Ruby Shimmer (re-write)

CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE

I was at a loss for words upon hearing such a strange announcement. But even so, I forced myself to pay attention, as I still had a few questions.

"So, let me see if I have this right. I'm gonna be traveling all across the world to each clan's main base. All in order to have total access to each collection of Guardian Stones and Location Gems so that I might be able to properly complete each mission. And I'm assuming that's what all these suitcases are for?"

"Correct, young miss." spoke up Ava's voice, the owner of which had just stood up and was now walking over to Uncle Phineas and myself.

"These suitcases all hold anything and everything we may possibly need during our journey."

"Wait...we?"

"Of course, young miss, I am your personal attendant and bodyguard, so it is only natural that I shall be joining you on your travels as well."

Once Ava had said this, it was Uncle Phineas who immediately spoke next after Ava herself had finished.

"Now, while I'm sure you have many other questions and concerns, I'm afraid you both have a flight to catch."

The older man then pressed the button on the remote again, which once again re-opened the secret door. And this allowed for a small army of the tuxedo-clad young men to enter the hidden room, each of them grabbing up two suitcases, one in either hand, before swiftly carrying them out of the room in single file and towards an unknown destination.

"Well then, shall we get going as well, my dear?"

I was still feeling a little lost about all that had just happened in a matter of minutes. However, I merely nodded my head in agreement, then proceeded to join my uncle, as well as Julian and Ava, for a fast-paced walk through the mansion's eerily quiet halls.

And once we had finally reached the mansion's front entrance, we quickly exited the mansion for the first time in weeks, only for me to immediately notice that an enormous limo was already waiting for us in the driveway. I also saw that the same servants from just moments before were now in the process of loading all of our suitcases into the trunk.

Forcing myself out of my slight trance, I quickly made my way over and climbed into the limo right after Uncle Phineas and was instantly followed by the others in our little group.

I myself ended up taking a few extra seconds to admire the spacious interior before settling down on one of the soft and wonderfully cushy leather seats right as the limo's engine turned over.

Moments later, we were finally on our way to what I guessed would most likely be the closest airport located in the next town over.

And at long last, after nearly two hours of quiet anticipation had ticked by painfully slowly, we had finally reached our goal as I could now see through the car window that we were pulled into the airport parking lot.

During our long drive, I just assumed that, when we arrived, we would simply be dropped off at the main entrance like one would normally expect.

But on the contrary, I was left completely disoriented when the reality of the situation turned out to be that we drove right past it and instead made our way directly onto the airfield.

Once we had eventually come to a final stop, I instinctively reached out to open the door myself, only to be beaten to the punch as the door was first opened from the other side by our driver. The driver himself then stood off to the side and politely waved his hand as a sign to exit the vehicle.

We all hurriedly followed his gesture without hesitation, after which, I was immediately left in shock and awe after realizing that we had managed to park right beside a private airplane that I could only assume belonged to the entire League of Gem Warriors.

This officially erased any lingering doubt that my family was far wealthier than I both did or ever could have thought.

The plane itself was colored in a solid black with what I recognized as the same red and gold flame emblem surrounded by the four gem-shaped symbols

And thanks to my studies, I now knew they each represented one of the four main clans that make up the League itself painted on the tail, while the flame represented the burning determination within the hearts of all League members.

"We...we have our own plane?" I said much louder than I intended due to the shock.

"Indeed, my dear." Uncle Phineas answered with a proud look on his face as he did so. "Though, technically, while the plane itself does belong to our family in name, it is not just used by us alone. It is also used by other higher-ranked individuals in the League as well.

Now, please hurry and climb aboard. You have a long flight ahead of you."

With no other choice, I got moving and made my way up the staircase all the way to the cabin door which was already wide open and waiting for us.

And once we were all officially inside, I found myself entirely captivated by the plane's interior design.

The inside of the plane itself had an elegant appearance and vibe that could easily rival that of a high class hotel. But, instead of beds like you would normally see in a hotel room, it was lined with at least a dozen black leather lounge chair-style seats. There was also a food galley set up on one side and near the back of the plane, I could see another door that I guessed was the plane's lavatory.

And if my hunch was correct, it was probably just as luxurious as the main space.

Still gawking a little, I made my way over to and sat down on one of the plush seats, immediately feeling my body relax within seconds, especially thanks to the automatic massage function that had kicked in the moment I had settled in.

It was then that I was joined by Ava, Uncle Phineas, and Julian, who had all walked over to me a few minutes later. And while Ava made herself comfortable on one of the other seats, I had already begun saying my goodbyes with my newfound family.

"Good luck on your journey, my dear niece. I know you'll succeed. Just make sure to follow your training and natural instincts and you'll be fine."

"Thank you, Uncle. I'll do my best. And I swear that I'll make both you and Gramma and Grampa proud." I answered emotionally as I felt my eyes quickly welling up with tears.

With that, my uncle and cousin both left the plane with the door then shutting itself behind them.

And moments later, I heard and felt the plane roar to life before it rolled onto an open runway before launching us into the bright blue sky.

But even though I had gone through so much in preparation, with all that had happened that morning, it really had it all sinking in at once for me.

I truly was the possessor of a great power and I was actually off on a literal world-trooting adventure in order to fulfill some kind of mysterious purpose that was started decades ago by my own family ancestors.

And at the time, all I could do was hope that I wouldn't do anything reckless or stupid and screw everything up beyond repair.