Return to My Heart (con't)
Keetra: O.O Wow! I got so many responses to my second chapter! And so much useful advice! Thank you all so very very much! I lost inspiration for this story and now got a little inspiration from watching the series again, especially the flashbacks scenes. I couldn't get Hitomi's question of "So, what games did you and Folken play when you were a kid, Van?" out of my head. So I decided to put them on paper and that mean also continuing this story. So ya'll got lucky! However, since I have so very little time nowadays, it will not be as long as I had originally planned. No more than five chapter is what I predict, and they will almost definitely take me a while to finish since I have no internet right now and have to go elsewhere for it. Anyways, on with the story!
Chapter Three : Flashbacks and Discoveries
'I think… I'm in your mind.'
Hitomi was shocked by this that she could not move or say anything. It was only when her lungs began to burn that she realized she was not breathing.
'B-But how is that possible!' Hitomi asked him, still trying to grasp the idea of it.
'Draconian told me as we were leaving,'Van explained, 'that if I was returned to my own body, I would only return to that place. After that I was here, seeing through your eyes. I saw myself lying on the bed. I heard your voice, and only you could hear mine. What's going on ?'
'I don't know…'Hitomi gasps as Merle's face is once again an inch away from her own. " Gah! " Hitomi tips backwards in reaction and starts to fall backwards off the bed. Her next reaction was to grab onto something to keep from falling. Her blunder was that this "something" happened to be Merle's tail, which caused a high-pitched squall from Merle and for both of them to fly off the bed, Merle, running to a corner and sulking over having her tail pulled.
The door slid slowly open behind them at that moment, drawing Hitomi and Merle's attention to the unexpected movement. A man entered through the doorway. His narrow shoulders were slouched and his head was bent in shame, causing his chestnut brown hair to fall in front of his eyes, which they came barely below in length. He wore a thin, white jacket over a cerulean blue, collared shirt. The jacket had a small pair of outstretched hands on the left shoulder and is slightly wrinkled, as was the untucked blue shirt. His pants were the same blue as the shirt and in the same wrinkled state, the bottoms of which half-covered his black shoes.
He stopped just after entering and looked up, his green eyes wide in surprise at what he had walked in upon.
"Ah, excuse me! I'm very sorry, I had no idea anyone was... I'll wait outside," he stutters as he turns back to the door.
"It's alright. I was just about to leave," Hitomi said, halting his exit as she struggled to her feet. She gave one last glance at Van's body, sorrow and worry coursed through her heart.
'I'm still here. I'm not leaving you,' Van's voice whispered softly in her mind.
'I know, It's just not the same, though,' she replied as she leaned down and kissed him softly.
The stillness of his lips upon hers emphasized her words and caused withheld tears to course down her face. She broke the kiss and trailed her hand along his cheek. This turned out to be a mistake since she then could not take her hand away from his soft skin.
"You must be Hitomi," the man's voice snapped her out of the trance and she met the newcomer's gaze.
"Hai. Kanzaki, Hitomi," she replied, wondering who in Fanelia did not know her face. She stood up and faced him.
"I figured as much. No one else would show such open affection to Fanelia's king." Those words brought a deep crimson color to Hitomi's cheeks. The man let out a chuckle upon seeing this. "It's nothing to be embarrassed about. Oh, I must introduce myself." he walked forward and shook her hand gently. "I am Edwin Alrese, a doctor from Palas." His gaze fell sadly upon Van's body. "I'm one of many who were asked so long ago to find a cure for the King." He released her hand and then laid that hand he shook with across the said king's forehead. "Good, his fever's dropped a bit." He opened the black bag in his left hand that had not been previously noticed. "Excuse me. I need to check his vitals." He removed a stethoscope and, after placing the listening ends to his ears, placed the remaining end under the blankets onto Van's chest. He listened for a minute before putting it back in the bag with a relieved sigh.
"Thank goodness," he commented under his breath as he reached for another instrument. Hitomi heard it.
