Hey! Once again, I am completely sorry for making you wait so long. I truly am, but I just couldn't write because I had
exams and so much work! Anyway, here is chapter 24. I hope you enjoy it, and I truly hope you don't kill me. Remember
that if you do, you won't be able to read the end of the story, and I know you don't want that. Well, I'll stop by rambling and
let you read next chapter.
The pain of loving you
Change of Heart
Hitomi was sure this was the worst day of her life. She had a huge headache, and she was afraid of opening her eyes. She was pretty sure that she was not in her beautiful room in Kansaki. The bed she was in could not be her own. Hers was soft and warm. This one felt like stone and was cold as a grave. So, if she opened her eyes, where would she find herself? She was too scared to find out.
'Come on, Hitomi, you have been through worse.' Damn, again that annoying voice. Could it not leave her alone, even now?
'Really?'
'Yes, you have been traveling around the world for almost a year now. You haven't slept in a nice bed for ages.'
'Oh, are you sure?'
'Do you not remember?'
Hitomi tried to clear the mess that was in her head. The headache wouldn't stop. In fact, it seemed to be intensifying.
'Are you positive that it is important for me to remember?'
'Yes!'
'Hey, I was only asking.' Hitomi took a deep breath and concentrated hard on remembering. 'Let's see, first I was in Asturia, but someone tried to kidnap me, and then I ended up in a suicidal mission with a mercenary. Okay, no problem there. After that…ah yes! Someone tried to kill me, but he saved me, and then we danced…I do believe he has nice arms, wait that is irrelevant isn't it?'
'Concentrate.'
'Okay, okay, so…um…oh yes, he saved me again, and we passed through some sort of trials, and then…"
"Shit, Van!" She quickly got up from her stone bed and opened her eyes wide. The room she was in was dark and humid. It didn't smell nice. Actually, it smelled like something was rotten. She didn't want to know what.
'About time you remembered.'
'Shut up, I need to think. How did I get here?'
She closed her eyes, trying to remember the last thing she had seen. In her mind, she saw eyes that looked like Van's, but they were colder. They didn't hold love for her, and yet they were so similar…
'Think, think, think…'
Flashback
"Let go of me."
"I'm afraid you are in no position to ask for anything."
Hitomi searched into his eyes, but there was nothing there. They were cold and serious, like Van's had been. She knew, without knowing how, that he was a very deadly Zaibach soldier, and he was here to get her.
"What do you want?"
His hold tightened around her as she tried to free herself.
"Please…"
His eyes only became colder, and suddenly it hit Hitomi that she knew those eyes. She had seen the somewhere else, but…
End Flashback
Shit, she had gotten herself captured! She had let her guard down. Not that anyone could blame her, really, she had always been protected, but still…She got up, examining the place she was at. Her hands grabbed some kind of bars…Oh, damn; she was in a stupid cell with no way out. How the hell had she gotten into this position? He must have hit her in the head, and that was why it hurt so much.
'Why am I here?'
And then his words came floating back to her.
"Dornkirk wants you alive."
'Of all the places in the world, it had to be this place I ended up at.' Hitomi thought annoyed. 'Really, why didn't they throw me in a room full of dragons? That would have been more practical.'
Her situation, to say the least, was pretty damn bad. She was completely sure that she was trapped in a cell in Zaibach, which meant that she was at the mercy of her worst enemy. And then, why would he want her alive? Wouldn't it be better if he just killed her? She was a menace to him, so he should get rid of her, unless…
'What if he knows that I have part of the Heart? What if he knows that I am a seeker, the mistress if the Heart?' Her mind was spinning rapidly, thousands of questions and situations appearing in her mind, and then…
'What if he wants to use me to win this war?'
She had never thought of that as a possibility. Boris and Van had known that Dornkirk was trying to find the Heart, but no one had told her that he might know about her. She was positive that he knew that he couldn't use the Heart without dying. If he wanted to rule over the world, then dying was not an option. So…he had to know about her. He was going to use her to win the war.
'No, no, no!'
Her yell got stuck in her throat, and there was no way that her thoughts were right. They could not be right. She would not allow them to be right. There was no way some sick idiot would use her to destroy the world she had been trying so hard to save.
