An elderly woman and her granddaughter, Ahmaya, live in an old-style house surrounded by long trees in the midst of the village Mawphlang, Meghalaya.
It's 8 a.m., and Ahmaya has been awakened but is unable to get out of bed. Her body is not fatigued; but her mind and soul are.
She moved here from Delhi to live with her maternal grandma after his father died and his mother disappeared. She has been getting odd glimpses and dreams for the past four days. She began having strange nightmares after only a few days of being here. In her dreams, she generally sees a tall, attractive lady. Her skin tone is dark, her eyes are black and huge, and her hair is short, untidy, and brownish red. In her dream from the night before, she saw this lady standing in front of a scandal wood tree that is outside the boundary of her granny's home, a tree known for its height and its dense leaves. The lady continues to try to speak to Ahmaya, but she cannot hear her. She attempts to approach her, but the closer she gets, the distant the woman gets. The day before yesterday, she had a dream about a spot in the middle of a forest where many old men and women sat together polishing enormous swords, and when they saw Ahmaya, they began to bow in front of her. She is thinking about it all and trying to figure everything out.
(The voice of the grandmother from the ground floor approaches.)
"Ahmaya, wake up." "What do you want for breakfast?" She inquires.
"I don't want to have breakfast; I'm not hungry," Ahmaya says in a low voice.
Ahmaya is unable to distinguish between reality and a dream. She believes her dreams are true, but how can a dream be true? She wants to tell everyone about this, but she is afraid that people will think she has gone mad after what happened to her parents. Also, she doesn't want to bother her elderly grandmother. She needs to prepare for her college application, but she can't get those thoughts out of her head. She is entangled in her own thoughts.
(grandma enters her room)
"Hey... you are not going to washup? The first thing you should do if you wake up is to clean up and pray..." She chastises Ahmaya. "If you're too busy to do nothing but lie in bed. Simply apply for a college admission."
"Please, amma, give me peace." Says Ahmaya
"Peas? If you want to eat peas, I will get some for you. First at least wash up" amma scolds Ahmaya.
"Amma..." Ahmaya murmurs angrily and closed her eyes and put the blanket around her. As she closes her eyes, the tree and that lady appears in front of her, and whenever she shuts her eyes, she sees it. She's even confused about closing her eyes for a few moments. All of this is causing her emotional anguish.
.
It's almost afternoon, and Ahmaya, freshly washed, is assisting her grandmother in cleaning the house. She is getting visions of her dreams. Her grandma told her to clean the garden of their house. When she steps outside her house, she feels as if someone is calling her, as if there is something outside attracting Ahmaya to them. She is staring at the tree, puzzled as to why this happens every time, she leaves this home.
"Ahmaya, is there something wrong?" granny inquires abruptly.
"No," Ahmaya replied nervously.
" Why are you focused on the tree?" Grandma inquires once more.
Ahmaya pauses for a moment before responding, "No."
.
The same day, later at night. Ahmaya and her amma are eating dinner while watching television. Ahmaya is looking out the window, and her grandmother observes.
She goes upstairs to sleep after finishing her dinner. She is terrified to sleep because she does not want to have another strange dream. But because she is mentally worn out, she can't help but fall asleep.
It is four o'clock in the morning. She abruptly awakens in mid-sleep, feeling very anxious. On her bed, she is repeatedly turning sideways. She becomes furious and opens her eyes. And her thoughts comes to a halt.
She sees the same woman from her dream, and she is very close to her, floating in the air, just above her, and staring at her with her wide black eyes.
