DAMANE

Chapter 2

DisclaimerDon't own Slayers or the damane idea I got from Wheel of Time

Lina awoke with a painful headache and a case of dizzy disorientation; the world around her spun, even with her eyes closed. She put a hand on her eyes and dozed off until the effect passed. An hour later, she awoke uncomfortably, moving her shoulder blades around the bed she as on. It felt like nothing more than a blanket on a thin layer of straw on a stone floor. "Gourry," her voice was wrapped in discomfort, "light the fire, it's freezing!"

When nobody responded, she groaned and sat up, a bad moon imminent. Lina hated to wake up somewhere hungover. But, she didn't remember drinking anything last night, all that crossed her memory was that town in flames, people screaming, two women....

Lina put a hand to her mouth and yawned, she'd tried to save that town, but what happened to it? She raised her other hand stretching. The hand brushed against something metal and she went stiff, memories flooding back to her. Lina's hands went suddenly to her throat and yanked at the metal collar there. Sparks of electricity shot through her fingers and she pulled away in surprise. She made an effort to jump up and run to the tiny door of the tiny room she was in, but upon reaching the door, she first discovered it didn't have a handle, and just after than, she was thrown back against the far wall by some strange force.

Lina rubbed the back of her head where it hit the wall and cursed, it hurt more than it was supposed to. The sharp pain of the initial blow still rang through her skull whereas it should have faded and at least be aching by now. Throwing that aside for the moment, she looked up and saw the bracelet linked to the cord hanging from a peg high up on the wall. 'The sul'dam are stupider than I thought they'd be.' she thought before standing up and making an effort to grasp the bracelet.

Suddenly, her arm stopped, cramping painfully. Lina's face twisted in pain as she tried to move it but couldn't. The door to her room opened and in stepped a fair girl with a charming complexion, dark, almost black, hair and shimmering green eyes. The woman laughed sweetly at someone who had spoken to her and was now moving farther down the hall outside of the room. When the woman turned her head, she frowned at Lina, "Now now, we can't have you trying to escape. You new ones always play the fool don't you? Please put your arm down." The voice was sweet and commanding, as if talking to a child or a pet.

Lina's anger boiled under the surface and she was unable to quell the look in her eyes, but her voice was contorted in the pain that it came out perhaps just the way the woman wanted by the look on her face when Lina spoke, "I can't."

"Well all you have to do it convince yourself you won't try to escape, then will it down, allow me to help." The woman took the bracelet and placed it on her wrist gingerly, with a grace almost like that of royalty. Suddenly pain exploded in Lina's head, feeling as if it were to explode. Hands shot to her head and Lina fell to the floor, afraid that if she took her hands away, she would explode.

"But, the a'dam only works the the sul'dam's will." The woman said, not losing the clarity or cheeriness in her tone, "Which is why you must obey me, unless you wish this to happen again." "Tell me what you want from me?" Lina growled once the pain subsided slightly.

There was a prominent pause before, "You should NEVER speak unless spoken to a'dam." The woman's clear eyes clouded with disappointment, "However, I will be extremely generous now and answer your questions just this once without the proper punishment. You are requested by his highness, although you are no where near worthy enough yet to offer yourself to him. It will take some training to get you domesticated, seeing the wild and feral spirit you've been permitted to live with until now, and your language must be regained, among other things. You are still unbroken?" The woman moved toward Lina with intentions Lina didn't like.

Lina shied away from her, grabbing the drab grey dress she was garbed in and drew it around her front in a protective manner, "What are you talking about? What's the meaning of this, I'm Lina Inverse, how dare you talk to me like that!"

Weight like no other slammed against Lina's back and sent her to the ground, crushing her. She thought she heard one of her bones snap but the pressure was so intense, she couldn't tell what it may be. She groaned and pleaded with the pressure to stop.

"You will not speak to me in such a manner. You are a'dam and only meant to answer directly questions asked of you and to obey your sul'dam! You will remain unaware of mattes that do not concern you and vigilance must be kept on every step of your sul'dam or their pain will be yours and more. Do you understand this a'dam?" The woman's voice was thick with disappointment and seriousness. She sighed and waited impatiently for Lina to stand, "Perhaps Anka was right, it will take much more time than I have patience for to tame you. But you will be tamed and offered wholly to his highness. I trust by your reaction and tone of speech that you are still untouched by any unworthy hand. And a'dam, you will give yourself to him." With that, she hung the bracelet back up on its peg and left the room with an almost regal air, closing the door silently as if walking out of her own home.

A little time passed between the woman leaving and Lina actually picking part of her body up. Her bangs shrouded the ruby-red eyes that blazed with hatred, anger, and insolence. "Lina Inverse begs to no one, let alone offers herself to one such as him. I will not be tamed, you will kill me first." Her voice was hoarse, but only added to the seething threat she issued, "Or perhaps I'll kill you."

The sensation of being slapped stung her face, but Lina did not flinch, she refused. She still remained on the ground in her position refusing to let herself move her body. In just that little time, Lina had become vengeance- filled and an almost different person. She spat on the floor, a single drop of blood splashed on the ground, Lina gazed at it and passed it. "The one to draw first blood will be the one to spill the last of it." She whispered in a language strange and yet so familiar to her. The saying itself was all to common to her memory, but she couldn't recall from where.

Lina Inverse slipped into unconsciousness with that thought and promise.

"So, ah, Zel, why are we going to Seyroon again?" Gourry trudged up next to the chimera, a distant look clouding his eyes as it had the past few days.

Zelgadiss sighed, frustrated for about the millionth time that day, without exaggeration. "Gourry, we're going to find Amelia. Her father is bound to let us borrow a ship after he hears of the situation. That and we have to think of some kind of plan."

"Why can't we just go in and attack. We're unstoppable when it comes to swords and they can't stop those with their magic...can then?" Gourry was looking at the sky, the familiar reds of the sunset sending his gaze farther off, so far that Zelgadiss thought he was completely gone for a moment.

Zel sighed, "Gourry, you just want to barge in there where those people possibly have stronger sorceresses under their control than Lina and expect to win with out swords? You're dumber than I thought, you should know better than anyone else, only enchanted swords work against magic, and even then not all of it. Yours isn't enchanted anymore and mine may not work against everything. Besides, we don't even know if mine'd work against what we'd be fighting."

"Lina'd help us."

"Gourry, Lina couldn't help if she wanted to. As a matter of fact, the effort might even kill her. We've got to find a way to free her before we even think of attacking or else she would die and it'd be our faults!"

Gourry snapped back to reality so quick his neck popped, "How so?!"

Zelgadiss sighed again, "Didn't I tell you once that an a'dam feels any pain caused to the sul'dam twice over? So if we kill the sul'dam linked to Lina, the sul'dam wouldn't die, but Lina'd feel the pain of death twice over. Almost like dying twice. We've got to free her of that collar first. Then I don't think Lina'd give us the option of eradicating her 'holder'."

Gourry nodded, knowing exactly what Zelgadiss meant. "But we are going to get her back." It wasn't a question, but a statement, and Gourry never lied; at least, not that he knew of.

Zelgadiss nodded.

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NOTE: the former adam and suldam are actually supposed to be spelled a'dam and sul'dam, the punctuation I previously used didn't work on here. Just ta let ya know that's how it's supposed to go.