Disclaimer: I only own Arathnia, and the characters from there. I do not own Escaflowne, even though I wish I did.
* mark dream sequences.
The Past, Future, and Somewhere in Between
Chapter 7 Terra
Dawn was what awoke Hitomi from her slumber in the early hours of their fifth day of travel. She quickly dressed herself and wandered up to the bridge where everyone else was present, and wide awake. Even Yukari had awoken before her, which was quite unusual. She could just feel the tension in the air as they soared high over the Stone talon mountains on their way into Terra. To her surprise, she felt the Crusade begin to descend, and slowly begin to prepare itself to land. However, they remained hidden behind the thick curtain of cloud. They had somehow lost themselves inside the fluffy white masses sometime during the night.
"We're clear of the mountains Sarg," Kio announced to Allen's right hand man Gaddes. "I'm heading in for landing."
Gaddes nodded. "Alright Kio. Furl the sails for a quick descent, then unfurl them once we have a clear view of Terra," He commanded crossing his well muscled arms over his chest.
It was not long before the white fluffy puffs disappeared from their view. It was definitely a quick descent. Hitomi gasped as she gazed upon the thriving city, known to Gaea as Terra. It was the same beautiful place that had been plaguing her dreams for the last few weeks. The rivers, the waterfall, and the magnificent castle built upon the mountain. The rounded buildings, and their white marble walls looked almost blinding in the bright sunlight. It literally took her breath away. However, the uneasy feeling traveling up the seeress' spine took away from Terra's initial beauty, and made it seem sinister and evil despite it's great beauty.
"This is Terra?" She asked gazing at the beauty of it all. Her dreams had done it no real justice. She found herself pinching her arm just to see is she was actually dreaming. She was pleased to find out that she was indeed awake.
Allen nodded, " Indeed it is," He stated with a nod. "The capitol of Arathnia," He seethed narrowing his cerulean eyes as the gazed towards the extravagant city.
"Tell me something about Arathnia," Hitomi began, standing up and stretching her legs out. They were quite restless from the lack of activity. "Why have I never heard of this place until now?" She asked her gaze turning out the large window and landing on the castle.
"Arathnia is the oldest, and most powerful nation on Gaea," Van stated bluntly. "King Archibald til Valandros III made sure of that," He continued. "He was Queen Brahne's father," He explained sensing Hitomi's slight confusion.
Allen nodded in agreement. "Arathnia was not directly involved in the Destiny Wars. Well, that we can be sure of," He began pushing his short blonde hair from his eyes. "It was rumored that they had allied themselves with Zaibach and provided them with some supplies that they had needed to wage the war,"He continued crossing his arms over his chest. "Zaibach would have never dared to risk Queen Brahne's friendship, so we are unsure if it's even true. She would have crushed them like insects." He concluded with conviction in his voice.
Hitomi's eyebrows furrowed in thought as Merle scoffed. "I wouldn't put it past Queen Brahne," the cat girl spat. "She's an evil greedy witch, of course she would side with Zaibach," She hissed, her stormy blue eyes blazing with hatred.
"Young lady, you should not speak ill of the throne of Arathnia," General Avanon stated. "You must remember that General Delenair was trained here in Arathnia. It is known to have the best, and the most loyal and dedicated warriors in all of Gaea," He continued, removing the small piece of black fabric that covered his left eye.
Beneath the small piece of fabric, lay what only could be described as horrific. These was a series of dark scars over the General's eye. His eyelid remained closed, but it was slightly concaved. It was then that Hitomi noticed that his eye was actually sown shut to keep the thin flap from opening. Upon further inspection, she knew that there was nothing behind that lid, just an empty socket where the General's left eye should have been.
"An Arathnian knight did this to me about twelve years ago. They are fierce warriors little lady," He concluded sliding the thin fabric back to it's rightful place over his eye.
Hitomi swallowed hard as she felt the Crusade land. She looked out in the window in surprise. They had landed on the outskirts of the vast city. She had anticipated that they would land closer to the castle since they were here on the Queen's request.
