Chapter 2:
The Stranger
The room bore all the trademarks of a science laboratory. There were glass vials of liquids, hissing noises, beakers full of boiling chemicals, placed over Bunsen burners, A well stocked bookcase and a table covered entirely with papers bearing mathematical equations, chemical formulae and diagrams for the most demented of experiments.
It was here the old man paced around.
What was he going to do now?! He had heard that Lina Inverse was in the village and so he ordered his accomplice to capture the sorceress who had brought him so much trouble. So what does that useless moron do? He goes and brings him the wrong girl! Marvellous! Just simply marvellous! How on earth could he complete his magnificent creation without the vital ingredient of a girl in her mid-teens?!
What made matters even more frustrating was that Lina will inevietably make the discovery that one of her friends is missing. And when that happens, there will be hell to pay! The old man shuddered at the thought. Having tangled with Lina before, he certainly knew the destructive power of the sorceress. And what if she was, after all this time, still going around with that Naga woman?! She was equally dangerous and indeed powerful - in her own unique way.
Yet as the prospect of facing Lina's wrath worried him, it still didn't provide the old man with the means to complete his experiment....
Suddenly an idea struck him.
The old man hurried over to his desk and began rummaging around his diagrams. There could be a chance that this could all work out.....
Eventually he found what he was looking for: A ratty looking, horribly aged document, written in an ink that was but fading. But no matter how much the ink was fading, it still provided the old man with the information he was seeking.
As the old man gazed at the faded diagram, his eyes grew with devilish fervour. Yes! Yes! This is good! He can use this girl in his experiments after all! And all he had to do was make some minor changes to his original plan! This girl could be of some use after all!
Suddenly his thoughts were interrupted by the sound of the laboratory door being flung open. The old man turned around only to see his incompetent accomplice. The old man's eyes grew with contempt.
The intruder had now changed out of his black clothes and his mask. Now he was revealed as a man in his mid-thirties. This man was dressed in a well-worn armour and clothes that had definitely seen better days. He also bore a mean face which had seen many a battle and a wicked looking sword. It was undoubtable that this man was a warrior.
But no matter how battle scarred he looked, the man was still the old man's accomplice.
"What is it?" the old man snarled, still annoyed at the warrior's bungling.
"There's someone here to see you." The warrior answered
The old man's eyes hardened.
"Well, show him in!"
The warrior stepped aside, to let the visitor into the laboratory....
....And suddenly the old man's eyes widened in surprise. This visitor was something completely unexpected!
The visitor was a tall figure, covered completely in a magenta robe. And, as this robe concealed this newcomer completely, it seemed impossible to determine the visitor's identity. His hands were hidden within the sleeves. His feet were concealed under the robe's folds. Even his face was concealed under a hood. Yet the hood was protective as the rest of the robe: Where the face should be was a void of inky blackness. An inky blackness that was penetrated by two narrow slits of blue light. It was these slits that glowered from the inside of the robe and onto the old man.
The old man gasped in astonishment. Who was this guy? He practically reeked of menace and mystery. And considering that his features were entirely concealed by that red robe, he was certainly not one to be trusted. But, as this stranger is a visitor as any other, he should have something worthwhile to stay.
"What do you want?" the old man growled.
It was then the stranger spoke. But it wasn't in a regular voice - it was in a raspy whisper. It was drier than a desert in the summer and it sounded as if the stranger had difficulty speaking - as if he had not spoken in a hundred years.
"Are you the renowned alchemist Diol?" the stranger inquired.
The old man grew suspicious. This stranger knew his name? He had no idea he was so famous.
But all the more reason to have his suspicions about him!
"Who wants to know?" snapped the old man named Diol.
"I've heard you have captured Lina Inverse." The stranger said, ignoring the old man's question, completely.
"Unfortunately not." Diol sighed, shooting an accusing glance past the stranger and at the old man's accomplice.
"Well if you haven't captured Lina Inverse, then who have you captured?!" the stranger asked, his voice now tinged with annoyance and anger.
It was then the warrior spoke up.
"We believe it's a friend of Lina!"
"SHUT UP YOU MORON!" Diol snapped.
Suddenly the stranger let out a series of short rasping breaths. It seemed like he was....
....chuckling.
"This is good." the stranger muttered.
