A New Generation of Protectors (Part 2)

The second part of the OVA, it serves as an epilogue to the novel. It continues from A New Generation of Protectors (Part 1).

## Story

22nd February 2018

The Realms of Aether World have been restored. The ruins were rebuilt, and the Crusaders of the Constellations have been used to their new roles already. It's been a month after they graduated from being students of Aether World Cosmic University to dimensional warriors protecting their dimensions from harm. Anyway, King Athos decided to let the Solar System Guardians work in the university as staff. Ranald and Mayari also accepted the offer to work as teachers in AWCU, but as Ranald has to care for the children in the orphanage and school that his parents on Earth own, the king allowed him to be a freelance teacher.

What's more, new developments have been popping up: Cerynitis brought her family to live in the Realm of the Moon to stay so that she can help her foster daughter with her job. Also, Orcus now has a mobile space fortress to help him patrol the borders of the dark side of the universe, preventing anyone from breaking the seal of the obsidian gate to it. "Does he ever write back?" Ranald asked Poseidon, who had just arrived at the university to check on the affairs there and to take a short break. "Orcus may not be the most social of the Solar System Guardians, but he does try to contact us by letters or by the Planet Watches. In fact, he plans to visit Aether World every time his mobile fortress flies here," he answered.

Poseidon told them that he will be swimming in the sea in his merman form along with Ichiguen, one of Ranald's old guides, now known as Double Fish bound by Fate, Pisces.

"I see. Tell Ichiguen that I wish him safe in his duties," Ranald told Poseidon. The golden-haired boy may be the leader of the Crusaders, but he still treasured them as his friends in arms. Even if some of them had taught him martial arts in the first place.

After Poseidon left, Ranald and Mayari asked Athos for permission to visit the Realm of the Moon. King Athos granted their request, and the two entered a portal to visit the Realm. Mayari went to the Argent Castle, newly rebuilt, and the Garden of the Four Guardians being refurbished. The Argent Castle's treasury held the 28 silver badges as well as more artifacts. Its five towers are as radiant as it was before its destruction. At the Garden of the Four Guardians, Mayari used a jade flute from the treasury to play a song to wake them up. The green dragon, crimson phoenix, white tiger and black tortoise's eyes began to open. They yawned, and as soon as they woke up, they focused on Mayari and bowed to her. "Seems like they like you," Ranald teased her." "Why...maybe yes. An inscription once said that only the Silver Deer can wake them up, and ever since the battle with the Devourer of Worlds, I must have fit the bill of 'Silver Deer' then," Mayari remarked. The four guardians turned their heads to Maanlicht Woods as if telling Mayari to bring Ranald there.

Mayari brought him to the Woods to meet Cerynitis and family. Cerynitis's husband, a strong and tough white reindeer with lilac stripes on his legs appeared with a young reindeer - Cerynitis's daughter, with small antlers, and a big wolf with yellow-orange fur, brass vambraces, and a leather collar. He looked younger than the reindeer family that adopted him, and once he saw Ranald, he ran towards him, leapt on him, and licked his face. "Oh Stone Hearts! Please...stop!" Ranald cried while his face was moistened by wolf saliva. "Sorry about that...Revati the wolf has never seen a human before. In fact, he's excited to meet one for the first time," Cerynitis said. Revati stopped and sniffed his new human playmate. "He must be honoured to meet you, hero," Cerynitis's husband said to Ranald. Mayari petted her Dimensional Mate for the first time and felt a connection with her.

Now Ranald and Mayari led Cerynitis and her family to the Argent Castle. Once there, Mayari showed them around the throne room. Revati though ran away from them to the treasury. The heroes and the reindeer followed the wolf to the treasury. "I'm sorry if anything happened, but my adopted son can be quite playful and mischievous sometimes," Cerynitis said, panting. "Mom's right, little brother can wander away from us when he wants some adventure," her daughter said. "You must be..." Mayari spoke. "Lilac. Nice to meet you," the young reindeer said. She's so-called because of her lilac-coloured markings on her white fur, inherited from her father.

When they arrived at the treasury, Cerynitis called for Revati. "Did you eat anything forbidden in there?" she asked. Revati exited the treasury, and in his mouth was one of the 28 silver badges. This one has the character '奎', meaning 'Legs' on it. The yellow-orange wolf looked at his adoptive mother's eyes as if he's begging her to let him keep it. Ranald bent this knee to look at the badge and felt some power from it. "It's alright. My son can have the badge," Cerynitis told him. "Maybe he will give it to his Dimensional Mate someday. Who knows?" Lilac said. "That would be neat," Mayari agreed. She removed the badge from Revati's mouth and attached it to his right vambrace. When they left Argent Castle, Ranald and Mayari bade Cerynitis and her family goodbye and left for the Realm of the Sun by the portal installed outside the castle.

