Disclaimer
I do not own any anime, game or mange/book characters, for I am currently a nobody. This is the rewrite of the original Chapter 1, 2 AND 3, for I found that it really SUCKED and that it was too damn SHORT. K'thx'bye XD
Chapter I: Unlocking the True Power Within
Crunch. Crunch. Crunch.
Life sucks...
Walking through the forest, I reflect onto how things have been going for me so far. It had been only two months since that fateful day, and yet I feel like it happened just a minute ago, and yet a million years ago as well.
My name is Rose Laxzi. Rose Laxzi V, to be exact, and I'm about eighteen years of age. I suppose that's important. And I am the remaining survivor of the attack on my family... An attack that I thought scientifically and realistically impossible.
I suppose I better back-track what I'm saying here. When I say about an attack that shouldn't have happened, I meant it to the fact that it would have been more believable if someone came along and used a nuclear warhead on my family for personal matters than what had happened... I can't get reality in perspective like it had used to been. Like where what you read in books, stays in books. Anime characters stay in anime. Game characters stay in games. Where they should.
My life had turned for the worse for me when it was family reunion time... Where the strike was made fast and unexpected. By one person that I thought to not exist. The name? Well, for all those Harry Potter fans out there, it would be the one that was feared by all wizards...
Voldemort...
Yeah. Now you wonder if my mind is muddled by that nuclear warhead. I wish I was.
Blinking as I caught movement out of the corner of my eyes, I look over at the only reason I haven't went and commented suicide. Trila barks up at me as she's prowling through the leaves, along with Kate and Melody. Trila, my multi-brown Australian shepherd; Kate the white cat that has a large black-and-brown Q on the middle of her back; Melody, the gray cat with darker gray stripes all around her to make her look like a miniature tiger; Dranzer, the green feathered bird of black-beaked annoyance; and Phoenix, the gray, yellow and white cockatiel that's larger than other cockatiels.
They're having fun as we're heading to the lake in the small forest that I've discovered near my house. We come here often, just so that I can keep my mind off of other matters and on the health and happiness of my companions. I can't really call them my 'animals.' It always feels disrespectful to regard them something not on the human level. Especially with these guys. You don't see two birds flying overhead and not flying away often. Nor with a dog and two cats playing with each other, when they're natural enemies. All off-leashed. And I never trained them in my life.
I can hear the splashing of the lake as we finally arrive to the edge of the clearing. Trila charges right into the water as the others follows her. I merely walk to the water's edge and took a seat on the rock I've used so often for the purpose of sitting. So many times that I wonder how my companions can stay quite happy, and make me smile even when I can't seem to make myself happy until I look over at them.
As Trila splashes the felines of the group to make them join her in the waters, I lean back and watch them idly. The way they're going, it would really seem like nothing had happened two months ago. I guess that's the kind of therapy I really need. I'm glad to be eighteen. There's no child services to try and hunt me down. But the bills end up coming up to me. At least I have someone covering them for me. The government is weird but helpful, at least... The government is only on my good side because they're not shoving me towards a counselor. Yeah, some big help that would have been...
"Careful, guys," I said outloud as I avoid getting splashed. But again, they manage to put a small smile on my face. "I don't know how it is that you all enjoy water so much," I said as I shake my head slightly. Not that I don't like them having fun swimming, of course.
Looking down at my wrist, I can't help wondering why I was born with the mark on my wrist. My parents couldn't explain to me about it, since it's completely out of the ordinary. It's just been there since they could remember... Just about the same thing with why I sometimes talk in a completely different language and don't realize it until someone asks me to speak English. I hide the mark under a black glove, with a medical reason so that it wasn't suspected while I'm in school. Whenever someone sees it, they assume it's a tattoo. And with the teachers, that's enough of a reason to put me in detention or something. I'm so glad to be out of high school. But yet, I continue to wear the glove. Something of a old habit to break. Might as well. If I ever get a job, I have a reason for having the glove on, just a medical reason.
Crunch crunch crunch. Crunch crunch crunch.
