The Adventures of Zelgadis 1: Sands of Time

by Sar-kaz-m

Implied ZL. COMPLETE Short Story. Immediately after the events of TRY, Zelgadis ventures into the Desert of Destruction. What does he find there? Prequel to my fic 'Dungurra'.

Adventures of Zelgadis 1

Sands of Time

The desert suited him.

The constant subtle hiss of the shifting sands, the midday heat so great it sunk into even his bones, but comfortably.   At night the stars sparkled close enough to distinguish their colors, and finding the hidden pockets of green and blue among the unrelenting brown felt like a triumph.    The constant wind created a never settling cloud of sand-dust, causing the nomadic denizens of the Desert to all wear hoods and masks.  One only removed the protective "ubrus" once one was safely inside a tent.  And the tents of the Ryzians were palaces of silk and canvas.

But none of this amazing hidden world did the most to make him feel as if he was suited to this environment.  It was the overweening silence of the place.   The loudest sounds came from the sands.  The people of the Desert spoke quietly; their horses trained not to whinny.  Their dogs even fought silently.

And after years of bickering, speeches, explosions, and havoc, having the quiet room to think felt like a blessing.

He had met Sadiin al Ryzia in Elmekia, the empire of the Demon Peninsula that most closely bordered the desert.   Sadiin, upon seeing his hood and cloak, had immediately hailed him as "brother".  Even when proved that he was no brother to Sadiin's people, the nomadic trader had shrugged with the wry fatalism of his people, and invited this new-made brother into the sands.

Now, a month after that fortuitous meeting, Zelgadis stood on the edge of a Ryzian oasis at sunset and watched the first flashing stars appear.   A steady shushing sound from behind alerted him to Sadiin's approach.

"Tomorrow, my brother, we will swing southward, and then east and north again to home." 

Zelgadis had become accustomed enough to the Ryzian's unique accent that he could even detect the anticipation in Sadiin's voice.

"Why not just continue east?  It would be the fast route, wouldn't it?"  Zelgadis asked.

Sadiin's eyes above his facemask wrinkled, and Zelgadis knew the man was grinning.  "Ah, little brother, you do not yet know the ways of the desert!"  He gestured due east.  "That way lies Death, and worse."

"How so?"

"Not being so brave a man as some, I have never traveled east from this place, only south, but from my father's father's father's time, and older, we are told to never pass that way.  There, I am told, lies the citadel of the greatest of the Malifiqi."

"What are Malifiqi?  Another tribe?"

"No, not men such as we.  You would say….hum….Mazoku?"

Zelgadis immediately stared to the east.  Directly east.  Sadiin must be referring to the citadel of Hellmaster Phibrizzo.  The Mazoku lords were each associated with some sort of territory, with the exception of Gaav, who's own unique issues after the Kouma Wars interfered with his duties, so to speak.  But the Desert of Destruction belongs to Hellmaster, the first and most evil of all the Demon lords.

Now that Hellmaster was gone, destroyed by the Lord of Nightmare's Herself, what might be found hidden in his ancient keep?

Sadiin peered at Zelgadis's face.  "Ah, my friend, I see I have set your feet on the path to Death.  Please, forget such things, and ride with us to our home.  You will see feasting and joy there!  My wives will care for you, and you shall have concubines and wine and song and all manner of pleasures!"  Sadiin flung his arm around Zelgadis's shoulder.  "Come!  We will eat this evening with my cousin Ahman, and perhaps, he will gift you with his sister on our return home!"  Laughing, he drew Zelgadis away from the dunes, back to the camp in the bowl of the oasis.  The Ryzian men thought of only two things, profit and pleasure.  In their minds, greatness of one lead to the greatness of the other, and Zelgadis's assistance on the journey so far had

won him many friends in the caravan.  Swathed from head to toe in robes and scarves themselves, with skin ravaged from sands and sun, they found his appearance unremarkable.  The difference between the insular yet jovial and accepting attitudes of the Ryzia made a soothing change from the hostility and fear that surrounded Zelgadis most of his life.  Part of him wanted to just stay with the Ryzians, accept their ways and lifestyle, live in a silken palace of a tent and enjoy life.  But whenever he imagined it....... one key thing was missing, and without that one element in his life, he knew that any happiness he found would be pale and wan in comparison.

Hours later, after a meal of goat meat, cheese, dates, and all manner of desert fodder, and many skins of wine, Zelgadis still quietly stared to the east out the doorway of the tent.  Beside him, Sadiin belched contentedly and grinned at him.

"You see?  Stay, become brother to me and mine.  Your powers would command respect in my home, and all manner of delights would be yours for the taking."  He leaned over and in a low voice said, "We could even find you a lovely merry wife to brighten that long face of yours!"  Laughing at Zelgadis's expression, he continued, "For what man can be happy without a soft inviting woman to cool his fires, eh?"

