The Dragon Priestess
AvalonReeseFanFics
A/N: Oh my wonderful readers this is a very late update. I'm so very sorry for the delay. My city went to partial shut down again and it just slashed my motivation in half. I had the chapter all ready to go and everything, only needed some minor edits. But that's okay, because we have the chapter coming up now and I'm going to do my best to have the next chapter up on time. So don't forget to leave a review and I'll see you guys on Sunday.
Chapter 18: City of Intrigue pt. 3
I had another bad vision.
That was all Brooke ever had. Merle accused her of trying to scare her all the time, but that wasn't true. Brooke was scaring herself.
She had had to ask directions before she found herself going the right way. Man she hoped it didn't cost Van his life because she got lost.
Brooke sucked as running. As soon as she realized that the side streets were mostly well paved she pulled out her roller blades strapped them on. But that wasn't enough. She ripped off the bag Van had told her to always carry with her and then tossed it to Merle. But even free of the weight she didn't' feel like she was moving fast enough to make up for all the times she had stopped. While she was skating she ripped the skirt long pleats off of her new beautiful dress so it wouldn't get tangled up in her legs and finally did she have the speed she was hoping for.
She then took off, speeding through the streets ignoring Merle's cries for her heading in the direction she knew Van was in.
The feeling, the vision, still hovered around her.
She needed to make it to Van before that vision came true.
Dilandau was not doing well.
That's what Kaydence would say to people when she thought he wasn't listening. The sad thing was it was true. He was not doing well, but it wasn't his fault.
He couldn't sleep. He was haunted. By the pain in his cheek, of the knowledge that he was no longer beautiful, by Van's stupid face. This was all Van's fault. He did this to him, cut his perfect beautiful face.
Mostly it wasn't so bad. When it got really bad though, like right now, Kaydence would put her hand over the throb and the pain and the cloud fogging up his head would all go away.
"Why must it sting so much?" he asked himself. "Cheek, cheek, cheek cheek," he kept repeating as he stroked the bandage.
By now one of his men would go get Kaydence, because sadly, it was clear that only she could keep him calm. The problem was that Kaydence was down in Palas with Folken. And Dilandau was spiralling out of control right then and there.
"Lord Dilandau, maybe it would be better if you didn't touch the wound like that."
Kaydence had been able to slap his hand away and shout: "Don't do that," to him all the other times he had started this, but again, Kaydence wasn't there.
The poor soldier who did it today though, got punched.
Then Dilandau grabbed him by the front of his armour and growled down at him. "Oh, so you understand the pain I'm feeling, do you?"
"Forgive me."
Dilandau threw him away from him and put a hand to his face. "My face, he cut my beautiful face!" he thundered.
"Lord Dilandau," A timid voice asked which was rewarded with a: "What now?!"
The second soldier who had stepped up wouldn't even look at the other boy who was at his feet.
"Lord Folken, he… he's been delayed… by… by the dragon…"
That was all he needed to say and like that Dilandau was running through the corridors to get to the guymelef hangar.
He confirmed where Folken and the Dragon were and then got into his guymelef despite his men warning him that he wasn't supposed to leave the Fortress, on Folken's orders. But Dilandau had thought of a way around that.
He had them open up the hangar, took careful aim on Van's stupid face, and powered his guymelef's energist to maximum, simply to shoot out a single Crima Claw. Maybe that looked crazy to his men watching, but he knew what he was doing.
"Bye, bye Van!" he cried as he pressed the trigger and his Crima Claw of pure heated liquid metal shot out of his guymelef.
He didn't even care that his guymelef practically melted under the strain all that mattered was that Van died.
Van had chased his brother and Brooke's twin all through the winding side streets. He had spotted them crossing a bridge when he was at the bazaar with Brooke and the other girls. He probably should have thought about it more but instead he took off after them leaving his friends behind.
He had something he wanted to say to Folken, answers he wanted to get and he was going to make sure his brother listened to him this time.
He had caught up to his brother on the outskirts of the city. He could see the Vionne hiding behind a mountain, clearly anchored there. And his Brother was heading for a carriage. Van wasn't going to let him get away that easily.
"Brother!" Van shouted and Folken came to a stop. He was at the top of the peaked bridge and when Folken stopped so did Van.
Van was out of breath, panting, staring at his brother who seemed unconcerned by his young brother's appearance. Like he had been leading Van here the entire time, and maybe he was but Van didn't care.
His eyes slid over to Brooke's twin. Kaydence, Brooke had called her. She looked like Brooke. The hair was shorter, her eyes were a different shade of green and her face looked… just not like Brooke's. Brooke had said that they people couldn't tell them apart when they were younger, Van felt like he could see a million differences between this girl and his Brooke, and not just in the outfit, or hair either.
Folken didn't seem to like the way Van was staring at her though because he moved to get his attention off of her.
"Brother are you prepared to come back with me?"
Hell no!
"Why?!" Van cried when he got his voice back. "Why are you working for Zaibach, Brother?"
