Hello, Minna! ^_^
After much deliberation, writiers block, and being grounded from the
computer, I finally got the 3rd Episode of Secret Games done! Yatta!
For those of you who have been waiting, gomen that it took me so
long. For those of you who just now got into the series, you can find
the other fics connected to this and soon the beginnings of this fic
at the newly updated:
http://www.geocities.com/Tokyo/Villa/9072/Fanfic.htm
Embrace the Darkness homepage. As always, C&C is greatly
appreciated and motivates me to write faster and probably better.
^^;; Anyway, onto the long awaited (I hope) Secret Games Episode
3!
---
Disclaimer: Select characters portrayed in this story belong to their
respective owners. Namely Araizumi Rui, the people at Software
Sculptors, and that other person who's name I always forget. This
story was not written for commercial use and will not be used to for
personal profit. In other words, don't sue me...please?
The Secret Games
By Murasakikaze
Episode 3: In the Beginning...
The room was cold and dark, but it didn't matter...at least not to her.
Every so often she would move to keep her blood flowing as she
mumbled incoherently about death and happiness, rattling the heavy
iron chains on her wrists and ankles that kept her suspended from the
ceiling. Her eyes, once a glittering blue, were reduced to a dull grayish
color as she stared straight ahead at a blank wooden wall. Something
moved and a torch was lit as it slid into its nook on the wall. She
blinked in the sudden light, then let her head roll forward, shaking it
side to side. She had seen what she had feared, the firelight glinting
off a pair of wire-rimmed glasses.
"You know why I'm doing this, don't you?" His voice echoed off the
walls, causing her to shiver involuntarily. She shook her head, knowing
he would tell her anyway. "You've failed me continually in finding him.
I keep telling you where he is, so why don't you bring him back?"
She raised her head and stared at him silently. Her hair was dirty and
matted against her back and a few grimy strands hung loosely before
her face. "I won't let you near him...he deserves more."
"You've never even met him and you're going to sacrifice yourself for
him? Gah, you're pitiful. You want to know something? The only
reason why I didn't scrap you when I made you was because that idiot
assistant of mine became so attached to you!" She winced at the
anger rising in his voice, fearing the beating that was sure to follow.
She cringed, turning her head away, and waited...yet nothing came.
She opened one blue eye and looked at him as he stood just outside
her field of vision. "You think I'd hurt you?"
"You hurt everyone else by putting them in the mines...you kill
everyone by making them slaves...why wouldn't you hurt me?"
"I'd never hurt someone so dear to me, sweet child..." he crooned, his
voice dripping with sarcasm. "Besides, even if you've failed before,
you're the only one who is able to get close enough to him."
"We're just dolls to you, aren't we? Nothing more than toys for your
sick mind, but one day we'll be standing over you and laughing as we
plunge a sword through your body. We can be stronger than you think
we can." For a brief moment the fire returned to her eyes as she
glared at him in contempt. He knew she would be the one to kill him
sooner or later since destiny was working against him, but for the time
being it didn't matter. He still had control.
"Now we see who has the last laugh, young one. I can reduce your
mind to ashes and make you stronger than a mountain, or I can make
you weak and torture your mind. Is that what I'm doing to you? Do
you feel your will breaking as we speak? Ah...such a lovely
sound...your silent screams of helplessness." The shadows moved
again and she felt something familiar press against her neck: a sword
tinted with magic. "I'll let you go, young one, if you'll just tell me
something."
Her head snapped to attention as the sword pulled away. "What is
it?"
"Tell me that you hate me."
She narrowed her eyes and struggled against the chains suspending
her from the ceiling again. "I do."
"Good. Now...before I let you go, let's play awhile." The figure
stepped out of the shadows and smiled, testing the blade against the
stone floor. She could almost see the sparks fly up and hung her
head again. He walked up to her and raised her chin delicately with
two fingers. Then he swung the sword, hitting her across the face with
the broad side before wheeling back and cracking the handle against
her skull. The sounds of metal clanging against stone echoed off the
walls, but never once did her screams mingle with them. When he
finally released her from the chains, she fell to the ground face first,
bruised and bloody, but straining to stand and fight. He kneeled
beside her, pushing her back to the floor with one hand and smirked.
"Remember, little one, family is the strongest bond...but it's the one
people most enjoy destroying. You'll learn one day what it means to
destroy family, I can see it in your eyes...you're a killer...just like
me."
She grimaced under the weight of his hand and he smiled, knowing his
words had hit home. He stood, wiping his hand off on his jacket.
"You can go now...you have your freedom."
She raised her head and struggled to her feet, blinking from the blood
running into her eyes. She scowled and fell forward, grabbing her
stomach, and grimacing from the pain. Her mind dimly registered the
now dull sword dropping down beside her and she picked it up, using it
to support herself. "Not...yet...you're...not dead...K-"
The sword skittered across the floor as the darkness swallowed her
again and she fell, her body no longer able to sustain consciousness.
Naria awoke and sat up, hugging the blankets around her. She had
left her window open last night and the icy sea winds blew the curtains
like ghosts into the room. The silvery light from the waning moon
illuminated her face and she shivered, drawing her knees up to her
chest. "I'm not like you...I won't destroy them.."
The young chimera raised her face to the moon and crawled across
the bed to the window. She brushed the curtains out of the way and
swung her legs over the edge, pulling a pillow off the bed and hugging
it to her. The wind stung her cheeks as she sat overlooking the ocean
and watched the waves crash against the rocks on the beach.
"I'm not like you...you weren't my family. I didn't kill my family like
you
killed yours. I'm not like him...right, Mirai? Please tell me I'm
right...I'm not a killer..." she whispered. Naria closed her eyes and
hugged the pillow tighter just as the moon slipped behind a cloud.
~~~
The knock on the door startled her out of her daydream and she raised
her head from the window sill. "Who's there?"
"Just your friendly neighborhood room service!" someone chirped from
the other side of the ornate wooden door. "You gonna let me in or
what?"
Imako lowered her head again and smiled, reveling in the warmth of the
sunlight. "Open it yourself."
Kako sighed and knocked again. .:: And after all the trouble I went to
of getting this waiter's outfit too...Hmm, wonder if that guy's going to
miss it or not?::. He coughed and began banging on the door again.
"I lost my key!"
"Poor baby, go get a new one." She rolled over and let her hair trail out
of open window as she stared up at the blue sky. "I'm sure there's a
few waitresses that would let you into their rooms, Kako-kun."
After getting no answer other than a few mumbled words, she sat up
and grinned yet again. "Jeez, for the God of the Past you sure don't
know how to have fun in the mortal world."
After getting no response other than eerie silence, she stood and
began to walk towards the door. She could hear someone moving
behind it and paused. "Heh, yeah, good one, Kako-kun. Go find
someone else to let you in!"
With an indignant toss of her silver-haired head, Imako turned and
stomped off to the bathroom. .:: You can get your own damn key if
you want to be a bad sport about all this, Kako-kun! ::. she grumbled
in her mind. Yet as she turned on the faucet something didn't seem
right and she poked her head out the bathroom door. .:: He should
have teleported in by now...where is he? ::.
"Kako-kun? Are you alright? Ne, Kako-kun?" She stepped out and
gripped the door frame tightly in one hand, a strange sensation
fluttering in her stomach. Her muffled footsteps marked her journey
across the carpeted floor towards the front door. Again she paused,
hand raised to twist the knob. "Kako-kun?"
Still no response.
