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Chapter 1 - Valley of Broken Dreams

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The green fields stretched as far as the eyes could see as the land sloped up and down in various places. Glass shards of different sizes and shapes protruded from the ground, each being reflected by the sun's light. A teenage lion stood in the midst of the land looking all around him. This specific lion is special compared to other lions because he has two souls as one. His mane covered most of his forehead and down the back stretching a little past his neck. The gold and silver lined mane moved slightly as the wind breezed by. His fur is a mix of yellow and brown due to an accident when he was only six years old. He wore a black shirt with outlined wings on the back, long black pants with a set of chains that ran down the left side, a black dragon buckle belt to hold the pants in place, and an armlet/gauntlet on both forearms, one made of metal and the other of cloth. In his right hand, he held a simple sword that has a four foot long blade given to him by a goddess named Valhalla.

"This definitely is the Valley of Broken Dreams," said the lion as he looked at one of the shards.

He saw his reflection at first. Emerald and sapphire eyes with a long scar that reached from his left eye down to the base of his muzzle. The glass shard then glowed before showing a little girl that dreams about being a super model until she dropped the dream to being a teacher.

"Broken dreams...I wonder if my dreams are also here," wondered the lion as he moved through the shards.

No matter where he turned, there would always be many shards covering the ground. Each shard represents one person's dream that has been discarded for a new one. If that person continues to discard dream after dream, then the shard becomes larger. Some eventually becomes floating pieces of glass but none has achieved such a goal. Everyone, regardless of where they are, has a shard. The lion eventually found his shard that looked like a flowing crystal. The image that the shard projected was the lion when he was only small.

"One day, I'm going to be a hero!" shouted the young lion happily as he zoomed around in circles.

The image changed and showed the same young lion about one year later talking to someone who was older than him. He was talking to a snake who wore green clothing to match the green scales which the snake is highly fond of.

"I'm will be a hero one day!" shouted the young lion.

"No you won't. You're nothing but a cry baby and there's nothing you can do about that. Hero's are strong and you're nothing but a weakling to, Leo," said the snake before walking away.

"I'm not a cry baby and I'm not weak...right?" said young Leo as he sat down.

Leo, the older version looking into the glass shard, moved back and remembered what happened next. He got up and charged at the snake who whacked him away using his tail and continued to walk laughing loudly.

"That was such a sad day," murmured Leo as he moved away from his glass shard which grew bigger when he turned his back to it.

He kept walking through the many shards and noticed how each of them had different textures as well as shapes. Some of the shards looked smooth like an orb with peaceful designs such as a flower while the others looked like clear rocks or weapons wanting to be used to attack someone. The smooth represented those with kind hearts and the rough represented those with hateful and evil intents. Taking this into observation, Leo walked aback to his shard which he couldn't find anymore. He found the right area but the shard was missing.

"I'm sure it was a flower shaped shard that was next to that one," murmured Leo looking at one of the shards.

He kept looking before he found a large clearing. It looked suspicious but it soon wasn't when Leo looked up into the sky above the clearing. There floated his shard but it was no longer a flower. It is difficult to describe because the texture is both smooth and rough. It was extremely pointy in some areas while flat or round in the others. Its design is all over something that looked like it was thrown in multiple and yet different machines or it could be considered to have been an art project of an elementary school student. It amazed Leo that the shard is floating in the air when the others were still stuck on the ground.

"What a marvelous thing to see," said an approaching voice.

Leo turned around and saw a hybrid of the human race and the beast race. The face has human features but the hands and and feet were beast man. The person was wearing a simple tan robe that covered his whole body but exposed the hands, feet, and tail. From what Leo saw, the hands, feet, and tail were draconian.

"Who are you?" asked Leo as the person stood beside him.

"I am neither you nor me nor anything that exists on this plain. I am how I am," replied the person.

"Okay? May I know your name then?" asked Leo.

"I have no name. I lived here for so long I don't remember or even if I never had one, I thought I did," replied the person.

"How can you have no name? Have you been living here for your whole life?" asked Leo.

"For as long as I can remember I have lived amongst these dreams, looking at some that are interesting to me. The only I have never been able to see is the one in the air," replied the person.

