Episode 15: Double-Sidedness
"I don't know what is going on with me, Gadess." Allen admitted. He and his first mate were moving down to the cockpit. "I don't know what's happened to me."
"What do you mean, Boss?" Gadess asked, growing wary.
Allen hung his head as they took the stairs from the guest wing down into the elaborately decorated hallways, their feet making sounds on the polished wood. Gadess had always been the best friend that he had, and it seemed like right now he was the only person alive who could help him sort out his confused mind. "Have you noticed a change in me?"
"Sir?"
The knight sighed heavily. "I'm going to share something with you. You wouldn't mind?"
"Of course not."
"I've been having doubts." He said with gravity. "Doubts in myself. I don't think my mind works the same way it used to."
"Oh, changes like that." Gadess understood. "Well, lots of things have happened since we first started working together. You can't expect yourself not to change."
"But I don't like the change, Gadess." He interrupted. "I don't like this person I've become. I'm not sure if I even recognize myself." Gadess opened his mouth to offer support but Allen continued to bear his soul. "Amano and I are supposed to be the same person and I recognize him as someone I could be… or once was… but we are so different. I don't know what I've done wrong to end up so much worse than he…"
"Allen!" Gadess grabbed his shoulder and stopped him, turning him around so that they faced each other on the landing. Gadess narrowed his eyes, his dark eyebrows growing level. This was a look Allen had rarely seen on his face – a look lacking in all but utter seriousness. "Don't regret yourself." The blond took a double take at the command, his mouth falling open. Gadess continued. "You're a good man and you have a good heart, but you'll lose that if you start to regret yourself. You can't help all that's happened in the past, that's something everyone has to face. Amano's younger than you are, you can't mistake youth and inexperience for one man being better than another. You've just got to be as true as you can to who you, uniquely you, are. You can control what you do today, that's the gist of life, and you can be who and what you want to be or fate wants you to be or whatever, but you can't live in the past. If you do that, you've lost every chance of making the future worthwhile. That's the way you've got to see things."
Allen paused, amazed.
The sergeant let the knight go and stepped back. "It'll be a sad day the day you lose who you are inside all your baggage, Boss, and I hope I'm not alive to see it. Come on, everyone has probably finished by now."
Allen tarried, glued to that spot as he watched Gadess turn the corner toward the bridge. He had to stop and consider what he'd heard, a speech with more meaning than he was expecting from a crewman. 'Gadess believes in me'. Allen bowed his head again, his eyes staring at nothing. 'He even prizes me. He's seen me through Millerna, Hitomi, Celena and now Yukari… perhaps I'm being selfish. I'm focusing all my attention on the wrong things.' He started walking slowly around the corner and down the long hallway. 'Perhaps there's nothing wrong with me at all…' he refocused his blue eyes as he approached the door to the cockpit, 'but then perhaps there still is something wrong – and I just have to get over it.'
When he entered everyone was waiting, including Celena, who leapt up at the sight of him. "Big Brother!" She dashed over and hugged him around the chest, smiling broadly. It took a second for him to realize that it was him that she was so happy to see, and recalled that she hadn't really seen him since the meeting the night before when he left in less than a satisfactory mood. He smiled a little to see how much she cared, then bent to see her blue eyes staring to him.
"Celena, how are you doing?"
"I'm alright, Allen!" She replied. "I was worried about you."
"You don't have to be worried." He answered. "I'm alright. You never have to worry about me, okay? I'll always be here for you."
Celena beamed with radiance, then glanced back to where she'd been sitting. "Suru and I have been playing! Do you want to play with us?"
Allen laughed a little to himself, thinking what he'd look like playing dolls with a couple little girls then scanned the room and found the rest of the party standing inanimately. Gadess was hovering over by them speaking with Daiji and Dryden in hushed chords. He glanced up to Allen who noticed that none of them seemed relaxed, the Dryden doubles, Hitomi, Amano, Yukari, the Millerna doubles, the cat doubles and the Van doubles all seemed as anxious as Gadess, who excused himself to go check on the bridge again. Allen realized that it was only the blissfully innocent who could be entertained in this room. "No, Celena, I have work. Maybe later."
"Okay." His sister agreed and she pranced of to Suru to resume their games.
Van let out a growl and got up from next to Hitomi, pacing down the isle in between them and the Dryden group like a lion in a cage. He spotted Allen with an impatient look and stomped over to speak hoarsely with him. "Where have you been?"
"I was preoccupied." Allen answered in a similar tone. "What's happened?"
"Reeden and some guy of Dryden's have gone to spy on the palace." Van answered, frowning deeply, "They've taken forever. They're supposed to tell us whether it's safe to go or not when they get back." His brown eyes flared. "This is pointless! Zaibach started everything. The only reason we should even be here is to stop them, why send spies at all!?!"
"You forget that Eries has control of this country." Allen informed him. "She would have nothing to do with war."
"Its obvious." Van stated with undeterred conviction. "It's happening again."
Hitomi was feeling antsy, playing with the hem of her skirt and looking up to the others in the room incessantly. "What do you think is taking them so long?"
Jiai's aqua eyes were very large as she received flash insight. "Did they get caught!?"
"Don't say that!" Hitomi cried. "If they did, it would be my fault!"
"Hitomi, it wouldn't be your fault." Yosu assured her. "We decided on this together and the two of them volunteered. There is no way it could be your fault."
"Yosu – " Hitomi's voice held a sense of relief. The orange-haired young man put his hand on her shoulder. Van's eyes flared.
"Yeah, stop blaming yourself, Hitomi." Koneko instructed. "You always blame yourself and it's never your fault at all."
"That's not true." She said, solemnly. Yosu sat down next to her and, in doing so, laced his arm around her back. His double began to boil like hot tar, his eyes ablaze with a jealousy that was only aggravated when Hitomi showed no adverse reaction to the arm, whatsoever. This had been going on for far too long, and in the expectant energy of the air, the king reached his breaking point. He stormed away from Allen and tore Yosu up out of his seat. The 16-year-old stumbled back and regained his balance facing the fuming draconian with outrage to match his.
"Hey!"
"Keep away from her!" Van snarled. "Stay away from Hitomi!"
"Van!" The girl cried, her hand flying up to her pendant. "Van!?!"
"Why should I!?!" Yosu snapped back.
