Chester?

It's a new day as the warm rays of the rising sun extended its welcoming light, which banished the last of the retreating shadows. The chickens eagerly paddled out of their nests by their ponds, shivering as if to expel the coldness of the night from them. Flocks of sheep roused from their slumber and began bleating their greetings to the rising sun.

…

In the old tower which Sips and Sjin had found the previous day, golden shafts of sunlight streamed from holes in the stone brick walls and danced across the face of Sips, who was sleeping on the stone floor. He stirred and slowly opened his eyes, and squinted at the presence of strong light. Yawning, he stretched noisily, and then slowly sat up on the hard stone floor. Stupid sun, he mumbled to himself. I was having one of the best dreams ever.

Whilst Sips looked around, he noticed that his best friend Sjin was not here in the tower. He was not worried about this though, and cautiously stood up, stretching for a second time. No bathroom. Damn it. Next to his left foot were a rucksack and a pile of clothes on top. Bending down, he saw that it was his blue – checked shirt and brown trousers. Sips picked it up thoughtfully. Who put this here, he wondered. Oh well, it's a change from that stuffy spacesuit I'm wearing. Why not?

When Sips went out of the tower by a door – shaped arch in the wall, which faced the fully – visible sun, he examined his surroundings whilst taking in the warmth of the sun. He was wearing the checked shirt and trousers now, and wore the rucksack with his spacesuit stowed inside. God, he suddenly thought, I feel ten years younger! He held up his arms and exclaimed, "I feel ten years younger!"

Somewhere in a small forest below the hill came a cry, which caught Sips' attention. He turned towards the source of the cry and thought for a moment. Should he investigate or should he just find ways of passing time whilst Sjin shows up? He decided to go down the hill and investigate.

…

At the old tower, a purple, misty substance formed around the base of the stone tower, like the mist that forms during cold mornings. The atmosphere grew tense as shadowy figures emerged from the shroud of purple haze, and the temperature dropped sharply. The surrounding environment suddenly became dull in appearance and lost its vibrant colours, becoming grey. The shadows left the range of the otherworldly haze and slowly stopped for a short moment. Then they flew across the landscape in all directions, summoning a strong gust of wind with them, and disappeared across the plains and deep in the forest. The purple haze also dissipated and the air grew warmer again, leaving no trace of an alien visit whatsoever.

…

As he approached the edge of the forest, Sips felt as though he had stepped into a different country. The grass was verdant and the trees were filled with life. Some animals were grazing in an open patch of grass some distance off and beyond that there was what appeared to be a small pond. Sips figured that the noise that he heard earlier originated from that pond. Moving forward, he discovered that it was Sjin who had fallen into the pond, who had climbed out by now, soaked as though he had been diving.

"Sjin, you dumb bastard!" Sips exclaimed, and held his hand down to Sjin, who took it. Sips lifted him on his feet with a short grunt. "What were you doing out here? How did you get soaked like that? That pond isn't that deep, is it?"

"B-but it's deeper than it looks! And I saw… things in it!" Facing the seemingly insignificant pond, Sjin slowly approached it and stared into it. "See? There are faces in the water!"

"What? You must've hit your head against a stone or something. Get out of here!" Sips walked up to the pond and kneeled, staring deep into the pond. After a while he still could not make out the 'faces' in the water that Sjin was talking about. However, there was one thing that he could confirm; the pond was very shallow! "Sjin, I think you actually slipped on the grass, did a triple front flip and landed on your head in the pond, which explains why you're acting so shifty like you are now. The pond is shallow as a puddle and there are definitely no faces whatsoever in the water. Pull your act together, Sjin!"

But Sjin was lost for words. "B-but it was as deep as a swimming pool! I fell so deep into it; there was hardly any light at all! You step into it if you don't believe me!" Sjin sidestepped and offered Sips to step into the pond.

"I'm not gonna get wet! Why don't you show me then?" He folded his arms and smiled in amusement, expecting Sjin to make a fool of himself.

"Fine!" And Sjin sat down on the edge of the pond and slowly lowered himself into the water. On the other hand, Sips was doubled up in laughter, unable to control himself because of the entertainment that Sjin was providing. But as Sjin went deeper and deeper until only his head was above the water, Sips slowly calmed down and noticed the strange phenomenon.

"Ha ha! Oh shit… hey, what's going on? Are you really that deep into the water?"

"Yes! Didn't I tell you? Now do you believe me?"

"Well, that in itself is a reasonable subject for debate, actua-"

"There! I'm coming out 'cause I've had enough of this nonsense!" And without hesitation, Sjin quickly pulled himself out of the water, soaking wet again and dripping in water. Sips was now deep in thought. "What should we do now, Sips? Isn't an extremely deep pond worth investigating?" asked Sjin.

"… um… no. Come on; let's go back to the old tower."

"What!? Why not? I think there's something mysterious about it."

"What's so special about a deep pond? It's just not worth it and it's too much effort. My old body probably can't handle it anyway. I'm going back, you wanna go back with me? Maybe? No? Hey, come on, you need help anyway after you fell into the pond, you careless…"

There was a silence where the two didn't speak, their juxtaposing opinions silently clashing against each other. Finally, Sjin remarked, "Well, it's now your loss and any loot I find after I've finished exploring this pond," he started, adding a hint of mockery or exaggeration in his tone, "will be mine, and mine only. You can go back like the baby you are and play with your dirt, because firstly, I don't see why you don't want to go on a small adventure, and secondly… well, I don't see why at all!"

