SailorStar9: Anyway, Chapter 10 goes up. This is Chapter 11. To all my non-reviewing readers, I love you all! Will love you more if you review! *hugs all round!*

Disclaimers: Nothing here is mine, well, except the plot and the pairing.

Chapter 11: RETURN! The Red Priest Is Back!

"Wow, is that Floogon, the famous holy tree of Sairaag?" Amelia gawked.

"They say that a long time ago, when the Swordsman of Light slew the monster beast, Zanaffar, here in Sairaag, its body began to give off a miasma of infinite evil that polluted everything around it." Aria related. "To contain the miasma and purify it, the Swordsman of Light planted the seedling of a holy tree here. And that seedling grew to become the holy tree, Floogon."

"They sure do have a lot of guards." Amelia noted, spotting the wanted posters on the wall.

"This way!" Gourry pulled the girls to hide behind a wall when they heard footsteps, the group having entered the city during the night.

"Pardon me." Sylphiel voiced. "Is that you, Gourry? It is you, Gourry. I'm so happy to see you again." She threw herself into his arms.

"Aren't you…" Gourry blinked.

"Sylphiel." Sylphiel confirmed. "I'm a shrine maiden at the shrine."

"Sylphiel." Gourry beamed. "Oh, that Sylphiel."

"I've been so worried since I heard there was a bounty on you." Sylphiel added.

"Gourry." Elc greeted the swordsman after Sylphiel brought the group to his house. "You managed to make it here safety."

"Well, I guess." Gourry noted.

"Could it be…" Elc recognized the Ragradia Sapphire around Aria's neck. "Ragradia-sama's avatar?"

"Yes." Aria nodded.

"The one who put the bounty on you." Elc stated. "A girl named Eris."

"Eris?" Lina echoed. "So, she's the one who framed me."

"That's right." Sylphiel confirmed. "She came here a month ago. She claimed you and Gourry were terrible villains and Aria was the fake Ragradia and put that bounty on you."

"What?" Lina echoed. "So some weird girl breezes into town with a story and you start spreading wanted posters?"

"No," Elc corrected. "I thought the story was a little odd. I couldn't believe Gourry would do anything like that. But she said he was under the control of the fake Ragradia."

"Someone is really out to ruin your name." Lina looked at Aria.

"And Eris proved to be a girl with impeccable references." Elc explained. "There's a great man staying in this town. It seems she's very close to Rezo, the Red Priest."

"Right, all we have to do is find that Eris girl who put the price on our heads and make her pay." Lina swore.

"So, where so we find Eris?" Amelia wondered.

"She's in a large mansion nearby." Sylphiel replied.

"Having that portrait here, means the owner of this mansion was connected to Rezo somehow." Aria concluded, the group entering the main hall and finding the life-sized painting of the Red Priest.

"Or to be more precise," Eris corrected. "This is just one of Rezo's mansions."

"So, you've finally shown yourself." Lina grinned. "You're the one who's behind all of this."

"Exactly." Eris chuckled. "The one who put the price on your heads and also sent Zangulus and Vrumugun after you, was I, Aria Waterfist."

"Who are you?" Gourry demanded.

"My name is Eris." Eris replied. "I live to serve Rezo, the Red Priest."

"But why did she put a price on our heads?" Gourry wondered.

"Why, to lure you here to Sairaag, of course." Eris answered. "That's why I stayed around here."

"And why do you need to lure us here?" Amelia asked.

"What are you after?" Lina inquired.

"First, to get the Sword of Light." Eris replied.

"And what would you do when you get the Sword of Light?" Aria asked.

"I don't have to tell you that, daughter of my most hated enemy." Eris retorted. "If you're not going to give it to me, I'll take it by force."

"It's time to end this." Vrumugun declared.

"Let's go!" Zangulus roared and the two swordsmen clashed.

"Freeze Arrow!" Vrumugun cast his spell.

"Flare Arrow!" Lina countered.

"In the name of justice," Amelia declared, levitating Aria and herself up to Eris. "I, Amelia Wil Tesla Seyruun, challenge you!"

"Well, I'll grant that you're prepared in terms of enthusiasm." Eris chuckled. "But I'm afraid the one you get to fight will be this." and summoned her mud chimera to battle.

"I hate fighting this thing!" Amelia wailed.

"Icicle Dance!" Aria sent her ice blizzard spell at the mud chimera. "Amelia, I need a fireball here, please"! she shouted, freezing the chimera. "Crap!" she muttered, the chimera shattering its ice prison.

"Blam Blazer!" the shivering Amelia released her spell at point-blank range, the chimera having crashed onto the first floor with the Seyruun princess in its grasp.

"That was close." Aria muttered, joining the group.

"Impossible." Lina gaped, having used Vrumugun as a shield to block off an ice spell when another Vrumugun appeared beside his frozen counterpart.

"There's another Vrumugun?" even Amelia was confused.

"Twins?" Gourry wondered, earning him a punch to the face by Lina.

"Not exactly." Vrumugun corrected, another replica appearing.

"Triplets?" Amelia mused.

"No, that's not it." Aria corrected. "You're Copy Men, right?"

"You're correct." Vrumugun confirmed. "We are Copy Men."

"No wonder you never seemed to mind all the times I've killed you." Lina retorted.

"Care to try and kill us again?" Vrumugun taunted. "Even if you do, more of me will only take our place. You cannot escape." A third Vrumugun appeared behind the group, preparing to release his attack. "Now it ends." The three Vrumuguns centred their attacks when the sound of a window shattering on the second floor indicated Zelgadis had arrived. A flung dagger at Eris then stopped Vrumugun from attacking.

"Don't be fooled." Zelgadis warned. "She's the one controlling them."

"Who are you?" Eris demanded.

"What's wrong?" Zelgadis questioned, pulling down his mask. "This isn't like you."

"Zelgadis?" Eris recognized the chimera. "You're trying to ruin our plans?"

"We have a sort of relationship." Zelgadis replied. "And as much as I'd prefer otherwise, suddenly meeting like this shows it's an unbreakable one."

"First you turn again Rezo and now you turn against me, Zelgadis?" Eris glared.

"I owe my loyalty to neither you nor Rezo." Zelgadis corrected. "Especially since I imagine you helped him create this body for me."

"Hold it." Lina gaped. "You mean you used to know her?"

"That's correct." Rezo concurred. "Eris and Zelgadis were both my followers."

"It can't be…" Zelgadis was shocked to see Rezo before him.

SailorStar9: Okay, this chapter is finally down. Read and review folks.