The Sentinel

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Abstract

s duty to protect Their work, but there was so little left to protect.But in his time of despair, They came to him. They’d compelled him to lift his eyes and see through the haze. Though individuals and even entire species could be destroyed, eradicating life itself was all but impossible. While the greatest of species had vanished, the more meek were thriving. He had been and still was terribly grateful for this lesson.He’d faced many threats during his time and had the scars to prove it. He treasured those scars and saw them as marks of honor. In his mind, a scar wasn’t ugly. A scar meant he’d performed his duty and been victorious. A scar meant he’d maintained the balance. And balance was what was most important to the Elders. Without balance, there would be chaos. And chaos, They told him, would be ruinous to Their plans.But now he watched as these new creatures moved u

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p from the south. They were unlike any species he’d seen before. They were innovative, like the Elders, but they were emotionally driven, like the beasts around them. He couldn’t see this combination of traits leading to anything other than chaos. He’d intended to silence them, as he’d done with so many others, but the Elders had intervened. They’d told him to stay his hand and wait. And now They wanted him to withdraw altogether.Though confused by this, he would never think of questioning the Elders. So he returned to his refuge, deep in the forest and shrouded by the Elder’s protection. There he would wait for the instruction to silence this new species. An instruction he was sure would eventually come. The Elders may tolerate this species for a while, but he knew They would never allow Their work to be undone. The humans would have their time. But the Sentinel knew, it wouldn’t last.</article></body>

Flash fiction

The Sentinel watched from high upon the mountain. He’d spent an eon tending the forests of the north. He’d seen the rise and fall of countless ages. Left by the Elders to protect the wilds, he’d witness the beginning and end of many species. He’d seen, first hand, the cataclysm that wiped out the dinosaurs. He’d felt the heartbreak of watching the Elder’s plans come to ruin in the aftermath of that lone asteroid. He’d been certain They would send him back to the Nether as darkness enveloped the Earth. It was his duty to protect Their work, but there was so little left to protect.

But in his time of despair, They came to him. They’d compelled him to lift his eyes and see through the haze. Though individuals and even entire species could be destroyed, eradicating life itself was all but impossible. While the greatest of species had vanished, the more meek were thriving. He had been and still was terribly grateful for this lesson.

He’d faced many threats during his time and had the scars to prove it. He treasured those scars and saw them as marks of honor. In his mind, a scar wasn’t ugly. A scar meant he’d performed his duty and been victorious. A scar meant he’d maintained the balance. And balance was what was most important to the Elders. Without balance, there would be chaos. And chaos, They told him, would be ruinous to Their plans.

But now he watched as these new creatures moved up from the south. They were unlike any species he’d seen before. They were innovative, like the Elders, but they were emotionally driven, like the beasts around them. He couldn’t see this combination of traits leading to anything other than chaos. He’d intended to silence them, as he’d done with so many others, but the Elders had intervened. They’d told him to stay his hand and wait. And now They wanted him to withdraw altogether.

Though confused by this, he would never think of questioning the Elders. So he returned to his refuge, deep in the forest and shrouded by the Elder’s protection. There he would wait for the instruction to silence this new species. An instruction he was sure would eventually come. The Elders may tolerate this species for a while, but he knew They would never allow Their work to be undone. The humans would have their time. But the Sentinel knew, it wouldn’t last.