“NONE OF YOU ARE TRAINED IN THE SACRED ARTS OF GUARDINIAN COMBAT,” Lord Castron Lakarias stated firmly to the new, ‘chosen six’ champion of the Guardian Energy Shifters from the front porch is forest-secluded Cabin. “You are to return here… TOMORROW at midday when Lieutenant Solas has FULLY recovered from his injuries that he sustained from his encounter with the Mawl Beast.”
“TOMORROW??? BUT WE’VE GOT SCHOOL,” Josh cried out, causing everyone (except for Derek) to roll their eyes. “And I’ve got an Honor Society meeting… THEN I have Football Lifting and Practice and…”
“FUCK ALL THAT BULLSHIT, RUSSELL,” John angrily barked. “Aliens invading Earth is MORE IMPORTANT than fuckin’ football practice.”
“But what about the Homecoming Game,” Josh replied as he turned to the Black Guardian. “It’s this Friday… AND I HAVE to be at practice, man! I just have to be or else Coach’ll BENCH ME!”
“Then why don’t you just make like a bitch and run the fuck outta here, Jockstrap?” Eric snapped off at the White Guardian.
“OOOHHH! SHOTS FIRED! BLAM! BLAM! BLAM!” Jim erupted as he playfully acted as if he were ‘lighting up’ Josh’s armored frame with machine gun bullets like in the ‘end-fight scene’ of Scarface.
“I’M THE STARTING VARSITY RUNNING BACK, ERIC,” Josh fiercely returned to the Yellow Guardian. “And the WHOLE ENTIRE TOWN is counting on me and the rest of the team to beat Fort Madison into the ground Friday.”
“Josh, with all due respect,” Kyle said in distaste. “I, nor anyone else that I know in town, cares about our school beating Fort Maddie at football.”
“Yeah, Josh,” Derek followed. “If we lose then we’ll try to beat them next year…”
“THAT’S NOT THE POINT!!!” Josh thundered, shocking the group and angering John even more than he already was. “IT’S MY SENIOR YEAR!!! My last ‘go-around’ at playing High School Football! I want it to be perfect… TOTALLY PERFECT!!! I want us to go UNDEFEATED and go on to WIN STATE!”
Rolling his eyes behind his visor, Eric sighed, “Ugh… Jesus.”
“I know nothing of this ‘football’... Or ‘state’, of which you speak, White Guardian,” Princess Ashanna stated with her brow scrunched. “But the GRAND possibility of your people and world being wiped away from ALL EXISTENCE triumphs over everything.”
“Yeah, Princess. Obviously,” Josh replied in a douchey tone. “It’s just that…”
“WHAT, RUSSELL???” John asked with his brow lowered behind his visor.
“It’s just… Urgh… It’s just that this all is happening WAY TOO FAST,” the White Guardian growled. “LOOK… PRINCESS, I get it. I get it, alright? You want us to fight… BUT we’re not the guys who you need to be these ‘Guardian’ dudes. Give these suits and powers to somebody else who’s WAY MORE qualified than us!”
“You’re afraid,” Princess Ashanna accused, causing Josh to gasp.
“Afraid??? You… You think I’m afraid,” Josh asked in disbelief.
“Yes… I DO. Tis practically radiates from your vessel, your fear.”
“I’m not ‘afraid’, Your Worship… I’M FUCKING TERRIFIED!!!”
“You are… AND TIS FINE, WHITE GUARDIAN. The Guardians… The ‘former’ Guardians of my world were afraid as well… BUT when terror and tyranny stuck, they stabilized their emotional levels to come together… UNITED AS ONE and protected Guardinas, its people, and the Pyramid from the evil forces who sought to enact harm against all.”
Turning to the others now, the Lady-Princess continued, “Lord-Guardians, I know that Lord Lakarias and I are asking a grand deal of you… BUT WE HAVE NO OTHER CHOICE. For, when the Vexans come, they shall lay TOTAL WASTE to the Earth… EXTERMINATE your race… AND WREAK COMPLETE CHAOS all across the rest of Known Twenty-Four… UNLESS you six, as well as the Lieutenant, band together and face them .”
“Do we stand a chance,” Kyle asked, causing Princess Ashanna to turn towards him again. “Do we stand a chance… Against the Vexans???”
“As you are now… NO,” the Lady-Princess truthfully answered. “But with Dexius’s aid… As well as mine and Lord Lakarias’s, then you shall, Lord-Guardian… YOU ALL SHALL.”
“Could we die?” Derek asked in a nervous voice.
Wordlessly, the Lady-Princess of Guardinas unfortunately nodded in reply.