"For what?" she asked him, a bit worried again.
"The King hasn't stopped wheezing since before he got sick. Now his breathing is back to normal. This is such a relief." He turned his head towards her and she could see tears at the edge of his eyes. "Ever since I got here, people have said 'Hitomi is going to come, then the King will be alright.' I got so tired of hearing of this miracle worker that nobody knew how to find." He bowed his head deeply towards her. "Please forgive me. I was wrong to think such rudeness. You have done what I could not do for months. You truly work miracles."
For a moment, Hitomi felt the urge to tell him she wasn't, that she didn't have that power. However, when she saw the relief of stress on the man's face and the sparkle of hope that was missing in Fanelia, she couldn't say a thing. She couldn't find a reason to say the words to make that disappear. All she could do was lay a hand on his shoulder, give it a small squeeze, then turn and walk out the door, not saying a single word, leaving Merle and Edwin behind her.
Outside the room, a girl in her early teens was sitting against the wall, dressed in a simple brown dress. She looked up as Hitomi walked out and the she quickly got to her feet, twirling her brown curls of hair nervously.
"Lady Hitomi," she said, still nervous, as she bowed. "I am to show you to your room unless you wish to see your friends."
Hitomi smiled at her, and then started to ask the girl to take her to see her friends,
'Talk to them tomorrow.'Van's voice said forcefully in her mind.
'Why? I want to talk to them and tell them what's happened! Don't you want them to know you're alright?' She countered.
'It can wait. You're tired, Hitomi. You need to sleep.' Van replied, her argument seeming to fall on deaf ears.
She was about to argue when the truth hit her like a wave on the shore. It curled over and crashed upon her mind, wiping out all words of argument. It rolled upon the shore of her body, coursing through the rivers of blood to very tips of her toes, causing her knees to fail in exhaustion.
"Lady Hitomi!" the girl ran forward and supported Hitomi by the shoulders. "Are you sick, Lady Hitomi? Should I get the Doctor?"
"No, I'm alright." Hitomi assured her as she gained her balance once more. "I just realized how tired I was. So much happened today."
The girl nodded, then slowly released Hitomi. "I'll show you your room then, Lady Hitomi." She then began to walk down the hall. Hitomi followed her, though slightly annoyed.
'How did you know?,'she asked Van, a little ticked.
'In truth, I guessed. I also know that a lot has happened to both of us today. You tend to be tired after an intense vision like that. But you never admit it.' Hitomi could picture the smirk on his face while saying those words.
'More has happened than you know...' she thought absently.
'What do you mean?'
Hitomi started to answer but the servant girl had turned left at the corner and stopped next to the first door to the left. The girl stood to the right of the door, faced Hitomi and bowed.
"Your room, Lady Hitomi. I was told to give you the closest room to Van-sama." she looked at the door with a sad expression. "It's a relief to have this room used once again. It has not been used since..." The girl went suddenly quiet.
'Since mother disappeared,' Van's voice finished the sentence for Hitomi to hear. His voice was monotone and really speaking to no one.
Hitomi's arm reached out of its own accord and slid open the door. Hitomi, realizing Van must have taken over, relinquished control to him and to his memories. He had her step into the room and images began to play in her mind as Van remembered happenings in this room.
Vision
"Mother! Mother, look what Folken gave me!" a small version of Van passed them to the right and ran to the bed in the far right corner where Van's mother, Lady Varie, sat on the bed, reading intently. She looked up as her son stopped beside the bed, a carved land dragon held towards her in his outstretched hands.
"It's beautiful, Van," his mother responded with a smile. "Make sure you take good care of it."
The scene shifted to a scene showing a young Folken standing in the far left corner, his hands above his head with curled, spread fingers. His face was contorted in a nasty snarl and he let out a roar towards the tiny figure in front of him. The figure's face was hidden behind a plastic knight's helmet and it carried a wooden sword, the point of which was pointed towards Folken. The figure stood before Lady Varie, protecting her from the "monster."
