Hello again! It's been a long while this time ;) As I've said last time,
this chapter was meant to be one whole thing with the last chapter, so
everything should connect well. Great news for me: my esca collection is
complete! Got the movie and series DVD! Who cares about the money!
Wheeeee! Well, that's just a note of weird happiness before you read
something tragic! Honestly, if someone does cry somewhere along the story,
I would be very touched and thankful. I know, that sounds kinda selfish.
Neways, enjoy!
IX. Pandemonium
Stone walls do not a prison make,
Nor iron bars a cage; Minds innocent and quiet take, That for a hermitage; If I have freedom in my love, And in my soul am free, Angels alone that soar above Enjoy such liberty. Richard Lovelace, "To Althea from Prison"
Intense light and mesmerizing sound combined to bring Hitomi an insurmountable dizziness. She fainted halfway in the pillar of light. When her eyes opened sorely, she was already lying on the cold ground, and her body ached with numerous cuts. She regained consciousness and saw Van standing in front of her, fighting with some monstrously tall soldiers. Suddenly, a splash of blood fell onto her, as Van angrily decapitated the last of the soldiers who had them cornered. She let out a scream.
"Hitomi! Are you okay?" he wiped the blood off her. "They're Fireans, that's why they look weird. Come on," he held her up. "It seems we've been transported to Basram. Let's go," he led her through the dusty, brown tunnels that they were trapped in. After some frantic meandering, they finally ran out into the open, under the murky Basram night sky. Van stepped forward first to make sure it was safe. But as soon as Hitomi came out to join him, the Fireans appeared from nowhere and surrounded them with vengeful hostility.
"Surrender, Vannius!" one of them addressed Van, and for the first time, he understood the Atlantean that was spoken to him.
"Are you.Branimir?" Van asked with hesitation, surprised at his own ability to speak the ancient language.
"No. But you will soon die and meet Lord Branimir in the other world." The leader then signalled for the soldiers to close in on them.
A vision dawned on Hitomi: they had experienced this before. Her and Van in Atlantis, encircled by belligerent Fireans. Before she could explore her vision any further, she realized she was in Van's arms and flying into the air.
A tornado of panic and confusion followed. The command of "shoot his wings" could be heard. A troop of black arrows was loosened and they chased after Van, piercing his white wings. With a jolt of struggle, Van failed to defy the pull of gravity and he crashed the ground, with Hitomi tight in his arms.
As soon as they hit the earth, they were separated by force. Van reached for his sword in order to protect Hitomi. But the sword was taken from him and he felt his own blade enter his right shoulder, disabling his arm. A drug was injected into them both and the last thing Hitomi was conscious of was Van's scream of pain. The pendant was broken from his neck. White feathers, scrawled radiantly across the night ground, became tainted with red blood.
The next time Hitomi's eyes received light, the night had already retreated, and the garish day invaded her senses. Her shirt was still had the brackish smell of the soldier's blood spilled on her earlier. She gazed around vaguely and noticed she was fenced in by short wooden boards. Then she realized it was not a fence but a defendant's box standing in the middle of what resembled a courtroom. All around her were lords and ladies who sat in the audience zone and pointed suspiciously at her. She abandoned their gaze and turned to Van who lay in one corner of the box. His red shirt was almost black with blood.
"Van, please wake up." When he did not respond, she buried her face in his chest and began crying.
A hand weakly touched her head. "Hey.it's okay."
"Van! I was so scared. What have they done to you?"
He groaned and groped his callously dressed wound, still oozing out blood. "Ah! I can't move my right arm."
Hitomi gently helped him up to the chair at the centre of the box. Van jumped in surprise as he saw their environment. "Be careful, Van! Sit down. It looks like they're putting us on trial."
"On trial? What crime have we committed? Damn them! They have no right! I'm gonna." before Van could finish, trumpets flourished and in strode the corpulent and despicable President. Van staggered up despite the wound and grunted in fury.
Basante ascended the judge's throne. His pasty and wrinkled face with his squinted snake-like eyes acquired an air of vain authority and patronizing superiority. "Well, well, look what my guards caught. If it isn't Van Fanel and his little witch!"
Van pounded his fist on the railing of the box but fell back a little in pain. "How dare you, Basante? What is the meaning of all this? Don't you dare call Hitomi a witch! If you insult her again, I'll."
"You'll what, Fanel? Hmm? You're injured and imprisoned. If you don't prefer the term witch, then perhaps whore then. Everyone knows you've merely picked up Allen Schezar's leftover trash!" Hitomi's eyes burned indignantly. Van's rage drove him to climb out of the box, but the guards quickly threw him back in. She tried to pacify him by embracing him.
Basante burst into hideous laughter. "Look at the two of yous! Don't even think about it, Fanel! You're nothing without your sword and your Escaflowne! And don't expect any help from your friends! That Schezar and his pathetic allied troops was defeated by us this morning," the crowd cheered. "They can save themselves before saving you!"
Van was infuriated beyond control. "Basante, go to hell! It'll take more than an injury and a lack of weapon to stop me! You're strong only because of the Fireans! Where's Branimir! He's the one who's behind all this. Send him out! Is he not brave enough to face me?"
"Don't be dramatatistic!" Basante picked his teeth with his little fat finger. "You're speaking madness, boy! What Fireans? Who is Branimir?" Laughter roared from the audience. "How miraclous it is that you can be a leader! This brings me to the main point," he gestured for someone to bring him a scroll.
Basante opened the message nonchalantly, as if suave and in control. "Van Fanel, in the name of the Republic of Basram, this Supreme Court of Justice accuses you of being an anti-republic tyrant. Your despotic action of overtaking the Alliance committee," Van's eyes gaped in disbelief, "has proved harmful to the people of Gaea. Furthermore, being a draconian, you are a destroyer of Atlantis, and is thus dangerous to the world. This court finds you guilty of the above charges and sentences you to death." Basante clumsily pounded the gavel and an uproar of applause swept through the room.
