Van woke to find himself beneath wreckage from the ship. He could see a shaft of light shining between beams of splintered wood. He must have ended up below deck in the crash. He could hear shouts from beyond the rubble. He slowly tried to lift himself, testing his limbs to check for broken bones. He seemed to be in one piece, aside from a few scrapes and bruises. As he lifted himself out from under the broken wood, he felt a shooting pain in his side. There was a deep gash, but it didn't seem to be bleeding heavily. He could worry about that later. There was no one else visible from where he was. At the moment he only had one objective, find Hitomi. She had been on deck when they reached the wall. She may also have fallen below deck. She could be injured, or… Van pushed the awful thought out of his head. He had to find her quickly.

It took all the strength he had to push the beams aside and climb out. The pain in his side worsened as he climbed. He reached an opening and climbed up out of the hull of the ship. He found himself standing on the side of the ship. As it turned and rammed the wall, the ship had fallen to its side, and it was the deck that was now resting against the walls of Palas. What was left of the crew was climbing from the rubble just as he had done. He spotted Sir Evelyn standing away from the ship, speaking to a guard from the palace. There were other's helping move pieces of the ship and helping survivors out of the wreckage. He couldn't see Hitomi among them.

Van vaulted over the side of the ship and slid down to the ground and ran. " Sir Evelyn, Have you seen Hitomi? Is she among the rescued?"

Daniel turned from his conversation with the guard.

"We haven't yet found her. The guards have been clearing the debris. You were their top priority. Now that you have been accounted for, we can turn their attention to the Lady Hitomi."

"I will search as well." Van turned and rushed back to the destroyed Zephyr. He could hear Daniel shouting something after him, but he couldn't make out what it was, and he didn't care. Hitomi was there somewhere, possibly injured, and he had to find her. All he had wanted to do was keep her safe! He shouldn't have brought her along. She would have been safer in Fanelia. He trusted Merle to be safe in Fanelia, why couldn't he have left Hitomi. He knew the reason without having to think it. As much as he wanted her safe, now that she was back, he wanted her to be with him. More than anything he wanted her to be at his side. But she would never be safe at his side. Why couldn't she have stayed in her own world!

Van threw rubble aside as he search through the hull. The pain in his abdomen made it difficult to maneuver, but he couldn't stop. It was difficult to navigate inside the upturned ship. As Van crawled through an opening, he realized he was in one of the guest rooms in the hull of the ship. It's door was above him and all of the furniture and belongings had fallen to the other end of the room. He reached up and pulled himself up through the door into the hallway. The room across the hall was blocked by the bed having fallen across the room. Van traversed the hallway, jumping over the open doors as he continued.

"Hitomi! If you can hear me, answer." He called for Hitomi as he searched, hoping perhaps she was conscious and merely trapped. Images of her unconscious form drifted through his mind, each one in a worse state than the last. Van was becoming frantic. He had made it through most of the ship and there was no sign of her. He was almost at the other end of the ship when he heard a noise behind him.

"It's a good thing I caught up to you." Said Daniel. "You left a nice trail for me to follow."

Van looked behind him where Daniel pointed. There was blood all along the path Van had travelled. He looked down at the gash in his side.

"I tried to stop you before you made it into the ship, but you couldn't hear me. You are losing too much blood, you need to get to the palace. The guards will find Hitomi. I will stay and search as well." Daniel reached out for Van's arm.

"No! I can't go until I find her, she's here. It's my fault she's here." Van was becoming dizzy. He began to lose the strength in his legs, but Daniel caught his arm in time.

"You will be no use here, let me take you to the guards."

"No… not yet… find her…"

Daniel began leading Van out of the wreckage. As they passed the last room in the Zephyr, Van caught a glimpse of what looked like a hand. "Hitomi…" He ripped his arm from Daniel's hold and dropped himself into the room below them.

Hitomi lay unconscious on top of a fallen dresser. She didn't appear to be badly injured, but Van hadn't thought he was either at first. He rushed to her side and began checking her limbs for injuries. Satisfied that nothing was broken, Van lifted her into his arms. "Daniel! I need help!"

Daniel's face appeared in the doorway above Van.

"Help me lift her through the door, I can't carry her and climb out."

Van lifted Hitomi to the door, and Daniel pulled her through. Van lifted himself through. Daniel was holding Hitomi in his arms when Van made it into the hall. "I will take her." He told Daniel.

"You can barely stand yourself, my Lord. I believe it would be best if I carry her."