Very slowly, Imako gripped the gilded knob and turned it, listening as
the door creaked open. She peered out through the crack in the door
and was puzzled to find the hallway dark when the lamps had been
burning just recently. "Kako-kun?"
She opened the door completely and stepped out, glancing from side
to side. No one was there. Clasping her hands before her, she
backed up slowly into the room, trembling slightly but not from fear.
An involuntary chill ran down her spine and for once, she cursed having
to take a mortal form. .:: Since when did mortals have such bad
vision, anyway? Why is everything getting darker? Why is everything
blurring?::. She shook her head and hugged her shoulders, trying to
stop the intermitent flashes of hot and cold. Glancing up, Imako tried
to focus as someone stepped into the room with her and was barely
able to scream as the stranger fell on her, pushing her to the ground.
~~~
Ornate wooden doors and tastefully decorated panels lined the hallway
as the figure moved silently towards the so-called 'throne' room.
Tortured screams and laughter echoed off the walls as they paused at
the end of the hall. He took a deep breath and touched the door knob,
pulling back at just the right moment. The large double doors swung
open, revealing the carpeted floor, still stained a rusty red color from
an earlier 'discussion.' The shadow moved swiftly towards the
high-backed chair, stopping just before it.
"Report." The voice was smooth, yet it held such a dangerous edge to
it at the same time, that had always amazed him.
"It's been set," he replied simply, smiling at the chair. "Can't I play
for
a little while?"
Xellas turned and smirked at her general priest as he kneeled before
her like any good underling would. "You had nearly three weeks of
playtime, Xelloss. You're being greedy again."
Xelloss nodded. "I know."
"Good for you, but my answer is no. Dolphin is getting restless and
I'm to meet her today to initiate this whole escapade." She paused
and took a long drag of her cigarette. "Hmm...they say smoking is
bad for you, what do you say, Xelloss?"
"In my honest opinion?"
"Yep."
Xelloss stood and shrugged. "We're Mazoku, why should we care?"
Xellas nodded and swiveled the chair away. "Thought so. You can go
now, but remember that this is just a detour from the plan. Don't get
too involved in this."
Xelloss looked slightly shocked and took a dramatic step back. "Of
course not, Juu'ou-sama. I'd never forget orders, you know that!"
She waved her hand absently, dropping cigarette ash on the red
carpeting. "Hai hai, now get out of my sights before I change you into
a hood ornament."
Xelloss bowed once before disappearing, knowing his master wouldn't
be far behind. She had many plans for the Bandit Killer and as long as
the gods interfered, it would go perfectly. He smirked as he set foot
outside Garrou and tightened his grip on the ruby-tipped staff.
"Manipulation is a wonderful thing..." he murmured, vanishing from
sight.
~~~
A void by definition is the empty space or something that contains
nothing. The Astral Plane is much like that, only it's not dark, but
filled with a glowing green or pale white light. It's a place of
serenity
that holds nothing in it at all and as the four figures emerged from that
void, the rush of color, sight, smell, and feelings washed over them,
causing them to pause.
Kojiro slowly opened his eyes and looked to his left where Mirai stood
waiting for the next set of orders. He glanced to the right and smiled
down at the younger gods Hikaru and Gaea. They had been briefed at
what they would find in Garrou and advised to stray from contact with
the mortals there, but he knew that even he would try to help everyone
they came across. The War of the Monster's Ressurection had left a
deep scar on the Council when all gods were reduced to being
watchers of the battles. So many of their kind had been lost in minor
battles against the Mazoku that they weren't even given recognition in
the war. Kojiro took a deep breath and nodded his head, it was time
for his redemption.
Mirai stepped up to the barrier and gingerly reached out, pressing two
fingertips against it and watching the waves ripple out. She continued
to push her hand through and grimaced as the dark magic began to
gather in that one area, trying to push her out. The other gods
followed in suit, each one pushing against the barrier, forcing their way
through.
As soon as they were past the barrier, Hikaru winced. "It's almost
tangible, isn't it..."
Gaea nodded and looked around. "Betcha the clam chowder's great
here."
Everyone blinked and Mirai threw the God of the Earth a look of
disdain. He shrugged and pointed towards the town. "There are
people who'll be needing our smiles down there soon. We have to at
least try to keep our spirits raised for them, right?"
Kojiro laughed and pulled his long azure hair back into a tight ponytail.
"That's the attitude I like seeing in my friends. Let's get going, we
have a lot of work to do down there."
Hikaru and Mirai nodded and followed silently down the winding road
leading towards the town. As they crested one hill, Mirai paused and
looked out over the ocean to the small island sitting off the coast. The
usual ocean breeze whirled past, taking the last few leaves off a
nearby tree and carrying them off in the wind. The goddess shivered,
remembering that winter was fast approaching, but continued to watch
the island. "Whatever you do...don't come here...Lina Inverse-san."
"Mirai! Hurry up!" She turned and found the others far down the road
already and waiting. She nodded and jogged towards them, silently
praying Lina had heard her.
~~~
"Are you just going to sit there all day?"
Naria glanced down and shook her head, jumping off the rooftop and
taking care to hold her skirt in place. Zelgadis was waiting for her at
the bottom and he offered her a flask as they started to walk back
inside. She shook her head again and kept her eyes glued to the
ground.
After taking a sip of the coffee inside, he slipped the small metal flask
back into his pocket. "You've been quiet lately...Mira-chan's worried."
She nodded and paused before the mirrored greenhouse door.
Zelgadis had started wearing his hair tied back in a ponytail for some
reason, but hadn't changed his clothes any. Naria studied herself for a
moment and sighed. Even though it was winter she was running
around in a short-sleeved white dress. "Tell Mira-chan not to worry
about me...I'm fine."
"You don't seem to be fine." He paused and looked up at the blue
sky. "I...heard you last night, Naria."
He watched as she quickly disappeared inside the greenhouse and
shook his head. He watched her for a moment as she started to tend
to the plants, trying her best to ignore him, then turned away. The
breeze blew past again and he closed his eyes, whispering, "You ask
for answers, but you won't let anyone give them to you. You'll never
learn anything that way."
"Zelgadis-san!"
"Hey, Zel!"
The chimeran boy opened his eyes and waved to his friends as they
ran up. Lina and Amelia were both back in their traveling clothes and
Lina pointed towards the shore. "Zel, we're heading back to Garrou.
It's uncomfortable for all of us here what with the paranoia about
humans here. We just came to ask if you were going to stay or come
with us."
Zelgadis looked over his shoulder and shrugged. "Might as well travel
back to the mainland...I hate these spas anyway. Too many people."
Amelia smiled and looked past him to the greenhouse, frowning
slightly as Naria turned away just as Amelia spotted her. "Is
Naria-san going to come with us?"
He shrugged and started walking towards the lodge. "I don't know.
Go ask her."
Lina patted Amelia on the back and grinned. "Go for it Amelia, I'll be
back at the room if you need anything!"
"You mean back at the restaurant..." the younger sorceress grumbled.
"You say Blast, I say Brast. You say restaurant, I say room. They're
the same thing, aren't they?" The red-headed sorceress grinned and
jogged off, waving. "See ya down at the docks in thirty minutes!"
Amelia was about to protest when the sound of a slamming door
caught her attention. She turned and barely caught a glimpse of Naria
as she disappeared into the forest surrounding the main spa lodge.
The young princess hesitated for a second, then shouted, "Ne,
Naria-san, wait a second! I have to ask you something!"
She ran after her, but was only able to catch glimpses of the chimeran
girl as she weeded her way through the dense underbrush. "Naria-san!
