-1Magic Knight Rayearth
Left in Cephiro
Chapter VI: Beyond the Borders! The Roads that Connect to Cephiro!
"I've heard that only the Pillar has the power to summon Magic Knights from another world. Those summoned by the Pillar cannot return to their own world except by the Pillar. It is also this same Pillar who protects and upholds all of Cephiro. Its borders are closed off so long as the Pillar exists. However, there is a means in which to travel to and from Cephiro. Anyone can freely leave Cephiro, but it is only by the will of the Pillar that can let those outside of Cephiro enter. Fortunately for us, there is no longer a Pillar to bar our way."
"Don't you mean that there is no longer a Pillar to grant us entry," asks a scruffy looking man with spiky brown hair.
"You misunderstand me, Geo. Without the Pillar, it is true that there is no one in Cephiro who can keep us out nor let us in. That is why we must construct our own road. The gateway to Cephiro, which is controlled by the Pillar, has collapsed after her passing. We simply need to force the gate back open. Of course, this IS an invasion after all."
"Eagle," a short, young and spunky mechanic speaks, "didn't Lantis return to Cephiro? Wouldn't he have had to break through the gate as well?"
"You're correct Zazu, Lantis did return to Cephiro. Once he realized what had happened, he left immediately. Unfortunately for us, I had to go through paperwork, parliamentary meetings, and a lot of red tape before we could even begin to make preparations to set out for Cephiro. It is possible that Lantis might have made it back before the gateway completely collapsed. Furthermore, even if he did have to force it back open, there is no guarantee that it would still remain open by the time we arrive."
Geo, mutters to himself remembering all of the trouble Eagle put him through when the request for the invasion of Cephiro was first filed. Although he knows that he is still unaware of all of the details of their mission, Eagle had him expend a great deal of mental energy assisting him in filing the various forms required.
"Geo, was there something you needed to add," the white haired Autozam commander inquires.
"Nothing sir! I was just grumbling to myself how some of my candies were missing this morning."
"Oh? Is that so? Are you sure you didn't eat them last night as a little midnight snack," Eagle teases his second-in-command.
"No I did not! I count each piece right before I go to bed each night. I also record each type, how many are left, and each time I eat a piece I record it as well. I'm missing one snauzeberry, two chocolate frogs, and half of a Reese's cup!"
Geo's accusing glare moves from Eagle to Zazu. Zazu points at himself and shakes his head left and right nervously. He more than knows better than to sneak a treat from Geo's sweet horde, and Geo is so uptight about his stashes, even a clever mechanic such as him, wouldn't be able to find them.
"Me? No way! I wouldn't even touch most of that stuff! I'm a wine buff, not a candy buff, although a good chardonnay and some chocolate dipped strawberries don't sound too bad, now that I think of it. But that's about it for me. I hate snauzeberries, I don't eat anything that moves, and I don't like how peanut butter sticks to the roof of my mouth."
"All this talk about sweets is making me hungry," Eagle remarks, "however, let us please return to the task at hand."
Eagle turns and looks at Zazu. Geo glances at his commander and sighs. He had managed to avoid drawing any attention to his muttered comment, while at the same time deducing that his missing candy had been taken by Eagle. After all, Eagle has a bit of a sweet tooth as well, and had been quick to dismiss the issue. Furthermore, Geo recalls, he even caught Eagle getting into his stash once before. Now that an air of importance and professionalism has taken over, Geo and Zazu promptly stand at attention.
"Zazu," Eagle begins, "what is the projected time of our arrival in Cephiro's orbit?"
"One hundred and twenty hours and forty-nine minutes according to the Adjusted Autozam Aerospace Time," Zazu promptly replies after running the analysis.
"Five days?! You're kidding me," Geo exclaims.
"Geo's right. That time is unacceptable. We need to arrive inside Cephiro's atmosphere in no more than seventy-two hours. Our spy satellites indicate that Cephiro continues to crumble, and the rate is gradually accelerating. The more that crumbles, the faster it crumbles. If we don't make haste, there won't be a Cephiro left to invade."
Elsewhere...
