Slayers: The Way
A Slayers fanfiction by mrthou
Chronological Notes: Takes place after chapters 1 & 2. Spoilers for Slayers and Slayers NEXT.
Disclaimer: I didn't create Slayers, nor do I own any of it's characters. Fanfiction is a marginally legal activity which I choose to participate in anyway. If the owners or creators of Slayers tell me to stop writing this, I will.
Book 1: Earth
Chapter 3
==========
Gourry Gabriev was not a smart man, but he was a persistent one. Once he started on a goal, he'd continue to push on against all obstacles. He honestly believed that if he set his mind (no matter how insignificant it might be) and body to a task, he'd manage to get it done. He wasn't always right about this, of course, but he was right often enough to keep believing it.
In this instance, however, he probably would have been better off giving up.
He flipped the coin. It spun and shimmered in the air, turning end over end. It hit the wooden floor with a musical sound, spun around a few times, wobbled a bit, and fell.
"Heads," the boy, Cyan, announced with little enthusiasm. "That's two hundred and ninety-six times in a row."
Gourry just couldn't figure this out. The coin was a perfectly normal silver coin, as far as he could tell. One side had a picture of some weird old man's head, and the other side had a picture of a bird on it. But no matter how many times he flipped it, it always landed heads up. Or at least, it had every time he had tossed it. Cyan couldn't seem to get anything but tails.
Cyan picked up the piece of paper he was writing on, and showed it to Gourry. "Gourry-san, I'm running out of space on this paper." He flipped it over a couple of times to demonstrate the point. Indeed, both sides were covered with little x's.
"Umm... well, we can stop at three hundred, I guess," Gourry said.
Sylphiel stepped out of a door that hadn't been there a moment ago. A voice from the other side said something to her, and then the door closed.
"Oh, hi Sylphiel," Gourry said. "Where's Lina?" He flipped the coin again. Heads. "Two hundred and ninety-seven."
"Oh, she's sleeping," Sylphiel replied. "Two hundred and ninety-seven what, Gourry-sama?"
"Heads, Sylphiel-san," Cyan answered. "Gourry-san is flipping a coin, and we're keepin' track of how many heads and tails he gets. So far he's gotten almost three hundred heads."
"Oh. And how many tails? About the same?"
"Zero," Gourry responded. He flipped again. Heads. "Two-ninety-eight."
"That's impossible!" Sylphiel exclaimed.
"No, merely improbable. Nothing's impossible," Gourry said. He looked up at her. "At least, that's what Granny used to say. I never really understood that. What's spontaneous speaking got to do with doing the impossible?"
"Spontaneous speaking?" Sylphiel asked, confused.
"Yeah, you know, like giving an improbable speech."
"Don't you mean impromptu speech?" Sylphiel corrected.
"Nah. There's nothing unlikely about speaking," Gourry replied. Sylphiel groaned, and buried her face in her hands. "Um, did I say something wrong?"
Sylphiel looked at him and gave him a rather weak smile. "It's nothing, Gourry-sama. Your grandmother seems like a very wise person. I'd like to meet her some time."
"Oh, yeah, you'd like Granny. Actually, she's a lot like Lina." Gourry frowned in thought. "Except she has white hair, and she likes stories instead of magic." Gourry laughed. "She hits me when I do stupid things, too. That walking stick of hers hurts a lot more than you'd think."
Gourry noticed Sylphiel's expression tense slightly. In fact, she looked almost... frightened, or maybe slightly ill. "Gourry-sama, are you a... masochist?"
"Huh? What's that?"
Sylphiel turned red, then sighed. "Never mind. It was just a silly thought."
"Oh." Flip. "Two-ninety-nine."
"This is boring," Cyan said. "Tell me another story, Gourry-san!"
"Umm, just one more flip." He flipped the coin one more time. Heads. "That's three hundred even. I guess that's enough. Umm, what do you want to hear?"
"I dunno," the red-haired boy said. "Anything's good, as long as it's like the story you were telling earlier."
"Okay. How about the Birth of Humans, then? That's always been one of my favorites."
Cyan nodded, and Sylphiel took a seat on the floor to listen. Gourry absently tucked the coin into a pocket, and began his tale.
"Now it came to pass that the Lord of Nightmares looked upon what she had created, and she saw that it was good. But it was yet incomplete..."
* * * * *
Lina Inverse awoke, feeling a bit stiff and sore. In fact, physically, she felt pretty darn lousy. But for some reason, her spirit felt much better.
"That was embarrassing," Lina said to herself. "I can't believe I let Sylphiel see me break down like that."
"You needed the emotional release, Lina Inverse," Pralahad said. "And her presence made it much easier for you to achieve that."
Lina sat up, and groaned as her whole body protested the motion. A pain shot up her back and then back down. Then for good measure, her left leg fell asleep. "Ceiphied, I feel awful. How long was I out?"
