The Guardians: Book 1 Magic

7/30/2019 The Guardians: Book 1 Magic

1/207

The Guardians

Magic

By: Michael Phoenix

The Guardians: Magic is about a drastic change in the world after a young boys

wish. The world becomes like the books he read with his father. Some people of

the world gain powers and the abilities of Magic, others live in a futuristic world of

flying cars and robots, another part of the world is full of superheroes and villains,

while the last part is an underwater city. The Guardians, a group of heroes from

before the change, must stop a new threat to this world. A powerful foe who is

searching for the device that granted the boys wish.


2/207

This book is dedicated to:

Mom,

Dad,

And to the real D and J,

Who are all inspirations to my imagination.


3/207

Chapter 0

Heroes of the Past

Heroes of the Past

By Ted Knowles

July 28, 2101

In the past, we knew them as heroes. We

never knew where they came from and they did not care.

They helped keep us, the normal people, safe from harm.

Eight legendary beings with powers and abilities normal

people could only dream of having. Each held the power of

an element capable of stopping whatever villain or disaster

came their way. The people would watch in awe as they


4/207

stopped planes from crashing, buildings from collapsing,

and crooks from hurting people. We called them

Guardians because that was what they seemed like to us,

Guardian Angels.

One of them possibly was an actual angel. He stretched his

white wings as he flew high into the sky, his hands covered

in flames as he threw fireballs at escaping bank robbers'

cars. There was a muscular man with a weird arm that

looked reptilian, with wings to match, on one side of him.

A red-haired beauty that sparked and frizzed as though

electricity poured from her body flew next to him on the

other side. If you were on the other side of town, you

would see a blue haired girl with a person made of smoke

combining water and cold air to make ice and snow at the

park for kids to enjoy on a hot day. On the news at night,

you would catch live coverage of a fire in progress. On the

screen would be a young blonde-haired woman with parts

of her body covered in machinery. She wore a white dress

while moving faster than light itself and pulling people out

of the building. With her was a man who looked like he

could pass for the fire throwing youths twin. He was using

a black colored magic to suppress the flames. The fire

department would arrive and thank them. The young man

would not say anything as he walked away but the girl

would say "no problem" and then run behind him. It was

rare to catch the green haired girl out unless it was

something that destroyed plant life. She would wave her

hand and the plants would return greener than ever. If she


5/207

could catch a camera recording her, she would walk over

and yell at the camera about how people are harming

nature, and the hippies would rejoice.

The kids would keep clippings from the newspaper. They

would try to catch the heroes while they were talking to

the police, giving reports on what happened, to get

autographs.

If they were lucky and wanted it bad enough, they could

get an autograph from all of them except the dark magic

using teen. One lucky goth kid got one from him. You had

to make sure you brought recycled paper to get the

signature of the green haired girl. Even if they were not

fighting crimes, you could see them receive awards from

the mayor, president, or Green Peace. They had fan clubs

they would visit, along with schools where they would talk

to kids about following their dreams. They shone in

everyones eyes.

Then the day came when two of them were fighting against

the other five. It looked as though a disagreement was

going on between the dark magic using Guardian and the

fire using one. The dark magic using one had the light

speed blonde-haired teen on his side, while the others

sided with the fire Guardian. The fight lasted an entire

day. When it seemed as though it was a draw, the fire

Guardian put forth a bright light that seemed to light the

heavens themselves. The Dark Guardian and the Light

Guardian retreated into what looked like a puff of dark


6/207

smoke. The damage to the area around them was extensive

and, even though they had fixed it, the government and

many people started to fear them. They had seen the

amount of power the Guardians possessed during the

fight, and started putting restrictions on them. They

limited their flying around and kept them under

surveillance at all times. They continued to help even

through the prejudice that they were enduring.

Then one day, while they were stopping a terrorist attack

on a plane, they all disappeared in a flash of light. The

flight crashed into the sea and lives were lost. The media

blew it out of proportion, saying that The Guardians had

let the plane crash on purpose. Anti-Guardian propaganda

went up everywhere. Posters, clothes, even television ads

went up and slaughtered the name of the missing heroes.

Crime increased and terrorist attacks led to wars. Large

banners and posters went up. Written on them in boldprint was "Where are the Guardians? That catastrophe

was the last we saw of them. No one knew what The

Guardians secret identities were, or even if they had any.

When the war was finally over, negative media about the

Guardians started to resurface. The military was the

biggest promoter of it. They started saying We dont need

their help. More wars started, and all but those whoalways wished for their return soon forgot The Guardians.

We once called them heroes.


7/207

Chapter 1


8/207

The Wish Felt Around the World

War ravaged our world in the beginning of the Twenty-second century. All

because of differences between major world religions, millions have died worldwide and

families were torn apart by deaths and separation. New York, Paris, London, Hong

Kong, Cairo, and Los Angeles, all wiped off the map and uninhabitable because of

radiation. All from nuclear weapons the enemy should not have had in their possession.

Even on American land, troops from invading countries were fighting against American

soldiers and pushing the military to its limit. Acts of terrorism such as car or suicide

bombings were common even in the supposedly safe zones. People everywhere were

losing hope because of the constant loss of family and friends. They needed a miracle to

end the war.

They did not know that something was on the way that would bring about the end

of the war. They did not know that the world was about to change in a way they had

never imagined. They did not know that this change would alter the world both mentally

and geographically. This change would not come from the soldiers or their leaders. It

would not come from their weapons of mass destruction.

It would not even come from an adult.

It would come from a kid, a young boy around eight years old with short, messy


9/207

black hair and brown-blue eyes. He had lost his father already in the war and did not

know what his mother meant when she said that daddy was not coming home. Because,

in his eyes, his father was a super hero, a wizard, a knight, a super genius, and

sometimes the king of an underwater civilization populated only by girls, though mom

would get mad at him for saying that. His father was a master storyteller. Every night,

before the draft, his father used to tell him stories, either from a book or ones he made

up himself. When his father left, his mother tried to do it for a couple of nights a week,

but she was not as good. He would stay awake after his mom had told him it was

bedtime and wait, hoping for his father to come in and tell him a story as he had before

he left, but he never came. Before he went to sleep at night, he prayed to the Lord and

wished on the stars that his dad would come back and read him a story so that, together,

they could delve into the world of their imaginations. Months went by, and the war

became worse.

The night the world changed, the boy and his mother were at home. Or the

closest to home they could get. The house they stayed in was in the northwestern part of

the country, in an area the government had created for people who had lost their homes.

It used to be all forest. The battle was getting closer to their area, but there was no place

for them to escape to. They had moved twice now. The entire west coast of the United

States was overpopulated from evacuees of the east side, and leaving the country was

impossible and dangerous considering the large proportion of planes being shot down or

hijacked by opposing forces. The news was on in the kitchen where his mom was, and he

could hear the newscaster talking.

We regret to bring you news of this terrible tragedy, of the nuclear bombings

that took place just ten minutes ago . . . New York, Georgia, Maryland, and Florida. I

repeat . . . He heard the click of the TV going off, and stifled cries rang out from the

kitchen.


10/207

The sounds of bullets and explosives were getting louder, and the yells of soldiers

were getting clearer. Earlier that week, his mother had put boards up to cover the

windows, hoping the soldiers would pass it by, thinking it deserted like some of the

other houses on the street. The boy was looking out of a crack in the wood on his

bedroom window, trying to see stars; he could remember himself and his parents

wishing on them before he went to sleep at night. There were no stars visible tonight

because of the clouds of smoke coming from the nearing battle. A loud whistling noise,

at first faint and then louder, came from outside. It grew louder and louder until it

ended in a loud, earsplitting Boom. The house and the ground shook as though they

were experiencing an earthquake. He looked through the window again and could see

smoke coming from a house down the street. His mother came into his room, a look of

panic on her face. She was tall, with dark brown hair and gray eyes. She was once young-

looking, but from the stress over the loss of her husband and the war, wrinkles lined

parts of her face and a few grays ran through her brown hair.

"Put some clothes in a bag, hurry, we are leaving right now. The boy grabbedsome clothes while his mom was tossing clothes and necessities into a small green

suitcase. She pulled the bag over her shoulder along with a blue bag that contained her

own stuff.

All right, lets go," she said and reached out, grabbing his hand and pulling him

out of the door.

