CHAPTER 6 — THE TEARS AND THE EYES
(Omar knelt among the burnt ash and black dirt of the ruined village. The dried blood and fresh tears on his face had merged into one. Hearing the old woman's words had struck a blow to his mind, tearing open the darkest, most agonizing page of his childhood. A blurry image of his real Abu and Ammi surfaced in his mind, and a long, heartbreaking flashback began to play before his hollow eyes...)
There was a time when this world didn't feel so dark and ruthless.
When I was very young, my real Abu was a merchant.
We had a small, but incredibly beautiful home, with a courtyard where Ammi always grew flowers.
There was a warmth in my Abu's voice that could chase away any fear in the night.
Whenever he returned from his long sea voyages, his clothes carried the scent of the salty ocean wind.
He would bring me new toys, strange glowing stones, and tales from another world.
"My brave lion,"
he would say, tossing me into the air.
"One day, you too will measure this entire world with your own footsteps!"
But then, one day...
he left on a new, long voyage across the sea for his trade.
As he left, he kissed my forehead, placed his warm palm against my cheek, and said,
"Omar, until I return, take care of your Ammi.
I will be back soon, with plenty of toys."
But he never returned.
Weeks turned into months.
Months slowly faded into years.
Waiting for his return,
my Ammi's (Kayala) eyes grew exhausted.
At night, I would hear her crying alone in her room, clutching Abu's old handkerchief.
Her smile, which once lit up the entire house, slowly vanished.
But the worst part was that the agony of this endless wait and loneliness hollowed her out from the inside.
She contracted an illness that no healer in the village could cure.
Fresh blood began to appear in her coughs.
Her face, which once glowed like the moon, turned entirely pale and lifeless.
Her hands constantly trembled, and her breath was always ragged.
"Ammi, you will get better, right?"
I would hug her, crying,
terrified that she too would leave me.
She would stroke my hair with her trembling, cold hands and offer a weak smile,
"My son... until your Abu is found,
even death cannot defeat me.
Your Abu will come...
I am sure of it."
Finally, when her condition worsened drastically and there was no other way to survive, she made a final decision.
Packing whatever little we had left, we decided to travel to Julfabaad City to search for Abu.
That was the last known destination where Abu's ship had gone to unload cargo.
We boarded a massive commercial ship bound for Julfabaad.
The vessel was enormous, built from heavy timber and iron.
The ship carried many others—merchants traveling to sell their goods, ordinary passengers, and a large, boisterous crew.
But from the very beginning of this journey, a strange, ominous feeling hung in the air.
The ocean water wasn't blue or green; it looked like thick, black poison.
The creaking sounds of the ship's wood sounded like the weeping of the dead.
"Tie the ropes securely, you fools!
The wind is changing!"
the First Mate shouted his orders across the deck.
"Captain," an old, experienced sailor approached the Captain, trembling.
"The color of the sky doesn't look right, sir.
There is absolutely no movement in the water...
and the birds have stopped flying in this direction.
Such a dead silence only falls when death is near.
We should change our course.
This 'Shadow Route' is not safe."
The Captain was an incredibly greedy, fat-bellied, and arrogant man.
He slammed the bottle of rum he was holding hard onto the wooden table.
"Don't speak out of turn, old man!
If we change our course,
it will take three extra days to reach Julfabaad,
and
I'll have to pay heavy border taxes.
This is my ship,
and I decide the route! Keep sailing straight!
I am steering this ship,
not some rotten superstition!"
The Captain knew exactly what dangers lurked on this maritime route,
but for the greed of a few coins,
he had traded our destinations and our lives.
On the third day of the voyage...
the sky suddenly turned pitch black.
In the middle of the day, the sun hid behind a thick, impenetrable darkness.
The ship's sails, which had been flapping in the wind, suddenly fell dead and hung limp.
The wind had completely died.
"Captain!!
Look ahead!
There... there is land!"
screamed a crew member perched on the mast, paralyzed by fear.
My Ammi and I stepped out of the cabin upon hearing the commotion.
