Disclaimer: None of these characters are mine, or were created by me. Except Garland. He’s mine.

So without further ado, here it is.
 

Deep beneath the ruins of old Sairaag, something stirred.

This room of the ancient mansion was still quite well preserved, despite the disasters which had twice rocked Sairaag. The chamber had been built deep under the mansion and heavily reinforced in case of magical accidents, and these two traits had led to its miraculous survival. Like the rest of Sairaag, the room was now forgotten. But it was not uninhabited.
The walls of the room were lined with glass tubes, large enough to encompass a man, or perhaps something slightly larger. Most of these were cracked or shattered, and those that weren’t stood empty and open. All except one. Suspended in this glass tube, in a strange gel-like substance, was a man, his only adornment a fractured ruby set in his forehead. He appeared to be lifeless, a mere shell of a man, until a sudden earthquake rocked the room. The land around Sairaag had become unstable after it had been ravaged by the Giga Slave several years ago. As the shock hit the room, the hatch of the tube cracked open under the strain, and the tube’s contents were vomited forth. As he struck the ground, light flared from the ruby set in the man’s forehead. A slight grin touched his lips as it did so, and his eyes slowly opened.
"Master… I shall fulfill your command."

In her room in the small shrine that was the only trace of civilization that still existed around Sairaag, Sylphiel sat bolt upright in her bed. The earthquake had disturbed her, but those were fairly common events in the area these days. No, it was something more that had shaken Sylphiel so suddenly from her slumber. Was it just a dream? She thought, shaken. No, it couldn’t have been. It was too real. Was it… a vision? Syphiel stared out the window, her eyes wide with fear.
"Gourry-sama… You are in danger…"
Invisible against the night sky, a black-cloaked figure flew from Sairaag, a single deadly purpose locked in his mind.

A year passed…

Zelgadis sighed in frustration. "Another pointless day of searching. I’m beginning to think that this temple doesn’t even exist."
"Cheer up, Zelgadis-san. I’m sure we’ll find it soon." Said Amelia, cheerfully.
"How can you still be so optimistic, Amelia? We’ve been searching in Seyruun, around Seyruun, and under Seyruun for the past two weeks looking for this Argashorite temple." We even checked the sewer systems. Now THERE’S something that I don’t want to remember. "And the only guarantee we have that it even exists is that old priest’s word. No one else in the city has even heard of the Argashorites."
"But we can’t give up now, Zelgadis-san! I’m sure that if we just keep on trying and put our hearts into it, we’ll triumph in the end!"
And besides, Amelia thought to herself, looking for this old temple is the only thing keeping Zelgadis-san in Seyruun. No, we definitely can’t stop now.
"Whatever, Amelia. Let’s just go back now, okay?"
"But Zelgadis-san-" Amelia began.
"Amelia, there’s nothing out here. I don’t want to waste any more time on this pointlessness," Zelgadis said, tired and irritated from a day of scouring the forests outside Seyruun. Zelgadis started walking back along the forest trail to Seyruun. Amelia stood for a moment, then slowly trailed after him. I know he’s just angry about not being able to find his cure, but… why can’t he be a bit more considerate? I was just trying to cheer him up…

They walked back to Seyruun in silence.

The Crown Prince Phillionel sat alone in his council room, poring over a stack of documents from today’s meeting. Once again, a new law that he was proposing had become stuck in an endless series of council debating and politics. Why can’t they just see that this law will help bring justice and peace to the people of Seyruun? The council never used to be like this. It’s only been in the past year or so that they’ve been trying to slow down my pursuit of justice. They weren’t even listening to me today in the council meeting, no matter how much I explained. No one’s ever been able to ignore me like that in the council hall. It’s almost as though someone’s trying to turn the council on itself. But who would do such a thing?
While Prince Phil pondered over the days events, a black-cloaked figure suddenly flickered into few. Moonlight reflected through the window from a cracked ruby on the man’s forehead.
"Who-Who are you?" demanded Phil, rising from his chair.
The intruder raised his hand.
Phil never got an answer.