"No."  Zelgadis's rejection was as cold as the desert night wind.

Dropping his jovial attitude, Sadiin studied him.  "Ah.  I see.  And so we come to the point of your journeys, the reason for this quest of yours."  He waited, but Zelgadis said nothing.  Lifting a skin of wine, Sadiin poured for them both.  "She is beautiful, then?"

Accepting the cup, Zelgadis's gaze returned to the desert.  "Yes."  His tone filled with a mixture of regret, longing, and hope.

"Ah.  Well, they say the fire of love burns a man so, he will go to the ends of the earth to quench it."

A brow raised, Zelgadis asked, "So I am that transparent?"

Chuckling, Sadiin replied, "Only if one knows what to look for.  Little brother, you are more like us than you think.  Very well, then - complete your quest, claim your love, and return to us here in the Desert.  You can swath your love in silk and jewels!"

"She has no need of silk and jewels.  Besides, I think your desert has enough fire in it."

Barking with laughter, Sadiin called to the other men still awake.  "Hear!  He makes a joke!"  Some of the others chuckled as well, smiling at Zelgadis with the sort of grin that comrades everywhere share.

"Seriously, my friend."  Sadiin captured Zelgadis's eyes.  "Do not leave us to go east.  I would have you as a guest in my home, not a memory to mourn."  The rare seriousness of Sadiin's words worried Zelgadis a little, but the Ryzian would not elaborate on the dangers to the east.

Dawn found the camp bustling to get underway.   The trip to Elmekia, rare for these desert nomads, had been unusually profitable.  Sadiin had explained that the journey was long for them.  Already, Zelgadis had been a month in their company.  Normally, they traded with the lands outside the barrier, but with it's lifting, the Ryzia had rediscovered trade routes long unused, and so begun the cross-desert treks again.

The caravan moved out only an hour after sunrise, but one person did not go with them.  Standing on the verge of the oasis, Zelgadis raised his arm in one last farewell as Sadiin and his people traveled south.  Swathed in his cloak, mask up against the dust, he himself appeared a Ryzian trader, left behind.  But the choice was his, and as the caravan wound south amongst the desert dunes, Zelgadis faced east and began the next phase of his journey.

BREAK***********************************

Zelgadis quickly discovered it was one thing to ride a horse or camel across the sands, but quite another to walk.  Within a day, he'd altered his habits so that he slept during the heat of the days, and traveled at night.  The heat or the cold meant little, yet he traveled better in the chill night than the scorching heat of day, and it helped to conserve water, which even he required at some point. 

Within a fortnight, he noticed the land became rougher.  The desert became rockier, outcrops jutting from the sands, until at last, nearly three weeks from leaving the oasis, he spied a ripple of darkness in the sands, about a day ahead of him.  Unless it was a mirage, he guessed it was a large canyon in the sands.

Pausing for a rest, he drank a little water.  A bracelet of pink and blue dangled from the canteen, drawing a little smile from him.  No matter how long his quest took, no matter how far he went, the bracelet meant he could always go back, to his friends, to his home.  Someday, he swore to himself, he'd return to that shining city a human man, and he'd rejoin his friends and his life.  Even more precious was the token buried safely and deeply in his pocket, the token no-one knew he carried.  The lock of hair had been carefully and quietly snipped from its owner the last night before he'd left his friends.  Doubtless, she was furious when she awoke to find him gone, and a lock of her hair cut off.  He often wondered which she'd be angrier over, whether she'd cursed him, whether she even realized what it meant.

He'd waited for the sun to set, the darkness sending cool winds across the desert.  He walked purposefully across the sands, aiming for the supposed canyon.  If nothing else, perhaps he'd find fresh water.

He didn't notice the sand devils at first.  The swirling winds caused miniature tornadoes like them all the time.  But after a while, the odd prickly feeling of being watched crawled up his neck.  He noted that the sand tornadoes seemed to keep pace with him.  Strange, but not out of the realm of possibility.

When their numbers began to increase and form a circle around him, like a barrier, he came on guard.  Stopping, he drew his sword.

Like it had been a signal, the tornadoes converged on him.  Not merely wind driven, Zelgadis discovered quickly that they were mindless minor demons!  A dozen charged him, driving the sands so fiercely that he felt the grains stinging his stone skin.   He lashed out with his sword, bisecting two, but to no effect.

The demons were little more than spirits of sand, a front line of wind and sand.  Any normal person might be scourged to raw bleeding flesh in moments, but Zelgadis's skin protected him.  Trying to fight his way out of the storm, he cast "ELMIKA LANCE!" into the gathered devils.

The astral attack ripped a hole in the barrier of spinning sands, and with a burst of speed he escaped their ambush.  Whirling, he called more astral power to him.  "BRAM BLAZER!"