"She's MINE!" Van yelled protectively. "Only I can touch her!"
Merle sprung up. "Lord Van!"
Allen stepped forward to intervene. "Van, calm down. Don't do anything rash."
Van was focused intently and utterly on Yosu, one fist clenching tightly and his arm shaking with fever. "You know that she's mine. Who do you think you are trying to take her away from me!"
"You don't possess her like some territory or royal annex or something!" Yosu spat at him. "She can make up her mind by herself who she wants touching her! What makes you the 'be all and end all'!?!"
Koneko joined Merle, stepping a bit in front of her. "Yosu!!!"
"Van! Yosu!" Dryden tried to interrupt. "You're the same person! Cool it! You don't need to be fighting like this!"
There was no swaying the combatants once the prize had been set. Van heard no reason, wound up and punched Yosu across the face. Koneko screamed. The orange-haired man staggered, his cheek hot and tingling, then turned an explosive rage on Van. He leapt for the attack and the two of them began a territorial civil war, a mutual mortal combat with the ferocity of two dragons with teeth, claws, and flame. Hitomi jumped up in time to have her chair kicked aside and covered her face in horror, her green eyes peering through her fingers. "No! Van! Stop please!"
Merle let out a pitiful call. "Lord Van!"
"Get 'em apart!" Daiji called, diving in and grabbing Yosu across the chest. Amano and Yukari joined him by grabbing limbs and stringing their fellow Earther up. Allen grabbed Van's arm but the king thrashed free. He shoved Dryden aside with a full swing and advanced on his captured double who was struggling like a madman. Daiji grabbed his forehead, trying to hold him at arms length but was rewarded by a quick and defensive twist job that made his wrist pop loudly. "Yeow! Not cool!"
"Hey!" Dryden yelled. "That's enough!"
"Would you two cut it out!?!" Yukari seconded.
Jiai called over the clamor. "Let him go, Daiji! Don't get yourself hurt!"
Koneko cried out on her toes. "Yosu!"
Merle grabbed her arm. "Come on!" The cat bounded over to where Allen and Dryden were being kept successfully at bay and leapt on Van in a feline pounce, hanging off his neck and down his back. Koneko jumped in between the King and her people with her arms flung wide in a way he found familiar. He froze long enough to get each arm firmly bound by the two Gaeans behind him. Merle twisted her legs around his thighs to keep him pinned. The room was frozen in the moment.
Koneko broke the silence. "The two of you shouldn't be fighting! What's wrong with you!?!"
"We're all friends!" Merle added from Van's ear. "We should get along!"
Koneko let her arms drop and turned her amber eyes to first Van and then her brother. "It's the waiting. The waiting has us all uneasy! We all need to take a deep breath and calm down! Relax! What's the use in punching each other, its not going to bring them back any faster!"
Merle nodded pointedly. "That's right!"
Van's mind warped back into focus and he unclenched his muscles, Allen and Dryden dropped his arms. Merle came down and around to face him. He felt ashamed as he looked into her eyes. Daiji put Yosu down, Amano and his girlfriend letting go as well. He crossed his arms, one eye beginning to swell. Hitomi was biting her fingers as she surveyed the two, their identically brown eyes sharing two different emotions; shame and bitterness, it was like mixing hot and cold water. The king sighed to release some of his coiled aggression and wiped blood from a split lip. "They're right." He turned steely as he addressed his double. "The waiting is making us restless. We're on our last nerve." He then looked to the girl standing nearby in shock. "I'm sorry, Hitomi."
She did not find this comforting, but instead she was more strongly repelled, the words seemed superficial with the emotional images she was receiving from each of them. The blood on their faces and the memories of the twisted malice she'd seen in them moments before made her nauseous and dizzy. In a blink she'd decided that she couldn't stand any more and, throwing her hands back over her eyes, darted from the room. She brushed past Allen as she ran for her quarters. The knight whirled around. "Hitomi!?"
Millerna started after her but stopped, second-guessing. "Oh, Hitomi…"
Yosu and Van were both ashamed now, a deep and self-loathing shame that drew them into separate corners to brood. Daiji and Dryden reclaimed their place by the window with Jiai, the referee massaging his wrist with his other hand. Dryden addressed him. "You alright?"
"I think so, It's not broken or anything." He tried rotating it but returned to rubbing. "I think he pulled something though, I've done it a couple times in weight-training, if I wrap it it'll be okay."
Dryden sighed and Jiai seemed greatly relieved. "Good!" But suddenly become rosy at his glance.
Amano noticed and looked to Yukari who shook her head, instructing him not to mention it. He returned to gazing out the window, keeping the watch. Celena and Suru continued to play on the floor, neither truly noticing that anything had happened at all. Suddenly the 17-year-old spotted three figures sneaking out from the alleys of the city. He recognized them instantly and let out an excited cry that make everyone else jump. "Hey! It's them!" The rest of them mobbed at the window to confirm. Amano took Yukari up under one arm, then suddenly took a double take. "Hey, what's Hakai doing down there?"
"Someone go run and tell Gadess that they're back." Daiji called.
"I'll go!" Merle volunteered. Koneko followed her, ecstatic.
Millerna grabbed Dryden's arm with an excited squeal. "Let's hurry and see what they say!" The rest thought it was a good idea and headed down to the gangplank on one of the lower floors. Gadess and the cats were waiting, having taken a more direct route, and were opening the hatch for the three scouts. Reeden, Llave, and Hakai dashed up, stopping just inside, panting. Llave collapsed to his knees in relief. Reeden spotted Allen among the crowd. "Boss! It's insane sneaking around out there! From the time we left at lunch to now the place is crawling with security!"
Van crossed his arms. "See? I predicted this from the start. They're the ones making war."
Llave looked up to Dryden. "They are just now mounting forces, sir, we got to see the perimeter being formed while we were waiting at the wall. They are emptying the barracks and it looks like they suspect that THEY are under attack."
"They probably do." Dryden responded. "More than likely they've heard of what's happened in the other countries. News of a missing queen and king, especially after a fight like there was in Fanelia, would prompt such a response."
"Or they could have caused both and are getting ready to strike Egzardia or Fried next!" Van insisted.
Allen turned sharply. "Fried?"
"You're jumping to conclusions." Yukari told him.
Hakai was looking devious, sniggering to himself. Amano turned a critical eye on him. "What are you sniveling about?"
