The Chosen And the guardians

by Liviu Costin Sociu

  Chapter 9: Drake's Path

  In a dark forest, Drake is carefully thinking about everything that happened. Another betrayal, another family lost, another place gone. Ryu, inside him, was worried. When Drake regained his senses and took the decision to leave, he saw how he felt, how much he was suffering, how much he wanted to run away. Ryu knew that he protected his now former family, still he decided to leave them to avoid any other problems, he saw what Drake was feeling back then, so he decided to stay silent and let him calm down and cool itself.

  In the distance, a little waterfall could be heard, water dropping down from a small hill, a calming sound which was helping Drake to think more clearly. Once found the little waterfall, he decided to sit down against a huge rock, his head was finally clear, not a thought or worry bothered him anymore in that instant "You ok now Drake?" Ryu was worried about his lack of anything in that moment and wanted to avoid another riot "Yeah...." Drake's reply was short and direct "Sorry for forcing your powers out....I was not myself" Ryu nod slightly "Few guardians can do that Drake, you are a special one and I confirm what I said when I choose you. I know how you felt back then, and I can honestly say I understand you...in some way. You are a powerful yet novice guardian, you cannot fight alone Drake. A full fledged guardian can even defeat an army alone, but you are far from that form...we are far from that form." Drake simply looked up at the starts in the sky and smiled slightly "Drake, when we choose our guardian, our companion, we grow with him both in power and experience, we give our best to help them in any way we can...but that's not easy. A good union and sync must exist between guardian and primal beast, otherwise no power can be mustered. That's why we both had almost no power at the beginning and, that's why, we can now use part of your potential now. Drake...I am the son of the great guardian, defender of the Creator's entrance, many expect much from me. They always watched me weird, almost like an enemy, and not one of their clan. Even if many were surprised by my choice, many others were relieved to have me gone from the Dragon realm and the Primal beasts Plane of existence. I know how you feel, no bonds or anything, my father was strict most of the times, I had to do the impossible for my experience and age just to live up to the name of the great guardian's son." Drake sighed slightly "Ryu, I know it was hard for you, but right now I am not in the mood or condition to cheer you up, I am shattered and destroyed after what happened, please..." Ryu simply smiled "I was not searching for a hand Drake, I was trying to say that I understand you fully and I believe that you will choose what's best, as I did when choosing you. What I saw in you was not a mistake, I am sure of that, but...Drake....are you sure you want to run away from what you found in those girls?" Drake stood silent and kept watching the sky, even if together, Ryu could not fully see through Drake's confusion and simply left him thinking while he focused on regaining his powers and rest, being there for him if needed.

  Back at home, Reit was watching over Iris who was in a deep slumber while Lifia was mending her injuries. "I...." Reit turned her gaze to Lifia, her hard expression left Lifia speechless and she could not talk anymore, resuming in simply curing herself silently. The atmosphere was very heavy, Reit was watching out of the window while the sun was slowly rising, she choose not to sleep so she could take care of the heavily consumed Iris who was still asleep since they got back. Lifia sighed unsure on what to do or say, she could not sleep, remorse and pain kept her awake and Reit's silence didn't helped at all. After a while she decided to risk it "I am sorry Reit..." Reit did not even turn her head to look at her and kept watching out of the window "I was controlled, I tried to fight it, but I was too weak to overpower the darkness in me, I tried to..." "Enough!" Reit snapped quickly and turned her furious eyes toward Lifia, her expression was a mix of sadness and fury "You betrayed us, put Iris into a coma, and made Drake go away...have you any idea how much Iris will suffer because of this?" Lifia looked down unable to fight back those harsh words, Reit sighed "I know you were controlled...but what you did is still difficult to forgive" Lifia, with tears in her eyes, stood up and watched Reit directly "Hit me, hit me until you feel better....please...." Slowly she started crying " Please hit me!....hit me until you are satisfied.....Do you think I wanted to hurt anybody!?" Reit was taken by surprise and could not react and simply listened to her, shifting her gaze at the same time toward her "I almost lost myself trying to free Drake from his prison! I just...I...I did not wanted for you to suffer....so please....please hit m..." Reit embraced Lifia tight, brushing her hair with her hand "I know how you feel....but I won't hit my family." after that Lifia simply could not bear it anymore and started crying without any holds up. Reit caressed Lifia's hair silently, letting her cry until she needed to, she had a lot repressed in her.

