ZOTR18.jpg (44282 bytes) Chapter Eighteen:
My Friend the Monster

"I think monsters are the most interesting people!"
-Bugs Bunny

        Gourry tied off the last of the packs on his horse and turned to Urlich, who was securing the packs on Jessica’s and the Princess’ horses. "I wonder where Zelgadis is?" Gourry asked as he worked the kinks out of his fingers from working with the ropes.
        "He went downtown with Sylph," Url told him with a grunt as he tugged on a rope. "We told you that."
        Gourry didn’t take the bait. "Yeah, but shouldn’t they be back by now? It’s been hours."
        Urlich tied the last knot and mopped his brow with a kerchief he pulled from his pants pocket. He had his jacket off and his shirt unbuttoned for the manual labor. Though he acted like he was hot and sweaty, Gourry didn’t notice a single drop of moisture on the man. Just another affectation, he decided with a shake of his head. Urlich was as big a faker as his dad was. He shaded his eyes as he looked down the street toward town and into the afternoon sun. It would be sundown in a few hours, and still no Zelgadis. At this rate, they’d have to spend the night in Marrigan before starting out. At least Zel’s party could make part of their journey through Zhara’s cavern (a much safer place now that it’s resident Soul Eating Larva had been eliminated). Zhara said the cavern had an exit less than half a day’s journey from the ancient battleground of Seified and Shabranigdo. Since Seyruun and Zefilia were just a day and half away, Lina’s and Amelia’s parties would take the long way, traveling together as far as Seyruun, then Lina’s group would carry on to Zefilia, which was less than a days’ journey from there.
        "Sylph’s probably helping him forage for food in the scarier sections of the city," Urlich told Gourry with a pat on his shoulder. Obviously, he’d meant that to be reassuring, but it just made Gourry uneasy because it meant Zel was feeding on the people he found. Well, hadn’t Zhara said that was the reason Marrigan existed? To trap mortals who would become food for the locals? Gourry sighed. It sounded like Marrigan was the perfect place for the new Zelgadis.
        "Gourry," Urlich continued in a harder tone when he saw the look on the other man’s face, "it’s his nature now, so don’t give him a hard time when he gets back, ok?"
        Gourry looked down the street again, past the rows of neat, harmless-looking houses, toward the deceptively inviting city. "Easy for you to say. You didn’t know him very well before he was turned into a monster. He hated Mazoku—especially Xellos. Now he’s getting more and more like your dad every day. What if he just keeps going like this?" He turned his attention to Urlich, who raised an eyebrow at him. Gourry walked over to the front steps of Zhara’s house and sat down. Urlich sat down next to him. "I mean," Gourry continued, "what if he becomes a full-blown monster?"
        Url frowned. "Then he’ll be a monster."
        "Then I’ll have to kill him," Gourry explained in an exasperated voice. "Don’t you get it, Url? Last week, when he was about to turn into that terrible Dark Lord, Lina and I swore we’d kill him before that happened. I know him, Url! He doesn’t want to be a monster because then he’ll be like Xellos! It’s bad enough for him that he’s a chimera, but to become a Mazoku, too? It would be too much."
        "He doesn’t seem too unhappy to me…" Urlich muttered.
        Gourry sighed. "Look, no offense, ok? I’ve worked with your dad before, and he can be pretty handy in a fight—but he is what he is. He always has his own thing going on that may or may not be good for anybody who’s traveling with him—"
        "So don’t travel with him, dumbshit," Urlich shot back.
        Gourry turned on him with a snarl. "It’s not like he ever gave us a choice, Url! If Xellos wants to hang around with you, unless you’re the Lord of Nightmares, or somebody like that, you’re stuck with him!"
        Urlich cleared his throat and looked away. "I guess you have a point."
        "And he’s just gonna keep working on Zelgadis until he has him!" Gourry finished angrily.
        "Zelgadis might not chose to serve Beast Master," Urlich replied thoughtfully. "If he hates Xellos that much but realizes he’s Mazoku, he might find another Lord to serve…though I can’t imagine who, since Gaav and Fibrizo are obliterated, and nobody’s heard from Deep See Dolphin or Dynast Grauscherra in ages."
        "What about the big guy? The one in pieces." Gourry asked, struggling to remember that long name he always screwed up…and screwed it up again: "Shabradiggo?"
