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Guardian of Time

By: Cimmaron Spirit

Chapter Two: The First Lessons

"A teacher affects eternity; he can never tell, where his influence stops."

-Henry Brooks Adams

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January 1, 2005 (Alpha Timeline)

The old robed deity clutched his scythe as he and a younger man stood together in a chamberfacing a massive display screen. The other man towered over the Keeper of Time, wearing a dark red shirt and black pants, with blood red sash around his waist. His short, pure white hair was combed over in a style that was popular from the world where he was from a fiery red pocket watch attached to the red cloth around his torso.

"I still believe you where foolhardy to have done that, Father Time," the tall figure said at last with a Russian accent, taping the display screen to rewind the images of the cataclysm that had taken place but a few hours ago. "I know you are immortal and all, but that was simply stupid."

"I stand beside my decision, Nikolai," Chronos defiantly replied.

"You just couldn't send another Guardian to fetch him, like what you did for me or any other member that has been recruited and brought here since the dawn of time? You had to do it yourself. And, as well, take him to the Temple of the Worlds, where Zeitherr would no doubt come, and risk Ty...Cimmaron's life?" Nikolai scowled.

"It needed to be done," the Greek godcalmly stated as they both continued to watch the screen as it re played the globes that represented the different timelines as they seamlessly merged together. The effect of the Staff of Vremja was still too stunning to comprehend. It took two timelines that had been separate since the dawn of humanity and merged them together, the primary Alpha, the normal course of history; and a Beta, the one which was populated with half animal, half human inhabitants, or "Furries" as they were known in the Alpha timeline; and merged them together. All the timelines that branched from the Beta timeline merged with their parallels in the Alpha timeline,so that a world where the Nazi's won the war that deviated from the Alpha Timeline merged with its furry counterpart that had before deviated from the Beta Timeline.

And not only that, but every timeline that came from the Alpha, which easily numbered in the millions, if not billions, had also been irreversibly altered, so that now there were two races of humanoid creatures in the Alpha Timeline, a rewritten history that affected everyone. They wouldn't know it, there would be a short transition phase, but soon it would be as if life was always like this, but the effects of the staff had made this merge irreversible, and any attempts to pull the two timelines apart would result in their destruction. The effects were still not completely understood, or even why Zeitherr planned to merge the two together in the first place, but it seems his plans succeeded and it had happened. The now destroyed Staff of Vremja had many mysterious powers that were barely understood, but this wasn't ever thought to be possible. So much research and thinking would have to be done about this...

The Russian let out a deep sigh as he rubbed his chin in thought. He was from a timeline were Russia did not become the Communist dictatorship it had been in the Alpha timeline; finally he lowered his hand and glared at the deity. That world was now changed beyond recognition, he knew, with anthropomorphic creatures now running about. "The last time you said that, we had Zeitherr surrounded, but you wouldn't let us destroy him, and end this nightmare that has been plaguing the Guardians for thousands of years. I was younger then, having only been a Guardian for about a hundred years. But now, I've been serving you for over 5,000, and, yet again, you wouldn't let Zeitherr be defeated. Why?"

Chronos looked at the monitor, and sighed. "He cannot be defeated yet. Nor can he be for much time to come. If we were to make an attempt, we would only be dooming ourselves, for you have to remember, he also has the power to move through time like you do. If we defeat him before the right time, a future or past version of himself will return and ensure he isn't captured or killed. We can't risk the lives of the Guardians, so we must wait until the time is right."

Nikolai was silent at that. He had heard this so many times, and each time, it was still infuriating to hear. But he knew it was true: the one time that Zeitherr was nearly killed, another, an older, more experienced evil master, swooped in and devastated the Guardians, defeating them all, and saving his past self, allowing him to escape and continue his plans.

Chronos looked up to the young man, and back to the screen. He knew that Nikolai, as well as the other Time Guardians, wanted to destroy Zeitherr, and the power he held. But it can't be done until the right time. But knew now that Cimmaron was here, and about to start his training, that time was now so much closer.

