Hellmaster's chamber of death was crumbling before Amelia and Zelgadis's eyes. Corpses were stacked waist deep around the chamber, and without the demon's spell to maintain it, the twisted building was finally giving way under its own weight.
"I hope she makes it back," Amelia fretted while looking at the shrinking portal to Hell.
"Well, we don't really have time to wait around and find out," Zelgadis coolly pointed out as he ran over to the unconscious Gourry.
"Because, you know it'd be terrible if she had to stay in there," Amelia said with a nervous chuckle. "Just terrible."
"Amelia?" Zelgadis said quizzically. He turned and saw the pale and trembling girl staring into the portal. "Oh no. Don't do this to me now," he whispered to himself. He yelled her name.
Amelia recoiled as if Zelgadis had hit her. "What?" she asked hesitantly.
"Try to concentrate," Zelgadis pleaded. "I can't carry you, Gourry, and Sylphiel. You have to help me, okay? Can you do that?"
Amelia nodded hesitantly and turned to help Sylphiel to her feet. "Hey," she exclaimed, noticing that something was missing.
"This is no time to play around!" Zelgadis yelled. He effortlessly lifted Gourry and slung the swordsman over his shoulder. "We have to go right now!"
The ceiling groaned threateningly as more and more supports cracked. Another few moments and four stories of wood and stone would come crashing down on top of their heads.
Amelia quickly glanced around the dark chamber. She shook her head and yelled, "But, Mr. Zelgadis, that girl's gone!"
The spot where Sylphiel had been sitting a moment earlier was vacant.
"Damn it all!" Zelgadis snarled. "She's on her own then. Come on."
Amelia hesitantly nodded, feeling guilty at leaving Sylphiel behind. There was no other choice though, right? She sprinted after Zelgadis who was already nearing the stairs with Gourry in tow.
There was a sudden tremor, dislodging more of the bodies from the wall.
Amelia screeched in terror as several of them fell onto her, knocking her off of her feet.
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Vrumugun struggled to focus on the doorway. If he could make it out into the hallway there might be a chance that someone would find him. The gashes in his back were mostly superficial, but the wound in his neck was deep, staining his brown cloak a shiny black. If he didn't hurry, he'd almost certainly bleed to death. Spurred on by that knowledge, he dragged himself arduously towards the door.
Just behind Vrumugun, the headless corpse thrashed about on the floor. Losing its head to the Slayer's blade had disoriented the beast, but had done little else. Its talons found Vrumugun's ankle and instinctively latched on.
Vrumugun grimaced as he felt the claws sink into his flesh. He kicked the creature away and hastily crawled out of its reach. He said a silent prayer of thanks that the door was open. He didn't think that he would have had the strength to reach up to open it. He flung himself out into the hall and glanced over his shoulder.
Luckily, the dead thing seemed to have lost a lot of its will to fight. It twitched spastically every few moments, but did nothing more.
Vrumugun sighed in relief and looked at the stairs leading up into the church. There were one hundred and thirteen steps from the basement to the cathedral. He'd traveled up and down them countless times over the course of his life. From the floor they looked even more daunting than usual. Maybe it would be best to give up.
The rational part of Vrumugun's mind protested. Surely, there would be people up in the church. Maybe even a healer. Somehow he had to make it.
That was for later though a less rational, but far more reasonable part of his mind suggested. He needed to rest up and regain his strength for the final push. Yes, that made sense, didn't it? No sense in trying when he was this tired. Kind of a silly idea, when he thought about it…
Vrumugun's eyelids fluttered briefly before sliding slowly shut. A moment later he stopped breathing. Just before everything faded away, he heard the sound of footsteps echoing on the staircase.
"Oh, I believe that you'll do nicely…" a strangely familiar voice said with a chuckle.
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Zelgadis glanced over his shoulder when he heard Amelia yell and saw her frantically struggling to disentangle herself from the bodies. "Move it Amelia!" he snapped impatiently. Even carrying an armored Gourry, he easily leapt over the bodies that were blocking the stairs leading to freedom. He turned again, expecting to see Amelia right behind him on the stairs. Instead he watched, a dumbfounded expression on his face, as she proceeded to sit on the floor and clutch her knees to her chest. "What in the hell are you doing?!" he demanded.
"I'm sorry. I… I can't do it, Mr. Zelgadis," Amelia responded apologetically. "They're all staring at me. They want to get me," she whimpered while glancing around. Everywhere she turned, dead glassy eyes appeared to be looking at her. "Go on without me," she called out. "I… I think that I'll wait for Miss Lina. Is that okay?" She couldn't stand the idea of touching all of those dead people again. She closed her eyes and lay down on the floor. "Don't worry about me, Mr. Zelgadis," she called out. "I'll be fine." Part of the ceiling landed next to her with a loud crash. She acted as if she hadn't even heard it.
