Tom and Seb waited anxiously, expecting to feel the explosion that would
kill them and all their neighbours, anticipating the split second of
excruciating pain and subsequent death that would come from the blast.
When that didn't happen, they stayed where they were, fearing their
movement might cause the mysterious agents that arrested Tom during their
shared vision to appear and apprehend him again. By about 5 o'clock, they
both realised they were safe on both counts, and began to relax slowly.
Seb sighed and pulled Tom close to his chest, drawing circles over his
"Do you think we're in the clear?" Seb asked, trepidation dripping from
his words, "I mean, nothing happened after the earthquake, and there's no
sign of your kidnappers. Is it over?"
Tom sat in thought for a moment, contemplating the likelihood of their
terrifying vision being a one off. In his experience, these kinds of
things don't just go away. He was worried that the underlying objective
of whatever was behind the bizarre events of the vision was not avoided
by his and Seb's efforts, and that another such attempt to capture Tom
At that moment, as if in response to his fears, a sinister voice echoed
around the room, practically hissing as it spoke to Tom.
*You will never be safe Tomas Daryk, we will never stop. We will have
you, Witch, and your soul's mortal equal. We will stop at nothing to
possess your power, it is futile to resist us. You are one of the last
wielders of Magic, one of the last to possess Kayl's Gift. Today was your
final day of freedom, your final chance to know peace. Tomorrow our
pursuit truly begins. Tomorrow we will claim our prize. Enjoy these final
hours with your soulmate, for tomorrow will be the end of both of you.*
"What the fuck was that!?" Tom exclaimed, panic swiftly taking over him
as he noticed Sebastyn's puzzled expression. "You heard that, right?"
"Heard what? I didn't hear anything." Sebastyn replied.
"That voice! It said it will never stop until it gets me, that today is
my last day of freedom and it will get me tomorrow. It sounded like it
knew about my vision, about my powers." Seb paled, the reality of Tom's
revelation dawning on him.
"What!? So, it's not over yet? What are we going to do?" Seb cried. "What
if we just stay here, wait it out and hope everything just blows over?"
"I don't think that will work. It managed to contact me here, it must
know where I am." Tom paused, trying to decide whether or not to share
just how much the voice seemed to know. Making up his mind, he continued,
"Also, it mentioned you, called you my soulmate and said it will come for
you too. I'm so sorry I brought you into this Seb, maybe if I leave now
and try to get out of town, you'll be sa-"
"No. I knew what I was getting into when I went looking for you this
morning. I won't let you do this alone, we're in this together. Besides,
how can you possibly stand against the magical Mafia without your
soulmate?" Seb grinned, stopping Tom's plea in its tracks. Tom gave Seb a
tight smile, mind already focussing on another important detail.
"The voice said something about me being one of the last people that has
magic, one of the few that have 'Kayl's Gift'. What could that mean?"
Seb looked pensively at the wall for a moment before bursting out, "Do
you think it has something to do with Axyl and Zayk Kayl? They were
"Of course! That makes a lot of sense, but then again, they had full
blown magic, they could conjure things and manipulate matter. And their
power was transferrable. Toby Drake and Dylin Malfoy became Witches too,
after they bonded with the Kayl twins. I don't see you conjuring anything
or blasting holes in walls..." Tom trailed off, a bemused grimace on his
"Yeah, but I shared your vision, maybe you imprinted on me when you saw
me before the gas tank exploded. Or maybe your gift is different, more
mental than physical, and it's transferred in a more subtle way..." Seb
argued, "Because Toby and Axyl were obviously soulmates, and apparently
the disembodied voice you just heard thinks we're soulmates too. Maybe in
our case the magic is transferred less obviously because of the mental
"I mean, there's so little we actually know about what happened with the
whole Toby Drake incident, so we're really just running blind with all
this." Seb visibly deflated, having run out of steam. What he was
referring to was quite true, though.
After Toby Drake and his adopted family unceremoniously vanished, evading
being captured by a large number of government and law enforcement
agencies, any information on the identities and abilities of the
'anomalies', as they were officially designated, was heavily suppressed
and classified. The events that precipitated the inevitable exodus were
quietly denied to have ever occurred, and were conveniently explained as
natural disasters where denial failed.
As is the nature of top secret information, regardless of the level of
protection guarding its release, a comprehensive account of the Toby
Drake saga was leaked onto the internet, and everybody that wished to
know what actually happened could access it where and whenever they
wanted, if they knew where to look. So while Toby's story wasn't well
known or widespread, a large number of people had knowledge the
governments of the world most certainly did not want them to have. And
the nature of forbidden knowledge is that, once known, it becomes like a
virus and allows to be spread.
