The
pair sank quietly into the depths of the well in the sealed air
barrier provided by Linas Ray Wing. All around them was
pitch-black; the only light was a meager green glow from
Xellosss staff. Lina was conserving her own magical energy
for what may come...
They
both gazed anxiously down below them in the direction they were
travelling. The air was tense. Lina was nearly back-to-back with
Xelloss, ready to react at any given moment. Xelloss was in the
same position, but he was also busily studying the walls of the
well, unsure what the hieroglyphics meant.
"Xelloss,"
Linas voice rang out, now firm and strong like the usual
determined sorceress, and completely the opposite from the Lina
she had been just moments ago.
"Hmm?"
"Do
you have any idea why-" her question was cut off by the
shrill shriek that escaped her lips. She backed up into Xelloss,
eyes ridden with fear and horror. "What is
that?" Her legs trembled and she looked ready to scream.
Xelloss promptly covered her eyes, holding her close to protect
her from possible harm.
The
walls of the well were lined with glowing souls and specters, all
moaning in agony and reaching out in attempts to grab onto Lina
or Xelloss. Though it all seemed to just be one big, awful
illusion, the smell of rotting flesh and bones and the sight of
peeling skin was enough to make any person vomit.
Xelloss
was more than surprised. The elaborate detail and grotesque of
the illusion was definitely not Dolphins style. In
fact...the overall feeling of the place proved to be highly
uncharacteristic of the Dark Lord. No matter...it was just some
disturbing scenery they would have to deal with until they
reached their destination...
Another
unsettling scream pierced through the air. If it was from Lina or
not, he could not tell, but he felt the fiery sorceress being
pulled from the safety of his arms. He quickly grasped her hands
but was shocked to find hundreds of souls pulling on Linas
legs and taking her from the safety of the Ray Wing.
What
was even more astonishing was that Xelloss himself could not
fight back their strength was too much and his mazoku
powers had no effect whatsoever.
In a
split second, Linas hands were torn from his. As the
specters covered her feeble body, Xelloss could see his name form
on her lips...
Her
outstretched hand was the last thing he saw, then all faded to
black.
"Dolphin-sama,"
Tsunami stated habitually as she made her presence beside the
sub-lord.
"How
are they? Xelloss and his pet, I mean." She was feeding the
fish surrounding her in the water with fresh, live bait, and the
fish in turn swam in circles around her, excited from the food.
Her lengthy, thread-like hair floated in the water like the
webbing of a spiders web. She, too, had the Sign in her
eyes.
"Everything
is as expected. Xelloss is floating our way. His pet will soon
come in contact with the Eye of Deceit and Faerys Tear
shortly..." At the last concept, Tsunami smirked.
Dolphin
smiled at the information, gently stroking a random fish she
picked out. Suddenly, her eyes widened and her grin grew, and she
grabbed the fish, snatching it up in one hand. The other fish
around her scurried away in fear as she crushed the one she had
in the palm of her hand sadistically. Her loud, child-like
shrieks of laughter filled the seas...
It
was pitch-black.
"Xelloss?"
No
answer. All that could be heard was a strident silence. Even her
voice only seemed to carry a few mere inches in front of her,
despite shouting at the top of her lungs. Her throat soon ached,
feeling as though a fire had lit up inside and was slowly
charring the inner walls. Her fingers gently massaged it on the
outside, though it provided little, if any relief. She needed
water.
As
though someone was reading her thoughts at that very moment, Lina
could suddenly hear the far-off sound of rushing water. In an act
of caution, she held her hands out in front of her as she walked
in that direction to hopefully prevent running into any large
objects of any sort. What she wasnt expecting, however, was
falling over the edge into some body of water a few minutes
later. She reached back for the ledge...
And
felt absolutely nothing solid.
It
was still pitch-black.
Smacking
herself in the face, she wondered why she hadnt attempted a
light spell beforehand. She lifted one of her hands above the
water and chanted the short spell mentally.
"Lighting."
A
tiny spark flickered in the palm of her hand, providing a split
second of sight, then all returned to black.
Okay.
Whatever was restricting her voice also restricted her power.
Great.
On a
lighter note, she did spot a ledge in front of her that
she could climb up on.
Lina
climbed out of the water and rested for a bit, calming her
panicked heartbeat from the fall. She frowned at the weight of
her wet cape and wrung it out in frustration. Tossing the length
of it out behind her after she was satisfied with its weight, she
stood up, but unfortunately the cave wasnt quite as high as
she suspected, so her head collided with the ceiling. She cursed
and bent down, rubbing the quickly swelling bump on her head.
