Disclaimer: I don't own the Slayers.
Notes: Hello and welcome to what is the second in what I hope will end up being a three story arc beginning with "Slayers: Revival". Needless to say, there are some things in this story that reference characters and events in the previous story, but you should be able to get along without reading the original if you want. Well, I'll just get out of your way and let you read now. . .
************************************************************************
The forest was unbearably cold on this January day. The wind howled through the bare trees. There had been a gentle snowfall all morning. Now, it was quickly becoming a very dangerous blizzard. There was a loud crack as a tree finally gave up on its struggle for survival. It plummeted to the forest floor with a thunderous crash barely missing the form of a man lying in the snow.
The chimera paid it no heed. Indeed, one might have assumed that he was dead from exposure given the bluish tint of his flesh. However, a faint puff of steam every few seconds betrayed his breathing and he would occasionally blink the snow out of his eyes.
Zelgadis had been sitting patiently for the past several hours. The storm didn't bother him. He felt as warm as he had ever been, his body totally immune to the effects of exposure. He could have walked for weeks through the storm and then through the Desert of Destruction immediately after. He no longer ate or drank at all. He hadn't had a cup of tea for twenty years now.
Ironically enough though, Zelgadis was out in the blizzard in search of food. Amelia waited for him back at the cabin that had been their home since they had grown tired of traveling. How very long ago that had been. Twenty-four years, if he wasn't mistaken. And he never was.
Zelgadis's thoughts turned to Amelia and he frowned. She had become ill lately. He thought that their time together might be drawing to an end. It shouldn't have come as a surprise to him. He was well aware that he would far outlive her. Thousands of years longer than her, in fact. It didn't make her failing health any easier to accept though.
Zelgadis brushed his hair out of his face and sighed. "Time catches up to us all." His eyes narrowed as he saw what he was looking for. "That was even quicker than usual." He shook his head, throwing off a fresh layer of powder.
A small brown rabbit cautiously poked its head out of a bank of snow, sniffing the wind in a vain attempt to sense any danger. It didn't even get a chance to move before a drift of snow seemed to explode as the chimera pounced.
Zelgadis quickly snatched the hare up and snapped its neck with a quick twist. He nodded, satisfied with the morning's work. He could have used a spell to spook the rabbit hours ago, but he enjoyed hunting this way. There was something primal in taking prey barehanded. Besides, it gave him a chance to think.
Lately, Zelgadis found himself thinking about the past. The adventures he had shared with Lina and Gourry, both gone long before their time.
Gourry had died at the hands of the demon priest Xellos. Zelgadis had been indirectly responsible for the swordsman's death as well, but Lina's words had freed him from a large amount of the guilt he had felt. Oh, he still regretted his part in the affair, but it didn't eat at him the way it used to.
Zelgadis wondered briefly at Xellos's fate. During the burning of Sairaag when they had been fighting for their lives against Prince Edward, Xellos had disappeared never to be seen again. He assumed that the demon had fallen in battle against Lina, but it hadn't been discussed. Her life had ended shortly after Xellos's disappearance.
The Lord of Nightmares herself had plucked Lina from this world thirty- seven years ago. Zelgadis chuckled as he walked through the forest. Lina couldn't have asked for a more dramatic death. In a way, he thought it was rather fitting. A legendary end for a legendary sorceress. He wondered if she would have been happy with that.
Zelgadis paused briefly to get his bearings. He was deep in the forest and the snowstorm made it impossible to see more than a few feet in any direction. Glancing around at the trees, he nodded. "This way." He continued on, fighting his way through drifts of snow that reached his hips. He could be blind and he would be able to find his way home. Living here for so long, he knew every tree and stone in the forest surrounding the cabin.
Satisfied that he was on course, Zelgadis returned to the comfort of his memories. Sylphiel the shrine maiden. After they had parted ways over sixty years ago, he and the others had never heard from her again. Where was she now? Dead most likely. Everyone was dead, or dying in Amelia's case.
Amelia was Zelgadis's last link to his past. Oh, it was true that he had made other friends over the years. Open minded people who had the patience to see past his rocky exterior and into his equally stony heart. He chuckled a bit as his continued.
Emily and Phillionel II were two such people. They were good friends, always happy to see Zelgadis whenever he and Amelia had happened to visit Seyruun. However, it wasn't the same with them. They were the children of his lost friends. And now they had their own children and grandchildren as well.
Zelgadis stopped again and looked at the cabin sitting atop a small hill. It was modest, but neither he nor Amelia really cared for anything terribly fancy. He had built it for the two of them and that been enough to make it home for Amelia.
