Vision Of Escaflowne Fan Fiction ❯ Heart of the Dragon ❯ Death isn't for Me ( Chapter 31 )

Chapter Thirty One: Death isn't for Me

 

 

Immediately he felt a burst of wind that threw him away from the coffin and made him skid across the aisle. He scrambled to his feet, almost falling right back over, for he didn't think he had ever been so terrified in his life. He watched a white transparent substance float over to him and curl around his form, keeping him pinned to his spot. He squeezed his eyes shut tight, and he tried not to start shaking from terror. He heard sighing noises, and for some odd reason he calmed and relaxed in the haunting presence. The sighing grew louder and he opened his eyes, expecting to see himself dead.

 

His mind instead filled with a distorted picture of his wife, and instantly he was swept up in another world. He felt the air around him grow warm, felt the dim lighting grow bright. He felt oddly at peace. He couldn't hear her voice, but he smiled as her arms spread to welcome him. Her mouth moved again, but he couldn't hear what she said, could only hear the faint sighs and ethereal whispers waft around him. He reached for her, wrapped his arms around her softly glowing body.

 

In a flash he felt his body being sucked dry of the little energy he had. His eyes widened as he stared down at her white apologetic face, her mouth moving into a small smile. He smiled back at her, understanding what she was doing. He sagged against her when he couldn't stand anymore, and still she continued to draw out his precious energy.

 

It started to get painful after a moment, and he gulped, squeezing his eyes shut to keep the pain at bay. He heard her whisper an apology and he looked up into her angelic face, not letting his eyes stray from her somehow bright silver eyes. He felt his world start to grow dark and colder again, felt the floor beneath his feet, actually felt real.

 

Allen and Merle stood impatiently outside of the temple, waiting for Van. It had been more than an hour, and Van had said only a few minutes. They saw the knob turn, and the door started to creak open. The first thing they saw was a distinct bright white glow as someone stepped outside. The door was all of a sudden flung open.

 

Van and Hitomi stood in the portal, their brilliant white glows almost blinding. Merle's jaw almost dropped to the floor, and Allen just stared. Allen couldn't believe the power he just felt radiating off of them, and the wind. He held back his hair so he could see, and smiled when he noticed the soft gentle breeze Hitomi and Van were floating in. It startled him for a moment, realizing that their feet weren't touching the ground, they were just hovering above the ground. And without their wings.

 

Merle started running forward to jump on both Van and Hitomi at the same time, but Allen all but ripped her arm out of her socket when he stopped her quickly. "No, don't get near them! I don't want you to get burnt!" he yelled at her, tugging her back into his arms.

 

"Lord Van...." Merle whispered, her eyes wide on the two otherworldly looking Draconians. The couple still didn't say anything, it was if they couldn't. It was then that Merle noticed a drastic change in Hitomi. She nudged Allen in the side, saying, "Look at Hitomi."

 

Allen gave her a close look over, his eyes becoming adjusted to the bright light they were giving off. "Her hair...her eyes. What the—"

 

He was stopped when Van and Hitomi drifted over to them, only a few barely noticeable inches off the ground. It was if they were too good to touch the ground, for it was too dirty. Allen watched their feet touch the ground, and looked up at Van, just as he collapsed in a heap on the ground. Merle cried out and ran over to him, but Allen ended up stopping her again. "No, he still might not be safe to touch. Let him alone."

 

Merle glared at Allen and then looked back at Hitomi, seeing how she wasn't glowing anymore. But her hair and her eyes...they were still different.

 

"I know this is a stupid question, but how the hell did you come back to life?!" Allen asked, bewildered.

 

Hitomi gave him a quick smile, bending down to her unconscious husband. "I didn't mean to take so much energy from him, but I had to. I only had one chance to come back, and he was it. Now he won't wake for two days."

 

Allen frowned. "Can you answer my question?"

 

Hitomi didn't pay him any heed. "He is safe to touch. Pick him up and bring him to our room." At that, she instantly disappeared. Both Merle and Allen blinked, trying to hide their shock over the whole situation.

 

"Alright, if I thought seeing Hitomi kill dragons was weird, I was wrong," Merle said, waiting for Allen to pick Van up and bring him inside. Finally when Allen couldn't fight with himself any longer, he picked the man up and brought him inside the palace to his room, where Hitomi was sitting in the middle of the floor, her eyes closed as her hands rested calmly on her lap. Allen laid Van down on the bed, not bothering to cover him. He crossed his arms over his chest, standing in front of Hitomi. "Listen...Hitomi, or whoever you are. I want to know now how you came back. I can't seem to come up with an explanation myself, so you are going to have to provide some serious answers."