"Patience, Nikolai," Chronos advised, turning around. "There are other things to contend with first; most important of all is to begin the training of Cimmaron. He will need all the help he can, for he has the Golden Chronodevice. He has a great potential, with the power he has been gifted. But he needs to learn how to control it." The god placed his hand on Nikolai's shoulder. "And that is where you come in, Nikolai. He will need your help, most of all."

"Yes, Chronos," the Russian said. The Greek God of Time smiled then tapped his scythe on the ground, causing him to disappear back into the time stream, leaving Nikolai by himself, looking at the monitor. The replay of the merging of the timelines had a kind of beauty to it, despite the shock and awe at the ease at which the worlds merged together. At last he looked away, for he couldn't watch it anymore.

"Zeitherr, you will pay for this," Nikolai muttered as he pulled out his Chronodevice, and looked at the red exterior, and how it shimmered with the light from the display screen. "You will pay."

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The equine anthro began to stir, until at last opened his eyes after a few hours of unconsciousness. He yawned and stretched, hearing several cracks from popping bones in his body. Cimmaron blinked his eyes a few times before gazing around the room he was now sleeping in. He remembered his old bed, in that cabin in Northern Canada... the one he never could, and never would, return to.

Cimmaron sat up and stretched, and scratched his back. The feeling of the fur brushing against his new hands made him shiver at the feeling, and also reminded him of the transformation that took place last night; how he had been knocked unconscious as a human, and woke up to be "furry." It was both strange and liberating at the same time. Now, he could put his past behind him, and look forward to his new life.

With that thought, he looked at the small bed side table, and saw the golden pocket watch, or, as Chronos called it, a Chronodevice. He delicately picked it with his new hands, and looked at the time piece. He carefully opened the cover, to see inside. The face looked like any ordinary pocket watch, with two arms slowly ticking off the time, and 12 numbers to reveal what the exact time was. But a couple other things took his attention. There were two other hands on it inside their own "mini" clocks, but both of them were pointing straight at the 12 on the top, and were not moving as the other hands where moving.

Cimmaron was puzzled at this, but he shrugged it off. He turned the watch over in his hand to look at the back, and the highly stylized pattern on the back, engraved into the gold. In the center was a combination of a sun and a crescent moon: with the triangles that usually represent a sun on the outer edge of the crescent, and a star inside the crescent. Four symbols ringed the outside, all made of lines in a simple design. He wasn't completely sure what they meant. He would have to ask someone to figure that out...

He brushed his finger over the outside, but as it touched the center a sharp jolt went through his body, making him gasp and pull his hand back. As he did so the watch plummeted to the floor, making a resounding thud. Cimmaron gasped and quickly retrieved the Chronodevice and checked to make sure nothing was broken before setting it on bed stand. When he was certain nobody was around, he sighed, unaware until then that he had been holding his breath.

Cimmaron glanced over to the other side of the room, where the other bed was. He noticed that it was still unused from last night when he first came in; he guessed his new roommate was out doing training, or maybe on a mission of some sort. Cimmaron shrugged to himself and looked around the room. It looked like he was in a movie set: dull grey walls with a couple monitors and lights set into them, and a small "desk" in each corner, with a chair and some stuff on it. A tinted window was set into the wall, allowing in some light. After getting a good look at his new room, he felt his stomach growling, demanding food.

Well, first things first, he decided He needed clothes. So he walked over to the closet (or, at least what he thought was the closet), and opened it up. Inside were some t-shirts and jeans, as well as nicer collared shirts and better pants. After a few moments of browsing, he pulled out a t-shirt and a pair of jeans, and draped them over his arm. He placed his shirt on the bed, and prepared to put on the jeans but as he attempted them on he realized his enhanced package... he looked down as his bare skin and reached for his ball sac, surprised how much bigger it was now. Cimmaron realized he was missing something and looked around, trying to find a drawer... there! That must be it, he thought, seeing several handles just sticking out of the wall on his side of the room. He pulled one open, to see nothing inside. The second and the third one were also empty, but finally When the young stallion finally pulled open the forth drawer, he gasped yet again. Inside was a couple pairs of underwear and a few jockstraps all specially made for his "enhanced" equipment. He blushed at the thought, as he had never worn any before, as he had never really been an athlete. But still...

