Mulder felt the excitement rush through his veins. "You come from the Mystic Moon?"
"I come from Earth." Scully replied defiantly. "And as far as I know, we are on the Earth right now. This is all just some sort of –"
"This is the land of Gaea." Van cut in. "And if you truly do come from the Mystic Moon as you say you do, you are a long way from home."
Gaea? The Mystic Moon? What were these strange men talking about? She knew of no land named Gaea. "How can this be?" Scully muttered, shaking her head.
"It seems too impossible to believe" Van agreed. "But it must be. The Mystic Moon has never shone brighter in the sky than it is shining right now…"
"Don't you see?" Scully stiffened as Mulder grasped her shoulders. "The legends are true!"
"Legends?" Allen scoffed. "You don't mean the prophecy of the Genesis Method?"
Mulder's eyes held an unrelenting glint as he nodded. Scully noted the fervour of his beliefs. Whatever divination this man was referring to held great meaning to him.
Scully sighed. "What are you all talking about?"
"The one who will free Gaea from the reign of anarchy must come from the Mystic Moon."
"Reign of anarchy?"
"The Zaibach Empire." Mulder explained.
"I'm sorry, but I don't have any idea what you are talking about. I don't know any Zaibach Empire. Maybe this is all just some dream." Scully rationalized.
"This isn't a dream." Van assured her. "This is Gaea."
"I…" She was at a loss for words. How could any of this possibly be true?
"Please, Ms. Scully, you need to come with us. You can help us, I am sure of it." Mulder pleaded.
Scully closed her eyes in concentration. Could what he was speaking be fact? Had she not just envisioned the dragon's attack moments before? Had she not been having strange flashes to such a strange land all of her life? Had she not already seen each and every one of their faces before in her dreams?
But how did any of it make even an iota of sense?
"I'm not sure that I can help you." Scully said reservedly. "But I have nowhere else to go. I have to find some way to get home."
Allen nodded. "I do not agree with Mulder's 'legends'" He began. "But as a knight Caeli it is my duty to ensure that you remain under our protection."
"We will help you get back home, Scully." Van agreed. "But first we must return to Fanelia. Escaflowne must finally be released."
Scully nodded in vague understanding. Her heart began to beat faster but she pushed the feeling away. She ignored the fact that the name Escaflowne sounded familiar to her ears.
"Van-sama, there you are!" Merle rejoiced. "And you defeated the dragon." She added, noticing the drag-energist that he held in his hands.
Merle closed her eyes as Van patted her head. "You brought another outsider. Is she a mercenary too, like the kitsune?" She asked without opening her eyes.
"No." Allen replied. "She is not a mercenary."
"She is from the Mystic Moon." Van clarified.
Merle pulled away from Van, staring intently at Scully. "Oh." She said softly.
Scully squirmed under Merle's gaze. A bizarre cat-girl was looking at her as if she had two heads? The situation was laughable, but Scully was too wound up to appreciate any ironies. She wondered if the rest of Gaea was as welcoming.
"Where is everyone?" Scully asked instead, noticing the bare kingdom of Fanelia.
"In position." Van did not meet her gaze. "There are very few soldiers left since the last attack. They are waiting for the inevitable return of Zaibach."
"And waiting for their king to return." Allen spoke up. "Waiting for you to unleash Escaflowne."
Van nodded. "Let's go, Allen."
Scully sat awkwardly on the ledge of a brick wall, avoiding Mulder's scrutinizing stare. She had been left alone with the least sane person that she had met so far. She would have rather taken her chances with the cat-girl.
Yet something about Fox Mulder intrigued her. His over-zealous demeanour was compelling, almost as endearing as it was intimidating.
"None of this is real." Scully began abruptly.
Mulder shot her a look. "Do I seem like an illusion to you?"
"No." She admitted. "But dragons, knights, the Earth hanging in the sky…"
"Why is it so hard for you to believe?" He countered in frustration. "I have seen things that I cannot deny, things that only myths speak of. If priests can call upon the Gods for our salvation why is it impossible for us to believe that the deliverance will one day reach us?"
Scully briefly touched the pendant of the cross that hung around her neck. "That's not how it works on Earth."
"You do not believe in miracles?"
She had always assumed that she did. She had been raised on tales of liberation and hope. But she herself was no miracle. No matter what Mulder believed, she knew that much.
"Fox…"
"Call me Mulder." He smiled.
"Right."
"Mulder…" Scully started again. "What exactly is it that you are fighting for?"
The question held so much weight. What was he fighting for? What were any of them fighting for? Their freedom. Their loved ones. The future. There was so much at stake.
"My sister Samantha was taken from me. The Zaibach Empire abducted her, but I am going to bring her back home."
Scully's hand found its way to his shoulder. It was the second time in his life that he had encountered such compassion and understanding; Mulder revelled in the sympathy of a complete stranger.
