6

In a dark space he was floating around. Binary codes after codes running down at minimum speed. Skeptical whether he is in another dimension, somewhere an unknown identity took him in.

Hindelr blink after feeling the emptiness around. Continuesly suspended by the absence of gravity. Bending down the endless dark pit, measuring the deep end and calculating the impact of the fall.

Bewildered by this, he was absent minded.

[What just happened? I was only talking to someone then I... Wait, I was talking with some? Who?...]

Amidst the slur memory and even the inaudible conversation, a voice suddenly erupted causing Hindelr to flinched in shocked.

'Congratulations for successfully completing 'Chapter One'.

Your service was highly appreciated.

Your participation was optional.

Thank you for participating.

The voice sounded the same as the woman he speaks with at his condominium but the only thing that is amiss is that there is no physical form in which the voice come from. It's as if it come from all around the dark space, echoing, vibrating and bouncing back.

Hindelr tried to focused. Sneakingly groping his body in hoping to find something useful in order to protect himself. No matter how hard he tried to think of how he end up here and there, there's no enough explanations to this. Until his hand got a grip of something from his coat pocket.

[What is this? A pocket knife!?]

Hindelr isn't used to carry something inside his pocket aside from a pen and a sweet candy he used to have since young. Even the phone which is a very essential thing is frequently forgotten.

Never once occured to him to carry anything specially a very dangerous one. But seems like this time is exceptional. He doesn't know where it came from or how it ended up in his possession but regardless, he needed it.

Time doesn't seem to goes by and the voice didn't say much more. And it seems that he somewhat adjusted to the unexplainable event that he blurted words that comes in his mind.

"Who are you? What is this place. Where am I?"

His voice reverberated every corner but a complete silence defeated his tune. He clenched his grip even tighter and his eyes are moving revertively. Soon enough, after waiting for answer, a screen flashed with a bright red light coming infront of him.

The screen included a loud ring of siren that's enough to impaired one's hearing.

*WARNING*

*WARNING*

*WARNING*

*WARNING*

The awaiting voice now turn into a systematic one with a high pitch and warn.

The system has detected an unusual behavioral conduct by the 'Selected Character' thus, automatically closing the gateway of the past. In order to maintain the stability of time, the 'Selected Character' here by forcefully ejected.

Hindelr knitted his brows as he used his hands to cover his ears. This time, the hidden weapon was revealed. Instantly, without a single noticed, he was sucked by a wormhole placed from his back. The pull was too strong that his effort of fighting back was in vain. As he struggles of keeping up in place, the voice come back.

Welcome to Abyss Nightmare. As a punishment for your inappropriate conduct, a  Counterclockwise Recording is played and served according to level of crime committed by the 'Selected Character'

Soon after, the voice is gone, as he was being pushed down, images of various faces of people kept on showing like a hologram. The faces of the people he never meet nor took a glimpse of.

At the very end, when the fall is about to end, a certain name echoed upon Hindelr's ear with a lips innocently smiled at him.

"Ryaa.... My name is Ryaa"

The gentle yet naive young boy beaming with warmth and covered in sweetness flashed through. The angelic face which can heal a broken soul somehow making Hindelr lost his breath.

The heart of him skip a beat mixed with unknown happiness and delight.

Just then, Hindelr remembered his face. The smiling lips and the glistening eyes instantly turn into a bloody death of him. The lost eye, the wounded neck and the dried purple lips. The lifeless body laying in a white mattress filled with crimson blood. Screaming, yelling, cursing, the young boy's voice sounded like a crying child whining the pain out of his chest, calling out a blurry name.

"**** It hurts. It hurts. ****, it hurts. It hurts It hurts It hurts It hurts It hurts It hurts It hurts"

"Let me out. Let me out. It pains me. I'm scared please, let me out"

"Too much, this is too much. I can't anymore. No more. Help me. Someone please help me, I beg you. It hurts. IT HURTS... Nooooo.... It hurts so much. Make it stop, make it stooop"

"Help me, someone, please"

Hindelr unknowingly clenched his fist too tight that his nails turn pale. The voice feels like a living torture. It hurts him bad, real bad. He doesn't know why but seeing the young boy in his pitiful state broke his heart that it darken his eyes in anger.

Watching a young boy suffering from endless pain, calling out for help, shackled with nothing but fear, grief, resentment, agony, the sting of rejection and loneliness, it was scary, it scared him out. His loud cries that trembles the earth, his bloody tears that contaminate a crystal water and his deep sobs that can loses all the lights, Hindelr witness everything. He never blink even once.

"No, no this can't be"

Hindelr felt a strong pain in the chest but he ignores it. His raise up his hand, trying to reach the young boy out. To get ahold of him. Trying to take him away.

"I.. I'm here, I'll take you away. Don't be scared. Don't be scared"

He continue adjusting his movements even though he knows it meant nothing.

