Sis of the Darkness- More pain??? More pain for who? Yes, there will be many more chapters to come...I have absolutely no idea how long this thing is going to be.
Akira- Maybe...^^
Kou-Kagerou- Yeek! A typo! Thank you for pointing that out! I'll have to go back and fix it...and revamp the end of chapter 7. I did experiment with putting the events in a different order before, but this one was the least confusing. Still, it needs work. It's funny you should say that about the dragon...my fencing buddies have recently started teaching me to play D&D. (Wrote that dragon before that, though.)
Deadly Beauty1- Praise is good. *Grin* *Munches cookies and sets to writing*
Faraday- Yea! So the dragon slaying turned out good after all!
lil- Thank you!
Audiblebeauty- Oooh, snowflake obsidian is really cool. Thank you for reminding me of it. I'll have to use it in here sometime. ^^ Sarcastic characters are so much fun to write with.
Zero-no-uta- Thank you! ^^ *Feels loved*

A/N: *Breathes extreme sigh of relief* So the dragon slaying was good after all! Whew! As with one of the previous chapters, I didn't get to do nearly as much editing with this as I would have liked, but I haven't updated in a long time, and with studying for AP tests my spare time has been almost zero.


La Ra Everlasting Frost
Chapter 8- Secrets the Blood Speaks

A concerned frown passed across Sir Allen Schezar's comely face. "A search for one of your own?" he asked. "Who has been lost?"

"A commander by the name of Dilandau Albatou, no older than that young man standing over there," Folken answered, glancing in Van's direction and looking back at Allen in time enough to study the knight's reaction. Folken's face remained diplomatically stoic, but he laughed inside at Allen's momentary frown. So, he wasn't supposed to have known that his little brother was here, after all. If Van was still as stubborn as always, Folken would bet money that Allen had ordered him to stay out of sight. What lengths would Allen go to in order to keep Van from Folken's mind? How loyal would Allen prove to his country, and therefore to his country's alliances? Folken could not tell if Allen knew or even suspected that the Dragon Slayers had burned down Fanelia, that the very man who stood before him had given the order. Folken hoped that Allen was not so shrewd that he would discover the truth, but, if he did, it would be interesting to see how he would handle the conflict of chivalry that would arise. Would he choose loyalty to his country, or aid to a suffering nation's refugee ruler?

"How was this young officer lost?" Allen questioned, the concern in his eyes true. Folken could see through false, diplomatic emotions. Allen really did not know for a fact that Zaibach had destroyed Fanelia. Perhaps he suspected, but his beliefs in chivalry had given him a large heart and a special desire to aid the weak and the helpless and the downtrodden. "Did he go missing in battle?"

Folken shrugged, spreading his organic hand in innocence. "We do not know what happened to him," he lied. Lying came so easily to him, now. "He was aboard our fortress Vione at dawn, but by night he was gone. He simply disappeared.

"No one simply disappears," Allen told him sagely.

That's what you think, Folken thought wryly. You do not know what our machines are capable of.

"A deserter, do you think?" Allen asked.

"Out of the question," Folken answered, allowing an insulted tone to creep into his voice, sounding to Allen as though he were trying to suppress it. "Commander Albatou is one of our most dedicated soldiers. His family and his very life are the Zaibach Army."

Allen bowed respectfully. "Forgive me, Strategos, I intended no offense." Folken nodded.

"It is forgiven."

Allen straightened. "If I may ask, what do you believe is the most likely cause of Commander Albatou's disappearance?"

"I really cannot say," Folken replied. "Though it seems ludicrous concerning a soldier of his skill, I have to guess that he was abducted. Security on the Vione is high, and it is unlikely that an outsider would be able to sneak aboard, but there is always the possibility of a traitor among our own ranks. One of the Gray Soldiers, perhaps, the Dragon Slayers are all very loyal to Commander Albatou. More loyal to him than to the Copper Army, I dare say."

Allen nodded slowly, turning this information around in his head. "What would you have we of the outpost Castelo do?" he asked. "If we can help our allies to find their lost officer in any way, name the means."

