Gemeni and the Gem of Hope(Ongoing & Unedited)

Part 1

It was a normal day on the island of Manijour. Gemeni had, as always been excited to see her friend Runeko for their training session. She wasn't so much excited for the training as she was for the ice cream they'd be getting after the training was completed. Runeko took care of Gemeni like she was family. He looked at her and felt in his heart of hearts that she was family. For that reason, he knew that if something was to happen to her, he wouldn't be able to live with himself so every morning before going out to the training grounds he'd look himself in the mirror and make a promise to: protect Gemeni, by any means necessary. Runeko knew that Gemeni had a fire in her, the fire needed to wear The Gauntlet of Truth and survive whatever trials may come with wearing the weapon. He swore to her father(Chief Maelle) that he'd help her build the endurance and strength needed to wear the Gauntlet, however, the wearer of said Gauntlet had to face a truth about themselves and that truth was seldom cheerful and although nobody knew yet what Gemeni's truth was, the Gauntlet was rarely kind and it was rarely merciful. So that morning on the grounds, Runeko looked on as Gemeni gracefully landed all of her maneuvers and stuck them to perfection. She was as poised as a princess and as fierce as a soldier. She was nearly ready. This disappointed Runeko as he loved their time goofing off and fighting pretend monsters. It also terrified him to think about what would happen for he knew that when this mission ended, one of them wouldn't live to tell the tale. That was a fact that Gemeni refused to believe. A fact she fought tooth and nail to avoid.

All of a sudden, the sky turned grey and gloomy. Runeko felt his heart drop all the way to his stomach. His vision became blurry. His hands and feet were shaking so much that he nearly collapsed in a pile of panic. He looked all around for Gemeni and he couldn't spot her. Gemeni was frozen still in the middle of the training grounds. She couldn't move or blink or breathe. She felt as though she was turned inside out and all of her organs were working against each other. This couldn't be happening. Not today. Not now. Gemeni wasn't well versed in what she was expected to do. He had to think of something fast, everything was happening all too quickly, his panic has yet to subside. Before he could think of a plan of action, he saw two lightning bolts strike simultaneously...it wasn't Abaddon. He exhaled a long relieved sigh and his knees nearly buckled up in happiness. Out of nowhere he saw two people, they weren't Manis, he could tell by their white and emerald green battle uniforms. Maybe they were lost. They went up to him and Gemeni, introduced themselves as Fawn-Elise and Torrick of Huntingham Cay. They claimed that they came to assist in fighting Abaddon as he went to their home in a rampage and has now massacred more than half of their people. He has stolen their life stone and maimed their queen, the only person with the power to retrieve the stone. That was of course until they heard the tale of the Gauntlet and the Chief's warrior daughter. Gemeni was confused, she was aware that they were referring to her but she hadn't heard whatever tale they were talking about. Runeko could see the confusion on her face and promised to explain at a later stage. For now, they needed to confirm the story of the two strangers standing before them.

Runeko thought about suggesting that the visitors take a truth serum. He would later suggest this to the Chief he thought. As he and a few guards were sitting and observing their guests, Runeko noticed how Torrick's fighting style was so offensive and how he purposely wanted to hurt his sparring partner. Runeko thought that this was peculiar and that he should talk to Torrick about it. He should find out who had taught him to fight like the warriors of the darkness as only the guards protecting the forest of monsters were allowed to know how. As he let his thoughts wander, Runeko became concerned. Something was probably not right. He needed to go and speak with the Chief now. It was possible that they let a threat into their home unknowingly.

Runeko tried not to spiral before speaking with the king. As much as he was a stellar interrogator and a strong warrior, Runeko was at the end of the day, still a teenager. He along with everyone around him seemed to forget that. He too needed caring for and he needed to be listened to. He loved Gemeni and he accepted with a happy heart that he was her protector. Runeko often thought about how he was the one who would end up perishing when the time for battle arrived. Runeko was okay with that. Was it a lot to bear? Yes. But Runeko was loyal to a fault. He would sacrifice himself for the island he grew up on. For his family and all it's people. As he stood there trying his best to keep calm, he decided that a truth serum would put his mind at ease. He would have to go suggest this to the Chief at once. He would lead the interviews as the point guard and he is going to enlist the head guard to assist as there were two people who needed to be interrogated. Runeko hoped against hope that his mind was just playing tricks. That Fawn and Torrick were just warriors like himself. He would absolutely hate it if it turned out that he let enemies of his home wander freely probably gathering intel and learning their fight sequences. Gemeni on the other hand seemed entranced by the two new arrivals. With Fawn more especially, Runeko was happy that Gemeni has a girl she can do things with. Sometimes he felt like he wasn't enough.