Chapter Eleven - Surya

 “Welcome participants.” The intercom sounded.

After the green, code particles overtook our surroundings, we found ourselves in an endless room of old TV’s and a stack of movie cassettes at the bottom of each one. There were a number of participants, more than I realized.

“The rules for the first part of the three-part test are simple.” The light, intercom voice continued. “Each participant is to choose a vintage TV and decode the password to enter the second part of the test. The movie cassettes beneath the TV will help you decode the password. Good luck!”

“I thought you said the test can only be taken once a year?” I asked Noren.

“Yea?” Noren responded, clearly confused.

“Then how come there are so many people taking the test?”

“Oh, that?” Noren laughed again. “There are plenty of believers in Surya, but most believers try the test during the week before our God’s prayer day.”

Now that I think about it, didn’t we meet ‘The God of Preservation’s’ believers on the train, because they were trying to make it to prayer day?

“Prayer day?” Julian said with a sullen expression. “I wonder if my God is doing anything special.”

I patted Julian’s back. “Let’s hurry and finish this test so we can reunite you with your God.”

He looked at me with a shocked expression which soon turned into determination.

I looked back over at the vintage TVs with a stack of movie cassettes. Each TV seemed to have different movies in their stack. But since this is a test, it shouldn’t matter which TV we choose, right?

“Well, we better get started!” Noren said, while going up to a random TV and inserting a movie cassette.

By the time we watched three movies, I was severely bored.

Several participants were already eliminated, while most chose to watch all the movies the whole way through, before entering the password. Julian seemed to be enjoying the movies and Noren wrote down anything she thought was important.

Although the others seemed to be taking the test seriously, I thought this was all just a huge waste of time.

“Mister.” Janica whispered to me.

“Hm?” I looked at him.

“I need to use the bathroom.”

…

After wandering amongst many TVs to search for the bathroom, a soulless eyed person finally came over and led us to a futuristic bathroom stall that looked like it cost a fortune.

“Janica, are you alright by yourself?” I asked him.

“Yep!” Janica cheerfully responded.

I poured water over my face while waiting at the sinks for Janica.

Just how would watching a bunch of different movies help us figure out the password on the TV?

Some TVs would have all comedy, some all romance, most with a mix of all categories. What could they possibly have in common-?

While sorting out my thoughts, a hammer sticker was placed at the bottom left of the bathroom mirror.

Could it be?

I thought back to my old friend Carl.

I didn’t remember much about my past other than me disapproving Carl and attending Carl’s funeral. Despite that, I still seemed to remember a few things about him.

I knew his favorite color, the type of music he’d listen to, and even that he liked knowing random facts about different cultures. I know that one day, he became fascinated in religious cultures.

While pondering about this, a short memory slowly appeared in my head.

…

“What’s with these hammer stickers?” I asked him. “I find them everywhere now.”

Carl smiled at me. “I’m sure you didn’t find them all, keep looking.”

…

“Mister, I’m done!” Janica told me after he grabbed a paper towel to dry his hands. I quickly grabbed his wrist at his response and led him out of the bathroom.

A soulless eyed person safely led us back to our TV. I quickly took out the movie cassette from inside the TV and looked inside the cassette entrance.

“Hey!” Noren shouted, clearly displeased. “You can’t just stop the movie midway! What if we missed something important?”

Aha!

At the top of the inside of the TV, there it was, the hammer sticker.

I picked up the movie cassettes, dropped them on the floor, and examined the back covers. There were eleven movies in total, and if my suspicions were correct, the first letter of each back cover synopsis held special meaning.

I placed each movie down, side by side, moving them in a specific order.

“Just what is he doing?!” Noren huffed, placing her hands on her hips as she watched. “I must stop this; we're only going to waste more time.”

Julian put his arm in front of her. “Let’s wait and see for now.”

Noren frowned but decided to continue watching me.

“Let me try guessing the password.” I told them. “I’m confident I know the answer.”

Noren glanced at the other two in disbelief before sighing and looking back at me. “Well, you would be the first person to ever be confident about the answer.”

I changed the screen of the old TV back into its password screen. I grabbed a futuristic keypad that was given to us and started entering the word: vishvakarma.

I looked at the word as I entered it. Carl would tell me an interesting fact every day, such as, in Hinduism, the sun God, Surya, married Sanjna, daughter of Vishvakarma. Vishvakarma was the deity of craftsmanship and also one of Carl’s favorite deities.

…

“You like making fun scavenger hunts, but how was I supposed to know you made a word scramble with just the first letter of each movie synopsis?" I scolded Carl while holding up a VHS tape.

Carl laughed. “That’s why it’s fun! No one but you could’ve found that out. I knew you could do it!”

“I could only do it because you left hammer stickers plastered all over an old TV.” I scoffed. “Who is crazy enough to do something like that but you?”

“Haha! I guess you have a point.”

When Carl died, I was the one to clear out his room. Neither of us lived with our parents and rooms were always in demand where we stayed, so it was expected that I was ordered to clear it out soon after the funeral.

I peeled hammer stickers off of everything, including the walls, furniture, and even the hundred stickers off his old TV.

I frowned upon looking at the TV. Why did he like this old thing so much?

I was supposed to throw out the TV, but my stubbornness wouldn’t let me. I peeled off every sticker except for one inside the TV insert area. Through this, no one would be able to tell it was his.

No one, but me.

…

The memories rushed into my head causing a slight headache. But it also made me feel relieved. Now my only memories with that old friend weren't just tragic.

But now that I think about it, what could I have possibly done with that TV?

These pointless thoughts filled my head as I struggled to remember any more.

“Hey.” Julian called out to me. “Are you going to enter it?”

I looked over at him as I was snapped back into reality.

“How impatient.” I joked and then turned my attention back to the screen.

I clicked ‘enter’ on the keypad and saw the TV glow.

*DING DING DA DONG!*

“Four contestants have successfully passed the first part of the three-part test!” The voice over the intercom was heard. “Congratulations to the following participants: Veer, Julian, Janica, and Noren. You four will now be transported to the next part.”

“He actually did it!?” Noren questioned in a shocked tone.

Our surroundings quickly turned chaotic.

“They passed?! How?”

“Is that even possible?”

“I guess it is now!”

Among the commentators, our vision, once again, was surrounded by green particles.

After the particles disappeared, the onlookers were no more and only tall green bushes with endless paths and a huge fountain statue, that looked like a beautiful woman holding the sun, surrounded us.

“Welcome participants to the second part of a three-part test!” The intercom voice sounded. “In this next test, you are to survive bloodthirsty monsters in the maze and eliminate both the monster holding the key and the traitor amongst you.”

Traitor amongst us?

“You will do this all with only a hammer and while securing the exit route in the maze. Oh! And only half of the participants can pass this part of the test.” The intercom voice continued. “Good luck!"