It was time
Deep Sea Dolphin removed her semi-transparent, sea-like shawl from its hook on the coral stand and wrapped it around her thin, pale shoulders. She let the ends fall to the floor, trailing lightly behind her as she walked. Faint echoes of the ocean shoreline were emitted when the cloth swayed – the crashing of the waves against the rocks which line the ocean shores, the sound of the sea breeze blowing, and the gentle cawing of the seagulls as they basked in the warm afternoon sun. With every swift turn she made, the trinkets adorning the light fabric would make the sound of wind chimes in the light ocean breeze. And with every step she took, a shrill sound of a pearl drop hitting glass would accompany it. Her very essence of being seemed to echo the sounds of the never-ending ocean.
She leisurely made her way to where Tsunami and Tsurugi were waiting for her. It was almost as though she was stalling to make the calm before the storm more extensive, even though her nature would have her prefer otherwise. At the exact moment she passed between her subordinates, they simultaneously stood up, each on her own respective side of her lord and master. They bowed respectfully and awaited her orders.
"Well now, I suppose it is about time for our appearance," the dark sub-lord remarked quite cheerfully. "I do hope they will provide us with at least a little entertainment…"
Tsurugi and Tsunami took extra care in making sure the doors were sealed tightly before following behind their leader. They had been waiting for this moment of excitement for ages. Being assigned a position outside the region of magic and sorcery could do that to a person.
"How long do you think we’ll be here for…?" Ameria asked, more to break the tension in the air than to actually get a worthwhile response.
Zelgadiss looked up at the stalactites lining the ceiling of the cavern. He had counted at least two hundred droplets of water fallen from the largest one, which would be equivalent to about three and a half hours if it had truly fallen at the rate of one drop per minute. Though considering they were hanging around waiting for someone to save them, time in his mind could have had a warped opinion.
The air was still tense and very chilling to the bone. The only sounds that broke through the heavy air were the occasional squeaks of the cold iron chains and the faint splashes of the fish inhabiting the tanks below where they hung. Perhaps it was not a farfetched idea to assume that these conditions were made in such a way that they, indirectly, were a source of torture for those who happened to be chained and imprisoned here…
That is, until a growl coming from Gourry’s stomach broke the mood and induced looks lacking amusement of any sort upon the faces of the other captives in the room, considering every one of them were beyond starving at this point in time.
Anyhow, the events taking place in the room were hardly suitable for any rest of any sort, so the only choice available to take was to simply hang around and wait for their holders to arrive with news of what was planned to happen next. Understandably, the situation hardly provided any excitement that would satiate the boiling stimulus which, on a daily basis, propelled mazoku to do the things they naturally do – wreak havoc. On the other hand, it did provide a suitable retreat for the not-so-bright blonde swordsman who, even under these insufferable circumstances, was caught deep in slumber with a thread of drool hanging down from the edge of his mouth…
…However, in order to progress in this seemingly pointless tale, a shift back to the circumstances of the fearsome and fearless Lina Inverse is in due order…
"I am up to HERE with this pitch-black thing!" Lina griped, holding her hand way up above her head. Her temper flared in regular intervals in the form of gruffs and clasps of smoke, which wafted from her ears. Her arms were crossed and her foot tapped the "ground", or whatever may be lying beneath her feet.
Rather than waiting for the answer from L-sama or whomever held absolute authority over the black dominion, she attempted another lighting spell. This time, however, instead of simply not working, it caused a bright light to shine nearby. Amazed that something was actually going her way this time, she dropped her guard and moved towards the source of the glow.
It, actually, was not the result of her spell. In fact, it was something fairly peculiar… a set of butterfly – no, fairy wings which were being contained in a small glass jar, seemingly warn and cracked due to the long passing of time…
Actually, there was nothing truly peculiar about it. They were more than obviously the wings that had once found a home upon Miran’s back. Lina carefully picked up the jar and began to unscrew the lid. Before the lid fully came off, the fairy wings suddenly came to life and fervently beat their way out of their container. Lina was not even given a chance to react before the wings somehow appeared as their full size on her back. A voice soon accompanied…
"Lina inverse, child of the legacy of darkness…" The voice paused briefly, then continued, "Let these wings come to your aid when you are in peril…"
Lina cocked an eyebrow. "And whenever would that be?"
