Chapter 1 – Lost in the Storm

...so I landed here. A huge storm was raging in the sky. There was only forest and nothing else. Palm trees blocked my view and I couldn't look up at the sky. The rumbling storm shut down all my electronics. There was no communication. From the map, I couldn't see how there could be land in the middle of the ocean. Too many questions. And so few answers. I didn't want to spend all my time in the cramped cockpit of the Harrier, so I pulled out an emergency bag with a survival kit and a loaded SPAC–12 shotgun and headed out. As I raked through the leaves and branches that clung to my helmet, I found a path. That made me happy. There was a chance of finding the locals. But... Is that a good thing? What if they're wild and I'm just an unclean meat carcass to them? I didn't want to think about that. But I kept going. Soon I saw the silhouette of a hut with the light of a lamp pouring out of it. It didn't look like a campfire. So I dared to approach. Carefully, without any noise, I reached the door. There were no gaps in it. I couldn't see anything through the window either. My only option was to open the door. But what if the guests didn't welcome me? Maybe they're already asleep? Or is there no one in the house? At least I didn't hear any noises coming from there. Overcoming my fears, I decided to open the door. Inside, I saw a wooden table where something was sitting. It was a rabbit, a goat, a cat with white fur, sitting peacefully with a pen in its hand, staring at a blank sheet of paper. I decided to observe and ended up not being able to take my eyes off it. Too much detail and such interesting fauna... But suddenly he noticed me and I immediately closed the door. I started to get worried and got my shotgun ready. Standing on the receiving end of the door I was ready to shoot. I had no guarantee that he was friendly. Just then the door opened. A large black eye with a white pupil peered out of the crack. A little later, the door opened and the white creature looked up at me. He didn't seem to understand anything. And indeed: it was the first time we had seen our own kind. He held out his hand. I didn't understand the meaning of the gesture, but then I thought maybe it meant a greeting, just like ours. I gave him my hand, taking off my glove, but he led me straight into the house. I was extremely surprised. He pointed out my dirty shoes and clothes, to which I responded by cleaning my pants and taking off my boots. He enjoyed this. He set a lot of beautiful fruit on the table, but I, for reasons of safety and modesty, decided to decline. He saw that I was tired, so he showed me to the bed. I didn't do anything naughty and lay down quietly. He came over to me and took my hand. I felt a slight surge of strength, then he looked at me and asked: – Who are you? Honestly, I was in complete shock. The unknown shit who was seeing me for the first time, whose house looked like a medieval hut in a couple of moments already knew my language! I'd never seen anything like it. It was too difficult for me to say anything. But the owner of the house quickly interrupted my doubt. He nodded his head back as if to say that he was waiting for me to visit. I didn't refuse. After all, no one wants to stand in the rain. When I entered the house, I took a quick look at the interior. Everything looked like European medieval style. And yet it was extremely cozy. I stood at the threshold, trying to dry off as quickly as possible. Meanwhile, the white fluffy man had gone into the other room, and from the sounds of it, he was trying to find something. Finally, he brought me a basket with some fruit in it. I didn't want to eat much, so I politely declined. I didn't know if the fruit was bad for me. The creature asked me to take off my shoes and sit down at the table. I behaved very modestly and tried not to touch anything. He left again to another room and returned with another quill and parchment. On his sheet he wrote the following words: – Hey, there. I don't know who you are or how you got here, but you don't seem very happy with your situation. I can help you, but right now I want you to tell me about yourself and your people in as much detail as possible. In return, I'll tell you where you are and who I am. I took a pen from my pocket, showing that it was easier for me. I began to describe myself in great detail. About the storm that had brought me here, about my jet being inoperable and without fuel, about humanity and my family. About my job and my way of life. I tried to reinforce the text with little sketches so that the reader could get to know me and humanity in general better. Finally, I finished the work. White Fluffy took the parchment and rolled it up. Then he stood up, took my hand, and led me into a room of some sort. There were a lot of bags. He made a kind of bed out of them and showed me that it was very comfortable to sleep on. A lamp lighted the room, creating a pleasant effect of warmth, which gave protection from the oppressive atmosphere of the storm. I stripped off my unnecessary bags and put away my weapons and tools. Finally, I settled down on my makeshift bed. Meanwhile, the master of the house entered the room again and brought me a blanket and a glass of water. I accepted the gifts with a big smile in my soul and looked into his deep black eyes. He came up to me and with a peculiar accent of speech said: – I'll be in bed soon. If you need anything, look for me at the desk in the first room. Oh, and, uh. Good night. I blew out the candle and went to bed. My thoughts kept me awake, but I tried to restrain my curiosity. All these events were extremely strange. Maybe it was just a dream. Maybe I'm just a concussed man lying in a coma in a hospital somewhere. Maybe I'm such a lucky person who was in the most realistic dream in Java. Thoughts flew by, answers and questions flew by and I couldn't hold on any longer. I started to fall asleep without feeling the time. Suddenly I felt something. The door opened and the clatter of hooves flew quietly from the wooden floor. I didn't move and perfectly pretended to be asleep. Finally, I felt a nudge in the sack. Apparently, he sat down next to me. It was a little scary, but there was a shotgun lying next to my hand. I was ready to grab it, turn around and shoot. But I waited. I waited for the right moment. And at the most intense moment, when he got close. His arm came around me.