Disclaimer: I do not own anything Escaflowne for someone out bided me on Ebay for the right. Any characters that are not from the original plot line are MINE!
Author's Note: Hey there everyone! ShadowKat back with the third installment of the Protector's series! YAY! It's been a long awaited and now it's finally here! So go on and read!
The Lost Protector
This story is dedicated to Chichirui for she is the reason for most of my inspiration and without her these stories wouldn't be half as fun! So this one is for you my hyper active friend! Keep the hyperness alive!
Chapter One: Where on Earth Am I?
Willow Akimo, Commander of the Death Angels, stood in the Training room of her underground labyrinth of tunnels that served as her head quarters. Not the president, C.I.A., F.B.I., I.R.S., terrorist, assassin, other world president, emperor or even royalty's head quarters-it was hers. She had paid the men to dig out the complex tunnels and support the structures by placing titanium siding within the tunnels then wiring them with the most powerful system any C.I.A. or F.B.I. agent would want.
This was her own base, her own power, and of course she was in demand by national treasures like the President of the United States and his employees or the Columbian Republic or any other person willing to pay her price. There was nothing she wouldn't do and there was nothing she couldn't do. Her name was at the top of everyone's list as best assassin in the world. Anything anyone else did she would break with her own record.
She looked at the assembled soldiers, mostly women, all wearing their Death Angel uniform consisting of light blue boots, white mini skirt, tall gloves and tight tank top, with light blue armor which was unlike any other armor. Light weight but extremely tough with the latest nano technology, the armor's "skeleton" laced their upper abdomens and arms, extending up to their necks, intertwining with another piece of armor and then jetting out again. At even the slightest hint of danger, the shoulders, chest, forearms, and back were instantly covered by a thousands swarming bits of titanium and hardened together to form a plate across the desired areas. When the danger was gone the titanium slithered back into its dormant state hidden within the strands of armor.
A soldier by trade, an assassin by choice, she had trained the best of the best and now had six extremely well trained assassins all following her command. For someone who was a soldier and only 21, she was surprisingly very pretty. No scars or discolorations were seen on her exposed skin and there was no sign that she had ever been harmed in battle-if only one knew how many times she had almost died. Her 5"1' slightly curved body was slim and athletic with her short dark red hair hanging around her face and her dark emerald green eyes shinning brightly.
Dressed in her Star Angel uniform, pastel purple over-the-knee high boots, a white mid-thigh skirt with a pastel purple tank top with a white thick line across the chest, she watched the soldiers with unblinking eyes, waiting for them to collapse under her gaze. This was a test, an exam to see if they were worthy of her praise. She wanted her soldiers to be perfect.
Finally she saw her opening. In an instant, she had released a small metal ball, which was hidden in the palm of her hand, sending it flying through the air at her opponent, a girl with short red hair. Her eyes narrowed and an instant later the ball hit the girl and it exploded, making the girl stumble back. "Pathetic!" She roared. "Within seconds I had all ready found your weaknesses and could've easily killed you in less then a second! Anyone on the field or any powerful opponent could've done it in a little more time then I did! I want that fixed by the time I come back!" She promptly left the large room slamming heavy steel the door behind her.
The door closed and she sighed, leaning against the door. How had this happened to her? How had she turned from the strong, never-give-up girl to what she was now? Which was a monster, mean and uncaring. I used to be happy, now all I have is hate and resentment in my heart… she shook her head, looking upwards towards the single titles that made up the ceiling. Slowly she raised her arms above her head almost like reaching up to heaven.
A silent plea took form in the back of her mind. She had been killing since she was little and now it all seemed pointless. There was no longer a reason to kill. All the action and glory had disappeared from the battle. "Please, take me away from this hell hole that had become my life," she pleaded to the heavens.
Katrina "Kat" Albatou, fiancé to Dilandau Albatou, First in Command to the Captain of the Dragon Slayers, Dilandau Albatou, stood in the hanger of the Vione. The large room was empty for only the tall bulky machines known as guymelefs that stood in long lines towards the sides of the building. Florescent lights shone high above them with catwalks that created a grid overhead with extra guymelefs hanging in the air suspended by strong, thick cords. Darkness seeped in the corners and high in the sky, consuming the whole room into almost pure night.
She looked at the assembled soldiers all wearing their Dragon Slayer's uniform consisting of black boots and pants with a black tunic and royal blue chest plate, shoulder pads with huge spikes on top, gauntlets, and anklets that reached up to their shins, armor overlaying the tunic. Their black gloved hands remained at their sides, the hilts of their ever sharp swords hanging inside their sheaths, ready to be drawn at a moment's notice, within a second's reach. Their eyes were devoid of emotion as they stood erect-they looked like plastic models of the perfect army.