Zelgadis watched Amelia's actions with an alarmed expression on his face. "Oh, for the love of…" he growled. He roughly tossed Gourry down on the stairs and leapt back down into the chamber. It had been a mistake to let Amelia come along with them in the first place. She shouldn't have had too see what Hellmaster had done.
Even he found the situation unsettling, Zelgadis mused. Under the circumstances, it was a wonder that Amelia could function at all. She was a lot stronger than he expected. There was something admirable about that. He knelt beside the girl and put a comforting hand on her arm. "Amelia?"
Amelia cautiously opened her beautiful cerulean eyes and looked at Zelgadis. "I'm just going to wait here for a while," she said meekly.
"You can't do that," Zelgadis replied gently. "Come on. I'm getting you out of here." He opened his arms invitingly. A moment later, Amelia's arms were wrapped tightly around his neck. He could feel her warm breath on his throat and her rapid heartbeat as she pressed herself against him. She was lighter than he had expected and he lifted her easily. He took a moment to breathe deeply, savoring her scent.
There was faint odor of jasmine, probably something Amelia had put on the previous day. That smell was all but overpowered by the scent of sweat and death. Being handled by Hellmaster's tapestry had left an unmistakable mark on her. Finally, there was the delicious aroma of fresh blood. She had numerous scratches on her face and arms as a result of the tapestry's cruel ministrations.
Unthinkingly, Zelgadis opened his mouth to expose his fangs. He looked down at her slender throat and sighed shakily. He shouldn't be doing this. For as long as he had lived, he'd never fed on another human, so why did he want to now? He had to admit, it would be easy. So very easy. Amelia would never know what had happened.
"Mr. Zelgadis?" Amelia whispered dreamily.
Zelgadis flinched at the sound of her voice. "What?" he asked guiltily.
"I'm really glad you feel better."
"Hmm?" Zelgadis muttered quizzically.
"Your skin," Amelia whispered. "You're not sunburned anymore."
Zelgadis looked down at himself and was surprised to see that she was right. Where there had once been blistered flesh, unblemished pale skin shone up at him. It didn't make any sense though. He hadn't fed since he was injured, so how could he have recuperated so quickly?
Amelia interrupted Zelgadis's thoughts with a question. "Mr. Zelgadis, are we out yet? I don't want to look at those poor people anymore."
Zelgadis shook his head. "Not yet, but we will be soon. Keep your eyes closed and leave it to me." He leapt out of the way of another falling timber.
A moment later, a large section of the ceiling gave way and fell a few feet before getting wedged precariously against a collapsed support.
That was all the persuasion Zelgadis needed. "Hold on to me," he whispered. A moment later, he was a blur of motion. As he ran, he berated himself silently for what he had almost done to the sweet girl in his arms.
Amelia smiled as she felt a strong wind on her face. There was the sensation of movement and aside from a barely audible grunt when he lifted Gourry Zelgadis was totally silent. She didn't even hear the sound of his footsteps. Could Zelgadis fly? She briefly considered opening her eyes to see, but remembered his command. "Keep your eyes shut," she quietly admonished herself. And so she flew on in darkness.
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Martina ran through the ruined streets of Sairaag, marveling at the destruction that seemed to permeate every part of the city.
Bodies were strewn about the streets like confetti, and fire swept unchecked through the closely packed buildings. Apparently, nobody was around to extinguish the flames. Even if they had been, it was doubtful that they would have come out of hiding after the events of the day. Until a few moments ago, half of the bodies on the street had been on their feet and in pursuit of Martina. All of a sudden they had all dropped over dead.
Martina looked up at the blood red moon and scowled. "Oh, why didn't I see this coming?" she whined. This kind of thing was bad for business. She'd told the last person she'd read that evening that they were going to have a prosperous and happy life. Ten seconds later, they were being eaten by a dead thing that had been mumbling something about brains. Then the chase had begun. "It's just not fair," she pouted. "Why does this sort of thing always happen to me?"
The sound of boisterous laughter emanated from a nearby building, causing Martina to stop short. "What kind of lunatic would be laughing at a time like this?" she asked. A large sign mounted over the door caught her attention. "Hmm, the Sairaag City Guard Station," she read. Her eyes lit up as she realized what that meant. "Maybe my beloved is in there!" She darted up the steps and eagerly flung the front door open. The first thing she saw was a huge man with long fiery hair barking orders at a group of guards.
