Mythical
Chapter 7
"I have never been in the kingdom of Ralteague before." Amelia stared at the mountains around her. It was the afternoon and they finally crossed the Saillune's lines. "It sure looks like the country."
"If I'm reading this correctly…" Gourry flipped through the pages of his little black book. "Ralteague is famous for their Chicken Katsu Curry." Gourry licked his lips.
"This is the plan. We meet up with Filia at the First Church of Ralteague in a few minutes and find a Chicken Katsu Curry restaurant!" Lina announced. Amelia and Gourry cheered along with her and continued down the sidewalk. Gourry blinked when the afternoon sun were suddenly blocked with a large shadow. He looked up and squint this eyes. He lifted an eyebrow.
"Hey, Lina, what is that?" Gourry pointed at the large dark figure nose-diving towards them. Lina looked up.
"I don't know…" Lina and Gourry stared at it with a tilted head. Amelia noticed and looked up at the sky as well. Her eyes grew large.
"IT'S A DRAGON!" Amelia screamed. "It's heading for us! RUN!" Amelia ran for cover. The Red Dragon screeched loudly and flapped his two large wings. Lina and Gourry yelped when the dragon blew fire at them. Gourry jumped to the side while Lina shielded herself in a windshield.
"What the HELL is going on?" Lina watched the dragon fly past her and to the sky. She disbanded her shield and growled. "East winds that blow. Have you as their source…" A number of blue arrows appeared in front of her. Lina smirked when the dragon turned and dived to her again.
"Into my hands. Ignite all their force!" The blue arrows became clear and made of ice. She aimed straight at the dragon. The dragon screeched and opened his mouth. Fire started building in his mouth. Lina dodged it easily and waited until the dragon fly by. "FREEZE ARROW!" She shot the dozens of ice arrows at the dragon's wings and body. It shrieked aloud. The ice restricted his movements and brought him to the ground. He slammed roughly on the dirt and shrieked. Lina continued to fire her ice arrows and covered him in ice.
"What the hell?" Lina panted heavily and shot her last ice spell.
"That was amazing, Lina-San." Amelia ran over. Lina chuckled and stretched her arms out. Gourry walked over and rubbed the back of his neck. "It's been a long time since I seen a dragon." Amelia examined the dragon.
"I thought they died out." Gourry tilted his head.
"I thought that too." Lina muttered. They blinked when the ice started shaking. The three took a few steps back when the dragon shrieked and the ice began breaking.
"Um… Lina-San…" Amelia gulped. Lina growled and pulled her sleeve up.
"It's time for a Dragon Slave!"
"There you are!" Lina turned her head and saw Filia.
"Filia!" Lina gasped. Amelia blinked when Filia noticed her.
"Hello, Amelia. I'm Filia, Cepheid's personal messenger." Filia smiled.
"O-Oh." Amelia quickly bowed her head. "It is a pleasure to meet you, Filia-San." Filia chuckled and looked at the shaking ice boulder behind them.
"What is that?"
"A Red Dragon started attacking us just a few minutes ago!" Gourry waved his arms. "Lina said she is going to do a Dragon Slave!" Gourry pointed. Lina rolled her eyes and bonked his head.
"I can't do it anymore. Filia is going to tell on me!"
"A Red Dragon?" Filia stared at the breaking ice. Her eyes widen to see the dragon's head break the ice apart. She searched the area around and spotted him. Val poked his head from behind a tree and smirked. Filia glared at him and looked away. "Step aside." Filia pushed Lina and Gourry to the side. The ice was quickly falling from the dragon's body. Filia positioned herself behind him.
"ateku...ra-zu-omu... ranaku-tsuraku... izu peku naomu..." Filia chanted beneath her breath. Lina's eyes widen.
"Take a few steps back!" Lina pushed Gourry and Amelia away. A spell-casting circle appeared under Filia's feet. Her eyes lit gold and her mouth opened wide. Fire erupted from her mouth. The dragon noticed the chant and looked back at her. It screeched and put up a protective light shield around him. A large gold ball formed instead of her mouth.
