Yet, in his desperation, Heka had never imagined the price would be so steep. He had never envisioned that his quest for relief would demand the ultimate sacrifice his parents' lives.
And yet, deep within, Heka had been prepared for a cost. He had understood, in some distant, shadowed corner of his mind, that accepting Soul Delivery might require surrendering a human soul.
But he had never believed it would be anyone but himself. He was willing, no determined. He would offer his own soul as the guarantee, the price to pay for his salvation. Not someone else's. Not the lives of those he loved most.
****
Clancy, who saw Heka sobbing and slumped, tried to approach him. She sat right behind him. It made her gloomy, so she cried.
She wrapped her arms gently around him, trying to anchor him in the storm of his emotions. Her touch was soft but firm, a silent promise that he was not alone in this unbearable moment.
She wanted to say something, anything. It might soothe the raw ache in his heart, even if it was just a single word. But the right words eluded her, swallowed by the heavy silence that hung between them. So instead, she chose to remain quiet, letting the embrace speak for her.
As she held him, she noticed movement out of the corner of her eye. Someone was approaching, their footsteps muffled by the rain-soaked ground. She glanced toward the figure but could only see the lower half.
Reluctantly, she released Heka from her arms, stepping back slightly as they both turned their gaze upward to face the newcomer. Clancy's eyes searched the stranger's face, but no recognition came.
He was a stranger, not a guest invited by her sister, nor an acquaintance of her parents. His presence was an enigma.
Then, barely above a whisper, Heka spoke a name that seemed to carry the weight of the moment. "Ansel…"
Clancy's heart skipped a beat. The way Heka said the name softly. It almost reverent told her that this was no ordinary visitor.
Heka knew this man well, that there was a history between them she had never been told about.
She thought maybe Heka invited his friend without telling her. She also wondered who was standing in front of them and what he had to do with Heka.
The rain continued to fall, a steady rhythm underscoring the tension in the air. Clancy's eyes remained fixed on Ansel, waiting for him to speak, to explain, to bring some clarity.
****
Heka had no idea when or how Ansel had arrived at Stacy's wedding as an uninvited guest. He had never told Ansel about the wedding schedule, nor had he mentioned it to anyone who might have informed him.
They was a stranger to Ansel. No one had invited him, and no one seemed to know him. His presence was an enigma, a shadow that slipped unnoticed through the crowd.
If there was, someone must have approached him.
He thought it didn't matter at all. He knew Ansel possessed abilities far beyond human limits, an uncanny sense that transcended time and space. It was only natural, then, that Ansel would know exactly when and where the wedding would take place without needing an invitation.
Yet, there was one question that gnawed at Heka's mind, one that he could not shake: "Why did Ansel come to this wedding? Is it to convince Heka that everything he says will definitely happen? Or does Ansel want to warn Heka, so that he will obey thing he wants to?"
The answer eluded him as he watched Ansel step forward and extend his hand.
Heka's gaze fixed on the outstretched palm, a symbol of invitation and perhaps fate itself. Doubt flickered within him. Should he break the promise he had made to himself? The promise to keep Ansel out of his life, to sever the ties that had only brought pain and chaos.
He stared at that hand, weighing the consequences. Probably, letting Ansel back into his life wouldn't be the disaster he feared. Probably, Ansel would make a big change in his life.
With a trembling resolve, Heka grasped Ansel's hand and rose to his feet. Though his body felt weak and unsteady, he forced himself to stand tall, to face whatever lay ahead.
Without a word, Ansel turned and began to walk away. Then, he glanced back at Heka, a silent command to follow.
Heka's eyes flickered toward Clancy, who sat beside her parents' lifeless bodies. She gave him a subtle nod, a quiet permission to go. Leaving them behind was agonizing, abandoning those he loved. Those who had just been torn from him by fate.
Actually, it was a difficult decision to leave everyone he cared for, just for the sake of someone who had just met.
He followed Ansel's steps into the uncertain night, unaware of where this path would lead.
Heka just walked after Ansel's steps. Although he didn't know where Ansel would take him away.
As he trailed behind, Heka felt a strange sensation. The man in front of him seemed different, unfamiliar, almost otherworldly. It was as if Ansel had transformed into someone else entirely.
"Is this just my feeling? Or is it all because of what, because of what has happened at Kiervant Sky?" He wondered.
He tried to convince himself that all the strange occurrences, the distortions of time, the Kiervant Sky, a place he barely understood. Since leaving that place, his life had been unrecognizable, a series of events that defied logic and reason.
He tried to convince himself all the strange things that had happened to him. First, he had begun to explore the mysteries of time itself, Kiervant Sky. He had absolutely no idea what place it was. There was one thing he realized after he left Kiervant Sky. His life immediately changed completely.
Then, the dreaded Bloody Marriage, a fate Ansel had often cautioned him about, had come to pass. None of it made sense, and yet it was all undeniably real.
He didn't expect it at all. That his life was completely out of logical moment.