There and Back again
GA1: URGE! Ok, I tried to do it in a manageable amount of time………
SD: Didn't work, obviously.
GA1: faints Shut up! It's a lot of work!
SD: Right sure………………………
Disclaimer: Ok, ya we have just graduated from high school… Do you really think we have enough money to own such a great series? Right so don't even try the suing thing! We do however own or respective characters:
Spirit Dancer: Aiko, Shiva
Glass Angel1: Ayane, Fira, Merlin, all the Province Children, Caim, and any other character that I must create for the production of this story.
All rights reserved
Summary:
Not just an ordinary retelling of Escaflowne. Two girl's wish away their lives of family abuse, only to find their wish answered. Destiny plays its hands hard as these two friends find themselves caught up in a war of a world they barely know, only to be torn apart along the way. Will they be able to overcome their trouble pasts, and save this new world for its own destruction? Or will their pasts become its means of destruction?
Category: Action/Adventure/Romance
xVxVxVxVx; same place different point of view
xXxXxXxXx ;scene change
italic; vision
XoX ; Flashback
Chpt. 28 Destiny's Lair
At the time, he hadn't really thought about what he was doing. The teary gray eyes, the plead to not be left alone, all he wanted to do was to do was to comfort the shaking woman. He had helped her strip out of the dress she was after she had struggled with it. The ideal of sleeping in his uniform (after she again made it clear she didn't want to be left alone) was unappealing. Sleeping in clothes altogether wasn't appealing, but he could live one night. He wasn't, however, going to wear the jacket so he had just planned to take that off, but once he had gotten it off her hands pushed the black undershirt up over his head. Well, that was quickly over looked as she buried her face in his chest. She said something, well a lot of some things, but all of it was in a language he did understand. She had cried herself to sleep latched onto him. All he could do was hold her, reassuring her that she wasn't alone. That entire time from the moment he helped her undress till he woke up he did not think about that, but now he couldn't figure out why, and how not to think about it anymore.
Dilandau stared up at the bed canopy, resting his head on the satin pillows. His right arm rest around the young woman's waist. Ayane was curled up next to him, one arm across his bare chest. Her head lay just under his, he could feel faint breathes against his skin. One of her legs was wrapped around his. Dilandau didn't remember taking off his black slacks (his boots yes, pants no) but he clearly took them off some time during the night. The silk stockings she wore felt strange against his skin (strange yes, but not arousing…. Far from it) Damn it all, he was to keep thinking about it no matter what he did. The first experience on a bed with her would have gotten him in a lot less trouble then this one now. Folken was going to kill him. Her fingers stretched out slightly as if she was waking up. His eyes snapped shut. The plan was for her to move first. She had been holding in on him tightly in her sleep, to him he was afraid to wake her and make the situation even worse. Dilandau kept his body relaxed and his breath shallow so that it would look as if he was still sleeping. The gods must find this situation to their liking; Ayane did not wake but only snuggled closer. Well, there went that plan.
Dilandau sighed opening his ruby eyes again to look up at the black canopy. Lifting up his head slightly, he looked down at her. Black curly hair fell down over her oval face, lips parted. He moved his left hand to brush the curls to the side. His hand moved along her check and along her jaw. Odd enough he sort of liked waking up to her again. The first time the positions had been different AND both had been dressed. The door opened then, there was a small clicking sound as whomever it was walked in. It was hard to see the door with the curtains around most of the bed being closed. The ones that faced to the left of him were the only ones open. The blue lights turned on slowly but only enough so that it was possible for one to see his or her way around the room. The clicking sound started towards the bed. In a few moments Dilandau was looking up at the red headed Dragonslayer. Miguel was leaning against the small wooden cane Dallet had carved for him. In his other hand was clothing and a set of heavy boots. Was it that time already?
"Voile said I would probably find you here… They are calling us for early departure." Miguel whispered lightly so not to wake the sleeping girl next to Dilandau. Though, it didn't seem to work as Ayane mumbled something in her sleep and curled closer to him for a time. Dilandau was going to have to wake her to get up. Miguel turned away from him and hobbled over to the table to place the clothes down. He wasn't really hobbling anymore. Miguel was walking pretty well now. There would always be a slight limp in his step now. The slayer had told him (after getting yelled at) that he did not let Ayane heal his leg like she had Shesta's hand. There was no scar on the blonde's hand, but Miguel's leg held a very angry looking one for the moment. Ayane showed a small limp when she walked a lot, the limp was more noticeable then. One on one sword fighting would be hard on the redhead slayer now, but piloting a melef was something he might be able to do again. Miguel, at the moment, would have to live with being left behind and watch everyone else go out to the hot fires of battle. "Do you want me to help you?"
"Um?" Dilandau, who had gone back to staring at the canopy, turned his head to look at the slayer by the table, "No, I'll be fine. Tell Shesta to have the others down in the dock in twenty ready to depart."
"…Alright..." Miguel nodded as he started to walk out of the room. The clicking sound of his cane faded away as the door closed behind him. Sighing, Dilandau stretched slowly to work the kinks out in his back. Sleeping in the same position all night did that at times, especially in an unfamiliar setting. There wasn't any time for him to debate whether or not to get up. He had a battle to fight, some other poor country to bring to ruin. What kind of monster had Zaibach turned him into? A very horrible one that was for sure, Dilandau growled inwardly. The same for Folken, for all of them, may humanity forgive the sinners of their deeds. If that damn dragon was suppose to be the bringer of Zaibach's downfall, little king wonder had better get his act together. Dilandau turned his mind to the task at hand. Maybe there was a way to get out from under her without waking her up. Taking hold of her head to support it with his right hand, Dilandau slowly started to slip out from under her. At first it was hard, for he was afraid to wake her from her sleep, but he found it very easy to do. Ayane must be a heavier sleeper then he thought. He laid her down on the satin pillows, and sat up. Getting her leg untangled was slightly harder but the silver haired demon-boy was able to do it without waking her.
