Lost Destiny
This chapter might raise some questions—don't worry! I'll answer them.
"Seiya, this is Shaina. She will be your teacher from now on."
"Sir, I protest! I will not train this Japanese dog just so that he can steal the ancient treasures of our homeland!"
"If Seiya wins a Cloth, it will have chosen him to enact justice upon the world, wherever his path takes him. There is no law forbidding a non-Greek from becoming a Saint, is there? We have many such Saints already."
"But why me? If you really want a Silver to teach him, Aquila Toma's Japanese like him—"
"Toma has never taken on pupils. He is ill-suited to it. You, however, have proven to be a tough but effective teacher. I believe that you will mould Seiya into a great warrior someday."
Seiya choked as Shaina's claw-like nails dug into his neck, his legs kicking wildly about as she held him out over the cliff-edge. "The training of a Saint is difficult beyond belief," she monotoned. "You will have to push your body beyond what you thought were its limits, into the realms of impossibility. This is your last chance to leave, and have a normal life."
"I-I can't leave here…" Seiya grunted, gripping Shaina's wrist with both hands. He stared directly into the impassive metal mask. "I can't go back…not until I have a Cloth…that's what they told me…"
Why is it so important to him…? Shaina nodded. "I understand. Then we will skip the warm-up and move straight to the impossible—the impossible must, after all, become routine for a Saint. Your training begins now." She released her hold and shook him off, letting him tumble away through the evening air. "If you survive, come and see me back at my quarters!" she called down after him. "Only then will I acknowledge you as my pupil."
She turned and strode off, pausing for a moment as a broad-shouldered, squint-eyed brute of a child came running up to her. "My lady, you dealt with him wonderfully!" he gushed.
She paused for a moment. I suppose…I really don't want to have to deal with Seiya…he's probably dead, but…I did promise that if he reached me… "Cassios."
"Yes?"
"Wait here for a few hours. If he reaches the top, kill him."
Cassios saluted, flashing a bloodthirsty, fang-toothed grin. "Yes, ma'am!"
Seiya dug his fingers further into the jagged precipice he'd grabbed onto for a handhold. He winced as blood dripped down over the back of his hand, twisting into red rivers all the way down his arm. He tried to reach up with his other hand, but a gust of wind slammed him into the cliff-face, and he barely held on with the one hand already in place, breath knocked out of him and more cuts opened up as his face and body smashed against the cruel rock.
Bloodied, bruised, exhausted and freezing, he was more miserable than he'd ever been in his life; he felt his grip slipping, and gave an involuntary gasp, his fingers scraping over the rough surface as gravity continued to take its toll.
Is this what it's like…to be a Saint? This kind of pain…and this is just the start…
I don't think I can do this!
He closed his eyes and waited to fall—but as the agonisingly-slow seconds ticked past, he found himself remaining in place. What…? I thought I let go… Almost against his will, his hand remained locked in place, gripping the outcrop with a frenzy. Why? Even though it's getting more painful every second…even though just letting it all end would be easier…why can't I let go?
"Seiya! Don't go! Come back, Seiya!"
"S-Seika…" If I don't survive…if I don't return with this Cloth thing…my sister and I will never meet again…!
Come on! He reached up with a trembling hand, shoving his fingers into another painful crevice in the rock, stabilising himself. He managed to find purchase, of a sort, for his feet on the cliff's natural incline. Just…one hand, one foot at a time! He began to move upwards, terribly slowly, every new grasp of the cold stone tearing at his raw skin, the cold biting inwards until he could barely feel his limbs. Just don't think! Don't think about how long it'll take to reach the top…just one hand…one foot…
That dreadful, endless climb was the moment he first decided—the first time he felt that absolute certainly. The first, but by far not the last, time those words blazed in his mind: I'm gonna live…and I'm gonna become a Saint!
Climb. Up. Hand. Foot. Hand. Foot. Climb. Hand. Foot. Top.
…top?!
Finally rolling over, gasping, onto the top of the cliff felt wrong somehow—as if after such an eternity of climbing, it was no longer natural for him to be on flat ground.
A huge smile broke out on his face, and he began to breathe normally—just before he felt the true pain of his accumulated injuries. His limbs were covered in cuts and scratches, many of which would leave permanent scars, and his hands were a bloody mess.
So naturally, Cassios seemed to wait until this pain had kicked in to notice Seiya, come running up to him and kick him square in the ribs.
