Author Notes: Yes, Rahkshi is my name in this story, cause if it wasn't, then it wouldn't be my pen name for this website either. So why don't you all just deal with it.
Story
My eyes widen at the book glowing in my hands. This is no ordinary book of course when I first saw it when I opened it from the package wrapping, but I never knew it was that non-ordinary. My fingers trembled against the book's solid smooth surface. My hands were demanding me to open it, waiting to find out what awaits me behind its binders. My thumb and index finger made a comfortable grasp on the top right corner of the front binder, then without a second to waste, I opened the glowing book. I can feel either my sweat, or raindrops slowly streaking down the sides of my head. But there was something unexpected about this book; inside, the pages weren't glowing like the book's binders were, and the two pages opened up in front of me were filled with writings and symbols that I can't read or understand. It was like an unknown language just discovered, but never translated. All of these writings and symbols were in pale blue ink, but they were just two pages in a whole book filled with pages. I fingers slowly turned a page, but it was the same with writings that I couldn't read. I began turning page after page, but I just kept getting each page filled with unknown writings and symbols. I want to close this book, but my fingers wouldn't listen to me. They just kept going and going and going with each page turned.
But something different showed up when I reached a part in the middle section of the book; there was one page with similar writings and symbols as the rest, but these ones were glowing like the book's binders. They weren't pale blue like the rest. Instead, they were glowing with shining rays of both white and black coloring. But the oddest or weirdest thing of all, is that out of all the other pages that I couldn't read, I can somehow read some of the writings on this page. But there was only like I think one or two sentences of this unknown language that wasn't in pale blue ink, but in a scattering combination of white and black ink instead. But before I could even get a chance to read or pronounced the writing that I could read, a heard a young voice clearing its throat loudly near me.
I gently closed the book and found that the voice belonged to the kid in the black cloak/dress thing with the white 'X' on the front. I completely forgotten about him. He has black hair as black as the night sky without stars, but there was also a few streaks of whitish/silverish hair blended in as well. And his skin was very pale, like he hasn't been in the sunlight for a really long time. I looked into his eyes. They were dark purple red colored, which gave me the creeps for a bit. Around his eyes, there were eye markings. The eye markings on the top of his eyes were black and curved moving inwards. The bottom eye markings were black as well, but they went straight down from his eyes.
"Are you still awake in there?" the kid asked me impatiently.
"Sorry, but..." I forgot what to say next. I looked back at the book in my hands again for a quick minute, and then the words I was looking for returned to me. "... I've never seen anything like this before." I responded, with a bit of shock in my voice.
"You're both nervous and 'freaked out', aren't you?" he spoke again with that same look on his face.
"Yes." I uttered softly, but then I heard his voice 'hmm' a bit. I take it that he heard me. "Are you Zero? The same Zero who sent me this book?" I asked. I don't know who this kid is, but this feeling inside of me is telling me that the one you want to see will always appear different then you thought they will be. Not only that, but ever since I closed the book in my hands, I was beginning to see a small dark aura surrounding the boy that is near me.
"Yes. My name is Zero." the kid hissed with a cold smile on his face.
"Okay. But may I ask you a question? In that letter you sent me, you said that if I say yes, I'll be drawn into a battle with extreme dangers. What is this battle you're talking about?" I asked. I know that battles are always dangerous, but this kind of battle that this kid said before sounds different than any other, perhaps more dangerous as well.
"I'm glad you asked me that question, Rahkshi. But first, I must tell you what I am." Zero answered my question as he looked up into my eyes. Those red eyes that are looking at me are saying that I should pay attention, and so I did.
"I'm not a human being like you are. The truth is that I'm a creature called a mamodo. Mamodos are creatures with special powers, that are either a natural element, or a scientific element, and they come in all shapes and sizes, there are mostly ones who look a lot like humans, but there are others who are animal mamodos, and there are others of unknown species of life forms. We are from another world alongside this one called the mamodo world. And why are we hear, you ask? Well our world is ruled by a mamodo that is our king, but our laws state that after every one thousand years, our world needs a new king. And so to decide who'll be king, one hundred mamodo children are sent to this world to compete in a battle for the mamodo king. Even though we can use our powers freely whenever we want in our world, but here on Earth, we need a human to team up with, to become our partner. On Earth, our powers are concealed in spell books, like the one you're holding in your hands. And so to use our powers, the human partner must read the spells inside the book. And the longer we remain in the battle and defeat more opponents, the more spells we'll learn. But that's not all. The power spell book are triggered by human emotions, so the more you feel, the more powerful the spells will become when you cast them. But each mamodo is born with only ten different abilities with our born powers, but there are of course, a handful of extremely rare mamodos who are born with more abilities that surpass the ten spell limit. And how we defeat our opponents? You must burn the opponent's spell book with either the spells, or by normal fire. And if the spell book is destroyed, the mamodo that owns it will be transported back to the mamodo world. And for the partners, they can't simply be any normal person. Only a chosen person will be able to read a spell book."
