To babysit the entire world, or to enjoy some festival fun? Both were very tempting offers. For the moment, Gemini decided on the latter and placed his guardian duties on hold. He strolled by the many booths. The smell of grilled chicken, beef, and the radiance from light orbs hovered over the terrain; and, like rain, washed him with excitement. A few people were laughing their hearts out. Others rumbled "rum, bum, bum, bum" upon bongo drums.

It was the night of the national festival in Kindrala, Blessed Rain. A festival that, for one night, gathered thousands from around the world of Veith to celebrate the victory against the great Nocturn Swarm. A few dishes from the Southern region, some from the Western region, and a ton from the Northern region were brought to one place. And because of the vast diversity throughout Veith, it was hard to imagine any region bringing similar cuisine.

Some skeptics from other lands still questioned "why have Blessed Rain in Kindrala?". In fact, the residents from Bulai would prefer that the festival be held in their city due to their large banquet halls and hotels. The residents from Trutess believed their village would provide the best locale due to their battle-trained civilians' ability to supply a nice orderly and protected event. Nevertheless, Kindrala was chosen due to sheer simplicity. It was one of few rural villages in all of Veith. So, a lot of land was open to allow a surplus of people. Not to mention, the natives to the area were the most generous. They worked mostly on a barter system of trading. Many citizens would even do odd jobs for each other for no cost. And though Kindrala may not have been the most profitable village, it compensated by extending great hospitality to everyone.

A night in Kindrala was a much-needed break for the other guardians too. The Integras, as Gemini and the other guardians were formally known, deserved some time away from fighting the remaining Nocturns that still plagued their world. And though the current Integras had not partaken in the fight against the Nocturn Swarm as their predecessors, they've fought their fair share of world-shattering battles.

At least for tonight, peace flowed from the food, the fun, and the atmosphere and breathed a cloud of calm upon them.

"Nice night, isn't it?" a tender voice stated.

Smiling, Gemini glanced behind him to notice his trusted fellow guardian. The black strands of her ponytail swayed in the wind past her shoulders. Her freckled face twinkled almost as sweet as the stars.

"Sure is, Patty." Gemini smiled as he patted her on the shoulder.

"H-hey, what have I told you? It's not nice to be so informal with an Integra!"

Gemini shrugged. "You prefer just Patrice? Thousands of years of tradition aren't thrown out the window for calling you Patty. You're not even on duty."

She sighed and shook her head, "May Tolvia forgive your soul. Rules are rules, you know."

Gemini kicked the ground a little. "Yeah, I would know. I enforce them."

"Nevertheless, Tolvia alone made the rules."

"True, yet I suggested quite a few," Gemini said before pulling out a scroll from thin air, "and according to this, the authority to call all Integras by any name to my liking."

Patrice ran up and reached out to grab the scroll from Gemini. Gemini skipped back and grinned.

"Surely, you jest," She said, blushing.

He laughed, releasing the scroll as it disappeared in a wisp of smoke. "Lighten up, Patty. It's the festival. Take some time and enjoy yourself!"

Just then, a rough arm rested on Gemini's head. Without looking, Gemini recognized the arm belonged to Barum, and Gemini was short enough to be this guy's armrest. Barum laughed, being ever so happy tonight as he dangled his chicken kabob in Gemini's face. "Yeah, Patty, lighten up and smell the...grilled chicken."

Patrice narrowed her eyes. "Barum, I hate chicken."

Barum snickered before devouring the kabob in several bites. "Your loss."

Gemini smiled. It felt good to actually relax. Destroying Nocturns and saving towns from utter destruction deserved at least one night of rest, right? But then he sighed remembering at least one thing they needed to discuss. For Integras, there's never a night of just fun and games.

"Almost forgot," Gemini said, "ready to report your latest findings?"

Patrice blinked as a frown emerged from her lips. She was never one to really hide how she felt. If she was a scroll herself, it would be open for miles for all the world to see. "Um, yes. I do have a report for you."

Gemini nodded towards a wooden bench a few yards away. Veiled by several trees, the bench abided untouched and unnoticed by any other pedestrians. "Good. Let's discuss it over there."

Pedestrians flowed past them as they walked uninterrupted towards the bench. To Gemini, this would be the only night they could enjoy an undisturbed walk anywhere. Any other walk would range from repairing the torn villages to teaching the local children the Nocturn protection drills.

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The trees rustled in the wind as they sat down on the bench one by one. The soft breeze soothed them to relax as the meeting began.

Patrice cleared her throat. "This morning, we spotted several Nocturns terrorizing the Northern region. They seemed bigger than the ones from weeks ago...almost the size of trees."

"Who was with you?" Gemini asked.

"Oh, just me and Barum."

"Got it. And what happened to the Nocturns?"

"We eliminated them on sight. It took some time. Barum suffered a few cuts, but it wasn't a difficult matter."

Gemini scrunched his lips. "That's not good. The attacks are becoming more frequent."

"Something else came up as well."

Gemini pressed his hand against his chin. "Something worth noting?"

"Yes, we saw another tear."

Gemini winced. These tears again. Is Tolvia's strength on this world waning that much? So much that portals of time and space are forming all over Veith? "Did anything go through the tear?"

"No sir. Nothing went through and nothing came out this time. Might I ask what can be causing them?"

