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【Vision of an Alternate Future】

Arc 2: Return of the Crystal Guardians

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【VAF】Chapter║: 43 ─ Memories 1

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They emerge into a room, but Naole is no longer with them, and they find themselves looking at a man and a woman sitting across a Medical doctor. They recognize the man and woman as Nalen and Esara.

Dr Kanu〘MD〙 : " The tests indicate that this baby has the same potential genetic deformities as your other child! There are some genetic materials that we don’t recognize, but this child goes even further than Casara!"

Esara : “ Is it some sort of mutation? Is my baby safe?”

Nalen : “ All Crystalans are some sort of mutation! We may have stabilized, but we remain fundamentally genetic mutants!”

Dr Kanu〘MD〙 : " The rest of us may have stabilized, but you Olens’ are at the beginning of your evolution, and this new child may be another leap forward if he survives!"

Esara : “ What do you mean?”

Dr Kanu 〘MD〙 : " Your at 4 months and the foetus is draining an unprecedented amount of energy from you; I’ve never seen anything like it! Your body may begin to reject the foetus!"

Esara : “ Then you must do whatever you need to! I’m having this child; even if it kills me!”

Nalen : “ That’s not going to happen! I’ll stay by you side; you’ll feed off my energy! We will do this together!”

Dr Kanu〘MD〙 : " That may be the only way to save the child! You must both avoid any strenuous activities and preserve your energies for the foetus; at least until six months!"

Esara : “ Then that’s what we’ll do!”

Nalen : “ Yes!”

Then there’s a blinding white light, and Savan, Peo, Hilan and Aurora find themselves a months ahead in Nalen and Esara’s bedroom at around 2am.

Nalen : “ Ah!” Nalen wakes up in a cold sweat; not wanting to disturb the sleeping Esara he quietly leaves the room and makes his way to where the Spirit Stone rests in Crystalorb. Nalen places his right hand on the Spirit Stone “What do you want with my son?”

Then Nalen hears a voice; the Voice of his grandfather Olen.

Olen : “ The spirit forming within your son is uncertain about the boy’s survival, and it left an anchor in the realm of the Spirit!”

Nalen : “ An anchor?”

Olen : “ This has created a doorway in his core!”

Nalen : “Connecting him to the Crystal Source!”

Olen : “ If the Spirit is not convinced to commit to life; he will die!”

Nalen : “ Convince him how?”

Olen : “ Show him that he is loved and wanted! Show him that this precious life is worth living; Show him the beauty of world; the generosity of the spirits of the people who live in this world!”

Nalen : “ I will do it!”

Olen : “ Be brave my son; I am very proud of you!”

The Voice of Olen fades.

Nalen : “ I’ll be brave for you grandfather!”

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Savan, Peo, Hilan and Aurora talk amongst themselves.

Hilan : “ So that’s the secret of Naole’s power!”

Aurora : “ He was born with it!”

Peo : “ He’s always had a connection to the realm of the Spirit!”

Savan : “ And to the Spirit Stone!”

Then there’s a blinding white light, and Savan, Peo, Hilan and Aurora find themselves a week ahead; Casara, Nalen and Esara seem to be on vacation in Paris. They walk into a restaurant; in the peripheral Hilan notices suspicious looking characters following Casara, Nalen and Esara. The Olen Family orders food, and when it arrives they dig in; one of the suspicious characters slips out of restaurant kitchen back door.

The suspicious looking characters seem to be recording the unsuspecting Olens. Then suddenly the pregnant Esara falls ill; Casara and Nalen also become ill. Crystalorb security personnel arrive and take the Olens away. Then there’s another blinding white light, and Savan, Peo, Hilan and Aurora find themselves back at the Crystalorb medical Centre; Casara and Nalen have recovered, but Esara seems gravely ill.

Dr Kanu〘MD〙 : " It doesn’t look good! The Baby has ingested some the radioactive poison designed to kill someone with a Crystal enhanced physiology. Esara is vulnerable because the baby is vulnerable. The only way to save Esara is to perform an emergency caesarean"

Esara : “ Would my baby survive? Would Naole survive?”

Dr Kanu〘MD〙 : " He’s not going to make it! He’s heart rate is decreasing with every second."

Nalen : “ There has to be something you can do?”

Dr Kanu〘MD〙 : " We can save the mother."

Esara : “ No I won’t accept that! Help us Nalen!”

Nalen : “ I’m trying!” he puts his hand on Esara’s abdomen “I know you can hear me son; I’ve felt your life-force from the moment you were conceived! Don’t give up on us! Give us a chance! We love you, and we need you! You birth will bring forth a light that will change the world forever! Don’t leave us!”

