A/N: Hello hello! Here we go, another chapter soon just like I promised! Just want to say thank you sooooo much to all the people who reviewed, you guys gave me the boost I needed to crank out that research paper and also just made me smile!
I know a lot of you want to see Van soon…you still got a bit of a wait to actually see him, but he's around still, especially in this chapter! I promise I won't disappoint y'all when he makes his big grand entrance! It's going to be a bang!
Enjoy!
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Key to Atlantis
Chapter Five: Warrior Trapped in a Cage:
The young man sprinted down the abandoned, filthy streets of Palas, the capitol of Maboch, not daring to slow down for even a moment to catch his breath. He could hear the clip-clop of the Zaibach soldiers behind him, shouting hoarsely to each other about how they were going to catch the fleeing boy in front of them, and willed his lungs to stop screaming for air as he sped up. He rounded a corner and leapt deftly onto a hidden ladder he knew to be flat against the wall, climbing up quietly with grace only stopping when he was concealed by the buildings shadow.
He kept his stressed and fatigued breathing quiet as the heavily armored soldiers turned the corner and passed under him, completely missing him as he lay frozen against the dark wall of some building in the business district of the city. He didn't trust himself to move for another couple minutes, almost sure that the soldiers would patrol back towards him when they discovered he had disappeared somewhere along the chase. After fifteen or so minutes had passed, he very quietly leapt down, landed silently on his feet, and began to slink off the other way, back towards the residential area of Palas.
As he walked back towards the small hovel that he liked to call home, the young man began to reflect on the deed he had committed to get him in this mess in the first place. It all had began as just some stupid idea to help rid the poor citizens of the once proud Asturia of the evil tyrant that presided over them for Emperor Salodin, but somehow had been warped into an assassination plot that had been months in the making. He even had cohorts answering to him, a simple blacksmith apprentice who wished to be a swordsman like those of legend, and everything had proceeded smoothly, until the night actually came and his assassin murdered the wrong man. Governor Jacobs had not been a pleasant man, but he had not deserved to die like he had, and the young man had taken it upon himself to kill King Moosta himself.
Needless to say, it had not worked quite well and now he was busy running from the Zaibach soldiers and trying to keep out of the hangman's noose.
The young man, just barely grown, ran a hand through his dark brown hair thatwas longer in front than in back and fell in in facein an elegant sort of way that was only messy because of his recent run from the law. He would be a wanted man in the morning he knew, but at least some good had come from this horrible situation he had made for his life. Maybe now the people of Maboch, all of them, would band together and over-throw King Moosta once and for all, ridding Zaibach of a powerful outpost at the same time they could gain their freedom.
He snorted to himself, knowing that the likelihoods of that happening were slim to none, and thrust his blood-stained hands deep into the pockets of his dark breeches, his intense eyes clouding over in thought as he came nearer to his home. He walked up to the familiar yard and smiled at the view he received, a warm but poor family who had taken him in after his mother had passed away who were all helping to set the table for dinner. He nearly made it to the door when he heard a sibilant hiss behind him that made the hairs on the back of his neck stand up.
"And where do we think we are headed little boy?" the creature whispered in amusement. "Surely not into such a caring house full of innocent people? You are a fugitive who may have been skilled enough to out maneuver the Zaibach soldiers, but not clever enough to out wit me."
"Leave them alone you monster," the young man growled, rage emanating from his voice. "They have nothing to do with this. They never even would have tr--"
"I might be persuaded of their innocence if you were to give yourself up to me boy," the black robed creature hissed cruelly, inspecting its scabbed hands in a dainty way. "I grow tired of chasing you throughout this forsaken city. That is your choice, give yourself and the family lives, resist and they die…simple as that."
The brown-haired man stood for a moment, a defiant expression never leaving his face as his blazing eyes looked to the house and back a few times, before his shoulders sagged in defeat and he gave a jerk of his head to show his surrender. He felt two strong arms tighten around his own arms and bind them close to his body, and then he was forced to face the black-robed thing in front of him, an evil smile able to be seen through the cowl of its cloak. It lifted its arm towards the house and hissed an order that should not have been spoken in such a joyous manner.
"Burn the house down, and make sure all of its occupants are dead by the morning, perhaps that will teach the citizens to not threaten the Zaibach Empire."
"No!" the young man yelled hoarsely, fear and anger mixing together in both his tone and eyes. "You said you would let them live! You bastard, leave them alone!"
