Eleanor's gaze drifted to the pristine Guardian uniform draped over a nearby chair. The black fabric seemed to absorb the light, the gold 'Z' on the sleeve glinting softly. Last night, the Commander's booming words echoed in her mind: "Guardian Rank." Then, the piercing stares of the Ascendants, especially Lucy's scrutinizing silver gaze, followed by the chilling, undeniable wave of pure evil that had washed over her. It wasn't a voice she heard, but the feeling was as clear and stark as any shouted death threat: Mariam, the Grand Goddess, knew her name now, and wanted her dead.
A shiver, not of fear but of cold resolve, traced its way down Eleanor's spine. The Phantom Warden had been a test. A brutal, nearly fatal one, but still just a test. What came next would be the actual exam, and she knew she wouldn't be allowed any retakes. She pressed a hand to her chest; her heart beat a steady, rhythmic drum. This was real now. No more practice fights in training. No more easy scouting missions. The gloves were off.
She pulled on the dark robe. The fabric felt light but incredibly strong, like woven shadow. It now felt like a second skin, molded to her very being. As she tied the belt, her axe settled comfortably on her hip, the cold metal a familiar comfort against her palm. She stood before the mirror. It wasn't just Eleanor staring back. It was Eleanor, the Guardian.
Eleanor stepped out into the gleaming hall. Guardians moved with purpose, their faces serious, a strong feeling of urgency filling the air. Whispers followed them like persistent shadows: "missing scouts," "weird disappearances," "strange magic." She spotted Meredith waiting near the grand archway of the main hall, already dressed in her own long Guardian robes, looking as if she'd woken up ready to conquer a small nation.
"There you are, Eleanor. Ready for your first day as a real Guardian?" Meredith's voice had an odd lilt, as if she were holding back a smirk.
"Pretty much," Eleanor replied, trying to sound as casual as possible, despite the butterflies doing acrobatics in her stomach.
"Commander Aldric wants to brief us on some new strange events," Meredith said quietly, her expression sobering. "Think of it like learning the plan-making aspect of warfare."
Eleanor gave her a look. "Plan-making? I thought we fought gods."
"We do," Meredith answered, a small, knowing smirk finally breaking through her serious face. "But not without a plan, you doofus." She paused, her gaze softening for a rare moment. "You did great yesterday. Better than most. Just remember what the Warden said. And what Mariam sent. This isn't just about strength anymore. It's about knowing who you're fighting."
Meanwhile, across the vibrant city, in a bright, bustling outdoor restaurant, Gail Valtheris was indulging in a truly epic breakfast. Plates overflowing with impossibly delicate pastries, shimmering fresh fruit, and steaming, aromatic tea covered her table like a glorious edible landscape. She took a blissful bite of a perfectly airy soufflé, a contented hum escaping her lips.
Thump!
A flash of white streaked from the sky. A messenger hawk, bearing a small Zenith Guard message tied to its leg, landed with an unceremonious thump right on her table, sending crumbs scattering like startled snowflakes. The hawk puffed out its chest, looking entirely too smug for having just violated a perfectly good breakfast.
Gail picked up the message with a dramatic flourish. Her eyes, usually sparkling with mischief, quickly scanned the brief note. Then, her face lit up like a supernova. Her wide smile stretched even wider, threatening to split her face.
"OH HELL YEAH! FINALLY! ANOTHER MISSION!" Gail shrieked, leaping from her seat so fast her chair toppled over with a clatter. She slapped a handful of glittering coins onto the table, barely glancing at her half-eaten feast. "Keep the change, you amazing establishment!"
With a loud, joyous whoop, she burst out of the restaurant, the Black-haired angel quickly took flight, soaring straight towards the Zenith Guard building with the enthusiasm of a puppy unleashed in a park.
The briefing room, while smaller than the vast Ascendant chamber, still gave off an aura of cool efficiency. A huge map of the Angel Realm shimmered in the center of the room, marked with markers that indicated... well, Eleanor assumed they indicated bad things. She saw Zak, Katya, and Theo already there, looking a little out of place amidst the older, more seasoned Guardians, like newly hatched chicks in a flock of battle-hardened eagles.
"Eleanor! Guardian! You look good!" Theo grinned, waving enthusiastically, almost knocking over a lamp.
Katya merely offered a quick, almost unnoticeable nod, but Eleanor caught the flicker of grudging respect in her eyes. Zak, as always, gave her a calm, steady smile, the kind that made you feel like everything was going to be alright. "Congrats, Eleanor. Good to see you here."
"Thanks guys," Eleanor said. "So which Ascendant did you guys get?"
CLACK!
A loud, decisive sound echoed from the entrance. Everyone's heads whipped around simultaneously. Gail Valtheris, the Ice Ascendant, burst in, her royal blue coat seeming to glow with an inner light. Her long, black hair cascaded behind her like a shimmering, shiny waterfall, impossibly adorned with glittering ice crystals that caught the light. She strode in proudly, chin held high, radiating an aura of confident glee. She looked impeccably neat, impossibly beautiful, and wildly, exuberantly excited.
"Alright, listen you four!" Gail's voice boomed, directed squarely at Eleanor, Zak, Katya, and Theo. "I've got some important news to share."
From the front of the room, Commander Aldric let out a soft, almost unnoticeable sigh, the kind of sigh that said, "Oh, not this again."
Gail, unaware, placed a hand dramatically over her chest and continued, "First and most important! I... Gail Valtheris, the most Fabulous, Gorgeous, Most Powerful Angel in the world will accompany you on this mission!"
Meredith looked at her, one eyebrow twitching with barely concealed annoyance. "Could you get your stupid little head out of the clouds, then?"
Gail gasped, clutching her heart as if Meredith had just proposed building a house out of puppies. "WHAT?!"