"Wait, I forgot something, he yelled as he pulled out of his mothers grip. He ran

to his dresser and grabbed a necklace off it, then ran back. It was a silver necklace with a

charm of a velociraptor on it. It was his most prized possession because his father had

given it to him before he left.


11/207

The two of them ran out of the house and saw two of the houses down the street

burning to the ground. The Johnson's and the Akron's lived in those two houses. He

hoped they were all right. The smell of smoke was heavy in the already cold air, making

it hard to breathe. The boy looked into the air and saw a large green plane coming

towards them in the distance. They got into the car and drove toward a street that led to

the interstate, away from the fighting. They got a little ways away from their house

before they had to stop in bumper-to-bumper traffic.

Feeling that all hope was lost, his mother cried out and slammed her hands

against the steering wheels angrily. The boy looked at them and noticed that they wereshaking.

Are you alright, Mommy? He asked worriedly.

"I-Im fine; his mom answered, looking at him through the rear-view mirror, her

eyes teary and red. Just get out and come with me.

They got out and started running through the grass on the side of the highway.

People on motorcycles rode by them, riding around the traffic. His mother was holding

his hand and running too fast for him to keep up so he kept tripping and stubbing his

toes. It was after five minutes of running that they heard them. From above, loud

engines roared in their ears. Enemy fighter jets were zooming through the sky. Many

people got out of their cars and ran into the woods. Some ran down the closest exit ramp

to take cover in the stores that lined the road. He heard a mans voice yelling to take

cover.

The jets started firing at the ground, and in the distance you could see cars

catching fire and parts flying into the air. The sound of screams broke through the loud

noise of the jets as people ran away from the road. A missile streaked into a store below.

His mother pulled him through the brush and into the woods on the opposite side of the

road. When she thought that they were far enough away from the street, they sat down


12/207

beneath a large tree. Leaning against the trunk, they could still hear the jets guns, large

explosions from missiles, and people screaming. His mother pulled him close, tears

running down her face, and after a while he fell asleep.

He awakened twenty minutes later, when he felt his mother lift him up and

started running. He could hear voices that he could not understand in the distance. He

could hear gunfire not far off from them. His mother ran, not knowing where she was

heading at all. Her only desire was to get her son to safety. She ran until they were on a

street of the town they lived in. She ran between abandoned cars, some of which were

still running. There were still planes fighting in the sky. The street was in flames at

certain spots. The stench of something burning in the air caught her nose and made her

gag. She looked around and, ten feet away from her, the flames of a burning body made

light dance across her face. His mother held back a gag and started to cry. He could see

enemy soldiers getting closer, their weapons drawn. That was when it happened.

A loud roar filled their ears, and the sky lit up as though it was on fire. The boy

looked up and saw a large meteor flying through the air toward them. It was the size of a

large truck, and flames surrounded it as it fell downwards to the ground. It tore through

two jets fighting in the sky like a knife through butter. Two other jets managed to escape

with just torn wings. His mom turned and started running away from it, but it was too

late. When it struck, the impact of the crash sent out shock waves that crumbled the

ground around it. A strong, dusty gust of air blew out all the surrounding store windows

and blew his mom up high into the air like a rag doll. For a second, it seemed as though

they were flying. It felt both terrifying and amazing. His mom was holding him tight

against her, and she turned in midair so he was facing away from the ground. They

landed with a hard thud, so hard that he heard a loud crack and his mom let go, making

him bounce off her and sending him back into the air, landing a few feet away.

He got back up, his body sore, and walked over to his mom. She was not moving.

Her left leg and arm were lying in awkward positions.

"Mom, please get back up. He started crying loudly.


13/207

"Dont cry, I'll be fine, his mom said as she opened her eyes, but you have to

start running away. Do not worry; Ill catch up to you soon. Stay away from the people

with guns, do you understand?"

"Mommy, I don't want to leave you, he sobbed.

"You have to go, don't worry, I'll be right there. Now go! And don't look back!"

He turned to run away and stopped with a jolt. He turned and saw his mom

holding him. She pulled him close to her and mustered all of her remaining strength to

push him to the ground and cover him with her body. The jets that the meteor tore

through crashed to the ground twenty feet away from them and blew up. A large, sharp

piece of metal flew into the air and sliced into his mothers back. She collapsed onto him

and whispered her last word to him.

Run.

He slipped out from under her and ran away, crying. He could hear soldiers

behind him yelling and he ran faster, but when he reached the end of the street he found

that a large crater blocked his path. He stopped and, looking down from the edge, he

could see a faint light coming from the middle of it, through some of the rocks and

debris. He heard a snap behind him and turned with excitement, hoping it was help.

However, when he looked, all he saw was the barrel of a gun in the hands of a soldier ten

feet away.

The man said something that he could not understand, and he backed away until

he felt the edge of the crater.

LEAVE ME ALONE, the boy cried out.


14/207

The man moved toward him, with his gun still pointed. The boy started to cry,

and then he felt the ground give way underneath him, and he fell into the crater. He

rolled and rolled until he reached the middle. He got up slowly, heard gunshots, and saw

the bullets hit the ground around him.

He ran toward the center of the crater. He could hear more shots hitting the rocks

in the crater around him. He could see a light ahead of him getting brighter. He ran

toward it and found the source. A black orb floated in the air, as though by magic.

He had never seen anything like it. He walked toward it and felt warm air around

him. It reminded him of his parents, and he remembered wishing on shooting stars with

them. He grabbed the orb, closed his eyes, and wished the same wish he always wished

at home. That he lived in a world like the stories his father told him. Then he wished

that he could be with his parents forever. He opened his eyes and looked around, hoping

to see something different. Everything around him was the same. Then he heard

something move behind him and turned around.

The soldier from earlier had followed him into the crater. He raised his gun and

fired. At the same time, the orb burst with bright light, engulfing the boy, but it did not

stop there. It continued until it covered the street, and then the city. It soon engulfed the

country, and then the entire world.


15/207

Chapter 2

The Magical World

"That was a sad story, Miss Spirit," said a bleach-blond young boy wearing a green

wizard hat with matching cloak. He was sitting on a log that had seats carved into it

next to nine other children in wizard and witch hats facing a short, petite young


16/207

woman who was sitting on a stump in front of them. She looked around the age of

fifteen. She had medium-short black hair shifted to the side so her bangs on her right

side covered her face; she had dark green eyes, and a pale, cream-colored skin tone.

She wore an azure witch hat, a frilly azure shirt, and a blue skirt with white flowers

going down one side and a knee-high split on the other side. She also had a strong

wooden bow leaning against the stump beside her, although no quiver or arrows

were with it. They were sitting in the middle of Light Forest, surrounded by tall trees

that kept the sun from reaching them. Gentle breezes flowed through the forest,

making the leaves above them rustle and causing the occasional fallen leaf to rise

and skip along the forest floor.

What happened to the little boy? asked a little girl with golden locks, rubbing tears

from her eyes.

"No one knows what happened to him after everything changed, replied Spirit, "in

fact, we didn't even know about the little boy until years after it happened, when

stories of him started to circulate."

"Miss Spirit, ooh, ooh, Miss Spirit, I have a question," said a young black boy in a

green hat, waving his hand in the air.

"Go ahead"

"What's a car?"

I'm not sure, myself, Anthony," she answered, and then continued, I believe it's

supposed to be a big broomstick surrounded by metal. No one around here knows


17/207

what they look like because one hasn't existed in five hundred years in either

Diamond or Chaos City."

"Miss Spirit, please tell us about the other places in the world," a little boy with sharp

eyes asked politely.

"Well there's Silicon Country, the technology part of the world. Then there is Hero

Country where rumor has it people with strange abilities, and some of the strongest

people alive, live there. Finally, theres supposed to be an underwater city

somewhere, but it has never been found," Spirit said with a smile while she looked at

the shocked faces of the children and listened to their remarks.

"Wow, that's so cool!"

"That's incredible!"

"Neat!"

"What's technology?"

"Wow. Youre so cool, Miss Spirit, our parents won't tell us any of this stuff."

"Yeah, they say that its none of our business to know about the other places that are

separated from us by deserts and jungles that are impossible to cross."

"Thats because its forbidden to give information about them, a voice said from

behind Spirit. Spirit jumped up, looking startled, but regained her composure when


18/207

she turned and saw who was behind her.