'Footsteps..? Was that a deer..??' I ask myself in my head as I look back at the forest. I can't see anything if there's something there. "Maybe it was nothing..." I try to convince myself as I look back at my companions. They've stopped playing, though, they look a little alert. They heard the crunching of leaves, more than likely. And if it got their attention, it can't be nothing...
'Why do I have a bad feeling...?' I close my eyes in slight despair. If it's people out there, I wish that they would just leave me the hell alone...
With a groan of annoyance and a little fear, I stand on my feet, looking around cautiously. If it's people trying to sneak up on me, it isn't working very well... Even I can hear their step-work. I look down at Trila and them as they leave the water and shake themselves dry. Getting me damp in the process, of course. I sigh at being covered with water, I look back up at the forest with blank eyes. Whoever they are, they suck at sneaking up...
"Whoever's out there, just show yourselves... You don't have a reason to hide and I don't have a reason to fight or run. Unless you give me a reason..." I call out grimly. The sounds of footsteps stopped for a minute. Someone finally walks out of the density of the forest. It's a man of about mid-20's. He has short, spiky black hair that hangs over a black-with-yellow-stripes headband he wears. He wears a golden-yellow jacket over his purplish shirt, while the jeans is black. On his wrists is just purple wristguards. But his skin except his face is covered with tattoos. Many of which looks like Egyptian symbols and hieroglyphics.
"We have no reason to quarrel with you," he said as he raises his hands. I don't relax very much, but at least I can finally see someone.
"You have a reason to being here..?" I said with little emotion, since I've taken to never being around other humans since the murder of my family. I don't think I could trust many others at this point. There's only one person I've been hanging with, and she's a good friend.
"Yeah," he answers as he approaches me. He gives a small smile of knowing that he won't get my trust and he respects that. At least he has sense to not press the trust issue... "I've come to collect you and your companions."
"'Collect you and your companions' isn't much of an answer. Nor a good reason. But I'll roll along with this and just ask why?"
"That's something that's not to be discussed here," he replies as he looks around as though looking for spies. "Enemy eyes and ears could and can be anywhere and everywhere."
"...You are more paranoid than I am..." I state as I cross my arms. Unless this is some sort of government issue and this is a special agent, I can only guess that this guy could be just a weirdo. He is certainly no James Bond.
"That's the truth of the matter. But no matter what you say, this discussion has to be taken elsewhere. That'll be up to you to be cooperative or not."
"Some way of saying you have no quarrel with me... You show up here at my property, and you tell me that I have a discussion with you that can't be here, and I have to go with you whether I want to or not. For not wanting to fight, you are certainly putting me in the position to fight back..." I said while narrowing my eyes at him. It's enough on my plate to think of what to do with my life, but now this..? Someone up there must hate me. Maybe the Goddess of Nature frowned at me. Or maybe this is humor to the God of the Sun. Either way, I think I'm screwed...
"So are you saying no?"
"Maybe I am, maybe I am not... You cannot give me a better reason for wanting this discussion with you?"
"It isn't with me. It's with the High Priestess," is all the answer I received before I felt a blow to the back of the head, rendering me unconscious...
'Owwww... I felt like I had a baseball bat practicing with my head...' I thought when I next regain my thoughts. But I didn't open my eyes, since I don't think I could handle it if the world is spinning in front of me and around me. I have to keep them closed for the sake of not throwing up, in other words. It wouldn't be a problem with the spinning if it isn't for the headache I got from the blow... I can handle roller coasters and all sorts of rides with a strong stomach. So that says something if I can't keep a strong stomach with a headache the size of Russia and with the world spinning on me.
'Whoever the hell that guy is, he's going to get a world of hurt the next time I see him...' I vow to myself. I doubt it'll actually happen, but I can dream. I may not like many other people, but I normally can't hold a grudge nor do wishful hopes of them getting hurt. I guess that's how I am. Of course, there's one exception to that little rule....
"Glad to see you're awake," I hear. I couldn't help but jump slightly from the voice being near me. From the voice, I can guess who it is.
"You probably would not be so glad if you knew all the things that is going through my head..." I said with a growl. "Like, for instance, payback times a thousand..."
