Villain's Second Heart: Trapped in A Fantasy Novel (BL)-Chapter 21: Welcome Home

"I want to get in touch with a Magician in Asteria. How can we make it happen?"

"Hmm...and why would you want to do a thing like that?" Rav's tail curled upward with twitching curiosity.

"Just tell me how, Rav. Preferably in a way that doesn't get me harvested or killed."

"What's the matter? Someone stole your watch or something?"

"Well, he tried to steal my heart...but -"

"Tried to steal your heart?" Rav smirked. He could read Ezra like a book - Rav's discerning eyes missed nothing. They were an even better judge of emotions than Deek's keen ears.

"You're in luck. See, I'm one of the lucky Magicians who fulfilled my debt to the king, so I can come and go to Asteria as I please. The real issue is you. Sensory types will know you're coming from a mile away, so we'd need to find a way to mask that unholy abomination you've got stuck in your chest."

"And how do we do that?"

"Tch."

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Rav waved his fan in Ezra's face. "I said one question a day. Why don't you ask me tomorrow?"

"Hey, that's not fair!"

"Fair? I just offered you a home in paradise, and a small fortune. I think we're plenty square."

Ezra drooped his head.

Rav stewed for a moment before breaking. "Fine, fine. I had plans to go to Asteria in three days. THREE days. We should be able to prepare everything we need by then. Can you handle that? Three days without seeing this 'Magician in Asteria'?"

"His name's Oberyn," Ezra said. "And...I guess I can wait three days."

Three days. Was it really that abnormal to go three days without seeing a friend? Ezra didn't think so...and yet the idea of three whole days crushed him. Even three more hours felt unreasonable.

He wanted to see Oberyn again - even if it was just to ensure the Nephilim made it back to Asteria safely. And he hoped that Oberyn wasn't in any trouble for failing to bring back his Second Heart.

'Three days...will he even remember me by then?' Oberyn wondered.

"Alright, that's enough moping. Ready to check out your new home, Ezra?"

Ezra looked around the village. It didn't seem like the kind of place a 'pagoda' would be - it was a huge, bustling place, but the buildings were small and compact.

"Oh, I don't live here," Rav winked. "I live all the way up there."

He pointed, in the distance, bringing his head close to Ezra's to help him spot it.

They looked to the tall mountain looming over the Ferin Village, which was nestled in the foothills.

All the way at the top of the tall and flat mountain - that was Ezra's new home. Ezra squinted and saw a shape. It was too far to make out, but it was some kind of manmade structure.

"That's CRAZY far away, Rav!" Ezra exclaimed. "It'll take us all day to get up there!"

"No, it would take you all day. Thankfully you're with me. Time for you to learn why they call me the 'Sage of the Clouds'."

Rav clacked his fan open and began to move rhythmically along with it, tracing delicate shapes in the air. Slowly, fluffy white clouds began to form around them - puffy, with a physicality to them. The clouds gathered in a ball and lifted both Rav and Ezra up off the ground, and they began to hover ten, twenty feet into the air.

Ezra looked around in amazement - he never imagined he could experience something like this. REAL magic - floating, enchanted clouds, summoned up in an instant by a catboy Magician!

Now this was a fantasy novel.

Ezra peeped over the edge of the cloud. He saw the Ferin people pointing and gesturing joyfully at the cloud. They've clearly seen this magic before - and they know it's Rav's.

"So, why does everyone respect you so much?" Ezra asked. More and more clouds formed together, making their floating pillow of fluff even bigger.

"I know I said one question a day, but that's my favorite thing to talk about, so I guess I'll break the rule. Eight years ago, when I was a wee boy of fourteen..."

"...I saved the world."

"Wait, wha-"

But before Ezra could get the words out, the true purpose of Rav's magic activated. With a colossal shift that sent Ezra flying back onto the cloud, they began to fly through the air at impossible speeds.

Ezra, never one to love heights, did the only thing he could.

Scream like hell.

They flew through the air like a bullet - faster than a speeding train, at superspeed. Ezra screamed and screamed until suddenly they came to an abrupt stop. The cloud underneath him popped, and he started to fall.

He was sure he was going to die, but instead he fell just a few inches and landed on a tuft of fluffy grass.

"No way, we're already here...?"

"Oh, did you want it to take longer? You seemed like you had quite enough fun."

Ezra ignored the comment as he looked up at what was to be his new home.

A magnificent spire greeted him that reached ten stories tall, a series of cascading floors with walkways connecting each level, unshielded from the elements. The entire tower had a beautiful indoor/outdoor design, growing out of the lush ecosystem on top of the mountain as if the tower had always been there.

Behind the tower, another structure was connected via a painted wood bridge, leading to a den or amphitheater of some sort.

And all around them was a beautifully maintained garden that covered as far as they could see - the full top of the mountain was a paradise of water and life. Frogs croaked in the pond, and trees chirped in the trees.

It was much cooler up here than down below, too - a perfect 'room temperature'.

"Welcome home," Rav said, holding out his arms. Ezra stepped forward, in complete awe.

"Oh, this is gonna be awesome."