Chapter 6: Inside [1]

Boom! Thunder roared and lightning flashed from outside. Rain drops pounded at his window. Trees seen through the window swayed back and forth by a harsh wind.

Morr opened his eyes to an unfamiliar room. Brown sheets tucked him in. White pillow cushioned his head. Broken lights hanged from the ceiling. It was dark and barely discernable; the moonlight shining through the window and sporadic flashes of lightning helped him see his surroundings. The bed, blanket, and pillow were small. It seemed more appropriate for someone younger than him.

Photo of a man, woman, and child hanged on the wall. The face was smeared and the photo itself was partially blurry. Below the photo was a plaque that read “To a hoping family.”

Stacks of books sat in the northeast corner of the room. Swords, shields, and armors collectively piled in the northwest corner of the room. In between those two stacks was a brown door.

After getting out of the comfy bed he immediately checked his hands. They were completely fine and intact; his skins didn’t have any holes in them and his bones were aligned as they should be. Not only was his hand fine, but his body didn’t seem malnourished at all. He had the body of a growing boy who ate perfectly balanced meals three times a day.

Looking outside the window revealed a sea of trees trapped in a storm. Thunder clapped and lightning struck from the sky. The never-ending rain drowned the trees in it. Green leaves flew wherever the wind wants it to.

“Am I outside?” Morr shook his head in disbelief. “No, it can’t be.”

Morr recalled his latest memories. “I was at Dr. Mav’s ward. Vogh left and they put me to sleep… so I must still be stuck here. But, where am I?”

Curious as to where he was, he began to investigate his surroundings. First, he inspected the pile of metals on the laminated wooden floor at the northwest corner of the room. Parts of metal armor was rudely trashed onto the floor, and each part was big enough for an adult to comfortably fit. All parts of the metal armor were shiny and spotless like it was new. The silver sword and wooden shield, however, was neatly lined up with the wall. The shield was horrendously scarred with many marks. The sword was chipped all around its edges.

Next, he inspected the books at the northeast corner of the room. All different colors and sizes of books were stacked into two towers. Opening a red book, The Principles of War: Learning to Not War, on the left tower revealed an unreadable passage. The words were blurred to the point of being unrecognizable. The next page and the page after that were the same. The ink was smeared as if someone purposely wiped them before they dried.

Next, he opened a blue book, Life As A Pet, on the right tower. It too was blurred and unreadable. After skimming through the pages that were all blurred out, he dropped the book and picked up another one. This time he picked up a grey book, Secrets of Man: Things You Should Not Know, but the results were the same. All the ink in the books he read so far were blurred out, and only the title could be read.

Stuck as to what to do, he dropped the book and walked towards the door. Without any hesitation he opened the door and stepped into the hallway. Doors upon doors lined up on both sides of the taupe walls. Carved on each door was the word ‘Forget.’ Both ends of the hallway led to a dead-end.

Morr opened the door closest to him, from across the room he was in. A sudden burst of shout slammed into his ears. Two shadowy figures stood in a dim-lit kitchen. They didn’t have skin, muscles, or even a form. Their gaseous figure bickered back-and-forth, loud enough for the entire house to hear.

“What do you think you’re doing dragging him to practice real sword fighting?” A womanly-toned voice shouted.

“All you do is keep him in his room, but for what?” A manly-toned voice shouted back.

“To make him study! If he doesn’t study, he’ll end up like you!”

“Get real! Giving him lessons to defend himself in this world is much better than whatever lessons you have in mind! Look at where all your studying got you!”

“Would you prefer your son to know nothing over something?”

“He’ll be dead before he even hits twenty! Screw this, I need some rum.”

What the hell was that all about? Morr shut the door. The sound stopped and everything became quiet.

Opening the next door revealed a training ground in a grassy field. Straw training dummies were stationed throughout the field. Rows and columns of shadowy figure stood diligently in front of a leading shadowy figure. Their height and body sized differs, but they all wore wooden armor and had their swords and shields in hand. Upon noticing Morr, they all simultaneously faced him.

“Hey, that kid actually came back!”

“What? Is his mommy gonna drag him out again?”

“Don’t pick on him or he’ll cry again!”

Even though they don’t have eyes, he felt them mocking him and their insults were directed at him. Ear-grating laughter shouted from the hundreds of them and their taunts were insufferable. Morr shut the door and the silence resumed.

Opening the door across from him revealed a kid’s room. A shadowy figure sat on a small bed next to a black-hair kid. Childish plush toys scattered across the room, and smeared photos were lined across the wall.

“Mommy, I don’t want to do any of these things.” The child pouted.

“Listen to us and be good. Bad boys will be punish, ok? Don’t be a bad boy.” The woman consoled in a stern voice.

