Disclaimer: I do not own this series, or the characters from it. I do however own the few made up characters I will be putting in this story later on
February 2005
Author: Hakuyo Chan
Chapter One: Hero's Reunite
Long ago before human roamed and plagued the world, there was a time of ancients. Long, long forgotten in the distant past. even further into legend and myth than anyone could reach into in the vast darkness of the mind and history. All imortal beings among mazoku, dragons and beasts. had forgotten most knowledge of the ancients, andvery few could recall the "myths" from the beginning of time. But do not know the whole truth and believed it to be false. the only one who knows the truth, lies asleep, watching all her creation from the depths of her mind and dreams.
It has been several months. Nearly a year since the destruction of darkstar by Lina inverse, "sorcery genius" as she liked to be called. Her closest friends by her side. Amelia, a saillune princess and a close friend to lina. Zelgadis, a traveling sorcerer and swordsman, seaching for a cure to his chimeric body. Gourry, a traveling swordsmen and travel companion with Lina. Filia, the last of the golden dragons, and an aquaintence or two that lina couldnt really call "Friend". After the hard battle was won, the world nestled back into peice once again... For the time being.
It was another one of those pleasant sunny days. Lina and gourry were traveling on the road again and as usual, getting into trouble. She had gone back into her old habet's of searching for treasure, bandit gangs to beat up, stealing their loot and eating as many different dishes of food in her travels. With her tall, blonde male companion, gourry by her side of course.
She cackled menacingly as the bandits she had been hunting down retreited with their tails between their legs (Literally in one of their cases) shreaking in fear, their cloathing blackened and singed by one of Linas favorite small fire spells. (Small, but effective.) after she had scared off the bandits, she proceeded to gather up as much treasure as she could into a traveling bag she had been carrying, drooling as she gazed over the glimmering jewels, coins and golden treasures.
"Uh.. hey lina?" Gourry spoke up after a moment of watching lina in the background "I think its about time we went to the next town, dont you? I'm starving!" Gourry's tone was full of caution, yet slightly firm, braceing himself in case if lina decided to set him on fire too. Lina froze, snapping out of her little trance just as her stomach began to protest for being empty "hmm.. your right, I'm hungry too" she drew the bag shut and flung it over her shoulder, carrying it along with her as she continued down the road to the nearest town. Once they arrived, they found a place to stay for the night and eat in a small quiet Inn.
quiet until they showed up.
Takeing their seats, they flagged over a waiter and began ordering a rediculously enormous amount of food. which stunned the poor old man that he almost had a heart attack. as the waiter left to fill out the orders, Lina and her male companion sat at their table and waited for their food to arrive "Man, I'm hungry. why cant they hurry up!" Lina whined as she rubbed her now growling belly.
But just then she caught a glimps of someone familiar sitting a few tables away from them. his back faceing everything else in the room. She blinked, noticing the familiar light bage tunic, the hood from his cape pulled over the mans head. she could just make out a hint of light purply/silver wire like hair pokeing out from behind the hood, gently sparkling in the lamps candle light. He sat there quietly, drinking a cup of tea and minding his own business.
Lina jumped to her feet and ran over to the man, slapping him hard on the back, whincing slightly and holding her sore hand. curseing to herself for forgetting her friend's cursed hard stone skin "Hey zel! how's it going!" she said with teary eyes, holding her throbbing hand. The man almost choked on the hot liquid, tea spewing from his lips from the sudden startling slap on the back. His shoulders went rigid as he sat there for a moment. Almost dareing not to turn around and ignore the person, but he knew she'd only get mad and try dragon-slaving him. he cleared his throat "Hello Lina." Zelgadis spoke calmly with a hint of annoyance in his tone, picking up a cloth from infront of him off the table and drying his lips and chin off as gourry approched the table. Lina plunked herself down into a chair nearby at Zelgadis's table.
"hey Zel, how've you been!" Gourry called out cheerfully, pulling out a chair and sitting next to lina "Not too bad I suppose, and you?" the chimera replied, a slight smile appearing over his lips at his old friends enthusiasm "Good good" Gourry replied, his usual happy childish grin over his face.
"Find anything for your cure?" lina asked, crossing a leg over the other. Then paused as she noticed the waiter that had taken her and gourry's order shown up at the table they were seated at before. with all their food, looking both nervours and uneasy as he looked about for the ones who ordered it. "Hey waiter! bring that food on over here!" lina shouted inthusiasticly as she got to her feet, waving a hand in the air to get the waiters attention.
