The sterile white of the ceiling swam into focus, a blurry, fractured landscape. Zazm blinked, the dry rasp of his eyelids a foreign sensation.
A low, rhythmic beeping pulsed in his ears, a mechanical heartbeat that wasn't his own. He tried to move, but his limbs felt heavy, leaden. A dull throb resonated behind his eyes, a persistent, unwelcome visitor.
He turned his head, a slow, agonizing process. The room was a pale, clinical expanse. A thin, translucent curtain, pulled haphazardly around his bed, offered a sliver of privacy.
A metal stand, bristling with IV bags and wires, stood sentinel beside him. The air smelled of antiseptic and something faintly metallic, a scent that pricked at his nostrils.
His gaze drifted to his hand, resting limply on the crisp white sheet. A thin plastic tube snaked into his vein, tethering him to the IV stand. He tried to remember what had happened, but his mind was a hazy, fragmented mess.
A flash of… something. A sudden, sharp pain. Then, nothing.
A soft rustle of fabric broke the silence. A figure moved behind the curtain, their silhouette a dark, indistinct shape. A voice, low and gentle, spoke his name. "Zazm? Can you hear me?"
He tried to speak, but his throat was dry, a parched desert. He managed a weak croak, a sound barely audible above the rhythmic beeping.
The curtain was pulled back, revealing a boy with tired eyes and a kind smile. His white shirt was slightly rumpled, and his dark hair messy.
"Welcome back, Zazm," he said, his voice soft. "You gave me quite a scare."
"Nox? What… happened?" he rasped, his voice a whisper.
Nova stopped for a second before he took a seat next to Zazm's bed, "You fell unconscious while trying to find the rupture or something."
Zazm quickly got up and his words, his entire body was in pain and especially his pain but it wasn't the time. The memories of the crack flowed into his mind as he sat down.
"Give me some water," Zazm spoke in a low tone and Jahanox got up and filled a glass with water, he walked close to Zazm and put his hand forward.
Zazm picked up his hand and grabbed it, not the glass but Jahanox's arm, Nox was in a temporary shock as Zazm pulled him close and caught him from his collar.
"Right, we were during an experiment and I remember telling you to do something." Zazm looked Nox straight in the eyes while his grip on his collar tightened.
Jahanox didn't tried to loosen his grip and simply stayed silent, this made Zazm even more furious he pushed him back, "Why the hell are you so quiet?"
"Would you believe me, If I say my powers doesn't work on you." Jahanox finally broke the silence while standing at a distance from Zazm. His face turned down, he knew he couldn't blame Zazm for what happened, he trusted him with his life and he failed.
"I See....." Zazm spoke in a low voice before he put his hands on the back of his head and leaned back on the hospital bed, he slightly shook his head to remove the hair from his eyes and a carefree smile appeared on his face.
"Well....that's that," Nox shot Zazm a weird look and was shocked for a second, "What do you mean that's that? You trusted me and I failed."
Jahanox clenched his fists in frustration but Zazm's smile simply widened, "Yeah, but it's not your fault your powers didn't worked."
"I think you don't understand Zazm, what if I was trying to kill yo-" Jahanox was speaking but his sentence was interrupted by Zazm.
"If you were trying to kill me then I wouldn't be here in the first place."
Zazm shot Jahanox a straight answer with his same carefree smile, "You wouldn't have brought me here and besides the doctor told me you were also injured, so something must've happened."
Jahanox was momentarily confused at Zazm's words he was so busy feeling guilty he didn't took these things into account, Zazm continued, "And I trust you man."
A slight smile appeared on Jahanox's face as he let out a sigh of relief, he was happy Zazm didn't misunderstood him, he was ready to get beaten and he didn't mind it.
"I can trust you....right? You won't kill me...?" Zazm spoke in a suspicious tone, his eyes slightly narrowing, he lifted his hands to look scared.
"Yeah I'll fucking kill you one day." Jahanox said with a smile as he threw the glass at Zazm.
Zazm effortlessly caught the glass, "You're already trying? Have some shame I'm still on bed."
Jahanox sat down again, "Well whatever, let's come back to where we left. And I have something to ask too."
Zazm turned his head in slight confusion, "Well let's talk about other things afterwards but what's this thing you want to ask?"
"Well my powers there is something weird about them." Jahanox spoke in a serious tone and Zazm pondered on his question for a while.
He finally spoke breaking the silence between them,"Tell me is there anything else besides the fact that your powers doesn't work on me?"
Jahanox nodded, "Yesterday, when I took you here, I mind controlled a man but I fell unconscious afterwards. Yet, the mind control didn't ware off."
Zazm tapped his fingers on his other hands, "That's indeed true, if that's the case your powers are acting weird. Mind controlling someone requires the controller to use his own mind and while you were unconscious this doesn't apply."
Jahanox nodded his head in understanding, "I know that but do you know what can be the reason behind it?"
A grin appeared on Zazm's face and he spoke in an excited tone, "You remember, when I first told you about your powers I said that they have something greater in them, that I can't tell yet?"
"Yes, wait..." Jahanox eyes shined as his thoughts matched Zazm's.
"Correct, its been nearly two years now and I'm sure I can tell you full extent of your powers." Zazm spoke with a mischievous grin, he looked at Jahanox who now looked slightly excited.
Zazm paused momentarily, "But before that i would like to tell you what I saw. Let's go somewhere else."
Zazm stood up but for a second he lost his balance and nearly fell, Jahanox quickly went towards them but Zazm raised a hand stoping him.
