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Crystal Guardian

Arc 2: Restoration of Hope

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Chapter 17: The Gathering

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On 10-11-2006 the Intrepid landed at landing platform 6 in the Crystal Valley autonomous region of the Republic of South Africa. The Intrepid brought with it 3000 refugees and 350 Hybrid heroes. The Hybrid heroes were there by special request of the Council of Elders, and the Hybrids knew that the Crystalorb Leadership wanted to make a proposal to them directly.

The Hybrids had never seen Crystalorb and upon entering the underground homeland of the Crystalans it became clear to them that the Crystalans were more powerful than any of them had imagined. Before the meeting began the Hybrids were taken on a tour of Crystalorb, and they were also shown a brief history of Crystalorb, its culture, its laws and its governance. When the visitors had some understanding of Crystalorb the meeting began.

As is customary the oldest member of the Council of Elders would speak for the Council and all the Crystalorb Leadership, and this was Gaurdius.

Gaurdius : " In the name of all Crystalans I welcome you to Crystalorb"

Anun lights a ceremonial torch which signifies the flame that sparked the light of hope. The torch is only lit when Crystalorb is in discussion with external forces to negotiate agreements that affect the well being of Crystalorb. The flame is a symbol that says that as long as there is light the darkness can always be defeated, and it forms part of the meaning of the Crystalorb warrior Oath.

Gaurdius : " Ladies and gentleman; The Light of Hope! A hundred years ago Our ancestors were exactly where you are; Fate had entrusted Our people with a great power, but our power was limited, consequently we were forced to retreat to this place. Even though we had incredible abilities we could still be injured and killed by those who hated us; first because of our skin colour and racial group, and second because our physiology was different to their own. So we continued to hide in this area until one man gave us a measure of security, and that came in the form of Crystal Armour. When Olen created the Crystal Armour he could not have foreseen the gravity of the power he had unlocked. This proves the power of one individual in making a difference, the ability of one spirit to change the future! The Crystal Armour gave us the ability to defend ourselves against any foe, and we finally had the option to end decades of hiding, but it wasn't meant to be. We quickly realized that the racist forces above would try to destroy us, and the resulting war with them would result in massive deaths of Africans. We resolved not to use our power in any way that might result in massive fatal casualties of innocent lives. 15 years ago things changed enough for us to make our re-entry, we would return to the world and share our light with world, but other forces had already entrenched themselves. After our first meeting with our cousins the HOD we found ourselves once again facing the prospect of ultimate destruction at the hands of our blood relatives. The HOD made it clear that unless we submit to their authority we would be destroyed. Once again one man made all the difference in the world, but this time it was Nalen Olen; grandson of the creator of the Crystal Armour. Nalen and his wife Esara are a double act! Nalen builds and advances the weapons technology, while Esara uses the weapons. In Nalen and Esara Crystalorb found its greatest champions, and because of the progress they were making the HOD found themselves on the defensive. The HOD were losing every battle, and every military confrontation with us was depleting their forces, an so they found a way to rapidly replenish their forces."

The visitors whispered to each other the words "Hybrid Phenomenon.

