After Gourry's spectacular failure to save them, Lina and Sylphiel were blindfolded and together with the unconscious swordsman, hustled to the bandits' mountain hideout. After a while, the girls were also gagged, due to Lina's non-stop running commentary during the trip.
Despite this setback, during the course of her insulting Lina had managed to determine the name of the group that kidnapped them. They called themselves the "Mountain Scorpions" and were led by someone named Dilgear. The one who had managed to trick Gourry called himself Zangulus, and was Dilgear's right-hand man. He had decided to bring all three of them to their hideout to present them before Dilgear himself. This was due in large part to Sylphiel, whose great beauty would surely be considered a prize among any bandit.
Lina was finally dumped off with her companions in a large, musty room. As their blindfolds and gags were removed, Lina studied her surroundings. They seemed to be in a large network of caves, which had been crudely converted into rooms separated by rickety wooden doors and makeshift walls. Gourry, who was still unconscious, was slumped on the floor next to the two girls.
Zangulus approached them and began to cut away their bonds. "Don't bother struggling, or I'll just tie you up again," he told them curtly. When they were free, he bound their hands in front once more and posted two guards to the room. "If the little one makes any more trouble, slit her throat," he commanded them.
The door closed, and Lina gulped nervously. Studying her bonds, she saw that it would be near impossible to work them off, especially with the two bandits watching their every move. Looking up, she saw they were staring at her and Sylphiel with mocking smiles.
"I don't see why we have to save her for the boss," muttered one, winking at Sylphiel, who let out a small sound of dismay and scooted closer to Gourry.
"Well I bet the boss wouldn't mind if you messed around with the little one," said the other, motioning at Lina.
"Who would want that one? She's a flat-chested little hellion with the mouth of a used ox salesman."
Lina felt her eye twitch. "Hey, stop talking about us like we're pieces of meat!" she snapped at them.
"Ohh, so you still have a bit of fire left in you, eh girl?" said one with a grin, approaching her and squatting down on the ground.
Lina turned away, wincing, as the force of his breath hit her. Ugh! she thought. I can't believe one of these guys is the last Celestial Warrior. But how am I going to find him? Studying the man before her carefully, she noticed him flipping a card in his hand. Maybe I should change tactics, she thought suddenly. Forcing a small smile to her lips, she braved the stink of his breath that washed over her and gestured at his playing card. "I see you like cards," she said coyly. "Maybe you and I could play a little game together?" she added with a wink.
The bandit's bushy brows lowered. "A card game?" he growled. "What does a little girl like you know about playing cards?"
Lina batted her eyelashes for effect, smiling in what she hoped was a seductive manner. "What about a game of strip poker?" she asked. The blast of breath that greeted her nearly knocked her over as the bandit opened his mouth and began guffawing loudly.
"Girly, I doubt you have anything I want to see! Go find another fool to play your games with!" he said, standing up and turning away from her.
Lina felt her temper rise, but saw the opportunity to find her last Celestial Warrior rapidly slipping away. "Wait!" she cried out desperately. The bandit turned and crossed his arms. "What if we play a game of strip poker with… uhh… Sylphiel taking my place!" she said, leaning her head towards the healer.
"LINA!" came Sylphiel's shocked reply.
Craning her neck around, Lina peered at Sylphiel. "Shh!" she said quietly. "Don't worry, I know what I'm doing!" Sylphiel just moaned and dropped her head to her knees. But the bandit had come back and was settling before her with a glint in his eyes.
"Aye, now you're talking, girlie. Poker it is," he said, drawing a pack of cards out from his pocket.
Lina felt a tiny grin rising to her face and nodded at him. "You deal," she said sweetly.
- x – x – x -
Some time later, Sylphiel sat next to Lina, missing one bracelet and a slipper. Their two guards sat across from them, tears streaming down their faces and clad only in their loincloths and weapon belts. Their clothes lay in a neat pile next to the healer, who was busily folding the last pair of trousers they had just received.
Lina, however, was not feeling very smug as she studied their two jailors. Damn it, neither of them has a symbol anywhere that I can see! she thought with annoyance. "All that for nothing," she sighed as the two bandits gaped at her. "Oh, and royal flush, but… eh, keep your underwear on, please," she added, throwing her cards down before her.
The sound of the gate unlatching was heard, and Zangulus stormed in. He stopped when he saw his guards, who stood to attention and were doing their best to look serious despite the situation. "Just what is going on here?" he said dryly.
"Sir!" the two guards said, sweating. Zangulus studied his prisoners carefully. "You know, I was going to bring you to the boss," he said to Sylphiel. "But the big man's still unconscious, and I doubt you're responsible for this," he said, turning to Lina instead with a grin.
Lina felt a sweatdrop forming on her head. "Uh… care for a game of strip poker?" she asked him nervously.
Zangulus smirked. "Not me," he said, hauling Lina to her feet and leading her out of the room.
