TUH

  “I thought I would hate the people that killed my family forever, but I remembered one day Ms. Crystal bought back some magazines back from town. In one of them was an article about the revolt that took place in my country. I finally realized why the people were so angry. They were suffering, with no food or jobs, dying from hunger and disease. My parents, as it turned out were bad rulers. They treated their own well but disregarded our people like trash.”

  Moon gazed into the distance, then turned to me and gave me that sweet smile once again.

  “Beanie, you asked me what I want. I don’t want anything. The universe kept me alive and now I want to serve it. From the very first time I came here I already knew that this was my home. I want to stay here forever. It’s a place that makes me feel like… I’m special but not so special to be worshiped… like I’m just the same as everyone else but no one else is exactly like me. You know?”

  “Believe in fate and yourself Beanie. Everything in life has its good and bad, but that quality is what makes it so beautiful. Nothing can be perfect but nothing can be the absolute worst either. There’s always good to be found.”

  Moon gave me her blue flower, hoping I could bring it back to Earth and plant it somewhere beautiful to spread her spirit. She also wanted me to bring back messages for each of the kids.

  “Will I see you again, Moon?”

  “Let’s not guess, let fate and our hearts decide.”

  “I’m not going back to Earth.”

  21

  Achilles’ School

  I would never forget this one particular orphanage that I stayed at for over a year. It resembled one of those grand mansions with a beautiful and lush garden you see in the magazines. However, the interior was cold and dark. The place gave you the goose bumps whenever you stepped inside. The hallway outside our dorm room was long, dark and scary. The lights that hung on either side of the wall flickered on and off whenever you walk by. It seemed that no one ever bother to fix them. At night none of the kids dared to venture out into the hallway because rumors of creepy laughter and ghosts ran wild at the orphanage.

  On one particular night, this one little girl had an accident in her pants and the awful smell began filling the dorm. All the other kids were screaming at her and making fun of her. She was crying but was still too afraid to go out into the hallway by herself to the bathroom. I felt really bad, so I volunteered to go with her. We got to the bathroom safely and I helped her wash up and change. On our way back, the hallway looked darker than usual, some of the lights on the wall must have gone off again. We walked quietly but at the rapid pace towards our dorm room. As we passed by the stairway the sound of creepy laugher suddenly broke the silence, which caused both of us to tremble violently. That little girl burst out crying and sprinted back to the room.

  I, on the other hand, decided to investigate where it came from. I carefully walked downstairs without making any noise, hid behind the banisters and peeked. There I saw…

  The night shift janitor was on his break, sitting in the corner of the room and happily watching a show on his small portable TV.

  “SHE SAID WHAT!?”

  Einstein, Nightingale and Da Vinci just stood there, staring at me with their mouths opened as if I just told them something completely crazy and unbelievable.

  Well, I guess I did.

  “And you didn’t stop her!?” Einstein yelled. “She can’t do that! You go back there and bring her out!”

  “But she…” I paused because I didn’t know if I should tell them what Moon told me earlier.

  “We came here together, we leave together!” Einstein kept shouting. “No one can be left behind!”

  “Kid.” Fairy interrupted. “Even if she goes back with you now, she still won’t stay with you forever. You all have to say your farewell to each other one day.”

  “But… I just think she’s too young to make a decision like this…” Einstein’s shoulder dropped. “And I’ll miss her…” His voice became soft and weak.

  Nightingale lowered her head as if she was finally agreeing with him on something.

  “She chose to stay here but it also means she’ll remember you forever. You know that, right, kids?” Fairy said, trying to console everyone.

  We all stopped talking. The mood became noticeably dark.

  “Oh, Key Holder.” Fairy turned to me. “Didn’t she have some messages for each one of them?”

  “Oh Yes.” I rubbed my hands.

  “Nightingale, Moon said she loves you, she’ll always be your best friends and will always be there for you in your heart whenever you miss her or need her.”

  Nightingale smiled while a single tear rolled down her cheek.

