Valgarv continued to laugh as he poured on more power against the barrier that Lina, Zel, and Amelia had erected.
"Is this all you have, Lina Inverse?" Valgarv asked, and added even more power in a spectacular burst that sent everyone flying head over heels over the sand.
Lina struggled to her feet, only to be knocked back down as Valgarv teleported in front of her and smashed her in the face with his fist. He then teleported behind Amelia, grabbed her by her head, and flung her across the desert. Gourry and Zelgadis lunged at Valgarv with the Sword of Light and spells fired up and ready to go, but Val simply held up a hand and repelled them.
Valgarv walked up to the downed Lina, with a nonchalant grace that Alyson found herself envying. Up to now, Val had ignored her, and she was thankful for the time to try and gather up her thoughts and find a way to help.
"Don't disappoint me ... you aren't finished, are you?" Val asked sarcastically, as Lina tipped her face up.
"Do you think I'm scared of you?" Lina asked. "It's time I show you how powerful I really am."
"I'm looking forward to it," Val replied, smirking. "Prepare to die!"
Just as he raised his glowing hand to deliver the final blow, a shout caught his attention.
"NO!" Gourry yelled, charging Valgarv with his Sword of Light. Val smiled slightly, and held up his arm, watching as the Sword of Light harmlessly bounced off without a scratch.
"The Gorn Nova?" Valgarv said, and began to pump volts of red electricity into Gourry, all the while reaching up for his sword.
Gourry gritted his teeth and kept a death grip on his sword, but he could still feel it slip through his grasp as Val added more and more power to his attack. In a burst of defiance, Gourry shouted, "You'll have to kill me first!"
"How cute," Val smirked. "Just hand over your sword."
"No! It's mine!" Gourry yelled, gripping his sword hilt even harder.
"Here it comes!" Zel called, as he and Amelia readied their attack.
"VOMERDALE WIND!" they yelled, casting the spell simultaneously. Val turned his head in the direction of their yell, and caught the wind spell full in the face. It knocked him and Gourry apart, sending them flying in opposite directions.
"Gourry!" Lina called, then stopped and blinked.
Alyson turned in the direction that Gourry had flown, and had to bite her lip to keep from laughing. Xeros was standing on top of a rock formation, calmly holding Gourry up by the ankle. With a shrug, Xeros casually flipped Gourry away from him, and turned his full attention to Valgarv.
"I've been looking for you, Valgarv," he said with a smile.
"Xeros, eh?" Val scoffed.
With another of his infuriating smiles, Xeros lifted his index finger, and was engulfed in a black mistlike miasma, while Val powered up his red powers. The two combatants eyed each other for about half a second, then Xeros made the first move, shooting a powerful stream of black lightning at Valgarv, who teleported out of the way and then attacked Xeros with his red lightning. The rock formation that Xeros had been standing on a few moments ago exploded. Alyson, who had been standing near the base of the rock formation, tried to move out of the way, but several hundred pounds of rock and sand rained down on top of her, somehow forming a small pocket where she was kept from being crushed by the remainder of the debris. She coughed out a lungful of sand and grit, and tried to move some of the rocks away from a small hole in the walls, but to no avail. She was stuck. After muttering several choice curse words, Alyson put her eye against the small hole, and watched as Xeros and Val battled it out. Soon Lina and Zelgadis joined in, hurling spells at Val. He simply dodged them and landed back on the ground, laughing. Amelia and Gourry ran up, joining Zel and Lina, while Xeros landed on the ground on Val's other side. Alyson couldn't make out what was being said, but Val looked to be vastly amused by whatever it was. Just when it looked like the fight was going to start up again, the ground gave a shudder, and Alyson began coughing as loose dirt and sand was dislodged from the roof of her prison, and rained down on her head. The ground shuddered again, and Alyson started to worry that the roof on her prison would collapse.
"Well," she thought, "that would be a messy end to this adventure."
