Roads of Destiny Part Two

Fifteen years later...

                   A girl with brown hair and hazel eyes was running down a school hallway. She was new to the school and had no clue where she was going. Stepping wrong, she tripped and skidded along the floor. A boy with brown hair and blue-green eyes noticed this happen.
         "Damn it... First day and I'm late for my first class. Great job, Jojo," she grumbled to herself, retrieving her supplies. The boy came over and started helping her out. Getting up, she bowwed slightly. "Thanks for the help. Could you tell me how to get to English 201?"
         "Sure. I could walk you there if you like." Jojo smiled. Finally, something going right.
         "That'd be great. I'm Josephine. You can call me Jojo."
         "I'm Mathew. Call me Matt...It's wierd but it feels like I've met you before..."
         "Nope. I'm new. Just moved here." Matt looked her over. She had a nice body and wasn't ugly. This would probably be the only time he'd be able to talk to a girl like this without being called a pervert or something. In his mind's eye, he saw how disgustingly fat he was and how blemished his face was, inwardly repulsed with himself. Jojo looked at him, a look crossing her face that Matt had little experience before. It wasn't scorn or disgust. Those he knew by heart. It was something else, acceptence maybe. Or even kindness. Whatever it was, it made Matt want to get to know her more even worse now.
         "So, when's your lunch period?" he asked nonchalantly, hoping it was the same as his. He pointed her down the next hallway, ever-closer to the class she was late for and the class he was ditching today.
         "Uhhh..." She rooted around in her purse, dropping half of her books before tugging a crumpled paper from inside a broken compact. "Here it is." She uncrumpled the paper as Matt looked over her shoulder. They didn't have the same lunch period but if he laid out a new route to classes and timed it right, he could see her every passing period.
         "Okay. I'd like to see you again. How's after this period sound?" he asked, praying to anyone who would listen to help him out. She looked him in the eyes, and it seemed she was reading through his mind. Before those piercing eyes, he felt stark-naked.
         "Alright," she finally said. "See ya around, Matt." She walked into her class without another look at him. Matt walked down the hall a minute and stopped.
         "Yes!" he yelled, overjoyed to finally have things go his way. A teacher poked his head out the door. It was Matt's bio teacher that he was suppose to be in class for right now.
         "Mathew Night. I see you're late. Or were you attempting to ditch my class again?"
         "No, Mr. Kelsey," he grumbled, shuffling into class. "Just helping out a new student." He smiled to himself. A hot, sexy, interesting new student he might have a chance with.
         An hour later, Matt rushed out of Biology, held back for his 3rd tardy. He zigzagged his way over to Jojo's class, afraid she already left. A friend of his called him over.
         "Yo, Matt! Got a message for ya!" Matt walked over after making sure Jojo was nowhere to be found. "Very fine piece of ass left this for you, big guy. Trying to get some quality action without letting me know?" The friend joked as he handed him a note. He opened it to find it written in some wierd doodles.
         "Funny," he remarked, highly annoyed. "Where's the real message?" The friend held out another paper.
         "The chick who left that said you may need a key." Matt took it to find each doodle corresponding to a letter. Absentmindedly thanking the friend, Matt headed off for study hall to decipher the message. About halfway through the class period, he finally got it.

Matt,
There are things beyond what you think you see and know. If you're willing to find these out, meet me in the old cemetary at Midnight. Come alone and bring a rose.
Jojo
P.S. Learn this code well. It is how I will write you from now on.

         "Old cemetary, rose, and come alone. I fell for a witch," he groaned. But deep down, he wanted to find out what she had to say since he felt there was more to this world that he knew. "Okay, you sexy seductress. I'll meet you tonight."

