"We can't leave yet." Aliciane said calmly as Lina and Gourry packed their belongings.

"We can." Lina shot back.

"We're not scheduled to leave until tomorrow."

"So we'll just get to the next town early." Lina said, the aggravation thick in her voice.

"So because you got embarrassed you're just going to turn tail and…"

"You announced to the entire town that I'm powerless and that it's a good time to attack!" Lina yelled.

"We can't show fear right now, or do anything that makes you look guilty."

"I don't exactly give a damn about how people in some god forsaken town in the middle of nowhere see me!"

"But doesn't this make you wonder why here, and not somewhere more populated? This was organized. That three people with a grudge against you just happened to be here of all places on the same day…"

"This isn't exactly the time for me to start investigating anything!" Lina groaned, "I don't want to deal with a conspiracy right now."

"Tough." Aliciane said, "I asked the mayor. This town is so small everyone knows everyone. No one has ever met those people until they came into town yesterday."

"Well, how much damage can they do here?" Gourry asked as he tied his bag up, "As you said, this is out of the way. It seems more like they wanted to shake us up while we're in an unsecure region."

"Which is why we can't show them that they succeeded." Aliciane pressed.

Lina looked at Gourry, and judging by his blank look it was safe to say that he was going to let her call the shot, "I do want to learn who sent them. But it's not like we have the element of surprise here. They know who we are so dropping by for a little chat and saying I'm someone else to dupe them into dropping information won't work, and I doubt that they'll give me any information of use if I try to be straight with them."

"They've already skipped town." Aliciane explained.

"Then I really have no reason to stay here."

"It would make you look guilty."

"I don't base my behavior off what makes me look innocent or guilty!" Lina snapped. "If I did that then I wouldn't have gotten half the shit done that I have!"

"And given people fodder to use against you?"

"Look, Lina's not a saint," Gourry said.

"Gourry!"

"But she's not a bad person either. And she's right about how sometimes when you're doing the right thing, it looks bad."

"That may be in your previous life, but you're in a different arena now. Looks matter!" Aliciane countered. "It's why we're doing the inquiries."

"About those inquiries! What are those about anyway?"

"I wouldn't worry too much," Aliciane said, "They'll just go over the evidence. We have Inspector Wizer's report, among other things. Your sister has been gathering data for years. It's to clear you beyond a reasonable doubt. And it's not that we think you did anything wrong, it's more to make the kingdom feel good about you."

Lina still wasn't convinced, but she didn't feel like talking anymore. "Fine."

"You're not going to bail on me?"

"If I were, do you really think you could stop me?" she shot back.

Aliciane smiled pleasantly, "But your sister wouldn't like it."

"Oh, get out of my room already!" Lina snapped as she walked over and looked out the window. A few seconds later she heard the door open and close behind Aliciane and she relaxed as Gourry came up behind her.

"We can still go." He said.

"Honestly, I don't know what to do. I wish Amelia was here so I could get her input. I just feel so out of my depth right now." She said as she stared out at the view towards the Desert of Destruction and noted that the hills looked like they would be fun to walk through as the familiar wanderlust surged through her.

Gourry wrapped his arms around her from behind, clasping them around her waist as he rested his chin on her shoulder, their cheeks touching as he looked out with her. "We don't have to go back to Maninstit you know. There's still so much to explore out there."

"But you hate the desert." She said.

"I'd go if it meant being with you." He said.

"There wouldn't be any inns. We'd have to camp outside for who knows how long. And we don't have the right supplies."

"We could buy the supplies."

She moved her hand to grasp and squeeze his arm. "And what happens when I stumble upon something I don't want to deal with out there?"

"I dunno know. You tell me." He responded as he squeezed her gently, "I only do what you tell me. And you just do whatever you want."

"You're being ridiculous!" Lina said as she laughed, "You know it would piss Sis off if I left everything and ran off to explore the Outerworld."

"What's she going to do? She has two toddlers. She's not going to be able to follow us."

"Can you imagine? Sis fuming at home because we've skipped off and unable to do a damn thing about it! Still, out there, we'd be in for a world of trouble."

"I'd be with you." He said as he turned his face towards her and started to nuzzle at her neck as his hands moved up to her breasts.

She gasped as she closed her eyes, and let herself enjoy it for a moment before she said, "You know I'm kind of gross right now."

"Shh," he said as he gave her breasts a squeeze, "We have plenty of other places to explore."

"Hmm," she sighed as she turned to jump him, sending them spiraling towards the bed.

"Lady Lina, Sir Gourry," the Mayor said as they stepped out of the inn. "I just wanted to thank you for repelling that attack. Being so close to the border has gotten a lot scarier lately."