He pulled one of the jockstraps from the drawer, and set it on his bed with the other clothes. Cimmaron continued going through the drawer, wondering where the socks were. But as he moved, he heard the clip-clop of his hooves, reminding him that he wouldn't need them ever again. He closed the drawer and walked back to his bed.

He quickly got dressed, slipping on the jock, which comfortably held his balls and bulging sheathe, and he pulled on the t-shirt and jeans he picked out. When he was done, Cimmaron looked into the mirror on the closet door, and smiled to himself. He looked almost like he did when he was human, except for the brown fur, long black mane and the massive snout he now had. The shut the door, and looked around again. It was then that he noticed the envelope on the table/desk thing. He was certain it wasn't there before, but he picked it up anyway, and turned it over in his hands. Nothing was on the outside to indicate a sender. Cimmaron shrugged, and opened it up, and pulled out the piece of paper inside to read it.

Good morning Cimmaron,

Since this is your first day here, it was decided to let you sleep in a bit, but until your training is complete, don't expect this luxury again. If you're reading this, I guess you got up a bit sooner than expected.

Anyway, after you're ready, follow the hallway down to the other end. Someone will be there waiting for you to take you to breakfast, then to your first training course.

I will not be around for a while now, as I have a previous engagement. However, I will keep track of your progress, and I wish you the best of luck.

Yours in Time;

Chronos

PS: If you're not out of your room by 9 o'clock, someone will be around to fetch you. Remember your Chronodevice!

The stallion turned around and picked up his pocket watch and opened the front to see the time. The hands were pointed at the nine and the twelve

"Cimmaron?" a voice asked behind him, making the anthro freeze in place. He turned around to see a tall man with white hair looking at him.

"Yes?" he asked, looking at the man, the icy grey stare making him cower.

"I'm Nikolai, and I'm here to fetch you," he said in a noticeable Russian accent. "If you will please come with me..."

"I was just about to leave..." the horse claimed, but the icy stare returned to face him, making the rest of the sentence die in his throat. The Russian turned and left the room, the door silently opening to allow him through. The anthro quickly followed after him, his hooves echoing across the floor.

Nikolai lead Cimmaron down the hallway, and through a maze of corridors that the horse had difficulty to keeping straight in his mind. At last, he gave up trying to remember the path, and silently followed the, presumably, Guardian of Time.

At last they arrived at another door, which silently opened to show off a dining room. It wasn't overly large, big enough for about 60 people, though only a handful was currently using it. A large picture window showed off a brilliant view of green, grassy hills and soft clouds floating in a bright blue sky. Part of Cimmaron suddenly felt the sudden urge to go outside, to run around in the fields and frolic in the grass...

His day dream was cut short by Nikolai, who nudged him over to a small counter. Cimmaron clopped over to the counter, where a tray piled high with scrambled eggs, sausage, toast and hashbrowns was waiting for them. The anthro stallion drooled slightly at the sight of such a spread after going such a long time without eating grabbed one tray, while his guide grabbed another.

They both went to a table and started eating in silence. Cimmaron was still uncomfortable sitting across, heck being near this guy. Those eyes were enough to make grown men wither from his glare. But he had so many questions! And, well, who better to ask?

"Um, Nikolai," he finally asked, waiting till the white haired, grey eyed man directed his withering attention at him. "What exactly is a Guardian of Time?"

Nikolai, his face still unchanged, took a bit out of his toast before answering. "A Guardian of Time is a person chosen from one of the many different worlds to assist in keeping order to the Space-Time Continuum. There are those that wish to change the past to something they assume would be more ideal. However, they can't, for if they do try to change the past, they will change the present and the future, and most times to something unpredictable, and always never what they wanted."

"Why don't you just send them to the world they want to be on? That would solve the problems, won't it?" Cimmaron asked.