Sips approached Sjin in a threatening way, not tolerating the insult hurled at him. "It's because I have better things to do than wasting time frolicking in a pond with the real baby, not mentioning any names you bastard, so there you have it. My mind has settled upon a course of action and it will take more than a big buffalo like you to alter its course."

"Well you can tell your stupid buffalo to fuck off because I won't change my mind either!"

"Fine!"

"Fine!"

With billowing anger, Sips quickly turned his back to Sjin, who, with the same level of arrogance, turned his back to Sips, whilst Sips stomped off towards the old tower without so much as a care in the world. However, Sjin stood there, rooted to the spot. Many confused thoughts flew in and out of his dazzled mind. Slowly, he gazed into the pond and saw a lonely, arrogant man. The reflection wore a livid expression, ready to burn others with its gaze.

"Was that really me?"

The reflection slowly lost its furious expression, and its eyes widened.

"Is that really me?"

The reflection showed deep remorse just as a falling leaf, brown and withered, fell into the pond and caused ripples to appear, and the reflection was gone. Sjin slowly stepped back and fell backwards on the ground. He felt the same emotions as the reflection had felt.

"What have I done?"

…

As Sips cleared the forest and reached the bottom of the hill, where the old tower sat, he noticed that a large hole had been dug out of a dirt section of the walls, big enough for a small person to fit through. And at that moment, a teenage boy stepped out of the hole and spotted Sips. He wore a white t – shirt and dark blue jeans with black trainers. On his back was a black case of some sort, fastened to him by a strap, almost like a rucksack. He stood there for a moment, transfixed. Then surprise emerged from his face as he cried, "Oh my God! It's you!"

Sips just stood there, confused. He pointed at the boy as he asked, "Hey, kid! Do I know you?"

The boy just replied, "Nope. But your name's Sips, no?"

"It is" Sips replied. "Since I don't know you, would you mind introducing yourself?"

"Sure! I'm Wanchester, but you can just call me Chester." And Chester held out his hand for a handshake.

"Chester? Chester? It's you! You're Chester reincarnate! Chester in human form! I haven't seen you again in ages, and now the conversations won't be so one – sided anymore!"

Chester paused for a moment, then responded, "Oh, sorry. I know who you're talking about, but unfortunately, I'm not the Chester that you're talking about. We just share the same name. Just about... well, you taking your time?" Sips still hasn't realised that Chester's still offering a handshake. He quickly took it and they shook hands. "Glad to meet you all the same, Sips"

"Me too, Chester. You've made my day. Well, almost… nah, far from it"

…

Meanwhile, back at the forest, Sjin sat by the deep pond reflecting upon the recent turn of events. He leaned towards the pond and saw his reflection looking back at him. Dark clouds were gathering and the wind picked up, sending a sudden chill up his spine. He shuddered, half because of the cold, and half because of his regret. Did he have to argue with Sips like that?

Maybe I can just go back and apologise. Maybe… yes, that's what I'm gonna do.

Settling on his new resolution, he stood up and brushed off dirt from his clothes. He began to walk back when all of a sudden there was a bright, piercing light, shortly followed by a deep rumble. A howling storm was drawing closer, and he had to quicken his pace. Dashing off, the first drops of rain began to fall as Sjin neared the border between the forest and the plains. The strong gales caused him to become unsteady as he dashed out of the trees, and the rain pelted him hard. The sky was an unforgiving canvas of darkness, occasionally exploding with lightning and thunder. He could just make out the silhouette of the old tower which sat on the hill, lonely and open to the punishing climate. The sky was suddenly lit up by blinding lightning.

And shadows of otherworldly creatures materialized. Then they faded away again as darkness once again took its hold on the land. Sjin skidded to a halt, confused. What were those just now?

Lightning stroke once more and the apparitions were like wisps, immune to the merciless gales. And faint though they were, what could have been red eyes glowed in the darkness.

Sjin stood paralysed, fear gripped him. What was happening? Was he seeing things?

Solid figures slowly emerged from the earth with a small, rumbling noise. It was like a scene from a horror movie as the figures began lumbering downhill towards Sjin, producing groaning sounds.

A raspy voice whispered the words, resonating in the sinister air, "… black… is opening…"

"Ah! W-who's there?" Demanded Sjin, fear tearing at him as he remained paralysed and helpless.

"…oh… how it… stares…"

Sjin hastily adopted a boxing stance, and shouted, "W-who, what? Show yourselves, I-I'm not afraid!" The figures were surrounding him and were very close, and Sjin landed a punch on one of the ghostlike figures. It remained unfazed by his attack, and in turn lashed out at Sjin with demonic claws, who barely avoided the attack with a yelp. He attempted to kick the creature, but another jumped onto him from behind and held him in a tight grip. More were surrounding him by the second.

"…so deep… into… the soul…"

Sjin felt a sudden sense of desolation as the creatures seemed to pull him down into the earth. There was no hope for him left, and his thoughts were elsewhere. What were my last words to Sips? He wondered. The memory was painful when it surfaced. It was like a faint echo, but it pieced him like a knife all the same.

"Well you can tell your buffalo to fuck off because I won't change my mind either!"

Why did it ending like this?

…

Chester and Sips sat around the small fire that they had built inside the tower, hands outstretched to gather warmth. The storm outside was very loud, which drowned out the lively crackle of the fire. Chester asked Sips, "Hey, where's Sjin?"

Sips was suddenly anxious, and replied "Sjin? Honestly, I don't know…"

"Isn't he always around with you? You two are inseparable, like brothers"

Worry began to set in as Sips looked down into the fire.

Why did I say those things before? Well, I just hope you're okay out there, Sjin.