Lina sat down on the patio overlooking the gardens sipping her drink. She was going to be leaving Sailune in a few days and she was debating on whether or not to tell friends about her current quest. It's not that she didn't want them with her it was just that she was afraid that they came with her they would be put in danger by the shadow creatures. And how do I know that my current quest has anything to do with these shadow things? They attacked Zelgadis and he didn't even see me. And if they were following Gourry then it doesn't matter if they come with me or not they'll be targeted too anyway. In fact it would be safer for them if we all stayed together. Hmm... well there's no harm in just telling them what I've been up too. If they want to come with me then they could.
"A penny for your thoughts?"
Lina looked up, Zelgadis was now sitting next to Lina. When did he get there? "I'm just thinking about what I'm going to do. Now hand it over."
"Hand what over?"
"The penny." Lina grinned holding out her hand in front of his face.
"It was just a figure of speech. And besides you didn't tell me exactly what you were thinking about. So what are planning on doing?"
"I'll tell you once I've got everyone else around so I can tell you guys all at once. I guess I'll do it right after lunch. What time is it anyway?"
"That's why I came here. Lunch is ready so - " Again Zelgadis found that Lina had ran off right in the middle of his sentence.
Two hours latter...
Lina attacked another plateful of food. Her appetite didn't seem to waver; she just kept eating at a constant speed. Everyone just watched in awe. Yes Lina had been known for her odd eating habits, but even this seemed a bit more outlandish than normal.
"Um, Lina are you okay?"
"Yeah sure I'm fine, why do you ask?"
"Well it's just that you are... um eating a little more than... well nevermind. Are you almost done?" There was some relief among the group, she did seem to be slowing down a bit.
"Almost I just want to finish last plate. (scarfs down the remains) Okay now what was I going to do now?"
"I think you said you were going to talk to us about what you were planning."
"Alright then, you all know that I'm going to be leaving soon. Well I'm on a quest that my great-grandmother has sent me on. Tell me have any of you heard about Elendar?" Lina looked at them all. They all seemed to have puzzled looks. All faces turned to Xellos.
"Elendar? You know I can honestly say that I have never heard of it. What is Elendar Miss Lina?"
"You have never heard about Elendar, Xellos? Gee I find that hard to believe considering how old you are..."
Xellos frowned. Not only did he not like having someone know about something that he didn't, he also didn't like it when people teased him on his age.
"Well in any case why don't you enlighten us."
"I don't know, maybe I should just keep it... a secret..." Everyone groaned at her and she only chuckled. Would she be mean like Xellos? No.
"Elendar is an ancient mythical place that is supposed to have the answers to practically all the questions and mysteries that have plagued mankind. It's supposed to have a large magical library and posses many other magical items."
"And how did you come across this information?"
"I was summoned to have a chat with my older sister and my grandmother. My grandmother gave me a letter that my great-grandmother had written to me. In that letter she told me about Elendar."
"But how do you know if she knows if it's a true place?"
"Let's just say that she knows things that she shouldn't. She wrote the letter to me before she gave birth to my grandmother."
"How is that possible?"
"Like I told you she knows things that she shouldn't."
"So where is Elendar?"
"You can't find it with a map. In fact I doubt it even has a physical location."
"No physical location? Then how do you find it?!"
"With the thirteen keys. Each key has some special meaning to it and element that represents it. If someone manages to find all thirteen keys then they are supposed to be able to open the door to Elendar. My guess is if you have them all they will react with each other or with some sort of incantation and a portal will open that takes you to Elendar. I really don't know. I do know what the first key is that I need to find. Eos, the key of dawn."
"And you want us to come with you?" Everyone glanced at Lina oddly. This story seemed a bit less creditable then some of the adventures Lina has gone on.
"No not really. If you want to come with me you can. If you don't I wont really mind. In fact I'm not really expecting to find any of these keys or anything."
"Then why do it?"
"Because this is family thing. There's a reason I need to do this, and I have to do it. I can't really explain anything more than that. Like I said it doesn't matter if none of you come with me. Anyway I'm going to go walk around the city." Lina got up and left them to sort their thoughts out.