"Oh, six or seven hours, give or take a few minutes. Enough time to get a few hours of solid deep sleep." Pralahad crossed his legs. "Did your visitor make an appearance?"
"No. That doesn't prove much, though. It's not like anyone could get a spell into here."
"Almost true," the doctor admitted. "It would be possible, but I only know of a few people who could do it. And a few Mazoku. But at least this should give you some respite."
"Yeah," Lina said. "Thanks, sensei. I haven't been sleeping very well recently."
"I can imagine." The old man pinched his lower lip in thought. "Still, the real test will come when you leave. If your dreams are the result of a possession, you should now be exorcized. Although I'd imagine you wouldn't have come to me if that had been the problem." Lina shook her head. "Well, whoever is invading your dreams, they are more powerful and/or more skilled than you are with dreams. I'm afraid that you surpass me in this area, so there's little I can do to help. I can recommend you to an expert on the subject, however."
"Oh? And who's that?"
"Why, your sister, of course," Pralahad said. "She had all the markings of a prophet, you know. She knows more about dreams than any human alive at this time."
Lina shuddered. "Anyone else?"
"No, not really. There was some old sage I heard about one time, Raudy Gabriev or something. He was supposedly an expert on dreams, but I've never been able to contact him."
"I've met him," Lina said. "He's dead now, I think."
"Really? Well, that shouldn't be too much of a problem, I think."
Lina looked at him oddly for a moment, then chuckled. "Sometimes I forget just what you can do, Sensei. It'll be a bit more difficult, though, 'cause he's actually in a different reality."
"Really? That sounds like a diverting challenge."
"Yeah. I helped him change the history of Mipross Island, so the Raudy Gabriev I met is gone, and he died more than a hundred years ago now."
Pralahad stood up. "Well, Miss Inverse, I think it is time for you to rejoin your companions. I have a few things to tell all of you. After that, well, you are free to do as you please."
"Do you mind if we stay here for a few days, Sensei?"
The old man waved a hand dismissively. "No, of course not. Stay as long as you like. Time will not pass while you are here, as usual." There was a strange glimmer in the wizard's eye as he continued. "How shocked would your friends be to learn that you are much older than the seventeen years you've aged?"
"I don't think Gourry would be all that surprised, to be honest," Lina replied. "He doesn't really think about things like that much. I don't think he's quite as dumb as he pretends to be, but he's not exactly bright. Sylphiel might be a bit surprised, but give her a couple days and she might figure it out. She's actually pretty intelligent, when she bothers to think instead of emote." Lina looked curiously at Pralahad. "How old am I, anyway?"
"Oh, this is just a rough estimate, but I'd guess that you've spent a good four years in this tower, altogether. I'm not entirely sure. Yours was one of the shorter tutelages. Rezo was here for almost thirty. Your sister was here for twelve, which is probably about average."
"Don't bring her into it," Lina muttered.
"And what about the red-haired child?"
"Him?" Lina asked, "What about him?"
Pralahad frowned. "Do you think he would be surprised? That was the original question, I believe."
"Ah. Don't really know. I've only known him for a few days. We picked him up a week or so ago. He was busy blowing up some bandits."
"And what do you intend to do with him?" Pralahad asked. "Why did you bring him here?"
Lina thought about it for a moment. "You know, that's a very good question." She frowned. "And I don't have an answer at the moment."
* * * * *
The sight that greeted Lina Inverse when she rejoined her companions struck her as rather amusing. She wasn't quite sure why, but she found it humorous, nonetheless.
Sylphiel and Cyan lay slumped over on the floor, unconscious. Gourry sat cross-legged a short distance away, a piece of paper in front of him and a coin held in his hand as he examined it critically.
"Hey, Lina, how you feeling?" Gourry asked offhandedly as she walked over to him and sat down. He tossed the coin up in the air and caught it, slapping it onto the back of his other hand. "Damn. Heads again."
"Heads?"
"Yeah. I must've flipped this coin five hundred times, and I keep getting heads, no matter what."
Lina frowned at him. "You're sure it's not a two headed coin?"
"C'mon, Lina, what do you think I am, stupid?" Gourry quickly rethought that comment. "Never mind. Dumb question. But anyway, I'm not that slow. I checked that after about ten in a row."
"Really. Have you tried flipping any other coins?"
"Yeah, a couple." Gourry pointed at four gold coins lying on the piece of paper before him. "This one always lands tails up, this one heads, heads again, and tails." He scratched his head. "I guess it's magic, or something, 'cause these look like pretty normal Gold Republicons."
"Republicons?" Lina squealed with delight. "Those coins are priceless! The Republic died five hundred years ago! Do you have any idea how much those are worth?"
"Um, no?"
"Wait a minute," Lina said. "How do you know what a Gold Republicon looks like anyway? They're rare collector's items. Nobody uses them for currency anymore."
"Really? Grandma had a chest full of all sorts of old things like that. She told me all kinds of stories about all the old junk she had, and how our family got all of it."