'Maybe,' Her inner voice told her, 'he just wants to chat.'
Hitomi felt like smacking herself, but it would intensify her headache, so it was not an intelligent idea.
'I am sure he brought me here just to say: Hello, how you doing? I know we are mortal enemies, but would you care to have tea with me? I have great cookies.'
'Exactly, and then you could say: I'd love to have tea with you. Do you have chocolate cookies?'
Hitting herself just to shut the voice did not seem like a bad idea all of a sudden. Sure, her headache would intensify, but she could take it, as long as her stupid self kept quiet.
'Fine, I will shut up, but have you wondered what happened to Van?'
Her mouth went dry. Her heart skipped a beat. Shit. It is not like her to swear so much, but giving the circumstances, she figured she could allow herself that privilege.
'If they have me, then they surely have him.'
She knows that he would never leave her alone. If they didn't have him, then he would come try to save her, the hero. He would probably end up being captured, and then what?
'Stupid Van, always thinking he is better that others, always sure he can do everything on his own. Why does he have to be so arrogant?' One of her hands flies to her chest, trying to stop the concern that is embracing her heart.
'Don't you dare let anything happen to you.'
She felt the tears beginning to form at her eyes. Her frustration was getting to her, and she couldn't control her emotions. Everything was fine just…some time ago. She didn't know how long she had been here. She only knows that she was with Van, and everything was just fine. Then, she woke up and found herself in this cell, trapped, and without Van.
'What if they hurt him?' And then, even worse, 'What if they kill him?'
The thought was too much for her. She felt her legs give away from under her, but she managed to stay up. She knew that nothing could happen between them, but she had allowed it. What they had could only lead to trouble, but she had hoped she had been wrong. Deep down, she had wanted to know that what they were doing was right, that they were right. She knew it was a mistake from the very beginning. She doesn't care anymore. She knows she can't live without him. She doesn't even want to try.
'Could anything get worse?'
And then she heard her cell door open, and she groaned. Her question was about to be answered.
He knew he was pretty fucked up. He had to be. The pain in his back had kept him awake all night long. He could still feel it, the way Dilandu had whipped him. He would kill the bloody idiot as soon as he managed to get out of this cell. Van tried to move his hands, but they were chained. His feet were chained too. He couldn't move. He was trapped. He felt lost and so very concern because…
Could they have tortured Hitomi like they had tortured him?
Was everything they had been through for nothing?
He tried to keep his mind off of the horrible thought that crept in his mind. Every single part of his body ached. His heart couldn't stand all the concern he felt. His soul was becoming black again. And he felt betrayed. Betrayed by his own blood, his own flesh, his own brother…
Folken.
He had hoped, through his pain, that Folken had been a dream. Every time Dilandu let the whip fall against the skin on his back, he whispered to himself that Folken was dead. He was not alive. It had been a trick of the mind, an illusion, a game Dornkirk was playing with him. It was anything but that.
Folken was dead. There was no more than that. He had seen him die. He had been there when the sword had gone through his stomach. He had seen the light leave his eyes as he was carried away by Vargas. He could not have survived. He had mourned for him. His childhood had completely vanished the moment Folken had yelled at him to run. All his life, he had thought Folken was a hero. It hurt too much to realize that he had been once again lied to. First Dornkirk and now Folken, didn't the gods know mercy?
His face hardened as he remembered his past. When things had been at their worst, he had thought of his older brother. He had always been there, in his mind, to keep him going.
'Folken gave his live for mine.' He would think after a long day of training. 'I have to keep going. I owe him that much.'
'Folken was brave. He would have been a great man. He died too young because of these bastards.' Van would think every time he massacred a village. 'If it wasn't for them, I would still be innocent. I would still have my brother my by side.'
'Folken was always so strong and loyal.' He would think as he looked at his reflection 'I should have died instead of him.'
Van had always wanted to avenge his family, but over all, he had wanted to hurt the ones that were responsible for Folken's death. Every single second of his life, he had felt responsible for Folken's death. If it hadn't been for his stupidity, Folken would still be alive. Van had trained hard all his life, trying to erase the little boy he had once been. That boy had been weak and useless. He would be strong. He had become cold and merciless, the perfect mercenary. His head had been filled with hatred and thoughts of revenge. Every single night, he had dreamed of his burned Kingdom, his dead parents, and Folken. He, who had been tall, wise, and an excellent leader. Folken had been everything he wanted but couldn't be. Yet Folken had lied to him.
