Zhara was just sitting down to a glass of wine and a book of ancient Mazoku spells when the little fox appeared, wide-eyed and shaking on the carpet at her feet. Her fur was all stuck together in most places and singed in others, and she stunk to high heaven. Zhara just stared at her for a second, not sure she was really seeing what she was seeing, then all at once she dropped her book and scooped Sylph into her lap.
        "Gods, Sylph, what happened to you? Why aren’t you with Zelgadis? What’s going on?"
        Sylph whined and trembled for a long time before finding her voice. "New Mazoku! Pretty boy with no name. Says he serves Zel. Incredible spell…Apocalypse. Just barely escaped. Found a spell fragment, but he won’t let Zel call Melfinius to find out how to send it to the scrolls. Yip! Zhara! Zel needs backup now!" She sprang from Zhara’s lap only to have her legs give out on her when she hit the floor. "Zhara!"
        Zhara got out of her chair and gently picked Sylph up off the floor. "You stink, Sylph. Mel told me about your encounter with Beast Master, but I smell more than her foul stench on you. Don’t tell me this no-name pretty Mazoku ate you, too?" As she spoke, she walked across the room to a small cabinet that held her favorite little magical baubles, including two crystal balls. She unlocked the cabinet and took out one of the crystals, then locked the cabinet and returned to her seat. "I’ll tel Melfinius you found a fragment—"
        "He won’t tell anybody but Zelgadis what to do with it!" Sylph interrupted over a miserable whine. "I’m burning, Zhara! It hurts!"
        Zara put the crystal ball down on the table beside her chair with a concerned expression on her face. "You said the name of the spell was ‘Apocalypse’?"
        "You know it?"
        "I’m familiar. It’s one of Deep Sea Dolphin’s inventions. I haven’t heard of it being used in centuries, though." Zhara frowned. "The burning is an illusion in your mind, Sylph. It can be overcome through strength of will, but you don’t look strong enough to do it right now. Anyway, we’re in a hurry. Let me see if I can remember how to break the illusion part of it…"
        While she thought about the problem, Zhara decided she just as well give her little fox friend a bath. She took the crystal ball with her, having changed her mind about calling Melfinius, deciding Jessica might be a better bet under the circumstances. As she ran water into the bathtub, she set Sylph on the floor at her knees and tried to contact Jessica.
        "Please tell me that water is cold!"
        Jessica answered the crystal at that moment, so Zhara replied to Sylph’s question by setting her in the tub. The water was, indeed, cold, and Sylph slipped and slid her way to lie under the spout and let the water pour over her body. "Burning…so hot…"
        "Is that my sister I hear whining?" Jessica demanded through the crystal.
        "She had a near miss with Dolphin’s Apocalypse spell," Zhara told her. "I’m trying to remember the spell to break the illusion portion of it. Sylph thinks she’s burning." Zhara held the crystal ball so Jessica could see her sister, who lay under the waterspout with bathwater slowly rising up to her chin.
        "She’s singed, Zhara!" Jessica protested. "Look at her fur. Oh, my poor little Sylph. She’s burning from more than the illusion, Zhara. Here, let me help." She closed her eyes and held the crystal at arms length, her lips mouthing spell words, then her eyes shot open and she shouted: "Illusion Break!"
        Sylph yipped, froze then collapsed into the water with a relieved sigh. "Thanks, Jess. Now go help Zelgadis. Please! He keeps drawing on his Mazoku part. It almost overcame him before. I don’t think he can hold out against it much longer. I have to get back!" She tried to stand, lost her footing and splashed back onto her belly, barely managing to keep her snout above water. "I have to help him! We have to help him!"
        "I’m trying to find more clues here in Seyruun," Jessica replied, "but I guess that will do him no good if he gets killed."
        "That guy doesn’t want him dead," Sylph bubbled. She struggled to sit up and would have lost it again if Zhara hadn’t gotten a hand under her chest to support her. "The new Mazoku, Mr. No Name. He says he serves Zelgadis, but Zel and I don’t believe him. He’s trying to keep Zel from finding his cure so they can be together forever."
        Zhara paused with her hand on the bar of soap. "So they can be together? What’s that supposed to mean?"
        "I think he has a crush on Zel," Sylph explained. She relaxed and let Zhara scrub her with the bar of soap. Her crystal ball with Jessica’s face still in it sat on the edge of the tub. "He said he’s in love with him, as a matter of fact. I think it’s a crock, and he really serves one of the living Lords…or maybe he’s one of Phribrizzo’s escapees. He didn’t feel like Phibrizzo to me, though. I’m not sure who he felt like, actually. Just…different. He’s really pretty, though."
        Jessica bit her lip thoughtfully. "That Apocalypse spell was invented by Deep Sea Dolphin, so my guess is he serves her. What does he look like, outside of being pretty?"
