WHY DO I FIGHT?

It was night and I decided to go up to the roof and think. Dressed in only a T-shirt and jeans, I was thinking about a question that had been burrowed into my mind from that fateful day,

The day I became a Zodiac Knight.

The wind blew through my long auburn hair as I closed my emerald eyes and asked myself,

Why do I fight?

I've been asking myself that question for a while now. Ever since I found that deck of cards and crystal, my life has changed forever.

I became one of the 26 Zodiac Knights destined to fight till the very end.

The end…

In the end there can be only one.

When Dragonzer came to me and I contracted him as my Zodiac Beast, I didn't know what I was actually getting into.

I was only 15 at the time but I became part of something big.

26 Knights,

Only one survivor.

But if I survive as the last man standing, what do I get?

A prize?

Why should someone who has slain 25 other people be given a prize?

A prize should not be given to a murderer!

I became a Knight to protect people from the monsters,

But now, I have to fight other Knights in order to survive.

I have to fight!

I have to kill!

I'm just a kid for god's sake!

What if one of the Knights I kill is a friend?

I'll be killing people I know, who I care for!

Why? Why? WHY?

I left home because of that question,

I left because I couldn't bring myself to kill other people,

I left because I couldn't bring myself to burn and destroy,

I left when I was 17 and came to this place,

Jump City.

I joined a local crime fighting team called the Teen Titans and now I have a new home and new family.

Robin, the gung ho leader and former sidekick of Batman,

Starfire, Koriand'r, the Tamaranian princess, the sweetest person I've ever met (but don't make her mad), and has a powerful death hug,

Beast Boy, the changeling and resident practical joker,

Terra, a girl who can move Earth and ran away from her past to catch up to a brighter future (like myself),

Cyborg, the big machine muscle man who has a big soft heart for his baby (his T-Car), and friends,

And Raven.

I don't know what to say about her though.

She's kind of a cynic and Goth.

She can be funny when she has a sarcastic remark (even when she doesn't know it).

But she can be nice to be around though and she balances the team out (which is majorly made up of hyperactive teens).

She reminds me of an old friend/rival.

I shook my head.

I came here to escape my past,

I came here to escape my fate,

However, my past caught up to me and I'm back to square one.

Shadowcobra,

Pluto,

Why did you come?

Why did you have to follow me?

Why did you have to pull me back to the old days?

I ran to get away, can't you guys see that? (Sigh…)

I guess I do miss you guys and well you guys must've missed me.

I miss you too mom,

I promise I'll come back when it's all over,

When all the fighting is over,

Or when I come back in a casket.

Jinx came up to the roof and called me for dinner. I turned and smiled at her. As we walked down the stairs, I gave her a heartfelt kiss (on the lips, not the cheek). She was a bit surprised at first but returned the kiss with as much passion. We reluctantly broke apart and she stared up at me with a questioning look.

Jinx,

The girl I fell in love with,

Her bright pink hair and pink eyes shine through the darkness of my heart,

I love her and I will protect her,

I will fight to protect her,

And now my question is answered,

Why do I fight?

I know now.