Chapter 4

Gale and Chantelle walked through the kingdom of Halondelle, watching the villagers train and prepare for the upcoming war. The king thought it best for everyone to stay as close as possible. The men built a larger house near the castle for the women, children, and elderly staying behind and could run to the castle for safety if needed. Everyone pulled together, ensuring things were ready for the war, and the king couldn’t have been prouder. The villagers smiled at Gale and bowed their heads.

“Do you think my niece and the others will be back soon?” asked Gale as he led Chantelle toward the castle.

Chantelle waved to a few of the villagers and then sighed.

“I hope so. I miss my son. We have to remember time is different in every realm, so yes, I believe they will return one day,” she said, and Gale nodded.

“We have to have faith in our children. They are the guardians, now,” Chantelle added as they walked up the steps and inside the castle.

The place seemed empty without Ashta and Riah terrorizing the staff with their games, Ray’s quiet and calm presence, and even Roman’s arrogant attitude god complex. Gale and Chantelle missed them dearly. Gale wasn’t sure what Ashta saw in the boy, but the only thing that mattered was that she was happy, and he was good with that. Plus, he wouldn’t have reconnected with Chantelle if things had happened differently.

Chelsea and Liam spent all morning in the castle with Bruce, Cellic, Simon, and Sam, preparing meals for the army and ensuring that the women, children, and elderly had everything they needed.

Liam was in the throne room when Gale and Chantelle walked in and turned toward them.

“How are the villagers?” asked Liam.

“Working hard, training and preparing in case of an attack.”

“Where are Chelsea and the boys?” asked Chantelle, and Liam looked at her.

“They are in the pool room. Bruce and Cellic are taking things pretty hard and believe that the guardians aren’t coming back,” he explained, and Gale and Chantelle looked at him sadly.

Liam sighed heavily and crossed his arms. He, too, was losing hope that he would ever see his niece again.

“Maybe I should go talk to them,” suggested Chantelle, and Liam nodded.

“Thank you. I hope you have better luck than Chels and I have had with them,” he stated.

Chantelle only nodded and left the throne room. Liam gave his brother a hopeless look, and Gale looked at Liam oddly.

“What is it?”

Liam sighed as he walked over to the window, and Gale followed him.

“It’s just that I am afraid the boys might be right. Ashta, Roman, Riah, and Ray are so young and new to be the guardians. What if? What if they weren’t ready for this brother?” Liam stammered as tears rolled down his cheeks, and Gale looked at his brother sympathetically.

“They are ready, or they wouldn’t have been sent away. You know the gods would never put the prophecy in motion if the guardians weren’t ready. The gods have been around for centuries. Have faith, dear brother,” stated the king as he held his brother’s arms, and Liam searched Gale’s eyes.

“We must have faith in them and trust that they will return home. I know they will,” Gale added, and Liam gave him a questioning look.

“How do you know for certain?”

“Because I can feel it,” stated Gale, and Liam looked at him.

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Ray, Haven, and Isabel cleared out the back half of the city and stood on the cobblestone street, looking around. Isabel gave Ray a clever look and raised an eyebrow.

“Not bad for a beginner,” she stated, and Ray laughed, wiping demon ichor off his arm.

“Not bad for a preacher’s daughter,” he teased, and Isabel grinned.

Haven smiled at them as she sat on Ray’s shoulder and hugged her knees.

“So what is our next move?” asked the Fairy Guardian, and Ray looked at her.

“I think we should get the others. They will be safe in these buildings,” the Earth guardian stated, and Isabel gave them an odd look.

“What about the serpent?”

“Since I am the only one protected by the monster’s death stare, and it comes out of hiding, I will distract it while you two get the Diggers inside safely,” Ray instructed, and Isabel looked at him.

“That thing can still hurt you! You’re not invincible,” she breathed.

“I didn’t realize how much you cared,” he teased.

Isabel scoffed and shook her head.

“What?” asked Ray.

“I didn’t realize how cocky you were. You sure you’re the Guardian of Earth?” she sneered, and Ray chuckled.

“I am here, aren’t I? If you think I’m cocky, then you should meet my cousin. He’s the Guardian of Air.”

“Hmm, seems fitting if he’s more arrogant than you. The Wisps of the Air World Realm are such a self-centered species. They worship themselves and believe they are gods because they live in the sky,” stated Isabel, rolling her eyes, and Haven giggled.

“They are pretty vain,” the fairy laughed, and Isabel pointed at her.

“Right? They think they are the most beautiful people in the world, and their s**t doesn’t stink!” Isabel laughed, and Ray chuckled.

