I stopped counting.
Not because I'd forgotten the number after nine.
And not because the light was too far away to see clearly.
Quite the opposite.
I stopped because I could see it too clearly.
One extra light.
Ten.
Even though there were only nine of us.
The light moved slowly between the trees.
Up.
Down.
Then it stopped.
Like someone standing there, looking in our direction.
I swallowed.
"Joy."
Bon's voice was soft.
I didn't answer.
"Joy."
This time, it was firmer.
I turned slightly.
Bon was still facing backward, but his eyes were now fixed on me.
"Don't count it."
I frowned.
"What?"
"Don't count it again."
I stared at him.
"Why?"
Bon didn't answer.
Doy, standing beside him, spoke softly instead.
"Because we don't know what we're actually counting."
That sentence made the night air feel even colder.
I looked behind us again.
The tenth light was still there.
Small.
White.
Moving slowly between the tree trunks.
Meanwhile, our nine lights stood in a crooked line.
I could see every one of them.
One from Bon.
One from Doy.
One from Darma.
One from Ozan.
One from Fathur.
One from Adit.
One from Eka.
One from Alin.
And one from me.
Nine.
Then there was the tenth light.
I closed my eyes for a moment.
Maybe I was wrong.
Maybe there were other hikers.
Simple.
Reasonable.
Gunung Lawu didn't belong to us.
There could easily have been another group night hiking that night.
But if they really were other hikers...
why hadn't we seen anyone this whole time?
Why hadn't we heard their voices?
Why wasn't anyone talking?
Why was there only one light?
And why...
why did the light stop every time we stopped?
I opened my eyes.
The light was still there.
Then it started moving again.
Slowly.
One meter.
Two meters.
Then it stopped.
"It's following us."
Eka's voice made me turn immediately.
Eka was standing behind Alin.
His face was pale.
"Who?" Fathur asked.
Eka didn't answer.
His eyes remained fixed on the light.
"Ka," Alin called.
Eka finally turned.
"Them."
"Who are they?"
Eka drew a long breath.
I could see his lips trembling slightly.
"Hikers."
Ozan snorted.
"Obviously they're hikers."
Everyone turned to him.
Ozan shrugged.
"Why are you all looking like you've never seen a headlamp before?"
Darma immediately shot back, "Because there's only been one this whole time."
"So?"
"So there are nine of us."
Ozan pointed behind us.
"Maybe it's someone else."
"Alone?"
"Maybe."
"In the middle of the forest?"
"Maybe."
"Without making a sound?"
Ozan fell silent.
Darma looked at him.
"Exactly."
Ozan sighed.
"Fine. Maybe he's alone."
Doy spoke quietly.
"If he's human, why isn't he coming closer?"
Ozan turned.
"How do you know he isn't coming closer?"
Doy pointed at the light.
"Because the distance is the same."
We all looked again.
He was right.
The light wasn't getting closer.
It wasn't getting farther away.
As if someone were walking at exactly the same speed as us.
The palms of my hands began to sweat.
"Bon."
"Yeah."
"What if we keep going?"
Bon nodded.
"We keep going."
"What if it keeps following us?"
Bon was silent for a moment.
"Leave it alone."
"What if it comes closer?"
"Don't stop."
I nodded.
Bon raised his hand.
"Tighten up."
We started walking again.
No one complained.
No one asked questions.
No one joked.
For the first time since we started the hike, the nine of us moved like a single body.
There was no distance between us.
No one fell behind.
No one walked too far ahead.
And no one wanted to be at the back.
I walked in the middle.
Darma was on my left.
Alin was on my right.
Eka was directly in front of Alin.
I could hear them breathing.
I could hear their shoes striking the dirt.
I could hear small branches snapping beneath our feet.
Then, from behind us...
another sound began walking with us.
Tap.
Tap.
Tap.
I didn't turn around.
I knew the others heard it too.
But no one spoke.
Tap.
Tap.
Tap.
The sound followed us.
I tried to ignore it.
One step.
Two steps.
Three steps.
But the longer it went on, the clearer it became.
As if someone really were walking only a few meters behind us.
I began counting without realizing it.
Ten steps.
Twenty.
Thirty.
The sound was still there.
Then...
it vanished.
I waited.
Five seconds.
Ten seconds.
There was no sound.
I started to relax a little.
Until a branch suddenly snapped on our right.
Crack.
I turned instinctively.
"Don't!"