        "Tall, long whitish-blonde hair, big, blue eyes, tight pants, really big bul—"
        Jessica cleared her throat, and Sylph broke off that train of thought with an embarrassed sneeze. "He doesn’t sound familiar, I’m afraid. At least, I’m positive he’s not her General Starfish. That one has blue hair and golden eyes. Quite nice to look at, if I recall correctly."
        "Sister! Zelgadis needs help now!"
        "I understand that," Jessica reassured her. "I’ll go. I’m the oldest and strongest of us and can still cast most of L-Sama’s most powerful spells, as well as quite a few of Seified’s." She added with a wink: "And I think I remember how Apocalypse goes, too."
        Zhara dunked Sylph and swished her around to get all the soap off, then held her under the spout for a really good final rinse. She grabbed a thick, fluffy blue towel and commenced rubbing Sylph down with it.
        "And if Zel..mrf…is Mazo..mrf-mrf…ku…you’ll need back…mrf…up!" Sylph wrestled her snout out of the towel. "He needs me! I’m going, too!" As soon as Zhara finished drying her, Sylph jumped out of her arms and turned into her human self. Unfortunately, the bath hadn’t done a thing for her human dress, so with a wrinkle of her nose, she stripped it off then disappeared to find a different one. In a moment, she returned wearing a filmy yellow number with a belt of jeweled gold chain mail and bracelets, anklets and earrings to match. "Let’s go!"
        Zhara stood up and hung the towel on its rack beside the tub. "Easy for you to say. I can’t teleport. I think I’ll leave this to the two of you and keep watch from here. Maybe I can weasel information out of Melfinius about that transference spell, if there is one. Besides," she added with a jaunty smirk for Jessica, "I’ve seen you fight, and as long it’s spell-to-spell, you can beat anyone short of a major Lord or L-Sama, herself. Even in your current, reduced state."
        Jessica smiled fondly and even blushed a little. "Let’s hope you’re right. If nothing else, seeing me there to fight him might scare him away to wait till the odds look better. After all, I am the Lord of Nightmare’s oldest and last remaining High Priestess. Even a minor servant of a Lord should recognize me. My aura is unmistakable."
        "I hope you’re right," Sylph muttered. More loudly, she said: "Let’s go already!"
        "Right!"
        The kitsune disappeared in the same instant, leaving Zhara to hold down the fort in Marrigan. She returned to her study, made herself comfortable then contacted Melfinius, though she was sure it was futile, since information about the spell fragments could only be given to Zelgadis, per L-Sama’s orders.

         Zelgadis regained consciousness to find his head in Mr. No Name’s lap, and his hair being stroked by that mysterious Mazoku’s fingers. He rolled away with an angry shriek, instinctively reaching for his sword only to find the sheathe empty.
        "Looking for this?" No Name dangled Zel’s sword from his fingers, letting it swing like a pendulum. "Nice craftsmanship. Feels like you cast spells on it quite a bit, though. Tsk-tsk. It will only wear down the metal, you know."
        "Give that back!"
        He shrugged. "Ok," and threw the sword at Zelgadis point-first.
        Zel caught it by smacking his hands together and pinning the blade between them. He immediately cast an Astral Vine on it and slowly got to his feet. His knees felt all wobbly, and his vision sort of wiggled, but Zel was determined to remain upright. Damn, used way too much energy before…don’t have much left… He looked to the place where he’d last seen Sylph. It was now just a pile of burnt and blasted rubble. No sign of fox remains that Zelgadis could detect, neither with his eyes nor his nose. Maybe she was able to teleport away in time he thought hopefully but wasn’t putting much stock in it. That wasn’t how his luck worked. Sylph was probably dead, in which case…
        "My turn again," he told the Mazoku. "But before I kill you, tell me your name."
        He pouted but didn’t get up. "Oh alright, I’ll think of one right now. Fine. Give me a moment." He made a big show of having a think, posing with one finger tapping his chin, and his eyes pointed skyward. Finally, just when Zel’s patience ran out, he smacked his fist into his palm and announced: "I shall call myself Gadis! After you, my beloved Master! Isn’t it delicious?"
        Zelgadis fought the urge to be violently ill. "Gadis."
        "That’s right!" Gadis jumped to his feet and twirled like a ballerina on the toes of one booted foot. "Gadis! Part of ZELgadis! Oh, isn’t it marvelous? I adore it!"
        "I’m so happy for you," Zel grumbled. "Now prepare to die."
        "You keep saying that, yet I’m still standing."
        Zelgadis bit his lip but before he could speak, Gadis winked and asked: "Would you like me to teach you my little spell?"
        Blink-blink-blink. "Wh-what?"
