sakura angel90- of course i had to leave it there, after all i want to keep you pples comming back

TheElvenHanyou- it dosent matter if they take you alive or dead

Dark Inuyoukai- why thank you

Dragon Star16- yes haveing comp crash does sux mucho grandai

Maya- 'was' ? but anyway thank you

and a thank you to those who had reviewed to the last pg 19 and therefore couldn't review to this one; Dark WolfHawk, mysisterthinksimasquijum, Macky, Fae Rain, xXFoolishXx, and last but diffently not least Pure hope

A/N: by popular demand i am going to try to make my chapters longer, so that means it will be slightly longer between updates (and no you can't have it both ways!) but any how hope u like this!

Chapter 21: Gekidoku

He almost didn't hear what she said over the sound of his own heart, "Van… I know what they were really after." Hearing this his stomach felt like it had done two complete summersaults then landed at his feet. Where they after her? If so what would have happened if he wasn't there to guard her back? Would she now be kidnapped? Or worst yet - - well he didn't even want to think what else might have happen to her. "Van…? You remember that green energest that you gave to me before I left? The one that your mother gave to you in the Mystic Valley?" of course he remembered that, how could he not? He nodded his head to let her know that he remembered. "For some reason I felt that I needed to bring it with me… I had it wrapped in this." She held up the piece of blue felt.

So that was what they were after, but why? Why steal all the energiests? Then it donned on him. Why didn't he see this before? Faneila would be helpless against a 'melef attack, and it would be weeks until the next shipment from the dragon graveyards were due, and that wouldn't even power a quarter of the guymelefs that Faneila had and he had to leave at sunrise.

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It was an hour after sunrise and everyone was still waiting for the king to finish with the emergency preparations and instructions that were to be followed while he was away. He didn't like leaving his country especially when it was so vulnerable.

After searching Hitomi's room they found that the only things that were still in one piece were her training paints and her button down red shirt, and a sleeping bag.

Normally all of the advisors would go on such a journey, but only two were going this time; Kagen and Orden. If Hitomi didn't know better she would have thought that Kagen was Van's twin; they looked that much alike. Thought there was that little something that separated the two, though she couldn't quite place what it was.

Finally Van emerged from the castle and mounted his horse, Demon, and signaled for every one to move out. Hitomi was riding Chikara, because she had promised that she would ride side-saddle through the major cities –which was Faneila City and Palas.

The journey was relatively a quite one, Hitomi made small talk with some of the soldiers, but mostly talked with Chid and Merle; Van stayed mostly to himself. They stopped for a quick lunch then headed out again.

When it was about time to make camp for the night they came across an inn to, which Orden insisted that she take a room in. She insisted that she would be perfectly fine sleeping under the stars like most of the others, and if it was a question of her virtue when having the dozen or so men watching over her would be more then sufficient. Besides Van wasn't sleeping in the inn either. This was the routine for the first three days, until Orden finally gave up on trying to convince her to sleep in the inns that were ideally placed between Faneila City and Palas.

It was the last full day that they would be on the road and they had just finished eating lunch. Hitomi was helping the men clean up camp and re-saddle the horses. It had been a quiet morning, with everyone thinking about the welfare of Faneila, especially Van. He had been quiet the entire trip, and she knew that the best thing for her to do was to give him his space. She had personal experience and knew that if she tried to take his mind off of it she would either get a very clod shoulder or have her head snapped off, though it would most likely be the first of the two. So she just smiled his way from time to time. The men that were apart of the travel party warmed right up to her and embraced her as 'one of the guys' around the campfires…

DANGER!

An arrow came whizzing out from cover of the trees that lined the road on both sides, and struck Van in the back killing him instantly. He never saw it coming. Chaos broke out. Arrows filled the air turning everyone into pin cousins.

"VVVAAAAAAANNNNNNN!" she yelled, and took off at a dead sprint, dropping all of the equipment that she had in her hands.

She saw a glint of something from the corner of her eye as she tackled him in to the bushes.

Everyone jumped into action the moment that she called out, Sora and the other Generals brought the magical barrier up, but only a moment to late the arrow intended for Van had already struck ground. More arrows came only to bounce off of the barrier.

"Hi-Hitomi." Van stuttered, slightly confused to what had just happened. She only smiled back as her breath came in short shallow breaths. Then she collapsed into his arms. "Hitomi! HITOMI!"

"My Lord?" asked a knight who had just arrived at the bush. Van gently picked Hitomi up and carried her to where he could find what caused her to faint, for surly it wasn't the run.

What he saw made his heart skip a beat; the arrow had grazed her side leaving a two-inch deep cut in her left side.

He motioned Sora to come over so that she could fix the wound.

Konn picked up the arrow and waved a hand over it. The air was then filled with the smell of molten metal. "Just as I thought. They tipped the arrows with Gekidoku poison. It reacts acidly with any form of magic, and is highly poisonous on its own. I believe that she only has about three hours to live unless treated with the antidote."

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN 'SHE ONLY HAS THREE HOURS TO LIVE'" shouted Merle.

"Do we have any of the antidote with us?" asked Chid.

"I'm afraid that we do not."

"So she has to get to Aunt Millerna."

"IT'S A SIX HOUR RIDE AT FULL GALLOP AND WITH NO STOPPING TO REST THE HORSE TO GET TO PALAS FROM HERE!" yelled Merle.

"I'll get her there." Said Van "Kagen please look after the horses for me."

"Lord Van are you sure that you want to do this?" asked Merle, after what he had said sank in.

"I have to Merle. It's the only way." at that he took off his shirt and released his wings.

"But what if they attack you?"

"I can fly out of range, all I need is a barrier to get me high enough." Was his reply as he picked Hitomi up.

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Van arrived in Palas with not much time to spare; he spotted Allen standing on one of the balconies and decided that that was the best place to land.

"Van, I know that you said that you were planning to fly in but I didn't think that you meant this. What's wrong?" He asked seeing the look of desperation in the king's otherwise unadorned face. "What's wrong with Hitomi?"

"Gekidoku poison." was all the young king could say before Allen jumped into action.

"You!" He called at a passing maid, "Go find the Princess Millerna and tell her that the Lady Hitomi is seriously injured and will be awaiting her in one of the sick rooms! She'll know which one when she gets there."

"Yessir!" the maid quickly bowed and then ran off to find the princess.

"Follow me." He said to Van

'"I'll know which one" he says. It's not like there's fifty different sick rooms here or anything.' Millerna fumed as she ran down the last corridor and then turned the corner only to find Van pacing in front of one the doors and glaring at it every ten seconds. To this she had to smile, he looked like a caged beast ready to pounce as soon as it got a chance- especially science he still had his wings out. She hurried past him and closed the door in his face, not wanting to be delayed in getting the details at that moment, all she really needed to know she already knew, for the time being anyway.

so what do u think?