Zelgadis sighed in mild annoyance "Not yet. but I have heard of an interesting rumor." the stone man spoke as he thoughtfully placed his index finger under his bottom lip and his thumb against his cheek. Lina blinked, sitting down in her chair again as the waiter began placeing all the plates of food on the table before them, gourry didnt hesitate to dig in "A rumor? what kind of rumor?" Lina asked curiously, keeping her eyes on Zelgadis as she reached for a fork and spoon. occasionally inhailing as much food as she can, before gourry eats it all.
"Well.." Zelgadis sighed and lowered his hand, trying to keep his composure as gourry and lina ate noisely, occasionally fighting over some food "I've heard of strange sightings to the east of here. of a large, unchangeing mass of black clouds. I've heard people say that since it appeared, no rain has fallen from it, or on the town" the stone man paused and crossed his arms, leaning back into his chair as he continued "villagers in the area had said that it drifts slower than normal. as if there was a large chunk of land hidden inside it.."
"A mass of dark clouds? a chunk of land inside it?.. hmm... sounds suspicious.." lina spoke as she thoughtfully tapped her spoon lightly against her bottom lip. Gazing up at the ceiling, the table piled high with empty plates and bowls, both Lina and gourry's hunger satisfied.
"Oh, and theres something else." Zelgadis spoke again, pulling lina from her thoughts. "a preistess staying in the area had said she senced a strange power coming from the center of that giant cloud. but could not say what it was" Lina turned her gaze to Zelgadis "Really? an odd power huh.. Definatly worth investigating" her gaze shifted to the table as her thoughts spun on 'dark, unchanging clouds.. apparently dry, a strange power sensed from the center of it.. hmm.. I smell hidden treasure.' a flicker of myschivous inspiration sparked in her ruby eyes as did a small, smug smirk slipped over her lips.
Gourry blinked, finally speaking up after listening to the conversation, looking parplexed "But how can a big chunk of land, float around like that?" gourry asked, clueless as usual. Lina grumbled in annoyance and glanced over at gourry "Dont you ever pay attention Jellyfish head?. if this rumor is true, and theres a giant chunk of land floating around hidden in a shroud of dark clouds. then that must mean theres some incredible powers holding it up"
Gourry tilted his head, looking even more confused "Really? someone can do that?" Lina fought the urge to punch him in the face, sighing in annoyance instead "Dont you remember back when we were protecting prince phil? those two mazokus that attacked us, Mazenda and kanzel?" Lina watched as Gourrys expression contorted with concentraition "mmmm... Nope" Lina hit face first into the table, causeing it to tremble underneath her. she grumbled and pushed herself off the table and sat back in her chair. glanceing at gourry "I thought that even someone as stupid as you would remember something like that! if my powers hadnt come back after we killed Mazenda, I could have died!" Lina shouted, gourry recoiling at her anger like a frightened mouse. Lina then continued "those two cut a huge junk out of the earth, with all of us still on it, as well as a mansion. We fought them on that large slab of land, dont you remember?"
Gourry sat and thought for a moment, placeing his hand on his chin. "I think so.." Gourry replied after a moment
"Well anyways." Zelgadis interupted "theres one thing for sure, I'm definatly checking it out. there might be a clue on how to turn my body back to normal" Lina nodded in agreement "I'll come with you" she said with excitement ringing in her tone, forgetting about gourrys stupid questions. Zelgadis flinched slightly, then sighed in defeat. knowing it'd be futile to talk her out of it "Fine. just dont cause any trouble. ok?" his words were full of weary annoyance as he placed his left palm against his face.
Lina smiled and winked at him "What? lil 'ol me? trouble?" lina spoke, her voice full of jokeing amusement and laughing at Zelgadis's defeated expression. "Dont worry Zelgadis, I'll try to behave" Lina said as she stretched and let out a little sleepy sigh, then raised to her feet "Well, I think its about time we turned in for the night. we can leave early in the morning". Zelgadis nodded in agreement, watching his two friends make their way up the stairs to the guest rooms, faintly hearing two doors open and close.