        "Apocalypse, my sweet Master!" Gadis spun again with a grand flourish of his elegant hands. "I can teach it to you! Oh, you’ll cast it marvelously, I just know it!"
        The Astral Vine spell on Zel’s sword petered out as his arm forgot to hold the sword aloft. "You want to teach me your spell so I can destroy you with it?"
        "Oh don’t be silly!" Gadis scolded him and stopped pirouetting. "You can’t hurt me with Apocalypse…well, not enough to kill me, anyway. I know the spell to protect against it, so it would really be a waste of energy on your part."
        "Unless you teach me that spell, too."
        "I could, but that wouldn’t mean you could penetrate the shield with Apocalypse." Gadis winked at him. "Does this mean you want me to—"
        He was interrupted by the spell itself slamming into him from the side and sending him sailing into the wreckage on the edge of the platform. Zelgadis’ sword came up, and his eyes flew to the sources of the spell just in time to see Jessica and Sylph materialize. "Sylph! You’re alive! SYLPH!" He dashed over, picked her up and spun her around in his arms. "I can’t believe it! How did you survive that spell? And…hey, you’re clean. You mean you were taking a bath while I was back here thinking you were dead?! This is a new dress, isn’t it? Did you go shopping, too?"
        Sylph squirmed out of his arms and jumped back with a huff. "No, I did not go shopping, you jerk! I’ve had this outfit! As if you’ve seen my whole wardrobe…"
        "I did when I was in Amelia’s body, remember?"
        Sylph scratched behind one ear. "Oh yeah. Well, I didn’t go shopping. You just forgot you saw this dress. You would’ve looked silly in it, anyway…AND ZHARA BATHED ME, so there!"
        "Oh?"
        "Not that kind of bathing me, you pervert!" Sylph growled at him. "I even brought Jessica to save your stony ass, and this is the thanks I get!"
        Jessica jumped in front of her and pushed Zelgadis aside. "It’s not saved yet."
        They looked to where she pointed. Gadis emerged from the rubble and brushed himself off. He noticed a tear in his shirt and wept in horror. "You…you bitch! This was brand new! I picked it out especially to meet Zelgadis, and you ruined it!"
        "You know," Zelgadis interjected, "he was about to teach me that spell when you showed up…"
        "TEACH YOU APOCALYPSE?!" Sylph and Jessica exclaimed together.
        "No way!" Sylph added.
        Zel nodded. "Weren’t you, Gadis?"
        "His name is Gadis?" Sylph snickered. "Like…ZELgadis?"
        "Shut up," Zelgadis muttered. "He came up with it, I didn’t."
        "So you don’t want me to destroy him?" Jessica asked hesitantly. "Or do you? I’m getting mixed messages here."
        Zelgadis grinned. "If anyone’s going to destroy him, it’ll be me…but I’d really like to learn that spell. Whose is it, anyway?"|
        "It’s mine!" Gadis pouted. "I told you that!"
        Jessica tossed her head, the jewels in her hair catching the red and gold light of the sunset. The display made Gadis’ breath catch in his throat in spite of himself. "The spell was created by Deep Sea Dolphin more than two thousand years ago when she got into one of her many tiffs with Zellas Metallium. The shield spell against it was created by Zellas…just in case you wanted to teach him that, too."
        Gadis bit his knuckles dramatically, but his eyes burned into Jessica’s. "Maybe I taught it to Dolphin!"
        "I think not," Jessica replied. "Do you even know who I am?"
        He looked away. "Fine. It’s her spell. So what are you going to do, Queen Jessica? Tell Dolphin someone’s using her spell to impress boys?"
        "I’m sure she wouldn’t care about that," Jessica purred, "but I think it would bother her that you’re using it to play right into Beast Master’s hands."
        He spun on her in shock. "I most certainly am not playing into that…that…tasteless woman’s hands! And don’t you dare insinuate such a thing again! It is simply not true!"
        "But Zellas doesn’t want Zel to get his cure, either," Sylph said with a smirk. "She wants Zel to serve her, and for him to do that he has to be Mazoku. Why else do you think she let Xellos put a piece of himself into Zel’s new copy body? By making sure Zel doesn’t get his cure you’re helping Zellas achieve her goals."
        "No!" Gadis gasped in dramatic horror and sank to his knees with tears streaming down his face. "That can’t be! I would never…oh, how can this be? For Zelgadis to be mine forever, he must be Mazoku, but that just makes him more vulnerable to that hideous Beast Master!" He buried his face in his hands and sobbed loudly. "What to do? Oh, what to do?"
        Jessica and Sylph exchange puzzled looks and shrugged. "Somehow, this isn’t what I expected when you begged me to come help Zelgadis, Sister."
