Thank you to everyone who reviewed! You convinced me to hammer out the two climactic chapters, and I plan to do the wrap-up chapter just as soon as I decide what happens in it. Writer's block is a reall pain in the $$, ne?
Brand new: I'm going to post review responses at the end of the chapter.
I do not own Lina, Zelgaddis, Gourry, Amelia, Rezo, or any other "Slayers" characters. To the best of my knowledge, they belong to Hajime Kanzaka.
The crescent moon was directly overhead when the army of monsters paused at the edge of the forest. Jedere took Tira by the shoulders and kissed her on the forehead, whispering, "Make me proud, daughter.
Jedere raised his right hand and called to it the animation-force of one of the monsters. Drained of life and magic, the monster's corpse shriveled up like a raisin. Tira was nauseated by the Puppetmaster's casual disposal of his own creation. She flinched slightly when he placed his right hand on her forehead, and she felt the power flow into her like honey, thick and rich. For a moment, she was completely disoriented, unable to distinguish between the earth and sky. The moment passed, and everything snapped into focus. She was gloriously alive, gloriously powerful.
"Go," Jedere commanded softly, and his daughter took to the air, soaring high above Illidar's main gate. She spoke an incantation in a singsong voice: "Oh Lord of Dreams, Keeper of Secrets, let the mist of sleep flow from me. Hold the spirits of these, your children, close to your breast Ôtill morning breaks.
A heavy purple mist billowed around her, flowing through the streets of the quiet city. It crept under doorways and into the nostrils of the city dwellers. There were several pockets of resistance, where cautious sorcerers erected protections, but the winged chimera had so much excess power from Jedere's less fortunate creation that she simply blasted through the wards. Tira flew to the main gate, where the five guards lay sleeping where they had fallen, and unbarred the great doors. The chimera army emerged from the protection of the forest, pushed open the enormous doors and marched down the main street towards the Temple. Jedere led, blowing aside the mist of sleep with a wave of his hand. The army moved quickly but as quietly as possible, as if afraid the villagers might break the sleep spell if there was any noise.
Tira flew above the army like a black falcon. When the army reached the edge of the temple grounds, it found Gourry blocking the way.
"You didn't really think we'd make it easy, did you? You should listen to your mother: it's not nice to steal." He grinned rakishly, tossed his long blond hair over his shoulder and struck a gallant pose.
The Puppetmaster and Tira both ignored him. If he was still awake, there must be a magic-user nearby shielding him from the mist. Jedere smirked. "I'll dispose of this trash. Tira, find the sorcerer.
"Hai." Tira concentrated on searching the shadows, while the Puppetmaster sent four chimera to tear apart the foolish swordsman. Gourry sliced through them.
"Ha. This Ôtrash' doesn't want to be taken out," Gourry declared.
The Puppetmaster enhanced one of his chimera soldiers with skin as thick as armor. When Gourry charged the monster, his sword bounced off of the thick scales.
Gourry retreated, pulled the pin out of his sword's hilt and allowed the metal blade to fall to the ground. Tira and Jedere felt the power emanating from the hilt and waited apprehensively, but the armored monster charged blindly. "Light come forth!" Gourry bellowed, and the monster was sliced in two by the light extending from its hilt.
Jedere turned to his opponent with new respect. "You wield the Sword of Light? I may have to deal with you myself." Gourry dodged a volley of Elmekia Lances and Flare Arrows.
"You're going to have to do better than that," Gourry taunted.
"I will," the Puppetmaster promised. "Triple flare arrow!" Gourry dodged the three bolts, but discovered that the arrows were following him.
Scrambling about frantically, Gourry screamed, "Heeelp! AMELIA!
Amelia's voice was lifted in a confident, "Freeze Arrow! Freeze Arrow! Freeze Arrow!" and the Puppetmaster's attack was neutralized.
Jedere ordered, "Tira! Disable him.
The winged chimera stepped forward, whispering, "Seed sprout, put down roots and grow. Bind him in stem and leaf and ravenous flower. Choke weed!" The vine sprouted in her hand but quickly grew larger than she. Gourry lopped off pieces with his sword, but there were too many tendrils: they overwhelmed him and he was buried under bushy green foliage.
Amelia yelled, "Gourry!" and ran out of her hiding place towards the bushy plant that had devoured her friend.
"Amelia, no!" cried Lina, who was on her heels, trying to stop the headstrong girl from getting killed.
Jedere smiled: he would destroy them all with one blow. "Fireball!
Lina and Amelia screamed. Within the plant, Gourry gave a cry of distress. From his hiding place, Zelgaddis bellowed, "Rey Wing!" The fireball bounced harmlessly off the protective globe. Zel stepped out in front of his friends and began his second spell. "Infinite earth, mother who nurtures all life. Let thy power gather in my hand." He placed his hand on the ground and bellowed, "Vlave Howl!