It
was then that the thought registered itself in her brain. Water!
She
immediately turned around and dunked her face in, gulping down
gallons of the cool, refreshing water. After she felt she had her
fill, she pulled her face out and sighed contently, paying no
mind to the question of whether the liquid was clean or not.
She
scrubbed the slime and grime off her hands and gloves, pulled
them back on, then continued walking.
The
ground was loose yet hard, and it didnt take a genius to
figure out what she was walking on after seeing what she had just
a while ago. Pinching her nose and breathing through her mouth,
she tried to push back thoughts to keep her dinner from coming
up. Things couldnt possibly get worse...could they?
As if
someone were still reading her thoughts, she tripped over
something large and fell prostrate on the bones. She nearly puked
as she got up, and she could feel the blood drain from her face
as something slithered over her leg. Shivers ran up and down her
spine, and suddenly the air felt a lot colder than it had been
just moments ago. The longing for a companion doubled, and her
heart felt as though it were trying to leap out of her chest in
fear. Things had definitely grown worse.
She
gulped, and as her last hope shouted once more.
"Xelloss!"
However,
this time, her voice echoed far and wide, decreasing in volume
each time it was repeated. As the last "Xelloss!"
faded, a blinding blaze of light flooded the room, forcing
Linas eyes shut.
Xellosss
consciousness woke to a girls voice. Lina? No, the voice
was slightly higher. Who was it, then?
He
slowly moved his aching head, looking around through his
customary slit eyes. He noticed a tank with...fish inside? Above
that was...
Oh
dear, this was not going well.
He
also noticed then that he was chained against the wall,
crucifix-style, and for some reason he couldnt use the
astral plane to get out.
That
surely was a problem.
"How
long have you four been...hanging around?" Xelloss inquired.
He couldnt hold back from using a pun there, even though it
wasnt the proper time or place for it.
Rosa
rolled her eyes. "Long enough," she answered with a
sigh. Tsurugi had left shortly after putting him up. He himself
had been dragged into the room, dripping wet, unconscious. Rosa,
or any of the others for that matter, hadnt paid attention
to where Xelloss had come from. They only knew Tsurugi carried
him into the room with the aid of her magic.
"Do
you remember the way in?" Zelgadiss interrogated, hoping to
figure a way out from the information.
He
furrowed his eyebrows in deep thought. "I remember entering
this place through the fountain with Lina..."
All
four heads piped up at the mention of her name.
"Lina/Lina-san!"
"Then
theres still hope..." Ameria concluded with a sigh of
relief.
Gourry
seemed to be following the conversation for once. "But where
is she now?" the inevitable question came, out of the mouth
that had been least expected.
Xellosss
head dropped as he remembered what had happened. "Lina-san
was separated from me along the way... I had assumed she was
taken captive..."
All
hope seemed to vanish from the room then, and the atmosphere
darkened immediately.
There
was a young lady standing on the beach, staring off into the
sunset while humming a soft melody. The last rays of the sun
reflected off her hair, tinting it somewhat crimson in shade. The
ocean water lapped at her ankles, burying her toes beneath the
sand as it rolled back out.
Where
have I seen this before...?
She
turned as she heard a small child calling out her name, running
towards her with her hands held out in glee.
The
woman, however, was crying.
Thats
right... Ive seen this same scene in a previous dream of
mine...
"Indeed
you have, Lina-san."
Who...?
"I
am the soul buried deep within this lost village, the guardian of
every soul that once lived here."
...Miran?
"Yes."
So
it wasnt just another false tale...
"No,
it wasnt. Come along now, dear." A light, no, an aura
took the shape of a woman with long hair, arms open wide in
welcome.
Lina
at first was filled with fear as her own conscious was pulled
into a golden aura of herself. She moved her legs and arms to and
fro, as though she was frantically trying to keep herself from
falling. What she realized seconds later was she could control
her position in the air simply by willing it. She instantly
calmed.
Miran
took both Linas hands in hers. Taking a moment to gently
caress the sorceresss hands, she whispered, "Im
sorry."
Before
Lina could react, another bright light engulfed her, blinding her
vision once more.
It
wasnt fair.
She
was only trying to protect a child. It was the humans fault
for invading their sanctuary in the first place.
