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Author’s note: Hiya! Me again! I actually wrote a whole bunch! Wow…anyway, this is a nice, long part. Initially, this was part of the previous chapter too, but I decided 23 pages was too big a deviation from my usual 8-10 pages. Hehe…anyway, this part is long, but I don’t know where to break it again anyway. Hmm…the next part might not be out for awhile, stupid college applications…(Mutter, mutter)…
"Why do we have to camp outside?" Lina muttered as she set up her bedroll. The sun was now setting off in the distance, drowning the scenery in red-orange light. She didn’t like the color, it reminded her too much of the vision of the future that Zira had shown them at the Sanctuary.
"Because no one wants to travel at night except for Xelloss, and there aren’t any convenient inns around." Zira said. The enigmatic woman had appeared about the middle of the day, showing no surprise whatsoever at their new traveling companion. "And quit complaining. No one wants to listen to a whiny brat."
"Are you on my side or not?" Lina retorted. She still held a healthy amount of respect for her ‘teacher’, but sometimes the woman’s callous attitude rubbed her the wrong way.
"I should hope so." Zira said, looking at Xelloss as he talked to his wolf and Filia as she tried to help Phillip set up camp. Gourry was off hunting for dinner and Amelia was cleaning up. "Are you ready for a lesson?"
"It’s about time."
Zira shook her head. "Sometimes, you have to be a little more patient."
"Patience is a thing for people with long lives," Lina said with a snort. "I’m human. I don’t have that kind of time."
"You don’t. But you aren’t the only one who doesn’t have time." Zira sighed. "My first time as a teacher and I’m already botching things…Nevermind, let’s go."
Phillip cried out in fear as the woman in gray armor took Lina’s hand and disappeared into thin air. "Filia-san! Look!"
Filia turned and saw that Lina was gone. "Oh, that’s just Zira. She’s going to give Lina lessons in magic now. They always disappear when they’re doing that." Phillip didn’t look very convinced.
"Well, why don’t they just do it here?"
"People will notice."
"Oh." Phillip couldn’t help but feel a little stupid. "Ur…how long before we get to Sairaag?" Filia serenely cleaned the pair of daggers that she wore at her waist.
"About two days. We’re close."
Lina fell on her back with a barely stifled scream. Her whole body was protesting as she forced herself back into a standing position. Zira tapped her stick against her hand.
"Lina, really. You didn’t see that coming?" She asked, black and white energy crackling around her. " Concentrate, for heaven’s sakes. You’re supposed to be fighting for your life here."
The red head forced her legs to stop shaking and brought the wooden blade that Zira had given her to ready. "I am."
"Then be serious."
"I am serious." Lina retorted as she attacked again. Zira casually parried the blow to one side and pushed the younger woman. Lina stumbled and fell again. Zira merely watched her with the same impassive expression. "I’m…always…serious…" Lina gritted. "My big sister trained me harder than this…I can take this…" She stood up.
"Then clear your mind. You’re not concentrating." Zira tapped her stick against her shoulder. "We’re getting nowhere if you can’t get it through your mind that you’re supposed to be fighting me for real."
"Hyaa!" Lina rushed forward with a quick slash to the left. Zira sidestepped that then blocked the blade that Lina brought forth again. "Power that can even crush the soul of the gods! Laguna Blade!"
Lina’s wooden blade was engulfed in chaotic energy as the blade of nightmares manifested itself in Lina’s hands, on the polished white wood of the sword that Zira had given her. Zira merely smiled as the makeshift stick in her hand shattered into a thousand splinters.
"You still have to chant the spell?" She asked, holding off Lina’s Laguna Blade with her hand. "I never understand why people needed to do that. Power is power, control is control. Chanting words can help you concentrate, but depend on the words too much, and they become a hindrance. I think I’ll have to make sure you don’t chant the spells anymore." Lightly, she twisted her wrist and her own Laguna Blade burst out. "Will is everything, remember that, Lina." With that, she shattered Lina’s blade. The impact and the explosion that followed flung the girl back violently.
"What…the…hell…are…you…?" Lina panted as she got up. Zira smiled. The girl had enough spirit and potential to take on the world.
"I’m a little bit of everything, Lina. So are you. So are we all. Shall we continue?"
"Finally!" Amelia huffed. "I thought we’d never get here!"
"Great scenery." Gourry commented, looking at the holy city of Sairaag and Flagoon. They were at the top of the hill that rises to Sairaag’s east. From their position, they could see the whole thriving city.
