The Guardians' Daughter

by A. M. McPherson

  “I-I never realized that could be a thing, but I guess it makes sense for why it would be. Especially when people like Mad Marie are out there. What was she even hoping to accomplish with her attacks? Did she want power? Money?”

  “As far as I could tell, she just wanted Stalwarth to burn to the ground. She has a deep hatred for the city. As to why, I’m not sure. Not much is known about her, but the other villains follow her without question. I’m sure that’s a big reason as to why these last seven years have been so quiet. Their leader is behind bars, and they’re clueless without her.”

  “That does make sense. At least Erik shouldn’t have to worry about using his abilities to the extreme like that again.”

  Eliza frowns. “I know he would never admit it, but I don’t think he could survive another battle like that. His regenerative abilities definitely aren’t what they used to be. I think both the Mad Marie attacks and aging are the culprits.”

  I force a reassuring smile. “I’m sure he’s fine. I saw him use them in class not too long ago, and his skin grew back quickly.” My desire to get back to the original point of this conversation takes over. “I hate to change the subject, but … has he found out anything yet about my parents?”

  “I don’t think anything concrete yet, but he did ask me if I remembered anything about your parents leading up to their deaths—specifically your mom.”

  “What about her?”

  Eliza stands and heads out the kitchen. “Why don’t you come with me?”

  I watch Eliza go for a moment, taken off guard by her action, but I follow. We cross the foyer to the hallway and stop at the first door on the right—my parents’ room.

  Her eyes don’t leave the door. “I won’t lie to you, Ember. Something was definitely off with your mom that week. Erik thinks it might’ve been something to do with my brother.”

  My face contorts with confusion. “Your brother? I didn’t know you had any siblings.”

  Eliza drops her head. “I … did. He’s been gone for a very long time.”

  “I’m … so sorry. I never knew. What was his name?”

  A tear streaks Eliza’s face. “Stanley, but it happened a long time ago. Your mom was close to him also and felt responsible for what happened.”

  “What did happen?”

  “He … disappeared.” Eliza’s eyes fill with tears. “All you need to know, Ember, is he’s gone, and it wasn’t your mom’s fault. We don’t know what happened. Just, one moment he was there, and the next, not. But, since your mom was becoming a Guardian, she felt like she could’ve done more.”

  I choke back my sudden feeling of grief. “I’m sure she did everything she could.”

  Eliza nods and dries her face. “She did, but Erik wanted to know if she talked to me about anything regarding him before everything happened.”

  “Did she?”

  “No, but I did tell him that if she knew anything, she probably would’ve written about it in her diary. She kept it religiously, but I wasn’t sure where it would be.”

  I scan all my memories, unsure of what Eliza is talking about. “She did? I don’t remember that.”

  “She always wrote in it after you went to bed. It was her sacred time.”

  “Oh. I guess that makes sense. I wish I would’ve known about it though. I would’ve loved to read them.”

  “Oh, honey. I’m so sorry.” Eliza turns to me with remorse in her gaze. “I just never thought about it, with everything going on. The problem is I’m not sure where she stored her older ones. They’re not in the basement, and I never saw them in the attic of the lake house. Her last one would probably be in her room somewhere, but I’ve never come across it even while cleaning.”

  “So, what does this all mean?”

  Eliza reaches for the doorknob, turns it and lets the door creak open. “I’m not sure, but I told Erik all of this, and he asked if he could check out their bedroom. He wanted to see if he could find anything, and I didn’t see any reason to not let him look around. I think he was in there for about twenty minutes before he rushed out, saying he needed to go, and you happened to come home at the same time.”

  “Do you think he found something?

  She pushes open the door, and it groans like we’re in a horror film. “I’m not sure. That or the League contacted him.”

  I peek around the corner into my parents’ room, and it looks the same as it did last time. Nothing seems out of place, but that doesn’t mean anything. “Let’s see if we can figure out anything.”