He let out a yell of frustration. He wanted, no, needed to kill something. He was sure Hitomi wouldn't mind if he killed a Zaibach soldier. It was for a good cause. If he didn't kill something soon, he would just explode, and he was sure Hitomi didn't want him to die.
Hitomi.
Damn it! Where was she? Was she alright? What had his stupid ex-brother done to her? He tried to free himself of the chains, but he only managed to cut his wrists. Blood slide down them, and Van felt helpless. He did not like the feeling. A noise interrupted his thoughts; He didn't raise his head to see who it was. Whoever it was, it would surely not put him in a good position.
"So, how are you, Dragon?"
Van stayed still. He felt like ripping out the heart of the person that was in front of him.
"You have no manners. Maybe I should teach you some before you have your audience with Lord Folken. He is very interested in knowing why you betrayed him."
"Soldiers, get him on his feet. I think he needs to be reminded of his position."
Two strong arms pushed him to his feet. They tightened their grips on his hands to hold him on his feet. Van raised his head and met the red eyes that were looking at him with hatred. Van looked at him with the same feeling.
"One day, Dilandu, I will have your head."
Dilandu only smirked and released the whip.
"I'm feeling artistic, Dragon. Do you think you'll be able to fly if I hurt your back enough? It seems like your wings don't leave you any scars. Perhaps, I should make you some."
Van didn't reply, but he felt his face become stone. He didn't scream or show any feeling. His face was a mask again. His eyes were hard as stone. He was inside his mind, trying to ignore the physical pain and trying to run away from the emotional. He thought of Hitomi. Sweet, innocent, Hitomi. He didn't care what happened to him as long as she was safe. He hated not being able to free himself to save her. He wanted to know what Dornkirk wanted with her. If he put one finger on her, he would…
His head jerked when the whip failed to connect. Surely Dilandu wouldn't have stop at such a short time…
"Out of here, everyone."
"But…"
"Do not dare to defy my orders, Dilandu."
"Yes, sir."
Van heard his cell door close again, and he was left alone with the one person he did not want to see.
"Van."
Anger built itself up in Van's body. How dare he call him by his name?
"Do not call me by my name."
"We are brothers, Van."
"No, we are not. My brother died a long time ago. You are jus a traitor."
He heard Folken sighed. "Want it or not, I am your brother. Let me explain."
Folken's voice had a pleading sound, and Van almost gave in to it. He had always loved his brother, or at least his memory. He had looked up to him. He had betrayed him, and that hurt way too much to be forgiven.
"I don't care about your explanations." He said without showing any emotion.
"You will hear them want it or not."
Sometimes, she wondered if the pain would ever stop. Once, she thought she had been born with it. Maybe, it didn't matter anymore. Nothing seemed to be extremely important, anyway. She was trapped. She didn't know how long she had been in this humid, smelly cell. It could have been years, months, weeks, days, hours, minutes, or seconds. She didn't care. After all she had been through and all that awaited her, it was irrelevant. It wasn't that they had hurt her physically. Oh no, they hadn't laid a hand on her, but words…Words did not go. They stayed forever engraved in the mind, and sometimes in the heart too. They were strong and hurt more than any punch or kick. Hitomi wanted to forget, but all she could do was remember. She remembered their harsh words and all the things they said about Van.
"He will surely be dead any minute now."
"The traitor, I'm sure he will get the worst of punishments. They'll probably torture him before killing him."
"Were you his whore, seer? I'm sure he gave you what you wanted."
Their horrible words…they kept playing in her head, and she couldn't turn them off. As if that wasn't enough, she was sick with worry over Van. She feared for him. She had always tried to imagine what his life in Zaibach had been like. She had never thought it would have been that horrible. She was a prisoner and was treated like shit. She had not met one person that was even half decent. Everyone on this rotten place was disgusting. She wanted everyone to disappear. She closed her eyes, hoping that when she opened them everyone would be gone, and she would be back at her home.
'Hold on, Hitomi.' She said to herself. 'You can do this. You will do this.'
