CH 26 Summary: ...I will never reveal big chapters in the summations...
In Chapter 27, as Aerobolt goes through his first day home, he learns that the imbalance in nature has already begun to spread across Nyethra. And that Arcane may very well be on his way there to attack. That a storm is brewing...
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The Guardians of Life: Justice (Book I)
Chapter Twenty-Seven-
Brewing Storm

When Aerobolt woke to the next morning, the sunlight was filtering onto his stomach. When he woke, at first he thought he was in the wrong place. Then he realized it was contrary; he was exactly where he belonged. He was home. Home at last. His dreams have been of Iridescence’s voice murmuring to him “Our Arrabalta is home,” over and over. At last Aerobolt can have a fresh start in life.
As Aerobolt sat up and stretched, he realized it was already almost midday. How had he slept so long? How early would the Guardians want him to be awake? Had he made a bad impression already? Panicking slightly, he scrambled to his paws, quickly wrapped his new scarf around his neck, and dashed out into Shade’s quarters. She was sitting in a chair, twiddling her handpaws, and tapping her footpaw.
“Oh, you’re awake. I assume you have slept well?” she was nonchalant.
“I overslept didn’t I? I would think I would have to start training right away, right? A-aren’t I in trouble for oversleeping?” Aerobolt asked nervously.
“Yesterday was a really big day. And as I recall, you hardly slept that previous night?” Shade winked.
“Cloud,” Aerobolt muttered.
“Are you hungry? I just realized we had no supper last night either. And it is pretty much lunchtime now,” Shade laughed somewhat. Aerobolt’s stomach growled, making her laugh a little harder.
“Famished. I haven’t eaten in a full day, and it is getting to me. Let’s go!” Aerobolt clutched his protesting stomach. He knew how it hated being empty. When was the last time he felt this hungry? He remembered when he protested stealing food in Hydyraen by starving himself. At least here he was convinced the food here was anything but stolen, but traded mostly from Thalda and Empra. He could eat now without feeling guilt. He realized how badly the extremities of his body were shaking as he started to follow Shade out of her quarters. He noticed that Shade was unsteady as well. Did she eve eat breakfast herself Aerobolt wondered? Since it was daytime, it was easier to see the objects lined along the hallway leading up to her quarters. They were several pictures and portraits of foxes. Each had a black nameplate encrusted with gold.
“These portraits are of all the other Arch Guardians of Darkness. All of them were Shade at one point,” Shade explained. At the end of the hall, there was a portrait of a much younger Shade. The nameplate read:
“Nova Crava Arrabalta. Served for 25 years and counting. Age 47 and counting. Bane: Wind. Is the mother of the Unknown Enemy and the God of Justice.”
Shade’s smile in this portrait looked like she forced it. Aerobolt could tell she was very upset when it was painted. Then he realized that Arcane was born four or five years before this.
“When I first heard about the ageless prophecy that depicted the God of Justice, I had at first concerned my first son, Arcane. And we all know who was wrong…” Shade said distantly. “I thought Iridescence lied to me. I had lost faith in the Guardians. Then you were born. I knew then, that I had done right by staying.”
“Arcane will pay for everything he’s done. You will be avenged. I will make sure of it,” Aerobolt swore.
Shade nodded. “I know you will… I know he will…”
They took the stone slab down and Aerobolt cried out at how fast it fell; it felt like he was being lifted off his paws. Once in Crossroads, they saw Storm standing in the archway opposite to the doors. Aerobolt had wondered where that led.
Shade answered. “That leads to the Commons area. That is where all the facilities are, like the dining hall and medical wing, for example.”
Storm was tapping his footpaw rapidly, and he was wearing an angry and impatient face. When he noticed his old traveling companions, his face lit up slightly as he strode to them. “There you guys are! I have been waiting for you all morning!”
Shade’s eyes widened. “You were? I had to let Aerobolt sleep in after such events as yesterday!” she said, surprised.
Storm’s mood failed to improve. “Humph. Well, as long as you are here, we may as well have lunch together, right? I mean, I know we are not traveling together anymore, but…” he faltered, suddenly nervous.
“Hey! Just because we are back in Castla nu Craara does not mean we aren’t friends anymore! What could possibly make you think otherwise?” Shade was more surprised.
Storm looked down at his paws, uncertain. “I uh… I don’t know…” he mumbled.
“Let’s go Storm,” Shade said starting down the corridor. Storm’s eyes brightened up as he followed her, Aerobolt close behind. Down the hall, Aerobolt could see several Guardians going in and out of the Commons. Many were going in, in comparison to coming out. Aerobolt assumed many of them were going in for lunch as they were. Aerobolt heard many voices talking at once. Indiscriminately so where he couldn’t pick out one word let alone conversation. Near the end of the hallway, Aerobolt noticed that it was actually outside. They were in the middle of the mountain, surrounded by the sheer cliff side above. The center of the area held a large garden of plants that could only survive in a harsh mountain climate. The sun beat down directly into it, and Aerobolt noticed several more entrances to various places around several of the walls. So this was Commons? Which one of these places was the dining hall?
