A/N: You know the disclaimer, you know that I'm going to finish this. My goal is to start posting a couple of new installments each week until this thing is finished, and it's getting closer all the time. I'm not going to post this on my websites until it's done, and I'm not going to post it in chapter form there. So, if you want to read this humongous fic in one shot, you can do it at vejiitasei.com. *grin* Oh, and this isn't proofread- I'll try to get to that someday.
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Lecia had also pestered Alfred into buying the ingredients for a communication spell, since she had no one else she could ask that of. That evening, the two of them cleared off a space on Alfred's desk and set up the bowl, just as the instructions indicated. Lecia held her breath as they extinguished all the candles except for one and Alfred began the incantation. His eyes were closed and his hands moved slowly over the surface of the fluid in the bowl. The particular spell he was using called for a white wine in which to do the scrying, and so there was the faint smell of alcohol in the room as he chanted. He finished the spell and set the surface of the liquid aflame, and when the flames receded, the wine had become as silver asl the bowl they were using.
At first she didn't see anything of interest, just snippets of the surrounding countryside, and her thoughts began to wander as she watched. She saw Roddy and Celdra in the library, faces glum as a tall, lean man tutored them, and Kerra sitting at a long table next to Gorran. Her brother's face was ruddy, probably from training outside all the time, and his expression was happy. She could see shadows deep in his eyes, though, and knew no matter how kindly Gourry looked at him from across the table, the blonde man would never replace their father in her brother's heart. The scene shifted again and showed her, crouched over the bowl with Alfred, her long hair shining in a dark cascade down her back. She realized then that the images in the bowl were following Alfred's thoughts, since he was the caster.
Well, she knew he liked her now. "Freddy," she said softly. "This spell will probably really drain you. Please focus on my parents, so you can release the casting as quickly as possible."
Alfred's face turned red and he nodded, glancing at her momentarily. "Lina Inverse, Lina Inverse," he muttered to himself, staring into the bowl intently, and he made a few movements with his fingers. The image in the bowl shifted again, showing her mother sitting alone in the common room of an inn. She was slouched slightly in her chair, almost completely lost in the folds of her black cape, her ruby eyes fixed on the distant hearth. A pile of dishes were off to one side, and she was nursing a mug of ale. No tall, dark-haired man sat by her side. Lecia could see the worry hidden deep in her mother's eyes, and her heart leapt for a moment. She loved her mother but had always yearned to be closer to her. It was comforting to know that, at least for a moment, she and her mother felt the same way. Lina took another sip of ale, then reached into her cloak and pulled out a little metal folder, no bigger than her palm. As she opened up the folder, Lecia saw that there were two miniature portraits inside. Lecia remembered those portraits. Xellos had insisted on them when Gorran was about six and she was eleven. There was a portrait of her and Gorran sitting together and a portrait of Lina and Xellos sitting together. She watched as Lina gently stroked the images of her children, then of her husband. Her face sagged with sadness, and suddenly Lecia wanted to cry.
"Okay, she's fine," Lecia said, voice rough. "Where's my father?"
Alfred's forehead furrowed. "Xellos, Xellos," he grated, and Lecia could tell he was getting tired.
The image in the bowl wavered, Lina's face blurring and disappearing as the liquid moved, and Lecia felt a sharp pain in her heart as her mother disappeared. She wished her mother was there right at that moment. Lina would have comforted her. It would have been nice to hear her mother tell her everything was okay. The image continued to shift, showing an empty ocean, then a brief glimpse of featureless sand. The bowl went dark for a moment, and she caught a glimpse of a dark head of hair, and suddenly a large yellow eye filled up the bowl. Lecia gasped and grabbed Alfred's hand, eyes wide with terror as the golden iris expanded, constricting the pupil. "Release the spell!" Lecia cried, but it was too late.
The liquid in the bowl exploded upward, turning into flames as it did so. Alfred grunted as he was thrown backward, ripping his hand from hers. "Freddy!" she screamed. His body slid across the floor and hit a bookcase with a sickening thud, and his head lolled to the side. The smell of blood filled her sensitive nostrils and she glared at the flames as they turned purple and began to gather back together. A shape began to darken the center of the flames, and suddenly all light was gone from the room except for a pair of glowing purple eyes. "Who dares interfere?" a rasping voice said, and a pair of black wings extending from the body. Lecia realized that it wasn't a human form at all, but that of a black wolf. The wolf, however, was about the size of a horse, and Alfred's desk cracked and broke under its weight. The silver bowl went clanging to the floor, rolling onto a rug and coming to rest near the wall.
Lecia knew immediately that she was faced with a Monster. It wasn't the most powerful she had ever sensed, but it was still pretty strong. She wished again that her mother was there. "Lecia Inverse dares interfere," she replied, forcing her voice to sound brave. Her parents would have sounded brave, she just knew it.
"Inverse?" the beast chuckled. "That name has always meant trouble."
Lecia narrowed her eyes. "Monsters have always meant trouble, too," she spat, rolling up her sleeves. The Monster smelled like a dark, dank cave, a smell she recognized from somewhere but couldn't quite place. It mingled with the sharp smell of Alfred's blood, and she knew she had to lure the Monster away. With a yell, she released a flare burst, grazing the wolf's wing. It hadn't been prepared for her attack, and launched itself at her with a growl. She rolled out of the way and yanked open the door, running out of the room. If she ran through the halls of the palace with the wolf on her heels, she knew the guards would investigate the room and find Alfred. He'd be okay.
