"Never did I want to be here again, and I don't remember why I came."
~ Godsmack
Godsmack
The Slayers eyed the newcomer.
The newcomer laughed nervously.
The Slayers looked from the newcomer to Lina, who was being unusually quiet.
The newcomer gulped and took a step back.
Now a silent Lina is never a good thing. However, it tends to be words when her shoulders are shaking in silent laughter. And the worse possible situation = silent + laughter x red battle aura over pi.
Don't you hate mathematicians?
"YOOOOOOOUUUUU!!!!" Lina lunged at the not-quite-stranger, dragging Zelgadiss behind her as he made a feeble attempt to hold her back.
"EEEEEEK!!!"
"YOU MADE A BIG MISTAKE GIRLY!!"
"Help!!" Zelgadiss wailed. Gourry grabbed his waist, Sylphiel to his and Amelia to hers. Thanks to the collective power of team work they managed to restrain Lina from going any further.
"LEMME AT HER!!"
"Save me Klea-san!!" The lilac haired girl jumped behind the confused former body guard.
"Maggie? What are you doing here?"
"SAVE ME!!"
Klea took one look at the enraged Lina and sweatdropped. "Forget it!!" she cried, leaping behind a tree.
"B-b-but - "
"Hey I quit remember!?"
"Let me go guys! I. Promise. I. Won't. Hurt. Her." Lina grinned through gritted teeth.
"Reunions are fun!! ^_^"
"XELLOSS SHUT UP!!" everyone san Maggie yelled.
"Well, that was rather rude. ^_^;"
"Ah...Maggie-san," Amelia struggled with her sliding footing. "What exactly do you want?"
"Um, unintelligible mumble."
"Eh?"
I said that iwantedtotravelwithyouall.... please?"
Well if that wasn't just the straw that broke the camel's back. The Slayers began to slowly back away from the again silent Lina.
"...you mean to say that after you mistake me for a boy and propose to me that you haVE THE AUDACITY TO ASK TO TRAVEL WITH US YOU FREAKY STALKER!?!?!?"
"...well, uh, yes. I mean no! I mean - uh..."
"I'VE HAD IT!!! Darkness beyond twilight, crimson beyond blood that flows, - MMWF!!!!"
"Come on Lina," Zelgadiss clamped his hand over her mouth this doesn't really require a Dragon Slave does it?"
"MWFF WRT IMF MWOS!!" Translation: DAMN STRAIT IT DOES!!
"Uhh, Lina," Klea tapped on her shoulder and Zelgadiss of course glared at her. "she did save your life."
"That's right!! I did!!" Her pale blue eyes began to take on a desperate edge.
Sighing, Lina tapped on Zel's hand, who promptly let go. "Fine. We're even then. But you can not travel with us!! She motioned to her friends to start moving.
"NOOOOOO!!" The desperate girl flung herself at the small sorceress' legs.
"LET GO YOU FREAK!!" Lina kicked her away.
"Itai @.@"
"First of all, you're clothes are NOT meant for traveling!" Her outfit, while simpler than before, consisted of a knee length navy blue skirt and white blouse with a red brooch startingly similar to Zel's. One should never travel in a skirt and the vest she wore practically screamed out her region's nobility.
"But - "
" - Second, we run into trouble. A lot. No one here," she motioned to the group "Can take the time to baby sit you."
"But she," Maggie pointed to Sylphiel. "Can't fight, I saw her!!"
"She is a very powerful White Mage and can cast a very high level Black Magic spell. She is a useful part of the group."
"But I can be useful too!"
"How?" She motioned to Amelia and Xelloss. "We have money and status covered."
"No really!! I'm an Enchantress!"
"Ano, I thought that Enchantresses wear skimpy outfits and go around seducing people."
"No Gourry-dear," Sylphiel said in her ever patient, ever adoring tone. "That's a succubus."
"Or an Incubus if it's male," Zelgadiss chipped in. "WHAT!?!" He cried as all eyes suddenly turned to him. (1)
sweatdrop "I don't know. Anyway," Lina continued "Enchantresses are a mixture of things really. They deal with Astral Magic studies, divining, fortune telling and the like."
"I thought that they are mostly scam artists." Amelia piqued.
"Not if they're licensed by the Guild. Are you licensed?"
She stood up and dusted off her skirt. "Yes! I'm level two!"
"Forget it."
crash "But why!?"
"I don't want a burden. First level or none. See ya."
"WAAAIIIT!!" She once again latched onto Lina's legs.
"WILL YOU STOP THAT!?"
shimmery eyes "I need travel experience to get to level one! I can already to everything and more!! I know about Astral Magic, I can divine, summon, draw power from objects, tell fortunes and more!!
"It's true Lina." Klea affirmed. "She does have a talent for it."
"Yeah! My family is well known for its psychics and stuff!!
"....WHY AM I EVEN LISTENING TO YOU PEOPLE!? AND WHOSE SIDE ARE YOU ON ANYWAYS!?"
"Lina-san," Maggie grabbed her arm. "Let me guess, you don't know what direction to take?"
"WOW! How did you know?" Gourry looked down at her, wide eyed.
sweatdrop "Actually I heard you guys talking about it earlier."
crash "Forget it! Let's go!"
"Onegai, Lina-san. I'm sorry about before, really I am. If I can help you decide where to go will you let me come?"
"...You're really desperate aren't you? Fine, but DON'T try to scam me cause I'll know." She tapped at her headband. "And I'll know if you try any mind altering spells as well."
"Lina," Zelgadiss cautioned. "is this wise?"
