Author's Note: I am so sorry. Lol, I am sorry to start off my author's note like that, but I am. This chapter is 20 pages long. I suppose I could have taken out the opening scene, but it amused me too much lol. I hope you guys can bear with this chapter, and I promise to do a better job at breaking up the following chapters :). Thank you for all of your wonderful reviews! Ok... let me quit rambling. Here is Chapter 24. Oh, let me warn you that it gets a bit weird near the end because of all the perspective flips. Ok...I'll shut up now and let you read. I hope you like it. Reviewer responses are at the end!
P.S.: This is Monday's update, but wouldn't let me log in honest Nikku :)
Chapter 18
Gatty pushed the young village girl away from him with a polite smile. "No Astrid." The bubbly dark-haired girl didn't give up at that and tried to force herself into his lap again, landing a sloppy kiss on his cheek. Her lips and tongue were hot and her breath reeked of alcohol.
Gods... Where was her mother? She had to be-what?- 12?
"Astrid!" Dallet seized the girl under the arms and hauled her off Gatty before her hands could weasel their way under his shirt. "You should be ashamed of yourself! What will your mother think? Who gave you wine?"
Astrid kicked at Dallet futilely and wailed pitifully, looking to Gatty for help that wasn't coming.
"Get going!" Dallet tossed her aside, glaring at her as she lingered a bit before stumbling back to her giggling girlfriends who stood in a cluster by the fire.
The villagers were throwing a celebration in honor of Mayor Pointellier's birthday, but it seemed the guest of honor was not really the birthday boy. Everyone gravitated toward the Slayers, pouring them wine and serving them food. A large bonfire had been lit in the center of town and the people danced and swayed around it. Viole had joined in and had dragged a protesting Miguel along with him.
After a few drinks, Miguel had loosened up though and was dancing as freely as Viole. The village wine was no joke; Lord Dilandau's eyes had crossed after a single sip and he hadn't touched his mug since.
Gatty looked to Miguel who had his arms wrapped around one of the older village ladies, whirling her around to the loud folk music being played by flute, drum, and banjo. Were they ever going to have fun teasing him in the morning.
"This is nuts," Dallet said to Gatty. "I've never seen everyone so fired up."
"There has never been a celebration like this before?" Gatty asked curiously.
Dallet shook his head. "We had parties, but not like this. I guess... well, we never had anything to be happy about celebrating. The Mayor's birthday? Come on. Who cares? But... now there are war heroes."
Gatty smiled. "I don't think we're that interesting, Dallet."
Dallet rolled his eyes. "It's more interesting than tending to pigs and chasing goats. Just seeing us walk through town with our swords is excitement enough for them, so the part with us blasting off in high tech guymelefs is practically orgasmic. We're bringing down Gaea's most dreaded enemy from the comfort of their own homes and they've got front row seats."
Gatty laughed loudly. "Well, if you put it that way..." Someone topped off their mugs with more of the dark wine and Gatty grimaced. He smiled at the man who poured it and casually took his mug and watered the ground with more than half of it behind his back. After the first sip had burned the hair off his tongue and scoured his esophagus, he wisely chose not to drink anymore.
"What the hell's in this stuff?" The poor patch of grass he'd fertilized was starting to wilt.
Dallet shrugged, but Gatty noticed he hadn't drunk a drop of his brew either. "I wish Miguel and Guimel would lay off it. They're going to be sick tomorrow and we're supposed to be working on our next mission."
"Don't worry about them," Gatty said, pointing to Guimel who had been lounging, letting a gaggle of busty village girls attend to him, being rounded up by an irritated looking Shesta. Then he nodded to Miguel who was being extracted from his dance by Lord Dilandau and Viole.
"Guess that means party's over for us," Dallet chuckled.
"Think it will last much longer without us?" Gatty asked.
Dallet patted his back. "Gatty, everyone's drunk, even the kids. They'll dance until they drop long after we go to bed. Come on. I bet no one will even notice us leaving."
"She was so beautiful. You've interrupted my dance with my future mate..." Miguel was whining.
"You won't say that in the morning," Viole snorted. "Just wait until you dry up, man."
"Guys, a little help here!" Shesta was grunting under Guimel's dead weight. The curly headed boy had fallen into a deep slumber, snoring loudly as his body sagged into Shesta's, head resting on his shoulder.
Lord Dilandau and Viole blinked at the picture Shesta and Guimel made, before laughing hysterically and leading Miguel off to the room he and Viole shared.
"Hey!" Shesta called after them in outrage. "Assholes!"
"Shesta!" Gatty clambered into the house followed by Dallet, both looking thoroughly amused. "Did you just call our captain an asshole?"
"Did you see what they did?" Shesta demanded, staggering under Guimel's weight.
Gatty and Dallet guffawed loudly, letting Shesta know that they had seen.
"I'm going to go get some water; you want some Gatty?" Dallet was heading for the kitchen, smirking at Shesta.
Shesta growled and unceremoniously let Dallet's partner tumble to the floor with a loud smack. Everyone stared at the floor where Guimel laid. The fluffy-headed blond let out a loud snore and curled up like a cat around a ball of yarn.
"He's gonna feel that in the morning," Gatty remarked, stepping over Guimel and entering the kitchen after Dallet.
Shesta gave Guimel a tiny kick to see if he could rouse him. When he received no signs of consciousness from the other, he gave up. Dallet had poured five cups of water and set them on the small kitchen table.
"Five?" Gatty raised an eyebrow then "ah"'ed as Viole and Lord Dilandau came into the kitchen, going straight for the freshly filled glasses.
"What the hell was in that wine, Dallet? I tried to drink it to be nice, but gah!" Viole gulped his water down like someone dying of thirst.
Once again, Dallet shrugged. "I don't ask; no one does."
"What are we going to do with Guimel and Miguel in the morning? Something tells me they are going to be totally useless," Shesta sighed. "We shouldn't have agreed to go to the party. I knew it was a bad idea."
Lord Dilandau shook his head. "We were obligated to go. If you hadn't noticed, though the party was supposed to be for the mayor, it was really unofficially for us. I didn't see anyone serve Pointellier one damn thing, whereas I had people ready to peel fruit and feed it to me."
"You too?" Viole grinned. "Did you let them?"
Lord Dilandau made a face.
"Yeah, me either. Who knows where their hands had been?" Viole shrugged and Dallet slugged him lightly.
"You're beginning to sound more and more like Miguel."
Viole's eyes widened. "Moi?"
"Oh, he's not starting to sound like Miguel; he's starting to sound like himself. Viole, it's time to come out of the closet."
"What...are...you...talking...about...Gatty?" Viole stared at Gatty, looking a bit dangerous.
Gatty actually took a step back at the look on his face. "You're a snob. Face it. Your good breeding and rich background are finally starting to surface."
Viole blinked, his face going from confused, to embarrassed, to amused in the span of three seconds. "Oh.... oh!"
"What did you think he meant by that, Viole?" Lord Dilandau asked, sitting in a chair and putting his elbows on the table, placing his chin onto his clasped hands. "The look on your face right then certainly was interesting."
Viole chuckled. "I thought he was making inferences about my sexuality or something."
Gatty nearly fell over as Lord Dilandau, Shesta, and Dallet hooted with laughter, Dallet beating the table with his palms.
"So, I'm a snob. Nothing wrong with that." Viole stuck his nose high into the air. "Don't we have some business to discuss?"
Viole trying to change the subject made them laugh even harder.
"Seriously guys! I didn't spend all day drawing blueprints for nothing!"
"Oh, so you were drawing blueprints for our mission. That whole time I thought you were drawing more plans for Miguel's private bath. That's why Guimel and I kept bothering you," Dallet snickered.