"But this is." Van nearly laughed. "This is preposterous. This must be a joke. Me a tyrant? And what makes you think all draconians are dangerous?"
"You are an inferior breed, so naturally, you're savage," he peered at the scroll once again. "Van Fanel, this court hereby strips you of your title of king and Fanelia will from hereon be a property of Basram."
As Van was building up momentum for an effusion of wrath, Hitomi cut in and spoke in a powerful voice. "No, you're wrong! The people of Fanelia love Van. He has rebuilt their home and brought them a happiness they could not have known without him. If it weren't for Van, Gaea would have been destroyed five years ago. His draconian wings saved Basram from destruction, how could you forget that?" she turned to the audience. "the feud between Branimir and Van is personal, you needn't be involved. Killing us would precipitate a war, not prosperity, not peace. Think of your family, your children. Do you want them to see the horror of war?"
"Shut up!" Basante barked, his face red and swollen. "Shut up! It looks like the little witch from the Mystic Moon speaks even more madness. Well, little whore, you're probably already carrying a cursed draconian seed in your belly anyway."
"What! Damn you, Basante!" Van roared. "I've never." at Basante's signal, guards came up and muffled Van with a cloth.
"What a noisy little boy. No wonder the people don't want to be led by him. As I was saying," he paused for a moment to think. "Ah, yes, you and your bastard child! As a protector of Gaea, I need to make sure no more draconians survive. You love the pathetic draconian dog? Fine! Then you can die with him!" the gavel banged again and Basante rose. "Throw them in the same dungeon. Consider it a gift, Fanel, former king of Fanelia." He stumbled out with an ugly laugh and the people continued the malice and ridicule.
Hitomi stood firm amidst the pandemonium. There was no self-pity, fright nor anger. Only disappointment. She passively watched Van kicking and resisting the guards, tearing his throat with muffled screams. God? Freya? Mom? Aleph? Folken? She wanted to whimper like a child but instead there was only a silent submission to tyranny. She let herself be carried off to the dungeon.
By the time they descended the steps into the prison, the sun was not to be seen again. Van fell into reluctant quietness but his eyes still blazed with exhausted rage. The corridor was long and cold, consisting of only a few large prison cells. Theirs was at the end of the hall.
The prison cell had two chambers, the first one faced the hall and the iron bars. The inner chamber was narrow, with a small door, concrete walls and a minuscule window at the very top. A faint amount of hot light snuck into the gloomy dungeon.
A chair sat in the corner of the front room and Hitomi helped Van to it. As soon as she removed the cloth from his mouth, he began cursing. "Damn it! Damn that Basante! I just cannot believe it! How dare he insult you like that. And to renounce my kingship? This must be a nightmare. I swear I'll." unexpectedly, Hitomi sealed his lips with a trembling kiss. "I'm sorry, Hitomi. You're right."
"Let me look at this," she gently took off the cloth wrapped around his injured shoulder. "We've got to clean this wound of else it'll be infected." She looked around and found a small basin and poured the water to clean away the blood. Then she took off her jacket and used it to make a sling to support his arm. "There, that should hold for now." She knelt down beside him.
"Thank you. I."
"Don't say it Van. This is not a nightmare, unfortunately. Let's just leave it at that." They stared at each other in silence then noticed the objects that fell out of Hitomi's jacket when she took it off. She gathered up the Ra-Maat cards and the dragon-phoenix relic. "Van, do you remember the reading I did on Serenus? The Ramses card predicted we will encounter someone with uncompromising authority and injustice."
"That must be either Branimir or Basante. And I did make a great decision just like the cards said. Our past has met the future. Things will be as they were written."
"I should never have read the cards."
"Don't blame yourself. Remember, you said the Death card brings a new beginning. Plus, we have the Love card, right?"
She smiled slightly then helped him up. As they were about to go into the inner room, the guard, who had been sitting in a nook concealed from their sight, suddenly came up to the bars. "Psst." he said.
"What do you want?" Van asked vexingly.
The man was young and robust, with the imposing stature of an athlete. His face, however, lacked the austerity and toughness of a prison guard, and rather reminded Van of Orion. "Your Majesty, I am named Zeer, the only guard bored enough to take this prison job."
"Haven't you heard, I'm not a king anymore," Van said cynically.
"Oh, poo!" Zeer cackled without restraint. "Don't listen to that old fool, Basante. What he says never goes! As you may have noticed, he doesn't say many things correctly anyhow! The reason why the people obey him is because if we don't, he'll take away everything we own. Tax is brutal. The politicians support him because they're cowards and care only about their land. What they call democracy is really masked tyranny. If there's a tyrant in all of Gaea, it's that pig! For he certainly looks like a fat pig!" he laughed again. "I tell you, the whole election system is rigged. It's all bribes and conspiracy. They care nothing about us poor people. It's dictatorship with a fancy name."
Van went up to the bars and smiled slightly. "You might want to keep your voice down, in case someone hears."
"Nah, don't worry! No one else comes near here. The other guards like to go to the citadel gates and walls or go fight. This is too stale for them. That leaves me to help you," he suddenly went into the guard's nook and brought out some bread. "Here, you need strength to hang on," he stuck his hand through the bars. "Have faith. I'm sure King Allen will have you out in no time."
Hitomi took the bread gratefully. Zeer winked at them cheerfully then left. She helped Van onto the single filthy mattress that lay in the narrow chamber. They ate a little then sat motionlessly. For once, they did not talk, did not pray. Let it come, let it come. They wanted to believe themselves capable of having the courage to face the greatest of all - death.
