Slayers Resurrection
Disclaimer:
Everyone has heard this before. I don't own slayers, nor, unless some weird twist of fate lands it in my lap, will I at any foreseeable point in the future. Don't sue me. I'm not making money off this story (unless some of you nice readers think I'm nice enough to donate some cash to, because I need it desperately!!)
Authors Note/Apology:
I know I haven't written for a really, really long time. Oh, of course no one has reviewed either but that is no excuse. I wanted to tell you all that I am very sorry. I had serious writers block. Then it was Christmas and I was rushing about doing last minute shopping and then it was New Years Eve . . . well you get the picture. So this morning I was out jogging, (if you could call it that, all I think it really was an example of how out of shape you could get over winter brake), and I had this idea. Hence my continued writing. So, and without further, pointless ado-
More ado: okay, I fixed the formatting. Tell me what you think. Sorry for the short chapter!
Dun da da DUN!!!!
Chapter Three
Eric Zelgadis Grey
Zel looked around the room in disgust, one simple thought running through his brain over and over and over again. Why, oh why, did I let Mel drag me to this thing? He was only dimly aware of the smooth, wooden floor beneath his feet (which, had he been more aware would have reminded him of a gym floor), the mirror behind his back, and the sore spots in his back because he had been sitting in the same position for too long. He was even less aware of the popping sounds in his neck caused by the action of turning his head from side to side. And beneath all these other awareness's, his mind was pulling in the dancers that dominated his vision and processing them and paying attention to them. Despite his constant efforts to ignore them. He wished, for a brief time freeing himself from the repetitive Why, oh why, did I let Mel drag me to this thing? that his mind wouldn't, when he wanted to ignore something, think of only that thing. In this case the dancers. Who were pirouetting gracefully around the room as they smiled their fake, annoying smiles. Well, that is, all except one.
Melina Callie Rivers
Mel glanced at the dancers and nearly had to stuff her fist into her mouth to keep from laughing. It was hard. She was tearing and shaking by the time she managed to look at them again. This time she kept her face blander, biting her lower lip to keep from making a disturbance. The ballet school attendees were in near perfect unison, throwing one arm out then pulling it back in, then the other arm, then all of their right legs came out and their arms came up in a gracefully curl. The teacher, who was giving the recital attendees an idea of what class was like said in her curt voice "And a-one two three four, Hold two three four, Longer two three four, Think two three four-"
That was when Mel noticed the wobble. Just a little shake, really, but it stood out among all the other junior ballerinas who were holding their poses perfectly. She stared at the offending leg that no one else had noticed. It shook again. And again. And again. Mel blinked. These were the perfect preps that were doing this. The cheerleaders. Surely, surely one of THEM wasn't about to fall over. It was unconceivable. No one had ever thought of such a thing.
Which just went to show how stupid people could be. The leg and the body attached to it slipped to the right. Then a little more. Then with a final, passing wobble, the girl tumbled onto the girl next to her. And she hit the girl beside her. And on and on and on down the line, until there were a mess of tangled limbs, growling girls, and one very unhappy Ami Wilson.
Ami Tanya Wilson
Ami couldn't believe it. It just wasn't fair. It wasn't fair! She looked up at the ceiling of the dressing room and blinked away tears. She felt a hard spot starting in her throat, heard her breath starting to catch around it, saw her vision of the ceiling start to go fuzzy around the edges. She blinked rapidly against the pinpricks start against the back of her eyes. "I'm not going to cry", she said softly, "I'm not-going-to cry." The last word was broken by a sob.
Ami felt drops of water drawing paths along her cheeks. Sobs racked her body, harder and harder, tears running down her face, until they pooled into droplets that fell of her chin. And then it was all over. She gave a few more, relinquishing sobs, but they were nothing to what they had been a few seconds before. Then she looked around. Dresses were scattered around the room, bags filled with hairbrushes and makeup, bras and underwear were lying in between the vanity tables and on benches. "How the heck did I get myself in here?"
She supposed it had all started with Fiona Drygoon.
Flashback
Ami looked around timidly. She had never been here before. The warm August wind whipped her shoulder-length hair into her eyes. She blinked, then screwed up her face with determination. What would Phil think if she didn't go and try out? She had to do this. It was all she wanted. Biting her inside lower lip, she strode forward. As she neared the other people on the field, they looked at her strangely. She heard whispers of "what is she doing here?" and "isn't that a freshman?" surrounding her like a hostile wind.
