"Rahadyan sanghulun..."
"Rahadyan sanghulun..."
Lestari wasn't much of a sleeper, so when she heard the women's voices calling out to each other and getting louder, her dreamless sleep was disturbed, and she opened her eyes in annoyance.
Seeing this, the women in the room who had been trying to wake Lestari immediately knelt down.
"Wungu sampun rahadyan sanghulun! Malilahaken pinaka nghulun, angjumput Tahapan banyu putih ring rahadyan sanghulun!"
The woman who had uttered those words then rose from her position. Quickly and without spilling a drop, she poured water from a clay jug that sat on a wooden table near the bed where Lestari lay, observing her surroundings.
'Black stone floor...
and six women ... are topless?!'
Lestari immediately widened her eyes and sat up.
"Iki tahapan banyu putih ring rahadyan sanghulun." A woman's words broke Lestari's focus on observing this completely unfamiliar situation.
'What did that woman say?'
The woman knelt beside Lestari's bed, one hand raised as high as the bed, holding out a cup of water.
Lestari suddenly felt her throat go dry, so she took the cup from the woman's right hand.
However, Lestari suddenly stopped and withdrew her right hand, which was floating in the air.
'Hairless and light enough ....
These fingers are so slender with long nails ....
They are also adorned with gold rings with intricate and beautiful carvings on both index fingers ....
The heavy gold bracelets that encircle both wrists are carved in even more intricate patterns ....
So luxurious.'
Lately, Lestari has been reading fairy tales and watching Ancient Javanese-themed dramas, so it didn't take long for her to realize the setting of her dream.
'The simple, round buns on the women's hair,
the woven bottoms, instead of the batik they and I wore,
the bronze bowls in different styles... Some hung on the walls and wooden pillars, others placed on tables. I don't know how these bowls could produce fire, but what's clear is that even with so many of them, the lighting in this room still seemed dim.
Two words and one phrase, Ancient Javanese.'
Lestari then picked up the cup and took a sip. As she expected, there was still no relief in her throat. The woman then withdrew and joined the line of other women.
Inwardly, Lestari apologized and praised the woman's strong hand, still holding her position, even though twenty minutes had probably passed. She also didn't forget to praise the other women—inwardly, of course.
Lestari wasn't stupid. Seeing that she had ignored the women for quite some time and none of them protested, she immediately knew what role she was playing in this dream.
A princess.
This must be my room, and they must be my royal maids. Uh, they're still kneeling. Now, what should I say...'
Although Lestari is a Javanese girl and speaks Javanese in her daily life, as far as she knows, ancient Javanese is very different from modern Javanese.
'Hey, this is a dream. Using English shouldn't be a problem.'
However, Lestari didn't do that. She still ordered in the Javanese she knew, of course, "Dangak kabeh!"
[Translation: Look up everyone!].
The kneeling maids then raised their heads, but their gazes were fixed on Lestari's feet.
Lestari studied their faces one by one. She had experienced lucid dreams many times, but never before had one this vivid and clear. Furthermore, none of the faces before her were familiar to her, even though they all had the typical Southeast Asian faces. Sometimes, during lucid dreams, she could conjure up faces, but only those from her memory, such as those of family members, friends, neighbors, and so on. If there were characters she didn't recognize, they were always faceless, and she wasn't afraid of them because she knew she was dreaming.
"Rahadyansanghulun..."
The silence that had been going on for who knows how long was finally broken by that voice. It was a voice Lestari had recently recognized, belonging to the maid who had fetched her a cup of water. However, she couldn't tell which face belonged to her.
"Rahadyan sanghulun dumadak sumaput, gumawe ajrih ikang punika nghulun kabeh. Ksamakena patataning pinaka nghulun ring rahadyan sanghulun--"
Lestari finally saw the maid's face. She seemed to be their leader, as she had been the one to take the initiative in serving her. Her skin was also light yellow, indicating she hadn't been very active outdoors. Upon closer inspection, she noticed that her bun was held in place by a yellow bracelet.
"--ri huwus, apa sing kudu pinaka nghulun kabeh magawe? Binakar sampun dening pinaka nghulun kabeh ikang jewawut ing sisih wetan."
The more the maid spoke, the deeper Lestari's brows furrowed. This was because she couldn't understand her at all, so the only reply she could give her was, "Metukabeh!"
[Translation: Get out all of you!].
"Inggih rahadyan sanghulun." They said the sentence in unison. Then, they turned and walked out of the room in an orderly fashion.
Jeglek
As soon as that sound came, Lestari knew they were gone.
However, she still needed confirmation.
Lestari got out of bed and walked toward a wooden door located in the center of the room.
Actually, the door wasn't particularly tall or large, it was exactly the same size as the door in Lestari's house. However, the wood was thick and very heavy, as evidenced by the difficulty she was having opening it. After a few moments, the door finally opened. It only needed a slight push and a slight lift.
However, Lestari didn't really want to leave right now, so she closed the door again. The locking mechanism was very simple, requiring only a long wooden block—quite heavy, it turned out—and a latch.