1.1 Chapter 1 - Nighty Night, Zel-kun!
1.2
Somewhere in the busy royal palace of Sailoon, Amelia Wil Tesla Sailoon, crown princess of Sailoon, found some time to take a well-deserved break. Her father, Prince Philonel, had gone on another one of his countrywide journeys, seeking to punish evildoers, right wrongs, and spread peace and justice throughout his country. Surprisingly, the 20-year-old princess didn't go with her father on his country-wide trek, and was left to sort through piles and piles of paperwork dealing with foreign affairs, citizens' rights, living conditions of servants, proposal offers from a wide variety of young men, death threats from the lovers of the aforementioned young men, etc. etc.
To put it in a simple, abridged version, she was exhausted.
So here she sat, in a cool, quiet parlor of the many cool, quiet parlors in the palace, slowly licking at a melting bowl of Sailoon's finest soft-serve strawberry ice cream, letting her thoughts wander to wherever they pleased. She watched as her thoughts picked their way carefully among the flowers and bunnies and pretty pink things of her imagination, sighing contentedly at the nice serenity.
A sudden flash of red, like the light reflecting from a ruby, caught her eye and wrenched her out of her daydreaming. She looked around the parlor to see if anyone was there, and, upon not finding anything, dismissed it as her imagination. Still, the red reminded her of something...
Blood.
Puddles, pools of blood, splashes of blood, a whole bloody mess. In the center of it lay a figure, so drenched in blood it was hard to make out the face...
Her mother. Oh god, it was her mother lying in a pool of spreading dark red blood, a stain spreading across the floor like a disease. Her mother, with a long, curved dagger that was so violently thrust into her, tearing through her pretty white dress so stained with red now, and then on to rip the flesh apart, hitting a crucial vein and more blood bursti--
Amelia snapped out of her flashback so violently that her ice cream bowl flipped over, flinging the spoon across the quiet, peaceful parlor and sticking it to the wall before it slipped down and landed with a clatter that seemed to slice through the pacific atmosphere of the parlor. In left behind a dirty light red smear, like a bird smashed against the wall and leaving a blo--
Stopping herself once again, Amelia forced herself to think happy thought. Her mind whizzed by all the usual, coming to a screeching halt as it passed by something that wasn't pink and fluffy, but rather blue and rough, something that had not crossed the path of her busy, whirling mind recently.
Zelgadis-san, I wonder how he's doing now? Is he still searching for his cure? Or has he found it already? Maybe he's near Sailoon and might decide to stop by, or maybe he's thinking of me and doing that this very moment!
Cheered by that thought, Amelia quickly cleaned up her mess and went back to work, humming a song some might recognize as Sasurai.
* * * * *
In some desolate corner near Sailoon, Zelgadis sneezed, sending up a larger cloud of dust than the one he currently had his head in. He tossed aside another ancient book in another ancient library. It landed on a pile of similar books, which, unbalanced, toppled from a four-foot-high stack to a growing collection on the floor, knee-deep already.
Another empty search. Another empty search, and in just two days it would be ten years of searching for a cure for the cursed body 'that damned Rezo' gave him.
He sighed and shook his head, then stood up, knocking over another pile of books. He bent over to put some order in them, drawing his attention to his own hands. Looking at them, he saw what he's seen for the last ten years. Stone. He closed his eyes, not wanting to see himself, or what he's become.
All these years...and everything I've chased has left me emptier inside...
The broody chimera picked his sword off a pile of books, strapping it to his belt. Just about to leave, however, he sensed something moving behind a shelf with his heightened chimeric senses, followed by a slight feeling that he was being watched. He went to check on the noise, keeping a stony hand on the hilt of his sword, loosening it in its sheath a bit. He thought he saw a glint of red, like a ruby, over there. Quickly crossing the ancient chamber, he peered behind all the dusty shelves. Upon not finding anything, though, he dismissed it as his imagination.
But the red reminded him of something, like...
...red robes, growing larger and billowing out like claws which wrapped around him, crackling with magical energy, squeezing him, transforming him...
