THE GALLANT SWORSMAN
Was it all just a dream? Or maybe a vision? No, it was real. The cards told me that it was going to happen! I found myself transported to the strange world of Gaia where the Earth and the Moon hang in the sky. Then the attack came.I remember the choking heat and watching the kingdom of Fanelia burn! I was once again wrapped in the bright light and sent into the heavens with that strange boy.
"Judging from the stars, this is definitely Gaia! Where's that girl?" Van said, hopping onto the ground after Escaflowne landed from the light. "Sent somewhere else, maybe." "Oh no! What am I going to do? I'm stuck out here all alone!" Hitomi cried. She pulled out her pendant and held it out in front of her by the chain. "Oh please, tell which way to go! I don't want to be lost anymore!" she begged the stone. She closed her eyes, trying to get the spirits to tell her where to go. The stone began to move slightly, but then something grabbed Hitomi's arm. She gasped when she found a strange looking man laughing at her. Hitomi screamed when she was pinned to the ground by this man and luckily, Van wasn't very far away to hear her scream. "NO! Don't touch me! No please!!" she begged, but he held up her right arm, the stone falling from her hand. He laughed again, admiring the pendant. Suddenly, he heard a screech and a white owl began to scratch at his face. "Hey! Get off me! That hurts! Get lost!" the man shouted, waving the bird away. The owl flew away into a nearby tree, but then the man looked up an saw a familiar figure in front of him. "So we meet again. Seems you've grown tired of petty thievery and prefer attacking little girls. Oh dear," the figure said, tightening his gloves. "A.Allen!!" the man screamed. The knight ran forward and punched the man in the jaw, sending the mole-man flying a few feet away. Hitomi couldn't believe her eyes and stared at her savior. The owl landed on his shoulder. "You're not hurt, are you?" he asked her. "Young lady, what are you doing out here all alone?" he asked sweetly, taking her hand. "I bet there's a story behind it." Hitomi wasn't sure if she was seeing things or not, but she couldn't believe her eyes. One glance at the handsome knight and Hitomi saw her love back home. "Amano! It's really you!" Hitomi cried, falling into the knight's arms. "I thought I was never going to see you again! I was so frightened!" Overwhelmed with the events that just happened, Hitomi passed out cold in his arms. "Amano?" the man questioned. "Hitomi!" Allen looked forward and saw Van racing towards them. "What did you do to that girl? I'm gonna kill you!" "Making rash threats is never a good a idea," Allen replied, picking up Hitomi. Van began to pull out his sword. "Don't draw! Draw that sword and it will be you who will die! It is my duty as a knight to answer steel with steel. I don't draw to play childish games." Van smiled and didn't heed the warning, completely pulling out his sword. He placed Hitomi on the ground softly, then faced the king of Fanelia, drawing his sword, ready for battle. Van charged at Allen, throwing his sword out towards Allen's head, but the knight simply stepped to the side. Van slashed from behind and Allen back- flipped out of the way. "You've got some talent, but.!" Allen began, charging at Van. He struck Van in the stomach and Van collapsed to the ground, coughing up some fluids. ".You don't charge aggressively enough!" he finished. He put away his sword and took Van's. "Too bad, it would be a shame to kill you. So I struck you with the back of my sword," Allen said, examining the weapon, recognizing the Crest of Fanelia on the hilt. Only the king would use that type of sword. "Allen! What just happened?" A young woman with teal hair tied back to her left in a big braid walked forward violet armor and black robes. "What is the meaning of this?" "It's nothing, Lybra. Help me out here," Allen said, picking up Hitomi again. "We'll be taking the two back to the castle." "Where are they from?" Lybra asked. Allen tossed her Van's sword, Lybra catching it by the hilt. She examined the hilt and saw the crest. "They're from Fanelia. Survivors probably." "Bring the king to the castle," Allen ordered. "Yes sir," she replied. She knelt down to the king and went to pick him up, but upon touching him, she felt a strange aura from him. What the hell?! What is this?! There's something about this boy! Something.cold. "Lybra! Come on!!" Allen shouted, snapping Lybra out of her trance. She lifted Van from the ground and followed Allen to the castle.
