Chapter 2
The real world

I screamed as Eclipse poured the cold water on my aching burn. Why had it burned me!?! Everyone from the party had left but me. Stupid I, the girl who had to touch the pendant and now my hand was fully black.

“You weren’t supposed to touch the pendant until you were trained!!” Eclipse said as she rubbed my hand. We were in the kitchen. The red from my finger had spread to my forearm. “You weren’t trained!! Now the burn could spread to your heart!!” She yelled. Karin was in the other room on the phone with my parents but I knew they wouldn’t understand this crazy story I didn’t even understand. Eclipse grabbed a small vile of purple liquid as she still rubbed my hands.

“What is happening to me?” I asked almost yelling as my veins and blood burbled and burned. Tears overflowed my eyes as I tried to fight the pain in my arms.

“Don’t ask questions!!” She said to me with a determined look on her face. “This liquid will help. But it will sting. Really bad. We don’t have the earth guardian here to heal you so this juice will have to do.”

“Earth guardian?” I asked confused.

“Don’t ask questions!” She said again. She let go of my arm and more pain began to spread.
“Okay….here we go….” She whispered. A concentrated look grew on her face. She moved her hands up a bit into the air. She moved them a bit and she looked…CRAZY. She kept doing it and slowly as I stared with astonishment the purple liquid slowly slipped out of the vile. It was levitating. Not falling, not getting everything wet, but just flying. Then Eclipse moved her hands forward and the liquid slowly dropped to my burn.

My scream was more than just a scream. It was a cry for life. I could almost see my life ending. But instead I saw my life stop. I felt the burn in my body stop. And instead I felt as If I had been shot with a hundred guns or a hundred knives. But as I cried the tears out I felt better and better. Then my mind went blank, black.

*₰*

My eyes didn’t open. But my ears did. I heard the sound of my parents and Eclipse. I felt Farlion on my bed as I stroked his fur. Where was I? I tried to speak but my throat seemed shut and closed.
“I hoped she would never ever have to learn herself.” My mom whispered. Her voice was sad and I knew she was crying.

“You can’t run from Crystal’s power.” Karin said. I felt someone bandage my left arm. I then realized I didn’t have the burning in my arms. I actually felt better. I felt like I was wearing soft pajamas.

“I think she’s awake….” My dad whispered. I struggled to move the numb fingers. They seemed glued to the bed. Suddenly I found my voice. It was raspy but okay.

“Mom….” I whispered. She gasped. “I can’t open my eyes.”

I felt the touch of my mom’s lips on my cheek. “Oh Crystal I’m so sorry I never told you I just I-“
“What didn’t you tell me?” I asked confused.

Eclipse put a warm tasting liquid to my lips I guessed was soup.

“I’ll explain.” Karin said.

“But what if she’s not ready?”

“Her pendant has found her, but it has found her with no training. It knows its guardian alive. We must teach her before the pendant kills people trying to find its guardian again.” Karin said.
“Fine.” My mom whispered. I heard the door slam.
Eclipse sighed. “Our world, earth, isn’t the only world here in this universe.”

“What?” I asked confused still. I knew there were aliens and such but she made it seem like this place was more important than aliens.

“There is a planet over the Universe boundary line that no one knows of but us. This planet is called the Zerodian. In the planet they don’t have an elemental system like earth does. Here our elements come freely and at ease but the humans have to treat it right. But in Zerodian each of the elements is entrusted with a person. That person is the guardian of the element. The guardian is usually given the title ‘guardian’ when he or she has finished his training and has touched his pendant for the first time. Each has a pendant that actually holds the element. That is what happened to you.”

“What?”

“You are now pronounced the guardian of fire. You touched your pendant. So you officially became the guardian of fire. But you were not trained in the ways of fire like a normal fire guardian would. That is why it burned you in such a way.”

“You mean….I’m a…guardian thing…”

“Yes. I am too actually. I am the guardian of water, but I haven’t been named yet.”

“You are?”

“Yes. That is how I controlled the purple liquid. I am still training though.”

I was quiet and so was she. I had to take this in. And the thing was…I wasn’t going to. I wasn’t going to believe this.

“Anyway….so if that guardian id killed while wearing the pendant, the element could be lost forever. That’s the problem. And what happens is this pendant gives the guardian immortality. Each guardian at the age of 200 must give their pendant to the next guardian or the guardian’s family.
That way the new guardian can train. Your family was told 400 years ago that one of their children was going to be the new guardian of fire. But when you and your twin sister were born you-“

“My twin sister!!!!!????!!!!?

“Yes.”

“I have a-a-a-a t-w-win sister…….” I stuttered.

“Yes….”

“No I don’t!!! I’m an only child!! My parents are Lillian and Jacob Chase!!”

“Actually your parents are Victoria the watcher and Zachariah the great.”

“HUH?!?!?!?!?!?! What kind of name is that?!?!?!!?!?!”

“This is going to be harder than I thought.” She whispered with her head in her hands. “You want the full truth here you go. You were born on June 6th at 12:01 a.m. Your full name is Crystal Janea Zelendipthis. The day you were born everyone thought your older sister Cassidy would become the new fire guardian. The great war of two different planets was happening and the enemy side, the Willows, heard your crying call. They wanted you. They really wanted you. As in kidnap you and turn you into one of them.

