CHAPTER 16

"Now arriving at Eternal Festival Station. Please watch your step as you exit the train."

Kari, Sota, Hana and Uchiro stepped off the Green Line and into a lavish visual wonderland. They were instantly surrounded by food stalls, game booths, floral gardens, park fountains and koi ponds. A massive temple loomed in the distance.

"Do we want to get some yukatas?" asked Hana, pointing to the clothing store.

Kari's eyes lit up. "Oooh, yes! We never did get to wear these with grown-up bodies, did we..."

Uchiro and Sota glanced at each other as if to say "Sure, why not" and followed the girls into the shop.

Four different-looking people emerged from the shop half an hour later.

"Check it out, I look like Byakuya from Bleach!" Sota proclaimed as he modeled his black robe with silver accents.

"Well, we are in kind of a 'soul society' now, aren't we..." Kari laughed. "How about me? Do I look good in burgundy?"

"Yes! Sis looks awesome!"

Hana turned to Uchiro. "You like my yukata, Uchi-kun?"

"You look great!" Uchiro replied. "Orange is a good color on you."

"Aw, thanks! You look quite handsome in navy blue yourself!"

Uchiro caught a hint of cleavage and sheepishly turned his head in an instant.

"What were YOU looking at, you naughty boy?" Hana playfully asked, pinching Uchiro's cheek.

"Let's not get too flirty, okay?" Uchiro whispered. "They still don't know, right?"

Hana stuck her tongue out in reply.

It was at that moment that Sota glimpsed at them. "What was that all about?"

"Mind your business, bro!" Hana shot back.

"Okay, let's have fun, but also, let's not lose focus on exactly why we're here," Kari announced to the group. "Two hours from now, we'll meet up at the temple entrance, got it?"

The other three nodded as they glanced at the temple in the distance where Kari was pointing.

"How's the dango?" Uchiro asked Hana as they walked through a lavish floral garden.

"Mmm... very good," Hana replied. "And wow, what a place. It's Kyoto intensified."

She slipped the empty stick into her pocket and took Uchiro's hand. "I hope I can get some answers on the dreams I've been having of Yuri-san. These last few months have been wonderful, and I don't want my visions to dampen the mood."

"I hope so too," Uchiro said. "I don't want to think of you still feeling troubled, especially since we're supposed to be in an afterlife paradise."

"You think our parents are imagining us together?"

Uchiro laughed. "I'm sure they've said 'well, they're together now' at some point."

"That's what Kari said when we first got here. I'm kinda surprised she hasn't found us out by now!"

"Well, we've been sticking to the plan real good. Keep our intimate time at school, keep the out-of-school dates rare and platonic, don't get all lovey-dovey on the phone..."

"And the fact that Kari doesn't know any of your friends or my classmates also helps! Except Keira, she's visited my place a few times... she knows we're friends, and that's it."

"How much longer should we keep this a secret?"

"I don't know... part of me wants this over soon, part of me would rather keep it secret for another month or so. I mean, I kinda enjoy the sneaking around, it's almost like a game or a challenge."

"I hear ya. Hey, speaking of sneaking... there's like a grotto in the corner all covered in ivy. Wanna sneak in there while we're the only ones in this part of the garden?"

Hana flashed a wide, mischievous grin at Uchiro. She started for the grotto, pulling him along.

The inside of the grotto was shady, damp and musty. Potted plants and a few cat statues were the only decor. Hana and Uchiro were inside for only ten seconds before they slumped against the stone wall in an energetic makeout session.

"Are you sure your sister and brother aren't anywhere near here?" Uchiro asked between kisses.

"Mmmph... knowing them, they're most likely trying to win at all the festival games on the other side."

The moment of passion continued for a few more minutes, then the couple rested on the ground, embracing each other.

"You ever wonder if there's anything more to this? All the... romance stuff?"

"Sometimes. It's like... I've seen all those movies, read the books, heard about what people go through during... you know."

Hana blushed and chuckled. "Yeah, like... once they've held each other for a while... there's some sort of blissful feeling or something." She stroked Uchiro's head, running her fingers through his hair. "I haven't felt that, though."

"You think that's on purpose? Maybe... whoever made this world put limits in place on... those feelings of love?"

"Probably. This world was meant for little kids, remember? And remember that one day we went swimming at Silver Coast? We slipped inside that secluded hut and tried kissing each other for a long time to see if something happened?"

"Yeah. And nothing really did happen, did it..."

"Right. I'm pretty sure there's some kind of limit placed on everyone."

A beeping noise punctuated the end of that last statement.

"That's the alarm I set on my phone," Uchiro hastily exclaimed. "We have ten minutes to get to the temple!"

The four were all awestruck at the interior of the temple. Ornate designs covered the walls. Many fountains with glowing underwater lights were situated in the corridors. Doorways led to meditation rooms of all sizes.

A young man approached the group. "Welcome to our temple... may I be of assistance?"

Hana spoke up. "We would like to speak to one of the Mystics about... a recent vision we experienced."

"We will be happy to assist you," the man replied as he pulled out an electronic tablet. "Our next room will be available in twenty minutes. May I get a name, please?"

"Nakamura," Kari said.

"Very well, you're on our list now. Feel free to explore our gardens, our galleries, and the Origin Theater which shows a brief presentation on how this world came to be. The next showing starts in about three minutes if you want to check that out."

"Cool, where is it?" Sota asked. "I wanna see it!"

The Origin Theater was just around the corner from the corridor that they were in. It resembled a planetarium with arena-style seating. A sizable crowd was already taking up half the capacity when the four of them entered and took their seats.

The lights dimmed and a holographic depiction of outer space appeared. The audience could almost touch the thousands of stars and galaxies slowly moving around the room. A disembodied voice began to speak, and the immersive animation followed its narration.

"Life is all around us. It is the driving force of our universe and the energy within, a flexible balance of positive and negative energy, the yin and yang.

"The God of Creation set the universe in motion billions of years ago. At random places in the universe, he initiated systems of life. These life forms would evolve and flourish over the millennia into the worlds of the living that you are now familiar with.

"But in the course of life's evolution, God noticed great swaths of negative energy that emanated from many of the souls who had passed from life. This troubled him greatly, for he knew that too much negative energy would eventually cause the universe to lose stability and possibly tear itself apart. He proceeded to infiltrate one of the living worlds as a sentient being himself. There he would learn that some people would meet horrible fates before they would get to old age and a natural death. Fates that caused despair, agony, rage, misery... all contributing to the masses of negative energy as their souls departed.

"So God in all his infinite wisdom created new worlds, one of which you are in now. They are known as Between Life Worlds, where souls who have not achieved peace within themselves could expend that negative energy and achieve what they had desired in their living world before finally passing on. The first souls that entered these worlds were infused with the knowledge of how the worlds functioned, and they became the first Mystics. These Mystics were granted the power to shape the world and the souls inhabiting it, to make metal out of dirt and red hair from black. They were also granted the power to create soulless new life for specific functions, in order to aid those souls who needed assistance in whatever form.

"As society and technology advanced in the living world, the Mystics were able to assist the BLW souls in replicating that technology. And in turn, the technology helped the Mystics and eased their workload, automating world-building functions and allowing computerized assistants to make simple cosmetic alterations.

"Today, the Between Life Worlds thrive and flourish, helping to preserve balance in the universe. There are several worlds that are themed in many different ways, to serve all kinds of purposes for the souls that were guided there. And while there are not as many Mystics as there used to be, we are still committed to your spiritual well-being.

"We hope that this presentation has enlightened you and enriched your knowledge. Please enjoy the rest of your visit to our temple."