She opened her eyes. To her dismay, Dilandu and three other soldiers were entering the cell.
'Speaking of the devil…' She though. Why were they back?
"Aren't you going to say hello, seer?"
"No."
Dilandu's eyes turned blood red. His hand went up, but then it fell limp by his side. Hitomi felt proud of herself. She hadn't stirred or made any movement. She was sure she had managed to keep the fear from showing on her face. She had been getting good at that.
"Stupid girl, don't you know your position in here?" He grabbed her chin and forced her to look him in the eye. A shiver ran down her back. "We are not hurting you only because Lord Dornkirk has ordered us no to. If not…"
His eyes went down her body, and Hitomi had a good idea of what would happen to her if it wasn't for Dornkirk's orders. That, of course, did nothing to calm her mind. Why was Dornkirk ordering them not to touch her? If he only wanted her to help him win the war, then torturing her until she accepted seemed like the right choice, unless he wanted her for something more. She barely managed to restrain the yell that wanted to escape. Whatever he wanted, she would refuse without question. He would have to force her into whatever he wanted, and it would take all his strength. She would not go down without a fight. If Van had managed to survive, to keep alive the part of him that allowed him to feel, for so many years, then she could surely do the same.
"You are boring me, Dilandu. What do you want?"
Her voice had more courage than then what she really felt. Still, she was glad that at least her voice sounded confident. She saw how his eyes shined with anger. She did not care. If she had to go down, at least she would annoy him. She saw how his hands formed fists, and she remembered that Van did that when he was mad. Apparently, Dilandu did too.
"You are just a slut. Do you really think you'll be able to save your pathetic kingdom? Do you think you are strong enough to save Gaea?"
Hitomi didn't answer. She couldn't. Those were the doubts she had been having since she had accepted this task.
'What if I fail? What if Dornkirk wins? What will happen to Allen, Yuraki, Amano, and Merle? What will happen to the people I care for? What will happen to Van, to me?'
After a long moment, though, she decided to answer. "Of course I will. Good always wins over evil."
"Really? Then why am I still here? Why is your kingdom suffering? Why did the Dragon become a killer? Why does Zaibach exist if good wins over evil?"
"You will not win this was."
"You are not to decide that. You are a stupid, spoiled princess and nothing more. No one can use the Heart without dying. Do you actually think you could?"
'No, I will die, and it won't matter because everyone will be alright, and Van will be free, and the bad guys will be gone'.
"Yes." Was the thing that she told him. She did not expect the reaction. In a blink of an eye, a fist made contact with her skin, and a blade went through her hand. Hitomi screamed in pain. She opened her eyes to see her hand pierced by a knife. Her other hand went towards her lips. There was blood in her fingers when she removed them. She looked up at Dilandu. He was smiling. Hitomi had never felt like killing anyone. Right now, she would have done anything to erase that smile from his face and killing him suddenly seemed extremely good.
"You…"
Hitomi's words were cut when the cell door opened. She almost smiled at what she saw, and would have if it hadn't been her worst enemy.
"I do believe I told you to not touch her, did I not?"
Hitomi had never seen him before, but by the way the soldiers and Dilandu were bowing, she decided that this had to be Dornkirk. Besides, Dilandu's eyes were suddenly fearful.
"Lord Dornkirk, she…"
"I want no excuses. Get out of here; I will deal with you later."
Dilandu bowed lower, but before he turned to leave, his eyes locked with Hitomi's. They promised death. Hitomi gulped. Then, her eyes locked with Dornkirk's, and she wondered if she wouldn't be better off with Dilandu.
"Shut up, Folken! I don't want to hear your pathetic excuses."
Being stuck at Zaibach was horrible. He was back at the one place he had never wanted to go back to. When he had decided to help Hitomi save Gaea, he had never imagined that that path would lead him to the one place where everything had started to go wrong. As if that was not enough, he had to listen to his stupid ex-brother's excuses. He was having a hell of a day, he decided.
"I want you to understand." Folken said calmly, as if what he had done was nothing. As if he hadn't broken Van's illusions of his perfect brother.
"I don't want to understand. You betrayed us! You betrayed me! I've been here, at Zaibach, for more than ten years. Do not tell me that you didn't know because that would only be another lie."