Dr Kanu〘MD〙 : " I don’t believe this!"

Esara : “ What’s happening?”

Dr Kanu〘MD〙 : " The baby’s energies are stabilizing!"

Nalen : “ That’s it! Just a little further son!”

Dr Kanu〘MD〙 : " The Baby is going through an incredible transformation! How is he powering this change?"

Esara : “ Naole heard you Nalen!”

Nalen : “ When did you name him Naole?”

Esara : “It just came to me!”

Dr Kanu〘MD〙 : " The baby is absorbing all the toxins from his mother! He’s somehow healing you! How is he doing this?"

Then there’s another blinding white light, and Savan, Peo, Hilan and Aurora find themselves again at the Crystalorb medical Centre, but this time Naole is being born.

Esara : “ Here Nalen!” handing the baby over to Nalen “Meet your son!”

Nalen : “ Welcome to the world my son!” Naole reaches out his tiny hand and touches Nalen’s face “You will harness my strengths and use them to bring truth to impossibility! The future of the human race begins with your birth!”

Casara enters the room accompanied by Lord Cyris and Guardian Inala. Somehow Naole recognizes Casara, and he reaches out his tiny hand and touches Casara’s face. When the nurse tried to remove Naole from his mother the little guy grabbed Esara’s left index finger so tightly that the nurse could not remove him, and Naole began to cry. The Nurse decides to leave him be.

Dr Kanu〘MD〙 : " That’s quite a grip! He doesn’t make a peep throughout his birth, but try to remove him from his family and he screams his lungs out."

Cyris : “ Is all that energy I’m sensing emanating from the boy?”

Nalen : “ Yeah!”

Inala : “ That’s a hundred times higher than other Crystalan babies!”

Esara : “ He’s an amazing little guy!”

Then there’s a blinding white light, and Savan, Peo, Hilan and Aurora find themselves having moved decades ahead in Naole’s timeline.

It is 20 years after the end of the Hodian wars; Naole, Casara and 3 other Guardians are at the Endurance Tournament. The Endurance Tournament is a condition of Crystalorb’s peace treaty with the HOD, and it’s meant to test the Strengths of Crystalans, Hodians and Hybrids against each other. Five Fighters from each group would battle members from the other groups and at the end of the group with the most victories would be declared victorious.

The Endurance Tournament was meant to keep Crystalans and Hodians from underestimating each others strengths; in the hope that one group never again grows to believe that they can annihilate the other without significant consequences. The Crystalorb Council of Elders sent the Ascended Crystalans Naole and Casara to show Hodians and Hybrids the tremendous true power of Crystalans.

Hybrids didn’t stand much of a chance against Crystalans and Hodians, but the fact that transformations and energy attacks were prohibited went some way to equalizing their powers. Hodians knew about Naole and Casara’s strengths, so they selected their strongest Grandlords to face them. Crystalorb had sent Canala, Nasara and Tialo; Head of the Ilesian Guard. There’s about a hundred other Crystalans providing escort.

The Tournament schedule is displayed, and Naole is surprised that he’s in the first match.

Nasara : “ Looks like your Dad is fighting first.”

Canala : “ Poor bustard has no Idea what he’s up against.”

Naole seems unsettled, and that somehow makes Casara uneasy. Then Naole’s attention focuses on the Arena’s entrance where 2 young men appear.

Casara : “ I’m getting strange vibes from those two! I don’t like it; they’re strong!”

Naole : “ Real Strong.”

Naole’s mind goes to the previous day; He’d met with the Council of Elders and explained to them the danger he sensed.

Cyris : “ Are you certain?”

Naole : “ The Spirit Stone senses it too. And Because of your connection to the Crystal Heart you must know that it’s true.”

Cyris : “ We feel it! Lord Lesedi foretold this problem, but how do we stop them?”

Naole : “ Over the past 22 years 350 Crystalans have vanished. They disappeared without a trace! I believe we are on the brink of war with an enemy the likes of which we’ve never faced. These missing Crystalans are somehow involved; or maybe they’ve become the danger. I’m sensing an energy signature similar to Amun.”

Cyris : “ Are you saying that they’ve betrayed Crystalorb?”

Naole : “ I don’t think most of them had a choice.”

Cyris : “ How so?”

Naole : “ The first few would undoubtedly have chosen Negative Psionic Energy, but the others may have fallen victim to Negative Psionic Energy exposure.”

Cyris : “ You think exposure to Negative Psionic Energy can have the effect of changing the nature of a Crystalan?”

