"Why must Enara be punished for my crimes?" Shane asked angrily. His fists were clenched. One of them was on the table, the other on his side.
"It's not your fault that you were lost in the portal when you were eight years old," Rana said trying to assuage Shane's anger. She sat opposite him inside the wide living room. Her eyes were looking outside at the bright beam of the sun in their green-trimmed yard.
"You're not a criminal, Enos. You were a kid when that accident happened. It wasn't your fault." Rana said looking back at him.
"But you are to die here because you tried your best to search for me and you even lost your memory because of it," Shane said with tensed jaws. "In the end, you must die because of it?"
He asked feeling incredulous and murderous at the verdict of Enara's fugitive action ten years ago.
"You don't have to die for me, Rana," Shane said, anguish showing on his face. He reached for her hands clasped on the table.
"I'll speak to the Council. Let them see reason."
"Even Ethiara couldn't make them see reason, Enos. Why could you?" asked Enos in a mocking voice.
He was leaning against the doorway of the living room looking at the sun's rays on the ground.
"Then, I must tell the Council that I will take her punishment instead," Shane said pounding the table.
"So, you're going to die for her?" asked Helios concealing the surprise in his voice.
"That's gallant of you, little Enos," jeered Ethos.
Shane looked darkly at his brother. "I'll die for her if I must."
"You can't be serious," said Ethos shaking his head. "All because of this woman."
"All because she's my woman," Shane said with profound determination.
"She's not your woman, Enos," Ethos opposed dryly. "She's always been mine, Enos. She loves me more than you."
"In your delusion, brother. Why don't you look at Ethiara instead?" Shane argued. "She loves you more than you realize it."
"He will not realize it. This guy is a dopehead," Helios butted in.
"Who is Ethiara?" Ethos said without thinking. "I have always loved Enara."
Ethiara who just entered that moment while everyone was talking heard it and left with a dark scowl on her face.
"I'll return when they're no longer talking about me and Enara. "
She said as she passed Helios.
"That's tough of you, Ethiara. It must be painfully hard to love and care for a thick-skulled called Ethos," said Helios lacing his insult.
Ethiara stopped and looked at him.
"Don't call him thick-skulled, Helios. You have no right to call him so."
"Always the knight against the bonehead, huh?" asked Helios with a smirk on his face.
"You are abominably despicable, hellfire!" spat Ethiara with venom in her tongue.
"Ah…don't I feel refreshed about that," he said in deep satisfaction. "I love it when you call me hellfire. I feel like my energy doubles every time you call me that name. You make me love you more, Ethiara."
"Shut up, asshole," hissed Ethiara. "Go back and return to Sonora, you ungrateful villain."
She left the room while the three men stayed in silence. Shane's mind was busy thinking of a way to get Rana out of the doom of her fate. Helios was silently observing the brothers as they simmered in silence on what to do to help Rana. Rana was quiet pondering why she must be fated to be faced with such kind of punishment.
The day of Rana's execution hung at the end of the month.
Shane stood up from the table.
"I am not going to wait until they execute, Rana. I'm going to the Council and talk to them."
Shane moved to the doorway. Rana spoke before he could leave.
"I don't think they will hear your reason, Shane," said Rana as she kept her gaze outside the yard. "They won't listen to Ethiara during the trial, why would they bother with yours?"
Shane turned round to look at Rana whose eyes were fixed outside.
"I'll talk to dad and ask what he can do at the council."
"The decision of the elders, Enos, is final," Eron said as he and Shane talked in his study. "We can't do anything to change the elders' minds."
"The only reason they can't be changed is because you won't try anything to convince them to change their minds, dad. Why don't you talk to them? You've been with the Council," Shane said reining his anger. "It was my fault in the first place that Enara left Lunara to come looking for me. Why must her life this time pay for my childish mischief then?"
Eron looked at him with a serious expression.
"Enos, it wasn't you who left the city uncaring about the rules and laws violating them ten years ago. Enara broke them without caring what will happen to her—"
"All because of me!" Shane said almost shouting. He rose from his seat and paced the floor. "It wasn't her fault if she was so earnest in finding me when the rest of you already gave up on searching for me. She left this place to look for me, dad! Why must I allow her to take that heartless punishment just because she came looking for me ten years ago? Why must—"
"Enos! Enough!"
Eron said raising his voice.
Shane turned to his face to look at his dad.
"And I would just watch her die in front of me because I can't save her life?" he asked, smirking a little. "You've got to be kidding me!"
He stormed out of the room.
Shane walked to the Council. It was a hot afternoon. He checked his watch. It showed past 2 pm. The blaze of the sun was glaring into his eyes. The ground was dusty with sand sweeping by the irregular gust of the wind. He walked to the front of the Council Hall and went straight to the Council of the Elders.
Shane knocked on the door.
An elderly man opened the door.
