A/n Sorry it's been ages and I have little excuse. But here is the next chapter and thank you so very much for your reviews. I have cleaned up the first chapter a bit more and I hope you enjoy this chapter. However, a little patience may be needed, I have a little explaining to do in this chapter. Thank you again.
Disclaimer: I do not own Escaflowne or any of its characters.
Chapter 2
The floating fortress moved silently through the night sky, parting the waves of mist in its path as it chased the setting sun. Below, mountains soared up to kiss the stars far above and rivers ran down the mountainsides to escape the towering peaks. Just above the quickly darkening skyline, a mass appeared unlike in shape but smaller than the floating fortress, heading towards it. The great mass of rock slowed as the lesser sped towards it until it too slowed, as the two chunks of rock stood in the air side by side. A vessel launched from the smaller craft and flew with intentions to dock in the bay of the floating fortress.
Dilandau traced the steps down the corridor to his lair that had been followed many a time before. His boots made a soft click as they touched the stone floors and echoed down the corridor ahead of him and the many others that preceded it.
The albino shivered suddenly. He shook his head and growled at himself. The way Wolf had moved and executed the Fanelian spy so effectively shocked him, maybe even scar-. He stopped short in his fleeting thoughts and clenched his teeth. He feared no one and nothing. Pushing the thought of Wolf away, the albino decided to blame the sudden shudder on the cold that bit in to him despite his armour. It was never very wise to walk around the Floating Fortress at night, it was rarely heated and the corridors were only left to be comforted by the sharp night air. Dilandau smiled to himself, that was a good enough reason.
He turned a corner and stopped at a pair of wooden doors which greeted him with the knowledge that he was home. Pushing the large doors open, he stepped in before closing them shut again. It took Dilandau a few seconds to adjust his fiery gaze from the bright unnatural light of the corridors to the preferably natural darkness of the Dark Lord's lair. Despite the impairment of his vision, the silver haired boy pulled a match out from the black veil that covered the room and lit a candle that glowed feebly against it.
Dilandau's eyes warmed to the flickering fire of the candle as he moved towards the bed that the new-born light had revealed. Feeling exhaustion sweep over him, he fell quickly to his bed, pulling the buckles of his armour as he went. Shifting his arms this way and that, the armour and his white shirt fell to the floor with a thud and the armoured boots soon followed. Feeling at the side of his waistline he grabbed the sheath containing his sword and placed it too on the floor. Lying down on the cold bed, he unbuttoned his leather trousers and pushed them away down his legs and on to the floor with the rest of the clothing. With one last obstacle to cross before he could finally rest, he pulled the metal band away from his forehead, allowing the bangs of silver hair to fall into his eyes. Placing the band onto a small desk next to his bed, he stretched and finally fell back on the sheets of his bed as he pulled the covers across his nearly naked body and blew out the candle.
'I hate Wolf,' Dilandau thought with all the fire that burned through his veins.
Roughly an hour had passed and he still couldn't get to sleep despite his exhaustion. 'What did he mean 'nor am I a man?'' He thought both confused and angrily to himself. 'If he's suggesting I'm just a mere boy, he's very sadly mistaken,' he continued with a growl.
He shifted on to his side, he had to get to sleep otherwise the night would last forever. Dilandau had been humiliated by Wolf enough for one day and just wanted to forget about it. Tomorrow would mean a chance to prove himself to Folken and the other Ziabach Generals. With hope filling Dilandau's thoughts, a rare thought at that, he slowly drifted into sleep where his mind could finally be at rest.
A pair of red eyes snapped open, searching from an unmoving body. Dilandau remained still, something or someone was in his room. There it was again, this time he could distinctly recognise the muffled sound as a footstep; someone wanted to be unheard. Dilandau slowly reached down to the floor for his sword but he could not grab at the leather sheath, as hands seized his body and pushed him back into the bed.
'Quickly,' he heard someone mutter full of desperation.