With her lying peacefully out on the bed, Dilandau felt the small tug at his heart like the one he felt last night. Damn it all to hell, the woman was not going to make this easy for him. He'll have to ask Miguel to look after her while he was gone; he still didn't like the ideal of leaving her alone now. Folken would forgive her presence on the bridge. The older man seemed to be growing fond of the young woman's presences on the ship altogether. Ayane had been able to keep the slayers in check. Dilandau brushed the stray hairs off her face again to look at her better. When he got back, he would take the time to talk with her. He hadn't been doing much of that, but for now, for now he had a battle to win. Slipping off the bed slowly, he walked across the room to the table. The shower could wait until he got back, he was only going to get sweaty and covered in water for few hours there was no point in it. Grabbing his pants Dilandau started to get dressed. It was nice seeing the others last night, even if it was only got a short time. Zaibach had changed them all; none of them were really the same anymore. Well, none of them had been the same since the day Zaibach took over. Now they were nothing more then tools, tools that would bring the world to the same fate. Dilandau shook his head he was starting to sound like someone he rather not sound like. The last person he needed to think about was that purple eyed freak of science that the madoushi created. That damn THING wasn't even worth the effort. She was down right one of the most EVIL things in all of Zaibach, right next to Chancellor Merlin's son but pretty damn close. Being so lost in thought, Dilandau didn't hear the soft steps of bare feet on the hard floor. Cold hands touched his bare chest as Ayane came up behind him; his hands nearly dropped the shirt he had taken off the table. Her face buried in his back.
"Don't go…" If it had been a different time, place. Had there not been a real need for him to go, for those words he wouldn't have. Letting go of the blue tank top, Dilandau clasped his hands around hers and turned himself around so that he could hold her. She was shaking in his arms as he held onto her. Her arms enclosed around his body as he held her. At least she wasn't crying anymore. He stroked her hair slowly for a while.
"I have to go… It's my duty to take on the commands given to me…" Dilandau said softly. That was all it was, the soldier's since of duty that kept him here. That and revenge, he still had a score to settle with little king wonder. The scar on his face still burned with hatred. If the boy was going to be Zaibach's downfall, then he had better do it before Dilandau got his hands around his neck. Ayane's hands tighten a bit before she moved her head off his chest so that he could hear her speak.
"Then promise me, Dilandau……" He frowned; the serious tone in her voice was not one that he liked. It made it feel that if he didn't do what she said that the punishment would be far worse then he could imagine. Cupping her face in his hand he turned it up to him.
"What?" Her gray eyes looked strange to him; like she was seeing something that wasn't really there.
"That when Fortuna's flags burn, when the Duke of Fried has dead and his son surrenders the temple that you will return to the Voine…" That was it? All she wanted him to do was return?
"I pro-" He started to speak he words, but she cut him off as she continued.
"Promise to return to the Voine and not leave… Not even to chase after the White Dragon… Promise me." Not chase the dragon? If the King of Fanelia escaped the battlefield he would have to give chase. Little boy wonder was his responsibility to make sure the boy was captured for the last time and brought to the capital. The look in her eyes was not one he liked very much, the tightness in his chest was a lot worse then it had been last night when he looked in to those teary eyes.
"I promise Ayane." Dilandau kissed her on the forehead, the words spoken without much thought. Her hands fell away from him and grabbed hold of the shirt Miguel had brought. Just like the night before but instead of undressing him, the young woman help to him put on the rest of his clothes from the shirt to the armor covered boots. No tears, no strange looks. The mask of calmness seemed to have taken hold of her. Before he left Dilandau kissed her check. When this was over, Dilandau would have to take her somewhere nicer then this vessel; war was seemingly unnerving the woman. Ayane watched him leave her standing there next to the table, hands clasped tightly together as the door closed behind him. It was the only thing that kept them from coming; even though now that she was once again alone the tears started to fall down along her ivory cheeks. Her knees gave out from under her, sending Ayane down to the floor. Her hands went up to cover up over her eyes.
"Lair…"
xXxXxXx
Tomorrow, they said tomorrow Zaibach's armies would arrive. Tomorrow in the morning fog Fried would fight for its survival and for its mission to protect Atlantis. It made no sense to Van really, that the "power of Atlantis" could bring the downfall to Gaea as it had Atlantis. The Draconians had done that, which was why he was cursed after all. There was no point in saying anything though, for tomorrow he would once again face his traitor of a brother, and that crazy pyromaniac and the rest of Zaibach's army. He needed to be stronger to protect them, Merle and…Aiko. They were all he had left. Van would help Fried, yes, but all he wanted to do inside was run away like he had back in Asturia and take them away from the flames of battle. Aiko didn't seem to take to well to the whole battle thing, actually she kind of freak out on him, literally. The young woman of the Mystic Moon should not have to be put though something she was not apart of. If only he could get her back home…but home to what? A life of neglect and abuse? That moon held a very hateful curse for its inhabitance. He sort of wondered now what was behind the porcelain mask of the Lady Ayane. Though that was a story that would have to wait, for now he had to do something else. Van stared up at the Escaflowne from the ground floor of the guymelef storage. He needed to be stronger, strong like Allen no matter how much he hated to admit it. Had it not been for the blonde knight, Zaibach would have captured him along time ago. One way to accomplish this was to become better a tuned to the Escaflowne. Aiko had shown him how to do this, or well he hoped that she had. If it didn't work then this would be a lot harder to do.
