Vision Of Escaflowne Fan Fiction ❯ Ashes and Remembrance ❯ Chapter Twenty-Seven ( Chapter 27 )

TWENTY-SEVEN

Folken let out a long sigh and rubbed his eyes with his fingers. He had been working with Marco and Juri for the past few hours, pouring over the guymelef plans. As they compared their individual notes and drawings, it was Juri who finally called a halt, "This isn't doing a bit of good. We need to see the 'melefs." Frustrated, the man smacked his fist on the tabletop, "Damn! I wish Garufo would get back here."

Folken had not been able to get any more information out of Juri regarding the accident. The older man claimed not to know anymore than what Marco had said earlier; but Folken sensed that there was still something that the two men were holding back. Reaching for the glass on the table to the left him, he winced a little at the pain in his shoulder and back as he stretched out his arm. Taking a long swallow, he watched Juri and Marco through half-lidded eyes as they spoke quietly on the other side of the table. It must be more serious than they said. I wonder why they won't tell me? Setting down the empty glass, Folken considered confronting the two men once again about what they knew. Just as he was about to speak, there was a knock on the door.

"Now what?" Juri growled as he turned to open the door. "What do you want?" The tone of his voice was harsh and the dog-man servant jumped a little before he replied. "Ex -- excuse m-m-me, s-s-ir. Th--this message j-j-just arrived for you." The servant held out an envelope, his eyes downcast. Juri snatched the paper away and slammed the door shut in the man's face.

Looking at the wax seal on the back of the envelope, Juri turned it over and exclaimed as he saw the handwriting. "It's from Garufo!" Tearing open the envelope, he quickly unfolded the papers within and scanned the top sheet. Juri looked puzzled for a moment and then quickly scanned through the remaining pages. Looking up, he saw that Folken and Marco were watching him.

"Garufo will be back tonight, with the wreckage from both guymelefs," he said coming back to the table. "You won't believe this," he held out several sheets from the stack, "but this is a copy of the preliminary field report from the military's investigation." Juri let out a small laugh. "I'd like to know how he pulled that off."

Marco came to stand beside him. "What does it say? Are they blaming us?"

"According to Garufo, it's inconclusive so far. But he wanted each of us to read it and see what we think."

Marco looked puzzled, "What does that mean? Inconclusive?"

Juri looked at him as if he were stupid, "It means that they don't know what happened. There isn't enough evidence one way or the other."

"Yet." Folken had risen from his seat and walked towards the other two men. Standing next to Marco, he looked Juri in the eye. "What's going on, Juri? No, don't lie to me anymore. Why is this so important? Any other time and you wouldn't care; you'd just write it off as an unfortunate accident and that would be the end of it. So, what is it?"

Standing next to Folken, Marco looked at Juri and then dropped his eyes. Juri gave Folken a long measured looked before he spoke. "One of the pilots, the one that died, was the son of some government big wig. That's why the military has taken such an interest . . . and why we must too. This man could cause trouble for us -- for the tower -- if it turns out that we were responsible."

Folken gave Juri a skeptical look, "The emperor controls the tower . . . and the government too. How can one bureaucrat cause trouble for us when we have Dornkirk's protection?"

"You're young Folken, and you haven't been here long enough to begin to understand the intricacies of our government. Yes the emperor does have dominion over the Empire, but his hold on the government itself is not as strong as it once was." Juri waved his hand towards the table, "Why don't we sit down and I will try to explain some of this to you."

The three men moved to the table. "I don't know how versed you are on our history, but I'll try to be as brief and to the point as I can." Juri took a quick sip of wine and then cleared his throat. "Before Emperor Dornkirk came, Zaibach didn't exist. We were a people trying to scratch out a living in a hostile land . . . fighting amongst ourselves . . . fighting off invasions from other countries . . . it was a place of anarchy. But Dornkirk changed that. He brought with him order . . . laws . . . hope. No one is sure where he came from . . . I've heard stories that he came from the Mystic Moon; but of course that's impossible. But he brought knowledge . . . knowledge of things that no other country on Gaea had. That knowledge gave him power and he used it to unite the people of this land; and thus, the Zaibach Empire was born."

