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Author's Prologue
(Ishiki: Or, 'The Part That Took A Very Long Time To Write, And Here It Is, So Stop Sending Me Death Threats'?)
In which confusion as to who exactly are the GOOD GUYS HERE reigns, Xelloss gets tortured (ooh, torture...), and Lina has to learn that sometimes you have to just accept things. And, oh yeah, Xelloss ends up telling some people a couple of things. But this IS Xelloss...
Ishiki: Well, he doesn't tell them much, since-(following comment deleted for spoiler content). Aw, shucks, I've been censored.
NOTE: It's come to my attention that Zel isn't really part Mazoku, he's something called a Blue Demon. However, 6 parts have already gone by on the assumption that he's part Mazoku. As this storyline cannot happen in the normal Slayers world anyway, it's obviously a slightly alternate universe fic. Therefore, one of the few differences from the normal Slayers world is that Rezo made him of part Mazoku, not part Blue Demon. Kay? Also, anti-Mazoku wards come into play. The reason they don't really effect Zel when he touches them is that he barely touches them for long, and the certain functions aren't really applicable, and his nature is not pure Mazoku. It's a combination of the three. So, anyway...
Harukami: Uh. I guess I should write something for the next part.
Xelloss: Yes. Before fans and characters alike attempt murder. ^_^
Ishiki: For different reasons, of course, but still...
Lina: Too late. holds up butcher knife with maniacal expression Now. You. Die. MWA HA HA HA HA HA HA!
Harukami: Hey, watch where you're swinging that!
Lina: I AM WATCHING!
Harukami: Ok. Do you want to solve this peacefully or -
Lina: DIE! DIEDIEDIE!
Ishiki: Well, I guess that answers your question... -_-;
Harukami: Ah. The violent way. snaps fingers, Luna appears
Luna: Can I take your order?
Lina: AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH! MAKEITGOAWAYMAKEITGOAWAY!
Xelloss: Nicely done.
Harukami: Thanks, Xelloss-dono!
Lina: sobs
Luna: blinkblink Hi, little sister.
Lina: sobs harder
Chris: wailing Will someone please tell me what's going on?!
Guntair: winces This is rather painful...
Ishiki: Ahh, enter the original characters!
Harukami: hands out complementary earplugs There ya go, Gun.
Xelloss: Are you going to start the fic now?
Harukami: Uh... someone's missing.
Ishiki: Nakoku? I think you forgot Nakoku...
Harukami: Probably. I ALWAYS forget Nakoku...
Meanwhile, in a corner, Zelgadis rocks himself [no pun intended] and whispers sweet nothings to himself
Ishiki: Oh, him. He doesn't matter.
Gourry: Well, I'm sure if who ever it is is important, you'll find him.
Amelia: appears to the sound of wolves howling. She looks slightly crazed Hey, everyone! Did I miss anything?!
Ishiki: Ha ha! More Xellas/Amelia subtext!
Luna: We're apparently missing someone. glares not so subtly at Ishiki
Lina: tiny voice Forgive me...
Amelia: Well, I'm sure it's not important. picks up Lina's butcher knife and cuts her fingers, watching blood run Oooh, pretty.
Guntair: ... I'm sure that's not normal.
Harukami: Uh... uh.. yeah. Um... onto the fic? The date is May 19, 1999, for anyone who's wondering, so if it takes a long time, at least you know I started...
Ishiki: And it's only Saturday, Sept. 4/1999 when it got dropped in my mailbox. That's only, um... three months, sixteen days, and some undetermined amount of hours, minutes, and seconds.
Harukami: Yes, and only Wednesday, Sept. 22/99 when I got it BACK. Blame it on Ishiki.
Ishiki: Hey, you didn't write a disclaimer or credit the lyrics! Naughty 'kami-chan! :P
Harukami: EEP! Uh, yeah. I don't own Slayers, though I wish I did: they belong to Hajime Kanzaka, Rui Araizumi, and a lot of other people I am massively jealous of. The song is Do What you Have to Do by Sarah McLachlan, and I don't own that either. Don't sue me, please. I have to save up for the rest of NEXT and GenCon next year...
Webmaster Notes
navy = flashback
"What ravages of spirit
Conjured this tempest rage?"
Thump-thump.
OhgodsnonotherL-samasavemehelpmesomebodyhelpme!
Thump-thump.
It'sherI'mgonnadieI'mgonnadieI'mgonnadie!Forgiveme!
Thump-thump.
Somebodyhelp!Ican'tdealwiththis!Help!HELP!
Thump-thump.
Lina sank to her knees, barely feeling the mud soaking into her pants.
Thump-thump.
No.No.No.No.No.No.No...
Thump-thump.
Luna looked at her. It didn't matter that her eyes were hidden in shadow, Lina knew that her older sister was looking at her. She whimpered.
Isshegoingtotell?Itwasn'tmyfault!Iswear!Ok,sothebaththingwas[A1]butnottheotherthing!HELPME!
Thump-thump.
Then Luna raised a hand and wiggled her fingers. "Hi, Lina-chan. Long time no see."
Lina fainted, falling to her side in the dusty, dry ground..
"Created you a monster.
Broken by the rule of love."
Guntair watched the Cepheed Knight in awe. It didn't matter that he'd never met her, didn't matter that he'd been in captivity when she had clearly been chosen. He Knew that this was the Cepheed Knight. It was ingrained somewhere below conscious but above sub-conscious. Mabu knew too, clearly, as the awe in his eyes reflected the awe in his own. He barely even noticed as Lina fell over, other than the fact it made the Knight frown. And then...
All of his beliefs shattered as Xelloss flung himself at the Cepheed Knight and hugged her. [B1] "Luna-chan! It's been a while!"
He could have lived through that. It would have been okay. If only the Knight hadn't replied. "Xelloss-chan! [A2] You can say that again!"
Mabu took a large step forward. "Knight-sama! That's a Greater Mazoku! Don't go near him!"
Luna chuckled. "Oh, come come, Xelloss and I are old..." she paused, and waved a hand as if looking for the word, smacking the blonde girl behind her in the nose. "...friends?" she ventured.
Guntair felt his mouth dry up completely. Cepheed above... it couldn't be... "Friends?" he croaked as Mabu struggled to get up off the ground.
"Friends," Xelloss replied, leering. The Knight of Cepheed hit him lightly over the head.
"Just friends," she told them dismissively. "Now, are we - "
Xelloss laughed and slapped her lightly on the back. "And what friends! Do you remember that time that you lent me your clothes and I actually made it into the Citadel before a Ryuzoku Miko passed by and sensed me? Wasn't that great?!"
Mabu goggled. "You lent a Greater Mazoku your clothes so he could sneak into a - "
The Cepheed Knight coughed and hit Xelloss again. "Ixnay on the rankspray," [A3] she told him softly. "Anyway, I - "
"Oh, and Juuou-sama is mad that you haven't been by for a while." [B2]
"I've been busy," she defended herself. "And I think Xellas-chan knows why."
"Xellas-CHAN?!" Mabu yelped, awfully high-pitched for a full-sized Dragon. "You refer to the evil dark lord Beastmaster Xellas Metallium as - "
Luna raised a hand. "Excuse me. I would like to enter the Koku no Tani sometime today. All will be explained in its proper time."
Guntair looked at the ground, almost imagining he could see the shattered remains of his ideals there. [B3] "I sorta want to get in too..."
"Uh, yeah." Mabu pulled himself upright. "I, uh, would, you know, but I have to get it cleared by the Elders first..."
Luna crossed her arms under her more-than-ample breasts and drummed her fingers. "I told you I authorized them."
"Well, yeah, but nobody's authorized you."
"I authorize me."
"But... but..." Mabu looked confused.
"Uh-huh," Luna smiled. "So you, blondie, pick up Lina-chan and bring her along while I - "
Mabu closed his eyes and swallowed while moving in front of the passway. "I want to, Knight-sama, really I do, but you see, nobody told me you were coming and they told me that they'd have my head if I let anyone, anyone at all in and - " He made the mistake of opening his eyes again.
Guntair couldn't see Luna's face now that she'd moved past him closer to Mabu, but he did see, from behind, her raise her head. Mabu gulped audibly and sweated. "The Knight of Cepheed's job is to... protect the Ryuzoku, is it not?"
The guard's head bobbed on its long neck.
"So. While I stay here and guard these people so they don't get in, you go and get someone to come authorize me."
Mabu nodded again.
Luna drummed her fingers even more. "And you are waiting for - ?"
The guard fled.
"And fate has led you through it.
You do what you have to do."
Zelgadis watched this new girl coolly. Well. SHE certainly made Xelloss happy. [B4]
He started as Amelia nudged him in the side. "You look jealous," she whispered.
Jealous? Why would he be jealous? He wasn't jealous. "I'm not jealous."
"Well, you look it. You're glaring at Lina's onee-san like - "
"That doesn't make me jealous," he reasoned . "It's just that..." he trailed off.
Amelia looked at him strangely with her violet eyes. "Just thatwhat?"
He crossed his arms. "She can't have him." [A4]
The young shaman's brows knitted together and then she giggled. Zelgadis felt his face heat. "What?!"
Still giggling, she shook her head and walked toward Guntair. "Nothing, Zelgadis-san. Don't worry about it."
"I'm NOT jealous," he huffed, then returned to watching this 'Luna' person. Xelloss was hanging off her arm, chattering away at her. A strange noise filled his ears and he suddenly realized he was grinding his teeth. He forced himself to stop. I'm NOT JEALOUS!
Luna said something and Xelloss nodded rapidly and hugged her again. I... I... ok, damn it, I AM jealous! He aimed a vicious glance at the sky. Are you happy now, gods?!
He closed his eyes and tried to calm down. Breathe. Breathe. Think, don't feel. Just think. Try not to... [B5]
" - you to someone! Zel... hey, Zel... hey, hey, hey..."
At Xelloss's insistent poking, he opened his eyes again. "What?"
The Mazoku's eyebrows shot up. "Touch-y!" he teased. "I just want to introduce the two of you! Zel, this is Luna, the Knight of Cepheed... you could call her a friend of the family, if you know what I mean. Luna-chan, this is my huggily-wuggily cutie-pie Zelgadis-honey. Zel, smile!" Xelloss glomped onto him.
Oh gods. Why me? He felt his cheeks heat.
The Knight of Cepheed tilted her head, an acceptable alternative to raising her eyebrows, hidden as they were under those bangs. "Xelloss-chan, I think you're embarrassing him."
"Eh? Oh, he's always blushing about one thing or another," Xelloss grinned.
Zelgadis was torn. He didn't know whether to try to shake off the Mazoku or to pull him closer and glare at Luna. He settled for looking way and blushing.
Luna emerged with another fantastic observation. "Actually, I think he's jealous."
"Jealous?" Xelloss made a great show of examining Zelgadis. "Zelgadis, jealous?" He poked at the chimera's red cheek. Zelgadis twitched. "I think you're right!" He seemed delighted with this concept.
"I'm. Not. Jealous." Zelgadis glared.
"Then why are you glaring and grinding your teeth and stuff? You ARE jealous!" Xelloss chortled.
With great effort, he managed to unclamp his jaws. "I'm not glaring. Why don't you torture someone else for a change?"
Xelloss shared a knowledegable glance with Luna. "Torturing?"
"The use of words seems to imply that - "
Zelgadis shook Xelloss off his arm. "I'm going to see if Lina's okay."
"And fate has led you through it,
You do what you have to do."
Gourry leaned over Lina's body. "Lina." He shook her again. "Lina? Lina?"
Again, no response. Well, she wasn't asleep, Gourry decided worriedly. That probably meant that... was she unconscious? "Lina?"
He brushed strands of red hair off of her face.
She didn't look peaceful. Her lips were all twisted up and she seemed to be trying not to cry. Gourry put out a hand to try to smooth her lips and felt her breath coming in pants.
Running a hand across her cheek, he pulled her head into his lap. Why had she fainted like this? Gourry didn't know. But seeing her looking like that made him feel like she looked, all twisted up and unhappy... he stroked between her eyebrows, wishing that whatever had made her feel like this would just go away.
A shadow fell across him and he looked up to see the small blonde girl who had been traveling with Lina's big sister watching them nervously. "Hi," he said, trying to dismiss that weird tight feeling in his chest.
"H... hi." The blonde girl lowered her eyes. "I'm Chris. Who..."
"I'm Gourry." Gourry looked away, back at the unconscious sorceress in his lap. "This is Lina."
"Luna-san's little sister?"
"Mm." Gourry found himself stroking Lina's hair again. It was soft and silky.
Chris glanced at the ground and stammered. "Wh - why did she faint like that?"
The swordsman shook his head. "She's afraid of Luna."
"Why?"
He shrugged. "Dunno."
Chris blinked, meeting his eyes for an instant before blushing and looking down again. "Didn't she tell you?"
"Lina doesn't tell people a lot of things, except when she's hungry and mad and stuff like that."
"Oh."
Gourry watched the blonde girl for a little while. "Is it interesting?"
"What?" Chris looked back, startled.
"The ground. You keep looking at it."
A blush spread across the blonde girl's cheeks. "I... I didn't mean to. I'm sorry."
That was just confusing. "You're sorry? Why are you sorry for looking at the ground?" [B7]
"I - " Shamefacedly, Chris hung her head again. "I'm not. I'm sorry."
Gourry frowned, getting really confused now. "Is there something there? Or - "
"I'm sorry!" The girl fled back to Luna's side.
The swordsman scratched his head. "That was weird..."
"What was?" Zelgadis seated himself beside Gourry.
"The girl. The one with Luna. She kept apologizing."
Zelgadis glanced back at Chris, Luna, and Xelloss, and turned back quickly, an odd look on his face. "She's probably just a normal country girl who followed Luna for whatever reason. And she's a waitress. I doubt anyone's ever really talked to her before. She somehow took up with Luna, and - huh. I pity the poor girl." [B8]
Gourry went back to stroking Lina's hair. "Why?"
"No reason." Zelgadis shrugged uncomfortably. "How's Lina doing?"
The swordsman accepted the change of subject. All of that was too confusing. Lina was something he could almost understand, at least. "I don't know, she won't wake up."
"She's probably in shock or something," Zelgadis sighed. "You remember her response to getting Luna's letter... now she's seeing her in person."
Gourry sighed. "Yeah... that's probably it. I just wish she'dwake up." [A5]
"I have the sense to recognize
That I don't know how to let you go..."
