Chapter 5: 2nd Fragment – Arrival

She slowly moved her eyelids as she regained consciousness. Arisa gradually felt her muscle contraction in various parts of her body. Waking up from a soft mattress made her unable to remember what was going on with her quickly. Her gaze goes throughout the room as her head is still hazy, remembering what had happened.

 

"That's right. I'm in the past right now, am I?" she said faintly, followed by a yawn.

 

Arisa walks up to the mirror in her room weakly. She notices her reflection—apparently, she is wearing pajamas. Her brown hair looks messy, and she still has a perfect physique without missing limbs. Not to mention that her ice cream cone hairpin perched on her head.

 

"Good. Then, now..."

 

A soft touch on the communication ring she wears activated a hologram screen that appeared above her left hand. Arisa opens the relevant files using the other hand, and the device displays the information she is looking for.

 

The Record of The Past.

 

"If we look here, Arisa is a student living in a family. So, everyone in this family should treat me like their own."

 

The girl reads the information while her legs tiptoe and make other small movements. Every profile she should have understood before her departure is being reread several times. Just make sure.

 

"My father's name is Zebulun Tanjung. And my mother is Sasmita Tanjung. Also, I have a little brother named Tirto Tanjung, who is seven years younger than me. That's it, so..."

 

She tightened her palm and turned off all the display of information, Arisa unlocked her door and stepped out.

It's the same as what this girl saw earlier in the three-dimensional projection from the future. Her room is on the second floor, connected to the other two rooms. As Arisa recalls, one of those rooms belonged to her past brother, and the other was still empty.

But that is not important for now. Arisa must prepare herself to treat strangers as her family as long as she is in the past, outside her original timeline.

Treating strangers as the closest people because they're supposed to be her family is something she's never experienced before.

As she goes to the first floor, a rare sight greets her without warning beforehand. The mother, who was preparing breakfast, realized someone had come from the second floor. She smiles toward Arisa kindly—a very rare sight in the girl's memory.

 

"You're awake. Good, let's have breakfast together."

"Yes," she replied shyly. Arisa carefully watches her move as she obeys her request, sitting in a chair and looking at the view of the whole house with her own eyes.

 

It's weird that someone I've just met is telling me for breakfast like this, she thought.

 

Arisa catches a glimpse of the interior of the house. Following the three-dimensional display she saw in the future, this place looks different compared to future housing. The furniture is old-fashioned for Arisa since it is less sophisticated than her own house.

The girl found her brother sitting across in front of her seat. He still looks sleepy. Sometimes, the little brother puts his face on the table.

 

"Well, breakfast is ready," said the mother, putting a plate of bread and sunny-side eggs on the table. Arisa is examining how the figure of the woman preparing breakfast so curiously.

 

Why has Arisa been accepted in a family of total strangers? It's all thanks to the Records of the Past.

The scientists created a feature so the volunteers could blend with the past community. By creating a pseudo-hierarchy slipped into an existing community, the community's memories of the past will adapt and treat a volunteer as someone who initially existed in the past.

 

The achievement of scientists is genuinely outstanding, she thought.

 

A man wearing old chain goggles is also present at this small morning gathering. The girl understands very well that the man is the head of this family. He didn't talk much and ate his breakfast straight away.

Like a signal, Arisa followed what her 'father' did. But as the simple sandwich went inside her mouth, Arisa's eyes were sparkling.

 

This flavor... is something I never had before!.

 

Closing her eyes while chewing, Arisa compares what she has been consuming in the future with her breakfast now.

 

... it tasted completely different!

 

Mom realizes her daughter has finished her meal quickly. She chuckles and smiles at Arisa.

 

"Are you really that starving? I'll make it again if you want."

"Yes, I do. I want more, Mom," Arisa replied enthusiastically.

 

The mother returns to the kitchen, preparing more for her daughter, who enjoys a new taste on her tongue. It won't be enough for Arisa to eat just a single portion if it's that delicious.

A moment later, Arisa remembered something when she noticed her 'brother and father' were enjoying their breakfast.

 

What about the others, huh? Do they also feel this foreign sensation like me?

 

The long-haired girl tries to guess what others are going through as she waits and looks out the window. It's so bright and warm, thanks to the morning sun.

 

In the same city, a different place where Valerie lives with his past family.

 

"Hmm..."

 

The man sat in the living room smiling awkwardly as a strange feeling was inside his chest. Indeed, he can easily get along quickly with new people. Still, if the said person is supposed to be his family from now on, he can't help but feel uneasy.

A woman with shoulder-length curly hair sits in front of him on a carpet with a gaze glued to a large television in the living room, enjoying a series of internet subscription programs. Her attention is focused on the series, so she's unaware that Valerie sits beside her, fidgeting.

 

"Val, what's wrong?"

 

Another voice is calling Valerie from behind the couch. A graceful woman with long hair up to her shoulders wearing casual clothes walked close to him as he turned around.

 

"Sis? No, nothing. Just got in a little bit of thought," he replied.

"What kind of thought? Do you mind if you tell me about it?"

 

I'm thinking about how strange it is to call you my big sister when we just met, Valerie answers inside his mind.

 

"It's okay. It's just a matter of silly debate on the internet. Don’t worry, Sis Alana. Everything is safely under control," he joked.

"Alright, then," she chuckles. She didn't think about it any further and walked into the kitchen to pick something up.

 

It does take time to adjust myself. But it will take a little time. I can do it, right?

 

Valerie smiled, got off the couch, and joined her cousin, who was still watching with focus.

 

"Okay, Nia. Can you give me a quick summary so I can understand this episode?" said Valerie casually, who was starting to watch the actors doing their job on the screen.