"No, I guess I wouldn't if I could read minds," he said with a slight laugh. I open one eye slightly, and I can see from what I saw before closing my eye again is that I'm in some sort of yellow or gold room. "Sorry about the blow. But we couldn't take any chances of you making a scene and us being followed."
"It's alright, I'll kill you later..." I mumble as I finally open both of my eyes to see what's around me. I'm laying in a bed with a canopy overhead, and the room looks like something straight out of a pharaoh's temple. With a groan of pain, I sit upright and lean against one of my knees, closing my eyes again. "How long was I out..?" I finally ask as I look over at the guy.
"About eleven hours. The blow came from a guy who knew how to knock people out cold."
"Ex-military..?"
"I guess so."
With a sigh, I lean back against my knee. I wish the damn world would stop its rinse-cycle... "So for eleven hours of complete unconsciousness, we are at..?"
"Well..." He scratches the back of his head a little as though he was about to give me bad news. This is never a good sign. "If you care to not freak out, we're in Egypt, Africa."
"................................................" I had to look back up and stare at him. "We got to Egypt, in eleven hours, in an airplane... Or jetplane, whatever it was..." I just might have a look of disbelief, because he gives a small but weak smile while he nods. "...This 'discussion' has better be of something so important that it would take my mind off of hurting you of unmentionable pain..." I said with a mocking voice, but I wasn't that thrilled, nonetheless. He gives me a sad smile as he nods.
"Believe me, it is. But it won't be taking place just yet." He stands up from the chair he was sitting. "There's a fridge and there's food and other stuff to keep your mind off of things. And don't worry about your companions, they're doing well."
"That's hard to believe when they're not here..."
"Really, I stake my life on it that they're safe," he swears. "When we knocked you out, they merely followed. We knew that they wouldn't leave your side, but they certainly gave us our run for our money."
"So why aren't they here with me?"
"There's also a reason for that, but that'll have to wait for when we're ready to discuss something with you." He starts to head for the door, but he lays a hand on the doorknob as he looks back at me. "If you need anything, just ask for me, Robert. I'm sorry for not telling you my name earlier."
"Eh... It's alright," I said with a reluctant sigh. "So... will this discuss have something to do with my life, since it seems to be that important to knock me out and kidnap me across the world..?"
He gives a slight smile again. "Trust me, it'll change your life entirely," he said as he leaves through the door, in which I hear the click of a lock. So now, I am trapped in Egypt. Awaiting for this meeting to come to play.
'Like my life hadn't change forever...' I thought to myself as I cross my arms, scowling at the closed door. But I guess all I can do is wait...
"Rose?" The door gets knocked on, and I sit back up from the bed, since all I have done was lay back down. Maybe eat a little bit, but otherwise, done nothing. I sigh to myself.
"Yeah?" Robert unlocks the door at long last and opens it, stepping half-way in. He looks the same, as always, though he looks slightly more serious. "Is it finally happening?" I ask. He nods and beckons me forward. Sliding myself off the bed and getting to my feet, I look back up to him.
"We best hurry," he said as he steps back out of the room, making me follow him. As he closes the door behind me, I examine the hallway we stand in. Like the room, it's golden but with hieroglyphics etched into the stones. They may have been done thousands of years ago, but they stand out far-more than what you see in the Discovery Channel. Probably because they hadn't had wind blasts that slowly erodes. Looking at Robert, he beckons me forward before turning to walk down the halls. Feeling utterly confused, I followed at the pace he set us in. Why would this so-called discussion take place in Egypt in some undiscovered pyramid?? Maybe in a government building back in America, maybe, but this? The more I think about it, the more ridiculous it seems. There has to be far-more to this than some 'discussion.'
Leading me down many hallways and stairs, leaving me confused of where we're at, Robert finally came to a stop to a pair of large doors. On the doors is a etched symbol, one that I immediately recognize. It's the very same symbol that I was born with on my wrist.
"Jeez, what do you keep in here..?" I said faintly as I look up to the top of the doors. They're probably fifteen feet up. "Jet planes?"
