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Author’s notes: Hiya! Hmm…I’ve reverted to RK soundtrack titles again, evil little me. As to the plot…what plot?? Well, there are only two more Demon Lords to unseal, so I can’t possibly keep this up much longer. Or can I? (evil laugh) That is a secret!
"Filia, wake up."
Her head hurt. She felt awful, and cold. Okay, make that she felt more cold than awful. She was sitting, leaning against something that was also cold. Painfully, she opened her eyes, then closed them. The silvery moonlight reflected from the pure white snow, the rays piercing her sensitive eyes ruthlessly. The naked trees provided no relief with their shadows at all. Better to keep them closed.
Xelloss rolled his eyes. "Filia-chan? I know you’re awake!" He said, trying to get a rise out of her.
She opened one eye to glare at him. "Don’t call me Filia-chan." She murmured.
"Okay, Filia." He compromised. "We’ve got to keep going otherwise Sheela will catch up. I can’t carry you the whole way, you know." She opened the other eye so she can give him a confused look.
"You…carried me?! PERVERT!" Filia tried to smack him, but her head hurt too much. She had the nagging fear that if she moved too suddenly, her neck would be dislocated. "Jerk…" she muttered, trying to get up. Xelloss fought the urge to stick his tongue out at her. It was too childish, and besides, it’s freezing. "What happened to you?"
He glanced at his torn cloak, "Oh, close encounters with a sword?" He offered. "It’s nothing. But we really need to keep going, otherwise we’ll freeze to death out here."
"The mighty Demon afraid of the cold?" She said mockingly. He smirked.
"Your lips are turning blue." He pointed out. "Who’s cold now?"
If glares can be used as heating, the North Pole would be very warm by now.
Xelloss shrugged and turned away. "We’ve got to get going. Another fight with Sheela would just slow us down."
"Why the hurry?"
"We’re running out of time."
A twig snapped and Xelloss was instantly alert. A low, sinister chuckle drifted through the air and Sheela stepped into view, sword unsheathed. "Indeed." She agreed. "Your time just ran out, Xelloss."
Filia positioned herself behind Xelloss, so they guarded each other’s back. She wouldn’t put it past Sheela to have some sort of ambush or trap waiting for them. A quick, elusive movement caught her eye and she grinned mentally. The same human that was helping Sheela earlier.
Xelloss smiled, knowing that smile drove her to the point of insanity. "Who knows, Sheela-chan? If I score, the game goes into overtime." To Filia, he said quietly, "Take care of that human in the woods, okay?"
She nodded.
"Watch your back." And then he was gone, and Sheela followed.
The Demon smiled as Sheela chanted the words to Dynast Blast. Let’s start with a big one, he thought. Darkness beyond twilight…
Filia jumped out of the way as the human came slashing at her. She rolled, coming to her feet with her daggers at ready. Fighting a swordsman with daggers is tricky at best, but she was confident that she could handle him.
The blade whizzed by, missing her by a few millimeters. " What?!" She backed off as the sword burst into flames. " One of the Blessed Blades of Cepheed?" How did he get that? She wondered. All four should have been lost in the War of the Monster’s fall! From the looks of it, this one was Nova, the blade of fire. Blessed by Cepheed and the Fire Dragon King. The blade that was rumored to have been lost or destroyed in the final fight with Lei Magus, the human that Ruby-Eye was reborn into.
Further contemplation was cut off as an enormous explosion detonated above her, throwing both of them to the snow covered ground. A Dragon Slave?? Filia thought as she got up first, knowing she had to strike before he could defend. "Flame Breath!"
"Fool!" The human laughed, catching the spell with the sword and absorbing it. "Fire based attacks will have no effect on it!"
"Distim Plato!" She called, the attack surging forward and pushing him back with its power and momentum. If she can keep him dodging and shielding against her attacks and from using the full power of the blade, she had a chance.
Sheela reeled back, more stunned with surprise than the actual damage the spell did. Ruby-Eye was Sealed, all seven pieces, but how can he call upon the power…? Her servant Beldon was having much more trouble with the Dragon than she expected. Changing her mind, the Demon General decided that it would be better for Beldon to be fighting Xelloss with Nova. With that, she phased out.