        "Shabranigdo," Urlich corrected him in disgust. "All monsters owe allegiance to him, but the only ones who directly serve him are the five lords he made for that purpose. Three, now that Gaav and Fibrizo have been eliminated. The only high-ranking underling I ever hear about since Valgarv and Seygram bit the dust is Xellos." He reached behind himself to grab his jacket from a higher step, then pulled his cigarette case out of it to fish up a smoke. He offered one to Gourry, who turned it down with a wave of his hand. Urlich put a cigarette in his mouth, lit up, took a drag, then went on with what he was saying, letting out smoke as he talked: "So if your buddy Zelgadis does go native, I can’t think of who he’ll serve, if not Zelas. Dolphin and Dynast have nothing against her to my knowledge, so they’re out, if he wants to pit himself against her. Anyway, he wouldn’t have a prayer against Xellos."
        Gourry nodded with a frown. "He seems pretty powerful. Even Gaav said so. Right before he started kicking Xellos’ butt."
        Urlich chuckled. "Dad probably let him do that, otherwise he could’ve done some serious damage to Chaos Dragon, since he was part human. Made Gaav weak. That’s why Fibrizo was able to waste him so easily. Before the Water Dragon King sealed Gaav into the form of a human—forget about it. Fibrizo was always the top dog under Shabranigdo, but Chaos Dragon was no slouch and he loved war. He’d pick fights for the pure joy of spilling blood. But after he did time as a human, Gaav just wasn’t the same. Dad’s different: He just loves messing with people’s heads. Can’t get a meal off the dead, Dad always says."
        "That doesn’t make for a pretty mental picture, Url," Gourry grimaced.
        Urlich rolled his eyes. "He’s evil, Gourry. Comes with the territory."
        "Oh yeah."
        They sat in silence for a while, Urlich smoking, and Gourry looking down the street, hoping for Zelgadis and Sylph to return. They didn’t. Finally, Gourry said: "So, you think Zel will serve Beast Master, huh?"
        Urlich shrugged. "Or die. You’d be amazed the cooperation you get when you add the words ‘or die’ onto your ultimatums. I figure Xellos’ll make Zelgadis an offer he can’t refuse before he gets powerful enough to start resisting Dad’s control spells. You know: While he’s still a young and impressionable Mazoku."
        Gourry rubbed the inside of his palm, concentrating on that to help himself master the anger that was building inside of him. Zelgadis was turning into a monster faster than they could find his cure! And they were already three clues short, according to Melfinius. How were they ever going to find all of the clues and figure out what they meant before Zel turned into the chimera version of Xellos? What if Zel got so far gone that he actually started liking being a monster and didn’t want his cure anymore? Gourry sighed. No, there was no question: They’d have to kill him. He knew he couldn’t bear to see Zel turn into a Mazoku—even seeing him as he was now was horrible. "Poor Amelia," he thought suddenly. She was in love with Zelgadis—the old Zelgadis. What would she do? Would she do her justice thing and tell them that Zel had a right to be a monster if that’s what he wanted? "Would she be right?" A tiny voice in the back of his head asked, making Gourry squirm in his skin. Zelgadis had a right to chose his own fate, that was true, but if he chose to join the monster race, then he would become the natural enemy of all living things, including his former friends. No doubt, he’d have to face Lina someday, and she’d waste him (to use Urlich’s incredibly descriptive phrasing). And if he faced Lina, he’d face Gourry since they came as a matched set.
        "I can’t kill my best friend, Url," he said quietly after a while.
        Urlich paused in the act of crushing out his cigarette to give Gourry a serious look, then finished smashing his smoke. "I know. I’ve been there, and it’s the hardest thing you’ll ever have to do." That said, he collected his coat, got up and went inside the house before Gourry could ask him what he was talking about.
        Gourry took one last look down the street, then followed Urlich inside, his curiosity seriously piqued. He caught up to Url in the parlor, where Lina was talking to Zhara. Grabbing Urlich’s arm, he brought him about. "You killed your best friend? Why?"
        Urlich jerked his arm out of Gourry’s hand with a snarl. "I don’t want to talk about it!"
        Lina left her seat to approach the pair with a curious look. "You killed your best friend?"
        "I really don’t want to talk about it," Urlich snapped, but his eyes were filled with pain, not anger.
        Lina backed off when she saw it and her gaze dropped to the floor. "I’m sorry, Url, I didn’t—"
        "Just drop it, ok?" He growled. "I want a bath. Tell me when Sylph gets back." With that he disappeared.
        Gourry and Lina turned their eyes on Zhara, but she refused to look up from her wine. Lina returned to her chair with Gourry a step behind her. He had his hand on Firedrake’s hilt and was looking at the sword with an odd expression.
