Guardian: Part Three

When Rionex woke up, she was lying on the sandy shore of a beach. She rubbed her head with one hand. Then, she remembered the gold bands. Quickly, she looked at her wrists. She sighed with relief when she saw both bands were still there.

      Carefully, she got to her feet. Her head throbbed, but she still pushed herself up. Looking around, she asked aloud, “Where am I?”

      “Krawk Island,” replied a male voice. She turned towards the trees and saw a camouflage Zafara watching her.

      Krawk Island! her mind exclaimed. How did I end up on Krawk Island? Then she asked, “Who are you?”

      The Zafara replied grimly, “I should ask you the same thing.” Then, his gaze drifted to Rionex’s wrists. When he saw the bands, his eye widened in surprise, and asked, “Where did you get those bands?”

      Rionex, wary of the Zafara, replied, “Why are you so interested?”

      The Zafara scowled at her. “Tell me, young Shoyru, for this is of great importance. Where did you get those bands?”

      “I will ask you the same thing I asked you before; why are you so interested?”

      “That is none of your business! Now, will you tell me where you got the bands or not?”

      “Not until I get some answers,” Rionex replied stubbornly.

      The Zafara sighed. Then, he walked quickly over to her and grabbed her wrist. “Then I must keep track of you until I find out answers from you.”

      Rionex tried to pull her hand away, but the Zafara’s hold was too strong. “Let me go!” she yelled angrily at him, but he refused to let go.

      The Zafara dragged her through the thick barricade of trees until they reached a small village. He didn’t stop at its edge, but kept pushing through. As Rionex looked around, she saw curious and wary eyes watching her and the Zafara.

      The Zafara came to an abrupt stop. In front of them was a small, worn out shack. He opened the door and shoved Rionex inside. Then, he shut the door and locked it. “Sorry, but until you tell me where you got the bands, I’ve got to keep you in there!” he called from outside the door.

      Rionex heard the sound of running feet, fading until there was not a sound. Rionex sighed and lay down her head to sleep.

      ~*~

      Rionex was awakened by the sound of voices outside the shack. She lifted her head, trying to catch what they were saying. “- the gold bands,” the first voice said, and Rionex recognized this voice as the Zafara’s.

      “How is it possible that she got a hold of the bands?” asked the second, this voice a deep male voice.

      “Dac, you said that she was a Shoyru, didn’t you?” asked a third voice, this one an elderly female voice.

      “Yes,” replied the Zafara.

      “It could be Sage,” the second voice replied. “After all, she was a Shoyru, and she was one of the Guardians of the Bands.”

      “No,” the Zafara replied, “she’s too young to be Sage.”

      “However,” the third voice replied thoughtfully, “Sage did have a daughter, who she took with her back when Sam turned to stone. Maybe this could be her. Dac, did you catch her name?”

      “No,” the Zafara, who Rionex assumed to be Dac, replied. “But, now that I think about it, she does like a little like her daughter. But I really doubt that Sage would tell her daughter about the Creature and the bands, at risk of her going of to face the Creature.”

      “So,” the female voice said quietly, “the only way we’ll find out is to ask her ourselves.”

      Rionex heard their feet walk over the door, and then she heard the turning of a key. The door opened, and Dac came in, followed by a faerie Xweetok and a mutant Krawk. “Hello,” Dac told her. “These are two neopets I think you should meet. The Xweetok is the Warrior Shaman, and the Krawk is Grog.” Rionex nodded in greeting at the Warrior Shaman and Grog, and then turned back to Dac. “I never really got to ask you your name,” Dac told her. “So, what might it be?”

      Rionex hesitated, but replied, “Rionex.”

      Grog gasped, and the Warrior Shaman nodded. “Ah, then you are Sage’s daughter.”

      “Of course I’m her daughter,” Rionex replied.

      “I don’t know,” Grog said. “This could be a trap, and she’s just trying to trick us!”

      “I don’t believe so,” the Warrior Shaman said. Then, she asked, “Rionex, what was your father’s name?”

      “I... I’m not sure. My mom never told me, and he’s never around.”

      The Warrior Shaman sighed. “In that case, may I ask where you got the gold bands on your wrists?”

      “I found them in the attic of my house. My mom wouldn’t tell me what they were, so I went searching for answers myself.”

