By: Kin'iro Hi-Torii
Chapter Two
Chi moaned and stirred. One of her eyes opened. Her misty purple eye was very bloodshot. All she saw was what looked like tall grass. She shut her eyes again and told herself.
"That was all just a dream, I'm gonna wake up, and I will be in my backyard, waking up from a nap."
Chi snapped upright and quickly looked around. To her horror she wasn't in her backyard. All around her was waist high field grass and a bunch of trees in the distance. It was like she was in a field in the middle of a forest.
"Well… looks like I'm not in Tokyo anymore…" Chi mumbled. To her left there was what looked like a pink head of hair, crouching in the grass, turned away from her.
"Konnichiwa? (Hello?)" Chi said cautiously. The person that the hair belonged to gasped and jumped up and glared at Chi. Chi's eyes widened. This girl looked like a… cat! She had tan fur and pink hair on top of her head, as well as a tail.
Chi blinked in confusion.
"Who are you?!" The cat-girl said.
"Chikara Shikami…" Chi said quietly.
"Weird name!" The cat said. "I'm Merle… what are you looking at?!"
Chi had been staring wide-eyed and unblinking at Merle.
"You… I've never seen a cat humanoid before!" Chi said in a flat voice.
"You're weird!" Merle said, sticking up her nose.
"You're one to talk!" said Chi, getting defensive. Merle stuck out her tongue at Chi. Chi stuck her tongue out back and pulled down her eyelid. Merle was appalled. (That kind of gesture is equivalent to flipping someone off)
"Merle! Who are you talking to?" came a strong male voice.
"VAN-SAMA!" Merle threw her arms around the man who had just approached. He looked about seventeen or eighteen years of age. He had a head of messy raven black hair and dark red eyes. He wore a red shirt and a pair of beige pants. His name was Van, obviously, and a sword hung around his waist.
"Who were you talking to Merle?" Van repeated.
"Me!" said Chi as she stood up. She brushed off her red and white school sailor uniform and pushed some of her waist length ebony hair out of her face. Merle hissed and her tail tensed.
"Who are you?" Van asked.
"Her name is Chikara… Chikara Shikami!" Merle said, annoyed as she released Van from her death grip and faced Chi.
"But everyone calls me Chi…" Chi said flatly.
"Chikara Shikami… that's an interesting name… what does it mean?" Van asked thoughtfully.
"Death God of Force… and "Chi" means blood…"
Van finally caught on to what she was wearing.
"You're from the Mystic Moon!" Van gasped.
"The Mystic what?"
"The Mystic MOON! That there!" Van pointed to the sky behind Chi. She turned around and in the night sky hung the moon… and Earth…
"Oh you mean Earth? Yeah I suppose so…" Chi turned back around to face Van and Merle. They seemed to be shocked at how calm she was.
"When Hitomi came here she was really scared… you look like you could care less!" said Van. Chi shrugged.
"Well I guess I'm not Hitomi then, am I?"
"Don't talk to Van-sama like that!" Merle blew raspberry.
Chi pulled her hand back. "Don't talk to me like that…" She smacked Merle across her face. "WENCH!"
Merle was almost in tears as she clung to Van's shirt. "Van-sama!! Look at what she did! Van-samaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!!!!!!!!!"
A sweatdrop dripped down his forehead. "… Let's go home."
Merle's blue eyes widened in surprise. "NANI (WHAT)??"
"We'll work this out when we get home, alright, Merle?" Van slowly began to pry Merle off his shirt. "Come on; I can't walk with you attached to me."
Merle suddenly smiled. "Yeah you can!" And she swung herself onto his shoulders.
Another sweatdrop dripped down his head. "… Right."
Chi arched an eyebrow and watched them start to leave. "… Okay."
Van turned back to look at her with his red eyes. "You're coming, right?"
"I dunno, am I?"
Van began to scowl a bit. "… Well you can come if you want. So are you?"
Chi shrugged. "Why not?"
Merle hissed. "How dare you talk to Van-sama like that!"
"Well what makes him special anyway?"
"You should bow to what would've been a great king!!"
Chi's face scrunched up in confusion. "What?"
"Van-sama was destined to become a king!"
"… Wow… I guess."
"Wow you GUESS?? BOW DOWN TO VAN-SAMA!!!"
"No, I refuse." Chi began to walk with them. "Ya wanna go, you damn cat? I'll take you down!"
Merle was about to pounce on Chi but Van stopped her. "Knock it off, Merle. Save it for the village."
When they reached the village Chi's violet eyes widened. "… Small village."
"COZY village!" Merle corrected her, glaring at Chi. "Welcome to Adom."