"FLAME BREATH!" A devastating bright gold ray shot from her mouth and pierced through the shield. It instantly cut through the dragon and enveloped him in large flames. It shrieked as it fell to the ground and burned slowly to death. Filia coughed a puff of smoke and patted her empty stomach.
"Now, wasn't that exciting?" Filia giggled as she walked past the group. They stared in amazement at the burning dragon. Filia looked back at Val and glared at him. Val smirked.
"Interesting."
"What shall we do with the dragon, Val-Sama?" Jiras asked.
"Leave him. Weak beast." Val looked back at him. "In the meantime, interrupt Gravos's joy kill in heaven and bring him here. Awaken more Demon Bulls and have them surround this town by night fall."
"Yes, Val-Sama." Jiras vanished away. Val looked back at the group. Filia was still staring at him with intense eyes. Val snorted and walked away into the darkness of the trees. Filia sighed and looked back at the three comrades. They were walking around the dragon. Amelia was shouting Lina to stop looking for treasure while Gourry touched the burnt beast with a stick that he found.
"He is still alive." Filia spoke. They all jumped back. Filia walked to the Red Dragon's face and gently touched its snout. "Why did you attack the Arch Angels? Dragons are supposed to be a peaceful magical beast. They don't attack unless threatened too." The Dragon opened an eye slightly and stared upon Filia's face.
"One… There is only one…" He growled. Filia lifted an eyebrow.
"Only one?" She gulped. "Only one what?" Dragon let out a soft chuckle. His eyes widen when he recognized Filia's face.
"You… You are the mother…" He whispered. The dragon cringed at the pain and gasped for air. Before long, his eye rolled back and his eyelid dropped. Filia removed her hand away and looked back at the others.
"Let's go into the city. I must tell you all the dire news."
Filia led them to the First Church of Ralteague and opened the magnificent double doors for them. They quickly ran in. Filia shut the doors and walked to the back of the church.
"Everyone, please get in." Filia opened a wooden door. She allowed the three to walk in first and followed after. It was just an empty room with a long table and chairs to it. Filia rolled an old parchment map over the table and laid it flat. "Please sit." She instructed. They obeyed.
"Unfortunately, our situation has gotten worse." Filia announced. "The demons have found two parts of Shabranigdo's soul. There is only three parts left."
"Do we know the location of the beings?" Lina asked.
"We have information for one." Filia scanned the map. She pointed in the middle of the blue ocean. "It should be located here."
"So, the ocean is one of the parts." Gourry nodded. Lina rolled her eyes and looked closer.
"It's on an island?"
"Yes." Filia removed her finger. She reached a parchment from her pocket and handed it to her. "The island is called Elf Island in the middle of the Demon Sea."
"Demon Sea?" Amelia gulped. "That sounds dangerous."
"Don't worry, Amelia. You have us." Gourry grinned.
"I heard there were ancient monsters sleeping at the bottom of the sea." Lina muttered. Gourry and Amelia sweat dropped. "When they are awakened they destroy boats and eat the passengers."
"That is silly, Lina." Filia rolled her eyes making Gourry and Amelia sigh in relief. "The monsters are already awake." Gourry and Amelia grew more sweat.
"Isn't there suppose to be a very powerful lord located in the Demon Sea?" Lina asked. Filia smirked and leaned her chin to her hand.
"If you mean Deep Sea Dolphin, I have already spoken to her." Filia chuckled. "She said as long as your group does not interrupt her sleep, she will let you pass."
"Deep Sea Dolphin?" Gourry tilted his head. "Who is that?"
"Didn't you ever listen when you were in Arch Angel academy?" Lina groaned. She bonked his head with her fist. "Can you explain in a quick manner, Filia?"
