Kian was the first one to wake up. After stretching his arms above his head, he noticed Malak sleeping almost on top of him. The limited space on the sofa provided not much room for both of them. Therefore, Malak was tucked snugly to his side and their faces were so close that Kian could hear him breathe. Because of the size difference between them, Malak always appeared delicate in the other man’s eyes. It didn’t help that he also had a few feminine traits like dark, thick and long eyelashes and full lips. Unable to tear his gaze away, Kian fondly observed his lover sleep while taking the opportunity to get a closer look. Although his appearance wasn't quite the same, Malak was exactly as he remembered.
After a while, Kian looked at the time, and it had gotten later than he expected. He was supposed to drive Malak back by the end of the day. Therefore, he needed to wake him up. But Kian's heart melted when he saw Malak’s serene sleeping face. After a mental debate, Kian carefully removed himself from Malak's grasp. Then, he made sure Malak was sleeping in a comfortable position before walking out of the living room.
In the hallway, a familiar yet unknown wave invaded his body. It was both painful and pleasurable, which made him take a few faltering steps. Leaning against the wall, he tried to control his breath while grabbing his chest by his shirt. When it felt like it was going to subside, a new wave came again. However, this time it was a lot more powerful, and it brought him to his knees. Cold sweat dripped down his forehead and back. Suddenly, the empty feeling in his chest filled up to the brim. It was like a once dried-up lake, being full of water and brimming with life. Once he realized what was happening, he managed to smile even through the pain. It was the moment he had been waiting for.
What seemed like an eternity later, Kian could finally get back to his feet. While watching his hand, he clenched and released his grip a few times. The conditions were met, and he was now free from the cursed shackles that were cast upon him by humans in a moment of weakness.
Through a window, he saw his reflection. Now that his soul was complete, his true appearance was revealed. In front of him, he saw the reflection of a smiling man with permanent bright red irises and dark brown horns, similar to those of a ram, coming out of the side of his head. He placed his hand on the cold window before wiping his hand on top of his reflection. After his hand was out of the way, the reflection changed. The horns disappeared, and his eyes were back to a dull reddish-brown.
Beyond his reflection, he saw the sun disappearing on the horizon with the sky dyed in different shades of red and yellow. Although it had been years since he came to this world, he still wasn’t used to the scenery and buzzing city with its weird technology. Here, the humans were prospering and reproducing like bugs. It was a wonder how they went to the top of the food chain. Not only were they fragile creatures, but they are also fickle, greedy, and short-lived. They always seem to struggle against a higher power. To Kian’s eyes, humans were no different from insects. The only exception to this was Malak. He may be human now, but it was only a temporary state. Plus, no matter his race, Kian would love him unconditionally.
Once he reached the kitchen to clean up, he heard Malak's phone ringing. By chance, he noticed the caller ID and the word “mum” was written in big bold letters. He hesitated to answer the call. To his eyes, it seemed like Malak was still hiding their relationship from his family. However, not answering this call may lead to problems later on.
Quickly, he grabbed the phone and went to wake Malak up. With a groan, Malak turned to the other side as Kian tried to wake him up.
“What?” Malak groaned, still half-asleep.
“Wake up, your mum’s calling.”
With the speed of light, he sat up and grabbed the ringing phone from Kian’s hand. He cleared his throat before answering the incoming call.
“Hi, mum!” he blurted out as Kian silently chuckled before leaving him some privacy.
“What took you so long to answer?”
“Ah… I left my phone in my bag.”
“I see. I was wondering when you’ll be back. Should I include you for dinner?”
“I don’t think so. We are pretty far from the city right now. I think I’ll be back tomorrow morning.”
“Alright, have fun! Don’t come back too late, and be careful of bears. ”
“Haha, there are bears here?”
“Just saying honey. Who knows what could lurk in the countryside. Alright, have to leave you. The pot is about to boil over! Love you!” Malak’s mother rambled before ending the call.
Relieved that it didn’t end as an interrogatory, Malak stretched his arms above his head with a yawn. Now that he could think clearly, something seemed different, but he couldn’t say what.
“Are you feeling better?” Kian said while walking into the living room with a glass of water.
“Yes, thanks,” Malak answered as he accepted the glass.
“Do I have something on my face?”
Malak blushed before looking away. He didn’t realize he was staring. “Sorry, there’s nothing. It’s just…”
“What is it?” Kian asked before sitting next to the young man on the sofa.
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“It’s just that I have memories I do not recall living. It resembles the dreams I had. It’s confusing.”
“Do you remember what I told you yesterday?”
“That I have to trust you,” Malak answered without hesitation, which made Kian smile.
“Yes, that’s the most important. Can you tell me what you remember?”
“I remember a world in a medieval theme with that enormous castle. Most of the people living there have horns, while others have animals’ ears and tails. There is also a big wedding and a revolt? Many people suffered and lost their lives...” Malak rambled while staring at the glass of water that he was holding with both hands. “The memories are fragmented and some parts are fuzzy. I can’t recall everything. But there is always the same tall dark man with horns and red eyes…”
Malak placed the glass of water on the coffee table in front of him before turning to face Kian. Carefully, he analyzed the other man’s facial features.
“Now that I think about it, you look like him. But… That’s not possible, is it?” Malak laughed before brushing the idea away.