Viole made a crude gesture and ran a hand through his tangled hair, grimacing when his hand got stuck. "Fine, fine, make fun of me. I'll just go toss my plans in the bonfire out there and get drunk like Miguel and Guimel."
Viole stood with his arms folded over his chest until his friends kindly stopped laughing at him. "Are you guys sure you didn't drink more of that wine than you said?"
Lord Dilandau was the one to stop their mirth. "All right, all right, enough of that. Like Viole said, we have business to attend to."
Everyone took a seat at the table and gazed at Lord Dilandau attentively, moving their water glasses from the table to their laps so Lord Dilandau could spread out the maps he and Viole updated frequently with large red X's every time they demolished a facility. "Four glasses, one on each corner."
Gatty, Dallet, Shesta, and Viole placed their glasses on the four corners of the map to keep it from rolling back up. Lord Dilandau peered down at the map and placed his finger on a location in a mountainous region. "This is Keep Copernicus. Dornkirk keeps his own personal collection of writings here. I don't know if it holds anything important to Zaibach in there, but I know it'll royally piss Emperor Dumbshit off if we burn it up. Shouldn't be too hard. Zaibach's expecting us to hit some more of the weapons keeps and fortresses, so this place will be a sleeper."
"Should we leave the old units behind then and just take the Silvers out?" Gatty asked. "It'll save us some resources."
No one wanted to say anything, but Alseides didn't run on water and fuel was getting scarce.
Lord Dilandau frowned. "I don't want to run into any unexpected surprises unprepared, but you are right about the resource issue. That's something else we need to discuss."
"We can probably knock up a base just for fueling purposes," Shesta suggested.
Lord Dilandau frowned at this. "They may be waiting for us to do just that. They don't know where our base of operation is, but they do know that we need fuel and that Alseides don't run on the same stuff as other guymelefs."
"Too bad Folken isn't with Zaibach anymore. I bet he would have found a way to get us some," Viole sighed, running his fingers along the edges of the map absently.
Gatty glanced quickly at Lord Dilandau, wanting to see if he would give any reaction at the mention of Folken's name. Lord Dilandau looked thoughtful.
"Well... At least we know he isn't in danger of being hung for treason aboard a Zaibach fortress anymore," Shesta said softly. "I worried about that a lot, you know? He really put himself out on the line for us... for you, Lord Dilandau."
"Where do you think he went?" Dallet pondered aloud. "He couldn't have gone back to Fanelia. That place is dust. You know, I've been wondering how he could have ordered us to attack that place, his homeland. I mean, this place is nothing special, but I'd never willingly let anyone burn it down."
Lord Dilandau shrugged. "What Folken does is his business and as for where he went... I believe that he could find us if he really wanted to and would only do so if he really needed us. I say we let it go until then."
"You think we'll hear from him?" Shesta asked.
Lord Dilandau gave a wry smile. "I wouldn't put it out of mind."
"Great... then we can tell him to bring us more fuel," Viole said.
"So when did you want to launch this attack?" Gatty asked, stealing a sip of Lord Dilandau's water since he wasn't drinking it, and it wasn't being used as a paperweight like his was.
Lord Dilandau blinked at his actions before answering. "Well, I wanted to do it tomorrow, but Guimel and Miguel may not be up to it. I wanna make sure they're good and sober before we head out." He stopped to smile sadistically and Gatty shivered. Poor Miguel and Guimel.
"How about the morning after then?" Shesta proposed.
"Yes, that sounds good."
"So what's this region like? Has anyone been there?" Dallet leaned in to study the map, frowning at the mountains and valleys stenciled in.
"I have. It's not so bad," Viole said, "if you subtract the fact that my mother and sisters live there."
"Viole, this is where you were spawned? Oh-ho- this place we gotta see!" Dallet clapped his hands. "Is everyone there as cooky as you are?"
Viole stuck his tongue out at Dallet. "For your information, I'm the normal one."
"Oh gods! Are we sure we want to go there, Lord Dilandau?" Shesta looked a trifle alarmed and Gatty snickered.
"I'm sure we'll be ok," Lord Dilandau chuckled; he then stared at Gatty who was finishing his water. "Gatty, you are aware that was my water, right?"
Gatty nodded, setting down the empty glass. "You can have mine." He smiled cheekily as Lord Dilandau gave him the oddest little look. In the old days, he wouldn't have dared it. Lord Dilandau would have knocked his head off and stomped on it when it rolled across the floor and stopped at his feet. That odd look would have been deciphered as: Run like the wind. Now it was simply: I'm borderline amused.
"Gross, Gatty germs," Viole gasped. "Don't do it, Lord Dilandau! You'll be contaminated!"
With a smirk Lord Dilandau took Viole's nearly full glass of water and downed it. "There. Satisfied?"
Viole sputtered in mock indignation as his friends laughed at him...again.
"I suppose I should be happy that you guys finally developed a sense of humor," Viole said, trying not to smile while fighting back the need to join in on the laughter.
Lord Dilandau patted Viole on the back sympathetically, though it would have seemed more sympathetic if he wasn't laughing.
Viole couldn't resist any longer. He laughed with his friends and drank down Shesta's water, causing him to drink Dallet's and Dallet to drink Gatty's.
"If Zaibach could see us now, what would they think?" Gatty asked, wiping his eyes.
"They would probably think we've all lost it."
"I think we have, but you know? I think having 'it,' is overrated." Viole shrugged.
"Well you've never had 'it,' so how would you know?" Shesta quipped.
"Hey now..."
"What is 'it?'" Dallet asked with a frown.
Taking one look at the confused look on Dallet's face made the group break into hysterics again and everyone gave up on the prospect of carrying on any more serious conversation for the night.
Van's life officially stunk. His bastard of a brother, Folken, had come to his senses as Van understood it and joined the good guys, and Hitomi was with Allen. The latter didn't bother him as much, mainly because Hitomi with Allen kept her from annoying him, but by the gods did the walking icon of handsome, courtly fashion always have to get everything he wanted?
He growled in his throat as he sat in front of the Escaflowne, pretending to be doing maintenance work. He was really keeping an eye on Folken who was below conferencing with Astorian diplomats, but no one had to know that.
So far Astoria had welcomed his brother with open arms. They were ecstatic to have an ex-Zaibach official on their side as highly esteemed as Folken had been. He brought with him Zaibach plans and schematics as well as a red-haired, woman doctor skilled in things most countries had never heard of and a stiff-backed soldier whom Van was sure ate little kids for breakfast.
Van wished he could be as welcoming as Astoria to his brother. So Folken was no longer the bad guy, but the facts that he'd abandoned the family and had Fanelia destroyed still remained. Van didn't think he'd ever be able to look past that. He was barely civil to Folken, only speaking to him when words were needed, words like "move," and phrases like "pass the bread."
Van's eyes widened when he realized Folken was gazing at him. Bastard. Who told him he could look up here? Van turned his head and went back to looking busy. Maybe he was being a brat. He'd spent years wishing Folken would miraculously return and now there he was, and Van was snubbing him. Didn't he have things he wanted to ask Folken's advice on? He needed a big brother at this point, but his... Van sighed, breath sifting through his black hair like a breeze.
But then again... The thing Van wanted to ask about... The feelings, the person... Folken would have first hand knowledge on it-- him.
Why hadn't Folken brought Dilandau with him instead of Stiff-Back and Red? Van might have been less hesitant to overlook his past mistakes and more obvious flaws, if Folken had gifted him with the silver-haired god. But then, what would Van have done if Folken had summoned him to the remains of Fanelia and appeared before him with not just Red and Stiff-Back, but the God of Silver too? What would he say to him if he had to see him on a daily basis? And more importantly, Dilandau didn't usually travel alone. What if he brought Avenger with him? Avenger would lop off his head, both of them.
