The Guardians

64thDay of the Year, 37th Year of the new King Dynasty,

         A thin girl, pale as the moon with dark black hair, walked slowly towards a thick forest, following a small stream. Her emerald green cloak flowed behind her as her shadowy eyes, matching her tunic, cast her gaze to the sky. It was a perfect day, as if the Storm God knew of her important yearly journey and held off all rain and cold. She picked her way through the many bushes and trees as she pushed deeper through the forest.
         After another hour of walking, she came to her destination, a quiet ravine. The small stream she followed that trickled and glistened in the sun, ran at the edge of the enclosure. The overhanging trees parted in a small circle, creating a perfect ring to encase the sacred spot. Flowers dotted the grass in miniscule splashes of white, pink and blue. In the middle of the ravine, stood a small but noble cherry blossom tree guarding the most precious object laying there, a tombstone.
         The wind picked up as the girl keeled down in front of the granite slab. It read,
Celine Nighthart 28th day of the Year, 67th year of the old Emperor Dynasty – 64th  Day of the Year, 30th year of the new King Dynasty. Tied to the Goddess of the Moon, May she rest in peace.
         Petite hands traced the name Celine Nighthart as she read the stone again and again. A small tear escaped her usually emotionless eyes as she remembered her mother, and how alike they were.
They both had the same pale skin, black hair, shadowy eyes, and frail figure. Both of their anger could spark unexpectedly, but could be put out easily., Both seemed to be hated wherever they went because of the unusual appearance, which caused them to seem distant and aloof to others. Most importantly, they both served or is currently serving the Goddess of the Moon as her guardian.
         She hastily wiped away the tear in fear of someone noticing, even though she was deep inside the forest. However, it wouldn’t be a great surprise if someone did follow her as she was wanted by the King, as were all the other guardians. Quickly looking back to the way of which she entered, she saw no trace of another presence, and decided she could spare some time for a short conversation before having to move in fear of staying in one place for too long.

“Mother?”

Silence

“It’s me, Amaris. Remember? I took the name you liked just like you wanted me to.”
Amaris meant child of the moon and was Greek, just like her mother’s name, Celine, which meant Goddess of the Moon. Most guardians used Greek names once they take on guardianship to replace their old ones. In some cases, the God or Goddess gave the name to the guardian. All names, however, related to their God or Goddess in one way or another.

“I’m seventeen now. I’ve been studying the ways of the guardians just like I promised you. Since I’m seventeen, I took over the duties recently. It could be hard though. Remember the new King? Of course you do. He’s prosecuting all of the guardians. He captured your friend Aglaia, the guardian to the Goddess of Harmony. Remember you told me about his greed? You were right. Rumors are that he’s trying to harness the power of all of the guardians and attack the Gods and Goddesses to have ultimate control. Father died yesterday, but you probably know that too. He was killed by the King’s warriors looking for me. If you can, could you tell him I’m sorry? I hope he doesn’t blame me. Can you talk to Father, wherever you are? Can you talk to me? I guess that was a stupid question. I hope you’re doing well.”

Silence

“Well Mom, I need to go. They might catch a whiff of my aura and capture me.”

Silence

         The wind picked up again swirling cherry blossom petals and leaves in a graceful dance around Amaris and the grave of Celine as she stood up.

“Bye Mom, I’ll try to be back next year.”

Almost as an afterthought, she added, “I love you,” and looked to the sky. She saw the sun sinking down into the Earth, throwing red, orange and pink splashes across the once blue sky. I must go to my post now, she thought, dark is almost approaching. Indeed, by the second, the sun sank down lower and the sky grew darker. Amaris chanted a few incomprehensible words, and melted into the darkness.