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【Vision of an Alternate Future】

Arc 1: Ascendance

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【VAF】Chapter║: 21 ─ The power of a Guardian

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On 02-05-2254 almost 2 years after the Battle for Enthea Guardian Commander Cyris and Expeditionary Guardian Isis came to the Crystalorb Moon to Inspect the containment facilities that held 9.215 million Crystalan Children in capsules as they developed. The containment facilities were being expanded and at full capacity would be able to hold 100 million Crystalan Children in capsules for the duration of their development.

Guardian Isis brought with her Luke and Jane on their first visit to the Crystalorb Moon. Luke and Jane had recently taken their Vows of Honour, and the two were at the beginning stages of their Vanguard training with the Ilesian Guards. Luke and Jane Stanley were born and raised in Canada, but at age 23 they moved to Crystal Valley City to live in a society that was majority Hybrid or Lodian.

Crystal Valley City is the traditional home for Hybrids and 90% of its 80 million population is either Hybrid or Lodian. Crystal Valley City provides a safe and discrimination free environment for Hybrids, but the City's most valuable quality to Hybrids or Lodians is that Crystal Valley City is a major financial and industrial centre. This above all was the primary reason why most Hybrids desired to live in Crystal Valley City.

Crystal Valley City is the headquarters of Crystal Valley Industries and its wholly owned subsidiary Crystal Valley Investment Bank. Historically Crystalans without Chest Crystals have been responsible for the management and running of Crystal Valley Industries, and Crystalans with Chest Crystals would traditionally only act in support of the Crystalorb's Ilesian Guards, but the massive expansion on the Crystalorb Moon had required more involvement from Crystalorb's other divisions.

Crystalans without Chest Crystals are preferred for the management and running of Crystal Valley Industries because they can move freely amongst other humans without their secret Crystalan heritage being discovered. Few humans outside Hodians and Lodians knew about the Chest Crystal, and even fewer humans in general knew about its origins, but those who knew about the origins of the Chest Crystal understood the need for the secrecy.

Crystalans with Chest Crystals gave the human race both a strategic advantage and disadvantage; with the primary concern being that should the Migon learn about the origins of the Chest Crystal they would move to destroy the human race to prevent the human race becoming a threat to them. For that reason most Humans understood the Crystalans to be an African Federation based organization of Hybrids.

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As the 90m long Intrepid Class Baby Ship landed on the platform the Guardian Armoured Naole Flanked by 2 Guardian Armoured individuals on each side approached the only access point on the Crystalan Ship.

Crystalan Ships don't have a landing gear, and they rely on the platforms to support their weight or they simply hover above the ground. Crystalan Ships have only one access point on its hull, and it's positioned between the Back Energy Weapons Crystal and the Bottom Energy Weapons Crystal.

The access point on the Crystalan Ships is called mouth because its major use for consuming asteroids for processing, but the Crystalan Ship's has other important uses including; cargo loading and unloading, crew entry, and small craft entry. Once inside the mouth of the Crystalan Ship the Ship would then guide the individual to his or her desired destination onboard the adult Crystalan Ship.

When the mouth of the Intrepid Class Baby Ship opened Naole and the other 4 Guardian Armoured individuals banged on the platform with their Crystal Lances holding them with their right hands, and then they extended their right hands such that the Crystal Lances made a 45 degree angle with their bodies and the platform. Electrical energy connected the tips of the Crystal Lances forming electrical arcs in the Air.

This is the traditional Guardian Salute, and is usually reserved for Guardians departing for or arriving from a combat mission, but it was also used to Honour Elders or the Guardian Commander when they arrived on a ship or base.

Naole : " Guardian of Guardians!" Naole bows "Welcome to the Crystalorb Moon Guardian Commander!"

Cyris : " Thank you Master Guardian!"

Naole : " Welcome to the Crystalorb Moon Commander Isis!"

Isis : " Thank you Master Guardian!" Isis bows to Naole "Guardian my Master!"

Naole : " How are you my friend?"

Isis : " Can't complain Master."

Naole : " Good" Naole turns to Luke and Jane "Good to see you again friends! Welcome to the Crystalorb Moon Vanguard Trainees!"

Jane : " Thank you Master Guardian!"

Luke : " Thank you Master Guardian!"

Naole : " Well then let’s get to it!" Naole turns to Guardian Commander Cyris, and they begin to walk ahead leaving Isis and the others behind "Commander everything is ready for the Guardian Conference, and the other Guardians will be arriving shortly"

Cyris : " Good! Do you know how many Guardians will be attending the Guardian Conference?"