Zelgadis blinked, then shook his head and decided to get out of the stuffy old room. He would get some fresh air and get the thoughts of another dead end out of his mind, and also to flush out the memory of hat fateful night he was turned into what he was today. Strangely enough, as soon as he thought that, thoughts of the fiery-haired sorceress with a temper to match the flames that spilled down her back appeared in his mind, startling himself. It had been five years, after all, and he actually missed the constant chatter that he normally would have strangled her for. He shook that thought away, and, just about to leave, his eyes were drawn to a book on the back shelf, one he must have missed seeing before. It was a plain brown book, covered in layers of dust. The cover was cracked with age, and it seemed to be wrapped in cobwebs. Zelgadis picked it up and slipped it into a bag with a few other items he acquired and pushed his way out of the books.
* * * * *
In some restaurant near the center of Sailoon, Lina Inverse sneezed as she dumped excessive amounts of pepper on her food. What the food actually was would be hard for anyone nearby to tell because it was covered with so many various spices, sauces, other dishes, etc. Of course, there wasn't anyone nearby to wonder what it was this flat-chested redhead in the center of the restaurant was eating because it was three hours past closing time and she and Gourry Gabriev, the tall blond swordsman with the vacant eyes, were the only ones left in the restaurant. So we needn't worry about that.
The poor (and indeed he was poor now) restaurant manager watched with intense disbelief as the two devoured every single dish placed before them as if the world was to end tomorrow and they wanted to eat all the food so it wouldn't go to waste. And he watched as his 'All-You-Can-Eat-For-A- Single-Silver-Piece' opening was eaten away, and all he had to show for it was two measly silver coins and a stack of dirty dishes that, between the cook, the three waitresses, and himself, would take until well past dawn to finish washing.
Nine-tenths full, the two with voids for stomachs walked out onto the night street. The stars shone brightly, for it was a clear night, though a slight chill wind passed through now and then, causing the torch lamps to flicker with it. In reaction to the chill, Gourry slipped a strong arm around Lina's slim shoulders and pulled her close, offering his body heat. She responded by slipping her gloved hand around his waist, the two snuggling close to shield each other from the wind as they set upon the task of finding a place to stay for the night.
Gourry's watchful fighter's eye kept an unwavering lookout around the deserted streets; wary of anything that might threaten his companion and himself. But it was a calm, peaceful night, nothing happening. So he allowed his usually idle mind to idle some more, letting it wander around heaps of food and food and more food and food and swords of light....
"Gourry...the Hikari no ken...yours now...take it...."
"But I can't...."
"TAKE IT! Before....it's too late..."
The bladeless hilt of the famed Hikari no ken was shoved roughly into the young boy's hand as the fire blazed around them, hotter and hotter...
"Gourry? Are you all right?"
The tall swordsman looked down into large crimson eyes, laced with concern, and then gave a dopey grin.
"Of course I'm all right, Lina. Why wouldn't I be?"
Satisfied with this perfectly innocent reply matched with a perfectly innocent look, Lina tugged on his arm towards an inn at the side of the street.
"Then come on, we need a place to stay tonight!"
Laughing and following her, like he swore to her five years ago, Gourry ran after her as the two checked into separate rooms.
* * * * *
Sh-chiing.
A young boy, clumsily hacking away at a tree with a small sword, murmuring his desires to become strong.
Sh-chiing.
Tiny splinters of wood sprinkled into a tiny pile and marked an hour's worth of progress as he wiped the sweat from his dark hair.
Sh-chiing.
A calm, confident voice spoke behind him.
"You wish to be strong, Zelgadis? I can grant you the power you seek. You will be completely transformed."
A tall man, dressed in red robes, his eyes closed in a peaceful state, stood behind the boy. He held a strange staff which glowed faintly, awaiting the boy's answer.
Sh-chiing.
The staff thumped the ground, rings atop it clattering together, making an almost musical ringing. The glowing increased, magical energy crackled through the air.
Zelgadis suddenly woke up with a start, trembling and sweating. The dream came often, but it never failed to shake him up every single time. Actually, he didn't have that dream for quite a while now, thinking he'd nearly forgotten about it, but why did it suddenly come back now?
He shoved his bedroll off to the side and grabbed a stick, poking at the dying embers of the fire he had lit earlier, trying to get enough going to boil some water for coffee. However, his efforts were interrupted by a low humming that just barely hit Zelgadis's chimeric eardrums. He turned his head slowly back and forth, trying to pinpoint the exact location of the humming.
He turned and saw his pack. It was glowing faintly silver, and the humming seemed to intensify as he noticed the light illuminating the rotten log he had left his pack near. Of course that gained his attention.