A young man with long black hair and light blue eyes who was dressed in silver

armor was standing there. On his back was a large broadsword with magical

inscriptions on it. Spirit's face turned from cream to red in one second flat.

"It is Prince Rocky, the girl with golden locks shouted.

Spirit turned to face him.

Rocky, I thought I told you not to use a Finder Spell to visit me, especially since the

last time you used it ended with you landing next to me while I was in the shower,

brother, dear, Spirit said sarcastically, her face slowly returning to its normal color.

The kids giggled from hearing this.

"And I thought Father told you not to talk about forbidden information, Little Sis,

said Prince Rocky with a smirk.

"Okay, kiddies, Spirit said to the children who were all staring at the two of them,

why don't you all go practice your water conjuring spells from yesterday by the

river?" The children got up from their seats and ran across a path that would leadthem out of the forest to a small stream. The crunching of dead leaves sounded loud

in the quiet forest and continued until they were out of hearing range.

You were teaching them water spells, Rocky said with a tone of disbelief in his


19/207

voice, Do you even know how to do them?

I know how to do all the spells I teach them, she replied irritably, but slightly

blushing from embarrassment, I just cant do them myself.

Rocky chuckled, making Spirit give him an angry glare.

"What is it that you want, Rocky? said Spirit, slightly annoyed.

"Just here to give you the invitation to my wedding. Spirit looked at her brother

seriously.

"So youre going through with it," she asked him. Her voice was full ofdisappointment.

"Of course I am, it's for the good of the city, and we will finally be able to have peace,

end this feud with Chaos City, and bring an end to all these wars. In addition to that,

I met her this morning. She's pretty smart, and man is she hot."

I don't think you should go through with it. Spirit was still not smiling.

Rocky looked at her with a smile and then said, And I don't think you should believe

and tell people what Michael says, but that doesn't stop you from telling morbid

stories to children. Maybe we should get you checked or something. You probably

have brain damage from falling off the broom when you were younger. Then he

turned, muttered a few words, then was gone in a bright white light.

Spirit stood alone, thinking about her brothers upcoming marriage to Chaos Citys

Princess Michelle. The two cities had been at war for centuries: Diamond Citys light

magic vs. Chaos Citys dark magic. Until recently, when the two Kings came to an


20/207

agreement that the two cities would call a permanent cease-fire if there were a

marriage between the two countries of the magical area of the world. She knew that

it would bring peace, but, in her heart, she could not bring herself to trust the Chaos

Empire or let her brother get stolen away by some hot vampire.

While still thinking about it, she started to practice her own wind magic. Ever since

she was little, Spirit would start doing magic without thinking about it. Mages

throughout the land knew that Spirit was the strongest wind-using magician around

and wondered how someone who was so young could control the wind so well. Her

father said that Spirit could control wind magic the day she was born. To her, using

it came to her as naturally as breathing. Unfortunately, besides some healing magic,

wind magic was the only magic she could use. King Giradot, her father, paid the best

tutors to teach her. When that did not work, he gathered the best doctors to try to

find out why she could not use any other magic. For that reason, many of the older

villagers ridiculed her and thought her strange, but they would never say anything to

her about it for fear of the wrath of the King or her brother.

She brought her right hand up and moved it in a slow circle. The air beneath her

hands began to move, and the dirt and leaves began to move in a circle. She hadcreated a tornado the size of a small child while she was thinking about her brother.

More leaves from the ground rose into the tornado until it looked like a spinning

bush, all brown and green. She was so absorbed by her thoughts that it grew bigger

and bigger, soon surpassing her in height, until an angry thought about her brothers

marriage went into her mind, causing the tornado to burst, sending leaves

everywhere and creating a strong gust of wind that knocked her off her feet.

Spirit caught herself with magic by surrounding herself in a tornado and floated

inches from the ground before rising back up. She heard laughter, so she looked

around but could not see anyone. She then realized that the sound had come from

above her. She looked up and noticed a large fireball coming at her from above. She


21/207

dodged it, barely, and felt a wave of scorching heat go past her before it hit the

ground. When it hit the ground, it scorched the spot where it landed and the flames

started to spread about. She used her magic to remove the oxygen from the air and

suppressed the flames with carbon dioxide. Then she quickly looked up to see where

the fireball had come from. On a tree branch, high above her stood a young man

looking down at her.

The young man looked to be about five feet and ten inches tall, one hundred fifty

pounds, he was somewhat muscular and around sixteen years old. His hair was

spiky, red, and black; he had light brown skin the color of peanut butter. He was

wearing baggy black jeans with a white T-shirt and a red short-sleeve trench coat

made out of what looked like a tough metallic material. He was looking at Spirit with

a smile before he spoke.

"It seems like your training is paying off. You made me wonder about you for a

moment when I saw you lose control."

"Michael, how long were you up in that tree listening? Spirit asked, still shakily

from his attack.

"Since the beginning of the story with the children, replied Michael happily, which

you told with such skill that I got tears. I wish I had some popcorn to go with it. Your

brother is right though, what a morbid story. I mean, theyre like what, eight years

old?"


22/207

"Really now, said Spirit thinking it over in her head before continuing, Could you

come down here for a second?"

"Sure, he said before jumping off the branch, flipping before landing on his feet

with a thud. He walked over to where Spirit was standing.

"What is it that you want? he asked smoothly.

Smack! The sound rang through the forest, echoing outwards from Spirit slappingMichael in the face.

"Ow, what was that for? shouted Michael with a big red hand print on his face.

"What is that for, you ask, you came here, spied on me without me knowing, then

you attack me and act like there is nothing wrong with doing it? You act as though it

was just some ordinary thing that you do to people, as if you were saying hi! You

scared the crap out of me!"

"You asked me to train you, he shot back at her.

"Train me, not attack me at random, you idiot. Man, sometimes you act like such a

kid."

"But in real combat you can be attacked at any ti . . .," Michael started and then

Spirit covered his mouth and he stopped.

"Did no one ever tell you that a princess is always right? she asked, still covering his

mouth.

"Whatever you say, Madame Princess Know-It-All, Michael said sarcastically.


23/207

Spirit just rolled her eyes at him.

When it comes to stories, Im not good at making them up and thats the only one I

knew, and they wanted to hear a story.

Still, out of all the stories Ive told you, you chose that one, Michael laughed,

Maybe I should get you some Dark City clothing for your birthday.

Ha . . . Ha, so funny, she said, then stuck her tongue out at him.

Michael was not like any other person she had known. She first met him years ago,

when she was younger. Yet he hadnt aged at all since then, though she figured that

was caused by puberty. He had traveled from one of the lands across the desert.

Supposedly, his father was here around forty years earlier, and his grandfather

before that. He was a complete mystery that she wanted to get to the bottom of.

Because he was the son of a great hero, and knowledgeable himself, Michael was

asked by the king to help Spirit train and learn other types of magic. Michael did not

see anything wrong with her only knowing wind magic, and told her father that he

would make her the best Wind Magician of all time. Spirit, when hearing these

words felt fond of Michael, though she would never tell him that herself.

They stood around and talked about plans for her training this afternoon when a

thought hit her, the children! She had sent them to the river thirty-five minutes ago.

They both ran to the river to see what they were doing. All the kids were there except

for one.

Little Amy, the girl with the golden locks had wandered off on her own into the

woods. Spirit told the other children to stay right there, and for no one to leave. She

even put up a bright blue wind barrier to stop any of them from leaving the area. She

and Michael then went to look for the girl in the direction everyone had last seen her


24/207

going, into the Mystical Forest.

The Diamond City and Chaos City Empires were separated by two forests: the

Mystical forest, which contained regular woodland creatures and non-aggressive

magical creatures, except for the dragons in the mountainous area, and the Dark

Woods, which contained some of the most foul and dangerous magical creatures,

with a canyon separating the two forests. If she were walking in the woods, they

could find her easily, but if she were using any type of magic to travel, it could pose a

problem. Spirit traveled by the air using her broom to fly above the trees, while

Michael jumped from tree to tree searching for her. Michael ran into a group of

fairies out collecting flowers to decorate their den, and signaled for Spirit to come

down.

"Let's ask them if they've seen her, Michael told her, pointing at the fairies. Spirit

laughed at him.

"Fairies can't talk, she said to him.