"If there is a betrayer aboard the Vione, we will find him ourselves. You do not need to concern yourselves with that," Folken told him. "We request that the soldiers of the outpost Castelo aid the soldiers of the floating fortress Vione in a search of the surrounding area for Commander Albatou."

"And I will grant you that request." Allen extended his right hand to Folken, which Folken gripped awkwardly in his left.

"Forgive me, Sir Allen," he remarked, "for failing to shake your hand properly, but several years ago I received an injury which has left me without the use of my right arm." Better to arouse the knight's sympathy than to startle him with the mechanical arm. Its skeletal appearance frightened and even disturbed many people, and Folken had found it easier to keep it hidden and allow others to think him crippled.

"Of course." Allen released his hand. Folken glanced at Van out of the corner of his eye. He had not moved. Perhaps, during the search, Folken would be able to find a chance to speak with Van. Would it be wise, to allow him to know that his older brother still lived? Surely Van recognized the Dragon Slayers' guymelefs as the same machines that had burned Fanelia. Would Van hate him? Did Van think that he had abandoned his country? Or would Van still love him? Yes, he would make Van see that what Zaibach did was good, even holy. Perhaps Van would even join them.

"Could you describe Commander Albatou for us, Strategos?" Allen asked him politely. "I am afraid that, though the name does sound vaguely familiar to me, I cannot bring to mind his face."

"Then you have no shame, for clearly you have never made his acquaintance. His is not a face easily forgotten, Sir Knight," Folken replied. "He is albino, like myself, and he stands this tall." Folken indicated with his organic hand a height slightly past his shoulder. "If he was kidnapped, he may not be dressed in his uniform. If you find him, you will know him, do not worry about that. He is very distinctive."

"Very good." Allen motioned, and a dark-haired man in a pink shirt broke away from the crowds of soldiers against the walls. Knight he was not; this was more the type of person that Folken would picture to man this obscure an outpost.

"Yeah, Boss?" he asked.

"Gaddes, divide the men into search parties," Allen ordered. "We will begin at once, while the sun is still high."

"Sure."

"It would be helpful to send a group of your soldiers with each party of ours," Folken suggested mildly. "These forests are new to us." Gaddes glanced at Allen, who nodded. Gaddes turned his back to Folken and Allen.

"All right, dirtbags!" Gaddes bellowed, "outside, now!" With a steadily rising murmur of voices, the room began to empty. Folken tilted his head to the side.

"He is not the most traditional of lieutenants, is he?"

Allen laughed, a charming sound. "No, he is not, but he has a good heart, and he gets the job done. Rules often become a bit lax so far out here, you know how it is."

Folken thought of Zaibach, where discipline was life and no soldier would dare say "yeah" to his commanding officer (Dilandau excluded). "No," he said, "I cannot say I do."

Allen coughed. "Pardon me, then."

Folken looked to Gatti. "You may go. Order the Gray Soldiers down. I want each party of ours to have at least several of Castelo's soldiers in it as guides. We can't have anyone getting lost out there."

"Yes sir!" Gatti saluted. "All right, Dragon Slayers, let's go!" The Dragon Slayers turned with uniform precision, and filed out of the room.

Allen watched them go. "They're all very young to be serving in the army," he commented.

"Perhaps." Folken glanced at Allen. "They are Dilandau's men. Do not be so quick to underestimate them. They are the finest guymelef pilots in our country."

"I ask your forgiveness again, Strategos." Still, under his breath, Allen murmured, "but they're just children!"

Children they may be, Folken thought, but I dare say they are not the cherub-faced innocents whom that word usually describes. Surely there is a better one to fit them. They are young, for certain, but children? They sacrificed their childhoods for the swords they wear now, and have no regrets about it. He looked again to the wall where he had seen Van standing. His little brother was gone. I have to find him. Allen raised his arm, and a snowy-feathered owl fluttered down to grip his forearm in its talons. He smoothed the owl's feathers, speaking to it softly. Folken watched with interest; the bird actually gave off the impression that it was listening to Allen's words. Allen finished, and he threw his arm up; the owl took flight and sailed out the wide, open doors.

"You can speak to the very animals of the forest, Sir Allen?" Folken questioned. Allen smiled.