She abruptly wakes up and sits, and the women disappeared. She is drenched with sweat. She is at a loss for ideas on what to do. Her heartbeat increased, as did her breathing. Her hands are trembling when she unlocks her phone and checks the time. She throws her phone down in irritation and puts both hands on her head, contemplating what just occurred. Then she hears a voice in her right ear say, "I need your help." She shifts her head to the right but sees no one. She gets up and runs to her grandmother's room. She opens the door to her grandma's room. She notices the elderly woman sleeping calmly. She goes to bed quietly and laid beside her. Consider what just occurred. And what she heard. She considers telling her grandmother about everything. She has no idea how time has passed until she notices the sun is up. But she hasn't slept since 4 a.m. Its 6 a.m. Her grandmother awakens. When she sees her, she assumes she is sleeping and does not inquire as to why she is here.
.
It's 9 a.m., and Ahmaya got out of bed by herself, washed up, and is sitting in her room eating breakfast. She hasn't slept a wink since that morning encounter, and she is constantly thinking. She fears that this will happen again. She is going insane from all of the thoughts she is having.
She's experienced enough. She wants to know why she feel something in the tree tempting her. What exactly is that woman? Is she a ghost or merely Ahmaya's imagination?
(Grandma enters her room)
"Are you done eating your breakfast?"
"Yes, it's almost done."
(Grandma sits next to her)
"You appear pale and scared; is there something wrong?" You could think I'm an elderly lady who doesn't understand your generation, but you can tell me anything. "After all, we're the only family left for each other," grandmother remarks.
Ahmaya smiled at her granny and said, "sure amma."
"I've also noticed you glancing at the tree outside our house. Your mother had numerous childhood memories of that tree. She used to sit for hours under it. She used to solely play with it. She used to converse with it." Amma smiled and continued, "When you miss her, you can find comfort in associating with the tree. You will undoubtedly discover a piece of her in that tree."
.
Ahmaya is becoming increasingly perplexed; she is experiencing visuals of that tree, she is drawn to it, and the tree was associated with her mother. And she has no idea where her mother is; she vanished shortly after her father died. Something unforeseen is happening. There is something Ahmaya is unaware of. She gets up and walks over to the tree.
She didn't feel anything until she comes closer to the tree and reached under it. The tree is dense and massive, as if each leaf tells a separate narrative. The tree is sending her a boost of energy. She now realises that she had always desired to meet this tree. She touched the trunk of the tree and felt a spark in her chest, so she pulled her hand away, but then she touched the trunk again and felt a lot of agony in her chest, as if her chest was about to burst, she couldn't manage the pain, so she started screaming and placed her palm on her chest. Because of the discomfort, she is unable to stand and falls unconscious.
When she opened her eyes, she found herself sitting next to a river in a forest.
She's dressed in a yellow Gho and Kira (traditional dress of Bhutan). She is in a state of panic. Her last memory is of touching the trunk of the scandal wood tree.
She stands up and begins to yell, "Is someone here?" She began racing into the forest, far away from the river, while shouting. But she's getting nowhere. She's just running, running and running till its dusk. The sun is beginning to set, and it will soon be dark. But Ahmaya hasn't found anyone or gotten anywhere. She is now terrified.
She is dressed strangely in the middle of a jungle. She is now tired as well. She sits on a nearby rock, her head down. After a few moments, she hears a sound. The sound of a bullock cart. She raises her head and notices a bullock cart passing by. She dashes in front of it, and the bullocky comes to a complete halt. And speaks something in a language Ahmaya doesn't know in an angry tone.
"What are you saying? speak in English." Ahmaya screamed at him.
The bully speaks again in an unknown language. "Sir, I'm not sure what you're trying to say. Do you own a mobile?" Panting says Ahmaya.
The boy sitting behind speaks in between. "Don't you speak Hojang?" and stepped from the bullock carriage.
"Can you please help me, sir?" All I need to do is make a phone call. Please give me your phone; I won't be long."
"If you need to make an urgent phone call, I'm on my way to my university." You can make a phone call from there." The boy says,.
Why I need to go to a specific place to make a call? Do you think I am dumb? If you have a phone, give it to me so that I can make a call here." Ahmaya says in a furious tone.