Guntair snapped out of the miserable contemplation of his life and why these things always seemed to happen to him when Amelia snuggled in beside him. "Hi."
"You okay?" Amelia asked, leaning into his side. It was something of a shock, but he forced himself not to pull away. It was getting easier to touch Amelia, but... but sometimes...
"I guess."
She looked up at him and for a moment he was stunned into believing that this was not Amelia, and then he shook his head, clearing it. He felt so stupid; he knew her eyes were violet now, but he kept expecting them to be blue... What does it matter? It's still Amelia.
" - shock."
He shook his head again. "Sorry, I must have drifted... what did you say?"
Amelia accepted this. "Being home at last must seem to be a bit of a shock..."
"Yeah."
"How many years has it been?"
He thought about this, speaking aloud as he contemplated. "Well, I was about three hundred when I was traded to Yume..." Gods, was I ever that young? I feel like I've been adult forever... "I have to be at least five hundred now... I think, I never really kept track.., so... somewhere in the two hundred year range?"
The young shaman winced. "That's an awfully long time."
He couldn't stop the words from coming out of his mouth as he thought. "You have no idea."
"I wish I had been with you for that time..."
"Don't." He felt an icy chill settle in the pit of his stomach, cooling him. "You would just have been more meat for Yume. Just more godsdamned flesh..."
She put an arm around him, squeezing him a little, and he started, trying not to pull away. She'd take that the wrong way. I'm just too stuck in memory today...
"It's okay now," Amelia told him. "I'm here now and I'm going to be with you always. She's dead and she can't hurt you anymore..." [A6]
I wish that were true. "Sometimes I wake up and it's dark... and I can't remember where I am and I hear people moving and it's all I can do not to scream." He murmured the words under his breath, barely loud enough for her to hear, as if he didn't really want to speak them.
"That... that has to go away in time. Right?" Amelia didn't sound too sure.
"And I can still hear her damned silk voice when I think of her. It makes me sick. I know she's dead, I felt her tear apart, but there's part of me that makes me feel like she's still alive somewhere, deep in my mind. And I saw the Knight of Cepheed and for one damned instant I began to hope... and then I see that she's a friend with a Mazoku. The protector of the Dragons, friends with a Mazoku. I want to scream."
Amelia sighed, tilting her head back to watch the sky. "Maybe that doesn't speak negatively about her but positively for him?"
"He's the priest and general of one of Shabrinigido's generals, Amelia. You can't be saying that he's on the side of good."
The young shaman closed her eyes. "Good. Evil. I used to think that I knew what they meant. It used to be so clear. Now... I don't know. But good people do bad things and bad people do good ones... who knows what it means? Evil capable of love and good capable of hate..."
Something came back to Guntair's mind from weeks ago, on the road. "Xelloss said something offhandedly about the Gold Dragons. Do you know what he meant there?"
Amelia rubbed her forehead. "Well..." she looked distinctly uncomfortable about this. "Did you ever hear about how the Gold Dragons were almost completely wiped out during the Kouma war by a single Mazoku?"
"Of course I have." Guntair shrugged. "Every Dragon, Gold or not, hears that while growing up. You know, if you aren't good and eat all your dinner, the Mazoku's gonna get you and then they tell that story. Why?"
"Um... that was Xelloss."
A hiss escaped from between Guntair's teeth as he glanced back towards Xelloss, who was talking to Luna and waving his arms extravagantly. The blonde girl was hiding behind Luna, and Xelloss winked at her clearly. "Him?" Guntair scowled. "He doesn't seem strong enough to take on an entire race..."
Amelia shrugged uncomfortably. "Well... the Golds say it was him."
"Bastard. And you say he's capable of love? I don't believe that's possible for someone like him, whoever tries to confirm it."
The shaman pulled her knees up to her chest and clutched them. "But... the thing that people don't talk about is... the Gold Dragons did some pretty terrible things too." The look on her face was one Guntair had never seen there before; a combination of horror, revulsion, and pity. He never wanted to receive it. "They did the exact same thing to the Ancient Dragons, only they didn't leave any alive."
"I've never heard of the Ancient Dragons."
Wiping a hand across her eyes, Amelia said, "Believe me, they did exist. Ask your elders, I'm sure that they'll remember."
She seemed so sure... "I've always heard that the Gold Dragons were good."
"That's just the thing. Both Xelloss and the Golds killed an entire race, basically. But Xelloss won't talk about his reasons while the Golds tried to justify theirs... we did talk to them... so what's good and what's evil? The Golds killed ALL the Ancients, even the hatchlings." Amelia choked. "Even the ones in the eggs. Xelloss clearly didn't kill the children... because there are Golds around now, and they recognized him on seeing him. But the Golds are classified as good and Xelloss is considered evil. I don't know what to believe any more..."
Guntair shook his head. "Ryuzoku killing other Ryuzoku? I can't believe it... the Ancient Dragons must have become corrupt, or something."
"They killed them. And their reasons just don't add up to me." Amelia snorted suddenly. "Corrupt? You mean, Mazoku-tainted or something?"
"Yeah."
"Like me?"
Oh shit. I didn't mean for her to take it like that! "That's different!" he defended.
"How?" Amelia crossed her arms, pulling away from Guntair. "How is my being Mazoku-tainted any different from your definition of 'corrupt'... and 'deserving to be slaughtered'?"
"You would have died!" [B9]
"So I am corrupt? You want your people to kill me or something?"
"You're taking it the wrong way! Just because you're tainted doesn't make you evil!"
There was a bitter quality in her laugh. "How is it any different, Gun? Do you even love me?"
"Of course I - "
She wasn't finished. "Or do you love the person you think I am?"
"You're you," he said desperately. "Does anything else matter? I know you're not evil, you're right, I'm just judging the way I'm used to. I'm sorry. I don't care if you're tainted or whatever, I love you! You're still the same you that you've always been, with or without taint!" His voice had raised from the sub-whisper to a loud tone; not quite screaming, not yet, but still very forceful.
"Are you so sure?" Amelia did not lean against him again, a small space between her and him. "I'm not. I've grown up a lot in a short while. And if what you say is true, and there's not much space between human and Mazoku-tainted and Mazoku, wouldn't it be the same for human and Ryuzoku being almost the same thing? And if Ryuzoku and human are almost the same, and Mazoku and human are almost the same, wouldn't Ryuzoku and Mazoku be almost the same too?"
His jaw dropped. "How - "
"Isn't it just how culture has defined things? Physical differences and a difference in the way people think? The same heart but different bodies, minds, conditionings?"
Guntair shook his head. "Amelia..." He didn't know what to say, what to think. "I don't know... I can't think of myself being like a Mazoku... I hate Mazoku... but..." he sighed. "I just... don't know. You say this, and I know you're not evil, that's one of the few things I can be sure of... but I can't look at someone like Yume... or any of her minions, even... and describe them as having any qualities of good. Any. What they do... and I'd be more inclined to say that... I just don't know. I'm sorry. I want to think like that, I guess, but... how can I? Yume was pure, complete evil. Xelloss... I don't know well enough to say, but... and I've never known any truly evil Ryuzoku."
"But it's what your culture defines as good and evil. And what the Mazoku culture defines as good and evil... what do YOU think evil is? Or good?" Her voice was odd there, almost pleading in a way Guntair really couldn't comprehend.
He thought about this. "Right and wrong, I guess."
"But what are THOSE concepts? Right for whom? Wrong for whom? And wouldn't evil be stronger than wrong and good stronger than right?" Amelia sounded supremely frustrated, but talked very quietly, head in her hands. "Because, for example, let's say a person's married but they fall in love with someone else. Culture would say that that's wrong, but is it evil? I mean, they're still loving. Can anyone classify love as evil? And... and people sometimes do wrong things for the right reasons and right things for the wrong ones. Where does that fit? I just..."
Guntair put his hand on her arm, briefly, lightly, before pulling his hand away from the contact. "Amelia... I'm trying to understand... but I don't know. I don't know these things! I know what my gut instinct tells me, but how can ANYONE know these things?"
She sighed, a strange look flickering across her face, then smiled up at him. "I'm sorry, Gun. I guess I got carried away. I've been thinking a lot about good and evil lately... I didn't mean to pull you into my problems."
He felt cold. Could her Mazoku-taint be wrestling with her human nature? Oh, gods, Amelia... I don't want you to go through this... "Why have you been thinking about this?"
"I don't know." Amelia shrugged. "I guess because I have to. It's probably just a part of growing up... children think they can't die, but... I'm not really a child any more. I know I can die. And I guess that makes me think about what I do when I'm here, what people will think of it as, and... oh, I don't know. I just am. Does it bother you that much?"
He reached out briefly, as if to drape an arm over her shoulders, then pulled his hand back and settled for just smiling at her. He wasn't quite comfortable with touch yet, but, oddly, Amelia sometimes brought the urge out in him. "I just don't want you to hurt in any way. I want you to be happy."
"I'm just thinking, Gun. It's not going to hurt anything."
He felt she wasn't satisfied. "I'm going to think about what you said," he ventured. It's not like I'm going to just forget this, however much I may want to...
Amelia leaned against his chest and smiled. "Good..."
"Amelia?"
"Yeah?"
Sometimes the future scares me more than the past. "I love you. Don't leave me."
She chuckled. "You don't have to worry about th - " [B10]
The ground shook as Mabu, still in his full Dragon form, came running up. Shadows fell across them from the sky.
"You're allowed to - " Mabu started to call as a bunch of other Dragons landed around them. They transformed into their human-shapes.
Guntair scrambled to his feet, then held out a hand to help Amelia up. She took it. It's okay. She's just thinking. We've promised to last this one together, whatever happens.
An older Black Dragon stepped forward, and although Guntair didn't recognize him, he bowed anyway. "Sir."
"Young Guntair. I doubt you remember me."
He coloured.
The old Dragon chuckled. "And no wonder, gone for so long. Never forgotten for your sacrifice, you shall feast well tonight." He turned to Luna. "Cepheed Knight."
Luna inclined her head.
"We thank you for your presence at such a vital time."
She grinned. "I thought you might."
The Elder cleared his throat. "Yes, well. We do, however, doubt your wisdom in traveling companions."
Her smile did not falter in the least. "Chris has been my traveling companion," she said, placing her hand on the blonde girl's shoulder. Chris flinched under their gazes, pulling away from Luna's touch to hide behind the other waitress, eyes wide and fixed on the dragons. "She is my responsibility. She should have been trained before now in other ways, but nobody bothered. As Cepheed Knight, my duty lies to take care of her."
"She didn't arrive with the others," Mabu stage-whispered to the Elder - a noise job for a full-sized dragon..
"The others here," Luna continued, "were the ones who completed the last dark prophecy, which I'm sure you all remember."
This clearly surprised the Elder, who drew in a sharp breath. "They are? Even the Mazoku and the Mazoku-tainted?"
"All except Guntair and the child," Luna confirmed. "And you know Guntair. I'm sure you all agree that the child is no threat to anyone."
N-kun looked hurt.
"Indeed." The Elder didn't even glace at him. "But the Greater Mazoku, the chimera and the girl with Guntair? They were a part of the prophecy?"
Zelgadis, to the side and sitting near the unconcious Lina, seemed to bristle at that, but didn't comment. Gourry was also by Lina, but unlike Zelgadis, didn't even hear the Elder's words.
Luna smiled. "Very much so. Admittedly, the girl was apparently not tainted at the time, but it is a very small taint, wouldn't you say?"
Is it that small? Guntair wondered. Xelloss said -
"And Xelloss and the chimera were some of the key factors in saving the world." Luna indicated Xelloss, and Guntair followed her gesture. The Mazoku was leaning back against a rock, seemingly deep in thought while staring at the sky.
"I see." The Elder's gazes raked over all of them. "They may all enter. There will have to be some precautions taken, but we will deal with that when inside. Please, follow me."
Guntair took Amelia's hand, squeezing it briefly. She squeezed back.
First was Luna, of course, with Chris trailing nervously behind her. Then Gourry, carrying Lina, and Zelgadis was a step behind them. Amelia pulled Guntair into line behind Zelgadis, and N-kun stepped up to beside them, grabbing Amelia's free hand. Last, Xelloss, with all of the entire escort of Dragons behind him strolled up to the gates, smiling cheerfully and innocently, as if there was nothing wrong with a Mazoku entering Ryuzoku territory.
Amelia's hand tightened on Guntair's, and he looked down at her. "I've got this bad feeling..." she began after passing the gates.
Light flared up behind them. Guntair dropped Amelia's hand as they spun to see what had happened, and Zelgadis forced his way between them. "What - "
Xelloss was on the knees on the ground, arms wrapped around himself, breathing hard, face in shadow. He raised his open eyes and had a very odd smile on his lips as the Elder walked back to him. "You... didn't lower the... wards."
The escort Ryuzoku stepped up. Zelgadis cursed and took a step forward, but the Elder glanced back at him and he stopped, scowling, eyes focused on the twenty or so Ryuzoku surrounding his lover, hands to one side of him as if preparing to cast a spell at a moment's notice.
Guntair's jaw dropped. "They wouldn't..."
"We know," The Elder replied to Xelloss. "This is part of the precautions."
The last thing they could have expected happened. Xelloss began to laugh, waving off his friends, who had tensed up and moved forward. It wasn't a completely pleasant laugh, but it did have humour in it. "We both guessed."
As some of the escorts began chanting, and others raised slips of white paper, stepping towards Xelloss, the Elder frowned. "Who is 'we'?"
"If you don't know," the weakened Xelloss mocked, eyes open and dark, "I'm not going to tell you [B11]. You really ought to guess." He winced as the papers were placed against his skin, sticking there, a faint wisp of smoke rising from the contact. He swayed on his knees. "But a thought to leave you with... I'm not fighting back. Why?"
The last of the papers touched him, and he collapsed, eyes closing. One of the escorting dragons picked him up and flung him over a shoulder.
Shifting uncomfortably at this show, Guntair accidentally brushed against Zelgadis. The chimera was trembling, fine shakes barely noticeable to anyone not looking for them. Guntair quickly glanced at his face, seeing complete fury there.
Luna pushed past them, walking up to the Elder. The casualness was gone from her step now, her heels drumming against the rock path with an angry 'tap tap tap'. "If you think you surprised him, you can stop congratulating yourselves now. I don't think anyone noticed, but he contacted his master briefly while outside. He knew this was going to happen. If his last words leave you with a feeling of dread, it's probably deserved. There is a total of two people who know every single plan of his... him, and his master. And only they could tell you what step in what plan that was, or even IF it was. But I doubt you'll ever know anyway. What do you plan to do with him?"