Wait!"
Although the winter season had stripped most mainland trees of their
leaves, many of the island plants had retained theirs and Amelia had a
hard time of moving through them. She carefully dodged branches and
thorny limbs above while watching out for raised roots and stones
below. Just as she cleared the forest, the princess saw Naria waiting
for her at the crest of the hill. Amelia jogged up to her and smiled as
best she could considering the fact that she now had leaves and small
twigs in her raven hair.
"What is it?" The chimera's voice was dull as she started walking
again at a slightly slower pace.
"We're heading back to the mainland and were wondering...do you
want to come along with us?" Amelia was still jogging to keep up with
the chimera's brisk gait and caught her arm to slow her down. Naria
remained silent as they stood there and Amelia finally had to repeat
her question. "Do you want to come with us or not?"
"Fine, I'll go. Now let go of my arm, please." Amelia complied and
watched as the chimeran girl disappeared over the next hill. She
sighed and looked up at the blue sky.
"Why is it that all the chimeras I meet are so cold and unresponsive?"
she griped and turned away, heading back to the lodge.
Naria lowered her head and stared down at her hands as they balled
up into fists. "Because we have many doubts about ourselves,
Amelia-san. Doubts that we can protect those we love...from
ourselves."
~~~
Lina ran up the stairs, pausing only briefly to sigh as the other guests
of the lodge turned away from her. "Gourry, hurry up and pack, we're
out of this creepy place!"
The door at the end of the hall opened and a blond head appeared.
"What?"
"We're going back to the port. Zelgadis and Amelia are right behind us
and we're going to the docks in half an hour. Although I love getting
away from defeating Mazoku lords and not running for my life from
insane gods, it's time we headed back." Lina pushed past him and
pulled her traveling bag out from beneath the bag. "Besides, it's
almost winter and I'd like to see snow for once in my life."
Gourry blinked as he processed all that then nodded. "So we're going
back to that Garret place, eh?"
"It's Garrou, Gourry."
"Yeah, that's what I said. You going to head towards the mountains
once we get back?"
"Yeah, that's where the snow is."
"Okay...you think the others are going to follow you?"
"If they do that's great. Amelia would love it and Zel needs to learn to
unwind. We can rent a cabin or something and just kick back after all
our hard work. If we get there in time we may even get it for the
holidays." Lina pushed the last of her clothes into the bag and yanked
on the drawstring. "There! I'll meet you down at the docks in half an
hour, alright?"
Gourry nodded and started packing as a someone watched him from a
tree branch outside the window. "Seems like everything's going
according to plans...Hmm? Hai, I'll be right there."
The sunlight glinted off a ruby as the shadow began to fade from view.
.:: As long as you remain on this path, Lina-san, everything will be just
fine...Everyone will be happy save one and you'll most certainly get
your wish. You won't be running from insane gods anymore. ::. A
teasing laugh echoed across the meadow as the figure smiled
impishly before disappearing from sight and from the island altogether.
~~~
The sun shone brightly on the small seaside town, bouncing off the
tiled rooftops and reflecting off the clear ocean water. The trees
lining
the street swayed in the gentle breeze as a lithe woman ambled
towards a rotund building that had been in existence exactly three
minutes. The smoke from her cigarette curled away from her as she
surveyed her handiwork. The building itself was only three stories
high, but each level was tastefully decorated on the outside as well as
on the inside. She should know since she was the one who ordered
the wallpaper, carpeting, furniture, and objects of torture that lay
within. Each level was perfect for its purpose and she had made sure
that it looked good too. Having someone as stylish as herself in an
ugly building just wouldn't do, now would it?
"It looks absolutely splendid, Xellas."
The Beastmaster turned to greet her guest and another drag of her
cigarette. "I know. I think I truly outdid myself this time."
The hologram nodded, admiring the newly formed building. "I would
have made it larger, but I suppose you know what you're doing. You
know this means a lot to me, Xellas."
"Of course, Dolphin. And you know that we play by my rules, right?"
"Of course." The Mazoku lord smiled and looked up at the building
again. "I've taken care of the two bothers, also. It was suprisingly
easy considering that I'm stuck here in the Sea of Chaos."
Xellas shrugged. "I could have done it myself, but as you see I was a
bit busy."
Dolphin nodded slightly. "I'm sure I did a better job anyway."
"Yeah," Xellas scoffed.
"Good to see you agree with who's superior here," Dolphin shot back.
A long period of silence descended on the street as the two lords
glared at each other. The air began to crackle as the once white
clouds began to turn a smoky gray color and the Lord of Nightmares
shook her head at her two bickering children. She knew they'd never
learn.
"Tsk, tsk, tsk, disagreeing already? Come now, Juu'ou-sama,
Mei'ou-sama, we can't be fighting when we're so close to our goals,
now can we?" Both women turned to see a familiar face materialize
out of the air. His deceptively innocent clothing of a priest didn't
fool
them one bit as his ruby-tipped staff hit the ground. "Now can we all
play nice or do I have to send you two to opposite corners?"
"Can it, Xelloss," Xellas growled. He saluted her crisply and stepped
back. "Still, he's right, Dolphin. We can't be fighting now, it'll ruin
our
chances later."
The other lord sighed and ran a hand through her blue hair, rattling
several seashells in the process. "Yes, I suppose so. I'll meet you
inside on the ground floor, Xellas, and I expect the grand tour once I'm
there."
"You'll get the E-ticket ride, Dolphin, I promise you that much," the
Beastmaster replied, smiling.
As Dolphin's hologram disappeared from sight, Xelloss stepped forward
again. Xellas began to walk towards the complex again and sighed.
"Is everything ready?"
"Yes, Juu'ou-sama. After spreading the rumor that looking at the
Dragon Spooker would turn you to stone on the island, they are
returning to the mainland," he reported.
"Any trouble?" She stopped at the lavish front doors and twisted the
gilded handle, pulling the door open.
"None, Juu'ou-sama."
"Good. I'll expect you on the second floor then, Xelloss. This game
should prove to be amusing at the very least." She stepped inside and
disappeared, leaving Xelloss alone on the street.
"Your games are always amusing, Juu'ou-sama," he replied and
followed her in. The darkness enveloped him and he moved through
the first hall, easily bypassing the several pitfalls and traps. As he
arrived at the main game center he smiled, scanning the large
hardwood floor decked with freestanding doors each more elaborate
than the last. His gaze moved towards the low ceiling and he nodded
approvingly at the glowing lights strung along it. "This should prove to
be quite a challenge for Lina-san and her friends and even if it
doesn't...it'll be fun to watch them squirm their way out of this one."
As he began forward, someone called out to him. "Were you born in a
barn or something, Xelloss?! Close the door for L-sama's sake!!!"
The priest's face flushed with embarrassment as he turned to walk
back towards the front door.
~~~
"What do you mean by we're not allowed to be here?! I just left a
place where we weren't 'allowed to be' and I don't want to hear that
right now, buddy!!" At this exact moment in time the words 'ticked off'
did not acurately describe Lina Inverse's attitude. The words 'I'm ready
to Dragon Slave your butt to the Astral Plane,' however, did. "Just
WHY can't we be here?!"
"Lina-san...please calm down, I'm sure there's a very good explanation
for all this," Amelia said, patting the older girl on the shoulder in an
effort to calm her down and dispel the bright red aura suddenly
gathering around her.
"I haven't seen her this mad since the restaurant incident back at the
opening of season two..." Gourry murmured to Zelgadis. He nodded
slightly, remembering what had happened because of that fiasco.