  “Da Vinci, Moon said thank you for the things you have shared with her, she’ll always pray for you.”

  Da Vinci nodded as if he understood the secret meaning behind this message.

  “How about ME?” Einstein impatiently shouted. “What she wants to say to me?”

  “She said sorry, hope you understand why she’s not coming back and that you’ll forgive her… and…” I gulped.

  “AND WHAT?”

  I leaned over and whispered in his ear.

  “NO! HELL NO!” He jumped back and threw Nightingale an awkward glance. “MOON DIDN’T SAY THAT! YOU LIE!”

  Nightingale narrowed her eyes at first, and then her eyebrows jumped up.

  “HELL NO FROM ME TOO!”

  They didn’t realize it but they just agreed with each other twice in one day!!

  “Let’s go get Achilles and go back to Earth now.” Einstein crossed his arms while purposely avoiding eye contact with Nightingale. She just rolled her eyes and grunted.

  “Which school is Achilles in exactly, Fairy?” I asked.

  “Well… he is neither in Science, Physics nor Sports.”

  “Then where is he?” The three of us asked in unison.

  “He’s in the School of Battle.”

  “Achilles’ School is the SCHOOL OF BATTLE???” I screamed. I couldn’t believe there was a school like that in here. “That doesn’t sound like a good school!”

  “Well.” Fairy sighed. “You have to understand battling and fighting are part of all society and living beings. They fight for control and they fight for needs, for this is all just a process of evolution. However, we do attempt to teach students to fight with honor, respect and courage.”

  “I heard a rumor about this school.” Nightingale interrupted in a strange tone. “I heard that ever since the new president took over, it had been trying to introduce more negative elements to its students. Also, since it was one of the most powerful leaders in TUH, no one dared to question it, but I heard reason for all of this was…”

  “I think it’s nonsense.” Fairy interrupted her. “None of the Tuher would ever want to expose negative elements to any student. It’s the beings themselves, they fight for power, money, hate and jealousy instead of fighting for justice and what’s right. We try to direct the students to fight for the right reason but it’s very difficult. All beings start out pure and simple, unburdened by the pressure and negativity of growing up in a harsh environment. You must remember that everything has two sides, the black and white, the good and bad and the right and wrong. This is how the universe stays balanced. When something seems very strong, it must also have a weak side. Since beings are becoming more advanced and complex, their positive emotions, as well as the negative are also reaching a higher point. The negative emotions came to dominate and beings started fighting for own desires and not for the right reason. To be honest with you kids, I have never been to the School of Battle. Most of the Tuher don’t go there. It’s a dangerous place to go if you don’t know how to control your feelings and emotions. It’s a place that will bring out deep-seeded anger and sadness without you even noticing it. You need a particular teacher when you go there.”

  It didn’t sound like a school I want to go to.

  It didn’t sound like a school
that I could find Achilles easily.

  But we had to go, we had to find Achilles and bring him back.

  School of Battle was located in an isolated area near the border of TUH School. As we got closer, the spacious and clean street became narrow and cluttered with debris. The temperature also began to drop rapidly and the sky turned to a dark green.

  “What’s that smell!?” Da Vinci held his nose. “You guys smell that?”

  “No… EWWWW. I smell it now!” Einstein covered his nose and mouth with his hands, followed by Nightingale and me.

  “What’s that!? It’s worse than the way the bathroom smell after I’m done using it!” He frowned.

  “Ki… kid… kids…” Fairy called, its body turned gray and its feathers were trembling.

  “I have really sensitive sense of smell… I don’t… don’t think I can…” It stopped moving and fell to the ground.

  “Oh NO!” Nightingale rushed over to see if it was okay.

  “It’s fine, it just fainted from the stench.” She picked Fairy up and put it on her shoulder.

  “So weak!” Einstein muttered with a scowl.

  We made our way up a hill and all of sudden the temperature went from freezing to boiling hot. It was probably well over 100 degrees, so hot in fact that all of us were dripping sweat and could barely move forward anymore. The condition got so rough that even Einstein didn’t have the energy to complain anymore, all you could hear was the sound of rapid breathing.