She scurried down the corridor, the wolf hot on her heels, and passed a group of nobles coming out of an office. Princess Amelia was behind them, and her eyes went wide with surprise as she caught Lecia's glance. Lecia shot her a grin and sped past, crashing through a window and taking to the air outside. She could hear Amelia shouting for her husband and saw her dashing toward Alfred's room. Relief momentarily washed over her, knowing that Alfred would be safe, and then she returned her attention to the task at hand. The wolf had also taken to the air, beating its black wings, and she smiled as she let dark power fill her. She shot straight up in the air until the lights of Seyruun were mere pinpricks of brightness beneath her, and the wolf followed. Ducking and weaving, she barely avoided the wolf's jaws as it snapped at her, its purple eyes blazing. She spent several minutes dancing out of its way as it tried to tear off one limb or another, and finally she saw what she was waiting for. A blue-tinged light appeared at the top of one of the palace's towers, and soon the light had spread to cover all of the city. The magic felt like Amelia's and Zelgadis', but there were differences, too. It seemed the whole Graywords family was casting the barrier spell. They knew her family so well.
"Okay, that's it!" she cackled at the wolf, who opened its mouth and shot a stream of golden fire at her, but she simply flew out of the way and grabbed it by the scruff of the neck. Gripping its slimy fur tightly, she swung up and around until she was straddling its monstrous back as if it were a horse. "You want a bite of me?" she murmured, and grabbed its jaw, forcing its mouth open with a cruel yank before letting go. The wolf snarled and tried to snap at her, but she was already moving back in front of it. The wolf swung around and opened its mouth wide, and she could see the fires deep in its gut. Gathering her energy and finishing up her chant, she let loose her spell. "Dragon Slave!" she screamed, feeling the magic flow out of her. It was like a tidal wave, rushing out of her with incredible force and fury, and she couldn't control her laughing. The wave of power was exilharating, making every single cell of her body tingle. She grinned as the ruby light incinerated the Monster and expanded to cover all of Seyruun. Trees just outside of the barrier were obliterated, leaving a perfect ring of bare earth on the perimeter of the spell. She had never cast such a powerful spell before, and the feeling of it left her breathless. Finally the last bits of power of the spell receded, and the barrier spell went down. With a contented sigh, Lecia returned to earth.
When she landed she was surprised that no praise greeted her. Instead she was confronted with a great sigh from Zelgadis and much head-shaking from Amelia. "Just like your parents," Amelia breathed.
"Don't you think it was a bit much?" Zelgadis asked, peering out at the perimeter of her spell. "If we hadn't put that barrier up in time, you would have destroyed the whole city."
"But I defeated it," Lecia said, her delicate brows coming together in a frown. "That's all that matters."
"Yes, you did, and we're proud of you," Amelia said. "We just want you to think a little more before you act next time."
Lecia clenched her jaw. These people didn't understand her. They didn't understand the joy of unleashing raw power. She wanted to open her mouth and give them a piece of her mind, but held her tongue. Her father wouldn't approve of her mouthing off to her hosts. "I'm sorry," she said, hanging her head and doing her best to act repentant, even though her heart was still soaring. "Is Freddy okay?" she asked suddenly, amethyst eyes going wide.
"I'm fine," she heard a familiar voice say, and her heart fluttered in her chest as she saw Alfred standing behind his parents. "That spell you cast was really strong, Lecia."
"Freddy!" she cried, and bounded over to him, throwing her arms around his neck.
Alfred blushed deeply and awkwardly patted her back. "Yeah," he murmured.
Lecia unwrapped herself from him and stood a few steps back, admiring him. He was so good and sweet, and he was handsome, too. His blue eyes were so pretty, and his voice was light and musical. Alfred was such a refined, intelligent young man, and she wondered what his full lips would feel like pressed against hers. She looked at her feet as she blushed, knowing that her actions would make him blush further, and she was not disappointed.
"All right," Zelgadis said, interrupting their blushing match. "What possessed you two to try scrying? Alfred, I know that we've warned you about that danger in the past. What was so important to see that you'd take a risk like that?"
"It's my fault," Lecia volunteered. "I wanted to know how my parents were. Freddy just helped me out of the goodness of his heart. I didn't know how to cast the spell myself."
Amelia paled and came up to Zelgadis, putting her hands on his arm. "But why was that awful beast summoned? Where did it come from?"
"I don't know," Lecia admitted, wishing her parents were there for the millionth time. They knew everything. She just wanted to know everything.
"What did you see?" Amelia asked.
Alfred stood next to Lecia, his body close enough that she could feel the heat of it on her skin. His fingers twitched slightly as if he wanted to take her hand, and although she silently commanded him to, her hand remained alone. Lecia wondered if Alfred was really that chicken or if he just didn't want to be affectionate in front of his family.
"We saw Miss Lina in an inn and watched her for a while, and when we tried to look for Mister Xellos, there was darkness, then a giant golden eye, and then that Monster came out of the bowl," Alfred explained.
"And that's it," Lecia added.
Zelgadis exhaled through his nose and shook his head. "Well, don't let what you saw put any nonsense in your head," he said, and Lecia turned to go, Alfred following her. "I'll talk with you later, young man," she heard Zelgadis add, and saw Alfred stiffen momentarily beside her.
"We'll figure out what all this means," Amelia called after them.
Lecia didn't care. They could think about it for the rest of their lives and never figure it out. She knew, however, that it was her father's head they had seen in the vision before the Monster attacked them. She didn't know why, but she recognized that dark place. Lecia knew exactly where her father was, she just didn't know how to get there.