This chapter is probably quite confusing because I messed up by starting it in first person, as in I instead of what would usually be She. I've decided that this chapter will all be in first person, but I plan to make it so it goes back to normal. Unless it turns out that I prefer it this way. Thanks for reading. Oh, and the house mentioned at the end of the last chapter isn't inhabited by just Winter and Tate; all of the other members too.
The next day came too quickly and all too soon it was time for my first lesson of the day. The school was a mass of decently sized brick buildings, placed strategically in the tip between the two primary mountain that separated the territory of the two different Guardian groups- My 'group', per say, one side of the school, the group ruled by another Blaze taking the other side. More than once, we had been more simply referred to by the Keeper's as simply North or West - Us being West. The humans from the nearby towns attended too, but to say the very least, they knew nothing about any of us.
Anyway, like I said, I was heading to my first lesson, Biology, like I always had first thing on Monday. I was going to said lesson alongside one of the other West members, Lillia, the only other female dragon Guardian I'd ever known. I understand you may be confused as to how that works, considering I must have parents, and It's not like my mother died dramatically during my birth... but the reality is a story for another time.
We strolled down the school corridors at a leisurely pace, laughing at something another West member had said yesterday over dinner. By then, we were used to the stares of the humans... they could tell we were different, but they could never tell exactly how. So they just stared.
The whole illusion of freedom and happiness was shattered as my eyes locked with those of a mid-height, plain looking boy, leaning against the fire-truck red lockers at the end of the corridor, and looking to any other person but me, completely innocent.
Sometimes, I envy the humans. They live such simple lives, taking everything for granted, thinking they know what's around them; but they never do. They may be oblivious to how everything really works, but at least they don't know that around every corner stands something that could put an end to their short lives... because at least, that way, they aren't terribly paranoid... and I hate to admit, but sometimes, I am.
I haven't paid attention to the life forms around me for a long time, some would say too long, but staring into the malicious eyes of the man who orchestrated my life like a some kind of diabolic puppeteer, I'm forced to.
He smirked.
I flinched.
He pushed off the wall.
I tensed.
He put a foot forward.
I took a swift step back.
"Winter... Are you alright?" Lillia questioned, her bright emerald green eyes staring into mine with a slight hint of worry. I took a step back again, blinking around the corridor. It was almost completely empty.
"If you would, Lillia, run along, you wouldn't want to be late, would you now?" A clear, strident voice drawled from behind her.
"N-no, I'll, uh, go now" She stuttered, turning and hurrying down the corridor, only pausing to throw a panicked look back at me quickly, before she continued. Thanks for sticking around, Lillia. I though somewhat sarcastically, but I knew it was for the better; had she disobeyed, she could've dug herself quite a snake-filled hole.
I almost flinched again as he took another step forward, reaching his hand and twirling a snow white curl around his finger. Don't show weakness.
"Well don't you look... different. Sort of punk rock. I like it." I didn't have to look at his face to tell he was wearing a smirk. It practically dripped from his words, like venom.
"As you can imagine, the fact that you like my 'punk rock' choice of clothes makes me want to start a parade, Johar." I regained my front, pushing all of my previous thoughts to the back of my mind and letting my position as a leader over take my fear, if that's quite what it was. He gave a deep chuckle, releasing the curl and stroking a finger down my cheek. I flinched back but he wrapped an arm around my waist and held me against him.
"Remember that you serve me, Guardian." He whispered into my ear, a clear hint of a threat lingering behind his words.
I nodded quickly, fighting the urge to show him just how much I could do; It may have been everything I was born to do, to shift there and then and burn him to a crisp, and it would have been amazing in that moment, but after that... I would have been destroyed, completely. We, Guardians, may have an initial advantage, but the Keepers... They had so many ways of bringing us to our knees.
"Well, I'm glad. I just had a message for you to relay to your... friends. If you see anyone who's not meant to be here... Wolves, Searchers... Kill them, instantly." He took a step backwards. "I expect to see you tonight. Don't bother bringing the rest of your little group... You know why." He muttered in an undertone, before he turned and continued on his way, leaving me alone in the corridor.
I squeezed my eyes shut, crossing my arms over her stomach in an a weak attempt to stop the feelings of sickness that had began to churn at his last words.
I can't do this.
And with that thought, I took off running through the corridor, straight out of the main doors and through the school gate, ignoring the calls of a passing teacher, and pelted into the forest, letting my instincts take over, ice-like, white-silver scales covering my whole body, wings growing out from my back and crystal like talons protruding. I didn't give the bellowing roar I usually would have; I didn't want anyone to know I was out there. I didn't want anyone to know what I had to do, the way I had to serve the Keeper, Johar, like no one else had to. I hated myself for it, for not finding a way out of this life. I always looked for one, again and again, but there was nothing. I had no choice.
Everything ran through my head as I sped through the air, the thoughts overwhelming and painful. I already knew of the other Guardians, there had been one around before; A panther. He was older than me, as I had been a mere 14 years of age at the time. He wasn't old, necessarily, no older than 17. His name was Lowell. I met him in the forest, we talked, laughed. He told me all about the other Guardians; but he never told me why he was in the mountains and not his home.
The excitement was short lived, however. A mere hour later, after they had parted ways, all the Guardians, including me, were informed that if they were to see a panther Guardian on the mountain territory, they were to be killed on sight, no questions asked. Just like I'd been told to do with the wolves, and the same thing we were practically hard wired to do with the Searchers.
And why? No one knows. At least, not any of us.
The panther, Lowell, was killed. But not by me... His killer, Sable, was another dragon, another Blaze and the leader of North. I remember finding both of them, Lowell having taken his panther form, laying, torn to almost unrecognisable shreds under Sable's snarling jaws.
I shook out my head, trying to physically escape the horrible memory.
I took a sharp turn, trying to follow the strong winds of the storm I hadn't noticed when I first took off, with everything bouncing around my mind.
The sound of the fierce winds shooting through the mountain mountain greenery resembled screams; I spun away from the dark clouds, fighting to not be dragged around by the pure power of the storm. I failed. I plunged, swooping towards the top of the mountains to avoid it, and found myself knocked painfully onto one of the flat grooves at the top of one of the mountains, smashing into the far wall and desperately trying to regain balance as the rocks crashed down around me.
I was too slow, and all too quickly I was pinned under the weight of all of rock wall I had disturbed.
Trapped.