Episode Five: Reunion! A Detour On The Path To Revelation.

As she crested the hill, Lina couldn't help but feel a brief wave of nostalgia. Everything looked as it had those years ago with Naga; the small town's buildings rose in strange spires, denoting elven origin. The fields and forests were lush and well tended, and the streets boasted a lively population of about three or four. Everyone else would be inside eating by now, she figured, maybe munching down on some of the bread that Baker specialized in.

"Biatz," she breathed. "Never thought I'd see this place again."

"You've been here before?" Gourry asked, as always at her side. "It looks sorta small to interest you."

Casting a glance toward the mountains, she spied a large, broken piece of earth and diamond which had once encased a giant Orihalcon monster intended to battle Mazoku through direct absorption of magical attacks. She gave her partner a smile. "Yeah, that's how it turned out. What's taking Zel so long?"

Gourry pointed back to the foot of the hill. "It was your idea to make him carry all our stuff."

"Damn it, Lina!" the chimera cried from the rear. "Why do I have to lug everything around?"

"Well, you do have the strength of a golem," she shouted down. "We appreciate it, Zel-chan."

"She's never going to let me forget that," he grumbled. "I was the one that pointed out Biatz was on our way to Panifess.

"At least let me carry some of that," the Princess offered, reaching for the giant bag on his back. He brushed her hand aside.

"I can take care of it," he grunted, and began dragging himself up the slope.

"He's so sweet when he wants to be," Amelia sighed.

"I think he's just trying to reaffirm his masculinity after that dance club thing," Raleic commented wryly, and found herself beneath a layer of traveling equipment.

"You carry it, then," the chimera muttered, sulking off. Amelia facefaulted.

"Why are we taking so much stuff with this, again?" Gourry asked Lina, back up on the hilltop. "We've never needed to before."

"We never had her with us before," was the response, with a gesture to the royal postal worker below. "Apparently our delicate princess can't travel without half the castle along with her. We should have snuck out of town without telling anyone. We'd convinced her to stay with Phil when we went to scout out the sanctuary."

"Well, I think it's kind of sweet in a way," the swordsman said. "She's just looking out for her."

"Amelia's not the little girl she used to be," Lina returned with finality, turning back to the village spread out before them. "Anyway, we'd better get down there. I have no idea what kind of reception we're going to get."

Gourry nodded obediently, but stayed behind to help Amelia and Raleic with the baggage. Zel had moved on to converse with Lina; had he been more clear-headed, he would have deduced that the Princess of Seiruun would not allow her worker to carry that heavy sack by herself and grudgingly taken it back. He was a bit muddled due to lack of sleep, however, and for some reason the prospect of being in the same place with both Selena and Amelia seemed a very foreboding one.

"I'd say you'll be very well received," he told Lina, eyeing the village. "The mayor's daughter referred to you as Lina-sama."

"Sama, eh?" She grinned, hands rubbing together. "They may be small time country folk, but they know their suffixes. She didn't mention anything about a girl named Naga, by any chance?"

"The name came up," Zel answered. "Why do you ask?"

"Nostalgia, I guess." Turning back to check the progress of the slackers, she was able to step aside just as Amelia and Raleic crashed to the ground beneath a few hundred pounds of luggage. "Jeez, Zel, can't you just help them out?"

"Let me - " Gourry began, but the chimera had already realized his error and yanked the bag off the two prone young ladies.

"Gomen," our mood-swingin' magic-usin' swordsman uttered briefly, before trudging off in the way of the mayor's house. After helping the Princess and the postal worker to their feet, Lina and Gourry followed. He hadn't gotten far; determined or not, his load was damn heavy.

"So," Gourry began, rubbing his chin. "We're here to do what exactly?"

"You know, a couple years ago and I would have mangled you alive for asking such a stupid question," Lina sighed.

"You get used to it with time," Zel agreed, grunting under the weight.

"Thank you." Gourry beamed, quite pleased.

"We're here because it's on our way to Panifess," Lina explained. "And because Zel wants us to check out this little magic lab on the outskirts of town."

"Ano, and why are we doing that?"

"Because there's a wellspring of active power inside it," Zel took over. "Elven laboratories are connected to each other through magical waves, so if someone has tapped into them, it might have something to do with our friends from the other day."

"Oh. And what friends were those again?" Gourry asked, and this time Lina did mangle him.

Those friends, forgotten or not within the shaggy swordsman's mind, had been questioned the day after what Amelia thought of as The Incident, and what Zel thought as The Big Horrible Thing That Didn't Happen.

Bound and held securely in the castle's dungeon, twelve guards surrounding them, Fairn and Ralov had been seated disconsolately in the center of the cell. Phil towered over the both of them, with Zelgadiss at his side. Lina, Gourry, and Amelia watched from the sidelines. Xelloss hadn't reappeared since his impromptu departure the previous night, to no one's surprise.

"Fairn Fellowdew, you say." Phil's voice was low, and even so it carried heavily through the cell. Lina leaned over to her sidekick.

"Damn, he can be scary," she whispered.

Phil continued before Gourry could earn himself serious internal bleeding with a poorly chosen response. The elf girl had apparently nodded in agreement to the Prince's last question, judging from the track this inquiry was rolling on.

"Another Fairn was here recently. More precisely, a Sara De Fairn Kelltic. Are you the same girl that masqueraded as the Princess of Panifess?"

The elf girl grimaced. "I was. As well as the same that conspired with Gregory to end in your assassination."

Philionel sighed, drawing hugely muscled arms across his chest. "That grieves me. Why would you want to kill a pacifist like me?"

"And why would you so boldly pronounce all this now?" Zelgadiss asked.

"That's not for you to know," Fairn spat. "Nor is what we were looking for inside the sanctuary last night."

"Well, I think we already figured that one out," Lina chirped up. "I mean, with the Legacy of Dusk being held there and everything, it wasn't such a big mystery."

"You got to it before we could, didn't you?" Ralov asked, his slanted eyes narrow. "What did you do with it?"

Raising her arms, Lina adopted her most innocent look. "Sorry, pal, but that's not for you to know."

The elves cursed. Phil and Amelia ooohed appreciatively.

"She's good," the Princess whispered to one of the guards, who nodded admiringly.

"What about the other sanctuary?" Philionel asked them. "There are two in this city, what happened to the other one?"

"There's nothing of use in the other one," Fairn replied grimly. "Much as there is nothing of use in the lot of you."

"Agreed," Ralov joined in. "Were we able, we'd decimate the entire lot of you. As it stands, I suppose that will simply have to wait for another day."

Zel took a step forward. His hands were balled up into stone fists. "You're going to try to escape?"

"Try nothing," Ralov leered. "I'll settle my score with you later, chimera!"

A fist flew.

The elves disappeared.

Zel's inertia flung him a good three-sixty and landed him on his face. The guards applauded.

"Don't just stand there," Phil barked, waving his arms. "Go after them!"

"That's not going to do any good, Daddy," Amelia attempted, but the damage had been done. Guards ran every which way, trampling Zel into the ground and upsetting all the hard-working prisoners who had been trying to get a little sleep.

"They're gone," Gourry pointed out, bug-eyed. "I didn't know elves could teleport."

"They can't," Lina muttered. "They're usually stronger than humans with magic, but they shouldn't be that strong. Their Mazoku sponsor must have given them extra power."

"And who is that Mazoku, anyway?" Amelia asked. "If they want my father dead, they'll have to get through me, first."

"Whoever it was, he was strong enough to survive a direct hit from a Laguna Blade." Lina mused a moment, looking into the cell's shadows. "There aren't many I can think of strong enough for that."

"Then it should be an easy list to review," Zel said, getting to his feet. "Why don't we take this to a more hospitable environment?"

That had proved to be a fine idea, and the four of them relocated to the kitchen hall. Phil had decided to try and get his guards back under a semblance of control, realizing their captives were, indeed, now very un-captive.

"So," Zel began, waiting patiently for his cup of tea.

"So," Gourry agreed, nodding.

Lina rolled her eyes. "Okay, Mazoku strong enough to withstand that kind of attack. First of all, Shaburanigdo."

"Obviously not," Zel answered. "And none of the other three Lords, either. They wouldn't waste their time in techno clubs, even if they did make it into our world."

"My thoughts exactly," she responded. "So next we have the five Sub Lords. Or the three that are left, anyway."

"Wasn't Garv a lot more powerful than that guy yesterday?" Amelia asked. "I mean, of course Phibrizo was, he was the strongest of them all. But with Garv - "

"Wow, you've done a bit of lore reading yourself," Lina appraised. "Well, Garv was supposedly the second most powerful of the five, but I see your point. Any objections?"

Zel shook his head, sipping on his newly arrived tea. Gourry stared blank faced at a wall.

"So then the only options left are a Priest or General of the Sub Lords, or someone with power equal to them." Lina blew heavily, leaning forward against the table.

"Like Xelloss," Amelia chirped. "Right!"

"This would be a much more enlightening discussion if that bastard were here," Zel grumbled.

"Ano, he has been running off a lot," Gourry said, off to the side. Everyone blinked, shifted their attention to him. "More than usual, I mean."

"True," Lina acknowledged. "Even when he doesn't help us out, he usually stays around to watch us struggle."

"I hate to admit it, but you're right." Zelgadiss hmmed. "Do you think he's running from something?"

"What would Xelloss have to run from?" Amelia asked. "I mean, with the exception of the Five Sub Lords, no Mazoku can stand up against him."

"Do you think maybe this chef thing is one of the Sub Sandwiches?" Gourry murmured.

"I don't see why anything that powerful would go so easy on us," Lina responded (ignoring her sidekick's quick bout of goofiness). "Though it makes sense. If Xelloss is actually afraid of something, I mean."

"Maybe he's an elfophobe!" Gourry cried. Apparently his intelligent suggestions for the day were done.

