"Ragna Blade!" Lina screamed the spell, and the dark power of the Lord of Nightmares writhed in her grasp. She advanced on Garv.
"Stop!" Lina (as well as everyone else) paused. Amelia had run in front of her, blocking her way of attack.
"Amelia! Get out of the way!" Lina's words came between clenched teeth. "Don't you want to see justice served?"
"Not this way. Mr. Garv is right. You are as much a villain as Xellos is. No, you are more a villain than he, for he is but a monster that is as his evil ways go, but YOU! You are a human, who has willingly harnessed the forces of evil for your own selfishness! Now I see that I must atone for the evil that I have unwittingly committed in your name! Flare Arrow!" The Ragna Blade flickered out of existence as Lina's concentration was dashed by diving out of the path of the unexpected spell. The young boy looked on with increased interest.
"Hmm. Well, it looks like you have a new lackey, Lord Demon Dragon King. And this one is at least twice as annoying as Saygrum was."
"Shut up, Xellos. At least I have control over my own destiny. At least I control my own life. And at least I can give someone who deserves it most wonderfully... THIS!" Xellos braced for the expected attack. So did Lina. Neither expected the aftermath of Garv's slice.
"Traitor." The boy whispered the word as Garv's sword slid back through him.
"Lord Hellmaster!" Yelled Xellos.
Amelia turned to Garv as he shimmered back to the place where he had stood behind her. "Why did you do that? That's not justice."
The Demon Dragon King chuckled as he resheathed his blade. "Justice? Hellmaster Phibrizzo would have killed all of you, as well as I. Except for his lapdog, Xellos, of course. I think that I will leave him for you, Lina Inverse. After I do THIS!"
Phibrizzo screamed while Garv laughed and Amelia trembled.
"Curse you, Garv! Take this!" Phibrizzo slashed his hands towards the Demon Dragon King. He stared at them incredulously as nothing happened.
This was not Garv's doing, however. What happened next served to reinforce it.
"Yahhh! Incoming!" A man's scream was heard, and a man-sized crater appeared in the ground between Garv and Phibrizzo. Everyone paused as the armor-clad man attempted to get up, but was subsequently flattened by another falling person. This time it was a blue-haired girl with odangos. Then Zelgadis was flattened by a screaming blonde, whose cigarette seemed not to leave her hand.
"Ow. My butt hurts. Dynast-sama, was it supposed to be like that?"
"Deep Sea?" Garv and Phibrizzo asked in confusion. Their quarrel was over for now. Falling mazoku lords were a simple distraction."
"Ohh... That wasn't part of it. Huh?" Dynast was shocked as he realized that his powers had been sealed. He was now only as powerful as a high-level human. He was on the same level as the red-haired girl that was near him.
"Dynast! What happened?" Xellas helped him up. She also seemed drained. It took only a second for Phibrizzo, Garv, and Deep Sea to realize what happened to them as well. At that point, a woman appeared floating in the sky.
"Well, well, well. It seems that my little adversary has found a new home. Can't say that his choice of friends is up to scratch, though. Little Shabby's kids, it's taken a long time to find you, so why don't you just give up now?" The woman smirked. Her flame-red hair seemed to burn in the light.
"Who are you?!" Dynast said harshly.
"What! Why you little! How dare you demand of me! I am" As the foreign mazoku continued to swear, Dynast whispered to Xellas.
"This one is really powerful. Please, can you help me?" Xellas nodded. She did not like to see anyone around who thought it was funny to seal powers. Besides, she could feel the power in this foreign Mazoku. She was a match for all of them, and she knew it.
"Well, maybe your little friends will persuade you to give up." The foreigner chuckled, and noticed the edges of Dynast and Xellas' barrier. She grabbed the two who were closest to the edges. Martina and Phibrizzo suddenly found themselves in the air underneath the stranger. The remaining mazoku gasped. They had underestimated her.
"If you want them back, then come to my city. Yes. Come to Sairaag"
"Hey! That's my line! You can't steal my lines!" Phibrizzo was protesting, and was promptly turned to stone. Just for posture, the woman turned Martina into a statue as well.
"Well, I guess you should know who I am. My name is Jhilfahne, daughter of the great Chaotic Blue." Jhilfahne promptly disappeared, knowing that a battle with L-Sama might very well be her last.
"Hey, what is this! What happened to Zel and Martina? I want some answers." Lina was tactless as ever. It was only a moment since the terror named Jhil disappeared, and already she was complaining.
"It's quite complicated. But, in any case, my brethren have had their powers subdued for a little while. As have I. But it's really a long story." Answered Dynast.
"And who are you to be saying such things?"
