The air was thick with flying clothes. A young woman crouched before a closet, hastily tossing garments onto the bed on the other side of the room. Said bunk was already cluttered with several personal belongings. A largish pouch bulged with something that clinked every time a shoe hit the bed.
Pausing to wipe sweat from her brow, the darkly tanned girl tossed a glance at the pile of clothes and treasures she wished to take along with her. Nodding finally to herself, she crossed over to the bed and began to stuff the articles into an unlashed bag.
"Caldina!"
Wincing to herself, the young woman turned around to face the irate figure posed in her doorway. He stood well over six feet, his broad, armored shoulders blocking most of the entrance. His blonde hair was crew cut on top, and pulled back into a ponytail at the back of his neck. Icy blue eyes flitted around the room, taking in the woman, the bag, and the mess.
"What are you up to?"
"I don't see how that's any o' yah business, Lafarga!" Caldina snapped, tossing her wild pink hair back over one creamy shoulder. Her own sapphire eyes flashed dangerously.
Ignoring the blatant warning, the warrior strode into the room. He towered over the woman before him, and used the height to his advantage, glaring down at her.
"You're wearing your traveling clothes," He remarked, referring to the old black leather outfit she wore in her days under Zagato. She drew her long red cape about her almost self-consciously, and bent her attention to adjusting her fingerless gloves. One bell-toed shoe tapped the ground impatiently.
"So? Yah point?" Had she been on earth, and not in Cephiro, one might have expected her to snap gum along with that statement.
"You're leaving," It wasn't a question; it was a voiced fact. He crossed his arms over his chest, a posture mimicked by the girl before him.
"I repeat: so?" Caldina set her chin defiantly, matching him evil look for evil look.
"Where were you thinking to go?"
She paused then, considering her answer. She didn't know really, just somewhere, anywhere but Cephiro. There were too many dark memories here. Maybe she'd go back to Chizeta...no...that was a Bad Idea. Not since she still owed a rather substantial bar-tab at the Frolicking Maiden, seaside tavern. Damn. In that case, maybe she'd just run off to Fahren. They probably appreciated a good dancer. The inhabitants of Autozam wouldn't know art or talent if it bit them in the ass. Damn techies.
Caldina opened her mouth to reply, but was cut short as the building around them gave a mighty shudder. A deep rumbling filled the air, as though some massive landslide was occurring not too far away. Instead of a sharp retort, what issued from Caldina's lips was a frightened scream. The ceiling above seemed to sway, and the light fixtures came crashing down with the din of shattering glass. The mirror on the dressing table fell over, adding its own crash to the cacophony. She threw her arms over her head in a futile effort to ward off the flying shards of glass.
The next thing she knew, she was on her knees, with the peculiar scent of metal armor filling her nose. Strong arms were wound around her shoulders as Lafarga bent over the dancer to shield her from the slashing pieces.
As abruptly as it had started, the tremor ceased, and the only sound in the room was the almost frantic sound of their breathing. Caldina swallowed hard and tentatively pushed herself away from the warrior before her. They were both crouched on the ground. She could see several scraped and nicks in the armor where he had been struck by the little shrapnel, and a long, bleeding gash oozed blood down over his temple.
"Are you hurt?" He asked roughly, releasing his grip on the Charmer and looking around the room, as if to assess the damage.
"No, I'm fine," She shook her head, but frowned slightly at him. "You are though. Maybe we ought to get somebody to look at that wound o' yours." She reached up to touch the laceration, but her hand was batted away.
"Nevermind that," Lafarga said, getting to his feet and pulling her up along with him. "We must go to the residential area and make sure the refugees were not hurt by the quake!"
"We?!" She squealed as he hauled her out the door. "What we?!"
The next thing Caldina knew, they were pounding down the hall at full speed, the bells on her shoes and wrists adding their own odd music to the echoing noise of their feet. Lafarga kept his death grip on her wrist, as though worried she would fall behind if let go. Which was a valid fear, because not only would she have been unable to keep pace, she would have turned right around and gone back to her room
The hallway twisted and turned in on itself like a snake writhing in its death throes. Apparently Lafarga knew their destination though, and eventually Dal and Charmer burst through one of the entrances into the clearing attached to the refugee-housing unit.
