In Her Honour
Author's note: The story takes place in a nondescript time; I imagine it after Try because frankly I didn't really like the new instalments. It's a XellosXLina story beware.
It had been nearly five years since Xellos travelled the human world. And nearly five years since he last saw his...well, not friends, not allies, nor acquaintances either. Mazoku like Xellos don't form relationships with humans, it's bad for business. However, he felt a certain fondness for a one Lina Inverse in particular. In the lifespan of a mazoku, which could go on for eternity, a single human should only be a fleeting thought... but she haunted him.
The Beastmaster no doubt had sensed Xellos' impatience over the growing months. At first Zellas merely needed Xellos elsewhere to do her bidding but over time she consciously gave him orders to keep him away from the human. It seemed obvious to her that Xellos was infatuated with the chaos that surrounded Lina Inverse, and not so much with the stupid girl herself. And it wasn't in Zellas' nature to sit Xellos down over tea and have a heart-to-heart about his obsession. So the only course of action at the time was to steer him away from her.
It had only worked for so long because as Zellas soon realized, the fate of Lina Inverse would always be directly tied to that of the gods and mazoku.
"Xellos..." The Beastmaster hissed. "I know you'll agree that these orders I give you are trivial at best and beneath you, certainly. However it has come to my attention that the Inverse girl has now gotten herself caught up in a political issue. "
Xellos held back a grin and replied: "What sort of human political issue could be of any bother to us?"
Zellas contemplated how much she should tell him. "There are...rumours...that Lina Inverse is aiding a political faction through her natural abilities. I need you to find out exactly who she's associating with and why they've recruited her."
Zellas forbade Xellos from revealing himself to Lina or anyone else until he had a full report of Lina's predicament. To Xellos, the thought of Lina being in any sort of predicament amused him; she was not the type to be helpless. However from the scarce details his master gave him; he had to wonder what had happened to her.
After he received his orders to track down Lina, Xellos parted immediately. The only whispers of her whereabouts placed her in the city of Ardros, the capital of the island nation Hellot. The country was only a few miles off the main coast of Zefielia, Lina's own native land.
Xellos took the ferry from the mainland with the merchants and peasants to sleuth around for hearsay. There was an excitement in the crowd and they chatted merrily about the upcoming festival celebrating their Honoured Lady Evangelina.
Xellos tapped the shoulder of a young woman with a baby in her arms. "I've never heard of your Honoured Lady. Is it a festival for your patron saint or someone from the royal family?"
"Oh no, Honoured Lady Evangelina is the human incarnation of our Goddess! She came to our island as prophesised nearly four years ago. At the time we thought she was a witch but her glory shinned through and we realized that she was our Goddess trapped in the body of a snotty-"the woman cut her sentence short, laughed nervously and continued, "What I mean to say is that the Goddess took the form of a young girl and tested our devotion and piousness."
"Exactly how did she reveal herself?" Xellos asked sceptically.
The woman raised an eyebrow and smirked at Xellos. Her look translated to 'pathetic non-believer' and she would say no more. She lifted her baby and kissed and cuddled it and ignored any more attempts Xellos made to talk to her again.
The ferry ride lasted a little over an hour and when it landed in the harbour the people poured out toward the main gates. The city was surrounded by high walls that were well guarded but generally looked peaceful.
The city of Ardros spread across half the island, it was basically the only city on the island and all other settlements outside the walls of the city were farm villages, likely to have been formed by single families that grew out. The city itself was nearly all constructed with red clay and the buildings seemed to have been pulled from the red earth by the hands of a sculptor.
Inside the city the houses and markets were being decorated by the locals. Long yards of colourful cloth were hung up and paper lanterns hung from window and clothes lines. The festival was to take place the next day so everything was preparing for family feasts and those who could afford it were buying up all semi-precious gems and trinkets for an unknown purpose.
Xellos took in the new town and sat down at an outdoor cafe. It was at that moment that he spotted her. Her long red hair and small framed kept covered by a cloak and hood as she sneaked her way around a corner and down a narrow ally.
Xellos' impulse was to run after her and catch her but he knew the best thing to do what he does best, stalk her.