Chapter 96 - Dilemma

Three days later.

Graven, Horace, and three other men went on a journey riding their horses towards the forest where the cave was located.​​

It's a chance for Graven to reminisce about his early life in the forest together with his human parents who raised him and his twin brother Luke.

They reached the forest after two days of travel and another half hour going to the cave, located in the deepest part of the forest.

They rest a bit beside a stream located twenty meters away from their destination and eat their meals.

After they finished eating, Graven and Horace began rubbing the oil on their bodies to prevent the snakes from attacking them while they navigate their way inside the cave.

Done rubbing the oil, Graven looked at his men. "You watched over our belongings and watch out for dangerous animals, they might come out anytime," he said.

"Yes, My Lord!" the men replied in unison.

Graven looked at Horace. "Let's enter the cave!" he said.

"Yes, My Lord!" Horace responded.

They walked towards the mouth of the cave hidden behind the overgrown bushes.

The moment they entered the cave...they saw several snakes getting out of their way. They continue walking passing, passageways, and chambers...until they reached the area of the cave where the spring cold water was located.

They saw the black coffin floating in the water. It looks intact and was not destroyed by the water, which is a miracle itself!

They rushed towards it.

Horace reached for the coffin, holding it in place with his two hands while Graven was trying to open the lid.

A few minutes later, Graven finally lifted the cover.

Their eyes widened in shock after they saw Luke's body!

They looked at each other, stunned.

For they were expecting a skeleton...but see none of that kind...instead they saw Luke's upper body which is intact, including his clothes. It seemed his body is generating flesh while his lower body was still in its semi skeleton state.

After Luke died and they put Luke's body in the coffin, he was already reduced to skin and bones, his eyes almost protruding from their socket due to his strange illness that has no cure. He acquired it through his endless traveling.

"My Lord, what does it mean? Is Lord Luke going to be resurrected?" Horace asked while watching the rise and fall of the chest of the corpse.

Graven stared at the small antique mirror that Luke was grasping in his hands. Rebecca told him about the spirit in the mirror visiting Laura's room. Could it be that Luke's spirit can enter the mirror and appear anywhere he likes, especially in Laura's room?

"It looks like my brother's physical body is recuperating, regenerating flesh to become whole again. This cave and the water are indeed magical and can restore life!" Graven replied.

Horace stared at Luke's closed eyes, fearing that it will suddenly open and might startle him. "So, what we're going to do with his body, My Lord?"

Graven pondered for a moment. "As much as I wanted to bring my brother's body back home, I won't do it..." he said.

"But why?" Horace asked.

"Because... if we bring this coffin and body home, he might return to his vegetative state. Right now, he's healing well inside this cave. His life source is here. If we take him away from here, he might die again. So we have no choice but to let his body stay here until he regained his good health 100% and restore all the flesh in his lower body," Graven said.

Horace scratches his head in confusion. "I'm wondering why the snakes didn't venture in this part of the cave where the water and the coffin were located? When you opened the lid earlier, I was expecting to see lots of snakes hiding in this coffin, but I was wrong," he said.

"My brother must have sealed this chamber away from the snakes," Graven said.

Horace looked at the mirror that the corpse was grasping with both hands on his stomach. He remembered that the mirror was included when they put his body in the coffin, but on that day, Rebecca put the mirror near Luke's head, not on his stomach. "But why did Lord Luke was holding the mirror in both hands?"

Graven remembered that Rebecca put the mirror near his head, not in his stomach. Which means Luke can already move his hands! Next, if his lower body has successfully regenerated all the flesh he lost before he died, he might be able to walk again. "The mirror is my brother's gateway. The medium he uses to manifests himself into the world outside the cave," he answered.

"Oh, so Rebecca is probably right with her assumption that your twin brother's spirit is the one visiting Laura through the mirror," Horace said.

"Yeah, it looks like she is right with her guess. Now I need to ask my twin brother to stop visiting Laura because she is going to get married to Cooper soon," Graven said.

"And what if your brother refused to do so, My Lord? What's going to happen next? Between your two brothers, Luke and Cooper, who's heart and interest do you want to protect the most?" Horace asked out of curiosity.

"You mean you want to ask me - who is deserving Laura's love?" Graven said.

"Yes, that's more like it," Horace responded.

Graven breathed deeply. "That's a tough question. They are both my brothers, and they both fall in love with the same woman. It looks like I will be having a hard time later once my twin will regain his life back," he said with a gloomy sigh. Luke might not listen to him if he will order him to stop pestering Laura. "I'm worried what will Luke do to Cooper? He might resort to violence and kill Cooper to prevent the wedding from happening and take Laura away. But he can't do it right now because his body has not fully recovered yet. Laura might feel terrified if she saw the real status of his body right now. For now, Cooper is safe...but it won't be for long..." he added.

Maybe... if he will take the mirror away? Will this method prevent Luke's spirit from visiting Laura in her room? Should he take the mirror away? His right-hand moves about to grab the mirror but change his mind at the last minute. His action would surely make his brother angry towards him. Besides, it would be too cruel if he takes away Luke's only means of contact with the outside world. If he will put himself in Luke's shoes, he will be devastated for sure.

Sighing heavily...

He picked up the lid that he placed on the ground and put it back in the coffin.

"Are we going now, My Lord?" Horace asked.

"Yes, we're leaving the cave. We will visit this place again after a few months to check my brother's condition," Graven responded and walked away from the coffin, followed by Horace.

The men rubbed more oils all over their bodies before going out of the cave.

A few minutes later, they managed to exit the cave without encountering any mishap along the way.

They walked back to the stream.

"We're going home in a little while," Graven told his three men that were guarding their belongings and the horses. "But Horace and I need to take a bath first to get rid of the oil from our skin," he said.

"Yes, My Lord. We will get the horses ready," one of the men replied.

Graven and Horace went deeper into the knee-length water and washed their skin with the soap to get rid of the sticky oil from their bodies.

Twenty minutes later, they were done bathing and changed into dry clothes.

The men left the stream and boarded their horses, ready to go home.

Graven and his entourage guided the horses towards the crumbling hut where the grave of his human parents was located.

They went down from the horses.

Horace took the candle from his bag and lighted it, then he put it on the ground in front of the tombs.

One of the men put the flowers in the ground beside the candle. They were assorted wildflowers that they picked up along the way.

Graven closed his eyes and recited the prayer to God, silently. The prayer that his human parents have taught him with his twin brother when they were still young.

Fifteen minutes later, after paying his respect to his parent's tomb, Graven and his entourage resumed their journey out of the forest.

While they were navigating their way out of the forest, Graven was pondering in his mind on how to solve the dilemma of a love triangle involving Cooper, Laura, and Luke? As of this moment, he has no definite answer yet.

He will be thinking about this big problem in the days to come. Who is the right man for Laura? His human brother Cooper of his twin hybrid brother?

To whom will he pledge his loyalty?

Or rather, the question is - between Cooper and Luke - who is the right person who can make Laura happy?

Maybe, he should let Laura chose the right man for her. That would take the heavy burden off his shoulder.

What if he will bring Laura to the cave? And show her the current status of Luke's body. Will the horrific sight that she's going to see inside the coffin can change her heart? Would she still be willing to love and wait for Luke when he looks hideous right now?

It would be interesting to see Laura's reaction and know her decision after seeing Luke inside his coffin.

The thought of bringing her in the cave is worth a try.