Guardians of Reality - CH2

I stood in the middle of a desolate city. Wherever I looked, ruined buildings stretched high into the dark sky. Some of them have already collapsed, while others barely, but still stood. The building I was once in have been levelled with the ground, debris forming a circle around it.

Turning forward, a strange, familiar machinery greeted, lights flickering, barely with enough power in it. I had to get back, I needed to get back to my family. I didn’t want to stay here, in this strange and unsafe place.

Stepping up to the machine, I tried to replicate what those men did to it. While I wasn’t sure about this, I needed to do something before I break down crying.

The machine soon flickered again, then all lights shut down. I stepped back, trembling as tears formed in my eyes, fearing that whatever I did, I messed up my last chance of getting back.

A soft rumble of the ground caught my attention, and I looked up as loud cracking came from above. One of the buildings started to break into two parts, and it started to lean towards me!

“No… No, no, no!” Panic filled my mind, as I started to look around, trying to find a safe place where I could run, but there wasn’t any way to escape. As I looked up at the building again, a sudden light caught my attention from the corner of my eye.

The portal! It opened up, but from the other side only blinding light and strong heat came through. I looked up again, then dashed towards the portal, screaming from the scorching heat.

“You did this…” Came a slithering voice behind me, which came from a shadow, as I looked back. “It’s your fault.” I looked forward, and passed the portal, after which everything turned black.

***

My body jerked as I came into consciousness. With ringing ears and pain my head, a groan escaped my lips. But that was not all of my problems, as my whole body felt like it got hit by a big rock.

Slowly lifting a hand to my head, I felt that something was different. The ground I was laying on have become softer, and more humid. A whole army of tiny and thin something tickled my bare skin, which didn’t feel too bad. Wind blew over me, and I felt a new rush of excitement, as I opened my eyes. Blinding, warm light shining down on everything have greeted me.

Then the memories of the vision have caught up to my thoughts. Was that a vision? Or maybe it was a memory… Who was that shadow? And why was I there? And that… machine thing. It didn’t make sense. Why did it say that it was my fault?

There were too many questions, with no answers to them. I needed to focus on something else, or this would just bug me until I become one with the ground.

As I sat up to look around, eyes wide, and mouth hanging; I watched the beautiful clearing around me. Surrounded by trees with light-brown trunks, with sap-green leaves dancing to the soft melody of the wind, they have given off a strong feeling of safety. They were almost glowing from their own beauty, not caring about how simple they looked.

As another blast of air hit me, I made a futile attempt at shielding myself, however the cool air still seemed to find itself all over my skin, making me shiver violently. The warmth of the sun wasn’t enough to keep me away from the freezing temperature of the wind. With the everlasting beauty of the trees and the ground, filled with radiant flowers, came the cold of the wind too. As my body was attacked by the cold from two fronts, I managed to get up.

“Persona!” I called out, hugging myself while looking around. The howling of an animal was the only response I got, as a few wandering clouds have covered the sun, making the forest seem darker. Some tree branches moved as a stronger gush of wind travelled through the clearing, making them look like grotesque hands, stretching towards me. Suddenly the forest has lost its welcoming aura. Fear started to put its icy claws on my heart, as the thought of being left behind crawled into my mind. Persona wouldn’t do this, right? The first guardian wouldn’t just leave me.

Before I could shout their name again, with panic starting to set in, movement have caught my attention. Turning to the left, there, I saw another woman stepping out from behind a tree, her skin having the color of a brownish-red sard stone, perfectly mixed with the orange-red undertone. As if that wasn’t enough, her softly glowing grey eyes perfectly fit to her obsidian hair, which flowed down gently over the right side of her front, and ending at her hips. She wore the same white silk dress, with the silver lining at its edges. The clearing has started to gain back it’s colorfulness, as the sunrays have escaped the clutches of the leaving clouds. Could she be…?

“I see you have woken up. I have to say, for being who you are, you made quite an amazing job with the first plane.” Her radiant smile showed off her pearly whites, which made her look like she is glowing herself. With my knees buckling, I tried to answer, but she continued.

“I have sought out the other four Guardians while you were unconscious, and I do have to say, their territories are just as perfect as mine is. I especially like the flowers that you made. Their smell fits perfectly to their looks, and the folk of the Firsadian forest are just as lovely.” She came closer, while I was still a little awestruck by her appearance. At first, I didn’t know what I should say, but soon something caught my attention, and I picked up my jaw.

“What do you mean by ‘folk of the Firsadian forest’? I just created this, didn’t I?”

“You did.” Came the answer with a heartfelt laughter. “And you did such a great job that you already created the occupants of this plane. You gave them and the territories a name. I almost feel a little jealous, usually I’m the one being tasked with doing this. Come here.” She gently pulled me into a hug, which I reluctantly returned, trying to process everything that she said. The hug felt good, seems like Persona preferred to have a bubbly personality, which suited her. Something still doesn’t feel right however.