"Hardly. Natal has been with me for a very long time now, and we have developed a certain understanding of each other. I sent him out to look for Commander Albatou. Of course," and Allen shrugged, "he may return with a dead mouse, but he certainly can't hurt anything."

"No, he will not," Folken agreed, only half-listening. Where had Van gone? Folken gave the wall a cursory scan. More than one door led out of the room. Van had probably exited through one of those; Folken seriously doubted that his little brother would join in the search for Dilandau.

"We should oversee the search," Allen told him. Folken shook his head slightly.

"They can handle a simple search on their own." Allen, it seemed, did not share in those sentiments.

"Perhaps, but I feel I should be out there with them. I am in charge of Castelo and its surrounding lands. If you will, Strategos." Allen motioned for Folken to join him, and started for the large doors. Folken fell into step just behind the knight, and, in the chaos in the doorway of many people trying to pass through one place, Folken slipped out into the hallway.

Castelo was not nearly as large as the Vione fortress, and its hallways and rooms were easily and sensibly laid out. Though Folken did not know his way, he did not feel lost, as many did on the Vione, and he could have retraced his steps back outside with no problems. With typical Asturian style, walkways wrapped around the outside of the building, and large windows or skylights kept Castelo's inhabitants in areas lit by the sun more than those lit by torches or lamps. The sunlight turned the polished wood a dazzling gold. Folken imagined that this place must be quite beautiful at sunset. Its cheerfulness and serenity were qualities he had not expected to find at a military establishment, though he supposed that its remoteness added a great deal to its calm.

He directed his steps toward the highest-ceilinged of the buildings. This, surely, was where the guymelefs were stored. The Escaflowne would be in here, if anywhere. Wherever the Escaflowne was, Van was certain to be close by, and with everyone out in the forests searching for Dilandau, none would disturb them.

Folken pushed open the door. Yes, he had been correct. It was cooler and darker in here, the light coming from windows high up in the walls and the ceiling. Dust motes swirled and danced silently on the sunbeams. It was quiet in here, very quiet. The walls muffled the sounds from the outside so that even his own soft footsteps sounded loud. Castelo's guymelefs sat in rows along the walls; stocky, hardy, heavily armored machines used by the common soldiers that could stand up to rough and unsophisticated handling. Two of the guymelefs, though, stood out as different from the rest. One Folken recognized as the traditional guymelef of Asturia's Knights Caeli- lightly armored, gray in color, with a golden crest on its forehead and a thin, elegant blade. This, no doubt, belonged to Sir Allen Schezar. It was old, but extremely well taken care of, so that it was almost like new. It was probably an heirloom of some kind; Folken didn't know whether these units were handed down through the family in hopes that a son would follow in his father's footsteps, or if they were handed down through the Heavenly Knights themselves.

The other guymelef was, of course, the Escaflowne. Folken stopped at the base of the stairs that led up to it, and a sense of wonderment filled him. He had never actually laid eyes upon Fanelia's protector god before, though he still knew the stories of it by rote. The Escaflowne was to have been his, had he not failed to slay the dragon. Now Van was its pilot. He felt no resentment toward his brother. It was better, Folken thought, that such a good and holy thing should belong to Van, whose heart was still innocent and pure. His own black heart would probably have corrupted it unforgivably.

"What are you doing in here?" a voice behind him demanded. "I don't think you'll find your missing soldier in here." Van. His voice had changed with his age, but Folken still recognized it. He kept his eyes on the Escaflowne.

"This is a beautiful guymelef," Folken commented. Behind him, Van shrugged.

"It's all right." Trying to conceal its worth from him? He must have figured out that Zaibach hunted him.

"Surely you underestimate its value," Folken continued. "This must be an Ispano guymelef. I have never seen its like before."

"It's old," Van told him. Folken suppressed a smile. Old understated the Escaflowne's age considerably. Ancient would hardly begin to describe it.

"Does this guymelef belong to you?" Folken asked, ascending the stairs calmly, the sword concealed beneath his cloak slapping his leg as he climbed.

"It's-" Van cut off his sentence abruptly. "What are you doing? Hey, you! Get down from there!"

"I will not damage your guymelef," Folken assured him. "I merely want a closer look at such a splendid machine."

