Episode Four: Killer Chefs Are Bad! The Dance That Turned Back Time!

Notes

navy = dreams

"Father, toss me the ball!" she cried.

The big man laughed as the danced from one foot to the next and passed it underhand. She leapt and it landed squarely into her midsection, knocking her over, and he laughed. She laughed, too, because she loved him.

Then a shriek, and she sat up, and he froze, and for a moment remained still. Then they broke into a run, and they were inside again, racing down a hallway, and he was shouting things and pointing a thick finger, and other men joined them, some running that way, some running this. He'd scooped her up in his arms and kept running, and although she couldn't make sense out of anything she knew where they were running to, and that made her stomach shrink up and squeeze against itself.

Then men she didn't recognize joined in, but they weren't joining, she realized. They were fighting. And as their own soldiers met them, they were killing. Blood painted the walls, and she was stunned and shocked and couldn't move. But her father had grabbed her, and they were running again, hurrying further down the hallway, as men killed and were killed and followed and halted...

They were at the door. But it was wasn't right. It was slanted, and creaking on one hinge, and there were bodies thrown along on both sides of it, dead bodies, and their eyes were glassy and sightless and she screamed.

"Merrina?" her father shouted, running inside, halting in front of a lone survivor, a man of lanky build with blood splattered over his outfit, a crimson knife in one hand and a matching sword in the other. She tried to get out of his arms, but they were so BIG, and he was holding her so TIGHT, and she knew that he was as scared as she was and she screamed again and didn’t stop. Her eyes were closed, and she felt the grip around her loosen and then release.

She hit the stone floor, and there was screaming, and she huddled herself into a tiny ball until it all stopped. She heard someone - she thought it was her sister, but where could she have come from? - call the incantation of "Chaos String," and there was a howl and a gurgle and the sound of a body hitting the stone floor..

A moment passed, and then another, and finally she opened one eye. Her father was there, holding his wife's body against his chest and sobbing in a terrible childlike way that made her want to run and hide forever. Her sister was there, too, she'd apparently made it to the room through the chaos after all. She was watching in a low, apathetic way, unable to fully grasp what was happening. Or simply not wanting to.

Then her father looked to her, and she could see that tears were running down his face, and a sudden wracking sob ran through him, shifting his weight, and she could see the body over his arm. Bloody and beaten, but death obviously hadn’t been painless for the defiled corpse she was staring at, and slowly the horror returned, and she could hear the dying men downstairs, and she grabbed her hair and bowed her head and screamed until her throat was dry...

...awakening herself from the sheer volume of it, the real and the dream worlds swirling like sickness inside her mind.

Slowly the two realm began to separate, and the feel of the soft feathery pillow beneath her head slowly sank in to her sensory nerves. Her father's shaking arms were replaced by the light cushioned bed which was kept tidily in her room, and she didn’t see her dead mother, but instead the unsentimental curtain that hung around her at nighttime to keep her privacy.

Shivering, she sat up.

"Princess?" came a soft voice, the last anchor needed to ground her back in reality.

"H...hai?" The response was shaky, as was her hand as she reached to draw back the curtained veil. As it allowed itself to be pulled aside, its little chains clinking in submission, she saw the solemn, weary look of Raleic's face reflected in the moon's light.

"Your father said you'd been having nightmares lately," she informed from her seat by the door. "Anything you, um..." Where a normal person would have finished with "need to share?", Raleic had a hard time forcing those words past her mouth and so ended the exchange with a slightly abashed look of silence.

Amelia sighed, reflecting briefly that perhaps the bouncy young girl Gourry had first met foiling a scheme of small-time robbery would have been able to beam like the sun and spout cheerful assurances that she was okay, it was just a dream after all. Instead she laid silently back on the bed, her hands folding over her stomach.

She thought Raleic tried to console her a bit longer, but she wasn't sure.

When daylight breaks over the holy walls of Seiruun, it does so in the most splendid of fashions. The people awaken dewy-eyed, groggy, but with a chest full of hopes and dreams that the prospect of yet another day has begun. The sun touches down over the east in brilliant splashes of light, illuminating families' morning meals as they prepare to meet the challenges of the world head on and make it out the other end victorious. Market vendors pull their carts into the streets, arrange their wares to the best of their abilities for the convenience of the customers, dogs and cats stretched lazily before chasing one another joyfully down the streets, and kobolds and beastmen and humanoid insects prepare for the opening of their all new dance club in the rundown slummish district. It really is a pretty sight. Except for that dance club slummish district thing, anyway.

"Great!" Terril boasted, smashing his palms together. "We're going to have one hell of a club here tonight. I bet we drive old Sprenner on the other side of town outta business."

"Sprenner sells vegetables," Gori pointed out. "We're really not in the same market."

"Shut up," Terril snapped back, folding his arms against his slim, felinian chest. "I say it will, and damn it, it will."

"Okay then," Gori agreed, complacently enough. He knew better than to argue with the boss.

"I think it'll drive all the vegetable-sellers in town outta business," Kalna piped up, his wings buzzing as he hoisted a sign into place above the main door, ignoring the sound of his joints popping beneath the ten feet of solid wood.

"Shut up," Terril reaffirmed, turning to the last of his three assembled helpers. "Baldy, go nail that sign up before Kalna breaks his exoskeleton."

Baldy, a short little funny looking bald guy, grunted and began climbing the nearby ladder to bang the nails into place. Kalna accepted the help with an ugly little buggy smile and sunk down next to Gori, wheezing just slightly.

"Oi," came a voice from inside the club, and the kid with the stupid hat popped his head out. "What did you want me to do with that trapdoor under the dance stage?"

Terril waved the question away, not knowing that by doing so he was signing the death warrant for the little club for which he had labored so long and hard. "Seal it, I don't care. Just remember I want it done by sundown."

"Gotcha," the kid with the stupid hat acknowledge, and ducked back inside. Gori and Kalna, their heads thrumming from the bangs produced by Baldy and his hammer, looked at each other and felt a mutual sense of unquestionable foreboding.

"Fire...BALL!"

Lina and Amelia watched as a little straw dummy burst into blazing flame, one of the two responding with a shout of glee while the other tried valiantly not look embarrassed in front of the nearby soldiers.

"Hah! I got it back! Fireball! FireBALL! Mwahahaha..."

"Ano, Lina..." Amelia hesitated, watching dummy after dummy reap a fate of flame. "We usually keep those for the guards to practice on."

"Fine," Our Heroine sighed, dropping her arms to her sides. "Don't let the sorceress have any fun."

"You're too violent, Lina-san," the Princess chided, wagging a finger. "You don't have to blow up Daddy's castle to prove how strong you are."

"Well, I've never seen them practicing. Maybe if they did once in a while they'd be able to take care of some of the problems around here without our help. Have they ever done anything useful?" On seeing a slight look of pain cross her buddy's face, Lina quickly knocked the conversation onto another track. "So where'd he go, anyway?"

"Who?"

"Your father."

"Oh." Amelia shook her head. "He went with Gourry-san and Raleic-dono to look through his collection of secret government documents."

"They won't be secret long if Gourry sees them."

"He'd forget about them in a few minutes anyway," Amelia pointed out.

"Well, that's true. But I don't see what they hope to find... doesn't Phil already know all the stuff that's written in there?" The sorceress tapped her forehead to denote thinking power. "And why didn't he just give us those to look for in the first place?"

"Daddy doesn't read much," the Princess sighed, folding her hands in front of her. She began a short walk out of the courtyard, glancing back over her shoulder. "And you know how whatever we look for is always in the last place we look for it."

"Well, yeah. Another point for you." Lina raised her hands in a shrug, trotting after her. "It still seems like a waste of to me, though. Xelloss already told us where we should go."

"Isn't that pretty weird in itself?" Amelia murmured.

"Hey, right again." Lina patted her briskly on the back. "You must've been studying hard since the Valgarv thing."

Biting back a childish cry of "What does that mean?" that was just dying to bubble out, Amelia forced herself to calmly mutter, "Where did Xelloss go, anyway?"

Lina shrugged, shook her head. "He just said he'd be back when the place opens tonight. I think it's his way of making sure we don't go too early for his purposes."

"That's always how it is," the Princess agreed, her shoulders were sagging a bit more than usual; Lina noticed this but shrugged it off. What with the assassination attempt and the evil knife Mazoku and whatnot, the poor girl could be afforded some preoccupation.

"You know how those Mazoku are. Why don't we go check up on your father?"

"That'd be nice," Amelia would have said, if she weren't interrupted by the sound of Gourry crashing into a wandering serving girl and knocking her, her pitchers of water, and himself onto the floor in a pointless but arguably much-needed display of levity.

Lina groaned and made her way to his side. "Oi. You okay?"

"I think so," he mumbled, struggling to his feet and smiling sheepishly at the serving girl he'd toppled over. Lina noticed she was more than reasonably busty, and bashed her sidekick over the head before he could utter an apology. The girl took the hint and fled.

Amelia, Lina's superior when it came to compassion, knelt down and helped the swordsman to his feet. "You shouldn't run in the halls, Gourry-san," she was sure to say, to make sure he didn't get too comfortable with her arm around him.

He nodded, wincing. "Hai. But your father said he found something and that he wanted you two down there to see. And you know how he sounds when he's excited."

So our trio journeyed to the Prince's study room, battling monsters and saving damsels in distress as they went to obtain their treasure for the fate of the world.

Except there were no monsters or damsels, and what they found wasn't really key to the fate of the world, although it will provide some interesting background information later on once everything comes together.

