The stench of the zombies was almost too much to bear and the shuffling sounds of their approach in the dark was absolutely maddening. Sylph and Zel were back to back, blades out and hearts racing as they waited for the enemy to come within fighting range. Neither of them was able to use magic to make some light to scare off the revenants. Worse, Zelgadis had sprung a leak.
        "Holy balls," Sylph hissed over her shoulder, "your magical scent is coming back! That shouldn’t be happening yet! I designed that spell to last until I undid it!"
        Zelgadis couldn’t feel any difference. "Can you do a patch?"
        Sylph shook her head. "I can’t pin down the leak."
        "Guess it’s kind of a moot point now that they’ve found us, isn’t it?"
        She grunted her agreement with that unfortunate fact. Even if she could have found the leak in the disguise spell, she wasn’t entirely certain she’d be able to create a magical patch. If she couldn’t do a light spell, it was highly unlikely she’d be able to work more complex magic. Which begged the question: Who or what was powerful enough to jam her and Zelgadis’ magical abilities.
        "Say, Sylph," Zelgadis asked in an almost casual voice, "I thought you said it was ‘bad’ to cut a true revenant."
        "Yeah, but right now you and I seem to be without magic," she replied, "so if you don’t have any better ideas about how to fight our way out of this, I for one feel much better with a blade in my hand."
        "And if you cut one of them, another grows from the pieces, and the blood will poison you to death if it gets on you," Zel persisted. "I’m just going on your experience, here, Sylph."
        "Ok, fine." Sylph put away her dagger. Panic had begun to seep into her voice. "No magic, no weapons, and we’re surrounded. We need a plan."
        "You’re asking me for a plan?!" Zelgadis sputtered, sounding no more confident than she did. "I’ve never fought them, remember?"
        Sylph closed her eyes and leaned her head back against his, trying desperately to calm herself so she could think. The only thing that came to her mind, however, was the realization that his hair wasn’t as sharp as she’d thought it would be. And he really was rather cute…and built…This wasn’t helping. "I’m about to die and all I can think about is getting laid," she scolded herself humorlessly. "I’m starting to sound like Urlich."
        Just then, Zelgadis had a moment of extreme duh. "Ah! I’m an idiot!"
        "I could’ve told you that."
        Zel ignored her. "We don’t need magic to make a light: I have a flint! I need some cloth to make a torch. Give me your dagger."
        Sylph was excited about this plan. "Why didn’t I think of that?! A torch! Duh!" She pulled out her dagger and cut several inches off the hem of her dress. Wrapping the cloth around the blade, she secured it and held the make-shift torch out for Zel to light. "Make some sparks, Rocky."
        Zel tucked the hilt of his sword under his arm and struck its blade with the flint. The first blow showed him where the torch was, by the fourth strike he’d managed to light the cloth. "Hold it up!"
        Sylph did, casting a bubble of light all around them. "What the--?"
        At the same time, Zel demanded: "Where are they?!"
        The smell and sounds indicated the enemy should have been just a few yards away, well within the range of the torch, but there was nothing out there but the rotting Troll arm. Sylph didn’t like this development one bit, and neither did Zelgadis. "On the one hand, we know it’s not true revenants," he quipped unenthusiastically, "on the other hand, we have no idea who’s making these illusions and blocking our magic. Any theories?"
        "Yeah," Sylph replied in a grim tone, "but I don’t think you’ll like it." She dragged her sleeve over her face to rub off the sweat that had gathered there, despite the chill air of the cavern. Zelgadis was sweating, too, which was something she’d never seen a part-golem chimera do. To her dismay, she noticed her disguise spell was gone, and Zel was himself again. She asked rhetorically: "Who would have the power to keep both of us from working magic and be able to create such a convincing illusion at the same time? Not to mention, lifting my spell on you."
        Then the shuffling sounds and the stench abruptly disappeared.
        Sylph cursed. "This is not good."
        "Let’s go," Zelgadis said solemnly, matching action to words. After a nervous look around, Sylph followed him. "Whoever it is, we should keep moving as long as we can. Gain as much ground as possible."
        Sylph nodded. "I think it could be Xellos," she told him, finishing her earlier thought. "Or worse, Beast Master, herself. They both know about this place and they both seem to want a piece of your ass for some reason."