The burst of astral power shredded the demons.  They were too weak to withstand so much astral power, yet that was not even Zelgadis's most powerful spell.  As the sands fell to the ground, he decided that they were meant to stop the casual traveler, no more than a fence at best.  But their presence confirmed that he neared something interesting.

Now on guard, Zelgadis traveled more slowly.  Clearly, not all of Hellmaster's power had been destroyed with him.  Zelgadis searched his memory for mention of a demon lord's power lingering after his death.  Some servants of demon lords were nearly independent operatives, as Valgaav had evidenced.  Others were merely mechanicals, random demonic energy until given form and maintained by the will of the master.  Clearly, these rude sand demons were minor enough to not need maintenance by the lord, yet independent enough to continue their duties.  He wondered what other tricks had Hellmaster left behind.

The lessened pace kept him from reaching the canyon that night.  Holed up next to an outcrop of rock, Zelgadis slept through the heat of the sun, setting a protection barrier around him of a sort he didn't need to be conscious to maintain.  It would stop minor demons like the sand devils, but any greater attack would get through.  Then again, anything greater would wake him long before a fatal blow.  He slept lightly.

In fact, it was no direct attack that did awake him, but a rumble under his ear.  Rising, he saw the sun had set.  Unusual for him to sleep so long.  He scanned the horizon ahead, expecting to see something.  Finally, he realized the sound came from behind him.

It rose like a tidal wave, blocking the last dying rays of the sun, blotting out the low western stars.  The wall of sand roared towards him. 

He immediately turned and fled to the east, pouring on his own demonic speed, but still the wall of sand gained ground.  Glancing back, he saw a multitude of demonic faces leering and jabbering in the wall.  The sand devils had banded against him.   The crest seemed to arch over him, reaching to devour him.  Ahead, the edge of the canyon loomed.  It was either plunge off the cliff or be buried.  Though he knew he could slap on a Levitation or Ray Wing in the blink of an eye, he didn't relish the idea that the wall of sand could still reach out after him in the air.  He'd rather defeat the thing than run.

Skidding to a stop, he began to chant.  "Ye who travel on the astral plane, passing eternally between the nexus. Aid my power and obey my will........."

The wall was nearly upon him.

"SPIRIT WAVE!"  The wide range astral attack tore into the wall.  In moments, the majority of the demons were ripped into so much astral dust, the few remaining unable to withstand the power and maintain the attack.  A massive shudder when though the wall as the demons maintaining it died.  However, there was still several tons of sand to avoid.

In a flash, seeing the danger, Zelgadis switched incantations.  "GOZ VU ROW!"  

Unfortunately, he'd misjudged the stability of the rock beneath him.

The magical earthquake ripped open the ground beneath the wall of sand, and the tons of sand, no longer held together by the power of the demons, poured down to fill the holes.  But also, the whole cliffside began to crumble, and Zelgadis was caught as the combination of collapsing sand and collapsing rock started a landslide down the hundreds of feet to the cavern floor.  Even the holes created the hold the sand collapsed, and Zelgadis, helplessly trapped by his own mistake, was buried by rock and sand that swept him off along over the edge and into the abyss.

BREAK********************************

"My lady, it was the chimera."

"NOT INVERSE?"

"No, My lady.  Lord Hellmaster's..... watchdogs attacked him.  He cleverly destroyed them, but in an attempt to control the sands, he caused the cliff to collapse beneath himself."

"THEN HE IS DEAD?"

"I believe so."

"YOU BELIEVE?"

Gulping, the Priest of the Greater Beast replied, "I will go to make certain, Mistress."

"DO NOT KILL HIM, XELLOSS.  IT MAY BE THAT HE WILL...."

"Mistress?"

"GO."

Nightfall in the desert.  A canyon hidden deep in the sands.  One part of the canyon's western wall had collapsed, tons of sand pouring down, creating a ramp of rubble and sand to the floor.  Sunlight glittered on the western wall, leaving the landslide and eastern wall to cast shadows across the scrub and the tiny stream on the canyon floor.

The silence of the evening was broken by the sounds of shifting rock and sand.  Emerging from the rubble of the landslide, a single hand of blue stone clawed at the brown rocks around it.  An arm clad in ripped beige fabric followed, along with another hand, and soon, Zelgadis dug his way out of the rock and sand.

Gasping and coughing, he tore his mask from his face, flinging back his tattered hood, and just breathed for a moment.  He'd come to in a pocket of sand, luckily uncrushed by rocks.  When he'd felt the ground beneath him crumble, saw the sands pour down on him, he'd been certain that it was the end.  He spun, tried to launch himself off the cliff, but with no purchase, he'd stumbled, taken a rock to the temple, and lost consciousness. 

Now, alive and battered, bruised, and exhausted from digging himself out of a desert grave, he decided the stars never looked so beautiful.  Almost laughing, he recalled an argument months ago.

"It's too dangerous!  You can't keep going off by yourself!  What happens if you're hurt, and we're not there to help you?!?  You could die out there in the middle of nowhere, and then what, huh, Zel?!?"

