A/N: … I changed the title back to fight for Gaea since it seemed to get noticed that way more… Chapter 8 will be delayed since it is very long and needs reworking.
Chapter 7 Love Hurts.
"What do you plan to do?"
"Yes Jhono it's your decision."
"I say erase her memory."
"Erase her memory. She'll never stand for it."
"She won't have to. Memross has come up with a new way to erase ones memories."
"I say it's an excellent idea, but won't we have to erase his as well?"
"He should have kept away from her like instructed or else none of this would have ever happened."
"Yes Knorance. I guess we will have to erase his memory as well. You think your up to it Memross?"
"Yes my lord I can handle two. We the elders have ordered this and so it will be done, I will do the young lady first."
Hitomi Stirred slightly and awoke to still darkness. She turned to see Kari laid not to far way. Hitomi crawled over to her, she hoped she was still alive; she shook Kari several times only to find that she was breathing and that some small cuts and grazes had healed.
Hitomi was unsure on what to do; she did not really want to go to sleep for she had no idea where she was and was unsure if any dragons were in the area. Though she did not really want to stay awake because it scared her to look out into the darkness. She looked back at the dormant Kari – Blood! – Thoughts ran through her mind.
"Oh No what if dragons can smell blood like sharks, or what if other creatures could ones that were worse than dragons."
Hitomi panicked but she was so tired her sleepiness won over.
"Where's Allen? What happened? Tell me." Millerna had seen the devastation Zaron had made and heard the stories. It was now morning and the clean up on the castle had started, a search for Allen, Kari and Hitomi had been arranged for later that day.
Merle had not left Vans side since the attack and Chid had not stopped worrying.
"Princess Millerna please don't worry I'm sure Allen's not too badly hurt." Van tried to sound that he was worried but all his concern was on Hitomi.
Everyone turned as the door opened with a bang, stood there or more correctly leaned there was Allen. He was very pale and clutched his right arm tightly, blood oozing out between his fingers. He was very ragged and dirty, as he looked up into the room everyone noticed how empty his eyes looked; they were no longer bright blue but very pale and lifeless.
Allen stumbled into the room as Millerna ran up and helped him sit down.
"Allen are you… How are you?" Chids concern was clear in his voice and on his face.
"Allen you're bleeding let me look at that." Allen looked over to Chid and attempted a smile he then looked at Millerna who was knelt at his side ready to see to the wound.
"You sure it's not very nice." Millerna nodded and Allen slowly let go of his arm to reveal not a cut but bone! Millerna gasped at the bone that had broken and penetrated through his skin. Merle looked like she was going to be sick and left the room at a hurried pace. Millerna quickly wrapped the wound up in bandages as Allen tied to shake off some dizziness.
"Dose it hurt Allen." Chid stayed his distance but was generally concerned.
"To be honest I can't feel a thing." Allen shut his eyes and kept his head down.
"Allen?" Millerna felt his forehead "Oh, Allen you have a fever." Millerna turned to face the room. "I'll never be able to heal that wound with out operating and I can't do that while he has a fever."
"I'll heal him." Everyone shot to the door where Marth stood in full black attire. Though that is usually my sisters' domain but I see she's not here so I'll have to do it." Everyone just stared at him, lost for words.
"Why?" Marth looked blankly at the now extremely pale Allen. "Why would The Taker heal someone that's already cheated death once. And I doubt The Elders will be too pleased with you." Marth grinned
"You think I care what those bunch of old know-it-alls think, I won't let u die from a broken arm and a fever, no matter what they say. And… and Kari wouldn't be too happy with me if she knew I let u die." Marth sighed and told everyone to leave the room because he needed to concentrate or else Allen could have a bent arm.
"This may hurt." Marth pushed the bone back into Allens arm which coursed him so wince and grit his teeth. "OK. Maybe it doesn't hurt that bad." The process from then on was simple, bondage of the bone and closing the wound. Marth began to talk after a while – the real reason he wanted to be alone with Allen.
"Why do you do it Schezar? Why do you put you life on the line for Kari? Yon know when Zaron put you on the brink of death, well she was in pieces. So she went against The Elders will, and healed you." Marth had finished fixing Allens arm and he tried to see if he could move his fingers.