"Ugh." Lina laid her head in her hands. "Well, we won't get anywhere pondering over things. We still on for exploring the other sanctuary?"

"Sure," Zel agreed. "Although I didn't get the feeling the elf girl was lying. She genuinely seemed to find it useless."

"Useless to her, maybe. We might find some valuable scraps of information lying about."

"Wow, this is just like old times!" Amelia beamed. "The four us, adventuring together again."

"Ugh," Lina repeated.

"The four of us, huh?" Zel asked, stolidly.

"Come on, don't pretend you guys aren't excited." The Princess beamed, elbowing the other two magic users at the table. "This'll be great."

"Maybe it's a conspiracy plotted by the Legion of Fishmen to reestablish their base in Seiruun territory," Gourry injected, and a slipper bonked off his head.

"I'd almost forgotten how annoying it was," Zel sighed, staring into his tea.

"Hunting out the remaining sanctuary, are you?" Phil nodded, massive arms folded against massive chest. "That's good. Perhaps you'll find something of use to us."

"That's what we're hoping," Lina agreed. "You know where it is, right?"

"Sure, I just need to find those old records." Phil turned to his desk, rummaging through a stack of portfolios. Our Heroine and her crew had a moment of silence before Raleic entered, rushing to the Princess's side.

"Where are you off to now, Princess?" she asked, panting a little between words. "Why didn't you tell me about this?"

"Ano, Raleic-san." Amelia smiled uncertainly. "I didn't know you, ah, cared."

"I haven't held the position of royal postal worker long," Raleic sniffed, "and I don't intend to lose it because you went off to get yourself killed."

"How would her death affect your mail-carrying?" Zel asked, very close to rolling his eyes. "She's handled herself against worse things than exploring ruins."

"Meaning her luck is bound to run out!" Raleic folded her arms, sniffed. "I refuse to let you leave with the Princess unless I'm in attendance."

"Raleic-san - " Amelia began, before Phil slammed a tome down on his desk hard enough for Zel to relocate his tea onto his face.

"Here it is," he boomed, opening the book and spinning it around. "A map of Seiruun as it was when the elves lived among us."

Lina crawled onto the desk, peering. "Okay, so we were here yesterday, right?"

"Right," Phil agreed, and jabbed a thick finger at another point. "And that's where you're going, on the other side of the city."

"Hey, they're directly across from each other," Gourry chimed in. "Those elves knew their architecture! It creates a straight line from one to the other!"

"Any two points create a straight line," Zel grunted, taking a peek at the map himself. "So most of the city is still the same as it was then, Your Highness?"

"Almost entirely," Phil responded. "There's a new road here that should take you there faster, though, and one of these side streets was closed off. Hm, and this building is demolished..." He began making little markings on the map with a quill, one eye closed.

"For such a thick-headed guy, he knows his city really well," Lina noted. Amelia smiled weakly and decided to let that one slide as a compliment.

Finally, Phil thrust the map back into Lina's face and nodded. "There, you'll be able to find it in no time at all!"

The sorceress took a look at the paper and glowered. "What the hell is that?"

"Lina-san?" Phil asked, innocent as a child.

Turning the map back at him, she growled. "It's completely covered by ink now! I can't make out any of this!"

"Oh, I'm sorry," the Prince mumbled, somewhat embarrassed. "But that's the only map I have."

"That's okay," Gourry chimed in. "I remember where it was."

Silence throughout the room. Lina looked at him cautiously. "You do?"

"Mmhm!" He took the quill and colored in an extra dark spot on the map. "Remember, it was in a straight line from the top of the hexagon thingy to the bottom. The one we already saw was here." He made another dab.

"Hey, pretty good!" Lina clapped him on the back. "See, you're useful even without your sword!"

"That's not exactly a great way to say thank you," Gourry sighed.

"It's as close as she'll ever get," Amelia piped up cheerfully. "Let's go, everyone!"

"Off to the sanctuary!" Raleic decreed.

"Er." Amelia stumbled, smiling sweetly. "Raleic-san, I can do this on my own. I'm not a little girl - "

"If Mazoku attack, what would happen to you? You've been having those bad dreams every night, - " Zel's eyes flickered at this, " - and you're much too stressed out to have to worry about killing your ex-chefs."

"Hey, listen," Lina began, but Amelia lightly put a hand to her mouth and spoke for her.

"Thank you, Raleic-san, but I have to do this much by myself." She paused, but spoke up quickly to stifle another protest. "And listen, Daddy needs more protection than I do. Those elves might come back for him at any time, and if you're not here, he's almost defenseless."

"He has the royal mages," she argued briefly, but Amelia shook her head.

"He needs a powerful mage to combat evil like this," she said, solemn as oak. "One of our soldiers wouldn't be able to do anything against these guys."

Raleic's face twisted a little, from a frown to a look of introspection to a dedicated smile. "Well then, I guess my call of duty is here after all. Don't worry, Prince Philionel, I will stay by your side until these four return!"

"Huh?" Phil gasped, slack jawed. "Er, I mean, very good, Raleic-dono..."

"Well, so we all know what we're doing now?" Lina asked, beaming. "Okay then, let's get going."

The four ruin explorers made for the exit. As Lina went out, she felt Phil clutch at her arm and whisper, "Hey... You won't take too long, will you?"

"I think we made pretty good time," Amelia announced cheerfully as the gang wound their way down a hillside on the southeastern side of Biatz.

The last time he'd been here, Zel had been at great pains to conceal himself. An aftereffect of the nightmares, he reflected now. A shove into the past, to back when he'd been so sickened by his appearance that he wouldn't go into any populated area without a good cloak and mask to cover himself up. He'd had time to get used to the constant barrage of late night memory terror in the time since he'd left and gone to Seiruun (Zel was, by nature, a quick adapter), but he couldn't force back an awkward feeling on showing up again, completely unmasked... and straining under the weight of a royal wardrobe.

"You remember where they live?" Lina asked, tilting her head. "I think I do, but they might have moved into a bigger house or something. The old one wasn't all that luxurious for a mayor."

"I don't think the Dyne family cares much for material possessions," Zel informed, with just enough tint in his voice to yank at the corner of the sorceress's mouth. "Their house wasn't at all flashy when I was here."

"Why would a person of high standing not want to reap the benefits?" Raleic pondered aloud. "Even in a little country town like this one."

"That's the difference between you and them," Zel answered promptly. "So which way do you think is quickest?"

Amelia smiled vaguely from the sidelines. He'd always been the practical one. Even when he wasn't hiding his emotions.

"The only way to search out clues on killer chefs." Lina did a somersault in the air.

"Ano, it really hurts when you do that," Gourry winced. "Do you have to hold me by the hair?"

"Oi! No complaining down there!"

"If we're doing this right, it should be over that way." Amelia dashed ahead, shielding her eyes from the sun as she scanned the city below. Off in the distance, twinkling in the afternoon light, her eyes caught hold of a single, thin silver spire atop a small, curvy building. She gasped, halting in mid-flight.

"What's wrong?" Zel asked, the first at her side. She turned to him, a small and tired smile on her face.

"Nothing. I just remembered that I've been to a shrine of the Water Dragon King in the same area as this." She pointed to the dark blob of ink Gourry had used to mark their destination. "It's right there, I probably should have thought of it sooner. I must not be thinking clearly."

"You've had a rough few days." Zelgadiss managed this sympathetic expression with difficulty, but once it was out he seemed to look a lot better. "Was it abandoned, like the Temple they built the dance club over?"

Amelia nodded. "I think it's our best bet. And an old man named Sprenner has a vegetable shop next door, in case anyone gets hungry." She kept Lina and Gourry in her sight as she said this, earning a half grin from the former.

"I guess we can eat healthy for one day," she agreed, and the four of them went zipping off in aerodynamic defying wonder.

The spire, as it came into view, lent itself to a domed marble ceiling, which in turn grew downward to become an architecturally beautiful slab of granite. The doorway arched with flowery swirls and puffy whorlies, and the pure white columns twisted in gently curvy waves, spiraling up the side like a very dramatic barber's pole. This led no doubt to Lina's mind; this place was either a revamped elven sanctuary or a really grandiose gay bar.

"That's it," Amelia pronounced, ending any thoughts she might have had concerning strange yaoi fanfic scenarios. The four of them landed smoothly on the steps leading to that vast doorway, Gourry letting out a sigh of gratitude as his beautiful golden hair was finally released.

"This doesn't seem too bad," Lina murmured, doing a quick optical inspection. "As ancient temples housing mysterious secrets go, anyway."

"Almost kind of cozy," Zel agreed, already on his way inside. "But let's not dally any longer than we absolutely need to."

"Always the practical one," Gourry diagnosed, the caboose for this little foray into uninhabited granite and marble. Lina shifted quickly to the front of the procession, leaving Zel and Amelia to walk side-by-side. Neither of them seemed particularly displeased by this, but then it's difficult to tell with this crew.

Sometimes.

The inside of the shrine was as nicely chiseled as the outside, and every bit as cold and unfurnished. There was one statue, cracked with fissures after years of neglect, that depicted the Water Dragon King poised in fierce determination at something or other. Its giant head looked down over the group, and even though they'd met and made friends with the idol's inspiration (or what was left of it, anyway), they couldn't help but feel a bit chilly. Just something in the air, Zelgadiss mused.

"This is strange," Amelia said, glancing around. "I've never felt this way in a holy shrine before."

"The Water Dragon King died a long time ago," Lina answered promptly, but not without respect. "And Aqua-obaasan died when we fought Gaav. The only thing left of them is the Claire Bible, and that's in the Kaltaart Mountains. I don't think even it can lend this place enough power to cover up all the things that have happened here over the years."

"What did happen here, Lina-san?" she asked, her eyes wide. Zel noted, without any particular feelings, that she looked like a little kid again.

"I have no idea," Lina answered. "I'm not particularly interested in finding out, either, but I'm guessing we don't have much of a choice. Something has decided to bring us into its little game."