"Nearly got me, that time," he said to himself.

He pulled himself out of the rocks and staggered down to the floor of the canyon.  There, he plunged his whole head into the stream, gulping water.  Sitting back, he took stock of himself and his surroundings.  For the most part, his clothes were still in one piece.  The sleeves and legs were tattered, the cloak ripped in a number of places, as was the hood.  The sturdy leather of his belt had held, so he still had his sword.  One canteen had held, looped across his body, and miraculously, the bracelet still dangled from it.  Plunging his hand into his pocket, he withdrew a small bundle of cloth.  Carefully unwrapping the black fabric, he sighed gratefully to find the lock of hair still there, gleaming in the light.  Reverently, almost superstitiously, he gripped it tight a moment, then retied it with the red string and returned it to its place.  One ankle sheath and its accompanying knife were gone.  His wrist sheath still clung to his arm, but its knife was missing.  Much of his other gear he'd abandoned in Elmekia so long ago.

The stream in the canyon floor fed a number of small scrub plants.  To the south, the canyon twisted out of view.  But to the north.......

A squat foreboding keep dominated the northern end of the castle.  The stone of the keep was tan and brown, blending the walls of the fortress into the rock of the canyon walls.   Only two or three stories high, Zelgadis supposed that the interior plunged deep into the earth.  Hellmaster seemed fond of deep holes.

Sighing, Zelgadis decided to just stay where he was for the night, and clutching his sword, he fell into a healing sleep.

High above, a figure stepped out of astral space.  "My, my.  Isn't THIS interesting?" the figure observed, and disappeared.

The peeping of tiny birds woke Zelgadis.  Not that he could see it, but dawn was creeping up in the east.  The canyon's depth would keep in shadow until nearly noon.  With a groan, Zelgadis sat up.  Casting a healing spell on himself, he decided he'd been an idiot to fall sleep in the open like that.  And damned lucky too, that nothing had attacked in the night.

Finally ready to start the day, having healed and eaten what little jerky remained in his pockets, he rose and started walking towards the fortress of Hellmaster Phibrizzo.

Far off, another discussion about Zelgadis was taking place.

"Mistress, why are you so pleased he lives?"

"XELLOSS, YOU ARE MY MOST TRUSTED SERVANT.  KNOW THAT IF YOU REVEAL ANY OF THIS, I WILL DISSOLVE YOUR EXISTANCE IN A MOMENT."

Xelloss knelt obediently in submission.

His Mistress continued, "HELLMASTER WAS A FOOL, ARROGANT, BUT POWERFUL.  WHEN HE ATTEMPTED HIS IDIOTIC PLAN WITH THE INVERSE GIRL, HE LEFT PART OF HIMSELF BEHIND TO GUARD AND MAINTAIN THE BARRIER.  BUT WITHOUT HIS WILL, HIS POWER COLLAPSED.  THE BARRIER OF LIGHT FELL, AND DIVINE MAGIC RETURNED TO THE PENNINSULA.  BUT THE POWER OF HELLMASTER DID NOT DISPERSE.  IT WITHDREW TO HIS CITADEL, HIS SEAT OF POWER.  IT WAITS NOW FOR A NEW HOST.  THE NEW HOST COULD NOT HAVE THE POWER THE ORIGINAL HAD, BUT WOULD STILL HAVE THE PLACE OF HELLMASTER IN THE HEIRARCHY, THE POWER OF DEATH."

"You hope that the chimera will become the new Hellmaster.  But why did you not claim this power for yourself."

"WE CANNOT USURP THE POWERS OF OUR FELLOW LORDS.  WERE IT SO, WE WOULD FIGHT AMONGST OURSELVES FOR SUPREMECY."

Bowing, Xelloss observed, "Ruby Eye is wise."

"THE CHIMERA IS ALREADY PART MAZOKU. A MINOR BRAU DEMON PROVIDES HIS POWER.  INFUSED WITH THE LAST OF HELLMASTERS POWER, HE COULD BECOME HELLMASTER.  AND WE WILL BE THERE."

With an evil smile, Xelloss perceived his mistress plan.  "He would be under YOUR influence, my Lady."

Zelgadis peered into the dark passageway into Hellmaster's Citadel.  The tunnel seemed to lead straight into the fortress, going ever deeper into the earth.  Zelgadis drew his sword and took a deep breath.  Now or never.  He glanced one last time at the brightening sky, then cast, "LIGHTING!"  As he had in Rezo's lab beneath Old Sairaag, he tossed the ball of illumination down the shaft, then followed it into darkness.