The door creaked loudly as it opened and Amelia felt a blast of wintry air on her face. She looked up from her knitting with a smile on her face. "Is that you Zel?" She coughed for a few moments.
Zelgadis quickly closed the door and stood silently for a moment. He gazed at Amelia, trying to determine what her condition was today.
Amelia was sitting in a rocking chair by the fireplace holding the beginnings of a quilt in her thin hands. Her once dark and beautiful hair had become thin and gray with the passage of time. Her face was pale and heavily wrinkled, but still beautiful in a way. Her smile helped that a lot. Even now, in the twilight of her life, very little could get her down. Her eyes were still the blue that Zelgadis loved, but now they were dim. She had gone blind a few years ago.
Smiling sadly, Zelgadis decided that her condition was still the same. That wasn't good. She had been sick for several weeks now. He put the rabbit on the table by a cooking pot and walked over to Amelia. He knelt beside her chair and laid his head in her lap.
Amelia sighed happily and lovingly ran her fingers over the familiar terrain of Zelgadis's face. She was careful to avoid the sharp points of his wiry hair. She had cut herself on his hair before and he hadn't let her touch him for a month. She knew that it was times like that when he really hated what he was.
"I knew it was you." She laughed for a moment before it degenerated into a series of coughs. "I could feel the raw enthusiasm when you came in."
Zelgadis forced a chuckle. "Why do I put up with your abuse?" He closed his eyes and tried to ignore the sound of Amelia's labored breathing. He had been wrong about her. She was getting worse, but he knew that she was trying to hide it from him.
Amelia smiled. "Well, why should you have all the fun? It's only fair that someone else gets a turn torturing you, right?"
Zelgadis snorted. "I suppose so." He took her hand and kissed it before standing and walking over to the table.
"How was hunting today?"
Zelgadis forced some mirth into his voice. "That's not what you really want to ask is it? What you really mean to say is, 'What is on the menu tonight at the Greywords Café?' Right?"
Amelia chuckled. "I guess you got me. So what are we having?"
Zelgadis began to clean the rabbit with a skill born from years of practice. "My lady, tonight you will be dining on the specialty of the house."
Amelia grinned. "Do you mean. . ?"
"Of course! Rabbit stew." He dumped the meat into a pot of water and set it over the fire. He stirred it, occasionally adding a pinch of salt or some assorted herbs from the forest. Although he couldn't taste anything, his sense of smell was amazingly acute. He knew exactly what the stew needed and added ingredients accordingly.
Amelia sniffed the air. "It smells great Zel."
Zelgadis pulled the pot off the fire and set it on the table. "But of course, my lady. Only the best for the princess of the castle." He ladled some of the stew into a small bowl and carried it over to Amelia. "Careful. It's still hot."
Amelia nodded and carefully took the bowl. "You don't have to worry about me Zel. I'm not made of glass you know." She blew on the stew for a moment before taking a sip.
"I know." Zelgadis pulled a chair over and sat in front of Amelia. "But, if I'm not worrying about you than I'm not happy you know."
Amelia frowned. "I know Zel." She continued to eat in silence for a moment before sighing. "Zel?"
Zelgadis cringed a bit. There was something in her voice that he didn't want to hear. "Yes?"
Amelia looked as though she was struggling to find the right words. She whispered, "What. . . what will you do. . . after I'm gone?"
Zelgadis looked down and was surprised to see his hands shaking. He couldn't understand why Amelia's question was such a shock for him. She wasn't stupid. She was probably coping with the truth better than he was. He sighed and shook his head sadly.
Amelia frowned. "Zel, please talk to me." Her voice quivered a little. "I'm scared of dying alone."
Zelgadis moved his chair over beside Amelia's. He hugged her delicately. "You're not alone."
Amelia closed her eyes and leaned against Zelgadis. "That's how it feels sometimes. You know that I'm sick." She felt him jump a little when she said that. "And you try to take care of me." She reached up to caress his face. "I appreciate that. But, sometimes I just want to talk about it." She heard him sigh.
"Alright."
Amelia smiled. "Thanks. I know it's hard for you. But, I really appreciate it." She paused before continuing. "Do you know what scares me the most about dying?"
"No." A moment's hesitation. "What?"
"You."
Zelgadis sounded a little surprised. "Me?"
"I worry about what you'll do when I'm gone." A tear ran down Amelia's cheek. "I worry about you being alone."
Zelgadis kissed Amelia's forehead. "You never think of yourself do you?"
