"Be wary of what you say, for it could affect many more people than just yourself."
"This looks like a good spot," Gourry said as he leaned on Amelia's shoulder, favoring his left leg. He nodded to the small clearing off the road - far enough to be clear of it. The banks of the river dipped down a bit so it would be easy to get water.
"Okay." Amelia turned and led him carefully across the uneven ground and helped him sit. Or tried, too. She was so much shorter and lighter than the swordsman, it was more of a gesture than anything. But he appreciated it all the same.
As he settled onto a rock, he smiled at her and squeezed her shoulder in a gesture of thanks. Then he grimaced and hissed in pain.
"Here. Let me take care of that now," she said, kneeling by his side. "No need for you to suffer longer than necessary." She held her hands over the wound and said a quick healing spell. The pain faded into intense itching as the muscle healed under her touch. The glow faded and she pressed her hand to his leg to check the effectiveness of the healing. "All done," she said as she gave him a cheery smile and jumped up. "Now you can help me gather some firewood."
"Amelia..." he groaned, scratching furiously at his leg. He pulled at the torn edges of his trousers, already stiffening with the dried blood. He'd need to get these repaired; he only had one other pair. And he hated sewing; he was always pricking his fingers with the needle. He glanced up at Amelia. "Tell you what, I'll go get the firewood and set the fire up for you if you mend my trousers."
She grinned at him. "That's a deal, Gourry-san."
He gave her a nod and got up and went off to gather the wood.
By the time he got back with an armload, Zelgadis had returned with their horses. One of the had a bad slash on its leg and the Princess was healing it while the Chimera got what they'd need for camp out of the horses' packs. He looked up at Gourry as he entered their little camping spot. "How's the leg?" he asked.
"Good as new," Gourry said, laying the wood down and looking around for some stones to make a fire ring. "What's this going to do to our arrival in Beram?" he asked as he laid the wood into the ring of stones.
Zelgadis set down his pack and pulled out the map. "We'd expected to be in Beram in two days, but this delay will most likely cost us another day." He looked at the sky, overhung with low, threatening clouds. "If the weather doesn't turn, we might be able to make it after all."
"And it's been ten days since we left Seyruun. So we have two weeks until the next full moon," Gourry mused. "A good time margin, but it's going to be hell waiting for the moon to turn full," he said quietly.
"We can spend the time in Melkur," Amelia said, coming into the camp and pulling open their provisions bag. "Trying to figure out a way to find Lina after you get the sword."
Gourry took a deep breath and sat back from the arrangement of wood he'd made. He gestured to it and Zelgadis sent a small fireball into its heart to start it burning. "If I get the sword, you mean," he said gloomily.
Zelgadis and Amelia looked at one another. When they'd started out from Seyruun, Gourry had almost been his normal self again; in fact, he'd surprised them by taking charge. But as the days went by, and there were no further contacts from Lina, he grew more and more despondent. They knew that if he were doubting his own fighting abilities, he was slipping even further from them.
"Of course you'll get the sword, Gourry-san," Amelia said, going over to sit by him. He looked at her gratefully, but his kind eyes were still sad.
"We don't even know what's involved, only that I have to fight the 'guardian of the sword.' It could be something I'm not able to handle - "
"Gourry," Zelgadis snapped, looking up from folding his map. "Stop it. You'll be able to deal with whatever you have to face to win this sword. We know that; you should as well. Now, snap out of it and start cooking. It's your turn tonight. And I'm hungry, too, so don't burn anything like you did the last time."
"I don't know why you two let me cook if you think I'm so bad at it," he muttered as he pulled himself up. "I never got any complaints from - " He broke off abruptly. "Never mind." Grabbing the provision bag, he started pulling foodstuffs out.
"Gourry-san," Amelia said softly.
He stopped but didn't look at her. "What?" His voice was brusque but not overly so.
"Why don't you take those trousers off first? I'll get what blood out of them that I can and start mending them."
Taking a deep breath, he nodded. "All right." He got up, grabbed his pack, and went to find a place to change.
Amelia watched him go off into the darkness. "Zelgadis-san," she said quietly. "What do you think will happen to Gourry-san if we don't get Lina-san back?"
The Shaman's eyes snapped up and met hers. It was the first time any of them had ever mentioned that they might not be able to save Lina from Xellos. It was as if by not speaking the possibility aloud, they could deny it even existed. And yet, now that it had been voiced, it couldn't be denied any longer. Zelgadis' gaze slid from Amelia's eyes into the darkness in the direction Gourry had gone off in. "I don't know, Amelia," he said very quietly. "We may have to be very careful he doesn't decide to return to L-sama." He finished folding his map and stowed it in his pack.
