-- Attached file included as plaintext by Listar --
-- File: EpFive.txt
Slayers PERSIST
Written by Zach Grafton, crazymanzach@fanboy.org.
www.angelfire.com/ca3/slayerspersist/
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Slayers PERSIST
Episode Five.
"Reunion! A Detour On The Path To Revelation."
As she crested the hill, Lina couldn't help but feel a brief wave
of nostalgia. Everything looked as it had those years ago with Naga; the
small town's buildings rose in strange spires, denoting elven origin. The
fields and forests were lush and well tended, and the streets boasted a
lively population of about three or four. Everyone else would be inside
eating by now, she figured, maybe munching down on some of the bread that
Baker specialized in.
"Biatz," she breathed. "Never thought I'd see this place again."
"You've been here before?" Gourry asked, as always at her side. "It
looks sorta small to interest you."
Casting a glance toward the mountains, she spied a large, broken
piece of earth and diamond which had once encased a giant Orihalcon monster
intended to battle Mazoku through direct absorption of magical attacks. She
gave her partner a smile. "Yeah, that's how it turned out. What's taking
Zel so long?"
Gourry pointed back to the foot of the hill. "It was your idea to
make him carry all our stuff."
"Damn it, Lina!" the chimera cried from the rear. "Why do I have to
lug everything around?"
"Well, you do have the strength of a golem," she shouted down. "We
appreciate it, Zel-chan."
"She's never going to let me forget that," he grumbled. "I was the
one that pointed out Biatz was on our way to Panifess.
"At least let me carry some of that," the Princess offered,
reaching for the giant bag on his back. He brushed her hand aside.
"I can take care of it," he grunted, and began dragging himself up
the slope.
"He's so sweet when he wants to be," Amelia sighed.
"I think he's just trying to reaffirm his masculinity after that
dance club thing," Raleic commented wryly, and found herself beneath a
layer of traveling equipment.
"You carry it, then," the chimera muttered, sulking off. Amelia
facefaulted.
"Why are we taking so much stuff with this, again?" Gourry asked
Lina, back up on the hilltop. "We've never needed to before."
"We never had her with us before," was the response, with a gesture
to the royal postal worker below. "Apparently our delicate princess can't
travel without half the castle along with her. We should have snuck out of
town without telling anyone. We'd convinced her to stay with Phil when we
went to scout out the sanctuary."
"Well, I think it's kind of sweet in a way," the swordsman said.
"She's just looking out for her."
"Amelia's not the little girl she used to be," Lina returned with
finality, turning back to the village spread out before them. "Anyway, we'd
better get down there. I have no idea what kind of reception we're going to
get."
Gourry nodded obediently, but stayed behind to help Amelia and
Raleic with the baggage. Zel had moved on to converse with Lina; had he
been more clear-headed, he would have deduced that the Princess of Seiruun
would not allow her worker to carry that heavy sack by herself and
grudgingly taken it back. He was a bit muddled due to lack of sleep,
however, and for some reason the prospect of being in the same place with
both Selena and Amelia seemed a very foreboding one.
"I'd say you'll be very well received," he told Lina, eyeing the
village. "The mayor's daughter referred to you as Lina-sama."
"Sama, eh?" She grinned, hands rubbing together. "They may be small
time country folk, but they know their suffixes. She didn't mention
anything about a girl named Naga, by any chance?"
"The name came up," Zel answered. "Why do you ask?"
"Nostalgia, I guess." Turning back to check the progress of the
slackers, she was able to step aside just as Amelia and Raleic crashed to
the ground beneath a few hundred pounds of luggage. "Jeez, Zel, can't you
just help them out?"
"Let me--" Gourry began, but the chimera had already realized his
error and yanked the bag off the two prone young ladies.
"Gomen," our mood-swingin' magic-usin' swordsman uttered briefly,
before trudging off in the way of the mayor's house. After helping the
Princess and the postal worker to their feet, Lina and Gourry followed. He
hadn't gotten far; determined or not, his load was damn heavy.
"So," Gourry began, rubbing his chin. "We're here to do what
exactly?"
"You know, a couple years ago and I would have mangled you alive
for asking such a stupid question," Lina sighed.
"You get used to it with time," Zel agreed, grunting under the
weight.
"Thank you." Gourry beamed, quite pleased.
"We're here because it's on our way to Panifess," Lina explained.
"And because Zel wants us to check out this little magic lab on the
outskirts of town."
"Ano, and why are we doing that?"
"Because there's a wellspring of active power inside it," Zel took
over. "Elven laboratories are connected to each other through magical
waves, so if someone has tapped into them, it might have something to do
with our friends from the other day."
"Oh. And what friends were those again?" Gourry asked, and this
time Lina did mangle him.
Those friends, forgotten or not within the shaggy swordsman's mind,
had been questioned the day after what Amelia thought of as The Incident,
and what Zel thought as The Big Horrible Thing That Didn't Happen.
Bound and held securely in the castle's dungeon, twelve guards
surrounding them, Fairn and Ralov had been seated disconsolately in the
center of the cell. Phil towered over the both of them, with Zelgadiss at
his side. Lina, Gourry, and Amelia watched from the sidelines. Xelloss
hadn't reappeared since his impromptu departure the previous night, to no
one's surprise.
"Fairn Fellowdew, you say." Phil's voice was low, and even so it
carried heavily through the cell. Lina leaned over to her sidekick.
"Damn, he can be scary," she whispered.
Phil continued before Gourry could earn himself serious internal
bleeding with a poorly chosen response. The elf girl had apparently nodded
in agreement to the Prince's last question, judging from the track this
inquiry was rolling on.