Doy shouted at once.
I froze.
My headlamp was still pointed to the right.
Between the trees...
there was nothing.
Only fog.
Only leaves.
Only tree trunks.
I lowered my light.
"Sorry."
Doy came closer.
"Don't look behind us."
"Why?"
"I told you."
I stared at him.
Doy didn't look like he was trying to scare us.
He was genuinely afraid.
And that was far worse.
We walked for almost twenty minutes.
No one spoke.
Every time a sound came from the forest, everyone tensed immediately.
I no longer dared to turn around.
But I could see the tenth light out of the corner of my eye.
It was still there.
Still following us.
Sometimes it appeared on the left.
Sometimes on the right.
Sometimes far away.
Sometimes close.
The strangest part was when the trail turned.
We followed the main trail to the left.
The light moved left too.
Not along the trail.
Through the trees.
For a moment, I saw it moving straight between the tree trunks.
If a human being walked there, they would have had to push through bushes and roots.
But the light simply moved.
As if nothing stood in its way.
I swallowed.
"Joy."
Darma's voice was soft.
"Hm?"
"You see it?"
I knew what he meant.
I nodded.
"Yeah."
"The thing from before?"
"Yeah."
Darma was quiet.
Then he asked, "Do you think it's a person?"
I didn't answer right away.
"I don't know."
"Most useless answer ever."
I almost smiled.
Almost.
Darma took a breath.
"If I run later..."
"Don't."
"I wasn't finished."
"Don't run."
Darma was silent again.
"What if I run because something's chasing me?"
I looked at him.
"Don't run by yourself."
Darma nodded.
"Deal."
We started walking again.
A few steps later, Darma spoke again.
"Joy."
"What?"
"If I suddenly say I see my mother..."
I turned.
Darma stared straight ahead.
"...don't believe me."
I fell silent.
"Why?"
"Because there's no way my mother could be here."
I didn't answer.
Darma smiled faintly.
"You get what I mean."
I nodded.
Yes.
I understood.
This mountain had started messing with our heads.
And maybe that was the most dangerous part.
About half an hour later, we found a slightly more open area.
Bon raised his hand.
"Stop."
Everyone stopped.
Doy immediately checked his watch.
"Are we taking a break?"
"Not for long."
Bon looked around.
"It's safe enough here."
Ozan let out a small laugh.
"Safe enough?"
Bon looked at him.
"Yeah."
"Our definition of safe changed really fast."
No one answered.
We set our bags down.
I sat on a rock.
My legs throbbed.
I opened my water bottle and took a small sip.
The water was ice-cold.
Fathur sat on the ground.
"How much farther to Checkpoint 3?"
Bon checked the GPS.
"If we're on the right trail, about twenty minutes."
"What if we're not on the right trail?"
Bon fell silent.
Fathur immediately regretted asking.
"Forget it."
Adit sat down and opened his camera.
I looked at him.
"You taking more pictures?"
Adit shook his head.
"No."
He looked at the camera as if it had just betrayed him.
"Why?"
"I don't know."
Adit opened the gallery.
"The pictures from earlier..."
"What about them?"
"The number changed."
I stood up.
"What?"
Adit turned the screen so we could see it.
The first picture we'd looked at showed a single figure in the distance.
The second showed the same figure closer.
Adit opened the third picture.
The back of my neck prickled.
The figure was gone.
But there were nine points of light.
All of them were our headlamps.
Then Adit opened the next picture.
Ten.
"When was this taken?" Doy asked.
Adit checked the photo information.
"I don't know."
"Who took it?"
"I did."
"You remember?"
Adit shook his head.
"No."
Ozan took the camera.
"The pictures could be glitching."
Doy looked at him.
"Every picture?"
Ozan didn't answer.
Adit kept opening the pictures.
The fifth picture.
Ten lights.
The sixth picture.
Ten lights.
The seventh.
Nine.
I exhaled.
"This one is normal."
Adit shook his head.
"No."
"What?"
"This picture was taken before we saw the tenth light."
I stared at him.
"You're sure?"
"Yeah."
"The time?"
Adit showed us the timestamp.
The picture had been taken about forty minutes earlier.
Before we'd seen the extra light.
I looked at the screen.
Nine lights.
Then the next picture.
Ten.
Then nine.
Then ten again.
As if our number changed every few minutes.
"Don't look anymore."
Doy's voice cut in.
Adit immediately shut the camera.