An unknowable time later, he still trekked down the tunnel.  He'd seen no branching, no doors, no sign that the tunnel led anywhere but straight into the earth.  Just as he was about to give up, thinking Hellmaster was obviously insane, or maybe blasting some walls, just in case, he sensed a widening ahead.  Tossing another light ball ahead, he discovered a large chamber.  Square and nearly two stories high, he noted that three passages led from the room.  One, to the left, seemed to head upwards.  The one to the right was blocked after a few yards by a rock fall.  The one straight ahead was the start of a shallow spiral staircase ever deeper.

Knowing Hellmaster's proclivities for underground chambers, Zelgadis chose the spiral stairs.

After another hour of going down and down and down, Zelgadis was starting to get nervous.  Either there was absolutely NOTHING of interest down here, or he was due for an ambush any moment.

Finally, he found himself in another chamber.  Unlike the plain square above, this room was round.  A door to the right was ornately carved.  Looking more closely, he saw scenes of death and destruction carved into relief on the blackened ancient wood.  With a shove and a rumble, the door swung open.  And Zelgadis thought he'd hit the mother load.

A library!  A library of texts on shelves, hundreds of them.  Casting his Lighting high, Zelgadis snatched the first book off the nearest shelf.  Flipping in open, he eagerly began to read..... a cookbook?  A commonplace one at that.  Dropping it, he grabbed the next book.  A collection of Elmekian fairytales.

Frantic, he began to tear at the books.  Nothing but trivial nonsense.

Finally, a shelf alone on the back wall drew his attention.  Standing alone, the books were all bound in something he couldn't identify.  Pulling one down, he touched the cover, and shuddered in realization.  Human skin!

Disgusted, he dropped the book, wiping his hands on his cloak.  But still, these were probably the texts he wanted. Carefully he knelt and opened the book.

A minute of reading, and he had to stumble aside to vomit.  A litany of atrocities had met his eyes, written in a strange brown ink that part of his mind, the part undisturbed and logical, guessed was blood.    Leaving it on the floor, he shakily reached for the next book.  This one told of the myriad abilities of lower mazoku, with illustrations.  Bound in leather and written in true ink, it must have been made by a human, for there were rude notes disputing the information in the margins.  Hellmaster had been one sick, demented, bored Demon Lord, he thought. 

Suddenly a breeze brushed his neck.  Turning, he saw the other shelves shimmer.  Drawing his sword, he looked about, but the breeze stopped.  Glancing back at the book, he saw to his amazement that the words were fading!  A check of the book on the floor revealed the same.  Snatching the next book, he flipped through the pages only to see the words disappear.

"No!" he gasped, grabbing another book.  Flipping it open randomly, he read To remove the chimeric curse..... and the words vanished.

"NO!"  Zelgadis cried, pawing through the pages, but they were blank.  Enraged, he flung the book to the floor.  In his head he heard again the mocking laugh of Phibrizzo.   The library was protected still.  Shaking in fury, Zelgadis raised his hands.

"FIREBALL!"

The shelves in front of him burst into flames.  The pages of the last book, at his feet, where he'd read the words he'd hunted for years, began to flutter.  Picking it up, Zelgadis meant to tear it in two, but the book began to shriek! 

The keening wail knifed into his ears.  He dropped it to cover his sensitive ears, when all the other books, the volumes of pointless information began to literally leap off the shelves.  Diving about like demented birds, they flew at him.  Battering them away as best he could, he backed to the door.  Friezes on the wall came to life, snakes hissing at him and images of demons reaching to rip him.

"BOMB DI WIND!"  He blasted back the flock of books, dodging the claws of the carvings.  He felt his shirt rip as he got too close to a demonic wolf carved into the door.   He grabbed the handle of the door he'd opened, hissing as a molded snake sunk its fangs into his hand.  Yanking the door closed, he stumbled backwards, falling into the center of the round chamber. 

Grimly, he cast a healing spell on his hand as the ornate door subsided back to its former state.  Monsters and creatures returned to their frozen decorative state, if anyone could call them that.   Defeated, bitter, and angry, for a while Zelgadis could only glare at the doors for a long time, sitting on the floor.   Finally, a logical thought worked its way through his mind -- SOMETHING is still running things down here. 

Determined to discover what was going on, he rose and chose another doorway.  And found a passage down. 

Either Hellmaster and Rezo shared architects, or all evil loonies had the same idea, he thought sourly.  He had no idea how long he'd been inside the citadel, but again, down seemed the best choice.

It took much less time for this passage to open up.  This time, the chamber was part of the hallway, a long rectangle with only one egress at the far end.  Hundreds of rectangular pedestals lined the chamber.  Approaching one, he saw the decomposed corpse lying there, covered in dust.  Zelgadis soon realized that all the pedestals bore corpses.  All of them seemed centuries old, blackened with age, mostly skeletons and scraps of fabric.  The one nearest was adorned in ancient dusty clothes that had some resemblance to the robes of the Ryzia.  Humans, then.  Victims of Hellmaster.  Zelgadis knew that Phibrizzo had lost all of his upper level monsters in the Kouma War.  So these people must have been..... personally attended to.  Shaking his head at the gruesomeness, Zelgadis walked down the path between the biers, his footsteps echoing oddly.  Another breeze seemed to float through the room, and instantly alert, his sword still in his hand, Zelgadis froze.  The end of the hall was dark.   A thought sent his lighting high above, and he mentally enhanced it.  The sudden gleam of light revealed the new threat.

