Chapter 2:
*Flash back*
The wizards brought the fire and ice elementals with them into battle. Like
their respective masters, the two elementals were of equal strength. The
two Titan-forced beings battled, the ice elemental wielded more magic
spells, she was clearly the longer distance fighter, casting one hard-
hitting ice-bast after another at the fire elemental. He on the other hand,
seemed to be an inclose fighter, he had a heat-wall(wave?) that would
cancel out any of her spells, but it was only at a radius of one or two
feet. When he would get close to her, he would attack full out with
magically charged fire weapons and other close range spells.
As they wrestled one and other, Daros and Majonin finally killed each other off. The two elementals stopped and looked at the dead forms of their respective masters. they blinked. looked at each other. blinked. looked at the other's master. blinked. (Note: when an elementals master dies, they have nothing to keep them in this world, and they return. but not these two.) They stood there for a bit, exchanged a few words, and found no reason that they should be fighting! With that new discovery, they both parted on neutral terms, and went their separate ways.
They met up in local gathering places many times, yet had little to say to each other and little want of useless, nonsensical chatter, so they hardly opened there mouths to speak. One such occasion, they had been the last two at the party being that elementals never sleep, they had sat on the ground beside each other, just far enough away that it was comfortable, yet close enough that if it were any other pair that were on neutral terms they would strike up a conversation, but these two just sat their like they were all by themselves in the world.
In the beginning, the towns people were afraid they would end up like their creators, but that fear soon fell to the realization that they were two beings that were VERY different than there ex-masters.
It took a while, but over time, the two found they had much in common, and started to spend more time together. Icis, as she named herself, relied mainly upon the spells she could cast for long distance affects. Fire, who was far less creative than his spell-wielding counter-part, relied on a sword more often than not. *Flash back ends*
Lina felt as if she were going to cry! Why couldn't he just leave her to wither up and die? He had proclaimed himself that he didn't want to see her again. well, not exactly, but it was close enough! So why did he just have to waltz back into her life when she felt for the first time since she was five that she just might have the slightest chance of standing, if only for the barest moment, on her own two feet.
"Yes, Zel?"
"Yes what?"
"You are here. why?"
Zel felt like he had been stabbed in the heart [Why?!? You ask me 'WHY'?!? Because I love you more than life itself, because I would sell my soul to hear you say 'I love you' back. Because I would give up my deepest desires and wildest dreams if you told me to, and replace them with what ever it is you want of me. and you ask me why?] but he replied all to coldly, "You are really something particular, you know that?"
When sad and vacant ruby-fire eyes looked up at him, he forced a half smile that faded far faster than he would have liked. He sat down across from her, looking deep into her silent hollow form through her soul's window. She finally after a while lowered her eyes and returned her dead looks to the table. After a long time of silence, Zel glanced over and noticed the displeased bartender.
"Lina.?" Zel asked her name softly to warn he was going to ask a question.
Silence.
"Lina.?" he asked again a little louder.
Silence.
Zel got up and went to talk to the bard. "Please, forgive my asking, my friend is going through some hard times, what is her room number?" after being told, he returned to Lina once more. "Lina. Lina it is time to go to bed." as he expected he got no response. Wherever she was, it was to far away to hear. He scooped her up in his arms and carried her into the room; she gave no reply, but reached out and grabbed one of the lanterns as they passed it, hugging it tightly to herself.
He took her up the stairs and into her room, after laying her on her bed, he attempted to remove the lamp from her hands. She held fast to it, and he nearly ripped it from her grasp when she gave a desperate whimpering wail just over a quivering breath.
He stopped for a moment and looked at her, she was clearly tired, and looked a little afraid, as she clung to the glass that surrounded the oil and wick as if it were the only thing keeping her alive. He finally said sternly, "Lina. give it to me."
She clutched it tighter and shook her head vigorously from side to side.
"Lina. you can't sleep with it! You'll let it tip and it will start a fire and burn the building down, most likely killing you and most the other people here."
"Good." she stated, pouting.
"Lina." his voice was soft now, and was tinged with pain and suffering. "If that's the way you will have it, then I shall burn with you."