So as the dark, foul creatures tried in every way to slip through your home you parents frantically devised a plan. Your mom and you took a portal to earth and your father stayed in Zerodian with your sister. But at the time they realized your mom, Victoria, was going to need help protecting you. So that’s why my mom and I came on earth as well. My older brother, Ethan, and my Dad live in Zerodian.”

I was quiet. My throat ached. Small tears rolled down my face as I realized what she was saying, just might be true. I felt someone’s warm hands stroke my messed hair. I began sobbing, breathing hard.

“W-w-hat….I-I-I…..” And I kept crying. My mother entered the room; I would know her footsteps anywhere. She stroked my face.

“Crystal…..what she says is the truth.” She whispered with a soothing tone in her voice.

“You mean D-d-d-ad isn’t m-m-m-y dad?” I asked.

“No…he isn’t. He’s my brother. He’s your uncle. Your real father I haven’t seen for 14 years.” She said now crying a bit.

Now I realized why on my birthday my mom secretly cried in her room. Now I understood why she wouldn’t let me touch the painting of the tall man in her room. I understood now why my mom never kissed my so called ‘uncle’. Her hands shook as they stroked my hair. I heard my……uncle….walk through the door. “Livantin!” my mom said loudly as he stopped walking. “We need to let her see you. See your real face.”

Karin stood up. “Here.” Suddenly, I felt a warm sensation around my eyelids. It tickled and I felt my eyelids begin to open. I saw a room full of people, people I loved. My fingers lost its numbness and I moved my hand around to feel the soft sheets under me. I wiggled my numb toes under the white blanket. I began to get back to my body, as if I had never been in it. I was actually sweating. I almost wanted to get out of the blankets but my legs were in a lot of pain. They ached and the bones seemed flat.

My Mom sat on the left side of my bed stroking my wet hair.

My…….uncle turned to me. His voice was sweet. “Crystal…..my real name is Livantin if you wanted to know. I’m your mother’s big brother. I am also a shapeshifter meaning I can change into different creatures and things.”

It took me a long time to answer as to I had thought he was my dad ever since I can remember.

“ I refuse to call you Livantin. I am still going to call you dad whether you like it or not.”

His happy face dropped. “No Crystal. You are to call me Livantin. Calling me ‘Dad’ would be lying since I am not your real father.”

“Fine.” I whispered as tears still ran down my cheeks. I let my tired head clunk onto the feather pillow.

“I want you to see my face, my real face.” He said to me while holding my hand. I pulled away. “I’m not a human like you think I am Crystal. The entire time here on earth I have been shifted into a human. I am something a bit more than human.”

I would have been scared but from the unexpected news I had received that day I didn’t really care. Livantin stood up straight showing his muscles. His fists were clenched and he stood firm to the carpeted ground. I didn’t notice it at first, the change in his skin, the color switch of his eyes, the growing of his ears. My eyes widened as his brunette hair lightened. The room became bright as if we were dying. As if we were leaving the earth, it was the kind of light that was so bright you had to shield your eyes. As the light died down a new person appeared in the place of Livantin. It was an extremely tall man, at least 6”9 with long pure neon blue hair flowing to his shoulders. The man had pointed Asian eyes that were an odd shade of purple. The oddest feature he had over all was the long, pointed ears. They stretched longer than his head and the turned out making them extremely obvious to anyone who saw them. His Nike t-shirt and pants were now gone and replaced with brown pants that were tucked into tall boots. He wore a leather shirt and a belt that held a clean and sharp knife. A quiver was on his back and it held silver arrows that gleamed in the desk lamp light.

“Livantin? Is that….you?” I whispered slowly pushing myself upright. Karin tried to push me down onto my back but I resisted as I swung my legs over the side of the bed. I found I was wearing a pair of Eclipse’s fuzzy blue pajamas.
The man nodded his head.

“Yes. This is what I usually look like. This is my true form. I’m an earth elf.”

*₰*

The footman handed Mama Spahn a piece of parchment wrapped in a red string. SHe took a deep breath.

“This letter is for the guardians from Victoria Zelendipthis.”

Mama Spahn looked up with wide brown eyes.

“Victoria? You’re sure?” She asked the footman. Catherine stood up at the sound of her mother’s name.

The footman straightened his trousers. “Yes.” He said formally. Mama Spahn was quiet in thought for a moment.

“Leave us and thank you.” She said waving him off with her hand. As soon as he left Mama Spahn ran to the circle and spread the letter out on the carpet. Her yellow and grey dress was wrinkled but she didn’t care when the letter of her old friend lay unread in front of her.

Mama Spahn cleared her throat and began to read out loud.

Dear Guardians,
My Daughter and I, the new fire guardian, are planning to come home with Livantin, Karin, Eclipse, and myself. We have located a portal somewhere north of our location. We expect to be there in about one day due to Crystal’s need of healing. I am sure Ethan and Jacobson are excited to see Eclipse and Karin. I know I am excited to see my beautiful daughter, Cassidy.
Love,
Victoria

Cassidy got up after the few quiet moments of silence we received. “Well why don’t we get ready for them!? We haven’t seen my mom and Crystal in 14 years. Move it.” And with that she stomped out of the room her braid still flying. Lilly giggled and ran after her.