"Miss Lina...I think choking him like that seriously hinders his ability
to
explain what's happening...and his ability to breathe. Perhaps you
could stop that? Or how about finding another solution to this
problem?" Mira-chan continued to tug on Lina's arm as the fisherman
gagged out an apology about calling her the 'Dragon Spooker.' As she
finally got Lina to release the young man and calm down she stared
over the side of the dock and shook her head. "I don't think tossing
him over the side of the pier was the solution I was looking for, Miss
Lina."
"It was the solution he got and he deserved it! Calling me those
names should be outlawed!" the Drago-Sorceress Supreme growled,
glaring at the fisherman as he clambered back up onto the dock.
"Or used as a way to teach people to get over their fear of water or
fire," Naria muttered, watching the man they had previously run into
frantically try to douse the flames on his boat. "Anger management
sessions would do wonders for you."
"I'll show you how I manage anger, Naria, step right over here and
you'll see just how well I manage anger." Naria wisely took the hint
and backed off allowing Lina to go back to yelling at the fisherman.
"Now do you care to explain why we can't be here, _sir_?"
The young man shrugged, wringing the sea water out of his brown
shirt. "Sure, but I still say you'd be better back on that island ya'll
came from. Now, if ya'll are here to do business, that's different.
Business hasn't been very good lately, but ya'll look like big fish
eaters
and that's what I have. I have a lovely bunch of ocean fish: big ones,
short ones, some as big as your head. I have over thirty types of fish
for sale and-"
The man stopped, glanced at the glowing ball of energy levitating in
Lina's hands and coughed.
"Okay...Guess that answers my question. Reason ya'll can't be here
is the city's under quarrantine or something. City folks caught some
kind of plague, but it's not the fish I tell you. I sell only Grade-A
fish...unless it's to schools, they say it's alright to do Grade-D or
something and that's the only way I can move that slop, but usually it's
Grade-A. Anyway it seems to be staying just in the city. The
fisherman live on the wharf and it hasn't affected us, so it's just the
city. So unless ya'll want to get sick and turn green or blue or
whatever color the city folk are turning, I suggest ya'll high-tail it
back
to the island."
Zelgadis nudged Naria, waking her up, and turned to the fisherman.
"Back up about three sentences and repeat what you said, would
you?"
The guy nodded and thought for about ten minutes as he flipped
through the pages of the script in his head. "Alright...City folks have
caught some kind of plague, but it's not the fish I tell you. I sell
only
Grade-A-"
Lina nodded, waving her hand in the air. "Yeah, yeah, only Grade-A
fish. We understand...But do you know anything at all about this
plague?"
"Yeah, I don't want it," the fisherman replied simply. "Listen, I have
work to do. If you need anything else ya'll have to go to the tourist
office. I'm sure they have pamphlets on plagues and such...they have
pamphlets on everything else at least. Except where to find good
fishing spots, that's gotta be by instinct. You have to understand the
fish's deep down emotions. You have to know what they crave..."
The man trailed off as he became farther away, or more accurately as
the group edged further and further away from him. Naria groaned,
shaking her head slowly. "I never want to hear about fish for the rest
of
my life..."
Zelgadis shrugged. "Look at it this way-"
"At least he's good at what he does," Mira-chan finished and beamed.
Naria nodded and searched everyone's face for some sort of plan. Lina
and Amelia were busy arguing about something and Zelgadis was
busy giving Mira-chan another piggy-back ride since she was tired of
walking. The chimeran girl turned to her last resort and found Gourry
looking lost as usual, but it was a different type of lost. He was lost
in
thought. After about two seconds of debating, she went up and tapped
him on the shoulder.
"Hey, Gourry, what are you thinking about?" she asked, trying to
sound uninterested.
He shrugged. "Wondering if we'll be staying here or not. I'd love to
try
some of the harbor food, since it always seems to be the best, but
that plaque thing is bothering me."
"Plague," Naria corrected.
Gourry nodded. "Yeah, the plaque thing is bothering me. Shouldn't
we do something about that?"
"I guess we should, but what can we do?" Naria fiddled with a loose
string on her sleeve and lowered her head. "Other than Amelia, we
don't have enough white magic sorcerors with us to make a big effect
on this city."
"Can't Zelgadis and Lina do that healing thingy, too?" Gourry tilted his
head to one side, remembering all the times Lina and Zelgadis had
performed small healing spells. "And what about Mira-chan? Amelia's
been teaching her, so shouldn't she be able to do that too?"
"It's still not enough, three or four people working on a city of
hundreds
and caring for themselves at the same time won't be fast
enough...people will still die," she pointed out. "Even if we taught you
magic, it wouldn't be enough."
"We can help at least a few of them then." Gourry smiled and nodded
in agreement to his plan. "Even if we can't save them all, we can save
some of them, right?"
Naria nodded slightly as the others ran to catch up to them. "Yeah,
we can try at least."
Ten minutes later, the entire gang stood in front of a large white
building with blue trimmed windows and a pale blue door. Lina took in
a deep breath and nodded to the others as she opened the door.
A young woman bowed as they entered and smoothed her skirt out as
she straightened again. "Hello and welcome to the Silver Bell. Follow
me to your seats, please."
As they followed Lina and the other young woman, Amelia leaned over
to Naria and whispered. "Guess Lina-san can't do this on an empty
stomach, ne?"
Naria rolled her eyes and glanced over at Zelgadis who was still
carrying the now sleeping Mira-chan. "Yeah, but does she have to eat
right when we're going to tell her our plan?"
Amelia shrugged and smiled. "She's always like this, don't worry,
Naria-san. I'm glad to see you're in better spirits though."
Naria sighed heavily and clasped her hands together behind her head
nonchalantly. "Yeah...well.... Hey, Amelia, sorry about the way I
acted back there...I was-"
The princess shook her head and gave the chimera another smile.
"No need for apologies or explanations. We all have a right to be
angry or sulky at times. We better hurry or Lina-san will eat all the
food before we get to the table!"
The chimeran girl watched as the princess bounced happily off to the
table and sat down, giving her order between the short silences that
followed Lina's ordering frenzy. Gourry ran up to the table next and as
Lina finished he began his list. Inbetween his pauses, Amelia
explained to the paling waitress that they never ate lightly. Naria was
about to step forward when a hand dropped on her shoulder. She
froze, half expecting it to be some Mazoku or another clone as her
luck would have it when a very familiar voice spoke out instead.
"You're wondering how they can eat at a time like this, right?"
"Yeah...we're sitting in the middle of a plagued town and all they can
think of is food. You've watched them a lot, Oniichan, do you
understand them at all?" She turned to face Zelgadis and waited for
his answer which happened to be a shrug.
"I guess it's their way of taking their minds off the problem at hand and
it seems to work." He shifted and adjusted his grip on Mira-chan
before continuing. "No matter what happens to them, they just sit
down, have one good meal, and they're ready to take on the world. It's
amazing."
Naria sighed and went back to watching the human black holes pick
their way through their orders. "I guess so...but what are we going to
do after this?"
Zelgadis shrugged slightly and adjusted his grip on Mira-chan against
as the inverse snoozed peacefully on his back. "I suppose we head to
the hospital and see what we can do."
~~~
The light hurt her eyes and her head pounded. Where was she
anyway? She closed her eyes again, running over what she could
remember. She had opened the door and was beginning to feel faint
when someone fell against her and she blacked out. .:: Wow, great
memory for a god, Imako. ::. she chided herself and opened her eyes
again.
