Chapter 7

"In the dark"

Zelgadis was up earlier than he had planned, but he had no intention of staying in bed any longer. Slowly, he dragged himself out of bed and made his way to the dressing table. He looked reluctantly into the large, cracked mirror. In the reflection, his eyes stared back at him, tired, but he couldn't find any comfort in them.

He had been human once. He had been flesh and blood, a soul, ambition. Sick ambition. And now? Too much time had passed for him to remember, to feel that wonderful state even in dreams. The traces that had remained in him allowed for nothing but pain and anger. To remember the faces of loved ones and enemies. Everything was so confusing...

He sighed loudly and looked away. Only then did he notice the clean clothes lying on the chair next to him. He guessed that someone must have brought them for him last night while he was already asleep. Without much thought, he pulled on the white shirt and dark trousers. Better than his tattered clothes, which he couldn't repair without magic. When he had finished dressing, not quite sure what to do with himself, he looked out of the tiny window in the room.

Through the dirty glass, he could see the dead expanse stretching out in front of him for miles and miles. He was startled to notice resemblances to the city of Saillune among the ruins. He quickly pushed the thought from his mind... The sky above was grey, veiled with swirls of dark dust, and below, thick fog drifted through the streets. The most intriguing sight, however, were the massive chains that wrapped around the entire area, holding it in a deadly grip. He remembered the bottomless abyss he had seen on his first day. It was incredible to think that the whole city could be suspended above it! Zelgadis assumed it was surely the work of magic.

Tired, he turned and sank heavily on his bed. He stretched out and closed his eyes, allowing his mind to wander freely along the paths of the past. He knew it was dangerous. After a moment, a flood of memories flooded over him, which, he suspected, only put him in a worse mood. But despite his bad mood and inner pain, he couldn't shed a single tear. Sometimes he thought that if he could feel their bitterness, it might somehow ease the pain. But... he had to stay strong. He couldn't let his life be run by sudden waves of emotion.

He let out a loud groan. And then he felt it - the sting of an alien presence trying to force its way into his consciousness.

The stream of memories stopped and he saw a figure standing in front of him, shrouded in a long black cloak. The wide hood carefully concealed the face of the figure, with only a few strands of white hair falling down onto the black robe. After a moment, the figure reached out a slender hand and touched the hood, and just as she was about to remove it, the figure turned and disappeared. Zelgadis opened his eyes and sat up in surprise. His head hurt. Covering his face with his hands, he thought for a moment and concluded that he must have fallen asleep.

A soft knock at the door drew his attention.

"It's open!" he called in a hoarse voice.

The door creaked open slightly and Gourry looked in.

"Are we leaving already?" Zelgadis asked, reaching for his sword.

"I'm afraid there might be a problem with that," the blond replied grimly.

"What do you mean?"

"Come, it's best if you see for yourself," he explained, disappearing behind the door.

"Strange," Zelgadis thought. He couldn't remember the last time Gourry had a look like that on his face. Surprised, he stared for a moment at the spot where his companion had just been, then quickly got up and left the room.

"Pull yourself together," he kept telling himself as he walked down the corridor towards the narrow staircase.

As he stepped onto the first step, he heard Kirei's excited voice:

"Not a chance!" Rei shouted angrily. "I won't let you go anywhere in this condition, just look at yourself! Do you think you can stand on your own?"

"I'll be fine," Amelia replied patiently, but her voice was so faint that Zelgadis wouldn't have heard her at all if it weren't for his heightened hearing.

"Well, we really shouldn't delay..." Lina spoke hesitantly.

"You call this delaying?" Kirei exploded.

Without waiting for further developments, Zelgadis rushed down the stairs and headed for the main hall where the shouting was coming from. He entered quietly...

On the other side of the hall, Lina was leaning against the wall, biting her lip nervously, her expression showing the inner conflict she was struggling with. Gourry huddled next to her and glared at Kirei, who was still making comments to the redhead. Zelgadis' attention, however, was drawn to Amelia. She was sitting quietly in the middle of the arguing trio. When the echo of his footsteps reached her, she raised her head and looked at him. She looked terrible. Her eyes were clouded. Zelgadis saw the deep dark circles under her eyes. Her body shook from time to time.

Now, Zelgadis understood why Kirei didn't want to go. He did not agree himself! He forced himself to move closer, afraid of seeing more terrifying changes in Amelia's appearance.

