Chapter 2

Seraphina noticed that every woman around her suddenly looked toward the dark sky above the glowing valley. She quickly looked up too, but all she could see were glowing rocks, floating lights, and a lot of empty space. She frowned and scratched her head.

"What are all of you looking at? Is there something up there? Please don't tell me it's a giant monster. I just got here."

The Elder Goddess looked at her, "Do not worry about it yet."

Seraphina blinked. "Yet? I don't like that word. It sounds like I'm going to worry later."

Several women laughed, making Seraphina even more confused. She pointed at herself and asked, "Can I ask something? Why did you choose me? There are so many women. Some of them even wanted to be the sacrifice. Why me?"

The Elder Goddess walked closer. "Because I saw something special inside you."

Seraphina quickly looked down at her body and checked both of her hands. Then she looked behind her. "Where? Is it stuck on my back? Is it glowing?"

The goddess shook her head. "No. I saw your future."

"My future?" Seraphina asked.

"You have great power sleeping inside you."

Seraphina slowly nodded. "Oh... I thought you found money in my pocket."

While everyone was smiling, Seraphina finally looked at the clothes the women were wearing. Every one of them had a beautiful blue robe that shined like the stars. They looked like real goddesses. Then she looked at herself. She was still wearing her simple sleeping dress with little white clouds printed on it.

One of the women smiled. "Do you want a robe too?"

"Of course!" Seraphina said right away. "Where can I get one? Who made them? Did someone sew them? Did you buy them? Is there a tailor here?"

Her eyes suddenly landed on an old woman quietly standing near the back of the group. The old woman wore the same shining blue robe, but she also carried a small silver needle hanging from her belt.

Seraphina quickly pointed at her. "Oh! Is she the one who makes the robes? She looks exactly like the tailor in my town. The only thing missing is a tape measure around her neck."

One of the women quickly shook her head. "No. Please show respect. She is not a tailor. She was once the Elder Goddess's personal guardian many years ago."

Seraphina's eyes grew wide. "A guardian?" She slowly nodded, then rubbed her chin with a very serious face as if she were solving the greatest mystery in history. "Hmm... so she's a retired bodyguard with good fashion."

The old woman slowly turned toward her with a deep frown, "No. You must earn your robe."

Seraphina's smile disappeared. "What?"

"You must finish your first training."

Seraphina crossed her arms and puffed out her cheeks, "So even the clothes have rules? Back home, I only needed money."

Another woman speak, "Here, hard work is worth more than gold."

Seraphina looked at her sleeping dress again, "My pajamas never asked me to work." Then she suddenly froze, "Oh no my date!"

"Date?" one woman asked.

"Yes!" Seraphina cried. "Tomorrow I have a date with my crush, Troy! I was finally going to tell him I like him. If he asked me to be his girlfriend, I was going to say yes!"

She looked at the Elder Goddess with hopeful eyes.

"Can I please go back tomorrow? Just for one day. I only need to tell Troy yes. Then I will come back. I promise."

The Elder Goddess gently shook her head, "I'm sorry, Seraphina. You cannot return."

Seraphina stood there in silence before letting out a long sigh, "So... I got sacrificed before I even got a boyfriend. Poor Troy. He's probably waiting for me."

The Elder Goddess smiled calmly. "There is no need."

"What do you mean, no need?"

"Because Troy does not truly like you."

Seraphina frowned. "That's impossible!"

Without saying another word, the Elder Goddess raised one finger. A glowing blue screen suddenly appeared in the air like a giant floating television. Seraphina jumped backward.

"Whoa! Magic TV?"

The screen showed Troy holding hands with another woman. A moment later, he kissed her. Then another picture appeared. Troy was smiling with a different woman. Then another. And another.

Seraphina stood there with her mouth open, "How many girlfriends does he have?"

The Elder Goddess calmly answered, "Many. Anyway, Seraphina. It is time."

She blinked, "Time for what?"

"Your training."

Seraphina frowned, "Training? For what?"

The Elder Goddess turned toward the dark valley. At that moment, another loud roar shook the whole cavern, making the glowing crystals flash like stars.

"To survive what has just awakened."

Seraphina stared at the Elder Goddess with her mouth hanging open. She slowly pointed at herself and asked, "Awakened... what?"

The Elder Goddess looked toward the dark valley but did not answer. Seraphina's eyes became wide.

"Wait! Don't tell me your training means I have to fight that thing!" She quickly waved both hands. "No! No way! I don't know how to fight! I can't even kill a cockroach. Every time I see one, I run away and ask my neighbor to save me!"

Seraphina slowly crossed her arms and puffed out her cheeks, "Fine! I'll stay here." She looked at the screen one last time and snorted. "Troy doesn't deserve me!”

The glowing screen disappeared into small blue lights. Seraphina let out a long sigh before looking at the Elder Goddess. "You know what? Thanks for showing me that. You just saved me from wasting good makeup." She shook her head. "I almost confessed to a man who was collecting girlfriends like trading cards."

Several women laughed, and one of them nodded. "That is a good way to describe him."

Seraphina suddenly looked around the huge cavern. "Okay, I have another question. If you have so many strong women here already, why do you keep bringing humans from my world? You have magic, flying rocks, glowing rivers, and... Magic TV. Why do you even need me?"

The smiles on the women's faces slowly disappeared.

The Elder Goddess Nythera remained silent for a few moments before answering, "Because every guardian you see here was once human. Only a human soul can awaken the power this world has lost. No one born in this world can do it anymore."

Seraphina frowned. "That makes no sense."

"It will."

A deep roar suddenly echoed through the cavern, louder than before. The glowing crystals cracked, and the ground shook beneath everyone's feet. Far away in the darkness, two giant crimson eyes slowly opened.