Sighing inwardly, Van took steps forward to the white dragon and began to climb the stairs up to the cockpit. He needed to be stronger and quickly if he was going to defeat the destroyers of his country. He had to revenge them all. That was the duty that came with the crown when it was placed on his head. Stopping at the top platform, Van's chocolate eyes stared into the red energist chamber before he placed his hands on it. Closing his eyes, the young king tuned out the rest of the world and focused on the task before him. In his mind he could see himself in the cockpit, the controls on his arms. He was there; the Escaflowne and he could move as one and would.
"Move…" Nothing happened at first, but soon there was the sound of the gears inside the cockpit next to him moving as if he was inside of it. That was it, Van focused harder; he could see the gears turning in other parts of the giant armor. If he could become more in tune with the ancient armor, if he could become one with it then he could be much stronger then he was now.
"Van?" Everything stopped then at the sound of her voice, his concentration shot. Opening his eyes, Van looked up at the young black haired woman on the catwalk above him. Aiko leaned against the bar, looking down at him. She was tapping the tip of her right boot behind her, the noise making small echoes in the large room. Again, she wore black clothing; her black tank top contrasted sharply with her light color skin, and her black pants hung baggily down to her boots. She had pulled her back hair back into a loose low ponytail, with some strands falling forward when she bent down. Her eyes looked slightly agitated as she bent over the bar. "What are you doing?"
"Getting ready for the battle… I'm going to help in protecting the temple." Well that was sort of the true, give or take a few reasons. Why in on Gaea someone would want to resurrect the power that destroyed Atlantis was beyond him. The least he could do was payback the Duke for allowing him to stay here. "You need to stay with Millerna and Merle." Aiko glared at him, her grip on the railing turned her knuckles white.
"You Baka! You're only going to get hurt…or worse!" The queasy feeling that Aiko had gotten earlier that morning only intensified when his eyes burned with agitation. Silence took over the room for a few moments. Aiko glared harder at him. Whenever a bad feeling came upon her, bad things usually happened…and the worse the feeling, the worse the incident. The queasy feeling definitely made the top five. He frowned at her as he stepped away from the Escaflowne and started to walk down the steps to the ground floor. Ayane use to laugh at her whenever she got this feeling like something bad was going to happen. Though around Ayane the feeling was never right. It was only when the gray eyed woman wasn't around that bad things happened. Here on this world she had visions when the bad feeling came around. There hadn't been any visions yet, but she was sure there would be at the worse possible moment. So it was better to get a head start before then. Van walked up the stairs to the catwalk where she was. He looked tired to her, like he hadn't slept all that well during the night. The dark brown haired king stopped an arms reach away from her.
"I am going to help them… I am not going to run and hide away anymore." He looked away from her to the white dragon. "I will not be a coward." Aiko sighed. When was he going to get it?
"Fighting rashly isn't bravery…its stupidity... What you're doing isn't brave, Van…it's stupid. You're going to get hurt. Trust me on this…" Van turned his head back to look at her again. There seemed to be a little bit of anger in his eyes as if she had said something too harsh. Well it was the truth after all, if it hadn't been for all the times pretty boy came around, they would have died a million times over.
"I am going to help them, Aiko, no matter what you say. Just…" He stooped himself before he snapped at her worse then he had. Aiko seemed a bit drawn back by the sudden change in his voice. "Just stay with Princess Millerna alright?" He turned to walk away from her to the doors, which lead back to the main part of the temple.
"Van…" She called after him, sound sympathetic. The young king stopped slightly but did not turn around.
"I'm…… I'm going to protect you Aiko; I promised Ayane that I would…" He looked over his shoulder at her for a moment before continuing out of the guymelef chamber. "I will keep my promises."
xXxXxXx
The high winds blew through the hanger needlessly. The crew was moving about busily as they tried to get all the equipment ready just in case something was to go wrong in the battle. It was still very early in the morning; the sun had yet to rise. The hanger was empty for the most part; half an hour ago the melef units had departed. No one paid her much mind; it was not un-normal to find her standing in the hanger watching. Ayane looked up at the lone melef in the hanger, the spare melef unit that Miguel had been using for practice. The boy wanted to maintain some sort of independence. The wind ruffled the white skirt of the uniform Dilandau had given her. She had felt it was probably the best thing for her to wear for the day. It would get her recognized as a member of the Vione's staff and left be if someone thought to bother her. She had been staring so hard at the blue melef that she did not hear the clicking sound of Miguel's cane.
"I figured you would be down here. Sorry I didn't come get you when they were leaving…" Ayane turned her head to the left to look at the young slayer. He didn't know she had been awake when Dilandau left her room. The boy was also pretending he had not found his lord half naked in the same bed as her. The lines under her eyes from the tears were not noticeable, enough makeup could make about anything go away. She smiled sincerely at him.
"That's alright, they be back …." She looked away from him back to the melef.
"Is there something wrong, Lady Ayane?"