"What happened?" he asked, trying to sound firm, interrupting Rei's monologue. He tried not to look at Amelia.

"Aka... I mean, Amelia," Kirei quickly corrected under her harsh gaze, "had another nightmare, but this time it was worse than the last!" he finished hysterically.

"We can't take her in this condition," Lina said matter-of-factly.

"Can't you go without her?" Kirei's plea was obvious in his question.

"Well..." Lina hesitated. "Maybe it would be better, but we can't," she finally answered. "We don't know if we'll have a chance to get her back, and we need to get back to our world as soon as possible. It's too much of a risk..."

"I can make it! I'll be able to walk!" Amelia tried again.

"Ugh..." Lina sighed. "We still won't let you go, you know that. Get some rest, and when you're better, we'll leave. I think since you've been here for almost a year and the world hasn't fallen apart, a few more days won't make any difference."

"A few days?!" the princess cried out in indignation. "Don't joke! I'll be ready by tomorrow," she said proudly.

"Sure." The redhead smiled condescendingly.

Seeing that she had already lost this battle, Amelia slumped back in her chair in resignation.

"So, what now?" she asked indifferently.

"Rest," Kirei answered strictly. "And I have to take care of the preparations."

"Preparations?" Zelgadis inquired curiously.

"Yes, and you can help too." His expression softened. "Today, the rebels are holding a celebration in honour of the warriors you saw yesterday. Those who returned with Maya and the others," he explained. "They are happy to see their loved ones back. As am I," he added with a smile.

"Not all of them returned," Zelgadis said. Rei's face hardened again.

"They died nobly, for a just cause, for their loved ones. We should be proud, not worried. And we can't take away the right of those who remain to rejoice. I can't take away their hope..."

"Interesting point of view..." Zelgadis muttered.

"Oh! Zel, come on! Yeah, yeah... Rei, you're right," Lina said, approaching the boy and linking her arm with his. "We definitely shouldn't let all that food go to waste!" Her face brightened. It had been a long time since they had something decent to eat...

"Don't call me Rei!" the boy snapped.

(…)

For Zelgadis, the whole day was a blur of misty events. From a safe distance, he watched as people bustled about, whispering in excitement. Even his friends seemed to have disappeared in the midst of all the excitement. Only Maya walked by now and then, pretending not to see him, although Zel knew full well that she was stealing glances at him whenever she had the chance. Obviously, she still couldn't grasp his aura. It amused him a little.

Before he realised it, platters of food appeared on the large tables and people began to gather in the hall. It might not have been something they were used to in their world, but at that moment he wouldn't turn down any food. He got up and made his way to one of the empty seats. As he passed a woman in a long, light dress, she unexpectedly turned and screamed at the sight of him.

"Demon!" She looked at him in fear, and the hall fell silent.

Zelgadis opened his mouth to speak, but ended up biting his lip again. Why bother?

"Hey, hey! What's all the fuss about?" Lina burst in from seemingly nowhere. "This isn't a demon, this is a friend! A human! Well, he might look a bit strange, but... that doesn't change the fact that..."

"Stop it, Lina," Zelgadis cut her off. "It doesn't make any sense anyway." He turned away and walked away, feeling the stares of everyone gathered around him.

"Wait!" Lina ran after him. "Don't tell me you're going to let that bother you?" she asked challengingly. He didn't answer.

"Come on, let's have a drink," she suggested resignedly, changing the subject.

They sat at one of the tables for a long time, with Zelgadis just sipping the drinks that Lina kept handing him. He didn't even notice when his companions got drunk. He smiled mockingly when he saw the redhead hugging Gourry. He wondered if they would remember. With his body, he would need a lot more to reach that state. Not wanting to disturb his two friends any longer, he stood up and quietly made his way toward the stairs. At first, he intended to just go to sleep, but when he reached the stairs, he saw steps leading down. If he remembered correctly, they should lead to the kitchen.

"Why not do a little exploring?" he thought as he made his way down to the lower floor.

