Disclaimer: This fiction is rife with plagiarism and copyright violations from the officially published works of "The Slayers" and "Fushigi Yugi." In fact it might even have writing errors in it. Since I'm not making a profit out of it, just deal with it.
Chapter 11: New BeginningThere once lived a girl by the name of Lina Inverse. She was a quite ordinary girl… well, no, actually, she was as normal as a pink tutu-wearing rhinoceros tap dancing at the Ice Capades. For this girl had an explosive temper, an inhuman appetite, and a brash attitude. Despite her strange nature, the girl did manage to make a few friends, namely, one Amelia Wil Tesla. The two girls were as different as night and day; where Lina was loud, fiery and impulsive, Amelia was quiet, cautious and patient. Despite this, the two girls were the best of friends, and thought of themselves as inseparable.
They might have continued in their touching, if strange friendship, if not for the book that Lina discovered in the Special Collections room of the library one day as they studied together. For this book was magic, and it drew both her and her friend into its pages to become parts of the legend it told. And whether through fate or circumstance, it so happened that Lina was fortunate to discover friendship and love within the pages of the book, while Amelia found only pain and hardship.
Inevitably, when the two girls met once more, misunderstanding led to conflict, and where there had once been friendship now stood a bitter enmity in its place. Or so at least one of them thought, as they each raced to fulfill their roles within the book's legend, as priestesses of the mighty Beast Gods of ancient lore.
The struggles of the two girls did not go unnoticed by the world outside, as their two siblings managed to come into possession of the cursed book which held the girls captive. And so we come to our story thus far ….
- x – x – x -
It was a peaceful Friday evening. On a normal day, Professor Inverse, a single parent who worked hard to support his two children, would still be in the office at the university, pulling extra hours to cover the mountain of bills their family always seemed to pile up. This was probably because the entire family was notorious for their eating habits, which happened to take up a much larger percentage of their budget than a normal household. Fortunately, this situation was somewhat alleviated by Lina's older sister, Luna, who took to working odd jobs in cafes and restaurants. While this did allow her to bring extra food to the table quite regularly, it also meant that she would return to the house very late, sometimes as late as Lina's father. This small obstacle, however, didn't prevent Luna from trying to teach her wayward sister the value of "tough love" in place of the mother which Lina never had. Lina herself had never been highly appreciative of her sister's method of expression family love, however, and usually sought to be absent, either reading in her room or more favourably, out in the city with her friend Amelia, rather than at home when her sister arrived.
So it was not unusual when the door to the house opened, revealing an empty, darkened living room. What was unusual, however, was Luna's companion. Luna appreciated discipline, studiousness, and hard work, values she tried to express in both her behaviour and appearance. Gracia, the older girl accompanying her, could only be described as her polar opposite. Gracia was tall, beautiful, shapely and knew it. She lived a wild life, discarding her own name in favour of the more exotic sound of "Naga," preferring parties to studies, and clothes that showed off as many of her assets as often as possible. Unfortunately, she was also known as being extremely scatterbrained, and spent so much time on her appearance and frivolous pastimes that she hadn't actually made it into a real college. To the Inverse family, Gracia was generally seen as an annoyance and embarrassment, and even her own sister, Amelia, was reluctant to admit a family relation when pressed on the matter.
Despite the vast differences between the them, tonight was not a usual one. And the two women had found, in an extremely short time, that they in fact did have one trait in common, binding them together in an odd, quick friendship of a sorts. And that was the mutual concern for their wayward sisters.
"Don't worry, no one will be home for a while," said Luna, striding into the living room quickly and flipping on the lights. "We have to learn everything we can about this book, and right now," she said to Gracia. She dropped her bag and immediately moved to the computer, switching it on and seating herself in front of the sickly blue glow of the monitor.
Gracia, for her part, was still glued to the book and would occasionally lift her head to report on the progress of the two girls. She barely even registered Luna's comment before burying her nose back within its pages. "What're you doing?" she asked absently, flipping another page.
"The one called Sylphiel mentioned something about two other Priestesses having done it before," Luna called out, her fingers rapidly tapping across the keyboard. "What were their names again?"
Flipping back a few pages, Gracia squinted at the book. "Here. Dark Star, and Vorfeed. But what are you trying to find? These names only mean something in this book's story. You won't find anything on the Internet about them."
Luna rolled her eyes, not that anyone would have noticed since her bangs were as bushy as ever. "Naga, don't be stupid. If two other girls got sucked into the book before our sisters, there must be a record about it somewhere. Nothing can escape the power of Google." As she clicked on her mouse, her face dropped into a scowl. "Dark Star and Vorfeed?"
Gracia moved to the computer and bent over, examining the monitor over Luna's shoulder. "Free Sex. Hot sex. Gay lesbian sex. Pintucket's fifth annual dog training competition. Butt sex," she read out loud. "Are you sure you typed in their names correctly?" she asked after a moment.
Luna felt her eyebrow twitch and then set her fingers in motion once more. This time the results slightly more favourable.
"Greatest Anime Hits… Fanfiction… Local Man Murders Own Daughter… World's Largest Midi Collection…" read Gracia. "How is this going to help us?"
Luna turned slightly in her seat and gave her buxom companion an annoyed glare. "Why don't you go back to the couch and read the book before you regret it," she growled lowly. As Gracia shrugged and left, she turned her attention back to the monitor. Her eyebrows furrowed as she clicked on the murder story and skimmed through the article. "Naga," she said finally, after searching through a few more records. "You'd better see this."