 

Her eyes snapped open, the silver glint in them reflecting annoyance. Allen drew back for a second, seeing the wrath in them. He thought it was directed at him, but almost as soon as he had seen it, it was replaced with warmth. He gave her a wary smile, waiting for her to talk.

 

"I don't know myself. Last thing I remember was feeling my neck break in two. Then I was surrounded in white, and I heard people talking, saying something about a Silver Atlantian. They told me I had to go back, I had to save them. And then it becomes a big blank until Van came and I took all his energy. I remember dimly someone saying that I would need to take it in order to get back."

 

Allen sighed. "So, what is up with you um, silver hair and eyes?"

 

Hitomi brought her hand up to her hair, running her fingers through the soft mid-back length. She shifted some over onto her shoulder so she could get a better look. She smiled when she saw the shimmering silver hair, something she had never seen before. "Are my eyes silver too?"

 

Both Merle and Allen nodded. Hitomi stood, walking over to the bed. "I think I am going to cut my hair. It gets in the way too much."

 

Merle gave her a smile, almost visible tears in her eyes. "Hitomi, you have no idea how horrible it was without you. I didn't think Van was going to live the next few days, but he woke up just before you got buried. You were to be buried only the next morning. And then all this stuff happened...I am just so happy to see you back."

 

Hitomi gave Merle a quick hug before she whispered to her only, "What happened to my children? Are they still alive? And what about Seibu and Dilandau?"

 

Merle drew back, a serious look on her face. "I heard from Vera that Van almost killed Seibu, but somehow she saved herself. Apparently he went totally nuts after you were killed. Vera told me he went in this insane rampage. She even said something about Van and stabbing Dilandau right through the foot so he was pinned to the ground and couldn't move. If you want my opinion," she giggled, "I think its kind of funny."

 

She stopped laughing when she saw Hitomi's eyes grow lighter. "What do you mean he almost killed Seibu?" she asked calmly, too serious. Merle was wondering if she was human.

 

"I don't know. No one would tell me. I think that only few choice people know." Merle's eyes widened when she saw Hitomi snarl. It wasn't the vicious look on her face that did it, but her vampire like canine teeth made her gasp aloud. "Hitomi, you...you can't be human anymore."

 

Hitomi gave Merle a shocked glance, but then she looked down, a sad look in her eyes. "I don't think I am either." As if to emphasize her point, her tongue stroked over her long canine teeth to get a new feel of them. "People are going to think I'm a monster. Van is going to hate me."

 

Allen walked over to her side, gripping her arms and giving her a firm shake. "I don't care what anyone says. You're not a monster, you're Hitomi, the Queen of Fanelia. You have more right than anyone on this planet to be alive. I know I sound weird, but it's true. How many times have you saved Gaea?!"

 

Hitomi smiled, her longer unusual teeth sticking out. "Thank you, Allen. I just hope no one will freak out."

 

Merle placed her hand on Hitomi's shoulder. "Allen's right, Hitomi. You have saved Fanelia countless times. If anyone should accept you, its your own people. Now me and Allen are going to leave and let you have some time to think and be with Van, and we will bring your children in a little bit. I bet you'll be surprised how much they grew in only a few days."

 

Hitomi nodded solemnly and watched them walk out of the room. She sat down on the edge of the bed, pushing back the hair in her husband's eyes. "Van if I get some sleep, I will give you your energy back, and you will wake up. I'm so sorry I had to do that. But I have the feeling you'll forgive me."

 

**********

 

Seibu screamed at her Angelslayers. "Damn you girls!! I told you to do something and you can't even do it!! Why didn't you obey me?!"

 

Aiea stepped forward. "I'm sorry, mistress. But Lord Dilandau told us not to go anywhere. We are sorry."

 

Seibu's eyes narrowed. "So, you listen to my husband, not me, your commanding officer?"

 

Aiea shook her head hard. "We were frightened that he might do something to us, mistress. You know that he is getting as strong as you."

 

Seibu laughed hysterically. "Stronger than me? Hahahahaha!! You make me laugh!!" She paused in mid-laugh. "Alright. Today is the day, girls. And this is a final warning. Never, I repeat, never listen to Lord Dilandau unless I am dead, or the order comes from me, do you understand? Oh yes, and if it is a life and death situation in which it will save my wonderful girls' lives. Understand?"

 

The women smiled and nodded.

 

"Alright now. Lets make our plans to go to that floating city."

 

**********

 

"Damn it."

 

Hitomi rolled her eyes. "What now?"

 

Allen frowned at her and sat down. "I don't understand something, and no one will tell me. So I guess you're stuck with telling me," he announced, giving her a triumphant smile.