A tall and young woman dressed in a royal robe sits upon a throne. Her long black hair is pulled up and wrapped into two cone-shaped buns that stick out from the sides of her head and curl up like bull's horns. To her left stands an elderly advisor, and to her right stands a young page eager to serve.
"Sanyuun," the princess speaks in a refined voice that carries a bit of an irritating sharpness to it.
"Yes, Lady Aska?"
"How much longer until we arrived in Cephiro?"
"Four days according to the Fahren Calendar, my lady," the page answers.
"By then Cephiro may have already crumbled," the old man remarks.
"Shut up, shut up," Lady Aska scolds her advisor as she waves her fan disapprovingly at him, "I did not instruct you to speak! If I wanted your opinion I would have asked for it!"
"Lady Aska, forgive me for asking," Sanyuun begins apologetically, "but why ARE we going to Cephiro? Are we going to try to take it over?"
"Don't be silly, Sanyuun. We of Fahren intend no ill will towards Cephiro. With Cephiro crumbling and no leadership to be found, we, Fahren, will take charge of this desperate country. Ho ho ho ho ho!"
The Fahren princess expands her fan out, concealing her nose and mouth, as she laughs excessively.
"But, Lady Aska, you just said..."
"Sanyuun," the elder speaks, "I believe what Lady Aska meant to imply is that Fahren intends to assist Cephiro in its time of need by providing structure and leadership. In the long ago past, a former Pillar of Cephiro had aided in the return of a missing Fahren prince. We have not forgotten this debt we owe. We of Fahren always repay our debts."
"Oh, okay, I think I understand now. So we're going to Cephiro to help re-establish its government and economy, right?"
"In a way, yes."
Meanwhile...
"I'm bored Tatra. Ain't we there yet?"
"Not yet, dear lil sister. Jus' try an' be a lil patient, mm'kay?"
"I'm sick an' tired of waiting Tatra! If we don't hurry on up, then someone else'll take over Cephiro and then we won't to get to be the new Pillar!"
"You worry far too much, my dear lil Tarta. Here," the elder sister speaks and offers the younger a cup of tea, "drink some of this. It'll help ya relax a lil."
"I don't wanna drink no stinkin' tea," Tarta pouts, "I wants to hurry up and become the new Pillar. Don'tchya care 'bout Chizeta?"
"I understand. I know very well jus' how teen tiny our lil ol' Chizeta is. However, there's jus' no way 'round it. We simply havta wait. We're so far from Cephiro, it jus' can't be helped. Now then, how 'bout this cup 'o tea?"
Tarta reluctantly takes the cup from his sister and gulps it down.
"Now, now, slow it down there Tarta, have I never taught you no manners? Ya oughta drink it more slowly, ya know, more ladylike, ya hear? The way ya jus' drank it now was rude an' very unbecoming of any refined young woman," Tatra scolds her younger sister.
"I'll drink it however I like!"
Cephiro...
"It's just as I've feared," Clef remarks to himself as he looks at three colored dots inside a starry globe in his study, "now that the Pillar is gone, other countries are making their way to Cephiro. We cannot be certain of their intentions, but from what little I have managed to glean from Lantis's experiences, Autozam definitely appears to be on the move for an invasion. I can only pray that I am wrong. I hope that there will not be a battle for the Pillar. Such a tragedy, I could not bear to endure it ever again. My heart would break completely if I had to hear those innocent tears fall once more. I'll never be able to forgive myself for what I had done to Hikaru...Hikaru...or the others. They never should have had to endure such hardship...such pain. I must never allow this tragedy to repeat."
Somewhere dark and lonely...
"Yami, Kaze," Mizu speaks to the other two Twilight Knights, "it's truly wonderful! That crack of light leads to another world!"
"That is simply wonderful," Kaze comments, "then we no longer need to stay here. Shall we all go then?"
Yami takes hold of Kaze and Mizu's arms to halt them from leaving.
"We don't know what's out there. It isn't safe. We need to learn more about these other world's before all of us leave."
"I'm sick of this place! I want to go back to the world of the Blue Water, back to Umi's world! I hate this place! I want to go back to Tokyo!"
"Amazing," Kaze notes, "you've already learned both her name and the name of her world."
