I do have to agree that there are plenty of series
out there that are underutilized in the realm of
fanfiction. So, here is my own attempt at a non-Ranma,
non-oneshot fanfic. It is about Magic Knights Rayearth,
and is set five or six years after the end of the second
series. Enjoy.
(BTW, trying Yahoo again. If it messes up, I'm only
using the Hotmail acct from now on.)
Disclaimer: The characters and situations in Magic
Knights Rayearth belong to CLAMP, their
publisher/producer, and whatever US company is currently
preparing to release the dubbed version in September.
The below fanfic is intended for entertainment, not
profit, so please don't sue me, I have no money.
Paladin of Cephiro
A Fanfic by Valandar the Red
Chapter One
Rage Against the Pillar
The village was a small one, nothing more than a
brief stopover for wagon teams crossing the length of
Cephiro. It had all the usual shops and services, such
as an inn, a blacksmith, and a general store. In fact,
the inn was actually fairly well known in the region for
its wonderful spiced mead. In the six years since the
new Pillar had risen, it had thrived.
The years before that, however, were among the
worst in recorded history. First, during the fall of the
previous pillar, it had suffered horribly from attacks
by monsters. Each new monster attack would create even
more horrible attacks, as the beasts were the product of
terror and uncertainty. No home existed that had not
been touched by the spectre of death during that time,
and some families were wiped out to the last child.
Down in the beer cellar of the inn, one of the
survivors of those times brooded. 'It was all the fault
of the Magic Knights,' came the thought. 'They didn't
get to Cephiro soon enough. And they never passed by
here to help us out. They ignored us, and the monsters,
just hopping around looking for those stupid giant
robot things. I hope they die.
'I hope the monsters come for them, the way they
came for my family.'
Hate stirred, and rose. The figure's will grew
stronger, as hate and rage provided it a bitter repast.
They would pay.
********************
Cephiro is world removed from Earth, not only in
time and space, but in willpower. Here, the will is the
gretest force known. Strong wills can cast magics that
are unkown on Earth, save in legend. And the strongest
will on Cephiro is that of the Pillar.
In previous years, the Pillars had to shoulder,
alone, the burden of holding all the world together.
The current Pillar, one Shidou Hikaru, did not. With the
love and friendship of her fellow Magic Knights, Ryuzaki
Umi and Hououji Fuu, the love of her life, Lantis the
Swordsman, and all her friends, she was never truly
alone, and their combined love for her and strength of
will aided her, even allowing her to rest when she had
to.
Right now, however, was not one of those times. Not
that she was actively working, mind you. Let's just say
that Lantis and Hikaru were considered married by
Cephiro law, and leave it at that. He was already asleep
on the bed, with a smile that would normally seem out of
place on his stoic face. It was a smile that only Hikaru
ever saw, and not just in bed, and one he reserved for
her alone. It was a smile of peace.
She looked down at him, brown eyes shining in the
dim moonlight. 'Tomorrow,' she thought. 'Tomorrow is
the day in Cephiro that would be my twentieth birthday
on Earth. I never told anyone here, but I think Fuu
found out, somehow. I wonder if they're going to do
anything for me.'
As she lay her head down on the pillow next to her
husband's, her eyes remained open. She could just
imagine the party, and all her friends there. Umi and
Ascot, Fuu and Ferio, Guru Clef, Presia, Calida and
Lafarga, all of them together again. She hadn't seen
Calida and Lafarga for almost two years, since they had
declared themselves to be married, and moved into a
cozy little cottage, in a village several miles away.
Guru Clef seemed to spend all of his time in his huge
library, lately, while Fuu, Ferio, Umi, and Ascot would
travel around Cephiro, dealing with all sorts of minor
threats to the people of the land. If Fuu had, indeed,
figured out tomorrow was her birthday, then...then...
then how could she sleep?
