Due to Destiny

Painful Past

I was feeling restless, and although I couldn't see much in the darkness of the night, I could feel something—someone. I could feel the presence of Noah. I started looking for him everywhere. My eyes scanned the area until I saw a boy standing a floor above. At first, his face was hidden in the shadows, but when he turned towards me, I saw his face in the dim light. It was Noah! My Noah.

But then, reality rushed over me. Noah was gone. He couldn’t come back. I closed my eyes, hoping to reassure myself that it was just my imagination. When I opened them again, he was gone.

Perhaps it was his birthday, and I missed him so much. This could be the reason for my hallucination. I justified the situation to myself, trying to push the thoughts away.

I was lost in my thoughts when Chris came.

Chris - "Amara, we are ready," he said.

Amara - "Okay, coming," I replied, quickly wiping my tears and putting a smile on my face.

Amara - "So, who is going first?" I asked, trying to sound cheerful.

Chris - "Me," He said.

Ava - "Yup! He won in Rock paper scissors," She said, rolling her eyes.

Amara - "Okay!" I said, putting the Oracle stone in front of Chris. It floated in the air, glowing softly.

Amara - "Chris, clear your mind, think about your question, and place your hands on the stone," I instructed.

Chris nodded and did exactly what I asked him to do.

Chris - "What don’t I know about myself and about my family?" He whispered.

A sudden thunderclap grabbed Ava's and my attention, but Chris remained focused, his eyes closed, still holding the stone. The stone's glow started traveling into Chris's body through his arms, and more thunder and lightning filled the sky outside.

I could see something was happening to Chris. After two minutes, the glow in Chris's body stopped. He opened his eyes, which were filled with tears.

Ava rushed towards him.

AVa - "Chris, are you fine?" she asked, concern etched on her face.

Chris nodded yes, but he looked shaken.

Amara - "Kiddo? Need Scotch?" I asked.

He nodded yes again, and I poured him a glass of scotch on the rocks. He gulped the drink within seconds.

Ava - "Say something, please," She urged him.

Chris - "I know who my parents were and what happened to them. It wasn’t a disaster or an accident. They were murdered," He said, his voice breaking as he started sobbing in Ava's arms.

The room fell silent, the weight of his revelation settling over us. I could feel the pain radiating from Chris, and my heart ached for him.

Amara - "I’m so sorry, Chris," I said softly, placing a comforting hand on his shoulder.

Amara - "But now you know the truth. And we’ll find out the person who did this. We’ll get justice for your parents."

Chris nodded, tears still streaming down his face.

Chris - "I never knew them, Amara. But now... now I have to find out more. I need to understand why this happened."

Ava - "We will," She said, her voice determined.

Ava - "We’ll help you, Chris. You’re not alone in this."

As Chris began to calm down, I couldn’t shake the feeling that this was just the beginning of uncovering a much larger truth. The Oracle stone had revealed a painful secret, but it also opened the door to understanding more about ourselves and our destinies.

Amara - "Next?"

I asked, trying to move forward and give Chris some space to process.

Ava stepped forward. She looked at the stone with a mixture of determination and apprehension.

I nodded, placing the stone back in the air.

Ava - "Clear your mind, Ava. Think about your question, and place your hands on the stone."

Ava took a deep breath, her hands hovering over the stone for a moment before she placed them firmly on its surface.

Ava - "What is my true purpose?" she whispered.

The stone began to glow again, the light traveling into Ava’s body just as it had with Chris. Outside, the storm raged on, thunder and lightning adding to the tension in the room.

After what felt like an eternity, the glow subsided. Ava opened her eyes, a look of awe and fear in them.

Ava - "I saw… I saw a future where A very big War is about to happen. Where I protect our legecy and own kind and fight against the Warriors and our own people too. It’s my destiny."

Her words hung in the air, the gravity of the revelation sinking in. Ava, our fierce and fearless friend, had just seen a glimpse of her true purpose.

Amara - "We’re in this together," I said, my voice firm. "Whatever comes, we’ll face it together."

Ava nodded, a determined look on her face.

Ava - "We have to. There’s too much at stake."

I took a deep breath, feeling the weight of our collective destinies pressing down on us. As the storm outside began to calm, I knew that this was just the beginning. The beginning of a journey that would test us, change us, and ultimately, define us.

Chris - "Amara, you were there, right?" He asked suddenly, breaking the silence.

Ava - "Where?" She asked him, turning her face towards him.

Chris - "On the day my parents were murdered. I saw you, Amara. Please tell me what happened?"

Ava - "Is that before we met Amara?" She asked, looking at me.

Amara - "Yes," I said.

Chris - "Please tell me what happened," He pleaded.

Amara - "Chris, are you sure that you are ready to know about your own people?" I asked gently.

Ava - "No, Amara, he just got to learn about his parents. Don't you think it will be too much for him?" She interjected.

Chris - "Ava, I am ready, and I think I have some hints," He said firmly.

Amara - "Oh! Then we will start with you. Tell us what you know and what you think, then I'll explain everything to you."

Ava - "Yes, in this way we will get an idea of how to explain everything to you," She agreed.

Chris - "Wait, what do you mean by 'WE'? How on earth would you know so much about me, Ava? You are just three years older than me," He questioned.

Ava - "You start, then we will get to know everything," I said, trying to keep the peace.

Chris - "Okay, as per the glimpses, I saw an altar with so many books and, as per my knowledge, it belonged to some Witch. And later I saw some wolves attacking our home and one of them killed my father in front of my eyes. My mother covered my mouth, hiding in a closet. And then you appeared and took me from my mom."

Chris stopped suddenly and started thinking something. It looked like he was calculating something.

Ava - "What happened?" She asked, sensing his turmoil.

Chris - "Amara, how can you be still the same? I saw the year on the calendar in my glimpses, and it was almost 14 years back," He said, confusion clear on his face.

Ava - "Chris, she will answer your question but can you please continue? We don't have the whole night to explain everything to you. We need to leave for Worthington State Forest early tomorrow morning," She urged.

Amara - "Chris, don't mind her. She can be very finicky when she is hungry," I said with a small smile.

Amara - "Ava, order something," She nodded and started ordering.

Chris - "Okay, so you took me from my mom and then we were running in the woods. And later I heard someone saying that he should not know until it's the right time. That's it. That's all I remember and saw."

Amara - "Okay, then let me start," I began.

Ava - "I ordered burger and pizza with cold coffees," She informed.

Chris - "Okay! Can she start now?" He asked impatiently.

Ava - "Yeah! Sure," She replied.