The Broken Council (The Guardian Chronicles 1) by Steven R. Burke Page A

from behind them and lifted them into
the air.   They hung suspended right in
front of Kana.   They had a brief moment
of terror rush through them, and then all at once they were at peace.   The guardian smiled pleasantly at her guests
as though this unwanted suspension should have been expected.   Once they felt comfortable again, they both
carefully put up mental barriers.   It was
never wise to lower them for too long, regardless of whose company you were
in.   Yukio worried that he may have kept
them down for a moment too long, so he employed his strongest barrier in the
form of a mind mirror.   This is basic in
what it does; however, it requires vast amounts of energy and skill to
employ.   He quickly searched for an alien
presence in his mind and found none there.   He breathed a sigh of relief.   She must trust us .   Yukio felt a pang of uneasiness at this
thought.
    “You
are here at my request,” Kana stated without wasting another moment.   “I have seen your destinies, and they are
intertwined with one another and with the elves.”   Her voice was smooth and yet intense at the
same time.   It mesmerized the pair to the
point of total submission.   A glazed look
came over their eyes, and their minds were blissfully at ease and defenseless
once more.   She told them many things and
spoke, at times, in a language not familiar to them.   They reached a point where they were aware
again after what seemed to be hours of listening to the guardian.   The elemental had released her control over
their minds so that they would remember this part of their meeting on a
conscience level.
    “It
is clear that you two are to be united as elf and man.   Your union will be the catalyst for saving
the elves from annihilation.   Also, new
friendships will be formed between races that were once enemies,” the tall
guardian stated confidently.   She seemed
to be glowing now as they looked at her.   They simply could not take their eyes off her. They began to panic again
at their lack of control.   She spoke some
more words they did not understand and cringed at the power they had when she
uttered them.   As she was speaking,
clouds formed overhead and freezing rain began to fall.   This apparently symbolized the washing away
of their previous lives and the beginning of their new ones as her servants.
    After
a few minutes of rain the clouds dispersed and the sun high in the sky hit them
with full, blinding force once more.   The
chill that had their bodies shaking immediately vanished.   They felt oddly cleansed and renewed after freezing
rain.   They did not know that this elemental
had broken the laws of the guardians by intervening in lesser beings’ lives and
by commanding an element that she did not have stewardship over.   She had used her command of the winds to
bring the storm clouds to their location to do her bidding even though she
should not command water in any form.   As
soon as her servants were cleansed, she commanded the wind to remove the clouds
to their previous position.   Then she
commanded the heat of the sun to dry and solidify the change she had wrought in
these two unlikely partners.
    “You
two are now bound together forever.   No
one can break the bond that has been created here today,” she said with a
commanding voice.   “Your mission is to
bring the elves that see the truth of things to this place to begin building
their new home.   They will be blessed by
the guardians for following their chosen servants.”   She spoke in a way that led them to believe
that she represented the guardian council.
    “We
will do as you have asked,” replied Yukio and Kira in unison.
    “Good.   Now is the time to do the work of the
guardians and to prove your loyalty to our cause,” Kana said with a smile.   At this point, it was unclear what she meant
by this statement.   The couple smiled
back at their new master while peace filled their souls.   They felt as though they were