Rows upon rows of shiny little soldiers marched up and down in the early morning light, feet stamping in time—not a single toe out of line—as they followed their commanding officer. As they marched, their chanting rang loud & clear in a roar that would've awaken even the stubbornest of morning birds.
"Your mommy was home when you left
You're right!
Your daddy was home when you left
You're right!
Your sister was home when you left
You're right!
Your brother was home when you left
You're right!"
"The dog was home when you left
You're right!
The cat was home when you left
You're right!
The fish was home when you left
You're right!
Your mommy, your daddy, your sister, your brother, the dog, the cat, the fish was home when you left
You're right!
And that's the reason you left!
You're right!"
"I left my home
I left my home
To join the army!
To join the army!
I left my home
I left my home
To join the army!
To join the army!"
"The day I left
The day I left
My momma cried
My momma cried
She thought that I
She thought that I
Would surely die
Would surely die"
"I left my wife
I left my wife
Crying at the door
Crying at the door
She knew that I
She knew that I
Would die at war
Would die at war"
"I left my son
I left my son
Playing in the yard
Playing in the yard
Seeing Daddy leave
Seeing Daddy leave
Made him cry so hard
Made him cry so hard"
"Are we, are we?
Are we, are we?
Are we, are we?
Are we, are we?
Are we, are we?
Are we, are we?
We join the army!
We join the army!"
"Follow me!
Follow me!
I know you can make it!
I know you can make it!
I know you can take it!
I know you can take it!"
"Follow the man in the green beret!
Follow the man in the green beret!
Marching's how he earns is pay!
Marching's how he earns is pay!
So join the army!
So join the army!"
"…Players!" Alma Bolton stood at the front of the room, a ruler in her hands as it played the role of impromptu microphone. All around her, students were packed around one of the cafeteria tables as they occupied themselves during a tornado warning drill. "Question is: yes or no? Theodore?"
Theodore shifted in his seat, an irate look upon his face. "…I KNOW what's going on here, I know what's going on here, okay? I do"
"Do you?" She smirked.
"And if you want me to WANDER outside to SPILL THE BEANS to teach—"
"—I mean, there's really no need for you to do that because—"
"It's the final question, right?" The brunette guessed.
"—These two" She continued on, unbothered by his interruption and instead, gestured to the two other 'contestants' "Are in the loop, so…"
"…THEY'RE in the loop?" Theodore huffed, "I'M the only one out of the loop, IT WOULD SEEM"
Their gathered year mates giggled like they knew a secret he didn't; cramped around the cafeteria table like ants on a jellybean. "And if we check my point total here" He tapped the singular notebook between them, his voice getting incrementally louder. "I don't NEED to look at my tally, because I KNOW what it is; it's a big ole goose egg, gang! It's a big FAT zero! HELLO! A little LATE addition to the numerical symbol chart, brought to you from our friends in Arabia! Little bit of trivia that I happen to know about the HISTORY OF NUMBERS; that kind of little tidbit would serve me well in most trivia games. UNLESS!" He pointed angrily at Alma who looked fit to burst with laughter. "IT HAD BEEN RIGGED FROM THE BEGINNING!"
Emmett Barnes threw his hands up in defence as light laughter bubbled out of his lips. "Whoa, man!"
Next to him, Benjamin Brockman was practically bent in half as he wheezed like a tire letting out air. "Whoa…man…! Chill…out…!"
That did NOTHING to quell the flames rising within Theodore. "OOOOOOOOOOOHHHHHHHH! I'VE ONLY JUST BEGUN TO PULL THE THREAD ON THIS SWEATER, FRIENDS! You would THINK in a game where there were only TWO possible correct choices, that one would STUMBLE into the right answer every so often, wouldn't you? In fact, the probability of NEVER guessing right in the ENTIRE game is a STATISTICAL WONDER! And yet, HERE we are!" He spread his arms out wide, as if to say, there you go.
A slightly crazed look took over his eye as he continued. "Introduced at the top of the game was a champion. What do you think that means? What about Icarus flying too close to the sun? Hands outstretched to catch those golden drops from the heavens. But it seems that Daedalus, our little master crafter over here, had some WAX WINGS OF HIS OWN, didn't she? Wanted to see the golden boy fall, fall from the sky. OH, HOW CLOSE TO THE SUN, HE FLEW!" Theodore smacked the table in front of him in emphasis, making those around him jump at the sudden smack. "WELL, I'M NOT HAVING IT! I'VE SOLVED YOUR LABYRINTH, PUZZLE MASTER! THE MINOTAUR'S ESCAPED AND YOU'RE GONNA GET THE HORNS, BUDDY!"
Cackles rang throughout the cafeteria as his impromptu monologue ended. "Okay, are WE—? Did WE—?" Emmett spluttered.