Amelia smiled. "I try not to. You worry about me more than enough for both of us." Her smile faded. "Zel, will you promise me something?"
"Anything."
Amelia turned to Zelgadis and looked at him with her blind eyes. "Promise me that you won't throw your life away. Make it count for something."
Zelgadis looked at her for a moment. "I promise."
Amelia slumped a little and sighed happily. It felt as if a great weight had suddenly been lifted from her shoulders. "I'm glad." Several coughs wracked her body and she nodded towards the bed. "Help me up please. I'm very tired."
Zelgadis gingerly helped Amelia to her feet and led her over to the bed in the corner of the room. After he made sure that she was comfortable he pulled his chair over to the bed and sat next to her.
Amelia coughed again and sighed. "You won't forget your promise will you? Make your life count."
Zelgadis took her hand and squeezed it softly. "I will."
Amelia nodded and slipped into an uncomfortable slumber.
Zelgadis held her hand through the night. Somehow, he knew what was coming and when Amelia stopped breathing in the early hours before dawn he wasn't surprised. In a way, by giving his promise he had also given her permission to leave. He leaned down and kissed her forehead. "Goodbye Amelia."
By the time the sun had come over the hills, Zelgadis was shoveling the last bit of dirt into a grave. He cast the shovel aside and knelt on the freshly turned earth. "Amelia." He opened and shut his mouth a few times, struggling to find the right words to say goodbye. "I'll never forget you. You gave my life meaning. Thank you." He stood and turned away from the grave. Glancing over his shoulder one last time, Zelgadis disappeared into the forest.
And the months passed. . .
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Next Chapter: The chimera wanders and comes across an old acquaintance.
Notes: I hope that everyone enjoyed the first chapter of the story. I will be the first to admit that the story doesn't really capture the feel of "Slayers", but I hope you enjoyed it anyways. I was reluctant to write this at first, because it doesn't have any humor or very much action or adventure, both of which are huge components of the Slayers series. But, it's an important part of the overall "Revival" story, so it needs to be told.
I'd like to offer a very special thanks to my beta reader / random idea person, Chaos Anita. Without her help, this story might not have ever seen the light of day. Thanks a bunch!!!
Well, thanks for reading and I hope that you'll stick with the rest of the story.
Notes: Hello and welcome to what is the second in what I hope will end up being a three story arc beginning with "Slayers: Revival". Needless to say, there are some things in this story that reference characters and events in the previous story, but you should be able to get along without reading the original if you want. Well, I'll just get out of your way and let you read now. . .
************************************************************************
The forest was unbearably cold on this January day. The wind howled through the bare trees. There had been a gentle snowfall all morning. Now, it was quickly becoming a very dangerous blizzard. There was a loud crack as a tree finally gave up on its struggle for survival. It plummeted to the forest floor with a thunderous crash barely missing the form of a man lying in the snow.
The chimera paid it no heed. Indeed, one might have assumed that he was dead from exposure given the bluish tint of his flesh. However, a faint puff of steam every few seconds betrayed his breathing and he would occasionally blink the snow out of his eyes.
Zelgadis had been sitting patiently for the past several hours. The storm didn't bother him. He felt as warm as he had ever been, his body totally immune to the effects of exposure. He could have walked for weeks through the storm and then through the Desert of Destruction immediately after. He no longer ate or drank at all. He hadn't had a cup of tea for twenty years now.
Ironically enough though, Zelgadis was out in the blizzard in search of food. Amelia waited for him back at the cabin that had been their home since they had grown tired of traveling. How very long ago that had been. Twenty-four years, if he wasn't mistaken. And he never was.
Zelgadis's thoughts turned to Amelia and he frowned. She had become ill lately. He thought that their time together might be drawing to an end. It shouldn't have come as a surprise to him. He was well aware that he would far outlive her. Thousands of years longer than her, in fact. It didn't make her failing health any easier to accept though.
Zelgadis brushed his hair out of his face and sighed. "Time catches up to us all." His eyes narrowed as he saw what he was looking for. "That was even quicker than usual." He shook his head, throwing off a fresh layer of powder.
A small brown rabbit cautiously poked its head out of a bank of snow, sniffing the wind in a vain attempt to sense any danger. It didn't even get a chance to move before a drift of snow seemed to explode as the chimera pounced.
Zelgadis quickly snatched the hare up and snapped its neck with a quick twist. He nodded, satisfied with the morning's work. He could have used a spell to spook the rabbit hours ago, but he enjoyed hunting this way. There was something primal in taking prey barehanded. Besides, it gave him a chance to think.