"Put your backs into it! I want this station back in regulation shape within the next fifteen minutes!" Gaav scowled at the guards who were hastily carrying the newly fallen bodies out the back of the building. "Regulation 10.26.77 strictly prohibits the presence of tripping hazards in the station walkways," he reminded the men sternly.
"Sir, if I may, I'd like to make a small suggestion," a smug looking guard said.
Gaav glared at the much smaller man as if the guard were an unwanted pest. Seeing that he couldn't intimidate the man into leaving he finally sighed and growled, "What is it Proctor?"
"Well sir, if you take a moment to think about it, are cadavers really covered under Regulation 10.26.77? Because I was under the impression that-"
There was a sudden yelp and a crash from the back of the station, cutting the obnoxious little man off. He and Gaav turned to see another guard sitting on the floor clutching his ankle.
"Sorry sir," the man said, gritting his teeth in pain. "Tripped over one of the cadavers." After a moment of consideration, he added, almost apologetically, "I think I broke my ankle."
Gaav flung his arms up in frustration and bellowed, "So, what, do you want a medal or something?!" He turned his fury to the man standing in front of him. "Now what in the blue hell do you call that Proctor?!" he yelled, jabbing a finger in the direction of the unfortunate guard who was trying to stand on one leg. Without waiting for an answer, he continued, "I call that an honest to goodness tripping hazard! So get your useless ass in gear and clear them out!" He watched his subordinate scurry away and muttered, "God, what a jackass."
At that point, Martina decided that the best course of action would be for her to back slowly out of the station and make a mad dash for the circus. Her Zangulus couldn't be here could he? Just as she was about to turn around Gaav looked up.
Gaav's demeanor shifted from fury to friendly in the span of a second. He strode purposefully across the room towards Martina. "Captain Gaav of the Sairaag City Guard at your service, ma'am." He reached out and grabbed the fortuneteller's hand and pumped it vigorously, almost knocking her off her feet. "How can I assist you on this lovely evening?"
"Um, lovely evening?" Martina squeaked uncertainly. She looked around at the carnage in the station and then back at the huge grinning man standing before her. He was serious, she realized. "Um, I, um, I'm, well, I was looking…" She paused for a moment, struggling to remember why she had come in here. She saw a beat up brown hat laying on the ground a few feet away and it suddenly hit her. "I'm looking for Zangulus!" she said, a little louder than she had intended.
Gaav's grin faded and was replaced by a solemn frown. "Zangladus…" he sighed while shaking his head sadly.
Martina's eyes widened and she stammered, "No! You can't mean…" She let her question trail off, as if voicing her fears might actually make them real.
Gaav nodded and said, "He fell during the battle."
"No," Martina whispered.
"You have my condolences," Gaav said quietly.
"Fell during the battle?!" a muffled voice yelled from a nearby pile of bodies. A moment later, Zangulus's head popped out of the heap. He glared at Gaav and yelled, "I didn't fall! You threw me you crazy bastard!"
"Fell! Threw! It's all the same! You screamed like a little girl Zangladus! Grow a spine man!" Gaav roared.
For once, Zangulus refused to be cowed. "And for the love of Ceiphied, my name is Zangulus, you blithering idiot! And what's the idea of telling her that I was dead?! You didn't even bother to check!" He dragged himself out of the pile and cautiously stood on the perilous footing.
The rest of the guards stopped what they were doing to stare at the interplay between Zangulus and Gaav. It wasn't every day that one had the opportunity to see a man commit suicide.
"I never said you were dead," Gaav quietly hissed through clenched teeth, "I said that you fell. I was telling her that I was sorry that you're such a clumsy idiot!"
"Zangie!" Martina yelled ecstatically. She flung herself into Zangulus's arms, sending them both tumbling down the pile. Before the swordsman could protest, she silenced him with a passionate kiss.
Gaav cocked a bushy eyebrow and muttered, "What an odd girl," as he watched Martina amorously maul the hapless Zangulus.
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Zelgadis slung Gourry off his shoulder and deposited him roughly on the cobblestone street. "You can open your eyes now. We're safe," he said to Amelia, who was still clutching him tightly.
Amelia cautiously opened her eyes and grinned when she saw that they were safely outside on the street. "Thanks Mr. Zelgadis. I don't know what would have happened if you hadn't helped me," she said, still holding onto him.
"Yeah, whatever," Zelgadis said irately. "You can let go any time now, you know."
"Oh, right," Amelia said as she released her grip on Zelgadis. "Sorry about that."