"Can I tell you what the thing is, now?" Alma practically vibrated in place.
"—Did WE think that we were in on it, but actually, THEODORE was the only one in on it?" Emmett asked, turning to check with the popular girl about what was going on. "That that was all rehearsed?"
"That was an INCREDIBLE monologue, Theodore!" Benjamin gasped.
"So, Theodore" Alma eventually recollected herself. "WHAT is the rule of the game?"
A manic grin split Theodore's lips. "I CANNOT WIN!"
"Woohoo! Yes! That is correct, Theodore! YOU cannot win the game!
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"
In the background, Emmett turned to Alma with confusion still swimming in his eyes. "…Did we ALL get points?"
"Uh" Alma paused to check the tally scores. "Only two of you got points"
"GOD DAMMIT!"
Lluma the Sky Father and Lora the Earth Mother lay together in a tight embrace, intertwined around each other liked they'd starve without the other. They held each other so close that no light could get through their entangled limbs and because of that, the world lay forever in eternal darkness.
Lluma and Lora had many children who lived between them, cramped beyond belief. The children often wondered what light was like and were fed up with living in the darkness, squashed between their parents' loving embrace.
One day, Kupin the God of Summer, decided that they should split their parents apart so that the sky would hang high above their heads, whilst the earth lay low beneath their feet; far enough that neither mother nor father could reunite and draw the world back into darkness.
So they agreed, but only Nakhon the Goddess of Spring, had the strength to push the two apart. She braced her head against Lora's bosom and used her feet to kick away her father, Lluma. With Lluma and Lora separated for the first time in history, in came a wonderful world of light and all manner of life flourished on the earth and in the sky because of it.
But after Lora and Lluma were torn apart by their squashed children, Mother Lora who was so overcome with despair and grief did two things. One, was to tear out her own eyes and throw them up towards her lover in the heavens, where, upon landing they scattered themselves into seven pieces. Seven pieces that would later birth seven daughters, or the Seven Stars of Lore, as they would come to be known. The second thing she did was curse her remaining children with the Lien du Lorne, so that they too, may suffer as she did. Baring cracks of blue upon their skin just as she wore rivers like veiled lace.
In exchange, Father Lluma tore out his own heart and threw it back down to earth where Mother Lora lay. There, she gripped it tight, burying it deep within her bosom next to her own, where the two would beat in time. These twin hearts would soon join to make one, thus creating a creature known as "the Entity" A godlike creature that grants all of the Garde their Legacies.
And thus, the world and its children, were born.
"…It is said that the Lien du Lorne is the most excruciating thing that one can experience…far more so than anything the mind could comprehend…Literally translating to "The Bond of the Forsaken"
"Supposedly, it is the very reason why Lorics are so territorial of their people, because to lose your Lorne could very well spell the end of you…Some of the stories are quite horrific…describing the feeling as being constantly branded with a hot iron, whilst a teaspoon tried to carve out your organs one spoonful at a time…"
—CURSED BE THE LORIC: THE LIEN DU LORNE, A. Sutekh
"…Salu!" Lila waved to Franklin, farewelling the boy as the Garde trudged away from the Cooper's farm.
Theodore puzzled over the new word, turning to the girl at his side for clarification. "Salu?"
"It's Loric" She absently kicked a pebble ahead of them, arms swinging idly at her sides. "It means 'See you again' or 'See you later"
"See you later, huh?" Theodore mused softly. "I like it"
"Me too" She hummed, unusually sappy in the warm summer air. "I don't like goodbyes; they feel too final, you know?"
"Goodbye means going away and going away mean forgetting" Theodore quoted.
Lila turned to the boy, brows furrowed in confusion. "Yeah…?"
"Peter Pan" He stated in lieu of reply.
"Ah" She nodded, "Anyway, it's like goodbyes are for break-ups & funerals; they're sad things and no one likes them. That's why I like see yous; they're like a promise. A promise that we'll see each other again one day and they're MUCH better than goodbyes"
"Which is just a REALLY long way to say that you're a sappy old lady"
"Oi! Who're calling old?!"
"So, what? Between the two of us, I'M s'posed to be the lady?"
THE GARDE
EX LIBRIS REGINALD H. HARGREEVES.
