The energy in the room grew to an astronomical level. Malachai wasn't just mad, he was insane, and diabolical. His lust for power grew like a festering cancerous sore. The sorcerer's guild was not enough for him, neither was the ancient holy manuscripts or the blood of many spilled upon his hands. He wanted more. Even if it took to making a contract with a demon. A demon not of this world or dimension. And he did not want just any demon. He wanted a Mazoku Lord, and he managed to get one to play into his hands. Or better, one got him to play into ITS hands. Malachai managed to destroy whole cities, towns and kingdoms and takeover whole armies, turning them into mindless drones. It was heard that he had tortured and killed his wife and children and sacrificed all their pain and suffering to the vile creature. The creature that was just now struggling and fighting its way onto the planet.
Lina used every drop of power in her small body to prevent the summoning spell. The portal before the two magick-users flickered, convulsed and heaved like a dying fish on the end of a fishing pole. The battle had been ruthless and bloody, and it all boiled down to this, sorcerer versus sorceress. If the portal opened, if the power was released, it would cause a rift, and when the energy leveled out, they would all be separated, maybe even killed. But Lina was weakening. The battle had weakened her enough, but this showdown was sapping every drop of her mental, physical and magickal strength. Her pale, haggard face burned with anger and concentration. She gritted her teeth, heart pounding wildy, so hard and so fast she swore it would try and rip its way through her small rib cage. Her legs where turning to jello and her head was spinning. Each breath she took was a gasp for precious air. Her wounds throbbed and bled freely, but she ingored them, concentrating all her last reserves on the madman before her, who stood stooped within his magick circle, wind whipping his long purple hair wildly, laughing madly, his insane cackling echoing off the walls of the ancient underground temple. The gargoyles that once kept silent watch over the thousand-year-old temple suddenly came to life, eyes glowing a sinister red, almost seeming to watch with much delight the carnage below.
Gourry opened his eyes. He felt something warm trickle down his head and face, and his head was throbbing. His body complained of over a dozen various injuries, his clothes tattered, torn, burnt and bloodstained. He lay sprawled about on the ground, unconscious for an uncertain abount of time. He tried to lift himself and tried to look through blurred vision for the location of his friends. He saw Zelgadis and Ameria crouched in the corner. Ameria looked pale, VERY pale, her clothes where tattered and bloody, and she was not moving. She was being covered by Zelgadis' bulk, who was shielding her from attacks. He too looked very battered and wounded, clothes torn, bloody and burnt almost completely off his body, blood streaming from various wounds. His eyes where closed as he clenched her tightly, and Gourry could not tell if he was still conscious, or not. He couldn't even tell if the small girl beneath him was still alive.
Then he saw Lina, standing before the wild maniac, fighting back with every ounce of strength. He then saw her falter with a cry, and saw the vile creature rear its head from the portal. It was catlike with huge yellow saucer-shaped eyes and long sabre-like fangs dripping saliva. It opened its mouth and roared, its spittle flying all about. It looked past its summoner to Lina with those horrible saucer eyes. He looked in horror as Lina began to fall and, in what seemed like slow motion he lifted himself onto his weak and shaking legs and half-staggered, half ran to her, catching her as she fell. He drew his sword and curled her small hands around its handle, covering them with his much larger swordsman hands. Seeming to get the idea she channeled her power through the blade. The beast reared back with a strangled, inhuman cry, but the insane man wasn't finished yet. Simultaneously he increased the barrier of defense around him, but it was too much. The blade swung with all of Lina's remaining power contained within its glowing blade. It hit its mark to the portal barrier and the energy was released as a huge rip in the barrier of space and matter was formed. They where engulfed by a huge sound of an explosion, followed by blinding light. Then silence, darkness.
Gourry's whole body stung and burned wildly. He opened his mouth to scream, but was choked with salty water. He was suspended within the ocean, floating several yards below the water. How he had ended up here was unclear, most likely the result of the energy release. Everything seemed to slow considerably, like in slow motion, and he could see the Hikari no Ken slip from his limp lifeless hand and descend into the darkness below. He could hear the beating of his heart, slow, yet very loud and vibrating. Strangely, he felt as if he was back in his mother's womb. He could feel his lungs burning with lack of oxygen, along with the rest of his body. He soon found out why. For some reason he could see crystal clear through the water, and swimming and floating all about him were jellyfish of all different sizes in beautiful colors of scarlet and pink. They stung him multiple times all about his dying body. He reached out his hand, more from wonderment than panic, and one of them coiled its tentacles about his fingers.
Many thoughts, images and voices streamed through his head. An image of his sister, well, not his real sister. She had been adopted when he was just a small child. She was on her death bed after having been attacked by a large, unknown creature. She remembered his words. "Old shamans once said that if you are out in Nature and a creature attacks you and you survive, you gain that creature's power and that creature becomes your totem. I don't think I liked that creature very much, but either way, I don't want to die..." Needless to say she never did, and wandered off to points unknown, fullfilling whatever it was she needed to fulfill.
Gourry watched the jelly coil its tentacles about his finger. Strangely, despite the pain, he had a look of utter serenity on his face as he was enveloped in darkness and silence.