  “Guys.” Da Vinci panted. “I think something is there.”

  Looking ahead, we saw a dark figure emerged from a cloud of thick red fog, heading towards us. We all froze.

  “Wha… wha… what is that?...” Einstein started to panic. He began moving backwards but accidentally tripped over a small rock, but luckily Da Vinci was able to catch him.

  I squinted intensely at the dark figure and then burst out in a smile.

  “D!!!!!” I sprinted over and hugged him. I was never happier to see him then at this very moment.

  “Hello, Key Holder.” D gently patted my head. “Fun trip in TUH so far?”

  “Except this one!”

  “Beanie, Who’s he?” Einstein asked with a scowl.

  “He’s my Teacher. You can call him D”

  “Can you help us to find Achilles? Or you are just as useless as Fairy?” Einstein asked in a very rude manner.

  “I’m so sorry. Please ignore him.” I dragged D away immediately.

  We kept pushing forward until we reach an enormous wall that blocked our path. The wall was covered with this black gooey liquid that gave off a disgusting smell, like rotting meat or a dead animal. We all kept our distances, except for Da Vinci, he was the only one brave enough to get close and investigate.

  “I think I saw a face…” Da Vinci leaned forward with his hands over his nose.

  “Get away from it, it’s poison, it will make you sick.” Nightingale pulled him back frantically.

  “GUYS! DON’T BE AFRAID!” Einstein abruptly shouted.

  “This wall is not a wall!” He said while giggling like crazy, I wondered if the smell was somehow affecting his brain. “I’m sure we can just walk through it! Here, let me show you…”

  “NO! EINSTEIN! Don’t touch it!!” Nightingale shrieked, but Einstein ignored her and proceeded to stick his arm into the wall. Half away through, he paused and stopped moving completely. Suddenly, he began to scream, which caused the rest of us to scream as well.

  “What’s going on!???” Nightingale shouted. “What’s wrong, Einstein!?”

  “It’s stuck.” He moaned. He tried pulling out his arm but it wouldn’t budge.

  “I told you not to touch it!”

  We tried helping but gave up moments later because Einstein would not stop screaming about how we were going to pull his arm off. He then went on to whine and cry about how he was going to die here without ever having kissed a girl. What a drama queen.

  “WHO’S MAKING ALL THAT NOISE!!!???”

  A hideous and monstrous face emerged from the wall with Einstein’s arm in its mouth. It then proceeded to spit out his arm which caused Einstein to fall backwards on to the ground. We were all terrified and no one dared to make a move.

  The face had pair of devil horns, eyes that glow like fire, grotesque skin and big mouth with large sharp teeth.

  “I like horror movies.” Einstein sobbed. “But this is too much?”

  “WHO ARE YOU? WHAT ARE YOU DOING IN MY SCHOOL?” It roared. “This isn’t a playground. NOW LEAVE.”

  All of us were shaking from fear, no one dared to answer back. I looked to D and he nodded as if encouraging me to be brave.

  “We’re here for our student.” I spoke in a soft voice. “Can… can you help us?”

  “NO.” It answered quickly. “Aren’t you a Key Holder? Why don’t you just connect with your student and call him out? Or does he prefer to stay here instead going back to your boring planet?”

  “No… no…” I stuttered nervously. “You don't understand, I’m a new Key Holder so I can’t…”

  “I DON’T NEED TO UNDERSTAND.” It shouted angrily. I flinched and stopped talking completely.

  “IM NOT INTERESTED IN HELPING YOU EITHER.” It snorted and smoke came out of its nostrils. “LEAVE. NOW.”

  “I believe Key Holder is allowed to go in and find the student herself.” D finally spoke up.

  “Of course she can, D. BUT, are you sure that’s what you want her to do? It’s her first time in TUH.” The face said with a sinister smile.

  “Can you come with me?” I turned to D.

