Beyond Dawn

Chapter 2


24-year-old Hitomi Kanzaki woke up startled from yet another bizarre dream. This time it had been so vivid and detailed it took her awhile to recognize her surroundings and to realize that she was in fact still in the security of her home and not in the middle of a raging battlefield amid chaos and destruction.

Fighting against the drowsiness that desperately longed to claim her comfy pillows once again, she threw the bed covers away and got up swiftly, making her way toward the kitchen and flipping every light switch on along the way.

Once there, she helped herself to a cup of strong coffee and allowing a tired sigh to escape her lips, she leaned back against the marble counter, holding the smoky cup in her hands.

It had been the sixth time that week she dreamt about Gaea... Or had it been the seventh? She couldn't keep track anymore. All she knew was that the dreams were getting more and more vivid and as a result she was getting more and more tired.

Of course dreaming about Gaea itself wasn't exactly the problem. After all, for the past nine years she often revisited the alien planet in her sleeping subconscious; although the frequency of these mental excursions had thankfully subsided in recent years.

Usually the dreams were pretty uneventful; mere short glimpses into the everyday lives of her old friends... Well, some of her old friends, at least. And not as vivid images at all; they were completely static, like old blurry photographs, which made her often wonder if the alien dreams weren't all just a product of her wishful thinking.

The real problem however, the one depriving her of much needed sleep, was in fact the dark, bloody turn that her once light-hearted dreams had suddenly taken in the past month and a half. From the moment the strange nightmares claimed her, to the moment she awoke surprised and alarmed, she saw nothing more than havoc and death.

And there were no more static images to be seen; this time it all seemed very real, like she was inside a war movie, so much so that she could actually smell the coppery scent of fresh blood.

At first Hitomi thought little of the nightmares. She had just been transferred to the emergency unit of Tokyo Medical University Hospital, where she had to deal with some pretty gory cases, so she assumed her mind was simply playing tricks on her while it adapted itself to her new work reality.

But the intensity of the bad dreams only increased, and as they became more vivid she started recognizing familiar places and long forgotten faces and an dreadful ominous feeling began to creep into her heart.

It was around the time Hitomi had finally convinced herself that her nightmares were much more than simple mind tricks, that for the first time in five years she dreamt about him.

The shock of 'seeing' after so long the man she once swore never to think of again was almost enough to jerk her violently awake, but a part of her subconscious curiously clung to sleep with such a force that she had no other choice but to witness firsthand the event that was taking place in the deserted clearing projected in her mind.

She saw him flinch slightly as he squeezed a small dagger in his left hand, and soon enough small drops of blood were being claimed by gravity. He let a few of them stain a small pink stone he took from inside one of the pockets of his military jacket and almost immediately submerged it inside the fluid heart of the sleeping beast.

Like she had once before witnessed, many, many years ago there was a blast of blinding bright light and the mighty Escaflowne awoke from its quiet slumber, instantly opening its front hatch to its master as it had done countless times in the past.

For awhile he stood motionless; only his everlasting unruly hair moving with the strong wind. His lips moved imperceptibly as if he was uttering a prayer and then he suddenly turned around surprised. That was when Hitomi saw her too.

Dressed in a simple yet elegant blue gown, very similar to the one Hitomi had first seen her in; she looked like the proverbial 'picture of perfection'. Her dark hair was now slightly longer than she remembered it to have been though, and she used it tied in the back in a more ladylike manner.

Hitomi was somewhat surprised to realize she didn't harbour any sort of ill feelings toward the queen at all. After all, Isabella had been the nicest, most graceful person she had ever met while on Gaea.

Sure, the young woman had also once been the reason for destroying her happiness, but that was all in the past now, and Hitomi was quite glad someone like her was in charge of Fanelia's affairs.

That particular dream stayed in Hitomi's mind for a lot longer than she really cared for and although she never again dreamt about any of its two participants, she was now positively sure of two things. Somewhere in Gaea there was a very, very big war raging on; and he was fighting in it.

The sound of the front door opening and closing preceded by light footsteps in the hallway brought Hitomi back to the real world and soon enough Yukari Uchida appeared in the kitchen doorway holding a small child in her arms.