"So, what've you got?" Lina asked, flopping down into a chair opposite Phil and his postal research partner. Amelia took up a seat on his other side and began glancing curiously over the book he was holding. The book itself was thick and dusty and titled "The History of a Kingdom" with "Classified" printed underneath with a small lock to keep prying eyes away from it.

"See for yourself," Phil invited, turning the book around and holding it out for her to see.

Lina raised her eyebrows and leaned in with a little "hmmn?" just in case someone there was going to accuse her of not seeming curious enough. "A skirmish which nearly took the city of Seiruun off the map, the Legions of Fishmen planned their most deadly attack yet, the Yogurt Ball of Doom..."

"Not that," Raleic snapped, and tapped a paragraph on the opposite page. Lina redirected her eyes.

"In the years just before the Prince Lyle de Seiruun left to become Lyle de Panifess the assassination of Prince Philionel Kline Seiruun by his brother Gregory sent the town into an uproar."

The passage went on, but the shock value of that sentence alone was enough to give our heroine pause.

"Gregory?" Gourry tilted his head, looked up at the ceiling. "Wasn't he...?"

"The guy trying to assassinate Phil," Lina answered gravely, and cast her eyes at the Prince again. "This Philionel was your grandfather?"

"Indeed," he answered, folding his hands in front of him. "Unfortunately, no one realized Gregory was the murderer until his wife murdered him."

"Geez," Lina sighed. "Are you and your daughter the only two in your family who have any interest in justice?"

"You'll know Prince Christopher is very fair and civil," Raleic cut in quickly, her tone disapproving. "A true Prince, just like our Prince Philionel. And Amelia's older sister was, too, before she left."

Amelia nodded mildly at that statement. "I remember the two of you used to have a lot of fun together."

"She had a good sense of humor," Raleic agreed.

"Anyway," Lina said, hoping to bring the conversation back on topic. "What we've got here is an attempted reenactment of a past assassination."

"It looks that way," Phil agreed. "And we've lost Cairi to it already. This Xelloss fella had better be able to put a stop to this tonight."

"I wouldn't put any money on him," Lina said with a shrug, and looked back at the book. "Anything else in here worth reading?"

"Information on Gregory's posthumous conviction. You should look it over," Raleic answered. "You might find something."

For a second it almost sounded like she was going to detail her sentence with "that I missed," but apparently she'd bitten that unnecessary add-on off at the last instant. Lina glanced blandly over the page.

"Gregory married Varena Hsynch a few months later, and was slain by her on their wedding night. During the subsequent trial, Varena revealed that she had been Philionel's secret fiancee during the assassination, and had proof of Gregory's involvement in the act." She scanned a little, dismissed the stuff detailing the court proceedings, and picked up a few sentences later. "Varena was sentenced to a compassionately short prison term and was released ten years later. The events that transpired have been recorded here by me and nowhere else; we don't need these sordid stories confusing the minds of the public." Lina rolled her eyes. "Forbid people know when their rulers are all killing each other off."

"But why would any Mazoku be interested in a royal lovers' spat?" Gourry asked, rubbing his brow.

"Well, it says that Varena's five year reign was then succeeded by Gregory's only remaining brother, Brandon Baidimell Seiruun." She gave Phil and Amelia an odd look. "No offense, but I'm glad I'm not in this family of yours."

"So you think that... ano...?" Gourry paused. Lina didn't interrupt him; she could see he was trying hard. "...You think that some Mazoku took advantage of the political confusion to try and take over Seiruun or something?"

"Right on the money," Lina praised with a grin. "Good boy."

"That still doesn't tell us anything about why a Mazoku would try to reenact a century old assassination and end up taking on the form of our cook," Raleic pointed out, rather dryly.

"Nope," was Lina's agreement. She leaned back in her chair and propped her feet up on the table. "Guess we'll just have to wait until Xelloss shows up so we can beat the information out of him."

"You're so violent, Lina-san," Amelia reproached softly, but this time without conviction.

Night descends over this magnificent town as it does over most other cities; its holy properties does not make it seem any more special than it would appear in Biatz or Malcune, and there are romantics who will tell you that a sunset looks its most beautiful as long as you view it with one you truly love. People pack up their businesses, street venders cart up their wares, children are called in off the streets, strange hooded men with glowing red eyes and their shadowy partners show up at dance clubs just in time to get a good position in the night's act. Sorceresses and Princesses and swordsmen and postal workers prepare to look for mysterious objects of something-or-other, waiting for Mazoku to show up before they can begin their investigations. Royal magicians gather 'round the crown Prince to protect him from evil knives who take on the form of deceased chefs, and dedicated brothers taking over that Prince's duties for the night in hopes of possibly saving their kingdom from what they all pray will be its final life threatening evil.

There are also sometimes a riot in the downtown insectmen district, but that's rare.

"Where is that purple headed idiot?" Lina grumbled, her arms folded in annoyance. "He said that we should get going as soon as the place opened."

"You're always so impatient, Lina-san." Xelloss shook his head reprovingly, slipping out from the shadows. "I just had some things to attend to first."

"Right. Whatever. Raleic, you have the ticket?"

"Hai," was the response, optically aided as she held it up for inspection.

"All right. You sure you want to come, Amelia?"

"Of course," she answered, hands on hips. "It's my duty as Princess to find the cause of this evil and destroy it in the Name of Justice."

"Ugh." Lina looked back at Phil, surrounded by his loyal magicians and guardsmen. "I guess we're off, then."

"Have a good time," the Prince called in farewell, waving a hand.

"We're not going to this place to dance," Lina sighed, and turned to go. Her little entourage followed her off the castle grounds and into the city proper.

"Welcome to our club," Baldy, now dressed up in a fashionable disco ensemble, greeted with a smile to each of Terril's Technobeat Dance Club's patrons. "Enjoy the dinner, enjoy the dance. Tell a friend. Be here for the night's big event."

He said this a number of times, to a number of patrons, belonging to a number of size and shapes and species. Only once that night was he caught speechless, and that was when the area surrounding him was cast into darkness, as if a filter had been placed before the sky, clouding it with a feeling of such dark angst and repressed denials that he seemed momentarily unable to breathe.

Baldy glanced up to see a guy standing directly in his sunlight, and his windpipes really did close up.

"Yo," the man said, cocking his head to one side. "I'm here to join tonight's dance line up."

"Okay," Amelia said, glancing down the street. She pointed towards a larger building off to the end. "That should be it down there."

Gourry squinted at all the people thronging in that direction. "Are you sure? It looks more like a small mansion."

"Must be a popular place," Raleic mused, tapping the ticket against her palm. "Maybe this won't be such a bad idea."

"We're not here to have fun." Lina emphasized this by swiping the free pass out of her companion's hand. "We've got a serious job to do."

"Indeed," Xelloss agreed from the background. "This is going to be very important to the success of our mission."

Lina gave her Mazoku pal a rather dour look. "It'd save us a lot of time if you'd just tell us what the hell we're going to find there."

"You know I couldn't do that even if I knew," Xelloss answered, managing to seem offended. "But you'd better hurry in... the sooner you get inside, the sooner you can start your hunt."

"Our hunt?" the sorceress asked, furrowing her brow. "And what are you going to be doing all this time?"

"That's a secret," he replied, and trotted on ahead.

"Why do I ask him anything?" Lina grumbled, folding her arms.

"I was wondering that myself."

"Shut up, Gourry."

Terril's Technobeat Dance Club was coming in to view by that point, and Lina did have to admit through her little haze of being pissed off that it cut an impressive sight. Large magical lanterns swung back and forth, lighting up the sky, as what looked like thousands of people (and things) from every section of the country swarmed outside the doors. The building was well designed, a square-set piece of architecture that left quite an impression on the mind, even as the sounds of exotic music wafted out into the street. As they got nearer, they could see a cowman and a little insectoid guy standing in front of the walkway leading inside. The gathering of people seemed to bottleneck at them, so Lina supposed they were some sort of security.

"Wow," Gourry said. "It's gonna take a while to get in there."

"You know, I could just Dill Brand us to the front of the line."

"Lina-san," Amelia warned with a small shake of her head, and turned to Xelloss. "Can't you get us inside quicker?"

"My master would throw a fit if I actively helped you out," he admonished, and Amelia deflated a bit. Then he opened one eye, and winked with it. "But I might be able to do something, if you really want."

"Er, no," Lina stammered, but a second too late. Xelloss had vanished, and with him all hope of getting inside without a fuss. All of the gathered heroes slumped their shoulders and waited for either a nuclear explosions or a third Shaburanigdo Resurrection.

"You really shouldn't encourage him," Gourry said, with a slight wince.

"I know," Amelia sighed. "Let's just get in line and pretend like we don't know anything about what's going to happen."

"Sounds good to me," the swordsman agreed, and stepped into place.

"How did you guys ever meet such common rabble, anyway?" Raleic asked, with a slight sniff in her voice that suggested she, of course, would never consort with such people. Lina doubted she knew just how unsuited Xelloss Metallium was to such a punk-kid-next-door description.

"We met him before we had to fight this Chaos Dragon Gaav guy," Gourry answered, rubbing his chin. It was a strain remembering such a long name. "He helped us look for the Claire Bible, but - "

Lina cut him off by knocking him over the head with a large wooden sign advertising kittens for sale. "I told you to shut up!"

"Chaos Dragon Gaav?" Raleic repeated, so apparently the damage had been done.

"No, no," Amelia put in quickly. "We just fought some guy named Gaav once. He was a candlestick seller."

Raleic narrowed one eye. "A Mazoku joined up with you to fight a candlestick seller," she repeated.

"He was a very ill tempered candlestick seller." Amelia tried on a smile.

