THE GARDEN OF AVALON

Satria Kusuma Wijaya was an ordinary man. He was just someone who lived his life like everyone else. Trying his very best to find happiness and his place in the world. He wasn't exactly a good person nor was he bad. 

He was a lawyer. A good one at that. Lot of people also think that his name suits him very well, a triumphant knight that may bloom like a flower. 

He has saved many people from an unjust end, helps people who are falsely accused of criminal acts, giving other people a chance to redeem their mistakes and he also stood beside those who are weak. He was a good lawyer that a lot of people admire and praise him.

Although he was a good lawyer, he was also a human. He, just like everyone else, also made some mistakes along the way. One mistake in particular, caused him to unfairly lose his life at the hands of another man.

**

Satria opened his eyes. He was lying on the floor. As he wondered what happened to him, he took a deep breath and then sat down. 

He started looking at his surroundings. There is some kind of wall surrounding him. He was in a room. A room that he finds strange in this day and age. 

'Where am I?'

He was wondering how he could end up in that room. This room is definitely not his room. It was a medieval style room with stones and woods. 

The walls are made out of stones, stacked together. The wooden ceiling is low and the floor is also made out of wood. There are no windows, only one door in front of him.

'What is this empty room? How did I end up here?'

Although it was quite dark, he still can see the entirety of the room. Satria stared at the empty room. Nothing is there, not even a single piece of furniture nor light source can be found. It was completely empty.

'It doesn't seem like anyone lives here.'

He stood up and brushed the dust off his clothes with his hands. After brushing the dust off his hands, he stood still. He was staring at his hands. 

He clenched his fists and moved his hand around. He lifted up his feet and stomped on the floor. He moved his head right to left, then bent his body, touching his feet with his finger. 

As he stood up, he took a closer look at his body.

'Hmm, nothing seems wrong,' he said to himself.

After checking his whole body, Satria decided to exit the empty room.

He walked up towards the wooden door. While attempting to open the door, he came to a halt. There was something that caught his attention as he grabbed the door handle. 

It was the wood that made up the door. He was wondering what kind of wood it is. Never in his life, he saw any wood like that. It was a dark, steel like wooden door, with a simple handle that isn't attached with a nail. 

Some dangerous thoughts cross his mind. Even so, there isn't anything to hold his curiosity of what lies behind the door. So, without giving it another thought, he opened it.

SHRIEEEKKKK~~.

Opening the door, he was greeted by a blinding light, and he quickly covered his eyes with his hand. Once his eyes fully adapted with the lights, an extraordinary sight reveals itself. It was magnificent. A garden. A really beautiful and lush garden.

A blinding light showers the garden with a white light. The garden is filled with all kinds of flowers. There are trees with colorful leaves. Birds in all kinds of feathers dancing in the sky. A squirrel, jumping around the trees and hiding in a lush flower field. There are two birds with beautiful red colored feathers sitting together in a tree branch, sharing some kind of fruit. 

At the end of the stone pathway, he saw a gate. Some of the trees come together and create an arc like a gate. Flowers can be seen sprouting from the tree gate.

Mesmerized by the scene in front of him, Satria swallows his saliva.

'Wow, I never knew this kind of place exists.'

Captivated by the sight, he starts to walk, taking a few steps to begin. 

After a short distance, Satria came to a stop and turned around. He stares into the room he was in. The once dark room is now filled with lights, revealing something that is hidden by the shadow. 

In the wooden floor, right where Satria opens his eyes, there is a circle. Strange circles with unknown writing and symbols were written on the floor. The circle is big enough for a person to be perfectly placed in the middle of it. 

He was wondering what kind of symbols and writing on the floor, when the wooden door suddenly closed.

BAAMMM!!

Startled by the door's sudden closure, he couldn't help but flinch. There isn't any wind that could make the door close on its own. Yet, it did, just like in some horror movies.

'Maybe the door is already too old.' He tries to think positively. 