A wave of mud rose from between the cobblestones and buried the entire army. Tira leapt into the air as the earth reached for her; beating her wings, she escaped entombment.
The mud encasing the Puppetmaster was blasted apart by a fireball. Filthy and furious, Jedere emerged. "You! What are you? A golem with power?" He blinked and corrected himself, "No, not a golem . . . a chimera." His lips stretched in a grim smile. "A puppet thought it could defeat the Puppetmaster?" His voice dropped as he recited the spell. "Life born of hardest stone, formed of weak flesh. Become one with my will, and become mine.
Tira whispered, "No. Father, please don't.
Jedere ordered, "Kill your companions, puppet.
Amelia asked, "Zel? Are you OK?" Zelgaddis turned slowly, and Lina saw that his eyes glowed red.
Review Responses:
Ichiban Victory:
WOW! YOU WROTE TONS OF REVIEWS! THANK YOU, THANK YOU!
You're right, Lina definitely knows all about the Goddess of food. In the Slayers episodes I watched, Lina was constantly trying to explain to Gourry who the Red Priest was, who Shabranigdo was, who Zanafar was . . . After a while, she must get sick of explaining stuff to such an idiot! And now she needs to explain everything to Amelia too . . . At least Amelia has a memory that lasts longer than a goldfish's memory (3 seconds, according to some bizarre study).
Zel is definitely anti-social, because he's so worried about being lynched for being a monster! The guy just doesn't belong in big crowds.
Thanks, I re-wrote that fight scene three times to get everything to work correctly (aargh!).
Will Tira gain her freedom? You'll have to read on to see . . .
Beedoo:
Well, I'm glad that you decided to read the story even if you did have a similar concept, and thanks for writing a review! Now that you point it out, I realize that you're absolutely right: Amelia IS out of character. I'm afraid that Amelia is one of my least favorite characters, and I really haven't seen many episodes with her. I basically only included her to show Zel's "softer side" (do I sound like a Sears commercial?). Plus, it's been months since I last watched Slayers. But you'll notice I did do my homework: some of the spells' incantations are copied right out of the show.
Kaeru Shisho:
I really appreciate your specific criticism about the rushed pacing. I've taken your advice to just plow ahead, and if I go back to revise, I'll do so after I've finished the whole thing.
Aelluvia:
So, you really don't like my chapter breaks, eh? I'm glad you read some of my other stories too. Hey, what's with the threat, anyway? Are you the same person who called me a sadist in a review for my Inu fanfic, just because I left you at a cliffhanger. Hold on a minute, you really ARE the same person! I appreciate the sentiment, anyway.
Brand new: I'm going to post review responses at the end of the chapter.
I do not own Lina, Zelgaddis, Gourry, Amelia, Rezo, or any other "Slayers" characters. To the best of my knowledge, they belong to Hajime Kanzaka.
The crescent moon was directly overhead when the army of monsters paused at the edge of the forest. Jedere took Tira by the shoulders and kissed her on the forehead, whispering, "Make me proud, daughter.
Jedere raised his right hand and called to it the animation-force of one of the monsters. Drained of life and magic, the monster's corpse shriveled up like a raisin. Tira was nauseated by the Puppetmaster's casual disposal of his own creation. She flinched slightly when he placed his right hand on her forehead, and she felt the power flow into her like honey, thick and rich. For a moment, she was completely disoriented, unable to distinguish between the earth and sky. The moment passed, and everything snapped into focus. She was gloriously alive, gloriously powerful.
"Go," Jedere commanded softly, and his daughter took to the air, soaring high above Illidar's main gate. She spoke an incantation in a singsong voice: "Oh Lord of Dreams, Keeper of Secrets, let the mist of sleep flow from me. Hold the spirits of these, your children, close to your breast Ôtill morning breaks.
A heavy purple mist billowed around her, flowing through the streets of the quiet city. It crept under doorways and into the nostrils of the city dwellers. There were several pockets of resistance, where cautious sorcerers erected protections, but the winged chimera had so much excess power from Jedere's less fortunate creation that she simply blasted through the wards. Tira flew to the main gate, where the five guards lay sleeping where they had fallen, and unbarred the great doors. The chimera army emerged from the protection of the forest, pushed open the enormous doors and marched down the main street towards the Temple. Jedere led, blowing aside the mist of sleep with a wave of his hand. The army moved quickly but as quietly as possible, as if afraid the villagers might break the sleep spell if there was any noise.
Tira flew above the army like a black falcon. When the army reached the edge of the temple grounds, it found Gourry blocking the way.
"You didn't really think we'd make it easy, did you? You should listen to your mother: it's not nice to steal." He grinned rakishly, tossed his long blond hair over his shoulder and struck a gallant pose.
The Puppetmaster and Tira both ignored him. If he was still awake, there must be a magic-user nearby shielding him from the mist. Jedere smirked. "I'll dispose of this trash. Tira, find the sorcerer.