[A little more, just a little bit more]

Hindelr exiled too much energy in order to touch the trembling body. Bucket of sweats been dripping from his temples into his cheeks. His hard work may not be enough to save the suffering soul yet regardless, he give out his best. But all his might disappeared after seeing the young boy slowly disappearing from his sight, from within his reach. He tried once more but nothing seems to workout, everything is futile. Before everything turns black, the young boy turn around, he smile so painfully that his curved lips started to cracked and his eye cried out a clear tears. He blurted out  words that Hindelr left unsettled.

"Freed me. I am loosing it. I am in too much agony. Please help me out. I'm begging you, b**t**r"

Hindelr doesn't know nor doesn't care. He doesn't understand this feeling of ache that comes from nowhere only by seeing this boy crying infront of him.

By this, Hindelr woke up while shouting his name.

"RYAAAAA"

Gasping for air like his body losses the ability to breathe. His trembling hand can't stop from shaking and tears continuesly fall to his cheeks. The saddened expression becomes even more heavy. His chest somehow tightens that he can't even control his complexion. Unexplainable feeling from a man he never meet but the emotion is really strong and real, too real.

Hindelr touches his face. The water that comes from his eyes bewildered his mind.

"I'm.... crying?"

He stares at the salted water. The feelings he felt from the man in his dream were already faded away but the sadness and pain remains in his eyes.

"I'm... actually crying!?"

[Ryaa.... Who are you?]

Hindelr groan from headache trying to remember his dream. He rub his temple to minimize the throbbing ache. Exploring the room, he realized he was in his own bed and took a peek at the digital clock in the beside table.

"3 A.M hah!?"

He lay back once again, looking blankly at the white ceiling. Putting aside the weird experience from his dream that almost make him think of the reality, Hindelr becomes even more confused.

[What the hell happened. Am I too tired from work that I am now experiencing weird dreams? No. It can't be just a dream. It is too real to be a dream. The feeling, the situation, the event and even the people's touch are almost as if their real. It must be something else]

[That boy... Who is he? What does he mean by calling me like that?]

Hindelr turn to the side. In his desk, is a photo of child sitting under a tree, carrying a baby in his arms sleeping peacefully as he hold him genuinely with love and affection in his eyes. His lips formed a laugh, making a small giggle out of himself.

"Pumpkin" Hindelr mumbled.

He turn back straight again, putting his arm into his forehead and choose to close his eyes.

Before he could get enough peace, a knocked was heard.

"Master, are you awake?"

------

Ryaa was in his deep slumber when suddenly he was woken up with a loud noise.

"YAY. Congratulations, Dr. Hindelr's Memory 'Chapter One' is Complete. We can now proceed to our main mission"

He yawns while extended his arms into the air. His sleepy face is still present but still trying to make a happy face.

"Yay, congrats to me, I'm sleepy

Talk to you later"

He then lay back again with only his body covered by the blanket.

A sneer form from YaYa's lips. She float near his ear and whisper something that cause Ryaa to woken up an instant.

"If you won't finish your mission by the end of the day, you'll miss the opportunity to win a cash price" (A complete lie)

It only took Ryaa a millisecond before opening up his eyes again with a big smile caved in. He excitedly walked out of bed and went straight to the bathroom. Luckily, this day doesn't seemed to be a terrible one. He didn't much experience having nauseous and dizziness and vomiting also decreased. But his food choices didn't change much. He still can only consumed nothing but apple.

Wearing a shirt, jacket, jeans and his old sneakers, Ryaa was ready to move. His determination already reached it's peak hearing the word 'cash price' earlier. Not only did his mood becomes light but he also doesn't seems to have mood swings even how irritated his inner self are.

"Let's get moving"

YaYa is sitting in Ryaa's shoulder while tapping the screen as they are trailing the path outside the apartment.

"We're going to Danmei Hospital where Dr. Hindelr is working on. And the system already signed an appointment for your check up in order for you not to queue too much in line"

"Wow that was so considerate, I have to thank that system for making my mission too easy"

Hearing this, YaYa shrugged in return.

"Well, I can't say that for sure"

The excitement filled over Ryaa's face that he cannot be bothered by what YaYa said. This is the first time where he won't have to work his butt out just to earn money for living expenses.

"By the way, how much money do you think I'll received when the mission ended? Will it be a hundred or a thousand? Or maybe a hundred thousand?"

YaYa rised her left brow in disbelief.

"Host, your a money hunger, you know. You still didn't even started your mission yet your already thinking about money, how good are you?"

"Hmmp. You don't understand what poverty means, do you?"

"True, I don't that's why I asked. Anyway, this Memory Chapter may seems to be more easy than I expected. Usually, it takes half a day to finished a single chapter memory but for Dr. Hindelr, wow, only a several couple of hours. That was a time breaker"

Outside the apartment building, Ryaa waved a taxi. He carefully sat on the backseat and close the door. The driver looked at him from the rearview mirror and was asked for destination.

"Danmei Hospital please"

Ryaa grab his phone and feigning like he tapped something on then place it into his ears. Since he thought that talking to a system which no one can see but him maybe a little too close to being called a lunatic, thus, he pretended to be on phone call.

YaYa was watching over at him. A questionable look formed in her face.