Phillip jumped when Filia tapped his shoulder. "Ye-yes, Filia-san?"
"Where are you headed from here?"
"There’s a temple beside Flagoon." He replied, looking at the ground shyly. "I’m supposed to report there first."
Xelloss smiled. "Well, we should get going too."
Lina caught Xelloss as they headed toward the heart of the city. "Xelloss, what are you doing?"
"What do you mean, Lina?" He asked innocently, the wolf loping beside him. Lina crossed her arms.
"You know what I’m talking about. We’re here to do business, but you’re making us follow him. Don’t you know what trouble we can get him into?"
Xelloss pretended to think. "Why, yes."
"So why are we doing it!?"
He wagged a finger at her. "Believe me, Lina, you’ll get it soon. But we do need to go to Flagoon."
"What, you sealed another Demon Lord there?"
"What do you think?"
Gourry slowed down so he could walk with Lina, who was busy trying to glare Xelloss to death. "Hey, what’s up?"
"We’re going to Flagoon." Lina muttered. "And he won’t tell me why."
"Flagoon…that sounds familiar…" Gourry murmured. Lina ungracefully fell on her face. He gave her a confused look as she picked herself up.
"Are you telling me that you’ve never heard of the legend? Are you really that out of it?" She asked him. He shrugged.
"I might have heard of it somewhere." He replied. " It does sound familiar."
Lina sighed. "Okay, okay. Here it is, tell me if you remember any of this at all." She took a deep breath. "During the War of the Monster’s Fall, many important, epic battles took place. One took place here, at Sairaag. The Holy tree Flagoon was already here by then, and legend says that one of the Demon Lords under Ruby Eye Shabrinigdo fought with the Swordsman of Light. The Swordsman of Light managed to defeat the Demon Lord, with aid from Flagoon. The Demon Lord was Sealed, but disappeared. The Sword of Light became a legend and no one had ever heard about it since. A lot of people believe that it was either destroyed in the battle or lost during the thousand years that passed. You get it now?"
Gourry blinked. "Huh? I wasn’t listening."
Filia turned around when she heard the loud explosion behind her. "What?" Lina strode up to the front of the group, dragging a rather toasted Gourry, muttering choice oaths. Xelloss chuckled.
Phillip just hoped that Lina wouldn’t pull that once they were within city walls.
"Hey, Phil." Amelia said. The young boy looked up, startled. He was always startled about something or the other, it seemed.
"Oh, hi, Amelia-san." He finally replied.
"Your test is tomorrow?"
"Yeah…I mean, yes." He scratched his head sheepishly. "I’m kinda nervous. Kind of, I mean." Amelia giggled.
"Relax, they’re going to love you."
"Really?"
"Yeah, really."
Phillip hugged his book to his chest. "I hope so. I really do." He glanced at the setting sun with an expression of hope and fear. "I just wish I was more sure of myself…"
"Self confidence isn’t something that you can learn in a day, Phil. Just relax and be yourself."
He took a deep breath. "You’re right! I’ll try my best! No one can make fun of that!" He stood up and shook his fist just to make his point. And jumped and hid behind his chair when Filia slammed into the room, looking like a thundercloud.
"Why that godsdamned Namagomi…" She muttered, pulling out a chair roughly and sitting down. "I swear I’m going to tear his head off someday…" She suddenly blinked, realizing she was in the presence of the young. "Ur…I mean…uh...never mind." The Dragon General coughed nervously. "Hello, Phil. Did I scare you?"
"No…" Phillip lied as he got back in his seat.
"Why are you two still here? Didn’t Lina tell you that they’re going to take a look at Flagoon now?" She asked. Amelia raised an eyebrow.
"Lina-san didn’t say anything to me. Did Gourry-san go with her?"
Filia nodded. "I think so…I wish I know he is planning…"
"Xelloss-san?" Phillip ventured.
"Yes. He’s so damn secretive!" Filia shook her head. "I keep thinking that he’s pulling something over us. It’s not unlikely."
"Xelloss-san seems like a nice person." Phillip said timidly. "I mean…he was nice to me…Ur. Nevermind."
"That’s exactly what’s making me suspicious."
Xelloss sneezed.
"Bless you. Oh, wait. I’m not supposed to say that, huh?"
He rolled his eyes. "Whatever makes you happy, Lina." He rubbed his nose. Can Demons catch colds? "Anyway, how are we supposed to get in?"
Gourry looked at the ominous gates. "Walk in?"
"I doubt they’d just let us in. We’re not part of the clergy or the nobles. I doubt we can just blast our way in. Unless that’s what Xelloss has in mind." She turned to the Demon. "Well?"
