"Guardian? Eyes up, Guardian." A small, tetrahedral drone hovered over the body of a thin, armor clad girl, trying to wake her up. Its technical designation was Ghost, but the Guardian it served alongside named him Little Light. In return, his Guardian wanted him to call her by the only name she could remember, Stella Black. "Stella? Can you hear me? Please wake up. We are not safe here..." The small AI didn't like the look of the large crack that spiderwebbed across Stella's black helmet.
He paused as a soft groan left the prone form of Stella. She stirred slowly, "Light? What happened?" A second groan escaped her. Flashes of memory hit her in painful waves. The warp engines getting hit by the Hive, activating them and sending the small craft careening away at FTL. Then the forced ejection of the warp engines, allowing them to limp to a halt over some unknown planet. Only it wasn't unknown, but Earth... or sort of. There were insane amounts of radio chatter on all wavelengths, including those that hadn't been used since before the golden age! The shock of it made her freeze up. Then an explosion ripped through the cabin, throwing her into the back of the that... It was a blur. She could vaugely recall something slamming into her helmet, causing her to black out. Her eyes finally focused properly, and she began thanking the Traveller's Light that she wore her helmet everywhere. She sighed softly, "Little Light, could you remove my helmet and begin repairs on the ship? I'll start scouting the area, see if any humans are nearby."
"I'm sorry ,Stella, but the ship broke up in the atmosphere. I was able to transmat you and most of your armor and weapons out of the craft before it detonated over the English Channel. We are currently in northern Scotland. According to unencrypted channels, the warp malfunction resulted in a temporal displacement of minus three thousand years,plus or minus a-"
"Light, just get the helmet off. I don't want to deal with when we are..." There was a bright flash as her helmet vanished, revealing the pale, grey-blue skin and ethereal green eyes of an Awoken. She brushed some of her messy black hair from her eyes and peered around carefully. They were in some sort of forest. Tall, foreboding trees rose up to touch the night sky. She could hear small creatures, and some not so small."Light, is there any suitable shelter nearby?"
The Ghost shifted its metal pieces slightly. "If I remember correctly, there is a large castle approximatly half a kilometre west of our position."
Stella nodded and drew a hand cannon fron a holdster on her hip. It was an old 21st century model called Desert Eagle. She always had it ready in case she was unable to access her armo ry. "Any signs of life?"
"Unfortunately, yes. So, stealth is of utmost importance now."
She flicked the safety off and began making her way through the forest. "I suppose I need something to help me blend in. Try to make something acceptable to wear in this era that will also cover my face and hands."
"Already ahead of you on that one. I believe I have found a few styles that will work."
"The simplest one. I don't need to attract attention."
"Yes, Guardian."
Stella shifted uncomfortably as her armor vanished, leaving the girl in her undergarments. She hated not having the armor, but there was nothing to do about it. She needed to be invisible. The air around her hummed as Little Light began constructing a new set of clothes. Her curiosity was piqued when she felt something much lighter than her armor form. It was softer, not to mention much more flexible. She looked down at herself and blinked in surprise. She now wore a black cotton shirt and blue jeans under a hooded leather duster. Her hands were also covered by black leather gloves and she wore knee high boots. Though admittedly strange, Stella found that she quite liked the new look. She nodded in approval as they neared the edge of the forest. "Thank you, Little Light. I-"
"Who's there?"
Stella froze and her Ghost vanished into her head at the sound of a gruff, female voice.
"I know you're out there! Come on out and I won't set Fang on you!"
I believe we've been caught, Stella.
She cursed silently. Whoever it was must have seen her Ghost's glow. There was no hiding now... Slowly, the young Guardian slid the massive handgun into her new duster and approached the voice. Only to freeze the moment she was in sight of a short stocky woman pointing a stick at her.
The strange woman brandished the thin piece of wood like a weapon. "What do you think you're doing girl? Why are you in the Forbidden Forest?"
Stella remained silent, letting the woman do the talking. Maybe she could learn something.
The woman must have mistaken her silence for fear, because she immediately lowered the stick, "What's wrong girl? Kneazle got your tongue?"
What the heck is a Kneazle?
Never mind trying to get any information. The woman was clearly mad. Calmly, she drew her gun and pointed it at her. "Ma'am, I am going to need you to surrender all of your weapons and money. It is nothing personal, I'm just not in the mood to-"
A flash of light erupted from the tip of the stick, jerking the gun out of her hand and sending it spinning away. She dove to the side, attempting to reach her weapon, only to be hit with an invisible force that paralyzed her. She hit the ground with a heavy thud, straining to escape the unseen bonds.
'Light, stay hidden! I can't afford to lose you!'
Understood...
The woman with the light throwing stick stomped over to the petrified Guardian, revealing that she had a wooden leg. "Let's see who you are dearie. I have no clue what a muggle is doing here at Hogwarts, but you must be terribly- Oh my goodness! What are you?" The woman had turned Stella over, causing the hood to fall away and reveal her inhuman appearence. Stella could feel panic rising up to consume her, and she began struggling even harder. She couldn't breath. The desire to break free was so great that she could feel it building up within her, blocked by a mental wall. She raged against it, forcing her way through. An unheard crack resounded through the recesses of her mind and the bonds vanished with a flash. The woman was so surprised at Stella's escape that she was unable to stop her as she took off towards the castle, scooping up her gun along the way.
"Little Light... That woman just froze me with a stick."
Yes. I noticed. I suggest we find the nearest human in charge of the castle.
Stella could hear the worry in her Ghost's voice. She picked up the pace, duster flying out behind her. The castle loomed over her, causing her to give pause. The moment of hesitation was just long enough to alert her to the sound of the human trying to catch up. She spun around, gun ready.
The woman held up her hands, "Hold on, girlie. I'm not going to hurt you. I'm Professor Grubbyplank. Can you tell me your name?"
Introductions? Stella frowned. What should she do?
Maybe you should try to explain what happned. There seems to be more to this woman than meets the eye... Just don't panic and don't reveal too much.
"Don't panic. That's easy for you to say..." She muttered irritably. While an excellent lier, Stella had no way to explain her behavior. It appeared she had no choice, but to tell the truth. Clearing her throat, she spoke to the woman. "I am Stella Black, Warlock Class Guardian. My craft's warp engine was damaged, causing a catestrophic systems failure and a temporal displacement of three thousand years. What year is it and who is in charge of this structure?" Stella winced as her Ghost lit into her. "Don't even start it, Light! I'm the one talking here, not you."
"Excuse me, but would you mind explaining what you just said? I don't quite understand ummm... Well, any of it. Also, who are you talking to?"
"My Ghost. And I mean exactly what I said. My personal craft was attacked, critically damaging my warp engine. It malfunctioned and sent me back three thousand years. Now, answer my questi-"
"STUPIFY!"
Stella dove to the ground, barely avoiding a jet of red light passing over her head. She rolled to her feet, free hand glowing a fierce purple. Her eyes locked onto a pink haired girl raising a stick. 'She's going to cast a spell...'
As soon as the thought entered her head, a blinding pain hit her. Images flashed through her mind at a sickening pace. She was vaguely aware of Little Light leaving her head and yelling her name. The pain crippled girl wanted to call out to her friend. She wanted to do anything to communicate what she was seeing. There was so much information. But it wasn't just random knowledge, what she was seeing were her memories. Not that it mattered to her. All she wanted was for the excruciating pain to stop.
Eventually, the shock of the pain overcame her, and she sank into oblivion.
