Exiting the frenzy ensuing within the four corners of Azalea and traversing the borders of the islands, one would find the towering mountains amidst the sea, an added form of protection used by the islanders to mask the presence of the Cube by deliberately making it seem inhabitable.
Crossing over the vast sparkling seas, into and beyond the dense and widespread forests, the borders of yet another beautiful landscape appears, with hills, trees, lakes and greenery stretching as far as the eye could see.
Ayont the lush terrains, a bustling capital city comes into view, tall and small buildings converging to form outlines and grid patterns, vehicles dashing through entwined lanes, people rushing along the pavements lined with potted plants, trees and shops that were lettered with fancy names and parks littered across the cityscape, adding a burst of life to it.
Standing tall to the West of the city was a massive villa sitting on a hill surrounded by different coloured flowers, graperies with a part of the sea hitting the rocks that rested on it. Coupled with the radiance of the golden sun that beamed on the white walls of the villa and the flowers that surrounded it, a picturesque view was created.
And although the villa was calm and pretty as a picture on the outside, gloom shrouded the residents living in it.
Standing in a hallway, a man and a woman were seen gripping each other's arms tightly whilst staring at a brown door that had been closed shut for a while.
"Dear, I thought Hans said he was better now, why did he suddenly have a relapse again?", the woman asked the man beside her as she raised a hand to her chest in a bid to calm her racing heart.
Staring down at his frowning wife whose gaze never left the door, the man sighed, "Don't worry too much honey, I'm sure he's going to be fine." he said as he retrieved his hand from his wife's palm and placed them on her shoulder.
Just as he was about to continue consoling his wife, the door they'd been waiting for finally opened and out came a man in a white dress shirt and black pant trousers.
Shutting the door behind him, the man adjusted his glasses and wiped his sweat off his face before facing the couple that was about to drill a hole into him with their stares. But before he could get a word out, he was interrupted.
"I..."
"Hans, is he awake now?", the woman escaped her husband's embrace and walked towards the man in glasses with her hand still on her chest.
Clearing his throat, Hans answered back, "I've tried all I could to wake him up but he's not responding. So right now, there's just one way to make him regain consciousness...", he trailed off as he stared squarely at the woman and her husband in the face.
"No!", the woman yelled with widened eyes.
"Isn't there any other way? There must be something you could do," her husband stepped forward and asked as he stood side by side with his wife.
"Actually, there isn't Ronald, he usually wakes up after all the sessions, this time, however, it's..... different...." Hans replied with a crease on his forehead.
"What do you mean there's nothing you can do?! What is different?! Aren't you a doctor?! You gave us your word, it's been 10 years! 10 whole years! What has happened to my son, what?! Tell me!" the woman yelled as she grabbed the doctor by his shirt, crumpling it in the process.
Rushing forward, Ronald freed Han's shirt from his wife's hands as he exclaimed, "Susan, please calm down!"
"Calm down? What do you mean?! My son, Our son! has been lying there on his bed since last night, with no indication of him waking up anytime soon and you expect me to calm down?! Are you serious Ronald?!" Susan said pointing at herself and towards the shut door before bursting into tears.
"Is there really no hope this time, Hans?" Ronald asked Hans instead as he hugged his trembling wife in his arms to prevent her from attacking the doctor again. Knowing his wife, nothing he said was going to get into her head till she regained her composure.
Adjusting his rumpled shirt, Hans replied, "Usually, he exhibits REM during his relapse and needs external help to regain consciousness from his sleep but right now, everything is just.....still,"
"Except for his breathing and heartbeat of course, which is regular...," he quickly added, seeing Susan about to have a mental breakdown again.
"....It's almost as if he's in a coma when in actual fact he's just asleep. And frankly, I haven't seen anything like this in my years of being a psychologist." he continued as he shifted his glasses to sit properly on his nose bridge.
"So what do you suggest we do now?", Ronald inquired.
"I don't think....", glancing at Susan, Hans stopped what he was about to say.
"Let's take him to the hospital, I'm sure I and my colleagues will be able to think of something. But first, let's calm her down." Hans said instead as he and Ronald helped the whimpering and trembling Susan down the stairs and into the master bedroom.
Few moments after Hans and the distressed couple left the hallway, a figure dressed in a black and white maid uniform appeared from a corner and walked towards the door that the trio was standing in front of earlier. Carefully opening the door, the figure found her way into the room then closed it without making so much as a sound.
Turning around, she took in the situation of the room.
The curtains were drawn, obstructing the rays of the sun from worming its way through the windows. It was silent, save for the light beep sound from the humidifier and the faint breaths coming from the person sleeping on the king-size bed next to it.
Walking across the room, the figure arrived next to the bed and stared down at the person lying on it who appeared to be peacefully asleep but was actually unconscious.
Grabbing a candle lying on the bedside table, she brought a lighter from her pocket and lit it. Then walked to the foot of the bed and placed it in a candle holder on the table before walking back to stand next to the bed.
With an outstretched hand, she reached for the person on the bed and caressed his dark hair. Whilst watching over him, the words of the doctor echoed through her mind and the hand sweeping through the silkiness of the hair stopped.
"It's my fault, it's all my fault," she whispered and soon the sound of repressed sobs filled the whole room.
A while later, the person lying on the bed began to show some movements, successfully choking the sobs out of her mouth.
Feeling relieved that he was about to wake up, she smiled and stood expectantly at the side. However, she began to notice that something was wrong.
She watched in shock as the once steady and faint breaths became ragged, sweat breaking out on his forehead and his whole body, followed by sudden jerking movements. Screaming in fear, she bolted out the door and down the stairs.
"Doctor Hans!", her voice reverberated through the walls of the villa.
Back in the room, the jerking movements stopped and the person on the bed sat up with force with sweat dripping down his face. Trying to gain his focus, his eyes scanned the entire room until it was fixed on the candle at the foot of the bed.
Whilst staring at the blue and red flame of the candle, he tried to recollect the dream he had but couldn't.
The dream was so vivid like he was taken to another world, everything was so different there. Yet, the only thing he could remember was the back of a girl with silver hair, wearing a gray hoodie. However, this wasn't the first time, he'd seen the girl with silver hair. He had seen her so many times, he wasn't even surprised anymore.
'But why was she running this time.' he asked himself.
"Ugh! Just who are you?" he groaned as he fell back on the bed as he used the back of the hand to cover his eyes.
Just as he was about to try figuring his 'dream' and probably remember more parts of it, the door to his room burst open as Doctor Hans and his parents charged into the room.
Sighing in exasperation, he readied himself for another barrage of questions.