Disclaimor: Slayers and its characters belong to Software Sculptors. I only own this story.
Author's Note: From here on out, it gets a bit more serious. Not to worry, though! As you can see, there's still plenty of good material for comic relief. Thanks for the reviews. Keep them coming, please!
Ramblings of the Doomed
Chapter 4: Eris and Kopii
"You mean you didn't follow the instructions TWICE!?" Eris asked, dumbfounded. She loved Rezo-sama with her whole being, but he could be so dense and impatient sometimes!
"Well… no," Rezo said uncomfortably.
Eris sighed in frustration. They had tried some potential cures on the little kopiis she had caught. Some of them did nothing. One made the kopii turn green all over. One made the kopi grow to almost Rezo's size before popping and splattering kopii goo all over the lab. A few made the kopiis fall over dead. The few things that did allow the kopiis to open their eyes didn't do a thing to Rezo himself, aside from giving him the occasional headache. He still couldn't quite understand why he got the headaches from time to time, but he thought maybe Eris could figure it out the next time he got an enormously painful one. He had great trust in her abilities.
"There's another spell we can try, but it won't work on these little ones," Eris said, indicating the kopiis who were climbing all over their enclosure. "We'll have to make another, and a big one this time. So that means using blood AND waiting the full time."
"Okay. But I told you, the last big one I made would have killed me if it had had the strength," Rezo said. "It had a mind almost TOO coherent."
"You just didn't know how to deal with it," Eris told him matter-of-factly. "You tried to reason with it as if it were a human. They're only copies, not real. They're not even animals."
"But… It spoke like a human," Rezo protested.
"Well, like you said, they're smart," Eris admitted. "They're copies of you, how could they not be? But they're still not human. Just let me deal with it, you'll see."
"All right," said Rezo reluctantly. "I suppose."
So they set up the Copy Machine again. Rezo gave himself a wide slash to the wrist, let some blood fall into the copy chamber, and healed himself while Eris set the dials. She set the timer for an hour and two minutes, just to be sure the new kopii would be the right size, and it would only be one kopii. That, combined with Rezo's blood, was bound to make a strong kopii. Maybe even as strong as the red priest himself! Eris shivered in anticipation.
For some reason, the kopiis were very quiet today. It was as if they knew what was going on. They were still everywhere, but the once-common giggling and pitter-patter of little feet was almost non-existent. There was the frequent sound of soft murmering among the kopiis, however. Since they weren't running around, Eris took the opportunity to catch a few more to replace those killed by the 'cures.' Then she followed Rezo upstairs.
Since Eris was curious, Rezo explained the basics of the reading and sensing spells he had cast on himself. To read, he ran his fingers along a line of words. This transmitted their meaning directly into his mind. He could also sense objects and walls and such that were in the same room with him. It was like a bat's radar system: it could tell him the size, shape, and location of objects, but not the colors, patterns, or details. In fact, he really had not the faintest idea what colors were. He had heard that grass and leaves were green, so he came to associate their smell and feel with the color green. It was the same way with red and himself. He had been called the "red priest" for years. But he really had no idea what red was like. He just assumed that he was red. Eris was at a loss for what to tell him. After all, how do you explain colors when the person you're talking to can't see them?
Rezo, sensing her discomfort, smiled self-depreciatingly. "But I get along well as I am. Don't worry too much."
"Maybe I could develop some kind of empathy spell so you would see what I see," said Eris helpfully.
Rezo smiled. "I tried something like that once, years ago. It was very disorienting. I couldn't make out anything, and it was so overwhelming, it made me dizzy. I need to be able to see out of my own eyes, not through someone else's."
Eris was about to respond, but just then the chime down in the lab rang. Rezo and Eris scrambled to their feet and tore down the steps to the Copy Machine. All around them, the little kopiis were chattering excitedly.
Eris got there first, so she opened the door to the Copy Machine. She and Rezo stepped back.
