It's been a while since I wrote anything, so, here
goes nothing. Please, let me know if you see anything
that needs correcting (grammar, usage, etc.)
The Masshin Chronicles
Prologue
Shidoe Hikaru, and her husband, Kailu Lantis, watched
as their son, Shidoe Musuko, played outside with Koi-chan,
his baby flying carp. The nature of their son's pet was not
the only unusual aspect of their lives, but was definitely
the most visibly apparent. You see, Kailu Lantis, the
swordsman, was brother to Zagato, the same Zagato who had
loved the previous Pillar of Cephiro, and nearly destroyed
all of that magical realm so that she would not be forced
to live her entire life constantly praying for others.
Shidoe Hikaru, herself, was the current Pillar, but who had
found in her friends and family a base of support strong
enough to allow her a life of her own. That life, four
years ago, grew to include little Musuko.
Musuko had red hair, like his mother, but slightly
darker, and had his father's sharp features. His eyes were
bright blue, with a sparkle of mischeviousness that made
the palace staff nervous every time he grinned in that
certain way. Guru Clef, the Pillar's advisor, had just six
months ago presented Musuko with Koi-chan with the intent
of helping keep the boy out of too much trouble.
Unfortunately, the assistance of a six-foot flying carp
just allowed him to get in even more trouble than ever
before. His tunic and breeches were always in need of
repair, and he was as dirty as any four year old would be.
He loved mud puddles, rolling around in the dirt with his
playmates in mock wrestling, and playing that odd
'basuball' game his mother and her friends, Umi and Fuu,
described. They made up their own rules, of course, as very
young boys are apt to do, and no one was ever quite sure
who won, content that everyone had enjoyed themselves.
Hikaru thought about her friends, both the natives of
Cephiro, such as Presea, Caldina, Ascot, and Lafarga, and
the two girls who were her best friends and adopted
sisters, Ryuuzaki Umi and Hououji Fuu. They had come to
Cephiro as young girls, barely fourteen, and had been forced
to fight against Zagato and Emeraude, the Pillar, herself, to
save this mystic realm, as the Legendary Magic Knights. The
trauma and fear of this so-called grand adventure bound the
three together tighter than any blood sisters, and the
fight, still later, against Eagle and the other forces
arrayed against Cephiro had cemented that bond. When the
dust had settled, they stayed in Cephiro, despite advice to
the contrary, and married their loves. Fuu, of course,
married Ferio, the little brother of Emeraude, while Umi
married the young summoner, Ascot. As has been said, Hikaru
married Lantis.
A hand on her shoulder broke her out of her reverie.
"You know, Hi-chan, that son of yours is going to be a
heartbreaker in a decade or two," laughed Caldina, a
tinkling laugh that was almost indistinguishable from the
sound of the bells on her wrists and ankles.
Hikaru turned, and smiled. "I know, Cal-chan. And we'd
better make sure that Musuko and your little Colvette don't
start too soon. They're almost inseparable."
The dancer pouted a little. "Tell me about it. Lafarga
caught them in the Throne Room, sitting in your and Lantis'
chairs."
"Oh, Cal-chan. Don't worry. Maybe someday, but they're
still children. They have the whole of their lives ahead of
them. Who knows, maybe one of them will be a Magic Knight!"
prophesied the Pillar.
Looking over her friend's head Caldina stared at the
unruly mop of red hair, barely visible behind his flying
carp. "I'm pretty sure one of them will, Hi-chan."
*****************
It was several years later, and Musuko was now fourteen.
Six days ago, without his mother's knowledge, Guru Clef had
come to him, and told him of a great duty he had to perform.
Touching his forehead, the diminutive sorcerer called out the
latent magic within the young prince, and also summoned forth
the armor that marked him as a prospective magic Knight. Now,
having trudged through the Forest of Silence, and having
faced a rather personal test at the Font of Eterna, he
climbed out of the font, surprised to be totally dry.
"I see you made it, Musu-chan," came a familiar voice
to his left.
"Of course I did, Aunt Presea," he said, and looked at
her. "I'm my parents' son. I have the Escudo."
"You know," mused the Sharl, "your mother and your aunts
Umi and Fuu had a much harder time of it. Back then, the
Forest of Silence was a place of monsters, and no magic would
work there."
"Isn't this where Aunt Fuu destroyed that big crystal?"
he asked.
"Actually, no. The crystal was back a ways, inside the
forest, itself. Still, they made it, and met me here, outside
the Font, just like you." She looked at him askance. "Now,
present to me the Escudo that shall be your weapon... and
turn around, please."
"Why?"
"Just trust me, turn around." When he had presented the
mineral to her, and turned as he was bade, she removed her
outer garments. Dressed in a diaphanous shift, she began an
odd dance. The Escudo rose, and began to glow with an inner
light, an amber light. When the dance had ended, a simple
though beautiful katana gently lowered itself to the earth.
Replacing her clothes, she told him to turn back around.
"Is... is that my blade?" he asked.
"Yes, it is. Amber, just like your gems, and just like
your armor." She glanced at the gem at the center of his
breastplate. "So, what kind of magic do you have, anyway?"