Stick tossed aside, Zelgadis grabbed his pack and upended it, emptying the contents out. An enchanted knife, a shard of purple glass, three silver coins, and a book glowing silver fell out.
The humming grew more intense as he picked up the book; the glowing intensified. Suddenly, Zelgadis was no longer kneeling on the ground, examining the contents of his pack, but standing in a forest glade. The handle of a short sword was in his hands, but it was far heavier than it should be.
Then he got a close look at his hands.
Human. Human skin and flesh, instead of the usual blue stone and small pebbles.
He dropped his sword, staring at his hands in disbelief. He drew the nails of one hand across the back of the other, blinking as a beaded red line weeping blood appeared. He brought both hands up to feel his face and, still surprised, felt smooth, soft skin.
He started to laugh. It was a hysterical, high-pitched giggle bubbling up from the bottom of his throat. He fell into a cross-legged position on the ground next to his sword, poking at himself and giggling an inane giggle.
A jingling noise came from behind him. It was oddly familiar, but Zelgadis paid it no attention and continued poking at himself in his state of mental imbalance.
"You wish to be strong, Zelgadis?" questioned a deep, calm, disembodied- sounding voice.
Irritated, Zelgadis turned around, about to give whatever interrupted him a piece of his mind. Then he saw.
"R-Rezo! No! We killed you!"
The Red Priest seemed to pay no attention to him, but instead pointed his staff at the former chimera.
"I can grant you the power you seek. You will be completely transformed."
The staff glowed a dull red color, like it was caked with dried blood.
"No....no....NO!!!!"
Zelgadis crawled backwards to his much too heavy sword, picking it up and bringing it in front of him. His grip wavered and slipped. But instead of hitting the ground, the sword was hit by a beam of red magic. It slowly floated up and turned on Zelgadis, then thrust forward.
An anguished scream tore through the peaceful night outside of Sailoon as the sword pierced Zelgadis's human skin, slashing through his vital organs, hacking apart his spine. It pinned him to the ground like a butterfly mounted on a display, then pulled out and slashed at him, again and again.
The sword, forest, and Red Priest all faded away as Zelgadis's life ebbed out, lying on the ground in a puddle of blood-stained dirt and clutching an old, dusty book with a cracked leather cover, a burned out fire at his side.
Nighty-night, Zel-kun...
1.2
Somewhere in the busy royal palace of Sailoon, Amelia Wil Tesla Sailoon, crown princess of Sailoon, found some time to take a well-deserved break. Her father, Prince Philonel, had gone on another one of his countrywide journeys, seeking to punish evildoers, right wrongs, and spread peace and justice throughout his country. Surprisingly, the 20-year-old princess didn't go with her father on his country-wide trek, and was left to sort through piles and piles of paperwork dealing with foreign affairs, citizens' rights, living conditions of servants, proposal offers from a wide variety of young men, death threats from the lovers of the aforementioned young men, etc. etc.
To put it in a simple, abridged version, she was exhausted.
So here she sat, in a cool, quiet parlor of the many cool, quiet parlors in the palace, slowly licking at a melting bowl of Sailoon's finest soft-serve strawberry ice cream, letting her thoughts wander to wherever they pleased. She watched as her thoughts picked their way carefully among the flowers and bunnies and pretty pink things of her imagination, sighing contentedly at the nice serenity.
A sudden flash of red, like the light reflecting from a ruby, caught her eye and wrenched her out of her daydreaming. She looked around the parlor to see if anyone was there, and, upon not finding anything, dismissed it as her imagination. Still, the red reminded her of something...
Blood.
Puddles, pools of blood, splashes of blood, a whole bloody mess. In the center of it lay a figure, so drenched in blood it was hard to make out the face...
Her mother. Oh god, it was her mother lying in a pool of spreading dark red blood, a stain spreading across the floor like a disease. Her mother, with a long, curved dagger that was so violently thrust into her, tearing through her pretty white dress so stained with red now, and then on to rip the flesh apart, hitting a crucial vein and more blood bursti--
Amelia snapped out of her flashback so violently that her ice cream bowl flipped over, flinging the spoon across the quiet, peaceful parlor and sticking it to the wall before it slipped down and landed with a clatter that seemed to slice through the pacific atmosphere of the parlor. In left behind a dirty light red smear, like a bird smashed against the wall and leaving a blo--
Stopping herself once again, Amelia forced herself to think happy thought. Her mind whizzed by all the usual, coming to a screeching halt as it passed by something that wasn't pink and fluffy, but rather blue and rough, something that had not crossed the path of her busy, whirling mind recently.