 

Hitomi sat back down on the bed her husband was still resting on. Everyone had forced her not to give him some of her recuperated energy, for reasons that she disagreed upon. First of all, Merle and Allen had said something about Fanelia getting attacked, and her not having any energy. Nara had said that Van could live two days perfectly fine without any help from either of them. He would just need a lot of food when he woke up. Third and fourth reasons were ridiculous, so she ignored them. She herself wasn't sure how she would go about it, so maybe in a way this was good.

 

"Alright, what do you want to know?" she asked, taking hold of Van's warm hand.

 

Allen was currently sitting in a comfortable chair next to the bed, looking at her and her sleeping husband. "I don't really know how to put this into words. Let me think. Oh, yeah. How was Van glowing like you were that other day? It seemed to me like you guys had the same power."

 

Hitomi let her eyes go back to Van, giving him a close inspection. She shrugged. "I honestly don't know."

 

Allen scowled at her. "You probably know but you don't want to say."

 

The sudden spark in her silver eyes made him sit straight up in his chair, his back stiff and his look wary.

 

She gave him a sympathetic smile. "Allen, I hope you know that I would never hurt you."

 

He relaxed a little, but he was still wary. "I know that my eyes are a little weird, and sometimes they do things that I don't want them to do. I have been creeping out a lot of people lately. Merle just thinks it's funny, for now we both have sharp teeth and funny coloring."

 

Allen couldn't help but laugh. Sitting in a chair for two days and waiting for a king to wake up was starting to get to him, and he hadn't really laughed. "Alright, I believe you. Maybe I should go and get her if you—"

 

The sudden stir next to her made her jump. "I think he's finally waking up." She leaned forward and tapped his cheek with her hand gently, causing his head to jerk away from her touch so he could get some more sleep. She smiled and gave him a harder tap, which made his eyes fly open and narrow at her. "Woman, you are going to cause my death by not letting me sleep."

 

Hitomi blinked a few times, wondering how he recognized her. No one did unless she told them it was her. "I'm sorry, Van. But...how did you know it was me?"

 

"What other woman is allowed on my bed?"

 

She gave him a big smile and laid down next to him, propping her chin up on his chest. "Do you need anything?"

 

Van gave a quick look over to Allen, who was still watching them. "Food?" he asked tentatively.

 

Both Hitomi and Allen laughed. "I told you that would be one of the first things he would say," Hitomi said, getting off the bed and walking over to the door to ask the maid stationed there to get some food. The guards nodded to her and asked if his highness was awake yet, and she told them yes. They looked happy, something that was starting to become rare in the palace. She went back into the room and ordered Allen out, a smile on her face.

 

"Ok, but just don't get frisky or anything. Both of you would probably burn down the palace or something. I'll come back later and I'll bring Merle."

 

Van sat up against some pillows and crossed his arms over his chest. "I'm the king and I can't even do what I want. I get ordered around by a knight and some woman."

 

Hitomi giggled and plopped down onto the bed next to him. "Stop complaining, Van, oh dearest one."

 

He pulled her up to him and commanded her to sit and stay like a normal woman. There was a knock on the door a little bit after Allen left and Hitomi let the girl come in, taking the tray from her. The girl left and they were alone again.

 

He started stuffing his face full of food, which she wondered how he was doing it for it was so dark. She got up off the bed and opened the now heavy curtains that covered the balcony windows. "Why are the curtains so dark and heavy?"

 

Van had just shoved something into his mouth and he currently couldn't talk. She gave him a pretend annoyed look, and waited for him to swallow. She couldn't believe the bliss he was getting by just simple food.

 

"Whenever Dilandau hit me in the head I got a concussion. When I woke up from it, I couldn't take the light. I took me three or four days before I could open them just a little bit. The day you came back was the day that I had first gone outside. I had some horseman come rushing up to the palace just before you came galloping up the drive like a crazy maniac."

 

Hitomi let him finish eating before she talked anymore. When he was done, she started off by delivering the bald truth. "Van, you remember that letter from Freid that explained to us that there was some huge floating island a few miles away from it?"

 

He nodded and she continued. "I have the feeling the Dilandau and Seibu are going to start exploring it. We have to get there before them. We can't let them find out what it is."

 

Van got the feeling that Hitomi knew exactly what that place was. "It's our home, isn't it?"

 

Hitomi was startled that he knew what she was talking about. She took hold of his hand and gripped it hard. The look of surprise on his face that she was squeezing it that hard went away after a moment. Her new strength was probably always going to surprise him.

