Ryder Meets the Guardians
The next morning Mr. Saskatchewan arranged for a private jet to take Ryder around the country to meet the Guardians.
“Once again, thank you for saving Canada,” Mr. Saskatchewan told Ryder as he was bidding him farewell. “Have a good trip and good luck with the Guardians. I hope to see you soon.”
Ryder Meets the Maritimes
Within a few hours Ryder was in the Maritime provinces to meet the Atlantic coast Guardians, which included Ms. Nova Scotia, Ms. New Brunswick, Ms. Prince Edward Island and Ms. Newfoundland and Labrador.
The four Guardians had developed a very close bond, and often worked together. They became so close they referred to themselves as sisters.
He was greeted by the four beautiful women, who were grinning from ear to ear. They dragged Ryder inside to sit down.
When Ryder was settled, they formally introduced themselves and revealed their special powers.
Ms. Nova Scotia could talk to marine life.
Ms. New Brunswick could breathe underwater.
Ms. Prince Edward Island could communicate with mammals.
Ms. Newfoundland and Labrador had navigation powers.
They explained that they all work together to take care of the Atlantic provinces, and to reward Ryder, they each gave him a gift that allowed him to harness their powers.
Ryder received an object that translates all animal thoughts, everlasting scuba gear that never ran out of oxygen, and finally, an enchanted compass.
The four Guardians hugged Ryder, gave him a kiss on the cheek, and thanked him once again for saving Mr. Saskatchewan.
Before completely leaving he asked the girls, “Next up is Mr. Quebec. What should I expect out of him.”
The girls all laughed. And Ms. Nova Scotia spoke up and said, “No one ever knows what to expect out of him. Good luck though.”
Ryder head out not knowing what to make out of Ms. Nova Scotia’s comment.
Ryder Meets Mr. Quebec
Within a few hours Ryder was at Mr. Quebec’s headquarters. He knocked on the front door and waited for an answer for several minutes.
Eventually, a well-dressed French man opened the door. “Bonjour,” he said.
He turned away and walked into his office, Ryder was unsure if he should follow, but he did anyways.
He sat down across from Mr. Quebec. They stared at each other for a few minutes.
It was clear to Ryder that Mr. Quebec was not going to initiate the conversation so he took matters into his own hands and introduced himself to the Guardian.
Mr. Quebec was acting quite aloof and would not even reveal to Ryder what his power was!
“I take care of the province, but how is none of your concern. I do appreciate what you did for the country, but I will not be gifting you anything that has to do with my power,” said Mr. Quebec. “All I will do is offer this piece of advice: take care of yourself better than you ever have, so much more relies on you than you know.”
Then Mr. Quebec stood up and led Ryder to the door.
Ryder was puzzled by the secretive nature of the guardian and the obscure advice he was given, but it stuck with him.
On his way-out Ryder respectfully said, “merci. Au revoir.”
Mr. Quebec offered a smirk and waved goodbye.
Ryder Meets Mr. Ontario
The next day Ryder was sitting across from a very well-dressed man who seemed to know how good he looked, Mr. Ontario.
Mr. Ontario held his head high and was clearly very confident. He spoke with power and assertion.
“I’m sure you are wondering what my power is,” said Mr. Ontario. “Well it is, in my opinion, the best one yet.”
“What is it Mr. Ontario?” asked Ryder.
“I have energy powers,” said Mr. Ontario as he raised his hands and all the lights flickered.
Ryder was impressed by the power, but in his head, he thought that it wasn’t the best. He still complimented and praised his powers anyway; he could tell that Mr. Ontario needed to be complimented.
After listening to the words of Ryder, Mr. Ontario reached into his pocket and pulled out a remote. It looked like just an average remote that controlled a television, but it was much more.
Mr. Ontario held the remote out to Ryder and said, “This is a universal remote, and I don’t mean it can control all the televisions you have, I mean it can control any energy source that you are surrounded by. I want you to have this gift as a reward for saving all the guardians and the country.”
