Third Person's POV
As the candlelight dances in the air, Astra's shadow sways with it.
Her conscious mind fades, replaced by her subconscious, until Astra reaches her unconscious mind.
Astra's soul separates from her physical body. When she opens her eyes, she sees her body sitting next to Mr. Copper.
Soon, the surroundings change. Astra finds herself in a dark forest, but there's a path lit with a faint light. She follows it until she reaches the other end, where a large oval mirror stands.
The mirror's design is frightening. The black frame is carved with images of people scrambling to reach the top. Some are stepping on the faces of those below, while others are trying to pull down those above them.
"You are now standing in front of the Dream Gateway. In front of you is a mirror. Enter it," instructs Mr. Copper.
Astra follows his instructions. As she steps through the mirror, it feels as though it is draining all her strength. The sensation is heavy until she finds herself in a vast white space surrounded by many doors.
"Once inside, you will be in a white space with many doors. Do not open or touch any of them. The only door you need to open is the yellow one," says Mr. Copper.
Astra looks around to find the yellow door. When she spots it, she walks over and stands in front of it.
She can't see Mr. Copper, but she hears his voice in her right ear. Despite her nervousness and hesitation, Astra fights her fear and pushes it aside.
Following Mr. Copper's instructions, Astra chooses the yellow door. She enters and begins climbing the staircase, the only way forward inside.
"Don't look back! Just keep moving forward no matter what happens," Mr. Copper instructs.
The staircase goes up, but Astra can't see how far she has to go or if there's another step after the one she's on.
Each step of the staircase only appears when Astra steps on the last one. She continues until she reaches the final step. It feels like a button under her foot, triggering a change in her surroundings.
What was once pure white now looks like the vastness of space. The endless black expanse is speckled with vibrant colors, creating a mesmerizing surrounding. Astra feels as if she is floating in a boundless sea of color and light, the beauty and mystery of the universe unfolding before her eyes.
Her soul wanders aimlessly through the void until she bumps into something.
"Sorry," Astra apologizes to the person she collided with.
The soul merely glances at her before drifting away.
Astra was scared when she realized that she just encountered a ghost.
Slightly taken aback, Astra continues to let herself be carried by the gravity that feels like a current.
Astra is astonished when she encounters numerous wandering souls floating aimlessly in space.
"Hello, do you want to play?" asks a child soul who notices Astra.
"My child? Why are you here? You shouldn't be here," cries a woman's soul.
"Your eyes are so beautiful! Can I take a closer look?" another soul remarks.
"Ahm," Astra hesitantly murmured.
Astra feels uneasy with the way these souls are acting around her. All of them seem eager to interact with her.
"You have successfully entered the fifth dimension," Mr. Copper's voice assures her. "But be cautious and don't follow any voices you hear. Avoid looking into their eyes and keep your gaze down."
Astra nods, though she knows Mr. Copper can't see her, and she focuses on keeping her eyes downward, blocking out the eerie souls around her.
The souls in the fifth dimension are those who can't find their physical bodies so they made another dimension for them to live like human. Many never find their way back due to confusion and decide to stay because of how comfortable they are here. While on the other hand, others are deceived by older souls who take over their bodies through trickery.
Astra quickly avoids speaking to the souls after hearing Mr. Copper's warning. She looks down as she walks, ignoring the voices around her.
Shaking her head, Astra continues wandering, remembering her mission and why she is here.
"Find him and convince him to return," Mr. Copper reminding her.
Astra nodd, blending in with billions of souls. She keeps her gaze downward as she searches for Armann's soul. She explores every corner of the space but finds no one resembling Armann.
Astra begins to lose hope and fear creeps in. She doesn't know how to find a single soul among the countless ones here.
In the outside world, Astra's reactions seem normal until Mr. Copper notices her eyes moving rapidly. Despite the air conditioning in the room, she is sweating.
Mr. Copper isn't sure what's happening, but he knows it's not normal.
"Astra? Astra?" Mr. Copper calls out, worriedly. "Don't be afraid," he says to calm her.
Astra hears Mr. Copper's words and remember what he said. She closes her eyes and takes a deep breath.
