A/N: wow! I've been having so much trouble with this chappie but I've just had a wave of inspiration… mainly in the form of a very helpful review, so I've finally been able to update… I hope you enjoy since this is the second to last chappie n everything is revealed.Please review
Chapter 15 The Pain of Gaea.
Was it all just a dream or maybe a vision…No it was real. (A/N: sorry it just had to be done)
I had returned to Gaea to find it on the edge of war. Fanelia was in ruin and Allen a wanted criminal. I later learnt that everything that was happening to Gaea had happened before and was told in an ancient forgotten tale.
On Gaea I met a strange woman named Kari who had been Allen's past lover and was known as 'The Woman in White.'
I was told that she was part of an ancient race once worshiped among the people of Gaea yet hated by the Draconians called the Zandrions. We learnt that the Zandrions and Draconians had had a war which involved all of Gaea.
The Draconians, jealous of the Zandrions power drove the people of Gaea against them which forced them to create a world of their own. From here they watched the people of Gaea controlling the seasons and even life and death it's self.
In time the Gaean people forgot about the Zandrions and many became disrespectful, because of this the Zandrions sent to Gaea three people that would decide the fate of everything. These people were known as 'The Bringer', 'The Taker' and 'The Chosen One', it was their job to decide if Gaea should be destroyed or reborn.
"When the Bringer falls; Gaea will fall.
When the Taker falls; Gaea will slowly fall.
And when they both Fall; Gaea will be reborn.
It is the Chosen one that decides from his love for life or death."
But there was a problem to this tale, we learnt that the Zandrions directed by the elders of Zandria had taken the Princess of Fanelia, Vans older Sister and turned her into 'The Bringer,' the most powerful of the three being able to give life; but because of their meddling things went terribly wrong and now Gaea's fate hangs by a thread, maybe to be destroyed and never reborn again.
The crusade ship could go no further; it had to stay clear if it did not want the risk of being spotted, and being swatted out of the sky by Zaibachs Ispano Guymelef that is.
Hitomi watched the flames grow higher, and desperately wished that Van would be alright.
She hated all of this, people had just began to get their lives on track and now Gaea was at risk again, but this time she was helpless, there was nothing she could do; no one could do anything, all they could do was watch, wait and hope that Zaron would wish Gaea to be reborn but then, Hitomi had no idea what that meant no one did.
"Don't worry Hitomi." Merle was knelt down with Hitomi, "everything will be okay. I just know it will."
"But how Merle? How do you know? How do we know that anything will be alright at all? I wish this had never happened. I wish this could just be over." Hitomi began crying again but her sobs came to a stop as her pendent began to glow.
Before she knew it Hitomi was surrounded in darkness.
"Where am I? What's going on?" Hitomi could see nothing around her.
"You are in-between time." Came a strange voice out of the darkness.
"What? 'in-between time' what do you mean?" Hitomi though not knowing who she was talking to began asking questions, did this have something to do with her wishing that things had never begun?
"This is the place where you can see all. The past, present and future are all here." Said the voice, it sounded feminine but Hitomi could not be sure the voice echoed in the darkness.
"But why am I here?" Hitomi asked "Who are you?"
A woman dressed in a similar white dress as Kari appeared before her; the woman had deep blue eyes and white-blonde hair, she was a Zandrion.
"I am Fera the Elder of times to come, this is where I and my brothers look over our times, and this is where you must be to make the choice."
"Choice what choice?" The Elder laughed.
"The choice if the Princess dies of course, if Gaea is to be reborn." Hitomi was completely shocked she thought it was Zarons Choice he was the Chosen One. "The Taker has already fallen, Gaea is already destined to fall but it can still be reborn."
Hitomi did not know what to do; she had so many thoughts running through her mind.
"I do not mean for you to make this decision alone, first you will witness Gaea now, then the possible futures." As she spoke she slowly disappeared leaving Hitomi alone in the darkness to think about what she had learnt, a few moments later -though she could not be sure a man appeared before her. He wore clothes like Zarons regal robes.
"You must be the chosen one, which Fera spoke of." He bowed most politely. The man like many male Zandrions had black hair, long and tied with a ribbon. "I am Knorance Elder of times now. I am here to show you Gaea how it stands."
