******Warning: I made myself cry writing this chapter******

Myamar Vison

18 years ago………..

Myamar Vison was a slight boy. He weighed 105lbs, soaking wet, and stood only 5’ 3and1/2inches tall at the age of 14. He had fiery red hair and the most beautiful green eyes. His father and 2 brothers, on the other hand, were built like gladiators. All 3 had jet black hair. His father, James, was 6’1 and 200lbs. The youngest of his older brothers, Jason, at age 15, was 6’0 already. His eldest brother, Ryan, was 6’2 at 17. Both were around 170lbs. Myamar had a different mother than his brothers. His father never said for certain, but would hint that he had an affair with a Sprite.

A Sprite in Freguard wasn’t tiny like the myths in Learity. Sprites looked like winged elves, except that Sprites were always incredibly beautiful females. They were very powerful magic users and usually picked Elvin men to mate with, taking the girls to raise as Sprites. They would leave the boys for the Elvin men to raise. Most Elvin men preferred Elvin woman, though. Sprite/Elf relationships were usually considered taboo.

Because of the way Myamar looked, his father and brothers were all convinced that he was what they called in Freguard, a bit of a “Fancy boy”. He thought that was a bit ridiculous, considering he was too young to have feelings for anyone, as far as he was concerned. Though, that meant that he couldn’t be certain that they were wrong, either. He didn’t tell them that, of course. His brothers nicknamed him “Sprite-ling”, which in their eyes meant “little girl”. They all treated him that way, in a sense, also. He didn’t tell them that his nickname secretly pleased him, either. His father even joked about wondering why they left one of their Sprite-lings behind. Myamar cooked, cleaned, and laundered for them. According to them, it was all his fragile little frame was meant to handle. He played the victim a tad bit. Only because he did not want them to know that he actually liked not working in the field all day.

Myamar had another secret, also. He was completely infatuated with magic. Magic was for girls. Everyone knew that, but he didn’t care. He could sense it all around him. He could almost…….touch it. As a boy though, he couldn’t. That made him a little sad.

Today though, his secret was discovered. He hadn’t even heard his dad and brothers come in from the fields. Myamar was hunched over a magic book, as usual. When his father saw, he let out a growl. Myamar turned in fear and surprise.

“Ffff..Father…I….I….I dddid not hear you come in.” stammered Myamar.

James looked upon his son in disgust. Then he grabbed Myamar roughly by the collar and said, “I knew you were “Fancy”. I just let it go because I couldn’t be sure. Now I can. There is no place for you here, “Fancy Boy!” James finished in a shout as he dragged Myamar out the front door.

“No! Dad, please. Who will wash your clothes and cook your meals?” Myamar said in a panic, realizing he had nowhere to go.

“That is no longer your concern, stranger. You are NOT a Vison any longer!” James declared as Ryan and Jason snickered in the background.

Those were the last things Myamar would hear from his family for a very long time.

Casterfell was roughly 20 miles away. It was the closest place, really the only place that Myamar could think to go. It took him the rest of the day and part of the next of travelling before he arrived. The city was huge to a farm boy. Lots of comings and goings. The excitement of a big town was magnificent to Myamar. Though he was heartbroken over his family, he couldn’t help being so excited about exploring this spectacle called Casterfell. First though, he needed rest. He found a shaded area near the banks of the river, and slept.

3 months later………

Myamar was giggling loudly as he hopped from roof to roof. He was racing Henry again. He didn’t know why. Henry always won, but Myamar didn’t care. It was fun just being with Henry. Henry was a medium sized, well built, boy at age16. He had light brown hair and Hazel/gold eyes. Myamar could stare in his eyes forever. Not that he would ever dare tell that to Henry. 3 months ago Henry had found Myamar huddling in an alley, soaked and shivering in the pouring rain.

“Hey there. You know, they say there is a chance it might rain tonight.” He said as he smiled down at a shivering Myamar. He continued with, “Come on let’s get you dry and warm, sweetie.” mistaking Myamar for a girl.