"Of course." Filia giggled. "You see, Gourry, while Cepheid-Sama controls all of Heaven and Shabranigdo controls all of Hell, there has to be someone to control Red Orb. Before Shabranigdo and Cepheid-Sama went into war, they agreed that 5 Lords to reside in Red Orb to persuade the humans to doing evil. It is the human's own judgment if they would follow the temptation or do the right thing. That is how they are chosen to where they are located after their life on Red Orb."
"MEANING, Gourry, the Old Man controls a branch of restaurants. Shabranigdo controls about the same amount. They agreed to combine one of their restaurants and hire 5 chefs. The chefs tempt the pathetic simple-minded humans who eat there to order a bad dish like curry without chicken katsu. It is the stupid human's decision to take the curry WITHOUT chicken katsu OR to get the curry WITH the chicken katsu. The human who chooses the chicken katsu curry will find it delicious and soul-filling while the stupid human with the regular curry will find it disgusting and soul-devouring." Lina explained. Filia and Amelia sweat dropped. "Now, the human who chose the chicken katsu curry will die and go to heaven while the other stupid moronic human who chose the curry with no katsu will die and go to hell for all eternity. Do you understand?"
"So… The 5 chefs are bad people?" Gourry asked.
"They are demons from hell but they are classified neither evil nor good. They are put on Red Orb to pass their judgment on the humans and to tempt their soul to hell. It is the goodness of the human soul to ignore their temptation and walk through the golden gates of heaven."
"The 5 chefs are bad people but they are known in the world as the best chefs. So they are not evil OR good. They just like to tease the stupid human to take the curry and watch them go to hell. But it is a smart human who knows that curry with chicken katsu is definitely better than regular curry thus he will go to heaven and eat cake and tea with the Old Man."
"I get it!" Gourry grinned. Lina chuckled and patted his happy head.
"Very good, Gourry." Amelia and Filia sweat dropped big.
"M-Moving on…" Filia cleared her throat and looked back at the map. "You must go to Ralteague Harbor and take a boat to Elf Island. There you must locate Shabranigdo's soul before the demons find it."
"It would take a few weeks, 2-3 to be sure, to get to the Harbor." Amelia scanned the map. "We should get there much earlier if we keep traveling during night."
"There is another part of the dire news." Filia sighed. "After word got out that you have been traveling with the Arch Angels, a huge significant of demons left the battle in heaven and escaped to Red Orb. There is a large bounty for you, Lina, and Gourry. That bounty hunter you have affiliated with is also being looked for."
"Why is Zelgadiss-San being looked for? He is not a part of this."
"They want him to find you. If he is working with them, he will lead them to you. They will do anything to find you, Lina, and Gourry." Filia frowned. "Demons are persuasive, Amelia-San, why do you think Zelgadiss was with them in the first place?"
"But…" Amelia looked down at the missing bracelet on her left wrist. "Zelgadiss-San…" She whispered his name to herself.
"We need to travel fast during daylight and hide during the night. Since the next town in Ralteague is 3 days away, we need to buy camping gear and food to last us. We will leave at sun set tomorrow morning and start heading to the next town." Lina calculated her plan. She noticed Amelia's sad expression and sighed. She leaned into her seat and crossed her arms. "Look, Amelia, just forget about him, okay?"
"Lina-San?" Amelia blinked. Lina looked away from her eyes and pouted.
"This Zel-guy is none of our concern and I know that you like him and everything but… he's causing a lot of trouble to this group and we need to survive through this." Lina gulped and glanced at her. "If I see him, I'm going to kill him. You better do the same."
"How can you say that, Lina-San?" Amelia gasped. "Zelgadiss-San is-"
"I don't want to risk being attacked by demons." Lina interrupted. "If he agreed with the demons in the first place, how do we know that he didn't agree with them the second time? If he is looking for us, I am going to attack. I am not risking anything. Especially now since demons are looking for us."
"Zelgadiss-San is not going to lead them to us. I trust him." Amelia muttered. Lina slammed her fist on the table making Filia and Gourry jump.
