Kory Williams had been his best friend since primary school. They met in grade five when Eli was new to the school. They had bonded over video games and had stuck together ever since. They had had other friends of course, but while some left and others joined Eli and Kory never parted. That wasn't to say they didn't fight, of course, they did. Sometimes those fights would be so bad they wouldn't talk to each other for weeks, but they always made up.
About six months ago, Kory's mother got a job, a really good job, far away from the town he and Eli lived in. Eli had seen him once since the move, during the school holidays, but it hadn't been for long. He missed his friend and had found that hanging around with his other friends wasn't as fun.
It was so strange, seeing a person he missed so dearly standing in front of him with no idea who he was. Despite all their similarities, everything Korian did was so different from Kory, even the way he walked and held himself. Kory was shy around strangers, but this man was so confident, as if he knew no one could face up to him. It was surprisingly intimidating.
He sat at yet another table having yet another confusing conversation that he could barely understand. Korian was saying things in whatever language they spoke in Arumni, Amos struggling to translate words into English. He obviously didn't know much, giving up at times just because he didn't know the word.
The pair explained that just as the people in Arumni seemed to be the exact opposite of their counterparts on Earth, the world was the opposite too. For one thing, there was magic. Korian said it flowed through everything, it's what kept the land alive, what kept the people alive.
All the people of Arumni could draw upon the magic to a certain degree, allowing them to do simple things like gain strength or flexibility, or even make a meal taste just that little bit better. There were people, known only as Mages, who could wield such magic with much more power than others. They drained it from the land and bent it to their will, allowing them to do unimaginable things. Amos told the story of how Korian once lifted a fallen tree off a man with the help of the land's magic.
As a Mage himself, Korian explained that it was meant to used in a cycle. Any magic taken from the land must be returned, otherwise, the land would begin to wilt. That made Eli stop, thinking back to the dead forest he had traversed two days beforehand. He questioned it, wondering why the land was so ill.
Amos and Korian shared a glance, the former rubbing his hands together in what looked to be worry. Eyebrows furrowing, Eli looked between the two, trying to get an answer out of them. The answer he was eventually given made him wish he had never asked in the first place.
A powerful Mage, one much more powerful than Korian or any other Mage in the realm, had taken control. He was draining to magic from the whole realm, bit by bit, and never once returning it. The Mage had desired to become stronger and stronger, the force of the magic having corrupted him until he had become undefeatable. The land was dying as a result, the death spreading outwards, the castle the Mage lived in becoming the epicentre.
The Mage was Eli, or at least, his Arumni counterpart. He felt the colour drain from his face at the information. A man with his face was destroying an entire world, killing people, trying to kill him. Eli's mind was filled with images of his own face in the mirror, realising then that it must have been the Mage version of himself. It explained the reaction the people in the village had had when they saw him, a man who looked like the Mage that was destroying the world. He would have run away too.
He ran one hand through his hair and down his face, the other playing with the edge of his tunic. Once again he wanted to vomit, the overload of information making him feel nauseous. They let him have a few minutes to wrap his head around everything. Amos gave him a flask of water, most of which he gulped down as soon as he got a hold of it.
When he had regained his composure it was Korian's turn to ask the questions. Eli had to explain what exactly had happened the night he had arrived, going into detail about what the two men had looked like. Korian didn't seem to recognise the men when Eli described them, his lips pursed and eyebrows furrowed.
Eli answered everything he was asked, despite still having his own questions that desperately needed answering and wanting more time to think. He explained how he got away from his attackers, how he got to the village, what he knew about Arumni. He had even been asked if he had heard of it before he arrived, the answer only being a sharp shake of his head.
Korian was halfway through a question Eli probably wouldn't have been able to answer when he decided to interrupt with one of his own. Why had he been attacked in the first place? He was on the other side of the mirror, what reason could his counterpart have to try and kill him?
It had been bugging him since he had started talking with Amos and Korian. Actually, if he was being completely honest it had been annoying him for far longer than that, probably since he had been attacked. Nothing made sense to him, even after some of his questions had been answered. There just always seemed to be more and more he needed to know.
Once again the pair seemed hesitant to answer, this time having a conversation among themselves. They spoke quietly, angrily, having an argument between themselves in a language Eli was sure he would never understand even if he could hear them clearly. Eli bit his lip, desperately wanting to interrupt again, to demand the answers he needed.
Before he could say anything, Korian slammed a hand on the table with a dull thud, making the boy jump back in his seat. Amos only sighed, saying something the angry man next to him. Korian said nothing in reply, standing up hard enough to tip the chair over. He held up one finger at Eli, which the boy assumed was the universal sign for 'I'll be back in a minute' and walked out of the room.