        "What is it?" Lina asked, her hand going to Icedrake, which lay on the table at her right hand. As soon as she touched the sword, she had her answer, but Gourry spoke first.
        "Its warm," he said, "and I feel, um…it’s mad."
        Lina’s heart sank. "Oh gods, he killed Dolgen Feitt, didn’t he?" She asked Zhara and Icedrake at once.
        ::It was a misunderstanding::
        "It was a misunderstanding."
        Lina looked from Zhara to the sword. "Ok, just one of you talk, since you’re saying the same thing. Zhara?"
        Zhara looked away and said quietly: "Eileah was there, I wasn’t. Let her tell you."
        "But we can’t hear her!" Gourry protested. "And I can’t hear Firedrake yet…"
        "I’ll translate," Lina told him, then told Icedrake to tell her tale, which Lina then related to the others.
        ::Urlich was hired to do a job for my master, Fibrizo, which involved working with me. Urlich and I got along very well and became friends. Dolgen heard a rumor that our relationship was more than friendship and challenged Urlich to a duel. Urlich was in love with Sylph, and I was in love with Dolgen, but we couldn’t convince Dolgen of that. He wouldn’t be satisfied until Urlich was dead…or he was::
        She paused to let Lina translate, then continued when she finished.
        ::They were evenly matched as swordsmen, since Urlich was once Dolgen’s swordmaster. And since Urlich was reluctant to kill Dolgen, the duel dragged on for hours. Finally, it became plain that Dolgen really couldn’t be made to see reason, so Urlich finished him and sealed his spirit into his sword, Firedrake. I make it sound like it was easy for Urlich, but it wasn’t. He almost didn’t survive the duel because of Dolgen’s great skill. However, Urlich had studied Dolgen’s method. I believe that was the key to his ultimate victory:
        Lina translated.
        "Then how did you get into your sword?" Gourry asked. "Did Urlich seal you, too?"
        ::No, I put my spirit into Icedrake when Xellos killed me. I knew it could be done because of what Urlich did to Dolgen’s spirit. Xellos tried to keep me, but I called to Zhara, and she took me away from him. Urlich never did another job for Hellmaster::
        Lina looked at Firedrake, then up to meet Gourry’s sad eyes. "Are you sure you can’t hear him? I’ll bet he’d like to give his side of the story."
        Gourry took Firedrake out of his belt and lay it across his knees. "I can’t hear him, I can just feel what he’s feeling."
        When Gourry didn’t expound on that comment, Lina prodded him: "So, what is he feeling?"
        Gourry shifted uncomfortably in his seat, one hand slowly caressing Firedrake’s length, as if to comfort the sword. "He’s very sad."
        Zhara made a little choking sound and put her wineglass down on the table. She put her elbows on her knees and her face in her hands and sighed: "I wish Url hadn’t brought this up…"
        Lina wrapped her hand around Icedrake’s scabbard, feeling the pain of the woman whose spirit was trapped inside it, just as Gourry was feeling the pain of Eileah's lost love. After a while, she asked: "How long after Dolgen died did Xellos kill you?"
        ::It was after the Water Dragon King sealed Shabranigdo and Chaos Dragon, but before the Sons of Chaos were sealed by Zhara and Jessica of the Kitsune::
        "There’s about two hundred years in there," Lina grumbled back, "do you think you could narrow it down a little better?"
        "It was three hundred years later," Zhara said in a ghost of her usually strong voice. "Give or take. Xellos spread the rumor that Urlich and Eileah were having an affair, knowing Dolgen would fly into a jealous rage and challenge Urlich. Xellos was banking on Url being the better swordsman."
        "Looks like he was right," Lina sighed.
        Zhara shook her head, the spangles on her horns making soft, jingling noises. "Urlich was Dolgen’s swordmaster in the beginning, but their paths diverged when Dolgen realized he bore a part of Seified’s power within him. Then he got spiritual about the sword and became a monk, disappearing into the mountains to meditate and develop his own style in solitude. When he came back, Urlich surprised us all by becoming Dolgen’s student." She leaned back and closed her eyes with a little smile. "Dolgen founded one of the five classic schools of the sword. The Spirit School, which uses the sword to develop the inner self."
        Gourry’s eyes widened and he looked upon his new sword with awe. "Dolgen Feitt founded the Spirit School? I never knew the founder’s name—it was always a big mystery!"
