The Guardian King

Chapter Five

~Ember

With Phyneas beside me, we followed Sadie into a sterile room with stark white walls. Cold metal chairs lined the wall and in the center stood a black examination chair. “Have a seat,” Sadie told me, pointing to the center chair. I attempted to make myself comfortable, despite feeling like a science experiment.

*

Sadie pulled over a small stainless-steel tray table on wheels where she picked up a shot glass filled to the brim with dark-gold liquid. “Bottoms up,” she said, placing the glass in my hand. I eyed Phyneas for reassurance. “It’s not that bad,” he responded from his seat against the wall. “It’s just bitter.”

“How will it make me feel?” I wanted to know.

“Alive,” Sadie answered vaguely.

“Like you’ve consumed too much caffeine.” Phyneas clarified. “You’ll feel a burst of energy as your body adjusts to your abilities. The worst side effect is difficulty sleeping.”

*

Satisfied with his answer, I raised the glass and said, “Okay then. Cheers,” before knocking it all back at once. “Ugh,” I cringed. “Tastes like tree bark.”

“Because it is,” Sadie said with indifference.

“Yeah, but it’s better not to know that beforehand,” Phyneas pointed out.

*

Sadie pulled on a pair of latex gloves. I made the mistake of glancing at the needle on the tray and inadvertently gulped. Nervously anticipating what would come next, I began to wring my hands in my lap. Phyneas stood and came to stand beside me. “Are you okay?” he asked. I nodded and answered, “I have a strong aversion to the sight of blood, that’s all.”

“Here, hold my hand and focus on me.” At Phyneas’ suggestion Sadie dramatically rolled her eyes. “That’s really not necessary,” I said.

“Come on, don’t be stubborn.”

“Fine.” I took ahold of Phyneas’ hand, looked into his friendly face, and immediately felt better. “Thank you,” I muttered.

“That’s a good girl,” he replied with a wink. I followed Sadie’s lead by rolling my eyes, but couldn’t hide an amused smile as I said, “Don’t patronize me.” He chuckled and replied, “I wouldn’t dream of it.”

*

While Phyneas teased me, Sadie wasted no time in pricking my skin with the syringe. The sting of the needle made me suck in air through my teeth. Phyneas’ large hands squeezed mine harder. “Done,” Sadie announced in seconds. I offered a meek smile and said, “Thanks for being so quick.”

“Just doing my job,” she answered coldly. “Wait here. I should have your results in about ten minutes.” She left without giving me a chance to respond, not that I had anything to say.

*

“How are you feeling?” Phyneas asked. He still had a comforting grip on my hands. “My heart’s beating really fast.”

“That’s completely normal,” he assured.

“Can you distract me?”

“I’ll do my best. How about you ask me some questions? You’re new to all this, there must be a lot you want to know.”

“The trouble is, I don’t know where to begin.”

“Begin with me. Ask me anything, even personal questions. Nothing is off the table, so don’t hold back.”

“Okay…” I thought for a second then gestured to his forearm and asked, “What’s with the Alice and Wonderland tattoo?”

“Oh, um… it’s a bit of a long story. As kids my sister and I shared a love of animated movies. Alice and Wonderland was a rare one she hated and I teased her relentlessly. When she graduated the academy, I took her to get her first tattoo. She chose this one for me.”

“You seem like a good brother. Is she your only sibling?”

“I wish,” he muttered, but followed up with. “I’m kidding… sorta. Jasmine’s part of a set. I don’t often see eye to eye with my little brother.”

“Don’t take him for granted. I wish I had a brother to fight with. Or a sister. Beats growing up alone.”

“I’m sorry.” With a shoulder shrug I replied, “I can’t dwell on a past I can’t change.”

*

As we waited for Sadie I considered the events of the day and couldn’t hold back a soft laugh. “What?” Phyneas eyed me curiously. “Nothing, it’s just… I can’t deny I feel a little like Alice at this point.”

“How do you mean?”

“My reality seems to have shifted drastically since I went to sleep last night. I woke up this morning wondering what kind of job I could find. Now I’m in a secret guardian city, waiting for an exceptionally beautiful woman to test my blood and tell me what kind of super powers I have.” He scoffed loudly and replied, “Do me a favor, please don’t say that in front of her. She already thinks way too highly of herself. We cannot afford to keep feeding that ego.”