- x – x – x -
"So tell me again why we're visiting a graveyard in the middle of the night!" Gracia hissed loudly while clutching Luna's arm tightly. The two girls were making their way through an eerie, dark graveyard that was cloaked in shadows, armed only with the magic book and a lonely flashlight. Gracia was more than a little jumpy; she had always been a sucker for ghost stories, and the book she was holding was doing an excellent job of teaching her that sometimes incredible stories were more than just fiction.
"We're here because you showed me that book, Naga. Now let go of me before I hurt you." Luna on the other hand was the picture of calm annoyance, ever unruffled. Her hand was forming into a fist, however, as if it was about to prove that she really was related to Lina in a most painful way.
The other girl released her with a reluctant expression, her eyes still darting fearfully around the gravestones. "Who are we looking for again?" she asked loudly, trying to keep the quiver out of her voice.
"Laia Einberg," Luna replied, turning the flashlight to another signpost. "Here. It should be in this section somewhere," she added, stepping between the graves. Gracia let out a tiny squeak, her fear of being left alone in the dark finally overriding her reluctance to walk into the midst of the many tightly-spaced tombstones.
"Here," Luna said finally, kneeling in front of one of the graves. "Laia Einberg, beloved daughter of Garia Einberg," she read out loud. "Hardly true. The man killed her, I can't believe they still wrote that on her grave."
Gracia was, as usual, not listening, convinced she had heard the rustling of the undead right next to them. "Great, great, we found her grave, now let's go…" she said nervously, stepping backwards. A small lump met her foot, and she went sprawling backwards, screaming at the top of her lungs. She felt a pair of hands grip her arms tightly and she opened her mouth to scream even louder, sure that she was trapped in the grip of horrible, ugly zombies—
-SLAP-
"Oww!" the purple-haired girl suddenly exclaimed, holding her stinging cheek. Luna stood above her, looking annoyed.
"You were talking out loud, idiot," said Luna, glowering. "There aren't any zombies here, you fell over another grave!" She pointed her flashlight at the stony lump Naga had tripped over, an irregular strip of grey marking the point where Gracia's heel had scraped the moss away from the stone. Suddenly leaned forward eagerly. "Wait a minute." Kneeling by the lump, Luna scraped off the remaining moss, a grim smile spreading over her face as she did so. "Naga, you're a genius."
Years of ingrained practice kicked in over fear, and Gracia sat up, her thundering laughter echoing over the gravestones proudly. "Of course, you finally realized it!" she crowed before being silenced by another slap. "OWW!" she yelled, cupping her other cheek.
"This is why I don't give compliments," Luna mumbled to herself with irritation. "Look, you found Garia's gravestone, Naga. No one mentioned he was buried here too," she said, studying the stone carefully.
Ignoring the painful tingling in her cheeks, Gracia moved to Luna's side and looked at the stone. "Did you find anything?"
Luna nodded, sitting back among the stones. "Maybe… Garia and Laia lived in this area almost 50 years ago," she said, pointing at the dates on the grave. "The story said that he was a librarian who worked in the Special Collections department. He was a normal guy… a bookworm and archaeology freak, he was always pushing to expand the University's rare book collection. Then one day he reported that his daughter was kidnapped. Three days later, the police found him gibbering over her body. He had killed her with his bare hands in their own house; no mention of where she had gone, how she got back, or why he suddenly snapped like that," she added.
Gracia had paled once more as Luna related the tale, the rustles in the darkness around them suddenly growing loud and oppressive. "Luna…" she whispered, her voice a terrified squeak.
"There's more. Look, on his gravestone…" Luna continued obliviously. "A strange inscription. 'I have no excuses for what I did, but I couldn't let that monster take my daughter. May whatever gods that exist forgive my damned soul.' It must have something to do with the book. Do you think he meant Vorfeed?"
"Luna!" said Gracia again, her eyes growing wider. "Did you hear that?"
Sighing, Luna turned to the older girl, veins popping. "Naga, for the last time. Get a hold of yourself! There is NOTHING out there!"
"You two shouldn't be here!" rose an angry, disembodied voice out of the darkness.
This time, both girls let out an ear-piercing shriek.
- x – x – x -
Inside of the book, time had not stopped either, and the Celestial Warriors of Cephied found themselves preparing for another long journey at the urging of Filia's tea. All of them, that is, except for Gourry, who once more was being held back (literally) by his advisors.
"But I wanna go!" the hapless emperor whined from his throne, where his loyal subjects had finally resorted to using rope to prevent him from sneaking away with the rest of the group. Since Xellos' trick, the blond had been assigned a special advisor whose sole task was simply to watch and make sure Gourry didn't leave his sight.
Lina smiled apologetically, ruffling Gourry's long blond hair. This was not only a gesture of affection, but also a chance to ensure that the many braids and pink ribbons she had been working into the golden strands for the past hour stood out at odd angles around his head. The young emperor struggled even more vigorously against his bonds as she did this.
"Why do I always have to stay behind?" he said, his puppy-dog eyes watering as she prepared to leave.
"Because you have a country to run, you big lug," Lina answered for him, giving his hair a final twist before stepping down and smiling at him. "But I'm gonna miss you. We all will," she told him.
Gourry fell silent for a moment, and then tossed a head at his advisor, who knelt at his side. "Hey, can you give her my sword?" he told his aide, whose eyes immediately bulged. Lina was still faster.
"WHAT? Are you crazy? I can't even get your light blade to come out!" she yelled at him.
