Vision Of Escaflowne Fan Fiction ❯ Beyond the Moon ❯ Veiled Honor ( Chapter 13 )

Poll: I have a Dilandau/Celena lemon/ (heavy, depending on my response) lime planned, and I was just wondering what people thought. It wouldn't do much for the story, but might help develop their relationship a bit. I am bursting with ideas. Anyway, here's the next chapter. Sorry it's a bit late, but we're all getting ready for vacation. I'm going to Florida for a week and probably won't get much done, I have to read two 300-page books for next semester. I'll have a heck of a lot more time when I get back, hopefully.

Beyond the Moon

Thirteen

"Allen." Munos' voice was deep and sinister, echoing in the knight's ear. He shivered, the metal blade brushing his Adam's apple as he gulped, drawing a small drop of blood. "Were you planning on going somewhere?" The guard's slimy, guileless words making the hair on the back of Allen's neck stand on end. He was in trouble.

"Me?" Allen asked, his voice slightly squeaky. He growled at himself mentally. He was far superior to Munos, but he had never had a reason to test such an assumption. The guard had always been such a good soldier under the knight's command.

"Munos," Allen began, addressing his captor. The blade at his throat pressed more urgently against his skin as he continued. "This is such a pathetic way to die. How about we settle this over a duel?" Allen was very aware it was against any man of honor to deny a challenge. He hoped the same would go for Munos, even though he was obviously not himself.

"Duel?" Munos seemed to contemplate the word for a moment, before loosely releasing Allen from swordpoint. The knight jumped back, hand landing on the sword at his side. He could barely look out the corner of his eye as Van peeped his head back in, no doubt wondering why Allen hadn't followed behind. The knight shook his head lightly, motioning back to the door.

Van looked around in confusion, then caught sight of Munos, who was getting into a fairly imposing fighting stance. The king lowered his head, his two chocolate eyes barely visible. The possessed guard would never know.

Before Allen had time to relax, Munos charged. The knight had at least expected the two of them would migrate into a more suitable area, like the courtyard or the garden. It looked like the battle would have to be right there in the main hall of the castle.

Munos' strike was poorly planned. His feet skidded along the smooth tile of the floor, sending him careening past Allen as the knight dodged carefully. The guard quickly righted himself, pushing himself off the wall, his rear pushing off the door inches from where Van's careful gaze rested. Allen quirked one lip as Munos repositioned himself, raising his sword in a defensive position.

Allen decided to take the initiative, allowing Munos to move out of the corner where he could be easily pinned. The knight lowered his sword, narrowing his eyes as he darted towards the red-coated guard. Munos raised his sword, a loud clang resulting from the impact of their two silver blades. Allen knew a battle of strength would be no good against a man like Munos, who was obviously superior to him in size and strength. He would just have to issue his natural agility instead.

Maneuvering to a better angle, Allen withdrew his sword, jabbing in another direction instead. Munos carefully matched him, anticipating each of the knight's new swings. Allen growled, jumping back and examining his challenge. The guard grinned nastily, taking advantage of the knight's obvious fluster. Munos charged, holding his blade out in front of him. Allen attempted to anticipate the move, quickly jumping out of the way and raising his sword, but the guard had other tricks up his sleeve.

Twisting around, Munos slashed out, the sound of ripping meeting his carefully aimed blow. A shred of Allen's white, regal coat was torn off, the cloth floating to the ground. Allen snarled, lowering his head as he responded in like manner, now slashing quicker and more aggressively. Munos matched every one of his blows, snickering as Allen withdrew suddenly, contemplating his options. The guard had an incredibly strong defense and also made use of good tricks and maneuvers, but he was still no match for Allen's ability with speed and angles.

Allen jumped back, carefully stepping off the long, royal carpet that extended to the doorway. He used his sword as a buoy, balancing with one foot slightly off the ground. His other leg was rooted in the slick tile, his muscles coiled to spring. Munos grinned with confidence, lunging once again at the apparently flustered knight. He swung his blade, expecting Allen to jump out of the way as he had before.

Allen sprung into the air, bringing his sword down on top of Munos' outstretched hilt. It knocked the weapon out of the guard's hand, the blow sending Munos crashing to the ground from both surprise and impact. Allen landed gracefully, swiftly gathering the other shorter, stubbier blade off the tile.

"I win," the knight said, his voice edging on cheeriness. Munos scowled, slowly climbing to his feet. Allen pressed the two blades against the guard's neck, pushing him back to the ground. "Oh no you don't," Allen assured him, "you're going to let me out, get me my horse, and let me leave. You give any indication that something is wrong, and I'll kill you." Allen's smile contradicted his statement, and a nudge against Munos' throat with one sharp tip forced a nod from the pinned guard.