"Roar!" Folken challenged the small figure. "Out of my way, runt! You think you can defeat me? I have beaten far more fearsome warriors than you!"
"You can't defeat me!" Van's muffled voice challenged the "monster" from under the helmet. "I'm Van from Fanelia! We are strong warriors protected by dragons!"
"Hah! That is a myth told to scare weaker monsters away. But I am strong! I don't believe in child's tales."
"Go, Great Dragon!" the younger Van raised the hand not holding the sword to reveal the figurine from the previous vision. "Protect the Queen of Fanelia!"
Van had the dragon swoop down from the air and slam into Folken several times. Folken pretended to be injured before falling to the floor.
"No! You are too strong." Then Folken lay still in pretend death.
"My hero. You have saved your queen! How can I ever thank you?" Lady Varie reached forward and embraced Van, which knocked off his helmet. She tickled her son and he doubled over in uncontrollable laughter. Then Folken joined in and a large tickle fight ensued.
Loud voices were then heard in the hall and the door was thrown open by a male servant Hitomi didn't recognize.
"My Lady, you must come quick! Lord Gao has returned from his trip and is gravely ill!" His words were rushed in urgency and shock.
The smiles died from everyone's face as Lady Varie leaped to her feet and ran out the door. Van looked towards his brother, unsure of what to do. Folken's own shock had rooted him to the spot he stood. He dropped to his knees and took Van in a tight embrace as sad tears streamed from his eyes, for Van was the only one Folken would let see him cry.
The vision jumped again to see Van, same age as the last vision, sitting in his mother's lap in the chair next to the window. They were both crying.
"Mother, Folken's coming back, right? He's going to be alright. He'll fight the dragon then he's coming back." Van asked, looking up at her with hope in his eyes.
"Yes, Van. Folken will be back. He'll come back, but he will have other things more important to worry about when he does. And he will not be the same." Lady Varie hugged her son tightly, tears coursing down her cheeks.
"Mother, what do you mean. I don't understand mother!" Van began to sob loudly, repeating over and over how he didn't understand.
Hitomi understood. She knew that Folken's mother now knew what would happen to her son, and knew there was nothing she could do to change it.
"Why? Why are you leaving mother? I don't want you to go!" Van pleaded with his mother, keeping her from leaving the room as her tangled around her leg.
"Gomen nasai, Van. There's something I have to find in the forest. I must know what has happened to Folken." His mother answered in great sadness.
"Then let me go with you! I don't want to be here alone!" Van broke into tears. He sat on the floor and wept, his hands releasing his mother's leg to wipe his tears.
His mother knelt next to him and gently grasped his shoulders.
"You must be strong, Van. Stronger than Folken. Stronger than your father. Soon, you will be of age to take the test to become King. Fanelia's future, and Gaea's future, will be up to you. "
She released his shoulders and walked past Hitomi without acknowledging her, then paused. She looked back into the room to the window where the Mystic Moon shown, covering most of the small space.
"It shines brightly tonight. Look at it, Van. So much lies on the abandoned world. I hope there will be no need to awaken the power connecting the two worlds." With that hanging in the air, she turned and left, leaving Van staring at the window, not noticing her absence.
"Mother?" he asked as he looked to where she had been a second ago. "No! Mother!" He burst into a fit of tears. "I'm not strong! I'm not! Mother!"
"Mother knew all along," Van's voice came nor from her head, but right beside her. She turned in surprise and saw that the present day Van stood right next to her with tear trails down his cheeks.
"Van," Hitomi tried to say words of comfort, but nothing came to mind that she could say that he would hear.
"Lady Hitomi?" the voice of the servant girl cut off the vision and returned her to the present day. The room's layout was the same as it was then, as if it was still lived in. Hitomi realized then that the room was occupied. It was filled with the pain and sadness left by the Lady Varie, but also with the happy memories that were able to come before the pain and sorrow. Hitomi knew her intrusion upon that would not be welcomed.
