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Crystal Guardian

Arc 1: Between the Darkness and the Light

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Chapter 4: In the Name of Crystalorb

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Afterwards Nalen and Esara used the transit system to go outside of Crystalorb. They then Activated the flight systems, after that took off and climbed to an altitude of 12000 meters. They then tilted to allow for Parallel Horizontal Flight. The Armour was designed to remove Carbon © from Carbon dioxide (CO2) thus giving the operator a constant supply of pure oxygen. When Nalen and Esara completed their tilt for horizontal flight they began to fly at high speed.

Nalen wanted to know the limitations of the Armour at Supersonic speeds. With the shields at 5% Nalen and Esara increased their speed to 350m/s (Mach 1.0184), just above supersonic. The ease at which the Armour went supersonic surprised even Nalen. Next Nalen and Esara increased their speed to 875m/s (Mach 2.544). They flew at that speed for 2 hours towards the Atlantic Ocean covering 6300 km (kilometres) then stopped in the middle of the South Atlantic Ocean where they could perform the rest of the tests.

Nalen Wanted to know how the Armour performed under Battle conditions. So Nalen and Esara would now fight each other, taking the armour to the limits of its capabilities.

Nalen : " Well woman, we are about to find out what you are truly made off!"

Esara : " So that’s how it's going to be?"

Nalen : " Of course, hold nothing back!" Nalen raised his shields to 90% "Lets see what you've got!"

Esara : " Ok! Just like when we were kids" Esara raised her shields to 90% "You'll lose!"

Nalen : " Back then I was taking it easy on you!"

Esara : " Really?"

Esara activates chest blast at 40%, but just before she blasts.

Nalen : " Chest Nova Blast!"

Nalen produces a very bright, red orb of light from his chest. The light temporarily caused Esara to loose sight of Nalen allowing him to escape her Chest blast. Nalen then quickly goes supersonic while in vertical flight then produces a hand crystal blast which hits Esara on her left arm.

Esara : " What the hell was that?"

Nalen : " It's a special move I created" Nalen gives Esara a smirk, then smiles "Do you like it?"

Esara : " I'm going to enjoy wiping that smirk of your face!" Esara powers both hands for a blast "Let's see how you like this!"

Esara sends two hand blasts directly at Nalen, but Nalen quickly moves out of the way only to be confronted by a fist from Esara. Just as Nalen thought that the attack was over the two hand blasts he had avoided were coming back and aiming at him from behind, Esara had calculated that he would avoid them.

Nalen : " Ooh hell!" just as the blasts were about to hit Nalen “Thunder flash!"

A burst of energy deflects the energy blasts straight into the water.

Esara : " Lightning blast!"

A lightning stream of energy flowed from Esara's right hand hitting Nalen's left shoulder.

Nalen : " Spinning shield" Nalen's Shield began rotating collecting the energy from Esara's attack "Shield burst!" Nalen redirected Esara's attack which then hits Esara on the chest "You want to play? Let’s play!"

Esara : " That was pretty good, you've improved a lot since the last time I fought you!"

Nalen : " You're just used to being more powerful than those you train against, you're not pushing yourself hard enough!"

Esara : " No! You've been training in secret"

Nalen : " Will see how you like my next attack!"

Esara : " Bring it!"

Nalen : " Spinning Shield Tornado Attack!"

Nalen's Shield began rotating, this time even faster than before causing the air around Nalen to spin. As the wind speed rose Esara began to have trouble stabilizing her hover. Realising that at the centre of the twister Nalen was not experiencing flight problems she decided to fly over the wall of wind and into the eye of the twister and make her assault directly at Nalen. When Esara went into the eye of the twister she discovered that Nalen had been using the twister to suck water from the sea, and Nalen had calculated that Esara would make her assault from above.

Nalen : " Hydro Cannon!"

All the water Nalen had been collecting began spraying Esara like a very powerful water jet. As the water hit it was becoming increasingly difficult to maintain her shield. Nalen created the shield, and so he new its weaknesses, the water was cooling the air in the electromagnetic field, but the water was also interfering with the magnetic field causing the shield to fail. Then Nalen stopped his attack

Nalen : " Well? What do you Think?"

Esara : " Impressive!"

