"Aaargh! It's so cold!" Noriala screamed, shivering.
"It's definitely cold out here! That's why I told you to wear a sweater earlier!" Rihisna replied, scanning a massive gateway.
"Where are we? Why are we in a place like this!" Noriala said, following Rihisna's lead.
Rihisna touched the gateway. The massive gate appeared to be five times the size of a human. There were carvings of unusual script all around the area. Noriala watched Rihisna's actions from behind while hugging herself to stay warm.
"What writing is this? I've never seen it before," Noriala asked, squinting to understand the script.
"Oh! You don't know? This is ancient script," Rihisna replied, grasping a knob that was larger than her hand.
"Ancient script? Can you read it?" Noriala asked again.
Rihisna didn't answer; his immediately pressed the round black knob.
"Akub utnip Teratak Gana!" Rihisna suddenly recited the phrase loudly.
Light emerged from the knob Rihisna pressed, turning a glowing bright red. The door vibrated slowly and began to open inch by inch. Noriala was shocked by what she saw. Rihisna merely smiled with excitement. Rihisna dashed inside instantly using the wind iktas on her feet, leaving Noriala behind. Noriala ran in after her.
"Hey, old man! How are you!" Rihisna stopped the wind iktas on her feet and greeted an old man with a long beard who sat hunched over in a chair.
"You could have waited for me!" Noriala shouted, out of breath.
"Oh right! Noriala, meet Gana," Rihisna said.
"Huh? Is this your father? I'm sorry, I am Noriala Irmina," Noriala bowed as she introduced herself.
"Hahaha, no, this is my master, Tok Gana," Rihisna chuckled.
"Then where are your parents?" Noriala asked.
Rihisna didn't answer; instead, he walked further in.
"Where are you going?" Noriala tried to chase after her.
"Eh? No need to follow, go chat with Tok Gana," Rihisna rushed off with her wind iktas.
The interior of Teratak Gana was vast and grand. Books were the most common sight. There were thousands of them, some neatly arranged and others scattered along with papers on towering bookshelves. Above, several large torches were suspended. Torches were also lined up every few meters along the walls. Uniquely, the floor glowed like a torch, though no physical torches were visible on the ground.
"He didn't tell you?" Tok Gana suddenly spoke.
"Erm, no. his only told me the name of this place," Noriala replied, shaking her head.
"As expected. Come, sit here," Tok Gana invited her.
A chair and table emerged from the floor near Tok Gana. Noriala was stunned by the iktas Tok Gana used. She had never seen anything like it. She stepped forward slowly to sit down.
"Forgive me, there is no food here. Well, I never invite guests," Tok Gana said, holding his staff.
Noriala looked Tok Gana up and down. He wore a faded white robe that reached the floor. On his head was a tattered, worn out black wizard like hat. His body was thin, but not overly so. On his hands, she saw what looked like animal scales. His face was wrinkled by age.
"Oh, it's okay. Anyway, we just had breakfast earlier," Noriala said with a smile.
"So, does Rihisna know what coffee tastes like now?" Tok Gana asked, gesturing his hand toward a bookshelf.
"Yeah, he's tried it. Tok Gana, you know, he was so excited," Noriala replied with a grin.
A book flew toward Tok Gana and opened by itself on the table.
"Wow! Does Tok Gana know gravity iktas?" Noriala asked excitedly.
"Yes, I know many types of iktas, including ancient iktas arts," Tok Gana replied while flipping through the book.
"Have you been friends with Rihisna for long?" Tok Gana asked, pausing his reading.
"Erm? Not really, I think we've only known each other for five days," Noriala replied.
"So you've made a pact with Rihisna?" Tok Gana looked at Noriala's right palm.
"Oh? How did Tok Gana know about this?" Noriala was shocked by the question.
"I know many things. Besides, I see a mark of a tapered sword on your palm," Tok Gana replied, looking away.
Tok Gana saw Rihisna appear with his wind iktas and stand beside Noriala.
"Hey! Did you have fun chatting with Tok Gana?" Rihisna whispered.
"Kind of. Tok Gana knows a lot of things. I want to know is that scales on his hand or a scar?" Noriala whispered back.
"That's the thing. If you want to know, Tok Gana isn't actually human," Rihisna whispered even more quietly.
"I can hear you!" Tok Gana suddenly spoke quite loudly as he walked toward a corner where a chest was located.
"Oops! Busted! hahaha," Rihisna laughed while scratching her head.
"You'd better tell her, Rihisna," Tok Gana said, opening the chest.