 

When she started squeezing harder, he gave her a confused look, wondering what she was doing. It started hurting really bad and he tried to get his hand out of her grasp, but it didn't work. "Hitomi, what are you doing?!" he cried, trying now to rip it out of her hold. He yanked as hard as he could, yet she didn't move, not even an inch. He watched as her eyes grew lighter, but didn't go white as they normally did. He felt his bones starting to bend under the pressure, could almost hear them snapping.

 

Hitomi smiled at him when he got an astounded look on his face. He looked up into her face and then looked back down at her hand still clasping his. "I...I don't feel any pain," he stuttered, not understanding.

 

"I'm going to break it, Van," Hitomi said calmly, squeezing harder.

 

He got a horrified look on his face. "No, Hitomi, don't break it!!"

 

She flexed her fingers and gripped his hand harder, until she felt the bones give and snap into pieces. He ripped his hand out of her hold, but he didn't feel any pain. He gave her another confused look, wondering why she would try to hurt him like that.

 

"I know you don't understand, Van. You will in a moment."

 

He felt an odd sort of tingling that started at his shoulder and then shot down to his hand. He watched as the broken bones in his smashed hand shifted and reallocated back into place with a sudden soft white glow, and then it was over almost as soon as it had started.

 

He moved his fingers and then his wrist around, smiling at her. "How did you know it would do that?"

 

She shrugged. "I didn't."

 

He gave her a look that told her he was scared as hell of her right then. "I don't remember much, but whenever you brought me back to life, Allen told me that both of us were glowing, like how I always do. I needed to find out if you had the same power as me. It seems like you do, Van."

 

He flexed his fingers again, to make sure he had really just healed his own broken hand. "What does this mean, Hitomi?"

 

"It means we have to train."

 

**********

 

Van waited for his wife to walk out of the palace and to the training field. He couldn't believe he was going to do this.

 

He unsheathed his very unused sword and did a few practiced movements with it to get used to it again. He found that he had missed the feel of the weapon as he sliced it through the air.

 

Hitomi walked out from the palace to see her husband doing some small maneuvers. He turned when she cleared her throat, and his mouth fell open. He still hadn't gotten over his shock whenever she walked past him. She heard the men's whispers and frowned at the stares. Surely she didn't look bad, did she?

 

Van re-sheathed his sword with some difficulty. He heard the men's nervous laughter at the state their sire was in. He gave them a wicked smile when he saw them in the same predicament.

 

Van walked up to his wife in her black leather clad form. Not only did it hug every curve on her lush body, it revealed enough to give a man a hint of what lay underneath. He stood in front of her, his arms crossed over his chest and a smile on his face. "So, are you trying to make the men more besotted than they already are with you? I think that every non-dead male between the ages of ten and eighty are having a problem right now."

 

She gave him a quick look and then smiled. "Really?"

 

Van rolled his eyes and walked away from her. He heard her say, "It doesn't seem to me like you are!!"

 

He stopped about ten paces from her. He let his smile slip off his face as he watched her unsheathe her own new sword. He watched her cradle it carefully in her hand as she flipped it over in her hands a few times. He had no idea why she insisted on learning this art, when he would rather lay down and die than teach her. But unfortunately she had demanded it, and then begged. He couldn't stand those eyes she gave him whenever she wanted something. He knew he would always give over when she did that.

 

Van observed her as her lips drew up into a grin that bared her almost sinister vampire teeth. It didn't really bother him, but it seemed to bother other people. He just made them leave when they started mentioning something about it.

 

Hitomi knew Van was nervous about this whole thing, and how the hell she even knew how to take her sword out of the scabbard right. It surprised her as well, for she didn't either. She just forgot about it as she positioned herself into an experts fighting stance. She gave Van an encouraging smile when she saw the uncertain glance he gave his now drawn sword. He smiled back at her when he saw her fighter's position.

 

"Alright, Hitomi," he said as he drew back his sword. "You win."

 

He didn't have much of a chance to say much more for in once blink of an eye she was right in front of him, her sword coming right at his chest. He blocked it just it time, his foot slipping and causing his balance to fail. He started to fall, but she gripped his arm and pulled him back up. As soon as she did that she threw him away from her, and charged him again. He couldn't believe how aggressively she fought. It was almost as if she was desperate, or she needed to do it.

 

He got tired after a moment of being defensive, so he went after her. She gave him an evil smile as he aimed right at her neck. She blocked it easily, and she frowned. "Van, I told you earlier not to hold back because I am your wife and I'm a woman!!"

