Disclaimer: I don't own Escaflowne. Sniff. A/N: Heh, I know that I'm not getting that many reviews, but this story is just fun to write so I'm just gonna keep writing away. =Þ

Chapter 11: A Bridge

The labyrinth of identical black halls had done it again. Cevena was lost. Still weak from the fever, shaken up by her encounter with the commander, being torn between Earth and Gaia, her parents and Gaia and now being lost *again* on top of it all made her want to scream at the top of her lungs.

Still running, her breath was coming in gasps. All of a sudden, she was in a massive room. Blinking, she slowed to a halt. Steel catwalks lined the perimeter and the walls were huge sheets of glass. The room looked familiar.

Peering around closer, she recognized the room as she saw the huge silent metal monsters seemingly in peaceful slumber suspended in midair by cables. They were the flying robot machines that the slayers had brought her in. She was in the huge hanger of the Vione. The landing pad stretched on for what seemed like kilometres.

Suddenly all her troubles came back to her, Cevena began feeling smothered again. Air.

Just her luck she saw that there were doors in each section of the glass windows leading out onto a balcony. The view must have been breath taking when the Vione had still been airborne.

Wrestling with a rusty door handle, she had to try three before one finally gave way. She sucked in the piny air, her head clearing up almost instantly. She leaned against the railing and gazed at the forested canyon walls.

Squinting she could even see the beginnings of many little settlements beginning to dot the land around.

All of a sudden, a huge white beam of light shot up into the sky. It all but blinded her, but she thought she could see two people within the light. Her parents.

As if the illumination had released the dam in her heart, hot tears began to roll down her face. Cevena forcefully wiped them away but it was in vain.

Out here on the secluded balcony, she was alone with no one to watch her. She was safe and solitary, ready to release her inner mayhem.

She wept her years of grief in silent sobs; they wracked her body making her ribs ache from the spasms. She slid down against the railing and sat on the metal grating floor.

She hadn't cried like this in over ten years, a sudden memory of her grandmother surfaced. Grandma Kanzaki called it "Spirit rain", it was supposed to heal and strengthen the soul. Cevena sagged, exhausted and feeling better. It really did heal, she thought absently.

The hair on the back of her neck rose and tingled. She twisted her head, left- right. No one.

Then abruptly, a pair of black boots dropped down from above. And attached to those boots was a pair of legs, a body and a head full of silver hair, and of course, the piercing crimson eyes.

Cevena was instantly terrified, embarrassed and angry all at once; no one would hear her scream out here. Not Folken, not the Brown girls. Dilandau would skin her out here as promised and she would never have the chance to see her parents again and she would deserve it, choosing Gaia over them after all. And how long had he been up there watching her cry? That creep! How could she not have noticed him? Her thoughts circled frantically on and on.

Dilandau cut through her frenzied fears. "What were you crying about?" He sounded suspicious.

Cevena blinked. It hit her suddenly that it would be a very, VERY bad idea to tell him that her father had just been here. She swallowed some phlegm, choking and coughing. "I. . .I was. . .was feeling sad." She finished lamely. Please don't kill me. She added silently.

He didn't look convinced in the least and he tilted his head peering at her quizzically. "Sad about what?"

Cevena's brain worked furiously, she was no good at lying or acting, drama class had certainly shown her that. Dilandau would see through her in a second. Why was he asking her these questions anyways? What was he waiting for? Why didn't he just get it over with? Her cheeks flushed with anger. He was toying with her, like a cat with a mouse.

"Just DO it will you?!" She blurted out. Oops. He probably thinks I'm insane.

She then had to desperately stem the giggles that threatened to explode with that thought.

He just stared at her. "Tell me and maybe I won't kill you."

Wow. Cevena thought wondrously, he had definitely been on the same page as her. Maybe she WAS crazy. In that case, it wouldn't do any harm to tell him why she was feeling sad.

"Have you ever betrayed someone you loved very much?" She asked softly and carefully.

Jade eyes met ruby ones but it was Dilandau who looked away this time, but Cevena caught the fleeting look of pain that arrested his features for an instant.

"He's thinking of his Dragon Slayers." She thought sadly.

Her heart immediately reached out for him. "Dilandau..." she spoke gently despite her pounding heart. "I'm not Hitomi and I'm not Van. I'm myself, Cevena. And I'd love if we didn't have to hate each other so much. . ." She trailed off, she didn't know where she was going with this.

Dilandau twisted to look at her. "After all I've done? All I've said to you? I can smell the fear on you right now. I don't think you want to call a truce with me as much as you just want to get out of here alive." He curled his lip bitterly.

"Well, of course I'm scared of you!" She exploded exasperatedly. "I've heard all the stories! And you DID threaten to kill me and you DID try to kill my dad with an insane passion! But I'm willing to try and look past all that. All I know of Dilandau is the feared commander of the dragon slayers in the history of Gaia. I don't know who YOU are."

He looked at her a little incredulously. "What do you mean you don't know who I am? I'm the same one, the same Dilandau who destroyed countless villages, slaughtered countless lives, toppled countless kingdoms. And I have not forgotten what the Dragon did to me."

He paused, it seemed if he was talking to himself now. "In the end, there can only be one of us. He thinks he destroyed me when he destroyed my slayers. He nearly did. But now that I am myself again, now that I have no Celena to hold me back, I will finish off that bastard." He clenched his fists.

Without thinking, Cevena grabbed the albino by the shoulders and shook him as hard as she could. "That's stupid and wrong! Listen to yourself!"

