"This has been the most boring trip ever!" complained Lina, mainly to take her mind off what they'd find once they got to their destination. "Well, except for the monster attacks. I mean, there's nothing here! Absolutely nothing! No villages, no inns, no trees; just grass. Grass, grass, grass..."
"There's rocks too," pointed out Gourry helpfully, just before Lina tripped over one.
For the past few days, the four friends had been crossing the Clory Plains, quite possibly the flattest, most boring stretch of land in the world. Occasionally, a nervous rabbit or two would run off at their approach, or a trickle of water daring to call itself a river would burble its merry way across their path. Other than that, and the now-daily monster attacks, there was nothing to disturb the neverending monotony of acres and acres of grass, stretching to the horizon in every direction.
Or, at least, there had been nothing to disrupt the flatness and monotony; now, the ground was getting a little rockier. Gentle hills and tiny ridges began to curve sinuously across the landscape. Also, the ever-present grass was starting to die out in this more hostile environment. It wasn't much of a difference, but it was enough to signal that they were nearing the end of the Clory Plains, and the beginning of Therilon.
"We're almost there!" called out Amelia in a bright sing-song voice. "Almost there, almost there..." She was perhaps the only one actually eager to see the Fallen Kingdom; her overwhelming enthusiasm lent a faintly optimistic air to everything. Lina, aimlessly kicking the rock that had tripped her, supposed that was a good thing, since without Amelia's good cheer they might as well have been leading their own funeral procession. Lina knew she certainly wasn't looking forward to this return trip to Therilon.
Zelgadis wandered forward, lost in thought. She barely even noticed Amelia skipping ahead in excitement. She did notice, however, when the young princess of Saillune stopped abruptly and recoiled a few paces. Puzzled, the violet-haired girl looked around for signs of anything that might have fazed Amelia; a slimy puddle, maybe, or perhaps a really evil-looking chipmunk. She didn't see anything other than grass, so kept walking forward, deciding that it probably hadn't been of much importance. She was halted in her tracks, however, when Amelia said, in a weak, trembling voice, "Amethyst? Can't you feel it?"
Zelgadis turned around. Amelia was still standing there, several paces back, shivering faintly. "What's wrong?" asked the violet-haired girl, a little confused.
Lina approached cautiously, and walked only a step or two beyond Amelia before she stopped with a jerk. "Yup, this is it," she said, grimacing. "The border of Therilon. Didn't you notice?"
"Notice what?" asked Zelgadis, now thoroughly confused.
"The border! How could you not notice it?" said Lina, more than a little confused herself. "It's like smacking headfirst into an invisible wall of... of dread, or something. You can't miss it!"
Gourry strode forward with his usual confidence, but halted in a similar way as soon as he reached the invisible 'border' that Lina and Amelia had felt. "Cold..." he said, looking troubled. "It's cold. And dark." He shuddered and stepped back a pace or two.
"It was terrible. It hated me," said Amelia from her position behind Lina, her face scrunched up in discomfort. "I... I don't want to go there anymore... Can't you feel it, Amethyst?"
"I don't feel anything," said Zelgadis, bemused. The moment she said those words, though, she realized something awful. Of all her friends, only she had passed through Therilon's border without trouble, as if she belonged there. She truly didn't want to admit it, but she knew exactly what that meant, and from the looks of it, so did her three friends.
Zelgadis stood quietly, a little overwhelmed. For the past few weeks, she'd tried to ignore the outcome of her wish and the monster attacks, all signs that she truly was the lost princess Amethyst. In a way, she'd wanted to find that it was all a big mistake, that one day she would find a cure and everything would be back to normal. But now, there was no hope. She'd have to deal with being a woman for the rest of her life.
In a daze, the violet-haired girl watched her friends try to pass beyond the invisible barrier surrounding Therilon. Lina went first, taking a deep breath before forcing herself to step forward. When she was across, she turned towards Gourry and Amelia. "We'll never get anywhere if you two keep standing there, so come on!"
Ever obedient, Gourry steeled himself and walked across the border. Once he passed it, he staggered forward, almost falling over. After he recovered his balance, he smiled at Zelgadis and Lina as if to reassure them that he was alright; but the smile was strained, and quite a change from his usual pleasant, slightly dazed expression.
Amelia, not wanting to be left behind, followed slowly behind Gourry. Eyes closed, concentrating fiercely, she made herself take that terrible step forward, bracing herself for the fierce shock that marked Therilon's border. She almost had to drag herself across it; every inch was sheer torture. When she was fully on the other side, she stood hunched forward, trembling. "I thought the feeling of... of darkness... I thought it would go away..." she mumbled. "I thought it was just a barrier..."
Showing uncharacteristic tenderness, Lina put her arm around the shivering princess of Saillune. "Nope, this is Therilon. Give yourself a few days, you'll get used to it."
Gourry spoke up, a haunted look in his eyes. "I'm not sure I want to..."
They slowly continued on their way. Lina led a stricken Amelia forward, with Gourry following closely behind. Zelgadis, her mind still reeling, brought up the rear. There was no more enthusiasm, no more cheerful optimism; after all, they were in Therilon now.