"I don't - " the postal worker began again, and was cut off by a small voice crying out the name of "Lina Inverse!" followed by "Gourry Gabriev!" and "Raleic Deontri!" and "Some girl named Amelia!"

Blinking, the group looked to see a little insectoid guy buzzing their way on his little wings. "Are you guys them?" he asked, looking to the bruised-and-battered Gourry.

"Ano, I think so," he answered.

"Need something?" Lina butted in, frowning.

"You've been requested by our main dancer of the evening to be our special guests," Kalna said, waving a buggy arm. "Come inside right away so that we can get your dinner started."

"Main dancer of the evening?" Amelia asked, blinking wide and confused eyes as they left the crowd and headed for the doorway (and Baldy at the side of said doorway, still a bit frazzled by his earlier experience). "What did Xelloss do this time?"

Lina sighed and tried not to think about it.

"You ready?" their escort asked, and yanked the door open without waiting for a response. Amelia's mouth dropped at the enormous amount of milling patrons, and then a bit more when she took in the actual amount of lewdness that was taking place among them. Music blared out the doorway, causing Lina to wince and clamp her hands down over her ears and glare daggers at Gourry, who was already beginning to get into the beat.

"Oi!" she shouted, snapping her gaze to Kalna. "Who told us to let you in?!"

"Our lead dancer," the answered again, leading them inside. "He requested that you have first row seats."

"We don't know any dancers, do we, Lina?" Gourry pondered. "Maybe it's Mimi and Nene."

Lina blinked. "Who?"

"You don't remember?" he asked, reproving. "We met them when we were looking for the Claire Bible and you and Amelia sang that song - "

"How the hell do you remember them?" Lina growled. "You can't even remember Rezo half the time!"

"Sure I can," he protested. "He was the guy with the big tank."

"That was Jiras."

"Ano... the guy with the big coat?"

"That was Garv."

"...the fish guy?"

"That was Noonsa!" she shouted, bringing her foot down on top of his, ignored his yelp of pain, and fixed a deadly glower at their current Guide Thru Madness. "Just take us to the damn stage," she requested with a flick of her hand, and the insectoid hastened to comply, weaving between patrons and overturned tables and shards of glass with the nimble ease of all little bugmen. For our little band of heroes, this was not as easy a task, but they managed well enough. You don't end up saving the world four times if you can't navigate a bar room, even a really crowded one.

"Here we go," Kalna announced upon reaching a grand looking arched doorway, sweeping his arms dramatically towards whatever was inside.

"What?" Lina shouted, hands clamped over her ears. The music was a lot louder here. Kalna made wavy "go-in-there" motions with his hands and then was promptly called away as another barfight broke out between two weretrolls who didn't like what one had said about the other's mom. Lina and co braced themselves for what horrors may lay in wait amidst the dance hall.

The man who had earlier approached Baldy was sitting loosely in a chair behind the stage, drinking a glass of Terril's most expensive wine and waiting for his cue. He'd been damn lucky, arriving in town just in time to get the main gig of the evening, but luckily the boss had been impressed with his impromptu routine to smack him as the night's main attraction. He smiled slightly into his drink, pushing hair out of his face, and jumped slightly when he heard the doorknob twist. Apparently he'd been so involved in his drinking he hadn't heard anyone approaching. Odd, for someone with as good hearing as he.

"Ano, sir?" Gori opened the door a crack to peek in, saw he wasn't going to be blown away just yet, and opened it the rest of the way. "Yer up in a couple'a minutes. Need any more wine?"

"No, thank you," he said, taking to his feet. "Tell your boss that I'm ready."

"Very good, sir," Gori replied, and slipped off to relate the message.

Now, Gori was not very bright; cowfellows rarely are. They'd probably be infamous for their stupidity if they stood out enough in the world to be infamous at all. He did, however, have one trait that was rare in his fellow cowfellows; luck.

Yeah, luck was always good to him. He'd managed to secure himself a job in Seiruun by arriving at the right tavern at the time; Terril had apparently just made a bet with the owner there that he would hire the next idiot that walks in the door and would still construct a better bar room than the dinky old one he was standing in. When he saw Gori, of course, he had convinced the tavern owner to take back the bet, but only on a double-or-nothing agreement. Kalna had wandered in then, and Terril had been forced to hire the both of them or pay twice his liquor bill for the year.

There's a lot more of that story, a lot of which is probably more exciting than a twenty-four hour Adventures of the Red Priest marathon in Storyville, concerning demonic foes and skilled assassins and bumbling fish men and a comic antic or two, but none of that's important to this immediate tale, and so we're going to skip it for now.

Suffice to say, Gori was dimly proud of his luck. He wasn't smart enough to actually know he was lucky, but he did indeed felt something was pretty damn good with him to get him where he was today when so many others of his kind were either (unskilled) mercenaries working for whiny less-than-lordlings or (unskilled) head chefs in small out-of-town restaurants, and only that much if they were above-average in math skills. That's why he was suddenly taken aback when he saw the second mysterious figure of this episode in the hallway, gazing at him with eyes that seemed almost painful to look into. Had he known how rare it was this figure opened his eyes, he might have been flattered, but of course he didn't, and so he was just freaked.

"Hello," the second mysterious character of the evening greeted him. "I wanted to talk to your boss about the main act tonight." He paused, gave the cowfellow a moment to run that through his slow-loading brain, and then added, "I'd like to be a part of it. I know your main dancer quite well, you see."

There was more after that, of course, but Gori didn't hear any of it. He was too busy trying to forget the look of this man's evil eyes.

Luckily, he succeeded pretty well.

"This is worse than the time we were attacked by that huge Dark Star thing!" Gourry shouted, hands covering his ears. Amelia was similarly trying to block the blaring music out of her head, but was adept enough at lip reading to carry the conversation.

"Valgarv had better manners than these guys," she supplied back, edging out of a slavering drunk's way in time to avoid being crushed in a dead faint.

Raleic winced, did a quick check to make sure the Princess wasn't damaged (and thusly her position not jeopardized), and squinted back off into the crowd. "Did you see where Lina went?"

"I lost her behind the homosexual goatman couple," Gourry called back. Raleic couldn't help but wince again.

"There she is!" Amelia shouted, thrusting her finger forward. Indeed, there she was, securing her and her companions a table by Fireballing all the other would-be relaxers. The trio hurried over so she wouldn't have to flamebroil more club-hoppers than she had to.

"Finally," Lina grumbled, taking up her seat. "Well, at least over here we can hear each other talk."

"What?" Gourry asked, and Amelia reached over to take his hands away from his ears.

Raleic flopped down into a chair, heaving a sigh. "What the hell are we supposed to do here anyway?"

"Wait," Lina answered simply, and leaned back in her chair.

The dance hall, as a physical place, was indeed a four-star worth-your-while stop, with prompt service from the bar room if you just wanted to relax, and comfortable seats for you to do that relaxing in. Patrons grooved (or jammed, or "worked it," depending on their moods) on the dance floor in varying degrees of talent and modesty.

As a physical experience, however, Lina wouldn't be giving this place any good reviews. The ceiling arched into a dome, serving to amplify the music much more than it needed to, the whiny laughter of the bugmen at the next table was getting on her nerves, and the smell of the food made even Lina's stomach churn.

"This place is pretty creepy," Amelia reflected, huddling down into her chair.

"What?" Gourry shouted, and Lina smacked his hands away from his ears again.

"I said this place is pretty creepy," Amelia repeated, with an almost shy glance at the dancers. "Don't you think?"

"I can see where you're coming from, at least." Lina tossed her gaze over the milling crowd. "There's sort of a weird feeling to the building."

"Like it's enchanted or something?" Gourry asked.

"Not so much enchanted as - "

"Throbbing with power?" Raleic cut in. The others turned to look at her, and were surprised at the steely glint in her eyes.

"Well - " Lina began. "I wouldn't say that, exactly. It's more like a subtle... um..."

"Oh, I know what you mean," Gourry said, nodding once. "It's like when a place is built in a dried out swamp, but you can still see the muckiness of the swamp, like the algae and stuff, on the ground and everything, even though you're used to it because you've lived in a swamp your whole life."

Lina blinked. "Um. Something like that, I guess."

"I don't even know what the hell that means," Raleic muttered, but no one heard her because there was another voice drifting out over the crowd on magical amplifiers, overtaking all other conversation and drowning out the bopping notes of music that the patrons still grooved or jammed or "worked it" to. This voice was gruff, rumbling, and soothing at the same time; the kind of voice women swoon over and guys get goosebumps because of. It was a voice that belonged to Terril the Kobold Entrepreneur, and it was announcing the next act.

"Ladies and gentleman," Terril proclaimed from his safe spell proof management box off-stage, "we now present for you the greatest attraction in dance club history! Not one but two professional dancers on stage tonight to get you in that special mood! The Technobeat Dance Club proudly presents... The Two Mysterious Guys!"

Lina found herself subdued despite a terrible sense of foreboding in her stomach. Music washed over the hall, and all the patrons (the four heroes of this story included) forgot whatever they'd just been doing and fixed their attention to the stage. The music ran through a slow, sensual verse, a captivating tune that Lina regarded with as much trepidation as when she'd had to face off against Shaburanigdo, spookily familiar and yet completely corrupted.

"That sounds like a techno version of Otome no Inori," Gourry mused, and Lina fell off her stool.

"Why the hell would anyone want to remix that song?"

"Oh, I think you and Amelia sang it very well," her sidekick assured, patting her shoulder. "But who would dance to it, I wonder?"

