Lina and Zel where walking home from the Hoof and Horn.
"Hey Zel, you okay?" Lina asked the man walking next to her.
"Yeah, I'm fine." Zel said shortly. Lina scowled at Zel and the two continued to walk side by side. "Hey Lina, can I ask you something?
"Sure, what?"
"Do you....." Zel trailed off as someone suddenly jumped in front of them. "Get down!" Zel shouted as he pushed Lina out of the way and drew his sword.
"Foolish mortal do you think tah can stop me?" Zel recognized their attacker as a Mazuko.
"Lina run!" Zel shouted over his shoulder at the red head. "Get help!" Lina nodded and ran off. "Let's fight Mazuko." Zel smiled grimly and conjured a spell upon his blade. The Mazuko raised his shield as the human charged as him and knocked the sword out of his hand
"Please you little whelp! Why did you do that?"
"So I could do this." Zel snarled. "Flare Arrow!" The dozens of magickal arrows slammed into the Mazuko.
"Now you die!" The Mazuko suddenly expanded and took on his true form, that of a tentacale monster. One the tentacles raised and stabbed down impaling Zel, and the stomach. Zel gasped as the white-hot wave of pain washed over him. Zel fell to his knees, dammit; he didn't get to tell Lina......
Lina ran down the streets, she had to get help, otherwise Zel might be hurt or killed. Lina wondered why her breath sobbed in her throat.
"Lina!" Someone grabbed Lina and she whiled around.
"Lina it's me!" Gourry cried.
"Gourry, Zel... he's...
"Lina calm down, now what's the matter?"
"We were attacked and Zel stayed behind..... You have to help him?
"Take me to him." Lina grabbed Gourry's arm
"Levitation!" Lina shouted and they began to float swiftly through the air.
"This is great!" Gourry shouted over the wind." Lina saw Zel go down as one of the Mazuko's tentacles impaled him.
"NO Zel!" Lina cried as she drooped to the ground. Gourry growled and unsheathed his sword. "No Gourry don't you don't stand a chance against a Mazuko!" Lina cried afraid she would lose another friend this night.
"Lina?" Zel opened his brilliant blue eyes.
"Shhh Zel." Lina whispered as he began to cast a healing spell.
"Hoshi no Ken!" Gourry shouted and Lina looked up just in time to see Gourry's sword become a column of black fire.
"Gods." Lina breathed as she continued to cast her spell
"Lina!" Slyph cried as she ran over to her friend.
"Sylph what are you doing? How did you get here?"
"I followed you, move over Lina." Slyph pushed her friends out of the way, and begin to cast a healing spell.
"Slyph, I didn't know you knew magick." Lina murmured as she watched her friend perform of all things, Resurrection, the strongest healing spell.
"Shhh, Lina, I need to concentrate," Slyph said with uncharacteristic seriousness. Lina nodded and placed her hand on Slyph's shoulder, giving lending her and Zel magickal support. Lina looked up and was the terror on the Mazuko's face as Gourry walked up with his Sword of Stars [1] flashing. The Mazuko tried to fend Gourry off, but the blond swordsman destroyed it with easy. Gourry turned around and looked at Lina.
"Gourry I gotta have that sword!"
"What!" Gourry shouted.
"Come on, I'll by it from you."
"Would you two cut it out!" Slyph ordered sharply. Lina looked down at her friend, sweat beaded her forehead, and she trembled slightly.
"Slyph! You didn't?" Lina cried as she knelt down next to her friend.
"I had to Lina, don't worry, your friend will be okay now." Slyph murmured and she suddenly collapsed.
"Slyph!" Gourry shouted as he knelt down next to the girl.
"Gourry, she's okay, the fool used up most of her energy to save Zel." Lina shook her head. "Ray Wing!" Lina cried, and a bubble of air formed around them. "Gourry where does Slyph live?" Lina asked as she took them high into the air. Gourry looked down and pointed.
"Three streets over on your left. It's the house with a garden in front." Lina looked where Gourry pointed and saw the house.