Sailune as usual was busy with all sorts of comings and goings. People eating, talking, walking, running, selling and buying. Lina among them too eating a very large ice cream cone er um make that three very large ice cream cones. I guess they must thinks I'm a bit silly, but I can't ignore my great-grandmother's request. Lina looked down at the old parchment. It's not like the whole quest would be a total waste of time. She really had nowhere to start looking, meaning she could just go anywhere in her search. There was no telling how many bandits she could fry and treasures she could stea- um find. In fact the whole quest would be just like anyone of her previous ventures. Only this time she wasn't looking for a chimera cure, clair bible or some other magic item. I doubt they would understand either. I just feel, no I know that I'm need to do this. There has to be a reason otherwise she wouldn't have asked me too. Lina then thought back to her great-grandmother. A master in so many things and magic being only one of them. All Lina's life she had been comparing herself to others, living in her ancestor's shadows. Great-grandmother Nora, I wonder what you were like... Though Lina thought so highly of her she had never met her great-grandmother. She had either died or disappeared years before her mother had been born. The only things she knew of her was what her grandmother had told her and from the letters that Nora had wrote for her.
"Your ice cream is melting."
"Eeep!" Lina only then noticed the ice cream dripping down her arm. She quickly cleaned herself off and glanced over to person who alerted her. There stood a person a little bit taller than herself with shoulder blond hair and blue eyes. What struck as odd to Lina was that he resembled Gourry. "Um thanks...and you are?"
"Silas. Ah no problem Miss. Anyway I better go, my sister will probably get angry if I keep her waiting any longer. Bye."
"Um bye..." Silas ran off quite fast, leaving Lina a bit mystified. "And what was that..."
"What was what?" Lina spun herself around. She had the whole group standing before her.
"Just that I feel like as if Gourry is multiplying. Anyway what's up with you guys?"
"We've decided to come with you on your quest."
Lina glanced at them skeptically. "Why?"
"I'm your guardian right? I have to protect you!" Gourry beamed and Lina cringed. Would he ever get off the great protector thing?
"If Miss Lina is going then I want to go too! In the name of justice I must see to it that evil doesn't get it's hands on such power!" Take a guess who said that.
"Even if there isn't any truth to this quest, but knowing you and your previous adventures I would have a better chance at finding my cure traveling with you."
"Well if Gourry-dear is going then I want to go too. And besides you might benefit from having a high leveled white mage in your company."
"My reason - " Xellos didn't get a chance to finish what he was going to say due to a flying ice cream cone heading straight for his face. "Now, now Miss Lina that wasn't very nice..."
"Can it Xellos! No one wants to hear your 'it's a secret' crap. Okay fine so you guys are all coming with me then. That's good, but Amelia does your dad know of your decision?"
"Um, well no..."
Lina rolled her eyes at the younger girl. "I guess you'll just have to tell him later. Since I have wasted most of my ice cream and I don't feel like spending the money to buy a new one I'm just going to hit a few of the libraries around to see if I can find any info on Eos, the key on dawn. Of course since you guys have offered to help me, you are going to come with me."
"Considering how many libraries Sailune has how about we split into groups of two and that way we can search through more of them at once."
Sylphiel already had her eyes on Gourry and Amelia looked like she was going to grab Zelgadis. Lina mentally groaned. There's no way I'm going to be stuck with that fruitcake Xellos! "Okay Sylphiel you're with Gourry and Amelia you go with Xellos. You all got that? Alright I'll see you guys later at the castle. Come on Zel." Lina grabbed Zelgadis and sped off before Amelia had time to protest.
"Wahhh! No fair! How could Miss Lina do this to me?!" Amelia slumped to the ground in defeat.
"But aren't you happy Miss Amelia? You get to be my partner." Xellos grinned down at the little princess. She groaned but got up anyway.
"(huff) Well (cough) got away from them." Lina stopped catching her breath. Zelgadis himself was a bit confused.
"Why did you do that?"
"Do you think I wanted to be partners with Xellos?! It was either that or I take Gourry and I would go with someone who doesn't bug me and has a good size intelligence. And since we are here we might as well go into this library right here." Lina pointed at a medium sized library a little off to their left.