The Elder did not seem amused. "We shall give him a room. Every so often we shall lighten the warding on him so he will be able to interact. He shall not be treated badly."
"Not if confinement isn't considered bad treatment." Luna shrugged, not smiling. "But he agreed to it, whether you knew it or not. So he can deal with it... not very nice of you to use that kind of ward, though."
"What do you mean?" Zelgadis demanded, a sudden burst of angry words from beside Guntair.
"Holy magic. No pleasure in that for him," Luna said, shaking her head. "There were other ways, but why would they care about hurting a Mazoku? Huh. Let's get this show on the road and get this over with. Lina-chan needs a room to recover in... they all need rooms. I'm sure there are people Guntair wishes to see, and things you need to explain to me. Cepheed is not pleased about certain security breaches."
A distinctly uncomfortable expression was on the Elder's face at Luna's displeasure. "Yes, Knight-sama."
"Every morning, with apparitions of your soul,
I'm ever swiftly moving"
Lina woke slowly, as if rising from the bottom of a deep pool, and slowly floating to the surface. Voices. She could hear voices.
The first voice was clearly recognizable; Gourry. A slight smile crossed her lips at the thought that he was there. Sweet Gourry, always waiting around.
The second voice, however, was one that triggered only a vague recognition in her mind, tugging at her conscious. She frowned and opened her eyes. And froze in terror.
OhshitI'mgonnadie...
"Oh, hey, you're awake!" Gourry exclaimed, voice sounding far away. "I was just talking to your sister and - "
Lina opened her mouth to say something, anything, but all that came out was a reflection of her thoughts: a pathetic whimper.
Her oneesan, her object of terror rose and extended a hand. Lina tried to shrink back but found her muscles unwilling to obey. Now is not a time to imitate a rabbit in the face of the Dragon Slave!!! The Knight of Cepheed reached for her and -
And -
And touched her forehead. "You okay, Lina-chan? You've been out a while."
Lina found her voice. Unfortunately, it was dysfunctional. "You're going to kill me!"
Her older sister started to shake, and Lina winced away. Now I've done it... Then Luna got louder and Lina realized that she was... She's laughing at me? Lina's fury snapped her out of her terror. "What the hell are you laughing at?!"
"Do you really think I'm going to kill you?" Luna reached into the shadowed area around her eyes, presumably wiping away tears of mirth. "By Cepheed... I try to scare you just a little and then this happens? How many years have you been trying to avoid me?"
"You know how long!" Lina shrieked, more than a little hysterical.
Luna shook her head, grinning like a maniac. "The first threats you deserved." She thought a moment. "Actually, the first punishment that time you deserved. You also deserved the threats responding to your response. I did not expect you to try to escape them by packing one set of clothes, some spell accessories, and climbing out the window in the middle of the night!"
Oh shit, she remembers what she promised she'd do to me... oh gods, I need a get out of trouble free pass right now...
"Hey." Gourry rose to stand by Lina's side. He'd clearly just remembered some of the things Lina had told him about her sister, that dysfunctional memory kicked in when Lina began acting like she was in danger. "You're not hurting Lina." [A7]
"No, I'm not," Luna agreed, smiling. "I might have, but Lina's clearly grown up some. If she had refused to do that job a little while back... then I might have fulfilled some old promises as well as making some new ones. As it is, we can consider the whole thing null and void."
Lina exhaled sharply, relieved, relaxing some but fully stopping her suspicions.
The Cepheed Knight suddenly grabbed the front of Lina's shirt and pulled her nose to nose. "But don't you EVER pull a stunt like that again."
Lina swallowed and nodded, very, very quickly.
The sound of footsteps outside was followed by Zelgadis sticking his head around the door. "Is Lina... ah, you're awake."
"Mm." Lina blinked at him. Zelgadis did not look good. He seemed on the knife's edge of angry, and though Lina had never brought it up, his getting angry reminded her of the average Mazoku. She searched for a possibly safe subject. "Where is everyone?" [B12]
"Amelia didn't feel too well and went to lie down for a while, and Guntair is renewing old acquaintances, with N-kun trailing along." Zelgadis's eyes were dark.
Lina noticed what he'd left out. Oh shit. The Ryuzoku wouldn't... no, wait, they probably would. "And Xelloss?"
"Xelloss," Luna said, "is unconscious in a room with wards stuck to him, due to paranoid Dragons. Joy oh joy."
"Will he be okay?" Lina watched Zelgadis's face darken even more.
Luna shrugged. "Probably. He's strong. He won't be at all comfortable right now, but he should last the time."
"Hey, Lina." Gourry seemed to perk up some. "Wanna go eat something?"
Hell, I survived meeting my sister. This is SOME cause to celebrate. "Sure!" Zelgadis could take care of his OWN problems!
"I'm every swiftly moving,
Trying to escape this desire."
"Hey, N-kun. You sure you want to come with me?" Guntair tried to keep his hope out of his voice; he wasn't sure what he was hoping for. Hoping the child would say no and not end up seeing this, or hoping the child would say yes and keep him company.
N-kun grinned, eyes up in happy smile shapes. "You bet! I wanna meet your family!" He held out his arms, obviously expecting to be carried. [B13]
Guntair picked him up. The child was a warm weight in his arms, a comforting burden. "Ok. Just... to tell you..."
"Mm-hmm?"
No. It wasn't worth it. "Nothing." He took a deep breath and headed towards what he remembered was his mother's dwelling.
His mother met him halfway there, wearing 'human' form to match him. They both stopped, at the same time, and she looked him up and down, as if looking for something in him and not finding it.
Nothing had changed.
It was all the same.
He swallowed back disappointment. "Hello, Mother."
"Guntair. You look well."
Do I? Do I truly look well? Or can you see it when you look in my eyes? The years of pain. The years of suffering. The years of Her. "Thank you. So do you."
"Yes." Her eyes traveled to N-kun, who put a finger in his mouth and blinked at her. "Who's that?"
Guntair put N-kun down. The child immediately went behind his legs, hands tightening in the fabric of his pants. "His name's N-kun. We encountered him wandering the roadways, and Lina decided to take care of him, so he's been traveling with us."
His mother lost interest.
Of course. You're not interested in things you can't control, are you, Mother?
"I hear good things about Lina." His mother's voice was off-hand, digging for information.
She's the Knight of Shabrinigido. Technically, I should hate her. But I don't. "She's a good person. She cares about her friends."
"I'm sure. However, I have some concerns about the other people you travel with."
The young Dragon felt his muscles tighten. Don't start this, mother.
"Mazoku and Mazoku-tainted? Really, Guntair, I thought I raised you better than that." [A8] Her tone was far too casual, with only a hint of disappontment which hit him, as always, like a fist in the stomach. Bitterness filled him.
No, Mother. How could you? You didn't do that much 'raising' that I remember. But you taught me to be noble. Oh, that you taught me, all right. "I did not choose to travel with the Mazoku. And as to Amelia, it's not her fault she is now tainted. It was the only way to save her life."
His mother's lips twisted. "It would have been kinder to let her die."
NO! "To who? To Amelia? To her father, who had to watch it? To her friends who she has traveled with for years? To me, who loves her?"
"You want to love a Mazoku?"
Why not? I was abused by one for years. Did you know that would happen, Mother? "She isn't a Mazoku. She's just an ordinary girl who was poisoned by her uncle and saved by the damned Mazoku. She. Is. Not. Evil." His eyes had narrowed to mere yellow slits, and he made a valient effort to keep his voice completely calm, but the edge of anger slipped into his tone anyway.
"I'm sure you'd like to believe that, Guntair, but you have to remember that you are a Ryuzoku. A proud one, as well, well respected for your noble sacrifice."
Ah, so you're afraid you'll lose your reputation of having brought me up well? Too bad, mother. I don't want to lose her. I don't care about what you think any more. "I love Amelia, Mother."
She crossed her arms. "Well, you'll just have to deal."
No. You will.
N-kun spoke up. "Amelia's real nice. She buys me candy and stuff and takes care of me."
The tall Dragon woman glanced down at the child still clutching Guntair's legs. "Candy is bad for your health. She's merely taking you down."
Guntair bent and picked up N-kun. "Come on, N-kun, let's go see how Amelia's doing. She must be feeling better after some rest."
"Where do you think you're going?"
I don't want to please you any more. "To someone who cares." His voice was colder than ice.
He left her there, heading back to the spare housing that the Elders had provided for them.
Candy is bad for your health. That's always been your way of thinking, hasn't it, Mother? If you can enjoy it, others won't respect you. Others won't give you reverence. You never wanted me to return, did you? Because then I wouldn't be a martyr. Thank you for asking how I am. Thank you for caring.
I just don't give a damn. I have no desire to please you any more. I like my candy.
"The yearning to be with you.
I do what I have to do."
Amelia heard the door open and jerked, startled. She rolled over in bed, heart beating fast, to see who it was.
"Hey." Guntair's voice was soft. "You feeling any better?" N-kun poked his head out from behind Gun's legs.
She relaxed. Why am I so jumpy? [B14] "A little," she said. Her stomach gave another disturbing lurch and she made a face. "I don't know what's wrong. It must be a combination of something I ate at breakfast and traveling... or maybe it was the gating... I don't know."
Guntair came over and sat next to her on the bed, and N-kun began wandering around the room, looking around. "Why? What exactly feels wrong?"
She shrugged, forcing herself to sit up. "My stomach feels like it's trying to turn itself inside out and my head aches all the way through... I feel a little lightheaded." Even feeling like she did, she couldn't keep a smile from crossing her face. "Your prognosis, Dr. Guntair?" [B15]
The Dragon looked lost. "I have NO idea. Maybe just a flu?"
"Probably." Her stomach cramped and she winced. "Came on awfully fast..."
N-kun spoke up. "I can make you some stomach tea if you like. I learned it when I... while I was on the road."
She smiled. "Thanks, but I don't think I want to swallow anything right now." Sighing as another flash of dizziness flowed through her, she leaned against Guntair.
His muscles were as taut as cords.
Oh no. "What's wrong?"
"Am I that obvious?" He heaved a sigh.
Oh, Gun... "Rather."
N-kun waved his arms. "His mother's a REAL meanie! She was being all nasty and stuff at him."
Guntair winced. "Yeah, that's about it. She... she is a very proud woman. And she no doubt gained a lot of reputation by having a martyr son."
"Who is no longer a martyr." She stroked his arm. Poor Gun. This is the last thing you need... "But surely she was glad to see you anyway...?"
She could feel him shake, leaning against him. Looking up to his face, she saw it was all twisted up, as though he was trying to contain tears. Opening his mouth, only a little noise made it out, and then he simply shook his head. "She... didn't care at all. She didn't ask what I went through. She... I think I hate her."
Hate your own family? I... guess it's possible. I can't imagine what it would be like, having someone like that so close to you... "Gods, Gun, I'm sorry. No wonder you were so moody earlier. I'm sorry I got angry at you."
He shook his head. "Not your fault... I was awfully..." he trailed off. "I just... wish she gave a damn. It would be nice. I was gone for about two hundred years... but to her, I was better gone. By Cepheed, I... I almost wish I didn't have to go outside again. I don't want to meet her again. I just want to forget about her."
"I can't imagine how terrible that would be," Amelia felt her own eyes well up and wiped them hurriedly. "And your father?"
A laugh burbled up from his chest. "I don't know. He vanished when I was only a hundred. Mother thinks he ran off with someone."
"Oh." Amelia shook her head.
He turned to her, wrapping an arm around her. "I didn't want to bring it up, but... I only met your father. Did that happen with your mother, like it did with my father?"
Something twisted deep inside her. "My mother's dead."
His eyes widened, his own hurt forgotten. "Gods... Amelia, I'm sorry, I didn't know..."
"I'm... not upset." Not with you. "It was... a while ago." She stared at her hands. She could almost still see the blood there. "She was murdered. It isn't one of my better memories... but it was a long time ago. I just wish I could have saved her, somehow..."
"You couldn't have been expected..."
Her stomach cramped again, and she laid her head against his chest, trying not to get too dizzy or faint. "I was there, Gun, I watched her die. I knew white magic, but I was too much in shock... I didn't do anything. And... I'm not sure it would have been enough, even if I did do something. But I can never know, now." Her eyes were dry, tears long since spent.
His other arm wrapped around her as well, gripping her in a tight hug. "Oh, Amelia..."
"But..." Let me forget, for now. Please. "But that was a long time ago! And this is now. Gun, have you asked about the hatchlings?"
His eyes widened as he released her slightly. "No, no I... they would have told me, wouldn't they? Unless they didn't want..."
"What's that noise?" N-kun asked.
They quieted, listening.
Outside the door, people were whispering. "Is that really - "
"It's gotta be!"
"You go in!"
"I don't wanna go in, YOU go in!"
"Why do I hafta go in?! YOU'RE our leader!"
"I'm del-a-getting o-thor-eatie."
"You can't do that!"
"I'm the leader, I say I can!"
"But I - "
"Just do it, weenie!"
"Scarp is a weenie!"
"Weenie! Weenie!"
"Okay, okay, I'm doing it! Jerks."
Someone knocked at the door.
I don't know whether I'm going to fall over laughing, grin proudly, or have a migraine. "Come in," Amelia called.
The door squeaked open and a slightly obese child stuck his head around the door. "'Scuse me, miss, we were told that..." His eyes widened, he squeaked something incomprehensible, and the door slammed shut.
"You idiot! You shut the door!"
"I can't help it, he was THERE!"
"That's the point!"
"Weenie!"
"But he was really THERE!"
"Weenie! Weenie!"
"I am not a weenie! Rath's the weenie!"
"Ooooohhhhh..."
"Did you just call our leader - "
"Me a weenie?!"
"Yeah, you're our leader but you're too scared to go in!"
"I don't have hands right now!"
"So transform!"
"Maybe I don't want to!"
"Hey, maybe Rath IS scared!"
"Scardy! Weenie!"
"Shut up! Ok, I'm going in!"
Even sick, Amelia's lips were twitching, partially at the yet-unseen children's antics and partially at Guntair's expression, which was somewhere between stunned delight and deer-caught-in-path-of-the-Dragon-Slave. N-kun had a disparing look and was crawling under the bed to hide.