Isabel looked at him, raising an eyebrow.

“Wait till you meet one. You will see exactly what I am talking about.”

Ray nervously ran his hand through his hair and snickered. If that was how the Air World Realm was, he knew his cousin Roman would fit right it. Ray looked at Isabel thoughtfully.

“I have met one. Spent most of my life with him.”

“Your cousin, right?” she asked, and he nodded.

“Hopefully, when this is all over, I will get the chance to meet him,” said Isabel brightly, and he shook his head.

“I don’t think that is going to be possible.”

Isabel shot the Earth Guardian a questioning look.

“Why not? What do you mean?” she asked, and Ray gave her a thoughtful look.

“We guardians can only step into our own realm. That is why the others aren’t with me. We each had to go on our own paths,” he explained, and Isabel looked at him, intrigued.

“What would happen if you stepped into another world realm?”

“He would die instantly, and there is no spell to make him come back from that,” stated Haven, resting her chin on her knees, and Isabel reared her head back.

“That’s awful! Who and why would they make the World Realms that way?”

The fairy gave Isabel a knowing look as she got to her feet.

“The gods. Now, I think we should get going,” she stated, fluttering off Ray’s shoulder.

Ray looked at Haven for a moment and wondered why she was irritated. He thought about Riah and what he would do if she were upset, and then it dawned on him. Anytime Riah or Ashta was cranky, it meant that they were hungry. Ray smiled and sighed, looking at his Fairy Guardian with care.

“What’s wrong, Haven? Are you hungry?” he asked.

Haven stopped and hovered as she nodded.

“How did you know?” she asked, and Ray shot her a knowing look.

“Well, in my experience, whenever the female species is cranky, that means they are hungry,” he explained, bending down to the ground.

The Fairy Guardian and Isabel watched in awe as Ray waved his hand over the dirt, and a few plants grew bearing fruit.

“There you go,” Ray chimed, looking at them and raising to his feet.

Isabel stared at the Earth Guardian with big eyes, and Ray looked at her in question.

“What’s wrong? You don’t have anything against fruit, do you?”

Haven giggled, and Isabel cracked a smile and shook her head.

“No, I don’t have anything against food. I am surprised you can grow it,” Isabel stammered, and Haven dived into the bushes.

“I learned how to when me and the other guardians were trapped in the Simulation Realm,” Ray explained, and Isabel nodded, grabbing a berry and popping it into her mouth.

“Simulation Realm? What’s that?”

The Guardian of Earth sighed heavily and grabbed the remaining berries off the bushes.

“Let’s walk and talk,” said Ray as he straightened.

Isabel nodded, and the three headed down the street.

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“So, two demons from the Underworld Realm thought it would be funny to stick us in an endless repetitive realm full of shapeshifting demons, and they phased into our families. Dead or Alive,” Ray explained, walking toward the cavern.

“That sounds creepy. Who in their right mind would think that’s funny?” asked Isabel, and Haven sighed.

“The same two demons who thought it was funny to steal Centeus’s heart and release Belhazur,” she stated, and Ray sighed.

Isabel thought for a moment and then looked at Haven and Ray suspiciously.

“What do the demons want?”

Ray and Haven looked at each other, and then Ray looked at Isabel.

“Honestly, I think they are after Ash, the Guardian of Fire,” he stated, and Isabel chuckled.

“What would a demon want with a guardian? I mean, they have to know there is no way the guardians can be separated like that.”

Ray looked at Isabel cleverly and raised an eyebrow.

“Even when the demon is your brother? Well, half-brother?”

Isabel gave him a shocked look, then straightened.

“Well, if that is what they want, why don’t you hand her over and stop this?”

Ray looked at Isabel and angrily snarled. She jumped back and looked at him, startled. Even Haven gave Ray an odd look.

“I take it. This is your girlfriend we are talking about? How selfish can you be? How many lives is she worth?” snapped Isabel, and Ray shot her a stern look.

“Ashta is my family, and we are not handing her over to anyone. Besides, I said, I think they are doing this to get their hands on her, but even if we were to hand her over, do you really think that this would stop? Especially since they unleashed the king of Chaos?” growled Ray, and Isabel gave him a solid look, crossing her arms.

“Yes, if she is what they want,” she sneered, and Ray roared at the girl.

“I think you should stay behind from here on out. You have lost sight of the mission.”

Isabel frowned, looking at the ground, and then looked at him.

“Actually, I think I will continue with you,” she stated, and Ray growled as he stalked past her.

Silently, Isabel followed Ray and Haven back to the cavern.