"And you'll be damned if you're going to let whoever that is have their way, right?" Amelia asked. The other three stared; Zel nearly toppled over. So much for the retraction into immaturity.

"Ano. Something like that." Lina grinned, turning back to the statue. "Come on, there should be a trap door around here."

There had been, and they'd had it open without any problems. Reflecting on this later as she stood on the borders of Biatz, Amelia would consider how lonely and desolate the place had felt. Surely the other sanctuary would have had the same feeling if she'd ventured beneath all the craziness happening up above, a creepy and disquieting aura about the place that Lina or Gourry probably wouldn't have recognized. She understood that the Water Dragon King was no more, but to actually experience the effect of its untimely departure was a little much for her senses.

The reception area that greeted them, like the one Lina had found beneath the techno club, was lit only with what small amount of light that crept in after them... and there was considerably less of it here, with that behemoth mock-up of a Ryuzoku blocking what meager rays the sun cast in their direction. Lina's dagger was up and at 'em, shining their way.

"Which door did we take last time?" Lina wondered, rubbing her head.

"The one I said I wouldn't take," Gourry answered, a tad sniffly.

"Yeah, but which was that?" Closing her eyes, she did a quick reenactment of yesterday's door choosing ceremonies and found that it didn't help at all.

"No luck?" her sidekick asked.

"Naw. Why don't you pick the way?"

"Really?!" he asked, nearly knocking Amelia over in joy.

"Sure. You're so upset about last time, you might as well. In fact," she cooed, "I want you to point out the top seven doors you'd like to go through."

"But there's only eight," he said, after a bit of counting. "That's not going to narrow it down much."

"Oh, just go ahead, it'll help us out." She waved her hands at him. He seemed to ponder this a moment before his face cleared (apparently the poor lad didn't see any hidden snares in this; Lina almost felt bad), and he began pointing rapidly.

"There, there, there, there, there, there, annnd..." One beat passed, and then it was decided. "There!"

"Great!" Lina chirped, heading for the one door he hadn't pointed to.

"Hey, Gourry-san didn't - " Amelia began. Then she glanced back at Gourry, looking wide-eyed and broken hearted. "Lina-san, that's mean!"

"I didn't say it'd be nice," she responded promptly. "Come on, already. What's it matter which way we go, it's all random fun."

"I don't get any respect," Gourry moped, following them. "Ever since I lost my sword, I'm useless around here."

"Oi, oi!" Amelia clutched at his arm, tugged a bit. "That's not true! You're still the best swordsman I've ever met, and you've always protected Lina even when your sword was helpless."

"Like when you dove foolishly into the Sea of Chaos," Zelgadiss agreed. At the sound of hearing the usually reserved swordsman/Shamanist offer his own sort of support, Lina had no choice but to turn around and put on a smile.

"Gourry."

He looked up at her, wary yet hopeful. "Nani?"

She smacked him across the cheek, and yanked down on his ear (the better to hear her, of course). "You are anything but useless. If I hear you say that again, I swear to the Water Dragon King whose shrine we are in that I will personally send you back into that Sea of Chaos."

He blinked, rubbing his cheek, before breaking into a broad smile. "Wow. Arigatou, Lina!"

Amelia and Zel exchanged a puzzled look. "Only she would try to reassure someone like that," the chimera noted.

"And only he would see it for what it meant," Amelia added with a shrug. "I guess they're made for each other."

"No more loitering now," Lina decreed, marching down the corridor. "If things stay the way they've been, we should run into a door down along here somewhere."

"Oh yeah, the one with the chef behind it!" Gourry nodded.

"Well, hopefully we won't run into any Mazoku this time."

"I think you just damned us all," Zel murmured.

Now may be a good time to point out that moments spent in barely lit underground tunnels tend to go by very, very slowly. Such was the case with Zelgadiss Greywers and Amelia Wil Tesla Seiruun, ambling along behind their usual sorceress/swordsman guides. They strolled along silently, both lost in their own little worlds, wondering when they'd reach the door they were supposed to find, wondering why they were having such awful dreams lately.

Lina and Gourry made up for their silence by eventually to finding their way into an argument over hot pot. This drifted through the cavern in echoey waves loud enough to drown out any hint of enemy movement even to Zelgadiss's sensitive ears, and after a while he simply stopped trying.

"How long can they keep talking about food?" Amelia whispered to him, jerking him out of his self-induced trance.

"I think they just enjoy hearing each other shout," Zel responded. It should be noted that he did not intend for that to be ecchi, but the Princess obviously took it that way by turning a shade of crimson usually found only in actives volcanoes.

There was a moment filled with nothing but "How can you say that?! You remember how much we all wanted the Dora-Dora hot pot!" and "But I'm just saying, squid is a fine substitute when you're broke!" and finally Zelgadiss spoke up again.

"You said you came here a while ago?" he asked, pleasantly as he knew how.

"Uh-huh," she answered. "When I was little."

"This is a strange place for a little girl to visit," Zel responded simply.

"Daddy and I came here," she supplied after what seemed an awkwardly long pause. "We... we visited all the shrines and temples in the city, even the ones that weren't in use anymore."

"That was around when your sister left?" he asked, and something in the rare sensitivity in his voice sent a shiver up her spine.

"H-hai," she managed, clasping her hands in front of her and watching the floor. "Daddy wanted to make sure she was taken care of... and we wanted to pray for Mother's soul."

"Gomen," he replied, keeping his eyes on the feuding pair in front of him. "You don't have to tell me anymore than you want."

Amelia felt her heart begin to race. A myriad of images flew through her mind, brief glimpses and/or suggestions of how to pursue this topic. One of them involved slipping an arm around his waist; one involved searching about for his hand and clasping it gently in hers; one of them made her too red and hot to begin to even contemplate it. As they walked along, she decided on the second course of action, and slowly, casually began slipping her hand toward his...

"Have you been having nightmares?" he asked then, and she jerked back into a proper upright walking position.

"Wha-hah?" she asked, trying to regain her composure.

"Have you been having nightmares lately?" he repeated patiently, and this time turned his head to look at her.

"Ano." She swallowed, cleared her throat. "Hai."

He nodded, as if it were something he'd expected. Just needed the confirmation.

"Why do you ask?" she managed, clasping her hands in front of her once again. She sure as hell wasn't going to let either one of them get frisky anymore.

"Because I've been having them as well," he answered. "And I think they're related to whatever mess we got ourselves into."

Amelia did not have readily available reaction to that. This was okay, however, because it was then that Lina and Gourry cut off their bickering and halted in front of a giant marble door.

"Finally!" Lina announced. "We made it."

"Yosh!" Gourry preened. "I knew this was the right way to go!"

"What are you talking about?" Lina returned. "This is the one route you didn't want to go!"

"Well, I'd figured that you were just setting me up again so I made sure I wouldn't point this one out," he answered, beaming. "Did it really work?"

"Yes, it worked!" Lina screamed. "How the hell could I have been outsmarted by you? That's like being emotionally engaged by Tenchi in Tokyo."

"I have my moments," Gourry said humbly, and was roasted with a Fireball.

"Now to take care of this wall," our sorceress cried, by now unable to cope with common sense.

"Hey, didn't you say that last time this caused the entire passage to explode?" Amelia screamed, arms a-flailing.

"Don't kill us all just because you're pissed off!" Zel shouted, his arms doing a little flailing of their own.

"Blame it on my idiot sidekick," she snapped back, pushing her hands against the door. "Blast Wave!"

When the rumbling began, Zelgadiss snapped forward and grabbed Amelia by the waist, ducking protectively over her. Her heart leaped for a moment before she realized he was looking at her expectantly, snapping something about a Balus Wall. She hurriedly cast it, trying her best not to look disappointed.

When the shaking stopped, the two of them stood to take in the havoc. The way they'd come from was most definitely wrecked; the way ahead looked mostly clear, but L-sama only knew where it lead to.

"You okay?" Zel asked. She brushed herself off and nodded.

"I'm fine. Where are - ?"

A scream and a medium-well Gourry burst out of a pile of stone, hauling Lina up out of the wreckage with him. He managed to get them both up and out before collapsing from exhaustion.

"Okay, I know," Lina mumbled while shaking pebbles out of her hair. "I overdid that one."

"All that we need now is a Mazoku to show up like last time," Gourry finished.

The sorceress bit her lip. "Don't say things like that. That's exactly what we don't need!"

"Hey," Amelia breathed, goggle eyed. "I think I heard something shuffling around back there."

"See what you did?" Lina snapped at Gourry, socking him in the shoulder.

"I didn't mean to," he muttered. "Want me to take care of it?"

"You couldn't take care of a child in your condition," she responded in her sensei voice. "I think l can do this one for you."

"How nice of you," Gourry answered unenthusiastically.

"Cairi!" she shouted into the darkness, walking toward the hole that used to be a door. "Come on out so we can finish this!"

No response.

"Alright," she informed to whatever was listening, "I'll just have to come after you then. FIREBALL!"

Her adventuring partners ducked as the spell caused a bit more debris to fly. There was a high-pitched "Itaiiii!" from in the hole, and the fire's brief light was enough for Lina to make out a familiar face.

"Lina-san, that was uncalled for..."

"You had it coming, Xelloss," she returned coolly. "Not answering me when I threaten you and skulking around in shadows."

"Gomen," he answered, shuffling into the mediocre light of the hallway, still burning from the tip of Lina's dagger on the floor. He noted the weapon for a second before turning his attention back to her. "I was involved in something. Although I'm impressed you can maintain a Lighting spell for so long, even after lobbing off two other spells."

"And being caught in a cave-in," Zelgadiss added.

Lina didn't seem fazed. "It's the easiest spell in all of magic, Xelloss. What are you doing here?"

"Waiting for you, of course. I knew you'd be down here at some point."