Someone knocked at the door again. "You can STILL come in," Amelia called.
"I think that she's mad!"
"She can't be mad! She's with HIM!"
"Just open the door, WEENIE."
"Scarp, I'm gonna get you." The door opened and a taller child stepped around, moving jerkily. "Uh. Uh. Uh. Hi." He wiggled his fingers.
Giggles from behind the door.
"Get in, I want to see him!"
"What if he doesn't like us?"
"He'll like us! It's HIM!"
"Shhh! They can hear us!"
"Uh... I wet myself."
Ews.
"Go home, Tania!"
"We don't need babies like you!"
"I didn't mean to, I just..."
"GO!"
"I'm telling mommy!"
"Yeah? So what!"
"Rath, move, we can't come in!"
Rath was slowly turning red and seemed to be struck dumb. Eyes really large, he began rubbing his foot against the carpet. "Um, I.. Um. We. We kinda... uh... I..."
"Get in, dummy!"
"OOOoooohhhh..."
"You called him a dummy!" Delighted squeals.
"You're gonna get it, Scarp!"
"Maybe I don't care."
"Maybe you should!"
"Ew, Tania left a puddle."
"Don't STEP in it!"
"What should I do?"
"Just leave it there, someone'll clean it up."
"I don't wanna wait out here, I wanna see him!"
"I'm scared, what if..."
"Oh, shut up already!"
Rath didn't seem to hear them. "I. I. Uh. I. We. Uh. You. Uh."
Guntair smiled and slid off the bed, crouching down to Rath's level and holding a hand out as if coaxing a young animal. "Hi. You're Rath? I'm Guntair. Pleased to meet you."
"Uh. Uh. Uh. I......." Rath seemed to freeze up, eyes somehow getting even larger.
"Don't just stand there, Rath!"
"SHHHH!"
"I was only trying to - "
"SHHH!!! I wanna hear!"
"Try shutting up yourself!"
"You can't tell me to shut up, I won't - "
"SHHHHHHH!!!"
"I wanna see him!"
"SHHHHH! Keep down! And Rath, get in! Go for it! Come on, we believe in you!"
Rath, the whites of his eyes showing, put a finger in his mouth and said something completely incomprehensable.
"Damn it, get on with it!"
"OOOOOHHH!"
"SCARP SAID A NAUGTY WORD!"
Giggles.
"Where'd you hear that?"
"SHHHH!"
"I know lotsa words like that!"
"I wanna see!"
"You do?!"
"You're gonna get in trouble!"
"I wanna SEE!"
"I am not! You wouldn't dare get me in trouble, would you?!"
"SHHH!"
"Of course not, Scarp! You're neat!"
"I wanna see. Can somebody lift me up?"
"Of course I am! I'm the greatest!"
"SHHHH!"
"Rath, DO something!"
"Oh, to hey with it!" Another child pushed past Rath, who moved aside docily.
It's voice was female, so Amelia assumed it was, even though it was dragon form. It was visibly blushing, and it's wings and tail were high, as though proud. "Uh... hi!"
"Wow."
"I can't believe she DID that!"
"By Cepheed, she's cool!"
"Don't take Cepheed's name in vain, stupid."
"You let Scarp get away with that sort of thing!"
"Scarp's different. Scarp's neat. You're just... you."
"SHHHH!"
"Rath, don't let her overcome you, man! Do something, Rath! Come on, I'm rooting for you!"
"You don't need to say it like that, I'm as good as Scarp any day!"
"Oh yeah, says who?!"
"EEP!I'mreallysorryScarp,Ididn'tmeanit!"
Guntair smiled at the little female dragon. "Hi, I'm Guntair, and this is Amelia. N-kun is... somewhere... I guess. What's your name?"
Her wings lowered a little and she blinked a few times. "My name? My... oh. My name is... uh... Zala. But everyone calls me Friz 'coz that's what my hair does when I'm human-shaped."
Giggles.
"I can't believe she forgot her name!"
"Better 'n Rath, he forgot everything!"
"SHHHH!"
"Ew, I just stepped in Tania's puddle!"
"Don't get near me, Yory! You're dirty!"
"I didn't WANT to!"
"SHHH!"
Guntair's smile broadened. It had to hurt by now, Amelia mused. "It's great to meet you, Friz."
"Are you really Guntair?" Friz asked hungrily. "I mean, THE Guntair?"
"The only one I know of. Why?"
She squealed. "IT IS, THEN! I'M SO EXCITED! Come on, everyone!"
"She wants us to come in?"
"You go first!"
"Yory shouldn't go, he stepped in Tania's puddle!"
"But I didn't WANT to!!!"
"SHHH!!! I think Scarp should go!"
"Naw, Scarp was scared before."
"Nafa..." Growled.
"I'msorrybutyouwere!"
No, I AM going to have a migrane, Amelia decided, feeling faint. But these were the people Guntair had gone through two hundred years of hell for. It had to be worth it... "There's room enough for all of you in here."
"Let's go! Come on!"
"I'm scared..."
"Shh, don't say that, HE'll hear you!"
"I don't wanna go after having..."
"Oh, just take your shoes off!"
"Oh. Yeah. Shoes. Eheheheh."
"They're waiting! Let's go!"
"Just a minute! Can someone help me with my laces?"
Groans.
"Yory, I TOLE you you shouldn't have let your mother do that!"
"It's not my fault she wanted me to look good for Guntair-sama! Anyway, can someone help me with them?"
"EW! I'm not touching them, you stepped in Tonia's puddle!"
"SHH! He'll HEAR you!"
This was getting to be too much rapidly. Amelia nudged Guntair. "Gun, I have a headache. Can you take them out somewhere?"
He nodded understandingly. Standing quickly and taking Friz and Rath by the arms, he headed towards the door. "Hey, everybody! Let's all go out for a snack!"
Worries were abandoned in favour of cheers and one, "Guntair-sama, watch out for that puddle!"
The door shut and blessed silence resumed. Amelia fell back on the bed and sighed.
"Oof!" Something under the bed wriggled. Eyes blurring, Amelia watched N-kun struggle out from under the bed. "Thanks!" he breathed. "I was afraid they'd want to play with me or something." From her view, he seemed to have a gold blur around him. "I gotta find the counter to my curse, you know... hey, Amelia-san, are you okay?"
She debated this as the room swam lazily around her. "No... I don't think so..."
N-kun's tiny hands brushed her forehead. "You have a nasty fever! Do you want me to get someone?"
She yawned, feeling herself fading. This was awfully familiar... if only she could remember... "Naw, I'll be okay. I just want to sleep. Why don' you go off an' find Lina or somethin'..."
Child's fingers... except they no longer seemed to be a child's, they were too long... brushed back her bangs. "Are you sure?" his voice seemed to be in two registers at the same time [B16], and she blinked back the blurry yellow obscuring her vision.
"I'm sure... 'tsokay, N-kun, I'm just tired. It's not important. I'll be okay after I get some sleep..." Her eyes drifted shut and she didn't hear his response.
"The yearning to be near you,
I do what I have to do."
"So, your name is Zelgadis?" Luna leaned back against Lina's bed, flashing a large amount of both bosom and leg.
Zelgadis shrugged, trying not to glower at this woman. So what if Xelloss seemed to hang all over her and Lina was terrified of her? It's not like I care one way or another.
Who am I fooling?
"Xelloss seems awfully fond of you," the waitress continued.
He shrugged again. He knew he was glowering. Damn.
It's not my fault. I mustn't feel, I must think. That's the only way I've ever made it through life. It's been alright feeling when it was just Xelloss and me, but I can't survive around others like that.
Gods. Poor Xelloss. Who knew what kind of thing he was going through now? Damn those Dragons... they didn't need to have reason, they just acted based on their fears...
"Cheese only rains on Tuesdays."
Zelgadis blinked, abruptly jolted out of his thoughts. "I beg your pardon?"
Luna grinned at him. "So you were conscious."
I think she just made fun of me. He tried to shrug it off. "I was thinking."
"Ah. About what?"
"Nothing important."
"Xelloss?"
Damn. She's reading me? "I'm a little worried," he admitted.
"He knew it would happen."
Zelgadis didn't respond. That doesn't mean I have to like it. "How'd you meet him?"
The Cepheed Knight propped her feet up on Lina's bed. "Showed up at my doorstep one day as an emissary." [B17]
"Emissary?" He couldn't help being curious at this.
Very briefly, light glinted blue off something in the shadow of her bangs - her eyes, he guessed. "Xellas-chan wanted to come to an agreement over a few things. Intriguing woman. The only one of Shabrinigido's five who would ever consider approaching me to make a deal. Of course, she was in a little bit of trouble, but it still shows some of the way her mind works. If enemies are after you, make a pact with one of your other enemies. Never fight a war on two fronts. Shrewd woman." Luna chuckled.
"You two must be awfully close for you to call her 'Xellas-chan'." Zelgadis remembered the two times he had encountered the Mazoku Lord, once as herself and once as she tried to dispel their worries. Having felt it before, he had been able to sense her awesome power aura even as she muted it, and he wasn't willing to call her something that friendly even this far away from her.
Luna shrugged and chuckled again. "It didn't take long for us to discover that we were too alike and too different not to get along, if you know what I mean. We're an awful lot like you and Xelloss, I guess."
I doubt that. "Are you?" he asked mildly.
She tapped the side of her nose. "Don't tell the Ryuzoku that, of course, it's just between you and me. They don't give me much credit as it is. They're much more stuck up then Cephy - pardon, Cepheed - himself, you know? They don't seem to think that I could both be close to her and be their protector."
"It is a conflict of interest," he pointed out.
"Not really," Luna shrugged. "Only if neither of us were professional. We are both perfectly aware that if it comes to another war, and we end up facing off, we will try our damnedest to kill each other, no holds barred, even though we're lovers." [A9]
Zelgadis tried not to cough. Okay, maybe they are like Xelloss and me. He thought about the sheer power of the two of them and winced. Or not quite. "I can see what you mean," he said absently.
"If it comes to another war and we end up facing off, we will try our damnedest to kill each other, no holds barred, even though we're lovers."
Shit. Could they? How? WHY? If they loved each other... "I don't think I could do that."
"Hmm?"
He realized he'd spoken aloud and had to continue that train of thought. "I don't think I could kill hi - my lover, you know? In battle or whatever." The chimera sighed. "He already nearly died for me; how could I kill him? It's... not..." right.
Luna chuckled, but it wasn't a humourous sound. "In that you're lucky, boy. You have the choice; in our case, it's destiny. Gods, I hate that word, 'destiny'. You see, you can choose which side you're on when the war comes. Whatever else is mixed in you now, you started human; good and evil mixes."
"You're human."
"I'm the Cepheed Knight. Human or not, I have... responsibilities. Choices denied me for the sake of what I am. What I do. Same thing with Xellas-chan, being Mazoku and one of Shabrinigido's five. I am the only person who can contact Cepheed and am his representative here. It's difficult, knowing you'll have to fight against loved ones, lovers, family, but it's not an option not to. You, at least, have the option."
Zelgadis jerked. "You know - "
"That Lina-chan's the Knight of Shabrinigido? Yes." Luna chuckled again. "I suspected when she was a child that it might happen; she was very quick at learning magic and getting into trouble. And Cepheed hinted that it could very easily be a possibility. That's one of the reasons she fears me; knowing she might fight for the fate of the world, I couldn't let her go in with no training and so drummed ability into her."
That was unexpected, and also brought up an issue he hadn't even considered yet. "Knowing she might end up fighting you in battle for the destruction of the world, you still trained her?" That wasn't the problem, the training, it was worse. Something that not only Lina, but Zelgadis as well would have to face.
"Of course I trained her," Luna said, as if the other choice hadn't even occurred to her. "It wouldn't be fair otherwise."
Zelgadis thought, but not about that. Gods. Xelloss will eventually be fighting for the world's descent into evil from the neutrality it is now. So will Lina, whether she wants to or not. I don't want the world to... but I can't fight Xelloss... but... oh, gods. "I can't do it."
The Cepheed Knight blinked. "Pardon?"
"Make a choice like that. I can't let the world get destroyed, but..." Gods, it hurt, deep inside his chest. "...but I couldn't fight Xelloss either. I can't do it."
Luna sighed, suddenly seeming very tired. She brushed back her bangs absently, and Zelgadis caught a glimpse of deep, deep blue eyes and a headpiece the same colour before the girl's hair fell back. "It doesn't really matter which side you fight for, Zelgadis. The only way the human race would survive is if there's another stalemate. I'd live if the Ryuzoku - if Cepheed - won, and maybe a very few, very pure humans, or people who were part Ryu, but that's all. If Shabrinigido and the Mazoku win, Lina will survive, you will probably survive, it's possible that that poor girl - Amelia, wasn't it? - will survive, evil humans or other part Mazoku will survive, but, again, that's all. Most of the human race and all of the Ryuzoku would be wiped out." As Zelgadis's jaw dropped, Luna went on, "It's something of a burden, which is why I had hoped Lina-chan wouldn't have to face it, but there's no more choice in that. Now... the people who have to fight on the sides they must fight will fight, the people who can choose will choose, and the others will have their fate decided for them, poor bastards." She shook her head again. "Hope for a stalemate; it's all any of us can do. Even Cepheed understands that, but his battle with Shabrinigido has been going on too long to stop."
Zelgadis's throat was dry. "Luna... you're talking like you know there's going to be a war. The last war was a thousand years ago..." Gods, please, gods... I know you've never listened to me yet, but just this one time... "Surely there's not going to be another for a long, long time." He somehow managed not to make it into a question.
Shrugging, the Cepheed Knight rose. "Well, hope for the best, I always say, even if it might be sooner than you think."
What...
Before he could question her, she continued. "Which reminds me, we should join Lina-chan and Gourry for dinner; I need to talk with the elders there, as they promised, and I rather think it would be a good idea for you all to be there. I was hoping I could watch Xelloss's face at this time, but I'm fairly certain he knows it already. That is his role, you know, to know things."
His role? To know things? Zelgadis wondered, realizing for the first time that Xelloss hadn't ever actually told him what he did. To know what things?
He blinked as he registered Luna's hand outstretched to help him up and, mind still whirling about the possibilities, took it.
"And I have the sense to recognize
That I don't know how to let you go."
Amelia floated in a black sea of sleep, letting herself be drawn under the waves, realizing she could breathe in them. It was peaceful, a place away from her headache, a comfortable, if empty, place.