"Are you an idiot? He is a part of them! You should know, you made him like that!" Lina shouted. Amelia's bottom lip trembled. "He is going to join the demons and when I see him next time, I am going to kill him. You better not stop me or I'm going to have to kill you too."
"Lina!" Filia gasped at her threat.
"What are you saying, Lina?" Gourry gulped. Lina glared at Amelia and walked to her. She grabbed Amelia's collar and pulled her off her seat. "Lina!" Gourry rushed out of his seat but Lina threw a fireball at his chest making him yelp and try to put down the fire.
"Did you hear me?" Lina growled. Amelia turned her gaze at Lina and glared with her wet eyes. She said nothing. Lina pouted and shook her roughly. "I said, did you hear me, Amelia?"
"What if he didn't agree with the demons? You are still going to kill him?" Amelia pushed Lina's hands off.
"They will follow him and he will eventually lead them to us." Lina muttered. Amelia bit her lip.
"So you are going to kill him either way." Amelia looked down at her shaking hands. "You are going to kill an innocent person who isn't even involved in this."
"He got himself involved when he agreed with the demons." Lina grabbed Amelia's collar and forced her to look into her own red blazing eyes. "Amelia. He is a demon-"
"And a human." Amelia whispered. "He can change. He can choose curry but can order a chicken katsu on the side. He can make his own judgment. Don't… Don't judge him because of what I did." Amelia let her tears out. Lina stared at Amelia's tears and scoffed.
"It's not what you did that made him like that, Amelia. It's his own decision to become what he is now." Lina unhand her shirt collar. "Let's get out of here and start looking for camping gear." She grabbed Filia's map and rolled it up.
"Lina." Filia spoke making Lina look at her. "If the demons get a hold of Amelia, they can easily take over her innocent human mind and make her kill everyone in sight." Filia grabbed Lina by her sleeve and pulled her to the side. "Don't risk getting her close to a demon. Especially that bounty hunter."
"I told you, I won't."
"I know you, Lina." Filia's gold eyes squinted. "I know you were threatening her because you wanted her to be more cautious. I also know that you cannot kill an innocent person even if it meant that you would die."
"What are you trying to say, Filia?" Lina pouted. "You want me to kill the bounty hunter?"
"I want you to do what you say you would do." Filia gulped. "Or I'm going to have to interfere."
"Interfere?" Lina scoffed. "How are you going to interfere?" Lina blinked when Filia leaned her mouth to her ear. As she whispered into her ear, Lina's eyes grew large and her face went to a shade of white.
"Y-You wouldn't." Lina whimpered. Filia smirked and crossed her arms. She gave Lina a great big smile. Lina sweat dropped and her bottom lip trembled. "Y-Y-Y-You wouldn't…"
"I'm sure she would love to see you again after 300 years." Filia patted Lina on the shoulder and turned to Amelia and Gourry. Amelia was tending to Gourry's burns on the table. "I am off to heaven. I believe my task is done."
"Oh, Filia-San." Amelia rushed over. "How is my father?" She asked softly.
"Do not worry about Saillune-Sama, he is sleeping at the moment but I'm sure when you see him, he will surely be awake." Filia smiled.
"That's wonderful." Amelia reached into her pocket and took out a small sapphire hairpin. "He gave this to me the last time I saw him... Can you place this on his bed stand so when he wakes up, he will see it and know that I am coming?" She handed it to Filia. Filia nodded and took the pin carefully from the palm of her hand.
"I will do what you requested." Filia turned to the doorway. She paused at the doorway and looked back at Gourry. "I almost forgot! Cepheid-Sama told me to tell you that it is okay to use the Sword of Light's true power, Gourry. It will not swallow you up like you think it would." Filia sweat dropped. Gourry sighed in relief and nodded.
"Thank goodness, I was scared for a minute there." Gourry chuckled. Filia giggled softly and gave the trio a final wave of her hand. She shut the door and her footsteps slowly disappeared.