"I can't stay here." Hitomi decided aloud, startling the girl.
"Wha- Why not?" the girl stuttered, her nervousness clear upon her face.
"This room has many memories. Sad memories. I can see them; they're so painful. It would be wrong for me to stay where such memories reside."
The girl saw the truth in this and nodded.
"I'll show you to the next room then?" she asked, seeking assurance.
"Hai, those memories need time to rest." Hitomi turned slowly and left silently as she closed the door behind her.
They walked further down the hall in complete silence. Hitomi nearly shrieked at the sound of a giggle from the servant.
"What? Did I do something funny?" Hitomi asked her, willing her own heart to calm itself.
"Iie. I remembered what the next room is." The girl turned and walked backwards, not missing a step and kept her same pace. She smiled broadly at Hitomi. "Van-sama would be happy if he knew."
'Indeed I am.' Van commented.
'What room is it?' Hitomi asked, her curiosity peaked.
'You'll figure it out.' He replied cryptically, not helping much.
They came to the door to the next room, which was on the left this time and revealed no secrets as to who its owner was. Hitomi reached forward and opened the door.
She entered into a room surrounded by dark greens and many shades of brown. The walls around her were painted a very dark shade of green and the one dresser against the wall kept its natural wood color with a dark brown stain finish. The large bed frame was made of wood s well and painted with a lighter stain of brown. It had dark green sheets that were the same shade as the walls. The wooden headboard had the Fanel family's royal seal engraved upon it. Hitomi gasped upon seeing a familiar dragon figurine upon the nightstand next to the bed. She hurried over and picked it up in her hands, believing it to be an illusion. It wasn't, and if it was, it was a sad one indeed. The paint covering it was uneven, there were burn marks on the wood and one of the front claws had been burned off.
"This dragon was Van's, so was this room." She spoke it aloud, still unsure if she was dreaming.
The servant girl gave a bright smile.
"Yes it was. When I was young, conflict arose with Zaibach. Everyone was given assignments on what to do should we have need to evacuate. Van-sama and I often played together then and he asked me to save his dragon because it was his most precious gift from his brother. I promised him that I would." The girl blushed a little at this. "That was a while ago, so I slowly forgot about it. Then Zaibach did attack and Fanelia burned…" she gave a slight shiver then regained her composure. "Van-sama's room happened to be along the route to the secret escape passageway in this area. I saw smoke in the room and suddenly remembered my promise." She walked over and touched the dragon gently. "It was on fire when I rescued it. I managed to put out the flames but it's still damaged." She closed her eyes, the struggle to avoid crying was evident upon her face. "Gomen, Van-sama!"
'Chelsea…' Van said softly, almost laughing. 'Don't you remember? I was so happy when I got it back after I thought it was lost. I had loved it so much, and Folken had just died and Hitomi had left. I was so happy that I didn't care.'
Hitomi gently put the dragon back on the nightstand and gave Chelsea a tight, reassuring hug.
"Why are you sad? You were able to give Van back something he thought he'd never see again. You're a hero, Chelsea. It was the only possession to survive, and that's because of you. So be happy, okay?"
Chelsea looked up, smiled then nodded. "Hai. Arigatou, Lady Hitomi." Chelsea bowed to Hitomi. "I will leave you to sleep now. If you shall need me…" she walked over to the right of the bed and pointed out a small crest of Fanel set into the wall, "you only need to turn this crest. It will signal my quarters. Goodnight, Lady Hitomi." She bowed again.
"Goodnight, Chelsea." Hitomi replied. She waited until Chelsea left the room before she collapsed sideways on the bed. She let out a deep sigh. "So tired…"
Van let out a soft chuckle at her sudden change in energy. 'Sleep well, Hitomi.'
"G'ni…" she fell asleep before she could finish.