Nalen : " I thought you'd like that one"

Esara : " So you've developed a whole host of attacks that no one has ever seen before!"

Nalen : " Yes, while you were Learning the attacks all other Guardian use I have been perfecting attacks unique to the Red Chest Crystal. It's time for you to bring Your A Game Guardian!"

Esara : " Ok! Just remember; you asked for it!"

Then Esara removed the retractable Lance from the side of her right thigh. The Crystal Lance is the primary weapon of a Guardian. Esara increased her energy output powering up the Crystal Lance.

The increase in electrical energy caused the contracted Lance to extend to its full length of 2 meters. The primary concern to Nalen was the two pointed edges of the Lance. Nalen knew that because the Lance is powered by electrical energy it had the potential of penetrating his shield. The Lance could also be used to generate precise electrical energy attacks.

Nalen : " Huh! Shield to maximum!"

Esara : " Now will see how well you stand up to the attack of a Guardian!"

Esara used the Lance to generate electrical energy streams from both Lance edges targeting the feet nozzles through the Vortex opening in the shield. As soon as Nalen felt the electrical energy reaching him through the shield he did something no other Crystalan can do.

Nalen produced electrical energy from all the Crystals on his armour, the electrical energy had a different charge to that of Esara's electrical energy, this cause the two electrical energies to repel each other thus blocking Esara's Attack. Just as quickly Nalen modulated the charge of the electrical energy he was producing to be compatible to that of Esara's energy attack resulting in Nalen's armour absorbing Esara's electrical energy. Seeing this Esara stopped her attack

Esara : " What the hell was that?"

Nalen : " Again, something only a red Chest Crystal can do!"

Esara : " I can't do that?"

Nalen : " Of course you can, you just don't know how!"

Esara : " You are full of surprises!"

Realising that Nalen has a counter for almost any energy attack Esara decided to launch a physical high energy Lance attack. Esara went supersonic reaching mach 2.8; she would physically propel the Lance through Nalen's shield. As the tip of the Lance collided with Nalen's shield there was a gigantic release of light and electrical energy that could be seen 5 kilometres away. Then Nalen saw that his shield was failing; Esara was channelling so much energy into the Lance that it would eventually break through the shield.

Nalen increased his light and electrical energy output from the Armour Crystal to the highest he could master. This massive surge in energy from Nalen supercharged the air that was trapped between the Electromagnetic Fields to create the shield, turning the air into supercharged gaseous plasma that produced so much power it broke the tip of the Lance that had partially penetrated Nalen's shield.

Esara : " By the Source!"

Nalen : " You know you could have seriously injured me with that!"

Esara : " I'm sorry, I lost control a little bit, but I was aiming for your shoulder"

Nalen : " Phew! It's a good thing I..." Esara interjects "Ayah!"

Esara : " Wait! I'm receiving a transmission from Crystalorb. It's the Council of Elders"

A holographic projection emerges from Esara's helmet Communications Crystal. A holographic projection of the Council of Elders appeared before Esara and Nalen.

Gaurdius: " Esara, you must return to Crystalorb at once! There is a situation developing that requires your immediate attention!"

Esara : " At once my Lord!"

Esara and Nalen immediately went supersonic heading in the direction of Crystalorb, with Esara staying in constant contact with the Guardian command centre.

Esara : " Esara Supersonic, speed at mach 2.9, altitude 12000 meters, estimated arrival time 105.253 minutes"

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While Esara was flying in the direction of Crystalorb Kolen the Guardian Commander briefed Esara about the developing situation. A member of the Hand of Destiny (HOD) had made contact with the team monitoring the HOD's activities in a mining village in Namibia. The man's name was Lotjama Ralefa nicknamed Loj. Loj expressed to the Vanglead in charge of the expeditionary team that he wanted to defect. Loj was sure that the HOD would kill him should they find out that he had intensions of betraying them.

In return for his and his family's security Loj would provide a detailed account of all the HOD's activities that he was aware of. Loj would be able to give information about the fighting capabilities and weaponry of the Hand of Destiny.

At the Chambers the Guardian Council and the Council of Elders had gathered to discuss the situation concerning Loj.

Kolen : " Honoured Councils, we must retrieve Loj, the information he could give us could be critical!"