"I will take her." Van said, more forcefully this time. He approached Daniel and lifted Hitomi from his arms. Her breathing was shallow, but steady. Her face was calm and untroubled. Van held Hitomi tighter to himself. "You will be safe, I promise." He carried her through the rest of the wreckage and out to the Asturian guards. He would not let the guards carry her either, but insisted on taking her to the palace himself. It wasn't until he began to faint and stumble that anyone managed to release her from his hold. Van and Hitomi were both taken directly to the palace.

Hitomi woke to find herself in an empty room. She was in a bed in clean underclothes. The last thing she could remember was being thrown across the deck of the ship and falling through a hole into the lower decks. It was dark outside. Hitomi wondered how long she had been unconscious.

"Hello, is anyone there?" She climbed out of bed to go try the door, but it opened before she reached it. It was an older woman Hitomi did not recognize who entered.

"Back in bed my dear. Millerna would not be happy to find you up and about so soon."

Hitomi followed her orders and climbed back into the bed. "How long was I asleep?"

"Awhile dear. I was just coming to check on you. " The woman tucked the sheets around Hitomi, and fussed over making sure they covered all of her.

"Is everyone alright? Is Lord Van alright?"

"I believe that is a question for The Lady, I will go let her know you are awake." The woman turned and left Hitomi alone again.

It wasn't long before the door opened again, this time admitting Millerna to the room. "Hitomi, it's been so long! I'm so glad you are awake. I was so worried when they brought you in. It's so good to see you!" Millerna knelt beside the bed. She looked older than Hitomi remembered, and more serious.

Hitomi tried to sit up but the covers held her in place. "Millerna,"

"Don't try to move too much. You weren't badly injured in the crash, but we still want to take precautions. You were lucky to fall where you did. I don't think you were thrown far."

"How is everyone else?"

"There were some casualties, beyond those we lost during the fight. The ship's impact crushed those who were on deck at the time. As I say, you were lucky to be thrown below."

Hitomi's thoughts were frantic. Van had been on deck with her, as had Daniel. She felt her chest begin to tighten as her breath came faster and her heart beat quickened.

Millerna could see the anxiety her words had brought to Hitomi. She put her hand out to rest on the covers above Hitomi. "Most of the crew made it through alive, I assure you. Many were injured and are recovering in other rooms, just like you. In fact, Sir Evelyn managed to receive no injuries at all! He was the one to carry you into the palace."

Hitomi felt at least some assurance, but Millerna hadn't yet said anything about Van. Hitomi had the feeling she was avoiding speaking of him. With difficulty, Hitomi managed to ask her question. "And… what about Van?"

Millerna tried to hide the worry in her face, but it was futile.

"What about Van. Millerna...please tell me." Said Hitomi.

"He lives." Millerna's composure broke. The quiver in her lip became a frown, and tears began to well up in her eyes. "He was injured in the crash… A gash in the side. He lost a lot of blood. He probably would have been okay, but.. Oh Hitomi. Sir Evelyn said he wouldn't leave his search for you. Once he found you he insisted on carrying you himself, and the effort became too much. He had to be carried into the palace. I've done all I know how to do. Hitomi, I'm sorry… I don't know what else to do. I don't know if he will make it, and all we can do is wait. I'm sorry, I'm sorry. I'm soo sorry."

Hitomi wrestled her way out of the covers. Millerna was bent over her hands on the bed, quietly sobbing. Images of Van trying to carry her from the wreckage flashed through Hitomi's mind. She saw Millerna bent over Van's bleeding body, trying to stymie the flow of life from his wound. She put her arms around Millerna and held tight. Millerna wrapped her arms around Hitomi and sobbed. Hitomi knew, as close as she felt to Van in some ways, she had not been part of this world for over a year. Millerna, on the other hand, had been in constant diplomatic contact with Van. There was a reason he was the first one she called when the shores of Asturia were attacked. Millerna, Hitomi's constant rival, and close friend in this large world, was hurting because Van had risked his life to save Hitomi's.

Hitomi felt a stab of guilt, but she also felt anger at Van for being so stupid. Someone else would have found her, surely, and someone else could definitely have carried her to the palace. It was obvious that someone had done so after Van had collapsed. Hitomi's insides couldn't decided whether to be angry or sad. She didn't feel like she could cry yet, not with Millerna quietly crying into her shoulder.

"Can I see him?" She asked Millerna quietly.

"He's down the hall. There is a nurse in with him now, and Sir Evelyn. He has been so helpful this whole time! I don't know what I would have done without him." Millerna stood from the side of the bed and helped Hitomi up. The long white underclothes that Hitomi was dressed in were tangled around her legs, making it difficult to extricate herself from the bed. Van was injured, and she had been asleep. How long had she slept? He was unconscious because he had tried to help her. Hitomi's mind was a mess. If Van lived, she would kill him for endangering himself for her.