Everything was always so complicated for Van.
He looked down again to see that Folken and the other officials had gone and Hitomi was wandering toward his mecha without her precious Heavenly Knight.
Great.
Maybe she hadn't seen him...
"Van!"
Van's life stunk, stunk, STUNK!
"Give him time, Folken; he'll come around now that he's sure you're not going anywhere and you're on his side." Marie said, taking a small sip of lemonade and grimacing at its tartness. "This needs more sugar."
Folken frowned at Marie who appeared to be perfectly relaxed and maybe even enjoying herself in their new settings.
They'd been in Astoria a few days and had been given the only best lodgings and treatment from the nobles and servants. Didn't these people realize they were from Zaibach? If they didn't, Folken certainly wasn't going to remind them, but still...
They sat in the courtyard in folding chairs, Marie drinking lemonade and eating cookies while Folken and Pearce drank wine.
"I think they're being a little too trusting," Pearce said, swirling his wine around as if checking for poison.
"They're desperate," Marie said thickly, swallowing a mouthful of cookie. "These people will take what they can get, and if they want to butter us up while getting it, I'm not complaining. The heir apparent is putting me in charge of the medical staff. He wants me to train them all accordingly and I can have anything I wish at my disposal, all I need do is ask. I do believe he was being a little flirt, but the guy has a lot of stuff."
Pearce scowled. "Isn't a princess enough for him?"
"Apparently not," Marie said with a wave of her hand. "But who knows, maybe he's sick of blonds. Red-heads are coming into season and he wants to pick from the creme of the crop."
Both Folken and Pearce snorted.
"You're just jealous because no one's offered you anything overly interesting yet," Marie wrote them off.
"What do you think of the Astorian forces, Pearce? You've assessed them by now, I'm sure." Folken looked to Pearce.
Pearce raised a blond eyebrow, his pale eyes grim. "They're poorly trained and their weapons are obsolete compared to what we've worked with in Zaibach. They won't stand a chance unless some of the other countries they are teaming up with have better equipment, and I'm not sure that they do."
Folken shook his head. "Not that I know of. So I'll get to work designing better melefs for Astoria, and Pearce, maybe you can help in retraining the soldiers."
Pearce didn't look happy. "They need a lot of work, sir. I don't know if I could accomplish that task."
Marie ate her last cookie and looked at the two men on either side of her thoughtfully. "I think there's someone who may be able to help us in that regard."
"Who?" Pearce asked. "Sir Allen or Lord Van?"
"No." Marie shook her head. "Someone else, someone we all know and have all wanted to spank at least once."
Pearce rolled his eyes and Folken set down his empty wine glass.
"Dilandau?"
"Of course," Marie nodded. "He's perfect. He can train anything. I saw some of his Slayers when they first joined his ranks-pitiful, but he made them all into soldiers that can stand in, in place of a small army on the battlefield."
"They didn't stand up very well to the soldiers on the Vione," Pearce couldn't help but point out and both Marie and Folken glared at him.
"That was a dirty fight in close quarters. If that battle had taken place elsewhere and they'd been given ample time to prepare for it, I bet they'd have won. And how do you explain all of the damage they are doing to Zaibach right now with only six men? Luck? No. They're good."
"What if he doesn't want to; what if he's not up to the challenge?" Folken asked. "He may very well help us because I asked him to, but training an army such as this one is a very large task. He'll push himself harder than what he can handle."
Marie ran both hands through her hair, tugging a bit. "Folken, I don't see what else we can do. Zaibach must be defeated and the only way that can happen is if we gather all of our resources together. I don't see how joining forces with us is going to make Dilandau any worse. I imagine the stress of what he's doing now is eating him up. At least here, he'll have more supplies, more men, and us. I didn't like his cell counts, when I checked him last, and I bet they are even more horrific now. Even if we don't call him in to help with the military, he still needs to come to us for treatment. We can start looking for possible donors for transfusions or transplants among the soldiers, nobles, and common people of Astoria without anyone questioning our actions as they would have in Zaibach."
"But we don't have the same facilities..."
"So we build them," Marie shrugged. "Either way, I don't see that we have a choice in calling Dilandau and his men to us. They need help, we need help, and we're all good friends."
Pearce finished his wine and Folken looked heavenward. There was no arguing with Marie. The woman was always right.
Calling Dilandau did sound logical. They were allies once again fighting the same enemy; why not be side by side? The center of operations was in Astoria and that was where the Dragonslayers ought to be. Besides, Folken was sure they were running out of blueprints and on their last few dregs of fuel.
It wouldn't hurt to ask, and Dilandau owed him one.
Folken had never intended to make use of Dilandau's offer of service, but he had also never intended to leave Zaibach either.
"We'll have to present the idea to Dryden and the other officials."
"Yes, and I'm sure they'll go along with whatever you say," Marie nodded.
"And then we have to find, Dilandau," Folken said. "That will be the hard part."
"Not if the three of us put our heads together, gentlemen. Come on, get up. We've got work to do. Pearce and I will start looking for possible places the Dragonslayers may have set up camp, and you, Folken dear, can start preparing for your announcement."
Marie was on her feet and already walking away, leaving Pearce and Folken to stare after her.
"Maybe we should have gotten some of that lemonade too. It was certainly stronger than this vino," Pearce said flatly and Folken made a soft noise in agreement.
"Oh my gods... that was the worst mission I have ever been on in my life," Miguel was groaning. "And why...why...why did we have to come back to this godsforsaken place with no running water..." He retched again and Dilandau rubbed his back.
They were under a large tree a few steps away from where they had parked their Alseides. The destruction of Decartes had been a by-the-book affair that hadn't taken more than a few hours. Miguel and Guimel could have been left behind to recuperate, but Dilandau wanted to teach them a little lesson about drinking unknown substances the night before a job.
A day hadn't been enough to detox the two hung-over soldiers, though Guimel was faring much better than Miguel. He either hadn't drunk as much or had better tolerance. Miguel gasped for air, sputtering more angry curses concerning everything under the sun and above it as well. Dilandau rolled his eyes.
"No one told you to get drunk, Miguel."
"They kept pouring..." Miguel groaned. "And that woman... oh gods, I almost... and what if she..."
Dilandau rested a hand on Miguel's back as he heaved again and raised an eyebrow at Viole who had wandered over, holding a glass of water. "I'll take care of him now, Lord Dilandau. Sorry I took so long. There were no clean glasses in the kitchen and I couldn't remember which one Miguel had used. I didn't want to hear his complaints, so I washed one."
Dilandau nodded; perfectly understandable. "But Viole, I've seen you wash..."
"I'll tell him Shesta washed it," Viole said dutifully. "Do you need help up?"
Dilandau was sitting with his legs straddled in front of him. He had his back to the squatting Miguel, but could easily feel for the other boy to offer him some comfort. He wanted to lie back in the grass and shut his eyes; he was starting to see green and silver sparkles. "I'll stay here. You can take him away though."
"It's too hot," Viole said, setting the glass in the grass. "Come on milord, you're getting up." Dilandau scowled and tried to move away from Viole as he tried to grab him under the arms and boost him up.
"Hey Gatty, come watch Miguel for a minute. Make sure he doesn't spew his intestines," Viole called over his shoulder. Dilandau relented to Viole's insistent tugging and helped himself to stand, leaning heavily on Viole as he was struck with a sudden dizzy spell.
