Chapter 1
Glacier swung his axe at the Tenebrie Bone warrior. The Bone warrior quickly dodged the attack and swung with both of his swords, only to be blocked by a wall of ice formed by Glacier’s hand. The wall of ice shattered at the blow, the Krenpowen’s waning strength unable to hold it together. The Bone warrior was thin and quick, but Glacier was a strong young man. He held up his axe, ready to strike again. The Bone grabbed and shoved him into the cavern wall, slamming him hard against the cold stone. The Bone warrior still had no glow in his hands, though Glacier’s were pulsing with light blue energy as he formed another blockade of solid ice. Glacier glanced towards the opening of the cave. Maybe I can make it out.
Glacier pushed a blast of ice into the Bone and encased him in frost, and took the opportunity as an out. If he is delayed just enough, I can get around him and out of here. I can’t beat him in close range. While the Bone struggled to break free of his icy prison, Glacier bolted for the door of the cave. He had always been a strong runner, but he pushed himself to the limits to escape this battle. As he reached the mouth of the cave, he began to see the glow of moonlight shining through the trees. I can make it back to the base. Just a little further. He sprinted as fast as he could, and the base was almost in sight. Just as he was about to be able to make out the wall, he stopped dead in his tracks. Oh no. He felt his arms and legs stretch towards his sides as his body began to float a few feet above the ground. His body was involuntarily turned around to face the Bone, who was breathing heavily, with his arm stretched out and glowing a dull black and white energy. The Tenebrie’s voice was cold, raspy, and thin.
“You put up a good fight, Krenpowen. I almost considered letting you live, so I could fight you again.”
Glacier struggled internally, trying as hard as he could to move, but it was clear that the Bone had a powerful hold on him. I can’t move, so I have to find another way out of this. I wonder if I can still… He pulsed energy through his power spirit. The Bone held him in place, evidently waiting for a response.
“Do you have anything to say for yourself before I end your sad little Krenpowen life?”
As the Bone warrior finished his sentence, Glacier focused his mind on the ground behind his enemy. A shard of ice began to form on the ground, the young Krenpowen’s body pumping with both energy and adrenaline.
“Well, if you have nothing else to say, then I suppose I will let your last words be screams…”
Glacier pulled the ice spike towards himself and through the Bone warrior, who let go of him and dropped to his knees. Glacier crashed to the ground, and picked himself up slowly. The Bone warrior smirked, blood pouring out of both the wound and his mouth, as he coughed up red speckles that colored the ground.
“That… was unexpected. I should have known better. You were a worthy opponent.”
Glacier walked over to the Bone warrior, who was clearly in shock, and fading away quickly. He softened his expression, lowering his voice into a warm tone.
“You know, it didn’t have to be this way.”
“Ha. You know nothing. You Krenpowen have been lying to yourselves for so long that you don’t even remember where you came from. This war will end with your extinction. Mark my words.”
Glacier sighed as the Tenebrie faded away, still impaled by the spike of ice, mouth hanging open, frozen blood covering his body.
“Some day, I’ll get one of them to join our side. Some day.”
He closed the Tenebrie’s eyes, and turned back to walk home. Before long, he could see the spire of the Guardian’s Citadel rising above the treeline, its silhouette set against the light of the moons. He longed to someday be stationed in that citadel. A Ronyo Royakume. Some day that will be my title. The top of the Guardians’ Elite, the Guardian Supreme’s personal bodyguard.
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Glacier limped his way towards the edge of the base. I need to tell the undermaster about that opening that the Tenebrie came through. That needs to be fixed or guarded as soon as possible. Glacier stumbled through that opening to get back into the base, and made his way to the undermaster’s house, just inside the citadel gates. He knocked on the door, hoping that the undermaster would still be awake. After a few moments of silence, the door opened slowly, and the undermaster appeared from within.
“Glacier? What are you doing here at this time of night? And why are you bleeding?”
“There is an opening in the north wall, a few yards from the corner of the east wall. A Tenebrie snuck through and tried to get into the citadel.”
“This is… not good news. Just… go to the citadel and tell the Guardian Supreme about the issue. Did you see where the Tenebrie went? Is he still in the base?”
“No, sir. The Tenebrie is dead. I tried to bring him to the light, but… he was deceived.”
“Oh… I see.”
The undermaster mumbled under his breath.
“That’s the third breach report this month.”
He rubbed his eyes and waved Glacier off.
“Go tell the Guardian Supreme everything. He will certainly want to know.”
“You want me to speak to the Guardian Supreme? Myself?”
“Yes. He will want to hear this from you directly.”
The undermaster turned and went back into the house, presumably to go back to bed. Glacier stood there in shock. He can’t possibly want me to walk into the citadel alone. I am not a strong enough warrior to even stand in the hallway, let alone speak to the Guardian Supreme himself. Glacier reluctantly began to walk towards the main entry door of the citadel, wondering to himself what he would say to the Guardian Supreme.