Myamar told him the truth, of course, just not till he was dry and warm. Henry was surprised, at first, but it didn’t matter to him. Even if Myamar had looked like a boy, he would have still rescued the poor little drowned mouse.

Henry lived in the ruins near the river. There were a few old structures that were still mostly intact. He was able to fish and forage, being close to a water source. He also had a few odd jobs that fetched a few copper here and there. Over the next few months Henry taught Myamar how to thrive in the big city. They got close. Perhaps too close.

“Dang it! You won again, you cheater!” Myamar declared giggling

“Bah, I didn’t cheat. You just have tiny legs.” He remarked with a chuckle.

That night was when things became complicated. They were lying down, huddled together by the fire, Henry behind Myamar, keeping his back warm. Myamar turned and locked eyes with Henry, perhaps staring a bit too long before saying, “Umm…Henry?” he whispered and continued with, “Is that your…… “Myamar said, too embarrassed to continue.

“Sorry.” He whispered back. “Sometimes, in the light of the fire, you are just so damn pretty. I guess that I forget sometimes and so does….uh…you know, my hormones.” He finished uncomfortably.

Truthfully, Myamar was quite flattered. Henry was such a sweet, handsome boy, and Myamar was beginning to think that his father might have been sort of right about him. Maybe Myamar was “Fancy”.

“It….It’s ok, really. I……I understand. It’s ok…you know….if you like me in that way.” Myamar got out barely.

“No! It’s not, Mya. I like you, but you are a boy and so am I. You know how things are in Freguard, Mya. From what your father did to you, I’d say that you know better than anyone.” He finished with a regrettable sigh.

“I…..um…” Myamar started to say before Henry cut him off with, “Mya, as much as you like magic, with your personality, have you ever….uh…you know….. uh….thought about just….uh…..you know…..becoming a….uh………girl? You could learn magic…..and well…uh…we could….well you know…..be together.” He finished in a whisper.

Of course Mya had. Sometimes it was all he could think about. He’d go to sleep at night thinking about being an all powerful sorceress for hire and Henry would be Myamars white knight, who would travel with her on her adventures, protecting her from snakes and spiders. “Uh….well…yea I guess, sometimes, but wishing won’t get us anywhere, Henry. I can’t change who I am.” Myamar stated, with certainty.

“Uh…well that’s not entirely true, Mya. With enough money, there are potions that could change you. You’d have to be sure, though. It would be irreversible. It would change you, and then you would become immune to any future transmutation potions or spells, in effect, making it irreversible.” informed Henry.

“I….I know.” Mya said, a little guiltily before finishing with, “I went to see alchemist. It’s hopeless though. 100 gold for the potion, Henry. There is no way that we could come up with that.” said Myamar, sadly.

“Look at me, Mya.” said Henry.

“O….ok.” countered Myamar.

“Do you want to be my girl? Now be very sure about your answer.” He warned.

“Yes.” Myamar whispered.

“What was that? I couldn’t hear you.” He had heard but wanted to hear it louder.

“YES! More than anything I want to be a girl….your girl!” exclaimed Myamar.

“Then we will get the money we need.” He insisted.

Myamar rushed into his arms, crying in happiness he looked up and said, “Promise?”

“On my life, Mya.” He swore.

Henry had a plan. He knew some men that needed his skills in climbing. He’d actually turned them down twice. He liked his life with Mya and didn’t want to screw up a good thing, being as this job would be very dangerous. That was before he found out Mya felt the same way for him that he secretly had felt for Mya. The job would pay 500 gold split 3 ways with 10% cut off the top to pay for the bribes it took to get the info for the job. He’d walk away with 150 gold. They could get Mya his ……no HER potion and still have plenty to travel and have adventures with.

The two men were happy to hear he had changed his mind. They would do the job in 2 days. All Henry had to do was travel the roof tops till he arrived at the target building. He would then slide down the roof, dangle by his hands on the edge, and swing in to the ledge just below. He would then scoot along to the window located 5 feet in. He’d then open it by any means necessary, preferably the quietest, and head in to unlock the door for the other 2 men. Oh and he’d do it all on a moonless night. *Piece of cake* he thought.