"We sneak in?"
"Why are we doing this in the first place? Why do you want to see Flagoon?" She tapped her foot impatiently, they’d been milling around, trying to decide what to do for almost an hour now. She was Not Happy. He shrugged.
"I need to see Flagoon and find out something. That’s all."
"No more wolves?"
"No more wolves." He promised.
"Well, I guess we sneak in, as planned by our fearless leader." Lina said sarcastically. Xelloss gave her an innocent smile.
"Then please lead on, Lina."
Did he just make fun of me? Lina wondered. Oh, well. Sneaking it is.
Gourry looked around. "I think I’ve seen this place before…Oh, you know what, I know where the back door is."
Lina found herself on the ground again. Xelloss sweatdropped.
"Yeah, it’s right around this corner, about fifty yards down." Gourry said with certainty. "I remember now!"
"Just now?!" Lina hissed as Xelloss restrained her.
"Let’s just go, Lina." He placated.
She pulled free of his grasp. " Whatever. Lead on, Gourry."
They found the door, just as Gourry had said, and went in quietly. It was getting dark and Lina was grateful for the cover of the night. She did not want to be caught. Gourry was leading them as if he knew the place, and she felt faintly suspicious. Gourry has the worst memory in the world, yet he knows a strange place like the back of his hand? That’s definitely odd.
Gourry suddenly stopped. "Hide." He whispered.
Lina gulped and pressed herself against the wall. Xelloss almost seemed to melt into the shadows. Gourry’s hand hovered near the hilt of his sword.
"Who’s there?" A soft, female voice called. There was a trace of fear in that voice, but Lina could hear the gentle strength behind it.
"Shielfiel?" Gourry whispered back, and Lina waved her arms at him frantically. What was he doing?! "Shielfiel??"
A woman with long, dark hair came into view, holding up a light. Her green eyes widened in recognition and joy. "Gourry-sama? It is you!!"
Xelloss raised an eyebrow, somehow beside Lina again. "Gourry…"
"…sama?" Lina finished. Before she could demand what was going on, the woman had flung herself in Gourry’s arms.
"Gourry-sama!" She whispered happily. Gourry grinned.
"Hey, Shielfiel, it’s been a long time."
"Gourry," Lina whispered. "Explain."
Gourry smiled happily. "This is Shielfiel. I met her when I was coming through here a few years ago. She’s a great cook and I love her food." He blinked as Xelloss and Lina sweatdropped expressively.
"Oh…I see." Xelloss finally said. Lina rolled her eyes.
"For heaven’s sakes! We’re not supposed to let anyone know we’re here." She gritted. Gourry patted Shielfiel’s back.
"She won’t tell anyone, right, Shielfiel?"
The woman almost melted with happiness. "Yes, Gourry-sama."
Lina leaned over to whisper in Xelloss’s ear. "Isn’t it sickening?"
He snickered. "Jealous?"
She smacked him for that little comment. "No, I’m not." To Gourry and Shielfiel, she grumbled, "Come on, let’s get on with things."
"So where are we going?"
Lina gave Xelloss a look. He tried to look innocent. "Can I see Flagoon?" He asked nicely. Shielfiel shivered, giving him a nervous look.
"Gourry-sama?"
"We came to see the big tree, Shielfiel. You want to come too?"
Everyone toppled over.
"B-big tree?" Lina stuttered.
"The holy tree Flagoon, aka the big tree." Xelloss giggled quietly. "You’re too much, Gourry."
"Well, I can show you where it is, unless they moved it since the last time I was here. Did they, Shielfiel?" Gourry asked. Lina managed to not fall on her face this time.
"No, they didn’t. Why don’t I take you to Flagoon, Gourry-sama? We’re not supposed to let visitors in, but…"
"Great!" Lina cheered. "Let’s go!"
Shielfiel nodded and turned. She led them down a long flight of stairs that winded and twisted like there’s no tomorrow. Lina looked around, trying to see in the near blackness. All she could make out was twisted shadows and intangible shapes.
Xelloss had caught up with Shielfiel and was asking her a question in lowered tones. She nodded and they continued. Lina noticed that they were definitely heading down now, deep into the earth.
Then the passage opened as if by magic. The red haired sorceress stared at the wide hallway that they were now in. The passage lit up by magic and she winced from the sudden light. "What?" "There are underground passages under Flagoon." Shielfiel explained. "Your friend wanted to see the heart of the tree, so we’re heading there."