The sausage flew through the air in a graceful arc, trailing mustard over unsuspecting diners as it went.
"MINE!"
"Hey! I saw it first!"
Lina and Gourry leapt through the air after the airborne sausage, forks outstretched to intercept. They collided in midair just behind the sausage, landing in a heap on a table where a young couple was eating.
"Our food!" the couple wailed.
The sausage continued on its path, planting itself neatly in an elderly man’s ear.
"My ear!" the man wailed.
"My table!" wailed the restaurant owner, who had chosen that moment to check on his customers.

Lina and Gourry soon found themselves ushered out of the restaurant by the owner, who demanded that they never set foot in his restaurant again.
"Geez, Gourry, if you hadn’t been so greedy, we could’ve finished our meal." Lina complained.
"Hey, it was you who flung that sausage in the first place! Anyways, we can’t go back in there, what do we do now?"
"Well, I guess we’ll just have to find another restaurant, won’t we?"
A young boy standing outside the restaurant suddenly noticed the two and cautiously approached them.
"Excuse me, sir, but would you happen to be Gourry Gabriev?" the boy timidly asked.
"Yeah, I am. Who’re you, little boy?"
"Umm… I have a letter that I was told to give to Gourry Gabriev or Lina Inverse. Um… here."
The boy handed Gourry a somewhat battered envelope sealed with a blob of red wax.
"Why thank you, little boy. Here, take this for your troubles." Gourry handed the boy a couple coins.
"Thanks, Mister!" the boy said, and ran off.
"Gourry, why did you have to do that?"
"Do what?"
"Give that kid the money? We’re nearly broke as it is. Anyways, gimme that."
Lina snatched the envelope from Gourry’s hands.
"Hey!"
"You probably couldn’t read it, anyways. Hey, what is this?"
"What?"
"This seal. This is the royal seal of Seyruun!"
"Seyruun?"
Gourry suddenly found a fist planted in his face.
"Don’t tell me you don’t remember where Seyruun is! It’s where Amelia’s from!"
"Oh, right. Why would Amelia be sending us a letter?"
"I’m not sure..." Lina cracked open the seal and skimmed over the letter.
"What does it say?"
"Yep, it’s from Amelia… Says she needs us to come to Seyruun on urgent business, but doesn’t say what it is or why. Doesn’t seem like something Amelia would write, but it looks like her handwriting… Well, if Amelia needs our help, then I can’t turn her down. Besides, we haven’t seen each other in three years, and it’ll be a great chance to find out how she’s been."
"If Amelia needs our help, then we’ve got no time to waste," Gourry said. "Let’s go."
"Hey!" Lina exclaimed as Gourry began to drag her by the arm, "Wait! We haven’t gotten our stuff from the inn yet!"
From the shadows, the young boy watched. Perfect. Everything is going as I planned it. Smiling in satisfaction, the boy flickered out of view.

It took Zelgadis and Amelia almost two hours to navigate the twisting forest paths that led back to Seyruun, and it was near midnight by the time they arrived, exhausted, at the main gate. The gate had been closed for the night, and the guards were nowhere to be seen.
"Open the gates!" Amelia called out. "I have returned!"
There was no reply.
"Strange… Where are the guards?" Zelgadis pondered.
Amelia waited a moment, and then called out again. "Hello? Is anyone there?"
After several minutes, a torch-carrying guard appeared at the top of the walls. When he looked down at Zelgadis and Amelia, his eyes widened in shock.
"They’ve returned!" he yelled, running down from the wall into the city. "Quickly, rally the guard!"
"They don’t seem pleased to see us… What’s going on?" Zelgadis asked.
"I’m not sure..." Amelia said slowly.
The gates suddenly swung open, and a dozen guardsmen ran out to surround Amelia and Zelgadis, pikes at the ready. The captain of the guard yelled, "Drop your weapons and come with me to the palace, now! And don’t try casting any spells. One word, and my men will skewer you without hesitation."