 

She gave an angered yell and her sword flew through the air with an amazing streak. Van barely had enough time to stop the attack, and when he felt the powerful blow strike his sword, he couldn't accept that she was stronger than him. The assault felt more forceful than when Dilandau had fought him those weeks ago. He growled at her and went back at her by kicking her in the side. She hit the ground hard, but she scrambled back up and went right after him again.

 

Van took a step back and braced himself for what he knew was going to a hard hit.

 

Allen stepped outside with Merle on his arm and their nursery maid with Aleta in her arms. When they saw Van and Hitomi hacking away at each other with real swords, Merle almost fell to the ground. "Allen, oh my God. What are they doing?!"

 

She gasped when she saw Hitomi's fast sword slice through Van's shirt, leaving a rip and a line of blood on his chest. She almost smiled at his enraged shout as he threw down his sword and jumped on her. Hitomi scarcely had enough time to throw hers away from her before his body slammed into hers.

 

Allen felt his face pale when he watched Van smash his fists into her face. He saw blood spurt from her mouth and go flying to the ground a few feet away from where Van lay on top of her, pounding her face into the ground. He grabbed onto Merle's hand and tugged her over to where the men were gathered around the practice field watching them. He got another astonishment when Merle starting cheering on Hitomi, along with the other men who were betting who would win. She started yelling at Van that he could hit harder than that, and she flipped out when he did.

 

Allen laughed along with everyone else when Hitomi brought up her knees and hit him square in the back, causing him to fly over her head. "Go, Hitomi!!" Merle yelled, earning a cheer from the men betting on her.

 

Hitomi took hold of her husband's ripped shirt and hauled him up by it, his feet dangling off the ground. She heard a sudden hush, but then everyone started screaming and yelling for more. Her fist slammed into his face and he flew out of her grasp and into the air. The people gathered around them gasped when he somehow gained control of his flight and righted himself in the air. He hovered in the air a moment before he lowered and his feet touched the ground.

 

Hitomi watched him wipe off a trickle of blood at the corner of his mouth. He walked up to her, in no hurry, and grabbed her arm, twisting. She didn't cry out, just fell to her knees, waiting for him to break it. He turned it farther, not even waiting for the bones to start give under his strength. He just twisted it until he heard the resounding snap of a clean break.

 

He let her go, almost throwing her away from him as he stood. She followed after him, holding onto her arm. She gave him a smile as she jerked it back into place. She didn't bother to wait for the glow that signaled that it had healed, just walked over to Van. The soft glow started as she stepped in front of him, and then wrapped her arms around him. He hugged her back, breathing hard from the intense and odd exercise. He heard the men cheering and shouting lewd remarks, but he ignored it in his wife's embrace. He knew they were dirty and filthy, but he didn't care. He breathed in the slight smell of flowers in her hair and held her tighter.

 

Allen and Merle walked out of the dispersing crowd and went up to Van and Hitomi. "Alright, you guys, that was just freaky," Merle said, her arms crossed over her chest. Hitomi and Van let go of each other, but Van kept his arm around her shoulders.

 

Hitomi moved her shoulder and arm around to make sure it had healed. Merle stared at her, wondering what the hell had happened to her once broken arm. "Um, Hitomi...I thought that your arm—"

 

"I have some sort of healing ability now. And so does Van. We found out two days ago when I broke his hand on purpose."

 

Allen's eyes widened. "You two are violent with each other!!"

 

That caused all for of them to laugh. Hitomi asked Van, "Do you think I am good enough that I can fight other people besides you?"

 

Van nodded, not even believing it. "Hitomi, if I wasn't just as strong as you, I would um, be very dead right now."

 

Allen looked at Hitomi. "How can you fight like that? I didn't know anyone taught you how to fight. And it takes years upon years to learn how to do it, you couldn't—"

 

"I don't know, Allen. All of a sudden I just know. A lot of freaky things have been happening, and I know you guys don't understand. You will just have to trust us."

 

Van looked up into the sky, seeing the visible speck of that floating island in the sky. If one didn't know where to look, you wouldn't notice it. "Hitomi, in a few days, we leave."

 

She nodded, giving him a sad smile. "Yes. Lets just hope that we come back."

 

**********

 

Hitomi kissed the cheeks of her six-month-old children. They laughed, reaching for her from Vera's arms. When she didn't take them up in her own arms, they started fussing and crying. Hitomi gave a small almost pathetic laugh and took Ryu out of Vera's arms, meanwhile Van took Malaika. He walked away with her, talking to her as if she understood the words. He hogs them more than me, Hitomi thought with a smile, bouncing Ryu around in her arms to give him some entertainment.

 

She didn't want to leave, she just wanted to stay and take care of her babies. Soon they were going to start crawling, and she couldn't wait. Van was probably more excited than anyone, including herself. He might as well have had the children, not her.