"Folken of Fanelia is dead," he announced as if that wasn't a terrible thing for his brother to hear. He made a big show of putting that metal arm into the sun so it could glisten in the sunlight. "On that day, the day the dragon ripped off this arm, I died. And it was Emperor Dornkirk who gave me life again. He taught me how to live."
That was absolute nonsense, they had been perfectly fine before his dad died. Perfectly fine, then Folken had to die too and ruin everything.
"Van, you are my brother. We share the same blood. I can see into your heart."
Oh yeah could he? Could he tell that Van wanted to punch him in his stupid smug face?
"This world is difficult for gentle soul such as yours to bear," he said and Van almost flinched. It was true, except he wasn't gentle he was weak.
Which was probably why Brooke was so much more formidable than him.
"This world where man fights against man. Now, where every living thing fights to take the life of another. We kill beast. We kill dragons. We even kill men. Fighting begets fighting, and the slaughter begins anew. Such is the way of the world."
"Yes, but it was the Zaibach that started all the fighting, Brother!"
"So then I supposed we fight to end that conflict to bring forth a new order. This is a true holy war."
Okay, what the actual fuck. His brother sounded crazy. Like a straight up psycho.
"You mean fighting to bring an end to fighting?" Van asked dryly channeling all of Brooke's sass. "I think you'll find there's no such thing."
Right so maybe Brooke would have put it better, but Van figured that would do.
But Folken didn't seem to care. "Van, come with me, now. Come with me, so that we may create a new world."
Then he opened his arms, wide, like Van was going to run into the embrace. Van was looking at him like he was crazy. Because he was.
There was silence for all of two seconds while Folken waited for his brother to run into his arms and Van stared at him like he lost his mind, and in that slice came this high pitch rumble, like strange wheels on the stone.
"Van!" Brooke shouted and he half turned. She was in those weird boots again, the rolling ones, and she looked scared. Was she getting chased?
But then he noted that her eyes were on something else, something above him. And when he turned to follow her gaze, he could see a streak of something coming for him.
He had just realized that it was a bolt of liquid metal when Brooke slammed into him, taking him down to the wooden pallets of the bridge
The silence should have been deafening because it couldn't be. Brooke was pressed intohis back, he could literally feel every inch of her against him. Her hands were on his shoulders, her chest heaving into him as she panted loudly into his ear. But the only thing Van could hear was the pounding of her heart as it beat wildly against his back.
Or was that his heart pounding like that?
Brooke carefully got off of him, still gasping for breath, letting him sit up as well. He turned his eyes to the smoking hole in the boards where the shot of liquid metal had gone through. Right where he would have been standing if she hadn't intervened.
Was that why she had come?
"Brooke… you… you came to save me?"
Brooke smiled at him, slowly and leisurely through her panting. "Yeah, we gotta stick together right?" she said softly and then added: "I can't believe I made it."
Anger was quick to return to Van. He stood quickly, leaving her on the ground to grapple with the railing to get back to a standing position seeing as her shoes were still rolling around. He was too busy facing his brother to notice that Brooke needed his help.
"I see. So this is how Zaibach operates,"
"This was not my intent."
Yeah Van didn't like that answer. "Is that all you have to say?"
Not sorry? Sorry my people keep trying to kill you? Sorry I ran away and made our mom so sad she died. I'm sorry I didn't come back and you had to live all alone. I'm sorry I set our kingdom on fire, or at the very least sent someone to do it for me! Nothing. None of that?
Just: That wasn't my intent.
There was a cry of: "Lord Van," that distracted him and then Merle was in his arms again.
"I'm so glad you're okay, she keeps saying the weirdest things."
"I'm not… it's just… they're visions okay? I don't control them!" Brooke cried.
"Wait… visions… you're getting visions?"
They all turned, Kaydence was out of the carriage and glaring at her sister. "You're not really getting visions tell the truth…"
Brooke blinked her eyes opened her mouth and then narrowed them.
"Wait a second… why did you say it like that?"
Kaydence went a shade paler and took a step closer to Folken as if she planned to use him shield her.
"You… can't get visions can you?" Brooke asked and Kaydence went red. "Can you!"
"That's what this is about," Brooke continued. "That's why you're mad. Because, just like when we were little, I'm better than you! And I'm not even trying!"
Kaydence actually let out a growl. "That it. It's true, you're here to steal my divine destiny! Admit it!"
"I have no idea what you're talking about!" Brooke hollered. "You… you… nutcase!"
Kaydence took half a step forward but Brooke wasn't having it. "You wanna go? Is that it?" she asked. "I used to beat you up when we were little, I bet you anything I can still do it!"
When Kaydence froze in spot, Brooke's glare darkened. "As far as I'm concerned, you're dead to me. To you hear me Kaydence Brillian. You left me alone, on that world, without our parents, thinking everyone, including you died, and you have the nerve to be mad at me cause I've got some stupid powers?" Brooke was getting weepy, Van almost wanted to put a hand out to console her but he also figured that in this state she'd probably hit him.
