The two were aboard in a simple fisherman's boat. Lazzi noticed Calvin was saying something but the noisy sputtering of the tiny boat's engine, coupled with the continuous rustling of the wind was all he could hear. In response, he opened his mouth and just looked at his Cal with confusion.
"I said, look!" Calvin screamed at the top of his lungs.
Lazzi raised his head and saw what Calvin was pointing to. Houses. Well, tiny wooden houses but at the very least, it's their first encounter of civilization after months being isolated together in a neighboring island. It looked like some of the houses back in Kepler and he felt defeated that even years from the future some of his people would still live like they're in the old Earth. It reminded him of his duties as a servant of the people and his mission to make life better for everyone.
"Boys, we're close now," Mang Fernan, the fisherman who was also maneuvering the boat alerted them. A few hours ago, this fisherman had luckily stumbled his way to Calvin and Lazzi's island. The two boys explained that they were stranded there and asked the fisherman to take them to the nearest town. To their surprise, they learned that they were still in the Philippines and only a few miles away from Agutaya Island.
Upon docking on the island, Lazzi quickly became vigilant. A few people were standing at the shore as if waiting for them.
"Stay close," Lazzi whispered. He tried to hold Calvin's hand but he moved it away from his reach. Lazzi tilted his head and squinted his eyes. He wanted to try again but Calvin had already hid his hand inside his pocket. Lazzi decided to ignore it for now.
The people pulled the tiny boat to the shore and began to take the fishes caught by the fisherman. In their native language, the fishermen talked to a woman. She looked at the two boys, nodding and eventually smiled at them. She waved them over and they followed.
"Welcome, welcome! I'm Apring. Welcome to Agutaya island," the woman said. Her voice is a little bit husky and sounded like a grandma although Aling Apring might be perhaps just around her 40's. "My husband Fernan found you? Yeah?"
Calvin smiled and nodded. "Yes. We were very lucky that he found us. I'm uh Berto by the way and um this is uh—Johnny," Calvin pointed at Lazzi, eyes squinted. "yeah his name is Johnny."
"Nice to meet you two. You must be very hungry. Yeah? Let's eat?"
Calvin nodded again this time more enthusiastic. "Oh, thank you! Yes, we're very hungry."
Aling Apring walked away, slowly, expecting the two boys to follow her. "You're a fellow Filipino or Malaysian?"
"Filipino."
"How about your friend?"
Calvin looked at Lazzi. "What's your nationality again?" he whispered.
"Keplerian." Lazzi quietly answered. Still bothered with the hand thing.
"Right an alien," Calvin smiled teasingly. Lazzi tried to resist smiling back but Calvin was just too much for him.
"He's a mixed breed." Calvin answered. Aling Apring giggled as if it was somehow an inside joke.
"What a handsome man he is. The girls here would throw their panties for you, for sure."
Calvin shook his head with a giant smile on his face while looking at Lazzi who was all confused. Lazzi stayed quiet because inside he was a bit embarrassed. Panties? All he could think of was Calvin's hand. "Why is he not letting me touch it?" he thought rigorously to himself.
"Not to say that you're not handsome. My daughter Rita might even fall for you. It's just that your friend is like an exotic breed."
Cal continued to laugh until Lazzi pulled him away. "Can we talk for a second?" he asked.
"What is it?" Calvin's smile slowly faded.
"Aren't we a bit lax here? This might be a trap."
"What? I don't think so."
"Why would they help us from the get go?"
"Because we were stranded? And we need help? We could escape anytime we want, okay? What's wrong with you? Between us you're the idealistic one. Relax a little bit. "
Lazzi scratched the back of his head. "Relax a little bit? Just a week ago, you were so worried about Ortus. Now—"
"Now, we have changed the future. Don't you think we need a little break?"
"Break? From what?"
"Hey boys? Aren't you coming?" Aling Apring asked.
"We are!" Calvin shouted then looked back at Lazzi. "We got this Laz. We're safe."
"Wait..." Lazzi placed his hand on Calvin's hips but Calvin quickly pushed it away once again. "Hey, are we okay?" he asked, genuinely concerned.
"What?" Calvin replied.
"You just moved my hand away. It's like you don't want me to touch you, anymore?"
"Oh...um...it's just that people are gonna look. On this planet, people only accept us when we're the butt of the joke. Or they'll only accept this kind of love if it is written in romantic stories as if it is just a fairy tale. They only see us as a fucking entertainment. But the moment they hear the real people fight for it, see the real people showing this kind of love and fight for equal rights, they are immediately disgusted."
"I see." Lazzi frowned as if a child told that he could not play. "Yeah no, I forgot about that."