**********
"What are these two doing here? So am I to understand that you let those Samurai damage TWO of my units?!" Dilandau shouted. "F.Forgive us," his soldiers begged. "Step forward!" he demanded. The two commanders did as they were told and as soon as they stepped forward, Dilandau's hand swiftly flew across their faces, sending them to the floor. "You had stealth cloaks! How could you let this happen? Are you trying to ruin my name?!" "F.Forgive us," they begged again. "I'm only going to say this once! I won't tolerate incompetence in my dragon slayers! Do you understand?" "Yes sir," they replied. Dilandau smiled and left the throne room. Now that Lybra's gone, I must turn to my own soldiers for pleasure. "Dilandau." The boy turned to Folken, who was glaring at him. "Come with me. Your presence is required at the main chamber." "What are you going to do? Lecture me about Lybra's betrayal?" "Lybra's leaving saved us all a lot of trouble. She has taken a major weight off the Zaibach Empire," Folken replied. "Are you done yet?" Dilandau asked. "Dilandau, there was no reason to burn Fanelia to the ground. I would like to see the stealth cloaks used more effectively." Dilandau growled. "I never in my life thought I would ever hear that from you, Folken! Not from the man who betrayed Fanelia!" Dilandau said. "An amateur like you has no business telling me how to fight a battle!" he said as they entered a dark room. Three pedestals raised from the ground as Folken stepped forward. "What is this room used for, anyway?" "That's right, it's your first time here," Folken said. Suddenly, a large screen flashed on, showing a large old face. "What? Emperor Dornkirk!!" Dilandau gasped, going to his knees. "Folken, it still remains. The dragon still casts its shadow over the Zaibach Empire's future! The dragon has fled Fanelia. Capture it at all costs!" "Of course," Folken replied. "We'll do just as your majesty wishes." "And.there is one other matter. That pillar of light, which my Destiny Prognostication Engine failed to predict! I sense the stirrings of a new power. Capture it! We must remove the unknown element! The dragon can be found on the frontier of Asturia. You must capture it. Capture it so we may re-awaken the legendary power of Atlantis!" Emperor Dornkirk ordered. "And what of Lybra?" Dilandau questioned. "Let her be. She will prove worthy to us eventually. Her destiny is close at hand and it will help bring us to victory." The image of the Zaibach Emperor disappeared.
**********
"You're awake," Allen said as Hitomi woke up from her wonderful dream. She gasped and glanced around, noticing she was surrounded by others. They seemed to be allies of Allen, but she began to tremble after hearing their shrewd comments to her. "All right, that's enough you guys! Waking up to ugly faces like yours is bad enough." Hitomi glanced out the window, gazing at the Mystic Moon. "I guess I didn't get back after all." "What's the matter? It's alright little princess, you can tell me. I am a knight of Asturia, Allen Schezar." Hitomi glanced at him. "And you are a guest in this castle. As its commander I will protect you. It is my duty as a knight.no, as a man to make sure you are safe," he proclaimed. "Man, how can he spout all of that with a straight face?" one of the soldiers asked. "Sir! The boy is finally awake," one of the soldiers from the other room said. "Show him in," Allen ordered. They shoved Van into the room. "Van!" Hitomi shouted. Allen simply smiled while Van glared at the knight.
"You came from the Mystic Moon? Are you're saying you're one of the Mystic Moon's inhabitants?" Allen questioned Hitomi. "Yes, it's just like we've explained a dozen times," Van sighed annoyingly. "OK then," Allen began, grabbing Van's sword, showing them the crest. "If the king of Fanelia says so. I suppose I must believe it." He glanced at Hitomi, even more curious about her than before. "What's your name?" Hitomi gasped. "Hitomi, sir. Hitomi Kanzaki." "Hitomi.it has a pleasant ring to it," Allen complimented, causing Hitomi to blush. Van stepped forward, ready to get down to business. "Allen, I apologize for entering your country without permission. So give me back my Escaflowne!!!" he demanded. "And what will you do with your Guymelef?" Allen questioned. "Return to Fanelia. I was sent here against my will in the middle of a fight against an unknown enemy." Allen sighed softly. "It's too late. Fanelia's been completely destroyed. Everything was burned to the ground," he finally admitted. "You're lying!!" Van shouted. "I'm not lying. Some of my country's merchants saw it happen," he replied harshly. "I'm sorry Van Fanel. I know it must be a hard time for you. But don't be upset, you're not the first one who entered Asturia without permission." "Fanelia.it's destroyed?" Van asked. They suddenly heard a rumble. "A Zaibach Empire floating fortress!" Allen pointed out. Suddenly, about six Guymelefs fell from the sky, five blue and one red. "Those are the giants that attacked Fanelia!!" Hitomi cried.