"You're an idiot like always," Lina grunted, kneeling to pick up her glowing dagger. Feigning indifference right before the blow. "But lately, it seems to us you've been quite a frightened idiot."

She looked back in time to see the corner of Xel's eyelid twitch. "Lina-san, you should know that Mazoku can't be afraid. It's against the nature of our existence, just as if I were to turn against a superior."

"So you'd like to think," she pressed. "But fear is one of the emotions your kind lives off of. It's part of what makes you guys up."

"What do you mean?" Xelloss asked, and she was pleased to hear a touch of the nonchalance gone from his voice.

"I'm saying that what you can't do is personally acknowledge your fear." She slipped up to him, tapping the blade against his chest. "That would be admitting weakness, and would destroy you."

"Lina," Amelia whispered. "I don't think upsetting Xelloss is our best strategy..."

Xel peered through one eye. "I think you should listen to her," he agreed. "You came here for a reason too, remember?"

"Wow," Gourry butted in. "He doesn't seem nearly so cocky now. You must've hit a nerve, Lina!"

"A nerve?" This seemed to regenerate the General-Priest's stamina. His face slid right back into its default smile, and his eye closed itself once again. "Well, perhaps it does, but it's one of disappointment. I'm a bit insulted than you think there's something around here for me to be afraid of, Lina-san."

"Yeah," she agreed, pulling away. "I guess that is pretty silly, huh?"

Out of the corner of her eye, she gave Zel a wink. He couldn't help but smirk.

"She actually cracked his demeanor," he whispered, unaware he was speaking until Amelia leaned closer to hear. "He is afraid of something."

"That's pretty scary," Amelia said. "I mean, who are we up against that would make Xelloss worry? He didn't even seem afraid of Garv, even when he almost killed him."

"Silly indeed," Xelloss had responded, and was turned back the way he'd come. "Want to get on with your search?"

"Wait." Lina sheathed her dagger. "Two things. First of all, now that you're here, you supply the light."

Sighing, the Mazoku produced a small luminescent globe. "Of course. And the second thing?"

"The second thing's a question," Lina explained. "Why did you tell me that there was something of Febriza's in the techno club? I didn't see a damn thing of hers!"

"Well, you didn't go all the way down, did you?" Xelloss kept on smiling.

"Uh, no, but..."

"Although even if you had, it wouldn't have mattered. I just said that to get you to go."

"FIREBALL!"

Another small explosion. Amelia shook her head to keep the dust from settling in her hair.

"You'd think such a powerful Mazoku would have better things to do than tease Lina all the time," she sighed.

There was more to this flashback, obviously, but just then Amelia was snapped out of her reverie as Zelgadiss fell down a hill.

"There," Lina and Zel had announced at the same time, pointing to a house in the distance. While Lina put her hands on her hips and nodded, the chimera realized too late the error in subtracting one hand from a two-hands-giant-bag equation and began rolling down the hillside.

"Yep, same old place." The sorceress sat down on a tree trunk, watching her buddy's face-first progress down the slope. "It's crazy how time flies by."

"How long ago did you visit here?" Gourry asked. "It was before you met me, right?"

"Yeah, it was. It's not just your jellyfish brains this time."

Raleic and Amelia had also caught up. Instead of going directly into town, they'd all decided to go around the outskirts first, avoiding the forested section as much as possible, in order to avoid being caught out in the open. With three enemies after her, she didn't want to parade directly into town square without knowing which way to go.

"Zelgadiss-san!" Amelia cried, eyeing the wreckage at the bottom of the hill. "What happened to him?"

"Oh, don't worry, he'll wake up." Lina stretched her arms over her head, breathing the country air in. "We've just walked so far, it's nice to take a rest."

"We've got things to do," Raleic stepped in. "You can't just relax out here when we're on a journey to Panifess! We've got a long way to go!"

"You obviously haven't traveled with me before," Lina responded complacently. "If you'd like to go on ahead, I'm not stopping you."

"Why you - -"

"Lina?" A small voice, heard over the bubbling froth of anger that was Raleic Deontri.

The sorceress looked up, surprised despite herself. On the path ahead, standing in the middle of the road, was a girl she hadn't expected to see ever again; Selena Dyne, a sword at her side, circlet gleaming in the sun, hair settled around an attractive face. The girl beamed up at her and waved, jumping up and down a little in her excitement. "It is you! It's Lina-sama!"

"Sama?" Raleic spat, but Lina was already on her feet and moving down to meet her.

"Heyo, Selena. Fancy meeting you here."

"I was hoping you would make it," she cried, clutching onto Lina's hands. "You met up with Zelgadiss-san, right?"

"Oh, yeah. See that pile of garbage back there?" She nodded back over her shoulder.

"Zelgadiss-san!" Selena cried, nearly running Lina into the ground as she hurried to pick him up off the ground. Lina had a brief spout of wobblin' craziness.

"At least she's got her priorities straight," Gourry said, putting a hand on her shoulder for balance.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Lina asked, watching the lone girl shove the bag off the prone chimera and struggle to help him stand upright. Up on the hill, Amelia was staring with a hand raised to cover a completely slack jaw.

"Zelgadiss-san! Zelgadiss-san!" Selena shook him a little, looking about to spontaneously combust with worry. "What happened to him?"

"Nothing!" Amelia cried, dashing up and snatching his unattended arm. "He just fell!"

"Under this giant thing? Whose is this?" Selena glowered at the bag as if it were one of the six remaining pieces of Shaburanigdo.

"Ah... ano..." Amelia stuttered, losing hold of his arm.

"It is Her Highness's, of course!" Raleic proclaimed, descending the hill to be at level with them. "You have a problem with that?"

Selena regarded the postal worker angrily, letting go of the chimera for a brief instant. "I'm just trying to help - "

"It's appreciated," Amelia answered for him, and seized her chance (along with his body). "C'mon Lina-san, let's get going. We have to find the mayor and his daughter."

"Ano... that is the mayor's daughter." Lina made sure to avoid her gaze.

The Princess's mouth dropped open again, and Zelgadiss crashed to the ground. She didn't speak, but then she didn't really need to.

"Afraid so," Lina answered, patting Amelia on the shoulder. "Meet Selena Dyne, daughter of Jer Dyne, mayor of Biatz."

"This is going to be really interesting," Gourry observed.

Zel's first waking thought was Damn you, Rezo.

He then remembered Rezo had been dead for three years and forced himself to calm down. A few breaths, and the previous few days returned to him in a headachy flood.

So his second thought was, Who the hell tucked me into bed?

"Awake?" a voice called. He cracked open an eye to see Lina and the crew seated nearby at a table. Closest was Selena, the girl from a few days past, standing over him with a warm cloth. He sat up, shrugging off the covers.

"I guess this means we arrived okay," he muttered, waving the moist towel away. Selena retreated with a worried glance back.

"We've just been catching up on the times," the old man muttered, still chewing that wheat. Zel inclined his head briefly in his direction, before focusing on Lina. She took the initiative.

"You were out a while," she said, between large bites off a chicken leg. "You tossed around in your sleep a lot, too."

"If that damn running gag had gone on any longer, my back would have snapped," he responded glumly.

"Cheer up," Jer beamed, pushing a cup of tea toward the side of the table to which he was closest. The empty seat was right next to Selena. "Come join us."

Zel did so, welcoming the chance to get out of the bed where he'd dreamt those dreams. As he sat, he noticed Amelia was staring pretty intently at her own cup.

"You thrashed around while you were out," Lina informed jauntily. "We were starting to consider sedatives."

"Not necessary," he answered after he'd found the tea to be satisfactory.

"That's what Selena told us," she agreed. "She said you were like this when you stopped by before."

"Ah," was all he had to say to that.

"And Her Highness has been the same way," Raleic spoke up. He hadn't seen her at the corner end of the table. "For a few nights now. She hasn't been able to get any sleep without - "

"It's alright," Amelia put in hurriedly. "It has nothing to do with anything that's happening, ne, Zelgadiss-san?"

Lina sighed, rocking back in her chair. Her feet slipped up onto the tabletop, next to a stockpile of dishes. The group looked to her. "Let's hear the truth, Zel."

"I don't know what you're talking about," he mumbled into his tea.

"What was that?" Gourry asked, leaning closer. "I couldn't hear, I don't think you spoke very clearly."

Zelgadiss sighed, set his teacup on its saucer. "I said, it's nothing. Amelia is right."

Lina obviously was not going to let this one slide. "You came to this town in the first place for a reason. You requested we stop back by for a reason. I'd like to know these reasons, Zel."

A lengthy pause. All eyes were on him. Lina's shrewd and coaxing, Gourry's blank, Amelia's worried, Raleic's expectant. As he swept his own over the two Dynes, he thought they looked more sympathetic than anything else, and that's what probably got him started.

"All right," he said, clearing his throat. "Here it goes."

The following tale took a bit to get all out. Some of it we already know, but a summary's a good idea just in case. Following are some of the more memorable quotes from his relating of the tale; if you'd like, you can sing them to the tune of your favorite image song.

"I started having these nightmares over a week ago. I guess Amelia's began some time later..."

"Juvenile or not, I couldn't take the night-after-night repetition of that scene..."

"But to simply call them nightmares is to do them a huge injustice..."

"I attempted to focus and pinpoint where the energy was coming from, but the source was elusive. I ended up requesting the assistance of a cleric of the Water Dragon King in the town I was in at the time..."

Lina choked on her fifth helping of wings at that. "You actually asked for help?"

A stony glare greeted her, and she quieted down. This was obviously not something to tease him about.

"The cleric was able to pinpoint this town, but that's as much as he could do. I arrived, met Selena and her, um, friends, and Jer-san pointed out an ancient elven laboratory in the forest." He paused here, whether to collect his thoughts or just to create a suspenseful mood was hard to say. "Much like the ones we saw in Seiruun."

"Wow," Lina mused, tumbling it around in her mind. "Can that be a coincidence?"