Nikolai shook his head. "No. That will make things worse. The idea is to keep the different worlds separate, and to have the people who live in them try to improve the present and the future instead. And, when a person is moved outside their original timeline, and into a new world and they die somehow or someway, they will be erased from all time's and worlds, as if they never existed."

"And what about these 'powers' Chronos was talking about? And why am I special? And why was I chosen to be a Guardian?" Cimmaron blurted out.

Nikolai calmly took a drink from his cup before continuing. "There are four 'natural' powers; Air, Earth, Fire and Water; as well as two 'supernatural' powers; Light and Dark; which a Guardian of Time might be able to have at his command. Most times, a Guardian is given control of two or three powers, usually those that work well together. However, you have the ability to summon all six of these powers, which is very rare, and, in fact, has only happened one other time before. They are all engraved on the back of your Chronodevice, if you look." Cimmaron pulled the watch from his pocket to looked at the different symbols, this time recognizing what they each represented.

"And as for choosing you..." Nikolai shrugged. "That, is a secret only Chronos knows, but he has been right. Mostly."

"What do you..." Cimmaron started, but was interrupted by Nikolai.

"No time for that now. We must go," the Russian said, rising from his table. "The questions you have will be answered in time, I assure you." He waved for the stallion to follow him, and Cimmaron stood up and clip-clopped after the older Guardian of Time.

"Where are we going?" asked Cimmaron, looking up.

"To begin your training. You didn't think this would just be some lazy vacation now, did you?" Nikolai asked, daring the anthro stallion to answer him.

"No sir," Cimmaron said, looking ahead as they at last arrived at a large door, which opened before the two, revealing a large dark room.

As Cimmaron and Nikolai entered, the lights came up, revealing a long, wood paneled room that would not have been out of place in an ancient Chinese temple. The horse looked around to see swords from many different eras hanging from walls, as well as preserved displays of armor and other assorted weapons.

Nikolai stopped in the middle of the room, and turned around to face the newest Guardian of Time. "We are going to start with learning how to use your Chronodevice. It is the most important object of a Guardian of Time, so you must learn how to use it. It is your ability to time travel, to use the elements, and to fight. So, we will begin with the easy part: fighting.

"Now, as you know, you will always be sent to different times and places to protect the Space-Time Continuum, so your needs for weapon's will always change. You would not want to take a revolver to Feudal Japan, nor a Katana to Ancient Rome, and so on and so forth. Therefore, you Chronodevice can change into the weapon you need, and the elements can be infused into the weapon to increase its power.

"For now, though, let's practice with changing your weapons. This process is a thought process, so you basically think about the weapon you want, and you get it. Now remember to choose wisely, as the wrong weapon at the wrong time can mean the difference between life and death. So always keep that in mind."

Cimmaron nodded, listening to the instructions, eagerly waiting to try this out for himself. Nikolai urged Cimmaron to move closer, and pulled out his pocket watch, which, in comparison to the anthro's gold was a fiery red in color. The horse also pulled out his Chronodevice, and held it in his palm.

"Alright, now let's say we are in Medieval Europe. What would you get?" the Russian asked.

"Most likely a broadsword," the horse replied. As he said so, he could feel the watch seem to turn into clay, which molded itself in his hands. The weight seemed to triple in a moment, as a long, double edged blade sprang forth, and a cross guard grew out of either side.

Nikolai watched in suppressed amassment, as he had never seen a first time Guardian ever manage to transform his watch into a weapon on the first go. Was Chronos right, and was Cimmaron destined to be the one that would defeat Zeitherr? He shook the thought from his head. He had more important things to deal with than useless thinking.

Cimmaron looked along the edge of the sword to see the symbol of the elements that were engraved on the back of his watch now shown on the blade nearest the handle. He looked up to Nikolai with a wide grin, though the elder Time Guardian's impassive features still did not betray what he was really thinking.

"Very well, Cim," Nikolai said. "Now, since we have our weapon's, let's do some sword practice."

"But I had never..." Cimmaron started as he saw Nikolai raise his weapon high to strike. The horse gasped, and quickly dashed backwards, the heavy sword swinging through the spot he once was in.