Ryder grabbed the remote, and graciously thanked Mr. Ontario.
“You are much more important than you know,” Mr. Ontario said to Ryder as he was leaving. “Take care of yourself, and I am sure we will meet again soon.”
Ryder Meets Mr. Manitoba
After hopping on the jet, once again, Ryder arrived in Manitoba. He was enjoying his travels and was looking forward to what the next guardian was going to offer.
Mr. Manitoba was sitting outside when Ryder arrived at his headquarters. Before Ryder could even introduce himself, Mr. Manitoba was already eagerly giving him a hug and a fist bump.
“Dude, I’ve been so excited to meet you. I’m so glad you saved Mr. Saskatchewan. He’s been like a dad to me,” he said to Ryder.
“It was my honour, I would have done it for anyone, but I am overly proud that my actions had such a positive impact,” replied Ryder.
Mr. Manitoba hugged Ryder once again and got him to sit down.
“It’s sure hot out here today,” said Ryder as he wiped sweat off his forehead.
Mr. Manitoba laughed. “So, I’m assuming you know what I’m am about to offer to you,” he said as he swirled his arms around.
The weather then immediately changed. It was cool and breezy, like a fall day.
“Did… you… just… do… that?” asked Ryder.
"Yeah man I did!” said Mr. Manitoba with a grin. “But soon you can do it too.”
He grabbed a tiny globe object that was behind him and explained to Ryder than by grasping the globe he too would be able to change the weather to whatever his heart desired.
“No way,” gasped Ryder. “All these gifts that I’m receiving are too gracious. Are you sure you want me to have it?”
“Ryder. Stop the protest. You will need to use each gift soon enough. Now please accept it and head on your way. Mr. Alberta is waiting and he’s not so patient,” said Mr. Manitoba.
Without further ado Ryder headed out to meet Mr. Alberta.
Ryder Meets Mr. Alberta
Ryder, feeling more and more excited after each guardian, arrived in Alberta. The scenery of Mr. Alberta’s headquarters was beautifully diverse. One direction he looked he had a beautiful site of mountains, in the other direction prairies that went for kilometers.
Mr. Alberta was tinkering with a car when Ryder walked over and greeted him.
Mr. Alberta was in grubby work clothes and a baseball cap. The sun was beating hard down and he was clearly overheated.
Ryder pulled the glove out and changed the weather to be a little bit cooler for Mr. Alberta.
“Mr. Manitoba treated you well eh,” said Mr. Alberta. “Well I’m glad you’re here I feel like I have been waiting for you for an eternity.”
Mr. Alberta then stepped away from his car and went closer to Ryder.
“I just want to say what you did for Mr. Saskatchewan means so much to me,” said Mr. Alberta with sincerity. “Us western guys got to stick together.”
Ryder, who was initially from Western Canada, agreed heavily.
“I’m assuming you’re curious at what I’m about to gift to you,” said Mr. Alberta to Ryder.
“I mean, yes, a little bit,” replied Ryder with a smile.
Mr. Alberta then walked up to his car, opened the glove compartment and pulled out what liked like a glasses case.
He said to Ryder, “I can see underground naturally, which helps me find oil for my region, and with the help of these glasses you’ll be able to find oil too.”
He pulled the glasses out of the case, they looked like regular sunglasses, but when Ryder put them on, he was amazed, he could see reservoirs of oil!
“Now head on your way Ryder. I’m sure I’ll see you again very soon,” said Mr. Alberta. “Ms. British Columbia awaits.”
Ryder Meets Ms. British Columbia
Ryder left Alberta and was on his way to British Columbia.
When he arrived, he was welcomed by Ms. British Columbia, who was dressed in hiking gear.
“Come along Ryder,” said Ms. British Columbia, “we’re going for a hike.”
Ryder ran up to catch up to Ms. British Columbia. “I’m honoured to meet you ma’am,” he said to her.