"You shall see in due time," it answered, much to her disappointment. "Now go, your friends await your arrival."
The wings faded as a pathway opened before her. With her first true look of satisfaction for the day, she called upon her reckless side and ran in.
Tsunami and Tsurugi entered the room alongside their master, both clothed in their own respective outfits. Their gazes remained averted for the time being, seeing as though it wasn’t time to kill their hostages…yet. The seashells hung from their neck, and strangely enough, were glowing in the moonlight that came in beams from the cracks in the ceiling. Tiny glittering beads of light seemed to flow over the curves and down from the edge of the shell, splashing into little showers and decorating the ground with their brilliance, leaving behind them a trail of glittering jewels in the stone cold earth.
Dolphin stepped into a patch of moonlight, gaining direct exposure to its gentle beams. She turned her face full-front to it, eyes closed, and allowed the white light to caress her luxurious pale skin, illuminating it with the same glistening jewels that graced the floor. She slowly opened her eyes, gazing at the purity of the moon for a moment before returning her attention to her captives once more.
The Sign seemed to have evolved to a new level. No words could describe it since it just felt that way.
Her new form was maturer, more enticing, more seductive. Voluptuous curves formed her body, no longer presenting the image of an overgrown child and instead presenting the image of a respectful woman, or rather, the image of a queen.
With grace, she sauntered over to Xelloss, who still remained crucified to the cave wall. She cupped his chin and turned his face so she could have a good look at him.
"It has been a long time, Xelloss."
In a rather monotone and indifferent voice he replied, "Not long enough."
She giggled slightly at this and brushed her fingers lightly across his cheek. Her fingers were chill to the skin, raising goosebumps on Xelloss’s skin. She closed her eyes and pressed her lips to his other cheek, indulging herself in his disgust. It was truly a delectable feast, as He was her favorite source for a meal.
Tsurugi and Tsunami sat aside, eyes still averted from the others. They, too, were feasting upon his negative emotions caused by the dilemma he was in, even though they seemed to be at peace with their surroundings.
Rosa struggled in an effort to free her arm. The cold iron chains jingled as they moved, cutting through the soft flesh that fought to be free of their bonds. Rich droplets of crimson blood dripped from her wounds into the pool below, exciting the formerly inanimate carnivores which sought to devour the victims being held above them. Rosa bit her lip to ameliate the pain, even slightly, as she felt the shackles pierce her skin and grind against her bones, threatening to fracture them in the dark, musty, and highly infectious environment. However, she was inconveniently interrupted by an unfriendly face that materialized before her.
"Oh dear, I suppose this one wasn’t taught properly in manners," Tsunami commented wryly, sneering in the half-breed’s face. "Didn’t daddy ever tell you it’s rude to interrupt other people when they’re eating?"
Rosa spat in her face, smirking when the mazoku general frowned and wiped her face with utter disgust. However, the tables were turned when Tsunami grabbed the girl’s neck, threatening to choke the life out of her. The action elicited shouts and insults from the concerned spectators hanging nearby, but they were unable to do anything other than watch, and pray.
Tsunami inspected the girl’s face, as if she recognized something notable and couldn’t quite figure out what it was. "You…" she began, a tone of suspicions masking the confusion she felt. She dismissed the earlier feeling and returned to her regular conceited attitude. "I suppose I should reintroduce myself. I am Tsunami, named after the unmerciful wave of destruction that returns all order to chaos."
Though she was already struggling for air, Rosa managed to mutter, "Ask me if I care."
Tsunami’s grip suddenly became more provoking. "I see we have two smart asses in this vicinity…" she remarked. "I wouldn’t be pressing my luck if I were in your position, missy, but I’m not your mother so I’m not one to preach." After the last comment, Tsunami suddenly leant forward and ran her coarse tongue across the gaping wound on Rosa’s neck, licking away the blood as if she were savoring the coppery taste. Rosa’s body tightened in response to the action, but she still dangled helplessly in front of her assaulter. She had become the predators prey, and since she was prey, she would be beaten and played with until she could no longer move.
