Cecilia ran around the countless souls around her to follow Toby; she thought of only one thing — the child's safety. Finally catching up to Toby, she instinctively slowed, her breath catching at the sight before her. Toby knelt before a woman whose vacant eyes stared endlessly into a distant void, as if lost in a world only she could see. The child's small hands trembled as he reached out, tugging gently at hers. "Mom? Mommy, I'm scared... please, let's go home," he whispered, voice fragile and trembling.
Cecilia's heart ached as she knelt beside the woman, her fingers trembling as she gently shook her shoulders. "Suzane? Can you hear me?"
But the woman remained unmoved, her lips barely parting in a soft, haunting chant: "I lost everything... I lost everything... I lost everything."
Cecilia spoke softly, desperation threading her voice. "It's not too late, Suzane. Even if it's just until we reach Kaginhawaan, you can still be with your son. Even if only for a few days, you can hold him."
She glanced at Toby, who stood silently, his small frame trembling. "Toby is here. Can't you see him? Your son needs you, now more than ever. He needs your love, your guidance, to take him to the next life."
For a moment, something flickered in Suzane's eyes—a faint spark of recognition. "You heard me, didn't you?" Cecilia urged gently. "Look at who's holding your hand. It's your son. Toby is here."
Slowly, Suzane turned her head toward the crying boy. "Toby?" Her voice cracked, fragile as a broken thread.
"Mommy, I'm here... please come on, let's go. I'm scared of this place," Toby begged, his voice barely above a whisper.
Suzane's lips curled into bitter disappointment. "Why are you still at home, child? Shouldn't you be in school? You're the top student in your class. What will happen to your grades now?" Her tone was sharp, but hollow—words spoken from a mind grasping for fragments.
"Suzane, this isn't your home. We're not in your house," Cecilia said, her voice trembling with urgency. "You're in the gray deck of the Twilight. You're in limbo—on the barge of the dead."
The woman's vacant gaze shifted, then she rose slowly and moved to a space, her hands moving as if washing dishes. "Sorry, but I'm busy. My husband and son will be home soon. I haven't even prepared dinner."
Cecilia reached out, taking Suzane's hands in hers. "Suzane, listen to me. You and Toby aren't in your home. You're on a ship heading to the afterlife. You're both... gone."
Suddenly, Suzane's head whipped toward Cecilia, her eyes blazing with pain and fury. With a force born of grief and denial, she shoved Cecilia to the floor. "The afterlife? The barge of the dead? How dare you say that about my family! How dare you!"
Her hand rose in a wild, desperate strike—but it did not fall on Cecilia. Instead, it landed on Toby, the boy had shielded Cecilia from his mother.
The shock in Toby's wide eyes shattered something deep within Suzane. Tears spilled freely from the boy's cheeks, soft and heartbreaking. The mother's breath caught, and her face crumpled as she dropped to her knees, gathering her son into trembling arms.
"Baby?" Her voice cracked, raw and broken. She stroked his hair, her tears mingling with his. "I'm so sorry, darling. I'm so sorry, baby. I didn't take care of you... because I let my sadness swallow me whole." The weight of her remorse hung heavy in the air, a fragile bridge between two lost souls clinging to the last thread of love amid the darkness. She then turned to Cecilia, "Please take my child, he does not belong here. He belongs up there."
"What about you? Toby looked for you; he braved this terrible place just to find you," Cecilia explained, though she only met mother and child, her heart ached for the two of them.
Despite not wanting to let go, Suzane gave Toby to Cecilia. "I belong here, because I let my son die, it is all my fault that my son is dead, I deserve to be here, to be punished!" She kissed her son on the forehead. "If you can choose a mother in your next life, choose someone who will take care of you and not someone like me."
Toby shook his head. He wriggled free of Cecilia and ran to her mother and hugged her. Despite being a boy, he showed maturity way beyond his years. "I want you as my mother, I don't care, I just want you as my mother!" he cried out loud.
At that moment, a miracle happened; based on what Cecilia knew, she could only assume that Suzane's genuine and sincere remorse had opened a path for her. A set of golden stairs appeared, leading to a bright place. The three looked around them at the other wandering ghosts, but none of them seemed to see the stairs.
The sadness in her eyes vanished, replaced by a warm smile. "I think it's for you," Cecilia said to Suzane with conviction.
Suzane smiled amidst the flowing tears. She picked Toby up into her arms. "Shall we leave this place, darling?" Toby smiled and embraced his mother. She then turned to Cecilia, "Thank you for giving me this last chance to be with my son." She took her first step onto the stairs, and as soon as her foot was on the first step, she felt peace and warmth she had never felt before. Her tears vanished, and with an ethereal smile, she climbed the stairs onto the gold deck.
When they emerged from the stairs, they were met with cheers and adulations, for even if it was possible, it was rare for a soul from the gray deck to ascend to the gold deck.
Cecilia watched as mother and child frolicked and basked under the stars of the heavens. It was then she felt the warmth in her heart; she remembered what the old shaman told her late parents, "She is a bright beacon," she thought to herself.
Yet despite the happiness and joy that was spreading on the gold deck, Chris viewed the spectacle with envy and jealousy. His powerful grip crushed the railings he was holding on to when a certain memory came to mind.
Kaginhawaan I 1857
"I'm so sorry, my son, that this curse has taken you," Chris's father said, as they were ferried to Kaginhawaan. "How can you be bound to this vessel?" The old man's eyes scanned the steamboat.
"My child, my dear, dear child, we missed you so much. We will beg the Gods to let you go" His mother explained as she embraced a grief-stricken Chris.
"I miss you both, mother…father. Please don't go, I don't want to be alone!" He sobbed, holding on to his parents, not wanting them to disembark.
"I'm so sorry, my son, but Kaginhawaan is calling us. We don't want to leave you, but now that we have found you, we no longer need to linger in the world of the living. I am sorry that you are in this predicament. Don't worry, we will do what we can to release you from your bonds." His father promised as they disembarked from the ship.
The Twilight I 2025
In a fit of rage, Chris ripped the steel railings as if they were twigs. Cecilia heard the creaking sound of steel and looked in the direction from which the sound came. When her eyes landed on the very place where Chris had watched mere seconds ago, all she saw was an empty area. The pristine railings sparkled under the glow of the full moon.