"Never used a sword before?" Nikolai finished. "Well then, the best way to learn is by hitting the ground running," he said, taking a step and another swing at Cim, who jumped backwards again. Nikolai grunted, and this time took another wild swing, but this time he felt resistance, as the equine anthro at last defended himself. The horse was strong, Nikolai had to admit, but he could see the fear in the young stallion's eyes. He grinned, and pulled back to swing again, yet again blocked by Cimmaron.

The Russian continued his huge swings, but Cim was soon learning to anticipate his swings, slowly beginning to block every strike. But Cim was still scared half out of his mind that his teacher would suddenly start attacking him like this.

Don't worry Cimmaron, a calming voice echoed in his mind in between the clash of the blades. It's a test to see if you are ready for what comes next. And you will do well. I assure you.

Who are you? Cimmaron thought, but no voice replied, leaving the horse yet again confused. But the battle was still raging, and another swing by Nikolai was parried yet again. The experience of Nikolai, as well as the power he had to swing the sword was immense, while Cim was nearly exhausted from just trying to block the attacks. But he knew he had to end this. To succeed in the test that voice was telling him about.

As Nikolai tried again to attack, Cim struck first swinging the sword toward the Russian with a whinny, but was just blocked. Cim brought the sword around quickly and hit hard, making Nikolai loose his balance as he tried to parry again, and the human feel to the floor, panting heavily.

"Well done, Cimmaron," Nikolai at last said. "You do have the spirit of Guardian of Time: to be able to fight back an attacker when the need to arises, even when unready." The white haired Russian rose from the ground, the sword seeming to melt backwards into his hand. Cim looked at his sword to see it doing the same, making it seem like he was holding clay until it reformed into a solid pocket watch.

"Now, Cimmaron, you must learn about the elements," Nikolai said. "I can't help you much here, as my single element is Fire. However, I can give you the basics. So, if you will come with me," the Guardian gestured, leading the equine to the other side of the room that they had entered. The door opened, but this time Nikolai led Cim outside. The two walked along a stone path to a wide, flat plain, with the scorch marks of many battles and practices etched into the ground.

Nikolai stopped in the center of the plain, and turned to face the horse. "Now, dealing with the elements is similar to weapons; it is a thought process. However, to control and use the elements, you need energy, which is measured on your Chronodevice. It is very difficult to explain how it works otherwise; it just seems to happen if you think about it.

"However, choosing the element you use is extremely important. If you choose Water in a desert or arctic setting, it won't work as well as Earth or Air in the desert and Fire in the snow. So, it is important that you pick the right one for the right purpose..."

Cimmaron listened carefully but he was growing impatient. He started rubbing his fingers together anxiously, feeling the friction between his furred hands. But as he continued to listen, suddenly his teacher stopped. "Um, Cimmaron..." he said, pointing to the horse's hand.

The anthro lifted his hand to see, and gasped as he saw a fireball engulfing his hand. He was shocked, as his body didn't feel like it was burning or anything. He turned his hand over to see the orange and red flames dancing on his hand. He looked up to Nikolai, who was silent.

"Um... how do you put it out?" asked Cimmaron, but as soon as he asked, the flames were extinguished.

"Remember, it's all a mind thing. As long as you have the energy, you can command an element." Nikolai raised his hand. "However, commanding an element is not the same as controlling an element. You have to practice to master them, as the elements are not easily tamed. Always remember that."

Cimmaron nodded as he listened, still looking at his hands. With a motion, suddenly a swirling ball of water engulfed his other hand, and when he shook it around, it was like it was stuck to him, yet he didn't feel wet or anything.

"Now, let's do some practicing," Nikolai explained, making Cimmaron's ears perk up, the water disappearing from his hand as he got in a defensive pose. Nikolai chuckled. "So, you think I'm going to attack you again?"

"Fool me once, shame on you," the stallion nickered. "Fool me again, shame on me."

Nikolai laughed, the grey eyes softening. "You are learning very quickly, Cimmaron. I'm actually surprised at how easily you handled a sword for the first time, as well as use the elements. Not many Guardians of Time can say the same when they first started."