They were met at the hanger by two workers, who had previously been working on a small red airship a few docking stations over. The two young men bowed in front of Van. "Welcome to Terra your majesty Fanelia," They greeted in unison.
He nodded curtly at them, "Where is Queen Brahne?"
"The Queen does not leave the castle," A sharp female voice seemingly snapped at them. Hitomi looked over to where the voice had originated. The golden haired woman named Galaxia was approaching their small entourage. She gave a subtle bow to Van. "For her protection and safety, I assure you lord," She stated, her face remaining blank.
Van snorted, "So she sends her lackeys to greet her guests?"
Galaxia's violet eyes narrowed at the younger man's words. "Do not speak to me in such a manner young Fanelia," She spat. She took a small breath reeling her emotions in a bit. "I am a knight of Arathnia, not a lousy hand maiden. I demand that you treat me with the same respect that you show your generals," She hissed through clenched teeth. Her eyes seemed to glow they were so filled with spite.
Van's lips tightened into a thin line, wiping his face of any emotion. His eyes were smoldering like two pieces of hot coal, making them appear darker in colour, "Of course," He forced out clenching his jaw.
She sighed rolling her eyes, the hateful glare in them dissipating almost immediately. "Follow me, I am to escort you to Queen Brahne," She stated coldly. All the anger she had held in her expression and stance moments before, evaporated completely leaving her a blank slate once again. She turned abruptly, heading towards the exit of the hanger, her royal blue cloak unfurling behind her due to her fast paces stride.
General Avanon chuckled, "She hasn't changed at all," He mused trailing after the female knight, and amused smiled stretched across his features.
The other swiftly began to follow the General's lead. Hitomi was confused about the situation, but quickly shook her head in order to clear her wandering thoughts. She needed yo think clearly, and focus while they were here. "What do you mean she hasn't changed?" She questioned falling into step behind Van, and the General. Apparently, she was missing out on something.
"Before Van appointed me his first General, I was working here as a mercenary," the General began. "My orders came from Galaxia. She's one of the best warriors in Arathnia," He explained quietly so that their escort could not hear him. "And she's hard as stone," He added. "On the field of battle, she's cold, calculating, and the epitome of stealth. If you've seen her once, she's has seen you ten times before, and has already planned out your demise by her hand," He concluded, his eye locking onto the blond knight's back.
They traveled through the city's bustling streets. They received the odd strange glance, or even some people would stop and stare at their small envoy. Other than that, the Arathnians paid very little attention to them. The climate in Terra was warm, tropical, but surprisingly mild at the same time. The rounded buildings looked so much more intriguing up close, then they had from far away. Merchants called from their stand attempting to draw in business, and others just walked by chatting with their nameless companions. Galaxia led them to the castle's giant staircase and into the vast castle.
Inside the castle looked nothing like the outside. The walls were white, but they were also crystalline. Royal blue, and white fabrics hung along the cool, smooth walls. Tapestries and portraits of former monarchs also littered the walls adding to it's charm. All of the floors appeared to be white marble with flecks of black within the tiles. Navy blue rugs ran down the center of all the hallways that could be seen. It truly made the castle seem so much more elegant than the outside had originally portrayed.
Their small group wandered down the many, seemingly endless corridors before they reached a huge set of double doors. The doors stretched from the floor, all the way up to the ceiling, and the ceiling was a least ten feet high. A crest of a dragon was craved into the dark wood. Galaxia turned to them, and gestured for hem to stay put. She took a deep breath before pulling open the obviously heavy doors. This revealed the circular throne room.
Galaxia walked into the room ,and almost instantaneously falling to her knees in front of her queen. It was a very humbled bow. "Your majesty," She began, "Van Fanel, king of Fanelia," She stated, her eyes never leaving the floor.
"Enter!" A cold female voice boomed, beckoning the small group forward into the throne room.
With that said, Van gestured for his companions to follow him into the throne room. Hitomi could tell that he did not want to face the queen alone. He bowed obediently, but not to the same extent that Galaxia had. Hitomi copied their movements, before she could bring herself to look up at the throne.