"Another Fairn was here recently. More precisely, a Sara De Fairn
Kelltic. Are you the same girl that masqueraded as the Princess of
Panifess?"
The elf girl grimaced. "I was. As well as the same that conspired
with Gregory to end in your assassination."
Philionel sighed, drawing hugely muscled arms across his chest.
"That grieves me. Why would you want to kill a pacifist like me?"
"And why would you so boldly pronounce all this now?" Zelgadiss
asked.
"That's not for you to know," Fairn spat. "Nor is what we were
looking for inside the sanctuary last night."
"Well, I think we already figured that one out," Lina chirped up.
"I mean, with the Legacy of Dusk being held there and everything, it wasn't
such a big mystery."
"You got to it before we could, didn't you?" Ralov asked, his
slanted eyes narrow. "What did you do with it?"
Raising her arms, Lina adopted her most innocent look. "Sorry, pal,
but that's not for you to know."
The elves cursed. Phil and Amelia ooohed appreciatively.
"She's good," the Princess whispered to one of the guards, who
nodded admiringly.
"What about the other sanctuary?" Philionel asked them. "There are
two in this city, what happened to the other one?"
"There's nothing of use in the other one," Fairn replied grimly.
"Much as there is nothing of use in the lot of you."
"Agreed," Ralov joined in. "Were we able, we'd decimate the entire
lot of you. As it stands, I suppose that will simply have to wait for
another day."
Zel took a step forward. His hands were balled up into stone fists.
"You're going to try to escape?"
"Try nothing," Ralov leered. "I'll settle my score with you later,
chimera!"
A fist flew.
The elves disappeared.
Zel's inertia flung him a good three-sixty and landed him on his
face. The guards applauded.
"Don't just stand there," Phil barked, waving his arms. "Go after
them!"
"That's not going to do any good, Daddy," Amelia attempted, but the
damage had been done. Guards ran every which way, trampling Zel into the
ground and upsetting all the hard-working prisoners who had been trying to
get a little sleep.
"They're gone," Gourry pointed out, bug-eyed. "I didn't know elves
could teleport."
"They can't," Lina muttered. "They're usually stronger than humans
with magic, but they shouldn't be that strong. Their Mazoku sponsor must
have given them extra power."
"And who is that Mazoku, anyway?" Amelia asked. "If they want my
father dead, they'll have to get through me, first."
"Whoever it was, he was strong enough to survive a direct hit from
a Laguna Blade." Lina mused a moment, looking into the cell's shadows.
"There aren't many I can think of strong enough for that."
"Then it should be an easy list to review," Zel said, getting to
his feet. "Why don't we take this to a more hospitable environment?"
That had proved to be a fine idea, and the four of them relocated
to the kitchen hall. Phil had decided to try and get his guards back under
a semblance of control, realizing their captives were, indeed, now very
un-captive.
"So," Zel began, waiting patiently for his cup of tea.
"So," Gourry agreed, nodding.
Lina rolled her eyes. "Okay, Mazoku strong enough to withstand that
kind of attack. First of all, Shaburanigdo."
"Obviously not," Zel answered. "And none of the other three Lords,
either. They wouldn't waste their time in techno clubs, even if they did
make it into our world."
"My thoughts exactly," she responded. "So next we have the five Sub
Lords. Or the three that are left, anyway."
"Wasn't Garv a lot more powerful than that guy yesterday?" Amelia
asked. "I mean, of course Phibrizo was, he was the strongest of them all.
But with Garv--"
"Wow, you've done a bit of lore reading yourself," Lina appraised.
"Well, Garv was supposedly the second most powerful of the five, but I see
your point. Any objections?"
Zel shook his head, sipping on his newly arrived tea. Gourry stared
blank faced at a wall.
"So then the only options left are a Priest or General of the Sub
Lords, or someone with power equal to them." Lina blew heavily, leaning
forward against the table.
"Like Xelloss," Amelia chirped. "Right!"
"This would be a much more enlightening discussion if that bastard
were here," Zel grumbled.
"Ano, he has been running off a lot," Gourry said, off to the side.
Everyone blinked, shifted their attention to him. "More than usual, I
mean."
"True," Lina acknowledged. "Even when he doesn't help us out, he
usually stays around to watch us struggle."
"I hate to admit it, but you're right." Zelgadiss hmmed. "Do you
think he's running from something?"
"What would Xelloss have to run from?" Amelia asked. "I mean, with
the exception of the Five Sub Lords, no Mazoku can stand up against him."
"Do you think maybe this chef thing is one of the Sub Sandwiches?"
Gourry murmured.
"I don't see why anything that powerful would go so easy on us,"
Lina responded (ignoring her sidekick's quick bout of goofiness). "Though
it makes sense. If Xelloss is actually afraid of something, I mean."
"Maybe he's an elfophobe!" Gourry cried. Apparently his intelligent
suggestions for the day were done.
"Ugh." Lina laid her head in her hands. "Well, we won't get
anywhere pondering over things. We still on for exploring the other
sanctuary?"
"Sure," Zel agreed. "Although I didn't get the feeling the elf girl
was lying. She genuinely seemed to find it useless."
"Useless to her, maybe. We might find some valuable scraps of
information lying about."
"Wow, this is just like old times!" Amelia beamed. "The four us,
adventuring together again."
"Ugh," Lina repeated.
"The four of us, huh?" Zel asked, stolidly.
"Come on, don't pretend you guys aren't excited." The Princess
beamed, elbowing the other two magic users at the table. "This'll be
great."