"Gramp Methos!" Shane greeted the old man who was wearing a green hat and a green dress with an orange scarf around his neck.
"Enos. What are you doing here, son?" asked the old man in his crooked voice.
"I need your help, Gramps."
Shane said finding hope at seeing the old man who gave them once the magical stones. He hoped he has another object to give him to help him save Rana's life this time.
"Let's find a seat, Enos."
Gramp Methos said leading him in an open room where red leathered couches were located close to a tall glass window. They took a seat together.
"Gramp Methos, Enara is facing execution at the end of the month. I hope you can help me find a way to save her." Shane said looking expectantly at him. "Maybe you can give me an amulet to help me worm her way out of this."
Gramp Methos was bent on his seat. His hands were clasped on top of the cane. He appeared to be already weak in appearance but there was a gleam in his eyes when he spoke.
"I can't give you any charm stones to help you save Enara, Enos. But I can give you a piece of advice," he said turning his eyes towards him with a small smile on his face. "If you love her just as much as you love her before. Fight for her life, Enos. That's the best you can do, son."
Enos simply stared at the old man.
"How will I fight for Enara's life, Gramps?" he asked feeling confused by his advice.
"You know how to fight for her with your life."
He said wisdom in his voice.
Shane stayed in his seat. Then, he moved to rise deciding to enter the Elder of the Council's Room. Gramp Methos touched his knees.
"They will not listen to you, Enos. Once the Council had decided, they will not change their mind."
"You know what to do, Enos."
Shane walked around the park of Lunara looking at the ground. He had been pacing around the park for half an hour already.
His mind was thinking of several ways to fight for Rana's life. What does Gramp Methos mean that he has to fight with his own life to save hers?
He strolled the ground.
"You've been gone throughout the afternoon, Enos. We've been looking for you."
Helios said as he approached Shane walking leisurely his head checking the ground.
Shane looked up to see Helios walking towards him.
"I've been to the Council, Helios. I saw Gramps Methos. He told me to fight for Rana's life."
"And pray tell what that old man told you?" Helios asked with exasperation in his voice. "He's always good at wringing his words."
Shane felt the corners of his mouth tugged with a smile. Helios had always hated talking to Gramp Methos since he was a kid. He looked at the Helios' arm bracelet.
"Have you already figured out what that arm bracelet was capable of?"
Helios looked sideways at his arm bracelet.
"Securing my upper arm for the past two decades," he said in annoyance.
Shane laughed at him.
"Wow. You still haven't figured it out, then?" he asked in amazement. "That's been quite a long time, Helios. I'm already back in Lunara."
"Shut up, Enos. It's not my fault if I don't know how this pesky little rock works."
"Maybe in due time —"
"— you will find out."
Ethos voice joined in.
Shane and Helios whirled around to see Ethos walking towards them.
"So, this is where you've been lurking, Shane," said Ethos. "I've been looking for you since this morning."
"I went to the Council," Shane explained.
"And did the Council listen to what you have to say, little brother?"
Ethos asked briefly looking at him.
"I've spoken to Gramp Methos."
"Gramp Methos…hmmm?" he said thoughtfully. "I hope he gave you sound advice."
Helios and Shane glanced at each other.
Ethos turned to look at them.
"And once again he left you with one of his famous riddles."
Shane cleared his throat.
"Well, I've figured it out. But I need you two to help me."
The month of November couldn't go by fast enough. For Shane, it was way too slow. He couldn't wait for the day to occur. He had a deliberate plan that will ensure Rana's out of harm's way. But for Rana, the days were moving way too fast. Rana stayed at home most of the time but Shane tried his best to keep her company all these times.
Rana kept her silence with the pending doom looming at her at the end of the month. What more does she wait life for anyway? She was to be executed. What was more disheartening was her situation inside their house was already determined with her death.
Her father already considered her dead. He never once opened his mouth to say anything more of the matter. Rana's mom tried her best by making her all the food dishes she used to love. She once heard her mother crying inside her parents' room but when she tried to enter she met the dark look of her father and retreated with clenched fists. She went straight to her bedroom then.
Rana was sitting by the porch floor, her legs dangling below while she listened to the cicadas of the night and watched their yard under the moon sky. It was a cool night. She could see some fireflies flitting into the night.
"You sure had it tough, Enara."
Rana turned around to see Ethiara approaching, She sat beside her.
"Life is literally short for me, sister, so I'm enjoying my last night out watching the stars and the sky and the fireflies."
She said with a smile.
"I'm sorry I couldn't help you more, Enara," said Ethiara in a distressed voice. She moved closer to Rana and hugged her tightly. "I wish I could help you more."
She said. Tears were glistening in her eyes. Rana wiped them out.
"I'm the one who's going. Why are you the one crying?" She asked in a wistful tone. "I will always be around even when I'm no longer here."
Ethiara openly wept before her.
It was a long and restless night for Rana and her sister.