Dilandau tore at the hands' grip but more took its place whenever he made any progress. It was hopeless as he pushed his trained muscles to the limit to urge his body to escape the ever-enforced grasp.
'Now,' a different voice whispered.
'It's difficult, it's too dark,' another voice harshly returned.
'Just do it,' the first voice snapped back.
Dilandau's eyes were now wild with blood red flames as he burned with lust to break free. A sharp, dull pain shot into his arm as he struggled. The albino's strength left him immediately and his eyes quickly fell heavy. Within a few seconds the fires in the albino's eyes were quenched and he was at peace again.
'You could have helped,' one of the voices snapped at another figure present in the dark room.
'But if I had he would have known it was me,' Folken said, holding out his metal claw-like arm in explanation.
'He's strong for just a boy,' returned the voice, dismissing the previous topic.
'Not strong enough though,' Folken replied. 'And that's why you're here, you and the other sorcerers. If Wolf, my personal guard, an ordinary person can out do the lord of the Dragonslayers, something needs to be done. I want him stronger. Can you do that?'
'Of course, you should know that. It will be painful for him but that should not matter,' the sorcerer said with little concern in his voice. 'Shall we then?' He gestured towards the door to leave.
Folken nodded and walked over to the sleeping albino and picked him up in his strong yet gentle arms. He was so light and fragile Folken felt pity for him to have to undergo such pain. Surely such torment would break him, being so fragile? But no, Dilandau will be fine. 'He will be strong,' Folken thought as he carried the boy down the corridors to the vessel that was resting in the docking bay.
Dilandau awoke with pain shrieking through his muscles, his eyes wide open, he noticed that instead of hands, leather straps held him down tight to a metal table. He arched his back as another wave of pain swept over his body and as an attempt to escape the sharp coldness of the metal that chilled him to the core. He blinked rapidly as his eyes streamed with what appeared to be tears. The pain was unbearable. He yelled until his lungs were at bursting point and then slumped back to the metallic surface that bit at his body with cold.
Resistance to the pain was fruitless as his body reacted involuntarily to the torture. Dilandau could do nothing but try to bear it. He looked around the dimly lit room, searching for the source of the pain, as cold sweat painted his face and spread across his body. His vision blurred with tears. Dilandau could see the smudged outline of men in long dull white coats standing around him. He noticed that one of the men moved closer with something held in his hand that sparkled then smudged in his watery world. He lost sight of it as the man moved over him and a second later, a pulse of pain shook his body.
Dilandau whimpered in pain and began to call out to the men in desperation, asking for pity. He searched the men's faces for any sign of mercy until his pale red eyes fell upon one who stood on his own, away from the others. Dilandau noticed that he held a melancholy expression and the albino pleaded with his eyes to him to make the torture stop. But no relief was met in the gaze of the burdened looking man. The albino lost hope, his energy diminishing and his eyes fell from the sad face to the floor. But there, down the side of the man's body something glinted and caught Dilandau's eye, a metal arm.
'Folken!?' Dilandau muttered before passing out.
'What?' Folken uttered in surprise. He turned to the other sorcerer, 'he knew it was me, he said my name and-'
'He won't remember anything that has happened here this night,' one of the other sorcerers said, rudely cutting Folken short. 'When we sedated him we also made sure that we added something that would make him suffer temporary amnesia just in case he woke up. And anyway, he's never remembered the times before has he? Don't worry.'
'I wasn't worrying thank you,' Folken responded coolly. 'Are we done here?' He continued calmly, wishing for the experiment to end.
'Yes, we're finished,' replied the sorcerer. 'He should be stronger now but still a bit unstable, so watch him. If you need anything else you know how to reach us,' he continued.
Folken nodded as he picked up the pale and exhausted boy and carried him out of the sorcerer's vessel and back to the Flying Fortress and then to Dilandau's room.
A/n Sorry it was short and not as exciting as the first chapter but please have patience and it will most certainly get better. Please review because I like to know where I'm going right or wrong. Whichever the case, thank you,
Lil eiko