The sound of Rezo-sized footsteps echoed out of the copy chamber, which was still buzzing fiercely. As the kopii stepped clear of the machine, there was a small explosion on the control panel, and Eris had to quickly put out the fire.
"Was that the Copy Machine exploding?" Rezo asked, dreading the answer.
"Yes, I'm afraid it was," said Eris. The little kopiis could be heard laughing nervously nearby. "Stupid kopiis…" she muttered.
"Kopiis?" asked the big kopii.
Eris saw that it was time to take matters into her hands. "Yes, that's what they are and that's what you are too. So don't get any ideas. Now get in there." She used her magic to gently shove him into a big cage she had set up earlier. It was warded so that no magic could pass or destroy it from inside, and the bars were made of steel so the kopii couldn't break them.
"Here, put these on instead of those robes," Eris said briskly. "I don't want you or anyone else thinking you're Rezo-sama. If you live." She tossed in a red cape and a white robe to go underneath. She also snatched the outer parts of his shoulder guards away. Then she snagged Rezo, who was listening in wonderment, and went to the other side of the basement to start preparing the tricky black magic spell.
The kopii was silent for a moment, feeling his new clothing before putting it on. "But if I'm not Rezo…" he said in a small voice, "…who am I?"
"I told you, you're a kopii. Kopii Rezo. You'll answer to Kopii," Eris said.
"Oh," Kopii said softly. "What are you going to do to me?"
"We're going to test a dangerous cure for Rezo-sama's blindness on you," Eris said bluntly.
"Wait, you never said anything about it being dangerous!" Rezo said. "You just said it was too much for the little kopiis to handle!"
"Well…" Eris said, "It calls on the power of the Mazoku. It's dangerous, but it could work! I'm ready now. Are you, Rezo-sama?"
"Uh… Hai. I suppose so," Rezo said hesitantly. They advanced on the trembling Kopii. Rezo began chanting a long, complicated spell while Eris drew symbols in the air and threw ingredients on them at the appropriate times. Eris watched as Kopii's closed eyes began to radiate blackness. He tried to clutch them , to keep the magic out, but Eris froze him in place with a spell.
Rezo completed the spell with one final dramatic phrase. There was a loud clap of thunder, and blackness exploded from the cage. The little kopiis all dove for cover, crying and screaming. Kopii himself let out a terrified scream.
* * *
When the blackness cleared up, Eris was thrilled to see Kopii blink. "It worked!" she exclaimed delightedly.
The world slowly slid into focus as Kopii blinked. He saw a young woman in white with short black hair. That must be Eris. Then he saw a man with purple hair sticking out on both sides of his head and red robes standing next to her. He looked down at the robes he had taken off at Eris's demanding. They were the same. Then this must be Rezo! 'It's me,' Kopii thought wonderingly. 'But it's not. I'm so confused!'
"Okay Kopii, here's the deal," Eris said. "I'll let you out of there for now and you'll do exactly what he did to you. Got it? You try anything else and I'll make you sorry. Do it right and you can live. All right?"
"Hai," said Kopii softly. "Just let me look at the spell once more before I do."
"All right," Eris said. She opened the door to Kopii's cage. He walked out cautiously. He meant to go straight to the book, but he was captivated by Rezo.
"So that's what I look like," he said quietly. Rezo turned his head longingly in his direction.
"I wish I could see it too," said Rezo. Eris had never heard him sound so wistful and sincere.
"Okay, come on," she said, hurrying Kopii along.
Kopii went and picked up the spell book. He read over it to refresh his memory, but since Rezo had known it before Kopii was created, Kopii knew it too. "I'm ready," Kopii said. Eris was ready with her materials. Kopii didn't really like Eris at all, but he thought that Rezo deserved to see.
So Kopii chanted and Eris drew symbols and threw things on them. The blackness gathered at Rezo's eyes. It went into him and settled for a moment. Rezo could feel it churning in his eyes. Then suddenly it shot out with a bang. The pain felt like it was splitting Rezo's head. He cried out in agony and collapsed to the floor, clutching his head. For a split second, his eyes glowed red through the closed lids, but then all traces of magic disappeared and Rezo was left with nothing but a pounding headache.