 

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The girl's attention is shifted to the man who should be her cousin. Her eyes look at the attractive figure who slowly becomes interested in the screen's various scenes.

Valerie's cousin then returns to watch as she prepares for the synopsis of what has happened in the series. It only took a few seconds for him to explain his cousin's request.

 

"This series tells the story of mafia life, whose main character wants revenge. In previous episodes, I was only told how he looked for clues about the person responsible for the accident. Then—"

 

Now his attention is entirely on his cousin, who is explaining the story in such detail. Valerie chuckles, not expecting Nia won't stop talking while presenting the synopsis of the series.

Maybe Valerie will enjoy the process of adapting to his new family.

 

Elsewhere in Tantoris, a short-haired girl with a dark color is currently preparing a warm tea inside the teapot. Then, she carefully brings it into someone's room and puts it on a small table.

 

"Grandma, I make you a warm drink. I hope you like it."

"Thank you, Rita. Sorry for bothering you."

"I don't mind, Grandma. I also happened to want to have some tea, so don't worry."

 

The fragile, hunched figure with white hair finally looked sideways after a long stare out the window. The sun is still out there. However, today's temperature is below average—colder than usual.

That's why Rita thinks making a warm drink for grandma might be helpful. The girl understands that if she is as old as her grandma, she would feel colder than relatively young others.

Rita pours tea into a cup and takes it to grandma's front. She nodded and took the cup carefully.

 

"It is very delicious. I feel like my body is getting warmer."

 

Rita smiled when she heard grandma's comment.

 

Thank God my existence got accepted quickly. Initially, I was worried, even though my position in my Record of the Past was to be her granddaughter. I thought she'd still reject me.

 

Rita breathes a sigh of relief quietly without grandma knowing. Her feelings are much calmer now.

 

How are Rio and Valerie doing? Hope they're okay.

 

The last one is Rio. Is he able to instantly blend with his past family as the others do?

 

Rio is currently at the dinner table. He looks around without knowing what to do as the oldest brother in his past family. Breakfast was over for a while, and the whole family was relaxing right now.

His eyes are looking at the twins talking to each other. According to the profile Rio read before, their names are Vemia and Nando. Both are twelve years old, with Vemia as the elder sister.

 

"There are many kinds of sea animals. According to this book, fish at a depth of five thousand meters will have a strange shape than fish on the surface." Vemia explains that based on the information she just read.

Arnando was quiet for a moment to process the information he had recently got. "Five thousand meters is about the distance from the midtown bridge to the police station, isn't it?"

"Yes, about that far. But imagine if the direction goes deeper into the sea."

 

Rio understands that his twin siblings are discussing sea creatures that are still a mystery. In fact, all animals in the depths have almost been identified thanks to future technology. However, in the next few hundred years, the earth also experiences destruction due to human selfishness.

 

That's right. If I'm in the past now, then...

 

The man stood up and walked to the door, which Nando later noticed.

 

"Brother is going to go outside?" the boy asked.

"Where are you going?" continued Vemia.

"Ahh... just want to find some fresh air," Rio replied, entirely unprepared for the question. How could he not think of people at home and walk away?

"Oh, that's it. Be careful, Brother," Vemia said, followed by Arnando waving his hand.

 

Rio smiles and finally seeks to see what the past earth has to offer.

 

The first time the man set foot outdoors, a warm light landed on his face as the first welcome for those who successfully managed to get to the past.

His gaze was savoring all of this rare sight before him. And then, he looks at the clear sky filled with soft, cotton clouds—things Rio had never seen in person because everything is in blue-and-gray in the future's sky due to the oxygen dome.

Rio took a deep breath and breathed it slowly.

 

Fresh air.

 

He smiled and looked at the clumps of cotton floating in the sky. It's time to take a first-hand look at the city's atmosphere in the past with his own eyes.

Suddenly, part of his mind says that someone he's been looking for over these years is also participating in a trip to the past. What will that person thinks when she sees this kind of sight?

 

... I kinda miss her.

 

Rio is going to get around further to fulfill his curiosity.

 

The housing structure is so different compared to the architecture of the future residence. The road is made of asphalt that gets warmer thanks to the relentless sunlight. Plants and trees grow naturally because the soil is still abundant with minerals, followed by the sounds of such noisy insects. It really gives Rio an experience that he has never felt before.

It's not that there's no vegetation at all in the cities of the future. However, every plant is always contained in a medium with enough soil because it needs to be monitored. No insects live on such caged plants. It is completely sterile and quiet.

The young guy spotted several vehicles passing by on the main road. Rio thinks cars in the past definitely need improvement, especially in their gas emissions factor. Rio wonders if he would try to change that for the sake of better earth in the future.

 

"But I'm not sure that the technology in this era is capable of supporting an environmentally friendly transportation system," he said as he continued to walk.

 

His footsteps slowly take the young man to the town's riverbank. Rio looked back on the information about the Tantoris City that he had studied before this departure began. Basically, the city's location is close to two mountains cut off by the Main River in the middle. The Main River has several branches that spread throughout the other side of this city.

 

The topography structures were quite common for cities in the past. It's really different when I compare it with our city's topography.

 

Rio is walking down through this riverbank to see how a natural river formed in the past. It is as depicted as his communication ring says. Still, this is the first time Rio has seen a naturally flowing river with his own eyes.

As he looks the other way, someone sits on a long bench near the riverbank.

 

"Eh?"

 

That figure feels familiar to Rio. The girl is relaxing with an ice cream stick in her hands while enjoying the sound of the river's flow.

 

Is it her?

 

Is she someone Rio has been looking for all along this time?

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