The Mist Guardian
Compendium 2020 – Story 37
By Andrew Hawnt
Midran had always faced North. His armour and multi-purpose bladed spear known as the Kelear always shone with the gleam of things that had been respected for generations, which they very much had.
The Mist was alive with the souls of trillions of beings, saved in their dying moments from planets across all of existence. They were as one in the Mist, safe and alive as a single mass of thought and wonder.
But there would always be those who sought to harness the Mist's knowledge and power. There had been ships. Demons. Gigantic monstrosities that pulsed with a million eyes. Armies of ghostly screams. A gargantuan orb of living blood that sought minds for its cells.
Countless others had tried, and they had all failed, for among the Mist there hung the Isle of One, where Midran stood watch. Midran and the island were the only things that had a physical form in that realm, so when attackers came, they were not prepared for the heart of the Mist to contain an immortal warrior brandishing a weapon that could slice time. Their vessels stood no chance.
Their consciousnesses had joined the Mist while their physical forms had wasted away in the ether. Midran had resumed his vigil. Always facing North.
He was never alone in the Mist. There was always a story to be had, a song to be heard, a life to be shared in the passing ether.
Threats would come from any direction, but always he would return to that edge of the Isle and gaze Northward. It would be that direction that his final moments as the Mist Guardian would come. Eventually, once time had died and realms had atrophied, the North, or what he perceived as the North, would part and reveal his entrance to the Mist itself, where he would join the countless souls and another would take up the mantle of Guardian.
Finally, after generations had passed into eons, Midrin saw that the Mist was threatened by an army of black spheres, their massive forms emerging through the yellow haze and attacking him with strange weaponry that tried to split him into threads of time and thought. Midrin was prepared, and faced the spheres down with the dual blades of Kelear.
As the last sphere died, the North parted. Revealing a pulsing tunnel. Midrin gave himself to its pull, eager to receive his reward for however many billions of days he had stood watch on the Isle of One. He passed through to that new realm and gazed with equal horror and wonder as a new Isle came into view. A new Mist surrounded it. Blue. Upon the Isle stood an armoured warrior clutching a similar weapon to Midrin's.
He landed on the Isle of Two and took up his new place. Universes had died beyond the Mist, and a new age of battles was to begin.
Midrin acknowledged his new companion and turned to face North.
He knew that one day he would see it again.
© Andrew Hawnt 2020
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About Compendium 2020:
Compendium 2020 is a project from author Andrew Hawnt that consists of 52 original short stories, flash fiction stories and vignettes given away for FREE in 2020. Featuring science fiction, fantasy, horror and more, this began as a personal quest and due to the weirdness of 2020 has become an ambition to provide free distractions for anyone who needs them.
About Andrew Hawnt:
Andrew is based in Nottingham, England. Known for his music journalism career, comics writing and film critique work, Andrew is a prolific writer and is the author of a growing stack of books, including the cult hit VHS Ate My Brain. He made the movies The Demon And I and The Demon And I: Birthrite completely in lockdown with cast members filming their scenes remotely, and new films are coming.
Andrew is also the creator and presenter of the YouTube shows Planet Hex and Turn One Shock as well as the video versions of the Compendium stories.
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© Andrew Hawnt 2020
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