"In time, this great city arose and the emperor turned his attention towards making Zaibach a force to be reckoned with on Gaea. He began instructing others in the sciences that he brought with him, calling these men sorcerers, an ancient word for those that practiced so-called magic. The government that Dornkirk had set up to rule seemed to do well without his daily supervision, so he turned his attention to the sorcerers and the teaching of science. Years passed and the bureaucrats became entrenched, and the emperor . . . the emperor aged, but he did not die. He used his knowledge to prolong his life and he became more removed from the governing of the Empire and became consumed with the study of destiny and fate."

"As Dornkirk's hold on the government lessened, the bureaucrats gained more power. There are . . . there are some among the governing bureaucrats that think that the emperor has ruled too long. They believe that they should have complete control over the affairs of the Empire . . . including the sorcerer's tower. The military is an extension of the governing body, Folken. They want nothing more than to discredit us, despite the fact that without our science and technology, they would not be the force that they are today. If the dissenters in the government can discredit the tower enough, they may be able to depose Emperor Dornkirk and seize complete control of the Empire for themselves. I don't know if this man, whose son died, is one of those who want to overthrow the emperor; but we can't take the chance. Do you understand what I'm trying to say, Folken?"

Folken was still trying to absorb all that Juri had said, "I -- I --I'm not sure." He shook his head.

"The very existence of the tower . . . no of the empire itself, may just rest on the outcome of this investigation. If the military can prove that we were at fault, then they can further discredit our work and give the bureaucrats more leverage against the emperor. That's why this is so important."

Folken gave Juri a wide-eyed look. "You're talking about a military coup?"

The older man took a deep breath, "It's possible. I'm only telling you this because . . . because of your connection with the emperor. As his apprentice, you should be more aware of the -- the situation . . . the state of the Empire, so to speak." Looking at Folken for several moments, Juri's voice was low and cold when he spoke again. "What I've just told you is to be kept in the strictest confidence, Folken. You have taken the oath of the tower and I will hold you to it. You will not speak of this again -- to anyone, sorcerer or no."

Folken swallowed hard, "On my oath, Juri."

The older man nodded his head. "Since we really can't do anything until Garufo returns, I suggest that we break until he arrives. Stay in your quarters if possible and I will send for you." Taking up the pile of papers, he handed one to Marco and then another to Folken. "These are the copies of the preliminary report. Take it with you and we'll discuss it when we meet again." Marco and Folken nodded.

Rising from the table, the two younger men gathered their belongings and quickly hurried out the door to their own rooms.

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Dropping the rolled plans and the report on his worktable, Folken felt a great weariness wash over him. Gods, I could just drop right here. Rubbing the fingers of his left hand over his eyes, he wanted nothing more than to lie down and sleep. Glancing at the table, he knew that he should read the report that Garufo had sent, but he doubted that he could keep his eyes open any longer. Just a quick nap . . . I can read it afterwards.

Going into his bedroom, he sat down to remove his boots. He winced and gritted his teeth against the pain in his back and shoulders as he bent down and pulled them off. He thought about taking a painkiller, he still had a few left that they sorcerers had given him when he had first come to Zaibach. He shook his head. No, if I take that I'll be out for the rest of the day and night. Gasping in pain, Folken gingerly laid down on the bed. His back screamed out in protest as he put his weight on it. Damn! Turning on his left side he tried to get comfortable but to no avail. Pulling himself up, he let out a curse. I'm never going to be able to sleep like this. With a frustrated sigh, he got up from the bed and with a quick thought grabbed the blanket that was folded at the foot of the bed. Going back into the front room, he gently sat down in one of the old wingback side chairs and pulled the blanket around himself. Not too comfy, but at least it doesn't hurt as much. Closing his eyes, he fell quickly asleep.

Folken was awakened by a pounding on his door. He was startled out of an unsettling dream in which he was wandering in a mist-shrouded land as Jindra's sad voice called out to him. He awoke to find his heart racing and his breathing heavy. As the pounding came again on the door, Folken shook his head to try to clear away the lingering gloom of the dream. Slowly rising from his chair, he chanced a quick look at the small clock on the table as he made his way to the door. Gods! I didn't mean to sleep so long.

Opening the door, he came face to face with one of the dog-man servants. Dropping his eyes, the man gave a small bow. "Pardon me, my Lord Folken. Master Juri has asked that you join him in his chambers immediately." The servant bowed again and without waiting for a reply, he turned and started back down the hall.

