Life and other Disasters
14. The door

“I hoped there would be an entrance in the river. That’s why I jumped in the water,” David said.

“And you never saw the creepy ghost zombies that wanted to kill you?” Ava asked, looking at the water in the pool, that had become the image of calm and peace again.

David didn’t answer, he just stared at the tower that seemed to appear out of nowhere. “We have reached it now, we can turn around and go back to Saul’s rest,” he said with a sigh.

Ava chuckled. “No, I don’t think so. I want to know what’s inside. I’m not going back without knowing what’s in there.”

A shadow of doubt glided over David’s face. “I’m not sure...”

He never finished his sentence. Ava hated it when people left her guessing, but there was something in his stance that stopped her from asking. David’s mouth was a hard line, his eyes smoldering coals, his hands were clenched into tight fists, and Ava realized he was afraid of what was in that tower.

“What happened to you?” she asked, trying to change the subject. “How did you survive the night?”

“I can ask you the same,” he countered.

“O no, mister, that trick is not going to work. I asked you first,” Ava said, shaking her head, determined not to get distracted this time.

“I...I spent the night in an abandoned cabin,” David said. He didn’t look at her, he avoided her gaze at all cost and Ava knew he was not telling her everything.

“Who,” Eggy cooed, more at ease now that they found David.

“What’s that?” David said, his voice a silent whisper.

“What?” Ava looked at the owl. “Oh, that’s Eggy. He’s pretty okay for an owl.”

David looked at the giant bird as if he didn’t trust the bird at all. “If you say so.”

Ava ignored his worries and told him about her night, how the mist had surrounded her, and how Es had saved her, how she had spent her night in an abandoned old cabin.

“This place must be crowded with abandoned old cabins,” Ava said.

“Let’s stay here. It’s too late to return anyway. We never make it back to Saul’s rest before the mist comes rolling in,” Ava said, looking at the mysterious tower. There must be an entrance somewhere.

David shrugged, sat down in the grass, almost disappearing in the long green blades.

“I recognize that look in your eyes.” He lay down, stretching himself as if he wanted to take a nap. “Suit yourself. I’ve looked everywhere, there is no entrance.”

So Ava walked up to the place where she expected the foot of the tower. Slowly she stuck out her arm, waiting for her hand to touch a wall, feel resistance, feel anything at all.

There was nothing, not an invisible wall, not an electric shock, not even a slight tingly feeling that something, anything might be there.

Ava walked into the void where the tower should be. Slowly, deliberately, watching her step with every move she made. She thought she heard something, monks chanting, a soft whisper, but it was just the wind, playing with the leaves in the few trees that enveloped the meadow where she was walking around.

“How long do you need, Ava?” David asked. He was still lying in the grass as if he tried to catch the last rays of sunshine.

“I need a little more time,” Ava said, trying to hide the frustration that lacerated her voice. “Just a little more time.”

“I don’t think we have any time left,” David said. “It’s getting dark. We need to replace a place for tonight.”

Ava ignored him. She had scoured the area, searched every inch of space.

“Open sesame,” she yelled, “Abracadabra! Open, please.”

She tried all the magic words she knew, but nothing worked. David was right, the light turned into the soft orange glow of the late afternoon, but she wasn’t ready to give up yet.

“Can you please hurry up.” David wasn’t even trying to hide his impatience. “I think I can see the mist between the trees.”

“Drama queen.” Ava laughed his worries away.

But David was right. The mist was rolling in and it was time to look for shelter. Ava could feel the cold of the nebula on her skin.

“Okay, you are righ... hey, what is that?” Just when she wanted to give up, something caught her eye.

Close to the ground, where the first tenders of mist were forming, the outline of a flat stone appeared.

Not saying a word, she didn’t hesitate and walked right up to whatever it was.

“What is it?” David said, right behind her.

Ava reached out and touched the stone in front of her. Where it had been transparent at first, it became more solid with the second. Next to it, a wooden structure appeared.

“A door,” Ava said.

They watched the door appear out of thin air. It was sturdy, bound with iron. The doorpost was decorated with vines and little figures. It only took a minute to appear completely. It was as if it had been there for a long time. The wood was paled with age, the iron was a little rusty.

They walked around it, looking carefully around if anything else had changed, but there was only the mist, creeping in on them.

Uncertain Ava knocked on the door once, twice, but no one answered. She pulled the latch, and with a heart-wrenching creak, the door opened.

Before them lay a room, a huge room. It was a giant entrance hall with one man, working at a desk, in the middle. The desk was placed higher and made of white marble. The man looked like a monk, dressed in a black habit.

Ava and David walked up to the desk. Ava coughs to attract his attention. The man didn’t stop writing. The scratching of his feather pen echoed through the room. His eyes are glazed over with a white shroud, his pupil isn’t visible at all.

This was the conservator, and he is blind, Ava realized

“I know you are there,” he says in a clear voice, without looking at them. “State your business, please.”

David and Ava look at each other. Why were they here actually?

Ava scraped her throat. ” What is actually in here?” she asked.

The man stopped scribbling. “Everything you ever wanted and more. Everything you’ve ever lost, even the things you didn’t think that were lost.”

Ava looked at David again. “That’s quite cryptic,” she said. “Can we just have a look?”

The man sniffed loudly, his face turned into a scowl as if she had just said something outrageous.

“Actually,” David said, “there is something I lost and there might be a small possibility that it is here.”

The man nodded and handed David a paper and a pen. “Please note down an accurate description of said object and then return to me.”

David started writing vigorously. Ava tried to look over his shoulder what he was writing exactly, but he shielded the paper off for her prying eyes.

“Can I use this for two requests?” David said.

“One request per paper,” the man said, and firmly handed him another piece.

And again David started writing with a vigor.

“Don’t you have any requests?” the man asked Ava.

She shrugged. “Not really, but I’ll go along with my friend here.”

The man nodded. He didn’t seem to mind that she was hanging around here. Her eyes traveled through the room. There wasn’t much to see. Besides the desk, there was only a stairway in the hall.

Finally, David was ready and gave his two requests to the man behind the desk.

The man read both cards. He never showed any emotion, until he read one of them. A small smile appears on his lips.

“With this one, I can’t help you. When it’s lost, it’s gone forever, I’m afraid,” he said. It sounded as if he was sorry and Ava could only wonder what must be written on the card. Did David look for some childhood animal or something?

“But the other object is here.” The man writes something down on the paper. “You can replace it in the basement, section C, plot 10.”

David took the card. “Thank you.”

“You have an excellent taste, if I may say,” the man said. ’It’s always a pity when they come in all lost and without an owner. I’m glad you found what is yours again.”

The man gestured to the stairway. “Go ahead,” he said.

David walked off, Ava following close in his trace. Ava wanted to thank the man, but he was already busy doing whatever he did before they came and interrupted him.

With firm steps, David descended the stairs and Ava could barely keep up with him. The light became dimmer with every step they took until there were only small flecks of light left. The atmosphere was heavy, pushing down on her chest and the feeling of ultimate doom overwhelmed her. For the first time in her life, Ava was afraid of what would come next.