Hi folks! I have an additional disclaimer beyond just "I don't own Escaflowne" this time...I also don't own the ideas for gigantic international meetings or divisions of Zaibach in continuation fics. Lots of people include these, but I swear I'm not trying to rip off anybody else (though I do feel uncreative...sigh). My reasoning is as follows: if you have a big meeting, you have lots of characters in one place; and if you're going to draw WWII parallels in Esca--why stop with the Energist bomb?

Advancement, Episode 3: Alterations

The room was too bright. He couldn't see anything. Blinking back water, he sat up on the table and stared at his hands, or at least where he thought his hands should be. Slowly they came into focus; he flexed his fingers and watched them stiffly respond. "Where am I..." he began, low voice shaking.

"Here, sir. Calm yourself," a voice said, and a glass of something was pressed into his hand. He took a sip, then drank greedily, throat sore from he knew not what and savoring his sensation of taste again as the tangy fruit alcohol washed over his tongue. Again? Had he been deprived of it? What had happened to him...

"Where's Jajuka?" he croaked, putting down the empty glass and wincing as a sudden headache split across his forehead.

"He died, sir. But we're still here." A gloved hand took his, held it tight. "We're ready to serve you."

Dead? Then who...Slowly he forced his stiff neck to pivot towards the direction of the voice. The empty wineglass crashed to the floor in pieces as he slid abruptly off the table in shock. All thoughts of his former part-canine caretaker vanished. A giddy, disbelieving smile slid onto his face, eyes soaking in three faces he never thought he would see again. He'd watched them die...and yet...

"You're here," he whispered weakly as the three boys in blue armor helped their commander find his feet again. "You're alive."

They bowed. "And we are ready to serve you, Dilandau-sama."

ooooooo

Two black-cloaked men listened to the reunion outside the laboratory door.

"So all four alterations were successful?" one asked quietly. His companion nodded.

"We believe so. We'll have to watch the replacements to ensure nothing goes wrong there, but as it worked with the prototype no complications are expected as long as they don't undergo extreme trauma. Extra precautions must be taken, however, that the families receive no word of their sons' supposed return. They might connect it with the other disappearances."

"Understood. And the Emperor's reaction?"

"He does not yet know. Garufo sent him on a tour of the capital to ensure he did not witness the alteration and to spark the desire for change in his heart. Thus we were able to power our machines to the fullest extent once more."

"The Emperor's connection to his token is strong. Should we inquire further into this?"

"All will become clear in time. For now, it is enough that we keep him motivated to change Gaea's future. The fact that he could not return to the Mystic Moon proves it: this may have begun on our part as a ruse, but destiny means him to be here. Fate is on our side this time."

"But to what end?"

The other man smiled. "We can change the end. Does the original really matter?"

ooooooo

The morning dawned bright and crisp, but Allen Schezar was in no condition to greet it. On her perch above his head, his white owl Natal hooted nervously, unaccustomed to her master's joining her in nocturnal activity. Not that he had done much all night: he'd paced the room for a while, then settled into an armchair by the fire and stared into the flames, lost in his own thoughts for hours. The fact that Celena had been spirited away again, this time literally before his very eyes, would have been enough on its own to send him on a downward spiral. But the kidnapper...

I couldn't have imagined it, he brooded. It really happened. He really took her, and he really looked like me. Aside from the hair color and length, it was as if Allen's reflection in the mirror had stepped into the land of the living and snatched Celena from him. And he'd let it happen. He'd frozen like a statue--he, Knight Caeli Allen Schezar, sworn protector of the innocent in general and his little sister in particular--and let that cursed reflection rob him of everything in his life that mattered to him. And now it was too late for her. He did not know if he dared to hope that she could be reclaimed again...

Damn it! People would ask after her today, would wonder where she had gone. Could he level such a charge against Zaibach? He had no proof, save Van and Merle's testimony, both people known to bear grudges against the empire--and what was more, if a knight of Asturia accused Zaibach of such a crime, he risked undoing what tenuous policies had been created to secure peace. Not to mention that he'd have to explain where Celena had been for the past ten years--which meant that even if the rest of the assembly believed him, his sister could legally be tried and perhaps executed for war crimes; such were the outstanding stipulations on the warrant for Dilandau Albatou's arrest. For the first time in his life Allen found himself sympathizing with his father's burning desire to cut himself free of all the entanglements of the world. If he only had to worry about himself, the situation would be so much simpler...but as it stood, he would have to suffer in silence and wait for a chance to try and save her. Yet even as his mind acknowledged the wisdom of the plan, his heart accused him of betrayal. Oh, Zaibach had been clever. They knew he couldn't do a thing.