  After a while Lifia stopped crying and watched Reit "Th...thank you...it means a lot to me" Reit nod and smiled, that was more than any word of forgiveness could ever say, Reit was from the beginning very confused about all the situation but could not bring herself to hate someone that she called family. She forgave her because that's what she felt inside of her, even if doubtful about her own thoughts and feelings about everything that happened. Iris was still sleeping, her energy was regenerating very slowly, even Lifia and Reit started to worry after the second day of sleep without any positive changes "I hope she regains consciousness, she saved me...I cannot forgive myself if something happens to her because of me..." Lifia kept her company and guard without any hesitation or sleep, she was physically weak but refused to rest even with Reit's offering a hand. "Lifia, go to sleep, it's been 2 days now. Your energy and condition are worsening, you cannot sustain such harsh treatment" Lifia shook her head in denial "No I must ensure that" A slap crossed Lifia's cheek in that moment "Don't you think she worried enough about you? Do YOU think she would like to see you devastated and half dead of tiredness like this? Get some sleep...I can watch her while you rest" Lifia touched her slapped cheek and simply nodded "Sorry to be a bother again...." Then left to get some sleep into the other room while Reit sighed once again "You are not a bother, but...".

  Drake was resting against the same rock near the little waterfall, the sun was smiling on him and woke him up slowly and peacefully. Ryu was back as well, fully recharged after a good rest and ready to roll. Drake slowly stood up and watched the sunrise while still lost in thoughts, he could not bring himself to a order inside his head nor could he forgive the betrayal of his latest family "Why does it bother you so much Drake?" Ryu simply confronted Drake directly "In the past I had many friends, close ones too, I was happy and lived my life without a knowing what suffering is." Drake paused himself a little and smiled shortly, a sad smile which seemed to bring him back memories "My friend betrayed me, used me and discarded me once they did not needed me anymore, nobody really cared about me or about my condition or suffering, no one loved me...and I slowly began to be lonelier and lonelier, until I was totally alone, no one to trust, no one to care about. I could not heal what I was feeling back then...so I started to be cold and distant, never picking up any feelings for anyone...that was my protection, my shell, which helped me to stay sane and able to survive up until now." Ryu was listening silently and nodding once in a while but he felt his sorrow and sadness and did not dare to interrupt or comfort him, he knew that only him could understand and know how he felt in what he passed through "After that, I lived my life like that, with my little shell, it was protecting myself well...until I met them. I reopened up, I started to care again, to feel alive but, as I expected, once again I was betrayed and used by the ones that I trusted the most...." Ryu sighed slightly "Drake, Lifia was under dark control, she could not free herself from that control, she almost sacrificed herself to help you escape, can't you see that? She cared about you and wanted to protect all of you, she was ready to die just to make amend of her mistakes..." Drake shook his head slowly "Still, if she could get out to help me, she could use the same way to warn us..." Ryu again was unable to understand how Drake was feeling "Trust me D
rake, you need a lot of power and will to defeat the darkness within you, it's not that easy, and still, she found that strength once you were in danger. You cannot blame her, you found your power in the same way!" Drake was silently listening but could not react in any way, preferring to look at the sky "She was ready to give her life away for you, one way or another, does anything else matter at this point? She cared about all of you, she did not wanted to betray you, think Drake, don't let your past haunt you and deny you your life from now on" Drake simply sighed thinking about everything, he could still not overcome his anger for that betrayal, no matter the circumstances or reasons, that act was simply a blow he could not stand.

  Night once again covered the skies and Drake decided to remain where he was, at the little waterfall, it was the only thing that kept him calm and helped him think clearly. The stars were shining in the sky and the moon was guarding the earth. Drake was sitting against the rock thinking hardly while Ryu was waiting for him to do something and, other than trying to make him think straight, he could not do much anymore. A young lady appeared on top of the waterfall, her clothes seemed made of water with a light blue color and ocean blue eyes, a long blonde-greenish hair and pointy ears and a smile that no human could ever forget even after seeing it only once. "You seem agitated young guardian" Drake stood immediately up, ready to fight. The young lady, now near the waterfall, revealed to be without any shoes or any other clothes other than that simple light blue dress which was almost resembling the water falling in the waterfall. She simply smiled to Drake and calmed him down in an instant. Drake's head seemed light and clear, he was calm and started to sit back down looking at the young lady "Who are you? What do you wish from me?" The young lady simply smiled again and started to walk toward him "Who I am does not matter young guardian, your hear seemed quite confused, the nature surrounding you can feel that, why are you so confused?" Drake was astonished and could not talk, the beauty of the young lady and her words were like a wind that was caressing his ears and a fire that was hypnotizing his eyes "I...I..." Drake could not make up his mind to start and explain because he was hypnotized by the young lady in front of him. She decided to sit besides him, caressing his cheek "Young guardian, even if life sometimes treats you badly, it always grants you a road to what you desire...to happiness. You just have to recognize it and take it. Sometimes it might be hard to recognize or even see that road, and sometimes it might even be a road that you already walked, but even if your life is blurred young Drake" another hand caresses Drake's other cheek while she smiled sweetly "You must see through it's deceptions and walk the true path you search for, even if that path sometimes might be dangerous or bring suffering" Drake could not do nothing if not look at her and listen, his clear mind was able to quickly grasp her message but could not react in any way "Once you find your true path Drake, walk it with confidence so that no one will be ever capable of leading you astray from it, have faith in yourself guardian. You are strong and can do many things still obscure to you, but you will learn only if you let them reach and teach you. Life can be a strict teacher, but a teacher nonetheless, and a teacher never hates his students, on the contrary, she loves them." That said the young lady stood up and kissed Drake's forehead and smiled one final time "I believe in you Drake, you should do that too...farewell" a gently, warm wind struck Drake's face and, when he looked the other way to see where it was coming from, the lady was vanished, leaving him a lot to think about.