"Thank you," Cimmaron said, smiling a little. "Now, you wanted to test me or..."

As he got the words out of his mouth, a fire ball streaked toward him. Cim gasped, and raised his hands...

And a wall of rock rose from the ground, taking the fireball and protecting the anthro. He looked around to see Nikolai with his hands out stretched. He smiled at the horse. "That was very clever, I must say. Earth is a great defensive element, as you see."

"Well..." Cimmaron started. He didn't exactly think about that... it just happened. Was that maybe his mind searching for something to protect him? But how did he know?

Another fire ball raced toward Cimmaron then, but this time he managed to get the wall of Earth of up by himself. He grinned, releasing the new powers he had. Maybe...

A column of rock suddenly rose underneath Nikolai, making him stumble, and the next fireball he released fly in another direction. Cimmaron grinned again, and then leaped up, and threw a water-ball he had formed at Nikolai, drenching the other Guardian. He tried to make another fireball, but it instead simply turned to steam.

Nikolai sighed. "Alright, you got me this time. That was very clever. I can tell that you are good at thinking on your feet...er...hooves...in a hurry, which is a good thing to do. But now, we must continue training. We will come back to this later, of course." He turned on his heels, about to leave the training grounds.

"But what about the other elements?" the horse anthro asked. "Air, Light and Dark and that?"

Nikolai stopped and twisted his head around to face the stallion. "We are going to go over those later. They are very difficult to control, so we must devote much time to working on them. But only after you have done well with the other element's you have at your command. Understand?"

Cimmaron nodded, and followed Nikolai back to the massive building. From the outside, the building looked like a mish-mash of different buildings: a Japanese temple, a Roman coliseum, a French castle, a Tudor house, to name a few.

Nikolai looked back to see Cimmaron looking at the building, the Headquarters of the Guardians of Time. "It was designed to look like different buildings from different eras on the exterior, while still being futuristic in the interior." The anthro nodded at the simplified explanation, and followed Nikolai back through the door they left to come out earlier.

He followed the Russian through some more halls till they arrived at another room, which was circular, and had mosaics that were done in the Roman style, which showed different events throughout history. The stallion found the Titanic on one, a World War One battle, a siege of a medieval castle; explorer's landing on a distant shore...

"This," Nikolai started in a hushed tone, "is the Chamber of Events. Many events in history are documented here, to be shared by all. It is also where we come to learn how to use the Chronodevice.

"Unlike everything else, it does not use mind power to work. Instead, you have to set the date, time and world you wish or need to go too." Nikolai pulled out his flaming red watch, and Cimmaron followed suit with his golden one.

"Now, first you have to pull the top, then twist," the Guardian demonstrated, pulling and twisting the stem, which changed the face of the watch from telling time to four displays. "The top display sets the day and month, the second the year, the third time, and the forth the world. The number of the world will be given to you when you set out on a mission, or you set a random one if you wish to go away for a while," Nikolai explained. "Now, this where I want you to set it to..."

Cimmaron followed the instructions, setting the different displays to the commanded place. "Now, to go to that place, push the stem down."

The horse nodded, and pushed. In an instant, he disappeared from the room he was in, and blinding colors and lights flew past him. But as soon as it started, it was over. Cimmaron gasped slightly at the sight he had went through, and looked around to see he was...

...in the same exact place he started, with Nikolai standing beside him. "So, how was your first time traveling trip?" the Russian asked.

"Did I go anywhere?" the stallion asked.

"Check your watch," Nikolai said. Cim looked at the time to see that had traveled to the time set, which, now that he thought about it, was a few minutes later than when they first arrived in this chamber.

Nikolai stretched, slipping his watch back in his pocket. "Alright, that concludes the first lessons. For the next few weeks, we are going to work on developing your weapon skills and element controls."

The stallion nodded. "Okay, but can I get supper?"

Nikolai chuckled. "Man, you are like a toddler with all your questions! Alright then, let's go, you hungry horse." They both turned to leave the chamber again. Cimmaron had many more questions, but, well, they would be answered eventually. He hoped.