And then she walked into Fiona.
"Hello," the taller, slimmer, more attractive girl said, her smile looking rather strained. "Why are you here?"
"I um-well-you see-that is-you know," Ami said hopefully. Why was she being so dumb? Why couldn't she talk? She heard the giggles surrounding her. Malicious giggles.
"No. I don't know."
Best get it over with. "I want to try out for cheerleading!" she said in a rush, the words tripping and stumbling over each other as she rushed to get them out. Then she looked down, hunched her shoulders, and prepared for the most popular girl in school to laugh in her face.
Nothing. Daring to hope, a very little bit, Ami looked up. Fiona was smiling, but not meanly. She looked as if she were really considering Ami's offer.
"Sure." Ami's jaw dropped. So did the rest of the squads. Fiona continued, apparently oblivious to the ridiculousness of what she was saying. "Sure. Why not? You look sorta fit, and definitely peppy enough. You'll have to do some preparing, but you could probably join the squad during the boys basketball season."
"Really?" Ami was incredulous. She had tried to befriend these people before, but they had turned her down. Why was she being accepted now?
"Sure. We have some job for you somewhere. Hey, listen, you can talk to Sabrina. Do you know Sabrina?"
"Yes!" Sabrina Kyria. Fiona's best friend. She had the highest GPA in the school apart from Zel Gray. She was nice, always doing extra community service, working with young children and the elderly. Picking up trash. Cleaning up the parks. Babysitting for large events. A model citizen. Everyone knew Sabrina Kyria.
Sabrina stepped forward. She was about Ami's height, and they looked a lot alike, with their dark hair that both wore long, and slightly rounder, pudgier forms. Even their faces were kinda the same, but for the eyes. Ami's eyes, which she considered her best feature, were big, blue and soulful. Sabrina's were pale green, and seemed to stare right into you. She always seemed to see what you hated most about yourself as soon as you met, which made most people very uncomfortable around her. Ami smiled cheerfully at her. There was nothing to object to. (Especially since she went to church.)
End Flashback
And that was how it had begun. The dancing lessons. The shopping. The training until she was so tired that she almost missed Sunday Mass. The diet.
Ami heard her stomach give a soft grumble. Oooooh the diet, she thought. The six hundred calories a day diet, with no breads, no dairy, and no sweets. As Ami was already a vegetarian, there wasn't all that much she could eat. Fruits. Veggies. And then more and more and more. She was so sick of fruits and veggies. But she belonged. She was on the cheerleader squad. They certainly didn't love her, weren't necessarily her friends, but it was a start.
So she stopped crying. And stood up. And got dressed for the formal reception that followed the recital. She belonged. There was no reason to cry.
Melina Callie Rivers
Mel stared up at her father in disgust. How dare he do this to her!! She wasn't three years old!! (Well, at least not anymore . . ) And she was hungry!! If he didn't move out of her way soon, she was going to tackle him.
"Melina" he was saying, "Do you have any idea how rude that was? And at your sisters recital, no less!! She just got back, and you're ruining it for her!! How dare you!!" Mel stared blankly at the ceiling above his head. He had no proof. Let him try to pin it on her! "Sniggering like that when those girls fell down! And laughing out loud when that Boy tackled Sabrina during her solo! The Kyria's are our friends, Melina!"
Mel heard the pause in his tirade that indicated he wanted her to say something. Her face shifted subtly from one of defiance to innocence. "Daddy" she said, honey nearly dripping off every word "that wasn't me!" actually, she had encouraged the boy to do it, and would have paid him except he refused her money, "I know their our friends, Daddy! I wouldn't do that to them! And I didn't laugh!" She looked up at him hopefully. He didn't look convinced. She needed something to eat, damn it! Anything! Before he could open his mouth and oppose her more, she quickly said, "I'm really, really sorry Dad! I love you! Laters!"
And, with a quick shove, she ran to join up with Zel at the snack table, nearly tripping over the blue evening gown that Luma, her older sister, had insisted that she wear.
Zel was looking in need of help. Lots of help. Xellos was standing in front of him, and Zel looked prepared to throw the orange in his hand at him. She came running up in time to hear the phrase "Rock boy" before Xellos looked up at her. (Well, you can't really say looked as his eyes appeared to be closed, but at least he moved his face in her general direction.) "Well, hello, Miss Melina!" he said happily, as if she were a long lost best friend.