Lately, Zelgadis found himself thinking about the past. The adventures he had shared with Lina and Gourry, both gone long before their time.
Gourry had died at the hands of the demon priest Xellos. Zelgadis had been indirectly responsible for the swordsman's death as well, but Lina's words had freed him from a large amount of the guilt he had felt. Oh, he still regretted his part in the affair, but it didn't eat at him the way it used to.
Zelgadis wondered briefly at Xellos's fate. During the burning of Sairaag when they had been fighting for their lives against Prince Edward, Xellos had disappeared never to be seen again. He assumed that the demon had fallen in battle against Lina, but it hadn't been discussed. Her life had ended shortly after Xellos's disappearance.
The Lord of Nightmares herself had plucked Lina from this world thirty- seven years ago. Zelgadis chuckled as he walked through the forest. Lina couldn't have asked for a more dramatic death. In a way, he thought it was rather fitting. A legendary end for a legendary sorceress. He wondered if she would have been happy with that.
Zelgadis paused briefly to get his bearings. He was deep in the forest and the snowstorm made it impossible to see more than a few feet in any direction. Glancing around at the trees, he nodded. "This way." He continued on, fighting his way through drifts of snow that reached his hips. He could be blind and he would be able to find his way home. Living here for so long, he knew every tree and stone in the forest surrounding the cabin.
Satisfied that he was on course, Zelgadis returned to the comfort of his memories. Sylphiel the shrine maiden. After they had parted ways over sixty years ago, he and the others had never heard from her again. Where was she now? Dead most likely. Everyone was dead, or dying in Amelia's case.
Amelia was Zelgadis's last link to his past. Oh, it was true that he had made other friends over the years. Open minded people who had the patience to see past his rocky exterior and into his equally stony heart. He chuckled a bit as his continued.
Emily and Phillionel II were two such people. They were good friends, always happy to see Zelgadis whenever he and Amelia had happened to visit Seyruun. However, it wasn't the same with them. They were the children of his lost friends. And now they had their own children and grandchildren as well.
Zelgadis stopped again and looked at the cabin sitting atop a small hill. It was modest, but neither he nor Amelia really cared for anything terribly fancy. He had built it for the two of them and that been enough to make it home for Amelia.
The door creaked loudly as it opened and Amelia felt a blast of wintry air on her face. She looked up from her knitting with a smile on her face. "Is that you Zel?" She coughed for a few moments.
Zelgadis quickly closed the door and stood silently for a moment. He gazed at Amelia, trying to determine what her condition was today.
Amelia was sitting in a rocking chair by the fireplace holding the beginnings of a quilt in her thin hands. Her once dark and beautiful hair had become thin and gray with the passage of time. Her face was pale and heavily wrinkled, but still beautiful in a way. Her smile helped that a lot. Even now, in the twilight of her life, very little could get her down. Her eyes were still the blue that Zelgadis loved, but now they were dim. She had gone blind a few years ago.
Smiling sadly, Zelgadis decided that her condition was still the same. That wasn't good. She had been sick for several weeks now. He put the rabbit on the table by a cooking pot and walked over to Amelia. He knelt beside her chair and laid his head in her lap.
Amelia sighed happily and lovingly ran her fingers over the familiar terrain of Zelgadis's face. She was careful to avoid the sharp points of his wiry hair. She had cut herself on his hair before and he hadn't let her touch him for a month. She knew that it was times like that when he really hated what he was.
"I knew it was you." She laughed for a moment before it degenerated into a series of coughs. "I could feel the raw enthusiasm when you came in."
Zelgadis forced a chuckle. "Why do I put up with your abuse?" He closed his eyes and tried to ignore the sound of Amelia's labored breathing. He had been wrong about her. She was getting worse, but he knew that she was trying to hide it from him.
Amelia smiled. "Well, why should you have all the fun? It's only fair that someone else gets a turn torturing you, right?"
Zelgadis snorted. "I suppose so." He took her hand and kissed it before standing and walking over to the table.
"How was hunting today?"
Zelgadis forced some mirth into his voice. "That's not what you really want to ask is it? What you really mean to say is, 'What is on the menu tonight at the Greywords Café?' Right?"
Amelia chuckled. "I guess you got me. So what are we having?"
Zelgadis began to clean the rabbit with a skill born from years of practice. "My lady, tonight you will be dining on the specialty of the house."
Amelia grinned. "Do you mean. . ?"