"I am sorry young man," the now uncovered Ferra said in such a cruel tone it made the boy shrink back a bit. "But you are a traitor to the Empire, and the ones who harbored you must be taught a lesson about their disobedience. Perhaps you can reflect on how your sins have now condemned their lives as you wait in prison for your execution."
The young man's tortured gaze was torn away from the now burning house as he was taken back towards the palace dungeons, but he could still hear the terrified and pain-filled screams and that was enough.
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"So tell me again Hitomi," Merle wheezed as the fur companions continued down a long forgotten trail into Palas, now the capitol of Maboch. "You saw Lord Folken and Emperor Dornkirk talking about some ancient power of Atlantis and then to an image where you saw a Ferra controlling a being of blue light?"
"Yes all right?" Hitomi said in a frustrated tone, craning her neck to look up at Merle who was perched on Escaflowne's back yet again. "For the hundredth time yes! Why do you keep asking? I can't remember anything else…well, at least I don't think there was anything else important."
"Yeah," Sari said in a sly voice from beside the girl from the Mystic Moon. "I guess fantasizing your pregnant with Van Fanel's child isn't all that informative is it?"
"Would you shut up already?" Hitomi sighed as she turned an attractive color of pink all over as she once again thought of a very attractive Van Fanel shirtless and holding her hand. "I told you that it wasn't important enough times to beat it in to even your thick skull. I'm more interested in what Dornkirk told Folken about this power…I thought that Atlantis stored their knowledge at Fortula in Freid? Why did they both seem to know about this sentient power…this true power of Atlantis?"
Merle didn't say anything for a while, her face screwed up in thought as if she was searching her mind for a long forgotten memory. Hitomi looked over and saw Sari had a puzzled expression on her face as well, so then she directed her attention to the great maroon eyes for an answer.
"I do not know about this child," Escaflowne replied to Hitomi's question. "But it does seem that this power could be what the Ferra are after now…and perhaps it holds answers to why I came into this form and also the whereabouts of my master. If Folken knew of this power, perhaps Van does as well…in your retelling of the incident it seemed that Folken thought Van might have something to do with it. But until we have clearer answers to these troubling questions, it would probably do well to focus on the present for the moment. We can always revisit this problem later when we have other answers."
Hitomi nodded her head, trusting the white dragon's words completely, and turned her head back towards the path she was trekking, a winding, narrow, and rocky path that was closely hugging the steep cliffs that rimmed the outside of Palas. She was happy to be back in Asturia, the beautiful seaport city that was a buzz with life her last visit. She ran a hand down her pale arm, thinking of how subdued Arzas had been, and hoped that Palas was still the beautiful city she remembered. She wondered if Allen, one of her greatest friends from Gaea, had become a legend just like Van had, and he mind receded further inside itself as she wrapped herself in memories.
She had first met Millerna here, the beginning of a friendship that had began as rocky as the trail she was now walking, and she had first discovered that other people from Earth had visited Gaea when she found a CD in the bazaar. She had saved Van here from assassination and she had first been kidnapped here as well, only to be rescued by Van. She had her first kiss here, on a bridge overlooking the ocean, and had broken her first heart here when Van had seen her and Allen kissing. She attended her first large scale wedding here and had also survived a terrorist attack here as well; something she still felt was her fault.
She hugged herself as a cold breeze blew at the four from the sea on the other side of these mountains, her brown hair whipping across her vision a few times before she reached up and secured the hair with a band she had in her pocket from graduation. She looked up to see Merle huddled in a blanket on Escaflowne and apparently in a deep sleep due to the snores that came from her now and then. The sight made Hitomi smile as she fished out her IPod from her small brown bag, given to her back in Arzas that held her makeshift black graduation cloak and a few other items of clothing, and put the earpieces into her ears so she could hear the music.
The young woman was quite happy her I Pod still had enough power to play, suspecting that maybe her pendant generated a type of energy or something, but she pushed those thoughts as one of her favorite songs began to play, and she unknowingly began to sing along with the tune.
"Stuck in a memory of us,
So hard to know that we're worlds apart,
And I was so wrong to think this would all be so easy!
But trust me I'll be back for more,
And then I'll close my eyes and go,
That's the reason with me here forever."
It was strange how almost every song she loved so much before now started to remind her of Van. It wasn't as if they always had made her think of him, but now looking back, she realized it was because she had thought that they're being apart on different worlds wouldn't be a hindrance. It would be easy, she had remembered thinking as she floated back to her own world and watched his smiling face fade away, and now she had come to realize how foolish that notion had been.
