GUARDIANS

Episode One: Awakening

Chapter Two

Drake woke up slowly and groggily the next morning. He was lying on his back looking up at the ceiling blankly. Everything was swimming. He closed his eyes tightly and opened them again. His vision was still blurry but that would clear up in a few seconds - at least everything was staying in the right place this time. Drake could smell coffee. Badly made though it was, it was perfectly recognisable. Odin was here; kid never could make a decent cup of coffee. Drake touched his stomach and smiled when he felt bandages, with a bit of luck this would be the time and he'd be seriously hurt, maybe even mortally wounded.

He sat up and ripped the bandages off, looking down. Nothing, not a scratch. He groaned loudly and fell back down on the bed. "Shit," he sighed, "why can't I just die, just once?!"

"You're alive, live with it." Odin taunted. "What I wouldn't give to heal as quickly as you do man. Sure beats the hell out of telekinesis and mind-reading. You take a knife in the stomach and wake up all healthy and good to go, all I can do is move objects with my mind and will you please stop thinking that I should shut up?"

Drake winced, he hated when Odin done that. "I'll think whatever the hell I want, don't forget who's Batman around here, Boy Wonder." Odin smiled. He was a new Guardian, and he'd been put under Drake's command for the moment. Which meant that in effect he was a sidekick until he was ready to fly solo. He was a punk, his baggy clothes were testament to that. He was also a powerful telepath, a power which, despite his whining, he adored - although not as much moving objects with his mind.

"Hon Shun wants to see you, Gabe." Odin stated matter-of-factly.

"Not until I've had a shower, a change of clothes and some breakfast." Just at that, Drake felt the alcohol from the previous night lurch in his stomach. "On second thought," he said, rolling out of bed towards the bathroom, "let's skip breakfast."

- After breakfast -

Hon Shun was looking good for a monk of over 300 years. He had a few wrinkles and the occasional grey hair, but no one could accuse the ageless Guardian leader of being out of shape. He wasn't the tallest or bulkiest, but he maintained an athletic air and a confidence in his own finely honed fighting abilities. He was sitting cross-legged at a low table, a small cup placed on a saucer in front of him and a tea-pot close at hand. Drake knew that the ceremony of drinking tea was revered by Hon Shun and practised religiously so he sat cross-legged on the other side of the table and waited for the tea to be sipped. When the old man had finally finished his ritual he closed his eyes; savouring the silence for a moment. Drake patiently waited it out.

"Did you sleep well, my son?" The slight cocking of the monk's head made Drake smile as he watched Hon Shun study him. He knew that the monk had highly developed telepathic powers - much more so than Odin, who appeared to consider his ripening abilities something of a toy at times. Despite this, Hon Shun followed a strict moral code, particularly with regard to telepathy. The deeply spiritual man would never use his powers in an unethical fashion. He would not pry.

"Like a log," Drake lowered his head, "But not well enough..." He said flatly.

"You rush to death, reckless and inviting it at every opportunity… But each time you invite such things… You receive only the heartache of knowing it will not transpire." Hon Shun's face seemed to age suddenly. A shadow fell over him as though a great weight had been placed on his shoulders. He cared deeply for Drake, perhaps more so than any who had gone before him. There was certainly something different about him, something special; something so much more than simply his unique powers. Gabriel Drake was an extraordinary man, on the verge of a feat more extraordinary than any man before him. Hon Shun could sense this much the moment he met him. He felt it more each time they met; and he had seen it. The Guardian master's sleep was often interrupted by powerful visions and he had learned to partially interpret the things he dreamed. There was no doubt that Drake's role in the events which would come to pass was to be prominent. The shadow passed over the monk as he took a long, calming breath. "Why do you wish to throw it all away my student?"

"Why am I here?" Drake had asked himself this question many times since his wife's death. Never once had he come to understand his place in the constant power struggle of good vs evil. If Hon Shun received visions of Drake's potential power, or the things that he would do, he kept them to himself. "What's the point? What is my purpose?"

"You should always learn that with life comes wisdom and with that wisdom comes the courage to live your life selflessly. You are a Guardian, Gabriel, a protector of this world, this universe.

"You bear a heavy burden, a burden which has been laid upon you because of your worth as a human being…" The monk hesitated to share more. The visions had been coming more frequently now, and the images were stronger than ever before. "There is a great darkness about to fall on the universe, Gabriel. It is our duty to protect the light."

"What do you mean?" Drake lowered his eyes, and then fixed his gaze back on Hon Shun.

"… And they have the power to turn the waters into blood and to strike Earth with any kind of plague any time they want..." Hon Shun's face was etched with concern.

"Revelations… But I don't understand…"

"Gabriel…" Hon Shun struggled to explain. Much of what he saw was not certain, and despite his wisdom he did not know how much to tell his student. "The weeks to follow will see our universe plunge into chaos... fear, misery… evil will take hold, and its grip will be strong. But the light must be stronger and shine through. The people of this world will need hope, Gabriel. That is why you are here, that is your purpose; to give them hope and fight against the dark. A storm approaches my friend, I hear its bitter cries in the distance..."