Eli bit his lip, hating the uncomfortable silence with a passion. He did what he usually did in an awkward situation, focused on the surroundings. Three of the walls and the ceiling were made out of pale brown wood, plants creeping along the planks like a parasite. The fourth wall was made by the tree; the bark many shades darker than the rest of the room. He could see sap spilling slowly down the wall like honey. The table was the only thing in the room beside a candlelit lamp hanging from one of the walls.
His observations were cut short when Korian burst back into the room, an air of confidence around him once more and a sheet of thick paper in his hand. He placed it on the table in front of Eli, his hand drifting over his shoulder in an odd attempt at comfort.
When Korian finally took his place at the table opposite Eli, the boy found himself staring into the familiar eyes of someone unfamiliar. Korian smiled at him, looking more confused than anything else, and gestured at the paper.
Feeling like an idiot, Eli glanced down at the words. Written in ink were letters he could only assume were from the Arumnian language, joined together in neat looping handwriting. Below it was another sentence, this time written in English. He held back a grateful laugh at finally finding something familiar.
Only the reflection of evil can defeat evil.
Confused, he read the words over and over again, trying to make sense of what he was seeing. He had no idea how the paper was meant to answer his question and looked to Korian for help.
He said one simple word, and even without Amos's translation, he knew what it was. Reflection. He said it again, pointing at Eli as he did. Eli blanched, finally taking in the meaning of the sentence in front of him. He finally understood what the word reflection really meant for him.
His mind was overloaded with information, slowly trying to put all the pieces together. Korian and Amos were still talking, only he was no longer listening, staring down at the paper with wide eyes. It didn't take the pair long to realise they he wasn't hearing a word they were saying. They silenced, and soon enough the only noise in the room was the trio's quiet breathing.
Only the reflection of evil can defeat evil. The phrase repeated itself over and over and over again in Eli's head as if it were taunting him. Korian and Amos seemed to believe that he was the 'reflection' spoken of in that tiny sentence. He could see why of course, he looked exactly like the man who had taken over the realm, he had come from the mirror. He was the exact reflection of the Mage.
He couldn't stop himself fidgeting, twisting his shirt around and around in his fingers. Yet more questions threatened to spill from his lips and he nearly couldn't stop himself from screaming them out.
He took a few minutes, ones that felt like centuries, to calm himself. Deep breathes and closed eyes allowed him to be calm enough to ask Korian if that was why he had been attacked.
The short answer was yes. The long answer was that the Mage knew about the words Eli had just been shown and didn't want to be killed, so he sent people to kill him. Korian had laughed after that, saying that the Mage probably hadn't expected Eli to be as tough as he was. Eli didn't feel all that tough, but he didn't bother to say so out loud.
He just wanted to go home, to get away from this man that looked exactly the same and yet nothing like his best friend, to be somewhere safe. He said as much to Korian, well, he said the first part at least. The young man sighed and told him that the only way home was through a mirror, all of which the Mage had taken when he had first come to power.
So, it seemed to be that the only way to get home was to defeat the Mage, just as Korian wanted. He slammed a hand down on the table, ignoring the prick of tears in his eyes. He didn't want to do any of this, all he wanted was to go home. He wiped at his eyes, feeling too overwhelmed to speak his thoughts. Who knew what Korian would do if he did.
After many minutes of silence, minutes that consisted of Eli trying to sort out his conflicted thoughts, Korian began to speak once more. Through Amos's choppy translations he found out that Korian was begging. Begging for help in defeating the Mage and bringing magic back to Arumni. He told the boy that he didn't know what would happen to Earth if Arumni was to die, but the two were connected and he was sure it would be dangerous for Earth if Arumni was gone.
While the argument wasn't the most convincing, Eli knew he would inevitably agree. He wanted to go home, so badly. He didn't want people to die, even if he didn't know them all that well. It was in his nature to help people, through anything, even if it got him into undesirable situations. He had seen the world as he walked, seen how dead it was. Part of him wanted that to stop, another just didn't was it to happen to his home.
However, he didn't want to be some saviour, some Chosen One destined to save the world. It seemed too farfetched, too fictional. He didn't think that so many people should rely on one tiny sentence to save them. He closed his eyes again, ignoring the sting of his cut hand as he pressed to his forehead.
Conflicted thoughts raced through his head. Only thing seemed consistent. He just wanted to go home, that's all he wanted, and he would do anything to get back.