"My name is Lord Dynast Grausweller." The mazoku cheerily said that, with another mock bow. Lina froze, and backed away very quickly. "In any case, this Jhilfahne seems to have returned to Lord Chaotic Blue's realm. But there are a few other things to deal with, most notably if my experiment was at fault, so I'll need to borrow you for a little while." Dynast was pleasantly surprised that he could still teleport people, and they all reappeared back at the spire.
"Wha-what just happened?" Amelia asked hesitantly. Lina was still shocked out of her mind. Gourry was clueless as ever, and didn't seem to notice that Xellos was hiding behind him.
"We've been demoted, thanks to that no-good harlot!" Garv was fuming, as was Deep Sea and Xellas. The air almost flamed with the anger. Even though Garv was a traitor, they all agreed that ANYBODY who decided to play with their powers should be dealt with unitedly. Besides, it was mainly Phibrizzo who had a problem with Garv.
"Wait a minute. That means that you're not as powerful as you once were. She made you guys human, didn't she?" Lina was thinking. "Which means there's no way that I can't kill you with a Ragna Blade now, Mr. Ultimate Bad News."
"Lina, I don't think that would be a good idea." Xellos interrupted. "You see, Garv's argument was with Phibrizzo, and you were merely a pawn. Now that Phibrizzo has been captured, as well as 'demoted' as well, he's not going to do anything to you. In fact, I think he respects you." Lina rolled her eyes at that.
"Yes, I do respect her. At least she has principles, and I do apologize for trying to kill you. Now, you see, there is something more..." Garv was cut off by Xellas.
"In short, we need your help. And we need your power as well as ours as long as we're sealed. After that, I'm sure it can be worth your while."
"Well, then. Glad to help you, partner."
"Miss Lina! They're mazoku! How can you agree to help mazoku?" Amelia obviously didn't remember how she had defended Garv earlier.
"Well, the pay is right. And besides, how bad can it be?" As Lina said that, she noticed that Gourry was missing. She was looking around, and noticed that the blue-haired girl was dressing a doll. But there was no sign of Gourry.
"Where'd the squid-head go?" Asked Lina to no-one in particular. Everyone looked around.
"All done!" Deep Sea held up the 'doll' proudly. Then, she returned him to his regular form. Gourry reappeared wearing a pale-green dress, with matching ribbon in his hair, stiletto heels, and wearing enough makeup to make Zelgadis look like a regular person.
"Ahhh! Get this off!" Gourry was frantic. Tears appeared on the sides of Garv, Dynast and Xellos' heads.
"But you look so pretty!" Deep Sea was squealing with delight.
"She... did... that?" Lina was stunned.
"Who... is... she?" Zelgadis was just as petrified.
"This is Deep Sea Dolphin, one of the five mazoku who were created by Shabranigdo. Thankfully, I work for Lord Beastmaster." Xellos joined his superior.
"Where are my clothes?!" Gourry was still frantic, and staring at Deep Sea. She shrugged, and tossed his clothes to him. As he went down the hall to change, Lina, Zel, and Amelia were still quite shaken up. Dynast was now concentrating on one of the mechanisms. Lina and Zelgadis stepped over beside him to see what he was doing.
"What is this?" Lina was curious.
"This is a magical device that I created to monitor certain flows in reality. Currently, I am attempting to locate how Jhilfahne can wield such awesome power on this plane." Dynast tapped a few buttons, and a new display came up. This time, it showed a picture of part of the world, with the lands within the mazoku barrier, as well as some of the land that was not.
"Amazing. This is on the level as the Claire Bible." Zelgadis was amazed. He moved his hand towards the panel, but Dynast slapped it away with a miniature Dynast Bras.
"Actually, this is a little more sophisticated than that, but your analogy is quite apt. Ah, Jhilfahne's power is concentrated by means of certain focuses in this world..." As Blaze droned on, Zelgadis listened in rapt contentment, learning all he could. Xellos was indulging in some of the hard liquor that Xellas always had on her, as was its owner. Garv and Deep Sea were giggling as they were looking at another panel. Lina and Amelia walked over, and saw a list of names.
"Wait a minute! What's that? Sylphiel Nels Rada?" Lina was confused. Why would Sylphiel's name be there? Gourry walked into the room as Lina reached over and pushed the panel at Sylphiel's name. Garv and Deep Sea were also confused. They had never seen this list before.
Sylphiel, or what looked like her then suddenly appeared. The others were staring at it, even Zelgadis turned. Dynast droned on in an overly technical explanation that no one was listening to. They were watching the new Sylphiel-clone.
"Oh, Dynast. I've missed you. I just want to show you how much..." Sylphiel-clone said the words softly, and began to remove her clothes. "I've missed a real mazoku, and just want to..."
"Sylphiel?" Gourry was confused. As usual. The others had a slightly freaked out look on their faces as Sylphiel began to make unbelievably naughty suggestions.
"But it doesn't matter, because... Oh no!" Dynast then realized what was happening.
