Chapter 2
"Old and New"
Amelia couldn't fall asleep for a long time. She stared at the outline of his silhouette, just bearly visible against the darkness. He slept so peacefully. No wonder, after all, he finally had a chance at what he wanted most in the world. Something he wanted more than her...
The campfire had long since gone out, only the moonlight and the stars provided a little comfort. She leaned her back against a nearby boulder and hugged her legs to her chest. She felt safer that way. Funny... She, Amelia Will Tesla Saillune, defender of justice, ally in the fight against the Lord of Darkness, brave and determined... was afraid of the dark! Like a little child. She couldn't admit it, of course. Mr Zelgadis would think of her as a child, and Miss Lina would never give her a break. But now, she wasn't only afraid of the darkness, but also of the journey that had already begun. She looked at Kazuki... She knew very well that something had happened in the forest.
"Lina! Amelia, help us!" Amelia slowly opened her eyes, she was alone in their camp...
"Amelia! No!" A deafening scream pierced the darkness.
"Mr Zelgadis?!" The princess rose immediately. It was still dark, and she thought she must have dozed off. "Where are you?!"
Without hesitation, she ran through the forest towards the screams and sounds of battle. Her muscles strained to the limit as she ran faster and faster, ready to fight, ready to defend. It wasn't until a moment later that she realised that with every step she took, the forest and everything around her was being engulfed in darkness. She didn't stop, and after a while she ran into the black abyss. Terrified, she closed her eyes, and when she opened them, she saw the city at her feet. Or rather, what it once was.
Beneath the bloody dome of the sky, crooked towers and houses rose. The chains that snaked across the landscape like snakes had been eaten away by rust. The chains seemed to hold everything up above the darkness. The screams came from a small square that was the central point of the area. She ran down the hill towards it. When she turned and looked back where she had come from, she saw only darkness.
"Amelio! Come here!"
"Mr Gourry? Miss Lina?" she called as bravely as she could, but her voice was full of panic.
When she found herself in the main square, where the screams were coming from, everything around her suddenly whirled... She felt cold metal beneath her feet. She looked down and saw that she was standing on a mighty chain, suspended above the abyss. She tried to cast some kind of spell, but felt completely powerless.
"Amelia? " She looked at Zelgadis, the chain dangling dangerously over the abyss.
"Zel... " She didn't have time to finish before she saw the boy slip off the chain and fall into the darkness.
His eyes became empty, lifeless...
Merciless laughter tore at her heart... Was anyone else there?
Without thinking about it any longer, Amelia threw herself into the infinite abyss after Zelgadis, after her beloved?
Darkness covered everything...
…
Water?
The princess opened her eyes. She was drowning! Holy shit! She looked up and saw the starlight above her stop on the smooth surface of the water. She felt her lungs running out of air. She tried to swim out, but something was holding her back. Her legs became entangled in the grasses that grew at the bottom of the shallow pool.
It's over... thought a panicked Amelia. Mr Zelgadis will never know how I felt about him, Miss Lina and Mr Gourry, I will never see them again! But... how?
There are only a few moments left to live, to exist, to love. There is nothing more, never, nothing!
In the name of justice, no!
Amelia saw images in front of her. They spun around her like a puzzle. The puzzle of her life, but who would put it together? She was about seven years old, playing with her father in their castle. Her mother lay in a pool of blood. Zelgadis smiling at her...
Suddenly, she felt a hand on her shoulder. It lasted only a split second. Zelgadis swam to her and grabbed her arms. She felt as if there was no air left in her lungs...
It's nice to see you before death... she thought and slowly closed her eyes, keeping this image for eternity…
…
Zelgadis lay on the hard earth. He couldn't sleep. He knew Amelia wasn't asleep either, but somehow he didn't have the courage to look her in the face. Why does this girl sacrifice herself so much for him?
Maybe... no, that's impossible! he told himself mentally, cutting off those thoughts and closing his eyes again.
"Mr Zelgadis?" A voice came from behind him. Should he answer? But what should he say?
"Yes, Amelia?" he asked with forced curiosity, he didn't feel like talking at all.