Hitomi finally freed her feet from the confines of the sheets and her dress. Millerna helped her stand. Their eyes met for a moment, but Hitomi couldn't stand the sadness in Millerna's gaze, it made her feel that there was no hope. "How long has it been?" Hitomi asked.

"The crash was three days ago. Van pulled you from the wreckage almost immediately, and we had both of you up here as soon as we could." Millerna helped Hitomi to the door. Three days! Hitomi's back and left arm were sore, but it wasn't bad enough to keep her in bed. " You seemed to be mostly okay so we focused most of our energy on Van… He had lacerations on his side, as well as a few broken ribs, and he was losing a lot of blood. I'm amazed he was conscious long enough to pull you from the wreckage." Millerna's voice was cracking as she spoke.

Once they were at the door Millerna let Hitomi walk on her own. She lead Hitomi down the hall to a room on the left at the top of the stairs. The room across the hall from it was lavish, with a garish and obvious entry way. Millerna had placed Van's room directly across from hers. She had kept him close. When they reached the doorway, Millerna gave her a nod, and Hitomi turned the handle to enter the room.

Van was laying on a small bed at the other end of the room. He was still unconscious. His face was calm. Hitomi realized it had been a long time since she had seen him look so at peace. It had probably been before she returned to Gaia that she had last seen him so calm. For a moment she had the thought that perhaps she had been causing him strife, but now was not the time to think of such things. He was so pale. If she didn't know he was alive she would have thought he was already a corpse. His skin was thin, and his eyes lay deep in their sockets as he slept.

Hitomi ran to the side of the bed. She grabbed his hand in hers, tears finally welling up in her eyes. "You can't! You're so stupid! You always push yourself too hard, you should have let someone else find me! You should have let Daniel look for me!" Tears ran down her face as she continued. " I didn't come back here for this. I didn't come back here to put you in danger." She pressed her face into the covers beside him. They hadn't even had a chance to properly reconcile. She could hear shallow breaths coming from the body in front of her. She squeezed his hand tightly.

"Van… If I lose you, then everything I've done to come back will have been for nothing… I can't promise you I will be safe, so please don't risk yourself for me. You have to trust me, trust that I will be okay. Please… just wake up."

Hitomi sat in the room with Van for several hours. No one tried to remove her. No one tried to talk to her. She sat holding Van's hand, with her head resting on the bed. She listened to his breath and watched his peaceful face. Sir Evelyn was present most of the time. He left a couple times to attend to who knows what.

Hitomi had not realized she had been there all night until the first rays began to shine through the window. Sweat was beginning to bead on Van's forehead. Millerna entered the room with fresh bandages and salve.

Hitomi sat up when she noticed. "Millerna, he's sweating…"

Millerna approached and dabbed the sweat from his brow. She gently removed the bandage from his side and a horrible stench filled the room. The wound was no longer bleeding, but it had a yellow fluid beginning to crust around the edges.

With tension in her voice Hitomi asked, "That's not good is it…"

"No." Millerna responded. "The wound is mortifying. I've… I've almost never seen a patient come back once it reaches this stage."

Hitomi reached up and put a hand on Van's forehead. He had a high fever. The wound was probably infected, but he was too weak to fight it off. He had been unconscious so there's no way he could have eaten. Hitomi didn't even know if they had been able to get him to drink any water. Of course they probably didn't know about bacteria yet! Of all of the amazing inventions Hitomi had seen in this world, they were developing in a very different way from how earth had. It was entirely possible that their medicine was still young.

"I'm sorry Hitomi, there's nothing else we can do." Millerna said. She was laying a new bandage with salve on the wound. Hitomi could see wet streaks making their way down her face.

Hitomi wondered if they had anything that could act as antibiotics, but she didn't know enough about medicine or first aid. "Millerna, what is in that salve?"

Millerna seemed a little startled by the question. She seemed confused about the look Hitomi was giving her as well, but she answered the question. " I use a base of Azurys oil, infused with lockweed and jourberry. It promotes healing of flesh, and usually keeps morbidity out."

"Do you use any alcohol?"

"Alcohol… but that would be incredibly painful on a wound this deep and might send the body into shock." Millerna was becoming intrigued with Hitomi's questions.

Hitomi was thinking hard. She knew alcohol was used regularly for cleaning injuries back home, She had been taught that in school for track injuries. It didn't seem like Millerna had used a disinfectant for fear of Van dying from the pain. Suddenly Hitomi realized the solution. If her duffle bag had survived, they may yet be able to save Van!