Inside was chaos. Strange creatures with far too many legs and heads and teeth scurried around, chasing the people of Cephiro like mice. The panicked civilians ran with no heed for each other, stampeding over their fellows in much the same fashion as cattle during a storm.
"What's this?!" Lafarga gaped. "Monsters in the Castle?!"
"It sure ain't no costume party!" Caldina snapped, irritated that he would ruin her escape plan and drag her into yet another battle.
"EVERYONE GET OUT!" A familiar voice shouted. A green-haired figure slashed and hacked his way through the ranks of the creatures, wielding a slightly curved long sword almost larger than he was. White cape streaming out behind him, Prince Ferio made a heroic figure amongst the fleeing refugees. "Get out and leave this to us!"
By 'us' he apparently meant himself and the tall man next to him, the one with the big hat. Ascot stood in his summoning stance, calling up monster after monster to counteract the ones appearing out of thin air.
"Caldina! Get the people out of here!" Lafarga commanded, charging off to join the other two men in battle.
Caldina huffed quietly to herself. How dare he order her around?! However, there was sense to his words. She alone had the power to impose calm on all the panicking minds. Raising her arms over her head and tapping out a tempo with her foot, she spun on her toes, faint sparks of magic flying from her outflung arms. Her cape whirled along with her body, cocooning her in a gauzy film of crimson. Her eyes fell shut in concentration as she focussed on soothing the fear and pain in the room, gaining control of so many bodies at once, and herding them out the doors of the grassy chamber to safety.
Cheated of their prey, the remaining monsters turned their attention to the three men standing in a rough triangle near the center of the enclosure. Ferio and Lafarga's swords dripped some nasty green-black ichor, and they were surrounded by the twitching limbs of the monsters they had dismembered. Ascot sent a birdlike creature that stood like a man towards one of the assembled foes. The monsters clashed, ripping and tearing with talons and beaks.
Howling a war cry at the top of his lungs, Dal Lafarga ran directly at something resembling a cross between a scaled spider and a lizard. He spun into the embrace of its many legs, sword a whirling blur before him as he parried a strike that would have disemboweled him, and continued on the take the leg off at the knee joint. The monster squealed in pain, head lashing towards the impertinent human who dared to harm it. Its muzzled drew back to reveal row upon row of needle sharp teeth. Undaunted, Lafarga thrust the blade deep into the gaping maw. The tip of the sword emerged out the back of the thing's skull, and blood gouted from the mouth to pour down on the blonde swordsman.
Ferio, in the meantime, was slowly backing away from a spindly, one-eyed thing that seemed to be made up entirely of eye, mouth, and a few dozen scuttling legs. It rushed at him with terrifying speed, forcing the Prince to retreat even further. Angered now, Ferio lashed out with his sword, cleaving directly through the skull...
The horrendous wound sealed right back up, and the creature grinned even wider.
"Be careful of this one!" The golden eyed Prince warned his companions. "Swords won't work on it!"
"Then we shall have to try magic!" Ascot declared, throwing his hands out before him. "LIGHTNING!" The bolt clove through the air, striking the monster dead in the mouth. It reeled backwards, but seemed to become somehow...larger?
All three men gaped in shock. Swords had no effect, and magic was of no avail. What options did that leave them?!
The massive jaw of the monster unhinged, gaping wide open. Something in the back of its throat began to glow, and a ball of lightning much like Ascot's spell surged forward towards the group.
Crying out in shock, Ferio dove to the ground, grabbing the Palu by the wrist and dragging him down. He turned to see Lafarga gaping incredulously at the crackling sphere. "LAFARGA!! GET DOWN!!"
There was no time. Instead, the blonde man crossed his arms before his face, awaiting a blow.
One that never came.
Howling some Chizetan curse at the top of her lungs, Caldina tore towards the group, a razor edged dagger grasped in her right hand. She flung it with all her might, sending it whirling through the air to slice into the lightning ball. The magical attack exploded on impact, blinding all in the room.