  “No. He can’t.” The face rejected me immediately.

  “Let me tell you something, Key Holder, not many of you dare to come in here, and even if they did, none of them ever got out.” It produced a creepy laugh. I was frightened beyond belief.

  “HOWEVER, it was always fun to see you kids suffer. I love it.” Its wicked eyes lit up. “So, I’ll make you a onetime deal. If you choose to come in, I’ll let you bring your friends with you. But, be warned, you’ll have to battle to get your friend out.”

  “Battle? What battle!?” Einstein and Nightingale asked in unison.

  “Your student will be waiting for you somewhere behind this wall. You’ll have to find him yourself. Inside the campus you’ll see these creatures called Black and White roaming around. White will give you directions and while Black will challenge you to a game. In order to move forward you have to beat it. However, if you lose, one of you has to go into the punishment cage and stay there. If anyone of you can find the student you’re looking before you all end up in a cage, then everyone will be set free.”

  “And if we can’t?” Nightingale asked.

  “If you can’t, all of you will be imprisoned in the punishment cage to serve me forever. You’ll never be able to go back to your planet.”

  The face breathed at rapid pace, as if it was excited.

  “SO, WHAT YOU SAY, KEY HOLDER? I THINK YOU SHOULD COME IN, I GUARANTEE IT WILL BE MUCH MORE INTERESTING AND FUN THAN ANYTHING YOU HAVE EXPERIENCED SO FAR!”

  “HOWEVER, it was always fun to see you kids suffer. I love it.”

  22

  11

  When you were little, you didn’t need CONFIDENCE or even knew what it was. You didn’t have a good understanding of the world around you so the fear of trying anything new didn’t really exist.

  As you got older, you began to realize that results mattered to people. You could do well or bad and you could come in first or last. Competitions encompassed all aspect of life and everyone was a judge.

  Your childhood innocence, little by little was slowly chipped away until you began to hesitate, worry and wonder if you had enough ability or talent. You began doubting yourself and making excuses to not try anything new.

  The fear and doubts you had would ultimately prevent you from moving forward and leave you saying to yourself in the end - I have no confidence, I don’t believe
in myself and I don’t think I can win.

  “What should we do now?”

  The frustration began to mount as Nightingale, Da Vinci, Einstein and I stood in a circle, staring at each other. Meanwhile, D helped Fairy gather itself and they began talking privately about something behind us.

  “I said we go, we can beat them!” Nightingale confidently proclaimed.

  “I said we DON’T.” Einstein disagreed with her, as usual. “This is too risky. We have to ask for help. It doesn’t make any sense that going through battle is the only way to get Achilles out. What if we all end up stuck in there? Earth needs us to go back! Beanie, I think you should ask D, there must be someone in TUH who can help. This is ridiculous!“

  “No one can help you, kids.” D said. He must have heard us. “You’re the one in charge of Earth now. You’re the only one who can make the decision for your own future.”

  “That’s INSANE!” Einstein shouted back. “We’re just kids! How can we decide the fate of Earth!? How can we be responsible for all those lives!?”

  “No.” D shook his head. “You don’t decide the fate of Earth, you only serve it. You’re making a decision for yourself, not it. Earth will always find a way to continue to survive with or without you.”

  “What’s he talking about?” Einstein glared at me. “Does he really know what’s happening here?”

  I shrugged.

  “What’s that sound?” Da Vinci turned to me.

  “What sound?” I scowled.

  Everyone stopped talking.

  “Beep.”

  I looked down, OH NO. The alarm Secretary gave me just went off.

  “Guys, we are running out of time. We have to decide now.” I clenched my fists.

  “Like I said earlier.” Nightingale exclaimed. “Let’s just go in and get Achilles!”

  “It’s too dangerous!” Einstein protested again.

  “I thought he’s your best friend!” She glared at him. “And you know if he doesn't come out and go back with us this time, you’ll never see him again! We already lost Moon and you want to lose Achilles too!?”