The look of shock on her face made it look as if her eyeballs were to fall out of her head. "NO! You can't die! You're my best friend! My ONLY friend! You can't die! I won't let you!" The distressed teenager rushed forward and flung her arms around his neck, sobbing out her fear, pain, and confusion.
His face was a mixture of pain, relief, and gentleness as he whispered to her, "I'm so glad."
***
Princess Amelia sat in her father's study. Being a Princess was really very boring. She so longed to go and travel the world again with Ms. Lina and Mr. Goury, maybe Mr. Xellos, and most of all Mr. Zelgadis. She gave a little sigh as she thought about her always-daydream of her and him pronouncing their love for one and other.
She knew it would never happen, she was far to shy to let her heart be known to him, and she knew he was just to quiet to pronounce the feelings she KNEW just HAD to be there. So she and him would go on being secret lovers forever. or at least until she found someone else.
She knew he was secretly harboring feelings for her because of that dazed look, that far off dreamy one he would get when he thought no one looking. He would often sigh, and now and again blush a little when like that. So she knew he HAD to love her just as ravenously as she loved him.
So goes the mind of the uneducated child when it comes to such affairs as these. But a maid coming rushing into the room interrupted her visions on a future that would never come. "Princess! Princess, your friend Mr. Goury is here to see you!"
"Mr. Zelgadis too?"
"Sadly no Princess, only Mr. Goury." her maids all knew that she was in love with Zelgadis, so their was no odd looks at her asking.
"Only... hey wait a sec! Ms. Lina isn't with him either?"
"No Princess, only Mr. Goury."
"What could have happened? Have you checked everything in the palace that is of any value?"
"Yes Princess, Ms. Lina is not here."
"Oh no! Poor Ms. Lina! She was SO in love with him!"
The maid gave a skeptical look, but said nothing to that comment. Every time she had seen the two, they always acted in her eyes like really good friends. But she didn't know them that well; they could act very different in different situations. "Would you like me to send him in?"
"At once!"
To her surprise, a very pitiful looking swordsman came in a moment later. "Amelia. I didn't know where else to look. I was hoping Lina would be here."
"Mr. Goury. what happened to her?"
He let her read the letter, and he told on how he had thought harder than he had ever thought before and had come up with the conclusion that she may have come here, but now that she wasn't. He didn't have the slightest clue on where to go and look for her! Amelia promised in the name of justice that she would help him find Lina back, and on the flip side, would not only get out of here and to somewhere more entertaining. But may even run into Zel again and get to dump Goury off and have Zel escort her back home.
***
Lina and Zelgadis sat under a tree; they were having a picnic lunch in a field in between towns. Lina was acting more like herself each day, but every now and again it would flash for a half-hour or so, she would get all depressed. But today she had had no such moments, she had been smiling and laughing since dawn.
But on this very moment, it was not her who was laughing so deep and richly that it filled the field, it was Zelgadis. You see, for the last twenty minutes or so she had had a little 'visitor' that would not leave her nose be! The beautifully colored butterfly had come and landed on her nose, getting a face in response that made Zel chuckle.
As she tried to look at the butterfly, its wings were beating to cover her red eyes. The design on the wings perfectly covered her eyes so it looked like she was only warring a mask to cover her elegant features. She proceeded to shake her head ecstatically to remove the bug, it worked in a way, the butterfly flew up and made a circle before landing again on her nose.
When she had shook her head so much it had given her a headache, she proceeded to attempt to swat the bug away getting little worse of a reply. Now she sat there, legs crossed, hands holding her ankles, head cocked to one side, and giving the bug on her now bruised nose the cutest little angry pout that Zelgadis had ever seen. Zelgadis couldn't help but laugh his heart out.
"You really are something, you know that?" he said as he slowly and genitally led the bug off of her nose and onto his finger. He smiled at himself at how careful he was never to touch his skin to hers, so not to scare her off at the feeling of stony, rough, cold hands.
Lina could only guess on what his skin felt like, but the time or two that she had wondered, she had guessed it much like a smoothed slate surface. "You always say that, you know." Lina lean in closer to study the beautifully marked Monarch Butterfly, going to great lengths to keep her nose at bay.
