5.1

Rey was the only one inside the room. He swallowed dryly, made sure no one could still see him. Still, for being there, where none of the elders could, he felt nervous. Even more nervous than when he saw his mother and father behaving strangely with each other. Peering curiously, he moved closer to the bed and watched as the three women helped his mother to her feet. Clumsy and tired, the vampire with the prominent belly moved around the place and, little by little, got into the tub of water smoothly thanks to the help of those present there.

Maryam looked worried about everything around her. From one moment to the next, if she wasn't moaning or gritting her teeth, she would organize what was next to her. But an abrupt change of mood came over her face and, with a backhanded flip of her hand, she threw away everything she had organized. Rey could see fear in his mother. The anxiety in her fingers flared until she needed to bite them until they bled and try to silence her doubts. Quietly and discreetly, the vampire looked at the two old women there and asked:

"If it came to it, could you ignore the deformity of one of my children and let me, my husband or one of the boys take care of the rest?"

"Our job is to ensure your safety and the babies' safety," Clara said.

"From then on, it will be your responsibility" Ana finished the sentence.

Calmed and almost with a smile on her face, Maryam came back to the present and screamed as if she couldn't seem to take the pain anymore. Rey, she still didn't understand what was troubling her mother. "Why does she allow others to be cast out?" he wondered. Moving closer and as one who wanted to make someone else's pain his own, he saw something he shouldn't have when his Maryam held her belly, laid her body down and lifted her legs wide open.

"I guess that's an open belly and that's the way out," thought the little boy with his eyes pinned between his mother's legs. The opening was considerable, had blood and fluids around it, at the same time it was enlarging. The skin in the area was stretched and seemed to want to give way forward, given that what was coming was bigger than the hole. "It looks like hair, yes... someone's head seems to be sticking out from between his legs. But he's having a hard time, maybe I can also see how his belly keeps opening up... But if it's information I'm after, I think it'll be more productive to go with the other adults," the little guy said to himself to turn his back on the bizarre situation he was in and go through the door almost as fast as he could.

After getting through the wood, Rey bumped into his father, who was standing in front of the entrance. Wulfgang had the look of someone who didn't know how to trust. He could understand that his father felt responsible, that he was perhaps nervous, worried and a bit discouraged. "Adults can't know everything," he said to himself. The little boy not only looked in the direction of the lycanthrope, but also looked at the others. They looked just as anxious. None of them had had time to reflect on the situation or think clearly.

Rey heard cries of pain behind him, how Heroclades demanded explanations from the Great Wise Wizard, the way Katherine paced back and forth, Ehimus' movement on the largest piece of furniture in the room, and his father's deep breaths.

Since everything on the second floor was more hectic and that was where the Great Wise Wizard was, Rey decided to keep walking and peek over the railing to look into the center of the foyer. There, under the stairs, where the rest of the pack was also, the faces were not different from Wulfgang's. They did not understand what had happened either. They didn't understand what had happened either, they looked at each other as if they needed an explanation before exploding or perhaps attacking someone.

The Great Wise Wizard, as if suggesting something, made a chair appear on which he calmly sat down. Remaining in a neutral position, with his hands on his thighs, his back straight and his head upright, the old man kept silent and only showed a discreet smile to all present.

Rey understood the body language, the old man with his calm and neutral gestures implied that the conversation would take time, and that he had no intention of fighting or raising his voice to be heard. After descending the first step, Rey also took a seat and, after placing his elbows on his knees, leaned down and let his jaw rest on his hands. Rey looked up, and before his white eyes, almost on the verge of boredom, he saw how the others took their seats almost reluctantly.

Once everyone was comfortable and almost no sound could be heard, the Great Wise Wizard began to speak in a low, affable voice:

"Don't misunderstand me, just like Silvia, I will not interfere with your lives and decisions. Even if you decide to kill the possible reincarnation of the previous reformer of hell. But I do want to explain about the currents of time, they are in charge of making everyone's stay more pleasant" Doubts were reflected in the faces of those who were listening.