Robert laughs lightly, though I couldn't tell you if they were faked or not. "No, not at all." Whistling a high-pitched tune, the doors come to life and begin to swing forward. Bewildered at whether the doors were mechanical or were being pulled by a dozen people, Robert looks back to me and smiles once more. "Please step forward, honored guest."
Mentally shaking my head to stop my wondering thoughts, I look back down from the ceiling to the room in front of me. I can hear faint voices that seems to be chanting something in a language I wouldn't know. The only light that I can see is torches along the walls and mirrors that directs the majority of the light to the center of the room. There's two cloaked people at the edge of that light, but they're too far away for me to distinguish anything other than that. Glancing at Robert, he nods with encouragement and gestures me forward. So with a deep breath, I turn back to what lays in front of me and begin my walk to the center of the large room.
"Welcome Rosalia Laxzi, the fifth descendant named after the ancestor that pledged her life upon protecting her people," said the woman beneath the white cloak. At this, I become slightly confused as I halt with uncertainty. I knew that I was named as the fifth, even though I was many generations ahead of my ancestor, who was also named Rose. Though I didn't realize that my name was Rosalia. Nor that she pledged her life on anything. "Step forward, please."
Taking the few steps, I find myself immersed in the light the mirrors reflect. I actually had to blink to get used to them. In response to my walking, the two before me come forward into the light as well. The woman beneath the white cloak is taller than the one in the black, though only by a few inches. Something about her voice is... familiar. "When had my name changed to Rosalia..?" I couldn't help myself. In response, the woman chuckles softly to herself.
"It is but an ancient name that had slowly erased itself from your family's memory, leaving it as Rose by the point in life that you came into being." She waves a hand from the front of her to the side, sweeping to the room around us. "Everything about your ancestor and her companions has been recorded within these very walls; the time that she was needed, even though she wasn't the Chosen One. Her history is remarkable, but now you must surpass your own ancestor, Chosen One."
"Whoa, wait a minute." I blink out of my confusion, seeing as nothing here was making sense. "I'm flattered that you would think of me as some Chosen One, but there's nothing remarkable about me." I sweep my own arm around to the room, looking around before returning my gaze to the two before me. "The only thing that happened would be the murder of my family, and yet you claim that my ancestor was doing something about protecting her people? How come I've never heard anything about her remarkable feats?"
"They faded from human memory, just as your full name had." She steps forward again. "You think you're unremarkable, but gaze upon my face and ask yourself again." Using both hands, she pushes the him of the hood until it falls around her neck and back, revealing a face that only takes me a minute to recognize.
"I-Isizu??" I swear on my parents' graves, that's Isizu of the show 'Yu-Gi-Oh!' She may not be in anime form, but I would recognize her face anywhere. Maybe I shouldn't be so surprised, but Voldemort was one thing... I could easily explain him as someone that took his name, even though they could use magical wands, but nothing could explain the person that stands before me.
"Correct, Rose." She smiles like it would ease the surprise. But it does nothing other than surprise me even further. "You have powers hidden within yourself, never before unlocked. And now you must know what has happened that caused your family's demise." The light fades from the center of the room to the wall in front of me. My eyes widen as I look onto a person that looks like the reflected version of me. "Rosalia Laxzi, once called Rosalia of the Light among the group 'Mages of Life' - the few humans with the ability to use magic as they see fit." The light widens to the rest of the wall, showing about thirteen other people surrounding her. Each had their own weapons and magic. But what draws my attention is another group, about four all by themselves and immersed in what I can assume to be the darkness. "They battled with the beings that called themselves the Chaos Warriors, who sought this world out amongst many others because of the lack of heroes. They had thought this world to be easy to conquer."
"But it was another being called Laxirin who have found the few humans able to wield magic," said the second person at long last. He pushes the hood of his cloak off, and I find myself staring at Isizu's brother, Marek. In response to his words, the wall to the left lit up. Taking my eyes away from the two people in front of me, I look onto a being that looks quite other-worldly. But it seems that he doesn't have a set form, for he doesn't even had a face recognizable by my standards. "He is known by many names, but the one that stands above all others is 'the Keeper of Life.' Without the counterpart that would guard this and other worlds from danger, he had sought the help from these humans to fight the Chaos Warriors."