Next Morning
Hitomi woke to someone gently, but determinedly, shaking her shoulder.
"Lady Hitomi, it is morning, you must wake. Oh, please wake up!" Chelsea's voice was now audible, a tone of urgency was heard as well.
"I'm awake, Chelsea. What's wrong?" Hitomi asked, hoping nothing had happened so quickly.
"There is a meeting of the Royal Council in almost an hour! I must have you ready." Chelsea explained.
Hitomi opened her eyes to see Chelsea pulling some clothes out of a closet blended well into the far wall, escaping immediate notice. To her surprise, Chelsea pulled out tomboyish-type clothes that looked like they would fit her. They were a pair of khaki style pants with a black belt and a green short-sleeve shirt.
"We'll have to buy you more appropriate attire later if you wish. This will do for now," Chelsea stated, walking back to Hitomi
"There are no dresses that would fit?" Hitomi asked, slightly bewildered at this thought.
"Yes, however, a dress would make wearing this considerably more difficult."
From under the clothes, Chelsea revealed a very well-known object. Encased in its usual blue sheath, Fanelia's royal sword gleamed like a newly polished jewel, looking to the world like it was not witness to the hardship of past years. Hitomi could only stare at it until realization dawned upon her.
"You want me to wear this?" she asked.
"Yes, because Lord Van wishes it." Chelsea said, bowing slightly.
"Van does?" Hitomi asked, hoping Van would answer as well. She knew he was there, for she could feel his presence still in the back of her mind. However, he stayed silent.
"Last night," Chelsea explained, "The summon bell for this room rang in my quarters."
"I didn't ring it!"
Chelsea seemed unsurprised by this remark.
"I ran to the room as fat as a could to answer," Chelsea continued without stopping, "when I arrived, you said you had something you needed to tell me. You told you were Lord Van, rescued by Lady Hitomi. To prove this, you recited to me things only Lord Van and I shared, that he would not share with any other soul. You told me that when you awoke, you would be Lady Hitomi and that I was to entrust to you the royal sword. That you thought Lady Hitomi would need it. So, as ordered, I offer to you the sword of the King of Fanelia. Do you accept the guardianship, Lady Hitomi?"
'Van?' Hitomi said, knowing he knew what she wanted to know.
'Take it Hitomi. Someone has to.' He replied in his usual gruff manner that Hitomi had learned to recognize as an embarrassed Van.
Hitomi nodded and took the sword from Chelsea.
"Oh, now you're going to be late! Sir Allen made it clear how important it was for you to be on time! Hurry, mistress!"
Hitomi hurriedly dressed, though Chelsea had to help her with the sword since she didn't know haw to wear it right. As soon as it was strapped on and Hitomi put on the sandals Chelsea gave her (which were slightly big since Chelsea had to guess the size) Chelsea grabbed Hitomi's hand and pulled her at a running pace through hall after hall until they came to a large set of doors. The guards at the door raised a curious eyebrow at the two out-of-breath girls before them.
"This is Lady Hitomi," Chelsea gasped out, "She was invited to attend the meeting."
"Sorry I'm late." Hitomi said, a little more in control of her breathing since she was a runner.
The guards looked questioningly at Hitomi's attire, then one of them seemed to recognize Hitomi and nodded to the other. They grasped the doors and opened them inwards. Inside, seated around a large table were 4 men Hitomi had not met before, Captain Benji (whom she could only WISH she'd never met), Allen, Prince Chid, Princess Millerna, and Dryden. Four of the group looked at Hitomi with a smile, the other five looked less than pleased to see her.
"Hitomi!" Millerna exclaimed in excitement as she got up and crossed the room to embrace her friend. Millerna stepped back with a smile. "Still dressing as a handmaiden, I see. And what's this?" Millerna asked noticing the sword. "Hitomi, that's-" Millerna stopped.
"Hitomi, why are you carrying Van's sword?"