I suppose, he mused, that I could tell everyone who already knows the truth about Celena. Princess Eries is running this conference, and she has experience with this sort of thing; she might be able to work something out...No, that was ridiculous. You could not negotiate with monsters like the Zaibach dogs who'd taken Celena from him. They never listened--or they pretended to and then stabbed you in the back the first chance they got. Hadn't his father trusted Isaac?

In his mind, he could see the brown-haired version of himself laugh at his indecision; he couldn't remember ever seeing his own face so happy. What right did that stupid boy have to smile? Did he rejoice in his double's anguish and despair? Allen had never heard of doppelgangers who could take a form without killing the original bearer, but what other solution could there be to the issue? Yet Van had said the man was from the Mystic Moon...what's more, that he had known Hitomi...Hitomi had called him by another name when first they met, hadn't she? Yet Hitomi wouldn't associate with a monster...it was possible, Allen conceded, that the Mystic Moon doppelganger could be a pawn of some darker power as well, and thus deserved his pity and not his condemnation.

The concession, however, only dampened the burning pit in his stomach. Nothing could fully put it out.

oooooo

Susumu had tried without success to convince the Madoushi that he was better off taking his first tour of Zaibach's capital without being heralded as the new Emperor sent by the Mystic Moon to the people. So it was that he returned thoroughly exhausted, tired of being scrutinized by thousands of eyes in faces he didn't know and forced to acknowledge hundreds of bows from people he didn't consider his inferiors. It had been easy to pick out in the crowd the people who shared his own opinions of the situation--the flinty faces who appraised his strange clothing, his youth, and wrote him off as a poor, abrupt fraud who would have to be put down. But the looks that haunted him most adorned the rest of the citizens--they'd looked starved, hollow, and yet somehow miraculously refreshed. Trusting their Madoushi to do what was best for the empire, firm believers in the "fate" that summoned a chosen Emperor from the Mystic Moon yet again...angry and despairing in their country's loss, yet rejuvenated by the prospect of another chance...those newly-lit eyes would no doubt haunt his dreams accusingly once he returned home. Assuming he ever made it back.

"The summit ought to know about me by now," he commented, collapsing into a chair. "Any word from General Adelphos?" He wanted to ask "Any word from Celena's brother?" but wondered if he'd ever get an answer. Bitterly he rued going along with that scheme, whatever its end might have been. He would have called the whole thing off, had the fury in Van Fanel's eyes not scared him to the core. Had Celena not started shaking uncontrollably...what had set her off like that? Was she all right, now that she was back where the Madoushi attested she belonged?

"No, my Lord," one of the robed men said, and Susumu had to remind himself the reply regarded his earlier question about the general, not about Celena Schezar. "I take it the people responded well to your arrival."

"Some," he admitted wearily, fingering his temples and wondering not for the first time exactly what the hell he thought he was doing. He had to get out, before those poor people's hopes were raised any higher. At the very least, he had to renounce this whole "Emperor" madness. Too bad the Madoushi weren't so keen on the idea...he had to get away...but there were still some unresolved issues here in the capital. "How is Celena?" he asked, taking the plunge despite his fear of the answer.

The man smiled. "Perfectly reacclimated to her surroundings. Don't worry about her any more. And our much-missed special-forces commander has returned. He awaits you, in fact, in the next room. Shall I send for him?"

"No need," a voice drawled from the doorway, and a boy no older than Susumu himself swaggered into the room, eyed the young man in the chair. Disdain flickered in his red-violet eyes. "So you're the new emperor these old men have selected?" he asked incredulously, then snorted. "Pathetic."

"May I present, your Majesty, Dilandau Albatou of the Red Copper Army," one of the ''old men" supplied belatedly. "Commander of the Dragonslayers elite squad." Dilandau smiled at his title, ran a finger down a scar on his right cheek absentmindedly as the man continued speaking. "They await your orders for deployment."

"We're not deploying anybody," Susumu half-moaned, sitting back in his chair. Dilandau's lower lip turned down in what might have been an indignant pout. He refused to stop staring at his new "Emperor," who in turn stared right back. The boy looked so young. He couldn't have been much older than Kanzaki. Or Yukari.

Oh, God, Yukari. What did she think had happened to him? She'd be out of her mind...and Hitomi...would she figure out where he'd vanished to? Why would she, though? His parents were probably furious at him...how immature it must look, seemingly running away from home because he didn't want to move...but they ought to know he knew better than to pull some ridiculous stunt.