"‘The heart of the tree’?" Lina repeated to herself. Xelloss didn’t bother turning around and explaining. What would he want with the heart of the tree? Is there a Demon Lord sealed in Flagoon?
Lina gulped. What would happen to the tree if that were the case? For the n-th time, she wondered what the Demon was up to. Xelloss suddenly stopped and stared at the wall to his right. Lina peered at it, seeing nothing but a healthy, thick tree root.
"Gourry, may I see your sword?" Xelloss asked softly. Gourry looked at Lina, who nodded. He unstrapped his sword from his belt and handed it to the Demon. Xelloss looked at it, then held it out to Shielfiel. "Shielfiel-san, can you tell me if this is the Sword of Light?"
Lina’s jaw hit the floor. THE Sword of Light?! "What?!"
Shielfiel took the sword and looked at it with wide eyes. "I-I was trained as a priestess for Flagoon…This-I’ve seen this sword in the books of ancient lore…It-I’m sure this is the Sword of Light! Where did you get it, Gourry-sama!?"
Gourry scratched his head. "It’s a family heirloom. I don’t know what you’re talking about. This is a good sword, but nothing that out of the ordinary…"
Lina was already glomping the sword, trying to wrestle it away from Shielfiel. "Let me! Let me!" Gourry jumped in the fray, exclaiming that it was his heirloom and not theirs. Xelloss watched all this without a change in his semi-serious expression.
"Lina, please give Gourry his sword back." He finally said. "Gourry, can you do something for me? Stand right here…take out the sword." Gourry did so. "Do you know how to use it?"
He looked at the blade. The hilt was warm in his hands. "Not really…"
Xelloss tapped his finger against his chin. "Try calling the blade."
"Calling?" He asked.
"Call for light." Xelloss explained patiently. Gourry looked at the blade.
"Okay." He agreed. "Hm…Light come forth!"
Lina squealed in delight as the normal blade shattered and a sword of pure, white-blue energy materialized. "The Sword of Light! It’s really the Sword of Light!"
Gourry was looking at it with surprise. "Whoa."
Xelloss was his smiling self again. "And please, hit the tree for me, will you?"
"What?"
He pointed at the root. "I need you to hit the tree root for me."
"Why?"
He used the most condescending and patronizing tone she had ever heard. "Because I need him to hit the tree. The why will be obvious to you soon."
Shielfiel was shaking her head. "No…not Flagoon! I can’t let you do that. Gourry-sama, don’t…"
"Xelloss. Why do we need to hit the tree?" Lina asked one more time.
"Because I asked you to, nicely."
Okay, that was a threat. She didn’t like being threatened. "And if we don’t?"
His eyes were open now, but somehow she had the feeling that he wasn’t trying to scare her. "If you don’t, I’ll have to do something about the tree myself, something that is going to be much more painful and much more permanent. Believe it or not, I’m trying to work this out to the benefit of everyone."
"Who are you?" Shielfiel whispered. Xelloss’s eyes closed in the smile again.
"I’m me." He replied. "Gourry? Sometime tonight?"
"Do we have a choice?" Lina muttered. "I really wish you’d let us know first." To Gourry, she nodded. "Might as well try it and see what happens."
Filia was drinking her tea when it happened. A muffled rumble reached her ears and the ground shook underneath her. She spilt her tea and cursed. "What the hell?"
Phillip tried to keep his own drink from spilling and was more successful than the Dragon. "An earthquake?"
Filia shook her head. Something was calling her, a voice in pain… "Something’s wrong…" Phillip’s eyes were wide and scared.
"There’s a voice…" He whispered. Filia glanced at him sharply and he shrank back. "There’s a voice calling for help…I can hear it."
"What?" Amelia asked. Filia closed her eyes and she began to glow with a blue light. When she finally opened her eyes, her expression was grim. "What is it, Filia-san?"
"It’s the tree, Flagoon." She said seriously. "It’s dying."
"Dying?!" Phillip exclaimed. The stabbing pain in his chest seemed to confirm that. The voice…that voice was so sad and so hurt…. "I-I have to go to it, it’s calling me!"
Filia nodded. "The temple guardians would have felt this by now. We’d better go before they attempt a lockout. Everyone, hold on to me." Amelia immediately took hold of Filia’s arm. Phillip grabbed the other. "Let’s go."
What are you up to, Xelloss? She wondered.
Shielfiel was holding herself, crying softly. "It hurts…" She whispered. Xelloss was looking at the severed part of the tree while Gourry tried to comfort the sobbing priestess.
