Chapter 5
The girls materialised inside what was once Tyrone’s Imperial Palace. They stared at the grand hall of the building. On the high walls they noticed paintings of Presidents from a bygone era – except that Gylith wasn’t there. He’d been removed. Now this was the Parliament House of the first free democratic government. They walked over to the administration alcove and looked at the old lady behind the glass partition.
“Sorry, girls. This place is only for official government business – not field trips from school!” snapped the lady, annoyed.
“This is official business,” said Penni, holding up the Oracle.
“Oh, I see,” said the Lady with sudden understanding. “You’re Guardians!” She came out and kissed the two girls, her grumpiness completely evaporated. “I will contact the President immediately.”
Sari raised her eyebrows and grinned. “We’re royalty here.”
A man, who looked way too young to be a President, came bounding around the corner.
“I’ve been looking forward to this day,” said the young man, beaming, “to see the return of the Guardians. Now, what do you need? Chariots? Weapons? An army?”
Benn was the President of Tyrone. He was tall, with short, sandy hair, and was twenty-five years of age. He wore an old-fashioned suit with a cloak. A gold chain hung out of his right-breast pocket.
Penni immediately liked the man for his enthusiasm, for his charm, his...
Sari nudged her discreetly and whispered, “It’s forbidden to get involved.”
Sari was right. If she became attracted to a man, it was all over for her. She would be immediately replaced as a Guardian. Guardians had to keep a chaste lifestyle. Marriage was fine, but a partner was vibrationally selected, meaning he or she would become apparent when the time was right. Having flings in between was absolutely forbidden.
Penni looked at his hand for rings – not wedding rings, but Keeper rings. There were none. “We need to see the Keeper immediately,” she said.
“Straight to business,” said the man. “I’m Benn, by the way. And who are you two?”
“Sari and Penni,” said Sari.
“OK, this way,” said Benn, curious to know why the girls were so serious. Oh well, he thought, who was he to question Guardian business?
Benn led them through the old palace to an office at the end of a long hallway. He opened the door, and a man looked up from his desk and smiled.
“Ambassador, I’ll leave you with the two Guardians, Penni and Sari.” Benn left, smiling at Penni.
“Hello, I’m Meln Lavos, the Ambassador of Sylonia.” He walked around his desk and shook the girls’ hands. “I’m really excited to catch up with Guardians once again.”
Meln was the Keeper of the Realm of Forgiveness – the Juncture. He was of medium build, with black hair, and was forty-five years of age. He wore a Sylonian suit, which looked similar to the formal Star Trek uniform. Meln wore rings on his ring fingers. Each ring had an etching of a sun – Udicia’s sun.
“So was everyone else,” commented Sari.
“Well, they would be,” said Meln. “The Guardians gave Udicia our independence.”
“I heard you did all right through the conflict,” said Penni.
“You mean with General Nas? Shadow Lords are impossible to kill without the silver from a Guardian’s sword, as you know.”
“Through the heart, at that,” said Sari.
“Yes, but it didn’t matter. We kept General Nas occupied, so he couldn’t organise the troops in Gylith’s legion.” Meln paused, thinking. “It really put everything into perspective when I put these rings on.”
“Yes, it does,” said Penni, knowing that the Oracle and the rings provided the same perception of knowledge.
“Gylith was only a small part of the Shadows’ grand scheme. We thought he was the 'Puppet Master', but he was merely a puppet himself.”
“Yeah, between the likes of him and the Shadow One, there are the Shadow Wraiths,” said Sari.
“Mmm, the Shadow Wraiths. The Masters orchestrate the national level, while the Wraiths, the broader universal level. As you know, Udicia was the staging point for their 'universal' plans to take back Earth. Luckily, Gylith failed.”
“I think I understand the implication,” said Penni. “The Shadow One may want to regain lost ground.”
“Exactly. There are several thousand light years between here and the Dark Realms. The Incarnations have been busily knocking out a lot of these Masters, although that has changed in recent times.”
“The Golden Stars,” said Sari. “We know that the Guardians are gradually starting to take over from the Incarnations there.”