"It's doubtful," Zel responded. "I don't know about you, but I haven't met an elf or even explored elven artifacts very often. To come up with three old sanctuaries and two elven mages in one adventure seems a little too organized to be luck."

"So where is this laboratory?" Lina asked, getting to her feet. "We should check it out."

"It's under a shack that idiot Galef used as a headquarters," he answered solemnly. When Lina almost fell over, he was ready to catch her. "I know. It was hard for me to take, too."

"You know a lot of people, Lina!" Gourry chimed. "I kinda feel left out."

"You'd just forget them as soon as you met them," she reminded him, patting him fondly on the shoulder. This brightened him up a bit, and he got to his feet. "We've got a few hours until night. Who else is going?"

"I think I'll stay here, if that's okay," Amelia said uncomfortably. "I mean, if Selena-san is going to go..."

"I am," she agreed from the door. She had already buckled on her sword.

"Then I'm staying with you," Raleic affirmed.

Zel gazed around at the lot of them. "Just the four of us, then?"

"Are you kidding?" a deep voice boomed from behind Selena. "You're not going to find your way back without us!"

Galef and Zachard shuffled through the doorway. The swordsman looked perfectly innocent except that he had a stethoscope around his neck.

Lina smacked her forehead. "What were you doing, spying on us?"

"Ano." Galef thrust his sleeve outward, concealing his ex-second-in-command long enough for him to burn the evidence (or at least hide it in his pockets). "We simply heard your cries of excitement and came to lend our aid."

"I think we were pretty docile," Lina mumbled, rubbing her chin. "I don't recall crying for anything."

"We'd better bring them just in case," Zel sighed. "They know the way better than I do, as much as I hate to admit it, and I'm not in at my best lately."

"Whoah," Gourry hissed. "He's being humble. This must be taking a real toll on him."

"You heard him," Lina snapped at the two. "You're under Zel's command until we get back."

"I don't recall saying that!" Zelgadiss grunted, folding his arms over his chest. "But if that's how it's going to be, one questionable move and you're both dead."

"He's not in the mood to play around," Lina agreed, jerking her thumb back at him. With the other hand, she pantomimed the famous slit-throat gesture.

"Well then," came one last voice. "If you're taking those two with you, I suppose I have to go as well."

They looked to see Jer climbing out of his chair and buckling on a sword.

"But Father - " Selena started. He raised his hand to silence her, then used it to pick the stalk of wheat from his mouth.

"I'm not about to let you guys have all the fun," he told her. "Besides, as mayor it's my duty to check out big finds like this."

"He handled himself well last time," Lina put in, elbowing the girl in the ribs. "He'll do fine. And we don't expect any big trouble while we're there, anyway."

She stammered a moment before giving in. The eight left, Jer at the rear to shut the door and smile disarmingly at Amelia and her current self-styled bodyguard. "Don't trash the city while I'm gone, eh?"

"Of course." The Princess managed a smile that lasted almost until he was gone. Then she silently huddled up on the room's bed and laid down, trying to stay awake and keep her eyes open as she rested.

Things began to unfold rather rapidly from there on.

Arriving at the old shack energized, Zel's and Selena's swords covered in the leafy entrails of all the unfortunate vines that had grown at locations specific enough to become obstacles for a parade of heroes and heroines on a mission, Lina was caught again by a sense of deja vu. She remembered, fleetingly, the skirmish that had taken place in this clearing; her and Naga versus Galef, Zachard, and a bunch of Lesser Demons. She also remembered Galef trying out the spell Meteor Fall, apparently in an attempt to become a silver haired chick magnet with a black trench coat.

"Ah," Galef murmured, patting the shack's decrepit wooden sideboards. "To be home again."

"I hope you guys remember the way to the lab," Lina said, her tone straightforward and deadly. "Otherwise, your supervisor's going to bring on the big spells."

"Huh?" Zel asked, looking surprised. He caught her look. "Oh, yeah. I'll, uh, get medieval." A small mass of fire swirled in his palm.

The Destructive Organization Xain's only two active members averted their eyes. "Well, we'd love to show you," Galef said, tugging at his collar. "But - ano - he was actually the one who found it. We didn't know it was there."

"Wow," Gourry spoke up. "You guys are really pathetic!"

"Hey," Zachard cried. "No one insults the two of us and gets away with it! I challenge you to a sword match!"

Lina dropped a flowerpot on his head. "We really don't need anyone to take over Zangulus's first season role, thanks very much. You ready to lead us in?" She'd switched attention back to Zel, waving his hand back and forth to dissipate the small amount of fire energy.

"Sure. I assume he had this ridiculous throne when you were here, too?"

"Yeah. First class tackiness. And I see the little candle is still here. A really desperate attempt to look spooky in front of your one subordinate, eh?"

"Evidently," Zel added, sliding his hand along the throne's arm. "Galef wasn't secure in his occultic prowess."

Zachard laughed. "That is so true!"

"Enough!" Galef screamed, his voice deep and gruff enough to invoke a sudden chill in his verbal tormentors. When they looked back to him, however, he was pulling at his hair and tears were coursing down his cheeks. "Do you all have to be so mean?"

"Hey, if you try taking over the world, you automatically offer yourself up for ridicule. It's one of the unwritten laws." Lina nodded at her own common sense. So did Gourry, since he couldn't think up anything clever to follow it with.

"Oh, here we go," Zel said, and after a small click of a sound, the shack began to shake as its giant throne swung into the ground, revealing a corridor leading into the ground.

"Wow," Lina whistled. "Pretty nice. So let me guess, you guys didn't even build your own headquarters?"

"Of course we did," Galef puffed up. "Zachard just discovered the foundation of an older monument. We built the place ourselves."

"And set the throne on the pedestal ourselves," the swordsman added defensively.

"Well, that goes without saying. No elf would ever design something that idiotic." Lina turned to them, nodding toward the lab's entrance. "Why don't you two lead us in?"

Shoulders slumped resolutely, Galef and Zachard did as commanded. Jer gave a gruff little chuckle at Lina's shoulder as Zelgadiss, elected warden for the journey, trudged after them.

"Hm?" The sorceress tried to look like she hadn't forgotten he was there.

"They're fools," the old man said, wiping sweat from his forehead with a handkerchief. "But they're hard workers, once you give them a reason for it."

"A reason for life," Gourry agreed, singsongy.

Lina hurried to keep the others from getting too far ahead. "That's common enough. Zel was your average run of the mill rabble before we ran into him, too. He even tried to take me on, once!"

"I remember defeating you with a blow to the stomach," Zel responded. She'd forgotten about his demonic hearing ability.

"That wasn't a fair fight!" she shouted. The echoes were loud enough for a good head ringing among her companions.

"Oh, that's right." Zel allowed himself a grin. "It was your - "

Wham!

" - itai."

Selena gasped as Zel wrested a socket wrench out of his hair. "Lina-sama, what did you do that for?"

"You'd understand if you traveled with her," was all Gourry said. Selena's expression was pretty grim, but she didn't pursue the topic.

"Here we are," Galef informed as his feet met smooth, nondescending concrete. "This is where we turned back last time."

"Indeed." Zelgadiss gazed around the barren room sullenly. "I couldn't make anything out of the magic current, either. A cleric or priestess like Shilfiel would be most useful in this kind of situation..."

"Or Amelia, but she stayed behind." Lina walked to the center of the room, looking around. "And I don't see any doors like we had at the other two, although the rest of it looks pretty similar."

"Do you think you can find us a path?" Zel asked. "I could assist."

"Might as well try. And two are better than one, I suppose."

Gourry noticed Selena looked a shade uncomfortable as the two of them stood side to side, eyes closed, but couldn't fathom out why. Then the two of them took hands, and he understood very well (although any questions he might have had about the budding sorceress-swordswoman were instantly shoved aside in his mind).

The two stood that way for what seemed a very long time.

Groping along after those teasing threads of magical knowledge was hard work. Lina held still with her eyes closed, unmoving in both the physical and mental sense. All she allowed to work now was her spiritual side, a fleeting, sad little thing when compared on the scale with Mazoku or Dragons, but quite impressive when put up against a regular person. Lina Inverse is, as you should already know, a very amazing young lady.

"Lina." A voice, far off and barely a whisper.

"Nani?" she asked, startled enough that she momentarily lost her way. Then she caught herself, found it, and followed. "Who is this?"

"You recognize Me well enough by now," the voice responded, light as breath.

"The Legacy?" she asked needlessly. She felt its consent.

"I am not only an artifact, young one. And you know it."

"Do I?" she asked. And of course she did.

Xelloss, charbroiled but none the worse for wear, had lead them through the sanctuary with the cheeriness of your typical tour guide. As there was nothing down there to point out, however, he'd worked off his energy through a good dosage of backstory.

" - and soon the head of these temples were the only ones left in this area."

"That's sad," Amelia had said. "That was a terrible war."

"It was. But as for what happened to those priests, I couldn't say."

"You probably could," Zelgadiss said. "But it's a secret, right?"

"Well, I do have my own theories. Nothing concrete this time, however." Xelloss smiled back at the chimera. "You know I couldn't hold information from such wonderful friends."

"Don't jerk us around," Lina said, and had surprised herself by the sharpness of it. "We know you have no concept of friendship."

"That's true," Xelloss conceded. "Anyhow, what do you know about the Legacies?"

"The what?" Amelia and Gourry asked.

"Oh, looks like we're here." Lina cleared her throat, gesturing to where the corridor opened into a large circular room a few feet ahead. "Why don't you guys go ahead, I think I want to talk to our comrade here alone."

"Sure," Amelia said, the first to agree. Zel had given her a searching look as he followed the other two into the large room, but had kept quiet. She waited until they were out of sight, turned to Xelloss... and found that he was already walking off after them.

"If you have something to say to me," she hissed, "say it privately where they can't hear."

Xelloss's eyebrows perked. "You don't want your own companions to know what all this is about?"

