~*Impossible Decisions*~

~*Impossible Decisions*~

Ch. 3: A Terrible Sacrifice

Hikaru held a hand to her throbbing forehead, and sighed. Her eyes stared out the window and into the lands of Cephiro. She, Umi, and Fuu were staying for a while, because of the window incident. They were afraid that something would happen, and that they would be needed. 'Cephiro is so beautiful. I can't see a single monster anywhere. All I see are peaceful villages, calm forests, and gorgeous seas.' Her mind drifted from Cephiro, for a split second, as she silently wished, 'I wish Lantis was here to see this with me…'

She suddenly heard the clacking of shoes behind her, and she whipped around, hoping to see Lantis. Instead, she saw Eagle halt to a stop under her gaze. Hikaru smiled, happy to see him. She wanted to see Lantis, but she knew he was away at Autozam. Still, is a loved one truly ever away?

"Hikaru…" He smiled warmly. "What are you doing?"

"Huh? Oh, I was just thinking about how beautiful Cephiro is!"

He walked over to her side, and stared out the window. "Yes, it is very beautiful."

Hikaru also returned her gaze to the lands. "I know… I would do anything to protect this beauty," she hesitated, "I…I would even become the pillar, again!"

Eagle's head snapped around in surprise. "What!?! But what about your…love? For Lantis, I mean."

"Lantis… I love him. But I know he would understand. Or maybe not, with Zagato and Emeraude's sad death. But Eagle, you love Autozam, don't you?!?"

He sighed, knowing he couldn't lie to the sweet, young girl. "Yes, I love Autozam very much. It's my home."

"Cephiro is like my home, too! Even if I had to give up my freedom, and my life, and Earth… I would protect it. I didn't even know I felt this way until recently, Eagle… Am I being stupid?"

The commander looked serious and surprised at this question. "No, not at all. You want to protect Cephiro, I understand. But don't think about becoming the pillar, that will be the very last resort." He kneeled down and gently held her hand. "I promise you, Princess Hikaru, I and Autozam will fight for you and Cephiro." Eagle gently brushed his lips against the tips of her fingers. His eyes shined with loyalty and honesty. "I promise you, Hikaru."

A scarlet blush graced Hikaru's cheeks, and she stuttered, "A-arigatou, Eagle-san…" She straightened, and a serious look took the place of the embarrassed one. "Cephiro and I thank you for Autozam's alliance and help. If the earlier event was an indication of future tragedies, I'm afraid that a war may come to be."

Eagle couldn't hide his surprise at how mature Hikaru sounded, but then remembered the training she had been undergoing. It seemed like Cephiro wanted a pillar again, and even though Hikaru was originally a Magic Knight, if she became the pillar, she would take Ferio's place as the leader. Not that Ferio would mind, the young man didn't seem too fond of being a prince. He would probably welcome the chance to be just second-in-command again. "Hikaru, please don't be so formal around me."

A joyful grin spread across her face, as she winked and replied, "You started it!"

He blinked, not quite understanding the Earth reference. "Hmm…?"

Hikaru sweatdropped, the people of this world could be a bit hard to joke with. Nonetheless, he was really so adorable confused! Her eyes widened, and she innocently wondered where such a thought came from. She opened her mouth to excuse herself, when a messenger suddenly hurled himself into the room.

The young boy halted in front of Hikaru, and saluted her and Eagle. "Excuse me, Magic Knight Hikaru-san, but I have a message from Autozam! Express delivery, from Cail Lantis!" He bowed, and bolted out the door as fast as lightning.

Hikaru squealed and ripped open the letter, excitedly. "Ooooh! Read this, Eagle!"

Hikaru,

Are you all right? I'm assuming Clef's birthday went well, but I had a bad feeling and felt I should write you. Is everyone all right? How is Eagle? I can't say much, due to lack of time and I don't want to charge the President too much money.

Lantis

Hikaru smiled inwardly at how he seemed so impersonal in the letter, yet how it was obvious, at least to her, that it was written with much emotion. She felt even guiltier about being attracted to Eagle at all. Eagle was Lantis's best friend! She couldn't have *any* feelings for him! It wouldn't be right to Lantis, and she really did love the dark haired swordsman.

Eagle felt like he had betrayed Lantis, getting so close to Hikaru. It was probably best that the messenger had interrupted them…Creator forbid that anything would have happened. And yet… No, this wasn't the time to think foolish thoughts.

"Eagle-san, I should leave now. I have my lessons to attend to, and the Guru will be upset if I'm late. If you'd please excuse me." She bowed her head, like she was taught, and left in a rush. A piece of folded paper was clutched tightly in her hand, as if it were her own sanity she was holding onto.

~*~

The 5 year old girl gasped as she felt an arrow nick her arm. She ran faster, her feet pounding on the floor as she ran towards her parents. The couple stared desperately at their daughter, as if trying to will her away. She had to be safe, and they had already been captured. With the ruckus going on, the monsters hadn't noticed her…yet.

The half beast, half man creature that had shot the arrow jumped down from the roof. As his feet touched the cold pavement, he snarled and leapt forward. A shrill scream left the child's lips as his claws became entangled in her dirtied dress, and the cloth ripped easily under his hold. Her curls bounced and the beast grabbed onto them, forcing her to look at his disgusting face. The child whimpered, and shot her parents a pleading glance.

