Fantasy

"He had to do it. As much as he hated murder, he had to kill the dragon in front of him. He ran forward, evading the dragons fire and tried to get close enough to stab him. He rolled on the burning floor and found himself right below the dragon. The dragon was blind, throwing flame balls everywhere but not sensing Jack was below him, next to his heart. With a mighty cry, he stabbed the evil dragon. One step closer to the magical shoes, the hero thought, feeling proud of himself."

But wait he wasn't proud. He wouldn't be proud of murder. Alex hit the delete button on his laptop, making the last line disappear. Jack, his hero would be happy to be closer to the shoes but he was more modest than that, Alex realized.

"The hero thought, happy to be one step closer to his goal."

But wait a second, with his power he would know he would succeed. Alex rewrote the part again feeling better. He reread his work and with a small smile at a job well done, closed his laptop after a long successful day of writing, and went to sleep.

The next morning he curled up next to his laptop, cup of coffee in his hand and started to write.

"The next step for Jack was to pass the Dark Woods the dragon was guarding where he would find the wizard that, Jack hoped and knew would help him win the magical shoes to save his sister. He started walking."

That sucks Alex thought. It could be worded better.

"Jack started walking in the Dark Woods. Thanks to the dragon he killed he could enter them. He needed to find the shoes, to find the wizard that would help him. It was crucial to help his sister."

No! Why isn't this working?! Alex muttered to himself.

He couldn't think, couldn't clear a thought. He couldn't make himself write. Writers block. His worst enemy. He wanted to write so much. He had to write. But it wouldn't work!

He opened Gmail mindlessly checking. Maybe google would help his problem. After all other writers went through stupid writers block.

"How to get through writers block?" He entered.

Alex clicked the first site. Most of the tips were useless, talking about rereading and drinking tea. Yet one of the tips struck him as interesting. It said to try and talk to the character and ask him what he wants and feels, just to imagine what he'd like with a pretend conversation.

He opened the word page, with all the white lacking of words staring at him accusingly.

"Jack?" He muttered feeling stupid. This wouldn't work obviously. He'd be better off drinking tea and meditating until his writing muses would return. Who knew when that'd happen though?

He had to start writing now. He tried again, this time closing his eyes.

He tried to imagine the dark forest, with light peeking through the high branches, the dark soil with small shrubs growing, the trees everywhere tall and green. He imagined Jack walking through it, navigating through the trees. He could see mentally Jack with his raven messy hair and dark twinkling eyes.

"Jack?" He called out again. Jack jumped in his mind.

"Who's that? Who called me?" His voice was deep and he spoke quickly Alex always imagined. He drew out his sword and looked around.

"Tell me where are you!" Alex could easily imagine Jack saying that. After all Jack had survived the great war and the many raids on his village. It was obvious in Alex's mind that he'd get scared if someone called his name.

Alex mentally answered him; "I'm no one important. I just wanted to know how are you feeling?" Alex just needed to know, to hear Jack of his mind explain what he was going through.

"What do you mean how am I feeling?! I need to go and you are interrupting my quest. Who are you anyway?"

"Nobody." Alex answered.

"You're a spy for King Melchion aren't you?! I knew it! I won't help you. Not for anything! I can save May without your help without fighting your wars! I don't believe in it and it won't happen. He knows of my powers. He won't win without me and I don't care. Tell him that."

Alex could feel his power working against him. He was a spy for King Melchion. He was. It was true. He could already start to remember a set of memories that he knew inside didn't exist. But it felt so good to believe he was a spy.

"I am a sp-" He started to say. He wanted to agree. But it was wrong. He forced himself to utter the correct words.

"I am Alex Gaskarth. I am a writer. I am 25 years old. I live in Baltimore Maryland. I am not a spy." He announced.

He had created Jacks power of making his beliefs come true and he knew the way to evade it. Already he was forgetting the old memories and coming back to himself. Jack looked extremely surprised.

"I thought no one knew about you know, the way to fight against my power. Show me yourself! How do you know this? Does Melchion know? Who are you?!" He started to look panicked.

Alex, knowing the character he created, knew that telling the truth was the only way to get out of this. Jack hated being lied to. The lie King Melchion told him about the water being ok to drink, the water that he gave to May, the water that poisoned May, made Jack extremely cautious about lies.

Seeing Jack talk was incredible. He wanted to continue talking to him. There was a chance he'd need to, if he got a writers block again. Lying would do no good.

"I know everything about you Jack of the Darkened Wood village-"

"How?!" Jack demanded. "No one knows that!"

Jack was brought up in the darkened wood village which was the home of most of the darkest wizards. Being from there was considered a great shame. More than that, the second he'd do something illegal he could exiled, people saying it was because of growing up in the darkened wood. Jacks mom had fled from there when Jack was 10 and had said she raised him in the forest. No one dared to ask the darkened wood village as it was extremely well guarded and scared most of the people. He'd learned most of his fighting skills and how to control his powers there.

"Well you see." Alex tried to find a way to explain it to Jack. "You're a character in my book. I wrote you. You don't exist apart of my book."

"What?" Jack asked frowning. "Of course I exist."

"You don't outside of my mind."

"What the hell is wrong with you? Of course I exist out of your delusional mind."

"I-" Alex was about to answer, to try and explain when he heard a bark.

His eyes flew open. He felt confused. He was in his study with Sebastian his dog barking to be let outside. Alex checked the time. He'd been with Jack for two hours. It didn't make sense to Alex. He felt all rumbled up as if he'd been sleeping. His mind felt fuzzy.

Did he really talk to his character? To Jack? Was it all a dream or did it happen? It felt so real, arguing with him, his responses. It even felt like Jack was a real person. Alex felt drowsy. It felt like a dream that he wasn't sure if existed or not.

That's when he felt that tingly feeling that someone was staring at him.

He turned around and was shocked to find Jack looking back at him. Jack as a real life person. Jack the character he invented was standing in his study looking confused. Alex rubbed his eyes, sure he'd gone insane. Jack was still standing there.

"What are you doing here?" Alex stammered.

"I don't know! I was talking to you and you suddenly would answer and I closed my eyes and found myself here! What is this place? You're a real person not just a mysterious voice!" Jack said looking around shocked.

"You're in my house. How did you-" Alex tried to remember Jacks words.

"Of course I exist out of your delusional mind." He remembered.

"That's it! You said and believed you existed out of my mind and here you are!"

"So how do I get back? I need to find the magic shoes!" Jack panicked.

"I don't know! You need to believe you're in my story and not in this world I guess." Alex said.

"But I'm here."

"I guess for now you are. Do you want something to eat and we can try to find a way to solve this?" Alex suggested.

That was how it started between them. As time went by they discovered Jack couldn't make himself go back to his world. His power only worked in his world. He could bring things from there but not back. He brought back May and his family and started to live in Alexs world.

As time progressed Alex noticed he became his own person, with thoughts and a certain depth Alex hadn't put there. Alex knew it was weird and wrong but after living with Jack for a few weeks and spending day after day, 24 hours a day together he was falling in love.

With Jack he wasn't alone anymore. Jack understood him, his thoughts. He loved their long discussions and private jokes and just everything between them.

When he discovered Jack felt the same way it was the best day of his life. He loved Jack and Jack loved him. That was enough for him.