ADJOINING REALM
UNEXPECTED MEETING

"How is this, Dar? Are we looking for a detour while we turn?" maung asked while staring confusedly at Jaka and Darto who were still trying to hold back the nausea in their stomachs.

"You go round first, Maung... Let Darto and Jaka rest for a while here," said Sastro who is now sitting next to Darto.

Hearing Sastro's proposal, Maung and Komang immediately turned into tigers again, they did the same thing as in room number seven, which was to circle around a strange place they had never met before.

It took quite a long time for Maung and Komang to return, when they returned, Darto and Jaka had fully recovered from the nausea that plagued them both. His face was already turning yellow, no longer plastered with pale skin like the previous one.

"There's a way?" tanya Darto was curious.

Maung and Komang immediately shook their heads after listening to Darto's question, they did not meet the path at all, because the thickets really filled the place on various sides and wrapped the two large trees tightly.

After seeing Maung and Komang shake their heads, Darto immediately said, "Let's just force it... Later I'll be the same Jaka rem up there."

After agreeing, Darto and Jaka again climbed onto the backs of Maung and Komang. The two of them immediately inhaled greedily, then held their breath inside the chest while closing their eyes.

Seeing that Darto and Jaka were ready, Maung and Komang ran again. They darted as they continued to jump, so as not to step on too many corpses piled up beneath them.

Not only once Komang and Maung shuddered, because not only one body was immediately crushed or the flesh was destroyed scattered after being made a foothold by the two of them.

There was truly one horrifying sight, the more the pile of corpses rose the more they approached the two enormous trees.

Fortunately Maung and Komang managed to pass through the place, plus their destination was also clean from the pile of rotten bodies like the one behind it.

After Maung and Komang got under the roots of a tree that already looked big from afar, they dropped off all of their friends in a place that had no bodies at all.

Darto and Jaka immediately threw out a hasty breath, then again inhaled the husky air they could.

After Darto and Jaka were ready, they turned their heads in the same direction and immediately walked towards the gap created between the two trees.

Roots sticking out of the ground actually have a size beyond reason, each curve of the root is completely fused to form a semicircle. And it looks like a gate with each end embedded into the ground.

The six men entered without hesitation, they again rounded their eyes after passing through the gate made from the roots of the giant tree.

Darto and five of his friends appeared on the cliff below which stood a settlement.

Dozens of houses with woven bamboo walls lined up neatly, and also saw a lot of residents who were passing by.

"Human village?" Maung opened his voice when five of his friends were dumbfounded.

"Either... Let's find out first," said Darto then lead the way down the cliff rocks.

Darto looked back. The place where he appeared really looked the same. There were two kapok trees standing, only not as big as two trees in room number six.

After remembering the entrance, Darto ran towards the crowd of people who were close enough to him. He approached hurriedly, but fell silent again when he reached his destination.

"They are not human beings" Darto murmured softly after making sure the entire population was in front of his eyes.

Hearing Darto's muttering, the five friends left behind also immediately put on the same expression. They were astonished, with hundreds of human-like creatures in front of their faces.

Everything seemed ordinary before, they seemed to be talking to each other and also doing the right thing.

But the strangeness of the six men could instantly be witnessed, when they saw a pair of legs of each floating resident.

All that was in front of them had no physical body, but only a collection of souls gathered in the same place.

"Let's just call one of them, Dar," said Komang who was also curious.

"Ssttt.. shhh..." Without his friend's approval, Komang immediately hissed while waving to one of the residents.

All residents near and far turned their heads after hearing the voice of Komang. They glanced in the same direction, and also stopped their entire activities.

Darto and five of his friends immediately shut up on the spot, they did nothing, because they were required to be vigilant after seeing the reaction of the entire population.

All the residents continued to remain silent as they stared at the six men. They did not approach nor move away, and just stood staring in the same direction as the blank stares that were emanating in their eyes.

In the engulfing confusion, the sound of the treads of a pair of horses sounded louder and louder with each second.

Two kodas began to appear closer from a distance, flipping the crowd who were staring at them with strange gazes.

Darto and five of his friends immediately put up a standby position when they saw two men get off their horses, they created weapons on their hands, and were ready to attack two young men of stout stature, he said, who began to walk closer towards them.

"Wait... I will not attack" said one of the horsemen, raising both hands. He walked confidently, closing in on Darto and his five friends.

Darto and his five friends remained unrelenting, they did not attack, but did not eliminate the weapons in their hands.

Step by step the two men continued to approach Darto and his five friends. He stood up while squinting after arriving at his destination because he really felt astonished by what he was witnessing.

"You people? are you really human?" ask one of the men with a face full of question marks. He could not believe that any human could set foot inside the place.

Hearing the question, Darto and Jaka did not answer. They both do the same thing as the two men who come to them, which is to notice two strangers who have just come towards them.

Darto and Jaka continued to frown while trying to recall something vague still lingering in their memories. Darto finally opened his voice and mentioned two names.

"Aryana's? Brahma?" darto said astonishment.

Hearing the two names mentioned by Darto, Jaka immediately put on a face of relief, he felt detached from the bond wrapped around his head, after trying to remember something he had forgotten.

Is correct... The two names were acquaintances that Darto and Jaka had met. Darto and Jaka met them, while doing the exam given by Eyang Semar.

"Who are you?" Aryana looked surprised after hearing Darto pronounce his name and also his friend.

"Arya. We take them to our house first. It's not safe here" Brahma said, stopping the conversation.

"Please follow me, here are many eyes watching. There will be many questions that you have to answer" continued Aryana as she walked towards her horse.

The six men hesitated a bit to step forward, but when Darto and Jaka nodded, all his friends could not resist the invitation of the two humans they trusted so much.

Maung and Komang again turned into tigers at that time, and brought four friends following two foreign men who were leading the way for all of them.

The eight men continued to dart, towards one place that looked quite majestic compared to the other houses.

In this place, a reality that Darto and Jaka had never known would soon be revealed in their meeting.

What place did the six men actually go?

Why are the two of them here? Didn't they also die when the Ki Gandar tragedy was unfolding?

Seriate....