"Ermm Noriala, I'm sorry! I didn't tell you that my parents have been gone for a long time. Tok Gana has been the one taking care of me. In fact, I never even knew what my parents looked like, hehehe," Rihisna made a cute face to convince Noriala and smiled.
"You don't have to apologize. You didn't do anything wrong. And stop making that cute face!" Noriala replied teasingly.
"Oh really? Was I making a cute face? Hmmm?" Rihisna looked confused.
"Yes! But why didn't you tell me about your parents earlier?" Noriala asked, feeling a bit emotional.
"I didn't want you to be sad." Rihisna went over to Tok Gana, who was busy searching for something in the chest.
Noriala only gave a weak smile without saying a word.
"Tok Gana! What have you been looking for? It looks important." Rihisna asked, peeking over Tok Gana's shoulder.
"I'm looking for a tool to stabilize the iktas elements," Tok Gana replied, pulling out an object shaped like paper covered in ancient script and symbols.
"Oh right! Tok Gana, can you help stabilize my iktas?" Rihisna asked excitedly.
"I can. But first, I want to stabilize your friend's iktas," Tok Gana walked slowly with his staff toward the table.
"Huh? You mean Noriala?" Rihisna followed Tok Gana slowly.
Tok Gana didn't answer and headed straight for Noriala, who was sitting down. He took a piece of paper from the chest and placed it on Noriala's forehead. Noriala was startled and stood up. Tok Gana signaled her to stay still. His mouth moved quickly, reciting something Noriala had never heard before.
"Nagned nautnab satrek ini halnaklibats rusnu aynsakti id malad hubuh!" Tok Gana chanted the mantra loudly while holding the paper to her forehead.
"Eh, nothing happened?" Rihisna's voice was suddenly heard.
"Of course nothing happened on the outside, because it happens inside the body," Tok Gana released the paper and placed it on the table.
"Okay! Now it's my turn!" Rihisna stood tall near the table, ready. He took the paper, placed it on his forehead, and closed his eyes.
"Ouch! Why, Tok Gana? Did I do something wrong?" Rihisna cried out in pain after being thwacked by Tok Gana's staff.
"You can't use this paper! Because yours is not iktas!" Tok Gana said loudly.
From a distance, Noriala giggled at Rihisna's antics.
"Then what is mine?" Rihisna asked, removing the paper from her forehead.
"Yours is an ancient power called MANTRA and LANA," Tok Gana replied, bringing his staff close to Rihisna's body.
"Ooh! No wonder when I said MANTRALANA! it appeared," Rihisna said, understanding.
"Sit still! I need to focus!" Tok Gana commanded.
For a moment, Rihisna stood straight with her eyes closed. Tok Gana, with a furrowed brow, took a stance, sliding his right foot back. Tok Gana tapped his staff on the floor and stood upright. Circles of light appeared beneath Rihisna's feet and above her head.
"Naganed asauk yang adauk! halnakkusam MANTRA nad LANA adap hubuh kabud ini nagned hunep! agomes aynai tapad lawakid!" Tok Gana opened his eyes wide and shouted the ancient words, gripping his staff tightly with both hands.
An aura could be felt throughout Teratak Gana, some parts felt peaceful and calm, while others felt eerie and terrifying. Bright white and dark black auras spread across Rihisna's body, rising upward. Meanwhile, Rihisna slowly levitated off the ground.
A loud explosion of white light shook the entire area of Teratak Gana. Noriala shielded her eyes with her hands, while Tok Gana lifted his staff from the floor. For a moment, white dust fell like light rain, making the scene beautiful. Rihisna slowly descended to the floor.
"Fuhhh, Eh? I can feel myself touching the floor? Ermmm, yahooo!" Rihisna opened her eyes slowly, looked at her feet, and jumped with joy.
"It is finished, hmmm," Tok Gana sat in his chair to rest.
"Yay! Yay! I can touch the floor!" Rihisna ran around happily like a child.
Noriala was surprised by Rihisna's behavior. She immediately went to Tok Gana, who looked exhausted.
"Are you okay, Tok Gana?" Noriala asked instinctively.
"I'm fine, just a bit tired. I haven't done that in a long time," Tok Gana replied, catching his breath.
"Tok Gana, why is Rihisna so happy?" Noriala asked, watching Rihisna who hadn't stopped running.
"He's that happy because he can finally feel the floor," Tok Gana sighed.
"Has he never touched the floor before?" Noriala sat beside him.
"He has. But ever since he left this place, he hasn't walked," Tok Gana replied, watching Rihisna with a smile.
After running for a long time, Rihisna stopped and quickly headed toward Noriala.