"You know." the stranger said, addressing the flustered alchemist, "I've heard how Lina Inverse defeated you. You were trying to incorporate her head into your design of a chimera."
Diol's face then went into a perfect shade of red. Then, from the other side of the room, the warrior started giggling. Diol's face then exploded into rage. With an expression, reading blue murder, the alchemist stormed over to the warrior and grabbed the warrior by his collar.
"SHUT UP VISTA!!!!!" Diol thundered. "At least I didn't get my instructions mixed up!"
The warrior named Vista blinked.
"And if I was you" Diol went on, "I would go back to the village because Lina would probably be looking for us!"
In that instant, Vista's face fell. His eyes widened and his face grew frightened. He stared at Diol in fright. What? This old man was asking him to go back to Dakeyras and retrieve Lina?! Vista, having fought Lina before as well, certainly understood what the red-head is capable of. And it was this power that Vista wanted to avoid at all costs! This old man was just demanding the impossible!
"What?!" squawked Vista. "You want me to go and face Lina on my own??!?!"
"Precisely!" Diol snapped. "Consider that your punishment for not capturing her in the first place!!!!"
Vista, however had other ideas.
"Forget it!" he retorted. "No way! Uh-huh!"
"Let me put it this way" Diol snarled. "Would you rather face my wrath or Lina's wrath?!?"
Vista paused, contemplating Diol's ultimatum.
"You know" the swordsman said eventually "I think I'd rather face your wrath!"
Growling with frustration, Diol grabbed Vista and flung him into the air! Vsita sailed through the door and out of the laboratory.
Diol dusted off his hands with a sigh. He had quite enough of the Vista's incompetence! That swordsman may have been the old man's former sponsor but to Diol he was just like any other underling!
Satisfied with the fact that he now had the useless swordsman out of his hair, Diol returned his full attention to the stranger. The stranger was once again chuckling, obviously amused by the idiots in front of him.
"So you've heard of my exploits." The alchemist groaned. "So what is it that you want?"
"I want to assist you with your chimera experiments." The stranger replied.
"How?"
"I have a little ingredient that could help you."
As Diol still had his suspicions about this visitor, he said nothing. Instead he glared at the enigmatic stranger.
"Of course" the visitor went on. "You will be handsomely rewarded."
And with these words the stranger reached into his robe and pulled out a bulging bag. The stranger opened up the bag so Diol can see that it was full of gold coins.
Diol grinned, his eyes blazing with greedy fervour. Well, if he was going to be paid this much, then perhaps this visitor was the trustworthy sort!
In fact, Diol was so engrossed with the stranger's wealth that he didn't notice that the stranger's hand wasn't a hand at all. It was, instead, a shrivelled talon......
"So we have a deal?" the visitor said, his voice one of satisfaction.
"Yes! Yes! Yes, of course!" Diol grinned. "But what is this ingredient you're offering?"
The stranger again reached into his robe and pulled out a crystal vial containing a clear liquid.
"This....."
Meanwhile, a long way away from the chaos in Diol's tower but still within the confines of the forest that surrounded Dakeyras, a solitary figure was making his way through the trees. It was the trail of Vista this figure was seeking but he was cursing himself with every step of the way.
It was the chimera Zelgadis Greywars. And it was the same Zelgadis Greywars who cursed himself for the umpteenth time. How could he be so incompetent? How could he be such an idiot? Such a fool? Such a failure.....?
Earlier this morning, he woke to the sounds of birds chirping. It wasn't quite dawn, yet the first few ray's of light were creeping in through the window, banishing the darkness of the night before. The night's reign was coming to an end and, in it's wake, a new day had begun.
Zel's eyelids eventually warmed up to the light, no matter how minimal it was, and released their captive hold on the chimera's eyes. Slowly the chimera's eyes opened up and adjusted to the surroundings - But this was no easy task as the chimera was half-asleep and still in a room which was still dark.
Lazily, the chimera reached his hand over to the other side of the bed. Towards Amelia. Ah, Amelia - his beloved, his princess, his sunshine, his everything. She who had risked life and limb to keep him from danger and certain death. She who stopped at nothing to rescue him from the nightmarish monster that was Isabella von Hurst. She who had remained true to him no matter how long he denied it. She who had not seen him as a monster but as a proper human being. She who was soft as a pillow when compared to his rock-hard flesh.
