Okay let's think about it, you were heading over to a forest maze what are the chances of getting lost once you are in there? Quite good I'd say.
"Where the hell are we?!" Lina fumed pacing around back and forth. They had reached the forest maze and had been in it for quite some time now. As much as they like to deny it, they were lost. So they were currently taking a break.
"Lina why don't you just sit down you're giving me a headache." Zel tried. Normally a forest maze wouldn't have been such a problem but usually if they'd get lost they would just fly above the maze and see where they needed to go. Only there was two reasons why they couldn't do that. One because of the other Lina Inverse's problem with someone after her it wasn't exactly the safest thing to do. And second is that they couldn't fly over the maze even if they wanted to. The maze had a ceiling made of vines and trees. Now the next course of action that Lina was would take in this type of a situation would be to use magic and blast her way through the maze. She did try that but it made things worse then better. There was a magical enchantment on the plants in the maze that reflected every spell that was casted back on the people. So when Lina tried using a flare arrow on the maze the group ended up having to dodge flying flare arrows heading straight for them.
"Damnit I'm so annoyed that I want to dragon slave this damned maze!" Lina growled.
"NO!" Everyone screamed at her and she just snorted and sat down with everyone else. They were all pretty annoyed especially Xellos and Zeros. They couldn't even get their way through by teleporting. When they tried they found that it didn't work and that they received a nasty shock to their systems that they found a bit painful.
"So what do we do now?" Everyone looked around at everyone else. No one had any idea where to go. Before they had come in this maze they had gotten a map that should have lead them through the maze. Only it lead them to this dead-end. Needless to say practically everyone wasn't too pleased. Gavin was the only one whom didn't seem upset or annoyed. He rather enjoyed puzzles a bit. And this maze was really interesting to him. What intrigued him the most about the maze was that even though the maze was made of plants there were symbols on the walls that weren't panted nor put up. They appeared to be the actual color of parts of the walls. Most of the symbols were consistent expect were they had stopped. The symbol was different. It almost appeared to be a button or a switch of some sort. It was what Gavin had been staring at ever since they had sat down for their rest. To push or not push? It could be the way through the maze or a trigger for a trap. And he had been wrestling with that for quite some time. Finally he just got up and went over to the switch.
"What's up Gavin?"
"I want to try something only it might either be a way through this place of a trap. Should I try it?"
"Alright but let up prepare for it just incase it is a trap." So they used a levitation spell and a few barriers. Gavin hesitantly pushed the switch and nothing happened.
"Great nothing this damn maze is so -- " Lina was cut short by the many crashing sounds that boomed throughout the maze. Before everyone knew it an open path emerged right in front of their eyes.
"Hooray! Gavin you did it!" Lina smiled and gave Gavin a bit pat on the back which in turn caused him to fall to the ground flat on his face.
"Thanks, I think." He got up and the twelve of them continued moving through the maze.
A darkly cloaked figured watched them with interest. Not much could be seen of this stranger only a pair of red eyes.
Now why are you looking anyway? Maybe I should just pay you guys a visit. The person mentally smiled and followed them through the maze.
They were close to the end of the maze when Lina had this odd feeling they were being followed.
"Do you guys hear anything?" Lina stopped and scanned backwards behind them to where they had been gong through on the path.
"No do you?" Zel stood next to her.
"No but..."
"Then what's wrong?"
"Oh nothing I guess.... Just forget what I said and let's keep going." Lina shock off her uneasiness and continued walking with the others. Must just be a little more paranoid then usual. Not surprising though, it's not everyday that you are traveling through a different dimension.
Once they were in the next town where Lina Inverse was supposedly at they realized they she had gone quite a while ago. And where did she go? Lenforth of all places.
"Xellos I thought you said that she was here?!" Lina screamed at the said monster.
"She has to around here somewhere! I'm sure of it!"
"Perhaps I could be of some help." A brown haired blue eyed man dressed in green and blue.
"And you are?"
"Smu, Smu Bishop. I heard that someone is trying to find Lina right?" Smu while motioning to them to come with him to get something to eat.
"Yeah we're looking for her. Have you seen her?"
"Well actually it's a bit odd looking for someone who is practically you isn't it Miss Lina?" Smu said with a smile to Lina who just raised an eyebrow. "Well I'm pretty sure that I know why there's practically two of each of you. But I do know Lina quite well. She was here then she went to Lenforth. She didn't give me an exact reason only that she said that she was going to follow some people. The people at Lenforth told you that she was here?"
"Yeah they did. Who was she following?"