Wait, who was he kidding? What else could he call the situation he was in? He had to get out, and fast. The appearance of this boy-captain, and the Madoushi's apparent eagerness for him to mobilize the army, proved that. Whatever plans the robed men were cooking for the future, he wanted no part of. But how to back down so completely they couldn't rope him back in?...And how to ensure that he did at least something for all those people who'd looked at him in hope?...He needed to consult with someone other than the Madoushi, completely free of their influence, and fast.

Smiling at Dilandau, he stood and offered the boy his hand. "Pardon my rudeness. It's a pleasure to meet you. I'm certain that your return can only signal prosperity for the empire." Staring at the outstretched hand in obvious revulsion, Dilandau refused to take it. A muscle twitched in his cheek, like he was debating whether or not to spit in his emperor's palm.

Susumu, however, finally had a plan and so refused to be deterred. "Would you do me the honor of escorting me to the international conference in Palas? I feel that, if I am to be a vital part of rebuilding this great nation, I must be present at such pivotal events." Dilandau's red eyes widened at the sound of the capital; his brows furrowed as he contemplated some plan of his own. The Madoushi, for their part, behaved exactly as Susumu had predicted. They panicked.

"But your Majesty! I thought it had been decided that--"

"You cannot doubt General Adelphos--"

"But you have so recently arrived, and know so little--"

"Enough," he snapped in what he hoped was an imperial tone; taken aback, the men settled into silence once more. "I have changed my mind upon seeing the people. The only person with anything to decide here is Dilandau. Now please procure a transport for me." Shakily, one of the Madoushi nodded and glided out of the room.

All eyes settled on Dilandau, who met them all with a sulky gaze like a predator in a cage. "Is something the matter?" he demanded, his hand on the hilt of his sword. His own eyes swept over to Susumu, now standing tall but still out-of-place. He laughed shortly, derisively. "What, you think I'm going to take orders from this--"

"Dilandau, we'll speak in the hall. Alone," Susumu added for the Madoushi's benefit. Taking the boy by the arm, he steered him into the hallway and, slamming his fist into a panel on the wall, shut the sliding door. Wrenching his arm free, Dilandau growled and assumed a fighting stance, venom practically dripping from his face.

"Don't you touch me, you--"

"Listen. I'm sorry about that." He spoke softly for fear of the cloaked men eavesdropping on the other side of the metal door. "Look, I don't want to be Emperor any more than you want me to, and that's the truth. I'm going to that meeting to talk things over with your General and hopefully get out of this madness while I still can, with plenty of official witnesses. Then I am going home. But I need someone around to help me play the role of Emperor until I gain admittance to the meeting, someone who'll help me fit in on Gaea." He didn't add that he wanted to keep the boy within arm's reach for fear of what might happen otherwise. In addition, Celena Schezar was in the military as well, wasn't she? Dilandau might be able to help him sort that mess out too.

Bowing low to the stupefied commander, Susumu pleaded quietly, "Please, help me out!"

Dilandau giggled. "You submit yourself to me?...You want me to go to Palas, where all the rulers are?...Answer me this." Suddenly, he snapped back to his professional, if haughty, military demeanor. "Is Fanelia represented?"

Susumu frowned, puzzled. "Yes, by their king. Is that a problem?"

Dilandau's smirking smile grew until it was nearly too large for his face. "Not at all. In fact, it's perfect. Glad to be of service, Emperor." Bowing mockingly, he marched off, presumably to marshal his troops. Bewildered, Susumu watched his back until he disappeared into a connecting hallway, victorious and yet feeling like he'd been tricked somehow anyway.

Mentally he assessed the number of questions he'd have to ask someone other than his cloaked would-be advisors: the pendant, the previous Emperor, the war, Dilandau, King Van, Celena, Celena's brother...Celena's brother, who looked exactly like him for reasons he hadn't had time to ponder...Celena's brother, who he could probably never look in the eye even when confronting him, so overwhelming was his shame.

"God, Kanzaki," he muttered before sliding open the door to inform the Madoushi of Dilandau's decision. "Did everyone act so strangely when you were here?"

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

a/n: Well, that took longer than expected to write...next episode, the plot really picks up (becomes evident?) as Susumu tries to learn swordfighting and is tested sooner than he ever expected by someone out to get Dilandau. As for who...tee hee.

On a related note, I have decided to stop writing one of my other Escaflowne stories, "Ghosts", but I'm not taking it down as I plan on having it tie into this one. Everything I've written thus far except some details in the last part of the third chapter (as to which details, you'll find out next episode) and maybe the italicized bits are both valid and backstory for forthcoming events.

Susumu and Van and Dilandau and assassins, oh my...