"Maybe it's a conspiracy plotted by the Legion of Fishmen to
reestablish their base in Seiruun territory," Gourry injected, and a
slipper bonked off his head.
"I'd almost forgotten how annoying it was," Zel sighed, staring
into his tea.
"Hunting out the remaining sanctuary, are you?" Phil nodded,
massive arms folded against massive chest. "That's good. Perhaps you'll
find something of use to us."
"That's what we're hoping," Lina agreed. "You know where it is,
right?"
"Sure, I just need to find those old records." Phil turned to his
desk, rummaging through a stack of portfolios. Our Heroine and her crew had
a moment of silence before Raleic entered, rushing to the Princess's side.
"Where are you off to now, Princess?" she asked, panting a little
between words. "Why didn't you tell me about this?"
"Ano, Raleic-san." Amelia smiled uncertainly. "I didn't know you,
ah, cared."
"I haven't held the position of royal postal worker long," Raleic
sniffed, "and I don't intend to lose it because you went off to get
yourself killed."
"How would her death affect your mail-carrying?" Zel asked, very
close to rolling his eyes. "She's handled herself against worse things than
exploring ruins."
"Meaning her luck is bound to run out!" Raleic folded her arms,
sniffed. "I refuse to let you leave with the Princess unless I'm in
attendance."
"Raleic-san--" Amelia began, before Phil slammed a tome down on his
desk hard enough for Zel to relocate his tea onto his face.
"Here it is," he boomed, opening the book and spinning it around.
"A map of Seiruun as it was when the elves lived among us."
Lina crawled onto the desk, peering. "Okay, so we were here
yesterday, right?"
"Right," Phil agreed, and jabbed a thick finger at another point.
"And that's where you're going, on the other side of the city."
"Hey, they're directly across from each other," Gourry chimed in.
"Those elves knew their architecture! It creates a straight line from one
to the other!"
"Any two points create a straight line," Zel grunted, taking a peek
at the map himself. "So most of the city is still the same as it was then,
Your Highness?"
"Almost entirely," Phil responded. "There's a new road here that
should take you there faster, though, and one of these side streets was
closed off. Hm, and this building is demolished..." He began making little
markings on the map with a quill, one eye closed.
"For such a thick-headed guy, he knows his city really well," Lina
noted. Amelia smiled weakly and decided to let that one slide as a
compliment.
Finally, Phil thrust the map back into Lina's face and nodded.
"There, you'll be able to find it in no time at all!"
The sorceress took a look at the paper and glowered. "What the hell
is that?"
"Lina-san?" Phil asked, innocent as a child.
Turning the map back at him, she growled. "It's completely covered
by ink now! I can't make out any of this!"
"Oh, I'm sorry," the Prince mumbled, somewhat embarrassed. "But
that's the only map I have."
"That's okay," Gourry chimed in. "I remember where it was."
Silence throughout the room. Lina looked at him cautiously. "You
do?"
"Mmhm!" He took the quill and colored in an extra dark spot on the
map. "Remember, it was in a straight line from the top of the hexagon
thingy to the bottom. The one we already saw was here." He made another
dab.
"Hey, pretty good!" Lina clapped him on the back. "See, you're
useful even without your sword!"
"That's not exactly a great way to say thank you," Gourry sighed.
"It's as close as she'll ever get," Amelia piped up cheerfully.
"Let's go, everyone!"
"Off to the sanctuary!" Raleic decreed.
"Er." Amelia stumbled, smiling sweetly. "Raleic-san, I can do this
on my own. I'm not a little girl--"
"If Mazoku attack, what would happen to you? You've been having
those bad dreams every night,--" Zel's eyes flickered at this, "--and
you're much too stressed out to have to worry about killing your ex-chefs."
"Hey, listen," Lina began, but Amelia lightly put a hand to her
mouth and spoke for her.
"Thank you, Raleic-san, but I have to do this much by myself." She
paused, but spoke up quickly to stifle another protest. "And listen, Daddy
needs more protection than I do. Those elves might come back for him at any
time, and if you're not here, he's almost defenseless."
"He has the royal mages," she argued briefly, but Amelia shook her
head.
"He needs a powerful mage to combat evil like this," she said,
solemn as oak. "One of our soldiers wouldn't be able to do anything against
these guys."
Raleic's face twisted a little, from a frown to a look of
introspection to a dedicated smile. "Well then, I guess my call of duty is
here after all. Don't worry, Prince Philionel, I will stay by your side
until these four return!"
"Huh?" Phil gasped, slack jawed. "Er, I mean, very good,
Raleic-dono..."
"Well, so we all know what we're doing now?" Lina asked, beaming.
"Okay then, let's get going."
The four ruin explorers made for the exit. As Lina went out, she
felt Phil clutch at her arm and whisper, "Hey... You won't take too long,
will you?"
"I think we made pretty good time," Amelia announced cheerfully as
the gang wound their way down a hillside on the southeastern side of Biatz.
The last time he'd been here, Zel had been at great pains to
conceal himself. An aftereffect of the nightmares, he reflected now. A
shove into the past, to back when he'd been so sickened by his appearance
that he wouldn't go into any populated area without a good cloak and mask
to cover himself up. He'd had time to get used to the constant barrage of
late night memory terror in the time since he'd left and gone to Seiruun
(Zel was, by nature, a quick adapter), but he couldn't force back an
awkward feeling on showing up again, completely unmasked... and straining
under the weight of a royal wardrobe.
"You remember where they live?" Lina asked, tilting her head. "I
think I do, but they might have moved into a bigger house or something. The
old one wasn't all that luxurious for a mayor."
