Thank you for the wonderful reviews! Sorry it took this long to get it out, but I wanted it to be really good. And finishing the school year was also important. Remember, I don't own Escaflowne, I just wish I did.
EmpKaylenatye
Chapter 13: Discovered
Lady Serra walked down the halls of the castle in Palas trying to find the newest guests. She wanted to see for herself how her scheme would work out. As she figured, they were sitting in the dinning room eating breakfast.
"Lady Serra, I am glad you came down to join us for the morning meal." said Millerna with a polite smile on her lips.
"I am terribly sorry, but I will have to decline that offer. I have asked my son to meet me here for the morning. I figured that he would like to see his long-time friend." Lady Serra hid a smile when she could see the king of Fanelia brighten at the comment.
"Oh and here he is." Everyone turned towards the entrance to the dinning room. A man, of similar age and build to Van, dressed in brown leather pants and grey tunic walked towards Lady Serra. His hair was the same midnight black as his mother and tied at the nape of his neck. A simple sword hung at his side with his hand gently resting on the hilt.
"Good morning mother." Tyrune took his mother's hand and kissed it.
Van stood up to greet his friend. "Tyrune it has been too long, dear friend."
For nearly a moment, Hitomi thought that Tyrune had hesitated from Van's out stretched arms. Yet, the two meet in a friendly embrace.
"Hitomi come and meet my friend." gestured Van. Hitomi came over to greet the visitor. Tyrune picked up her hand and while kissing it never let his eyes leave hers. Hitomi didn't hear the introductions made by Van while shivers of fear ran up and down her spine.
"I'm surprised you didn't come to the ball that I held in my country. I had announced my engagement to Lady Hitomi at that time." Van had taken Hitomi and moved her to his side. The warmth of his body helped to stall the shivers.
"I deeply regret that I could not attending at the time. I was held against my wishes with some diplomatic problems." Tyrune gave a small frown. Van waved it off making Tyrune smile in gratitude. Hitomi watched as Van talked about various stories of their boyhood together. Looking around the table no one else seemed to be affected as she was, except Ilya. Her seat at the table between Merle and Hitomi was vacant. Excusing herself, Hitomi left the room feeling Tyrune's haunting eyes follow her as she left. "I'm sorry, but I must excuse my son and I. We have a meeting with a few delegates before noon." Lady Serra curtsied as Tyrune bowed to the king and queen of Palas and walked out of the dinning area. Feeling far enough away from prying eyes and ears Lady Serra let a smile on her face. "That went perfectly. No one will suspect now."
Dilandau just walked beside Lady Serra, his face twisted in sick pleasure. "I will enjoy this new game."
"Dilandau, I want you to go back to the Dragon Slayers. Tell them to be ready at my orders. If I find out that Philos is right about another pillar being here in Palas we'll take it along with the girl."
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Hitomi felt as if she had begun to cross every hallway twice and she had still not found the girl. She thought would be easy to spot the blonde haired child, but she was nowhere to be found. Walking past the library, Hitomi overheard some familiar voices. Peeking her head around the large wooden doors she saw her friends gathered around a large pile of scrolls. Entering the room, Hitomi was quickly spotted by Millerna who was opening a scroll.
"Come join us Hitomi. We are trying to find out more on the pillars from Kasher."
"Have you found anything yet?" Hitomi picked up a rather dusty scroll and had a brief coughing fit as the cloud of dust disappeared.
Van shook his head, "We haven't found anything that seems on the topic of the pillars." Picking up another scroll, Van opened it only to shake his head with another failure. "Where did you go to?"
"Ilya was missing from breakfast, I haven't been able to find her all morning."
Hitomi picked up anther scroll and read it's author. 'Recorded document of scientist Ruma Teloh of the Zaibach Empire.'
"Zaibach Empire!" Hitomi blanched at the document in her hand.
"Most of these documents are from the raiding of the Zaibach archives. The former king of Astoria decided that it wasn't a good idea to let information just lay about for anyone to take." Answered Allen from his own feverish search.
"Hey, I think that I have found something." Dryden held up a scroll and took it over to a table where everyone could stand around.
