Chapter 7: The Meeting

This task was appointed to you all
If you do not complete it
No one will

If the Rangers go about unchecked
If everything fails
It will be the end of everything as we know it

Guosim and SolarKatz barged noisily into their parents’ bedroom. Their mother and father sat bolt upright in their beds as they suddenly pried them out of their dreams.

“Wuzgoinon?” their father murmured sleepily as he blinked about in the lighting dawn.
“Mom, dad, we need help!” Guosim screamed tearfully as she tugged at her mother’s hand, “Aaru needs your help!”

Within seconds, Guosim’s mother had grabbed her bathrobe and sprinted downstairs into the living room where she found Aaru gasping for breath as both Reptina and Latia were standing next to her with their hands covering their mouths in shock.

“Get me a basin filled with iced water,” Guosim’s mother demanded hastily as she kneeled next to Aaru’s whimpering and trembling body. Reptina and Latia stood rooted to the carpeted floor.
“Did you hear me? SHE NEEDS HELP NOW!” Guosim’s mother shouted angrily. Reptina suddenly sprinted to the kitchen and started banging through the cabinets for a basin. Latia dashed towards the freezer and waterfalled all of the ice onto Reptina’s basin.

SolarKatz’s father had appeared in the living room wearing a black bathrobe and grasping his Dark Ritual. He quickly magiked the vomit away into thin air, and swiped everything on the coffee table onto the ground with a clatter and crash.

Quickly, Reptina and Latia dashed back to Aaru and placed the basin full of freezing water onto the coffee table. SolarKatz’s father ripped off his left sleeve, revealing his muscular forearm and a black lightning-shaped tattoo on his shoulder, and curled it up into a ball. Gently, he dipped it into the ice cold water and placed the rag on Aaru’s sweaty forehead.

“Raeken, let me do it,” his wife started as she grabbed her husband’s arm, but he put his hands to her lips.
“I got it, Anni, she is like me, let me do this,” Raeken replied as he stared into his wife’s deep blue eyes with a reassuring smile that somehow did not reach his dark eyes. Annikabelle’s hands relinquished and let go of Raeken’s bare forearm. He returned to tending to Aaru. The seven people inside the living room worked quietly, the silence only punctuated by Aaru’s sudden gasps of pain.
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Mark’s dark eyes fluttered open. The sun had crept over the horizon and was now peering over the rooftops of nearby buildings. He swayed a little as he stood up and faced the new sun. Beside him, Vanya and Will still lay in their dreams.

Mark bent down to grab his Omega Spear, but stopped immediately. There, right in front of his eyes, was the fire ruby. I didn’t take that out. He hastily slid on his Work Gloves to pick the ruby up, but it suddenly vibrated on the ground, shaking and bouncing up and down. Mark fell back in surprise. He watched with wide eyes as the fire ruby trembled and rocked on the ground. Mark noticed an invisible force was pulling the ruby towards the west. Suddenly, it shot out from in front of him.

With a yell of surprise, Mark sprinted after it, grasping his Omega Spear and startling Will and Vanya. The three of them sprinted after the magical ruby as it flew through the crisp, dewy morning air

Suddenly, the fire ruby stopped at a gate as if nothing had happened. Mark stopped short of it, and Will and Vanya collided into Mark’s back. The three of them toppled over, successfully crushing the gate into splinters with a sickening crunch underneath their combined weight.

The fire ruby glinted in the sunlight, shedding its blood red light upon a front door of a two story house. It moved no more, still as a rock. Mark sputtered and spat some grass out of his mouth as Vanya and Will clambered back up from the ground. As Mark stood up and dusted himself off, he looked up at the front door and suddenly stopped.

As if by instinct, Mark walked boldly to the door, grabbed the fire ruby from the ground, and knocked on the great oaken door. Vanya and Will stood back, unsure of what Mark was planning on doing.

Mark waited for a minute or two, and was just about to bring his knuckles to the oak door again, when he heard the locks on the other side spring to life. The door opened a crack and a slim, pretty figure of a lady emerged into view.

“May I help you?” she asked uncertainly, as if troubled by something inside.
“You have her,” Mark said immediately as he stared straight into the crack the door made.
“I’m- I’m sorry, you must be making a mistake,” the lady said as she started to close the door, but Mark slammed his hand on the door, keeping it open.
“Please, I know she is in there. We have to find her,” Mark explained as he looked back at Vanya and Will.

The lady looked at the three of them, surveying each of them closely. Her gaze fell upon Vanya’s left arm which bore a solitary black lightning-shaped tattoo. Vanya noticed her stare and quickly turned his left arm away from her view with a concerned look upon his face. As if hypnotized, the lady slowly let the three men enter her house. Silently, she shut the door with a small click and followed behind the three strangers.

Raeken looked up as three men entered the living room followed by his wife. He watched curiously as the three assembled next to him around Aaru.

“We have found her,” Vanya said, as he kneeled next to the Ice/Lightning Mage, staring at the witch.
“Afta such a lon’ tyme o’ searchin’,” Will said with a contended sigh.
“Er, excuse me but, who are you?” Raeken demanded sternly as he continued to dab Aaru’s head with the freezing towel.
“I am Vanya,” Vanya said forgivingly, “This is Will and Mark.” Vanya motioned towards Will and Mark respectively. “We are like you, Mr.?” Vanya trailed off as he waited for an answer.
“I am Raeken. This is my wife Annikabelle. What do you mean you are like me?” Raeken demanded.
Vanya moved forward, and turned his left arm towards Raeken, revealing his lightning-shaped tattoo. Raeken’s eyes widened in shock.
“There are more?” he asked in surprise.
“What? Of course! You did not seriously think you were the only one,” Vanya said in disbelief.
“Now you just hold on a minute,” Annikabelle suddenly shouted out in a newly found voice, “What the hell is happening?” Vanya, Mark, Will, and Raeken all turned to stare at her.

Latia, Reptina, Guosim, and SolarKatz all crept forward behind Annikabelle, all wondering what this situation was about.

Raeken turned around to face the five. “We are protectors of the One,” he explained, “We have all been branded by the mark of the One. It’s shape is supposed to reflect the soul of the One.” Raeken shifted his shoulder so they could see the black lightning bolt.

“What is the One?” Annikabelle asked uncertainly.
“The One is the only person who can defeat the evil that has now spread across our lands. You two might have already met them,” Raeken nodded to Latia and Reptina who had moved their glance down to Aaru. “The Three Rangers. If they are not stopped, they will bring about the end of MapleStory as we know it and throw it into a darkness that will forever reign.”

Latia and Reptina suddenly looked up at Raeken in fear. They remembered full well how strong and terrible the Rangers were. After all, it was they who had caused all of these events to occur.

“We are sworn to protect the One,” Raeken continued, “We live and die for the One.”

There was silence. Nothing stirred in the house, not even Aaru. Everything was still and quiet. The sun had risen considerably and was now shining its glorious rays into the living room, its light glinting off the furniture and off everyone’s faces. Some were confused, some were determined.

Suddenly, a twang of a bowstring rang through the air and the great front door was suddenly engulfed in fiery hot flames. A great grunt emitted from outside the house and a strong foot swiftly kicked down the door with a tremendous crash. There, standing in the doorway, were the three Rangers.