She sighed. But Guntair wasn't here. Neither were Lina, or Zelgadis, or any of the others. She had to get back to them. That was what she was here for, right?
Trying to swim toward the surface, her heart began to beat faster. What?? She couldn't rise, couldn't reach it. Normally she could pull herself from sleep, but...
She stopped struggling and fell deeper into the waves. Maybe she was just really tired. She hasn't been here for long. Her body knew what it needed, right?
There was no need to worry.
Yet.
"I don't know how to let you go."
Homen was exhausted, through and through. Moreover, his stomach was cramping uncomfortably with hunger, or, at least, he hoped it was hunger. What can I sell for food? he wondered, digging through his belt pouch. No money. Damn. His vest wasn't precisely a necessity, not yet, but it would be dangerous to sell it, could risk giving away his secret.
He resigned himself to picking someone's pocket. Normally, he didn't have many qualms about it, other than fear of getting caught and executed... but lately, he'd had a burning desire to keep himself safe, for some reason. Oh, well. I've got to live, and I can't do that by starving. It never even occurred to him to sell the ruby he'd stolen, back in that shrine to Cepheed.
Stomach cramping again, Homen made a face. His back ached, too, and his head. A bad, bad feeling settled in the pit of his stomach. Oh, shit. Didn't I just deal with that? Silently, he began to count on his fingers. Twenty-nine days. He tried not to panic, it had happened before. He just needed to find some private place to change.
If the guilds see the blood, they won't let me get away with what I do steal! Homen was well known amongst the guilds in this city and others for his skill. Damn stuck up bastards, not letting a person steal just because she's a girl. [A10]
She began to look for a good quick hiding place to change in.
"Glowing embers,
Burning hot."
Pain.
Gods above and below, what pain.
No, pain wasn't the word for it. Pain was something Xelloss was used to, something Xelloss actually enjoyed. This was... this was...
han. No word existed for it; no Mazoku had ever passed through this pain and either survived or wished to think upon it again. It was han, opposite, anti-. Every fibre of his being screamed that it was completely wrong, fought to force it away. It was everything he wasn't and nothing he was. It was completely han to him, and it was burning him alive.
"I think he's coming to, sir." A feminine voice, cool, practical. [A11]
"It would be about time." This voice was masculine and gruff, and Xelloss recognized it as the voice of the Black Dragon Elder. "Damn it, we removed the unconsciousness-inducing wards almost an hour ago."
Heh. Xelloss would have smiled if he had any control over his body. And did they just expect me to snap awake while like this? Not asleep, no, nor actually unconscious. But not capable of coherent thought or action.
A hand gripped his shoulder, shaking him roughly. "Oi. Mazoku. Open your eyes."
Another blast of han shot through him and he gritted his jaw to not cry out, not give them that power over him. Godsdamned Dragons... He didn't want to, but his eyelids pried themselves open against his will. The light started a dull, comforting throb at the back of his scull and coloured splashes crossed his vision. So this is a migraine. Very interesting. Yick.
Somewhere inside him, he found his voice, rusty and bleeding, but he danced it forward anyway. "Ah. My hospitable hosts." He attempted his usual smile and felt dry lips split, blood trickling briefly into his mouth.
"Shut up," the Elder commanded, touching one of the symbols of han, one on his shoulder, and Xelloss's jaws snapped shut. "What is your name, Mazoku?"
The pressure holding his jaws shut let up. "You know my name," he croaked.
"I didn't ask you if I knew your name." The Elder pressed another piece of paper, symbol of han onto his cheek. "I asked you what your name was."
Damn it, that had to be a truth ward. It was forcing him to speak. His name was harmless enough, but he had to find a loophole. "Xelloss Metallium," he said, and reached for his master's presence, always on the edge of his consciousness.
And couldn't contain the tail end of a scream as the wards slapped his mind, his aura, his body, his being. His essence struggled against the horrifying feeling. The fact he couldn't reach Her was bad enough; to have han ground into him for trying was unbearable. His breathing was harsh in his own ears as his struggles subsided.
"I will trust you will not try that again," the Elder's female assistant commented, smiling. Angry, Xelloss's eyes flicked over and captured hers for an instant. Watching the blood drain from her face was a brief moment of pleasure for him.
But, even more than that, there was something wrong. Kin... he contained a curse as he realized what it was. Damn it, they needed her! But he couldn't mention it in front of these Ryuzoku. They'd kill her rather than help her. He could only hope something would happen to get him out of this.
Not that I would help THEM anyway.
"Who is your master?"
No loophole to that question. That didn't matter, any idiot knew who Xelloss Metallium's master was. Even someone who didn't could make a guess based on the name. I guess this guy isn't just ANY idiot... "Juuou Xellas Metallium." Oh, hell, if I have to tell him, I might as well tell him enough that he understands the enemy he's made. "Queen of Predators, master of the wild, Beast over beasts, huntress who never loses her prey, lady of - "
"That's enough."
Damn it, they're not even going to let me have any fun.
"What is your connection to Luna Inverse?"
"I am not connected to her." Physically.
The woman interrupted with a question, upset at having shown fear. "How do you know Luna Inverse?"
He smiled. Why not? Not the whole truth, of course, but enough to surprise them. "She is a friend."
"Nonsense!" the woman shouted. "He must be lying!"
"He can't lie," the Elder said patiently. "He has a truth ward on him. We will talk to the Cepheed Knight about this." He turned back to Xelloss. "What are you doing here?"
Now THAT one had so many loopholes he might even be able to enjoy himself a little. "Well, I was born..."
He wished he could crack a smile as the Dragon Elder ground his teeth. "No! What are you doing here, at the Koku no Tani?!"
Xelloss pretended to think. "Well, it seems I'm being tortured." He forced another smile.
The Elder's hand crashed into his jaw, rocking Xelloss's head back. A low chuckle came from the Mazoku's throat. "Four points for the Mazoku," he rasped. "Three points for the Ryuzoku. Shall we continue? Sudden Death game, maybe?"
"This isn't a game, Mazoku," the woman sneered.
Another chuckle bubbled from his throat. "Everything's a game, young lady." As the Ryuzoku bristled at the 'young lady' comment, - she wasn't that young, but she was still younger than Xelloss, from what he could tell - he smiled up at the Elder. "So far, I've only ever won."
"You may not find yourself so lucky again," the Elder said dryly, having recovered his composure. "For what purposes did you come to the Koku no Tani?"
Shit. "Guntair wished to discover whether the Dragon Eggs Yume had stolen had been returned properly." He wished he could stop there and not reveal any further, but the plural denied him that, so he reached for his master again. He knew what would happen, but at least the shock of it stopped his voice from continuing for a second. Damn it, I need time! If he let the plans become known, it would be his death. He didn't fear death, but he'd rather torture himself and scream until he had no voice left rather than let the Beastmaster down.
"Stop that!" The woman commanded. "Are you a fool?! Just answer the question!"
No. He clamped his teeth around his scream and grinned as the han stole his voice.
And suddenly, the Elder and his assistant's attention was drawn away. He stopped struggling to reach his master and whispered the answer quietly enough that they couldn't hear while their attention was gone. "I came to see if the Ruby was still here." They hadn't heard him. He turned his head to see what they were looking at, licking dried blood off his lips.
The blonde half-Ryuzoku remained frozen in the doorway, eyes wide. "Su...mie...ma...sen..." she whispered, clutching her cast-iron waitressing tray to her chest.
"What are you doing here, girl?" the assistant demanded angrily, striding towards her. "This is not publicly accessible!"
Chris wavered on the verge of leaving immediately. "I'm sorry... please excuse me... Luna-san sent me to remind you..." her eyes strayed to Xelloss, who watched her as well, not hiding his eyes. "...to remind you that you said you would... speak to her at dinner, and..." Gaze flickering back and forth between the Ryuzoku and Xelloss, she seemed to have forgotten what she was saying and stammered, "and... and... that's it..." [B18]
"Tell her we are on the way," the Elder commanded. "You saw nothing here, halfbreed. Nothing. Remember that."
"Yes!" Chris squeaked, turning on a high heel unsteadily and escaping.
Good. If she has any spine to her at all, she'll tell Luna-chan. He didn't smile and give away his thoughts. Luna won't help, but she'll make sure it gets passed on to Lina, and Gourry, and hopefully Zelgadis. They'll get me out of this, hopefully before I say more than I should.
The Elder sighed and removed his gloves. "Dalia, place the ward back on him. We will continue this later."
Dalia - the assistant - nodded, and pulled a slip of paper from her dress pocket. "Back you go, Mazoku." As she bent over him to place it in the middle of his forehead, he whispered a message to her, a promise for the future.
"Go to your dinner, young lady. Eat, drink, and be merry..." [B19] The paper touched his forehead, leaving the rest of his sentiment unheard as his mind fled.
"Deep within I'm shaken by
the violence of existing for only you..."
A tug on his pants dragged Guntair's attention away from his in-between- bites conversation with Lina, and he smiled down at Friz. The children had a table away from the adults, fortunately... although the children were sweet, they were constantly demanding things of him, once they'd gotten past their initial shyness. Still, they continued to come and ask him questions when they thought of it, often trailed by concerned parents; this seemed to be a relief to N-kun, who had been seated with the other children and was constantly wearing a put-upon expression. Guntair grinned quickly at Friz's mother, a few feet behind, then transferred his gaze back to the little dragon girl. "Yes?"
"What happened to the nasty-bad lady, Guntair-nii-san?"
Pain lanced through him, and he froze briefly as her face shone in his mind as she walked along his sword, blade in her belly, coy, teasing, hateful smile on her face as those long wicked nails reached out to caress his face. " My stupid, stupid pet. Betraying me for these children. You shall be punished very severely indeed." He could hear his whimper as his hands went numb, knowing her method of punishment, the sword clattering to the ground at his feet, the sickening squelching sound as it slid out of her flesh...
"Guntair-nii-san?"
"Zala..." the child's mother scolded. "I'm sorry, Guntair-san. She's just..."
He pulled himself back to the present, smiling shakily at the woman and her child. "It's okay. The nasty-bad lady is dead now, Friz-chan, and can't hurt anyone at all any more."
Except that I will never forget.
Friz crowed with delight. "Did you kill her?" She didn't wait for a response. "I'm gonna become a Mazoku killer just like you, Guntair-nii-san! I'll hunt them down and make them pay! There's lots of them around, it'll be easy, and - "
"Don't," Guntair warned. "They're very dangerous creatures, Friz-chan. You're too young to deal with them."
She pouted, and amended, "When I'm older."
Guntair felt himself relax. At least I don't have to watch out for her while she goes and hunts creatures who would gladly tear her limb from limb or worse...
Friz's mother was leading her away. "We'll talk about that," she was warning the child.
"But Mom..."
A chair squeaked and he turned to see the Cepheed Knight lower herself into the chair beside him, Zelgadis seating himself beside Gourry.
Luna grinned at him. "Hi. They seem to be keeping you busy."
He shrugged, uncomfortable around this woman. "Sort of."
"Still, children can be so cute, when they're someone else's," she philosophized.
He shrugged again, looking around, trying to find something else to talk about. "Where's that little friend of yours?"
"Chris?" She jerked a thumb to the door. "I sent her to tell the Elders' I'm ready to talk with them, and see if Amelia wanted to join us for dinner."
"Ah." He glanced down on his plate, which a waiter had somehow refilled without him noticing, taking another bite. "The food's good."
"The food's passable," Luna disagreed. "I've tasted better." She chuckled. "Actually, I'm just uncomfortable with being served instead of serving. I keep wanting to get up and help."
He coughed. The Cepheed Knight, a waitress. I still find it difficult to believe. "Uh."
Chris seemed to appear silently above their shoulders, making him jump... it had to be a waitress ability, he reflected. Luna didn't seem at all startled. "Yes?" she asked the girl.
The half-Ryuzoku gazed at the table, not looking at Luna's face. "Amelia-san was asleep so I guess she won't be coming down... and... uh, the Elders were... busy... but they'll be down in a minute."
"Oh?" Luna drew out, and Guntair saw her glance towards Zelgadis, who had stopped sipping wine and was listening. "What were they busy with?"
"They... told me... that it was nothing, Luna-san... I'm sorry." The blond waitress had a distinctly guilty look on her face.
"I'm sure they told you that, yes. But you trust me. What were they REALLY doing?" Luna toyed with her fork, letting it catch and fragment the light.
"They were..." Chris lowered her voice, looking around and blushing. "Questioning Xelloss-san, Luna-san."
"Torturing, you mean." Luna's voice was also quiet, barely enough to cover the table; louder was the sound of Zelgadis's wine glass shattering. A waiter hurried up to clean up the mess and replace the glass. Zelgadis had transferred his attention to his food and had a very odd look on his face. Guntair shivered, glad that that angry gaze was directed at the food, not him. Apparently, the Mazoku had somehow become close to Zelgadis's heart, Cepheed alone knew how. It should never happen. Still, I know that if Amelia was in his place, I'd feel the same way.
Chris cringed. "I... I wouldn't know enough to say... I'm sorry..."
"Stop apologizing, Chris-chan," Luna sighed. "Xelloss is a big boy, he can take a little pain, and you and I can't do anything about it. We must leave that for the people who can."
Guntair noticed an interesting tone in her voice, how it raised at the last sentence, and how, despite the news, a grin trailed at the edges of her lips. Such an odd woman. Seeing her glance over, so quickly that if he hadn't been watching her he wouldn't have noticed, he followed her brief gaze back to Zelgadis. Realization hit him. Why that little... she's manipulating him!! He snorted softly and she grinned at him. Whose side is she on, anyway?
Still, I can't say I blame her. Ryuzoku torturing someone? Even if it IS a Mazoku, our people shouldn't do that! It puts us on their level... He shook his head.
"Come on, sit," Luna was commanding Chris, pulling out a chair for the overly-nervous younger waitress. "You did the right thing in telling me. Sit." She glanced to the side and caught Guntair's gaze again, smiling. "You know," she murmured softly enough that he was certain that he, and perhaps Chris, were the only ones who could hear, "being the Cepheed Knight means more than protecting Ryuzoku from outside influences. It also means protecting them from what they might someday do, and stopping it from continuing."
Shit. I suppose... she's right. It was a stunning thought, that she thought... hell, that Cepheed himself thought... that they needed to have an eye kept on them to stop them from violating their own code.