"This is our home." Van told her. "We'll discuss you later and we'll see if we will let you stay."
Chi shrugged. "Okay. Whatever works."
Dilandau and the Dragon Cavalry were on the ledge of a cliff. Shesta's eyes widened and he threw his head back. His words were interspersed with gasping.
"Sir!… I'm sensing… the pre… sence… from the Mystic… Moon!"
Dilandau, the platinum haired youth, spoke. "What is it, Shesta?"
"The… the Messiah… of the Phoenix!" Shesta gasped.
"Messiah?" Dilandau arched a brow, pondering.
"Yes Sir!!… She… The Messiah… is within Adom village!"
"Adom village, eh?" He began stroking his cheek. "The Messiah of the Phoenix, straight from the Mystic Moon! They say she can call upon the powers of Phoenix... and she can summon the Dragon Armor… Escaflowne!" He babbled.
"Yes. They say she is indeed a powerful person-" Gret braced himself as he felt the sheathed sword smack him upside his head.
"I KNOW!!" Dilandau screeched down at the cowering man with chin length brown hair. "Don't babble, Gret!"
"But you-" Gret got smacked again.
"Don't condescend to me!" Dilandau barked warningly.
"Yes… Sir…"
"Alright! Minna (everyone), we ride to Adom village!" Dilandau's red eyes gleamed happily as he held his now unsheathed sword in the air. The Dragon Cavalry held their swords up as well and they all turned to go to Adom.
Chi felt a strange feeling, pounding in the back of mind. "How weird…"
"What now?" Merle sneered at her.
"Back off, wench! It's nothing…"
Merle rolled her blue eyes. There was a knock upon the door and Van entered. "VAN-SAMA!!!!!!!!!!" She glomped onto him.
Yet another sweatdrop floated upon his head. "Chi, I've discussed you with the elders. You may stay."
Chi shrugged. "Okay."
"Ohhhh! Van-sama, can't we escort her to another village? Somewhere? Anywhere? Other than here?" Merle whined.
"No, Merle. Unless," Van told her, "Chi wants to go somewhere else?" He looked at her with questioning eyes.
"Where would I go?" Chi asked.
"Point taken." Van tried to pry Merle off of him again. "Chi will stay then. Okay, Merle?"
"Noooooooo…" Merle whined sadly.
Dilandau sat upon his horse, looking down at Adom from the rim of the gorge, his five Dragon Cavalry behind him. "There it is… we'll find that Messiah… and she will bring Escaflowne to me!" He began to cackle psychotically. He turned to Shesta with a smirk on his face. "What does she look like? Tell me, Shesta."
Shesta once again flung his head back and began his half-crazed gasping. "… She is… dressed in white… and red… with ebony hair… that… that flows to her waist… and deep purple… misty purple… eyes. Her skin… is pale… no… of average tone…"
"Anything else?"
"… Yes… she will have… a tattoo… the Phoenix… upon her hip."
"Her hip, eh?" His smirk grew wider. "Alright… that'll be enough." He turned to the rest of the Dragon Cavalry. "CHARGE!!!!!!!!!" He drew his sword and kicked his horse. "HIYAH!!!!!!!!" The rest of Dragon Cavalry mimicked him and followed his lead down the gorge.
Chi suddenly doubled over in pain. She clutched at her head. "OW! DAMMIT!"
Van stood over her, worried. "Chi! What's wrong?"
"My head… it hurts!!" She moaned. Her misty purple eyes widened. "Some one is coming!"
"Who? Friend of foe?"
"I don't know!" She ran out of the tent she was in and looked up the gorge. She saw several armored men riding upon horses; their swords brandished, charging down the gorge. "VAN!! WE'RE UNDER ATTACK!!"
Van sprinted out of the tent and unsheathed his sword. "Fuck!" He muttered under his breath. "Merle! Take the villagers and hide them in the forest! Take Chi with you!"
Chi protested. "NO!"
Van stared at her with wide red eyes. "What??"
"Just give me a sword and I'll show you what I can do!" She boasted. "I'll kick some sweet ass!"
Van tossed her a sword, looking skeptical. "… Alright."
Chi laughed. "What the Hell are you worried about? I take kendo."
The Dragon Cavalry galloped through Adom village with their swords brandished high, Dilandau taking the lead. Ryuon took his sword down upon a little girl of about six years, digging his blade into her side.
Chi and Van saw it all, their mouths dropped in shock. "Damn you!" Chi screamed and she took out her own sword.
Dilandau's attention turned to Chi and his smile broadened. "There you are… my Messiah!" He began to charge at her.