Zelgadis waved dismissively as he looked back at the building across the street. He massaged his temples, sensing an oncoming headache. "I swear," he muttered, "Everyone in the world has gone mad except for me."
Amelia looked up from where she was checking on Gourry and frowned at the irritated Zelgadis. "What do you mean, Mr. Zelgadis?"
"Those… those people!" Zelgadis said while trying to keep his exasperation to a minimum. "That girl wouldn't let me kill Hellmaster. On top of that she ran off despite being wounded. And don't even get me started on Lina! That woman is the most stubborn, impulsive, irritating…"
"I guess," Amelia agreed while scratching her head. "She can be kind of grating sometimes." She smiled as she continued, "But I think there's a lot more to her than that Mr. Zelgadis."
"Do tell," Zelgadis muttered darkly. He crossed his arms and glared down at the street.
"Well," Amelia said after a moment of consideration, "I think that she can be really nice if you give her a chance. Don't you get that impression?"
Lina's words from a few nights ago came back to Zelgadis.
"Being nonhuman isn't a crime in my book. You have just as much right to live as anything else."
"I suppose," Zelgadis said, more to himself than anyone else. Lina had known about his… condition and it hadn't changed a thing between them. She'd treated him like a normal person. He quickly quashed the guilt that was building up within him. It was unpleasant, but he couldn't afford to get attached to Lina, or anyone else for that matter. There was too much at stake. "It doesn't change the fact that she's obnoxious and pushy," he muttered.
Amelia nodded, "Yeah, but she's not mean. You've noticed how she acts around Mr. Gourry, haven't you?"
"What? You mean sullen and depressed?" Zelgadis replied with a dry chuckle. "Hardly what I'd call pleasant Amelia."
Amelia rolled her eyes. Why was Zelgadis being so obstinate? She explained, "I guess she does that sometimes, but there's something else too. I can't believe you haven't seen it. She laughs more often when Mr. Gourry is around. She's a little nicer too." She blushed slightly and giggled, "It's so cute to watch them together."
"Whatever," Zelgadis muttered. He pointedly looked away from Amelia's smiling face, trying to hide the fact that he was blushing a bit as well.
Amelia continued on unperturbed, "On top of that, she's risking her life to save a little boy that she doesn't even know. How many people do you know that are that selfless?"
Zelgadis's brow furrowed in thought, the memory of a giggling Lina counting the money he had given her fresh in his mind. "Yeah," he muttered sarcastically. "Selfless. Selfish is more like it."
"Oh, you just don't understand her," Amelia said with a sigh. "I think she's cool, though."
"Cool?!" Zelgadis sputtered in disbelief.
"Well, yeah," Amelia replied with a shrug. "She's so heroic and loving. I wish that I were half as tough as her and well… I just think that she's really cool." She looked at the unstable building apprehensively. "I hope she makes it back."
Zelgadis snorted derisively, but found himself hoping that Lina made it back too. She still had a role to play in his scheme. Besides, he begrudgingly admitted, he'd probably miss the loudmouth if she didn't return. She did have a way of making life interesting.
"Does this mean that it's over?" Amelia asked while looking around at the bodies littering the street. "I mean, I guess we won, right?"
"I suppose," Zelgadis said with a nod. "But, I wouldn't tell Lina that if I were you. For her, I think that it's just getting started."
"Yeah. So, what do you think she's doing right now?" Amelia asked apprehensively.
"I can't even begin to imagine, but I'd wager that it isn't pleasant," Zelgadis replied.
Zelgadis and Amelia, both lost in their respective thoughts, lapsed into a comfortable silence while watching and waiting for any sign of the redheaded Slayer.
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A midnight black carriage drawn by dark stallions flew through the darkness towards the burning city of Sairaag. Although there was no driver present, the horses seemed to know exactly where they were going. They came to a halt just before slamming into the city gates.
A skittish guard cautiously stepped out of a nearby building and approached the carriage. "Hello?" he called out to no avail. Noting the lack of a driver, he moved around to the door of the carriage itself. "Hello? Is anyone in there?" he asked, trying to see into the gloom of the interior. There was a rustle of cloth and he was suddenly face to face with a hooded figure. He yelped in surprise and fell to the ground.
"Good evening," a female voice said.
"By Ceiphied, you scared the hell out of me!" The guard quickly scrabbled to his feet, his face beet red.
"We desire entrance into the city," the voice purred.
"I don't think you want to do that." He grimaced at the sound of an agonizing scream from behind the city walls. "Bad things have been happening in Sairaag of late." He tried in vain to make out the figures in the gloom of the carriage. There were two of them, unless he was mistaken.