Van's loss of blood has drained his energy. Soon, he was forced to lie down. An insipid drowsiness invaded him and the wound induced a fever. Hitomi hurried out to get some cold water. Before he descended into an inflamed sleep, his mind was able to rant about Basram, his former ally and Gaea's leading nation in science. What is a great country anyways? What can be great about a land of a traitor? Fanelia may well be a little house and him and his loved ones the only inhabitants, waiting out the day when Basram too may admit itself to be but a speck in the sky. It is a sin. It is a hubristic sin for any one nation or person to assume the figure of Fate. Dornkirk had been satanic, heroic in some ways, but unforgivably hellish. These people, like mischievous devils who know not they once had heaven, raise pandemonium, and pretend they are calling up magical wonders. He himself had once been conceited but the thought can no longer occur to him without inflicting self-contempt. To his enemies, he had once said, "I can kill you because I am me." But now, Basante, Branimir and even Kailan say to him, "We can kill you because we are All."
He soon lost his way down the moribund river of such thought. The past came back to haunt him. The Destiny War appeared in an unrestful and noisy dream, remembered feverishly among the overburdening reality of the waking world. The war looked at him with a vengeful aspect. He relived the hate, the killing, the evil, the death. Then, as if standing in the middle of a battlefield, he received the soul-stifling revelation that if he dies, he may never in all the unimaginable universes, look on Hitomi's face again. The dream soared up in flames, the battlefield and dead soldiers burned all around him. He wandered through the inferno, without hope, seeking her but all he found was an unrecognizable shape that seized him with boundless fear, a terror he had never known. It became so hot, so very sultry and the fiery light flickered everywhere, fiendish and fighting with him over oxygen. With his last breath he screamed, "Hitomi!"
"Van! Wake up! I'm here, it's alright," she held a cold towel to his burning forehead.
"What the." he sat up and saw the little candle next to the mattress - that was the source of the raging flame he had dreamed. His hair was damp with sweat and the wound still throbbed. "Hitomi, you're here."
"Of course I am. Where else would I be? Here," she gently wiped his face. "Zeer said your wound must have caused a fever, hence the nightmare. He gave me an ointment to apply to the cut, so you're safe now. You can sleep soundly for the rest of the night."
At first, Van's eyes expressed a child's panic then it gradually hardened into an aged man's sorrow. "Hitomi, I.you know how during the Destiny War, death and killing did not matter to me at certain points. It wasn't that I.had nothing to lose. It was just that I was blinded and death became.death became,"
"I know what you're trying to say. But do you really give up hope? Don't you think we can get out of this somehow?"
"I.I don't know. I suppose there is a great possibility that Allen will come and rescue us, but I just felt like I should come to terms with all the possibilities. Death has always been as real as life for me, I mean, I'm constantly aware of both."
"Don't let either become too real," she kissed him on the cheek.
"It's not life I'm worried about losing, it's you," he looked through the small window at the top and saw no stars. "I wonder what the other world is like." ....
Under a dome of pure blue empyrean, in a sea of white foam, there rose an emerald promontory. On it stood a golden tree draped with leaves of crystal. In the sky there roamed ten planets and their moons, the children of the Sun, trailing the heavens with their beaming splendor.
Folken stood solitary beneath the golden bough. A small pool of water lay at his feet and he stared meditatively down its crystal depth. Many pools were scattered across the promontory but his mind was constant to this one that lay in the tree's shade. Because gravity is lower in this world, he was able to float up into the air, so he hung above the pool and observed what its window showed him: Van and Hitomi lying in prison.
A soft wind blew from another nether world, and ceased after a minute. His green shirt gently undulated. The wind brought another being, who had long black hair and purple earrings in the shape of teardrops. She approached Folken with steps of feather and held her palm upright in the air. "Folken." her call echoed like a dream. His eyes left the pool rested on her. "Nerya." Smiling, he raised his right palm solemnly and pressed it against hers.
"My love, with what sad eyes your soul wanders The world beneath, watching your dear brother."
"No, with you here, all woes turn to wonders, And my ill heart soars free like a feather." He leaned down and touched the water; ripples unfurled. "But alas, Nerya, I fear the night Descends too darkly upon his white wings."
She brushed over his cheek with the back of her hand. "Fret not, they shall live, for Love lends them light, Death and Life shall be as winters and springs."
"I need not Aleph's word, for there is you," he played with her earrings. "The dark power shall be vanquished by Life, And the Love of all Love shall be in view."
"Yes, their Love and Death rise to end all strife," she suddenly turned to gaze at the planets above. "The Gaean sun is born, I must be gone."
Folken drew her into his arms. "I remain your Atlantis within, till next dawn." Beneath the reflecting orbs and translucent veil of heaven, they kissed. Another zephyr swept by; the golden leaves and diamond water wavered. When he opened his eyes again, she was gone. ....
People talking, groaning, working.noises swelled to bury the deep echo of the caves. The "dong.dong" of the mystic bell had vanished. Outside, beneath an inconstantly shifting night sky, the land of Fanelia lay in darkness and death-like silence. Not one person, one torch, disturbed her dormant veins woven around the empty houses. But inside the bosoms of the cliff, bonfires danced and citizens of the two kingdoms huddled in various circles and slept against the walls of boxes. The underground chambers were illumined like circles of light. The sounds and fullness robbed the caves of their mystery, darkness and poetry, the only qualities that accommodated them to the name of Nerya.
Down the main entrance tunnel, blocked by boulders, was the first chamber, also the largest. Many soldiers who were wounded in the morning's battle, lay with their families. People crowded close together around the fires and lamented as they cooked. They were fatigued by the merciless fate of their countries. With the sudden disappearance of King Van and Lady Hitomi, the defeat of the allied troops, they suspected peace will forever be displaced. Merle huddled with the children and engaged in incessant praying. In the stuffiness of the caves, everyone thought about their homeland that lay just outside the rocks. Fanelia and Asturia already became another world. Wistfulness descended on them.
