Gaea:

Gaea:

The Crusade has landed at Fanilia, and preparations are ready for the journey ahead.

Gadis: "You men load those creates carefully and those chests go to the Empresses rooms.

Allen walks into the control room of the ship.

Allen: " Gadis, good to see you. How are the preparations?"

Gadis: " Perpetrations are almost complete Commander. But after loading all of the empress's things I'm not sure if this ship will get back off the ground."

With that said Gadis flips his commander a salute and returns to work. As Allen leaves the ship he meets Millerna.

Allen: " Princess"

He bows, and then goes down on one knee and taking her hand kisses it.

Millerna: " I was looking for you. A convoy heading for Astoria will take Aries and Celena back with it. Ceid left this morning. He wanted me to tell you he regrets there wasn't more time to spend with you this trip. And to invite you and Celena to come to Freid when you are free.

Allen:" He understands that something is wrong, but he will not mention it. I think he will be a great Ruler one day.

Millerna: " I know he will. Hitomi foretold it."

As Allen turns away Millerna thinks of the two of them 'Oh Allen you and Ceid need each other.'

As late afternoon approaches the Crusade awaits one passenger before it can set sail. Finally Empress Terrial arrives. She is greeted by Van, with Merle close by his side.

Terrill: "I didn't expect her to accompany us."

Van: "I didn't want your honor to be questioned by traveling without a companion."

At the word companion Merle's tail fur raises. She leans over speaking low so only Van hears her.

Merle: "I never thought I'd say this, Lord Van, but I will get even with you for this. Then she turns to Terrial and motion's to her to follow.

Merle: "Come your "Lady shipppp" I think you need to rest in your cabin."

Terrial throws her head back as if to protest, then thinks better and follows Merle from the room. They head for her room.

The Crusade is traveling through the night sky toward Fanilia's eastern boarder. Van sits on the floor thinking. They are close to the place Van left Escaflowne earlier. How will he capture the dragon. How will they even find it. So many questions.

Dryden is pouring over charts and text still trying to figure out when the eclipse will take place. Unlike the passing of the Firestar, which occurs once each hundred years, eclipses have never been charted with such accuracy.

Dryden: " I don't know why I can't figure it out. When is the dam thing going to happen.

Mr. Mole is sleeping in the corner of the room. As usual no one knows when or how he ended up on the Crusade. He rouses and looks at Dryden.

Mr. Mole: " The eclipse you say. Let's see blue moon 3rd day. Why?"

Dryden: "Are you sure? How do you know.?"

Mr. Mole: "I'm a mole remember. I make it my business to know when there is going to be a little extra darkness."

The Crusade in anchored. Stopping for the night to give crew and passengers a rest. Van opens the ramp in the guymelth bay and hops out onto the ground. He heads in the direction he left Escaflowne. He knows that Escaflowne will obey his thoughts and would have come to the ship under its own power. But he feels the need to get out. Just for a second he feels sorry for Merle stuck with the job of keeping the Empress occupied.

Van reaches Escaflowne and places his hand on the chest crystal to open the cockpit. As he is about to climb in the energist starts to resonate. A bright pillar of light descends through the night sky.

Van: "Hitomi!"

He rushes forward thinking that Hitomi has come back to him. Back when he needs her so very much. It's not her, he realizes as two people are in the pillar holding tight to each other. As their feet touch the ground the pillar of light vanishes. Ukuari opens her eyes and together with Amano, she looks up in the sky. There is both the moon and the earth above them. The sound of someone approaching, the two turn not knowing who or what they will be facing. What they see is Van approaching (they recognize him from the track, when he took Hitomi back to Gaea) and behind him the giant Escaflowne.

Van: " Allen?"

Amano: "My name is Amano, and this is Yukari. We remember you from the track when you returned to Earth for Hitomi."

Amano holds out his hand, there is a feather in it. Van's white feather, the one he gave Hitomi. Van reaches out and takes the feather into his own hand.