"It's always true, too." he replied without a pause.
"Well, you could think up something new to say. It is getting pretty old, you know." she playfully scolded as she positioned herself more comfortably to watch the bug... she was laying across his lap.
Fighting down a blush, and bowing his head to hide it, he replied, equally playfully, "Then I am afraid I will have to strive harder to please, then, milady."
All was quiet for a while, before Lina inquired on something in a rather unusual way. "I like you better like this when we're traveling alone. Why don't you ever act like this when we're with others?"
Though the question-so innocent that it didn't even bring a blush to Lina's cheeks to ask it-was a simple enough one, Zelgadis-who was blushing like a school girl-stumbled and grabbed in the dark recesses of his mind for an answer to such a personal question, tied in to all that he felt, that didn't give away his feelings plain out. "I just. I don't know, I just don't feel as. relaxed. in larger groups."
"You aren't ugly, and you aren't a monster." the answer was so devoid of emotion that, though she had never really voiced this opinion before, it was clear that she had that answer made up for a long time now. "But lets not get into that, shall we? It always seems to have the habit of depressing you."
***
"Excuse me, Sir?" a young voice asked.
"Yes, Amelia, what would you like?" the man in beggar clothes turned to face the young teen.
"MR. XELLOS?!?"
"Yes, I know who I am, what can I help you with though, my dear?" Xellos, the legendary Trickster Priest of the Beast Master Zellas Matellium asked, with his trade-mark-closed-eyed-smile.
"We're looking for Ms. Lina. Have you seen her recently?"
"Who?"
"Mr. Xellos! You do remember who Ms. Lina is, don't you?!?"
"That's a secret!"
"Do you know where she might be?"
"That's a secret!"
"Do you know of anyone around that can give us a strait answer?"
"That's a secret!"
"Mr. Xellos!" Amelia whined.
"Who?"
"Mr. Xellos! Don't you even remember your own name?!?"
"That's a secret!"
"." Amelia had made the mistake that most people who know Xellos make, she forgot the fact that he avoids giving a strait answer to all of his capability, unless he believes it to be of his own entertainment to do so.
***
"Zel... I'm hungry." Lina whined as they walked side by side.
Rolling his eyes, Zelgadis just replied with a simple, "We're almost in town, Lina, you can get some food there."
"Really? What town are we going to anyways?" Lina asked, excited at the prospect of food in her endless pit of a stomach.
"Norvulk Hills." Zelgadis replied without thought. Then he looked over at Lina and playfully shook his head. "I think you got hollow legs. No one should eat as much as you do and not loose their figure unless they do."
"Humph.Sigh! You're the first PERSON that didn't know me before the transformation to treat me like I deserve to have a chance at living. Let alone, the first woman." He didn't know if she would catch his referring to her as a woman instead of a girl, but part of him wanted to let her know that not everyone thought of her as just a child.
"Maybe no one treats you like a person, because you don't treat yourself like one. You don't hold yourself like someone who deems themselves worthy of human contact, or attention, or respect, so if you don't demand it... humans have a nasty way of cutting people down as much as they can, to prove that they're the best. If you let them do that, then they see that in you and they take advantage. Your too good for that Zel, I know you are. You are strong, fast, smart, funny when you let yourself be, powerful... everything that you wanted you are, and more. You're sweet, kind, cute, caring, and an all around nice guy, Zel. You have no idea the shortage of nice guys on this planet. Every girl wants one, but there just aren't enough to go around. All you have to do is be yourself like you are when it's just the two of us alone, and you'll have girls throwing themselves at your feet! But anyways, enough of that, I'm hungry, let's go."
Zelgadis had nothing more to do then follow numbly behind. She thought he was cute? I told you that my sister would join me in this project eventually, yes? Well, she was surfing anipike.com the other day and, well. lets just say she got herself introduced to the concept of 'Mazoku'. And from their she fell in love with the concept that there is SOMETHING in the wide world of anime/manga that think and process info and react like her. So do look forward to having her wonderful (though often odd and peculiar sense of humorous) writing in the next chapter. But we've kind of got stuck, we don't know how Amelia, Goury, and Xellos will meet up with Lina and Zel. Anyone got any suggestions to help make this story go a little faster? Anyway, if you have any QCC, e-mail me at WolfStar_SCA@hotmail.com. Shade and Sweet Water!