Her parents stared, utterly horrified, as the monster snarled and tore off the girls head. The father stared in mute shock at the head of his beautiful daughter. His wife passed out, as the mutilated body fell onto the pavement. The head continued to hang from the beast's mouth, a curl tangled in the teeth. Blood dripped from the head and onto the pavement, as the father felt his world go black.

Nearby, a set of twins were being tortured as well. A monster had one of his eight tentacles wrapped around the older twins' neck, and he slowly strangled her. The younger twin let out a gruesome cry as her body was engulfed with flames. The fire licked her arms and she could feel the incredible heat on every part of her body. She could feel Satan's breath on her neck, and she knew her life was escaping her. Her sister would die soon; there was no escape for the two.

The mangled body of her husband and the cries of her sister, those would be the last memories she would have until she passed on. Her younger sister continued to cry and beg for mercy, as the fire continued to overcome her. The older twin couldn't hold her breath for much longer, nor could she take the pain. Her husband had died trying to fight these monsters, and she could only watch in disbelief as his body was torn in half. As she had run towards the monster in a rage, she had seen a bruised and raped little boy out of the corner of her eyes. A piece of a monsters tentacle was nearby, and the young boys clothes had been stained by slime and blood.

The little boys body racked with sobs, as he clutched onto what remained of his clothes. He was a feminine child, with pretty eyes and rather longish brown hair. The tentacles of that repulsive monster had ripped him from his very innocence. Everything was crystal clear in his mind, and the sanity of the child was leaving as quickly as his purity. His mothers sweet blue eyes flashed through his mind, as he remembered the stories she used to tell him. About knights and dragons, and how the knight would always win and save the lovely maiden. He was never fond of these stories, but he now felt a terrible hatred for the creatures that terrified the people in those stories. A terrible emptiness was part of his soul now, but it only lasted for a split second, as a knife was stabbed through his young and blackened heart.

The butcher who had taken the raped child's life had lost his sanity a while ago. The death and torture that surrounded him, it was like a jail cell from which he had no escape! He would kill everyone who had been attacked by these creatures, as his last gift for them. The deserved to be freed and sent to heaven. They would no doubt kill themselves later, he might as well be the one to do it for them. This way, they could at least spend their days rejoicing in heaven.

~*~

Fuu sipped her tea politely, while carefully listening to Umi's story. The three girls were gathered in Hikaru's room, and were sharing gossip and secrets.

"So, anyway, this servant suddenly taps Clef's shoulder and goes—,"

Loud pounds on Hikaru's door interrupted the sapphire eyed Knight's story, and she was quite annoyed. She stomped over to the door and whipped it opened. Instead of saying something rude about being interrupted, she asked, in a harsh whisper. "There's something wrong, isn't there, Clef?"

Clef nodded gravely, not bothering to ask how she knew. Umi could easily read the Guru's expressions by now, and she silently closed the door behind him. The Guru wasted no time getting to the news. "A village has been completely destroyed. Not a single civilian escaped unharmed."

The teacup slipped out of Fuu's normally careful hands and crashed onto the floor. Hikaru's eyes grew wide, and she suddenly found herself having difficulty with her breathing. Umi gulped and leaned against a doorway, her heart pounding and her mind in shock.

Clef bit his lip, but continued. "It was completely ravaged by monsters. The details will be discussed later. We're heading towards the former village right now. Do you girls want to come?"

The three girls stood up without thought and followed Clef out the doorway.

~*~

Caldina paced around nervously, scared out of her mind. This couldn't be happening, that village…completely destroyed. How many lost lives? Over 12,000.

"It was fortunately a small village, not many people were lost. It wasn't a particularly significant loss to Cephiro."

The charmer whirled around angrily and slapped the speaker, Lafarga. "How can you say that?!? The amount of lives that were lost… Destroyed by monsters… You can't possibly mean what you said!"

Lafarga's steely eyes, which where usually so gentle with Caldina, flashed and he replied, just as harshly, "It means a lot more to me than you think!"

Caldina took a step back in surprise, but still didn't seem to believe what he said. "What, are you afraid that you might get your almighty rank lowered?!?" She whirled around, so she wouldn't have to face him again. "Or are you afraid this might ruin your reputation?"

For a minute, there was complete silence. Suddenly, strong arms turned her around to face him, Lafarga. She was shocked to find tears glazing her lover's eyes, as he harshly pushed her onto the bed. A yell of protest was given, but were quickly silenced under Lafarga's gaze. He climbed onto the bed, and gently turned her till she was facing him.

"You have no idea how much I cared. That village was Kiata. My home. I was born and raised there, my parents and twin sisters lived there, and my closest friends lived there. They were all destroyed."

Caldina gasped, and clasped a hand to her mouth. And then she saw what she never thought she would see, as her invincible husband clasped her in his arms, and cried. She felt his sadness and loneliness; she almost felt like her own heart was breaking for his tortured one.

To be continued…

Umm…. What?!? I *so* did not have THAT in mind for my Caldina/Lafarga story… And I did rate this story PG-13, right? I better have… _ I don't think is going to be a kid's story…

Well, didja like it or hate it? Please review and TELL ME!!!!

Random MKR fact about Sarah: Despite Eagle being her favorite character, her new favorite couple is Caldina/Lafarga… Is it that obvious…?

Disclaimer: Don't own them knights. Ain't got nutin but a barrel of hay…

Now THAT was stupid and corny…