How could two people, who had just admitted to how they each felt about one another, even think that this would be so easy? Hitomi shook her head at her own foolishness and wondered if Van had come to realize that as she had before he disappeared.
"Thrown into a world of fact and fiction,
Swimming in my own contradictions,
In my fantasy, you are here with me.
You can say it's all right,
You can say you don't mind,
But it's killing me to be away from you!
And you can say it's all right,
You can say you don't mind,
But it's killing me to be away from…"
She had been thrown into this world, without a single warning as to what would be waiting here for her or as to what would happen to her along the way. She had grown up here, she realized that as soon as she returned for the second time, and she had changed into a person who did not need to be reassured by other branches of knowledge on what she already knew in her heart was true. It had happened almost against her will, her clinging on to Allen was proof of that, but when she had told Dornkirk's spirit that she didn't believe in pre-determined fate she knew right then that she had changed.
Now the only problem was that she was still apart from the person who had helped her grow into who she now was. She had been so selfish when she originally came to Gaea, but knowing and being around him had changed that…it had changed him too. It hurt so much to be away from him on Earth, and now that she was back on Gaea, it hurt even worse because she had not been there to help him when he needed her…when he wanted her to be there.
"Your sigh,
I'm done with closes and
Goodbyes, are falling upon its side.
I try to make you speak,
But your beautiful awkward silence falls on me.
But trust me I'll be back for more,
And then I'll close my eyes and go,
That's the reason with me here forever!"
He had been so incredibly awkward when she first met him Hitomi thought as she giggled a little as she sang along to the words. He was cold one minute and kind the next, but his facial expressions were always comical when she was alone with him. It was a wonder that she didn't see how much he cared earlier, but she was horrible herself when it came to actually understanding what love really was. By the time she got it right, she had to leave him, curse what you call ironic.
"Thrown into a world of fact and fiction,
Swimming in my own contradictions,
In my fantasy, you are here with me.
And it makes my nights a little richer,
Falling in love with a faded picture of you,
Fantasy, you are here with me."
All that she had to go on for so long was a dimming memory of his face, was this song written just to make her feel this way? It was frustrating that she decided to listen to music in order to calm herself down and clear her mind, but instead it had caused her to think of about a million things that did not let her mind relax. On Earth, girls would swarm Hitomi and ask her what this mystery guy she was seeing looked like, after all a pretty girl doesn't reject the captain of the gymnastics team if she doesn't already have a boyfriend. And she would always say she just wasn't interested in dating right now, in her heart and mind wishing for something much more meaningful.
She was wishing for Van.
"You can say it's all right,
You can say you don't mind,
But it's killing me to be away from you!
And you can say it's all right,
You can say you don't mind,
But it's killing me to be away from…
You are the burning in my throat,
With the gentleness of smoke.
And it ever flows quickly past my veins,
And then gone, but I wish it wasn't true."
'I wish I had more time with you Van,' Hitomi thought to herself as she listened and sang to the damn song. She knew she should have picked her own relaxing tune instead of trusting the shuffle option!
"You can say it's all right,
You can say you don't mind,
But it's killing me to be away from you!
And you can say it's all right,
You can say you don't mind,
But it's killing me to be away from you."
Hitomi stopped singing along to the song and took out the ear phones after the song ended, wondering why they were stopping to rest already, until she looked up and saw it was dark outside.
"How is it so late already?" Hitomi wondered aloud to no one in specific, her emerald eyes narrowing in confusion. "It was only three or so last time I checked."
"Oh, you finally decided to stop singing?" Sari asked with a mischievous gleam in her blue eyes as she threw Hitomi a look and a grin. "You were singing that song forever! Albeit, it's a pretty nice one, I had it memorized by about the seventh time or so, but I was wondering if you were ever going to stop!"
Hitomi looked comically over at Merle who nodded in agreement with Sari before looking back down at her IPod, her eyes softening as she thought back to that song. "I didn't even know I repeated it…" she thought out-loud to herself, loud enough for the others to barely hear. "I didn't even notice…"
Both Sari and Merle muffled their laughter from Hitomi before rolling over to fall asleep instantly. Hitomi fell asleep a little bit later, her ear phones in her ears again and her lips mouthing along to a song, her thoughts to filled about a certain maroon-eyed young man she did not notice the other maroon eyes watching her with interest,
Escaflowne wrapped its slim but powerful form around the sleeping girl in a protective manner, not sure why it felt so drawn to the brown-haired girl, but feeling it nonetheless. Her words from earlier were still echoing in its head, answers swimming to the surface but diving again before he could examine them closely, but he thought it best to keep his suspicions to itself for the time being. If Folken, the other half Draconian, was the wrong prince Dornkirk had been looking for, that meant its little one was much more involved than anyone had thought of yet. But, the white dragon let out a soft yawn in the form of a growl before laying its head down next to Hitomi Kanzaki…almost not noticing the feeling of joy pass through him before he gave into sleep.