Of
course, it was still partly her fault for not controlling the
extent of her power, but what other choices did she have?
None.
And
she was banished for it banished for doing the only thing
she could do. Banished for disobeying the law. Banished for
saving lives...
It really
wasnt fair.
The
child and his friends all attended her ceremony of exile. Their
faces were all full of grief, guilt, and pity. They knew what was
happening, but what could they do about it? They were, after all,
just children.
As
was she. That boy was her closest and best friend.
And
the authorities, without thinking once of the reasons, banished
her.
So
she was thrown out of the sanctuary she had lived in for all one
hundred and three years of her life. The gates shut behind her,
never to be opened in her presence again. In bitter remorse, she
flew away, her right wing damaged. But she felt no pain at the
time, for her thoughts were filled with nothing other than pure,
sweet hatred.
For
weeks the little faery flew, unhindered by weather or her
physical condition. At last, however, her limit was breached, and
she fell like a meteor from the sky into the blue ocean.
Fortunately,
or perhaps, unfortunately, a young man stumbled by her fallen
figure on the beach. He seemed no older than eighteen, but no
younger than fifteen. He had a lean, muscular, attractive build
that made even Lina blush from her spectators spot in the
air above. His aquamarine hair was tied in a neat ponytail, and a
part of it was left down to cover his right eye, similar to
Zelgadisss hairstyle. The adolescent had no trouble lifting
the faerys frail body into his arms and carried her away
with ease. Though, for some odd reason, he didnt seem to be
surprised at all to find a winged figure, much less one
unconscious on the beach. Upon closer inspection, Lina quickly
learned why.
The
boy was a mazoku. The pupils in his eyes confirmed so.
As
all these factors pieced together to form one complete picture,
Lina slowly concluded...
"This
is the past?"
"Yes."
"So
why are you showing this to me?" Lina asked Mirans
"soul" who was inexplicably watching her from some
place she couldnt quite see. Lina continued to watch the
scene unfold below her apathetically as she awaited her answer.
The mazoku set young Miran down on a sunny patch of grass, then
quickly set up "camp" to make his appearance seem like
nothing more than a weary human traveler. There was no
doubt in Linas mind at the present time that he was up to
something, and that the only reason he was able to find her was
because of the unadulterated hatred radiating from the
misunderstood girl.
"Youll
see... It will be clear to you why I am giving you
this...warning."
The
ambiguous statement left the sorceress with countless questions,
but none of which had a chance to be asked before the young Miran
tiredly blinked her dry, worn eyes open. "Where am
I...?"
"Oh!
Youre awake!" the young man exclaimed as he carried a
newly filled canteen bottle over. He offered it to her with two
simple words, "Here, drink."
She
knew she should have been alarmed by the strangers alacrity
towards helping her, or at least cautious, but only one thought
rang in her mind at the time Fresh water! Taking the
canteen into her tiny hands with all earnest, she unscrewed the
top and drank thirstily, gulping down what may have been enough
to last months for a being her size. The young man simply watched
her with a warm smile on his face.
After
she had her fill, she put the bottle down and immediately
blushed. Scolding herself inwardly for lack of self-restraint and
ignoring the kind gentleman, she finally spoke up in a tiny voice
that had been unused for so long, "Thank you kind sir.
Please excuse me for not introducing myself earlier. My name is
Miran." She bowed her head in gratitude, though the tips of
her ears still burned a soft pink from her embarrassment.
It
was then that the mazoku noticed. Her wings radiated a bright
light that wasnt present before, probably because of her
lack of strength. She was definitely a prize indeed only
the best faeries had a light that strong, a heart so pure.
Such
was a victim he had been seeking.
He
held his hands up and replied in feigned modesty, "No need
to thank me. I only did what was right."
"No!"
Mirans head shot up, displaying the still present pinkish
tint on her cheeks. "I mean, I really am grateful to
you for what you did. If theres anything I could do in
return..."
His
expression brightened at this. "Anything?"
Miran
nodded her head slowly. Perhaps it was too soon to trust him...
He
deftly caught her hands in his, encircling them. Eyes open and
sincere, he told her his request, "I would like you to stay
with me, forever."
She
blinked, then blushed furiously as the idea invaded and conquered
her train of thought. It had been completely unexpected out of a
person like him, and she had to keep her body from fidgeting
uncomfortably all on its own. "I-I-I-I-"
That
silly expression suddenly popped up on his face again. "Just
kidding."
"Huh?"
