http://clampfix.fanworks.net/kenichi/rayfic04.txt </head><body><pre>"The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?" BIBLE, Jeremiah 17:9 Chapter Three: Prophet Presea's words stuck like glue to the corners of my mind. Do not lose.... I thought that coming to Cephiro would give me all the answers. All I got were even more questions. What is it that Presea "hasn't made in a long time"? Why does Dal Rafaga hate me? Moreover, why does he call me Zagato? I nursed the bandage on my right hand. Why dosen't Zagato leave my dreams alone? =================================== A knock on my door. Rafaga. It had to be. I opened the door. Sure enough, it was the Dal himself, cool, refined, and distant as ever. "The Guru wishes to see you at dinner." I wondered about this as I got up. Why is it that the Dal, a great swordsman, has to come fetch me? I hadn't seen anybody else other than Presea, Clef, Rafaga, and Mira during my stay. No househelp, no soldiers other than Rafaga himself, nobody... Strange... =================================== It seemed more like a tea party than a dinner. Just Clef, Rafaga, and me at a small table. Rafaga, as usual, took his place behind Clef, ever the vigilant gendarmes. Slices of bread and cheese, and the expected tea. Fruits were also part of the meal, it seemed. I took a knife and sliced the loaf. The cheese would have to do, then. I planted the cheese in between the slices, and was about to bite in when I noticed Clef looking quizzically at me. "...Is there something wrong?" "What ARE you doing with the bread and cheese?" I was about to laugh in disbelief to his face, when I recalled a bit of my History class. Sandwiches weren't invented until the middle 18th century. Clef and everyone else in Cephiro had probably never seen or even imagined a sandwich before. It was then I noticed Clef using the knife and fork in eating. Huge tactical blunder, Kaeda. "...Oops..." I spent the remainder of the next hour explaining, or at least trying to explain, to Clef the theory of the sandwich. It obviously intruiged him, although I found myself at a loss on how to explain why the Sandwich was invented. It was hard to explain why the Earl of Sandwich would not give up on his gambling habits. Not to mention that it wasn't getting me anywhere, either. I waited until after we finished the meal. Specifically, after Clef devoured his rather unsuccessful (and visually unsettling) attempt at a Cheese-and-something-fruit-sandwich. "Guru Clef, what is it that Cephiro needs from me?" Clef gathered up his robe and stood up. "I don't know." But his eyes betrayed the truth. "I think you do, Guru. You said so yourself that a dream told you of my coming. What is that dream, and why does it involve me?" "Ken, are you one of those types of people who jump to the end of a book in order to see its outcome? Are you the type who wishes to know the answer to a question that has yet to be asked?" Confusion again. "I don't understand what you mean." "To really know a story you must walk each step one at a time. You cannot hope to find immediate answers to everything." "I only want to know why I'm here." Bile raised in my throat. "I don't want to become your unwilling executioner like Hikaru and the others were." I could see Clef's teeth grinding. "Is that what you think being a Magic Knight is?" "No." I swallowed back my pride. "But I honestly don't know what being one is all about. I'm not a Magic Knight myself." "That is where you are wrong." Huh? What did he mean by that? "That wasn't funny, Guru Clef." "It was not meant to be." Clef's statement took the wind out of my sails for good. Me? A Magic Knight? Impossible. I wasn't with Hikaru when... "What you're saying is impossible, Guru. How can I be a Magic Knight when I remember your legends..." I stopped. Not I remembering. Zagato remembered. Clef took no notice of the slip. He turned to Rafaga and whispered something. Rafaga's nod made me uncomfortable. "Come. I will answer some of your questions." =================================== Even without stairs, we descended the building. At first, I asked Clef if this was some sort of magic. He only chuckled, saying that it was more mundane than I percieved. While making our way down, Clef described how Autozam engineers helped build the Palace of Souls, a memorial to the strength of many hearts, from different lands, in the heart of Cephiro. The palace's crystalline outer structure covered a corkscrew-like inner shape. The slope was far too gradual to be percieved, but it was enough to allow people to travel inside without ever needing magic or stairs to get from one place to another. No wonder. We arrived at the bottom. I could tell by the appearance of the ground from the window. Clef entered a small door, one too small to waste on magic, as Clef physically pulled the latch. The door opened, and Clef entered. I followed after Rafaga's entry. The room was odd; almost as if I had been here before... The Guru pointed to the walls. I followed his glance. Paintings? I saw an odd trio of statues in one picture. The three mashin. Had to be. A dark cloaked figure. Zagato, who else? In his arms a golden haired child. Emeraude. The entire story of the Magic Knights was scrawled across the walls. Clef tapped the walls with his sceptre. "We found these just after