"Like hell you do!" Van growled. He dashed up the stairs, and as Folken reached the top platform he darted around to plant himself between the Escaflowne and the Strategos.

Folken chuckled. Van was still as stubborn and quick to overreact as he had always been. "I told you that I would not harm your guymelef. Why are you so hasty to assume that my word is worthless?" he questioned.

"Because you serve Zaibach," Van told him, his eyes gleaming with protective defiance.

"And you assume that every citizen of Zaibach is a liar? What evidence do you make this judgment upon?" Van said nothing. Folken tilted his head to the side. "Does this magnificent guymelef have a name?" he asked. Still Van would not answer him. Folken smiled. "Could this be the legendary white dragon god, Escaflowne?"

Van's eyes widened in surprise, and he gasped. His expression quickly changed to a frown. "You're a damn liar," he told Folken. "You're not missing a soldier. You're the ones who destroyed Fanelia, and you came here looking for the Escaflowne!"

Folken drew his sword enough to slit open his finger upon the blade, then pushed it back into the sheath. "I'm afraid that's not entirely true." He stepped up to the Escaflowne. "Commander Albatou is, in fact, missing. We do not know exactly how he vanished, or where he is. In this regard, I am no liar." He lifted his hand to the Escaflowne's heart-stone. The pink crystal was as smooth as still water beneath his palm. A high, ringing noise filled the air; the stone glowed briefly, and the Escaflowne's cockpit opened.

Van's jaw dropped. "How did you do that?" he demanded, a hand going to the hilt of his sword. "Only a member of the Fanelian royal family can open the Escaflowne! Who are you?"

Folken lowered his hand and turned to Van. "Who do you think I am? Think back. You know me, Van Slanzar de Fanel."

Van's brow furrowed. "How do you know my name?"

"Think," Folken told him simply, "and remember one who once loved you."

Van stared at him. "No," he whispered, "it can't be. You can't be. You're dead."

"Dead? Do think your eyes deceive you? Here I stand before you. Touch me, I am real. Who do you think I am?" Folken repeated. Van dropped his arms to his sides.

"Brother?" Van asked softly. Folken nodded once, slowly.


"Allen!" Hitomi hissed, running up behind the Knight and tugging on his sleeve. "Allen, I have to talk to you!"

"Hitomi!" Allen caught her arm and pulled her into the shadows around the side of the building, away from the soldiers milling about and dividing themselves up. "What are you doing out here? What if they see you?"

"I'm sorry!" Hitomi clutched at Allen's sleeves. "Allen, they're the ones who attacked Fanelia! I'm absolutely positive! Those are the same blue giants!"

Allen frowned. "Ah, I was afraid of that. I wonder what their reason for attacking Fanelia was? Do you know?"

Hitomi looked to the guymelef storehouse. "They want the Escaflowne. They came looking for it. That's why they're here! They're looking for it! They know it's here!"

Allen thought a moment. "I don't doubt you if you say that you saw them in Fanelia, Hitomi, but I'm not certain that they're looking for the Escaflowne. The Strategos seemed quite serious that one of their soldiers had gone missing. They're all out in the woods right now, going away from the Escaflowne to look for him."

"It's a trick!" Hitomi insisted. Allen continued to turn the matter over in his head.

"You said that a strange pillar of light brought you from Fanelia. How would they have tracked you here? And besides, if they were looking for the Escaflowne, they would have prepared an excuse to get inside the guymelef storehouse." Allen seemed comforted by his conclusions. "I'm certain that this Commander Albatou really has gone missing."

Hitomi did not share in his sentiments, her eyes wide and worried. "How can you be sure?"

Allen smiled comfortingly. "You don't need to worry. I won't hand you over to Zaibach. You are a refugee from an attacked country, and it is my duty as a Knight- as a man, even," he corrected himself, "to ensure your safety. We just have to be careful. We don't want to do anything that might endanger our alliance with Zaibach. That will definitely put you and Van in danger. You understand, yes?" He smoothed Hitomi's hair with a gloved hand. "Now, go back inside and keep out of sight until they're gone." Hitomi seemed disappointed and unsatisfied, but she nodded obediently and ran for the nearest door. Allen returned to the sunlight and the soldiers to direct the search, wondering mildly where the Strategos had gone off to.