He was right; the first room the corridor led to was the kitchen. However, the corridor continued into the recesses of the building. Without hesitation, he took that way, using a Lightning spell to see anything at all. He passed several abandoned, old rooms, and before he knew it, he found himself at the end of the corridor. Not wanting to go back just yet, he entered the next room. It must have been used as a pantry now, because there were crates of food stacked everywhere. He sat down on one of them and picked up a bottle of wine. He opened it quickly and dipped his lips into the divine drink when he suddenly heard a scream. He jumped to his feet and spat out everything from his mouth. The scream echoed again, and then he realised that the sound was coming from just behind the wall. Quietly, he approached the spot and touched the cold stone. He ran his fingers along the wall until he felt a few planks that, under the pressure of his hand, revealed a small hole in the wall. Without thinking, he squeezed through the opening. On the other side, he was immediately surrounded by thick fog. He tried to see, but he couldn't penetrate the white barrier at all.

"No! Help!" The scream echoed again, and Zelgadis ran quickly in that direction.

As he got closer, two figures emerged from the mist. He immediately recognised Amelia, writhing on the ground in pain, clutching her head. The other figure stood beside her, dressed in a long black cloak. Zelgadis made a quick assessment of the situation.

"You!" He pointed his sword at the cloaked figure. "What have you done to her?!" He got no answer.

He furrowed his brow and strained his eyes. His heart raced like mad. His breath quickened.

"It's over for you, demon..." he muttered to himself and charged directly at the cloaked figure with his sword drawn. He was about to strike the final blow when suddenly...

"Stop!" A sharp voice rang out from behind him.

The blade of his sword trembled dangerously, barely stopping in mid-air. Why was he told to stop? Zelgadis clenched his lips in anger and raised his head to look at his opponent.

"A g-girl?!" he whispered in shock, losing all concentration and composure at once. The sword slipped from his hand and fell heavily to the ground. So, he? He had almost killed...?

A pair of frightened, tear-filled eyes stared at Zelgadis from beneath the voluminous hood. There was something strangely powerful in her gaze, but before he could realise what it was, Maya appeared. Shielding the mysterious figure with her body, she pushed Zelgadis away with such force that he fell to the ground, still dazed.

"Idiot!" Maya shouted angrily. "This is a human!"

"I can see that! How was I supposed to know?! You said yourself that demons take human form..." he tried to explain.

"Shut up! Who do you think you are to break our rules?" she hissed, clenching her fists. "Idiot! You would have easily recognised her if you had just looked at the face of the person you were about to kill!" she exploded. "As a mage, you must know that a demon can't cry!"

Well, it was true and he knew it. Maya was right too; if only he had looked at the girl's face earlier... But why was Amelia...?

"Never mind," he said curtly, rising from the ground. "You'd better take care of her instead of taking out your frustration on me." He gestured to the sobbing girl in the black cloak.

"We'll talk about this later..." Maya continued, still angry.

Zelgadis just shrugged with an indifferent expression and turned to the unconscious Amelia. Gently, he picked her up in his arms and walked towards the old temple. He paused at the main doors. The last thing he wanted was to find himself in the crowd on the other side, carrying an unconscious girl.

"You'd better follow me, otherwise Kirei will go crazy," Maya suggested in a calmer tone.

Mentally thanking her for her words, he moved in the direction indicated. They walked along a narrow path at the back of the building.

"What did you mean by rules?" Zelgadis asked suddenly.

For a long moment, silence was the only answer, but finally Maya spoke in a low voice.

"I told you, Zelgadis, I can see the human aura soulless demons lack. This allows me to tell them apart, and since neither of us wants to see innocent people killed, a basic rule has been established. None of us will kill anyone until I've seen them, unless the demon has already revealed itself and attacked. That's why I travel with warriors, even if I don't fight myself."

"I see..." he murmured. "That's a rather convenient solution."

"True, but now is not the time for that," she broke off the conversation, stopping at the same time. "Those doors..." she pointed, "are the back entrance to the temple."

Zelgadis tightened his grip on the still unconscious Amelia and opened the heavy doors.

"You can reach your room through these stairs," Maya explained. "Please take care of Akama... er, I mean Amelia. I would do it myself, but I need to keep an eye on this young lady."

She glanced at the girl in the cloak beside her, who still looked dazed, as if the shock hadn't worn off yet. Maya sighed heavily at the sight.

"My sympathies," Zelgadis remarked, on his way up the stairs.

"Don't be so smug," Maya chuckled behind him. "You also have a difficult job ahead."

Zelgadis sighed and looked at Amelia. "I really should start charging for being her bodyguard..." he muttered resignedly, earning another soft laugh.