"She's awake!" someone yelled and Imako was faintly aware of a
shadow disappearing above her. She flinched as the light hit her again
and tried to roll over. .:: Why can't I move? Kami-sama, my entire
body hurts! That idiot manager is going to hear hell from me about
security when I get back!! ::.
"Please, don't try to move, ma'am. It'd be best if you just stayed
still,"
a male voice assured her. She looked up and barely made out his
outline, but presumed he was the doctor. "Can you tell me your
name?"
Imako tried to sit up again and fell back against the pillow exhausted.
"W-where is he?"
"Where is who?"
"K-kako...Where is he?" The goddess tried to sit up again and only
succeeded in weakly raising her head. "What's wrong..with me?
W-why am I so tired?"
"Ma'am, you're sick and we're trying to treat you. Please, just try to
rest. We'll try our best to find your friend." Imako didn't find any
reassurance in his voice and could tell by his faked 'it's alright' tone
that she was in serious trouble. She closed her eyes again and
stretched her mind, searching for any significant power sources only to
find that even looking past the bed was causing her head to spin.
"His name is Kako Eienjo II...please...find him..." she mumbled,
holding onto the last vestiges of her consciousness as something
unpleasantly warm was injected into her arm.
"Can you tell us what he looks like, ma'am?" the nurse asked, pulling
the needle away from the goddess' arm.
"Ha-hai. Long brown braid...silver and blue outfit...deep blue eyes..."
Imako opened her eyes and was finally able to focus on the nurse as
she hovered over her. "Please...just find him....I'm worried..."
The nurse smiled and nodded as Imako lost her battle to the sedative
given to her. Her head rolled to the side and soon she was asleep
again. The nurse stood, brushing back a few stray locks of gray hair,
and looked around the room. The entire first floor was jammed with
beds and sleeping rolls where the sick were lying, moaning from the
high fever and hallucinations. She knew the other four floors were just
as bad as well as the lobby. The sick hadn't stopped pouring in since
daybreak. She hadn't seen anything this bad in all her sixty years as
a nurse, but she knew it would only get worse. Turning to the next
bed she pulled back the curtain and sighed.
There were three stages as far as she could tell. The first was
exhaustion and a mild fever along with minor hallucinations and
nausea. The second was a high fever, hallucinations, nausea, fatigue,
dehydration, and trouble breathing. The third and final state was a
high fever, not being able to tell reality from hallucinations, vomiting,
and probably death. The old nurse shook her head as she looked
down at the young man clutching the sheets in his pale hands.
"You're too young to die in this, sir, but at least we know what to write
on your gravestone." She picked up his chart and scribbled down his
condition. "It's amazing, but you've lasted longer than the rest of
them. Most people are already in the third stage while you're only in
the second. Be glad for that much at least."
She replaced his chart and was about to turn away when something
snagged her skirt. She glanced down and found the young man
clinging to her, his eyes open for the first time all day.
"Where is she?" he croaked out. The nurse sat down and pulled a cup
of water out from the bucket beside his bed, bringing it to his lips. He
shook his head and pushed her hand and the cup away. "No..where is
she?"
"Where is who, sir?" the nurse asked, helping him drink the water even
if it was against his will. He shook his head, trying to get free from
her
and fighting to stand. "Tell me her name and I'll try to find her."
The man turned his head and glanced over at the next bed, his eyes
not really seeing anything. "I can take care of myself. I am over
500,000 years old, you know. I'm a god...I can't die like this. I refuse
to die as a mortal...where is she?!"
The nurse stood, pushing him back against the pillows. .:: Such a pity
what the plague will do to the mind. ::. she thought and smiled down at
the young man again. "You're too sick to go looking for anyone, sir.
Just tell me her name and I'll find her for you."
He seemed to loose his will to fight and laid back, closing his eyes.
"Imako Eienjo...please...find her..."
The nurse smiled and nodded. "We'll find your wife for you,
Kako-san."
Kako shook his head and tried to laugh, failing miserably.
"Not...married...She's too...obnoxious..."
She smiled again and left the cup of water next to his bedside. "We'll
find her for you, don't worry."
As his eyes closed again, she pulled a needle out of her kit and
injected its contents into his arm. Kako's head rolled to the side and
his eyes opened slightly as he felt his strength leaving yet again.
"...please...I'm worried...about...her..."
The nurse smiled and nodded. "Don't worry, sir. She'll be fine."
He nodded and closed his eyes again. "Stay safe...Ima-chan..."
~~~
Lina gazed up at the five story white building and turned to their guide.
"So this is the only hospital in town?"
The guide, a short girl with icy blue hair nodded slightly before
pointing
to the two double wooden doors. "The town is there." Her voice was
completely emotionless as she turned away. "I will not accompany
you in there. I do not wish to die."
Amelia blinked and caught the younger girl's arm as she passed.
"What do you mean by die?"
"The plague is highly contagious. The nurses themselves are dying
one by one and very painfully. People who go to the hospital leave
through the morgue," she answered plainly.
"Aren't there any healers here? Can't anyone do anything?" The
princess gripped the guide's arm as the blue-haired girl shook her head
sadly.
The guide tugged on Amelia's hand, her voice becoming desperate as
the rest of the group seemed to migrate towards the building. "No one
can heal them. We've tried all we can, but nothing works. Please...I
don't want to die here..."
Amelia relented and the girl ran off down the street. The young
Sailoon princess turned to the rest of her group and studied their faces
intently as she spoke. "We can't just leave all these people here to
die. Even if they say healing won't work, I know we can do it!
Lina-san, Zelgadis-san, you can use a little bit of white magic and so
can I. Together I know we can pull through all this! We have to help
them!"
Lina nodded, holding up one hand to stop the girl from going off into
one of her longer speeches on Justice and the Holy Flame of Purity. "I
know, Amelia. You think I'd leave a town like this? Even if we can't
help them too much, we can at least try right? And trying will make a
few of these people feel a little bit better. You don't have to convince
us."
Gourry nodded. "Like I was saying earlier, this plaque thing doesn't
bother me much."
Naria sighed and felt like digging her forehead into the palm of her
hand. "Plague, Gourry...it's a plague."
The swordsman nodded again and smiled. "That's what I said."
Zelgadis dropped a hand on Naria's shoulder before she could say
anything and gave her the "Don't try anymore" look. "It's not getting
through; trust me."
The younger chimera nodded and glanced up to find the rest of the
group already opening the doors to the hospital. "We'd better hurry
up."
Zelgadis adjusted his grip on the still sleeping Mira-chan and nodded.
"Hey, Naria."
"Yeah?"
He began to walk forward, keeping by his sister's side and motioned
towards the inverse on his back. "Did Mira-chan always sleep this
much?"
Naria shrugged and pushed the two wooden doors open. "I don't think
so, but we've been traveling a lot. Maybe she's just really tired from
all
that."
"I've been carrying her this entire time...how can she be tired?" he
grumbled and gingerly picked his way through the people sitting or
lying on the floor moaning in pain. From what he saw, the guide was
probably right. The entire town had to be in this hospital or else in
their homes suffering alone.
His sister followed after him, grimacing as a few of the younger
patients grabbed onto her legs, crying for help. She quickly pulled free
and joined the others at the receptionist's desk which was
unfortunately empty at the time. The small silver bell sitting on the
desk suffered many blows as Lina slammed her fist down on it trying
to attract attention from the nurses and doctors scurrying past them.