"Gotcha." Lina flew there. Lina looked at the area they were in. This was one of the worst parts of town. "Gods, Slyph lives here?" Lina asked as she looked at the old, falling apart houses. There is a whole lot more to Slyph, then meets the eye. Lina thought to herself as she landed outside of Slyph's house
Lina rolled over in her bed. After they had explained everything to Slyph's father, He invited them all to stay the night. It was rather cramped in the old house, but Lina had to admit, there was a kind of warm peacefulness that permeated the Nal Raada household. Lina finally gave up on sleep and sat up, this was getting her nowhere. Lina opened the door on peeked down the hallway. She walked past Slyph's room, and looked inside the open door, there was Gourry siting by her side. Lina grinned and walked down the hallway. Lina froze when she walked past Zel's door, when she had gone to sleep three hours ago, his too was asleep, but now a light shinned from under his door. Lina frowned slightly and opened the door, she was right, there was a candle burning at Zel's beside. Lina walked in, and noticed that Zel was asleep.
"He's so cute when he sleeps." Lina thought with a giggle. She walked over and was about to blow out the candle, when Zel started to talk in his sleep.
"Lina watch out!" Lina froze, and looked at the pale man. Zel's face though normally pale, was even paler then usual, it was almost translucent.
He must be having a nightmare, but a nightmare about me? Lina's thoughts were interrupted once again by Zelgadis' dream.
"Xellos let go of her, she's not yours! Damn you Mazuko..... Lina no stay with me, don't die.....don't die. NO!" Zel screamed and suddenly woke up. Zel looked around, and he saw Lina looking at him with scared ruby eyes.
"Zel?" Zel ran a hand through his indigo hair.
"I'm okay, I sometimes have dreams like that." Lina nodded, and pulled up a chair and sat down. "Lina, the dreams I have, they come true, so please be careful, the dream I had today was the worst ever." Zel's sapphire blue eyes had a haunted look in them.
"Zel what happened?" Lina asked.
"You were captured by that daemon Xellos, and he killed you." Lina gasped. "Lina, that won't happen, I promise you." Zel grabbed Lina's hand and squeezed it.
"But if it's my future...."
"NO! The future is never set in stone. Do you hear me Lina?" Zel looked at her with intense eyes. "I won't let Xellos take you, and by L-sama I sure as heck won't let him kill you, I promise." Zel smiled slightly and Lina smiled back.
"What am I doing you are the sick one here Zelgadis Greyweres!" Lina said smiling brightly. "Now you get some sleep."
"I'm not really tired Lina." Zel said amused at her sudden sift in moods.
"Well you are going to get some sleep, and don't worry about nightmares, because I am going to stay right here, and keep them away." Lina grinned at Zel. "Now get some sleep." Lina pushed Zel into the bed, and pulled the covers up to his chin.
"But...."
"No buts, you are going to get some sleep." Zel frowned at her and Lina looked at him unfazed.
"That's not going to work with me Zel, so you might as well get some sleep." Lina leaned forward, and touched his brow. "Sleep." she murmured and Zel's eyes closed.
"He is going to be pissed at me when he wakes up, but he needs his sleep." Lina sat back and got comfortable in her chair. It looked like she wouldn't be getting any sleep tonight. That was her last thought before she too drifted off.
[1] The Hoshi no Ken is the Sword of Stars. When Shabrinigdo was reborn in Lei Magnus' body, the ancestor of Gourry tried to stop him, but he failed and was killed. So the Sword of Light fell into the Mazuko's hands. It is no owned by Xellos Metallium, the Mazuko general. So after the Sword of Light was lost, the Gabriev family slowly dwindled, for their only purpose was to protect the Sword of Light. But one day, a strange woman showed up at the Gabriev farm, and she gave to the eldest son a beautiful sword, which she called the Hoshi, no Ken, the Sword of Stars. It was the twin to the Sword of Light, when the Sword of Light had been captured by Shabrinigdo, the Hoshi no Ken suddenly appeared. So the woman smiled one last time as the boy, and turned around and walked away. The boy watched as the woman with long blond hair walked over a hill and disappeared. Since the, the Hoshi no Ken has been in the Gabriev family.