"Sure why not."
Amelia rubbed her eyes. She was tired of looking through books. Her and Xellos had been two libraries already and they were already on their third. Though Amelia was finding nothing she wasn't sure if Xellos was having the same luck. He would sit their turning pages of the books he was looking at making little comments like 'Oh isn't that interesting' or 'I didn't know that' and so on. And every time Amelia asked him what he found he would just say 'Oh nothing' something along the lines of that. She was about ready to throw her book at him. No I cannot given to such mean a temperamental thoughts. Throwing a book at him would be wrong even if he is a monster.
"Ooooooh Miss Amelia you must read this!" Xellos jumped down next to her startling her out of her thoughts.
"Um, what is it Mister Xellos?"
"It's a book about 101 most awful and annoying jokes! It certainly is one of the most interesting and funny books I've read."
Amelia glared at him. Screw what's right and wrong.
(THAWP!)
Xellos now had a bright red mark on his face in the shape of a book.
Meanwhile Sylphiel and Gourry weren't having much luck themselves. Every book they looked for about Eos ended being about some goddess from some sort ancient mythology. But not like they didn't mind though, Gourry got a chance to have a siesta and Sylphiel got to spend time alone with Gourry, sort of.
Sylphiel pick up another book. Eos, the goddess of dawn - Sylphiel slammed the book closed and stared off into space. I guess I should have expected something like this. The key's are all probably named after gods and goddess' from ancient civilizations. What time is it? I should probably wake up Gourry and head back to the castle now. He's probably hungry. Sylphiel smiled as she looked down at the slumbering blond swordsman.
"Gourry-dear? Time to wake up."
"No I don't wanna get up now Mommy..." Gourry mumbled out much louder then Sylphiel was expecting.
"But Gourry-dear, don't you want to go eat?"
"Huh? Food?! Let's go!" He almost yelled fully waking up. He was shushed by many of the library staff and shot evil glares. Gourry whisper an apology and tipped toed out of the building.
"Lina have you found anything?"
"Not sure, but I'm going to borrow these books just in case. I'm hungry so I want to leave now." Lina's stomach growled in agreement.
Back at the castle Lina was very temped to question Xellos on his face but decided not to. (Relm: Why is his face still red? I've put a temporary curse on him that makes him unable to heal properly. He shall forever remain with a book outline red mark on his face. Mwhahahahahaha! Nah it's a side affect from his little fight with Gek. His healing abilities have been halved for the time being. Any real point to me talking here? Not really I just feel like it. La la.) But for whatever reason Amelia had a large grin on her face. But what she didn't know was that Xellos still had a certain little book in his possession. (Relm: Cue evil impending doom.)
In the dark void a little amber-eyed shadow cowered before its master.
"Lowlife, what do have to report?"
"High Elder I am sorry, but I failed you. Zelgadis Greywers and Lina Inverse killed both Polle and Gilf. Please I beg for you forgiveness."
"Oh you shall be forgiven. In fact I'm going to send you on a trip..."
"Where?"
"To meet your fallen comrades. DILL BRADNO!" The High Elder cackled as he watched his low minion scream as it went to its painful death.
"Such brutality, and towards one of your followers for just failing a mission?" A dark haired man with matching dark eyes spoke with a chilling voice emerging from his shadowy seat standing next to the High Elder.
"Oh you know how things are, you have to set an example for the others to make sure to avoid future incompetence."
"I do." The said person narrowed his eyes and returned to his seat.
"Make no mistake, they will die, all of them. They can't live and fulfill their false fate. They must die like their ancestors before them. But then that wont be such a problem now since you have decided to help us." The High Elder spoke to his dark haired companion. His companion didn't speak he just kept the deathly silence.
Okay there I go again taking Carbunkle's characters again without him knowing. I doubt he'd care anyway. I sorta don't know why I put Silas in anyway... (But out of the characters Carbunkle has created Silas is my favorite.)
Oh and if you are thinking that the dark haired man with the High Elder is my little brother Death Scythe, then I'll set you straight, it isn't. There's no way I'd make Death an evil guy. Let's just say I need to update my character lists.