Severed Reflections
"Gourry let go of me, we're about to have a fight!!"
"Oh Lina! I know you weren't dead, I always knew it."
"I was dead! I mean Lina is dead, I'm just her soul reincarnated!"
"Well if you too need to catch up on old times, I'll.."
"RAYWING!" The shadow-Zelgadis lifted off the ground and stood there.
"Don't you go anywhere!" Xenith shouted. "Gourry let go of me!" Then a
scream split the air.
"What was that?" Xenith asked as the scream distracted them all.
"Sherra," the shadow-Zelgadis asnwered reluctantly.
"But I thought Sherra was mazoku or something," Gourry said.
"She is, so what's up?"
"Tes made the pledge of immortality with Sherra," the shadow explained.
"So that's Tes screaming then," Xenith sighed. "Oh well, she deserves
whatever she get. I just hope the blue-girl leaves something for..."
"No, that is Sherra screaming," the shadow-Zelgadis said.
"Huh, why would she be screaming?"
"Tes corrupted the pledge," he explained. "She revealed this just after
Sherra returned in her failed attempt to capture you."
Sherra stopped in mid charge, doubling over in horrendous pain as a dark
miasma rose from her physical form and drifted toward the pledge stone,
toward Tes. The shadow-Zelgadis backed away from the madly cackling queen as
the darkness flowed out of Sherra into Tes. Then it was finished and the
light slowly returned to the room.
"Your saying that Tes stole all of Sherra's power?" Xenith asked.
"Is that bad?"
"Well its not as much power as me and Xellos, but."
"But she's immortal as well, at least as long as the pledge stone exists."
"After that I managed to hide Sherra in the bowels of the dungeons, until
last night at least. One more day and perhaps she would have been safe."
"Wait a minute, does this mean you and Filia are breaking up?" the
shadow-Zelgadis and Xenith both facefaulted.
"Where'd that come from?" Zelgadis demanded, pausing in his fight.
"Amelia and Xellos went in that direction," Filia noted. "What's over
there?"
"Oh nothing but the royal chambers," Naga answered. "A boring bunch of
rooms in dire need of some redecorating. OHOHOHOHOHOHOHOHOHO!!!!" Everybody
covered their ears and the guards dropped their weapons cowering on the
ground.
"AGGHH! I can't take it any more, we surrender!!! Just make her stop
laughing!!!!!!" Zelgadis and Filia sweatdropped.
"Naga, would you mind perhaps watching these prisoners while we check on
that scream?" Filia asked. Naga turned around to see a dust trail.
"Why do people do that around me? They must all be terrified of the
power of the Great Naga! OHOHOHHOOHOHOHOHOHOHOHOHOH!!!!"
"Please stop it!! We've surrendered all ready!"
"Foolish girl," Tes laughed. "She didn't really think I'd miss her
trying to escape." She returned to planning what she was going to do. If it
weren't for the mazoku it would be simple, just destroy them all. She didn't
know if she could beat the new Lina or Xellos both however. At the heart of
it all there was the basic fact that she was terrified.
"Wait a minute," Tes said. "If they found Sherra...then." Tes's eyes
flew wide, they had no reason to protect tha mazoku, even if they didn't know
about the pledge. She teleported to the hallway outside of her room.
Further down the hall two figures stopped walking and turned around.
"You," Xellos snarled "We were looking for you." He launched a bolt of
blue energy at the scarred shadow. It met the aura of immortality about the
shadow and shattered. Tes experienced a sudden pick up in confidence.
"Is that all you can do?" Xellos smiled.
"Sore wa himitsu desu," he smiled. His smile deepened and he cracked
open an eye as fear started to reassert itself in the girl.
"You have a couple things that belong to me."
"So this IS your doing!" Amelia shouted. "First you try to...rape me,
then you have Lina killed, and then you torture your own ally."
"Sherra isn't my ally, she's my property. And last night she proved
herself to be at least as...entertaining as you are Ame-chan."
Xellos recalled the humiliation and terror that Sherra had been
emanating. He cracked open his eyes to slits and glared at the shadow
Amelia. Tes took a step back and Xellos smiled. Amelia herself was
glowering at Tes righteously.
"Such a cowardly little girl you are," Xellos said.
"I brought a dark lord's general to her knees," Tes boasted. "What
coward would dare that."
"How could YOU have ever been created from ME!" Amelia shouted and power
began to grow in her hands. "BLAM BLAZER!!" The spell rocketed forward and
erupted around the Tes. The shadow smiled at first and then winced as some
small amount of energy leaked through and struck her. She took two steps
back and gazed at Amelia in shock.
"I gave Amelia the pledge," Xellos explained, lying Sherra down on the
ground. "And I've always been much more powerful than Sherra."
"Is allying with the mazoku just, Ame-chan?" Tes asked nervously.
"You fiend, you don't know anything about justice!" Amelia shouted. "I
should have given you over to a magistrate instead of letting you leave."
"Well, we all have our regrets don't we."
The sound of footsteps attracted Tes's attention, the shadow whirled to
see Filia and Zelgadis appear in another hallway. Tes started to sweat, then
she smiled.
"I don't see Lina with you," she said.
"Of course not, you had her killed," Zel growled. Filia swallowed
sharply but didn't say anything.
"And now she's afraid to show herself, mazoku or not," Tes laughed.
"Find me again when she's with you, I'm not interested in fighting you all
one at a time." Tes vanished away from them.
"What did she mean by that?"
"She's crazy what does it matter?" Filia suggested. Zel looked at her
sharply.
"Xenith isn't just any resurrected human, is she," the chimera asked.
