Chapter Seven

After we ate that heavenly meat from the pub, we went to look for Mike –  finding him in the most unusual, or not unusual seeming as this was a world of magic, position. He was clinging for his dear life on the side of a floating hot air balloon a few feet high on the ground of the roofless garage. His scrawny body curled up, his clothes disheveled. I could feel his fear of falling, but what was most odd was that I found myself smiling at his situation, amused. I realized this and wiped off the smile on my face, hoping no one saw that. I looked at Leah who was also looking at me, our eyes met –  her emerald to my flaming red eyes. I couldn’t read her expression at all. Was she scared?

She glanced up, pretending she didn’t see anything. My thoughts now filled with doubt, fear, and anxiety as I kept looking at Leah. Pursing my lips for the nth time, I gaze up to Mike clinging to a rope on the hot air balloon. The Mavi’s slowly gathered around the huge roofless garage. The handler of the hot air balloon shouting at his men and waving his hands frantically.

How in the world did he get there in the first place? I felt Leah grab my arm and pulled me closer to the hot air balloon. I could feel the air around me change as if it was being pulled towards Leah, it swirled around her, leaves flew everywhere as she casts her powers.

“What are you doing?” I grabbed her arm.

She turns to me. “Saving Mike.”

I let go of her arm, wondering, does she have a hero complex? She flew up expertly towards Mike, and helped him down the balloon. Why am I needed here when she can do it herself? I glanced up at the two slowly descending on the ground, Mike held on to her neck tightly. As I look at them, it reminded me of supergirl –  saving everyone even though they look ridiculous. Was she the real life supergirl that wants to save everyone? Or is she just saving him because she’s close friends with Mike?

They landed a few feet away from me, and Mike collapsed on the ground, still shaking from the situation he was in a few moments ago.

“Th-thanks.”, he shakily said to Leah. She shrugged and gave him a pat in the back. She looks up to me and smiled widely at the accomplishment she did. I tilted my head slightly to her, still wondering at the ridiculousness. She definitely has a hero complex in her system.  Do I have that complex too now that I know that I’m supposed to be the big hero of this world? The savior? My flaming red eyes glinted in amusement as the Mavi’s surrounded them, asking if he was okay and how the hell he got there in the first place. What was he doing there anyway?

I walked away from them, from the crowd – dodging the onlookers as they passed by me. There was a moment that I thought everything around me slowed down once again. The Mavi’s that walked by, the noise that seemed to muffle out, the air that grew still as I took another step on the crooked pavement. I could hear my heart beat in my ears as clear as someone talking to me. Was it not done yet?

“Selina.”, someone grabbed my arm and time returned to its normal pace. I glanced behind and saw Leah. “Where are you going?”

“Uhm…”, I started but came up short with an answer. Where was I going anyway?

She chuckled. “Let’s go.”, she pulled me to her side. “Tyson is just about here right on time.”

I hummed in response, my head still in the clouds. Where was I going a moment ago? I shook my head off from the thoughts and followed Leah who was leading the way. The crowds slowly dispersed away from Mike. Sure enough – as Leah had described in the old pub, a burly man with jet black wavy hair wearing sunglasses stood beside the small stature of Mike. He wore a red flannel shirt that felt like it would rip out from his bulging muscles, a black denim jeans and a white sneakers. His face was so much different from Mike’s, more refined, he’s basically like superman. But something was different with him – not because of his dissimilarities with Mike, but because of his aura. He had this intimidating yet friendly vibe around him.

Tyson smiled as he saw us walk towards them. “Hey.”, he had this deeper voice that any girl would fall for. His pearly white teeth so perfect, his pose – hands on hips, so lax and mighty. Something was really different about him than Mike aside from the appearance and stature.

“So, you’re Selina.”, he said as soon as we stopped in front of them. He reached out his hand for me to shake.

“And you’re Tyson, Mike’s brother.” I reached for his wide hands and shook it. They were warm and calloused. I looked at Mike who was still on the ground, shaken still and back to his hunk of a brother. “You’re different from Mike.” I looked straight to his sunglasses, seeing my reflection, my red eyes shining and my now blonde hair messy. I bit my lip.

He chuckled. “Yes, yes, very different.” His chuckle was kind of annoying my ears. Like a tingling buzz that I did not want to hear. To others, they’d definitely want to hear his chuckle.

I looked at our hands still entwined, my right brow twitched. “Uhm, you can let go now.”

“Oh! Right, sorry.” He smiled apologetically, scratching the back of his hair.

“Now that you’ve met,” Leah cut sharply between us. “I supposed you can start training her?”

“Help me up first.”Mike said faintly. Reaching his hand up to his brother.

Tyson smirked. “Geez, how’d you end up there anyway?” The million question everyone wanted to know was finally asked.

“I was helping a little girl get her kite. It got stuck on the ropes, so I climbed it.”, both his shoulders slightly raised as he explained. “And I did not know it was scheduled to fly.”, his shoulders slumped.