Filia felt triumph when her fist connected with the human’s face. He swung at her side, but she twisted out of the way, dancing out of his range, for now. A battle cry alerted her to move when Sheela reappeared, bringing her sword down. Filia threw herself out of the way, but not fast enough. The Demon’s kick jammed into her gut, and emptied all the breath in her lungs. Filia doubled over, gasping for breath. She teleported away when Sheela swung at her, but couldn’t avoid Sheela’s lunge when the Dragon returned to the physical plane. The Demon’s tight, claw like grip went to her throat, and she was shoved back for what seemed like forever. Then the ground ended beneath her.
What?! Was her first thought. Then she glanced down.
They had just went off the edge of a cliff. Beneath them were jagged pieces of ice, all long and sharp.
"Welcome to the graveyard." Sheela hissed as Filia struggled in her grip. "Let your body be pierced and your blood frozen in this cold hell!" They fell, Filia trying to cast a Levitation spell, and failing because of Sheela’s black aura.
Not enough time! She closed her eyes tight, bracing herself for the pain.
Something solidified between her and Sheela. The Demon General screamed as Xelloss separated the two by tearing Sheela’s arm from her socket. Forcefully, he shoved her away. Once out of Sheela’s range, Filia found herself with the ability to use magic again, and she teleported, reappearing seconds later above the two that are still falling.
"DIE!" Sheela screamed, shooting off a ball of energy as they plummeted down.
Filia watched in horror as the sickening, tearing sound followed Sheela’s scream. Xelloss fell, impaled on the spears of ice as the speed of their fall forced him down still further. The pointed tips of the ice spikes gleaming in the moonlight despite the black blood covering them, protruding horribly from the Demon’s body.
"Xe..Xelloss…"
He opened one eye. "Score." He whispered.
Filia screamed as something blasted outwards with incredible force. Then everything exploded.
Where…? Lina found herself standing at a beach, the sea gently lapping at her feet. Bare feet…
Wait, bare feet?
The last thing she remembered was the water rushing in, and the certainty that she was going to drown. Then why was she here??
"Xellas! Now, don’t do that! You made Dolphin cry!" Scolded a young man with short dark hair. His eyes were a brilliant, ice blue.
Lina’s eyes widened as a young Xellas came into view, looking slightly guilty. Her hair was not as long, but her eyes were the same. "Sorry." She muttered. The young man tapped his feet (also bare?) impatiently.
"I’m not the one you need to apologize to."
"Grausheela!" Xellas protested.
Dynast Grausheela gave her a stern look. "Just because you’re the youngest doesn’t give you the right to be mean. Apologize to Dolphin."
Xellas sighed. "I’m sorry, Dolphin." She muttered.
Lina saw a little girl, shorter than Xellas, with blue hair and wide blue eyes, come out timidly. Her hair was long and wavy, and there were seashells and pearls laced though it. "It’s okay, Xellas-chan." She said, very softly. "It’s okay."
Lina yelped as the scene swirled dizzily around her, shifting and rearranging itself. Then she was standing in…
Corpses were strewn across the ruined buildings, some of humans, some of dragons in their human forms, and some of dragons. Golden Dragons…
A shriek caught her attention and Lina spun around just in time to see Melena enveloped with white light. The white light then streaked towards the sky, taking her with it. There was dead silence.
"Why did you do that?"
She shuddered at the familiar, yet alien voice. Xelloss’s back was to her, and the only difference she could see was that he was holding what seemed to be a ruby tipped staff in his hand. She had a feeling she wouldn’t want to see his face right now. The question he asked was said in a tone so unnerving, so chilling, that she was glad that she wasn’t the one he directed the words at. The man…no, dragon, facing the Demon looked to be in his late thirties or forties, although it’s hard to tell with dragons. His eyes were a familiar sapphire blue.
"As the Cepheed General, I cannot allow you to do as you please." He answered gravely. Lina gasped. That’s…Filia’s father? Does that mean she was looking at…the past? "You have murdered my clan and countless innocents. I cannot let you murder one more."
The chuckle that came from Xelloss’s throat made the hair on the back of Lina’s neck stand on end. "Innocent? Murder? I suppose I did murder them, but I wouldn’t have done that if they had stayed out of my way." The staff swung forward lazily. "I wouldn’t be fighting you now if you had stayed out of my way."
Lina watched with fascinated horror as the Demon advanced…
"What do you think, Zira-chan?"
