Chapter 2: Entering the Labrynth
Filia woke up to a soft twilight. Her first thought was to wonder where exactly she was, her bed wasn't this hard, and the morning sunlight shone directly on her pillow. Her room was lighter than this even on overcast days, and something was tickling her nose. Her eyelids fluttered open, meeting laughing violet eyes.
Filia gasped and pulled backwards, hitting her head on the roots of the tree she was lying under. Xellos laughed at her expression, closing his eyes.
"Good morning, Filia." He grinned, twirling the feather he had been tickling her nose with. "You are a very sound sleeper, aren't you?"
"What are you doing here?" Filia demanded, reaching for her mace. She stopped in confusion when her hands met a rough pant fabric instead of her usual soft skirt. She looked down, realizing she was now wearing a strange pair of rough blue pants, a flowing white shirt, and a pretty white vest. At least she was still wearing her boots, even if they had changed.
"Don't bother looking for this," Xellos said, holding up her mace. "I'm hanging on to this until you've finished the... challenge."
Filia stopped inspecting her new clothing, and glared at the unrepentant Mazoku. "Don't think you can get away with this. There are rules, you know."
"Ah, Filia, you can't talk to the Goblin King that way." Xellos scolded, shaking his finger at her. "That wouldn't be playing by those rules you are so fond of, would it?"
Filia stopped advancing on him, noticing that not only had she been moved from her house and had her clothes changed, but that Val's egg was missing. Her eyes narrowed in preparation for an attack before his words sank in.
"What rules?" She demanded, her fangs showing. "And where have you taken Val's egg."
Xellos played with his lace cuffs, a secret smile flitting across his lips. He waited to answer her, letting her anger grow almost to the breaking point.
"Well, Filia. I sent the challenge, and you accepted it." He replied, eyes opening slightly to reveal amethyst backed slits. "I've set the game up, the least you can do is play it."
Filia advanced towards Xellos, ready to beat him for the return of her ward. He held a hand up to stop her, and continued in a mocking tone.
"You know that the only way you can get Val back is to play the game." His smile turned cruel. "You could always admit that you don't have what it takes to play and just leave."
Filia growled at his insinuation. "I don't think so. There isn't a game in the world that you can beat me at, Xellos." Her fisted hands started raising up.
"Very well, Filia. Make it to the center of my maze before the clock strikes midnight and you will get your ward back again." Xellos faded out of view, his voice echoing eerily across the hillside.
Filia looked around wildly, seeing the clock floating next to the tree. It was a strange clock, with thirteen hours instead of the usual twelve. The hands of the clock were running backwards towards Thirteen O'Clock.
Filia looked around, hoping for a clue, but all she could see was the tree, the clock and a wall with a huge set of doors in it. She sighed, and straightened her vest in preparation for her challenge, then headed down the hill towards the walls.
She soon reached the walls, but quickly realized that she had been mislead by the size of the walls. The doors were much further away than she had estimated, and much too large for her to open on her own. Even with her dragon strength, her human hands would have a very difficult time reaching around the door handles.
Because the challenge had been issued to her as a human, she wasn't able to take dragon form without forfeiting. At least Xellos would have to limit himself to normal magic as well, conjuring or purchasing all his props. Using his Mazoku essence would be a breach of the game, and she would automatically win.
"No way that Mazoku can limit himself successfully, and I doubt that he has money, so this should be easy." She muttered to herself as she walked further along the wall. Filia was so lost in thought that she didn't even notice the small figure in her path.
"FIREBALL" the figure cried, throwing a tiny fireball into the bushes. Something small squealed and fell to the ground. "Fifty-Seven!" the figure cried, flinging her red hair away from her face.
Filia stopped in confusion. "Lina?" She asked, walking towards the figure. "Lina, what are you doing?"
Filia looked down at the tiny figure on the ground. A fairy lay sprawled on the ground, looking up at her helplessly.
"Oh. How cute." Filia bent to pick up the tiny fairy. The fairy blinked up at her, then sunk a tiny set of very sharp teeth into her thumb.
"Ouch!" Filia cried, shaking the fairy out of her hand. "It bit me!"
The redheaded figure stomped on the fairy. "It's a fairy, what did you think they do?" she demanded of Filia.
"Oh." Filia stuttered, "I thought they granted wishes and things like that."
The redhead shook her head at the ignorance of that statement. "Where did you hear a silly thing like that?" She demanded, before fireballing another fairy and crowing "Fifty-Eight!"
"Ummm..." Filia began, then shook her head and continued. "Lina. What are you doing here? Aren't you still traveling with Gourry?"
The redhead grimaced at Filia. "My name is Hoggle." She said abruptly. "I don't know this 'Lina' person." She turned away from Filia to continue her fairy hunting.