Silence abruptly fell, and Guntair looked over to see the Elder who had greeted them at the door enter, and beside him... Oh gods. No, it couldn't be... his mother.
He froze as her gaze raked over him disdainfully, wanting to shrink down in his chair, but she barely bothered with him, turning her attention to the Cepheed Knight. She raised one eyebrow imperiously. I hate the way she makes me feel...
Luna rose, and suddenly she radiated Power. It was like Luna herself had gently stepped aside and in her place was... someone else. Her bangs blew away from her eyes of their own accord, revealing eyes as blue as an evening sky. Guntair's mouth moved silently, mouthing the name. Cepheed.
Both the Elder and his mother bowed slightly, but both still had slightly indignant expressions on their faces. With both these things demanding attention, it was only with the back of his mind that he noticed the twang as Zelgadis's fork snapped.
The being who was partially Luna spoke. "Your duty has not been fulfilled." The voice was Luna's, yet, at the same time, not Luna's. It was pure power; even Lina and Gourry stopped their constant cramming of food in their mouths to stare.
Searching quickly for a response, the Elder was visibly sweating. "We are most apologetic, Cepheed Knight. The thief was quite cunning."
"No thief should be cunning enough." Luna frowned, and the room was suddenly a few degrees colder, at least to Guntair. It was stunning, hearing that voice, both terrifying and thrilling him. "The last war was a mere thousand years ago. The world has not yet recovered enough for another war. This is why We set you to guard that piece of Shabrinigido. And yet, now, the piece of Shabrinigido has been spirited away. How could you be so lax in your duty as guardians?"
The... A PIECE OF Shabrinigido?! [A12]
Guntair's mother found her voice. "We sensed no Mazoku presence passing the wards, Cepheed Knight. We did not believe - "
"Of course you felt no presence." Luna crossed her arms, and the temperature seemed to drop a little more. In the back of the room, a child started to cry. Guntair glanced over, worried, thinking already of these children as his responsibility, but the child was already being comforted by its mother. Something else caught his attention; N-kun had leaned forward, staring, something almost hungry in his pupilless eyes. Well, Guntair thought inanely, I suppose everyone reacts differently to the presence of a god... Luna was continuing. "He could not be reborn through a Mazoku. The thief is human, of course."
"We had no idea that a human could possibly - "
"You should have had an idea," the Cepheed Knight cut in. "Underestimating humans has caused you to fail in your duty. When - if - the Ruby is brought back, you must redouble all your efforts for all time, no matter what it does to your economy or culture. You were given that duty for a reason."
The Elder swallowed. "Cepheed Knight, how can we... make up for our failure?"
"You may guard it when and if it is retrieved, guard it properly, unlike the way you had before."
"And you?" Guntair's mother asked, intruding. Guntair swallowed. He may have seen Luna as an ordinary person earlier, but now... now she was much more than just Luna. He knew that he would never dare interrupt her. Yet his mother... "What will YOU be doing? Will you be retrieving the Ruby?"
Luna turned and looked... straight at him. "No. We have other duties We must attend to, not the least of which is raising one who has been ignored by her own race. One of the Guardians will go."
"Let me," The Elder begged. "Let me make up for our error - " [B20]
Luna's eyes, still boring into Guntair's, were an amazing shade of blue, one that had to be seen to be believed. He couldn't tear his gaze away.
The Cepheed Knight cut the Elder's words off, still not looking over. "No. Not you. The one We wish to go is one whom sacrificed and returned, unwelcomed. We wish Guntair to retrieve the Ruby. His companions will go with him."
"Not all his companions!" Dalia, Guntair's mother, cried.
"All his companions," the Cepheed Knight repeated. "There is a balance in there. This balance is required."
Guntair was still frozen in shock, knowing in his soul that no matter what, he would do this. It was more than just Luna telling him to do this. He had to. But my companions...Lina...
Still gazing into them, he saw the Cepheed Knight's eyes flash. A voice spoke in his head, and would have knocked him to his knees had he not been sitting.
It was not a presumptuous voice. It was quiet, masculine, though merely a light tenor. Wisps of music seemed caught in it. But, whether the voice itself could be considered remarkable... it was more than just a voice. It was the voice of his god. "Yes. Lina is the Shabrinigido Knight. Yet she too must go. There is a balance in this. Luna will also be going, although later, and taking a different route. The goal, my Guntair, isn't to retrieve the Ruby, although if that is possible, it must happen. The goal is the destiny already set in motion. Perhaps... you and the ones you love can prevent it from escalating to be more than the destiny of you few."
Then the voice was gone, and Guntair came to the slow realization that the others at the table were waiting for a verbal confirmation of his acceptance. He somehow managed to find his voice and croaked, "Of course! We'll do it!" He hoped the others wouldn't contradict him, but the Cepheed Knight turned, to face them.
"Will you?"
Lina's agreement was surprisingly quick and quiet. He glanced over to see her avoiding looking at the Cepheed Knight who was, he reminded himself, her older sister. Of course she'd agree. Zelgadis shrugged, eyes cold, not seeming fully focused on the conversation. Gourry smiled. "Why not?"
Luna turned, to Guntair's surprise, to look at the back table, the child's table. He'd thought that N-kun wouldn't be going further than this, really. But the child, sitting on the table, gave a thumb's up and a cocky grin towards the Cepheed Knight. She closed her eyes softly. "So that's how it is," she murmured.
Seeming to shake her mind off something, she turned back to the Elder. "Two of the companions are missing."
"Neither could make it to the dinner, Cepheed Knight," The Elder told her, bowing.
"Ah. Well. They will learn of this later then. Do not fail Us again." Luna swayed slightly and sat heavily in her seat, and EVERYBODY relaxed. She turned to grin at Guntair, eyes once again shadowed. "That's always quite a dizzying rush." Though she didn't seem too steady, she didn't seem unwell either, and Guntair got the impression that she could even fight in this condition. She was nowhere near as weak as she made herself out to be, that was for sure.
Guntair nodded, looked down at his plate, and looked up into his mother's eyes. He swallowed, suddenly. I had hoped I wouldn't see her again...
"Guntair. I'm surprised your little tainted girlfriend isn't here," Dalia sighed. "I wished to meet her."
He felt all his muscles tense. That'll never happen if I have anything to say about it. "She hasn't been feeling well."
"A pity. Of course, it makes sense, you know. As the Guardians, our city has powerful wards around it. Even if she is not, as you say, evil, the Mazoku taint in her will make her feel unwell in contrast with them."
He shrugged uncomfortably. "Perhaps. That could be it." It pained him to give his mother even this concession.
"You know, there are ways to remove taint," his mother began.
Luna leaned over, resting an elbow on Guntair's shoulder with nerve-racking casualness. Guntair hadn't been surrounded by this many people or this near to many women since... His throat constricted. That's over. She's dead. Yet the fear was still there.
"Dalia-san," Luna was drawling. "Removal of taint puts an awful strain on the system, especially for humans. In the state she's in now, it could make her much worse, and could crack her mind, though I'm certain she's got great willpower. The cure could be worse than the infliction."
Guntair's mother tossed her hair back. "Well. If Guntair and she herself WISH for her to remain something stained for the rest of her life, I'm sure they're welcome to it." She patted Guntair's other shoulder condescendingly, and walked off.
"Now THERE'S," Luna said softly, into Guntair's ear, "a woman with a burr WAY up her ass."
The Black Dragon's eyes widened as he watched the stiff way his mother was walking and then burst into laughter. Dalia glanced at him and he looked down at his plate again, still chuckling. "Luna, you may well be the death of me."
Luna's next words were sobering. "I hope I'm not."
"I know I can't be with you,
I do what I have to do."
Amelia was beginning to get scared. Sight of the surface of these black waters had disappeared long ago and she still couldn't fight her way upwards. Her breath was getting tight. "Guntair?" she called. "Lina-san? Zelgadis-san? 'Tou-san? Xelloss-san? N-kun?! GUNTAIR?!"
Nobody came for her.
It was getting cold. Though the waters had been lapping around her, her clothes hadn't been getting wet... but now she was terribly, soul-shakingly cold. "GUNTAIR?! Come find me! PLEASE!"
Nobody came.
"Somebody," she sobbed, choking on her own tears as her lungs tightened further. She could feel herself begin to hyperventilate, trying to find air. "Anybody..."
There was only one other person who usually found her. She hesitated to call, not knowing the voice's name, hating to call her the other name, the one she would respond to, but needing somebody, anybody. It was so lonely, and so cold... "Master? Please, come to me, I need you..."
Her eyes blurred, and she wiped away tears. Opening them again, she saw a hand, dark-skinned, with delicate long fingers and almost threatening nails stretching towards her, reaching for her. Almost uncertain to what she was doing, she reached for it, crying aloud now, chest aching with the effort.
It was out of reach.
"I'm so sorry, child," the voice murmured, sounding far away, as if on the other side of a door. "I cannot reach you where you are... don't give up... I will be back for you when I can get your kin to you... when I can reach your kin. You are falling... do not fall..." The voice trailed out, and the hand vanished.
"NO!" Amelia screamed as the loneliness slammed into her again. "COME BACK! DON'T LEAVE ME HERE!!!!"
She wrapped her arms around herself as she cried. "Gun..." she whispered. She didn't like being lonely like this.
She wished he'd find her.
"I know I can't be with you
I do what I have to do..."
Zelgadis pressed himself back into the shadows as some half-asleep young Ryuzoku passed him in the hall. He shouldn't be doing this. Xelloss could take care of himself. The stupid Mazoku KNEW what'd happen to him. So he shouldn't be bothering with this.
Damn it.
It would be nice if he had even HALF a chance in hell of convincing himself.
Someone tugged on his pant's leg and he nearly had a heart attack, barely able to muffle his startled cry. He clutched at his heart as N-kun blinked huge, pupilless eyes at him. "Don't DO that!"
"What're you doing?" N-kun asked mildly.
Zelgadis flushed. "Nothing."
"I see," N-kun nodded wisely. "I do see." He held up a basket of food. "I'm bringing some snacks to Amelia in case she's hungry, okay? Tell Xelloss I said 'hi'."
The chimera's jaw nearly hit the floor.
"See you." N-kun gave him a last wave and wandered back down the hall.
It was so unfair. Apparently even the kid knew. I'm becoming so transparent, he groused mentally, grinding his teeth. Whatever happened to the heartless swordsman? Damn it all.
He knew what had happened.
It was SO unfair.
Zelgadis felt so stupid, knowing that he was acting like... some love-struck youth. He wished he could just turn back now and go to his room and... meditate or something. Anything other than giving in to these pathetic desires to... rescue Xelloss. He was no white knight, and Xelloss was most definitely no innocent needing rescue.
"Stop apologizing, Chris-chan," Luna sighed. "Xelloss is a big boy, he can take a little pain, and you and I can't do anything about it. We must leave that for the people who can."
And what gives ME the right to be that person?! [B21]
He was at the door, the one Chris had described when he'd caught her after the dinner. The poor girl wasn't aggressive enough, and had been terrified of him. Normally, he didn't care, but it had gotten on his nerves then. At least he'd found out where they were keeping Xelloss.
Carefully, prepared to cast a spell if anyone should be in there, he opened the door. No response. Carefully, ever so carefully, he peered around the door, muscles tensed.
And stepped into the doorway, eyes wide with shock. He had seen torture scenes before... hell, had initiated them before, however badly they'd turned out... but none of them had made something inside him twist like this sight did.
Xelloss was laid out on some metal table, eyes closed and head tilted to the side, shirtless and looking so strangely vulnerable. Burn marks dotted his body, pieces of paper sticking to his skin in an almost magnetic effect. His shirt, bag, cloak, and staff were on the floor nearby, items from his bag scattered and clearly picked through. Zelgadis still wasn't certain if Xelloss ever slept or not, but this didn't look like a natural sleep to his eyes.
Moving closer, he shook Xelloss slightly. "Oi. Wake up." No response; it was definitely not sleep. Unconsciousness perhaps. Or maybe it was the wards.
He examined the papers. All had elabourate symbols on them in a language Zelgadis couldn't read. It didn't matter; whatever they were, they couldn't be doing the Mazoku any good. Methodically, Zelgadis began removing them.
The ward on Xelloss's shoulder went first. Nothing. The one on his cheek. Still nothing. The one on his forehead and...
Xelloss's eyes flickered slightly, then opened, gazing at Zelgadis. He didn't seem to recognize his surroundings or Zelgadis... he's not reacting yet, Zelgadis realized, reaching out and shaking him again. "Wake up, Xelloss!"
Finally, the Mazoku seemed to focus slightly. "Zel...?" Frantically, suddenly, he clawed at his own chest, the last piece of paper there, but missed, as if he didn't have complete motor control. "Please..." he croaked through split lips that bled and healed even as Zelgadis watched.
It hurt, seeing Xelloss so weak, in pain. Suddenly angry at the Dragons for doing this to him, at Xelloss for letting it happen, at himself for not interfering, he ripped the last ward off.
Xelloss gasped, wrapping his arms around himself and shuddering for a second. "Help..."
"I am helping," Zelgadis snapped, immediately regretting doing so. Xelloss wasn't really the focal point of his anger. [B22] "What do you want me to do?"
"Need... staff."
The chimera hurried over, scooping up Xelloss's shirt, cloak, bag, and what was left of his belongings, and grabbed the staff, pressing it into Xelloss's hands.
Xelloss's eyes went wide, and then small whimperings began in the back of his throat, like an animal in pain. He reached for Zelgadis with the hand not gripping the staff, panting escaping between the whimpers. "Kin!" His voice was hoarse still, and full of desperate pleading.
"What? I don't understand!" Xelloss was making no sense. How badly had those godsdamned dragons hurt him?!
Slowly, Xelloss was regaining control over his body, pushing himself into an unsteady sitting position and reaching out for Zelgadis again, yet still the whimpers came. "Kin in... danger. Amelia. I have to... help her. Take me to..." He drew in a sharp breath as he tried to force himself to stand. "..to Amelia."
Zelgadis looked at him blankly. "Amelia's fine. She just was feeling a bit ill."
The Mazoku shook his head, whole body shaking with the effort. "She's... dying. I'm the only one who... can help. She's pack... kin. Must...help her." [A13]
That sent a chill straight into Zelgadis's stomach. On one hand, Xelloss was in no shape for a healing like he'd done back in the Seiryuun palace. On the other hand... Amelia was one of the few people who cared for him, whom he'd do anything to protect. His friends were his true family, and he refused to just sit back and know she'd die. At least in this, he could do something.