"No…." Ayane looked back over at the redheaded slayer with a false smile. She brushed the loose hair out of her face as she looked at the unit again. "I was just wondering… How you move those things…?" Miguel moved a few steps in front of her, holding onto his cane as he went towards the unit.
"Well, if that's what's on your mind, Lady, I've got a little time to kill before Folken wants me on the bridge again…." There was a sound of distaste in the word 'bridge' as he spoke. "I guess I can give you a little lesson. As long as you promise not to tell Dilandau-sama, ok?"
"Deal…" Ayane smiled slyly as she followed him up the stairs to the giant unit's cockpit. Two could play the games of lies.
xXxXxXxXx
It all started just before the dawn, the fog made it hard to really see anything but the Fortuna soldiers seemed to know that the Zaibach army was there. The Duke of Fried had gone out to face the invading army instead of turning tail like he had back in the capital. Allen, against the concern of his men, had gone out with the royal ruler with the Escaflowne not to far behind. Fried was more then happy to have the extra help it seemed. Allen was betraying his sworn homeland to protect the smaller country. They had felt them, the crew of the Crusader, the young prince, the princess of Asturia, the cat girl and the Mystic Mooner alone in closed at the center of the temple. They were not to far from the doors that lead to the room that held the power of Atlantis and the sleeping Draconian maiden. Millerna was leaning back against the tapestry, which adored the wall. The young woman hadn't said much all morning, which was a little strange Aiko had decided. Normally she would be worrying over the pretty boy. The dark haired woman was sitting down on the floor not to far from the blond woman. Her arms rested on her knees with her head on top of them. Green eyes watched the young prince pace back and forth. Merle was sitting a little to her left, looking worried about Van. Around them was the crusader crew, with orders to protect the young prince of Fried and the rest of them if any soldiers got inside. Outside they could hear the sounds of battle, and the sounds of dying men were not a pretty one even for such a gloomy morning. There suddenly was a loud explosion, followed by the shaking of the building that they were currently in. Merle shifted uneasily.
"Oh Van-dono…" Aiko glared at her for a moment.
"It's his own damn fault if he gets killed…. stupid boy wants to be reckless and stupid instead of wise and careful…" Merle's tail puffed out as she hissed at the green-eyed girl.
"Who are you calling stupid, Mysticer?" Aiko's eyes narrowed at the cat girl.
"Who do you think? The baka thinks that he can protect us by getting killed. Well, if he wants to get killed, that's fine with me…"
"Why you little-"
"Will you two shut up?" Millerna's voice rang over the broken silence, making Aiko and Merle glare at her.
"Well, that's an interesting command from the girl who never shuts up herself." Aiko got to her feet, and pointed her finger at the pink princess.
"Ya, you practically talk other people's ears off..." Merle crossed her arms over her chest and joined Aiko's glare at the girl.
"Well, I never…" The three started yelling at each other so loud and fast that you couldn't make out anything they were saying. Gaddess shook his head as he walked over to the group.
"Ok, Ladies…lets please break up, and settle down..." He barely finished his sentence before the room went quiet and three sets of eyes were glaring at him. He gulped, and lifted his hands in protest. "…O…k...never mind…" The eyes followed him back to where he was standing before. Aiko sighed and slumped back down, and drew her knees up to her chin. The bad feeling had only gotten worse since Van and Allen left, and it wasn't getting any better. Van better be damn happy with himself. If he goes off and gets killed, what good will his stupid promises do then? The rest of the room hadn't changed much even with their arguing. Shid was still passing back and forth. None of the crusader's crewmembers had moved from their posts. They had been watching the corridors and the soldiers that were running about. Silence filled the room; the only noise was the sounds of battle outside. There was the sound of feet running towards the room; Shid stopped pacing when the head priest of the temple came in. Blood dripped down from his helmet along the side of his face. Breath came out from his mouth in harsh gasps.
"How goes the battle?" The four year old really did sound a lot older then he was. It was a little unsettling to think of him as well, a four year old. Maybe in his teens, but to act so adult like at such a young age? Aiko pulled her head up off of her knees as they all waited for the priest to speak. Even though she was royally pissed off at Van, it didn't mean she wasn't worried about him. The feeling wasn't going away, it was just getting worse. The moment of silence as they all waited for the man to speak wasn't making any of it better. "Well?"
"My…Lord, your father…" The room seemed to grow tense. Millerna rose up off the wall and started to walk forward to her young nephew as if she knew what the man was going to say. Merle also stood back up from where she had sat down on the floor after the spat with Aiko. "The Duke of Fried is dead, Shid." The room seemed to fall apart as Aiko watched the look on the now ruler of Fried. Four years old and now faced the decision that a boy his age should not be making. Millerna moved to comfort her nephew who she thought would fall apart. It seemed like the boy would, but the looked of distress did not last long when he turned away from them and looked at her. She could see the tears that wanted to come out of those baby blue eyes, tears that would never fall as he took in a deep breath as the priest spoke again. "My lord, Zaibach is advancing towards the temple… You should-"
"Tell Zaibach that We surrender…" Aiko couldn't keep the look of shock off of her face. When she looked over at Merle, the cat girl's face mirrored her own. Millerna looked crestfallen, as she gave her nephew a light hug. Even though Aiko was glad that the fighting would be stopped, she was still nervous. The bad feeling still hadn't gone away, which means that things would only get worse.