 

Van came back about ten minutes later with her daughter, who had a small doll in her hands. He kissed her and said bye bye like nothing was wrong. Hitomi did the same and they handed their children back to Vera. "Take care of them while were gone, Vera," Van said, smiling. He walked out the door and started talking Allen and Merle who were waiting to say goodbye.

 

Hitomi made sure that her and Vera were out of hearing range from everyone else. "You um, know what to do if me and Van don't come back. Please make sure that Allen and Merle take care of them if you have to do it. I already talked to the generals, and they know what is going to happen if the situation arises. And if we don't come back and Ryu and Malaika are given to Allen and Merle, you don't have to hide their identities. When you think Ryu is old enough to run the kingdom, you can bring him back."

 

Vera, a very close person to the king and queen of Fanelia, couldn't help but be touched by their devotion to their children and their welfare. It was rare that royalty cared this much. She knew that his highness and Hitomi had made the plans together, and that Van wasn't being excluded in the future plans of his children. She didn't know what was going to happen, felt altogether terrified that they really weren't going to come back. Only choice people knew where they were going, and she was one of them. If they did die and never came back, she would be able to tell their children that they had died trying to save Gaea. She smiled and waved to Hitomi, telling her she understood and that she should leave. Hitomi gave her a quick hug and kissed her children again, telling them she wouldn't be back for a while. Vera knew that she could be gone for as long as a few months, or a few days. She didn't know, and neither did anyone else.

 

Hitomi stepped up to Van, who had her duffel bag in his hand, filled with food and clothing. She took it from his hands and said a quick goodbye to Allen and Merle, who didn't have a clue as to who they might get if they died.

 

Van made sure that his sword was strapped tight to his side before he jumped up into the air, flying towards the boundary of the city. Hitomi thought it funny that they could fly with or without their wings. They had discovered that flying with their wings made them tired, and flying without them didn't, or at least as fast.

 

Hitomi followed after him, also checking her sword to make sure it was secure. She met him outside the city limits and they flew towards the spec far off in the distance.

 

Van calculated the time it would take to get there. They were going faster than walking and riding horses, that was for sure. He had the feeling they were going faster than an air cruiser also. He remembered when Hitomi had put into numbers how fast horses and cars went, so he asked her how fast they were going. "Not that fast. Probably about one hundred miles per hour. You remember how fast that is right?"

 

Van nodded and pushed his hair out of his eyes. It went right back into place, unfortunately. Hitomi had cut her hair a day ago, and now it was above her shoulders. He was just happy she hadn't cut her soft hair so short that it looked ridiculous.

 

"How long do you think it will take to get there?" he yelled above the wind. She looked thoughtful for a moment. Alright, if the carriage goes about thirty miles per hour, and it takes about twenty four hours to get to Freid, then its about seven hundred miles away. And that floating city is about twenty miles east of Freid. "It should take about seven hours, Van, if we are going the current speed we are now. Good thing we left early. We will have enough time to set up camp and sleep for the night. We will go in the morning."

 

The time passed slow, but all too soon they found their destination. Two miles east away from the floating island. They set up camp, not daring to make a noise or a fire, for it might attract something, namely the possible men scouting the area for Dilandau and Seibu. They laid down, trying to get some rest so they would be charged up for the next day. It took a few hours, but finally it came and gave them the bliss of darkness.

 

**********

 

They both sat up at the same time, the noise that had woken them reverberating through the forest. It was soft, almost inaudible. Nevertheless, it was enough for their newly sensitized ears to hear it. They hurried and stuffed their small thin blankets into Hitomi's duffel bag and cleared away any evidence that there had been of their presence.

 

They ran a short distance before they jumped up into the air and flew a safe range away from where they had been. Hitomi looked back, seeing the trees moving.

 

**********

 

Dilandau smiled wickedly at his wife, who was currently holding their son, Daienand. His silvery hair and purple eyes told him that he was definitely his father's son, not to mention his wife's, considering they both looked the same. Seibu's own purple eyes and silver hair combination used to scare him because they looked so much alike, but he found that now he rather liked the way she looked, taking into account she looked like him, except in a much more feminine way.

 

Dilandau silenced his men and told them to spread out on their horses. His second in command took over from there and Seibu, Dilandau, their son, and several other men were left by themselves.

 

"Dilandau, I am sick of sitting here and scouting the area. We should have already been to that stupid little floating island that is supposedly Atlantis. I doubt it is, its probably some piece of junk derived from another um...piece of junk. Can we just leave Daienand here and go? The other men can take care of your precious heir," Seibu complained, acting if her own son didn't matter and getting to the floating island was more important.