         Matt crept in and out of the crumbling tombstones, a white rose in hand. He didn't know why but he felt compelled to buy this last white rose instead one of the dozens of red roses at the flower store. The moon lazily peeked around wool-blanket clouds that painted the sky a faint hue of imperial purple. Somewhere farther into town, the church clock rung out midnight. There was faint shouting ahead, in the trees that acted as a boundary to the cemetary. Quietly moving closer, he met a sight that he couldn't believe. It was Jojo, white dragonwings unfurled from her bare back, fighting a creature Matt only saw in his unusually vivid nightmares. Its grimy claws flashed in the flamelight of the black-green flames that engulfed it. It fell to the ground, obviously dead. Jojo walked over to the creature and tore its head off with her bare hands. Then, all the body parts vanished along with Jojo's wings. Matt backed up, horrified. What the hell did I just witness? raced through his head as he buried himself in the shadows. He watched as Jojo slowly picked her way through the undergrowth until she was next to the bushes he was hiding in.
         "You can come out now, Matt," she said quietly. It was as if she knew he had watched the exchange she was just in. "There are no more demons in the area tonight." Matt carefully came out in front of her, making sure to go the long way in case he had to hide again. Jojo gave him a few feet of space between them when he finally revealed himself. "You're wondering what you just saw in the clearing, aren't you?" Matt mutely nodded, afraid the wrong answer would result in his head being ripped off. "I am a person you can call a sorceress or mage. It's the best word for our kind. And you are our kind."
         "What do you mean 'our kind?' I'm not a... a... thing like you!" he cried, appaled at such an accusation.
         "Yes you are. You are Saigith, Divinity Mage of the Cardinal Magic of Love. You're over-due to come into your birth-right." Matt looked sceptical. "What if I told you by coming into your birth-right, your body became perfect? I can see it etched in your mind that you're repulsed by your own appearance. You feel no woman worth going after would even take a second look at you because of a few minor details. When you are this, appearance is a very minor detail. Not to mention, you'll be able to talk any person into letting you do anything or into giving you whatever you desire." Matt mulled this prospect over. Some of the things she said hit so close to home, it hurt. And it wouldn't hurt to talk his teachers into giving him good grades.
         "You have me convinced," he finally said, not truely convinced with the claims she made. "How do I 'come into my birth-right' for this?" Jojo came up to Matt, inches from his face. Leaning in, she pulled him into a gentle yet demanding kiss. Something seemed to swell in the center of his chest and explode through his body. He harshly broke the kiss, gasping for air. His hand fisted over the point in his chest where if felt like a bomb had went off inside him.
         "Love is drawn by Hope, which I wield." She softly took his hand and slid it under her shirt. Matt blushed slightly as she guided his hand to a spot right between her breasts. The skin under his fingers seemed to pulse, filling him with a sense of invincibility. He was giddy and happy, and he could take on the world. Jojo let go of his hand, and it slid out to rest at his side. It seemed to tingle from where it had sat against her skin. "What you felt is the residue of using my powers so recently from my seat of power. Where it feels like you exploded from is your own seat of power. Hope is intoxicating for someone who isn't born to use it. That reminds me." Everything around them seemed to melt away to show a lake under a sunset. "This is the after-world. This is where we go when we die in the living world. You have to skinny-dip in that lake to take your after-world appearance with you into the living world." She guided him to the edge and had him look down. The reflection staring back at him was breathtaking. Perfectly toned muscle rippled over tanned skin. His hair had become silky and reddish-brown. But his eyes blew him away. They were ocean blue that swirled with midnight purple and had what seemed to be spring green lightning that flashed through at random moments. They never looked the same for long. Matt got the urge to shrug his shoulders and when he did, wings made of delicate glass and painted in the sunset's palette fanned out behind him. Matt leaned closer, suddenly uncomfortable in his normally comfy loose clothes. Not caring who might be watching, he stripped off his clothes and stood naked before the water. His reflection showed him favorably endowed, more than enough to satisfy even the hard-core sex-addict. He couldn't stand it anymore. Matt dove into the water, its pleasent warmth rushing to greet every part of his body. But he felt no change to himself. He pulled himself out of the water, disappointed. He looked at Jojo, who watched the entire scene with an air of detached duty. She dutifully held up brand new clothes to him. "You're old ones will fall right off of you," was all she said. Matt looked down to see she was right. Everything he saw in the reflection was now in the flesh. Matt strode over to Jojo and pulled her into a passionate kiss, entralled with his new appearance.