- x – x – x -
As they entered the crude "throne room" of the cavernous abode, Lina suppressed a shudder. Ugh… I don't want to see him naked! she thought to herself as she studied the leader of the Mountain Scorpions.
Dilgear was a big man, with wild green hair. While that in itself was not a problem, his hair didn't just end on top of his head. It burst out of his shirt collar and sleeves, and if Lina looked closely enough, she swore she could see some coming out of the top of his boots. Oh man, she thought to herself in disgust, he looks like an animal! Trying to quash her discomfort, she mumbled a mantra to herself repeatedly. "Must find the dragon. Must find the dragon. Must find the dragon…"
"What was that?" asked Zangulus, raising an eyebrow.
"Nothing," she said quickly, and cleared her throat. "So what do you want with me?" she called out to the huge man standing behind a large wooden desk.
"Why, isn't that obvious, my sweet—" he turned around and regarded her, and his smile dropped. "Zangulus, is this some kind of a joke?" he asked brusquely. "I thought you said she had legs up to her neck and a chest that—"
Lina felt her temper blow. "Screw the dragon! Are you calling me flat-chested, you big hairball?" she screamed at Dilgear. Zangulus gulped nervously and held Lina back as she squirmed in his grasp, muttering "Lemme at him!"
Dilgear frowned. "I see, this must be the other one," he said finally. "Why'd you bring me the kid?"
Zangulus cleared his throat, clamping a hand over Lina's mouth as her eyes widened and her struggles grew more violent. "Eh, well, boss, it seems she managed to beat Rodimus and Zolf at poker," he said. "I thought you might enjoy a match or two with her."
Dilgear's eyes glinted at the mention of the card game. "I see. You did well, Zangulus, leave her to me," he said with an evil grin, beckoning Lina toward the table.
Zangulus cut her bonds, and shoved her forward. Resisting the urge to throw a lariat at Dilgear, Lina opted instead to seat herself in the chair he proffered. Circling around the table, he seated himself and regarded her with a wolfish grin. Drawing a pack of cards from his pocket, he shuffled them professionally before her. Lina felt a competitive smile growing on her face. "Hmm, you just might be a worthy opponent," she told him, rubbing her hands together.
As Zangulus exited the room unnoticed by the two, he rolled his eyes. Shutting the door behind him, he shook his head in disbelief. "I can't believe what a gambling addict Dilgear is," he muttered to himself in disgust. "Things were so much better when the old boss was here…"
- x – x – x -
Back in the darkened chamber, Gourry finally shifted and groaned, coming back to consciousness. Sylphiel was at his side immediately, stroking his hair back with concern.
"Your majesty!" she whispered to him balefully. "I can't believe I allowed this to happen to you! Please forgive me!" she said, bowing and blushing deeply.
Gourry sat up and rubbed his head slowly. "Aww… it's okay, Sylphiel, I guess it's my fault," he said, rubbing his belly. "And I'm still hungry!" he whined as an afterthought. Looking around, he noticed they were alone, the two bandit guards having opted to spend their time outside of the prison, as "heavily dressed" as Lina had left them. "Sylph, where's Lina?" he asked.
Sylphiel sighed worriedly, putting a hand to her cheek. "A man named Zangulus took her away," she murmured. "Gourry, I think she might be in trouble. We have to get out of here and find her!"
Gourry nodded, and felt for his sword. "Heeey, they left me my lightsword!" he said gleefully, hefting the hilt up into the air. His face dropped when he saw it. "But they took away the blade!" he moaned, looking into the empty socket of the sword with disappointment. "The smith's gonna get mad at me for losing it again!"
"Gourry!" Sylphiel whispered, trying to hush him. "After they found out the blade was removable, Lina told them it was broken," she whispered.
Actually Lina had told them that Gourry was an idiot who as a child had been hit too hard on the head with the hilt of his toy sword, and that he had since developed a dependence on it like a security blanket. She had threatened that taking away the hilt would turn him into a whining baby that would be more difficult to manage than herself. Sylphiel, however, thought it best not to point this out to her beloved emperor.
"You can still use the sword without the blade," she whispered to him encouragingly. "Please call the light blade out and free us so we can help Lina, my lord!"
Gourry smiled at Sylphiel. "You're not just beautiful, you're smart too, Sylph!" he told her happily, and then lowered the hilt, missing Sylphiel's blush and swoon. "Hikari-O," he whispered to the sword quietly. A tiny wisp of light sputtered to life from the hilt, which he quickly used to free Sylphiel from her bonds. Standing up, he shook the sword out, the blade lengthening to its true form as he did so. Together, they crept towards the wooden door quietly. Motioning for Sylphiel to step behind him, he kicked the rickety door down with a crash.
The two guards spun around at the noise, their weapons drawn. Their jaws dropped as they saw Gourry standing there, holding the blazing sword of light before him.
"Hi guys!" Gourry said, waving. "Could you tell me where you took Lina?" he asked them. The two bandits stared for a moment, then took off down the hall at a dead run. "Gee, that was easy," he mumbled as he led Sylphiel out into the hallway.
