GUARDIANS25: The Book of Sirrah

Relive

It had been three hours, and I was still sitting near Alix's holding cell, further away on a bench against the wall but close enough to watch him. He had stopped talking to me a long time ago, but being close to him was nostalgic, and I didn't want to leave his side. Anora was right when she said something had changed in him. He was different, darker, and more closed than he'd ever been, even after the explosion.

"Hey, nugget!" someone said from out of my eyesight and I jumped from the shock. It was Lyle. He towered over me, holding a teacup in his hands. I couldn't help but notice that the angle of him holding the cup made his biceps bulge. Those are new, I thought.

"You scared me," I said as he handed me the tea.

"When I heard we had another visitor, I was sure this wasn't going to be easy for you," he stated.

Lyle and I had such a complicated relationship as of recently. Yes, he was my boyfriend before the explosion, and no, we didn't break up, but circumstances forced us apart. We cared for each other on a level that would never go away.

"So, how are you dealing?" he asked, placing his hand on my shoulder.

"Not so well," I admitted. "I hate that it has to be this way. I hate that we're so divided. I hate that it's my fault—"

"You put way too much pressure on yourself," he assured me. "I know you were given the role of General and tasked with that special message from whomever, but the world isn't relying on just Sirrah. So, you have to stop feeling that way."

"That's good to hear. Because I can't even handle my own team, the whole world would be at a loss if it was up to me," I shared with him.

"Yeah," he said. I snapped my neck to him. He smirked at me.

"Not funny, Lyle," I said, taking a sip of my tea.

"Actually, it's hilarious."

"Too much pressure," I declared.

"Makes a diamond," he told me. We fell silent, but silence has always felt okay with us. He was someone I was used to spending hours alone with.

"Alix had me thinking, do you remember our last day?" I asked him.

"How could I forget? I mean, who could imagine," he said, gesturing to our underground dungeon.

"Just think," he continued. "Had I gone to school that day and not played hooky, I'd be dead like... everyone else."

"Or, you'd be a Guardian, and have superpowers, I mean," I assured him. We always felt like Lyle was another member of our team. Although he wasn't an official Guardian, he had helped us in various ways in and out of battles.

"And then another Guardian would be dead. Only twenty-five survive...isn't that what you were told? The rules seem set in stone," he replied. "I feel like all of you were chosen for a reason, you were destined to have these gifts. You're going to serve a purpose, little nugget. I just know it. If you don't know, destiny and I know."

"And..." Lyle started touching me softly. "Maybe when the dust settles, we could pick up where we left off...?"

My eyebrows nearly flew into the sky. I dropped my jaw to reply but no sound was coming out of my mouth.

Click! Click! Click! Click!

"Let's talk about that another time—"

"Of course! Not the best time," he said separating slightly from me.

Click! Click! High heels were moving fast in our direction. It was Anora, accompanied by McVonte. Where his uniform used to shine with metals of official glory, his face was now weathered by stress, and his clothes reflected this job as his biggest responsibility.