After twenty minutes of torment and fear, the sound of the doorbell echoed throughout the apartment, followed by the fumbling of keys. As Yuw opened the door, she was met by a gentle, friendly smile. The same one she had seen countless times, never getting old, it was definitely something she needed to see in the moment. The smaller woman had a spare key in her hands, but it was quickly put away once she was let in.

“Yuw,” Autumn began to speak as she greeted the startled giant with a hug, “is everything okay? I came as soon as I could.” 

She had a brown ponytail, which was different from her usual braided hair, showing how fast she rushed to the apartment. The woman had a white ruffled collar that was attached to the red vest that she always wore. Underneath that was a darker long sleeved shirt which shifted as Autumn raised an arm to embrace the giant. 

Yuw had known this woman for a long while now, ever since she was in elementary, Autumn was the motherly figure of her life outside of her parents’ care. She was kind, patient, positive and encouraging. Even while helping the giant and her friend train for the military, she was a ray of sunshine. And yet, as much as she felt like she knew a lot about Autumn, there were still many personal things she didn’t know about her mentor. Things like her past, her life before coming to Dikuda, why she knew the things she knew. Yuw had always felt rude to just ask about it, even with the many years of experience Autumn had over herself.

“No, everything is not okay.” Yuw said outright, sounding like she was about to burst into tears. “I’ve been stressed to a point where I’m starting to hear things. I’m not sure if it is the lack of sleep or whatever I’ve done to attract this, but I think I am being haunted.” She spoke with her hands in her face. “You see it, don’t you, Autumn?” She looked to the woman, wordlessly asking for comfort and guidance. 

Autumn can see many spirits, aberration, ghouls, and even curses on a person. Yuw had known this since a young age. She had witnessed the woman use this very ability to help people, and if anyone could help her with such entities, it was going to be her. 

“... I don’t see a ghost.” Her friend responded, with her hand on her chin, gazing around the area.

“N-no?” Yuw spoke, her voice was weak. “If it’s not a ghost, then… What is it?” As much as the blue haired woman didn’t want to admit it, she was getting scared and was begging for Autumn to not think that she had gone insane. ‘Was this something that was even out of Autumn’s capabilities? Could spirits hide themselves from even the most trained eyes? Is this some higher being haunting me?’ She thought to herself, sitting down on the edge of her bed, overwhelmed by all the questions that couldn’t be answered. 

Autumn tilted her head, pondering for a moment before responding back.  “I may need to look it up in a library.” She sat down beside Yuw.  “But I can teach you meditation right now to calm down, if you like.” 

Her friend’s words felt like a blunt response to her, wanting to search for answers in a local library seemed like a last resort. She didn’t know if such answers can be found in a place like that, but as hopeless as it sounded, it was worth a try.

For now she brushed it aside, disliking how the solution to her problem couldn’t be given right away.  “I-… Fine,” Yuw answered with a hint of annoyance in her voice. “If we must…” She tried to think of alternatives, but meditation may be the only thing to help her calm down, and deal with the voice inside her head. 

Meditation was strict on how it was taught when Yuw first learned about it. How the legs must be crossed while sitting on the hard floor, who would sit where, what to wear to class, and all the different routines that would take place during it. Before meditation, she must always have her hands positioned in just the right way, leveled at the chest, up to the center of the forehead, and back down again. Then it must reposition the hand into a bowl, with the right on top of the left, and down near the abdomen. These lessons were drilled into her head, and no matter how much she explained her discomfort, this had to be the way.

Yuw would remember these meditation classes being boring and fruitless. If she took anything away from the classes, it was her and Ryahno messing about during the class when everyone else was meditating. They would whisper silly things to each other. And when they get caught speaking, they would just use hand signals and make funny faces, trying to get the other to laugh.  

Yuw was prepared to receive a repeat lecture of what she remembered since her childhood, but To Yuw’s surprise, this was not the meditation lesson she received. Autumn had her lay down on the bed, making sure she was comfortable. Deep breaths from the core being the same as before, but that was it. None of the annoying rules Yuw remembered as a kid, none of the pain and soreness from the long sitting sessions, nor the scolding and ridicule from the teachers that monitored the class. She just laid down and tried to recall the steps she learned many years ago. The giant started to listen to pulses in her body, remembering how strict they used to be when she couldn’t do so. 

“Can you feel anywhere on your body that has a rhythmic pulse?” Autumn asked with a gentle voice. Compared to the classes back in the days, the friend’s voice made Yuw feel relaxed and safe. 

“I feel my heart pumping, does that count?” The giant replied, eyes closed. 

“Yes. Now see if you can amplify the pulse, making it bigger, and get the other energy points in your body to start pulsing as well.” 

Yuw paused, tried, and felt exactly what Autumn described. She could feel a point in her throat pulsing. Without speaking, she nodded. 

“Well done, we can stop the lesson here for now so you can practice and get used to it. The next step, after you’ve mastered focusing on the pulses, is to try to get all of the ten pulsing points activated. Chakras, some call them. Amplifying them once they are found, influencing other parts to pulse as well.” Autumn explained this. “And then, get all the pulsing to sync up into one.” That was the general idea of the meditation lesson, but the mentor didn’t expect Yuw to be able to do it all on the fly. Being told to just explore, play around, have fun, and overall just relax.

“It takes time.” She said, reassuring the meditating giant. “Some people take years to master it. So don’t rush it. Slow and steady.” Yuw didn’t like the sound of ‘years’, she didn't have patience for that. But for now, she put that exhausting thought aside, and focused on her problem at hand.

Since that day, the giant followed meditation instructions, and tried her best to be patient, ignoring the voice that was still screaming in her mind, focusing on meditation alone. She is hoping that her friend will figure out what is going on, and even help remove it. Although the meditation did calm her, and aid her sleep, it only helped so much with the occasional nightmare still flooded her vision. 

The dreams never got better. Every time she woke from it, she would try and meditate in the hopes of being able to fall back asleep. The giant wished that she could eventually get used to the emotions she felt whenever she awakened from the dream. There was a difference in how hard it impacted her, but the dread and guilt was always there.  Over and over again, the sight of Wyse being crushed by the collapsing building, made Yuw feel a pinch in her heart, even if she tried to ignore it.

Over time, Yuw was getting used to this method of meditation, even instinctively finding the pulses to calm herself. No matter if it is at home, work, or anywhere she would need it. Though it has only been a week, she was pleased to be able to do it on the spot, calming herself down within ten minutes. The giant was also able to suppress and tame the whispers in her mind, and she was quite proud of it.

One night, before Yuw slept, she meditated like normal, but this time she had this floating feeling. Her body felt bloated, almost like a lot of things were stuffed into her. She could feel the energy coming in, the feeling of growth as if the body was expanding larger. The giant could feel her physical body, and the stillness that was happening at the same time. It felt like she was in two places at once.

Yuw opened up her eyes, unsure what was happening, and found herself laying in water. She quickly got to her feet to assess the situation, only to find herself not in her bed, nor her room, but somewhere entirely different. “What in seven heavens...”