"I don't think the Dyne family cares much for material possessions,"
Zel informed, with just enough tint in his voice to yank at the corner of
the sorceress's mouth. "Their house wasn't at all flashy when I was here."
"Why would a person of high standing not want to reap the
benefits?" Raleic pondered aloud. "Even in a little country town like this
one."
"That's the difference between you and them," Zel answered
promptly. "So which way do you think is quickest?"
Amelia smiled vaguely from the sidelines. He'd always been the
practical one. Even when he wasn't hiding his emotions.
"The only way to search out clues on killer chefs." Lina did a
somersault in the air.
"Ano, it really hurts when you do that," Gourry winced. "Do you
have to hold me by the hair?"
"Oi! No complaining down there!"
"If we're doing this right, it should be over that way." Amelia
dashed ahead, shielding her eyes from the sun as she scanned the city
below. Off in the distance, twinkling in the afternoon light, her eyes
caught hold of a single, thin silver spire atop a small, curvy building.
She gasped, halting in mid-flight.
"What's wrong?" Zel asked, the first at her side. She turned to
him, a small and tired smile on her face.
"Nothing. I just remembered that I've been to a shrine of the Water
Dragon King in the same area as this." She pointed to the dark blob of ink
Gourry had used to mark their destination. "It's right there, I probably
should have thought of it sooner. I must not be thinking clearly."
"You've had a rough few days." Zelgadiss managed this sympathetic
expression with difficulty, but once it was out he seemed to look a lot
better. "Was it abandoned, like the Temple they built the dance club over?"
Amelia nodded. "I think it's our best bet. And an old man named
Sprenner has a vegetable shop next door, in case anyone gets hungry." She
kept Lina and Gourry in her sight as she said this, earning a half grin
from the former.
"I guess we can eat healthy for one day," she agreed, and the four
of them went zipping off in aerodynamic defying wonder.
The spire, as it came into view, lent itself to a domed marble
ceiling, which in turn grew downward to become an architecturally beautiful
slab of granite. The doorway arched with flowery swirls and puffy whorlies,
and the pure white columns twisted in gently curvy waves, spiraling up the
side like a very dramatic barber's pole. This led no doubt to Lina's mind;
this place was either a revamped elven sanctuary or a really grandiose gay
bar.
"That's it," Amelia pronounced, ending any thoughts she might have
had concerning strange yaoi fanfic scenarios. The four of them landed
smoothly on the steps leading to that vast doorway, Gourry letting out a
sigh of gratitude as his beautiful golden hair was finally released.
"This doesn't seem too bad," Lina murmured, doing a quick optical
inspection. "As ancient temples housing mysterious secrets go, anyway."
"Almost kind of cozy," Zel agreed, already on his way inside. "But
let's not dally any longer than we absolutely need to."
"Always the practical one," Gourry diagnosed, the caboose for this
little foray into uninhabited granite and marble. Lina shifted quickly to
the front of the procession, leaving Zel and Amelia to walk side-by-side.
Neither of them seemed particularly displeased by this, but then it's
difficult to tell with this crew.
Sometimes.
The inside of the shrine was as nicely chiseled as the outside, and
every bit as cold and unfurnished. There was one statue, cracked with
fissures after years of neglect, that depicted the Water Dragon King poised
in fierce determination at something or other. Its giant head looked down
over the group, and even though they'd met and made friends with the idol's
inspiration (or what was left of it, anyway), they couldn't help but feel a
bit chilly. Just something in the air, Zelgadiss mused.
"This is strange," Amelia said, glancing around. "I've never felt
this way in a holy shrine before."
"The Water Dragon King died a long time ago," Lina answered
promptly, but not without respect. "And Aqua-obaasan died when we fought
Gaav. The only thing left of them is the Claire Bible, and that's in the
Kaltaart Mountains. I don't think even it can lend this place enough power
to cover up all the things that have happened here over the years."
"What did happen here, Lina-san?" she asked, her eyes wide. Zel
noted, without any particular feelings, that she looked like a little kid
again.
"I have no idea," Lina answered. "I'm not particularly interested
in finding out, either, but I'm guessing we don't have much of a choice.
Something has decided to bring us into its little game."
"And you'll be damned if you're going to let whoever that is have
their way, right?" Amelia asked. The other three stared; Zel nearly toppled
over. So much for the retraction into immaturity.
"Ano. Something like that." Lina grinned, turning back to the
statue. "Come on, there should be a trap door around here."
There had been, and they'd had it open without any problems.
Reflecting on this later as she stood on the borders of Biatz, Amelia would
consider how lonely and desolate the place had felt. Surely the other
sanctuary would have had the same feeling if she'd ventured beneath all the
craziness happening up above, a creepy and disquieting aura about the place
that Lina or Gourry probably wouldn't have recognized. She understood that
the Water Dragon King was no more, but to actually experience the effect of
its untimely departure was a little much for her senses.
The reception area that greeted them, like the one Lina had found
beneath the techno club, was lit only with what small amount of light that
crept in after them... and there was considerably less of it here, with
that behemoth mock-up of a Ryuzoku blocking what meager rays the sun cast
in their direction. Lina's dagger was up and at 'em, shining their way.
"Which door did we take last time?" Lina wondered, rubbing her
head.
"The one I said I wouldn't take," Gourry answered, a tad sniffly.
"Yeah, but which was that?" Closing her eyes, she did a quick
reenactment of yesterday's door choosing ceremonies and found that it
didn't help at all.
"No luck?" her sidekick asked.
"Naw. Why don't you pick the way?"
"Really?!" he asked, nearly knocking Amelia over in joy.