Zelgadis glanced over at Amelia. Amelia was staring in shock at the guard captain, a confused and hurt expression on her face. "Phillip-san, don’t you recognize us? It’s me, Amelia! And Zelgadis-san!"
"Silence! I won’t listen to your lies! Now come with us!" yelled the captain, enraged.
Zelgadis cast a questioning look at Amelia, who slowly nodded, still in a state of shock. Zelgadis tossed his sword on the ground.
"Very well, although I have no idea what this is about, we will accompany you."
The guards marched Amelia and Zelgadis towards the castle at pike-point, eyes filled with hatred.
What’s going on? Amelia’s thoughts were in a daze. I hope Daddy can explain things to them…

Garland was disturbed from his late-night meal preparations by the sound of people marching through the streets. Hmm? What’s this? He wondered.
After Garland had learned that his recipe really didn’t need any chimera’s blood, or any of the other bizarre ingredients that Xelloss had instructed him to put in, Garland had apologized profusely to Zelgadis for kidnapping him, and had decided that he would repay his debt to the chimera by travelling with him and aiding him in his quest for a cure. Despite Zelgadis’ frantic insistence that it wouldn’t be necessary, and that he would be just as happy if Garland didn’t accompany him, Garland wouldn’t hear of it and accompanied him back to Seyruun. Today, Garland hadn’t been able to keep up with the pace that Zelgadis had set for the search, and had returned to the city early. Now, he was staying in an inn waiting for Zelgadis’ return.
Damn noisy kids. Don’t they know that a master chef requires the utmost concentration? I’ll teach them not to be so blasted noisy!
Garland flung open the window, prepared to give whoever he saw a piece of his mind
"Hey, you down there- Eh? Isn’t that Zelgadis?"
Whatever they’re planning on doing to Zelgadis, it can’t be good. I’d better go find out what all this is about.
Garland put aside the spatula he had been wielding and stealthily crept out of the inn after Zelgadis.

"Milord, we’ve found the assassins." The guard captain said as he knelt before the throne.
"Good. Bring them before me," commanded Prince Phil.
Assassins? Zelgadis thought, alarmed.
Zelgadis and Amelia were roughly thrust in front of Phil.
"Father?! What’s going on? Don’t the guards recognize me?" Amelia shouted desperately.
"Silence! You can’t hide yourself from me… impostor."
"Impostor?" said both Zelgadis and Amelia simultaneously.
"You think I don’t know?" Phil bowed his head. "The body of my real daughter was found floating in the harbor a few hours ago."
There was complete silence in the room. Amelia stared in shock and horror at her father, tears beginning to well in her eyes.
"… that… that’s impossible! Daddy? How… how can you think…"
"I won’t listen to any more of your lies. Guards! Take them to a cell. They will have plenty of time to think about their crime tonight. They will pay for it… tomorrow."
"But… but… you can’t do this, daddy! You can’t…"
Amelia sagged to the floor, tears flowing from her eyes. Zelgadis tried to catch her, but was roughly pushed back into place by a guard. Zelgadis snarled at the guard, and struggled to break free.
Philionel looked impassively down at Amelia. "You deserve no mercy for what you’ve done. Guards! Hurry up and remove this scum from my sight."
Something’s wrong here… thought Zelgadis. Prince Phil wouldn’t normally act like this. Something’s very wrong…
This… This can’t be happening…Amelia felt sick. It can’t be… Daddy would never do something like this to me…
"Daddy, you can’t do this! Please, stop! You can’t…" Amelia cried out as the guards dragged her and Zelgadis away.
Phil gazed impassively at his daughter as he was taken away. Unnoticed, a slight grin played across his lips.