The eyeball creature screeched in rage, and opened its mouth, spitting yet another sphere towards the Charmer. It whirled towards her too quickly for the human eye to follow, impacting into her chest and hurling her backwards. She crashed into Lafarga, and they both slammed into the wall.
Gasping in shock, Ascot and Ferio hesitated, unsure whether to attack the monster, or assist their friends. Their problem was solved for them, as the creature seemed to deflate, sagging in on itself and eventually collapsing into a pile of skin and bones.
Ascot was beside his old friends in a heartbeat, checking their vital signs and searching for any serious wounds. Lafarga had hit his head pretty hard against the solid substance of the wall, knocking himself out cold. There was a medium sized tear in his scalp, which bled freely, but head wounds always did bleed a great deal.
Caldina was also unconscious, and in something of a bad way. Her front of her halter-top had been torched and burned, folding away to reveal a generous amount of her breasts. Her skin was nastily scratched and burned as well in some places, those long limbs tangled in the fabric of her cape.
"Will they be alright?" Ferio asked anxiously, leaning over his shoulder and gripping the hilt of his sword tightly.
"I think so," Ascot nodded, green eyes glittering worriedly from beneath the heavy fringe of his bangs. "But we should take them to Guru Clef to make sure."
"We need to speak with him anyway," Ferio reminded him. "About this intrusion. Monsters aren't supposed to be able and enter the Castle so long as the Guru keeps the shields active." He reached downwards to wrap Caldina in her cape and lift her into his arms. "Ascot, would you...?"
The Summoner nodded, and one of his beasts leaned over to scoop Lafarga up into its talons with surprising gentleness. Nodding to each other, the two men struck off down the hallway, leaving the monster carcasses for later.
Her head hurt. In fact, it really hurt. Hurt did not even begin to describe the way it felt. It was splitting down the center, and her brain was attempting to claw its way out.
Caldina groaned. She weakly opened her eyes, and instantly wished she hadn't. The dim candlelight seemed to lance right into her skull, intensifying the ache there a hundredfold. She whimpered and attempted to push herself upright, only to gasp in pain and fall back to the bed. Her arms wrapped tightly around her bandaged torso, while Caldina sucked in deep breaths of air, swearing softly to herself.
"Caldina?" A woman's quiet voice came from just overhead. The Charmer slowly turned her head and gazed through watery eyes at a pale splotch that seemed to swim in and out of view. After blinking a few times, Presea's anxious face gradually sharpened. Caldina looked upwards into those warm amber eyes and managed a shaky smile.
"Yeah?"
"How do you feel?"
"'Zat a trick question?" The Chizetan woman carefully uncurled from her ball and gingerly made another try at sitting up. Being aware of the bandages now, it wasn't quite so bad the second time around. She was clothed in a long nightshirt of some light material. It felt pleasantly cool and soft against her tortured skin.
"You took quite a hit," The Pharle said quietly, perching herself on the edge of the bed to assist her in sitting. "Your whole front suffered from burns ranging from first to second degree."
"I've had worse," Caldina assured the worried woman, cracking another smile. "What 'bout all y'all? Did any of those critters escape? How're Lafarga, Ascot, and the Prince?"
"They're fine," Presea assured her. "Lafarga had a nasty head wound, but Guru Clef saw to it. Ascot and Ferio were unhurt."
"Guru Clef..." Caldina frowned thoughtfully. "I thought that as long as he held the shields, we were safe from the monsters here?"
"He was knocked unconscious by a falling piece of rubble," Presea fretted, wringing her hands together. "He will be alright, but it was a near thing."
"Poor 'lil guy..." Even after working with him for so long, Caldina still thought of the Guru as nearly a child. His height just worked against him!
"How do you feel?" Presea asked again, checking the dressing around the tan woman's chest. "I understand if you're a little sore, but in general?"
"I'll live." Only then did she notice that her wild mass of cotton-candy hair was out of its usual high ponytail. It hung midway down her back, incredibly silky and almost ticklish. She pulled it around to the front to toy with one lock. "How'd I get back here?"
"Ferio and Ascot brought you and Lafarga to the infirmary," Presea explained. "Lafarga has since been up and about. He insisted on going out on another sortie into the countryside to rescue any more villagers."
