I don't own Escaflowne, just the characters that I throw in there for some spice!
Chapter 10: Getting closer to the truth
Yukari and Amano were sitting outside of a cafe each taking in the delight of cold ice cream on the hot day. Amano noticed that Yukari had been quiet for the past few days and nothing he did could pull it out of her besides being blunt. She had told him about Hitomi leaving, but she had seemed happy now that Hitomi was happy. Finally fed up Amano took the last resort.
"Are you going to tell me what has been bothering you or do I have to drag it out of you." he spilled.
Yukari looked up from her half finished sundae. "I'm sorry Amano. It has just been bothering me about that dragon sighting a while ago. It was so strange that we were the only people to see them."
"Well, that's not true."
Yukari gave Amano a puzzled look.
"Remember that accedent on the highway the day after Hitomi disappeared. The driver that caused the accendent had seen the dragon and that is why he stopped in the middle of the road. He is a professor at Toyko University, he has to be somewhat trustworthy."
Suddenly getting out of her chair Yukari darted off.
"Yukari where are you going!" Amano rushed to pay the waiter and dashed after her. He caught her taking the bus. Luckly he was the last person to get on before the bus started towards its next stop. Yukari urged him to sit next to her.
"What has gotten into you?" said a baffled Amano.
"We have to find out who this professor is. He was one of the only people who saw the dragon that Hitomi first saw. Apparently he is a professor in the archeology department. Maybe he has some information on what is going on."
"Yukari, you do realise the problem with this right."
"What?" she asked incently.
"How is Hitomi going to get the information?"
Yukari sat chewing her bottom lip. "Well, Hitomi did come back for a while. Maybe she will come again and the information will help. Besides, who knows what danger she might be in."
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Dilandau was still comprehending the information that his Dragon Slayers had told him. Zaibach defeated, him being inside the mind of a girl and now this febale boy. 'I will be trained and ready for battle soon enough," he thought. He wore an outfit simular to the one he had worn under Zaibach. Gatti and Chesta were walking with him to the guymelef chamber and explaining Lady Serra's plan of rebuilding Gaea. Enter the chamber, Dilandau felt more comfortable seeing the Dragon Slayers standing proudly.
"So tell me when do I meet this, Lady Serra."
"She is coming towards us now." said Gatti gesturing to the lady walking with a purposeful stride towards the trio.
Lady Serra fixed her eyes on Dilandau making him feel fidgety, much like Folken had when he had fixed him with the same stare. Something in the back of his mind felt as if it wanted to push its way out, but Dilandau kept it in cheek.
"Dilandau, it is nice finally meet you. I would like you to accompany me to my battle chambers and we will discuss the matters of why you are here."
Wanting to get more information, Dilandau followed the fierce lady. It wasn't long before they reached her battle chambers and sat down.
"My name is Lady Serra, and you are here because I need your services."
"Continue."
Lady Serra handed a glass of wine to Dilandau before she continued. "I am reshaping Gaea, continuing the work of Dornkirk. Unfortunately I know there will be a few obsticals in my way. Most don't concern you, but what I need you for is retrieving somethings for me and while you are at, cause a bit of a disaster along the way."
Dilandau licked his lips at the prospect of causing destruction. "What do I have to do?"
Lady Serra put on a sly smile of her own. "I'm glad you're interested."
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It was mid-afternoon when Millerna and Hitomi decided to leave Ilya with Dryden and ventured outside for a walk in the gardens. The early summer sun poured over the flowers which were in full loom. They walked to Ilya's fountain and sat down, dipping their hands in the cool water.
"Hitomi, what was your home like on the Mystic Moon?"
Hitomi, pondered while trying to think what she should tell the Queen. "Well, I live on an island called Japan, specifically the city of Toyko. There are more people there then there are trees here. Hundreds of people live in a single building that is twenty stories high and the streets are covered with busy with transportation vehicles. Sort of like motorized carrages."