“But… how come I did this much? I just… I don’t even know what I did!” I suddenly let go of her, and gently pushed her away from me. “I just simply let my body do the work! I even lost my consciousness after I opened my palms!” I turned away, taking a few steps forward while holding my head. “There is no way I did all of this. I didn’t plan anything; I didn’t come up with anything! You can’t just tell me that with what supposed to only create this world, it also created others with names, even names for the territories that I had no idea about!”

“New one…”

“No! No, I don’t believe that! It couldn’t have been me who did all of this! I don’t even remember anything, nothing to start with, it’s impossible!”

“New one.”

“Don’t call me that! Damn it, I don’t even remember my own name! The only thing I remember is this stupid language, and even that doesn’t make sense to me! How do I know what I’m saying, how come I don’t remember learning it! I even know how to write in it! But creating all this from this blank state is…”

“Enough!” The sudden yell that came from Persona ripped me out of my thoughts. I opened my eyes, which I closed without even realizing it until now, and I immediately noticed the change in my surroundings. The trunks of the trees looked darker, their leaves have started to decay and fall off. The flowers around me have all lost their petals, and bent over, seemingly losing their energy.

The sudden death of my surroundings has completely caught me off guard, as I started to breath faster, and took a few steps back. Growling came from the blockade of trees, and I’m sure I saw a few glowing pair of eyes staring at me viciously.

A hand closed around my upper arm, keeping a strong grip on me.

“Get a hold of yourself.” Whispered Persona sharply right into my ear, standing behind me. “You are upsetting the occupants of the forest, while also making it decay! Listen to me very carefully: clear your thoughts, take slow breaths, and do not doubt yourself, or your ruling as a god will be short lived. This place, without a god, cannot survive. Your thoughts and emotions manipulate everything, not just your surroundings but others around you.” When I tried to look at her, her grip only strengthened, which earned a hiss of pain from me. “Do not… turn around…” A growl escaped her throat, as I froze on the spot. Her hand didn’t feel like a human’s hand should, and it heated up a little.

I must be affecting her too! As soon as I realized this, I closed my eyes, and hurriedly tried to take big breaths, working on forcing my thoughts to just stop, and don’t think about anything. I don’t want Persona to suddenly turn into a monster, and…

Stop! I ordered myself. That thought would not be helpful at all! It was just as unhelpful as my racing heart, which I’m sure Persona felt as well, since she gave off another growl.

Then an idea came to my mind. A crazy idea, that could easily get me killed, but if not, it could work. I started to focus on it, and when I felt Persona’s hand having scales, I smiled a little. With a heart that still raced in my chest, I imagined her, changing her look, growing, reshaping. If my thoughts and emotions are affecting her too, then I can use that to my advantage. The two following cracks sounded painful, but Persona didn’t make a single noise, which I took as encouragement.

She let go of my arm, and I slowly started to sit down. Personas hot breath tickled my nape, and soon the air around me became hotter, as the noises from the outside world faded. Slow, powerful breathing was the only thing I heard, and it made my work on calming myself easier, as I tried to mimic it.

Thankfully, Persona showed enough self-control as to not bite my head off. As I opened my eyes, a dark shaded, golden colored scaly wing greeted me, to which a grin started to form on my face. A powerful dragon, shielding me from the outside world with its wings. The feeling of safety and the hot air that enclosed me was the perfect thing that could help me calm down.

As I turned around, leaning back a little, and propping myself up with one of my arms, I looked at the baffled draconic face of Persona. I don’t even know how I could read off feelings from looking at her face, but I didn’t care. It worked.

Her pupils were so dilated, that I could barely see in its reflection my bright green eyes, and brown hair, which ended at my chest, perfectly hiding one of my breasts. For a while, she just looked at me in the bare light that shone thought the hole at the top, but then an amused, toothy grin appeared on her face.

“Again, I have to say… You are full of surprises.” Her deep feminine voice was like a song to my ears, as she lay down, then looked out from the tent that her wings have formed. “But you still have work to do. I may be able to defend you from the occupants of this area, but as long as this mix of emotions linger here, the forest cannot heal.”

“How do I do it?” I asked, eager to try my powers out again. I tried to look out as well, but she wouldn’t let me. Instead, she looked down at me, and cocked her head to the side.

“Well… Imagine the forest as it was, before you did this. Imagine how it felt to look at them, and let loose of those feelings. They will hopefully completely negate the negative ones.” Nodding furiously, I closed my eyes, and the image of the lively forest came to my mind in an instant. The grass, glistening in the humidity, the flowers that gave a good ecstatic to the clearing, with their colorful petals and different shape, the few rocks that I hoped I would not step on accidentally. The trees, standing tall, reaching to the skies, with their leaves gently rustling as the wind made them dance. The peaceful feeling that the forest had, the safety it promised have all came back to me.

I frowned then, as one of the trees suddenly looked vastly different than the others. Its leaves were all in a different shape, some even having a different color. No matter how much I tried to affect it, to change its look so it could look normal, it didn’t do anything. I couldn’t imagine it changing.

I opened my eyes, slowly rising to my knees, while having a hand on Persona for added stability. I looked out through the hole and looked at the strange tree.

I successfully healed the forest, and I no longer saw the terrifying glowing eyes, but there it was. Now, being able to see it clearly, the tree had the audacity to change its trunks, forming into a twisting one, like it took multiple smaller ones, and twisted them around each other. Then it turned blue.