"In my search for more knowledge under my new master, I accidentally discovered a part of his past. Dornkirk had been searching for answers to the many mysteries that the Draconian had. I knew about his search for the power to alter the future, but I didn't know that he had stumbled upon a great weapon. According to his personal journals, he discovered a power that could obliterate everything. Why he doesn't use this knowledge is beyond me. This ancient power is some how sealed in stone pillars. From his travels he had found that there are five pillars: happiness, grief, terror, rage, and life/death.. Although he has all of this great power, Dornkirk does not seem to want it. If this is what my master wills me to know I will accept his teachings. I, Folken Fanel, will follow him to the reconstruction of a better Gaea."
Everyone stood still as the knowledge still took a hold.
"Folken knew something about this." Van said in a barely audible voice. "If only he was still here to tell us what the connection is between these pillars and the dragons."
Hitomi wrapped an arm around Van's shoulder, pulling him close to her. She laid her head on his shoulder, knowing the disappointment would be evident in his face.
"Well, maybe we will get another clue from the pillar that is out in the training grounds." Allen urged the group to follow him out of the library.
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Lady Serra boarded her ship with her escorts following close behind. The only place she found solitude from the noisy engines were her own chambers. An ornate table served as her desk holding papers and maps. Also on the table sat the three stone discs that one of her foreman had given her. She didn't understand why statues were buried in her mines, but that didn't stop her hunt for more of the pillars. 'I will make my own Gaea. This weapon will obliterate everything that could try to stop me. Once it's ready, I will become the new ruler.'
Lady Serra looked out her window as her ship lifted from the ground. She saw the waves in the air signifying her plans were in action. 'Soon I'll have all the answers I need to gain the power of the weapon. Then Gaea will see my power, no one will dare to stop me!'
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Allen led the group as they walked out to the training grounds. Hitomi remembered the place briefly on her search to find Van. The grounds were nothing much to look at, but a long stretch of dust and training gear. They were heading to the barracks where they could see the pillar standing next to the main door. Even from a distance, just glancing at the image relieved on the stone put a cold spot in Van's stomach. The image of the cowering man seemed to drag every image of fear to the surface.
Nearing the pillar, Hitomi could start making out the etching of symbols trailing along the bottom of the image. Suddenly the symbols started looking very familiar. Running closer to the pillar, the group had to sudden catch up with her.
"Hitomi what is it?" yelled Van behind her.
Hitomi was quickly circling around the pillar, "I can understand it!"
Van stood dumbfounded as Hitomi continued her circle. "What do you mean?"
"This is the same writing as the ancient Draconian writing in the Fortona Temple. I understand what they are saying."
"Well, don't leave us hanging Hitomi tell us." Said an exasperated Millerna.
"It reads, 'In terror, horrors before our eyes relive in our nightmares, the comfort of others helps us to stay together.' That's it."
Dryden scratched his chin, "Doesn't give us much to go on. I wonder how these pillars hold such a great power."
"We need to find all of them to figure out this mystery." Everyone agreed with Van's words.
A crash from the far side of the court brought them out of their ponderings. "What is going on?" Allen moved away from the group to get a better look at where the commotion was coming from. A soldier in training running away from the sound came hurtling at him.
"It's D-dragon Slayers!" His shout rang against stonewalls surrounding the court. Looking back at where the trainee had ran, Allen could see his enemies crashing through the gate from the road. Sprinting to action, Allen ran back to his friend only to find more Dragon Slayers flying close by, a couple by his friends another blocking the way into the guymelef chambers. He began waving his arms to signal the group when Van caught on and turned around.
As Van turned to look behind him, he was taken aback as three Dragon Slayers just immediately swooped down encircling the small group. Cursing the fact that he was closed off from Escaflowne, Van did the next best thing he could do. He stood in front of Hitomi acting as her personal shield.
"Van, I'm scared." Her voice was barely loud enough against the turmoil of the court.
"Don't worry." He said aloud.
"Oh, is the little king trying to protect his pathetic friends." Came a mocking voice.
"It's Dilandau!" Hitomi quickly sucked in her breath.
