She walked into her office, heels clicking softly on the highly polished floor, but the usual rhythm did nothing to settle her. Something felt off. As she scanned the room with her eyes, her chest became tight. So many strange faces.
Her eyes scanned the open office, hoping to find a face she knew, any face she knew. And then, in the corner, she saw Luke, the eager intern she'd hired the previous year. A small wave of relief hit her like a breath of fresh air. At least someone was still here.
She straightened her shoulders and walked toward him. "Morning, Luke," she said softly, her tone calm but direct.
Luke looked up, startled for a moment, then his face spread into the now-familiar nervous smile. "Miss Luna! Good morning. It's...uh...it's really good to see you. How have you been? I mean. It's been a while."
Luna paused, taken aback by the concern in his voice for a moment. "I'm fine, Luke," she said with only a faint smile. "Thanks for asking."
But there was no time to waste on pleasantries. Her voice changed back into business. "Luke, I wanted to ask you something."
Luke straightened up, fumbling for papers on his desk. "Sure! Anything, Miss Luna."
Her eyes scanned the room briefly before settling on him again. "The staff. There are so many new faces here. What happened? Why have so many people been replaced? Do you know who did this?"
Luke's smile went crooked as his fingers went frozen mid-sort. "Oh. um," he said, seemingly unsure of how to continue. He scratched at the back of his head, cheeks flushing a bit as he spoke. "Well, I don't really know everything. People started leaving, and then. new people just sort of showed up. Some were let go, I think."
Her brow furrowed in frustration, carefully hidden behind a calm expression. "And nobody told you anything outright?"
He shook his head. "No, not really. I just. focus on my work. But, you know, there were whispers that somebody from higher up gave the orders."
Her stomach dropped, but she composed herself. "What about the projects? How are they holding up?"
Luke's face lit up; he wanted to answer something that he did know. "Some are on track, but sometimes confusion occurs. With this many new people, it can be difficult to get all on the same page. It's been a little … chaotic."
Luna's lips compressed to a thin line as she digested his words. "I see." She nodded slightly to him. "Alright, Luke. That's all I need for now. Thank you."
Luke half-rose from the chair, replacing his nervousness with genuine enthusiasm. "Do you need me to help with anything else?"
Luna shook her head gently. "No, you're fine. Just get back to your work."
"Yes, Miss Luna," Luke said quickly before sinking back into his chair, fumbling with his papers again.
Luna turned, her steps slow as she walked toward her office.
Inside her office, she quietly closed the door behind her and leaned on it for a moment, letting out a deep breath. Through the glass partition, she could see the sea of unfamiliar faces outside. The quiet murmurs, the odd glances in her direction it all felt wrong, more like this was a plan against her. Because all Luna knew was there were more numbers of enemies than her friends around her.
She walked to her desk, letting her bag fall into the chair before she sank into her own seat. Her chin rested in her palm as she stared out at the floor, lost in thought. Luke's words echoed in her mind.
She bit the inside of her cheek, drumming her fingers lightly against the desk. It didn't take much to guess who had pulled the strings. *My father or him, his son."
Whatever the case, she wasn't going to sit back and let this slide. Not anymore. Luna straightened, grabbed her phone, and called HR of the company she ordered her to look for a new personal assistant. Soon.
While Luna sat in her office, trying to make sense of the chaotic changes surrounding her, somewhere far away, another person was equally troubled.
Elis had been following the old man, who seemed far too chatty for someone he had just met. The man fired questions at him, one after another, as if he already knew more about Elis than he let on. "Where are you from, young man? So strange, are they old?" the old man asked with a glint in his eye. "And tell me, why Munshi Mountain?
What brings you to such an ancient place?
Elis frowned, quietly nodding along without giving much away. The journey itself was puzzling enough—roads paved with strange dark material, people staring down at glowing boxes in their hands, and the loud growls of what they called "machines." *What kind of world is this?* he wondered.
He followed the old man as they wove through streets and pathways, his surroundings becoming less and less "new" the further they went. Soon, the tall buildings and flashing lights faded into the distance. Instead, trees began to rise, and the cool, crisp air of the mountains greeted him. Elis let out a slow breath, finally feeling a touch of familiarity.
