My Guardian Dear

Chapter Three

Chapter Three

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Cold air whipped my face, stinging my eyes.  Birds flew alongside me, and clouds glided beneath my feet.  It was a breath-taking experience, had I not been scared out of my mind.  I stifled a scream, my throat drier than the Sahara, my eyes squeezed tightly together.  Praying for ground to make contact with my feet, my wish was granted.

I opened my eyes, only to see clouds hovering beneath my feet.  I jumped back into Luna’s arms in alarm.  She groaned in annoyance and dropped me.  I fell with a thud back onto the “solid” cloud.  Still sitting, I glanced around, taking in the glorious scene of angels surrounding me.

“Stand up.  Don’t think I can save you from the evils of exercise,” Luna commanded, her tone dripping with sarcasm.  Somehow I suspected her previous elegant behavior was just a façade.  I quickly clambered to my feet and rushed to keep up with Luna.  A small angel, around six or seven, ran up to me, giving my legs a tight squeeze.

The little girl said, “You must be Leena.  My name’s Angel, ‘cause I’m an angel of course!  I find it funny that your guardian is Luna.  Leena, Luna, Leena, Luna, Lee—“

“Shut up or die,” Luna jammed the hilt of her sword against the side of Angel’s head.  Angel let out a yelp of pain, a tiny tear forming in the corner of her eye. Almost by impulse, I apologized to Angel, and hustled to keep up with Luna’s quick pace.

The grand hallway was impeccably clean, not a thing out of place.  I followed Luna to the end of the hallway, and stopped dead in my tracks in front of a majestic-looking door.  Designs of gold and silver laced the door gracefully, and with a gentle knock of Luna, the door slowly opened wide.  A man stood at the end of the room, his wings outstretched, and glorious smile spread across his face.

“Leena, how wonderful it is to meet you,” the man said as Luna and I stepped into the room.  The door closed behind me.  “I am Gabriel, one of the head coordinators of the Guardian’s Sanctuary.”

“Gabriel…” I muttered to myself, as if I did not recognize the name.

“Yes, do you not remember me from the Bible?  You know I am quite famous.  Mary would not have known about Jesus if it weren’t for me,” Gabriel continued with a grin.  I nodded slowly, recalling the Bible story of the angel descending from the heavens to tell Mary about Jesus.

Suddenly, Gabriel’s expression changed from cheerful to serious.  He beckoned me over with his finger, and I hesitantly stepped forward.

“Leena, I would like to welcome you to the Guardians, but I must inform you that our business is not all fun and games.  You see, there is a war raging beyond human awareness.  The Holy War, we like to call it, between us, Guardians, versus the evil Lucifer.  Luna must have told you the story, so let me cut to the chase.  Guardians do not reveal themselves for the sole purpose of protecting their human, but also if they feel the human is fit to accept the consequences.  Now that you know about the Guardians, you are left no choice but to follow my orders and to help us to win the war.  Understand me so far?”  Gabriel explained.  I nodded and he continued.

“Guardians and their humans travel the world to fight Lucifer’s followers and recruit Ordinaries, humans that have lost their guardians in battles.”

I imagined losing Luna after a battle, and though we have spent little time together, most of which was not pleasant, my heart ached at the thought.

“So, Leena, are you willing to join the Guardians and I and aid us in the Holy War?” Gabriel questioned gravely.

Finding my voice, I said, “Yes, I am.”

A grin stretched across Gabriel’s face.  “Perfect.  I shall arrange for your first mission now.”

As I walked out of the room, Gabriel called after me.

“Oh, and Leena,” I turned back, “welcome to the Guardians.”