But...
"Xelloss is a big boy, he can take a little pain."
Xelloss must know his own limits.
Zelgadis helped Xelloss to his feet, slinging one of the Mazoku's arms over his shoulders and half-carrying him, half- helping him walk towards the door. "Come on," he said grimly.
"And I have the strength to recognize
that I don't know how to let you go."
Guntair paced back and forth across the floor of Amelia's room, not noticing N-kun's eyes following his path. "I don't like this," he muttered for the thirtieth time.
Nakoku had arrived first, and had sat by Amelia's bed, waiting. He wished he could interfere, but something inside him reminded that there was only one thing he could ever interfere in. Strange, that. He used to pretend the voice wasn't there, but lately... he'd been treating it as if it was an honest part of him. Any day now, he'd remember how it'd got there. He was sure of it.
The trouble was that he liked Amelia. He couldn't interfere in any way at all... now that she was unconscious, using his parents' knowledge of natural healing and making her a health-improving tea wouldn't help. And he most certainly couldn't interfere in the other way - whatever that was; he knew he'd know one of these days. So instead of doing anything, he'd sat there, brushing back her bangs with his hands, watching his fingers lengthen as his body grew when the sun set, hoping that she could at least feel she wasn't alone. Finally, Guntair had shown up to see how she was doing, his worry that she might not get enough sleep overwhelmed by his desire to keep her safe. Nakoku had been able to report her condition, at least, and hadn't moved from his spot beside her bed.
She was such a nice girl.
"Why won't she wake up?" Guntair demanded roughly, stopping pacing suddenly to throw himself to his knees beside her bed, taking her hands in his. He'd given up on waking her earlier, though he'd spent some concerted efforts to do so when he saw how pale and sweaty she was.
"It's probably a fever-sleep," N-kun said, knowing it wasn't the truth but knowing that it was the best explanation Guntair would accept. "I used to get them when I was really little," he added, making the lie more real.
She was slipping. He could feel it, and there was nothing he could do.
Luna entered the room again. "No change?" She'd shown up about half an hour ago with Guntair, but kept leaving on 'Knight errands' [A14] and returning briefly. She'd deposited Chris in a corner the second time. The halfbreed girl continued to sit there, just watching them, knees pulled up to her chest, head on her knees, cast-iron waitressing tray beneath her hand on the floor.
The Cepheed Knight hadn't been at all surprised to see Nakoku's natural form, but he could have guessed that. Chris hadn't even responded, but that... well, there was something broken about that one. Nakoku could sense it, somehow. Besides, waitresses were good at not commenting about that sort of thing.
"No change I could see," Guntair growled, clearly hating his inability to do anything. Nakoku could understand. "Maybe I should get a healer..."
"That'll be a bad idea," Luna said. "They'd have to remove the taint first and that could kill her." The waitress shook her head, expression unreadable. "Better to see if she can just sweat it out."
Guntair buried his face in his arms. "I hate this," he muttered, voice muffled by the cloth.
"We all do," Nakoku said, certain of that at least.
Amelia was such a nice girl.
The door opened, and Guntair leaped to his feet. "Who's - "
Zelgadis staggered through, half dragging Xelloss, shutting the door behind him with a foot. Xelloss shoved away slightly, leaning on his staff, and stumbling towards Amelia.
Nakoku could foresee the next move and was absolutely not surprised to see it come to pass. He brushed Amelia's hair away from her sweat-soaked forehead.
The black dragon blocked Xelloss's path. "Where do you think YOU'RE going?!"
Xelloss seemed to hardly see him. "Must help Amelia."
"Bullshit!" Guntair shouted. "If it hadn't been for your damn taint, she'd be able to be healed of this!"
The Mazoku was shaking, clearly unsteady. Nakoku narrowed pupilless eyes. He hadn't shaken off the effects of the warding yet, or the normal 'tani wards were still keeping him unwell. "If it hadn't been for my... damn... taint, she'd be dead twice over..."
Guntair was going to run over that, ignore what had been said, so Nakoku spoke up. "Twice over? What do you mean?"
Surely that little interference didn't count.
Xelloss wavered. "Please, let me to Amelia." The humble tone really seemed odd from him, but Nakoku guessed he didn't have much of a choice. There was more than what he himself wanted in this, there was... Someone else wanted this and Xelloss was NOT going to disobey.
Luna sighed, speaking up to answer Nakoku's question. "I think I know, N-kun. If I'm right... the poison wasn't the kind that wears off, but circulates in her system, so Xelloss had to place a permanent block of dark energy to fight off the effects of the poison."
Zelgadis and Guntair both made slight noises of surprise. Nakoku was not at all startled. Of course Luna knew. Luna knew a LOT of things. In an odd way... Luna is like me.
Xelloss nodded, swaying wearily. "She's dying Guntair. Let me to her."
"But..."
Luna continued. "The fact that the dark energy taint was constantly in battle with the poison is why she hasn't shown many signs of acting like a Mazoku. But... once inside the basic wards of the Tani, the dark energy was weakened, and the poison began to flow through her veins again. The only way to stop that is to give the taint a sustained boost. Am I right?"
Xelloss nodded again. "Guntair... do you want her to live?"
Guntair's eyes were wide and shocked. "But... why didn't you tell me this?!"
The Cepheed Knight shrugged. "I wasn't sure. Besides... would you have listened?"
"I don't like this!" Guntair cried. "She's having enough trouble with the taint as it is! I don't want her to become any more Mazoku!"
Nakoku held his breath. Here it was, the deciding factor. Xelloss was saving his energy to help Amelia; should he put forward the will to push past the angry dragon in his current state, he wouldn't be able to bring Amelia back. Should Guntair step aside, Xelloss could save her. But Guntair was so stuck in his ways...
"Let. Me. To. Her." It almost sounded like it hurt Xelloss to talk.
"NO!" Guntair's voice had risen to an almost hysterical shout. "NO! I won't LET you!"
Zelgadis stalked forward, every line of him snapping with angry tension. "Godsdamnit!" he swore, beginning to push Guntair to the side. "You aren't saying that because you don't want her to be like a Mazoku for HER sake! You're saying that because you're afraid of Mazoku! Get over it! Xelloss is NOT well, I took him from a state of torture your people put him into!! It's going to hurt him like HELL to help Amelia and YOU are willing to let her die because of your memories! Damn it, deal with your personal problems at a different time! I, for one, am not willing to just let Amelia die!!"
Guntair pushed away from him, face reading shock and pain. "I... I..." he began, then glanced back at Amelia, far too pale for her own good. "Cepheed damn me, do it!" he shouted, taking Xelloss by the shoulders and flinging him towards the girl. "Just save her! I..." his angry tone stopped as his lips moved, forming words that never got said, eyes seeing something far away and long ago. "Cepheed damn me," he murmured painfully, sinking down to the floor, and starting to cry.
Nakoku left Amelia's bedside, eyes focused on the dragon. Who knew what Guntair was seeing? He had Hangups. Nakoku had seen it over and over again. He had never seen an adult man cry like this, though, great gulping sobs that wracked his whole body, seeming to draw himself away from everything in the room, make himself smaller. He didn't want to be touched, that much was for sure, but aside from Amelia, Guntair was one of the people who had been nicest to Nakoku.
This wasn't interference, he was sure, as he knelt down beside the crying dragon and patted his hair, trying not to touch him so much that he descended into his own personal hell, but trying to give comfort. "It'll be okay," Nakoku whispered. Empty words.
Guntair jerked away from his touch, curling tighter, not acknowledging he was there. Nakoku sighed. The only person able to pull Guntair from this was Guntair himself. [B23] He remained sitting there, but turned back to watch Xelloss.
The Mazoku did NOT look well, but was nevertheless getting down to business; resting his staff against Amelia's unconscious body, leaning against Zelgadis so as not to waste energy trying to keep himself upright, or perhaps in an attempt to block some of the wardings. Whatever the reason, the Chimera knelt behind him, trying to keep Xelloss steady, looking angry or possibly worried. Probably both. The Mazoku rested his head on the sheets and took a wrist in each hand. Sighing slightly, Xelloss began to concentrate, and when Nakoku narrowed his eyes, he saw black energy begin to flow out of the Mazoku's body and into Amelia's, touching something inside her and slowly fanning it to life.
Strangely, he got the feeling that he was the only person who could see it.
He'd find out one of these days, really. [A15]
It was on this thought that he heard the door open. [B24]
Nakoku cursed mentally when he saw the woman standing there; she'd know his other form now, and she was clearly NOT the type to trust anyone. Too late to worry about that now. Zelgadis's brows furrowed as if trying to remember where he'd seen her. Luna sighed and placed her head in her hand, and Chris forced herself further back against the wall.
"What is going on here?!" the woman demanded.
Slowly, tears streaking his face and body still shaking, Guntair raised his head. "Mother?" [B25]
"What is going ON here?!" Dalia screeched. "Who is that?!" she pointed towards Nakoku, who scooted away from her son, just to be on the safe side. Not, he pointed out wryly to herself, that she'd ever done that great a job of protecting her son. "How... what...?" Dalia finally saw what was going on near the bed. "The Mazoku..." she whispered, shocked. "The Mazoku's loose."
Xelloss turned his head slightly, opening eyes with slightly dilated pupils and smiling at her. "Remember a promise I made, young lady?" he rasped.
Zelgadis watched the woman with dark eyes, one hand on his sword-hilt, the other beginning to glow with a spell as he blocked both Amelia and Xelloss from the woman's potential attacks.
Luna raised her hands. "Everyone, please. Calm down. I can explain every - "
"The Mazoku's LOOSE!" Dalia was in no state to listen. "I have to sound the alarm! We'll put him back and then - "
"NO!" Guntair stumbled to his feet, wild-eyed, clutching at his sword. "Amelia will DIE!"
"Better her then us!" Dalia said in a panicked tone, backing towards the door. Luna blocked her path and the Ryuzoku woman spun to face her. "Cepheed Knight! How could you condone - "
"Will you please calm down," Luna soothed, a blue glow starting near her forehead.
Dalia slapped her.
Luna's eyes couldn't be seen in the layers of shadows under her bangs, but the air seemed to freeze in motion near her. Very slowly, she straightened from the twisted pose the slap with Ryuzoku strength behind it had thrown her into. Quite possibly, Nakoku realized, only Cepheed's presence inside of her stopped her from being slammed through one of the walls.
Guntair's mother didn't seem to notice. "You can't be the person you say you are! No Ryuzoku protector would EVER allow a Mazoku loose! Look at this! You're allowing taint to spread! I'm sounding the alarm!" She raised a gem on her necklace, which started to glow.
Communications device, Nakoku noted, sitting back on his heels. He couldn't interfere. We're toast. Amelia's going to die.
"I need - " Dalia began and -
- crumpled.
Well, I'll be damned, Nakoku thought. I'd never have guessed.
Without a pause, as a voice from the gem began to ask what was wrong, Luna scooped up the device. "Dalia-san and I were just discussing a few things and she set the device off on accident. No problems here. Over and out." Luna shut the gem off and turned to their unlikely saviour. "Well done."
Chris took a step backward from Dalia's crumpled body, clasping her now-dented cast iron waitressing tray to her chest, eyes wide with shock. "I'm sorry," she whispered, taking another step back.
Guntair's brows creased. "Is she...?"
The Cepheed Knight took a pulse. "Just unconscious."
"Ah." Guntair lowered his head, a look of relief and disgust written across his features..
Luna stood. "You all have to get out of here. Amelia won't be well until you're out, and it won't be long before people find out Xelloss is missing. I'll set up a Gate to just outside the Tani. Chris, you go get Lina-chan and Gourry-san."
"Hai!" Chris backed towards the door, eyes still on Dalia's unconscious form. "I'll just... do that now!" She spun and set off in a run.
Xelloss released Amelia and stood, trembling. Zelgadis immediately took one of his arms and flung it across his own shoulders. The Mazoku's eyes were opened. "I've stabilized Amelia for now," he said, very calmly. "And now I'm going to kill Dalia."
Guntair's head shot up again. "No you aren't!" he shouted, jumping to his feet.
The Mazoku eyed him, a slightly mad look in those slit-pupilled eyes implying that he wasn't all there at that time. "Why do you care? Look how she's treated you."
"That... that doesn't matter!" Guntair shook his head wildly. "I hate her, yes, but there're some things people just don't let happen to family! She can go to Hell after death and rot for all I care, but I'm NOT going to watch as someone sends her there! She's FAMILY!"
Xelloss leaned against Zelgadis. "I wouldn't know about that. All I know is that I promised I'd kill her for what she did to me. I don't break such promises."
Nakoku watched with interest. This was new, but not that surprising. What would happen? Frankly, he was fine one way or the other. Dalia deserved death, but Guntair didn't deserve the guilt. It balanced.
Balance was important.
"We don't have time for this," Luna muttered, drawing a circle on the ground in chalk and starting on the sigils. "Has Xellas-chan approved this, Xelloss?"
The Mazoku's eyes widened. "Not... yet..." he hedged.
"Fine. So kill her later, after you've got approval. Argue it out with Guntair then. We don't have time for this now!"
Xelloss lowered his head, allowing his weight to rest full against Zelgadis, as if the strength had drained from him. "Fine."
Guntair growled, but didn't reach again for his blade . He turned towards the bed. Amelia was still pale, but her breathing was at a more natural pace. Nakoku watched him carefully pick the smaller girl up. She looked so delicate in his arms.
I hope it lasts through the end, he thought, then wondered why.
Lina and Gourry burst into the room, Chris entering quietly after and shutting the door. "What HAPPENED?!" Lina demanded. "Chris told me a few things, - and pulled us away from dessert - but..."
"We've got to get out of here," Zelgadis told her. "They tortured Xelloss, the wards were killing Amelia because of the taint, and it's not long until the alarms go."
"That's bad," Gourry said, the understatement of the week.
"That's really bad," Lina corrected, turning to watch her older sister set up the gate. Nakoku observed a flash of fear cross her face. Odd how old fears never die, he mused, reflecting how in that respect, she was very similar to Guntair.
Luna took a step back. "I'll open the gate in just a minute, but first I must charge you with a task, Lina-chan."
Lina flinched and, for once, didn't argue. "Yes, Oneesan. What's the task?"