The door to the carriage swung open quietly and a sinister figure, cloaked in black, stepped out into the cool night air. She threw back her hood to reveal a stunningly beautiful face and short dark hair. She wore a modest circlet of silver atop her head. "So it would seem," she said while staring at the carnage through the gate. "Still, I must insist that we be allowed to enter."
The guard tried to resist staring at her as he mumbled, "As you say Miss. I'll be needing to see your papers, then."
"Very well." The woman in black smiled coldly and produced a roll of parchment from a pocket in her cloak. "I'm confident that you'll find everything in order."
"Of course. Just a formality, you understand." The guard took the parchment with sweaty hands and unrolled it. Clearing his throat, he muttered, "Eris. I assume that's you?" A nod from the woman confirmed his assumption. "And your traveling companion?" he said, taking a step towards the carriage and peering in the window. "There's only one name mentioned on the document."
There was a rustle of cloth and a figure clad in a white cloak retreated into the dark recesses of the compartment with an angry hiss.
The guard took a nervous step back and looked to Eris for an explanation. The other passenger didn't look quite as friendly as Eris.
"I do hope that you'll forgive my companion," Eris said with a disarming smile. "It's been a long journey and we're both a little out of sorts."
The guard nodded and said, "I can understand that, but that doesn't change the fact that he… or is it a she?" He looked to Eris for clarification, but received none. "Anyway, your friend can't enter without authorization."
Eris's smile tightened slightly and she nodded at the page. "You didn't finish."
The guard looked at the page and continued to read, "Servants of Ceiphied… official church business… with the authority of…" He looked up, an expression of horrified shock on his face. "The High Priest."
"Correct," Eris said with a nod. "I am here on the authority of the great Rezo himself. So I strongly suggest that you open the gate and stop pestering my traveling companion."
"Oh god, I'm sorry Miss Eris! I didn't know…"
"Never mind that. Just open the gate."
"Yes ma'am!" The guard nodded and ran off to do just as she had instructed.
Moments later, Eris and her companion were back in the carriage and riding through the streets of Sairaag.
"It hasn't changed much, has it?" Eris remarked as she looked out the window at the carnage in the streets. "It's still a cesspool full of human garbage. Always has been."
Her companion scowled and turned to look out the window opposite Eris's.
"Oh, did I upset you?" Eris said with a smirk. "My sincerest apologies." They rode on in silence for a moment before she asked, "What's bothering you anyway? You've been this way since Atlas City. It's not like you to be so surly." She didn't expect a response and when companion replied, it was so quiet that she almost didn't hear it. "What did you say?" she asked, leaning forward to more clearly hear the quiet voice.
The figure in white sighed impatiently and repeated more clearly, "Her."
"Her? Her who?" Eris said curiously. It was unusual for her companion to be so chatty.
"Lina. Lina Inverse," was the figure's hissed response.
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Next Chapter: Lina's Inferno
Notes: Well, another week another chapter, huh? No Lina action in this one, but I did manage to lay the groundwork for a couple of plots in the future, so I'm quite pleased with it.
Hmm? "What about Lina?" you ask? Well, you'll be happy to know that Lina gets the entire next chapter to herself. She's such a ham.
Reviewer Response:
Thanks for the kind words, Miss Gabriev. A Lina/Zel pairing, hmm? How can I get that into the story? *scribbles some notes* By the way, how did that thing that we discussed turn out?
Pogo, you hate me? *sniff* But all I do is try to entertain all of you, and you're all so mean to me! Waaah! Hope you liked the Gaav/Zangulus bit in this chapter.
Otaku girl, would you believe another 40-50 chapters? At a chapter a week, I'd say you're going to be reading for a long time. As for the loved one thing, keep it in mind. It could happen at any time…
Stara, no matter how hard it tries, real life can't keep me down! The only thing that'll slow the pace of this story aside from some cataclysmal computer trouble is the dreaded Writer's Block. And I haven't had trouble with that recently, so it's all good. *sigh* Watch me get stumped now that I've said that.
Dragonet, Gourry can't save Lina this time, but she's not really alone either. The LoN? Hmm, maybe she'll be hinted at in a future chapter, but don't count on a cameo or anything.
Chapter 18 is done and I'm sad to say that there are no spiders in the portal Zaber. Although your obsession with them is a little unnerving… Brrr!
Masaki, Sylphiel's part in the story isn't done, so that should make you happy. As for appearances in future parts? I can't say just yet. It all depends on how things turn out in the next 2-3 chapters…
???, darn it. I hate losing bets. How much do I owe you? Wait a second, how do I know that you're telling the truth? No money for you!
Thanks for reading everyone!