Naole : “ It’s the potency of negative energy that is the problem here! My father knew about the potential danger; he understood the true nature of being Crystalan! Dad said that Crystalans are monsters; just like Hodians.”

Cyris : “ We’re not monsters!”

Naole : “ No; we’re highly evolved Humans right? Have you forgotten what Crystalans became when the Spirit Stone was forcefully removed from Crystalorb? Don’t you remember the extreme violence we suddenly became capable of? I suspect the monstrous tendency is just below the surface, and exposure to a potent form of Negative Psionic Energy would quickly bring that terribly distractive tendency boiling to the surface!”

Cyris : “ No!”

Naole : “ My calculations indicate that these fallen Crystalans would be as strong as Amun!”

Cyris : “ That means that all 350 would wield the powers of a Crystal Guardian!”

Naole : “ That’s exactly what it means!”

Cyris : “ Then we’re outnumbered aren’t we?”

Naole : “ I’m afraid so! Casara and I may be Ascended Crystalans, but even Ascended Crystal Guardians can’t overcome these odds. 350 Reducted Crystalans powered by Negative Psionic Energy could unleash a torrent of evil upon this world.”

Cyris : “ Is Crystalorb safe? Could they reach us here?”

Naole : “ Ten years ago I installed the new Tri-Crystal Energy Defence Cannons; Combining Red, Blue and Clear Crystal energies. All this was based on my Crystals; each Cannon’s Crystal consists of equal amounts of Red, Blue and Clear Crystal enclosed in Black Crystal for strength. The Red to defeat Negative Psionic Energy, the Blue to generate higher energy levels and the Clear Crystal for full spectrum energies.”

Cyris : “ That solves Crystalorb’s security, but what about the rest of the world? If we don’t find a way to stop them the human race will be extinguished!”

Naole : “ As you all know; a properly skilled Reducted Crystalan can defeat a Crystalan Ship. They just weren’t designed to confront Reducted Crystalans. Therefore using the Ships away from Crystalorb could be disastrous, and if our standard forces confront them there is a high likelihood that they would end up swelling their ranks; converted by exposure to a potent form Negative Psionic Energy.”

Cyris : “ Then what do we do?”

Naole : “ We can’t win this war alone! We’re going to need allies! To that end I’ve developed the Power Ring!” Naole holds out his hand to show the Elders a Power Ring “Who so ever wears this Ring, If they be Deemed of a Worthy Spirit, shall Wield the Powers of a Crystalan!”

Cyris : “ You want to give Hybrids and Hodians Crystalan powers? Who decides that the individuals are worthy? And what powers these rings?”

Naole : “ The Power Rings are like a small Tri-Crystal Energy Defence Cannons; each Power Ring consists of equal amounts of Red, Blue and Clear Crystal encased in Black Crystal for strength. The Power Rings are also communicators, and that means that the Spirit Stone would always have direct access to the rings and all their vested powers without being vulnerable. The Power Rings draw their energies from the wielders deepest inner strengths; augmented by absorbed ambient energy. Like with Guardian Crystal Armour the Spirit Stone will decide who is worthy and if necessary the Spirit Stone can stop the ring from functioning or in extreme cases use the ring to destroy the wielder.”

Cyris : “ You want to give them a fighting chance against this Circle?”

Naole : “ Then we can withdraw our forces to Crystalorb where we will teach others to achieve a power level higher than that of a Reducted Crystal Guardian. With enough Ascended Crystal Guardians we can defeat the Circle.”

Cyris : “ Exactly how many Power Rings are we talking about? These things are like loose nuclear weapons.”

Naole : “ To be effective; at least 10000 Power Rings!”

Cyris : “ That many?”

Naole : “ 2500 for Hodians, 2500 for Hybrids and the rest will go to governments around the world.”

Cyris : “ Must we really hand over advanced Crystalorb Technology to these Governments?”

Naole : “ Without our assistance the Circle will destroy them! Besides; the technology of the Power Rings protects itself.”

Cyris : “ What about Human leaders? How do we protect them? If the Circle begins open assassinations things could get catastrophic?”

Naole : “ We’ll give Human leaders Sceptres of Leadership!”

Cyris : “ But they would never understand the powers of Sceptres of Leadership. They could never wield the power of Sceptres of Leadership.”

Naole : “ That’s true; but the Sceptres of Leadership will still shield them from the attacks of Negative Psionics. We can’t give Hodians or Hybrids Sceptres of Leadership; in their hands the tools could be far too dangerous. We’ll code the Sceptres of Leadership to only respond to specific individuals, and recode them when the next leader comes into office.”

Cyris : “ Then it’s agreed!”