"I have no idea. But my guess is that she went to Lenforth was there either while you were they or before. You see Lina can keep a very low profile naturally but when she wants she can keep that profile even lower. And since she's tailing some people then chances are she went in and out of there without them even knowing it."
Everyone slumped down in their chairs. They had come across a dead-end and this time they didn't have a clue where to go next.
"Hey Smu was does she keep a low profile anyway? Is there someone after her?"
"In a manner of speaking yes. But you needn't worry. The person after her will not come after you."
"How so?"
"Because he knows the difference. He's known Lina for quite some time and he wouldn't get the wrong person I can assure you."
"Is there any other clue that you could give us to where she might be?"
"I'd like to help you further but honestly I don't have much of a clue to tell you. Only what I have told you already. Now if you will excuse me I must get back to work." Smu got up from his chair and gave the waitress a smile as he paid and left a large tip.
"How do you know her anyway?" Lina asked before Smu had left the inn.
"Who?"
"Lina Inverse."
"Well let's just say that when she's in town I help her get her traveling food." Smu gave them a nod and left them without saying anything else.
"That's just great, all that and now we don't have a damned idea where to look next! ARGH! This is sooooo annoying!"
"Well Lina look on the bright side at least you don't have to worry about some weird evil guy trying to kill you because you look exactly like this dimension's Lina Inverse." Gavin said with a cheerful smile as he tackled some more of his food. Lina just stared at his with a quizzical expression. In some ways he reminded her of herself, like in his appetite, but in others he was much different. Like with they way Gavin eats. He eats almost as much as she does only somehow he manages to eat very fast but very neat at the same time. And his attitude was positive in some ways like Lina's only other times it's a bit too positive like Amelia's. Then there are just things about him that where just common to him.
"I guess I should take comfort in that. But still I'd like to have an idea of where to go. In a way I kinda wish that person that she' hiding from would come after me. Then I would be able to get some more information."
"But you could also get killed too."
"Yep that too." Lina and Gavin laughed and continued to attack their food with a frenzy and defended their plates when Gourry and Garry tried to swipe some of their food. Unknown to them was the same darkly cloaked figured that had been following them in the maze, sitting on the other side of the room drinking a dark red liquid that looked like wine. The stranger was very aware of everything around him or her except a certain currently invisible person whom was giving an evil eye to Lina.
Later on that night the gang were settling in their rooms for the night. They decided that they'd figured out what to do in the morning. Lina herself was very tired and crashed on her bed without even bothering to change. She rolled over on her bed and opened a lazy eye to see a gray and dark blue ugly and hideous creature staring at her with a twisted smile.
"AHHHHHHHHH!!!!" Lina screamed and jumped back. "It should be a rule not to have a young and beautiful maiden have to see such an ugly creature right in front of her face! Who are you?! And what they hell are you doing in my room?!" Lina charged up a fireball while everyone else came rushing into her room.
"Lina what's wrong?" They all glared at the intruding creature in ready battle stances. The creature just said nothing and it's smile broadened. Next thing they knew everything around them turned black as they lost consciousness.
The darkly cloaked stranger stood up in its chair at the feel of the magic energy shockwave that had swept over the building. The stranger was the only one whom seemed to notice it because everyone else in the room was still eating and drinking like they were before. What the hell was that?! That wave it felt familiar. But what was it? A thought dawned on the stranger as it sprinted up the stair to find Lina's door to her room hanging open with no one in the room.
The group woke up groggily with large headache. They found themselves chained to a wall in what seemed to be enchanted chains and shackles. But they didn't recognize where exactly they were. The room was dark and damp. It had some faint musky odors and whole place seemed to be made of stone slabs. They were definitely in a dungeon of some sort. The gray and dark blue creature was standing in front of them smiling like he had been in Lina's room.
"Where have you taken us?! What do you want you ugly thing?!" Lina screamed and the creature just continued to smile at them. He didn't say anything and then without warning he just left and walked away. "HEY! Where do you think you are going?! You can't just leave us here like this?! GET BACK HERE?!" Lina screamed but it was pointless the creature left without even acknowledging her.
"Zelgadis do you know of any dungeons close to the town we were in?"
"The only dungeon I know of that is anywhere close to where we were is the one in the old kingdom ruins of Mirus. But Mirus is at least a day or two's travel by foot. There's no way he could have gotten us that far away in such a little amount of time!"
"But for all we know we might have been out cold for quite sometime. And besides he might have used some magic spell or something to get us over here."