"Brother? Folken?" Van stood staring at Folken dumbly. "It's really you?" Folken nodded again, pleased that Van had come to this revelation. But Van turned away from him. "No. You can't be my brother. My brother died fighting the dragon. He's dead." In a sense, Van was right. Folken of Fanelia had died. But the Strategos of Zaibach still loved his brother as much as Folken of Fanelia had.

Folken unfastened his cloak and let it fall to the floor behind him. H shrugged out of the sleeves of his uniform, and quietly unfolded his wings from his back. (Oh, he had not flown in so long!)

Van started as a white feather drifted past his face. He looked back to Folken in wonder. "You are Folken!" he gasped.

"Are you certain now?" Folken asked with amusement. He pulled in his wings with a final shower of feathers and pulled one sleeve up over his shoulder.

"I don't understand, Folken!" Van exclaimed. Folken began to wonder if he should have kept his identity concealed from Van. He had not wanted to see his little brother's face so full of pain and sorrow. "I always thought that you had died fighting the dragon! That you had faced it with courage and fought it until the very end! They all said, 'Folken is a coward! He ran away from the rite of dragon slaying!' But I told them, 'No! Folken will come back! You'll see!'" Folken smiled. Van had tried to stand up for his brother? "Why, Folken?" Van demanded. "Why are you working for Zaibach? Why?"

Folken chuckled in spite of himself. It was just so good to see his brother again! All these years he had fretted and worried constantly about Van. Was he well? Was he happy? Did he look forward to his own rite of dragon slaying and the prospects of the crown, or had Folken's failure made him afraid or nervous? And would Folken ever see him again?

"I don't think it's funny!" Van continued. "Why are you laughing? Why did you destroy Fanelia? Answer me! It's not funny! Stop laughing!"

Ah, but it was amusing, to see Van so full of questions as always. Folken stooped to retrieve his cloak from the floor.

"Fanelia was not meant to be destroyed. That it was is regrettable, but Dilandau has a tendency to jerk his leash out of the hand that holds it," Folken replied.

Van curled his hands into fists. "Regrettable? Just regrettable? You don't even care!"

But he did care. That was the problem. His associates in Zaibach thought him an emotionless machine, but that was not so. It was not that Folken Lacour de Fanel felt no emotions, but that he did not show them. Perhaps his face had remained passive as he watched the Fanelian cityscape slowly consumed by flames, but his heart still ached with the loss.

Folken threw his cloak around his shoulders and fastened the spade-shaped button. "You ask so many questions, Van. I do not believe I have the time to answer them all."

Van's hand went again to the hilt of his sword. In one reckless motion he had the blade out and raised, the edge pressed against Folken's neck.

"You will answer my questions!" Van growled. Folken watched him with curiosity.

"You would shed your own brother's blood with the royal sword of Fanelia?" he asked, knowing full well that Van would not. Van was not born to be the cold-blooded killer his older brother was. Van adjusted his grip on the sword shakily.

"Just start talking!" he ordered.

Folken shrugged, though he was acutely aware of the metal of the blade cold and heavy against his neck. "I want you to join me, Van," he said. He stopped, taken aback by his own words. He had not intended to say that! He had only fleetingly considered it before! Van knew that Zaibach had burned Fanelia, his pride would never allow him to join with the empire. But, what if he did? What if Folken could make him see? Then Van would willingly give them the Escaflowne, so that their ideal future would no longer be in jeopardy. If he could make Van see that Zaibach's plans were for the good of Gaea, to turn it into a utopia, an Arcadia, a perfect world...More than anything else, he wanted that perfect future for Van. If Van was to join with Zaibach, their plans would be all but secured. But oh, why did his words call such a look of betrayal to his brother's face?

"Join with you?" Van asked, disbelieving. "Why should I join with Zaibach? With the ones who murdered my country?"

Folken pushed the blade of the sword away from his neck with two fingers of his mechanical hand. "You must understand, Van, that what we do, we do for the good of all Gaea."

Van laughed hollowly. "The good of Gaea? How was destroying Fanelia for the good of Gaea?"