Daniel was still half asleep in the chair in the corner. "Daniel!" Hitomi's shout shocked him awake. Hitomi ran over to his side. " Did they find any belongings in the wreckage? I should have had a pink bag with me in my room. I desperately need it now, Van's life may depend on it."

"They have been working on pulling our resources from the wreckage, I will go find out if they have anything by that description." Daniel pulled himself from the chair and sped from the room.

Hitomi returned to Van's side and took his hand again. "You don't get to slip away that easily Van, I'll bring you back. You saved me, now it's my turn to save you." Millerna watched Hitomi quizzically but she stayed silent.

About a half of an hour later Daniel returned carrying a duffle bag. Hitomi almost squealed with joy as she ran to his side to take it. She threw the bag on the floor, unzipped it, and began rifling through her belongings. She had mostly brought clothes, but she had also brought all the modern comforts she thought might be lacking once she got to Gaia. She threw her toothpaste and shampoo to the side, along with a bottle of painkillers, feminine supplies, a few bars of soap, and extra batteries for her CD player. Finally she pulled out her box of first aid supplies. It had the normal contents, a roll of gause, bandaids, topical analgesic, but she had also thrown in something extra just in case. She grabbed the small orange bottle from the box and unscrewed the top. It still had a few white pills in the bottom. She poured them out on the side table.

"What are those?" Millerna asked. She had stopped crying before Daniel left, but had refrained from asking Hitomi what she was up to. Now she was profoundly curious.

"They are antibiotic pills."

"What? What are they for?"

Hitomi was never exactly sure how they worked herself, but she knew they killed bacteria in the body. She had a feeling that it would take a long time to explain bacteria to Millerna. "They are used to stop fevers and the festering of wounds. In my world they manage to save lives all the time. I don't know how well they will work now, but if there's nothing else we can do it's worth a try right?"

Hitomi counted 8 pills. She was usually told to take two a day when she had them so she instructed Millerna to administer the same. "He has to swallow one in the morning and one at night. I don't know how you've managed to get him to swallow anything, but whatever you do, get him to swallow these. It might be good to crush up a couple and put them in your salve too." Hitomi handed the pills over to Millerna.

"Okay… I will trust your world's medicine. We have nothing else to lose." Millerna took the pills and turned to leave the room. "Hitomi… I hope it works. It would be a miracle."

Hitomi relaxed a little. She turned to looked at Van. "It will be okay now, I can feel it."

By the time Hitomi left Van's side to go freshen up, word of his being on his deathbed had already spread. Spirits were low and there were whispers wondering if he was already gone, or of how long he would be able to hang on. Hitomi paid them no heed. She was at peace now. She had done what she could and she had a strong feeling that Van would be alright. He had a fever, which meant his body was still fighting. If her antibiotics worked, they would give his body the edge it needed in the fight. She was a little happy to be helping him fight again, even though it was a different kind of fight. She did not want war to come back to Gaia, and she did not want to have to fight, but she missed working together with Van the way they had, with Escaflowne. It was weird thinking of Escaflowne now being nothing more than a statue in a shrine. There was nothing better than riding on it's back through the sky with Van. If only they could have just that, without all the rest.

Even if Van lived, Hitomi thought, he was King now. King Van Fanel, of Fanelia. Even if he lived, and she stayed, nothing would ever be the same. They would not fly through the skies of Gaia together. Van was not free to do as he wished. He had to take care of Fanelia, even if there wasn't war. What had she come back for? She just wanted to be part of his world. Maybe just being part of it would be enough. First, he had to live.

Hitomi slept in her own bed that night. Since she hadn't slept the night before, and spent both the night and the day worried about Van, she was exhausted and fell asleep almost as soon as she was in bed.

She awoke early. Light was just beginning to stream through her windows. She could hear birds outside. Her duffle bag had been delivered to her room some time in the night. She dressed quickly and found her way back to Van's room. Millerna was already there applying a new bandage.

"I put the 'pill' in the salve last night just as you said. It already looks better." She held the bandage back slightly so that Hitomi could see. Millerna was right. There was less swelling, and the wound no longer smelled horrid. Millerna lay the bandage down.

Hitomi put her hand against Van's forehead. His fever was already down, though he was still warm. His skin was not so pale, and he looked more asleep than deathly. Hitomi took his hand in hers and held it against her face. She was so happy that tears began to well in her eyes.

Van's hand twitched, then squeezed hers.

"Hitomi…"

Hitomi looked up into Van's open eyes. He was smiling.

"You're alright, you're safe, I'm so happy."

Hitomi smiled at the irony and gripped Van's hand a little tighter. "Yes, I'm saved