To The World We Are

Dhavita Cube

Another storm started to pick up again in Zvezda. The neighborhood was already fast asleep at this point. Never mind the rapid echoes of rainfall; one could hear a pin drop in the attic room.

Still holding her defensive stance, Sela questioned the man before her, "who are you?"

He scratched his head in confusion. "Aren't you the one who called me here?"

"Answer the question."

"I'm Haechan."

Sela gave him a quick scan before returning to meet his eyes. Although his outfit was quite simple, he carried an authoritative demeanor. "Look here; I don't know how you manage to get a hold of this thing." He gestured to the cube, "but you better return it to its rightful owner."

"And who is that?"

"I don't know, the people in white, I guess."

The people in white, the Elyx? "Oh, so you work for the Elyx?"

"I don't work for anyone."

"Elaborate?"

"It's a long story."

"I have all night."

Haechan rolled his eyes in annoyance, "let me just show you." He reached for Sela's hand and pulled her through the portal. Everything happened so quickly it didn't give her enough time to react. She held her breath as Haechan kept her in his arms. In just a blink of an eye, their surroundings changed. The flowery scent of Damask roses lingered in the air as she found herself encircled by Mediterranean vegetation. Seeing living plants in the open air was a new experience to Sela. Plantations were precious to Kwangyans because their climate could not nurture the growth of agroforestry. Scientists have tried for many years to develop greenery outside of a controlled environment. But they have failed trials upon trials. Hence, the children of Kwangya grew up not knowing the taste of broccoli and peas.

"Are you going to let go of me?"

Too engrossed in the scenery, Sela didn't realize she was still clinging onto Haechan. "Sorry," she immediately tried to back away. But to her surprise, his grip on her became tighter. "Stay close."

"Excuse me?" She frowned in disapproval.

"Fine then," he released her and jerked his chin forward. "Try walking."

Sela hesitated but still took a cautious step ahead. Out of nowhere, an electrifying sensation strikes her body. Instinctively, she lowered her head as the pain hit her.  At that moment, Sela found herself staring at her palm in terror. Her fingers were beginning to dissolve into thin air; the fragments looked just like those of the portal from earlier. Her breathing quickened as the pain became unbearable. Suddenly, a delicate hand covered her eyes.

"Shh," Haechan leaned over and whispered, "listen." Time seemed to stop when the taller figure hovered over the short one—creating a barrier between her and everything else. The instant he touched her, all the pain disappeared. And as her breathing slowed down, Sela could feel the warmth of his breath on her neck. She could even make out the rhythmic tapping of a woodpecker somewhere in the distance. And far far away, was the thunderous roar of a waterfall.

Finally, having collected herself, Sela's defense mechanisms started to kick in. She wanted to believe her intuition about the strange man. However, she decided to suppress the hunch and just went along with the flow. At this point, she knew he was the only one who could bring her back safely. "What was that?" Sela eventually spoke up after fighting a mental battle with her conscience.

"Ah, you see this line right here," Haechan pointed to the faint outline above their head. "As long as you stay within this line, that will never happen again."

"How so?" 

"The space we are standing in contains the basic components of a person's original realm. It can provide the necessities that one requires to maintain homeostasis. The reaction your body encountered earlier was because you tried to invade a realm that you do not belong to."

"Does that mean I'm on a different planet?"

"More like a different moment in time," Haechan replied as he stepped back to give her some space. "This cuboid isn't big enough for two; that's why I asked you to stay close to me." Curious about how the boundary seemed to shift along with his movement, Sela raised the question. "Can you control this thing?"

"Yes, of course. I am a part of it."

"What do you mean?"

"You sure do ask a lot of questions," Haechan was feeling aggravated, but he continued explaining to the girl. For some reason, a voice in the pit of his stomach kept urging him to earn her trust. "The little green cube you stole earlier is a device to summon me. It's called Dhavita Cube. And I'm the only person who can control it."

"What are you?"

"Are we doing this again?" Irritated, he clicked his tongue, "I'm Haechan."

"No. What. Are. You?" Sela emphasized each word, showing clear signs of frustration.

A hint of amusement flashed in his eyes as he mocked her tone, "I'm. Haechan."

"Are you human?"

"I am?"

"Is that a question or an answer?"

"I am."

Lie.

"Why did you bring me here?"

"You wanted to know if I worked for anybody, right?"

"Sure?"

"Well, come with me." Haechan began heading down a path that appeared out of nowhere. In fear of dissolving into pieces again, she followed closely behind. The landscape around them started to change as they continued down the trail. Sela wasn't paying any attention to where they were going. All she could think about was the identity of the man in front of her. Abruptly he stopped short in his track, causing her to slam into his back.

"A heads up would have been nice." She grumpily said, touching the heat on her nose. Sela realized they were standing in a room covered with floor-to-ceiling mirrors. "Where are we?" She asked.

"Do you see him?" Haechan directed her gaze to a figure standing before them. "That's study subject number one, TY."

(To be continued)