Crossing her arms, the Cepheed Knight seemed once again to radiate power. "I have seen the thief who stole the part of Shabrinigido." A brief illusion of a green-haired boy flashed in the air. "Remember that face. He was on the road from Zefilia and heading North-West. I'm sure you can track him; Shabrinigido will be trying to call you there, if you listen. You MUST bring the Ruby Teardrop back to me. Without it, a war will start and most of the world's population would be destroyed. Do you understand?"
"Sure," Lina sighed. "I've done harder things before, I guess."
Nakoku's eyes widened. She wouldn't! Hell, she just did. Well, no going back now. "It should be fun!" he piped up. And it might not turn out that way. Deep inside, though, he knew that Something was about to happen.
"Good." Luna turned back and murmured something, moving her hands in an elabourate gesture, and the gate energies flared up. "Go on!"
Lina immediately dashed through, Gourry as always following close behind. Guntair followed, Amelia cradled in his arms, giving one last respectful nod to Luna. Zelgadis dragged Xelloss towards the gate, Xelloss using most of his strength to cling to the chimera and clutching the staff in his other, and before they were through, Luna whispered something in Xelloss's ear. The chimera eyed the two of them, but said nothing as he continued to bring his lover through the gate. Chris as well took a step towards the shifting gate, but Luna put a hand on her arm to stop her.
The waitress's eyes widened again. "But - " she began, gesturing towards the fallen Dalia. "But she - "
Luna shook her head. "I can explain everything," she said with a very dark smile, and Chris stepped back, submissive.
There's something broken about that one.
Turning, the Cepheed Knight eyed him. "Well? Are you going or is there something you wish to say? I can't hold this gate forever, ya know."
He sighed. "I wish you luck," he said, barely knowing why. Oddly, he had the feeling that this woman knew more about himself than he did.
"Thank you," she said. "In the end, it will either be destruction or more stasis. That's the way it's always been. I haven't done anything except attempt to start the cycle again."
Shrugging, sure that he'd understand (one day, at least), he stepped through the gate.
I don't know how to let you go.
Lina sighed, watching the fire. They were out. They'd traveled for several hours until they were sure they were safe for this night, at least. Amelia had come to, but was very groggy and uncertain on her ordeal. Guntair had refused to let her walk on her own, carrying her instead.
They were cute.
Zelgadis was talking quietly to Xelloss, who was shaking his head rapidly, denying something. Another few short words from Zelgadis, and a sheepish shrug.
They... she still didn't know what to think. She didn't approve, that was sure. Xelloss was... just... so... well, he couldn't be good for Zelgadis. That was all.
And she wasn't jealous either.
She found her gaze wandering towards Gourry, the shadows the fire played on his face as he also watched the dancing flames. Something inside her jerked, and she yanked her gaze away, back to the fire. No. It would never work. He was a good friend. (Just a friend.) I mean, Gourry. He was Gourry. That said it all. There was no romance for her in her plans, none whatsoever. She was better off without it, anyway.
Her chest was hurting. Must have run too far today.
Then there was N-kun. The leather-clad cursed boy was sitting with his back to the tree, clearly nodding off, just the bottom of his lime green irises visible beneath his closing eyelids.
He was no more than what he seemed. Of them all, there was that at least.
She closed her own eyes, sighing again. So. Oneesan sends me on another quest. Her smile twisted. Recover a part of Shabrinigido. Well, this should be easier than the last one, at least. I'm betting old Ruby Eyed is rather anxious for me to get my hands on it. Maybe I can fool him into thinking I'll do something for him and just give it back to her. That'll show him for invading my dreams all these nights.
Yeah, that'll show him.
Lina was jerked back into full wakefulness by the sound of Xelloss's voice by her ear.
"Lina-san, are you awake?"
She opened her eye, pretending she hadn't just been about to fall asleep. "Yeah, what?"
Xelloss sat back on his heels. Oddly, his burn marks were still visible. Normally, he healed faster than that. "Luna-chan requested I talk to you about a few things, and the others should listen to this as well." He paused as the others drew nearer. N-kun remained leaning against his tree, eyes hardly open.
"I'm listening," Lina told him, feigning disinterest, wondering why her sister hadn't just told her herself.
"It's about the true nature of the Knights..."
Author's Notes
The end for now. To be continued in Foes part 2.
Author's and Beta Reader's notes:
Boy, this took a long time to come out, eh? Well, it's done. Finally. Phew. Yeah. There will be more, btw. 2 whole more parts. Don't you just feel special? Don't I just feel exhausted?
Ishiki: Yaay! little flags are waved in celebration Now doesn't that make you just wanna go write some more, 'kami-chan? Like, how 'bout, right now? It's not like you need to sleep, or eat, or study... really!
Harukami: Biiiiig sweatdrop
A1
"...sothebaththingwasbutnottheotherthing..."
Author: Uhuh. The bath thing. I've got a lovely manga (doujinshi?) picture of that, btw. Droolsome. demonstrates
Ishiki: hands the author a bucket
B1
"All of his beliefs shattered as Xelloss flung himself at the Cepheed Knight and hugged her. "Luna-chan! It's been a while!""
Ishiki: Hopefully, Xelloss didn't 'miss'. Of course, Luna has a much larger, um, tracks of land, but still... not only would that kill even more of Guntair's mind, but Zel would Not Be Happy.
A2
"Xelloss-chan! You can say that again!"
Author: Xelloss-chan? Oh dear. And watch Zelgadis foam at the mouth. ^_^
A3
"Ixnay on the rankspray."
Author: Yesss.... pig latin is a common language in the Slayers world... why?
B2
"Oh, and Juuou-sama is mad that you haven't been by for a while."
Ishiki: as Xellas "You never call, you never write, you don't love me anymore..."
B3
"Guntair looked at the ground, almost imagining he could see the shattered remains of his ideals there."
Ishiki: Yeah Guntair, your ideals are right there mixed in with Zel's sanity, Amelia's days of peaceful sleep and Lina's mind...
B4
"Zelgadis watched this new girl coolly. Well. SHE certainly made Xelloss happy."
Ishiki: Not as happy as you make him, 'sweetie pie'.
A4
"She can't have him."
Author: And he says he's not jealous.
B5
"He closed his eyes and tried to calm down. Breathe. Breathe. Think, don't feel. Just think. Try not to..."
Ishiki: ... leap over and show the world that Xelloss is most definitely yours? Ohh, that would be interesting...
Harukami: giggles at the mental image of Zel clutching at Xel's groin and growling at everyone...
B6
"Well, she wasn't asleep, Gourry decided worriedly. That probably meant that... was she unconscious? "Lina?""
Ishiki: It's odd. Whenever Lina is attacked, Gourry is often the first person to go on defense, but whenever anything that isn't related to protecting her from other people happens, he's the first one confused.
Harukami: He's trained in fighting. He's not trained in psychiatry or healing.
B7
"You're sorry? Why are you sorry for looking at the ground?"
Poor Gourry. With the crowd he hangs out with, it's understandable why he wouldn't recognize bashfulness for what it is.
B8
"She's probably just a normal country girl who followed Luna for whatever reason. And she's a waitress. I doubt anyone's ever really talked to her before. She somehow took up with Luna, and - huh. I pity the poor girl."
Ishiki: Zel, you wouldn't know normal if it hit you over the head with a two by four.
Harukami: Hear, hear!
A5
"I just wish she'd wake up."
Author: I'm a Lina/Gourry fan. Can you tell?
A6
"I'm here now and I'm going to be with you always. She's dead and she can't hurt you anymore..."
Author: Ack, does anyone else hear my GIRLFRIEND speaking those lines? 0.0
Ishiki: shudders
Author: mildly Don't shudder at my girlfriend.
B9
"How?" Amelia crossed her arms, pulling away from Guntair. "How is my being Mazoku-tainted any different from your definition of 'corrupt'... and 'deserving to be slaughtered'?"
"You would have died!"
Ishiki: Ohh, Valgarv parallels... 'Cept, of course, he went all the way, and willingly... Ack! I meant in becoming a mazoku! Not that! Mind out of the gutter... out of the gutter... oh damn...
Harukami: happily nodding and smiling Yep, he definitely went all the way with Garv. pulls on a rubber parka and gets out an air tank as the Hentai Tsunami crashes down around them
B10
"I love you. Don't leave me."
She chuckled. "You don't have to worry about th - "
Ishiki: as Amelia " - at unless Luna-san keeps putting off visiting Xellas-sama. Really. And it's not that I don't love you, but she's my master, and you know how these things go..."
B11
"If you don't know," the weakened Xelloss mocked, eyes open and dark, "I'm not going to tell you."
Ishiki: Methinks that someone has been dressing like a girl too much...
A7
"You're not hurting Lina!"
Author: And my bias becomes even more apparent.
B12
"Mm." Lina blinked at him. Zelgadis did not look good. He seemed on the knife's edge of angry, and though Lina had never brought it up, his getting angry reminded her of the average Mazoku. She searched for a possibly safe subject. "Where is everyone?"
Ishiki: Lina-chan, that is not a safe subject.
B13
"N-kun grinned, eyes up in happy smile shapes. "You bet! I wanna meet your family!" He held out his arms, obviously expecting to be carried."
Ishiki: And for all the poor dragon lad knows, the kid doesn't have any family of his own. Oh, what a pleasant reintroduction to domestic life this will be...
Harukami: Actually, Gun BELIEVES N-kun doesn't have any family. Remember his (fictional) dead sister?
A8
"Mazoku and Mazoku-tainted? Really, Guntair, I thought I raised you better than that."
Author: hisses You know you hate your own characters when...
B14
"Why am I so jumpy?"
Ishiki: Because some small part of you expects paranoid ryuuozoku to jump out and kill you any minute now? Or you're missing the extra edge the taint probably gave to your senses, especially your instinct for sensing danger?
Harukami: whistles innocently
B15
"My stomach feels like it's trying to turn itself inside out and my head aches all the way through... I feel a little lightheaded." Even feeling like she did, she couldn't keep a smile from crossing her face. "Your prognosis, Dr. Guntair?"
Ishiki: Guntair and Amelia play doctor. Interesting.
Harukami: reads the above sentance and breaks out laughing
B16
""Are you sure?" his voice seemed to be in two registers at the same time..."
Ishiki: Like the neat thing that L-sama's voice does, the two tones at once? Cool.
Harukami: applauds sarcastically
B17
"Zelgadis didn't respond. That doesn't mean I have to like it. "How'd you meet him?" The Cepheed Knight propped her feet up on Lina's bed. "Showed up at my doorstep one day as an emissary." "
Ishiki: FINISH THAT STORY, 'KAMI-CHAN!!! I WANT MORE OF IT!!!
Harukami: cleans her ear out with a finger and winces Yes, dear. Working on it, dear. Have it up to 9 pages handwritten, dear.
A9
"...we will try our damnedest to kill each other, no holds barred, even though we're lovers."
Author: Okay, so I couldn't resist throwing just a LITTLE Yuri in.
A10
"Damn stuck up bastards, not letting a person steal just because she's a girl."
Author: There IS a reason for this.
A11
"I think he's coming to, sir."
Author: Yep. The promised Xelloss torture scene! Huzzah!
B18
"Gaze flickering back and forth between the Ryuzoku and Xelloss, she seemed to have forgotten what she was saying and stammered, "and... and... that's it..." "
Ishiki: So tell me, ojousan, who are the monsters here? The dragons that you were raised to hate and fear, the mazoku whom everyone are taught to hate and fear, or both? Perhaps neither? Both are only doing what they must. Tell me, ojousan, I would really like to know...
B19
""Go to your dinner, young lady. Eat, drink, and be merry..." [B19] The paper touched his forehead, leaving the rest of his sentiment unheard as his mind fled."
Ishiki:...for tomorrow you die? Is that a quote from somewhere, or just my twisted mind? I can't remember...
Harukami: Oh, it's a quote, all right. I just wish I could remember from where...
A12
"The... A PIECE OF Shabrinigido?!"
Author: Well, I'd find it shocking.
B20
"No. We have other duties We must attend to, not the least of which is raising one who has been ignored by her own race. One of the Guardians will go."
"Let me," The Elder begged. "Let me make up for our error - "
Ishiki: You idiot, you really think that Luna doesn't know the contempt you hold for Chris? If nothing else, that would no doubt stop her - them - from choosing you to mend a much larger mistake...
B21
"And what gives ME the right to be that person?!"
Ishiki: A night on silk sheets, with amethyst eyes gazing into your own, and the touch of his hands and his mind. Don't you remember? And every breath, every heartbeat since then, and no small few before. Silly boy.
Harukami: See? SEE? This is how she writes her stories, or perhaps even BETTER than this! COME ON EVERYBODY! BUG HER FOR 'OTHER VOICES'!!!
B22
"I am helping," Zelgadis snapped, immediately regretting doing so. Xelloss wasn't really the focal point of his anger. [B22] "What do you want me to do?"
Ishiki: Yeah, but your anger, frustration, and regret are no doubt helping him; after all, he is a Mazoku.
A13
"She's... dying. I'm the only one who... can help. She's pack... kin. Must...help her."
Author: Yeah, Xelas LIKES Amelia.
Ishiki: And if priest boy there doesn't hurry up and save her, Xelas'd probably take it out on his hide.
A14
"...but kept leaving on 'Knight errands'..."
Author: Knight Errants?
B23
"Guntair jerked away from his touch, curling tighter, not acknowledging he was there. Nakoku sighed. The only person able to pull Guntair from this was Guntair himself."
Ishiki: That's it Guntair. Even if you can't help Amelia directly, the emotions you're broadcasting are probably feeding every Mazoku from here to Zephilia.
A15
"He'd find out one of these days, really."
Author: Hehehehehehe!!!
B24
It was on this thought that he heard the door open.
Ishiki: And in the background, there is an inconspicuous ominous clap of thunder.
Harukami: Dum da da da DUMMMM!!
B25
"Slowly, tears streaking his face and body still shaking, Guntair raised his head. "Mother?""
Ishiki: Eh, poor dragon lad. There he is, trapped in his memories, and who should snap him out of it, but one of the two women at the heart of his personal hell... Sure, Yume abused him for two hundred years, but his mother's influence probably made it all the easier to break him.
Ishiki: Good luck with the rest of it, 'kami-chan! The voices in my head are rooting for ya!
Harukami: Thank you. Hopefully, we'll see Other Voices soon, right?