The afternoon of the “job” Henry had a talk with Myamar. He wanted to make it clear to Myamar that he was going to do this alone. Myamar wanted to at least be there to watch his back but he insisted that it was his job to take care of Myamar, not the other way around. Myamar baulked at this.

“Look Mya, I know we live in a world where girls can be more powerful than boys, but it’s still our job to take care of and protect our girls. That will never change. Even when, one day, you will be able to kick my arse.” He finished with a chuckle.

He made it clear that Myamar would wait at the ruins for him. He assured him that everything would go smoothly and he would be back before it became light out.

It was pitch black out, but Henry knew these roofs like the back of his hand. It only took him minutes to arrive at the target building. He looked over the north side at the back entrance. He saw a shadow and heard a bird chirp. That was his signal. He swung down and barely caught the ledge with his tip-toes. Slowly with his hands still gripping the roof, he swung in and released hugging the wall for dear life. *Whew, that was a close one* he thought to himself. After gaining his composure, he made his way along the wall until he arrived at the window. He was in luck. It was unlocked. They must have figured that it was safe to keep the windows this high up unlocked. Piece of cake. Henry made his way down stairs and unlocked the door. As the two men moved to come into the building, Henry felt a cold, burning sensation in his gut. He looked down to see a knife, held in one of the men’s hand, buried in his gut. Henry slumped to the floor.

After the men broke into the safe, retrieved the gold, and headed back to the door, they discovered that Henry was gone. Only a pool of blood remained where Henry had been.

Myamar was told to pack, so that’s what he did. He was so excited. His life was finally going to be tolerable and maybe even downright wonderful. When Henry returned, he would get to be a girl. Even better, he would get to be with the boy he loved, and no one would bother them for it. They didn’t have much, so it didn’t take long to pack. Myamar was just finishing up when he swore he heard something. He went to the opening of the ruin he was in and listened hard.

Then he heard, “Mya…” in a barely audible whisper. Myamar raced into the darkness toward the sound. He found Henry lying there in pain. “Please….inside…help” was all he could manage. Crying, Myamar dragged the helpless boy inside and near the fire. Henry was covered in his own blood. Some of it from being coughed up.

“Oh God, oh God, oh God!!!! Please don’t die…please please please….I love you so much…please” begged a hysterical and sobbing Myamar as he pulled Henry’s head against his chest and started rocking him.

“I…..I’m so……..sorry…Mya…….I knew this…*cough* cough* …was a bad….idea. I….love……..y.” was all Henry could manage before he died in Myamar’s arms.

Myamar was lost. He spent 2 full days doing nothing but holding Henry and sobbing. He was paralyzed with grief. Then she found him.

Constance Aldegard was The Queens “House Wizard”. Basically she answered to no one but the queen. She had many duties. Most were of a magical nature, but some were political. When the queen wanted to let someone know she was serious, she’d send Constance. House Wizards were also responsible for everything “Guardian”. Finding, training, guiding and so on. Unfortunately she hadn’t found her yet. There was also finding a worthy apprentice to worry about. It was time she started training a successor.

Though the intention was to train an apprentice over many years, merely having one was the most important thing, especially in a House Wizards case. Even if the apprentice does not receive all the knowledge and training required to succeed the Matron Wizard, the Matrons(Matron is the Freguard females word for Master) death would trigger a magical download, of sorts, to the apprentice. Of course, to protect the Matron from an overly ambitious apprentice, there was a catch. The Magic would look into the apprentice’s spirit and judge whether she was worthy, first. Apprentices who were responsible for a Matrons death, directly or indirectly with intent, was never judged as worthy.

On this particular day, she had been on a mission of a political nature. They cowed to her quickly and she found herself free for the rest of the day since she would not be heading back to Summer Haven, where the Queens palace was, until the morrow. She decided to take a walk along the river bank to clear her head. She was closing upon some ruins when she swore she heard sobbing. She investigated.