Lina stared at him. "Your grandmother had a chest full of things from the Lost Republic? Do you have any idea how much things like that are worth?"
Gourry scratched his head nervously. "Um, well, money never really meant much to me. As long as I have enough, I don't really worry about it."
Lina sighed, her aggitation dissolving. There wasn't much point in being upset about it. Gourry didn't know what he'd done wrong, which was typical. However, in this case, he wasn't even being an idiot. He just didn't have a very good grasp on finances. Which reminded her...
"Gourry, from now on, I'll carry the money."
"Um, Lina, you already do."
"Oh. Right." Stupid! Of course she carried the money. Like she'd trust it to him. Sure, she'd trust him with her life, but her money? Yeah right.
"Anyway, back to the coins problem." Lina picked up one of the coins, and flipped it. It landed tails up. "And you said this one always landed heads?"
"It did for me," Gourry protested.
"Well, lets try again." She flipped the coin a few more times, but kept getting tails.
"I think I get it."
"Huh? Really?"
"Yeah. It has to do with probability," Lina told him. "This place is sort of locked in time, so the same things keep on happening over and over. So the probability of your flipping a given coin heads or tails is fifty- fifty. But once you've flipped it once, the probability is set in stone, and you'll keep getting the same thing. But if I flip the coin, that counts as a separate event, so I might get a different result to begin with. But I'll keep getting that same result after the first flip. Get it?"
Gourry hadn't. He'd fallen asleep instead.
She bopped him lightly on the head. "Idiot! Don't you ever pay attention to what I say?"
"Gee, Lina, I try, but you're just so boring."
Lina hit him again, but with a little more force.
"Okay, I'll shut up now."
"Wise decision."
A few minutes of silence passed.
"Hey, Lina?"
"I thought you were shutting up," Lina joked.
"Changed my mind," Gourry said. "What's next?"
"Hmm? What do you mean?"
"I mean, we met your friend, so now we're gonna go on a quest or something, right?"
Lina leaned back on her arms. "Yeah, we'll leave in a bit. We'll stay here a couple of days, though. I've got a few things to ask still, and I'm not in any big hurry."
"Oh. Okay."
Sylphiel started to snore softly.
"Hmm. First time I've heard her do that," Lina commented.
"Well, that's not a surprise."
Lina bristled. She just knew there was an insult coming. The worst part was, she was fairly sure Gourry didn't even know he was insulting. "Really?"
"Yeah. I mean, who could hear anything over your snoring?"
Lina balled her fists, but somehow suppressed the urge to punch him. "Gourry?"
"Yeah?"
"Do you want me to hurt you?"
"No." He looked at her in a way that said, what, you think I'm stupid?
To which she gave a look that clearly answered, Well, duh!
"Look, lets wake up these two and take them to the guest rooms. They'll probably sleep a lot better on beds, and be a lot less stiff in the morning."
Gourry heartily agreed. "Yeah, a bed would be nice. But we don't have to wake them. I'll get Sylphiel, you get the kid."
They picked up the happily sleeping duo, and Lina led them through a few doors to the guest rooms.
"Go ahead and take that one," Lina said, pointing to a door. "Sylphiel can go in here, and I'll put Cyan in that room, there."
"Hey, Lina, where will you sleep, then?"
"I just slept. I'll be visiting the doc, so if you need anything, just knock on the door. We'll hear you."
"Really? So you'll be just outside the door? I didn't see anything too interesting out there, just a hallway."
Lina sighed. "Look, yogurt-for-brains, it's a magic door, okay? I'll hear you, trust me. It's a funny house that way."
"Oh, okay," Gourry replied, accepting what she said at face value. "Well, good night, then, Lina."
"Good night, Gourry. See you in the morning."
"Yeah."
Lina walked off down the corridor while Gourry got Sylphiel settled in. By the time he made it back to the hallway, Lina was gone.
* * * * *
Xelloss was, for perhaps only the third time in his existence, concerned. It was an uncomfortable feeling, to be sure. It meant that he felt doubt in the powers he possessed, and also in the powers of his master. To feel such things was to invite dispersement, to risk having his component energies break apart and scatter across the universe. To doubt too much was to die.
And yet, Xelloss doubted. There was no way he could not, in these circumstances, although he would need to doubt a great deal more before any serious harm would come to him. The Beastmasters plans were failing; for the third time, Zelas had guessed wrong.
Zelas seldom guessed wrong. In truth, She seldom guessed at all. Eleven hundred years ago, when all the world was preparing for war, Zelas Metallium had turned Her keen insight upon the insignificant race of man. There, She had discovered an unexpected treasure: mathematics.
Oh, it was true that the Mazoku and Ryuzoku both had knowledge of simple arithmetic. Such things were elementary to existence, perhaps innate, since Xelloss himself could never recall a time when he knew not how to add. Yet the humans had taken these simple truths and turned them into something more complex. They had learned how to apply numbers to things, and to then make predictions upon them.