I looked at Doy.
"Why?"
Doy didn't answer.
"Why, Doy?"
He looked toward the trees.
"Because we don't know whether that camera is recording us..."
Doy stopped.
"...or counting them."
My stomach twisted.
Fathur stood up.
"We're leaving."
Bon nodded.
"Yeah."
Everyone picked up their bags.
We didn't talk about the camera again.
When we started walking again, the tenth light was no longer visible.
At first, I felt relieved.
It turned out I shouldn't have.
Because after a few minutes, I started feeling that something was wrong.
It was too quiet.
There were no footsteps.
No branches snapping.
No sounds from the forest.
Even the wind seemed to have disappeared.
I could hear my own breathing.
I could hear my wristwatch ticking.
I could hear Darma's bag zipper rubbing against the fabric.
I could hear everything.
Except the sound behind us.
And strangely...
I actually missed it.
Because when that sound disappeared, I felt even less safe.
"Bon."
"Yeah?"
"Did you notice?"
"What?"
"The light is gone."
Bon glanced back.
"Yeah."
"Do you think that's a good thing?"
Bon was silent.
"I don't know."
Doy, behind him, spoke.
"No."
I turned.
"Why?"
"Because now we don't know where it is."
That made me look straight ahead.
We kept walking.
Five minutes.
Ten minutes.
Nothing.
Until Eka suddenly stopped.
Alin nearly ran into him.
"Ka?"
Eka didn't move.
"What is it?"
Eka raised a hand.
"Quiet."
Everyone stopped.
Eka closed his eyes.
He looked like he was listening to something.
I moved closer.
"You hear something?"
Eka nodded.
"What?"
Eka opened his eyes.
"Footsteps."
I listened.
Nothing.
"Where?"
Eka pointed ahead.
"There."
We all aimed our lights in that direction.
Empty.
Eka shook his head.
"Not ahead."
"Then where?"
Eka pointed to the side.
"Below us."
I fell silent.
"Below us?"
Eka nodded.
"Someone's walking."
Ozan snorted.
"That's impossible."
Eka stared at the ground.
"I hear it."
Doy came closer.
"Don't talk."
We fell silent.
For several seconds.
Then...
duk.
Duk.
Duk.
A sound like something knocking from beneath the ground.
Fathur immediately stepped back.
"Shit."
Duk.
Duk.
Duk.
This time it was clearer.
The ground beneath our feet seemed to be tapped from below.
Not loudly.
But rhythmically.
Three times.
Then it stopped.
Three more times.
Darma looked at me.
"I don't like this."
Neither did I.
Bon gestured.
"Walk."
We moved.
Duk.
Duk.
Duk.
The sound followed us.
Checkpoint 3 finally came into view.
A wooden sign emerged from the fog.
CHECKPOINT 3.
I almost felt relieved.
We quickened our pace.
But when we arrived...
there was no one there.
The checkpoint was empty.
No other hikers.
No tents.
No lights.
Only a small, flat area with a few wooden benches.
Bon looked around.
"Let's rest for a bit."
Fathur sat down immediately.
"Thank God."
I stood beside the Checkpoint 3 sign.
Something about it was strange.
The writing on the sign looked old.
The paint was peeling.
I touched the wood.
It was wet.
"Bon."
"Yeah?"
"This is Checkpoint 3?"
"Yeah."
"You sure?"
Bon looked at the sign.
"Yeah."
Doy came over.
He read the writing.
"Checkpoint 3."
I pointed below it.
"There's something else written here."
There were several scratches at the bottom of the sign.
Like writing carved with a sharp object.
I brought my light closer.
There was a short sentence.
**DON'T WAIT FOR THEM.**
I read it softly.
Darma came over.
"Who wrote that?"
"I don't know."
Ozan came to look too.
"Just some hiker's graffiti."
Doy said nothing.
I watched his face.
"You know something?"
Doy shook his head.
"No."
"Liar."
Doy looked at me.
"Joy."
"What?"
"If I knew, I would've told you."
I didn't believe him.
But I didn't get the chance to ask anything else.
Because Adit shouted.
"Guys."
We turned.
Adit was standing beside one of the benches.
"Whose is this?"
There was a water bottle on the bench.
A clear plastic bottle.
Still full of water.
And what made us fall silent...
was that the bottle looked new.
Fathur stood up.
"Another hiker?"
Bon picked up the bottle.
It was still cold.
He looked around.