THEODORE-CERO [Theodore of Zero]
11/13/18
"We were first alerted to his existence thanks to the spike in loralite radiation levels, upon our terran sister planet. The likes, of which, had not been seen in centuries…No one was certain about what could've caused it, although there were many theories…not even the folks on the ground could ascertain such a cause—but they were more focused on the loss of human lives, than the pursuit of scientific endeavour…"
"…I must admit, part of me wondered if it had been the result of the anomaly—the Entity—(upon which I had discovered only some months prior, in that desolate field which would soon blossom into a stinking city) waking earlier than planned"
11/15/18
"…Myself and my ward, Evangeline-Ent, have decided to make the year-long journey to Earth to investigate the site…From the reports, it sounds like a truly terrible thing…Wiping out thousands of people in mere seconds, with the force of a nuclear bomb not yet seen upon this planet…Terrible, yes, but great…"
"I suspect that the Council is simply worried that this was the work of the Mogadorians, who have been pushing at our borders ever since I can remember…They know how we treasure our bond with our kin and how closely we guard our own"
11/20/19
"Unfortunately, it took us several days to situate ourselves once we'd arrived upon Earth…despite stating that I was to oversee the investigation of site of the bombing, we were still made to jump through so many obscene hoops to even get clearance to SEE the site…"
"It wasn't until much later, that I was able to ascertain that there was in fact, ONE survivor…one of the Sparrow Squadron pilots (the youngest) whom had landed behind enemy lines that fateful day…No one knows how he survived, but the theories abound"
"…He is a boy, by the name of Ensign Theodore Hargreeves. A peculiar coincidence, if you ever believed in such things…It will require further questioning upon the boy's awakening…In any case, it was far too easy to pose as the boy's grandfather, to discharge him from the hospital…These terrans, they have no sense of security, nor the knowledge of what it is they hold…"
04/16/20
"Upon the journey back to Lorien, it was decided that Theodore's existence (whom I have decided to label Theodore-Cero, after the late Founder of the Council. Afterall, there has yet to be a replacement for his seat) would be hidden from the general public. However, the people who are in the know—or those who are smart enough to put two-and-two together—about him, said that he was clearly a weapon and should be treated as such"
"…I am unsure as to where I sit on this subject, just yet…Further testing will have to be done…but for something—or someone—to cause such destruction without apparent cause HAS to be a weapon, does it not?"
05/13/20
"He looks like a Loric, just laying in that hospital bed…all delicately vulnerable and fragile, but he is a tool without a heart; just like me"
05/27/20
"…The boy's temporary status as a Garde was confirmed thanks to the Garde mark impressed upon his collarbone…After many tests, it was proven to be real and an Orlin, at that…What were those imbeciles thinking? There is truly no way to make a counterfeit mark that exact…"
06/19/20
"…Only time will tell if these musings prove to be true…"
It had been Lila's idea to wear the form-fitting blue suit; the one with the matching waistcoat and cufflinks. "If they wanna whisper, then let 'em roar!" She'd said as she'd deftly bound his tie around his neck. Not that Theodore was complaining, not at all. Especially considering it had enticed Marty a little closer than usual. With the party still in full swing inside the banquet hall, the two young men had popped out for some "fresh air", departing with a sugar-spun glass in hand and a not-so-delicate bird flipped in Lila's direction (that knowing smirk was uncalled for, thank you very much).
His love for Marty had started out small, inconsequential. A thought here (If we leant closer, we'd be kissing), or a moment there (War calloused hands helped him down from the truck bed with a gentleness that did not belong to someone so-broad shouldered). Until it finally hit him. Oh. THAT'S what that is. And then he found himself falling so head over heels in love with the boy, that it felt like he was drowning in unrequited longing. But maybe…it wasn't so unrequited?
His hands fumbled with his belt in the rush to get it off and then Marty, gentle as ever, was laying him down in the flower bed. He gazed at the Garde with eyes so dark, they were like pools of inky black and high above his tousled head there lay a halo of twinkling stars. The sight took his breath away. And then, when their lips met in a hungry kiss, his breath was stolen again. This time, as the traces of loralite in his system mingled with Marty's—when they danced beneath pale flesh like stars in the night sky—deft fingers raked down his bare back and marked him with nail-deep scratches that would absolutely leaves its mark. Not a Garde mark, HIS mark.
Theodore adored him, every inch of him, hoping that this moment could last forever.
When Theodore awoke, it was with a gentle exhale on his lips and a surprising amount of bandages wrapped around his appendages. A layer of crisp white sheets pinned him to the bed and a single curtain fluttering over the windowsil next to his bed in the quiet imitation of privacy. A quick look behind the sheer material revealed a strange world outside of his window; one filled with blue skies, green grasses, towering skyscrapers and scores of people just going about their lives.
Overwhelmed by what he saw, Theodore collapsed back against his pillows and instead turned his attentions to the room he was in. It was neat—breezy—and compact enough that he just about see into everyone room from where he lay. There were no other signs of life in this place save for the fresh vase of strange-looking flowers on the bedside table and, what looked to be an empty animal cage, in the corner.
He didn't know this place.
This…wasn't home.