"You can do this, Astra," she tells herself. "You can do this! Believe you can," she encourages herself.
After calming down, Astra opens her eyes and walks forward with determination.
She eagerly looks but she can't identify Armann because she's looking down and can't see their faces.
While she's thinking, a hand brushes against Astra.
She stops and follows the hand with her eyes.
"Yes, that's it!" Astra says to herself. "I know what to do!"
Astra continues searching, not looking at their faces or figures but focusing on their hands. In this way, she doesn't need to look at their faces and be cautious of not looking straight at their eyes.
In the distance, away from the other souls, she sees a man standing with his back to her. She can't see his hands because they are positioned in front of him.
Astra feels that this isn't Armann, so she decides not to check. She turns around and starts to walk away to look at others.
After a few steps, she stops. Something about the man feels familiar—his aura and the way he stands.
Astra turns back to the man and decides to take a closer look. As she approaches, she sees that his hands are covered in small cuts and bruises.
She smiles with relief.
"I finally found you," Astra says softly.
Astra realizes that one thing could actually help her find Armann. She remembers that whenever Armann used to cook, when she had just moved into his unit, she noticed small cuts on his hands.
"Mr. Armann," Astra calls gently, her voice trembling with emotion.
The man turns around, and Astra slowly lifts her head, hoping to catch his eye excitedly because she found him finally.
"Don't look!" Armann says anxiously. "Why are you here? You shouldn't be here," he demands, his voice filled with urgency.
Astra's heart sinks, and she quickly looks down, avoiding his gaze.
"Well—" Astra begins, her voice wavering. "I-I'm here to take you back," she says softly.
"You can't stay here! You need to leave," Armann insists, his tone growing more desperate.
"B-but—" Astra speaks haltingly, her voice barely above a whisper.
"Didn't you hear me?" Armann shouts, his anger noticeable.
Astra takes a step closer, reaching out to him, her hand shaking. She wants to calm him down, to make him understand.
"I said leave!" Armann yells again, pushing Astra slightly. The force of his words and actions sends a chill through her.
Astra stumbles back,collapsing to the ground while in a state of shock by what he did just now. She can feel the weight of the situation pressing down on him. She takes a deep breath, trying to steady herself.
Armann, on the other hand is startled, instinctively looks at her with concern but quickly turns away, trying to hide his concern.
"I told you to leave!" Armann insists, his voice still firm as he avoids his gaze.
Astra stands up on her own, her determination unwavering. She looks directly at Armann, her eyes filled with resolve.
"I won't leave here without you," she says softly but firmly.
Hearing this, Armann turns to look at her not directly, his expression conflicted.
Astra extends her hand towards him, her voice gentle yet insistent.
"Come on, take my hand and come with me," she urges.
Armann's eyes move from her hand back to her face, searching for answers then back to her hand again.
"Why are you doing this?" he asks, his voice filled with both curiosity and confusion.
Astra gives him a gentle smile, her eyes conveying warmth and reassurance.
"I don't know. Honestly, I could just leave you here. But I realized that you're the only one I have in this world," Astra pauses, her voice trembling. "And my aunt. You're always there to save me, but I'm the one who can't do anything for others. At first, I thought being an Aisling was the coolest ability because only two of us have it. But now I see I was wrong. It's actually the most useless ability. I can't even help the people I love," she says, her eyes filling with tears.
Armann feels a pang of sympathy and guilt as he listens to her.
"I can see events that will happen in the future, but I can't even use it to help," Astra continues, her voice breaking, tears now streaming down her face.
'No,' Armann thinks to himself, feeling his heart ache.
"So I decided," Astra takes a deep breath. "From now on, I'll use this ability to help as many people as I can, starting with you. I'm not leaving here without you," she declares with determination.
This is the first day someone cares for him. He didn't know that a mere human would save him one day.
Armann is deeply moved by Astra's words. Emotions swirl within him—guilt, sadness, but also a glimmer of hope. He realizes how much Astra cares for him and the strength she finds in her love and determination to save him.
"Take my hand and leave this cold place with me," Astra stated while waiting for Armann to take her hand.
~ To be Continued ~