"What is it all about?" she hissed. "All I know is that I've been targeted by Mazoku again, and some weird thing that calls itself the power of the Lord of Nightmares keeps talking to me inside my head."

"The Legacies of the Lord of Nightmares," Xelloss agreed, meeting her eyes. "There are three of them, formed at the time of Shaburanigdo's War against your Dragon thousands of years ago."

"What are they?" Lina asked. She felt her stomach tighten.

"Coalesced forms of the Sea of Chaos," he answered. "Formed from the massive amounts of power used in that battle and left over to change history whenever men would come across them."

"Like the Philosopher's Stone," Lina breathed. He nodded.

"Except, unlike a simple magic-boosting artifact, this is the Lord of Nightmares' power." He paused, watching her. "And therefore the Lord of Nightmares Herself."

There was a space of an instant where Lina was awed beyond the ability to speak. She caught herself as quickly as she could. "So why haven't I heard anything about this before? The Philosopher's Stone is famous for all the times people have taken command of its power and tried to do crazy things with it!"

"Yes, and that's because when it is used, people are alive to tell about it." Xelloss was not smiling now; indeed, he even looked somewhat respectful. "When one draws on the Lord of Nightmares, She destroys everything nearby before her power is canceled. And, in every case in history known to Mazoku kind, it ends with the one who has drawn upon it sucked into the Sea of Chaos itself."

That stunned her, at least temporarily. "You mean, without any hope for an afterlife?"

Xelloss nodded, shook his head. "Soul and body alike, completely gone. Nothing survives that power. It's akin to destroying a Mazoku on the Astral plane."

"Like what happened to Hellmaster Phibrizo," she whispered.

"Oi! Lina!" Gourry cried, nearly toppling her on top of Xel.

"Don't do that!" she shrieked back, regathering her composure. Apparently they'd wandered into the center room without her realizing it. She noticed that a number of doors opened off from it, so presumably no matter which door they'd chosen, they would have ended up here. Gourry'd been so pleased with himself earlier, however, that she didn't bring this to his attention.

"Sorry," he'd said. "But Amelia found something."

The room was indeed grand looking. Larger around than the Water Dragon King's shrine, held up by giant columns of exquisite design, it was lit only by the Light spell on her dagger tip and a powerful source in the center of the room that resembled a sort of staff, surrounded by a ring of waist high wall. Zelgadiss was inspecting this as Gourry and Amelia were scouring through one of many volumes of books.

"That was quick," Lina said, coming over to appraise the goods. "What, was it right on top of the pile?"

"Actually, it was alone on the stone desk over there." The Princess indicated it with a quick elbow-jerk. "I guess its owner was the last person down here."

"The elves' priest?" Zel asked, wandering up. Amelia shook her head and opened the book to the first page, holding it over for Lina to see. Giving the amount of light already available, she sheathed her dagger and took the small tome for herself.

Reading aloud, she said, "The Journal of Lyle de Seiruun."

"The Prince who left Seiruun to form the country of Panifess?" Zelgadiss asked, peering over her shoulder.

"The country of Halgon and our elven attackers," Lina agreed, flipping through the pages. "What's this doing here?"

"The last few make some sense," Amelia said helpfully. "I don't know what that Legacy stuff is all about, but it's in there, too."

Indeed it was. Lina narrated the text, skipping the date at the top for urgency's sake.

It has been centuries since the elves were with us, and I think I've discovered their fate. What's worse, I believe I may fall to the same end. I cannot let that happen; I owe more to my subjects than that.

A brief glance up to Xelloss. Nothing to read there. Lina went back to the book.

I am leaving my country, and I will give it leave of these cursed Legacies as well. I may not be able to take the other one without Varena noticing me (gods take me for trusting her with this information!), but I can at least depart to my corner of the world with this one where it may not harm anyone. And hopefully, without the two of them in the same city, anyone who wishes to call upon both their powers and unleash whatever hell lay within will be thwarted.

I feel much regret on departing when there is such conflict within the walls of this city due to Varena's mishandling of power; I believe the desire to help the people will always burn within me. But for the good of all, this must be done. I can only hope the witch does not stop me before I can flee!

Well, that is all for tonight. I hope to have a chance to write more, but I may be forced to act quickly, lest I am discovered.

Lyle de Seiruun

Lina closed the book. "That's all."

"I guess he had to leave pretty quick then," Gourry thought aloud.

Amelia nodded. "The date in the book is within two days of the discovery that he was missing," she said. "I remember all this from history classes. It's pretty romantic, not counting the stuff about the Queen Varena."

"History probably has him fleeing from her wrath for political reasons," Zelgadiss murmured. "I doubt they mention anything about Panifess, or these Legacies."

"Hai," Amelia agreed. "Not a word."

"I think we better keep this for later," Lina said, tapping its cover with her fingers. "Kind of cryptic to read down here."

"But I think it's taught us one thing already," Zelgadiss said.

"And what's that?" Lina asked.

"We need to be headed for Panifess."

She nodded, grinning. "I guess if we're going to find anything, that's where it would be. Back to the castle to make travel arrangements, then."

"Right!" Gourry and Amelia chorused, peppy for no particular reason. Zel, looking thoughtfully at Lina and then Xelloss, acquiesced with a slight nod. And then, in a sudden blur, they were gone.

"What the hell?!" Lina shouted, leaping to action. A hand clutched at her shoulder, and she swung around full force. Xel ended with a facefull of boot.

"I sent them back to the surface," he explained after resetting his jaw. "Nothing to get yourself worried about."

"I don't like Mazoku sneaking up on me," she grunted. "Why am I still down here?"

In a freakily calm voice, Xelloss turned and walked to the glowing sculpture in the center of the room saying, "Come here, Lina." She complied, too out of sorts not to.

He stretched his hand toward the staff, looking at her solemnly with his Mazoku eyes. Atop the magical light source was set a small round pedestal. She took this in as she hopped over the wall between it and her.

"With the death of Aqualord Ragradia, the barrier protecting this Legacy disappeared," he explained, pointing the end of his staff at the structure she'd just climbed. "And there was no one around then to notice. No elven priests, certainly."

"And so it was left down here until Lyle came across it," she surmised, looking at the empty little seat where the Legacy of Twilight had once resided. "But he took it with him to Panifess."

"That one's already in the hands of our enemies," Xelloss informed her, quite seriously. "But thankfully, we have the Legacy of Dusk."

"We do?" Lina asked, eyes wide. "But I never got to a room like this. I didn't even see it!"

"That's because you drew its attention to you," Xel said, and she was totally transfixed under his gaze.

"What - what do you mean?" She could barely move.

"The Legacies were originally the Sea of Chaos itself. It can transfer its power as it sees fit." Xelloss closed his eyes. "Lina Inverse, you are the new Legacy of Dusk."

A moment later, she was standing in the middle of a very weirded-out Phil's study with her friends.

"Lost to your memories?"

"Not at all," she answered, adapting to the freak-out mind conversation smoothly enough. "And yes, I know who you are."

"Grand. Then you know the power you possess."

"I understand that it exists. I have no idea how to use it."

"Ah." The voice paused. "You will, when the time comes."

"I assume you can speak to me at any time, then?" Lina wasn't particularly enthusiastic about the thought.

"I could," the voice answered. "But I will not. To do so would destroy your sanity, almost as I completely encompassed you in your battle against the Hellmaster. In order to speak to Me safely, you must be in contact with at least two of, as you refer to them, My Legacies."

"Is the other one in Biatz?" Lina asked. She was given the impression of discontent.

"No. But as you may have known, all the laboratories built by the race known to you as elves are connected through magical orbs they had created. Use this information as you wish."

"Okay. You're saying the one with the other Legacy is in an elven laboratory as well. That I'm, in a sense, contacted with that one as well as the one inside me."

"Perhaps. I do not direct the fate of life on your plane; I watch and intervene only when I see a shift to the Balance. There may be one coming in the future, but it is not on scale with the Hellmaster's plans. Thusly it is not worthy of my complete attention. I will assist you minimally, Lina Inverse, but hopefully that is more than you will need. It had better be, for you to be prepared for what is to come."

"Wait, I still - "

The connection was lost, the voice was gone, and Lina suddenly felt very, very tired.

Zelgadiss, too, was embarking on a search with his soul. And just as Lina, he was greeted by a disembodied voice.

"Hello, Zelgadiss Greywers," this voice said, and all concentration was lost. Any assistance he had meant to give was gone the moment his mind latched ahold of that voice, and the face of Rezo appeared before his spiritual self.

The Red Priest laughed silently, regarding him with those blind eyes. "What?" he asked finally, amused. "Aren't you happy to see me?"

"Rezo," Zelgadiss finally growled, his fingers curling into a fist. He knew this wasn't happening, and knew that no physical attack would help even if it were. His body did not seem his own, however, and his mind had given way to his emotions.

"That is no way to greet one who is twice over your elder," the bastard said. "Especially not after I granted your request for power with such an open heart."

"Had I asked to become a freak, I would have thanked you!" Zel spat.

"What is the matter, after all? I thought you were making such progress over the years. Leaving your bitterness behind, learning to live with yourself..."

"I could never become accustomed to this." Zel was already preparing a full library of spells. "Never!"

Sighing, Rezo raised his staff. It fell back to the ground with an alarming clang. "If that is true," he answered, "you are truly damned to a life of misery."

Screaming with rage, Zelgadiss attacked.

"What's wrong with him?" Lina asked. She'd come to and had been able to get her wits about her when Zel's body, sprawled beside her on the floor when she'd awakened, began grunting. His left foot kicked a few times.

"Nothing, I hope," Selena answered. She was sitting at his side, trying to rouse him. "He just fell over after you two began your... spell. We can't get him to wake up."

"My spells don't work," Galef explained. "Although admittedly, I'm not the best at white magic."

