Chapter 3: The First Encounter

“Okay. Calm down, me. Think.” I say to myself. Why am I here? Where is this place? Where are my friends? The questions keep coming and coming, but I can’t find an answer to any of them.

However, a thought flashes in my head when I’m just about to give up. “The book! I was the only one able to open the book!” I yell out loud, piecing together the information.

This book must be one of those weird spell books I’ve heard from old stories when I was a kid – the books used by mages in an attempt to achieve God’s powers for themselves, a grave sin supposed to be culled a long time ago. But then, if the book is in fact magic, did I get teleported, or am I trapped in another world? And why do Bea’s parents have this book, if it’s supposed to be disposed of many years ago? What I thought was the answer turns out to be just another gateway to more questions harder than before.

“No use thinking over it now.” I keep on talking to myself, unsure if it’s just to cope with the deadly silence of the woods anymore. “What’s important is getting out of here. Let’s see…”

I look around me in hope of finding a way out. However, it proves to be of no effect, as everywhere my eyes can see is the same – a murky road covered by more trees and bushes, with no signs of returning to town, let alone the hill where my friends are. Having no other information to base on, I have no choice but to just move forward according to my gut feeling, and it looks like that risk is paying off.

The direction I choose to go is surprisingly a plain and easy road after the first series of thorny bushes, which did no more than give a few scratches to my clothes. Mother will probably yell at me for a bit when she sees this, though, but it’s no big deal. But alas, my journey in the woods finally comes to an end as I see light coming from behind the nearby trees, signaling at least an open field.

I’m greeted by a beautiful meadow, with brilliant green grass overflowing with life on one side and a clear, serene lake on the other. On the other side of the lake, a humongous tower stands tall, higher than any other old watchtower on the town’s border. And to think it’s this tall already when I haven’t gotten nearly close enough. While marveling at the scenery, however, I was reminded of an important detail: I see no way leading to any sort of town or city. The ground just… stops beyond the tower, it’s like I was really transported to another world.

“You’re kidding me… right?” As soon as the thought crosses my mind, the words instinctively leave my mouth. “How am I… supposed to get back?”

However, luck hasn’t given up on me yet, for when I’ve run out of ideas, something arrives. The water in the lake suddenly vibrates wildly, with bubbles viciously forming on the surface as if the lake itself is being boiled by some unknown force. Then, from the bottom of the lake, “it” rises.

From its rugged brown fur, its large body as it stands on two feet on top of the water, its mouth filled with fangs, its rather short snout as well as its round ears, the creature coming out is, no doubt, a bear. However, no other bear I’ve seen in picture books can walk on water or have fireballs as its eyes, and no fire I know can burn so strong after emerging from underwater. And, as if it hasn’t brought enough surprises, before I can let out a scream in fear, the bear talks like a regular person, with a voice filled with happiness:

“At last! The new cycle is upon us, and that means I get to roam free again!”

“Oh?” As it seems to have finally noticed me, the bear changes to a rather calm, stoic yet soothing voice of a male. “Are you perhaps…”

It then brings its nose close to me, making me tense all of my muscles to keep myself standing and awake. “You do smell like him… then I guess it’s true.” The bear continues, before, beyond my wildest expectations, kneels itself down to pay respect, like a servant to their long-time ruler. “I welcome you to your sanctuary, my master, my King.”

“Your… Master?” I ask, not believing a word I just heard. “Me?”

“Are you not the one to open the seal?” Asks the bear, still down on its feet.

“You mean that weird book?” I ask back. “I mean, sure, I was the only one that could open it, but…”

“Book?” This time, it’s the bear’s turn to be confused. “I’m referring to the amber cross.”

As it wonders itself, however, the bear moves forward, causing me to reflexively back myself. Upon seeing this, however, it then backs itself up as well. “My apologies, my King. It appears that you are not used to this form.”

After the words leave its mouth, a sudden gust blows, carrying lovely pink flowers – a sight never-before-seen to me – and wrapping them around it. After the wind settles down and the flowers drop to the ground, creating a beautiful field in the process, the bear is no more, and in its place is a young man, maybe in his late twenties with ankle-length white hair, which makes a strange contrast with the brown bear hide he’s wearing.

“Ah, it’s been a while since I last took this form. I remember the first also giving me the same reaction when he was your age. How nostalgic.”

“I’m sorry, uh…”

“Oh, right. I haven’t formally introduced myself.” The man lets out a smile and places his left hand across his chest, lightly bowing as a sign of respect. “I am known by many names, but for now, you can call me Balam. May I ask your name, my King?”

“Uh… It’s Peter.” Seeing at least a human form has calmed me down a bit, so it’s easier for me to answer.