"I could tell you some important stuff." He replied with a mischievous sneer. "REAL important stuff. Stuff only people who snuck all the way inside the palace would know…"
"You went INSIDE!?!" Amano cried.
"You bet he did!" Reeden cried. "We had to chase him in, it was a royal mess!"
"You weren't supposed to go inside!" Dryden cried. "That wasn't smart."
"I knew you'd be mad, sir, but we had to chase him." Llave appealed. "We couldn't leave him in there, he's a member of our party."
He crossed his arms. "I suppose. What was he doing along for the trip anyway."
"He snuck up on us." Reeden replied. "I still say we should have left him."
"What kind of information do you have, Hakai?" Yukari asked. "If it's so important you need to tell us."
Hakai weighed the options visibly with a certain amount of cock. "Hmn… Should I? Shouldn't I?"
"Spit it out!" Amano shouted.
"Tell us, Hakai." Suru pleaded. "Its probably very important."
"Su," Hakai leveled to her, "you gotta learn stuff. Its not like I get any benefits around here, the only way you get any power is if you learn to make deals. If I just out and tell 'em what I know I won't even get a 'thank you' but if I ask for a price, then they've got no choice but to pay up. That's the way it works."
Suru looked up to Celena then back to him. "But you could be nice." He snorted.
Amano put his hands on his hips. "Okay, what do you want?"
Allen grabbed his shoulder in outrage. "What are you doing!?"
"Let me handle this, Allen." Amano snapped, brushing his hand off and turning back to Hakai. "What's your offer?"
"Hmn…. Lessee…" Hakai bated in mock deliberation, enjoying the look of exasperation on their faces.
Amano reached to smack him in the head. "Stop messing around! Name your price if you're gonna name one!"
Hakai ducked out of the way and frowned at him. "I want my matches back!"
Yukari gasped. "Don't do it Amano!"
"If his information is as important as he says we can't afford to pass it up." Amano replied.
"Well… offer him red meat or something." Yukari suggested. "But don't give him those matches back, he'll be hell-born with those!"
Hakai sniggered wickedly. Amano sighed and turned to him. "Okay, you win. Tell us what you know and I'll give you your matches." Yukari put her head down in his arm.
Hakai's hands started twitching. "Wicked!" He let out a maniacal laugh that made the others feel like a monster had just been put loose.
Van and Yosu both narrowed their eyes at him, Yosu because he remembered how much he hated Hakai from Tae Kwon Do lessons with him, and Van because he had been reminded of someone else whom he hated. The King bared a fang and snapped. "Out with it already!"
Hakai spoke importantly in a victorious tone. "Well, while I was sneaking around inside the palace, I found a really fancy doorway with black walls and torches and stuff…"
"That's the throne room." Millerna recalled. "I remember from Eries's wedding, we got to see the palace."
"He got in all the way to the throne room!?" Jiai cried.
"Uh, talking!" Hakai redirected. He kept telling with a little more irritation. "There was a dude there with guys dressed like those dead soldier dudes standing around him. He was really wussy looking with a lot of heavy clothes on and he talked to himself the whole time like a baby."
"Lyse." Millerna confirmed. "It fits King Zaibach to a tee."
"He got to the KING!?" Jiai cried again.
"What was he talking about, Hakai?" Amano asked.
"I was getting to that!" The boy shouted. "He was talking about how some 'resistance' or something were coming and that he'd had the whole place filled up with guards so that some lady would be safe. He was mumbling about how she was worried about Asturia. That's the place we took off from right? I thought it was. He was a total loser and was all griping about how bad he was at being king."
"He was talking about Eries." Millerna announced, with fervor. "He's flooded the palace with guards to protect her! He must have heard about what happened in Asturia and is afraid that the same thing is happening here."
"That's what we thought wasn't it?" Daiji asked.
"He doesn't really sound bold enough to go to war." Yukari surmised. "He barely sounds confident enough to make decisions for his own country."
"I'm starting to seriously doubt the 'Zaibach is in charge of the war' hypothesis." Dryden voiced.
"But sir!" Llave called. "Those melefs were there. The Maginot! Reeden said that they were the same ones that attacked our ship yesterday!"
"They what!?" Dryden cried. "The same ones? Here? Now?" He seemed a little shaken. Millerna was too far away to reach him, but stared longingly over Jiai's head as Daiji put a hand on his shoulder. Allen charged forward to take control.
"The Maginot who just engaged us – the same ones who attacked Fanelia and Chesario and have been following us for days – they're here now!?"
"Yeah boss!" Reeden answered. "We saw three of 'em."
"They must have just gotten here." Gadess figured. "Probably about the same time we did."
"Are they arriving or returning?" Yukari asked.
"They are Asturian melefs." Allen announced.
"But there are Zaibachian soldiers driving them." Yosu noted. "Maybe they were stolen."
"Or it's possible that they didn't originate from Zaibach directly." Dryden suggested.
"A detachment?" Allen inquired.
Dryden nodded. "That's what it would seem. "If they came from the north, they could have gotten their hands on some Asturian melefs across the border, but Zaibach as a country has the strongest Melef army in Gaea. Its not typical for them to opt for foreign models."
"But the those Maginot were in Asturia when we were there." Jiai reported. "They and the green melef chased us out."
"That's right." Allen recalled. "So are they directly Asturian taken over by Zaibachian soldiers or are they Asturian soldiers defecting to Zaibach?"
"Or are they defects of everywhere?" Amano asked. "Just because they wear Zaibach uniforms doesn't mean that they are loyal to Zaibach. We are talking about a resistance, maybe it's made up of people from all over – Asturia, Zaibach, even Fanelia."
"Not Fanelia." Van stated, sharply. "No one from Fanelia would destroy their own country! We've got more pride than that."
Some moved to protest but Millerna interrupted. "Well, some would in Zaibach. Not everyone is happy with their new king. Even you, Van, know that many living here are still loyal to the Dornkirk regime, especially those who were previously in executive positions."
"But Zaibach is Germany!" Yosu stuck. "Its obvious that they're behind it, the details don't matter!"
"We don't know that for sure." Daiji told him. "It's a good hypothesis, but there's no way to know if the pattern of wars and countries has been copied exactly. A theory's just a theory, we can't make all our judgments on an educated guess."