"Rosa!" Zelgadiss was actually surprised she had human blood. Though at the same time, the fact only brought on further complications – primarily the fact that, like he himself, her form resided on the physical plane rather than the astral plane like most mazoku. In other words, she could stand no more wounds than a normal human being could. He, too, would be caught in such a predicament if his body wasn’t…
But that was a matter that needed to be tended to at a different time. Right now, there was a life at stake.
"Damn you! Who the hell would beat a defenseless child like her!" Gourry shouted at Tsunami. He gritted his teeth. If only he had his Hikari no Ken…
Tsurugi appeared before the three. "Watch quietly," she instructed softly, and gave a small smirk.
At that exact moment, a vortex appeared behind Tsunami. Nothing could be seen, but a small voice was heard. A voice that grew stronger with every syllable…
"…With power that can smash even the souls of the gods!"
She launched through the air from the lapse in space, chin up, eyes burning a brilliant red. As she emerged, so did a large, dark blade…
And she was flying directly at Tsunami.
Tsurugi barely had a moment to warn Tsunami of the oncoming peril. Tsunami made a futile attempt to move out of the way in time.
"Too late for that!" Lina taunted, bringing the blade forward. "Laguna Blade!!"
Tsunami managed to dodge the attack enough so that the sword merely slashed through her side rather than hacking her in two. She winced, but managed to laugh it off. "Hah! You call that an attack…!?"
She was silenced by the sound of clinking iron.
It was then that they all realized Tsunami hadn’t been the target from the start. Instead, the goal had been to free Rosa from her magic-constricting chains. With ease, the bonds were broken.
Zelgadiss grinned a bit. "She always has to make an entrance doesn’t she?"
"That’s our Lina!" encouraged a jubilant Gourry.
Rosa didn’t waste any time. With a flick of her wrist, she sent five astral cones spiraling at the chains which held the others in place. The iron shattered, and they were all freed.
"Levitation!"
Lina smiled. She was risking a lot by trusting the kid with such a critical task, but her intuition had told her the kid had more to her than it seemed. Her intuition had never been wrong before, and besides, any daughter of hers could never be truly normal…
Rosa flew up to Lina after making sure the others made it safely to the ground. "Moth- I mean, Lina. I have to warn you that you MUST under all circumstances keep your human eye closed. Explaining this would take too long so…just trust me!"
Lina winked, keeping the eye shut when she did so. She then turned her to attention to where Xelloss was still being held and pointed a finger at her adversary. "You there! Are you really THAT desperate to die?"
Rosa nearly facefaulted. "That’s DOLPHIN! Do I need to spell it out for you?!"
Lina looked almost dumbfounded. "Why didn’t you tell me that earlier?!"
"Because I wasn’t expecting you to be so stupid about it," Rosa muttered.
Lina rubbed her temples. "Well whatever. Either way… battles with mazoku never turn out nice…" she commented, recalling previous engagements with Garv and Hellmaster Fibrizzo. Memories she’d rather not remember…
And here was another standing before her. What was she to do? Kill it? Could she even attempt the same miracle and pull it off a third time…?
Dolphin lowered her head and tightened her grip on Xelloss’s neck, digging her fingernails into what would have been his flesh had he been human. In a soft voice not even audible to Xelloss’s ears, she whispered, "Play time is over already…?"
Lina didn’t quite grasp what was happening at first. From her perspective, it just seemed as though the girl were merely standing there. However, a telltale glow began to engulf Dolphin’s body, sending off little wisps of steam as though it was leaking from its container. She had been drawing out her power.
Lina looked around the room for a way to escape. Things could get really ugly in this cramped space and a mass of energy surging through. She noticed an opening in one of the cave walls and began to fly towards it, but she was caught off-guard by Tsurugi who pulled the sorceress’s hands behind her back and had an arm around her throat. It was then that Lina realized that Rosa and the others had already been confined as well.