"OI! Doesn't anyone care that I'm here to help?!" Lina screamed in
exasperation. No response. In turn the sorceress vented her
frustrations by beaning Gourry with bunny slipper just before he
opened his mouth. The others just watched as Lina continued beating
Gourry over the head as he tried to explain that he hadn't said anything
worth getting hit over.
Very silently a shadow crept up into the receptionist's desk and sat
down, watching the group just as silently. It didn't want to disturb
them until everything was over, but as the minutes dragged on it
became aparrent to the figure that it wasn't going to end anytime soon.
It tapped the desk once, then rang the bell twice, threw the pencil
holder at Zelgadis' head, and finally settled for screaming: "OH MY
KAMI-SAMA, IT'S THE DRAGON SPOOKER!!"
That worked.
The figure soon found itself the center of attention as the lobby noise
disappeared and a red aura appeared. It smiled and waved
non-chalantly as the 'Dragon Spooker' revved up another attack.
"We care that you're here to help, Lina-san. It's just that the rest of
the people here are too worried with their own-" The stranger lifted a
hand and deflected the fireball, sending it spiraling into oblivion
before
continuing. "-lives that they can't take the time to acknowledge your
presence."
Lina did her best 'I-Hate-You' glare and folded her arms before her.
"So, care to step out of those shadows or do I have to cast a lighting
spell too?"
It smirked and dismissed the darkness that hung around her by
jumping over the desk and landing right in front of the sorceress, still
smiling. "I think I'll be courteous."
Lina blinked and looked up at the woman standing before her. In place
of her usual tunic she wore white slacks and a light blue shirt. Gray
streaks were highlighting her normally blonde hair causing her to
actually look somewhat her age for once. Gourry smiled and waved,
thankful for the reprieve in his punishment. "Hey, you're looking pretty
good for a dead person, Mirai."
The Goddess of the Future waved back and grinned. "Gods don't die,
Gourry. We just tend to sort of stop existing for a few seconds."
The swordsman nodded slightly, not really comprehending, but
nodding nonetheless. Mirai turned to the rest of the group and waved
them towards the swinging double doors. "We have a lot to discuss,
but we can't do that here. Would you mind joining me?"
Amelia opened the double doors and only found a hallway filled with
more sick. "Joining you where?"
Mirai grinned again and waved her hand. "Someplace safe." Almost
immediately, the colors of the hospital lobby began to distort and swirl
around them. The people faded away in the distance and the double
doors disappeared. Then the whole world just popped like a bubble
and left the group standing in the middle of a bare stone plaza. Mirai
sighed and flopped down on what most people would so deceptively
call thin air. Apparently, goddesses didn't care about laws of physics.
"Sit down wherever you please...don't worry, you won't fall over."
"I'll stand, thank you." Lina glanced around the plaza and tilted her
head to the side in a simple sign of comprehension. "So this is your
dimension, is it?"
"Yes, and you're safer here then anywhere else, I'll guarantee you
that." Mirai sat forward in her 'chair' and looked up at the young
sorceress. "You're in grave danger if you stay here, Lina-san. All of
you are."
Naria nodded and began walking the perimeter of the plaza. "We
know, the plague."
"It's not that. It's who caused the plague. You're in danger from
them." Mirai motioned towards the wall and it blurred, forming a small
viewing screen. "Two dark lords, previously thought to hate each other
have joined forces to accomplish two things. One, bring Deep Sea
Dolphin out of the Sea of the Chaos. Two, destroy-"
"Me, right?" Lina chimed. Mirai nodded and the sorceress sighed in
exasperation. "Why can't they go pick up another hobby? Brass
Raquets was a good recreational sport. If they have enough will to do
this every stupid season, they'd be great at that thing."
"We don't know what they're planning, but stay on your guard. Kojiro,
Gaea, Hikaru, and I are in the city if you need anything, but we're here
to do one thing and get out. After we leave, you'll be on your own."
"Why can't you stay and help us? You're gods aren't you?" Gourry
asked, looking up at the screen.
Mirai sat back and ran a hand through her graying hair. "Yes, but even
gods have limits and rules. We can't just change the balance of the
world on a whim. All we can do is sit back, guide people, and watch
them screw up in the most annoying ways."
"So even the big bad gods answer to someone, eh?" a sneering voice
called. Mirai jumped to her feet, her staff appearing in her hands as
her eyes swept over the plaza. "Well, that's no surprise, we don't get
total freedom either. We take it!"
The dimension shattered into shards of glass, sending the entire group
spiraling into darkness. Mirai's hand snaked out and brushed against
Lina's as they fell before the goddess was simply winked out of
existence. Evidently, the darkness was deceiving as first Gourry, then
Lina, then everyone else hit the ground. Hard.
"I-Ite..." Lina pushed herself up onto her knees and glanced to her
right, checking to see if Gourry was alright. As he sat up, she
checked everyone else. All but two of them were already in various
stages of standing up. Naria was busy checking on them and Lina
stood, helping Gourry up. This place was eerily quiet and dim torches
assumedly hung on the walls, casting black shadows against the
black ground. Amelia stood and coughed as she rubbed her sore
knee. There was no echo. "This silence is too-"
Lina was interrupted as Naria's voice cut through the air like a knife.
"Oniichan?! Mira-chan?! Wake up!! Come on, wake up!!"
Amelia was by the younger chimera's side instantly and checked the
duo's pulses. Thankfully they were strong, but Mira-chan was having
trouble breathing. "I think something's wrong, Lina-san..."
"You should do more than think, child. Something IS wrong," the
same sneering voice floated out of the air as a bluish bubble of energy
appeared above them. Gourry grabbed Lina and pulled her back from
it while it descended towards the middle of the room. Naria grabbed
Mira-chan, shielding her as something began to materialize inside. "In
fact, I do believe she's caught my little cold. Such a shame, but hey,
health benefits will cover it won't they?"
The sound of seashells knocking against each other filled the air and
the figure inside the bubble took shape. A young woman with long
blue hair interlaced with shells of all kinds smiled ruthlessly at them
through the thin shield. "I expect that if she's like the others, she
won't be alive for much longer. Unless, of course, you can solve my
first riddle."
Lina pushed Gourry aside and stepped forward, keeping one hand
prepared with a Dil Brand behind her back. "Deep Sea Dolphin, I
presume?"
The woman bowed with an extravagant flourish and grinned. "Why of
course! You must feel so honored to have gotten my attention all this
time! I assure you I don't choose my prey lightly."
"We're flattered," Lina mumbled. "So what's your riddle?"
Dolphin tapped her chin with a tapered finger and smiled. "Ah, yes,
the riddle. If you're up to it, find this thing and you'll have your
cure.
What can live forever and still die
Dies, but never really stops existing
Feels love, but never falls into it
Feels hate, but can never hate people
And will die in two hours time?"
Dolphin scanned her audience with a pleased smile. All of their faces
were completely blank. "Tick tock goes the clock, Lina Inverse. Your
little friend over there is dying quickly and soon the effects will be
too
far gone to reverse! Hurry up now. If you get it you'll go free and you
can find the cure. If you don't, you all die here and make it so much
easier for me. You only have one guess."
Lina narrowed her eyes and ran over the clues silently in her mind.
With only one guess, everyone's lives were depending on her. In the
back of her mind something was tugging at her, but she couldn't quite
remember what it was. "Lives forever and still dies...dies, but never
really stops existing. Feels love, but never falls into it? And will
die in
two hours time?"
"Tick tock, Lina Inverse!" Dolphin grinned again and began to float
away. "Three. Two. On-"
"WAIT!"