'Counterpart..?'
"Rosalia was the first human he approached," Isizu said after her brother stopped speaking. The rest of the wall lit up, and I could see this Laxirin person hovering in the air in front of the same person that I would have thought to be me, though that isn't the case. "Accepting what his words to be true, she accepted his request. In return, he unlocked her magic so that she and the few could defend their world from the Warriors. In the many years to follow, the battles between the Chaos Warriors and the Mages of Life have been far and wide." Then the right wall lit up as the left fell to the darkness. On this wall, I can see four crystals in front of my ancestor. "In their last battle, your ancestor used up all of her energy so that she could seal the Warriors within crystallized prisons. Her physical form may have faded away along with her energy, but she was not lost entirely. With her victory, the remaining Mages have sent each Warrior to different realms, so that they would remain apart, where otherwise their strength was great together."
At the end of the wall, a crystal were placed in each corner. "The leader to the farthest corner of the Neither Realm." When she pointed to the crystal to the top left, I realized that it's the blackest of the four. "The great black dragon called Zikomo to the Middle Realm, stripped of his former glory, to wonder amongst the mortals as a mortal as well." The crystal was the one below the first, nearly as black as the first I've seen. Then she points to the one in the top right corner. "Malshano the black lion, sent to the Lower Realm, to walk amongst the demons. And the black cheetah, sent to the Higher Realm where his influence would never work on the inhabitants there." As Isizu's hand falls to her side, that wall falls back to darkness, as well as the first wall. The light returns back to the center of the room.
"We do not know the names of the nameless ones, for your ancestors thought these two so vile that they banished the mention of their names from history." Marek just answered my unspoken question. "The four realms mentioned are called by other names, which I think you'll find more memorable. The Higher Realm is known as the Spiritual Plane. The Middle Realm as the Mortal Plane. The Lower Realm as the Undead Plane. And the Neither Realm as the Immortal Plane."
"Whoa, wait." I finally found my voice. "You acknowledge these four 'realms' like they're a fact of life, but haven't you been living by the code of your ancestors, about the Pharaoh's return and everything??"
"We lived by our ancestor's code, yes," Isizu said. "But we are bound to the Mortal Plane, and so we never look past beyond our own realm to worry about such others. You, on the other hand, will."
"What makes me so special?" My anger is slowly rising, but I manage to keep it out of my voice. Though I suppose it's too much to hope that they won't notice my shaking fists. "Why me, why not someone else from my family?"
"If you have noticed," Isizu said gently, "you're the only one left alive, apart from your foster sibling and nieces." Sad to say, I felt like I've been slapped. I knew that I was adopted, but they've been the family I had loved for many years, even though we weren't blood-related. "The murder was done in the attempt to kill you, their reason to fear of being stopped once again."
"D-didn't you just say that they were sent to different realms??" I take 'their' as these Chaos Warriors.
"Two have been reunited, my Guardian. The two are still locked within the Neither Realm, but the remaining have been released from their prisons as well, and they both are here in the Mortal Plane." I may not know these guys, or even know their potential, but I felt my face pale. "Malshano hunts for you even as we speak. Zikomo, who have been stripped of his powers, is acting under another being's power. He may not have given his loyalty to this person, but nonetheless, he does as he's told."
"Malshano, who could not be stripped of his powers like Zikomo, had been placed under a curse," Marek said. "With this curse, he cannot kill. There is only one person that he can kill, which would unleash him from the curse. And she stands before us." I didn't know that one person could pale even further, but I think I just accomplished that. Seeing the panic on my face, Marek nods gently in my direction. "This is part of the reason why you have been brought here."
"The leader had a similar curse, but unfortunately, he was released from his when you were born. During your lifetime, he had been seeking a way to reunite the Chaos Warriors, and it had only been recently that he attempted to end your life."
"..." I cross my arms, shaking my head a little at all this information. Then I look back up as I realize that I was called differently. "What did you mean by 'Guardian'..?" I ask Isizu, who nods at my asking.