Munos slowly climbed to his feet once more, Allen dropping the shorter sword to the ground as they walked out onto the front yard. The knight slowly removed his blade from Munos' neck, allowing the guard to call two of his men from their posts near the bottom of the stairway. Van had disappeared from sight, but on closer observation, Allen noticed a bit of his black hair poking up behind one of the stable stalls.

"Fetch this good knight his horse," Munos commanded, nodding towards Allen. One of the guards looked at him in confusion, then turned and disappeared into the stable. Munos kept his gaze focused ahead, not once looking back at the knight standing confidently beside him. Whether it was some kind of signal to his men or just the dishonor from being defeated, Allen didn't know. He walked down the steps, roughly taking his horse away from the green-coated guard. The other man blinked, then shrugged and walked back to where his partner stood.

"Good day," Allen called, jumping onto the horse unceremoniously. He turned, galloping out of the castle gates and down the cobblestone streets, disappearing behind one of the inner-lying houses. Munos turned, examining where his blade lay just inside the door.

Van took the moment to turn, slowly pacing through the stalls that lay to one side of the palace stairs. He looked all around him, and determining that the two other guards were busy talking to one another, he trotted across the moat-like road and disappeared beneath an overhanging tree. He inspected the high, stone wall, and, using his free arm to clutch a branch, pulled himself painfully onto the flat top of the partition. Van's arm had become numb; his body was still drained of energy, but at least he had minimal feeling in his fingers and palms.

Van leaned over the wall, peering through the branches of the tree to look around for Allen. Surely the knight hadn't taken off without him. His hope was assured when a familiar pair of gray horse legs appeared.

"Come on out," Allen commanded. Van crawled over the wall, letting out a gasp as he slipped painfully down the other side. The once six or seven foot barricade was only three or less on the other side, but the sudden jolt to his weak body sent Van's head into a nauseated swirl. He came out from beneath the tree, wincing as the knight helped him onto the back of the horse. Allen reined the large, gray stallion around, the two taking off at a gallop.

Munos turned, yelling at one of the guards. The green-coated man raised his hand to his forehead, calling to attention.

"Get one of your fastest horses and follow him. Make sure to stay out of sight, and return as soon as they stop, if at all," Munos commanded. The guard raised one eyebrow then nodded, following his orders.

Before long, he had trotted after Allen, disappearing into the city of Palas.

***

"Dilandau," Celena prodded, poking at the albino's arm. It was wrapped tightly around her shoulders, and she had woken up with a cramp. She shifted in an attempt to escape, but he merely clutched her tighter and mumbled something in his sleep.

"Dilly, we need to keep moving," she said again, slowly prying his hand off her other arm. Dilandau jolted awake suddenly, eyes widening as he looked down to find his current position. One arm wrapped tightly around Celena's shoulders, her body pressed close to his side.

Dilandau dropped her hastily, getting up all in one rush of air. Celena blinked as he coughed, wiping off his grassy back. He eyed her, allowing her a decent view of the red staining his cheeks. Celena swallowed her chuckle, getting up as well.

"We move out," he commanded, looking around for his horse. It stood not far off, apparently sleeping. Well, the sorrel mare was in for a rude awakening.

While Celena busied herself with wiping off her dress and slacks, a loud whinny drew her gaze up. Dilandau was currently tossing rocks at their horse, which quickly leapt into defensive mode.

"Dilandau!" she scolded, grabbing the next rock out of Dilandau's hand. He growled, crossing his arms and looking away. Celena shrugged, trotting past him to the terrified mare.

When Dilandau looked up again, Celena was walking towards him calmly, the big sorrel horse walking solemnly in tow. He raised one eyebrow; she had always had a way with men and animals.

Soon enough, the two had mounted and were quickly on their way once more. Dilandau followed the small, widely-spaced tracks along the hillside, which rapidly flattened out into a long grassland. Far in the distance he noticed a high plateau, one side of which was banked by enormous waterfalls. The roar of the falls soon enveloped them as they moved steadily closer, the plateau rising above them. Jagged cliffs cut the waning sunlight, casting long shadows across the fields.

"Dilandau," Celena said quietly, nudging his arm with her shoulder to get his attention. The albino merely stared ahead, a slight twitch in the affected arm signaling that she now had his full consideration. Dilandau trained one ear to hear her soft, quiet voice beneath the assault of the roaring falls.

"It's getting dark," Celena observed, squinting as a tilt of her head caused a previously shadowed sun to glare into her eyes. Dilandau raised one eyebrow.

"So?"

"I'm not riding in the dark," she replied, her voice hardening. Dilandau growled.

"We just rested!" he snarled, urging on the unsure horse with his heels. Celena grabbed the reins in her hands, causing Dilandau to jolt in surprise.

