"W-What is he talking about?" I asked. My throat felt dry, and there was this funny feeling that was dancing on my skin. And then there was my heart dancing like some kind of war drums were beating inside of my ribcage. My forehead began to sweat, and the tingling sensation grew more powerful for every second that passes. "What's happening?!"
Before I could speak another word, the man was pushed away, and there was a rapid windstorm around me. It was spinning at furious speeds, and I was inside a small but powerful tornado. Then the enemy tried to attack me by summoning more blades and throwing them at me. It was all but a futile effort since the wind just deflected them. A couple of it was even shattered to pieces.
And when I looked back at Trevor, and I saw his hand make some sort of gesture. Slowly, he was trying to write something in the air, and the tip of his finger was glowing. I knew then that he was the one who caused the wind to be stirred. After a few more seconds, the wind stopped. Suddenly, he was beside me again. He put a reassuring hand on my shoulder and squeezed it softly.
"Sorry for getting dragged into this." He whispered to me. There was a rising pressure in the space between us. My head felt light-headed as I tried to get ahold of myself. "This wasn't part of the plan."
"You have a lot of explaining to do." I muttered. And with a quick flick of a finger, I summoned a short blade using my own powers. The man looked at me, and he was nowhere from being taunted. To me, he was even enjoying what was taking place. "Any plans in mind?"
"Plan A, don't get killed. Don't be shy from defending yourself to your last breath because he's no simple threat." Trevor was so quick to disappear beside me. My eyes weren't even able to follow his movements as he sent the enemy flying again. But the man also made a move, and a set of blades were already flying towards me. It was so fast because I wasn't even able to raise my blade and defend myself. But my body suddenly sent bolts of lightning as if it was protecting me. The blades were then deflected and fell on the ground. It caused me to lower my weapon. "Chance, don't put your guard down!"
And there it was, a swift upward stroke of a sword abruptly took away the blade from my hands. The thing was jolted into the air. My reflexes just kicked in time, and the blade grazed my shirt, cutting it open. The man appeared from my shadow as if he used it as a portal. He had another blade in his other hand and was about to slash me for good. At the corner of my eye, I could see Trevor was about to use his "speed power" again. But I knew he was not going to make it. Not this time. The only thing I could use to defend myself was my arms.
As the man pulled both his hands downwards to go for the kill, a black spear appeared in my hands. It was summoned out of a reflex and caught both the man's pair of blades. An instinct inside me commanded my arms to whirl it around with all of my strength. It caused the blades to be guided sidewards. Successfully deflecting the attack. Trevor's timing was perfect because he used his hands to chop one of the enemy's arms from his shoulders. But the opponent disintegrated into a pile of dark sands.
"Looks like you're learning fast in how to defend yourself." He commended with serious eyes. But I wasn't too happy about it. My actions were coming from some kind of battle instincts inside me, and I had no idea what I was doing. "He's gone."
"How can you be sure?" I demanded. My lips were quivering, and there was a wave of pent-up anger inside of me. My nerves were about the explode, and my heartbeat more than a hundred times per minute. "It's like he could appear anytime and the worst possible moment! Whoever that was, he was bent on killing me."
"He wasn't. Trust me." Trevor muttered dryly. He tilted his head slightly as if he was listening to something. His eyes suddenly glowed for a moment as he scanned our surroundings. "He was toying with us. The guy was allowing me to hit him over and over again, even if he had the chance to avoid my attacks. You don't get to defend an attack from that guy. Your body will move on its own and suddenly open yourself for a direct attack."
"Trevor, if that really is your name, what on earth is going on?!" I grabbed him by the shirt. Both of us stared at each other eye to eye, and I knew that he would not merely say everything in one go. But he was not even intimidated. "Answer me, damn it!"
"That was Samael, the son of the Black Sorceress." He stated and gently took away my hands from his shirt. "Calm down, Chance. I know you're not the kind of getting all hysterical. It's the cost of using Vladimir Magic. Your emotions can easily get a bit sketchy whenever you go beyond your limits."
"You have a lot of explaining to do!" I demanded him. When I looked at his eyes, they were filled with worry. But at the same time, there was a strong sense of relief. The boy in front of me sighed and smiled as if I wasn't serious enough. "Is there something funny with what just happened?"
"Nothing. There's nothing funny, actually." He admitted. Then he started walking towards the direction of our houses. I had no choice but to follow and walk beside the person who suddenly turned into a stranger. "In fact, I'd be trying my best not to have a meltdown right now because a stranger tried to kill me. But no, that man wasn't trying to kill you. He did it to taunt you."
