Slayers: Overshadowed
Authors Note: Originally this was going to be a short story, but the story took on a life of its own after a certain point. All of the Slayers characters make an appearance except for Filia. She's still working diligently at her pot and mace shop as she should. There will be a bit of shipping going on, but only for laughs. I don't like writing romance, so it will be minimal and comical. Reviews are appreciated as always and I hope you enjoy the craziness. This story is meant for pleasure and fun and laughs and I don't own Slayers.
Also, if you don't already know, I write everything in present tense. I know it is unusual, but it's something I do.
Prequel: The Author
The Lord of Nightmares is feeling capricious once more as she watches the world flow by without her from her sea of gold. She is ready to have some fun. Whether it's because the lord likes to cause mayhem or simply doesn't care, no one can really say. Watching her favorite band of young teens, the goddess decides to screw with fate for no reason in particular; perhaps it is just to make life interesting. All of the players are almost in place, all she has to do is roll the die and watch the magic. In this game with fate the Lord of Nightmares decides to use Zelgadis as her main pawn. With him, she is sure to turn the Slayers world upside down. Her name shall now be fate, destiny, and coincidence.
Day One: Goodbye
The Slayers group is in Seyruun finishing up one of Zelgadis's newest cure schemes. Technically Lina and Gourry are only here because they are out of money and hungry. The fact that they happen to be here in Seyruun, at the moment, is purely a coincidence. The chimera is a different matter though. In order to attempt his latest cure Zelgadis needs a device to contract and control massive amounts of magic. His choices are either Taforashia or Seyruun; since he'd much rather spend his time with Amelia rather than Pokota, the choice is an easy one.
Now, the cloud of dust around Zelgadis's massive machine is beginning to settle as Lina, Gourry and Amelia wait to see if the experiment is a success. They are disappointed, but not surprised.
"Well I guess it's no surprise," Lina says as Zelgadis sighs in defeat yet again. He isn't disappointed really, ever since their last bout with Rezo his search for a cure hasn't been as intense. Inside he still feels a slight twinge of regret, as his gaze rests on his human companions. While studying them he is also reminded of why he won't give up. To be normal, to walk down the street without fear or hate staring him in the back and most importantly to forget. To escape the memory of Rezo's cruelty and his own inability to chose his fate. He wants to feel the world again, not just experience the hard grit of his own fingers. Zelgadis will never give up.
The chimera begins to feel light headed, an unforeseen side effect of having massive amounts of magic pumped into him. Basically, Zelgadis dies.
The Lord of Nightmares is really having fun today.
"Zelgadis!" Amelia cries as she rushes towards Zelgadis with Lina and Gourry quickly following behind her. Amelia kneels beside him to cast a resurrection spell and Lina joins her. Their efforts do nothing to help their friend, Lina can tell, but Amelia keeps trying anyway.
"Mister Zelgadis! Mister Zelgadis! You must be alright, it isn't fair. It just isn't fair." The princess begins pounding on his chest arguing against a cold fate. Due to fatigue, after trying many futile attempts to revive Zelgadis, Amelia collapses over his chest and begins to hiccup. She refuses to cry. Zelgadis means something to her, and she is just starting to accept those feelings, but now it is too late.
Lina doesn't move to stop the princess, but after a while of watching, Lina slowly moves towards her. She reaches over and carefully hugs Amelia, removing the girl who has draped herself over Zelgadis's body. Lina tries to be of comfort, but how can she when she feels empty inside as well. Lina is actually crying.
"Dam-it Zel." Lina says under her breath as she tries to come to grips with what has just happened. This can't be real. Can it? He's died right in front of her eyes once more. She didn't even try to do anything to stop that idiot.
Gourry hasn't moved. At first he is just staring in shock, but it doesn't take long for him to recover. He is a warrior and knows how to handle such things, which doesn't make it any easier. Gourry patiently waits for the girls to step away from Zelgadis's body and only then does he silently makes his way to his friend's side.
"Zel," Gourry says quietly and bows his head. Lina only nods at Gourry, but he knows what she wants him to do. Gently, Gourry hoists Zelgadis's body into a sitting position as he prepares to pick him up. Zelgadis is heavy so it takes all of his concentration to position himself comfortably around the unmoving body. He only slightly hears Lina's instructions on how they are going to break the news to Prince Phil and the kingdom, when something catches Gourry off guard. Faintly, Gourry feels a slight warmth still emitting from Zelgadis's body and tastes the humid breath barley escaping Zelgadis's mouth. Immediately, Gourry lowers the body again, putting his ear to Zelgadis's chest. But between Amelia's hiccups and Lina's distracting voice it is too loud to hear anything.
"Shhh," he briskly motions for the two girls to quiet down as he lowers his head once again to Zelgadis. Lina is about to bash him on the head for being so rude, but stops when she actually watches Gourry.
The clothing Zelgadis is wearing too thick so he can't hear anything, which frustrates the swordsman. It doesn't help that Zelgadis is made of rock which only makes it harder for Gourry to make out a heartbeat. There's got to be some way to tell whether or not this guy is alive. So instead he puts his ear to Zelgadis's mouth. This time there is no mistake, Zelgadis is definitely breathing, but only faintly. It is as if he is in a deep sleep. Gourry coughs as he smells the heavy coffee scent on his breath as it enters his own lungs. After a slight gag at the strong smell Gourry gives the girls a thumb up. "He's alive!" Gourry says.
The girls are thrilled. Amelia sends for all of the white mages in the kingdom, but no one can figure out what is wrong with the chimera. The only thing they can guess is that Zelgadis is slowly dying, so until they can figure out what is wrong with the chimera, they hook him up to a machine to keep him alive. The contraption is very similar to what Eris used on copy Rezo. It is the same principle, using magic to sustain the body. Theoretically, over time the machine should replenish Zelgadis's empty magic pool and life force.
That night no one sleeps well, even Gourry. Amelia and Lina are worried about Zelgadis, although Lina will deny it. She isn't about to admit how much she actually cares about the stupid blue man. As for Gourry, something is bothering his insides making it difficult to sleep. Perhaps it is something he ate, no matter how unlikely. He eventually falls asleep unaware of the plight his body is about to experience.
Authors Note: Well I just killed Zelgadis, almost. The Lord of Nightmares will have a big role in this story, but she will not be mentioned by name very often. Usually her name will be fate, destiny, and coincidence from here on in. Hopefully she'll stay capricious throughout this story. The other chapters will be much longer than this one, so don't be fooled by the short prequel. On another note, it was fun actually letting one of Zelgadis's cures nearly kill him.