Hours of Songs

Chapter 4: First Day

One thing I am certain of is that red spirits mean the presence of demons. In this case, the demons are inside the water I was about to drink. For some reason, the red lights seem evil to me.

I only have a few seconds to come up with a game plan against this predicament. If I drink the water now, I might be consenting to demon in-take.

In class at Citiland National University, the number one university in Citiland, we are always taught to escape. My eyes dart to the nearest exit. There is only one visible exit.

The pasture below me seems attractive enough to quickly dump the lake water into. Quick movements. The sharp glazed eyes do not dart away and I might get harmed attempting to spill some right under their noses.

“Who are you?" I ask President Bear, instead of draining the cup.

“The president of Maica," he answers.

“Why did you bring me here?" I ask.

“Drink now," interjects Officer Joe, who glances slightly down at Lim and me with infuriation.

“I don't have my answers yet-" I try to spit out some words as a decoy.

Before I can finish, a wooden knife appears under my neck. Officer Joe does have a weapon on him. If this is a threat to force us to take in water, there is something wrong with the lake water.

Noticing my sudden stiffening, President Bear Cane lifts his hand at Officer Joe Hank to voice a halt. This causes Officer Joe to sheath back his knife.

“Let them drink on their own accord," orders President Bear loudly.

I tremble. It is almost suicide. However, we would lose our breath.

The lake water flows down the wooden cup and enters my mouth. I brace myself for the taste of the lake water.

“AAAHHH!" screams all the servants and guards, including Lim Tow, in the tent.

My tongue is hot. The lake water never went down my throat. Fire is burning the whole tent.

I pull Lim out of the tent while everyone braces themselves to put out the fire with the lake water that is available within President Bear's tent. We run out together with others who are focused on grabbing more lake water from the lake down the slope.

Lim and I dash back toward the warning sign where we first met Officer Joe.

We watch the havoc in the tent from afar. They look like tiny multitudes moving very fast in confusion.

A mixture of half asleep and completely knocked out people on the pasture. Some rise to help, while others blink their eyes to decipher the mess.

While I stare at the scene, Lim poses, “How did the cup turn into the fire?"

His face is pale white.

I answer with what I can gather with my assumption, “It wasn't the cup. The water turned into fire."

“I saw the cup turn into a fire bolt. It flew towards President Bear. Instead, it hit a drape. Then, the whole tent burst into flames."

“The moment I felt the water on my tongue, I felt my tongue burn. It changed."

My mouth opens and my tongue is now in front of Lim's face.

“Lim, is it burnt?" I ask.

He shakes his head.

“So, the water is no ordinary water?"

“I don't think so," I say.

Lim is still examining my tongue. I just stare at him.

This is one of the weirdest things that has happened to me. It feels like a dental check-up. The funny part is that Lim is unprofessional and this is no dental check-up.

“There is one spot near the tip of your tongue that looks like it got burnt," he points out. “Then again I have never seen your tongue. You could always have a birthmark that I do not know of."

“This is no joke," I say sternly. “Thanks. That must be the spot that stings. It is hot right now. We have to go."

I look up at the clouds above. Birds are flying away from the pasture and into the forest, where my desire is with. The smoke is thickening. Many people must still be running up the slope from the lake to put out the fire at the tent. The two of us try not to turn to face the scene.

The smell of fire has traveled to us and Lim slightly chokes.

“It's not safe here," I declare.

We do not know who might be stationed like Officer Joe near the warning sign.

“Let's go," I command.

Lim retorts, “Pierre, we're not allowed outside this area."

I hesitate to bring Lim. There are only a few seconds left. I can bring Lim or leave him by the sign. Once the fire is almost put out, President Bear or Officer Joe might send some men over here.

“It is unsafe," I remind Lim.

“Okay. Tell you what, Pierre. I will go with you. My reason is that Officer Joe placed a knife under your throat. You know, there is nothing wrong with the water. I am ready to go when you are."

We run in.

The forest is pitch black. There is no light in sight.

From our training camp back in Citiland, our trainer has taught us how to make fire out of natural materials. In the darkness, I try to navigate my way, while instructing Lim to help me out.

There are no footsteps by the entrance. Moreover, no one can see us. It would take some time for me to gather the materials to make a torch. The fire has bought us some time.

If someone comes into the forest or someone jumps at us from inside the forest, we must enter back into where there is light. However, there is no visible entrance towards the forest, except for this area.

Stress begins to torment me as I turn to look at what is between us and the outside world. The impenetrable array of thick barks needs a sharpened saw to cut through. This is imprisonment at its finest.

Somehow the entourage of the president appeared out of nowhere. Perhaps, they magically appeared here. Lim says that people just pop in out of nowhere.

For all I know, tomorrow there might be another person transported to Maica from another country too.

The question of the reason for our kidnap and how we were brought here simply appears. My priority is to get out before we become someone's buffet. I must decipher how to leave and how to eat.

I look up to the sky and see the familiarity of what I used to look up to to check the weather back home. Science is still the same.