Chapter 2
Glacier stood at the door of the citadel. What am I doing here? This is crazy. Maybe I should go back to the undermaster’s house and reason with him. No… he’d be angry that I woke him up again at this hour. He started to turn away, but stopped himself before walking off. He let out a deep, tired sigh. I suppose I will do what I must. Glacier turned back, raising his hand to knock on the door just as a guard opened it and stood before him with a questioning look on her face.
“Why are you standing in front of the door? Are you lost? Sleep walking? Need something?”
“Ummm…I…”
“Come on, soldier, speak up. What do you want?”
“I… I must speak with the Guardian Supreme.”
The guard stood back and shifted her weight onto her other leg.
“Oh, and what exactly do you need to speak to his Highness for?”
“I… um… there’s a breach in the… a hole… a…”
Come on Glacier. Use your words!
“Are you just gonna keep sputtering, or are you going to give me an actual reason?”
Glacier took a deep breath. Nothing to be nervous about. She’s just a guard.
“There’s a breach in the defenses. I chased a Tenebrie out of a hole in the wall, and it needs to be addressed.”
The guard’s face quickly shifted when she scanned over Glacier’s bruises and damaged armor, realizing he was telling the truth. Her half-smile dropped into a solemn scowl.
“Come with me.”
The guard beckoned for Glacier to follow as she entered the door of the citadel. This is crazy. I can’t talk to him. I have to follow her though. Glacier reluctantly entered through the doorway and into the Guardian’s Citadel.
Most of the lights were off inside the citadel, save for a few guards stations and occasionally one of the servant rooms. The intricate paintings lining the walls shimmered as Glacier passed them, the moonslight casting an eerie glow over each one. A statue adorned with the Guardian insignia stood out from the wall, shining with intricacy as the two of them walked by. The citadel twisted and turned, forcing Glacier and the guard to snake their way through the long hallways. After a few minutes, they came to a door that was intricately decorated with the Guardian insignia and had light coming from the bottom of the doorway. The guard turned, one of the moons reflecting through the skylights and off of her armor.
“Wait here.”
Glacier stood in silent darkness while the guard entered the room. As he waited, he could hear a few muffled voices speaking from the other side of the door, as well as a bit of shuffling around and what sounded like typing on a holo-computer. His heart tightened in his chest. What if this could be my chance? Could I be on the path of a Ronyo Royakume? No. No. After a few long minutes of waiting, the guard opened the door and beckoned for Glacier to enter. Glacier hesitantly walked through the doorway, and found himself in a small study room occupied by only the guard and the Guardian Supreme himself, wearing some regal underclothes without the armor attached. Glacier quickly stood up straight and put his fist up to his chest in salute. The Guardian Supreme smiled warmly, waving his hand for Glacier to stand at ease.
“Relax. It’s late, and I hear you’ve been through a lot. Care to explain what happened?”
“Yes, your majesty.”
Glacier began explaining what had happened, the Guardian Supreme stopping him when he mentioned the ice spike.
“You formed an impaling spike without use of your hands?”
“Yes, sir.”
The Guardian Supreme nodded thoughtfully, motioning for him to continue. When Glacier had finished his explanation, the Guardian Supreme pulled a small device from one of his pockets, clicked a button on it, and began speaking into the device.
“Fern, there is a breach in the northeast quadrant, section 4. Please patch the breach and increase defensive countermeasures in the area.”
There was no voice that came from the other end, but Glacier could sense that whoever was on the other end was going to have the task completed like he had been asked fifteen minutes ago. The Guardian Supreme then turned to Glacier with a curious look in his eye.
“So, you followed a Bone into the forest… alone? Not knowing how strong he was, or what his intentions were?”
Glacier nervously rubbed the back of his neck with his hand.
“Yes… sir… majesty… your majesty.”
“Call me Drako. I’ve never been much into semantics. I grew up in a blacksmith’s shop, and just so happened to be the next one in line when the last Guardian Supreme fell in battle. Family ties, you know.”
Drako paused in thought for a moment.
“What were you thinking, running headfirst into a fight that you might not have won?”
“That the safety of our people is more important than my own. I’d rather die fighting than knowing I let the enemy in to hurt us.”
The silence was heavy. Glacier stared at the desk, not daring to make a sound before the Guardian Supreme addressed him again. Drako stroked his beard.
“How would you like to possibly be a part of my Guardian’s Elite? There would be some tough training sessions that you would have to go through, and a lot of tests to make sure you are a good fit, but I think you have the potential to be a great candidate for the program. Somebody like you could be a big help in forging a new age for Ninjonia.”
Drako’s smile widened as he slid a candidacy paper out of a drawer and handed it to Glacier. His breath faltered for a moment, his heart beating furiously as he stared at the page that was held out before him. He reached out took it, his eyes rising to meet Drako’s.
“Tha… That would be amazing! Thank you. I would be honored.”