As they wrestled one and other, Daros and Majonin finally killed each other off. The two elementals stopped and looked at the dead forms of their respective masters. they blinked. looked at each other. blinked. looked at the other's master. blinked. (Note: when an elementals master dies, they have nothing to keep them in this world, and they return. but not these two.) They stood there for a bit, exchanged a few words, and found no reason that they should be fighting! With that new discovery, they both parted on neutral terms, and went their separate ways.
They met up in local gathering places many times, yet had little to say to each other and little want of useless, nonsensical chatter, so they hardly opened there mouths to speak. One such occasion, they had been the last two at the party being that elementals never sleep, they had sat on the ground beside each other, just far enough away that it was comfortable, yet close enough that if it were any other pair that were on neutral terms they would strike up a conversation, but these two just sat their like they were all by themselves in the world.
In the beginning, the towns people were afraid they would end up like their creators, but that fear soon fell to the realization that they were two beings that were VERY different than there ex-masters.
It took a while, but over time, the two found they had much in common, and started to spend more time together. Icis, as she named herself, relied mainly upon the spells she could cast for long distance affects. Fire, who was far less creative than his spell-wielding counter-part, relied on a sword more often than not. *Flash back ends*
Lina felt as if she were going to cry! Why couldn't he just leave her to wither up and die? He had proclaimed himself that he didn't want to see her again. well, not exactly, but it was close enough! So why did he just have to waltz back into her life when she felt for the first time since she was five that she just might have the slightest chance of standing, if only for the barest moment, on her own two feet.
"Yes, Zel?"
"Yes what?"
"You are here. why?"
Zel felt like he had been stabbed in the heart [Why?!? You ask me 'WHY'?!? Because I love you more than life itself, because I would sell my soul to hear you say 'I love you' back. Because I would give up my deepest desires and wildest dreams if you told me to, and replace them with what ever it is you want of me. and you ask me why?] but he replied all to coldly, "You are really something particular, you know that?"
When sad and vacant ruby-fire eyes looked up at him, he forced a half smile that faded far faster than he would have liked. He sat down across from her, looking deep into her silent hollow form through her soul's window. She finally after a while lowered her eyes and returned her dead looks to the table. After a long time of silence, Zel glanced over and noticed the displeased bartender.
"Lina.?" Zel asked her name softly to warn he was going to ask a question.
Silence.
"Lina.?" he asked again a little louder.
Silence.
Zel got up and went to talk to the bard. "Please, forgive my asking, my friend is going through some hard times, what is her room number?" after being told, he returned to Lina once more. "Lina. Lina it is time to go to bed." as he expected he got no response. Wherever she was, it was to far away to hear. He scooped her up in his arms and carried her into the room; she gave no reply, but reached out and grabbed one of the lanterns as they passed it, hugging it tightly to herself.
He took her up the stairs and into her room, after laying her on her bed, he attempted to remove the lamp from her hands. She held fast to it, and he nearly ripped it from her grasp when she gave a desperate whimpering wail just over a quivering breath.
He stopped for a moment and looked at her, she was clearly tired, and looked a little afraid, as she clung to the glass that surrounded the oil and wick as if it were the only thing keeping her alive. He finally said sternly, "Lina. give it to me."
She clutched it tighter and shook her head vigorously from side to side.
"Lina. you can't sleep with it! You'll let it tip and it will start a fire and burn the building down, most likely killing you and most the other people here."
"Good." she stated, pouting.
"Lina." his voice was soft now, and was tinged with pain and suffering. "If that's the way you will have it, then I shall burn with you."
The look of shock on her face made it look as if her eyeballs were to fall out of her head. "NO! You can't die! You're my best friend! My ONLY friend! You can't die! I won't let you!" The distressed teenager rushed forward and flung her arms around his neck, sobbing out her fear, pain, and confusion.