  Eliza nods and enters the room, and I follow. The first thing I want to check is the stack of books on my mom’s nightstand. Maybe the diary got mixed with them. I bend to take a better look while trailing my fingers over the spine of the books: Native Plants to Stalwarth, Rare Flowers of the North, Sacred Flowers of Egypt …

  Eliza appears at my side. “I always thought it strange about her sudden drive to read about plants, but your mom always was reading whatever book she could get her hands on.”

  “Yeah. Maybe she was trying to find some other kind of plant that could withstand being around her heat abilities other than cacti.”

  Eliza laughs. “Yeah. Maybe.”

  There’s not much at all in my parents room besides the bed and nightstands. The nightstands have no drawers, so no place to really hide a diary. “How about in the closet?” I ask hopefully. “Would Mom have hid her diary in there?”

  Eliza shakes her head. “I thought about that, but no. That would be too obvious.”

  I pout. “Are you sure she actually hid it in here?”

  “I don’t know where else she would have, but it could be somewhere else.”

  One article hanging crooked on the wall grabs my attention—New Guardian Couple Emerges.

  “Have you ever cleaned the frames?”

  Eliza looks behind her. “Oh, no. I’m not that thorough.” She chuckles. “I come in here maybe once every three months or so just to vacuum and wipe a little dust off the tables. I don’t like to stay in here too long … I feel like I’m invading their space still.”

  I nod. “I know what you mean, but I’m pretty sure that article wasn’t hanging like that the last time I was in here.”

  “Well, isn’t that the one you were looking at last time you were home?”

  “No. I looked at the one about Disguiser, not that one.”

  Eliza’s face creases with intrigue. “Hmm.” She takes it off the wall and flips it over.

  Both our mouths drop open. There’s no diary but a little built-in cubby that could hold a small notebook of some sort.

  “That seems like a perfect hiding spot for it! Where is it though?”

  A green ring bleeds into Eliza’s pupils; her plasma abilities shining through, that only happens when she’s absolutely furious. “Erik.”

  Her accusation surprises me, but deep down, I know she’s right. “You really think he would just take it without saying anything?”

  She rehangs the article on the wall. “I have no clue, but it’s too strange of a coincidence to ignore.”

  “We need to ask him.”

  “Yes, we do.”

  Eliza heads out of the room toward the kitchen with me behind her. Eliza opens a cabinet next to the fridge that hides one of the Guardian communication devices my parents used to use. It’s silver and resembles a phone but is a fraction of the size. She picks up the receiver, her hands glowing green, and punches in a code—Erik’s code. This will ring his device that Guardians are always required to keep on them.

  “Great.” Eliza rolls her eyes.

  “What is it?”

  She hangs up the device. “He ignored the alert. He probably saw it was me and will call back later. I know he really did have to check in with the League, so he might be caught up there for the moment.”

  “Now what do we do?”

  “Unfortunately, right now, nothing. I promise you, once I get a hold of Erik, we’ll all sit down and discuss this. Is that an acce
ptable plan for you?”

  I sigh. “I guess it’ll have to be.”

  “Let’s talk about something else.” Eliza closes the cabinet and dons a smile; her hands fade back to normal. “You’re on break! That also means you only have about a month left of the semester! We should celebrate! What would you like to do this week?”

  My mind is swirling with all the information I just learned, and I would rather talk to Eliza more about everything. She’s right though, there will be more time for that later with Erik, and I’ll get a lot more answers then.

  “Actually, I went to this restaurant downtown recently. It’s called The Garage. Have you ever heard of it?”

  “Wait a second.” Eliza raises an eyebrow and grins. “What were you doing downtown? At a restaurant?”

  My cheeks burn with my sudden embarrassment. “I went there with Aiden … to talk to him about the Defender program.” The thought of Aiden knots my stomach. I’m terrified to learn what he’s hiding from me, since I have absolutely no clue as to what it could be. I can’t let myself think about him too much right now or I may become obsessed with trying to figure it out. “But anyway, it was a really cool place, and I’d love to go with you there. They have great food, and the atmosphere is so cozy! You forget you’re in the middle of the city.”