        Sylph’s ears drooped. "Well, he really seemed to be in a lot of danger when I left him. You didn’t see, Jess! His aura was all red and scary! He was losing control!"
        Jessica closed her eyes and gave Zel’s aura a psychic sniff. "He feels in control now."
        "Now, yes," Sylph retorted, "but for how long? If he has to fight someone like Gadis again…"
        Zelgadis’ grip tightened on the hilt of his sword, but he said nothing, knowing she was right. He had almost lost control and been consumed by his Mazoku part when he’d had to protect Sylph from his Asher Dist spell. He’d even drawn upon that part of himself to add a little extra kick to the spell, though he really should have known Gadis would dodge it. Zel cursed himself for not thinking things through before firing off major spells. He’d almost blasted a part of his cure in the process. Stupid, stupid, stupid.
        Sylph put her hand on his arm. "You just have to be more careful, that’s all."
        He nodded and glared at Gadis. "Is that offer to learn Apocalypse still open?"
        Gadis’ eyes lit up, but it was Jessica who spoke. "I don’t think that’s a good idea. Apocalypse is a very high level Mazoku spell that draws on the power of Deep Sea Dolphin, herself. If what Sylph just told me is true, I worry that you’ll use your Mazoku part to cast it, lose control, and your non-Mazoku self will be overcome. I strongly advise you not to attempt to cast that spell."
        But the power! Zelgadis didn’t look at her. It was so easy for her to run such power through her body; she’d still be Jessica. But he was still evolving. If he cast it, he risked becoming the thing he hated most: Xellos. Zel thought back to those moments when he’d teetered on the brink, just able to taste the Mazoku power inside himself…that power he’d drawn upon to cast the Asher Dist. Not Shabranigdo’s power from without, but the Lord’s power from within. A bit of Shabranigdo from his ancestors still remained, even in this copy body, and now it had a bit of Xellos to keep it company. If he learned Gadis’ Apocalypse spell, he’d draw down a bit of another Dark Lord, the mysterious and reclusive Deep Sea Dolphin. It might tip him over the edge, especially if he attempted it now, while he was still weak from casting the Asher Dist and the strength it had taken to keep hold of his "good side". He looked beyond the edge of the platform, knowing from maps he’d studied that her home wasn’t far from where he stood. Did Gadis really serve Dolphin? If so, what was her interest in all this? If she wanted to thwart her rival Beast Master’s plans for him, she was going about it all wrong, just as Jessica and Sylph had said. If she really wanted to ruin Zellas’ day, she’d do everything possible to help him find his spell fragments, put them together, cast the spell and be human again. At the moment, Zelgadis couldn’t think of anything that would piss off Zellas and Xellos more than not having their way with him. So where did Gadis stand in Dolphin’s hierarchy, if he did serve her? Did she know what he was doing, or even care?
        "So you serve Deep Sea Dolphin, then, Gadis?" He asked in a quiet, dangerous voice.
        Silence.
        "Answer me!"
        "So what if I do?" Gadis pouted.
        "Do you or don’t you?"
        "It’s really not important," Gadis insisted. "Everything I’ve told you is true! I came here to serve you because I love you, Zelgadis!"
        "Mazoku don’t ‘love’."
        "Want you, need you, crave you…same thing." He waved his hands about dismissively. "You know what I mean. Anyway, it’s all true."
        Zelgadis closed his eyes with a sigh. "It matters to me. Do you or do you not serve Deep Sea Dolphin?"
        Silence, but for a brief wind that swept everyone’s hair dramatically, then whooshed away. "Nice touch," Zel muttered with a little smirk. Like Zellas, Gadis apparently liked to manipulate the elements to enhance his scenes.
        "Life is drama, Zelgadis," Gadis replied fondly.
        "Who--?"
        "Yes I do, but she doesn’t know or care about this. This is entirely my affair."
        Zel looked up at him. Sylph and Jessica glared at him. "If she knew you were helping Zellas’ cause by interfering with me finding my cure," Zelgadis drawled, "I don’t think she’d be too happy, do you?"
        Gadis choked and looked away. "She would be displeased, yes." He admitted.
        "And serving me wouldn’t be construed as betrayal?"
        "Yes…it might…sort of…but…"
        "You want me, need me, crave me," Zel waved his hand in the same gesture Gadis had used earlier. "Yeah, I got that, and I really don’t think she’ll care. So, your ass is toast. Ah well, thus endeth another failed relationship. I never was good at them, anyway. So, Jessica, do you ever talk to Deep Sea Dolphin?"
        Jessica raised an eyebrow. "No, but Zhara did some work for her in the past. I imagine she’s calling Dolphin right now to find out if this guy is one of her minions."
        "NO!" Gadis bit the knuckles of both hands in abject horror. "She can’t!"