"Kaze! Mizu, I understand your desire, we all can agree that this place is horrible. I don't think any of us want to remain in this hellhole if we can help it. You two were the first people I've met here, you're my only companions. I don't want anything to happen to you. That's why you need to be careful."
Yami releases his grip on his two fellow knights and focuses his attention solely onto Mizu.
"This light, you said it leads to a place called Tokyo, did you not?"
"Yes, Umi and her companion the Green Wind are in Tokyo," Mizu answers.
"If Blue Water and Green Wind are in Tokyo, then where is the Red Light," Kaze inquires.
"The Red Light called Hikaru, was here," Yami answers turning to look at him.
"But how?! How can that be?! That's not possible! We're the only ones here!"
"Mizu is correct. She could not be here because this was the place where we were born. In all our wanderings, we three are the only people we have found in this dismal darkness. Besides, we have only just figured out how to leave this forsaken abyss. Therefore, it is unlikely that someone else could have already found a way in."
"She was here, I saw her! There were two others who had managed to get in here as well. The first was a white haired midget. He was looking for Hikaru. I managed to drive him way with no problem. But then a tall man dressed all in black appeared shortly after I drove the other away. He was looking for her as well. He had found her and was trying to take her away from me, so I tried to kill him. However, he managed to escape with her. I think that crack must have appeared as a result."
"Now that I think about it, your outfit has changed a little since we first met," Kaze points out.
"A little?! He's wearing friggin' armor! That's more than a little Kaze!"
"Yes, this armor suddenly appeared on me while I was fighting with that man. I think he called himself Lantis. There was something familiar about him. Almost as if we had met before, or rather, Hikaru might have met him before. She seemed to have noticed as well."
"Oh, enough reminiscing! This is pointless...I want to go back to Tokyo. It's so boring here. At least in Tokyo I can go and play with Umi."
"Actually, Mizu, why don't you go back to Tokyo after all. Please, try not to interact with the one called Umi too much. Try and find out as much as you can about that world and then report back here."
Yami turns and looks at his green haired companion.
"Kaze, I understand that you might want to experiment with the Green Wind, but I want you to search the surrounding area for any other cracks. They might lead us to that other world. I have a feeling that it is that palace where Hikaru now awaits."
"Understood," Kaze begins, "but what is it that you plan to do?"
"I am going to look for Hikaru, and that man called Lantis of course. Until we find a way into that other world, I won't be able to play with them. I'm going to try to project myself into Hikaru's body, just as Mizu did with Umi."
"I see. Will you be fine by yourself then, Yami?"
"Don't worry about me Kaze. I was born alone...I can take care of myself."
Mizu grabs Yami's hand and holds it in his own. He peers through the white bangs that conceal his eyes and looks deep into Yami's own.
"It's important that you take care of yourself as well, Yami. You might have been born alone, but you're not alone anymore. You have both me and Kaze now. We'll both be here for you whatever you need. After all, the three of us have all suffered the same pain and loneliness. We all want our revenge. That's why we have to work together to make those who have hurt us suffer."
"Mizu is correct," Kaze adds placing his hand on Yami's shoulder, "We're together and that is what makes us stronger. If you ever need one of us, simply call. We'll be right there to help you out. And if that man ever shows up here again, just let us know and together we'll fight him and crush him once and for all!"
Yami smiles, albeit crookedly.
"Thank you, Mizu, Kaze. I'll do that."
The three dark Twilight Knights spilt apart and go their separate ways.
Shidou Kendo Academy...
"I must not forget. It is very important and precious. No one has noticed. I fear that I am the only one who remembers."
Curious as to what their elder brother has been meditating upon lately, Masaru and Kakeru enter the training room in the hopes of uncovering what has been bothering their beloved brother.
"Satoru," Masaru speaks, "what is the matter? You've been meditating more than usual."
"Please, tell us what's wrong. When our older brother is worried about something, we, as your younger brothers, become even more worried," Kakeru adds.
"That's right," Masaru continues, "if you're worried about something we have even more reason to be concerned. If something is bothering you, then it must be something very serious."