"Was this the first attack?" Lina asked.

"It was," the Mayor said, "But it's more concerning given that since the barrier fell we've sent out several parties to explore what was out there. It's been two years and none have returned, and they were just supposed to be short, week long ventures."

"Hmm." Lina said as they started to walk to the restaurant. "What else are you worried about?"

The Mayor looked around, and then said quietly, "There's some rumors from the Elmekian Empire about a few people who returned. Supposedly it's called the Desert of Destruction for good reason. In addition to fierce demons, in some places the sand is so hot it can scorch you alive. Supposedly it's impossible to survive. No water, nothing grows there."

"Well, it was where Hellmaster Fibrizzo anchored himself." Lina mused.

"At the same time, I don't trust the stories. There are also rumors that the Elmekians found something powerful there, and they are spreading lies to keep other kingdoms away." The Mayor lowered his voice and added, "Some are even saying that the Elmekians killed our scouting parties."

Lina looked at Gourry to see if she could get a read on what he was thinking, but he looked as clueless as ever. But by now she also knew not to trust that look. "Well, Gourry here is our Elmekian Empire expert."

"I am?"

"What do you think?" Lina asked.

"It's possible." Gourry said, "If there is some powerful artifact there, they would stop at nothing to seize it."

"I'm sorry to burden you with all of this during your honeymoon." The Mayor said, "But out on the border like this with the desert to our east and Elmekia to the south…"

"You're the first in the way if anything bad happens." Lina said as she waved him away, "And the first line of defense. Why hasn't the Eternal Queen sent more people down here?"

"Forgive me, but I believe she's been so busy with affairs among the kingdoms to the west and fighting Mazoku that this has slipped her notice. Everyone just assumes the Desert of Destruction is impassable, and that we have centuries to worry about whatever is out there."

Lina tapped her finger on her arm, and then said to Gourry, "Hey honey, feel up to sticking around a few more days and then doing a flyby?"

"What?" Gourry asked.

"We can Ray Wing once my powers have returned. Get a lay out of the land, see if we see any human activity."

"But that would put you in so much danger…" the mayor protested.

Lina waved him away again, "It's nothing I'm not used to."

"How long are you wanting to go in for?" Gourry asked.

"An afternoon, tops. Just long enough to get a feel for whether or not the Elmekians are out there. We won't even touch the ground."

Gourry shrugged, "Fine by me."

"What bone headed idea is this!?" Aliciane screeched. "We're supposed to leave for Eithne! We have a tight schedule to keep!"

"So send a message and let them know we're going to be delayed." Lina replied as she ate her eggs at breakfast the next morning. "Ensuring the safety of our kingdom is more important than our schedule."

"But people are expecting you!"

"They can wait." Lina replied. "Really? What's the point of being Lina Inverse if you can't be fashionably late?"

"Your sister will be furious."

Lina shrugged, "Ask her if she can spare a knight, by the way. I have a feeling this little town will need one."

Aliciane reddened, and Lina scoffed as she put her plate on the tray, "Look, just get out of our room already and set about the errands I've asked. Now get, unless you plan to take me on! Oh, and be a dear and set the tray in the hallway for me before you leave."

"I'm not your chambermaid!" she huffed, but she grabbed the tray as she stormed off anyway.

Gourry muffled a laugh beneath his hands as he locked the door. Lina sighed and laid down on the bed. "Do you think your sis will be mad?" he asked.

"No, knowing her she wanted me to probe for vulnerabilities while I was out and about. And with a little luck she will send a knight. I'd feel more comfortable leaving this place with someone powerful to defend it."

"It could be an outpost we send students to in a few years." He said as he got into bed with her.

"For once, that's a good idea. They can prove their worth here. Or perhaps we can deploy people around the border."

"In the meantime, what are we going to do with our extra time here?" he asked.

"You mean this extra time when we're not investigating danger or sitting bored out of our minds listening to some speech?"

"Yeah! What are we going to do with it?"

"Well, we've already seen everything in this podunk town…" Lina said contemplatively as she looked him over, "So I guess all that's left is to stay in bed and screw each other's brains out."

"Oh!" he said as he lit up, "You mean what normal people do on a honeymoon."

Lina laughed, and reached out for him, "Come here."

A few days later, they set out into the fearsome Desert of Destruction to find that there was sand. And more sand. Occasionally Lina thought she might have seen something shift in the sand, but considering how common optical illusions were in the desert, she couldn't be sure that she wasn't imagining it, and she wasn't about to set them on ground to find out.

"Be careful," Gourry said as he scanned the area as they came towards a large mesa, dotted with caves along its walls, "There's someone there."