Isis : " But is it worth the risk?"

Cyris : " This could be the thing that sparks direct confrontation between Crystalorb and the Hand of Destiny!"

Kolen : " My lord; confrontation is coming with or without this, but with Loj we would no longer be blind to the abilities of the HOD!"

Gaurdius: " And what about after we retrieve him where would we put him and his son?"

Onala : " We don't even know why he wants to defect"

Kolen : " Why is neither here nor there, a decision is required on this matter, and time is of critical importance!"

The discussions continue.

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When Esara arrived at Crystalorb she immediately went to see the Council of Elders.

Isis : " Esara; those are your people in that town, what do you think is the correct course of action?"

Esara : " The risk is great, especially to my people on the ground, but an opportunity like this may never avail itself again! I would choose to retrieve Loj!"

Gaurdius : " How many HOD units are on the ground?"

Esara : " Six, including Loj!"

Cyris : " So our people are outnumbered!"

Gaurdius : " Esara; how quickly can you get there?"

Esara : " 90 minutes, but my Armour needs some repair and recharging so that’ll be another 2 hours"

Gaurdius: " Esara; instruct your units on the ground to intervene and retrieve Loj at the earliest opportunity!"

Esara : " On your Command!"

Isis : " Kolen; activate your units to collect Loj’s son and bring him here to Crystalorb!"

Cyris : " And Kolen; make sure that all the Crystalorb Defence systems are raised to the maximum level. We must stand ready for an attack!"

Kolen : " On your Command!"

Gaurdius: " We will adjourn for now and meet again in 2 hours"

The emergency meeting is adjourned, but Isis wants to speak to Esara alone.

Isis : " Esara; I know I don’t have to tell you why the situation makes me uneasy!"

Esara : " Yes Lady Isis! Peo is a capable Vanglead he will be fine!"

Isis : " A mother never stops worrying! You know he volunteered to serve under your command. He said he wanted to work with the best!"

Esara : " I'm honoured!"

Isis : " In the meeting you said something about your armour needing repair?"

Esara : " Yes!" Esara shows Isis the Crystal Lance with the broken tip "Incredible isn’t it?"

Isis : " Nalen did that?"

Esara : " Yes, I had always thought that the Crystal Lance was indestructible"

Isis : " Is he truly that powerful?"

Esara : " It's more than just power; it's how he uses his energy!" Esara laughs “I always believed that I was stronger than him, but today I saw a completely different side of my Husband. He has an almost completely different array of fighting styles; he had a counter to nearly all my energy attacks!"

Isis : " By the Source!"

Esara : " Ooh! It gets better! I raised my attacks to 95% of my full power and they still had no effect. He's on a whole different level! Even when we were kids he never fought with such focus and determination. In private he has expressed a fear that I might be killed fighting the HOD, I think the fear of losing me has caused him to snap!"

Isis : " Do you think he is ready to command, take the vows of a Guardian and become a Leader?"

Esara : " No, I think that taking the vows of a Guardian would only limit him. He is driven by the desire to protect me and our children, and that extends to our home Crystalorb. In any case he loves his scientific work and I could not bear to see him unhappy" After a brief pause "Lady Isis don't worry too much I will do my very best to keep your son safe!"

Isis : " Thank you!"

Then Esara took her Armour to the Base of the Pyramid where the Spirit Stone automatically repairs and recharges the Crystal Armours. Esara then went home to rest for 2 hours.

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An hour and 45 minutes later Esara and Nalen were awoken and quickly hurried to the Council Chambers. The time was around 17h00. Every one in the Chamber was watching a holographic video communication from Peo.

Esara : " Commander; what happened?"

Kolen : " There have been some developments"

Esara : " What developments?"

Kolen : " Loj was being chased and attacked by the other HOD members (Hodians), the Council of Elders ordered Peo to intervene. Now all four are under attack"

Nalen : " Esara; look!"

Esara and Nalen also look at the holographic images showing the expeditionary team being attacked by members of the HOD. Peo is in communication with the Council of Elders.

Peo : " My Lord they are using some sort of handheld device to fire plasma balls at us!"

Loj : " It's called a Manacle of Destiny, and it Produces plasma blasts!"