"Hai." Tira concentrated on searching the shadows, while the Puppetmaster sent four chimera to tear apart the foolish swordsman. Gourry sliced through them.
"Ha. This Ôtrash' doesn't want to be taken out," Gourry declared.
The Puppetmaster enhanced one of his chimera soldiers with skin as thick as armor. When Gourry charged the monster, his sword bounced off of the thick scales.
Gourry retreated, pulled the pin out of his sword's hilt and allowed the metal blade to fall to the ground. Tira and Jedere felt the power emanating from the hilt and waited apprehensively, but the armored monster charged blindly. "Light come forth!" Gourry bellowed, and the monster was sliced in two by the light extending from its hilt.
Jedere turned to his opponent with new respect. "You wield the Sword of Light? I may have to deal with you myself." Gourry dodged a volley of Elmekia Lances and Flare Arrows.
"You're going to have to do better than that," Gourry taunted.
"I will," the Puppetmaster promised. "Triple flare arrow!" Gourry dodged the three bolts, but discovered that the arrows were following him.
Scrambling about frantically, Gourry screamed, "Heeelp! AMELIA!
Amelia's voice was lifted in a confident, "Freeze Arrow! Freeze Arrow! Freeze Arrow!" and the Puppetmaster's attack was neutralized.
Jedere ordered, "Tira! Disable him.
The winged chimera stepped forward, whispering, "Seed sprout, put down roots and grow. Bind him in stem and leaf and ravenous flower. Choke weed!" The vine sprouted in her hand but quickly grew larger than she. Gourry lopped off pieces with his sword, but there were too many tendrils: they overwhelmed him and he was buried under bushy green foliage.
Amelia yelled, "Gourry!" and ran out of her hiding place towards the bushy plant that had devoured her friend.
"Amelia, no!" cried Lina, who was on her heels, trying to stop the headstrong girl from getting killed.
Jedere smiled: he would destroy them all with one blow. "Fireball!
Lina and Amelia screamed. Within the plant, Gourry gave a cry of distress. From his hiding place, Zelgaddis bellowed, "Rey Wing!" The fireball bounced harmlessly off the protective globe. Zel stepped out in front of his friends and began his second spell. "Infinite earth, mother who nurtures all life. Let thy power gather in my hand." He placed his hand on the ground and bellowed, "Vlave Howl!
A wave of mud rose from between the cobblestones and buried the entire army. Tira leapt into the air as the earth reached for her; beating her wings, she escaped entombment.
The mud encasing the Puppetmaster was blasted apart by a fireball. Filthy and furious, Jedere emerged. "You! What are you? A golem with power?" He blinked and corrected himself, "No, not a golem . . . a chimera." His lips stretched in a grim smile. "A puppet thought it could defeat the Puppetmaster?" His voice dropped as he recited the spell. "Life born of hardest stone, formed of weak flesh. Become one with my will, and become mine.
Tira whispered, "No. Father, please don't.
Jedere ordered, "Kill your companions, puppet.
Amelia asked, "Zel? Are you OK?" Zelgaddis turned slowly, and Lina saw that his eyes glowed red.
Review Responses:
Ichiban Victory:
WOW! YOU WROTE TONS OF REVIEWS! THANK YOU, THANK YOU!
You're right, Lina definitely knows all about the Goddess of food. In the Slayers episodes I watched, Lina was constantly trying to explain to Gourry who the Red Priest was, who Shabranigdo was, who Zanafar was . . . After a while, she must get sick of explaining stuff to such an idiot! And now she needs to explain everything to Amelia too . . . At least Amelia has a memory that lasts longer than a goldfish's memory (3 seconds, according to some bizarre study).
Zel is definitely anti-social, because he's so worried about being lynched for being a monster! The guy just doesn't belong in big crowds.
Thanks, I re-wrote that fight scene three times to get everything to work correctly (aargh!).
Will Tira gain her freedom? You'll have to read on to see . . .
Beedoo:
Well, I'm glad that you decided to read the story even if you did have a similar concept, and thanks for writing a review! Now that you point it out, I realize that you're absolutely right: Amelia IS out of character. I'm afraid that Amelia is one of my least favorite characters, and I really haven't seen many episodes with her. I basically only included her to show Zel's "softer side" (do I sound like a Sears commercial?). Plus, it's been months since I last watched Slayers. But you'll notice I did do my homework: some of the spells' incantations are copied right out of the show.
Kaeru Shisho:
I really appreciate your specific criticism about the rushed pacing. I've taken your advice to just plow ahead, and if I go back to revise, I'll do so after I've finished the whole thing.
Aelluvia:
So, you really don't like my chapter breaks, eh? I'm glad you read some of my other stories too. Hey, what's with the threat, anyway? Are you the same person who called me a sadist in a review for my Inu fanfic, just because I left you at a cliffhanger. Hold on a minute, you really ARE the same person! I appreciate the sentiment, anyway.