(…)

The soft clanking of chains outside the window finally woke Amelia. Slowly opening her eyes, she propped herself up on her elbows and realised she was lying in her own bed. In her own bed?

Doubts and questions flooded her mind. What had happened? She sat up and tried to recall the last thing she remembered, but before she could, a strange smell - smoke, perhaps gunpowder - filled her senses. Confused, she raised her head and scanned the room. Nothing looked unusual, but she couldn't shake the feeling that something was wrong.

She looked around again, this time more carefully, and then it dawned on her: silence. Beyond the clanking of chains, there were no footsteps, no voices, no laughter. Nothing. So it was already night and everyone was asleep? But where was Kirei? He never let her sleep alone, he was always there. And that irritating smell was still in the air.

What was going on?

Worried, she rose and slowly made her way to the door. For a brief moment as she walked, the world around her seemed to falter. Something had happened, she could sense it. A heavy lump formed in her throat as her initial unease turned into deep fear.

Her cautious footsteps echoed dully as she moved through the corridors. The smell of smoke had become almost unbearable by the time she reached the entrance to the main hall. She pushed the doors open, but what she saw shattered the lump in her throat and left her breathless.

All around her, on the floor, on benches - everywhere - lay dozens of bodies. Blood splattered on every surface, pooling and running down to her feet.

They were all dead.

Dead.

The word pounded in her head. Amelia wanted to scream, but even that seemed beyond her now. She struggled to breathe, her mind slipping away as she fought to stay conscious. Her body refused to move, paralysed in the face of this horrific sight. A tornado of emotions tore through her.

Could this really be happening?

"Rei?" she finally choked out, her voice breaking with fear.

With all the strength she could muster, Amelia forced herself to take a step forward. She moved down the centre of the great hall, blood splashing under her feet. She wanted nothing more than to run, to escape this nightmare, but first she had to be sure...

He's not here, is he? And if he is...?

It was too much. She stopped and squeezed her eyes shut, feeling as if she'd been hit over the head with something heavy. For a moment she had the disconcerting feeling that this fear was familiar. She shuddered, but opened her eyes again. She turned her head and saw him.

He was lying in a pool of blood next to Tamaki, Maya, Lina, Gourry and...

"No, Zel, not you too..." she whispered in horror as her eyes finally found him.

She stood there, all alone, the only survivor. And in that moment she understood that her life had ended with theirs. Her eyes became clouded with grief, unable even to cry. It was too much to see their lifeless bodies. She turned sharply and ran from the hall, her hand covering her mouth.

She had no direction, just an overwhelming need to run, to get as far away from this place as possible. She pushed open the main doors and burst out. As she looked up...

If Amelia had ever imagined the end of the world, this was what it would look like. It was as if everything was falling apart at a terrifying rate, right in front of her eyes. What had once been a barren land now looked like a huge, festering wound under a blood-red sky. Charred plants twisted in every direction, slowly rotting. The air was filled with an unbearable stench. Her legs gave out and she fell to her knees.

Is this how the world ends?

Before Amelia could react, even process the horror, the chains on one side of the city snapped violently. She tried desperately to grab onto something - anything - but it was too late. There was nothing but darkness.

(...)

"No!" Amelia woke up.

Sitting up abruptly, she looked around. She was alone, lying on the floor, tangled in her own sheets. Was this... was she dreaming?

Shaking her head in confusion, she dismissed the thought. It couldn't have been a dream; it had felt too real! She shuddered at the memory of her dead friends and quickly pushed the thought away, clinging to the hope that it hadn't happened. With a sigh, she freed herself from the sheets. Still, the familiar silence left her with an uneasy feeling in her chest, prompting her to check the situation. Everything felt too much like a nightmare, but when she stepped into the main hall, relief washed over her. It was empty.

Just as she was about to turn around, she remembered to look for Kirei. Quickly, she made her way to the kitchen, hoping to find him there. She was not mistaken; as she approached, she heard soft voices coming from the room.

"At first, I thought Amelia was the fifth..."

Kirei's voice reached Amelia as she stopped in front of the door.

"I was also convinced by your explanations, but in this situation, I think there's no doubt..." a voice Amelia didn't recognise replied.

"And I said from the beginning that it wasn't her! Rei, think! Even then, too many things didn't fit - what about the mark? Some ability? She didn't have either, but this..." Maya trailed off.

