11 Nightmare and Spies

Peng Hu was in a dark space. This time, he felt that he was standing on a floor. Looking at his surrounding, he could only see darkness. Suddenly, he saw flashbacks from his own memories floating in the space. Peng Hu could feel a cold shiver down his spine. The terror of loneliness. Injustice. A chain called culture and tradition that bounded him. A betrayal from the person he considered his best friend.

Peng Hu ran and ran, and wherever he went, he could still see those atrocious memories. Voices could be heard from the fragments of memories. He could also hear the time he cried hard on his pillow... the day it could be considered the game changing event in Peng Hu's life.

Peng Hu started to feel the pain, and tears were flowing from his eyes. In a flick of a moment, a small light could be seen in the far off distance and then it vanished. Wanting to escape from the place, Peng Hu clinged onto the hope of this small light, calling out to it.

"ma... wo pa! ni zai na li? maaa!" (pinyin for: Mom... I'm afraid. Where are you? Moom!)

As if his prayers were heard, Peng Hu could feel a soft stimuli. With all the mental effort he could mustered, he woke up from the long dream. With opened eyes, he could see that he was in a bed with a lot of books surrounding the bed.

"Haa... haa...!"

"Pen, are you okay? I tried to wake you up but you didn't respond..."

Peng Hu looked at his side and saw that Kai had a worried face. In his right hand, Peng Hu could see a cooking spoon.

[Did Kai smacked me? Well, I'm grateful for it...]

"Yeah, I'm okay Kai. I just had a bad nightmare.

Feeling a headache in his head, Peng Hu tried to recall details from last night and how he arrived at this unfamiliar bed... but nothing came up. Maybe something did happen to him?

"What happened to me yesterday? I don't remember much after the food arrived."

"You gobbled up the village specialty, the Lion Roar of Roost styled Chop Suey with Soup of Alcinante. For beverage, you drank... beer."

"Beer?"

"Yep! Afterwards, you went to the toilet for a good amount of time, on which I was very worried! Then you came back half unconscious. Like what friends do, I helped you and got you into bed. Aren't I doing a great job as a friend heh?"

Kai acted proudly for his good deeds.

"Thanks Kai. I am sorry... for taking your bed."

"Don't worry! I just went back to reading books, and before I knew it, it was already daytime! It's a shame... a shame I tell you Pen! A night is not enough to do everything I want to do!"

"Hahaha..."

[It's also not enough for those who procrastinate haha. Kai would fit very well into the modern world.]

"Rise and shine Pen! We got to meet Aunty Alis!"

"? Why are we going over there? I prefer we don't interact with her if possible. She is just a huge pain to deal with her two words dialogue."

"Haha...ha..."

"?"

[? Kai would usually reply me with energy...? Is there something fishy going on?]

"Anyways! A messenger came early this morning to escort us! Since you didn't wake up, I was struggling whether to wake you or no... I'm telling you! It was very hard to decide! Would I be a good friend if I woke you up or no? When I saw you sweating... I thought that maybe you were having a nightmare and I decided to wake you up."

Peng Hu touched his clothes and could feel moisture from it.

"Persp li ist la void!"

Moisture from the clothes were disappearing as if they were evaporating, marveling Peng Hu from the practical uses of magic.

"Now that I have fixed you up, let's go to Aunty Alis! Her message was urgent!"

"Sigh... fine."

_________________________

Arriving at the Two Words Hall, Peng Hu started to regret his decision.

[First thing in the morning and have a headache because of a somewhat mediocre way of communication is not a very good sign for a long healthy life...]

Peng Hu saw the old lady and her attendant taking their respective positions, the same place as how he remembered yesterday.

"Good morning Great Chief Alis."

"Good morning Aunty Alis!"

[Hmmmmmmmm... 'aunty'?]

The attendant followed up the common routine.

"Good day, Kai. And good day to you too Mr. Who."

"I have been informed that Chief Alis was searching for Kai and me?"

"Yes. Chief Alis will tell you more details." - said the attendant.

[Suuuuuure. A two word dialogue is going to tell me more details. Suuuuure.]

Clearing her voice, the old woman Alis said a shocking news that threw Peng Hu's mental condition out.

"Spy. Find."

"... are you kidding me?"