TEN YEARS LATER
Ten years passed like flowing water.
Levie grew fast, but not like other children.
He never got sick.
He never tired easily.
He moved quietly, like he carried no weight in his steps.
He listened more than he spoke.
And his eyes… still held that calm, unnatural silence.
Most villagers kept their distance.
Some out of fear.
Some out of confusion.
Only Mala stayed close, and she loved him with everything she had.
But even she could feel it:
Levie was different.
Not dangerous.
Not strange in a bad way.
Just… not like everyone else.
And the elders watched him from afar, wondering what he would become.
The Forest Rules
Every child knew the rule:
"Never enter the Eastern Forest alone."
The forest was old.
Older than the village.
Older than the stories.
The trees were thick and twisted.
Some paths shifted at night.
Wild animals lived deep inside.
And some said forgotten spirits wandered there.
Children were taught to stay away.
But on Levie's tenth birthday, he woke up before sunrise and felt something calling him.
A soft pull.
A quiet whisper in the air.
Not a sound — a feeling.
He didn't tell his mother.
He didn't tell anyone.
He simply got up, walked outside… and headed straight toward the trees.
Mala Notices Too Late
When Mala woke, she felt a heaviness in her chest.
A mother's instinct.
She stepped outside and froze.
Levie was gone.
"Levie?" she called.
No answer.
Her heart beat fast.
She checked the riverbank.
The hill.
The open fields.
Nothing.
Then she saw the footprints leading to the thick Eastern Forest.
Her breath caught in her throat.
"No… not there…"
She ran back to the village.
"Zuwu! Elders! Levie has gone into the forest alone!"
The elders exchanged worried looks.
"He's just a child," she cried. "He doesn't understand the dangers!"
But Zuwu's face was tense.
"Levie is not like other children," he said. "This may not be a mistake."
Mala didn't care about their theories.
She cared only for her son.
"I'm going after him," she said.
But Zuwu grabbed her arm.
"No. The forest shifts when it wants to. If you enter now, you may not come out. Let us first understand why he went there."
Mala pulled her arm away.
"I don't care why. He's my son."
Meanwhile, Inside the Forest
Levie walked deeper and deeper, the trees closing around him like tall shadows.
He wasn't scared.
His breathing was steady.
His steps were light.
The forest animals stayed unusually quiet.
Birds didn't chirp.
Leaves didn't crackle.
Even the wind held its breath.
It was like the whole forest was watching him.
He stopped when he reached an old tree — huge, dark, and split in the middle like a wound.
The whisper he felt grew stronger.
He placed his hand on the tree.
The moment he touched it, the ground trembled softly.
A thin line of light appeared in the split of the tree.
Levie felt no fear.
Only recognition.
Like he had been here before.
Like the forest knew him.
A voice — not loud, not human — whispered inside him:
"You are not bound."
Levie blinked slowly.
He didn't fully understand the words.
But they felt true.
The tree responded to him.
The forest responded to him.
Like it knew he was not tied to the comet's rules.
He took a step forward—
And the split in the tree opened wider, revealing a hollow space glowing faintly from within.
Back at the Village
Mala was pacing, tears in her eyes.
"What if he's hurt? What if—?"
Zuwu lifted his hand.
"The forest is quiet. Too quiet."
"What does that mean?" Mala snapped.
"It means," Zuwu said slowly, "the forest is waiting."
Mala's eyes widened.
"For Levie?" she whispered.
Zuwu didn't answer.
Because he already knew the truth.
The Forest Opens
Inside the hollow of the ancient tree, Levie saw something simple yet frightening:
A mark on the inner wood.
A symbol shaped like an eye with no pupil.
It pulsed once.
Then it went dark.
Levie touched it—
And the forest exhaled.
All at once.
The wind rushed in.
Leaves shook violently.
The whole forest wo
ke up.
Levie stepped back, blinking as the symbol glowed faintly on his palm.
Not burned.
Not drawn.
Recognized.
He didn't know what it meant.
He only knew one thing:
The forest had accepted him.