"So someone was here."
Ozan smiled.
"See?"
He looked relieved.
"Told you."
Doy took the bottle.
He sniffed the cap.
Then frowned.
"What?"
"There's no smell."
Ozan laughed.
"It's a water bottle, Doy."
Doy didn't laugh with him.
He turned the bottle over.
There was a small marking in permanent marker.
**A.**
Just one letter.
A.
I looked at Adit.
"Adit?"
Adit shook his head.
"Not mine."
Alin looked at Eka.
"Eka?"
Eka shook his head too.
"No."
Bon asked, "Alin?"
"No."
We looked at one another.
No one knew.
Bon finally put the bottle back.
"Don't touch it."
Ozan rolled his eyes.
"It's just a bottle."
"Don't."
Ozan raised his hands.
"Okay."
We prepared to continue.
That was when...
I saw something behind the Checkpoint 3 sign.
A light.
Small.
White.
I froze.
The tenth light.
This time, it wasn't far away in the forest.
It was right behind the sign.
About ten meters away.
I stared at it.
Someone was standing there.
I couldn't see their body.
Only the headlamp.
"Joy?"
Darma's voice.
I didn't answer.
The light moved.
One step.
It stopped.
One more step.
It stopped.
Coming closer.
I held my breath.
"Bon."
Bon turned.
"What?"
I pointed.
"There."
Bon looked.
His expression changed.
Doy saw it too.
No one spoke.
The light drew closer.
Five meters.
Four.
Three.
Then it stopped.
I could finally make out the figure behind the light.
A hiker.
Black jacket.
Large backpack.
Head bowed.
Exactly like the figure we'd seen before.
Fathur whispered, "He's..."
Doy immediately raised a hand.
"Don't."
The hiker stood motionless.
Then slowly raised his head.
The headlamp made his face impossible to see.
Only a black shadow.
Then...
he said, "Excuse me."
A man's voice.
Normal.
Completely normal.
Fathur immediately looked at Bon.
Bon didn't move.
The hiker continued, "Is it still far?"
No one answered.
He lifted his head a little higher.
"Checkpoint 4?"
Doy went pale.
I looked at the sign.
CHECKPOINT 3.
The hiker was behind us.
If he were an ordinary hiker, he should have come from below.
But we hadn't heard him approach.
No sound.
No breathing.
No branches snapping.
He had simply...
appeared.
Bon finally answered.
"Still a ways."
The hiker was quiet.
Then he asked, "How many people?"
My heart began pounding faster.
Bon didn't answer.
The hiker repeated, "How many people?"
Doy whispered, "Don't answer."
The hiker waited.
Then he smiled.
I could make out the faint shape of his lips.
"There should be ten."
The world seemed to stop.
Not one of us moved.
The hiker lowered his head again.
Then walked past us.
I could hear his footsteps.
Tap.
Tap.
Tap.
He walked toward the trail leading to Checkpoint 4.
Past Bon.
Past Doy.
Past Darma.
Past me.
When he was right beside me, I smelled wet earth.
Not body odor.
Not a wet jacket.
Earth.
Like someone had just climbed out of the ground.
I held my breath.
The hiker kept walking.
Five steps.
Ten steps.
Then he disappeared into the fog.
Only then did Fathur dare to speak.
"Who was that?"
No one answered.
Ozan looked pale.
"I..."
He stopped.
"What?"
"I know that voice."
Everyone turned.
"Whose voice?" Bon asked.
Ozan stared into the fog.
"It was my voice."
No one believed him right away.
Not because we didn't trust Ozan.
But because our minds were already too full of impossible things.
"You sure?" Darma asked.
Ozan nodded.
"I know my own voice."
"Similar?"
"Not similar."
Ozan swallowed.
"It was my voice."
Doy closed his eyes.
"Enough."
Ozan looked at him.
"Enough what?"
"Don't talk about it."
"Why?"
"Because now it knows whose voice to use."
Ozan didn't answer.
I looked toward the trail.
The hiker was no longer visible.
But I could still hear his footsteps.
Tap.
Tap.
Tap.
Far away.
Then farther.
Until they vanished.
Bon finally spoke.
"We're moving."
Fathur stood up immediately.
"Where?"
"Checkpoint 4."
"Why?"
"Because we can't descend the mountain from here."
Darma looked at him.
"Why not?"
Bon pointed at the trail behind us.
"We came from there."
"So?"