The Princess' eyes went wide with shock. "You don't think he would actually do that, do you?"
Sighing, Zelgadis shrugged. "He might not actively seek his own death, but without Lina, he probably doesn't see much purpose left in life." He could only imagine what it would be like to love someone as unconditionally as Gourry loved Lina. Ceiphied knew he loved Amelia with all his heart, but he'd spent too much of his life convincing himself that he was not capable love or being loved to be entirely comfortable with the idea yet. It'd only been a few months since he'd even admitted to himself that he loved the Princess of Seyruun. Unconditionally? He wasn't sure, but at least he was trying to find out if it was possible.
How would he respond she were taken away from him? he wondered morbidly. If Xellos swooped down and stole his love away? His hands gripped the edge of his pack until it started to tear; quickly he shoved those thoughts away. The very thought of Xellos touching Amelia in any way caused something to twist painfully in his chest.
Zelgadis sought out the eyes of the girl he loved, just to reassure himself that she hadn't been whisked away while he wasn't looking. Reaching out, he took her hand and linked his fingers with hers to make sure she was not just a phantom. She gave him a startled look; Zelgadis usually wasn't one for such displays. Sadly, she squeezed his fingers.
"For as long as I've known him, Lina has been the first and foremost thing in Gourry's mind; Lina is his life. With her gone, he may either just waste away or...grow careless." He was only a little surprised to find that the thought of the swordsman letting himself get killed was as painful to him as losing either Amelia or Lina.
Amelia's eyes were shining in the firelight. "We've got to get Lina-san back," she whispered.
"We will, Amelia," he said, vaguely surprised that at this moment it was he who was reassuring the Princess. "We will, no matter what it takes."
A footfall outside the circle of firelight made her dash away the tears that shimmered in her eyes. Forcing a smile, she turned to Gourry as he re-entered the camp. He was carrying his trousers over one arm. She held out her hand and he handed them to her. "I washed out the blood," he said.
"I said I'd do that," she said as she pulled her sewing kit from her pack.
He shrugged. "I know, but I was already there by the river washing it off the rest of me. No need for both of us to get our boots wet." She nodded thoughtfully and turned her attention to the long, ragged slash in the pant leg. The tall swordsman knelt by the fire and started preparing a simple stew with the dried meat and vegetables they'd brought along.
Zelgadis sat silently by Amelia as she worked at mending Gourry's trousers, studying a book on summoning and tracking spells. He'd tried several of the latter, and all of them had proven unsuccessful - proving that Lina was no longer in the physical plane. Xellos must have taken her to either the Astral plane or to another one altogether. If that were the case, they could be looking for her for a very long time. Time none of them could afford to spend.
He sighed and looked up from trying to make sense of yet another summoning spell. The words were beginning to run together in his head, a sure sign he was not going to remember anything of it yet. These were old spells and bordering on a form of the Shamanist arts outside his area of expertise. So he found himself absently watching Gourry stir the stew as it bubbled over the fire. Something flashed on Gourry's left hand that drew his attention and an idea wormed its way into Zelgadis' mind. Setting the book aside, he sat forward and caught Gourry's hand in his own. He turned it over and looked down at the carved gold band the swordsman wore over his fingerless gauntlet. "Gourry..." he said as the idea grew into a possibility.
Both Amelia and Gourry looked at him curiously. "What?"
"This Soulbond you share with Lina...Tell me what it's like."
Gourry stared at him. "It's kinda hard to describe, Zel," he said finally. "I've already told you what I can."
Zelgadis shook his head. "I mean, can you link with her on demand? Control when it happens? If you were to try it now, could you do it?"
The swordsman nodded. "Probably. Why?"
He let go of the other man's hand and settled back on the rock against which he had been leaning earlier. He licked his lips as he tried to think of a way he could put that knowledge to use. "I think I may be able to use that..."
Gourry's attention was focused completely on the Shaman now. "How?" he demanded, his voice full of hope.
Zelgadis held up his hands as he thought. "Wait...Give me a moment..." He picked up the book of spells and flipped through its ancient, yellowed pages to find the one he'd just been studying. It was a powerful summoning spell, able to find and bring creatures from the other planes given a strong enough catalyst. It was the catalyst that he'd been lacking before.
"Okay, okay, here's my idea: This spell here can summon being from other planes, but you need something from them. A type of catalyst for the spell to work. A physical piece of them, or even better, their Name - "
"But you know Lina's name," Gourry interrupted.
