“Ember! Is it true you’re attending the University of Stalwarth?” an unknown reporter shouts. “Will you join the Defender program?”
So much for my moment of happiness. My smile fades, and I keep my mouth shut. No way will I join a program that trains people to become puppets of the city, just to be abandoned when help is needed the most.
“Why are you ignoring the questions?” another man asks. “Are you just keeping up with your theme of ignoring your parents’ legacy?”
“Why don’t you want to be a Guardian like them?” some woman yells, who sounds like she should be having a lung treatment instead of standing at my gate.
“What are your thoughts on the current league restructuring with the Guardians? Do you think having more leagues in the city will help with the rising crime levels?” another voice shouts.
The urge to run home and slam out the outside world is strong, but I can’t let down Eliza. She has done too much for me not to stick to my word. Plus, I just have to focus on that, once I get on campus, I’ll be safe.
“Ember! How do you feel about learning from colleagues and friends of your parents? From the very ones who didn’t do anything to help save them?”
I can’t control my emotions, and my head snaps in their direction. The flashes and yells become even more overwhelming. I can’t see any of their faces, and they can’t see the pure fury in my eyes. All they’re getting are pictures of a girl dressed in black pants, a black hoodie with the hood up, and sunglasses. No one knows what I truly look like, not anymore.
“Eliza, I’m getting in the car.” I walk to the passenger side door, never thinking I’d want to escape my house for the safety of the University of Stalwarth.
Chapter 2
Aiden
I can’t help but stare up in wonder at the grand steel archway. UNIVERSITY OF STALWARTH adorns the top in polished letters. The university’s slogan, A Better World Starts with U.S., is engraved in a piece of metal resembling a banner underneath.
My dad walks up beside me. “Well, Aiden, it’s time for me to go.” His voice is thick with emotion.
“Yeah, I know. This would be a really bad spot to park the car,” I joke, trying to cheer him up.
He smiles, his hazel-colored eyes glimmer. “Ha! Plus, I doubt your mom would want the car to be impounded.”
“Yeah, too bad she got called into work,” I reply, slightly killing the mood. “I know she really wanted to be here.”
My dad nods but stays silent. He was also pretty quiet during the drive here. The mixture of emotions of being both happy and sad about dropping me off are probably too much for him. Too bad all my extra money went to my abilities lessons instead of buying a car. If I could have driven myself, I would have saved us both from the awkwardness, but I’m glad he’s here. He’s become my biggest supporter in helping me achieve my dreams. It’s crazy how much family therapy has helped us throughout the years.
“Here.” My dad hands me my mom’s old suitcase, which has seen better days. The leather is worn, and my dad used black duct tape to fix the handle. He’s always trying to save anything, even when it should probably be thrown out. “Do you know if Billy is here yet?”
I adjust my duffel bag on my shoulder and take the suitcase from him. “Thanks, Dad, and no. But, knowing Billy, he’ll probably be late like always.”
My dad chuckles then embraces me in a hug, taking me off guard for a moment.
I tightly hug him back.
“I’m so proud of you, Aiden,” he says into my ear.
Even though I already knew that, it still means a lot to hear it from him. Tears sting my eyes, but I refuse to cry, no matter how much I’ll miss him. “Thanks, Dad.”
We step back, and he points his finger at me. “Now, you better keep us updated with everything. I know you’ll be focused on your Defender work, but make sure to have some fun too.”
I eye my dad in feigned confusion. “Fun? What is that?”
He chuckles.
I smile. “Don’t worry. I will. On both accounts.”
He puts his hand on my shoulder and studies my face, looking a little sentimental—worried but mostly proud.
“I’m good, Dad. Really. Thank you. For everything.”
He smiles, pats my shoulder and takes a deep breath. I can tell he wants to say something else, but he turns from me. He walks around the car to the driver’s side door, stops and nods. “I love you, son.”
I return the nod. “Love you too, Dad.”
He steps into the car and closes the door.
We wave to each other as he pulls away, and I watch him for a moment as he drives off. This scene seems almost surreal. I have worked so hard to get here, and it’s hard to believe I’m actually living this moment, but I am. I take a deep breath and turn around toward my future.
Taking my first step toward the university is thrilling and exhilarating yet terrifying. My body trembles, but I ensure to walk with confidence. I want to make a good impression to anyone around me. I pass under the archway while mixing in with some other students. One girl has pink skin, another looks like a walking pile of mud, and a guy has three extra sets of arms.
The campus is gorgeous. The wide path leading from the archway is set in a diagonal pattern with gray-colored stones. Oak trees that look like they have been here since the dawn of man border the path on both sides. I catch glimpses of a shimmering lake through the trees on my right.
Up ahead is my first stop of the day. The student center is made entirely of glass and steel, which contrasts from the surrounding scenery. Multiple rectangular sections with slanted roofs are made of glass arranged in a rhombus pattern, while the middle is one solid sheet of polished steel. Directly in the middle, the large doors have been propped open, and I enter with a few other students.
Inside feels like a beehive with everyone swarming about, and I keep an eye out for Billy, even though I know it’s futile to do so. For the last ten years I’ve known my best friend, he always manages to be the last one to arrive for anything, unless I’m with him. Even with so many people in here, it feels light and airy because of the open layout and the glass ceiling.