"Yeah, they can, he shot back, "you just have to know how to talk to them." Michael

said. He created four balls of fire in his hand. They floated from his hand to his back,

spreading out long, and then flattening out like a pancake. They had taken the shape

of four fairy wings. He moved his fiery wings back and forth and did hand

movements at the fairies. The fairies looked at Michael and pointed, but kept away

from him. Fairies were a cautious and shy species. A blue haired fairy with clear light

blue wings broke away from the group and did it back to him. Michael looked at

Spirit and moved away from her. Spirit followed him, and the fairy looked

uncomfortable.

Could you back up a bit please, he told her and she gave him a weird look. Youre

scaring the fairy. Spirit backed up a few feet and waited patiently.


25/207

The fairy and Michael kept beating their wings at each other, until eventually

Michael turned and smiled at her.

"She ran past here a few minutes ago, he said happily.

"That means she's not far, Spirit said, while looking a little relieved. "Could you tell

her I said thank you?"

Michael did a twirl and bowed to the fairy. Spirit snickered.

"This does not leave this forest, Michael said his cheeks red with embarrassment.

"Whatever, come on, we need to hurry, Spirit laughed. Five minutes back intolooking, they heard a scream just ahead of them. Spirit shot ahead of Michael by

increasing the wind, which doubled her speed.

When they reached her, she was only halfway into the forest and a wolf was snarling

at her. The little girl was backing up against a large tree. She tripped and fell onto

her butt. Her face was red and tears were running down it. She pointed her wand at

it and sparks shot out. The wolf backed up, then shook its head and continued to

walk toward her. It was unfazed by the sparks that were still shooting out of her

wand. It was not an ordinary wolf. This wolf was jet black with red eyes. The wolfs

fur had a wavy, shadowy look to it as if shadows were emanating from it. They called

it Cannis Noctis, or Dark Wolf, a wolf that has dark magical powers. Spirit got to her

first. She landed right in front of the girl, separating the wolf from her. She grabbed

her bow from her back and pulled back its string. The air around her hand started to

move and gather speed at the spot on the string that she was holding. The wind

started making a visible shape. When she let go, a gust of wind in the shape of an

arrow flew from it. It knocked the wolf back into a tree. It got up and shook its head.

Snarling from the pain, it dodged Spirits next arrow and then opened its mouth. A

dark purple-blackish energy started to appear, swirled, and then started to gather

into a ball. Then the wolf made a howling sound and pointed its mouth at her as a


26/207

beam of the dark energy shot out of it, straight toward Spirits head. A strong gust of

wind blew around her, making a barrier blocking some of the attack, but some of the

beam penetrated the barrier and connected. Her vision went black, and she saw a

horrible image of a large, slimy swamp monster running toward her in her head.

Feeling scared and confused, she backed up while shooting arrows at the monster.

Starting to panic when she saw that the arrows were having no effect, she tripped

and fell back against Amy, causing both of them to fall to the ground. Spirit regained

her sight back right as the wolf pounced at them, its mouth wide open and ready to

take a bite out of the two of them. Michael had finally reached them, just in time. He

jumped off a tree branch above them, flipping forward and bringing a heel down in

the center of the wolfs head, slamming it to the ground a few feet in front of them.

The wolf let out a yelp of pain before staggering to its feet, and started to do its dark

howl again, but Michael brought his arm back as though he was going to punch the

air in front of the wolf. When his arm moved forward, flame shot out and three

fireballs shaped like small rockets erupted from his fist. Two of the rockets flew to

opposite sides of the wolfs stomach and the last went at its mouth.

When the fire rockets hit the wolf, they exploded, sending the wolf flying up into the

air and twenty feet backwards, its fur singed and its mouth burned. The wolf got up,

whimpering, then turned and retreated. Michael watched the wolf as it ran. It looked

like a black blur heading toward Dark Woods.

"Are you all right? Michael asked Spirit, offering her his hand to lift her up. With

the wolf gone, the effect of the dark howl wore off and Spirit was hallucination-free.

Spirit grabbed his hand and Michael pulled her up. She felt a little dizzy and

stumbled a little bit, but Michael grabbed her so she would not fall. Spirit felt her


27/207

heart thump hard and stood up quickly, blushing. She shook off her dizziness, picked

up Amy, and carried her, still crying into the back of Spirits shirt, back toward the

river.

On the way back to the other children, Spirit asked Amy why she had wandered away

from the group. Amy told her that she was chasing a bunny and got lost in the

woods. Spirit scolded her and then went to smile at Michael. However, from the look

on Michael's face, she could tell that he was concentrating on something else. It was

times like this that he actually looked like a teen becoming an adult in her eyes.

Michaels thoughts were on the dark wolf. It was odd that it had been so far away

from Dark Woods, and he believed that he should inform the King about this

accident.

Soon they got back to the other kids at the river.

"Wow, youre the famous Michael, one of the kids said, "Miss Spirit told us all of

your stories."

"Really, Michael asked the kids with a loud, excited voice, "Did she tell you about

the time I fought a sand worm?"

"No, the kids said in unison.

"Well then, let me tell you about it, he said, sitting on a large stone by the river.

"It all started when I was crossing the Desert of Death . . . " All the kids sat down

around him and started to listen. Michael told them the story until it was time for

them to get ready to go because their parents would be at the edge of the woods

soon. Normally, Spirit would watch the kids in the castle, but today was somewhat

like a field trip she did every week.


28/207

"I guess that will be it for me watching these kids, huh? Spirit told Michael, looking

sad.

"Why is that? he asked, wondering what she was talking about.

"Well, when their parents hear what happened, theyre going to be furious."

"Who said the parents will find out? Michael said slyly.

"What do you mean?"

Michael looked at the kids curiously and then said, "Hey, look at what I found. In

his hand was a bright, white light in the shape of an orb. Once the kids had gathered

around the orb, it flashed a bright light. All the kids looked dazed. He had erased

their memories.

"Hey what did you guys do today? Michael asked with a smile.

"We all practiced water conjuring spells by the river and listened to Michael tell

stories. The children said in unison.

"I didn't know you could do that, said Spirit, looking shocked, and then whispered.

It doesnt hurt them, does it?

Michael shook his head, looked into the air in silence, and then started to laugh.

"There are a lot of things you don't know about me." Spirit looked at him curiously,

wondering what other secrets he was hiding.


29/207

Chaos City was a dark and dreary land where barely any light got through the clouds.

The buildings and houses outside the palace looked run down and dirty. Creatures,banished dark wizards from the Diamond Kingdom, goblins, vampires, ogres, and

other dark humanoid type creatures lived around the castle. The stores there sold

forbidden magical items whose only uses were of the evil kind. A large, onyx-colored

castle stood in the middle of the city. Its black walls seemed to suck in any light and

emanate darkness; this was Onyx Castle. Large, sharp turrets stabbed the sky, and

gargoyle-lined, bat-filled towers gave it a sinister feel that fit the city. Deep in the

castle, in a dark, small, fire-lit room, a conversation was going on about the

discovery of the wolf between the dark King of Chaos City, King Taurus, and a young

man who looked to be around the age of eighteen with spiky, white hair that covered

part of his face. He was wearing a black leather trench coat with silver brackets, a

dark emerald green shirt, and baggy black pants. On his back was a large sword with

a silver handle and trigger like a gun, but there was no hole for a bullet to travel

through.

"One of our scouting wolves quickly returned, beaten. When we used memoryretrieval magic, it revealed that it was discovered by a fire-using young man and the

Princess, said the King, sitting in a large black dragon skin chair. He was a tall,

lanky man with gray, aging hair. His teeth were yellow, and his nose was long and

narrow. He was a frail-looking man, but his power as a Dark Magician kept all the

creatures in the city from revolting.

"Theres nothing to worry about; theyll just think it was a stray, the young man

replied, while walking around the room looking at the portrait of a man changing

into a werewolf. He stared at the immense look of pain on his face for a few seconds

and then continued walking.

The king still looked uneasy.


30/207

"I've seen that young man before, supposedly he comes from a family that travels the

world, and a son always comes back here after crossing a desert. His ancestors have

stopped many of our wars, the King responded.

Don't worry, Ive kept my end of the bargain, you keep yours and things will be in

the bag for you, the young man said calmly as he stopped in front of the kings chair.