 

Dilandau gave her a hard stare, but she didn't shut up, she kept going. "I am just going to leave now, Dilandau. I will not wait for you, and you know I won't. I don't ever listen to you."

 

Dilandau scowled at her, his hand itching to smack her impertinent mouth. He clenched his fist to keep himself from doing it. He didn't want to hit his wife. It wouldn't matter if it was any other woman. He didn't care about them. "Listen, Seibu. Sit down now. I am trying to come up with a good plan, not some joke that the other men in command came up with."

 

She snorted and handed Daienand over to a silent Dragonslayer. He held his master's son without saying anything and Seibu walked up to her husband, jabbing her forefinger into his metal clad chest. He took a couple pushes before he finally snarled at her and raised his hand, slapping her as hard as he could. She fell to the grass coated ground, her head turned and her soft silvery hair covering her pale face. Dilandau couldn't read her expression because of this, so he just stood there with his arms crossed trying to keep himself in control and telling himself he hadn't just liked hitting her. However...it had felt good, making the complaining little bitch shut up. That's all she ever did now. She used to act like she loved him, and now all she did was order him around and treat him like a pawn in a game she was winning. He missed her the way she used to be.

 

He stalked over to her and hauled her up by her limp arm, which made her seem so delicate and small...like she used to be. He dragged her farther into the woods, loosening his grip when he realized he was actually hurting her.

 

When he was a far enough distance from his men and their hearing range, he stood her up against a moss covered old gnarled tree, where she leaned against it, her face turned away from him. It angered him that she wasn't talking, not even complaining or anything. She was hiding her feelings too good for him to even read what she was thinking. It was usually really easy, but now he had no clue.

 

He ran his fingers through his hair, making some of it stand on end. He had an idea about what to say, but he was afraid to. He snorted to himself. Afraid? Afraid of a woman, your own wife, he questioned himself. He walked up closer to her hesitantly, almost wondering if she was going to freak out on him and knee him in the groin or something. Balls of steel, balls of steel, he chanted to himself as he leaned against the tree, resting his arm above her head. "Seibu, I...I didn't mean to do that. You know I never hit you before."

 

She didn't answer him. He heard her sniff and all but smiled. That little thing she just did gave him all the confidence he needed to say those simple words. "I'm sorry."

 

Seibu blinked a few times, wondering if she had heard right. Dilandau, saying sorry??!?! She smiled and lifted her face to his. "I have no idea what to say."

 

He smiled at her, his white teeth flashing. "You don't have to say anything. Let's go to that stupid floating island."

 

He took her hand and led her back to the group, where he gathered the needed people for the small air cruiser he had stolen from Freid to go to the dumb floating island.

 

**********

 

Hitomi and Van stared at each other, not believing what they had just seen. "Dilandau, did he just, um, apologize to Seibu?!" Hitomi whispered, trying not to yell and attract attention. Van was completely dumbfounded, he couldn't even say anything. Hitomi waved her hand in front of his face, snapping him out of his dream world.

 

"We have to go now, before they get there. We won't have much time."

 

Hitomi nodded and they took off again, trying to be quiet and not achieving it.

 

As they flew towards the floating monstrosity, they were overcome by a sense of euphoria and lightness. The normal sunlight became so bright that they were completely blinded, and had to shield their eyes. They had no idea which way they were going, just held hands so they wouldn't lose each other in the eternal blinding light.

 

"Hitomi, I can't see. Maybe we should go back." Hitomi didn't answer, and Van started to slow down. He soon found himself being drug through the air by his wife who was completely oblivious of what she was actually doing.

 

Van let himself be hauled along with his wife, whom he noticed was flying much faster than he could. She must be flying slower than I can, he thought to himself and gripped onto her hand harder. He squeezed his eyes shut, for they were watering. Hitomi was going way too fast for his eyes to tolerate. The speed was scary and phenomenal. He wondered if this was her full speed.

 

Hitomi felt the air suddenly become thick, and she slowed down, and not on her own account. The air was just so heavy that it forced her to slow down. Van seemed to have noticed it too, and asked, "Hitomi what's going on?"

 

Hitomi tried opening her eyes, and felt immense relief that it wasn't as blinding as it has been. "I think its some sort of protective barrier. We should get our guard up."

 

Van nodded and slipped his hand out of his wife's, but still stayed close to her. He knew that she felt protected when he was close to her, and it was what she wanted, but it was odd when she was stronger than him, even though he would never admit it.

 

Hitomi smashed right into something so hard that she was temporarily stunned. Van caught her before she fell and let her go when she was back to her normal self. She shook her head and placed her hand over a water-like barricade that rippled at her touch. She tried to stick her hand through it, but it didn't budge.