But she wasn't there.
Instead of meeting Amelia's soft flesh, Zel's hand only made contact with the silk sheets of the bed.
The chimera's eyes shot open. What? Amelia wasn't there?! Impossible! Unthinkable!
He flicked his head around towards the other side of the bed.
There, the horrible reality of the situation sank in. Amelia definitely wasn't there. The space where she should have been was empty.
The chimera shot up in bed. His eyes scanning the dimly lit room, searching for answers to Amelia's disappearance.
He didn't have to worry for too long.
There, across the room, Zel caught sight of the curtains billowing out from the window.
Zel blinked. The curtains billowing around like that could only mean one thing.....
The chimera leapt to his feet and headed over to the window. It is there his suspicions were confirmed: The window was indeed open. Who on earth had left the window open....?
Did Amelia go through the window?
No. Amelia wouldn't have done a thing like that unless something was wrong......
Suddenly, in that instant, Zelgadis forgot about everything. He forgot about his current state of being half-awake. He forgot all about Isabella. He forgot all about the horrific ordeal he had experienced the night before last. He forgot all about Lina. He forgot all about Gourry. He even forgot all about breakfast. What mattered was finding Amelia. If she was in trouble then she needs him. Period.
Without a moments further hesitation, Zel grabbed his usual travelling clothes, which had spent the night draped across a chair, and leapt through the window. It was then from the tavern that Zel commenced his search, as the dawn sun crept over the horizon.
Zel had been searching ever since.
It had now been several hours.
It was now that Zel found himself wandering the forests surrounding the town, cursing himself. He'd spent the early hours of the morning going through the town. Yet his search there proved fruitless. But ever since Zel left the town, he had picked up signs of someone departing from the town on foot. And, judging by the tracks left, this someone was moving at a rapid pace, despite carrying a heavy load.....
It was there and then the chimera was struck by a terrible realisation.
Suddenly, Zel sprinted on, following the tracks. If anything had happened to Amelia...
....He would never forgive himself!
And that's how Zel found himself wandering the forest, cursing himself for allowing Amelia to be abducted like that. She was taken out from under his nose while he was in a position of helplessness. She was kidnapped while he was powerless to prevent it happening. She was to be subjected to some devious machinations thought up by some fiend while he was lost in the wilderness.
But not if he could help it....
Yet, his pursuit of the kidnapper had now come to an abrupt halt. He had been following the tracks of the kidnapper but now these tracks had gradually grown into confusion: the tracks of the kidnapper now suffered from a degree of interference. These tracks were overlaid with new tracks. Only this newcomer had peculiar markings. They seemed not like human feet but like claws. Claws that could of only been made by a bird.
Yet even those claws seemed too large to be made by a bird.....
Could it have been some kind of animal?
That's possible.
But the longer Zel examined the tracks, his eyes widened and his brain came to a rather unsettling conclusion.
These tracks - there wasn't just one set, there were two! One set was heading in the same direction as the kidnapper while the other set was heading back in the other direction! From the look of it, this creature, must have met the kidnapper in the forest. And then what happened? Did they talk? Did they attack each other? Or something else.....
Suddenly the chimera's thoughts were interrupted by a loud noise. A loud yet reassuringly familiar noise.....
"WHAT?!?!? YOU AGAIN?!?!?"
Zel flicked his head around in the direction of the noise. He could recognise that voice a mile away! How could he not identify the owner of the voice?! And, considering the power of the vocal chords behind the voice, how could Zel not place where the voice itself was coming from?!
Soon another noise joined the first.
"Hey Lina, do you know this guy?"
Zel sped off in the direction of the noise. Lina! Gourry! What were they doing here?
Lina wasn't too pleased with the situation. First Zel and Amelia disappear, then both she and Gourry get lost in the forest and now, they were being challenged by a die-hard of an old foe!
No, Lina was certainly not keen on seeing Vista again. Jeez, she defeated him once already. So must she whip his arse again?! Why is it that she always attracts beaten adversaries like a magnet?!
Oh well, one can easily guess that its all part of being a bandit-killer.....
"Well" Vista sneered. "How unpleasant it is to meet you again Lina. You don't know how long I've waited to take revenge on you."