"Do you mind if I call you Gono?" asked Leo.

"I prefer if you know me as Zeek," said Zeek.

"Um...sure, I guess," said Leo as he returned his attention to the floating shard.

"It's a rare site to see a shard float. The power and sacrifice that is imbued into it means the owner must be having a lot of difficulties in their lives regarding personal goals," said Zeek as he began to walk away.

"Really?" thought Leo as he followed Zeek.

"It is a pity though, the effects of floating usually results in the shard to shatter and send its pieces all over the land," continued Zeek.

"What happens to the pieces?"

"Some will make new areas for more dreams to reside. Others will just burn up. There have been only one time where the shard doesn't shatter but I cannot recall when or why."

Leo turned around to face the shard and noticed that there are small cracks forming on the surface. He stopped to look at it when it did shatter and pieces flew in all directions but inside the shard was something else. The Valkyrien sword that he held finally got his attention when it began to glow and he could here voices in his head.

"He's here! He's finally here!" exclaimed one voice.

"Quiet down, I'm sure he can hear us if you stop shouting," said another.

"I think we have his attention because you squealed," said a third.

Zeek stopped and turned around to see the shard shatter that left behind a small orb that drifted towards Leo. As the orb grew closer, the glowing light of the sword became brighter until the orb was right in front of Leo's face only a few inches away.

"Well I'll be," murmured Zeek.

"What's going on here?" thought Leo as he examined his glowing sword.

"You have finally come to free us all from the cycle! We are the warriors of Lady Valhalla who have been trapped here for so long, practically an eternity!" squealed the first voice.

"Stop squealing so much, you're making the mood to light," scolded the second voice.

"No I'm not!" shouted the first voice.

"While you two bicker away, I'll talk to him," said the third voice but the first and second voice weren't listening. "I am Valkyn, the one that is negative is Belkyn and the last is Grace. We have been here for so long that we do not remember how long or why were here in the first place. We were told that the hero for everyone will come and when that happens, we would join such person for battle."

"And that is to be me?" asked Leo.

"Why, yes, it happens to be you," replied Zeek. "If I knew you were the chosen one, then I wouldn't have lied to you. My real name Zanik Repiere also a warrior of Lady Valhalla."

Zanik bowed down low as Leo looked at him in confusion. The orb continued to float near Leo as he gathered his thoughts on what is going on.

"If I can see Zanik, then why can't I see you Valkyn?" questioned Leo.

"We, Belkyn, Grace, and I, has given up our bodies so we could wait in the shard for the chosen to come. For now, we are just souls waiting for a holder until Lady Valhalla can grant us new bodies," responded Valkyn. Belkyn and Grace stopped bickering to listen to what is going on.

"I see," said Leo.

"In order for them to follow you into battle, you would first need a sword of your own and be a Valkyrie but Valkyries are only females," stated Zanik.

"That's true, Valkyries are only female. There's no way I can do anything about that...is there?" questioned Leo.

"Actually there is," said a clear voice.

"Lady Valhalla!" exclaimed Zanik as he bowed down to the ground.

"There is no need to bow Zanik," laughed Valhalla as if she was a child.

Zanik quickly got up and dusted himself off before standing up straight and tense.

"Leo, you can hold my three Valkyries by becoming a Valkyrien knight for night. It is quite unheard of and something that doesn't not fit a male stature but it is necessary until I can produce three bodies for the Valkyries," said Valhalla.

Leo didn't know where the voice was coming from until he looked down at the sword that was glowing even brighter than earlier. The voice was coming directly from the weapon that Valhalla loaned to him to help suppress Valice, a beast man that was driven for power ever since he was a kid. Leo thought about the offering as well as the chance to find his own weapon. He also thought about his friends and the future. After several minutes has passed, Leo came up with an answer that seemed logical.

"If it is needed, then I shall become a Valkyrien knight," said Leo.

The Valkyries were surprised as well as Zanik who thought Leo would have refused the offer and keep his masculinity. Valhalla didn't say anything and nothing happened for a few seconds before the sword began to shine with bright light that enveloped Leo. Zanik covered his eyes for the light was to intense for his eyes to bare. The orb moved back slightly. Within the light, Leo covered his eyes using his left arm until the intensity of the light died down and revealed nothing but white. At first he thought it was only his imagination and that he couldn't see anything, not even his own body. This was soon disproved as he saw his arm and the sword and the rest of his body when he looked down.