Mel fought the disgust that welled up in her when he said her name. "Hello, Xellos!" she called cheerfully, reaching over to slap him on the arm. "Whatcha talking to my buddy Zel about? Hmmm?"
"We were just commenting on Zelgaddis's particular metabolism. How he manages to stay 'Rock Hard' without doing any exercise at all! In fact, he's quite lazy!"
Mel didn't' buy it. "Come on, Xellos!" she said, pitching her voice to an annoying whine "tell me what you were really talking about!"
The speed at which he moved amazed her. With barely a second to spare, he was in her face, waggling a finger, and saying "Sore Wa Himitsu Desu!"
It took all Mel's control not to blow up in his face. And then he was dragging her to a table, pulling a chair out for her, and forcing her down. She almost didn't notice that Zel was lost in the confusion.
Eric Zelgadis Grey
Zel moved off to be alone. The comments that Xellos had made about his body had really rubbed him the wrong way. And he couldn't understand it. Xelloss was really starting to scare him. He avoided him at school, avoided him on the weekend, but he always seemed to bump into the older, more annoying guy. And their conversations always centered around his body, around how he was so rock hard, so stoney. Xelllos had once said that he almost saw pebbles protruding from his skin. And for some reason, such petty teasing had really bothered Zelgaddis. And now, he ran, as he always did, to the Men's Restroom. Just to check.
He was panting slightly as he threw open the door, and moved into one of the stalls, this recital hall was BIG. And then he started his systematic check. He took two fingers, and placed them on his face in several particular places, he didn't know how he chose them but they seemed right. He felt for smooth peebles, for pimples, anything. His face was clear. Then came the part of the check that he really didn't want other men seeing. Which was why he chose a stall.
He slowly peeled off his shirt and checked. All clear. All clean. No stone. He put his shirt back on, his formal, long-sleeved, button up shirt, which was really uncomfortable. He took of his pants, kaki, also really uncomfortable. Checked. None on his legs. He checked and checked again. And, until he was sure he was all clear, he didn't come out of the stall. This check was part of the reason that he avoided Xellos. He found that he couldn't help but check if the-the damn monster said anything about stone. It was an immediate reaction that he couldn't help. He would run to a bathroom before he realized it, and do his check as quickly as possible. If he did manage to suppress checking, he found himself becoming more and more anxious. His breathing would increase. He would sweat profusely. If it happened to be around a meal time, he wouldn't be hungry. Or he would be, but couldn't eat. So, eventually, he gave up, and just went through his check, without knowing why, or how, he did.
Luma Serena Rivers
Luma stared at her sister, who was sitting with a strange looking boy, who looked older than Mel, and had, Luma grimaced, purple hair. And, was it just her, or was that hairstyle so last year? And purple? As if! It was just the kind of thing that Mel would find attractive in a guy. . . her sister was such a weirdo. No fashion sense. No hair sense. No makeup sense. No nothing. And yet, she always seemed to attract people. Even with her bad hair, worse temper, and odd mood changes, she was like honey. And the others around her were like bees. There was just something about Melina. . . something that bothered Luma quite a bit.
Melina Callie Rivers
Mel stared at Xelloss. What was with this guy? He bothered her. She felt something when he was around her, an atmosphere of fear, pain, and anger. Even though he was always happy. Even though he was always nice. Even through everything. And so, sitting with him, eating dinner, and talking about their project on the Gods and Monsters of the Japanese Mountain culture, she felt just a little bit uneasy. Just a little bit off balance. She didn't know what would happen next. And it rubbed her the wrong way.
"Miss Melina" he was saying, "which of the Monsters fascinates you the most?" She looked up at him, surprised by the question. "Which, of the Dark Lords, their Lords, or the lower monsters?"
He smiled. "All. Pick your favorites."
She grinned. She liked this question. "Shabranigdo. Phibirizzo or Gaav. Xelloss." Xelloss, she thought, the one he was named after. The trickster priest. The private puppet of Xelas Metalium. Gaav, the demon dragon king. Who fought the Water Dragon King. Phibirizzo. The Hellmaster. The fear of all living things. Satan. Shabrinigdo. The Dark Lord. Ruby Eyes. Yes, Xellos, Xellos the second, these are my choices.
Xelloss smiled a cold smile. "Why them?"
"Because" she said, quickly, "I feel as if I know them."
Xelloss smiled again. His eyes opened, and their amethyst depths enveloped her. She felt warm and secure within them. And then she realized he was speaking, and turned her full attention on his words. "-Allow me to let you in on my little secret."
