Chapter 15: Seven
1886 Words
"Enough about me. I want you to understand your position right now. You eight were the first to get out of the tree. After all these years, you managed to leave,” the white-haired explained.
"Wh-What does that imply?" Rahma seemed afraid to ask.
He joined his thump and middle finger together and pointed his index skywards. "Either you continue your journey, or you go back up to save your friends."
"F-Friends?! Which friends?" Harun asked.
"Each year, thirty-seven teams are sent into this tree through a random natural disaster. Each group contains twenty-one persons."
"Thirty-seven times twenty-one equal seven hundred and seventy-seven." Shadi frowned. "So our friends are…"
The white-haired nodded. "Your teammates. Now, thirteen of your teammates are missing. You can choose to abandon them or go back to get them. Of course, each choice will affect your path in the rest of your… adventure."
"I still want to ask. What is this adventure all about? Why us? Why is our team so… different?" Shadi pointed at himself. "We're from different backgrounds, dialects, financial and social states and ages. We're so different!"
"Aren't you all humans?" The white-haired narrowed his eyes. "Aren't all humans equal? Before the final judgement."
"F-Final… judgement?!" Shadi swallowed hard. "Y-You don't mean we…"
The green bird flew away, and its green feathers fell down like exotic snow. The white-haired's smile widened. "Forgive my late introduction. My name is Ridhwan, the keeper of heaven."
They all screamed and pulled away from the white-haired, shocked and terrified.
Ridhwan grinned. "Do not be afraid. This is by no means the end of the world. Time is ticking, but the countdown started. I do not know when the world will end, and I am only doing my job. That is what angels do, after all. If the world was ending, I wouldn't be here with you, and you would not be here either."
"Then… Wh-What is this place?!" Shadi swallowed hard. "Why are you… You're an… An angel… Why are you here?! Why can we see you? You're an angel!"
"Because this is the form that your eyes can see." Ridhwan lowered his head slightly, keeping eye contact with Shadi. "You can see me, can't you?"
"Y-Yes."
Ridhwan grinned again. "Good! Now, moving on to more important topics."
"Wait! You still didn't explain what we are doing here!" Dina protested. "Explain!"
Ridhwan ignored her, "What is your choice? Will you go back to save your teammates? Remember, thirteen of you remain."
"W-Will we have to go back from the way we came down? Honestly, I don't want that. I don't want to pass by the first floor again!" Feyruz was terrified.
Ridhwan nodded at her. "Let me hear your thoughts first."
"I want to go back." Fahd stepped forward. "I left my sister in there. I must go get her."
"You're crazy!" Zain grabbed his collar. "She tried to kill you! You… She injected you with some weird stuff! Do you know how painful it was to watch you breathe your last breaths?! Do you know… how difficult it was to swallow my rage and my urge to make her pay for your sake? You… You're nuts! Why would you go this far for the sake of someone who wants you dead? YOU'RE INSANE!"
Shadi watched them without interfering.
Fahd smiled weakly and held Zain tightly. "If she kills me, then so be it. I must face death and face my crimes."
Ridhwan smiled, listening to him. He sat down on the grass and watched them in silence.
"What are you talking about?!" Zain gritted his teeth. "I won't… let anybody else die."
Fahd frowned and glanced at him. "Z-Zain…"
"I…" Tears rolled down the brown-haired’s cheeks as he lowered his head. "I won't watch people as they die in my arms anymore. I DON'T WANT THAT! WHY ARE YOU SURRENDERING TO DEATH?!"
"Because… death isn't that bad." Fahd pursed his lips. "But, I stopped seeking it after someone saved me." He moved his gaze to Shadi, and his gaze saddened. "I will no longer seek it, but I will not run from it either. Rania is my sister. I cannot leave her behind. Please, understand. I also want to save Talal and Joud. I heard they nursed me when I was unconscious. I must pay back their kindness."
"I will never forgive you if you die." Zain wiped away his tears and stared at him darkly. "I will never forgive you."
Fahd nodded, and Zain let go of him. He clenched his fists. "I… I will go back too. I actually want to save the child of that woman Sonia. I learned that her mother mistreats her all the time. She always came to stay with you when you were unconscious, Fahd. I want to help her."
"I want to save my brother, his wife and the baby," Shadi confessed, "I cannot leave them behind."
"I want to save Oussama. At first, I found him strange, but then he approached me. We started cooking, and he took my advice on how to use herbs to get the best flavours. It was the first time someone takes me so seriously." Harun added.
"I don't mind going back," Shahd smirked. "I have nobody I want to save, but all this fear is making my blood boil. I WANT MORE!"
"I want to help Wassim. He might look arrogant, but he's kind-hearted in reality. He's just very awkward with his feelings." Rahma smiled sadly. "Like me."
"If you go, then I will also go!" Feyruz was determined. Rahma shook her head and patted her head. "It's all right. Stay here with the angel. You're too young, so don't worry about these things."
