Chapter Eleven: Meanwhile
Amelia felt dirty and slimy. If she could just rinse the grime away, she would be all right. But after three
hours in the bath that night, she realized the grime had become one with her skin and no matter how hard she scraped,
it never went away.
She could hear that creature snoring. She felt like throwing up. If she had just made a decision right away, may
be the Council would have not taken matters into their own hands. She had been adventuring with Lina and Gourry at the
time when she had seen the announcement in the local news of the village.
"What do I know?" she had thought, "Maybe they chose a prince that was all for peace and justice!" She bid farewell
to Lina and Gourry. They wished her happiness in her marriage and promised to visit soon. She hurried home to
meet her husband-to-be. She was a little dismayed at his figure, which was round, but "looks aren't important". She
married him after only a few conversations with him.
When the priest had said, "And you may kiss the bride," and he had kissed her, she then realized her mistake. His
kiss was slimy and it felt like he was trying to eat her rather than kiss her. At the reception, he announced that he
had banished Gourry and Lina Gabriev from Saillune, "to protect this city." Amelia could do nothing, not for lack of
trying, but the Council had agreed on the issue and the law had already been laid down, irreversible.
Then they arrived at this honeymoon resort and she had to submit to his... desires. This was Hell in its purest
form. No sugar added, no artificial flavors, no preservatives, just good wholesome Hell. Tomorrow would be
the same. And the next day. And the next day. Forever and ever more.
That's why she was filling up the bath again. The sound was calming and innocent. No one would think twice about the
bath filling up. No one would even bother to turn their heads around the corner. Perfect. Of course, no one knew
that she had already filled up the bath and then pulled the plug. The water was still at the same level, the same amount
flowed out as it rushed in. No point flooding the place. The bathroom was nice, no need to give it water damage. That
wasn't very polite.
Deciding that the noise was not going to wake the creature, she slid in the bath with her new-found friend. A
razor blade. She stuffed a rag in her mouth to keep from involuntarily screaming and waking the creature and
positioned the blade on her wrist. She could have never used a knife, still had a morbid fear of them. But razors, to her
sub-conscious, were safe. If you can fool your friends, you can fool your enemies.
She looked at the room, admiring the color scheme and replayed all the good times she had. Dressing Gourry as a
girl and him getting hit on by that silly captain, being the star in a play, catching lake dragon, singing that silly
song with Lina, playing brass racquets with Xellos, dressing Gourry up as a girl AGAIN and getting Zelgadis in a dress
too. She smiled. She had heard that when one dies, their entire life flashes before their eyes. So, she would be able
to relive all of those moments again.
She took a deep breath. She felt a little sorry for Lina and Gourry but she would see them again on the other
side. Before then, she could watch over them and see them have kids whom would have adventures too. She could be their
guardian angel. She would like that. And she would be with her mother again, so she wouldn't be lonely. Maybe Zelgadis
was there too.
"I guess we'll finally be together, Mister Zelgadis," Amelia said quietly. Then she cut herself and smiled.
*** ***
"NOOOO! That can't happen! I won't allow it! It's not fair!" Hannah cried and banged against the steel viewscreen,
"What is the probability of this event occurring?"
The asexual voice replied, "If events flow as they do presently, then there is a 40% to 50% chance of this
occurring."
"No. Why my little girl? I want her to be happy, why does she have to die like that? In such pain?" She lifted
herself away from the viewscreen, which had since gone blank, "What can be done to prevent this?"
"To prevent this event," the voice responded, "two events must occur and the second depends on the first.
First, the human known as Zelgadis Greywords must live. Second, the human known as Zelgadis Greywords must marry the
human known as Amelia Wil Tesla de Sayrunne."
Hannah's face flushed with anger, "That little twerp! Ha, Zelgadis is nothing more than a whiny brat! I wouldn't
allow it," she paused, "but if I don't, my little baby will die. And I can't permit that. But what can I do? The Death
Angels want him for something. I can't stop them." She exited the Prediction Hall and went towards her Viewing
Pool, in frustration, she stomped her foot and said, "It's not fair!"
"It's not fair!"
The words echoed back to her but they were spoken by another woman. She went towards the source of the sound.
When she came upon the site, she didn't know whether to laugh or scream in terror.
The voice belonged to a certain purple haired woman. She too was dead, as Hannah was, and had wrapped her arms
around a Death Angel's leg. That woman was Victoria Greywords.
"No one said life was fair," The Death Angel said. She was blonde and had green eyes.
"Life was fair? I'm dead! I think the AfterLife should be fair!"
"Well, no one said the AfterLife was fair. Let go of me!"
"No! You promised me that if I died, you would let Zelgadis go free. You said you wouldn't take him!"