"No…" Merle's voice was barely a whisper, saying what Aiko refused to say allowed. "After all the fighting we put in…" The battle noise continued to fill the air, the clash of swords brought Aiko out of her stupor. Van… Just thinking his name made the bad feeling even worse. If Freid surrendered then what would happen to Van? Allen would maybe have a bruised ego at the most, but Van is what Zaibach wanted to begin with… Aiko placed her head in her hands, and tried to stop the facts that were rolling through her head. Stupid Zaibach for bring Van and Shid pain, Stupid Ayane for not being there, and Stupid Van for going out in the first place. She hoped for both her and Merle's sakes that he came back in one piece, cause there will be more damage if he wasn't.
"Shid…."
"It's alright Aunt Millerna…." The young duke stepped away from the older woman, and looked at the young cat girl. "It's not all been in vain. All the fighting, the deaths, none of it has been in vain. For now, all Freid can do is surrender. Atlantis has slept in these stonewalls for as long as Gaea has existed. Maybe it is time for us once again to decide our faiths. So for now, Fried will surrender…under the conduction the Crusader is allowed to leave Freid air space…."
xXxXxXx
"All units advance to sector alpha, I repeat…." Folken stood on the top of the bridge over looking all the communication deck. Below was chaos in its own creation as crewmembers moved about the deck voice calling out orders, and relaying information. The redheaded Dragonslayer was a loudest voice on the deck, calling out all the direct orders. Beyond the bridge, outside the large open glass windows, the battle with in the fog raged on. Every now and then Folken could hear the voices of the four generals relaying instructions. In the beginning on the battle Dilandau had informed him of the location of the Duke of Fried, along with the king of Fanelia. So far the battle had moved from the outside rim of the temple to the inside courtyard. At this rate Fortuna would be over turned in less then an hour. Closing his maroon eyes, the strategies tired to clear his mind of what was happening outside. It was starting to give him a headache. So many things to do, so little time; whatever this 'prefect future' was supposed to be it had better damn well be worth it. The clicking of heels on the hard metal floor broke through his train of thought. Opening his eyes again, Folken turned his head to the side to see the dark haired Ayane walking onto the main deck of the bridge.
"Onii-san?" Folken turned more to look at her, his body hidden mostly by the large cloak that he wore. She was dressed in the uniform Dilandau had made for her. She wasn't wearing the head peace that went over her hair. She was looking out into the high fog. The pendent around her neck was glowing faintly; the only reason he noticed was because it stood out against the black uniform.
"Is something wrong?" She turned her head away from battle below and looked at him. Crossing her arms over her chest she walked up to him so that she could look over the bridge.
"I was starting to get worried… It's been three hours since I last seen any of you…." Had the battle been going on that long? No, it had been a good hour before the four generals had order the advance when they arrived here. They waited just before the sunrise when the fog was the densest. Her slender fingers were tapping nervously on the long back sleeves of her uniform as she looked down off the bridge to the world below. Inwardly Folken frowned, was the young Mysticer worrying about the Dragonslayers in general or one pacifically? He hadn't been watching the interaction between all the young slayers and the young woman well enough then if that was true. But if that was what seemed to put the young woman in distress the least he could do was put her at some ease.
"Miguel, report…" The redheaded turned his head sharply, half finishing the sentence he was just saying. The youth looked a little crossed at the older man for interrupting him but it only lasted a few moments for his eyes caught the young woman who was standing to the side of him.
"Dilandau-sama, status report…" Miguel spoke into his headset as he flicked over some of the wires in the consul before him.
"….amn it, Gimuel watch where you fire! Huh? What was that Miguel?" Dilandau's voice came on the sound system in the middle of him yelling. There was a loud crackle from the sudden push of sound through them. The young general sound royally annoyed at something.
"Status report…"
"Status what? Damn it all Miguel I'm busy!"
"OOO! Dilly-kun has a potty mouth!" A female voice came on over the com.
"Feona? Get fuck off the Vione's line! Aren't you supposed to be finding the Duke?!"
"Potty mouth, Potty mouth!"
"FEONA!"
"Zahur, Dilly-kun has a bad potty mouth just like Nicole!" Miguel turned the line off just before the silver hair youth began to curse out the redheaded woman who had intercepted the Vione's secured line. It really did show how unsecured the secured line was at times. That seemed to lighten the mood of the young Mysticer as she tried to keep her face straight. Below the chaos of voices continued until someone started to shout over the others.
"Bravo Green has sighted Duke, Bravo Green requests action orders! I repeat, Bravo Green has sighted Duke, request of orders!" Has that time come already? Folken stepped forward passed the black haired woman to look down directly off the bridge. Things would pick up pace now.
"Iron General has given orders! All units, deceased on Duke! I repeat…" Things began to fly across the boards as those below him.
"Scherezade is disarmed!" The Asturia knight was here as well?
"The Duke has been killed! I repeat! The Duke of Freid is dead!" There was a sharp in draw of breath from Ayane as those words were repeated and confirmed by another part of the bridge. Folken touched the woman on the shoulder for a moment before looking back out onto the deck below him. Now it was only a matter of time. A few more moments passed by, just because the ruler of a country had died, it didn't mean the battle was over. The young prince of Fried could make the decision to continue this battle so that his father's death was not in vain. All one could hope for in this sense was that the child was not a big fan of wars.