Her voice lowering to a dangerous, matter-of-fact voice, she responded with, "I am not riding in the dark." Dilandau stared at the back of her white head, for she had turned back to the road ahead. "We travel until we are completely in shadow," Celena continued, taking full control of the horse.

The albino snorted, but the movement of one hand more tightly around her waist and two of his fingers playing with the fabric of her dress betrayed him. She smiled lightly, resting her head against Dilandau's coated chest. He adjusted his body so the front of his jacket opened, allowing Celena to be enveloped by the soft, black folds. She sighed, inhaling deeply as she - with reluctance - placed the reins in his free hand. She could almost taste his scent, which had a kind of roguish musk but also seemed fair and sophisticated at the same time.

***

King Chid sat down, watching Hitomi's retreating form. She had definitely changed, almost as much as he had. It was too bad King Fanel had already clearly laid his claims on her, for the Duke of Freid would have been more than happy to take her as his own queen, despite the taboos of marrying outside of royal families.

He shifted his thoughts away from the green-eyed woman, focusing on the problem at hand. He couldn't let his affections and personal feelings get in the way of his overall mission, his goal. The king would instruct the servant woman to keep Hitomi company until tomorrow, when she would be fully rested and hopefully helpful to his mission.

Chid's thoughts were interrupted as the wide, oak doors opened once more. Three tall, cloaked creatures stepped in, each one bowing as it entered. The three travelers removed their hoods, revealing long, ivory faces and large, dark green eyes. Though Chid had never really liked their looks, he commended the doppelgangers on their cunning, bravery, and ability to travel great distances at speed.

The first lord stepped forward, his blood-colored stripes thick and dark. "I arrived bearing the human woman earlier today. Have you spoken with her?" the doppelganger, Denongo, asked, informally taking a seat at the middle of the table. The king nodded.

"She knows nothing," he replied coolly as the two other figures took their seats on the opposite side of the table, each removing their long hoods.

"And the Fanelian king?" the second doppelganger asked, his skin featuring a more teal tone than Denongo's purplish hue. The third nodded in agreement, one who appeared to be more bluish than the other two.

"I did not get the chance to inquire her, Lord of the Western clans," Chid replied, "she is resting. I hope to bring the issue to greater light tomorrow." The two stranger doppelgangers glanced at each other, and the first lord nodded at the king.

"The energists we recovered from the fallen Zaibach empire are fading," the second lord informed him, his face grave. Chid narrowed his eyes, leaning forward in his chair. "A nearby country, Chezario, is having similar problems. The disease is spreading."

"Why do we care? What can we possibly do?" Denongo countered, "what does that human woman have to do with anything?" The king glared at him for the intrusion, and the doppelganger sighed back in resignation.

"Precisely my point," the second lord responded. "We have no use of energists in the clan of the East." Chid growled loudly, slamming one fist into the table. The three doppelgangers looked at him in surprise, further annoying the reddened king.

"The Zone of Absolute Fortune will spread, even to your distant clans. Without the energists, there will be no defense from your neighboring countries. The Eastern clans will be attacked by Basram; the Western clans by Chezario. It's only a matter of time before the world is in turmoil again," Chid began, his exasperation slowly fading. Denongo let out a loud sigh, closing his eyes. The other two lords looked at each other with slightly worried expressions.

"Atlantis, the sunken metropolis, is drawing back its old strength. If nothing is done, it will be reborn, and once again shift our worlds out of balance." Denongo inhaled sharply, the three doppelgangers' eyes automatically looking out the far window at the two moons hovering in the sky, unclouded in the fading sunlight.

Chid continued, unhindered. "What Hitomi has to do with it... Everything. She is the key," he said, his voice becoming lower and more dangerous. "Somehow, through her pendant, she harnessed the power of Atlantis. Why, I don't know. But we'll need her. Whatever is happening on Earth, she has direct access to and can possibly stop the power flow."

The two foreign lords put their hoods back on, standing up. "King Chid, you continue to serve Gaea faithfully," the first one commended. The second one nodded in agreement.

"Our armies are your armies, our resources are your resources. Unfortunately, there is not much else we can do. We trust in you, King Chid." The two lords bowed, swiftly exiting the room.

Chid let out a breath he didn't know he was holding and collapsed on the table. Denongo cleared his throat, hardly gaining himself one irritated look from the king's raised eye. "I don't like using her this way," King Chid berated. Denongo sighed. "Can't we at least tell her our motive?"

"No," the doppelganger responded. "If she knows, she may not want to help us the way she needs to. If she does find out," he continued, "it will all be over with and she'll thank you for it."

Denongo rose to leave, letting the immense, oak doors close with a meager rush of air. Chid buried his head in his folded arms, sighing deeply.

"I'm not so sure."