"I always knew you were here."
Van felt his blood boiling.
"You knew I was here, and you didn't do anything? You let me believe you were dead?"
"It was for the best. You had to grow strong, and with me around you would have never done so. I did you a favor."
"You fucked me up, that's what you did! You…you betrayed me. I trusted you unconditionally, and you betrayed me, and our parents! Did you plan it all along? Did you kill our parents?"
Van's eyes held fear. He shouldn't have asked that. He didn't want to know. All his life had been a lie. Dornkirk had tricked him, and Folken had used him. Who else would use him?
"I am pained that you actually believe I would have killed our parents. I loved them. I love you, Van, even if you don't want to admit it. I did what was right."
"So lying to me was right? Do you know what they did to me here? Do you have any idea of how many people I have killed because of Dornkirk? You helped him fed me lies! You almost destroyed my humanity! You made me a…a…monster. Do you have no remorse?"
"I only did you good, Van. Perhaps you don't see it now, but I did. Dornkirk is the only hope to this world. If he does not win, then we are lost. How can you possibly not see that?"
"Are you blind, Folken? Dornkirk only wants power. He will destroy this world. He will make everyone his slaves. Gaea will be destroyed if Dornkirk wins."
"You are wrong, Van. If I remember correctly, you once used to be one of Dornkirk's loyal men. You had to believe in his dream to create a united Gaea. Your loyalties can not possibly be erased so fast."
"I was fed lies! I followed a liar! My loyalties are not with Dornkirk. They will never be with him again."
"Then who holds your loyalties now, Van?"
Van did not respond immediately. He knew his loyalties were with Hitomi, so then he was with Kansaki, but he did not want to say this aloud. He didn't want Folken to tell Dornkirk. He knew that Dornkirk felt that he had betrayed him, so he knew he was eager for revenge. A traitor always was punished, and he was the greatest of traitors, at least to Zaibach.
"That doesn't matter."
"It does. You betrayed my Lord, and you will be highly punished. Still, you are my brother, so I will see that your life is kept. Maybe this time you will be grateful."
"Don't do me any favors, Folken. I want nothing from you."
His words were bitter, meant to hurt, but Folken remained calm. Van wanted to hurt him. He wanted to make him feel as lost as he was. He wanted to make him see his mistake. He could do nothing. He was trapped. He wanted to rip him to pieces, but he was held back by iron.
"Why are your wings black?"
"I was almost dead when Dornkirk found me. He had to…inject something in my body in order to allow me to live. The chemicals changed the color of my wings."
Van felt that the color had been changed because of his betrayal.
"How did you end up here?"
Folken smiled, and Van felt like throwing up.
"After I saved you from that soldier, Dornkirk found me and brought me here. I almost died. It took his best doctors and scientists to keep me alive, but he did it. He told me he had murdered our family and destroyed our kingdom because we were gaining too much power. If he didn't destroy Fanelia, then Fanelia would have ended up destroying Gaea. He had to kill thousand to save millions. Van, he did it for a good reason. It was for the best. Dornkirk only wants to save Gaea from its destruction. Once every kingdom is under Dornkirk's rule, peace will rein. We will live in the perfect world, where no one is higher than anyone else."
"That," Van said, his voice filled with hatred. "is bullshit. You have no idea of what you are talking about. Dornkirk will enslave us. He will destroy Gaea. We will never live under peace. He caused this war, Dornkirk! How can he bring peace?"
"Sometimes, violence leads to peace."
"You are insane, Folken."
"You do not understand a thing, Van."
Folken turned to leave, and Van just had to say it.
"If I'm ever free, I'll kill you, Folken."
Folken stopped and looked back. His eyes, so like Van's, met with his.
"I only did what I had to do to keep you alive."
Van screamed, letting all his rage out in that one yells. Deception, betrayal, torture, and all in one day. He held on to his thoughts of Hitomi in order to keep from going mad.
Hitomi felt frustration, anguish, desperation, and over all anger. The man before her represented everything she hated. It had been him who had destroyed Fanelia. Because of him, her father had had to sacrifice himself for Kansaki. Dryden, too, had died because of the war that he had started. He had taken everything away from Van. The man in front of her had been the one that had destroyed Van's life. It was his entire fault. Hitomi could have forgiven him for a lot of things, but making Van's life miserable was something that she would never, ever, forgive. She would always hate this man because of what he had done to Van.
