Capriones 8/21/2006

Disclaimer: We shall make use of several of the characters from The Slayers, none of whom belongs to us.

Chapter Thirty -- The Philosopher's Stone

Zelgadiss glanced with alarm at Lina, unintentionally tipping off Rezo to suspect that it was she who had the Philosopher's Stone. It wasn't, however, enough to convince the cardinal absolutely; that hint came from Xelloss.

Xelloss' heart swelled with joy. Lina was safe! His next decision would be a life-defining one. If he wanted to be a part of life, and not just a watcher, he would have to let himself love her fully. He would not allow her to sacrifice herself, as Zelas had expected, and let her take on Rezo alone. He needed to draw enough power to charge his attacks. He had already begun, causing the red orb atop his staff to glow dully, but it would take more time. Could he let Lina risk herself, giving him that time, or attack Rezo himself and risk failure? His nature had already made the choice, but if he pulled back now, then he would lose his chance at happiness and fulfillment.

As Lina jumped from the horse to the ground, Xelloss set out in her direction. His naked yearning to be at her side was misinterpreted by Rezo as a craving, such as his, for the magic amulet. It was Lina Inverse who carried the Philosopher's Stone and Rezo had to possess that stone!

Rezo shouted a simple command, clearing men obstructing his path to Lina, while at the same time secretly casting a spell to ensnare her. Like a serpent, the spell slithered along the ground unseen, then spun up her legs, over her torso and up to her chin, encircling her and drawing tight, before she could launch a counter attack.

"Don't anyone move!" Rezo shouted. "Or the bands will tighten, and they are razor sharp!"

Xelloss halted less than a caravan's length from her, his staff gripped with white-knuckled intensity. Rezo dismissed Xelloss, perhaps prematurely. Rezo didn't believe Xelloss would be a problem for him, since he had destroyed his mother and everyone knew Zelas was the strongest magician of the Capriones.

Rezo stalked around Lina looking her over, his shoulders straight, his chin held high. Rezo gave Lina the respect she merited. She was a powerful sorceress, but she should realize that he was soon to be all-powerful and that she would lose any battle with him. She should be begging for her life! Instead, though, there was no fear in her eyes, only anger. Had she the stone and not the knowledge to use it? Could she break the binding spell with her hands tied, so to speak, he wondered?

Lina was splitting mad, unable to move her arms and barely able to breathe. So, she observed. There was Rezo, the smug bastard. There behind him were her friends and comrades, except for Filia. She hoped Filia was okay. Xelloss, she noticed with a blink to clear a trickle of sweat, was drawing power through his staff readying himself for a massive attack. She had never actually seen him demonstrate the strength of his abilities, but she imagined he could fire off a pretty good wallop, enough to break the spell holding her, should he need to. He just needed more time, so she set about holding Rezo in conversation, putting off any attack until Xelloss gave her some kind of sign.

"Okay, buster," she managed to say. "So, what do you want?"

Rezo moved closer to examine her better. The stone was not in view, nor could he feel its magic. "Well, I certainly want an outlaw like you dead, but first I thought I'd give you the opportunity of redemption."

"Redemption? Like saving my soul or something? No, thanks. I'm fine the way I am and I have done nothing to offend the gods that needs apologizing for, and in particular I don't need the likes of you acting as an interpreter."

"You think so? I see. Talking to the gods now, are we?"

"Well, I do, in my own way. I can't actually say who it is you talk to these days. Yourself maybe?"

"Hold your tongue, you smart-mouthed little girl! I thought you might consider the welfare of your friends or these people as worth something in trade."

"I might, though my hands are what's tied up here, leaving me just about enough space to hold my breath. What do you think I have that you want?"

"I demand the Philosopher's stone." Rezo noticed her eyes widen briefly in surprise.

"No can do," she said.

The words just escaped Lina's lips, when Rezo tightened the coils on his spell. Blood oozed along her arms where the enchanted wires sliced through her clothing, stinging so violently that Lina had to bite her lip to stop herself from crying. She wouldn't give the sadist the satisfaction of seeing her cry.

"We shall have it, now!"

"Oh, for the love of..." Lina forced out between her teeth. "More of those plural personalities! Ahhh...!"

Rezo smiled as his torture of Lina commenced.

"Stop it now!" Xelloss shouted. "She hasn't got the Philosopher's stone!"

"Xelloss!" Lina cried out.

Xelloss rested his gaze on her, smiling. "I have it."

