Home.
        She stood atop the Staff for a moment longer, looking at the Sea of Chaos and the Four Worlds. It wasn’t truly as she had imagined it, and she figured that she’d blank the memory of this out as soon as she left it. So she decided to look at it for just a little longer.
        It’s lovely, isn’t it. There was no question in the voice.
        Lina turned, looking to the Lord of Nightmares. “It’s… more than I can describe. Being human does have its limits.”
        The Lord of Nightmares smiled. You have done well, Lina Inverse. In time, you will truly master the role of Chaos Knight.
        Lina nodded, looking off at the Worlds again. “It’s like putting on new shoes. They don’t fit your feet quite yet, and it’s kind of hard to walk in them.”
        The Lord of Nightmares looked bemused.
        Lina turned to the Lord of Nightmares. “There’s a question that I wanted to ask… because you would know. Is there a cure for Zelgadis out there? I mean… with all this power… it seems that somewhere there’s the answer.”
         The answer, Lina, depends on the question. What is the cure? What does he truly seek? Vague questions gather vague answers.
        Lina blinked, looking down. “I guess I don’t know. I just don’t like to see him unhappy. He’s a friend… and…”
        And you care enough for your friends to risk a good deal of trouble in asking me.
        Lina looked up, suddenly very unsure of the situation. “I…”
        The Lord of Nightmares smiled. There is something that he wants, but even his heart is not clear. I cannot tell you more, that is for him to choose.
        Lina nodded. “Zel’s a pretty private person.”
        Very much like yourself.
        Lina shot the Lord of Nightmares a look. “Yeah, but what can I hide from you? I mean, I’m pretty much an open book to you.”
        Yes, and you have feelings for the blonde swordsman.
        Lina blushed. “Hey now, that’s getting a little personal.”
        There is something that you must know. Witness. The Lord of Nightmares lifted a hand, and a sphere of brilliance sat upon it. As Lina peered into it, she saw the Dragon God Cepheid in human form. His face and form shifted to that of Rouddy Gabriev, and then to a youth who was the child of Rouddy and the elf Meriroon of Mipross island. With that child was the Sword of Light, and Lina realized that she was looking at one of Gourry’s ancestors.
        “So Gourry… is…”
        A descendant of Cepheid.
        Lina fell over. Picking herself up from the Staff, she shook her head. “No way. There is no way that Gourry is a descendant of Cepheid. He’s too dense!”
        There was the vaguest sound of a chuckle from the Lord of Nightmares. Dense he may be, he is indeed a descendant. It is not too hard to imagine.
        Lina shook her head again. “So this means that I shouldn’t…?”
        No, Lina. That is not what I am telling you. I am simply showing you the truth. Should the two of you have children…
        Lina blushed. “You know… I think I liked it better when you were throwing cryptic comments at me.” She felt fatigue wash over her, and realized that the Chaos was starting to take its toll on even her. She wasn’t completely immune to the Sea of Chaos, and she wouldn’t be able to stay much longer without danger.
        The Lord of Nightmares smiled. Go home, Lina.
        Lina nodded, looking back to the World that she knew was hers. “But do I truly have one?”
        As she drew the cloak of Chaos around her to return to Tirshen and the madness that generally surrounded her friends, she heard the Lord of Nightmares’ comment.
        You return to your friends. Is that not home enough, wherever it may be?

        Lina alighted in the pathway that led to the front door of Kira’s house. Inside, she could hear the elder Inverse’s voice raised in irritation at someone. As Lina approached, the words became clearer.
        “You are absolutely irritating! Get out of here before I resort to blasting you into the next town!”
        Eyebrow arched, Lina opened the door and looked in to see Kira glaring at a calmly smiling Xellos. Across the room, Lina could see Amelia peering around the doorway to the kitchen, and Zelgadis was seated quietly on the sofa, reading a magic text, ignoring the Mazoku and elder Inverse engaged in debate less than five feet away.
        Spreading his hands, Xellos shrugged. “But that’s what I do, Kira. You forget that I’m not called the Trickster Priest for nothing.”
        Kira seethed. “Get back to Elena, you! I’m tired of putting up with you!”
        “But, Kira dear… I’ve only been here for an hour!” Xellos protested.
        Lina walked into the room quietly and walked up to the Mazoku. She caught Xellos by the throat, pulling him towards her to look calmly into his eyes. She was still in Chaos Knight mode, and it left her feeling curiously detached. “Xellos, what are you doing?” Her voice was deceptively sweet, and her tone extremely dangerous. Tiny fangs glinted in the light, and the sense of impending fireball (or worse) was strong.
        His eyes popped open, and she could read faint alarm hidden within the violet depths. “Oh, I’m just having some fun, Lina. Nice armor there… could you put me down, I’ll just be on my way…” He smiled disarmingly, and didn’t mention the fact that the merest brush of her Chaos armor against him was relatively painful, and it wasn’t the kind of pain he enjoyed.
        Lina’s eyes darkened, and she smiled with an eerie echo of her sister’s comment of earlier. “Stuff it, Xellos.”
        The oddest expression crossed the Mazoku’s face, and he shivered. “You know Lina, you remind me of Luna so much when you do that.” It startled Lina enough that she released him in reflex, and he vanished from sight.

        After Lina and Kira had collected themselves, the former allowing the Chaos armor to vanish, reverting to her normal clothing and the latter casting a fireball out over her back yard, the little group assembled in the living room.