"What are you doing. Whom are you calling?"

Ryaa whispered in return "What do you think? Do you want me to be called lunatic because I'm talking to myself?"

She slightly tilted her head and crossed her arms.

"Uhuh!?..... Oh, by the way, I was notified by the system that the 'Selected Character' was forcefully ejected. Do you know why?"

"Why?"

"Because, the system detected a threat from him"

"Threat?"

"Yes, When a Selected Character is forcefully ejected, they usually experience a real-time nightmare in which they didn't witness or cannot let go in the past. When that happens, the Selected Character will either be banned from the list or will given a warning"

"How did you know"

"I was watching it last night. The system send me a copy in order to get updated.... But in Dr. Hindelr's case, since he didn't directly point the weapon into the system but only on high alert, that's why he was given a warning and was forcefully ejected"

"Forcefully ejected? Is that even possible? Is 'it' too sensitive?"

"Why, yes. The system is highly sensitive over something like threat. They usually don't pardoned whom those committed a crime unless it's reasonable"

"What will happen to him?"

"Depending on how things will end for the Selected Character and how he will undergo such things over and over again"

The ride was smooth but Ryaa seems to be slightly uncomfortable that he felt getting sick. He gentle rub his belly and tried to maintain his focused.

YaYa notice the slight changes in Ryaa's complexion that she can't help getting worried.

"Host, are you okay? Is something wrong?"

Ryaa wave his hand into the air "I'm fine, it's nothing. Then, what about banning a character?"

Before replying, Yaya open up the screen and pressed a heart shaped button. She flew into Ryaa's abdomen and started scanning.

"Hmm. I don't know. I never witness anything like banning a character before but from my highly intelligent brainwaves, they will likely be trapped inside the dream.."

While waiting, YaYa put her finger under her chin while looking above " There are two types of punishment that is severed for them. One is the Lucid Dreamer and what does it called again?... Abbo something or Abby... Abby... that's right it's Abyss Nightmare"

Ryaa slightly took a glance at YaYa's side. Knitting his brows together he asked  "What are those?"

"Lucid Dreamer is for those who didn't commit a crime but was punished due to the act of changing the past. While Abyss Nightmare is like what happened to Dr. Hindelr, a crime for threatening the system"

When the scanning was done, a notification flashed into the screen.

Health Check Complete

Status: Normal

After confirming the safety of the fetus, YaYa flew back to Ryaa's side.

Dwelling his mind, Ryaa said "Lucid Dreamer, Abyss Nightmare. They sound the same"

"Might be but actually not. Lucid Dreamer is actually a very simple yet confusing than the Abyss Nightmare because they have the chance to change the past of their own freewill"

Ryaa was a bit astonished but quickly composed himself back when he saw the driver looking at him confusedly.

He immediately avoided the gaze of the old man while pretending to look at the outside with his voice lowered down.

"Can they really change the past?"

YaYa ignored the action as she continue playing a game on screen.

"Sure they do. When a Selected Character awakens their soul when they're still inside the gateway of the past, they have what it calls to be a free-consciousness. To be exact they will know whether they're in a real world or not. If that happens, the system has to take action immediately"

"Will they also have to be banned?"

"Not really. Lucid Dreamer is  just like having a nightmare in a daily basis but not the same as the the Abyss Nightmare. A character who experience Lucid Dream have to fight for their own consciousness to woken up on their own or with the help of someone in the real world. Just like having a sleep paralysis"

"What about the Abyss Nightmare. Do they also have a chance to come out?"

"Not likely. Abyss Nightmare is the complete opposite of Lucid Dreamer. Once trapped, there's no turning back. Their body in the real world will considered be dead as their time was fully shut. Time goes by and their body will suffocate and won't function anymore. By the end of the day, their body and soul will completely deteriorated and separate from each other"

"Do you mean they have to die separately?"

"Tragically yes. In order to avoid the arise of conjunction, the system need to keep close of the fact that they're having a will of turning back the time. If it's to spread, those who participated this event will likely be the subject of experiment and causes of endless war..... You know, countless of greedy people wanted to go back in time in order to change the past"

"Aren't 'they' meant to kill a character? It's unreasonable enough for them to do such cruelty. Your system is like a murderer"

"What do you know? It's just like Survival of the Fittest. If they become reckless of their own actions, they have to suffer from the consequences. And it's not like the system did something to harm them. They just have to received what they sow and more importantly, a Selected Character don't weight much value compared to a host. But worry not, even if they are to be trapped inside a dream, there soul will most likely forgotten their memories of everything. They're like a moving object without direction"

Ryaa paused a silence. His thoughts is already wondering about how he even ended up with a system. He look at the outside world, all things came and end with a reason thus, Ryaa subconsciously blurted out "Wow, sounds tormenting to me. Though, if I were to choose, I'd rather be trapped in a dream than remember those unpleasant things back again"

A snap was cut within her ears as a wave of shocked form into YaYa's face that it turn her pale as the way she is.

"What? No way, don't you know how dangerous and complicated it is? Abyss Nightmare only belongs to the old demise"