"So, you captured it, said the King, unbelieving.

"It wasnt too hard, but I had to use all of the talismans you gave me."

"You used all of them?" the king asked.

"All of them."

"Then you will be able to find what you are looking for when we invade, said the

king confidently.

"Fine, he said as he walked toward the door, his necklace, which had a strange

broken charm that looked like a dragon on it, gleaming from the fire.

The dark room that the king was sitting in suddenly filled with light as the door

swung open.

"Daddy, a young womans voice rang out. A blur came into the room, passing by the

young man and stopped when it hit the king, revealing a young woman (five foot ten,one hundred thirty pounds) of about sixteen who was hugging the king. She had

long, silky black hair that flowed to her mid-back. Her skin was a caramel color, her

eyes bright green. She wore a gray, eighteenth century-style trench coat with a

pointed collar, a tight, black, revealing shirt, and a black miniskirt with knee-high


31/207

combat boots. Her bubbly personality was a complete contrast to the environment.

When she smiled, two long pointy white teeth showed.

"Thank you, thank you, thank you, she said while hugging him tightly. One of the

guards stifled a laugh.

"First, dear, let me go. Then tell me why you are thanking me, Michelle, the king

said, wheezing and embarrassed.

"The prince of Diamond City is so cute and strong. He was nice and a proper

gentleman when he met me. He seemed to like me a lot and kept smiling at me.

When I asked him why, he kept blushing and saying how beautiful the weather was,

she said laughing then continued, "We even set the date for the wedding."

The King had been sipping something out of a gold cup which, at this point, he spit

out.

"But . . . but . . . this is so sudden, the King exclaimed, "I thought you would have

been more upset about having to marry the prince of Diamond City, since they took

your mother away from you when you were young. I had agreed to the peace treaty,

but I thought it would be a year or two before a wedding. I loved your mother a lot,

and even though she was a vampire she never turned me into one. She loved me as ahuman. It still makes me angry to give you up to him, even if it is for peace. He

slammed his hand against his armrest at the end of his speech.

The happy tone of her voice changed to a pleading sound as she spoke, I loved Mom


32/207

too, but what happened to her was what happens in wars, and was also under a

different King. I'm tired of seeing the people of our land die, and looking at Prince

Rocky, I think I've fallen in love."

"Thats absurd! the king shouted, I will not have that kind of talk in my palace! If

you are with him it will be for peace, nothing more!

Why cant you just let me be happy? Michelle yelled at him. The princess's eyes

watered and tears fell as she turned around and ran out the room.

Are you worried, sir? One of the guards asked.

"No, the king said, his face red and his breathing still fast, Our plan will be finished

before the wedding and the prince, along with all of Diamond City, will be dead now

that I have my secret weapon.

Michelle ran out into the hallway and bumped into the white-haired teen as she ran

by him.

"Sorry, she said, after running by him. She stopped after a few steps, feeling dizzy,

and shook her head as though trying to shake it off.

"Are you all right? The white haired teenager asked.

"Yeah, I just remembered something I had forgotten, but thanks for asking, she

said, looking at him in an odd way. He seemed young, but his eyes make him look

older. He did not look like a vampire, but his white hair was odd and he looked as

though his affinity was for light rather than darkness. The sword on his back looked

too heavy for a normal person to carry.

"Well, make sure you don't forget those whom you love, he said, walking away,

"They're the ones that would do anything for you."


33/207

Chapter 3

Training and Diamonds City's

Dragon Problem

At the center of Diamond City was a large ivory and silver palace, surrounded by

a suitably large village. The village contained small stores, restaurants, and many

houses. Everyone in the village was a witch, wizard, or light-using magical creature.

The villages economy flourished from trading within the village. The people were

happy and carefree since magic solved most of their problems. To the east of the

village was a large, dome-shaped object covering a four-mile radius.

Walking into the castle grounds, six walls encircled the main castle. The courtyard

surrounding the castle was full of statues of previous Kings and Queens done in ivory

and bronze. Trees with bright and beautiful flowers were all over. A beautiful silver

fountain was in the middle of the courtyard, and streamed different colors of water


34/207

every few minutes. Inside the ivory walls of the Light Castle, beautifully-crafted

stained glass windows lined the halls and soft velvet rugs lined the floor, leading into

different rooms with solid polished oak doors. In the middle of the throne room floor

was a painting of a large white cross under a black wand crossing a silver sword.

Michael and Spirit were giving the news of the dark wolf to King Giradot in this

room, while he sat on his large, red-and-ivory throne with Rocky standing beside

him. The king was a large man, with bright white hair that he wore long and a beard.

He had a long, red silk cape and a white shirt with black pants. He was an older man

who you could see had once been very powerful, but age had caught up with him. He

never wore his crown because he wanted his people to believe that he was just like

them, not above them.

I would like to take your information for granted, Giradot replied to the news with

his deep voice, "but there isn't enough proof that it wasn't just a stray who wandered

into the Mystical Forest."

"With all due respect, your Highness, Michael began, just because there isn't any

proof doesn't mean that the dark wolf wasn't checking out our defenses."

I agree with Michael, Father, why is it that you won't believe that Chaos City isn't up

to no good? Spirit said, pleading with him to believe them.

"Of course you would agree with him and find a reason to be suspicious of Chaos

City, Rocky said with an angry look in his eyes, "you've been angry about me

marrying the Princess since it was first agreed upon. I think you'd say anything to

stop it."

"Rocky's right, Spirit, the King said firmly, then continued, You never got over the


35/207

agreement and have been acting selfishly recently, as though you don't want peace.

Spirit looked down at a spot on the floor after hearing this, and the King continued.

The reason I believe it is a fluke is because of Princess Michelles visit this morning.

It was obvious that she fancies Rocky, and they seemed to be hitting it off. Also,

these peace talks have been going on for a while."

"They get along so well because they are both idiots, Spirit muttered under her

breath.

"That's enough, Spirit, the King said angrily, then turned calmly to face Michael,Its not that I don't take you seriously Michael. I know you are wise because your

forefathers are known throughout the kingdom for their heroics, as well as traveling

to other parts of the world. It is amazing how a son always makes it back here every

forty years. For you, I will send a few guards to watch the borders but that's it."

"But, Father, you will only send a few soldiers, Spirit said, disappointed.

Yes, that is all I will send, and that is the end of this conversation, said the King

with finality in his voice. They turned and walked out of the throne room into a

brightly-lit hallway with many large windows. Once the heavy silver doors closed all

the way and they heard the click of the knob, Spirit went off.

"God, he's so stubborn, Spirit shouted as they were walking down the hallway.

"Well, the King will do what he believes is right, Michael said calmly.


36/207

"Oh hush you, Mister King's Favorite, Spirit said, trying to imitate the King, "Oh,

because it's you Michael, I'll send a couple of men, Blah, Blah, Blah . . . By the way,

I've always been curious to ask you. How is it that you made it back here on your

own while crossing the Nova Desert, the so-called Desert of Death? Many people,

even some of our best games, have tried to cross it and disappeared. And another

thing, I have seen all of the pictures of your father and his father and so on. Why is it

that your father, grandfather, and so on all look so alike except for different hair style

and clothes, did they all marry women from the same family?"

Michaels expression turned a little uneasy, and he felt a lump form in his throat. He

had been expecting this for some time.

"I'll tell you about it another time, he said calmly as he stepped onto the staircase at

the end of the hallway. It magically carried them down to the first floor of the castle.

Its a long story, and we need to get to your training."

They walked out of the main doors, through the courtyard, and out of the palace

grounds through the village. The main road was made of gold bricks and had an anti-

thieving spell on it. Michael often smiled or smirked when he walked on this road.

One day a dwarf walked in front of him and he started laughing so hard that tears

came out. The village had brightly-colored houses and stores, some of which were

designed into funny shapes: a cats head, a teapot, a giant cup with a spoon handle

that rotated that served as the coffee house, a giant shoe, a star, and even one that

was leaning on its side. It was a marvel that some of the houses were able to stand, or

would have been were it not for magic. Some of the villagers outside waved to them

as they passed. Others tended to their gardens, magically changing the colors of their

flowers, or rode unicorns to the market area. Young kids flew out of their houses,

riding on toy brooms that only rose a foot or two above the ground. One witch was


37/207

chasing her son, telling him to get back here and clean his room. Some children and

young teenagers came out and followed Michael and Spirit. They liked to watch the

pair from outside the dome during their training sessions.

