Shredders and Some Paint

Jurie lost her concept of time in Blankia. She learned from L that some of those he had met before her were also writers who had forgotten how to write words on blank sheets. They gradually lost their ability to express themselves creatively with words. They lost track of who they were, completely erasing their passion for writing when they couldn’t produce a single word. Some of them were able to regain their memories and had broken free from the curse of writer’s block. However, when the beasts found out about the scripts—that were not supposed to be what they were expected to produce—printed on their bodies, they dragged them out of the office and brought them to the Rekindling Forest. He had no idea what had happened to his colleagues there.

When they returned to the office, she noticed that some employees were absent.

“Ten of them didn’t show up today. What could’ve happened?” she asked L, who was sitting beside her.

“I don’t know, but I noticed one of the guards calling them one by one earlier.”

“Everyone, listen! Last night, two  Censor-Beasts apprehended two lawbreakers and brought them to the Rekindling Forest! If you don’t want to join in their agony, make sure to follow the rules!” one of the guards said. They were the only ones who were allowed to speak in the office, aside from the time bird. Their skin color was a bit off-white, almost light cream, and they spoke only what they were dictated to say. Well, all Blankians have thin-lined mouths. But those who did the clerical work were prohibited from speaking unless in unison, when needed. Desk workers would open their mouths when they had to eat.

The guard was about to leave when he stopped and looked back at them again. “By the way, The Boss thought of another way of punishing those who can’t produce an output—the shredder! You all know how it works. So, break a leg! Unless you literally want to break one of yours in those monsters.”

As he closed the door behind him, screams of pain filled the other room. The poignant bellows synced with the thundering metal teeth, munching on and tearing pieces of paper. Some of the Blankians shivered in fear. As dread seized their hearts, black patches of letters appeared on the screens of their laptops. They began to type adjectives, verbs, and nouns that were also imprinted on their skins.

Jurie poked L several times to get his attention.

“What’s going on with them?” she asked.

“The terror brought their creativity to life. The guards mustn’t see them! We have to do something! Quick! Grab a bucket of white paint!”

“Huh? Where?”

“There! Under your table!”

Without second thoughts, Jurie did what she was told. After grabbing the bucket, she poured its contents onto the Blankian to her left, who, despite being shocked, remained silent, realizing what was going on. He nodded as a thank you to her. L did the same for those who were showing blank ink close to him.

“How did you know there were buckets of paint here?” she asked. Even the other Blankians looked in their direction. Jurie sensed their curiosity, even though she couldn't see their facial expressions.

“I stored them for this specific purpose,” L said. “It happened to me before. Luckily, I was home then. I realized that when I’m under pressure or feeling intense emotions, original ideas flow back; our creativity is restored. As it happened, unique text appeared on my skin.”

“Where did you get this paint then? Has anyone noticed you bringing it in here?”

“It’s from the other side of the Rekindling Forest. There’s a specific tree there that produces a white sap. Fortunately, no one has seen me bring these buckets in.”

“Can you bring me to the Rekindling Forest?”

*****

Chirping birds serenaded Jurie’s ears when they went for a walk one Saturday afternoon. She at least knew the day because she learned how to count the hours, all thanks to the origami alarm bird in the office.

“It’s lovely. I haven’t realized birds here know how to sing,” she said.

“Yeah, right, especially when you always hear the noisy bird in the office.” L led the way to his favorite spot. “ Those birds are caught and trained for the purpose they serve, while these in the wild have no care in the world. They’re living as normal.”

When they reached the spot, L pointed at the other end of the mountain. Unlike the spotless part they were at, the other end had grayish clouds—almost like cumulonimbus.

“Is that fog, or am I seeing thunderstorm clouds?” she asked.

“That’s the Rekindling Forest. I wonder what those clouds are.” L led the way in the opposite direction. “That area is prohibited. The tree we need is in this part.”

A soft murmur coming from a body of water captivated Jurie’s ears. Although she was following L’s lead, she couldn’t help but wander off the track. She was so enthralled that her focus was on finding the source of the melodious sound.

‘Come closer, oh stranger. I am but with no owner. You need me as I need you. If you find me, then I’ll help you.’