the Magic Knights left. They are probably thousands of years old." Prophecy? I shook the thought out of my mind. I did not like to believe in destiny. Clef pointed to a particular set of paintings. The dark figure again. But this time, it was drawn after the others. A large blue sphere. It could be Cephiro or even Earth. The Dark figure draws a hand into the planet, and snatches a child from it. Hmph. I guess that means me. The figure puts the child in another blue sphere. The next picture has the child...destroying something; No, three different things. Three statues. But of whom? A Tree, a Mermaid, and a Shield. Definitely not the three Mashin. But what are they? Another picture. The child is in an armored suit. This one frightened me. The Dark Figure unites with the child to become one with the armor. The armored suit was shown destroying a man with dove's wings. Finally, the armor turns and with a flash of light, destroys the blue sphere. It holds its weapon arm up in a kind of triumph. My destiny...? To destroy Cephiro? The blood rushed out of my head and my body felt like lead. I don't know who caught me, Clef or Rafaga. If they knew, why didn't they kill me? The void eagerly opened its maw and claimed me. =================================== Door. Again. This time I was hesitant to open it. "I don't want to know anymore!!!" My fist smashed through the wood. Pain gripped me. Yet I turned the knob. "No!" My body did not heed my plea. The door swung silently open. Black mists. Red sky. Cloaked figure ahead. "Damn you, Zagato! Get your own executioner!" The cloak rose up steadily. "Is that what you really think I want you to do?" "I know the truth!!!" I gripped my hands with a fury unseen. "I don't want to do it!" Zagato raised a hand. "It is not truth you know, but an interpretaion of the truth. Such is not the same as the truth itself." He came toward me. "Join with me, and you will know the whole truth." My mirth was so great, it was almost sinful. "That old 'Darth Vader' routine isn't going to work Zagato! Why would you even think that I would join you?" The hand fell back into the void of his cloak. "As I said, you do not fully understand. I said to join WITH me." The figure came closer. I could not move. I tried to scream, but no noise escaped my throat. Zagato towered above me. "You must know all the sides of a story before you can truly understand it. Did not Clef teach you enough?" His hand lashed out, and came to a rest on my forehead. =================================== "Get away!!!" I bolted upright and saw the frightened eyes of a young girl sitting at the foot of my bed. Who...? Mira. The girl who saved me from the sea. The girl who was with Presea. Frightened. Like the child she is. "I'm... sorry..." Her voice seemed even younger than she was. "It's not your fault. It's mine." I hoped that my words would calm her nerves. "My dreams aren't... pleasant, you see." She nodded, and blushed slightly. "I changed your clothes..." It took awhile for the words to sink in. I peeked under the bedcovers. Sure enough, I was clothed only in my birthday suit. "Oh." This was turning out to be a real blushing contest. She stood and started to leave. "Wait, Mira-Chan..." She turned as she reached the door. Her voice like a child who had seen something she shouldn't have. "I'm sorry if I saw anything..." Then she exited, closing the door slightly behind her. Wonderful. What did I get myself into this time? Saw anything... I swallowed hard and immediately went for my clothes. =================================== It was morning already. The seats in the great hall were beginning to become a commonplace thing, as I kept meeting with Clef among them. I talked to Clef about the matter, and he told me in no uncertain terms how I suddenly lost control of my excretory functions while in the room. "I hope it will not happen again." Right now, the only thing I wanted to do was to get out of this place. The Guru said that it was the Orb that allowed me passage into Cephiro. Not much luck in getting back, though. The Guru told me of the nature of my Orb, and the questions that lay within. "That orb is made of Escude. As far as I know, only three Escude exist; Fire, Water, and Wind. This is the first time I've seen a Black Escude in a long while." A long while? Like the way Presea mentioned 'something' she also had not made in a long while. It seemed a good a time as any to ask more questions. "Guru, why don't I see anyone else other than you, Rafaga... Isn't there anyone else living on Cephiro?" The Guru folded his hands in his usual fashion. "If they know of the legends and saw you, they just might kill you. Because of that, we let no one but essential people inside the palace." So my assumptions were correct, after all. I was to be Cephiro's destroyer, and it was only Clef's kindeness that kept me alive. "So you're all planning to get rid of me in one way or other." "No." Clef dropped his hands toward his staff. "There are no other Magic Knights who can help us now, other than you. It is not a matter of choice; there is a reason you were sent here." Clef stood up. "But your heart is not as strong; you are not yet ready to face the challenge." "What challenge?" The Guru muttered more arcana and waved his staff at the ceiling. Images again. This time, of