The Death Angel laughed and bowed to Victoria's level, "I'm afraid you misunderstood me. I never said I wouldn't
take him. I said, 'I will not take him NOW, erase his memory of you and William and leave you sterile.' Am I doing exactly
what I said? I never said I'd never take him."
"You... liar!"
"I never lied. It's not my fault you didn't understand my intentions. Besides, you betrayed US, by marrying that
stupid man over there, breaking every rule we live by. You could've been a great queen but you had to sabotage
yourself. But, your son, at that age, had such promise! He has no one left anyway. No one to love him, no where to go.
Only a non-existent cure kept him going and even that didn't last long, as I'm sure you observed. I will not waste such
power and ability! It's too late for you but he will make a fine king. Maybe even better than you could've been. But,
that's not important right now, I have matters to attend to." With that, she shot a shocking spell at Victoria's
fingers and released herself. She "hump"ed and continued on her way.
Victoria mimicked her own son's gesture by hitting the
ground with her fist in anger. All was lost. He was mortal. He was MORTAL. They couldn't make him into their perfect
king because he was perfect as he was, with all his flaws and quirks. That why she liked mortals, they were perfect in
their imperfection. But to make him their perfect king, they would have to sandblast his perfect flaws and he wouldn't be
her precious little boy anymore.
She felt someone watching her. She whirled around, catching Hannah off-guard, "Enjoy the show?" she asked
gruffly, wiping the tears away.
"I'm... sorry. I just heard you and wondered if there's anything I can do?" Hannah stuttered pathetically.
"No, there isn't," she turned away then did a second look at her guest, "You're Amelia's mother, aren't you?"
"You mean Amelia of Saillune?"
"Yes, her. Pretty girl."
"Yes, I am her mother. Are Zelgadis Greywords' mother?"
"Yes, he is my son."
Hannah resisted the urge to scream at her for having such a spoiled brat for a son. Instead she asked, "What
exactly is the problem?"
"My sisters made a promise to me and now they have broken it... and there's nothing I can do."
Hannah nodded. She remembered what she had seen in the Prediction Hall. "You shouldn't give up!"
"What?"
"Never give up! You're a mother, full of love for Zelgadis! Love is on your side. Love always prevails!"
"Geez, now I know where your daughter gets it."
"I'm serious!" Hannah struck a Justice pose, complete with the pastel laser beams and stars behind her, "You can't
just sit back and watch your son get taken or whatever it is they're trying to do to him! Love will always triumph no
matter the odds!"
Victoria balled her fists and stood up beside her, "You're right! I have to do something! Will you help me?"
Hannah took Victoria's fists in her hands and nodded, "Yes, of course!"
They then pumped their arms in the air, "Fight! Fight! Fight!"
*** ***
"No. No. No!" William Greywords shook his head ferociously.
"Why not?!" Victoria pleaded, "He's your son too! And I can't do it alone!"
"No means no! If we fail, we're all doomed. We are powerless!" He held on to his wife's shoulders, "Look, I
know it's horrible and it shouldn't be happening but there's nothing we can do. You just have to accept it."
"No, she shouldn't!" Hannah interrupted, "Children are the most valuable treasures, they are our future! Nothing
should stand in a parent's way when it comes to the safety of their children!"
"Okay, great. Back to reality," William sighed, "look, he wanted to die anyway, we all saw that. They're giving him
a chance of a better life! It's true what they say, he has no one to look after him and no where to go."
"Hm... I wonder why..." Victoria asked, sarcastically.
"What is THAT supposed to mean? Are you saying this is all my fault?"
"No, it's not all your fault, it's Rezo's too!"
"What do you mean it's my fault?" Rezo asked, shocked out of his silence.
"Well, the only reason my son is such a crackpot is because he was traumatized by his father committing suicide
right in front of his face and don't get me started on the torment Rezo, his own grandfather, put him through. Yes, I
think it's both of your faults this is happening!"
"Yeah, you're not exactly great in the parenting department," William said to Rezo and Rezo snapped, "Well,
at least I didn't commit suicide when your mother died!"
"Oh, you mean my sister?" William replied sarcastically.
"It was an honest mistake!"
"Enough!" Hannah did a karate chop between them, "fighting is not going to help your son or grandson. We have
to bond together, united as one force!"
"You can't just run away from this!" Victoria added, "If you want to redeem yourselves in the eyes of Zelgadis,
then you must help me!"
"Fine, we'll help but now what? How are we going to help him?" William asked.
"I know how," Victoria said, giving them all a serious stare, "We must go to the Palace of the Death Angels and
stop them ourselves!"
To be continued...
Author's Notes: Tehehe! That was fun to write even though the first part was hard. But, I prepared myself beforehand
by reading dark, angsty fics! By the way, I really do like Zelgadis and Amelia, I just think it's fun to point out
Zelgadis' bad points. Also, parents rarely like their child's spouse, so... Anyway, C&C are welcome and needed at
destinyplot@lycos.com. Come back soon!