“Yes. The Incarnations now need to focus their attention on these Wraiths, while the Guardians take care of the Masters.”
Penni and Sari looked at Meln, knowing he was about to tell them something important.
“The Galactic Council are certain the Shadows are about to make a major strike on the Ranger Alliance, in the border regions – at the planet Pern, in the region of the Left Way at the Realm of Creativity.”
“A vunerable realm, that’s for sure. How do you know, anyway?” asked Penni, a little surprised. “A Keeper wouldn’t be privy to this, I don’t think.”
“Sounds like you’ve received a little intelligence,” commented Sari.
“Very alert of you both. You’re right. I spoke to Arden a few hours ago,” said Meln. “He’s eager to speak to you.”
“Ready to go,” said Meln, opening the door of his sleek-looking chariot.
“Nice carriage,” commented Penni, stepping into the chariot. “How come all the Keepers are so well-equipped?”
“Must be, kind of like, universal payment for our outstanding service to the cause,” said Meln with a grin.
“Oh, brother,” murmured Sari.
“Wait for me,” called Benn.
Penni pretended there was suddenly something much more interesting to see, and stared out at the beautiful countryside.
Sari grinned mischievously and said,” Hasn't the President got more important matters to attend to?”
“Not at all,” replied Benn, with a smirk at Meln. “Guardians are the top priority. Even more so than Ambassadors.”
“Well, at least this ruler of Tyrone has a better sense of humour than the last one,” replied Meln, with a grin. “...and is much better looking, too.”
“Where are we going?” asked Penni firmly. She was annoyed that Benn had joined them, and she was annoyed at herself for dodging his gaze. She knew she was being ridiculously silly.
“What do you think, Penni?” asked Benn. “Are you ready for the great adventure?”
“Absolutely,” said Penni, feeling a weight lift from her shoulders all of a sudden. "More than ever.”
"Good. Let's get you two out there," said Benn, powering up the levitation gyros on the chariot.
After a few hours’ travel over Tyrone's hilly countryside, they finally made it to the valley between the Thal mountains, Udicia's Great Juncture; the place on Udicia where the Left and Right Ways meet. Once a place that was spiritually shut down because of the Shadow Empire, it was now open for universal business. Loving vibrations from the six realms now flowed through like a torrent and instantly made people feel completely thoughtless, never wanting to leave.
The first order of business was becoming apparent as the President of Tyrone, the Keeper of the Realm of Forgiveness and the two Guardians arrived there.
“This place is a haven for wildlife,” commented Sari, looking around at all the birds flying around.
“Yes, there weren't as many shrubs and trees around here, either, before the transformation,” said Meln.
“And just the feeling of this place now,” said Benn. “Back then, it felt like the killing field; now, it’s just like heaven.”
Penni was the first to see the subtle stirrings of a significant event around the Great Juncture.
“Look, the Juncture is widening,” said Penni.
Big flocks of birds were flying away from the mountains as the wind picked up. Suddenly, a huge vortex appeared between the mountains, spinning in a clockwise direction. Everyone stood silently as the vortex widened and became three-dimensional, giving them the feeling that it was a long tunnel, leading to a far-away realm.
From a distant point within the tunnel, a large, spinning golden Mandala came toward them, becoming larger and larger. The Mandala stopped at the entrance of the vortex momentarily, before there was a flash of brilliant subtle light.
A white-robed man stood looking toward them for a moment, before turning around to look at the vortex. It was Arden, the Incarnation of the Great Juncture. He turned to study the Juncture and motioned his right arm in a clockwise motion. The Juncture responded and started rotating faster.
The vibrations from the Left, Middle and Right Ways increased, and the four stood on the chariot, speechless. The vibrations were actually visible now, like sparkling points of light, swirling around in a random sort of motion. There was nothing to say; there was nothing to think. They weren't in the past; they weren't in the future. This was the present.