"The trail..."
Bon stopped.
"What?"
Bon looked again.
His face slowly changed.
"The trail is gone."
We all turned around.
I pointed my headlamp at the trail we'd just come through.
I knew for certain there had been a trail there.
We had come through it.
There had been dirt.
Roots.
A large tree.
But now...
there was only forest.
No trail.
No open ground.
No sign that humans had ever passed through.
Fathur came closer.
"This..."
Darma stepped forward.
He aimed his light down.
The trees were packed tightly together.
The undergrowth was high.
There was no way we'd just come through there.
"No way," Ozan said.
Bon didn't answer.
Doy whispered, "Don't go down."
I looked at him.
"Why?"
Doy pointed ahead.
"Because now there's only one road."
The trail to Checkpoint 4.
We all looked that way.
Darkness.
Fog.
Trees.
Nothing.
But in the distance...
one light appeared.
Then another.
Then another.
My stomach dropped.
One.
Two.
Three.
Four.
Five.
Lights appeared between the trees.
Many of them.
Not one.
Not ten.
Dozens.
They moved slowly toward us.
Fathur backed away.
"Bon..."
Bon raised a hand.
"Don't run."
"But..."
"Don't run."
The lights drew closer.
I began to see the shapes of people behind them.
Hikers.
One.
Two.
Three.
Five.
Ten.
More.
They walked in a single line.
All of them wore hiking clothes.
All of them carried packs.
All of them had their heads bowed.
Not one of them spoke.
Not one of them looked in our direction.
They simply walked.
Past us on the trail.
One after another.
I didn't know how many there were.
But Eka did.
I turned to him.
Eka was crying.
"How many?"
He didn't answer.
"Eka."
He covered his mouth with his hand.
"How many of them?"
Eka shook his head.
"There are too many."
"How many?"
Eka looked at me.
Tears ran down his cheeks.
"Don't count them."
I swallowed.
"Why?"
Eka answered in a voice barely above a whisper.
"Because every time you count them..."
He looked toward the hikers.
"...their number increases."
The group kept walking.
They passed us as if we weren't there.
I stood perfectly still.
I didn't dare move.
One hiker passed.
Then the next.
Then another.
Some wore red jackets.
Green.
Black.
Blue.
Some carried walking sticks.
Some carried large packs.
Some carried only small bags.
Some looked like modern-day hikers.
But others wore clothes that looked old.
Very old.
A man passed us in a jacket styled like something from decades ago.
A woman carried a small backpack.
Their faces couldn't be seen.
All of them kept their heads down.
All of them were silent.
I saw one of them limping.
Tap.
Drag.
Tap.
Drag.
Tap.
Drag.
I didn't know why the sound felt familiar.
Then I realized.
It was the sound of the footsteps that had been following us.
I looked at Doy.
He realized it too.
Doy looked at me and slowly shook his head.
Don't.
Don't ask.
Don't speak.
I understood.
We simply stood there.
Until one of the hikers stopped right in front of Eka.
Eka froze.
The hiker didn't move.
Alin immediately grabbed Eka's hand.
"Don't."
The hiker slowly raised his head.
I saw his face.
Blank.
Not faceless.
He had a face.
But it was as if fog covered every detail.
Eyes.
Nose.
Mouth.
Everything was blurred.
Then he raised his hand.
He pointed at Eka.
Eka began to tremble.
"He's..."
"Ka," Alin whispered.
"He's..."
Eka stared at the hiker.
"I know him."
I felt my heart stop.
"Who?"
Eka didn't answer.
The hiker lowered his hand.
Then he started walking again.
Past Eka.
Past Alin.
And disappeared into the fog.
Alin immediately grabbed both of Eka's shoulders.
"Who?"
Eka cried.
"My friend."
"Who?"
Eka covered his face.
"He should be dead already."
No one spoke.
Ozan looked at Eka.
"You've seen him before?"
Eka nodded.
"Where?"
Eka didn't answer.
Doy finally spoke.
"Not now."
Ozan looked at him.
"If we don't know anything, we'll never get out."
Doy gave him a sharp look.
"If we know too much..."
He pointed at the hikers still walking past.
"...we might never get out."
I don't know how long we stood there.
Ten minutes?
Twenty?
Half an hour?
The group of hikers kept walking.
Their numbers never seemed to run out.
Until finally...
the last hiker appeared.
He walked alone.
Slower than the others.
He wore a black jacket.