Nythera's calm smile finally disappeared, "It has found us."

Seraphina swallowed hard, "What exactly did I just agree to become?"

The Elder Goddess Nythera only smiled and turned around. "Come with me." Seraphina had a bad feeling, but she followed anyway. After walking through a long crystal tunnel, they arrived at a huge training ground surrounded by floating blue rocks. Strange metal rings hovered in the air, and glowing lines covered the floor like a giant magic machine.

Seraphina looked around with wide eyes.

Nythera raised her hand. "Watch carefully.

The women stepped into the center of the field. One lifted her hand, and blue fire danced around her fingers without burning them. Another woman made sharp ice spears appear in the air. A third jumped high into the sky before landing with enough force to shake the ground.

Seraphina's mouth slowly fell open, "No way..."

Another woman stretched out her arm, and bright lightning shot from her hand, hitting a floating metal target. A loud boom echoed across the field.

Seraphina quickly hid behind Nythera, "I changed my mind! Can I train to become the cafeteria manager instead?"

Nythera smiled. "Every guardian has her own power."

Before Seraphina could speak again, the floating metal rings suddenly turned bright red. A loud voice echoed across the training ground.

"Unknown life-form detected. Power level... impossible to measure."

Everyone froze.

Nythera's smile vanished. "It should not be here already."

Seraphina looked at her with a confused face. "What do you mean? Please don't say that like you're talking about a surprise guest."

Before Nythera could answer, a deafening sound shook the entire training ground.

Booom!!!

The floating rocks trembled, cracks spread across the glowing floor, and another loud bang echoed from the giant metal gate at the far end of the arena.

The women immediately stopped laughing. Their smiles disappeared as blue light surrounded their bodies. Fire, ice, lightning, wind, and glowing energy filled the air as each guardian prepared for battle.

Seraphina looked from one woman to another with wide eyes, "Wait... you're all fight?"

Nythera stepped in front of her. "Stay behind us."

Another explosion slammed against the gate. This time, a long black claw broke through the metal, followed by thick purple smoke.

Seraphina grabbed Nythera's robe with both hands, "I need to pee!"

The gate exploded into thousands of glowing pieces.

A giant alien-like creature slowly stepped inside. It had four glowing red eyes, long black arms covered with sharp crystals, and a mouth that opened from the top of its head to its chest, filled with rows of silver teeth.

Seraphina's legs shook, "What the hell? Can I still apply for the cafeteria job instead?"

One of the guardians laughed while keeping her eyes on the monster. "Sorry. We don't have a cafeteria."

"Then I'll open one!" Seraphina quickly replied. "I'll make soup! Everyone likes soup!"

"I'm afraid that won't solve this problem," Nythera said calmly.

The alien creature let out a loud roar and rushed forward. At once, the guardians moved like flashing lights. One woman covered the battlefield with walls of ice while another fired balls of blue fire. A third guardian appeared behind the monster in the blink of an eye and struck its back with a glowing spear. The creature screamed and swung its huge claws, but another guardian trapped one of its arms with chains made of light.

"Now!" Nythera ordered.

A bolt of bright lightning crashed from the sky, striking the monster's head. The ground shook as the creature fell to its knees. The last guardian jumped high into the air and brought down a shining sword, cutting through the monster's chest. The alien gave one final roar before its body broke apart into tiny blue crystals that slowly disappeared into the air.

Seraphina stood there with her mouth hanging open, "That was the most dangerous thing I've ever watched without buying a movie ticket."

The women laughed as they lowered their weapons.

Nythera turned to Seraphina with a gentle smile. "Very soon, you will fight creatures like that as well."

Seraphina's face turned pale. She slowly sat on the floor, hugged her knees, and started crying with tiny sniffles.

"No way! Huhuhu! I can't do that! I get scared when a goose chases me! How am I supposed to fight a space monster with four eyes?"

Seraphina slowly opened her eyes. She found herself lying on a soft bed inside a small but beautiful room. Blue flowers glowed softly on the walls, tiny floating lights drifted through the air, and the crystal window filled the room with warm golden light. She blinked a few times before a huge smile spread across her face.

"Yes!" she cheered, jumping out of bed. "I knew it! It was all just a crazy dream." She happily stretched her arms and walked toward a mirror. "Today is my date with Troy. I need to look pretty. Maybe I should wear the blue dress... no, the pink one. Wait! What if he finally asks me to be his girlfriend?"

She giggled to herself before rushing toward the door, "I can't keep my future boyfriend waiting."

Seraphina grabbed the handle and pulled the door open.

The smile on her face froze.

Outside was the same glowing valley, the same floating crystals, and the same women wearing beautiful blue robes.

Lea stood in front of the door with a bright smile and waved, "Good morning, Seraphina."

Seraphina quickly slammed the door shut, "You? No…"

She rubbed both eyes, "I must still be sleeping."

She pinched her cheeks.

"Ouch!"

Seraphina opened the door again. Lea was still standing there. She smiled even wider, "This is the worst morning of my life."

Lea laughed and gently pulled Seraphina outside, "Come on. Your training will start now."

Seraphina let out a deep sigh, "Can my training start next week? I'm still mentally busy thinking about my canceled date."

"I'm afraid not." Lea raised her hand and pointed toward the training field, "For your first level, you need to fight that."

Seraphina frowned, "Fight what?" She slowly followed Lea's finger.

At the far end of the field stood a giant silver wolf, taller than a house. Blue lightning danced across its thick fur, its golden eyes glowed like two suns, and every breath from its mouth covered the ground with cold white mist.

The giant wolf slowly turned its head and looked straight at Seraphina.