"I don't want these stupid powers. I don't want your stupid divine destiny. I want my parents back. I want my sisters back. I wanted you back. And you don't even care that I'm here!" she shouted. She balled a fist and then brought it to her eyes to wipe the angry tears away. "So if this is how you want to be Kay-dee, then fine. FINE! Go a head. Take your stupid divine destiny and your stupid powers. You can have them. I don't want them and I don't want you."
For a long while Kaydence just stared at her, her eyes wide probably horrified. To Van's surprise a tear actually slipped down her cheek.
Folken had to put a hand out to her to keep her from going to her sister to hug her. So Van did it. Scooped Brooke up into his arms and just held her to him. He knew how she felt, he knew what it felt like to lie awake at night and just want one's family back.
And those two, their siblings, had no idea. They were selfish, they were the reason Van and Brooke had suffered. They deserved one another.
Even Merle put a hand out to Brooke to soothe her quaking shoulders. "It's okay Brooke, we don't want you either."
Brooke pulled her head out of Van's chest and glared at her. She then turned the look onto Van. "Do you see what I… Van! Say something!"
Van turned to Merle. "What did I say?"
"To be nice."
"So be nice."
"See," Brooke said sticking her tongue out at her. "Be nice."
There was a clamour of boots on the cobblestones and then they were all surrounded by guards bearing the Astoria colors.
"Van Fanel of Fanelia, King Aston of Asturia has requested your presence."
"By sending an army to come get him?" Brooke asked, clearly not impressed by this. "That's awfully suspicious… and rude!"
Van left Brooke to argue with the guards. He didn't actually leave her, he just turned around to watch as Folken handed Brooke's twin up into the carriage and then drive away.
He turned back to the burgeoning argument noting that the leader of the troop had a hand on his sword. Yeah Van was going to have to put a stop to this.
"It's fine. I'm coming," he said.
Van took one step, with Brooke on his arm and the girl went down, almost talking him down with her. The guard stared at her and her wheeled boots while Brooke sat up and said: "Let me put my shoes back on."
Van almost palmed his forehead. Damn she embarrassed him sometimes.
Van and Brooke along with Merle were taken back to the Castle, but not into the castle. Instead they were taken to an arena. Not an arena of sorts, a straight up arena, like the coliseum but not ruins.
There Van was taken away and Brooke and Merle were reunited with Millerna and Allen. Brooke's bad feeling still lingered. She wanted to believe that it was just the vision repeating badly on her, like bad heart burn or something, but she knew it wasn't that. Van was clearly still in danger.
They were taken into the empty arena where the kig was sitting in the high box reserved for royal occupants while they were more by a servant's entrance. She could have gone to sit down but she refused to. Without Van there to cling to Merle had grabbed onto Brooke in her worry, and Brooke was determined to stand in between Millerna and Allen, lest Millerna decided to cling to Allen in her imaginary worry.
"Allen, what's going on?" Brooke hissed for the millionth time and once again the man ignored her and instead winced.
Right so he knew what was happening and he was nervous about it. That did not bode well. Brooke almost probed further but King Aston spoke to Van in a loud and commanding voice. It might have been more remarkable if he had to be heard over the din of a million screaming patrons, but as the arena was empty Brooke was hardly impressed
"Welcome King of Fanelia. My country welcomes you with joy in it's heart. And as proof of our friendship, I would like to put to the test your skill and the power of your Guymelef, Escaflowne."
"How the hell is Van fighting someone proof of friendship?" Brooke hissed to Allen. "This seems an awful lot like this guy is saying beat up this guy for me and then we'll be friends."
Allen sighed, Brooke may have been able to get away with being disrespectful to Van but King Aston would not allow that to happen.
"It's not like that," Millerna said. Because of course she would, it was her dad being a dumbass, she had to defend him. "Everything's perfectly okay. Don't worry Allen. I'm sure that father knows what he's doing."
"Bitch, Allen didn't say shit, I did," Brooke snapped. "If you're going to address my concerns at least show me the common courtesy of directing it to me, not your stupid boyfriend."
Allen put a hand out to Brooke to stop her from saying anything else. "I know you're prone to violent hysterics, but if you could please just calm down. You creating a scene will not help Van in this situation."
"You take that hand off of me or you won't get a scene you'll get a whole goddamn play."
Allen moved his hand immediately.
"Really Allen, with that mouth you'd think she was a common dock maid, and even they are better behaved. What does the king of Fanelia see in her?"
Allen turned a pained look first from Millerna to Brooke, both of which were staring at him waiting for his answer. And there was no right answer to this one. Luckily he was given a distraction.
Across from Van a door had opened revealing a guymelef with a long chain that ended in a massive metal point.
"Hey! That's Sajima's guymelef. He's no knight. He's nothing but a bounty hunter who fights for money!"
Brooke turned hot and angry eyes onto Millerna daring her to say something. Let's see her protect her father now.
And then two more doors opened revealing two more guymelefs with equally as cruel looking weapons.
Yeah. Proof of friendship huh? More like prove your worth.