"We request weapons, food, and water. We are engaged in urgent military maneuvers," Dilandau explained to Allen. "Of course, we will do all in our power," Allen replied. He suddenly noticed Van pushing his way through the crowd to hear what Dilandau had to say up close and personal. "By the way, sir Allen, you haven't seen a strange Guymelef around here, have you?" Dilandau asked. A Guymelef? Is he talking about the Escaflowne or the Jemineye? "No, not that I know of," he replied. "The Guymelef wouldn't have anything to do requiring the maneuvers of a floating fortress, wouldn't it? Would it have anything to do with Fanelia being attacked?" Allen interrogated. "What? That run-down little country? Maybe it's leaders were eaten by the dragons that seem to wander around that valley. It's such a fitting end for such a backwards little country," Dilandau said. Van and Hitomi gasped and Van reached for his sword. "And the country was full of cowards, led by a king who went into hiding." "Becoming invisible during a battle is cowardly!" Van exclaimed. Dilandau faced him and walked towards Van, pushing him out of the way, facing Hitomi. "I've never seen clothing like yours before. Where are you from little girl?" Dilandau snapped. Hitomi trembled and couldn't find any words to respond to him. His blood-red eyes burned through her. Allen smiled and walked to Hitomi, preparing for a response Dilandau will never forget. "So you've noticed. I found her in the east and her name is Hitomi," he said, kissing her on the cheek. Dilandau growled watching such a pitiful display. "She's simply beautiful. Well, wouldn't you agree?" "Allen, that was totally uncalled for!" Dilandau glanced behind him and faced a woman with teal hair down to her waist and in violet armor. She glared at him with her obsidian eyes. "Well, well, well. I thought I'd never see your sorry face ever again!" Dilandau laughed. "Lybra Daemon, my favorite person to torture. Ever since you left, I've been reduced to attack my own soldiers. Why did you leave? Don't you like me anymore?" Dilandau mocked. Lybra was disgusted. Nobody outside of the Zaibach Empire-even within the empire-knew of the unpleasant tortures Dilandau applied to her. "I'm no longer under your command, so you can't torture me any longer. Unless you want to embarrass yourself in front of all these Samurai and give yourself a worse name than what's you've already earned yourself," Lybra replied. "Well? Which example are you going to set?" Dilandau was silenced. She was correct about not torturing her anymore, but that wouldn't stop him. Before turning back to Allen, he whispered harshly into her ears. "You're not escaping that easily, Lybra. Mock my words, I haven't even begun my tortures." Lybra growled before he walked back to his troops. "You live up to your reputation, Allen Schezar. I just hope you put as much effort into our provisions," Dilandau snapped. Allen's soldiers cheered Allen for his great performance for Dilandau, but Van couldn't help but stare at Lybra. What is up with that girl? And what is her relationship with that villain? "Well, we seemed to have through that all right, but I'm afraid I've given you a bad reputation in the Zaibach Empire, Hitomi," Allen said sweetly. Hitomi was in shock of what Allen did. Now she began to ponder about Allen being the angel in her dreams.
"Oh Allen." she sighed, completely forgetting that Van was sulking in the corner of the room. She felt something within her shirt and pulled out her tarot cards. "I forgot about my cards." She glanced at Van, hoping the cards could lighten him up. "Hey, don't sulk Van. Look, it's the Hermit!" she exclaimed, placing the card onto the floor along with a few other. "The cards are saying you have to be a little more patient." "What are those?" Van asked harshly. "They're tarot cards. They can tell you your fortune," Hitomi replied. "A bunch of cards cannot tell you your fortune," Van said bluntly. "I was only trying to take your mind off everything. Jeez, cheer up!" Hitomi snapped back, pulling out the LA MOTRE card. "The Death card!!"