"Yeah, a few show of powers here and there. A blade that almost took my neck. And not to mention, I have no idea how to explain to my mom why on earth was there a tear in my damn shirt!" My voice escalated by a small notch. I was probably frowning at him in a way that I have never done before. But Trevor was calm and collected. He was trying to empathize with me, and I could see it in his eyes. "Then you're going to tell me that he did that, whatever that was, to taunt me?! Please, enlighten me. I'm begging you!"
We both stopped walking. I was breathing heavily, and I was probably fuming in anger and bewilderment. My guts told me to punch the heck out of him. And that was a thought in high considerations that very moment.
"It's not you that he wants." Trevor replied grimly. It was a serious tone. We stared eye to eye, and I knew that he was telling the truth. "He wasn't interested in you."
"What?!" I exclaimed in disbelief. And my voice was raised by another notch. A little more and we could get attention to ourselves. When I looked around, there were no people for some reason. Weird. "What do you mean by it's not me that he wants? This is confusing. Everything is confusing."
"I understand you, Chance." He tried to put a hand on my shoulder. But then I swatted it away. Honestly, he could have overpowered me. Yet he didn't. "Please, trust me. Everything can be explained."
"Tell me, Trevor. What does he really want from me?" I emphasized my words to make sure he got it. And being the brilliant guy he was, he did. "I am no one special, so I have literally no idea why would he try to approach me that way."
"You're not a normal person, Chance. This is going to sound insane, but you have to believe me." Trevor attempted to put both hands on my shoulders, and this time, I allowed him to. He looked straight into my gray eyes and stared at his blue pair. For some reason, I was fully convinced that he was being sincere. "You're an extraordinary person because inside of you is another person named Israfil. He is my best friend. That's why I will bring forth hell if I need to just to protect you. If you can access magic, then that means you have it in your blood."
I stood silent in front of Trevor. A million things were probably running around my head, and I didn't know how to make it. Magic. Israfil. A guy in black. Trevor. Ventus. Lightning sparks and stuff. Shadows turning into swords.
"Chance, are you with me?" Trevor snapped his finger and took me away from my trance. He stared at me to check if I was still listening. And then, out of nowhere, he hugged me. My hands suddenly hugged him back automatically. I lost control for some reason, and something else moved from within. "You're an important person. If Israfil found an incompatible vessel, his soul would have disintegrated. And that means he would never have peace. I wouldn't be able to imagine that. Let alone think about it."
"Sorry, Trev. I'm just not following anymore." I mechanically said. Even my tone of voice seemed bored. Then he moved away and looked at me again straight in the eye. I knew he was serious and sincere, but I still felt betrayed. "I never knew that I was in the middle of such things. And I'm sorry for almost losing it in front of you. I almost forgot to thank you for saving my life. Thank you, Trevor. If that's your real name."
"The man was right. My real name is Ventus. You can call me Ven for short. I know it sounds weird because I am not from this world. Where I come from is somewhere far more weird called Altimeraea." And there was suddenly a smirk on his face. My brows frowned in, trying to figure things out. He was definitely someone hard to read. "And I can take you there right now if you want to. It's going to feel weird when traveling between the two dimensions. I really need to warn you about that. One of my friends threw up the first time he got here."
"You know, you can be really good at killing off the excitement." I mumbled at him with a whiny voice. Ventus just smiled at me warmly because he knew the tension between the two of us was already gone. "Just because you get to teleport me to another world will not mean you get a free pass from the explanation you owe me."
"So, is it a yes?" He clarified. I just nodded my head. It was filled with both fear and excitement. Both because of the unknown. A whole new world was about to be disclosed in front of me. And it was a world I have never heard of before. Altimeraea sounded a bit off. As if it was pulled off from one of the chapters of Narnia.
"Okay. But let's go back to my place. I don't want anyone following us." Ventus motioned. Then quickly started walking away from me. "Faster! We don't really have much time."
"Damn it, Trev." I almost snarled at him. He just smirked again as if he was intentionally trying to annoy me. "I thought we're about to go right now! And I do mean right this very instant. And don't think I forgot the explanation you owe me! I know you're more powerful than me but don't think I wouldn't be able to whoop your ass."
"Well, you're kinda wrong on that one." Ventus exclaimed. Both of us were already in front of their house. But from the looks of it, there was no one at home.