- x – x – x -
Lina felt a trickle of sweat roll down her forehead as she tried to stare Dilgear down. He smiled at her, and she felt a sinking feeling in her stomach.
"You don't have anything," he guessed correctly, and threw his cards down.
Groaning, Lina lowered her hand, showing her cards. Dilgear was actually proving to be a good poker partner. She had managed to win more than a few hands, much to her dismay. This was because Dilgear was now wearing only his trousers, which gave her full visual access to the bulk of his body hair. She couldn't make out a character symbol anywhere on him, though in his state, she guessed they would need a razor and some shaving cream before anything could be certain.
"Well, take it off!" Dilgear growled at her, motioning at his winning hand triumphantly.
Lina sighed and gritted her teeth. "The things I do for Cephied," she muttered under her breath as she began to lift her shirt up.
At that moment, Gourry and Sylphiel burst into the room breathlessly.
"Hey, we found her! Why is Lina taking off her shirt?" were Gourry's first words.
Sylphiel, on the other hand, was frozen with shock. "You beast!" she finally managed, pointing a shaking finger at Dilgear. "We won't let you have your way with Lina, you horrible, horrible man! Gourry, get him!" she shrieked.
Lina leapt up from the table, suddenly glad for the intervention. "Great timing, you guys!" she yelled. "Yeah, this pervert here was going to force me to take off my shirt! Gourry, you really should beat him up!" she said, pointing.
Dilgear sputtered, his face turning purple as he stood up and slammed his hands on the tabletop, scattering the cards that lay there. "Hey, wait a second, I won fair and square! What are you saying, you little cheater?" he growled.
Sylphiel looked embarrassed and began to mutter an apology to Dilgear, making Lina's eye twitch. "Excuse me, Sylphiel, remember who's the bad guy here?" she yelled sarcastically, dodging the bandit leader's clumsy grab.
Gourry sprung to action, bringing his lightsword up towards Dilgear. Before he could connect, however, another sword swept away his own. Zangulus stood there, holding a long black sword with many magic runes inscribed upon it.
"Nice try, but you're going to have face me now," he told Gourry, stepping into a guard position. As the two swordsmen began to battle, another masked figure emerged from the small, almost unnoticeable side door in the room.
"Zangulus! You saved me. You'll be rewarded for this!" said Dilgear, backing away and drawing a huge metallic handle out from a box behind him.
"No," came a raspy voice from the mysterious figure as he dropped his mask. "He escorted me here so I could reclaim Vessegace," the man said, narrowing his golden eyes. "And my rightful position!" he added with a roar.
Lina watched in amazement, wondering what was going on. The masked man and Dilgear seemed to have forgotten completely about Lina's group as the two squared off.
Dilgear brought the long bladeless handle out before him with a smirk. "Not likely, Valgarv! Vessegace is mine, and I'm going to kill you this time!" The staff exploded into life, licking tendrils of flame shaping themselves into deadly blades at each end. Whirling it around his head, he grinned ferociously. "Bring it on!" he snarled, slashing the staff towards the aqua-haired stranger in a vicious arc.
Valgarv leapt out of the way with a growl, landing next to Lina. He grabbed her and shoved her before him like a living shield. "Use that weapon and you'll burn your precious treasure right up with me," he smirked.
Lina struggled against the man's iron grip. "Let me go!" she yelled, squirming. "I don't want a tan that badly!"
Dilgear laughed at them both, raising his flaming staff once more. "That prisoner means less to me than you, fool! Prepare to meet your death!"
Cursing, Valgarv threw Lina over his shoulder. With a quick motion, he threw what appeared to be slips of paper in Dilgear's direction. "Paper?" Lina screamed as she watched him, beating at his shoulder. "The guy is fighting us with fire, and you throw paper at him? Are you insane?"
Valgarv just growled and mumbled under his breath. Suddenly, the many slips of paper swirled around Dilgear, who dropped the staff and let out a blood curdling scream.
"Zangulus! Stop playing with your food and get over here!" Valgarv roared, sprinting towards the tiny exit.
Zangulus grunted in reply and pushed Gourry away, turning to follow Valgarv. "Gourry! Sylphiel!" Lina cried as she was spirited away.
Gourry tried to follow them, but the flames from Dilgear's attack began to rise higher, black smoke filling the cavern.
"Gourry! We can't follow that path, we must leave this place now!" Sylphiel shouted, grabbing his arm and dragging him out the opposite exit to the hall.
As the two made their exit, Dilgear finally managed to stand again, reaching for the now-lifeless staff before him. "Valgarv…" he said, coughing as he also fled from the raging fire. "I'll get you for this!"
- x – x – x -
"Hey! Oww! Put me down! Owwww! What's the big idea, kidnapping me anyway? OWW! And stop running so fast!" Once Valgarv and Zangulus had exited the tiny corridor in the mountain hideout, Lina yelled, struggled and squirmed for all she was worth against her captor. She was still slung over Valgarv's shoulder, and her stomach was getting sore from the jostling of his bony arm as he climbed down the path. "Can't you even talk?" she gasped as another jolt knocked her breath out once more.
