19 Chapter 19

Somber and calm was the room for the 'Big Reveal' was on course. She leaned in closer to the eyepiece, taking a peep with eyes both open on the telescope to meet the barren sky. Nothing but a certain shade of blue confined in a black orb. That was all she saw.

"Neh, I cannot see anything." That it was a kind of weird. Yuna frowned as she slowly slanted her head away from the eyepiece to look at the clear evening blue sky. Even if the telescope was sort of old-fashioned, she managed to set up high-potential lenses that could pierce through the atmosphere and to the space.

"Is the atmosphere that thick than the Earth's?" She narrowed her gaze, thinking about why she did not even think of that or even ask much about this place. Everything here sure looks like Earth, but not entirely.

Is she even breathing oxygen or drinking water?

"Teacher, actually there is a special sphere on the heavens protecting us to this day." Dale who seemed to eavesdrop replied to her perplexing question. Thankfully, he remembered his teacher is suffering from oblivion,

--or Innocence or ignorance

"Sphere?" 'Does it work like the atmosphere, bouncing the sun's light off?'

"Yes, based on the Council, the blue sphere is there ever since 'Veneiah' [Creation/Beginning], protecting us from the scorching heat of the sun. Every time the night comes, it will thrum away, displaying the beautiful night sky." He explained as his hands met and slowly break apart, gesturing the word, 'Display'.

"Veneiah? Or Birth, huh." She whispered, "Did that sphere possibly made us invisible from the outside or from other entities outside this world?" It would make sense if yes, but it's likely impossible. Earth can withhold life due to the fact that it was located in the 'Goldilocks Zone,' making the Earth's water liquid, not icy or evaporating.

Dale painted an abstract expression on his face. He too was curious after hearing such a bizarre question, but not a single stock of promising answer jammed his mind.

"Um, I don't know what you are pertaining to teacher."

"Never mind then," She uttered, thrashing away the current topic as she started to create opinions.

'This magic-driven sphere is responsible for life on this planet. He said the sun is too hot, this place must be located somewhere near the sun, but where? Mercury and Venus were off the options due to obvious reasons.

This place is Earth-like, it must at least resemble the Earth or it should have been already found unless...'

That means she must wait until dusk, before she could even complete a conclusion. Also means, she still has some time loitering around, to read, and to learn more.

'..unless it is a dream.'

No, unfortunately, by finally having the knowledge about the 'sphere' of these worlds, it somewhat triggered a possibility in her mind. These creatures here terrifically created an artificial atmosphere, protecting themselves from the harmful ultra-violet ray of the sun. This world is considered a work of art of an artist. What a thrilling discovery.

Creatures here, big and small, were intelligent creatures indeed. That is obvious, actually.

There were so many possibly factual theories corresponding to the possibility of alien life in the universe. What if she's really in another world, another planet? She remembered Zyair's 'mythical' explanation earlier. Was there truth to it?

What if what she saw here was real after all?

That they were some kind of advanced civilization that humans were looking for all along?

A dream or not, she'd figure it out.

"What's the date today?" She asked and watched Dale walk towards a seeming illustration of a calendar and pointed at it. It was sketched in a tan cloth, and the details and calculations were odd enough for a human to understand.

"It's exactly the 16th day of the 10,000th-century summer." He replied, making her cup her chin as she stared at the empty basalt stone wall in front of her.

'Seasons too, occur in these lands.'

'It's been a million years since the beginning of their civilization and the fact that they were aware of it, does that mean they did not undertake Evolution? If they managed to create spaceships, why can't I see any structures that are linked to technology? Did 'space exploration' ever cross their mind at all?'

"Tell me, Dale," Her slim hand left the wooden telescope and stood upright as she looked back to Dale who's still standing by the calendar. "Can you go outside and collect these things for me?" She gaited towards the table and immediately snatched a paper and a quill, writing specific kinds of stuff for Dale to gain. There ain't any time for more patience.

This is where her work starts.

Dale nodded in affirmation and his wobbly little legs sprinted towards Yuna. She was in the midst of writing when she thoroughly remembered. Their terms for this specific stuffs weren't the same.

'Damn,'

She kneeled down in front of Dale and patted both of his shoulders. Remember the things I told you when we're at Deyonne's? Without going there, I want you to look for some of that here, just here inside the place. Got it?" Her seriousness left him speechless but not bothered; he then gave her another nod and a smile before sprinting towards the door.

Yuna trailed her gaze to the running Dale as he left the room, but as soon as he was outside, the open door mysteriously slammed closed. Everything inside, the windows, the balcony door, and light sources were all closed and dead, making the room dark and spooky.

The door slammed so hard that it took Dale's attention, ghastly turned around only to hear a horrid shout from the inside.

"Teacher!" He ran back towards the door, banging it with his diminutive fist.

He then tried pulling the knob, trying to open it, but it wouldn't even budge. He should have trusted it. He should have trusted his instinct when he felt that someone else was with them inside before. He refined a fireball and threw it to the door, but a golden ripple swallowed his power. Now that he heard his teacher's horrible yell, something must have happened to her. He needs to do something as soon as possible.

But no, that shout wasn't hers. Everything may be sudden but she was entirely calm as the room suddenly engulfed with darkness just like in every horror movie, where ghosts, poltergeists, or spirits manipulating the room.

She's calm, yet never a shout came out of her mouth, neither did Dale's shouts and knocks reached her ears. The room was dark and silent, but that doesn't mean no one was around.

Not a fear or distress strung her nerves, that this status quo even struck nostalgia around her. It was so nostalgic that she wondered who even dared to intimidate her.

It was so dark that not a speck of light was present in the room, but Yuna felt it, an unnatural soft wind touched her bare skin. Whoever it may come from; it was surely near her, hovering around. Even if she closed her eyes, it equated the same darkness, so she trusted her senses and instinct instead.

Then an eerie sharp whisper decided to break the silence as it says,

"Barren are the minds of those who claim they know,

Blind are the eyes of those who believe just by sight,

Ignorant are the creatures, who conclude unknown as odd,

And many are knowledgeable souls yet never relied on wisdom,

So tell me, meandering soul, who are YOU?"

Grinning lips then flashed in the mere darkness, as the predator's foul intention unenticingly made her presence known to her Prey.