The War of Choices

War rages between the opposing sides of Meisters and Weapons. A story of love, angst, betrayal, and death. What will happen when Commander Evans finds himself falling for the enemy? Will it be his downfall? And who can really be trusted?

Chapter 1 - Let Me Introduce Myself (No More Happiness! Away With You!)

Soul's P.O.V.

The albino teen jumped out of bed. Or, to be more specific, a coffin. He looked back to the strange case, widening his eyes.

It was pure black, but it seemed to have closed as soon as he left its clutches. Now, his own name was engraved into the cover, gold and melancholy. 'Soul Eater Evans. Yet to die.'

Soul blinked at the readings. What was going on?

"Soul? Strange. Your deathbed is here, but you aren't dead," a cool voice called out.

Soul recognized it immediately. He whipped around to face his older brother sitting on a plain wooden bench, wearing a commanders' armor. "Wes? What is this place?" he asked, feeling a bit strained.

"The End."

Soul raised an eyebrow. "That's a bit corny, dontcha think?

"Wes shrugged. "I had the same reaction, but it is what it is."

Soul reached out to touch his brother, but some strange force stopped him. "Are... Are you dead?"

Wes smiled. "Yup."

"How?"

"Killed on a mission."

"What mission?"

"To capture the princess. Those damned Meisters are strong. I was this close, and suddenly, her advisor stabbed me." Wes pointed to the blot of blood on his chest, which Soul hadn't noticed before.

Not that he had ever cared about his brother. But now, it all seemed a bit cruel. "Have I died?"

"Surprisingly, you still have the string that connects you to Earth. You aren't dead. You're dreaming. Generally, when you see your coffin, it means that death will hit you in the next year or so."

Soul staggered back like he had been punched. "What? But how?"

Wes shrugged. "Beats me. Hey, my call time is about to expire, and Lord Death has to give it to someone else. Kill that princess for me, eh?"

Tears welled up in the younger boy's eyes. "I will avenge you. And other dead Weapons. Don't worry."

The image of his brother faded to black.

Death the Kid P.O.V.

Death the Kid paced outside the princess' door. He had been doing this for the last eight hours. The royal girl used to sneak him some bread or cookies, which made the advisor happy, considering that he was in love with her.

However, as of that moment, he had not seen his princess in two days straight. It worried him, but the doctor had assured that it was just a fever. She would recover.

She had better, he thought worriedly. The amounts of assassination attempts against her isn't something to laugh about. Maybe those foolish Weapons know that our leader is sick? He considered it, but then decided that it was a childish assumption. It couldn't be. It's just heavier than usual, that's all. I'll talk to Commander Black*Star about assigning more guards to the palace walls. Better safe than sorry.

He looked longingly at the official double doors, wishing that he could see her face. Please get better, Princess.

Patti's P.O.V.

Patricia Thompson, Patti for short, tapped her knees together boredly. She was not a very bright girl, and had been captured by the Meisters. Luckily, they hadn't caught her older sister, Liz. "Maybe I should've listened to her," she pondered aloud. "She is a General, after all. I'm only her sister. Only a Sargent."

The young girl looked around at her guest bedroom. She might've enjoyed it, had she not been handcuffed and shackled to one of the bedposts. Now, she lay lazily on the velvet blanket, wondering how proud her sister would be if she knew that Patti had inside information on the sick princess. "Perfect opportunity for attack," she spoke to herself. "It's too bad I'm all locked up."

Black*Star's P.O.V.

"Alright, soldiers! Orders from the Princess's advisor!" the teen screamed to the rows of sweaty soldiers. They all seemed to be breathless and heaving from the huge workout. Black*Star, on the other hand, was little more than warm. "Squads Three and Four are going to be manning the gates to the palace from now on!"

They groaned in pain.

"The next one to complain has to fight me!"

Silence.

Black*Star grinned. "That's right! Why doesn't anyone want to fight me? Eh? Even though I've already promised my rank to the victor?" The young teen enjoyed the memory of each soldier falling prey to his offer. None had beat him yet. He always won in the first ten seconds. The humiliation was enough to put them in their place. "Know your rank. But now... night duty raffle!" he called out, picking up the satchel of names.

The soldiers flinched. It was a daily tradition to randomly choose one person to stay up all night watching for the gates. There were more than two-thousand soldiers, but they all dreaded the unwanted fate. Mostly because for the last two months, assassins had been killing the night guards.

"And the winner is..." Black*Star reached for a slip of paper, and read it. "Tsubaki Nakatsukasa!" He was a bit baffled that he had picked a girl. There were only about four hundred of them in his army, but the blue-haired teen shrugged it off.

The soldiers let out a breath. Some murmured to themselves.

"Tsubaki Nakatsukasa!" Black*Star called out again. "Come face me!"

His army parted to make a 'hall of shame' for the chosen victim. A tall girl stood there, her long dark hair billowing in the cold wind. "M-Me?" She seemed as surprised as he was.

"Yeah, you! You got a problem with night duty?"

Tsubaki looked around at the looks of pity. "Um, n-no, of course not. I'll get ready right now."

The whole army burst into laughter.

Black*Star stared at the girl as if she were an alien. "Get ready? What, you have to get dolled up for a dark night where you're as blind as a bat?

"Tsubaki's face turned red. She looked down shamefully. "Please excuse me, Commander, I'm new."

Black*Star waved it off. "Just go, soldier." He watched as the girl walked quickly away from the jeering glances of the men. "Alright, soldiers! All squads can return to their quarters, with the exception of Three and Four, along with the regular indoor guards. Dismissed!"

Tsubaki's P.O.V.