Zangulus rolled his eyes. "You chose the wrong girl to steal, Valgarv," he said, pointing his thumb at Lina. "This one sings like a banshee," he laughed as Lina spouted some colorful insults in Zangulus' direction.
Valgarv's ears were throbbing in time with his headache. He ignored the both of them, continuing his fast pace down the mountainside and into the forest below. I failed to retrieve Vessegace and Dilgear is still alive. And all I have to show for it is this whining kid. Why did I kidnap this girl anyway? he was thinking to himself with a scowl. Lina gave him another kick and yell, as if to emphasize the question. He gave up trying to concentrate when she started to pull his hair, however.
"STOP THAT!" he roared.
Lina flinched, and fell silent. But only for a moment. "Well, you're the one who kidnapped me, you know!" she then said. "If you hadn't noticed, I was on my way to being rescued before you butted in. I didn't ask to come with you!" she added with a huff.
Zangulus grunted in assent behind Lina. "Yeah, why did you take her, boss?"
Valgarv felt his already black mood darkening. "That's none of your business," he grumbled.
Lina pulled at Valgarv's hair again, causing him to yell and throw her forward. She landed unceremoniously in a patch of undergrowth.
"I told you to stop that, girl!" he said, glowering at the redhead.
"First of all, my name is Lina, not 'girl.' And excuse me for stating the obvious, but I think Zangulus' question is very much my business!" she said, standing up with a wince and rubbing her bottom painfully. She crossed her arms in defiance and stared at the two rogue bandits. "So spit it out. If you wanted to kill me, you could have just left me in the fire."
Valgarv glared at Lina, annoyance seeming to visibly radiate from his tense form. "I like my girls fresh, not fried," he finally said.
Zangulus quirked an eyebrow and rubbed his chin. "Oh, I see, you just didn't want her to die back there, right? You always did have a soft spot for chicks, Val," he said to his friend with a grin.
"What?" said Lina in disbelief. "You're bandits! I thought you rape and pillage and murder for a living!" she said to them.
Zangulus waved a hand in Lina's direction. "That's a gross misperception propagated by our less professional peers, people like Dilgear. We actually only want money," he said with a grin. "The truth is Valgarv's a pretty nice guy once you get to know him. He likes reading and playing the lute a lot more than murder and pillaging, and he'd never mistreat a woman." he continued. "And you should see him make pottery—"
Valgarv's eyebrows lowered as he turned his deadly gaze onto Zangulus. "Thanks so much, my friend. Now just do me a favor and SHUT UP!" he growled. Turning back to Lina, he cleared his throat and tried to recover his bandit image. "Soft spot or not, if you don't shut up right now, I'll make you wish I'd left you to die in the fire!" he said to Lina ominously. Behind him, he heard Zangulus snicker.
Instead of cowering in fear, a sly smile spread across Lina's face. "You're talking to a master poker player here, buddy. I can see right through your bluff!" she said with a smirk.
Valgarv felt his eye twitch.
Recognizing the signs of imminent implosion, Lina worked quickly to sooth Valgarv's temper. "Well, don't worry about it, I won't give your secret away," she said quickly. "I still wouldn't want to mess with guys like you," she added. "But let's face it. I'd get lost if you left me out here alone right now." Clasping her hands together and making her eyes water, she sniffed tearfully for effect. "I might die horribly, alone and in the cold, an innocent young maiden left to the brutal ravages of the wilderness…" Zangulus rolled his eyes. "I promise not to try to escape. So why don't you just let me walk instead of carrying me? I'll stay out of your way," she added, smiling hopefully.
Valgarv rubbed his head. "With friends like these…" he muttered under his breath. "Fine, just don't bother me. That goes for both of you!" he said, glaring at Zangulus, as they set off into the forest once more.
- x – x – x -
Valgarv led their small group to his secret hideout. Lina sighed and paused as she studied the small hovel that he was calling home. "What is it with bandits and caves?" she said with exasperation. "Can't you guys live in an ordinary house for once?"
Valgarv growled. "In case you didn't notice, I'm not an upstanding citizen of the empire," he pointed out. "I also wasn't planning to spend very long here," he added, clenching his fist.
Zangulus seated himself on one of the many crates haphazardly lining the back of the cave and pulled a wineskin from one of them. After taking a long draught, he cleared his throat. "So what do we do now, boss? The last plan didn't work, and now that Dilgear knows my loyalties I won't be able to go back, either."
Valgarv didn't say anything, instead rummaging angrily through one of the other crates and pulling out a hunk of stale cheese. He tossed it at Lina. "Eat," he grunted, and then resumed his frustrated search through the supplies.