"Wow, your home seems like it must be a bustling place, but how do people live such a fast pace life?" Millerna leaned back to let the sun shine on her face.
"So many people are concerned over their own lives that they are too busy to think about others. It's not like here where people watch out for eachother and stand up together. I learned that the last time I was here on Gaea, the goodness of your heart is what controls your dreams."
"You will make a wonderful queen if you keep those ideals." Hitomi knodded a thank you.
Millerna stood up and brushed off her dress. "We should go back now, there are many more things that I need to drill into your head before your wedding. By the way, have you given a thought as to when that will be."
Hitomi shrugged as the two walked back into the palace.
"Well, don't worry. I will help you and you can come to Pallas with me when I return to start picking out a wedding dress." Millerna began to rattle off the different designs that she had gone through when picking her own wedding dress, but stopped when she saw Hitomi's far away look.
"Hitomi what's wrong?"
"I can't help it, but I'm worried that another war is about to start."
"Hitomi! You can't be serious." Millerna's giggles were cut short by Hitomi's silence.
"I haven't had visions in years, yet the moment I saw the dragons on Earth I knew something was wrong. The visions I've had so far are different from the last. They feel controlled by something or someone. Not like the times before when I used by tarot cards; those felt as if they came from another place. Now with the attack at Fort Castelo I can't help but feel as if I had known that was coming."
"Hitomi, you can't control what human nature does."
"I know." said an asperated Hitomi. "I just want to figure out what is going on so I can continue with my life."
"Don't worry so much Hitomi. We are all here with you." Millerna grabbed Hitomi's hand and gave it a light squeeze.
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Van stood on the prow of the Crusade as it made its way back to Fanelia. Allen was off somewhere on the ship venting his fustration on anyone and Van was sick of being lashed at. The damage was great and knowing who caused it was worse. 'How could they still be alive. We were told by King Aston that the Dragon
Slayers had been taken care of.' Van beat a fist agains the railing. Looking out the glass windows, Van let the the passing of green trees calm his fustration. The thudding of boots coming towards his sitting position and the quiet stream of curses warned him of the horrible mood knight.
"Allen, for a knight of your status you should really calm yourself."
"How would you like it if you had been told that Dragon Slayers had kidnapped Hitomi for unknown reasons leaving your home near ashes."
Van fixed the knight with a heated glare.
Allen ran a hand through his hair and tried to regain his composer. "I'm sorry Lord Van. That was low for me to even suggest such an action."
"Don't worry over it Allen. What concerns us now is figuring out who the Dragon Slayers are working for and where they are so we can get your sister back. We are going to have to talk to the former King Aston to figure out his information source on the 'deaths' of the Dragon Slayers."
Once again Van watched the trees fly by the Crusader. Then a movement following much the same course below them. Looking harder Van suddenly ran to the side of the ship to get a closer look.
"Van what's wrong?" Allen followed the king's gaze and also saw the strange movement below.
"What do you think it is your highness?"
"Something large enough and has some sort of cloaking capabilities, but did you notice which direction it is heading in."
"Aren't we nearing the place where we sighted the dragons?"
Van nodded. Allen told Gadhis what to follow and as soon as that was done both men kept a sharp eye on their target. It wasn't long before the clearing came into view and Allen had the Crusade halted. The large object had entered the clearing, but couldn't be seen. When a black hold in the ground opened up the dragon materialized itself and walked into it.
"Captin, that was a dragon that we just tailed?" said a nervous soldier behind them.
"Yes indeed. For how long do you thing we have been following it?" Allen turned to Van.
"I think it has been with us since Fort Castelo."
Many men standing around them took in a sharp breath, murmers of 'bad omen' were caught in Van's ears.
"Gadhis, get us back to Fanelia as soon as possible!" said Allen.
"We need to get this mystery figured out Allen, I feel Gaea is depending on it."
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Yukari and Amano had been all over the campus searching for what seemed to be a fictious professor. Exhausted from their search the two plopped down on a bench outside of the last building on campus.
