Finally a version I was pleased with... Enjoy!
The last several days were the longest for the young king of Fanelia. Ever since he returned from in Asturia with his brother and two leopard-women the events around him started to get frustrating and suffocating.
The crowd in the Asturian palace was too much for him and in those times he would just pull back, go to the windmill where Escaflowne was being kept and just lie there with his eyes observing the larger of two moons high in the sky.
In those times he appreciated the solitude that helped him to think things through better, but even then someone would take the trouble to climb all the way up to bother him with a bunch of unimportant matters. Usually it would be Merle.
"Lord Van, how long do you think this war would last?" she asked the question no one knew the answer to so Van remained silent. He loved his adoptive sister, his childhood friend, but at that moment he wanted to be alone. Merle didn't recognize that, or even if she did she didn't leave him alone with his thoughts, she pressed the matter even further "I was talking to Marissa the other day about the reconstruction of Fanelia. She is positive her father would help so Fanelia would be finished sooner. And you know why?"
"So that the wedding could be help sooner?" Van asked with absolutely no enthusiasm.
Not that it mattered cause Merle had enough for both of them "Exactly!"
"Merle, you do understand we could lose this war?" Van was utterly serious.
"I have faith in you lord Van. And not that the alliance meeting is being organized-"
"It's not as simple as that Merle!" Van was losing patience "And even if we do win only Gods know what would happen to Gaea."
"What would happen?" the neko looked at him "Don't tell me you are worried cause of that prediction we find about on Atlantis lord Van. We have no prove it could happen anyway! I mean the whole world being destroyed because two people didn't get married. It's just ridiculous."
"And what if it is true?" the young king finally said what bothered him the most. It wasn't the fighting or killing, it wasn't getting hurt or being killed "What if Gaea is really facing destruction because-"
Merle was inpatient so she interrupted him before he managed to say the most important part "Maybe they were never meant to be lord Van! I mean, all of Gaea is in war and there is no sign of those two. We don't even know they existed. It could have been a simple story."
"They existed Merle!" Van said sternly "They were real, both Ren and Elora. Ren was my grandfather Merle! I saw him when the pillars took Allen, Hitomi and me away. All three of us saw the past that binds us together."
"I get the father of the knight and your grandfather part of the past. But what does Hitomi got to do with anything? I thought she was taken away because of being a seer."
"A seer from the Mystic Moon, Merle. From the same place Elora once came to Fanelia." Van's voice was sad.
"Hitomi is-"
"Elora's granddaughter." Van said and Merle snorted.
"They love was described like everlasting and yet Elora married someone else." The neko said coldly.
Van could clearly see the change in her and it made him sad. Never before would she take things for granted or make fun of the serious matter like this one. But she did have a point.
"She loved Ren." He finally said "I know she did. I saw it."
"Maybe she did, but that's all past now. You have Marissa now lord Van. You already like her. I mean you kissed her."
Van remained silent. He was aware Merle said the true and there was nothing he could do about it. That's just exactly what Millerna told him when he talked to them after his return from Fanelia. The queen of Asturia was clearly inpatient when it came to the wedding between Van and her old friend. She had already chose a gift for them and her personal seamstress had started to work on Marissa's dress for the reception after the ceremony.
"She's gone now anyway…" Van whispered.
Sudden shaking of the levi-ship brought Van out of his thoughts. He stood up from his place at the guymelef bench and headed towards Crusade's bridge. They were currently on their way to Lampart where the meeting of the alliance forces was to be held. Young king stood next to the window and looked outside towards the island they were approaching.
Allen looked at him and shook his head. The seemingly calm king was a storm ready to happen. The words Van said after returning from the futile trip to Fanelia. When he told them Hitomi returned to her home Allen knew that would reflect on their position in the war sooner or later.
Many ships including Crusade started to descend towards the landing planes when a dark object high in the sky appeared from nowhere. No one had the time to consider what was going on and what the thing in the sky is when many smaller objects started to fly towards the island.
"Zeibach guymelefs!" a shout echoed through the solders based on Lampart and they ran to the guymelef hangars and in the weaponry. But in was all for nothing. Enemy guymelefs became invisible as soon as they landed and right away began to destroy everything around them.
High in the sky both Van and Allen were running in the hangar to their own guymelefs in hope they would be able to prevent the completely destruction of the island post. The dragon flies out of the levi-ship first, something that didn't escaped a solder in one of the invisible guymelefs. He lifts his arm and fires at Escaflowne as soon as it landed and changed the mode.
Van managed to block the crima-claw but the next attack made him step back. Loud laughter reached his ears and the voice he get to know quite well "We finally meet again Van! But this time I will defeat you! This time you will BURN!"
Young king stepped back under the pressure of Dilandau's attacks and for the first time since the destruction of Fanelia he felt something he hoped he would never feel-fear. Fear for his life and for the future. Fear he would never see his homeland in its full glory or be able to be an actual king.
The crima-claw was inches away from the visor and Van had to collect all his strength to push his attacker away before striking himself. It seemed like the albino general became better since their last encounter. Van's attacks were either too weak to harm Dilandau in any way or is some cases he would completely miss his invisible enemy.
Allen joined him very soon and helped him fight the red guymelef. The Ceali knight was far more successful then the young king. His attacks were hitting the mark. At one point Dilandau even pulled back only to attack again.
At the same time Van helped the Lampart solders to fight back the guymelefs that were no only killing the men but destroyed the buildings at the same time. They were visible so he had no trouble. But that was exactly what bothered him. He was blind. Completely blind and unable to defend himself.
The fires were extinguished and the enemy left after almost razed the post. There was no way for the summit to be in the ruins that remained after Zeibach's guymelefs returned in the flying fortress that soon after that disappeared. They would have to change of the location.
Once more onboard of Crusade, sitting alone in hangar Van closed his eyes and whispered the words he knew were true but so damn painful at the same time "Face it Van, you need her…"
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