Stellar Tomorrow

“Who is Litriva?” Vale asked Elwin before they walked into the ranch.

“Litriva was the leader of Pure-Hearted Retribution. They were kind and brave even though they were shy. They had a rough home life, which is the only reason I would believe they’d defect, but the last time I saw them, they were completely different. I believe the Nether Brigade did something to them, but I can’t prove it.” Elwin sighed.

“So… they are the master of Anne now?” Serrina asked, and Elwin nodded.

“I suppose. But nothing will come of thinking of the ones we’ve lost. We must push forward and strengthen the forces we have now.” The older man opened the door. ‘Amili, I’ve brought a guild here to gain their animal forms.” 

“Oh, hello there! I’m Amili, welcome to my ranch!” A blonde girl looked up from pen with a bunch of puppies in vibrant colors. “Rainbow’s litter is finally old enough to be adopted, so I put them out front. Ah, I love them so much, I’m so sad to see them go!”

“Puppies!” Alicia cooed at one of the puppies who was mostly violet in color, with white and blue speckles. “Are these like the ones in our world?”

‘Yes, but they have coats in colors that are unnatural to you!” Amili smiled. “This ranch - well it’s actually a pet shop but we call it a ranch - was my mother’s, but she decided to pass it on to me. Come on, we’ll go to the Guardian Chamber! Elwin, you going to leave?”

“Yes. Rowan asked for my help preparing for someone’s wedding.” Elwin said, “Good luck!”

“Right!” Amili nodded. She touched her hand to the vault, and turned to another woman,  who was much older. “Mom, please watch shop while I’m back here!”  Her mother nodded, and the vault opened. “Come on.”

Vale and the others followed Amili into the Guardian Chamber. There was another vault within.

“The guardians live within a world that exists in this vault, but we can’t go into it. There, they wait until their chosen partner comes and calls for them. Who would like to go first?”

“Leader goes first,” Ciaran shoved Vale a bit. Vale shot him a glance and rolled his eyes.

“Right!” Amili grinned. “Press your hand here, and your Guardian will come out for you.”

Vale pressed his palm to the panel that Amili pointed at, and the vault opened as the panel glowed white. Inside was a snow-covered mountain, and out came a small blue bear, with purple paws and green eyes.

“Hi! I’m Frostbite!” The bear spoke, his green eyes shining. “I’m your Guardian!”

The bear was about the size of a stuffed animal, and it perched on Vale’s shoulder.

“Oooh, ooh! Can I go next?” Alicia asked, her eyes shining with glee. “I love animals!”

“Sure, go ahead.” Amili smiled, and Alicia pressed her palm into the panel. It began to glow red as the vault opened once more and a fiery volcano land was inside.  Out came a butterfly, though it was more cartoonish. Her body was pale orange and her wings were red with orange spots.

“Hi! I’m Flicker!” She spoke and Alicia stuck out a finger for her to perch on.

“Nice to meet you Flicker!” Alicia smiled at the butterfly. “I’m Alicia, and I’m glad you’re my guardian!”

Ezzy frowned as she watched Alicia joyfully look at her new partner. Vale seemed fine with Frostbite, too.

“How does this all…. work?” Ezzy asked as she looked at Amili. “This magic stuff, I don’t understand.”

“I don’t understand it either!” Amili chuckled. “This magic stuff has always been a part of our life. This world existed for a long time before the Nether Brigade and nobody questions it. Elwin, leader of the Amphites, Tuphere’s king, doesn’t understand. His ancestors made all of this possible, but he doesn’t know how all this portal stuff and these forms work.” Amili looked at the ground. “This vault is a portal, or something like that. I’ve been entrusted with it, and the job isn’t so hard, but I always wonder how things are done.”

“Well, we can tell you what we know!” Flicker said. “But first, we should get all the other Guardians here!”

“I’ll go next,” Ezzy sighed, putting her palm onto the panel, making it glow golden. This time, the portal opened up to a stormy cloud area, with lightning towers scattered across the land. The Guardian that came out was a small yellow meerkat. She paused and began to peer at Ezzy with orange eyes.

“My name is Shock. Nice to meet you.” She made her way to Ezzy’s shoulder and sat down.

“That means that I'm going last,” Ciaran said, looking at his hands. He then made his way to the panel. He slowly put his hand on it, and it glowed a silvery color. The scene inside the vault was a galaxy. A black and grey coyote flew out and leapt onto Ciaran’s head.

‘I’m Shadow! I’m so happy to meet you!” He shouted, excitedly.

“Okay, why don’t we go to the training area and talk to the Guardians? I want to know more about it myself.” Amili motioned for them to follow. “I’ll summon Watt, my Guardian too.”

They were just a little bit away from learning about Tuphere and it’s magic. With their new partners and the ability to transform into a new form being just in reach, the members of Stellar Tomorrow were all at least somewhat excited about the future.