Right in the middle of the ocean, where the maps indicated there should be nothing but miles of water, a massive, black island had emerged.
The island was so terrifyingly huge that our massive ship looked like a tiny toy in front of it.
The island was covered in green moss, the broken masts of ancient burnt ships, and centuries-old debris.
The Captain, drenched in sweat, fearfully pulled out his telescope.
He looked closely at the island.
Whatever he saw through that lens made his very soul tremble
. Suddenly, his hands began to shake violently, and the telescope slipped, crashing onto the wooden deck.
His face had turned as white as a sheet, as if there was no blood left in his body.
"T-Turn...
Turn the ship back now!!!"
the Captain screamed like a madman, his voice cracking.
"Cut all the ropes!!
That is not an island!!
MAY ALLAH HAVE MERCY!!
THAT IS NOT AN ISLAND!!!"
Before the crew could even comprehend his words, the black ocean water began to boil violently.
The massive bubbles rising from the depths were the heralds of an unimaginable storm.
The earth shook.
No... not the earth, the entire ocean shook.
That massive island...
suddenly began to rise.
Thousands of tons of water cascaded down from the "island" like a heavy waterfall.
And then, under that dark sky, right before our tearing eyes, the horrifying truth tore through the water and revealed itself.
It was no rock.
It was a demon.
'Saratan'.
The most ancient and terrifying monster of the Arabic seas.
A massive, mountain-sized Island Crab, measuring over fifty feet in length and width.
Its shell bore an entire false island, designed to deceive wandering ships.
Its legs were as thick as the pillars of an ancient palace.
As Saratan opened its rocky, moss-covered massive jaws, the silence of the ocean shattered into death.
GURRRRRR—
SCREEEEEEEEEECH!!!
The sound didn't belong to any ordinary beast.
It sounded as if thousands of tons of iron chains were being dragged simultaneously beneath a centuries-old ocean, carrying the terrifying pressure of boiling water and cracking boulders.
The vibration of that roar was so heavy and deafening that a physical shockwave was felt in the air, and the thick wooden planks of the ship began to splinter.
But the strange thing was, there was no hunger in that roar; there was an ancient pain and wrath, as if someone had made a grave mistake by waking it from its deep slumber and wounding it.
"AHHHH! MY EARS!!"
The crew member on the mast screamed, losing his balance and plummeting straight into the boiling sea below.
That demonic, ear-shattering roar from Saratan instantly ruptured the eardrums of more than half the crew standing on the deck.
People collapsed to the ground in terror and unbearable agony, streams of blood pouring from both ears, painting their faces red.
The roar was so dark and heavy, it felt as though the ocean itself was announcing their doom.
As Saratan fully emerged from the water, its two massive, glowing red eyes opened.
It didn't look at a single crew member on the ship.
Its terrifying gaze locked directly onto that fat, greedy Captain.
"AAMMI!!!"
I screamed in terror, clinging to my Ammi's chest.
Her entire body was trembling, but she shielded me in her embrace with such force, as if even death couldn't touch me.
"Save your lives!!!"
the First Mate screamed, turning to leap into the water, but just then, Saratan raised one of its massive, rocky claws into the air.
CRASH!!!
Saratan smashed that colossal claw directly onto the section of the ship where the Captain was standing.
Wood, iron, and the Captain's human body... everything was obliterated into dust in a single second.
The Captain couldn't even let out a scream; he was simply crushed out of existence beneath that giant rocky pincer.
Saratan didn't eat anyone; it didn't even touch another human.
But the sheer impact of that colossal claw and Saratan's movement in the water generated such terrifying waves that the ship snapped into two pieces.
Thousands of gallons of water rushed violently into the vessel. Absolute chaos erupted.
People began to drown in the sea due to the sudden storm and the shattered ship.
Blinded by terror, no one even realized that Saratan hadn't attacked them at all!
They were merely dying in the tempest created by the monster's sheer weight.
The ship was rapidly sinking into the terrifying depths of the ocean.
Fire, screams, boiling water, and the naked dance of death surrounded us.