For once, Zelgadis didn't seem annoyed by Gourry's ignorance. "Not that name, Gourry. In this case, it's the true 'Name' of a creature, meaning the definition of what that creature or being is. It's more than just what they're called. Humans don't have anything like it since we're such complex creatures we can't be defined in such a simple manner. So I've been trying to think of a way to modify the spell so we could at least know where to start looking for Lina." He paused and leaned forward. "And I think I've found the way." His voice fairly shook with excitement.
"What's that, Zelgadis-san?" Amelia asked eagerly. Zelgadis' enthusiasm was infectious.
"We use the bond between Gourry and Lina as the catalyst. It should work if I can rework the spell. The bond transcends dimensions; we already know that from their ability to link." He looked at Gourry to see how the news would affect him.
Gourry just blinked. "Just how are you going to find Lina?" he asked, sounding confused.
Zelgadis winced; in his excitement, he'd forgotten Gourry didn't understand even the most fundamental elements of magic. He took a breath and tried again. "I'm going to use you - and the bond you share with Lina - as a sort of..." He searched around for a concept Gourry could understand, something concrete. It hit him. "A compass. A way to tell which direction in which to look for Lina. Only, a special kind of compass, because it will tell us which dimension in which to look as well as which direction."
The swordsman concentrated, trying hard to process this information. "A compass..." he said. "You mean something that will lead us to Lina?"
The other two nodded vigorously. "Yes, Gourry-san," Amelia said. "That's what Zelgadis-san means."
His face lit up. "What do I have to do?" he asked, eyes shining with hope.
"Right now, not a lot. I need to study this spell first, and I'll probably have to practice it to perfect it. By the time we reach the Temple, I'll know whether it's going to work or not."
Amelia smiled. "Then we'll be able to find Lina-san," she exclaimed.
"And once I get Graeswandyr," Gourry said with a grim smile, "it's payback time."
It was snowing when the three travelers entered the mountain town of Beram. It was a lonely little town, nestled high in the mountains that bordered the southern range of Seyruun and the northern edge of Elmekia. Winter had set in en force, and they eagerly sought out an inn. The only one in town was a small affair, and was mostly empty. The horses were quickly stabled and the three entered the common room of the tavern, stamping their feet to shake loose the thick, wet snow from their boots. The journey from Melkur to Beram had been harder and more arduous than they had expected and taken them longer, too. It was now only two days to the full moon.
They sat down and ordered food, lots of it, for all of them. While they were waiting for their food, a cloaked man came and pulled out the fourth chair, turned it and sat down. He crossed his arms over the back and looked at them all levelly, sizing them up. They in turn sized him up: He was of medium height with silver hair shot through with grey pulled back into a ponytail at the nape of his neck. He seemed about Gourry's age and had a mouth that was used to smirking. "You're going to the Temple, aren't you?" he asked bluntly, smirking.
Gourry and Zelgadis glanced at each other; each could tell that the other had taken an instant dislike to this character. Zelgadis answered for them both. "We're just visiting," he said. None of them were in the mood for this kind of thing.
The man grinned and shook his head. "We're not exactly on the beaten path here. No one comes to Beram after the snows set in except to visit the Temple. There's nothing else in Beram that would bring visitors during the best of weather."
"Just why should we tell you that?" Zelgadis said flatly, giving the man a glare.
"Just curious, 'sall," he said. He looked from Zelgadis, to Amelia, then to Gourry. "So you are here to visit the Temple? For the sword or some other reason?"
"Look," Gourry practically growled. "We don't know you. We're tired and hungry and really just want to be left alone."
"Okay, but you're turning away the only one that can help you," the other man shot back with a wry grin.
"And what if we don't need your help?" Amelia asked.
"You'll need it. The way to the Temple of Light and Shadow isn't exactly marked with road signs. It's hidden in the mountains above the town very well. You could search for weeks and never find it. Especially in the snow." He reached forward and grabbed Gourry's cup, which was still empty, and helped himself to some of the steaming coffee in the pitcher. "You'll never find it by yourselves."
Zelgadis gave him a look that rivaled the temperature outside. "I think we could surprise you."
The other man shook his head slightly as he blew on his coffee to cool it. "Nope. It's hidden very well. You can't get there unless I take you."
"Why you?" Gourry asked.
The stranger was quiet a moment then he looked at the blonde man over the rim of the cup. He winked and said, "That's a secret."
Those words had an instantaneous effect on Gourry: He roared and launched himself out of his seat, knocking the table aside as he reached for the stranger. The coffee pitcher went flying, splashing hot liquid everywhere. The swordsman grabbed the other man's cloak and hauled him up out of his chair. The smaller man flailed helplessly, clutching at Gourry's hands as he slowly turned blue.