Zelgadis-san, I wonder how he's doing now? Is he still searching for his cure? Or has he found it already? Maybe he's near Sailoon and might decide to stop by, or maybe he's thinking of me and doing that this very moment!
Cheered by that thought, Amelia quickly cleaned up her mess and went back to work, humming a song some might recognize as Sasurai.
* * * * *
In some desolate corner near Sailoon, Zelgadis sneezed, sending up a larger cloud of dust than the one he currently had his head in. He tossed aside another ancient book in another ancient library. It landed on a pile of similar books, which, unbalanced, toppled from a four-foot-high stack to a growing collection on the floor, knee-deep already.
Another empty search. Another empty search, and in just two days it would be ten years of searching for a cure for the cursed body 'that damned Rezo' gave him.
He sighed and shook his head, then stood up, knocking over another pile of books. He bent over to put some order in them, drawing his attention to his own hands. Looking at them, he saw what he's seen for the last ten years. Stone. He closed his eyes, not wanting to see himself, or what he's become.
All these years...and everything I've chased has left me emptier inside...
The broody chimera picked his sword off a pile of books, strapping it to his belt. Just about to leave, however, he sensed something moving behind a shelf with his heightened chimeric senses, followed by a slight feeling that he was being watched. He went to check on the noise, keeping a stony hand on the hilt of his sword, loosening it in its sheath a bit. He thought he saw a glint of red, like a ruby, over there. Quickly crossing the ancient chamber, he peered behind all the dusty shelves. Upon not finding anything, though, he dismissed it as his imagination.
But the red reminded him of something, like...
...red robes, growing larger and billowing out like claws which wrapped around him, crackling with magical energy, squeezing him, transforming him...
Zelgadis blinked, then shook his head and decided to get out of the stuffy old room. He would get some fresh air and get the thoughts of another dead end out of his mind, and also to flush out the memory of hat fateful night he was turned into what he was today. Strangely enough, as soon as he thought that, thoughts of the fiery-haired sorceress with a temper to match the flames that spilled down her back appeared in his mind, startling himself. It had been five years, after all, and he actually missed the constant chatter that he normally would have strangled her for. He shook that thought away, and, just about to leave, his eyes were drawn to a book on the back shelf, one he must have missed seeing before. It was a plain brown book, covered in layers of dust. The cover was cracked with age, and it seemed to be wrapped in cobwebs. Zelgadis picked it up and slipped it into a bag with a few other items he acquired and pushed his way out of the books.
* * * * *
In some restaurant near the center of Sailoon, Lina Inverse sneezed as she dumped excessive amounts of pepper on her food. What the food actually was would be hard for anyone nearby to tell because it was covered with so many various spices, sauces, other dishes, etc. Of course, there wasn't anyone nearby to wonder what it was this flat-chested redhead in the center of the restaurant was eating because it was three hours past closing time and she and Gourry Gabriev, the tall blond swordsman with the vacant eyes, were the only ones left in the restaurant. So we needn't worry about that.
The poor (and indeed he was poor now) restaurant manager watched with intense disbelief as the two devoured every single dish placed before them as if the world was to end tomorrow and they wanted to eat all the food so it wouldn't go to waste. And he watched as his 'All-You-Can-Eat-For-A- Single-Silver-Piece' opening was eaten away, and all he had to show for it was two measly silver coins and a stack of dirty dishes that, between the cook, the three waitresses, and himself, would take until well past dawn to finish washing.
Nine-tenths full, the two with voids for stomachs walked out onto the night street. The stars shone brightly, for it was a clear night, though a slight chill wind passed through now and then, causing the torch lamps to flicker with it. In reaction to the chill, Gourry slipped a strong arm around Lina's slim shoulders and pulled her close, offering his body heat. She responded by slipping her gloved hand around his waist, the two snuggling close to shield each other from the wind as they set upon the task of finding a place to stay for the night.
Gourry's watchful fighter's eye kept an unwavering lookout around the deserted streets; wary of anything that might threaten his companion and himself. But it was a calm, peaceful night, nothing happening. So he allowed his usually idle mind to idle some more, letting it wander around heaps of food and food and more food and food and swords of light....
"Gourry...the Hikari no ken...yours now...take it...."
"But I can't...."
"TAKE IT! Before....it's too late..."