Gaurdius : " Exactly! The Hybrid Phenomenon is something that the HOD started in an attempt to out manoeuvre Crystalorb, and its working. Today the HOD outnumbers us 100 to 1, and in a few years it will increase to 1000 to 1. With such numbers they could plunge the world into permanent chaos and disaster. Realising this we instructed Nalen and Ocyris to build the Intrepid, and we created a Hybrid homeland in the name Crystal Valley City. The hope is that we can stop the Hybrid being used as cannon fodder in some future war the HOD may start in a mad attempt to take over the world. I have to stress that Crystalorb does not need Hybrids for its security! We have the technology and the power to guarantee the security of Crystalorb! In fact, by building the Crystal Valley City we have made Crystalorb more vulnerable to HOD attacks. We are keenly aware of the potential for HOD infiltration, but it is a risk we feel we have to take. Which brings us to the reason why we have invited all of you here? Crystalorb does not want to police Hybrids; we would prefer that the Hybrids police themselves. We don’t need you to fight our wars, and we should not be involved in Hybrid conflicts. You are here because all of you have in some way chosen to protect the world. You are here because we believe that you can help to heal the world. Crystal Valley City needs a police force, and the Crystal Valley City Council believes that all of you would be perfect for their police force. Please understand that if you decide to join the police force you would also be required to assist your home towns with the arrest of renegade and destructive Hybrids. Crystalorb has for its part agreed to build and manage a detention facility capable of imprisoning even the most powerful Hybrids. If you decide to join you will also be required to help in the relocation of Hybrids in danger to Crystal Valley City. For your own safety and that of your families we don’t want you confronting the HOD. The HOD are our problem, so let us deal with them. We have agreed to provide the Crystal Valley City police department with advanced Crystalan technology to help them carry out their duties. Should you choose to join the larger fight for the grater good you will be taken to our training facilities where 2000 volunteers from Crystal Valley City are currently being trained by our Mobile Assets Defence Division under the Command of Loj who is the Mobile Assets Defence Guardian. In the end what I'm asking you to do is; Step into the larger world and be part of the fight for the greater good!"

After the address 297 of the Hybrids at the meeting decided to join the Crystal Valley City police department. Thata Molema was pleased with the result because he knew that the experience the 297 Hybrids brought to the Police service would be critical in a confrontation with rogue elements, and since the 297 Hybrids were amongst the most powerful they could even stand up to the HOD should the need ever arise.

The new arrivals were then taken to the training facility where they would be equipped with a simplified version of the Manacle of Ilesia and trained in the proper application of the Manacle's power.

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Successive upgrades to the Manacle of Ilesia had made it an extremely powerful weapon system, and as the Crystalan operator reached 45 years of age the use of 2 Manacles of Ilesia would now allow transformations similar to that of a Grandlord.

A surgical implant could allow for a more stable Metallic Crystalline transformation of the Skin that the Mobile Assets Defence Division named the Guardian Form. The Hybrids found that the Manacle of Ilesia allowed them to sustain their Metallic Crystalline transformation a hundred times longer than they would otherwise be able to, and the Manacle of Ilesia had other capabilities that they were completely without; like Flight, energy field shields and the ability to generate ElectroLaser Lightning Bolts.

As the training got under way the Crystalorb ship Intrepid was docked at its platform for re-supply. The Crystalorb Leadership decided to let the Intrepid stay docked for the next month in order to allow for a full systems analysis, and associated performance review. The crew of the Intrepid was happy to have this time to reconnect with their friends and family after a long deployment.

Over the previous two years the Intrepid had become the pinnacle of Crystalorb technology and the pride of the Crystalorb security forces, and even though the Crystalorb Leadership had decided not to implement their plan for the Intrepid to be outside the Crystalorb Command structure, but instead placed it under the direct command of the Council of Elders the ship had fulfilled its objectives.

The Crystalorb Leadership felt that because of the Crystal Valley City the peace keeping role of the Intrepid was no longer necessary, and it was important that the Intrepid be available to the Crystalorb Command Centre should the need arise. Even Nalen understood this view, and since the ship was designed to reproduce it was important that the Crystalorb Command structure maintain adequate control over the vessel.

The Intrepid had become a mobile base for Crystalorb Forces, and the role of the ship became of increasing importance as time progressed. Over the two and a half years that the Intrepid was deployed Esara had been training her two children along with anyone else who wanted to learn the advanced fighting techniques. The advanced fighting techniques were developed by Esara during her time as Expeditionary Guardian.

The advanced fighting techniques were extended by Nalen who emphasized that training should be done without Crystal Armour. Esara taught Crystal Armour control while Nalen taught energy manipulation. Nalen's students did not use Crystal Armour when training, and the primary focus of the training was not fighting, but the development of the mental disciplines required for advanced energy manipulation.