Zelgadis sat there quietly, deep in thought. almost as still as a statue that he resembled. the stones around his face and exposed eye glinting gently in the candle light, giving a newly polished look. He sighed lightly, thinking to himself of his past and present frustrations "Whatever it takes.. I must find a cure.." he whispered to himself under his breath, his glimmering teal eyes displaying his frustration as he looked down at his hands. He got to his feet, also heading up to his guest room. sepret from lina and gourry's.
The halls were dimly lit with lanterns as he approched his door, although it didnt affect him that much; since he could see better in the dark than a regular human could.
He opened the door and entered his room quietly, closing it after he entered. walking over to a chair as he unclipped his sword from his belt and set it down beside it, resting it against the side of the chair. He then proceeded to remove his cloathing, starting with his cape. Unfastening the ward that held it in place, folding it and neatly setting it on the chair. he then reached down and unbuckled the belt that had held his sword, placing it in the chair also then removed both of his fingerless gloves.
As he removed his tunic, the faint sound of cloth brushing against stone was heard as he pulled it over his head, folding it and placing it ontop of his cape. Zelgadis turned around and walked over to the bed, a few darker stones scattered here and there in his smooth blueish stone skin glimmering softly in the moonlight.
The soft mattress sunk slightly to his weight as he sat down on the bed, feeling something grind uncomfortably between him and the mattress against his hip as he sat. shifting slightly as he reached into his pocket and pulled something out. He looked down in his hand at what he had pulled out from his pocket. his gaze sofened slightly as he looked down at what he had retrieved. It was the pink and blue ward bracelet that Amelia had given to him before they parted ways. he almost forgot that he had removed it from his water canteen and put it into his pocket for safe keeping. He sighed lightly, memories of the princess returning to him.
Zelgadis chuckled lightly "I cant believe I'm saying this.. But I actually kind of miss that justice worshiping little princess.." he whispered to himself with a touch of amusement in his tone. He got up again and set the ward down on the neat pile of clothes on the chair. sitting back down on the bed and removing his boots, then slipping under the covers and slowly drifting off to sleep as his head rested into the pillow.
There was darkness as far as the eye could see. Engulfed in the endless sea of blackness, Zelgadis floated limply in the center of nothingness. Slowly he opened his eyes, blinking in surprise then looking around franticly, seeing nothing but black. "W-where am I?.." his voice echoed through the empty space as he spoke, both confused and startled.
Just then, a light began to glow far in the distance, glimmering like a distant star in the dark night sky. Zelgadis's long elven like ears twitched slightly as they picked up a faint sound. "Huh? whats that?" he concentraited and listened hard as he stared off at the distant light, squinting his eyes slightly. As he listened, he could faintly hear the sound of a woman humming a beautiful, deep mystic tune. ringing softly through the endless darkness, seeming to come from the light in the distance. While he listented to the humming, he began to feel more and more relaxed, feeling calmer as the soft music surrounded him. But then he became aware that the tune sounded more sad than happy. Zelgadis swam through the darkness, kicking his legs slightly as if he was swimming through deep water. (Although he would sink if he ever tried jumping into deep water because of his stone skin.)
The light seemed so far off in the distance, the darkness seemed to stretch on forever, his body drifting along slowly, approching closer and closer to the light gradually.
Zelgadis listened to the female voice humming the sad tune, unsure if it was despair or sadness. Finally, what seemed like hours, he was close enough to the light that he could see a figure of a woman in the center of the light. He couldnt make out any details of her appearance. all he could tell was that the silhouette was a woman with long hair, which floated and drifted gently behind her. The humming stopped when Zelgadis was just a few meters away from the figure. everything grew silent as they floated there in the center of the black void.
A quiet feminen voice began to speak in a strange language. Zelgadis asumed that it was an ancient dilect, not understanding a word that the woman spoke. Her quiet whisper seemed to echo through the nothingness as she spoke in an ancient tongue. by the tone in her voice, it almost seemed like she was asking for help. Slowly Zelgadis drifted closer to the figure, trying to understand what she was trying to tell him.
Suddenly the figures eyes shot open, glowing an eery emerald green, gazing at him with mysterious unblinking eyes. Zelgadis's eyes opened wide, gasping lightly with sudden surprise as he froze in place, feeling numb inside and unable to move. He tried to speak, tried to move, tried to shout out. but to no avail, he couldnt react. All he could do was helplessly stare back at this shadowed female figure.
As if gravity had been switched on, Zelgadis felt his body begin to descend. quickly falling deeper into the darkness, away from the mysterious figure.
