Chapter 1188: Ethereal debris |
"After you left," Liiza announced, stopping to gulp down a mouthful of booze, "I tried to follow the Niqols' ways. I wasn't an outcast anymore, and Azni insisted. In a way, it was proper."
Khan didn't know how to feel about that revelation. Part of him had guessed as much, especially due to the emotional blow the separation had inflicted on him and Liiza. That was the Niqols' way, and Liiza had been a proper Niqols by then.
"I kicked, screamed, and cried," Liiza continued, her eyes still on the universe above. "I probably traumatized that poor boy. I just couldn't do it."
Khan wanted to glance at Liiza, but the memories that rose through his mind prevented him from doing so. It hadn't been as immediate, but he had done the same on Ecoruta.
"By the way," Liiza added. "Azni is fine. She and Doku married and had two terrifyingly cute kids."
Khan couldn't help but laugh, and his reaction affected Liiza. She also giggled, and the two looked at each other, unable to stop that childish action.
"Did she drag him to the event while he was drunk?" Khan asked.
"It actually came from Doku," Liiza revealed. "Azni was the most surprised of them all."
"Doku came through in the end," Khan sighed, a smile plastered on his face as he looked up again. "I'm glad. I'm happy for them."
"Snow, too, huh?" Khan chuckled. "I miss that bird. Is he still as playful as he was?"
"He was only playful because of you," Liiza commented. "He has always behaved perfectly with me."
"I'm insulted," Khan gasped. "He should have buried you in snow at least once."
Liiza giggled and tried to say something, but she and Khan ended up looking at each other again, and her smile froze. She recalled that playful pretense, but they weren't on Nitis anymore.
"It took some time," Liiza resumed after diverting her gaze, "But I eventually met someone. He was patient and understanding, but..."
Khan felt the change in the mood, so he dived into his drink. He emptied his cup and started to refill it, only for Liiza to offer her empty glass, too.
"He tried," Liiza continued while Khan refilled her cup. "Well, I did, but I just couldn't like it. It wasn't the same as … you know, so I eventually ended things."
Khan knew exactly what Liiza was talking about. If it hadn't been for Monica, he would have never escaped that problem. As fulfilling as sex was, feelings added a whole, deeper layer to that act, and the Niqols lived and died through those.
"At that point, I only focused on the Niqols and my tribe," Liiza explained. "My mother had her flaws, but was a respectable figure. As humans say, I had big shoes to fill and had to solve problems she had never faced.
"The planet's social structure was a mess, and compromises were in order. We dusted off the old ways, finding a middle ground with what we had developed with the Global Army's help. I had to represent the Niqols, so I had to be the best at that."
Those words explained why Liiza's hair now featured many red strands. She had partially accepted the Niqols' old ways without ending up like Zalpa. Her approach had sounded stable, but Khan had his doubts.
"I eventually became my tribe's leader and worked non-stop," Liiza revealed. "I didn't handle that position like my mother did, but the Niqols are weak in the grand scheme of things. We needed an ally, so I found the Kros, and we agreed on joining our species through marriage."
Liiza's face had regained the aloofness Khan recalled. He had ended up looking at her, and noticing that detail made it impossible for him to divert his gaze.
"They told me my promised groom is handsome and a key figure among the Kros," Liiza concluded. "Once this is done, the Niqols will finally be safe to reopen their borders."
Liiza sensed Khan's gaze but kept looking at the universe above, remaining silent while focusing on her drink. Still, she eventually pouted, peeking at Khan to scold him.
"It's your turn now," Liiza stated.
"Right," Khan sighed, emptying his drink and leaning deeper on the metal wall behind him. "What should I say? I also came close to getting married."
Liiza's eyes flickered, but she forced herself to look away. She had read something about Khan, but the information about him was fragmented and hard to obtain while Nitis was still closed. If anything, the fact that she had managed to learn anything at all vouched for how famous Khan had become.
"I didn't, ultimately," Khan continued. "She did her best, but I was just too much for her. I tried and tried, doing what you told me to do, but I have always been too much for everyone."
Liiza was pretending to look away but lowered her gaze. She recalled the promise they had made upon their separation so long ago. Only an idiot would have stayed loyal to it for ten years, but Khan was exactly that, and Liiza didn't doubt his words for a second.
"What about your nightmares?" Liiza asked.
"I found the Nak," Khan revealed, and Liiza's face snapped on Khan, revealing her pleasant disbelief.