Esara focused more on harnessing the energy of the Crystal Armour to improve one's use of the Crystal Armour, and her methods centred around improving one's control of all the capabilities of the Crystal Armour. Many of the Crew of the Intrepid preferred to study Esara's Crystal Armour techniques, but for many of those not born with Chest Crystals Nalen's methods held greater appeal.

Although Nalen's methods were developed for those with Chest Crystals many without Chest Crystals found them beneficial because the methods are focused on the individual mastering their own body without the aid of external devices. For those without Chest Crystals Nalen's methods brought the promise of them being able to master the process of Transformation to a Metallic Crystalline Skin.

Nalen believed that even those born with Chest Crystals should be able to transform to a Metallic Crystalline Skin without external aids. Casara and Naole attended both Nalen and Esara's classes, but since Casara already received her Crystal Armour she was more focused on Esara's methods while Naole gravitated more towards Nalen's methods. Perhaps it was because Nalen was his father, but Naole took to heart Nalen's Ideology and tried his best to apply it.

Both Casara and Naole were due to complete their Bachelor of Science degrees from the University of South African in 5 months, and no one was more proud of them than their father Nalen. Casara majored in Physics and Chemistry, and Naole majored in Applied Mathematics and Computer Science just like his father Nalen. Casara and Naole were some of the youngest to ever complete the degree, but the Crystalorb Leadership was insistent that the university keep their age and progress a secret.

Casara planned to take her vows of honour and follow in the footsteps of her mother by joining the Expeditionary Division, but Naole had no intension of becoming a warrior, and his plans centred around becoming a member of the Crystalorb Research Division. Because of the long deployments of the Intrepid Casara and Naole spent every day together and had become constant companions, more than brother and sister, but best friends.

When the Intrepid was docked Casara spent every waking minute with her other best friend Enala, and it was during her stay at Enala's home that she grew closer to Enala's older brother Kato. Enala was 2 years younger than Kato, and he was 4 years younger than Naledi. Kato was about to complete his Vanguard training under Aman the Guardian of sector 2, and would formally be assigned to sector 2, but Casara encouraged him to seek to be assigned to the Intrepid so they could be close to each other.

When a Vanguard is trained, the sector selection is determined by the month in which the individual was born, with January meaning sector 1. However once training was complete an individual could choose where they wished to be placed, although most chose to remain with the sector where they trained. Thus Kato had every intention to stay with sector 2 until Casara suggested that he should consider serving on the Intrepid.

As the Intrepid was docked for the month Enala began to notice that the bond between Casara and Kato was more than friendship, but a deeper and more meaningful attachment. Enala began to feel a little left out as Kato and Casara grew closer and closer, so she turned to her other life long friend; Naole. Even though Naole was 19 months younger than Enala they had a history and Naole had the kind of intellect that could rival that of any adult.

Naole was no ordinary 15 year old, and testament to his depth was the work he was doing assisting Nalen's scientific research during their time on the Intrepid. Enala was surprised at how much Naole had grown emotionally and spiritually. To Enala's surprise Naole was fast growing into a man of great depth, strength and character. The gap between Enala and Casara was growing, and it all had to do with their changing roles in Crystalan society.

Casara was fast becoming one of Crystalorb's warrior elite, over the 2 years Casara had developed into a highly trained Crystal Armoured warrior, but Enala was still in training Armour and was just preparing to take University Entrance Examinations. The two friends had less and less in common with each other, and even though they made efforts to stay connected it was clear that their friendship was changing, but both of them knew that this was just a transition and things would return to normal once they were once again in the same league.

Naole more than anyone could understand Enala's dilemma, he had spent most of his life rejected by others his age because he was ill, and later because he was more interested in seeking knowledge rather than what others his age were into. Consequently Naole was always available to hear Enala's expressions of the feeling of being left behind, and in return Enala lend her ear to Naole's fears, hopes and dreams.