"Sure. You're so upset about last time, you might as well. In
fact," she cooed, "I want you to point out the top seven doors you'd like
to go through."
"But there's only eight," he said, after a bit of counting. "That's
not going to narrow it down much."
"Oh, just go ahead, it'll help us out." She waved her hands at him.
He seemed to ponder this a moment before his face cleared (apparently the
poor lad didn't see any hidden snares in this; Lina almost felt bad), and
he began pointing rapidly.
"There, there, there, there, there, there, annnd..." One beat
passed, and then it was decided. "There!"
"Great!" Lina chirped, heading for the one door he hadn't pointed
to.
"Hey, Gourry-san didn't--" Amelia began. Then she glanced back at
Gourry, looking wide-eyed and broken hearted. "Lina-san, that's mean!"
"I didn't say it'd be nice," she responded promptly. "Come on,
already. What's it matter which way we go, it's all random fun."
"I don't get any respect," Gourry moped, following them. "Ever
since I lost my sword, I'm useless around here."
"Oi, oi!" Amelia clutched at his arm, tugged a bit. "That's not
true! You're still the best swordsman I've ever met, and you've always
protected Lina even when your sword was helpless."
"Like when you dove foolishly into the Sea of Chaos," Zelgadiss
agreed. At the sound of hearing the usually reserved swordsman/Shamanist
offer his own sort of support, Lina had no choice but to turn around and
put on a smile.
"Gourry."
He looked up at her, wary yet hopeful. "Nani?"
She smacked him across the cheek, and yanked down on his ear (the
better to hear her, of course). "You are anything but useless. If I hear
you say that again, I swear to the Water Dragon King whose shrine we are in
that I will personally send you back into that Sea of Chaos."
He blinked, rubbing his cheek, before breaking into a broad smile.
"Wow. Arigatou, Lina!"
Amelia and Zel exchanged a puzzled look. "Only she would try to
reassure someone like that," the chimera noted.
"And only he would see it for what it meant," Amelia added with a
shrug. "I guess they're made for each other."
"No more loitering now," Lina decreed, marching down the corridor.
"If things stay the way they've been, we should run into a door down along
here somewhere."
"Oh yeah, the one with the chef behind it!" Gourry nodded.
"Well, hopefully we won't run into any Mazoku this time."
"I think you just damned us all," Zel murmured.
Now may be a good time to point out that moments spent in barely
lit underground tunnels tend to go by very, very slowly. Such was the case
with Zelgadiss Greywers and Amelia Wil Tesla Seiruun, ambling along behind
their usual sorceress/swordsman guides. They strolled along silently, both
lost in their own little worlds, wondering when they'd reach the door they
were supposed to find, wondering why they were having such awful dreams
lately.
Lina and Gourry made up for their silence by eventually to finding
their way into an argument over hot pot. This drifted through the cavern in
echoey waves loud enough to drown out any hint of enemy movement even to
Zelgadiss's sensitive ears, and after a while he simply stopped trying.
"How long can they keep talking about food?" Amelia whispered to
him, jerking him out of his self-induced trance.
"I think they just enjoy hearing each other shout," Zel responded.
It should be noted that he did not intend for that to be ecchi, but the
Princess obviously took it that way by turning a shade of crimson usually
found only in actives volcanoes.
There was a moment filled with nothing but "How can you say that?!
You remember how much we all wanted the Dora-Dora hot pot!" and "But I'm
just saying, squid is a fine substitute when you're broke!" and finally
Zelgadiss spoke up again.
"You said you came here a while ago?" he asked, pleasantly as he
knew how.
"Uh-huh," she answered. "When I was little."
"This is a strange place for a little girl to visit," Zel responded
simply.
"Daddy and I came here," she supplied after what seemed an
awkwardly long pause. "We... we visited all the shrines and temples in the
city, even the ones that weren't in use anymore."
"That was around when your sister left?" he asked, and something in
the rare sensitivity in his voice sent a shiver up her spine.
"H-hai," she managed, clasping her hands in front of her and
watching the floor. "Daddy wanted to make sure she was taken care of... and
we wanted to pray for Mother's soul."
"Gomen," he replied, keeping his eyes on the feuding pair in front
of him. "You don't have to tell me anymore than you want."
Amelia felt her heart begin to race. A myriad of images flew
through her mind, brief glimpses and/or suggestions of how to pursue this
topic. One of them involved slipping an arm around his waist; one involved
searching about for his hand and clasping it gently in hers; one of them
made her too red and hot to begin to even contemplate it. As they walked
along, she decided on the second course of action, and slowly, casually
began slipping her hand toward his...
"Have you been having nightmares?" he asked then, and she jerked
back into a proper upright walking position.
"Wha-hah?" she asked, trying to regain her composure.
"Have you been having nightmares lately?" he repeated patiently,
and this time turned his head to look at her.
"Ano." She swallowed, cleared her throat. "Hai."
He nodded, as if it were something he'd expected. Just needed the
confirmation.
"Why do you ask?" she managed, clasping her hands in front of her
once again. She sure as hell wasn't going to let either one of them get
frisky anymore.
"Because I've been having them as well," he answered. "And I think
they're related to whatever mess we got ourselves into."
Amelia did not have readily available reaction to that. This was
okay, however, because it was then that Lina and Gourry cut off their
bickering and halted in front of a giant marble door.
"Finally!" Lina announced. "We made it."
"Yosh!" Gourry preened. "I knew this was the right way to go!"
"What are you talking about?" Lina returned. "This is the one route
you didn't want to go!"
"Well, I'd figured that you were just setting me up again so I made
sure I wouldn't point this one out," he answered, beaming. "Did it really
work?"
