Heng V

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While the wedding itself was a somber affair, due in no small part to the interruption by Elder Hanska, the party afterwards was anything but. Loud, boisterous, and full of people getting high on whatever they could get their hands on. It was a whirlwind event of talking to people and talking to other people and then coming back and talking to the first people because they’re so high on random plants that they’ve forgotten who Heng was and why they were even there.

It reminded him a bit of college, in a way.

Still, there was a point where the party gets to be too much, and Heng and Wachiwi excused themselves from the party—to clean up, if nothing else.

Getting away from the rest of the crowd, they stumbled into Heng’s teepee, collapsing on the ground.

‘Actually, it would be our teepee now, wouldn’t it?’ he mused absently. ‘God, that’s so weird to think about.’

“So, we’re married now, huh?” Wachiwi muttered quietly from where she laid next to him.

“Yeah,” Heng grunted, staring up at the roof. He absently traced the wooden poles, noting how the rope tying them together was starting to come undone. He’d have to fix that, soon. “Yeah. We are. I’m… still having trouble processing it.”

“Yes, I am… I am…” Wachiwi trailed off quietly. She choked, quiet sobs which did not grow louder but built and built and built on each other, letting herself turn into a blubbering mess now they she was alone.

Well, not completely alone.

‘Oh fuck,’ Heng thought frantically, turning to look at his—his new wife. Who was now bawling her eyes out. ‘FUCK.’

“I didn’t think he’d…” she sobbed. “I didn’t think he’d do that! I thought he… at least a little! But no~ He only ever cares about himself, and his stupid fucking title. Who even cares, you piece of shit! Nobody likes you anyway! Your own daughter hates you! I’ve hated you for years! So why the fuck am I crying!?”

Heng stared at her with wide eyes, completely out of his depth. Still, he couldn’t just sit here and watch as his wife friend had a breakdown in front of him. Reaching over, he gently grabbed her shoulder, causing her to turn to turn to him, looking more lost and despondent than he’d ever seen her before.

“Um, it’ll be—no, that doesn’t help,” he stopped himself from just giving her an empty platitude. “I, um, I get it, you know? It sucks, when someone you care about turns out to be a bastard.”

“But I don’t love him!” she snapped, wiping at her eyes.

“He’s your father,” Heng told her softly. “He raised you. You’re allowed to love him. And you’re just as justified at hating him for what he’s done to you. The two aren’t mutually exclusive.”

“Fuck off,” she hissed, before hiccupping with uncontrolled sobs.

“We don’t need to talk about this now,” he squeezed her shoulder. “It’s fine if you just want to cry. Just know that I’ll be here if you ever want to talk.”

After that, Wachiwi just sort of… broke down. She cried, and sobbed, and screamed obscenities. More than once Heng had to shoo away a concerned villager, but otherwise he just sat there with her, hoping his presence helped her in some way.

And, eventually, she calmed down enough to talk again.

“Fuck him,” she bit out quietly, her voice hoarse. “He ruins everything.”

“I’m sorry. I know it’s not a lot, but…”

“…No, I’m sorry,” she muttered, closing her eyes. “I shouldn’t have… I shouldn’t have lost control like that.”

“Hey,” Heng cut her off. “Don’t apologize for being hurt. I won’t judge you—trust me, this isn’t the first time I’ve helped a friend through something like this.”

“I doubt that, somehow,” Wachiwi grumbled. “I’ve never met anyone else with my problems.”

“You’d be surprised,” Heng told her. “A lot of people have a lot of similar problems. Parental issues are surprisingly common. That doesn’t mean your issues aren’t valid, of course! Just that there are other people out there who know what you’re going through.”

“…did you?”

Heng almost immediately answered, but then he paused, considering the question more carefully. “…No, or not in the same way you do, at least. My father was… traditional. He was the one that got me my first real job in his office. He’d groomed me to take over the company—er, I guess that’s like a tribe? Just a lot bigger, and more focused on making money—which you don’t actually-"

“Heng.”

“Right! Right. Point being, I didn’t want the responsibility. So when he offered me a higher position, I quit. We had a big fight about it. Not like what you guys had, my own culture looks down on physical fighting. Looking back on it, it was just a lot of pointless shouting. He more or less banished me from my hometown, and I moved to the city to go to school. I wanted to be a vet as a kid, you know? I always wanted to work with animals. But I was just cut off from my bank account and needed money for school, so I got a job working at a tech firm to help pay off my student loans. And then, well, I ended up here, which kind of messed up that whole plan.”

Wachiwi, who had been silently watching him ramble the whole time, frowned softly. “…I see.”

“Is that a good ‘I see’?”

“No—I mean, it’s not about that,” she waved the issue away. “I meant I think I understand you better now. As a person. I always thought that the reason you were so removed from the rest of us was because you were arrogant. That you believed yourself better than us.”

“What!?” Heng asked incredulously. “That couldn’t be further from the truth!”