The Intrepid had been in port for 32 days and all the systems analysis work had been completed and the time for the Intrepid's next 3 month deployment had arrived. But before the Intrepid could depart there were other ceremonies that the Captain of the Intrepid could not miss. Casara turned 18 years old and was now ready to take her vows of honour, and thus formally be accepted as a Crystalan adult.

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The Vows of Honour were conducted during a ceremony where Crystalan youths formally become Crystalan adults. The Vows of Honour compelled adults to take responsibility for their actions, to live with honour and be truthful to their convictions. After taking the Vows of Honour an individual receives the right to take part in the governing of Crystalorb, in the form of voting, and the individual accepts the responsibility to defend and protect Crystalorb.

Every Crystalan adult received an equal share of 50% of the dividends received by the Crystalorb Trust. Since 35% of the after tax profits of Crystal Valley Industries went to the Crystalorb Trust all the Crystalan adults share 17.5% of the after tax profits of Crystal Valley Industries. This meant that Crystalans had savings available for their personal use, and because of the size of the profits of Crystal Valley Industries this could be large amounts of money. In 2008 the after tax profits of Crystal Valley Industries was R29.634 billion, and that gave R10.374 billion to the Crystalorb Trust, which then allocated R891,466 to each of the 11637 Crystalan adults.

And because most Crystalan adults did not use their portion of the dividends many chose to invest it with Crystal Valley Investment Bank; an investment bank that was owned by Crystal Valley Industries. The Council of Elders wanted Crystalans to have separate wealth as a security for the unlikely event that Crystalorb is destroyed and the Crystalans have to leave and live amongst the other people of the world.

In the home of Esara and Nalen preparations were underway for Casara's ceremony, and as the guests began to arrive Casara was delighted to see that her oldest friend Enala had come early to help her prepare. Because of the reputation of Esara and Nalen there was an unusual presence of many of the Crystalorb Leadership at the ceremony; these types of ceremonies were usually family centred, but on this occasion three Elders and 8 Guardians were at the ceremony.

Lord Lumen was requested by Esara to lead the ceremony.

Lumen : " Thank you for coming everyone!" he takes a long pause "We are gathered here to initiate a very special young lady into adulthood. She is the daughter of two of Crystalorb's most revered individuals. She comes from a line of extraordinary Crystalans, and at age 18 she is already one of the most accomplished people in Crystalorb. For the past 18 years she has harnessed the strength of her mother, she has absorbed the knowledge of her father, combined them and made them her own. Crystalorb is blessed to have Casara as one of its own. Step forward and answer Casara!"

Lord Lumen read from Section 1 of the Crystalorb Charter and then asked;

Lumen : " Do you accept the Laws contained in the Crystalorb Charter?"

Casara : " I accept!"

Lumen : " Will you abide by these Laws?"

Casara : " I will!"

Lumen : " Will you support these Laws?"

Casara : " I will!"

Lumen : " Do you understand the rules of honour?"

Casara : " I understand!"

Lumen : " Do you Vow to Live with Honour?"

Casara : " I Vow to Live my life with Honour"

Lumen : " Will you act with Honour?"

Casara : " I Vow to act with Honour!"

Lumen : " Do you understand the consequence of Honour?"

Casara : " Yes I understand"

Lumen : " Do you accept the consequence of Honour?"

Casara : " I accept the consequence of Honour!"

Lumen : " Having learnt, understood and accepted the rules of Honour! I Lumen an official of Crystalorb formally declare Casara Olen to be a Crystalan adult!"

Everyone erupted in excitement.

Lumen : " Stand with pride Casara; woman of Crystalorb!"

As the formal ceremony concluded the party started, Music was turned on as the young people separated from the older folks and began to enjoy themselves. As the party continued couples could be seen pairing off and seeking more intimate conversations with each other. When the people paired Enala and Naole felt deserted by their friends so they decided to go for a walk in the hydroponics centre.