Yukari: " Van please help us. Hitomi is in Trouble!"

Van stands there astounded. Hitomi is here in Gaea. He should have known, felt her.

Van: "Hitomi is in danger? But how, where is she. Did she send you for me? Tell me."

Amano: "We don't know much, but we believe she's here on Gaea. She must be."

Van: "We can't talk here, you will return with me to the ship, there we can talk."

Van turns from the two newcomers and returning to Escaflowne, enters the cockpit. It closes behind his and the giant guymelth stands extending its hand to Amano, and Yukari.

Van: "Here hop on we must leave this place. I'm sure other's have seen the light and will come to investigate."

Amano and Yukari climb aboard the giant's hand and are lifted up as Escaflowne leaves.

It takes only moments to reach the ship. As Van enters the guymelth bay, the others have already gathered there waiting for him. Van sets the two strangers down before emerging from Escaflowne.

Allen approaches the two, his gazes fixed on Amano. The strangers clothes are like nothing he has seen before, well almost never before. Could this be the man from the Mystic Moon? "How eerie it is, this man could almost be me."

Allen: " How are these people? Were they the reason for the pillar of light we saw?

Van: " They are friends of Hitomi's brought here from the Mystic Moon. Hitomi is here on Gaea."

Allen: " What, here but how can that be? Where is she."

Van: "I don't know. I thought it wise to bring them back here. That pillar of light was probably seen for miles. I didn't think we should stay there out in the forest to talk."

Merle enters the bay, stretching, extending her claws. The two strangers are staring at the cat woman. She knows at once they must be from the Mystic Moon. Only those people surprise that easy.

Merle: "Yes, I think all of Gaea saw that light, except her ladyship. She wears a black mask over her eyes and snores too. I had to get away for a while. Glad I came. Who are these people? There from the Mystic Moon aren't they."

Van: " Yes they are. This is Amano and Yukari. We will all find out why they are here soon enough, but not here, someplace a little more private. Merle get Dryden and Millinera."

Everyone is gathered in Dryden's makeshift study. The very same room Dryden used all those years ago to read Allen's father's journal.

Amano: "Then she screamed and was gone."

Dryden: "This comet you talk about, it must be the Firestar. I can't believe that the disappearance of Hitomi and the appearance of the dragon's shadow are just a coincidence."

Van: " What are you saying? That who ever brought forth the dragon took Hitomi. Why?"

Allen: " She does have the Power of Atlantice. Van you must have thought of trying to bring her here. To help defeat the dragon."

Van: " Yes I did, but I couldn't put her in that kind of danger again. So I didn't try."

Allen: "Someone may have wanted to be sure that you couldn't."

Yukari: " I don't understand, Hitomi told us about when she was here, but you make her sound as if she were dangerous. Like she's some kind of wepon."

Millerna: " To some extent she is. Dornkirk used her power and it almost caused the destruction of Gaea."

Yukari: " There is also something else. I don't know if it is important, but Mrs. Kanzaki, Hitomi's mom sent her duffle bag. She doesn't believe Hitomi will return home, to earth."

Her voice grows so low it's almost a whisper. Her eyes expressing the fear she feels for her friend. She gathers her control and continues.

Yukari: "Van, Hitomi's mom had a dream. In it a beautiful woman told her Hitomi would not be returning. Mrs. Kanzaki said the woman had the wings of an angle."

Van: " Mother"

Allen: "It's late, we must all get some sleep. We have a lot of ground to cover tomorrow. Now we must not only find the dragon, but Hitomi as well. We might even hear news of a foreigner she would stand out. The way she dressed always brought up questions."

Merle: " Speaking of foreigners those two have Mystic Moon written all over them."

Millerna: " Not for long, with a change of clothes, and a story or two, they will be Allen's cousin and his wife. They joined up with us during the night.

Amano puts his arm around Yukari leaning close and whispering in her ear.

Amano: " Wife, Nice Idea."