Saving Two Worlds p.8: The Arrival of Nemesis

By Angels tears

Van stood wearily before Emera. Her eyes glowed hatefully at him. 'How did he catch up so quickly? He shouldn't have even been able to find me, at least not yet. I haven't even gotten two miles away from the city.' she thought furiously.

"Welcome, my Lord. I hope you're prepared to say goodbye to your little slut, because she's coming with me and you'll never see her again." Emera spat hatefully. She pulled out her sword and looked down at the unconscious Hitomi with a disgusted look.

"Why are you involving Hitomi in any of this? She's not who you want. I'm who you want to get revenge on; leave her out of it. Please." he begged Emera. He dropped his sword to the ground. "If you want revenge on someone, then hurt me."

Her glare intensified. 'How dare he protect her!' she thought angrily. 'If I get rid of her then he will love only me. I'll make Junara place a spell on him so I'll be the only one he'll ever love ever again. The spell will place him under my control and then he'll kill Hitomi. That'll make her suffer before she dies. I can see the betrayed look in her eyes now.'

Both remained locked in a staring contest, or so would someone just passing by would think. Not only was the thought of revenge playing in her mind, but reviving Nemesis too. With Relena being as pure as she was, Nemesis would easily take over the young girl's body. Van's eyes were pleading, just how she wanted to see them. He was begging her and she enjoyed it. There was no way she'd release Hitomi or Relena, but playing him was just as fun.

"Emera--" he started.

"No!" she exploded. She charged at him with all her might only giving him time to dodge her attack without retrieving his sword from the ground. "You will pay, Van Fanel, I'll make sure you pay dearly for betraying my love for you."

"If you loved me then you'd want me to be happy." he shot back, noticing Hitomi starting to wake up.

Emera exploded with rage again. She tried to charge at him again, placing more speed and effort into it this time.

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Trowa looked up into the night sky. Something was definitely wrong, he could sense it in his gut. Sighing, he looked back into the apartment. Both Quatre and Wufei had gone to sleep hours ago, but he just couldn't fall asleep. He knew that where ever Hitomi was, that was where the others were. He had a slight idea of where she was. Their mother had told him about Hitomi's adventures in the strange world of Gaea. The world where your greatest fantasies were reality; how fairytale creatures roamed the planet. He was a bit unbelieving at first, who wouldn't have been? But there was a sense of sincerity in her voice he trusted. She sounded so sure of things as she spoke of dragons and half-people/half-animal beings. They were a few things that Hitomi spoke fondly of, but that was what their mother said at least.

"Come back soon, Hitomi. I never thought I'd find myself so attached to someone, but you're my little sister and I want to protect you." he begged her quietly.

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Hitomi could hear fighting somewhere in the background. She couldn't tell who exactly they were. At first she thought there were two guys fighting, because not many woman fought with swords on Gaea, but soon recognized one of them as Emera, and soon after, the other as Van. 'The dragon!' she thought panicking, as the memory of the strange creature returned to her. She had sensed it then. Emera had the ability to change into a dragon creature, even more powerful than she was at the time.

"Van." she murmured, trying to call him and warn him of Emera's ability. The fighting continued without either stopping or even noticing her. She sat up. "Van, watch out."

Van glanced over at Hitomi for a second. He'd managed to get hold of his sword without Emera slicing him up but her skills were quite good. One blow after the other she attacked, each one just as strong as the last and never falling out of rhythm. She had him struggling to keep up with her own moves. Both were good with swords, and the fight might have gone on longer, but Junara interrupted them, striking Van to the ground using a fire ball. Hitomi gasped, jumped up, and went to his rescue. She dropped to his side and helped him sit up.

"Junara," Hitomi said, looking the old woman over. She was relatively small, couldn't be any taller than 5"2, she had dark, beady, hazel colored eyes, and long white hair. She wore a long black, hooded cloak and held a staff in her left hand. "Leave us alone, Junara. We won't be part of your little games anymore. I'm only going to give you this one chance. Give up on Nemesis and stop using your magic. If you do, I'll consider going easy on you."

Junara merely laughed at Hitomi. "You, threatening me? That's the most hilarious thing I've ever heard of. You are nothing but an inexperienced seeress. How dare you think of threatening me!" her voice boomed in such a way Hitomi shivered a bit with fear. Junara's eyes held an expression of joy when she saw this.

"Please spare Van." Emera pleaded her friend. "I wish to keep him for myself. I think an eternity of serving me would teach him some manners." They looked at Van and Hitomi for a second before Junara made her decision.

"If it pleases you then you can have him."

A victorious smile was flashed towards Van and Hitomi. Emera had gotten her wish to keep Van for herself, and there was nothing he could do to refuse this time. Hitomi held him close, avoiding any eye contact with either Junara or Emera. If she couldn't figure out how to call upon her powers then he'd be forced to serve Emera and she'd be killed.

'Varie,' Hitomi thought to her friend. 'please help me. I can't defeat them on my own. If I don't then that horrible Emera will take Van away and I can no longer protect him. Please help me reveal my powers.' she silently begged. A blinding, bright pink glow appeared before her and the image of Varie appeared in its center. Her unblemished white wings were spread out in the wind, making her look lie a perfect angel. "Thank you, Varie"

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Duo paced nervously in front of Heero and Allen. His eyes were blazing with anger and hatred.

"How dare he say I'd get in the way! I'm a Gundam pilot for God's sake. I know how to fight. It's not like I'd be some helpless little boy who would mess every little thing up for them." he complained. A look passed between Heero and Allen.