The redhead blinked.
The golden lake rippled lazily, golden waters washing onto the nonexistent seashore and the three…no, four beings present.
Zira…yes, it was Zira, frowned thoughtfully. The usually impassive woman had an expression on her face that could only be described as…discomfort? Nervousness? Or maybe a combination of the two. "I don’t know, the seashells are a bit…um…"
Dolphin, now a teenager, giggled as she combed a strange woman’s long, golden hair. The golden hair framed her face and kept her eyes in shadow. "It’s okay, right, L-sama?"
Lina’s jaw hit the floor, or beach, or whatever it was they were standing on.
"Looks fine, Dolphin." L-sama replied. Lina recognized the voice as the one that had sent them on this mission in the first place. Zira shifted from her cross-legged position.
"Whatever floats your boat." Zira sighed. "Oh, L-sama, I think the Dragon and Demon Wars are starting. Your instructions?"
L-sama toyed with a small, pale pink seashell as Dolphin looked away, eyes sad. "Do not interfere." She finally said softly. "Let the victors be chosen by fate."
"But L-sama…" Dolphin started, then stopped. "I…I don’t want to fight."
"You must, child." L-sama replied. "Chaos demands it."
"Yes, mother."
Lina took a deep breath and closed her eyes, shutting out whatever image, memory or event that came next. That wasn’t what she was here for.
She opened her eyes, and this time she was in a room, surrounded by water and waterfalls. It was breathtakingly beautiful. Bubbles drifted languidly in the cool air, and one popped every once in awhile.
"Dolphin."
Lina saw Xellas, fully grown, at the door of the room. "Dolphin, I know you can hear me."
Lina searched the room, seeing nothing.
Xellas walked in, and slowly, a shimmering form appeared in the middle of the room. Lina drew in her breath sharply.
Deep Sea Dolphin floated as if she was in the water, hair waving gently. Her eyes were closed, but they opened when Xellas took another step closer.
"Dolphin?"
Her eyes were bottomless pits of blue, empty. "Xellas-chan…" she whispered in a soft, childlike voice. "You’ve come to play, Xellas-chan?"
"Dolphin, there’s a war going on."
"Xellas-chan has come to play." Deep Sea Dolphin continued, laughing lightly. "I love Xellas-chan, she’s so fun to play with."
Xellas flinched as if struck. "Dolphin, wake up, please??"
Dolphin played with the pearls that floated about her.
"She’s not going to get better." Garv said gruffly from the door. "Leave her alone for now, we’re going to have to fight the war without her."
"Is it my fault?"
Xellas said that so softly that Lina almost didn’t hear her.
"Is it my fault? She…she should be furious. She should be angry. She should be trying to kill me." Xellas’s hands clenched into fists, her nails digging in hard enough to draw blood.
"She can’t. She loves you, like she loves everyone else." Garv answered. "It’s not your fault that she can’t hate you and has to go insane in order to avoid it. It’s just your fault that you made her hate you in the first place."
"So it is my fault."
Garv shrugged. "If that’s what you want to think. But I don’t want another insane sibling to deal with anytime soon." He said, slinging his long sword over his shoulder and leaving. Xellas gave Dolphin one more, searching look, then turned to leave also.
"Xellas-chan…"
Xellas turned to see Dolphin smiling at her.
"You’re forgiven." She said dreamily, smiling innocently.
"XELLOSS!"
Sheela moved her arm in a motion that was too quick to be caught by her eyes and Filia felt the cold tip of the demon blade at her throat. "Don’t move, Dragon."
Beldon was getting up, cursing the explosion. He was a bit singed, but otherwise all right. The cliff that he was on when the explosion went off absorbed most of the destructive energy. Sheela did not get off so easily, being the closest one to the source, but she was regenerating at a quick pace. Filia could see tattered shreds of black flesh knitting together and reforming.
"Go check." She said shortly. Beldon gave her a look.
"He couldn’t have survived that!" He protested. Sheela hissed.
"That bastard is harder to kill than a cockroach!" She snarled. "And I don’t want him to die just like that. He has to suffer first." Filia’s eyes followed the human as he slid down the edge of the crater in the earth.
Cautiously, Beldon approached the center. "Shit." He swore. The gaping wounds in the Demon’s body were already closing up at a frighteningly fast pace. He wasn’t even bleeding anymore. "Sheela-sama! You’d better do something quick! He’s still alive."