It was he himself who had reported on this, but he was not as intelligent as his master. She had seen a hidden potential: she realized that the actions of groups of intelligent beings could be predicted statistically. It had taken her four hundred years to perfect her mathematics, but in the end, she had it. She had a system of prognostication that was accurate. She had the SAFE.
There was one significant problem with the Statistical Analysis of Future Events. It only gave probabilities, so there was always a chance, no matter how slight, that things might not go as planned. SAFE had predicted a 67.63 percent chance that Hellmaster Phibrizo's plans to destroy the world would fail: and they had. But there had been only a 0.16 percent chance that he himself would be destroyed. Yet that unlikely possibility had come to passs.
Xelloss blamed Lina Inverse. She was a wildcard; she influenced the course of history far more than any mortal should. Twice now, she had been present at a massive deviation from the expected future, although the first time had been a more modest 12 percent (and the resurrection of Shabrinigdo would likely have failed in any case: 93 percent). Twice now, Lina Inverse had disrupted the Beastmaster's plans.
If it were up to Xelloss, Lina Inverse would be dead. But it was not for him to decide: Zelas Metallium had given him clear instructions not to harm her, and he could not disobey. To do so would be to become nothing.
So instead, Xelloss watched, and waited.
"Xelloss." He turned and saw a grey-clad figure approaching.
Ah. The old man of the tower. "Good evening, Master Pralahad," Xelloss said congenially. "You look the same as ever."
"Come to try your luck again, Xelloss?" the old man growled. "I still have that arm of yours you so kindly donated on your last visit. Have you come to donate another?"
Xelloss kept his habitual smirk firmly in place. He would not rise to the bait, as he had last time. The old man was not bluffing; he was capable, in this place, of destroying even a Mazoku lord, and possibly even a piece of Ruby Eye himself. But his power extended a mere twenty yards from tower in all directions, and Xelloss was a good six inches beyond that.
"No, I'm afraid not. I was simply in the neighborhood, and thought I'd stop by. Lesser Mazoku are frightfully boring conversationalists, and occasionally I hunger for some real talk."
"Pity," Pralahad remarked. "Ah well, probably for the best. You wouldn't believe how much trouble was to set up a containment field to keep that arm of yours corporeal. I see you've grown a new one."
"I'm sure it's a simply fascinating application of magical engineering, but that's not really my forte," Xellos said. "I've always found statistics to be far more fascinating. And sadism, of course, but that really goes without saying."
"But never masochism, unfortunately," the old man retorted. "Well, as I said before, just as well. It's probably too much trouble to preserve any more little bits and pieces of you." He shook his head. "I know about your use of statistical prophesy, and I know that history has just forked against you. If you are sniffing around for clues as to why, I'm afraid you'll be sorely disappointed. I'll not help you prefect the theory."
"My good sir, there is nothing wrong with our SAFE method, I assure you. The unlikely simply occurs on occasion. Such is the nature of probability, or so I've observed."
"It is either for that reason, or for Lina Inverse that you trouble me so."
Xellos opened one eye. "Your powers of insight were ever keen, old one," he said ironically.
"Well, get thee gone, creature of darkness. There is naught to be accomplished here." Pralahad traced a circle in mid-air with his left hand, and then pushed his right hand through it. There was a sudden surge of power, and Xelloss was pushed back from the astral wall around the old man's tower.
"Do not tempt me, old man," Xelloss snarled. His control was slipping, he knew, but Xelloss simply could not contain his rage. "You and I both know that you can do no serious harm to me while I remain outside your barrier, and I can do no serious harm to you while you remain within. But I can make you very uncomfortable."
Xelloss snapped his fingers, and focused his will on the air behind Pralahad's tower, drawing it toward himself. There was a sudden gust of typhoon class wind, and the old man stumbled forward. He fell, and as he did so, his hand passed beyond the barrier.
Xelloss immediately pointed, and pushed his energy outward, toward the offending limb. The astral equivalent of lightning shot out from his finger, and struck the old man's hand. He was entirely surprised to see that absolutely nothing happened. In fact, where there should have been a blackened and burned arm, there was nothing. The old man's limb simply ended where it touched the shield.
Xelloss forced himself to smile once more. He had been tricked, once again. "Clever, old one, very clever. I could not even sense that it was a projection."
"Very good, isn't it?" the projection asked. Xelloss studied it carefully now, and wondered at it. The illusion actually had an emotional presence, and even a slight astral one. Truly amazing, what these humans could accomplish despite their lack of innate ability. "A student of mine came up with this method some two hundred years ago. It took me years to penetrate the illusion and duplicate the method myself."
"I suppose I must concede this round to you, good doctor. That makes the score two to three in your favor, by my count. But I shall win the game."
"We shall see." The projection turned away, and vanished.
Xelloss gazed at the tower malevolently for a few microseconds, and then he too disappeared, leaving the night much the same as it had been before the interruptions.
And those inside slept on, unaware of what had happened, with the exception of a certain redhead.
