Disclaimer: I do not own Escaflowne or its characters. Escaflowne is the property of Sunrise and Bandai Entertainment. I'm just an innocent person who happened to write a fanfic on Escaflowne.


Attention: I have come to the conclusion that the first chapter is ridiculously lame and . . . just extremely, utterly stupid—well, the beginning of chapter is. Therefore, the prologue and chapter has been re-edited and will be very different from the original, although some parts will remain the same. I think you will agree with me that the revision is much better. Well, have yourself a fantabulous day. Thank You!


Ancient Feuds


Prologue


A tall, silvery blue haired man glanced up from his lab desk to find his assistant, Naria, standing before him. She seemed somewhat uncomfortable to be in his present. He frowned slightly to himself. He hadn't done anything to conjure that sort of atmosphere. Perhaps it was the black cloak he always wore, or his artificial arm. What ever it was, he was sure it was the latter.

"What is it?" he asked in a low voice.

Naria cleared her throat. "Dilandau wishes to speak with you, sir. He says it is urgent."

"Let him in," he said after a pause. This had better be good. Dilandau was known for making useless conversation, wasting precious time.

When Dilandau came in, he made himself comfortable in the seat before the desk and took an unusual interest in staring at the vial fluids. Dilandau had information that even the man sitting before him would find interesting. Dilandau brushed back a stray hair and leaned back into the chair. The blue haired man eyed him warily.

"What is so urgent, Dilandau."

"What? No 'Hi?'" exclaimed Dilandau in a mock hurt voice. He smirked.

The blue haired man gave him a reprimanding look. "Get to the point before I have you thrown from my lab."

Dilandau laughed lightly to himself as his red eyes flickered in the light. "I see you haven't changed, Folken."

"You were just in here yesterday, Dilandau. I do not imagine it possible for me to change so quickly."

"Well getting to the point, I have a little something you might like. You've been eyeing it for quite a while now. I'm sure you won't be disappointed."

Folken raised an eyebrow as his heart began to beat slightly faster, but he braced himself. "And what might that be?"

Dilandau carefully took out a photograph from a pocket inside his coat and slyly slid it across the desk to Folken. He watched Folken's expression fall from stern to slightly shocked. Dilandau grinned inwardly. "What do you think?"

"I didn't think you could do it. Now bring it to me."

Dilandau half snorted. "It? That's a little harsh, don't you think?"

"Just go! This should convince my little brother," Folken commanded, growing irritated at Dilandau's seemingly useless remarks. After he left, Folken stared at the picture again. He had his reasons for calling it "it." Reasons that better suited him than any other.


Chapter 1

Frustrations


Hitomi edged toward a fruit stall and was about to pick up a plum when everyone began to blabber about something. She followed the noise and found the reason. There was a tremulous commotion outside the seaside inn. A flock of town folks had clustered around a fresh scroll posted on the wall. Hitomi stopped in mid-stride as she went on her tiptoes to see over the heads of the townspeople at the prints on the scroll. She saw a few words about a $10,000 reward for a certain person before a giant of a man rudely stepped in front of her, blocking her entire view of the scroll. She bit back the urge to violently shove him aside.

Hitomi returned to her grocery shopping. Luckily the stalls were now nearly free of shoppers. She piled the necessities into her basket.

"Good morning, Hitomi," greeted Allen and Millerna as they approached her.

"Good morning, you two," she returned.

"What is all this commotion about?" asked Millerna as she glanced at the crowd.

Hitomi shrugged. "It's a reward for capturing someone. $10,000, I think."

Allen raised an eyebrow. "That someone must be worth a lot."

"Yea," agreed Millerna. "You know, Allen, you could use that money."

"Well . . . I shall wait until the crowd disperses. I don't see how it could take so long just to look at that piece of paper."

Hitomi gave him a look. "It's not as if they're all educated. Some can't read."

"And I'm assuming you're one of them?" he said good-naturedly.

"Suck my toes," she shot back.

Millerna laughed, sounding like a harmonious chime. They stopped at a fortune telling tent. Millerna wanted to have her fortune told. Hitomi and Allen stayed outside, much to Millerna's sheer delight. She said something about outside forces mingling with her internal spirit which was hazardous to her fortune and the fortuneteller's talented gift. Hitomi and Allen decided to wait under the shade of a tree for her, watching people walk past them. From some where behind them, someone gave a loud, explosive fart. Hitomi's face crinkled from the destructive stench and hurried away from the smell. Allen let out a howl of laughter before following in her wake.

