"Blessed, humble hand of God, breath of Mother Earth. I pray thee, come before me and show your great compassion…."
Amelia stayed with her friends for just a little longer before reluctantly excusing herself. "I'd really better get back," she explained, "or Captain Trels will be worried."
"Overzealous bodyguard, huh?" Lina guessed.
"Something like that," Amelia agreed. "After…. Well, Daddy insisted we bring some guards. Of course, it does help the whole thing look more 'official,' too," she added.
"Ah, well. I don't suppose it hurts anything," Lina shrugged. Lina had noticed the false start, but in one of her more empathetic moments, she chose to ignore it. Nobody needed to be reminded of events from the Seyruun family's past.
"It is good to have some extra company," Amelia said, agreeing with Lina's spoken statement. "Well then…um, see you first thing tomorrow morning?"
"You got it. G'night, Amelia. It's good to see you."
"It's good to see you, too. Good night Lina-san, Gourry-san." After one more quick hug, she made her way back to the Inn and Sylphiel.
Over the next couple of days, Amelia was kept fairly busy visiting with a group of Lyziellese dignitaries and otherwise overseeing her own country's delegation as it prepared to move on. Every spare moment, however, was spent with all three of her friends. Sylphiel was intensely curious about the adventures surrounding the defeat of Darkstar. Amelia had told her a little—enough for her to know that Filia-san was a new friend of theirs—but there had never been enough time to tell more, and the story had only reached the world at large as bits and pieces of (very) confused rumor. Once asked, Lina-san began to tell the tale with great enthusiasm, though she tended to leave out certain embarrassing bits, such as having taken the job only after being threatened by Luna. Amelia noticed that Gourry-san was generally quiet, rather than interrupting as he used to do with his questions. It seemed he was beginning to learn….
The story continued when everyone was back on the road. Amelia broke away often enough to ensure that things ran smoothly and that none of the accompanying nobles felt ignored, but she otherwise stayed beside Gourry, Sylphiel and Lina. It turned out that Lina was a surprisingly good storyteller; even though Amelia had been there, she listened to Lina-san with rapt attention and the tale was so enthralling, with all it had to tell of strange people and unusual places never before encountered, that it sustained them all the way through the rest of the trip. This too passed uneventfully, and remarkably explosion-free.
They arrived at the ruins of Sairaag on the afternoon of a good, clear day. While the servants erected a central pavilion, whose main pole flew the Seyruun flag, and then several other luxurious tents that surrounded the pavilion like orbiting moons, the four friends went to survey what was left of a once-noble city. The foundations of Fibrizo's temple still stood, portions of wall jutting up from it like pointed teeth. Sensing the miasma of evil it still gave off, both shrine maidens regarded it with uncharacteristic scowls.
"We'll give Sairaag justice, Sylphiel," Amelia said resolutely. "I promise you that." Sylphiel took comfort from her friend's belief.
It took two more whole, impatiently endured weeks before they could act. They had to wait for the rest of the delegations to arrive and settle in, and Amelia and Sylphiel had to lay out the magic circle that they had so carefully designed while in Seyruun. Lina examined it as they worked, but since it was white magic, and since she also didn't have any of their references, she could only partly make it out. The circle had a typical seal in the center, which was then surrounded by five concentric rings of runes, each of which seemed to have a different purpose. She couldn't make out the four inner circles except to see that they were white magic, and that the users seemed to intend for the effects to…blend somehow. The fifth circle was even more curious. Unless she was very much mistaken, it was some variety of summoning, but what for she couldn't imagine. This ought to be interesting, she thought.
When Amelia got up the day before the Ceremony, she already thought that it would be the hardest day to bear. All the preparation was finished, and there was little to do but tie up loose ends and fidget. Breakfast with Lina-san and Gourry-san was the usual lively affair, though Amelia and Sylphiel-san remained relatively quiet. After breakfast, they all four decided to go for a stroll. The formerly silent countryside around the ruins had been transformed into a bustling tent "city," and they actually had to jostle their way though a couple of crowds. On their way out of the second jam, Amelia spotted somebody she needed to have a quick word with. She told the others to keep going—she'd catch back up to them in just a second.