The darkness around Hitomi and The Elder became lighter and changed slightly, though still dark Hitomi knew where she was.
"Palas!"
She saw the smoke filled sky as the grand city became ever more engulfed in fire, her first thoughts were of Van and her worry for him fighting in such conditions.
She saw the two Guymelefs locked in battle but that was not why she was here. Hitomi was suddenly overcome with a weight on her heart; it felt as if it was being torn apart.
"What-What is this." Hitomi held her hand to her chest, and deepened her breathing.
"That is the pain of the people of Palas, those that are dying." Hitomi thought she heard wrong at first until the Elder repeated himself. "You can feel their pain here, just as Kari can always. She feels the pain of every dying creature on Gaea." Hitomi thought back to that vision she had of Kari before (see chapter 10).
How could she live with this pain, how could anyone live with this. The feeling of a lead weight on your chest and that your heart is being torn apart was unbearable, yet Hitomi could not understand.
"How is it she feels this, I thought she was Draconian?" The Elder turned hi head to look at the burning city.
"We changed her fate, through blood fusions and techniques similar to the Zaibach scientists it was wrong we know, but when Marth was born without his twin we had no choice, it was years before we found a suitable subject someone that would withstand such procedures."
"So why am I here, why am I this chosen one?" The elder didn't seem to mind answering some long over due questions.
"Zaron must have know he was not the chosen one things just have not been the same this time, before everything was simple. We interfered too much, but we couldn't let the past repeat."
"The past what past? What happened?"
"Everything that has happened in your time here has been planed by Zaron, he wants Gaea destroyed but he hasn't the heart to kill Kari, Zaron hated this world, he killed the Zandrions for what they did to him and Kari and plans to kill everyone on this world to end her suffering."
Hitomi thought back to what she had learnt, Kari's memories being 'erased', how they messed around with fate. What she had heard was right the Zandrions are nothing but trouble. This was all Zarons fault, their entire fault their want of control had drove them to this, they were just like the Draconians with they want to control human will.
"Suffering!" Hitomi looked at the elder. "This is what Zaron wants to end Kari's suffering?"
The elder shook his head.
"Not just Kari's but the worlds suffering."
"But he is what created this suffering! I think I understand now, this is not what was planed but is the result of things changing, things constantly changing."
"Then we must adapt to that change and follow the course." The elder walked off into the distance, Hitomi ran after him but he had disappeared.
"I see we have been mistaken, this is not the old tale but a new one. This is not about disrespect but of pain." Hitomi heard Fera's voice but could not see here.
"Miss kanzaki!" Hitomi looked around, it was Marth. "Please do not fear I am here to tell you what to need to hear." Hitomi nodded.
"To this time there has been two bringers the first you have heard about in the scroll when the elders were chosen, some years later a new bringer, taker and chosen one descended on Gaea, the bringer was female and fell in love with the chosen one similar to Kari and Zaron and the first time this happened, but you see the taker wanted to destroy Gaea, he felt they did not deserve to live so he had to kill his own sister, this is where the story differs, the Draconians were well gone by this time so there was no one to interfere apart from the chosen one, he did not want his love killed, he was happy with how things were, but the taker was adamant they fought and killed each other."
"Back on Zandria the elders decided they could not let Gaea fall into ruin so decided to execute the bringer, it is one reason Zaron wanted the sword so it could no be used on Kari you see the bringer was killed in the centre of Zandria with everyone watching, Jhono did not want that for Kari."
"So it was you? You were the one to destroy Fanelia not Zaron?" Everything was becoming so clear they had been wrong all along it was Marth who wanted to destroy Gaea for disrespect.
"All Zaron wanted to do was help rid the world of pain, of course I only wised to have it reborn but that wouldn't solve the pain now would it."
"You can't do this. Zaron can't do this people have to live with their pain and sorrow, its apart of life without it we don't learn, it's hard at first but in time that pain it melts away sorrow leaves you. You can't just destroy everything. Didn't you learn anything from the Great War? It was the same thing Dornkirk wanted."
To be continued...
Disclaimer: i do notown Escaflowne but just about everyone in this chappie is of my own creation.