“But all the kids get to play and have fun… why can’t I?”

“Their mommies don’t love them, that’s why. I love you, so you have to be good, ok?”

Another shadowy figure appeared besides them.

“God damn it! Can’t you stop pampering him? No wonder the kids pick on him so much!” The newly-appeared shadowy figure shouted with a manly-toned voice.

“Stop that! The poor child is right here!” The woman barked.

“He needs to be strong! And you’re not helping!” The man barked back.

“There’s more than one way to be strong!” The woman shouted.

The door slammed shut with a heavy thud. He stared at his hand, shocked that they just moved on their own. Thunder roared and shook the house. Lightning follow soon after, and the rain pummeling the house continues.

What just happen? Morr shook his head.

Moving onto the next door, he turned the knob but it barely budged. With a few jiggles and a heavy pushed, the door finally opened. A ceremony took place in a small, well-lit room. Tens of shadow blobs sat in chairs that were neatly lined up before a stage. On that stage was the same black-hair kid who Morr saw earlier, and a taller shadow blob that stood next to him.

“Congratulations to the finalist of the Junior Merlin Recital! For having the fastest incantation, an innate deep pool of mana, and cleverly suppressing his fellow competitors, we present Mr. Yore with this award!” The shadow blob handed the kid a diploma.

“Thank you! Thank you!” The black-hair kid gratefully accepted it.

“I can’t wait to see what you’ll accomplish in the future. I’m cheering for you, kid.” The shadow blob gave the kid a thumbs-up.

The kid faced the crowd, eyes moving back and forth, scanning for individuals.

“They didn’t come…” the kid muttered with a disappointed face.

Morr closed the door in fear that he would’ve been seen.

Perhaps this is… Morr walked to the next door and opened it.

Fifteen shadow-blobs on a grassy plain circled around a rectangular brown coffin in a six-foot hole.

A manly shadow-blob sat on his knees next to the black-hair kid.

One by one, the shadow-blobs approached the kid.

“I’m sorry for your loss, but don’t let this affect your future, ok?”

“Grow up and be strong, just like your mother and father wished you to be.”

“Your mother was a great woman. Don’t let her death stop you. She wouldn’t want that.”

They offered their condolences and walked away. The kid averted his gaze the entire time. Refusing to speak to them at all cost. The manly shadow-blob occasionally thanked them as they left on behalf of the boy.

Dirt poured into the hole where the coffin lay. The ground finally leveled, and the mass of blobs disappeared. The kid tilted his face upwards and stared at Morr who was watching from afar.

Surprised at the kid’s reaction, Morr shut the door and walked to the next one.

Locks and chains secured the peculiar door in front of him. Wooden planks were nailed to avoid entering. The door knob was jammed as if on purpose. Blue light shone from underneath the door.

Locking it only makes it even more curious… Morr thought. I'll save this door for last.

Moving on to the next door revealed a poorly lit room. At the center of the room was a light bulb dangling from the ceiling. From within the dark room, it was sufficient enough to show two chairs in the room and nothing else.

“Come in.” A voice called out.

Morr waited, but nothing happened.

Darkness suddenly washed over one of the chairs, and engulfed it for only a second. It left just as quickly as it came. A boy appeared in the chair, who had the exact same image of Morr. Ink-black hair that accentuates his sharp, black eyes. His fair-skin and lean body were easy on the eyes.

“Sit.” The boy gestured towards Morr.

Morr obliged and sat on the chair. He leaned forward and pinched his cheek. He knew it wasn't a mirror in front of him, because the splitting-image stared at him as if he was a one-of-a-kind, newly identified animal.

“What are you doing?” The boy questioned.

“It's just as I thought.” Morr said.

“Is it?” The boy asked.

“I’ve always wondered why I can’t remember my past. Sometimes I thought why can’t I even remember my parent’s face. Even now, I still can’t see them clearly.” Morr replied.

“It’s better this way. The past isn’t worth remembering.” The boy commented.

“Why isn’t it?” Morr asked.

“There’s nothing good to come from it.”

“What do you mean? Of course there is!”

“Trust me when I say that it’s not worth it.”

“Shouldn’t I be the one to decide?”

The boy shook his head. “Why are you even here? Do you want us to die?”

“I can ask you the same. What is a part of me doing in here?”

“Doing my best to keep us alive. I would appreciate it if you would do the same outside.”

“Yeah, I'm trying.”

“It's best that you go back before the both of us gets killed.”

The darkness creeped towards the chair, penetrating the barrier of light from the flashbulb.

“Wait!” Morr looked to his left, and then his right. “I'm not done talking!”

The darkness engulfed the chair and Morr in one swoop. The boy stood up and closed the door. The light bulb flickered before completely ceasing. Everything returned to darkness.