      “And why couldn’t you have just told me that?” Dac asked, frustrated.

      “Well, I thought that maybe you weren’t good,” Rionex replied with a shrug.

      “Dear, you should have told him at first,” the Warrior Shaman told her. “You see, those bands around your wrists once belonged to the warrior Samari and the rebel Sage. However, the Creature was somehow set free, and he froze Samari in stone. Before he did, Sam gave his golden band to Sage. She and their two-year-old daughter, Rionex, left the island, to keep Rionex and the gold bands safe. It’s been thirteen years since they left, and the Creature has only grown in power since. However, his power is still less than even one of the gold bands.”

      “So, you’re saying that these bands are magical?” Rionex asked, dismayed.

      The Warrior Shaman nodded. “You need to keep those bands safe,” she told her.

      Rionex sighed. She knew she had an important job, but she also knew she didn’t like the idea of an evil creature attacking her.

      ~*~

      The Creature’s eyes glowed with anger. “How could she have escaped alive?” he roared. “You two were supposed to kill her! That way, I’d have control over both of the bands!”

      The Creature turned away and created the odd ball of power. “Show me Rionex,” he said. A picture appeared in the ball of dark power, showing Rionex, Dac, the Warrior Shaman, and Grog. “No!” he cried angrily. “She’s at Krawk Island! Now she’ll find out the power of those stupid bands!” He let the ball of power disappear, and started to pace the room.

      Doomflame just watched him. The bands had given him power to fight the evil inside of him. However, the war was constantly raging within him, and sometimes the good would get pushed back, and the evil would surface. Part of him told him to run to Rionex and tell her of the danger that would come to her, while another told him to stay and do the Creature’s bidding. As the fight went on, the power the bands had given him eventually started to fade. In the end, his evil side pushed itself forward.

      “Doomflame!” the Creature roared. Doomflame looked up at the Creature. “You must go to Krawk Island, and try to convince her to give you the bands peacefully. If she doesn’t, you know what to do.” The Creature grinned evilly, and for a moment, Doomflame’s good surfaced again. However, it soon receded. The Creature used the magical powers of the coins, and turned Doomflame into a normal blue Draik in appearance. Doomflame took flight, and headed of to Krawk Island.

      ~*~

      Rionex sighed as she watched the sun go down from her spot on the beach. The waves lapped up against the shore of the beach. I wonder how Mom’s doing? she thought. She probably misses me. She watched as the moon took the place of the sun, and the stars came out.

      As she looked up at the sky, Rionex saw a shape flying towards her from a distance. Rionex stood up, and as she did, a blue Draik landed on the beach. “Uh, hello,” he told her. “Do you perhaps know where this is?”

      Rionex gave him a confused look, but replied, “Krawk Island.”

      The blue Draik gave her a charming smile that made Rionex blush. “Ah, so then I am at the right place.” He looked at Rionex, then said, “Excuse me, it seems I forgot to introduce myself. My name’s Do... Draco.”

      “Dodraco?” Rionex asked.

      “No, no, just Draco. What would your name be?”

      “Rionex.”

      “Ah, Rionex, what a lovely name.” Draco grabbed Rionex’s hand and gave it a light kiss. “And what would such a fair lady be doing here?”

      “I’m not sure. I remember a bright flash and blacking out, and when I woke up, I was here.”

      Draco nodded. He knew exactly what had happened. In truth, his real name was Draco, but the Creature had given him the name Doomflame. He recalled the flash, and the strength the gold bands had given him to fight the darkness. He looked at the golden bands on Rionex’s wrists. They glowed dimly in the night. The bands brought a little strength to fight the evil within him, but it was not enough.

      “Uh, Draco?” Rionex asked. “Why are you looking at my wrists?”

      Draco shook his head. “I just noticed the golden bands around your wrists,” he replied. “Where did you get them?”

      Rionex hesitated in answering. After a while, she replied, “I just found them lying around.”

      Draco nodded. “It’s getting late,” he said. “We should probably get some sleep.” Rionex nodded, but watched him out of the corner of her eye.

      Draco walked silently behind her, thoughts whirling in his mind. The good was fighting evil, but to no avail. However, one thought continued to pierce his train of thought. Why am I doing this?

To be continued...