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It feels so surreal, she's close but than she's not. How do I keep coming up with this stuff? What am I even saying, it's not like I know anything about her at all…but when she made that noise come out…it felt so familiar I could barely stand not knowing!
Why do I keep feeling her feelings…painfully reminding me that I'm not real, or that maybe I am. I'm not so sure anymore, but both seem to me like it would be a painful admission to be either. Why does she keep feelings these things out of the blue? It doesn't seem logical…but then again, what does here? I don't even know where here is…but maybe it's better that I don't.
She's still singing…that's what it's called! Singing…that noise is singing. I'm remembering more things lately, or at least I keep telling myself I am like just now. I am crazy, listen to me talk to myself, trying to discover if I'm worth a damn or not. Maybe I want to be so badly for her…I want to be the one she's singing about…but what kind of chance is there of that? I don't even know what I am or was…
I don't think I was worthy of her though…maybe just in my mind no one is because she's perfect here where I can see only her emotions…and her green eyes. They are so full of caring and…something else that I can't quite remember. I want her to sing again so I can hear her voice…well maybe hear is the wrong word for it, but still.
How can she be so very near to me, and so far away at the same time? Is it because of—
What's the matter with me? It's just some kind of lie I've fabricated for myself, she doesn't sing for me or for my pain…she sings for some one she cares about…someone who isn't some kind of spirit or whatever I am. I'm not really in pain anymore…the black things must have something else to preoccupy their time now. I hope it's not her and that's why I can see her…
Maybe I'm there vessel so they can see her! I need to stop, they might hurt her, and I don't want that! I could never-could never want that. I'd take a thousand more pains from them than let them have her!
I promised to protect her…I promised to protect her…to protect her…
I'll keep that promise.
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Hitomi woke up the next morning, feeling slightly refreshed, albeit she had a distinct impression that her dream last night would bother her for the rest of the day. As she rolled up her bedding and blanket, her thoughts drifted back towards the blue being she saw again in her dream, destroying Gaea at the hands of the Ferra, but it had shifted suddenly in her dream to one where she was dancing with that blue being, high above the ground. She could not fully say she thought this creature was evil anymore, because it had felt so kind in her dream…and that voice
"I'll keep that promise."
It just confused her, but she pushed the dream out of her mind as her company started to continue down the spiraling path and she hurried to catch up.
"Hey guys," she yelled as she drew level to them again. "It would have been nice if you had least told me we were leaving! Thanks for leaving me up there, all alone, in a world I know nothing about anymore!"
"We were just afraid you'd start singing again Hitomi," Sari said with a crooked grin, giggling a bit at her own cleverness.
"Are you trying to pick a fight?" Hitomi snapped back, fixing the playful kitten with a trademark glare. She opened her mouth to say something else insulting when she heard Merle laughing hysterically and shot her a look. "What are you laughing about Merle?"
"Just that you look good enough to be a handmaiden now, eh?" Merle choked out amidst her guffaws. "Remember?"
Hitomi froze for a moment when she realized she had something exactly like that when Merle made a crack about her dress her first time in Asturia. As she started to laugh along with the old cat, Sari shot Escaflowne another annoyed look that plainly said she was angry for being out of the loop, before she stormed off ahead to escape the now crying pair.
"I forgot about that," Hitomi finally said, wiping her eyes as she still chuckled slightly. "Wow, I feel like I just went back in time a bit…I was so angry with you I remember Merle."
"Yeah," Merle agreed, now completely sobered up again, a contemplative look on her face. "I was mad at you too. Van couldn't stop staring at you, he thought you looked beautiful. I was so jealous! You as usual were clueless, and poor Millerna, we must have confused the heck out of her eh? You did look pretty though Hitomi."
"Oh, Thank you," Hitomi said quietly, thinking back to what Merle had just said. He thought she was beautiful in that dress!
The three continued in silence until they rounded a corner and found Sari there staring out at the expanse of Palas before them. It looked quite like Hitomi had remembered, with a few differences here and there, like the smog that seemed to rise from the city's residential areas she recalled so well. It looked like her worst fears came out to be true again, Palas had changed into a dirty and sad looking city that she would have told anyone before that was one of the purest cities she had ever seen.
