Escaflowne follows the adventures of Hitomi, a young girl who is transported to Gaea, a strange world where the Earth and the Moon hang in the sky animal people walk alongside humans. She meets Van, a young king and pilot of the ancient mecha: Escaflowne. They set off, along with some other people to destroy the evil Zaibach empire, who are attempting to conrol fate and take over Gaea.