"When will you teach us how to fight and use spells like you? a dark-skinned teen

girl asked Michael.

"Yeah, the other teenagers agreed.

"You know, I've always thought about opening a school one day, he told them, "but

not just for you guys, for all of the young people in the world with abilities. Spirit

smiled at the thought.

"That would be so awesome! a young boy with a green hat yelled out.

They finally made it to a clearing just outside the village's east side. A large,

transparent bubble spell surrounded the training ground. It reached seven hundred

feet high and two hundred yards long. It stood there to protect anything outside

from any spells or projectiles that went astray. Spirit and Michael walked inside,

where there were trees, stationary targets, and discs bewitched to fly around, as well

as an obstacle course, and even a small bottomless lake that stretched outside the

bubble wall.

Michael and Spirit started her training. Michael made Spirit practice her aim for her

Wind Arrows on the stationary targets first, and then made her try to hit a moving

target but, instead of using the discs, Michael had her try to hit a harder target,

namely himself.

"Youre crazy, I can't shoot them at you, what if you get hurt, she said, not accepting


38/207

the idea.

"What? Are you too embarrassed to show our audience that your aim stinks? he

said in a mocking voice. Some of the boys outside started laughing. Spirit looked atthem with daggers in her eyes and they got quiet.

"Bring it on, fire boy! she shouted angrily at him.

Michael flew around through the trees and Spirit chased after him, firing wind

arrows from her bow so fast that her hand was a blur. She fired an arrow that got

close to him, which hit a small barrier of fire he put up to protect himself.

"That's one," he yelled to her.

After ten more hits, Michael made Spirit dodge his Fire Rockets.

"It's your turn, Michael said, with a mischievous smile. After failing to stop nine out

of ten rockets from hitting her, Spirit wanted to move onto something else because,

even though Michael was using a non-burning type of fire, the pressure of being hit

still hurt. Therefore, after a short argument in which Michael did the chicken dance

that culminated in Spirit creating a large lump on Michael's head, they moved on. It

was getting late, all of the people watching them had left, and the sun was setting.

Michael lit a tree on fire and told Spirit to put out the flames. Spirit used the same

trick that she had used on the fireball Michael had sent at her that morning, thinking

that it would be easy. It did not work.

"This is a different type of fire thats made to not use oxygen; youre going to have to

try something different."

Spirit thought for a second and created a tornado around it, thinking to blow it out,

but it still didn't work, and the tornado spread it even more. When it came toward


39/207

her, she moved the tornado to the lake and used it to suck up some water that she

moved toward the tree before dropping the water on the fire, putting it out.

"Good thinking, said Michael. "Its nice to see youre learning."

"A non-oxygen-needing fire, huh, youre full of tricks, Spirit said, wondering what

else Michael could do.

Michael thought for a moment and then said, I have a trick for you to learn. I'm

going to run around, and I want you to stop me by stopping the air around me."

"Can we try that tomorrow? I'm pooped. Spirit replied, sighing, and then flopping

down on the ground. Her hands were red from pulling the bowstring. Michael

agreed, picked her up, and piggybacked her on his back. She fell asleep with her head

lying on his shoulder. Michael let out a sigh as he felt his shoulder get wet from her

drool.

And shes supposed to be a Princess, he said with a chuckle.

Michael carried her through the village, heading back toward the castle. The sky was

now dark and the street lamps were on. Michael could hear pots and pans banging

around from post-dinner cleaning in the houses he passed. His stomach was

rumbling, and he could not wait to get some castle food. A cool evening breeze

flowed through the village, carrying with it the smell of magical flowers and plants

from peoples yards. While he was walking, Michael was arguing inside his head with

himself.

"I should tell her . . . but she won't understand, she'll feel betrayed that she was lied

to, but I've been training her for two years now, but think about what happened last

time, but she's not like that. She needs to know who I am and what she is. Michael


40/207

was so deep in thinking to himself, that it startled him when he felt a drop of

something wet hit his head. He reached up and felt something slimy. He looked at

his hand and saw some kind of clear, bubbly liquid. He looked around and noticed

that he had walked into the wooded path that leads to the palace courtyard. He

looked up, but did not see anything in the trees around him.

Kids must have been playing with some kind of goo and got it stuck in the tree, he

thought to himself.

He kept walking through the path until he reached a clearing and walked through

the ivory and gold gates of the courtyard. He felt a strong gust of warm wind behind

him and turned around to see the source.

"Um, Spirit, you might want to wake up for this, Michael said his voice a little

shaky.

"Huh, Spirit said with a start, looked up, and jumped off of Michael's back. They

both started to back up slowly using baby steps.

In the clearing on the opposite side of the gate was a giant dragon. It was

brown, with scales that looked like they were made of stone, and had landed on the

ground 40 feet in front of them, its giant wings still flapping and forming strong

gusts of wind. It had no fewer than thirty white talismans attached to its body. It let

out a roar that vibrated the ground where they stood and then charged. It broke

through the gate as though it were made of toothpicks.

"Th-that's impossible, she said, shaking, the color d rained from her face, a dragon

this far away from the mountains."


41/207

"Why don't you tell him that he shouldn't be here then, Spirit?" Spirit stood frozen in

fear. Michael grabbed her arm and tried to pull her away, but she did not want to

move.

"Run! Michael yelled at the top of his lungs, snapping her out of it.

Spirit and Michael turned around quickly and ran. The dragon rose back into the air

and circled around the courtyard. Aggravated by their zigzagging running, it started

launching fireballs at them. Michael and Spirit jumped and rolled behind statues and

stones, doing whatever they could to dodge each fireball.

"Spirit, try using your bow! Michael yelled over another roar from the dragon. Spirit

took out her bow and started to counter attack. She launched arrows into the air at

the fireballs, but they just made them bigger. She ducked down behind the large

fountain as one hit the ground a few feet in front of it, sending dirt flying into the air

and showering Spirit.

"You have to concentrate and use the carbon dioxide in the air instead of oxygen,

Michael told her while taking cover behind a large statue of Spirit's grandfather.

"Why aren't you doing anything? she yelled at him.

"His skin is too thick for any of my regular attacks, Michael yelled back. Spirit took

a deep breath and concentrated while pulling back her bow. Her arrow gave off a

dark gray light. She jumped up and fired at one of the fireballs heading at Michael,

and it turned into a puff of smoke.

"We need to get somewhere safe, Spirit said, as she saw that in the middle of the

courtyard was a stone shrine. Spirit looked at Michael and pointed at it. They began

to run, weaving through the large statues that surrounded it. The dragon flew after


42/207

them and took a large breath. It shot out a large blast of fire, scorching the ground

behind them. Michael pushed Spirit into the shrine and let the flames engulf him.

Spirit fell, scraping her legs and scratching her right arm. She screamed as she

turned and saw the fire surround him, tears running from her eyes as she imagined

the worst.

The flames stopped, and a large blaze was still burning in front of the shrine

doorway. Then the fire started to swirl and form into a ball. Michael walked into the

shrine unharmed, with the ball of fire in his hand.

"Dont tell me you thought I would die that easily from a blast of fire. Did you forget

that fire is my element? He asked, smiling as he turned the ball of fire to a puff.

Spirit ran up to him and hugged him. She let go of him quickly.

"Owww, youre still hot, she said, rubbing her arms before continuing, "Why

couldn't you make his fireballs go into puffs like that instead of making us fall?"

"Because I wanted to see what you got, he told her honestly, I wouldn't let anything

too bad happen to you."

"Your lesson timing sucks, Spirit yelled while punching him in the arm, "Well, at

least we'll be safe in here."

"Safe, said Michael, unbelieving, "not exactly. . . we have to go stop that thing. It's

left us and is going to attack the castle."

They ran out of the shrine and started for the palace. In the sky above, the dragon


43/207

was flying and attacking the palace. They could see many lights from spells sent

toward the dragon that just bounced off its skin. Dragons have a high resistance to

magic, so it takes powerful spells to bring them down. Fireballs from the dragons

mouth scorched the palace walls and sent chunks of stone flying off as the smell of

smoke filled the air. Spirit started to cough, but Michael seemed unfazed by it. Just

then, they saw a light appear above the dragon and someone fell from it on top of the

dragon.

