Capriones 8/1/2006
Capriones (ca-pree-OWN-ees): A roaming people of the Seyruun City-State region comprised of mixed race and heritage sharing common facilities and traditions. Said to have their own culture and to live outside the laws of any land they move through, they fight mostly amongst themselves in order to improve individual ranking in their encampments.
Disclaimer: We shall make use of several of the characters from The Slayers, none of whom belongs to us.
Chapter Six -- Spells and Frippery
It wasn't difficult for Gourry to remain behind with the pretty Miss Sylphiel. He admired her reed-like figure and shiny black hair, which was as long as his when it wasn't tied back in a sleek braid. She was quiet and demure, although he knew she was doughty underneath; he had seen her wield a sword. They had been talking about their friends, sharing information, when Sylphiel asked about Zelgadiss' condition.
"You say he was cursed?" Her eyes grew troubled, imagining his suffering. "How truly terrible for him! Has no one tried to cure him?"
"Sure, but none of our healers can undo a spell like that. Xelloss and his mom aren't healers, but they're our best magic users."
Sylphiel placed her hand on his sleeve, drawing his eyes down to meet hers. "I'm a white magic healer and so is the Princess Amelia. Maybe if we worked together, we could create an undo spell for him."
"Oh yeah? I guess I should ask Xelloss about that, for his okay first, ya know?"
"Yes, please, do that. I'd like to help if I can," Sylphiel said.
She smiled and he couldn't help but smile in reply. She had the gift of making every good outcome seem possible and offered comfort where it was needed. Gourry felt that when she listened to him, it was as if he was the most interesting person she had met and was at the center of her entire attention. It was quite a talent. And very flattering, he thought with a ripple of appreciation– and sudden warning. It was a powerful art and a dangerous one. A man could lose his heart, if he wasn't careful. And she was so pretty, pretty enough for him to ignore the warning signs and lower his guard.
"Ah, sun's about to set. We ought to get going if you're to get back to your tent when Xelloss wants. Tomorrow, he wants me to help train you. I don't do the magic part, but I can show you some sword tricks. Valgaav and Zelgadiss will cover the magic."
They came to an arch of late blooming, wild, white roses, the scent heavy in the still warm air, and as she moved closer to him to pass through he found himself smiling down at her. Perhaps she read the appreciation in his eyes, because she blinked and looked down, then smiled a little and began to walk away. The grace in her step showed her satisfaction, sending a warmth spreading outward from his racing heart.
(O)
Later that evening Lina was back in a tent with her friends, Sylphiel and Filia, explaining that they would be staying in the Caprione camp a while longer.
"Of course we have to see this preposterous wedding through to its unnatural end and free the princess," Filia said. "But I have to tell you: don't put too much hope on my convincing that unpleasant Valgaav ne'er-do-well to help me. He's as likely to knife me in the back as help my people against anyone, even Rezo."
"You don't like him, do you?" Sylphiel asked. "You'll let something like that keep you from your duty?"
Filia tried to cover up a faint blush reddening her cheeks. "I didn't say that. I don't like that hedonistic Xelloss rascal either."
"So you'll keep at it," Sylphiel pressed, hearing Lina growling from behind.
Filia nodded.
"Good!" Lina said. "And I don't get your problem with Xelloss. He hasn't been lewd around me. He's got a weird sense of humor, though."
"His people have lured away our young innocents for hundreds of years, and he's their leader, next to that monster of a mother he has. They are disgusting, dirty, lawless . . . and strange. Take that freaky-looking Zel guy--"
"Zelgadiss was enchanted by his grandfather, who happens to be Rezo!" Lina told them about what she'd learned about Zelgadiss.
"What!" Filia gasped.
"Gourry told me he'd been cursed, but not that his grandfather was Rezo or responsible," said Sylphiel. "Oh, that's just so sad, tragic really."
"Nonsense!" Filia said with a snort. "Rezo is awful and must be ousted, but he was a healer. Why would he turn his own flesh and blood into a freak like that? It's a lie, I'd say, to squelch our suspicions and garner our sympathy."
Filia didn't have point out to Lina that that was exactly what she thought the Capriones had accomplished, she simply let the words sink in.
"Filia, Zel's story fits with what I know about him and how he was used shamelessly by Rezo as a child. Of course, Rezo wouldn't want the world to know he'd cursed his own grandson or, worse yet, was unable to fix him, so he took Zel far away, searching for a magical stone to make him more powerful."
Lina's eyes hardened. "Rezo got a powerful, magical charm called the Philosopher's stone, then lost it, and was still using Zel to get it back when the Capriones captured Zel. I know the Capriones are rather wild, but they aren't out there murdering innocents, burning villages, or razing cities where the people disagree with their beliefs or practice some form of magic. That's Rezo and his Red Guard. The more I travel, the more I hear about him and the more I see him to be the central figure in all the problems of the world."
"I wonder what happened to that magic talisman," Sylphiel wondered aloud.