"You’d better explain now, Xelloss." Lina said, pulling him away from his thoughts. Xelloss touched the tree.
"Flagoon was part of the Seal." He explained. "The Seal could not be broken unless Flagoon dies because Flagoon was the power behind the Seal."
"Where’s our Demon Lord then?"
"He should be coming, any minute now…" Xelloss closed his eyes. "Yes, he’s coming."
Lina crossed her arms, her voice quiet. But it had a knife’s edge to it. "No more, Xelloss. Next time, tell us what you want us to do and why ahead of time. I’m not going to go on blind faith anymore."
He opened his eyes and looked at her. "All right, Lina." He finally agreed. "No more going on blind faith." He looked away. "But that’s all there is sometimes…"
Lina shook her head. "Not for me. So what do we do now that Flagoon is dealt with?" She pointed toward Shielfiel. "We can’t leave her here in this condition."
Xelloss tilted his head a fraction, as if listening. "We have to get out of here. The Temple Guards are coming. Filia and the others are in already, we should meet up with them."
"Filia? Here?" Lina wondered. "Oh, great. You’re right. Gourry, let’s go."
"What about Shielfiel?" He asked.
"Take her with us." Lina said shortly. The priestess was helped to her feet, in too much shock to protest. "Let’s get back to the surface first, shall we?"
Filia tensed as she felt the wards go up. Thank goodness they made it in before. She almost teleported them in too late. Those wards serve only one purpose: No one gets in, no one gets out. Are the dragons really getting that paranoid? No matter, that just meant that either they’d have to break the wards or kill the people who were supporting them. She hoped it would be the first option.
Phillip was sticking close to the Dragon and Amelia. He still wasn’t sure why he was here. He couldn’t fight and was of no use to anyone at all. But something told him that he had to be here. It was destiny.
The blond woman stopped, blue eyes narrowing in the dim light of the cramped hallway. Her long, almost elven ears twitched as she heard footsteps approaching. Dragons, judging from the noise. "Amelia, Phil. Hide. I’ll take care of this."
Amelia nodded, "Go into one of the rooms." She whispered to Phil. He nodded and groped in the dark for a doorknob. Upon finding one, he turned it and stumbled in as quietly as he could, silently hoping that it was empty.
Fate was smiling on him, it appeared. The room was empty and dark except for a glass case with something that glowed in it. Phillip could hear Filia as she efficiently ‘took care’ of whomever it was that was coming.
Curious, Phillip took a few steps toward the glass case. It held a golden orb inside. The orb was floating in mid-air, emitting a soft, comforting light. He stared at it, marveling at the strange feeling of familiarity that it generated in him. The desire to touch it was overwhelming, and he gave in, gently removing the glass case and cupping the orb in his hands. The sphere’s glow seemed to brighten.
"Wow…" he murmured. It was so warm…
His head snapped up when he heard a cry of pain from outside. That brought his mind back to the present and reminded him of how much trouble he was in. But that was Filia’s voice!
Filia ducked under the swing of the guard, pulling out her twin daggers and disemboweling him. There were too many of them, and she knew that the hallway was too confined for her to use magic. Sooner or later, she’s going to have to either risk magic, or risk getting overwhelmed. Someone’s lucky swipe opened a deep gash on her left arm and she cursed silently, bringing her daggers up to defend her torso. Instinctively, she dodged as something when whizzing past her.
Wait, from behind?
One of the Dragon guards screamed, a scream that was abruptly cut off and ended in a gurgle. Filia could see a large, gray wolf gliding among the guards, tearing and biting. She watched with terror as the wolf proved the effectiveness of sharp teeth and iron jaws when working in close quarters. She didn’t recognize the wolf though. It didn’t look like the one that was always following Xelloss around.
Whoever, or whatever it was, it was doing a good job of lowering the Dragon population of Sairaag. Filia took a step back, silently grateful of the breather. She was definitely feeling the sting of the cut on her arm now. She heard a door open behind her and spun around.
"Filia-san?" Phillip asked timidly, then his eyes widened as the dim light that the dragons had carried showed him the bloody gash on her arm. "Filia-san, you’re hurt!" He exclaimed as he hurried out, holding something that looked like a ball of gold.
"No-" She caught sight of a shadow behind the young man. "DON’T COME OUT!"
For Phillip, time seemed to slow to a crawl. He felt himself turn, following Filia’s frightened gaze, then feeling the orb slip from his hands. Someone screamed inside his head.
DON’T DROP IT! DON’T BREAK IT!!!
