IT WAS STRANGE. WHEN THEY HAD ALL STARTED, THERE HAD BEEN COUNTLESS SOULS HEADING TOWARD THE GREAT PIT AHEAD. BUT NOW, AS BASTIAN WALKED, HE REALIZED HE WAS ALONE. THE OTHER SOULS WHO HAD BEEN BESIDE HIM WERE GONE.
"WHERE DID THEY GO?" BASTIAN MUTTERED, PERPLEXED. "THEY WERE JUST HERE A MOMENT AGO… WHAT'S HAPPENING?"
THERE WAS A FUNDAMENTAL DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE SOULS OF THE LIVING, WHO HAD TEMPORARILY LEFT THEIR BODIES, AND THE TRULY DEAD. THAT MUCH WAS CLEAR. BASTIAN WASN'T THE ONLY ONE CONFUSED; EVEN THE SHAMANS AND WITCH DOCTORS UP ABOVE SEEMED UNCERTAIN. THEIR PLAN HAD A GLARING FLAW, THEY DIDN'T UNDERSTAND THE TRUE NATURE OF WHAT THEY WERE DEALING WITH. MIXING LIVING SOULS WITH THE DEAD WAS LIKE TRYING TO COMBINE OIL AND WATER. NO MATTER HOW MUCH YOU STIRRED THEM TOGETHER, THEY WOULD EVENTUALLY SEPARATE AGAIN, EACH RETURNING TO ITS OWN NATURE.
BASTIAN FEARED THAT HIS QUEST WAS DESTINED FOR FAILURE. EVEN IF HE WERE THE "OIL" THAT FLOWED FARTHEST ALONG THIS PATH, IT SEEMED THAT HIS SEARCH WOULD LEAD NOWHERE. THE SOULS OF THE DEAD WERE SLIPPING AWAY FROM HIM, AND SOON HE, TOO, MIGHT FIND HIMSELF LOST.
BUT THEN, SOMETHING UNEXPECTED HAPPENED.
A VOICE PIERCED THROUGH THE SILENCE, SOFT YET CLEAR, AS IF IT HAD BEEN WAITING FOR THIS VERY MOMENT. "I TOLD YOU WE WOULD MEET AGAIN. YOU TOOK YOUR TIME."
BASTIAN FROZE. THAT VOICE. IT COULDN'T BE…
HE TURNED SLOWLY, HIS HEART RACING. "YOU'RE… THE SNOW OWL?!"
IN FRONT OF HIM, PERCHED CALMLY AMIDST THE LIFELESS SURROUNDINGS, WAS A SNOWY OWL. BUT UNLIKE EVERYTHING ELSE IN THIS BARREN, MONOCHROMATIC WORLD, THE OWL RADIATED VIBRANT COLOR. ITS FEATHERS GLEAMED WITH SHADES OF WHITE AND SILVER, STANDING OUT IN STARK CONTRAST TO THE DRAB, GRAY LANDSCAPE.
BASTIAN WAS STUNNED, HIS MIND RACING TO MAKE SENSE OF WHAT HE WAS SEEING. SOMEHOW, HE HAD TRAVELED DEEP INTO THE GROUND, AND HERE, IN THE HEART OF THIS DESOLATE WORLD, THE SNOW OWL A FIGURE FROM HIS PAST, WAS THE ONLY SOURCE OF LIFE AND COLOR.
HIS BREATH CAUGHT IN HIS THROAT. WHAT DID THIS MEAN? WHY WAS THE SNOW OWL HERE, IN THIS PLACE OF DEATH? AND WHY HAD IT BEEN WAITING FOR HIM?
MORE IMPORTANTLY, WHAT WAS IT GOING TO SAY NEXT?
THE OWL HOVERED IN THE AIR WITH AN UNNERVING CALMNESS, AS IF IT HAD BEEN WAITING FOR THIS MOMENT FOR FAR TOO LONG. ITS EYES WERE SHARP, GLEAMING WITH BOTH WISDOM AND MISCHIEF.
"SOUL FORM?" BASTIAN STAMMERED, HIS VOICE A MIX OF DISBELIEF AND CURIOSITY. "ARE YOU... DEAD?"