"Damn," Lina said. "Is it an Elmekian?"

"We should turn around." He cautioned.

Just in time to show that it was too late to do that, there was the screech of a spell being hurled towards them, and Gourry raised his sword and bisected it. Unfortunately it damaged Lina's Ray Wing spell, and they went crashing to the ground. They quickly scrambled for cover as more spells rained down upon them. "If they have a powerful weapon, they aren't using it." Lina remarked as they ducked behind an outcrop of rocks.

"Are you complaining?" he asked.

"Just thinking outloud!" she replied as spells flew on all sides of them. "Cover me!"

"Right." He said as he got up and slashed through the first spell that came out them. Not for the first time Lina thanked her lucky stars that they had found that weapon. Whoever was firing at them could aim!

They raced to the cave entrance, and Lina chanted as she stayed behind Gourry, who fended off the attack with his usual skill. When they reached the cave she cast, "DEMONA CRYSTAL!"

Fog rose, and then spread into an icy crystal web through the cave, ensnaring the people within. The attack ceased immensely as, from within, Lina could hear someone cursing their existence. Lina and Gourry peered inside and found the people within trapped and subdued. Gourry proceeded in cautiously. "Did you bring some rope?" he asked.

Lina reached into her cape and pulled some out. "Of course!"

It was late when they got back into town. Walking was a lot slower than Ray Winging, especially when they were transporting eight prisoners. "You've returned!" the Mayor exclaimed, the awe evident in his voice.

"Yes, and we found something interesting while we were there." Lina announced as Aliciane came up with two women that she recognized as Ceiphied Knights from Luna's restaurant. Lina also noted that they had recently changed their hairstyle to keep their hair off their forehead. "I see reinforcements got here."

"Are they Elmekians?" the Mayor asked.

"Yes." Lina said. "Better get them to the jail and interrogate them tomorrow. And take extra care with the ones who are gagged. They had three sorcerers in the group."

"We'll see that you pay for this!" one of the prisoner yelled.

"Whatever," Lina said dismissively as the guards took them away, "Let's see if I remember. Dava?"

"Correct." One of the knights said, "And this is Sobelle."

Lina nodded, "Is being out here going to be a problem? Because we're going to need someone stationed permanently after what I found today."

"I actually like this." Sobelle said, "It's pretty here. Gets us away from Luna and Harold."

"Huh?" Lina asked as the women shared a chuckle.

"Sobelle is more powerful than Luna, and Luna doesn't like it." Dava explained.

"And Dava and Harold had a thing before he married Luna." Sobelle added. "So I guess this is banishment."

"Blissful banishment." Dava said as she stared at the mountains in the distance.

"You have the opportunity to make a name for yourself with your exploits out there." Lina stated. "I'm kind of envious actually."

"What did you find?" the Mayor asked.

"Eight Elmekians in a cave." Lina explained, and then she pulled some manuscripts from her cape, "With these."

Sobelles took them, and her eyebrows hit her hairline, "Is this a treasure map?"

"Apparently Hellmaster Fibrizzo had a vault somewhere loaded with goodies. I didn't get a chance to check out the cave they were exploring," Lina explained, "But it's here on the map. Should make for a fun adventure."

"Please tell me you have a good reason to take these men into custody." Dava said.

"They fired at us." Lina said.

"And?"

"That's…not enough? Fine," Lina sighed as she pulled out a bag and threw it towards them. "It's full of mementos from people from Zeferia.".

"They'll probably say they found them from a corpse." Dava replied.

"I'm starting to see why Sis doesn't like you." Lina replied.

"Hey, I have to anticipate their response. I trust what you say."

"As do I, I recognize some of this. This will bring some families in this town closure at least." the Mayor said as he took the bag and indicated that he would be leaving. "Thank you."

"I trust we'll be leaving bright and early tomorrow." Aliciane stated.

"Of course." Lina replied. "But for now, let's eat!"

AN: Here's the map of the Slayers world that I use for reference. Still glad this page is up after so long…especially as I suck at geography. .

Thanks for everyone who left words of encouragement last week. My grandpa died peacefully Thursday evening. It's been a whirlwind but I'm feeling better after a restful weekend. Stay wonderful.

Dava Sobel wrote a book about how a bunch of female computers at Harvard calculated the age of the universe thanks to Ceipheid variable stars (The Glass Universe). So while thinking of names for the Ceiphied Knights that connection came to mind for some odd reason (especially as I am 100% serious when I say I am dyslexic, was diagnosed age 8). Probably name anymore knights who come up for some of the actual computers. Not sure if HK named Ceiphied for these stars, especially considering how drastically the name spelling can change depending on the translation, it's likely a coincidence, but it amused me.