was in a wooded forest. Surrounding me were just plants and more plants. There was nothing familiar in sight. Just a moment ago, I was talking to Crystal in James's house, and now, I was in the middle of a forest. I checked my pockets for anything useful I could find. Most of my pockets were empty, but my hoodie pocket had a crumpled up piece of paper in it. I tried to flatten it out, and after a good few minutes, it was readable.
Hello Ayro. You got lucky. Your precious friend isn't dead, But she will be soon. You can't stop me. None can.
-Your very close friend, The Dealer
I tore up the note and left the pieces on the ground. I looked around for any hint, any clue of how to get back. I trecked through the forest, and eventually reached a clearing. It looked like a secluded field. There were strange symbols drawn in a circle, and they seemed to surround an area just big enough for someone to stand in. There was nothing else in the area, and it was surrounded by trees.
"Outsiders are not welcome in the Field of Promise," An unusually loud voice said. I looked around for anyone that might have said anything. There was a girl standing in the center of the strange circle. She appeared to be in her early 20's. She was wearing white robes with golden stitching, with a staff that looked similar to the one James has in his house.
"Are you an Animus Holder?" I asked.
She looked offended. "Yes."
"Oh. I'm kinda lost. Could you help me?" I asked.
"Fine. I'll show you the way out," She huffed.
"Actually, I'm looking for James. I was at his house, then I randomly appeared here," I explained.
She sighed. "Name?"
"Ayro."
"Oh," She said with relief, "You're one of his friends."
"I guess," I responded.
She motioned for me to follow her. I did, and she started walking.
"I don't understand why he bothers. Mortals don't live that long, and most of them will betray you anyways. What's the point?" She asked.
"To have connections. Not everyone will betray you, or hurt you. Some people just aren't who you think they are. I had to leave people in my life because they betrayed me, but that doesn't mean I won't have friends."
"You think that your current friends won't betray you? If they found out you were hosting a Shadow Dweller, they would," She said, gritting her teeth, "No matter how strong you believe your connection to be, they would hate you if they knew."
"Shadow Dweller?" I asked.
"Powerful dark creatures who feed off of people's souls. The one who happens to be leeching off of you is a powerful one," She explained, "The humans once formed a cult around him. It was called 'Gamble' or 'Casino' or something like that."
"He invented gambling?" I asked.
"What is... gambling?"
"It's when people bet money on games that are based mostly on luck," I explained. Apperently, some Animus Holders didnt know what gambling is.
"Oh, that. No, he just made it more popular and addictive," she explained, "He got very angry when people started to worship 'lady luck' and not him."
"Calling himself 'The Dealer' doesn't exactly help his case. Especially in Black Jack, people hate the dealer," I said.
I noticed we were still in a wooded area. Ar least she seemed to know where we were going. I blocked for one second, and we were in front of the huge gold and white building.
"Wha? How? We were in the woods a second ago!" I exclaimed.
The Animus Holder started laughing.
"Your Shadow Dweller friend took over to explain how stupid you were. He said that The Dealer controls the deck, and who gets the aces. Hearts, spades, diamons and clubs. All under his control. Like pawns."
I tried to lock that information into my brain. My friends needed to know this. I clutched the little notebook in my pocket, which contained The Dealer's notes about everyone, excluding James. She led me through the front door, then down some corridors, up some stairs, then a left, then a right? My head was already spinning. This place was huge, and there's no way I could find my way back on my own.
We made it to James's home after a bit more turns and stairs. The Animus Holder knocked on the door, and tapped her foot impatiently. James opened the door, eyeing me and the girl.
"Ayro," He said, looking at me. The he turned to the Animus Holder next to me, "Uptight asshole."
"I'm not here to squabble. I must speak with you," She said, glaring at him. She was being way less casual with him than me.
"Whatever," He said, moving aside, "Both of you. Inside."
I could see everyone staring at me when I walked in. Everyone's gaze was locked on me. Alex was glaring at me, Raven looked sceptical, Crystal looked worried, and Maddie... Maddie wasn't there. She mustve been in another room.
"James-"
"Layla, I don't want to hear any of your bullshit today," James said, pinching the bridge of his nose.
"Look. This is important. Important enough to talk to you, so quit your bitching and help me!" She yelled angrily.
"I'm bitching? Did you forget what you said to me?" James yelled back. They kept arguing, and watching them felt like watching a tennis match. Back and forth. Back and forth.
"You know what!" Layla said, grabbing his arm, "I am going to talk, and for once, you are going to listen."
"Fine!" James responded. Both of them dissapeared into another room.
Alex stopped glaring at me, and walked towards me.
"We need to talk," He said, his eyes narrowing.
"Great," I muttered under my breath, "Just great."
"What did you say?" He asked, raising his voice a little. Alex was scary when he was mad.
"Nothing. I said nothing," I said quickly.
"Good."