Folken closed the door and ran a quick hand through his hair. Great! I haven't read the report and I probably look like I just rolled out of bed. With a sigh, he went into his bedroom and retrieved his boots. Gathering up his things from the worktable, Folken pulled the report out. I can read it on the way. Closing the door behind him, he started towards Juri's quarters.

Folken haltingly read as he walked, trying not to collide with the other people passing through the halls. He had reached Juri's door and was knocking when Marco came up behind him. "Little nap, huh?" Folken turned around and gave the dark-haired man a wry look. "Did you read this yet?" He held up the report copy.

"Uh -- uh -- actually . . . I was going to -- but -- I kind of got off track," Marco replied sheepishly and looked down. "I was going to read it on my way here, but . . ." Whatever Marco was going to say was lost as the door opened and Juri quickly ushered them inside.

"Garufo should be here any minute. He's supervising the unloading of the wrecks. We thought it would be best to meet here first and then go out to the storage hangar." Seeing the report in Folken's hand, he gestured towards it. "Did you get a chance to read it?" Folken felt the color rise in his face and he looked down quickly, hoping that the other man didn't notice. "Uh, yes. It's very basic, but I'm sure that will change as they continue their investigation." Folken put his things down on the table and was just sitting down when the door banged open and Garufo entered.

"Everyone here? Yes -- good -- good. Damn, but I was never so happy to get back here in my whole life. " Seeing Folken seated at the table, Garufo stepped towards him and slapped him on the back. "Well, it looks like the wandering apprentice has reappeared." His voice held a mocking tone and he gave Folken a smug look. Folken could feel tears well in his eyes from the pain and he blinked his eyes several times to hold them back.

Turning back towards the others, Garufo continued. "I had a hell of a time getting those wrecks away from the military . . . they seemed rather reluctant to give them up for some reason. But we've got them now and that's all that matters."

Juri took a seat and indicated that the others should also. After everyone was seated he looked at Garufo. "Anything new since your message?"

"Not really." He thought for a moment, "Oh yes, there was something. The second pilot died this morning."

Juri swore under his breath and his eyes grew dark. "Damn! That's all we needed. So was this one of importance too?"

Garufo waved his hand, "He was a nobody. The son of some minor land owner from the west. No one to worry about."

Folken bit his lip. How can they be so callous? A nobody? The poor man is dead and they act like it's nothing. He glanced at Marco, hoping to see some sign of outrage, but the dark-haired man was silently shaking his head in agreement with Garufo. Folken's measure of Marco dropped several degrees and he found himself wondering if he too would end up as unfeeling and cold as the men seated around the table with him.

Almost without thinking, Folken spoke. "Who were they? I mean their names. What were the pilot's names?"

"Why?" Garufo shrugged his shoulders.

"Call it morbid curiosity . . . I'd like to know."

Juri gave him a puzzled look, "Who cares? It's not important. All that matters is what they did and if they are responsible for what happened."

Folken felt the anger growing within. himself. "Who cares? These men were the sons of someone . . . they were soldiers of the Zaibach Empire. I'm sure their families are . . ."

Juri let out an exasperated sound. "Folken! Enough! That is none of your concern. All you should be concerned with is whether or not the tower can be connected with what happened. Who grieves or does not grieve for those men is of no importance to us. Enough . . . I will hear no more from you."

Folken clenched his jaw and gave Juri a hard stare, but said nothing. Looking from Folken to Juri, Garufo cleared his throat, "If you two are finished . . . I think we should continue down in the hangar. The sooner we get started, the sooner we can find the answers that we need."

As the men stood and gathered up their things, Marco came to Folken's side. "What are you doing Folken? Are you a complete fool? Juri Selanne is not someone that you want as an enemy," his voice was a whisper. "If you want my advice, you'll just leave it."

Folken gave Marco a cold look. "Well it's a good thing I don't want your advice then, isn't it Marco." Without another word, Folken stepped around the other man and followed Juri and Garufo out the door.

Marco watched Folken's back as he walked away. Leave it alone Folken. Trust me, you're not going to like what you find. Picking up his design plans, Marco walked out the door closing it behind himself.