        Zel rolled his eyes. "Welcome to an adult conversation, Sylph," he sighed impatiently. "Join me outside the gutter for a moment, if you would please? If it is them, how do we fight them without magic? And how can we tell what’s illusion and what’s real without a spell?"
        "Prude," Sylph grumbled under her breath. How to fight them, indeed? Whoever was responsible--be it Xellos, Beast Master or someone else—thus far, they hadn’t shown themselves, and until that happened, weapons would be useless. Without magic, they couldn’t know for certain who their attackers were without seeing them, nor could they foil their illusions if they could, or attack from a distance. Sylph wondered why the enemy had only broken the spell on Zelgadis but had left her own disguise spell untouched. Between herself and Zelgadis, she was almost certain she was the most powerful, if only by virtue of age, though without her magic, Sylph wasn’t much good in a fight. She’d always depended on her magical ability to change forms and the superior speed and agility of her fox form in particular. Without magic, she was stuck in a Human disguise.
        "I don’t know, Zel," Sylph confessed, using his name for the first time since they’d entered the cavern. Zelgadis wasn’t so sure that was a good omen. "Until we’re attacked again, the best thing to do is keep running for Zhara’s tunnel and deal with whatever they throw at us when it happens."

       "Why doesn’t she get rid of some of this shit?" Urlich cursed as he cracked his shin on yet another piece of the junk that cluttered his sister’s basement. Normal people organized their basements. Normal people sold their excess belongings in yard sales or gave them away to relatives. Not that Url and Zhara’s relatives were the sort to need used furniture or the sort that Zhara would want to be giving any freebies. Of course, normal people didn’t have a dragon’s obsessive need to collect a hoard. They also weren’t likely to have a vampire hiding in their basement. Urlich booted the whatsit he’d kicked into his hands for examination. It was a statuette of a dancing monkey, painted in the ugliest colors he’d ever seen. "Gods, Zhara, what were you thinking?!" He tossed it onto a nearby sheet-draped divan, then had a flash of premonition and overturned the chair.
        Amelia shrieked with rage as Urlich’s boot pinned her to the ground. "That’s twice you’ve fallen for that one, you Royal bitch," Urlich sneered. "Jaz! I’ve got her again!"
        Jaz materialized out of the clutter in front of him, an antique iron mace clutched in her hands and a dangerous look on her face. "Just hold her still, darling."
        "Zhara wants her alive, or you don’t get paid." Urlich sounded disappointed, then he brightened: "But what’s money, right? Nail her."
        Jaz raised the mace over her head as if to strike and Amelia screamed and clawed at the floor. Urlich ground his boot deeper into her back. "Just a little joke, Princess. There’s nothing more important than money." To Jaz, he said: "Help me wrap that sheet around her."
        She pouted prettily but exchanged mace for sheet and did as she was told. "One move out of you, Princess," Jaz warned wickedly, "and I’ll bash in your skull. Got it?"
        "N-no loyalty among vampires?" Amelia squeaked unhappily.
        "None whatsoever."
       Later, as she was being tied to her bed, Amelia whined: "But you don’t understand! I only want to make the world a better place for everybody! If we’re all vampires, then surely we can live together in peace and justice!"
        "Kind of like how all Humans live together ‘in peace and justice’?" Zhara grunted, tying off her knot.
        Gourry stepped back from his own handiwork and made a disgusted noise. "Who are you trying to kid, Amelia? You just want to make Zelgadis a vampire!"
        "Yeah," Lina agreed from her corner of the bed. "You didn’t really think that would change his feelings for you, did you? He’d just hate you for doing that to him!"
        Gourry snorted: "You’d be right up there with Rezo!"
        Amelia tugged at the ropes, testing her strength against the knots with angry snarls. The bonds held, and eventually the Princess gave up. "You’re lying! I know he loves me! He’d never hate me, no matter what!"
        Collapsed in the chair by the fire, a weary Urlich was getting his wound bandaged by Jaz. By way of thanks for her help, he’d allowed her to lick the wound clean instead of asking her to use a damp cloth. The injuries from his duel with Zelgadis that morning still weren’t completely healed and the pain was making him groggy. "You’d think she’d be weaker during the day," he mused tiredly.
