"There is nothing I can say to stop you, is there?" Faith asked.
The defeat was obvious in her usually neutral voice.
"No, there is nothing I wouldn't do to prove my love to Andromeda." Rad said.
Having no way to stop him from undertaking the quest, she decided to follow the man she loved to another world where struggles and pain patiently awaited their arrival.
"Very well, then I am coming with you." Faith said.
"Are you allowed to do that?" he couldn't help but ask.
"No," she said.
Although Rad wanted to question her further about the strange decision she had made, he decided that her mistakes are hers to make. He had enough of his own errors to worry about, he didn't need the additional burden of someone else's.
Soon enough his mind switched to his own problems, after all, no one else's problems mattered much. He was the best wizard his world had ever seen, and he knew it.
Rad couldn't figure out why the love spell didn't work. It was certain that his incantation was good enough. The words were still alive at the forefront of his mind:
"My love is strong,
I can't wait long
be my lovebird
like the stories we heard."
It was simple yet precise, it shouldn't have fired back. Not even once did he consider that it had something to do with the limitations of magic.
It couldn't kill anyone.
It couldn't make a person fall in love with someone.
But he dismissed those notions as old myths.
Why would he have magic if he couldn't use it the way he saw fit?
Maybe some lesser wizards and magic users were unable to do it, but he was sure he could do it, with the right tools.
Lost in his thoughts, he almost forgot where he was and what was about to happen. That was until Faith snapped him out of his reverie.
"Are you ready?" Faith asked in the vain hope that the distant look in his eyes was a sign of doubt.
"Yes. How are we going to do it?" he asked without any hesitation.
"I can open a portal for us to crossover. It is rarely done and the portal itself can be extremely volatile. I can't say for sure where it will take us. The only thing I know for sure is that it will only work one way, this is a one-way trip. " Faith said.
"Don't worry about it. You just get us there and I will find a way to bring us back. After all, I am the most powerful being the world has ever seen," he said.
Although Faith was well aware of the fact that his words were untrue, she thought it wise not to point out that fact.
Soon enough, she managed to open a portal the size of a door that would lead them to a place where they might stay lost forever.
"That's not very impressive, is it?" Rad said.
"When I make portals, they are much bigger than that. I also make them with a lot more flourish." Rad said.
Weak as she was from the effort of creating not only a portal but an inter-dimensional portal that bridged two alternate realities, she decided not to comment on his lack of respect.
It was obvious that he failed to understand the amount of magic it took to create even that small doorway.
Since Faith didn't answer his quite appropriate question he decided he might as well go through.
There was a strange sensation of being pulled in by a force stronger than anything he had ever felt before. He felt an unpleasant chill run down his spine, and he knew that the place they reached was an unfriendly and dangerous world.
"Come on, let's go find the scroll," he said even before he became fully aware of his surroundings.
When he didn't get an answer, he finally looked at Faith as she lay there relaxing as far as he could tell.
They were in a hurry and there she was taking a nap.
"Get up! I have to save my love. Her soft embrace is calling my name," he said with a far off look in his eyes.
"Can't you see that I am drained! I need time to recuperate." Faith said.
"We don't have time for that. You are fine. Let's go!" he said as he pulled her back to her feet.
Barely holding on, she continued after him as they went in search of his precious scroll while Faith was fighting pain that was caused by making such an impossible portal.
Surprisingly enough, they weren't in the place they expected. They thought that the scroll was in a pyramid in Egypt, but the place they were in was definitely no Egypt.
"You brought us to the wrong place," was Rad's first conclusion.
"No, I haven't. Look!" Faith said pointing behind him and there, in the middle of the overgrown jungle they found themselves in, they saw a huge pyramid obscured by the overgrowth.
"I think it has been long forgotten. It doesn't seem like anyone was here in centuries. Are you sure that the scroll is here." Rad asked.
"Yes, I am sure." Faith answered already getting annoyed by his persistent doubt.
Her legs wobbled underneath her and she fell down. Instead of helping her out Rad headed for the pyramid in search of his treasure.
"Why do I even love this man? He is an arrogant, insensitive wizard! I guess I love him for the man he used to be and for the man that I know he can be," she thought with a deep sigh as she settled down comfortably on the ground.
It didn't take Rad long to return holding the scroll in a gentle embrace.
To Faith's tired eyes it looked as if he was holding a precious child lulling it gently to sleep.
"Where to now?" he asked Faith who could barely keep her eyes open.
"I don't know," she said as she drifted to sleep.
All alone Rad felt something he had never felt before, fear.
He tried to use his magic to help them find the way out, but it didn't work. Nothing happened.
He was drained of all magic, but he refused to accept it and kept on trying to cast the simplest spells.
Night fell and he accomplished nothing.
He was cold and although Faith was fast asleep he assumed she was cold too.
It didn't seem like she would wake up any time soon as lazy as she was, in Rad's eyes, so it was up to him to save their lives.
He didn't know any of the rules of the new world they found themselves in, and he had no idea how to do the simplest things without magic, but he didn't lose hope, after all, he was the great...
What was he now that he had no magic?
He couldn't call himself a wizard when he couldn't even light a simple fire using his power. Defeated, he lay down close to Faith hoping that her proximity would make him warmer.
Luckily for both of them, the night wasn't too cold, and they both survived with just a few shivers.
In the morning, Faith talked him through lighting a fire since she was familiar with such mundane tasks, and they were finally able to warm up properly.
Once they were sufficiently warm, Faith reminded him that she already told him that she couldn't bring them back.
"I think the best we can do now is try to find the inhabitants of this place and maybe they will help us out," she said.
It sounded like a good idea but since they didn't know where they were it was a difficult task to accomplish.
Having no food or water, Faith had to teach Rad since she could barely move, what food could be found in the forest and where to look for water.
The basic structure of all the worlds was the same and even though he knew what he was looking for it was a challenge for Rad to find food and water for both of them.
He even started helping Faith move around since he could see in how much pain she was.
When faced with adversity, you learn a lot about who you are. You get to meet your true self. There are no more protective layers stopping you from seeing deep into your core.
All the good and bad things about who you are, exposed raw for your close examination.
It was a challenge that Rad had to face if he wanted the two of them to survive.
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