“I see that, now. But I always… I thought you lived a life of luxury, before this, in the realm of the gods. I didn’t think you knew of suffering before you descended to this plane. The fact that you had your own problems before coming here is… enlightening.”

…Ah. That way of thinking actually made sense. Just as he didn’t understand these people, they didn’t understand him. It wasn’t simply their cultures and faiths that were so different, but even simple things like money and businesses were incomprehensible to them. And he hadn’t exactly made it easier by isolating himself, either.

But they were also both people. And at a fundamental level, people were all the same.

“…I wouldn’t say my homeland is the land of the gods,” Heng began slowly. “I was brought here by some sort of God-Thing, yes, but my life before this was a struggle. Honestly, even with all the issues that have been cropping up recently here, I don’t think I want to go back to that life. I don’t think I could go back to that life. This new life, for all its twists and turns, is just… peaceful. And honestly, I think I’ve fallen in love with it.”

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Wachiwi stared at him for a moment, before giving him a small, brilliant smile. “I see,” she murmured softly. “I see you, Heng.”

Then with a sigh, she rubbed her eyes, wincing. “I’m tired. This past day has been trying, and I don’t want to deal with any more heavy topics tonight. So, husband, normally this would be the part where we consummate our marriage—”

Heng choked, flushing red.

“—but I don’t think I could get in the mood for it if I tried. So I’m going to sleep. And if you would wish to join me in my furs… well. I wouldn’t mind.”

Heng, still flushed, gaped at his wife (Wife! How did he forget they were married now!) as she crawled over to her bedroll. The woman turned to look at him as she reached them, giving him a look that obviously communicated that what she’d implied was not a request.

Heng, shaking himself out of his stupor, quickly obliged.

--

Morning came faster than he would have liked. Light fell through the teepee’s openings and the sounds of the rest of the village waking up outside forced Heng to wake up, just as it had every other day since his arrival.

What was not usual was the warm body he was currently clinging to. Groggy and emotionally exhausted, Heng’s eyes suddenly snapped open, wincing at the sudden influx of light, but desperate to figure out who was—

Wait, right. Wedding. He was married now. His wife was in his bed. Yes, this was a normal thing for you to do with your spouse.

Calming down, he began to notice the perks of cuddling. Like how warm it was, the morning chill gone for the first time since he lost access to air conditioning. And how nice it felt, to have someone he could relax with, a soft body pressed up against his.

In fact, it was so relaxing, he could probably stay here all day—

“Chief!” Šóta, the bastard, started shouting outside his teepee. “Wake up! Wake up already you languid, lethargic lord! You’ve actually got stuff to do today! So put on your clothes and get out here! The sun’s already risen!”

“Šóta!” Heng groaned back, forcing himself to shuffle awake. “Would you please shut the hell up!”

Wachiwi winced, shuffling beneath him. Blinking her eyes open slowly, she shuffled into a sitting position, rubbing her eyes and letting out a cute little yawn.

Wait, that felt kind of creepy. He shouldn’t be thinking like that about someone.

Wait, that was his wife! That probably made it okay!

Heng shook his head, dispersing his weird morning thoughts. He really didn’t want to be up.

“Heng, what’s going on?” Wachiwi groaned, her face falling into her natural glare. “Why is Šóta shouting?”

“I’m wondering the same thing,” he grunted.

“I know you’re awake in there, Chief!” Šóta continued to shout. “Nobody in this tribe can sleep through my racket, and god-given power or not you’re no different! So get up already, you’ve got things to do!”

“I heard you!” Heng angrily shouted back. “I’m up, you infuriating old man! Just give me a minute!”

“Oh, not dressed, I see?” the old man who refused to leave cackled. “You must have had a lovely night, huh! Ah, to be young and full of vigor!”

“Why the fuck are you here, Šóta?” Heng groaned, feeling his cheeks flush. Sure, they hadn’t actually done anything, but the potential was definitely there. Also, having an old man scream that kind of stuff at you early in the morning didn’t help.

“Ah, that,” the old man calmed down. “You mean you haven’t figured it out yet? You’ll need to be wiser than that if you really want to rule for a thousand years.”

“Just fucking tell me,” Heng grumbled, grabbing blindly for his comb. His hair had gotten a lot longer in this world. “I’m not in the mood for games.”

“Fine, fine. It’s about Hanska,” he said, sounding serious for the first time

Oh. Right. That.

Sure, that was an issue, but he didn’t think it would be that hard to figure out what to do—

Heng looked down, suddenly remembering Wachiwi. That this was Wachiwi’s father, and everything that she’d ranted about last night.

For a moment, the woman looked like she’d break down again. Tears welled up in her eyes, and she clenched her fists hard enough to draw blood. But she took a deep breath and, rather than breaking down again, she put on a strong face and gave him a reassuring nod.

It didn’t really reassure him, but as long as she wasn’t going to break down he’d take that as a tentative win.

Now. Time to go deal his first political enemy.

His father would be so proud.