“WHOA! This whole deal just went up a new-ass level, y’all,” Jim erupted with his eyes widened. “I’m all for savin’ the planet and the WHOLE human race and all that cool shizz… BUT the result of me ‘gettin’ AXED in the process MOST DEF kills my vibe!”
“And HOW are we supposed to know when the Vexan do decide to invade?” Eric asked.
“YOU WON’T,” Castron said from up on the front deck as Princess Ashanna gave him an angry glare.
“WELL THAT’S JUST FUCKIN’ GREAT,” Eric snapped off as he proceeded to shake his head in disbelief.
“My vibes are now OFFICIALLY killed, y’all,” Jim glumly followed.
Stepping towards Castron past Princess Ashanna, Kyle pressed, “You mean to tell me that they could come at any time? Like… Like RIGHT NOW even???”
Castron nodded to the Green Guardian as did Princess Ashanna, regretfully.
“Shit,” John muttered in response as he crossed his arms over his chest once more.
“See, Princess? We’re obviously NOT the guys who you guys should trust in saving the world… Or the Galaxy… OR WHATEVER IN THE HELL ELSE IS CURRENTLY AT STAKE,” Josh stated sternly. “I’m sorry, but we’re not the Guardians.”
Princess Ashanna kept silent… With her only reply being a single, glowing tear drop that ran down her right, bronze-skinned cheek.
As his peers all wallowed in the face of a most certain death, Derek set his eyes on the Lady-Princess of Guardinas.
Noticing the pain that was shone quite visibly on her trembling face, Derek watched as Princess Ashanna crumbled emotionally… Causing him to take courageous action.
“I’ll do it,” Derek said as everyone directed their undivided attention towards him.
This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it.
“HUH??? Do what, D?” Kyle asked.
“The ‘truffle-shuffle’?” Jim playfully asked.
“I’LL FIGHT,” Derek sternly replied through his helmet’s voice modulator and oxygen mask, locking his eye on the now very surprised looking Guardinian Lady-Princess.
“Derek… You’ve been through a lot tonight. WE ALL HAVE,” Josh stated as he stepped towards the Red Guardian. “You’re not thinking clearly…”
“NO, JOSH. I am thinking clearly,” Derek snapped back in correction, taking the White Guardian aback. “As a matter of fact, I’m thinking more clearly than I have in my whole life.”
“DEREK… What are you talking about, man,” Kyle asked as he too stepped towards the nerdy eleventh grader. “What are you saying here???”
“I’M SAYING that I’m going to fight for our world, Kyle,” Derek replied with his brow lowered behind his visor. “We ALL should be. Not just as these ‘Guardians’... But as HUMAN BEINGS.”
Looking at the rest of the group now, the Red Guardian proclaimed, “This is our planet… OUR HOME… And we have every damn right to fight for it.”
Narrowing his dark eyes, John asked from off to the side, “Even though we could ALL DIE HORRIBLY you still got the balls to stand up and say you wanna fight these Vexan-Fuckwads, Bentley?”
“Yeah, John… I DO,” Derek nodded towards the Black Guardian.
“Fuckin’ A… I’ll join ya then.”
With John’s allegiance now made, Derek looked to the others for their decisions.
“Kyle, what do you say,” Derek asked the Green Guardian. “Are you in too, man?”
“Fuck… I don’t know, D,” Kyle replied in an unsure tone. “This is big… Like REALLY
BIG.”
As the Red Guardian’s heart began to sink down in his chest, Kyle continued, “BUT… It’s like we always say, brotha… TO THE END.”
Kyle then held out his right fist towards Derek, causing the latter to smirk whilst bumping it with his own.
With Kyle’s mind now made up, Derek set his sights on the Yellow and Gold Guardians.
“Eric… Jim… WHAT DO YOU GUYS SAY,” the Red Guardians. “Are you both down to save the world?”
“Uh.. Well… Y’see, Bentley,” Eric awkwardly replied whilst rubbing the back of his armored head nervously. “I was in until I heard the whole ‘we could die’ part of the convo… AND THAT’S WHEN I TUNED OUT.”
“YO, DUDES!!! CHECK IT,” Jim erupted, causing everyone to turn their sights on him. “Say we beat these ‘Vexan whatevers’ back to the stars and shit then I bet that chicks ALL OVER THE MUTHFUCKIN’ WORLD would WORSHIP US like Gods! LIKE ‘THE DOORS’!!! We’d LITERALLY be drownin’ in DA BOOTY, my bro-homies!”
Scrunching his brow, Derek asked, “Right… So, Jim, I’m guessing that you’re in?”
“DAMN STRAIGHT, SON! FOR DA BOOTY!!!!”
Derek and the others shook their heads whilst Eric sighed, “Ugh… Just fucking kill me already.”