"Well, if I can't protect you, it's the next best thing," Gourry told her reasonably. "Besides, you'll bring it back, right?"
There was a pregnant pause as Lina eyed the sword. "Uh… well, how do you use it?" she said finally.
"It's easy, just imagine the blade forming and say 'Hikari-O!' … it means 'Light!'" he told her. Then, a little more worriedly, "You'll bring it back, right, Lina?"
Lina was eyeing the sword with a speculative, almost greedy look. "What? Oh! Uh… yeah, Gourry, I'll keep it safe for you!" she said with an eager smile. "Oh, well, look at the time! Gotta go!" She threw the sword over her back and gave Gourry a tight hug before running out of the throne room, leaving him struggling helplessly against the rope.
"Lina! Aren't you gonna bring it back?" he called after her.
- x – x – x -
Salty sea air filled Lina's nostrils as she inhaled deeply. The small ship that Gourry had provided them with had already been underway for almost two days. The group of Celestial Warriors had chosen to set sail for the neighbouring kingdom of Kataart, where the first artefact was rumoured to be held. The onset of the journey had been quite exciting, as Lina had never before been to sea. It didn't take long, however, before the looming skyline and miles of ocean surrounding them became more tedious than interesting to the young girl. Leaning on the railing, she rested her chin on her fist and stared at the horizon listlessly. "I'm so bored!" she groaned to her companions once more.
"If you're that bored, find something to do with yourself," Valgarv called out to her irritably, flicking at his line. The aqua-haired bandit had taken to amusing himself by attempting to fish while hanging precariously from the railing of the ship. "Why don't you go bother your boyfriend instead of whining to us?" he added, grinning slightly.
This made Lina lose her grip on the railing and blush. "He's not my boyfriend!" she yelled defensively.
"Soulmate. Meatpuppet. Whatever!" Valgarv groaned, rolling his eyes. "Just go below deck and complain to him. You've been telling us how you feel for the past couple of hours. Some of us are trying to enjoy ourselves!"
"Sylphiel…" Lina began, counting on the only other female on board for support.
The woman in question managed to avoid her gaze, mumbling politely instead. "Well, maybe you should go check on Zelgadis, Lina. You know this voyage can't be easy on him."
Lina's eye twitched. The polite demeanor of the healer might have been able to fool anyone else, but the girls had come to know each other quite well. "I'm not really that bad, am I?" she grumbled ominously.
Xellos popped up beside her and wagged his finger chidingly at the other warriors. "Now now, Lina dear, don't listen to these other people. I find your company to be quite charming at the moment!" he told her with a smile.
Lina groaned and dropped her face into her hands. "It IS that bad! Alright, alright, I'm going below deck. Sheesh!" Shoving a protesting Xellos out of her way, Lina stomped to the cabins below.
"Zel? Zel, are you in here?" she called out, her eyes taking a moment to adjust to the darkness. Opening one of the doors, she immediately quieted down as she saw his still form on the bed. The chimera was sound asleep, his face pressed against the pillow and snoring softly. She smiled, glad that Zelgadis had finally managed to get some rest.
It wasn't that Zelgadis was prone to seasickness; he was however understandably nervous being stuck on the ocean miles away from shore. With his heavy stone body, there was no doubt of what would happen if he fell overboard. While the others had for the most part tried to appease his fears, Xellos' suggestion of using Zelgadis as an anchor, complete with conjured rope, had not sat well with the chimera. While the others had been enjoying (or suffering, depending on how one reacted to Lina's complaints) the journey above deck, Zelgadis had all but sealed himself in his room, swearing to remain there for the duration of the journey, or at least until Xellos was no longer on board.
Lina approached his bed carefully and seated herself on the edge, brushing a few strands of lavender wire away from his face. A smile touched her lips as he twitched slightly in his sleep. "You're a big baby," she whispered to him amusedly. "Thank you for coming with us, though… and for everything," she continued, moving to brush another strand of his strange hair away.
Zelgadis grunted and rolled, catching Lina in his arms and sending her flying face-first onto the bed. "OUCH!" she yelled, as her cheek made painful contact with his stony chest. "What's the big idea, you idiot, that hurt!" she hissed, struggling in his arms. A loud snore met her ears, and then Lina realized that Zelgadis hadn't even woken up. "Great," she muttered, carefully trying to extract herself from his grip. This only caused a mumble of discontent as his arms tightened around her. Finally she gave up with a sigh. "You're not going to let go of me, are you? Might as well enjoy it," she said, trying to make herself more comfortable.
As she listened to the rhythmic breathing of the sleeping warrior, Lina took the opportunity to study his rocky skin. It hurt when I fell against him. Being made completely of stone… it must have been difficult for him, growing up so different from everybody else. Sighing, she reached up and stroked his arm gently. Strange… I feel rough stone, but he's so warm. I didn't think he'd be warm. Not really like stone at all, she thought, blushing slightly. "It's a good thing Luna can't see us," she mumbled nervously. Still, as comfortable as it was for the sleeping Zelgadis to have something to cuddle, Lina was beginning to lose feeling in her fingers. "Zel," she tried again.
The chimera mumbled and attempted to roll over, causing Lina to grunt in pain.
"Zel!" she said once more, louder this time.
Zelgadis started to drool on her.
Lina's eyebrow twitched. "Zelgadis… I'm going to count to three, and then I want you to GET UP OR I WILL HURT YOU!" she screamed into his ear.
