Chapter 160: Aria's Secret

We brought Mei back to California. Safe. Protected. Grateful.

"Thank you. All of you. You saved my life. Risked everything for me." Mei bowed. Respectful. Humble.

"You're a Guardian. You protect the world. We protect you. It's the least we can do." I meant it.

Mei was small. Maybe five feet tall. Looked young but had ancient eyes. She'd been a Guardian for two hundred years.

"The Erasers are growing bolder. More aggressive. More successful. We must stop them soon or we all die." Mei warned. "Four Guardians left now. Including me and Thomas. We're the last line of defense."

"Where are the other two? Can we contact them? Bring them here? Protect them together?" Luna asked.

"Guardian law forbids gathering. We must stay separate. Maintain independence. Prevent total elimination if one location is compromised." Mei explained. "But I will try to warn them. Try to help them survive."

"And Aria? The Guardian who helped us? Do you know her?" I asked the question everyone wanted answered.

Mei's face went dark. Worried. Scared.

"Aria is not a Guardian. Not officially. Not truly." Mei spoke carefully. "She was. Once. Long ago. But she was expelled. Cast out. Forbidden."

"Why? What did she do?" Sarah leaned forward. Interested.

"She broke the most sacred Guardian law. She fell in love. With a supernatural being. A vampire. They had a child together. A hybrid. Half Guardian. Half vampire. Completely forbidden." Mei looked down. Ashamed to speak of it. "The other Guardians voted. Eleven to one. To cast her out. Strip her power. Exile her forever."

"But she still has power. We saw it. She created that portal. She has Guardian abilities." Cole pointed out.

"They tried to strip her power. The ritual failed. Guardian power can't be removed once given. They didn't know that. Never tried before. Aria kept her power. But lost her position. Lost her title. Lost her family." Mei looked sad. "She's been wandering ever since. Helping when she can. Hiding when she must. Surviving alone."

"Where's her child? The hybrid? The one she had with the vampire?" Maya asked.

"Dead. Killed by the other Guardians. They said it was too dangerous. Too powerful. Too wrong to exist. They executed it when it was only two years old." Mei's voice shook. "Aria tried to stop them. Failed. Lost everything. Her love. Her child. Her life. All gone."

Silence. Heavy silence.

"That's horrible. That's evil. How could they?" Luna held her son. Protective. Horrified.

"Guardian law is absolute. No exceptions. No mercy. No second chances." Mei defended weakly. "It's harsh. But necessary. Or so they say."

"It's murder. It's cruelty. It's wrong." I was angry. Furious. "And you let it happen? You voted for it?"

"I wasn't a Guardian yet. This was three hundred years ago. Before my time. But yes. The current Guardians let it happen. Participated in it. Carried it out." Mei looked ashamed. "It's our darkest secret. Our greatest failure. Our eternal shame."

"So Aria helps us because she hates the Guardians? Because she wants revenge? Because she's working with the Erasers?" Nina jumped to conclusions.

"No. Aria helps because she still believes in Guardian purpose. In protecting. In serving. In saving. She just does it her way. Without rules. Without law. Without Guardians." Mei corrected. "She's not our enemy. She's our conscience. Our reminder. Our hope."

"Where is she now? Can we contact her? Can we talk to her?" I wanted to thank her. Wanted to understand her. Wanted to know her.

"She comes and goes. Appears when needed. Disappears when done. You don't find Aria. She finds you." Mei smiled slightly. "But she's watching. Always watching. Always helping. Always there."

"We need to find her anyway. We need her help. The Erasers are too strong. Too organized. Too successful. We can't beat them alone." I decided. "Andres. Can you track her? Find any trace?"

"I'll try. But if she's that good at hiding I might not find anything." Andres started searching.

Days passed. No sign of Aria. No trace. No clue.

Then one morning I found a note. On my pillow. In my locked room. Handwritten.

"Dear Lita. Thank you for accepting my help. Thank you for not judging. Thank you for being different. I've watched you for years. Watched you grow. Watched you lead. Watched you love. You remind me of who I used to be. Before I lost everything. I want to help more. Want to fight beside you. Want to stop the Erasers. But I can't risk it. Can't risk attachment. Can't risk caring. I lost one family. I can't lose another. So I help from distance. Like your father did. Like I've always done. But know this. When the final battle comes. When you need me most. When everything seems lost. I'll be there. I promise. Until then. Stay safe. Stay strong. Stay you. Signed, Aria."

I showed everyone the note.

"She was in your room. While you slept. Could have killed you. Could have done anything. But she left a note. A promise. A hope." Cole looked disturbed.

"She's not our enemy. She's our ally. Strange. Hidden. Mysterious. But ally." I believed it. Felt it. Knew it.

Through the bond Sarah and Maya agreed. Aria was friend. Not foe.

"Then we prepare. We train. We get ready. For the final battle. For when Aria returns. For when we face the Erasers completely." I rallied everyone. "And we protect the remaining Guardians. Keep Thomas and Mei safe. Keep the balance alive. Keep hope real."

But two days later. News came. Bad news. Terrible news.

One of the remaining Guardians was found dead. Killed. Murdered. Gone.

Three Guardians left. Thomas. Mei. And one more. Guardian named Jin. From Africa.

The Erasers were winning. Slowly. Surely. Completely.

And we were running out of time. Running out of Guardians. Running out of hope.

Unless we did something drastic. Something dangerous. Something impossible.

We needed to find the Eraser headquarters. Find their leader. End them completely.

Before they ended us. Before they killed all Guardians. Before they eliminated all supernatural beings. Before they won.

The clock was ticking. The war was escalating. The end was coming.

And I had no idea if we could survive it.