Pilgrimage – Reunion
Part Ten


        “Amelia, you have a hell of a lot of explaining to do, so you’d better open your eyes and start talking.”
        Amelia heard the voice and knew that she hadn’t failed at all. But opening her eyes… it felt like a heavy suffocating blanket of darkness was tucked in all around her. It was… comfortable. She’d just rest a little while, right?
        Just rest a few more moments…

        Amelia still hadn’t opened her eyes. The child grabbed Zelgadis’ hand and he almost didn’t notice until the additional power flowed into his healing spell. He’d read of people who could boost others’ magics, but never before had he felt the rawness of such a connection. The power flowed with a wildness that he could barely contain. But all he truly needed to do was direct it.

        The pull was undeniable. She was tired, but she had to answer it. She owed them that much, yes.
        She opened her eyes.

        The cave was dim, lit only by the natural reflection of light by the ice crystals. One by one, faces came into focus as Amelia struggled to consciousness.
        Her daughter Lina.
        Zelgadis.
        Gourry.
        Lina Inverse.

        Tears came to Amelia’s eyes as she focused on those of her long-missing friend. She reached up slowly to the restored sorceress and felt the weight of her daughter as the girl threw herself across her mother. Amelia smiled faintly, her other arm cradling her child as she looked to the woman beside her.
        “Amelia…” Lina shook her head. “That was foolish,” she chided gently, cupping Amelia’s hand in hers.
        “I’m sorry, Miss Lina. I guess… I guess I still haven’t learned when not to cast the big stuff…” Amelia whispered softly.
        Lina Inverse smirked. “Yeah, well, when we get back, you’ve got a lot of explaining to do. Like how in the name of Cepheid you learned to cast the Laguna Blade.”
        Zelgadis watched Amelia’s daughter. He and the girl both knew the cold truth: Amelia wouldn’t be explaining anything. And he couldn’t do anything about it. He watched with a sick sense of dread, knowing the future and powerless to do a thing to change it.
        Amelia hugged her daughter tighter against her, feeling the untrained magic trying to push back the encroaching darkness. “No, Miss Lina. I think you’ll have to read the books…”
        The unspoken truth came to Lina Inverse, and for the first time in a long time, the redheaded sorceress burst into tears. “Amelia, no!” She cast several healing spells in quick succession, but still she could feel Amelia slipping off. She gripped her friend’s hand tighter, as if somehow her touch could keep her with them.
        “Miss Lina… I’m sorry…” The blanket of darkness was enfolding her, cushioning her in a soft embrace. She was so very tired… and the darkness was so inviting… rest. Yes. At last, she should rest.
        “Amelia!” Lina Inverse couldn’t stop it. She didn’t have the magics.
        Deep blue eyes flickered over the black hair of her sobbing child, focusing on aquamarine ones that were flecked with pain. “Take care… of Lina…”
        A moment passed, and he nodded slowly once, closing his eyes as he did so, hiding the pain from her. She didn’t need to know.
        She smiled ever so faintly, and then her eyes dimmed.

        The silence that fell was only made more profound by the sounds of the child’s sobs.