        Xellos and Elena were notably absent, and that was probably a good thing, given the imbalance in the house. Aqua stood beside Kira, shaking her head at the woman. “Truly, Kira… I would have thought that you’d know how to disarm Xellos by now.”
        Kira scowled and folded her arms. Was it her fault that Xellos knew precisely how to bait her?
        Amelia told Lina that she thought Luna was mean, and Lina immediately reacted like a mouse that had seen a cat. “My sister?! Here?” She started to look for somewhere to hide.
        “Miss Lina! You just need to stand up to her!” Amelia cried.
        Lina stared at Amelia, all sense of being the Chaos Knight gone. “Amelia! Are you nuts? She was poisoning me on a regular basis before I turned three! By the time I was six, every bone in my body had been broken at least twice!”
        “But, Lina…”
        “Don’t ‘but Lina’ me, Amelia. Your sister wasn’t evil,” Lina shot back over whatever the girl might have been saying.
        “I’m not evil, Lina.”
        Lina froze at the voice. Oh no. Oh no. No, no, no, no…Haven’t I been through enough today?
        Amelia frowned, glaring at the sudden return of the Cepheid Knight. Her eyes flashed, and she made up her mind right then and there. “You leave Miss Lina alone. She’s not a failure, no matter what you say!”
        Lina paled at Amelia’s challenge to Luna. She’ll kill her! She’ll kill her!
        Luna opened her eyes and fixed the princess with a look that brought the girl to a chilled standstill. “I don’t recall asking you.”
        Amelia blinked, stammered, and tapped her fingers together. “Well… Um… I… That is… I think Miss Lina’s pretty cool…”
        Zelgadis rolled his eyes, looking up from the magic text. “Lina is the Chaos Knight, and her returning to us proves that she has completed her assignment and prevented Shabranigdo from gaining control of the Philosopher’s Stone.”
        Luna glared at Zelgadis as well, but the chimera patently ignored it, turning the page of the book and continuing to read.
        Gourry just blinked at Luna in confusion. He was still trying to figure out from where she had come in. She hadn’t been in the room earlier…
        Kira and Aqua sighed, both knowing that Lina would have to take this on her own as well. Nothing they said would help. This was an argument that had to be settled between Lina and Luna.
        Amelia was still rambling about Lina, and Luna scowled at the princess. “Be quiet!” A flick of the Cepheid Knight’s hand, and Amelia went practically white and closed her mouth. She stepped backwards and bumped into the wall behind her.
        A golden aura shimmered around Lina, the bracers appearing on her wrists, but the armor did not follow. Crimson eyes darkened, anger burning furiously within them, an anger that was being very deliberately built and directed at Luna Inverse.
        Very quietly, Lina began to speak, her voice cold and edged with a strength that only anger could give. “That’s it. That is the end, Luna. For years I let you try to kill me. For years I tried to pretend that it was no big deal, that you were teaching me to be stronger. And sometimes I’ve even been grateful for that strength.” For a moment, there was a flicker of a memory of the circlet on her head that shocked her every time she cast a spell. “But you’ve gone too far. You do what you want to me, Luna Inverse. But I’ll be damned if I’m going to let you do what you want to one of my friends.” Golden flames began to swirl around Lina’s ankles, mirrored in her eyes. “It ends here, Luna.”
        Purple and silver armor snapped into place around Luna, a sword larger than should be possible flickering into her hand as Luna assumed her role of Cepheid Knight. “Are you finally old enough to fight me, Lina? Do remember how many times you tried and failed before. It will be just as fruitless this time.”
        None of Lina’s friends had witnessed the transformation before. As they watched, the bracers flared, the light spilling out of them, flowing down Lina’s fingers to become golden gauntlets. Up her arms the light traveled, meeting at her throat and draping itself down her like water cascading over her shoulders. Magically liquid metal seemed to conform itself to Lina’s body, shaping itself into a malleable and yet powerful armor. The light continued to her feet, pooling around her for a moment before the brilliance faded and revealed Lina standing there with a cold and haughty expression on her face. The ribbon around her forehead fell off, the knot untied. It landed on the floor beside her, and Lina lifted her chin slightly, eyes narrowed. “I think, perhaps, that the odds are a little more even now. Your challenge is accepted, Cepheid Knight.”
        Amelia’s mouth fell open. Lina wasn’t just Lina, Amelia decided at once. Lina was a goddess. The princess looked at the golden figure with her red hair spilling about her like flames, and stared in awe. The aura of power rippling away from Lina was almost tangible, and Amelia knew that she’d never see another human radiate with the finely controlled power of Chaos.
        Zelgadis, too, was singularly impressed. He knew that Lina was a fairly decent match for him in swordsmanship under normal circumstances… but now Lina looked as if she could take on Luna in an almost fair fight. The magic sense from her was unlike any that he’d ever felt before, and the nature of Lina and Chaos was starting to make itself apparent to him.
        Kira blinked. Lina had even more control over the armor than she’d had. Well, little one, she thought to Lina. You have a chance yet…but don’t let her goad you, and don’t let her sidetrack you with pettishness.
        Lina’s mental voice was almost as cold as her physical one had been. I don’t intend to let her do anything.
        Aqua shook her head. Being the Water Dragon King, she had just a little more authority than these two. Voice clear and tight, she commanded the Knights. “Take it outside, girls. You break anything in here, and it will be years before Kira lets you set foot back in her house!”
        Luna’s focus changed to Aqua for a moment, and then the Cepheid Knight gave a sardonic little half-bow and stepped through the door to the outside.
        Lina followed.
        And so did everyone else.