“Oh my!” Constance exclaimed, when she stumbled upon a young girl who was holding onto what looked like a corpse to her. His lips were blue and skin gray. It was obvious he had been dead far too long for Constance to be of any help. The child looked up at her with the most heart wrenchingly sad emerald green eyes. “What is your name child?” All she heard was the name “Mya”. They stared at one another for a few seconds before Constance reached out her hand and said, “Come with me Mya. This is no place for a sweet little thing like you.”

Mya Aldeguard

15 years and some change ago…………..

It took a long time for Mya to get over her first love. The Matron had taken her away from Casterfell a couple years ago. It was sad to think that eventually Mya had gotten everything she had wished for and Henry was not here to share it with her. When Mya had come clean that she was a boy, back then, it disappointed the Matron, at first. She was pleased when she found out that, not only did Mya come from Sprite “Stock”, but that he desperately wanted to become a girl and learn magic to protect the people he loved. She obliged Mya’s first wish with a simple potion, warning her it was irreversible. Then she officially introduced Mya to the Queen as Constance’s apprentice, making both Mya and the Queen happy.

Mya worked hard for the Matron, doing whatever she needed without question. She would accompany the Matron when she traveled. It was exciting to see the Matron at work. Whether she was hunting a rogue sorceress, or threatening a Duke for suspected slave trade involvement. She was amazing. Mya learned all she could, like a sponge. What impressed her most was how rich in gems the Matron was. It seemed that the Matron had many secret lairs spread everywhere throughout the kingdom filled with gems the size or Mya’s fist. Eventually she learned that gems contained energy that helped to boost magic for the tougher spells. Once used up, they became just gems. The Matron was as rich in gems as the Queen was in gold and platinum and someday so would Mya by default.

One day her hard work paid off. The Matron actually wanted Mya to be the real life Guardian Princess’s personal attendant. Wow. This was considered a real honor, and the Matron had picked her. It felt like one also, for like the first few minutes. Once she met him/her, she felt much less honored. She thought he/she was what he/she referred to once as a “douche”. Of course, she felt the Princess’s pain when she lost the Prince, but what had occurred next devastated Mya.

Mya and Constance had just received the news of Prince Tomas’s death when Constance saw the Princess enter the Court with a look of rage on her face.

“Mya, my dear, I need you to go to town and pick up my order of herbs.” Constance urged.

“Now, Matron?” asked Mya a little confused as to the urgency of herbs.

“Now, Mya. Enough with the questions. Be off with you, NOW!” she declared even more urgently.

Mya hurried off. She had gotten halfway down the hill to Summer Haven when the blast took out the Palace. In an instance the palace was vaporized along with the walls and guard houses. All that was left was an empty crater. Well, almost empty. The Princess ran from the crater, towards the grove. Mya followed her. Mya witnessed the Princess rip a hole into the Veil. Mya tried to follow, but it shut before she reached it. Mya was angry and heartbroken that this supposed “Guardian” killed both, the Queen, and her Matron, who gave her everything to live for. Just then a ball of pure energy came from nowhere and entered her. She felt a shock and screamed. That was the last thing she remembered before it went black.

Now that Mya had the knowledge of Constance, she knew what she had to do.

First, she used her immense wealth and power to find out every scrap of information on the Guardian spell. Then, she found a way to modify it to her needs. After Many years and a lot of money, she found a way to eliminate the unnatural bond of the Warrior Prime, and substitute him for a mate of the Spirit’s choosing. The bond would then grow between them, in effect, making her chosen mate the Warrior Prime, if the feelings were returned. Her next step was to find a way to open the Veil. Then to hunt down and destroy this……Paul, to make him pay for what he did, since he had no power in Learity. Once the spirit was released, she would find the Spirit’s new vessel and raise her properly before returning. Gems here weren’t cheap, but she was told that a gem the size of a fist in Learity was considered priceless. She had lot’s of gems left to finish her mission.