        Zhara smiled and nodded. "Don’t tell anybody. Dolgen didn’t want to be venerated, as he was sure he would be once his method spread, and he gained more disciples. He used to tell them he received his knowledge from a master who never revealed his name."
        "Maybe there was somebody else," Gourry suggested, "somebody he met up in the mountains."
        Zhara shrugged. "Maybe, but I don’t think so. Then again, he might’ve been referring to Urlich, for all I know. I could still see a lot of Url’s style in Dolgen’s after he came back from the mountains."
        "You never lose what your first master teaches you," Gourry told her sagely. "If you ever have more than one master, that is, or don’t found a new school, like Dolgen did."
        "What school did you study, Gourry?" Lina asked him curiously. "I never see you meditate, or anything spiritual like that, so I’m guessing it’s not Dolgen’s Spirit School."
        Her boyfriend blushed and patted Firedrake nervously. "I, um, wasn’t patient enough for the Spirit School. I wanted to learn to fight and didn’t get how sitting still for hours and thinking about nothing could ever defeat an opponent. I understood when I was a lot older and fought some of the guys from the Spirit School, though." He shrugged with a self conscious chuckle. "I got my butt kicked, so I started studying their methods again—but still couldn’t deal with sitting still for hours on end. Heh. I guess I just wasn’t cut out for that meditation stuff."
        "So what school did you study?" Lina asked again.
        "Well," Gourry explained carefully, "the Swordsmen of Light sort of had their own school, but it wasn’t official. It was just because the Sword of Light was so different from other swords. But my Dad—the previous Swordsman of Light—also studied the methods of the five major schools: Spirit, Wind, Fire, Water and Earth."
        Gourry sat up straighter and his voice assumed the instructional tone Lina often used on him. "The schools get their names from their major attack styles. The Wind school has the Shattering Wind attack, which is pretty fancy, with the blade swirling around to confuse your opponent and whack him to bits, like a house caught in a tornado. The Fire school has the Firestorm attack, which is sort of like the Shattering Wind attack in its reliance on fancy movements. I don’t like the Wind and Fire attacks because I think they waste energy, but I guess they’re ok as a last resort. The Water school’s big attack is the Tsunami, which is that hitting the enemy from above with all my might thing I do sometimes. It’s most effective after you get your opponent off balance, or to take him by surprise.
        "When the Spirit School came along," Gourry continued, looking from Lina to Zhara like a teacher holding the attention of his students, "nobody knew what to make of it. It was totally different from anything they’d ever seen. It’s still the hardest of the five schools to master, because you have to master yourself before you can master the sword. And," he laughed self-consciously, "it takes a lot more patience than I have."
        The women just stared at him in amazement for a few moments, then Lina snapped out of it and said: "I had no idea you knew so much about the history of the sword, Gourry. I mean, you couldn’t even remember the whole story of the Sword of Light when you were the Swordsman of Light!"
        Gourry turned red. "History’s boring. Sword lore is interesting. I remember stuff that’s interesting." He shrugged. "I guess I’m just a Sword Nerd."
        "A Sword Nerd?" Lina, Zhara and Eileah snorted in disbelief. "I can’t believe you just called yourself a nerd," Lina added with a giggle.
        Gourry huffed and tossed his head. "Yeah, well you’re a Magic Nerd, aren’t you?"
        "I am not a nerd."
        "It’s not an insult, Lina," Gourry shot back, "it just means you’re really into it. And you’re the most intellectual sorceress I know! You’re always studying new spells!"
        Lina coughed and muttered with a blush: "Well, since you put it that way.."
        ::Magic Nerd:: Eileah giggled. ::Lord of Nightmares, now I’ve heard everything!::

        While Gourry expounded upon the methods of the various sword schools, Zelgadis and Sylph settled down in one of Marrigan’s finer eateries for a cup of coffee and the kind of food Sylph ate. Once the menu came, Zelgadis realized he wanted some of that kind of food, too, and ordered the same thing Sylph did: Roasted Hare in a red wine and herb sauce. He passed on the cinnamon and honey she requested for her coffee, though, preferring his black. In spite of the disappointment of learning he was short three clues, Zelgadis felt better than he had in days. Of course, today was the first he actually got a decent Mazoku meal in him.
        Sylph looked out the window beyond Zel’s shoulder and commented cheerfully: "Looks like you guys are staying the night."
        Zelgadis twisted around to check the sun’s position for himself, then turned back around with a grin. "Time flies when you’re having fun."
        Giggle.