Allen made a face, though his eyes laughed. "Must have been a hearty breakfast. I wonder how long it'll last."

"I have no idea nor do I care." She hurried away to a much safer location.

Allen joined her, hands clasped behind his back. "Perhaps, then, would you care to engage in a duel with me?" he asked in a teasing manner.

She flashed him a smile. "Of course."

They entered the forest of Asturia and continued until they reached a grassy clearing. Hitomi caught the lingering scents of musk and lavender in the air. The aroma danced under her nose and was whisked away by a light gust of wind. The scent of roses and lilies replaced the previous until they, too, were carried away. With her eyes locked with Allen's, Hitomi slowly drew her sword from its sheath and dragged the tip of the sword in an arc across the patch of grass in front of her. The sound it made was music to her ears. From the corner of her eyes, she watched as Allen did the same.

"Ready?" he asked as she formed her stance, sword in position.

"I've never been as ready in my life," was her reply.

"Let us begin, then."

Allen raised his sword and swung it but then changed its position. Hitomi reacted quickly to the sudden repositioning and changed her grip on the hilt. Their two swords made contact, making a silvery clang that sent chills down her spine. Hitomi blocked several other attacks, much to Allen's delight. "I see you've been practicing and learning...from someone other than me."

Hitomi jerked. "Is it that obvious? Millerna swore you wouldn't notice."

"She did, did she? It's hard not to notice when you pulled a move I never taught you. However, I don't mind that Millerna's teaching you as well. She's quite a skilled sword fighter," he remarked before swinging his sword. After Hitomi blocked, he challenged, "Now attack me."

Hitomi brought her sword down on Allen, who easily blocked it. Several times he blocked her attacks. She hated the fact that he made it look so effortless. An idea came to her and she decided to do a combo. First she attacked his left and quickly moved to his right and then swung swiftly diagonally down his left. She sensed the surprise in Allen, though he managed to block those three attacks. She used that moment to bring her blade up. Allen recovered and blocked that attack as well, barely missing his shoulder.

"How'd I do?" Hitomi chirped brightly. Both of her hands were placed on her hips and a grin was plastered on her face.

He laughed softly. "Not bad, but you could do better."

Hitomi glared at him.

Allen laughed again, his clear blue eyes twinkling. "If it makes you feel any better, you did get me with that combo. Where'd you learn it anyway?"

"From you. I saw you pull it on Gaddes and tried it myself. I'm surprised you didn't know." Hitomi sheathed her sword and lay outstretched on the grass. Her heart was beating rapidly. A light sweat broke across her forehead. Her eyes flickered to the dark, scattered clouds in the sky. It was going to rain later she concluded.

Allen sat down and leaned against a trunk. "I'll teach you a combo later . . . that is if you can. It takes great skills and concentration to understand it."

Hitomi turned her head to face him. "What are you trying to say?"

"What do you think I'm trying to say?" he asked slyly. Suddenly his form became rigid. His mouth parted. Hitomi was startled at this abrupt change in him. Then, with his eyes glued on something in the distance, Allen uttered, "Van . . . "

Hitomi jumped to her feet and spun towards the direction that Allen was staring at. It was then that she saw Van's unmistakably unruly black hair as he ran towards them. It was as if he was gliding—no, more like flying—and more strangely, his sword was not drawn.

What the heck is he trying to pull? She was about to draw hers when Allen pushed her back, his already in a ready position. "Go. Call the others. I'll try to hold him off."

Before Allen finished his sentence, Hitomi had already gone to get the other men. Fortunately, she found them nearby. She quickly spotted Gaddes. "Gaddes! Allen needs your help. Bring your men. Hurry and follow me."

When they all reached the clearing, Allen was down on one knee and his sword was raised in defense against Van's. Allen was slowly succumbing to Van's strength. Hitomi noticed that Allen's arm was bleeding. Gaddes attempted to save his captain by slashing Van from behind, but was immediately kicked down. He groaned in pain.

Allen made a comeback only to be blocked by Van once again. Hitomi decided it was time to interfere. As she ran towards them, Allen shouted, "No! Go back, Hitomi. Get away from here as fast as you can!"

But his words registered her brain a few seconds too late. A few seconds was all it took for Van to knock Allen down and catch her before her brain catalyzed a reaction. She squirmed and jabbed him in the side with the point of her sheath. Van let Hitomi go from shock at the jolt of pain. She ran without looking back and when she sensed that Van had not followed her, she stopped and then turned around, which turned out to be a huge mistake.