He tried to grab the orb as it fell toward the ground slowly, watched as it descended leisurely, only to crack, then break as it hit the ground. Then something shattered in his chest. Just like the orb.
Time returned to normal and he looked at the pieces blankly. Forcefully, the guard behind him ran him through with the bloody blade he held in his hands. Phillip looked at the metal protruding from his stomach with surprise, then the guard followed through, using a Dragon’s strength to rip the sword out of Phillip from the side.
Filia froze in her current position, her mouth opened in silent denial. That didn’t just happen, she thought with horror. Phil didn’t just…
His body hit the ground with a wet thump, crimson blood slowly staining the dirt floor.
No.
Nononononononononoo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
"PHIL!!" She screamed. That didn’t just happen. That’s impossible. He was innocent. He didn’t do anything. WhywhywhywhyWHY DAMMIT!? "BASTARD!" She shrieked. The dragon guard looked at her, face grim. She could see his thoughts in his eyes.
Just another enemy. Just something that isn’t one of us. Just another dead body. Something unpure. Something not of the Light. Oh, gods what have we become? She thought in a jumble. Rage and grief controlled her now, the sight of what she wanted to protect lying dead in the dirt was too much. Filia flung herself at the murderer. Cepheed forgive me.
"Damn you to hell!" She snarled as she ran into him with the full force of her anger behind her. Filia didn’t even bother trying to hit his vital spots with her weapon, she just slammed her fists into him as hard as she could, giving the punches more power behind them than anything living could stand. "He was innocent, you bastard! Why did you kill him! He didn’t do anything!!" She tried to pretend that tears weren’t streaming down her face and that she wasn’t hitting one of her own race. Disillusion is so painful. Her mind focused on one thing: Kill him.
She pulled back her fist, ready to finish it with one last blow.
Fingers wrapped around her wrist with a firm grip. She fought against it, trying to tear away and kill the bastard, but there was irresistible strength in that hand. "Let go!" She hissed. Xelloss shook his head.
"That’s enough." He said, the statement sounding oddly final.
"I’m going to kill the bastard," She growled. "He’s going to DIE for what he did."
Xelloss’s eyes…were they actually sad? "Some fates are worse than death." He whispered.
A clear, childlike chuckle rang through the air. "And he is right, of course." A voice said cheerfully. Filia gasped and spun around. Lina, Gourry, Amelia and Shielfiel were at the hallway’s entrance, eyes wide at the scene unfolding before them.
Phillip sat up, smiling. His white robes were soiled with blood, but the flesh of his side was a healthy pink through the torn cloth. He snapped his fingers.
The Dragon Guard beside her suddenly started screaming, clawing at his heart and screaming louder. His eyes widened and rolled back until only the whites showed. Then black energy began streaming around him, tearing into him and ripping him apart. Filia winced as some blood and gore splattered against her.
"Ph-Phil?" She whispered, bewildered. Phillip’s eyes were shadowed, but the smile was still there.
"I sent him to Hell, just like you wanted, Filia-san." He giggled, looking up. Filia drew in her breath sharply.
Phillip’s eyes had changed. She couldn’t remember what color it was, but it wasn’t the reptilian green that it is now. The young man’s smile twisted.
"Phil?" He said, as if studying the name. "Ah, I see. Phil is the name of this body." He looked at his hands with interest. "A fitting name."
"What-what?" Amelia stuttered, confused. "What’s wrong with you, Phil?"
"That’s not Phillip." Lina said grimly, looking at Xelloss. "Flagoon was only part of the Seal, he had said…"
The man smiled, standing up. "Ah, Xelloss. Yes, he would know what the Seal was. Flagoon was the one strengthening the Seal, actually." He blinked, seeing their confused and suspicious expressions. "Oh, my. I’m terribly sorry. You don’t know who I am." The person who was Phillip bowed. "I am the Hellmaster. You guys, since you awakened me, may call me Phibrizo."
Lina stiffened. "Phibrizo."
Filia felt her jaw drop. "Hellmaster…"
Phillip, or rather, Phibrizo, looked at her with interest. "Ah, the General of Cepheed? The last time I had saw you, you were still a little girl…" He chuckled. "Of course, who am I to talk?" He shrugged. "Now that I’m awake, I think I’ll go raise some hell. No pun intended, of course." The Demon Lord giggled at his own joke.
"Wait! What happened to Phil?" Amelia cried.
"Phil? Oh, him." Phibrizo yawned. "That boring goody-goody is gone forever, thank goodness. I’m still surprised that he broke his own Soul Orb, that annoying thing that’s been keeping me away for so long."