"I don't have a telephone on this bullock cart miss." Boy responds bitterly.
"I see....a person travelling on a bullock cart, how can he afford a phone." She replied in a rude way.
The boy scoffs, gets back on the cart, and says, "Let's go" to the bullocky in hojang language. The bullock cart then moves forward once more. Ahmaya weeps "Listen, please listen, sir," and the bullock cart comes to a stop once more. "You don't even own a feature phone?"
"Miss, if you're really in trouble, the closest place you can go to make a phone call is Konway University," the boy explains. "I'm moving in that direction; you can follow me or go alone."
Ahmaya is perplexed. He is a very attractive young man with a crew cut. He is rather tall. His skin glows like the sun. What is the significance of him riding in a bullock cart? He really doesn't have a phone or is he pretending?
But Ahmaya believes he does not appear suspicious or creepy. And she doesn't have any other choice except to trust. It's nearly dark now.
"Okay take me to the university with you." Ahmaya remarked. The boy agreed. She struggles to step up to the bullock cart in kira dress because she has never worn it in her life. She has no idea how to carry it. The boys take notice of her. He extends his hand to her and as she holds it, she has a vision. A vision of that scandal wood tree. She got startled, so she let go of his hand and fells down.
"Miss, are you okay?" the boy inquires.
She stands up and says, "Take me to the university as soon as possible." Please." She takes his hand again and sees the young man in his eyes."
"Do you want to go to the hospital?" asked the boy.
No, Ahmaya said, going up to the cart and tells him to go to the college. She desperately wants to contact her grandmother and have her come here and take her home. She is apprehensive of being seated beside an unknown boy. She is only praying to God that nothing bad happens and that she arrives to university safely and contacts her grandmother.
She made it to university. It is enormous. The main gate is a massive black stone gate. This university has a peculiar vibe to it. Everyone is dressed to the nines in fitted suits, gloves, hats, and pumps. Everything has an ancient feel about it. No one appears to be wearing an earbud, lead, smartwatch, or headphone.
"Follow me, I will show you where you can find telephone." The boy says.
Ahmaya begins to follow him and gets in university. He led her to the admissions office and informed the peon that she is with her and that she needed to make an urgent call. The boy indicated the landline phone.
Ahmaya is perplexed; it was a landline phone with rotary dials. She has no idea how to use it, and she can't even call her grandmother with it.
The boy is about to leave, but she grabs his sleeve and says, "Please don't play with me, give me a mobile." If you don't have a mobile, please tell someone to assist me, I implore you."
"I don't think you're in your right mind; there's a phone, please use it." I'm sorry, but I don't have time for you."
And he walked away.
Ahmaya attempts to converse with those around her. "Ma'am give me mobile, I don't know where I am."
"Please help me sir...."
But no one seems to be paying attention to her; everyone is wondering who she is, what she is talking about, and why she is here.
From outside the door, the boy is observing everything. he begins to feel sorry for her. He returns inside, grabs her, and drags her outside the block.
"I believe you require help. If you continue to cause disturbances there, they will drive out you from the university." The boy was breathing lightly.
"I'm not sure what your problem is. I'm just looking for a little help in getting a mobile." Ahmaya responded through tears.
"Can you explain, the thing you need mobi.. what is it?" The young man responded loudly.
"Wait, what exactly is this place?" She inquired.
"Khasi hills in the east." The boy responded.
"Yes, are you familiar with Mawphlang Village? I have to go there."
"Miss this is Mawphlang."
What? She knows what her neighbourhood looks like, but this is not it.
"Which East Khasi Hills are you referring to? What is the name of this state?" Ahmaya, afraid, inquired.
"Assam." The boy responded. And Ahmaya's feet got swept out.
It can't be Assam if it's Mawphlang in the East Khasi Hills. This belongs to Meghalaya.
On the near wall, she discovers a template. She dashes over there and reads the template.
The template bears the date 12-10-1935.