“That one,” Shade pointed to the one to her immediate left. Aerobolt noticed that many of the Guardians were going to and fro from it. This was it? He wondered as he followed Shade and Storm in. The sounds of conversations of many Guardians sharply amplified. Several round tables were dotted throughout the hall. Many of them had food on them already, and many hungry Guardians occupied them.
“Looks like chicken stir-fry is on the menu today! Mm! My favorite!” Shade said, smacking her lips.
“I ordered the cooks to prepare it just for your return, Shade.” Neither of the foxes had realized Fielra was at a very close by table until she spoke.
“Thank you Mistress Fierla,” Shade said graciously.
“We have much to discuss. Come! We shall go over it over lunch together!” Fielra beckoned them to her table. It was already set out and waiting for them. As they settled down, Storm suddenly yelped out and pointed across the table, then proceeded to laugh.
“Hah! Look at those two!” he was pointing at two fox cubs carrying several dishes of newly prepared stir-fry each to the empty tables nearby. They were covered head to toe in various ingredients, so it took Aerobolt several seconds to realize that they were indeed Cloud and Iris. Aerobolt could not help but smile.
Shade ignored the cub. “So what is it that we need to discuss, Fielra?” she asked.
“Mentors,” Fielra said plainly. “We have a new apprentice, whom we already decided that Thor should mentor, and one no longer with one. As you may have heard already, but while Storm and Plazma were out fetching you two, I had decided to assign mentors and apprentices according to their Bane Force. I want each Guardian to mentor a cub of which carries their own Bane. It used to be so that they match Dominant Forces, but I believe the maximum potential is reached if the Banes matched. So before this decision, I had wanted Shade to mentor you, Aerobolt. Now you can see why I decided against it, right? You see why I chose Thor right?” Fielra explained.
“I see…” Aerobolt replied.
“Excuse me? Mistress Fielra?” Storm started cautiously.
“Oh? Are you nervous about your new mentor, Storm? Don’t worry, your new mentor is—“
“While we are still on topic of Thor, he needs to know that Storm’s Thunder Gem was destroyed,” Shade interrupted.
“Is that so? May I ask what happened to the other Gem? These Gems are hard to replace you know,” Fielra didn’t seem too upset though. She sighed after Shade recalled the Kobold Bandit incident. “I see. Those Bandits have gotten so much bolder lately. The Shadow Vulpine influence is spreading far and wide. They may even reach the Shrouded Wolf Tribe in the Shrouded Forest. Wolves, as you may have known from Thalda, are brave and noble creatures, albeit too proud at times. If even they can be swayed by the Shadow Vulpine… Arcane has gotten far too charismatic for my liking. These Bandits you say have also catalyzed a famine in the village of Uron?”
Shade nodded. “Indeed. We got Marqi of Thalda and Salar of Cavra to assist them. Uron should be fine as long as either two are not cut off.”
“Marqi?” Fielra echoed.
Shade dipped her head sadly. “Stonepaw has—“ she couldn’t finish.
Fielra dipped her head in return. “I see. So he’s finally gone to the Ethereal Sky. At least there his health is finally restored. May I ask how you got that haughty Marqi to acquiesce to your requests?”
“We have enlightened her of her true nature by comparing her to Arcane. She realized how shockingly similar her threats were to his intentions, and now she strives to change her image,” Shade replied.
“I see… if only others could change so quickly,” Fielra said, eyes clouded.
“So… um… Who’s gonna be my mentor now?” Storm spoke up.
Fierla directed her gaze at the nearly grown cub, “I chose Blaze to be your mentor. I asked her to join us tonight for our meeting. I ask you to be patient with her, though; she can be quite headstrong at the worst of times.”
Storm nodded. “I promise I won’t let either of you down! And what about my Thunder Gem?”
“I will get Thor on that as soon as possible, but do not expect it any time too soon.” She turned to Aerobolt, “Also, Aerobolt. Thor and I believe you should stay in Shade’s quarters until you yourself have an apprentice. You two have, as we’ve established, much catching up to do.”
“Thank you Fierla!” Aerobolt said, happy to hear those words. “So uh, when do we start training?”
Fierla sighed. “That’s just it. The Arch Guardians don’t normally stay in Castla nu Craara for very long. Many times they are called out into the field to fix imbalances of their Force all over Nyethra. Thor is here, yes, but he had just returned from a month long expedition to the Thunderstruck Mountains. He is much too exhausted to start with you today,” Fielra said regretfully.
Aerobolt was disappointed. “Oh. Well. That’s all right. But if Arcane is indeed on his way here, we need to be prepared.”
“Too true,” Fielra agreed.
“I have one request before we start, however.”
“Oh? And what might that be?”
“C-can you take me to see my father?”