"Zelgadis-san.. We’ve got to do something! Somehow, we’ve got to prove our innocence to my father! … I know that we can appeal to his justice-loving nature and bring him to his senses! He’ll have to see the truth if we approach him with a clear and pure heart filled with love and justice! He’s got to!"
"Could you be quiet, Amelia? I’m trying to concentrate here."
Zelgadis was holding an ancient rusty spoon he had found in a corner of the cell, and was trying to scrape a hole in the wall.
The cell was silent save for the sounds of Zelgadis’ scraping for a few minutes.
Of course she can’t be quiet. Her whole world’s just been turned on its head and she’s been betrayed by her own father. How can I expect her to just sit there and be calm about it? Zelgadis mentally kicked himself. And what have I done to help her cope with it? I’ve been so intent on my own goals that I’ve been completely ignoring her the entire day. I’ve been a complete fool.
"Amelia…" Zelgadis said, slowly.
"Yes, Zelgadis-san?" replied Amelia from the corner of the cell where she sat.
A voice from across the hall interrupted whatever Zelgadis was about to say.
"Keep it down over there, will you? I’m trying to sleep."
Zelgadis and Amelia slowly looked at each other.
"That sounded like…" Zelgadis said.
"… Lina-san? Is that you?" Amelia called across the hall.
"Amelia??" Lina said back, startled. "What are you doing in your own prison?"
"I was going to ask you the same thing. Why are you here, Lina-san?"
"Well, Gourry and me had come to Seyruun after getting that letter you sent us, and-"
"Letter?"
"You know, that one about the urgent business you needed us for."
"Umm… I never sent you a letter, Lina-san."
"… What? Then who sent us that letter?"
"It seems like someone’s trying to set us up." Zelgadis observed. "Amelia and I were accused of assassinating the real Amelia, and were thrown into the prison by Phil’s guards."
"What? That’s the same thing that happened to us!" Lina exclaimed.
"I don’t like this… By the way, Lina, where’s Gourry?"
"Oh, he’s in here. Hey! Gourry! Wake up!" Lina yelled, kicking Gourry in the side for emphasis.
"Wha? Wha’s goin’ on?" Gourry mumbled.
"Get up, you jellyfish! Amelia and Zelgadis are here too!"
"Amelia and Zelgadis? Have they come to help us?"
"Unfortunately, we’re in the same situation as you are." Zelgadis said.
"Anyways, I think now our first priority is to get out of here," Lina said. "Zelgadis, can you do anything?"
"The guards took my lockpicks away when they brought me here, so I can’t do anything."
"Well then," said Lina, a fiery gleam in her eye, "I guess it’s up to me. FIRE –"
"No, don’t!" Amelia cried.
"Eh? Why not?" Lina asked, letting the fireball dissipate. "Do you have a better way to get us out?"
"No… It’s just that… Please don’t hurt anyone, Lina. Even though my father thinks I’m an impostor, I still don’t want to see any harm come to this kingdom."
"What are you saying, Amelia? We’ve got to get out of here, don’t we? It’s not like I’m planning to go on a killing spree."
"I know, but…" Whenever Lina starts flinging spells around, there’s always a lot of destruction. I don’t want that to happen in Seyruun…
"Alright, Amelia, I won’t use any fireballs," Lina sighed. "So what now?"
A figure emerged from the shadows. "Haha! There you are, Zelgadis!"
"Who’s that?" asked Lina.
"Garland-san!" exclaimed Amelia.
"Thought you could use a little help, so I decided to come to the rescue." Garland’s face darkened a bit. "I overheard Prince Phil talking with his guards. They’re planning to execute you tomorrow, you know."
"WHAT?" exclaimed the four prisoners simultaneously.
"Garland, can you do something about the door?" Zelgadis asked.
"I can’t, but I brought you all the stuff that they took from you, along with some weapons."
Garland unslung a large sack from his back and emptied it onto the floor.
"Hey, my sword!" Gourry exclaimed as the bag was emptied out.
"Garland, be careful. The guards’ll hear you." Zelgadis warned."
"Oh, don’t worry about them. I took care of them with a sleep spell."
Father… Amelia thought to herself as the others rooted through the equipment that Garland had brought. Why would he execute us? Seyruun has never had executions before. Father’s always been opposed to them. Her resolve hardened. Something strange is going on here, and I’ll find out what it is!
"So, Zel," Lina asked as Zelgadis worked on the cell lock with his lockpick set, "Who is this Garland guy, anyways?"
"It’s a long story," Zelgadis replied distractedly. "I’ll explain later when we have time. For now, though, I’ll just tell you that he’s our ally."
"And who are these two, Zelgadis?" Garland asked. "Seems like you know them."