==========
End Chapter 3
A Slayers fanfiction by mrthou
Chronological Notes: Takes place after chapters 1 & 2. Spoilers for Slayers and Slayers NEXT.
Disclaimer: I didn't create Slayers, nor do I own any of it's characters. Fanfiction is a marginally legal activity which I choose to participate in anyway. If the owners or creators of Slayers tell me to stop writing this, I will.
Book 1: Earth
Chapter 3
==========
Gourry Gabriev was not a smart man, but he was a persistent one. Once he started on a goal, he'd continue to push on against all obstacles. He honestly believed that if he set his mind (no matter how insignificant it might be) and body to a task, he'd manage to get it done. He wasn't always right about this, of course, but he was right often enough to keep believing it.
In this instance, however, he probably would have been better off giving up.
He flipped the coin. It spun and shimmered in the air, turning end over end. It hit the wooden floor with a musical sound, spun around a few times, wobbled a bit, and fell.
"Heads," the boy, Cyan, announced with little enthusiasm. "That's two hundred and ninety-six times in a row."
Gourry just couldn't figure this out. The coin was a perfectly normal silver coin, as far as he could tell. One side had a picture of some weird old man's head, and the other side had a picture of a bird on it. But no matter how many times he flipped it, it always landed heads up. Or at least, it had every time he had tossed it. Cyan couldn't seem to get anything but tails.
Cyan picked up the piece of paper he was writing on, and showed it to Gourry. "Gourry-san, I'm running out of space on this paper." He flipped it over a couple of times to demonstrate the point. Indeed, both sides were covered with little x's.
"Umm... well, we can stop at three hundred, I guess," Gourry said.
Sylphiel stepped out of a door that hadn't been there a moment ago. A voice from the other side said something to her, and then the door closed.
"Oh, hi Sylphiel," Gourry said. "Where's Lina?" He flipped the coin again. Heads. "Two hundred and ninety-seven."
"Oh, she's sleeping," Sylphiel replied. "Two hundred and ninety-seven what, Gourry-sama?"
"Heads, Sylphiel-san," Cyan answered. "Gourry-san is flipping a coin, and we're keepin' track of how many heads and tails he gets. So far he's gotten almost three hundred heads."
"Oh. And how many tails? About the same?"
"Zero," Gourry responded. He flipped again. Heads. "Two-ninety-eight."
"That's impossible!" Sylphiel exclaimed.
"No, merely improbable. Nothing's impossible," Gourry said. He looked up at her. "At least, that's what Granny used to say. I never really understood that. What's spontaneous speaking got to do with doing the impossible?"
"Spontaneous speaking?" Sylphiel asked, confused.
"Yeah, you know, like giving an improbable speech."
"Don't you mean impromptu speech?" Sylphiel corrected.
"Nah. There's nothing unlikely about speaking," Gourry replied. Sylphiel groaned, and buried her face in her hands. "Um, did I say something wrong?"
Sylphiel looked at him and gave him a rather weak smile. "It's nothing, Gourry-sama. Your grandmother seems like a very wise person. I'd like to meet her some time."
"Oh, yeah, you'd like Granny. Actually, she's a lot like Lina." Gourry frowned in thought. "Except she has white hair, and she likes stories instead of magic." Gourry laughed. "She hits me when I do stupid things, too. That walking stick of hers hurts a lot more than you'd think."
Gourry noticed Sylphiel's expression tense slightly. In fact, she looked almost... frightened, or maybe slightly ill. "Gourry-sama, are you a... masochist?"
"Huh? What's that?"
Sylphiel turned red, then sighed. "Never mind. It was just a silly thought."
"Oh." Flip. "Two-ninety-nine."
"This is boring," Cyan said. "Tell me another story, Gourry-san!"
"Umm, just one more flip." He flipped the coin one more time. Heads. "That's three hundred even. I guess that's enough. Umm, what do you want to hear?"
"I dunno," the red-haired boy said. "Anything's good, as long as it's like the story you were telling earlier."
"Okay. How about the Birth of Humans, then? That's always been one of my favorites."
Cyan nodded, and Sylphiel took a seat on the floor to listen. Gourry absently tucked the coin into a pocket, and began his tale.
"Now it came to pass that the Lord of Nightmares looked upon what she had created, and she saw that it was good. But it was yet incomplete..."
* * * * *
Lina Inverse awoke, feeling a bit stiff and sore. In fact, physically, she felt pretty darn lousy. But for some reason, her spirit felt much better.
"That was embarrassing," Lina said to herself. "I can't believe I let Sylphiel see me break down like that."
"You needed the emotional release, Lina Inverse," Pralahad said. "And her presence made it much easier for you to achieve that."
Lina sat up, and groaned as her whole body protested the motion. A pain shot up her back and then back down. Then for good measure, her left leg fell asleep. "Ceiphied, I feel awful. How long was I out?"
"Oh, six or seven hours, give or take a few minutes. Enough time to get a few hours of solid deep sleep." Pralahad crossed his legs. "Did your visitor make an appearance?"
