Slayers
The Key
by ZelgadisGreywood
Disclaimer: I don't own them.
I can't afford Lina.
Archive Permission Granted. Just tell me where (offlist of course.)
------------------------------------
-Chapter One-
------------------
"So," Lina inverse said, to the man sitting across from her
at the table. "What you're saying is that if we join our powers,
we'll be able to unlock the Golden Temple?"
"You don't need a spell, just join your powers," the man told
her.
"Very interesting," Zelgadis remarked as he joined them.
"I'll say. So it's the magic itself, not the spell that
we need."
"It says, the right combination will create something that
will be the key to opening the temple."
"Well, let's start trying," Lina cheered.
*****
A hundred or so explosions later, it was once again Lina and Gourry's turn
to make the attempt. Their magic flowed, encircled each other, and for a
time seemed to work. Then, flowers began to pop up in Gourry's power and
Lina's power became a fire which incinerated the flowers.
"Well, that didn't work," Xelloss observed. "Next."
"Our turn," Zelgadis and Amelia stepped forward. Their energies combined,
their powers increasing in tandem until the two streams of power coalesced
into a large stone sphere the same color as Zelgadis's stone skin.
"What is that?" Lina blinked.
"I don't know, Miss Lina." Amelia admitted, looking to Zelgadis in hope
of learning the answer from him.
Zelgadis merely shrugged.
"Oh my," Xelloss pondered, amusedly. "I don't know what you'll achieve
with a mere geode, no matter how big it is. Plus, it's so large, there's
no way to get it up the mountain and into the temple."
Lina looked over at the setting sun. "It's getting late. Let's get
some sleep, and we'll try again in the morning."
------------------------------------
-Chapter Two-
------------------
Amelia woke the next morning, and found herself
staring at the remnants of the geode.
"WHA...?!" She leapt up in alarm. "Mr. Zelgadis!
Miss Lina! Mr. Gourry! It's broken!"
"Well," Lina shrugged. "Nothing we can do about
that now. Let's concentrate on getting into the
temple."
"Maybe if we go there," Amelia offered, "there
will be something about what kind of power is
needed."
"That sounds like a good idea," Gourry agreed.
The foursome were met by a shock when they got
to the topmost step.
The gate was open.
"But I thought that man said only something
that combined the magic of two people could
open the temple." Amelia said.
"Well, if something can override a temple's
magic, it's probably very powerful. So let's
be very careful." Lina went silent as she
and the others walked into the open temple.
The sight that met there eyes was one that
made them all go slackjawed with shock.
A girl, no more than six years old in appearance,
was praying, quietly, in the middle of the
temple.
She was naked, but undisturbed by her lack of
clothing, as if she had no become accustomed
to such things.
Her hair was long and with streaks of blue
and black, she had one human eye and one demon
eye, and her skin, though clearly made of stone
and pebbles, seemed to be made of polished white
marble rather than slate.
Zelgadis wasted no time in removing his cloak
and covering the child with it.
"Who is she?" Gourry wanted to know. "Where did
she come from?"
Zelgadis looked meaningfully at Amelia. "I think
she came from the geode." he reasoned.
"Then you mean...?!" Amelia squeaked.
Zelgadis nodded. "That child is our daughter, Amelia."
------------------------------------
-Chapter Three-
"Huh?!" Amelia blinked. "Our daughter?!
But, Mr. Zelgadis, we're not even married
yet."
"It's not as if she was created in the
normal way," Zelgadis reassured Amelia.
"Rather an unusual girl." Xelloss remarked.
"Quite a unique chimera. One third Zelgadis,
one third Amelia, and one third Claire Bible."
"What do you mean 'one third Claire Bible'?"
Zelgadis asked. "Surely this child's mind
doesn't contain...?!"
"The whole Claire Bible?" Xelloss raised
an eyebrow. "Of course not. Only a small
portion of it. And we won't know which part
until she learns how to speak."
"Learns how to speak?" Zelgadis asked.
"Well, she was just born," Lina reminded
them. "Don't worry. I bet she'll learn to
talk really fast, won't you?"
The chimera child nodded, enthusiastically.
She understood perfectly well, even if she
could not yet reply. In time, she would be
able to. But for now, they would just have
to be patient with her.
------------------------------------
-Chapter Four-
Amelia sat by the child she and Zelgadis had created.
She hadn't expected to become a mother so young, out
of wedlock. To many people of the lands she travelled
it wasn't such a big idea. But she was a princess of
Seiruun and she had certain morals to observe. The
child had not been created by the standard method,
however, so her birth had not been a shameful one,
even if she and Zelgadis were not married.
"So," she said to the little girl. "Um... erm...?"
She was stuck here. What did one say to a newborn
who was apparently seven. The usual talk reserved
for the newly born seemed rather silly and even
insulting here.
Zelgadis did not need to think of what to ask.
"Can you cure me?" he asked her, hopefully. "Do
you know how I can be cured?"
The child looked at him in confusion. He didn't
look sick. So why was he asking for a cure? She
wished she knew how to convey her bewilderment
to the chimera.
The girl glomped onto Zelgadis and for a moment,
he expected her touch to heal him. There was no
change in his body, however, and he frowned.
"If you're trying to mend my heart, little one,"
he told her, "you're wasting your time. My heart
is something that is unmendable. I am a heartless
sorcerer-swordsman. My will is made of stone, just
like the rest of me."
The child turned, confusedly, to her mother. What
the man had been saying wasn't what she had sensed
from him. She had felt loneliness, pain, regret,
and love toward the woman who sat there with them.
But he denied himself that love, even though the
young woman offered her own love freely to him.
She wished there was some quick fix to make it
all better for both of them, but what knowledge
she had inherited from the Claire Bible did not
tell her how to bring happiness to stubborn
chimeras who insisted on moping around and feeing
sorry for themselves.
"So," Lina managed to find the only sensible thing
to say to the little girl. "Whaddaya want to eat?"
The girl perked up. Now here, she thought, was a
question that she knew the answer to. She wanted
to try a lot of different things. She wanted to
sample the meats and taste the desserts. This
was her first meal, and she didn't know what she
liked yet. She would have to try everything and
work out which things tasted best to her.
Lina smiled. "Tell ya what. There's a great
restaurant in town. Let's get what we came here
to get and then we'll go."
The child looked apprehensive. She didn't think
this odd but nice woman should be taking things
from this place that weren't hers.
Lina went into the temple. She was about to
pick up the jewel she'd come for when she
felt a tugging on her pants leg.
Looking down, she saw the child shaking her
head in disapproval.
"Look, kid," she said. "I travelled a long
time to get this thing. Now let me just put
it in my pocket and we'll go get a bite to
eat. Okay?"
The little girl gave Lina a look that Lina
was sure had been meant to make her feel
guilty.
"It ain't workin', kid." Lina told her.
"I want that gem and I'm gonna have it.
Now, just stand back."
The child pounced on Lina, not very well
since she wasn't entirely accustomed to
using the muscles in her legs, yet, and
bit her leg.
"FIRE..." Lina began.
"NO!" Zelgadis snatched the child away
from Lina. "Don't you dare hurt my daughter."
"Shame on you, Miss Lina!" Amelia scolded.
"Picking on a little girl."
"She started it!" Lina wailed.
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