"You know very well what I thought about her ability..." Rei defended.

"That's irrelevant now. This girl is the fifth; she has the mark. Has she said anything?"

"No," Maya replied gloomily. "And that's the problem. Xellos, what do you think we should do with her? Is there any way we can discover her ability?"

Amelia stood by the door, listening intently. The whole conversation felt very strange to her, and she understood little of it. And what did it have to do with her? Unable to resist the urge, she peered cautiously through a small crack in the door. The three figures were sitting around a large table. The stranger had his back to her, so she couldn't tell if she knew him, but the expressions on Rei and Maya's faces did not bode well.

"I think her power will reveal itself on its own; we just need to wait a little and leave things as they are. It may have something to do with today's incident before you brought her here," Xellos explained, glancing to the other end of the kitchen. Amelia followed his gaze and quickly realised she wasn't supposed to be overhearing this conversation.

Sitting against the wall was a huddled girl in a tattered black cloak. The sleeves were rolled up and she was scratching at her wrists with an almost inhuman fervour. Angry red welts were already visible on her pale skin. Amelia couldn't tear her eyes away from her.

"Stop!" she cried softly, pleading for someone to intervene, and suddenly... the girl stopped.

A storm of tangled black hair obscured her face, which soon lifted to reveal dark eyes staring directly at Amelia. Startled, Amelia started to flee, but then tripped over a piece of damaged floor tile and fell, staring expectantly at the door. Expecting... what exactly? The door swung open and Kirei stood in the doorway with a confused look on his face.

"Oh, it's you?"

Amelia simply nodded.

"What are you doing here?"

"I was looking for you," she replied.

"But you see, you shouldn't be here right now because we... I mean, I..."

"It's okay, Kirei! Let her in if she wants to," Maya called.

Kirei hesitated for a moment, but eventually helped Amelia to her feet and together they entered the kitchen. Amelia glanced at Maya, who was busy bandaging the dark-haired girl's hands. But there was no sign of the stranger.

"Who is she?" Amelia asked bluntly, pointing at the unknown girl.

"Don't you remember?" Maya replied, still applying the bandage. "She's the girl we found you with tonight."

"Me?" Amelia exclaimed in surprise.

"First tell me what you were doing outside?" Kirei asked. Concern was evident in his voice as he gently took her hand and sat her opposite him.

Amelia didn't answer, but began to search her memories, suddenly realising what they were talking about.

"I remember now," she finally began. "There was a party and you told me to stay in my room, but I was so bored that I decided to wander around the building. As I walked past the windows on the top floor, I saw a figure, and I don't know why, but I was sure it wasn't an Undead. She just seemed different, lost, so I went to her..."

She swallowed hard under Kirei's stern gaze. "The last thing I remember is that I touched her..." She decided to skip the part about her dream and turned her attention back to the stranger girl. "What actually happened?"

"You were lucky that Zelgadis found you before something worse happened, and you probably just lost consciousness," Maya explained. "And it's a good thing I got there before that hotheaded boy killed her."

"Zelgadis?" Amelia was surprised.

"Yes, he was angry..."

"But wait!" Amelia protested. "Why did you let that girl do that to herself?" She pointed at the girl's hands. "And where's the boy who was here with you?"

Maya froze in the middle of her movement and Kirei narrowed his eyes.

"What are you talking about?" he finally asked. "Nobody was here but us, and she had this when we found her. She hasn't said a word yet. I have no idea where it came from..."

"What do you mean? There was no one else here?"

"Amelia, think about it. If there had been someone else here, where would they have gone?" Rei said, smiling warmly.

Amelia looked at him thoughtfully, but finally decided that she probably hadn't fully woken up from her earlier dream and that she must have imagined things.

(…)

The rhythmic movements polished the smooth surface of the sword. After a few repetitions, Zelgadis could see his reflection in the blade. Satisfied, he rose from the bed and tightened his grip on the hilt. He was about to begin his usual training of thrusting and slashing when a dull pain shot through his head. The sword slipped from his hand as he clutched at his temples. It only lasted a moment, but he felt as if the image of the mysterious white-haired girl in black robes had once again flashed through his mind. He sighed when the sensation passed.

"Who are you?" he whispered to himself as he landed back on the bed.

"No, I must just be tired," he thought and fell asleep.