It was during that walk that Naole and Enala began to explore other avenues of their friendship. For months they had found solace and comfort in their expanding friendship but had never explored the possibility of the friendship developing into more than a simple meeting of kindred spirits. So as they continued their walk through the hydroponics centre; which is the heart of Crystalorb's food production Naole felt a sense of urgency.

Naole was looking for the correct moment to bring up the subject of his growing affection for Enala, but he was fearful that his feelings may be unrequited.

Naole : " It's been quite a month!"

Enala : " It has!"

Naole : " Tomorrow I leave for another three to four months! And I ...!"

Enala : " Yes?" she turns and looks him in the eyes "What is it?"

Naole : " Forgive me if I speak out of term, but I have to say something, even though I may wish it unsaid a moment later."

Enala : " Go on! I will hear whatever you wish to say to me"

Naole : " The Idea of leaving Crystalorb unsettles me, and I find myself wavering in my resolve"

Enala : " Why?"

Naole : " For the past three days I've been wondering why I'm so reluctant to leave Crystalorb when my entire family is leaving with the Intrepid."

Enala : " Yes?"

Naole : " Then I realised that its not that I don't want to leave Crystalorb" his eyes on the ground "but that I don't want to leave someone in Crystalorb"

Enala : " Mm-huh!"

Naole and Enala look at each other in the eyes.

Naole : " I don't want to leave you Enala!"

Enala : " You don't?"

Naole : " You disarm me Enala; You cut through all my defences. And I find myself helpless before you!"

Enala : " I feel attached to you too."

Naole : " I've treasured every moment we've spend together" holding both her hands "I find myself wanting to spend more time with you."

Enala : " I would also like to spend more time with you too"

Naole : " I know it seems crazy, but I think, I know, that I've Fallen in love with you!"

Enala : " You have?"

Naole : " How could I help falling for someone as incredible as you. How could any man escape such Gravitas! A man would sooner cut of his legs off than run from such splendid continence! I love you Enala! I stand before you and offer you the keys to my heart."

Enala leans in and kisses Naole. Their intimate entanglement continues for around two minutes until their lips separate.

Enala : " I love you Naole!" Enala's mind quickly returns to reality "How do we do this?"

Naole : " I don't know, but I know we have to try"

Enala : " But you're leaving tomorrow!"

Naole : " I haven't had time to think about how we get it together because I've been preoccupied with if it would happen"

Enala : " Perhaps you could find a way to fly back with the rotational Expeditionary teams"

Naole : " The training Armour isn't fast enough"

Enala : " Casara received her Crystal Armour when she was 14, and you'll be 16 in a month, maybe the Council of Elders would be willing to grant you Crystal Armour."

Naole : " I don’t know, the situation with Casara was the result of emergency conditions"

Enala : " You've had the power to control Crystal Armour since you were 8 years old and they know it. There is no reason to deny you this opportunity!"

Naole : " But there has to be a reason for them to...!"

Enala : " Let’s go to your mother; she could talk to my father"

Naole : " But what do we tell her?"

Enala : " Just tell her that you would like the same opportunity that Casara had"

Naole : " I can’t lie to my parents"

Enala : " Of course you can! Kids do it all the time"

Naole : " Not to my Parents! As their Chest Crystals grows older they have developed the ability to hear Broadcast messages from other Chest Crystals. They can hear your thoughts."

Enala : " Then you will just have to tell her the truth"

Naole : " Ok! But let me go alone. She may think you’re influencing me if you're there, and she would be right"

Enala : " Ok! I'll go home and wait for you there"

The two embrace for a moment, and then Naole rushes to speak with his mother.

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Naole finds his mother engaged in conversation with Lord Cyris and Lady Isis.

Naole : " Mother?"

Esara : " Yes?"

Naole : " I've come to a decision"

Esara : " What about?"

Naole : " Now that Casara will now officially join the Expeditionary Division and will no longer serve as emergency field Crystal Armour recharge personnel, I want the position."