"I'm afraid to find out," Lina sighed, but cast her eyes toward the stage anyway. There two shadowy figures were slipping into the foreground, arms hooked around one another, swinging in perfect step to the music, and just as the lights fell over them they swung one another around by the waist and gave the crowd a double-V. The women in the crowd went instantly wild (with the exception of Our Heroines, who paled visibly).

"That's Zelgadiss-san!" Amelia jumping to her feet.

"Freak dancing with Xelloss!" Lina flailing her arms.

"They sing pretty good," Gourry reaffirmed, and struck in with some wild applause.

"Oh dear Shinzoku," Raleic cringed. "I knew that Mazoku would be up to something."

"But where did Zelgadiss-san come from?" Amelia asked, trying to put out of her mind how gracefully he was slinking about the stage. "And what's he doing? He hates Xelloss!"

"We all hate Xelloss!" Lina shouted, pushing out of her seat and knocking over a few lizardfolk.

"You know, I've never seen Zelgadiss without his shirt before," Gourry called. "He's got pretty good abs!"

"He's made out of stone!" Lina screeched, snapping toward the stage ominously. "That's it. This time, Xelloss's ass is fried."

Amelia glanced at the humming and finger-snapping Gourry, figured there would be no help there, and leapt after her. "Wait a second, you can't just..."

"Do you want to listen to the rest of this song?" Lina asked from the side of her mouth, cracking her knuckles.

Amelia wavered. "Well, no, but you can't - "

"Watch me," Lina grunted, and pushed her way into the crowd. Amelia squawked and dashed after, leaving Raleic behind to deal with the man sneaking up behind her.

"He'll never let me live this down," Lina grimaced, dashing for the nearest stairway. Amelia ran along behind her, flailing for her cape; she knew Lina, and the destruction of a building filled with Seiruun citizens wasn't how she wanted to resolve things. "The real Claire Bible wouldn't have been worth going through that song and and dance number." Amelia finally latched onto her cape, yanked the sorceress to a momentary standstill. Lina continued dragging herself forward regardless. "Must... kill... Xelloss..."

"Oi!" Amelia shouted, digging her heels into the ground. "Wait a second! You know what'll happen if - "

A rose landed in her mouth. Amelia looked up to see Zel on stage wink at her, and fling another rose into her hair, causing an immediate bright red hue to her face and knocking her flat on her back. Lina scrambled up to the horde of shrieking female fans, unaware that Amelia's unconscious body was being hoisted up by a guy in a chef's hat, and began prying the crowd apart to make room for a convenient uppercut a' Lina to the Mazoku on stage...

...and froze as someone grabbed her shoulder.

Zelgadiss swiveled with the music. He kept his eyes closed, concentrating on the sensual movements of his partner. The two swirled about the stage, creating a harmony with their choreographed strutting and dipping and spinning that many impressionable and youthful female minds did not forget for quite a while to come (to the distress of their boyfriends - unless, of course, their boyfriends were similarly enjoying things).

It didn't occur to him that he was doing the Forbidden Dance with a Mazoku he'd be more than happy to kill. Nor did it occur to him that wasting time in a techno club while in the middle of searching for Lina to help him out with some elven trouble was pretty out of character for him. He also completely ignored the fact that his eyes were glowing crimson, which surely would have made anyone else pause for a few seconds at the least.

The first time he noticed anything at all since he'd left the small village of Biatz, came a minute or so before Lina was subjected to some shoulder clamping-downage. A moment came when he felt extremely light-headed and a tad bit winded, and he missed a few beats before regaining himself. He still didn't think anything really strange was going on, but a part of him recognized a sort of danger, and as his blood slowly warmed up to the prospect of fighting an unknown foe, his dancing got even more passionate.

Lina turned, hands together, the words of a few dozen kill-'em-quick spells on her lips, intending to blow this nuisance away and get back to avenging her years old embarrassment, but as she recognized the once cordial face of Amelia's royal chef, those words died instantaneously.

"And so we meet again, Lina Inverse," Cairi greeted, showing off a pleasant smile.

Lina jerked away from his touch, affecting a non-homicidal demeanor. "Oh, it's you again. I didn't know Mazoku enjoyed dance clubs."

"We don't, usually," he conceded. "The mood tends to be much too perky for our tastes."

"Meaning," Lina returned, doing a quick survey over the room, "that this environment wouldn't be to your advantage."

Amelia and Raleic were apparently MIA. She thought she saw Gourry's blond hair back toward where they'd been sitting, but other than that, it looked like she was on her own.

"And that means," she resumed, "that you didn't come here to kill me."

Cairi tilted his head, cupping his ears. "I'm sorry? It's too loud in here."

"Did you come here to fight or what?" Lina shouted, homicidally demeanored once again.

"Oh." Cairi chuckled, shaking his head. "Of course not. I'm here to get something."

Lina sweatdropped. "A Mazoku's trying to steal something from a techno beat dance club?"

"It's funny when you think about it, huh?" Cairi smiled, folding his arms over his impeccable cookwear. "By the way, I've taken the liberty of incapacitating your friends as a safety measure."

Raleic and Amelia, bodies slack and unmoving, faded into appearance over the evil chef's head. Lina noticed the flush staining Amelia's cheeks and the rose clutched in her fist and guessed there hadn't been much of a fight as far as she was concerned.

"Pretty smooth," she conceded, shrugging in a dramatically helpless manner. "You attack me at less than full power and get blown away. I attack you and have two innocent deaths on my hands." Lina smiled, folded her arms. "I guess we're at a stalemate, then."

"Not quite," Cairi chuckled, and Lina was knocked forward off her feet by a really loud explosion.

Zelgadiss had broken away from his partner for a quick round of audience participation, selecting one fawning fangirl apiece up and pulling them up on stage to join in their energetic tango. Zel's was a pretty redheaded lass with glasses, who kept her body as tight to his as is possible in a non-lemon fanfic. Closer to the crowd, on the part of the stage known to the more theatrical as the "apron," Xelloss had acquired the company of another aesthetically pleasing girl with shoulder length blond hair, and the two were taking no pains to put on a tasteful facade.

Upstage, seemingly unnoticed by the four slinking and writhing dancers, appeared two figures.

Moments thereafter, the stage exploded.

"What the hell?" Lina squawked, regaining her balance by spinning her arms in a rapid circle. The crowd went into an immediate frenzy, surging for the exit. Twisting about, Lina was able to sidestep a few of them, avoid stage shrapnel, and duck just in time to keep from being knocked over the head by a flying foursome of techno dancers. The four Ground Zero survivors hit the ground in a bundle of arms and legs in the exact same area Cairi had been standing. Lina grimaced; she hated letting her opponents escape.

Likewise gone were Raleic and Amelia, but this was no big surprise given that whole taken-captive-by-the-Mazoku thing.

"Oi," Lina called down, kicking Zel in the shin and immediately regretting it as a flash of pain shot up her leg. "Dammit, wake up!"

"Uh?" Zelgadiss lifted his head, peered up through hazy, non-crimson eyes. "Lina - ?"

"Yeah, it's me. Look, we've got to get..."

"Where am I?" he asked, attempting to sit up and finding himself with a facefull of fangirl bosom.

"A dance club in Seiruun," Lina answered promptly, lifting the unconscious girl up and letting her collapse on Xelloss, who was evidently having fun playing dead.

"Why the hell am I at a - " Zel's words cut off as he stared in slack jawed horror at his wardrobe.

"Don't ask," Lina advised. "Listen, we've got to get... uh, Zel?" She waved a hand in front of his face. "Zel?"

"What's wrong with him?" Gourry asked, appearing behind her with quite a few footprints covering his face. He had not, apparently, gotten away from the terrified mob unscathed.

"I think he went into shock," was Lina's diagnosis. "Well, whatever. We've got to go save Amelia and Raleic."

"Huh? Weren't they with you?"

Lina wound up a fist. "And where were you when they were kidnapped, eh?"

"I didn't mean it like that," Gourry reassured quickly. "I just wanted to know what happened."

"That Mazoku that tried to assassinate Prince Phil is back, took our missing comrades hostage, and blew up the stage," Lina informed patiently.

"Oh, the cook guy?" Gourry pointed at the decimated stage. "He didn't do that, two other people did. They looked like elves."

"Elves?" Lina repeated. "Don't be stupid. Elves don't show up in the middle of crowded cities."

"Well, I said they looked like elves," he explained. "The ones my grandfather drew pictures of, anyway."

Sighing, Lina glanced to the pile of techno-beat blowdown piled up next to her. "I guess these guys can take care of themselves. Want to go kick some Mazoku ass?"

"Yep," Gourry agreed, pulling out his sword. Lina looked at it a moment, and then glanced back at him.

"You know, I'm not thinking this is gonna be an easy fight." She paused, fixed him with a stare. "And you haven't really fought anything too strong without your Hikari no Ken."

Gourry, looking a little wounded, began to resheath his weapon. "You're saying I should stay here with these guys?"

A couple seconds passed, and Lina turned to run for the now demolished stage.

"It's up to you," she called back over her shoulder, glancing back with a smile. "Just don't hold me up, ne?"

Beaming, Gourry flashed his sword through the air again and dashed after her.

The only people still occupying the dance club that night were those who were passed out, in shock, or directly involved with our tale. All of Terril's subordinates were running back and forth, trying to locate all casualties and treat them as best they could in order to not be sued first thing in the morning. The confusion and sparse crowding made it considerably easier for Lina and Gourry to slip up the broken mesh of stairs that led up to the wooden crater they were trying to get to and take in the macabre sight that awaited therein.

Peering over the side of the jutting bunch of boards and rails that once held this platform up, Lina could make out a large feline figure clutching something in his arms out amidst the rubble. They hopped down, picking their way through the remnants of techno dancing intensity until they were at its side.