"Yes, it worked!" Lina screamed. "How the hell could I have been
outsmarted by you? That's like being emotionally engaged by Tenchi in
Tokyo."
"I have my moments," Gourry said humbly, and was roasted with a
Fireball.
"Now to take care of this wall," our sorceress cried, by now unable
to cope with common sense.
"Hey, didn't you say that last time this caused the entire passage
to explode?" Amelia screamed, arms a-flailing.
"Don't kill us all just because you're pissed off!" Zel shouted,
his arms doing a little flailing of their own.
"Blame it on my idiot sidekick," she snapped back, pushing her
hands against the door. "Blast Wave!"
When the rumbling began, Zelgadiss snapped forward and grabbed
Amelia by the waist, ducking protectively over her. Her heart leaped for a
moment before she realized he was looking at her expectantly, snapping
something about a Balus Wall. She hurriedly cast it, trying her best not to
look disappointed.
When the shaking stopped, the two of them stood to take in the
havoc. The way they'd come from was most definitely wrecked; the way ahead
looked mostly clear, but L-sama only knew where it lead to.
"You okay?" Zel asked. She brushed herself off and nodded.
"I'm fine. Where are--?"
A scream and a medium-well Gourry burst out of a pile of stone,
hauling Lina up out of the wreckage with him. He managed to get them both
up and out before collapsing from exhaustion.
"Okay, I know," Lina mumbled while shaking pebbles out of her hair.
"I overdid that one."
"All that we need now is a Mazoku to show up like last time,"
Gourry finished.
The sorceress bit her lip. "Don't say things like that. That's
exactly what we don't need!"
"Hey," Amelia breathed, goggle eyed. "I think I heard something
shuffling around back there."
"See what you did?" Lina snapped at Gourry, socking him in the
shoulder.
"I didn't mean to," he muttered. "Want me to take care of it?"
"You couldn't take care of a child in your condition," she
responded in her sensei voice. "I think l can do this one for you."
"How nice of you," Gourry answered unenthusiastically.
"Cairi!" she shouted into the darkness, walking toward the hole
that used to be a door. "Come on out so we can finish this!"
No response.
"Alright," she informed to whatever was listening, "I'll just have
to come after you then. FIREBALL!"
Her adventuring partners ducked as the spell caused a bit more
debris to fly. There was a high-pitched "Itaiiii!" from in the hole, and
the fire's brief light was enough for Lina to make out a familiar face.
"Lina-san, that was uncalled for..."
"You had it coming, Xelloss," she returned coolly. "Not answering
me when I threaten you and skulking around in shadows."
"Gomen," he answered, shuffling into the mediocre light of the
hallway, still burning from the tip of Lina's dagger on the floor. He noted
the weapon for a second before turning his attention back to her. "I was
involved in something. Although I'm impressed you can maintain a Lighting
spell for so long, even after lobbing off two other spells."
"And being caught in a cave-in," Zelgadiss added.
Lina didn't seem fazed. "It's the easiest spell in all of magic,
Xelloss. What are you doing here?"
"Waiting for you, of course. I knew you'd be down here at some
point."
"You're an idiot like always," Lina grunted, kneeling to pick up
her glowing dagger. Feigning indifference right before the blow. "But
lately, it seems to us you've been quite a frightened idiot."
She looked back in time to see the corner of Xel's eyelid twitch.
"Lina-san, you should know that Mazoku can't be afraid. It's against the
nature of our existence, just as if I were to turn against a superior."
"So you'd like to think," she pressed. "But fear is one of the
emotions your kind lives off of. It's part of what makes you guys up."
"What do you mean?" Xelloss asked, and she was pleased to hear a
touch of the nonchalance gone from his voice.
"I'm saying that what you can't do is personally acknowledge your
fear." She slipped up to him, tapping the blade against his chest. "That
would be admitting weakness, and would destroy you."
"Lina," Amelia whispered. "I don't think upsetting Xelloss is our
best strategy..."
Xel peered through one eye. "I think you should listen to her," he
agreed. "You came here for a reason too, remember?"
"Wow," Gourry butted in. "He doesn't seem nearly so cocky now. You
must've hit a nerve, Lina!"
"A nerve?" This seemed to regenerate the General-Priest's stamina.
His face slid right back into its default smile, and his eye closed itself
once again. "Well, perhaps it does, but it's one of disappointment. I'm a
bit insulted than you think there's something around here for me to be
afraid of, Lina-san."
"Yeah," she agreed, pulling away. "I guess that is pretty silly,
huh?"
Out of the corner of her eye, she gave Zel a wink. He couldn't help
but smirk.
"She actually cracked his demeanor," he whispered, unaware he was
speaking until Amelia leaned closer to hear. "He is afraid of something."
"That's pretty scary," Amelia said. "I mean, who are we up against
that would make Xelloss worry? He didn't even seem afraid of Garv, even
when he almost killed him."
"Silly indeed," Xelloss had responded, and was turned back the way
he'd come. "Want to get on with your search?"
"Wait." Lina sheathed her dagger. "Two things. First of all, now
that you're here, you supply the light."
Sighing, the Mazoku produced a small luminescent globe. "Of course.
And the second thing?"
"The second thing's a question," Lina explained. "Why did you tell
me that there was something of Febriza's in the techno club? I didn't see a
damn thing of hers!"
"Well, you didn't go all the way down, did you?" Xelloss kept on
smiling.
"Uh, no, but..."
"Although even if you had, it wouldn't have mattered. I just said
that to get you to go."
"FIREBALL!"