Not wanting to admit that she had had it and lost it, Lina said irritably, "Xelloss has it, but keep that top secret, okay? Now, be quiet so I can concentrate on this letter to Phil." Lina dug though her bag for her writing tools. "Xelloss wants to have riders deliver it this evening, or in the morning at latest."
The letter was written after several attempts, and it was Zelgadiss who arrived to collect it. Lina slapped it into his hand, expecting him to comment on the contents. She didn't have long to wait. On his way to the door, Zelgadiss hesitated at the door of Lina's tent.
"What else?" Lina asked. "Don't you dare rewrite it!"
"I wouldn't do that," he bit off; hurt that she should think he would. "What I wanted to ask was... Would you mind if Amelia stayed here with you? It would be crowded, I know, but I think she could use the company."
"Isn't Zelas afraid we'll try to escape with her?" Lina asked.
"I'm not asking her. I'm asking you."
Lina felt his resentment flare. Once again she couldn't help but admire his courage and compassion. She gave him a nod and waved him off with her hand.
"Yeah, sure. Bring her over, but bring some bedding with her. We're short of that as it is."
"Fine, I will. Thank you. Don't wait up. I'll have to wait until late to move her."
Zelgadiss shot Lina a small, rare smile, and left to seal the note with Amelia's personal stamp.
(O)
"I told Amelia I'd be back to escort her to her new lodgings in another hour," Zelgadiss told Xelloss as he handed over the sealed letter. "They all ought to be asleep by then."
"Good. I hope this gains us some level of trust. Lina must know by now that her magic is sealed in her tent and without that I don't think she'll try anything. Still, I suppose I should post a guard."
"We'll keep a lookout," Zelgadiss assured him.
"Thank you. I won't worry about them tonight."
Xelloss knew that meant a long night of broken sleep for Zel, Gourry, and Valgaav. He had other concerns to occupy his mind. He dismissed his friend, and then took up the letter, concealing it in an empty wine bottle. He weighed the bottle with sand to match a normal full one, wrapped the bottle in a pink and lavender flowered silk scarf as was customary for an engagement offering, and finished the present off with more frippery, trailing a string of gemstone beads, ornate baubles, and gold coins around the neck to close it off.
He kicked back the tent flap and summoned a servant to load the gifts into a caravan immediately. Xelloss placed his specially decorated bottle in a crate with a dozen other mixed bottles of wine and brandy from the clan, the lid off.
He gave the crate over to the servant and called a trusted messenger boy to the side, whispering, "Press upon the Crown Prince the urgency of opening this bottle immediately on receipt, understand?"
"Yes, the...ah...prince. Should I know what's in it?"
"Well, now, no. I think that is a secret," Xelloss whispered, noticing his mother approaching the caravan.
Xelloss smiled and helped tie down the lid before Zelas could take an interest. Of course she knew of the traditional offering and approved of her son's quick compliance with her wishes and conformity to her will. She had no reason to doubt his sincerity or his actions, including the return of the ransom money.
"You don't think I went a little overboard with the coin necklace I sent?" he asked her with counterfeit concern.
"I wouldn't have sent such a valuable piece of jewelry, but if you're out to impress the man it should do the trick," she told him.
He smiled at the compliment. "You still want me to train Lina Inverse in magic, is that right?"
"As soon as possible."
"I was planning to begin in the morning. And her friends as well?"
"If you like, although I don't sense the potential in either of those other girls like I do with the Lina girl. She should catch on quickly."
"And if she doesn't?"
"Be sure she does," Zelas said, voice cold and hard.
Xelloss knew his mother's greed for power knew no boundaries, but using Lina to achieve her goals was not settling right with him. This wedding wasn't a good thing either, but he wouldn't argue. He needed to bend to his mother's will, comply with her wishes, carry out her instructions to the letter, or at least appear to, and without question, as galling as it was becoming. His attraction to Lina was growing with their increasing contact and as impossible as their match might be, he wanted her like no other woman he had ever encountered. And he had no reasonable explanation for feeling that way. They had just met! Still, if it ever came to choosing between his mother and Lina, his mind was made up, but could he make his own plans for his people work out too?
(O)
Lina, Filia, and Sylphiel had been delighted to wake up with crowing of roosters to find the princess nestled in her blankets at the foot of their bedrolls.
"What's on my feet? Damn, if I get the chance I'm going to strangle each and every one of those foul fowls!" Lina groused. "Why do they suffer the nasty birds anyway?"
"Well, they have to have the boy birds, you know," Sylphiel said.
"Not in the morning," Filia groaned. "Is it morning? It's still dark."
"Ouch! Oh, where am I?" Amelia asked, rubbing her side where Lina had just kicked her in the ribs.
They hardly had the opportunity to say hello, when a nervous boy arrived at the tent bringing baskets of juice and bread. He dropped them at the door and fled, afraid of the strange and grouchy women inside.
"I wonder when we start our lessons today." Sylphiel said more to break the silence than for the answer.
Boots kicked up dust at their doorway and a low voice called out, "Ah, morning, ladies. When you're done, I'll take you out to the playing field."