Of course they looked perfect because they were perfect. They were elite the best darn army on the planet. Even for someone who was a soldier and only 21, she held no signs of battle on her skin. Her 5"4' curved body was slim and athletic, parts of her waist long dark brown hair framed her gently face and dark midnight blue eyes shone brightly against her pale skin and dark lips. Dressed in her own uniform, she stood tall, not a part of the Dragon Slayers formally but in spirit. Months ago they had rigged the paperwork so they worked when they wanted under a contract.
Tall black boots that came over her knees, a black mid-thigh skirt with a black tank top with a dark blue, thick line across the chest was what she wore as her uniform. She watched the soldiers with unblinking eyes, waiting for them to collapse under her gaze, like a cat watching its prey she waited. Suddenly the sound of the hanger door opening caught her attention and she turned to smile at the six-foot three man that entered.
The man was tall with a powerful build wearing the same uniform as the other Slayers only with red armor. His silver hair shone in the dim light held back with a gold band that sat on his forehead just under his long bangs that were slightly swept to the side. Deep crimson eyes stared at the assembled men with rage and ember burning deep within their dark pupils and pale skin covered his slim face, a long scar on his right cheek showing that he was the meaning of war. The was he walked demanded respect as he shifted his weight from foot to foot, ready to spin around at any moment, his hands twitching readily near the hilt of his long, engraved hilt of his sword, the look on his face in a sneer.
He was Dilandau Albatou, Captain of the Dragon Slayers and fiancé to Kat. There was no other like him on Gaea and if there were then Gaea would surely suffer. Many a battle had he fought and won, pride in his stride and the lust of battle in his eyes as he walked back, blood covered and not caring. Any emotion was shed from his skin the second killing was possible as an aspect or action-he was a ruthless monster on the field, inside, and all the time. Rarely did he spare a true smile and not one mean to torture or show pleasure in other's pain.
How was it that she could be in love, no, about to be wed to someone whom Gaea thought a monster? It shocked her when she thought about it but the answer was simple for Kat. Behind that killer exterior there was a man reaching out to love, to make the devoid space in his heart that drove him crazy, the itch that he could never satisfy no matter how hard he tried. Yet sometimes when she looked at him, sitting in his chair, sipping a red wine the color to match his eyes, tasting its burning flavor as he stared into the depths of the fire as if listening to its inner wishes, she wondered if even she could feel that void or if it was something that would never cease to hurt.
Dilandau looked at Kat and nodded; he approved of the troops. She motioned for the troops to mount up onto their sturdy, chocolate colored steeds, which were waiting, and all did as commanded. Only one horse stood apart from the rest; a black stallion with powerful rippling muscles, long sturdy neck and fiery red eyes that burned like flames in the blackest of nights snorted as his master mounted him. This was Dilandau's horse, a single stallion bred only for the purpose of serving his master in the depths of the battlefield.
As they took off with Dilandau leading them only a single thought remained in Kat's mind. It had been there a while but it still bothered her. Would the horse and master still be around when the negotiations were over? Or would they disappear into the mist, to find a new war to fight? Could a single man bred to kill ever stop?
The room was a buzz of talking with outbursts of the men that sat around her. They grumbled and stomped, argued and slammed fists on the table in rage or emotion. Most were there for peace, others for war, and the rest for a chance at nothing; it was more interesting then working or walking around for hours.
Stuck with monitoring duty again, she thought annoyed as her eyes glazed over all the men in the room. How boring-all they do is argue and fight.
The small room was filled with eight men, all big muscled and tall, serving their own right as generals of Austuria, Freid, and Fanellia. She could see why the men were elected. Their loud booming voices and strong appearance made them seem intimidating and she wondered how many treaties had been made just out of fear that the other would beat the men in the room.
Dark wood made up the walls and floor, with only a single light above the table in the center of the room to light it. Darkness playing in the corners of the room grew and lessened as shadows were thrown across it, dancing in a strange waltz of light and shadow. The battered table had obviously seen many a treaty since it was badly scratched, its surface rough and uneven, bending under invisible weight as if their arguments caused it pain. The legs had been kicked many a time and large chunks were missing from the once sturdy and glorious legs.
The advisors and generals, along with a small crowd that had managed to settle in the darkness of the close walls, talked and battled the other. The trade routes from Fanellia to Austuria had been under attack by rebels of unknown origin, which had caused both countries to suffer greatly. The rebels, getting bolder, had started attacking Freid dressed in Fanellia's army's coats of armor. Now all three countries were in an uproar about what to do with the rebels.
Dornen, the nearest to Kat's spot in the corner of the room, and probably the burliest man in the room, with messy dirty blonde hair and hazel eyes, was the Austurian General of War with a loud voice and an attitude to match her own-hard headed with a fiery temper.