“What the…?” As I felt Persona looking into the same direction, she suddenly stood up, which forced me to catch myself, before I would fall over. She approached the tree, humming.

“Ah, I see now.” She muttered, to which I started to frown. Again, something that I may have caused without intending to.

“What did I do this time?” I asked, tired of everything. As much as I liked my new powers, it quickly became apparent that I always manage to screw up something.

“You weren’t the one who did this.” May the sun fall on me.

“What do you mean? Who then?” Persona looked at me, and smiled, quickly changing back into her human form, as she put her hand inside a hole in the tree, and pulled out some clothes.

“A Guardian. You will meet him eventually, but for now, you will have to make a decision. And also put some clothes on.” She tossed them to me, and I managed to catch them all. Then sandals landed at my feet, and I looked up at her, lifting up one of my eyebrows.

“I mean, you don’t have to, as long as you enjoy the freezing temperatures of the approaching night.” She gave me a wink.

Cheeks burning, I quickly turned around, and got dressed. It wasn’t anything special, just a loose blue jean with four pockets, a white tricot and a shirt, having a green and brown spotted pattern on it. They were thick, and quickly got me warmed up. As I looked down at the sandals, another frown appeared on my face.

“Wouldn’t my feet still be freezing with just these?” I questioned, looking at Persona, who by that time pulled out many more things from the tree.

“Don’t worry about it. They have magical abilities, such as defending your feet from almost anything. You can also change their shape at will, after putting them on.”

“That’s handy…” I quickly stepped into them, and the change happened in an instant. My feet warmed up, and I imagined them turning into traveling boots, which they did.

“So… what now?” I watched as Persona continued to pull out different things from the tree trunk, and putting them into a side bag, which looked too small to be able to accommodate all that, but somehow, it did.

“Look around the clearing. You must choose which path you want to go on. All four end of the clearing has something unique on them, and by taking it, you will choose your path. It could be anything: a rock, a leaf, a fallen branch, or a flower, just for example.” She finally finished putting everything into the bag, and she patted the trunk. “Just like this tree, as this is one of them.”

“Oh…” With this information in mind, I went to look around. It calmed me a little that I did not cause the tree to change so suddenly, but the fact that my thoughts and emotions could change my surroundings this easily wasn’t something that put me at ease.

Before I could think about it more however, I stumbled on something, and fell face first to the ground. Groaning, I turned around, and sat up, searching for the culprit, which to my surprise and demise, was a fist sized rock, shining with a blue color. The first strange item I found, and it already caused me to fall.

Better keep looking. I thought to myself, as I got up, and kept on going. I did not want to carry a rock with myself.

The next one, to my surprise… was another rock. I stared angrily at the black stone, that seemed to have a white pulsing light in it. Nope. Not taking it.

My next stop has also become a point of disappointment for me. No matter how much I looked around, the third item was… not a rock. It was an old watch, not the one that you put on your wrist, but the circular one, that always had a pocket for itself on a jean. However, with how rusty it looked, I doubted that it would be much of a use for me, to at least track the time on my journey.

Sulking, I quickly stalked back to Persona, and sat down at the tree, crossing my arms in front of my chest.

“Haven’t found what you were looking for?” The teasing in Persona’s voice earned a glare from me, and with a huffing breath, I leaned back into the tree. Her smile didn’t seem to falter, as she stretched upwards, and removed a leave from the tree, presenting it.

“Then, you could always go and thank the Guardian for all this stuff.” As she said this, the leave started to glow with a faint red light, and I took it, still uncertain about it. What could I do with it?

“Unfortunately, as much as I would love to, I cannot go with you. This will be your journey, in which you have to find yourself, as well as learn everything you can from the other guardians.”

“But… where should I go? I don’t even know what I am supposed to be looking for!” I quickly got up, protesting about the idea that I have to go alone. She however, just smiled and put a hand on my shoulder.

“You will know what to look for when you arrive there. As to which way to go: just go around that tree, and go forward. You will find a path, and as long as you follow it, you should arrive at the other guardian’s territory. The occupants won’t attack you, as you are their god, but never forget: the moment you start losing control, it’s the end for you.” She again, pulled me into a hug, which I returned immediately, with much more strength this time. I didn’t want to let go of her, as the thought of being alone here scared me. As if sensing it, she petted my hair a few times, putting a kiss on my forehead.

“Don’t worry, new one. You will get through it. Remember, there is a reason why you were summoned by me.” As she slowly let go of me, this time she was the one who gently pushed me away, smiling brightly. I returned the smile, and while taking a big breath, I froze. When I was about to speak, she put the strap of the side bag around my neck, and suddenly kissed me. It wasn’t just a simple kiss however: it had a certain amount of fire in it, as she ran her tongue over mine, before retracting, and slowly pulling away, ending the kiss.

As I kept watching her, unable to say anything, she just winked, then took a few steps back, and transformed into a dragon. With a powerful jump and flap of her wings, she flew towards the sky, sleaving me in the clearing in utter shock.

What have just happened?