A large pack.
His head was bowed.
But something was different.
His footsteps made no sound.
No shoes.
No branches.
Nothing.
He walked toward us.
Then stopped right in front of Joy.
Me.
I stared at him.
He raised his head.
This time, his face was clear.
I froze.
I knew him.
Not because we'd ever met.
Not because I'd ever seen him in a picture.
But because...
that face was my face.
I saw myself standing in front of me.
The same jacket.
The same bag.
The same shoes.
Even the small scratch on my cheek from the branch earlier was there.
I stepped back.
The figure stepped back too.
I raised my hand.
He raised his hand.
I stopped.
He stopped.
I lowered my hand.
He lowered his hand.
I couldn't breathe.
"Joy?"
Darma's voice sounded far away.
I didn't answer.
The figure in front of me smiled.
Then spoke in my own voice.
"Don't be afraid."
My entire body went rigid.
He moved closer.
One step.
Then whispered, "They'll be coming down soon."
I stared at him.
"Who?"
The figure smiled wider.
"You."
I didn't understand.
Then he pointed behind me.
I turned instinctively.
There was no one there.
When I looked forward again...
the figure was gone.
"Joy!"
I jerked back to reality.
Darma was shaking my shoulder.
"What's wrong with you?"
I looked at him.
"Did you see them?"
"See what?"
"There was someone."
"Where?"
I pointed ahead.
Empty.
All the hikers were gone.
Not a single light.
Not a single sound.
The forest had returned to normal.
Dark.
Quiet.
Foggy.
Fathur looked at me.
"What did you see?"
I couldn't answer.
Bon came closer.
"Joy."
I looked at him.
"Who did you see?"
I opened my mouth.
But no sound came out.
Doy was already standing behind Bon.
He stared at me for a long moment.
Then said, "It showed you its face?"
I looked straight at Doy.
"You know?"
Doy sighed.
"Answer me."
I nodded.
Doy closed his eyes.
"Then it's chosen."
"Chosen what?"
Doy didn't answer.
"Chosen who?"
He remained silent.
I started getting angry.
"DOY!"
Everyone flinched.
I was startled by my own voice.
Doy finally looked at me.
"Don't ask."
"Why?"
"Because the answer might make you not want to live."
I stared at him.
"You know who he is."
Doy didn't deny it.
"Who?"
Doy looked toward the forest.
Then said softly, "Someone who shouldn't be coming down."
I frowned.
"Coming down?"
Doy didn't answer.
Bon cut in immediately.
"We're leaving."
"Doy."
"Joy."
I looked at Bon.
"We need to go. Now."
"Why?"
Bon looked behind us.
His face was pale.
"Because they didn't disappear."
I turned.
Empty.
Bon said softly, "They just don't need to walk anymore."
We moved at once.
No one asked any more questions.
No one argued.
We followed the trail to Checkpoint 4.
I didn't know whether it was the right decision.
But we truly had no choice.
The trail down was gone.
There was only one route left.
Up.
We walked quickly.
Almost running.
Bon led.
Doy was behind him.
I stayed with Darma.
Eka and Alin were right behind us.
Ozan, Fathur, and Adit were at the back.
I kept looking straight ahead.
Don't look behind us.
Don't.
But the sound returned.
Tap.
Tap.
Tap.
I held my breath.
Footsteps.
This time, there wasn't just one set.
There were many.
Dozens.
They were following us.
Tap.
Tap.
Tap.
Tap.
Tap.
Faster and faster.
Darma started walking faster.
"Don't run," I said.
"I know."
"You want to run."
"I don't."
"Your legs are running on their own."
Darma swore.
"Shut up."
I almost laughed.
The situation was so insane that humor felt like the only way to stay sane.
But then the sounds behind us changed.
They weren't footsteps anymore.
Now there were voices.
Soft.
Many of them.
Whispering.
I couldn't make out the words.
Until one voice became clear.
"Joy."
I froze.
So did Darma.
The voice sounded like my mother's.
I stopped immediately.
Darma grabbed my arm.
"Don't."
I looked at him.
"How do you know?"
Darma looked at me.
"Because I hear it too."
The voice came again.
"Joy..."
Closer this time.
My eyes suddenly filled with tears.
I didn't know why.
I didn't know where the voice was coming from.
But it sounded so familiar.
So real.
As if someone who had been gone from my life for a long time were standing right behind me.
"Joy..."