His face was a mixture of pain, relief, and gentleness as he whispered to her, "I'm so glad."
***
Princess Amelia sat in her father's study. Being a Princess was really very boring. She so longed to go and travel the world again with Ms. Lina and Mr. Goury, maybe Mr. Xellos, and most of all Mr. Zelgadis. She gave a little sigh as she thought about her always-daydream of her and him pronouncing their love for one and other.
She knew it would never happen, she was far to shy to let her heart be known to him, and she knew he was just to quiet to pronounce the feelings she KNEW just HAD to be there. So she and him would go on being secret lovers forever. or at least until she found someone else.
She knew he was secretly harboring feelings for her because of that dazed look, that far off dreamy one he would get when he thought no one looking. He would often sigh, and now and again blush a little when like that. So she knew he HAD to love her just as ravenously as she loved him.
So goes the mind of the uneducated child when it comes to such affairs as these. But a maid coming rushing into the room interrupted her visions on a future that would never come. "Princess! Princess, your friend Mr. Goury is here to see you!"
"Mr. Zelgadis too?"
"Sadly no Princess, only Mr. Goury." her maids all knew that she was in love with Zelgadis, so their was no odd looks at her asking.
"Only... hey wait a sec! Ms. Lina isn't with him either?"
"No Princess, only Mr. Goury."
"What could have happened? Have you checked everything in the palace that is of any value?"
"Yes Princess, Ms. Lina is not here."
"Oh no! Poor Ms. Lina! She was SO in love with him!"
The maid gave a skeptical look, but said nothing to that comment. Every time she had seen the two, they always acted in her eyes like really good friends. But she didn't know them that well; they could act very different in different situations. "Would you like me to send him in?"
"At once!"
To her surprise, a very pitiful looking swordsman came in a moment later. "Amelia. I didn't know where else to look. I was hoping Lina would be here."
"Mr. Goury. what happened to her?"
He let her read the letter, and he told on how he had thought harder than he had ever thought before and had come up with the conclusion that she may have come here, but now that she wasn't. He didn't have the slightest clue on where to go and look for her! Amelia promised in the name of justice that she would help him find Lina back, and on the flip side, would not only get out of here and to somewhere more entertaining. But may even run into Zel again and get to dump Goury off and have Zel escort her back home.
***
Lina and Zelgadis sat under a tree; they were having a picnic lunch in a field in between towns. Lina was acting more like herself each day, but every now and again it would flash for a half-hour or so, she would get all depressed. But today she had had no such moments, she had been smiling and laughing since dawn.
But on this very moment, it was not her who was laughing so deep and richly that it filled the field, it was Zelgadis. You see, for the last twenty minutes or so she had had a little 'visitor' that would not leave her nose be! The beautifully colored butterfly had come and landed on her nose, getting a face in response that made Zel chuckle.
As she tried to look at the butterfly, its wings were beating to cover her red eyes. The design on the wings perfectly covered her eyes so it looked like she was only warring a mask to cover her elegant features. She proceeded to shake her head ecstatically to remove the bug, it worked in a way, the butterfly flew up and made a circle before landing again on her nose.
When she had shook her head so much it had given her a headache, she proceeded to attempt to swat the bug away getting little worse of a reply. Now she sat there, legs crossed, hands holding her ankles, head cocked to one side, and giving the bug on her now bruised nose the cutest little angry pout that Zelgadis had ever seen. Zelgadis couldn't help but laugh his heart out.
"You really are something, you know that?" he said as he slowly and genitally led the bug off of her nose and onto his finger. He smiled at himself at how careful he was never to touch his skin to hers, so not to scare her off at the feeling of stony, rough, cold hands.
Lina could only guess on what his skin felt like, but the time or two that she had wondered, she had guessed it much like a smoothed slate surface. "You always say that, you know." Lina lean in closer to study the beautifully marked Monarch Butterfly, going to great lengths to keep her nose at bay.
"It's always true, too." he replied without a pause.
"Well, you could think up something new to say. It is getting pretty old, you know." she playfully scolded as she positioned herself more comfortably to watch the bug... she was laying across his lap.