I heard and understood every word Zero said to me, except one. "I don't wish to be rude, but how do you know that I'm your partner?" I asked.
"I had a feeling you would ask me that. Very well, to be one hundred percent sure that a mamodo has found its partner, the heart of the mamodo and the heart of the human have to be the same size, shape, and color. And since our internal organs are the same size, shape, and color, I know that you're my partner, Rahkshi." Zero answered.
(A/N: I learned about that part from the first Zatch Bell movie)
I thought about it for moment. So I'm the chosen partner for this child in this battle to be a king of the mamodo world. Even if I do agree to his offer, my parents must say yes for him to stay with us.
"And how will this battle make me into a better person?" after all, that is what Zero wrote down in that letter.
"This battle will change you from inside out, the choices you make in this battle will determine what kind of person you'll be in your future life. At first you wouldn't understand, but in time, you will."
I thought it over again, but longer this time. How can a battle make me into a better person when all that a battle has is violence. But either way, this Zero kid is still just a kid. He doesn't have a place to stay, and of course, I am his book owner. "Come on, I need to get home, and you're coming with me. I need my parents' permission for you to stay."
I placed the book in my backpack and threw it over my shoulder and walked home in the rain without an umbrella. It was raining only a little and soft, so it's gonna take a while for me to get soaked. I heard small footsteps coming from behind me. I knew it was Zero at first, but I turned my head to see him just incase he was really following me. Yes, he's there, with his hood over his head.
I followed the street signs block after block, until I came to my two-story house. I checked the mailbox in case I got my new Lego magazine. Nope, I haven't got it yet, but I will sometime this month. I realized that I've walked home without an umbrella. Man, I'm soak and wet. My hand grabbed the cold door handle and opened it, knowing that my parents and Marcy are home already. I turned and awaited the kid to follow me in.
An hour later.
I was a long talk with my parents to decide if Zero can stay with us. Believe me, it's really long, so I'm gonna skip the conversation and go straight to the part which I tell Zero about the decision. I've had a nice hot shower and was changed into my nightshirt and some soft shorts, since it's still too early for me to be going around my house with only my boxors underneath. I have a small towel around my shoulders as I opened my bedroom door, only to find my room totally dark and empty. I thought I told Zero to wait in my room.
"Looking for me?" a voice spoke from behind me, which freaked me out a bit. It was Zero, looking up at me like nothing had happened, chewing on what looks like one of my mom's delicious brownies.
"Why weren't you waiting in my room like I said? Are you trying to scare me to death?" I snapped at the mamodo.
"I was just hungry, and your mother let me have a brownie." the dark creature responded as I saw him took another bite of the brownie.
I sweat dropped, but shrugged it off and walked over to the television screen to find something to watch, since I have no homework today, since it is my first day of high school.
"You feeling alright?" I heard Marcy asked me as she walked in. I turned to look at her, wearing her pajama bottoms and a small T-shirt that exposes her stomach. I nodded yes and turned back to screen, flipping through the channels. Then I heard Marcy snatching Zero's brownie from his hands and eating it like she never knew he was there.
"Hey, that crazy female ate my brownie! Give it back, ningen!" I heard Zero's voice raised a bit, then I heard punching and beating noises. I dare not turn to see what's going on behind me, so I ignored it and began to play some Halo 2 on my X Box connected to the television screen. But in the back of my head, I was still wondering about that book me and Zero still have. Of course I can read it though, but what does it do is my real question.
What is that spell? And what does it do? And what will happen if I cast it? All these questions were flowing around my head like a never ending river going in a circle. I just kept repeating those words from the book in my head
'The first spell: Raker.'