Zelgadis shout out of the bed, his eyes wide and glancing around for attackers. "It wasn't me, I swear, Lina!" he said reflexively before focusing on their surroundings. Then he groaned and rubbed his face as she smirked at him.
"I knew you could do it before I got to three! Good morning, Zel," she chirped at him with a broad smile.
Zelgadis just eyed her warily, then ran a hand over his face. "What are you doing down here Lina? I thought you wanted to stay above deck with the others."
Lina shrugged and leaned into his shoulder. "I wanted to check on you," she told him. "I didn't know you were going to maul me, though," she grinned, poking at his side.
Zelgadis flushed and muttered under his breath. "Sorry about that. I hope I didn't hurt you." He looked away and moved to stand up.
Lina scowled and grabbed onto the chimera's arm, forcing him to sit next to her. "Oh, here we go again, huh?" she said sourly, glaring at Zelgadis, who looked surprised. "Don't give me that look. I know what you're thinking. I'm such a stony freak, she'll never like me now that I grabbed her like that, blah, blah, blah!" she scoffed. "Well guess what, buddy, I'm probably going to have a swollen cheek from hitting your chest tomorrow morning and I'm still sitting here attached to your arm like a lovesick mosquito. I told you how I felt, Zel. That won't change." She blushed slightly as she finished, but held his gaze as firmly as she held his arm, forcibly dispelling any of his doubts.
A small smile broke across Zelgadis' face as he regarded the petite redhead. "Thanks, Lina." The smile widened into a mischievous grin as he leaned forward slightly. "Maybe you could remind me about your feelings in another way?"
Lina's face turned a brighter shade of red as his face came closer to her. Though the excitement and giddiness of being so close to Zelgadis washed through her, she couldn't shake an ominous feeling of foreboding when he moved to kiss her. It's a really good thing Luna can't see us, she thought nervously.
- x – x – x -
"I'm going to kill her," Luna said in a deadly voice as she scanned the passage. "She's too young to have a boyfriend. How old is this Zelgadis guy anyway? Forget that, I'm going to kill him first." The popping sound of Luna's knuckles cracking filled the room as she flipped to the next page in the book.
Gracia watched the fuming girl nervously. "Well, you know Luna, Zelgadis did save Lina's life a couple of times already," she coughed.
"I'll be merciful and make it quick, then," was Luna's deadpan reply, causing Gracia to sweatdrop and return to her conversation with the old man sitting next to her.
"Look, Mr. Diol, we're really sorry that you found us in the cemetery so late at night, but this was a matter of life or death!" she told him earnestly.
"If you're rootin' through the graveyard, it usually is a matter o' death," the old man answered irritably. "How you explain t'me what you were doin' there will determine whose. You girls are lucky it was my shift," he told them. "Another feller might have just called the police. Now, care to tell me what you girls were doin' so late at night in my cemetery? You don't look like vandals." He gave Gracia another appraising look. "Well, not both of you at least."
Gracia laughed nervously and shook Luna's shoulder once more, unsuccessfully trying to break her companion's current fixation on the unfolding story of the book. "Luna!" she crowed nervously under the old man's scrutinizing gaze. "A little help here!"
Luna's eyes glinted from under her bushy bangs as she looked up from the book, sparing a glance at the old man. "We're doing a research project. We needed to know more about Garia Einberg, and why he murdered his daughter Laia."
The old man sat back and rubbed his beard thoughtfully. "Oh, you want to know about old Garia, do you?" he mumbled. Both of the girls focused on him quickly.
"What do you know?" Gracia asked quickly, her nervousness disappearing as the old man relaxed.
"'Tis a sad, sad story indeed. I knew old Garia, right up to the day he went nutters," the old man told them, shaking his head. "He came to me, see. During the troubles with his daughter, 'fore they found her in the house. After he went to the police, though. Said he knew where she was. Said he'd be needin' a pair of graves. I knew something was wrong then, tried to get him to talk about it, but the man was wild."
Luna studied the old caretaker thoughtfully, her attention finally torn away from the book as she processed the information. "Please, Mr. Diol. We need to know everything that Garia told you. No matter how ridiculous it might have sounded."
The old man scrutinized the two girls for a moment, and then with a sigh, nodded slightly. "Well, okay. I don't know why I believe you, but maybe it'll help with your problem. Must be a big one, to get two pretty girls like you crawlin' through a graveyard on a Friday evenin'." He reached into his pocket and drew out a pipe, lighting it and puffing away.
"Garia Einberg was a very smart man. Well read, he was, bloody walkin' encyclopedia. Maybe he read too much. Got somethin' he didn't like, it messed with his head. He told me his daughter was trapped in a book," he explained. He didn't notice as the two girls leaned forward, puffing away at his pipe absently. "Said he spent his time researching this book. Wasn't an ordinary one, but a spell from an ancient Chinese cult," he explained. "The cult was banned, but somehow the book got written anyway. Was s'pposed to sacrifice young girls to the gods in order to summon them into the real world," he explained. "Sounded like a load of bullhockey to me, but Garia was convinced his daughter was goin' to be the next sacrifice. She was in the book, see, he said the book would eat her first, and then a monster would come out and eat the rest o' the world. Said he had to stop it. I didn't know what he meant…" Here the old man trailed off, a look of regret flashing across his eyes. "I would've stopped him if I knew," he said sadly. "Laia was such a beautiful girl…"
The silence settled thickly among the trio as the old man swam in his memories and the two young women grappled with the dread that suddenly gripped them both. Luna was the first to recover, masking her surprise and setting her jaw firmly. "Mr. Diol. I'm sorry, but this is very important. Do you remember anything else that Garia Einberg said? Anything at all, about the book, his daughter, the monster…"
The old man's eyes cleared as he nodded at the girl slightly. "Yes, one thing. Said the name of the monster… what was it? Fourfed? Vorpal?" He scratched his chin absently.