The bladeless hilt of the famed Hikari no ken was shoved roughly into the young boy's hand as the fire blazed around them, hotter and hotter...
"Gourry? Are you all right?"
The tall swordsman looked down into large crimson eyes, laced with concern, and then gave a dopey grin.
"Of course I'm all right, Lina. Why wouldn't I be?"
Satisfied with this perfectly innocent reply matched with a perfectly innocent look, Lina tugged on his arm towards an inn at the side of the street.
"Then come on, we need a place to stay tonight!"
Laughing and following her, like he swore to her five years ago, Gourry ran after her as the two checked into separate rooms.
* * * * *
Sh-chiing.
A young boy, clumsily hacking away at a tree with a small sword, murmuring his desires to become strong.
Sh-chiing.
Tiny splinters of wood sprinkled into a tiny pile and marked an hour's worth of progress as he wiped the sweat from his dark hair.
Sh-chiing.
A calm, confident voice spoke behind him.
"You wish to be strong, Zelgadis? I can grant you the power you seek. You will be completely transformed."
A tall man, dressed in red robes, his eyes closed in a peaceful state, stood behind the boy. He held a strange staff which glowed faintly, awaiting the boy's answer.
Sh-chiing.
The staff thumped the ground, rings atop it clattering together, making an almost musical ringing. The glowing increased, magical energy crackled through the air.
Zelgadis suddenly woke up with a start, trembling and sweating. The dream came often, but it never failed to shake him up every single time. Actually, he didn't have that dream for quite a while now, thinking he'd nearly forgotten about it, but why did it suddenly come back now?
He shoved his bedroll off to the side and grabbed a stick, poking at the dying embers of the fire he had lit earlier, trying to get enough going to boil some water for coffee. However, his efforts were interrupted by a low humming that just barely hit Zelgadis's chimeric eardrums. He turned his head slowly back and forth, trying to pinpoint the exact location of the humming.
He turned and saw his pack. It was glowing faintly silver, and the humming seemed to intensify as he noticed the light illuminating the rotten log he had left his pack near. Of course that gained his attention.
Stick tossed aside, Zelgadis grabbed his pack and upended it, emptying the contents out. An enchanted knife, a shard of purple glass, three silver coins, and a book glowing silver fell out.
The humming grew more intense as he picked up the book; the glowing intensified. Suddenly, Zelgadis was no longer kneeling on the ground, examining the contents of his pack, but standing in a forest glade. The handle of a short sword was in his hands, but it was far heavier than it should be.
Then he got a close look at his hands.
Human. Human skin and flesh, instead of the usual blue stone and small pebbles.
He dropped his sword, staring at his hands in disbelief. He drew the nails of one hand across the back of the other, blinking as a beaded red line weeping blood appeared. He brought both hands up to feel his face and, still surprised, felt smooth, soft skin.
He started to laugh. It was a hysterical, high-pitched giggle bubbling up from the bottom of his throat. He fell into a cross-legged position on the ground next to his sword, poking at himself and giggling an inane giggle.
A jingling noise came from behind him. It was oddly familiar, but Zelgadis paid it no attention and continued poking at himself in his state of mental imbalance.
"You wish to be strong, Zelgadis?" questioned a deep, calm, disembodied- sounding voice.
Irritated, Zelgadis turned around, about to give whatever interrupted him a piece of his mind. Then he saw.
"R-Rezo! No! We killed you!"
The Red Priest seemed to pay no attention to him, but instead pointed his staff at the former chimera.
"I can grant you the power you seek. You will be completely transformed."
The staff glowed a dull red color, like it was caked with dried blood.
"No....no....NO!!!!"
Zelgadis crawled backwards to his much too heavy sword, picking it up and bringing it in front of him. His grip wavered and slipped. But instead of hitting the ground, the sword was hit by a beam of red magic. It slowly floated up and turned on Zelgadis, then thrust forward.
An anguished scream tore through the peaceful night outside of Sailoon as the sword pierced Zelgadis's human skin, slashing through his vital organs, hacking apart his spine. It pinned him to the ground like a butterfly mounted on a display, then pulled out and slashed at him, again and again.
The sword, forest, and Red Priest all faded away as Zelgadis's life ebbed out, lying on the ground in a puddle of blood-stained dirt and clutching an old, dusty book with a cracked leather cover, a burned out fire at his side.
Nighty-night, Zel-kun...