Filia gave a silent sigh of relief. Sheela released her sword, which hovered in mid-air, still pointed at Filia. "Don’t move, Dragon, or my sword will cut your throat before you can praise your precious Cepheed." Sheela warned. She then teleported to the crater, smirking at the still form of Xelloss. "Well, well. This day is turning great." She gloated. "But first things first, I can’t have you running loose and wreaking havoc on me." The blue-haired woman held out her hands, and something dropped into them. From Filia’s vantage point, they looked like silver bracelets…no, more like shackles? Sheela snapped them onto Xelloss’s wrists, looking smug. "Now let’s see you make trouble. Beldon, get the dragon, we’re going back."
"All right." The one named Beldon said doubtfully, still eyeing Xelloss with suspicion. He had wielded Nova for most of his life, and had seen Demons and Dragons fall before it without resistance. To say he was nervous that this most recent case wasn’t so was an understatement.
"Don’t be so jumpy," Sheela laughed. "Let’s go."
"Okay, let’s see." Lina started to herself. "I’m in the middle of somewhere, and I’m seeing scenes from everywhere, and it’s confusing. Now, what could possibly be the point of this?" She thought a little bit, ignoring the conversation taking place behind her between a little Filia and Melena. "Either someone is projecting images into my mind, or I’m in a place where these images are stored. Now, how could that happen?" She was drowning before she blacked out and woke up on the beach. Now she was standing in the middle of what appeared to be Dolphin’s throne room, with the bubbles bursting and showing her various scenes from the past, and some, she guessed, from the future. "I started off trying to look for Deep Sea Dolphin." She said impatiently, "And now I’m stuck here!"
"Dolphin??"
Lina saw young Xellas again, searching the beach. A little kid with spring green eyes was with her. "Maybe she went to Mother." The child said.
"Don’t be silly, Phibrizo. Dolphin wouldn’t go to Mother now." Xellas rebuffed. "She must be hiding from us."
"Don’t sound so big!" Phibrizo protested. "I’m older than you are!"
"And you’re shorter, so there."
"Can I help it if you grow so fast?!" The childish, almost inane, conversation faded as the two wandered further off. Lina stood still.
She must be hiding from us.
Deep Sea Dolphin was chosen of both L-sama and Ruby-Eye.
She must be hiding from us…
"She’s hiding." Lina breathed.
"I was wondering when you were going to figure that out." A familiar voice said from behind her. Lina didn’t bother turning around.
"And when were you planning to tell me this, Zira?"
Zira sighed. "I can’t tell you anything, you have to figure it out for yourself. You got the hiding part right."
Lina snorted. "That’s great. Allow me to continue my deduction. Deep Sea Dolphin went insane and retreated into herself. I’m not sure what drove her insane, but from the bits and pieces of those memories, I’d say that it was a combination of stress and something that Xellas did." Zira nodded and Lina assumed a thinking pose. "What could she possibly be stressed by? Everyone loves her. But I suppose serving two deities would have its problems. I’m having enough trouble just helping one out." Zira nodded again. "Working for both L-sama and Ruby-Eye must have given her some impressive powers, and I’d guess one of those powers is the ability to see the past and the future. So when Dolphin went into hiding, all those memories and images got loose." She narrowed her red eyes. "Does that mean I’m inside Deep Sea’s mind right now?"
Zira clapped sarcastically. "Brilliant. I’m proud of you, Lina."
Lina sweatdropped. "It was a pretty wild guess, I thought." She coughed. "Well, then. If I’m inside her mind, then all I have to do is find the real Dolphin and get her to come out again!"
Zira shrugged as Lina cheered. "Have fun."
"Where is everyone else?"
"In her mind also, I would suppose. The door was the way in. I’m surprised that Xellas didn’t know." Or she did and just didn’t say…
Lina found herself alone again, on the beach. She looked around, the ocean stretched for as far as she could see. "WHERE IN THE WORLD AM I SUPPOSED TO FIND HER IN HERE?!"
He felt numb.
Uh-oh, he thought mentally. That numbness was a little too familiar for comfort. The feeling, or non-feeling rather, was mainly in his arms. Like he was detached, which, in a way, he was.