The corpses had begun to rise.

Shuddering and stiffly moving, they slide of their resting places, shedding dust and fragile fabric.  In each, a dark shadow of power coiled out from the ribcage, winding down the arms, warping exposed hand bones into wicked claws, sharpening teeth to razor points, lighting empty eye sockets with an unholy green light.  

Steeling himself, Zelgadis raised his sword as they surrounded him.  "ASTRAL VINE!"  The red glow of power rippled up the blade as the first attacked.

Whirling, Zelgadis used two swings to sever arms and heads.  "FLARE ARROW!"  He blasted several more, but still greater numbers rose against him.  Dead hands clutched at his cloak, trying to drag him down.  He sliced off most of his cape himself to free himself.  Another skeleton seized his arm, and he yelled as demonic teeth sunk into his forearm.  Smashing the skull with the butt of his swordhilt, he cast more Flare Arrows.  A lucky swipe of his enchanted sword split the ribs of another, and Zelgadis saw the green light die as it collapsed.  Now knowing where to aim, he chopped at the darkness in the chest of each skeleton, destroying others with with Elmekia Lances.  It seemed only astral attacks were truly effective. 

Still, the sheer numbers were overwhelming.  He bore many oozing cuts and wounds from their teeth and claws.  Desperate, he fought his way towards the one exit.  "BURST FLARE!"  Setting a group on fire, he leapt through the flames, kicking the still-grasping forms aside.  Finally past, he skidded to a halt to turn and destroy them all.  But a sudden sight caused him to freeze.

With a clicking and clacking of old bones, the skeletons began to merge.  His own flames began to wind about the monstrous figure, forming the musculature. The bones stayed black, and the dark power converged to become a single pulsing heart of blackness.

And at its feet, a single forlorn canteen with a pink and blue bangle bracelet.  And next to that, a tiny package of black fabric, tied with a red string.

Zelgadis's hand flew to his pocket to find it torn open by a skeleton's claw.  Snarling himself, Zelgadis rose.   Reversing his sword, he stabbed it into the stone, forcing it to stand by itself, point imbedded.

The giant demonic skeleton opened a mouth glowing green and red, ringed by a hundred sharp teeth.  A howl of death emerged, battering at Zelgadis.  Giant clawed hands reached for him, green-lighted eyesockets sparking in anticipation of his death.

Drawing his powers about him until a blue aura flared around, Zelgadis poured everything he had into the spell.  "Source of all souls which dwells in the eternal and the infinite, everlasting flame of blue. Let the power hidden in my soul be called forth from the infinite! RA TILT!"

BREAK ******************************

He couldn't think as he dug through the remains of a hundred dead people.   Tossing aside bones and bit of crumbling cloth, he searched for his treasures.

For a moment, he didn't even remember his own name.  It wasn't important though.  Finding the items buried beneath the pile of bones was.  The extreme expenditure of his own life-force in the largest, strongest Ra Tilt he'd ever cast causing him to feel dizzy and disconnected.  All he could think was find them.

Finally, his fingers brushed the leather canteen.  He pulled it up, not even knowing why it seemed so important to him.  Then, picking through the remains, he found the little bundle of black, tied with red.  Still confused, he sat down in the middle of the inert corpses, and slowed pulled the knot apart.  The curling lock of red hair glimmered in the weak light of his dying light spell.

Holding the canteen with its blue and pink bangle in one hand and the lock of hair in the other, he stared at the items, uncertain why they were so vital.

Then, as the light finally faded away, a name came to his mind.

Lina.

LINA!  AMELIA!  GOURRY!

In a rush, his lifeforce restored him.  He remembered everything.  "LIGHTING!"  He staggered over to a now empty bier and sat.  Gasping a little, he made a mental note never to use that much of his own soul in a Ra Tilt again.  He tied up the bundle of Lina's hair again, and took a drink from the canteen.  That was twice know he'd nearly died, for if he hadn't been able to recall his soul, he'd probably have wasted away in here, in the dark. 

Zelgadis tied the canteen to his belt, and adjusted the remains of his cloak so the broach was over his heart.  Then carefully and securely he pinned the lock of hair on the inside of his shirt, so he could feel it against his chest.  He stood, and walked towards the door.  Yanking his sword from its stance in the floor, he sheathed it and continued.

He easily passed through the black doors at the end of the hall of dead, the barracks of corpses.  The next hall was short, but ever widening to frame two enormous doors of pure gold.  Again, monsters of varying shapes and sizes were cast in scenes of death and destruction.