Clutching me to her chest,
stumbling and dodging splintered wood while enduring the freezing slaps of the water,
my Ammi made it to the edge of the deck.
"Ammi!
There!
There is a lifeboat!"
I cried, pointing.
But we were too late.
The two lifeboats had either been smashed to pieces and sunk,
or a few terrified crew members had already jumped in and taken them.
We had no way out.
Ammi was panting heavily.
Her illness had drained whatever little strength she had left.
Blood was spilling from her mouth, and her clothes were completely soaked.
Suddenly,
her eyes fell upon a massive **wooden barrel** lying on the deck.
It was a heavy ration barrel used to store food or drinking water for long voyages.
Gathering her absolute last ounce of strength, Ammi forced the lid open and dumped out the little remaining water and supplies inside.
"Omar!
G-Get inside!
Hurry!"
Gripping me with both hands,
Ammi tried to shove me into the wooden barrel.
"No Ammi!
What are you doing?!"
I began to cry hysterically, fighting with all my might to climb back out.
"There's no room in there!
You won't fit! I won't go without you!"
With her blood-stained hands, Ammi held my cheek.
There were tears in her eyes,
but no fear—only a mother's love,
greater than any monster in the world.
"My son... you must stay alive."
"What are you saying,
Ammi?!"
I screamed, sobbing uncontrollably.
My tiny hands gripped hers as tightly as I could.
"I won't leave you alone to die!"
"No, my son, you have to go,"
Ammi offered me a heartbreaking, final smile.
"You have to find your Abu...
And look at me...
Even if I survive this monster here...
this terrible disease will torture me to death in a few days anyway.
My time has already come, my child."
"LIAR!!!"
I stood inside the wooden barrel, screaming at the top of my lungs.
"You're lying! You're making excuses to push me away!
So you can die yourself and I survive?!
I won't let that happen! Never!
I will never let you die!"
I was just about to jump out of the barrel and run to her when...
A surviving crew member, running blindly in panic from behind, lost his balance.
His heavy elbow struck the exact back of my neck with brutal force.
A horrifying jolt of pain shot through me, and darkness clouded my vision.
My small body collapsed into the heavy wooden barrel.
All my strength was gone, but through my blurry vision,
I witnessed my final sight:
My Ammi hastily pulled the lid of the barrel half-shut.
Using her very last breath, she shoved the heavy wooden barrel with all her might, and it slid off the ship, plunging straight into the black ocean.
SPLASH.
Amidst the deafening waves, peering through the small crack of the barrel,
I saw her one last time.
My Ammi was kneeling on the shattered deck.
Saratan's massive shadow loomed directly over her.
But the colossal monster didn't attack her.
For just a fleeting moment, it looked at my Ammi with its massive, ancient eyes, as if bidding a final farewell to a kindred spirit.
In that single second, there was no death in the giant monster's eyes, only a strange peace and an ancient sorrow.
"Allah Hafiz...
my son..."
her lips moved.
And then, Saratan began to sink back down into the water.
Its descent created another massive wave, and the remaining wreckage of the ship, along with my Ammi, was swallowed by the black ocean forever.
Inside the barrel, I let out my final scream and completely lost consciousness.
(Cut scene: Next day at Julfabaad Port)
The next day...
crashing against the waves, that wooden barrel washed up on the rocky shores of Julfabaad Port.
I somehow pushed the lid off and crawled out.
There was utter chaos at Julfabaad Port.
The stench of fish and garbage hung in the air, and I lay in the dirt amidst the crowd like a corpse.
The panicked voices of the people reached my ears.
"I heard another large ship sank on the Shadow Route!"
a man yelled.
"Did no one survive?!"
"Probably no one! To this day, whoever has seen that sea monster hasn't survived.
It's Saratan! It has eaten over 3,000 ships.
God knows how many thousands of merchants that devil has killed!"
Because no one survived the storm to tell the tale, the people never knew the truth—
that Saratan hadn't actually eaten anyone;
it had only broken the ship.
But their terror forced them to spread the rumor that it devours everyone alive.