Amelia felt dirty and slimy. If she could just rinse the grime away, she would be all right. But after three
hours in the bath that night, she realized the grime had become one with her skin and no matter how hard she scraped,
it never went away.
She could hear that creature snoring. She felt like throwing up. If she had just made a decision right away, may
be the Council would have not taken matters into their own hands. She had been adventuring with Lina and Gourry at the
time when she had seen the announcement in the local news of the village.
"What do I know?" she had thought, "Maybe they chose a prince that was all for peace and justice!" She bid farewell
to Lina and Gourry. They wished her happiness in her marriage and promised to visit soon. She hurried home to
meet her husband-to-be. She was a little dismayed at his figure, which was round, but "looks aren't important". She
married him after only a few conversations with him.
When the priest had said, "And you may kiss the bride," and he had kissed her, she then realized her mistake. His
kiss was slimy and it felt like he was trying to eat her rather than kiss her. At the reception, he announced that he
had banished Gourry and Lina Gabriev from Saillune, "to protect this city." Amelia could do nothing, not for lack of
trying, but the Council had agreed on the issue and the law had already been laid down, irreversible.
Then they arrived at this honeymoon resort and she had to submit to his... desires. This was Hell in its purest
form. No sugar added, no artificial flavors, no preservatives, just good wholesome Hell. Tomorrow would be
the same. And the next day. And the next day. Forever and ever more.
That's why she was filling up the bath again. The sound was calming and innocent. No one would think twice about the
bath filling up. No one would even bother to turn their heads around the corner. Perfect. Of course, no one knew
that she had already filled up the bath and then pulled the plug. The water was still at the same level, the same amount
flowed out as it rushed in. No point flooding the place. The bathroom was nice, no need to give it water damage. That
wasn't very polite.
Deciding that the noise was not going to wake the creature, she slid in the bath with her new-found friend. A
razor blade. She stuffed a rag in her mouth to keep from involuntarily screaming and waking the creature and
positioned the blade on her wrist. She could have never used a knife, still had a morbid fear of them. But razors, to her
sub-conscious, were safe. If you can fool your friends, you can fool your enemies.
She looked at the room, admiring the color scheme and replayed all the good times she had. Dressing Gourry as a
girl and him getting hit on by that silly captain, being the star in a play, catching lake dragon, singing that silly
song with Lina, playing brass racquets with Xellos, dressing Gourry up as a girl AGAIN and getting Zelgadis in a dress
too. She smiled. She had heard that when one dies, their entire life flashes before their eyes. So, she would be able
to relive all of those moments again.
She took a deep breath. She felt a little sorry for Lina and Gourry but she would see them again on the other
side. Before then, she could watch over them and see them have kids whom would have adventures too. She could be their
guardian angel. She would like that. And she would be with her mother again, so she wouldn't be lonely. Maybe Zelgadis
was there too.
"I guess we'll finally be together, Mister Zelgadis," Amelia said quietly. Then she cut herself and smiled.
*** ***
"NOOOO! That can't happen! I won't allow it! It's not fair!" Hannah cried and banged against the steel viewscreen,
"What is the probability of this event occurring?"
The asexual voice replied, "If events flow as they do presently, then there is a 40% to 50% chance of this
occurring."
"No. Why my little girl? I want her to be happy, why does she have to die like that? In such pain?" She lifted
herself away from the viewscreen, which had since gone blank, "What can be done to prevent this?"
"To prevent this event," the voice responded, "two events must occur and the second depends on the first.
First, the human known as Zelgadis Greywords must live. Second, the human known as Zelgadis Greywords must marry the
human known as Amelia Wil Tesla de Sayrunne."
Hannah's face flushed with anger, "That little twerp! Ha, Zelgadis is nothing more than a whiny brat! I wouldn't
allow it," she paused, "but if I don't, my little baby will die. And I can't permit that. But what can I do? The Death
Angels want him for something. I can't stop them." She exited the Prediction Hall and went towards her Viewing
Pool, in frustration, she stomped her foot and said, "It's not fair!"
"It's not fair!"
The words echoed back to her but they were spoken by another woman. She went towards the source of the sound.
When she came upon the site, she didn't know whether to laugh or scream in terror.
The voice belonged to a certain purple haired woman. She too was dead, as Hannah was, and had wrapped her arms
around a Death Angel's leg. That woman was Victoria Greywords.
"No one said life was fair," The Death Angel said. She was blonde and had green eyes.
"Life was fair? I'm dead! I think the AfterLife should be fair!"
"Well, no one said the AfterLife was fair. Let go of me!"
"No! You promised me that if I died, you would let Zelgadis go free. You said you wouldn't take him!"
The Death Angel laughed and bowed to Victoria's level, "I'm afraid you misunderstood me. I never said I wouldn't
take him. I said, 'I will not take him NOW, erase his memory of you and William and leave you sterile.' Am I doing exactly
what I said? I never said I'd never take him."