The Council of Elders look at the Spirit Stone, and Lady Cilan looks at Naole.

Cilan : “ One Hundred Sceptres of Leadership; No more!”

Naole : “ But?”

Cyris : “ Naole; Enough! Reorganise that when the Sceptres of Leadership are brought together in unison the wielders will be granted some of the powers of Crystalan Elders.”

Cilan : “ Including Elder Sight! We understand the danger we face with the Circle, but we cannot afford to be reckless! Outside of the Council of Elders you’re the only one who has the gift of sight, but you can only see your own path; we see the path of nine!”

Cyris : “ We have a clearer image!”

Cilan : “ Appreciate that fact Naole!”

Naole : “ I realise that; Honoured Elders; I’m worried about the implications of the Guardian Compass.”

Cyris : “ We are aware of the threat!”

Naole : " If in fact what we call the Guardian Compass originates from a human ability then members of the circle will be able to harness its power for their purposes. It triggers the protective instincts of Crystal Guardians, but it also empowers us; almost as though we draw energy from their fear and despair! When one becomes a Crystal Guardian the Spirit Stone arms one with the Guardian Compass. It's a spiritual connection to other Crystalans, but it sometimes extends to other beings and that is where things get complicated. It's possible that Negative emotions generate Negative Psionic Energy. Hate and Rage are clearly Negative emotions perhaps generating Negative Psionic Energy, and Joy and Happiness are Positive emotions perhaps generating Positive Psionic Energy, but fear and despair have both negative and positive aspects perhaps generating both Negative and Positive Psionic Energy."

Cilan : “ We know that you’re worried.”

Cyris : “ You’re not the only one.”

Cilan : “ Casara thinks that they could be stronger than Reducted Crystalans.”

Naole : “ That is a distinct possibility given the potency of Negative Psionic Energy.”

Cyris : “ Others believe that they may seek a more potent source of Negative Psionic Energy!”

Naole : “ Humans?”

Cyris : “ Hybrids and Hodians!”

Cilan : “ Do you see it now Naole? Do you now understand why we must move carefully? Why every move must be measured against the potential Consequences?”

Naole : “ I understand!”

Naole’s mind returns to the tournament as his name is being called.

Announcer : “ In this evenings first bout Grandlord Tinok Ralefa of the Hodian High Council will face off against Guardian Naole Olen; legendary son of Crystalorb!”

Casara : “ Brother; Take it Easy!”

Naole : “ Right!”

As Naole moves towards the tournament ring Casara notices a young Crystalan man from the Ilesian Guard approach a Hybrid young woman and ask her out. The Hybrid youth seemed interested, but then declined the boy’s request by indicating that she has a prior engagement.

Casara decides to intervene, and she approaches the Hybrid young woman who’s surrounded by her friends.

Casara : " If you’re interested, then you should make it known to him. Crystalan men aren’t like the sex obsessed Neanderthals that populate the world, they are much more evolved. Crystalan men only ask once. Women around the world have men practically beg them for a date, but Crystalan men don't beg. Ooh no; that would violate their sense of honour; Crystalan men can be Unforgiving. If you say no to a Crystalan man you have to understand that your decision is final. He won't ever ask again! And that door may be closed forever. Many Crystalan women have lived to regret their choices!” Casara smiles “They should come with a warning. Crystalan men may look indestructible, but they are in a lot of ways the most vulnerable men in the world. They are required as a question of honour to wear their hearts on their sleeves, unable to hide away, unable to shield themselves from Crystalan women. They are in some ways defenceless against the women they love. Crystalan women must therefore always be gentle with them; careful with their feelings."

As Casara walks away the Hybrid young woman quickly rushed to the Crystalan boy and makes it clear to him that she is interested, and that she would love to go out with him.

Nasara : “ Why intervene mother? It’s not like there’s a shortage of Crystalan women?”

Canala : “ Yeah; Why encourage Crystalan men to look outside Crystalorb?”

Casara : “ You know how fickle Crystalan men can be; One perceived rejection could put him off women for years. Furthermore; other Crystalan young men are watching, and his perceived rejection could discourage them. We need Crystalans to breed; restore our population. Besides she’s half Hodian half Hybrid; this could help expand our Crystalan gene pool.”

Canala : “ Ah! Father’s powering up!”

Casara : “ Yes; now they will comprehend true Crystalan strength.” She shakes her head “The fool is too close!”

Tialo : “ The Grandlord?”

Canala : “ Father is very fast!”

Tialo : “ But he weighs 3287 kg?”

Canala : “ Father is Ascended Crystalan fast!”