"That's not very happy, Dynast-sama. Not happy at all." Deep Sea was pouting.
"Why is this on? Who turned this on? Why is this on?" Dynast frantically ran over to the other panel, and pressed the off button. Sylphiel-clone blinked out of existence.
"Uh, what just happened?" Amelia was confused and shocked.
"Should we ask why you need that program?" Asked Garv with a smirk
"That was weird." Lina said blandly.
"Mr. Dynast! That is not just! You cannot go on with such a horrid thing! I know that you are only a mazoku, but please, be civil in the presence of a warrior of justice! Atone for your evilness!"
"I'm not human, so I don't care." Dynast said numbly. "Er, in any case, in order to disrupt Jhilfahne's concentration, we have to destroy the Keystones that are holding the field together. However, we have to destroy all three, because once the field has been enacted, it can be supported by only one Keystone."
"So, why don't we just destroy the keystones?" Lina stated the obvious.
"That's exactly what we need to do. However, Jhilfahne has to have left guardians. Which is why I need you. In our present states, us mazoku will probably fail. We need... help." It obviously pained Dynast to ask for aid. It did on the faces of his brethren.
"What's in it for me?" Lina asked.
"Miss Lina! The world is in danger, and they're asking us for help. The villains have recognized that only the just can save the world."
"Why didn't that floozy take her instead?" Lina muttered under her breath. The others nodded.
"Well, I'm sure that we can find something for you. Do you want something rare, valuable, or something really shiny? Really, really shiny!" Asked Deep Sea.
"Well, how about the rarest thing you have?"
"Ah. Here it is." Deep Sea dug into her pocket, and pulled out a small pebble. "This was the first thing that I ever created! And if I have to, I'll give it up. But that would make me sad." A sweatdrop appeared on the side of Lina's head.
"Maybe not. What about you, Garv? What could you give me?"
"Well, I do have some spare trenchcoats." A sweatdrop appeared again on the side of Lina's head.
"What is it with you people? Don't you know the value of money?" Lina was furious.
"Well, no. We don't need money." Garv said calmly.
"Ahh!" Lina screamed in frustration. Then, she noticed that Garv was giving something to Deep Sea. She quickly snatched it. It was a hairbrush. A hairbrush that had an orichalcon inlay. She pocketed it quickly. Garv and Deep Sea just looked at each other in confusion. The things that some people wanted... At least they didn't have to give up something that they would miss, they thought in unison.
"Alright! Let's get going! Now that I've been paid, let's break those stones!"
"Uh, don't you want to know where they are first?" Xellos asked cheerfully as she began to turn.
"OK. Where are these Keystones?" Zel asked, interested.
"Each is part of a Mystic Triangle, cousin to the Magic Circle. The first one is in the Kingdom of Xoana, at the ruins of Xoana Castle."
"Yes." Said Zel.
"The second is in Seyruun, in the Temple of Cepheid. And then there's the last one. The last one is in the Holy Kingdom of Femille, which I believe you are familiar with." Dynast and the mazoku savored the raw fear on their new allies' faces at the mention of that place.
"No! Not Femille! We can't go back to Femille!" Zelgadis was terrified at the idea. He thought that he could spend the rest of his life avoiding that place.
"Wait a minute. Femille can't be that bad. I mean, they must've changed the laws there, right?" Amelia asked.
"Nope." Said Garv cheerfully. "The Queen hit her head, and can't remember you guys, or what happened when you came, so it's business as usual there."
"What are you so cheerful about? You two have to become ladies too..." Said Lina evilly. Fear spread across Garv and Dynast's faces.
"Oh, goody! I get to dress up more people! Garv-sama, Dynast-sama, just you wait! I'm going to put you in the prettiest dresses! Dresses, dresses, dresses!" Deep Sea giggled. It was not the most welcome sound. At the moment, the men feared Deep Sea Dolphin more than Jhilfahne, or even a starving Lina. The women understood perfectly, and thanked Shabranigdo for making them female.
Sir Blaze: Well, that's Part One. Heh. I guess the next part will be a trip to the Holy Kingdom. Well, how bad can it really be? I mean, they're only trying to make the men into women. A few questions will be answered in the next part, like "Why is Jhilfahne doing this?", and more importantly, "Can Deep Sea make Garv look feminine?". Anyways, 'til next time. ^_^
L-Sama: Hey! What do you mean this is the end? You can't stop now?
Sir Blaze: Yes, I can.
L-Sama: No, you can't. I forbid it.
Sir Blaze: Fine then. If you want, I'll write more.
L-Sama: Good.
Sir Blaze: I hope you like being the star of a yuri story. Heheheheheheh.
L-Sama: Nooooooooooooooo! ::Grudgingly:: You win. See you next time...
Part 2 | Fanfiction