"Hey!...You're up already?" The red-haired eyed Hitomi surprised.

"Yeah... Couldn't sleep anymore." She was quick to notice the suspicious look that came over her best friend and added. "I have to get ready to go to work soon anyway... Is he sleeping?" She asked after noticing the unusual lethargic state of the child.

Yukari lowered her voice a bit. "Drowsed off in the car on the way back."

Hitomi smiled and took the boy from her arms. "Thanks for taking care of him. I really needed the time to rest."

"Don't mention it." Yukari said while inspecting a few of the medical magazines Hitomi had scattered over the counter. "I love spending time with him. Takeru is a riot!"

As if on cue the little boy slowly lifted his head from Hitomi's shoulder and yawned sleepily. "Hi mommy."

"Hi! Did you have a nice time with aunt Yukari?"

The infant nodded happily. "Yep. She bought me ice-cream and cotton candy and let me go on all the rides, even the big rollercoaster that mommy never lets me go on, 'cause I'm too small."

Hitomi looked incredulous at her friend. "You let him go on what?"

Yukari didn't lift her eyes from the magazine she was reading, although her voice was a pitch higher than normal when she answered her. "I have nooo idea what he's talking about!"

"Can I go play in the backyard?" Takeru asked then, making the most use of his trademark puppy eyes.

Hitomi put her energetic son down, trying unsuccessfully to comb his messy hair with her fingers. "Yes... But no climbing trees, you little monkey."

As soon as the cheerful young boy went past the doorway, Yukari turned to Hitomi with a strange glint in her eyes. "So... what did you dream about this time?"

"What makes you think I dreamt at all?"

"Call it psychiatrist's sixth sense." The red-haired said casually. "Besides you are my best friend. You couldn't keep a secret from me to save your own life." She added with a big grin.

Hitomi rolled her eyes. "Fine! I did have another dream while sleeping this afternoon. Satisfied?"

"Very." Yukari leaned forward in the counter and whispered conspiratorially. "So... was it about... you-know-who?"

It took a few seconds for Hitomi to figure out who she was cryptically referring to. When she did, she chuckled. Her friend was always so overly dramatic when it came to adressing that certain person! "You-know-who does have an actual name, you know?"

"Ok, ok, was the dream about Van or not?" Yukari asked expectantly.

"Sorry to disappoint you… but no!" Hitomi was very careful to emphasise the last word. "Hey, don't look so down! You should know by now that fairytales don't always have happy endings."

Yukari narrowed her eyes at her comment. "Yes, but in this particular case it didn't because Cinderella decided to dump Prince Charming for no apparent reason." She said accusingly.

Hitomi took a long sip of coffee to calm herself; she now knew what she was in for. "Really? No apparent reason?" She retorted calmly. "What was the point then of continuing a relationship that was doomed to end anyway?... We were too different from each other. It would have never worked out; even if for awhile I lived in obvious delusion thinking our love for each other was enough to solve every problem we could be faced with."

She shook her head tiredly. "Besides, he is married now. And from what I could tell from the dream I had, he's very happily married. End of story."

"Well, he would never have gotten married in the first place if you-"

"Don't even go there, Yukari!"

"But during the dream didn't you-"

"No!... I did not, in any way, experience any sort of warm, fuzzy feelings as soon as I saw him again, nor did I feel any sudden urge to curse his wife out of jealousy."

Yukari opened her mouth to try and counterattack her friend's argument yet again, but Hitomi was quicker. "No matter how much you try to convince me otherwise, the truth is I have absolutely no more feelings toward that man, and if I'm lying, lightning may strike me in the head."

"Hm... You should be careful then. I heard there will be a thunderstorm tonight." Yukari said sticking her tongue out like a child.

She managed to duck just in time to avoid being hit in the head with the latest issue of 'World Science'.

Outside the kitchen window, a small lightning cut through the heavy clouds, illuminating the dark afternoon sky.


Thanks to everyone who read/ reviewed chapter 1. Hope you enjoyed this one. I'm writing short chapters so I can update more quickly.