"Put away your sword, Van," Folken told him gently. Van reluctantly sheathed the weapon. "I'm afraid that you could not even begin to understand the workings of our plans. Much of it is confidential, and I could not reveal it to you even if you understood the things I would speak of. I can tell you this, though- we are working for the ideal future of Gaea."

Again, Van laughed. "There's a lot of different ideas about what an ideal future really is, Brother." Well. Perhaps Van was not so naïve as he had thought. But how to explain this so that Van would understand?

"Gaea is a world of the sword," Folken began. "We live by the sword. Conflicts are settled by the sword. Do you agree with me?"

"The sword," Van said stiffly, "or the flame." Folken flinched. "But I understand what you're getting at, so, yes, I agree with you on that."

"If Zaibach is successful-" and Folken's eyes went to the sword at Van's belt "-we will become a society in which you will never have to draw that sword again. Gaea will be a world of the book, where conflicts can be solved peacefully, if there are any at all. Don't you see? All the fighting will end."

Van was not buying into it. "How do you plan to achieve all that?" he asked. "By fighting? Fighting to end fighting, Brother?"

"I suppose so," Folken answered. Van snorted.

"You're not so wise as you seem. There is no such thing!"

"Why not?" Folken reached out and seized Van's arm in his mechanical hand. "Why can we not fight for an end to fighting? There are many battles in this world, and not all of them will be won with steel in your hands." Van looked away from Folken. Folken sighed. Van may not sway so easily after all. he was becoming an adult, and a warrior at that.

"Where is Balgus's little cat-girl?" he asked, hoping to change the subject to a lighter note. "Merle, that was her name, right? The two of you used to be inseparable."

Van looked up, and he glared Folken in the eye. "She was left behind in Fanelia," he replied, jerking his arm out of Folken's grip. The mechanical hand's nails inadvertently scratched five red lines on his skin. "She's probably dead."

Dead? No, probably not dead. Folken could not recall the corpse of a cat-girl among the dead he had seen in the ruins. Really, relatively few had lost their lives in the attack. But he could not be certain, and so he said, "I am sorry, Van."

"You're sorry?" Van turned his back to Folken again. "I don't believe you."


In the room that she had been given, Hitomi sat on her bed and twisted her hands together. Allen didn't believe her! All her instincts told her that Zaibach was looking for the Escaflowne, and she had found that her hunches were usually right. Moreover, she could feel that power inside her getting stronger ever since she had come to this world. Fortunately, she also felt that this lost soldier really was lost, and he seemed to be the top priority. If they found him here, they would take up their search for the Escaflowne again...but if he wasn't here, maybe they would leave, and she and Van would have a chance to escape. Allen had been so kind; she didn't want to put him in danger because of her.

Hitomi reached into the inside pocket of her blazer and took out her tarot cards. Maybe, if she could locate this Commander Albatou, she could solve all their problems at once. If he was not here, she could direct Zaibach away from Castelo. If he was near here, she could warn Van, and they could escape before the soldiers had time to collect themselves and return to their fortress.

Hitomi closed her eyes and focused on the description that the Zaibach Strategos had given them. Albino. Red eyes. White hair. She knelt on the floor, and one by one placed the cards into the familiar spread.

That done, Hitomi opened her eyes and studied the cards. That's odd, she thought. I've never come up with something like this before. These four...are parallels. The Emperor, The Empress. The Magician, The High Priestess. And in the center...The Sun and The Moon are crossed over each other. And here...service, compassion, trust, friendship...

Hitomi sat back on her heels. This was the hard part of tarot readings- trying to put the big picture together. It was easy enough to figure out the meaning of one card by itself, but that meaning always changed when the card was put in with the others. It was like doing a crossword puzzle- they all built on each other. These three...The Sun, The Emperor, The Magician...I think they're all one person. And these, The Moon, The Empress, The High Priestess...they're another person. Two parts of a whole...but the parts don't fit together? Two parts...of two separate wholes. I see. It's like yin and yang. They're opposites, they're going to conflict soon. But which one will win? Hitomi looked to the other four cards. Service, compassion, trust, friendship...how do these fit in? Oh, this isn't what I wanted at all! She looked over the cards again. Maybe this isn't two people? Maybe it's two sides of this Dilandau's personality? No, it really feels like it's two people.