"FIREBALL! Fifty-Nine!"
"Wait, Lina" Filia began, reaching out towards the woman.
"Hoggle!" Lina/Hoggle yelled, stamping her foot. "Not Lina! Hoggle!" She turned back towards Filia, fairy hunting forgotten for the moment. "Don't you have anything better to do than annoy me?"
"Well, Lina... ummm, Hoggle" Filia began, "I need to find my way to the center of this maze, but I can't even figure out how to get into it..."
Filia motioned towards the maze wall.
Lina/Hoggle turned back to Filia, "Maybe you just need to ask the right questions. FIREBALL! Sixty!"
Filia sighed and followed Lina/Hoggle.
"How do I get into the Labyrinth?" she asked, sighing at Lina's odd preoccupation.
"Ah..." Lina/Hoggle said, turning towards Filia, "Now that's more like it!"
Lina/Hoggle walked past Filia, motioning towards a slightly smaller set of doors, "You get in... there." As Lina/Hoggle spoke, the doors opened themselves, mist streaming out through the doorway.
Filia stepped through the doorway gingerly, not sure what to expect. The corridor in front of her stretched out in either direction, falls of braches and piles of leaves scattered throughout. The walls gleamed wetly, and Filia drew back, not wanting to get slime on herself. Filia ignored her desire to clean the corridor, concentrating on her need to retrieve Val's egg.
Filia was concentrating so hard that she didn't notice when Lina/Hoggle walked into the Labyrinth beside her.
"Cosy, huh?" Lina/Hoggle said, causing Filia to jump slightly and gasp. Lina/Hoggle laughed at Filia's discomfort. "So, you going left or right?"
Filia looked each direction as Lina/Hoggle pointed to them. Both corridor directions looked similar, and both were in desperate need of a thorough cleaning.
"They... both look the same." Filia complained, continuing to examine the corridor.
Lina/Hoggle laughed again. "You're not going to get very far with that attitude."
"Well," Filia began, "which way would you go?"
"I wouldn't go either way!" Lina/Hoggle stated.
"Well, if you're just going to make fun of me, why don't you leave." Filia snapped.
"I think I will. You know your problem, Filia? You take too much for granted." Lina/Hoggle flounced past Filia, muttering something about stuck-up dragons.
Filia blinked in surprise. "I guess that really was Lina..." she said to herself as the Labyrinth doors shut behind Lina/Hoggle.
Filia woke up to a soft twilight. Her first thought was to wonder where exactly she was, her bed wasn't this hard, and the morning sunlight shone directly on her pillow. Her room was lighter than this even on overcast days, and something was tickling her nose. Her eyelids fluttered open, meeting laughing violet eyes.
Filia gasped and pulled backwards, hitting her head on the roots of the tree she was lying under. Xellos laughed at her expression, closing his eyes.
"Good morning, Filia." He grinned, twirling the feather he had been tickling her nose with. "You are a very sound sleeper, aren't you?"
"What are you doing here?" Filia demanded, reaching for her mace. She stopped in confusion when her hands met a rough pant fabric instead of her usual soft skirt. She looked down, realizing she was now wearing a strange pair of rough blue pants, a flowing white shirt, and a pretty white vest. At least she was still wearing her boots, even if they had changed.
"Don't bother looking for this," Xellos said, holding up her mace. "I'm hanging on to this until you've finished the... challenge."
Filia stopped inspecting her new clothing, and glared at the unrepentant Mazoku. "Don't think you can get away with this. There are rules, you know."
"Ah, Filia, you can't talk to the Goblin King that way." Xellos scolded, shaking his finger at her. "That wouldn't be playing by those rules you are so fond of, would it?"
Filia stopped advancing on him, noticing that not only had she been moved from her house and had her clothes changed, but that Val's egg was missing. Her eyes narrowed in preparation for an attack before his words sank in.
"What rules?" She demanded, her fangs showing. "And where have you taken Val's egg."
Xellos played with his lace cuffs, a secret smile flitting across his lips. He waited to answer her, letting her anger grow almost to the breaking point.
"Well, Filia. I sent the challenge, and you accepted it." He replied, eyes opening slightly to reveal amethyst backed slits. "I've set the game up, the least you can do is play it."
Filia advanced towards Xellos, ready to beat him for the return of her ward. He held a hand up to stop her, and continued in a mocking tone.
"You know that the only way you can get Val back is to play the game." His smile turned cruel. "You could always admit that you don't have what it takes to play and just leave."
Filia growled at his insinuation. "I don't think so. There isn't a game in the world that you can beat me at, Xellos." Her fisted hands started raising up.
"Very well, Filia. Make it to the center of my maze before the clock strikes midnight and you will get your ward back again." Xellos faded out of view, his voice echoing eerily across the hillside.
