Chapter 24

The brilliance died down, the spell finishing its job, and Lina peeked open her eyes to see the black pool of magic dissipating. That was a relief. And Amelia was standing in the doorway, shivering uncontrollably, but she’d come through in the last of it.

“Is… is… everyone okay…?” Amelia mustered the courage to ask, looking into the room from the doorway. Lina was there, crouched on one side of the room, her defense shield fading now that it was safe.

Lina stood from her crouch, looking around the room. “Zel…?” It was hard to see now, and she lifted her hand and cast her quick-and-dirty Lighting spell. “Source of all power, light which burns.”

The resultant sphere of light was not as brilliant as she could have cast, but it enabled them to see clearly enough to find Zelgadis across the room. He was sitting on the floor, looking rather annoyed.

Lina and Amelia looked to each other, then Lina moved towards Zelgadis first. “Zel…? What’s wrong? What is it?”

“Are you hurt, Mister Zelgadis?” Amelia asked as the two neared him.

Aquamarine eyes flashed annoyance again, and he looked up to the girls, scowling. “I twisted my ankle.” It didn’t hurt so much as it injured his pride and annoyed the utter hell out of him. He never got injured like this. It just wasn’t something that happened to him.

The tension and the fear crept out of Lina in the form of a giggle. It earned her an annoyed look from Zelgadis, and she giggled even harder. Amelia turned to the sorceress in surprise, and Lina sat down beside the wounded chimera, laughing.

“What is so funny?” Zelgadis asked with an edge of irritation.

Lina snickered, resting a hand on his arm. “You twisted your ankle, Zel… You. Of all of us. I thought you might be hurt by that forming Mazoku, or singed by Amelia’s spell, but…” she giggled again, softer. “You twisted your ankle…” she collapsed into laughter, unable to help herself.

A moment passed as Zelgadis thought about it, then he too started to chuckle. He could suddenly see it, the reason why Lina was leaning on him laughing helplessly. He, of all people, the chimera who was practically indestructible by most standards… had managed to twist his ankle. It was absurd.

It took three more seconds for Amelia to get it, and she started to laugh, managing a shaky “Poor Mister Zelgadis…” as she sat to cast a healing spell on his ankle as she laughed.

“Huh? What happened? What am I missing?” Gourry said as he came into the room and saw the three on the floor laughing.

Zelgadis looked over to the swordsman. “I twisted my ankle…”

Gourry’s eyes got wide and he looked concerned as he walked towards them. “Gosh, that’s terrible. But why are you all laughing? I don’t get it.”

It only set the trio laughing all the harder as they sat on the floor of the room.

They exited the small church, stepping out into the street and looking around. Silence filled the enclosed city, and Lina looked reflexively to the fountain.

The water was gone, the stone dry and aged.

She walked over, looking in, and shivered involuntarily. There was still no sign of the sorcerer who had supposedly drowned himself within its waters, but there was still an eerie sensation about the fountain that Lina couldn’t quite put her finger on.

There was a rumble, the ground shifting, and suddenly, for a moment, the sun was shining and people were bustling down the street. Then it was dark and stone once again.

Confused, the group stopped and looked around themselves. It was Amelia who spotted the figure, pointing with a loud exclamation, “Look!”

Standing by one of the stone people was a young man, a sad look in his eyes. He raised his hand in salute as they approached. Lina folded her arms and looked at him, crimson eyes blazing. “Who are you?”

The reply was softly voiced, “I could ask the same of you. But it doesn’t matter, as I sense that you are those who have destroyed the last of the Curse of Ishii. I have been the Keeper of Ishii for many, many years. And I thank you from releasing me. But you must go now. The spell is shifting, and soon the city will fall in upon itself, the memories of the people finally released.”

Lina frowned. “You’re the sorcerer! You drowned in the fountain…”

He shook his head. “No… that was what was said to protect the city. There was no fountain before I cast the final spell to bind the black magic to me. I became the fountain, a vessel for containing the power of the black magic that I could not control.”

Lina’s eyes widened as she considered the ramifications of what he had said. “So you turned all the people into stone… by accident?”

He nodded silently.

Amelia drew up short, looking to the statue that the young man stood next to. “Are they still alive? Can we help them?”

He shook his head. “No, they are not alive as you would understand it. Perhaps you,” he said, looking at Zelgadis, “would understand. They are souls placed into stone, unable to die, unable to live. They watch, and remember. And soon, the stone will fall, and they will at last be able to rest.”

Zelgadis nodded slowly, he understood all too well what the Keeper was telling him. These people were worse off than he had been as a full chimera… they couldn’t move or interact. “And we’ve been seeing their memories as they are released from the stone?”

The other nodded. “Yes, it is even as you say. But you must leave now. There is nothing here that will assist you. Time is short, you must leave.”

As his last sentence was spoken, the ground began to shift again, several stone people falling over to shatter, releasing images of a sunny day and busy city streets. Amelia blinked, disoriented by the released memories, and Gourry grabbed her around the waist and leapt for the exit above, leaping from stone to stone.

Zelgadis closed his mind to all but the truth of leaving and cast his Ray-Wing around himself and Lina, lifting into the air for the exit. As he looked down, he saw the figure lift a hand again, and he did so in return.

Landing outside, Zelgadis released both Lina and the Ray-Wing spell, spun around as a ball of power built up in his hand. Slamming his hand down onto the ground, he finished the silent spell: “Vigarthagaia!”

The ground shook slightly, a precisely controlled earthquake rippling through the ground, and the entrance to the lower city collapsed into the hillside and sealed away the City of Stone. When he turned, three pairs of eyes were on him.

“Gosh, Zel. I didn’t know that you knew that one…” Lina said, considering.

The shaman chimera gave a half-shrug. “You never asked me.”

Lina stared at him. “I never asked you? Oh, for crying out loud, fine! What else can you cast, Zel?”

There was a brief pause as he considered, and a truly devilish smile crept across his lips and into his eyes. “That is a secret.”

Lina’s scream of rage could be heard all the way into town, and Zelgadis took off running before she could catch up to him.

Amelia and Gourry stood there looking after the two who were vanishing towards town with bemused expressions. “You know, Amelia, I think that Zelgadis is going to be just perfect for Lina, don’t you?”

Amelia nodded absently as she watched a fireball head towards Zelgadis in the distance. “It won’t ever be dull…” She winced as she watched the fireball singe the chimera slightly. It’s a good thing Miss Lina doesn’t keep a mace like Miss Filia did… but then, Miss Lina uses her slipper…

Gourry clapped a hand onto Amelia’s shoulder, chuckling softly. “With Lina around, life is never dull. Come on, Amelia. Let’s go save him before she does something that she’ll regret later.”