As someone who was used to the sound of a bustling city throughout the day, this was something I needed to acquaint myself to. Things were moving too fast when you get to live your whole life in the mainland. Time was something of importance. It made people go crazy, trying to accomplish a task that exceeds their physical and mental limitations. People eventually would have to experience a burnout or worse, a fatal sickness that diminishes every hard-earned job to get where you were now. And, for what? To earn this type of commodity, a piece of paper which kept us alive. A mouth to feed and a roof over our heads. It was a literal concrete jungle out there. It made you hungry for a life that doesn't even make you happy. 

I was done. I got tired.

All my life, I followed all the basic rules on how to survive as a human being. It got tiring, you know? Doing all the same things over and over again. There was no longer that thrill, making you believe there was a purpose. Leveling up was too difficult unless you were one of the lucky ones that got to live their best lives. 

You might think that moving to a small town was unideal. There was absolutely nothing here for me to see. Everything was going to be simple, nothing spectacular like seeing the tallest skyscraper. To be honest, I wasn't sure what I was looking for. Just that I didn't want to be in a place where you were being controlled on how to live your life. 

I had worked in the kitchen for so long. It was the most rewarding feeling whenever people critic the dish I prepared. By the end of the day, you see a good review of an article, and the excitement people get to try and visit the establishment where you worked. I wasn't the owner nor the head chef. I was simply a line cook that never got his break. However, after a while, it got boring. When people started to praise the food not because they enjoyed it but because we were getting famous, it didn't sit well with me. Some had labeled the restaurant's food as 'IG-worthy' and others would simply visit for the hype. I had to admit, it was good business but just wasn't enough to feel the peaceful contentment. 

The drive took a few days until I finally found a quaint town up north from the mainland. There was no plan, wanting to get away was the goal. The money I had with me was all the savings I got. It wasn't much, but I hoped it could last me a couple of months. It was already late at night, my eyes were tired and in need of rest. I stumbled upon a dingy little motel, not better than the last, but it was a safe place to stay for the night. The town that I found was still a few kilometers away, but I wasn't in a hurry to get there yet. The receptionist kindly gave me the key to a room. When I settled my things, I took a hot shower and immediately fell asleep. 

The chirping birds awakened me outside my window. A sound that was rare when you lived in a crowded apartment building. It was pleasant to hear it in the morning. Getting out of bed, I got ready and checked out of the motel. It was a beautiful day out, sunny but the trees around me made a cool breeze. I took a few more moments to appreciate what my new world had to offer, breathing in the fresh air. It was going to be a long day ahead. I needed a place to stay and just enjoy the town for a little bit before I start another job hunt. 

Just when I thought I was going to be relaxed for the next few weeks, it turned out that I was always restless. Doing absolutely nothing was something I wasn't used to. It felt like there was this obligation to do more work. It didn't take long that I went job hunting and was lucky enough to be hired in the town's most well-known diner. The job wasn't much, but it was a new change for me. 

Like any other line cook, I was in charge of doing all the mise en place. Their house specialty was the oven-baked ribs doused with their homemade barbeque sauce. The meat was so tender that when you take a bite it would just fall off the bone. A simple recipe yet the people in this town looked forward to enjoying it. The place where I worked felt homey which was nice because it was run by a nice family. 

I didn't tell them where I used to work. The work demand was too high, and the standards were just over the top. Intimidating them was the least of my worries. 

My stay had been quiet and uneventful. It was as if I was finally living the dream. I wasn't getting tired of it anytime soon. 

However, lately, this small town had been experiencing a surge of power outages. It only took half an hour or so before it came back resuming business. But after a week, they became more frequent and longer than an hour. We were worried about the equipment. The generator helped, but it couldn't support every machine used in the restaurant. It only gave us a few minutes to properly turn them off. We were practically more concerned about the walk-in chiller and freezer. It was the place where we kept our produce fresh and temperature controlled.

The local news has been stirring up crazy theories about the outage. People were experiencing weird encounters with their dreams. Not sure how it made a connection. But, they were saying whenever there was an outage a portal opened, through a door or sometimes their closet. The description was like a different world where there was no longer life but fire – everywhere. In short, it was like how humans portrayed hell.

Crazy, right? It was now the talk of the entire town. 

"Did you hear the news last night? Someone reported getting into those portal things and disappeared this morning." Carlos shared aloud as we just started our shift. 

"How can you be sure it was the portal? Maybe they got drunk or something and couldn't find their way home last night." another of my co-worker argued back.

"Things have been strange, I tell you."

I drowned out their voices as I butchered some meat to portion for a rib order. As much as this was the most action I've had since I moved here was speaking volumes. People were easily entertained and that this type of conspiracy made everyone get together. Whether the theories were true or not, I wasn't going to indulge myself to this type of entertainment.

All of a sudden, the lights flickered which quieted the room in an instant. We were waiting for it to stop or the power to shut down but it kept flickering. We stopped what we were doing and just observed. Carlos tried to make out a joke out of the situation which wasn't even funny. I was feeling anxious and could see that my co-workers looked scared. 

The ground started to shake, and it set everyone to panic. The owner yelled to evacuate the area. But before we could run out, it stopped. We were motionless after the short earthquake. The electricity finally came back to normal. The short inconvenience got everyone to talk about it and leave their stations. I quickly went back to work, so I could finish and get back early. 

After I had finished portioning the meat, I packed them in cling wrap and neatly stacked them in a plastic crate. Carrying all the meat over my shoulder, it was time to freeze them again. As I was about to open the freezer door, I noticed the temperature immensely increased to a level where the frozen goods were no longer safe. I put down the crate and opened the freezer.

My eyes were playing a trick on me when I saw the inside of the freezer was no longer a normal one. It was a different dimension where there was red stone everywhere. Just by looking at the place, it was really hot and beyond the distance, I could see a huge fire burning endlessly. 

"G-guys?! Get over here quick!" I yelled without moving my eyes, afraid to blink that it might disappear in front of me. 

Their footsteps shuffled from a distance and I heard Carlos gasp in surprise. "Holy sh---!" 

"Are you guys seeing this?" I shouted for confirmation. 

"Yeah. H-how did this happen?" I heard someone say.

"What are we going to do?" 

"What is this place?"

We were too focused on what was in front of us but no one dared step foot into this unknown realm. There was no living, so far as we were concerned. This was beyond our human control.

Only one thing came into my mind – I definitely did not sign up for this.