         "I think I love you," he said softly.
         "That's just residue. It'll wear off," she answered lazily, relaxed in his arms. Matt just grinned and kissed Jojo again.

         Matt awoke the next morning with a headache. He didn't remember getting home after the events from last night. In fact... He lifted his head to see he was in an unfamiliar room. A hand-painted mural of a battle involving people, dragons, and those creatures Jojo called demons heralded from the walls. He lay on a dark green couch with super-soft pillows and a crocheted blanket.
         "I figured letting you go home last night would be ill-advised. I still have to lay glamour on you so the changes aren't all at once to others. Being a princess means I never had to do that. I was born this way." Matt whipped around to see Jojo in a billowy pastel yellow dress sipping on a cup of tea. The yellow made her seem to glow in the muted morning light. "But we do have practice this morning so get dressed in the clothes on the coffee table." She got up and left the room. "And it's not a dress. It's a mage's robe. You have one too," she added behind her. Matt shrugged on the robe and wandered out of the room to see not another soul in the entire house. He finally found the back door to a fenced-in paradise. Jojo waited for him near the door, wind fingering through her robe and hair.
         "Do you live alone?" Matt asked as he walked out the door.
         "Does it bother you? I live with a  fellow mage since my living-world parents abandoned me at an early age and I sued them for everything they were worth over child abandonment and neglect." She said it with no emotion, as if she was running off the day's stock report. "Now, come up close to me." Matt warily approached, remembering the pull of Hope to Love. But as he got closer, he felt just the normal sexual attraction that being a red-blooded American male was all about. Not moving an inch, Jojo stared at Matt and he went flying into a tree. "This is only a fraction of what you could do. Now, up and at the ready. Imagine a wall between you and me." Jojo waited for Matt to get up. When he was up, she stared again and Matt only slid a few feet. "Make your wall from a stronger material. Up and at the ready." Matt gingerly got back up and dusted his robe off. Jojo went again and Matt didn't move this time. "All right! Now, attack me in your mind." They went back and forth like that all morning. Sweat ran from Matt's brow as he drug himself into the house. He barely reached the couch before he passed out. When he woke up, he was sprawled out on his bed at home with a note taped to his forehead.
Saigith,
The glamour was set on you and will wear away in the next few weeks. Rest up cause tonight I take you demon-hunting.
Aurora
Matt crumpled the note and it vanished from his hands. He was getting better at using his power. Grinning, he rolled over to get some more sleep.

         Jojo met him with a hug when he showed up that night. She had on her robes from earlier. Running her hand over him, his own robes appeared on him.
         "I have another student I need you to meet. He's a little more advanced than you but you're a quick learner. Come on over, Doyle." Out of the shadows stepped a young man whose black waves of hair that brushed his shoulders were darker than the shadows around him. His emerald eyes gleemed in the dark, cat's eyes sizing up the situation. "Drop your camoflauge, Doyle. It's not needed before allies." Gradually, the shadows faded to show the area well-lit by streetlights nearby. Now Matt could properly see that he was toned for hand-to-hand combat and tan, probably asian blood somewhere in his bloodline mixed with latin. Shimmering from his neckline was a tiny celtic trinity knot behind the Celtic Tree of Knowledge pendent. He wore robes like Matt and Jojo but where Matt's were flame and Jojo's were pale yellow in color, his were deep blue, almost like sapphires. All Matt could do was stare. This was like a god in living form where looks were concerned.
         "I see I've made an impression. If it's good or bad remains to be told," he said quietly, his voice a rich barotone that seemed to come from a figure of authority that wished to remain anonymous to the people he stood before. Matt started to feel the irisistible urge to run his hands all over that beautiful body and make that barotone sing his name in hot extascy.