"I don't think this is something we can do with low-level tricks," Lina said. "I don't know what, but we've got someone very powerful after us."

"But why is he playing with his mind?" Selena cried. "Those nightmares, and this... Whatever it is, it's driving him crazy!"

Gourry shook his head. "Why would they want to do this to Zel and Amelia?"

"Maybe they just haven't gotten around to us yet." Lina gritted her teeth. "In any event, we've got to get him out of here. Gourry, Zachard, you two get him up the stairs. Galef, you'll be able to hold his weight better, prepare a Levitation spell to take him back to Biatz. Selena and Jer - "

"Ah-ah!" someone cried from the stairway. "I think you should just stop right there, how about you?"

Lina clenched her teeth, didn't bother turning around. "Cairi."

"Hey," he greeted, stepping into the room's small circle of light. A gasp flew from Selena, and when Lina turned, she nearly dropped her knife.

Cairi's wound had apparently had time to fester. The two halves of the chef's face were now crusted over, flopping on their own respective sides of scalp. That once perky chef hat was now burnt and blackened, bobbing solemnly away from the other. His widely parted eyes nearly bulged out of their sockets, and whenever he spoke, it was the left side that had privilege to his tongue. This was, of course, purely a Mazoku head trick; the hell of it was, it worked pretty well.

"Damn," Lina managed. "You're an ugly son of a bitch."

"All thanks to you," Cairi answered bitterly. "I see you left the Princess back in the town. I was hoping she were here, but I guess it will be easier to pick her off separately. When I'm done with the three of you, of course."

"There are more than that here," Zachard said, looking around. "Can you not see very well? I think we can light the place up better for you - "

"Shut up," Cairi said, and the dopey swordsman was flung backward into a wall. "I have no interest in these people. Only Lina Inverse and her cohorts matter to us."

"Whenever I hear my full name, I always know it's gonna be trouble that follows." Our Heroine sighed, flipping her hair back over her shoulder. "Look, I'd better just tell you. I'm going to want some answers this time."

"Good luck getting them," Cairi intoned, and thrust his hands toward the ceiling. The last thing Lina and her gang realized was that the floor had given way beneath them and they were starting an uncomfortable descent into the lab's basement.

Amelia sat up in bed.

"Your Highness?" Raleic was immediately bedside.

"I had a dream," she mumbled, speech difficult with blurriness.

"I'm sorry, Your Highness," the postal worker and self-appointed nanny consoled. "If you want, I can get you some more tea - "

"Not that dream," Amelia replied quickly. "I think Zelgadiss..."

Her voice trailed off like some elusive dream, and before she could bother to find it again she'd hopped out of bed and made for the door. Raleic, startled into action after her quick on-the-job doze, soon followed.

The group landed without too much damage, thanks to those good old Levitation spells that kicked in at just the right moment, and a handy Balus Wall that shielded off the fragments of rock that were a bit slower in falling. Cairi, above, was laughing, but there really wasn't any reason for it; it's just something anime villains do.

"At least he's alone this time," Lina mumbled to herself. She took a quick look around. The room was obviously very large, with only a small fraction lighted (and that from her dagger, still aglow). She could faintly make out shapes of what appeared to be crystals, weird magical devices, and a lounge chair or two. The magical energy of the place was intense, even after centuries of disuse; given more time, she would have been glad to scour the place for hours. No such luck, however, and she returned to sizing up their opponent.

"This shouldn't be too difficult once he gets close. One more Laguna Blade should take him out, he couldn't have had time to regenerate all the way since last time." She spoke up. "Anyone who can't use magic, get behind us. This isn't a fight you can win."

Gourry, Zachard, and Jer reluctantly broke away, forming a half circle behind the other three. Selena and Galef took up position on either side of Lina.

"How much magic have you taught her exactly?" Lina asked the sorcerer, cocking her head toward toward the girl.

"I guess we're about to see," he answered grimly. Selena drew her hands together, the picture of deadly beauty. "You say this guy's strong?"

"Strong enough to be a serious annoyance," she agreed. "You can distract him with your summoning magic, right?"

"More than distract, I think." Galef made sure the right amount of haughtiness reached his voice, and then fell quiet as their opponent descended swiftly for them.

Cairi hovered over Lina with his destroyed face, grinning on both halves. Selena had trouble keeping her concentration at such a sight, and Galef was obviously doing all he could by keeping down his lunch.

"Ready to see this through to the end?" the chef asked, almost idly. Lina's teeth clenched; she was sick of cocky villains.

"I am if you are," she returned. There wasn't going to be any mercy this time; her hands clenched at the air, ready to call upon the chaotic blade as soon as she had the few moments necessary. To her side, there was a flurry of robes; the battle had begun.

"Lesser Demon, I choose you!" Galef thrust his open hands to the sky, his cry met by the conjured forms of three freakish goat like beasts. Fire consumed Cairi's figure, and Lina was about to begin her chant when all three of the monsters exploded from the inside out.

"That was cute," Cairi sniffed, emerging from the fire unscathed. He flung forward as a blur, his fist a mass of darkness, missing Lina's stomach by a fraction. Nimbly skipping backward, the sorceress landed neatly on her feet, ready for a second attack... and realizing too late that she would not be on the receiving end of this one.

"Gourry!" she screamed as Cairi reached for him. The swordsman swung hard and quick, but without any effect; the Mazoku caught the blade in his hand, sending surging blasts of dark waves along it and into her sidekick's body before he could let go. He screamed for a moment before going limp and falling backward, unconscious.

"Gourry!" she cried again, dashing forward, the words of the spell working fast in her mind. Before she reached them however, she found herself face-to-face with the two elves from the other day. She had just enough time to acknowledge them before bowling them over completely, lunging for Cairi and muttering that spell. Ralov and Fairn cried for a penalty shot from the background.

"Lord of the Darkness and Four Worlds, I beseech thy fragments..."

The Mazoku swung around, bulging eyes slit. Teleporting swiftly, he and Gourry reappeared far above, much out of the Lina's reach. "Kill her," he snapped at his elven henchmen.

A clash of steel behind her; she swung around to see Jer and Zachard deflecting two elven blades from her unprotected torso. The elder gave her a nod, knocking Ralov off balance.

"We'll take these two," he told her.

"Ergh," Zachard agreed, parrying Fairn's advances.

Lina didn't have time for thanks. She swung around to see Cairi produce his own sword from his hand, a weapon created from the swirling vortex of darkness in his soul. This wasn't like the Laguna Blade; this one was purely of his own energy, filled with whatever dark and poisonous motives drove him and his companions. She also registered something hard and spiky under her foot; trivial, but she kept in mind.

"Stop!" she shouted, raising her hands. "What the hell do you guys want from us?"

"Only to get you out of the way," he responded down. His blade was stayed at his side, but he could change that quickly. "It's nothing personal, you know. You just happen to know the wrong people." Gourry began to stir, but was held tight.

"And what exactly do you think we'd prevent you from doing?" she cried up. The sound of swordplay echoed behind her. "Take over the world? Even a dullard like Gourry could see a cliché like that coming!"

"She's right," the half-concious captive agreed. Cairi answered this charge with a smirk.

"I'm afraid our goal is nothing at all that extravagant. We're simply out for revenge."

"Revenge against who?!" Lina shouted, hopping up and down. "And why the hell do you think we'd care?"

"Whether you'd care or not, you'd eventually get in our way." He shook his head, as if she'd been forcing his hand. "He'd make sure of it. He's a master of manipulation."

"Who are you talking about?!" She stomped her foot, glowering. "I don't give a damn for Mazoku quarrels."

Cairi was done chatting. His sword rose, came close to tapping Gourry's skin; he cringed in pain, the simple proximity of the spiritual weapon causing pain. "All you need to know is that your record of Mazoku killing has gotten you quite a record," he told her complacently, "as has the company you've taken. And now you can watch as this one dies."

At the cry of "Monstrous Occultic Eye!" from behind, Lina leapt into action. Apparently Galef wasn't as dense a bastard as he seemed; a giant orb appeared behind Cairi, blasting him with a plasma shot to the back. This in itself didn't seem to cause the Mazoku any harm, but it was then that Lina ducked down and flung the thing she'd been standing on. By the time Cairi saw the unconscious chimera coming, it had already knocked Gourry out of his hands and into the Levitation spell of a very timely Selena.

"Nice," the sorceress commended her assistants, as Zachard and Jer disarmed their elven adversaries and held them at bay, swordpoint-to-throat. She turned back to their main adversary. "Guess that takes care of that."

"You think?" Cairi responded, she noticed too late that his sword arm wasn't there. It appeared directly in front of her, the blade cutting into her stomach.

She gaped, open-mouthed, at the protruding weapon. The sight took Jer and Zachard by surprise, and the next thing they knew, they were being tossed across the room by a blast of a spell from the elves. Selena and Galef were next, rendered swiftly unconscious as the two henchmen ran to finish off Lina Inverse for good.

"Lina-san!" someone cried, and as she prepared one last ditch effort to roll away from the assailants, she watched as the giant throne fell directly on top of them both.

There was silence, filled only with a few blinking sound effects.

"The hell?" Cairi mumbled, squinting to see a figure climbing its way on top of the piled heap of iron and elf.

"Two more fiends crushed under the Weight of Justice!" Amelia cried, her fingers raised in a V. Raleic half-heartedly waved a colorful flag with the phrase "Justice Rules!" in the background.

"Hey!" Lina shouted up, waving with both hands. "Nice entrance!"

"Yosh!" the Princess cried, and directed her attention to Cairi. "And now for you!"

"The hell!?" Cairi shouted, just in time to meet face to face with a Ra Tilt. The outline of his body squirmed, wavered, and then dissolved. Lina whistled, her brows raised.

"Wow," Gourry said, stumbling up from the background. "That was good!"

Amelia beamed, casting her eyes about. "Zelgadiss-san saw, didn't he?"