"I don't know if anything that you say is true. But I want to help you, I really do." She gave a shuddering sigh. "I don't think that I can, but I will try."
"That is all I ask."
Van, Merle and Allen were steadfast in their reverence of the hallowed halls of the ancient Fanelia sanctuary. Very few had ever stepped foot through these blessed walls.
"How do we know that we can trust that woman?" Van asked solemnly. "Could she really be from the Mystic Moon?"
Merle touched his arm gently. "The scent of the Mystic Moon seeps from every inch of her skin. She is not from here, Van-sama."
Van nodded. "But can we –"
"Scully saved your life, Van." Allen interjected. "It is because of her that you are now holding that drag-energist in your hands."
Van sighed, bowing his head, yet squaring his shoulders. He had to fulfill his duties, whether a woman from the Mystic Moon had fallen from the skies or not.
He used the blade of his sword to slice a small cut into his finger. His blood mixed vigorously with the orb as he grasped it. Van held the drag-energist high above his head as the blood flowed.
"I, Van Fanel, new king of Fanelia, bind myself by blood pact to thee, Escaflowne. Thou sleeping dragon, awake!"
A crash of light flooded the hidden sanctum as wind whipped vigorously through their hair. The graceful white guymelef fell from the sky, kneeling in place before Van as its cape settled gently behind it.
Van jumped into action, standing face-to-face with the ruby-coloured encasement of the warrior suit. Without hesitation he placed the drag-energist into its rightful position. The heart began to beat ominously as Escaflowne came to life.
The melef opened up and Van made his way inside. It had been years since anyone had piloted the legendary Escaflowne. Van felt the aged suit spring to life with each strained step. It had been retired for a long time, but its vitality was still dormant, waiting for Van to utilize it. It fed off of his passion.
With Escaflowne Van knew that he would be able to win the battle against Zaibach. He had to. They had taken everything from him…
The glorious high walls had been robbed of their pride and their elegance. Debris scattered as smoke and ash unceremoniously erupted. Destruction devoured the entire kingdom like the rain-fires of hell. Bodies of soldiers were strewn haphazardly; no screams were heard. It was an affront to the great legacy of Fanelia.
There was not a single enemy in sight.
Mulder and Scully watched in horror as the kingdom in the distance fell before their eyes, despite Fanelia appearing to be completely deserted.
"What's going on?" Scully's voice was shrill.
"I – I…"
They sensed the impending carnage inch closer and closer towards the outskirts of the kingdom. Closer to them. How would they be able to protect themselves against an invisible enemy?
Mulder clenched his teeth and unsheathed the katana he was still carrying. He moved in front of Scully, shielding her from the opponents that he could not see.
Scully clutched her head suddenly, falling to her knees. She let out a piercing shriek.
"Scully!"
The unseen intruders caught Mulder in his moment of distraction, slicing through his sword and shattering it into pieces.
"It's not like I was any good with it anyway." Mulder grunted, pulling out his revolver. As if any type of weaponry could make a difference. He was fighting blind.
"No!" Scully shouted out insistently. "A gun won't do any good!"
"What are you saying? How do you know that?"
Without warning he felt his body being pushed back violently; he slammed hard into the ground.
"Mulder!" She rushed to his side.
He regained his composure, a hard look in his eyes. "I am fine, Scully. But how do you know that my revolver will not injure the enemy?"
She trembled slightly, refusing to look him in the eye.
"I can see them."
And the enemy was advancing.
He needed no further explanation. Mulder grabbed an abandoned sword that had scattered near his feet and lunged back into battle.
Dana Scully would have to give him her sight.
Van moved hurriedly in Escaflowne as he rushed to the scene, but he was certain that he was already too late. Merle scampered behind him, tears streaking her eyes. Fanelia was burning to the ground.
"No…" Van whispered once he finally reached the outlying walls. They had all but crumbled. His home, his family, his people. Nothing remained.
All that was left was for Zaibach to take his life.
"Van! To your right!" A voice cried out, but Van did not hear it. His mind, his heart and his soul were too far gone.
Allen gracefully struck out with his sword, knocking back an unseen force.
Van snapped out of his reverie and noticed Mulder and Scully running towards them. They had survived. And somehow the one from the Mystic Moon could sense the invisible soldiers. Her eyes were wide with panic, astonishment and determination. And they were filled with visions that Van had no choice but to believe in.
"We're outnumbered." Scully declared fearfully. "There are too many of them."
Each of their faces fell and Scully had never been more frightened in her whole life. These men had fought dragons and wielded swords as if it was child's play. If they were afraid then she was beyond terrified.
All she wanted was for the five of them to stay safe. To stay alive.
Yet the army was approaching, their seemingly endless numbers multiplying.
As this thought filled Scully's over-exerted mind she was shocked to see her view flooded by white light, blocking the strange enemies from her sight.
And then everything went black.