Gaurdius : " Peo we have helicopters en-route; they should be there in 2 minutes!"

In the Horizon Peo sees the two helicopters making their way towards him. Then one of the HOD enforcers fires from his Manacle a plasma balls that hits one of the helicopters causing it to crush, the other helicopter turns and tries to run away. The helicopters were hired and paid 10 times their normal fee to collect Loj, Peo and Peo's team.

Peo : " Helicopters have been lost Commander, we will head for that hill" pointing at a nearby hill "the rocks should give us cover"

Kolen : " How long can you hold out?"

Peo : " With the kind of firepower these guys are throwing out perhaps 3 to 4 hours if we conserve Armour energy"

Esara : " Hold on Peo, I should arrive in 90 minutes!"

Esara goes to the bottom of the pyramid to put on her armour. Peo and his team make their way up the hill under heavy fire. Half way up the hill one of the enforcers sneaks up on Noko one of Peo's team members and hits Noko with a plasma blast causing Noko to collapse. Peo responds by hitting the enforcer with a full power hand blast causing the enforcer to fall down the hill.

Peo : " Commander, Noko has been knocked unconscious!"

Kolen relays the battle status to Esara through the Spirit Stone to her Helmet Crystal.

Kolen : " Esara; Noko has been hit, he's unconscious, where are you?"

Esara : " I am supersonic, Mach 2.9, I'll be there in 41 minutes!”

Nalen : " This thing will be over in 20 minutes! Commander Kolen; let me talk to Esara!"

Kolen : " Go ahead!"

Nalen : " Esara; raise your shield to 95% and climb to an altitude of 24000 meters then increase your thrust to 95%"

Esara knowing that Nalen understands the new armour more than her promptly follows Nalen's instructions and thus increasing her speed to mach 10.8. Then linking to Peo she reassures him that help is on the way.

Esara : " Peo, I am now Hypersonic, I’ll be there in 10 minutes"

Kolen : " Nalen; won't this speed cost her in Armour energy?"

Nalen : " The new Armour has much higher reserves; the total cost will be 10% of total reserves, leaving her enough energy to crush those bastards!"

Kolen : " By the Source!"

Nalen : " Esara; Remember, Fast and Hard!"

Esara : " Got it!"

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When Esara was less than a minute from target she charged the Crystal Lance to maximum then used the Crystal Armour's automatic targeting systems to acquire the 5 enforcers pursuing Peo's team. Then when Esara was a few hundred meters while still flying at very high speed she threw the Lance at one of the enforcers impaling him on the chest, then she activates her hand blasts targeting another two enforcers with maximum hand blasts killing them instantly.

In under a minute Esara had killed three enforcers. Back at Crystalorb word had spread that a Guardian was about to engage the Hand of Destiny (HOD), so a crowd had gathered and was watching the battle on the holographic projectors along the sides of the pyramid. When Esara launched her attack and killed three enforcers the crowd erupted in a cheer. Then Esara turned her attention to the two remaining enforcers.

First Esara used electrical energy to recall the Crystal Lance back to her right hand. Just as the Crystal Lance touched her right hand she was hit by a massive plasma ball throwing her to the ground, and as she stood up she heard a voice.

Kodu : " You had an easy time defeating my enforcers, but I'm not just an enforcer, I am Overlord Kodu Ralefa!"

Esara : " I can't say it's a pleasure to meet you!"

Kodu : " And you are?"

Esara : " My name is for my Friends, but you can call me Guardian!"

Kodu : " What an unexpected pleasure!" almost smiling "This performing now is the pinnacle of Crystalan power? I'm going to enjoy killing you!"

Esara : " Look at that, one of your friends is running away!"

This as the remaining enforcer ran for his life. Then Kodu raised his Manacled hand preparing for another plasma blast directed at Esara. But Esara had used Kodu's tough talk as an opportunity to charge the Crystal Lance to maximum power.

Kodu : " Inferno Plasma Blast!"

An even larger plasma ball emerged from the Manacle moving towards Esara. Esara threw the Crystal Lance through the Plasma ball piercing Kodu in the head, and then Esara activated a chest blast at maximum power to stop the plasma ball that was still approaching her. Once again the crowd at Crystalorb erupted in celebration, Esara had given them back the confidence that they could stand up to the power of the Hand of Destiny.