"Kalna," Terril informed them, presenting them with a limp buggy body. The kobold's face was drawn and sober.

"What happened to him?" Gourry exclaimed, staring at the insectman like a kid in a science class. "He looks terrible!"

"He's dead, you idiot," Lina growled, smacking him with a two-by-four. She took a second to compose herself properly before addressing the proprietor again. "Where did they go?"

"You mean those pointy-eared guys?" Terril asked, the corners of his eyes creasing. "I didn't get a chance to see. They were about to kill me before Kalna here got in the way - " At this point he broke into hysteric sobs and Lina decided it best to leave him be.

"Now what?" Gourry asked, at a loss. "If we don't know where they went, we can't give chase. Er, can we?"

"Theoretically, no," Lina conceded. "But where would you go if you were a pointy-eared Mazoku who liked to blow up dance clubs?"

Gourry apparently could not stretch his imagination that far. "Uh, I'd get some yogurt?"

Lina rubbed at her brow. "Well, there's got to be something in this place that would catch their interest. I suppose we should try scouting around."

"Oh, well what about that?" Gourry said, gesturing with his thumb toward the very center of the crater. A hole had been ripped through the foundation of the club, a small trap door hanging precariously by a single hinge.

Lina smacked her forehead. "How did I miss that?"

Gourry gave her a fond little pat on the shoulder. "Don't worry, sometimes I miss things, too."

"I do not want to hear that from you! Hey, kobold guy, what's the deal with this?"

Terril looked up, blinking back big gushy tears. "What, that trap door? That was there for a while. We sealed it up when we built the stage."

"What's down there?" Lina asked, peering over the side and into dimly lit darkness.

"Nothing important. Some old ruins we didn't need." Terril shrugged offhandedly.

"Well, no wonder they blew up your stage," Lina glowered. "If you hadn't sealed it up they could have just gotten in on their own!"

"But why would anyone want to go down there?" Terril yelped. "It's just a bunch of stones and junk!"

"Evil people are always looking for old ruins," Lina supplied, thinking it pretty common knowledge. "Why would you build this place on top of an ancient artifact?"

"It was cheap," Terril answered defensively. "A business man has to think about things like that."

"Good thinking," Gourry murmured, rubbing his chin. "Small renting fees leave more room for profit."

"Exactly," the kobold agreed. "You would make a good entrepreneur yourself, human."

"Would I?" Gourry beamed over at Lina. "Did you hear that?"

"I'll try to forget it," she responded, checking for a ladder or other such footholds. "You coming or what?"

"Right," Terril chimed in, turning around and cupping his hands to his muzzle. "Yo, Baldy!"

A pink pate popped over the edge of rubble. "Yeah, boss?"

"You guys take care of things up here. I'm gonna go check out these here ruins."

"Who invited them?" Gourry heard Lina grumble.

"Ready?" their new companion asked, already slipping down the proverbial rabbit hole. Gourry followed amiably, and Lina went last with help from a self-appointed Ray Wing. Darkness closed in immediately, but despite a few whimperings from the kobold, the place was otherwise silent. They'd been in freakier places than this; like the Hellmaster's front gate, for example.

Lina touched ground a good twenty feet beneath the stage overhead in a room roughly the size of the one they'd just left. Light from the magical disco balls above spilling in through the hole was the only source of light, but it was enough for Lina to make out a bit of the architecture.

"Ne, Gourry, maybe you were right," she whispered. "This place looks pretty darn elvish."

"See?" Gourry whispered back. "I'm not completely unreliable."

They were interrupted by a sharp whistle. "Just look at this," Terril said, running a hand along a marble column in mid-decay. "I had no idea such terrific craftsmanship existed under here. I could make a fortune with this stuff!"

"Don't you check your property before you sign for it?" Lina asked between her teeth. Terril tried to respond without sounding stupid, but Lina had already redirected her attention. She drew her knife and held it blade skyward, instructing it simply.

"Lighting." The chamber lit up. Lina peered through the remaining darkness, making out a set of eight or more archways leading further underground. "Hmmn, they had to have gone through one of these..."

"Wanna split up?" Terril asked, a bit shiny eyed with the prospect of finding a boatload of treasure and hoarding it for himself. He got over the deaths of close friends rather quickly, it seemed.

"I don't want to send Gourry out on his own," Lina answered, waving a hand at him. "Who knows what kind of trouble he'd get himself into."

"I'm not a child," Gourry muttered, but she ignored him.

"Anyway, it's always better to stay together in these situations. As soon the characters part ways in a creepy underground sanctuary like this, all hell breaks loose."

"True," Terril admitted, apparently up on his action/adventure literature. "But how do we know which way to go?"

"Good question." Lina paused, then turned to her partner. "Gourry, which one of these doors would you absolutely not go through if it were up to you?"

"Me?" he repeated, pleased that she'd value his judgment. He pointed toward one off to the left. "I guess I'd have to say that one."

"Good enough for me," Lina beamed, grabbing him by the hand and running in that direction. Terril stood in place a moment before realizing what happened, and then shot off after.

"Why do you ask me these things if you're just going to do the opposite?" Gourry asked, loudly enough to be heard over their heavy footfalls.

"I don't know, I just needed a random path to take!" she called back. There was a brief moment in which silence reigned, and then she looked back over her shoulder and grinned. "Arigatou."

Gourry stared, dumbfounded, unaware of the spreading hue of red creeping over his cheeks. "Ano..." he stuttered, averting his eyes. "No problem."

He was caught in a land of light and sound. A dreamscape of the mind.

It was peaceful. He was able to relax. There were no troubles in this dreamscape; there were no bad dreams, freaky mutations, and most importantly, no inexplicable changes of costume and memories of dancing with beings of pure evil.

But somewhere on the outer fringes of his happy land of solitude, he felt a tremor. An earthquake? A volcanic eruption, perhaps? And the noise that accompanied it. A low, coaxing whisper, sweet to listen to but deadly nonetheless. Deadly because it meant that the end was possibly in sight for the dreamscape, and he would fall back into a terrible world where he could not control his body, attire, or freak dance partners.

"Zelgadiss-san!"

He snapped awake with a start, peering hazily at the pretty young face pressed close up against his.

"Augh!" was his first thought, as he jumped to his feet and backpedaled against a wall. "How do you know my name?"

The girl blinked, obviously confused. "He told me," she said, jerking her thumb at the man behind her.

"Xelloss!" Zelgadiss growled, his hands clenched into hard fists of stoniness. "This was all your doing, wasn't it?"

"Not at all," the priest squawked, putting on his most innocent expression. "I was just as surprised as you were."

"I doubt that," Zel grumbled, but didn't see much else to do except hunt for his clothes and plot really diabolical revenge schemes. Just as he was about to wander off, Xelloss tossed a plain tan bundle into his arms.

"You really should worry more about decency," Xelloss admonished. Before Zel could follow through with a Flare Arrow, he shoved their two dance crazy team mates in front of him, effectively blocking the line of fire. "By the way, did you meet our friends? This is Jekka and Christy, leaders of our fan club."

"Pleased to meet you," they greeted in unison, looking more than a little drooly.

"I think I met Jekka already," Zel said. Now that he was back in his old clothes, he'd be damned if he let Xelloss crack his composure again. He resolved never to mention a thing about Lina or Amelia's modesty at being seen unclad ever again.

"You two were very impressive. And to think that was your first dance, ne, Zel-chan?"

His eyelid flickered, the corner of his mouth twitched. "Zel...chan?"

"Of course, you couldn't quite match Christy and I." Xelloss beamed at the blond in such a way that Zel wouldn't have been surprised if she'd melted on the spot. "But then, we're born talents."

"You know it," Christy cooed, shimmying up to him. Jekka apparently took this for a challenge, because she was instantly clinging to Zel's side.

"You guys wouldn't know real dancing if you'd invented it," she cried, thrusting her finger toward the two of them. They reacted with shock, but reclaimed their calm and stood their ground.

"Well then, what say we have another dance contest?" Xelloss asked brightly, and although his eyes were closed, Zelgadiss could feel them boring right into his perspiring skin. "What do you say, Zelgadiss-san?"

"I say that's utterly ridiculous." Zel yanked his arm away from the young hopeful and turned. "I'm going, but if it turns out you're at the bottom of this, be prepared to meet me again."

"Sorry, pal," was the reply, and it wasn't from a Mazoku trickster priest but from a guy with no hair standing in front of the door with his stout arms splayed. "No one leaves until we find out what happened here."

"Che," Zel cursed. "What a nuisance. I suggest you move."

"Don't threaten me," Baldy snapped, pointing a thick finger at the chimera's chest. "I've got orders, and that means that no one is going to leave, not even our star attraction-glug."

That speech was cut short as a brick fell onto his head and he slumped to the ground. Zel looked upward to see a sleek, robed individual with jet black hair suspended just above the door, his arm extended outward as if he'd just, say, dropped a red blocky piece of ammunition onto somebody.

"You!" came a voice. Zel looked and saw that it belonged to a cowfellow, shaking with rage. "You killed Kalna! You wrecked our stage!"

The figure held two hands up at shoulder height, descending at a leisurely pace. "I guess I did. No offense meant to you all, it's just that we had need of something in here."

"And that would be what?" Another voice, a squeakier voice. Zel glanced that way and saw a kid with a really stupid hat walk up, brandishing a mop. "What's down in those ruins that's more important than our business and Kalna's life?"

The man lowered his head at this, fixing the kid with an irritated frown. As he did, his hair fell away from his ears and Zel's eyes went wide. Our favorite chimera retreated briskly into the background.