Lina turned the cheese over slowly in her hands, thinking quietly. One of them has to be the last Celestial Warrior, I just know it! But how to find out… is it really safe to just come out and ask them? They are still bandits, after all, even if they're being sort of nice to me.
Valgarv stopped his search, feeling eyes boring into the back of his head. He turned around and saw Lina staring at him. "What are you staring at?" he asked, squinting with annoyance.
"Ahh, uhm…" Lina twitched nervously, grasping for an idea. "Anyone up for a game of strip poker?" she finally managed pitifully.
Zangulus began to laugh loudly, leaning back on his crate. "Why do you want to get our clothes off so badly, Lina?" he asked her. "I understand if you have eccentric tastes, but neither of us are interested in gambling or seeing anything you have to offer!" He smirked as he stared openly at her chest, or more accurately, lack thereof.
Lina flushed. "Pervert! That's not it!" Sighing, she made the decision to tell them before further embarrassing herself. "I'm looking for someone with a symbol on their body. It should say 'dragon' in ancient script. I was told I'd find him somewhere here, in the Mountain Scorpion Bandit Clan." She sulked and crossed her arms over her chest. "Honestly, I've already seen more bandit flesh this evening than I ever wanted to in my lifetime! So please, just spare me the trouble and tell me if one of you has it."
Zangulus fell silent, while Valgarv regarded her with a quiet gaze. Finally, the latter spoke up. "Only the leader of the Mountain Scorpions has such a symbol on his body."
Lina dropped her head to her knees. "Ugh, you mean to tell me it was Dilgear after all?" She groaned. "I should have figured, with all that hair." Suddenly nervous, she studied the two men before her suspiciously. "Well, even if he is a major jerk, do you think you could… uhm… not kill him?" she asked. "I sort of need him alive. You can still incapacitate him if you want though," she quickly added. "You can even have that fire staff thing he was throwing around earlier!"
Valgarv glared at her angrily, an almost visible aura of malevolence rising around him. "Vessegace is mine!" he growled. "Dilgear stole it from me and used it to chase me out of the clan." Clenching his fist, he shook his head. "I will have it back. And I'll do whatever it takes to get it. Sorry, Lina, but I can't promise you he won't die. I can only promise that he will suffer!" he said with a cold smile.
Seeing Valgarv grow enraged made Lina reconsider her plans. I guess if I want to save Dilgear, I'm going to need Gourry and Sylphiel's help. Clearing her throat, she took a deep breath. "Well, alright. I understand your need for vengeance, and I won't get in your way. But it sounds like you're going to have to come up with a new plan to reach Dilgear, since the last one didn't exactly work."
Zangulus coughed noisily. "The plan didn't work because of you and your friends, Lina," he reminded her.
Lina glared at him angrily. "Hey! You guys were the ones who thought it would be a great idea to just sneak in and throw strips of paper at your enemies! Don't you see a little flaw in THAT brilliant idea?" she spat back.
"H-hey!" interrupted Valgarv with a sweatdrop. "Those aren't just strips of paper, you little fool!" he said, drawing out the stack of tiny papers from the pocket of his pants.
Zangulus nodded in agreement. "Yeah, they're the boss's secret weapon, the Attack of the Paper Cuts!" he explained.
Lina stared at them incredulously. "Paper cuts? You've got to be kidding me," she said dryly.
"No, I bought them for the boss myself!" said Zangulus, with a look of utter seriousness. "I think they're a great weapon! They surround your enemy and use the worst possible attack you can imagine against him."
"I can imagine a lot worse injuries than a paper cut," Lina said with a smirk.
Valgarv returned her smirk. "Oh really?" he said, hefting one of the papers and flinging it at her.
Lina watched as the paper flew at her with a life of its own. Suddenly, it slashed viciously at her. "OWW! Damnit, that hurts!" she screamed furiously, tearing the paper out of the air and crumpling it as a tiny bead of blood appeared on her fingertip. She stuck it into her mouth and began to suck as she glared at Valgarv. "What's the big idea?" she managed to mumble out at him angrily.
Valgarv just shrugged at her, an amused smile lightening the severity of his features. Unfortunately Lina couldn't appreciate it, since she happened to be the butt of his personal joke. "See?" he said simply.
"Gimmie those! I'll show you a paper cut!" Lina yelled as she leapt up and snatched them out of his hand. "Now how do you use these things," she said, holding one up to the torchlight. Her brows furrowed as she studied one of the small strips of paper before her. "Hey, why is there a picture of a knife drawn all over this one?" she asked suddenly. "It looks like someone drew these on recently," she added, smudging the ink with her finger.
Valgarv attempted to grab the papers back out of Lina's hands, but she danced away quickly. Sighing, he crossed his arms. "The magic works by turning your desire into reality. You draw what you desire on the paper, and when you throw it at your enemy, your desire becomes reality." He ran a hand through his hair. "Truthfully? You're right, paper cuts are a stupid attack. But that's what I got."