He paused, then pushed one of the doors open.

Far away, a relaxed figure came suddenly alert.  "XELLOSS."

"Yes, my Mistress."

"HE IS ENTERING PHIBRIZZO'S SEAT OF POWER.  GO AND OBSERVE.  NOTIFY ME THE INSTANT ANYTHING INTERESTING HAPPENS."

The miasma of power left visible swirls of energy in the air of the chamber.  Zelgadis froze in the threshold, not sure if he should advance or retreat.  Carefully, he stepped though the door and entered.

For a moment, the air of the room seemed to press down on him, but then it began to move, a sinisterly cheerful breeze that tugged his cloak, teased his hair, and made the dangling strings of his capelet dance.   Zelgadis found himself touching the lock of hair, as if for protection.    The winds of power seemed now to push him, lead him, across the room to the dais in the center.  Alone in the center of the riser stood a stone throne, and on a stand before the chair, a globe of solid gold.  

He could almost hear the power.

Zelgadis's sword dipped and fell and his arm relaxed as the power whispered to him.  Sit, it said, and slowly Zelgadis took his seat on the stone chair.    An impulse he could not have called his own caused him to raise his hand and lay it on the golden sphere before him.

Like a blast from a supercharged Lighting spell, a golden flare radiated from the sphere.  The power in the room became a vortex around the figure of Zelgadis, a shadow in the center of gold light.

By the door, a distance now more like a lifetime away, a smear of astral darkness solidified into the Mysterious Priest.  "He taps the power, my Mistress."

"Now we wait."

Light.

Like the lava of a Vlave Howl, a liquid burning bright gold wound with utter darkness.

Pain.

Pleasure.

Pain/Pleasure.

Finally, the light began to dim.  Staring into the depths of the golden sphere, Zelgadis saw history play out before him.  He saw the world when it was new, and the figures of gods and demons marched by.   For timeless time he watched mankind grow, build cities, make war, die.  He felt as they died.  He controlled their deaths. He could feel their lives in his hands.  He could touch that spark within them and snuff it out with a thought.  He could hold the spark like a golden marble, to hold or crush at will.  He saw himself seated in the stone throne beneath the desert, a thousand Mazoku servants before him, willing to do whatever he bid.  He saw himself with pale skin, his own brown-violet hair tousled by the power at his command.  He could see the cities of the world, and walk through them at will.  He saw the shade of Rezo trapped in torment for eternity, a never-ending penance for casting the chimeric curse.

And most seductive, he saw Lina, garbed in glorious silks dripping with jewels, her hands caressing his human skin, fingers tangled in his hair as she lifted her face for a kiss, eyes smoky with desire….  

But I would not be human.

He saw his friends smiling around him as he shared his gift with them, locking their life-spheres away so they were never crushed, living forever with him in his sandy citadel.  Lina laughing, Lina dancing before the flames of his power……

It's a lie.

"Does he weaken?"

Amazed, Xelloss reported, "No, my Mistress.  He seems to  …. To strengthen!"

All yours, whispered the power.  Take it.  Become the master.  Become the ruler.  Control all.  Be smooth of skin and bright as flame.  Take what you want, it is yours to have and hold. Be the Master of Death, the master of all.

It is only death.  It cannot rule LIFE.

Think of Lina.  She can be yours.  This power can bring her, make her love you, make her stay bay your side for all eternity….

But would it be her choice?

Again, the image of Lina swam before his eyes.  She appeared more beautiful than ever, her hair seemed highlighted by the golden power, her eyes light with it and with ….. lust for him?

A mistake, that last part.

The power, not understanding love, could only show lust in the eyes of the hallucinatory image.    Like a splash of arctic water, the lingering strains of Hellmaster Phibrizzo's power were forced back by Zelgadis's will.  He would not be seduced to become Phibrizzo's replacement.

"ELMEKIA LANCE!"  Zelgadis fired wildly, using the astral spell to figuratively burn a hole in the blanket of evil power all around him.  He tore his hand away from the golden sphere, crying out as a layer of rocky skin was ripped away.  The pain gave the evil strength, and it advanced on him again, spinning its lies of power, but it also gave Zelgadis willpower.

"Source of all souls which dwells in eternal and infinite, everlasting flame of blue," chanted Zelgadis rapidly.  "Let the power hidden in my soul be called forth from the infinite...RA-TILT!"  At nearly point-blank range, he fired the spell into the golden sphere. 

Like a tornado, the lingering evil of Hellmaster twisted and pulled itself down into the sphere.  With a grimace, Zelgadis raised his sword.  "ASTRAL VINE!"

From the door, Xelloss smiled.  "Whoops, time to go!"

Gripping the sword two-handed, Zel brought it down like a dagger, plunging the point deep into the sphere, thinking only "Lina….."