  Eliza nods with a hint of understanding. “Well, how about we go there for dinner?”

  I don’t suppress my excitement when I say, “That would be great!”

  Chapter 32

  Aiden

  “Hey, Mom?”

  “Yeah?” She hands me another dish.

  “Can I ask you a question?” I take the plate, and she plunges her hands back into the soapy water to wash a cup. I notice her vanilla-colored hair is streaked with white near her temples, and the faintest signs of crow’s feet are near her eyes.

  Her lips tug upward. “Now, Aiden … you know you can always ask me anything.”

  I dry the plate and put it in the cupboard with the others. “I know, it’s just about … well something about what happened eight years ago.”

  She goes still and takes a deep breath. “About when—”

  “Yes.” I drop the towel on the counter.

  A shake rattles her, and she takes another long breath. She removes her hands from the dishwater and dries them on the side of her jeans. “Okay. What is it?”

  “I need to know about something. Why was I supposed to never tell anyone I was there? If I really didn’t do anything wrong, why did I need to keep it a secret?”

  Her eyes—the same blue ones as mine—tremble with worry. “My understanding was that they were worried about your safety.” She swallows hard. “There were a lot of unanswered questions about what happened. They didn’t know if Black Mold and Iron Forge would want to finish the job.”

  “Finish the job?”

  “Of killing you.”

  “Oh.”

  She frowns with a touch of understanding. “I know things weren’t easy for you, but why ask about this now?”

  I stare off into the living room. My dad fell asleep with the news blaring in the background. The twelve-hour shift at the electrical plant really took it out of him, but I’m happy he’s sleeping. I don’t want to deal with both of their questions at once. “I … met someone.”

  “Oh, honey!” My mom beams ear to ear. “That’s great! What’s their name?”

  I glance back at her. “Ember … Ember Vulterra.”

  The happiness drains from her face. “Vulterra. As in …?”

  I nod. “The daughter of Emerald Blaze and Digger.”

  BOOM! The house rattles, and the kitchen window explodes. Glass hits the floor like raindrops after colliding with my forcefield. I didn’t even register grabbing my mom and putting the barrier around us.

  My mom shakes against me. “What was that?”

  “Anne! Aiden!” My dad flops off the couch onto the floor and scurries to his feet. “Are you guys okay?”

  “Yeah! We’re fine!” I reply and let go of my mom.

  The screams start.

  We rush outside of our home, and my heart drops into my stomach. An apocalyptic scene greets us. People are jumping from cars and running away with fear in their eyes. Others are fleeing down the sidewalks, tugging their families behind him, desperate to save them from whatever disastrous event is taking place. About a couple of miles away, smoke rises across the sitting sun, giving the illusion the whole world is on fire. The ground shakes, and my family grabs onto one another to stabilize. One of the many city skyscrapers sways, like a ship waving goodbye before sinking into an icy ocean. It caves into itself, as if the earth is swallowing it whole.

  I sprint toward where everyone is fleeing from.

  “Aiden!” My mom screams.

  I turn.

  She’s flying a few feet off the ground toward me. “Are you crazy! Where are you going?”

  Rumbles rattle me as I feel another explosion, but it’s hard to tell what direction it came from. All the white vinyl-sided condos lining the street shake. A few more windows spit out glass. People shriek in panic.

  “I need to help!”

  My mom drops in front of me, panting. “No. No you don’t! We need to take shelter!”

  People rush by me, horror reflecting on their faces.

  “Mom. This is what I’m going to school for! You have to let me go!”

  A sob escapes her, and she gasps for air. She runs her hand through her hair like she’s trying to think of anything she can say to change my mind. Her posture straightens, and she stares me dead in the eyes. “Go. My fears can’t hold you back. But you will come back to me. Do you understand?”

  I attempt a smile. “Of course, or you would kill me, right?”