THE OWL'S FEATHERS RUFFLED, AND WITH A PIERCING SQUAWK, IT SNAPPED, "YOU'RE THE ONE WHO'S DEAD! YOUR WHOLE FAMILY IS DEAD! DON'T LUMP ME IN WITH MORTALS LIKE YOU WHO NEED POTIONS TO YANK THEIR SOULS OUT OF THEIR BODIES."
BEFORE BASTIAN COULD REACT, THE OWL DARTED FORWARD WITH SURPRISING SPEED, PECKING HIM SHARPLY ON THE HEAD; TWICE, JUST TO MAKE ITS POINT. A STRANGE, STINGING PAIN SPREAD THROUGH HIM. THIS WASN'T A DREAM. THE SENSATION OF PAIN MADE THAT VERY CLEAR.
AS HE RUBBED HIS HEAD, TRYING TO PROCESS THE SURREAL INTERACTION, BASTIAN COULDN'T HELP BUT FEEL CONFLICTED. THE CREATURE BEFORE HIM, SEEMINGLY HARMLESS AND EVEN CUTE IN APPEARANCE, WAS ANYTHING BUT ORDINARY. THIS OWL, THIS STRANGE BEING, HAD BEEN THE CATALYST BEHIND SO MUCH OF WHAT HAD HAPPENED. IT WAS THE ONE WHO HAD GUIDED HIM TOWARD UNCOVERING THE "TRUTH," THE ONE WHO HAD SET THIS ENTIRE CHAIN OF EVENTS IN MOTION.
BASTIAN HAD ALWAYS KNOWN THEY'D MEET AGAIN, BUT NOT LIKE THIS. NOT HERE, IN THIS BIZARRE AND OTHERWORLDLY ENVIRONMENT. HAD THE OWL ANTICIPATED THE COALITION'S DRASTIC MEASURES? COULD IT HAVE KNOWN THE SOUL-WALK WOULD BE ATTEMPTED ON SUCH A GRAND SCALE?
THE THOUGHT WAS UNSETTLING, YET UNDENIABLE. THE OWL, THIS SEEMINGLY INNOCENT LITTLE CREATURE WAS THE MASTERMIND, THE PUPPETEER PULLING STRINGS FROM THE SHADOWS. BUT WHAT WAS ITS TRUE AGENDA?
THE OWL TILTED ITS HEAD, AS IF READING BASTIAN'S MIND. "IT DOESN'T MATTER WHY I'M HERE," IT SAID COOLLY. "WHAT MATTERS IS WHERE I STAND."
THE WORDS WERE THE SAME AS THEIR LAST MEETING, ECHOING IN THE EXACT SAME TONE. THE OWL'S PRINCIPLES HADN'T CHANGED, THOUGH THE SITUATION CERTAINLY HAD. THE LAST TIME THEY'D CROSSED PATHS, BASTIAN HAD BEEN RUNNING FOR HIS LIFE, GRASPING AT WHATEVER HOPE REMAINED. BACK THEN, HE STILL BELIEVED THERE WAS GOOD TO BE FOUND IN EVERY RACE, THAT PERHAPS SOME SEMBLANCE OF ORDER COULD BE RESTORED. BUT NOW, AS HE LOOKED AT THE CRUMBLING REALITY AROUND HIM, HE KNEW THINGS WERE FAR WORSE. THERE WAS NO MORE ROOM FOR NAÏVE OPTIMISM.
THE OWL SPOKE AGAIN, INTERRUPTING HIS THOUGHTS. "YOU SHOULD CONSIDER YOURSELF LUCKY. WITHOUT ME, WITHOUT KNOWING WHAT I'VE SHOWN YOU, THE SITUATION WOULD BE FAR WORSE."
BASTIAN STARED AT IT, KNOWING THE TRUTH BEHIND ITS WORDS. THE OWL'S KNOWLEDGE HAD SAVED HIM BEFORE, AND IT HAD CHOSEN A SIDE IN THIS WAR OF SOULS. IF BASTIAN WANTED TO SURVIVE, IF HE WANTED TO UNCOVER THE TRUTH, HE COULDN'T AFFORD TO IGNORE THIS CHANCE.