"Don't worry Zel! What can it hurt?"
"Yosh!!" Maggie cheered. "Now, what did I do with that chalk?"
"...Besides my head T.T;"
"There." Maggie wiped her hands, admiring her work.
Lina eyed the magic circle critically. It seemed to be alright...."I sit in one of the center circles yes?"
"Yeah, that one."
"What kind of runes did you use as the base?" Zelgadiss inquired.
"Oh,' she sat down in the circle in front of Lina. "those are a modified from a set created by my family."
"Really?" Sylphiel raised an eyebrow.
"I told you, my family is known for this stuff." She laid down four blank cards between her and Lina. Three where laid into a triangle shape with the fourth in the center of them.
"Those aren't Tarot..." Lina looked confused.
beam "No, I made them myself. They're my pride and joy! Please place your hands on the triangle's bases."
"Sylphiel-san," Amelia whispered in the priestess' ear. "Will those really work?"
"I'm not psychic, and my divining skills don't deal with the Astral Plane but, from what I can tell they seem genuine."
The entire magic circle began to glow as Maggie placed her hands on the top point of the triangle of cards. "Just relax and open your mind; let it be free."
Yeah right. Open up my mind and relax huh? I wish I cou -
" - Lina-san if you don't relax I can't do this." That was odd, she normally had trouble reading thoughts unless the person was completely entranced.
How had she.... oh hell. This is dumb, I can't belive -
Again.
Acceleration.
Memories.
Notagainwhydoesthisalwayshappen?
"Lina!" Gourry cried as gold electricity snaked down her arms.
Gourry and Zelgadiss ran to her, only to have the circle swell up into a force-field. "Why won't is let us in!?" He demanded.
Klea walked up to them. "It's a result of Maggie's runes. It ensures an accurate reading free from outside influences."
"What the hell where you thinking letting Lina go into a thing like that!?" Zelgadiss grabbed the green haired girl by the collar roughly.
"I promise you," her peculiar orange eyes bore into his, "That I would never let Lina go into anything I thought was dangerous - ack - "
"How do you know what's dangerous and what's not!?"
She fixed her eyes to the ground.
"Well!?" He shook her violently.
"...."
Maggie unconsciously reached for Lina's hands and was seemingly unaffected as the gold current ran down her arms as well.
It couldn't hurt her now.
She had a role to play.
What'swrongwithmewhywon'tthisstopIdon't -
Lina-san...
what's wrong with me!?!?
Let it go.
Let it go?
Let what go?
Maggie maneuvered their hands over the center card as the light grew even brighter.
Klea smirked at Zelgadiss. "Does it look like she's in pain to you?"
The Slayers watched in confusion as Lina's face visible relaxes. Maggie had a concentrated, but serene look on her own. But that still didn't discount the gold energy or why it didn't seem to hurt.
Maggie felt...she didn't know how she felt. She always felt more alive when she was looking into someone's mind, it made her feel proud that she had the power to help others. But now, now this was different. As if a hand was guiding her through the process lest she get lost.
This was so much clearer than normal, the clarity of it all threatened to overwhelm her mortal mind. Strange...Lina was torn, but there was only one real path.
A tri-colored road.
Red.
Black.
Beautiful gold.
Lina let her head sink forward, remembering everything and nothing.
A path to take.
A choice to make.
The end of a search.
A battle.
Truth.
In a final burst of light, the circle faded away, rushing into the center card, the two girls once again beginning to be aware of their surroundings.
"Daijobu Lina-san!?" Sylphiel ran to her. She said nothing, eyes transfixed on the once blank card. Sylphiel leaned over to get a better look. "A path?"
Maggie kept her eyes on the ground and trembled. The clarity....
With Sylphiel's help, the shaky sorceress rose to her own two feet.
"Lina..." Zelgadiss began.
She looked up to her friends, eyes resolute. "We're going to Zephilia."
Xelloss smiled to himself as he fazed back into his mistress' domain. She'd be so pleased.
"I thought I told you to stay with her," the Beastmaster's voice growled from the darkness.
"It's alright m'lord." He bowed low although he couldn't yet see her form. "They are sleeping in a camp. I....trust you know about the dagger."
"I do not." The distinctive smell of tobacco invaded the area.
"It let off a silver energy. It was a clumsy throw, perhaps it was a test....or perhaps a tease."
In the darkness, a cigarette light brightened and faded. "No, it was either a test or a first move. They don't have much of a sense of humor."
He smiled lightly. "No, I suppose not. They are going to Zephilia next.'
There was a pause. He could feel what she tried so hard to hide. Of course it wasn't his place to say anything. "... I see. Well, things are moving rather quickly."
"Yes they are mistress. wink I suppose it's the chaotic side of things." He could almost feel her mouth move into a smile of anticipation. "The Knight warned you not to try anything."
She removed the cigarette from her mouth and crushed it under a heeled foot, bracelets and anklets jangling all the while. "The Knight doesn't have a say in this matter."
He felt the corners of his own lips turn up. "That's what I thought. I suppose it's time to try to set things in motion?"
"I suppose." She began to fade away again, almost eagerly. "Our part anyway. Keep an eye on her Xelloss."
"As you wish." He himself began to disappear into the shadows.
What fun.
Honestly, this story keeps on going and we're still not any closer to finding out what's happening ^^; oops. Anyway, this chapter was basically to get from point A to point B. Sorry for any confusion. Let me know what you think!
(1) Yes, that was a pun off of Libby-chan's wonderful fic Incubus ^_^ waves I luv that fic....