He looked at the fog in front of him.
The boy let out a deep breath from his nose. "Finally we caught her," he spoke, stretching his hand.
Aneouz was on the edge of the bridge. He stopped. From there he saw the strangers were still 100 meters away from the bridge.
Aneouz thought: They haven't even reached the bridge yet. I just need to climb down to reach Ira first.
He glanced down once more before climbing. They were taking steady steps.
Suddenly, he turned.
An intense gaze met his. Without trying, a question rose in Aneouz's mind. A strange pattern. It looked like it wasn't from here. He had never seen a pattern like this before.
Aneouz mumbled to himself, "It looks like it was from... beyond the world. Or I just never saw this pattern before. Whatever."
His violet eyes were alluring, yet they looked scary too.
After a moment, the raincoat guy slowly turned away.
Aneouz turned back instantly — like he had always wanted to avoid eye contact. Yet he couldn't. No matter how unsettling it was, deep in those eyes the unique pattern was still drawing him in.
He stepped onto the stairs and began climbing down — one after another.
---
Ira slumped on the bench.
She rubbed the back of her neck — her palm came away damp.
She pushed her fingers into her hair, rubbing at the roots. Then grabbed the sides, scrunching the layers. Then twisted the ends of her fringe outward.
A firm shake.
The platform stayed empty.
She was done waiting a long time ago.
Her hand tightened into a fist.
"He is taking too long to get here," she said. "I am going to punch him."
Aneouz's foot touched the platform. He saw Ira sitting in front of him.
"Oi, Ira—"
He ran toward her.
"Finally—" she started. Then stopped. Her eyes moved past him. "...did you hear that?"
Aneouz turned.
The fog had shifted slightly. Somewhere behind it — movement.
"What happened up there?" Ira asked quietly. "You look like you saw something."
He stopped in front of her, still catching his breath.
A few seconds passed.
"Something feels off," he said. "Stay close."
Still staring at the fog — "What do you mean?" she asked.
"When I was on the bridge, my gaze met someone's eyes down there," Aneouz said, turning toward the fog. "They are moving straight toward us — the ones we saw earlier at the tea stall."
"Okay," Ira said. "So what? They're just passing through. That's normal."
"I sense something weird," Aneouz said.
Something was slightly visible through the fog. Not clearly.
Ira and Aneouz's gazes fixed on it.
Someone was approaching, cutting through the dense fog.
First, a ghostly small violet light through the fog, then another movement. The fog parted.
The raincoat guy and the boy stood in front of Ira and Aneouz. They stopped.
Silence — only on the outside.
Aneouz's shoulders straightened without him deciding to. His eyes steadied.
Ira's gaze searched for the violet eyes. She thought: It doesn't look real. That pattern wasn't supposed to exist.
"So... she's the one?" The boy asked, looking at the raincoat guy.
"On her forehead. The horizontal mark," the raincoat guy mumbled. "Just like I thought."
A silence.
"Hello," the raincoat guy spoke. "My name is Vael. You must be Ira."
He looked directly at her.
She didn't answer right away. Her fingers tightened around her bag strap. Her gaze moved slightly sideways, like she was buying herself a second.
A beat. Then another.
"How did you know my... name?" she asked.
Aneouz's jaw tightened. He wondered the same thing. Why did he know her name? And what is the horizontal mark?
His eyes moved between Vael and Ira — then back to Vael. His hand, hanging at his side, curled into a fist. Then released.
He said nothing. But his weight shifted forward — just slightly — like he wanted to step between them.
"My eyes can see through the void — into the depth of your soul, bypassing your conscious, reaching your subconscious. I see every possible way of defeating you," Vael said, softly touching his eyes. "In simple words — I saw your weakness. The one you try to hide without even realizing it. The one which makes you lose, instantly."
The boy sighed. Loud.
Eyes rolled sideways to Vael. "Master. You're gonna make the fog cry. That was way too dramatic."
Vael didn't look at him. The corner of his mouth twitched. "Did it work?"
The boy jerked his chin at Ira and Aneouz. "Yeah. The kid's about to pass out."
Ira's eyes cut sideways. To Aneouz. Held.
Then back to the ground.
Aneouz turned to the boy, staring.
"Be calm and listen carefully. First of all, we're not your enemy," Vael spoke. "And — my goal is to become... whatever I want."
Vael tilted his head. "What would you prefer?" he asked, voice light. "Talking peacefully while drinking tea... or standing here in the middle of this place and talking?"
"I already know you'll choose tea," he said with a teasing smile. "So then let's go. To that tea stall."
Ira didn't blink.
"No," she said. Quiet, but firm.
"We're talking here."
"I do not understand anything, so please explain everything, Mr. weird raincoat guy," Ira said, frustration rising in her voice.
Vael exhaled.
The breath left him in a thin cloud, and for a moment the fog around them seemed to hold still to watch it disappear.
When it was gone, the weight in his violet eyes was gone too.
He looked at Ira. Then at the mark on her forehead.