"Guess that's your answer," Lina said. "Magic lessons begin with the rising sun, after a light meal." She raised her voice, adding, "Thanks, Gourry. We'll be ready in five."
It was late summer-early fall now, golden autumn with the stubble fields stretching into the distance, spreading toward the foothills, and beyond them, more copses and fields until the soil became too shallow at the base of the mountains. The chestnuts were just beginning to turn amber in sharp contrast to the soil, rich and dark where the last of the carrots, lettuces, and peppers had been pulled. Pumpkins swelled, dotting the hills with orange orbs and the birds picked through the broken corn fields searching for the last fallen kernels.
"Good morning ladies." Xelloss greeted them all with his cheerful countenance.
Gourry and Zelgadiss were carrying the girls' confiscated weapons and Xelloss was doling them out. Valgaav stood a little to the side, armed crossed and scowled at their progress.
"Princess Amelia, Zelgadiss will furnish you a sword, one suitable for a lady, if you don't object?"
"I would love to train with the others. Thank you, Mr. Xelloss," she replied.
"My pleasure."
As he walked toward Filia, his smile faded as she looked over his shoulder, turning up her nose and strutting proudly to meet him. Their mutual dislike was apparent to everyone, but not understood.
"Be careful with this," he warned, as he offered her her mace and a scabbard-covered sword.
"Afraid I'll clobber you over the head with this thing?" She tested the weight of the mace in a loose swing over her head.
"No, but you might hurt someone with the sword, in particular yourself, if you are unfamiliar with one."
"Oh, so it might prick that thick skin of yours? I should try that," Filia said, smiling so hard her teeth bared in a grimace.
"It could kill any of us, except Zelgadiss, of course. He's immune," he said with no explanation but a smile. "Anyway, Gourry sharpened all the blades last night."
Xelloss suddenly stepped closer, tapping Filia's arm with a gloved finger.
"Ach!" Filia cried out as his magic numbed her arm for a moment, causing the mace to fall from her grasp.
"I mean it. Be careful."
"Grrr . . . if I hadn't promised Lina to comport myself with the dignity expected of a priestess of my station, I'd show you!" Filia said, continuing to grumble to herself.
Xelloss turned his back on her, wondering how any man could be attracted to a woman like her, yet hoping Valgaav might. It would raise the probability that his plan to save his people, such as it was, would work. He walked over to where Gourry was proudly showing Sylphiel the razor-sharp edge he'd put on her blade. Valgaav hadn't budged. His sword hung at his side, his eyes glowering. Whether he was there by choice or by Xelloss' command, he did not appear to be happy about having to participate.
Xelloss took Lina aside, delegating the other girl's training to his brothers. Valgaav, Zelgadiss, Gourry, Amelia, Filia, and Sylphiel were grouped along the edge of a field, the tent encampment of the Caprione settlement to their backs and at some distance. Together, Lina and Xelloss walked off further afield.
"I thought to start off with magic training to enhance your own natural abilities, so why don't you show me what you can do?" Xelloss began.
For the next few minutes, Lina fired off spell after spell, sending scarecrows flying and splattering unripened tomatoes everywhere.
"Ah, that will do, I think," he said, holding out his arms. "I see that you prefer aggressive attack's spells over defensive."
"Got that straight."
"When you cast your strongest spell, I'd like you to add this phrasing to the end." He whispered a few words and made her repeat them twice.
"Enough! I got it already. I'm not some empty-headed nitwit," she growled. "I'll blow up that pile of rocks."
"Do you think so?" he asked, skeptically, touching her hair, feeling its smooth softness slide through his fingers.
She froze at his sudden intimacy, and then spun away from his reach.
"Focus, focus," she repeated to herself, and then she tried her fireball attack again, this time applying it to her sword.
A nearby scarecrow hung off the ground from a wooded brace. Lina lunged at the grinning dummy, driving the sword point into the head.
"Fireball!" she screamed.
The cloth and straw scarecrow burst apart; the support post rocketed past, driving into the rock pile, and blowing it to smithereens. Her success drew a wild, nearly feral, grimace to her lips.
"Yes!"
"Careful!" Xelloss rushed to her side and caught her from falling hard to the ground. "That was an impressive show. You used up more energy than either of us expected. Now, I recommend a break. Drink?"
She accepted both offers, taking the opportunity to sit and sip at the offered flask of watered down wine. "Pretty weak," she observed.
"You'll get stronger in no time," Xelloss promised.
"I meant the wine, idiot!" she said harshly, but followed up with a knowing smile.
"The alcohol kills germs, but there's not enough to affect your coordination or judgment."
"I grew up in wine country and I can tell you that this stuff is watered down because it's so terrible it would kill you to drink it undiluted."
"Really? I should have you talk with our wine makers."
"Yeah, sure."
He watched out of the corner of his eyes, gauging her energy level. He decided by the slump of her shoulders that she would need several minutes more of rest, and so he began to talk.
End Capriones, Chapter Six.