*

I toyed with a piece of my frayed jeans as I expressed, “She doesn’t seem to like me very much.”

“That’s because she’s jealous,” Phyneas replied assuredly.

“Jealous?” I echoed with surprise.

“Yes. You’ve been apart of our world all of a few hours, yet you’re already the talk of the entire guardian community. She craves that kind of attention, and for a while, she had it.”

“How so?” I asked. Phyneas sighed, as if remembering some unpleasant memory, before he replied, “She is the king’s ex.”

“Oh.”

*

After a brief pause, I couldn’t help asking, “What happened?” When he remained quite for several moments, I followed up with. “Sorry, I shouldn’t have asked. It’s none of my business.”

“I said you could ask anything, didn’t I?”

“About you. I don’t want to get you into trouble for spilling the king’s secrets.”

“It’s hardly a secret. They dated for almost two years. Right up until he discovered her unfaithfulness.”

*

My mouth fell open in surprise. When I recovered, I pointed out, “That’s discouraging. If a king can be cheated on, what hope do the rest of us have?”

“Tell me about it,” he muttered. “And if her betrayal wasn’t bad enough, the manner in which he discovered her disloyalty, was very… public.” I raised my brows with intrigue and Phyneas explained, “During a royal event, he caught her in a compromised position in the backseat of his limousine… with a friend of his.”

“How awful.”

“Yeah. If it were me, I would’ve banished her.”

“Can he do that?”

“He’s the king, of course he can. But he didn’t even dismiss her from her position on the high court.”

“Why do you think he didn’t?”

“For starters, her great uncle is the former king, which makes her a bit of a guardian socialite. And, to be honest, I don’t think Phoenix ever really loved her. I believe he saw her as more of a… placeholder.”

“A placeholder? For who?”

*

Phyneas shifted his weight from one foot to the other, before returning to his previous seat in one of the metal chairs against the wall. I couldn’t begin to guess why a question about other people’s drama would make him uncomfortable. He cleared his throat and finally answered, “Phoenix has always known… the type of woman he’s looking for. He would rather be alone than with the wrong woman. The only reason he began a relationship with Sadie in the first place, was due to outside pressure to choose a companion.”

“A companion?”

“The guardian equivalent of a girlfriend or boyfriend. Anyway, I think he chose her out of convenience. The two of them never quite fit together. That woman is a lot of things, but one thing she’s not is unintelligent. She knew Phoenix viewed her as nothing but a substitution. And Lamond is not the type to settle for second place. It’s probably what led to her betrayal, but you’d have to ask her to know for sure.”

“No, thanks. I don’t need to know everything,” I said to myself as much as Phyneas.

*

I looked at my watch and realized more than ten minutes had passed since Sadie left the room. With every passing minute, I became more anxious. What could be taking so long? I hoped it wasn’t a sign of something wrong with me. Was there such a thing as a defective guardian?

*

“What’s the matter?” Phyneas asked, picking up on my nerves.

“Nothing,” I lied. He’d already gone above and beyond the call of duty. I didn’t want to seem needy. “Ember,” he urged.

“I’m fine,” I responded automatically. He pulled his chair away from the wall, scooting closer to mine. He faced my direction and put a hand on my knee. His touch didn’t feel the least bit invasive, but soothing and kind. “What’s eating at you?”

*

I let my eyes fall to the floor as I searched for an answer. “What if…” I hesitated.

“What if what?” he prompted. My eyes met his again and I let my thoughts come tumbling out. “What if this has all been a big mistake? What if I’m not really a guardian after all? What if I don’t have any abilities? I don’t know if I can go back. I mean, this has all been overwhelming to say the least, but at the same time it feels… right, me being here. I finally feel at home… with my people. I don’t know what I’d do if it turned out I don’t really belong here after all.”

*

Phyneas moved his hand from my knee, taking mine in his as he sent me a sweet smile. “Look, I know we just met,” he said, “but I’d like you to consider me a friend. Can you do that?” I nodded and he went on, “Then as your friend, trust me; you belong here. You are most definitely a guardian. I can feel it.” He gave my hand a reassuring squeeze. “One of my gifts is healing. With this ability I can sense a lot about a person simply by touch. I can feel your heart rate right now, your temperature, even your blood sugar level.”

“How impressively invasive,” I commented.

“True. But my point is, I can feel your guardian DNA coming alive as the tonic works it’s way through your system. And I can tell you for certain, your gifts are strong. So, you can relax. You being here is no mistake.”

