Some time later, after Lina had been sated her rumbling stomach, the King again asked for an explanation of what happened. He got it, and sat there in amazement as Lina told him everything that had happened with Aristos -- including the forgotten memory that Lina and Zelgadis had been shown by Aristos.
"...and we came back here," Lina wrapped up as she finished describing the kidnapping from last night, waving a hand at the palace in general. Her stomach bulged just a little bit from the amount of food she'd eaten, much to her delight, and Zelgadis's amusement.
The King frowned and sat back in his chair, his expression revealing nothing as he considered what he'd just heard. "So all this began in the past..." he murmured to himself.
Zelgadis nodded solemnly at his family. "Lina and I are puzzled by the memory that started all this. Neither of us remember it, despite being shown it in detail...and neither of us are the type to forget something like that."
"Perhaps it's a false memory," Tannec suggested, tapping his head.
Lina shook her head fiercely. "Then there'd be no reason for Aristos to chase us."
"Someone could have implanted the memory in Aristos alone," Wyna suggested after a moment.
Again, Lina shook her head. "That wouldn't make any sense. Why not get someone else who'd be much more likely to kill us? Despite the successful kidnapping of last night, Aristos is a fool, a coward, and a third-rate sorcerer." She sighed, and pushed her plate away. "They could just as easily got an expert assassin to go after us -- without going to the trouble of implanting a memory."
The Queen frowned this time, and asked pointedly, "If Aristos is such a fool, how did he manage to kidnap you, Zel?"
Zelgadis smirked bitterly. "He had help. The Aristos we've come to know wouldn't think to cast Sleep on me before trying anything, or of binding me with something extra strong, or of covering his tracks. I think someone else gave him advice." He added dryly, "And he kept on rambling on about 'someone else.' Apparently, that other person was giving Aristos specific instructions. One of those instructions was to kidnap me, and kill me as soon as possible. Aristos didn't do that; he wanted to gloat first." Shrugging, he said, "It's the only reason I was alive when Lina rescued me."
Wyna asked hesitantly, "But what about that memory? If it isn't false, how come you can't remember it?"
Zelgadis and Lina gave each other long looks, fraught with hidden meaning as they silently asked each other whether it was time... Finally, Lina nodded encouragement, and Zelgadis stood up.
Quietly, he said, "Lina and I have no idea why we can't remember the day we first met. But...we were told that the King and Queen might be able to answer us..."
The King and Queen gasped in outrage, and the Queen demanded shrilly, obviously offended, "Who gave you that idea?!"
Zelgadis's reply was even quieter than before. "Trecix."
Silence filled the room to the bursting point as bulging, unbelieving eyes turned to him and asked without words for an explanation.
Lina sighed and waved a hand at him. "Just show them, already!"
"I don't suggest that..." a voice chuckled.
Zelgadis whirled towards the sound, and everyone else swiveled in their seats. Lina jumped up and automatically began to summon a fireball. But they couldn't see anything. What was going on?
"It would ruin all my perfect plans, if...Zel...did so," the voice continued from the same spot. Zelgadis squinted and tried to pinpoint the general area where the sound was coming from.
A maniacal laugh from the door caught their attention. "I won't let you escape this time, Zel!" Aristos stated, grinning insanely, his minions standing behind him.
The minions looked decidedly uncomfortable, especially when they saw the King and Queen standing in the room. They shifted uneasily from foot to foot, alternately casting their eyes down and back up.
Lina grimaced. Zel, Aristos wasn't the person who was speaking just a few seconds ago...
I'm guessing that was the mysterious benefactor of Aristos...and possibly the person who attacked us in the hallways yesterday, he replied grimly.
Aristos chuckled under his breath, and pointed dramatically at Zelgadis, who sweatdropped from the bad theatrics. "I, Aristos, shall defeat you, monster! I won't let your evil spread!" Taking a deep breath, he continued, "Vice..." A small ball of ice formed above Aristos's hands, and quickly gathered more ice around itself as the seconds went by. The only reason the spell hadn't been completed yet was testimony to Aristos's skills; he wasn't powerful enough to cast it quickly and cause a major blast.
Zelgadis mentally cursed and hastily formed a shield around himself, praying it would be enough. Simultaneously, he cast "Levitation!" Perhaps if he wasn't on the ground, the cold couldn't reach him... Others apparently had come to the same conclusion. Everyone present had a shield surrounding them, and was floating somewhere in the middle, between the floor and the ceiling.
"...Freeze!" Aristos finished, grinning and laughing. The ball of ice had become fairly huge by now, and as he said the last word, it exploded. Millions of ice shards showered the room, and where they touched, they spread ice sheets. The shields took the barrage for them, and mercifully didn't collapse under the pressure.
Several long minutes later, the shards stopped coming, and everyone hesitantly floated to the ground.
The floor, furniture, and rugs were all covered by at least three feet of heavy, dense ice. At the other end, they saw through the doorway that ice had covered the next room as well. ...And just before it stood Aristos, his face caught mid-laugh as the ice had covered him, too.
Lina snorted and crossed her arms. "Amateurs shouldn't play with magic like that. He didn't have enough power left to keep himself from being iced over. Idiot." She looked around her and then at the royal family. "Let's talk in a less slippery...and warmer...room." As she said it, she rubbed the goosebumps on her arms. The King nodded in agreement, and everyone carefully made their way out the door. Everyone except Zelgadis managed to slip on the ice at least once, and land with a sickening thud.
The figure grimaced to itself as it watched Aristos's idiotic display of power. He didn't have the control, the intelligence, or the magical abilities to pull it off successfully. As Aristos did indeed lose control of it, and got caught in his own spell, the figure shook its head in disbelief. He won't be any good to me from now on. At least he managed to delay them from one crucial moment. Zelgadis was much too close to revealing who he was... No matter what, I can't let that happen.
It smiled grimly as it recalled, Aristos was able to heal my hands before this happened, thankfully. Now I can go after Zelgadis myself...
Chapter 35 | Story Index | Fanfiction