"That was hypocritical of you." Van shot him. "This whole adventure has been based on an educated guess. Nothing we do is really supported by fact!"
"Right back at you!" Daiji responded. "We're here because you are positive that the enemies we were fighting on this ship were Zaibachian and Draconian. Checking it out was not a guess… it was strategy!"
"Don't fight you guys." Jiai bade.
Allen took this opportunity to set the train on track again. "Whatever their purpose, Zaibach seems to be on the alert whether against the rest of the world or against themselves."
"Are you suggesting that Eries and Lyse might not even know that the Maginot are a threat to them?" Millerna asked.
Jiai sounded concerned. "We can't just leave and let them have their feet cut out from beneath them! That's awful!."
"With that many guards and soldiers mounting we can't stick around long." Dryden resolved.
Millerna started to panic and reached out for Allen's arm. "I have to talk to Eries! I have to warn her of the danger!"
"But she might be the cause of it." Amano objected.
"Then I need to find that out!" Millerna cried. "If she did start it, I want to know why, and perhaps she can tell us about Haman and Seguir – the betrayal of the Asturian court – I don't think she would attack her own home if she had a choice. Maybe she's being held prisoner! The Maginot originated from Asturia after all, maybe she needs our help!"
Allen appealed to her. "Millerna, you can't! It's not safe. We should leave here as soon as possible."
"How can you say that!?" Millerna cried frantically. "How can you abandon Eries like that, you two are practically family! I refuse to leave her when I can help her."
"We should at least try and do something." Dryden agreed. Van and Yosu cast him a spiteful glance. "It seems like this is a hotspot, there is an opportunity to learn something about who is looking for us."
Allen prepared to mount a protest but Amano agreed with Dryden and caused his double to stall. "But how do we do that?"
"I want to talk to Eries!" Millerna announced.
Every head turned to her. "WHAT!?!"
"I want to speak to her!" Millerna insisted. "She's my sister, I know her. She's a stoic and the only way I'll know if she's really behind this or not is if I speak to her."
"They're looking for you, Millerna!" Van shouted. "When they see you, they'll capture you in a second!"
"I'll wear a disguise!" She defended. "All of you have done this before! We'll wear disguises and sneak in undetected!"
"Will they be expecting that?" Jiai asked. "Since they half expect a resistance group to attack them as it is?"
"Its impossible!" Reeden told her.
Millerna pointed to the boy next to him. "But Hakai got in!"
"She's right." Llave said, cheerily. "So its not impossible."
Reeden snarled. "Shut up!"
"Heyo! Don't look at me!" Hakai cried. "I just ran around, don't think I actually knew where I was going! I can't get you all in like a frickin' secret agent!"
"But you might remember." Millerna pressed. "There's got to be a way to get me inside! I'm telling you, I have to speak to Eries!"
"This is insane!" Allen stated, pointedly. "It's too dangerous! You can't go, I forbid it!"
Millerna bit down on her resolve like a mouth-guard and turned her offended eyes from the knight to the merchant. "I have to go! You understand, don't you? She's my sister and I have to know if this is all her doing. And if it isn't, then it's my duty to warn her about this threat that is currently at her doorstep!" Dryden put a hand to his unshaven chin. Millerna's big blue eyes were begging him from the depths of her very soul. Allen was expecting a strict refusal, but Dryden answered instead with a question.
"You realize the danger right? And this still means so much to you that you would risk sneaking into a heavily guarded palace?"
She nodded fervently.
Allen took a start. "You aren't considering letting her go!"
"If that's what she feels has to be done, she's an adult and I'm not her master." Dryden replied. "I can advise against it, but if she's not going to deter, then I'll do my best to make it happen."
"How can you say you love her and let her try and pull this off!?!" Allen accused.
"I consider her feelings and her freedoms!" Dryden spat back, defensively. "I might ask you the same question regarding your controlling behavior, Allen Schezar. If you have a problem, then deal with it! I'm going to give it a shot."
Millerna was all smiles. "Dryden thank you!"
Gadess was thinking as well. "If we do get inside, it will give us a chance to get the low-down on the situation from a Zaibach standpoint and answer a lot of our really important questions."
"Gadess!?!" Allen shouted, appalled.
His first officer stepped backward into the wall. "Sorry Boss, just looking at both sides!"
"But he is right, you know." Yukari lectured in the sergeant's defense. "We do need to know where Zaibach stands in all of this before we make any other moves. We could make huge consequential mistakes if we assume to much at this stage, and our information so far is pretty sketchy."
Allen was nearly chalk-white with the sensation of falling down a hole.
"Hey and…" Daiji added with an excited twinge of inspiration, "If Zaibach is not responsible, then we've got the opportunity to stop another hostile takeover like we've seen in other places!"
"And what if they already are taken over?" Van asked.
Yosu added his thoughts in a string and voice that sounded it was all the same statement. "Or Zaibach did cause the war afterall? What then?"
"Then we're already inside the heart of it." Amano resolved. "We could stop the whole thing right here and now if that's the case! We'll take out the leader or sabotage the proceedings or something and stop the tank where it stands."
Dryden mused. "What better way to kill a weed than at the root?"
Allen backed down, putting one hand to his face. "Alright, alright, perhaps it IS worth an investigation, but haven't Reeden and Llave uncovered valuable information already?"
"They've given us the break-down." Daiji answered. "We use what they've found to choose how we carry out the next step."
"So we've decided then?" Jiai asked. "We're definitely going through with this? We're getting Millerna into the palace?"
Yukari actually clapped in excitement. "Let's get to planning!" Millerna beamed at her. "Who goes? Who stays? Who'll lead and which way should we get in or get out?"
"This doesn't need to be as detailed as our infiltration of Urthras." Allen said. "Not everyone needs to be involved. We should probably send as few people as possible. Additionally, we do not need to actually remove Eries from the palace. She needs to stay in control of her government if its peaceful and do with our warning what she sees fit."
"What if we DO need to rescue her?" Jiai asked.
"We can't afford to try and smuggle her here and there." Allen insisted. "We don't have a friend on the inside like we did with Hoden in Fanelia. Zaibach is larger and more heavily guarded than the palaces we've escaped from before. Queen Zaibach has supreme power over her kingdom where Van did not. I don't know if we could smuggle her out… it's going to take all we have available to us to get in."
