Now and Then, Here and There

Now and Then, Here and There (今、そこにいる僕, Ima, Soko ni Iru Boku) is a Japanese anime series directed by Akitaro Daichi and written by Hideyuki Kurata. It premiered in Japan on the WOWOW television station on October 14, 1999 and ran until January 20, 2000. It was licensed for by Central Park Media until the licensing was passed onto ADV Films.

Plot
While walking home from school, Shuzo "Shu" Matsutani encounters and intercedes to protect a girl, Lala-Ru, who is attacked by abductors in a mechanized dragon and is accidentally transported to the attackers' world as a result — a wasteland devoid of water and dominated by a red giant star. Shu gets caught up in the harsh reality full of war, slavery and child exploitation and he continues to protect Lala-Ru, for she has the mysterious ability control water contained in her pendant.