As they walked down in silence, Hitomi was overcome with a vision of a warrior being hung and a blue being destroying the world. The warrior looked like someone she once knew, but couldn't quite place…he was the one from her vision! He was here in Palas, and about to be killed!
"He's there!" Hitomi breathed as she came out of her vision, stumbling slightly and allowing Sari to steady her. "The warrior from my vision on Earth is in Palas…the one trapped in a cage of his own making. But he's going to be killed if we don't rescue him! We need to go now!"
"Are you crazy?" Sari hissed back, jerking Hitomi back towards Escaflowne and Merle. "We can't just barge in and rescue some convict in Palas! It's overrun with Zaibach pigs, we'd be caught without even trying!"
"But we need him to come with us!" Hitomi countered, looking back at the white dragon and the older cat woman to try and make them listen to her. "I know it seems crazy, but it's true! We need him to help find Van, and besides, if Zaibach wants to kill him, doesn't that make him a good guy?"
"Not necessarily Hitomi," Merle said as she slid off of Escaflowne's back, fixing the girl with a beady look. "But, if your vision says we should help him, I think we should. But, Sari is right too…we need a plan or we'll never get in there without being killed as well. Any suggestions?"
Neither Hitomi nor Merle said anything, both thinking for an answer, and Escaflowne was merely gazing at all of them. Hitomi was about to ask the dragon what they should do when suddenly Sari spoke up.
"I have an idea," the black-haired kitten said in a no-joking tone, her blue eyes hard and determined. "But it means that Hitomi needs to be a much better actress than she was in Arzas. And it means that neither you Grandma or Escaflowne can interfere with whatever might go wrong until we tell you too. Can you all do that?"
When Sari received nods from each person and the dragon, she gave an evil smile and said, "Okay then, here's what we do…"
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"This isn't going to work Sari," Hitomi hissed as the two girls walked through the bazaar of Palas, making their way towards the large courtyard where Hitomi had witnessed Millerna and Dryden's disastrous wedding. "If you haven't noticed, there are hundreds of Zaibach soldiers here! I know I look different for Gaea and--"
"That's what I'm counting on," Sari hissed back, keeping a docile expression on her usually otherwise face. "These men haven't been home to Zaibach in quite a long time…they probably wouldn't notice if the styles there have changed considerably, they usually do anyway. All you need to do is act like you're a Zaibach nobleman's daughter visiting Palas for a month and let me take care of the rest."
"Oh, that inspires hope," Hitomi muttered under he r breath, receiving a slight jab in the rib for it. "Ouch! Will you stop that already? I just don't think this as a high chance of success is all."
"Well," Sari answered back matter-of-factly as she gave the brown-haired girl a furtive glance. "You were the one who kept saying how important this guy is because of your vision and all. It will work if you stop fidgeting and just act like a snobby noble, shouldn't be too hard for you really."
Hitomi was about to retort when she saw some soldiers round the corner towards both girls, and dragged Sari into an alleyway to hide until they passed. She slumped against the side of the wall and gave out a small whimper of fear and doubt, terrified that she would mess up and ruin any chance Van might have wherever he was, and directed her green gaze back to the patient eyes of the kitten.
"I don't think I can do this Sari," Hitomi moaned, her hands wringing each other in nervous anticipation. "I was always a horrible liar and now…I'll get us both killed!"
"No you won't," Sari replied logically, her gaze not leaving Hitomi's. "Because you never got anyone killed in all the stories my grandma told me about you. You actually saved people more than anything else, you were always so capable and determined…you even surrendered yourself once. That takes the type of courage needed to make this plan work, plus you could pass for a Zaibach noble. If they see me with you, it'll blow away any questions they may have about you; beast people don't travel openly in the big cities unless they are slaves now-a-days. Just stay calm and stick with the plan and everything will work out just fine."
Sari didn't say anything for a while, letting her words sink into the young woman until she saw that green fire Grandma Merle had always talked about Hitomi getting when she's determined. The cat-girl smiled and let Hitomi walk back out onto the street, following quickly after as they hurried to the Palace courtyard. Hitomi slowed down and put on one of the best snotty, stuck-up faces Sari had ever seen and march right past some passing Zaibach soldiers as if it had not terrified her moments before.