Tsunami appeared before her, looking smug as always. "It would have been rude of you to leave, especially since the party’s just begun," she said, indicating her master’s growing power.
Xelloss had been freed from his chains, but he was still held in place by the giant force of energy before him. He seemed to be struggling to breathe, even though he didn’t exactly need air.
Finally, the sub-lord turned to face her victims. She had strange markings on the side of her face, and gills had formed on her neck. She was staring straight at Lina, eyes ridden with the mysterious, endless gray abysses of the Sign. In a rather mature-sounding voice, she inquired, "Do you know why I am named after the Deep Sea?"
The cave walls suddenly disappeared, and the place began to flood at a rapid rate. Lina quickly held her breath as she was instantly plunged deep underwater along with everyone else. She felt something slimy brush past her legs and shuddered.
It was pitch black.
Suddenly sources of light began to fill the area, illuminating their faces. It took a few seconds for her eyes to focus, and she realized the sources of light were actually coming from fish.
Dolphin petted one of the fish and stepped forward. "Welcome to the deepest trench of the entire ocean, Lina Inverse. More commonly known as my domain." She paused and slapped the rear end of the fish, as if it were a horse, and sent it speeding at Lina. The fish latched onto her shoulder, digging its long razor-sharp teeth into her skin and piercing through her shoulder, eliciting a cry of pain from the sorceress. A shock of pain shot throughout her arm, and then it went limp and numb, as if it had just been severed from the rest of her body.
Dolphin smirked at the girl’s misery. "And this will become your graveyard."
She called her pet back with a simple wave of the hand, stroking it lightly as it came to a halt beside her. Its teeth were stained the color of crimson, the color of human blood.
Lina clutched her arm as she tried to cast a healing spell on the wound. It was pouring out a sick amount of blood, which mixed into the watery surroundings and most likely attracted any nearby predators.
The situation seemed to be getting worse by the minute.
There was also the fact that she couldn’t breathe underwater. She was straining herself without air, when all of a sudden the blonde swordsman happened to blurt out, "Hey, I can breathe!"
Lina found that a bit hard to believe, as though maybe Gourry had finally lost it, but she decided to risk it anyway. She slowly breathed in… and found that not only could she breathe, but she could also speak without difficulty.
Amazing.
"How on earth did you figure that out, Gourry-san?" Ameria wondered curiously, also surprised that the mercenary with pudding-for-brains could figure something like that out.
Gourry rubbed his chin for a bit, as though he were thinking. Then, with a huge, bright smile that looked like that of a child, he said, "I didn’t. I just thought that since they were fine, it was ok to breathe too." He pointed at Tsunami and Tsurugi.
The others were astounded by his stupidity that just saved their lives. Lina sighed and shook her head in disapproval. This was just another typical Gourry moment. His intelligence would never improve.
Dolphin’s echoing voice pierced the heavy silence. "Let’s play a game, shall we?" she suggested, though her voice was unenthusiastic and monotone. The sub-lord sauntered over to Rosa, taking her time in order to induce anxiety and dread within her captives. She gazed directly into the young girl’s wary eyes and smiled. Though she wasn’t quite sure why, this girl seemed valuable to both Lina and Xelloss. Not only valuable, this girl was precious to them.
And she hated it.
In a blink of the eye, Dolphin had punched Rosa in the stomach and was now holding her head up by her pink hair. Dolphin’s eyes were full of rage and killing intent, a hefty leap from the disinterest she had shown only seconds ago. Her aura flickered once again around her body, paralyzing everyone in the area.
Ameria shivered and fell to her knees trembling. It had almost felt as though her heart no longer had the strength to keep beating, and that all hope to live had been lost. Invisible tears escaped from the corners of her eyes, merging with the ocean water that suddenly had the sickening smell and taste of blood.
Xelloss was the first to recover from the impact. Somehow finding the strength to move once again, he managed to stand on his own two feet and take one step forward.