"Okay," Lina agreed. "We'll just keep going this direction."
"Fine, Lina-san. Be right back!" Amelia replied, dashing off to tend to business.
True to their word, Lina and the others continued to amble along their chosen path. They finally broke free of the crowds, and from there they simply drifted along the edge of the nearby woods. Lina was idly speculating about whether they would ever make it back to that "all you can eat for a silver-piece" restaurant when the three companions abruptly sensed a presence behind them.
"I thought you all had to be around here somewhere," came a wry observation.
Upon sensing the other person, Lina had frozen, but now she dropped her fighting posture and grinned as she turned to face the newcomer, having recognized the voice.
"How ya doin', Zel? Long time, no see!"
"As usual," he replied, pushing back his hood and lowering his mask, his features still exactly the same as when they'd last seen him.
Lina was just about to ask Zel what had brought him here when he turned his head to look at someone who was approaching their group. The figure was of medium height, wearing an outfit of very pale blue, but her hood was up so he couldn't see a face. The figure looked up and suddenly stopped, as though startled. When she reached up and pushed back her hood, Zelgadis felt his jaw go a little slack. "A-Amelia…."
It could be no one but her, though her face was subtly changed. When he'd last seen her, it had still retained some of its childlike, soft roundness, but the lines had matured now into a more elegant frame. "Cute" had forever retreated and (whether she knew it or not) had left "beautiful" in its place. It wasn't the sort of fair-maid, frail-flower "beauty," either, it was something more profound than that. Before, if one had looked carefully, one might sometimes have caught glimpses of this yet-to-come…and now, here it was.
Their eyes met very briefly before they looked hastily away, each blushing furiously as they realized that they'd been staring. Lina suppressed a snort. Those two, she scoffed, mentally rolling her eyes. When are they gonna figure this out? Okay, time to come to the rescue.
"So, Zel, what brings you this way, anyhow?" Lina asked.
"Taking a break from the search, I guess," he replied. "The Outer Lands really didn't have anything, which I suppose isn't too surprising considering how limited the use of magic is out there, so I came back to the Barrier-lands a couple of months ago. I've just been back to Dragon's Peak to ask about the Claire Bible."
"Any luck?" Lina asked.
He raised a stone eyebrow as if to say the answer should be obvious, but replied anyway: "No. Milgazia was nice enough to see me, but he said the Claire Bible had been too badly damaged to use. They're thinking of repairing it, but according to Milgazia, that's going to take a couple hundred years."
"Wow—Gaav must have really done a number on the place. I guess that rules that out, huh?"
"Sure does," he sighed. "Anyway…he told me that he'd heard something was going on around Sairaag, and since it's not too far, I decided I might as well see what was up. It's supposed to be…some kind of memorial, was it?" As he asked, he glanced over at Amelia, directing his question.
She gave him a smile without thinking about it, and filled him in as they all walked back towards the colorful mass of tents. The rest of the day was surprisingly pleasant. Zel told a few tales about his wanderings, and Lina and Gourry shared a few of their more recent adventures from the last couple of years. Amelia couldn't stop herself from frequently stealing glances at him, though if anyone noticed, they didn't say anything. Lina smirked, because she had noticed. She'd also noticed him sneaking glances at her. It was too bad that with all the hubbub generated by the upcoming Ceremony, there was no time or place for a private conversation, or Lina might have tried to arrange it for them. Before everybody knew it, evening had fallen, and it was time to go and get some rest before the big day.
The day itself held more fair weather, which Amelia thought was a good sign. She was glad that her friends would be there…and Zegadis-san...she'd missed him so…but she reminded herself that today was about helping Sylphiel, and Sairaag.