"Phil’s Soul Orb?" Lina whispered. "So that was the second part of the Seal…"
Phibrizo seemed to be in good spirits. "Yup. The little half-breed’s Soul was what kept me locked away. His mother Sealed me inside herself, inside her future child, knowing that his fate is doomed if I ever got loose." The smile on his face was pure evil. "Not very motherly, is she? Then again, most Dragons wouldn’t know how to raise children if we gave them a manual."
"Kid, that’s not a nice way to talk about Phil." Gourry warned. Phibrizo looked at him, raising an eyebrow.
"Hey, that’s the Gorn Nova. Where’d you get that?"
Gourry tightened his grip on the sword. "None of your business. Give Phil back."
Phibrizo threw his head back and laughed. When he finally quieted, there was a maniacal look on his face. "Phillip is gone forever, I’m afraid. His soul is gone, so I’m the one who controls this body now. I ask you to stay out of my way, otherwise I won’t play nice."
Filia pulled herself to her feet. "Give Phil back…" She said. Then her voice strengthened. "Give him back!"
Phibrizo locked his eyes with hers. "What are you going to do to me," He asked sweetly. "Filia-san?"
She gritted her teeth. She can’t. Not when that monster had Phil’s body. She can’t…She heard Phibrizo chuckle, then a tremendous shockwave slammed into her, pounding her into the wall. A cry of pain tore itself from her throat.
Phibrizo’s smile was wide. "Poor thing." He mocked. "It’s a pity I have to kill you. After all, you are Cepheed’s General; I can’t just let my enemy walk away unharmed. Phillip really liked you a lot." Another shockwave.
"Filia!" Lina shouted. Okay, this was getting out of hand, regardless of whose form Phibrizo was wearing. "Laguna Blade!" She yelled, slashing the sword at the Demon Lord. He laughed again, and the sword clashed against a shield.
"Now, now. Did you really think that it would hurt me? If the Knight of Chaos had came at me with that, I might have been afraid, but you? A mere human?" He flung her aside with no effort at all. "Really."
"Elmekia Lance!" Amelia shouted as Gourry attacked with his Sword of Light. Phibrizo watched with interest as the energy crashed down upon him, then took special delight in repelling it away.
"Humans are so interesting. I think I might even keep some alive after I destroy everything." He giggled. Filia fell to her knees, feeling the splinters in her side from her broken ribs. This can’t be happening.
Lina and Gourry continued to attack. Painfully, Filia looked up to see them get pushed back. Phibrizo was just playing. Toying with them.
Xelloss was a few steps to her left, holding what appeared to be shards of golden glass. He was looking at those shards as if he expected them to talk and give him an answer. Filia didn’t have time to think of that when Phibrizo turned his attention back to her.
"And you, Dragon. You will be the first to die." She watched as he gathered dark energy in his hands, his evil smile twisting Phillip’s once innocent face.
"Hellmaster-dono." Xelloss interrupted. Phibrizo turned his attention to the Demon for a second, then his yellow green eyes widened.
"How did you-what are you doing?!"
The shards of gold in Xelloss’s palm were glowing eerily, the light growing in intensity. But somehow, Xelloss’s eyes remained shadowed in the light. "I’m sorry, the balance must be kept. In order to do that, I can’t let you kill her."
"NO! Stop it!" Phibrizo howled, whipping his hand forward with dark energy crashing toward Filia and Xelloss. The golden shards in Xelloss’s hand suddenly exploded in light. Phibrizo’s scream hit an incredibly high pitch as the black energy dissipated.
Lina flung her arms up, trying to block the winds that were raging inside the hallway. Gourry steadied her with one hand, saving her from the fate of being blown away. She attempted to see what the heck just happened.
Phibrizo was on his knees, breathing heavily. He raised maddened eyes to Xelloss, who was now holding the unbroken golden sphere in his hand. "How…did…you…" He managed to whisper before he collapsed. Filia glanced toward Xelloss, and he nodded.
"And he’s gone?" she murmured.
"Phibrizo is Sealed again." Xelloss replied. "Phil should be back."
Almost as if she were afraid, Filia knelt by the young man’s prone form. "Phil?" Amelia and Lina ran forward. She turned him over and shook his shoulders carefully. "Phil?"
He groaned and stirred a little.
"He should be fine." Shielfiel said after checking him over. Filia breathed a sigh of relief. She jumped when Xelloss tapped her on the shoulder.