Slowly pulling herself off the bed, she slipped on
a simple white shift, and regarded herself in a mirror
on her dressing room wall. The promise of beauty she
had when she arrived had blossomed, changing her from
a cute young girl to a beautiful young woman. Her red
braid now reached almost a foot below her waist, and
her red-brown eyes drew in the gaze of even a casual
observer. Always athletic, her figure could no longer
be said to be even slightly boyish, and was in the peak
of physical condition. A grin flashed across her face,
and she changed into something more presentable, more
appropriate for wandering the palace.
She had done this many times in the last six years.
The first time, back when they had returned to Cephiro
to face invaders from other worlds, she had met Lantis.
He had captured her heart even then, and she would
sometimes find herself retracing the path she took that
very night. Tonight, however, she did not.
Something drewher to the main entry hall. It was
huge and ornate, with crystal spires rising very nearly
to the ceiling, and graceful chandeliers precariously
balanced on those spires, held and illuminated by magic.
Myriad benches circled these spires, as a place for
those awaiting entrance or audience to sit. Resting
against a spire, she let visions of her adventures flash
through her head.
Her reverie was demolished by the sound of the
outer door flying open with a crash. Startled, she
instantly summoned her armor, and drew her escudo sword.
Two shapes shambled in, roughly human sized, with one
supporting the other.
"Hikaru!" cried out Calida's voice. "Help us!
Lafarga's hurt!"
Willing her sword away, she rushed to the pair, and
saw that the enchantress was struggling to keep her
husband on his feet. The swordsman's armor was horribly
battered, and torn completely away in spots. The word
that was his focus had deep gouges in it, like a
slender poinard used to hack at stone. His side was
bleeding heavily, despite hasty bandages Calida had
obviously applied. It was a miracle he was conscious at
all, let alone still alive. "Quick, lay him down here.
Fuu is in the palace tonight, I'll get her right away."
********************
Calida, Hikaru, Fuu, Ferio, Clef, and Lantis
gathered in the throne room. "I don't get it. Lafarga
is my oldest rival, and one of the best fighters I know.
What could tear him apart so easily?" Lantis looked at
Guru Clef, awaiting an answer.
The eternally young sorcerer looked up at the
Pillar's husband. "After Fuu healed his injuries, I took
the opportunity to examine his sword. In it, I found
small tufts of green hair, stuck in the notches in the
blade. They were not cut off the creature, but appear to
have been shed."
"What does that mean?" asked Ferio, his arm around
Fuu.
"It means little by itself. But, when I examined
the hair, and cast some divinations over it, I
discovered something horrible. In the first place, no
ordinary weapon could cut the creature's hair, let
alone its hide."
Hikaru spoke up. "Then it's easy. Fuu and I will go
find Umi. Then, with our escudo weapons and our magic,
we'll destroy it, and any more like it!"
Guru Clef shook his head. "I am afraid that it is
not that simple, my dear. Do you remember how the
monsters you fought in the past were created by fear?"
"Yes?"
"These are created by hate. Hate for the magic
Knights, and especially the Pillar. Yes, escudo weapons
would hurt the beast. But not if they were wielded by
women. And your magic would not affect it. In fact,
the hate that created it is so strong, I doubt any
magic at all will directly affect it."
"But, Guru Clef!" exclaimed Fuu. "No one but the
Magic Knights can use escudo weapons, and we're all
women!"
"Actually, no one _right now_ can use escudo
weapons except a Magic Knight. There is one to come who
shall attain a similar position, but will not be a Magic
Knight."
"And who is that?" asked Calida.
"He who shall become the Paladin."
Clef was met with confused looks, but refused to
answer any more questions until the morning, when
Lafarga would likely wake up.
********************
It used to be an inn, with famous spiced mead. It
used to be a village, used as a stopover point for the
caravans that cross the length of Cephiro. Now, there
was nothing but several piles of ash, a single beer
cellar, and a figure holding its knees, humming
tunelessly to itself.
"Bye-bye, Pill-ar, bye, bye, bye. Bye-bye Magic
Knights, bye, bye..." The hate had grown strong enough.
The hate would destroy. The hate would kill. And the
hate would gain vengeance.
- Valandar the Red of the Empty tankard
Other fanfics are at
http://members.tripod.com/~Valandar/fanfic.html
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