  At daytime, Lifia finally woke up "Good morning, how is she?" Reit was standing next to the sleeping Iris "Still low on energy, but she did not got worse which is a good thing" Lifia nodded and started to head toward the exit "Where are you going?" Lifia simply smiled "Sorry to leave her in your hands, but I am going to search for him" Reit shook her head "Leave him be, it's the best" Lifia sighed "I made this mess so I'm going to fix it" without waiting for an answer, Lifia left Reit alone with Iris, a simple smile forming on Reit's mouth. Lifia started to search for Drake's position, his guardian powers were still fuzzy and was difficult for her to locate anything at all. Searching in the city brought no results so she decided to search near the battlefield where they fought the dark one. After hours of searching, nothing was found yet so she decided to search the surrounding area for clues or something about him. Not much later she started to have a faint sensation and started to feel Drake's power source even if it was blurry. Following his tracks, she reached the forest where he was currently staying. The forest was huge and it might take days to find him, that of course, if he does not leave the place where he was staying right now. Even if her powers helped her locate his area of presence, she could not pinpoint his right location, it was very fuzzy and unclear where he was exactly, she could only tell that he was somewhere inside that forest. Still strong-willed, she started to search the place, but the first hours of search lead to nothing. A young lady, the same that Drake encountered, smiled while standing against a tree "You search for the lost one it seems..." Lifia was surprised by the delicate voice that caught her attention but did not felt any hostility from her and simply nod "Yes, I must find him, do you know where he is?" the young lady smiled gently "Did you ever considered if he wanted to be found in the first place? Or if he wished of you to search for him?" Lifia stood silently by. Since the beginning of her searches, she never thought about anything else if not finding him, only now she started to think about the situation itself and how Drake must be feeling. At the beginning she wanted to apologize and bring him back, but what if he doesn't want to go back? Lifia was conflicted but her will answered for her "It doesn't matter, he is alone now, without someone near him. I betrayed him, made him lose everything he had, it's my fault and I will pay every consequences I need to pay in order to bring him back! If not for me, for the one that saved me" Strangely enough, her primal beast, was not speaking, or more precisely, he was almost like absent. The young lady smiled once again and caressed the tree "I see...you are resolute indeed, but the problem is not about the consequences, but about what he wishes to do. You cannot force him to obey your will, you know that right?" Lifia bit her lip "I....I don't know how, but I want to try to convince him to turn back, she needs him...please tell me where he is, I need to find him" Lifia watched the forest floor while biting her lower lip but...no one answered, the young lady disappeared and was nowhere to be found. A gently wind caressed Lifia's face and a wolf came out of a bush looking at her. His silver fur and eyes were somehow special and he seemed to be wanting Lifia to follow him. Without questioning what was happening, Lifia felt the urge to follow the wolf and started running after him.