“So, E… Whaddaya say?” Kyle asked the Yellow Guardian, who was literally so done with the night.
“Ugh… Fine. Whatever. I’m in,” Eric replied in a disgruntled tone. “Even though none of you fucks gave me much of a choice or say in the matter.”
“We couldn’t do it without ya, Eric,” Derek replied, causing the Yellow Guardian to flip him off.
Turning the White Guardian now, Derek asked, “What about you, Josh? Are you in???”
Josh didn’t respond… Causing Derek to lower his brow.
“Look, Josh… I know that I’m asking a lot of you, man… But you have to realize that the survival of the WHOLE EARTH and HUMAN RACE is at stake here… And it’s all gonna be gone… EVERYTHING. Gone. Just like that…”
“UNLESS we do as the Princess says and assemble,” Kyle followed.
“UNITE, Lord-Guardian,” Princess Ashanna corrected.
Looking over at the Guardinian Royal, Kyle replied, “Oh. Uh… Right. My bad.”
“Ugh… Gordon… YOU SPAZ,” Jim snapped. “That’s ‘the Avengers’, homeslice. THEY ‘ASSEMBLE’. WE ‘UNI--”
“AH, SHUT THE HELL UP, JIM!” Eric raged at the Gold Guardian, bitterly silencing him.
“Josh, I’m sorry… BUT YOU’VE GOTTA MAKE A CHOICE,” Derek continued as the White Guardian looked on still. “You can run back to your parents' cabin and be done with this… OR you can stand with the rest of us and fight for something bigger than you… THAN ALL OF US.”
Josh now glared at Derek whilst Kyle asked, “What’s it gonna be, Superstar? You gonna sit back and wait for the world to end…”
“OR YA GONNA ‘BITCH-OUT’,” John seared, causing Josh to look over and glare at him now.
Gritting his teeth and clenching his armored fists, Josh growled, “URGH… FINE! I’ll join you fuckin’ lunatics… EVEN THOUGH WE’RE ALL GONNA MOST DEFINITELY DIE!”
“ALRIGHT! TEAMWORK!!!” Jim joyfully erupted.
Lowering his brow, Jim stepped forth and shouted whilst throwing his right fist up in the air again, “WE ARE... THE GUARDIANS!!!!!!!”
With absolutely NO ONE joining him in his chants and cheers, Jim looked around and wordlessly lowered his fist back down to his side before back-pedaling to his former position in utter shame.
“Grand thanks. GRAND THANKS TO YOU ALL, LORD-GUARDIANS,” Princess Ashanna commended. “Your utter bravery, courageousness, selflessness, and fearlessness have been shown proudly and respected immensely on this night-cycle.”
“Ugh… Right,” Eric groaned in reply.
“AS SAID BEFORE, LORD-GUARDIANS,” Castron spoke. “You shall return here, to my dwelling, tomorrow where your combat training shall commence.”
“I don’t know how I’m gonna swing it… But I’ll ‘try’ to be here,” Josh replied.”
“THERE IS NO ‘TRY’, WHITE GUARDIAN,” Lord Lakarias raged, causing Josh to freeze up in fear. “There is ONLY ‘do’.”
“You WILL be here, Lord-Guardian,” Princess Ashanna ordered whilst glaring at Josh. “You shall ALL be here tomorrow-cycle if you truly do wish to save your planet and race from utter annihilation.”
“CUT THE SHIT, RUSSELL,” John barked, causing Josh to growl again.
“URGH… FINE! I’LL BE HERE,” Josh proceeded to shout. “I’ll be here. Ugh… Just… Just leave me the fuck alone.”
“HEY, PRINCESS!!!” Jim called, causing Ashanna to turn towards him.
“Yes, Gold Guardian?”
“How do we, like, get these totally fuckin’ GNARLY battlesuits off? ‘CAUSE I’M STARTIN’ TO CHAFE MAAD!”
“YEAH, PRINCESS,” Kyle followed. “These suits ARE pretty sick and all… BUT if people in our town saw us walkin’ around in ‘super-powered suits of alien space-armor’ then they’d TOTALLY lose their shit.”
Narrowing her glowing eyes, Princess Ashanna explained, “To break the bond with your Guardian Energy Shifters all that you simply must do is speak the word ‘Deactivate’.... WHICH SHALL THEN cause your sacred armor to retreat within your shifters and return you to your normal selves.”
“Gucci,” Kyle replied whilst turning his head towards the Red Guardian. “Wanna count us off, D?”
Looking to his best friend, Derek nodded in reply.
“ALRIGHT, GUYS… ON THREE,” the Red Guardian shouted aloud as the others reluctantly all followed in suit. “One… Two… THREE!!!”
“DEACTIVATE!!!!!!!”