Naole : " We've received confirmation from 206 Guardian Armoured Crystalans"

As Naole and Cyris continue to talk about the Guardian Conference Luke begins to enquire about the purpose of the secretive Conference of Guardians.

Luke : " Why is information on the Conference of Guardians restricted? I've been trying to look it up on the Crystalorb Network but it requires Guardian level clearance. Why is a Conference restricted?"

Isis : " The Guardian Conference is a gathering of Crystalorb's Guardians held every 2 years, and it allows the Guardians to interact freely while sharing information and Ideas. Only Guardians can know the details of the activities that occur at the Guardian Conference." Isis stops to look Jane and Luke in the eyes "The fact that you even know that the Guardian Conference is about to be held is an extraordinary privilege afforded to you because of your special situation. Most Crystalans never know about it until it happens."

Jane : " Why is it so important that it’s kept secret?"

Isis : " The Guardian Conference is not a Conference in the way you might think of a Conference, but a training or sparring session. Every Guardian is required to participate in a Conference once every 8 years. The Guardian Conference provides the Guardians an opportunity to test their fighting skills against some of the most powerful Crystalans, and to learn from some of the most skilled warriors alive."

Jane : " Like Master Naole!"

Isis : " Yes like Master Naole!"

Jane : " It's strange, he doesn't seem all that powerful to me."

Luke : " I still don't understand the need for secrecy! If everyone knows that they are going to fight, then why keep it a secret?"

Isis : " The secrecy is a societal requirement. Designed to keep the Guardian Conference from becoming a competition. The Guardian Conference is suppose to provide a pressure free environment for Crystal Guardians to practice the Guardian Techniques."

Jane : " Guardian Techniques?"

Luke : " The legendary fighting Techniques or Methods of the Crystal Guardians."

Isis : " Exactly! As you can probably understand the Crystal Guardians generate a tremendous amount of energy, and in modern Guardian Armour the energy rises exponentially. It therefore makes sense that we should want to keep this power hidden, and our allies inform us that the Migon have spies everywhere, so Crystalorb has to be careful, because if the Migon should learn of the source of our power the human race will be destroyed. We need time to prepare! Time to increase our capabilities! You two can help us stay hidden."

Jane : " How?" with a puzzled look in her face "We are just barely beginning to understand who we are, how could we possibly be of use to Crystalorb?"

Isis : " In the race to increase the Crystalorb population the Council of Elders restricted the growth of Crystalans without Chest Crystals to 5%, and the view was that we needed more Crystalans with Chest Crystals because of their ability to stimulate Crystal growth, but we forgot that Crystalans without Chest Crystals are our eyes and ears amongst the rest of the human race. The two of you can go where most Crystalans with Chest Crystals cannot follow, and because of the massive amounts of energy produced by the Chest Crystal even a standard scanner can detect us when we are not in Crystal Armour. We need the Crystalans without Chest Crystals to run Crystal Valley Industries, and the fact that the two of you actually grew up outside Crystalorb makes you perfectly suited for interacting with other humans. You've no doubt noticed that Crystalans society is different to that of the rest of the human race."

Jane : " That's an understatement."

Isis : " Because of the risk we pose to humanity we've had to become increasingly more Isolated!"

Luke : " I was hoping to become an Ilesian Guardian."

Isis : " You know that 9 of the 22 Ilesian Guardians were trained by Master Naole?”

Luke : " But he has a Chest Crystal, how would he be able to control Ilesian Crystal Armour?"

Isis : " You have much to learn Vanguard." laughing "After you took the Vows of Honour you were injected with Bio-Organic Bio-Nanomachines; Technology that has its origins in Naole's Physiology! All Crystalans have these Bio-Organic Bio-Nanomachines, and they create a 9 millimetre sphere in the frontal lobe of the brain."

Jane : " What?"

Luke : " Are you saying that we have an object in our brains."

Isis : " I thought you understood this; Didn't anyone explain to you how this works?"

Jane : " They told us that the Bio-Organic Bio-Nanomachines would help connect to the Crystalorb Network, and that we would develop the ability to control Ilesian Crystal Armour."

Luke : " No one said anything about them forming a sphere in our brains."

Isis : " Sorry about that! Someone should have explained that that’s how it works!" Isis pauses to reflect "The Crystalorb Network is not a digital Network but a Psionic Link. The Spirit Stone connects us all!"

Jane : " Are you saying that we are all connected to the Spirit Stone?"

Isis : " Yes! The sphere in your brain is a replica of the Chest Crystal; originally developed for the brains of the Crystalan Ships, but later expanded to all Crystalans. Because you don’t' have a Chest Crystal you need a brain implant to join the Crystalorb Network. Once your spheres come on line the Spirit Stone is able to connect to you, know your deepest inner thoughts, and share its knowledge with you."