Allen's question caused everyone who had not noticed the sword to look at it in surprise. Hitomi looked down at the sword, unable to return the glares of the four official-looking men she did not know.
"He wanted me to carry it. Van told me to." Hitomi said, still not looking up, but she caught the gasps of surprise in the room.
"Young lady," One of the men she didn't know spoke up. He was elderly, his hair almost gone; what was left was now a silvery gray color. Hitomi met his gaze as he continued, "are you trying to tell us you have spoken recently to Lord Van?"
Hitomi seemed unsure of what to say.
'Just tell them you hear me.' Van advised.
'Easy for you to say. You're not the one they think is crazy for saying such things. That and they don't seem to like me already.'
'Then it won't change anything. Would you rather explain that I'm now in your mind?' Van asked.
'Not really.' Hitomi gave in. "I've been able to talk to Van since I came here. He doesn't know what's happening, but he wants me to help him make it right. He entrusted me with his sword as a symbol of that." Hitomi told the others.
"Impossible," One of the other men commented.
"I wouldn't doubt the notion so quickly, Corbin," another admonished the doubter. This one had gray hair as well, but his face was the kindest of the four that Hitomi faced. "Lord Van spoke highly of this woman's talents and five at this table have experienced this power first hand, and relied on it as well for valuable information." The man offered Hitomi a brief smile, as if trying to encourage her, "I also do not doubt, young lady, that Lord Van would entrust you to help him. He put more trust in you than in most of his advisors after you had returned to the Mystic Moon."
Hitomi allowed a smile of gratitude at his defense of her. Though Corbin, the one who had spoken up, did not seem appeased, he did not speak up again for the moment.
"If these details are quite through bickering about, Garret" the last unknown face commented. He seemed younger than the others, his hair only slightly gray. "Can we continue the meeting that was scheduled."
"Ah, yes, of course," Garret, the kind one, replied. "there is much to discuss. Please take a seat, Miss Hitomi." He gestured to the open seat next to Millerna at the end, across from himself.
Hitomi took the seat and everyone else returned to theirs.
"Now, as I was saying, and as a review for the new arrival, Lord Van's condition is grave. With the loss of all doctors of Fanelia in the battle against Zaibach years ago, our great allies have volunteered individuals to train new doctors. When the health of our King reached beyond the capabilities of those they trained, we sought their help once more, and it was willingly given with some of the best doctors I have encountered. All this time we have held to the hope that one doctor would find an answer to help our King. Our hope has not been in vain. Doctor Edwin Alrese, a visiting doctor from our allies in Palas has asked us to call this meeting so that he may announce his findings." Garrett turned to the guards at the door. "Let him in."
One of the guards nodded and opened the door, motioning to an unseen figure on the other side. The doctor Hitomi had seen before walked in and stood at the end of the table, resting a rather thick folder upon it.
"Good rulers and representatives of Fanelia and her allies, I thank you for holding this meeting on such short notice," Edwin spoke respectfully with a slight bow.
"Nonsense, doctor." Garret replied, "We all wish to know your findings and, hopefully, your cure for our King."
"Thank you. As you may be aware, I was a volunteer doctor sent by Palas in the hopes of doing just that. I admit, the illness the Lord Van suffers from was beyond anything I had experienced or heard of in my studies. However, in reviewing the medical documents that were rescued from Fanelia's original palace, I believe I have found what ails the King."
"And what would that be, doctor?" Corbin asked, his voice sounding impatient and bored, as if better and more important things awaited him.
"I found other instances of this illness in the history of some of the past Kings of Fanelia. More specifically, those Kings who had bonded with the Guymelef, Escaflowne," Edwin announced.
"We know of this, doctor," Allen pointed out. "I personally went to Escaflowne's resting place and looked it over. There has been no damage to Escaflowne's exterior."
"It is not what is on the outside that concerns me, Sir Allen. It is the inside. The very makings which allows Escaflowne to function."
"What?" Allen asked, shocked.
