The Vision of Escaflowne

One fateful day, high school sprinter Hitomi Kanzaki experiences a disturbing vision of another world and discovers from her best friend that Amano (the track team star she has a crush on) is about to go abroad. On an impulse, she asks him the next day for her first kiss -- if she can sprint 100 meters in thirteen seconds. But then, a young warrior prince and a dragon appears before Hitomi during the run ....

In a shaft of light, Hitomi and the prince Van tranports to the world of Gaea, where Earth is known only as the "Mystic Moon" in the nightly expanse. Van returns to the capital of his country Fanelia to be coronated after obtaining the Energist crystal from the dragon. During the coronation rite, the Zaibach empire launches an invasion with Guymelef Alseides mecha, and Van must retrieve at his mentor Balgus's bidding Escaflowne, the legendary god of protection of Fanelia.

Hitomi and Van find themselves separated and lost in the neighboring country of Asturia, where a handsome knight save Hitomi from a thief and apparent lecher. Allen's haunting resemblance to Amano does little to alleviate Hitomi's confusion, specially after Van and Allen challenge each other to a duel not once, but twice...

Once again, Hitomi sees a disturbing vision, this time of Allen's fort engulfed in flames. Van reunites with his attendant catgirl Merle after she escaped Fanelia's fiery destruction, but both she and Hitomi fall ill. Both eventually recover, but then Hitomi's vision of a Zaibach invasion comes true at the hands of a devilish youthful commander named Dilandau...

After his capture by Dilandau and the Dragon Slayers, Van is imprisoned aboard the Zaibach floating fortress Vione. Here, the Zaibach strategist Folken reveals his identity to Van and attempts to invite him into the folds of the empire. Fortunately, Hitomi uses her dowsing abilities to discover the Vione, and the crew of Allen's ship Crusade mount a rescue operation...

After the successful rescue, Hitomi and Van's party seek refuge in Paras, Allen's home and the capital of Asturia. However, the Zaibach forces and their entreaties to King Aston upstage their entrance. (Zaibach and Asturia have a non-aggression pact.) Folken meets with Van to offer a personal entreaty to join the Zaibach cause. Meanwhile, Dilandau attempts to avenge the grevious facial scar Van inflicted...