He hated the first few hours after returning from missions. Folken and Marie's concoction burned in his veins, trying to combat his body's natural overreaction. The ongoing battle was painful and disorienting and... "How much can you carry, Viole?"
"Oh crud! Hey, Gatty...never mind watching Miguel. Take Lord Dilandau from me!"
The change of hands was confusing, but he felt himself resting against stronger shoulders in the end. "This one's really bad."
He could have slapped Gatty for stating the obvious, but he couldn't quite figure out where his hands were. If he still had hands... He was pretty sure he did. Someone would have said something if they had fallen off somewhere.
"I got him, Dallet; go somewhere!"
Next thing he knew, he was resting against something soft and someone was tucking a pillow under his head. The surface was too small to be a bed, so he must have been on one of the couches. It was a bit cooler in the living room.
"Ok, what do you think you need?"
Shesta.
He opened his eyes a crack to peer at the concerned blond. "I don't know this time."
Last time all he had needed was a few apples and a bottle of seltzer water to make him feel halfway decent again. He had no cravings for anything right then.
"Well, just be still for a bit and maybe something will come to you."
"Oh my gods...why does this place smell like food?" Guimel's voice was grumbling from somewhere. Dilandau could hear the front door closing and many feet plodding in different directions.
"Lunch is here or dinner; however you want to think of it," Viole announced. "Come on Guimel, just try some...OW!"
"Guimel don't hit Viole!" Miguel snapped, outraged.
"Miguel... you're standing up for me?"
"It's my turn to hit him!" Miguel clarified for anyone who was confused.
"Ow!"
Dilandau shifted his position a bit, willing himself to fuse with the plush cushions of the couch. A nap, that was what he needed.
"Lord Dilandau!"
Shit.
"Give it to me, Dallet..." Shesta was hissing.
"But it's a message from Folken!"
"What?"
Dilandau opened his eyes completely and struggled to sit up. He felt a steadying hand behind his back give him the boost he needed to be upright. He covered his eyes with one hand to orient himself with his new position then looked at Dallet expectantly.
"I was running shut down diagnostics on your Oreades when the message came through. I probably should have written it down, but it came up so fast. At first, I thought the enemy had hacked our systems like we've hacked theirs... but, I'm sure it's Folken. The trace I ran on the message says it came from Astoria. Anyway, Folken is not sure of our whereabouts exactly and didn't ask. He, and Dr. Marie, and that personal guard guy, Pearce, have joined Astorian forces against Zaibach, and he wants us to become a part of the movement as well. Seems the army there is lacking."
Dilandau laughed disdainfully then gasped in pain at the head rush he received. "I hope the rest of the Astorian forces don't look as ridiculous as Allen Schezar's men. By the gods... We could have walked into the castle that night."
"We did," Shesta snickered.
"Why would he go to Astoria of all places?" Dallet scratched his head. He sat on the floor with his back to the cushion Dilandau occupied. "Why not Basram or Godashim?"
"Think about it, Dallet. His dear brother King Fanel is good friends with Sir Allen Schezar. Van has no one else to lodge with, so of course he's probably with Allen..."
"Who lives in Astoria," Dallet finished lamely. "Why would Folken want to join his brother? I think it's pretty clear the kid doesn't like him much."
"Doesn't mean Van hates him," Dilandau muttered. "Folken probably figures he still has a chance to reconcile with Van. He... he's trying to make amends to everyone he cares about that he's hurt with his actions in Zaibach."
Folken, you're a soft-hearted idiot.
Dallet snorted. "Well...good luck with that, Folken."
"Are we going to go?" Shesta asked. He had moved from the arm chair he was keeping vigil with Dilandau in over to the arm of the couch. He touched the side of Dilandau's face with curled knuckles and frowned lightly.
Dilandau scowled. Should they go? He assessed their current situation mechanically. They had good lodgings, good food, their location was unknown, the locals were friendly and more than willing to help out. On the other hand, their resources were running low, the locals were friendlybut untrained in military procedures, everyday they were in the village they chanced the safety of it, and... he was running out of game plans. He was quickly approaching his last map and the last of his Zaibach knowledge. He didn't feel his fight was over yet, though. Folken would give him a whole new objective.
And...
And he would like to work with Folken again. He missed driving the man nuts.
"It would mean that we go on fighting. Our current plans have us finishing our ultimate mission in two more attacks. We can stop after that, if you wish. Do you want to keep fighting? It's not my decision to make for you."
"I'm a soldier," Dallet said flatly. "I fight. It's my job. What else would I do? And there is no way I'm staying here for the rest of my life."
"So you can venture out..."
"But what chance would I stand without a name, a reputation? I vote we go," Dallet said with a nod.
"I think we should too," Shesta said. "And if some of us decide not to fight anymore, who says they have to? Folken wouldn't force anyone."
"We have to wait and ask everyone..."
"What do you want to do, Lord Dilandau?" Shesta asked, now pressing the back of his hand against Dilandau's forehead and testing the temperature of his own. "Are you hot?"
"No, don't think so..." Dilandau shut his eyes for a moment, attuning himself to his body's thermostat. If anything, he was a little chilly. "And-- I would like to join Folken again. I may not like Astoria, but I do like him. Also, I once told Folken that if he ever needed me for anything, all he had to do was ask. I never thought he would, but I'd like to honor my word."
"Well that's all it's going to take to convince the others to go."
"I'm not going to tell them my opinion," Dilandau said, slumping back into the couch pillows. "One of you make the announcement and discuss it amongst yourselves."
"Yes sir," Shesta said, then leaned forward on his elbows. "So... did you figure out what you need?"
"A nap..." Dilandau murmured. "Don't wake me for anything short of an invasion."
"Yes sir."
"Awaiting your orders, sir."
Valeska rolled her eyes. She knew her team was getting impatient, but the constant reminders of their presence was an unneeded distraction. As if distractions were ever needed.
She glowered at the shabby little town below her that she and her Gorgons had followed Dilandau and his little Dragonslayers to.
Pitiful Dilandau. He really could have done a lot better for himself, if he was the person she'd studied him to be. His raid on Keep Copernicus was poetry in the book of battle tactics. The building had gone up in a beautiful blaze that nearly brought tears to her eyes. She was eager to test his skill first hand.
She was giving him a little time to settle in, rest up, so he'd be fresh for her. An hour after set down was long enough. It had given her enough time to send scouts to survey the terrain and population.
It was a small secluded area fenced in by trees. Perfect for battle and capture. Valeska's orders were to exterminate Dilandau's Dragonslayers, but to take the man in charge alive, if possible.
After Copernicus, she didn't think it was going to be possible. One of them would have to die, and it wasn't going to be her. She looked at the time piece on her control panel. Exactly one hour had passed. She grinned and cracked her knuckles in anticipation.
"Gorgons... get ready. Lyle, fire a crima claw at that sweet little house right down there on my count of 3... That ought to get their attention. One...two... three!"
The crash startled Shesta from the light slumber he had fallen into.
"What the...?" Gatty's voice sounded from another room.
More loud crashes followed. It sounded as if a house had been plowed into by a... a crima claw. He sprang up from his seat and rushed out the front door, joining Dallet and Viole on the porch. Gatty had run from the back of the house to the front and stood in the grass a few feet away from the porch.
From their positions they could see the cloud of dust compiling in the air left by pounds of wood collapsing in on itself.
"I knew this freakin' place was a dump. It was only a matter of time before the houses started falling in on themselves..." Miguel stumbled out of the house, pushing past Shesta and Dallet to lean on the wooden railing of the porch.
"Smell the air Miguel. That's liquid metal!"
"Holy shit! You think Zaibach's found us?"
"Viole, go get Lord Dilandau!"
