MIZPAH

24 | immortal love

CHAPTER: 24

Soul Sanctuary

Somewhere in the brightest cabins of the Soul Sanctuary, the Almighty paced with a frown on their unblemished face, it was not a usual sight hence the officials in the room shared worried glances.

The bells at the far end of the southern lands went to and fro erratically.

The Almighty closed their eyes for a moment, there was silence all over except for the ringing bells and opened them slowly.

"The time has come", they muttered to themselves as others tried to decipher the cause of their dilemma.

❀

Earth

Vrishti and Vidhyut trudged through the muddy grounds in the darkness of the night when Vrishti clutched the transparent raincoat she wore over her pj-s and spoke up, "Why are we here again?"

Vidhyut turned to her as his eyes fell where she had held onto the sleeve of his tunic. She had her eyes on her surroundings, she eyed the trees around the Ruins.

Now she turned towards him and spoke again, "But shouldn't we go to the place where you uh-you, and Varsha met for the first time or somewhere you guys ", she mistakenly spoke in English but switched to Hindi when she realized that, "where both of you met".

"We do but first I have some questions, that need to be answered", he explained and they took steps to go inside.

As they moved forward, he couldn't help himself and stared at the woman walking beside him. He realized he never really looked at her thoroughly, she was just a mortal to him who knew about his existence in the world he didn't belong to and somehow they shared the same purpose for different reasons, perceptibly.

His eyes followed the slope of her nose, those arched eyebrows and almond-shaped eyes, her proportionate lips, and the curve of her jaw, there was a softness to her features and it made her look ethereal but the moles and acne scars peppered here and there, tiny hair covering her delicate skin and those glossy pale lips made her human.

Her beauty might not be something that looked out of this world but quite one of the few, for this world.

Suddenly she looked at him and he was reminded of the occurrence which had occurred a few hours ago, her pain-etched face and writhing body were unbearable and an unforgettable sight for him similar to the one from many centuries ago.

"How long do you plan to stand here? Are you summoning others or anything", she tried to lighten the situation.

Vidhyut hadn't realized that he had brought them in front of the stone door of the Courtroom, a room he was very familiar with. It held so many memories of pain and pride alike.

This was the same room he received the 'sword of esteem' as an honor when he got recruited into the military forces of his dynasty and the one where he took his own life but was history as he remembered because the memories are all jumbled now.

He cleared his throat and composed himself, "We shall head inside".

"What? Do you even hear what you are saying? Don't you remember what happened this morning?", Vrishti whispered in admonishing.

"We have to do what we can", he told her.

"I think I would need your help for this one because believe me, the room behind the doors holds some answers that I am sure would help us. Don't let go under any circumstances, promise me".

"I won't let go", she reassured him then turned towards the door as the flashbacks from this evening were still fresh in her memory, she traced the throbbing mark once before lifting both her hands towards the cold surface after Vidhyut.

Electricity crackled in the air and traveled up their arms, sparks flew. They could hear the rumble and shudder of the building as the ground trembled as the stone door grew hot as if it opened to the igniting pits of the inferno.

Pain, Vrishti could feel it everywhere. The raincoat which she hadn't removed and her cotton clothes clung to her sweaty skin. The burning sensation was everywhere and she knew the man was encountering something similar if not something even more painful.

She groaned in agony and clutched her eyes shut as she clamped her teeth together when suddenly an equally burning hand went under her palm and washed her with something cooler, something sweet as if she could taste it on her tongue.

"It's okay let me do it, don't push yourself", Vidhyut spoke with a clenched jaw, his translucent figure which always had a soft blue undertone was now glowing as if engulfed in fire.

"No", she all but shouted and slightly removed her palm so that their little fingers touched, they supported each other and shared the burden together.

The building trembled, now even more vigorously. Vrishti could feel the stings as the flesh of her palms burnt on the igniting surface.

The situation that happened next couldn't be deciphered if not experienced oneself, as if the ground parted, they could hear something shifting within the walls and underneath them, and with the last cry, the door shut open and they flew across the rough ground.

The moonlight filtered in through the large windows that spread till the roof but Vrishti's vision blurred before she could take in her surrounding anymore, darkness crawled at her sides as her eyes felt heavy, the last thing she remembered was a cheek pressed against her own. 
.

.
.

"...i will always choose death over separation", the spring sun fell on his dark strands creating a halo

"don't say such things, we won't part even after death", she chastised as her fingers stopped threading through his tresses

she held his face by palming his flushed cheeks and made him look her in the eyes, "i will follow you to death"

the river flowing in the distance was the only sound that could be heard in that silent afternoon. she spoke again, "my father told me that love is immortal and i believe in the almighty, they are not so cruel. i am sure we will find our way to each other"

"almighty shall bless us", she concluded with a soft smile on her lips as she traced the corners of her lover's lips

after some moment of silence, he spoke up  "will...will you wait for me?"

she moved forward as her lips touched his lightly and whispered in a sweet melody, "always"

❀ ❀ ❀ 

dun dun dun...I wonder what's happening?
is Vrishti's death the cost of finding Varsha
so many things are happening, it's nerve-wracking for me even as a writer.