Tyson shook his head in disbelief. “God, you’re unbelievable. Father would’ve made you do pushups if he were to see you be saved by a girl.”

“What’s wrong with girls saving men?” I blurted out to which he swiftly turned his head towards me.

He exhaled, his chest puffing out, “Well, there’s nothing wrong with that. My family’s just been,”, he paused for effect. “Harsh to my little brother since he’s like this.” He waved his hands to his brother.

“Hey!” Mike placed his hands on his hips despite the disheveled appearance. “At least I’m smarter than you!”

Tyson raised his hands in surrender. “No offense, okay? Just stating information on the princess.” As he said princess, his gaze shifted to mine.

Was that supposed to make me swoon over him? “You’re a jerk.” He does look like one of those jocks at home, wearing their ridiculous varsity jackets like it’s all they have in their closets.

Leah held back a laugh beside me whilst Tyson and Mike looked at me in surprise. Mike, who was all serious a moment ago, laughed at my comment. “I’ve never met anyone say that in front of my brother’s face.”

Tyson shrugged.. “There’s always a first for everything.”

“Anyway,” Leah placed her hand on my shoulder. It was warm and it made me relax. “Let’s get your training started.”

We left the huge garage and followed Tyson to wherever he was leading us. As we walked by the different tents and stalls, women seemed to pop out and swoon at Tyson like a celebrity. Saying a few ‘hi’s’ and ‘hello’s’ to his way – to which he smiled and waved at.

“Is he that famous here? Or is it because of his muscles?” I whispered to Leah.

Leah snickered quietly. “Yes and yes.”

No wonder every stall we pass by, women pops out like a hole in a mole whacking game. “Hey,”

I grabbed Leah’s attention again, her emerald eyes gleaming my way to which the hairs on my back stood from the excitement. I composed myself. “Why is Tyson’s brother teaching me about my powers? Isn’t he also a Mavi?”

She shook her head no. “He’s like you. A Zonculi.” 

There was a moment of pause between us until I spoke. Shock was evident in my voice. “He is?”

She hummed in response. “Their father is a Zonculi, and their mother was a Mavi.”

“Was? You mean...?” My eyes shot up a glance to the back of the brothers.

Leah nodded. “Yeah, she died in the last war.”

“There was a war?”, I asked again.

She chuckled. “You ask a lot of questions do you?”

I shrugged. “Don’t blame me, I don’t know anything about this world yet. I’m just trying to make sense of everything.”

“True enough.”, she licked her lips before continuing. The crowd of women went crazy as we passed by the stalls and shops. “The last war was because of greed and men’s fault.”

I looked through her emerald eyes – they held sadness and anger. I stayed silent beside her.

“The war began with a feud between the two opposing elements of the countries. The Zonculi and the Mavis. It started with one girl. She had both powers. Some people thought she would unite both, but it backfired.” She said the two sentences slowly. “The two countries wanted to claim her for their greed. The Zonculi thought of her as a weapon, a future use. And the  Mavis wanted her for,” she paused, I could see her eye twitch. “Display. To gain more people to come into their territory to have profit in their shops.” She looks up at the blue sky, her emerald eyes shining, albeit dimly. “The girl – she hid from those who wanted her for greed.”

I felt the air around me drop, the leaves on the trees stopped rustling, the birds stopped chirping. I could see her gulp a lump in her throat before she opened her plump lips.

“Then men came in to search for her. She was a quest to everyone. But it didn’t go well. They,”, she clenched her fist – eyes now looking at my flaming red eyes. “Touched her in ways for their own greed and pleasure.”

I abruptly stopped walking, my eyes set straight to her. She looks down the pavement, closing her eyes. The hairs on my back standing up, making me shiver.

“Until she burst into flames, burning everything around her. At that time, she was in the Mavis’ territory. And of course, the Mavis thought it was a means of war towards the Zonculi. So they retaliated. There were no survivors when Catherine burned everything around her-”

“Wait.”, I interrupted her. “Catherine?”

Leah walked beside me, facing me and grabbing my hand in hers. She had a knowing look in her eyes that I wanted to deny that she knew my best friend's name. “Yes.”

I wanted to let go of her hand, but the thought of comfort made me let her hold my hands longer.

“Her name, the girl’s name, is Catherine.”, she looked at my eyes.

“What...what happened to her after that?” I asked shakily. I was scared to know what happened yet at the same time I wanted to know.

“She,”, she shook her head slowly, indicating she didn’t know what happened next. “Disappeared. A lot of people died in that war because of greed.”

“She was in our world.”, I said in realization. “I met her there, and somehow, along those years we met when we were kids, she disappeared for a year and a half. I thought she had moved.” I half laughed sadly. “All along she was in here. Battling her own battles alone.”

My brows furrow deeper in anguish. Leah let go of my hand as she felt my hands grow warmer. I exhaled, closing my eyes and releasing the heat out of my hands gently. I should calm down. I glance up at Leah. “Would there be a chance Catherine is here?”

She slid her hands in her pockets. “I don’t know. Maybe.”

I nodded in understanding. “I need to find her.”