  She swallows me in a hug. “You bet. Now get out of here,” she says against my chest.

  With a nod, I let go and run.

  Smoke circles me, and what seem like ghosts move by me, but they’re people, struggling to breathe. An elderly woman with blue dreadlocks clutches to my side while I help her from the fog of dust. I created a masklike forcefield with an incredibly small hole to allow oxygen in around her face so she can breathe.

  “Thank you … honey.” She coughs. “You’re a lifesaver.”

  “Of course.” The air stings my eyes, but having a mask of my own helps me breathe easier. Thanks to Valentino’s training, forcefields can connect from any point on my body. This gives me the freedom to help others as much as necessary.

  “What’s happening?”

  I wipe my eyes. “I’m … not sure.” I glance around me, unable to tell anything else.

  Phantom figures rush around, and there’s muddled cries of help in the distance. The smoke lessens, and we come upon two medics kneeling while assisting other people. One is a man with shimmering green skin. He’s holding the hand of a kid who looks a little younger than me; his skin is also shimmering green. The kid suddenly sighs in relief, and a puff of smoke escapes from his mouth. The other is a woman tending to an older man with a bleeding gash above his eye. She touches the wound, and new skin stitches around it, sealing it shut. They’re both dressed in a black uniform with red stitching that reads, EMERGENCY CREW, on the shoulder.

  “Did you get any information yet?” the woman asks the other medic.

  “It’s Mad Marie! They were transporting her to the new prison in Stromeburg, and a gang of villains attacked the transport—the bastards!”

  The woman’s eyes drop with terror. “No. It can’t be! If that’s true, we’re about to see Hell on Earth!”

  He nods. “I’m sure we are, and I heard they’re heading in this direction.”

  “Oh, no.”

  I let my mask dissipate. “Guys, can you assist this woman?”

  They look at me.

  “I want to see if I can help anyone else out.”

  “Definitely!” The man jumps up and over. “I can get any dust and smoke out of her system.” He reaches for the older woman’
s hand, and she gives it to him.

  The shimmering effect transfers, flowing up her arms, and her skin turns a darker brown. Her body simultaneously relaxes.

  I remove the forcefield from her face, and she sighs. Smoke seeps from her mouth.

  She gives me a gentle smile. “You have my eternal gratitude. I wouldn’t have made it if it wasn’t for you, sweetie.”

  I gently place a hand on her back. “It was my pleasure. Take care.” I turn and head back into the smoke. My eyes water, and I cough. The ashy smell is too much, and I form a replacement mask over my mouth and nose. Suddenly, the ground rumbles again.

  CRACK!

  I look skyward and see a shadow growing larger; something is falling. The smoke makes it impossible to see what it is. I construct a blanketlike forcefield over a large circumference to catch whatever it may be. My muscles flex on impact, and I close the forcefield around it, slowly lowering it. A couple people stagger by me; I need to be careful not to hit anyone. I inch my way between cars and step onto a sidewalk. I see a fenced-off patio at a restaurant with abandoned black iron tables. I lower the debris into the area and can make out it’s a brick chimney. I end the forcefield, and it crashes on top of one of the tables, bending its iron legs.

  “Get away from me, you creep!” a woman screams.

  I freeze. I swear that voice belongs to Ember.

  Two figures struggle together in the smoke about twenty feet from me. One pushes the other against a building. “Now, now! You are feisty, aren’t you?” They disappear into the building.

  My gut tightens with a sickening feeling. I sprint to the storefront; it’s a floral shop. A bunch of wildflowers are painted on the glass door with the name Purple Pansy in cursive.

  Two figures are struggling in the shadows, the faint glow from the flower coolers barely illuminating them.

  I shove open the door, and I’m hit with the overwhelming scent of roses. My heart stops.

  A man with short black hair and camo pants has a hand around Ember’s throat. He has her pinned against him and the counter; his other hand is firm on her hip. “Now listen here. You may have resisted me before, but this time, you’re helpless.”