        "Lina’s gonna be so pissed," Zelgadis went on with a happy smirk. "I know she won’t leave until she knows I’m really going to follow the plans, so she’s probably sitting around Zhara’s, going nuts wondering where we are."
        "Or looking for us," Sylph suggested seriously. "I’d hate to have her find us, if even half of her reputation is true."
        Zelgadis’ humor faded abruptly as a vision of Lina Inverse in a fit of rage leapt into his mind. He gulped. "I guess you’re right. We should eat fast and hurry back to the house before she finds us."
        The waiter brought their coffee and a basket of dinner rolls. Once he was gone, and they’d each gotten a couple of sips of coffee in them, Sylph asked seriously: "You’re afraid of her, aren’t you?"
        "No I’m not," he argued, but the tremble in his voice put the lie to his claim. "I just want to stay alive long enough to find my cure, that’s all."
        "You are afraid of her!" Sylph teased and pointed an accusing claw at his face. "Zel, she’s your friend! What do you think she’s gonna to do you, huh?"
        His cheeks colored, and he took a hasty sip of coffee to cover for it. "You don’t understand," he told her quietly. "I’m becoming Mazoku. If that happens before I find my cure, I don’t think I’ll care about becoming human again. In fact, I probably won’t want to, since humans are so weak and vulnerable, and as a Mazoku, I would be even more powerful than I was as a chimera. It’s…tempting, even now. When it happens, I’ll have to swear loyalty to one of the Lords. I mean, whoever heard of a freelance monster, right?"
        Sylph looked at her coffee instead of him and nodded. "You have a point."
        "No," he sighed, "my real point is this: No matter what Lord I serve, they’ll send me against Lina because all the ones we’ve ever encountered seem to want her working for them or dead. And…well…all the monsters Lina has fought…" he paused and licked his lips, "they’re all destroyed. She doesn’t always do it solo, but usually. So…"
        "So she’d kill you," Sylph filled in hollowly, "in a blaze of black magic."
        He nodded. "Or I’d kill her, if I got lucky, or if whatever Lord I chose to serve gave me his or her power or really great back-up, like Xellos, for instance."
        Sylph’s hand tightened around her mug as a growl rumbled in her chest. "Don’t even say that! Don’t even suggest being his ally, Zelgadis! I will never, ever forgive you if you do that! Not in a million years!"
       The forcefulness of her tone took Zelgadis completely aback, and all he could do for a few moments was stare at her in astonishment. Her lower lip trembled, then a tear trickled down her cheek and splashed into her coffee. "Sylph…"
        "Promise me you’ll never be anything but an enemy to Xellos," she growled. When he didn’t instantly reply, her head snapped up, and she repeated her plea with all of her rage and pain packed into her hard, green eyes. "Swear to me right now that you will never be anything but his worst enemy!"
        Zelgadis reached across the table and wrapped his trembling hands around hers, feeling the warmth of the mug through her delicate fingers. "I swear Xellos will always be my most hated enemy, no matter what happens to me because of this piece of him I carry inside of me."
        She smiled weakly and took her hands off the mug so she could hold his with a grip that belied her build. "Thank you, Zelgadis. I will hold you to that oath, no matter what."

        "Naga! Haven’t you had enough?" Amelia scolded her sister and tried to take the bottle out of Naga’s hand. "Give me that!"
        "Nope!" Naga giggled and swung the bottle out of Amelia’s reach. "I’m not in the least bit drunk!" She slurred, then added with a suspicious glare: "Hey, how come you won’t drink with me, huh? You’re my long-lost sister! We should drink to our happy reunion! Here!"
        Naga pushed the bottle at Amelia, but the Princess pushed it back. "No thank you. I don’t drink wine." At least, not in the quantities Big Sister obviously did, she amended silently. When did Gracia become a lush? How embarrassing. "I really think you’ve had enough for one night—"
        "Aw, don’t be such a party pooper!" Naga cut her off and finished the wine in four loud chugs. She let go a big gasp of delight, belched, then fell back onto the bed in a giggle fit.
        Amelia sighed. "Do you do this often?" She asked her sister in righteous irritation.
        Pause.
        "Naga?"
        SNORE!
        Amelia sighed again and shook her head. "How embarrassing." She slid to the floor to remove her sister’s boots and swing her long legs onto the bed. There was a blanket folded over the end of the bed, and Amelia threw it over Naga, tucking it gently around her body, then sat down at her feet with another sigh. Yes, she thought, it was definitely better that Daddy not see Gracia now. Amelia wiped a tear from her cheek and wondered if her sister would ever come home, or if she’d ever be able to tell anybody Naga was her sister. No, she couldn’t. Not now, anyway. It was best left a secret.