"Vorfeed?" Gracia supplied, a nervous quaver in her voice.
"Yes, that's it! That's it exactly! How'd you know?" he exclaimed in surprise. Tense silence settled in the room as the two girls stared at each other in nervously. Luna finally broke the silence when she glanced down at the book, clutching its pages between her fingers tightly. Her shoulders stiffened. Gracia sat forward, tension radiating off of her form. "What's wrong, Luna? Did something happen? Is everyone okay?"
The blast of an almost visible deadly aura suddenly rose around Luna, who was once again fixated on the pages of the book. "I look away for two minutes, and he's putting his hand WHERE?" she said darkly. Gracia and Diol sweatdropped and stared at her, but Luna ignored him, her face looking like an ominous thundercloud before a storm. She leaned in towards the pages of the book and snarled at them like a possessed demon.
"Uhh, miss, are you sure your friend's okay?" the caretaker asked nervously, quickly revising his opinions about which of the girls looked more suspicious.
Gracia gulped and shook her head frantically at the old man. "Don't interrupt her when she gets like this! It could be bad for your health!" she warned him nervously.
"Lina Inverse, if you don't stop what you're doing this instant I will teach you a new definition of pain," Luna thundered at the book with a deceptively low voice. Perhaps the entire Inverse family was gifted, as the aura of malevolence from the older sister soaked through the book, bringing forth its unearthly red glow and causing the other occupants of the room to gasp.
- x – x – x -
"Mmm… MMMPH!" Lina pushed herself away from Zelgadis with a look of panic.
"Lina? What is it? Did I hurt you?" he asked her worriedly.
The redhead wheezed and leapt away from him as though she had been struck by electricity. "Luna! I-swear-we-weren't-doing-anything! Okay, maybe kissing, but not anything else! Please don't hurt me!" she gushed hurriedly, covering her head with her hands and cowering in a corner of the room.
Zelgadis looked around the room wildly. "Luna? What? Who are you talking to Lina?" he asked, springing to his feet.
Lina, however, was not listening to him, instead chanting something that sounded like a mantra. "She's in the real world, not in the book, she can't be here, no way, not Luna, it was my imagination," Lina rambled nervously.
"She who?" Zelgadis asked again, glancing around the room once more and moving quickly to her side. "There's no one here, Lina, what are you talking about?"
Just then lightning cracked overhead as the ship rocked violently, and the door to the cabin burst open, spilling four very surprised and worried looking Celestial warriors into the room.
"Lina!" cried Sylphiel first. "I felt an angry aura descend over the ship! What's going on?"
Lina cowered in Zelgadis' arms, her eyes still darting about the cabin nervously like a frightened deer. "L-L-Luna," she muttered nervously. "My sister. I swear I just heard her!"
Zelgadis held the trembling girl gently in his arms and gently brushed a few strands of hair away from her face. "Nothing's going to hurt you while you're here with me," he told her soothingly.
That's a lie! And you can tell that lecher that something is going to hurt him if he doesn't let go of you right now!
Lina squeaked as the thundering voice filled her temples, causing her to cower once more.
Peel yourself out of Zelgadis' arms, Lina, you're a disgrace to feminists everywhere, came her sister's authorative command.
Years of training kicked in and Lina snapped away from Zelgadis, standing at attention. "Yes ma'am!" she yelled, squaring her shoulders. Then the logic cells in her brain began to function once more. "Luna? Is that really you?"
Yes, it's really me, Lina. Naga showed me the book, I've been reading about what's been happening to you and Amelia.
"Great, big sister is watching you," Lina mumbled to herself.
I heard that, came Luna's reply.
"Sorry, sorry!" Lina said quickly, sweatdropping and causing her befuddled Celestial warriors to become even more confused. "So what do you want, Luna? Don't tell me you went to the trouble to yell at me because you caught me making out with a guy?" she asked angrily.
This caused Sylphiel to blush in modesty and an interested hum to rise from Xellos' throat as he prodded Zelgadis with his staff. That was followed shortly by Xellos lying face-down on the floor with a twitching Zelgadis standing over him. "Not a word," the chimera said in a deadly tone to the others.
Don't take that tone of voice with me young lady, was Luna's curt reply to her sister. You can thank your boyfriend for allowing me to reach you, though. There's something important I need to tell you. Your punishment can wait for later.
Lina gulped nervously. "Maybe you can thank him by letting him live," she suggested out loud.
I'm more concerned about you getting out alive, Lina. You're in danger right now.
Lina snorted. "Of course I'm in danger. Almost everything in this world has been trying to kidnap or kill me since I got here. A little danger never scared off an Inverse," she said proudly.
If it did, you wouldn't be such a brat I'm sure. But this is serious. Naga and I have found out a little more about this book, and it's not as simple as it looks. If you summon a beast god, Lina, you're going to die.
"What?" was Lina's surprised reply.
It's true, it's already happened in the real world once before and it ended up in murder. I know you want to rescue Amelia, but we can figure that part out later. I want you to concentrate on me and come out of that book right now.
"You want me to leave Amelia and the others just like that? You've got to be kidding me."