"Its Rocky! Spirit yelled, "Hes gotten himself on top of the dragon."

The dragon rose up and started to spin its body, trying to dislodge its rider. Sparks

were flying off the dragon where Rocky was hitting the dragons rough skin with his

sword. The dragon flew toward the high towers of the castle and rammed its back

against it, knocking the tower over. Rocky quickly leaped off the dragons back just in

time to avoid smashing against the wall. He tried to teleport in midair, but as he was

lighting up the dragon's tail swung around and smacked him toward the ground.

When he hit the ground, dust flew into the air and, when it cleared, you could see

that a small crater had formed around him from the impact.

"Rocky! Spirit cried and started to run toward him, but Michael grabbed her hand

and held her back. She tugged her hand, trying to escape his grip, but could not.

"You don't have time to worry about him, the medical witches will attend to him, he

said. Witches dressed in white and red outfits topped with white hats were running


44/207

out to retrieve the prince and others injured by the dragon's fireballs.

"Like hell I am. I'm not going to just leave him there with them! Spirit yelled at him.

"You have to calm down and you have to help me or there will be more like him, or

worse, Michael said calmly. Spirit looked at him with an extremely angry expression

and said, What is it you need?"

"I need you to keep it busy and inside the inner courtyard and then, on my signal, to

create a powerful tornado and suck him into it. I'll take it from there, Michael said

firmly.

Spirit jumped up, used wind magic to push herself, and landed on top of the castles

roof, behind the dragon. Michael watched her go.

Giradot is so gonna have my head for this if it doesnt work out, he told himself.

"Its Princess Spirit, the guards below were yelling.

"Spirit! Giradot yelled from below, growing red in the face, "Get down from there!

"I can do this, dad! she yelled back confidently.

Michael was down in the courtyard spreading a bright red fire onto the ground and

yelling, "I need everyone to clear the area so that we can stop the dragon with this

attack.

"Im not going anywhere while my daughter is out there! King Giradot bellowed

angrily at him.

"Sir, I'm sorry, but no one will be able to stand this next attack. I need you to retreat


45/207

into the castle and close off any windows and doors leading out here. It's going to get

really hot, Michael told him calmly. Giradot looked at him hard, seeing that there

was no way around it.

"You heard him, everyone, get into the castle! he ordered. Overhead, Spirit had

pulled her bow from around her shoulders and started shooting wind arrows at the

dragon to get its attention. The hits of the arrows felt like little taps to the thick-

skinned dragon.

"Hey, you, big and ugly, over here! she yelled as she shot an arrow into its eye. Thedragon stopped and let out a loud roar. It turned, steam pouring from its nose, and

looked at her. It flew after her and she started to run. While shooting her arrows at

it, she kept jumping from roof to roof, using the wind to glide. The dragon started

shooting fireballs from its mouth after getting irritated, prompting Spirit to start

using her wind abilities to their fullest extent by creating strong gusts of winds to

alter the path of the balls.

"Do it now, Spirit! Michael yelled from below. Spirit used the last of her strength

and created a giant tornado underneath the dragon, sucking it in. She then fainted

on the roof. On the ground below, Michael stood, the wind pulling him toward the

tornado. He had cleared the area before the tornado and created a symbol on the

ground, a flame inside a triangle surrounded by a circle, all made of fire. The tornado

started to dissipate and the dragon began recovering its senses.

"Let's hope this works, he said, looking at the dragon.

"Firestorm! he yelled. Then he cast a fire barrier around Spirit and himself.


46/207

The sky lit up as clouds gathered around the moon and turned different shades of

red. Red bolts of lightning spread across the sky. A giant, swirling pillar of fire

descended from the sky and hit the dragon. The intense heat melted all the statues in

the courtyard, trees and plants in the area burst into flames, and the dragon let out a

roar of pain before slamming into the ground from the pressure. It kept trying to

rise, but the pressure of the fire blazing down on it would not let it move. The pillar

kept burning for a full minute, and then the sky returned to normal. The dragon was

not moving anymore. It gave off a horrible smell of burnt skin. The tips of its scales

were charred, and some were glowing bright red from the heat. They had stopped it.

Michael looked at the dragon, making sure it would not get back up. He then

removed the barriers around them and sent a burst of flames into the ground that

lifted him up onto the roof where Spirit lay. As he landed, he started walking toward

Spirit, and stumbled. He had just used his strongest fire attack, and it had taken a lot

out of him.

"Man, I haven't used that move in a while. I can't believe it took that much out of me,

maybe I should have restrained a little less power, he thought to himself, looking at

two red tattoos of ancient symbols that had appeared surrounding his wrist. Heshook his arms, causing the tattoos to disappear, before walking up to Spirit and

pulling her up so she was lying in his arms.

"Hey, wake up, Michael said but, when she didn't stir, he smiled and said, Wow, I

can't believe you fainted after that little bit of work. Spirits eyes shot open and her

fist hit Michael in the stomach.

What do you mean little bit of work, I almost got my butt toasted and you callavoiding that a little bit of work!? Spirit yelled at him, And we had just finished

training! Michael laughed.

"Hey, Spirit said, pointing behind Michael, "whos that? Michael turned around


47/207

and stood up.

A large, stone dragon claw-shaped hand reached out and grabbed his neck. It lifted

him up off his feet and then retracted, bringing him closer to the person attached to

it. Michael looked from the hand up to the arm, which looked dragon-like, and then

to the person holding him. Attached to the arm was a teenage boy, with long, messy,

brown hair and eyes of a stony grey. He looked as though he was the same age as

Michael, six feet and five inches tall, and one hundred seventy-five pounds. He was

wearing no shirt or shoes, so his large chest, abdominal muscles, and feet were

showing, along with his other arm that was normal and full of muscles. Talismans

covered his body. His pants were baggy and from his back sprouted two dragon

wings, not as large as the other dragon's, but the same color and look. Michael

looked down at the dragons body, but it was not there. "He looks so familiar, he

thought.

"It can't be, Michael asked, wheezing and holding the arm that had his neck, Wes,

is that you?

The young man stared at Michael with a look of recognition that changed to one of

immense pain before grabbing his head with a free arm, as though it was hurting

him to think. He shook it off and spoke.

"I don't know who Wes is, but I do know that its been a long time since someone

took me out of my dragon form and weakened me this much. However, before I

return to my master to recover my strength, here is an award. He threw Michael off

the roof and jumped down after him. While in midair, he punched him with his


48/207

dragon-like fist. Michael was too exhausted to defend himself. He slammed into the

ground, making a much larger crater than Rocky. You could hear loud cracks

through the air from bones breaking under the impact. Michael stared up at the teen

in shock before passing out. Stone tiles from the palace courtyard flew into the air

and started to meld together into a shape. A large rock formed in the middle of the

air below Wes before taking the shape of a giant spear and plunging down into

Michael's abdomen. Spirit screamed.

No! she cried out.

Wes rose back into the air, his wings beating as he faced the castle.

"I was sent here as a declaration of war. The peace treaty is off. Chaos City will be

attacking in three days to crush you for the last time. He flew up, into the air and

toward Dark Woods.

Spirit jumped down to Michael and ran to his side, grabbing his hand. She tried to

find some way to help, but did not know any major healing spells and had used too

much energy fighting the dragon to try to lift the rock.

Help! she cried, hoping for someone to come. She could hear banging on the doors

from the soldiers trying to get to her, but the fire attack Michael had released had

melted the doors together and to their frames. She was crying when she noticed the

spear start to rise out of Michael, as though something was pushing it out. Spirit

stepped back in shock.

"What magic is this?" she whispered under her breath. The rock spear fell to the side

with a loud thump and the hole in the middle of Michael's stomach started to close

and heal. Spirit ran forward and began to feel for any broken bones, although there

were none, when suddenly a pair of large, pure white wings flowed out from


49/207

Michael's back. The white wings shone like moonlight, and disappeared as quickly as

they came, leaving small feathers floating in the air around her. She felt a warm,

refreshing feeling as the scratches on her legs and arm disappeared.

Chapter 4

S.M.X.