--

“Hanska, son of Huron and Illweki,” Elder Chayton declared solemnly. “You stand before your people, your peers, and your chief. You stand for the crimes of assaulting your chieftain on his wedding, breaking several rites, and possibly endangering our relationship with the gods. You stand here today to have judgement passed upon you by your people, your peers, and your chief. What say you in your defense?”

When Heng had been asked what they were going to do about Hanska, he’d said that they should give him a fair trial.

“I… I only did what I thought was right. It is my duty and privilege as a father to guide my children on the right path!” Hanska declared, scowling. “I told her not to marry the chief, and yet she went behind my back and did so anyway! How can that be anything but an affront to the gods!?”

But he hadn’t actually expected them to pull the entire village together to give the trial.

The whole tribe had gathered once more at the center of the village, teepees still arranged how they were for the wedding. Only this time, instead of ‘joyful’ marriage, today this clearing would witness joyless justice.

“We aren’t here about that,” Elder Chayton told him dryly. “You’re standing trial for assaulting a fellow member of our tribe. Specifically, the chief. Whether your daughter went behind your back or not is irrelevant. We’re here about your actions today, not hers. Is there anything else you wish to declare, before we continue?”

“Yes!” he snarled. “You are a traitor you your people, the gods, and everything we have ever stood for! You let a foreigner into the heart of our clan—nay, even worse, you allow him to lead us. You take orders from this alien beast as though he were your own father! Witnessing such a thing—well, is there any wonder something had to be done about that!?”

“I see,” Chayton hummed, looking completely unruffled by Hanska’s tirade. “Anything else?”

Hanska’s mouth opened, his jaw tensing angrily, before he apparently decided against whatever he was going to say, closing his mouth. “No, Elder Chayton, I do not.”

“Then we can move onto the next part of the trial,” Elder Chayton turned to look out over the crowd. “As an Elder, one who has been sworn by the trust of the people to his position, as you all know there is only one punishment fit for when he breaks this trust. Today, all of us shall cast a vote—yay, or nay.”

Then, turning to the furthest people away first, he began asking for their votes.

Yay.

Yay.

Yay.

“What’s this punishment?” Heng whispered to Wachiwi.

Yay.

“What do you think?” she replied, refusing to look at her father. “The punishment for such a crime is death.”

Yay.

“Oh,” Heng whispered back, turning to look at Hanska once more.

Yay.

The man, who had once looked so full of anger and life, now only looked defeated. Resigned. A man who knew what future awaited him, and that there was nothing he could do to stop it.

Yay.

Yay.

Heng, despite the fact he still didn’t like the man, couldn’t help but feel sorry for him.

Yay.

Yay.

And on and on it went. Every vote a yay, every vote weighing down on Hanska’s soul even more. Eventually, it reached the Elders, who each voted yay. And then it reached Wachiwi. Refusing to look at her father, she took a deep breath, and voted yay.

And, finally, it was Heng’s turn.

“I vote,” he paused, taking a deep breath. “I vote nay.”

The trial paused. Every person in attendance turned to look at him with shock written on their faces.

Well, his reasons weren’t the best. It wasn’t altruism that caused him to vote no—he understood that some people had to die to make the world a better place. After all, nobody sane would deny that people like Stalin and Hilter deserved to die. But this was different. For one thing, this person hadn’t committed that heinous of a crime—sure, assault and attempted murder, but the person he tried to kill was an immortal man and it was clearly a crime of passion. This couldn’t even be called coldblooded attempted murder. It was just a poorly thought out in the heat of the moment attempted murder.

Which, when he put it that way, didn’t sound much better.

But his point was, that in his old world people would be let off for worse crimes than that. And he wasn’t quite ready to turn to killing people who wronged him just because he had the power to.

The second reason, was that he really didn’t want to start off his marriage with his wife by killing her father. That just felt like a bad omen to start his marriage on.

The final reason, and one that he hated even admitting to himself, was that his vote didn’t matter. The other four elders and his wife had all voted yes. Hanska was a dead man walking. But that didn’t mean Heng had to help tie the noose.

So he took the high road, and yet high or low, the destination would inevitably be the same.

“…The vote has been cast,” Chayton continued after a brief moment. “One hundred and sixteen to one, with an abstention from the guilty party. Hanska, son of Huron and Illweki, father of Chieftess Wachiwi, today the people have spoken. Today the gods have made their opinions known. Today, you will die.”

Heng winced, but did nothing else. He’d already known where this was going. Even with his status as outsider, he knew these people didn’t put their own on trial so easily. Hanska was dead long before this trial even began.

And so, with the gait of a man who knew his end was nigh, Hanska walked towards Chayton. He kneeled low, bowing his head and brushing aside his long hair so that his neck was spared.

Elder Chayton nodded respectfully, and began his funerary rites. Prayer and promise, both were spoken to quietly to hear.

Then, with a solemn carefulness, he pulled out a knife, and swiftly stabbed it into Hanska’s neck.

All around him, the people didn’t cheer, treating the execution as the solemn loss of life it was.

If nothing else, he could appreciate that.

9,911 God-Kings Remain