Shaking her head to the point of drawing blood, Lina shouted, "No! Don't! Don't give it up!"

"He will, if he wishes to spare the lives of the innocent," Rezo's lips turned up into a sneer. "More than you do, apparently."

Xelloss pulled a dark lump from a pocket and held it up. The black stone shone like glass in the sun a moment, and then he tossed it carelessly to Rezo.

"Here!"

"What!" Zelgadiss roared, running to his side. "What are you doing!"

The others wondered at the significance of the act which consumed the attention of the Rezo, Xelloss, Zelgadiss, and Lina. Rezo's obvious delight in possessing the object signified that it was valuable. So, what did it mean if Xelloss gave it away without first securing Lina's freedom, or anybody else's? Lina and Zelgadiss looked appalled, stricken by what Xelloss had done. Amelia whispered her opinion to the others.

"I think Mr. Xelloss is too clever to throw away something precious, and he'd never betray the Capriones."

"Or Lina," added Sylphiel.

Gourry had managed to work his way over to where Zelgadiss and Xelloss stood.

"The red ball on your staff is starting to glow," he said to Xelloss.

Gourry was about to say more, but Xelloss held up one finger, saying "Watch this."

Rezo was shouting about his supplemented power and how he would go down in history as the greatest sorcerer of all time.

"First I shall rid this world of you, Lina Inverse!" Rezo bellowed as he attempted to activate the stone.

However, even as he attempted to cast a new, terrible spell, his previous one holding Lina relaxed just enough that Xelloss deactivated it. The spell uncoiled, emitting a hissing sound, and released Lina's limbs.

"What!" Rezo cried out, uncertain at first why the stone was not working properly.

Xelloss asked innocently, "Is it not what you expected?"

"NO! It's not the real thing. What have you done with the real stone, you master of treachery?"

Xelloss thought of a dozen things to say. He looked sideways at Lina's face. At first he was not sure if could see fear in it or not. It occurred to him that perhaps she desired this. The rush of blood, the excitement, the danger might be intoxicants to her– they were to him! Xelloss held up a matching stone dangling from a silver chain.

"Naturally, I wouldn't risk losing a priceless magical tool. I had a phony made, as I did with Amelia's bride price. My apologies to your father, princess, but I couldn't part with a necklace as valuable as that, even as a dowry for you."

He winked back at Amelia as her hand automatically flew up to her neck, touching the necklace she still wore. "Although, the one I sent Prince Philionel is quite fine, it is nowhere as valuable as the one you are wearing. Similarly, I had ornithon amulet copies made to trade for our freedom. So, Cardinal, you can see that we Capriones are very crafty, and skilled."

Xelloss tossed the stone strung upon a chain to Lina. She snatched it out of the air before Rezo could, and immediately finished off her incantation. Although Lina had no idea how to use the stone, she knew Xelloss wouldn't give it to her if he didn't think she could!

"Ragna Blade!" she yelled as a light-absorbing, blade-like weapon sprang crackling from her hands.

It continued to grow to enormous proportions, pulsating with black, magical energy amplified by her own amulets. Lina and Rezo were the center of attention with hatred, rage, and a will to do violence fueling them both.

"Rezo!" she shouted above the rising roar of her enchanted sword. "There are some people, like you, to whom any sort of celebrity would be better than none, that to be ignored would be considered a type of death. And I think that just terrifies you. Anonymity creates an engulfing darkness that eventually annihilates your psyche. Anything is better, even loathing, isn't it? It's a kind of madness from which here is only one cure, as I see it– death."

Xelloss jumped as Lina's Ragna Blade spell screeched, sliding across Rezo's gigantic enchanted shield, sending sparks flying into the air. Rezo hunched over, bent nearly to the ground in order to block her attack. Xelloss couldn't tell if Lina could control the awful spell long enough to drain Rezo of his power. If not, then she would be in serious danger and too weak to fend off a counter attack. Sweat dripped from her face; her arms trembled. He didn't think she could hold out much longer. Rezo was weakening, too. It was close. Xelloss hastened his preparations to finish the battle.

"You'll need barriers– the strongest shielding spells you can summon," Xelloss shouted to Zelgadiss and the Amelia. Zelgadiss pulled Gourry back behind him as his hands began to glow with building power. Sylphiel and Milgasia nodded understanding they were needed too, and began their own incantations.

As Lina tried one last swing at decapitating Rezo with the enchanted blade, Xelloss finally tapped into the power of the Philosopher's stone, the real one, which he had kept. Energy flooded his senses. It was all he could do to focus his mind on his purpose, directing the flow of energy outward into his staff.