After breakfast, everyone gathered silently: all the assembled dignitaries an their staffs, all of the guards and mercenaries. Lina-san, Gourry-san and Zelgadis-san were all a the front of the crowd, with Seyruun's delegation, something Amelia had quietly taken care of during the previous day's last-minute business.
When everyone had found a comfortable place, Sylphiel and Amelia stepped forward to the level patch of ground where they had prepared their magic circle. They walked side-by-side at first, both dressed in formal shrine maiden's robes. When they reached the circle, they turned and went to opposite sides, where they each knelt and set the palms of their hands to the ground so that the tips of their fingers just brushed the circle's edge. Both cleared their minds and shared a nod when they were ready. Amelia listened closely as Sylphiel began the incantation.
"O spirits who linger,
we give you this, that you might know rest:
I invoke Sleeping."
At the words, power flowed from Sylphiel and the smallest, innermost circle of runes began to glow. Amelia then took the next verse:
"O land that has suffered in body and spirit,
we give you this, that you might be clean again:
I invoke Dicleary.
The next circle also began to glow. The runes and the words of the women's incantation were taking the original spells and altering their energies to meet their casters' will, and so far it seemed to be working. Speaking more confidently now, Sylphiel continued, taking over once more:
"O life which has known harm,
we give you this, that you might be healed:
I invoke Resurrection."
They could both feel the energies beginning to bend, and it took more effort to hold them in. The glow, now covering three of the rings, was growing steadily more intense. It was Amelia's turn once more. This time, however, her voice was one of command:
"Hear me, evil which lingers here!
This place is not for you.
Let our ward protect this place,
For we banish you forever from it.
I invoke Megiddo Flare!"
The power level abruptly exploded, creating a column of white light too bright to look at. The same light engulfed the women, power flowing over and through them as the energies gathered. There was one more piece to go. It had been Sylphiel's idea, and Amelia, who had helped figure out how to put the idea into practice, thought it was brilliant. It was only fitting, then, for Sylphiel to finish it:
"O blessed Tree,
Which sheltered us and nurtured life,
O spirit of Flagoon!
Come to us this final time,
Aid us as once you did,
That one last evil
May be driven from this land.
We pray to you,
We call to you
Aid us now,
Flagoon's spirit…."
The faintest tint of green began to infuse the energies surrounding them, and Amelia could feel it…the lightest touch of a mind so very unlike anything human, but entirely benevolent. Was this what Sylphiel felt, years ago, when she had communed with Flagoon? The presence strengthened and then stabilized; Flagoon was with them, and now they were ready. Their eyes met and they exchanged the barest nod.
"Purification!" they cried in unison, naming the spell and therefore releasing it. Amelia continued to pour power into the ring, while Sylphiel held the mighty responsibility of channeling everything that the ring transformed and released. The green-white energy surged outward like a great wave, flowing everywhere. Amelia and Sylphiel used their magic to sustain it for several minutes, until they could sense that it would be unsafe to drain themselves any further. Without needing to exchange any sort of signal, they ended the spell.
It took several seconds for the magic to fully dissipate. When Sylphiel and Amelia could catch their breaths, they found that the air tasted crisper, cleaner, and the ground beneath their hands felt more…at peace, somehow. When they looked, they saw that the last remnants of Fibrizo's temple had vanished.
Sylphiel was the first to speak: "It worked!"
"We did it," Amelia agreed, beaming.
There were still traces of evil in the odd pocket here and there…but the worst had been undone, and a dedicated team of white mages could probably handle the rest, given time. It was then that Sylphiel knew that they could rebuild. Nothing would ever be the Sairaag she once knew, but she realized now that it would be possible to build something in its place which could be meaningful in its own right.
Thus—or so the historians were to record—was the Cleansing of Sairaag.
A/N: Another chapter! We've finally got the whole gang together again--hope you liked it.
Next time: new rumors and a new objective!
Special thanks to everybody who has reiewed so far--you all are the best