The cloaked figure's voice was steady. "Don't kid with me, child, and you might live until tomorrow."

"Wow, this is interesting." Xelloss prodded Zel in the ribs. "Who do you think will win?"

"Don't play dumb," was the response, his voice grave. "What is an elf doing here?"

"Oh, you didn't even know that?" Xel gave a sheepish little grin. "This place was built on top of an old elven sanctuary, where the clans who used to live in Seiruun were entrusted with an artifact known as the Legend of Dusk."

Zelgadiss nearly fell backwards. "I think that's the first time you've ever given any helpful information at all!"

"You just don't understand me," Xelloss sighed, and a sudden blast of light put an end to their conversation. It also put an end to the kid in the stupid hat's threats. The boy fell to the ground unconscious, his head wear string and yarn tatters which lay decoratively about him. Zel watched, in rapt attention.

"Really, cowfellow," the elf addressed Gori, "is any of this really worth the cost of your life?"

"The stage, no." One hoofed foot advanced. "But Kalna, yes."

"Alright, then," the elf responded, and slugged a ball of pure light at the hapless Gori. The cowfellow fell to the ground, his eyes replaced with big goofy swirly symbols.

"What was that?" Zel asked, unaware he was thinking aloud. "I've never seen a spell like that before!"

Xelloss tapped his shoulder, and then pointed at an object lying a few feet away from the cowman.

Zelgadiss stared. "A racket ball?"

"Pretty corny, I admit," the elf sighed. "But it was handy, you know?"

"This is the stupidest situation I've ever been in," Zel grumbled.

"Oh, I wouldn't say that," Xelloss chimed in. "Remember that time you dressed up like a woman and fell in love with - " Zel's fist put an end to that memory.

"Well then, what about you two?" Their mysterious robed guest, having blasted everyone he thought a threat, turned to face the couple. "Are you going to beat up each other all day, or do you feel like trying your luck as well?"

Releasing the Mazoku from his headlock, Zelgadiss gave a minimal shrug. "I don't have anything to do with these people or this place. Therefore, I have no qualms with you."

"Nice to hear that for once," the elf conceded, bowing his head again. "To tell you the truth, I'm pretty tired of fighting. It's nice to meet a person who would rather - "

"But," Zel interrupted, loudly enough to shut him up, "I have a feeling that you've got something to do with getting me on stage with this idiot. And if that's the case..." He paused, narrowed his eyes into little slits. "You're going to wish you'd never showed yourself in a human realm."

"Wai, Zel-chan!" Xelloss and the two girls screamed from the background.

The elf's eyes were huge, taking a step back against the giant doors. "Wa-wait, I had nothing to do with that, it was all her idea - "

Zel's eyes flashed dangerously. He stepped forward. "So you know who did it?"

"I know nothing!" the elf cried, alternately trying to hide in his robes and meld with the door behind him.

Zelgadiss cracked his knuckles, beaming with sadistic, wild eyed delight. "We'll see how this jogs your memory."

They'd come to a giant stone door when they heard the first explosion up above.

"There must be a really cool fighting going on now," Gourry said, looking wistful. "I hope Zelgadiss has snapped out of it."

"He's a big boy, he can take care of himself." Lina put a foot to the door and attempted to shove it open. No dice.

"Let me see at it," Terril requested, and shoved his shoulder hard enough that they could hear the echoes of his bones shattering.

"Owch," Gourry sympathized as Lina cast a quick heal spell (out of pity, she made sure they understood). "Well, I guess if I had my old sword we could cut our way through like in Sairaag."

"You don't, though," Lina grunted when she was done with her slight repairs to their koboldian friend. "So I guess I'll just have to bust through with a spell."

"Don't make it anything too heavy," he replied, putting on a hard hat.

"Who, me?" she asked sweetly, turning to the door and sticking her knife back in its sheath.

"I've heard that tone of voice before," Gourry fretted, pounding a hard hat on Terril and then huddling over him in a protective manner.

"Blast Wave!" Lina cried, thrusting her hands against the door. There was a loud crashing sound, and Gourry heard a ping! as a few pebbles bounced off his armor, and then all was quiet. The swordsman paused for a moment, making sure everything was clear, and then stood up.

"See? Piece of cake," the sorceress grinned, dusting grit off her hands, right before the tunnel collapsed behind them. "Damn. Should have restrained myself a little more."

Gourry sighed, but couldn't look quite as upset as he was trying for. "Going to lead us on, Lina-sensei?"

"Naturally!" Unsheathing her dagger, she dispelled the gathered darkness by thrusting it in front of her (that is, the dagger, not the darkness). The foot she'd raised to strut off carefree fell back to the floor as the redrawn light fell over the figure of Cairi.

"I apologize profusely," he said, holding up a hand. "But I'm afraid I can't let you go past here. Business things, you know."

"That guy from last night!" Gourry shouted, drawing his sword.

"Oh, the swordsman." Cairi beamed. "I seem to recall you being of not much use last time we met. A wonder this girl lets you tag along with her at all."

"That's hitting below the belt," Gourry returned, somewhat sulkily.

"Hey, no picking on the defenseless," Lina snapped.

"You're not helping," he grumbled.

The sorceress returned her attention to the baddy. "You've decided to fight me out-and-out now?"

"Oh, not at all," Cairi responded, shaking his head. "I'm just here to buy time. Care to play a game of life or death with your friends?"

Amelia and Raleic shimmered into being over his chef's hat. Both were awake now, struggling at magic bonds and mumbling behind magic gags. Lina thought she heard Amelia say "justice" once or twice, but everything else was pretty jumbled.

"Oh, and just so you know, my associate Ralov is taking care of your friends up above." Another far off explosion sounded (this one much more hard to hear, considering the rubble now blocking their path back up), and Cairi smirked. "Sounds like he's doing all right for himself."

"Ah, then I suppose your third helper is off looking for an artifact of some kind." Lina tilted her head. "Pretty good planning for a Mazoku that likes to take the form of a knife."

Cairi looked very close to losing his temper. "Would you stop bringing that up? I had no idea Gregory would prove to be such a weakling."

"Not a very good of character," Lina admonished. "So anyway, what's the game? We defeat you, and you give us back these two?"

"That sounds as good a plan as any," Cairi agreed, drawing his hands to his chest. "I'll even let you have the first shot."

"How kind of you." Lina closed her eyes, and Terril took a step back.

"What's she doing?" he asked, more than a tad nervously.

"I don't know," Gourry whispered back. "She's difficult to read, even after two years."

"Unfortunately for you, Cook-san, I'm not about to let a bunch of second-rate villains get a valuable artifact while I sit around playing games with them." Lina's eyes opened, and she smiled softly. "So one shot is all it will take."

"Such confidence," Cairi sneered.

As Lina began to chant, that sneer wavered until it reassembled into a look of fear.

"Lords of the Darkness and the Four Worlds, I call upon you, grant me all the power that you possess!" The talismen adorning her body glowed bright red. Gourry's mouth dropped open, and he put an arm around Terril and hauled back as far as possible. Amelia struggled in her bonds, edging away from the inevitable attack.

The spell continued.

"Lord of the Darkness and Four Worlds, I beseech thy fragments; by all of the power thou possesseth, grant the heavens' wrath to my hand; unleash the sword of dark, freezing nothingness; by our power, our combined might, let us walk as one along the path of destruction: LAGUNA BLADE!"

Bursting into existence between her hands was none other than the quintessence of darkness itself, forming a blade of hatred and death. Cairi shrieked, attempting to erect a quick barrier, but the girl was too fast. She leapt forward, holding the solidified essence of dark over her head and slamming it down into the Mazoku.

There was enough time then for Lina's feet to touch the ground and the spell to fade out before there was any movement from the evil Cairi. First his body shivered, twisted in half, and then seemed to melt away entirely, not screaming until he was almost completely gone. It was a high, very feminine shriek, and the sound of it made Gourry's head ring.

When Lina opened her eyes, Gourry and Terril were at her side, and Amelia and Raleic were sprawled on the ground, unbound and ungagged. There was no one else around.

"Lina-san!" Amelia squawked. "That was pretty reckless!"

"Hey, he's the one who said he was stalling for time," Lina grinned. "I took that as a challenge. Besides, I couldn't use a Dragu Slave down here."

The Princess sighed. "I guess you're right. Thank you."

"N - " was the only sound Our Heroine made before going rigid. The hallway was completely silent.

"L...Lina-san?" Amelia waved a hand in front of her face.

"What happened to her?" Terril asked, his brows furrowed. "Didn't she want to hurry up and get to the treasure?"

"Treasure?" Raleic's interest was sparked. "What kind of treasure?"

Gourry knelt by her side, all worry. He studied her face, poked her in the ribs, gave her a nudge and watched as she fell limp. "I don't like this. I hope it's not because of that spell."

"What was that, anyway?" the kobold knelt as well, visibly impressed. "We could really use that for our floor show."

"Be serious for once," Gourry snapped, and even Amelia went goggle eyed at that. The swordsman leaned over his companion and bit his lip, before scooping her up into his arms. "We've got to find the way back up."

So unusually commanding was his tone and demeanor that the others snapped into immediate attention, throwing up salutes. "H-hai!"

They watched him wonderingly for a moment as he ran off, and then followed close behind.

"N - " she had said, before the voice had spoken to her.

She recognized this voice. It had been back at the Kouwara Mountains, and had spoken to her through the machine there. Apparently, it had decided to revisit.

"Very impressive, Lina Inverse. You handle Our Lord's power very well."