Xelloss opened his eyes just a crack. Just as he thought, Sheela had placed the Seals on him. Not very strong seals, considering the power of the person that created them, but seals nonetheless. He refrained from testing them, knowing that Sheela could probably feel his every move on the Astral Planes now. Talk about annoying.
He could hear them, Sheela and the human, in the next room. That left Filia unaccounted for…which is a bad thing. He needed Filia to Unseal Dynast and Sheela doesn’t know that yet.
"Are you sure it’s okay to leave the Dragon there?" He heard the human ask. Sheela laughed.
"Of course. Don’t worry, I have everything planned and under control." The demon answered, opening the door. "Bring Nova in, I’ve waited a long time for this."
Xelloss made a face mentally. Yuck, he thought, Nova. Holy Swords infused by White magic are not his favorite things in the world. Not even close…
"Wake up, Xelloss." Sheela said, poking the prone form. "Be a good boy, now. I need a little information from you." The Demon opened his eyes and emerald met amethyst for a second before he closed them in a smile.
"Hello, Sheela-chan." He piped cheerfully, regardless of the fact that he was chained to the wall, had his magic sealed and was in the same room with two people who wanted to kill him. Or at least, make his life miserable. Well, this is nothing new, he thought.
Sheela punched him. "Don’t call me that!" she snarled. Xelloss smiled through his split lips and opened one eye to look at her with a smug expression. "Stop smiling, what the hell is so funny?!"
Xelloss’s smile got wider. She could already see his lips healing. "Hey, I’m the one that’s supposed to be tortured here." He said playfully. "You’re not scaring me very much, girl."
Sheela took a deep breath and gathered her calm about her. "We’ll see about that." She said. "I’ll give you one chance to tell me where Dynast-sama is. Tell me now and I’ll let you and the Dragon go. I promise."
Xelloss snickered. "Yeah, right. I believe you, Sheela-chan. Really, did you think I’m that stupid?" Sheela gave him a cold, appraising look. His smile never wavered.
"I’ll take that as a no."
Xelloss chuckled. "Bright girl."
"I will not allow you to insult Sheela-sama!" Beldon growled, stepping forward. Xelloss gave him a smile too, just for the heck of it. The human took out the sword and flames erupted from the blade. The demon gave it a bored look. "Pay attention to me!"
Xelloss yawned, secretly having a lot of fun. The Dragons were all a bunch of boring old geezers, but this human is actually quite tasty. Hmm…there’s anger and irritation and just a small dash of fear…
"Stop it," Sheela said sharply to Beldon. "You’re only making him stronger."
"Sheela-chan is right." Xelloss agreed. Sheela whipped her sword up, to his throat.
"Silence!" she barked. "Or I’ll cut your tongue out!"
Xelloss shrugged. "It’ll grow back." He replied. "Face it, Sheela. There’s nothing that you can do to me that can scare me. I suggest we cut the stock dialog and get on with it."
"My, my. I never expected this attitude of acceptance from you." Sheela sneered. "This is new."
Xelloss grinned. "Well, I’ve learned a few things from the Dragons. Most of which is that if I’m going to suffer, I might as well enjoy what I can." Beldon brandished Nova, waving the blade inches from Xelloss’s nose. Déjà vu, he thought with a smile.
Gourry scratched his head. Now what was he trying to figure out? Oh, right. "Let’s see…Lina’s not here, Amelia’s not here…neither’s Xelloss or Filia or Xellas…" Briefly, he wondered if Xellas and Xelloss are related, then dropped that line of thought. Instead, he looked around. He was in a rural looking town, with various townspeople wandering around. Gourry wondered at the setting, after all, wasn’t he in Dolphin’s castle under the Demon Sea just a few minutes ago? He tried to stop a baker as he passed by.
His hand went right through.
"Hmm, how odd." Gourry mused.
Music started up, and people increased their scurrying. Gourry peered curiously at the crowd gathered at what appeared to be the town’s center. Since he was fairly tall, it was easy to peer over the crowd.
"Whoa…Lina?!"
The red head was in…A DRESS?! Gourry felt his eyes bug out of his sockets as he watched Lina dance, wearing a pretty dress and having her fiery hair in pigtail braids. Her slender figure swirled elegantly as her small feet completed the complex dance steps. Gourry could almost feel his jaw hitting the floor.
