Philip was riding his horse impetuously towards the village. He had a smile on his face for he was anxious to meet Verena by the big tree, their favorite spot. He had felt that Juan was quieter that day, as if the wizard feared something was coming. Earlier, the young man insisted on asking him if something was going on, but his master changed the subject in order to avoid his questions. On the next day, the boy intended to make the mage tell him the truth at any cost. But now, the only thing he really wanted was to be together with his beloved woman. He would leave all worries for tomorrow.
***
The reason for Juan's silence was the fact that he had started the arrangements to face Klaus, who could be nearby. He found the enemy's silence odd. It had been more than 24 hours since the warlock's creature had spotted him, and up to that moment he had suffered no attack. The mage knew that this time the fight would be far worse than the one they had years ago at the cave, before Klaus had imprisoned him. Besides, the wizard was running the risk of being killed in battle. But he was no fool, he knew that there were things in the Book of Souls that the evil man was unable to interpret. The worm still needed him. However, Juan was aware that once Klaus had learned them, he would destroy his life. At least, his adversary was not suspicious about Philip's identity. The young man would be kept safe this way.
There was another thing that Juan had to do soon: Tell the Phantom Man's prophecy to Philip and his role on that story. He would do so at the first opportunity.
***
The young man, at his hurry to see his girlfriend, didn't notice that a dark smoke was flying high above, which had already spotted him riding fast on his horse. The fog was following the young man to report every detail to his master afterwards.
A few minutes later, the prince recognized his beloved one and waved to her. She was gorgeous, and waited for him wearing a light lilac dress with a dark blue ribbon on the chest. Verena smiled and ran to meet him. This time, she was carrying a fawn kitten. Philip got off the horse to kiss her. After a while, she put the pet on the ground, since it was not happy to be squeezed between the two lovers.
While they were spending time catching up, the creature of the shadows descended from the skies and hid behind a tree in the woods to spy on them.
Philip kissed Verena's mouth for some seconds and then held her in his arms. Next, he saw the pet meowing to get attention.
"What a cute kitten! I didn't know you had one..."
"It's not mine," she said, smiling. "I found it on the way and decided to hold it a bit. Then I put it on the ground, but the kitten followed me here."
Philip held the animal in his arms. When he smoothed its fur, it arched its back. The prince felt a shiver running up his spine, and decided to put the cat on the ground. It fixed its eyes towards the woods and meowed loudly, seeming to be seeing something. There, the Doppelgänger was, lurking. The pet could see it among the shrubs, even though the creature was invisible to the couple.
Philip and Verena brooded at the cat's reaction, so they decided to check out. Would there be someone watching them? Maybe a royal spy...
They tiptoed towards the woods, passing over some tree trunks on the way. The creature was quiet, for it only wanted to gather information to pass on to Klaus, as it had been ordered. It didn't want to get involved into any unnecessary fight.
As Philip got nearer, he felt a change in his vision. He could at last see the Doppelgänger in all its ugliness. As if magic ruled his body, he lifted his arm towards the creature and threw it far away. The cat meowed nervously, its head following the monster's track until it hit a tree. After that, the pet arched its back, and its fur stood up. The animal assumed attack position and showed its teeth.
"Philip, it's happening again! Is there a ghost around?" Verena asked, frightened.
"No. There's an evil spirit near us right now. That's why the cat is so nervous. Felines can live on the line that separates the living and the dead. I think I also have this power..."
"If this is supposed to make me less worried, it's not working..." Verena commented, stepping back.
Realizing that it was useless to remain hidden, the Doppelgänger showed itself. Its eyes were red, and they shone brighter as the night fell. Klaus watched everything from the cave on the mountain through the creature's eyes. As soon as he realized that the confrontation was imminent, he immediately created a portal to get there.
As Verena looked at the Doppelgänger, the creature showed its teeth to her, and she fainted. The cat stayed by her side, apprehensive, its fur up. The animal walked back and forth trying to protect her. Philip put himself in front of them. He was ready to fight.
"So, you are Juan's friend..." The creature of the shadows said, with its horrendous voice.
"I don't know who you are, monster of darkness. If you think I'll tell you anything, then you are wasting your time," the boy answered as his eyes burned in flames.
"Wait!" The creature stopped and stared at Philip. "I have seen these eyes before. You are the child that the wizard was taking care at the cave, the King of the Wizards' son!" The Doppelgänger shouted with a dreadful voice.
"I don't know what you're talking about."
The creature spoke no more. Instead, it prepared its sharp claws and walked straight to Philip, who unsheathed a sword he carried with him. At each blow, the young man defended himself readily. The more the battle raged, the more Philip's eyes burned, with escalating intensity. At that very moment, Klaus stepped out of a mysterious portal.