Filia looked around wildly, seeing the clock floating next to the tree. It was a strange clock, with thirteen hours instead of the usual twelve. The hands of the clock were running backwards towards Thirteen O'Clock.
Filia looked around, hoping for a clue, but all she could see was the tree, the clock and a wall with a huge set of doors in it. She sighed, and straightened her vest in preparation for her challenge, then headed down the hill towards the walls.
She soon reached the walls, but quickly realized that she had been mislead by the size of the walls. The doors were much further away than she had estimated, and much too large for her to open on her own. Even with her dragon strength, her human hands would have a very difficult time reaching around the door handles.
Because the challenge had been issued to her as a human, she wasn't able to take dragon form without forfeiting. At least Xellos would have to limit himself to normal magic as well, conjuring or purchasing all his props. Using his Mazoku essence would be a breach of the game, and she would automatically win.
"No way that Mazoku can limit himself successfully, and I doubt that he has money, so this should be easy." She muttered to herself as she walked further along the wall. Filia was so lost in thought that she didn't even notice the small figure in her path.
"FIREBALL" the figure cried, throwing a tiny fireball into the bushes. Something small squealed and fell to the ground. "Fifty-Seven!" the figure cried, flinging her red hair away from her face.
Filia stopped in confusion. "Lina?" She asked, walking towards the figure. "Lina, what are you doing?"
Filia looked down at the tiny figure on the ground. A fairy lay sprawled on the ground, looking up at her helplessly.
"Oh. How cute." Filia bent to pick up the tiny fairy. The fairy blinked up at her, then sunk a tiny set of very sharp teeth into her thumb.
"Ouch!" Filia cried, shaking the fairy out of her hand. "It bit me!"
The redheaded figure stomped on the fairy. "It's a fairy, what did you think they do?" she demanded of Filia.
"Oh." Filia stuttered, "I thought they granted wishes and things like that."
The redhead shook her head at the ignorance of that statement. "Where did you hear a silly thing like that?" She demanded, before fireballing another fairy and crowing "Fifty-Eight!"
"Ummm..." Filia began, then shook her head and continued. "Lina. What are you doing here? Aren't you still traveling with Gourry?"
The redhead grimaced at Filia. "My name is Hoggle." She said abruptly. "I don't know this 'Lina' person." She turned away from Filia to continue her fairy hunting.
"FIREBALL! Fifty-Nine!"
"Wait, Lina" Filia began, reaching out towards the woman.
"Hoggle!" Lina/Hoggle yelled, stamping her foot. "Not Lina! Hoggle!" She turned back towards Filia, fairy hunting forgotten for the moment. "Don't you have anything better to do than annoy me?"
"Well, Lina... ummm, Hoggle" Filia began, "I need to find my way to the center of this maze, but I can't even figure out how to get into it..."
Filia motioned towards the maze wall.
Lina/Hoggle turned back to Filia, "Maybe you just need to ask the right questions. FIREBALL! Sixty!"
Filia sighed and followed Lina/Hoggle.
"How do I get into the Labyrinth?" she asked, sighing at Lina's odd preoccupation.
"Ah..." Lina/Hoggle said, turning towards Filia, "Now that's more like it!"
Lina/Hoggle walked past Filia, motioning towards a slightly smaller set of doors, "You get in... there." As Lina/Hoggle spoke, the doors opened themselves, mist streaming out through the doorway.
Filia stepped through the doorway gingerly, not sure what to expect. The corridor in front of her stretched out in either direction, falls of braches and piles of leaves scattered throughout. The walls gleamed wetly, and Filia drew back, not wanting to get slime on herself. Filia ignored her desire to clean the corridor, concentrating on her need to retrieve Val's egg.
Filia was concentrating so hard that she didn't notice when Lina/Hoggle walked into the Labyrinth beside her.
"Cosy, huh?" Lina/Hoggle said, causing Filia to jump slightly and gasp. Lina/Hoggle laughed at Filia's discomfort. "So, you going left or right?"
Filia looked each direction as Lina/Hoggle pointed to them. Both corridor directions looked similar, and both were in desperate need of a thorough cleaning.
"They... both look the same." Filia complained, continuing to examine the corridor.
Lina/Hoggle laughed again. "You're not going to get very far with that attitude."
"Well," Filia began, "which way would you go?"
"I wouldn't go either way!" Lina/Hoggle stated.
"Well, if you're just going to make fun of me, why don't you leave." Filia snapped.
"I think I will. You know your problem, Filia? You take too much for granted." Lina/Hoggle flounced past Filia, muttering something about stuck-up dragons.
Filia blinked in surprise. "I guess that really was Lina..." she said to herself as the Labyrinth doors shut behind Lina/Hoggle.