Esara : " That was just a title the Guardian Council created to legitimize an extraordinary situation"

Naole : " Nevertheless I want to be afforded the same privilege! I've managed and controlled the power necessary to control Vanguard Armour since I was 7 years old, my academic work has been exemplary, I assist Father with his research and I've mastered the mental disciplines of Father's methods. I'm ready."

Esara : " I sense that you have other reasons for wanting Crystal Armour"

Isis : " Yet by Giving Casara Crystal Armour at age 14 we set a president, we have no legitimate reason to refuse Naole his right to Crystal Armour"

Naole : " I know you’re apprehensive mother; Afraid that I will get Hurt! But deep down in your heart you know that it would take an extraordinary power to harm someone with my abilities."

Esara : " It is precisely those abilities that concern me"

Cyris : " What abilities?"

Esara : " Physically! Naole is more than six times stronger than anyone his age. His muscles are ten times denser than that of any Crystalan. His Chest Crystal is twice the size of that of anyone else, and the Blue Chest Crystal generates more than six times the amount of electrical energy of the Clear Chest Crystal"

Cyris : " How come we don't know anything about this?"

Esara : " I don’t know if Crystalorb is ready to have a 15 year old in Guardian Armour?"

Naole : " I'll be 16 in a month"

Cyris : " A 15 year old in Guardian Armour?"

Esara : " Because that’s what we are going to get if we try and upgrade his training Armour. The question then becomes is Crystalorb ready for such power to be in the hands of a boy."

Isis : " But still; Still! I say we accede to his request! Naole has proven himself to have an insurmountable will, and If giving him Crystal Armour today means that he will be that much more prepared to face our enemies when he comes of age; then I'm all for it!"

Naole : " Mother; I know your in contact with father, so what does he think?"

Cyris : " Clearly the boy was born to wield the power of a Crystal Guardian! Don't stand in his way!"

Esara : " He is my son! I don't want the Crystalorb Leadership sending him to fight Grandlords!"

Cyris : " None of us want our children fighting the HOD, but it's inevitable!"

Isis : " So we train and prepare them the best we can for the day when they have no other choice but to fight"

Cyris : " In the meantime we work to make sure that day never comes!"

Esara : " Nalen agrees with all of you! So I will set aside my fears and trust my husband. Nalen says that he will meet us at the Spirit Stone"

Isis : " Then let’s go and usher in a new generation of Guardians"

Cyris : " I can't wait to see the extent of the capabilities of the Blue Crystal"

Naole : " Thank you mother"

Esara : " Remember that Crystal Armour comes with great responsibility Naole"

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The three Elders, Nalen, Esara, Inala, Casara, Kato, Enala and Naole gathered at the Spirit Stone Chamber for Naole's upgrade from training Armour to Crystal Armour. To access the power of the Spirit Stone it was necessary for at least three people who had been in prolonged contact with the Spirit Stone to touch the Spirit Stone. And since the Council of Elders had the most contact with the Spirit Stone they were the most natural choice.

Next in line were the Guardians, and this was because every time they upgraded their Crystal Armour they touched the Spirit Stone. Vanguard and Vanglead Armour systems could be upgraded through the Armour repair centre, but upgrading from Vanguard type Armour to Vanglead type Armour, or from Training Armour to Vanguard Armour the process required that the user stand before the Spirit Stone.

For upgrades to Guardian Armour the candidate would have to touch the Spirit Stone in the presence of at least three people who had been in prolonged contact with the Spirit Stone, and any systems upgrades to the Guardian Armour required that the Guardian touch the Spirit Stone. Furthermore Guardians could instantly recharge their Guardian Crystal Armour by just touching the Spirit Stone.

Then the three Elders touched the Spirit Stone.

Lumen : " In the name of Crystalorb I unlock the seal"

The Spirit Stone activated and an aura appeared around the Spirit Stone. As Naole brought his Training Armour.

