A gentle breeze floated across the balcony, brushing aside wisps of Eva's hair. She looked skyward, to the flickering clouds, then to the city dotted with shimmering points of light below. The view reminded her of night skies before the world was enveloped in darkness, and she let out a wistful sigh. Still, she thought, even cursed this world is beautiful. Eva's thoughts weren't of the twisted wilds, nor the cloudy night skies which had become the natural of this world. Instead, when having this thought, she reflected on the communities the people had built, the connections they'd made, and the future they worked for. "He always said we were his most perfect creation." Eva whispered with a smile. Suddenly, as the chilling chains in her heart started to tremble angrily at these words, Eva heard a shout from below, filled with fear and longing.
"Mom!"
Eva's line of sight snapped to where the shout had echoed, then practically squealed in delight. "Anak!" She waved at him frantically for a moment, having it returned by the beaming mass of muscle down below, before holding up a finger and darting inside.
"Edo! Edo!" Eva called for her husband with unabashed excitement. "Anak is here! He's here! Come quick!"
Edo poked his head out from a side door inside the massive room where they were granted lodging by King Ker-V'as, hair tousled messily. He had apparently slept in today. "Here? Where?" He looked around the room sleepily, still not quite clear from the fog of dreams.
"He's right outside, dummy! Come on!" Eva didn't care a bit about how tired her husband was, rushing him out the balcony door as quickly as possible. "Oh!" Eva exclaimed in surprise. Anak stood waiting on the balcony before them, hands on his hips and smiling. "How did-?"
Anak winked and subtly shook his head, indicating not to mention the oddness of his appearance there. Eva hesitated, but she trusted Anak, and so she chose to let it be.
Edo didn't notice the quick, strange exchange and simply nodded to Anak with a smile. "Hey, son. It's been a while."
Anak grimaced and responded awkwardly, "Yeah… sorry about that." He looked at his parents in front of him, and shame flooded his heart. He had run away without a word to either of them, then had been gone for months. He may not have planned to be trapped in a labyrinth, but he certainly didn't stop to consider giving Edo or Eva any news.
Seeing Anak's head hang in shame, Edo snapped his fingers. "Hey, none of that. You're a man, sometimes a man has to go find himself, right? You're back now; that's enough."
Anak looked up to see his parents smiling at him fondly, and their eyes told him a story of long held worry that had only just been alleviated. Anak realized the best thing now would be to simply let himself and his family be swept up in the happiness of their reunion. All faults or apologies could wait, if not simply be forgotten.
"Right." Anak nodded and smiled back, laughing after a moment from delight. "I missed you both."
The three exchanged a tight hug for a minute or two, before finally releasing each other.
"Let's go inside." Eva invited.
"Yes, yes. Come on." Edo agreed, "We have some things we should probably talk about anyway."
Eva glared at her husband, "Can't it wait five minutes?" She didn't want to discuss such weighty things so soon after their reunion.
"Hasn't it?" Edo teased with a wink, only to receive a frustrated huff in response. "Fine, fine. We can talk about that later." He made an expression towards Anak that said, 'it can't be helped,' earning a pinch on his elbow from Eva when she caught sight of it.
Anak laughed once more at his parents' display. "Well at least you two still like each other. That much hasn't changed."
The family entered their quarters jovially, taking full measure of the happiness of reunion. Finally, after a long time of merely enjoying each other's company, a knocking echoed from the large entrance.
Without awaiting reply, a messenger opened the door and declared, "King Ker-V'as has requested your presence in the private audience chamber. If you would please follow me."
Edo waved a hand dismissively, "We know the way. You can tell Ker-V'as we're on our way."
Eva stood to her feet with a polite smile. "Thank you, Argus. Are your children well?" She warmly inquired, partially to make up for her husband's brusque dismissal.
"Very well, Lady Eva. Many thanks for the advice." The messenger, Argus, broadly grinned at the question, clearly pleased to have been asked it.
"Advice?" From the side, Anak tried to insert himself into this conversation he'd apparently no part in. He wanted to know more about his parent's lives; he simply didn't have enough of a childhood to have that chance before.
Argus lazily turned his head, nearly jumping from his skin when he saw Anak. "Who are you?! How did you get in here? I- I…" The man started to hyperventilate, then took a deep breath, presumably to yell for help of some sort.
Clamping a hand over Argus' mouth, Edo chuckled. "Relax, Argus. Exhale would you? This is my son."
"Yrrr srn?" Argus asked stiffly from behind the palm muting his voice. His eyes darted between Anak and Edo, as if seeking some point of comparison.
"That's right. He's no threat. So relax, would you?" Edo released the messenger, wiping spit from his palm with a disgusted expression. "Don't you have a message to deliver?"
Argus snapped back into formality after being reminded of his duties. "Right! I will deliver your reply to the king." After nodding politely to the three of them, Argus swiftly departed with long, controlled strides.
"His children were ill, so I shared some of what I knew to help." Eva helpfully explained after the messenger had departed. This answer merely raised more questions in Anak's mind, but before he could ask he was interrupted.
"You look wrecked." Looking over the disheveled state of Anak's wardrobe, Edo declared. "You're in no state to meet a king. Come, let's get you prepared." Anak nodded, and the family of three withdrew to the wardrobe smiling happily, so Anak could change out of his ragged attire.
In his isolated garden, King Ker-V'as leaned forward attentively, as Argus delivered his report. When he was finished, the king reclined in his carved stone chair. "So, Anak has returned." A lazy smile crept across his cheeks. "Argus, prepare one more seat at the table."
"At once, my King." Argus bowed, before darting off to complete his task.
Ker-V'as stroked his chin, his thoughts swirling with various ideas and schemes. Now that Anak had returned, he could skip the search, and go directly to the next stage of his plan. He'd had enough of being subject to Gel-ad, his junior in both years and kingship. He had once admired the young man Gel-ad, who had demonstrated a keen wit and leader's charisma even before he was consumed by ambition and pride. "Never in over a thousand years have I suffered like in this last one." He moaned, grateful to be alone in this moment. If his exhausted complaints were to be made public, he'd never recover from the loss of dignity. Ker-V'as was very old, as old as the world itself, one of only a handful of living humans who could claim so. As such, it was becoming harder and harder for him to endure the cursed world as time went by. He already felt aches in his joints and grumbles in his organs that hadn't before existed, emphasizing all the more in his mind how necessary his plans were. "For the sake of the world," He whispered to himself, "Even if I die… we must topple Gel-ad and his gods first."
The King of Tabselem stared at the empty blue sky, a mere mystical projection, emulating the world he once knew. His heart swelled with longing and grief as he looked at the gorgeous landscape surrounding him. Tears dripped from his eyelids, carried away in the gentle breeze. 'Oh God…' His heart cried out for the One he once knew, as he wept for the state of his kingdom, and his world. "My Lord. Shall we ever return to paradise?"