        Zelgadis spun his sword casually on its tip. "So what’s your real name?"
        "It’s Gadis."
        Zel sighed. "I thought we were being honest with each other…"
        "It is my real name, I swear!" Gadis took his knuckles out of his mouth and smoothed his hair. "That’s another reason I chose you: Our names are so similar. I just thought you’d be flattered if it seemed I’d chosen one just for you." He sighed prettily. "I’m such a romantic."
        "Mazoku aren’t romantics, either," Sylph hissed. "They’re cruel, evil, murderous monsters, who care for no one but themselves! What’s your real reason for messing with Zelgadis, huh? You can’t really expect any of us to believe you’re doing this because you have a big crush on him!"
        "Just because a Mazoku killed your son is no reason to condemn the lot of us," Gadis spat back.
        Sylph gasped, then balled her fists with rage. "Don’t you dare talk about my son!"
        "You brought it up, honey!"
        "Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr!"
        "And weren’t you married to Xellos’ son for a while? How much more Mazoku can you get, you furry little hypocrite!"
        "Urlich is also half Dragon!" Sylph snarled. "In fact, he’s more Dragon than Mazoku! He’s a healer!"
        "Who wishes he could use attack spells," Gadis yawned, patting his fingertips over his mouth. "I’m familiar. I can’t believe you left him, you little fool. He’s gorgeous!"
        Sylph sputtered for a while before finding her voice. Zelgadis and Jessica just giggled. "You keep your hands off of him! And I thought you were so hot for Zelgadis!"
        "I am. But I’m not blind!"
        "Well, Urlich’s not that kind of a guy, so just forget about it!"
        Zelgadis grinned. "You know, Gadis, I think Xellos might swing that way, and Url is his spittin’ image."
        Gadis turned a sickly shade of green and swooned onto a rock. "Oh, Zelgadis…what a horrible suggestion…"
        Zel giggled. "I know. Can I hurt you some more?"
        "You’re feeding off of me?!" Gadis collapsed into a fit of violent sobbing. "Oh, Zelgadis, how could you?"
        "Well, you were the one begging me to keep hurting you before," Zel grumbled.
        "I know…sob…it’s so deliciously painful…but Xellos! Oh ick!"
        Sylph scrubbed her face in frustration. "Hello? Zelgadis? The spell fragment?"
        "Hm, yes, where is it?" Jessica asked. Sylph pointed behind her at the giant boulder with writing on it, and the priestess went to investigate. "Ah, more of L-Sama’s old runes. Interesting. Have you figured out how to get it back to Marrigan yet?"
        "No," grumbled Sylph and Zelgadis at the same time. "And pretty boy over here won’t let me call Melfinius to find out!" Zel added with a mean look for his so-called servant.
        Gadis tossed his head. "Well your crystal ball’s broken anyway, so it’s a moot point!"
        Sylph raised her hand. "I did that. Sorry, Zel, I lost my grip when you threw me out of the way of your Asher Dist. And speaking of that, what was that extra bit you threw in?"
        Zelgadis’ face flushed, but instead of answering her, he joined Jessica by the stone. He looked at her filmy gown with its deeply plunging neckline and leg slits up to her waist. "I don’t suppose you have a crystal ball hidden in there somewhere?"
        Sylph growled. "Don’t ignore me!"
        "Or me!" Gadis added and jumped to his feet. He brushed off his pants and made his way through the rubble to stand beside Zelgadis, who clearly didn’t want him anywhere near. "So Zellas doesn’t want you to be cured?"
        "Nope." Zel replied.
        Gadis put his hands on his hips. "How dare she have my same agenda! That bitch! Now I have to help you become human, or I’ll actually be helping her! Ooh! I can’t stand it! How dare she ruin my plans!"
        "I’m sure you were never a consideration," Sylph snapped.
        Gadis growled at her, she growled at him, tiny lightning bolts jumped between their heads. "Stop that!" Sylph snarled."
        "You just can’t appreciate good drama!"
        "Drama?! That was drama?! Hah!" Sylph balled her fists and glared at him. "More like comedy! And not even good comedy!"
        Gadis’ eyes went wide with horror. "C-comedy?!"
        "Yeah," Sylph retorted with a sneer. "Send up."
        He choked, clutched at his chest and stumbled backward a few steps. "You—you—you tasteless—ooh! There are no adjectives suitable to describe such a person!"
        "Likewise, I’m sure." Sylph huffed, tossing her head and turning her back on him. He did the same.
        "Bitch."
        "Vixen, damn you! I’m a vixen!"
        "Hmph! I always thought kitsune had better taste."
        Sylph spun around and smacked him in the back of the head. He turned around and took a swing at her but missed when she jumped out of the way. "Are you saying my sister the Queen isn’t glamorous?!"