"This is where you wanted to go, yes?" the old man asked, stopping at the edge of a narrow path that seemed to snake into the woods.
Elis turned to look at him and nodded gratefully. "Yes. Thank you. I—"
But when he turned back to finish his sentence, the old man was. gone.
Elis stood still. He's heart leapt, he glanced down the now vacant space from which the man had seemed to spring mere seconds ago. No footstep sound was there, no rustle of the leaves in the trees - nothing. It was like that old man vanished into air.
What.?" Elis muttered under his breath, his brows furrowing deeply. He spun in a small circle, searching the area, but the man was nowhere to be seen.
He stood there dumfounded, a strange unease crawling up his spine. *Who was that man?* Elis wondered. He had seemed ordinary enough. yet there was something undeniably *off* about him.
Yet, no time to stop and rest. Elis shook off his unsettling feeling and moved forward, focusing ahead. The mountain path stretched like an old friend calling him home; he knew this place and knew it better than anything in this strange world.
"No matter what year. No matter what's changed," Elis whispered to himself, his jaw tightening with determination. He looked up at the towering mountain peak, its outline softened by mist. "The door has to be here."
With that notion, Elis stepped forward, boot crunching the earth because he was now moving up the mountain. The breeze whispered through the trees that carried with them memories of once upon a time, then this mountain would have meant everything. Every step felt like returning to a forgotten piece of himself.
The further he climbed, the closer he felt to the truth. He didn't care how strange this world had become or how much it had changed. That door is hope.
Right now,
Elis stood in front of the monstrous tree, and its size made him feel less than its peer. Maybe this was it; he ran his eyes up and down the grooves of the bark. It was very vivid Munshi Mountain.
A tree. The sigil. was all to be found.
But nothing about this scene seemed even a little correct now that he stood in front of the thing. There weren't any marks, no sigil. And worse yet, as he looked around, he saw more trees, around fifty, maybe more, each identical, their roots tangled like secrets hiding in plain sight. A deep frown appeared on his forehead. 'Was I mistaken?' he thought. No, that couldn't be. He remembered too well. 'The door was here,' he mumbled.
With no other option, Elis decided to try it out himself. He took a deep breath and lifted his right wrist. His movements were fluid yet purposeful as his left fingers pressed against his vein, tracing an invisible pattern. Then, with deliberate grace, he pushed his hand through the air, his motions an ancient martial dance type. he'd performed countless times before.
For a moment, silence. Elis held his breath in hope, waiting for something to happen. A sign, a shimmer of light, anything. But nothing came.
His lips curled into a bitter smile. 'How foolish,' he thought. Shaking off the disappointment, he walked to the next tree, repeating the same movements with quiet determination.
One tree.
Then another.
And another.
The more trees he tried, the heavier his steps were becoming. His arms ached at the twentieth tree, and he was running out of patience. Every failure bit away at his pride, and frustration brewed inside him like a storm. He wiped his forehead, talking to himself. "A man like me, doing this." He breathed sharply through clenched teeth.
But still, he could not stop. His memories urged him on. Each tree was an opportunity a key that may unlock the door he so earnestly desired.
By the time he reached the fiftieth tree, Elis was exhausted. His chest heaved with every breath as he stepped back, scanning the sea of trees. His clothes clung to his body, damp from the exertion, and his shoulders slumped slightly.
"Stupid," he whispered to himself, anger simmering just beneath the surface. "I look like a fool."
He rubbed the back of his neck, ready to accept that this attempt had been futile. But just as he turned to leave, a sharp sensation struck him...a presence.
Elis stiffened. The hair on the back of his neck rose, and instinct alone made him brace himself. Someone was approaching. Their steps were quiet too quiet.
Before he could spin around, THUD!
A sharp pain erupted at the back of his head. His vision became blurry, and a wave of hot dizziness washed over him. Elis stumbled forward, reaching out blindly for balance, but the world around him was already growing dark.
The last thing he heard was the faint rustle of leaves and the sound of his body hitting the forest floor.
Then, nothing.