 

Van placed his own hand over the shield and tried to shove it through. When that didn't work, he punched the stupid thing. He cursed when all his fist hit was something solid and accompanied by pain. Hitomi giggled, not being able to help herself. She got more serious, thinking about how to get in. They couldn't see anything on the other side, which was weird, for they could see the towering white building inside at a distance, and not up close. "Van, does this feel like water to you?"

 

He nodded and tried kicking it. He growled at the thing, getting ready to unleash an all-out attack on it. For some reason it made him angry.

 

"The opposite of water is...fire right? So do you think if we like, melt it or something it might dissipate?"

 

Van knew Hitomi had some weird power where she could fling balls of energy at things, but he wondered if he could. "Hitomi, how do you um, shoot those big balls of fire or whatever? Can I do it?"

 

Hitomi blinked a few times, as if not understanding. When she finally understood, she smiled. "It's easy. There are two ways that I know of, maybe three. One that I normally do is just think about it. Another way, and the hardest for me, is to draw out my energy and place it in my hands. I did that to those dragons that attacked Fanelia. The other way, which I haven't really experimented on, is gathering energy from around you. Maybe you can try it. Sometimes it even helps when you're around something that's electrically charged."

 

Van gave her a confused look, not knowing what 'electrically' meant. "Here, watch me," Hitomi said, putting her hands in front of her. Van watched her close her exotic looking silver eyes, and her small smile that showed just the tips of her pointy teeth disappear. Her shorter hair wafted around her in a slow dance that made him feel oddly calm.

 

Van almost had what was going to happen memorized, but he had never paid attention to it. A look of intense concentration appeared on her face, and her hands drew closer together as she did whatever one of the three things she had just said to gather energy in her hands. He felt an abrupt inspiration and closed his own eyes, a frown gathering on his smooth forehead. It was if Hitomi realized he wasn't paying attention anymore, so she stopped just before she had brought it into her hands, the hardest process.

 

She smiled when she saw Van facing the water-like shield in front of them, his hands close together just like hers had been. She noticed that a brighter light was growing around his hand, so she guessed it meant he was close to doing it. She almost giggled when she saw him gnawing his lips nearly off his face. An unexpected flash made her shut her eyes and block her face with her arms from the blinding glare. When she thought it safe enough to open her eyes, she did, only to see an ecstatic smile on her husband's face, and a small hovering ball of light blue in between his hands. "I don't think this is a um, fireball. I guess I was thinking too much about water to get a fireball in my hands." He stopped and his smile got bigger. "Aren't you proud of me, Hitomi?" he asked, almost like a school boy trying to get his teacher's approval.

 

Hitomi gave a small laugh and nodded. "Yes, Van, I am so proud of you that I can just—" she drew closer to him and did the most hated thing in the world. It reminded her of when her aunts and uncles would pinch her cheeks and give them a little shake, making her feel like her face was falling off, or being ripped off. She just couldn't help it, she did it to Van. He started laughing so hard that he almost fell.

 

"I remember when my mother would do that to me, just to make me mad. How do you, you earthling, know about it, or how to do it?"

 

Hitomi gave him a brief confused look. "My aunts and uncles did it to me. Hmm, maybe it has something to do with the past, you know, Gaea and Earth?"

 

Van shrugged, not really paying attention. He wanted inside the shield, and he wanted in now.

 

Hitomi could tell that he was in another world, so she gave up. He was even paying attention to anything at all, as far as she could tell. She just rolled her eyes and decided to blast the stupid shield. She wondered if it would even work.

 

Van has no idea how long it has been, but all he knew was that he had been in another world, just as Hitomi had been thinking. He felt a sudden power surge next to him, not to mention an increase in the already harshly blowing wind. He had the sense that the temperature around him was growing way too hot and too fast to be natural, and he guessed that the phenomenon's going on had to be Hitomi. No sooner had he thought it, there was a red flash that produced so much heat he felt his skin starting to literally melt.

 

The pain went away almost as soon as he had felt it, and he watched it mold back into place. He looked up just in time to see Hitomi fling a ball of veritable fire straight at the shield that blocked their path. All he knew was that it wasn't blocking their way now. He smiled and grabbed Hitomi's hands to tug her in through the large hole that was already starting to close.

 

Hitomi already had a feeling about what she was about to see, but nothing prepared her for the sight of her life. They were both silent, unable to move.

 

What was going to happen next? Hitomi wondered, taking hold of Van's hand and leading him forward. Was it leading them forward into the future, the future of saving Gaea? Or was it to their death?