He claimed his name

"This is where his father left him. He has told you about it, yes?"

I nodded. He had no right to intrude in our personal conversations, but I was not in a mood to point it out.

"Had it been a normal guy, they'd hate this place. But Max, being a masochist as he is, absolutely loves being here. He is happy, he comes here. He is hurt, he comes here to sob. That's how weird he is. Two years ago, he came here running. It was midnight, we needed him for something, so we start looking for him. He is nowhere to be found. Then I remember this place. I come here, and guess what? I find him sobbing like a child. When I ask him what's wrong, he says, I found him. He says, I am so happy right now that I can die."

Two years ago, where was I then? With Amy, starting a new life? Had he known me for that long? Why didn't he show up earlier then?

"He said, he has finally done it. He has said it, claimed it. He has claimed his name. He kept on sobbing for god knows how long. Do you know how important it was for him, or for us?"

"Because I am supposed to fix everything," I replied nonchalantly.

We sat on a boulder, very close to the water, far away from the twinkling lights of the town. The darkness felt good, like a soothing ointment over my injuries. Vee probably had his own injuries too. Our stories, as messed up and complicated as they are, had to have hurt him. It might not be the same way as it did to me or Max, but it couldn't be nothing.

"Let us not talk anymore. Since I have come here, that's all I have been doing. I don't want to talk anymore."

"Huh…I thought you wanted to meet me so that we could talk," he said. Sarcasm dripped from his tone.

"You must think of me as a terrible person," I commented without facing him. I did not want to see the look of contempt on his face right now.

"Well, I don't think of you as a person at all, but that should not matter to you. You are back for him, so take care of him. Do you want to swim?"

The sudden change of topic got me. I glanced at him to see he had already taken off his shirt. He was getting rid of those faded pair of jeans and his sneakers. "Come on, it's fun under the water."

I couldn't decide whether I should go under the water. The last time I went there something happened. I still couldn't put my finger on it, but it made me uncomfortable. I debated over the notion of sharing that with him. Would Vee know, or understand what it was? Should I tell him?

"Come on, what are you waiting for?"

I considered refusing him once again. My eyes were glued to the dark water, not exactly black, but a deeper shade of green. Mysterious, intimidating– it was something of an enigmatic story, each wave concealing an untold chapter. Vee took a deep breath and went under the water. I waited for him to surface until i started getting antsy.

"Screw it," I said to no one in particular, and started taking off my clothes as well. Once completely bare, I jumped into the cold water.

The first feeling that hit me was the weightlessness of my body. I floated on the surface waiting for something to happen. Nothing happened, at least nothing too horrifying. Eventually, the cool of the water seeped into the innermost layers of my skin. I felt the shivers. It did not scare me; I still had the heart of staying in the water. I floated for some more time, completely forgotten by Vee who was splashing around somewhere away from me.

I watched the starry sky from the river. The sky was clearer than usual, the stars were sparkling a little more than the other nights; even though there was no moon in the sky, there was an eerie, bluish glow everywhere. There was a tune in my head– words forgotten– something primitive that had been there since the beginning of the times. I hummed the tune as my body floated aimlessly, on the same spot.

The uncomfortable feeling started after some time. Something was there under me, something big, dark, ancient. Suddenly, I was drowning. Not struggling against the water, or even trying to go up, I was drowning willingly. I had lost my resolution to live. All of a sudden, I had no problems actually dying.

"What is death like?" I thought. Was it like a painless transition to the other world? Or was it simply falling into oblivion? How did a dying person feel like?

"That depends," somebody spoke in my head. A hissing sound, mixed with a growl played in my head like an old record, on a never-ending loop. "For some, it feels like a dream, for some it is pain, for some it is relief."

"Am I dreaming?" I asked to the owner of that same growling, hissing voice.

"Dreams often take a form that is different from reality, but it is also very close to reality. Which one do you want?" the growling had stopped, but the hissing was still there. What was that in that tone? Contempt, sarcasm, anger?

"Who are you?"

Laughter rippled the water. I kept on falling in deeper and deeper until all the lights faded away from everywhere.

Then I felt it–her. It could have been him, but something very feminine was just in there, in the water around us. She was around me, a gigantic shape twirling around me like a snake, a very big snake. Her presence engulfed me. She was there, everywhere, and she was there for me.

"Humans have many opinions. They love to think, conspire, and ruin. You, I, us, we don't. We know the truth, unlike humans. Don't we, Arin?"

"Who are you?" I asked again, this time restlessly. There was something about her I couldn't trust, or like. Something dark, cold, and to some extent oppressive. Who was she? Why was she there? Why was communicating with me? Was I drowning myself, or was it she who pulled me into the deep, dark water?

"Questions, questions, and more questions. Why Arin, am I that terrifying? If not you, whom shall I communicate to? If not I, who would have the courage to drown you?" she smiled, and left me frozen. The sound of her smile made me tremble to my core. I was not afraid, but restless, very restless. She was not an ally. She was not here looking for a reunion.

"This wouldn't have happened if you hadn't done that. You claimed your name. Since then I had been waiting for you. Two years is a long time for the humans, but for us, it's but a moment. You should remember these trivial things, Arin. after all, when this all ends, when your human dies, you will have to return."

I started struggling under the water. I did not have a breathing problem like others, I could hold my breath for inhumanly long periods. But I was afraid to get stuck there. I was scared that I would never be able to see his face again. I made some swift movements to release myself from the reverie I was in.

I had to go up.

I found a pair of strong hands holding mine. This was not Vee. this was him, Max. where had he come from? Didn't he know, this place was not safe for him? Why had he come?

He pulled me up with all the power he had in his hands.

While leaving that cold, dark space, I heard her saying the last words. "We were there before everything started. We will be there when everything ends. What of your human? How long is he going to last? Even with all the magic in the world, all the curses, and all the boons, how long will he last?"

My blood froze.