Luke : " The dreams?"

Jane : " Is this why I suddenly know things I couldn’t possibly have known before?"

Isis : " The Spirit Stone allows all Crystalans access to its knowledge thorough the Crystalorb Network, and that means that every Crystalan has access to not just human knowledge, but the knowledge of all the Civilisations who were willing to share their information with us."

Jane : " Does that mean we have access to the knowledge gained from the O'con Federation? The wisdom of the O'ltana?"

Isis : " Yes! Access to the Spirit Stone is the right of every Crystalan! However access comes with responsibility, and you must understand that for as long as you live you'll have to guard the knowledge you gain from the Spirit Stone."

Luke : " Even from Telepaths"

Isis : " You won't have to worry about that; Your brain is too powerful now! Telepaths are the weakest of the Psionics; it’s the others that may pose some risk."

Jane : " The others?"

Luke : " Empaths, Psychokinetics, Remote viewers and so on! Those that can read your emotions without accessing your mind, and those that can see into your past!"

Isis : " Fortunately 260 years ago the Hodians developed a Psionic block to shield themselves from the power of the Spirit Stone, and that technology is widely available in the form of the telepathic block."

Luke : " The block is Hodian technology?"

Isis : " Yes! You'll find that a substantial amount of technology was developed by the HOD, and because of our common goals we have to cooperate with them to improve our own systems."

Jane : " Aren't we supposed to be rivals?"

Isis : " We are! We've always been! However that doesn't mean that we're enemies. Granted we used to be enemies, but those days are long gone, and the last time the HOD made a move against us it led to the African Federation becoming a militaristic police state. The HOD don't like any limitations on their freedom, and in the end they worked to overthrow the African Federation military government they helped bring to power" after a brief pause "After that mess they realised what we had also come to understand."

Luke : " Which is what?"

Isis : " They need us as much as we need them."

Jane : " Crystalans need Hodians?"

Luke : " During my time with the Lodians I'd often hear the Council of the Light of Destiny speak of the Balance! Is this what you mean?"

Isis : " Lodians walk the Middle. Hodians and Crystalans have a tendency to walk the extremes."

Jane : " Extremes?"

Isis : " We seek to limit Internal competition between Crystalans, but the HOD encourages Internal competition between Hodians. Crystalans seek extreme physical power, and so do the Hodians." after a brief pause "Both our peoples seek to insure the survival of the Human race! The Hodians are a mirrored reflection of our soul."

Jane : " I see what you mean. Crystalans seem to frown on competition amongst themselves, but they welcome competition with Hodians or Lodians."

Isis : " Limiting Internal competition has allowed Crystalans the freedom to follow the calling of their Hearts."

Luke : " Calling of their Hearts?"

Isis : " Let me put it this way." after a brief pause "By removing the concept of wealth Crystalans don't need to earn a living, and that means that Crystalans can choose a life partner based on qualities that don't involve income or earning potential. This has also removed the concept of class, and because of this Crystalans have been able to overcome the primitive concept of provider, resulting in true equality between the genders." after a brief pause "Access to the knowledge of the Spirit Stone means that there isn't any knowledge advantage that one Crystalan has over another. However there are things like passion that forms the distinctions in our personalities, and these distinctions forms the basis of the Calling of one's Heart."

Jane : " But there are people who are truly exceptional?"

Isis : " You are thinking of Naole and those of us with Red Chest Crystals aren't you?"

Jane : " Yes! It's impossible to ignore that those with Red Chest Crystals seem more powerful or perhaps more capable than those with Clear or Gold Chest Crystals."

Isis : " I can assure you that it only seems that way, but the differences are notable, and in time you'll come to understand that the power of the Blue, Gold and Red Chest Crystals come at a cost. The Clear Chest Crystal gives the individual the power to heal, restore life, and at its optimal the power to accelerate growth."

Luke : " I don't believe it! It can't be?"

Isis : " Search the Network and you'll understand! It’s like Nalen said; The mind is the weapon, not the Crystal!"

Jane : " That's the Motto of the Vanguards!"

Isis : " Yes! Understand your own mind and you’ll have untold power! Today’s Ilesian Vanguard Crystal Armour is more powerful than Guardian Armour from 200 years ago, and standard Vanguard Crystal Armour is even more powerful."

Luke : " How is that possible?"

Isis : " Once you gain full use of your Vanguard Crystal Armour you'll understand the true extent of the power your entrusted with."

Luke : " And standard Vanguard Crystal Armour is even more powerful?"