"Noriala, come here! I'll show you my room!" Rihisna said excitedly, pulling Noriala's hand.
"Eh?! Your room? What for?" Noriala was taken aback.
After running for a while, they reached a small cave and went inside...
"Tada! This is my room, isn't it pretty?" Rihisna introduced it with an excited tone.
Noriala was speechless, amazed by what she saw. Books were stacked neatly all the way to the top, thousands of them. Light shone down from a large hole in the ceiling. Everything was tidy, except for a corner with a table where a large book lay open. To the left and right of the table were candles lighting the area. Old books were scattered on the floor and on the seat. There were also leaves scattered around as if they had fallen from trees.
"Sorry it's messy, I forgot to clean up before I left," Rihisna said, busy searching for something among the books on the floor.
"What are you looking for? It seems important," Noriala asked while looking at the massive book on the table.
"I'm looking for a certain book. I meant to bring it before leaving, but I forgot," Rihisna replied, searching the nearby shelf.
"Go back to Tok Gana first," Rihisna instructed.
"Eh? I want to help you find it!" Noriala protested.
"No need! Tok Gana is calling you, go on," Rihisna insisted.
"What? I didn't hear anything?" Noriala was puzzled.
Without wasting time, Noriala went back to Tok Gana and sat down. Tok Gana was searching for something on a bookshelf.
"Did you call me, Tok Gana?" Noriala asked.
"Sit a moment, I want to say something," Tok Gana sat beside her.
"Inside your body, there are two iktas elements. Now, you can use the second one. You already know your first element is fire, right?" Tok Gana explained and asked.
"Yeah, it's fire. How did Tok Gana know?" Noriala answered, puzzled.
"I told you, I know many things," Tok Gana replied, opening a book.
"Oh right! Rihisna told me earlier, hehehe," Noriala laughed at Tok Gana's answer.
"Wait! So the other element is..." Before Noriala could finish her question...
"You will find out soon, don't worry," Tok Gana interrupted.
"One more thing! Please look after Rihisna. I mean, teach he how to socialize, about sadness, anger, shyness, the meaning of sacrifice, suffering, and love," Tok Gana suddenly stopped flipping through the book and stared seriously at Noriala.
"Huh? Oh... okay... then!" Noriala replied, stammering.
"It's just that since he was little, he has never known the outside world freely. All this time, he only knew the world from the books he read. His whole life since birth was spent mostly with the books here," Tok Gana explained at length.
Noriala's face filled with emotion, and her eyes welled up. She didn't know why she felt this way.
"I promise I will take care of her, Tok Gana!" Noriala said firmly yet sadly, raising her right hand as if making an oath.
"Hrmmm... good. I am happy he finally has a close friend. I thought he came here alone," Tok Gana said, smiling.
Noriala was touched; this was the first time since she arrived that she saw Tok Gana smile so happily.
"The world is full of falsehood, yet it is beautiful!" Suddenly, the atmosphere shifted as Rihisna spoke those words, walking out of his room toward them while carrying a book.
"You found the book, good. Come here, Rihisna," Tok Gana commanded, standing up.
"What do you want me to do, Tok Gana?" Rihisna asked, looking at the book Tok Gana was holding.
"I want both of you to place your hands on this book," Tok Gana directed them, opening a page that featured a circle and a rectangle symbol.
"Do you mean the hand with the mark?" Rihisna asked, looking at the sword shaped mark on his palm.
Noriala said nothing; instead, she immediately placed her hand on the circle symbol on the right page. Rihisna placed his square symbol on the left page.
"Now! With this mark! You two have concluded this place Teratak Gana!" Tok Gana said in a stern voice.
"Hrmmm, so this is why you told me to find a close friend, Tok Gana," Rihisna said, his voice trembling as he held back tears.
"Yes, Rihisna, the time has come for me to go," Tok Gana replied softly.
"Oh right! King Augus sends his regards, Tok Gana!" Rihisna quickly pulled his hand away and grabbed another book from the table.
Suddenly, a light emerged from Tok Gana's body. The light enveloped him and transformed him into a giant creature. Rihisna and Noriala looked up, bathed in the glow. Tok Gana's form turned into a dragon with six eyes, wings, and a tail. Rihisna simply smiled at the transformation.
"So Tok Gana was a dragon all along? So all this time Rihisna lived with..." Noriala whispered in her heart, unable to finish the sentence due to her emotions.
"Amiret Hisak," Rihisna said with a smile.
"Amas-amas... Rihisna," Tok Gana replied, smiling back.
Rihisna and Noriala were instantly teleported back. Teratak Gana slowly vanished, leaving no trace behind.