"Where are you?" Now it was a scream full of fear.
Zelgadis turned around in surprise. He saw Amelia abruptly get up and run into the forest. Without a moment's thought, he ran after her.
"Amelia! Come back here!" he shouted frantically after her.
"Mr Gourry? Miss Lina?" the girl shouted, accelerating her run so that the Chimera lost sight of her for a moment.
Zelgadis searched for her, lost in the forest. He had to find her, but he couldn't understand what was happening. After a few moments, guided by his intuition, he reached the nearby lake and found Amelia walking confidently towards the centre of the deep water. For a moment, he even felt relieved to have found her.
"Zel..." He heard his name and then saw the girl suddenly disappear beneath the smooth surface of the water.
Relief turned to terror.
He immediately dove in after his friend. He swam deeper and deeper until he saw her at the bottom of the shallow pool, struggling in the tangle of seaweed. It all seemed to take only fractions of a second. He grabbed her arms and looked into her eyes. He didn't see the usual sparkle in them; he only saw life slipping away with each passing moment.
You can't leave me now! he shouted in his mind.
Did Amelia light up when she saw him, or was it just his imagination?
Air! Damn it!
It would take a few moments to get her out of this mess, and he didn't have a minute!
She has to live... he thought, then leaned his face against hers.
His lips touched hers... Her tender lips, and then he breathed warm air into her body...
No, it wasn't a kiss. It was only the transfer of breath. Giving breath to a body from which life was fleeing...
…
Zelgadis was furious.
Why is that stupid girl getting into trouble again? And why does he have to be the one to act as her 'bodyguard' again? He's on a higher level in the civilisation hierarchy than Gourry - Lina's bodyguard, so why! He certainly won't get involved in something like that again.
Let Gourry get two jobs and look after Amelia too, he thought ironically.
When they managed to get out of the water, or rather when he managed to get out of the water because Amelia was unconscious, he felt completely exhausted. He laid her frozen body on the grass and sat down beside her. He was worried about the girl, but it was all too much for one evening. First the adventure with Kazuki and now this. Besides, he hoped that Amelia wouldn't remember what had happened under water. He didn't want her to misunderstand him...
Because he didn't intend to...
"Cold..." A soft whisper steered his thoughts in a new direction.
"What happened?" he asked harshly, removing any remaining sympathy from his voice, and Amelia felt it grow even colder.
"I... I heard your screams... from the forest, and..."
"And?"
"I ran there... I... I don't know, then everything disappeared, and after a while I saw some kind of city suspended by huge chains. You were calling to me... I saw you fall... into the great darkness..." A chaotic response rang out. Tears shone in her eyes. "I fell too..." she continued.
This version was still better than 'I jumped after you'.
Zelgadis sighed tiredly.
"When I opened my eyes, I was trapped at the bottom of the lake. I thought it was all over for me," she added softly, the tears that had gathered on her lashes streaming down her cheeks. "Then you appeared..." Zelgadis waited nervously for the rest of the story. "I don't remember anything else, I'm sorry," she finished, and the boy breathed a sigh of relief. That would be his secret now.
Why? He didn't know.
There was a long, uncomfortable silence, broken only by Amelia's sobs. They both felt lost in recent events.
"Stop crying," Zelgadis' harsh comment broke the silence. "You're always acting like a child..."
"I'm sorry," she replied, wiping away her tears and trying to regain control of herself.
"Forget it. You just had a bad dream and sleepwalked," he said as he stood up. "Come on. I don't intend to freeze on this shore until morning." He walked towards the camp. "And it's better not to mention the whole incident to the others. I don't feel like explaining myself."
Amelia nodded and followed her 'saviour'.
…
In the morning, Lina, Gourry and Kazuki awoke from a deep sleep, completely unaware of the events of the night, and a tired Zelgadis and Amelia tried to avoid each other's gaze for a long time after waking.
"What's for breakfast?" Lina cheerfully started the day, and as if to confirm her words, Gourry's stomach let out a loud growl.
It took some time to gather enough food for Lina to even consider it breakfast. They managed to catch a few fish from the nets they had set earlier, and miraculously, Gourry even caught a rabbit, which was now roasting over the fire.