In the darkness, a great bird stirs
A fateful meeting between two
Chosen Ones is soon to occur…
Right as he was about to run into her, Chi fell back and dug the hilt of the sword into the ground. The sharp blade penetrated the horse's chest, and Dilandau went flying as the horse flipped over Chi. Dilandau hit the ground and rolled twice. His face held a dazed expression.
Chi took her sword out of the beast she had slain and pointed the bloodied blade at the platinum-haired man before her. "You got a bone to pick with someone? Don't you fuckin' take it out on a little girl, you baby-killing bastard!"
Dilandau slowly regained composure. "I… didn't do it… you ditz."
Chi glared at him. "I ain't no ditz, baby killer!"
"I ain't no baby killer!"
Chi and Dilandau carried on their verbal argument, paying no heed to Gret as he took down a village man and Gimel as he brought another one to the earthen floor.
Van pushed Chi aside and pointed his blade at Dilandau. "YOU again? What do you want?"
Chi pushed Van back. "Excuse me, I was having an argument here!"
"The argument can wait!" Van replied.
Dilandau laughed sinisterly. "Yes… we can bicker when we get home, Messiah!"
"Why do you keep calling me Messiah??" Chi snapped.
Van ignored their arguing. "What do you want? Make it quick and get out of here!"
"You're looking at her!" Dilandau pointed at Chi rudely.
"Ok I know I'm sexy but that doesn't mean you have to kill innocent villagers to have me!" Chi said cockily.
Dilandau stared at her with a screwed up face. Van looked at her blankly.
"What?" Chi shrugged.
"I don't want you like that." Dilandau stated.
"Oh, you know you do."
"How about not."
"You wanna roll in the hay with me. You know it! But you can't have me. I'm too God damn sexy for ya!"
Van screamed out in frustration. "Enough of your babbling!" He shot an energy wave at Dilandau, but he managed to block it in time.
"WHOA NOW!" Chi jumped back in surprise. She stared with wide eyes as Van and Dilandau continued to chuck energy waves at each other.
"WHAT DO YOU WANT????????" Van yelled at Dilandau.
"I WANT THE MESSIAH!!!!!!!" Dilandau replied.
"BUT
I'M TOO SEXY!!!!" Chi screamed out at him.
Dilandau charged his sword at Van, and their battle became a sword fight. Dilandau laughed triumphantly as his sword sliced over Van's chest. "HAHAH!"
Van stumbled to the ground. "… Damn you…"
Dilandau continued to laugh maniacally. "DIE!!!!!" He raised his sword, about to end Van's life.
"No!" Chi leapt in front of Van. "Back off, monkey boy!"
Dilandau stopped in his tracks. "Monkey boy?"
Their swords clash,
The Phoenix wakes
It's feathers furl
To their hearts it takes
Chi raised her sword and tried to cut open his chest, but their two swords met. Dilandau was surprised at how strong she was.
"Heheh, for a dinky lady you are strong!"
"FUCK OFF!!!!!!" Chi screamed. "I don't need any of your gentlemen-like calling-me-a-lady bull shit!"
"Look, I will spare this village if you come with me… and keep your mouth shut."
"No. You will spare the village and IT'S CHILDREN if I come with you and scream at your monkey boy face!"
Dilandau smirked. "Fine… bitch. But first I must see if your are the true Messiah in all traits." He suddenly flicked up her skirt, revealing the Phoenix tattoo etched on her hip.
"PERVERT!!!!!!!!" She slapped him. Dilandau only smiled and proceeded to fling her body over his shoulder. "LET ME GO! LET ME GO!!!!!!" Chi's fists pounded on his back, but he paid no heed to it.
"You hit like a girl." He commented dryly. He looked down at Van. "She is the true Messiah. This is what we came for. We got her, so we're leaving now."
Van looked up at him with hate-filled eyes. "Bastard… don't come back ever again!"
Chi glared at him. "What you don't care about me anymore?"
"Do you want to go with him?"
"I don't care."
"Then go. But realize we are now enemies."
"I love you, too, Van." She rolled her eyes.
Dilandau began to walk away. "Right. We're leaving now."
"Damn monkey boy." Chi muttered. "Sayonara (Goodbye)…"
Dilandau hopped up onto a horse that stood before them, who must've escaped the stables. He flung Chi onto the horse. "Ow! Fuck you!"
"Yeah, yeah. I don't wanna hear it." Dilandau snapped down at her. Before he left he turned to look at Van, who now had Merle attached to him. "And by the way, I WILL be seeing you soon. That's a promise. HIYAH!" He kicked the horse and along with Chi and the Dragon Cavalry he rode off.
To be continued…