Lina nodded slowly. "Well, at least they did seem to work somehow against Dilgear last time, so they're not a total dud," she said comfortingly. Then a sudden glint came into her eye. "So you write your heart's desire on these, and then when you throw them you get it?" she asked carefully.
Valgarv nodded slightly.
A wide grin spread across her face, and reaching into her pocket, she drew out a pen. "Great! I want to try a few!" she yelled happily as she gleefully scurried over to an empty crate in the back of the room.
Zangulus sweatdropped. "Uh, Lina, those belong to Valgarv," he said as he watched his friend chase the girl around the cave.
"Give those back!" Finally Valgarv managed to wrestle Lina to the ground and reclaim his Paper Cuts. Quite a few of them had been ripped in the struggle, however, and he quickly pocketed the surviving remainders as he sat back and glared at Lina. "You really are more trouble than you're worth, you little twit," he said.
Lina laughed nervously and rubbed the back of her head. "Sorry," she apologized to him. "Sometimes I get carried away when I see something I want. But I'll make it up to you. Those papers weren't really the weapons you were looking for to storm the bandit hideout anyway, were they?" Noticing their silence, she deduced that she had guessed correctly. "Zangulus, you fought Gourry earlier. You saw what he could do. Gourry's my protector. If I ask him, I'm sure he'll help you out. All we've got to do is find him."
Zangulus nodded in agreement, looking at Valgarv. "Her friend is quite skilled with his magic blade. Boss, I think he can be a real asset against Dilgear," he told his aqua-haired companion.
Lina broke in to the conversation. "Listen, they'll probably be looking for me near the hideout still. So why don't we just go back and find them? We can make a plan to storm the hideout after we've regrouped," she said.
Valgarv rubbed his chin, regarding the two before him. Finally, he gave a resigned sigh. "Hmm, okay. It doesn't seem like we have a better plan at the moment. Hurry up and finish eating," he grumbled, standing up and packing his things together.
- x – x – x -
Sylphiel and Gourry crouched in the bushes outside of the Mountain Scorpions' hideout, where they had narrowly managed to escape from the fires. The remaining bandits were camped out a short distance from the cave front, covered with black soot and looking dirtier than usual. Dilgear was among them, roaring commands.
"I really hope she's not hurt," whispered Sylphiel with worry.
Gourry nodded his head slightly, studying the encampment below. "What should we do, Sylph?" he asked her, fingering the hilt of his sword.
"A plan?" Sylphiel blushed and twisted her hands in her robes nervously. "I'm not very good at planning battles," she began uncertainly. Gourry smiled at her, patting her on the arm comfortingly. Sylphiel thought she might melt under the weight of his bright blue gaze.
"Aww, it's alright, Sylph, don't feel bad," he said to her gently. "I'm no good with plans either."
Sylphiel's heart fluttered wildly in her chest, as she stared at the object of her affection dreamily. Rays of light sparkled over his head, and distantly she thought she heard a chorus of angels singing.
"I guess I'll just ask that Dilgear person who those other guys who stole Lina were."
Gourry didn't look any less handsome in Sylphiel's eyes, but the light faded and the angels coughed and sputtered into silence. "Your majesty, are you sure that's wise?" she whispered anxiously, holding him back.
"Of course it's not wise! It sounds just like the sort of hare-brained plan Gourry would come up with though. Sheesh, what would you guys do without me?" Gourry and Sylphiel whirled around at the sound of Lina's voice. She was already leaping forward, clamping a firm hand over Gourry's mouth while motioning Sylphiel to silence. "Shh, I'm glad to see you too! Those other two guys you saw earlier saved me!" Releasing Gourry, she leaned back on her heels and grinned at them.
"So they helped you, Lina? Is one of them—" Sylphiel asked hopefully.
Lina shook her head sadly. "No… they're good guys, but neither of them is the last Celestial Warrior," she whispered back. "In fact, Valgarv, that's the light-haired one, he told me that Dilgear has the symbol. I just couldn't find it under all that hair!"
Sylphiel nodded, but then bit her lip nervously. "But Lina," she whispered. "They just let you go, without asking you for anything?"
Lina smiled nervously and rubbed the back of her head. "Well, guys, that's the thing. I sort of promised to lend them Gourry's sword arm so they could take over the Mountain Scorpions again. But we have to get to Dilgear first, or Valgarv and Zangulus might kill him!"
Gourry, who had spent most of the time looking perplexed, brightened as he heard his name mentioned. "Ok, Lina, so you want me to go in and get Dilgear. That sounds a lot like my plan after all!"
Lina sweatdropped. "Gourry, you idiot! Weren't you listening? We have to meet up with Valgarv and Zangulus before we do anything!" She thumbed a finger in the direction of the bushes behind her, but Gourry was already raising the hilt of his sword.
"But if they want to kill Dilgear, then I should get to him first. Don't worry, Lina, I'm not hungry this time!" He grinned and waved, and leapt to his feet.