"So how many do go in?" Yosu asked. "Millerna is the reason for the whole thing, she has to go. Who else? Van and Allen to protect her should there be a negative outcome?"
"I think we need Allen and Van to keep a watch on those melefs." Dryden asserted.
Van was obviously against that idea. "Then who goes in with Millerna? Are you suggesting that you will?"
Dryden smirked. "Oh gosh no." Allen looked at him with distaste. "I wouldn't do any good. I wish I could take care of her, but I can barely defend myself in a one-on-one. I am torn though. I do want Allen and Van to go in with her because they're the most capable with a sword, but I'm also in charge of making sure all of you are safe since you're on my ship. Millerna could be perfectly safe, but if we are all taken out by those Maginot, where will the three of them return to? At the same time, what if something goes terribly wrong on the inside and they never return? I'd hate myself. The deciding question is which enemies are more dangerous? The ones on the inside or the ones on the outside?"
"Inside." Allen huffed.
"But without you and Van, we're all helpless against those melefs!" Yukari appealed.
Daiji had a solution. "Then one goes in and one stays out."
"I'm going in." Allen announced to no ones surprise. Millerna did, however, find the gravity and determination on his face was enough to take her off guard.
"I'll go too." Daiji volunteered. He looked to Dryden. "I got your back, man."
"Is three good?" Yosu asked. He looked around. "Should someone go get Hitomi?"
"We'll go we'll go." Koneko and Merle offered nearly dutifully. "We always go get everybody!"
Merle laughed as she scampered off. "Its boring around here anyway."
"Let's not do anything major until she gets here." Amano resolved as the two cats left the room. "She's important too, and I think she's got more emotion tied into this adventure than most of us do. She'd want to be kept up to date on what's going on."
"I do think it's the right thing to do." Gadess added. "Its crazy and risky, but from what I've seen here, I think it's for the best. We're a group divided. Yosu and Van are convinced, maybe not so much anymore, that Zaibach is behind everything that's happened so far. I personally feel that Zaibach poses a threat…"
"I agree." Amano added. "They're a threat but not as large as Van and Yosu think, I don't think they're the ones that are taking over Gaea."
"Nor are they behind the hunt for us." Gadess continued. "That's what I think. I get the feeling that Zaibach is too small for all of this… or more like the offense is bigger than that. Millerna and Dryden seem to feel like Zaibach is a victim and the rest of us have been trying to pick sides. Getting inside and getting the truth is invaluable to any future action."
"You are right." Allen finally agreed. "I'd failed to look at the big picture. This maneuver is very important. Perhaps even the most pivotal task we've taken on yet. We need to take the time to make this work."
Dryden seemed satisfied. "I wouldn't condone it if it wasn't important."
Just then Merle and Koneko came in dragging Hitomi by each of her hands. She looked miserable, but decidedly calmer, and took a deep breath when she got to the floor. "Yes?"
"We're going into the palace and trying to get some answers out of the queen." Yukari told her.
Hitomi was shocked at first, but sank down. "If you think that's a good idea –"
"You don't?" Jiai asked.
Hitomi tightened her shoulders around her neck. "I don't want anyone getting hurt – "
"It was my idea." Millerna stated. "The rest of them just agreed to let me do it."
"Okay." Hitomi agreed, exhausted of talking and planning. "How did you agree to do it then?"
"That's what we were waiting for you for." Yukari said, gently. "You don't have to participate really if you're not up to it, but we thought you'd like to be involved so you don't think we don't care about you."
Hitomi was relieved that they cared about her. "Thanks."
"Well, then how are we going to get in?" Daiji asked.
"We have plenty of Zaibach uniforms." Llave said, cheerily. "From the casualties yesterday, and Reeden and I did make it in once before. Of course we were chased out… but it can't be impossible."
"We can take care of a disguise, but we need a proper guide." Dryden determined. "Hakai is the best bet since he's been in all the way to the throne room although he claims he doesn't know how he did it."
"Was it luck or talent?" Jiai asked.
"Or instinct." Yukari suggested.
"Or maybe…" Amano stopped. "Something like that happened before to me. When the Crusade was under attack, I found my way to the bridge automatically, been though I hadn't been there before. I was just guided by my gut."
"Same here." Daiji agreed. "I feel at home on this ship, and when I was trying to find Dryden in the helter skelter of yesterday I knew where I was going somehow even though consciously I'd never seen the place."
"So now the connection helps people get around?" Koneko asked. Suru and Celena had come over to sit with them when they returned from their errand. The pigtailed girl cocked her head. "Hakai found his way through the palace because the whacked-out kid who's his double knows the place?"
"Did Hakai's double spend a lot of time in Zaibach palace?" Jiai asked.
"Apparently so." Van huffed, crossing his arms.
"But we don't have Hakai's double here." Yukari said. "So no matter how well HE knew the place, we can't use him as a guide, just the inkling of him."
"Its risky." Dryden sighed.
"The whole thing is risky." Yosu spat.
"I mean trusting you all to a guess." Dryden clarified. "Its bad enough that we have to go in at all, but if I had a choice, I wouldn't put a twelve-year-old boy who is, himself, not confident in his ability to sneak back in, in charge of escorting Millerna around a hostile palace." Everyone agreed internally and looked at the floor. It was true that most of them wished that they had a better plan. "But we don't really have a choice."
Allen was in conflict with himself. His love for Millerna had resurfaced in the face of this impending danger, he was trying to fight a reckless nature in his heart and struggled to suppress a suggestion that he knew was the most concrete choice they had. He finally lost. "We have a choice."
The party focused their many repeating eyes on the blond. Allen's face twisted as if he was thinking of something that he detested. The shadows contrasted darkly under his brow. Hitomi was struck with a stomach-clenching realization. She shot her quaking green eyes to the sixteen-year-old girl standing with the half-scorched wooden fox doll pressed to her heart. The sight of the blackened face turned her panic on the knight. "Allen, you can't! It's not right!"
"Hitomi," Allen growled, his teeth clenched. "I know. I know hat it sounds like I'm doing. You're right. How could I ransom my own sister, but we have no other options."
"We still have Hakai!" Hitomi combated.
"He's useless for this." Allen said. "If the future of everything rides on us getting into that palace, we should use everything in our hand to make it possible."
"What's this about?" Millerna asked, alarmed at this incredible 180 in Allen's behavior.