"Yes girly, I'm back from the dead it seems. But enough with this chit-chat, you are coming with me." Without a warning Dilandau shot out a liquid tentacle that wrapped itself around Hitomi. Lifted off of her feel, Hitomi kicked and pounded at her restrants as she was removed from the group.
"No! Don't take her." Yelled Van.
"What, and take you instead. I'm sorry but you're not important enough. We want the Mystic Moon girl, you are just an inconvenience, may be I should take care of you right now." Dilandau brought the sword in his other arm down mere inches away from Van's body while putting Hitomi securely away from her friends.
"Gatti, Viole, get the pillar. If any of you so much as blinks out of place your young king gets it." Van stood panting underneath the giant sword. The other two Dragon Slayers moved over to the pillar and began wrapping metal tentacles around it. When they were done the Dragon Slayers took off leaving Dilandau still standing there holding Hitomi.
"Don't worry, your queenie-to-be will be well taken care of. That is if she cooperates. I will fight you later dragon." Dilandau took off after his men leaving Van pounding the dirt in frustration. A roar in the sky above them caused all to turn the other direction. A pair of dragons flying almost too high to see passed overhead. The training grounds were still except from the shouting king. A large hole where the pillar had stood served as a reminder to everyone.
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She had just spent a trip in mid air fearing for her life as the ground below her sped past in a hurry. However, standing on the deck of another ship made the hairs on the back of her hair stand on end. Dilandau had let two of his men take her from his cannon and had followed them down to the holding cells. Roughly they shoved her into the tiny room with bars for a door.
"I hope you like it here. This will be your room for our little trip queenie." Hitomi could hear him smirking underneath the mask. Shaking from the cold floor, Hitomi huddled to keep warm.
Dilandau pulled off his mask to get a better look at Hitomi. When she looked up from the floor her face went pale.
"You-you're supposed to be his friend, not some maniac. Dilandau was locked away inside Celene." Trembled Hitomi.
"Well, someone decided that they wanted me out again and now they have given me a permanent body." Dilandau grabbed the bars of the cell.
Suddenly Dilandau's grip slackened on the metal bars and he fell to his knees on the ground. Hitomi sat stone still as Dilandau took in large labored breaths. He looked over to Hitomi, but she could see something different in his eyes that weren't the same cold-blooded killer she had remembered. But as soon as the episode had started, the hardened look to his eyes returned has he smiled like a hunter looking at prey. His face took the look of enjoying the fear he could see in her face. Dilandau left her laughing from her reactions. As his laughing form faded, Hitomi's thoughts turned to her friends.
"Van, please find me." Hitomi whispered to no one as she clutched her grandmother's pendant in her hand. She soon fell asleep crying and listening to the humming of the ships engines.
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Van was still kneeling on the ground a while after the evil omen had passed over their heads. No one seemed as if they could pry him from his strange vigil over the horizon. His hands were dirty from the sand that he had scratched from the ground in frustration. 'I did nothing.' He shook his head in shame. 'I let the one thing that I care about most get taken by that monster.' His thoughts pervaded his mind so thickly that he couldn't hear the loud commotion behind him, nor did he care. It wasn't until a small hand placed itself on his shoulder that he began to acknowledge the outside world.
Ilya stood next to him, but she seemed much different than before. "Draconian, you need to follow her."
The presence of the little girl caught the attention of the group as she stood next to the distraught man. Her entire demeanor had changed from an innocent girl to a confident young lady.
"I have a way to follow her." Ilya picked up the gem that hung on a string around her neck. Half closing her eyes, Ilya began to concentrate hard. Van shifted so he was facing the girl as she started something that he didn't understand. The crystal in her hands began to glow a red-orange as did her eyes covering up the green.
When Ilya began to speak again, it seemed as if it wasn't her voice, but those of others spooking those around her. "I can see who is taking her. I can lead you to the castle, but we must leave immediately or I will lose the sighting."
"What are y-"
"There is no time for questions, we have to move now." Ilya cut off Millerna's question.
Allen was the first one springing into action and shouting orders for the Crusader to be ready to leave. Van moved from his spot only to fetch Escaflowne for immediate departure.