"Why… Why… Why Schezar? Marth looked away and stood.
"Why what? Marth" Allen was feeling a little better and stood himself, but he was still very weak and his eyes were still pale.
"WHY DON'T YOU FEAR HIM!" Allen just stood there looking half dead as Marth shouted his question in his face. The sudden out burst attracted the attention of everyone outside and they soon came rushing in.
"Tell me why you don't fear him when you're only human?" Marth had quietened down some what.
"Because Marth. I am only human… I am thankful for being alive and I'm used to cheating death. I didn't ask for Kari to help me but she did, and I'm not afraid of him for her. I don't know why but if you haven't noticed she's terrified of him, and I don't think it's just because of what he did to your family." Marth looked shocked – Was Kari that afraid?
"You…you there's more to this?" Allen shrugged and left the room; smiling to Millerna as he left to say that he was going to his room to rest like she would have told him too.
Hitomi woke once again but this time to the light of day. She was still very tired as she sat up and nothing was yet in focus. Hitomi finally noticed that Kari was gone from the little clearing they were in.
She stood worried for what might have happened, and was about to call out her name when she emerged from out of the trees.
Kari smiled. She was in what looked like the remains of her dress mainly torn to use as bandages on wounds from the sword that would take time to heal and would scar. Her dress had lost its middle where it was most likely at its bloodiest from a large slash across her stomach, replaced with strips of tightly tied cloth. Hitomi also noticed an arm and several inches off the bottom of her dress had been used to bandage up wounds on her arm and legs, also that what was left of her dress looked cleaner and very revealing resting far above the knee.
"Hay there you want to get going. We're a few days away from the castle." Hitomi just stood there thinking to herself.
"How could she be so calm and cool about everything? She nearly died."
Kari cocked her head to show it was not a rhetorical question.
"Sure. How far are we again?"
"Erm… About three days, not far; and the forest isn't too dangerous. We can follow a river south for about a day or two." Kari smiled and walked off into the forest Hitomi at her heels.
Kari and Hitomi had not been walking long but the silence was getting to Hitomi, she just had to say something; but she had so had so many questions where was she to start?
"Erm… Kari…" Kari looked over her shoulder then stopped. "How long have you known Allen?" Hitomi looked down at her feet as she asked her question. She felt like blushing as she felt her gaze but knew it was stupid. Kari's laugh made Hitomi really want to blush.
"That's an odd question… I don't think anyone's ever asked before." Hitomi looked up from her feet. "Well I'm pretty sure we knew each other from when we were about Chids age so about… sixteen years. Why you ask?" Hitomi thought about her answer carefully and was about to say it when she noticed what looked like a pair of black wings on her shoulder blade.
"Erm… well I was just wondering… is that a tattoo?" Kari looked a little confused at first then realized she meant her wings.
"Oh no. they're kind of like a birth mark, Marth has a pair but they're white and on the other shoulder. It's to show we're twins or so my father used to always say." Kari turned and began walking again. Hitomi followed. They stayed in silence from then on.
Marth had decided to stay till Kari was found. He said Zaibach could look after it's self for a short while and that his 'connection' with Kari could help.
Allen was still very weak and Millerna had put him under room arrest and ordered he stay in bed since she was not sure on how much blood he had lost and that he still clearly became dizzy when he stood up.
Van locked himself up in his room in an attempt to find Hitomi using the method of dowsing she had taught him – he was unsuccessful.
"Hello Emperor Marth." Millerna had walked outside to find Marth watching a pool of fish.
"Hello Princess." Millerna stood next to him. "Hmmm. How does he do it?" Millerna looked towards the Emperor.
"What do you mean Emperor Marth?"
"Please just Marth, and I mean Schezar; you're thinking about him and it's clear how you feel." Millerna blushed. "Though I don't think you love him but the idea of him." Millerna did not know what to think.
"I don't understand… Marth." Millerna was trying to be polite but her frustration showed.
"This Allen that you see is nothing more than a front, something he put on as a Knight." Marth laughed as he saw her face; she was confused and did not believe his words. "Well he hasn't always been that polite, though I have to say I think he's never drank so much since he got drunk that one time."