        Behind him, Jaz shrugged. "That’s not a hard and fast rule," she explained. "It depends on who bit her. Denruo is old and so is Cricket. Their bite would impart strength. Anyway, it’s almost sunset."
        Urlich sighed, not looking forward to keeping his promise to his sister that he would finish healing Amelia. By the time he completed the job, he’d probably have to be carried out. Ah well, that’s what sisters with dragon-level strength were for. Just as well get started. Url pushed himself out of the chair, wincing at the sharp pain on his shoulder blade, and headed for his patient. "Somebody better stay and give me back up in case she gets loose."
        Everybody but Amelia volunteered. Urlich grinned and went to work.

       Zelgadis had hoisted Sylph onto his back, so they could take advantage of his supernatural speed. The unfortunate side effect of this was that they couldn’t keep the torch lit and were forced to run in pitch darkness. As long as there weren’t any more Troll parts lying around, they figured they’d be ok. In spite of their dire circumstances, Sylph was enjoying the ride like a dog in a convertible cruising down the highway. She clung to him with her legs wrapped around his waist and her arms about his neck, her head level with his, and her hair and dress streaming out behind her. She’d decided to try and be nice to him from then on, so maybe he’d give her another ride, outside, on a nice, sunny day. Naturally, she kept these thoughts to herself for the time being, correctly assuming Zelgadis wouldn’t appreciate her having fun when life-threatening danger could crop up at any moment. For Sylph, that just added to the thrill. "Danger Sylph", she thought jauntily, her earlier terror all but forgotten. The possibility of being attacked from the rear had occurred to her at the outset but she’d decided it was highly unlikely anything could keep up with Zelgadis’ demon speed. He was utterly unlike any chimera she’d ever encountered (though she felt his personality left much to be desired). This thought was born shortly after she’d climbed aboard his back and was in direct contact with a large portion of his body. He felt…odd, magically, and that through no influence of hers, since there was now no trace left of her disguise spell on him. She pondered this conundrum as he carried her through the cavern, trying to put a finger on what that weird magic felt like. It was incredibly powerful, but tightly locked-down, and Sylph concluded that Zelgadis probably wasn’t aware of it, or if he was, he didn’t know how to access it. It was like a snake, coiled at the bottom of a deep hole, hidden beneath a rock. She smiled to herself at that analogy, enjoying the pun, and resolved to ask him about it when they were safely in Zhara’s house.
        "How much farther?" Zel asked, not having to raise his voice, being cheek to cheek with her and trying very hard to keep his mind off that fact.
        "He doesn’t even sound out of breath!" Sylph marveled. "Hard to tell," she replied into his ear and felt his face get warmer. "I based the travel time on my own top speed. I judge yours to be at least double that, possibly faster."
        "Best guess?"
        "Another 20 to 30 minutes, give or take." Just to mess with his head, Sylph made her voice as low and sexy as she could without seeming obvious and forced herself not to smirk when his cheek got even warmer. "He’s so innocent," she giggled to herself, then remembered his recent encounter with Xellos and her mirth died. "Poor guy. Probably thought he’d found the girl of his dreams, and she turns out to be that psycho!" Though they’d never admit she was right, Sylph’s math had always gone: Zhara + Urlich = Xellos. She wondered if Zelgadis would still want to be friendly with Zhara, knowing she was Xellos’ daughter.
        An icy puff of air sliced past Sylph’s exposed cheek, and she sucked in a startled breath. "Poltergeist. Shit." Aloud, in Zel’s ear, she advised: "I felt a ghost pass me. Ignore them and keep running. They’re just annoying, not really dangerous." Unless they find something to throw around, was what she didn’t say and hoped he didn’t remember her saying it back in her den. She felt him nod, but he said nothing. Another ghost wrapped itself around them like a chill cloak, cold tendrils tickling Sylph’s waist and tugging playfully at her hair. She tightened her grip on Zelgadis and squeezed her eyes shut. "Run the numbers, run the numbers," she coached herself, and launched into basic multiplication tables. When that wasn’t enough of a distraction, she tried logarithms.
        "It’s tickling me, Zel!" She growled into his ear, fighting to keep her hold on his torso. In response, he tightened his grip on her thighs. "I hate being tickled!"
        "It’s tickling me, too," he told her in a strained voice, "just hold on! I won’t let you fall."
