| Slayers |
| Episode 21: Upset! Gourry vs. Zangulus! |
| The blast from Lina's Flare Arrow broke the door down, and revealed the inside to be a semi-large chamber containing nothing but double-doors in the ground which claw-like structures hung over presumably as a type of protection. A closer look revealed that the twin doors were actually enormous in comparison to the Slayers. The pattern formed the shape of a skull and other symbols beneath it. "Here, huh? Rezo's legacy is hidden beneath this?" asked Gourry. "Now that we know that, I can cut loose!" exclaimed Lina happily. "Just leave this thing to me!" She shot a full-power Fireball at the doors, but the resulting blast did nothing to the door, not even scratching it. Zelgadis wasn't surprised, however. "Apparently ordinary magic won't break the ward Rezo cast here." Lina was indignant, even insulted. "Oh, yeah?" she challenged. "Then I'll just blast it open with a Dragon Slave!" She cracked her knuckles to emphasize her point. Everyone glanced at her in alarm in surprise. "Uh, Miss Lina, is that really a good idea?" offered Amelia tentatively. Lina elbowed her in the eye, going on about how her magical skills wouldn't be thwarted by something like that. "Nobody makes a monkey out of me!" she finished. Zelgadis promptly hit her over the head at this, causing her to fall to the ground undramatically. "Ow, that really hurt! What's the big idea?!" demanded Lina, getting to her feet. Zelgadis took the logical approach, asking them to think rationally. He reasoned that Eris knew where the doors were, and so posed the obvious question of why she hadn't opened the ward herself. "Was it because she was after you and Gourry's sword?" he finished. "Of course! That must be it!" Amelia realized. "Huh? Is this about me?" asked Gourry, confused. He got the gist, however, and with a "Light, come forth!" summoned up the Sword of Light. "The Sword of Light must be able to break the ward," Amelia stated understandingly. "I get you. That's why Eris wanted it so badly," replied Lina. Gourry swung down his sword mightily, about to prove the thinking true. A huge crack appeared in the doors to everyone's surprise, and an explosion resulted that illuminated the entire area. Somewhere outside amidst the rubble, Zangulus sat. He was bandaging up his face from when Gourry had hit him with Sylphiel's staff. "Damn you, Gourry," he cursed, letting the bandages go and putting his hat back on. He suddenly started at the explosion in the distance. "It woulod seem they've broken the ward," Eris stated, who had come up behind Zangulus. Rezo was with her. "No matter," he replied calmly. "We'll let them do our work for us." Zangulus looked back with a steely gaze. Back in the chamber, everyone was shielding their faces with their cloaks or hands. "What happened?" asked Lina, after the blast was over. She suddenly let out a startled squawk as the door glowed reddish along inner lines, and fell back as it exploded into pieces. The five of them looked in at the stairway that led downwards; the way was clear. "It worked!" Amelia exclaimed. "Was that all it took?" Gourry asked calmly. "Piece of cake!" Lina slapped his back in a gesture of congratulations, causing him to jump around in pain. "Would you lay off me a little?!" he demanded. "Whatever do you mean?" asked Lina, meanly hitting him just as hard once again. Sylphiel was concerned about the way Gourry was being treated, though, and spoke up about it. Lina wasn't razzled; she replied that it was simply the way she showed her appreciation, meanwhile hitting Gourry again and again. "This is appreciation?!" Gourry demanded. "Okay, we've come this far, so let's give it one last push! We'll all rush 'em!" Lina declared, getting ready to go downwards. She turned back in confusion when no one moved, and saw Sylphiel inquiring about Gourry's health, and Gourry chuckling and saying that he was fine. Lina was indignant once again. "Oh, I think I'm gonna be sick!" she muttered. She continued walking toward the downward staircase. As she passed Zelgadis, he inquired, "Why are you so angry?" "Dunno!" she replied, still angry, and took off down the stairs. Amelia hurried after her, and the rest of the group followed at a run. Zangulus, Eris, and Rezo showed up at the doorway. "Looks like they'll end up beating us," commented Zangulus. "Oh, not at all," reassured Eris. "I know this place very well. All the rooms as well as all the traps inside. I doubt they're nearly so well informed." One of her eyes glinted with knowledge. The Slayers continued running down below. "How long does this 'last push' go?" asked Amelia. "Why don't you ask Zelgadis?" replied Lina, still in the lead. Zelgadis looked disagreeable. "I never said I knew these underground passages..." he explained, "....were put together like a maze!" "Thanks, you're a BIG help," replied Lina sarcastically. "Lina, can I say something?" Gourry asked. Lina turned around to reply: "What?!" As she turned around, she surprised everyone by running straight into a new set of doors. Gourry looked dumbfounded. "Well, I was gonna say 'look out', but..." he trailed off. "Say it faster next time," Lina mumbled, and the door opened with her still smushed against it, revealing light on the other side. Lina landed in a heap on the ground. The other four caught up, and let out gasps of awe that made Lina look up as well. The entire room was filled with shining, illuminating crystals. "What a pretty room!" Sylphiel commented. "Wonder what it's for?" Lina inquired. "My, my... I congratulate you on getting this far," spoke up none other than Rezo. He and Eris had apparently already managed to get there, and Eris indeed looked confident at his side. "Rezo!" exclaimed Lina. Rezo remained calm. "You've done well, my friends," he replied mockingly, "But this is where your journey ends." "Hold it!" spoke up Zangulus, who was sitting in another corner of the room and idly tossing a