“Peter… And your last name?”

“Pendragon. Peter Pendragon.”

“Pendragon…” The man, now Balam, stutters in shock. “Interesting… This is the first time I’ve served the same lineage twice…”

“Served the same lineage twice? What do you mean?” I ask with a curious look.

“Tell me, my King. Do you at least know of your destiny?”

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“Destiny? What are you talking about?”

“I see… Then allow me to explain.” Balam, having realized the situation, snaps his fingers to reveal a table along with a tea set appearing out of nowhere. “Have a seat first.”

“You see, I’m a Demon.” Balam starts the conversation with a surprising introduction, sipping his cup and waiting for a response. However, seeing no reaction from me, he lets out a laugh:

“Nothing? You’re really like the first, then. Must run in the family.”

“What do you mean by ‘the first’, anyway?”

“To explain that first I have to tell you about our battle with God.” Balam refills his cup and continues his story. “We’ve been fighting since the dawn of time, going through many, many generations. It’s been so long, even I forgot what initially caused our war. But we’ve been fighting. And, to gain the upper hand, both sides asked for the help of humans.”

“Why humans?” I interrupt the story. “Both you and the Angels are a lot stronger than us.”

“Is that what you truly think?” Balam chuckles at my question. “I’ll have you know, it was you humans, not us Demons or God and his Angels that once stood on top of the food chain. Your desire for progress resulted in a great scientific civilization, and leaving it unchecked will certainly destroy us all and let you truly be the only rulers of the world. That’s why God was afraid, and he set up that purge thousands of years ago.”

“You mean…” I clench my fist. Knowing that the lives we have right now have been nothing but a plot, set up from the start by God and the Angels… it’s unacceptable, so much that it makes my blood boil and my veins pop. Balam, on the contrary, remains calm as a still river, drinking another cup of tea and continuing:

“We Demons do not fear you, since we feed ourselves on your desires. It’s sort of a symbiotic relationship: the stronger you are, the stronger we are as well. That’s why by bringing you humans under control, God and the Angels also gained the upper hand on us. They wiped out nearly all of our race, finally leaving only one Demon Lord and 72 Demons alive. Then, even our lord perished, and along with that were the lives of my brethren. Now with only seven remains, we need to find another way to defeat God, and so a solution was found.

By allying ourselves with the humans of old, we were able to draw out our full potential. However, seven demons just weren’t enough; and so, in our last struggle, we place a curse upon ourselves: by sealing our souls inside seven different crosses, we wait for each generation of vessels – Kings – to awaken us once again and fight along with us in the hope of slaying God.”

“Okay, so you’re saying I’m one of the ‘vessels’ you’re talking about? When are you going to possess me and take over my body if I were to join you?”

“Of course not, my King.” Balam lets out a reassuring smile. “As I said before, our relationship is symbiotic: it’s more like I will live in your body along with you, and you can choose to let me interfere in certain things that you wish.”

“Another question, then.” I continue. “Why me?”

“I do not know.” Balam shakes his head. “For each generation, our awakening is a resonation of the souls: we choose our Kings subconsciously, without any particular reason… well, except one, perhaps.”

“What is it?”

“Tell me, my King… Have you met anyone around you with the same name as you?”

“As in, another Peter?” I ask with a confused look. “Of course…” The words don’t get to leave my mouth. As I rack my brain, scraping for any memory I can find, only then do I realize Balam is correct in his assumption, and I’ve been missing that one small detail my entire life.

“I can’t believe it… No, I haven’t.”

“It surprised me too when I first noticed it.” Nods Balam. “It seems that Peter is no longer just a name anymore. It’s somewhat of a title, to signify your soul-bound pact with us, as well as your destiny to fight against God… Of course, there is a single exception: the first generation, the first master that I serve – your ancestor, King Arthur Pendragon.”

“Well, now that you’ve known everything you need to, what says you? Would you like to topple God alongside us?” Balam offers his hand. I, however, remain motionless. Letting out a smirk, I ask:

“And what if I refused?”

“Are you planning to refuse, I wonder?” Balam lets out a chuckle. “I said ‘resonation of the souls’, but us Demons can only be released from the crosses when exposed to a great desire. And I think you are already aware of your own.”

I cannot rebuke what he says. I know he’s right; I’ve been aware of what I want for too long now. However, I want more time. Therefore, I answer:

“Let me out of this place first. I still need to think this through.”

“As you wish, my King.” Balam, unsurprised by my decision, snaps his fingers once more. On my neck now is the same amber cross on the book, this time in the form of a necklace. He then says:

“To return to your world, close your eyes and think about the place you originally came from. To return here, simply do the reverse. Now, I await your answer, my King.”

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