present-day Cephiro. A bluish shimmer across the planet. Next, a glimpse inside. The mists roiling around. Just outside of the palace. People, living among the mists. Monster...? A dark castle loomed in the center of the mists. Someone. Something. Do I still want the truth? "What does that mean?" Clef responded in his usual matter-of-fact tone. "It means only a Magic Knight and Mashin can stop it." "Clef, I don't even know what 'It' is..." "All things will be answered soon. You must undertake a journey to reclaim the fourth of the Mashin." Fourth of the Mashin? The armor that could... Would... "I don't think I can do that, Clef. You saw the paintings. That Mashin might destroy Cephiro!" "You don't know that!" The Guru was angered. No, it was more like desperate. "If that 'thing' out there takes over, Cephiro is as good as dead." It seemed Clef knew more about this than he was willing to admit. "Clef...Tell me what that 'thing' is." The Guru was adamant at first, but my prodding soon got the better of him. "Very well." Another image, like the illusion of a madman, appeared on the ceiling. Large. Cloaked. Had I not known better, I would have said it was Zagato. The cloak covered all but a fully-encased head. The mists ever swirling around him. Just as quickly, a flash illuminated the image, and the view was lost to us. No, not Zagato. Someone greater. "That is Dis." Clef licked his lips nervously. "Father to Sol Zagato and Lantis." Father... Zagato's father...? Why is he doing this? As if in answer to my query, Clef continued on with his declarations. "I do not know what his intentions are, but it's a pretty safe bet that he wants to avenge the loss of his two sons." Loss of two..? Of course. The younger son fell in love with the killer of his brother. Joined her on Earth. I bit my lip. Of course, Ken. You never had a chance. In Hikaru's heart, there was only Lantis. You, you're just a wet-nosed kid who turned up and ruined everything for her. The thought tasted poisonous. Who was I to call Hikaru a killer? Or Fuu or Umi? They weren't cold-blooded, and definitely not hateful. If I took that Mashin, would I be any different? I shivered. When you join with a Mashin... Does it make you a cold, heartless murderer? Clef droned on, unmindful of my inner torments. "The black mists surround great areas of Cephiro. Those who enter them still live normally, but it seems that none of them can leave." The Guru's voice grew bitter with hopelessness. "None of them WANT to leave..." Presea walked in. She was garbed in clothing that seemed familiar... It was the same clothing she wore during the Knights' second coming. Now, she wielded an object wrapped in a mound of silk. Her voice lacked the vitality it had the other day, as if drained of all energy. "It took awhile, but it is ready. Guru Clef..." The Guru nodded. "This shall be your weapon, Kaeda Kenichi." "But I didn't say I'd agree to this!" Clef shook his head. "It is no longer a matter of choice. If not for us, do it for the one closest in your heart." Damn him. This was blackmail. I swore to love and cherish what Hikaru cherished. And it was, indeed, Cephiro which she truly cherished. But that was not all. There was something deep within me that asked to save a little hope for a child. Mira. To ensure a future for her. Clef was right; It was no longer my choice. I, at least, could choose not to destroy Cephiro. Zagato's father, Dis, wasn't giving them such a chance. Better a possible death than a certain death. I was following the Destiny written out for me. That didn't mean I liked it. "I guess I don't have a choice, then..." Clef smiled, but it came out weak. "Thank you, First Sword." <<Mahoudenshou!!!>> A flash of white emanated from the ground beneath me. Just as instantly, it faded. I looked at myself and found nothing out of the ordinary. Except a glove. My left hand was encased in a glove similar to those the Magic Knights wore. but other than that, there was no change in my clothing at all. Clef and Presea were obviously surprised. Clef first looked over his staff as if it were broken, then he turned to Presea. And finally to me. "I don't understand... Why only a glove? The previous knights before you had at least a breastplate..." Somehow, the glove alone felt right. Embedded in it was the black orb that I owned. I smirked. Zagato found a way of calling that was unknown to the Guru and all else in Cephiro. Maybe that same orb was what kept the Guru from handing down a full armor. "It dosen't matter, Guru. This... feels right." Clef nodded, but with a tinge of doubt. Presea unwrapped the object in her arms. It looked like a kind of lance. Perfectly symmetrical, a blade projecting from either end of the hilt. As if on cue, the weapon floated above me, and in a flash of white, was sucked into the orb on my left glove. It was a surprise to see such a large weapon suddenly up and disappear like that. "Thank you, Pharle Presea." Presea smiled. "Do not forget your promise." I nodded. Somewhere, someday, I will understand all of this. And hoped that I would save Cephiro for Hikaru's sake. Or condemn it.</pre><p><a href="./">Back</a></p><p><a href=http://www.dreamhost.com/donate.cgi?id=216><img border=0 alt="Donate towards our web hosting bill!" src=https://secure.newdream.net/donate1.gif></a></p></body></html>