"You hate me." He said, coolly. His voice was grave and powerful. Hitomi hated it.
"Yes."
"I see. Why?"
"You represent everything I want to vanish from this world. You are everything I'm fighting against. You want to destroy everything I love. Do I need any more reasons to hate you?"
He laughed. Hitomi felt like punching him. "You have spirit. I like that. You'll make a wonderful queen."
Hitomi's mouth opened. Queen? What the hell was he talking about? Maybe he was crazy and not evil. A mental disease would certainly explain his evil plans.
"What?"
Dornkirk got close to her, carefully grabbing her chin, dedicatedly moving it so she would meet his eyes. Hitomi tried to put all her hatred in her eyes so he would see it.
"You hate me now, but it will be different. I will make you change your mind."
"I would never change my mind. I will forever be against you."
"I can assure you I will change your mind."
"Impossible."
"Possible, but first, what do you know about Van?"
"Nothing."
She closed her mouth tight, determined to not speak a word. She would not give him any information. She would rather die first.
"You do understand that he is a traitor. I just want to know why he changed…sides."
Hitomi kept her mouth closed. She glared at him.
"You can tell me the easy way or the difficult way. I will know anyways, so it's up to you to decide."
Hitomi kept glaring at him. Dornkirk sighed.
"Your choice."
Hitomi felt his hands at both sides of her head. She looked at him with determination. Whatever he was planning on doing, it would not help him.
"You see, seer, I have worked on this special technique that will help me control everyone's minds. The problem is that I'm not strong enough to use it to control every person in Gaea. That's where you come. With the Heart, I can amplify my power and control everyone. Would you like to see how it works?"
Out of nowhere, Hitomi felt the magic steer, and then, without any warning, a pain shot through her head, making her blind with all the hurt. She screamed and screamed and screamed. Her nails dig in her palms, cutting trough them. Her body went stiff, and she could think of nothing but the pain. Then, as sudden as it came, it disappeared, leaving Hitomi with just the memory of the pain.
"What…was…that?"
"Impressive, isn't it? So you are the one that changed the boy's heart, huh? You made him betray me. If I wasn't going to make you my queen, I would kill you. Fortunately for you, I'm not." Dornkirk carefully took her pendant between his fingers. Hitomi's eyes widened. "This if part of the Heart, mmm, interesting. The other part is in Escaflowne, the guymelef that is currently in my power, so I guess I have the Heart. And you are the only one that can use it, which makes it even more perfect. You have resulted far more useful than I expected."
"How do you…how do you know?"
"I saw it in your mind. I also know that you love Van. An odd couple, if I may say so. It won't last, of course. I won't let it."
"You can't change the way that I feel."
Hitomi was scared. This man had managed to extract the information that she had sworn to guard with her life. He had just put his hands on her head, and everything had opened up. What else was he capable of?
"That is where you are wrong, mistress. I can change the way you feel, and I will. You see, a long time ago, I was in loved with your great grandmother, Meridian. She was everything I wanted, but she betrayed me, and I had to kill her. That's where the idea came to me. If I managed to control people's thoughts, then I would never be betrayed again." He looked at her, and grinned at the confused look she had. "Your family brought me a lot of pain, but you will make it go away."
"I will never be your queen."
"You will, and jut because I like you, I will tell you why. You love Van with all your heart, and you hate me with the same kind of passion. I just have to get inside your mind and change the feelings. You will hate Van and love me. It is very simple."
Hitomi's eyes filled with fear. 'No, no, no, I will not let him. Please, let me not let him. Let me be strong enough.'
"What you are planning on doing is not real. It is only an illusion. True love is stronger than any illusion."
He laughed heartedly. "Trust me, my love; this is a very strong illusion. And even if you break free of my power, I will already know your mind. It will be easy for me to turn you against Van again. No matter what happens, I win and Van loses. You will be mine."
"I will not let you."
"And how will you defend yourself?"
He reached out towards her. Hitomi yelled, moved, tried to free herself, nothing worked. She could feel his power entering her mind, the pain invading it. With all her being, she fought it back, trying to push him from her mind. The pain just grew stronger.