"Is he insane?!" Caldina exploded. "He's injured! He could be killed!"
The honey blonde brushed her bangs out of her eyes and smiled. "He takes his duty far too seriously. I'm sure he'll be alright though, Ferio and Ascot went with him. Those three make quite the team!"
"Yeah, I guess they do," The dancer brooded for a moment before swinging her legs out of the bed.
"What do you think you're doing?!" Presea demanded. "You're a long way from recovery!"
"I'm jest gonna go for a little walk," Caldina smiled reassuringly. "I promise I won't go out of sight of the infirmary doors."
Presea gave her a long, hard look, but eventually relented. She helped Caldina to her feet, and steadied her when her knees shook.
One hand pressed against her ribcage, the Charmer made her way down the hall, leaning heavily against the wall. She didn't know why, but she just felt she needed to be up and about. Maybe she intended to make her way back to her own room and finish her packing. To be rid of this infernal place once and for all. Yeah, that was it.
She rounded a curve in the hall, and stopped. Standing as solid and impassively as stone before one of the large round windows was Lafarga. He stared out over the jagged, crumbling landscape of Cephiro with eyes that didn't seem to focus on anything at once. Lost in his thoughts.
Caldina turned to go, though she wasn't sure why. A part of her was uncomfortable with the intense aura he seemed to be radiating, and the rest of her firmly told that part she just didn't want to get caught again.
"You're going somewhere, Caldina?"
Urk! She froze midstep, the steadying hand still bracing herself against the wall. Very carefully, she turned again, forcing a smile that wavered slightly.
"You feelin' better Lafarga? I heard you took quite the hit to the noggin'."
"It was nothing," He dismissed the comment out of hand. "You should still be asleep and resting. What is Presea thinking, letting you out of bed?"
"I'm fine!" Caldina protested hotly, making her way over to join him by the window. "It's not like I can't take an injury as well as the rest o' y'all, just because I'm a woman. I'll have you know I've taken out puh-lenty of warriors in my day."
"Yes..." Lafarga nodded, "Your days under Zagato."
Her mouth snapped shut and she, too, stared aimlessly out the window, watching as dark shapes crept across the violent spikes of earth which speared upwards into the sky. It was so hard to believe that only a very short while ago, Cephiro had been the most beautiful world of the four. All she had to go by were her memories of that time. Her blue eyes were troubled as she worried her lower lip between her teeth, fiddling with the sleeve of the nightshirt she wore.
"Caldina...where will you go?" The Dal asked after the silence had stretched on for far too long. "Why do you feel you need to leave?"
"I don't have a destination in mind," She said honestly. "But anywhere is better than here."
"Why do you think that?" He turned to fix her with those piercing blue eyes, and Caldina could readily believe that in battle, enemies would flee that stare alone, never mind the sword the warrior wielded. "Is it because you feel guilty, perhaps? By serving Zagato for a few paltry coins, do you think that somehow you indirectly brought about the destruction you see before you?"
"Shut up!!" Caldina cried, squeezing her eyes shut and clenching her hands into fists. "You know nothing about me, Lafarga. Nothing, d'ya hear?! This isn't my home, and I have no reason to stay and defend a dying world."
"So I was right," The blonde man tilted his head downward to narrow his eyes at her. "It is guilt, isn't it? Only you are incapable of taking responsibility for your past actions. So instead, you flee from them."
A sound somewhere between an angry growl and an anguished sob escaped her throat. Blinking back angry tears, Caldina slammed her fist into Lafarga's armored chest, barking her knuckles painfully against the ridged metal. Trickles of blood ran down her fist, identical to the droplets splattered across the breastplate. She took an involuntary step back, raising her hand to her lips in an effort to stop the pain.
Concern written plainly on his face, Lafarge reached over and took her long, delicate hand between his sword-callused fingers. He carefully turned it over in his hand, frowning at the split marks.
"Did you honestly think I would feel it through my armor?" He asked softly, wiping away the blood with the edge of his cape. He tore a strip from it, and carefully bandaged her scraped knuckles.
She had no answer, instead, she bit her lip and watched him do the work.