Tsurugi materialized before him, though she was careful to keep a safe distance between them considering he could still easily overpower her even in his state. Looking him straight in the eye, she advised against interrupting at the given moment. "Dolphin-sama hasn’t explained the rules of her game, yet."
The frightful aura resided again. Killing the girl right away wouldn’t bring about any satisfaction. Torturing her and devouring her soul would be so much more…pleasant. She carved a pattern into the back of Rosa’s neck with her fingernail. Rosa’s body immediately stiffened, and she lost all sense of sight, sound, and smell.
She had been poisoned.
"So the rules of this game are as thus…" Dolphin began, holding up the inanimate body which had seemingly been deemed the prize. "Obey everything Dolphin-sama says without objections." There was an emphasis placed on the last part of the sentence. Though the words were hardly serious, her tone still issued a warning to anyone who would dare object. She pointed the finger she had used to poison Rosa at Lina, adopting the sorceress’s uncanny way of insulting people and using it to mock her. "Lina Inverse." She paused for a moment so the dread-stricken sorceress would acknowledge what she was about to say.
"Call upon that blade you used earlier on my subordinate again, and kill Xelloss with it. If you don’t do it, the girl will die."
The words sank in almost instantly, and Lina felt her heart shatter. It was a sick joke. They couldn’t really be expecting her to…
A glance at Rosa’s lifeless form validated her ambiguities.
Seeing Lina’s undecided expression that was rather unfitting for her, Xelloss frowned. The answer should have been simple – "Sacrifice the girl and we’ll have another."
…Is what he wanted to say, but he had grown rather fond of his child as well and couldn’t just hand over her head on a silver platter either. She had that same flaming spirit that lived within her mother, the kind of spirit that you could confide in even under the worst circumstances. Perhaps, all she needed was a bit more time…and she would certainly overcome the poison that threatened her life.
Stalling for time…was the only thing he could think of.
"Lina-san," he said, voice barely louder than a murmur. Lina only had to look into his eyes to understand what he wanted her to do. She rebuked it almost immediately, but she had never seen such a… resolved expression on his face before…
And the worst part was that he was smiling.
He looked so at peace as he sat down and rested his back against the cold stone. Any and all of his natural defenses were let down as he awaited his moment of passing. "I’m sure everything will be alright."
Tsurugi watched him for a few seconds, then stepped away from the priest. Her role in this game was over.
Dolphin was becoming impatient. "Well what are you waiting for? Unless you want me to kill the girl right now…"
Without words to express her feelings on the matter, Lina crossed her arms in front of her to form an "x" across her chest. Her demon blood talismans began to glow as she began the incantation.
"Lina-san please don’t do it!" Ameria cried. Her voice was dry and cracked, barely reaching the ears of everyone in the setting. Throwing her justice speeches aside for the time being, she built up enough strength to give one more cry. "The Lina-san I know and admire would never give up this easily!"
The comment caused Lina to grimace a little. "I know, Ameria, but I don’t want to risk what’s precious to me…" she thought, recalling the ages she had spent alone. It had been hard to find friends she could believe in…and she wasn’t about to give any of that up.
An unexpected voice broke through her thoughts. "Is this your answer, Lina!?" shouted the chimera who had decided to abandon his principles for the sake of protecting a friend from living the rest of her life full of regret, as he himself was.
"Lina! Xelloss is a good friend of mine, too!" declared the blonde swordsman. "I don’t want to watch him die!"
Lina winced at the comment, holding back a deep sob. She, more than anyone else, did not want him to die.
The sphere of energy materialized in her hands. The darkness laced with gold flickered, hungry for destruction. With a pained expression, she leapt towards Xelloss’s docile figure and cried, "I’m sorry, everyone!"
The blade was stopped as it came down on Xelloss’s head. His eyes opened in shock as he recognized the familiar presence before him.
"Juu-ou-sama…"
Clothed in her usual garments and adorned with her regular jewelry, the Greater Beast Zelas Metallium appeared within the Demon Sea. In one hand she gripped the Laguna Blade; in the other she held a burning cigarette. After taking a draft on it, she addressed Lina in a cool, collected manner.
