The Truth Beyond the Reflection

Chapter 7: Met Once on the Other Side

By Sanzaki Kojika

Disclaimer: I do NOT own any of the Kyou Kara MaOh! Characters. I do however, own everything "beyond the reflection." Heh. WARNING: There IS Yaoi in here. YxW and vice versa. I guess you could say hints of CxY, too.

This is a Wolfram chapter! Yay! I love writing from his pov XD Since he IS my favorite character…but um yeah. Anyways, this chapter finally brings in some characters from "beyond the reflection." Chapter 8 is under way….but I'm kinda brain dead to anything but Albel and Fayt (Star Ocean 3) right now so it might be a while. I promise to have it up before the end of the year though XD

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The soft feel of grass…the quiet crunching of dead leaves…the dim rays of the rising sun….I sat straight up and looked around. I was no longer by the swamp. In fact, I wasn't even near it. The noises, the smells…there was no doubt that I was in the forest.

I slowly climbed to my feet, using a nearby tree for support. The rough bark stung at my fingers. Once I stood, I almost fell. The pain in my leg was excruciating. I glanced down at my injuries. Odd. I was bandaged.

I wasn't sure how I had gotten to the forest, but at least I was safe…for now. Since I was already in the forest, I might as well try to find the tree. I just wish I knew what I was looking for. Besides a tree, I mean.

I reached back and felt for my sword. Good. It was still with me. I pulled it from the sheath and examined the blade. It was…odd.

I put my sword back and stumbled. I grabbed onto the tree with both hands. I stubbed my toe against a root. "Dammit!"

'Hey! Watch what you're doing!' I jumped. Something had just spoken to me. I looked around. There was nothing but trees around me.

"Who's there?" I put my hand on the handle of my sword. A slight breeze brushed past me. Still, nothing stirred.

'That is my line. You dare to enter my domain uninvited and question me?' the deep, booming voice surrounded me. Was it in my head? No…it couldn't be. There was an echo to it.

"I'm sorry…" Wait. Why the hell was I apologizing? I didn't even know who, or what, I was apologizing to!

'Who are you…' the voice asked after a moment. I glanced around once again, but still, I saw nothing.

"I am Wolfram von Bielefeld…" Why was I still answering? I think I was starting to go crazy! I needed to get out of here, and fast!

'Why are you here?' I sighed softly.

"I don't know…" The wind brushed past me again. I heard a bird squawk in the distance.

I shook my head and growled slightly. What was I doing? I shouldn't just stand here and talk to myself! I needed to find a way out of here. I turned to walk away.

'Wait.' The voice stopped me. I was sure it was coming from behind me. I glanced back over my shoulder, but all I could see was trees.

"Excuse me, but I need to find a way out of here. So, I must be off…" the voice interrupted me.

'I am called Lief, the Mazoku no Kagami.' I stopped dead in my tracks.

"What did you say?" I shouted. The large tree I was fully facing now started to quiver slightly. A few leaves rained down upon me.

'Don't yell! You know very well what I said!' I could swear the tree was moving…

"How can that be…? I'm in the mirror! Aren't I…?" I shook my head. Something landed on my shoulder. I jumped back. It was a tree branch…

Suddenly, I remembered the fading treasury. I had heard someone say "the tree-"…was this what that person had meant? Was this the tree?

'It may resemble a mirror…but it's not just an ordinary mirror. I'm sure you know that anything created by the Mazoku must have some kind of magical tribute to it.' Was the tree really talking…? Somehow…it really didn't surprise me. Maybe I was starting to go crazy.

"So, what is this place?" I sat down in front of the tree….er, Lief, I mean. The wind seemed to sigh with me.

'All Mazoku treasures have a life of their own per say. They are all endowed with a sort of magical soul. This place is where their magic best resonates, allowing the treasures to take on more substantial forms. I am the guardian of this land,' Lief swayed slightly. I thought back to my encounter with the monster…was that a treasure, too? Lief seemed to have read my thoughts.

'Like everywhere else, this realm has creatures that do not belong. Some have entered through their own accord, while others seemed to have just appeared. Some of those were sent here by failed magic spells yet some….have been here as long as I. So, even I do not have all the answer.' I was curious to know if he knew about my encounter with those monsters, and if so, how, but I decided not to ask. Instead, I thought of another question.