Gemini shook his head. "I'm not sure, but I believe it roots back to Tolvia. As the sacred tree of Veith, Tolvia has always kept the world stable from outside threats and abnormalities in nature. However, since Tolvia's transformation into the 9 sacred books and 9 keys, his books were scattered amongst our world and the keys in another dimension and time. He can't hold Veith together as he had in the past. The sharp increase of Nocturn sightings and attacks are proof of that. Until Tolvia alerts me of the keys' presence, these calamities will get worse."

Patrice leaned in closer. "And when will you get the alert? Being his son, he should've given some timeframe for this, right?"

Gemini shook his head. "It's not a matter of time limit. Tolvia always told me that if he would ever need to disperse, he'll make sure to alert me when the time is right to combine again." In his mind, however, Gemini thought of the real cause of Tolvia's dispersion. Besides the Nocturn Swarm, there was another catastrophe to consider, the Tolvian Rift. Drexel, a traitor to them all, sparked an invasion in an attempt to overthrow Tolvia's control of Veith. That whole event sparked the need to disperse Tolvia. But it's been years since he had shown his face. What could he be doing now? Gemini sighed at the thought. Now wasn't the time to contemplate the troubled past when the present had its own issues to bear.

Barum chimed in, "Speaking of scattered, where did you place the three books we've found?"

Gemini said, "Don't worry, they're safe. I have them in a secret compartment where no Nocturn or former Integra can tamper with them."

Patrice said, "Oh, I think I know what compartment you're referring to."

Gemini let out a light laugh and patted Patrice's head. "Oh, so adorable."

Patrice mouth widened in disgust. She swatted his hand away. "I do know! It's in your dimension, Aingeil Wing!"

Gemini sported a sly grin. "No."

In turn, she pouted. Not that Gemini cared, but for an adult, she knew how to go from age 20 to 2 fairly quick.

Barum shook his head and then looked at Gemini. "Nevertheless, don't you have any ideas where the remaining books are? You caused Tolvia to disperse to keep the keys and the books safe from the invasion."

Gemini frowned a bit. "My powers were allowed to only disperse them randomly. Don't forget that the keys function as a compass to their respective book. When we find the keys and we will definitely find the books as a result."

"Hmm. Did you consider that some of the keys may be on the other side of the tear? Maybe this is Tolvia's alert after all. We can search the tear and-."

"No! You can't!" Gemini exclaimed before placing his hand on his forehead. "I mean, you can't just yet."

Barum raised an eyebrow. "Why not?"

"They're not stable portals. The first thing we need to do is-."

"Learn how to keep them stable and open!" Patrice said.

Gemini was a bit shocked. But, then again, eagerness wasn't new for Patrice. Actually, it wasn't new for any of the Integras. Being guardians, he was sure they were anxious to see something other than their usual posts.

Gemini sighed and reclined back on the bench. "Well, technically speaking, our Secure skill would be the go-to."

Patrice tilted her head. Her words flowed rather slowly. "Really? You speak as though you've kept one open."

Gemini sheepishly grinned. "Well, I have. I've ventured through the other side of it."

Patrice and Barum gasped. "And you didn't tell us?"

Gemini laughed as he stood up from the bench. "Hold on. I didn't stay too long. And I got a chance to figure out how long I can hold a tear open."

Barum grumbled. Gemini knew keeping things hidden from him was like snatching a toy from a child.

Patrice sighed and turned to Barum. "This was nothing to get worked up over. Gemini did what he thought best. To endanger us to unknown territory would be to leave Veith open to other threats. Until the facts were clear, no one would be told anything."

Gemini blushed. "You sound so understanding."

Patrice narrowed her eyes. "And yet, I'm still disturbed we didn't find out sooner. What did you find anyway?"

Gemini sighed, gazed upon the crowd, and then back to them. "Many things. Some similar to life here. The people looked like us physically, but they felt so different. And, from what I can tell, it's rather busy but peaceful."

Barum stroked his chin before he stood up from the bench. "So, you believe it has no threats?"

Gemini grimaced. "Not entirely. I wasn't there long enough to assess that. To be honest, I wondered if this was Tolvia's alert too. Maybe...." He sighed. "Maybe you two can find out for me?"

The duo's eyes lit up brighter than the light orbs. Patrice jumped to her feet. "You mean you want us to explore?"

"Just one of you and only for several hours. The other should keep watch and hold the portal open."

Patrice leaped, but then frowned a bit. "Wait. Which one of us will go then?"

Gemini shrugged. "You two are grown. Decide amongst yourselves. Either way, I'll teach both of you how to open the portal later."

The duo nodded and then looked at each other. They both narrowed their eyes. Patrice placed her hand in front of Barum. Then, Barum placed his hand in front of her before they clasped their hands together.

Barum and Patrice yelled, "One, two, three, four. I declare a thumb war!"

Gemini sighed. Veith was being protected by children. Grown, super-powered children.

~

They spent the rest of the evening enjoying what little time they had left as civilians. Gemini especially cherished this moment. As the other Integras left to return to their posts, Gemini looked at the festival from a tree branch yards above the terrain and absorbed the jovial landscape one last time. Duty was his calling. It's mostly what he knew. But every once in a while, duty could wait.