"Miss Lina, I didn't think that such a small person like you could eat so much," Kazuki said as he saw the redhead consuming unimaginable amounts of food.
"Small?! Do you have something against me? Is that some kind of reference to my beautiful breasts?" she hissed angrily, sensitive to her own complexes.
"Oh no, not at all!" the man replied quickly, forcing a smile.
"Which way do we go to get to the Temple of Chaos?" Zelgadis asked calmly, interrupting the argument.
"Zel, do you always have to ask such questions at moments like this?" replied Lina, who was about to throw a fish at Kazuki for such an insult.
"Sorry," he replied with an ironic smile. "So, Kazuki?"
"There will be good news for Princess Amelia because we have to go through Saillune."
"Through Saillune? That will be a great opportunity to visit your father, won't it, Amelia?" Gourry said happily.
"Maybe..." she replied sadly, and such an answer immediately surprised everyone.
"Amelia, what's wrong?" the redhead asked, but Amelia said nothing.
The princess felt guilty. Terribly guilty about what had happened the night before. She had seen Zelgadis' anger and felt that he would never accept her the way she wanted him to. But when he held her in his arms... for a moment, she hoped she was wrong. She wanted to atone for all her mistakes and bad behaviour and win back his sympathy. She felt that her own thoughts were unfamiliar. Perhaps this was part of her punishment? Old and new. Was she still the same Amelia?
After the third 'second breakfast' they could finally leave. Lina was having a heated discussion with the blonde, Zelgadis had drifted off somewhere with his thoughts, and Amelia was walking quietly with her head down. Only Kazuki was watching her intently.
"Why are you so sad?" Kazuki asked.
"Why do you think I'm sad?" she replied sarcastically.
"I can see it and you should know that you are losing a lot. You look so much more beautiful, Princess, when you smile," he said and gave her a beautiful flower that he had picked just a short time ago.
"Thank you," she replied, slightly shocked. Involuntarily, she gave him a smile and felt herself blush, but Lina and Gourry didn't notice, and Zelgadis? He probably wouldn't admit it anyway. Not even to himself. The fact that he was watching the whole situation out of the corner of his eye, he would probably explain to himself as the beginning of a squint.
…
The journey to Saillune was peaceful, some might even say boring. They encountered a few local bandits, whom Lina quickly sent to the other world with the Dragon Slave, while Gourry had developed a new technique called "Vigilant Warrior", which involved sleeping in every possible situation.
Finally, when there were still three days of marching to Saillune and it seemed as if they would pass as calmly as the others, if not for...
"Lina?" Zelgadis asked one afternoon.
"I know, I feel it too. Someone is following us..." she replied, looking back nervously.
"I've been trying to locate them, but I can't, and they don't seem to have any intention of revealing themselves."
"If they need a special invitation, let's give them one." A controlled madness flickered in Lina's eyes...
The wind tore at the cloaks of the travellers with its strong gusts. The redhead looked around carefully and began to mutter something. Before Zelgadis could get his bearings, he saw a ball of fire streaking towards the bushes.
"Why are you just standing there, Zel?! I think I got him!" shouted Lina, running towards what must have once been part of the forest.
When they arrived at the scene, all five of them looked like they had a heart attack. The stranger was leaning against a tree trunk, rubbing a huge bump on his head. He grinned as he saw the stunned faces of the people who had gathered around him.
"Xellos?!" Lina shouted, almost deafening the others.
"Oh, hello, Lina," Xellos replied sarcastically.
"Do I need to remind you what happens when you offend Lina Inverse?!" she shouted, baring her teeth like a hungry wolf. "What the hell are you doing here and why are you following us? And for your own good, I suggest your explanation be convincing!" she added, grabbing him by his clothes.
"I'm sorry, Lina..." Xellos began, scanning everyone's faces. He stopped when he saw Kazuki and smiled mischievously. "But it's a secret," he finished and turned his gaze back to the angry girl. In a moment, he was gone.
"Xellos, you miserable reptile! Come back here!" Lina threatened, waving her fist in the air.
"Um, Lina?" Gourry asked timidly.