        Speaking of secrets, Amelia wondered why Xellos hadn’t been ‘round to torment them today. She knew Zhara had spells on Marrigan to keep her father out but she also knew those spells weren’t strong enough if Xellos really wanted in. He’d gotten through them before to steal Zelgadis from Jessica when she’d found him in the catacombs. She’d like to think Xellos had lost interest in them for the time being but knew better. Either he wasn’t around because he was up to something elsewhere, or he was just building up their suspense for when he sprang at them out of the shadows, or something equally sneaky.
        "Oh no!" Amelia’s heart skipped a beat when her next thought hit. Although Xellos wasn’t attacking her just then, he could very well be doing something to Zelgadis, who was roaming the streets of Marrigan with just Sylph for an ally! While it was true that Sylph was powerful, Zelgadis was in the mood to foolishly desert his allies lately and might try to lose her. And then there was Xellos’ ability to turn Zelgadis into a puppet…
        With a panicky moan, Amelia jumped off the bed and ran to find Lina, imagining Xellos kidnapping Zelgadis and maybe even killing Sylph for trying to stop him (which she surely would). She charged down the stairs, around the corner and into the parlor to find Lina, Zhara and Gourry sipping tea and joking about nerds. "Is Zelgadis back yet?"
        They stared at her for a second, mystified by her panic, then Lina replied in a worried voice: "No, why? And where’s Naga, by the way? I thought she was with you."
        "Never mind that—"
        "Yeah," Gourry cut in, "you girls are totally bonding."
        Amelia shook her fists at him impatiently. "Mr. Gourry, will you stay on the subject, please?!"
        He hung his head. "Sorry. I was just saying…" then he looked up with a start and declared: "You know, you two look a lot alike. Are you sure you’re not related?"
        Amelia choked and turned a couple shades whiter.
        Lina laughed. "Oh, come off it, Gourry! Where do you get that they look alike? They look nothing alike! Right, Amelia?"
        The Princess chuckled with relief. "Right! Silly, Gourry!"
        Gourry scratched his head and didn’t look convinced but he let it go. "Is she upstairs?"
        "Mr. Gourry!" Amelia growled but before she could return to her concerns for Zelgadis’ safety, Lina joked:
        "She’s probably passed out upstairs, if I know Naga."
        That brought Amelia up short. She raised a quizzical eyebrow at Lina and asked carefully: "So…Naga’s always been like this?"
        "For as long as I’ve known her," Lina replied with a disgusted snort. "Sickening, isn’t it?"
        The Princess nodded dumbly. Poor Gracia had had a drinking problem for years, she groaned inwardly. Well, now that she’d been reunited with her more sensible younger sister, things were gonna change in Naga’s slacker life, yessiree! No more getting drunk while Amelia was around. Not only was it a disgusting habit, it was bad for one’s health and could lead to an untimely death. "Did you ever try to help her quit?" She accused Lina severely.
        The sorceress cringed and twiddled her fingers nervously beneath Amelia’s Warrior of Justice stare. "Well, yeah, but…she’s an adult and…um…"
        "You didn’t try, did you?" Amelia went on, tapping her foot impatiently. "You just told her she was being disgusting but didn’t do anything else! Miss Lina, how could you let your friend tumble into the pit of vilest evil and never so much as throw her a rope?! Lina Inverse, you’re…" she paused for dramatic effect, then finished in a voice dripping with distaste: "…an enabler!"
        Lina shrank into her chair and blushed. "It’s not my fault! She’s an adult who's perfectly able to make her own choices—"
        "She’s choosing a slow death," Amelia countered, "and you’re just letting her die!"
        "Now wait just one second, Amelia—" Lina tried to defend herself, but Zhara cut the argument short.
        "Excuse me, but weren’t you going to tell us why you’re so worried about Zelgadis?"
        Amelia faltered, torn between her righteous anger against Lina for letting Naga turn into a drunk, and her fears for her beloved Zelgadis. Zelgadis won, since she figured his danger was more immediate, and Naga’s danger could be dealt with later. Not much later, but later than Zelgadis’ problem (if in fact he was having a problem and wasn’t just having a Mazoku afternoon on the town and losing track of time).
        "I was just thinking that Xellos has left us alone all day," she explained. "I thought he’d at least try to go after me again, since I was the one who chased him off with a happy rant this morning."
        "’Happy rant’?" Zhara echoed in mild amusement.