The tremors stopped as suddenly as they had begun, and Alyson blinked. Shrugging, she put her eye once again to the small hole, and watched as Xeros and the others began to talk. The group suddenly seemed to realize that two of its members were missing, and began to search for them.
Knowing that Zelgadis had the best hearing of the group, Alyson took a deep breath and yelled, "GET ME OUT OF HERE!!!" As she had hoped, Zel heard her, and began to move in her direction.
"Alyson? Where are you?" Zel called, soon joined by Amelia, while Lina and Gourry continued to look for Filia.
"Well, I'm underneath a lovely pile of rocks that I'm sure any rock collector would just die for," Alyson said sarcastically. Zelgadis soon reached the area where she was, and stood staring at the rock pile.
"You're underneath all that?!" he asked, as Amelia scrambled up onto the rocks, and found the hole where she could see Alyson's disgruntled face.
"Yep," Alyson said. "I believe it's called solitary confinement."
"Huh?" Amelia asked, looking over the rocks to find a way inside.
"Never mind. Think you guys can get me out of here?" she asked.
Zel took on a thoughtful pose, and began to mutter to himself under his breath. He began to make scratches on a notepad he had with him, occasionally eyeing the rock pile. At this time, Lina, Gourry, Xeros and Filia had walked up to them, asking what was going on. Filia looked like she had had her head buried in a sandbox, and would occasionally shake her head, sending loose sand flying all over the place. Zel quickly outlined the situation and his plan, and the friends quickly got to work. Filia began to lift away some of the heavier boulders, while Amelia and Lina worked on clearing away the area around the hole and making it larger. After a few moments, Gourry and Zel were able to reach in and grab one of Alyson's hands and, with a sharp pull, haul her out of her prison. As soon as she was clear, everyone jumped away and watched as the roof of the cave collapsed.
"Well,"Alyson gasped, "That certainly would have been one way to lose weight. Thank you for getting me out."
The group quickly filled her in on what had been happening and said after Val and Xeros' fight, and Alyson found herself eyeing the Dark One with a huge amount of curiosity. Xeros, however, was busy arguing with Filia about who was using Lina and to what extent. Lina finally sighed, and stood up.
"Will you two put aside your differences for a moment? Xeros, stop being obnoxious and tell us what our enemies' objectives really are," she snarled.
"Our enemies have three goals," Xeros said, holding up three fingers.
"What three?" Alyson asked.
"First, they want to get rid of Lina," he said, while Lina smirked and said, "Garv's troops sure are persistent."
"Their second objective is to get Gourry's Gorn Nova or, as you know it, the Sword of Light," Xeros continued.
"So what's your business with the Sword of Light?" Lina demanded.
"Well, that is ... If you were to lend me the Sword of Light, I could protect it from Valgarv," Xeros hedged.
"No way! This sword is mine!" Gourry said, clutching the sword to him.
"Enough already!" Lina yelled.
"That's all right, makes my job easier," Xeros muttered to himself.
"What's that supposed to mean?!" Lina demanded.
Zelgadis sighed. "So, what's their third goal?"
"To find a sword that is equal to or stronger than the Sword of Light," Xeros grinned.
"What?! There's no such thing! It's impossible! No sword can compare with the Sword of Light!" Lina said.
"Well, I believe that it exists. It's called the Holy Sword of the Desert Tribe, and Valgarv's men are already after it," Xeros said.
"How do you know that?" Lina demanded.
"Because I saw Valgarv's men attack the village on my way here."
"Then that means ... " Lina trailed off, and the rest didn't need any other encouragement.
Several moments later, the group stood on a rise of sand that overlooked what was left of the burning village.
"Told ya," Xeros grinned.
"Why didn't you do anything to help them, Xeros?! Were you afraid of them?!" Amelia snarled, looking like she wanted to chew up and spit out some nails.
"Well, Valgarv wasn't there, so I left," Xeros explained.