Everyone turned to see who had spoken as the person lowered their
hand. Their hopes sunk with it. "I know the answer!"
"Gourry, what are you doing?!" Lina tugged on his arm, trying to pull
him back, but the swordsman refused.
"I know who it is!" he cried, stopping as Dolphin appeared just before
him. He noted that he could see right through her and made a mental
note to ask Lina about that later.
"Well, mortal? What is it?" the dark lord mused. She had followed
this one and she knew he wasn't the brightest person in the world. It
was going to be a massacre.
"A god."
Dolphin twitched and Lina stopped pulling on him. The Mazoku lord
tightened her jaw and glared at the blond man before her. "What did
you say?"
"A god. Mirai said they never really stop existing even though they
die. I don't know about that other stuff, but she's the only one I know
that can do that," Gourry replied.
"DAMN THE KAMIS!!!" Dolphin flew up into the air as the bubble
around her crackled with her black energy. Gourry whirled around and
grabbed onto Lina, shielding her as the energy lashed out at the walls.
Large chunks of black stone broke free and tumbled towards the
ground as the others ran to dodge them. Then as suddenly as it
began, it stopped and Dolphin calmed down. "Alright, you answered
it. Now, go. Find the god I talked about and you'll have your cure and
your curse. GO!"
Lina's eyes shot open and she found herself sitting in the waiting room
with everyone else. They were standing at the receptionist's desk and
her hand was hovering over a little silver bell. "Wha?"
Naria adjusted her grip on the inverse sleeping fitfully in her arms and
shifted her weight to the right side as Zelgadis leaned against her
heavily. "Oniichan...?"
He tilted his head down in a weak nod and Naria breathed a small sigh
of relief. Amelia offered to take Mira-chan and the chimera relented,
opting instead for helping her brother stand. The raven-haired princess
turned to Lina and bit her lower lip. "They need healing, but nothing I
do is helping."
"Let's go upstairs, maybe we'll find a doctor up there," Lina suggested,
quickly retracting her hand from over the bell. "I hate dealing with
Mazoku...strange things like this always happen."
As the group trudged through two swinging double doors toward the
stairwell, someone else opened the lobby door. Their light blue hair
and sad eyes stood as a testament to what they had seen in the past
day. "I know they're here," he muttered, his voice sounding almost as
tired as he looked.
Another man with long, dark brown hair entered behind the first and
nodded. "Let's hope you're right, Kami-sama. We've been searching
everywhere and their signature is getting weaker by the moment."
A curt nod was the only response the younger man received.
Gaea looked up at his leader and frowned. "Kami-sama, I don't think
there's much we can do here..."
Kojiro's jaw was set with determination as he led Hikaru into the
waiting room. "I know, Gaea, but if we don't try, what do we have to
show for coming here? Mirai disappeared on us and until we find her,
we're the healers for this town."
Gaea nodded and let his eyes wander through the packed room. "Hai,
Kami-sama."
~~~
"You're an absolute moron."
"Oh, shut up, Xellas." Deep Sea Dolphin was mad. Of course, saying
she was just 'mad' would be like saying Lina Inverse had a slight
appetite. At the moment, the Mazoku lord was busy drumming her
fingers on her holographic table as she sat in a holographic bubble
watching Xellas laugh at her through holographic eyes. "I said, Shut.
Up. Xellas."
"I still can't believe you didn't just transport them here like I asked!"
The Beastmaster covered her mouth as she continued to laugh.
"Then you give them that idiotically easy riddle and expect them not to
get it? I've said it for the past hour and I'll say it again: You're an
absolute MORON."
"And yet you laugh as I set us off course. How utterly childish and
moronic of you, Xellas," Mei'ou-sama shot back. The ice in her voice
was almost tangible and the Beastmaster finally calmed herself down.
Xellas pulled a cigarette out of her pocket and brought it to her lips.
"I'm just saying that you should have known better. I'm not so stupid
as to go around letting people go. I may toy with them, but I never let
them go."
"Whoever said I let them go?" Dolphin smiled coldly and turned away
as Xellas struck a match to light her cigarette. "I have them on a very
short leash. They won't be going very far."
~~~
The room was like all the others she had visited before in her
wanderings. Plain white walls and beds lined up against them in neat
rows gave the impression of the perfect hospital. Unfortunately,
impressions often fade like the sun as night sets in. People lay
underneath white sheets, gripping them in their hands as the
hallucinations made both the conscious and unconscious worlds hell.
She had seen this before, but how could it have gotten into the blood
of mortals? And what was with the barrier that had been placed to try
and ward off any gods from entering? Dolphin and Xellas of course,
but still...how could they have gotten ahold of this disease? The
plague that Kami-sama himself had banned the gods from ever using
as a weapon? So many questions and yet no answers. Mirai shook
her head.
She was thankful at the very least that she had been transported back
to the hospital and not to some forsaken part of the desert. Dolphin
must have been preoccupied or she wouldn't have made such a
careless mistake. The Goddess of the Future took another deep
breath and stopped next to another bed, waving her hand over the
inhabitant's face. They immediately fell calm, cured for the moment.
Still, it was only a momentary cure. Mirai closed her eyes briefly as
she continued her search for Imako and Kako, thinking to herself. .:: If
only we had the real cure again... ::.
Her green eyes swept the room one last time as she began the climb
up the stairs again. They didn't have much time. Since two gods
were stuck with the disease, it would mean that until those gods were
gone, the disease would be incurable. They acted as a barrier against
all healings powers no matter how strong. Not only that, but within
one day of catching the disease, whether you were immortal or not,
you would cease to exist on the phsyical plane. Mirai hoped to
Kami-sama that it hadn't been over one day.
~~~
Naria helped Zelgadis sit down on an empty bed and checked his
temperature before turning away to help Mira-chan. They were both
looking bad, with the young inverse the worse off. Apparently she was
having some sort of delusion about a mirror or something, but it was
her high fever and the fact that every mirror she saw was the "Lugandi
Mirror" that had Naria worried. Still, whatever it was, she'd pull
through it in the end.
"Hey, I found one of them!" Lina shouted, motioning everyone over.
She pulled back the gauzy curtains, revealing a young girl with
deceptively graying hair. Beads of sweat lingered on the young girl's
face and her breathing came in short gasps. Naria looked down at the
goddess and sighed.
"Poor kid," she mumbled.
Amelia glanced down and began the healing process as did the
others. Even if they couldn't cure her completely, at least they'd be
able to get her conscious again. Although, Amelia wasn't sure if that
was a blessing or torture for the young Goddess of the Present.
"Um..Lina? What do I do?" Gourry peered over the sorceress'
shoulder.
Lina glanced at him over his shoulder and went back to concentrating
on healing. "See if you can find the other god. What's his face, Kako
or whatever."
Gourry nodded and turned away, walking away. "What's he look like
again?"
"Long brown hair and blue eyes." Gourry blinked and looked over at
Zelgadis who was sitting up on the opposite side of the room. "I said,
long brown hair and blue eyes."
The swordsman nodded and faced the group. "Found him!"
Everyone blinked and looked up as he pulled back the curtain on the
neighboring bed. The young man lying there was deathly pale, almost
as white as the sheets that kept him warm. Yet he was awake and
smiling at them in the same boyish manner that most of the gods
already knew and sometimes wanted to smack him for. "Took...you...
long...enough.."
Lina left Imako's side and turned, facing the other god. "Well, pardon
us for being mortals! We can't all just pop in and out of the Astral
Plane like some Jack-in-the-Box on hyperdrive!"