"You lie, Allen drunk. Never." Marth grinned
"You really don't know him do you? Kari and I had a right laugh. Though she wasn't too impressed; since, I started the game." Marths grin turned into a warm smile and he looked out into the dusk. "I remember it like it was yesterday. I challenged him to a drinking game to celebrate our birth-date." Marth looked back at the Princess.
"Our?" Millerna was very interested, she very little about Allens past – a lot like anyone that knew him. And it had come as a surprise to her to hear that when training with Balgus he lived with Marth and Kari at a small cottage in 'The forest of the Dragons.'
"Yer well Kari and I naturally have the same birth-date and from some odd reason Allen did too." Marth laughed "He was so pissed. We drank the same amount each but for some odd reason alcohol doesn't affect Zandrions the same way it dose humans." Marth sounded like he did actually know what he had just said.
"Oh." Millerna could not even imagine Allen drunk but Marth was telling the truth. She looked at him and saw the sadness in his eyes, as he began to say something in a more quiet tone of voice.
"And that's when I saw how she felt and how much she cared for him." Millerna looked back at Marths saddened, dark eyes and she thought how handsome he was. She had missed him at the palace in Palas and this was really the first good look of him she had had. "'Did I win?' he said to her in the morning. She thought I was still asleep on the sofa and that I didn't know that she had made him a drink to help with the hangover, but I did. I watched as she talked to him explaining about the drink, that he had to drink it fast and before it got cold. If that had been anyone else even me she would have left them with the hangover. But you know what she answered?" Marth looked at the stunned Princess as she shuck her head. "'Yer you won."
"What did he win?"
"A kiss from Kari." Marths words were silent and hard to hear but Millerna noticed how Marth felt towards him, towards Allen – he hated him.
Hitomi looked out onto meadows of lush green, the grass tall and gently blowing in the wind. She could feel the wind on her face and smell the flowers of spring time. The silence of this peaceful meadow was broken by laughter and yells as two people ran out of a forest to the side of the meadow.
She saw one fall through the grass and without moving found herself only a few feet away as the second person came up and stood looking down at the fallen woman.
"Hmmm… What do he have here a young lady alone, asleep in the grass." The young man knelt down and prodded the girl who laughed and pulled the man down beside her. Hitomi noticed the two people were in-fact Kari and Allen, they looked quite young; probably not to long after Allen joined the Knights Cali Hitomi thought.
"Why do you have to go back? I've been so lonely since Marth left."
"You'll be fine. I'll still come visit." Allen was laid down looking up at Kari who was sat up looking down at Allen by her side.
"You promise? I'll make it snow if you forget."
"Then maybe I will forget, just to see it snow in summer." They both laughed but Kari kindly hit Allen on the arm and frowned. "I promise."
Out of nowhere Kari leaned over and kissed Allen.
"What was that for?" Allen asked somewhat stunned.
"For luck, on returning." She smiled and kissed the blonde Knight again.
"And that?" Kari shrugged and Allen smirked. He sat up and kissed Kari back surprising her.
"For luck, on living alone again." They both laughed.
Hitomi watched as the meadows faded away slowly to darkness and she found her self in a small dark cottage watching Kari sat at a table sewing.
The room was a lot like Maria's home in Palas but all on one floor with three doors leading off somewhere. A table, three chairs and a sofa the only moveable looking furniture in the opened planed room.
Kari was sat sewing what looked like her trade mark white dress, wearing only a very long white shirt; which did not look like belonged to her. Allen walked out of one of the doors (that Hitomi saw led to a bedroom) wearing only a pair of boxer shorts, she felt a blush run up into her cheeks- she could not believe her eyes Allen walking around in his underwear.
"I've been looking for that." He was stood next to Kari who put down her sewing and stood, putting her arms over Allen's shoulders.
"Well I have to wear something." Allen held Kari by the waist. "If you want it back then come get it." Kari backed off smiling and indicating Allen to come after her.
They were soon chasing each other round the small room laughing as Allen failed to grab her. Kari (after a stakeout at the sofa) dashed for the door; running into a cloaked figure - The cloaked figure – Hitomi gasped as she recognized the stranger. Zaron.