"You really are a Dark One," Lina sighed. "Oh well ... I'm going to get that treasure for myself!"
Amelia, Zel, and Lina all took off with their flying spells across the desert, with Gourry running full tilt behind them, leaving Alyson, Filia, and Xeros in their dust.
"Um, your name is Filia, right? How's the fire dragon king doing these days?" Xeros asked, grinning.
Filia responded with a scream that rattled Alyson's eardrums, then proceeded to freak out, yelling, "Don't come near me! Evil one! Raw Garbage! Don't cross this point!" She then made a crude barbed wire fence around Xeros and Alyson, leapt onto one of those bird horses, and took off after Lina, screaming her name.
Xeros' eyebrow and smile twitched as he giggled, and grated out, "Raw Garbage?"
"Looks like she got your goat," Alyson grinned at the twitching Trickster Priest.
Xeros muttered something acidic, then suddenly turned his attention to Alyson. His open eyes and intense stare sent a small shiver of fear down her back.
"What?" she asked, trying not to show her fear.
"I'm just wondering something. Why are you blocking your Power?" the Trickster asked.
"I DON'T HAVE ANY POWERS, DAMMIT!" Alyson screamed, finally losing her temper, and causing Xeros' eyes to widen a bit.
"Ahhh, I see," he said, and smiled, changing his face from intense scrutiny to general cheerfulness in a matter of seconds.
"Um, yeah," Alyson stuttered, thrown a little off balance.
"So, where exactly are you from?" Xeros asked.
Alyson sighed. "Long story, that. Let's just say I wound up dropping in from another world that's far away from here. If you really want to know more, ask Lina and the others."
Xeros opened his mouth like he was going to say something else, but the ground suddenly began to shake violently, causing Alyson to lose her footing and fall to the ground. Xeros merely shrugged and floated a good two inches above the ground.
"Show off," Alyson muttered, then asked, "What's going on?"
About that time, several large, worm like things suddenly appeared in the distance, right where Lina and the others had been heading.
"Hmm, now that's interesting," Xeros muttered to himself, then blinked when he felt something grab onto his ankles. He looked down, and found that Alyson had attached herself to his feet and was staring up at him.
"You can teleport, right?" she asked. When he nodded, she said, "Great! Teleport us to where Lina and the others are."
Xeros lifted an eyebrow, but he complied. They appeared near Zelgadis and Amelia, who had confronted Grabos about the large sword he was now holding. When he said that all he did was pull the sword out of its holding place, Xeros commented that that must have been the magic seal that kept the desert beasts contained.
Alyson looked around at the large, worm like creatures that had very large, sharp teeth, and muttered, "At least it's not spiders." A clanging sound drew her attention away from the worm things and to Grabos, who had collapsed onto the ground in a rather painful heap, with Filia standing over him and glaring.
"I see you forgot about me again," she snarled, as she handed the large sword to Amelia, saying, "Here, we need to return this."
"Sure, just leave it to me!" Amelia said, then cocked her head to the side. "By the way, where do I return it to?"
"Probably in that cave over there," Xeros said, pointing to a distant cave that could barely be seen beyond piles of monster bodies and teeth.
"I have to go through that?!" Amelia asked, looking really worried.
"Nice knowing ya," Alyson quipped, gazing at the monster-strewn pathway.
"How much do you weigh?" Zel asked, and promptly got whapped over the head with the sword Amelia was holding. "I was being serious," Zel grunted, and Amelia finally whispered it in his ear. Zel pulled out his notepad, and began scribbling mathematical figures onto it, then asked Filia to drag a large pipe over to a small pile of rocks. He then had Amelia climb into the pipe, making sure that she kept a good grip on the sword.
"Um, Zelgadis?" Amelia asked, looking worriedly down from her place at the front of the pipe.
"Don't worry about me, I'll be fine," Zelgadis said, then cast his spell. "VOMERDALE WIND!"