"And what makes you think we do that?" a commanding and definitely
amused voice asked from behind them. The group turned once again
and blinked, caught off guard for once.
Zelgadis coughed. "You have company."
"No, really? Thanks for the notice, Oniichan," Naria replied
sarcastically and bowed to the man standing behind her. His light
blue hair was drawn back into a tight ponytail and for once his bangs
were out of his blue eyes. Those same blue eyes surveyed the room
from where he was standing in the middle aisle. He nodded to the
young chimera and smiled as she straightened up. "Hello again,
Kami-sama."
"Just Kojiro. We go on an informal basis wherever we go, don't we?"
The god turned to face the two lower gods behind him. "I'm sure
you've all met Gaea, God of the Earth, but this little one is Hikaru,
God of the Light."
Both bowed in the order they were introduced and Hikaru quickly
broke away and ran to Imako's bed. "How's she doing, Naria-sama?"
The chimera blinked and shrugged. "She's still alive..."
Lina coughed slightly. "Since you introduced yourselves, we might as
well introduce ourselves too. Lina Inverse, Sorceress Supreme. And
that's Gourry Gabriev, the Swordsman of Light and my self-proclaimed
body-guard."
"Amelia Wil Telsa Sailoon," the princess curtsied and smiled.
"Princess of Sailoon."
"You know me, Oniichan, and Mira-chan already," Naria said simply,
watching the group with her arms crossed in front of her chest. "So
you here to give us the cure or what?"
Kojiro's face darkened slightly at her remark. "So subtle aren't we,
Naria-san? I'm here to find the Fates and help you, Lina-san."
"Help me?" Lina blinked in surprise.
"Yes...with your situation with a certain Mazoku lord.." Kojiro trailed
off as he glanced over his shoulder. "Ah, good to see you're alright,
Mirai."
The goddess entered on cue and looked around at everyone. "I see
I'm late for once."
"Yes...where did you disappear off to anyway? You know we need all
the healing powers we can get," Kojiro chided, assuming the role of
boss once again.
Mirai bowed her head and bit her lip as she spoke. "Forgive me,
Kami-sama. I went against your orders and sought out Lina Inverse
on my own. I was hoping to prevent the disaster before it began."
"Ah, well, it's all done and over with, right? We found her at the very
least. So.." The eldest god turned to face everyone and smiled
nervously. "Any of you have an idea of how to stop this plague?"
And so the sound of a thousand sweatdrops rang across the Astral
and the physical plane. Lina swallowed once before jumping up and
grabbing the taller man by his collar. Even if it only served to pull
herself up off the floor to see him eye to eye. "You mean to tell me
you're the highest of all the gods and YOU don't know how to stop this
thing?! What kind of gods are you anyway?!"
Mirai blinked and turned crimson as Lina proceeded to yell at her
boss. She was about to speak up when Gaea grinned and dropped
his hand over her mouth. "Tsk tsk, don't speak out of turn,
Mirai-sama."
In response, Mirai turned a darker shade of red and shoved her elbow
into Gaea's side.
Kojiro's face proceeded to turn a slight shade of red for a different
reason as he returned Lina's blazing glare calmly. "...I...had a
cure..."
"So where is it now?" Lina demanded. When he averted his eyes, she
shook him slightly and glared at him again. "I'm not letting my friends
die because you don't want to tell me where it is."
Kami-sama blinked and looked back at the sorceress. "You think I'd
let them die? Come now, you can't think gods are that harsh! No,
what I was going to say was that I had a cure, but I gave it to
someone else."
He smiled as Lina let him go and dropped back to the ground. "Well,
then who is this someone else?"
"He forgot..."
Everyone turned to see Kako sitting up in bed, his breathing heavily
labored. He glanced up at them with pale blue eyes and smiled
slightly. "He..can't help it..."
"He's absentminded sometimes..." Mirai finished, stepping forward
and glaring at Gaea who was still nursing his side. After receiving
several pained and angry glares from the entire group, she sighed.
"It's been over three millenia since both the plague and the cure were
formed. You try to remember where you put both after all that time."
"Gourry can't even remember where he put something after three
minutes, let alone three millenia," Lina groaned, running a hand
through her hair. Gourry blinked and was about to protest when she
continued. "Still, that's really irresponsible considering how everyone
looks up to you."
"Oh, and you're the responsible one?" Naria shot back, hiding a smile
as the sorceress' face became a cherry again.
"That's different! Anyway, how do we figure out who has the cure
then?" she asked, quickly changing the subject.
"It's simple. We just look into the past." Kojiro beamed and blinked
as all he got were blank stares. "What? Do you need me to tell you
again?"
"No, Kojiro-san...we're just wondering...exactly HOW do we look into
the past?" Amelia asked, piping up for the first time in a long time.
Again the god smiled. "Yet again, that's simple. All we have to do
is-"
He was suddenly cut short as a blinding blue light burst into the room,
sending the doors at either end crashing out into the halls. Several of
the patients screamed while many of them just fell unconscious, the
strain of the explosion too much for them. Everyone standing was
thrown to their feet as the shock wave hit them and as they looked up
they knew they were in for trouble. As the light condensed into a
floating ball, a cheerily devilish face smiled at them. Her blue hair
was
just a shade or two lighter than the energy surrounding her and Lina
groaned as she recognized her.
Lina sat up and rubbed her sore back as she said, "Dolphin...My,
don't you know how to make an entrance?"
The Mazoku lord grinned again, setting even Kojiro's hair on end. "Of
course! The entrance sets the mood for the disaster to follow. I just
wanted to inform you, Lina Inverse, that in ten minutes your little
friends will all die. I've decided to speed things up a bit since
watching
them die slowly over a course of one day, while fun, gives you just too
much time to make them well again. So tick, tock, hurry up!" A
delicate hand appeared next to her face and she snapped just as the
bubble burst, restoring the room back to as it was before.
"We only have ten minutes?" Gourry frowned and sat up. Zelgadis,
Kako, Imako, and Mira-chan were still sick and they only had ten
minutes to live.
"Well...that's just peachy..." Everyone turned their gaze to the God of
the Earth as he stared back at them calmly. "What? Just get Kako
to look into the past and we'll have our cure in under three seconds."
Lina snapped and nodded, jumping up as did the others. "As the God
of the Past, he has to be able to know all that happened back then.
He'll remember! Where is that sarcastic idiot?"
She glanced around and blinked as she saw Naria kneeling by a bed
on the other side of the room cradling something. "Ne, Naria...what's
wrong?"
The chimera looked up and glanced over her shoulder, tears starting to
form in her eyes. Lina looked beyond the girl and saw that she was
holding Zelgadis and Mira-chan. "...They won't wake up...they just
collapsed...he just collapsed on me..."
"Imako-sama!!" Hikaru screamed, shaking the older goddess.
"Imako-sama!! Wake up!!"
"Kako? Kako! Wake up, we need you!!" Mirai was holding Kako up,
but everyone could see that his eyes, although open, were glazed over
and dull. "Kako!!"
At that moment a nurse came running in and glanced at the four
individuals. She closed her eyes, a look of absolute sorrow coming
over her weary expression. Kojiro stepped forward, assuming the
leader role again and asked, "Ma'am, is there any way to revive my
friends? We have a dire need to talk to them."
The nurse opened her eyes and bowed to him sadly. "I'm sorry to
inform you of this, Sir, but your friends are in the third stage of the
disease...I'm afraid they won't wake up again until they reach the
Astral Plane."
--to be continued--