"But he said..."
"Don't wake him for anything short of an invasion! Well I think this qualifies as an invasion!" Shesta shouted, pushing Viole into the house.
"Dallet come with me to the Silvers! Shesta, Miguel, go check on the damage to the city! Guimel...shit!" Guimel had not come out of the house. "Whatever! Lets move!"
Dallet and Gatty hustled off in the direction of the Silvers and Blues.
Shesta took Miguel by the arm. "Come on. It'll only take a minute."
"Gods..." Miguel groaned and yelped when Shesta started running, dragging him after him.
"He's not waking up!" Viole shook Lord Dilandau again. The silver haired captain turned his face into the pillows and swatted him away.
"I'll get some water; you keep trying." Guimel jogged into the kitchen.
"Come on, this would be funny as hell if we weren't under attack," Viole muttered, sitting Lord Dilandau up and groaning when he flopped over his shoulder. "Are you ticklish, hmm?"
He was willing to try anything.
"Let him go," Guimel said, pulling Lord Dilandau off of Viole and splashing the entire glass of water in the captain's face. He barely flinched.
"What the hell? Think he drank some of that poison Miguel and I did from the other night after all?" Guimel stared.
"Think he's dead?"
"Uh...." Guimel bit his lip. "Ok, protect me after I do this. Promise me, Viole!"
"What are you gonna...?"
Guimel readied his hand and slapped Lord Dilandau hard across the face, leaving a beautiful red palm print on their leader's cheek. The sound of the slap resounded and echoed in their ears.
Guimel uttered quiet prayers as Viole gapped like a beached fish.
Lord Dilandau's eyes opened into mean slits. "Who...?"
"Guimel!" Viole pointed at the guilty blond who sputtered.
"Lord Dilandau, we think the village is being invaded!"
Another crash from outside.
"What the hell was that?" Lord Dilandau rubbed his face, noticing for the first time that he was wet.
"Zaibach."
"Is he up? We gotta get to the Silvers... Zaibach's here!" Miguel burst through the front door. "We have to lead them out of the village!"
"Dammit," Lord Dilandau rose to his feet, wobbling a bit. "Where are the others?"
"Already to the Silvers."
"Good. What kind of attack force is out there and how many?"
"Alseides of an unfamiliar model and there are 9 of them."
"Help me," Lord Dilandau steadied himself on Guimel and Viole's shoulders. "Ok, let me go."
They hurried from the house, Lord Dilandau narrowing his eyes at the darkening sky. "No Alseides have landed in the village?"
"No, they're just firing claws every few minutes," Miguel huffed.
"They must have followed us back from Copernicus..." Lord Dilandau grumbled.
They stopped in their tracks as the massive shadow of several Alseides in battle mode swallowed them up.
"Where IS he?" Valeska growled. "Throw some fire down this time. I don't think we're being taken seriously enough!"
They couldn't possibly have evacuated, could they?
Who's to say the Dragonslayers cared about this town and its people? Valeska knew she would not, but she also wouldn't run from an outright challenge.
"Dilandau!" She cooed over her speakers. If he was still there, that would definitely interest him. "Come out, come out, wherever you are! I'm tired of counting; it's time to do some seeking!"
With a wild laugh, she plummeted toward the ground, ignoring the startled yelps of her squad. They should be used to her antics by now, but they still managed to act so surprised every time she did something... unexpected.
Her Alseid landed in the middle of town square with a loud crash. There were a few screams from below. Wonder if she'd crushed a few civilians?
The thought amused her greatly.
"Hmm... If I were a pasty-faced, red-eyed freak where would I hide?" She prowled through the village, letting the flanks of her guymelef brush against and crumble the sides of houses and buildings.
"Sir! In the sky, two silver Alseides!"
Only two and neither one had a red belly.
"Permission to battle?"
"Granted."
What little game are we playing now, Dilandau?
"Lord Dilandau, Gatty and Dallet are already in the skies trying to lead the enemy away," Shesta called down from his Silver. He watched Lord Dilandau, Viole, Miguel, and Guimel run to Silvers behind his and climb into the cockpits.
"We'll join Gatty and Dallet," Lord Dilandau said over the comm in his guymelef. Shesta could hear him still shifting and getting himself comfortable in the machine.
"One's set down in the city!" Gatty's voice crackled. "It's probably the leader."
Shesta slammed a fist on the control panel. Damn. What were they to do about that? There couldn't be a battle in town square. The people were smart enough to clear out, but what of their homes?
"Flight mode. I'll send a message to the leader via speaker," Lord Dilandau said, sounding very calm.
"Yes sir."
Once in air, they circled high until they spotted Gatty and Dallet and finally the Alseid in the center of town giving cat calls over its loud speaker, demanding Lord Dilandau's presence.
"That voice. It sounds like that bitch Adelphos is always grumbling about- what's her name?"
"Well whoever it is, is pissing me off," Lord Dilandau said silkily. "This is Captain Dilandau Albatou. Did you need something soldier?"
Shesta heard chuckles from Viole and Guimel over the comm and sighed; Lord Dilandau so loved trying the patience of his enemies.
The soldier below laughed; it was a rich, feminine sound. "So there you are. You've kept me waiting for a very long time."
Shesta frowned. Valeska- that was the bitch's name.
"Move! She's coming up!" Lord Dilandau ordered out of nowhere. Valeska hadn't even moved yet, but Shesta didn't hesitate to obey. They scattered, spiraling out into a diamond formation at the same time Valeska came hurtling toward them, full speed with a yodeling war cry.
"You're all mine now, Captain. Gorgons, clear the skies of all but Dilandau and I!"
"Slayers, we're going to go west and try to lead this fight away from town," Lord Dilandau said through their private comm-links. Shesta never understood people who gave orders over the loud speakers so that the enemies as well as the squadron could hear them. "Points formation, I'll take lead."
"Yes sir!"
"Now!"
They sped off, Shesta shoving his throttle forward as far as it could go. His head snapped back at the breakneck speed and he gritted his teeth.
"They're giving chase," Gatty reported.
"Go toward the hills, then hit the brakes and tackle the followers. I get the leader."
"Destroy the units or try to keep them intact? They look pretty nice. We could use them," Dallet said.
"Salvage what you can, but by all means don't kill yourselves for the sake of machinery," Lord Dilandau said. "Approaching hills. Slayers.... ready?"
Shesta swallowed hard. He was going to be airsick after this.
"Go!"
Shesta pulled the brake, grateful to be slowing down, then yanked the throttle toward him to send himself flying in the opposite direction, toward an enemy guymelef.
The poor guy didn't even see him coming. He plowed into the unsuspecting pilot, sending him crashing to the ground with a scream of terror. The guymelef struck the earth with a loud crash and didn't move to get up.
Hmm... he fired a crima claw at it, piercing the melef through the heart and watching it bleed its life's blood.
Better safe than sorry.
Next!
She'd almost scored a hit and he fought the urge to slap himself, anything to knock the cobwebs out of his brain. He ducked another blow and caught a punch, tossing Valeska back.
"What's the matter, Dilandau? Are you asleep in there?" She landed a love tap on his chest plate, rattling his melef. "Oh that could so easily have been a kill, but I don't want to kill you easy, Dilandau! Fight me or I'll keep cutting at you until that stupid unit of yours is in pieces and you fall to your death!"
Dilandau narrowed his eyes. If his Slayers weren't so nearby, he would seriously be considering setting this woman on fire. Unfortunately the flame thrower on his Silver Oreades had not been calibrated for usage on single enemies. He'd flambee the forest and everything unlucky enough to be in it at the time. He dodged another run through and lifted his unit higher in the air, further away from his Slayers who were doing quite well against Valeska's incompetents.