The increased air pressure against Amelia's body created a human cannonball out of the Saillune Princess, who went hurtling across the desert with a stream of curses that Alyson didn't know Amelia had been aware of. Once Amelia was safely in the cave and had replaced the sword, the worm monsters turned into ice and were destroyed.
"Am I good or what?" Zelgadis asked of no one in particular.
"If I'm right, Amelia is going to have a major headache when she comes back," Alyson muttered, wishing that Tylenol had been transported with her to this world.
"Um, where's Lina?" Xeros asked.
At that moment, there came the sound of two swords clashing, and a sudden pillar of light shot up from the ground a short distance away. Alyson and the others ran in that direction, and found that Gourry and Valgarv's lightswords had crossed and were generating an incredible magnetic reaction.
"Gourry!" Lina called, watching helplessly as the swordsman was drawn in from the power of the reaction. Suddenly, another pillar of light shot out of the sky, and impacted between Gourry and Valgarv, hurling them in opposite directions and separating the two light weapons. Everyone stared at the huge, transparent being that was now standing next to Val. Alyson turned to glance at Xeros, and found that he was shaking and staring wide eyed at the new arrival.
"Enough," the being said.
"Why are you stopping me, Almace, when I'm winning?!" Val demanded, glaring up at the tall being.
"I said... that's enough," Almace repeated.
Val growled, but relaxed a bit, only to tense up as Lina and Zelgadis came flying in with an Elmekia Flame and a Ra Tilt. The two spells impacted, but had no effect on Val and Almace.
"Their magic didn't work?" Filia asked, surprised.
"No, they don't have the correct magic," Xeros said, as Almace smirked. "but I think I know someone who does."
So saying, he walked over to Alyson, who had watched the whole proceedings with wide eyes, and pulled off one of his gloves. In a move that was to fast to see, he grabbed her around the throat, and smiled as her eyes went blank and he delved into her mind and soul.
What are you doing?! Alyson screamed at him, though she made no sound.
I'm just looking for the seal that you placed on your Power, nothing more, Xeros calmly answered, while he searched for said seal. He started a little when he came across the missing fourth of Alyson's genetic makeup. Hmm, no wonder we couldn't recognize what your other part was. The Ancient Dragons have been dead for centuries, and Valgarv is only half an Ancient now. Makes sense in a strange way, though.
Oh really? Alyson asked sarcastically.
Yes. If you think about it, whoever brought you here wanted you to pass as a native of this world, and a powerful one, at that. It makes sense that you would be made up of four of the most Powerful Magical beings this place has to offer, Xeros explained.
Is this the truth? Alyson asked.
I can't lie mind to mind, Xeros said, and then stopped when he found himself "standing" in front of the seal that had been placed between Alyson and her Power. As he reached out to break the seal, a sudden thought stopped him. Reaching into his cape, he withdrew a knife, and made two vertical slashes in the back of Alyson's shirt before anyone could stop him. He then reached out with his own Power, and blasted the seal, causing it to explode instantly, and released Alyson's throat.
Alyson blinked up at him, and said, "What was that all about?"
"This will probably hurt," Xeros said.
Alyson was going to ask what, when the raw Power that she had been sealing away suddenly came flooding through the broken seal. Alyson's knees gave out and her mouth opened on a silent scream as every nerve in her body felt like it had been submerged in a cauldron of white hot pain. A small corner of her mind registered a ripping sensation in the vicinity of her shoulders as a pair of silvery wings burst out of her back and through the two slashes in her shirt, but she was too occupied with trying to get this crushing pain under control to give it any attention.
After a few seconds, the pain eased off, and she collapsed forward onto her hands, panting. As she slowly regained use of her aching limbs, she became aware that everything felt different. She felt stronger, and there was a small, pulsing knot of energy that seemed to always be sitting at the corner of her awareness. Alyson finally took a deep breath, and got to her feet, feeling more than slightly off balance.