Isis : " You have to understand that the Ilesian Vanguard Crystal Armour is a derivative of what we call standard Crystal Armour. Consequently there are inherent limitations due to the fact that Crystalans without Chest Crystals can't make a direct Crystal connection to the Crystal Armour. This results in the Ilesian Crystal Armour being only 45% the power of Standard Crystal Armour."

Luke : " Clearly the Hodians and Lodians don't know about the advances you’ve made to the Crystal Armour, because most Lodians estimated the Crystal Armour to be 10% as powerful than it actually is."

Isis : " Our time in the O'con Federation yielded an incredible array of improvements to our technology, and that has created a revolution in Crystalorb Technology. The O'con Federation has trusted us with its secrets, and for our part we've honoured the request by the O'ltana to protect their advanced knowledge."

Jane : " Speaking about Honour!" Taking a moment to phrase her question "What happens when a Crystalan is found to have acted dishonourably? What happens when one makes a mistake?"

Isis : " In simple terms contrition is required. Then the offending party is required to work to regain their Honour."

Jane : " How do you know when that particular person has regained their Honour?"

Isis : " That will be determined by the Spirit Stone. Only the Spirit Stone can examine every part of an individual and make a judgment. Once the Spirit Stone determines that a person is once again Honourable no Crystalan will question that particular person's Honour."

Jane : " What happens in relationships? How does contrition work when for example you don't really feel sorry for falling in love with someone else? Or you think that you’re justified in seeing someone else?"

Isis : " That kind of thing doesn't happen to Crystalans. Not even to Crystalans without Chest Crystals. Crystalan Love is different, like an addiction, and the longer you are with a person the stronger the bond gets. The bond is extremely powerful, and another person just doesn't fit."

Luke : " Addiction? What do you mean by addiction?"

Isis : " When Crystalans fall in love their Crystals make a connection, and the closer they get the more they bond emotionally. Every time they touch they exchange energy, and over time the Crystals in one body begin to crave the specific energy of the other just like an addiction. Every Crystalan has a unique and specific energy signature that no other Crystalan can produce, and when Crystalans are bonded they become extremely addicted to each other's energy. It's like a drug that only the one you love can give you, therefore falling in love with someone else is not only improbable it's impossible."

Jane : " Isn't there a choice?"

Isis : " No! When you gain full power you'll come to see how beautiful and elegant this is." after a brief pause "But it can also be incredibly dangerous. Which is why Crystal Guardians are always encouraged to only partner with other Crystal Guardians? Fortunately most people have found their life partner by the time they reach the age where the Chest Crystal has grown enough to wield the power of a Crystal Guardian."

Jane : " Dangerous How?"

Luke : " At what age does one become a Crystal Guardian?"

Isis : " For Clear Chest Crystals the age is 170 years for those who don't train regularly, for Gold Chest Crystals the age is 120 years for those who don't train regularly and for Red Chest Crystals the age is 80 years for those who don't train regularly. Those who actively seek the power of Crystal Guardian gain a 30 to 60 year advantage. My husband and I gained the Guardian Armour at age 65." her tone become serious "The Guardians were originally formed as the Guards of the Spirit Stone, Crystalorb's Elite Guard, and the Guardian Order was a natural follow on from the original protectors of the Spirit Stone." after a long pause "Becoming a Crystal Guardian is a choice that requires discipline, focus, determination and sacrifice!”

Jane : " And what about the danger?"

Isis : " If a Crystal Guardian partners with someone who's not as powerful as the Guardian the weaker person becomes increasingly more addicted to the higher energy levels produced by the Crystal Guardian, and over time they become completely dependent on the Guardian's energy, needing constant contact with their partner. This means if the Crystal Guardian dies the energy dependent partner will also die! Death can also occur if the two are separated for long periods."

To Luke and Jane it seemed puzzling that love could be so dangerous, but they were coming to terms with the society that was their heritage, and Luke was pleased with the special importance given to Crystalans without Chest Crystals. Guardian Isis was then called away, and Jane and Luke were taken to the Vanguard facilities where they could interact with other Vanguards from the Mobile Assets Defence Division also known as the Ilesian Guards.

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At the Guardian Conference the power output of the Guardian Armours were equalized as always, and this was to insure that when the Crystal Guardian fought each other there is no advantage for a particular Crystal Guardian. In team scenarios the Crystal Guardian with the lowest power level is taken as the basis, and all other Guardians are adjusted to that level for the duration of the team battle.

For generations the Clear Chest Crystal has proved superior to the Red and Blue Chest Crystals at the Guardian Conference, and that was because the Clear Chest Crystal outperformed the other types of Chest Crystal in endurance. In equalized form not even the great Naole could compete against those with Clear Chest Crystal. The Guardian Conference had always proved difficult for Naole, and he always seemed to struggle more than any other participant.