It's true that the door looks quite old. Old doors can close on their own sometimes, so it's not that strange, he thought. 

Forgetting what he just saw, Satria began to walk to the gate. As he walked to the gates, the birds that saw him coming, started to sing.

WHISTLE~ TRILL~ WHISTLE~ TWIRP~ TWIRP~ WHISTLE~ CHIRPS~.

It was a beautiful melody. 

Seemingly aware of the melody, all kinds of birds started to fly in the sky. Some of them landed, gathered atop the tree gate. They happily sang a sweet melody. 

While the birds are singing and chirping, another group of birds comes. They dance, fly around, some even land on the gate, stomping their small feet on the trees and nodding their heads. 

The birds were trying to give him a warm welcome. Satria, aware of their intentions, smiled warmly at the feathered creatures. He moved his feet forwards, towards the tree gate.

Upon reaching the tree gate, the birds begin to sing different kinds of melody; a grand yet simple and sad melody. It feels like a welcome and farewell at the same time. Satria closes his eyes, enjoying the melody that had been sung for him.

After a while the birds took off and flew. Birds with all kinds of colors now filled the blue sky. He saw the bird fly far away in awe. They had finished their welcome and farewell.

From far away, one of the birds can be seen flying towards him. The bird flies all around him in wonder until it decides to sit on his shoulder. It was a small bird, small enough for him to put it into his hands. The bird feather is white. No, not just white, it was silvery white. The white light reflects on the bird feather like stars in the night sky.

CHIRP~ CHIRP~.

The bird starts chirping, tilting and nodding its head in excitement. It was cute. Satria's hand moved on its own, instinctively trying to pet the bird. Seemingly knowing that Satria wants to pet it, the bird swiftly leaps onto his head. Satria let out a sigh. 

The bird, who then feels guilty, flies into one of Satria's hands and lightly brushes its head. Curious about what the bird was doing. Satria tries raising his hand. Without any instructions, the bird jumps onto his hand, asking to be petted.

'Haha, what a cute bird.' A smile appeared on his face. 

Without giving much of a thought, he began to pet the bird. Its feathers are soft.

**

A woman, a beautiful woman in a white robe sipping tea from a cup in her hand. She was sitting on a chair in a beautiful yet simple gazebo atop a crystal clear lake. The sky is bright, warm air and the sound of water splashing filled the air. 

"It's a really good day." The woman said.

While still holding her cup, the woman closed her eyes and started to hum. She was waiting, waiting for someone to appear. Someone who she had chosen.

While she was humming by herself, the birds in the other parts of the lake suddenly began to sing. They sing, dance and fly towards the other side of the lake. Realizing what was happening, the woman opened her eyes.

"I guess he woke up." The woman stood, fixing her hair, robes and hat.

"Shall I meet him now?" A small silvery white bird in front of her tilting its head in confusion.

"Would you like to go and pick him up?"

The bird then nodded excitedly and flew towards the other side of the lake. The woman, staring at the bird, smiled. She had been waiting for this moment.

**

Satria continued to walk from the gate. He walks past a well built stone bridge, flower fields that have nice shapes and diverse colors, trees with pink and golden colored leaves, the garden seems to have a lot of unique yet beautiful flora. The big and beautiful garden makes him wonder, who could create such a big and beautiful garden. It was also well maintained.

'How many people needed to maintain such a big garden? 20? 50?' He wondered.

The garden has many sections; from trees, stone pathways, to enchanting fountains that sparkled in the soft sunlight. As he strolled through the flourishing landscape, Satria also noticed a hidden grove adorned with mystical, luminescent flowers that emitted a calming aura.

The garden has a statue, obviously. A magnificent statue stands tall in the center of the garden, captivating all who pass by. Unlike other parts of the garden, the statue doesn't have anything around it. No trees, no flowers and not even animals near it. The surrounding area is covered in a stone pavement. 

On the paved surface, Satria knelt down, examining it with both hands. He rubs his finger on the stone pavement, feeling its rough texture.