A confused, innocent look covered her face.
He
sweatdropped. "You mean you really believed me? It was only
a joke!" He picked the canteen up and began walking away,
leaving the mildly fuming faery behind to glare at his back.
"Oh, and you might want to do something about those wings of
yours. Theyre a dead giveaway that youre not
human," he called out over his shoulder, swinging the bottle
by its strap around his finger as he nonchalantly sauntered away,
humming a small tune.
Linas
patience was running low. "I still dont
understand."
"Just
watch patiently..."
"I
dont want to watch patiently! Let me leave!"
the sorceress protested hotly. Her anger was boiling over the
edge as she seethed through clenched teeth, her temper obviously
nearing its limit.
"...No."
"...No?!"
The scene below continued to unravel, though, and soon calmed the
sorceresss retorts.
"Hes
right..." Miran thought, fingering the lacey edges of her
faery wings. "I have to do something about these...but
what?"
He
came back then as if on cue, still humming in a carefree way.
Seeing the contemplative look on her face, he frowned and sat
beside her quietly. "So?"
She
tilted her head away from him, ashamed. "I dont
know..." Her bangs shadowed her eyes, glazed over from
tiredness.
He
paused, then brought up the only answer plausible.
"Youll have to remove them..."
Her
spine tingled at the words. It was the only path she could take,
but would she be able to go through with it...? Removing her
wings would mean she would never be able to fly ever again...
Living without that ability was like saying she had been reduced
to nothing more than an average human being...
Slowly,
she nodded her head. "I have no other choice. I have to
remove my wings tonight," she concluded reluctantly.
"I
could do it for you now."
She
would have laughed it off as a joke if his expression hadnt
been so austere. Instead, she lightly answered," Humans
cant do the process... It requires a lot of spiritual
energy to turn faery wings into dust..."
He
shook his finger at her, then winked in a Xelloss-type manner.
"Who said I was human?"
"You..."
she paused, mentally searching for the memory of his declaration
about being human...but didnt find it. Feeling somewhat
obtuse now, she finished, "...didnt."
He
grinned. "Exactly. I didnt, but Ill tell you
now. My name is Hattari, and I am a mazoku."
The
information took a moment to fall into place. This kind, generous
young man was a mazoku? The evil beings that were the exact
opposite of holy ryuuzoku? The kind of mazoku that fed off of
negative human emotions, most of the time inducing these emotions
by themselves as a stimulation? This was a mazoku she had
dreamt nightmares about as a young faery because of all the awful
tales she had heard (one prominent one being about how a thousand
dragons fell to a single mazokus feet in one second)? This
was one of the cruelest things on the planet?
There
had to be a mistake somewhere either in the
knowledge that she had been taught about mazoku or his being one.
Her intuition said neither was right, but...
His
face expression changed, as if he knew exactly what she was
thinking and saw it as a mere challenge. "Should I prove my
existence as a mazoku to you?" When she nodded, he
continued, "All right, Ill prove it by removing your
wings for you, via the astral plane of course. If you feel it at
all, then I am not a real mazoku, agreed?"
Miran
faintly remembered something from her studies about mazoku being
able to traverse the astral plane effortlessly. "If he can
travel in the astral plane...then he really is a
mazoku," she thought. And, since he was offering to remove
her wings for her...why not? Out loud, she said,
"Okay."
She
turned her back to him and pulled her long, golden-brown hair
over her left shoulder. She was tense; he could see that vividly.
Hattari
walked over and placed his hands on her shoulders in a soothing
manner. He leant in to softly whisper in her ear, "Trust
me," then vanished to the astral plane, leaving her to
think.
Though,
surprisingly, his two simple words washed away all her fears,
worries, and troubles. All were replaced by a single echo...Trust
me.
And,
she did.
Lina
could view the mazokus movements clearly from her place,
even as he traveled the astral plane. His real form showed him to
be a lower-level mazoku, for it was nothing more than a
"burst" of green light, in a sense. She watched quietly
as he conformed himself around Mirans wings and engulfed
her light, while on the physical plane she sat still, completely
serene, at total peace with her surroundings. In a blink of an
eye the wings vanished from her back, and he reappeared on the
physical plane, jar containing her lightly beating wings in hand.
She, of course, had been anticipating his appearance.
"Its done?"
Instead
of giving her a verbal reply, he held the bottle out as proof.
"Here, take it."