Casara : “ These Hodians have no Idea what an Ascended Crystalan is capable off!”

Nasara : “ Uncle seems unsettled; what could be troubling him?”

Casara : “ Yes!” Casara turns to look at the 2 young men they’d noticed earlier “Perhaps it’s …”

Before Casara could finish speaking the Hodian Grandlord Tinok noticed than Naole lacked focus then made his move, but Naole countered with a fist across Tinok’s chest; sending him flying across the arena crushing against the wall. Tinok was now unconscious and bleeding profusely from wounds on his head and chest

Tialo : “ By the Source!”

Canala : “ Ah!”

Casara : “ Naole?”

Nothing could quieten the muffled gasps reverberating through the audience. An Armoured Clear Chest Crystal Vanglead rushed to Tinok and began to administer Healing Light; restoring Tinok back to health. As Naole approached Casara he could see that she was very annoyed.

Casara : “ You were supposed to take it easy?”

Naole : “ I’m sorry sis; I lost control for a moment, and I couldn’t adjust my strength quickly enough.”

Casara : “ What were they trying to do?”

Naole : “ They tried to invade my mind!”

Casara : “ Fools! Don’t they realise that you can’t invade the mind of an Ascended Crystalan?”

Naole : “ That they would even try is what worries me! Their telepathy must be more powerful than we thought.”

Casara : “ So it has begun; The fate of the world now hangs in the balance!”

Canala : “ What’s wrong Father?”

Naole : “ When they tried to penetrate my mind they opened themselves to my mind! They call themselves Circlean; former Crystalans imbued with Negative Psionic Energy.”

Tialo : “ So the war begins!”

Naole : “ The Council of Elders has been observing; part of the reason they sent both Ascended Crystalans is that they knew the Circle would not resist the temptation to assess the true potential of an Ascended Crystalan! We now know what they plan to do!”

Casara : “ They will burn this entire world to ground; extinguishing the Human race in the process.”

Naole : “ But their Ultimate goal is to Destroy the Spirit Stone!”

Nasara : “ No; they can’t! Is it possible? Do they have the power to destroy the Spirit Stone?”

Casara : “ Not yet! But I fear they will, and soon!”

Canala : “ How could it have come to this? How could we have let things get this bad?”

Nasara : “ We should attack immediately; before they have time to organize!”

Casara : “ I’m afraid it’s too late! All our hopes rest on the combined powers of Ascended Crystalans!”

Naole : “ By the time we understood the gravity of the threat they were already too strong. What I’ve learnt from them is that when one of their first Eldons died they reached full power.”

Casara : “ That was 10 years ago!”

Tialo : “ Then it’s too late!”

Casara : “ Not yet; we will rise to meet this challenge!”

Nasara : “ Can we? Do we have the strength?”

Naole : “ Not yet; Young Guardian!” he puts his hand on Nasara’s shoulder “But you will!”

Casara : “ Fortunately the Circleans don’t know how they measure up compared to us, and that means that we have some time, but I expect them to move against the HOD soon.”

Canala : “ Dad; am I ready to become an Ascended Crystalan?”

Naole : “ Not yet; your brothers are in an even worse state than you, but Nasara is further down the path than all of you. Because of my Blue Crystals Nasara shouldn’t be generating as much Energy as you are Canala, but the fact that she is implies that she’s been pushing herself harder than any of you Red Crystalans.”

Nasara : “ I have!”

Casara : “ But she’s still a long way from being ready to Ascend! To win this coming war we will need more than Ascended Red Crystalans, we’re going to need Ascended Clear Crystalans.”

Soon after Casara defeated another Hodian in an equally spectacular display of strength, and Canala and Nasara won their battles against Hybrids. With the Crystalorb warriors winning all their bouts Crystalans we declared the strongest of the Neo-Humans.

Then there’s another blinding white light, and Savan, Peo, Hilan and Aurora find themselves a day ahead at the Hodian Training Centre; Naole Casara, Canala, Nasara and Tialo are meeting with Viceroy Nato Ralefa of the Hand of Destiny.

Savan, Peo, Hilan and Aurora talk amongst themselves.

Hilan : “ Naole’s memories are very clear!”

Peo : “ That Casara was something else!”

Savan : “ Incredible!”

Aurora : “ It’s like we were there!”

Hilan : “ I wonder why Naole wants us to see these events? What does he want us to understand?”

Aurora : “ We’ll find out soon enough!”

Peo : “ This is the moment isn’t it? The day Crystalorb shared Crystalan power with Hodians?”

Savan : “ The turning point!”

Focus returns to the meeting with Nato Ralefa.

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