She could suddenly see the figure of death from the card surround her. Once again she saw flames around a kingdom. It didn't seem like Fanelia though, but Hitomi couldn't tell since she didn't know her way around Gaia. She could see more Zaibach Guymelefs marching through the flames when the image of Dilandau came to her mind.
"Hitomi! Are you OK?!" Van shouted, shaking Hitomi out of her trance. They could hear something clash against the floor near them, and suddenly, a part of the ground collapsed. A funny looking man popped up, questioning where he dug. "AAAH! It's that thief again!!" Hitomi shouted.
"You're telling me they've disappeared?!" Allen questioned his sergeant. "I know where they went. Gaddess, prepare Scherizad." "It that really necessary?" Lybra questioned. "We can't let them leave. They'll be killed out there now that Zaibach is involved." "So you'll kill them now rater than later?" Lybra asked, her eyes narrowing. Allen stood up. "Perhaps it was your sharp tongue that gave you those scars," Allen said harshly before storming out of the room.
"That's why you attacked me?!" Hitomi asked the mole-man as he dug after learning that the mole-man admired Hitomi's pendant. "I thought I'd bring this bag to apologize," the man replied. Hitomi gripped her backpack tightly. The mole-man led them through the tunnels, eventually reaching a large room full of Guymelefs. The man led them towards the large silver Guymelef that was Escaflowne, but what caught Hitomi's eye was not the Escaflowne, but another beautiful Guymelef as well. One made of quartz and emerald. But she returned her thoughts to the Escaflowne as Van approached it. "What are you going to do?" Hitomi asked. "Leave this place and return to Fanelia," Van replied, still not believing what Allen said about his kingdom being torched. He placed his hand on the large energist-holding crystal. The crystal glowed as it recognized Van's blood and opened up Escaflowne for Van. The king hopped in and fitted himself within the Guymelef. "Van, stop!" Hitomi called out. "Don't be foolish! Please!" The door to the storehouse opened and there stood another Guymelef, only this was black and gold. "Van Fanel, I thought I told you not to leave the castle!" All of the knight's men were on the top of the walls, except for Lybra, who was standing on Allen's melef's shoulder. "But if you insist my friend, you're just going to have to go through me. I find that highly unlikely however," Allen finished. "There's more to him than meets the eye, Allen. I sense a cold, disturbing aura around that boy." Lybra hopped from the melef's shoulder to its hand, then was placed safely on the ground. Van groaned, but continued to advance onto the battlefield. Hitomi could hear all of Allen comrades placing bets on who would win and she was beginning to doubt that Van would get out of this battle alive. "Stop! Why are you fighting Allen?" Hitomi cried. Escaflowne backed up, almost stomping on Hitomi, but Gaddess grabbed her out of the way in time. "Gaddess, you should take her out of here. She'll be safer this way," Lybra said. Hitomi gasped at the woman, finally noticing two scars on her face, both from her eyes down to her jawline. Escaflowne charged at Scherizad and both Guymelefs clashed swords. "You don't charge aggressively enough! Balgus never held back like this!!" Allen shouted. "What?! You've heard of Balgus!!" Van shouted. "Of course! Balgus is one of the three master swordsmen of Gaia! And Balgus was my swordmaster!!" Allen struck Van continuously, Van blocking every single one. Allen finally shoved Van to the ground and brought Scherizad's sword to Escaflowne's throat. "That's enough! Come out of your Guymelef peacefully!" he ordered. Escaflowne opened up and Van stood up. "I lost.Balgus I'm sorry!" Van cried. Allen examined Scherizad and gasped when he saw the left arm sliced open. What?! How could he?! When did that happen? "Amazing. He was able to hurt Allen. No wonder he survived Fanelia's attack," Lybra muttered under her breath as she pulled herself up the melef's leg, then onto its wounded arm. "It's not serious!" she called to him. "Van." Hitomi said, running over to Van. Escaflowne's crystal began to glow again and Hitomi gasped, seeing more images of destruction. "Quick Allen, run! It's the invisible enemy!!" Hitomi screamed as she was engulfed in explosions as the kingdom of Asturia exploded into flames.