"Running from me, Precious?" As expected, Valeska boosted herself up after him. He could feel the superior smirk that had to be smeared on her face.
Stupid bitch. Didn't she know who she was dealing with? He was Dilandau Albatou, slayer of armies, leader of the best men Gaea had ever seen, and the worst nightmare of all those who opposed him.
But he was not showing this to her.
What Valeska was getting was a joke. She had every right to tease him for his performance.
He growled deep in his throat.
He needed to get pissed. He needed the rush of testosterone and adrenaline that a nice wave of rage could give him.
He had to fight the sedatives in his system...
"Dilly... Are you being shy? Is that why you're avoiding me?"
His hands were beginning to shake as blood rushed to his cheeks. Shy?
"Or maybe you're scared? Perhaps you've heard of me then. You've heard how I'm the best soldier in Zaibach, and how I outrank even you."
Scared? He began to breathe faster as sweat peppered his brow and trickled from the top of his neck inside the collar of his shirt.
"You and your pitiful Slayers have been replaced, and now my Gorgons and I are here to take out the trash as per suggested by the Emperor himself."
He could hear the blood in his ears as his heart pounded faster. He ignored the itch of perspiration traveling down his back and blinked the stinging sweat out of his eyes.
"Oh, but don't worry, Dilly. I'm to take you in alive. The Sorcerers think they know what's wrong with you now and want to correct their mistake."
Sorcerers? The growl in his throat turned into a roar of outrage. His vision was tinged with blood and focused on a single melef unit in the sky that laughed and jeered at him.
He released a crima claw, lengthening and thickening the liquid metal into a wicked sword. "Valeska..." He called, his voice coy. "You talk too damn much."
He lunged and she parried quickly, but she had clearly underestimated the strength of his oncoming attack for her guymelef was forced back a few feet.
"Aw... did I hurt your feelings, baby? Let me apologize!"
Dilandau saw her move before she'd even executed it. She swung low, trying to cut his side and duck beneath the reach of his blade. He pushed his Oreades forward, barreling into hers in a wild tackle, both melefs flip-flopping over each other in the sky like a pair of trapeze artists. Before Valeska could roll from the attack and ready herself, Dilandau was pulling out of the spin and slashing down at her unit.
She moved a split second too late, taking a hit to the arm. She snarled as liquid metal blood wept from the wound and Dilandau chuckled over the speaker for her listening pleasure. He attacked again before she could recover. All of her moves were just too slow to counter his and she was being backed up. In the open air, she had the advantage of never finding herself backed into a corner. But was that advantage going to work for her or against her?
Dilandau was quite content at chopping away at the melef body before him without giving it a change to retaliate. His movements were like lightning, everything before him was a red blur. She didn't stand a chance against him!
Best soldier my ass!
This was fun! He laughed, cackled really, not wiping the tears of mirth from his eyes.
Something in his cockpit was making noise...
Shut up! He shook his head, trying to ignore the whining gadget. He couldn't take his eyes off the enemy to locate it. He had to kill.
There was a soft hiss, and a cool mist spread throughout his cockpit, drenching him. That felt good. He'd been getting hot.
Ah...ah... Valeska was trying to recover. No, no, my dear. He fired an extra crima claw, drilling it into her side, keeping her bound to him.
Now he was going to punch her head...
Oh... he choked.
What.... ?
His heart had somehow jumped into his throat. It beat so furiously he couldn't get a deep breath. Gods...
The red haze over his vision was thickening into paste. He couldn't see... but he knew he still had her in his grasp. He could still finish her off...
"Lord Dilandau!"
Go away!
"Your suit is about to shift into autopilot! Let us take care of the enemy for you!"
"No!"
"Lord Di...."
He wasn't listening to them anymore. He had business to attend to. "Still there, Valeska, my sweet?"
"Bastard!" She screamed at him, confirming her position. Still in place. Perfect.
"Be a good girl and hold still for me, Val. I want a clean kill."
I'm probably going to explode after this, but at least I'll know that she died before me. He pulled the arm of the Oreades back, preparing to strike and...
"WHAT THE..... That's cold!"
He was thoroughly saturated with cold water. It was as if an arctic waterfall had somehow relocated itself over his head. He screamed as a geyser suddenly opened up in front of him too. He was being doused from all sides.
Holy freakin' shit....
Well that had killed the mood. All his previous rage at Valeska dissipated as he shivered and tried to cover the spigots still drenching him. The autopilot kicked in and went about detaching Dilandau from the external battle, pulling out of Valeska's incapacitated guymelef, and bringing him safely to the ground.
How embarrassing was this?
Oh was Folken ever going to hear about this one.
Lousy, overprotective prick.
I had her...
Valeska was grinning so hard she thought her cheeks were going to fall off when Dilandau finally started fighting her like he meant it. She cursed herself for not being ready for his first strike. She didn't roll with the blow and ended up giving ground...air... whatever.
Purring a bit, she teased, "Aw... did I hurt your feelings, baby?" She prepared her next attack. She could deck him from the side, slicing into his abdomen and rendering his left side useless. Shooting out a claw of her own to use as a blade, she executed her move while crying out, "Let me apologize!"
She gasped as she was blinded by a blur of silver and red smashing into her unit. Her body was thrown backward then forward as her melef was propelled into a wild tailspin. She braced herself, gripping her harness and gritting her teeth. Shit.
He'd predicted her move!
The spin was losing momentum and she tried to pull out, but not before he did! Dilandau's Oreades was already recovering and coming at her again for attack. She pulled up; hurry up you stupid hunk of junk!
She couldn't get out of the way of his attack! She was hit! She kept retreating, hoping he would give her an opening for counterattack, but with the way he was moving that wasn't likely.
Was he possessed...
She heard him laughing.
... Like the Dragon has been?
She didn't feel the icy touch of fear running its hands along her body as she did when she'd fought the Escaflowne. She didn't feel the urge to run. She wanted to keep fighting, if Dilandau would ever give her the chance to recover.
Valeska knew she had to keep dodging his blows, keeping the damage to her unit as light as possible... though a monitor beeped at her, letting her know she was losing critical fluid from the wound in her side.
He was going to get tired; he had to. Nothing could keep moving at that pace.
The Oreades relented on its attack for a split second. That was all she needed. She was going to fire the adhesive, freeze him in his tracks, and end this quickly.
She righted her mecha and configured the double glue guns to hit the legs and arms, and from there she would coat the rest of the body. Fire!
A low groan emitted from somewhere deep in her machine and a warning screen flashed before her. Danger it read. There wasn't enough power! All reserves were going toward life support. There was a soft noise and she looked down at her feet to see a thick, congealing sea of liquid metal flooding her cockpit.
Not good.
Damn.
She yelled as her Alseid rocked again and the horrid screeching sound of metal being torn assaulted her ears. Her systems were failing; alarms in her cockpit were screaming.
What the hell just....
He'd fired another crima claw at her! Dammit, she tried to back away from him. She had to evacuate, but she was stuck. She saw the face of Dilandau's model on her monitors. He hadn't retracted his claw.
"Gorgons some assistance!" Valeska prayed her communication system still worked. A faint hissing of static told her it was still functional, but there was silence from her subordinates.
Silence?
"Lyle? Peter? Hans?"
Oh gods. Her attention flitted back to Dilandau as he called her name, asking if she was still there... She slammed her hand down on the control, wanting to broadcast to the world what she thought of him.
"Bastard!"
Her Gorgons... her team... Were they dead, or had they been cowards and run away? She hoped it wasn't the latter. She despised cowards and deserters.
"Be a good girl and hold still for me, Val. I want a clean kill."