The swordsman held up the chimera's knocked out body by the collar. "Naw, he's out." And then on seeing her face fall: "But I'm sure he'll be really excited when we tell him about it!"

"That's not important now!" Amelia was quick to cover up. "We've got to take these two back to prison - "

"Like we'd let ourselves get caught like that," Fairn growled, teleporting in front of her young girl, sword in one hand, swirling ball of energy in the other. Raleic was on the ground behind her, already dealt with. "That would be an insult to our race's memory!"

"It would be pretty humiliating," Ralov agreed, appearing behind Lina and thrusting his sword point an inch from her throat. "One of the points on that thing really dug into my side. I swear, if I die from Tetanus, I'm going to..."

"Let her go," Gourry growled. His sword was in his hand in a flash. "I could dismember you before you moved, and you know it."

"That where I come into play," Fairn said, and blasted him with a fistful of raw dark energy. He hit the ground with another scream; this was not his day.

"This is for Gregory," the female informed them, her muscles tensing for the strike...

...and her mouth dropped open when she found herself staring at her own arm on the floor, hand still clutching the sword, blood splashed like a crazy warden's attempt to liven up death row.

Amelia took the opportunity to flip out of her grasp and knock Ralov's sword aside, freeing Lina and taking position above Gourry's groaning frame. The male elf hardly noticed.

"Fairn!" he shouted wildly, running to her side. "Oh, Gods, are you okay?"

As she turned to him, Lina and Amelia had time to snap out of it, and took in a sight that sent them both psychologically reeling; Selena Dyne, standing with a raised and bloodied sword, her eyes set in a steely glare. Amelia was suddenly sure her rescue story was going to be greatly overshadowed.

"What happened?" Ralov was asking stupidly, his hands flailing over the smooth shoulder that once went on to connect to an arm. She was in no better condition, her mouth agape, simply staring and not comprehending.

"Should I try a Healing spell?" Amelia asked, unsure. Lina looked to her and was about to respond when at the edge of the light's reach in the huge room, darkness began to spill forth, coming together in a solid form.

For a moment, Lina (as certainly many of the readers, as well) was sure it was Cairi, but it didn't take long to make out a woman's shape in the collecting void.

"Hey, it's another girl with bigger breasts than Lina!" Gourry cried from the floor, and had his face immediately stepped on.

"This is the last time," the woman called to them. Fairn and Ralov looked up, as if awakening from a daydream.

"Who are you?" Lina asked, gritting her teeth. "Out for revenge as well?"

"I'm done with mind games and charades," the woman spat. Her eyes were the red, bloody slits of all Mazoku, her lips full and trapped in an enraged sneer. "The next time we meet, all four of you are dead!"

"Cairi?" the sorceress asked, taken aback. "You're still alive?"

"You haven't even met our Lord," Ralov cried. At some point he'd shrugged out of his cloak and draped it over the stump of his companion. "You stand no chance against her, and you'll stand no chance against him either!"

"Your death warrants have been signed," Fairn screeched. The sparkle of tears stood out on her cheeks. "Thank L-sama I took Halgon from you before he wound up with a knife in his heart!"

"You did take him, then?" Lina cursed, reaching for her dagger. "You realize I don't take the kidnapping of any of my companions lightly, even stupid ones I hardly know."

"What you take lightly," the Mazoku intoned glaringly, "is of no consequence now. You'll come to check out the elven capital in Panifess, as you've been planning, and there we'll settle this. You will not interfere with our greater plans."

"Then I look forward to seeing you," the sorceress agreed, eyes locked and not wavering.

A beat, two beats, and then all three of them were gone. Fairn's dismembered arm went with them as well, and the sword it held clanged as it settled to the ground.

No one spoke for a minute, and then:

"A last parting gift, looking forward to our next rendezvous!"

A short humming sound began from one of the long unused elven devices, and then another, and Zelgadiss shouted, "Quick! A defensive spell!"

Galef and Amelia converged to form a solid one; Zelgadiss woozily found his feet and attempted to assist. "You picked a damn good time to come around," Lina complimented with a pat to the back. She was then about to suggest to Selena that she help, too, but the girl had the look of one who's just awakened in the middle of sleep walking. Probably the first time she'd drawn blood; the sorceress left the girl to herself.

The spell formed around them, strong enough just as the laboratory exploded. Lina quickly levitated all of them up and out, their protective bubble riding the shockwaves of the blast to safety.

"Kind of reminds you of Rezo, doesn't it?" she asked while they were spinning out, and Zel's eyelid twitched.

Raleic came around eventually. They didn't have as much luck with Selena.

The girl sat all night, refusing to sleep, huddled up by herself and staring into space. Her absorption was relieved only every so often, when Zelgadiss awkwardly asked her a question, or offered her something to eat. Amelia made sure she wasn't present whenever that was happening. As far as Zel himself was concerned, he could not remember a thing about his mental battle with his great-grandfather, and his sleep that night was dreadfully unfulfilling.

On a lighter note, however, Lina and Gourry had found their own undisturbed area that night and sat together, looking at the stars. There's nothing quite like gazing skyward at night to shake off the effects of a taxing battle.

"Here you guys are," Jer greeted them eventually.

"Hey, mayor-san," Gourry said. "How's everybody?"

"Selena will be fine," he assured. "I'd have a seat with you, but this back of mine's been killing me."

"Well, old man, you did save my life." Lina winked up at him. "Go pamper yourself a while."

A slight flush of crimson bloomed against his weathered cheeks. "I'll be fine," he responded quickly. "I just wanted to ask if you folks will be staying with us long. You know you're welcome for as long as you'd like, we need a good tourist attraction."

"And what better to draw crowds than Lina Inverse, Destroyer of Corporations and Their Headquarters?" Galef asked, ambling up. Next to him was Zachard, nodding dippily. They hadn't taking the loss of their shack very well.

"It's appreciated," Lina grunted, repressing the desire to throttle all three of them. "But we've got to be on our way in the morning. That thing is right, we're on our way to Panifess."

"You realize they'll be waiting for you."

She nodded. "And we'll be waiting for them."

Jer smiled. "Impressive as ever. You know I'd offer my assistance, but for my age."

"The village needs you," Gourry chimed in. "And so does your daughter. We can take care of ourselves."

"Well, I can, anyway," Lina said, nudging her sidekick's ribs. He pretended to find this amusing.

"I've got to find a new sword before she completely destroys my self-esteem," he muttered to himself.

Sorceress, swordsman, chimera, Princess, and postal worker stood outside the mayor's house the next morning. On the front steps were Jer and Selena Dyne, Zachard, and Galef and his wife and daughter. The last two had rushed over as soon as they'd heard the chimera and his friends were leaving; Zel was less than thrilled to be on the receiving end of a number of sloppy little girl kisses. (At least, that's the effect he adopted for public display.)

"Drop by whenever you can," Jer said in farewell. "You know you're always welcome here."

"It was interesting making reacquaintance with you," Galef agreed, his golden tooth catching the sun. "Perhaps sometime we'll decide who's the better sorcerer through a duel."

"And the best swordsman!" Zachard agreed, attempting to look tough.

Lina and Gourry exchanged a glance. "I think we'll pass," she returned. "Consider yourselves winners by default."

"Hell yeah!" the two exclaimed, striking their fists to the air. Mrs. Kainzard rolled her eyes.

"Excuse my husband," she grunted, elbowing him roughly. "He's not a very good sport."

Further niceties were exchanged, but as they drew to a close Selena had yet to speak up. Jer finally placed a hand on her shoulder, when the group was ready to take off.

"I'm sorry," she told her father quickly, and then faced the others. "Take care on your journey."

"You too," Lina agreed. "And keep practicing your stuff."

"Hai!" she responded sunnily. Amelia breathed a sigh of relief, but sucked it back in at her next request. "Take care of Zel-sama!"

The blushing chimera turned away. "Isn't it time to go?"

"Yeah, yeah." Lina shrugged at the farewell committee. "He hates good-byes. Anyway, we'll seeya!"

"Farewell," they called after, and the group was on their way.

Back on the steps, the crowd respectfully dispersed. Jer and Selena were left finally, watching the retreating entourage.

"I think I'll go get something from Baker," the elder said finally, turning. A part of him knew what was coming before it actually came.

"I'm going with them, Father." She didn't avert her eyes from the dwindling figures. Jer sighed, turning back to her.

"As a dad, I've got to say I'd rather you didn't." He regarded her a moment; the determination in her eyes, the set of her jaw. He moved his head, watching the group climbing a hill, Lina as always in front, beckoning the others onward. "But as a public official, and an old man who can still kick some ass, I'm going to have to agree. I guess you proved yourself capable enough at handling yourself last night."

Her lips brightened in a smile, and she jumped on him, hugging him fiercely. "Thank you, Father."

"Ermf," he agreed. "Hurry up and go before you lose them."

She hopped up quickly, kissed him on the cheek, and was dashing off before he knew it. Watching her running into some bizarre situation that could her wind up with her death, the couldn't recall a time he'd ever felt more proud as a father.

Nor as a mayor, nor as a retired fighter.

"So we've got one more tagging along," Gourry beamed. "This should be neat."

"Yeah, as long as you keep yourself out of trouble," Lina warned. "I've already got my hands full taking care of this big idiot."

"I won't slow any of you down," she vowed, quite solemnly. Apparently she'd missed the intended humor of the exchange.

"Sheesh. You're almost as serious as Zel." The sorceress feigned a sigh.

"Someone has to be serious around here," he returned. Amelia, next to him, was too busy trying to keep a positive expression to enter into this conversation.

Far from where they stood, in the distant reaches of Panifess, a stocky little man was sleeping soundly, an elf was tending to his partner's wounds, and a Mazoku was reporting to her Lord.

"When they arrive," the Lord said, "you will make sure they die."

"Of course," she swore, her head bowed.

There was indeed going to be much bloodshed on the morrow.

Episode 6   |   Fanfiction