You Leave Me No Choice.

Elena was again left alone in a white void. The woman closed her eyes and focused all her thoughts on one thing, she needed to find him as soon as possible.

Some time later, she heard a light melody with an already familiar timbre, Elena went to the sound of the voice, like it was the light of a lighthouse, in the hope that this would lead her to the right person.

Marcus was sitting on a rock, and muttering to himself the first song that came to his mind. He did not know how much time had passed and had already tried all the options for how to distract himself from the constant provocations of his own mind.

"Bonjour, Madame. I haven't seen you yet," he grinned, noticing Elena approaching him, "What torture did you come up with this time?"

"What are you talking about?" the woman asked, Marcus seemed a little strange to her.

"Oh, every illusion is getting better and better. I even began to have a sporting interest, what will happen next," Marcus gave the woman his white smile and turned away, ignoring her as if she was not real.

"And how do you like this illusion? Some high quality illusion for you!" Elena grabbed the man by the ear and squeezed it, with all her strength.

"Auch!! That really hurts!" Marcus hid his reddened ear with his hand and looked at the woman with resentment, "Damn, you could immediately have said that you are real!"

"Tsk, too easy," Elena spread her arms and smirked, "Moreover, you deserve it."

"How did I deserve this? I'm an angel in the flesh!"

"Yeah, right, an angel. Only the wings are in the dryer, and the halo is being recharged," Elena answered his clearly exaggerated praise, "You lied that my father was dead. Be happy that you got off a little blood. So that you know, along the way, I saw one very real illusion, where someone promised to protect me. I'm wondering if I tell my dad that you offended me, how much he will punish you?"

"Wh-what?"

"Hah, my dad is so silly, really. Mom was right, he was ready to protect from the shadows, and then be lonely sad in the corner. Marcus, what do you think, what punishment would I come up with for him to compensate for all the years that I lived without him?"

The man looked at Elena with his mouth open, not knowing what to say. For the second time, she caught him by surprise with this conversation.

"Uh, Elena..."

"I love you."

"Wh-what?"

"I decided that I would tell dad, "I love you." This will be a great punishment. You do not think so?" Elena tilted her head, her gaze was full of seriousness.

Marcus turned his back on the woman so that she would not see his face, "Some kind of strange concept you have about punishment," he muttered under his breath, but Elena easily noticed a note of joy in his voice.

"By the way, what about the knife? I don't see it," Elena drew attention to the large stone next to which they were standing.

Marcus also remembered why they came here, "Khem, well, I suggest to repeat the same trick as the one with the bracelet. Give me your hand."

Elena held out her palm to the man, he wrapped his palm around hers like a glove. Marcus directed the girl's hand to the handle of the knife, and Elena felt her fingers touch the cold metal surface.

"I can feel it!" This sensation was so unusual, like putting one's hand in a dark bag and trying to guess what was hidden inside it.

"Great," Marcus praised the woman; he wrapped his fingers around the kukri handle and pulled it towards himself.

Elena's body was numb, blue waves, like long ribbons, went from the knife before her eyes. They wrapped her hand and switched to Marcus's hand. Together with the blue waves, she saw golden threads piercing the body of the man.

This man in front of her was like an open book, her eyes shone with a blue flame, Elena saw his past, his present and his future. All his thoughts, feelings and desires, all his memories and dreams.

Marcus noticed that the woman fell into a light trance, but most of all he was struck by the changing color of her eyes. They became sky blue, with such a deep blue that they seemed somehow cosmic.

"Elena?" the man called her gently.

The woman blinked and looked into his eyes, her look returned to its usual condition.

She looked around, her clothes and hair became dry, like that of Marcus, as if they had not been soaked in water to the last strand. Their hands were tightly interlocked, the golden hilt of the knife lay between their palms.

Elena squeezed the knife and pulled it toward herself.

"What are you doing?" Marcus asked and strained his hand.

"I will not give you this thing. I will not let you do what you want," she looked resolutely at the man, this was the first time he had seen her being so serious.

"Elena, don't be silly. It's not for you to decide what I will do," Marcus pulled off his hand against himself and the woman crashed into his chest, "Give me the knife, I don't want to hurt you," he looked no less serious than Elena.

"Then you have to hurt me. Can you?" she squeezed the handle of the kukri even tighter, no matter what the cost might be, she did not want to give him this thing. If she knew in advance the purpose of this knife, she would never have agreed to get it with such ease.

Marcus frowned; this lady was even more obstinate than her mother. However, obstinacy was a feature of both her parents.

"You leave me no choice, princess."

The man's second hand touched Elena's neck, and she felt her eyes grow heavy. "Wait!" The woman grabbed Marcus by the shirt, but her hand loosened and could not even linger. "Nic...as," Elena whispered, after which her mind plunged into darkness.

Marcus grabbed her in his arms and hugged her. The energy emanating from the knife was so powerful that every cell in his body burned with a thirst to absorb it. As soon as they pulled this thing from its rightful place, the spell disappeared, and all the powers of the man returned in even greater volume.

He raised his head and looked thoughtfully at the dark ceiling. Marcus sensed upstairs the presence of a creature whose appearance he had been waiting for many years. This was to happen a little later, but for Marcus, it did not matter anymore.

"Sorry, my joy, but you better not see what happens next," the man whispered and, together with Elena, disappeared into the air.

His feet stepped silently onto the surface of a large stone slab, covered in a mysterious pattern. Several pairs of eyes, each with different emotions, were looking at him and at the woman who was lying unconscious in the man's arms.

Marcus narrowed his eyes and smiled mysteriously, "Oh, I see, you have been expecting me."