"Van likes to watch over Hitomi on his own. As far as he's concerned, everyone's in his way if Hitomi needs help." Duo glared at him for a second. "I think from the first time they met Van fell in love with Hitomi. He was quite protective of her and went out of his way to ensure her safety, for the most part. In any case they always watched out for each other. Hitomi always predicted something would happen and Van would make sure it wouldn't happen. They were an unbeatable team, and, in the end, it was their love for each other that saved Gaea. I don't know quite how long Hitomi loved Van. I think if you ask Merle, she'd know. But that's beside the point. Together they can win any battle. Trust in them and they will succeed for us. Van won't let Hitomi *or* Relena get hurt, and in turn, Hitomi will ensure Van's safety."

"They've always loved each other." Merle's voice came from the doorway. "I could always tell they cared, no matter what they said or did to each other. Lord Van could piss Hitomi off to the extreme but she'd always be forgiving within an hour or so, and the same with Lord Van. She slapped him a few times, I remember him telling me she did, but he said he deserved it, that Hitomi had every right to hit him. The idea surprised me quite a bit. He grew up a prince, spoiled to the max and never punished when he was acting that way, and then there came Hitomi, a girl who grew up without a King or Queen and she showed him just how equal people are. Her cheeky attitude was one no one who ever encounters her will ever forget."

Duo looked at Merle for a moment. "So I don't stand a chance against him?"

"Not a single one." she replied. "Their love for each other is more powerful than what any of the Gods can do. Zaibach learned that the hard way. Maybe you should take a look at Selena. I've noticed her checking you out." Allen glared at her.

"Is she the blond babe I keep seeing around here?" he asked.

"That blond babe you're referring to is my baby sister." Allen growled. "And if you so much as look at her again I'll rip you to pieces." he threatened.

Heero stood up and looked out the window. The sun was rising, it looked so beautiful. If only Relena could have been there to enjoy it with him. He blinked back a few tears that threatened to fall down the side of his face. "Relena."

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Hitomi fought against her restraints as Junara walked over to Relena and gazed at the young girl.

"You made an excellent choice here, Emera. I'm glad you paid such close attention to my instructions of what to look for in out sacrifice." Junara complimented. She placed a bony hand over her and began reciting something in her old language. "Perhaps you will learn something, young seeress."

Hitomi remained still as Varie untied her restraints. The image of Varie was very much real, it was just a matter of who could see her, and she seemed to be the only one who could. Van's face hadn't dropped at the sight of his dead mother standing before him, so it was obvious he hadn't seen her yet, and then there was Junara and Emera, neither had reacted to Varie so she figured they hadn't seen her yet either. 'How ironic it is I must fight someone who believes they are the best, and yet they cannot even sense Varie. We'll see who learns what when I get free. I can feel my powers growing within me, wanting to get free!' she thought as she watched Junara's actions.

"Kamailesta toyina mayuyet samerta." Junara began as an evil, black glow surrounded Relena. The glow became more powerful as it absorbed Relena into it. She repeated the phrase, "Kamailesta toyina mayuyet samerta!"

Hitomi's hands were free, but it was too late. The evil glow disappeared into Relena and all was silent. She watched as Relena's honey blond hair turned pitch black and her eyes gave off an evil red glow. Standing up, she took hold of Van's sword, which had been discarded a few feet away, catching Emera's attention. The jealous girl unsheathed her sword and charged at Hitomi, who blocked the strike with amazing ease, only angering Emera even more. The two girls remained in combat until Van was freed from his bonds. He watched them for a moment, trying to gather the information he needed to understand everything.

"Mother?" he asked as he turned to face the unseen Varie.

"Be careful, my child. You must work with Hitomi to ensure the safety of Fanelia and Gaea together. You must believe and trust in her. Believe in your love for her, Van" Varie pleaded her son. He nodded in reply. He knew he loved Hitomi and could believe in that love to get him through this hardship. "You must never forget who your friends are. They will help you on your quest."

"Mother, why did you leave me all alone? I needed you while I grew up." The image of Varie appeared as she hugged her son.

Junara smiled as she watched Van and Hitomi. They were all distracted. Her smile widened as the 'dark' Relena stood up.

"My dark queen, Nemesis. It is an honor to have you back within our world." She pointed to Van and Hitomi. "Those are the horrible ones who have tried so hard to keep you from leading our people to victory so we can rule all of Gaea. They must be stopped at all costs."

Nemesis nodded. She walked over to Escaflowne and placed her hand on its gem. At first it did nothing, but soon enough it began to glow. Hitomi and Emera were distracted from their fight at the sound of Van's anguished cry. All Varie could do was hold him, she was powerless against Nemesis. He cried out again, this time it sounded worse. Hitomi dropped his sword and ran towards Nemesis at full speed. Nemesis raised a hand in an attempt to use her power to blast Hitomi away, but Hitomi was ready and countered with her own powers. Nemesis was sent flying away, far back into the forest with Junara and Emera following closely behind. Even though she had gotten rid of Nemesis, it was already too late. Van remained limp in his mother's arms, lifeless.

Well, how'd you like this part? I promised to have the next part up and here it is. I'll be sure to have another part to this story up within the next week or two. I can only hope that this part makes everyone's standards. As for what's in store for the pilots on Earth, well that'll be announced soon enough. Don't worry to all of those who want the others to fight and get involved. I promise they will. *smiles evilly* Anyway, what's up with Nemesis? Is she really too weak to take on by Hitomi or was she just caught off guard? And yet another catch, Trowa and her brother and sister? I'm making too many twists and turns here for even me to keep up. Well, see you all around. Bye.

Angels tears