Dilandau reflexively broke off her grip and glared at her. "What the hell are you saying?"

"You have to let go of the hate! Both of you are wrong and both of you are going to end up destroying yourselves! You nearly destroyed my father when you burnt down his kingdom all those years ago! Losing his family was hard enough, but then losing his realm, people, friends, warriors and sword master. That's a heart wound that never healed. I know he inflicted the same one onto you by killing the slayers. But please understand that you hurt him too!"

Cevena realized that her palms were outstretched as if in a plea.

"Please. . ." She thought in her mind. "Please open up to me. . . "

Dilandau visually winced at the mention of the slayers. He looked at Cevena and she was surprised to see that his eyes seemed bright with tears.

"I was the one who killed my slayers. . . ." He whispered shaking his head. "I was so determined, so blinded by my hatred that I killed them. Not Van."

"What do you mean?" It was Cevena's turn to ask.

He looked intently into her eyes; there was desperateness in his gaze. "I should have died with them that day. A good commander dies with his men, the dragon must finish what he started. He must finish me off."

Cevena could barely conceal her shock, she had been wrong again.

She had assumed that Dilandau had been after Van for revenge but with astonishment she realized that that was wrong. The truth was that he had been trying to get Van to kill HIM to finish him off so he could join his Slayers. "Dilandau-" She began.

Shouting and opening doors interrupted. It was another surprise for Cevena, as the strategoes himself came charging onto the balcony.

Dilandau's face immediately lost its almost vulnerable look, his cloak of indifference and arrogance was back in place.

Cevena watched as Folken, with almost unnatural speed, seized Dilandau's arms, twisting them back with brutal strength.

Dilandau gasped. The Dragon Slayers all filed in behind Folken. "Dilandau Albatou, I gave you direct orders to stay away from Cevena!" This was the closest to a shout Cevena had ever heard her uncle's voice.

He wrenched the passive commander around. He drew back his hand to hit him. All the Slayers turned away. Cevena raced forward and grabbed her uncles raised arm.

"Stop! Uncle, STOP! It's not what you think!"

Cevena tugged Folken's remaining arm that held Dilandau. Folken gaped. He all but shoved the albino away. He checked Cevena over quickly looking for injuries, taking her shoulders. "Has he harmed you? Threatened to kill you if you do not aid him now?"

Fury crossed his face and he stared hard at the young man who still had the submissive look on his face as if resigned to his fate. "Captain Dilandau Albatou, explain yourself."

Cevena cut in before Dilandau even opened his mouth. "Uncle, listen to me! I came outside because I needed some fresh air to clear my mind; it so happens that Dilandau was out here too. We started chatting, he didn't threaten me or hurt me or anything!"

Dilandau's head snapped up in surprise. For a second, Folken looked positively astonished, but just as quick Folken converted back into his usual composed self again. He glanced at the commander with a mildly curious expression on his face.

"Dilandau, if what she says is true, than I owe you an apology." Dilandau gave a little shrug. "Don't worry about it." He muttered.

Folken turned back to his niece, crossing his arms. "When the Brown girl ran in breathless screaming about seeing Dilandau about to kill you, I thought I would have a heart attack. Right after promising your father to keep you safe too! But once again I see that you are quite capable in taking care of yourself."

Cevena blushed at the praise, her bold tongue was now clumsy and big.

He glanced quizzically back at Dilandau again, "It does come to me as a surprise however, that the commander has suddenly decided to be civil to the daughter of his most hated enemy. . ."

Dilandau spoke this time, "I have decided that my quarrels are between Van and myself. . . they need not concern others."

"Oh?" Folken's tone was sceptical. Cevena thought she could read a mixture of pity and sadness in his usually unreadable face.

Folken stood around a few moments longer before turning to go. Chuckling, he muttered "I ran all the way out here for nothing. . . " He turned one more time to Cevena. "I will leave you out here then if there is no danger. I will leave the Slayers with you, should Dilandau change his mind, they will protect you. I apologize again for interrupting, I shall be in my room if you need me."

The Slayers remained, hovering about their captain uncertainly but Dilandau was staring at Cevena. "I thought your plan was to stall me until help came and then do away with me once and for all."

He paused.

"I suppose I was wrong." He said this casually, like an after thought.

It had all happened to fast that Cevena still felt like it had just been a dream. "I'd hoped that you knew enough about me by now to know that I'm not that kind of person!" She exclaimed.

The corners of Dilandau's mouth quirked a tiny bit.

But his eyes were still guarded. If his arms were sore, he didn't show any signs of pain. He turned also to go.

"Come on Slayers, back to the training hall for another round of sparring!" He barked.

Miguel immediately spoke up. "We are under direct orders from Folken to protect Lady Cevena. We can not leave her side."

Dilandau whipped around, narrowing his practically glowing eyes to slits. "What did you say?"

Miguel cowered down, melting into apologies.

"You are the Dragon Slayers. You are loyal only to me. Remember that."

"NOW MOVE."

The Slayers all meekly marched out.

Just before leaving he turned back to Cevena. He actually looked a little uncertain of himself. "Maybe.... just maybe I don't have to kill you. But don't think we can ever be friends, you may not be not be Van or Hitomi, but you are still their child. Just stay out of my way, girl and you won't get hurt."

He walked away. The glass doors opened and shut.

Cevena was alone again. She sat down on the metal grating floor again and stared out into the tranquil forests once more, she tried to regain the quiet in her mind but pieces of that strange conversation continued to race through her brain and on top of that, the Androids confused her. . . they acted so human. . .

Exhausted, she closed her eyes.