The voice seemed to come from a royal lady—soft, mesmerizing, and enchanting.

She kept walking until she reached a lagoon that shocked her. She thought of hearing the sound of swift-flowing water from a river; she was wrong.

With steady and sure strides, she kept going. The lagoon was the only colored spot in Blankia. The only body of turquoise water blended with deep blue and green. Seeing colors for the first time since she had arrived there hypnotized her.

The melodious hymn continued, as if making her float; she couldn’t feel her steps. She felt lightweight.

‘Your life is dull; there’s no color. You have ideas, but all are blurred. Find me, my dear, and let’s escape. You might forget who you are when it’s too late.’

She shook her head to wake up from the enchantment. The lyrics of the song were like a warning to her. She rubbed her eyes only to see an empty jar instead of a pristine body of water. Her shoulders dropped when she looked around her and saw that everything was the same as it was.

With a sigh of disappointment, she turned her back about to trace back her trail when…

“Jurie, what are you doing down there?” L’s voice broke the spell of the lagoon that almost drowned her. “Get back here this instant before the sap dries out.”

She scratched her head, wondering how she got down. Instead of debating, she climbed up to the cliff. The protruding roots of the gigantic trees helped her to complete the task with ease.

“Sorry,” she said. “Something caught me off guard.”

“You’re always the defiant one, aren’t you?” L extended his hand to help her. “Did you find any container?”

“I’m sorry. I couldn’t find any.”

“And what’s that in your hand?”

She followed L’s gaze and almost dropped the bottle when she saw it. “I—I…”

“Come on. We need to hurry. It’s no time for pranks.” L was still holding her hand as they walked back to where the sap tree was.

The tree was enormous. It was a 20-foot-tall baobab-like tree with an extremely wide canopy.

“That was huge!” Jurie exclaimed. “Do you have a knife to slice its trunk?”

“We don’t need that. We just have to wait.”

“The sap won’t come out if we do—n’t—”

“Shh! Here it comes.” L pointed above. A gigantic bird, similar to a pterodactyl, flew by. Its beak was as huge as a pelican’s, but its end was as pointed as a hummingbird’s. It had tentacles for claws. “Only that bird can inflict a wound on this tree’s trunk. The rest, whatever weapon it may be, are deemed useless.”

“Why?”

“You’ll see.”

The bird flapped its enormous wings and almost swept them away. Luckily, L was still holding her tight. He was holding on to another nearby tree.

The bird circled the tree and struck once. It pecked the trunk with its powerful beak in one blow. The action shook the ground, vibrating through their bodies and sending minor electric shocks to their systems. Ear-splitting, creaking wood sounds echoed in the mountains and scared the other animal inhabitants in the ecosystem: small birds flew in all directions, carnivorous squirrels hopped away with chunks of meat in their mouths, and snakes with ears and horns slithered towards some safer caves.

“It’s coming! Ready your container, Jurie! We’ll have a splash!”

She uncovered the lid of the jar she found down the cliff while L snapped his fingers. As he did so, several frog-shaped flowers spread their petals wide. They resembled huge, open, toothless mouths.

“How did you do that?”

“Mind power,” L answered, pointing to his right temple.

The first sap globule dropped with such surprising rapidity that they didn’t have enough time to escape before it even reached them. Both were soaked in white paint. Jurie waited for another droplet to fall, but there wasn’t.

“That’s it? Just one drop?” she asked.

L looked up, so she followed his gaze. Her eyes widened seeing that the hole made by the bird was gradually closing. It didn’t take a minute before the massive burrow disappeared without a trace. It was as if nothing happened as the bird flew away after having its fill.

“That’s what I’m talking about. We can’t get another chance to take some sap today. That bird only feeds once a week, on this exact day and time.”

Jurie covered the lid of her jar while L plucked the flower whose petals automatically closed the moment they got filled. He cut some vines to tie all six bulbs and carried them on his shoulders.

However, as they took a few steps away from the tree, footsteps and rustles on the ground made them stop and duck behind the tall cogon grass. With erratic heartbeats, they waited for who would appear. Beads of sweat trailed their faces as three silhouettes of Blankian guards emerged from a distance.