Escaflowne stood against the back wall of the chamber. Its shadow fell over the people and seemed like a message from another realm.
Opposite the main tunnel, across the first chamber, there ran a smaller tunnel that extended along the length of the cliff. This tunnel led to the rest of the chambers, equally populated and hot. About half way down, there was a smaller sub-tunnel that branched off into a more private cave. In it rested most of the lords and commanders.
In one corner, Allen sat with Millerna and Eries. The two women were roasting some food while Allen was using some stones on the ground to try and simulate battle positions. Exasperated, he picked up the stones and threw them into the blaze. He suddenly felt tired of Van and Hitomi.
"You know," Millerna said without looking at him. "Perhaps you'll have better luck if you had someone who's like a good luck charm. If that someone is here, you'll try harder to defend this place, out of love. Perhaps.Duke Chid?"
Allen knew her too well not to have noticed the cold sarcasm in her voice. He raised his head slowly and stared at her in vexation and disappointment. How could you not understand my grief, Millerna? Then he stood up and went to drink with Gaddes.
Soon, the night deepened and the fires died out. The Nerya caves regained their blackness and mesmerizing echo. People's sleeping hearts beat in unison with "dong.dong". Even the guards were somewhat lulled. A figure, cloaked in black and armed, managed to steal out of the chambers and proceeded down the main tunnel. He had taken a horse with him and had blindfolded the creature so it would not be afraid. He found a small door next to the entrance boulder and snuck through. After making sure no one was around to block his way, he straightened his back and mounted the steed. As he proceeded past the castle and down the central route out of Fanelia, he heard a voice call him from behind, "Orion!"
He stopped in shock and turned to see another rider, cloaked like himself. "Who goes there?" his hand reached for the hilt.
The rider removed the hood of the cloak. Even in the murky darkness, Orion could still see the silver curls and night blue eyes. "Selena, what are you doing here?" he ride closer to her.
"I'm coming with you, Orion."
"Why? I'm only going for a ride in the forest."
"Don't lie to me," she sighed. "Do you always go riding with a sword and bow? I know you're going to rescue Van and Hitomi."
Orion exhaled in exasperation. "Fine! I am! I know he's in Basram, I just know it." He closed his eyes momentarily. Orion had always believed that one should act in the real world, believing not in an inevitable progression toward a perfect, mystic Absolute, but in an imperfect world where individual action matters, where true heroism is leaping forth and saving a friend. "Having an army march in there just won't do. My strategy failed everyone this morning. I put Allen and the others in danger. I should go alone. It's easier for one spy to get across the border. One! Understand? You're not coming with me, Selena!"
She inched closer to him and held up her chin. "Your wounds have not fully recovered. You need a partner!"
"No," he sighed. "No, Selena, I cannot risk your life. If something happened to you, your brother would skin me alive."
"You forget, I have Dilandau's swordsmanship," she revealed the sword hanging from her belt. "I can probably beat you in a fight."
"Oh, really?" he puckered up his face and began considering.
"Let me come. They're my friends too. I can help in case you fall. Please?"
"Oh, alright!" Orion rolled his eyes then turned his horse around. She followed intrepidly.
The clouds parted momentarily and under the moonlight, they galloped out of Fanelia and approached the unguarded the forests bordering Basram. They paused before being in view of the citadel walls. Hidden in the thick undergrowth and foliage, they were free to speak.
"Okay, Selena, you stay here. I shall attempt to take a uniform from a Basram soldier and masquerade as one of them in order to reach the prison. I'll come up with the rest of the plan as I go along. If I don't return by dawn, go back to Fanelia and tell your brother. Don't look back, do you understand? Don't come after me."
She stared at him in protest then nodded. "Okay, I promise I'll stay here."
"Atta girl!" he reached out his hand ready to touch her face but suddenly withdrew. "Um.I better get going. We're running out of time. I trust you'll be careful. See you soon," he pulled the rein.
Just as he was almost out of reach, Selena pulled him back, "Orion."
He looked down at her hand gripping his arm, and cleared his throat nervously. "Y-yes?"
She moved her horse closer to his. "I want to give you something before you go," she reached into her pocket and took out the Twin Souls card. "Here. Hitomi gave it to me. She said it's a good luck charm. It symbolizes Love. I want you to have it."
Orion hesitantly took the card and looked at it with watery eyes. "Um.do you really.never mind. Thanks, I'll." he quickly put the card into his shirt pocket. He dared not look at her, fearing a look would shatter his dreams into an illusion. She waited but he still looked down. He twisted the rein around his hand and contemplated the girl who was beside him. He thought about her past, present and future.
He suddenly straightened up and looked ready to leave. But he swung around. His arms swept the night wind and ended around her waist. They kissed. It was impassioned, poetic. It was them.
"I had to make sure," he whispered then started off.
A radiance lit Selena's face and she called after him, "Sei tu corai ansias."
Orion turned around and smiled. "Deathlessly." The trailing dust from his path soon obscured her view. He advanced toward life or death and her future went along with him. Everything was shrouded in dust that could be dispersed only by the rising of the sun. Love itself became mystified.
~ End of Part IX ~
AWWWW! Aren't you just so happy for Orion and Selena? Well, it's not so happy later on, hehe. Too bad about Folken and Nerya - in a later chapter, it's explained that these two are separated in the afterlife kind of as a punishment for the sinful mortal lives they've led. Well, someone has to be tragic, right? The climax is coming up, so stay tuned! Don't forget to leave a review!