"Who is this?" Lina asked, and in doing so realized she couldn't move her lips. More precisely, she realized she had no lips to move. She was now simply her consciousness, unshackled from the confines of her body.

"You don't remember me? Back at the mountain range, you assumed I was a machine. That was incorrect; I inhabited that machine, as I inhabit this place."

"What does this have to do with anything?" she asked again, feeling her temper strain. She was getting sick of these mystery games.

"I, Lina Inverse, am the Legend of Dusk. I am what your enemies are searching for."

She felt her spiritual self shiver under the weight of such news. "The Legend of Dusk? Related to the Legend of Twilight at the Kouwara Mountains?"

"I am the essence contained within all three of the Legends of the Lord of Nightmares. I am chaotic power itself. The side of evil wishes to capture me to use for their own, to swing the balance to their side."

"What's their intent this time? Why are they coming after me again?"

"You will find that out when the time comes. Are you ready to accept my gift before they find me, or do you have something you wish to ask me first?"

Lina paused for a breath, before remembering that she didn't need to take one. She took a moment to gather her strength, instead. "You asked me before if I could handle my own hypocrisy."

"I did."

"What will happen to me if I can't?"

"You will be absorbed into the Sea of Chaos and become nothing, as have all the others before you. There can be no chaos within you, otherwise my own will latch ahold and drag you in with it."

Another few seconds passed.

"Are you ready to accept this Legacy of the Golden Demon Lord?"

This time, she only hesitated for a beat.

"I am."

Somewhere on the physical plane, Lina's body twitched back to life.

"Itai!" the elf cried, after flying across the room and leaving a bodily imprint in one of the marble walls. "Leave me alone, I didn't do it!"

"Too little too late," Zel cried gleefully, and the robed figure (who we now know is Ralov) felt rock crash into his gut as Zel flew forward and kneed him in the stomach, knocking him forcefully back into the wall. His head rebounded off the marble with a little whimper, and his chimera assailant withdrew for the moment.

"So, then, who was the she that thought up this brilliant idea?" he asked carefully. The way his fingers curled back up into his palms indicated that he would not mind at all if Ralov had another memory lapse. The elf swallowed hard, considering his options, while Xelloss was very near swooning in the background.

"I love these little outbursts of his," the priest whimpered against Christy's and Jekka's support.

"You idiot," a soft (but quite loud) girlish voice said from behind our hybrid hero, and if not for his demonic reflexes, he would have been knocked out of the way by force. He ducked just in time to avoid a fist thrust powerful enough it would have knocked him off balance at least, stone skin or not. The girl strolled forward calmly, apparently having not even broken stride. "You've been defeated already?"

"It's not my fault!" Ralov exclaimed, jumping to his feet. "This guy's a maniac!"

"Isn't he though?" Xelloss cooed, high from the temporary insanity rush.

The girl swiveled around, facing Zelgadiss with narrow eyes. "Ah, yes. The chimera."

Zel would have narrowed his own eyes just to keep looking badass, but he was too busy taking in the appearance of this young woman. She was certainly an elf like her colleague, with a touch of pure, undisturbed beauty that vied with the cold passionlessness of her expression and won. Her clothes were a blue version of Ralov's red robes; and the way she put her arm around his waist hinted at more than a casual acquaintance.

He registered this in less than a second, and responded to her words quickly thereafter. "You sound like you've heard of me."

"Uh-huh, and I believe the other three are down below. We'd hoped you were out of the way," she said with a bit of a put-out frown. "You're a persistent bastard, apparently."

"So then, you were the one that put that spell over me." Zel grimaced. "That kind of takes the fun out of it. I can't beat up on a girl. As much."

"Sorry again, but you've still got the wrong person. Have no fear, though; this won't be a concern of yours once you reach the afterlife."

Zel had time to blink before a spiral of air had him full in the chest, sending him across the room and dumping him a pile just short of the further wall.

Zelgadiss gasped, trying to regain his breath. "That was a Blam Gush. So powerful and she didn't even call out the name."

Ralov thrust his fists into the air, grinning. "I want a try at that." His partner gestured uncaringly, and a big goofy grin spread across the elf's face. A moment later Zel found himself in the middle of a Dill Brand, knocked back full force into the wall behind him. When he toppled to the ground, he went right to his knees and coughed. Specks of red dashed the floor.

"You're good," Xelloss chirped. The two elven mages blinked and turned their attention to him. "But I wonder how you'd far against a really powerful spell caster, hmm?"

Zelgadiss raised his head, batting hair out of his eyes. "What are you doing? I thought direct involvement was against your orders."

"Drastic times call for slight plan changes," Xelloss responded solemnly. "Are you willing to fight me, or not?"

The elves looked at one another, as if to confer. For a second Zel thought they'd show intelligence and duck out, but of course they did not. Xelloss conjured his staff into place and held it before him; the elves drew their arms back and their hands together. Both parties stared at each other, unmoving, waiting for the other to slip up.

In the end, it was Xelloss who acted first.

"Bye-bye!" he called, and disappeared from sight.

"God damn I hate him," Zelgadiss growled.

"Man, he's cool!" Jekka and Christy interjected.

"The hell was that?" Ralov asked, and then another voice could be heard. Echoey and distant, but it could be heard.

"Up the ladder, guys. I'll follow last."

"But Gourry-san, let me help you..."

"Sounds like the swordsman and the princess," the female elf mused. "Our Mistress hasn't even started with the idiot, and the assassin thing fell through. The girl will hardly be phased." She swore, turning back to her comrade. "They've fully assembled. We should get out of here."

"You will do nothing of the sort," a voice intoned ominously, and Zel's heart leapt in his chest by the suddenness of it. He'd gone out of control one too many times for his liking already, so overcompensated for this quick lapse into fear by kicking a few stones around good-naturedly.

"You!" the female elf cried, and seemed to shrink a bit as the perverted, twisted figure of Cairi the chef came into view. He no longer looked quite so sweet. Zel immediately quit his rock-kicking and flashed his sword out of its sheath.

"You failed to get the Legacy," the thing sputtered angrily. "Now the girl has it, and all four of them are together. You will remain until you've solved one of these two problems, or you and Ralov will be punished most severely."

The female looked ready to beg for forgiveness before a sudden scream of terror tumbled through the room. Amelia was standing on the edge of the stage, supporting Lina with Gourry, and had apparently been taken by surprise at the sight of the broken mass of flesh that used to belong to her personal friend. Raleic clamped a hand over her mouth, gritting her teeth.

"Quiet!" the postal worker hissed, necessity forcing her to forget that she was, after all, on this girl's payroll. The Princess was quiet then, but not because of the hand. She'd felt Lina's limp body twitch.

"You're the ones who wrecked my club," Terril shouted, jumping from the stage and away from Raleic's frantic gestures. "You will pay!"

"Like your friends here, I suppose?" the demolished Cairi thing responded peevishly, gesturing over the room of unconscious folk of various races. "You would like to try me yourself?"

"I'd love to," Terril hissed, cattish eyes slit.

"Shut up," Lina Inverse mumbled, pulling herself away from Gourry and Amelia.

"Lina!" they exclaimed. Raleic just grimaced.

"You look dazed, girl." Cairi snapped himself to attention. "I admit I took you for granted before, but now you hardly seem in any condition to fight."

"I think I could hold my own," Lina grunted. "Especially with my back-up, here?"

Gourry, Amelia, and Raleic took this opportunity to look as threatening as possible. Zel joined in with a little shrug.

"Aw, he's so cute when he makes those little growls," Christy cried, hanging from his sword belt.

"You're so sexy when you're mean," Jekka agreed, rubbing up against his side.

"What did I do to deserve this?!" Zel screamed, pulling out a couple sharp tufts of hair.

"What have you been doing with them for Gods' sakes?" Amelia shouted back, a bit jealously to Lina's ears.

"Nothing!" he replied, flailing his arms. "Ugh, what a terrible reunion!"

Cairi shook his black mess of a head and raised an arm skyward. "This is ludicrous. Take them, Ralov, Fairn."

"Of course," they responded instantly, and Zel was the first to feel the brunt of the attack. Hit in the face with another Blam Gush, he flew backwards out of the girls' arms and face-first into the wall yet again. This time, however, he did not seem to be moving afterward.

The next to go was Raleic, a Dill Brand taking her swiftly and efficiently. She, too, did not make it through in good working condition. The remaining three broke as soon as their reflexes allowed them, spreading out and calling to mind either spells or brandishing swords.

"Gourry, you can't hurt the Mazoku, so go for one of the elves," Lina shouted as they ran, and had to duck to avoid a sudden volley of Flare Bits. Gourry was on it immediately, weaving his way through a few spells. Amelia had meanwhile run over to Zelgadiss's position and was picking a target. Lina hit the further wall, and launched a Flare Arrow at Cairi. The Mazoku simply teleported out of the way, grinning wickedly from both halves of his face.

Gourry was meanwhile making good on his instructions. He made it up to the elves, and while Fairn was busy clubbing away at Lina, he ducked beneath Ralov's guard and smashed his hilt into his chin. The elf squawked and went down, but the female was too quick on her feet for another swipe to keep her down and out; she leapt away from him immediately, smacking him with a Wind Brid. Leo's sword fell from his hand as tumbled backward.

"Humans are pathetic," she hissed quietly, and Amelia smashed into her face with her elbow.

Screeching in surprise, she grabbed her assailant's hand and flipped her overhead, sending her directly on top of Gourry. This position made the both of them feel very awkward and they wasted at least five valuable seconds sputtering over how very, very accidental it was.

On the other end of the court, both Zelgadiss and Raleic were getting to their feet. A moment later and the Princess and swordsman would have paid for their moment of cute insecurity with their lives, but a Fireball from Raleic and a simultaneous Flare Arrow from Zelgadiss put her out of commission.