Fighting down a blush, and bowing his head to hide it, he replied, equally playfully, "Then I am afraid I will have to strive harder to please, then, milady."
All was quiet for a while, before Lina inquired on something in a rather unusual way. "I like you better like this when we're traveling alone. Why don't you ever act like this when we're with others?"
Though the question-so innocent that it didn't even bring a blush to Lina's cheeks to ask it-was a simple enough one, Zelgadis-who was blushing like a school girl-stumbled and grabbed in the dark recesses of his mind for an answer to such a personal question, tied in to all that he felt, that didn't give away his feelings plain out. "I just. I don't know, I just don't feel as. relaxed. in larger groups."
"You aren't ugly, and you aren't a monster." the answer was so devoid of emotion that, though she had never really voiced this opinion before, it was clear that she had that answer made up for a long time now. "But lets not get into that, shall we? It always seems to have the habit of depressing you."
***
"Excuse me, Sir?" a young voice asked.
"Yes, Amelia, what would you like?" the man in beggar clothes turned to face the young teen.
"MR. XELLOS?!?"
"Yes, I know who I am, what can I help you with though, my dear?" Xellos, the legendary Trickster Priest of the Beast Master Zellas Matellium asked, with his trade-mark-closed-eyed-smile.
"We're looking for Ms. Lina. Have you seen her recently?"
"Who?"
"Mr. Xellos! You do remember who Ms. Lina is, don't you?!?"
"That's a secret!"
"Do you know where she might be?"
"That's a secret!"
"Do you know of anyone around that can give us a strait answer?"
"That's a secret!"
"Mr. Xellos!" Amelia whined.
"Who?"
"Mr. Xellos! Don't you even remember your own name?!?"
"That's a secret!"
"." Amelia had made the mistake that most people who know Xellos make, she forgot the fact that he avoids giving a strait answer to all of his capability, unless he believes it to be of his own entertainment to do so.
***
"Zel... I'm hungry." Lina whined as they walked side by side.
Rolling his eyes, Zelgadis just replied with a simple, "We're almost in town, Lina, you can get some food there."
"Really? What town are we going to anyways?" Lina asked, excited at the prospect of food in her endless pit of a stomach.
"Norvulk Hills." Zelgadis replied without thought. Then he looked over at Lina and playfully shook his head. "I think you got hollow legs. No one should eat as much as you do and not loose their figure unless they do."
"Humph.Sigh! You're the first PERSON that didn't know me before the transformation to treat me like I deserve to have a chance at living. Let alone, the first woman." He didn't know if she would catch his referring to her as a woman instead of a girl, but part of him wanted to let her know that not everyone thought of her as just a child.
"Maybe no one treats you like a person, because you don't treat yourself like one. You don't hold yourself like someone who deems themselves worthy of human contact, or attention, or respect, so if you don't demand it... humans have a nasty way of cutting people down as much as they can, to prove that they're the best. If you let them do that, then they see that in you and they take advantage. Your too good for that Zel, I know you are. You are strong, fast, smart, funny when you let yourself be, powerful... everything that you wanted you are, and more. You're sweet, kind, cute, caring, and an all around nice guy, Zel. You have no idea the shortage of nice guys on this planet. Every girl wants one, but there just aren't enough to go around. All you have to do is be yourself like you are when it's just the two of us alone, and you'll have girls throwing themselves at your feet! But anyways, enough of that, I'm hungry, let's go."
Zelgadis had nothing more to do then follow numbly behind. She thought he was cute? I told you that my sister would join me in this project eventually, yes? Well, she was surfing anipike.com the other day and, well. lets just say she got herself introduced to the concept of 'Mazoku'. And from their she fell in love with the concept that there is SOMETHING in the wide world of anime/manga that think and process info and react like her. So do look forward to having her wonderful (though often odd and peculiar sense of humorous) writing in the next chapter. But we've kind of got stuck, we don't know how Amelia, Goury, and Xellos will meet up with Lina and Zel. Anyone got any suggestions to help make this story go a little faster? Anyway, if you have any QCC, e-mail me at WolfStar_SCA@hotmail.com. Shade and Sweet Water!