"Goodbye, Cardinal," Xelloss said, then pointed his staff at the cardinal's mid-section and let loose the spell.

(O)

"I think the boss likes that blonde warrior-woman," Gravos said, jerking his head out of the way of the Red Guardsman's sword.

"Who wouldn't?" squeaked his smaller companion, the fox-like Jillas. "She's a real bomb-shell. Yip!"

Gravos smashed the guardsman to a pulp, saving his little friend from being skewered, while snarling a warning, "Yep, now you keep yer eyes open and don't let nothing harm them."

Valgaav looked at Filia, still fighting and looking exhausted and filthy. No doubt her body ached just as much as his, her skin stung, her head felt pummeled and her lungs were tight and sore every time she took a breath, and yet she battled on showing no weakness or loss of intensity. And then suddenly she was looking at him, her eyes bright and sharp, seeing every flicker that crossed his face. He felt the heat in his cheeks and knew he was coloring. Whether anyone had noticed his awkward courtship of her, or not, wasn't likely, but now anyone with a single operating eyeball could see how intense was the mutual caring.

"Your makeup is smudged," she said, laughing.

Valgaav touched a finger to his facial stripes, his eyes never leaving hers. He closed the distance between them, and reached out to press her to him. He was amazed at how slight she was hidden by the multiple layers of heavy clothing she wore. Her laughing turned to weeping and she clung to him so hard it bruised his skin, and he was happy just to feel the strength of her. He closed his own arms around her and held on to her while he lost all sense of time and it really did not matter anymore.

She looked up at him a moment longer, weighing what he thought, what he felt, then she was satisfied. Her eyes filled with warmth and, smiling, she moved her arms around his neck, pulling his face lower, and kissed his lips. Relief washed over him in a warm, sweet tide. He had never been more grateful for anything in his life. He responded to her with his whole heart.

But only for an instant. A light filled the sky flickering first white-hot then void-black, stunning everyone and halting the fighting. There was no sound for an instant, and then came a sucking sound, as if the earth had taken a sudden gasp of air, followed by a hollow roar from the bowels of the planet.

"Get down! All of you!" Valgaav shouted, as he yanked Filia's arm, pulling her to the ground. "Get under a wagon!"

Even covering their ears with their hands, the noise was overwhelming. The ground shook in wave after wave of magical energy forced the floor of the valley to move. Somehow Valgaav dragged both himself and Filia beneath a caravan, hoping the axle wouldn't break and crack open their skulls, but then the fallout began peppering them with dirt and debris.

"What...?" Filia tried to ask, her words lost in the uproar around them. "Dragon Slave?"

"Yeah, plus something else and a whole hell of a lot of protective shielding set up or we'd be one with a crater right now."

As the rock-pelting let up, Valgaav and his people emerged from the wreckage. A head count revealed that all the Cepheid followers had survived with amazingly few injuries and those minor. Many of the Red Guard had been unwilling to act on Valgaav's warning, taking the full force of the fallout to their heads, and died pummeled to death. The others, dazed and in shock, stumbled into view and were quickly dispatched by the Cepheid warriors

Both Valgaav and Filia starting running on foot, knowing that the other wanted the same thing- which was to find their friends.

"Get off of me, you lug!" shrieked Jillas, pushing and kicking at the larger beast man who had sheltered him with his own body.

Gravos groaned and rolled over, bleeding.

Gravos? Hey! One of you healer people! Help me over here! Man down!" Jillas cried out.

A lean, blond man scooted to his side and imediately began applying healing magic to the prone man.

"Is he going to be okay? He's gonna make it, right?" Jillas asked repeatedly, his eyes tearing up.

"Yes," the Cepheid man whispered. "He's a strong man, your friend here."

"Thanks..." Jillas let out his breath as Gravos sat up, shaking his head. Jillas smiled as he panted.

"Come on, you big lug. You've had yer rest. Get up then. We gotta take care of the boss man!"

(o)

"Dear gods preserve us all!" Rodimus shouted, uncharacteristically religious.

"What was that? Surely Rezo hasn't recovered the stone!" Zolf said, his voice a hoarse whisper in his comrade's ear.

"Ride on!" Rodimus roared to the men behind them. His hand was rock-steady as he knew he was leading them to their deaths. Still, it would be a grand death.