"But what if one of the monsters kills a treasure?" It almost seemed like Lief was laughing, but I wasn't so sure a tree could laugh.

'In this realm, we are immortal. Our bodies do not lie here. Only a Mazoku has the power to destroy us. If that were to happen…I should assume that our bodies would remain untouched, but the magic of our soul would be lost.'

For a moment, we were both silent. I listened to the wind rattle through his leaves. I felt almost sorry for the Mazoku treasures. We who created them could easily destroy them. And, I knew it had been done on numerous occasions. Bah! Yuuri was rubbing off on me!

After a moment, Lief sighed, 'You are a Mazoku, am I wrong?' I nodded my head slightly.

'You do not belong here…but I can do nothing for you. I am afraid I cannot give an answer to a question that I do not know.'

I sighed. I had figured as much. A monster was probably responsible for my transfer then. At least…I hoped it was so. I wanted to beat the stupid thing to death. Unfortunately, I didn't really know what had brought me here. If I did, I might be able to find a way back.

'But I will help you if you help me.' I stood up and faced the tree. Oh great. What was he going to ask me to do….?

'I will offer the aid of my loyal friend if you in turn let me live a little longer.'

I stared up at him in silence for a moment. His leaves quivered. That's right…I could destroy him. I smiled slightly.

"Alright, fine!" I made a face and folded my arms across my chest. "This guy better be able to help me!"

Lief chuckled softly. 'Rest assured; this man shall not fail you.'

I nodded slightly. I hoped that his 'friend' would be a little more human. I could live with talking trees, but if it was something else…I shivered despite myself.

'He shall come when the first crack of sunlight breaks through the leaves. Rest now, my little Mazoku, no harm shall fall to you under my watch,' Lief pushed me towards his roots. I was about to protest, but I was so tired. I was exhausted from all the running and fighting, and I'm sure my wounds weren't helping me at all. The little sleep I had managed to snag was far from enough. In fact, as of now, it was doing more harm than good.

My eyelids grew heavy and I stumbled. Lief caught me gently with a branch and lowered me down. I fell asleep before I was even at the ground.

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A bright, warm light fell over my eyes. I moaned and rolled over. Stupid sun! Hard bark scraped across my cheek. I slowly opened my eyes. What I would give for my own bed! What I would give to find out that this was all a bad dream!

'Here he comes.' I almost jumped at the sound of Lief's voice. This world…this place, the creatures in it, even Lief, still unnerved me…even though I knew the truth.

I sat up and rubbed my eyes. I could see the dark silhouette of a man coming towards us. He was big, bigger than Gwendal, yet for some reason, I wasn't frightened. It almost seemed as if he was….familiar…

'He is the one who brought you to me,' Lief added. I nodded slightly. The man stepped out of the shadows. He was a handsome man with stunning black hair and sparkling amethyst eyes. He wore a uniform similar to the ones of the royal Mazoku, but it was made of all navy blue fabric. There was a crest high up on his arm that resembled a skull. It looked vaguely familiar.

"It is an honor to be able to meet you in this form," the man knelt down and took my hand. He smiled –like Conrad always smiles- and bowed his head, "Wolfram-kyo." I pulled my hand away.

"Who are you? How do you know my name?" I demanded. Lief patted me on the shoulder slightly.

'Allow me to introduce you to your guide. In your world, he is known as the Mazoku sword; here, he is the great warrior, Morgif.'

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Translation notes:

Mazoku no Kagami: Monster's Mirror

Mazoku: monster

Wolfram-kyo: Lord Wolfram

DUN DUN DUN! I have absolutely no idea why I decided to give Morgif a human form…but I did. I had this planned for a while, but I didn't know if I was actually gonna use it or not until I got it to fit in. But since I did, there he is. I really like the name Lief…I wasn't planning on finishing this tongiht...buuut..my bg happens to currently be half naked Yuuri and Wolfrma so somehow I found the inspiration

In case you wanna see how I imagine Morgif…you can go to deviantart(dot)com-deviation-19645368- and see a pic from a while ago...repalce the - with slashes! and the dot with ooh i wonder