Chapter 2: The Passenger

The pilot hands the man another letter as soon as he makes his decision. The note is, once again, unsigned, and precise:

Get in the seat behind me.

The plane is a 3-seater; the pilot's seat included. The man gets into the seat behind the pilot while the plane is still moving alongside him. He puts the seat belt on, and the plane gradually rises, flying horizontally in the air now.

The man sits stunned at everything that is happening and chuckles, eventually laughing hysterically, "I . . . I am not falling anymore," he says to himself, gasping.

The man continues to laugh, tearing up because of the intensity — for six days. The pilot doesn't say anything for six days. Anyone listening would only hear the gentle hum of the engines and the man's laughter.

Until, the man finally stops at last.

"How long before we reach salvation?" he questions the pilot.

The pilot presses a button, and a small box slides out in front of the man. He tentatively opens it to find another letter. He picks up the letter and the box folds back into the compartment.

He opens the note:

We will be there in a few days. Hang on.

The man decides not to ask any more questions so that the location remains a surprise. Instead, he asks the pilot, "How did you acquire this plane?"

The pilot repeats his actions, and the man is holding another note in his hands:

My master gave it to me.

"Who is your master－" before he can complete his question, the plane begins ascending all of a sudden, pushing him back into his seat.

"What are you doing?!" he exclaims and looks around, jerking in surprise when he spots a white, human-like figure suspended in the air.

Another human?!

The pilot positions the plane in the same vertical alignment as he had when he met the man. The man sees that the falling human is bald and wears an eye-patch.

The man with the eye-patch is quiet and shows no reaction to the plane. The pilot hands him a letter and waits while he reads it.

"I refuse," says the eye-patch man.

"What?! Why would you do that?" questions the passenger, dumbfounded as to why the other human is refusing such an opportunity.

The eye-patch man remains silent.

The passenger tries again, "Why would you choose to keep falling in this darkness?"

"Is there any proof that this salvation exists?" questions the eye-patch man.

"Proof?! Isn't the mere existence of this plane proof enough for you? How else would there be a plane in this null darkness, with nothing in sight as far as the human can see?"

"Have you considered other possibilities? What if the darkness and the randomness made this plane out of nothing?"

"What are you talking about?! Randomness and darkness being able to make a fully functional plane? The chances of that are practically zero! You would never believe such a low probability in a different context."

The eye-patch man stares at the passenger sitting behind the pilot for a heartbeat.

"I suppose you are right, I guess I was just making excuses," he concedes.

"Excuses for what?" asks the passenger.

"I guess I just feel more comfortable like this, falling into this open darkness. I have been falling for so long that I have grown used to it. My life itself is this fall, or at least I want it to be so."

"That's your choice, then."

"It is," the eye-patch man pauses, "However, before you leave, I would like to ask something. The first time I saw the thing you two are riding, I knew it was called a plane. Even though I have never seen one before. How do I know what is it called then? And how do I know what death is? Or how to talk at all?" he asks.

"You . . . you are right! How do I know all this as well?" considers the passenger.

The pilot hands over another letter to the eye-patch man.

"I see. Well, I am done here, you can leave," says the eye-patch man as he smirks, chuckling.

"Wait a second, I want to know as well—" the pilot interrupts the passenger as he moves the plane away from the eye-patch man.

Oh no . . .

The passenger frowns, "Hey, can't you tell me?" he asks the pilot only to receive no response from him.

"Wow, okay. Be like that then," he mutters as he settles into his seat.