Lina yawned. Man, this guy sure knows how to prattle on and on.....
"Lina?" Gourry inquired, with a bewildered expression. "How do you know this guy!?"
"Enough!" Vista snarled. "Let's just end it right here, right now!"
And with that he drew his sword with a dramatic flourish. Gourry raised an eyebrow.
Lina, now looking as bored as ever, started to cast a fireball, to toast the annoyance that was Vista.
But Gourry held his hand out in front of her.
"No Lina." the swordsmen grinned. "This one's mine"
Lina sighed. Who was she to argue? She didn't have time for Vista.
The sorceress nodded. Gourry drew his sword with a manic grin and charged towards Vista.
Vista blinked. This wasn't the adversary he was expecting......
But what does it matter? At least this blond's appearance may be that of a total pratt but he also looks like he could put up a decent fight!
Vista grinned at Gourry's charge. Bring it on!
And within seconds, the battle was joined.
But Lina wasn't too interested. With a yawn, she turned away and nestled herself under a tree, to relax. Knowing Gourry's swordplay, this shouldn't take too long.....
"Lina!" came a shout.
Lina blinked. Hold on....
That sounded like Zel!
The sorceress looked up and, sure enough, there was the chimera. He charged right up to her bearing an expression of concern.
"Hiya Zel!" Lina grinned. "Where've you been?"
"Trying to find Amelia."
Lina blinked.
"What? Find Amelia? Where's she gone?"
Zel didn't answer. Instead, he looked up at Gourry and Vista getting stuck into one another.
"What's going on over there?" the chimera asked.
"Oh that." Lina answered, her voice lacking with interest. "Someone wanted to challenge me and Gourry decided to step in."
Zel let out a groan. There's always one....
"We don't have time for this!!!" he snapped, irritably.
Vista, meanwhile, was too busy fighting off Gourry's attacks to notice Zel's arrival. But what did it matter? This young fellow was certainly putting up a good fight. He certainly seemed to know the art of swordplay inside out. No doubt about it, even though this fellow was younger then Vista, he certainly was masterful swordsman.
In amongst the heat of the duel, Vista managed to catch sight of Lina. However she was now joined by someone else. But, Vista wasn't prepared for the appearance of the newcomer. His skin was blue and it looked completely unnatural. His face was decorated by chunks of blue rock that at once looked both bizarre and disturbing. And this newcomer's hair was rigid and looked capable of withstanding anything thrown against it. Vista was so taken aback by the appearance of this newcomer that he nearly dropped his guard.
Yet in spite of his appearances, this newcomer was someone who obviously knew the sorceress. And it was this newcomer who observed this duel of swordplay - With a rather annoyed expression.
All of a sudden, this newcomer waved his arms above his head and pronounced two words:
"MEGA BRAND!"
At the mention of these words, Vista blinked. Mega brand? Hey, he had heard those words some place before. But where.....?
Suddenly, in asking that question he received much more then he bargained for.
For the ground underneath him began rumbling and quaking, as if in anticipation of a disaster on a much larger scale.
Then, in the blink of an eye, the ground underneath Vista erupted! Piles upon piles of rocks and dirt shot skyward, taking the bewildered swordsman to the heavens. With a scream, Vista soared through the sky and over the horizon.
Lina turned to the chimera with a smile of satisfaction.
"Thank you."
Zel nodded.
Suddenly the sorceress blinked.
"Hold on. Where's Gourry?!"
The answer to that question came much sooner than expected. For the swordsman, with a scream, came plunging out of the sky and landed on the ground with a terrific thud. Apparently Vista wasn't the only one creamed by Zelgadis' spell.
"Does that answer your question?" Zel replied.
Lina was indeed shocked to see the swordsman plunge from such a height only to crash with such an impact. Yet she couldn't help but giggle. Gourry, although dazed by his unexpected ride and less than satisfactory landing, raised his head. When he saw Zel, his eyes widened and he leant up onto his elbows.
"Zel!" the swordsman cried. "There you are."
"Yes Gourry." the chimera said.
"Did you do that spell?"
"Yes....."
"Can you warn me the next time you do that?!?!" the swordsman yelled, his voice radiating with annoyance.
Chapter 3
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