        Gadis made a dismissive gesture. "She is. You, on the other hand, are merely gaudy."
        "GAUDY?!" Sylph bared her fangs and lunged at him, swiping at his face with her claws. "How dare you! You take that back right now! I am not gaudy!"
        Zelgadis and Jessica exchanged weary looks. Zelgadis stalked over to the combatants and grabbed each by the hair. "Behave, children, or Uncle Zel will have to get nasty."
        "Owowowowowow!"
        "Not the hair!"
        Zelgadis let them go and returned to Jessica’s side. "So who has a crystal ball I can borrow to call Melfinius?"
        "I’m afraid I don’t, Zelgadis," Jessica confessed. "I left Seyruun in such a hurry, I didn’t think to grab one. I’m sorry."
        "Well, I don’t usually carry one, so…" Sylph said.
        There was a pause after that, and everyone turned meaningful looks on Gadis, who merely pouted then turned his back on them with a pert toss of his head. "Gadis…" Sylph began.
        "You don’t want to be helping Beast Master, do you?" Zelgadis chimed in.
        "Or Xellos, more specifically," Jessica added. "He seems to have a bigger stake in Zelgadis’ fate than his master does. If you help Zelgadis find his cure—or just stop interfering, if helping him directly is too much for you—you’ll ruin Xellos’ plans. I’m sure your master Dolphin would appreciate that."
        Gadis continued to pout, refusing to look at any of them. Finally, his arms dropped to his sides, and he sighed. "But I want Zelgadis to be Mazoku like me… How can I love him if he’s human? He’ll just die before I know it. That’s what humans do."
        "But he’ll be happy," Jessica said. "Isn’t that important to you?"
        Shrug. "Not if he doesn’t want me anymore."
        "I didn’t want you to begin with," Zelgadis reminded him, and got a jab in the ribs from Jessica’s elbow. He ignored it. "I’m not that kind of a guy. Really."
        Gadis went back to pouting. "I won’t help Xellos or his master in any way, shape or form, whether on purpose or by accident. Ever. I’d die first!"
        "So it’s settled, then," Jessica chirped. "You’ll stop interfering with Zelgadis finding his cure. Now, do you have a crystal ball, or don’t you?"
        He held out his hand and a crystal ball materialized in his palm, but he didn’t turn around. Zelgadis snatched it out of his hand and immediately went about calling Melfinius. It was only when Jessica cleared her throat and gave him a meaningful glare that he remembered to thank him. "Thanks, Gadis."
        "So what will you do now?" Jessica asked.
        Gadis still didn’t turn around. "I go where Zelgadis goes. If that means helping him find his cure, than I’ll help him…even if it means losing him…I suppose…unless he changes his mind, of course." He turned around and gave Jessica a wink. "I am irresistible, you know."
        Sylph stuck her tongue out at him. "Says you."
        "I thought you told Zhara and me he was pretty…"
        "Urk!"
        Gadis gave Sylph a superior look then went to lounge on a rock formation near Zelgadis. His torn shirt had mysteriously fixed itself, and there was now not a speck of dust or charring on him. Hmph! Drama queen! Sylph seethed.

        The day of Lina Inverse’s trial arrived with Xellos still firmly in place as Special Prosecutor, and Urlich smugly convinced he had the ace in the whole that would win the case. He sat behind a table next to Lina, who was chained to the floor and still complaining about not being given a big enough breakfast on such an important day. Xellos sat behind the table next to Url’s, a very bland-looking woman at his side. She wore a gray suit and cat glasses, her mousy hair done up in a prim, tight bun at the nape of her neck. Urlich assumed she was Nina Farley, the woman from the "Rratsnek Informer", whom Xellos had offered a job the day before.
        "I don’t believe I’ve met your paralegal, Dad," Urlich smiled, showing all of his sharp teeth and glistening fangs. Nina didn’t flinch.
        Xellos smiled back, showing his flat, human-like teeth. "This is Nina Farley, formerly of the ‘Rratsnek Informer’ newspaper. Nina, this is my son Urlich."
        She looked at him over the top of her glasses as if he was some kind of bug. "A pleasure, Mr. Metallium." She then turned her sour look on Lina, who smiled in an annoyingly cheerful way. "Miss Inverse."
        "Hi!" Lina beamed. "I hope Xellos doesn’t fire you after he loses this case, which he will, by the way."
        Xellos laughed. "Always the optimist, Lina! What a charmingly useless human trait!"
        Lina giggled. Urlich rolled his eyes.
        "But where is your paralegal, Urlich?" Xellos asked sweetly. "I thought Princess Amelia was assisting you in this case."
        "She was disqualified because of the charges pending against her, and you know it, Dad."