Cyris : " Because of the fundamental differences between your Blue Chest Crystal and the Clear Crystal that mainly forms your Training Armour you have to touch the Spirit Stone directly"

Isis : " Go ahead Naole, Touch your destiny!"

When Naole touched the Spirit Stone the energy of the stone was infused into his entire body causing all the Blue, Red and Clear Crystals in his body to be filled with Spirit Stone energy. As the Crystals in his skin became energized they began to transform Naole's skin to a deep Blue Crystalline form. A beam of light from Naole's Chest Crystal then illuminated his Training Armour forcing the Training Armour into direct contact with the Spirit Stone, allowing Spirit Stone energy to flow through Naole to the Training Armour, and this transformed the Training Armour into a Guardian Armour locked in a Guardian Armour sphere.

When Naole let go of the Spirit Stone his skin returned to Normal

Nalen : " I knew it!"

Isis : " Naole its time!"

Cyris : " Say the Oath of Crystal Armoured Crystalan warriors"

Young Naole steps forward and touches the Deep Blue Crystal Armour sphere.

Naole : " I am the light on the hill!" The Guardian Armour sphere begins to open "The line in the sand!" Light energy increases, making it hard to see Naole "Here and no further!"

The automatic Crystal Armour assembly was started and Naole was covered in Guardian Crystal Armour. Naole's Crystal Armour was almost completely Deep Blue in colour; The Armour's Left hand Energy Crystal was formed from Dense Clear Crystals, the Armour's Right hand Energy Crystal was formed from Dense Red Crystals and the Armour's Chest Energy Crystal was formed from Dense Blue Crystals.

Cyris : " How does it feel Naole? How does it feel to wear the legendary Armour of a Crystal Guardian?"

Naole : " It’s almost overwhelming! You were right father; there is a power level beyond that of a Crystal Guardian!"

Esara : " So you can feel it as well?"

Cyris : " He’s physiology is not that different from that of Nalen?"

Nalen : " The energy of the Crystal Armour allows you to sense the potential!"

Naole : " Father; how do we get there?"

Nalen : " I haven’t figured that out yet!"

Naole then took his new Crystal Armour to the Intrepid, and the others decided to return to Casara's party. Enala chose to accompany Naole to the Intrepid, and Enala spent the night with Naole onboard the Intrepid, Enala's parents simply assumed that she spent the night at Casara's home along with Kato and the other teens. In the morning as Nalen was conducting status checks he saw Naole say goodbye to Enala in an intimate way, but decided to keep Naole's secret.

Of course Nalen could not keep anything from Esara. Nalen and Esara were connected in both mind and heart.

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Then Nalen activated the Intrepid's nuclear reactor in preparation for take off, he then activated the Intrepid's weapon systems because at low altitude the ship has some limited vulnerability to ground based weapons like lasers and other energy weapon systems. When Nalen conducted a thrusters test it indicated to the Intrepid's crew that it was time to get onboard and prepare for departure.

After the Intrepid left Crystal Valley air space the weekly security meeting of the Crystalorb Leadership got underway. The topic of main concern was the intelligence reports from Expeditionary Recognisance indicating that the HOD is planning something big. Expeditionary Recognisance had been conducting surveillance of known HOD facilities and picked up increased activity at the HOD Enforcer training centres.

The Council of Elders previously used their power of divination to determine what the HOD were plotting, but the HOD were using Negative Psionic Energy to somehow shield themselves from the divination abilities of the Council of Elders. The HOD was well aware of the power of divination, and they used it with great effect. Both Ralefa and Lesedi inherited the divining ability from their father; they then passed it on to their children, who then passed it on to their children, and so on and so on.

The Crystalorb Leadership had to rely on other methods to determine what the HOD was up to, and this was the primary work of the Expeditionary Recognisance. Given increased Enforcer numbers the HOD were far more capable than ever, this meant that Crystalorb would have to be more vigilant. The main concern of the Crystalorb Leadership was that whatever the HOD is planning has to do with the Crystal Valley City.

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