"You... liar!"
"I never lied. It's not my fault you didn't understand my intentions. Besides, you betrayed US, by marrying that
stupid man over there, breaking every rule we live by. You could've been a great queen but you had to sabotage
yourself. But, your son, at that age, had such promise! He has no one left anyway. No one to love him, no where to go.
Only a non-existent cure kept him going and even that didn't last long, as I'm sure you observed. I will not waste such
power and ability! It's too late for you but he will make a fine king. Maybe even better than you could've been. But,
that's not important right now, I have matters to attend to." With that, she shot a shocking spell at Victoria's
fingers and released herself. She "hump"ed and continued on her way.
Victoria mimicked her own son's gesture by hitting the
ground with her fist in anger. All was lost. He was mortal. He was MORTAL. They couldn't make him into their perfect
king because he was perfect as he was, with all his flaws and quirks. That why she liked mortals, they were perfect in
their imperfection. But to make him their perfect king, they would have to sandblast his perfect flaws and he wouldn't be
her precious little boy anymore.
She felt someone watching her. She whirled around, catching Hannah off-guard, "Enjoy the show?" she asked
gruffly, wiping the tears away.
"I'm... sorry. I just heard you and wondered if there's anything I can do?" Hannah stuttered pathetically.
"No, there isn't," she turned away then did a second look at her guest, "You're Amelia's mother, aren't you?"
"You mean Amelia of Saillune?"
"Yes, her. Pretty girl."
"Yes, I am her mother. Are Zelgadis Greywords' mother?"
"Yes, he is my son."
Hannah resisted the urge to scream at her for having such a spoiled brat for a son. Instead she asked, "What
exactly is the problem?"
"My sisters made a promise to me and now they have broken it... and there's nothing I can do."
Hannah nodded. She remembered what she had seen in the Prediction Hall. "You shouldn't give up!"
"What?"
"Never give up! You're a mother, full of love for Zelgadis! Love is on your side. Love always prevails!"
"Geez, now I know where your daughter gets it."
"I'm serious!" Hannah struck a Justice pose, complete with the pastel laser beams and stars behind her, "You can't
just sit back and watch your son get taken or whatever it is they're trying to do to him! Love will always triumph no
matter the odds!"
Victoria balled her fists and stood up beside her, "You're right! I have to do something! Will you help me?"
Hannah took Victoria's fists in her hands and nodded, "Yes, of course!"
They then pumped their arms in the air, "Fight! Fight! Fight!"
*** ***
"No. No. No!" William Greywords shook his head ferociously.
"Why not?!" Victoria pleaded, "He's your son too! And I can't do it alone!"
"No means no! If we fail, we're all doomed. We are powerless!" He held on to his wife's shoulders, "Look, I
know it's horrible and it shouldn't be happening but there's nothing we can do. You just have to accept it."
"No, she shouldn't!" Hannah interrupted, "Children are the most valuable treasures, they are our future! Nothing
should stand in a parent's way when it comes to the safety of their children!"
"Okay, great. Back to reality," William sighed, "look, he wanted to die anyway, we all saw that. They're giving him
a chance of a better life! It's true what they say, he has no one to look after him and no where to go."
"Hm... I wonder why..." Victoria asked, sarcastically.
"What is THAT supposed to mean? Are you saying this is all my fault?"
"No, it's not all your fault, it's Rezo's too!"
"What do you mean it's my fault?" Rezo asked, shocked out of his silence.
"Well, the only reason my son is such a crackpot is because he was traumatized by his father committing suicide
right in front of his face and don't get me started on the torment Rezo, his own grandfather, put him through. Yes, I
think it's both of your faults this is happening!"
"Yeah, you're not exactly great in the parenting department," William said to Rezo and Rezo snapped, "Well,
at least I didn't commit suicide when your mother died!"
"Oh, you mean my sister?" William replied sarcastically.
"It was an honest mistake!"
"Enough!" Hannah did a karate chop between them, "fighting is not going to help your son or grandson. We have
to bond together, united as one force!"
"You can't just run away from this!" Victoria added, "If you want to redeem yourselves in the eyes of Zelgadis,
then you must help me!"
"Fine, we'll help but now what? How are we going to help him?" William asked.
"I know how," Victoria said, giving them all a serious stare, "We must go to the Palace of the Death Angels and
stop them ourselves!"
To be continued...
Author's Notes: Tehehe! That was fun to write even though the first part was hard. But, I prepared myself beforehand
by reading dark, angsty fics! By the way, I really do like Zelgadis and Amelia, I just think it's fun to point out
Zelgadis' bad points. Also, parents rarely like their child's spouse, so... Anyway, C&C are welcome and needed at
destinyplot@lycos.com. Come back soon!