The first sight that greeted us when we returned was the verdant green walls that I had erected. The walls were teeming with life and provided a stark contrast to the wilderness beyond.
Aria, the leader of her group, paused at the threshold, her eyes wide with wonder. “Is this Schoolville?” She asked, her voice tinged with disbelief.
I had a quizzical look on my face. I leaned over towards Brad. “When did we name it Schoolville?” I asked him.
Brad responded. “You missed the meeting. It was last week.”
Before I could respond, Scott stepped forward. “Yes, this is our home. Welcome to Schoolville,” he said, gesturing towards the open gate.
Aria responded. “We are from Havenrest. Thank you for your hospitality. We almost gave up hope that anyone decent was left in the world.”
Scott hesitated. “I am not familiar with Havenrest. Where is it?” He asked.
“Well, it was a couple hours north of Little Rock, but the world got all topsy turvy and we decided to change the name of our little hamlet.” Aria explained.
“Well, shit.” Scott exclaimed. “You’re in eastern Washington now.”
After a moment, Scott continued. “Well, hell if anyone knows now. We’ve had some idea that the world got scrambled. I think this is the proof we needed.”
Aria continued looking around. “How did you manage to build all this?”
Scott smiled, glanced over at me. Some kids had run up and were asking me were Thor and Loki were.
“It’s a long story, but it’s one of cooperation, magic and a lot of hard work. Gavrin here. Wait, where’d he go? He was just here.” Scott said.
The voices faded as I took the kids to a field inside the walls so there was more room to play. “Ok, you guys. Be gentle.” I quietly told my friends. I turned to the kids. “Be kind. No tail pulling or biting ears.” I warned them.
“We would never do that, Mr. Gavrin.”
The field was alive with laughter and excited chatter as the children gathered around Thor and Loki, who sat patiently, their tails wagging slowly. My boys were the size of small ponies and could easily snap a kid in half. Despite the menace I knew they could project, there was a calm and gentle demeanor emanating from both my puppers.
One brave little girl, her hair tied back in a messy braid, stepped forward and laid her hand on Loki’s massive head. “You’re like a big, furry mountain!” she exclaimed in awe. Loki responded with a soft rumble, akin to a purr, leaning into her touch.
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Encouraged by her bravery, other children began to approach, their initial hesitance giving way to curiosity and excitement. They took turns petting the dogs, marveling at the softness of their fur and the warmth emanating from their massive bodies.
As I watched them play, a slow smile spread across my face as I saw the joy Thor and Loki brought to the kids. “Alright, let’s see if they can catch you,” I suggested, a mischievous twinkle in my eye. At my command, Thor and Loki gently rose their feet, and began to trot around the field.
With a laugh, the kids started chasing the dogs. Loki was careful to keep her pace slow enough so the kids could keep up. Thor was a little butt and started using his shadow dance abilities to appear and disappear around the kids. He was putting his wet nose on the kid’s necks and every time he did it, the chosen target would squeal about his cold nose.
I sat down at the side of the field and let my senses sink down into the earth. I entered a meditative state.
In the tranquil embrace of the earth, my mind drifted, tethered loosely to the material world by the laughter and joyous shouts of children playing. The soft, rhythmic pulse of the earth beneath me served as a guide, drawing me deeper into a trance. It was here, in the borderland between wakefulness and the arcane, that a vision began to unfold before my inner eye.
I found myself standing in a vast, twilight realm, where the sky was painted with the deep indigo of impending night, yet held the soft glow of twilight at its edges. The air was charged with a palpable magic, thrumming with the potential of creation and the whispers of ancient secrets.
Before me stood an immense forest, its trees towering and ancient, their trunks wide as houses and their branches interlacing to form a cathedral-like canopy above. The leaves whispered in a language older than time, speaking of growth, decay and the eternal cycle of life. This was the Living Forest, a manifestation of the natural world’s heart, pulsating with the pure essence of life itself.
In the heart of the forest, I saw a clearing, bathed in the ethereal light of countless fireflies, their glow casting dancing shadows across the ground. At the clearing’s center stood a tree unlike any I had seen before. Its bark shimmered with a golden hue, and its leaves were of the purest silver, reflecting the light of the fireflies and casting the clearing in a celestial radiance.
Beneath the tree, a figure appeared, shrouded in robes of midnight blue, their face obscured by a hood. Yet, I felt no fear, only a profound sense of peace and recognition. The figure raised a hand, and from the palm, a light blossomed, growing and shaping itself into a symbol that I knew represented balance. The intertwining of elemental forces, the harmony of earth, air, fire and water.
The figure spoke, their voice resonating in the silence of the forest, “Seek the harmony within and without. Let the elements guide you, for in their balance lies the key to awakening the true potential of your power. Protect this balance, for it protects all life.”
As the words echoed in the clearing, the vision began to fade, the forest dissolving into mist, the figure vanishing like a dream upon waking. Yet, the symbol of balance remained etched in my mind, glowing softly in the darkness behind my closed eyes.
I emerged from my mediation, the laughter of the children bringing me back to the present. I opened my eyes, feeling an unshakeable connection to the elements, the earth beneath me, the air around me, the distant warmth of fire, and the subtle moisture in the breeze. I knew then that my path was not only to protect but to maintain the delicate balance of the natural world, a guardian of harmony in a world of chaos.