She did all she could to squirm and writhe, only serving to spill more precious lifeblood from her unit.
It wasn't supposed to happen this way! He was not supposed to beat her! She was his superior! She roared with rage, screaming curses at him. She would not die like this! She had to get free of him. She needed another weapon, another chance, another battlefield...
Her melef gave a shudder, but it wasn't one from a killing blow. Pressure was being relieved from the abdomen of her Alseid. Suddenly she was falling, her melef tumbling at an alarming rate. She shut her eyes, saying a silent prayer before hitting the button for the emergency thrusters.
Please be online.
Please be online.
A soft whir made Valeska sigh in relief. She wiped the sweat from her brow as her melef slowly descended into the blanket of trees below. Her body was protected from the rough jostles and shakes that wracked her guymelef by the gooey exoskeleton of soft metal as it struck thick branches on its way down.
With a loud crash she hit the ground and her last conscious thought of killing Dilandau for the humiliation he'd just dealt her.
You're a worthy opponent, Dilandau, and I will be honored to be the one who kills you.
"He's pulling out," Viole announced, sounding relieved as the shrill alarms that had been erupting in their Alseides warning them of their Lord's growing distressed began to quiet.
Gatty watched as Lord Dilandau's Oreades retracted its crima claw from the purple guymelef and began landing preparations. Good.
"Think he finished her?" Guimel asked.
Valeska's purple giant was falling at a rapid speed, but as it disappeared from sight, Gatty heard a familiar sound. Engine fire.
"No."
"Do you think he knows?" Dallet questioned.
"Of course he does," Miguel snorted.
Gatty had no doubt he did either, which was why he was already prepping his Silver for landing. He would stop Lord Dilandau from pursuing the woman on the ground if he had to physically pick him up and carry him away.
Shesta had beaten him to the punch, though. Gatty scowled when he noticed Shesta's Silver about to touch ground a few feet from Lord Dilandau's unit. He landed, watching Shesta scramble out of his Alseid and run toward Lord Dilandau's. The hatch of the Oreades was open and if Gatty squinted he could just make out a tiny figure on his hands and knees in the grass.
Oh no...
Land faster! He opened his hatch before his Silver had completely touched the ground and shimmied down the right leg, letting himself drop the last foot and a half. Hitting the ground running, he sped over to where Shesta was kneeling beside Lord Dilandau and threw himself down beside them.
"Are you..." Gatty paused in asking his question, staring at both Shesta and Lord Dilandau. Lord Dilandau was soaking wet, water ran off him in rivulets, and he was shaking, hard. Shesta...
Shesta was chuckling.
"What's...?"
Lord Dilandau looked up, his crimson eyes shining with mirth. "Folken installed a sprinkler system in my cockpit...and a hose..."
He laughed outright then, nearly falling over.
Gatty had never been so confused.
"To calm him down, instead of some fancy sophisticated system and procedure, Folken used fire precautions," Shesta explained, patting Lord Dilandau's back. "You would think he'd be mad about it."
"Oh, I'm pissed. I am so pissed I can't find the right curses to express myself properly," Lord Dilandau giggled. "He freakin' hosed me!"
"With what, happy water?" Gatty muttered. "You're a mess."
The wind about them picked up as the other Silvers landed in a neat arc. "Can you stand, sir? The others are gonna freak if they see you in a heap and Shesta and I leaning over you?"
The captain was still snickering and now using Shesta for support, burying his head in his shoulder.
"Oh gods! I knew this was a bad idea! We should have taken care of it all ourselves. Those guys were easy!" Viole was shouting.
Gatty rolled his eyes and stood, whirling to face the onslaught of hypochondriac soldiers with his arms spread out at his sides to keep them from passing him.
"He's fine," Gatty said.
"I'm fine," Lord Dilandau echoed with a hiccup.
"What happened? Why are you all wet?" Viole and Miguel pushed past Gatty as if he wasn't there and sat down on either side of Shesta and Lord Dilandau, soon to be joined by Dallet and Guimel. Gatty blew his bangs from his eyes with a snort and plopped himself down where he stood.
"Not important," Lord Dilandau said, waving a hand. He sat up and pushed wet hair off his face, wringing it out with one hand. "Were all of the Gorgons taken care of?"
Miguel chuckled darkly. "It was almost too easy."
"They didn't fight together as a team very well," Dallet remarked. "They may have been competition if they'd mastered that one."
"Valeska didn't seem like much of a captain," Guimel said dryly. "You think she survived that fall? I know I heard a back up engine come on, but I also heard a crash."
"If she was half as good as she boasted herself to be, she did," Lord Dilandau said, frowning at his soggy clothing. "I wouldn't know her skill; I didn't exactly give her a chance to show it."
"No, you didn't!" Viole hooted. "She didn't stand a chance in hell! None of them did. I'm a little insulted. Zaibach could have sent someone better after us; someone with a little class, some finesse."
"They don't have Dragonslayers Anymore, remember?- and no one qualified enough to train more like us," Miguel huffed. "Zaibach's sunk to a new low."
"Poor them. So what now?" Guimel asked, leaning forward to sample for himself the degree of dampness of Lord Dilandau's apparel. "Our location has been breeched. Zaibach will undoubtably send more soldiers to the area, and... well the villagers may not be so happy about us hanging around anymore after what happened today."
"They knew the risk," Dallet snorted. "If anything, they'll apologize to us for the place being a mess."
"Probably won't even notice the damages," Miguel muttered under his breath, then yelped as he caught an elbow in the stomach. "Oh my gods... did you HAVE to hit me there?!"
"We can't stay here." Lord Dilandau ignored Miguel and Dallet's minor altercation in favor of Guimel's question.
"Where will we go then?" Viole asked, smirking at a slightly green Miguel glaring at a grinning Dallet.
Lord Dilandau sighed and looked at his hands. "Folken's run to Astoria and he's joined their forces against Zaibach. He's requested my presence, and I wish to join him. None of you are obligated to come with me. You can go wherever you want. Our mission, our revenge... is over today with the fall of the Gorgons. You're free."
Gatty blinked and his mouth hung agape. Was he being dismissed?
"When did this happen?"
"Dallet brought the message to me right after we returned from Copernicus."
"And when were we to be told of this...dismissal?"
Lord Dilandau looked up then, his bright eyes wide with surprise. Staring at Gatty, he said, "I'm not firing you, Gatty, but I understand that some of you may be tired of fighting and I'm not binding you to my decisions any longer. I was going to have Shesta and Dallet tell you and have you discuss it amongst yourselves without me there to influence your decisions. The attack got in the way. I'm sure if we'd have told the Gorgons our plans for the night they may have come back in the morning."
"Yeah, they seemed ever so polite," Guimel rolled his eyes. Reaching to take one of the hands Lord Dilandau kept glancing at to avoid making eye contact with them, he said, "Lord Dilandau, I've bound myself to you. You don't have the authority to dismiss me on those grounds because you didn't give me the order."
"Or me," Viole shook his head.
"Me either," Miguel said, managing to pull off a look that showed both sincerity and pride while trying not to throw up. "Remember I said that, sir! Excuse me!"
"Class and finesse equals Miguel Lavariel," Guimel muttered as they watched Miguel's hasty getaway.
"I already told you where I stand on the issue," Dallet said flatly and Shesta nodded along. "So that only leaves..."
All eyes were on Gatty.
It took him a moment to realize it, but when he did, he blushed. He looked heavenward then back at the others, at Lord Dilandau.
"As if you even had to ask," Gatty sighed. "Where you go, I go and nothing's going to change that, so get over it."