They hung there in silence. They tried the chains but they would be able to be destroyed not even if someone used a sword or an axe. Gourry or Garry's sword of light might have cam in handy only it was laying with the rest of their weapons in a pile at the other end of the room. But not like it would help that much because Garry or Gourry couldn't really use them when their hands are chained to the wall. Magic didn't work either. The chains somehow made it impossible to cast even a light spell. And of course Xellos and Zeros could teleport either, but at least there wasn't a painful shock to their system when they tried. So what was left? Trying to pick the locks, which of course didn't work either. The locks were old and rusted and most them couldn't even reach the locks with their hands.
The darkly cloaked stranger continued and the trail to find Lina and the others. Though against it's better judgment the stranger flew. Now where would Vilresed take them? There's not many places he could take them even if he was at full power. The stranger mused while following the faint magic trail that the demon had left.
Vilresed sat in a room looking over the scroll he had for an interesting magic spell that was written in demon tongue. He was fed up with waiting, he wanted his revenge on Lina Inverse ever since she had humiliated him and stopped his plans for mass destruction and terror. She had killed every other demon that Vilresed had working for him and Lina had thought that she had killed Vilresed too. But you see Vilresed wasn't demon back then, no he had been a cursed human whom had wanted power and literately traded his soul to obtain that power. Lina hadn't killed him because he was immortal. But Lina did cause Vilresed to loose a large amount of power and he was brought done to a form close to death. So Vilresed whom did not learn the first time around damned himself again for power. This time he was turned into a demonic type of creature. He wanted his revenge for what Lina had done to him two years ago, but what didn't know was that the Lina Inverse that he had held with her companions in the dungeon was not the same Lina Inverse whom he wanted revenge on. Of course there was that whole, 'who are you?' stuff that Lina had been yelling at him. But he didn't think much of it because he didn't look the same as he did before plus he figured that because she thought she'd killed him it couldn't be him. That or she was playing dumb so that she would not show weakness in front of him or her friends. Vilresed gathered up the scroll and was going to go back to the dungeon to finish them off but he was a bit hungry and sleepy. I'll just let them sit and suffer for a while. That ought to be fun; I might as well toy with her for a little while. Just killing her wouldn't be that satisfying.
Meanwhile Smu got up that morning early and went to check if he'd gotten any messages. What he did find was a few things of mail and a small envelope with a request order and some money. Smu smiled as he got himself ready. He was really an architect but because of lack demand he was working as a general store worker. "I hope they are staying out of trouble."
Lina and everyone were annoyed as hell. Not only could they not get free from their chains but they were also hungry and tired.
"What sort of captor kidnaps people and doesn't even say what he wants? He hasn't even said a damn word to us yet. He just smiles and leaves us here for hours. That idiot." Zelgadis grumbled. Everyone was developing a true hatred towards the creature that had kidnapped them. But all their thoughts were interrupted by the sound of someone coming into the dungeon.
"Whose there?" The person who came in didn't say a word but came into view. It was the darkly cloaked person whom had been following them. "Who are you?"
Still the dark stranger didn't say anything but proceeded to unlock all the shackles. They didn't complain but they were still a bit confused.
"HEY! WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!!?!?!?!" Their captor came back with scroll in hand.
"Getting out of here what do you think?! FIREBALL!" Lina shot the ball at him which he dodged with anger displayed in his face.
"You will not get away this time Lina Inverse I shall get my revenge for what you did to me two years ago!" Vilresed started to chant something under his breath but the cloaked stranger zipped by them and knocked him down and took the scroll from him. Everyone else took this as a hint to escape. The dark stranger motioned for them to follow and lead them out of the ruins. Once outside the ruins they were all sent flying off their feet by an explosion. Vilresed was close behind them with lots of magical beasts.
"Get them!" The creatures would have had the opportunity to attack because everyone ray winged it out of there.
Once outside a far and safe distance from Mirus ruins they all sat down to catch their breath. The dark stranger smiled at them and glanced at them.
"Who are you?"
The stranger smiled broader though they could not see her smile. The person gave them a nod and then zoomed off into the trees. They tried to keep up the person but the stranger somehow vanished.
Smu organized some of the store items but he was generally bored. The day was slow and he wasn't having many customers.
"Smu, do you have my supplies?" The dark stranger asked Smu from behind. The stranger removed her hood and mask and let her hair out.
"Now when did you get here? Yes got them right here, four bottles of wine. Hey did you know you have some people looking for you?"
"Yeah, they are the ones whom I'm following." Her red eyes twinkled a bit but they still conveyed the sadness that they usually did. "Thanks Smu."
"No problem Lina."