Part 4 I Want To Ask Why
//Why? Why did this
happen?
I know you're out there: watching, waiting.
Come and take me!
Free me from my misery!//
~~ I watch as the flames lick what used to
be my home as Mayle continues to pull me along. My eyes never leave the dancing spirits, as my feet
unconsciously keep moving. Mayle
carefully ducks us around debris and chunks of earth the size of cars.
"Keep up with me!" Mayle yells at me when I slow my
pace. My body has already been pushed
well beyond its limits. She appears to
have not even tired after being injured. "If you want to continue living you will keep up."
Those words chill my blood. There was something new about Mayle that I had never seen
before. Her words are cold and
distant. She won't even look at me. What is it about these huge machines that
can make someone as fun loving as Mayle to become a harsh shell of a
person? How many other people feel the
same?
She pulls me under the cover of a shrub next to the central
gazebo. Hiding between the plant and
the structure, we wait. The battle goes
on without these two participants. The
barrage of bullets continues, the sound of explosions un-relentless. The only reason I am calmed is by Mayle
gently stroking my blond hair. It is
obviously something that she is doing subconsciously since her eyes and
attention are trained on the burning palace.
"Damn them. We had
no intention of war, yet they attack us!" I had never heard Mayle curse before and it scares me. She had seemed so unable to use such language.
"Why are they doing this?"
"Because the Alliance is made up of scum who believe war is
promise and peace is just a fool's wish. They're afraid of what effects pacifism might have on the world and
therefore they are trying to destroy it. So they send these mobile suits into an unarmed country. What cowards they are, I bet the man who
ordered this is hiding behind his desk and title at this moment. It's just like the men who make the
decisions not to get their hands dirty in the process. Cowardly bastards, all of them.
"Master Milliardo, I beg of you not to become like those
men. When you lead, always fight along
side those who follow. Then you will be
a true leader. Don't let politics
interfere with the way that you live your life; it will only burden you even
more. Know your enemies, know them
better then you know your allies. You
will never be defeated if you follow that advice."
The hollow sound of a scream erupts from within the
inferno. "Mother! She's still inside!"
"Don't move. Do not
move one inch from where you are now. Once the suits have left I want you to run. Take the path through the grove to the nearest home. I have no doubt that they will help
you. I will come find you when all this
is over."
I grab her arm and hold on tight, "Mayle, don't go!" Tears stream out of my eyes; I can't help
but have the feeling that I will never see her again. "I need you!" My body is
shuddering with the sobs and soon she pulls her arm out of my grasp.
"I will see you again, Milliardo." With that she darts off towards the
flame-engulfed palace. I can only hide
and cry while my best friend risks her life for my family. I watch horrified as she enters the palace
pulling her sleeve over her nose. The
smoke is pouring out of the entryway in plums. Soon Mayle lets herself be grabbed and pulled into the grasp of the
demon.
"No! It wasn't
supposed to be this way. You were
supposed to teach me about Sagittarius tonight. I was supposed to look at the stars you put up on my bedroom
ceiling and name all the constellations that you have taught me. I was supposed to look at the pictures in
your astronomy text. But that won't
happen now. There is no more
bedroom. The text is now ashes. And soon there might not be anymore you, and
then the stars will never shine as brightly in the heavens." I whisper to myself, sobs distorting the
words. Curling up into a ball I allow
the horrible reality to seep in. ~~
Faint echoes of my name being called over and over again. I wish to call out to the unknown being, but I am too weak. The soft voice is so inviting, so comforting. I wish to run to its source, but I can't. The heavy restraints of gravity hold me back. 'Come, I am here!' The voice grows louder for one repetition before it fades away as if it never existed at all.