Notes

Journeys: The influence of fortitude and grit
A whirl of darkness revealed Arlo Aphelion. He was tall, with jet-black hair and a beard, blue eyes, low-frame glasses, and a blue suit without a jacket or tie. Arlo drew out his wand and said, ''Aberto,'' the door now swings open, and Arlo enters. Three men are in front of Arlo, and all of them point their wands. The third man attacked Arlo, but he was swiftly intercepted by him as Arlo quickly stunned the other and disarmed one. The third man cast spells at Arlo but was completely blocked by Arlo. The man slowly floats in the air as Arlo swings his wand. Arlo then swung his wand again, forcing the man to fall through the wall. Arlo hurries upstairs to find something. The fourth man is standing in front of a boy, prepared to wield his wand. Arlo reacts swiftly, a purple spark shoots from his wand, and the man instantly transforms into a block of rock. ''Are you alright?'' Arlo inquired, to which the child responded, ''Yeah, I'm ok; I need my wand.'' The teenage boy moved swiftly towards the chest of drawers, pulled open a drawer, and grabbed his wand.
''Hurry, before they return,'' Arlo said. They both sprinted out of the house as soon as they could. Arlo put his wand aside and then clung to the boy's arm.
The two of them spun away, now appearing somewhere else. The boy turned around and was shocked to realize they had changed places. ''Where are we?'' Asked the boy
Arlo responded, grinning at the boy, ''My office,'' and moved towards the door. The boy followed Arlo to the settee, and they both sat, ''What did they want with me?'' Asked the boy
''They want to learn the truth from your parents, they're holding them hostage, and they want to use you to do it,'' Arlo stated as he continued to look at the boy, hoping that he wouldn't panic too much and what he said wasn't too blunt. ''What do they want from my parents?'' He spoke, raising questions out of genuine concern for his parents.
''They seek details about an unidentified artifact. The item possesses magical abilities that go beyond ordinary magic, and it can be fatal in the wrong hands.'' He stated as he noticed the boy's face become drab. ''Why my parents,'' he asked, now angered. ''As they are the custodians of the object, nothing is more valuable to them than ensuring its safety--aside from you, of course. The men attacked you as a result of this, they were hoping to utilize you to reveal your parents' secrets'' Arlo said, pacing the floor.
''Will I ever see them again?'' Concerned for his parents' welfare, the child expressed dismay. ''Without faith, how could we ever find your parents? Faith is all we have.''
He paused and finished his sentence before turning to face the boy. ''But what if we don't find them?!'' The child yelled in frustration ''Your heart won't propel you on and enable you to reach them if you genuinely fear we won't find them.'' Seeing through the boy's eyes, Arlo smiled, as he did, for a moment he glimpsed the boy's parents via his eyes.
''I was friends with your father when we were both young, and I can tell how much he has affected you. Your father has the same philosophy as you towards life.'' When he observed the shadows outside his window reflecting his past, Arlo was suddenly knocked backward by a blast. ''They have located us; come on, let's leave,'' Arlo yelled as he hurried the boy to safety. After equipping his wand and hiding the boy inside his chamber, Arlo went outside to confront the man and raised his wand. ''Before the possibility disappears, make the proper decision and depart.'' The man then fired a spell at Arlo, which Arlo swiftly blocked and deflected ''I gave you the option, but since you chose to fight, I will obey your wishes.''
When the man was distracted, Arlo quickly disarmed him before shooting him into the air. He rapidly raised his wand towards the man's chest, and a slash from it knocked the man back. The man was thrown flying backward after Arlo spun his wand around his head. Arlo cast a spell, knocking the man out cold. In a hurry, Arlo returned home to see how the boy was doing, but before he realized it, it was too late. Arlo suddenly now materialized, he was among the boy who had been apprehended. Keeping a low profile, he watched as they took the boy. ''We shall torment him,'' muttered the one man, carrying the boy. Arlo emerged from the shadows in response, ''You won't, not if I have anything to do with it.''
When spells were thrown at Arlo, he swiftly built a shield to block them. He then blasted one of them, causing the blast to bounce off of them and strike another. Arlo struck one of them, disarming them, and the force gave the man a small bang. After casting a spell on the woman who was about to strike him, she started to float in the air. He then attacked her again and blew her away, which caused some of them to be stuck to the ground. The man between the other men was the target of a flaming spell fired by Arlo; the magic struck the man and spread, striking the other two. When two men approached to attack him, Arlo instantly struck the two with his wand, forcing the to bleed. One of them tried to hit Arlo, but he blocked, and the spell backfired on the attacker. ''Avada Kedavra!'' The woman who was hiding in the shadows yelled as a green light rushed towards Arlo, Arlo quickly fired a red spark from his wand, and the spells clashed, sending a stream of magic into the air. Arlo was somewhat unfazed and thrashing her with ease when a man rushed over and immediately snatched the boy, which caused the stream to narrow and gave the woman the upper hand, ''Expelliarmus!'' Arlo's control of the wand was lost, and he fell to the ground. ''You were so blinded by care, that you lost control over power.'' ''Goodbye, Mr. Aphelion, Avada Kedavr-'' she said while pointing her wand at Arlo, as she stared aimlessly. The woman was suddenly struck by a flash of red light, falling to the ground unconscious. The boy stood and assisted Arlo in getting to his feet. ''Thank you'', Arlo remarked as he stood up and checked the area to make sure it was secure. When a second man attempted to attack Arlo, he was burned by fire from his wand after it changed into a dragon.