"Am I cut off from the outside with this white room?" thought Leo reaching a hand out to touch the walls.

His cage, should it be considered that, had smooth walls that curved in. Leo is enclosed inside of a white sphere which he concluded when he could find no corners using the swords tip. The walls were so thick that he could not see through to the outside even though he never moved when the light exploded with brilliance. Strange enough, there was a breeze and he can still feel the heat from the sun even though he could not see it. The sphere acted like a cage but you can't see anyone or anything and they can't see you. This is probably what an asylum would feel like if you were in the room with its puffy yellow walls.

"Wait, how can there be light in an enclosed area?" thought Leo.

It truly is a mystery indeed. A confinement that allowed the heat and breeze in with no possibility for light. The sword was not glowing so that possibility is out of the question but Leo kept thinking about it as he sat on the floor with the sword propped over his right shoulder.

Outside of the sphere after the light had died down, Zanik dropped his cover and looked at the white sphere that levitated an inch above the ground. He touched its surface and it was smooth and hard just as Leo had discovered. He could see through it to the other side so Zanik walked around and stood next to the orb and looked in amazement that there was no form or air holes or doors to allow passage in and out of the sphere. Zanik wondered whether Leo could see and breath inside as he sat on the ground and waited patiently.

"What do you think is going on in there?" asked Valkyn.

"He's probably being judged whether he should live or not," said Belkyn.

"Don't you say that! He's not going to die!" shouted Grace.

"No, he is being judged but not about life or death," said Zanik.

"It is quite difficult for her to design the Valkyrien armor for males. She should just give him one of the male armors to make it easier," said Valkyn.

"Then he wouldn't be able to find a place for you three to rest in," said Zanik thinking hard about how Valhalla will design such an armor.

"She'll probably just make one that will end his life and all hope will be lost for sure," said Belkyn.

"Stop being so evil! She's going to make an armor that will save everyone and make all of us happy!" said Grace cheerfully.

"No, the armor is going to be dark like the night and slowly drain away his energy until he his nothing but a pile of dust," said Belkyn darkly.

"You have bad thoughts! Think happy once in a while," scolded Grace.

"But I am thinking happy thoughts. Thinking dark thoughts is more fun though," said Belkyn.

"No it isn't! It's far from fun!" shouted Grace.

"Will you two just shut up already?" asked Valkyn but Belkyn and Grace ignored her yet again.

"Just let them be, I don't think you'd be able to do anything about it anyways," said Zanik drawing out his weapon from thin air.

The weapon is a halberd. It had a long wooden shaft and a metallic blade at the tip, far from where Zanik is holding it. The metal blade was curved on one end, a long point that follows the shaft, and another point that is perpendicular to the shaft. The curved portion is quite long for it covered half of the shaft if the head was placed next to the shaft itself. Zanik held the weapon high and brought it down on the sphere with all of his might. The weapon clashed with the sphere but slid off without making a single dent or scratch.

"This is tougher than I thought. No sound either," murmured Zanik.

"Lady Valhalla knows how to make an enclosure, right?" asked Valkyn.

"Yes she does," said Zanik as he sat on the ground and closed his eyes to meditate.

Back inside the sphere Leo continued to think about light in an enclosed area. He did not hear Zanik's heavy strike on the sphere wall nor did he hear the conversation between the warriors. Leo is basically all alone inside the sphere other than his sword but that didn't carry a conversation though.

"In order to design your armor, you must first find your weapon," said Valhalla's voice.

"Find my weapon?" murmured Leo.

"Are you willing to embark on that journey even though there is a possibility that you may not return?" questioned Valhalla.

"If I'm going to do something in here, then I might as well," said Leo.

"Then place the sword in front of you, close your eyes, and relax," said Valhalla.

Leo placed the sword before him and did as Valhalla told him so. He closed his eyes and started to relax as much as possible. What he didn't know is that the journey to find his weapon starts from the very beginning when the first time guardian was chosen which ages ago were; around the time that the ancients were brought into existence along with the other worlds.