"Lina-San?" Amelia and Gourry stared at the traumatized Lina in the corner. She was hugging her knees to her chest as she rocked her body. "Are you alright?"
"S-Shhhh… she can hear me." Lina whimpered. Gourry and Amelia stared at each other with big sweat drops.
"What did Filia-San say to her?"
"I don't know."
Val took a sip of his tea. He sat outside of a restaurant with a plate of cookies and a cup of tea. He continued to read the parchment in front of him while he silently ate his cookies. He looked above his material when Lina and Amelia walked by the restaurant, Gourry was right behind them carrying all the camping gear. He watched as they walked past him. Val smirked and looked back at his parchment.
"Val-Sama." A large troll with a ruby jewel as one eye appeared besides him. He knelt down to the ground. "You called for me."
"Gather the demons and follow the angels." Val set his teacup on the table. "They should be resting for the night at an inn. Surround the perimeters and attack at midnight. I want that Halfling in my possession by tomorrow morning, Gravos."
"Yes, Val-Sama." Gravos lowered his head and vanished in thin air. Val folded his parchment and stuck it under his arm. He took a last sip of his tea and stood up. Before he left his seat, he looked over his shoulder and smirked.
"Are you going to take my offer?" He softly asked. The figure directly sitting behind him on another table continued to say nothing. "If you assist me, you will get your cure AND control of half the Hell's army."
"I am not interested." Zelgadiss muttered. He had his mask and hood over his face.
"How about her?" Val was suddenly standing behind him, his mouth near his ear. "You can have the Halfling." Val made Zelgadiss turn his face toward Amelia. She and the others were choosing their snacks on the street. Zelgadiss's eyes soften.
"I know you want her." Val chuckled. "After I'm through with her, I was going to kill her but… if she is still in good use, I'll give her to you." Zelgadiss watched Amelia giggle while Lina and Gourry fought over the same snack.
"How can anyone fall in love with you?" Val growled. "Did you actually think that a beauty like her would fall in love with the likes of you? YOU tried to kill her. Do you think she forgot about that? You are a worthless miserable careless fool who only cares for himself. Just mere glances at your face, beings are traumatized." Val grinned at the angst emotions escaping from him. "She will never love you. She is disgusted of you. She thinks you are a freak." Val emphasized the last word in his last sentence. Zelgadiss hung his head.
"If you accept my offer, you will become normal and with control of the greatest army in this universe. You will also have her by your side. She will always be there for you. Loving you in ways, you will never get if you remain a Chimera. She will be all yours to touch and love." Val whispered, he patted Zelgadiss's shoulder and chuckled. "Or you can be a freak for the rest of your lives and watch your pathetic love die in my bare hands."
"You are not going to touch her." Zelgadiss snarled.
"I won't if you just agree with me." Val smiled. Zelgadiss looked back to Amelia. She was helping Gourry from the ground while Lina ate triumphantly besides them. Amelia smiled kindly and patted the dirt off Gourry's clothes. Zelgadiss's eyes clouded. He remembered the last time he was with her. Amelia hugged him tightly and kissed him on the cheek. She said she wanted to see him real soon and to reconsider joining the team. Zelgadiss rubbed his left cheek, the exact spot she kissed. Why would she hug and kiss him if she did not care about him? Zelgadiss sighed. Maybe she only did it so he would not harm her. Even if that is the reason, he is unable to harm her anyways, he had tried before and was unsuccessful. But... he is a Freak and he did not want to remain that way forever.
"You got a deal." Zelgadiss quietly agreed. Val grinned and firmly patted his shoulder.
"Gravos will assist you in killing the Arch Angels. I want that Halfling in my possession by tomorrow morning. After we take her powers, you can have the rest." Val left his side. He took a few steps back and vanished. Zelgadiss sighed and grabbed his teacup. He drank down his tea and slammed it on the table.
"Bitter."