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Amano and Yukari held their breaths for the umpteenth time that day as Professor Tomoe, who was reading the red leather book Yukari had found, gave a non-committal 'hm'. The professor turned page after page as the two adults sat awaiting a response. He hadn't questioned their story about Hitomi, but had insisted on looking at the book. Now he was looking over the book that would either prove their story or make them look insane.
"Interesting." When the professor finally spoke he shocked the two sitting diligently.
"Do you believe us?" asked Yukari.
Professor Tomoe looked up at the young woman with a serious face. "I never doubted you for a moment. This book here has only proved that fact further."
"What did the person write?" Amano moved closer to the professor.
"Well, he talks about a gateway controlled by ancient beings. These beings, from the sketch that he has here, look more like angels to me, but he insists that they are from the lost civilization of Atlantis." Professor Tomoe opened the book to the sketch to the angel in the picture. "But what I find particularly exciting is that this man had found a way to understand their language. There is an extensive section in this book on these ancient beings, not to mention the tower of Babel. Well, we now have the information we need to start putting the pieces of the puzzle together."
"If I may ask professor, who was the author of the journal."
"Oh, his name was Isaac Dornkirk." A gasp from Yukari made Professor Tomoe give the young lady a strange look.
Yukari only shook her head, "That was the man that was in control of the Zaibach Empire we were telling you about."
Professor Tomoe quickly moved into action despite his age, "If that is true then we have no time to waste."
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The comforts of the lavish quarters did nothing to diminish the nightmares that Lady Serra had. She had decided a nap on the trip back to her fort would do her benefit, but her fitful sleep said otherwise. Her black hair laid in knots around her twisted face as the blankets kept her tied to the bed.
In her nightmare, Lady Serra stood in the ruble of her fort as hot ashes from burning fire stung her eyes. All around her screams pierced the heated air. Not knowing where to turn, she let her eyes wander to a figure that was walking towards her from the fire. The stance of the figure was powerful as it strode forward. Above the figure came roars from terrifying creatures. Their black silhouettes surrounded Lady Serra and the figure in a circle.
The figure came close enough for Lady Serra to clearly make every detail. A young woman stood before her wearing a warrior type outfit. She wore a cropped top with shorts that showed her long legs. The material seemed to be made of the skin of a dragon. Padded cuffs around her arms and legs were also made of dragon skin. Her long blonde hair was tarnished from the ash in the air. The woman stood facing Lady Serra holding a lance as if it were only a walking stick.
"Who are you!" shouted Lady Serra, her voice had started loosing much of it sharp tone.
"Stop your plans for rebuilding the weapon." The woman said looking hard at the older woman.
"I will have my rule and create a world under my domination. No one will stop me."
Lady Serra found a sword at her side. Without a moments hesitation she picked up the weapon and engaged the mystery woman. Lady Serra's movements were fast and hard, but the woman kept up to pace with them stroke for stroke. Lady Serra struggled to find a hole in the woman's defense, but only ended up making ones in her own that the woman quickly took advantage of. In haste Lady Serra made a sweep towards the woman's right side. She blocked it as if expecting the blow, her spear came up and the tip cut deep in Lady Serra's cheek. Dropping her sword, Lady Serra's hand came up to cover the burning cut on her face.
"Tell me who you are!" She demanded still cradling her head in her hands.
"I am to protect what you are trying to destroy. Harm the girl and the draconian will kill you."
Lady Serra watched as the woman raised her arms upwards with wings sprouting from her back. The woman looked at her before her body started to move in odd directions as if something was trying to escape her body. Suddenly the woman's body exploded into a roaring dragon mere feet away from her body. For the first time in her life Lady Serra froze in fear. The dragon's mouth came down over her body as she screamed out in terror.
Waking up in a cold sweat, Lady Serra struggled viciously to get the tangled blankets off of her. Wiping her hair off of her face she felt something wet against her hand. Looking down at her hand, Lady Serra jumped out of her bed. Running to the mirror, she could see the cut on her right cheek, blood trickling down into her hand. Not wanting to be in the room Lady Serra stormed out to find her captain. She no longer felt safe in enemy lands.
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Please review - EmpKaylenatye