'Please, Van, please, let this be a bad dream, please, don't let it be real.'
She knew she was just lying to herself. She could already feel something wrong in her mind. She could feel…
Dornkirk was pleased by the way things had gone out with the seer. It had been difficult, to accomplish his goal. She had strength of mind that he had not anticipated, but he had done it, anyway. She was his. She had even believed that, if she ever got free from his illusion, she would be a danger to Van. Of course he could change her back, if she ever managed to free herself, but it would be far more difficult. It had been an arduous job. Her love for him was too great, and she refused to forget it, nut her hate for him had helped. It was done. Now all that was left was go torture Van, kill him, and win a war. He thought he could have everything done by the end of the month. Everything was perfect. He allowed himself a smile.
"Open the cell."
A nervous soldier quickly moved to open it. Dornkirk stepped in.
"Folken."
"Milord."
"Leave, I have issues to deal with Van."
"Yes sir."
Folken stopped in front of him. "Please, milord, don't kill him."
Dornkirk's face grew serious. "That is for me to decide. Now, leave."
Folken bowed and left the room. Dornkirk looked in front of him, only to be met by a pair of furious eyes.
"Dornkirk." He said his name with all the hatred that was inside of him. Dornkirk found that he feared Van a little. If he ever got free, and they were in the same room, he would surely rip him apart. Fortunately, he planned to kill him quiet soon.
"Van."
"You lied to me." Van's eyes burned in his. If looks could kill…
"Of course I did. Having the last two draconians at my command was to my best benefit. But don't look at me like that, Van. I trained you and made you stronger. It is because of me that you are here, after all. All I did was save you. You should actually thank me."
"Thank you? For what? You made me kill thousands of innocents. You took away my feelings. You made me a monster, a mercenary, the Dragon. You made my life a lie. What is there to thank you in that?"
"I suppose nothing, really. Except for the fact that I kept you alive and teach you everything you know. I would have expected you to be more loyal, Van, You have disappointed me."
"You disappointed me too, Dornkirk. I swear, even if it is the last thing I do, I will bring you down." His words were harsh and angered. "I will avenge my family. I will kill you for what you did to my kingdom, to me. You will not escape me."
"I assume you would, if you could. Unfortunately, you can't. You are in my power, Van, just like your precious Hitomi."
Dornkirk had decided that he was getting bored with Van's proclamations of revenge, so he thought of bringing Hitomi into the conversation. Van's reaction was certainly amusing, if no a little frightening. He had managed to sand up and was currently fighting with the chains around his wrists. He could see the blood rolling from them. Foolish kid.
"If you have laid one finger on Hitomi…"
"Oh Van, I have done much more than put one finger for her." He saw how his face transformed with hatred.
"What have you…?"
Dornkirk raised a hand. "I have decided you should die, but it will not be me who kills you." He ordered the soldiers to bring her.
"I want you to meet the new Hitomi. She is to be my queen."
Slowly, Hitomi entered the room. She went directly to Dornkirk, without even glancing at Van. She put her arm around his waist and smiled as their eyes met. Then, she turned her eyes towards Van. They were filled with hatred.
"Hitomi…" Dornkirk said, giving her a sword. "Kill him."
Wow! Who would have thought that Dornkirk would be so powerful? Next chapter will be quite interesting, and it will change
the relationship between Hitomi and Van. Oh, and good news to everyone! Chapter 25 and 26 are already written! I've just
received chapter 25 from my editor, but look for it in one or two weeks. Chapter 26 will come shortly after it. Yey! Well,
moving to other things…
The war between Zaibach and the rest of the world is about to start. Van and Hitomi don't seem to be in good terms and yes,
they will eventually go back to Kansaki, where Allen and the others are. So…a lot of things will be happening and some of
them will be crucial, so don't stop reading! And please, please, please, review. I know I haven't been very good in the
updating part, but I've just have work after work after work. My school is very demanding, and they just won't leave me
alone but trust me, I am trying, so please review and let me know what you are thinking. It truly means a lot to me. And it
helps me know if I should modify something in the story, thought I am sure of how I'm going to end it. Your opinion really
count to me, so please, please, please, go down there and leave a comment.