Seiya rolled away, lifting himself off the ground with a great effort and rising to face his assailant. The fatigue was getting to him, and Cassios swum and blurred before his eyes, splitting into two and floating in circles. Seiya rubbed his eyes with a forearm, shaking his head and trying to focus. "Wh-Who the hell are you?!"
"I am Cassios! Lady Shaina's true pupil!" The trainee grinned, taking slow steps towards Seiya. "Once I kill you, my real training will begin…she's going to teach me the power of a Saint, and I'm gonna win my Pegasus Cloth!"
"Sorry…" Seiya felt the certainty surge for a moment again. "You're gonna miss out. Pegasus…is mine."
"Like hell!" Cassios growled, lumbering into motion. Seiya ducked away as Cassios lunged, striking back with his elbow (not wanting to subject his hands to any more injury) at Cassios' side. Aiming for his head would have been impossible—despite being only Seiya's age, Cassios was already the size of a full-grown man.
When Seiya's attack hit him, however, after flinching back for a moment, Cassios straightened up, chuckling. "Wherever you came from, they taught you to fight…but I barely felt that." Now that Seiya was back at close range, he responded with a backhanded swipe that spun the Japanese aspirant around in mid-air, landing him on his face. "Is it because you're so tiny?" Cassios wondered aloud. "Or because of how tired you are right now? Both, I guess…"
Seiya raised his head, forcing his eyes open and clenching his teeth, yet more blood seeping from between his teeth and dripping to the ground. "C-Cassios…why do you want to be a Saint? What's…your reason?"
Cassios stomped over towards Seiya, cracking his knuckles. "No special reason. I wanna get stronger, I guess. When you're strong, people let you do what you want." He bent down, reaching for his prone opponent.
"That's not—" Jerking into motion, Seiya flipped onto his back, swinging his arm up, a large rock clenched in his fist, smashing it into the side of Cassios' face, sending multiple teeth flying. "—good enough!" Cassios staggered back, howling, and stumbled around for a few seconds while Seiya tried to catch his breath. "Not just…for its own end," he wheezed. "It has to…mean something."
"And who let you make the rules…" Cassios muttered, wincing as the cracks in his jaw began to make themselves felt. He let out a guttural roar, pouncing back towards Seiya, who tried to scramble away, kicking madly out at Cassios, but his attacks had no effect at all on the enraged giant. He twisted and rolled in a panic, somehow evading his attacker, who continued to reach and grab at him. Finally, the great gnarled hands caught him around the waist, and as Cassios rose Seiya was hoisted with him, his efforts to break free completely futile.
"Got you," Cassios breathed, lizard-like eyes lit with a hungry glow. He withdrew one hand from Seiya's waist, leaning in close and reaching out towards his head. "First," he continued, "I'll take, hmm…how about an ear?"
As the hand swiped at him, Seiya ducked his head—and suddenly found himself staring directly at Cassios' throat. Without thinking, only seeing his terrible enemy momentarily vulnerable before him, he leaned forwards and bit down hard, shoving both hands into Cassios' chest to propel himself backwards as he tore away—and then he realised what he'd done.
Shaina looked up with some surprise—Cassios' footsteps are heavier than that…but…it couldn't be!
Seiya entered the room, each step slow and measured, doing his utmost to stay conscious and stay on his feet. "Cassios…is dead," he mumbled.
Shaina flinched. By…this child?! No! "How?" she demanded, standing and glaring down at him.
Seiya raised his head for the first time, revealing the enormous red stain—obviously not his own—covering his neck and the lower half of his face, particularly around his mouth. "Take a guess." He was beyond the point of caring what she thought now, absorbed in his own fear and disgust.
Shaina watched silently as he staggered over to the wall and collapsed against it, losing consciousness. She pondered the day's events for a minute. I suppose…I can make something of him, perhaps…
Six years later…
Seiya circled his opponent, Synithis—a wiry, tall teen who had a similarly impressive track record to him. But, though he didn't want to say this out loud for fear of wounding the man's pride, Seiya knew there was no comparison between them.
He dodged back and forth, counting each of Synithis' blows as he evaded them. The final one hissed by, and with a somersault he landed behind Synithis, straightening up. "60 punches in one second…that's not bad, but you've still got a lot to learn." He turned back to look over his shoulder. "Have you ever felt the true Cosmos within you?"
"True…?" Synithis frowned.