Disclaimer:
Everyone has heard this before. I don't own slayers, nor, unless some weird twist of fate lands it in my lap, will I at any foreseeable point in the future. Don't sue me. I'm not making money off this story (unless some of you nice readers think I'm nice enough to donate some cash to, because I need it desperately!!)
Authors Note/Apology:
I know I haven't written for a really, really long time. Oh, of course no one has reviewed either but that is no excuse. I wanted to tell you all that I am very sorry. I had serious writers block. Then it was Christmas and I was rushing about doing last minute shopping and then it was New Years Eve . . . well you get the picture. So this morning I was out jogging, (if you could call it that, all I think it really was an example of how out of shape you could get over winter brake), and I had this idea. Hence my continued writing. So, and without further, pointless ado-
More ado: okay, I fixed the formatting. Tell me what you think. Sorry for the short chapter!
Dun da da DUN!!!!
Chapter Three
Eric Zelgadis Grey
Zel looked around the room in disgust, one simple thought running through his brain over and over and over again. Why, oh why, did I let Mel drag me to this thing? He was only dimly aware of the smooth, wooden floor beneath his feet (which, had he been more aware would have reminded him of a gym floor), the mirror behind his back, and the sore spots in his back because he had been sitting in the same position for too long. He was even less aware of the popping sounds in his neck caused by the action of turning his head from side to side. And beneath all these other awareness's, his mind was pulling in the dancers that dominated his vision and processing them and paying attention to them. Despite his constant efforts to ignore them. He wished, for a brief time freeing himself from the repetitive Why, oh why, did I let Mel drag me to this thing? that his mind wouldn't, when he wanted to ignore something, think of only that thing. In this case the dancers. Who were pirouetting gracefully around the room as they smiled their fake, annoying smiles. Well, that is, all except one.
Melina Callie Rivers
Mel glanced at the dancers and nearly had to stuff her fist into her mouth to keep from laughing. It was hard. She was tearing and shaking by the time she managed to look at them again. This time she kept her face blander, biting her lower lip to keep from making a disturbance. The ballet school attendees were in near perfect unison, throwing one arm out then pulling it back in, then the other arm, then all of their right legs came out and their arms came up in a gracefully curl. The teacher, who was giving the recital attendees an idea of what class was like said in her curt voice "And a-one two three four, Hold two three four, Longer two three four, Think two three four-"
That was when Mel noticed the wobble. Just a little shake, really, but it stood out among all the other junior ballerinas who were holding their poses perfectly. She stared at the offending leg that no one else had noticed. It shook again. And again. And again. Mel blinked. These were the perfect preps that were doing this. The cheerleaders. Surely, surely one of THEM wasn't about to fall over. It was unconceivable. No one had ever thought of such a thing.
Which just went to show how stupid people could be. The leg and the body attached to it slipped to the right. Then a little more. Then with a final, passing wobble, the girl tumbled onto the girl next to her. And she hit the girl beside her. And on and on and on down the line, until there were a mess of tangled limbs, growling girls, and one very unhappy Ami Wilson.
Ami Tanya Wilson
Ami couldn't believe it. It just wasn't fair. It wasn't fair! She looked up at the ceiling of the dressing room and blinked away tears. She felt a hard spot starting in her throat, heard her breath starting to catch around it, saw her vision of the ceiling start to go fuzzy around the edges. She blinked rapidly against the pinpricks start against the back of her eyes. "I'm not going to cry", she said softly, "I'm not-going-to cry." The last word was broken by a sob.
Ami felt drops of water drawing paths along her cheeks. Sobs racked her body, harder and harder, tears running down her face, until they pooled into droplets that fell of her chin. And then it was all over. She gave a few more, relinquishing sobs, but they were nothing to what they had been a few seconds before. Then she looked around. Dresses were scattered around the room, bags filled with hairbrushes and makeup, bras and underwear were lying in between the vanity tables and on benches. "How the heck did I get myself in here?"
She supposed it had all started with Fiona Drygoon.
Flashback
Ami looked around timidly. She had never been here before. The warm August wind whipped her shoulder-length hair into her eyes. She blinked, then screwed up her face with determination. What would Phil think if she didn't go and try out? She had to do this. It was all she wanted. Biting her inside lower lip, she strode forward. As she neared the other people on the field, they looked at her strangely. She heard whispers of "what is she doing here?" and "isn't that a freshman?" surrounding her like a hostile wind.