"Strategoes!" Miguel's voice rang out over the others. Maroon eyes settled on the red head. "Word from the Prince of Freid! Freid is willing to surrender!" Voices started to stop calling out statistics as those words left the Dragonslayer's mouth. "On the condition that the Crusader is allowed to leave Freid air space without being followed or being harmed." Freid's surrender on the condition of the dragon's freedom; the young ruler was already making uneven trades. Not asking for the sparing of his soldiers? No regards to Freid's people? Folken frowned, the young boy was too naïve, the general's would take a quick advantage of that.
"Open the chancels! As of now, the Vione will take responsibility of all dealings with the surrender of Freid. All units return to respected fortresses. Cease all actions." Folken spoke out loudly, barely allowing the channels to be opened before he relied orders. "Miguel, tell Freid we accept all three terms of their surrender."
"Yes Sir!" Folken turned away from the bridge and started to walk out.
"There was only one…" Ayane's voice stopped him. He looked at her as she frowned at him. He smiled slightly, even though in this situation he shouldn't be able to find the ability to smile. What was he turning into?
"A four year old would not understand it, but the temple priests will. He asked for the well being of the Crusader, but not his own person or his people. He either over looked it, or thought that was what surrendering entitled. I'd rather not allow a young monarch to make that sort of mistake so early." Boy, did he sound like a big softly. Folken started to walk out again before Ayane said something else that only made him look at her again.
"Where are you going now?"
"To accept the young monarch's surrender, and the key to unlock Atlantis." He expected her to ask him what that was; though he wasn't sure he wanted to explain that right at the moment. Maybe at a later time, when things settled a bit; however there was a surprise she held as she turned to follow his out. No confusing or questions marked her face about what he had just said.
"Can I join you then?"
xXxXxXx
War was not a pretty thing; even the aftermath of it all made the action worse then the word. There was not much of an argument about her joining him. Actually somehow it had ended with Miguel coming with them as Folken's guard and Ayane as his aid. Well that worked out weirdly, Miguel had left his cane back aboard the ship ignoring her worried words about him not being able to walk well without it. The redhead just calmly stated that he didn't feel like using it. Ayane knew what it really was; his image was too fragile already, going out with that cane would only worsen it. They had gone down to the temple of Fortuna was more then just a small escort, when they reached ground they had been greeted by Tara and Zahur's platoons. The two had been left in charge of all ground movements. The first thing that Folken had done (not waiting for the four major generals to join him) was finish the surrender of the Fried monarch; which turned out to be a four year old blond haired blue eyed boy. How could someone so young have to take on the rule of caring for a county? All Ayane could do was stand behind the blue haired Strategoes and watch with Miguel as the young boy surrendered the key to Atlantis. This looked so much like what Dilandau had described, except he had been five, only a year difference then from the child before them. Would Zaibach give this one the same choice as it had the silver haired general?
Things began to pick up pace when the four generals arrive. Ayane decided even before the stern warning from Folken that she did not like the look of the four older men. They were not to kind in their tones with Folken, even though it was clear that Folken out ranked them in their chain of command. Maybe that was what displeased them? Was Folken stopping what would have created another child to join the already large group of Province children? If that was the true, Ayane found herself grateful for that, even though this whole war thing was not to her liking. Dilandau was not here, and as truth to part of his promise had returned to the Vione with orders from Folken to stay put. But orders could be broken, just as easily as promises. After the arrival of the generals, the young duke lead them to the chamber in which they were all now in. The grand doors took the child little effort to open, even though to Ayane it looked like they were designed to be opened by the giant machines called guymelefs. The door had a beautiful scenery design on it of some ancient city. A large tree loomed before all of it, but for the most part it looked to be a peaceful city. When the doors opened, pushed all the way opened by several of the guards who had a harder time opening the doors then the young duke, the light broke through the darkness of the enclosed room. Along the stonewalls were carved designs that could have been the language of the ancient civilization of the city on the doors. There was a stone walkway that extended out to a large circular platform in the middle of the circular room. A railing that came up to Ayane's hip lined the ends of the walkway and the platform to keep people from falling over the end to the darkness below. A head in the middle of the circular platform was a remarkable stone statue. A woman was knelt down on her small petal stool hands above her head as if to accept something. The thing that made the statue so remarkable to Ayane were the six wings that were almost completely folded around their master as if to incase the woman in a robe of feathers. Miguel touched her shoulder to keep Ayane from walking in any further. With silent eyes he made it clean that here just at the beginning of the circular platform was as far as they should go. Her gray eyes followed Folken as he walked to stand before the angel statue. Something was said between the four older men that were with them, causing a small chorus of laughs. Ayane looked away from them as Folken turned the 'key of Atlantis' downward to slide into the petal stool before the statue. Her eyes rested for a moment on the large bolder that hung by ropes just at the end of the circular platform. There was a strange sound of old joints grinding together to move, and a dim light shot up form below them. Taking hold of the railing to her right, Ayane looked down into light to see the glass octagon below, but before her eyes could focus enough to make out what was on it, the bolder slide down out of the ropes that had been holding it for ages and it plummeted down. The glass shattered allowing the light that had been behind to come up at full force. Ayane raised an arm to cover her eyes, but her vision was blinded into a dark shadow.
Everything was silent; there was no sound of the laughter from the four cold generals. No sound of the broken glass as it fell down after the fallen boulder. Just plain silence. Her arms fell down away from her face; Ayane looked out onto the stretch of sheer darkness. The stone room, the circular platform, all of it was gone. She was alone in this dark vision. Yes, this must be another vision. Ayane looked down at her hands, they were shaking strongly. But, she hadn't seen the reaper this time. So far her recent visions started with him. Inwardly Ayane sighed; this vision stuff was getting annoying. Huh? Ayane glared down at her hands, since when could she think and control her movements in a vision?
