The Van Til House: STRAF SABBAT
Chapiter 26

"The beetle was the mount of Nyi Ageng," explained Agustin after their car can walk, while the rain again stormed.

"Who is Nyi Ageng?" Magisna asked while shivering in Hendra's army jacket which was no longer dry. Hendra covered himself with an Agustin jacket, while Agustin himself wore only a cloth wrapped around his shoulder.

The style of dress is indeed a bit of a village, Magisna thought. His style of speech is also raw. But he's good.

The way Agustin drives makes it comfortable. His calm carry gives a bit of strength and courage.

"Nyi Ageng is a kind of keeper of the plantation land" explained Agustin.

"I mean Centeng?" ask Magisna again.

"No," said Agustin while smiling thinly. "Maybe it's more appropriate to say the caretaker, but more than that, Nyi Ageng is also a spiritual being."

"You mean ghosts?" Hendra interrupted them.

Agustin looked back and sighed. "Nyi Ageng is not dead yet" he explained. "So does her husband."

Magisna squinted her eyes.

"I mean the mount!" Agustin corrected his words.

"Wrand is her husband?" Magisna.

"Yes" answered Agustin. "They're both special humans."

Hendra chuckled behind them. "In other words, Nyi Ageng was riding on her husband? What's special? All the wives are riding on her husband!"

"Moor!" Magisna.

Agustin smiled knot. "They are not ordinary people" he said. "More precisely a demigod. Time and weather control."

Magisna. So the time that stopped and the weather that suddenly changed earlier was indeed controlled by the creature?

Hendra cut down while turning his face to the side, leaning his back against the seat and hugging himself. 

Magisna glanced at him.

Silence ambushed them for a while. The car drove smoothly and arrived on a straight road.

At a minimum I already know who's lousy at driving, Magisna thought. Ice to sleep in the back seat even though the rain is still very heavy.

The rainstorm seemed to keep crashing into the windshield, as if it was trying to hit them.

The cold was tormenting Magisna. The journey is like it won't end. Where's the end of this road? thought. 

"We are almost at the foot of the hill" Agustin said at last.

"Aren't you the counter-princess?" Hendra asked half insinuatingly.

Agustin just shut up. Stay focused on the road ahead of them.

The roads returned straight when they reached the valley, but the rain fell more and more. And they still haven't seen any other vehicles, either in front or behind.

"I feel like I remember this path," Ais said suddenly. He pulled his back from the backrest of the seat then lowered his hood. "Not far from here, there's a country road. Turn left off this road and follow it. This path will eventually arrive at the same goal."

"Huh? Rural roads? What does rural roads mean?" Hendra glared at Ais. "There are still rural roads on rural roads?"

"It's a highway" Ais said.

"This is a highway?" Hendra developed a palm on the side of his shoulder, pointing towards the road.

Hendra bought it while grunting.

Hendra and Magisna had not long lived in the plantation village. Both have just moved out of town. 

Hendra moved to the plantation area for special reasons related to his behavior that is difficult to manage. So his parents sent Hendra to his father's hometown and put Hendra at his grandparents' house to school there.

In contrast to Magisna, both parents moved to the plantation village because of work and settled in housing a little bit away from school.

This was the furthest trip for the two comers.

And Magisna preferred to believe in Ais and Agustin.

But Hendra doesn't seem to be the kind of person to work with except as a "Boss". He could be close to Dika and Alexza as they both treated Hendra like his leader. But here, now, there is no special treatment. Ais and Agustin seemed to respect each other. And Hendra felt like he lost his fangs. All he did along the way was find out. Trying to show that he is better. It was very childish, Magisna thought.

Hendra was silent and pouted with a frustrated look on his face.

Magisna looked at him with concern. So, he said in his heart. Are you starting to miss your friends now?

Magisna sighed heavily to get rid of the pain inside her chest. Although not too close to Novi, Dika or Alexza, considering they were snatched in front of his eyes, it should not hurt his heart as well. Even Isa is hated. Will I see them again? thought sad.

Are they still alive?

When they reached the intersection as Ais had said, Agustin turned left. The tires of the car squeaked. The car almost turned skid. But Agustin nimbly managed to straighten it out again. And they finally made their way to the narrow country road.

Magisna turned to the side, staring out at the car. It felt strange how all the colors could disappear from this world.

Disappeared like Novi and the others, he recalled bitterly.

When he looked back to the front, he saw a Triton Athlete darting towards them. Even in the pouring rain, he could see it from the windshield. Suddenly he felt like everything was going on in slow motion.

The Triton Athlete rang his horn loudly, but his voice muffled with the rumbling rain.

Triton Athlete was hurtling right at them. The streets narrowed, too narrow for the two of them to pass through simultaneously.

Agustin stepped on the brakes, but probably not in a good way. The car started to slip—right on Triton Athlete's road.

Magisna smothered his face. He heard Triton Athlete's horn again, this time louder, closer. His voice closed his ears. Makes his bones vibrate.

Magisna held her breath, preparing to face the accident.

Then he felt the roar of the car in front of them as if it was crashing the jeep he was riding. He felt as if the jeep was being pushed by the wind from the car that hit him.

"Let's die, yeah!" The thunderous cry of a man jerking Magisna. He lowered his hand from his face and stuttered.

A long-haired wave curl gawked out from Triton Athlete in front of them. Before long the man slipped out of the car and lunged towards their jeep. "This is if you want to look for death, make a storm the same cave!" challenge arrogant.

Magisna gasped, while Agustin remained silent. Ais and Hendra did not hear his voice. Perhaps they were also surprised by the impromptu attack.

But that's not what made Magisna freeze. The gondrong man's face dazzled him.

I must be crazy, he said in his heart. How could in this state he even be fascinated by the crazy man who was clamoring to challenge them?

At first I fell into the tunnel, then had a nightmare, trapped in the labyrinth, attacked by strange creatures that are not clear, then trapped collapsed bridge until it had to rotate and get lost in the middle of the plantation, it circled around in the same spot, then collided with Triton Athlete. I must have had a severe concussion!

This novel is driving me crazy!

Crazy novels written by crazy people!