Amano felt the heated blood in Allen's veins. "What are you saying!?"
Allen looked up with a determination that seemed war stoked and relentless. "Dilandau's here! He will be our guide!"
"Ahh!" Celena's ears ran with the name. She threw up her hands, Leptelepitos hitting the floor with a hollow thunk.
Van gasped and stepped back. "Dil – You mean Celena can change back!?!"
"Change back!?" Dryden cried. "Change into what!?!"
Hitomi looked at him quizzically for a second, then figured out his plight. "Oh that's right, you weren't here when we found out. Dornkirk turned Celena into Dilandau for his army."
"He did what!?" Dryden demanded. "How is that possible? Not science-?"
"Atlantis." Millerna said. "Fate Redirection."
Dryden grimaced. "That's disgusting."
"Celena's attacks of pain are the preliminary stages of the transformation." Allen said, his shoulders moving in his white Asturian sleeves. "I've tried to keep it from happening. I can usually stop it but sometimes it's too strong. The will to divert back to that demon is too much for me to subdue by myself. She changes."
"Celena," Suru saw the girl drop to her knees, her face in her hands. Suru got down next to her and put her hands on her double's shoulders.
"Dilandau can and will lead us." Allen said. "I'll make him."
"He won't listen to you!" Hakai told him, authoritatively. "He hates you!" Allen scowled at the counterpart, pure malice radiating out of his blue eyes. Hakai continued. "I'll go with you guys. He and I are connected. We've got a mind thing going on. He'll help us if I tell him he should."
"Hakai did have a kind of power over Dilandau." Hitomi recalled.
Van shot his eyes to her. "When was this!?"
"The night before last." Hitomi answered. "She changed very late, and it took Suru to bring her back."
"The connection." Amano surmised. "The twins are two sides of the same person."
"Perhaps this will work." Dryden reasoned. "Celena won't know what's happening will she? When she is changed, she doesn't know what's going on right? And Suru can bring her back."
"That's true." Allen answered.
Millerna sat down on her knees next to the 16-year-old girl. "Celena, would you please help us?"
"I'm scared." She whimpered. "He wants out! He wants-"
"He!?!" Yosu cried.
"I want him to come." She said finally, gasping. "When I hold back- it hurts! He wants to come so badly! Is he – is he hurting like me!? I don't want to go back to the dark again, I don't want to go back! I'm scared what will happen while I'm gone. How long? How long? The last time… I came back a lady. What will change when I come back the next time? Will I be changed? Will Allen still be here with me? Or Suru? Will any of you?" She shuddered. "Ahh! It hurts!"
"We'll bring you back as soon as we can!" Millerna promised. "We won't forget you. Your friends and family want you back more than anything."
She looked up, her blue eyes constricted tightly. "I believe you." She took a deep breath, her pupils relaxing and looking to Allen. "I love you, Big Brother. I'm okay to do what you want."
Allen looked like he was about to cry, all the anger and difficulty he'd faced in the decision now turned on himself. How could he have brought his sister into this plan too, when all that he loved was already involved and she could have hidden and been safe. But Celena was already being helped off the floor and out of the room. She had spoken of the 'he' like Dilandau was there in her head. What sort of horrors existed behind her large, innocent blue eyes that he had never seen or heard? The moment was suspended in dread and suffering for them both. Or perhaps all three; the brother, the sister, and the symbiance.
* Escaflowne *
"Here's the deal." Resultant instructed Areolar. "Your sister is the target. We both know that Virial has the hots for her. No matter how set he is in his job, if she's in trouble, he'll come and save her."
"I don't like that." Areolar protested. "I don't want Torsion in danger, that's the point of this."
"You gotta give and take." Resultant said, dispassionately. "I'll be the one handling her whole "ordeal" trust me if you would."
"You're sure he'll come?" Areolar said, miffed. "He'll come if she's in trouble?"
"Once he sees that she can't defend herself, I'm positive he'll come."
"You're not threatening Torsion's life are you?" Areolar flared, his brown eyes burning. "If you are, I swear I'll kill you!"
"Why would I kill her!?!" Resultant shot back, then approached again, calmer. "I'll make sure she's fine, okay? I'm confident in my skills. Nothing's going to happen to her that's my fault, and I'll make sure nothing happens to her that's his fault. That's the reason I came to you after all."
"When did you plan to pull this off?" Areolar asked.
"We're supposed to be doing tours of the city in search of Nadeje and Atlantis. We'll all be in melefs and spread out around the city then. It would be a good time to attack."
"So you attack Torsion and – "
"And you get a sword in Virial when he's distracted."
Areolar leveled his eyebrows critically at him. "That's your plan?"
"What's wrong with it?" Resultant inquired bitterly.
"You did this impulsively didn't you?" Areolar observed crossing his arms. "Something happened that made you homicidal. What? Torsion reject you again?"
"Shut your face." Resultant spat, rawly. "That's not anything that – its not important why I decided to, the point is that we're killing Virial and that's that."
"You'd better watch your back." Areolar advised. "I don't think you deserve Torsion either. If you don't watch your motives, you might be next on my list."
"Its not professional of you to threaten your conspirator." Resultant replied, staring through his spider-like red bangs. "We're supposed to be heading out on the search right away. Are you with me or not?"
"I'm with you." Areolar said. "But I'll do it my own way. You just get Virial distracted and I'll take care of his death."
"I want my sword bloody." Resultant said. "I want my revenge!"
"Whatever." Areolar responded. The other captain turned and headed back to his parked Maginot, kneeling in the open hangar. Areolar scowled, a sincere distaste in his mouth as he stared at the retreating back, his right fist was hungry for his sword and his sword for the spot just between Resultant's shoulder blades.
* Escaflowne *
Celena was dressed in a Zaibach uniform – a black body piece and blue-violet shoulder casements with matching boots. She seemed nervous as Jiai and Yukari strapped her into it. Suru was feeling her anxiety and shifted weight from foot to foot. Hakai watched in anticipation. Allen was inching away a bit at a time, wanting to resign to a far corner or find a hole to hide in. He was still gnawing himself for volunteering her, but Amano was the one who spoke his mind. "I dunno about this guys, I'm having second thoughts."
"Second thoughts?" Millerna asked. "What do you mean?"
"I know this is what we agreed on, but I feel bad putting Celena through this." Amano clarified.