At the end of the Guardian Conference the Guardian who completed all his/her tasks while expending the least amount of energy was declared Conference Champion. This was a title recognizing the analytical and energy management skills of a particular Guardian. Naole with a Blue Chest Crystal and the other Guardians with Red Chest Crystals were always amongst the highest energy expenders, consequently the title of Conference Champion was always beyond their reach.

However every Guardian at the Guardian Conference knew that few Guardians could master the strength and power to rival Naole; Without Armour, but in his Indigo Form, Naole is stronger than most Armoured Guardians. Absent in ambition Naole welcomed the opportunity to explore his limitations, an opportunity provided by the Guardian Conference. Most Armoured Guardians knew the importance of control, and most importantly the ability to conserve energy in a time of crisis.

A new dawn was breaking and the era of the Gold Guardian was at hand! In a few decades the first of the children to be born with the Gold Chest Crystal would begin the arduous clime to the level of Crystal Guardian. They would seek the legendary power of the Crystal Guardian, and the endurance of the Clear Chest Crystal combined and tempered the extreme power of the Red Chest Crystal would answer the call of their spirits and a new type of Guardian would be born; The Gold Guardian.

The rise of the Gold Guardian held the promise of ending the domination of the Red Guardian, but that would only be numerical because no Gold Guardian could ever hope to match the tremendous power of the Red Guardians. The change simply meant that the Gold Guardians would dominate the Expeditionary Division, and that would be their natural place in the Crystalorb's defence structure.

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At the end of the Guardian Conference Isis approached her master for guidance, she was having trouble adjusting to her relatively new role as a Nexus Power, and she wanted the advice of the only former Nexus Power still alive.

Isis : " Ever since you declared Jalen and I to be Nexus Powers I've noticed a change in my status. The others treat me like a Master Guardian."

Naole : " What can I say, it’s Providence!"

Isis : " I'm afraid of making a mistake."

Naole : " There are no mistakes."

Isis : " Lessons from the Spirit Consciousness?"

Naole : " The Nexus Power Theory speaks of Divine Purpose. Every step is important, even the wrong steps, because if we don't make mistakes we never learn where the pitfalls are."

Isis : " So you’re saying that Jalen and I must make mistakes?"

Naole : " It's the only way to identify the cosmic wrong turns."

Isis : " But the stakes are so high?"

Naole : " The stakes are always high young Guardian."

Isis : " Are you saying that the path of the Nexus Powers is about the mistakes?"

Naole : " It's always been that way; The Nexus Power is the light that illuminates the dark corners. The Council of Elders knows this; they will follow you into the darkness and make sure you do not fall into the abyss."

Isis : " The Council of Elders knows this?"

Naole : " It’s Providence!" Naole smiles “In my youth I was impulsive, obstinate and defiant. However Love tempered my heart, and in that I found purpose. Things were different then, and Crystalans had more room to make mistakes, but now with the impending war against the Migon many Crystalans feel like there is no room for errors. The Nexus Power is there to remind us that there is more than one way of achieving objectives, and that noble purpose is Divine."

Isis : " Divine purpose?"

Naole : " Providence young Guardian; Providence!" Naole reflects "Contrary to popular belief what connects us to the Spirit Stone is not the Chest Crystal, but love! Divine Love! Lesedi's love for his children, His children's love for their children and so on and so on. Divine Love!"

Isis : " Divine Love?"

Naole : " Yes!" Naole puts his hand on her shoulder "Divine Love is Divine Providence!"

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As the Guardians depart for their respective commands Naole is relieved that the Guardian Conference is now behind him, and it will be another eight years before he is once again forced to participate in the tiring activities of the Guardian Conference. The limitations placed on the abilities of the Red Guardians and the Blue Guardian are taxing for them, and for the duration of the Guardian Conference the limitation systems keeps their energy level at almost depleted levels.

The Red Guardians and the Blue Guardian functioned at significantly higher energy levels than other Guardians, and the limitations imposed on them for duration of the Guardian Conference left them feeling weak, but once the Conference ended they could begin to slowly rebuild their energy level to normal.

The Red Guardians and the Blue Guardian Naole more than anyone understood the importance of control, and even though he disliked being limited, he understood the importance of the lessons learned by the Red Guardians. The Red Guardians needed to be reminded that they need to conserve energy, and they needed to be reminded that Ultimate power comes at a price. The Red Guardians needed to be reminded that a Guardian first and foremost is a commander of protectors.

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