This caused the other warriors to quiet down and watch Lina carefully. Xellos spoke up, offering the others a short explanation. "She's obviously communicating with someone she knows in her own world," he said. "If the link between them is strong enough to cause this connection, it would theoretically be possible for her to leave this world again right now too."
Zelgadis stilled, suddenly filled with a sense of worry. "Lina. You're not going to leave us, are you?" he asked her quietly in a pained voice.
Lina flashed a brief smile at her companions. "No way! We've come this far, I'm not going to just abandon you again. Besides, we still have to rescue Amelia."
Lina! Luna snapped.
"No! I'm tired of listening to you, Luna. You listen to me for once! I'm not leaving this world until I help these people. And most of all, I'm not leaving this world until I rescue Amelia. I bet Naga doesn't even know you just said that! What do you think she would say, huh? Why is it right for me to come out of the book when Amelia can't? Especially now that you've told me what will happen?"
There was a slight pause, as though Luna was considering her sister's words. I'm sorry, Lina. But I'm not giving you a choice. Come out of that book right now!
As the words echoed through Lina's mind, a heavy energy filled the room, and Lina could almost tangibly feel the presence of her sister tugging at her very soul, as if to pull her out of the book. No way, Lina thought to herself. I can't leave the book, not yet!
"Lina! What's happening to you?" Zelgadis' voice brought her attention back to her friends, and faintly, she realized she was glowing with a dull red aura.
"I don't know, but I don't want it to happen!" she told him angrily, fighting against the pull. "Xellos! Can't you do anything?" she asked the magician as sweat beaded on her forehead.
Xellos frowned and rubbed his chin. "This is most concerning. The only way someone from your own world could exert such influence over you is through strong spiritual power and some sort of direct link." He furrowed his brows and shook his head slightly at Lina. "I can't do anything to stop her, this magic is beyond even my means."
Valgarv, who had remained morosely silent, finally growled and shoved Xellos out of the way. "You're an idiot, trickster. If there's a link, all you have to do is break it."
"Link. What link? Even if we are sisters, we don't have anything in common!" Lina fumed.
"Lina, wait," Sylphiel called worriedly. "There is something connecting you to your world. I can feel it." The healer clasped her hands together and closed her eyes, concentrating. After a moment, her eyes snapped open and she pointed at Lina. "It's in your pocket, whatever it is."
Frantically, Lina dug through her jeans, finally pulling out a small, lint-covered bonbon. "Of course, I forgot!" As she held the small candy up to the light, the red glow around her intensified. Growling, Lina leapt forward and pinched Xellos' nose.
"What—" he began, but was quickly silenced as she shoved the candy into his mouth and clamped his jaw shut.
"Don't talk, just swallow!" she yelled at him. Xellos made a face but gulped audibly, and slowly the glow around Lina faded.
"Lina dear, did you really have to do that?" complained Xellos, as he coughed up a few bits of fuzz. Lina smirked back at the trickster.
"Yes, I did, and there is some kind of justice in forcing you to eat my pocket lint." She looked down at her hands, a worried look clouding her face. "I'm sorry, Luna, but I can't come back, not just yet," she whispered as the overwhelming presence of her sister faded.
- x – x – x -
Luna sat back, exhausted, as Gracia and the caretaker stared at her with wide eyes.
"W-what did you just do?" asked Gracia cautiously, peering over Luna's shoulder at the open book.
"I failed," Luna said irritably, rubbing at her head. "The brat is getting stronger," she added as a small smile of pride played across her face. It quickly dropped however and was replaced with concern. "She always was stubborn, but I don't know why she has to start growing a backbone when it could actually get her killed."
Gracia leaned over and shook Luna by the shoulders. "I'm not talking about that. How did you manage to reach her? Can I try it with Amelia?"
Luna pushed the other girl away with irritation. "It didn't work, Naga, and I would say I'm a little more focused than you are. Besides, that magician in the book said there was a connection somehow. Some sort of candy. I have no idea what he was talking about."
Gracia's eyebrows shot up and she dug through her pockets. Finally, she found what she was looking for, holding up the crumpled piece of glittering foil. "The link! Lina gave this to me before she left. She said it was the only way for her to get back! You mean she broke the link?"
Luna stared at the foil in consternation as the room fell into silence.
The old caretaker finally spoke up, shock echoing through his voice. "You… you mean it was real?"
- x – x – x -
Lina and the other warriors, even Zelgadis, returned to the deck of the ship to discuss what had happened after Luna's presence dissipated completely. The redhead had a moment of doubt as she considered what to tell the other warriors who were watching her expectantly. Luna said I might die if I summon Cephied. How am I supposed to tell them that? She shook her head, deciding then that it would be information better left unshared. I'll deal with the problems when they come. I don't know what happened before, but I'll be careful. "I know I can do it," she said out loud. "I know I can save both Sairoon and Amelia."
"Lina?" asked Sylphiel gently. "I felt it. That thing you fed to Xellos was your link. If it's gone…"
Lina smiled and put her hands on her hips. "Oh, don't worry about that. It was just my bossy older sister being herself. She likes to terrorize me like that all the time. But this time I stood up to her. I'm staying here, with you guys, and we're gonna see this thing through to the end, together!"
"But you can't return to your world now unless you summon Cephied," Sylphiel protested with concern.
"All that means is that we can't fail," Lina told the other girl determinedly. Then she snuck a glance at Zelgadis and gave him a quick wink. "Besides, being stuck here with you guys isn't all that bad."