Was it all just a dream? Or maybe a vision? No, it was real. The cards told me that it was going to happen! I found myself transported to the strange world of Gaia where the Earth and the Moon hang in the sky. Then the attack came.I remember the choking heat and watching the kingdom of Fanelia burn! I was once again wrapped in the bright light and sent into the heavens with that strange boy.
"Judging from the stars, this is definitely Gaia! Where's that girl?" Van said, hopping onto the ground after Escaflowne landed from the light. "Sent somewhere else, maybe." "Oh no! What am I going to do? I'm stuck out here all alone!" Hitomi cried. She pulled out her pendant and held it out in front of her by the chain. "Oh please, tell which way to go! I don't want to be lost anymore!" she begged the stone. She closed her eyes, trying to get the spirits to tell her where to go. The stone began to move slightly, but then something grabbed Hitomi's arm. She gasped when she found a strange looking man laughing at her. Hitomi screamed when she was pinned to the ground by this man and luckily, Van wasn't very far away to hear her scream. "NO! Don't touch me! No please!!" she begged, but he held up her right arm, the stone falling from her hand. He laughed again, admiring the pendant. Suddenly, he heard a screech and a white owl began to scratch at his face. "Hey! Get off me! That hurts! Get lost!" the man shouted, waving the bird away. The owl flew away into a nearby tree, but then the man looked up an saw a familiar figure in front of him. "So we meet again. Seems you've grown tired of petty thievery and prefer attacking little girls. Oh dear," the figure said, tightening his gloves. "A.Allen!!" the man screamed. The knight ran forward and punched the man in the jaw, sending the mole-man flying a few feet away. Hitomi couldn't believe her eyes and stared at her savior. The owl landed on his shoulder. "You're not hurt, are you?" he asked her. "Young lady, what are you doing out here all alone?" he asked sweetly, taking her hand. "I bet there's a story behind it." Hitomi wasn't sure if she was seeing things or not, but she couldn't believe her eyes. One glance at the handsome knight and Hitomi saw her love back home. "Amano! It's really you!" Hitomi cried, falling into the knight's arms. "I thought I was never going to see you again! I was so frightened!" Overwhelmed with the events that just happened, Hitomi passed out cold in his arms. "Amano?" the man questioned. "Hitomi!" Allen looked forward and saw Van racing towards them. "What did you do to that girl? I'm gonna kill you!" "Making rash threats is never a good a idea," Allen replied, picking up Hitomi. Van began to pull out his sword. "Don't draw! Draw that sword and it will be you who will die! It is my duty as a knight to answer steel with steel. I don't draw to play childish games." Van smiled and didn't heed the warning, completely pulling out his sword. He placed Hitomi on the ground softly, then faced the king of Fanelia, drawing his sword, ready for battle. Van charged at Allen, throwing his sword out towards Allen's head, but the knight simply stepped to the side. Van slashed from behind and Allen back- flipped out of the way. "You've got some talent, but.!" Allen began, charging at Van. He struck Van in the stomach and Van collapsed to the ground, coughing up some fluids. ".You don't charge aggressively enough!" he finished. He put away his sword and took Van's. "Too bad, it would be a shame to kill you. So I struck you with the back of my sword," Allen said, examining the weapon, recognizing the Crest of Fanelia on the hilt. Only the king would use that type of sword. "Allen! What just happened?" A young woman with teal hair tied back to her left in a big braid walked forward violet armor and black robes. "What is the meaning of this?" "It's nothing, Lybra. Help me out here," Allen said, picking up Hitomi again. "We'll be taking the two back to the castle." "Where are they from?" Lybra asked. Allen tossed her Van's sword, Lybra catching it by the hilt. She examined the hilt and saw the crest. "They're from Fanelia. Survivors probably." "Bring the king to the castle," Allen ordered. "Yes sir," she replied. She knelt down to the king and went to pick him up, but upon touching him, she felt a strange aura from him. What the hell?! What is this?! There's something about this boy! Something.cold. "Lybra! Come on!!" Allen shouted, snapping Lybra out of her trance. She lifted Van from the ground and followed Allen to the castle.