As soon as I heard that final line—
"no merchant ever returns alive"
—the veins in my head felt like they would burst.
My Abu...
was a merchant.
And he had taken that exact route.
That meant... my Abu was already dead.
My Ammi's sacrifice was for nothing!
I was left completely and utterly alone in this massive world!
I dropped to my knees in that filthy dirt in front of the crowd,
buried my face in my hands, and began to weep with such an agonizing wail, as if the last drop of blood was being wrung from my body.
"Why?!
Why did this happen to me!!
Allah, give me death!!
I don't want to live!!"
I kept screaming, crying.
Just then...
someone placed a light, warm hand on my sobbing shoulder.
I turned around. A man stood before me.
His face was calm, and his eyes held the same warmth
I used to see in my Abu's eyes years ago.
It was none other than the merchant,
Salman.
Salman knelt in the dirt right in front of me.
"Look, child, whatever terrible things have happened to you, either you know or the Almighty knows...
but by losing hope like this, you are causing great pain to your Ammi and Abu."
"IT DOESN'T MATTER!!"
I screamed in his face.
"Because they are not in this world anymore!!
Everything is finished!!"
"So what if they are not in this world?
They live in your breath,"
Salman said, pulling me into an embrace.
"They didn't give up their lives so you could die crying here.
Life is very long, my child...
It must be lived with courage.
From today, you are not alone."
END OF FLASHBACK
(Present Time - In the destroyed village)
Omar snapped out of that agonizing flashback of his Ammi and Abu, crying heavily.
He was kneeling in the ash and scorched earth of the village.
The sickening stench of burnt flesh and ash still hung in the air.
"STOP RIGHT THERE,
BASTARD!!!"
Omar flinched violently and turned around.
Hovering in the air right above him was the Devil Head,
Huba Huba !
"I WILL TAKE YOUR EYES!!!"
The Devil Head was driven insane by blindness and rage.
Huba Huba launched his most brutal and sickening attack.
From the blind devil's hollow sockets,
a rubbery and sticky mass
shot out like webs and slammed tightly onto Omar's face.
"AAHHHH!!!"
Omar screamed in agony into the dark village.
The sticky mass cemented itself over both of Omar's eyes, burning his skin.
With absolute brutality, in a single, deadly jerk, Huba Huba yanked the flesh back!
SQUELCH!!!
"M-MY EYES!!!"
Omar shrieked in horrifying pain, collapsing into the dirt.
Huba Huba had brutally ripped both of his eyes entirely out of their sockets!
Thick streams of blood poured from both sides of his face.
Huba Huba hovered in the air, licking the fresh eyes with his long, red tongue, laughing like a maniac.
Just then—
BOOOOM!!!
The scorched earth of the village violently quaked as if struck by a massive earthquake.
An incredibly heavy, masculine, and fire-spitting voice shattered the Devil's laughter into a deathly silence.
"STAY WITHIN YOUR LIMITS, UNHOLY DEMON!!!"
Huba Huba jerked backward.
His laughter caught in his throat.
From amidst the dust and drifting ash, a colossal shadow emerged.
"Stay away from that child,"
the giant man threatened with a roar.
"Who gave you permission to deal death on this soil?!"
Huba Huba growled, opening his wide jaws as he floated.
"I... I don't need anyone's permission!
I only answer to my Master Jabar...
And tell me first...
WHO ARE YOU?!"
The giant man stepped forward like a walking fortress.
His weight was so immense that the ground vibrated with his every step.
He wielded a massive, rune-engraved warhammer in one hand and an Iron Chain hook Blade in the other.
He glared at the Devil Head with glowing blue eyes and roared with an earth-shattering voice, like an Army General:
"HOLD YOUR TONGUE,
FILTHY BLOODLINE! YOU DO NOT STAND BEFORE A MERE MORTAL
; YOU STAND BEFORE THE HEARTBEAT OF THE EARTH ITSELF! MY NAME IS HAIBAT! THE ELDER GUARDIAN OF THE DIVINE DISCIPLES...
AND "THEIR ABSOLUTE SHIELD!"
END OF CHAPTER 6