"I apologize," He said finally. "I had no right to accuse you of such things."
Caldina shook her head, wild hair falling into her eyes. "No...you're right. I am responsible for this, in some way. When I think of all the pain I caused those Little Magic Knights...all the people whose lives I destroyed for money." She swallowed hard and swiped away the hot tears with the heel of her hand. "At least you and Ascot had good reason. You were under Zagato's spell, and he used poor 'lil Ascot's loyalty to his friends to dupe him into doing what he wanted. But I...I was just in it for the cash."
"Caldina," Lafarga said intently, giving her hand a squeeze, "You must believe me when I say that all of this would have happened without you. Zagato still would have captured Princess Emeraude, the Magic Knights would have still been summoned, and the tragedy would have occurred."
"Maybe," She admitted. "But I am running from my guilt, aren't I?"
"We all do," The swordsman replied. "There isn't a day that passes that I don't wonder, what might have happened if I had been a little more vigilant, a little more skilled with my blade that day Zagato took her away."
"You shouldn't think like that!" Caldina exclaimed, not sure if she was angry at him, his words, or herself. "You are an amazing warrior Lafarga! I've seen it!" Now it was her turn to pat his hand in comfort.
"Thank you Caldina," Dear sweet Pillar was he actually smiling? "But I still will continue to fight, despite my doubts. Because as long as I am alive, I will work to prevent this from happening again. We will find the next Pillar, and we will restore Cephiro to its former beauty."
"We?" She asked, suddenly reminded of earlier that day.
He seemed slightly flustered. "By 'we', I meant all the people of Cephiro."
"But not me?" She raised her chin in challenge. He knew of her foreign blood.
"I would certainly welcome you, should you choose to stay," Lafarga dropped her hand and turned back to the window. "You see Caldina, by staying, perhaps you can somehow make right the wrongs you committed. To repent and make up for them. That is how I see it, at any rate."
"To repent...?" She murmured, gazing through the glass, and trying to see what he did. A world where no one should have to sacrifice their happiness for others, Cephiro as it ought to be.
"Besides," Lafarga went on, seeming almost awkward now. "Ascot would miss you terribly. He sees you as a beloved elder sister, you know."
Caldina blinked in surprise, and shot him a sidelong glance. He fidgeted with hilt of his sword, head turned away from her. The tips of his ears were flushed a faint pink color. Understanding dawned in her sky blue eyes, and the familiar impish grin appeared on her lips.
"And you, Lafarga?" She asked almost coyly. "What about you?"
The sudden change in her tone tipped him off. The blonde man turned back to her, the redness spreading across his cheeks. "I...ah...I admit I would miss you as well," When her smile did not falter or disappear, he gained some confidence and plowed on ahead. "I have grown to care for you a great deal, since my mind was restored to me. We have a great deal in common, being in the same situation."
"Situation?"
"We have committed awful acts, and are struggling with our consciences. We search for something to allow us to forget." He said finally, blowing any and all romanticism right out the window.
"I wish I had yer conviction," Caldina sighed. "Somethin' to fight for the way you fight for Cephiro."
"You could," He said almost earnestly. "Find something to fight for, to believe in. I believe in you, that you could accomplish that."
"And you'd miss me if I left?" She eyed him again, inwardly giggling at the sudden blush.
"I...I would, yes."
"Then I suppose that's reason enough for me to give this wreck of a world a second chance," She said nonchalantly. Her expression and tone sobered, and she gazed at him seriously. "I have a whole lot ta repent for, at any rate."
"Caldina..." Lafarga struggled to find something to say, and was surprised when she reached over and took his hand in hers.
"Lafarga," She smiled up at him. "You can shut up now." She tugged at his hand, and stood on her toes. The drastic difference in their height made it difficult for her to raise her lips to meet his.
He drew his cape around them, holding the slim woman against him as he tentatively kissed her back, finding her mouth to be warm and yielding against his. Her arms snaked their way gracefully around his neck, a soft smile tugging at her mouth.
Presea smiled as well, and ducked back around the corner. She needn't worry about Caldina's safety, not while she was held securely within the arms of Dal Lafarga.