The Power of a Few

I Will Protect You ~ 7

   I'm a Guardian, Sree thought.

   It had been several days since her... episode, but the fact that she was part of a group of ancient warriors hadn't settled in yet. Why her? Why not her sister Myra? She was the one who sacrificed herself helping others, not Sree. Sree was always the quiet one. The one who stayed home. The hushed, shy daughter.

   God, why me? She prayed, silently. Longing for an answer.

   Nothing.
   No answer.
   No reassuring voice.
   No blinding celestial light.
   No deafening thunder booming across the sky proclaiming the specificity of why God had singled her out of literally thousands of other individuals.
   Nothing.
   Sree sighed, slightly disappointed. She knew loud, obvious signs weren't how God spoke, but she still prayed for an answer.

   The past several days had flown by in a rushing blur. Myra, their father, and Sree hiked over dozens of hills at the start of their departure from Erarld. Their father wanted to arrive at this mysterious Urih as soon as possible, so they spent the whole day strolling across the low grasslands of the Southern Isle. They took breaks, but not long ones. The next night they ate and rested. Dawn woke them up to another day of their arduous journey, and so they continued. Each day they repeated that cycle. Walk. Eat. Walk. Sleep. Walk.
Sree didn't mind the work, it provided her order and peace amidst the chaos that had become her life, but it all passed by in painful silence. Even though she usually enjoyed the quiet, the perpetual ignorance of her father infuriated her. He hadn't said a single word about that night. No explanation of what had happened to her. Each day of their journey she thought he would explain the bizarre event, but he said nothing.

   She glanced back at Myra, who seemed lost in her thoughts too. Sree, deciding not to interrupt her sister, strode up to her father. She would get answers even if she had to beg for them.

   Striding ahead of him, she placed herself directly in his path, turned to face him, and stood with her hands on her hips. She stared up at him, her eyes telling him she wouldn't budge. He looked down at her and groaned.

"Well. I knew this was coming."

   She didn't break eye contact.

"Ok. Emergency family meeting," he hollered to Myra. Her eyes perked up, and she hurried over and plopped on the ground, staring up Sree and their father. She patted the ground beside her and the two followed suit.

"So..." Myra said, breaking the silence, "Um... family meeting... huh?"

   Sree continued staring, her arms now crossed. Her father opened his mouth to speak, but she beat him to it.

   "You're a Guardian?! I'm a Guardian?! What happened back at the house, what's so special about this 'Urih' place, and who was that woman in my dream?"

   He sighed, "Well... she warned me this would not be easy."

   "Who did?"

   He leaned back on his palms, gazing up at the few clouds that glided on the blue sky.
"Your mother."

   Our mother? Sree glanced at Myra who looked equally perplexed.

   "She knew about... you?" Myra asked. "Your powers?"

   Their father sat up and looked at Myra."When your mother and I got married, we made a promise to never keep secrets from each other. So yes, I told her." His eyes glazed over, as if lost past, "She didn't believe me at first, the story of the Guardians had faded away long before our time, but eventually, she came around."

   "Didn't you ever use your gift?" Sree asked, bringing her father back to the present. "To convince her?"

   His eyes darkened. "When I was a boy, I had vowed to never use my gift ever again." His eyes fell to the ground as they filled with grief. "But after your mother's death... I made another vow. I promised to protect both of you two at any cost." He looked up at his two daughters and they saw the fatherly love in his eyes, burning like fire, ready to scourge anything that would harm them.