"I found them," Khan continued, ignoring that cold, piercing look. "I only need to wait for my scientists to finish a few projects. I'll be able to end that story once they are done."
"That's," Liiza gasped. "That's great."
"Yeah," Khan exclaimed, still looking at the universe above. "It took a while, and it wasn't easy, but I'm almost done."
"Do you need a hand?" Liiza asked, and some strange sadness invaded her when Khan showed a reassuring smile.
"I have to make this trip alone," Khan stated. "It's better for everyone."
Liiza ignored her strange sensations and nodded. Truth be told, she shouldn't have even offered her support when she wasn't sure she could give it. Her status was about to change, and she didn't know the complications it could bring.
"What about your father?" Liiza questioned, diverting her gaze. "Did you talk to him?"
It was Khan's eyes' time to flicker now. He stared at Liiza, suddenly recalling that she knew about Bret and his initial lie. Ten years had passed, but Liiza still remembered that event that had almost broken Khan.
"I did," Khan revealed, promptly looking away. "We made up. The old man had good reasons to do what he did."
"You always saw things in their worst light," Liiza teased. "I'm glad. Is he with you now?"
"Oh, he is dead," Khan casually revealed. "It's almost four years since he died."
"What?" Liiza gasped.
"It's fine," Khan reassured. "He died of natural causes, sort of. Honestly, he lived exactly as he wanted to until the end. In a way, I envy him."
Khan was overall fine, but Liiza couldn't take the matter lightly. She not only knew how deeply Khan had cared about his father. The possibility of his betrayal wouldn't have hurt so badly otherwise. Still, Liiza had lost one parent, too, so she couldn't ignore the matter.
The Niqols fought sorrow with happiness, so Liiza leaned to her left, placing her cup on the floor to seize one of the available bottles. She opened it, but Khan tried to reassure her again.
"You don't need to," Khan smiled, showing his cup to Liiza. "I still have some."
"Just let me," Liiza snorted, grabbing Khan's wrist to place it down. Still, strength suddenly abandoned her, and Khan shared that reaction. His grip weakened, letting the cup fall to the floor while the two fixed their wide eyes on each other.
Lightning bolts ran inside Khan and Liiza as soon as she touched him. A tide of cleansing rivers rushed through their brains and bodies, piercing the immense pile of ethereal debris accumulated in the past ten years.
Politics, personal goals, time, and more had corrupted both Khan and Liiza. They had been forced to accept compromises, adding layers upon layers of complex problems and events over their past, innocent, pure feelings.
That development had been unavoidable. That was how life was in the end. People changed, and feelings withered and disappeared, but Khan and Liiza were different. They had always been.
A torrent of memories invaded Khan and Liiza's vision. They recalled their time on Nitis more vividly than ever, remembering all the loving moments they had spent together. Feelings also accompanied those images, making the two reexperience everything they had been through.
The event wasn't a simple trip down memory lane. It acted as a declaration of what Khan and Liiza had previously searched for. Their feelings had never gone away. Time had only hidden them under ethereal mountains, preventing them from coming out until now.
Khan finally saw the bold, free girl who had taught him how to love. He recalled her cold, cozy touch, her expressions, and the dizziness she could cause. His mind wavered like it did many years ago, making him forget about everything else.
Liiza finally saw the playful, cursed boy who had sacrificed himself over and over again for her. She recalled his warm, addictive body heat, his serious, meaningful stares, and the unstoppable reactions they could cause. Her mind gave birth to many of those now, and her glowing eyes inevitably fell on Khan's magnetic lips.
Khan noticed that and couldn't help but do the same. Everything was too confusing to be clear or factual, but his head instinctively leaned forward, and Liiza imitated him. They were drawn to each other by an invisible, ethereal, and profound force.
"[Lii]-," Khan absentmindedly began to mutter in the Niqols' language.
"No!" Liiza cut Khan short, suddenly pushing away his wrist and jumping to her feet, retreating until her back hit the handrail, confusion, panic, and disbelief afflicting her face.
"No, no, no!" Liiza cried, her glowing eyes darting left and right before focusing on Khan. "This can't happen!"
Khan was as confused as Liiza, but his body moved on its own. He stood up and took a step forward, but Liiza shouted again.
"I can't do this to the Niqols again!" Liiza cried, seemingly begging herself before jumping off the balcony. Her plea made Khan freeze, only allowing him to see her figure leaping through the air before disappearing altogether.
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