At the Realm of the Sun's newly built Zenith Castle, Ranald walked inside the halls for the first time. He and Mayari looked inside the throne room and saw the stele he touched. He entered the Observatory of Zenith Castle and looked for the 108 Star Orbs. He went into the back of the castle, with a garden planted there by him and his classmates back when they were in their senior years. He and Mayari remarked on the beauty of the plants there when they heard the sound of beating wings. Ranald looked around the garden, only to see Golden Heart and Hydara alight at the garden's lawn.

"Mom! Dad!" he cried as he ran to embrace his Dreamland parents while Mayari watched. He brought them to meet her. "Your friend has the makings of a great heroine," Golden Heart remarked. "What's up with these Star Orbs anyway?" Mayari asked them. "It's simple. When we were resting," Hydara's first head spoke. "Ra's teacher Athos contacted us," the second head spoke. "And told us and our wife to bring the 108 Star Orbs here," the third head said. "So that's what we did," the fourth head added. "And we went back and forth from here to Dreamland until you arrived," the fifth head of Hydara said. "We would come here to check on the Star Orbs by day, and by night, we would resume our duties of guarding the spirits of children going to Dreamland along with you," Golden Heart explained to her son's Earth Dimensional Mate. "It's possible that the Star Orbs absorbed the essences of Dreamland and the Sun, and King Athos thought it best for them to go back to their old home when he found out," Ra told Ranald in his mind.

The Observatory of the Sun has been upgraded to include an open-air area for anyone to view the stars. It's where the Star Orbs are currently kept, placed neatly into 108 stands for them. Said open-air area connects to the Plain of Dreams. "When my class was in the fourth and last year of university, we built the area and planted the Garden of the Hopeful Morning in the Plain of Dreams," Ranald told his parents as he showed them around. When they reached the Star Orbs, though, something happened:

Each of the orbs glowed a golden colour, with the Chinese characters on them shining a particular colour. They floated in the air, whooshed past a startled Ranald and flew out of the Observatory's open-air area to Earth. "What just happened?" Mayari asked, trying not to panic. "The Star Orbs resonate with brave spirits. It seems that on Earth, there are such souls, who have overcome their fears in some fashion and ended up attracting the Star Orbs to them," Ra said as he left Ranald's body to speak with Mayari. "When they flew past my Earth Dimensional Mate, I saw visions of the people who will receive the power of the Star Orbs. They are from every age, ethnicity, tongue and more. We have some idea of what to do when we return to Earth," Ra added as he entered his Mate's body once again.

"I not only have the duty of safeguarding the spirits of the good children of Dreamland from the Boogieman's nightmare spirits but now...I also have the duty of leading the Crusaders of the Constellations and those who will receive the 108 Star Orbs," Ranald said to Mayari. "But it will take time for your leadership skills to blossom like a flower in sunlight," Golden Heart told her son. At the Plain of Dreams, they met Phrixus and Chrysomallos herding the flocks of sheep. "Delmare is now protecting the seas of the Realm of Neptune and the other dimensions. Kibahime is guarding the castle of the Realm of Venus. And Bai Tu..." he was about to finish his sentence when a white blur sped by. He stopped, and Bai Tu in his armour went to greet his old buddies. "I hope you had a good time," he said, brushing his white hair. As soon as the albino boy saw Golden Heart and Hydara, he bowed to them. The Dream Defender Duo bowed back and told Ranald to have a great time with his friends. He nodded and gave the heart-gem he kept in his bag to his Dreamland parents. "Please visit Dreamland with your friends some time," Golden Heart said to them as she flew away with her husband.

"And you have any messages?" Mayari asked the Swift Steward of the Moon's Medicine. Bai Tu handed her two envelopes, one from Delmare and the other from Kibahime. Ranald opened them and read the contents. "They will be meeting us at AWCU soon," he said. Bai Tu also took out a holograph scroll he received from King Athos. "We're going to the 98th dimension by his request. Seems like some interesting things have happened there so far, according to him," he told his friends. Ranald wondered what happened there, but Ra as his inner voice told him not to worry about it, for he can go back to Earth after Athos's request. "Let's go investigate then!" Phrixus said, using the Aries Constellawatch to change into his armoured form. Mayari used her silver pendant to become the Silver Deer Warrior of the Changing Moon. Ra came out and Ranald held his hands. They spoke, "I am you and you are me, together we're the Warriors of Gold!" and merged to become Ra the Golden Griffin Warrior. "No time to waste, King Athos's waiting for us!" he said to his friends as they flew away from the Realm of the Sun for Aether World Cosmic University and then to many new adventures.

Now you know how the Crusaders of the Constellations came to be. Who knows where they'll go next? The answer's limitless, like the number of stars in the night sky...