Hitomi bowed her head. "I see what you mean.
"I guess its not too late to reconsider." Millerna noted, sounding discouraged.
Dryden dropped his shoulders a little, wearing a face as if he expected this to happen. "It's not, but then we'd be back to plan A. Plus Celena did agree to do it. She said it only hurts when she resists, so logically, if she relaxes it should be relatively easy." He squared back up and looked around. "Logically."
"I hope you're right." Jiai sighed. She jiggled the final clasp and found it secure. Then she stepped away. "Okay, she's all set."
"Let's get this over with." Van huffed.
There was a silent agreement and a circle formed around the girl. Celena trembled a little, then took a deep breath and looked to the crowd. "I'm okay." She swallowed a lump in her throat. "I'm afraid, but, I'll just remember what you promised." Millerna and the others nodded to her. "Everything will be alright, and I'll be back soon." She clasped her hands in front of her. "Goodbye everyone." Her large blue eyes, blue for only a little longer, turned on Allen in the back. "Goodbye, I love you big brother."
Allen died inside.
Yukari turned to her boyfriend beside her. It was ironic that the knight's double was to be the trigger for the transformation. "Alright, Amano."
He nodded and stepped toward his twelve-year-old cousin, reaching into his blazer. "Okay, as promised – " He lowered an industrial-sized box of matches down toward Hakai's itching hands. " – but don't get too smart. I can take them away again before you know it."
"Yeah whatever." Hakai snatched them quickly away and beamed in triumph.
Hitomi was struck with the sudden realization that this was it, the spoke hurriedly to Celena. "Just relax, don't struggle! Everything's going to be okay!"
Koneko elbowed her in the side. "Shh!"
Hakai struck the first stick and stared as it ate down the wood to his fingers. Celena flinched at the sudden smell that filled the air. A constricted red eye darted to her. "Yo, Dilandau! I can see you in there!" Celena's face twisted quickly, but tried to remain calm. The blond held his match in front of her closed eyes. "Can you see that? It's awesome! Its power in my hand! You've had power in your hand before, you know what fire can do! It can wipe out whole cities like that, and like that I can put this fire out. That's power, Dilandau! That's the power to control power! You listening!? I'll drag you outta there if I have to! You're mine!" Something was going on in the girl's head. Through a placid sea, as sudden wrinkle and twitch, then the changes all began to happen at once. Her skin paled and her hair stiffened. Features that were uniquely Celena's melted and warped into elements singularly Dilandau's. A scar opened like a slice down her face. Her posture changed. She held her weight differently. The figure spoke, Celena's voice changed to the rash, biting sound of the boy. He sneered.
"You got nothin'. I got power. Oh yeah, I got power. More power than you." His eyes opened. They were red. He stared down at the flame before his face and closed his hand around it, smoke snaking up through his fingers. "I got more than you."
Hakai smirked with glee.
Dilandau took a look around, his irises constricting when he recognized all the faces circling him. "Whoa!? Where am I?"
"Relax, pal, it's cool." Hakai assured, cocking his head to the group. "They're with me."
"Grr." He looked menacingly at Van, who was snarling and Allen who was pallid. "I don't like your company kid."
Hitomi decided to open communication. "Dilandau –"
"You're the girl from the mystic moon." He spat. "I'm a prisoner right? I don't know how I got here or how long its been but I'm gonna get out! Zaibach is probably looking for me and when I get back, I'll lead 'em in and stomp you all! The war's not over!"
"Actually it is." Dryden said, scratching his forehead. "I'm afraid you've been out of the loop for about a half a year."
"What!?" Dilandau roared. "How's that!?"
"Hard to explain." Amano said. "but trust us, your war is over."
"I don't believe you." Dilandau answered.
"You have no choice!" Van snapped.
Hitomi stayed him. "Calm down. He's with us now."
"Who says!?" The albino demanded. "I never agreed to anything. I won't be buddy-buddy with Van or Schezar. Not on your life!"
"You don't have to be." Yukari told him. "I'm honest when I say that all we want from you is a favor then you don't have to deal with us anymore."
"Favor?" Dilandau scoffed. "What do I look like?"
"A prisoner." Yosu snuffed.
"No, no, he's not a prisoner." Suru said in Dilandau's defense. The party was stunned by this the new arrival especially. He scanned her up and down.
"Who's this?"
"She's my sister." Hakai told him.
"Your sister..." He rubbed two fingers into the nape of his neck. "hmm…"
"She's right." Koneko joined in, coming into the center of the circle. "He's not a prisoner. If we're not nice to him, how can we expect him to do anything for us?"
Merle conformed to Koneko's example. "Sure he's a jerk, but even jerks are people I guess." She got a shifty idea and her blue eyes scanned the group with a pinch of mischievousness. "You guys take care of getting' details and stuff ironed out. We'll look after pasty-boy."
"You'll what!?!" Van cried.
"What'd you call me!?" Dilandau raged. "I'll kill you for that!"
Koneko waved him off. "Empty threats. If you're like Hakai, you'll be a pushover."
"Hey!" Hakai snapped, defensively.
"Merle!" Van insisted. "I don't want you associating with him. He's dangerous!"
"You take care of Hitomi, okay Lord Van?" Merle said, assuredly. "Sine I can't be your girlfriend, I gotta learn to take care of myself. If he gets outta hand, I'll scratch 'im, deal?" The three girls shoved Dilandau out of the circle and toward the door. He struggled the whole way.
"Hey! I'm not going anywhere I don't fricken want to!"
"Move it buster!" Koneko said, employing a British policeman accent. "Hoof it!"
Hakai watched his double being escorted away with shock. "Hey! No fair! He's my friend! You got Celena, Dilandau's MINE!" He dashed after them, Suru following closely, leaving the rest of them to exchange stupefied glances and blinking dazedly. The children stopped in a different room made for inventory and shut the door behind them. A crate was by the wall and they set Dilandau down on it. He fumed, crossing his arms, the whites of his eyes turning pink.
"Who do you think you are? I'm not someone you can shove around. I could murder all of you before you even knew what hit you."
"Why are you so fixated with death?" Koneko asked. "I'm sure it's not healthy. Not good for making friends for sure."
"I don't need friends." He said, but the Dragonslayers came to mind and he flinched. The deaths of all of his compatriots were what began his fluctuation between Celena and himself. He got oddly quiet, pressing his lips in discomfort.