"What?!" the girl snapped.
"Who was that, anyway?"
Of course, this primitive question went unanswered, causing the gathered group to let out a loud sigh of irritation and exhaustion. Hearing this, Lina couldn't help but take out her anger on the poor blonde. Surprisingly, he took it calmly, or at least as calmly as you can when you're being punched in the head.
…
It was late evening. The sky was filled with dark blue clouds and it would probably rain. The journey had been quiet for them since their encounter with Xellos. Neither of them had noticed the presence of the demonic priest again. Of course, they had tried to get to the bottom of the reason for his 'visit', but what was there to be gained from an imprecise guess? Xell had always been mysterious. The strangest thing was that since that incident, Kazuki had stopped behaving in his usual overly pleasant manner. Now, he tended not to speak at all. Amelia noticed this immediately and even tried to engage him in conversation at first, but his reluctance quickly discouraged her as well.
According to Zelgadis' calculations, they should reach Saillune by midday the next day. Tired from the journey, they busied themselves with setting up camp for the night.
"I will go and fetch the wood," Amelia said, eager to get on with the task that had always been assigned to her.
"Good, good, just hurry up!"
She had already turned her head back to the nearby tree trunks when suddenly someone grabbed her by the arm.
"Don't you dare," he whispered directly into her ear. "You'd better stay here, because I don't want you to bring another freak to us." He stepped back and smiled at the embarrassed girl.
So he smile sometimes?
"Mr Zelgadis, this isn't funny!" she outraged.
"Sure, but let me be the one to go and get the wood." The silly smile still remained on his face, and Amelia, unable to stop herself, smiled back.
In the end, they managed to organise everything somehow. The fire crackled merrily in the campfire and the smell of roasting food wafted through the air. They were all very tired after such a long journey without stopping at any decent place. They simply sat down to eat, which in the case of Lina and Gourry still took a lot of effort as they fought over every bit of food, and after that they fell asleep.
...
Amelia sat leaning against the trunk of an old tree. The cool air brushed against her face and she lost herself in thought. But that didn't last long, because after a while she felt someone looking at her. When she opened her eyes, she saw Kazuki crouching in front of her, smiling at her and sitting down next to her.
"What are you thinking about, Princess?" he asked quietly.
"I... about nothing in particular." Each time he looked at her, his eyes seemed to light up.
"You look depressed, aren't you happy to see your hometown?"
"Of course I am, it's just that..." Why does he have to sit so close to her that she can't concentrate on her own words?
"That...?"
"I was thinking about the book you wanted to show us. Why are you helping us at all"
"You're clever. Everyone was incredibly quick to accept my earlier explanation, even though I made that story up on the spot... Apparently, your friends were too preoccupied with visions of hijacking the book for their own purposes. Going back... I'm helping you, not them."
"Helping me?"
"Yes, you. I was in debt to your mother."
"To my mother?! Did you know her?"
"You could say that," he replied mysteriously.
"What was the debt?"
"Hmm, I won't tell you!" he replied, smiling and narrowing his eyes slightly. "I have a better idea, shall I tell you a secret?"
"A secret?" Amelia asked curiously.
"Just don't tell your companions, okay?"
"If you wish so."
"With the Book of Chaos, you can bring the dead back to life."
"But that is impossible!"
"Not if you don't have such a book. So perhaps in a few days you will have the opportunity to ask your mother yourself about this debt and everything else?"
"Raising the dead..." Suddenly Amelia's head was flooded with thoughts.
"Then I'd better go." Kazuki said and stood up with a smile and the clear conviction that what he had just said was completely normal. "I would rather have a rest before the rest of my journey."
She simply could not believe what she had just heard! Could this mean a second chance for her and her mum? Impossible! And yet... it happened. So this book could change their whole life...
Will they be able to make a family again? And what would dad say? she thought.
A sudden flash of lightning interrupted her thoughts, followed immediately by thunder that cut through the humming wind. The first raindrops fell, and with them Amelia was hit by the past. Painful memories and ties that held her captive. Was it finally time to break them, to break free? It had been so long ago, but the image of her mother lying in a pool of blood with a dagger in her chest was still fresh in her memory. She remembered vividly what she must have seen when she entered her room. She remembered her helplessness. That was when her older sister, Gracia, had left her. It was the first time she had been alone...