In the Council Chambers the other Guardians were also celebrating. The Council of Elders were relieved that their first encounter with the Hand of Destiny was successful.

Esara : " Commander Kolen; one of the enforcers is escaping should I pursue?"

Kolen : " Negative, secure our people, a helicopter is en route!"

Isis : " Great work Esara!"

Cyris : " That was an amazing display Esara! Crystalorb is Honoured by your courage!"

Esara : " Thank you my Lord!"

Nalen : " Well done!"

Gaurdius: " Incredible!"

Moments later a helicopter Arrived and took the Group to a nearby airfield where a private plane had been waiting to take them to Crystalorb. Esara arrived back in Crystalorb to a hero's welcome; nearly all the Crystalans had come to witness Esara’s triumphant return. Until that day Crystalans had never witnessed the true power of a Red Guardian. Over night Esara had become a Legend.

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After the Victory celebrations the Council of Elders instructed Esara to go Home and rest. Meanwhile Kolen was eager to speak to Loj, and Loj was also eager to speak to the Council of Elders. There was time critical information Loj wanted to relay to the Council of Elders. But as Loj was about to enter the pyramid to go to the Council Chambers a High energy electrical field appeared at the Pyramid entrance blocking Loj from entering the pyramid.

The Spirit Stone did not recognize his Life-Force Energy, and thus would not allow him to enter the pyramid. Therefore the Council of Elders and the Guardian Council moved their meeting with Loj to another building.

Gaurdius: " In the name of Crystalorb I hereby declare this meeting constituted"

Isis : " Loj; we welcome you and your son to Crystalorb"

Loj : " I thank your kindness and hospitality"

Cyris : " We have some questions as to the reasons for your defection."

Onala : " As you can understand there are some amongst us who are unconvinced by your conversion"

Loj : " I understand, you have to be cautious in these perilous times"

Gaurdius : " What happened that made you want to leave the Hand of Destiny?"

Loj : " To put it simply, my life and the life of my son were threatened. It began after your meeting with the Viceroy. The Hand of Destiny has a hierarchical structure that is mostly determined by wealth and physical power. The way this works is; as a whole the Hand of Destiny is the worlds largest supplier of animal food products, all other business serve to mask this one activity. I'm certain you are aware that we draw our energy from the Life-Force of non-Sapient animals. It's this Life-Force energy that powers the Manacle of Destiny (MOD)"

Isis : " Of course, the animals they own supply them with an unlimited supply of energy"

Loj : " Exactly, that’s where the wealth aspect of things comes in. The more animals you own the more energy you can extract from them. To that end we developed the Manacle of Destiny (MOD), it is a tool used to connect to a system that draws energy from these animals. After absorbing the Life-Force energy it stores the energy and feeds the energy to us directly. This meant that we no longer needed to manually touch every animal to absorb its energy"

Gaurdius: " And this allows you to gain incredible amounts of energy. But what material is the Manacle made from?"

Loj : " The Manacle of Destiny is not an object as such, but a living organism. My Manacle for example is a part of me; the outside is forged from an Alloy that contains some of the hardest minerals in the world. But inside it contains a network of veins that contain my Blood. That's how the Manacle is able to link to us; it's also how it's able to collect Life-Force energy"

Gaurdius: " What happens to the Manacle when you die?"

Loj : " While the Manacle is attached to me it is also a separate entity it can go on without me. Someone with a similar DNA to mine like a sibling or my child can use my Manacle. The older the Manacle the more powerful it becomes. Its power is cumulative! Before someone new can use the Manacle they would have to introduce their blood into the Manacle, and if the DNA is compatible the Manacle will accept. The Manacle increases its core energy capacity with every recharge, thus the older the Manacle the more energy it can store, and with that the more the energy it can produce"

Isis : " Who created the Manacle?"

Loj : " We don't know exactly, some say it was Ralefa Himself! Others believe it was one of his sons! In any case the Manacle worn by the Viceroy is said to be the complete blood line, including the blood of Ralefa himself"

Cyris : " By the Source!"

Loj : " What Source? What is the Source?"

