The Prophecy (The Guardians) - By Wendy Owens Page 0,54

who was destined to give birth to the prophet, he didn’t care. None of it mattered to him, except being with her.

The prophecy he had been avoiding for the past five years was staring him in the face, yet he felt no hesitation. Didn’t Sophie understand that it would have been easier for him to love her, to just stay with his friends, giving up any future with Rachel? Gabe didn’t want the easy path, he didn’t want to go back to what he had. He wanted Rachel.

“Gabe!” Haim’s voice filled the room. The man rushed in, stopping and standing before his friend. Gabe had been surprised by the physical changes when he first saw Uri, but Haim was shocking in a different way. He was still tall, towering above him, but his physique had not changed much. Haim had always been a large and muscular fellow. The biggest change Gabe noticed in his appearance when he first saw him again was the full and lush beard he proudly wore. Gabe could grow some handsome stubble, but nothing that could rival the behemoth facial growth Haim touted.

“What happened? Did you find him?” Gabe gasped.

“Bring him in.” Haim called over his shoulder. A plump girl, with wiry blonde hair entered, clad from head to toe in body armor. Behind her she pulled a boy, perhaps nineteen years in age at most. He wore a gray hoodie; the color of his hair was dark, like a raven. His nose was large, his jaw line sharp, and his head hung low. Gabe didn’t think there was much resemblance to the woman he loved so dearly until the boy looked up.

There he was, looking in to the exact same eyes that peered back at him when he was with Rachel. Oversized and brown, full of innocence and empathy. Gabe could see the boy was confused and afraid, he could only imagine what this felt like for him.

“You must be Damon.” Gabe said at last.

“How do you know my name?” the boy asked, the full sized woman retaining a tight grip on his arm. It was clear Damon had not been eager to go along with them.

“Please, release him.” Gabe instructed.

Pushing the boy forward into the room, the warrior woman did as she was instructed. Gabe flashed a look of disappointment at her before adding in a tone that relayed his feelings, “Thank you, can we be alone?”

“I don’t think that’s a good idea, sir, this one is a runner.” The warrior woman glared at Damon as she spoke.

“And where do you presume he will run?” Gabe asked, a clever smile displayed on his lips.

“Come on, out.” Haim commanded, turning to exit the room and dragging his comrade along behind him. A moment later, Gabe and Damon were alone in the room.

“I’m sorry if she was rude to you. Some of the folks around here are— well, they’re not exactly what I would call skilled when it comes to communication. They have been trained for battle, not diplomacy; I hope they weren’t too horrible though.” Gabe offered.

“Where am I? Why am I here?” Damon replied, uninterested in Gabe’s apologies.

“Don’t worry, I’ll tell you everything you want to know. Let’s sit, shall we?” Gabe offered, motioning to two nearby seats. Damon watched Gabe cautiously, allowing his host to sit first, glancing towards the entry way a few times.

“Damon, you can leave, but honestly, there’s nowhere to go. You might as well get some answers.” Gabe said, not even looking at the boy as he spoke.

“How?” Damon gasped. He couldn’t comprehend how this stranger knew he was contemplating fleeing without even looking in his direction. Quickly the boy decided answers would be the most help to him at this point. Walking around, refusing to take his eyes off his host, Damon sat across from Gabe.

“So, what is this place?” Damon pushed.

“The facility we’re at is called Iron Gate. It has been here for hundreds of years.” Gabe explained.

“I don’t understand. Why am I here? These goons come and tell me I need to come with them, no explanation. Then they throw me up on — I don’t even know what that thing was, but it wasn’t natural. It flew!” Damon cried.

Gabe smiled, remembering how it felt when he first witnessed all the fantastic things this world had to offer. “Slow down, alright. Don’t worry, I’ll answer any questions you might have. That creature you flew here on was called an Alicorn. They have been the friends of