        "Aw, what a shame. I was so looking forward to seeing her again."
        "I’ll bet you were." Urlich grouched.
        Just then the Bailiff entered the courtroom and pounded his staff on the wooden floor. "ALL RISE!" Everybody did, even Lina, whose chains were just long enough to allow it. A door opened behind the Bailiff and a small woman wearing a wig and a white lace collar over her black judge’s robes entered the room and mounted the steps to the Bench. She sat down, and the Bailiff announced: "This session of the Rratsnek felony court is now in session, Judge Joodie Shinylint presiding! You may be seated."
        The Judge pounded her gavel and gave Xellos a suspicious look. "What are you doing here, Mr. Metallium? I thought you were disqualified from this case."
          Xellos stood. "The charges against me were found to be false, Your Honor—"
        "Sure they were. For how much money?"
        "Your Honor, I—"
        "Oh don’t act so shocked. This is Rratsnek, Mr. Metallium, that’s how the game is played. Ok, fine. Nevermind. What’s done is done. Let’s get on with it. What are the charges against the defendant Lina Inverse of Zephelia?"
        The Bailiff opened a scroll and read: "The defendant Lina Inverse is charged with ten counts of murder in the first degree, 22 counts of property damage and one parking violation."
        "Parking violation?" The Judge asked.
        "The defendant left her horse in a two hour parking zone in excess of the two hours," the Bailiff clarified.
        "Was this before or after her arrest?"
        The Bailiff read something else on the scroll then replied. "After, Your Honor."
        "That charge is dismissed," Judge Joodie declared with a pound of her gavel, "on grounds that defendant had no way to move her horse out of the parking zone due to her incarceration. Scratch it off the scroll, Bailiff." The Bailiff did as he was told over grumblings from the crowd of locals packed into the courtroom. Judge Joodie pounded her gavel and demanded order. "If you people can’t behave yourselves in my courtroom, I’ll have you all expelled and charged with contempt. Is that clear? Good. Now, Miss Inverse, how do you plead to these charges?"
        Lina stood. "Not guilty, Your Honor, on the grounds that I was acting in the public interest and for the public good."
        "You’re charged with killing people and trashing an inn, Miss Inverse," Judge Joodie shot back, "that doesn’t sound like acting in the public good to me, but we’ll see how well your attorney can BS the jury into believing it. Special Prosecutor Metallium, you’re on."
        "How well you can BS the jury into—" Lina began, but a hefty pound of Judge Joodie’s gavel shut her up.
        "I said order!"
        Urlich stood up. "Your Honor, I would like to motion for a Bench Trial."
        "We’ve already picked a jury, Mr. Metallium, where were you and your motion when that happened?"
        "Rratsnek retains professional juries, Your Honor. This one was already scheduled to hear whatever case came up at this date and time. Under Section 117 of the Rratsnek Legal Code, I am entitled—"
        "Don’t quote Law to a Judge, Mr. Metallium," Judge Joodie snapped. "So you’ve practiced here before, have you?"
        "Yes, Your Honor. I studied Law here, as well."
        The Judge muttered something under her breath that looked to Lina to be some kind of expletive then she pounded her gavel again. "Alright, I’ll hear your motion. This court will recess for one hour. I want to see the Metalliums in my office. Bailiff, escort the prisoner back to her cell."
        The Bailiff pounded his staff on the floor. "This court will recess for one hour!" He then gestured to the guards standing behind Lina to unhook her chains and take her back to her cell.
        "Professional juries?" Lina asked Urlich as her chains were undone. "Are you serious?"
        "Completely," Url replied and started packing his files back into his briefcase. Better not to leave them unguarded. "They make good money, too."
        Lina watched the jury file out of the jury box and through a door out of the courtroom. "Wow, I guess nobody in Rratsnek tries to get out of jury duty, then."
        "It’s the city’s primary form of entertainment, too," Url told her, "hence the large capacity court rooms."
        Lina had noticed that as she was brought in from the prison before the trial started. The room was huge, with at least 200 rows of long benches behind the jurists’ tables and a horseshoe-shaped balcony that seated at least as many people. In all, Lina estimated the courtroom could hold upwards of a thousand or more people. Stadium seating in a coutroom. What a weird town.