Lina groaned and covered her eyes with her hand, hearing him bellow "HIKARI-O!" as he charged out of the undergrowth at the surprised bandits. Her headache compounded as Sylphiel leapt out of the bushes behind him, crying out "Gourry, wait! We're not supposed to charge yet—oops!"
"You again!" Dilgear didn't waste any time, drawing forth Vessegace and sending the flames shooting towards them. Lina grabbed Sylphiel, rolling out of the path of his attack, as the few bandits who had not already been scattered by Gourry leapt away from the uncontrolled infernos lit by the flaming staff. "No more tricks, girl, this time you and your friends die!" he snarled at them.
Gourry twisted and spun gracefully, avoiding another burst of flame Dilgear sent towards his path. "Hey, can't we talk about this?" he shouted, bringing his sword down towards the hairy man.
Dilgear blocked the attack with the handle of the staff, which surprisingly didn't split apart under the light sword's crackling white energy. "That's an interesting sword you have there," he grunted as he shoved Gourry away. "I think I'll add it to my collection when I'm done with you!"
Gourry scowled, gripping the hilt tightly. "The light sword belongs to the royal family! You'll never get it!" he said, flushing.
"Gourry, you idiot!" Lina yelled furiously, but Dilgear's laughter cut her off.
"That sword… wielded by a blonde fool… you're the Emperor, aren't you?" he exclaimed, twirling the staff around menacingly. "That's going to make your death that much more enjoyable," he grinned. "Try blocking fire with that blade of yours, 'Your Majesty!'" Dilgear laughed, sending a searing blast towards Gourry.
The blonde swordsman actually did try to catch the fire with the light blade, and for a moment it seemed as though it might work. The roar of the flames and the white energy of the blade crackled and pulsed for some minutes, as if one might absorb the other. But then, with a blast, the energies violently split, sending Gourry flying into a tree. Sylphiel let out a scream and rushed towards the fallen warrior, as Lina stood up and faced Dilgear alone.
Not good… this is not good at all! she thought nervously.
- x – x – x -
Zangulus eyed the battle from the treetop incredulously. "I can't believe he actually thought he could parry a blast of fire with a sword," he mumbled as Gourry was thrown into the forest below them.
Valgarv watched intently. "Don't be a fool, Zangulus, he almost managed it," he rumbled. "But Vessegace wasn't meant to be used so crudely," he bit out, glaring at Dilgear. He saw Lina get up, facing down the hairy leader of the bandits alone.
"Looks like the chick's going to turn into a roast soon," noted Zangulus. He started as and looked in surprise as Valgarv stood from the branch. "Boss?"
"I'm going for Vessegace. If she gets in my way, that's her problem!" he growled, leaping from the tree.
- x – x – x -
Lina backed away from Dilgear rapidly, adrenaline pumping through her veins. I've got to get out of his line of fire! she thought to herself. A distracting cry from behind her broke her concentration.
"Dilgear! You've borrowed that for long enough!" Valgarv's roar came from above her as he landed at a run, racing towards Dilgear. His speed was incredible, and Lina barely had time to roll out of the way as Valgarv sent his Paper Cuts flying towards Dilgear's surprised form.
"Ahh! Not again!" the hairy bandit yelled, raising the staff in front of him and squeezing his eyes shut painfully. There was a popping sound, and then something sticky oozed down his face. Carefully, Dilgear opened an eye and licked at his nose. "Whipped cream?" he said with a note of disbelief.
Valgarv also stood there, eyes wide. Lifting the few remaining Paper Cuts to his face, he studied the pictures drawn on them. Then he turned to Lina, his eyes thin slits. "What did you do…" he growled ominously at her.
Lina laughed nervously and scrabbled backwards. "Well, you see, I was hungry, and nobody seems to know the recipe for chocolate eclairs here…" she began nervously, glancing behind her back. "Uh, Sylph? Gourry? I could use some help here!" she yelled as Valgarv roared in frustration at her.
Dilgear, who hadn't managed to fully wipe the remaining pastry from his hairy beard and bushy eyebrows, brought the flaming staff before him once more. "That was your last mistake, Valgarv!" he thundered as the flames blasted out of each end of the handle.
"Damn!" yelled Valgarv, already moving and throwing the last of Lina's Paper Duds at Dilgear as he searched for a weapon.
Dilgear roared, bringing the staff down and incinerating the pastries that popped forth before they could land on him again. "You're not getting away!" he yelled, raising the staff above his head and aiming it at Valgarv's retreating figure.
"Leave him alone, you big hairy idiot!"
As Dilgear tried to bring the staff forward, a weight held his sweeping blast back. Turning, he saw that Lina had approached him and grabbed the handle of the staff. He glared at the petite redhead in annoyance, and with a mighty swing, sent her flying to the ground. "You're a terrible poker player, girl! It's because you don't know how to quit when you're ahead!" he said, pointing the flaming staff at her. "Do you think that coward Valgarv or that idiot Emperor of yours can save you now?" he laughed, raising the staff threateningly once more.