"Xenith used to be hu..." Xellos frowned momentarily at a sound in the
back of his head.
"Xellos, is something wrong?" Amelia asked.
"Juuou-sama is laughing at me," he said.
"Are you certain its here?"
"What reason do I have to lie?" the shadow-Zelgadis asked.
"Well none, but every time I ask that there's this really tasty surge of
fear," Xenith said. "The real Zelgadis just gets irritated."
"Only Lina could be worried about a meal at a time like this," Gourry
sighed.
"Its not as if it gets in the way, Gourry, and I'm not Lina anymore."
Suddenly there was a huge upswing of anger, hate and then fear in the room.
"Now THAT is a meal, wait a minute."
"You!!!" Tes screeched. Xenith whirled around and snarled.
"You.." she growled taking a step forward and assuming her mazoku form.
Strong wings carried her up to where Tes levitated above them. "I'm going to
rip your heart out of your body and RAM it down your throat."
"I'm not going to waste my time on you right now," Tes laughed. She
blinked out of sight and the reappeared next to a the stairs leading up to
the throne and lifted a loose tile. She turned to the shadow-Zelgadis.
"Perhaps you can take care of my Sherra for a while." She almost missed
Gourry's approach, turning to face the swordsman and dodging out of the way.
"Get the stone Gourry!" Xenith shouted. "Fireball!" Tes screamed and
then blinked out of sight before the fireball exploded. "Hey! Wimpy Zel, do
something!" Gourry and Lina turned about to charge at Tes.
"BLAM BLAZER!!!"
"Gourry!" as she expected the raven winged mazoku dodged in the attack's
way. Tes smiled as Xenith tried to shake off the attack, she was no where
near death, but the attack had caused signifigant, and unlikeable, pain. She
looked down at the hole in her stomach, it was curious to know that such a
hideous looking injury would heal over a couple of days or less.
"Lina!!!"
"Predictable," Tes sneered, she turned to boast at the shadow-Zelgadis
and eyes snapped wide. Reflexively she raised the tablet to block the sword
strike and too late realized her mistake. "Damn you!" Tes shouted as she
teleported away one last time, a blackness forming around her. As she
vanished the small portion of the pledge stone that had been sliced off
landed on the ground.
"I'm fine Gourry."
"There's a hole in your stomach!"
"Remember when Garv ripped Xellos in half?"
"Which one was Garv?" Xenith growled and glanced at the shadow-Zelgadis.
"Hey, good job," she shouted. "Didn't think you had it in you." Which
is about the point that the shadow-Zelgadis toppled backwards looking
stricken.
"I can't believe I'm not dead." He whispered.
"She's doing it AGAIN!" Amelia screeched as the darkness appeared around
Sherra.
"Who's doing what?" Filia asked.
"No, this is different," Xellos said. Sherra suddenly seemed to take a
deep breath, odd only in that as a mazoku she didn't need to breathe. Her
eyes opened slowly, and the flood of emotions returned. This time there was
something new, hope.
"I'm free," she whispered. Then the darkness started to fade away. She
sat bolt upright. "NO!! NOT YET! I want it ALL back!" As the darkness left
completely she slumped against the wall. The bulk of her former power was
still gone. "She's still alive." She stared at the wall and shivered.
"What was that?" Zelgadis asked. Sherra perked up as he spoke and turned
to stare at him.
"Zel-" she stopped as she saw how the dragon maid was standing near him.
She stared in shock for a moment. Xellos arched an eyebrow as he felt the
emotions waving off of the blue-haired mazoku, she was about to break
completely.
"I suppose the other Zelgadis is in a jail cell," he sighed.
"Other Zelgadis?" Sherra asked, then she remembered, and sighed,
relieved. "That's right, other Zelgadis."
"Is something wrong with you?" Filia did the best she could to keep the
distaste from her voice, but this was a mazoku after all, and one that had at
one time been their enemy. Sherra whirled to glare at her.
"If you're ever....if a mortal ever...." she spoke quietly, then she
turned silent. Amelia watched her remorsefully.
"Put me down!"
"Are you certain its up this way?"
"Gourry, I can walk!"
"I can stick my arm all the way through you." Everybody turned towards
the voices as the other Zelgadis appeared looking rather bedraggled.
"Listen, Jelly-fish brains! I'm mazoku, this is a SMALL wound!" Gourry
appeared then, carrying Xenith, now in her human form.
"Hello Lina," Xellos said cheerfully. Xenith stopped complaining to
Gourry and blinked before throwing up her hands.
"Great now EVERYBODY knows."
"How could you keep that from us!" Amelia demanded.
"Juuou-sama said..."
The shadow-Zelgadis, noticed Sherra behind the other slayers and walked
towards her. Among them all was the only one not paying attention to the
newcomers. He sat down in front of her and handed her a piece of stone.
"Milady," he said. She looked at him, scanned the hall and found the
real Zelgadis, and then looked at him again. Then she embraced him tightly,
weeping, ignoring the stone.
"Of all the romantic nonsense," the real Zelgadis grumbled quietly.
There was a sound somewhat resembling a thunderclap and the chimera looked up
to see the other three females in the room regarding him angrily. "But then
again, what do I know."
Tes struggled to her feet, trying to catch her breath. The pledge stone
was split. Her hold over Sherra was gone, as was some of the power she had
stolen. Most of it she still held, however, enough to build on. Humans
could get quite powerful, she had memories that proved this. She would find
a way to take vengence on them all. There had to be a way. She smiled then
as an idea came to her.
"Perhaps some research is in order." Tes wondered just how much was left
over from Lina's confrontations with Rezo and Phibrizzo.
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