And then she walked into Fiona.
"Hello," the taller, slimmer, more attractive girl said, her smile looking rather strained. "Why are you here?"
"I um-well-you see-that is-you know," Ami said hopefully. Why was she being so dumb? Why couldn't she talk? She heard the giggles surrounding her. Malicious giggles.
"No. I don't know."
Best get it over with. "I want to try out for cheerleading!" she said in a rush, the words tripping and stumbling over each other as she rushed to get them out. Then she looked down, hunched her shoulders, and prepared for the most popular girl in school to laugh in her face.
Nothing. Daring to hope, a very little bit, Ami looked up. Fiona was smiling, but not meanly. She looked as if she were really considering Ami's offer.
"Sure." Ami's jaw dropped. So did the rest of the squads. Fiona continued, apparently oblivious to the ridiculousness of what she was saying. "Sure. Why not? You look sorta fit, and definitely peppy enough. You'll have to do some preparing, but you could probably join the squad during the boys basketball season."
"Really?" Ami was incredulous. She had tried to befriend these people before, but they had turned her down. Why was she being accepted now?
"Sure. We have some job for you somewhere. Hey, listen, you can talk to Sabrina. Do you know Sabrina?"
"Yes!" Sabrina Kyria. Fiona's best friend. She had the highest GPA in the school apart from Zel Gray. She was nice, always doing extra community service, working with young children and the elderly. Picking up trash. Cleaning up the parks. Babysitting for large events. A model citizen. Everyone knew Sabrina Kyria.
Sabrina stepped forward. She was about Ami's height, and they looked a lot alike, with their dark hair that both wore long, and slightly rounder, pudgier forms. Even their faces were kinda the same, but for the eyes. Ami's eyes, which she considered her best feature, were big, blue and soulful. Sabrina's were pale green, and seemed to stare right into you. She always seemed to see what you hated most about yourself as soon as you met, which made most people very uncomfortable around her. Ami smiled cheerfully at her. There was nothing to object to. (Especially since she went to church.)
End Flashback
And that was how it had begun. The dancing lessons. The shopping. The training until she was so tired that she almost missed Sunday Mass. The diet.
Ami heard her stomach give a soft grumble. Oooooh the diet, she thought. The six hundred calories a day diet, with no breads, no dairy, and no sweets. As Ami was already a vegetarian, there wasn't all that much she could eat. Fruits. Veggies. And then more and more and more. She was so sick of fruits and veggies. But she belonged. She was on the cheerleader squad. They certainly didn't love her, weren't necessarily her friends, but it was a start.
So she stopped crying. And stood up. And got dressed for the formal reception that followed the recital. She belonged. There was no reason to cry.
Melina Callie Rivers
Mel stared up at her father in disgust. How dare he do this to her!! She wasn't three years old!! (Well, at least not anymore . . ) And she was hungry!! If he didn't move out of her way soon, she was going to tackle him.
"Melina" he was saying, "Do you have any idea how rude that was? And at your sisters recital, no less!! She just got back, and you're ruining it for her!! How dare you!!" Mel stared blankly at the ceiling above his head. He had no proof. Let him try to pin it on her! "Sniggering like that when those girls fell down! And laughing out loud when that Boy tackled Sabrina during her solo! The Kyria's are our friends, Melina!"
Mel heard the pause in his tirade that indicated he wanted her to say something. Her face shifted subtly from one of defiance to innocence. "Daddy" she said, honey nearly dripping off every word "that wasn't me!" actually, she had encouraged the boy to do it, and would have paid him except he refused her money, "I know their our friends, Daddy! I wouldn't do that to them! And I didn't laugh!" She looked up at him hopefully. He didn't look convinced. She needed something to eat, damn it! Anything! Before he could open his mouth and oppose her more, she quickly said, "I'm really, really sorry Dad! I love you! Laters!"
And, with a quick shove, she ran to join up with Zel at the snack table, nearly tripping over the blue evening gown that Luma, her older sister, had insisted that she wear.
Zel was looking in need of help. Lots of help. Xellos was standing in front of him, and Zel looked prepared to throw the orange in his hand at him. She came running up in time to hear the phrase "Rock boy" before Xellos looked up at her. (Well, you can't really say looked as his eyes appeared to be closed, but at least he moved his face in her general direction.) "Well, hello, Miss Melina!" he said happily, as if she were a long lost best friend.