"Well, it's useless. The only thing we have found out about this professor is his name Tomoe Hideki. Oh Amano, it's hopeless!"
"Yukari, you said it yourself we need to help Hitomi and oof!" A heavy box had suddenly fallen into Amano's lap.
"I'm dearly sorry about that young lad." Came a voice behind a large stack of boxes parked next to the bench. An old man peeked around the mound of boxes with his monical style glasses shining against the sun, piled onto his trolley to look at where his parcel had landed.
"I'd hate to bother the two of you, but would you be so kind as to carry some of these boxes back to my labortory?"
"No problem." Amano handed his box to Yukari while taking two more from the pile allowing the man the ability to see.
"Thank you ever so much, my lab isn't to far away so I won't be keeping you from enjoying your sun."
They walked into what seemed to be one of the science buildings with dead stuffed animals and bones in display cases. It wasn't far down a hall when the professor took out a large ring of keys and tried a few times before the right key was found. Carrying in his belongings, Yukari was struck by all of the old maps that lined the walls with little tacks with string on some of them. There were ancient pottery pieces on one book case, each different from the other, old scrolls and books on another.
"This room is amazing!" awed Yukari.
"Why thank you miss, I have tried to gather as much as I can for my students. It does them a world of good to see acheology up close."
Yukari and Amano passed a look. "Excuse me, but we haven't introduced ourselves, my name is Amano and this is Yukari." Amano held out a hand which the professor shook vigorously.
"It is refreshing to meet nice young people like yourselves. My name is Professor Tomoe Hideki."
Yukari began to regain some of the energy that she had lost from running around and began questioning the professor. "So what is in your boxes, professor?"
Professor Tomoe smiled, "A few stone tablet pieces that have been sent my way to help translate. The person who was originally working on them said things were too busy for her to continue translating."
"Forgive me professor if this seems a bit rude, but were you the professor that had caused the accedent about a week ago on the highway?"
The professor pulled out a hankerchef, took off his glasses and began to clean them. "I was hoping that both of you weren't here to ask me questions about that. I have told the police what I saw and I can't explain why I was the only one to see the dragon. You can think me crazy, but I know they exist." The professor put his glasses back on and looked sternly over the two young adults.
"Oh, no professor," Yukari waved her hands in front of her, "We weren't acussing you of not seeing the dragons, in fact we wanted to confirm that it was you who had seen them."
Professor Tomoe gave the two a qwerky look. Amano swiftly came to Yukari's rescue. "What we are trying to say professor is that you aren't the only who can see the dragons, we have as well."
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Dilandau was not completely fond of the terms Lady Serra had given him, specifically the one he was currently haveing to deal with. "Why do I have to where this stupid mask?" he said to himself. The other condition was that while out in public and with Lady Serra he would be referred to as Tyrune and would be expected to reply. "At least she is a decent woman, if there were any to be strong enough to be my mother." Dilandau continued to stare at the mirror figuring out how to put on what seemed to be a cloth blindfold when
a knock came at his door.
"Come in!" he shouted from his spot.
Lady Serra came in and shut the door behind her, Dilandau immediatly knelt. "You don't kneel in my presence. Besides I will be quick."
Dilandau stood and knodded. "I know that the Dragon Slayers have been spotted my informant among the ranks at Fort Castelo has told me. You need to get your men back into shape, so I have a mission
for you. I need for you to draw the king and queen away from the King of Fanelia."
"What! Is that nusaince still king of Fanelia!" Dilandau growled.
"Yes, and if his contact remains strong with the family of Pallas then my plans could be ruined. Block water ways, stop traders, destroy a village, do whatever, but I want the King and Queen of Astoria to leave Fanelia as soon as possible."
Dilandau licked his hungry lips, "With pleasure."
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It is absolutely amazing! Two chapters in less than a week, don't expect this too often! For those of you waiting for more gore or maybe a lemon, hold out for the next chapter! BYE-BYE Oh, REVIEW!
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