All's fair in love and war: A troubled reunion

Ariana manouvred the craft out of the hangar, following short behind everybody else. Dilandau was in the front leading. 'Activate your stealth cloaks now! Remember we aren't to kill him, I want to do that!' Ariana obediently did as she was told and at the same time nineteen blue guymelefs and one red guymelef all disappeared into thin air. 'Head towards the forest down there, that's where Van is hiding!' Ariana was alone now, nobody to follow behind. The tension was gripping and her hands were shaking with a kind of excitment of fighting Van. She was about thirty feet from the ground; Alseides was a lot easier to control now that it had been fixed. 'Hey!' she saw something moving in between the tightly wound trees. 'Dilandau below us-it's Escaflowne!' she dived down, invisibility still in tact. 'What?' Van uncertainly peered around into the darkness. 'What is it Lord Van?' Merle was also with Van, tagging along on his Escaflowne. 'I thought I heard something' He carried on walking, with a certain uncertainty in his mind. 'WHAT!?' Jets of flames spurted from the blackness of the wood. 'Bye bye VAN!' Dilandau triuphantly screamed. He must really have some grudge against Van, Ariana thought listening through the intercom for another order.
She was bound in the trees, protected by their twining braches like a camouflage except of course she was invisible. Escaflowne was directly in front of her! she held the Crima claw button down tightly so it hurt her finger to do so, the steam pressure was growing. Ariana didn't know why she was doing this or what good would come of it, but she still continued. She wanted something to pierce Escaflowne, then she released her finger on the button, they had orders not to kill Van, even though the chance was staring her directly in the face. The metallic spike aimed at such a speed it was like a silver snake flying. 'Oh yeaAHHH!!!' It went straight through Escaflowne's right arm. 'Van is right handed, so he won't be able use his sword very good, now claw, come back! Come back!' she commanded it, and it withdrew itself. 'Ariana, good work just don't kill him' Dilandau's over-excited voice loomed out of nowhere. 'I-I-I just can't see them' Van cried, it was incredibly funny watching Van trying to fight thin air, like a child having an invisble friend that only he can see thought Ariana. 'WHAT THE?' Escaflowne started running! It was backing out! Van is such a coward! 'Urhhh!!! FOLLOW HIM!' Yelled Dilandau.
'Lordd Vannn!!!!' Merle's face screamed out 'afraid!' as Escaflowne ran towards an open lake. All of the Dragonslayer army arrived there. 'Invisibility cloaks are no good in water!' grinned Van. 'VERY CLEVER!' screamed Dilandau, tackling Van with a enormous sword. 'But we don't need to be invisible!' Dilandau's voice ran through the intercom. Ariana's heart pounded, what should she do? Van kept blocking Alseides' sword and she wanted to help Dilandau. 'Van's using his left hand, he must be ambidexterous or something' Van grunted, 'Only a fool would learn to use a sword only with his strong hand' Dilandau was weakening, she had to help him, 'And that's what I'm going to do!' She rushed up behind Van's guymelef and charged at, it panting in excitment. 'NO!' he yelled, he took one swipe at Ariana's guymelef 'DILANDAU!' her guymelef crumpled to the ground, everyone was in chaos but Van appeared to be holding them off well with his left hand. 'I hope Dilandau doesn't get hurt!' Just what was she saying? She didn't want him to get hurt, but why? Van was out of control, she didn't know he enjoyed fighting so much, but at least she knew why. 'Arrghhhhh!!!!!!!' Van took a swipe at a Dragonslayer's guymelef, it crashed to the icy lake. Ariana tried to raise her guymelef out of the shallow water but it wouldn't budge. 'Hellpppppp mee!!!' Dilandau looked as if he was fighting a losing battle, more and more of his men were getting wiped out 'Just hold on a minute' he yelled.
Dilandau wanted Van. Wanted to see him die, after all he had done, cutting his cheek, daring even to try and oppose him. And Allen too, humiliating him and intervening his battles, he half wished Allen were here just so he could gloat at him. 'VANN!!!!' He guffawed. 'Why is this guy so bloodthirsty?' Van didn't know what to do with him, killing him wouldn't exacly bring an end to Gaea's wars, would it? Van persaveered though and with a sudden outburst of strength, he tackled Dilandau's huge, red guymelef. 'I-I-s he some kind of demon?' Dilandau panted.
'Look above!!!!' Ariana's muffled scream came from the intercom. 'ALLEN!' Dilandau glanced upwards; the black monster practically fell from the sky. 'Allen!' Merle cried. 'Allen you're here' Van was grateful for Allen's presence, he would need all the help he could get taking Dilandau down.
Ariana was slightly jealous of those who were still on their feet, fighting bravely. 'Oh man' she felt really stupid, like a waste of space, she was a sitting duck in the water. 'Dilandau! I'm retiring from my guymelef' 'STAY WHERE YOU ARE!' Damn. 'Dragonslayers, we've just had an order from Folken that we have to retreat' Dilandau commanded, immobilizing his sword and cloaking his guymelef. 'WHAT!??? Why?' 'Because, Chesta there are Asturian Leviships above and Asturia is one of our Allies, heheh we wouldn't want them to get the wrong idea now, would we?' he replied sardonically. He and many other giant guymelefs took off to the Vione, the smoke clouding her sight. 'You're not going anywhere!' Shit. It was Schezarazade, pointing his sword at her guymelefs head shield. 'You and that other soldier are both coming with us' he said, not an emotion in his voice. 'DILANDAU!!!' It pained her to shout so loud. I wonder if he can still hear me, even far away. 'Ariana, go with them. They're going to get everything they take.' By the tone in his voice, Ariana felt as if he had a plan. 'How nice to see they have left you alone, now get out of your guymelef, soldier. Allen didn't even know it was her in the guymelef! 'No, Allen I won't!' Ariana loved shocking people, this time she had totally outdone herself. 'Whatt??? Ariana!!!' 'Yeah thats right. Hmmp, Allen you were the one in the first place who suggested Zaibach to me and quite frankly, I couldn't have been more grateful.' Allen sneered, 'Stop messing around with this contemptuous talk and leave your guymelef!' Well, she thought, Dilandau does have something up his sleeve and he said to go with them. 'How am I supposed to with all of the water idiot!' She felt happy. And incredibly strong, like she could take on the world even though her guymelef was bust. 'Kio! Gaddess! Take the crusade above us, we'll have to hoist these machines up ourselves. Ariana's guymelef was for the second time attached to steel ropes and pulled up to a large airship by ten other guymelefs. Maybe my guymelef's jinxed to break all of the time or something, she thought.
Finally she was inside yet another hangar. 'Well, we'll take you to Freid with us and have Placteau interrogate you.' Allen announced swiftly. 'I still can't believe she joined Zaibach though' whispered Van to Allen, both of them walking away leaving Ariana in handcuffs guarded by two Asturians.

00:24 09/12/01