Zaron looked Kari up and down and walked past her into the house.
"Excuse me!" Allen clearly did not know who this man was.
"Yes," Zaron looked at Allen noticing he was in his underwear. "I'm interrupting something aren't I?" Before Allen could say anything Kari stepped forward.
"What are you doing here?" Zaron stroked Kari's cheek and ran his finger across her scar.
"I thought that was clear." Zaron slapped Kari cross the face sending her to the floor.
"What the fuck do you think your doing?" Allen grabbed Zaron only to be thrown outside Zaron walking behind.
Hitomi watched as Zaron beat Allen and pushed Kari away when she tried to help, he soon got annoyed kicked Allen in the stomach and tied Kari to a near by tree; picking up a large log in the process.
"Allen look out!" As Allen stood up Kari yelled out. But Allen had already undergone a beating and was unable to doge the oncoming attack.
Kari and Hitomi both winced as log hit Allen with some force. Hitomi was close to tears. Why was she seeing this? Why did she want to cry? What she saw was the past, this had happened and there was nothing she could do about it. She looked towards Kari who was still tied to the tree she was begging Zaron to stop as he kicked the living shit out of Allen. He at first had attempted to fight back but as Hitomi saw it was becoming harder for him to stand let-a-lone put up a fight.
"Please Zaron you're killing him!" Kari had had enough, she was pleading for him to stop. Allen was no longer moving.
"I thought that was the point." Zaron kicked Allen once again, and was surprised when he mad some sort of noise in pain. "He's still alive!" Zaron stepped back as Allen coughed up some blood.
"I'm not so easy to get rid of." Allen was hard to hear and Hitomi could tell he found it hard to talk.
"Well." Zaron walked back to the log he had thrown to the side after it was easier to use his foot. "I'll just have to try harder then. Wont I?" Zaron walked up to Allen slowly swinging the log gently.
Hitomi saw what was coming. Zaron turned to speak to Kari the fear on her face holding back the tears.
"Say goodbye to him. Butterfly." Zaron raised the log above his head and it made it's descend.
"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"
Hitomi woke with a jerk and a cold sweat. She was short of breath and it took her a good few minutes to get over what she had dreamt.
"Hitomi." Hitomi jumped as Kari called her. "Hay sleep well? Come on we've got to get going." Kari stood there watching Hitomi with her piercing dark eyes – she knew something was wrong.
"Well… Erm… No I didn't sleep very well. I had the most horrible dream." But Kari, Hitomi saw, missed that last part she was looking behind her.
"Hitomi hide. Something's coming."
Marth had gone out with Van and a few others to search for Kari and Hitomi. Merle, Millerna, Chid and Allen stayed behind as not even before dawn the search started.
Van and Marth had taken the Shadow-Walkers and told the other men to split up but Marth soon ran off away from Van after he said he felt something Van tried to keep up.
Hitomi did as Kari told her and hid in some near by trees that were thicker and denser then others. She knelt down and watched as none other than Zaron walked out of the trees that circled the clearing.
"You're healing I see that's good." Zaron walked slowly round Kari like a vulture after its meal. "Fera told me you were to betray our people again; so she told me to stop it, but I was a little late; so I had to go straight to plan B and punish you. That's if you were wondering." Kari watched Zaron with her eyes not moving, her breathing becoming shallower. "But Fera says you're going to betray us again, even after the punishment The Elders suggested, so they decided; since it worked so well last time they would let me decide your punishment."
Hitomi saw the fear grow on Kari's face as Zaron stopped. Put his hands on Kari's shoulders and whispered something in her ear - Hitomi could not hear but she did hear shouts of her name and Marth came running.
"Zaron get your hands off of her!" Zaron stepped back raising his hands.
"Just leaving. Goodbye little butterfly. I'll see you later, soon I hope." Zaron walked off, Kari breathed out and fell to her knees. Hitomi had not noticed she had held her breath.
Disclaimer: I do not own Escaflowne or anything to do with it. But i do own Kari n a few other ppl that turn up like poker n maria(the list is very long ish) so plz dont use them wiv out asking (y ne one would i have no idea)