She gasped. It was the ebony haired woman from her dreams. She shivered as a cold chill ran up her spine. The feeling was worse in reality, than it had been in her dreams. The Queen's cold blue eyes locked onto the strangely clad seeress, and her lips pulled up into a snarl. However, the look passed by so quickly, that everyone else seemed to have missed it. She turned her gaze to Galaxia, silently gesturing for the blonde knight to rise. She obeyed walking to the door. She stopped, standing, and waiting,. Waiting for what, Hitomi was unsure.
Seated on the smaller throne next to the dark haired Queen, was a blonde girl. Her hair fell straight down past her shoulders. A metal veil covered her eyes and nose leaving only her mouth visible to them. The position she sat in was identical to that of the Queen. Her arms rested on the armrests, and her legs were pressed tightly together, and leaning slightly to the right. The girl's pose was so stiff you would have thought that she was a statue, not a living human being.
The Queen folded her hands so that they rested in her lap elegantly. With every small gesture, she made Hitomi even more intimidated. "Welcome to Terra Van Fanel," She boomed, a smirk creeping up onto her face. "I trust that your journey was safe," She said her voice dripping with authority. Her voice possessed a regal quality that she had only ever heard Van's father possess. However, that was only in her dreams. This was reality.
"Yes your highness, it was," Van replied calmly. However, Hitomi could see the tension in his stance, as well as in his face, but she was not entirely sure why. He pulled his lips into a tight line. His expression made her repress ye another shiver that dared to travel up her spine.
"Good," She retorted, her arms re-attaching themselves to the arm rests of her white marble throne. A sinister looking smile crept characteristically on the Queen's face. "Astra!" She snapped harshly turning to the blonde seated on the throne beside her. "Are you not going to greet our guests?" She questioned in a chastising tone.
The girl appeared to look down at them. It was hard to tell where her eyes were resting due to the chain mail veil covering her eyes. She smiled showing her perfect teeth. It was a surprisingly warm smile. "It's good to see you again Van," She greeted. Her voice was nothing like Hitomi had expected. It was no where near as loud as the Queen's had been, and it was a lot warmer. Her voice was much high pitched. It was almost angelic. Just like her smile. Hitomi couldn't help but feel General Avanon tense up beside her at the sound of her voice.
"Galaxia!" The Queen's voice boomed suddenly causing both Merle and Hitomi to jump at the sound.
The Queen looked over to Celena, who was visibly shaking. The young girl's eyes remained on the floor, biting her bottom lip. It was obvious that it was in fear. The sinister smile re-appeared on the Queen's thin lips, and her eyes seemed to shine with some sort of recognition. However, she said nothing.
"Yes my Queen?" The knight responded from her position at the door. She bowed slightly, but her violet eyes were locked onto Celena's shaking form, a look of displeasure evident on her face. There was something calculating over about her gaze.
"You may return to your duties, and your family for the time being. I shall have Astra escort our 'guests' to their quarters," She explained dismissing the golden haired knight.
Galaxia returned to her upright position, "Of course. Thank you your majesty," and with that, Galaxia briskly turned her heel and exited the circular room.
The girl named Astra rose from her seat next to the Queen. She did not appear to be any older than Merle. The blue dress she wore hugged her every curve. It left very little to the imagination. She walked down the curved staircase, the train of the blue dress training behind her. She stopped at the bottom of the stairs, "Follow me," She said gesturing to the door before leaving the throne room to wait on the other side of the heavy wooden doors.
"I will be seeing you later Van Fanel," Queen Brahne called after him before the doors slammed shut behind their small group.
Van shuddered at the reverberation of the door, and began to walk at a faster pace. Hitomi watched as he fell into step next to Astra at the head of their little entourage. Quietly, the two began to converse, almost silently. Unfortunately, Hitomi could not see their lips to even hint as to what words were being passed between the two. Astra's presence, and the vibe Hitomi got from both her and Queen Brahne unnerved her even farther. She did not feel safe in Terra, or with it's monarchy. The whole thing screamed facade to her. Like there was something going on that she was missing entirely.