'Looks like this was made from sandstone.' 

Satria stood up and looked at his surroundings. It's not like there aren't any animals around, they just don't seem to dare to come any closer. There was a squirrel, a few dozen meters away, who was quietly observing him from a distance, leisurely chewing on a peculiar nut. 

'Hm, could this statue be dangerous?' He mumbled.

A statue of a man in a robe and pointy hat in the center of a big garden. The man, who seems to be in his late years, is holding a book and some kind of staff. The right hand of the statue that's holding a staff was raised, like he was a leader of some kind.

'He looks like Gandalf.'

The statue, indeed, looks like it depicts a mage in his late years. A small stone tablet stands in front of the statue. It has some kind of a plaque and a strange inscription carved on the tablet, leaving him puzzled. Although the inscription on the stone tablet left Satria perplexed, he couldn't even read it, let alone understand its meaning. 

All he could recognize was a single symbol, a symbol he had come across earlier on the floor where he had been lying moments ago.

Satria stood still. He is deep in thought. A room with a strange circle on the floor, a flock of birds that welcome him, trees and flowers that he had never seen before, a steel like wooden door and now this statue; all of it seems peculiar. Satria pondered by himself, he has a lot to think about after all.

Only when the white bird started pecking at his head did he snap back to reality. The bird, looking kinda bored, lifts its wing, signaling Satria that he needs to go.

"Ouch, alright, alright, I'm going," Satria frowned, "that way right?" 

He felt a bit angry. The bird, looking a bit upset with what he said, begins pecking his head a few times more. 

TAP~ TAP~ TAP~

"Stop it!"

Satria walked, he was holding his head, trying to stop the bird from pecking at it. 

As he walked, he saw a beautiful lake. The lake isn't very large, but at the same time, the light that reflects on its clear water makes it seem large and grand. On top of the lake, there is a wooden bridge. Feeling intrigued, Satria makes his way to the bridge. He notices something as he arrives at the bridge. 

The bridge, it seems that it's made with the same type of wood as the wooden door in the empty room he was in. Strange indeed, the dark wooden bridge seemed to contrast with the clear lake. Staring at the wooden bridge, something caught his attention. It appears that the bridge has been linked to a gazebo of some kind. It was a simple yet beautiful gazebo.

All of a sudden, the white bird chirps and starts flying. He fixed his gaze onto the bird as it flew in front of him. It flew in circles, up and down, did a flip, and then started floating in place. The bird, once again, raises its wing and points to the gazebo. The bird told him to go there.

"You want me to go there?"

CHIRP~ CHIRP~.

The bird chirps and nods its head.

"Okay then, lead the way."

Satria, follow the bird closely from behind. The mesmerizing sight of the lake captivates him, as he can't take his eyes from it. The lake has many fish, a whole bunch of them. The fish have flowing fins and tails, which resemble butterfly wings. The various colors, patterns and their unique appearance fits the lake perfectly. It's as if the lake has butterflies flying in it.

As both Satria and the white bird arrive at the gazebo, the bird starts to fly and land atop of a woman's shoulder. A white robed woman stares at Satria with an enthusiastic gaze. Their eyes meet. Satria immediately froze in place.

Satria had never seen such a beautiful woman. Her black hair and white robes are fluttered in the wind. Even the big hat she wears can't properly hide her pretty face. With a soft and gentle smile on her face, any man would fall for her. Her pair of black eyes capture the scenery of the lake and Satria. Frozen, Satria can't help but be mesmerized by the sight of a woman in front of him.

It wasn't because he was an easy man. The lake, the sky, the birds, the trees, the sound of water, the scent of flowers in the air and the white robbed woman make a perfect combination. Anyone would also be mesmerized by the scene. It was like a picture, a masterpiece.

As Satria just froze in place. The woman opened up her pink lips and said.

"Welcome to The Garden of Avalon," Startled, Satria snapped back to reality.

"My name is Viviane."

"..."

"I have a proposition for you, Satria Kusuma Wijaya."