(o)

Nearly blinded by the brilliant strobe of light, King Philionel of Seyruun ordered his troops to a halt. He braved the possible dangers to ride ahead to the top of the rise. There he could look down upon the retinue of Red Guardsmen between where he sat and the smoldering wreckage that he took to be the Caprione settlement. A wave of sadness brought tears to his eyes. He had arrived too late. Rezo had exterminated the Capriones. Then the wind picked up, clearing the smoke and revealing a cluster of living human beings, and Lina Inverse was among them!

"Take courage in the belief that Justice Prevails!" Phil bellowed over his shoulder. "We come to save our fellow countrymen from the devil himself! Charge!"

With a thunder of hooves and roar of enthusiasm, King Philionel del Seyruun and his palace guard swooped down upon the last regiments of the Red Guard, penetrating their defenses.

"What's wrong with Xelloss?" Lina cried out, pushing off the ground on one elbow.

Sylphiel had rushed to her side the moment Rezo collapsed. The cardinal was scorched and unquestionably dead, Lina, however was alive, but hurt and needed care.

"Shhh, Valgaav's arrived with Filia," Sylphiel told her while applying healing magic to Lina's torso. "They are all talking to him now."

"But what's the problem?"

"I don't know, but the Philosopher's stone has something to do with it. Like he can't let go of it."

"I have to go to him," Lina insisted. "Let me go!"

"As soon as I have healed your injuries. Now, sit still!"

Milgasia, Valgaav, and Filia were with Gourry, attempting to reason with Xelloss. Zelgadiss and Amelia were lost in a long-awaited embrace.

"Just take the damn thing off, Xelloss," Valgaav said. "Or hand it to me."

Xelloss turned his glowing red eyes toward his brother. He was floating several feet off the ground, and his body shimmered with an energy field. "I can touch the world, all at once."

"You're touched, all right. That stone's giving you delusions, dude. Just take it off and drop it on the ground."

"It must be destroyed!" Amelia announced and she and Zelgadiss closed in. "Can't you see it is evil?

"No!" Xelloss shouted. "What a waste of an invaluable tool!"

Zelgadiss agreed, "Okay, then it needs a keeper who's incorruptible."

"But who?"

Lina could tell by the look in Xelloss' eyes that he wouldn't willingly give it up to anyone. She had to think fast and come up with a winning argument.

"Ah, listen up guys. Xelloss is no fool. He knows a good thing when he sees it. He knows value. How do we value things?"

"By how much it costs, but..." offered Amelia.

"Right!" Lina parted from Sylphiel and burst past Amelia. "Money fixes the worth of something. Xelloss returned your father's gold, sending the chest back with that necklace of paste gemstones and wooden nickels, but kept the family heirloom, and you."

"Yes, but I still have the real necklace!" Amelia said.

"Sure. You were either going to end up being his wife, and he'd be getting it back, or you'd be Zel's bride and Zel would pay it back to Xelloss to gain you."

Amelia looked to Zelgadiss, who shrugged and said, "We haven't exactly had the opportunity, but if he asked me for it, I would."

"Sure, just look at these," Lina said holding out her arms to show off the amulets there. "Xelloss knew he could buy my loyalty and will power--voluntarily, I might add-- as his magic student with these."

"Miss Lina! You can't tell me you believe... It's not always about money!" Amelia drew a deep breath and stood her ground. "Valgaav gained his freedom, his return to a position of royalty wholly in his power. No money changed hands there. Xelloss likes you, too. You don't believe that everything's all just a cash transaction between you!"

"No, I don't. And you don't know all the details with Val, not that I do. Anyway, don't get me off track here My point is that now Xelloss' got something of supreme value that could make him a god– what incentive has he got to give it up? What's it worth?"

The storm grew in ferocity converging over Xelloss as he continued to attract and absorb all of nature's energy into his body. Lina bravely stepped closer to Xelloss. She could feel the power pulsating from his body. His eyes, no longer red, were toneless and indistinct; his hair was floating off his shoulders. As she raised a finger to touch him, she shuddered at the crackle of electricity. Lina had Xelloss' attention now. It was her turn to gamble, and there was no going back.

"So, what's it worth to you, Xelloss?"

"Make me an offer," Xelloss intoned in an inhuman voice.

"I can return the amulets, but I know that's not enough without asking. Here, I can empty my pocket of all my treasures and coins, everything I've got. Doesn't come close to that stone, huh? Guess there's nothing I've got you want. Or is there?"

End Capriones, Chapter Thirty.