Disclaimer: See chapter 1
AN: I've recently discovered that fanfiction hasn't been uploading the lines of asterisks I use to signify a change of scene. This has managed to confuse things so I'll clarify the details. Melinda is the only guardian to have gone back in time. Anzu is still in her own time, it's just that she's met the Cornelia that exists because of the change in the timeline as opposed to the one who should exist. Hope this clears things up.
Rebecca looked at the three girls in front of her and smiled. Oh how she had longed to see this, her most powerful enemies standing powerless in front of her. "Welcome Guardians" she said with a smile. "Welcome to my world." She paused. "It's amazing what a little change in time can do, isn't it? One small detail and everything changes. And now you will pay the price for defeating my Lord Shail. Seize them!" And with that the three girls found themselves surrounded by armed Lurdens.
Just as the Lurdens got close however, the three girls simultaneously kicked the Lurdens closest to them. The one kicked by Alice flew backwards as her heel smashed into its jaw. Meanwhile Hannah's went straight down as her leg spun round. In the middle of these two, Sarah brought the top part of her foot into the groin of the Lurden in front of her. Everything seemed to pause for a moment and then the girls ran down a side alley. Two seconds later the Lurdens began shooting at them. Badly.
"What did she mean welcome to my world?" shouted Alice as they ran.
"Talk later" replied Sarah between breaths.
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Melinda looked at the room around her. When she had become a guardian, she'd never thought she'd find herself tied up in the basement of her workplace. By people she'd known all her life, no less. And seven years before she was born. It had to be one of the oddest things she had ever experienced, including all the guardian stuff.
The old guardians (or should that be new?) and Caleb were in Meridian, seeking the source of Phobos's fake hearts. Fake hearts that didn't exist, but she had to admit it sounded more likely than what she had told them.
There was a creak on the stairs. Looking up, Melinda saw Joan Lin coming down to her and in her hands was a bowl of soup.
"I brought you something to eat," she said quietly. "I don't know what my mother in law or my daughter and her friends have in mind for you, but I'm damned if I'm going to let you starve to death."
She placed the bowl down on the table. Then she turned Melinda's chair towards it. Melinda looked at the soup. It looked like leek and potato. She looked at Joan with a puzzled look. "How.." she began, but Joan held up her hand. "I'm going to have to feed you it myself. After all, if you really are dangerous, I don't want to take any chances." And with that she began spooning soup into Melinda's mouth.
For a few minutes they sat in silence as Joan Lin fed her. Then, out of the blue Joan blurted out, "Are you really from the future?"
Melinda swallowed her soup in shock and promptly began coughing as the soup went down the wrong way. "You-you actually believe me?" she asked in surprise.
Joan blushed slightly. "Well it sounds like something out of one of my comic books and I've always enjoyed a good sci-fi or fantasy book. So tell me your story and I'll see what I can find out to support it. Of course that's assuming your telling the truth." She paused for a moment and frowned. "I don't like lies. A lie can go round the world…"
"Before the truth has got its boots on" Melinda finished. "You told me that one first time I worked for you. You said that's why you despised lies, people are always more willing to believe them." Melinda smiled sadly. "Thank you Mrs Lin"
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Caleb stared in disbelief at the girl in front of him. She was, without doubt Miranda. They had stumbled into one of Phobos's secret weapons facilities that littered Meridian, but as they attacked, Miranda came out to meet them. Locking swords with a Lurden, Caleb shook his head. He needed to focus on the task at hand. While Hay Lin swept up the weapons with a powerful breeze, Taranee used a huge fireball to melt them. Between them, the heat was pretty intense, so Irma flooded the ground with water. This stopped the fireball from choking them all.
"Hey" Will called to Caleb as she hit another Lurden "Is it me or does that girl look like Miranda?"
Miranda snarled and transformed herself into a giant spider. Wills eyes went even wider. "No like about it. I am Miranda!" the spider snarled. But just as she leapt at Will, a web of vines shot up in front of her. Standing at the side, grinning was Cornelia. "I'm not about to let you have all the fun you know. I'd have stepped in sooner but I got pinned down by some of her webbing."
Flashing her a grateful smile Will ordered a retreat, leaving behind a thoroughly defeated enemy. But Will was far from happy. If Miranda was here, how did she escape the Silver Dragon? More importantly who was hurt in the process? The others seemed to share her thoughts as they too rushed to the portal they entered Meridian through.
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"Thomas Vandom" the voice boomed. Thomas looked up. "Yes?"
"I believe I have a solution to my problem with contacting your generation of guardians." The voice paused. "Entities such as myself are allowed to choose an agent to deal with problems that arise within our sphere. Most seldom bother, including myself. However I need someone to help me this time to fix this mess. I am asking you to act as my agent."
Thomas frowned. "What are you exactly?"
The voice sighed. "I am time and space. I do not involve myself with the affairs of good and evil. None of us do. But we object when people change what should not be changed."
Thomas thought for a bit. "I won't be asked hurt the guardians will I?" He asked.
"No. Nor will you be asked to go against family, friends or Candracar itself" replied the voice.
"Ok I'm in" Thomas said cheerfully. "Tell me what I'm doing."
"I'm sending you to your friend Anzu Watshashi. I'll explain what you need to do then." The voice said as Thomas began to vanish.
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Anzu was having a harder time of persuading Caleb about her story than she had Cornelia. She had explained about her being a guardian and how she had been there at the battle of Candracar. She'd even thrown in her theory about time travel being used to change time.
"So let me get this straight. Your saying that Lord Shail was defeated at the battle of Candracar and so someone has changed history, so that he did win. And you are the only person to remember this." Caleb stared at her. "Cornelia may be happy to believe you, but I don't."
Anzu gritted her teeth and raised her hand to her forehead. "I've already said this. I'm the only person who remembers, that I'm aware of. My friends might, but I don't know where they are."
Caleb's face turned to a frown. "Listen kid, Cornelia is really delicate right now. After we lost our daughter in the fall of Candracar, she almost killed herself. I won't have ANYONE hurt her like this. If you keep telling her this crap she'll go over the edge. Find evidence to support your claim or shut up."
But when he turned away, Anzu saw tears in his eyes. The anger and aggression, she realised, was a defence mechanism.
But she couldn't afford to be gentle. "Very well. I'll go find the others." She said in a cold voice and turned to leave, but before she could, there was a glimmer of light and right beside her Thomas Vandom shimmered into view. Smiling at Anzu and Caleb, he said one word. "Hi"
Second disclaimer: The saying A lie can go round the world before the truth has got its boots on comes from the Terry Pratchet book The Truth. I don't own the rights Terry Pratchet does.