She
reached a hand behind her back to confirm this. Her wings were no
longer there. She then looked upon the bottle and its contents in
nostalgia, for she would never again have the privilege to fly
through the wind. Starting today, she was tied to the land.
Rather
than taking the bottle profusely, she refused it. "Keep it,
as a token of my gratitude." A smile graced her lips for the
first time since her unfortunate change of events in life, a
smile so pure and so sweet that Hattari felt the sudden urge to
taste them...
Turning
his face away to fight the profound blush on his cheeks, he
stated, "That reminds me, you still havent repaid me
for what I did for you earlier..."
She
continued to look upon him with the grandest of smiles.
"What would you like?"
He
breathed in deeply. The urge soon consumed him, and in one adroit
movement he had his lips pressed tightly against hers, arms wound
comfortably around her slim waist. The request had been spoken
without the need of words - Stay with me?
And
she, with that heart-warming, resonating smile, obliged
willingly.
She
sped up her aging to meet his, and he, as a mazoku did not age. A
few years later the couple bore their first child, and the year
after that their second. They created their own village, which
quickly flourished and lived in total harmony until one frightful
day...
Hattari
had gone out to attend his mazoku duties, or so he told Miran.
She had stayed home, as usual, to take care of the house and
kids. Suddenly without a moments notice, one of the
villagers came rushing through the door, face full of panic.
Sweat dripped down the sides of his face as he breathed heavily,
leaning against the doorframe for support. When he finally caught
his breath, he spoke with urgency, "Miran-sama! There is an
emergency!"
Miran
quickly quieted her children and left them in a room of the
house, warning them to be silent chance the house should be
attacked. Removing her apron, she walked over to the villager
while smoothing out the wrinkles in her dress. "What is
it?"
He
just motioned for her to follow, hands and fingers quivering in
fear. She obeyed, though cautiously, and stepped outside to view
what had the village up in panic. At first she only noticed the
black clouds, which wouldnt have been all that strange if
they hadnt been swirling in irregular patterns. She
squinted at it as though she recognized it, but it wasnt
until moments later that she understood what it was.
She
felt a thousand daggers pierce her stomach, and her heart lurched
up into her throat.
This
was the Dance of Death, performed only when a sanctuary had been
breached and the occupants slaughtered. She looked to the West,
to her former home, and all her fears were confirmed in an
instant.
The
peak of the mountain radiated fire over the horizon, and in her
ears she heard the faint cry of her family and friends at the
mercy of the Death that loomed over them...
And
all she could do was watch in a kind of fascinated horror.
A
lump had formed in Linas throat as she watched on with
undying interest and adamant wonder. She was beginning to
understand, slowly and painfully, why Miran had insisted on
showing this to her. She had been forced to turn her head away
for a moment because she couldnt bear to watch the
inclement slaughter before her; it was too gruesome and
estranged. The mazokus animosity at killing did not falter,
even for a second, and he lavished in the sweet nourishment they
provided. The truly atrocious fact, however, had to be that the
abominable soul that was decimating the faeries was none other
than the "savior" himself, Hattari.
He
relinquished their utter demise and, eventually, faded out to
return home and laugh at Mirans hurt expression.
But
she had known, and she had expected it. The aghast look mixed
with the stupefied feeling of having been betrayed covered her
face wholly. There was no room for woe; there was no room for
mourning. Bitter resentment radiated from every part of her, and
she realized the horrible mistake she had made. Tears burned in
her eyes as she murmured with trembling lips,
"Murderer."
He
continued to grin a grin he had never shown her before, a
malevolent grin that chilled any onlookers to the bone. The
villagers backed away from them in slow, precarious movements,
suddenly very afraid. Hattari looked over to them, sending a new
wave of fear that washed over the crowd. In reply to Mirans
bold statement, he gruffly said, "That...I am."
Before
anyone could react, he held his hand out, pointing towards the
cowering humans. A fierce light of pure energy formed at the end
of his pointing finger, and the last thing that was heard before
the blast was Mirans vain plea, "Wait!"
The
village went up in flames. Each and every human combusted on the
spot, their screams of agony and terror filling the air. They
fell to the ground with a sickening thud, and Hattari cackled in
delight.
"This
is wonderful! Have you ever heard such a wonderfully composed
piece before?" His eyes glistened with insanity as his
boisterous laugh filled the air.
Miran
fell to her knees, nerve-wracked. All she could do was wonder,
"Where did the kind man who once loved me go...?"
