Beads of sweat the size of corn kernels clung to their skin. They ran aimlessly, fleeing without direction. Finally, they stopped for a moment, gasping for air, their chests heaving.
Yono peered back over his shoulder, scanning the darkness for the terrifying figure they had just encountered. His gaze then shifted to Bella, who was still trying to catch her breath.
Tyas was in a state of total collapse. She leaned against a massive tree, head tilted back, sobbing. Her tears were a sign of surrender. The entities grew stronger the more terrified their human prey became.
"Tyas, you need to stay calm!" Pram said, standing beside her, trying to offer comfort.
Though his own heart was gripped by fear and chaos, Pram tried to stay strong. If they all lost hope and succumbed to terror, there would be no way home for any of them.
"Calm? Don't tell me to be calm!" Tyas shrieked, her temper flaring. "We almost died back there! Do you even know where we are?" Her eyes brimmed with tears she could no longer hold back.
Fear and rage fused into one. Tyas grabbed Pram's shirt, staring at him intensely.
"I don't want to die here!" she spat.
Seeing this, Bella approached and tried to separate them, stepping in as a mediator.
"What is wrong with you two? You know how dire this situation is! Stop fighting! Right now, we have only one mission: we have to get down. All five of us—no one gets left behind!" Bella told her companions firmly.
Tyas exhaled sharply and looked away. Meanwhile, Rio's face was becoming increasingly pale.
Pram helped Rio sit beneath a leafy tree not far from where they stood. Yono watched Rio, whose expression remained vacant and hollow.
"Bella, wouldn't it be better if we just left Rio behind?" Yono asked, finally choosing to give up.
"Why? You were the one who insisted on bringing him earlier!" Bella replied, looking at Yono as he lowered his head.
"The situation is beyond our capabilities now, Bella!" Yono argued.
"Yono is right, just leave Rio! He's an idiot. Why on earth did he eat the offerings? We still have our own supplies! He's insane!" Tyas added, her fury returning.
This environment was a breeding ground for arguments. Bella knew that some of her friends were not sensitive to the supernatural.
Those who had never seen the unseen would lose their minds the first time a spirit terrorized them. Bella understood; this was beyond logic. They were currently trapped in the Other Side.
It was a sacred realm inhabited by demons—a place that would relentlessly hunt and terrorize living souls until they perished.
Furthermore, the higher they climbed the mountain, the stronger the dimension of the supernatural became.
"Hahahaha... Hahahaha..." Rio's sudden burst of laughter drew their attention.
They clicked on their flashlights, pointing the beams directly at Rio, who was now standing with his back to the large tree. Rio, who had been sitting, was now standing with his head bowed, laughing loudly.
The hair on the back of Tyas's neck stood up instantly. The forest was pitch black, and the flashlights only illuminated Rio as he roared with laughter. Tyas instinctively grabbed Yono's arm.
Their eyes were locked on Rio. His laughter was so booming it felt as though it was crushing their very souls. They were paralyzed by shock and fear.
"Hahahaha... Pr... Prey!" Rio growled.
That wasn't his voice. Rio's voice was never that heavy. Every time he spoke, he hissed like a serpent.
What Bella saw now was a body possessed by something evil—a serpent-headed demon. Bella let out a small gasp and closed her eyes; her head was throbbing painfully.
"You must get out of here, Bella," said the voice of Albert, a Dutch ghost who often followed her.
"How do I get out of here?" Bella asked him internally.
"Just leave your friend here! Besides, anyone who commits an offense on the mountain will never be safe," Albert told her.
"Damn it! This ghost's advice is just as selfish!" Bella thought to herself.
The possession did not last long.
Rio eventually collapsed, losing consciousness. As Bella stepped forward to check on him, her other friends remained frozen, too afraid to move.
A pair of massive hands from the darkness of the wilderness was watching Bella. She knelt before the unconscious Rio.
"Bella!" Pram called out.
Bella turned her head back toward them. She saw her friends staring at her with wide eyes, their expressions filled with pure, unadulterated terror.
Bella didn't understand the look at first. But when she turned back to the front, a pair of large, black hands snatched her, dragging her deep into the forest.
Bella stayed silent; she didn't scream. Not because she wasn't afraid, but because no sound would escape her lips. She was silenced by the darkness of the demon's grip.
She felt her consciousness fading as she heard the distant screams of her friends scattering in the dark.
"Brother... Dika..." Bella whispered soundlessly.
That silent plea reached Dika, who was currently standing at the mountain's registration gate. Dika stood there with Rachel and Marsya. Equipped with full hiking gear, they were ready to explore the peaks to find Bella.
Dika knew his sister was in danger because one of Bella's astral companions had delivered the message. Bella was Dika's younger sister, as well as a sibling to Rachel and Marsya.
"Let's go!" Dika said after a brief prayer.
His burning spirit made Rachel and Marsya look at each other. There was no sadness on his face, only his usual stoic expression.
"How are we going to find her, Dika?" Marsya asked as they followed him.
"An innocent human must not be devoured by the guardians here!" Dika replied.
"That's what Marsya is asking! How exactly will we find her?" Rachel interjected.
"It seems you've started asking a lot of questions lately, Rachel," Dika said with a small smile.
"You crazy kid! Your sister is missing, swallowed by the Other Side, and you're standing there smiling!" Rachel snapped, frustrated.
Dika only laughed. The three of them began their trek into Mount Lawu, navigating through the dense, tangled forest.
"As long as I'm here, everything will be fine! But sometimes, there must be a sacrifice if we want to save someone from the Other Side," Dika said, staring straight ahead.
Rachel understood the weight of those words. It meant that someone might have to die for them to bring Bella back.