"Why have you come here?" Ayane wheeled around at the sound of a tired woman's voice. There, where had she still been in the stone room the statue of the six winged angel would be, sat a long dark haired woman upon nothing. In her lap was a small blond child curled up to her bosom. Steel-gray eyes burned into her own.
"Who are you……?" It was the only thing Ayane could think to say to her. The woman drew her hands around the sleeping child in her lap.
"I am nothing but a cursed sinner of the past, damn to spend my eternity guarding the desires of all…" She turned her head to the side as she looked at Ayane; the long black hair seemed to mix into the darkness around her. "Why are you here, child of Earth?"
"Earth?" Well now, if that wasn't something to be taken back by. Every time someone had said something about her home world, they called it the Mystic Moon, or the cursed moon but never had Ayane heard anyone call it Earth. "I…I wished myself here…"
"A…so it was you voice I heard…"The child in her arms grew restless, as if it was trying to wake up but couldn't. The woman's steel-gray eyes looked more tired and worn out then they had before when they looked away from Ayane to the child that lay in her arms.
"What's going on?"
"Don't you know? Or…" The woman looked back up at her and stopped. Maybe all she had to do was look up at her before she answered her own question. "You, child of the cursed world, are trapped in a moment of time."
"What?"
"The foolish ones have not listened to my warnings…and since I no longer have the ability to regenerate my body I had to go with my last resort…" The woman placed a hand onto the child's head to calm it. "Do you know child… what you are?"
"……………Yes."
"Then do you know why I ask? I cannot move, but I can move within another body. They do not know the power they unleash…" She stood up with a better hold on the child sleeping restlessly. The black rob floated gentle around her thin frame as she stood up. "Atlantis cannot be released once again on this world. Its power would only destroy it." After a moment, in which the silence filled the darkness again, the two looked upon on another. Both almost identical, and yet completely different; Ayane took a small step forward.
"Then use me as your vessel."
xXxXxXx
"Van-dono!" She was supposed to feel happy that the battle was finally over, and that the death and destruction had stopped. However, standing in the hanger as the sunset bathed everything in a warm gold, Aiko was everything but happy. Scherezade hadn't come back because of the damage that it had been dealt, but that's not what Aiko was worried about. The Escaflowne had arrived in the hanger not five minutes ago, and instantly went into the kneeling position. Aiko remembered rushing down; relief mixed with anger and maybe even a little happiness because it actually came back in one piece. The happiness and relief had vanished as soon as she saw the machine. In the fifteen minutes after the Escaflowne had arrived, it hadn't moved and it seemed that it was going to stay that way. The bad feeling that she had at the beginning of the battle increased ten times fold as Merle continued to call out his name. "Please, Van-dono! Answer me!"
"There's blood dripping from the cockpit…" Her eyes widened as Merle started shouting even louder.
"Van-dono!" Glaring at the machine, Aiko ran up to it, climbed up onto the knee, and stood in front of the energist chamber.
"Ok… I hope this works…" She gently placed her hand against the pink stone. The shocking cold made her gasp. At first, nothing happened, then there was a hiss, and the doors opened and the young king was flung out. It took a few moments for the shock to wear off: shock that it actually worked, and the shock that the young king was now laying still on the ground covered in blood.
"Van-dono!" Merle ran to his side, as Van struggled to get up. Aiko growled as she jumped down and ran to him.
"You Baka! Getting up isn't the smartest thing to do at the moment." He was covered in the crimson liquid, which took on a gold sheen as he continued to rise.
"I…can still…. fight…" He started to take a step towards the open hanger.
"What are you, an Idiot? You can barely walk let alone defend yourself against the soldiers…" Aiko ran in front, and tried to stop him. "You've done enough, Van. The battle is over."
"I… can… still fight." The young king didn't seem to be paying her much mind as he took another staggered step forward pushing against her. Blood dripped down along his face, from a wound that she could not see. Merle grabbed him from behind as Aiko continued to push him back. More forcefully, Aiko planted her feet down on the hanger floor, so that the young king could not take any more steps towards the hanger door. God only knew what the boy was thinking that he could do. Behind them, was the fallen temple of Fortuna, with more then seven times a hands count of fortresses. There was nothing back there that they could do, it was a fallen hope and a lost cause at this point. Shid did the only thing that he could do; hopefully they would get to see the blond haired and blue-eyed prince again. There was a sharp intake of breath from the pink haired cat that got Aiko's attention. The feline's eyes looked wide when the Mysticer look up at her and away from Van.
"No! Van-dono, don't!" Don't what? Aiko looked at the cat girl slightly confused. Van had stopped trying to go forward, so what was the feline freaking out. Following Merle's eyes, Aiko looked down at Van's back. The red shirt that boy always wore was expanding white feathers were starting to stick out from under it.
Draconians are a cursed kind. People don't…think of them to highly.