Musuko picked up the katana, and thrust out his chest.
"Stone magic. I had to fight a minotaur before I got to the
forest, and I called up a boulder to swat him!"
Presea took back the simple sword he had borrowed for
this portion of his quest, as he placed the Escudo sword into
the gem of his armor. "Musu-chan, I have to tell you this.
I'm really proud of you. And I'm pretty sure Guru Clef, and
your father are, too."
The prince froze. "D-dad knows?"
"Of course he knows," she laughed. "But don't worry, he
approves. And I don't think he's told your mother, yet. Now,
come on, squirt, let's go back to the palace."
"But - when she sees the armor, won't she know?" he
asked.
"Yeah, she will. But you _do_ know you can send the
armor away, right? Also, you've been gone almost a week.
Either she's figured it out, or she has more faith in you
than you may realize."
"Why do you say that ?" he said, willing it away, then
trying to figure out where it went.
"Simple, the palace isn't burning to the ground. Now,
call Koi-chan, and lets go."
*****************
As Musuko approached the living quarters of the palace,
he heard voices coming from his mother's room. One was easily
recognizable, it was his mother's. The other he didn't
recognize, but it was soothing, and sweet. Whoever she was
seemed to be trying to convince the Pillar of the importance
of something.
"I am sorry, Hikaru-san, but that is the way it must
be," said the unknown voice. This startled Musuko - who would
talk like that to his mother besides one of the other Magic
Knights, Guru Clef, or >snicker< Mokona ?
"But why? He's just a boy, still," protested his mother.
"Yes, just a boy of fourteen. Just as you were a girl of
fourteen when you and your friends were brought here by
Emeraude."
"I... I see. But why him?"
"Because, Shidoe Hikaru, he is a Magic Knight. And he is
of the blood of two worlds, worlds where Destiny followed its
proper course. No better champion for this cause can be
found," said the visitor.
"A Magic Knight? But..."
Musuko had heard enough. "I am, Mom," he said, coming in
through the door. "That's, um, where I've been the past few
days." A simple act of will, and his garments were replaced
by his armor in a brief amber flash.
Hikaru's eyes shone for a moment, then gained a tinge of
sadness. One corner of her mouth twitched upward as she said,
"At least your change is too quick to see," she joked.
"What?"
"Never mind," she said. She stood from her bed, and
approached him. "You're almost as tall as I am, Musu-chan,"
she said. Then without warning, she drew him into a fierce
hug. "I'm so proud of you, Son of the Lion Shrine!"
"Shidoe Musuko, I greet you," said his mother's guest.
He turned, and took a good look at her. She had soft, brown
hair that framed a delicate face, eyes as gentle as his Aunt
Fuu's, and a serene smile that made him feel at peace. On her
forehead and cheeks were faint markings, that almost seemed
to glow from within, rather than be painted on or tattoos.
Her garments were flowing robes, with delicate embroidery and
hem work, as a shawl wafted about the gentle curve of her
shoulder. "I am Belldandy."
"Um, Belldandy, I greet you," he responded, bowing
slightly. "I, well, sorta overheard part of you talking to
Mom. If you need me for something, I'm ready."
"Musu-chan, you just got back!" she protested.
"Mom, you told me all about when you, Aunt Fuu, and Aunt
Umi first got here. You were needed here, and you felt that
need." He took a deep breath, and continued. "You told me to
always help people in need. Well, I'm needed. And I'll help,
whatever they need me to do."
Hikaru looked at her son, standing eye to eye with him.
As a single tear inched its way down her face, she simply
nodded. "You take care of yourself, do you understand me,
young man?"
Musuko nodded. Turning to Belldandy, he asked, "When do
I leave?"
The visitor looked at him, then his mother, then back to
him. "Kami-sama will be sending me back here in a week. If
you still want to perform an unkown quest, for the good of
people who do not know you, and may never thank you, then you
will go with me."
"Will I ever come back?" he asked.
Belldandy smiled. "I see a Shidoe Musuko, married and
happy, growing old with his wife and children in the Palace
of Cephiro. But, this quest will be dangerous. While what I
see may happen, the quest may prove so dangerous that you...
will be unable to return."
Nodding, he bade farewell to the visitor, and withdrew
from his mother's room. He had a lot to think about.
*****************
Author's Notes:
The timeline I am basing this story on is a modified version
of the manga. I haven't read anything past the first series,
but the single most significant difference is that Presea
does _not_ die in her home, shaping the Escudo as one of
Ascot's monsters attacks. Instead, she met them at the Font
of Eterna, and shaped their weapons there. At that point,
Hikaru Umi and Fuu continued with their quest. Thus, the real
Presea is present to shape Musuko's sword.
=====
- Valandar the Red of the Empty Tankard
Captain of the Guard of the Barony of the Far Woods
Empire of the Iron Mountains
and Ruler of the Spammish Main
http://members.tripod.com/~Valandar/fanfic.html
http://members.tripod.com/~Valandar/ran40k.html
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