**********
"What are these two doing here? So am I to understand that you let those Samurai damage TWO of my units?!" Dilandau shouted. "F.Forgive us," his soldiers begged. "Step forward!" he demanded. The two commanders did as they were told and as soon as they stepped forward, Dilandau's hand swiftly flew across their faces, sending them to the floor. "You had stealth cloaks! How could you let this happen? Are you trying to ruin my name?!" "F.Forgive us," they begged again. "I'm only going to say this once! I won't tolerate incompetence in my dragon slayers! Do you understand?" "Yes sir," they replied. Dilandau smiled and left the throne room. Now that Lybra's gone, I must turn to my own soldiers for pleasure. "Dilandau." The boy turned to Folken, who was glaring at him. "Come with me. Your presence is required at the main chamber." "What are you going to do? Lecture me about Lybra's betrayal?" "Lybra's leaving saved us all a lot of trouble. She has taken a major weight off the Zaibach Empire," Folken replied. "Are you done yet?" Dilandau asked. "Dilandau, there was no reason to burn Fanelia to the ground. I would like to see the stealth cloaks used more effectively." Dilandau growled. "I never in my life thought I would ever hear that from you, Folken! Not from the man who betrayed Fanelia!" Dilandau said. "An amateur like you has no business telling me how to fight a battle!" he said as they entered a dark room. Three pedestals raised from the ground as Folken stepped forward. "What is this room used for, anyway?" "That's right, it's your first time here," Folken said. Suddenly, a large screen flashed on, showing a large old face. "What? Emperor Dornkirk!!" Dilandau gasped, going to his knees. "Folken, it still remains. The dragon still casts its shadow over the Zaibach Empire's future! The dragon has fled Fanelia. Capture it at all costs!" "Of course," Folken replied. "We'll do just as your majesty wishes." "And.there is one other matter. That pillar of light, which my Destiny Prognostication Engine failed to predict! I sense the stirrings of a new power. Capture it! We must remove the unknown element! The dragon can be found on the frontier of Asturia. You must capture it. Capture it so we may re-awaken the legendary power of Atlantis!" Emperor Dornkirk ordered. "And what of Lybra?" Dilandau questioned. "Let her be. She will prove worthy to us eventually. Her destiny is close at hand and it will help bring us to victory." The image of the Zaibach Emperor disappeared.
**********
"You're awake," Allen said as Hitomi woke up from her wonderful dream. She gasped and glanced around, noticing she was surrounded by others. They seemed to be allies of Allen, but she began to tremble after hearing their shrewd comments to her. "All right, that's enough you guys! Waking up to ugly faces like yours is bad enough." Hitomi glanced out the window, gazing at the Mystic Moon. "I guess I didn't get back after all." "What's the matter? It's alright little princess, you can tell me. I am a knight of Asturia, Allen Schezar." Hitomi glanced at him. "And you are a guest in this castle. As its commander I will protect you. It is my duty as a knight.no, as a man to make sure you are safe," he proclaimed. "Man, how can he spout all of that with a straight face?" one of the soldiers asked. "Sir! The boy is finally awake," one of the soldiers from the other room said. "Show him in," Allen ordered. They shoved Van into the room. "Van!" Hitomi shouted. Allen simply smiled while Van glared at the knight.
"You came from the Mystic Moon? Are you're saying you're one of the Mystic Moon's inhabitants?" Allen questioned Hitomi. "Yes, it's just like we've explained a dozen times," Van sighed annoyingly. "OK then," Allen began, grabbing Van's sword, showing them the crest. "If the king of Fanelia says so. I suppose I must believe it." He glanced at Hitomi, even more curious about her than before. "What's your name?" Hitomi gasped. "Hitomi, sir. Hitomi Kanzaki." "Hitomi.it has a pleasant ring to it," Allen complimented, causing Hitomi to blush. Van stepped forward, ready to get down to business. "Allen, I apologize for entering your country without permission. So give me back my Escaflowne!!!" he demanded. "And what will you do with your Guymelef?" Allen questioned. "Return to Fanelia. I was sent here against my will in the middle of a fight against an unknown enemy." Allen sighed softly. "It's too late. Fanelia's been completely destroyed. Everything was burned to the ground," he finally admitted. "You're lying!!" Van shouted. "I'm not lying. Some of my country's merchants saw it happen," he replied harshly. "I'm sorry Van Fanel. I know it must be a hard time for you. But don't be upset, you're not the first one who entered Asturia without permission." "Fanelia.it's destroyed?" Van asked. They suddenly heard a rumble. "A Zaibach Empire floating fortress!" Allen pointed out. Suddenly, about six Guymelefs fell from the sky, five blue and one red. "Those are the giants that attacked Fanelia!!" Hitomi cried.