As soon as the young lady was out of sight, she ran to a small crack of an alleyway and retrieved her walkie-talkie. "General Thompson, it looks like luck has taken our side. I've been chosen for night duty."

She could hear a laugh on the other end of the receiver. "Good job, Lieutenant! Our squad is moving in! Commander Evans will be joining us as soon as we infiltrate the castle."

Tsubaki grinned. "I thought for sure that I'd have to start chaos to get you all inside. This is fantastic!" She released her finger from the button, then dropped the device, smashing it with the heel of her boot. Just in case. The young lady hopped up onto one of the massive stair steps by the grand gate. She twirled the master keys around her index finger, smiling at her success.

Suddenly, movement. It wasn't as big as the squad she was expecting, but more like six or seven... assassins. Tsubaki sighed in relief. "Don't worry, It's Lieutenant Nakatsukasa. The main squad is coming in. General Thompson dismissed the assassins a few hours ago. Which session do you belong to?"

A deep voice growled, "None. But it looks like you've been a bad girl, soldier." The male looked up into Tsubaki's eyes.

She caught just a glint of those dark green orbs, and instantly realized that she had been speaking to Commander Black*Star. No! It's over! It's all over! I'll be captured! Tortured! Forced to answer questions! Killed!

Black*Star did something that surprised her, though. He smiled. Not like the way it normally was, cocky and confident, but softer and full of sorrow. However, the look disappeared quickly. "Soldiers, take her to the prisoners' room. Stuff her in with that dull crayon."

Tsubaki cocked an eyebrow. "Dull crayon? Are you referring to Sargent Thompson?"

The men started moving towards her.

Black*Star simply stood there, watching her tense up. "How lovely it was for you to get picked for night duty. You may have snuck your name into the bag, but I have a profile of every soldier I've ever enlisted. You, Lieutenant Tsubaki Nakatsukasa of the Weapons, are not one of them."

Tsubaki leaped over the Commander's head a split-second before the men could grab her. "Go to Hell!" she hissed before sprinting away into the forest.

She could feel the soldiers on her heels. Luckily, she spotted a squad look-out heading in her direction. She whispered hastily, "Retreat! Tell the General to retreat! Head back to camp! I'll lead them away. Come back at midnight! I'll meet Thompson then!" Before the man could say anything, she continued her escape from the trained soldiers.

Liz's P.O.V.

The young woman fidgeted as she stood, staring at the woods. "Time, soldier," she called out anxiously.

"12:30, General. She seemed really desperate when talking with me. We have to wait."

Liz cursed quietly. What are you planning, Nakatsukasa? How are you going to escape? The young woman looked up into the sky. And will my sister live?

Fifteen minutes later, General Thompson had had it. She was going to attack the castle now whether Nakatsukasa came back or not.

Maka's P.O.V.

"King Franken," the young teen ventured to say quietly as the crazy man paced the throne room. "What's going on?"

Three days earlier, Maka had been moved out of her own chambers through a strange passageway to the throne room. Now, every night she slept in the seat of the vacant queen, feeling discomfort in taking her such a throne when the woman was still alive... maybe.

The scientific king stopped pacing, and looked at her, his eyes showing a rare emotion: fear. "Commander Black*Star informed me that a Weapon has been spying on our army. She escaped, probably going back to report to an invasion army," he spoke hesitantly. The man had dark circles under his eyes, and had stopped eating. Now he looked no more than a peasant playing 's eyes widened.

An attack? Yes! Strangely, the girl was excited. She never had any say in political matters, never fought in battles, and did no more than practice ladies etiquette, which, in her point of view, was a massive waste of time, considering that she was likely the most graceful being of the kingdom. Then it occurred to her that the nightmare-ish King could save them. "Stein, why don't you just kill the Weapon King?"

The King continued his pacing. "It's not a good idea," he muttered.

Maka was about to ask about it, but decided that it was best to change the subject. "What can I do to help?"

The older man laughed crazily. "Princess Maka, if the Weapons capture you, I guarantee that they win this war. I am not one to lose so easily. Therefore, I'm having Death the Kid help you escape to the southern forest."

The Princess gritted her teeth. "If Kid is going to be part of this, why did you lie to him?"

Stein shrugged. "I had to think this plan over. Go meet with the Commander. I'll collect your advisor.

PREVIEW:

Chapter 2 - Attack of the Weapons (I Slaughtered a Man!)

Soul hovered over the Princess's bed, staring at it with such a pained expression that he could hardly contain a scream of fury. The entire room was abandoned, with no royal girl to be found.

Death the Kid looked up at the King tiredly. "I stood... at that door... for two days straight... and she wasn't even sick?" He let out a humorless laugh. "I was wishing upon a star for that luck to hit me in the gut."

Patti ran as fast as her bloody feet could carry her. "Liz!" she screamed a split-second before the guards yanked her leg.

Black*Star handed the Princess some traveling clothes that the female soldiers had prepared for her. "Here's my special katana," he whispered, gingerly setting a weapon in the open hands of a surprised Maka. "Live, okay?" He smiled at her.

Tsubaki looked around the camp, desperately searching for General Thompson. Other Weapons looked at her strangely, but she was in her own world. No! Why didn't you wait for me?

Liz almost grabbed her sister's hand, but it suddenly jerked back. The older girl hissed at the captors menacingly. "Give her back, or I swear I'll kill you."

Maka was fitted into her new clothing. She had never worn trousers before, but they were a lot more comfortable than those dresses she used to wear. These provided flexibility, and a quick escape if she needed one. Hopefully, she wouldn't have to run... her track skills were less than usable.