Merle let out a triumphant laugh. "Ha Ha! You just proved yourself wrong!"
"What do you want with me?" Dilandau asked, gruffly.
Suru poked her head into the conversation. "Why are you sad?"
"What?" Dilandau's patience was waxing thinly.
"You seem sad." Suru peeped. "Celena was sad too."
The sound of his alter ego's double saying her name stabbed into his head. He jumped. "Ack! Sadness is weakness. I'm not sad."
"Lying is bad." Suru said innocently.
"Shut up!" Dilandau raged.
"Yo, leave my sister alone." Hakai snarled. "I can hurt you you know."
"Who ARE you?" Dilandau demanded of him.
"My name is Hakai." He replied. "Remember from the other night? We're doubles. That means you're me and I'm you."
"What the fricken heck -!? What?"
"We're doubles." Merle said, pulling Koneko close so that he could see the similarity. "Means were the same person from two different worlds. Here and the Mystic Moon."
"So you're me from there." Dilandau clarified.
"Right." Hakai confirmed.
Dilandau pouted in thought. "When'd this happen?"
Suru answered him. "We just got here. We've been here a week."
Dilandau crossed his arms as he realized that her response fell short of answering his question. He took a minute to think and scan the crowd, this time with a more studious and less critical eye. He sized up each member; their personality and appearance. Hakai seemed like a peer, letting the double thing make a little sense, and Suru for some reason seemed remarkably trustworthy. He closed his eyes after his analysis. "It really has been six months hasn't it?"
Merle nodded. "yeah, it has."
"And the war really ended."
The cat girl answered affirmatively. "You lost, yes."
"Grr." He cast his eyes to her and then to the floor. "I hate losing. I hate being on the losing side."
"But you're not anymore!" Koneko said, cheerily. "You're with us! You're on the winning side now!"
"That doesn't count!" Dilandau snapped. "Just switching sides doesn't make you a winner."
"You get another chance now." Hakai said. "We're fighting again."
"We are!?" Dilandau urged. "Is that what that girl back there was asking me about – a favor?"
"Yeah." Koneko answered. "We need you to sneak us into the Zaibach castle so that we can talk to the Queen."
"Queen?" Dilandau asked, disgruntled. "Then Dornkirk-"
"Folken killed him." Merle answered.
Dilandau smiled cynically and laughed to himself. "Folken…I guess he can do something right." He looked up, professionally. "Dornkirk didn't deserve all he got. Some wrinkled old guy wanting to take over the world in his giant tank with his fancy machinery and crap. To heck with that." He seemed to show new interest in the situation. "Who would I be sneaking in?"
"Me, Daiji, Millerna, and Allen." Hakai said. "Unless the bigshots have changed it when we get in there."
"Allen Schezar…" The boy growled. "Oh well, better than Van. Maybe I'll leave him behind."
"So you will do it!?" Suru asked, hopefully.
"Why not?" Dilandau asked. "I got no side for this war yet. After this crap is over maybe I'll pick one."
Suru smiled sympathetically at him. "You're not as bad as the others say you are, Dilandau."
* Escaflowne *
Resultant had rejoined the group as they stood suited up in the melef hangar. He was on good terms with none of them; Torsion was still angry from their conversation before, and Vector and Prestress regarding him suspiciously. Around their feet, the other Draconian soldiers stood at attention. They were awaiting Commander Virial's arrival so that they could commence search and seizure operations. Prestress spoke across to Vector. "The Commander is late. Unlike him."
"On the threshold of completing a mission that has plagued us for two days and several failures." Vector agreed evasively. "But I sense nothing wrong. I do not think that he is late."
"I trust your judgment." Prestress said.
"Shut up." Torsion rebuked. "When he gets here he gets here!" Vector and Prestress looked at each other again.
Resultant was plotting. The four of them would split up with their individual squads of ground troops to search the city for Seguir Nadeje and his daughter Ayen. They would each head out from this spot like six points of a star and cover a different section of the city. It would be too suspicious for he and Torsion to appear in the same place at the same time unless he struck early, but Areolar was nowhere to be found. All his burning , mutinous nature needed was to get his butt kicked by his intended victims. Not to mention that he wanted to keep his position in the army so that he could retain a high level of reward when the revival of the Natural Order came. He would have to wait until Nadeje was found, then he could strike Torsion in a battle with the Pravada and blame it on Nadeje. He could blame Nadeje for Virial's death too if it works out. Otherwise, he did have an accomplice to pin it on should he be reprimanded for this. As these things began falling into place in his head, a giant hulked into view. Read and powerful, the Dragon Oreides made everyone stop and stare. Most had been in service during the pervious war, a couple had even seen this monster in action under its previous master. Their astonishment was doubled when their commander spoke out of it.
"Soldiers! Today we search the city for a defect! He has betrayed his godly blood and turned his back on our Master. Find him! He is Asturian with blond hair and green eyes. His daughter carries something of great value to Trapan and the Master. She is the center of all our hopes and dreams; the very cornerstone for building our new, unified world. She is the Eyes' double. Find these two and bring them back here! Trapan orders that they are not to be harmed. He wishes that privilege for himself."
They all saluted. "Yes sir!"
Virial stepped closer, puffs of air sending wind from each crashing footstep. He addressed his captains. "Where is Areolar?"
"He..uh.." Resultant blurted. "He is searching for a melef to use." All of them cast him glances that made him feel his age. Virial accepted his excuse with a grain of salt.
"Then those assigned to the Captain strike out without him. The rest, break and search your designated sections."
"Yes sir." The chorus came again. The Captains in blue and white melefs turned and headed out of the hangar doors. Trapan was a shadow watching from above. He sneered himself into a grin as he saw the group move in rigid formation. Torsion was the last of the Maginot to go, staring out into the street as the Red Dragon melef marched with its following soldiers into the city. She wished with all her Draconian heart that she could see its pilot through the thick red metal armor.
Resultant glanced back before leading his ground troops out of the palace grounds. He watched her watch Virial with blue flame in his eyes, then narrowed them on his commander. "That's a fine outer layer, Virial, but even a Dragon God in a Dragon Melef cannot escape what's coming to you. Revenge is all I live for, don't think I'll pass up the opportunity."
To be continued…