Hitomi, Merle, Yukari, and Celena were shown to a room shortly after Astra had placed the men in their sleeping quarters. That left the strange girl alone with just Van to keep her company. Their new room was quite large, far larger then their room had been back in Fanelia. Four, four poster beds were set up in the four corners of the room, leaving a lot of floor space for them to move around. Royal blue fabrics hung above all of the beds. The fabric was gathered, and was arranged to fall down around the beds to act as curtains. Upon further inspection, Hitomi noticed that they were actually opaque. They also had a large balcony that overlooked the beautiful and thriving city. She noticed that their meager luggage was placed neatly on the floor next to the door. It appeared as if the handmaidens had been busy while they were announcing their presence to Queen Brahne.
Astra turned to Van, her angelic smile gracing her lips. "Come on, I'll show you where you'll be staying," She suggested smoothly, a hint of playfulness evident in her soft and gentle voice. If her eyes could be seen, Hitomi would have sworn she would see that playfulness reflected within the depths of her eyes.
An amused smile formed an Van's taught lips. Surprisingly, he seemed to visibly relax a bit. "Lead the way princess," She replied playfully with a deep mocking bow.
She giggled and turned down the hallway. Van followed her quickly, leaving the door to the room wide open. Hitomi glared daggers at the open doorway before slamming it shut with all of the strength she could muster. She clenched her fists and stormed over to the bed farthest from the door. She sat down roughly, and crossed her thin arms over her chest. To see Ban that relaxed with another girl made her blood boil, despite how innocent it was. She picked up the pillow and screamed into the soft object. It muffled her offending voice well. She had already decided that she deeply hated Astra, even though she barely knew the girl. Just seeing her with Van was enough.
Merle winced at the sound of her friend's scream, and hopped onto the bed beside the sandy haired seeress. "Hitomi, what's wrong?" She asked tilting her head curiously to the side. Secretly, she knew the emotion that her friend was currently experiencing. Jealousy.
"Who was she?" Hitomi spat angrily, glaring at the cat girl. She felt betrayed all of a sudden, and she had no idea why. It was unsettling.
"Her name is Astra til Valandros," Celena spoke up quietly. "She is the future queen on Arathnia," She began looking at Merle for permission to tell the sandy haired girl more. Merle nodded and Celena looked at Hitomi sadly. "And Fanelia," She said sitting down on the edge of the bed letting the bombshell drop on her friend.
Yukari's eyes bulged out if her head, "What!"
"Did you say Fanelia?" Hitomi asked quietly.
Celena nodded, and then looked away, ashamed of herself for keeping her silence for the last few weeks. "Yes."
Merle sighed shaking her head. "He didn't tell you did he?" She asked playing with the ends of her long pink hair.
"No, obviously not," Yukari spat walking over and standing beside the bed next to Hitomi. "That stupid son of a bitch! Who does he think he is? He can't just..."Yukari raged until she was cut off by Celena.
"Not helping Yukari," the blonde remarked softly.
Before Yukari could reply, Merle shot her a nasty look which instantly shut the red head up. The cat girl sighed. "After we began to rebuild Fanelia, we received assistance from Arathnia, and Queen Brahne came to pay us a visit," She began scratching behind her feline ears. "She informed us that an arranged marriage had been placed between him and Princess Astra. Apparently, King Goau and Queen Brahne had arranged it just before his death on one of his last trips to Arathnia," She explained folding her hands in her lap so that she would not fidget.
Yukari scoffed, "And you believed the evil witch?" She asked leaning back against the wall and raising an eyebrow curiously.
Merle glared at her, her ears flattening. The two seemed to get into a lot of fights. It was most likely because of the fact that their personalities were quite similar. "She showed us the signed document you stupid twit," She hissed at the red head, her tail puffing up slightly.
"He's going to marry her?" She asked recalling the dream she had, had before she had returned to Gaea. She knew that the blonde haired girl marrying Van in her dream had to be Astra. The love she saw in those pale blue eyes, cause tears to well up in her own. She felt her heart begin to break inside her chest.