"No. That doesn't prove much, though. It's not like anyone could get a spell into here."
"Almost true," the doctor admitted. "It would be possible, but I only know of a few people who could do it. And a few Mazoku. But at least this should give you some respite."
"Yeah," Lina said. "Thanks, sensei. I haven't been sleeping very well recently."
"I can imagine." The old man pinched his lower lip in thought. "Still, the real test will come when you leave. If your dreams are the result of a possession, you should now be exorcized. Although I'd imagine you wouldn't have come to me if that had been the problem." Lina shook her head. "Well, whoever is invading your dreams, they are more powerful and/or more skilled than you are with dreams. I'm afraid that you surpass me in this area, so there's little I can do to help. I can recommend you to an expert on the subject, however."
"Oh? And who's that?"
"Why, your sister, of course," Pralahad said. "She had all the markings of a prophet, you know. She knows more about dreams than any human alive at this time."
Lina shuddered. "Anyone else?"
"No, not really. There was some old sage I heard about one time, Raudy Gabriev or something. He was supposedly an expert on dreams, but I've never been able to contact him."
"I've met him," Lina said. "He's dead now, I think."
"Really? Well, that shouldn't be too much of a problem, I think."
Lina looked at him oddly for a moment, then chuckled. "Sometimes I forget just what you can do, Sensei. It'll be a bit more difficult, though, 'cause he's actually in a different reality."
"Really? That sounds like a diverting challenge."
"Yeah. I helped him change the history of Mipross Island, so the Raudy Gabriev I met is gone, and he died more than a hundred years ago now."
Pralahad stood up. "Well, Miss Inverse, I think it is time for you to rejoin your companions. I have a few things to tell all of you. After that, well, you are free to do as you please."
"Do you mind if we stay here for a few days, Sensei?"
The old man waved a hand dismissively. "No, of course not. Stay as long as you like. Time will not pass while you are here, as usual." There was a strange glimmer in the wizard's eye as he continued. "How shocked would your friends be to learn that you are much older than the seventeen years you've aged?"
"I don't think Gourry would be all that surprised, to be honest," Lina replied. "He doesn't really think about things like that much. I don't think he's quite as dumb as he pretends to be, but he's not exactly bright. Sylphiel might be a bit surprised, but give her a couple days and she might figure it out. She's actually pretty intelligent, when she bothers to think instead of emote." Lina looked curiously at Pralahad. "How old am I, anyway?"
"Oh, this is just a rough estimate, but I'd guess that you've spent a good four years in this tower, altogether. I'm not entirely sure. Yours was one of the shorter tutelages. Rezo was here for almost thirty. Your sister was here for twelve, which is probably about average."
"Don't bring her into it," Lina muttered.
"And what about the red-haired child?"
"Him?" Lina asked, "What about him?"
Pralahad frowned. "Do you think he would be surprised? That was the original question, I believe."
"Ah. Don't really know. I've only known him for a few days. We picked him up a week or so ago. He was busy blowing up some bandits."
"And what do you intend to do with him?" Pralahad asked. "Why did you bring him here?"
Lina thought about it for a moment. "You know, that's a very good question." She frowned. "And I don't have an answer at the moment."
* * * * *
The sight that greeted Lina Inverse when she rejoined her companions struck her as rather amusing. She wasn't quite sure why, but she found it humorous, nonetheless.
Sylphiel and Cyan lay slumped over on the floor, unconscious. Gourry sat cross-legged a short distance away, a piece of paper in front of him and a coin held in his hand as he examined it critically.
"Hey, Lina, how you feeling?" Gourry asked offhandedly as she walked over to him and sat down. He tossed the coin up in the air and caught it, slapping it onto the back of his other hand. "Damn. Heads again."
"Heads?"
"Yeah. I must've flipped this coin five hundred times, and I keep getting heads, no matter what."
Lina frowned at him. "You're sure it's not a two headed coin?"
"C'mon, Lina, what do you think I am, stupid?" Gourry quickly rethought that comment. "Never mind. Dumb question. But anyway, I'm not that slow. I checked that after about ten in a row."
"Really. Have you tried flipping any other coins?"
"Yeah, a couple." Gourry pointed at four gold coins lying on the piece of paper before him. "This one always lands tails up, this one heads, heads again, and tails." He scratched his head. "I guess it's magic, or something, 'cause these look like pretty normal Gold Republicons."
"Republicons?" Lina squealed with delight. "Those coins are priceless! The Republic died five hundred years ago! Do you have any idea how much those are worth?"
"Um, no?"
"Wait a minute," Lina said. "How do you know what a Gold Republicon looks like anyway? They're rare collector's items. Nobody uses them for currency anymore."
"Really? Grandma had a chest full of all sorts of old things like that. She told me all kinds of stories about all the old junk she had, and how our family got all of it."