"Damn you, you kopii!" Eris raged, throwing him back into his cage with magic. "What did you do to him!? Oh Rezo-sama, are you all right?"
"Ergh…" Rezo moaned. "Wasn't him, Eris. It's happened before. Don't… know what it is. I need some tea with herbs…"
"Of course, Rezo-sama," Eris agreed hurriedly. She helped Rezo up the stairs, locking Kopii's cage door tightly on the way up. She helped him lie down on his bed, then fixed him some tea with herbs. She added some sleeping powder to it, because she could see it was the only thing likely to help him. After he was asleep, she washed the dishes, picking the troublemaking little kopiis out of the sink periodically. Then she went up to her attic to read.
* * *
Down in the lab, Kopii tried to coax the little kopiis out of hiding. He finally managed to get some to come to him. He picked them up and stroked their heads, telling them how nice they looked. They giggled at him.
"Do you think you could do something for me?" he asked. He pointed to a hand mirror on a low shelf. "Could you bring me that?" The kopiis who could see led the others, and they brought it to him. On top of it was a dusty old piece of paper. Kopii turned it over and looked at it. A color wheel! He stared at it, mesmerized, and quickly memorized the colors on it. He looked at the little kopiis with opened eyes. Purple eyes, with round black pupils. He then looked at himself in the mirror. One green eye with a round pupil, and… one yellow eye with a slitted pupil. 'A snake, cat, or mazoku eye,' Rezo's experience told him. 'Mazoku…' he thought, motioning for the little kopiis to put the mirror back, and folding the color chart up, putting it in his pocket for future reference. 'What AM I!?' The little kopiis only giggled.
*Japanese for Beginners*
Hai – yes
-sama – lord, master, or dear
mazoku – demon race
kopii – copy (Slayers term, not Japanese)
arigato – thank you
Please tell me what you think! Review, review! Arigato!!
Author's Note: From here on out, it gets a bit more serious. Not to worry, though! As you can see, there's still plenty of good material for comic relief. Thanks for the reviews. Keep them coming, please!
Ramblings of the Doomed
Chapter 4: Eris and Kopii
"You mean you didn't follow the instructions TWICE!?" Eris asked, dumbfounded. She loved Rezo-sama with her whole being, but he could be so dense and impatient sometimes!
"Well… no," Rezo said uncomfortably.
Eris sighed in frustration. They had tried some potential cures on the little kopiis she had caught. Some of them did nothing. One made the kopii turn green all over. One made the kopi grow to almost Rezo's size before popping and splattering kopii goo all over the lab. A few made the kopiis fall over dead. The few things that did allow the kopiis to open their eyes didn't do a thing to Rezo himself, aside from giving him the occasional headache. He still couldn't quite understand why he got the headaches from time to time, but he thought maybe Eris could figure it out the next time he got an enormously painful one. He had great trust in her abilities.
"There's another spell we can try, but it won't work on these little ones," Eris said, indicating the kopiis who were climbing all over their enclosure. "We'll have to make another, and a big one this time. So that means using blood AND waiting the full time."
"Okay. But I told you, the last big one I made would have killed me if it had had the strength," Rezo said. "It had a mind almost TOO coherent."
"You just didn't know how to deal with it," Eris told him matter-of-factly. "You tried to reason with it as if it were a human. They're only copies, not real. They're not even animals."
"But… It spoke like a human," Rezo protested.
"Well, like you said, they're smart," Eris admitted. "They're copies of you, how could they not be? But they're still not human. Just let me deal with it, you'll see."
"All right," said Rezo reluctantly. "I suppose."
So they set up the Copy Machine again. Rezo gave himself a wide slash to the wrist, let some blood fall into the copy chamber, and healed himself while Eris set the dials. She set the timer for an hour and two minutes, just to be sure the new kopii would be the right size, and it would only be one kopii. That, combined with Rezo's blood, was bound to make a strong kopii. Maybe even as strong as the red priest himself! Eris shivered in anticipation.