Another small explosion. Amelia shook her head to keep the dust from
settling in her hair.
"You'd think such a powerful Mazoku would have better things to do
than tease Lina all the time," she sighed.
There was more to this flashback, obviously, but just then Amelia
was snapped out of her reverie as Zelgadiss fell down a hill.
"There," Lina and Zel had announced at the same time, pointing to a
house in the distance. While Lina put her hands on her hips and nodded, the
chimera realized too late the error in subtracting one hand from a
two-hands-giant-bag equation and began rolling down the hillside.
"Yep, same old place." The sorceress sat down on a tree trunk,
watching her buddy's face-first progress down the slope. "It's crazy how
time flies by."
"How long ago did you visit here?" Gourry asked. "It was before you
met me, right?"
"Yeah, it was. It's not just your jellyfish brains this time."
Raleic and Amelia had also caught up. Instead of going directly
into town, they'd all decided to go around the outskirts first, avoiding
the forested section as much as possible, in order to avoid being caught
out in the open. With three enemies after her, she didn't want to parade
directly into town square without knowing which way to go.
"Zelgadiss-san!" Amelia cried, eyeing the wreckage at the bottom of
the hill. "What happened to him?"
"Oh, don't worry, he'll wake up." Lina stretched her arms over her
head, breathing the country air in. "We've just walked so far, it's nice to
take a rest."
"We've got things to do," Raleic stepped in. "You can't just relax
out here when we're on a journey to Panifess! We've got a long way to go!"
"You obviously haven't traveled with me before," Lina responded
complacently. "If you'd like to go on ahead, I'm not stopping you."
"Why you---"
"Lina?" A small voice, heard over the bubbling froth of anger that
was Raleic Deontri.
The sorceress looked up, surprised despite herself. On the path
ahead, standing in the middle of the road, was a girl she hadn't expected
to see ever again; Selena Dyne, a sword at her side, circlet gleaming in
the sun, hair settled around an attractive face. The girl beamed up at her
and waved, jumping up and down a little in her excitement. "It is you! It's
Lina-sama!"
"Sama?" Raleic spat, but Lina was already on her feet and moving
down to meet her.
"Heyo, Selena. Fancy meeting you here."
"I was hoping you would make it," she cried, clutching onto Lina's
hands. "You met up with Zelgadiss-san, right?"
"Oh, yeah. See that pile of garbage back there?" She nodded back
over her shoulder.
"Zelgadiss-san!" Selena cried, nearly running Lina into the ground
as she hurried to pick him up off the ground. Lina had a brief spout of
wobblin' craziness.
"At least she's got her priorities straight," Gourry said, putting
a hand on her shoulder for balance.
"What's that supposed to mean?" Lina asked, watching the lone girl
shove the bag off the prone chimera and struggle to help him stand upright.
Up on the hill, Amelia was staring with a hand raised to cover a completely
slack jaw.
"Zelgadiss-san! Zelgadiss-san!" Selena shook him a little, looking
about to spontaneously combust with worry. "What happened to him?"
"Nothing!" Amelia cried, dashing up and snatching his unattended
arm. "He just fell!"
"Under this giant thing? Whose is this?" Selena glowered at the bag
as if it were one of the six remaining pieces of Shaburanigdo.
"Ah... ano..." Amelia stuttered, losing hold of his arm.
"It is Her Highness's, of course!" Raleic proclaimed, descending
the hill to be at level with them. "You have a problem with that?"
Selena regarded the postal worker angrily, letting go of the
chimera for a brief instant. "I'm just trying to help--"
"It's appreciated," Amelia answered for him, and seized her chance
(along with his body). "C'mon Lina-san, let's get going. We have to find
the mayor and his daughter."
"Ano... that is the mayor's daughter." Lina made sure to avoid her
gaze.
The Princess's mouth dropped open again, and Zelgadiss crashed to
the ground. She didn't speak, but then she didn't really need to.
"Afraid so," Lina answered, patting Amelia on the shoulder. "Meet
Selena Dyne, daughter of Jer Dyne, mayor of Biatz."
"This is going to be really interesting," Gourry observed.
Zel's first waking thought was Damn you, Rezo.
He then remembered Rezo had been dead for three years and forced
himself to calm down. A few breaths, and the previous few days returned to
him in a headachy flood.
So his second thought was, Who the hell tucked me into bed?
"Awake?" a voice called. He cracked open an eye to see Lina and the
crew seated nearby at a table. Closest was Selena, the girl from a few days
past, standing over him with a warm cloth. He sat up, shrugging off the
covers.
"I guess this means we arrived okay," he muttered, waving the moist
towel away. Selena retreated with a worried glance back.
"We've just been catching up on the times," the old man muttered,
still chewing that wheat. Zel inclined his head briefly in his direction,
before focusing on Lina. She took the initiative.
"You were out a while," she said, between large bites off a chicken
leg. "You tossed around in your sleep a lot, too."
"If that damn running gag had gone on any longer, my back would
have snapped," he responded glumly.
"Cheer up," Jer beamed, pushing a cup of tea toward the side of the
table to which he was closest. The empty seat was right next to Selena.
"Come join us."
Zel did so, welcoming the chance to get out of the bed where he'd
dreamt those dreams. As he sat, he noticed Amelia was staring pretty
intently at her own cup.
"You thrashed around while you were out," Lina informed jauntily.
"We were starting to consider sedatives."
"Not necessary," he answered after he'd found the tea to be
satisfactory.
"That's what Selena told us," she agreed. "She said you were like
this when you stopped by before."
"Ah," was all he had to say to that.
