THE MARKINGS OF THE BEGINNING Prologue
Shidou Hikaru
abruptly woke up to examine her room frantically. Cold sweat beaded her forehead and chest. Hikaru's wild gasps didn't stop. Her eyes didn't stop wandering around her
room. Her stomach began to burn. The ruthless autumn wind seemed to knock on
her window, beckoning to come in.
"Uhh . . ., that was crazy. What kind of dream was that?" Hikaru got up only to fall back, wincing in
pain. Her flat stomach burned more. It was as if it was on fire. She doubled over in pain.
Although the pain in her stomach felt like fire, she was
cold. Her hands were white as snow.
She didn't understand what was
happening to her. Hikaru pulled off her
night gown and clutched at her stomach.
She looked down to gasped. She ran
to the mirror to see a red marking on her stomach. It had a circle with a star in the circle.
How did it get there?
What is it?
Why did her stomach burn whenever
her hands went near her stomach?
The dream . . . As
soon as Hikaru thought about her dream, the symbol glittered and Hikaru doubled
over in pain once more. It took all her
strength and will power not to scream.
Hikaru heard soft footsteps behind
her. She turned in alert.
It was the man in her dream. His presence was like the shadows in her
room.
"Stay back!!" shouted
Hikaru. She heard her brothers animatedly
running up through the hall to her room.
The man brought out his hand from
underneath his cloak and held it out for her to grab.
"No!! Get away!! Ahhh~!" Hikaru didn't understand why she was afraid. The more she tried to stay away from this
man, the more brightly her symbol glowed.
There was a pounding on her door.
"HIKARU!! OPEN THIS DOOR!!"
"WHAT'S GOING ON?"
"ARE YOU ALRIGHT? WHY WON'T YOU OPEN THIS DOOR?"
He was doing it, thought
Hikaru. Her door didn't have a lock and
it almost always opened too easily.
"Help me, o-niisan!!" Hikaru was crowded into a corner of her
room. Her kendo sword was just inches
away . . . If only the pain would stop!
Hikaru extended her hand for the
sword.
"Do not fight your future, Shidou
Hikaru." Said the man. Hikaru cringed
at the callous voice.
The pounding continued at her
door. Her brothers were slamming
themselves against the door.
The man raised his hand to
magically lift her off the floor and into his arms. The glow of the symbol dyed the room with the color of burning
embers. Hikaru struggled to
escape.
"HIKARU!!!!"
"Lantis . . ."
whispered Hikaru.
"Lantis? Princess Emerald's bodyguard?" said the
callous voice. The man placed his hand
on her bare stomach.
Hikaru forgot to
be embarrassed of her state of undress when he placed his hand on her stomach. There was something about his touch. It wasn't the first. Her dream . . .
Just then the
door to her room burst open and her three brothers filled in to her room with their
swords. They gasped when they saw the
tall dark man carry her uncovered sister.
"Who the hell are
you!!"
The man had a
smirk on his sculpted face. He formed
what looked like a white light and lobbed it at the three brothers.
The confused
brothers didn't know what it was at first but when they sensed its kii, they
dodged it. The white ball of energy encountered
Hikaru's mirror and it broke into pieces.
The brother's
were helpless when they watched their youngest sister and the bastard slowly disappear
into thin air. There was only a wail of
their sister.
"Lantis!!"