The rain had increased in intensity, but Amelia was no longer sure if it was just drops of water running down her face. After a while, there was nothing left of the campfire that had provided some light. Lina mumbled some sort of shield spell in her sleep, protecting those sleeping from the downpour. Amelia, however, stayed where she was. She didn't care if she got wet. She cared little about anything now. Was there really a chance for her after so many lost years? The girl closed her eyes and, thinking of nothing else, listened to the falling rain. Its soft songs soothed her tired mind. Black strands of hair clung to her face, obscuring her vision. She continued to listen for long minutes, as if in a trance.
The soft rustling of someone's coat interrupted the music of the rain for a moment. Someone crouched down beside Amelia again.
"What else do you want, Kazuki? Do you have any more news that will miraculously change my life?" Amelia said sarcastically, annoyed that the boy had interrupted her listening.
"Amelia, I thought you remembered my name."
That voice?
She opened her eyes, but the hair falling over her eyes and the prevailing darkness prevented her from looking at her interlocutor. After a moment, a hand touched her forehead, brushing her hair aside.
"Mr Zelgadis..." she began shyly.
"Amelia, when are you going to stop calling me 'Mister'? I'm getting a bit tired of it, you know?" the boy interrupted, putting his arm around her shoulders.
"Mr Zelgadis, what are you doing?"
"Firstly, stop calling me "Mister", and secondly, someone has to look after you," he replied calmly, covering them both with his cloak.
"Watch?!" The girl was indignant.
"I am too tired tonight to chase you through the forest in the middle of the night, so I prefer to prevent the situation from happening in the first place." He smiled at Amelia.
"But I..."
"Come on. Besides, I know you're afraid of the dark."
"You know that?"
It was a bit of a shock. After all, she hadn't told anyone about it, how could he know?
"I know, but don't worry, I won't tell Lina," he said jokingly.
"You'll get wet..." Amelia said simply.
She felt a little strange about the whole situation, and why should she suddenly stop calling Zelgadis mister?
"You too," sounded the perfunctory reply. "Why did you think it was Kazuki? Would you have preferred him?" It was a strange question.
"Uh, no... He just talked to me earlier about... my mother." It wasn't exactly a lie.
"About your mother?"
"Yes, but don't ask me about it, please."
"Okey," he said after a moment's thought. "But wasn't your mother murdered a dozen years ago?"
"She..." suddenly Amelia's voice faltered.
How could he ask that so calmly? Is he that insensitive?
"Forgive me." She heard Zelgadis whisper softly after a moment, apparently realising his mistake.
"Can I ask you something?" she said quickly, trying to change the subject.
"Ask if you must."
"What about your family? You never mentioned them..."
"They're dead..."
"I'm sorry..." she replied embarrassed.
"It's not your fault. Besides, I don't even remember them very well..."
"I envy you..."
"Why?"
"It's better when you don't remember anything than when you have the image of your own murdered mother before your eyes..."
"Is that too high a price to pay for all those other beautiful memories?" he asked.
Amelia fell silent.
"My parents died when I was five. I was supposed to go to an orphanage, but then my relative Rezo came to get me. I was weak and helpless. He was the one who took care of me and it seemed to me that he wanted me to be well. I spent my whole childhood practising and seeking power. When I was fifteen, Rezo made me proposals, offered me power. I was such a fool that I didn't even think about the consequences. That very day he turned me into what I am now, and I will probably spend the rest of my life looking for a cure. So believe me, I don't have any good memories. I've been alone my whole life."
"But you're not alone now..." Amelia started shyly and Zel looked at her in confusion.
"I don't think I have the courage to disagree." He smiled slightly.
They looked at each other for another long moment. Two pairs of blue eyes. The rain was still dripping from the sky, but it didn't bother them now. Amelia doesn't even know when she leaned her head against the boy's shoulder and fell into a peaceful, deep sleep... A soft, barely perceptible smile played across her face...