Commander Aldric stepped in, his voice firm but laced with a hint of tired amusement. "Alright, alright. Everyone, please listen. This is serious."
The room fell silent instantly, all eyes turning to the Commander.
"As Gail was so clearly attempting to explain," Aldric said, a dry sarcasm coating his words as he shot a pointed look at the beaming Ice Ascendant, "we've detected new patterns emerging. Isolated incidents. Alone, they might seem unimportant. But together, they point to something far more sinister, something truly evil."
He gestured to the holographic map. "Over the last three days: Several angel scout teams have vanished without a trace near the Whispering Wilds. No distress calls. Just silence. And in a village further North, particularly Oakhaven, we've received chilling reports of residents disappearing overnight, leaving behind truly horrific scenes."
Eleanor felt a cold knot tighten in her stomach. "Horrific scenes?"
Gail's expression darkened, all humor instantly drained from her features. "The villagers weren't just killed," she said, her voice chillingly devoid of its usual cheer. "Their bodies were attached to the buildings. Melded into walls like grotesque decorations. Some were hanging out of windows, half-merged with the wood. Others were sprawled across the floors, skin fused into the very floorboards. No blood. Just sheer horror. Like the entire village had been turned into a living, macabre exhibit."
A hushed murmur, a collective shiver of unease, rippled through the room.
"This isn't typical Black Angel behavior," Aldric continued, his gaze sweeping over the assembled Guardians. "It's too precise. Too artistic in its depravity. We believe this is the work of Mariam's Heralds. Their first probing attacks, designed to disrupt and demoralize."
Meredith stepped forward, her resolve strong. "We're assembling immediate response teams to investigate. Gail and I will lead. Eleanor, you're with us." She then looked at Zak, Katya, and Theo. "You three should come too; we could use the extra hands for this."
Theo punched a fist in the air, a wide grin splitting his face. "Aw yeah! Now we're talking!"
Zak raised an eyebrow at Theo, a look of weary amusement on his face. "You know we're about to fight demigods, right?"
Katya scoffed, her eyes darting towards Eleanor. "Whatever. I'll make sure to cut 'em down before Sunshine does."
Eleanor shot her a sharp look, a flash of her Sunfire temper. "This is a mission, not a race, you moron."
Katya stared at her for a beat, her usual confidence giving way to a flicker of genuine challenge. Then she gritted her teeth, a determined glint in her eyes. "Like I said. I'm gonna surpass you, Sun Angel."
Aldric stepped in again, gracefully placing himself between the two, an aura of tired authority settling around him. "Alright, everyone. Let's all try to coexist, shall we?" He turned to Gail and Meredith. "Watch these young ones. Make sure they don't do anything reckless, especially the blonde one." He subtly, almost unnoticeably, indicated Katya with his eyes.
Katya let out a frustrated huff but bit back any retort, crossing her arms and looking pointedly annoyed. Zak, the ever so calming presence, placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder, which seemed to calm her down slightly.
"Our primary objective right now is the Whispering Wilds," Gail stated, her voice suddenly sharp and focused, all her previous showmanship vanished. "Ziza, the Beast Herald, is the most likely culprit for the missing scouts. Her hunting patterns are animal-like, predictable." She looked back at the map, a strange, almost personal gleam in her icy eyes. "But keep your eyes open for Carna's work in that Northern village. She's far less predictable, and far more horrifying. Honestly, a shame for anything beautiful."
They departed within the hour. The air was cool and crisp as they soared above the Angel Realm, the distance dissolving quickly beneath Eleanor's powerful wings. Speed was key; they needed to reach their destinations before the Heralds could inflict further damage. Eleanor flew alongside Meredith and Gail, a formidable front line, with Zak, Katya, and Theo forming a tight, focused group close behind.
The Whispering Wilds lived up to its name. Ancient trees, so colossal their tops disappeared into the clouds, cast deep, oppressive shadows. The ground was a chaotic tangle of roots and damp earth, perpetually steeped in a dim, unnatural twilight. The only sounds were the hushed rustle of unseen creatures and the faint, unsettling whisper of the wind through the leaves. It felt less like a forest and more like the living, breathing mouth of some colossal beast.
"Stay alert," Meredith murmured, her hand resting on the hilt of her blade, her senses keenly aware of their surroundings. "Even without a Herald, this place is dangerous."
Gail drifted ahead, moving with silent, predatory grace. She stopped in a small clearing, her eyes sweeping over the disturbed ground. "Here. Fresh tracks. Too large for any known animal. And..." She pointed to some torn moss. "Not quite a paw print. More like a heavy claw mark, dragging."
Eleanor knelt to examine the earth. The moss was ripped, the soil beneath heavily compacted, as if something immense had been dragged across it. A faint, musky scent hung in the air, alien and disturbing, unlike anything from the natural forest.
"Missing scout's bag," Theo reported, pointing to an old leather satchel caught in a nearby bush. It was ripped open, its contents strewn, but strangely, there was no blood.
"Clean," Katya muttered, her eyes darting around the dense trees, a frown on her face. "A bit too clean though. Something feels wrong."
Zak picked up a small, ornate compass, its glass cracked. "This belongs to Scout Seraphina. She was part of the last team that went missing."
Suddenly, a loud, sharp CRACK! echoed from deeper within the woods. It sounded like a massive tree branch snapping under an unbearable weight. Then, a low, guttural growl vibrated through the very ground beneath their feet.
Gail's eyes narrowed, a cold glint appearing in their depths. "She's here. And she's hunting."
Eleanor gripped her axe, the familiar warmth of Sunfire already blooming on her skin. The whispers of the forest seemed to intensify, no longer just the wind, but the distinct feeling of unseen eyes watching them, measuring them. This wasn't just a mission. This was the opening move of a war, and they were standing on the front lines.