"We're like acne; once you get it, it's forever baby," Viole exclaimed, launching himself at Lord Dilandau to hug him, then gasping. "Ah! You're freakin' wet! Now are you going to explain how this happened or are we going to have to wait until we get to Astoria?"
"You'll have to wait until we get to Astoria. We've got some major preparations to make and some thanks and promises to deliver."
They had to pack, load the Silvers and Blues, and say goodbye to their temporary haven. Gatty stood, brushing the grass from his uniform and watched as the others did the same. Lord Dilandau remained in his perch in the grass, leaned forward, elbows planted in the dirt, chin resting on top of his hands. He batted his lashes at them as they waited for him to explain why he wasn't moving.
"Sir?" Shesta finally asked, failing to repress a smile as it dawned on all of them what the problem was. It was like a one large, collective lightbulb being turned on.
"Yes, Shesta?"
"Would you like a piggyback ride?"
Shesta didn't see the wet shirt flying at him until it smacked him in the face with a loud splat.
Author's Note: Ok, all done...finally. I hope you all liked that. Please review and let me know!Take care!
Reviewer Responses:
Pocketfirefairy: Lol, I'm still going. Sooner or later, you're going to ask me to stop ;) Thanks for reviewing and I hope you enjoyed the chapter.
Mealik: Thank you so much. I hope you enjoyed the chapter and take care!
DragonSteel: Oh my... How to begin to answer your questions? Some of them were answered in the chapter lol ;). But...lets see... Most of the things Valeska recalls in the last chapter were implied things taken from the anime. Adelphos hasn't liked Valeska since she set foot on his ship lol. The "Strategos didn't want her on his ship" is an assumption made on Valeska's part, since she hasn't met the man nor has he made any requests to meet her. (And though it wasn't said, it is true). Um...the new Alseides question. I don't quite understand that question. Yes they do use both sets of units when they need more manpower.. But they do have to be present on the battlefield to control them. Well, I hope that answers everything lol. Or maybe it confused you more :). I hope you liked the chapter, take care!
Kaitourei: Hehehe, well I hope you liked Valeska in this chapter. She gets to strut her stuff, though she gets her butt kicked, miserably. But you know what, she still thinks she's the best, so it's ok lol! Miguel/Viole interaction is fun; I didn't get a chance to single them out too much in this chapter though. Could you imagine how long it would have been? Lol. I hoped the other Slayer interaction scenes sufficed :). He, he, he, Dilandau in class was fun too. Just wait until he teams back up with Folken ;) chuckling. Speaking of Folken, yes, his talk with Van and everything happens just like it did in the series only with Pearce and Marie present in the background. I chose not to write out that part. I'm really trying to move this thing along lol. Well... I really hope you enjoyed this chapter, thank you for reviewing and take care!
GakiFang: My story kicks ass? Why thank you! Lol! I'm blushing, really ;) Giggling Thanks for the review. Your words mean a lot :) Take care and I hope you enjoyed the latest chapter!
Tomorrow Sounds Good: A lot of time and effort does go into this story, but it's all worth it, because I'm having so much fun writing it and loving that it's getting such a good response :). The story is already pretty long and I see it becoming a monster before I'm through. I've got a few more planned events before I can let the story die down. Maybe 5 to 10 more chapters? We'll see. My favorite part of the story is the relationships between Dilandau and the Dragonslayers too ;). Your welcome and thank you so very much! Take care and I hope you enjoyed the chapter!
Skippys Cat: Stories kicking ass I get the funniest mental imagine when I think of that, lol. Thanks! Yes, the healer is lucky he's dealing with the "nice" Dilandau lol. I hope you enjoyed reading about the drunken escapades of the Slayers and Dilandau and Valeska's showdown. Now it's time to reunite Dilandau, the Slayers, and Folken, and reintroduce Dilandau to Van. This is what I've been waiting for lol! Thanks for reviewing girl and I hope you liked this chapter! Take care!
Jhaylin: Hehehehe, well they took out the fort, and Valeska didn't kill any of them lol. But now that she's been humilated... We'll see what happens next lol. I hope you enjoyed the chapter; thanks for reviewing and take care!
Kou-Kagerou: Hello my dear. Lookee at how early I've updated this month. I was in Louisiana for a week, lazing around in my friends apartment while she was at work with nothing to do but write. Happy to know you think the last chapter came out fine. I guess I should try to read the story as a whole. Then it might not seem as disjointed to me lol. I'm glad you noticed the slight maturation of Viole's character...slight... lol. I didn't want to forget about what they are actually doing in fighting Zaibach, so I figured someone should show the strain, why not Viole? Dilandau and Shesta's lesson was fun...for me lol! They got in trouble ;). Hah, on the "white tiger" bit. Oh...and thanks for pointing out the "foreshadowing" on Folken's part. Now I'm getting inquiries from people cough Nikkucough Aurebeccough (They're probably reading this so I thought I'd put their names in here ;) Hehehehehe!! Oh, I thought about the deleted scenes things...and I might do more of an "added" or "extended" scenes thing at the end, since I really did delete those scenes lol. Oops. Well, take care, thanks for reviewing and picking out the places I need to work on, and I hope you liked what I offered to you today. (You can tell me if you didn't..I won't cry lol). ;)
Tenshiamanda: Yes... I actually thought about not killing them. I came close to saving them when they all boarded the ship together, but then I thought...What would I do with them lol? Thanks for reviewing and take care! I hope you liked this chapter!
Nikku: Look, see! I said, Sunday, Monday, or Tuesday...it's Monday! Lol! I'm glad you're liking the way the relationships between the Slayers are evolving. I really want them to be extremely cozy with one another by the time they join Van's team in Astoria. I think I may be going overboard with the male bonding stuff though. But yeah, essentially Valeska screwed herself in the way she trained her men and now she'll never get the chance to fix it. Hehehe, glad you liked the bit with Dilandau kicking rocks at the squirrels. I hate squirrels. There nothing but fat rats with big fluffy tails I tell you! I'm trying to give Marie a bigger part and develop her character more. She's kind of fun, though as you can tell I don't really favor female lead characters. And you didn't have any reason at all to fear Dilandau's battle with Valeska. I knew he was gonna kick her butt all along ;). I couldn't let her beat my Dilandau...not yet anyway ;). Hehehe, and no, I don't plan on killing off my Dragonslayers anytime soon either. Yes...Van will eventually ask Folken about Dilandau... I'm looking forward to writing that awkward scene, hehehe. Well, I hope you enjoyed the chapter, thank you for always reviewing, and as always take care! :) :) :)
Namida: Lol! Well I'm glad you liked Folken in the last chapter. Maybe you'll like him more in the chapter to come lol. I hope you enjoyed the funny little scenes in this chapter too! Take care and thanks for reviewing!
Aurebec: You can give Folken a hug....just watch the metal arm thing (looks like it might hurt). The running water jokes, alas, have come to an end :( since Astoria will have running water and heated pools. Miguel is quite pleased with me now. (I had to do something nice for the kid since I keep torturing him). Happy to know you liked the DilandauShesta scene too. That scene was originally longer and I was going have Dilandau and Shesta have to make their own pot of salve...hehehehe, but I cut it before I was halfway through with it lol. I probably should have cut some of the stuff out of the beginning and middle too...but I didn't and here you are with a 20 page chapter lol! And see...Dilandau vs. Valeska wasn't so bad at all ;), not for Dilandau and the Dragonslayers anyway lol. Thanks for always reviewing and take care. I hope you liked this chapter!
Macky: Thanks! Eh.... I thought about saving the cats, but I just didn't have anything for them to do later in the plot. :) Thanks for reviewing and take care! Hope you liked this chapter!