"It is something serious, but then perhaps trivial. It is something important to me that should also be important to you both as well," Satoru answers in a riddle
"Then if it's something important to us, please Satoru, tell us what it is," Masaru pleads.
"Let us help you, elder brother."
Satoru stands up and turns around to face his two younger brothers.
"Is there something you've forgotten?"
Masaru and Kakeru briefly look at each other. They think for a moment as they contemplate their brother's words. Unable to think of anything, they turn back and look at Satoru. They both shake their heads left and right simultaneously.
"I don't think there's anything I've forgotten," Kakeru remarks.
"I don't remember forgetting anything either," Masaru adds.
Satoru sighs. It is as he suspected, that he is, indeed, the only one who remembers. His brothers, even their parents, have forgotten something very important and very dear to them.
"Isn't there someone you've forgotten about," Satoru questions hoping that they might remember.
The two brothers look back at each other. Suddenly, their eyes widen in shock as they finally remember what they had forgot. They look sheepishly at each other, thinking how horrible it was of them to ever have forgotten something...and someone so important. They realize if their parents find out that they had forgotten, that they would become rather ashamed of them.
"That's right."
"We did forget after all."
Satoru breathes in a sigh of relief. His heart and mind is now at ease, knowing that they remember as well. No longer will he be the only one who remembers that sweet, endearing face.
"We forgot about Hikari," both brothers exclaim in unison.
Satoru's jaw nearly drops down off of his face from the sudden shock.
"We haven't walked Hikari yet today," Masaru remembers.
"That's right, we haven't! Masaru, whose turn is it to walk him today?"
"Hmm...I don't really remember. Who is it that usually takes him out?"
"I don't know," Kakeru admits.
Masaru and Kakeru turn back and look at their elder brother. Satoru is trying desperately to control an annoyed twitch in his face.
"Well mom and dad left you in charge, so it must be your turn to walk him."
"Yah," Kakeru speaks, "well, we've gotta go, we've got things to do!"
The two boys shoot out of the room. Only a few moments later, do they poke their heads back in.
"Thanks for reminding us about Hikari."
"Yah, and don't forget to walk him too!"
The two brothers zoom out again. Satoru places his forehead into his left hand and shakes his head solemnly. His brothers really did not remember after all. Futhermore, they delegated the task of walking Hikari to him.
"Masaru and Kakeru were never really the brightest of the bunch," he remarks to himself.
Satoru resumes his position on the mat and continues to reflect on what had been lost and forgotten.
"Her name...is...Hikaru. She has...red...hair. Her eyes...they are...red...they are red as well. Her face...always smiling. She is...she is our...she is our dear little sister! I must not forget this. I must not forget her. I must not forget Hikaru. I must not forget her red hair. I must not forget those eyes. I must not forget that cheerful smile. I must not forget that she is our sister. I must not forget my sister."
After reassuring himself that he really remembers what the others forgot, Satoru then contemplates upon her whereabouts.
"Did she go to the other side? Did she fall into another world? Now that I really think about it, Hikaru always did seem different than the rest of us. None of us have red hair or red eyes. It's almost as if she doesn't belong with us. As if she was meant to have been born somewhere else and that she was given to us by mistake. She's the only girl in a family of boys, which isn't all that odd. What is odd, is that I don't seem to recall anyone in our family having red hair or red eyes? Are we really her family? Does Hikaru truly belong with us? Perhaps her true family has taken her away. No. I must not think that way. Regardless of where she was supposed to have born, and which family she should have been born into, she is still my sister. As her eldest brother, it is my duty to be concerned about her welfare."
An image suddenly emerges from the back of Satoru's mind, an image that is at least four years old. In his mind, he remembers a man, a foreigner with short, black hair. He remembers this man wearing black jeans and a black tank top.
It was summer break and the Shidou Family went to Disneyland in Tokyo. It was the first time Hikaru had been to a theme park, and the first time the family went to one for a family vacation. Masaru and Kakeru were traveling with Hikaru, who was no older than eight years old at the time. Satoru started off traveling with his parents before being asked to explore the park either on his own, or with his younger siblings.