For some reason, the kopiis were very quiet today. It was as if they knew what was going on. They were still everywhere, but the once-common giggling and pitter-patter of little feet was almost non-existent. There was the frequent sound of soft murmering among the kopiis, however. Since they weren't running around, Eris took the opportunity to catch a few more to replace those killed by the 'cures.' Then she followed Rezo upstairs.
Since Eris was curious, Rezo explained the basics of the reading and sensing spells he had cast on himself. To read, he ran his fingers along a line of words. This transmitted their meaning directly into his mind. He could also sense objects and walls and such that were in the same room with him. It was like a bat's radar system: it could tell him the size, shape, and location of objects, but not the colors, patterns, or details. In fact, he really had not the faintest idea what colors were. He had heard that grass and leaves were green, so he came to associate their smell and feel with the color green. It was the same way with red and himself. He had been called the "red priest" for years. But he really had no idea what red was like. He just assumed that he was red. Eris was at a loss for what to tell him. After all, how do you explain colors when the person you're talking to can't see them?
Rezo, sensing her discomfort, smiled self-depreciatingly. "But I get along well as I am. Don't worry too much."
"Maybe I could develop some kind of empathy spell so you would see what I see," said Eris helpfully.
Rezo smiled. "I tried something like that once, years ago. It was very disorienting. I couldn't make out anything, and it was so overwhelming, it made me dizzy. I need to be able to see out of my own eyes, not through someone else's."
Eris was about to respond, but just then the chime down in the lab rang. Rezo and Eris scrambled to their feet and tore down the steps to the Copy Machine. All around them, the little kopiis were chattering excitedly.
Eris got there first, so she opened the door to the Copy Machine. She and Rezo stepped back.
The sound of Rezo-sized footsteps echoed out of the copy chamber, which was still buzzing fiercely. As the kopii stepped clear of the machine, there was a small explosion on the control panel, and Eris had to quickly put out the fire.
"Was that the Copy Machine exploding?" Rezo asked, dreading the answer.
"Yes, I'm afraid it was," said Eris. The little kopiis could be heard laughing nervously nearby. "Stupid kopiis…" she muttered.
"Kopiis?" asked the big kopii.
Eris saw that it was time to take matters into her hands. "Yes, that's what they are and that's what you are too. So don't get any ideas. Now get in there." She used her magic to gently shove him into a big cage she had set up earlier. It was warded so that no magic could pass or destroy it from inside, and the bars were made of steel so the kopii couldn't break them.
"Here, put these on instead of those robes," Eris said briskly. "I don't want you or anyone else thinking you're Rezo-sama. If you live." She tossed in a red cape and a white robe to go underneath. She also snatched the outer parts of his shoulder guards away. Then she snagged Rezo, who was listening in wonderment, and went to the other side of the basement to start preparing the tricky black magic spell.
The kopii was silent for a moment, feeling his new clothing before putting it on. "But if I'm not Rezo…" he said in a small voice, "…who am I?"
"I told you, you're a kopii. Kopii Rezo. You'll answer to Kopii," Eris said.
"Oh," Kopii said softly. "What are you going to do to me?"
"We're going to test a dangerous cure for Rezo-sama's blindness on you," Eris said bluntly.
"Wait, you never said anything about it being dangerous!" Rezo said. "You just said it was too much for the little kopiis to handle!"
"Well…" Eris said, "It calls on the power of the Mazoku. It's dangerous, but it could work! I'm ready now. Are you, Rezo-sama?"
"Uh… Hai. I suppose so," Rezo said hesitantly. They advanced on the trembling Kopii. Rezo began chanting a long, complicated spell while Eris drew symbols in the air and threw ingredients on them at the appropriate times. Eris watched as Kopii's closed eyes began to radiate blackness. He tried to clutch them , to keep the magic out, but Eris froze him in place with a spell.