A woman with blue hair tapped him on the shoulder. "Excuse me, sir?"
Gourry turned around. "Huh?"
She was very pretty with wavy blue hair and azure eyes. He raised an eyebrow at the sight of pearls in her hair. "I was wondering if you could tell me where I can find Luna Inverse."
"The Knight of Cepheed?" He asked, the memory coming back to him dimly.
"Yes."
"I don’t know." He apologized. "I’m not even sure how I got here."
"Oh, all right." She replied. "Thank you."
It wasn’t until after she disappeared that Gourry realized that she could see him and touch him, unlike the people in this memory of a place.
For the second time that day, she woke up cold. Filia blinked.
Silvery light filtered through the barred windows of the dungeon she was in. The silence was oppressive. The floor was freezing and her arms and legs were numb. The General got up slowly, stiffly. The human named Beldon had knocked her out once they arrived at Sheela’s fortress and she couldn’t remember anything after that…
Xelloss! She thought, stiffening. Her head protested by screaming with pain. Ow.
Filia took a deep breath, checking herself over for any serious injuries. She was a bit battered and she had no weapons, but otherwise okay. Tentatively, she tried her magic and found that although it was considerably weakened by the miasma of evil around this place, she could still use it. Filia casted Recovery on herself, feeling much better after the white healing light faded.
She got to her feet, stretching a bit. The next order of business is actually finding the missing Mazoku. She wasn’t particularly happy about that, but Filia had no idea where she might find Dynast on her own. Besides, personal grudges aside, she really wouldn’t stoop to the Demons’ level of abandoning their own companions. Xelloss is Mazoku. But he’s also in this scrape because of her…Filia rolled her eyes as she examined the lock on her prison. A simple, human lock with a chain. Even if she couldn’t pick it, she could probably force it open. Are they stupid? She wondered as she got a good grip on the metal. With a grunt, she forced it and the links snapped in her hands. Frowning, she carefully loosened the chain and eased the barred metal door open just enough so she could slide through. That was…too easy.
Filia frowned. No guards, no alarms…almost as if they wanted her to escape. Now that really made her nervous, for she could almost feel that there’s an evil plan behind that. But it’s also a great opportunity. The dragon melted herself into the dark shadows of the hall and silently began the calming mental exercises that she always used when training. First things first. Find Xelloss, then get out. Try to not get lost in the process.
Left, a voice echoed in her head. Filia tensed, but there was only silence that greeted her alert ears. It sounded familiar…
She turned left at the corner, and then hastily backtracked as she heard the voices. Sheela and Beldon, Filia noted. Only those two? Flattening herself against the wall, Filia listened as the voices drifted out again. Stationary. Sheela was sitting and Beldon was listening attentively. No danger yet.
"Are you sure, Sheela-sama?"
Sheela chuckled. "Everything is going according to plan. The Dragon is probably loose already and looking for that damned Xelloss."
Filia narrowed her eyes. So that’s why it was so easy.
"That’s bad, Sheela-sama."
"On the contrary." Sheela corrected him. "That’s exactly what I want them to do." There was a surprised exclamation from the human and Filia’s ears twitched.
"But why?!"
There was a metallic rapping, as if Sheela was tapping her blade against something. "Simple. Xelloss is the only one that knows where Dynast-sama is Sealed. And there’s no way in hell that he will tell me, no matter how I torture him. Frankly, I don’t have the power to force it out of him." The rapping stopped as Sheela allowed her servant to absorb that information. "But he is here to Unseal Dynast-sama, there’s no other explanation for his presence. So what I’m going to do is let him go as he planned. Once I figure out where he’s keeping Dynast-sama, he and the Dragon are dead." A steely rasp rent the air as she sheathed her sword. "The Dragon is important somehow, but only Xelloss knows why. Still, he won’t be able to survive if I go all out, especially with Nova on our side. Without Xelloss, the Dragon is no threat. So all we have to do now is wait. I’ll be able to tell when Xelloss is gone, and then we’ll follow them."
"That’s a great plan, Sheela-sama!"
Filia smirked. Too bad she had to go and blab it all out, she thought. Still, what she said was disturbing. If Sheela was going to let them escape, then they would have to be very careful…
Footsteps behind her alerted her to the approach of the servant a minute too late. She barely had time to cover the lesser demon’s mouth before it could cry out an alarm. Filia almost killed it out of reflex, but another idea occurred to her. She forced it against the wall, pitching her voice very, very low.
