Yeshua wrapped his fingers more tightly in his hair, his head not moving from his hands where it had laid for some time, though the passage of time had long been lost to him. He was trying to hold back his tears, though in the hopelessness he felt, that seemed to be a losing battle.
In hindsight, it was easy to see that what they had done was foolish, arrogant even, but they had never meant to cause offence and they certainly hadn't sought the consequences they had received. The punishment was devastating and affected not only those responsible for the act but the entire world. While he didn't wholly understand the meaning, the words given were that 'the domain in which humanity was created will come unto destruction'.
They hadn't meant an affront to God in using His gift to try to reach Him; they had thought in their foolishness that perhaps He would be proud of them, that such was their test. Now he knew that if God wanted them there, they would be already; they were separate from Him because God did not deem them worthy.
It was awful to think that their Creator held so little regard for them, that all they believed was false, though perhaps their actions had but proven He was right to think so little of them. Yeshua could still not think of the punishment as anything but excessively harsh however, it wasn't right to punish everyone when so few had been involved.
Unfortunately it didn't matter what he thought however, God had decided what was to be done and none of them could do anything about it. He and Mary had been given roles in the destruction, which he supposed was extra punishment, though he had no idea what it meant to be the 'failsafe of the Universe'.
Considering Mary, he knew he should probably check on her and offer support but he couldn't, not yet at least, not while his head was still in such a state. How could he offer support to another when he couldn't cope with the situation himself? That didn't make it right of course but it was the truth and he couldn't change that any more than anything else.
Everything was going to be lost and there were no words that could make that better and no actions that could prevent it, so how could comfort be given, what consolation existed under such circumstances? Time could not be moved backwards, the past could not be changed; everything was hopeless and would remain so until the end came.
Finally the helplessness consumed him and his unshed tears fell in torrents. Everyone was going to die because of him and there was nothing he could do. Oh how he wished God had just smote those responsible and left everyone else alone. Even the loss of His gift to ensure no one else could try to achieve the same was something they would adapt to, but instead there would be no life.
A knock sounded on the door, the only sound aside from his own laboured breathing, but Yeshua ignored it. He wasn't ready to face anyone yet; it was all still too much of a painful shock. Unfortunately he couldn't remember whether he had barred the door before he had fallen apart, or whether his visitor would be able to enter freely. He could but hope that either the room was secured or that the silence and absence of light would deter anyone from entering.
Sadly luck seemed to be lacking for him today and he heard the door opening slowly, the light of a candle chasing away the darkness he sought to hide in. It took a few moments for his eyes to adjust to the brightness, but once they had he realised Mary was his unwanted visitor, though she was not alone. The other was hidden head to toe in a loose, hooded cloak and he could not presently determine anything about the person.
Upon entering the room, Mary ushered the other person inside before closing the door behind them and placing the bar across, much to Yeshua's dismay. He had already taken what little time he had to collect himself and wipe away his tears but he was by no means ready for whatever this conversation was set to be about.
"Why are you here Mary, and who is this?" Yeshua asked softly, his voice breaking slightly to betray his fragile state.
The stranger lowered the hood of the cloak and Yeshua couldn't help but stare in surprise. The man was unlike any he had seen before, his hair was pure white, though the man looked little older than he was, so it could not be from old age, which was rare enough in itself. His skin was pale as well, too white for comparison with anyone he had met, and his eyes were red, which he had never seen in a person before.
He was a startling sight, something completely foreign and yet he held the baring of wisdom and nobility they expected of their royalty. He could not fathom where the man had come from, or why Mary would bring him, least of all after what had just happened earlier that day.
A slight hint of a smile curved the very edges of the stranger's mouth but otherwise his expression was blank and unreadable. Pulling his gaze from the other man, Yeshua looked again to the brunette woman for an explanation. When she stepped closer to him however, she simply gasped, before moving to stand close enough to place her fingers in his hair.