"We request weapons, food, and water. We are engaged in urgent military maneuvers," Dilandau explained to Allen. "Of course, we will do all in our power," Allen replied. He suddenly noticed Van pushing his way through the crowd to hear what Dilandau had to say up close and personal. "By the way, sir Allen, you haven't seen a strange Guymelef around here, have you?" Dilandau asked. A Guymelef? Is he talking about the Escaflowne or the Jemineye? "No, not that I know of," he replied. "The Guymelef wouldn't have anything to do requiring the maneuvers of a floating fortress, wouldn't it? Would it have anything to do with Fanelia being attacked?" Allen interrogated. "What? That run-down little country? Maybe it's leaders were eaten by the dragons that seem to wander around that valley. It's such a fitting end for such a backwards little country," Dilandau said. Van and Hitomi gasped and Van reached for his sword. "And the country was full of cowards, led by a king who went into hiding." "Becoming invisible during a battle is cowardly!" Van exclaimed. Dilandau faced him and walked towards Van, pushing him out of the way, facing Hitomi. "I've never seen clothing like yours before. Where are you from little girl?" Dilandau snapped. Hitomi trembled and couldn't find any words to respond to him. His blood-red eyes burned through her. Allen smiled and walked to Hitomi, preparing for a response Dilandau will never forget. "So you've noticed. I found her in the east and her name is Hitomi," he said, kissing her on the cheek. Dilandau growled watching such a pitiful display. "She's simply beautiful. Well, wouldn't you agree?" "Allen, that was totally uncalled for!" Dilandau glanced behind him and faced a woman with teal hair down to her waist and in violet armor. She glared at him with her obsidian eyes. "Well, well, well. I thought I'd never see your sorry face ever again!" Dilandau laughed. "Lybra Daemon, my favorite person to torture. Ever since you left, I've been reduced to attack my own soldiers. Why did you leave? Don't you like me anymore?" Dilandau mocked. Lybra was disgusted. Nobody outside of the Zaibach Empire-even within the empire-knew of the unpleasant tortures Dilandau applied to her. "I'm no longer under your command, so you can't torture me any longer. Unless you want to embarrass yourself in front of all these Samurai and give yourself a worse name than what's you've already earned yourself," Lybra replied. "Well? Which example are you going to set?" Dilandau was silenced. She was correct about not torturing her anymore, but that wouldn't stop him. Before turning back to Allen, he whispered harshly into her ears. "You're not escaping that easily, Lybra. Mock my words, I haven't even begun my tortures." Lybra growled before he walked back to his troops. "You live up to your reputation, Allen Schezar. I just hope you put as much effort into our provisions," Dilandau snapped. Allen's soldiers cheered Allen for his great performance for Dilandau, but Van couldn't help but stare at Lybra. What is up with that girl? And what is her relationship with that villain? "Well, we seemed to have through that all right, but I'm afraid I've given you a bad reputation in the Zaibach Empire, Hitomi," Allen said sweetly. Hitomi was in shock of what Allen did. Now she began to ponder about Allen being the angel in her dreams.
"Oh Allen." she sighed, completely forgetting that Van was sulking in the corner of the room. She felt something within her shirt and pulled out her tarot cards. "I forgot about my cards." She glanced at Van, hoping the cards could lighten him up. "Hey, don't sulk Van. Look, it's the Hermit!" she exclaimed, placing the card onto the floor along with a few other. "The cards are saying you have to be a little more patient." "What are those?" Van asked harshly. "They're tarot cards. They can tell you your fortune," Hitomi replied. "A bunch of cards cannot tell you your fortune," Van said bluntly. "I was only trying to take your mind off everything. Jeez, cheer up!" Hitomi snapped back, pulling out the LA MOTRE card. "The Death card!!"