"Seiya…Cosmos is what gives a Saint their power. We are all composed of atoms created in the Big Bang, the birth of the universe. A Saint has the potential to re-awaken that power, and reproduce it on a small scale! There is a universe—a cosmos—of power within you, Seiya, if you can awaken to it!"
"Let me show you," Seiya said, smiling as he slid his feet apart, beginning to move his hands in a rhythmic, swaying pattern—as Synithis realised, passing through the positions of each of the thirteen stars in the Pegasus constellation in turn.
He's standing still, at least…can't waste this opportunity! Synithis decided, rushing in at Seiya and drawing back both arms to strike—too late.
"PEGASUS—" Seiya swung his right arm out, his whole body taking a half-turn to face him side-on to his target, arm darting out far faster than normal human eyes could follow, his blows appearing as crackling bolts of violent blue energy swirling around Synithis and striking him from all sides. "—THUNDER CLAW!"
Shaina observed all this, grinning behind her mask when she saw Synithis wasn't getting up. Eighty-five punches a second…the fastest he's ever been. This means a lot to him—he's giving more than he ever thought he had.
The Pope, an intimidating figure in his elaborate robe and helmet, rose to his feet as a gentle ripple of applause filled the Coliseum. The Pope held up a hand for quiet. "The battle is decided!" He faced Seiya directly, silhouetted for a moment against the setting sun. "From this moment on, until the end of your life or until you choose to pass on your legacy to another, you are the Bronze Saint—Pegasus Seiya!"
Seiya's heart swelled at the words, and he approached the Pegasus Clothbox sitting in front of the Pope with a slow reverence, gingerly placing one hand on it. "Remember," the Pope continued, voice growing sterner, "this Cloth is a weapon that must only ever be used for a righteous cause! Should you use your power for evil or selfish gain, Saints from all around the world will descend upon you to destroy you!"
"Y-Yes, sir!" Seiya beamed despite himself, saluting for a moment before grasping the Clothbox and hoisting it two-handed. Well, Seika? I told you I'd do it…now, I'm coming home for you!
Mount Olympus…
Artemis, goddess of the hunt, approached her immobile Angel servant across the throne room, beginning to walk in slow circles around her. "Marin, Marin," she sighed. "This is getting worse…every time I send you away on a mission to Earth, you slip away to look for your brother…"
Marin nodded silently, acknowledging this.
"It's really affecting your performance in your assignments. I can't have that. Listen to me." Artemis stopped in front of Marin, eyes narrowing. "You are no longer the human you once were. You are my Angel now. That is the price you paid for me saving his life, remember?"
"I…remember, my queen," Marin managed.
"Good. But I have prepared something for you, just in case…" Artemis smiled unpleasantly, producing a thin silver object. "It's a special mask, just for you…to help you remember."
Next week, we check in at Death Queen Island, to see how some more fates have been altered.
Anyway, as I said, questions I predict you might have (though obviously feel free to ask anything else, or to ask for clarification on any of these):
-Will there be more changes between this AU timeline and canon?
A few, yeah. I'm basically beginning with three major changes to the set-up—the first of which we've seen here (Marin and Toma have changed places, resulting in Seiya being given to Shaina for training instead)—and then proceeding from there.
-How come Seiya doesn't have Pegasus' signature attack?
Well, we know the Ryuseiken isn't necessarily specific to the Pegasus Saint. Crateris Suikyo from Next Dimension knows it, and taught it to Tenma; and in the main series, Marin knows it, and taught it to Seiya—and she has, in fact, used it in battle, further confirming this. Hence, "Ryuseiken" (Meteor Fist/Punch) on its own is a non-specific attack, but can have a "Pegasus" spin put on it. So I decided given the change of teachers, Seiya would do the same but with a different attack. Will this make this slightest bit of difference?
…actually, yes, it will.
-Toma? As in that Toma?
Yes, the very-strongly-hinted-to-be-Marin's-brother Toma, from Tenkai-hen Overture and Next Dimension, i.e. Artemis' Angel. I'm going with the Next Dimension version, because it's cooler…and also because in general, it's just best to try and forget Overture ever happened.
-Is Seiya's killing Cassios going to affect him?
Oh, yes.
-Anime or manga canon?
Mainly manga, as the storyline is overall more streamlined, but the anime has done a couple of moments I prefer its version of, so don't be surprised if I dip into it occasionally—don't worry, though, I'll always make it clear when I do so (and in general what the difference is, in case you're only familiar with one or the other).