The prince's sword tinkled as it lashed against the creature's blade-like claws. Philip fixed his eyes on the Doppelgänger, unaware of how the flames in his eyes seemed to be exploding and reaching the demon, which began to burn and to shout in a high pitching sound. In few minutes, it was nothing but a pile of ashes. Klaus crossed the portal, and the first thing he felt was his evil twin's pain. In order to stop the prince, the warlock stretched his arms and threw a ray towards the boy, which tossed him far away.
The boy's head hit a tree trunk, and he got dizzy. Everything seemed kind of blurred, his movements got slower... He was sure that if he didn't recover quickly, he would die.
***
Juan felt a tremble running all over his body, and he got worried. He knew that magic was being used in large scale nearby, and passed his hand in the air to locate it. Inside his tent, a vision appeared before his eyes. He saw Klaus as well as his creature, which was burning up, fighting the prince. He got desperate, for he knew that Philip wasn't ready yet. So, he didn't think twice: He spoke some magical words and created a portal that led him to the boy.
***
Despite the dizziness, Philip took hold of the sword and made a great effort to stand up again. What could a blade do against Klaus' power? If only he had Night's Fury with him, but he hadn't received the sword yet.
The dark warlock cast another magical attack towards the boy, who fell unconscious on the ground. As if they had previously arranged, Verena recovered her senses at that very moment and saw before her eyes that tragic scene: The monster on fire, his beloved one on the ground, and a decrepit old man staring at her with mean intentions.
Klaus took a magic powder off from a sack attached to his waist, put it on the palm of his hand, and blew it on Fratello. The flames extinguished. Little by little, the creature recomposed itself. It had almost been consumed by the flames, which made the warlock feel himself weakened by the boy's attack as well.
In a moment of bravery, Verena prepared herself to face them in order to defend her beloved one.
"What have you done to my Philip? You monsters..." She shouted in a hysterical voice, scaring even the small cat.
Klaus was weakened due to the attack his mate had received earlier from Philip. Once he felt Juan's imminent arrival, he would only have time to kidnap the lady. He wasn't strong enough to face the old mage.
"So that's the boy's name... You must be his sweetheart, aren't you?" Klaus approached her like a beast before its prey. "You know what? I'll take you with me. This way, the lad and old Juan will come after me to retrieve you... I'll lure two birds with only one trap."
Verena's eyes widened, full of terror, and before she could answer him, Klaus raised his hand and blew his magical powder at the wind, whispering some words and making her faint again. He opened a new portal and the creature took the lady on its arms. In a few seconds, the three were gone.
It didn't take long for Juan to arrive, but it was already too late. He kneeled before the boy, took his head and, shaking it, said:
"Philip, c'mon, wake up! It's me... Juan."
The young man moved his head and opened his eyes. He stood up, still a little dizzy. He recalled what had happened and shouted nervously and desperately:
"Where is Verena?"
"They took her with them, probably to the Castle of the Absents."
"And where is this place?"
"It's a long story. What really matters now is that we must leave right away if we want to rescue her. I'll open up a portal that leads to a lodging house in the city of Florence. I know that city well. Once we're there, I'll tell you the whole story about the Phantom Man. However, I warn you that this will be a hard mission. Those beings are ill-omened and never play fair." Juan stopped for a moment, stared at the prince, and told him, "It would be better if I went alone. I have nothing to lose. I am old, with just a handful of days left. Please, Philip, stay! I'll do my best to save your beloved one... It's definitely a trap."
The young man looked at old Juan with kind eyes. Within a very tight schedule, he had taught Philip that magic was not to be feared, an understanding that the mage had achieved in a way that only a few had.
"I would never let you go in my place. She's my girlfriend and I am the one who has to save her. You're the one that should stay..."
"I made a promise to the Gods that I would take care of you. I would never let you go on your own on this rescue mission. To a trap. You are bold and have the power, but you are still inexperienced."
"If there's no other way, we'll go together..."
The wizard was aware that they would face powerful enemies. Klaus had absorbed huge amounts of energy from the wizards that he had destroyed. His monster was fatal, as well. However, it was too late to back off.
***
Sometime later, they both headed to the Castle of the Absents. Philip picked a few things from the palace's kitchen and got out unnoticed. He left a note in his bedroom, saying that he needed to help someone.
On the way, Juan told Philip the whole story about the Phantom Man, as well as the way that the prince had entered his life when he was just a newborn. As the young man heard it all, he realized the responsibility that was being imposed on him. Wasn't it too much to expect from him? How would he manage to deal with all that?
But those were burdens that he would have to deal with later, in case he survived... The only thing that he could picture was the bad time Verena was having in the companionship of those two.
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The Phantom Man 2 - The Book of Dead by CHAIENE SANTOS WRITER