After walking again trough endless corridors Gracia saw a bright light at was seemed the end of the tunel. She stooped for a moment for in front of her was a blinding light and it took her her eyes a moment to get used to it. Then she saw what Lina had called 'the gardens'. Everywhere was grass, trees and further back she saw fields. It was beautiful. Gourry indicated her to follow him and they walked down a small path between the trees. She looked at her suroundings, she still couldn't believe what she was seeing. There were people working here and there, picking fruits or planting seeds. There were even some insectes. This is how she had imagined the world befor the second Mazoku War and she couldn't believe that it could still exist. She just wished Amelia could be here with her.
After walking around through the garden with the newcomer Gourry finally found who he had been looking for.
"Alas!" he caled the blond-brown haired woman kneeling on the ground with the back to him.
Gracia saw a long haired woman turned around to face them, she looked surprised at Gracia for a moment but when she saw Gourry a warm smile appeared on her face. The blond woman stood up and dusted the dirt of her clothes.
"Hello Gourry1 Who is your beatiful friend? Your girlfriend?" asked the woman.
Gracia felt herself blushing and looked down. Gourry's cheek had turned red too.
"Ah, no she is not my ... girlfriend." said Gourry still blushing and not looking at Gracia, "This is Gracia, Ayla asked me to show her around, she is new here and I thought that you maybe could explain her how this works."
"Sure thing." said Alas smiling at them, she streched her hand out to greet Gracia, "Welcome, I'm Alas."
Gracia looked at the woman infront of her and greeted her. Suddenly she rememberd Ayla having mentioned her name and she twiched back. Alas looked at her surprised.
"You... You're the... an Ancient Do... Dra... Ancient Dragon!" Gracia finally managed to say and stared at the woman infront of her. Gracia looked at her, Alas's long blond brown hair was tied in a pony tail, but some strands fell down in her face, when Alas moved. The dragon had a mark on each cheeck and her eyes were the same color as her hair. She was as tall as Gourry.
"Yes, I'm an Ancient Dragon, I'm surprised you noticed." said Alas smiling friendly at her.
"Well I acutally Ayla told me about you." said Gracia a little ebarassed about having jerked back.
Alas laughed, "I should have know, after Gourry saying that Ayla asked him to show you around. Anyway if I understood right you want to know how this..." Alas made a handmove towards the gardens, "...works, ne?"
Gracia noded.
"Well than I should probably introduce you to Aishan." Alas turned around and shouted: "Aishan!"
Gracia saw a brown haired woman hanging headdown on a tree a little farther behind, she was holding herself up there with her legs and waved at Alas. The dragon waved back and indicated Gourry and Gracia to follow her. In the meantime the brown haired woman had jumped of the tree and was waiting for them on the ground. She was wearing shorts and a red shirt and her short hair was fuzzed.
"Hi!" she said.
"Aishan, this is Gracia, she's new here. Gracia, this is Aishan, she adminstrates the gardens with me." said Alas.
"Nice to meet you." they said in unison, they had to laughed at that.
"Gourry why don't you look for Yalemar, please? He should be helping at the fields back there." said Alas to Gourry as she pointed toward a place behind the trees.
"Sure. You can wait here, yes?." Gourry asked Gracia who noded, then he walked away.
"Well, I'm sure you wonder who built this." said Aishan
"Actually no, Gourry told me that his father designed this place." replied Gracia as she looked after Gourry.
"Yes, Mr Gabriev is a real genius for architecture. You see, the whole city is lighted with Lightspells, but the gardens need more powerfull lightspells since the plants need a lot of light." Aishan told Gracia and sat down on the ground with the other two women.
"But how do you get enough water for all this? I mean here must be over 100 trees not counting the fields over there." said Gracia pointing towards the fields where about ten people were planting seeds.
"Before Kayless became the headquarters of the resistance this place was an old temple or something like that. Underneath this catacumbs flows an underground river, which we can show you if you want." said Alas.
"Are you saying there is another level under us?" Gracia looked stuned.
"No, no." Alas laughed, " Part of the river flows under us, but before it gets there it flows over a waterfall which is over there. Can you see it?" Aishan indicated Gracia to past the trees and the field.
Gracia saw it above the tree tops, a small part of the waterfall, but that was all.
"I'm impressed, this place is increadible."
"Yes, it certanly is.", Aishan reached behind herself and gave Gracia an fruit she had never seen, "Here, try it out."
Gracia took it in her hands, "What is it?"
"Try first." Alas smiled.
She bit on the fruit, a swaet taste yet somthing bitter, but is was fabulous. Aishan and Alas saw that she liked it.
"It is a mix between an apple and a cheery. We invented it as there was a great famine in Rigan and our surplies were less then now. You have to know that not only Kayless supplied with all you see here, but we also supply the surounding villages and towns."
Gracia looked at both women impressed as Gourry came back with a shoulder-lenght dark green-haired boy with ice blue eyes, he must be around five or six. The boy looked at Gracia, his eyes seemed so cold, then the boy ran into Alas arms. Alas fuzzed his hair, while Gourry sat next to Gracia.
"Gracia this is my son Yalemar." she looked at the boy who was sitting in her lap."This young lady there is Gracia. Why don't you say hello to her?"
The boy gave Gracia the hand and smiled at her, then he made some strange moves with his hand which she didn't understand.
"He said that you're a very beatiful young woman and that it is nice to meet you." Alas said to Gracia.
Gracia looked questioning at the Ancient Dragon.
"Yalemar doesn't talk he uses handsignals to comunicate with others." explained Aishan.
"Oh... " Gracia made a pause," I don't understand. Ayla said that you were the last Ancient Dragon, but if he's your son then..."
"He is actually my foster son, I found him ten years ago in one of the cities I was traveling through." said Alas as the boy stood up and climbed on the tree.
"So he's not a dragon?"
"Oh yes he is. He grows too slow for a human. His age compared to human age is around 20, but for his dragon race he's just 5. Luna said to me that he's a Wind Dragon, but I haven't been able to comfirm it yet, sine he has never changed into his dragon form."
"I see." said Gracia and looked up to the tree where Yalemar was eating an apple he had picked up.
"How long will you stay in Kayless?" asked Aishan curiously.
"Well, it depends on when my sister returns..." Gracia looked down, pain filled her features as she rememberd that she hadn't been able to protect Amelia.
"Gourry?" Gracia heard a childish voice behind her, she turned around to see who it was.
It was girl from the cafeteria who had called Ayla away, Gracia looked at her long light-brown hair tied up in a pigtail.
"Uhm, yes? What is it Edele?" asked the swordsman the girl.
"Luna wants to talk to that woman." said the girl and pointed at Gracia.
"Edele, be a little more nice to Gracia." said Aishan to the girl.
"I am mother." said the girl.
Aishan sighted. There was no use to try changing her daughters behaviour.
"Yalemar. Come play?" Edele asked the boy ignoring the others.
Yalemar smiled and jumped down and walked away with Edele.
"Well,... You two should be going. You shouldn't make Luna wait." said Alas smiling.