"Wait." Calvin tilted his head. "So does that mean in the future..."
"Yeah. What we have is normal and nothing to be ashamed of. People moved past that ancient belief."
Calvin's face suddenly lit up. "Huh, wow."
"Don't you believe it?"
"It's just so crazy. I wish I could be in that kind of future."
Lazzi coyly smiled. "Don't worry, I'll make sure we'll have that kind of future."
"I can't wait. But for now, this'll have to do." Cal kissed his fist and gently punched Lazzi's chest. "Why don't we go to Aling Apring's home, okay? Let's go eat." Before Lazzi could answer, Calvin had walked away and followed Aling Apring. He looked around the place, still worried that Ortus might be silently lurking around the place ready to attack them.
Aling Apring's house was a small one but Lazzi noticed that it was bigger than the nearby houses. It has unpainted concrete walls and wooden ceilings. Aling Apring gave the two canned sardines in tomato sauce and rice. She kept apologizing that that's the only thing she could offer but Lazzi and Calvin were delighted at the taste of tomato, something they missed for months.
"So where you from?"
Lazzi looked up. It was Aling Apring's daughter, Rita, who asked, obviously swooning for him. She's beautiful with caramel brown skin and long curly hair. But of course, Lazzi was not at all interested. He almost didn't hear her because of the noise from the radio that Aling Apring was tuning.
Lazzi flicked his eyes to Calvin who was busily gorging on his food. "Um, I'm from..."
"Italy." Calvin blurted. Lazzi smiled as he noticed a piece of rice was on Calvin's cheeks.
"Oh, mamma mia, pizzeria!"
"Wait shhh."
"....and now, the countries are more divided with the terms of Ortus, the mastermind of the unexpected terrorist group composed mostly of young adults..." Calvin and Lazzi looked at each other. "US, for one is threatening to launch an imminent attack if Ortus's hostages, the world's most influential people around the world, are not released immediately. On the other hand, countries like Iceland, Switzerland, and Japan are agreeing to Ortus's term to find the two men whose faces are flashed on the screen. Those who can pinpoint their location will be rewarded with...." The radio lost a bit of signal.
Lazzi was not aware he was shaking his leg until Calvin gripped it under the table. He stopped briefly and continued to eat his food as if he heard nothing. He was grateful that Aling Apring was listening to a radio and not watching a television or else, she would know that they are the wanted men.
"That sick bastard," Aling Apring commented. "you boys must not have known, do you? That Ortus has just killed our president. Tsk, the world is really getting more dangerous than ever."
"How did she do that?" Calvin asked.
"Beats me. But the word is, they say Ortus has superpowers. Crazy isn't?"
Rita awkwardly laughed. "Oh, don't listen to her. It's just one of those gossips they like to spread. So, about the pizzas..."
"They'll die if that Ortus is not stopped." Lazzi grimly blurted. "We're all gonna die."
"Laz—Johnny, stop that."
"I'm sorry. I can't just relax here, okay?" Lazzi stood up and walked out of the house.
Calvin looked at their host and saw their surprise. He tried to think of something to say but instead he just ran after his boyfriend.
"Hey-hey, Lazzi!"
"What?"
"Where are you going? Why are you acting like this?"
Lazzi sighed. "Because, I don't get you."
"Me?"
"Why do this, huh, Cal? I thought once we get to a town, we'll form a plan on how to finally kill that monster. I thought we'll gather some weapons or anything at all. Instead, you act as if nothing is happening! You heard what the radio said? Ortus kidnapped people. Innocent people! What more can she do if we don't do anything now?"
"It's just that—"
"What? I really don't understand, so please tell me."
"I'm scared okay. No, I'm fucking terrified. I don't even know if I can kill someone."
"Cal we can't run forever. You know we can take her on. You know it yourself. If it comes to the killing part, I'll do it. You don't need to dirty your hands."
"Yes, but after seeing the future..."
Lazzi pulled back his wild brown hair and sighed once again. He truly believed in his own skills and the power of Veross. That's why it doesn't translate well to him why Calvin was so scared. They can change the future. They just did. So, to him, Calvin only lacked confidence. "Hey, you're not going to lose me, okay? You're going to protect me, right?"
"Of course. I'll do that no matter what. But—"
"Cal, the more you know things in the future, the more you can protect me. I know it might be scary but that's more of a reason for us to plan things."
Calvin nodded. "Yeah, I guess you're right. I'm sorry."
"Let's try later?"
Calvin scrunched up the hem of his shirt. "Sure."