Point of Interest: Folken and Nerya speak in iambic pentameter, and their lines form a sonnet. The idea is taken from Shakespeare's "Romeo and Juliet" where the first meeting of the two lovers also had the palm-pressing movement and the sonnet speech.
IX. Pandemonium
Stone walls do not a prison make,
Nor iron bars a cage; Minds innocent and quiet take, That for a hermitage; If I have freedom in my love, And in my soul am free, Angels alone that soar above Enjoy such liberty. Richard Lovelace, "To Althea from Prison"
Intense light and mesmerizing sound combined to bring Hitomi an insurmountable dizziness. She fainted halfway in the pillar of light. When her eyes opened sorely, she was already lying on the cold ground, and her body ached with numerous cuts. She regained consciousness and saw Van standing in front of her, fighting with some monstrously tall soldiers. Suddenly, a splash of blood fell onto her, as Van angrily decapitated the last of the soldiers who had them cornered. She let out a scream.
"Hitomi! Are you okay?" he wiped the blood off her. "They're Fireans, that's why they look weird. Come on," he held her up. "It seems we've been transported to Basram. Let's go," he led her through the dusty, brown tunnels that they were trapped in. After some frantic meandering, they finally ran out into the open, under the murky Basram night sky. Van stepped forward first to make sure it was safe. But as soon as Hitomi came out to join him, the Fireans appeared from nowhere and surrounded them with vengeful hostility.
"Surrender, Vannius!" one of them addressed Van, and for the first time, he understood the Atlantean that was spoken to him.
"Are you.Branimir?" Van asked with hesitation, surprised at his own ability to speak the ancient language.
"No. But you will soon die and meet Lord Branimir in the other world." The leader then signalled for the soldiers to close in on them.
A vision dawned on Hitomi: they had experienced this before. Her and Van in Atlantis, encircled by belligerent Fireans. Before she could explore her vision any further, she realized she was in Van's arms and flying into the air.
A tornado of panic and confusion followed. The command of "shoot his wings" could be heard. A troop of black arrows was loosened and they chased after Van, piercing his white wings. With a jolt of struggle, Van failed to defy the pull of gravity and he crashed the ground, with Hitomi tight in his arms.
As soon as they hit the earth, they were separated by force. Van reached for his sword in order to protect Hitomi. But the sword was taken from him and he felt his own blade enter his right shoulder, disabling his arm. A drug was injected into them both and the last thing Hitomi was conscious of was Van's scream of pain. The pendant was broken from his neck. White feathers, scrawled radiantly across the night ground, became tainted with red blood.
The next time Hitomi's eyes received light, the night had already retreated, and the garish day invaded her senses. Her shirt was still had the brackish smell of the soldier's blood spilled on her earlier. She gazed around vaguely and noticed she was fenced in by short wooden boards. Then she realized it was not a fence but a defendant's box standing in the middle of what resembled a courtroom. All around her were lords and ladies who sat in the audience zone and pointed suspiciously at her. She abandoned their gaze and turned to Van who lay in one corner of the box. His red shirt was almost black with blood.
"Van, please wake up." When he did not respond, she buried her face in his chest and began crying.
A hand weakly touched her head. "Hey.it's okay."
"Van! I was so scared. What have they done to you?"
He groaned and groped his callously dressed wound, still oozing out blood. "Ah! I can't move my right arm."
Hitomi gently helped him up to the chair at the centre of the box. Van jumped in surprise as he saw their environment. "Be careful, Van! Sit down. It looks like they're putting us on trial."
"On trial? What crime have we committed? Damn them! They have no right! I'm gonna." before Van could finish, trumpets flourished and in strode the corpulent and despicable President. Van staggered up despite the wound and grunted in fury.
Basante ascended the judge's throne. His pasty and wrinkled face with his squinted snake-like eyes acquired an air of vain authority and patronizing superiority. "Well, well, look what my guards caught. If it isn't Van Fanel and his little witch!"
Van pounded his fist on the railing of the box but fell back a little in pain. "How dare you, Basante? What is the meaning of all this? Don't you dare call Hitomi a witch! If you insult her again, I'll."
"You'll what, Fanel? Hmm? You're injured and imprisoned. If you don't prefer the term witch, then perhaps whore then. Everyone knows you've merely picked up Allen Schezar's leftover trash!" Hitomi's eyes burned indignantly. Van's rage drove him to climb out of the box, but the guards quickly threw him back in. She tried to pacify him by embracing him.
Basante burst into hideous laughter. "Look at the two of yous! Don't even think about it, Fanel! You're nothing without your sword and your Escaflowne! And don't expect any help from your friends! That Schezar and his pathetic allied troops was defeated by us this morning," the crowd cheered. "They can save themselves before saving you!"
Van was infuriated beyond control. "Basante, go to hell! It'll take more than an injury and a lack of weapon to stop me! You're strong only because of the Fireans! Where's Branimir! He's the one who's behind all this. Send him out! Is he not brave enough to face me?"
"Don't be dramatatistic!" Basante picked his teeth with his little fat finger. "You're speaking madness, boy! What Fireans? Who is Branimir?" Laughter roared from the audience. "How miraclous it is that you can be a leader! This brings me to the main point," he gestured for someone to bring him a scroll.
Basante opened the message nonchalantly, as if suave and in control. "Van Fanel, in the name of the Republic of Basram, this Supreme Court of Justice accuses you of being an anti-republic tyrant. Your despotic action of overtaking the Alliance committee," Van's eyes gaped in disbelief, "has proved harmful to the people of Gaea. Furthermore, being a draconian, you are a destroyer of Atlantis, and is thus dangerous to the world. This court finds you guilty of the above charges and sentences you to death." Basante clumsily pounded the gavel and an uproar of applause swept through the room.
