Dr. Cha Eunhee from the Great Society Rehabilitation Centre was a world famous psychologist, who had patented a novel method of therapy for the treatment of psychological illnesses.Her relentless work schedule usually left her no time for rest.
She had a constant barrage of patients to attend to and weekly journal articles to submit in a never-ending cycle of monotony.
“Boring. Dull. Tedious.” These were her daily complaints. But despite her desire to escape it all, she simply could not bring herself to just abandon her responsibilities.
Hence, she now found herself in the midst of a counseling session with a middle-aged woman.
“I’m truly sorry about your daughter’s circumstances,” Dr. Cha said, blinking away the moisture in her eyes.
“I know it’s already been 5 years.” The woman smiled sorrowfully as she confided in Dr. Cha.
“But ever since that child tried to throw her life away, I haven’t been able to concentrate on anything.”
“It’s time for you to tear your thoughts away from your daughter’s well-being and begin searching for your own purpose in life.”
“Actually doctor…” the woman asked, grasping Dr. Cha’s hand tightly.
“… I believe that she’s trapped in there somewhere… She’s…”
*****
The Heavenly Tree randomly extended skyward but soon began shooting towards a specific direction.
Weed and his companions held fast onto the trunk as it sprouted towards its target at some speed. The buffeting wind left them battered and the ground below was a distant memory.Within seconds, Baran village had disappeared from sight.
They passed through the clouds and arrived at a seemingly huge island. An island floating in the sky! Riding the growing tree stalk of the Heavenly Tree, Weed and his companions rose above the fog blurring the area.
“This is the City of Heaven!” the party exclaimed, feasting their eyes on their surroundings.
A maze of buildings sprawled out before them. In the center of the extensive labyrinth rose a massive tower with a myriad of birds perched on top of it. Beyond the large tower were rolling hills and lush fields.
“Oh! The tree’s withering away!” shouted Irene as she glanced back at the tree.
The Heavenly Tree’s trunk withered and splintered before their eyes. The fragments disappeared into the clouds, severing the floating island from the distant ground below.
“Our way back has been destroyed. What do we do now?” Surka fretted. Her companions, on the other hand, did not seem particularly concerned.
“The real adventure starts here. Since the tree is gone, we’ll worry about returning when the time comes.” said Pale.
“But, Pale-nim…” Surka was on the verge of tears, already missing the solid ground.
Weed attempted to cheer her up, “If there’s a will, there’s a way.” But Surka seemed unconvinced by Weed’s words of encouragement, at which point Weed nonchalantly said, “Well, if we can’t find a way we can always jump right?”
“B-but…”
“Well, you’d surely die once, but you’d definitely end up on the ground.”
Surka’s face went white. Truth be told, she had always been terrified of heights.
As the Heavenly Tree grew, she had held on for dear life, afraid of plummeting to her death.
Perhaps she would have passed up on this adventure if she had known it would take her all the way up here.
The party continued on, consoling Surka along the way.
*****
The City of Heavens was home to a unique species.
“They look like birds…”
Standing on two legs, with their small beady eyes, pointed beak, great wingspan, and rounded cheeks, they resembled sparrows.
The old birds seemed to have white beards around their beak.“Kyaa! So cute!” Surka exclaimed, her affection for the birds overshadowing her acrophobia. She was no longer trembling in fear, but excitement.
The old bird slowly walked towards the group, ignoring Surka’s unwelcomed affections.
“Greetings travelers, welcome to Lavias.”