        The guards ushered Lina toward the door guarded by the Bailiff. She looked over her shoulder at Urlich, who waved and gave her a thumbs up sign then went back to stuffing his briefcase. Nina Farley was stuffing Xellos’ papers into his briefcase for him. Lina thought Nina must be the grouchiest, most unpleasant looking person she’d ever seen. Such a contrast to Xellos’ perennial cheer. One of the guards pushed her in the back to make her walk faster, but for once Lina didn’t snap at him for it. She had too much on her mind. If all they had to deal with was that grumpy Judge Joodie person, then Url had a chance of winning this case. She didn’t think he could do it with a Rratsnakian professional jury making the final decision but…who knew? She also wondered if Sylphiel would make it to Rratsnek in time to act as her character witness as she’d promised Urlich she would last night when he’d contacted her via crystal ball. She was sure Gourry would vouch for her, and so would Amelia, but she feared Xellos might be able to trip up Gourry through cross examination…and Amelia’s credibility was jeopardized by the charges against her in Rratsnek. Naga’s very appearance would discredit her, and Lita hardly knew her, so she was out. If only Zelgadis was there. He didn’t just know her, he understood her! So he didn’t always agree with the things she did, he at least understood why she did them (or she thought he did), and he didn’t interfere. Hell, even Prince Phil would make a good character witness! She’d done some bodyguard work for him in the past and had even saved the monarchy! (Ok, so she’d blown up part of Seyruun in the process, but if she’d let that chunk of land fall on it, there would’ve been even more damage.) Of course, Phil couldn’t be expected to leave his kingdom and do something as menial as testify in a felony case—but no! This was Prince Phileolnel, champion of justice! Why hadn’t Url asked Phil to come? Hm, maybe he did, but Phil declined. "Damn, forgot to ask him about that!"
        "Ask who about what?" The guard demanded with another shove between her shoulder blades.
        "My attorney, and the rest is none of your business!" Lina shuffled down the stairs to the tunnel that led to the prison and wished she could get out of these damned manacles that kept her from casting spells. If only she could get free, she’d Dragon Slave this stupid town and head for the hills.
        ::Now that’s what I’m talkin’ about! Yeah!::
        You can hear my thoughts?! When did this happen?"
      ::When you first touched me at Zhara’s.::
        And you’re just now letting me know you can do that?
      ::You didn’t ask before.::
        I didn’t ask this time, either! You just did it.
      ::Oops.::
        I don’t believe this…
      ::So, how ‘bout we make some serious fireworks and blow this dog and pony show?::
        Can you get me out of these chains?
      ::Nope::
        Then no fireworks.
      ::Aw, come on, Lina, be a sport. Death is not the end, you know.::
        It is for me. Now quit bugging me about it if you can’t get me out of these chains, or at least break the spell on them.
      ::Sorry. No can do. Oh well, I’m sure the trial will be entertaining, at least. Humans get so worked up over these things. It’s yummy. I wonder what I’ll do when they hang you, though. Hmmm…maybe that Gourry git will take me? No, I’ll just return to Zhara.::
        And if you go, Firedrake goes, right?
      ::That’s usually the way it works::
        I wonder what Gourry will do if I die…
        Icedrake had nothing to say to that, and Lina sensed her thoughts were on Dolgen Fiett, the spirit of Firedrake. If she died, Lina wondered, could Zhara put her into a sword for Gourry to use? Would she even agree to do that? Lina resolved to talk to Urlich about it as soon as she got the chance. Not that she thought she was going to die or anything…it was just a precaution. You said death is not the end, but you guys are still apart, no matter what you do. You’re stuck in swords and can’t ever really be together like lovers. And he’s mad at you for some reason, too.
       ::He doesn’t like it when I go on binges, like I did with you. He’s sort of goody-goody like that::
       Well, he was a Knight of Seified. Then Lina thought about her own sister and cringed. Luna was a Knight of Seified, too, but the term "goody-goody" never entered Lina’s mind to describe her. Luna was…scary.
       ::Dolgen could be scary like that, too. They serve the Dragon God, after all. He’s no whimp::
       I know, I know. But don’t you ever wish—
       ::Every damn day. Now drop it::
       Can you two be freed from the swords? I mean if you were, could you be put into new bodies, or something, so you can be together?
       ::What is it with you mortals and physical bodies? And didn’t I tell you to drop it?::
       Your spirits can’t be together without physical forms, can they? Because you’re Mazoku and he’s a Knight of Seified. That’s why you’re in the swords. They’re your physical forms.
       ::What part of "drop it" did you not understand?::
       Ok, ok! I’m sorry. I have to worry about me now, anyway. But…do you think Zhara would do that for me?
       ::You’re human. Forget about it::
       But humans have souls!
       ::Do you want to be a sword?::
       Lina thought about it. If…if that’s the only way I can…um…Right. Drop it.
       SHOVE! "In ya go, Inverse! Enjoy it while you can. The next stop’s Hell."
       Lina just sat down on the floor and let the guards secure her chains to the rings in the floor and wall. If being his sword was the only way to finish what she and Gourry had finally found the courage to start, then that’s what she’d do and like it.
       ::You understand::
       Yeah, Eileah, I think I do.      

HOME / SCRAWLINGS/ SLAYERS FICS