"How can I do these things you speak of... I am weak… I am not special!"

"Blessed is he whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered, whose sin the Lord does not count against him, and in whose spirit there is no deceit!" Hon Shun smiled. "Gabriel Drake... you are special!

"What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us and in the time to follow, you will learn what is within you.

"But you cannot fight this battle alone, none of us could. That is why I wished to see you... I am calling the Awakening!" Again, the monk smiled a little and Drake listened even more attentively. The Awakening was an extremely rare action, almost mythical in its existence. It was the summoning of all Guardians; an act totally unheard of, certainly in modern times. "Your Guardian brothers are spread throughout the galaxies, Gabriel… The time has come to bring them all together; a task I entrust to you. I summon you all to me in this time of need!" Hon Shun continued smiling at Drake for a moment before his eyes slowly closed over and he drifted off into a peaceful sleep.

Drake ran his hand through his hair; many questions raced through his head, far outnumbering the answers. For now, however, he was content to carry out his master's instructions. At least for the moment, Gabriel Drake had a purpose. To find and unite his brothers.

- The Hills of Geberach, Ghartaria -

- Homeworld of the Guaranzen race -

- Later -

The Guaranzen people were a fierce race, a warrior nation far more aggressive in their approach than the contemplative Varquesse. They were a mighty military power, and had the potential to be so much stronger if they set aside their differences with the neighbouring planet of Chickaaria. The planets were currently balancing on a knife-edge between uneasy peace and all-out hostility. They had declared war on each other countless times, requiring only a minor spark to incite years of conflict. But Drake was not on Ghartaria to concern himself with current Guaranzen and Chickaarian diplomacy. He was in search of a Guardian.

The 'Hills of Geberach' were in fact a vast mountain range spanning several hundred miles of land; their title failed to do them any justice. The spectacular rocky peaks seemed to reach towards the heavens. Drake had been climbing for an hour; his naked upper body was covered in a sheen of perspiration.

Drake was by no means a giant man, although at six feet he was not short either. He was, however, incredibly well defined. He jammed his hand into a crack in the rock and made a fist, holding himself in place. He wiped the sweat-soaked fringe of his black hair with his free hand as he allowed himself to hang for a moment, letting his aching legs rest and sending his gaze upwards. He was near his goal, a flattening on the mountain where he knew he would find the man he was looking for.

If he rested any longer it would be dangerous, he knew he had to push on before his body lost the will to move any higher. With a grunt he forced himself to continue and he surged upwards again. When he reached his destination he pulled himself over the cliff edge and collapsed on the ground. Sitting perhaps fifty metres from him was a lone figure. He was sitting with his legs crossed and his eyes closed. The four suns of the Guaranzen homeworld meant that there was no night as humans knew it. Light was constant all year round and Guaranzens had developed in such a way that sleep was alien to them. Sunlight glinted off of the creature's blazing orange hair, tied back neatly in a pony tail, and shimmered on its vast, olive-coloured upper body. Like Jax, each muscle was honed and toned to perfection. Drake spent a moment marvelling at the impressive figure before him, taking time to run his eyes along the countless scars which covered the alien's body. One particularly caught his attention. It ran from the right side of the Guaranzen's neck right down to its left side.

"It is rude to stare brother!" The voice was deep and resonating. Drake was not expecting it and jumped slightly as it rumbled around him. Slowly, the alien opened his eyes and looked upon Drake. The fiery orange eyes were perfectly clear and glinted as he opened them.

"I was not staring… I was marvelling, Ach Caar!" Drake pushed himself into a sitting position. Caar chuckled softly at the human's use of 'Ach', a Guaranzen title and term of respect.

"Well, it is apparent that you did not climb all the way up here to marvel…" Caar was never one to beat about the bush, and he got straight to the point every time. "So tell me, what brings you here?"

"Blunt as ever," Drake nodded, "I will extend you the same courtesy. I am here to summon you… Hon Shun has called the Awakening!" Caar raised one of his bushy orange eyebrows.

"Curious..." He stated simply.

"How so?" Drake asked.

"I am curious to our mission… Few threats require so many of us."

"All will be revealed soon enough..." Drake grinned, he knew that the Guaranzen would now be eager to depart, "Are you ready to leave?"

"Let me gather my belongings!" Caar picked up his shirt and tied it around his waist. "Now I am ready to leave!" Both men chuckled. "Now, about the way down..." Caar shot to his feet and in a fraction of a second he had covered the ground between himself and Drake. He grabbed the man in his two great arms and launched himself off the mountain side with Drake in tow. The wind tore into Drake's face as the ground rushed up to meet him. Suddenly, he felt Caar's body tense as two great wings unfolded from the alien's back. With a shudder, the wings powered forward and they soared high into the air. With a sigh, Drake realised that if his ability was quite so noticeable, he would probably not have seen his 31st birthday. Fortunately for Caar, Earth's prejudice against evolution was not yet reflected everywhere.