"But this is." Van nearly laughed. "This is preposterous. This must be a joke. Me a tyrant? And what makes you think all draconians are dangerous?"
"You are an inferior breed, so naturally, you're savage," he peered at the scroll once again. "Van Fanel, this court hereby strips you of your title of king and Fanelia will from hereon be a property of Basram."
As Van was building up momentum for an effusion of wrath, Hitomi cut in and spoke in a powerful voice. "No, you're wrong! The people of Fanelia love Van. He has rebuilt their home and brought them a happiness they could not have known without him. If it weren't for Van, Gaea would have been destroyed five years ago. His draconian wings saved Basram from destruction, how could you forget that?" she turned to the audience. "the feud between Branimir and Van is personal, you needn't be involved. Killing us would precipitate a war, not prosperity, not peace. Think of your family, your children. Do you want them to see the horror of war?"
"Shut up!" Basante barked, his face red and swollen. "Shut up! It looks like the little witch from the Mystic Moon speaks even more madness. Well, little whore, you're probably already carrying a cursed draconian seed in your belly anyway."
"What! Damn you, Basante!" Van roared. "I've never." at Basante's signal, guards came up and muffled Van with a cloth.
"What a noisy little boy. No wonder the people don't want to be led by him. As I was saying," he paused for a moment to think. "Ah, yes, you and your bastard child! As a protector of Gaea, I need to make sure no more draconians survive. You love the pathetic draconian dog? Fine! Then you can die with him!" the gavel banged again and Basante rose. "Throw them in the same dungeon. Consider it a gift, Fanel, former king of Fanelia." He stumbled out with an ugly laugh and the people continued the malice and ridicule.
Hitomi stood firm amidst the pandemonium. There was no self-pity, fright nor anger. Only disappointment. She passively watched Van kicking and resisting the guards, tearing his throat with muffled screams. God? Freya? Mom? Aleph? Folken? She wanted to whimper like a child but instead there was only a silent submission to tyranny. She let herself be carried off to the dungeon.
By the time they descended the steps into the prison, the sun was not to be seen again. Van fell into reluctant quietness but his eyes still blazed with exhausted rage. The corridor was long and cold, consisting of only a few large prison cells. Theirs was at the end of the hall.
The prison cell had two chambers, the first one faced the hall and the iron bars. The inner chamber was narrow, with a small door, concrete walls and a minuscule window at the very top. A faint amount of hot light snuck into the gloomy dungeon.
A chair sat in the corner of the front room and Hitomi helped Van to it. As soon as she removed the cloth from his mouth, he began cursing. "Damn it! Damn that Basante! I just cannot believe it! How dare he insult you like that. And to renounce my kingship? This must be a nightmare. I swear I'll." unexpectedly, Hitomi sealed his lips with a trembling kiss. "I'm sorry, Hitomi. You're right."
"Let me look at this," she gently took off the cloth wrapped around his injured shoulder. "We've got to clean this wound of else it'll be infected." She looked around and found a small basin and poured the water to clean away the blood. Then she took off her jacket and used it to make a sling to support his arm. "There, that should hold for now." She knelt down beside him.
"Thank you. I."
"Don't say it Van. This is not a nightmare, unfortunately. Let's just leave it at that." They stared at each other in silence then noticed the objects that fell out of Hitomi's jacket when she took it off. She gathered up the Ra-Maat cards and the dragon-phoenix relic. "Van, do you remember the reading I did on Serenus? The Ramses card predicted we will encounter someone with uncompromising authority and injustice."
"That must be either Branimir or Basante. And I did make a great decision just like the cards said. Our past has met the future. Things will be as they were written."
"I should never have read the cards."
"Don't blame yourself. Remember, you said the Death card brings a new beginning. Plus, we have the Love card, right?"
She smiled slightly then helped him up. As they were about to go into the inner room, the guard, who had been sitting in a nook concealed from their sight, suddenly came up to the bars. "Psst." he said.
"What do you want?" Van asked vexingly.
The man was young and robust, with the imposing stature of an athlete. His face, however, lacked the austerity and toughness of a prison guard, and rather reminded Van of Orion. "Your Majesty, I am named Zeer, the only guard bored enough to take this prison job."
"Haven't you heard, I'm not a king anymore," Van said cynically.
"Oh, poo!" Zeer cackled without restraint. "Don't listen to that old fool, Basante. What he says never goes! As you may have noticed, he doesn't say many things correctly anyhow! The reason why the people obey him is because if we don't, he'll take away everything we own. Tax is brutal. The politicians support him because they're cowards and care only about their land. What they call democracy is really masked tyranny. If there's a tyrant in all of Gaea, it's that pig! For he certainly looks like a fat pig!" he laughed again. "I tell you, the whole election system is rigged. It's all bribes and conspiracy. They care nothing about us poor people. It's dictatorship with a fancy name."
Van went up to the bars and smiled slightly. "You might want to keep your voice down, in case someone hears."
"Nah, don't worry! No one else comes near here. The other guards like to go to the citadel gates and walls or go fight. This is too stale for them. That leaves me to help you," he suddenly went into the guard's nook and brought out some bread. "Here, you need strength to hang on," he stuck his hand through the bars. "Have faith. I'm sure King Allen will have you out in no time."
Hitomi took the bread gratefully. Zeer winked at them cheerfully then left. She helped Van onto the single filthy mattress that lay in the narrow chamber. They ate a little then sat motionlessly. For once, they did not talk, did not pray. Let it come, let it come. They wanted to believe themselves capable of having the courage to face the greatest of all - death.