The first thing on my agenda is to find a map. They sent me one in my welcoming package, but, during the ride here, I realized I left it at home. I look around to figure out where one would be, and I swell up with pride. It still amazes me that I’ve been accepted into the best university in the country and the most prestigious program to boot, the Defender program.
Something catches my eye. Hanging in the center of the wall opposite from me is a life-size portrait of the Guardians, Emerald Blaze and Digger. The portrait looks almost other-worldly, lit by the sun shining through the ceiling. Dust sparkles and swirls around in the light, beckoning me forward. My legs move like they have a mind of their own, and, before I know it, I’m in front of the portrait and read the gold plaque underneath—In Honorable Memory of Emerald Blaze (Julia Vulterra) & Digger (David Vulterra).
The portrait showcases them in their Guardian outfits. Emerald Blaze is wearing a skintight, one-piece suit with long sleeves. The deep-green color matches her Guardian name. Red-orange flames are detailed on the sides, and she has an orange belt and matching knee-high boots. Her red hair hangs wildly loose around her face and cascades past her shoulders. The brilliance of her emerald-colored eyes stare down at me like she knows who I am and what I’ve done—or rather, what I didn't do.
Shivers shoot down my spine.
Digger’s dark brown eyes look down at me more warmly, like hot fudge on a sundae. He has short, messy brown hair that looks as though he had just rolled out of bed. His outfit is quite different from Emerald Blaze’s—a simple brown T-shirt with a grass-colored military vest covered in pockets and pouches. His brown cargo pants match his T-shirt, and his large steel-toed boots are the color of sand.
It’s crazy how two people who were so different comprised the greatest Guardian couple in history. It makes complete sense a portra
it of them would be here. Throughout the years, they returned to teach after they graduated. They influenced so many lives—including mine.
The guilt from my past resurfaces too suddenly. Anxiety rushes through my veins, and my heart hammers. I take a few slow, deep breaths to calm myself, but I need to leave before my thoughts consume me. I turn and abruptly halt, so I don’t crash into a girl standing right behind me. Holy moly! Does she want a piggyback ride or something?
She’s focused on the portrait, and a single tear travels down her cheek. Her beauty, not just her closeness, takes me off guard. Her dark green sundress hangs loosely on her strong frame, and her skin glows in the sunlight. The sun also highlights the red tint in her long brown hair. She has soft facial features, like she belongs in an oil painting, not here in the student center.
I feel like I should say something, especially since she’s crying. “Hey, are you okay?”
She shifts her gaze at me, and my breath escapes me. Her eyes mimic two emeralds with light shining behind them. They’re absolutely brilliant and mesmerizing and so unique. I’ve seen only two people with those colored eyes: Emerald Blaze and … her daughter. Like a tidal wave, the flashback of the first and only time I’ve seen her daughter floods my mind.
It was a few days after the horrendous murders, and I was home from the hospital. I was curled into a ball on the couch while watching the funeral on TV. My parents did not think I should watch, but I felt like I needed to out of respect.
My mom and dad were whispering to each other in the kitchen doorway while carefully watching me. I could not help but overhear. “Roger, you need to get your drinking under control. You’ve been doing this for over a year now. It needs to stop. I get it, it’s not easy for you to not have abilities like most of us, but Aiden needs his father, especially now.”
I cupped my hands over my ears to magnify the sound from the TV and to cut out their conversation. The figures on the screen were about to lower the slick black caskets into the ground. Flower arrangements of white roses, along with people, flooded the surrounding area. Someone was talking, probably the priest, but it was too hard for me to focus on what they were saying. The angle of the shot showed a few people sitting in chairs next to the caskets—a man with bluish-black hair, a young woman with longer, straight black hair, and a girl who looked to be my age around the time. The camera abruptly zoomed in on the young girl while The Daughter of Emerald Blaze and Digger scrolled across the screen.
Emerald Blaze’s desperate voice echoed in my mind, “Please, please think of my daughter …”
The girl’s head snapped up, and her bright green eyes stared at me through the TV screen. It seemed like she knew her parents were dead because I wasn’t able to help them, that I was the reason why she was now an orphan. Tears poured from my eyes as I sobbed into the couch. How could I ever live with myself for failing this girl’s parents? For failing her? My sobs intensified, and my mom was suddenly there. She effortlessly pulled me into her, and her warmth somewhat comforted me. She mumbled something while lifting the remote toward the TV to turn it off. Those emerald eyes faded away, but they would haunt my dreams for months to come.
Now those same eyes are staring at me—just staring at me—and the girl they belong to is not saying anything. My teeth rattle. “I-I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to bother you.”
My words snap the girl from her trance. She blinks a few times as she wipes her cheek. “You’re not. I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have been that close to you. To be honest, I didn’t even see you. I was a bit distracted.”
I give a little shrug and struggle to take a breath. “Yeah, sure. It’s okay.”