"Wha..."
"Alyson?" Amelia asked, walking up and staring at her friend.
"Whoa, she's got wings!" Gourry exclaimed, moving around so he could get a better look at Alyson's feathery, silver wings.
"WHAT?!" Alyson shrieked, reached behind her, and yanked one of her wings forward, spraying feathers everywhere. She then dropped her wing, grabbed Xeros by the front of his shirt, and yanked him to eye level.
"What did you do?" she hissed, glaring murder at the Trickster.
"I simply removed the block you had place between you and your Power," Xeros answered calmly. "So you can no longer claim that you don't have any Power."
"Then why do I have wings?"
"Those wings are from your Ancient Dragon heritage, though I have no idea why they're silver."
"Final question, why did you do this?"
"That is a secret," Xeros said with a finger wiggle and a wink.
"SECRET THIS!" Alyson screamed, and made sure that Xeros became very familiar with her right fist. She then turned her attention back to Valgarv, to find that he was still taunting Lina, while Almace stood by, smirking.
"He's starting in on what he's going to do to Lina when he gets his hands on her," Zel whispered to Alyson, who snorted.
"Figures," Alyson said, and bit her bottom lip, thinking. "Well," she shrugged, "Might as well take the bull by the horns."
"Huh?" Gourry asked, looking confused.
"If I'm right," Alyson thought to herself, "And if I can believe what Lina told me a while back, then I should be able to mix the different forms of Magic, especially since Shamanism and Black Magic aren't having any affect on those two. May as well give it a shot. First thing first, get these stupid wings out of my way."
She furrowed her brow in concentration, and sighed with relief as the wings slowly retracted back to wherever they had come from. She then crossed her toes, leaving her hands free, and closed her eyes, carefully tapping into that line of Power she sensed. She then prayed to whatever deity might be listening that this would work without her blowing everyone, including herself, to kingdom come.
Lina was fast reaching the boiling stage and was getting ready to throw a Dragon Slave at Valgarv, when she heard someone else chanting the spell. She whirled around and stared at Alyson, who was beginning to glow with the concentrated Power.
"Darkness beyond twilight, crimson beyond blood that flows, buried in the flow of time. In thy great name, let the power that is hidden within my soul be called forth from the infinite!"
"That's not ... !" Lina began to yell, when she got cut off by Alyson yelling, "DRAGON TILT!" as a blast of silvery energy shot from her hands and blasted towards Val and Almace. Almace's smirk turned into a look of surprise as the spell smashed into them, knocking them back several feet.
"What the *#@*&##%^&*#*@*#6 just happened?!" Val swore as he regained his feet.
"Let's go, Valgarv," Almace said, and faded from sight.
"Remember this, Lina Inverse. I shall return to kill you," Val threatened, and vanished as well.
"He's subtle," Alyson remarked, then blinked as Lina grabbed her.
"What was that spell you just used?! It sounded like a mixture of the Dragon Slave and the Ra Tilt," Lina demanded.
"Um, ah, well I guess that's what it was. I figured that since your magic wasn't working, I would try and see if I could mix the two spells and make a new one," Alyson explained.
"But why are you now able to use your Power?" Zel asked.
"Xeros decided to acquaint me with it."
"I bet he didn't even ease you into it," Filia snorted. "Especially since his evil race enjoys pain."
"You mean that pain wasn't necessary?" Alyson demanded.
"No, it wasn't. I could have removed your block in a way that would have let you receive your Power slowly, so that you would have a chance to get used to the feeling," Filia explained, glaring at Xeros, who just grinned back at her.
"Well, I don't know what you're talking about," Gourry said, "But I think it would be best if we got moving. We don't know when those two will come back."
"You're right, Gourry," Lina said, and the group set off through the desert, with Lina and Zelgadis asking questions of Alyson, while she tried to answer them as best as she could.
Part 5 | Fanfiction