"Worthless underlings," Cairi spat as he teleported away from Lina once again. The girl had been very persistent, launching spells with unbelievable stamina, and Cairi was feeling quite worn... but far from helpless, before even these impressive attacks.

"You don't really think you're going to win, do you?" he asked his opponent, dispelling a Fireball with a wave of his hand.

"I've won against much more impressive Mazoku than you," she answered smartly, and sent out another Freeze Arrow and dodging to the side. "And besides," she added with a smirk, "everyone's awake now."

Cairi sneered, then took a moment to assess his surroundings. Everyone in the room had indeed roused; even those idiots that worked for the kobold. They had formed a line, shoulder-to-shoulder, and behind them were the bodies of her subordinates.

"How did this happen?" the Mazoku growled. "I didn't even notice it."

"You were so busy defending against my spells that you didn't spare a glance at Mr. Terril over there." Lina, seeming to think that this was at an end, relaxed enough to stand up straight.

"My own formula," Terril agreed, holding up a small vial. "Wakes anyone up in a pinch!"

"I can see why," came a little voice from the stage. Kalna popped his buggy head up, groaning.

"Kalna! You're not dead!" The kobold and his pals bounded past the sorceress and her Mazoku friend, picking the little insectoid up in a crushing hug. Lina facefaulted, trying to keep her dignity.

"Well, you get the point," she said, even managing a bit of a smile. "Still want to try your luck?"

Cairi turned to her, and then to the warm feelings being shared off to side. His eyes glowed for a moment, and then he smiled.

"I will show you, meddling bitch, the true power of who you are dealing with."

"I've heard that - " was as much as she got out before flung off her feet. Knocked to the ground, she raised an arm just above her eyes, peering out through waves of raw power directed throughout the entire room. She noticed that Fairn and Ralov had arisen and were struggling through the gale of energy to reach Cairi's side, and that her friends were likewise held against the floor. The balance of this fight was turning much too often for her tastes.

Time for a quick finish. But she wouldn't be able to reach him with a Laguna Blade, and what else did that leave?

She smiled and turned around, using as much thrust as she could to reach Amelia and the others through the storm of black energy.

"Lina-san!" the Princess called, and caught the look in her companion's eyes before they closed. Under the rush of the storm, she could hear bits of the spell's chant and grew quite alarmed. "A Dragu Slave will wipe out half the city!" she screamed, not wanting to face her father after an episode like that.

"This place is an elven sanctuary," Zelgadiss grunted at her side. "I can tell by the design. It would have had a seal inside it, to keep energy from escaping."

"There aren't any records of an elven sanctuary in Seiruun!" Amelia answered. "If this is one, it's got to be thousands of years old! A seal can't hold out that long!"

"We'll have to wait and see," Zel responded, and pushed her head down as he heard Lina approach the end of the chant.

"DRAGU SLAVE!" she cried, and Cairi grasped and redrew his energy to form a wall about him. Like last time, however, he was too slow, and a sound like an earthquake mating with a tornado filled the air.

When she dared open her eyes, Amelia took in the sight of giant hunks of marble all about her, a clear view outside, and a hundred bewildered spectators (most of them ex-patrons of the dance club's Grand Opening who had waited around to see what happened) staring open-mouthed. More importantly to her, however, was the sight of buildings beyond those people. She whispered a thank-you and laid her head back down. Rest sounded very, very nice.

Lina sat up, dusting stones out of her hair. "Jeez, I hate people that don't know when to die."

"I hear you," Gourry agreed, helping Raleic to her feet. "Do you think you got him?"

"I sure hope so," she answered. The area he had been standing was deserted now except for huge chunks of rock and two elven bodies. "How about them?"

"They're fine," Zel said after taking a quick pulse. "What about those idiots that ran this place?"

"Oh, us?" Terril and his gang popped out of the rubble. "We're fine."

"Gori here grabbed us all and yanked us behind the stage," Kalna added, all six of his buggy arms giving his pal a pat on the back.

"I told you guys I'm lucky," the cowfellow insisted brightly.

"So do you think we're done?" Amelia asked, sitting up. "We'll have to question the elves and everything, but... this isn't going to turn into a huge crisis, is it?"

"I couldn't tell you," Lina admitted. "But I don't think this is going to wrap up so easily."

"Why not?" The younger girl had apparently had her hopes.

"We have no idea what was behind the assassination attempt on your father, for one," Lina answered. "I don't suppose you heard that elf girl's name?"

"I must not have caught it," Amelia said, thinking. "I was kind of caught up in everything."

"Well, here's a clue: it's the same as that princess that disappeared with Halgon right after we took care of Gregory."

Amelia's eyes widened into saucers. "You mean, she's Fairn?"

Lina nodded. "It would seem so. And other than that, I've just got a hunch that our role in this isn't quite done yet."

The Princess sighed. "I was kind of hoping for a quick, happy ending."

"You're still a little girl in a lot of ways," Lina said, patting her on the head. "Don't worry. We'll get this solved just like always. Why don't we go back to the palace for now?"

"All right," Amelia agreed. "But no more torching the guards' practice dummies."

Lina tilts her head cutely. "What, would I ever defy the Princess of Seiruun?"

"Constantly," she deadpanned, arms folded over her chest.

"Stop right there!" a voice shouted, and Ralov rose from the ground covered in shades of dust and soot. He towered ominously over a surprised Zelgadiss, drawing a knife from his back pocket and jabbing it near his throat. "You're not through with me yet!"

A hollow crack! and clang! sounded, and the elf fell to the ground.

"No one hurts out Zel-chan," Jekka announced stoutly, brandishing a cracked violin bow. Christy nodded solemnly next to her, wielding a dented frying pan.

"Sugoi," Gourry approved. "You've got your own fanclub, Zel!"

Pretending to be no part in this situation, Zel gave the knife a little kick and mumbled, "Couldn't have hurt me with that anyway."

"Your Highness," the royal guard announced, tapping his fist against the library door. "The Princess has returned."

"Oh, my daughter!" The sound of books flying and paper rustling followed by that of a few chairs tumbling came from behind the sturdy oaken wood, and then Phil's giant dwarfish face appeared in front of them. "Amelia, Lina-dono! Did anything happen?"

"Not much." Amelia gave a tiny smile. "We have some prisoners downstairs. The guards are taking care of them."

"And I kinda destroyed the dance club. Sorry about that." Lina tried to look sweet.

"If it was in the pursuit of Justice, it was an acceptable loss. Where are the rest of you?"

"Raleic is tending to the captives," Amelia said. "Gourry's in the dinner hall, and we met Zelgadiss while we were there. He's asleep; I think he's a little, ano, stressed out."

"That's good enough, then." Phil gestured with his thick arms for them to enter the library. "Come in here, I did some reading while you were driving off the villains."

"You were reading?" Amelia gasped, eyes sparkly. "That's so cool! You never read!"

"Well, if I'm going to help you guys out I'm going to have to do my share." Phil ambled over to his desk, picked up a chair, and thumbed through a book a couple pages. "I came across some records of the place you guys were at tonight."

"Wow!" his daughter chirped, fluttering over. "I didn't think there was anything that went back that far!"

"It took a while to find," Phil responded proudly, pointing to a page, "but I persevered until I got it. It seems that Mr. Terril guy built it out of an old elven sanctuary."

"We figured that much out ourselves," Lina informed helpfully, leaning over to get a look at the book. "Does it say what the sanctuary was for?"

"It seems it was one of two in the city back in ancient times. They were reverted to churches for Ceiphied and the Water Dragon King over the years, but..." He paused, skimming the pages. "About a hundred years ago, the Queen of Seiruun ordered it destroyed."

"The Queen wanted to destroy a temple in a holy city?" Lina repeated, her eyes wide. "What kind of royal figure would do something like that?"

"The Queen Varena," Amelia informed solemnly. "The one that married and killed Gregory, my great-grandfather's assassin. Before she had been put to trial, she had a reign of five years that all of our family looks back on in shame." She seemed to shudder. Lina was caught so off guard at such an uncharacteristic choice of tone that for a moment or two she couldn't think of anything consoling to say.

"So after that it was pretty much abandoned," Phil went on. "Until those entrepreneurs took advantage for some easy money."

"What happened to the elves?" Lina asked, unable to get a good view at the book due to Phil's heavy bulk. "When did they leave? Why did they leave?"

"Each temple had a Priest who lead it, and the elves would gather there in ancient times to offer prayer to Ceiphied and his four children," the Prince explained. "As elves began to get more reclusive, they disappeared from the city entirely. The only ones who couldn't leave were..."

"The Priests," Lina mused. "But something happened to them anyway."

"Good deduction," Phil appraised. "You're indeed a valuable asset in our quest for - "

"Yeah, okay," she put in quickly, waving her hands. "I know the rest. I'm going to get some sleep - If Xelloss doesn't show up by tomorrow morning, I guess we'll head off to the other sanctuary."

"Of course," he answered, getting to his feet. "Amelia, show her to her room. A true warrior needs her rest."

"Hai," she said, gliding to her feet. "'Night, 'tou-sama."

"Goodnight, Amelia," he returned gently, and she swept out of the room.

The dead of night in Seiruun is much like you could expect from any other city. It's dark, and people tend to trip over stuff a lot more often than they would during the day. Babies cry, dogs bark, and the sleeping people are lost in their world of dreams.

Oftentimes, these dreams can be nightmares. In the case of one chimera and one Princess tonight, however, they were much worse than that.

Episode 5   |   Fanfiction