Isis : " The Source is the Spirit Stone, the Heart of Crystalorb!"

Gaurdius: " So this Manacle worn by the Viceroy is like our Spirit Stone; it holds a piece of the original ancestor!"

Loj : " Are you saying that the Spirit Stone is formed from the original crystal that was on Lesedi's chest?"

Isis : " Not just Lesedi's Chest Crystals, but all the Chest Crystals of every Crystalan that has died"

Gaurdius : " More than that! It also holds a portion of their spirits!"

Onala : " You said something about hierarchy?"

Loj : " Yes, we operate on a hierarchical system. It’s a system that is determined by wealth power and birth. The wealthiest Hodians have the most Manacle power because they own more animals from which they harvest the Manacle energy. All Hodians are wealthy, but there are different levels of wealth. Someone who has 10000 cattle is not the same as someone who has 100000 cattle. At the Top there's the Viceroy, then there's the Viceroy's Council members also referred to as the Grandlord, then there's the Overlords, then there's the Under-Lords, and lastly there's the Enforcers."

Cyris : " Where did you rank?"

Loj : " I was an Under-Lord"

Gaurdius : " What caused the Trouble with you?"

Loj : " My wife was recently promoted to Overlord. This was a hotly contested position, but she was an amazing businesswoman. Her business acumen ensured that she had the necessary wealth to increase hers and my power. Her competitors believed that they had a birthright to her new position, so that was the end of that!"

Isis : " What do you mean?"

Loj : " They murdered her! They poisoned her, and they would have killed me and our son had we not escaped."

Onala : " I didn’t know you could be poisoned?"

Loj : " Ayah! But this was no natural poison, it was a radioactive isotopes based poison designed to kill even one of us. The Viceroy did not mined the fact that they murdered my wife because he did not like her politics, and besides the murderers were his friends and family."

Cyris : " What do you mean by politics?"

Loj : " She was resistant to the Viceroy's world domination agenda. She was more like you in the approach to the world, she believed that we should protect ourselves, but that should be the extent of our influence. She deplored the Idea of being a master people, and there are others who believe as she did. Too Bad!" shaking his head "Now they will all be slaughtered!"

Gaurdius: " Where do you stand on the world view? And what do you mean slaughtered?"

Loj : " Personally I don't care too much about the world, I say live and let live; besides I was never a very good warrior. When the rest of the HOD learn that a single female Crystalan killed 3 enforcers and an Overlord in 5 minutes they will panic and start purging all those amongst them who do not share their goals. Their suspicious nature will lead them to believe that they were somehow betrayed, it would be the only explanation for the defeat of the Viceroy's Brother!"

Cyris : " Did you say Viceroy's Brother?"

Loj : " Oh yes!" after a brief pause "Overlord Kodu was the Viceroy's Brother!"

Isis : " By the Source!" after a brief pause "We've put these people in danger!"

Cyris : " Can you compile a list of all those that might be in danger."

Loj : " Yes, to the best of my abilities."

Gaurdius: " Kolen activate your Units, as soon as Armour upgrades are complete take Loj's list and find these people, save as many as you can!"

Kolen : " On your Command!"

Isis : " And Kolen; try and avoid direct confrontations with the HOD, there has been enough death for one day"

Loj : " My wife was right about you Crystalans; you would risk your own lives to protect even those who were aligned to your enemies."

Isis : " Crystalorb must not be a source of Hatred, but a beacon of hope! We must bring our light into the world, not rule the world!"

Loj : " In that case I will help in any way possible!"

Gaurdius: " Good, the First thing we will need from you is your Manacle. The energy that it uses is what we call Negative Psionic Energy, the energy of destruction. Crystalans are also capable of absorbing Life-Force energy from animals, but this causes extreme pain to us, we have since learned that the pain we feel is the pain the animal experiences, so for that reason we don't practice that energy absorption method. We can also absorb Plant life energy, but we only do that in case of emergencies. Give us your Manacle and our research teams will study it, and then produce a new Manacle that uses positive energy, energy that will come from the Spirit Stone!"

Isis : " What was your wife's name?"

Loj : " Ilesia"

Isis : " We will call the new Manacle the Light of Ilesia, in recognition of her enlightened world views."