''While I was here, they said to me that I wasn't worth keeping alive.'' The boy felt useless as he turned to face Arlo and began to cry. ''These people lack all knowledge of value. You are valued more than you could ever understand, and I would risk my life to ensure that you lived to see another day.'' Arlo stood before him and began to wipe the boy's tears.
''Thank you...'' The boy said, grinning now. ''Love gives us the confidence to keep moving, which makes it the most valuable thing there is. Your affection for your parents is proof of that.'' Now that he was holding the boy's shoulders, Arlo said, ''We cannot go back; they have found us.'' When moving through the woodland. ''Unpredictability is our best bet for safety,'' Arlo stated while clutching his wand. ''Where are we, exactly?'' Asked the boy. ''I am searching for something in the forest's depths. I think it will be helpful on our path.''
When Arlo waved his wand and said ''Accio,'' a light appeared at the top of the wand. Suddenly, several figures carrying what Arlo wanted appearing, but these beings did not appear to be humans. ''May I please have that? I desperately need it so that I can assist my friends.'' Arlo remarked, lowering his wand in the hope that his negotiations will be successful.
Arlo had to choose which of the five boxes to order to get his object once the beings threw it into the air. ''I select the first one because loved ones always come first,'' he said, putting away his wand. Lava erupted from inside the box as it shook, and the thing flew out and into Arlo's hands. ''A key?'' Asked the boy, sounding very perplexed.
''It unlocked the temple of love and allows the user to locate lost loved ones--but only if they do it with noble intentions.'' They both entered the door after Arlo held out the key, which opened. They suddenly appeared in a bizarre location, high up on a floating rock. A door was nearby, but they had to jump across to get to it. Arlo sounded brave and added, ''I'll go first.'' He leaped onto the first rock and shouted ''Ascendio'' to cross. Another spell was needed for the second rock, and it was ''Alarte Ascendre,'' Arlo spoke to the boy while glancing in his direction. ''Alarte Ascendre!'' The young wizard said as he raised his wand. Arlo was able to cross to the third rock after being propelled high by this. The final rock required a spell, which people seeking power might use, although it is not advisable to depend on its might. The only person that could successfully cross using ''Imperio'' on Arlo was the boy, who had never used it. ''Now, pay attention, this spell demands focus and willpower. Keep in mind that because it is a curse, your intentions must be clear.''
The child cried ''Imperio,'' but Arlo could see that he was now ready. He tried again, this time with more vigor, and was successful in getting through to Arlo. Upon inside, they discovered themselves in a dueling ring. When Arlo brought out his wand and encountered another wizard, the latter yelled ''Reducto!'' as he gripped his wand firmly in his hands. Arlo promptly stopped this and fired back; the man blocked as well, and Arlo struck the ground, knocking the man back and slowing his descent through the air, The man was killed instantly when Arlo struck him. ''How could he of been killed instantaneously when I didn't even employ the killing curse,'' Arlo inquired. Before Arlo, other men materialized, and this time the boy assisted in their duel. The child yelled ''Everte Statum,'' the man blocked it and struck him, Arlo stood in front of the boy to ensure his safety, and then he launched a strong light in their direction, which caused them both to be blasted and eliminated. They arrived at the place where they encountered the princess. The princess regarded Marcellus and inquired, ''Do you seek your parents?'' The young man appeared perplexed and speechless. ''Move off our way and you'll see my charming side. We do not seek your word; we seek what is ours and we shall be gone.'' Pushing past the princess, Arlo murmured. When the boy turned to her and pleased, ''Please, I want my parents,'' the princess moved out of the way and held out her hand towards the door. ''Mum! Dad!'' the boy yelled as he reached his tied-up parents. The boy yelled, and Arlo dashed over to free them from the rope before the men who had been holding them captive showed up. The two of them pulled out their wands, with Arlo blocking and casting spells while the boy assisted his parents, who then rose and started to fight. The boy caused a significant amount of damage and Arlo was able to blow a few away. They took turns battling, and when they were all struck, Arlo and the boy's parents rendered them unconscious. A woman entered and created a bubble around the boy and his parents. She then shot at Arlo but he blocked and freed the boy. Arlo used the water on the ground to shoot at her, she then held up a firewall and attempted to throw a piece of it at Arlo. Arlo slipt the fire and casted spell after spell at her until she grew weary and the ground began to tremble. Finally, Arlo lifted his wand and caused lightning to strike her. The boy was shot down and injured, Arlo then fired spells at her, which she deflected. He then displayed a strong gust of wind, which rendered her immobile and caused her to fire back, She then stood up and hit him down.
She creates d bubble after being shot by Arlo, who had used his wand to hit the ground and enable him to fly back up. She then used the stones on the ground to attack him, but he quickly shot them back and she disintegrated them. Arlo quickly disarmed her and pointed his wand at her. Released a burst of black energy from the tip of his wand at her. ''So, this is the consequence?'' She says. ''I am afraid so,'' Arlo replied. Arlo lowered his wand, ''Yet, I think everyone can change, if given the proper guidance.''
He looked at her aimlessly ''Or not!'' The woman shouted, she cried ''Avada Kedavra!'' She remained standing as Arlo cast ''Stupefy,'' and then the two spells collided.
They were clinging on when all of a sudden the boy's parents joined him, enabling him to love her of their assistance. When they arrived home following the duel, the boy asked Arlo, ''Is love a horrible thing?'' ''No. Quite the opposite. Love is vital because it reveals to us who is genuinely significant in our life, rather than those who desire hatred,' Arlo restored. The boy waved to Arlo and said, ''Goodbye.'' Arlo then wished them all well before suddenly disappearing in a whirl of light.