"Allen, don't! You're hurt!" Aiko snapped her head up to see the blond knight entering the hanger with the pink princess in tow. No, Van couldn't do this to himself. He had kept the secret of his for a reason. Even if she didn't understand what it was, if the cat girl was freaking out about it, then it probably wasn't a good thing. Behind them there was a loud sound, like rock being split. That sure stopped everything. Allen and Millerna stopped with some of the Crusader crew just waking out to the hanger. Merle looked away from her lord back to the fallen temple of Fried. With the two girls no longer concentrating on keeping him still Van pushed Aiko aside, the abrupt movement startled the young woman. It threw off her balance, and Aiko landed on the floor. Green eyes looked back at the young king as he staggered forward. It was amazing how slow moving everything can get when something you know is bad was about to happen. A white beam of light shot up from the temple of Fortuna, at that moment the red shirt Van had always been seen in was ripped to shreds as his wings extended. Aiko couldn't seem to find her voice to yell; she couldn't even hear Merle's cry or the commotion behind her. Pain, the pain that shot up along her spine as she stared out past Van to the beam of light that began to flicker out took all of her senses. Her vision blurred as the pain echoed in her skull.
"It seems the time has come once again, for the fate of all to be decided." The voice spoke in time with the pulsing pain in her head as her vision was almost entirely engulfed in darkness. The only thing that stayed was a thin line of what was left of the white beam of light from Fortuna. The pain in her spine died away as the line began to bend and take the shape of something else. Was this another damn vision? If it was, it was a little on the late side, all the bad stuff had already happened. It wasn't like it could get any worse now.
"Who has the right though? Who has the right to decide?" The voice sounded like a small child's voice. The beam of light took on the shape of a young woman in a strange uniform. A long white skirt flowed down to the ground covering her feet a black uniform jacket covered her upper torso, and broke at her waist and fell down the back. The long sleeves covered the woman's arm, which were wrapped around a small blond child that held on to her neck. The woman's face was hidden by short curly hair that fell around it, but that meant nothing. Aiko knew whom it was by the dark glowing pendent around her neck. Ayane, it was Ayane. Had her spirit found some spite in taunting her friend? But that little girl, short blond hair, white toga looking dress. That was a girl she had seen back in the room that held the power of Atlantis. Ayane lifted her head so that Aiko could see her gray eyes. They were empty, a void of emotions as she looked down at her. One hand unwrapped itself from around the little girl and turned to point down at down at Aiko. The little girl moved her head slightly so that her side of her little face could slightly be seen. The small childish lips moved even though the voice sounded more grown up then what the child looked to be. "Can you break the curse? Can you decide? Do you have the strength?"
xXxXxXxXx
Water poured down off his faces as the Alseides emptied out the warm liquid that filled the cockpit. All the muscles in his body were tired and sore. Taking a nice long hot bath sounded really good, but not as good as taking a nice long hot bath with someone to share it with. After beating or well trying to beat around little king wonder, Dilandau was really in the mood just to sleep in those soft arms again. It's amazing how fast you can miss something like that when you are use to sleeping alone. The young woman was better bed company then that little maid that used to entertain him. Even though, he hadn't even thought about doing that to the frail Mysticer just yet. There was something more the red-eyed warlord wanted then just that. With a push of a button under his left thumb the doors of the Alseides opened and the white haired lord was staring down into the face of a certain blond slayer, who by the way was not looking very happy.
Urge, did little king wonder make a few scores of his melef? The boy was fighting as if he had been possessed or something. Which by the way is really creepy after a night like he just had, and Feona wasn't helping much. The safety latch around his chest retracted and the red-eyed lord hoped down out of his melef. His eyes scanned the hanger for a few minutes to see if Ayane was there. Being ordered to stay really did make him angry, but her little fit this morning was a lot scarier to deal with then the Four Generals who were done right pissed at Folken. Let the blue haired baka deal with them breathing down his throat. A little pay back for what he tried to pull back in Fried with Miguel. Where the hell where they anyways?
"They went down with Lord Folken, Dilandau-sama…" Shesta said, pulling his red-eyes back to the blond standing in front of him. A towel was cast forgotten on one shouldered, and with in his hands what looked to be a telegraph. Dilandau frowned.
"What's the matter then?" Dilandau looked down at the white piece of paper. "Some asshole telling me to disregarded the Stratigoes' orders?"
"Well…..Something like that except it's from the Capital, sir…." Without another word Dilandau snatched the white paper from his hands and unfolded it to look down at the neat handwriting of the Vione's communication officer. It didn't matter who wrote it, Dilandau's eyes could still see the horrid smile that was hidden behind the faceless machine it came off of.
I have been hearing some bad things about you Dilly, and I don't think Folkie has been putting enough emphasize how important it is for you to capture that little dragon. Do you need some help from me, my little pet? Maybe I should come back out with you for a while, and get you back into shape, hum? It's been such a long time since I've been able to play with my favorite toys.
So my pet, how many slayers does it take to capture a single dragon?
Celena
Dilandau crumpled the letter in his hand with a slight shutter. Absentmindedly his empty hand stroked the scar on his cheek that seemed to burn with the anger he was now feeling. No way in hell was he going to have to put up with that wo- that THING. His red-eyes turned to look at the nerves slayer to his side. Blue eyes were cast away from their lord. No way in hell was he going to put his men through that torture again.
"Fuck Folken's orders! I want ever damn slayer I've got in the air in five!"
SD: Did I ever tell you just how evil you are?
GA1: busy taking care of sun burn Um, about three hundred times a day……
SD: Are you still hurting from that? Pokes sun burn
GA1: growls Hey! Your graduation was out in the freaking sun set! How was I supposed to know it would take you two hours! Mine was an hour and half!
O ya, go class of '06.
Edit: 07/29/07