"The reason you were brought here, to Egypt. While your family's ancestor was exceptional in every way, she was never the Guardian of Life. That alone is your destiny." As I frown to myself at such a title, Isizu steps forward and nods to a corner of the room. Hearing the familiar pattering of paws, I turn in spite of myself to watch as my animal companions come to the center of the room themselves. What absolutely throws me is that my ground-bounded companions have wings, the feathers the same color and patterns as their fur. Assuming that my mouth is open out of shock, Melody purrs out of her own amusement.
"That's not very becoming of you, Rosie."
"H-huh?!" Gaining control back over my muscles, I turn back to Isizu and Marek, who stands there with their own small smiles. "How is that possible??"
"They have been your guardians since you became aware of your surroundings, even before then," Isizu said as she nods to Kate and the others, who nod in return. "To protect you even in disguise as ordinary animals." I watch as my companions station around me, sitting like they had authority. They've done this so many times, and I never questioned it. Until now. Have they done that to protect me from possible danger? Was I only something to protect, or had they done this because they love me??
"We now ask you, Rose, of something important." As Marek spoke, the lights spread out to light up the whole room. Glancing up, I happen to see the mirrors being covered with linen sheets of sorts. Must mean the story-telling part was definitely over. Feeling a mixture of dread and excitement, I look back to the priests in front of me. "Will you take up your place as the Guardian of Life, to carry out your duty by Laxirin's will? To protect everything that represents life so that your world, and many others, can continue to thrive in prosperity?" I had a choice to become one with my destiny? I could say no?
"This is our only time that we could unlock your potential, for this pyramid becomes unburied of sand every few thousand years," Isizu answers to unasked questions. "While there are other methods to break what's been placed on you... we thought this would be best, for it causes the least pain."
"But those other methods wouldn't be done by you," I said in statement. They both nod in confirmation. I had no other choice, really, none that I can see. I may have no family to protect, but... my friends are definitely worthy to fight for. Even if I go in hiding, which I bet would have been Isizu and Marek's second option to do if I declined, these warriors would probably hunt down my own friends... I can't have that happen. "So... if all you said was true..." I said in uncertainty, though I have no doubt that everything they said so far was the truth - my animals was enough to convince me. "Then I really can't ignore all this." I bite my lower lip as I glance down at my companions, who all look up at me with the faith and love that can't be faked.
Isizu walks forward once she accepted something from someone that stepped toward her. Beckoning me forward once she reached the center of the room, I slowly walk forward until I was standing in front of her. Even up close, she looks so real. Unwrapping the parcel in her hands, she then holds out a letter addressed to me. Bewildered once again, I slowly take the ancient letter. Isizu steps back as I carefully open the letter. All it contains is a sentence of some spell.
"This letter is a gift from Laxirin himself, who had seen when the Guardian would be brought into existence. Your power and appearance had been sealed by another before you were adopted, and this is Laxirin's way to help you unleash the true power within." I look back up to her.
"So... my saying this spell will do that?" I watch as she nods. Looking behind me, I watch as my companions watch me closely, much like everyone else in this room. The chanting stopped at one point. I start to feel foolish, like this really is some sick joke someone's playing on me. But still... 'If this really is a joke, this won't work, and I have to kick someone's ass for putting me through all this,' I thought to myself, even though I didn't believe it. There's really one way to see if this works, too. Memorizing the spell, I then look back up and said, as clearly as I could:
"Cy, Rosalia Laxzi ri Kinzel, ri'ha Cysilica and Ak'shna lei hyzela ni vic'il Kinzual!"
"I, Rosalia Laxzi of Life, ask Cysilica and Ak'shna to unleash my true Light!"
End of the revised version of Chapter I, II and III, since all three were short and I combined them together. The chapter numbers of each chapter will be messed up as I revise the early chapters, so bear with me as I do this process. Thank you for understanding. *Smiles* I hope this is more enjoyable than what it had been from before - past and present tense mixed up badly and crappy story-plot that, really, only got better and made better sense as the later chapters were put up. This revised chapter is dedicated for those that had put up with my childish ways of thinking, since the early chapters were made at the age of about thirteen.