The cat girl sighed. "I'm not so sure now," She replied bluntly. "He never truly expected you to return. Besides, if he breaks off the marriage, Fanelia and Arathnia will be at war. It was an agreement of a treaty," Merle explained sadly. "Poor Lord Van," She trailed off.
Yukari scoffed shaking her head. "That is so stupid."
Celena rolled her eyes, "He feels obligated to marry her," She explained, annoyance evident in her voice. "If he doesn't, Fanelia doesn't stand a chance against Arathnia, even with General Avanon, and General Delenair on his side," She added taking a few steps forward. "He is stuck between his love for his country, and his love for you Hitomi," She said softly, placing a hand gently on the seerss' arm.
Merle nodded in agreement, "She's right. Sadly."
Hitomi took a deep breath attempting to compose herself. "Does he love her?" She managed to ground out. She hugged the soft pillow tightly to her chest. There was an increasingly heavy feeling in her chest as she processed all that her friends were saying. She found herself almost unable to speak. Eve breathing was beginning to be difficult. Her chest felt so constricted that breathing seemed excruciatingly painful.
Merle winced anticipating the question that had just spilled from her lips. "I think he forced himself to," She honestly informed her in an attempt to ease her friend's pain. "It's more like a good friendship
between them," She explained looking at her with sad eyes.
Hitomi nodded, "Why couldn't he tell me?" She questioned in a whisper so quiet that it was barely audible.
Merle sighed, "It's a bit more complicated than that. I'll let Van explain it when he's ready. But for now, just remember that he loves you more than he will ever love her. If he even loves her," She remarked standing up and nodding to Celena.
Suddenly, alarm bells began to go off throughout the city. The sharp crisp ring echoed through the walls of the castle, and made the whole structure vibrate. It wasn't long after the large bells began, that the sound of pounding feet filled the halls beyond their closed door. Screams wafted in through the window from the city below. The four girls ran to the balcony. In the distance, they could that the Crystal dragon that had been following them yesterday had somehow gotten over the protective mountains, and into the city. The four girl's looked at each other and bolted from the room and into the halls. They barreled straight into Allen, Van, and General Avanon. The whole castle was in an uproar over the situation.
"What's going on?" Yukari cried as Hitomi grabbed her wrist and pulled her along as they ran along side their male comrades.
"The dragon got into the city, we're heading to the throne room to see what we can do to assist the people," General Avanon yelled over the thudding feet from the hallways.
Hitomi was surprised how fast the one-eyed man could run. You would think the person's depth perception would be off, but no Mendelev Avanon. It was not too long before they reached the throne room. To her surprise, Queen Brahne was off her throne, standing in the middle of the room. She was surrounded by over a dozen people, all holding some kind of weapon and wearing armor. Among them, Galaxia stood proudly, garbed in different armor than she had been about an hour before. Her bulky white armor had been replaced by form fitting golden armor. Her cloak had been discarded, and she wore tight boots that went up just past her knees, and their were no legs to her amour. Instead, it was a skirt that came down to mid thigh. She more an extravagant golden helmet a top her head, which Hitomi was certain housed all her golden locks. The armor was built for speed, and strategy. Galaxia held her sword ready in her hand in case she was in instant need of the steel blade. Next to her, was a man. She could not determine his appearance, because she was clothed in a black robe that covered his entire body. His face remained hidden by he hood, making it impossible to identify the tall man. The image of him reminded her of a monk.
"Lorelei, send out the melef units, keep the dragon from getting deeper into the city. Galaxia, you and Strategos assemble the dragon riders. We need to weaken it enough to capture it. Remember if the creature is killed, a bounty will be placed on the head of whoever delivered that final blow," She barked her orders crisp and precise.
Hitomi's eyes narrowed at Galaxia and the cloaked figure. There was something so familiar about him, but she couldn't quite place it. She noticed Van's eyes follow Galaxia and the cloaked man as they hastily ran out of the room, and disappeared down the bright halls. Van shook his head and turned to Queen Brahne's pacing from. "Can we be of any assistance you majesty?" He asked calmly.