She watched in utter horror fascination as Van arched his back, obviously in some sort of pain. For a mere moment nothing happened. Then, with a cry of pain, blood spurted from each shoulder blade. Hitomi flinched and what she saw next was either the most beautiful or the most horrifying thing she ever saw. A pair of massive white wings sprouted from Van's back as he threw his arms and head back. His shirt lay shredded on the grass and loose feathers floated aimlessly about him. Hitomi gasped.

The legendary Draconian.

The muscles on Van's upper body rippled as his wings began to flap with the power of a tornado. He faced her now, his eyes fixed on hers. Coming back to her senses, Hitomi began to run again. All around her arrows flew mightily through the air. Van's wings expertly swept the arrows away from him. He rose elegantly off the ground and he would have looked like an angel except for the fact that he was made of flesh and blood.

Almost too quickly for her to even realize it, Van captured her and this time his grip on her was iron strong. He began to fly higher and higher. Hitomi wrestled in his arms and frantically made an effort to pry his fingers from her waist, but to no avail. She swung her legs back, hoping to kick him brutally in the shin and cause him to fall lower to the ground.

"Do you want to die?" Van asked harshly. Hitomi stopped moving. "That's what I thought. I would gladly drop you to your death should you move again."

From below her on the ground were Allen and his men. They were still shooting arrows. Allen was shouting something at her but she was too far up to hear any of it. Suddenly, Van faltered in his flight. Hitomi looked down to see that an arrow had pierced his side. A trail of dark red blood had begun to trickle down his waist. Oddly enough, it gave her a sense of satisfaction that he got hurt for kidnapping her.

He deserves it, she thought triumphantly.


Millerna dabbed the wound on Allen's arm with an herb ointment. He winced but did not make a sound. The wound was not too deep and was not going to leave a scar. But Allen was suffering from another type of pain.

He blamed himself for not being able to protect Hitomi, whom he saw as the younger sister he had lost. A painful memory flitted across his mind. It was an image of the last time he saw his actual sister, Celena. It was so long ago but he could still see it as if he was experiencing it at the very moment. They were both so young at them time . . . so young.

"Allen, it's no use," said Celena in a soft, sad voice.

He grabbed her hands in an attempt to keep her from leaving. He was eleven then and she was 10 but she had a sort of maturity he found startling. "What's going to happen to you? You can't just leave like this!"

She tugged at her captured hands. "I have to. It's the only way for me to get better. Please, Allen, let me go." Even as she uttered this, a tiny stream of tears found its way down her cheek.

"What if it doesn't work?"

"It has to!" she said angrily, unnaturally shrill. She continued in a calmer voice. "I don't like this any more than you do but, it's for the best."

Their mother stood forlornly against the stair railing. Allen could see that she was trying hard not to let them see her cry but he knew better. She had her arms wrapped around herself. If he only knew how to comfort his dear mother. He turned his attention back to Celena.

"I have something for you," he said after hesitating. "Wait right here."

He ran up to his room and hastily cut out a picture of her and himself and stuck each of the pictures into one side of the gold locket that his mother had given him. He hastily went back to Celena and placed the locket into her small hands and closed her fingers over it.

He swallowed down his tears. "Keep it always with you so you don't forget, okay? When you're afraid just look at our picture and the fear will go away. Promise me."

She nodded and reached behind her neck and unclasped the hook of her own locket. Then she cut a lock of her glossy honey curls and placed it inside the locket. "Here. This is for you to remember me by and don't you dare lose it!"

He let out a cheerless laugh. "I won't."

A tall man came into the house and without a word, picked up Celena's suitcases. He left to put them into the car. Allen felt a wave of despair and loss wash over him. Without warning, their mother ran towards Celena and held her in a tight embrace. She was kneeling and sobbing loudly into her hair. "Celena, my precious little one, be brave for me . . . for all of us. And be a good girl, okay? Mommy loves you very much. Don't cry, Celena."

Allen watched with a heavy heart as his mother continued to cry. I'll be strong for Mother and Celena and I won't let anything hurt them, he solemnly swore to himself. He embraced them both, letting his own tears mingle with theirs. His pride and dignity as a male didn't matter then.

Almost too soon, the man came back. He stood majestically in front of them and scanned the seen before him. With a distracted sigh, he said, "It's time, Celena."