We stand in awkward silence for what feels like hours. Is she who I think she is? Ember Vulterra? Would she tell me if she is? From time to time, I did keep tabs on her. I read articles about her, and the press would blast her for not taking up her parents mantle, which seemed a little unfair. She was just a kid. But I rarely ever saw photos of her with them. When I did, she was always covered up, so I couldn’t really see her. She clearly does not want to be known to the public.
Unfortunately, my curiosity and desperation to know if she is that little girl gets the best of me. “Are you their daughter?”
She narrows her eyes, and I swear I see what looks like fire behind them for a split second.
I should have kept my mouth shut.
“Why do you want to know?”
Her question petrifies me, since I have to carefully choose my words. I can never tell her how sorry I am that her parents had fought hard to return to her, that I was just a scared kid who wanted to help but couldn’t. It dawns on me; I can just act like I’m a fan of her parents or something like that. I straighten my posture and keep eye contact with her. “Emerald Blaze and Digger were a huge influence on me, and they’re the reason why I want to be a Guardian someday. So, if you’re their daughter, it would just be an honor to officially meet you.”
This doesn’t seem to go over well. Her lips purse even harder as her brow furrows even deeper, but I notice her tremble. She takes a deep breath and raises her chin. “I am.”
Even though I was expecting that answer, her admittance causes what feels like ice to invade my veins. I’m not too sure what I’m feeling. Terrified? Shocked? Amazed? I swallow hard and try to think of something to say.
“Oh, and you should know,” she adds, and I’m sure I see the fire again in her eyes. “You’re an idiot for wanting to be a Guardian.”
My mouth feels like it just hit the floor. We stare at each other for another second before she turns on her heel and walks away from me. I watch her as she heads toward the front doors, her hair bouncing with every step.
She stops to look back at me, and I look away too fast, hoping she didn’t see me staring at her. I approach a bench resting against the wall while glancing at the front doors. Ember is gone. I sit down, needing a moment. I drop my suitcase and bag at my feet, letting my head fall into my hands. This girl is the daughter of the two Guardians who changed my life forever, and clearly, she won’t ever talk to me again.
A student passes me and gets my attention. A map floats in front of him and books of all sizes float behind him as well.
I’m desperate to find the way to my dorm room, so I can hide with my shame, but I still need a map. I stand and tap the guy’s shoulder then point at his map. “Hey, I’m sorry to bother you, but do you know where I can get one of those?”
Chapter 3
Ember
My heartbeat vibrates throughout my whole body. I walk briskly, focusing on the ground, to my dorm room, desperate to put as much space between me and that white-haired guy who somehow knew me. Not only was his tall, strong form intimidating, but the way his ice-blue eyes bored into me made it feel like he knew everything about me. Maybe I had set myself up by being near my parents’ portrait? Eliza is always telling me I look a lot like my mom. No matter, it was still unsettling, and it cemented the fact I need to accept my fate. Sooner or later, everyone will know who I am.
I quicken my pace. It feels like everyone is staring at me and knows who I am, even if that isn’t possible right now. My dorm room is a good mile from the opposite side of the student center, set back near the woods for privacy. Even with the distance, I make it there in what must be record time. I enter the brick building named Scottson Hall and rush up the stairs to the second floor. The hallway is loud with other people still moving into their rooms. I pick up on a disagreement a few doors down from me.
“I was here first! So I get what side I want!” one girl yells.
“Well, unless you want to turn into stone, I suggest you reconsider!” another girl shouts back.
I fidget with my keys before shoving the correct one into the lock on my door, turn the handle and slam the door behind me. I lean against it and slide down, collapsing on the floor. The room’s quietness comforts me. I close my eyes and inhale slowly.
“Hi. I take it you’re my roommate, or I really nee
d to get the lock checked out,” someone says with a chuckle.
My hand flies to my heart in surprise, and I look up to see a girl wearing a pink rose-pattern skirt and a white sparkling blouse standing by the divider wall, watching me. Her outfit really pops against her darker skin and coffee-colored, red-highlighted springy hair.
“Oh, I didn’t mean to scare you!” She smiles timidly. “I’m Stella, and this is Lime.” She motions with her head toward a little rock with arms and legs sitting on her shoulder.
He gives me a little wave and squeals as if he is the happiest little creature in the world.
I chuckle and give him a big smile. “Well, hi there.” I focus on Stella. “Did you make him or something?”
She nods. “Yeah, I can make rock golems. Lime is the first one I’ve ever created, and I didn’t have the heart to put him back to sleep. So he’s been with me over twelve years now.”
“Oh, that’s cool.” My throat feels dry; my voice sounds hoarse.
Stella’s cheeks flush slightly. “Well, thanks.”
The feeling of wanting to run from the room to avoid introducing myself drapes over me like a wet blanket. I hate that the campus doesn’t offer single-occupancy rooms. This room is the closest one I could get to having my own privacy. The wall separates the room into two sides, with our own bed, closet, desk, and dresser. A mini refrigerator sits in the middle for us to share.
Stella stares at me, probably waiting for me to partake in the friendly part of introductions. I stand slowly while brushing off my dress. “You’re probably wondering who I am.”
She shrugs with a smirk. “Yeah, it would be nice to know your name. I’m not going to lie.”
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