Hikaru had wanted to go window shopping. Sure, the rides were exciting, but she had never been to such a large park before. She saw so many beautiful things in the windows and became completely fascinated by all of the amazing souvenirs. Somehow, amongst the crowd, both Masaru and Kakeru both lost sight of Hikaru. The two brothers eventually met up with Satoru, and worriedly explained their situation.
The three of them agreed to split up, and that it was best not to worry their parents just yet. Each brother went different ways to help broaden the search for Hikaru. It was Satoru who first met up with Hikaru, although, it wasn't him who had managed to find her. Satoru had merely met up with the man who had found the lost little girl and was trying patiently to reunite her with her family.
Little Hikaru's hand clutched tightly onto the hand of the tall and handsome gentleman. Hikaru had never been afraid of strangers, and in fact, she always seemed excited to meet new people. She seemed very happy to be traveling with him. The foreigner had a look on his face that was both very serious, yet very gentle. Perhaps it was that look that made Hikaru think of him like one of her older brothers. In fact, the foreigner fit in so well with her that perhaps the other park patrons must have thought that they were actually brother and sister.
When Hikaru finally spotted her eldest brother, she called out to him. Satoru looked back to where he heard her voice and saw his missing sister waving at him with her free hand. The man, having noticed the person the girl was calling out to, immediately escorted her to him.
"Are you related to this girl," the foreigner had ask in fluent Japanese.
"Yes, I am. I am her eldest brother. My name is Satoru. I thank you for taking care of her and helping her find her way back," Satoru replied.
Just at that very moment, Masaru and Kakeru arrived in that area from different directions. They did not notice their brother Satoru, but instead their attention fell upon Hikaru's hand which was still clasped inside the hand of a suspicious stranger! Immediately the two overprotective brother's rushed to their little sister's rescue. To them, Hikaru was an innocent and naive little princess dressed in a white laced flowery dress with little yellow flowers adorning her cherry colored hair. The strange man, they saw as a malicious dark knight with wild spiky hair, sharp horns protruding from the sides of his head, bloody vampire teeth peeking out from his lips, and his face branded with a tattoo of the kanji for "bad" written in deep, dark red ink.
Masaru saw himself as the brave and brilliant warrior-wizard who was charging forth on his brave Mahogany steed whereas Kakeru imagined himself as the charming paladin knighting riding to the rescue upon a silvery white mare. Both of them rode forward in order to save the fair maiden from the vile foe and their horses quickly neighed into a half before the dastardly villain. The two brothers swiftly dismounted and drew their weapons with great haste in order to vanquish their terrible foe.
"Unhand our fair sister you fiend," they both had exclaimed, each standing to one side of the tall, dark foreigner.
It was at that moment, Satoru had to step in.
"Masaru, Kakeru, I hate to interrupt your little Dungeons and Dragons fantasy, but I have some business with this man, if you don't mind."
"Dungeons and Dragons? Is that one of the rides here? It sounds scary," little Hikaru wondered.
"Uh-oh, Masaru, Satoru's found out about our game. We need to hide the books and the d20's as soon as we get home."
"Yah, dad'll ground us if he finds out that we've been sneaking out of kendo practice to play DnD," Masaru noted.
"Here," the stranger spoke as he let go of Hikaru's hand then placed it into Satoru's hand.
The foreigner promptly turned his back to them and began to walk away.
"Hey! Where do you think you're going?!"
The man's steps came to a halt. He turned back to look at the brother who had yelled at him.
"Masaru, do not start a fight," Satoru had scolded.
"But, Satoru...we can't just let some stranger walk away who was walking around and doing who knows what with Hikaru," Kakeru whined to his brother's defense.
"Was there something else I can help you with?"
"No," Satoru began, "thank you very much. We appreciate all you've done for us. Please, don't mind them, they are too overprotective and are always jumping to terrible conclusions."
"Shut up Satoru, you might trust this man, but we don't. We don't know who he is. We've been looking for her for awhile now. What right does he have to watch over our little sister. He could have taken her to the lost and found. He has no right taking care of our little sister like he's her older brother or something. Just who do you think you are?!"
The foreigner sternly looked into Masaru's eyes, piercing them with his deep blue eyes.
"I am Cail Lantis, Tokyo Police."