Rey, somewhat quizzical, thought, "That would be me they're talking about. Honestly, I don't feel like 'a reincarnation,' so that must not be the case."

The Great Wise Wizard continued:

"One example is that even though you are different species and need different amounts of time to satisfy the tiredness of your bodies, none of you woke up feeling tired or sleepy, did you?..... This is because, for some, time stood still in their rooms and for others it did not."

Opening his eyes, the old man seemed to realize that uncertainty reigned on the faces of the listeners.

"Time in this place has lost all logic as you know it. It is not linear, much less constant. That the lights make or fade does not necessarily mean that the sand in the clock falls, but neither does it mean that it is stopped. Also, the power we are talking about rejects and nullifies any event or phenomenon that is undesirable for the place, such as aging. Therefore, they do not get older. Although their bodies do develop hunger and other physiological needs while they are awake..."

Sighs and groans from Maryam were heard behind the door that led into the matrimonial room, the same one where the lycanthrope stood guard.

Mijan, ignoring what he heard and taking advantage of the pause the Great Wise Wizard had made, asked.

"Then why did we all wake up at the same time?"

The Great Wise Wizard raised one of his fingers in the air, opened his mouth, but before he could say anything, the energetic cries of a child could be heard. Once the cries subsided, the old man set about answering the light elf's questioning:

"The currents of time. When the lights go out and darkness comes, the individual who needs more time to replenish his strength, body and mind is placed last, those who need less rest will be placed first. If you are the first and you already slept what you needed, your time will be stopped until the last individual is also satisfied. When everyone is ready, the time course is triggered and the light will be made allowing you to have a synchronized awakening."

Rey turned her face away, having the feeling that behind the door the sighing and moaning became something else, so familiar that she came to wonder, "Will it feel just as painful as it does when alone with my father?"

Yes, Maryam was no longer sighing and moaning as before, but now she was sobbing and screaming as when she had been having sex with Wulfgang inside the hot tub. It was true that the vampire's sobs and screams were more intense, but what was the difference for the little one or for the older ones? Finally, a second cry was heard. To Rey, the whimpers sounded different than the first. Somewhat less energetic and longer at the same time. Undeniably, it belonged to a second baby that had just arrived at the house. Rey knew that there were three babies to come and with the second cry, as she turned her head, she could see how everyone in the room smiled. That most of the vampire's labor was ending was a target of joy. But, with the intensifying silence, the tension rose among the pack members.

Rey could swear that none of those present seemed intent on asking any more questions. They were breathing faster, they had faces that were gradually flushing, they were fidgeting in their seats in a funny way. They were not acting as they normally did, except for the Great Wise Wizard. It was as if, instead of waiting for the third baby to burst into tears, they were imagining something else and trying to disguise it.

Yes, Rey closed his eyes, he could imagine something. A room in which the vampire was writhing, screaming and moaning from inside her loins. Guttural screams that, mixed with the moans and sighs, expressed pain because her belly was being opened and a belly opening must have been painful. However, the older people there did not seem to be imagining the same thing. They were imagining an erotic scene behind the door, perhaps because, for them, giving life was the same as making life. Rey was able to relate the faces of the moment, like the faces they made when they were naked alone, and finally came to a conclusion: "Maybe that's why they try to hide what they are thinking,? the little boy thought, "because showing that you take pleasure in the suffering of others is not considerate."

Time went on and on. No one spoke. He tried not to move, until from behind the door no more moaning from the vampire could be heard. At that moment, several opinions were thrown into the living room of the house and, among them all, there was one that caught the attention of the little one that no one could see. Ehimus said in a rather low tone of voice:

"Maybe the third baby... got out dead. Tell us Wise Wizard: does death exist in Paradise?"

Rey raised her head. The green elf could not be right if the third baby was him, and he was there, alive, watching what was happening. On all sides, the elders thought about the possibility. They put their hands to their faces at such a nasty comment, especially Katherine, to hide her smile, and though they looked like they wanted to give their opinions, no one spoke again. They acted as if it only remained for them to wait for an answer from the old man. The Great Wise Wizard replied:

"Yes, she wears black wherever life goes....."