Thump! Zelgadis awoke suddenly after he hit face first into the floor. Looking around the room franticly, startled from the sudden rude awakening. one corner of the blanket was tucked underneath his waste, pulled half off from the bed when he fell. He pushed himself off the floor and sat on his feet, turning his gaze towards the window. it was still dark out. The moon glowing in the inky black sky, reminding him of the light he saw surrounded with darkness in his recent dream. a few beads of sweat cling to his blueish stone skin, glisening gently in the moonlight as he sat there quietly for a moment.
Troubled, the stone man looked down at the floor, remembering the dream he just had. "what did it mean.." he whispered to himself, trying to make sence of it in his mind. slowly he got off the floor, climbing back into the bed and layed on his back, pulling the covers back up. Zelgadis staired up at the ceiling quietly, thinking it'd probebly be best to keep that dream to himself. slowly he drifted back to sleep, and thankfully had no startling dreams for the rest of the night.
Morning had risen. The warm rays of sunlight seeping from the cracks behind the curtian, casting its beams of warmth across the room. a light, cool breeze seeped in through the partly opened window, making the curtian dance and flutter slightly in the breath of the wind. Lina woke slowly as the suns light whispered her from her slumber as it spread over her like a warm blanket. Sitting up, she stretched her arms into the air, arching her back as she did so and letting out a long sleepy yawn.
Lina swung her feet over the side of the bed and got up. getting dressed into her travel worn sorceress outfit and brushing her long firey red hair. After adjusting her talismens, she turned and headed downstairs to meet up with the others.
She was surprised to see that Zelgadis hadnt gone out on his own, as he usually would have in the past. instead he was seated at a table, talking to gourry. who's expression lighting up as he saw her
"Hey lina! Morning!" the blonde man said cheerfully, watching her approach the table and takeing a seat next to him. "So I see you've changed a little Zel. Normally you would have ran off on your own and left us behind" Lina spoke half serious, half in amusement as she crossed her arms, glancing at her chimeric friend with a smile. Zelgadis merely closed his eyes and shrugged with a small smile.
Lina laughed lightly "Well, once we have some breakfast, we can head out, right guys?" both men, Stone and flesh, nodded in agreement. "HEY WAITER!" Lina boomed as she slammed her right hand on the table, makeing both of her male companions jump, as well as a waiter nearby. who froze on the spot "I'd like a breakfast special, triple portions! and make it snappy! Lina Inverse doesnt like to wait for her food!"
Gourry piped up his order as well "Triple portion breakfast for me too please!" Zelgadis sighed in both annoyance and embarassment "Just baken and eggs.. and a tea for me.." the waiter wrote down the orders nervously and then ran into the kitchen. The trio heard verious noises from the kitchen, shouts, yelps in surprise and the clatter of dishes, pots and pans at work in a rush. within 20 minutes their orders were brought to the "hungry" costomers.
"Alright! its about time!" lina shouted in triumph, lunging at the food. Both herself and gourry digging in immediately, gobbling up all the food seemingly in just a few minutes. while zelgadis took his time on his breakfast, taking sips from his tea and watching his two friends gorge themselves with food. He sighed "I dont know how you guys can eat like that." he muttered partly to himself. but loudly enough for them to hear "You'd think I'd be used to it by now, after traveling with you guys for so long."
Lina took a deep swig of liquid from her mug, setting it down on the table and letting out a satisfied sigh "Well, what can I say? I have a passion for good food" Zelgadis tapped a stone finger against his forehead in slight frustration, standing up after a moment of thought "lets be on our way then, now that you two are finished eating" after paying the bill, Lina, Gourry and Zelgadis left the inn and began their journey to the east.
Who knows what adventures could sweep the unknowing travelers off their feet.
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Author's Notes:
I changed this chapter a bit. I thought it needed a little more to it so I just added a bunch of stuff, and just re-wrote a few things near the beginning of the chapter. So anyone that read it before, will have to read it over 'cause of the editing and such (I'll probebly be going in and fixing things like spelling and stuff every now and then, since the only writing program I have is Wordpad x.x sorry for sending this when its still sorta rough!) Anyways, Sorry that the second chapter is taking a bit, I kinda got stumped on what to have happen now, but the ideas are coming to me!... eventually.. well, I hope you all like the update! and the story so far