"Again, it’s a long story, but they’re old friends of mine. She’s Lina Inverse, and the swordsman is Gourry Gabriev. Ha! Got it!" Zelgadis said, the lock snapping open as he finished. Zelgadis swung open the door and moved over to unlock Lina’s cell.
"We’ve got to hurry, Zelgadis-san! We must find my father and discover why he’s doing this!" Amelia exclaimed, running out of the cell.
The lock to Lina’s cell was unlocked in an instant, since it was so similar to the other cell’s lock.
"Alright! Let’s get out of here!" Gourry said, grabbing his sword from the floor.
"Right. Garland, did you put all the guards to sleep?" Zelgadis asked.
"All the ones I could see. I might have missed one or two, though."
"Well, if we run into any, we’ll just have to take care of them." Zelgadis glanced over at Amelia as he said this. Amelia was looking down at the floor, eyes moist as she held back tears. Amelia… She’s taken too much today, and I’m not helping her any by being the heartless swordsman. I’ll try to make it up to her if we can get out of this alive.
"What are we waiting for, then?" Lina said. "Let’s go!" Lina ran off down the hallway. The others followed close after.
The throne room was dark and empty by the time that Zelgadis and the others arrived there after having uneventfully escaped from the dungeons. Well, not quite empty. As they entered the room, Phil rose from the throne and walked down to greet them.
"Welcome. I was wondering how long you would keep me waiting."
The escapees stopped suddenly in alarm. Gourry drew his sword, just in case it should be needed.
"Phil!" shouted Zelgadis. "Explain yourself to us! Why did you imprison us?"
"Hmm? I told you already." Phil grinned. "You killed my daughter."
Something’s strange, Lina thought. This isn’t how Phil normally acts.
Who’s this guy? Gourry thought. Fortunately for him, he didn’t voice his question.
"Father!" Amelia shouted. "Open your eyes! It’s me, Amelia!"
"Amelia?" Phil said. "It is you! How could I have been so wrong! Come to me, my daughter. Please forgive me."
"Father!" Amelia said, starting to run towards him.
Suddenly Lina saw what was going on. "Amelia! Don’t listen to him! It’s a trick! He's not Phil!"
As Amelia ran toward Phil, Phil raised a hand. "Freeze…" Phil began. Amelia suddenly stopped, and began backing away slowly. Too slowly.
"AMELIA!" Zelgadis screamed, and flung himself forward on top of her.
"Arrow." Phil finished. A lance of icy energy burst forth from Phil’s hand towards Amelia, but the spell struck Zelgadis instead.
"Aaargh!" screamed the chimera, as blood poured from his shattered back.
"Zelgadis-san!" Amelia screamed as the chimera’s blood washed over her.
"Amelia… I hope I… made up for everything…" Zelgadis whispered, before falling into unconsciousness.
"Zelgadis-san!!!" Amelia screamed again, tears flowing from her eyes.
"Hmph. Looks like I have no more need to carry on this charade," said Phil. There was a noise like shattering glass, and the image of Phil exploded outward and fell to the floor in a thousand pieces. Standing in Phil’s place was a man enshrouded in a black cloak. Red light poured forth from the broken gem set in his forehead.
"Vrumugun?!" Lina said.
"Who?" Gourry said a second later.
Vrumugun stepped towards Amelia and the fallen chimera. "A pity that you escaped from the prison. That would have made my work much easier. Unfortunately there was a factor I could not foresee," he said, looking at Garland. "It matters not. My master’s command will still be fulfilled."
Why is Vrumugun here? What could he possibly still want from us? Lina thought, her brain working furiously. And how could he have cast a Freeze Arrow with such power? Even I would have difficulty doing that, and Vrumugun was never that powerful.
"What do you want with us?" Lina demanded.
Vrumugun gave no answer, but continued to advance on Amelia and Zelgadis. "Fire…" he began, his hand outstretched towards Amelia.
"Zelgadis-san…" Amelia sobbed, oblivious to Vrumugun’s intentions.
"Amelia, move!" shouted Gourry.
"Ball." Vrumugun completed the spell, and a fiery orb sped from his hand towards the princess and the fallen chimera.
"Balus Wall!
The fireball dissipated as it struck the invisible barrier.
"What?" Vrumugun shouted, enraged that his spell had been blocked.
"Lina, Gourry… Take Zelgadis and escape." Garland said as he spread his protective barrier over Zelgadis. "I’ll take care of things back here."
"Garland, are you sure?" Lina asked.
"Just do it!" Garland commanded.
"Right!" Gourry grabbed Zelgadis and slung him over his shoulder, and Lina helped Amelia to her feet.
"We’re counting on you, Garland!" Lina shouted back over her shoulder as they ran from the castle.