Feyruz's face became red with anger. "Y-You always look down on me just because I didn't hit puberty yet!"
Everyone fell silent for a second, and she blushed. "I-I mean… I mean!"
Rahma laughed. "No. I'm just worried about you. Don't forget that your parents are waiting for you. It is my responsibility to protect you. Be a good girl and leave things to me, okay?"
"But… But I don't want to stay with the angel," Feyruz was sad. "He's scary!"
Ridhwan pursed his lips and smiled, staring down at the grass and poking it a bit.
"D-Don't say that," Rahma seemed embarrassed. "We will be back quickly, okay? Don't worry!"
"O-Okay… I'll stay." Feyruz stood back and sat away from the white-haired, anxiously poking the grass.
"As for me, I want to get Youssef. He's a fellow anime fan, and we had nice conversations. I want to get him out of there."
"I guess it's settled then," Zain turned to Ridhwan. "You heard us. All of us are going back, except for Feyruz. We leave her to you."
Ridhwan rose to his feet. "Your total number will be nineteen, but not twenty-one. Are you sure about that?"
Shadi frowned. "What do you mean?"
"If a group gets together and decides to come back here, then all the… distractions on the floor will disappear. The first team that gets out of the floor with all its members first brings destruction to the floor they came from. In total, there are three thousand seven hundred and thirty-seven groups per floor. It takes only one group to decide to leave that floor together and take one step outside of it so all the things they considered valuable disappear from that floor. Only a few things for survival would remain. That is done to make their departure easier. As for the floor itself, it will be destroyed, its purpose served."
Everyone's eyes widened. "So… If another group from our same floor gets out of that tower before us, our floor will go poof?!"
Ridhwan nodded. "However, getting all the members of the same team to agree is a real challenge. Viewing the many differences you stated earlier, a common ground for understanding will be indeed hard to maintain. Humans are naturally made to struggle with themselves, nature and others. Not only that but with the unknown too. That is the urge to seek the truth. Very few manage to break out of the cycle, which is why it took me thousands of years to see you as the first group that comes out of that tree. I congratulate you, but the quest continues. If you want to save those who are dear to you, you must fight."
"But we only… We lack two people. Menyar and Oubay." Shadi noticed. "If we get those and get back into the stairs, we will be saved."
They all nodded to each other.
"Can you watch over our friend over here?" Zain stood in front of Ridhwan pointed at Feyruz. "We will be back. For sure."
The white-haired smiled at him. "Who are you promising, yourself or me?"
Zain closed his eyes and smiled. "Who knows? The fact that you're here in front of is freaking me out. I don’t know how I’m so calm about it. I don't think I can think straight anymore."
"Your friend is safe. As long as she doesn't go into the forest, she will be fine. That being said, nobody can go into the forest alone even if they wanted to. There is a minimum number that must be complete."
Zain nodded. "Thanks. We will return."
"It took you eight months to go down," Ridhwan added. "That means that so far, you spent one year inside that tree. Going back from the same route will take another eight months, and retuning here from that same path will take eight more months. That's two years and a half."
"You keep on saying that path and that route." Rahma narrowed her eyes. "Is there another path?"
Ridhwan grinned. "Maybe."
"Wait… We walked for eight months without feeling hungry or thirsty, and without needing to clean ourselves?!"
Ridhwan nodded.
"Is that all we must know?" Fahd asked, and the white-haired shook his head. "One last thing. There will be a period where the murderer will not know why they killed, and the victim will not know why they were killed," he paused, "Ponder on that. That is the last thing I will tell you. Good luck on your journey."
"There must be another route!" Shadi announced. "Let's run around this huge tree to find another path. No way am I going back into that cursed first floor!"
They started running. Ridhwan watched them, amused.
"I-I'm sorry… for saying that you're scary." He glanced to the side to look at Feyruz. She stared down sadly. "I actually love angels a lot, but… but I'm worried about Rahma and everyone else. We were like a family, so I'm so worried about them. I wanted to make up any excuse to convince Rahma, but she's too stubborn. She always thinks I'm weak."
Ridhwan smiled softly and sat in front of her. "You're not weak, and she knows that too. You're such a pure-hearted child." He grinned. "Don't let lif–the tower change you, as it changed millions and billions before you. For now, hope for the best. That is what you can do."
She smiled sadly. "Your white hair is pretty. I know this is not how you really look like, but it's lovely."
"Thank you."
Ridhwan stood up again, smile fading. He emotionlessly gazed up at the sky and closed his eyes as a soft wind blew, playing with his snow-white hair.
He blinked as someone bumped into his back. "We didn't find…" Zain fell to his knees, hyperventilating. "Anything!"
"I can take you there," Ridhwan suggested. "All seven of you."
"Y-You can?!" Dina smiled brightly. "Please do!"
Ridhwan nodded. "Hold each other's hands and hold on to me."
“We’re going back into the tower!”
- Writer