50/207

Spirit stayed by Michael's side in the infirmary that night. She told no one what

she had seen come out of Michael's back or about the stone piercing through him. Since

Michael had evacuated the area, no one else saw what happened after the dragon had

attacked, and by the time the medical witches had gotten to him the wings and feathers

had disappeared. A flood of emotions and thoughts ran through her mind; part of her

felt betrayed, hurt, and angry that she had been deceived. She had believed that Michael

was just an ordinary wizard. She was also curious and relieved as to what Michael was

and that he was ok.

"Maybe he had a reason to hide what he is, she thought. Michael had been training herfor four years now, and she thought of him as one of her best friends. Then she thought

of the pictures of his ancestors and what he had told her. Theres a lot you don't know

about me." Is it possible that it was Michael in all of those pictures? Is he an angel? She

finally fell asleep with these, and many other, questions in her head.

Light was pouring into the infirmary and the phoenixes were singing from the trees

outside. Spirit woke up in the chair beside Michaels bed where she had fallen asleep

looking over him. She looked beside her to see if Michael was awake yet, but the bed was

empty. She jumped up and looked around, starting to panic. Had he run away, knowing

that she had seen what he was?

"Calm down, I am out here, she heard a voice call from behind her. She walked through

the curtains to the balcony outside and saw him sitting on the balconys edge, watching

the phoenixes flying.

"I wasn't upset, she said, looking at him, slightly relieved.

"Sure you werent, Michael said laughing. You know I wish every day was like this,


51/207

sunny yet breezy, a calm day, no clouds in sight.

"How can you be thinking about weather at a time like this when, in three days, Chaos

City will be invading us? said Spirit angrily.

"Come on, Spirit. We both know that's not the real reason youre angry with me. If you

have any questions you want to ask then ask away, and I'll answer them, but wait until

after I tell you what you deserve to know."

"My name is St. Michael X, otherwise known as S.M.X. I am the tenth angelic

reincarnation, meaning I have died nine times as an angel and this is my tenth, and

final, life. I am billions of years old. Yes, I am an archangel. No, I will not answer any

questions involving religion so dont ask if there is a god, what he looks like, or what

color he is. The truth is that the story you were telling those kids, the one that I told you,

is true. The boy found a wish-making device that we had only heard rumors about; he

made a wish, and bam, instant chaos. We angels came onto earth and created order to

fix the screwed up mess we were in, but we couldnt change things back, it was simply

impossible, so we improvised. We erased everyones memory of the event. Before,

people spoke many different languages; we made them speak only one, except for the

underwater city because no one knows where it is. We know it's there, but we can't find

it. Then, to stop any more large-scale wars from breaking out between the lands, we

created landscapes that would take a miracle to cross so that no one would travel

between the different lands. Many of the people used to stay in one country, never

meeting anyone else from another country. There were tribes in Africa and South

America that had never seen anyone from outside their tribe. Imagine how they felt after

the change, what a culture shock it must have been. Now, many types of people live

together in unity. We solved the problem of discrimination but ran into another. Some

of the people on Earth had become stronger, power-wise, than angels, and many angels


52/207

lost their lives, so they retreated. Then the demons attacked, and I had to lead an army

against them. After it was over, most angels left the planet and went back to heaven, but

I have stayed because of personal reasons, to make sure everything remains somewhat

peaceful, and because I love this planet. I'm sorry to have kept this from you, but I like

to lead a somewhat peaceful life too. Is there anything else you would like to know?"

Spirit stood there with her mouth open, shocked.

"Is it a little too much to take in? Michael asked with a smirk. She nodded her head up

and down, and Michael laughed.

"It answers a lot of things, she said, once Michael had stopped laughing. She thought

about some of the things he had said and asked, What about the boy?"

"He disappeared after that night. No one knows what happened to him. We searched all

over so either he ended up in the underwater city or that bullet could have hit him.

"So what youre saying is that the only reason I have these powers is because of some

wish a little kid made, she asked in a cracking voice full of sadness.

"No, at first that was the case, but I believe that, if the world changed again, everyone

would retain their abilities since theyre a part of them now. Spirit, I believe that you

would have gotten your powers even if the world had never changed to begin with, said

Michael, giving her an encouraging smile.

"What do you mean? I thought all the people on Earth were normal before the wish took

place, that's what you told me in that story, said a confused Spirit.

"Oh no, Michael said with a smile, "not everyone was normal. Every kind of creature in

this world was alive at some point in history before the wish happened. That's where

most of the stories came from. There were vampires, werewolves, witches and wizards,

people with superpowers, and even aliens. I lost most of my lives fighting those types of


53/207

creatures who were doing evil deeds."

"Then how am I special? Spirit asked curiously.

"Youre a Guardian, an elemental being. You can control your element as if you were

made of it. Thats why you cant use any other magic; your Guardian powers block you

from using it. There are eight Guardians on the earth right now, and each one holds a

different element. They are fire, wind, earth, lightning, nature, water, light, and

darkness. I was curious about when the next Guardian of Wind would appear since the

last one passed on some years back, Michael replied.

"How will I know whether or not I am a guardian? Spirit asked, not sure whether she

should believe him.

"Do you have a little tattoo of a tornado on your body that you didn't put there?

Michael asked, hoping for the right answer because secretly he was not sure that she

was.

"Yes, she said surprised, "It is right on my b-" She stopped, turned red in the face, and

quickly asked another question. "Youre a Guardian too right? Spirit asked.

"Yes, I'm the Guardian of Fire, see, he said, lifting up his sleeve and exposing his upper

arm, where there was a small red flame tattoo, "and the dragon that you met last night

was the Guardian of Earth."

His name is Wes. He was a being that was around before the wish, but he had also

disappeared after the wish.

"He is half human and half dragon, how did that happen? asked a very confused Spirit.

"A long time ago, Wes and I were on an adventure together. This was before the wish,

back then I came down to earth a lot to have fun, Michael began, "and we were


54/207

exploring the hidden treasures of a king called Charlemagne. He had a lot of powerful

magical stuff as well as cursed objects that he had collected. One of the objects there was

a dragon scale. Dragons had already died out many years before we had gotten there, so

I told Wes not to touch it and that he would regret it if the scale was cursed, but he

didn't listen. It transferred its curse to him, making him able to transform into a dragon,

which wasn't that bad, but left one of his arms dragon-like. His wings are retractable like

mine."

"But how is it that he has been alive all this time, Spirit asked trying to find out as much

as she could. "Being a guardian allows you to live longer? How much longer does it

increase your lifespan? Does it allow you to live hundreds of years?"

"Eh, I'm not really sure. Wes is a warrior from one of the tribes that lived in the early

12,000s B.C. It is possible that he was immortal to begin with, since he was already one

hundred and fifty years old when he became a guardian but he still had the body of a

sixteen-year-old boy. Moreover, being that hes part dragon, a race that already lives

hundreds of years, who knows when he'll kick the bucket. Youre the first normal human

Guardian. "

"Im the first normal Guardian? Spirit said, surprised. "If one day I'll be as strong asyou and that Wes guy and live that long, then being a Guardian is great."

"Yeah, they all think that, but there's a catch, Michael said seriously while looking into

her eyes.

"A catch?"

"Given that I've lived so long, don't you think I should look older and act my age?" Spirit

looked confused.

But youre an angel right? Spirit asked him, I thought you were immortal.

"We are, but we still age slowly. There are angels younger than me with beards who look

around seventy years old, but being a Guardian stops time for you physically and


55/207

mentally at the age of sixteen."

"What do you mean? Spirit asked, still unsure of what he meant.

"I mean that no matter what you learn or how old you get, your mind will think like a

teenager. Once you turn sixteen, you don't age a day more. You don't grow up, youre in

a constant state of puberty," Michael said. There was a tone of sadness in his voice.

"Is that truly a bad thing? Spirit asked him.

"You might not think it is at first, but once you notice everyone around you..." Michael

started, but then smiled and said, "But why am I boring you with the little things? It's an

honor to be one."

"An honor, huh," Spirit said smiling. Why do you stop aging?

I dont know, I think it has to do with the imagination, having to be able to think up and

use abilities the way we do. You have to be open-minded and imaginative.

How were you chosen to become a Guardian? Spirit asked curiously.

I dont know. The element chooses you, Michael answered, shrugging his shoulders. Iwas born one and Wes found out that he was one in the middle of an earthquake. The

ground around him had given way but he stayed up floating on a piece of rock.

It chose me...?

Documents

The Guardians: Book 1 Magic