Garland prepared himself to face the sorceror standing before him. "Zelgadis… This will even the score between us."

Vrumugun laughed. "Come now, old man, surely you don’t think you can stop me."
Garland smiled. "Bahaha! Never underestimate the power of the mighty sorceror and master chef Garland!"
"Alright then, old man, let’s see what you can do. Your move."
"You’ll regret that later. Let’s see how you like this… Burst Flare!"
No way he could’ve survived that, thought Garland as the area where Vrumugun had been standing was consumed in flames. That’ll teach him not to underestimate his elders.

"Interesting. My turn," said a voice from behind Garland.
"What?" Garland whipped around to find himself face to face with Vrumugun. Vrumugun’s eyes stared mockingly at Garland, and the ruby in his forehead glowed with demonic light.
"No! Balus Wall!" shouted Garland, hastily erecting a barrier.
No use. Vrumugun stepped through the wall as though it had never been cast, and placed his hand on Garland’s chest.
"Freeze Arrow."
Garland’s eyes suddenly snapped wide open, and a strangled gasp escaped his lips.
"Heh... Nice trick.. but did you really think you could kill me… with such a simple… spell…? Let’s see… if you can handle… this…"
Garland raised his hand feebly, and mouthed the words to a spell as his body slid down the spike of ice that Vrumugun had thrust through it.
"Sorry Zelgadis… I failed you." he whispered.

"Recovery!"
A white aura surrounded Amelia’s hand as she cast another recovery spell on Zelgadis.
"Amelia, you’ve done all you can for him," said Lina. "Any more and you’ll only be exhausting yourself. What Zelgadis needs right now is rest. I’m sure he’ll be okay in the morning."
"And you need rest too, Amelia. You look terrible." said Gourry.
At Gourry’s words, Amelia suddenly realized how tired she was. It was nearly morning, and she hadn’t slept a wink.. The day’s events had left her exhausted physically, mentally and emotionally.
"But… what about Zelgadis-san?" she asked, fighting the urge to sleep.
"Don’t worry, he’ll be alright. I’ll bet that by tomorrow he’ll be good as new," reassured Gourry.
"Zelgadis-san… he nearly died… to save me…" Amelia said quielty to herself.
If I hadn’t been so stupid… If I had just recognized that that wasn’t my father to begin with… none of this would have happened…
That thought suddenly brought another question to Amelia’s mind.
"If that wasn’t Father… then, what happened to him?"
"Perhaps I can answer that."
Gourry suddenly leapt to his feet, sword ready.
"Vrumugun! Show yourself!" demanded Lina.
"Heh, heh, heh…"
Vrumugun suddenly materialized in the middle of the campsite, carrying a ragged red mass in his arms. He unceremoniously dumped it on the ground in front of them.
Amelia gasped, eyes wide from horror. "Garland-san!"
Gourry’s eyes narrowed. "You monster!" he shouted, and leapt toward Vrumugun. Vrumugun grinned, and flickered out of view, reappearing behind Gourry.
"Gourry, watch out!" shouted Lina.
"Hmph. So quick to use violence. I am not here to fight you right now. I am merely here to show you something."
Vrumugun raised his hand, and a cloud of mist appeared in the air. An image formed in the mist.
Amelia looked up from Garland’s body, trembling, and screamed when she saw what was being shown in the cloud of mist.
Prince Philionel was chained to a wall in a dungeon, his body covered in cuts and bruises. He was straining against the manacles, a wild look in his eyes, Then, his head turned, and he stared straight at Amelia.
"Daughter! You've got to help me! Hurry!" Philionel said frantically.
"Help me, Amelia! That madman is planning to kill me! He’s-"The image suddenly cut off, and Amelia sagged to the ground, sobbing.
"And now, swordsman, I have something to show you." A new image formed in the cloud of mist.
"She was coming to warn you about me. I couldn’t have had that, now could I?"
The image now showed another dungeon, only this time, the figure chained to the was was-
"Sylphiel!" Gourry shouted.
"Gourry-sama..." Sylhiel said weakly. "I tried to warn you, but- he found me first… I’m sorry, Gourry-sama…" With that, Sylphiel’s energy seemed to be spent, and she was silent.
Gourry was trembling with rage. "You… you…"
"Why have you done this?" Lina demanded. "What do you want with us?"
"Come to Sairaag, if you want to see either of these two again. There, all things will be settled." With that, Vrumugun vanished from view.
Sairaag… I thought that I would never have to return there…Why is Vrumugun doing this? What is his purpose? Lina wondered. Whatever it is, we can’t ignore him. Sylphiel and Phil are depending on us.

In the morning, they built a cairn for Garland.

To be continued, in my next fic.

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