“Well Ryder, I’m honoured to meet you,” she replied back.
They continued to hike, and Ryder noticed that they weren’t on a trail. Instead it was Ms. British Columbia who was clearing the way as she went. She made the terrain flatter, and simply moved trees and plants out of the way.
“Wow, that is amazing,” said Ryder.
“It does come in handy,” said Ms. British Columbia as she moved another tree out of the way.
She reached into her satchel and grabbed a pinecone out. It looked like a regular pinecone, but by now Ryder knew better. It was more than just a pinecone.
“With this you can point it and change your environment, much like I was just doing,” said Ms. British Columbia. “Go on try it out.”
Ryder moved it around. Trees were moving. Fallen trunks were cleared. Terrain became flatter.
They finished their hike and Ms. British Columbia thanked Ryder for coming along with her and sent him on his way to the Territories.
She threw him a parka and said, “You’ll need this.”
Ryder Meets the Territories
Ryder once again hopped in the jet and flew north. He arrived in an ice-covered region that was freezing cold!
He was greeted off the jet by the remaining guardians; Mr. Nunavut, Ms. Yukon, and Mr. North West Territories.
“Welcome to our land,” they said collectively.
“It is indeed cold up here, but we like it. It’s not for everyone though,” said Mr. Nunavut.
I’m glad you made it this far. We have a few things to give to you, but first follow us to our headquarters.
They walked through snowy roads for several minutes before arriving. During the walk each guardian revealed to Ryder their powers.
Ms. Yukon could turn anything into gold.
Mr. Northwest Territories had special connections to polar bears.
Mr. Nunavut had infinite wisdom and values.
When they arrived at the headquarters Ms. Yukon went to fetch the group hot chocolate to warm up with.
“I’ve never been this far north,” Ryder said to the Guardians. “It really is amazing.”
When Ms. Yukon came back, she sat right next to Ryder and handed him a gold bar.
“This is for you to use,” she said. “It can turn anything into gold, but be careful with it and do not get greedy, as greed could be the downfall of you.”
“Stop bragging about your gold now,” said Mr. North West Territories to Ms. Yukon.
He faced Ryder and said, “what I’m about to give you may save your life in a tough situation.” He held out a necklace that had a bear shaped pendant. “Wear this when you want a companion.”
He went on to explain that by wearing the necklace a polar bear would be summoned to protect and keep Ryder company.
Ryder graciously thanked the two guardians and turned to Mr. Nunavut who sat in silence for most of the meeting.
“It is now my turn to speak I presume,” said Mr. Nunavut. “Well Ryder all I have to offer you is a notebook. However, it is a wise notebook. When you need wisdom or advice about anything. Simply open it up and writing will appear. The writing will give you all the necessary information you need at a certain point in time.”
The three Guardians sat with Ryder and talked for several minutes more, but then Mr. Nunavut jumped up and said, “The time has come where you must go back to Mr. Saskatchewan. The rest of the Guardians will meet you there. Now head on Ryder.”
Guardian Summit
Ryder was flying back to Saskatchewan, curious about what was to happen next.
When he arrived, he was welcomed by Mr. Saskatchewan who was completely healed from his accident. He walked him into the farmhouse.
To Ryder’s surprise all the Guardians were waiting for him. They were applauding and cheering for him.
“Ryder,” said Mr. Saskatchewan, “All the Guardians, including myself, were so impressed by you. You are probably wondering why you were given all those gifts too.”
“Yes. Very curious,” said Ryder.
“Well, it is because we have chosen you to become the 14th guardian. You will not have a specific region, hence the abilities from all provinces, but you will travel the nation to help out the Guardians when needed. You will have a home wherever you go in Canada. You have made us and the country proud. We wish you good luck for your next chapter: Guardianship.”
Ryder was honoured to be the chosen one and took it very seriously. He went around thanking each Guardian and he began his new life as a patriotic Guardian.