I almost turned around.
Darma held my head in place.
"Don't."
I closed my eyes.
"Don't look."
The voice drew closer.
"Joy..."
Then it changed.
It was no longer my mother's voice.
It became Eka's.
"Joy."
I opened my eyes.
Eka was standing in front of me.
He stared at me.
"Joy."
I looked at him.
"Yeah?"
Darma immediately pulled me back.
"Don't answer!"
I snapped out of it.
The Eka standing in front of me...
didn't smile.
His face was pale.
His eyes were empty.
Then the real Eka shouted from behind us.
"JOY!"
I turned.
The real Eka was about five meters behind us, holding Alin's hand.
I looked forward again.
The figure that had looked like Eka was gone.
Darma whispered, "Don't trust voices."
I nodded.
"Don't trust faces."
I nodded again.
We ran.
This time, we really ran.
The trail grew steeper.
Our breathing became ragged.
Bon signaled for us to slow down several times.
But the sounds behind us were drawing closer.
I could hear countless footsteps.
Not ten.
Not twenty.
Too many.
As if the entire forest were walking.
Tap.
Tap.
Tap.
Tap.
Tap.
Fathur shouted, "Bon!"
Bon turned.
"What?"
"They're close!"
"Don't look!"
"But—"
"Don't look!"
Fathur walked with his eyes closed.
I could hear him crying.
"Why aren't we going down?"
Bon didn't answer.
"We can go down through the trail we came from!"
"There is no trail!"
"Then where are we going?"
"Up!"
"Why up?!"
Bon stopped.
"Because down isn't an exit anymore."
Fathur fell silent.
Bon pointed ahead.
"Checkpoint 4."
A light appeared in the distance.
It wasn't a headlamp.
It was larger.
Like a light shining from inside a building.
We quickened our pace.
"Checkpoint 4?" Darma asked.
Bon nodded.
"It should be."
I stared at the light.
Something was strange about it.
It was too bright.
And the closer we got...
I began to see the shape of a building.
A roof.
Walls.
Windows.
I frowned.
"Bon."
"Yeah?"
"That's not Checkpoint 4."
Bon stopped.
So did Doy.
We all looked.
In front of us stood a wooden building.
An old building.
Its lights were on inside.
I could see a table.
Chairs.
Even the shadow of someone moving behind the window.
Fathur whispered, "There's a shop up here?"
No one answered.
Darma gave a quiet laugh.
"No way."
Ozan said, "Maybe it's a shelter."
Doy shook his head.
"No."
"Why not?"
"Because that building isn't on the trail."
Bon looked at him.
"You sure?"
Doy nodded.
"Absolutely."
We stood in front of the building.
There was a wooden sign above the door.
The writing on it was old.
But still readable.
**CHECKPOINT 4.**
Something dropped in my stomach.
"You said Checkpoint 4."
Doy stared at the sign.
"This isn't the Checkpoint 4 we know."
Bon stepped closer.
"Then what is it?"
Doy didn't answer.
From inside the building came the sound of a chair being dragged.
Creeeak.
We all fell silent.
Then someone said, "Come in."
A man's voice.
Old.
Calm.
As if he had been waiting for us.
Fathur stepped back.
The voice came again.
"Come in."
Bon looked at us one by one.
No one moved.
Then the door opened by itself.
Slowly.
Creeeak...
Yellow light spilled out from inside.
And in the doorway...
stood an old man.
He wore the clothes of a checkpoint keeper.
A hat.
A thick jacket.
Long pants.
His face was wrinkled.
He smiled.
"What took you so long?"
No one answered.
The old man looked at us one by one.
Then he counted.
"One..."
He pointed at Bon.
"Two."
Doy.
"Three."
Darma.
"Four."
Ozan.
"Five."
Fathur.
"Six."
Adit.
"Seven."
Alin.
"Eight."
Eka.
"Nine."
Then his finger stopped.
He looked at me.
I felt the blood freeze in my veins.
The old man smiled.
"Ten."
I turned around.
There was no one there.
When I looked back at the old man...
he was no longer smiling.
"Come in," he said.
"Because the tenth one..."
He looked straight into my eyes.
"...has already been waiting for you inside."
I couldn't move.
And from inside the building...
came the sound of footsteps.
Tap.
Tap.
Tap.
Then someone called my name.
In my own voice.
**"Joy."**
**"I've been waiting for you."**
**TO BE CONTINUED.**