        Amelia ignored her. "Then I realized that I’ve been here, in your house for the last few hours, but Zelgadis has been in the city with just Sylph! So—"
        "’Just Sylph’," Zhara repeated coldly. "Sylph is a very powerful sorceress, Princess. I wouldn’t dismiss her as an ally, if I were you."
        "I’m not!" Amelia assured her hurriedly. "I’m just saying that…well, Zelgadis doesn’t seem to want allies lately, so he might try to lose her and—"
        "Oh good gods, she’s right," Lina groaned. "That’s just the sort of thing he’d do to get away from the rest of us! Dammit! I knew I should’ve gone with them!"
        "He wouldn’t have let you," Gourry told her. "Or me, or Amelia."
        "Or Mr. Urlich or Queen Jessica," Amelia sighed. "And especially not Dr. Sorez."
        "Speaking of which," Lina asked with an upraised finger, "where is our little dual personality? I haven’t seen her since lunch."
        All eyes went to Zhara, who could only shrug. "I thought she told you where she was going. She’s your traveling companion, not mine."
        Lina, Gourry and Amelia groaned. "Where’s Jessica?" Lina asked Zhara.
        Zhara closed her eyes and sent her feelings on hunt for the ancient queen’s lifeforce and found it upstairs in the vicinity of her brother’s. "She’s with Urlich."
        Gourry looked confused. "What did you just do?"
        Zhara smirked and told him casually: "I can locate the people I know well by sensing their lifeforces. No biggie."
        "Can you find Lara like that?" Gourry asked eagerly.
        "I said people I know well," she retorted sourly. "I don’t know her well, so, no, I can’t find her that way. If you’re worried about her falling victim to Marrigan’s citizens, stop worrying. I’ve forbidden them from harming any of you, so she’s perfectly safe."
        Lina got up and tucked Icedrake into her belt. "It’s not her safety I’m worried about. Come on, Gourry, we better find her."
        Zhara rose with them. "You’ll need a guide. I’ve called for Jessica."
        The kitsune appeared on cue, which surprised Lina, who’d assumed something Jessica wouldn’t want to tear herself away from when Zhara had said she was with Urlich.
        "Dr. Sorez is missing," Zhara explained. "I don’t suppose you have any idea where’s she’s got to, before we go searching for her?"
        Jessica shook her head. "She said nothing to me. The last time I saw her was at lunch. This is bad."
        "Why is it ‘bad’?" Zhara wanted to know, but Jessica waved her off.
        "No time to explain. Ask the Princess." She collected Lina and Gourry and was halfway to the door before she realized Amelia was following them. "Not you," she told the Princess. "Xellos wants you too badly. Stay here with Zhara and wait for Zelgadis and Sylph to return. He’ll only worry if you’re not here when he gets back."
        Amelia doubted that and would’ve argued, but then Zhara’s hands fell on her shoulders, casting a gentle restraining spell on her until the others were gone. Amelia had a feeling Zhara had already changed the spell on her house to keep her from leaving it. When the restraining spell lifted, she turned on Zhara to demand an apology.
        "Sorry to do that," Zhara told her before she could open her mouth, "but I agree with Jessica. You’re safer here." She turned around and went back to her chair in the parlor.
        The Princess balled her fists and trembled with rage at Zhara’s retreating back. "I am not a child," she fumed, "and I resent everybody treating me like one!"
        Zhara indicated a chair at her left with a smile. "Princess, have some tea and tell me why Lina thinks Lara Sorez is more dangerous than the people of Marrigan."
        Amelia meekly took a seat across from Xellos’ daughter and accepted the tea she was offered. As she stirred honey into it, she said: "I don’t know that she’s more dangerous, herself. It’s just that when she was Lita, she told us a monster was after her—a monster Lara sent. Now she’s Lara, and she admits to using Mazoku in her experiments and to creating copies of herself so they could get killed instead of her when she heard someone was trying to kill her. Lara doesn’t think copies have souls, so they’re not people. Lita’s a copy, so she doesn’t agree with that."
        "Naturally," Zhara nodded. "But that just makes Lita a victim and Lara a heartless bitch."
        Amelia gulped. "Urlich said Xellos told him there really is a monster after Lara—or maybe Lita—and he saw it outside her window the other night. Urlich didn’t think Xellos recognized the monster, which is kind of weird, isn’t it? I mean, he’s a pretty high-ranking Mazoku, right?"
