"Who are you…?"
The words slipped out of Juson's mouth before he could stop them.
The man standing at the door didn't answer immediately.
The house was dim. Evening light filtered weakly through the window, stretching long shadows across the floor. Only a few rays managed to reach inside, and even those felt dull, like they didn't belong there.
Juson narrowed his eyes, trying to make out the man's face.
Behind him, Wanna stood completely still.
No movement. No reaction.
That alone felt wrong.
The man stepped forward slowly. Each step was measured, controlled. Juson felt his body stiffen, his breath catching somewhere between his chest and throat.
Then the light touched the man's face.
And everything froze.
Hakiten.
Juson's mind blanked for a second.
Wanna remained in the background, her eyes fixed ahead, as if she had already accepted his presence. No shock. No anger. No questions.
That was worse than anything.
"Bring us some juice," Hakiten said casually, not even looking at her.
Wanna turned and walked away without a word.
Juson's unease deepened.
Why isn't she questioning him?
He had been gone the entire night.
No calls. No explanation.
And now he just walks in… and she listens?
Something was off. Not just with Hakiten.
With her.
"Sit," Hakiten said, pulling a chair out.
Juson hesitated for a moment, then sat down slowly. His eyes stayed locked on Hakiten.
There was something unnatural about him.
Not his appearance.
His normality.
It felt… forced.
Like someone pretending to be calm instead of actually being calm.
"Where were you last night?" Juson asked, his voice quieter than he expected.
Hakiten didn't hesitate.
"The store owner is expanding the business," he said. "He needed help. I stayed there."
The answer came too easily.
Juson knew about the job. It made sense on the surface.
Still…
"Where's the new place?"
"Behind the school."
That hit instantly.
The construction site.
The one Juson had seen earlier.
Before he could press further, a soft cry came from the other room.
Hakiten stood up.
His daughter.
He walked over, lifting her gently, calming her with quiet movements. For a moment, he looked like a completely normal father.
Then his eyes shifted.
Toward the torn papers on the table.
He didn't touch them.
Didn't move them.
But he spoke.
"You've seen a lot today."
Juson frowned. "What?"
Hakiten didn't repeat himself.
Instead, he turned slightly away, rocking the child in his arms.
Silence settled in the room.
Juson felt it pressing against him.
Something was being hidden.
Something important.
He thought about Yokina. About Herik.
He needed to get back.
"I should go," Juson said, standing up.
No response from Wanna.
Not even a glance.
That confirmed it.
Something is wrong with her.
Juson didn't push it. Not now.
He walked out of the house.
Behind him, the door closed.
Soft.
Controlled.
Inside, Hakiten gently placed the child back in her cot.
"You did well, Wanna," he said.
She didn't respond.
He turned and walked toward his room.
The moment he stepped inside, his expression changed.
The calm disappeared.
He scanned the room slowly, then moved toward the corner.
Two sealed boxes.
He placed his hand on them.
"Stable," he muttered.
He brought them to the center and opened them.
Inside—blue sand.
Not ordinary sand.
Larger grains.
Faintly glowing.
He stood up, turned toward the table, and pulled open the drawer.
The cube.
Glass-like, but incomplete.
Red sand shifting inside it, moving on its own.
Alive.
Hakiten lifted it carefully.
For a moment, he just stared.
Then he placed it on the floor and began pouring the blue sand out of the boxes.
The particles spilled, forming a small mound.
Glowing softly in the dim room.
"Time to wake up," he whispered.
He placed the cube on top of the sand.
Nothing happened.
Then—
The sand shifted.
Slowly at first.
Then rising.
Grains lifted, climbing upward, forming unstable paths like invisible hands guiding them.
The cube began to rise with it.
Higher.
Higher.
Until the sand swallowed it.
The mound trembled.
Then changed.
Edges formed.
Shape emerged.
Something human.
But not quite.
---