All the foxes at the table gasped. Clearly they have not expected him to ask that. Nevertheless Fielra replied, “Yes, of course you can. As soon as he returns to Castla nu Craara; I am afraid he is not here.”
Aerobolt couldn’t hide his disappointment. “I kinda figured he wasn’t here, but I hoped…”
“A volcano in the far north had erupted, and Salamander was dispatched there to keep the local ecosystem from collapsing. I’m sorry. He should be on his way back. In fact, he should be back in a week or two,” Fielra said apologetically.
Aerobolt shook his head. “I’m just glad I have a father,” he said. “Have you gotten any news on Arcane, though?”
“Arcane will have had news of your arrival by now. As you both know, you were followed by that Shadow Vulpine up to Uron?” Fielra said darkly.
Aerobolt seethed under his breath. “Yes. We have.”
“Well he tailed you completely up to Thalda. He left you at that point, but by the time he would have reported to Arcane, you are here. Arcane will undoubtedly be on his way here right now, amassing his entire army together to march to our sanctuary. His plan to corrupt you has failed. Now he is on his last resort at revenge. A storm is brewing and I am afraid not al of us may get out alive.”
“Oh yes. I still have to know this. Why does Arcane want revenge?” Aerobolt asked.
“For the simple fact that no one accepted him. They never accepted his personality here in Castla nu Craara. He was a cruel cub, and he tried to force his beliefs on his fellow cubs, Storm’s new mentor, Blaze, included. His views could not be accepted; they were too vile for us. He wanted Darkness to be the most prominent Force in all of Nyethra. He wanted the Guardians to be suppressed and even disbanded. So Shade abandoned him in Myunae nu Eira to die. What we had done was unorthodox and cruel ourselves, but surely, how could we let someone like that live here in the Haven of Being? Unfortunately, we never anticipated his survival. We never anticipated his return, of which he tried to steal the Commander of Life away. Knowing that he couldn’t do so, he stole what we held just as dear to us…”
“Me…” Aerobolt whispered.
“Indeed. This was all apart of his plan to gain vengeance upon us for denying him. He believes we are the bad guys, and that he is noble. He is sick, twisted, and unjust. He must be stopped at all costs. So we are asking the Arch Guardians that are here to hinder his progress in anyway possible.”
“So the Unknown Enemy…” Aerobolt started.
“Was never unknown to us, I’m afraid. We tried to our greatest ability to suppress all signs of his existence. For the most part we succeeded. No one in Nyethra knows that Arcane was a product of the Guardians. He chose never to reveal it. His motives for doing as such are not present, but we can say our efforts to purge him have failed. And now… now that everything he wants is here… he will launch one last onslaught onto us any day now…”
“Speaking of Arch Guardians,” Shade began loudly. “I still have a bone to pick with Gnome, Sylph, and Nereid about the bad weather we experienced.”
Fielra’s eyes clouded with darkness again. “I am afraid, the recent inclement weather was not caused by our Arch Guardians. The Force Orbs are reacting to the danger they are in, and causing bad weather all over Nyethra. We recently heard that the Cryogen Lands are melting. Earthquakes are breaking out all over Vrangar Hold. And even the Windfall Steppe is seeing many more tornadoes than usual. The imbalance has already begun.”
Shade was very wide-eyed. “What!? Please tell me what you say is a joke!?”
Fielra shook her head. “I can only wish that it was. But I am afraid that it is not. A storm is definitely brewing. Arcane is throwing the balance out of control, and that is why the Orbs are reacting. An imbalance like this can only be stopped—“
“If Arcane’s reign of terror is put to an end. I promise over and over again to do so, even if I am one of those victims of this brewing storm,” Aerobolt vowed once again.
“How long exactly do we have until he gets here?” Storm seemed nervous.
“The good news is since he is liable to bring every Shadow Vulpine capable of combat as well as the Kobold Bandits with him across Nyethra, it is bound to slow him down. However… we do not know how far he has already come. For all we know, settlements like Uron and even Thalda could be under attack as we speak,” Fielra said darkly. “But… also for all we know, he could still be holed up in Hydyraen,” she added when the three others gasped in shock. “We wait for a status update tonight from Guardians out in the field.”
“And that is what we will discuss? Our plan of action, according to the current situation?” Aerobolt prompted.
“Precisely.” Fierla nodded. She stood up. “Indeed we shall discuss our final plan against Arcane. We will make sure this will be the final time he comes to Castla nu Craara. I want all of you to meet me in Crossroads tonight for this discussion after all other Guardians have turned in. Until then, the day is yours.” With that, the leader of the Guardians walked out into the Commons, and disappeared behind a growing crowd of Guardians. Aerobolt had many more questions buzzing in his head. He never bothered asking because only one of them truly mattered to him: ‘Does my father know I am home?’
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Want to from the beginning? Here is Chapter One! http://www.furaffinity.net/view/11187661/
Here is my series' index! http://www.furaffinity.net/journal/5340298/