***
Like thieves in the middle of the night, Lazzi and Calvin sneaked out from Aling Apring's home. They held each other's hand, Lazzi leading the way, as they traveled the dark and sleepy town with only the familiar song of the sea to guide them where to go. As their feet felt the sandy shore, Lazzi stopped abruptly, turned around and gave Calvin a long hard kiss as if he wanted to devour Cal's lips whole. Calvin at first was grateful for the surprise but pushed him away when he remembered the reason why they came out there.
"Tsk! Behave!" Cal chided gently.
"Sorry. You can't believe how much I was restraining myself to do that." Lazzi whispered back. "Anyway, are you ready?"
Lazzi couldn't see Calvin that much but after spending countless nights with him, blindly memorizing each other's presence in the dark, he could tell from the slightest change of the rhythm of Calvin's breath that something is bothering his love.
Lazzi pulled him closer until Calvin's head was resting on his chest. "I'm sorry for pressuring you to do this." He hugged him tight and swayed him tenderly pulling him to a small dance.
"No, don't be. I need that. I need to be brave."
"You don't have to be brave alone. I'll always be there for you."
"What if Ortus takes you away? She'll kill you."
"Let's make things easier. Choose only the reality where you could see both of us. Don't peer into those that we're not together, okay? You don't have to see me die over and over again. Yeah?"
Calvin nodded, rubbing his forehead on Lazzi's shirt. "Okay." Cal traced his fingers from Lazzi's strong arms towards his Insignia. The darkness fled away as the light from Cal's eyes shone bright. Meanwhile Lazzi just stood there, admiring how Calvin had grown. He remembered how much Calvin whined about not wanting to be the Obelisk but here he is now taking full responsibility. With that Lazzi knew, he had fallen for the right person. Lazzi kissed Calvin's forehead. He cherished the serenity of the night and the chance to love someone so dearly.
When Calvin came back, Lazzi found him with tears running down on his cheeks before the light from his eyes dimmed. Lazzi stared at him full of worry.
"What did you see? I thought we agreed you wouldn't look at—"
"I didn't. I just—"
"Then why are you crying?"
"Because...because I found a way to defeat her but...It's the riskiest one. One small misstep and I could lose you. That's why I'm crying. I don't want to lose you Lazzi."
"Then we'll stick to it no matter what. Okay? What do we have to do?"
Cal sat at the sand, exhausted from all the realities he had checked. His fingers dug between the sand, and sprinkled it back to calm himself. Lazzi went to his side and rubbed his back, silently waiting for him to recuperate and gather his thoughts. "I've learned some information. Like what had happened to my dad and Ophelia." Calvin burrowed his face on Lazzi's chest and tears began to fall once again. "I'm sorry Laz, but I can't tell you."
"Shhh," Lazzi stroked Calvin's soft dark hair. "I'm sorry if you can't tell me. But I understand. It'll be okay." Calvin continued to sob, soaking Lazzi's shirt. Lazzi, even though he was clueless, felt Calvin's sorrow. He wished he could do something to take away the pain from Calvin. "I'm here Caly. Cry as much as you want."
When Calvin's tears had run dry and his erratic breathing had slowed down, he sat right up and steeled himself. He looked at Lazzi with his puffy reddened eyes. "As per the plan," he began, "there will be an upcoming attack in Manila by the military forces of the US. The city will be in chaos. On that night, we'll attack Ortus."
"We must evacuate the people then."
"No! Sorry Lazzi, we couldn't do that. We wouldn't win if we did that."
Lazzi clenched his jaw. He could already imagine how many innocent lives would suffer and he would just let it happen. That alone broke his heart. "What're we going to do then?"
"I need to Bridge with the powers of Ortus and Vide. You'll have to make sure that I will be able to touch their Insignia."
"Bridging with Ortus will grant you any phenomenon you could think of." Lazzi recalled "But why would you need to Bridge with Vide? What are you going to summon from a different reality?"
"I can't tell you that either."
"Why not?"
"If I do, the reality will change again, and we wouldn't succeed."
"Why are you leaving me with so little information? What should I do then?"
"Remember what Erik's last message to Ortus was? The one I told you at the island?"
Lazzi tilted his head. "Yeah, what about it?
"Remember it because that's our secret weapon." Cal took Lazzi's hand and kissed it. "Trust me, okay? If we win..." Cal murmured, "we'll get to achieve our dreams. You will be able to change things in the future for the better. And I will be reunited with my parents."
"I trust you." Lazzi assured. He couldn't help himself but to grin. He started to imagine himself in the future, finally making the change he wanted, the change his mentor, Creo, would be proud of. He was once again filled with hope that his worries had been laid to rest.