Lina stared at him. "Your grandmother had a chest full of things from the Lost Republic? Do you have any idea how much things like that are worth?"
Gourry scratched his head nervously. "Um, well, money never really meant much to me. As long as I have enough, I don't really worry about it."
Lina sighed, her aggitation dissolving. There wasn't much point in being upset about it. Gourry didn't know what he'd done wrong, which was typical. However, in this case, he wasn't even being an idiot. He just didn't have a very good grasp on finances. Which reminded her...
"Gourry, from now on, I'll carry the money."
"Um, Lina, you already do."
"Oh. Right." Stupid! Of course she carried the money. Like she'd trust it to him. Sure, she'd trust him with her life, but her money? Yeah right.
"Anyway, back to the coins problem." Lina picked up one of the coins, and flipped it. It landed tails up. "And you said this one always landed heads?"
"It did for me," Gourry protested.
"Well, lets try again." She flipped the coin a few more times, but kept getting tails.
"I think I get it."
"Huh? Really?"
"Yeah. It has to do with probability," Lina told him. "This place is sort of locked in time, so the same things keep on happening over and over. So the probability of your flipping a given coin heads or tails is fifty- fifty. But once you've flipped it once, the probability is set in stone, and you'll keep getting the same thing. But if I flip the coin, that counts as a separate event, so I might get a different result to begin with. But I'll keep getting that same result after the first flip. Get it?"
Gourry hadn't. He'd fallen asleep instead.
She bopped him lightly on the head. "Idiot! Don't you ever pay attention to what I say?"
"Gee, Lina, I try, but you're just so boring."
Lina hit him again, but with a little more force.
"Okay, I'll shut up now."
"Wise decision."
A few minutes of silence passed.
"Hey, Lina?"
"I thought you were shutting up," Lina joked.
"Changed my mind," Gourry said. "What's next?"
"Hmm? What do you mean?"
"I mean, we met your friend, so now we're gonna go on a quest or something, right?"
Lina leaned back on her arms. "Yeah, we'll leave in a bit. We'll stay here a couple of days, though. I've got a few things to ask still, and I'm not in any big hurry."
"Oh. Okay."
Sylphiel started to snore softly.
"Hmm. First time I've heard her do that," Lina commented.
"Well, that's not a surprise."
Lina bristled. She just knew there was an insult coming. The worst part was, she was fairly sure Gourry didn't even know he was insulting. "Really?"
"Yeah. I mean, who could hear anything over your snoring?"
Lina balled her fists, but somehow suppressed the urge to punch him. "Gourry?"
"Yeah?"
"Do you want me to hurt you?"
"No." He looked at her in a way that said, what, you think I'm stupid?
To which she gave a look that clearly answered, Well, duh!
"Look, lets wake up these two and take them to the guest rooms. They'll probably sleep a lot better on beds, and be a lot less stiff in the morning."
Gourry heartily agreed. "Yeah, a bed would be nice. But we don't have to wake them. I'll get Sylphiel, you get the kid."
They picked up the happily sleeping duo, and Lina led them through a few doors to the guest rooms.
"Go ahead and take that one," Lina said, pointing to a door. "Sylphiel can go in here, and I'll put Cyan in that room, there."
"Hey, Lina, where will you sleep, then?"
"I just slept. I'll be visiting the doc, so if you need anything, just knock on the door. We'll hear you."
"Really? So you'll be just outside the door? I didn't see anything too interesting out there, just a hallway."
Lina sighed. "Look, yogurt-for-brains, it's a magic door, okay? I'll hear you, trust me. It's a funny house that way."
"Oh, okay," Gourry replied, accepting what she said at face value. "Well, good night, then, Lina."
"Good night, Gourry. See you in the morning."
"Yeah."
Lina walked off down the corridor while Gourry got Sylphiel settled in. By the time he made it back to the hallway, Lina was gone.
* * * * *
Xelloss was, for perhaps only the third time in his existence, concerned. It was an uncomfortable feeling, to be sure. It meant that he felt doubt in the powers he possessed, and also in the powers of his master. To feel such things was to invite dispersement, to risk having his component energies break apart and scatter across the universe. To doubt too much was to die.
And yet, Xelloss doubted. There was no way he could not, in these circumstances, although he would need to doubt a great deal more before any serious harm would come to him. The Beastmasters plans were failing; for the third time, Zelas had guessed wrong.
Zelas seldom guessed wrong. In truth, She seldom guessed at all. Eleven hundred years ago, when all the world was preparing for war, Zelas Metallium had turned Her keen insight upon the insignificant race of man. There, She had discovered an unexpected treasure: mathematics.
Oh, it was true that the Mazoku and Ryuzoku both had knowledge of simple arithmetic. Such things were elementary to existence, perhaps innate, since Xelloss himself could never recall a time when he knew not how to add. Yet the humans had taken these simple truths and turned them into something more complex. They had learned how to apply numbers to things, and to then make predictions upon them.