“Thanks, Phyneas,” I said with great relief.

“No need to thank me, Emmie.”

*

I chuckled softly at the nickname I hadn’t heard since I was seven years old. “Emmie?” I questioned.

“You agreed to consider us friends. Well, all my friends get nicknames. Sometimes more than one. Get used to it.”

“Should be easy with that one. It’s what my mom used to call me.”

“Oh, I’m sorry. I’ll find something else.”

“No, don’t. It’s… nice actually. Comforting.”

“Okay then, Emmie. Feel free to call me, Phyn.”

“Hmm,” I replied in thought.

“What?”

“I can do better than that.”

“Such as?”

“I’m not sure yet. Give me time, it’ll come to me.” Phyneas chuckled.

*

I tensed when the door opened, but immediately relaxed when I saw Gemma. “I am so sorry, Ember,” she said. “I promised I’d be with you every minute, then turned right around and abandoned you.”

“It’s fine, Gemma, really. Besides, Phyn has been great.” She looked from me to him as she said, “Phyn huh? You two sure bonded quick.”

“We did,” Phyn responded matter-of-factly. As he stood and slid his chair back to its place against the wall he asked Gemma, “What did His Majesty want that kept you so busy?”

“I’m sure you already know,” she replied, before she looked at me and said, “I didn’t miss your results, did I?”

“No, we’re still waiting on the ice queen,” Phyn informed her.

*

Seconds later, the beauty in question finally returned. Phyneas gave her a displeased look as he curtly said, “It’s about time, Lamond.” I suspected if Phyneas gave all his friends nicknames, calling Sadie by her surname, was a spurn. She glowered at him, before turning to me with an expressionless face. “Do you want him here for this?”

“Is it bad news?” I asked with sudden apprehension.

“It’s neither bad nor good, it’s just news.”

“Out with it, blondie.” Phyneas demanded. “We both know I’m not going anywhere.” When I gave no objection, she conceded. “Fine.”

*

Sadie opened the folder in her hands and read, “Ember Anne Ellison… class five.”

“Holy crap,” Phyneas blurted out.

“Is that bad?” I needed to know.

“No, the opposite,” Gemma assured me with a smile. “You have the most abilities a guardian can have. What are they, Sadie?”

“Her dominant ability was inconclusive. It happens sometimes when a guardian possesses many abilities. It takes time for one to stand out.”

“Quit dragging it out,” Phyneas snapped.

“Do you want to do my job?”

“No, I want you to.”

“Phyneas, shut up and let Sadie speak,” Gemma rebuked.

*

Sadie looked back to the folder and continued, “As I was saying, because you have many abilities, it will take time to determine which are the strongest. However, yours include, telekinesis, cloaking, healing, truth, and empathy.”

“You are an empath, cousin! Like me!” Gemma exclaimed.

“And a healer, like me,” Phyneas added proudly.

“Yes, yes, and I have a truth ability,” Sadie commented, rolling her eyes, “There were bound to be commonalities. It’s a statistical probability, nothing special.”

“Don’t listen to her,” Phyneas told me. “It’s fantastic!” Sadie gave a look of disapproval and turned her attention back to me as she said, “The king is expecting my report. Do you have any questions?”

“We can take it from here, Sadie,” Gemma answered for me.

“I doubt that, but suit yourself.”

*

After Sadie departed, Gemma and Phyneas wrapped me in my first group hug. The confirmation alone of my guardian genes made my heart swell. The abilities themselves weren’t important. My new friends’ reaction is what had me grinning.

*

“Congratulations, Ember!” Gemma expressed.

“How do you feel now, Emmie?” Phyneas wanted to know.

“Like I’m dreaming, but better. Although, my heart’s still beating like a hummingbird’s.”

“Eating will help,” Phyneas suggested. “Let’s go get some food. My treat.”

“Ooh, you’re speaking my language,” I replied happily, before getting to my feet. I’d only taken a single step toward the door when my vision blurred. Arms surrounded me the moment my legs gave out and everything went black.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Author’s note:

Sorry this chapter is on the short side. I really don’t pay attention to word count when I write. Where I decide to end a chapter has to do with where the story best breaks as well as when I need to switch POV.

Thanks for understanding!

*

Chapter 6 coming Sunday at 9am cst (January 8th if you’re in the Western Hemisphere)

~E. K.