"Here, Filia."
She blinked and stared at the golden sphere he was holding out to her. "What?"
"I said, here. Take it."
Her mind whirled with confusion. "Why?"
"Phillip is the only one who can break this Seal. I’m giving this to you because I know you’ll never let Phil near it for the rest of his life. So take it already."
"But…" Don’t you need Phibrizo? She finished silently.
"No buts," He said with his usual smile. "Now, we’d better get out of here before the Dragons show up calling us Tree-killers."
"How?" Filia finally got her mind to work. "The wards are up. We can’t teleport out of here and we certainly can’t sneak out."
Gourry picked Phillip up and looked at Lina for further instructions. Lina shrugged. "Blast our way out?"
"I don’t think that’ll work…" Amelia gulped. Xelloss shook his head.
"Since the wards are the only problem, I think Xelana should be enough to take care of it."
"Xelana?" Amelia asked. The walls of the temple shuddered with the impact of something. Xelloss grinned.
"Right on time." He pulled Filia to her feet. "The wards are weakened. I think a blast from Lina should do the trick. Lina?"
Lina cracked her knuckles. "Heh! Finally I get to cut loose!"
Gourry sweatdropped. "Ano…don’t overdo it…"
Too late. "Try this one for size! DRAGON SLAVE!!!"
Xelloss yelped as the red-gold energy streaked upward. The Dragon Slave broke through the ceiling and flew upward into the dark sky, illuminating Sairaag. "Lina! When did you learn that?!"
Lina grinned dangerously. "Heh. That’s a secret. Now let’s get outta here before they try to make me pay for the damages!"
"Feel better, Phil?"
Phillip sat up in bed, looking around frantically. "Wherewhathowwhen!? What happened? Am I dead?"
Filia chuckled. "Would I be here serving you breakfast if you were?"
He looked at her. "I thought-I was killed! Why am I here?"
The Dragon patted his head. "Silly. Yes, you were injured, but Amelia and I got to you before it was too late. You were saved, Phil. So just be grateful and happy, okay?"
Phillip blushed. "You saved my life? You and Amelia-san? Thank you, thank you very much." He started thanking her profusely. Filia shook her head.
"No need to thank me." She said, then changed the subject. "What are you going to do now? I mean, you can’t be a priest here anymore since the temple was destroyed."
Phillip shook his head. "No! The people here need to rebuild the temple! And they’re going to need help. They’re going to need me." He looked down at his blankets. "And I think Flagoon…I think there’s a link between Flagoon and me. When I thought I was dead, I could hear its voice… It’s getting better now, did you know? Flagoon is recovering…So I think I’m going to stay here and help out." He glanced at her nervously, wanting her approval. " You think it’s a good idea, Filia-san?"
She smiled. "It’s a great idea, Phil."
Filia found him under a tree, talking to the wolf as usual. He had an unusually serious expression on his face when he talked. The wolf didn’t seem too willing to listen, so she walked up to them.
"Xelloss."
He looked up. "Yes, Filia?" The wolf sat up on her hunches, tongue lolling out. "Stop doing that." He said to the wolf irritably. She ignored him. Filia cleared her throat.
"I just wanted to…" damn this is hard. "Thank you for what you did."
He raised an eyebrow. "What did I do?"
"You know what."
He laughed. "Filia-chan, I think that’s a very interesting shade of red you’re turning. Is thanking me really that hard?"
You have no idea. "No. And now that it’s over with, I’m leaving." She knew he was watching her with that amused expression on his face. Stupid idiot, she thought to herself. But that reminded her of something. She turned around and stomped back to him. He gave her that look again. "I’ve been wondering, Xelloss. Why did you do it?"
"Why did I do what?" He asked her innocently.
"You know what!"
"That’s a secret, Filia-chan."
She gritted her teeth. "Fine. How did you do it?"
He twirled a strand of hair around his finger. "That’s a secret too." She grabbed his collar. "Now, Filia-chan, don’t be hasty!"
"How?"
"Let’s just say I have a few tricks up my sleeve, okay?" He winked at her. Filia growled, released him, and stomped away. The wolf and the Demon watched her go.
"I agree." Xelloss said to the wolf. She just looked at him. "Yes, I know I’m in trouble." Silence. "No, I don’t really care. There’s lots of reasons to back my decisions up." The wolf barked and Xelloss rolled his eyes. "Really? I think you might have done a better job breaking the wards so that Lina didn’t have to use a Dragon Slave."
The wolf got up and howled at him. "Oh, stop complaining, Xelana."