         "Now Matt, pay attention. Demons can look like any normal person until they can't control their tendences any more. Then they become the thing of nightmares. A mass of mismatched body parts, demons are wingless creature created from the polluted souls of serial killers, serial rapists, and other repeat offenders of the base human principles. That means you are to hold no emotion killing these creatures. Now, we hunt demons." Jojo led them into the night. She took them up to a house. Matt recognized the car as Mr. Kelsey's beat-up Focus. "This is the first one of the night. I've been watching him for a while now and it has been confirmed that he is a demon. Private classification."
         "What's that mean?" Matt asked, lost with the classification she gave his Biology teacher.
         "It's military rank titles we use for classifying how powerful a demon is." She went up to the door and rang the bell.
         "We're demon hunting and you just ring the bell as if this was a social call?" Matt's head swam with the illogic of it. Doyle turned to look Matt in the eyes and Matt felt something start to respond to that gaze.
         "There are too many mortals in the area to out-right attack. So we look like students looking for extra help or doing a fundraiser," Doyle grumbled. "Our ability of suggestion won't work on him very well but three on one will get him to let us in out of mortal sight." The door opened and Mr. Kelsey poked his head out the door.
         "Mathew Night, what are you..." He looked at the other two and how all three were dressed. The color drained from him face and he moved to close the door.
         "Charles, do let us in. We'd like to talk to you," Jojo said, power dripping from her words. Mr. Kelsey froze in spot, unwilling to move. Jojo pushed past him with the other two in tow. He finally came to his senses and closed the door. "Now, shall we do this the nice way or the difficult way?" He snarled at her, his features melting into the horrific mixture of a demon's. "I take that as the difficult way." Jojo's dragon wings fanned out as Doyle grew white feathered wings at the same time. Magic crackled through the air from being charged to a rather dangerous point. Mr. Kelsey the demon charged Matt, only a breath of time for a reaction. Snap-charging his magic, he unleashed a deadly wave of fire at his teacher. Matt clutched his seat of power from forcefully taking from it as Doyle beheaded Charles. The barrier between the realms opened and took the demon's body from the living realm. Wings rustled then vanished, magic no longer needed. "Not bad. For your first demon," Jojo complimented.

         Days turned into weeks, and weeks melted into monthes. Matt/Saigith was getting better at demon-hunting and was spotting them better dispite their camoflauge. Every demon took out helped battle the imbalance of darkness and light. But the imbalance in the after-world was finally blantent in the living world. Corrupt politicians kill the people with baseless taxes and impromptu laws to protect themselves. International leaders becoming bloodthirsty and money-hungry on their starving citizens. No country is left untouched by the dark hand sweeping the world with its poison. It was on one such grisly day that Matt mentioned it.
         "Hey, Jojo. You said a princess of either throne must be a split soul. But you're pure good. Why's that?" he asked her after charging the bullets they stole from the police station to return as help for their fight.
         "I'm the last. All lines end with me. I will either die before reaching the throne or I will kill the opposing kingdom." She finished stitching the gash in his robe and handed it over to him.
         "You said 'opposing kingdom' as if you're not sure which throne you'll ascend to," Doyle said between bites of take-out chinese food. "You're not evil."
         "That's because there is still a chance I could become a blackmage before I ascend. Nothing more." Matt flicked on the television to watch the news. Their best demon leads came from the nine o'clock news nowadays since he moved out of his parents house with Jojo as his legal guardian (she could forge papers like a pro, thanks to her abilities). It turned out Doyle was the fellow mage Jojo had mentioned before. The anchorwoman came on the screen in the middle of a sitcom the was all the rage currently.
         "This is a special bulletion fron the Channel 8 news. What appears to be monsters have started flooding all the country's major cities. They are stumping scientists since they are no known species. Instead they look to be a jumble of many animals. But you must stay inside if you see these creatures. They are highly dangerous and attack people on sight. We would have live coverage for you but... three of these creatures attacked our reporter and... devoured him. The armed forces have been deployed to deal with the situation. So we stress, stay indoors. For the safety of all, stay inside." The screen went to snow, no sitcom coming back on. Jojo shut off the television and walked over to the door, her robes billowing in the non-existent breeze.