So, which is him? Hitomi reached for the two cards crossed over each other in the center, The Sun and The Moon. The Sun is gold and fire and light. This is the masculine card. The Moon is silver and water and darkness. It's the feminine one. So, The Sun and the other two cards that go with it must be Commander Albatou. Maybe, if she focused on this card, it would tell her something. Her hand hovered over the card, with its image of a golden-haired child sitting astride a lion under a bright sky. Maybe...

Lightning flashed in Hitomi's mind as her fingers brushed the card, and images surfaced that only her eyes could see. The moon appeared in the sky, though it was the middle of the day, and it crossed over the sun in an eclipse, darkening the world. The lion, its fur a pure, snowy white, ran along the land as though pursued by something. The golden-haired child on its back, face in shadows, cried out and clung to it fiercely, fingers twisted through its curly mane. Two sets of beating paws joined in the flight, and a pair of wolves came up beside the lion. One bared its teeth and growled. The lion tried to dodge, but the wolf leapt at it, sinking sharp teeth into the lion. Down the lion went, and the two tumbled along the ground, flinging the child through the air to roll to a stop. The second wolf trotted to the child, and another shadowed figure jumped lightly from the wolf's back, and it reached a hand toward the child-

-and then the vision ended, leaving Hitomi out-of-breath and shaking. She didn't know what it meant, but part of it was clear enough, and this new feeling of dread that filled her only served to underline it. "Something is coming." That much was certain. She had to tell Van. Something was coming, something terrible, be it Zaibach, or some new foe that had yet to show itself. Hitomi gathered up her tarot cards hastily, shoved them back into her pocket, and dashed for the door. She had last seen Van headed for the guymelef storehouse, and he would probably stay there, guarding the Escaflowne, until the last Zaibach soldier had departed. She would probably find him there.


"Tell me about the young woman you were with, then," Folken suggested, trying to find a topic to continue the conversation. He feared that if he stopped talking, Van would take that opportunity to leave, perhaps forever.

"What makes you think that girl was with me?" Van asked defensively. "For all you know, she's Allen's new lover, and she happened to be standing by me when you looked over." Folken smiled.

"I draw that conclusion because you have not denied that she was with you; you only stated that there is a possibility that she is Sir Allen's companion and not yours." Van hmphed, his wind-tangled hair falling in his eyes.

"Who cares about her? She's just a girl."

"She's very odd-looking," Folken noted. "She's either a foreigner or a prostitute." That point concerned him greatly. Folken hoped with all his heart that his innocent little brother had not begun to find pleasure in that kind of company.

"She's a foreigner!" Van retorted immediately, and Folken was greatly relieved. "What kind of person do you think I am?"

"I do not know," Folken answered quietly. "You are not the same person I left behind in Fanelia ten years ago."

"Perhaps you should have thought of that before you decided to leave," Van countered. Folken sighed. Van didn't understand. He didn't understand at all.

"Van!" cried a high-pitched, female voice. "Van!" Folken glanced back over his shoulder. It was that odd young woman. She stopped running abruptly and clapped her hands over her mouth. She must have thought to find Van alone.

Van ducked around Folken and leaned over the railing. "What's wrong, Hitomi?" he called. Hitomi. So, that was the girl's name. Folken had never heard its like before.

She opened her mouth to reply, but cut off as the pink pendant around her neck began to glow. Folken stumbled back as the Escaflowne's heart-gem flared with rose-colored light. What was this? What was going on? The air nearly crackled with Destiny, like the charged atmosphere during a storm of thunder. A circle of white opened at the girl's feet, and a pillar of white light shot to the heavens. The girl began to rise. "Van!" she shrieked. Folken's eyes widened. This was not the Sorcerers' doing, he could feel it. Zaibach's machines had not created that pillar of light!

"Hitomi!" Van shouted, "Hitomi!"

The pillar of light dissolved, taking the girl away with it.

Van whirled on Folken. "What have you done?" he demanded. "Where did you take Hitomi?"

But Folken could only stare at the ceiling in shock. "I have done nothing," he answered softly. "Destiny is acting on its own accord."