Rezo completed the spell with one final dramatic phrase. There was a loud clap of thunder, and blackness exploded from the cage. The little kopiis all dove for cover, crying and screaming. Kopii himself let out a terrified scream.
* * *
When the blackness cleared up, Eris was thrilled to see Kopii blink. "It worked!" she exclaimed delightedly.
The world slowly slid into focus as Kopii blinked. He saw a young woman in white with short black hair. That must be Eris. Then he saw a man with purple hair sticking out on both sides of his head and red robes standing next to her. He looked down at the robes he had taken off at Eris's demanding. They were the same. Then this must be Rezo! 'It's me,' Kopii thought wonderingly. 'But it's not. I'm so confused!'
"Okay Kopii, here's the deal," Eris said. "I'll let you out of there for now and you'll do exactly what he did to you. Got it? You try anything else and I'll make you sorry. Do it right and you can live. All right?"
"Hai," said Kopii softly. "Just let me look at the spell once more before I do."
"All right," Eris said. She opened the door to Kopii's cage. He walked out cautiously. He meant to go straight to the book, but he was captivated by Rezo.
"So that's what I look like," he said quietly. Rezo turned his head longingly in his direction.
"I wish I could see it too," said Rezo. Eris had never heard him sound so wistful and sincere.
"Okay, come on," she said, hurrying Kopii along.
Kopii went and picked up the spell book. He read over it to refresh his memory, but since Rezo had known it before Kopii was created, Kopii knew it too. "I'm ready," Kopii said. Eris was ready with her materials. Kopii didn't really like Eris at all, but he thought that Rezo deserved to see.
So Kopii chanted and Eris drew symbols and threw things on them. The blackness gathered at Rezo's eyes. It went into him and settled for a moment. Rezo could feel it churning in his eyes. Then suddenly it shot out with a bang. The pain felt like it was splitting Rezo's head. He cried out in agony and collapsed to the floor, clutching his head. For a split second, his eyes glowed red through the closed lids, but then all traces of magic disappeared and Rezo was left with nothing but a pounding headache.
"Damn you, you kopii!" Eris raged, throwing him back into his cage with magic. "What did you do to him!? Oh Rezo-sama, are you all right?"
"Ergh…" Rezo moaned. "Wasn't him, Eris. It's happened before. Don't… know what it is. I need some tea with herbs…"
"Of course, Rezo-sama," Eris agreed hurriedly. She helped Rezo up the stairs, locking Kopii's cage door tightly on the way up. She helped him lie down on his bed, then fixed him some tea with herbs. She added some sleeping powder to it, because she could see it was the only thing likely to help him. After he was asleep, she washed the dishes, picking the troublemaking little kopiis out of the sink periodically. Then she went up to her attic to read.
* * *
Down in the lab, Kopii tried to coax the little kopiis out of hiding. He finally managed to get some to come to him. He picked them up and stroked their heads, telling them how nice they looked. They giggled at him.
"Do you think you could do something for me?" he asked. He pointed to a hand mirror on a low shelf. "Could you bring me that?" The kopiis who could see led the others, and they brought it to him. On top of it was a dusty old piece of paper. Kopii turned it over and looked at it. A color wheel! He stared at it, mesmerized, and quickly memorized the colors on it. He looked at the little kopiis with opened eyes. Purple eyes, with round black pupils. He then looked at himself in the mirror. One green eye with a round pupil, and… one yellow eye with a slitted pupil. 'A snake, cat, or mazoku eye,' Rezo's experience told him. 'Mazoku…' he thought, motioning for the little kopiis to put the mirror back, and folding the color chart up, putting it in his pocket for future reference. 'What AM I!?' The little kopiis only giggled.
*Japanese for Beginners*
Hai – yes
-sama – lord, master, or dear
mazoku – demon race
kopii – copy (Slayers term, not Japanese)
arigato – thank you
Please tell me what you think! Review, review! Arigato!!