        That gave Sylph a warm, fuzzy tingle. She hugged his neck and nuzzled his cheek in silent gratitude. He blushed again, but her mind was chugging over too hard to notice this time: "If a chimera leaves one end of a cavern at 12-oh-5 and arrives at the other end of the cavern at 12:45, how fast is he moving? Too easy. Um…calculate the drag on the chimera caused by the woman he’s carrying on his back, if the woman weighs two stone and the chimera weighs four stone. Better. And they’re moving through a cluster of tickle-ghosts. Do ghosts cause drag? Hmm…OUCH! Zel! They pinched my ass!"
        Zelgadis snorted. "Better them than me."
        "Yip! Oooh! Perverts!"
        "Look who’s talking…"
        Sylph bit his ear and almost chipped a tooth on it, but the nip had the desired effect of causing him pain. "Just wait till they start groping you, funny man!" She snarled. "Wait. Where’d they go?"
        "What? Do you miss them?" Zelgadis joked sarcastically, glad to be rid of the flirtatious spirits.
        Sylph hissed. "Something scared them. Couldn’t you tell?"
        "No…" Zelgadis dropped the sarcasm and tried to feel what Sylph had sensed. No luck. He shook his head. "How do you know?"
        She didn’t answer right away, concentrating instead on the psychic vibrations in the air around them. Something big and bad enough to scare off a pack of poltergeists was near, but Sylph couldn’t pin down precisely where. It seemed to be coming from…Zelgadis? But that wasn’t possible! If it was him, why hadn’t the ghosts been afraid to attack them in the first place? She focused harder but got the same results. "Zelgadis," she began slowly, uncertainly, "I’m totally serious: I think what scared them is you, or something emanating from you. Some kind of power I’ve never felt before. If there’s anything you’d like to tell me about—"
        "What kind of power?" Zelgadis cut her off, not liking the fearful tremble in her voice at all. His heart skipped a beat. "Maybe it’s just my magic returning?" Even as he said it, Zel knew that wasn’t it.
        Sylph hugged him even tighter, her response reflecting his thoughts. "No, I don’t think so. I would have felt it before if that were the case." She pressed her lips to his ear and gasped: "Gods, Zel, what are you?!"
        Zel swallowed bile. "I’m beginning to wonder that, myself."
        He ran on, digging deep inside himself, trying to find the power that had frightened both friend and foe, but could find nothing that hadn’t been there before. He felt exactly the same as he always did, since having this gruesome body foisted onto him by the Red Priest. And yet…his mind rewound to the day Rezo had summoned Shabrinigdo: The Red Priest had uttered a spell that had placed Zelgadis completely under his control, like a puppet—forcing him to attack his own comrades. What else had Rezo programmed into this body when he’d formed it? Obviously, he’d used some of his own life force to create the connection that allowed him to control Zel. Did that life force include that part of Rezo that had been Shabrinigdo? No! Zelgadis vehemently rejected that possibility. Shabrinigdo was dead, he’d watched Lina Inverse destroy the Dark Lord with the Giga-Slave and the Sword of Light! And there was no trace of Shabrinigdo in Kopii Rezo, unless shards of the Dark Lord’s spirit were to blame for Kopii’s unbridled cruelty.
        "Have you ever fought a Dark Lord?" He asked Sylph, trying to force steadiness into his voice and failing.
        She sounded even more frightened then before. "I fought one of Dark Star’s lesser servants a long time ago, before Dark Star was forced into the nether realms." Sylph told him, "That was quite enough excitement for this little kit. Why?"
        Zel blinked sweat out of his eyes. "I fought along side Lina Inverse when she destroyed Shabrinigdo," he explained in a hollow voice. "The Dark Lord had been hiding in Rezo The Red Priest’s blind eyes—when Rezo forced me into this body." Zel had to pause to clear his throat and blink away more sweat.
        Sylph realized what he was doing and reached up with one hand to wipe his brow. "So, you think you got some of Shabrinigdo’s life force with your new body, is that it?"
        Zelgadis hoisted Sylph a little higher onto his back. "I don’t know for sure, but that’s what I’m thinking." He told her about how Rezo had been able to control him through his chimera body, and his own theory about how that had been possible. Sylph’s head drooped onto his shoulder with a tiny whine, like a frightened puppy’s. He sighed: "My sentiments, exactly."