It was he himself who had reported on this, but he was not as intelligent as his master. She had seen a hidden potential: she realized that the actions of groups of intelligent beings could be predicted statistically. It had taken her four hundred years to perfect her mathematics, but in the end, she had it. She had a system of prognostication that was accurate. She had the SAFE.
There was one significant problem with the Statistical Analysis of Future Events. It only gave probabilities, so there was always a chance, no matter how slight, that things might not go as planned. SAFE had predicted a 67.63 percent chance that Hellmaster Phibrizo's plans to destroy the world would fail: and they had. But there had been only a 0.16 percent chance that he himself would be destroyed. Yet that unlikely possibility had come to passs.
Xelloss blamed Lina Inverse. She was a wildcard; she influenced the course of history far more than any mortal should. Twice now, she had been present at a massive deviation from the expected future, although the first time had been a more modest 12 percent (and the resurrection of Shabrinigdo would likely have failed in any case: 93 percent). Twice now, Lina Inverse had disrupted the Beastmaster's plans.
If it were up to Xelloss, Lina Inverse would be dead. But it was not for him to decide: Zelas Metallium had given him clear instructions not to harm her, and he could not disobey. To do so would be to become nothing.
So instead, Xelloss watched, and waited.
"Xelloss." He turned and saw a grey-clad figure approaching.
Ah. The old man of the tower. "Good evening, Master Pralahad," Xelloss said congenially. "You look the same as ever."
"Come to try your luck again, Xelloss?" the old man growled. "I still have that arm of yours you so kindly donated on your last visit. Have you come to donate another?"
Xelloss kept his habitual smirk firmly in place. He would not rise to the bait, as he had last time. The old man was not bluffing; he was capable, in this place, of destroying even a Mazoku lord, and possibly even a piece of Ruby Eye himself. But his power extended a mere twenty yards from tower in all directions, and Xelloss was a good six inches beyond that.
"No, I'm afraid not. I was simply in the neighborhood, and thought I'd stop by. Lesser Mazoku are frightfully boring conversationalists, and occasionally I hunger for some real talk."
"Pity," Pralahad remarked. "Ah well, probably for the best. You wouldn't believe how much trouble was to set up a containment field to keep that arm of yours corporeal. I see you've grown a new one."
"I'm sure it's a simply fascinating application of magical engineering, but that's not really my forte," Xellos said. "I've always found statistics to be far more fascinating. And sadism, of course, but that really goes without saying."
"But never masochism, unfortunately," the old man retorted. "Well, as I said before, just as well. It's probably too much trouble to preserve any more little bits and pieces of you." He shook his head. "I know about your use of statistical prophesy, and I know that history has just forked against you. If you are sniffing around for clues as to why, I'm afraid you'll be sorely disappointed. I'll not help you prefect the theory."
"My good sir, there is nothing wrong with our SAFE method, I assure you. The unlikely simply occurs on occasion. Such is the nature of probability, or so I've observed."
"It is either for that reason, or for Lina Inverse that you trouble me so."
Xellos opened one eye. "Your powers of insight were ever keen, old one," he said ironically.
"Well, get thee gone, creature of darkness. There is naught to be accomplished here." Pralahad traced a circle in mid-air with his left hand, and then pushed his right hand through it. There was a sudden surge of power, and Xelloss was pushed back from the astral wall around the old man's tower.
"Do not tempt me, old man," Xelloss snarled. His control was slipping, he knew, but Xelloss simply could not contain his rage. "You and I both know that you can do no serious harm to me while I remain outside your barrier, and I can do no serious harm to you while you remain within. But I can make you very uncomfortable."
Xelloss snapped his fingers, and focused his will on the air behind Pralahad's tower, drawing it toward himself. There was a sudden gust of typhoon class wind, and the old man stumbled forward. He fell, and as he did so, his hand passed beyond the barrier.
Xelloss immediately pointed, and pushed his energy outward, toward the offending limb. The astral equivalent of lightning shot out from his finger, and struck the old man's hand. He was entirely surprised to see that absolutely nothing happened. In fact, where there should have been a blackened and burned arm, there was nothing. The old man's limb simply ended where it touched the shield.
Xelloss forced himself to smile once more. He had been tricked, once again. "Clever, old one, very clever. I could not even sense that it was a projection."
"Very good, isn't it?" the projection asked. Xelloss studied it carefully now, and wondered at it. The illusion actually had an emotional presence, and even a slight astral one. Truly amazing, what these humans could accomplish despite their lack of innate ability. "A student of mine came up with this method some two hundred years ago. It took me years to penetrate the illusion and duplicate the method myself."
"I suppose I must concede this round to you, good doctor. That makes the score two to three in your favor, by my count. But I shall win the game."
"We shall see." The projection turned away, and vanished.
Xelloss gazed at the tower malevolently for a few microseconds, and then he too disappeared, leaving the night much the same as it had been before the interruptions.
And those inside slept on, unaware of what had happened, with the exception of a certain redhead.
==========
End Chapter 3