For a fleeting second all was still.  Then with a noise too low for ears, a concussion greater than any explosion burst outwards.*

The pain from striking the wall with such force nearly forced Zelgadis into unconsciousness.  The secondary pain of landing on the ground, having hit the wall nearly 30 feet up, felt almost negligible.   The next thing he thought about was just lying down and dying, but he knew his friends far away would never forgive him for giving up.  With a groan, he struggled to his feet. 

A challenge that, for the entire citadel had begun to shake.  Dust fell from above, rapidly progressing to dirt and sand, and rocks.  With a curse, Zelgadis staggered for the trembling doorway.  He had to get out before the whole structure caved it.

Through the door, he poured on as much speed as he dared.  He retraced his route though the Mazoku fortress, through the barracks, using a Rey Wing up the spiral stairs, past the library of disappearing books, dodging tumbling columns in the Main Hall.   He could hear the collapse behind him as he approached the long tunnel out.  A sudden thunderclap of sound behind him told him that only seconds remained.  Pushing himself to his absolute fastest, he strained for the glimmer of pale light ahead.

The final collapse came, but the compression of air sent a blast out the tunnel to the gorge, and it sent Zelgadis flying out of the tunnel like a bullet from a gun barrel.

He landed on the slope below the entrance and kept rolling, all the way down the gorge to the banks of the weak stream at the bottom.   Finally coming to a rest on his back, he stared up at the cloud of dust and sand caused by the destruction of the citadel, watching it fall back in on itself.  The pale sky above told him that dawn was upon him.  He had spent so long inside.  Was it dawn a day later, having entered at dawn, or dawn a week, a month, a year later?

A tickle on his leg roused him.  Sitting carefully, he discovered the stream level had risen.  Glancing back up its course, he smiled to discover a spring had been forced up by the fortress's collapse.  The water chuckled and burbled it's way down the stream, widening itself as it went.  Zelgadis leaned over for a drink. 

"Well well!"

Sputtering, Zelgadis spun as fast as he could on his knees and tried to hold up his sword. 

Xelloss smiled sweetly at the weakened chimera.  Lucky for Zelgadis, his Mistress had not ordered the chimera's death.  Yet.  "You certainly know how to make your mark on the landscape, eh, Zelgadis?"

"What do you want, Xelloss!"

"Now, now, Zelgadis," Xelloss chided, wagging a finger. "No need to be so hostile!  I just …. noticed some interesting activity on the astral plan, and thought to investigate.  To be honest, I expected the pleasure of meeting Miss Lina here."

Zelgadis scowled.  "You're never honest."

Xelloss hung a pouting expression on his face. "Oh, you're so cynical!"  He leaned towards Zelgadis.  "Find anything…. Interesting inside, Zelgadis?  Care to tell me about it?"

With a sneer, Zelgadis replied, "It's a secret."

Xelloss nearly killed Zel right there for the presumption, but not a trace of the struggle showed.  "Oh, very droll.  But you know," his purple eyes opened, and bored into Zelgadis's own blue, "You don't have nearly as many secrets as you'd like to think, Zelgadis." 

"What are you really doing here, Xelloss?"  Zelgadis asked, trying to control a revolted shudder from the sight of Xelloss's eyes.

With a sudden reversal from threatening to cheery, Xelloss's eyes snapped shut and an annoying smile lit his face.  "That's a secret, of course!"  He grinned at Zelgadis.  "Well, this has been pleasant, but I really must be going now.  Ta ta!"  He faded away.  His voice echoed around the gorge.  "Perhaps we'll meet again sometime!"

Zelgadis sighed.  Clearly, whatever the Mazoku thought of his destroying Hellmaster's citadel, The Greater Beast was unconcerned.  For now, at least.

He took in the view of the rising sun lighting the gorge and turning the growing stream into a shining ribbon.  He spotted a likely way out to the east, and sighing, he rose.  He would make his way up and across the sands.  With any luck, he'd find the Ryzian home village.

In a distant, different citadel, Xelloss knelt, having given his report.  His Mistress sat silently on her throne.

"Shall I rid us of this chimera, how has now dispersed the last of Hellmaster's power?"

"NO.  THERE WAS NOT THAT MUCH AFTER ALL.  IT IS OF LITTLE CONCEQUENCE."  She paused.  "HE CRIED OUT INVERSE'S NAME?"

"Like a war cry, my Mistress" Xelloss replied through gritted teeth.  Lina Inverse was HIS plaything.

"CHECK ON INVERSE.  I WILL CALL YOU WHEN I HAVE NEED OF YOU."

"Yes, my Lady."  He retreated into darkness, thinking Lina........

END

 *author's note:  have you ever seen a deep sea depth charge go off?  It's like a crumph and a whoomf at the same time, and for a brief moment seems to suck itself in, then blow out in all directions with incredible force.  That's what I'm imagining.  You can see a small one in the movie "The Score" when DeNiro blows up the safe.