"Ah...Damn it my head, let's hurry up." Zazm and Jahanox got out of the hospital room and started walking through the corridor. When a silhouette appeared from a corner.
"You kids.... Where do you think you're going?" A nurse wearing white coat, who looks like in her early forties stood there, her hair tied in a bun and a suspicious look etched on her face.
Jahanox instantly recognized her, he leaned closer to Zazm, "That's the doctor that treated you, she's way too stern."
Zazm's smiled flickered for a moment before he walked closer to her, "I'm Zazm Mystic, Thank you for taking care of us but we're fine now." Zazm spoke with a soft smile.
The nurse crossed her arms, "You need rest kid." She spoke her voice still stern but before she could say anything a hand appeared in front of her eyes.
Suddenly she stopped moving and turned on her heel and left, "I wiped her memories, is that ok?" Jahanox spoke wiping a small sweat, with a mischievous smile.
Zazm chuckled a bit, "You could've done that from the start let's leave."
Both friends started walking and soon reached the exit of the hospital. Zazm quickly recognized the location of hospital, "Oh wait it's the one close to my place."
Jahanox nodded and spoke, "Yeah I assumed we will go directly to your place once you're up."
Zazm put his hands in his pockets and scoffed a bit, "Aren't you quite concerned...." Zazm paused for a second before he turned to Nox, "But what happened to the guy that drove us here?"
Jahanox started twirling his fingers, he let out a dry laugh, "Ah.. ha.hah- I wiped his memories but I was angry so I accidentally made him forget everything....."
Zazm eyes widened in surprise as he let out a small sigh, "There is nothing we can do" Zazm continued to move but Zazm didn't moved towards his house, instead he took another part.
"Where are we going? That's not the way to your house." Jahanox stopped and questioned Zazm. Zazm continued to walk and shot his a straight answer, "It's easier to discuss these things on higher places."
"Nah...don't tell me we are going on some mountain again....." Jahanox spoke in horror the last night still fresh in his mind. Zazm's smile widened.
"We're going to the same place, it's the best place." Jahanox's eyes widened in surprise, "Dude, that place is atleast 30 mins away and combing the time to climb it.... It's already sundown."
Zazm continued walking and didn't paid him any attention, Jahanox followed Zazm but once again Zazm changed the path into a dark alley.
"I said we have to go there, but I never said that we have to walk there." Zazm spoke with the same mischievous grin. Jahanox looked at him in suspicion.
"Oh, what are we gonna do now? Fly?" Zazm let out a small laugh, "Hahaha no no."
Zazm held his hand in hair, his other hand still in his pocket. Jahanox looked at him in confusion as he continued to hold his hand.
The air shimmered, not with heat, but with an impossible, iridescent chill. Jahanox, his hands still trembling from the arcane incantation, watched as the space before him began to unravel.
It wasn't a tear, nor a rent, but a slow, deliberate blooming. Imagine a soap bubble, but instead of rainbow hues reflecting on its surface, it held the swirling depths of a nebula.
The initial shimmer coalesced into a perfect circle, a frame of pure, crackling energy that pulsed with a soft, rhythmic hum. This frame wasn't a harsh, blinding light, but a gentle, ethereal glow, like moonlight filtering through the finest silk.
Within the circle, the nebula-like depths swirled, not chaotically, but in a mesmerizing dance of celestial blues, violet whispers, and the softest, star-golds.
It was as if a slice of the night sky, a fragment of the cosmos itself, had been carefully extracted and placed before them.
Tendrils of pure light, like captured starlight, reached out from the portal's edge, tracing delicate patterns in the air before retracting, as if testing the boundaries of their newly formed reality.
The air around the portal grew cool, a gentle breeze carrying the faint scent of ozone and something else, something indescribable, like the echo of distant stars.
Jahanox froze at the beautiful sight Infront of him he looked at Zazm who was smiling with satisfaction at his reaction, "I know you have questions and I'll answer them all but for now let's go."
Jahanox looked back at Zazm and then back at the portal he couldn't believe what he was seeing, his eyes were still widened in shock. With a low voice he finally spoke looking towards Zazm.
"Zazm.....the hell is that?" Zazm's smile brighted even more as his eyes glowed with intrigue, he opened his arms and spoke in a mighty tone.
"Behold.... The portal of teleportation made by yours truly."
Pfft... Jahanox let out a small laugh before he walked closer to the portal Zazm opened he got close to it and started investigating it.
He turned back to Zazm to ask for confirmation once again but as he turned back. He didn't met the carefree smile and gaze of Zazm.
Instead he met with a front kick to his stomach that made him fly into the portal.
"AHHH WH--" Jahanox shouted at the sudden pain and sudden push by Zazm.
"It's the revenge for yesterday you asshole." Zazm replied to him with a grin and jumped with him in the portal.
---
Jahanox slowly opened his eyes as he found himself laying on the ground, he looked up to see Zazm standing there, Zazm smiled at him and spoke in a mocking tone.
"Oh, you're up. I thought a single kick killed you." Jahanox quickly got up and dusted his clothes, he looked around him only to be left in utter surprise, they were standing at the same top of mountain.
He looked at Zazm still smiling, "I swear if it wasn't for yesterday I would've paid you back for that kick."
Zazm laughed slightly and continued to walk towards the railing, the sun had already set and it was time to reveal the secrets. Zazm started speaking and everything made Jahanox more and more surprised.
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