International Legends

Chapter 6 - Ozara

It started out with the strangled cry of the Naomi-Tree that reverberated throughout the ship, causing the entirety of the party-goers to stop the celebrations. Quite a shame, too, as it had been midnight, and everyone was ready to go to bed. 

David Juarez, who was finally ready to give in to his bride, slurred in his drunken state, "Do we have to deal with this right now?" while his sister Jackie Solano tried to resist getting angry at the situation on the "most important day of her life."

There was a crowd of chairs littered around a campfire on the main deck of the Diva of the Seas. Claire, daughter of the late Patricia and Bruno, had appeared after physically assaulting her babysitter, carrying a giant book of fairytales. She said with the clarity of an adult, "I think the Naomi-Tree wants us to tell stories to her."

There was a great commotion about this, including if there should be more deliberation about the best course of action. Naomi had been impatient however, causing giant waves to crash among the side of the ship. So it was decided between Guardians, Time Guardians, and Wizards alike that the best time to tell the story was now. 

Afterward, no one was able to keep their eyes open. The pirates had nearly passed out over the desks while the Guardians looked solemn over the entire story. To think that I, too, once had heard this story before and had deciphered that of which it meant. Wondered if all the suffering onboard Maricorp was for the highest purpose of the Guardians. I thought that, in spite of everything that we went through, they loved us. Now I know better. 

I watched Kathair stare off into the Vortex Sea longing for his realm of Atlantis while Emrion, with his mighty bear chest, longed to climb up the masts the way he did in his forest-covered planet. Where was that Arkethia that damned me to the clone cruise? I will poison her first and all the rest of them for the shit they put my family and me through.

...

That night, Mother appeared to me in my dreams. She was the mother that was assigned to me at birth. Being a clone, we were falsely planted with memories at at all times - leading us to believe that we were being divinely protected by the Guardians and needed to pay homage to them. 

It was there on the ship that we performed offerings to the Guardians in the hopes that they would bless us in some way. 

Similarly, we would idealize the Wizards and the Time Guardians as well. There were so many tales of Axel the bird-kid about his clumsiness, his strength of heart, and his struggle with following his life's purpose. I always found him to be a petty and insignificant character. I never knew that I could find myself falling in love with him. 

Mom stands now in front of the mural that had once adorned the Great Hall showing the pantheon of the Guardians - all the way to their parents, Sky Dad, and Mother Earth. Yet, I can look closely into her eyes and realize that this woman, too, is not my mom. Her eyes are glittering green and an electrical energy is emitting from her. If I came close to her now, it would nearly kill me from the immensity of the power. It's enough to make me angry. 

"You want to know if you are worthy," says the woman. 

Perhaps this is Mother Earth. Mom, in her life, had been completely devoted to the Guardians. Seeing her children being plucked one by one for what turned out to be being harvested for their life source for the noble classes, she would say "The Guardians have a purpose for taking my children. They will return to me in time. The Guardians will provide."

This Earth Goddess, this creator of all reality, did not deserve to be in the body of my mother. My mother devoted all of her being to the Guardians, only to have her three husbands and her 5 children killed. She suffered for their "glory."