Lina's eyes widened as the arc of Dilgear's deadly weapon was suddenly held in check. "No, but maybe an angry boyfriend could," came a soft voice.
"What?" Dilgear said, twisting again as his staff was held back. All that he managed to glimpse this time was a flash of beige and a blue fist before stars danced around his head.
"Zelgadis!" Lina cried, her breath catching in her throat as the chimera stood in front of her protectively, the symbol blazing from his forehead. "You came back!" she said, feeling tears forming in her eyes.
He turned around and spared her only a brief glance, smiling slightly as he did so. "I'll always protect you, Lina," he told her, and then sprung at Dilgear once more.
- x – x – x -
Gourry managed to stumble out of the forest, leaning heavily on Sylphiel and Zangulus, who had descended to help the two. As they emerged from the undergrowth, they saw Valgarv standing there, watching the battle before him with interest.
"Hey, boss, what's going on?" came Zangulus' voice.
"I don't know," answered Valgarv truthfully. "That blue man just came out of nowhere and picked a fight with Dilgear. It looks like he's winning, too," he said, his eyes following the movements of the combatants.
"Blue man?" Sylphiel said breathlessly, dragging Gourry forward quickly. "It is!" she exclaimed, her eyes widening. "Gourry, it's Zelgadis! He saved Lina!"
The group looked on, as the chimera knocked the flaming staff out of Dilgear's hands brusquely, clearly outmatching his opponent. Leaping forward, he landed yet another punch in Dilgear's stomach, and then reaching for the bandit's head, twisted violently. There was a sickening snap, and Dilgear's body dropped to the ground limply. Zelgadis stepped back, looking down at the corpse briefly, and then turned to Lina.
"Zel! You didn't have to kill him!" Lina gasped, shocked. She stood shakily, and ran towards him. "But I'm so glad you're back!" she cried, reaching for him. "I'm ready… I'm ready to finish our conversation now," she told him anxiously. "Just don't leave again, okay? Promise me you won't leave!" As her arms closed around him, though, all she met was air. "Zel?" she asked, fear rising in her throat.
But he continued to smile slightly, staring right through her, as his image flickered and wavered. Finally, in a gust of wind, he disappeared completely, leaving only a torn scrap of white that floated to the ground at Lina's feet.
"Zel," she choked, falling to her knees as she recognized the crude sketch of his face she had drawn on the magic paper.
- x – x – x -
Lina, Gourry and Sylphiel had packed up, and were preparing to leave the Mountain Scorpion hideout. After Dilgear's death, Valgarv had reclaimed both the magic staff and control of the bandit company, naturally appointing Zangulus as the second in command once more. That Lina had risked her life to save him, and also that Gourry had promised to make his bandit troupe an empire sanctioned organization contributed greatly to the hospitality he offered the Celestial party afterwards.
Despite this, however, Lina was still in a foul mood as they set off the next morning. "No final Celestial Warrior, no Zelgadis, and no clue where to go from here!" she growled as they made their way down the rocky mountain path back towards the capital.
Wisely, Sylphiel and Gourry remained quiet during her ranting, each having tried to soothe Lina's foul mood earlier. "Let's just concentrate on reaching the next village," Sylphiel murmured. "We can try to contact Zelgadis when we're finished with this journey," she said comfortingly.
"Fine, whatever," Lina snapped back, her expression stormy. "The sooner we get to the next village, the better. I'm starving and my butt STILL hurts!" she said, glaring at her horse.
Lina's argumentative voice carried over the distance as Valgarv and Zangulus watched them disappear around a bend in the path. "Hey, boss, I know you wanted Dilgear dead, but are you sure about this?" the dark-haired swordsman asked his friend.
Valgarv glared after Lina's party sullenly. "You talk too much," he finally grumbled, and turned back towards the ruined hideout.
- x – x – x -
As the three companions approached the outskirts of a tiny farming village, Lina was still complaining, though not as vehemently as she had that morning.
"I can't believe we didn't manage to get him!" she said angrily. "I mean, he was a jerk, but now he's a dead jerk! We can't use dead jerks to summon Cephied!"
"Lina, please," Sylphiel said, lines of strain showing on her usually-patient face. "Complaining won't get us anywhere. Isn't that right, Gourry?" Seeing the placid emperor's face, Sylphiel suddenly felt ashamed. Here I am getting edgy with Lina, and Gourry isn't bothered at all by it. He's such a true example of a Celestial Warrior! she thought. "Gourry?" she asked again gently.
Gourry half-turned in the seat of his horse, and saw Sylphiel's questioning expression. Reaching up, he pulled two tiny wads of padding out of his ears. "Uh, what did you say, Sylph?" he asked her cluelessly.
Sylphiel facefaulted and sighed. "Umm, Lina was just mentioning how tired she was, and that perhaps we should stop here."
Gourry brightened. "Oh, you mean she finally stopped complaining? Great, let's have lunch!"
That was the day Lina discovered that she didn't need help to dismount her horse as she drop-kicked Gourry into the mud.