Avery, tall with light brown hair and dark purple eyes, one of the Austurian Advisors and an attitude of resentment to match his unwillingness to be here.
Gobi, the shortest man of the generals and advisors, with thick black hair and deep green eyes, the Freid Chief Advisor to the King who had an even and well-mannered temper and was well versed.
Cilet, tall and thin, dark blue hair and light blue eyes, the Freid Advisor with the attitude of a fatherly figure.
Nerrian, tall yet still not coming near the height of even Gobi with short blonde hair and baby blue eyes, the Fanellian Chief Advisor to the King, with a quiet and sensible attitude.
Guyam, not quite tall or short with wild red hair and deep golden eyes, the Fanellian Advisor who had an attitude of an average hard-working man.
Currently though they were all fighting. Dornen was yelling in rage at Gobi and Cilet, who were both fighting back using complex sentences and verses from old books to confuse the "Barbarian of Austuria". Avery was looking like he could kill at any second and Guyam was about ready to punch Nerrian in the face. Kat sighed and looked idly at them, not really interested in their talks. She had to break up multiple fights during the past week and personally she thought that she should just let them beat the crap out of each other.
How incredibly boring-I can't believe Folken wanted us here for security. Just because he and Van have rebounded in their relationship doesn't mean he can send us to protect his brother's precious events-we aren't the elite security force, we're the elite army, she thought, annoyed. "Mmm, you look delicious. I think I can eat you up right now," a deep voice said near her ear. "But your mind is else where. Tell me what's bothering you."
She smiled and turned in her hard wooden seat towards the corner of the room to look into Dilandau's crimson eyes. He was leaned over her, his chin resting slightly on her shoulder so when she turned to look at him she was practically nose-to-nose, staring into his eyes. "What's wrong is that Folken has been sending us on more and more security missions. We no longer are the feared Dragon Slayers, we're the best security around," she told him truthfully, not bothering to hide her dislike in her tone.
Dilandau smirked at her. "Well, Kit," he paused, standing up and crossing his arms over his chest. He used that nickname for her only on very special occasions. "If someone was really getting bored I wouldn't be able to stop them if they decided to cause some havoc during the party tonight… just to make sure to do real damage so people don't think we've lost our touch," he continued, still smirking.
Kat's eyes lit up with the familiar fire that sprung to life whenever there was danger around. "Oh, I've got to go see if Alex and Nicole want to get together tonight," she said, standing up.
Alexandra "Alex" Lavare and Nicole Byson were her two best friends and both were married to Dragon Slayers; Alex was married to Miguel, Second in Command, and Nicole to Chesta. Both were currently held up in guard duty by Van Fanel's room where he and Hitomi were discussing plans for tonight.
She quickly slipped out of the room and ran down the long, broad halls of the gray stoned castle. They had chosen an abandoned watch house on Zaibach grounds to meet in. The place wasn't huge but held many small rooms in the two stories and incredibly long halls. After running down three adjoining corridors, all of the same dull gray stone, and down the small flight of stairs, down one last corridor, she found them by the entrance of Fanel's room towards the courtyard.
Alex Larvae, the same age as Kat, 21, and 5"5' with long dark brown hair that reached down to her shoulder blades and emerald green eyes that sparkled in the dim light, wearing her uniform that was exactly like Kat's only she had a dark green stripe instead of Kat's blue, smiled at her friend as she noticed her running up to them. "Hey, what's up? I thought you were stuck with monitoring duty?" She questioned as Kat drew nearer.
Nicole Byson, recently 22, and 5"2' with shoulder length blonde hair and hazel eyes, wearing her own uniform like Kat and Alex's only she had a dark violet stripe where Alex had green and Kat had blue, shook her head sadly. "Don't you see? They finally drove her over the edge," she said jokingly, motioning at Kat as she came to a stop. "Look, she can't even talk!"
Kat rolled her eyes and playfully hit Nicole in the arm. "Oh, stop it. Look, if you don't want to have some fun tonight then I'll just find someone else," she said.
That drew Alex and Nicole's attention immediately. "Did Dilandau say we could?" Alex wondered, her eyes wide. It had been too long since they had some fun.
"Of course, if we leave our name behind. You know, just to show people we haven't gone soft," Kat replied.
Nicole and Alex looked at her with fire in their eyes. "Why not? I mean, normally I wouldn't be agreeing, but I need some action," Nicole said.
That made Kat chuckle. Nicole, the more down-to-earth girl and the smartest who always seemed to be grounding her and Alex's plans with common sense, also the more fearful of the group, almost never volunteered for high packed adventure. Yet she always held through when it did come around.
Alex smirked and nodded. "As always, count me in," she agreed.