"Of course! Rabbit stew." He dumped the meat into a pot of water and set it over the fire. He stirred it, occasionally adding a pinch of salt or some assorted herbs from the forest. Although he couldn't taste anything, his sense of smell was amazingly acute. He knew exactly what the stew needed and added ingredients accordingly.
Amelia sniffed the air. "It smells great Zel."
Zelgadis pulled the pot off the fire and set it on the table. "But of course, my lady. Only the best for the princess of the castle." He ladled some of the stew into a small bowl and carried it over to Amelia. "Careful. It's still hot."
Amelia nodded and carefully took the bowl. "You don't have to worry about me Zel. I'm not made of glass you know." She blew on the stew for a moment before taking a sip.
"I know." Zelgadis pulled a chair over and sat in front of Amelia. "But, if I'm not worrying about you than I'm not happy you know."
Amelia frowned. "I know Zel." She continued to eat in silence for a moment before sighing. "Zel?"
Zelgadis cringed a bit. There was something in her voice that he didn't want to hear. "Yes?"
Amelia looked as though she was struggling to find the right words. She whispered, "What. . . what will you do. . . after I'm gone?"
Zelgadis looked down and was surprised to see his hands shaking. He couldn't understand why Amelia's question was such a shock for him. She wasn't stupid. She was probably coping with the truth better than he was. He sighed and shook his head sadly.
Amelia frowned. "Zel, please talk to me." Her voice quivered a little. "I'm scared of dying alone."
Zelgadis moved his chair over beside Amelia's. He hugged her delicately. "You're not alone."
Amelia closed her eyes and leaned against Zelgadis. "That's how it feels sometimes. You know that I'm sick." She felt him jump a little when she said that. "And you try to take care of me." She reached up to caress his face. "I appreciate that. But, sometimes I just want to talk about it." She heard him sigh.
"Alright."
Amelia smiled. "Thanks. I know it's hard for you. But, I really appreciate it." She paused before continuing. "Do you know what scares me the most about dying?"
"No." A moment's hesitation. "What?"
"You."
Zelgadis sounded a little surprised. "Me?"
"I worry about what you'll do when I'm gone." A tear ran down Amelia's cheek. "I worry about you being alone."
Zelgadis kissed Amelia's forehead. "You never think of yourself do you?"
Amelia smiled. "I try not to. You worry about me more than enough for both of us." Her smile faded. "Zel, will you promise me something?"
"Anything."
Amelia turned to Zelgadis and looked at him with her blind eyes. "Promise me that you won't throw your life away. Make it count for something."
Zelgadis looked at her for a moment. "I promise."
Amelia slumped a little and sighed happily. It felt as if a great weight had suddenly been lifted from her shoulders. "I'm glad." Several coughs wracked her body and she nodded towards the bed. "Help me up please. I'm very tired."
Zelgadis gingerly helped Amelia to her feet and led her over to the bed in the corner of the room. After he made sure that she was comfortable he pulled his chair over to the bed and sat next to her.
Amelia coughed again and sighed. "You won't forget your promise will you? Make your life count."
Zelgadis took her hand and squeezed it softly. "I will."
Amelia nodded and slipped into an uncomfortable slumber.
Zelgadis held her hand through the night. Somehow, he knew what was coming and when Amelia stopped breathing in the early hours before dawn he wasn't surprised. In a way, by giving his promise he had also given her permission to leave. He leaned down and kissed her forehead. "Goodbye Amelia."
By the time the sun had come over the hills, Zelgadis was shoveling the last bit of dirt into a grave. He cast the shovel aside and knelt on the freshly turned earth. "Amelia." He opened and shut his mouth a few times, struggling to find the right words to say goodbye. "I'll never forget you. You gave my life meaning. Thank you." He stood and turned away from the grave. Glancing over his shoulder one last time, Zelgadis disappeared into the forest.
And the months passed. . .
************************************************************************
Next Chapter: The chimera wanders and comes across an old acquaintance.
Notes: I hope that everyone enjoyed the first chapter of the story. I will be the first to admit that the story doesn't really capture the feel of "Slayers", but I hope you enjoyed it anyways. I was reluctant to write this at first, because it doesn't have any humor or very much action or adventure, both of which are huge components of the Slayers series. But, it's an important part of the overall "Revival" story, so it needs to be told.
I'd like to offer a very special thanks to my beta reader / random idea person, Chaos Anita. Without her help, this story might not have ever seen the light of day. Thanks a bunch!!!
Well, thanks for reading and I hope that you'll stick with the rest of the story.