Van's loss of blood has drained his energy. Soon, he was forced to lie down. An insipid drowsiness invaded him and the wound induced a fever. Hitomi hurried out to get some cold water. Before he descended into an inflamed sleep, his mind was able to rant about Basram, his former ally and Gaea's leading nation in science. What is a great country anyways? What can be great about a land of a traitor? Fanelia may well be a little house and him and his loved ones the only inhabitants, waiting out the day when Basram too may admit itself to be but a speck in the sky. It is a sin. It is a hubristic sin for any one nation or person to assume the figure of Fate. Dornkirk had been satanic, heroic in some ways, but unforgivably hellish. These people, like mischievous devils who know not they once had heaven, raise pandemonium, and pretend they are calling up magical wonders. He himself had once been conceited but the thought can no longer occur to him without inflicting self-contempt. To his enemies, he had once said, "I can kill you because I am me." But now, Basante, Branimir and even Kailan say to him, "We can kill you because we are All."
He soon lost his way down the moribund river of such thought. The past came back to haunt him. The Destiny War appeared in an unrestful and noisy dream, remembered feverishly among the overburdening reality of the waking world. The war looked at him with a vengeful aspect. He relived the hate, the killing, the evil, the death. Then, as if standing in the middle of a battlefield, he received the soul-stifling revelation that if he dies, he may never in all the unimaginable universes, look on Hitomi's face again. The dream soared up in flames, the battlefield and dead soldiers burned all around him. He wandered through the inferno, without hope, seeking her but all he found was an unrecognizable shape that seized him with boundless fear, a terror he had never known. It became so hot, so very sultry and the fiery light flickered everywhere, fiendish and fighting with him over oxygen. With his last breath he screamed, "Hitomi!"
"Van! Wake up! I'm here, it's alright," she held a cold towel to his burning forehead.
"What the." he sat up and saw the little candle next to the mattress - that was the source of the raging flame he had dreamed. His hair was damp with sweat and the wound still throbbed. "Hitomi, you're here."
"Of course I am. Where else would I be? Here," she gently wiped his face. "Zeer said your wound must have caused a fever, hence the nightmare. He gave me an ointment to apply to the cut, so you're safe now. You can sleep soundly for the rest of the night."
At first, Van's eyes expressed a child's panic then it gradually hardened into an aged man's sorrow. "Hitomi, I.you know how during the Destiny War, death and killing did not matter to me at certain points. It wasn't that I.had nothing to lose. It was just that I was blinded and death became.death became,"
"I know what you're trying to say. But do you really give up hope? Don't you think we can get out of this somehow?"
"I.I don't know. I suppose there is a great possibility that Allen will come and rescue us, but I just felt like I should come to terms with all the possibilities. Death has always been as real as life for me, I mean, I'm constantly aware of both."
"Don't let either become too real," she kissed him on the cheek.
"It's not life I'm worried about losing, it's you," he looked through the small window at the top and saw no stars. "I wonder what the other world is like." ....
Under a dome of pure blue empyrean, in a sea of white foam, there rose an emerald promontory. On it stood a golden tree draped with leaves of crystal. In the sky there roamed ten planets and their moons, the children of the Sun, trailing the heavens with their beaming splendor.
Folken stood solitary beneath the golden bough. A small pool of water lay at his feet and he stared meditatively down its crystal depth. Many pools were scattered across the promontory but his mind was constant to this one that lay in the tree's shade. Because gravity is lower in this world, he was able to float up into the air, so he hung above the pool and observed what its window showed him: Van and Hitomi lying in prison.
A soft wind blew from another nether world, and ceased after a minute. His green shirt gently undulated. The wind brought another being, who had long black hair and purple earrings in the shape of teardrops. She approached Folken with steps of feather and held her palm upright in the air. "Folken." her call echoed like a dream. His eyes left the pool rested on her. "Nerya." Smiling, he raised his right palm solemnly and pressed it against hers.
"My love, with what sad eyes your soul wanders The world beneath, watching your dear brother."
"No, with you here, all woes turn to wonders, And my ill heart soars free like a feather." He leaned down and touched the water; ripples unfurled. "But alas, Nerya, I fear the night Descends too darkly upon his white wings."
She brushed over his cheek with the back of her hand. "Fret not, they shall live, for Love lends them light, Death and Life shall be as winters and springs."
"I need not Aleph's word, for there is you," he played with her earrings. "The dark power shall be vanquished by Life, And the Love of all Love shall be in view."
"Yes, their Love and Death rise to end all strife," she suddenly turned to gaze at the planets above. "The Gaean sun is born, I must be gone."
Folken drew her into his arms. "I remain your Atlantis within, till next dawn." Beneath the reflecting orbs and translucent veil of heaven, they kissed. Another zephyr swept by; the golden leaves and diamond water wavered. When he opened his eyes again, she was gone. ....
People talking, groaning, working.noises swelled to bury the deep echo of the caves. The "dong.dong" of the mystic bell had vanished. Outside, beneath an inconstantly shifting night sky, the land of Fanelia lay in darkness and death-like silence. Not one person, one torch, disturbed her dormant veins woven around the empty houses. But inside the bosoms of the cliff, bonfires danced and citizens of the two kingdoms huddled in various circles and slept against the walls of boxes. The underground chambers were illumined like circles of light. The sounds and fullness robbed the caves of their mystery, darkness and poetry, the only qualities that accommodated them to the name of Nerya.
Down the main entrance tunnel, blocked by boulders, was the first chamber, also the largest. Many soldiers who were wounded in the morning's battle, lay with their families. People crowded close together around the fires and lamented as they cooked. They were fatigued by the merciless fate of their countries. With the sudden disappearance of King Van and Lady Hitomi, the defeat of the allied troops, they suspected peace will forever be displaced. Merle huddled with the children and engaged in incessant praying. In the stuffiness of the caves, everyone thought about their homeland that lay just outside the rocks. Fanelia and Asturia already became another world. Wistfulness descended on them.