"Where do you keep the prisoners?" She asked. The demon struggled futilely and she gathered energy for an attack spell. She wasn’t really planning to shoot it off, but it’s a good terror tactic. "Tell me. Or else."
Frantically, it gestured. Down the hall, then right. Filia gave it a nasty smile. "You’d better not lie." She warned, "Or you’ll be very sorry." It wouldn’t do for Sheela or anyone else to hear it…but it seemed wrong to just kill without a more solid reason…
She killed it anyway.
Somehow, that bothered her as she continued to sneak down the hallway. Her conscience tugged at her, guilty. She brushed it off. There was no other way to ensure silence, and they needed silence. Besides, it was just a demon…
"So it doesn’t matter? Is that it? I’m a demon so you can ruin my life if you want?" His tone turned bitingly sarcastic. "My, my, Filia. You’re a lot more Mazoku than you pretend to be."
Of all times for his words to haunt her…Filia shook her head. Silently, she glided through the hall like the shadows she was a part of. Darkness that hid her. Quietly, she checked the doors once she reached where the demon was pointing. Heavy, steel doors with strong supports and even some with magical seals. Talk about special treatment.
Very, very softly, she whispered "Xelloss?"
Quiet laughter came from one door. "And the rescue team arrives." She could hear Xelloss say. Filia felt relieved. Whatever had happened obviously wasn’t serious enough, for the Demon was acting normal.
She tested the door. Also unlocked. "Sheela wants us out in a hurry." She murmured as she entered. "Either way, though, we’re in deep trouble."
Xelloss seemed to materialize out of the shadows he was sitting in, black on black. The silver shackles on his wrists gleamed malevolently in the darkness. "Please don’t tell me she was bragging about her wicked plans and you overheard." He said with a smile. Filia could barely see him in the near total darkness, but she could hear chains clanking.
"You took the words right out of my mouth."
He sighed. "It’s people like Sheela that gives evildoers a bad name." The sigh was followed by metallic crunching, then sounds of chains snapping. "So, are you going to blast us out of here?"
"Can you run for it?" She asked, feeling the walls in the darkness. The sound of cloth rustling, then his presence behind her.
"What do you think?"
She took that as a yes. "Sheela’s going to let us out. But there’s a catch."
"She’ll kill us once we reach Dynast?" He finished, and she could hear the smug smile in his voice. "What a cliché plan."
"Isn’t it?" Filia agreed. "Stand back." She warned, gathering energy in her hand. She wasn’t sure how thick the wall was, but she went ahead anyway. "Burst Flare!"
Flames gathered in her hands, shooting out and through the walls. It cut through like a hot knife through warm butter, tearing a hole out of the walls twice her size. The miasma dampened a considerable part of her power, but it worked out fine. She could see the white-silver of the snow in the distance. "Let’s go." She said, turning to Xelloss. Filia stood there for a second as her eyes searched for what was not there. A black wolf loped past her.
Don’t gape, Filia. She heard his voice in her mind and she jumped. It was the only way to get rid of the Seal she put on me. Now, are we leaving or what?
"Xe-Xelloss?!" Now, where had she seen that wolf before…?
Yes. Do I have to spell it out for you? Hurry up!
Phibrizo…in the underground passages of Flagoon, against the guards…Filia snapped out of the memory and scrambled to catch up. "Don’t sound so superior!" She protested as they approached the opening. The wolf didn’t look back.
Teleport, Filia. I don’t care where you get us, as long as we put some distance between here and there. Filia frowned, she really didn’t like being ordered.
"Do you mind?" she hissed. "I just got you out of here." They exited out, the white snow almost blinding after the time she spent in darkness.
We’re not out yet.
As if to prove his words, a loud crack was heard in the air, and Filia looked up. Blue light was erupting from the top of the tower, shooting down and towards them. It began raining energy bolts as she started cursing expressively.
It’s only logical that she makes some effort to keep us here. Xelloss remarked. Now, are you going to teleport us or are we just going to stand here like sitting ducks? Filia fought the urge to glare at him and instead concentrated on teleporting. A golden light surrounded them and they disappeared.
"Perfect." Sheela purred from her perch on the battlements. "Now the hunt begins."