Heya continued to recount the eerie events in the Eastern Forest, the memories lingering in his mind, his voice carrying a somber tone.
"They took me to the deserted military camp, Mia. It was like stepping into a nightmare. The spirits of the soldiers who had suffered during the war still lingered there. I could feel their pain, their torment. It was as if time had frozen in that place, and the echoes of the past reverberated through the empty barracks."
Mia wanted to retort, saying that the place wasn't haunted, but she decided the truth could wait. She reached her hand out to offer Heya a warm hug.
Asa, whose senses were mingled with Mia's, felt everything—from the touch to the warm breath of Heya on the side of her neck.
She hated the fact that she had no control over anything right now, not even the body she was in.
She wanted to scream and push the Joan Eve lookalike away. And she was sure that right now, Joan Eve probably wanted to shove her off too.
It is going to be awkward when they got out of this sigil magic, she thought.
Mia patted his back. "It's okay, you're safe now."
Heya nodded slightly as he basked in the warmth of Mia's embrace. "At first, we just heard some painful-sounding moans. The guards got scared and dropped me there, leaving me alone," he continued to tell his story.
Rage rose up in Mia's chest, not accepting the fact that Heya was treated so poorly by those men.
"I wasn't scared at first. I was curious as to what it was. There were so many Crystal Flowers there, and you know how their pollens often make one feel dizzy. I thought at first it was just my hallucination in my dizzy state, but," Heya backed away from Mia's hold to look her in the eye, "It wasn't, Mia."
"What is it?" Mia asked.
Heya sighed, "They are humans, but they look so weird. Their eyes were sunken, they look very thin. They have many wounds all over their body and they smell like rotten meat." Disgust clearly showed on Heya's face. "It's terrifying."
"Did they attack you?" This was supposed to be a rhetorical question, but Heya's answer surprises her.
"No," he said as he looked down, as if he was scared to meet Mia's eyes. "They killed themselves right in front of me instead."
Mia gasped, feeling horrified by the answer, chills running down her spine. "What do you mean?" she asked again, still not believing what he said.
"They brought themselves to my face one by one and started killing themselves, Mia. I was so scared!" he exclaimed. "I tried to run, but they followed me just to show me how they do harm to themselves. Panic came over me, and I tripped on some branches when i ran and fell down. Never once did they ever attack me; they just showed up in front of me to do harm to themselves."
Questions popped up in Mia's head. This is the first time Mia ever heard of such a thing. Are those things really ghosts?
"Then, all of that blood from before was theirs?"
Heya nodded. He seemed weaker now after telling the story.
Mia's mind raced, trying to comprehend the disturbing events Heya had experienced in the Eastern Forest. The image of tormented spirits inflicting harm upon themselves sent shivers down her spine. It was a scenario beyond anything she could have anticipated.
As she looked into Heya's eyes, she saw genuine fear and trauma. Mia felt a surge of protectiveness, an instinct to shield Heya from the horrors he had witnessed.
"That's... unimaginable," Mia murmured, her voice filled with a mixture of disbelief and sorrow. "Why would they do such things to themselves?"
Heya shrugged, leaving the question hanging.
On the inside, for Asa Amerta and Joan Eve, who were listening to the conversation, they knew exactly what Heya was seeing. It was Crys.
This was a newfound fact for both of them. They never thought Crys had already existed for hundreds of years. How had they stayed hidden all those years before they finally attacked Antara?
Throughout the dinner, Asa chanted to herself that she was just misunderstanding things and that Mia and Heya wouldn't share a bed. Joan did the same on the other side. But both of them had an ill fate. They were forced to share a bed for the night as Mia and Heya.
To make it worse, Heya wrapped his arm around Mia's waist, bringing the woman's slim body closer to his under the blanket. As if it were the most natural thing to do, Mia slipped her arm around Heya's body as well, enjoying his embrace.
As the night settled in, the awkwardness in the shared consciousness of Asa and Joan reached an all-time high. Forced to share a bed through the bodies of Heya and Mia, the two silent observers felt an uncomfortable intimacy that transcended the boundaries of their own understanding.
The warmth emanating from Heya's body, the gentle rise and fall of Mia's breath, and the entwining of their limbs beneath the blanket created an atmosphere that left both Asa and Joan grappling with a mixture of confusion and embarrassment.
Asa also felt a sense of rage within her.
In the hushed silence of the room, only broken by the soft sounds of night, Asa attempted to rationalize the situation within her own thoughts.
This is outside of my control. I do not want this nor I enjoyed this. I do not want this nor I enjoyed this. Damn! I will really slap Joan Eve as soon as we get out of this sigil magic!
On the other side, Joan was equally desperate to convince himself that this isn't his fault, he can't control Heya's body thus couldn't stop Heya's inappropriate affection towards Mia.
In the dimly lit room, the bodies of Heya and Mia lay intertwined, blissfully unaware of the silent turmoil within the minds of Asa and Joan.
When Mia finally fall asleep, Heya couldn't help but reach out to caress Mia's sleeping face.
Joan was glad that at least the woman who looked exactly like Asa had her eyes closed. Joan, with a sense of familiarity, observed Mia's features.
She really looked exactly like Asa, just a bit more feminine. Her long, pretty eyelashes, slightly round nose, and plump lips contributed to her adorable appearance.
How pretty. both Joan and Heya thought simultaneously.
The night finally came to an end, and morning greeted them again. By now, both Asa and Joan realized that the relationship between Mia and Heya was a romantic one, as both of them shared hugs and small kisses throughout the morning.
Realizing that there really was nothing they could do, both Joan and Asa gave up scolding the two lovebirds and just let them be.
The awkwardness lingered, but there was an unspoken agreement to endure it until it ends.
Knock, knock.
The sudden, insistent knocking on their door jolted the two lovers from their intimate cocoon. Heya, who had been embracing Mia from behind, peppering her neck with tender kisses, reluctantly withdrew as Mia untangled herself to answer the door.
"Grandma," Mia greeted the elderly lady standing at her doorstep, a full basket of food in her hands. "Why are you bringing so much? Come on in," she said, making way for her to enter.
Heya, intrigued by the unexpected guest, tilted his head to get a better look and swiftly moved to assist the grandma with the laden food basket as soon as he noticed her struggling.
After settling the grandma in a dinner chair and placing the food basket on the table, Heya inquired, "Grandma, why all this delicious abundance? Is there a special occasion we're not aware of?"
A warm smile lit up the grandma's face, her eyes brimming with affection as she gently patted Heya's hand. "Your girlfriend's eating for two now, dear. I thought I'd drop by with some homemade goodies, just in case The Royal Sorcerer decides to take a culinary vacation. The entire village knows Heya's skills in the kitchen are... well, less than magical." She chuckled, her eyes twinkling with mischief.
Mia blushed at her grandmother's teasing.
The grandma chuckled, a knowing gleam in her eyes. "I'll leave you two to enjoy the feast. Take care of each other." With a warm smile, "Take care of yourself and the baby well, Royal Sorcerer." She said as she exited the room, leaving the couple alone with the spread of home-cooked delights.
As the aroma of Grandma's cooking wafted through the air, Heya and Mia shared a laugh. They sat down at the table, enjoying the array of dishes that Grandma had brought, their conversation filled with light-hearted banter and shared laughter.
The day is peaceful and light-hearted. The stress of yesterday seem to have only been a fever dream for Heya as he watch a smiling lady in front of him.
Unbeknownst to the lovebirds, a wave of horror swept over the two souls trapped within their shared body as they finally comprehended the full extent of the situation.