He could pretend to not know all he wanted, but the truth was right next to him, and he knew it, too. The resemblance was too great, and he also saw Kian’s eyes glow in the same shade of red as the one in his dreams and memories too. Not only his mind but also his body was screaming at him. The denial was caused by his rationality. Everything he learned at school would class this situation as fiction. Common sense would dictate that creatures like that don’t exist, and superpowers only happened in comics.
“Why don’t you say anything?”
“So you think it’s all a dream?” Kian answered with a question as he tried to stay calm and neutral.
“Don’t you agree? We can’t have superpowers or horns and all that fantasy fluff. This isn’t how life works.”
“This is only if we are talking about this world. The one you saw isn’t the one we currently live in.”
“You’re talking about a parallel universe?” Malak asked in surprise before snapping out of it. “Wait, you believe it? Is this a joke?”
“I can explain everything, but only if you believe such a world exists.”
Malak thought about it. He wanted to believe him, but, it didn’t make any sense. Malak trusted Kian, but he never expected that it would be on something as crazy as this. A headache appeared as he couldn’t harmonize his head and heart on the matter.
“Then, you can surely prove it, right?” Malak asked with hesitation.
Kian seemed to hesitate. Although Malak’s past life memories were released, they were incomplete. Therefore, his curse was broken, but only partially. He could easily change his appearance, but anything more complicated would drain him dry. One on hand, Kian wanted Malak to know everything, yet he did not want to push him over the cliff. He didn’t want to overwhelm the younger man.
“I wish I could show you more than this, but here,” Kian opened his palm as Malak quietly observed it.
After a moment, when nothing happened, doubts blurred Malak’s judgment. It was only because he noticed the level of concentration on Kian’s face that he didn’t dare to comment.
Suddenly, a sprout of a flower appeared in the middle of his palm. In seconds, it grew until a fully bloomed iris was presented in front of Malak. Unable to believe what he just witnessed, he could only accept the flower while staring at it wide-eyed. Gently, he caressed the purple and white petals of the iris. The softness and the gentle fragrance of the flower reminded him it wasn’t an illusion.
“W-what is this?” Malak asked in bewilderment.
“I hope that you’ll accept my message as you have accepted the iris.”
With a soft smile, Kian explained everything to Malak, hoping he will not only believe him, but his memories would also come back.
The world Kian and Malak used to live in were composed of five major forces: the Bazahian Kingdom, the Alhuriya Empire, the Eastokya Dynasty, the Aisakar country and the Vaeseon Theocracy. Kian and Malak came from the Bazahian Kingdom and lived in Narakzir, the capital.
At that time, war was raging, and the borders were constantly changing. Only the Bazahian Kingdom succeeded to repel the other forces and seized most of the Western continent. They were unstoppable. For decades, the demons were feared, but they were all powerless against their military power. Anyone who dared to stand against them would only end in a massacre.
On the Eastern continent, the humans once occupied it in its entirety. It all changed when the humanoid beats and dragons fled from the Western to the Eastern continent. To survive and avoid slavery, the demi-humans fought and won after multiple arduous battles. Thus, the Eastokya Dynasty and Alhuriya Empire were created, as the Vaeseon Theocracy now owned the tiniest part of the continent.
As for the country of Aisakar, it was an agglomeration of different species that believed in the equality of all races. They fought together and defended the territory their country was now occupying. They were the first to ban slavery and the monarchy and installed a government based on the people. Unless threatened, the Aisakar country stayed neutral and served as a mediator.
After years of war, the leaders all travelled to Aisakar to sign a treaty of peace. However, while everyone came to an agreement, the Vaeseon Theocracy refused it. Not only did they want to claim their land back, but they also demanded compensation for the damages and the deaths of their citizens. After days of discussion and negotiation, nothing bore fruit. Unable to come to an agreement, the Vaeseon Theocracy left the negotiation table with a promise to clean their land from impurities. To protect themselves from the humans, the Bazahian Kingdom, the Alhuriya Empire and the Eastokya Dynasty signed an alliance and a trade agreement.
It granted years of peace on the international borders, and Kian and Malak were able to meet. They spent years together until they finally got married. While the couple was happy, others were not. While the Bazahian Kingdom was mostly composed of demons, there were a minority of humans and other demi-humans. After Kian and Malak got married, they banned slavery in the kingdom. However, the gap in inequality between the races was still growing. As the demons reigned supreme, the humans heard the news of the Vaeseon Theocracy waging war on the Eastokya Dynasty. It was the spark that exploded the barrel full of oil.
As the Bazahian Kingdom faced a civil war, it couldn’t afford to send its men to help the Eastokya Dynasty. It had to fight against the Society of the Silver Light that believed humans should reign supreme and coveted the destruction of all demonic creatures. The secret society planned for years and wanted to use Malak to bring the demon’s King to his knees. However, they were shocked and disgusted to discover that not only Malak refused to help them, but the once human was also now a demon. How could the saviour of humanity be what they despised the most?
Without hesitation, they killed Malak and presented his head to the King. Kian’s heart filled with sorrow and blinded by hate, he killed all the humans in his sight. The Society of the Silver Light used this moment of weakness to curse him before sending him into another world.