City of Intrigue

City of Intrigue (策謀の都, sakubō no miyako) is episode 6 of the anime series The Vision of Escaflowne.

Synopsis
"'Folken of Fanelia is dead. On that day, the day the dragon ripped off this arm, I died. And it was Emperor Dornkirk who gave me life again.' - Folken Fanel" The episode opens with the Crusade on the way to Asturia. Hitomi notices Allen looking pensively out the window and wonders if he's worried about the tarot reading she did for him. He notices that Hitomi looks worried, and walks over to her, telling her they'll soon arrive in Palas, the capital of Asturia, and that no one should hurt her because it's his country. He leans in and whispers to her that she should keep her special power a secret. Flattered by his smooth talking, she falls and hits her head on the window of the Crusade. The scene briefly cuts to Merle looking for Van, and she finds him perched atop Escaflowne where he thinks about the last time he saw Folken during the attack on the Vione.

The Crusade lands in Palas, and Princess Millerna Aston arrives on horseback to greet Allen. Allen introduces her to Van, telling her that he is the king of Fanelia. Millerna mentions having visited Fanelia when she was younger and having seen Van with his brother Folken. She says Folken seemed like "such a nice person," which causes Van to hang his head. Millerna tells Allen that her father, the king of Asturia, has asked to see him and allows him to take her horse. Mistaking her for a handmaiden, Millerna asks Hitomi to carry Allen’s things. Van explains that Hitomi is not a handmaiden, and Millerna remarks on her strange appearance. Hitomi starts to say that she’s from the Mystic Moon, but Merle steps on her foot to cut her off.

During his audience with King Grava Aston, Allen explains that Castelo was attacked and destroyed by Zaibach, a clear violation of the non-aggression pact between Asturia and Zaibach. He encourages Grava to action before Zaibach damages Asturia any further. Grava dismisses him, but Allen protests that the code of chivalry demands protection of Van, whose country was destroyed by Fanelia. Folken appears and tells King Aston that Fanelia attacked Zaibach first, and that Fanelia's trespass could be forgiven if Allen handed Escaflowne and Van over to the King. Grava tells Allen that if he truly loves Asturia, he will do as Folken demands. Allen finds his honor challenged by the King’s demands, as he has already made a promise not to betray Van.

Hitomi takes a bath and changes into Asturian dress. Millerna’s handmaiden tries to throw away her school uniform, but Hitomi insists on keeping it because of its sentimental value. Millerna says that Hitomi must have quite a story behind her, and that she’ll have to ask Allen about it. Another handmaiden brings in a letter from Allen, telling her that he won’t be there to go down to the bazaar with her. Rather than sitting inside, Millerna, Hitomi, Van, and Merle all go to the bazaar together.

Allen’s crew puts a tarp over Escaflowne so that it won’t "attract attention," but they are soon interrupted by members of the royal court who come to retrieve Escaflowne from them.

At the bazaar, Hitomi is surprised when she sees a dolphin man. The group walks on until Van sees Folken talking to a couple of Zaibach soldiers and runs off in pursuit of his brother. At a stand run by a beast man, Hitomi picks up a CD and puts it in her CD player. While listening to the song, she thinks about Yukari and Amano and her high school. Then she has a vision of Van getting hurt, and she runs toward the harbor after him, Merle following.

Van catches up with Folken, who explains that he died the day the dragon ripped off his arm, and that Emperor Dornkirk gave him new life. At the same time, Dilandau is obsessing over the wound Van gave him, preparing to attack Van, and Hitomi is running toward the harbor to warn Van. Folken tells Van that Zaibach fights to bring about a new world order and end all the fighting. He asks Van to come with him. Meanwhile, Hitomi rips off the bottom half of her skirt so that she can run faster. She reaches the bridge just in time to tackle Van to the ground, and Dilandau’s claw attack misses its target. Dilandau’s Alseides runs out of energy, and he is forced to disembark from it and plan another counterattack. Merle catches up to Van and Hitomi. Before Van can say goodbye to Folken, he is surrounded by royal court members who escort him, Hitomi, and Merle to the dueling arena.

Grava tells Van that he will not take him prisoner but instead wants to put the skill of Escaflowne to the test. A fighter steps into the ring in a brown Guymelef with a spiked ball and chain as its weapon. Allen recognizes him as Sajima, a bounty hunter. Meiden, Grava's advisor, marvels at Escaflowne, but wonders why the King didn’t just ask Allen fight to Van. Grava says that Allen can “wait his turn,” and he wants to see how his way works out. Two more Guymelefs step into the dueling arena. The episode ends on a cliffhanger, with Hitomi having a bad feeling about the coming fight between Van and the three men.

Characters

 * Hitomi Kanzaki
 * Van Fanel
 * Allen Schezar
 * Folken Fanel
 * Dilandau Albatou
 * Millerna Aston
 * Grava Aston
 * Meiden Fassa
 * Merle
 * Allen's men
 * Yukari Uchida (flashback)
 * Susumu Amano (flashback)

Trivia

 * This episode has two sequences that were cut: the beginning scene where Allen whispers to Hitomi, followed by the scene with Merle and Van, and Hitomi's bath scene.


 * From the Escaflowne Compendium: "The invocative song Hitomi discovers on the CD at the bazaar is 'My Best Friend' ('Tomodachi'). Not incidentally, it's Hitomi's voice [actress] Maaya Sakamoto herself who sings this piece. When asked about the CD's very existence on Gaea, director Kazuki Akane reportedly said, 'CDs fly to Gaea [by themselves].'"
 * When Hitomi rips the skirt of the Asturian dress, the hemline appears to be jagged, as it would likely be if it were torn. However, in all subsequent episodes, the hemline is drawn as if it were sewn normally. This is likely to ensure consistency in animation, though it would also imply Hitomi had her skirt mended in between this episode and later episodes in which she wore the Asturian dress.

Quotes

 * "Man, that sea air! It's that air that tells me I'm home!" - Reeden
 * "I guess the sea smells the same no matter where you go." - Hitomi
 * "Chivalry alone can't protect a country, Allen Schezar." - Grava
 * "My cheek is throbbing. It stings... It stings... It stings... It stings... It stings..." - Dilandau
 * "Van... You are my brother. He who shares my blood. I can see into your heart. this world is difficult for a gentle soul such as yours to bear. This world, where man fights man. No, where every living thing fights to take the life of another. We kill beasts. We kill dragons. We even kill men. Fighting begets fighting, and the slaughter begins anew. such is the way of this world." - Folken
 * "Fighting to bring an end to fighting? There's no such thing!" - Van
 * "Why is my heart pounding? There's something wrong about all of this." - Hitomi
 * "The rumors of its magnificence were certainly not exaggerated... I'm overjoyed to see an Ispano Guymelef with my own two eyes." - Meiden