Allen's eyes widened in panic. It was too soon. He needed more time with his little sister. He was about to say something to her when he saw that she was staring intently at him. Finally she gave him a small smile. "I have to go now, Allen."

"No. Don't go," he said pitifully. "I—we need you. Mother needs you."

"I can't," she said quietly. She gave him a long hug and when she let go, he squeezed her little hands. She squeezed back. There was a look of yearning in her eyes now. She inhaled deeply and smiled unsteadily one last time. "Goodbye, Mommy . . . Allen," she whispered.

The man held out a hand for her to take and they headed out the door. Allen ran towards them.

"When will you come back?" he asked her in a trembling voice.

"I don't know," she replied softly. She looked back at the both of them for some time before turning. Allen heard her utter a stifled cry.

By the doorway, with his mother standing behind, he watched as his sister climbed into the black limo. Before a minute had passed, the car had driven off into the distance.

That was the last time he ever heard of her and the last time he ever saw her. The pain from his injury brought him back to reality. He smiled gratefully at Millerna for tending to his cut. "Thank you."

She inclined her head, acknowledging his gratitude. "There you go. Your arm should be back to normal in no time. Allen . . . how are we going to get Hitomi back?"

"I don't know."

"What does he want with her? What does he think he'll gain?"

"I don't know."

"I fear for her safety. That Van is capable of anything—what if . . ." Millerna trailed off as she thought of all the possibilities that could happen.

Allen looked up. "You don't know him like I do. If only Hitomi had known. It was right there but she did not see it. I could have barged through that crowd but instead, I chose to wait. My actions have endangered her."


Van grunted as he felt the burn of wound on his side. He needed to rest some where before he died from blood loss. The girl in his arms had finally stopped squirming much to his convenience. Before long, he came upon a sheltered clearing at the top of a mountain. He decided that it would have to do.

Hitomi, having nothing better to do, examined the gash between Vans ribs. She shuddered seeing that the arrow was still embedded there. Most of the blood had dried but some was still pouring from the gash. She wondered whether it hurt him and then immediately scolded herself for thinking that. Why should she care whether he was hurt or not?

"Where are you taking me?" she demanded.

"You'll see," was his vague reply.

"Tell me now—ooph." He had dropped her on a patch of grass. "You didn't have to toss me like a dead animal."

She watched as his wings disappeared. There were two red welts in place of the wings and pretty soon they too were gone. He rolled his shoulders a few times.

"What?" he growled.

She just glared back. "Why did you take me? I demand an explanation right now."

He returned her look. "Do you mind? Your hideous voice is grinding my nerves and I can't hear what I'm thinking. Why don't you go somewhere else and leave me alone. I have better things to do than answer your questions."

"I can't because I don't know where to go," she retorted defiantly.

Van closed his eyes and opened them a second later. Then he got up on his feet and seized her arm. He led her to a spot somewhat far from him but still close enough to keep an eye on and left her there. "There, you will stay here and keep your mouth shut."

He returned to his original spot. He closed his hands around the arrow and with his teeth clenched, slowly eased the arrow out from his body. The agonizing pain must have been unbearable. When he was done, he was panting a little. He threw the arrow aside and went in search of glarl leaves. When he came back he flung a handful of the leaves on Hitomi's lap.

"Grind those up until they're pasty."

Hitomi scowled at him. "No."

He gripped her wrist so hard a small whimper came from her mouth. He yanked her up to his level. "You will do it. I am your benevolent guardian. I alone have the power to kill you right now, to torture you, or to leave you here all by yourself. Do I hear an agreement?"

"Yes," she said through gritted teeth. She jerked her hand out of his grasp. Furiously, she forcefully ground the leaves with a rock she found nearby all the while muttering obscene curses under her breath.

Van had gone to look for a source of water to clean out his injury. This would've been the perfect chance for her to escape if she had not been stranded on a cliff. She had no idea where she was. If she was going to try to run away she would have to do it now because the day was beginning to darken. How stupid that idea was. There was no where for her to go. She hoped he wouldn't be able to find any water, or even better she hoped he would become hopelessly lost and would die there like the deranged animal that he was.

"Stupid jackass," she muttered to herself. "I knew all along that—"

"That what?"


A/N: Well, what did you think? Much better, yes?Lol.Well, thank you for taking the time to read this re-edited version and please review. I like reading everyone's opinions. Thanks again.