With the Keepers at their realms and the girls having journeyed through them all to increase their clearing, Arden now opened the Juncture to increase the flow of the Ways. It was time for Udicia, like Earth, Caldon and other worlds, to use its enlightened standing to make an impact on the rest of the Universe. Then, Arden realigned Udicia's Juncture to the Realm of Innocence in the Ranger Alliance's solar system, thousands of light years away, in the planetary Oracle called Rune.
Arden turned and smiled, as everyone climbed out of the chariot, giving him a courteous, prayer-like bow. He turned to Penni and Sari.
“Udicia's transformation caused a cascade of transformations across hundreds of light years. The Shadow's hold on Udicia had restricted vibrational flow for worlds beyond your world. You see, the Milky Way galaxy is spinning clockwise, with loving vibrations flowing as far as the border region of the Dark Realms, where their anti-clockwise flow of darkness is pushing back against this.”
“So, that's why the Shadows are desperate to counter that motion, and at least claim a large patch of heavily militarised space,” said Penni.
“Yes. The Ranger planet, Pern and allied worlds are approaching their transformations sooner because of the work we've done here. It will make it twice as hard for them to transform,” said Arden.
“And all that much easier for the Shadows to undo everything, considering their position in the Realm of Creativity,” said Sari.
“They may not be as ready as you, but you are more than ready. Forty-two Keepers have now become nine. Nine Guardians have now become three," said Arden.
"Where is the other Guardian, anyway?" asked Sari.
"You will meet up with her very soon," said Arden, "but before that I want to explain something about the Guardians and Keepers.”
"Why have our numbers been reduced so much?" asked Penni.
"Now that the Guardians are engaging the Masters, it’s been decided by the Council that nine Guardians together in a particular battle are no longer required, since the application of the Stars.
“The three Guardians will each take on the three powers of the three Ways – the three powers of the Goddess." He paused. “Also, because of the widespread campaign into the new realm, Guardian numbers need to be stretched.”
“As for the Keepers, they will no longer be anywhere near the battles. There are many transformed worlds now. They can do their job effectively from local realms.”
“What about the Shadow numbers?” asked Sari. “Aren't their resources also stretched?”
“Yes, but the Wraiths are desperately spawning more Masters to conquer the next world.”
“OK, so the Masters are the Wraiths’ main chess pieces in this conquest. What about the Wraiths? How much control has the Shadow One over them?”
“Very good question,” said Arden. “They've been around since the beginning of creation, like the One. He was a Wraith himself once, who turned his back on the Goddess. You see, ultimately he’s just a Wraith that happened to take power. He didn’t earn Godhood; he just took it. ”
“So, Wraiths were once Incarnations like yourself?” mused Penni.
“Yes, and that's why we need you to take care of the Masters, as the Incarnations are very busy with these unpredictable Wraiths. Even now, most of my attention is on their movements. They could strike the border regions or beyond at any moment.”
“Then don't let us hold you up,” said Penni. “We're ready.”
He raised both of his hands, and the Golden Stars were swirling around in each one. They suddenly shot out toward Penni and Sari and entered their subtle centres where they reside in the human body.
At first Penni felt sick, as the torrent of vibrations went through her body, but that passed and was followed by a feeling of overwhelming euphoria! But not in a sexual way. Then, subtle knowledge began to manifest, not like the knowledge from a book or a computer, but a deeper understanding of the workings of the Universe around her.
Penni was eventually drawn to a “catch” at the left side of the Realm of Innocence. Without looking at either Benn or Penni, Arden said, “When this is all over, you can court. But for now, you must focus on the job at hand.”
Benn had left her mind completely, but the vibrations were so powerful they could pick up the slightest residue of a past wrong. Penni didn't feel embarrassed or guilty about it, which was a blessing of her past conditionings. Even more of a blessing was the fact that Arden didn't immediately stand her down. Innocence was what he stood for, and he was well-known not to compromise on it.
Benn held a poker face, but Arden knew. After all, he was the Universe. How many galaxies were swirling around in his body, anyway?
Penni and Sari looked at the Juncture and then at each other. They didn't speak, but their eyes conveyed that this was it; this was what they'd worked for. They held hands and walked through.