Mel fought the disgust that welled up in her when he said her name. "Hello, Xellos!" she called cheerfully, reaching over to slap him on the arm. "Whatcha talking to my buddy Zel about? Hmmm?"
"We were just commenting on Zelgaddis's particular metabolism. How he manages to stay 'Rock Hard' without doing any exercise at all! In fact, he's quite lazy!"
Mel didn't' buy it. "Come on, Xellos!" she said, pitching her voice to an annoying whine "tell me what you were really talking about!"
The speed at which he moved amazed her. With barely a second to spare, he was in her face, waggling a finger, and saying "Sore Wa Himitsu Desu!"
It took all Mel's control not to blow up in his face. And then he was dragging her to a table, pulling a chair out for her, and forcing her down. She almost didn't notice that Zel was lost in the confusion.
Eric Zelgadis Grey
Zel moved off to be alone. The comments that Xellos had made about his body had really rubbed him the wrong way. And he couldn't understand it. Xelloss was really starting to scare him. He avoided him at school, avoided him on the weekend, but he always seemed to bump into the older, more annoying guy. And their conversations always centered around his body, around how he was so rock hard, so stoney. Xelllos had once said that he almost saw pebbles protruding from his skin. And for some reason, such petty teasing had really bothered Zelgaddis. And now, he ran, as he always did, to the Men's Restroom. Just to check.
He was panting slightly as he threw open the door, and moved into one of the stalls, this recital hall was BIG. And then he started his systematic check. He took two fingers, and placed them on his face in several particular places, he didn't know how he chose them but they seemed right. He felt for smooth peebles, for pimples, anything. His face was clear. Then came the part of the check that he really didn't want other men seeing. Which was why he chose a stall.
He slowly peeled off his shirt and checked. All clear. All clean. No stone. He put his shirt back on, his formal, long-sleeved, button up shirt, which was really uncomfortable. He took of his pants, kaki, also really uncomfortable. Checked. None on his legs. He checked and checked again. And, until he was sure he was all clear, he didn't come out of the stall. This check was part of the reason that he avoided Xellos. He found that he couldn't help but check if the-the damn monster said anything about stone. It was an immediate reaction that he couldn't help. He would run to a bathroom before he realized it, and do his check as quickly as possible. If he did manage to suppress checking, he found himself becoming more and more anxious. His breathing would increase. He would sweat profusely. If it happened to be around a meal time, he wouldn't be hungry. Or he would be, but couldn't eat. So, eventually, he gave up, and just went through his check, without knowing why, or how, he did.
Luma Serena Rivers
Luma stared at her sister, who was sitting with a strange looking boy, who looked older than Mel, and had, Luma grimaced, purple hair. And, was it just her, or was that hairstyle so last year? And purple? As if! It was just the kind of thing that Mel would find attractive in a guy. . . her sister was such a weirdo. No fashion sense. No hair sense. No makeup sense. No nothing. And yet, she always seemed to attract people. Even with her bad hair, worse temper, and odd mood changes, she was like honey. And the others around her were like bees. There was just something about Melina. . . something that bothered Luma quite a bit.
Melina Callie Rivers
Mel stared at Xelloss. What was with this guy? He bothered her. She felt something when he was around her, an atmosphere of fear, pain, and anger. Even though he was always happy. Even though he was always nice. Even through everything. And so, sitting with him, eating dinner, and talking about their project on the Gods and Monsters of the Japanese Mountain culture, she felt just a little bit uneasy. Just a little bit off balance. She didn't know what would happen next. And it rubbed her the wrong way.
"Miss Melina" he was saying, "which of the Monsters fascinates you the most?" She looked up at him, surprised by the question. "Which, of the Dark Lords, their Lords, or the lower monsters?"
He smiled. "All. Pick your favorites."
She grinned. She liked this question. "Shabranigdo. Phibirizzo or Gaav. Xelloss." Xelloss, she thought, the one he was named after. The trickster priest. The private puppet of Xelas Metalium. Gaav, the demon dragon king. Who fought the Water Dragon King. Phibirizzo. The Hellmaster. The fear of all living things. Satan. Shabrinigdo. The Dark Lord. Ruby Eyes. Yes, Xellos, Xellos the second, these are my choices.
Xelloss smiled a cold smile. "Why them?"
"Because" she said, quickly, "I feel as if I know them."
Xelloss smiled again. His eyes opened, and their amethyst depths enveloped her. She felt warm and secure within them. And then she realized he was speaking, and turned her full attention on his words. "-Allow me to let you in on my little secret."