She turned to her. Her eyes passed Van and fell on General Avanon. "Mendelev, you can go assist my riders, since you have the proper training. As for you Lord Van, you will remain in the castle," She ordered and then turned away from them without another word. "Where is Agrael!" She nearly screamed in frustration.
Van bit his bottom lip and clenched his fists tightly at his sides. He hated being useless. Hitomi placed a hand on his shoulder. He shrugged the appendage off, and turned leaving the noisy, crowded throne room. Hitomi felt as though he had slapped her. Merle noticed the pained look on the seeress' face and grabbed her arm gently. She swiftly removed her from the throne room.
"We should go back to our room," She stated softly as the other two girls joined them in the hallway. The excitement seemed to have died down, since Queen Brahen had addressed the situation so quickly. However, the alarm bells were still ringing.
"What's wrong with him?" Yukari asked crossing her arms over her chest as she watched Van's figure walk farther and farther down the hall.
Merle sighed again, "He's frustrated and scared."
"Scared of what?" Hitomi asked as they began to walk back the their room.
"Queen Brahne. She's everything he's not, and more," Merle explained. She looked around quickly to make sure that they were alone in this particular hallway. When she decided it was safe, they continued walking back to their room. "Look, according to the Fanelian records that we managed to salvage from the wreckage of the Zaibach attack, King Goau was about to break the treaty himself," She concluded in a very hushed voice.
"What do you mean?" Hitomi asked in surprise. From what she knew about King Goau, he was a peaceful man. Why would he want to start a war with the most powerful nation on Gaea. It was beyond her.
"He was going to nullify Van's engagement," She said looking around once more to make sure that no one was eavesdropping on their conversation. "We found the document drawn up, but without Goau's signature, it's not valid," She explained sadly.
"What happened to him?" Yukari asked in a whisper.
"Yeah, I mean, I know he died but why didn't he sign it?" Hitomi added.
"He died," Merle replied sadly. "Rumors were tossed around that he was poisoned, but that could never be proven," She explained quietly.
A light bulb went off in Hitomi's head. "Do you think Queen Brahne killed Goau?" She asked, maybe a little too loudly.
Merle covered her friend's mouth and shook her head vigorously. "No," She stated firmly. "Not even Queen Brahne would go as far as to commit regicide. Van however, thinks it's a strong possibility," She whispered as is it were blasphemy. "Especially since it was days after he returned from his last visit to Arathnia, and he had gotten sick on the journey home."
"Is that why he's so scared of her?" Yukari asked as the four of them entered their bedroom.
Merle quickly shut the door behind them to quiet their voices, and evade curious ears. "Yes. The pressure of pleasing Queen Brahne to ensure her friendship is too much for him. I am amazed that he even came on this trip," She concluded with a firm nod.
Merle and Hitomi journeyed to the balcony, leaving Celena and Yukari alone in the bedroom. The guymelefs had appeared to have restrained the Crystal Dragon. They watched as the dragon rider's tied the creature down to prevent it from harming the general public. Hitomi sighed. It was a sad ending to see the beast in chains. Even the most volatile of creatures deserved to be free.
Van sat in his room in Terra's extravagant castle. He watched the battle with the Crystal Dragon through one of the room's many windows. As the dragon went down, he sighed. He felt compassion for the beast. He too knew how it felt to be a prisoner in a place you would, and could never call home with people who took absolutely no interest in your needs, desires, or true need for companionship. The draconian king sigh again, shrugging his shoulders allowing his shirt to fall off of his body. He allowed his wings to emerge and spread their whole span. He flexed their muscles as he watched the battle. he felt a stray tear drip down his cheek as he watched the dragon riders tie down the crystalline being. He stepped out on the balcony. He just wanted to be free, even if it was just for a little while. Free to fly, and be able to be with the one woman that he truly loved. He took a deep breath and jumped off the balcony launching himself into flight not really caring if anyone saw. He quickly rose flying into the bright sunlight, and disappeared from the castle's view.