"WHO ARE YOU, REALLY?" BASTIAN ASKED, HIS VOICE FULL OF FRUSTRATION AND URGENCY. "YOU OBVIOUSLY KNOW MORE THAN ANYONE ELSE ABOUT WHAT'S HAPPENING. THE SITUATION IS SPIRALING OUT OF CONTROL. IF YOU WANT TO HELP US, WHY DON'T YOU JUST TELL ME? WHY ALL THESE RIDDLES?"
THE OWL'S RESPONSE WAS NOT WORDS BUT ACTION. WITH A SUDDEN, POWERFUL SWEEP OF ITS WINGS, IT TOOK OFF INTO THE AIR. IT WASN'T LEAVING, NOT YET. THIS WAS AN INVITATION TO FOLLOW.
WITHOUT THINKING, BASTIAN TOOK OFF AFTER THE OWL, HIS SPIRIT FORM SOMEHOW CAPABLE OF KEEPING PACE AS THEY DARTED THROUGH SPACE. THE WORLD AROUND THEM SHIFTED, BOUNDARIES COLLAPSING AS THEY CROSSED ONE LIMIT AFTER ANOTHER. SNOWY MOUNTAIN PEAKS, VAST PLATEAUS, ENDLESS PLAINS, AND DEEP VALLEYS FLICKERED PAST LIKE SCENES FROM A DISJOINTED DREAM.
CONFUSION WASHED OVER BASTIAN AS THEY MOVED AT IMPOSSIBLE SPEEDS. WAS THIS REAL? WAS HIS MIND FRAYING, OR HAD HIS SOUL ALREADY BEGUN TO UNRAVEL? HOW LONG HAD THEY BEEN TRAVELING? IT FELT LIKE AN ETERNITY, YET HE COULDN'T RECALL TAKING A SINGLE STEP. HIS SURROUNDINGS BLURRED, AND SOON HE WASN'T SURE IF HE WAS EVEN UNDERGROUND ANYMORE.
"I'M DEAD... AREN'T I?" BASTIAN MUTTERED, HALF TO HIMSELF. "THEY MUST THINK I'M DEAD UP THERE. I'VE BEEN GONE TOO LONG..."
THE POTION'S EFFECTS WERE SUPPOSED TO LAST THREE HOURS, NO MORE. BUT HE HAD LONG SURPASSED THAT TIME. STILL, THE SOUL-SHATTERING SENSATION THAT SHOULD HAVE COME HADN'T ARRIVED. IN FACT, WITH EACH STEP, EACH LEAP THROUGH TIME AND SPACE, BASTIAN FELT STRONGER, MORE ALIVE. IT WAS AS THOUGH THE FURTHER HE TRAVELED, THE MORE HIS SPIRIT BECAME ENERGIZED.
SWIM? BASTIAN BLINKED, STARTLED BY HIS OWN REALIZATION. HE WAS NO LONGER WALKING. HE WAS GLIDING, AS THOUGH FLOATING THROUGH A VAST CURRENT. BEFORE HE KNEW IT, HE HAD STEPPED INTO A RIVER, AN ENDLESS RIVER MADE UP OF COUNTLESS SOULS FLOWING ALONGSIDE HIM.
THE STYX. HE KNEW THE NAME. A RIVER THAT CARRIED SOULS TOWARD THEIR FINAL DESTINATION, TOWARD THE AFTERLIFE. YET BASTIAN DIDN'T SINK. HE FLOATED ALONG ITS SURFACE, BOBBING UP AND DOWN LIKE A LEAF CARRIED BY THE CURRENT. HIS SOUL'S WILL WAS THE ONLY THING KEEPING HIM AFLOAT, PROPELLING HIM FORWARD.
TIME LOST ALL MEANING. THREE HOURS? SIX? THREE DAYS? HE COULDN'T TELL ANYMORE. ALL HE KNEW WAS THAT EVERYTHING AROUND HIM HAD GROWN STRANGELY QUIET, AND WHEN THE FRANTIC ENERGY FINALLY SUBSIDED, HE FOUND HIMSELF WASHED UP ON AN ISLAND, AN ISOLATED PLACE SEEMINGLY FORGOTTEN BY TIME ITSELF.