"And Her Highness has been the same way," Raleic spoke up. He
hadn't seen her at the corner end of the table. "For a few nights now. She
hasn't been able to get any sleep without--"
"It's alright," Amelia put in hurriedly. "It has nothing to do with
anything that's happening, ne, Zelgadiss-san?"
Lina sighed, rocking back in her chair. Her feet slipped up onto
the tabletop, next to a stockpile of dishes. The group looked to her.
"Let's hear the truth, Zel."
"I don't know what you're talking about," he mumbled into his tea.
"What was that?" Gourry asked, leaning closer. "I couldn't hear, I
don't think you spoke very clearly."
Zelgadiss sighed, set his teacup on its saucer. "I said, it's
nothing. Amelia is right."
Lina obviously was not going to let this one slide. "You came to
this town in the first place for a reason. You requested we stop back by
for a reason. I'd like to know these reasons, Zel."
A lengthy pause. All eyes were on him. Lina's shrewd and coaxing,
Gourry's blank, Amelia's worried, Raleic's expectant. As he swept his own
over the two Dynes, he thought they looked more sympathetic than anything
else, and that's what probably got him started.
"All right," he said, clearing his throat. "Here it goes."
The following tale took a bit to get all out. Some of it we already
know, but a summary's a good idea just in case. Following are some of the
more memorable quotes from his relating of the tale; if you'd like, you can
sing them to the tune of your favorite image song.
"I started having these nightmares over a week ago. I guess
Amelia's began some time later..."
"Juvenile or not, I couldn't take the night-after-night repetition
of that scene..."
"But to simply call them nightmares is to do them a huge
injustice..."
"I attempted to focus and pinpoint where the energy was coming
from, but the source was elusive. I ended up requesting the assistance of a
cleric of the Water Dragon King in the town I was in at the time..."
Lina choked on her fifth helping of wings at that. "You actually
asked for help?"
A stony glare greeted her, and she quieted down. This was obviously
not something to tease him about.
"The cleric was able to pinpoint this town, but that's as much as
he could do. I arrived, met Selena and her, um, friends, and Jer-san
pointed out an ancient elven laboratory in the forest." He paused here,
whether to collect his thoughts or just to create a suspenseful mood was
hard to say. "Much like the ones we saw in Seiruun."
"Wow," Lina mused, tumbling it around in her mind. "Can that be a
coincidence?"
"It's doubtful," Zel responded. "I don't know about you, but I
haven't met an elf or even explored elven artifacts very often. To come up
with three old sanctuaries and two elven mages in one adventure seems a
little too organized to be luck."
"So where is this laboratory?" Lina asked, getting to her feet. "We
should check it out."
"It's under a shack that idiot Galef used as a headquarters," he
answered solemnly. When Lina almost fell over, he was ready to catch her.
"I know. It was hard for me to take, too."
"You know a lot of people, Lina!" Gourry chimed. "I kinda feel left
out."
"You'd just forget them as soon as you met them," she reminded him,
patting him fondly on the shoulder. This brightened him up a bit, and he
got to his feet. "We've got a few hours until night. Who else is going?"
"I think I'll stay here, if that's okay," Amelia said
uncomfortably. "I mean, if Selena-san is going to go..."
"I am," she agreed from the door. She had already buckled on her
sword.
"Then I'm staying with you," Raleic affirmed.
Zel gazed around at the lot of them. "Just the four of us, then?"
"Are you kidding?" a deep voice boomed from behind Selena. "You're
not going to find your way back without us!"
Galef and Zachard shuffled through the doorway. The swordsman
looked perfectly innocent except that he had a stethoscope around his neck.
Lina smacked her forehead. "What were you doing, spying on us?"
"Ano." Galef thrust his sleeve outward, concealing his
ex-second-in-command long enough for him to burn the evidence (or at least
hide it in his pockets). "We simply heard your cries of excitement and came
to lend our aid."
"I think we were pretty docile," Lina mumbled, rubbing her chin. "I
don't recall crying for anything."
"We'd better bring them just in case," Zel sighed. "They know the
way better than I do, as much as I hate to admit it, and I'm not in at my
best lately."
"Whoah," Gourry hissed. "He's being humble. This must be taking a
real toll on him."
"You heard him," Lina snapped at the two. "You're under Zel's
command until we get back."
"I don't recall saying that!" Zelgadiss grunted, folding his arms
over his chest. "But if that's how it's going to be, one questionable move
and you're both dead."
"He's not in the mood to play around," Lina agreed, jerking her
thumb back at him. With the other hand, she pantomimed the famous
slit-throat gesture.
"Well then," came one last voice. "If you're taking those two with
you, I suppose I have to go as well."
They looked to see Jer climbing out of his chair and buckling on a
sword.
"But Father--" Selena started. He raised his hand to silence her,
then used it to pick the stalk of wheat from his mouth.
"I'm not about to let you guys have all the fun," he told her.
"Besides, as mayor it's my duty to check out big finds like this."
"He handled himself well last time," Lina put in, elbowing the girl
in the ribs. "He'll do fine. And we don't expect any big trouble while
we're there, anyway."
She stammered a moment before giving in. The eight left, Jer at the
rear to shut the door and smile disarmingly at Amelia and her current
self-styled bodyguard. "Don't trash the city while I'm gone, eh?"
"Of course." The Princess managed a smile that lasted almost until
he was gone. Then she silently huddled up on the room's bed and laid down,
trying to stay awake and keep her eyes open as she rested.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Many characters are copyright of Hajime Kanzaka, Rui Araizumi, Kadokawa
Shoten, TV TOKYO, SOFTX, and Marubeni. Story by Zach Grafton.