It took her 5 years to accomplish everything she needed to gain access to Learity. In that 5 years wars raged on to see who would rule. Evil crept back into the lands in the form of oraci, The Draven, and dark elves. Dark elves weren’t dark skinned like the myths. They were DARK elves, because they worshipped supernatural magic, created from blood and other dark ingredients. Dark pretty much equals evil in this sense. The world was in chaos and the Guardian was gone. It was a free for all. Some of those dark creatures caught wind of Mya. Unbeknownst to her they were watching her closely.

Mya had to try twice to open the Veil before succeeding. The first experience was a nightmare that Mya would regret and feel guilt toward for the rest of her days. She improperly spoke the words of the spell. The Veil opened, however, it opened 1000 years in the past. Her observers did not know this, though. Once the Veil was opened, they attacked. 1000 Draven, orcs, and dark elves rushed at the Veil. Mya did the only thing she could. She ran. As the evil creatures stepped through the Veil, they changed. Some became vampires, werewolves, witches, and some even lost their forms and became specters and ghosts. Pretty much every nightmare and myth was let loose on Learity. Well except of course…….

Santa Claus? Dirty old man who breaks into houses.
Easter Bunny? Mutant rabbit with an egg fetish.
Tooth Fairy? Uhhhh………well that one is true….kind of.

You see, it all started with a brownie named Ariel SwiftFoot. She had no wings, like some brownies, but she was impossibly fast. At 3 inches tall she was all but invisible to most. One day, a long time ago, she stumbled upon a small crack in the Veil that only she could fit through. She explored Learity and happened upon a house late at night. Curious, she went in to explore. She happened upon a little girls room (not so little to Ariel), and found her at slumber. She then discovered the most amazing thing. A human child’s tooth. In Freguard they were worth a fortune and almost impossible to get for spell use. Feeling bad about taking such a valuable object, she replaced it with a shiny disk that had twenty five cents written on it. She had found it in the gutter outside the house. The next time she came, there were teeth under many children’s pillows. She collected them and later replaced each with other disks she had liberated from around each child’s house. Eventually, Freguards market became flooded with human teeth, but not before Ariel became filthy rich and a new tradition among human parents was born….but I digress.

Mya waited a whole year this time and hired a merc company of soldiers to protect the Veil this time. This time she was more careful and said the spell properly. It worked.

Mya brought many large gems with her. Her first step was to convert them to viable commerce. She converted slowly at first. She bought a highly expensive new identification. The forgeries would fool even the toughest government scrutiny. Once legal she bought a small front business to work out of and live in while she was hunting Paul down. It only took a few months to discover his death. This worried her. How would she find the new Spirit? She knew where the accident was and knew when approximately when he died, give or take an hour. She discovered that there were only 2 babies born around that time frame, in hospital close to the accident. A Katie Summers and a second baby that had no name on record, due to the mother taking the baby and leaving almost immediately after birth. The mothers name was Abigail Sapphire. Mya later, through magic, divined that the baby was taken almost directly to the orphanage. His name was Justice.

Over the next 9 years she watched both of them, hoping for a sign telling her, which was which. At the same time, she grew her business into a powerful and influential foundation. She had a secret hand in both Children’s lives. She was the one that influenced JDH to separate Justice from the boys. She even left money for Justice to find when he’d run away. She even told the cops where his bomb shelter was when she knew he needed help. She couldn’t interfere directly until she was sure she was bonafide in this world. When the children turned 15, she knew it was time to make her move before they were too old to influence properly.

She pulled a lot of strings to get the State and the caseworkers and the family judge to sway things her way. Today was the day. She focused when the judge asked about her.

The judge responded with, “Who exactly runs this home, Mr. Evans?” the judge asked.

“I do, Your Honor.” Said a woman in the back who couldn’t have been more than 25.

“You look a little young to run a foster home Mrs………? Step up to the front so I can see who I am talking to.” ordered the judge

Justice turned and saw a very cute, fiery red head moving up the row. *Devil Child!!!* Justice shook his head. Why had he thought that so loudly?

As she reached the front she announced, “Mrs……..Aldegard…Your Honor…..Mya Aldegard.