         "Time to let the people know what they're going up against. Let's go boys." Jojo lead them out into the streets where chaos ran unchecked. Demons swarmed the area, all in their primal state of nightmares. Doyle got closer to the other two.
         "We're gonna die out here. There's too many of them for us to fight all alone," he whimpered, showing uncharacteristic cowardice.
         "We're all dying. We just don't know when it's done until it does us in," Jojo said, a black void of emotion sweeping through her tone. "We need to get to the news station and broadcast a public message." She turned them down alleys and dark shadows to avoid most of the demons. There were a few that they had to take care of to continue but that was to be expected. They made it without major incident, unless you count Matt having his arm cut open for the hundredth time a major incident. Jojo placed herself in front of the cameras, much to the anchorwoman's indignation. "Don't go to commercial while I say this or those things outside will be the least of your problems," she said to the entire station. The "on-air" light flashed twice to show they understood fully. "People, listen up. I'm breaking the ancient code of silence to save your lives. I am a mage, a person who uses magic. You can refuse to believe if you wish but the demons outside your house prove otherwise. Those hellish creatures attacking our cities are called demons and they will rule us all if we don't reclaim our world. You must burn them or remove their heads to kill them. Doing both covers all bases to make sure they're dead. But you alone can't kill the black ones. Only a mage can do that. So get out there and start protecting your home, your country, and your very lives. We will not let them win!" She twisted her hands and her signature black-green flames raced up her arms. "Any questions?" When the fire went out, so did all the cameras.
         "Now, who the hell are you?" the anchorwoman yelled as Jojo walked towards the door with Matt and Doyle. She turned back to the woman, the temperture in the room dropping to freezing at her scorn.
         "Your last hope." Outside, people were torching demons while others hacked off their heads in an attempt to reclaim thier way of life. Jojo ran out to flame a black demon that was attacking the people trying to get out of town. Spinning to see Matt in trouble, she paniked.
         "Mathew!" she cried, running towards him. Blood from a gash on her head streamed down her face as the demon came up behind her and grabbed the ground. Matt saw the pavement come up, leaving Jojo without a chance to stop.
         "Josephine!" he screamed as she sailed through the air. Her head bounced ounce upon landing with a stomach-churning crunch and she lay still. In a jolt of pain, Matt felt his power rush forth and impale the demon before it could take form and disappear into the mass of innocents running by. Matt rushed to Jojo's side. His magick hummed through his body, energized by being near the one he loved. He gently cradled her head in his lap, something warm and wet soaking through his robes. He moved her slightly to see blood gushing from an area with something pinkish and wrinkly. "Jojo. Stay awake for me," he whimpered, knowing that she was probably going to die in his arms.
         "Matt?" she asked weakly, barely able to keep her eyes focused on him and open. "I'm dying, ain't I?"
         "You said before we're all dying. Now, just sing for me until Doyle comes to heal you so you stay awake. Then you'll be fine," he lied, just wanting to hear her sing for him. One last performance of her talents.
         "Like what?" Her head lolled to the side for a brief moment.
         "Anything you desire to hear, Jojo."
         "I will remember you. Will you remember me?" Her eyes shut as she struggled to continue. "Don't let... your life... pass... you by. Thank... God... for... the memories." She whispered the last, slipping away. Matt prodded a little, afraid to shake her in the slim chance she was just unconsious. His hand instinctively moved to the seat of her power. Before, he always felt giddy and joyful when he came in contact with it, ready to sieze the day. Now, it was just skin under his fingers. He moved over to her heart. It still beat away, slowly and faintly. Ba-bum, ba-bum, ba... It never finished the third beat. He snuggled his face in her hair, searing her blood all over himself. But he didn't care. His demon-murdered girlfriend cradled against his body, he gently rocked her back and forth as a father would do a sleeping child. Though his eyes were open, they saw nothing but the loss in his arms. Doyle picked him off the ground and walked him away from the body. He was merely a puppet at this point, someone else in control of his movements. Demons continued to be destroyed for the next week. His lifeless body was found a week later hanging from his bedroom ceiling, wrists sliced open and an empty poison bottle at his feet. No note was ever found.