AS HE STOOD ON THE SHORE, BEWILDERED, HE LOOKED AROUND. THE SNOW OWL WAS THERE, PERCHED NEARBY, ITS BRIGHT FEATHERS GLOWING LIKE A BEACON IN THIS DESOLATE PLACE. BASTIAN HAD ARRIVED SOMEWHERE FAR BEYOND WHAT HE EVER IMAGINED. BUT WHAT WAS THIS PLACE? AND WHAT HAD THE OWL BROUGHT HIM HERE TO DISCOVER?
"EVEN AT THE LAST MOMENT, HE DID NOT LOSE CONSCIOUSNESS," THE OLD SHAMAN WHISPERED, HIS WEATHERED FACE ETCHED WITH LINES OF CONCERN AND HOPE. "HIS WILLPOWER RIVALS EVEN YOURS. PERHAPS OUR PLAN WILL SUCCEED AFTER ALL."
"HA, SO YOU FOUND HIM LIKE THIS," A SHADOWY FIGURE REPLIED SKEPTICALLY, STEPPING FORWARD FROM THE DIMLY LIT CORNER OF THE TENT.
CONFUSION SWIRLED IN BASTIAN'S MIND AS MUFFLED VOICES DRIFTED IN AND OUT OF HIS AWARENESS. HE STRUGGLED TO OPEN HIS EYES, FEELING AS THOUGH HE WERE UNDERWATER. WHEN HE FINALLY MANAGED TO AWAKEN, HE FOUND HIMSELF UTTERLY ALONE.
HE STOOD ON A DESERTED BEACH, BUT EVERYTHING WAS RENDERED IN STARK BLACK AND WHITE, AS IF ALL COLOR HAD BEEN DRAINED FROM THE WORLD. THE GRAYSCALE LANDSCAPE WAS EERILY SILENT, AND A PROFOUND FATIGUE WEIGHED DOWN HIS ENTIRE BODY. REALIZATION DAWNED ON BASTIAN: HE HADN'T RETURNED FROM HIS JOURNEY AFTER ALL.
"IF YOU FEEL TIRED AND EXHAUSTED, YOU SHOULD CONSIDER RETURNING," THE SHAMAN HAD WARNED HIM. "A SOUL WITHOUT A BODY DOES NOT FEEL FATIGUE. IF YOU DO, IT MEANS YOUR SPIRIT IS BECOMING UNSTABLE."
HE SIGHED DEEPLY, RECALLING THOSE WORDS. EVEN IF HE WANTED TO GO BACK, HE HAD NO IDEA HOW TO BEGIN. THE MONOCHROMATIC WORLD BEFORE HIM WAS UNFAMILIAR AND DISORIENTING.
"IS THIS TRULY THE UNDERWORLD? OR AM I SOMEWHERE ELSE ENTIRELY?" BASTIAN MUTTERED TO HIMSELF, GAZING UPWARD.
ABOVE HIM STRETCHED AN ENDLESS STARRY SKY, BUT IT WAS UNLIKE ANY HE HAD EVER SEEN. STARS FORMED UNFAMILIAR CONSTELLATIONS, AND NEBULAS GLOWED WITH AN OTHERWORLDLY LIGHT. HE REALIZED HE WAS STANDING ON A BEACH THAT WAS PART OF A FLOATING ISLAND, SUSPENDED IN MID-AIR.
BUT THE SURREAL SCENERY DIDN'T END THERE. BELOW THE ISLAND, SEAS AND RIVERS FLOWED UPWARD, DEFYING GRAVITY. WATERFALLS CASCADED IN REVERSE, SOARING INTO THE HEAVENS. BASTIAN WATCHED IN AWE AS THESE "RIVERS" STREAMED TOWARD LUMINOUS "WINDOWS" SCATTERED ACROSS THE SKY. BEYOND EACH WINDOW LAY INFINITE WORLDS.