When they finally arrived at their destination, both girls looked around to where they thought the prisoners might be kept through the throng of people who had shown up to watch the execution. It made Hitomi inwardly ill to see so many people who apparently enjoyed watching someone lose their life, but she kept her face on, determined to live up to whatever Merle had spoken about her in those stories to her granddaughter. It made Hitomi slightly smile to think that Merle had actually said nice things about her, but then she realized that the Merle who had told those stories was now grown-up, not the same brash kitten she had known. It made her sad to know that she missed out on Merle growing up; they could've actually been great friends…
"There Hitomi," Sari whispered, barely inclining her head towards a small group of soldiers guarding a storage house. "Let's do this shall we?"
"Okay," Hitomi answered, more to herself than Sari, as they started to walk over towards the casually standing soldiers. 'All right Kanzaki,' Hitomi told herself mentally in a stern tone. 'Prove to everyone that died while you were gone that you're not some weak and defenseless little girl! Show them all right now, right here.'
She walked regally over to the soldiers, flashing the men a dazzling smile as she approached and asked, "May I inquire if this is where the condemned prisoners are located?"
"May I inquire your name my Lady?" One of the more attractive soldiers asked back, a teasing smile playing on his lips as he looked Hitomi up and down. "I hope you'll forgive me, but your apparel is most…unusual, and the times are dangerous here in Palas."
"Not at all good sir," Hitomi said with a vapid smile, thinking to herself that this was almost too easy. "My name is Lady Kala Durstange of Kaldoch. My father is here on business, and I decided I had not visited Palas since I was young so I would join him. And as to my clothing," she said indicating the blue skirt and white halter she was wearing underneath her graduation robe-cloak. "It's the new rage in the Zaibach Empire right now! Is it not just simply beautiful? I actually have several of these new 'skirts' at home, I thought Palas could use some culture."
"Forgive me Lady Kala," the soldier said as he and the others swept into a bow, recognizing the name Durstange immediately as one of the wealthiest merchant families in all of Zaibach. "It has been so long since you have come here to Maboch, I hardly recognized you. If it pleases you, you have grown into a beautiful young woman Lady Kala."
"Thank you soldier," Hitomi simpered, hoping she did not have to stay in the soldier's presence that much longer. "And do not worry, I will forgive the momentary lapse if you would be so kind as to let me examine the prisoners for a short moment. You see, one of those criminals actually cost my father quite a lot of money when he blew up one of my father's shipping vessels and I was hoping to let him know just how horrible he is before he dies! You do understand don't you?"
"Well," the soldier answered, looking a little nervous at the prospect of letting her in. "I am not sure if I can allow that Lady Kala but--"
"Oh tish-tosh," Hitomi said as she waved a hand in front of her face and then flashed him another smile. "I'll only be a moment or two, and I have my handmaiden here, I'll be perfectly all right. My father would greatly appreciate it if you would do this one favor for me."
She kept smiling, hoping that the contemplative look on his face wasn't debating whether to hang her as well, and felt a wave of relief wash through her when he smiled at her and gave her a nod, moving aside for her to pass. She thanked the soldier for understanding and floated past him, Sari close by her side who was giving her a look of immense approval for her performance.
"Nice job," Sari murmured once the two were out of earshot. "I nearly believed you…you couldn't have done better."
"Thanks," Hitomi breathed back, clutching her pendant for its comforting warmth. "I was so worried the entire time he was just going to order me to be hung a well!"
"Are you kidding?" Sari replied, shooting the other girl a sly smile. "That guy was too memorized by how short your skirt is to even care. Lucky you're not terribly ugly."
"Very funny Sari," Hitomi muttered back, glancing in the cells for the man from her vision. "Do you see him yet?"
"I don't know what he looks like. I thought you did."
"Well, it would have been prudent if you had at least asked me uh?"
"Excuse me for not--"
"Sari," Hitomi breathed out, grabbing the cat-girl's arm to stop her. "There he is! Let's hurry!"
Hitomi hurried over the young man she had pointed to, a boy barely grown you looked to be asleep. Hitomi saw that his dark brown hair was a mess all over his head, the longer front portion hanging over his face and obscuring his features. She wrapped her hands around the prison bars and whispered, "Um…you there, we're here to he--"
"Get away from me," the young man lashed out, springing from his pounce in an instant and scaring Hitomi away from the bars as he launched himself at them. "You stupid little brain-washed sycophant! I don't care if I burned down one of daddy's precious ships, if I hurt Moosta someway than it was well worth it! Go and play politics with someone else you stupid whore!"