Kat wasn't surprised; Alex was a lot like her only Alex wasn't as hardheaded and quick to judge as Kat was. She was more of the friendly type, the kind of person you could always count on to be there for you, the person who everyone was drawn to because of her friendly nature. Kat would easily turn people away in a heartbeat and Nicole was shy and too modest to really be more then a social moth.
"Okay then, I'll see you two later. I've got to go back and keep an eye on the conversations," Kat said, rolling her eyes. "Look for me tonight!" She turned and ran back down the corridors, not heading back to her boring duty. Instead she walked through the empty halls.
Even though they had plans to create and execute tonight she wasn't thinking about their upcoming outing. Strangely her mind was elsewhere on a topic that was new to her. Ever since most of us married and reached a massive power extent we've changed, she thought as she walked. We're still the same people we were six years ago, in theory. Nicole isn't as shy or quiet or even as neutral as she used to be, she's more willing to voice her opinion and to fight. Alex is still dependable and fun loving but she's become more wise and thoughtful. And me, well, I've lost my regard for what is right and I'm in love with the fight.
As she walked she was so involved in her thoughts that she didn't notice the shadow following her. It was only when she stopped in front of a door and the shadow decided to attack did she notice it. Feeling someone behind her, she whirled around and calmly caught a fist that was coming towards her. Why didn't I sense it before? She wondered.
Holding the fist, she looked into her attacker's face only to find her staring into the deep hazel eyes slightly hidden by the black wild bangs of Van Fanel. "Is there something I can help you with, Van?" Kat asked calmly, although her anger was on the rise. Why was he about to hit her? Did he think he could get away with it?
"I needed to speak to Dilandau," Van said, his voice strained as if it was the hardest thing to ask.
Kat sighed silently. What's with all this, "I need to speak to Dilandau" junk he's been doing lately? If I didn't know better I'd swear something was going on, she thought. But Dilandau would tell me if there was. "Well, why don't you turn around?" She said pointing behind him.
Van turned around, pulling his hand free from Kat's hand, and came face to face with Dilandau who had come up behind him, ready to draw his sword if the cloaked person had been a threat.
Kat turned away, quickly dispersing the small crowd that had been watching. She wasn't sure how all these people had arrived; they just seemed to pop up at random times whenever a fight would start. When she turned back around she saw the retreating backs of Dilandau and Van. Sighing she figured she'd return to her duty.
It was nearly two in the morning when the last of the advisors left, all drunk. Kat sighed and rubbed her temple, remembering what had happened in Van's small suite. Around midnight things had started getting rowdy with people drinking too much and by one in the morning she was fighting drunken hands off her while trying to break up drunken fights. Even the brandy that was still lying around tempted her.
"Ready for some fun? You look like you could use it," Alex commented as she and Nicole came up to her.
They were in the same boat as Kat and all three of them had been having a hard time with the drunken party. "Yeah, let's go," Kat said and followed them out of the room, down the corridors and out into the dark night.
"Where to hit first?" Nicole asked as they walked swiftly and silently down the path that led into the forest.
"Let's try near the lake? I've heard that there's some Fire Balm that we can use as an excuse," Kat suggested. Fire Balm was a plant that was known for getting over heated when there was even the slightest of humidity in the air that rose. Plus she didn't feel like leaving behind the Dragon Slayer name since they weren't a part of the team formally and didn't par take in a lot of the battles.
Alex smiled at her using Kat's famous evil grin. "Yeah, I've heard that too. But that was in the summer, let's hit near the safe house, just to freak people out," she said.
Nicole nodded and they adjusted their path so they could disappear into a patch of forest near the back of the safe house. It only took a few minutes to reach their destination and to prepare. "Ready?" Kat asked in a whisper, dark electricity bounding around her fingers as she flexed them.
There were two nods, Nicole with her ribbons around her hands and Alex with balls of fire all ready formed, and then all hell broke loose. Trees, shrubs, carts left outside and anything else all burst into flames with loud bangs as the girl's attacked. Nicole reached out with her mind and made cartons of yeast and food explode while attacking with her energy ribbons to snap the wheels off carts. Alex made explosions in the air with lightning from the sky and set random things on fire while Kat attacked with dark energy making things explode and burst into flames.
They continued with their fun for another couple minutes, and then made their retreat. Before they left Nicole left a note on the side of the building, "Pong Played". "Pong?" Asked Alex.
"Protectors of Natural Gaea," supplied Nicole.
There was a blank stare from both Kat and Alex.
"What? We need a catchier name then "Protectors"!"
Kat only shook her head and they retreated back into the forest. In the shadows, a lone figure watched them run, it's emerald green eyes glazed over with lust.
Author's Note: A long first chapter huh? Well, now, a new character and who's watching our beloved Protectors? Questions arise! Sorry for the super long chapter but I hope it was worth the wait! Thanks for reading and please review!
~The Shadow That Takes Form as a Kat~
~~ShadowKat~~