"Allow me to explain," Edwin continued. "As I mentioned, the only other occurrences of the illness Lord Van suffers was from past Fanelian Kings that had bonded with Escaflowne during a time of need. More precise, they had bonded and lived through the experience. In each instance, the bonded King died within ten years after the end of the conflict, all with similar symptoms and all with the same end result." Edwin paused, letting this information be thought over in the minds of his audience before stating this next fact: "The most recent of which, was Lord Van's own father."
"Impossible!" Corbin spoke out again. "Lord Gao died of internal injuries that he failed to report and receive proper treatment for! His negligence led to an illness beyond treatment."
"Indeed, that was the cause of death reported by the doctors. Curiously enough, the other Kings of Fanelia in similar circumstances all received similar statements concerning their cause of death. All of the doctors concluded that internal injuries sustained in battle led to a contaminant finding its way into the blood stream, killing the unfortunate King." Edwin held a stack of papers up as he spoke, passing them around so that they could look. Hitomi noticed that Corbin barely glanced at the papers before passing them along. When they reached Hitomi, she looked through them. They were medical documents of past kings, and all held the same conclusion as the cause of death: 'Internal injuries causing blood contamination.'
"The conclusion is not farfetched, doctor." Dryden spoke up. "Those of us who fought with Fanelia's king saw him take many injuries during battle when Escaflowne took a blow." He bowed his head slightly, remembering, as the others who'd experienced it were, the painful time when this truth had almost meant the death of Van.
"Indeed, sir. With this in mind, it seems unlikely that the King would not take extra care of his Guymelef, knowing quite well the consequences." Edwin explained.
Hitomi nodded her agreement, remembering the utmost care that Van treated Escaflowne, letting not even a small scratch go unmended.
"Are you suggesting the Kings purposefully left damage to Escaflowne in order to commit suicide?" One of the unknown men spoke up, his voice betraying his anger.
"No, sir. As I said before, I believe the cause is internal. Something so simple, it is hardly thought of." Edwin stated.
"What is it then, doctor?" Millerna asked him, clenching Hitomi's hand within her own, both asking for and giving support.
Edwin took a deep breath, bracing himself.
"As with all Guymelefs, Escaflowne operates from an energist power source. However, being the only Ispano Guymelef, it remain the only one that requires a non-fossilized energist from a recently killed dragon."
"Yes, doctor," Garrett said slowly, "it is this right that the heir to the throne must conquer before becoming Fanelia's King."
Edwin only nodded to this statement.
"To awaken Escaflowne, the King must be bound to it by blood, his own blood. It is this blood connection that allows the King to connect with the dragon Guymelef. While used as energy, the energist plays the role of the dragon's heart, beating with the blood of the King. However, when no longer needed, the energist is removed, though the bond still remains. With no purpose for its energy, the energist would shut down and fossilize, becoming something is was not originally. Another way to describe this, is to say that the drag-energist, the representation of both Escaflowne's and his pilot's heart, becomes contaminated."
Around the entire table, no one was able to come up with words to speak.
End Chapter Three
Keetra: And I leave another cliffhanger….. yeah I'm mean like that. But at least now I have a little more time to write. I just wanted to get this much posted before I ran out of time again and this seemed the best spot since the chapter was getting long. Over a year to update…. That's bad even for me. I'm gonna work as fast as I can on the next chapter. There's a few details I still need to tweak a bit in my imagination. Alright, inspiration, don't let me down! -sigh- Well, I'll post this and hope for the best. Don't forget to review! I was so happy at the amount of reviews form the last chapter that I almost cried! And yes, I know I changed tenses in this chapter compared to the other two. I've had too many people off the internet complaining to me that the present tense writing threw them off, so I been trying to write more past tense. Tell me which you prefer! (Though, a lot of the time this means I write a scene as fast as I can which means present tense them I go through and switch the tenses. Sorry if I missed any! I know that can be confusing too…) Ja ne!