Escaflowne stood against the back wall of the chamber. Its shadow fell over the people and seemed like a message from another realm.
Opposite the main tunnel, across the first chamber, there ran a smaller tunnel that extended along the length of the cliff. This tunnel led to the rest of the chambers, equally populated and hot. About half way down, there was a smaller sub-tunnel that branched off into a more private cave. In it rested most of the lords and commanders.
In one corner, Allen sat with Millerna and Eries. The two women were roasting some food while Allen was using some stones on the ground to try and simulate battle positions. Exasperated, he picked up the stones and threw them into the blaze. He suddenly felt tired of Van and Hitomi.
"You know," Millerna said without looking at him. "Perhaps you'll have better luck if you had someone who's like a good luck charm. If that someone is here, you'll try harder to defend this place, out of love. Perhaps.Duke Chid?"
Allen knew her too well not to have noticed the cold sarcasm in her voice. He raised his head slowly and stared at her in vexation and disappointment. How could you not understand my grief, Millerna? Then he stood up and went to drink with Gaddes.
Soon, the night deepened and the fires died out. The Nerya caves regained their blackness and mesmerizing echo. People's sleeping hearts beat in unison with "dong.dong". Even the guards were somewhat lulled. A figure, cloaked in black and armed, managed to steal out of the chambers and proceeded down the main tunnel. He had taken a horse with him and had blindfolded the creature so it would not be afraid. He found a small door next to the entrance boulder and snuck through. After making sure no one was around to block his way, he straightened his back and mounted the steed. As he proceeded past the castle and down the central route out of Fanelia, he heard a voice call him from behind, "Orion!"
He stopped in shock and turned to see another rider, cloaked like himself. "Who goes there?" his hand reached for the hilt.
The rider removed the hood of the cloak. Even in the murky darkness, Orion could still see the silver curls and night blue eyes. "Selena, what are you doing here?" he ride closer to her.
"I'm coming with you, Orion."
"Why? I'm only going for a ride in the forest."
"Don't lie to me," she sighed. "Do you always go riding with a sword and bow? I know you're going to rescue Van and Hitomi."
Orion exhaled in exasperation. "Fine! I am! I know he's in Basram, I just know it." He closed his eyes momentarily. Orion had always believed that one should act in the real world, believing not in an inevitable progression toward a perfect, mystic Absolute, but in an imperfect world where individual action matters, where true heroism is leaping forth and saving a friend. "Having an army march in there just won't do. My strategy failed everyone this morning. I put Allen and the others in danger. I should go alone. It's easier for one spy to get across the border. One! Understand? You're not coming with me, Selena!"
She inched closer to him and held up her chin. "Your wounds have not fully recovered. You need a partner!"
"No," he sighed. "No, Selena, I cannot risk your life. If something happened to you, your brother would skin me alive."
"You forget, I have Dilandau's swordsmanship," she revealed the sword hanging from her belt. "I can probably beat you in a fight."
"Oh, really?" he puckered up his face and began considering.
"Let me come. They're my friends too. I can help in case you fall. Please?"
"Oh, alright!" Orion rolled his eyes then turned his horse around. She followed intrepidly.
The clouds parted momentarily and under the moonlight, they galloped out of Fanelia and approached the unguarded the forests bordering Basram. They paused before being in view of the citadel walls. Hidden in the thick undergrowth and foliage, they were free to speak.
"Okay, Selena, you stay here. I shall attempt to take a uniform from a Basram soldier and masquerade as one of them in order to reach the prison. I'll come up with the rest of the plan as I go along. If I don't return by dawn, go back to Fanelia and tell your brother. Don't look back, do you understand? Don't come after me."
She stared at him in protest then nodded. "Okay, I promise I'll stay here."
"Atta girl!" he reached out his hand ready to touch her face but suddenly withdrew. "Um.I better get going. We're running out of time. I trust you'll be careful. See you soon," he pulled the rein.
Just as he was almost out of reach, Selena pulled him back, "Orion."
He looked down at her hand gripping his arm, and cleared his throat nervously. "Y-yes?"
She moved her horse closer to his. "I want to give you something before you go," she reached into her pocket and took out the Twin Souls card. "Here. Hitomi gave it to me. She said it's a good luck charm. It symbolizes Love. I want you to have it."
Orion hesitantly took the card and looked at it with watery eyes. "Um.do you really.never mind. Thanks, I'll." he quickly put the card into his shirt pocket. He dared not look at her, fearing a look would shatter his dreams into an illusion. She waited but he still looked down. He twisted the rein around his hand and contemplated the girl who was beside him. He thought about her past, present and future.
He suddenly straightened up and looked ready to leave. But he swung around. His arms swept the night wind and ended around her waist. They kissed. It was impassioned, poetic. It was them.
"I had to make sure," he whispered then started off.
A radiance lit Selena's face and she called after him, "Sei tu corai ansias."
Orion turned around and smiled. "Deathlessly." The trailing dust from his path soon obscured her view. He advanced toward life or death and her future went along with him. Everything was shrouded in dust that could be dispersed only by the rising of the sun. Love itself became mystified.
~ End of Part IX ~
AWWWW! Aren't you just so happy for Orion and Selena? Well, it's not so happy later on, hehe. Too bad about Folken and Nerya - in a later chapter, it's explained that these two are separated in the afterlife kind of as a punishment for the sinful mortal lives they've led. Well, someone has to be tragic, right? The climax is coming up, so stay tuned! Don't forget to leave a review!
Point of Interest: Folken and Nerya speak in iambic pentameter, and their lines form a sonnet. The idea is taken from Shakespeare's "Romeo and Juliet" where the first meeting of the two lovers also had the palm-pressing movement and the sonnet speech.