Xellos cleared his throat. "There still is one very important question that needs to be answered, my dear Lina." He rubbed his chin thoughtfully as he scrutinized the young girl behind his closed eyelids. "What exactly were you doing with Zelgadis in the cabin before your sister interrupted?" he asked with a curious smile.
Lina showed the magician her middle finger.
"Why Lina, aren't you a little young for that? Besides, I thought you preferred Zelgadis!" Xellos said, shocked. There was a crash, after which the magician quickly picked himself up from wooden planks, which had shattered on the impact created when Zelgadis smashed him into the ground.
Lina muttered to herself. "Pervert. Hey, Sylphiel, we were a little hard on him this time. Make sure he's okay?"
"No! Anything but that! Lina dear, I won't make another joke again!" Xellos begged, panicking and squirming as the healer leaned over him.
Valgarv, who had wandered off to the railing in boredom once more, called out to the others, ending their bickering. "Guys. You should take a look at this." He pointed out over the horizon, where rolling black clouds were gathering some distance away. "It looks like a storm. A bad one."
Xellos, who had magically recovered as always as soon as Sylphiel's attentions were no longer directed towards him, spoke in a serious voice. "That storm is not natural." Lightning flashed, as if to confirm the magician's words, and the dark clouds moved closer to the ship. "My my, I do regret saying this, but you should probably not be on deck, Zelgadis," he added in a lighter tone. "If anyone is going to drown you, it should be me after all. And I just won't have the time to do that if I'm going to keep this ship afloat."
The chimera glared, but gave a tiny grunt of acknowledgement to the trickster, who was already holding two fingers before him and chanting softly in an unrecognizable tongue.
"Lina, Sylphiel, Zelgadis, get below. I'll stay out here and protect the fruitcake," Valgarv told them, unslinging Vessegace from his back and leaning onto it boredly. "I know how to handle myself on ships." As he spoke, the wind picked up around them and began to blow wildly.
"That sounds like a good idea," Lina said, as they left the railing and made their way towards the cabins once more.
- x – x – x –
Against the shore, the loud sound of laughter rose from a cloaked figure. The wind blew wildly, tossing back the hood of the cloak and releasing whipping strands of curling, lime-green hair. The laughter rose louder and louder, rising above the cacophony of the violent weather. "No one will survive my curse," she crowed into the stormfront. She lifted her hands to the sky once more, and the kanji blazed out from her palm with a clear blue light. "The warriors of Cephied will never reach shore so long as I, Martina Zoana Mel Navratilova, have them in my grasp!"
- x – x – x –
"This is a stupid idea!" screamed Lina as she was flung against the wall of the tossing ship. "How in the hell are we supposed to fight against a storm like this?"
Sylphiel, who had turned a faint shade of green from the violently rocking motion of the boat, managed to gulp out a reply. "I-I'm s-sure Xellos has everything u-under c-control!" she squeaked, before being flung alongside Lina towards the opposite wall.
Zelgadis caught both of the tumbling girls, throwing his weight backwards and keep them from crashing painfully into the wall. "This is no good!" he yelled at them over the roar of the storm's tumult. "Even if the ship doesn't sink, we're still going to be killed if we stay down here like this!" As he spoke, the tiny cabin window burst open, sending a jet of water into the room. "We have to get out of here!" he told them, making his way towards the door.
Lina growled and slung Sylphiel's arm over her shoulder, staggering after the chimera. "Zelgadis! Get a rope or something, damn it, if you fall overboard you're done for!"
Zelgadis only grunted in reply, trying to keep his balance as he grabbed a thick length of rope and forced his way towards the deck of the tossing ship. The stinging sea water blasted into their faces as they entered the deck, and Lina squinted against it desperately, looking for Xellos and Valgarv.
"Zelgadis!" she yelled at him, pointing suddenly. "There they are!"
Following her motion, the chimera looked and growled as he saw the two. Xellos appeared to be oblivious to the tossing of the ship, his concentration completely focused on his spell. He remained in the same position, standing at the railing of the ship where they had left him earlier. The only thing that seemed to be keeping the magician in place was Valgarv, who had sheathed his weapon in favour of lashing a rope around his waist and holding Xellos in place. But it was clear that both of the warriors had their hands full, one with whatever spell he was casting, and the other just trying to keep the magician from flying overboard.
"Who in the hell is driving this thing?" shouted Zelgadis as he tied the rope around one of the masts.
Lina shook her head as he shoved a length of line into her hands stumbled towards the rudder of the ship. "Zelgadis! Wait! Knot the rope around yourself first!" she yelled. As if on cue, a huge wave swelled over the ship, and Valgarv growled out a hoarse warning over the storm.
"Get down!"
The wave crashed over the deck, soaking Lina to the bone. She held onto Sylphiel tightly with one arm and spun the rope around the other. Salt water filled her mouth as she tried to cry out in pain, the rough twine gouging into her arm painfully as the water lifted and tossed both of the girls around like leaves in a whirlwind. As quickly as it hit, the monstrous wave subsided, leaving both girls panting and bedraggled. Painful as it was, however, the rope had done its work, as they were both still on the deck of the ship. Zelgadis, however, was nowhere to be seen.
"No!" Lina said as she coughed and sputtered, lifting herself to her knees. The rope jerked suddenly on her arm, bringing her to her knees again, and she followed it with her eyes. "Zelgadis!" she yelled, seeing it trail off into the water. Xellos' idle threat had turned into reality, she realized with horror. Zelgadis might have been grasping the rope, but with his stone body, he was still trapped under the violent ocean waves as he was tossed overboard. "I've got to help him!" she yelled to Sylphiel, pushing the rope into the healer's hands and sprinting for the railing.