Loj : " This will be a great honour for my Wife"

Gaurdius: " There are Crystalans who are not born with Chest Crystals; the new manacle will also help them be part of the fight for peace!"

- - -

In the next few days the Crystal Armoured Crystalans rescued 90 people with the help of Loj they were able to signal these people and arrange for a pickup with minimal confrontations with the HOD. Sadly not all could be saved 23 of the people on Loj's list were killed by the HOD. All the people on Loj's list were somehow related to Loj; they were his relatives, his late wife's relatives or just good friends.

When the Council of Elders realised that there would not be enough housing in the Cone shaped residential Building to accommodate all the new families, the Council of Elders Ordered the creation of three more Cone shaped residential Buildings to accommodate these and future Crystalorb residents

The process of creating these new buildings was an incredible sight. The buildings were grown like a crystal plant. Once the Spirit Stone formed the base Crystals a combination of light and electrical energy along with the requested minerals were fed to the base crystals making them grow. The Spirit Stone controlled the direction of the growth by changing and varying the strength and direction of the light and electrical energy.

This was something that all Crystalans enjoyed witnessing. In a matter of days the construction was complete. Since the Spirit Stone does not create mechanically moving parts like gears and hinges all moving parts were electromagnetic just like in the Crystal Armour and the Crystal Lance. All Crystalan technology was electromagnetic systems; consequently electricity was a critical component to all Crystalorb.

It's for this reason that the Black crystal at the top of the hill that was now referred to as Mount Crystalorb began to spread as the energy requirements of the Crystalans increased. Also Nuclear Reactors were constructed to support Energy Needs.

- - -

Meanwhile Nalen was hard at work understanding the mechanism of the Manacle of Destiny (MOD). This was a difficult and tedious process since the energy matrix for the Manacle of Destiny (MOD) was of a different energy type than that Nalen was used to working with.

Nalen's daughter Casara had just turned 7 years old and could thus begin training, while 5 year old Naole was still troubled by his massive energy requirements. It was clear from the beginning that Casara took after her mother Esara, Casara took to fighting techniques like it was second nature to her, she was quite obviously a natural warrior.

- - -

There was a lull in confrontations with the Hand of Destiny (HOD); the Council of Elders was beginning to believe that all out conflict may be avoided. But it was not meant to be, because even at that very hour the HOD was hard at work planning their next move.

One of the people rescued from the HOD told of something disturbing being carried out by the HOD, she was called to speak before the Council of Elders; her name was Tumi, short for Tumelo.

Gaurdius: " We hear that you might be in possession of information that could give us a clue to what the Hand of Destiny is planning."

Tumi : " I am happy to help in any way possible!"

Isis : " And we're glad to have your assistance."

Tumi : " I have no direct knowledge of this, but my father was a researcher for the HOD's genetic manipulation division called sector 9. Before they murdered him he told me that the Viceroy had gone mad after the death of his brother, authorizing advanced research into the speeding of a genetic mutagen designed to turn normal humans into a Hodian hybrid capable of using the Manacle of Destiny. They are planning to build an army of these warriors!"

Cyris : " By the Source!"

Gaurdius: " Why didn’t you tell us sooner?"

Tumi : " I don't have any proof, so I didn't think anyone would believe me!"

Onala : " This explains the lull in the fighting; they are not reconsidering their stance they are preparing for war!"

Tumi : " It gets worse!"

Isis : " How?"

Tumi : " They have satellites that they use to search for underground mineral reserves, and they have probably used it to scan the Crystal Valley Farm."

Cyris : " That would mean they know about Crystalorb."

Tumi : " The bigger question is; who are they going to tell about Crystalorb?"

Gaurdius: " In any case they would be fools to attack Crystalorb directly, no matter their numbers."

Tumi : " They may not need to, if they can get someone else to do their dirty work for them, like for instance the South African government. After what your Guardian did to the Overlord Kodu they will want to draw you into the open where you would be a target for not just them!" after a brief pause "Even with your power you could not possibly survive! As for me after seeing you risk your lives to save us, I have decided that I will share your fate whatever it may be!"

Isis : " Thank you Tumi!"

Tumi leaves the meeting, leaving the Council of Elders to discuss what their next step should be in the face of this new information.

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