        "He’s very high-ranking, two steps below Shabranigdo, himself," Zhara replied thoughtfully. "And you’re right: It’s extremely odd that he wouldn’t at least know who another monster served. We know for sure it’s not Beast Master, since Xellos would know the others under his Lord." She shook her head with an unpleasant frown. "I don’t like this. What else did Url tell you?"
        "Nothing. Xellos wouldn’t say anything else unless Urlich told him about the tomb."
        Zhara’s frown deepened. "Then by all means, we must discover the identity of this mystery monster as soon as possible. Jessica knows all of this, I take it?"
        Amelia nodded. "All of us do. We were there when Urlich was talking about it this morning, after I got rid of Xellos for us," she added smugly.
        "That’s that ‘happy rant’ thing you mentioned before, right?" Zhara asked with a raised eyebrow. "Do I want to know how that goes?"
        "Not if you’re Mazoku!" Amelia chirped back proudly. "Xellos looked like he was gonna be sick. It was great!"
        "Too bad I missed it," Zhara muttered into her tea. Her mind was turning over the possibilities of who the mystery monster might work for. It could be any of the five lords, including the two who were destroyed: Hellmaster and Chaos Dragon. With Hellmaster dead, the creatures he kept imprisoned in the underworld could very well be breaking free of their bonds and emerging into the living world. She’d been hearing rumors of such creatures off and on for the past year but hadn’t been able to substantiate any of them. As for Gaav, the only two Mazoku servants he had left were Valgarv and Seygram, and they were out of the picture, as well. Dynast, perhaps? Or Deep Sea Dolphin? If it was either of them, it would be the first real peep she’d heard from either since before the War of the Monster’s Resurrection. Hmmm… She’d have to meet the beast to know for sure, but if her father hadn’t been able to fathom the creature’s origins, she certainly wouldn’t be able to do it. This was definitely not good. Better put out feelers.
        "I’m going to put the word out about this mysterious Mazoku," she told the Princess. "Do you have a description?"
        Amelia shook her head. "Xellos wouldn’t tell Urlich, so we don’t know. Lara didn’t seem to have any idea, either, or she would’ve said something, right?"
        "Maybe," Zhara mused, "or maybe that’s information she prefers to keep to herself for some reason. I guess I’ll just have to have my people keep their senses alert for a strange monster that’s hanging around a woman meeting Dr. Lara Sorez’ description. Best I can do," she sighed and got up to make the arrangements. "I’m liking this situation less and less, Princess."

        Lara hid in an alley between a pair of warehouses, just within the spell border Zhara erected around Marrigan to keep the prey inside the trap. She kept looking impatiently about, even up toward the rooftops, as if waiting for someone. After a few minutes, she closed her eyes and leaned against the wall to relax a bit. When she opened her eyes again a moment later, a darker shadow loomed in the shadow of the building across from her.
        "Where have you been?" She scolded the black cloud. "I was expecting you two nights ago! I can’t believe you let Xellos chase you off so easily! You could have returned after he was gone!" As soon as she said it, she knew that was impossible, since she’d fought with Zelgadis that night, then they’d all been forced to leave Seyruun. The creature would have had no opportunity to contact her until now.
        "It was impossible," it said in its emotionless voice, echoing her own thoughts. "I am here now. May I ask who it is that has summoned me?"
        "The only one who would know how, you amorphous git!" She snapped back. "Lara! I’m furious with you, Torga! I can’t believe you allowed Xellos of all people to see you! If he identifies you—"
        "He will not. I was unknown to him before now."
        "Don’t underestimate him, you fool!" Lara shot back. "Compared to his power, you’re just a bug! Do not engage him conversation again. If he appears, you disappear. Is that clear?"
        "Yes," Torga replied dully. "What are your orders?"
        "The same as they have always been, fool!" Lara growled. "Kill the copy Lita!"
        Pause. "To kill Lita, I must kill you. Is that your wish?"
        Lara’s fingernails dug into her palms as she faced yet another person who insisted she and Lita were one in the same. "You are as delusional as the rest of them," she snarled back. "She’s still out there, no matter what you might hear! Find her and kill her!"
        Torga rippled. "I found her two days ago, but now she is you. I have found no other copies of Lara Sorez. I can only carry out my orders by killing you."
        "Your information is inaccurate," she hissed through her teeth. "Search again!"
        "Lita Sorez does not now exist in this world," Torga said after a few moments of lazy rippling. "Now there is only Lara. If Lita reappears, I will kill her immediately." With that, it disappeared, leaving Lara to fume in the shadows.
        "I am surrounded by idiots!"

Chapter 19