She could suddenly see the figure of death from the card surround her. Once again she saw flames around a kingdom. It didn't seem like Fanelia though, but Hitomi couldn't tell since she didn't know her way around Gaia. She could see more Zaibach Guymelefs marching through the flames when the image of Dilandau came to her mind.
"Hitomi! Are you OK?!" Van shouted, shaking Hitomi out of her trance. They could hear something clash against the floor near them, and suddenly, a part of the ground collapsed. A funny looking man popped up, questioning where he dug. "AAAH! It's that thief again!!" Hitomi shouted.
"You're telling me they've disappeared?!" Allen questioned his sergeant. "I know where they went. Gaddess, prepare Scherizad." "It that really necessary?" Lybra questioned. "We can't let them leave. They'll be killed out there now that Zaibach is involved." "So you'll kill them now rater than later?" Lybra asked, her eyes narrowing. Allen stood up. "Perhaps it was your sharp tongue that gave you those scars," Allen said harshly before storming out of the room.
"That's why you attacked me?!" Hitomi asked the mole-man as he dug after learning that the mole-man admired Hitomi's pendant. "I thought I'd bring this bag to apologize," the man replied. Hitomi gripped her backpack tightly. The mole-man led them through the tunnels, eventually reaching a large room full of Guymelefs. The man led them towards the large silver Guymelef that was Escaflowne, but what caught Hitomi's eye was not the Escaflowne, but another beautiful Guymelef as well. One made of quartz and emerald. But she returned her thoughts to the Escaflowne as Van approached it. "What are you going to do?" Hitomi asked. "Leave this place and return to Fanelia," Van replied, still not believing what Allen said about his kingdom being torched. He placed his hand on the large energist-holding crystal. The crystal glowed as it recognized Van's blood and opened up Escaflowne for Van. The king hopped in and fitted himself within the Guymelef. "Van, stop!" Hitomi called out. "Don't be foolish! Please!" The door to the storehouse opened and there stood another Guymelef, only this was black and gold. "Van Fanel, I thought I told you not to leave the castle!" All of the knight's men were on the top of the walls, except for Lybra, who was standing on Allen's melef's shoulder. "But if you insist my friend, you're just going to have to go through me. I find that highly unlikely however," Allen finished. "There's more to him than meets the eye, Allen. I sense a cold, disturbing aura around that boy." Lybra hopped from the melef's shoulder to its hand, then was placed safely on the ground. Van groaned, but continued to advance onto the battlefield. Hitomi could hear all of Allen comrades placing bets on who would win and she was beginning to doubt that Van would get out of this battle alive. "Stop! Why are you fighting Allen?" Hitomi cried. Escaflowne backed up, almost stomping on Hitomi, but Gaddess grabbed her out of the way in time. "Gaddess, you should take her out of here. She'll be safer this way," Lybra said. Hitomi gasped at the woman, finally noticing two scars on her face, both from her eyes down to her jawline. Escaflowne charged at Scherizad and both Guymelefs clashed swords. "You don't charge aggressively enough! Balgus never held back like this!!" Allen shouted. "What?! You've heard of Balgus!!" Van shouted. "Of course! Balgus is one of the three master swordsmen of Gaia! And Balgus was my swordmaster!!" Allen struck Van continuously, Van blocking every single one. Allen finally shoved Van to the ground and brought Scherizad's sword to Escaflowne's throat. "That's enough! Come out of your Guymelef peacefully!" he ordered. Escaflowne opened up and Van stood up. "I lost.Balgus I'm sorry!" Van cried. Allen examined Scherizad and gasped when he saw the left arm sliced open. What?! How could he?! When did that happen? "Amazing. He was able to hurt Allen. No wonder he survived Fanelia's attack," Lybra muttered under her breath as she pulled herself up the melef's leg, then onto its wounded arm. "It's not serious!" she called to him. "Van." Hitomi said, running over to Van. Escaflowne's crystal began to glow again and Hitomi gasped, seeing more images of destruction. "Quick Allen, run! It's the invisible enemy!!" Hitomi screamed as she was engulfed in explosions as the kingdom of Asturia exploded into flames.