( 15 )
C H E L L
In the dream, she was a child again.
Chell was walking alone in the middle of a forest path underneath a bright day. The soft grass underneath her bare feet muffled the sound of her footsteps as she made her way slowly through the undergrowth. Around her, olden trees twisted from the earth and towered above, their branches shielding her from the heat. From an outsider's eyes, the thick forest seemed wide and confusing. Many considered it as a dangerous maze that spanned for miles and miles, ready to claim any lost people who happened to wander inside. Chell had been warned countless of times never to leave the trail unless she wanted the risk of losing direction. But she never did, however. Even if it happened, the dead were always there to guide her back.
Her eyes flickered through the trees, looking at the familiar scenery that stretched out before her. At the same time, she kept glancing at the small, brightened opening at the end of the trail far ahead. Her destination lay beyond it. Every silent step brought her closer and closer, until finally, she arrived underneath the last branch and emerged on the other side.
She covered her eyes from the sudden burst of sunlight, blinking a lot. The forest opened out into a magnificent glade where the smell of the flowers and earth was carried over by a slight, warm breeze. She retreated her hand and looked around, squinting.
"—Chell!"
At the sound of her name, she turned immediately towards the voice that had called out to her. A few feet farther to her right, a little boy was crouched over the ankle-length grass, bending down to look at something. His white hair, colored in a hue just like hers, glinted occasionally as it reflected the sunlight. He gestured with a small, pale hand and waved at her. For some reason, the rays of the sun unnaturally concealed his facial features. It was as if a thin veil had been draped over it. Chell could not even properly see his eyes.
Her feet moved towards his direction. As she kneeled beside the boy, she caught sight of the thing that he was bent over at. It was a small, obscure-looking brown object. When she got closer, however, she realized that it was, in fact, the corpse of a baby bird. One of its wings, she noticed, was bent at an odd angle. Broken.
"It's sad, isn't it?" The boy muttered quietly beside her as he stared at it. "It must have been blown away from its nest the night before. Remember the thunderstorm last night?"
Chell nodded. She kept silent, not knowing what to say. Instead, she simply stared at it. Somehow, a wave of sadness washed over her at the sight of the dead animal.
"If I could have gotten here sooner... perhaps it could have been saved," he whispered solemnly. Behind them, a flock of birds suddenly flew from the trees, the sound of their flapping wings loud in her ears.
"... It wasn't your fault, " Chell reassured, turning to look at his unclear face. "That's the way the gods decreed it. This one's time was supposed to end today. It can't be helped."
He shook his head, reaching out to gently touch the corpse with his fingers and feeling the blanket of death that had enshrouded its pitiful withering body. "Hm... perhaps it was..." he trailed off. "But don't you think that's a bit cruel? For the gods, I mean. How could they decide how and when a life should end?"
She took a moment to collect her answer, searching for it in her mind. "That's because they created everything. And they have the power to end the things they create whenever they like it. Or at least... that's what teacher told me."
The boy pulled his hand back. The moment he had, the bird's flesh withered away into sand and sank back into the ground until there was nothing that remained. He gripped his fingers into a loose fist.
"Then, what if the gods suddenly decided someone to die?" he asked. "Can no one save them?"
"I think so," Chell paused for a second. "Because... that is their fate."
"No matter how unjust their end was?"
"Yes."
"Then all those people who died from sicknesses and murder... was that their horrible fate as well?"
"Yes."
He rubbed his head and turned to her, leveling his gaze. Very softly, he said, "Chell, may I ask you something?"
She looked up at him, reflecting the surprise in her eyes from the sudden change of atmosphere brought about by his tone.
"... What is it?" she asked.
"Then...," he made a slightly forced grin, tilting his head to one side. "... if I told you I would die tomorrow, would you do nothing?"
Chell went silent at that, taken aback by his question. Then, a second later, she found her voice to answer him.
"No. I'd find a way to save you."
"But you said it was pointless."
"Perhaps... But I would still try," she affirmed with a tone of resolution. "Be it fate or the gods. I'd save you... no matter what."
At those last words, he blinked a few times. Chell noticed his cheeks turning slightly red. A sudden breeze blew over them, rustling the grass. Then, a moment later, the boy burst into a mirthful laugh.
It was a light, comforting sound, one that easily carried away and scattered into the trees. He abruptly stood up, patting his knees. His shoulders were still shaking from amusement. Chell, clueless on what to do or how to react, watched him silently, blinking in confusion.
"Haha, thanks a lot Chell! I think that's enough of death talk. I'm feeling a lot better now thanks to you," he said. Then, he held an outstretched hand towards her. "Ah, now I feel embarrassed. Although I'm so happy you'd go that far for me! And... if someone ever told me the same, I'd do everything I could to save you, too." He smiled in clear joy.
She blinked at him once again as she took his hand without any reluctance. There were no bandages wrapped around them to break any direct contact. To Chell, it felt warm and safe. Familiar and comforting. Whenever she was together with him, it made her feel like she had a place she could belong. A place that she could call her home. This feeling of peace, she thought as he pulled her up to stand along side him, is what I want to protect the most. With him, she was able to stop worrying and smile. With him, the world seemed kinder and easier to trust.
I'll save you, Chell thought as she held his hand tighter, unwilling to let it go. No matter what, I'll save you.
In that moment, his grip suddenly went slack.
"Ah, but in the end you still couldn't save me, could you?"
Her eyes widened as she heard a taunting voice whisper loudly in her ears. She looked up at the boy's face just as the sky above their heads flickered and darkened in an instant, like a torch that had suddenly lost its light. A dim glow of red pulsed from the earth that had suddenly started to rot and dry. The trees in the forest aged and withered, the grass turning black and dying. On the horizon, jagged streaks of red cut across the clouds, resembling the color of fresh blood.
The scene shifted completely as a nightmare unfolded in front of her.
Chell was not a child anymore. Now she was in her current body, dressed in a white cloak smeared with blood, its metallic scent filling the air. In her grasp, the boy's hand started to rapidly decay. Underneath his sleeve, his skin folded into gruesome wrinkles and sagged from his bones like water, dripping on the poisoned ground. When Chell looked down at his face, a thick trail of blood had started to run from the top his head and dripped downwards to his chin. His eyes had disappeared, forming into deep hollow sockets that showed her pools of a midnight abyss. Still his mouth was formed in an eerie, haunting smile as the flesh on his face melted, showing her the grotesque display of raw muscle and bone.
Somehow, his grip tightened. Now, his hand was nothing but bone. A few bits of flesh were still clinging, horrendously showing the vivid scene of a rotting corpse. Her heartbeat accelerated, pounding loudly in her ears. Chell flinched. Fear clutched her body. She could not move.
Danger, snow. You must get away!, she heard the dead suddenly whisper in her ears. Yet, she could not see them anywhere. They were gone. They had left.
Wake up. Wake up!
The boy suddenly pulled her close to him, leaning his bony mouth close to her ears as though making sure that she could hear him clearly through the chorus of the dead. He whispered seven words.
"In the end, you couldn't do anything."
Then, Chell woke up from the nightmare.
----> thank you for reading!
Q:
Who do you think the boy is to Chell?