Amelia and Zelgadis dragged at Gourry's arms in a futile attempt to get him to calm down. "Gourry-san! Stop it!" Amelia shouted, feet swinging off the floor as the maddened swordsman lifted the stranger off his feet. He didn't hear her, but instead seemed intent on murdering the man he held.
The commotion drew the attention of the inn staff. The other patrons that were in the common room quickly scattered as the innkeeper and the stablehands rushed in, each holding a sword. "Drop him!" the innkeeper shouted. He waved the sword menacingly in their direction.
"Amelia!" Zelgadis shouted.
"Right, Zelgadis-san!" Amelia dropped lightly to the floor and took up a stance between the four of them and the innkeeper. "Balus Wall!" she shouted, creating a barrier between them. The innkeeper and the stable hands beat against the invisible barrier with their swords a moment before falling back before Amelia's angry glare.
It took all of Zelgadis' demon strength to pull Gourry's arms down. When the other man still wouldn't let go, Zelgadis gritted his teeth and ground the bones of the swordsman's hands together. He was surprised and dismayed to hear the bones crack before Gourry finally dropped the stranger.
He staggered backward, glaring at Zelgadis. "Why did you stop me?" he shouted. His voice was full of pain, hate and anger.
The Chimera, who still held Gourry's hands in his, forced the other man around. "It isn't Xellos, Gourry! You nearly killed an innocent man! Look at him! Look at his eyes!" Drawing up short, Gourry looked from Zelgadis to the stranger. The man was cowering on the floor, hand to his neck and staring at Gourry as if he were mad. "Do you see?" Zelgadis said, releasing his friend's hands. "They're green, not lavender. And they're human."
"I - I," the swordsman stammered, looking at Jarix's eyes. As the knowledge of what he'd done sank in, he seemed to deflate into himself. He staggered backwards into a chair, put his head in his hands and leaned his elbows on the table.
Zelgadis turned to the stranger and held out a hand. The other man glared at him and pushed it away, climbing to his feet without help. "He needs to be locked up," he muttered hoarsely, rubbing his throat. "He's mad!"
"Yes, he is. You chose the wrong people to play mind games with, and that particular turn of phrase is not well received among us," Zelgadis snapped, righting a chair and the table.
"What did I say?"
"'It's a secret,'" Zelgadis replied.
"What's so bad about that?"
"Hope you never find out," Amelia said, coming up behind them. Zelgadis looked over and saw the innkeeper and the others had put away their swords but were watching the strangers closely.
Amelia grabbed a rag from the frightened waitress and helped wipe off the table. "Now, who are you? And don't beat around the bush this time," she said coldly.
"My name is Jarix. I'm a trapper." He pulled out a chair and sat down - well away from Gourry.
"A trapper who just happens to know the way to this Temple?" Zelgadis said, sitting down. He glanced over at Gourry, who had not moved. Amelia went over and touched the swordsman's shoulder. He shrugged away from her but she insisted, taking his hands in hers and pulling them down. She cast a healing spell on the rapidly spreading bruises then pulled him around to sit at the other table.
"Well, a man's got to make a living. I know these mountains like the back of my hand. I was raised here. And I figure I can make some profit off those people who come looking for the Temple. There's nothing wrong with that, is there?"
Amelia glared at him. "You charge for your services? To guide people to a Temple that should be open to all? That's an affront to Justice and you will be punished for it!"
Jarix stared at her. "You sound like Prince Philionel," he muttered. "Crackpot Justice and all - "
He didn't get very far as he was attacked for a second time inside ten minutes. "You will not mock the name of my father in such a manner!" she shouted, holding him in a headlock that would make Lina proud. "Or you'll feel the righteous Hammer of Justice! Do you understand?"
Peeling open one eye, he looked up at her. "Your - your father? You mean you're - "
"Jarix, trapper and guide extraordinaire, may I present Princess Amelia Wil Tesla de Seyruun? Crown Princess of Seyruun?" Zelgadis said with a half-smile.
"The Princess?" Jarix croaked.
"The one and only. Let him go, Amelia. I think he's been chastised enough for one day."
Reluctantly, Amelia let him go and Jarix picked himself up. Glaring dangerously at him, Amelia pulled out a chair and sat between Gourry and Zelgadis. She put a hand on Gourry's arm but he didn't seem to realize she was there; he just kept staring into the empty space just above the table.
"So, Jarix," Zelgadis said, taking a mug from the waitress who approached timidly with new mugs and a fresh pitcher of coffee. He poured himself some and sipped it before continuing. "Where's this Temple and how much is it going to cost us to get there?"