01. WHERE AM I?

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Just a clear reminder that this is purely a work of fiction and anything can be made possible. Try to read Volume 1 so you can understand some aspects of the book however if you feel like a genius that can complete a whole second volume and still understand it without going through the first volume then go ahead. 

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   "Haaaaaaaa" 

That was Jane's scream as she landed on a grassy ground. She had been rolling non-stop ever since she got into that portal. She groaned and slowly, her hands reached out to her back to massage the aching part. Her eyes which had been tightly shut when coming down slowly opened, adjusting to the dark scenery she had found herself in. 

Jane sat up gently with fear in her heart and looked around. What time was it? Where was she? She remembered falling into that portal - was that why she was here? 

   "Allen? Drake? Charlotte?" She whispered. 

It wouldn't be right for her to yell nor would it make sense not to because this was a strange land. Where the hell was she? 

It wasn't that dark though as she could still see her surroundings so she slowly stood up and turned around. There was no entrance, no portal of any sort that could take her back. It was just a flowing stream that parted the green grass. 

   "Where am I? Will anyone be able to find me in this place?" She whispered and before she knew it, tears slowly came out of her eyes. She was scared. If she had known, she should have listened to Allen. She shouldn't have gone to the forbidden building and now see the result. 

She braced herself up, not knowing the kind of danger she would find herself in. She crossed the stream gently and landed on the other side of the grassy area. 

Her surroundings were beautiful to look upon. If not because of her current predicament, she would have loved to just sit still and enjoy the scenery but she needed to get out of her. 

She started walking as fast as she could, looking for a path that led out of the place. She finally found a narrow one and increased her pace, her breathing becoming heavy. Maybe she would be able to find a soul there - maybe a human or anything that would signify that she wasn't alone. 

But on the contrary, what if she was alone indeed? That would certainly make her run mad before she knew it. Nevertheless, she still wanted to hold tight to the little spring of hope that she had within her - a hope as small as a mustard seed. 

Then suddenly, she sighted what looked like a door and she stopped on getting to that area. What was a door doing in the middle of nowhere? Was it a real door? 

She bit her lips and looked around nervously for any sign of help aside from this but nothing - absolute blankness. 

   "In 3...2...1" She pulled the door's handle and a bright light faced her directly, making her cover her face most especially her eyes. She could have been blinded. Despite her not being able to see anything yet, she still went through in and the door shut. Everywhere became silent again so she quickly looked up and what she saw scared her. 

A whole thick forest was in front of her. 

   "Forest or jungle?" She asked herself. Whichever it was! She was damn scared! 

The door was not behind her anymore except for another huge forest. Everywhere was silent, not even the sounds of birds could be heard - absolute silence as related to a graveyard. This gripped the poor Jane with fear and she continued crying. Oh how much she missed her brother and her life - her school life most especially. By this time now, she could still be sleeping. Hell, what, she didn't even know what the time was! 

Suddenly the clouds changed to another color, it was now faintly red. Another scary event. Thunderstruck and she screamed, falling to the ground and curling up instead with her body shaking. It seemed almost as if her heart was going to burst out any moment and leave her alone to face her ordeal. The thunder kept striking hard - was there a war? Whatever was going on wasn't clear to her except the fact that this was terrifying. 

She didn't move nor did she bother to lift her head to see anything. Jane just remained in that position terrified to death. Maybe she would be struck with lightning now. Oh dear dreams, goodbye. 

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[Back to Earth]

[Duration: Two months]

Xander bursts into the room frustratedly. Sitting on the chair was Drake. He was eating his apple while scrolling through the news. Xander didn't say anything at first, he was walking up and down the room hoping that Drake would finally pay attention to him but he didn't and this infuriated him the more so he went ahead, grabbed the apple he was eating and slammed it against the wall. 

    "Are you stupid?!" He yelled aggressively at him.

Drake rolled his eyes and finally let out a deep sigh before going offline. He put the iPad beside him and entangled his fingers before looking at the young man whose half buttons were undone. 

   "What is it?" He calmly asked and Xander chuckled like a Maniac. 

   "What's it? You are asking what is it? Are you for real? Can't you see the problem we are in!" He shouted the more and Drake leaned against the chair with his hands folded. 

   "I can't see anything if you keep behaving like this."

Unable to bear Drake's nonchalant attitude towards him anymore, with his fast reflexes, Drake found himself pinned against the wall with Xander holding him by the throat. His breathing was heavier and his eyes were slowly changing. 

Before Drake could think of a way to escape, someone else came to his rescue and pushed Xander against the wall instead unexpectedly while Drake coughed hard. Kyle was the hero of the day and he seemed to be angry at his brother. 

    "What has gone into your head, Xander? Are you drunk?" He scolded him. 

   "I guess not. It's eight in the morning." Drake replied as Kyle slowly let go of Xander after the latter was back to normal. He sighed heavily and withdrew his steps before facing Drake. 

   "What's going on? Any progress so far?" He asked and Drake shook his head. 

   "None. I can't contact Allen and there is no way for me to get through to Jane too. Seeing as she is a first-timer and a stranger to that place, she might be jumping from frying pan to fire and then to the grave lastly at this minute." He answered and sat down again. 

   "But it's been two months already. I am tired of answering Old Madam Ryan the same question. The woman doesn't even believe me - no one does anymore. The business is getting too much for me and Ben to handle alone and Stephen seemed to be getting suspicious. Our lies are getting weaker by the second." Xander complained while Kyle stared at the floor in silence.

It's been a while since Allen and Jane disappeared. Xander had lied that the former took the latter on a trip that was going to last a while and that they wanted to be alone without any interruptions but Old Madam Ryan had complained that she was worried about Jane's schooling and that she needed to see her. It was disrespectful of them to just leave without saying anything. 

Somehow, the lies were not working anymore. 

   "Boys, let's be patient and give Allen time. He will surely bring her back very soon and until then, I will look for another option that can help us out." Drake finally spoke up. 

   "Better," Xander answered and exited the room, his cold aura followed behind him.