He
smirked at her. "Do you really wanna know?"
Dont...
Grabbing
her flamboyant hair and pulling her face up so he could see the
pained expression fully, he spat in her face. "Falsified
emotions, my dear. It was nothing more than one big bluff."
Thats
a lie...!
As
childrens wails filled the air, Miran felt her chest wrench
in horror. No!
Hattari,
too, knew where the source of the wails was. Tossing the helpless
faery aside, he began to prey upon their household, it blazing
with fire. "Come to daddy..."
"Stop
it!" both Lina and Miran shouted simultaneously. As if
by a miracle, two beautiful, breathtaking wings sprouted from
Mirans back, propelling her forward into Hattari. Her hand
pierced through his chest, the exact location of his power on the
astral plane, and forced him down on his knees. He choked and
sputtered, trying to recover from the shock.
The
mazoku somehow relaxed as Mirans arms wrapped around him
from behind. Even through the numbing pain, he could feel her hot
tears on his back, and the idea bewildered him. "Miran...why
are you crying?"
The
only response to his question was mouthed into his back. He was
not bleeding; mazoku dont bleed. But he was indeed fading
fast. He looked up to the billowing sky, trying to decipher what
she was saying.
The
answer soon came to him, and he closed his eyes in regard to her
feelings. "You know what, Miran? I lied... I really
do-" He fell forward as the blackness began to consume his
torso, feeding hungrily on his corpse and erasing its existence.
As he stared at the barren land spread out before him, he softly
whispered, "...love you."
Lina
buried her face in her hands, sobbing uncontrollably. She was
shivering, trembling at what she had seen. The world around her
had resumed its pitch-black state of silence.
Mirans
aura once again appeared before her. In a sympathetic gesture,
she gently patted the sorceresss shaking shoulders, then
began, "Lina-san, do you understand now what I have been
trying to tell you?"
Lina
shook her head, even though the message was very clear to her.
Miran
seemed to frown, then held out her other hand to Lina. Resting on
her palm were two items one in the shape of an eye and the
other in the shape of a tear. "Lina-san...please choose your
destiny."
Lina
looked up at this. "What?"
"If
you choose the Eye of Deceit, Xelloss will be saved at the
expense of your friends lives. If you choose the
Faerys Tear, your friends lives will be spared at the
expense of Xellosss death."
Lina
paled. "Are those the only two options?"
Miran
paused before answering. "No." Seeing the
sorceresss look of hope, she said, "The third
option... You may sacrifice your own life to save all of theirs
if you take both artifacts. However, the sacrifice is not death
but to be confined in this void for all eternity."
Lina
swallowed, then swallowed again. "I guess I have no
choice..." She slowly began to reach out to choose the
artifact that would seal her fate...
But
instead, she swiped both artifacts off Mirans hand with a
cocky grin, dropping them into the void. "I pick choice D,
to defy my own destiny."
Mirans
form stood quietly for a moment, and then she seemed to smile.
"As expected of you, Lina Inverse..."
A
blinding white light filled the room once again, but this time
Lina only had to shut her eyes for a brief moment. Before her no
longer stood Miran, but a woman clad in black with long, golden
hair. In her left hand she carried a large scythe, and in her
right a black and gold orb. Holding the orb out to Lina, she
stated, "So it has been decided."
Lina
was stunned. This voice...
Paying
no heed to the girls reaction, the woman continued with all
due authority in her voice, "Lina Inverse, you have been
freed from the bonds of fate that bound you." In a simple
snap of her wrist, she had Linas hand firmly grasped in her
own, the orb of energy surrounding both. Though she was calm and
dignified during this time, Lina on the other hand was not.
"Are
you-"
Lina
winced as she was jerked rather roughly into the growing ball of
energy. She looked to the woman in question, both human and
mazoku eyes widened.
"Lina,
walk forward to your future with your head held high. Do not
detour from your path of choice even when facing any obstacle.
You can overcome them all." With one last look of
reassurance, she released Linas hand and began to walk
away.
Lina
tried pointlessly to reach out for her. She was desperate; she
needed to know. "Wait! I need to ask-!" She was cut off
when the sphere completely consumed her, then reduced in size
until it vanished.
The
Lord of Nightmares grinned. "Interesting. Ill be
waiting to see what you do, Lina Inverse. Until we meet
again."
She
slowly raised her hand, and seconds later, disappeared.
<--Back one Chapter Table of Contents Go on to Chapter Ten-->