Hitomi stood completely still for a moment, before marching right back up to the prison and soundly slapping the young man through the bars, her green eyes blazing. "Will you keep it down you moron! We're trying to help you, but if you keep calling me names than one of those soldiers is going to come in here and you'll be dead! I mean, gosh…I just want to make sure you'll be okay and I smuggle myself in here even though I was terrified and you just yell at me!"
Hitomi took a steadying breath as the young man eyed her with clear blue eyes, his hand rubbing his cheek where she had hit him. She calmed herself down and starting hissing instructions as Sari walked up next to her, her claws protracted and ready.
"Okay, first give your hands over to Sari, she'll undo the bonds and stuff and listen to me. Okay, if you believe me or not, my name is Hitomi Kanzaki and I come from the Mystic Moon."
"What!" the young man asked back, craning his head to look at her as the kitten undid the bonds without making it look so. "The infamous seeress? She's just a myth though!"
"I assure you I'm very real," Hitomi said dryly as she glanced quickly over her shoulder. "But if you want proof, you'll have to get it later because we don't have a lot of time. Okay, so you need to do exactly what I'm going to tell you. When you see a bright blue column of light out there, you need to rip off the bonds Sari is weakening and grab a sword from somewhere near you and get yourself off the stand. We'll take care of everything else, so don't worry…just trust me when you see our getaway…um transportation. You need to act just like you did before though, don't let any of them know that we were here. Got all that?"
The young man nodded, a slightly dumbfounded expression play across his handsome, albeit dirty, features. Sari backed away and gave Hitomi a triumphant nod before checking the soldiers again.
"They have a Ferra here," the blue-eyed boy said quietly, his eyes narrowed in anger. "A fake blue column light isn't going to fool De'miraz or her cohorts."
"It won't be fake," Hitomi muttered back, the name he called the Ferra triggering an elusive memory she couldn't quite catch. "Just trust me okay? Believe me, they'll be plenty busy with other--"
"Hitomi," Sari hissed hurriedly. "We need to leave now."
Hitomi looked back at the imprisoned youth, seeing the gradual trust settle in his clear blue orbs, and gave him an encouraging smile before she swept out of the room, Sari following the beautiful girl obediently, readopting her façade of Lady Kala. Hitomi murmured another thank you to the soldiers and weaved her way through the crowd, waiting anxiously for everything to get started.
Sari stood next to her and asked quietly, "You can call to Escaflowne right? I mean, that wasn't just a legend either?"
"I hope so," Hitomi said more to herself as she gazed up in the clouds where she knew the white dragon and Merle were, waiting for her signal. "Otherwise we're sort of screwed."
"That's great," Sari muttered darkly as she stared at the stage as the prisoners were being hung for various crimes. It was not until at least seven criminals lost their life that Sari saw that tell-tale messy brown hair and elbowed Hitomi to get her attention. "Hey, there he is, let's get ready."
Hitomi nodded silently, holding out her pendant as she listened to the orator list off the reasons why the boy was going to be killed.
"On this day," the over-weight man yelled out to the crowd. "A Loric de Jesep will be hung from the neck until dead for crimes against the Zaibach Empire. They list as espionage, plotting against the Empire, and finally an assassination attempt on King Moosta of Maboch. May the Gods help his soul."
Hitomi saw another man forcibly tie the noose around the named young man, Loric, and she could hear that the actual citizen part of the crowd were not cheering at all, but rather looking depressed and beaten. She saw that Sari had already disappeared, her part in this plan different from Hitomi's, and she knew it was time. She threw her entire mind into contacting Escaflowne, relieved that she was able to reach him easily, and then wished her pendant to glow with the same blue light she had been abducted by nearly three years ago.
Her eyes flew open as she heard people start to yell in panic in fear, looking at not just one, but three columns of bright blue light weaving their way through the crowds and a gleaming white dragon raining fire down on the courtyard as well, careful not to actually hurt anyone seriously. She smiled to herself as she saw Sari throw open the gates that held back the townspeople and watch them wash over the Zaibach soldiers as well, obviously hoping to free this Loric person as well. Sari had jumped back on Escaflowne and Hitomi hurried over to where Loric was fighting off soldiers with a sword with such skill, it almost blew her away.
Hitomi had nearly reached Loric when suddenly one of the cloaked forms from her nightmares swept in front of her, blocking her path. For a moment, neither moved towards the other, just staring at each other as if trying to figure out the other. Hitomi could feel her pendant burning hotly against her skin as she continued to gaze at the creature in front of her, remembering the horrible images from her vision and she knew who was standing in front of her, the creams of a little girl echoing in her ears.
"De'miraz," Hitomi hissed, not sure why she felt so brave when she knew she should feel terrified.