Before he could ask what was wrong, the strange man offered an explanation. "Your hair colour more closely resembles my own now, a side effect of becoming the failsafe and the power that goes with it."
Struggling to process the information given so nonchalantly, Yeshua determined to learn more of the stranger. "Who are you and why are you here? What do you want from us?"
"I do not have a name to offer you at present; I am not of this domain. What I seek is to prevent His intent until enough can be done to change it and for that, I will need the both of you to cooperate with me."
"I don't understand, are you an Angel or something?"
This time the man did smile. "Or something. The beliefs your kind hold are not accurate, they were determined by your own and have nothing to do with the Upper Domain. Do not trouble over that; know only that if we work together, destruction can be avoided."
Yeshua looked to Mary, who smiled reassuringly, clearly she was willing to lay her hope with the stranger and he supposed he couldn't blame her for that. Really, what choice did they have if they wanted to survive? He nodded, knowing they had no choice but to trust the other because there were no other options.
"Wonderful." The albino stated calmly. "Then for now I shall leave you to rest while I make some preparations. The End is not to come nearly as quickly as you feared, so there is no need for haste, everything will be prepared in time. I shall speak with you both again soon enough and explain what it is that needs to be done."
"Of course, thank you." Mary stated gratefully and the stranger let himself out and faded into the darkness. Then turning back to Yeshua, she spoke again. "It will be okay now, we can fix this, he'll make sure of that."
"But why would he? It doesn't make sense Mary..."
"Perhaps it's a test, a way to prove ourselves. Or it could be that he disagrees with Him and considers the punishment too harsh and would seek to change His mind. It doesn't matter Yeshua, we have a way to atone, to keep everyone safe and that's what's important."
Yeshua nodded, not willing to argue and upset her. While he couldn't help but doubt, which was perhaps down to fear, they had little choice but to listen; unless they chose to give up and leave everyone to die, which neither of them ever would. If the man really wasn't human then he didn't necessarily know what deceit even was after all, so it was hardly fair to judge him without understanding better.
Mary wrapped her arms around him in an embrace, a simple show of support and reassurance that also conveyed her hope and excitement. She believed their mysterious benefactor; she needed to believe to be able to continue forward and he supposed he needed to do the same. Wallowing in despair was certainly gaining him nothing.
She stepped away after he had given her a slight squeeze in return and smiled warmly at him. "Get some rest Yeshua, I'll see you in the morning and we can just continue as normal for now until we see him again."
Yeshua nodded. "Sleep well Mary."
Lighting one of the candles in the room, she nodded before leaving. Sighing softly, Yeshua picked up the candle holder and placed it on the table by the door so he could see to place the locking bar across it. While he was still concerned, he couldn't deny that he felt better now than he had. The chance that something could be done lessened his fear and guilt somewhat and he could not help but hold hope that it was all true.
The torrent of emotions had left him feeling drained, so he hoped that meant he would be able to sleep and escape his thoughts for a while. Mary was right, tomorrow was a new day and all they could do was take one step at a time until they learnt more. With any luck, they would not be kept waiting too long to learn more of the situation and what they needed to do to change it.
Any hope for a future lay with red-eyed man and they would both do whatever they needed to, he held no doubt of that. Taking a deep breath to calm himself, Yeshua brushed his thoughts away. For now, they could but wait for the knowledge that would save them all, and pretend for a little while longer that everything was still normal.
Soon enough their lives would change, so they needed to make the most of what time they had left of their current lives. That didn't frighten him now however, he was willing to give up his life and be apart from the world if that was what was required. It was only responsible to make whatever sacrifices he had to.
Climbing into bed once he was ready, he blew out the candle and closed his eyes. While he still held no love for himself and considered himself to be the epitome of chaos, he was more at peace with it now that he could make amends. He would follow the stranger and undo what they had done and everything would be well again. With that thought in mind, he drifted into slumber, awaiting all that was to come.