"I will not allow you to rid me of my most valuable subject."
She then squeezed the blade into nothingness. The only marring that had been done to her body was a single cut in the palm of her hand.
She glanced at it for a bit, then looked to a still stunned Lina and snapped, "That hurt."
Xelloss noted a somewhat subtle tone of malice in her words. The fact that it wasn’t there wasn’t quite all that earth shattering, though. After all, he had almost allowed himself to be killed by a human. Even though Lina Inverse wasn’t your run-of-the-mill everyday human, she was still nothing more when it all boiled down to technicalities.
Giving up one’s own life was seen as an act of treason within the mazoku race, and that would result in a harsh punishment from his master.
He bowed down in humbleness to his superior and creator. "I accept whatever consequences you may inflict upon me."
Zelas propped her wounded hand on her hip as if it didn’t hurt anymore. "Come now, Xelloss. No need to act all formal just because we have spectators…" She noticed he relaxed almost immediately and quickly added, "But that doesn't mean you're excused from any punishment later." After he nodded in acknowledgement, she eyed the people present and fixated her gaze when she met with her equal. "Hey."
Dolphin seemed a bit upset, but her rage was gone. "Why are you here?"
Another drag on her cigarette. "Business."
Lina noticed they didn’t seem to like each other, but they didn’t exactly dislike each other either. A glance at Xelloss’s unaltered expression indicated that this behavior was nothing out of the ordinary. To her, however, the situation still seemed somewhat surprising. She had always imagined that the higher-up mazoku would either be banded as a group or would be at each other’s throats, ready to overpower the other when given a chance. This was hardly the case.
Dolphin’s eyes suddenly narrowed. "Are you trying something?" she asked, suspicious of the spontaneous visit.
Her suspicion caused Zelas to frown. "You know I don’t like to involve myself in unnecessary matters."
"True…" Dolphin seemed to relax after that statement. She was still holding onto Rosa’s limp body.
Zelas walked up to more closely inspect the girl. She seemed rather interested, oddly enough. Most mazoku probably wouldn’t care about the children given birth to by someone their spawn has been sleeping with. In fact, they probably wouldn’t even care about who their spawn has been sleeping with.
Tsunami stepped down from her post and task of watching the captives. When Zelgadiss shot her a questioning look, she shrugged and answered, "This is beyond my involvement."
Zelgadiss, Gourry, and Ameria reunited with Lina. Ameria was the first to reach her and engulfed her in a warm embrace, along with tears of relief. Gourry soon followed and patted her lightly on the head much to her embarrassment, but it was normal Gourry behavior so she didn’t really mind. Zelgadiss came over and extended his hand out to help the weary sorceress up.
The friendly atmosphere was shattered by Zelas declaring, "I’m going to take the girl with me. She could be of some use."
Lina was first at a loss of words, but then she became irate and upset. Forgetting she was talking to a mazoku sub-lord that could kill her with a simple wave of the hand, she protested with a simple yet solid, "I won’t let you."
Zelas unleashed some deadly aura aimed right at Lina. In a more rough voice, she warned, "Know your place, human."
Lina opened her mouth once more to say something but Xelloss gave her a warning glance to stay silent. Her practicality once again took over and she unwillingly backed off.
But she was still opposed to the idea.
"That reminds me," Zelas began, turning once again to her follower and devotee. "Your punishment…"
She suddenly whirled to Lina and pulled the unexpecting girl forward into a tight, but soft embrace. Zelas was only barely taller than Lina, so Lina was able to peer over her shoulder.
The eyes of the Deep Sea, a pair of orbs filled with gray, foggy endlessness, were there to greet her…and both of her eyes were open from the unrelenting shock caused by the Beast Master.
Zelas gently stroked the sorceress’s silky hair as she watched her minion’s reaction. For possibly the first time in his existence, Xelloss was at a loss for words.
The mazoku lord kissed the top of Lina’s head and whispered just loudly enough for Xelloss to hear: "…Your punishment is the loss of this human as she once was."
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