News travels fast in Hogwarts, after all, and when magic is involved
there tends to be a significant amount of supernatural influence in said
"I've got to call Jake and see if he's ok, then I think we should get
some sleep. There's no use delaying the inevitable. Let's not borrow
drama. Worrying about something before it happens just means you suffer
twice." Tom hoped he could heed his own words, bringing up Jake's number
on his phone. Pressing dial, he waited for the phone to connect.
"Sorry, the number you have called has been disconnected. Please check
the number and try again." Tom's stomach sank.
"Umm, Jake's phone is disconnected. Maybe I should go back to my unit and
"Dude, are you sure? It could be a trap, or he might have just run out of
battery..." said Seb, trying not to panic at the idea of Tom leaving his
apartment. "It's 12:30 anyway, he's probably asleep.. and the voice did
say it's coming 'tomorrow', technically it's tomorrow now."
At that moment Tom's phone rang, startling them. "It's Jake! But how? I
only called, like, 30 seconds ago.."
"Answer it, there's only one way to find out what's happening!" cried
Seb. When Tom pressed the button to answer the call, a screeching sound
filled the room, bringing both boys to their knees.
"Hey Tommy, it's a shame you didn't make it home tonight, I've got some
friends here that are really looking forward to meeting you." Jake's
voice boomed out of the speaker, mixing with the screeching to give the
feeling of nails on a chalkboard. Seb and Tom grit their teeth while
trying to block out the grating sounds. "After all these years Tommy,
you'd think you'd know when I need you to come home, but apparently
you're too busy with your new Witch slut. That's why I'm glad I met these
friends of mine. Together we're going to eradicate you freaks and save
the world from your evil. I'm just sorry I couldn't do it myself, but my
job was to make sure you didn't meet that Black cunt. Aww well, at least
now we can kill two birds with one stone. Now don't you boys move, we'll
be there very soon." And with that Jake hung up. Seb looked at Tom,
concerned for his lover. Tom looked ready to collapse in on himself,
tears just barely being held back.
"But... How, when? I've known Jake for most of my life, how could he..."
Sebastyn tried to calm Tom down, get his mind on the urgency of the
situation. It wasn't an easy job, and Seb wanted to scream and rage,
himself, but logic won out. He calmly soothed, "Ok love, we've got to go,
they're not far away and they're coming now. I know he was your friend
"HE WAS MY BEST FRIEND! FOR 15 YEARS I'VE HELPED HIM THROUGH WHATEVER HE
NEEDED, NEVER ASKING FOR ANYTHING IN RETURN, AND THIS IS WHAT HE FUCKING
DOES TO ME!!" Tom screamed, and bright tendrils of power crackled off of
him, smashing glasses and windows. The shockwave from his outburst
reverberated around the room, only stopping it's destructive path when it
hit Seb. Seb could feel the potent magical force sink into his body,
pulse through his veins like a drug. He quickly and instinctively went to
Tom and hugged him close, feeling Tom's uncontrolled despair and raw
power balancing with his own, a raging tempest meeting a calm ocean. When
their errant magic was contained, their heads were clear enough to
register the immediate problem of getting as far away from Jake and,
presumably, the agents from their shared vision.
Their problem was solved quickly, albeit in an unusual way. Tom's magical
tantrum had blown part of the front wall out, giving them direct access
to the front of the building. As Seb only lived on the 3rd floor, they
easily made it onto the street. Tom turned back to check that they
weren't being followed, and not seeing anyone tailing them, breathed a
sigh of relief. His relief was short lived, however, as he remembered the
scale of their predicament.
"No, I know that look. We're free and safe right now, and that's the main
thing. What was it you said? Don't borrow drama? Your energy is better
spent finding a place to hide, then fucking me deep and hard until you're
cumming dry." Seb quipped, the shit eating grin on his face plainly
visible even in the darkness of the street.
"How dare you use my own spells against me, Black! You'll pay for that!"
Tom shot back, trying in vain to stifle his own smirk.
"Bring it on Daryk. I can take you, easy."
Their banter continued on into the early morning, the only signs of the
immense danger they were in being the furtive glances into the shifting
At approximately 5:30am they were met with what would be a significant
advantage in their fight. Well, it met with them. At great speed...