"Lina!" Valgarv shouted, frustrated, as another tremor buffeted the boat. "What are you doing?"
She didn't hear him, however, having already dived into the water. Fortunately for Lina, physical exertion was one of the things she did excel at, and swimming was no exception. Holding onto the rope for dear life, she took a deep breath and plunged her head under the ocean waves, pulling herself down. Her eyes burned, and the rope twisted violently in the raging currents of water, but she hung on determinedly.
Zelgadis was also hanging onto the rope for dear life, laboriously pulling himself up hand over hand. His eyes widened as he saw her, and then flashed angrily as she wrapped an arm around his waist and helped pull him up.
Save the arguments for later, Zel, she thought as they struggled their way towards the surface, hoping he would understand. We've got to break the surface before we drown!
- x – x – x –
On the deck of the ship, Valgarv's cursing could be heard clearly over the storm. "That stupid girl! I can't keep track of both her and Xellos! If Xellos goes, we lose the ship, and then we're all as good as dead!"
As he cursed again, Sylphiel looked over the railing of the boat, biting her lip. She was still holding onto the rope Lina had left behind, her stomach doing flipflops as the ship lurched under her feet. She felt her cheeks flaming with a blush of shame as another round of Valgarv's cursing fell on her ears. Though she couldn't make out what he was saying, Sylphiel was sure she could understand his meaning. "If only Lord Gourry were here!" she said to herself helplessly. The seconds ticked by, and then suddenly, a shock of red broke over the surface of the water. "Lina!" cried Sylphiel, pulling at the rope with all of her strength.
Zelgadis' head surfaced next, and the chimera gasped for air. Both of them clung to the rope for dear life, but the storm continued to buffet the ship relentlessly, making it impossible to board the boat.
"The storm is too strong!" Sylphiel screamed at the other two warriors. "They're trapped!"
"Well, what do you want me to do about it?" came Valgarv's furious reply as he dragged Xellos back to the railing they had been knocked away from.
"But-" cried Sylphiel, as the storm tossed them again. There was creaking sound, and suddenly the healer went tumbling as the rope she had been pulling on went slack. "No!" she cried, rushing to the rail and watching as Lina's head disappeared under the surface once more. The rope had snapped, and without it, Zelgadis' stone body was dragging them both under literally like a slab of rock.
Sylphiel bit her lip and looked at the frayed end of rope still held in her hands. "But Gourry's not here," she said, blinking back tears.
"I can't hear you!" yelled Valgarv.
She turned, and then waved at the aqua-haired youth. "I'm going to save them!" she called out.
"What? Sylphiel?" yelled Valgarv, his eyes bulging as the healer climbed over the railing and plunged over the side. "Damn it, Xellos! This ship isn't going to be worth saving if everyone else dies!" he snarled.
"Can't teleport," came the magician's terse reply, the first words he had spoken since beginning his spell. "The power that's blocking me is from Shabranigdu. I can break this curse, but I need time."
Valgarv nodded, gritting his teeth. "Sylphiel, you better come through," he growled lowly with frustration.
- x – x – x –
Lina gasped as the she felt the rope snap, the waves tossing then briefly before Zelgadis began to sink once more. Oh no! she thought, wrapping both of her arms around his waist and kicking wildly.
Zelgadis was treading water desperately as well, but his weight was too much to keep them surfaced despite both of their efforts. That idiot! Why won't she let go of me? We're both going to drown! He glared at Lina, grabbing her arms and trying to pry her off of him as they drifted lower through the murky ocean water. Lina only redoubled her efforts in response. No good! he thought as his lungs began to burn for air. From the look on Lina's face, she was also going to be in serious trouble soon. I won't let it end like this! Zelgadis thought to himself angrily.
As if in answer to his furious demand, a hand descended onto his shoulder. Then a blinding white light pulsed around them. The water around them stopped tossing, and Zelgadis looked up to see Sylphiel holding on to both him and Lina. She shook her head wildly at him in some sort of a warning, and vaguely Zelgadis realized that they were inside of a magic bubble of some sort. Sylphiel closed her eyes, and with another pulse, the water pushed out of the barrier she had erected, sending the trio flying towards the ocean's surface.
"Sylphiel!" Lina screamed after she had inhaled enough air. "You must be crazy! Can you even swim?"
The healer paid no attention, her energy already focused on creating a new barrier around Zelgadis before he could begin another deadly descent into the ocean.
"Never mind how she did it, just hang onto her!" Zelgadis shouted as the fragile magic buoyed him through the water. "This barrier must be taking an incredible amount of energy to create. We've got to get out of the water before it fades!"
Lina nodded, her sharp eyes scanning the surface of the waves for any sign of the ship at all. Her heart sank as she noticed how far the turbulent water had carried them from the badly wracked ship. Still, it seemed the further away they were from the vessel, the less violent the storm was. Twisting her head around, Lina searched for another option. "There!" she yelled suddenly in relief, pointing at a small outcropping of rock jutting out of the ocean's surface. "We can make it if we swim for it." Grabbing the healer by the waist, Lina began to stroke through the water towards the tiny island. "Sylph, we can manage. Just keep that barrier up around Zelgadis," Lina commanded as she swam. "I know you can do it!" The older girl nodded slightly, concentration written across her face as she allowed the redhead to pull her through the salty water.