"Seeress from the Mystic Moon," De'miraz drawled back, her sibilant voice dripping in amusement and interest.
Before either could say anything else, Escaflowne swooped in front of her, breathing fire at the Ferra with uncontrolled fury. Hitomi saw De'miraz throw up some sort of magical shield to protect herself from the heat, but then felt Sari tug her up, yelling something about her being crazy.
The dragon swooped back around and flew over to where Loric stood fighting and lowered himself enough for the youth to leap onto him from a slight height. Hitomi yelled at him to hurry up and she held her hand out for him to grab. The brown-haired young man slashed his sword through one last Zaibach soldier, spraying dark red blood onto the already stained ground before he ran and leapt onto the dragon from the ledge of the platform for the hangings. He positioned himself between Sari and Hitomi and before any of the other Ferra could do anything, the five vigilantes swept off into the now night sky.
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"Thank you for rescuing me," Loric said to Hitomi, a while after Escaflowne had set the small band down in an enclosed glen away from Palas. Escaflowne was apparently dozing with Merle and Sari, all three tired out from the day's excursions, but Hitomi and Loric had set up camp and such while the adrenaline still pumped through their veins.
"Oh no problem," Hitomi said brightly, as if rescuing people was an every day occurrence for her. "I just can't believe we actually pulled it off you know? I kept thinking we would get caught or something…but we didn't and you're safe now so that's all that matters."
"Why did you save me?" Loric asked, his now clean hair hanging elegantly in front of his eyes, a quirk that Hitomi could see was due to his hair being longer in front than in back. "You don't even know me…and I didn't know you until you came into my cell this evening."
"Oh well," Hitomi said quietly, playing with her shoulder length hair nervously. "I um, I saw you in a vision before I came back to Gaea. Do you still want proof that I'm who I say I am?"
"No," Loric answered simply, giving Hitomi what she thought was a rare smile. "You pretty much proved it to me when you called down those blue pillars of light. I read a lot of stories about the Destiny Wars…that was something you were known for…that and for being with Allen Schezar."
"Oh yeah," she said with a small chuckle, imagining Van's look when he found out she was mentioned in books as being with Allen. It all seemed silly to her to be frank. "I guess I was with him for a little while. Aren't you curious as to why I'm still young when I should be older than Merle over there?"
"That's Merle?" Loric asked with interest. "The Merle who was the legendary Van Fanel's companion? I thought she was just a myth along with him…I suppose he isn't either than? Of course he's not…his story was one of my favorites as a child. He was in love with you wasn't he? I thought I read that somewhere…"
"Yes, I was too," Hitomi said quietly, thinking that it was strange she said was. "I mean, I am. That's why we need your help Loric…we're going to find Van Fanel, and my vision said you could help us do that. Can you?"
Loric was silent for a minute or two, a deep contemplating look on his face that reminded Hitomi of another brooder she met here her last trip to Gaea. She started to giggle, which caused Loric to look at her strangely so she had to explain, "I'm not laughing at you Loric. You just remind me of someone else you used to get this really deep look on his face when he was thinking about something serious."
"Who?" Loric asked innocently.
"Allen Schezar," Hitomi said, still giggling as Loric's face turned to one of surprise. "He used to sit like that on the Crusade and just think and think and think; usually about his father and mother, but sometimes about Van or Millerna, or well, me. I think I fascinated him more than anything else, but he was a great man."
The two sat in silence for a little while longer before Hitomi announced that she was going to go to bed and that he could decide in the morning what he wanted to do. He watched her fall asleep, softly singing a song with some strange earpiece in her ears, her child-like manners reminding him of little Sara, now dead because her family had allowed him to stay there. He looked back at the small fire, already in his heart decided what he would do in the morning, but his brain still needing to go through everything. It was a lot to take in all at once, seeing as almost everything he had thought to be a legend was suddenly a reality and staring him in the face.
Maybe the morning would hold more answers to him, until then he would try to sleep and block out the screams of his nightmares…maybe he would just listen to her song.
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A/N: Wow, longest one yet! Sad thing is they're only going to get longer and longer. I don't think any of y'all will worry about that though! I hope you liked this one, not really a cliffhanger or anything, but I can't do that to you guys all the time!
Remember review!
Oh, the song Hitomi sings in this chapter is not owned by me, Aphasia and all their people do. The song is called "Away From You," and the CD is called Fact and Fiction, I recommend rereading that part while listening to this song, it'll fit so perfectly I swear! Until next time, Adieu!
Osco