  After some time of running, the wolf jumped into a bush and disappeared. Trying to following him, Lifia jumped through the bush as well, ending at the little waterfall where Drake was resting. Drake immediately stood up and got in fighting stance looking at Lifia "What do you want? I said to leave me alone!" Lifia was happy and sad at the same time by seeing Drake "I...Drake...I..." She was a little tired from the long search but mostly she didn't know what to say. After a while she regain her composure and walked toward him "Don't make another step if you cherish your life" Lifia stopped in her tracks and looked Drake in the eyes "Drake, I am sorry for everything, I know you are suffering, I know I betrayed you, but...it was not my will, I did not choose to betray you or back stab you. Do you know how many times I watched whatever I was doing without having the power to warn you? How many times I saw her living the moments and things that I could not? How many times I suffered while I could not do nothing to help in any situation?" Drake was still in fighting stance but was silently listening "I know that I am to blame for what happened, no matter what were the circumstances, but I don't want my only family to pay for it, do whatever you want to me Drake, but please come back to us, to them...to her" Drake left his fighting stance and watched Lifia starting to shake slightly and cry in front of him, tears came down her cheeks while she was standing in front of him "K...kill me if that makes you happy! But please...don't le
t them...her...pay for my mistakes...please..." Drake was looking at her and could not decide what to do but, after a while, he started to walk toward Lifia. Ahe was ready to accept her fate, whatever that might be, she closed her eyes and waited. A hand passed on her cheeks, sweeping away the tears and Lifia reopened her eyes amazed by that action, she did not know what to do and ended up looking at him with puppy eyes unable to speak. "Why......" That was the only word she could say in a whisper voice, Drake shook his head slowly "I cannot kill you" Lifia leaned against him and punched him in the chest, but in her condition, those punches were more like a breakout of her feelings rather than anything else "Why? I cannot do anything else for you! Take my life but please return to them!....please don't let me live in remorse and sorrow...." Drake embraced her gently and she stopped punching, unable to react anymore, she simply stood in his embrace like a doll "I cannot kill you, you are part of the family that I trusted, please go back Lifia, I do not wish for your company" Lifia shook her head violently "No, no! You're coming with me! I cannot return empty handed!" Drake slowly distanced her from him and looked her in the eyes "I can't Lifia. I can't return where I don't feel my heart at, I can't return where I feel betrayed or unwell, please try to understand..." Lifia looked down and bit her lips again, she could not think of anything else to convince him to come back.

  In that moment a gentle and warm wind caressed both of them and Lifia nodded slightly "Promise me...." Drake was a little surprised "W..what?" Lifia looked at him determined "Promise me you will return someday...to return where you are waited and welcome" Drake smiled slightly and nodded "I promise" Lifia then hugged him tightly for the first time using all her strength, smiling happily after many days of sorrow and worries "Thank you...." Drake simply nodded once again "Now return home...I need more time" Lifia nod and started to walk away "Take care, we will be waiting for you, your family will be waiting for you" Drake smiled once again seeing her off and started to sit down again against the rock in deep thought. Lifia, on her way back, saw a figure of a young lady on top of a tall hill, Lifia simply smiled to her and bow with respect and appreciation for everything. The young lady smiled back and nod, disappearing in thin air while Lifia started once again to walk toward home.

  Reit in the meanwhile was worried about Iris, her energy started to decrease fast, she did not know how to help her, she was not the magic type and doesn't have the right knowledge on how to help her if not by taking her hand and sustain her "C'mon Iris, don't leave me now! You can do it! I know you are a strong one, show me what you made of!" A little light started to shine where their hand were joined, her guardian simply advised her "Energy transfer in progress" Reit was surprised, she was not able of such thing "Her primal beast is struggling to do the transfer, I am just allowing him to take our energy" Reit nod and let Iris absorb her energy. Normally, energy cannot be easily transferred between guardians, since every guardian has his own energy, which is the life force sustaining him. Being a very powerful source of energy though it can be recovered through eating, resting and every activity that allows the body and mind to regain strength. One's energy usually is not easily compatible with others, it takes a lot of effort and a complex ritual to transfer energy from a guardian to another, which is not the same as transferring one's fighting stamina and energy on the battlefield, and it's usually not suggested to do so, it might even kill the donor if not done right. Reit was not caring about such details now, if she could help Iris in any possible way to recover, she would gladly do it without any second thoughts. Iris started to regain more and more energy but Reit started to feel more and more tired and consumed by that transfer, his primal beast struggled to keep the transfer stable but it seemed that the connection went astray and the energy was transferring strangely. The connection was severed and, at the same time, Lifia returned home "Reit?....what....oh my....REIT!" the primal beast of Reit severed the transfer, but Reit was out cold and collapsed on the floor, the transfer went astray too much but managed to restore Iris's energy to a minimum percent. The energy passed allowed her to stabilize and to start regaining back her strength and forces. Lifia immediately took Reit in bed and started take care of her the way she could and, even if her primal beast was more expert in magic and energy, her powers were still fuzzy and unstable to be used for a stable transfer, a bad usage of those and she could die as well, she preferred to let her rest, able to finally be at peace with herself with the matter finally solved.