crystal in his hand. He caught everyone's attention. "I thought I was the one who would finish them off." He caught the crystal again and turned towards the Slayers. "Zangulus!" Gourry exclaimed, a hint of annoyance and hatred in his voice. Zangulus jumped down to the ground, drawing his sword. "I challenge you, Gourry!" he shouted, taking his sword all the way out. He held his sword out in front of him. But before any battle could begin, the crystals that the Slayers were standing on suddenly illuminated with blinding light from below them, surprising the Slayers and Zangulus alike. "Huh?! What's happening?!" Lina stammered, alarmed. Rezo was apparently the one controlling this, judging by the sly smile on his face. As the light disappeared, it was seen that all five had vanished. "What happened?" asked Zangulus, but it became obvious that Rezo and Eris both knew perfectly well what had taken place. "This room is a transit chamber to the inner laboratory," explained Eris. "It's what?!" Zangulus asked. Eris removed her hands from the crystal that suppoedly did that transporting. "Who knows where they may have been taken?" "Stay out of my way!" yelled Zangulus. "I have to be the one to finish them!" Rezo narrowed his eyes and frowned a little at this. Zangulus continued, "I've worked hard up 'til now for that money you promised me! But from here on out, I'm fighting for what I want!" He sheathed his sword and ran to the crystal that the Slayers had been standing on before, and Zangulus was gone in another flash of light. "A foolish man," Eris stated. Rezo had a semi-amused look on his face. "'For what I want', eh?" he smiled. A ball of light appeared in a dark chamber, and out of it tumbled Lina and Sylphiel, landing on the ground. "What the heck happened to us?" Lina muttered. Sylphiel suddenly let out a shriek, catching Lina's attention. The ugly face of a stone golem loomed down over them. As they got to their feet, they saw that the whole chamber was full of the unmoving monsters. "Don't scare me like that, Sylphiel," Lina gasped. "They're just statues." "St- Statues?" "Looks like someone built a little golem factory here." Lina reached over and kicked one of the golems, making a piece break off and break into pieces harmlessly on the ground. "Well, I don't want to hang around here all day," Lina decided. "I agree," seconded Sylphiel. The chamber they had landed in was very large, and there were no definite walls. The two of them started to try finding an exit, and Lina halted when she saw a small carving of Rezo on the wall. "Creepy," Lina decided, and they continued onward. The carving is zoomed in on, and its eyes were blank and scary-looking. On of the golems started flexing its hand. Elsewhere, Amelia and Zelgadis had arrived in a just-as-large library filled with magical books of all kinds. Amelia was just standing around, but Zelgadis had already been through a great number of books, searching for his cure, judging by the number of books taken off the shelves and left on the ground. He was leafing through yet another book. "C'mon, let's go look for the others," suggested Amelia in a kind voice. Zelgadis turned back, and his gaze wasn't as nice. "Don't forget, I'm here to find a way to turn my body back to normal!" "You're mean!" replied Amelia indignantly. "I don't think you have a shred of compassion in you, Mr. Zelgadis! That's bad karma!" "I'll do what I want!" Zelgadis replied, not caring. Behind where Amelia was standing, on the far wall, was yet another of those creepy Rezo carvings. Elsewhere, Gourry was trapped in a dark chamber of his own, but it wasn't as large - it was built like an arena of some kind. "HELLO-O-O-O..." he called, and his own voice bounced back. "Man, a place this big has a great echo to it!" he commented. He crossed his arms. "Well, no time to be admiring the scenery." He looked around. "I wonder where I am, anyway." "Our own private arena," answered a voice. Gourry looked back in surprise, and by the same twist of fate that always brought them together, saw Zangulus waiting for him. Zangulus's eye glinted. "One that will soon be your graveyard." "Zangulus!" exclaimed Gourry in the same tone as usual. "Actually, it looks like a place to test new magic spells," Zangulus commented. "Gourry! At last we're alone to finally settle things!" He was very passionate about a true duel, but apparently Gourry wasn't as eager. "Come on, is that really necessary?" he inquired. Zangulus drew his sword, and it pulsed with the power of the Howling Sword. They exchanged a few words, and the battle began. "Hyah!" yelled Zangulus, swinging down his sword. The Howling Sword's green blast of energy shot toward Gourry with great speed and force. Gourry countered it with his Sword of Light, managing to stop the blast, and even swinging his sword to make it fly back towards Zangulus. The other swordsman neatly dodged the blast. Gourry charged, as did Zangulus, and their swords met in a devastating crash. Back in Lina and Sylphiel's chamber, the golems still stood solidly. Lina and Sylphiel had found a far wall, but there was no door. Sylphiel seemed to be praying, and Lina was knocking on the walls to try to find a hollow spot as an exit. Lina reassured Sylphiel that everything would be fine, although she didn't seem to be having much luck. "Miss Lina, aren't you worried about Gourry dear at all?" Sylphiel demanded. Lina suddenly got a different look on her face, and she temporarily stopped knocking. "Of course I'm worried," she replied. "Miss Lina..." Sylphiel muttered. "She must love him, too," she thought privately. Lina turned around with a happy look on her face. "After all... I'm after Gourry's Sword of Light!" Sylphiel seemed to take a little time to register this, and then her eyes widened like saucers. "The... The Sword of Light?" She couldn't believe that the weapon would have anything to do with being worried about Gourry. "Sure! You saw how powerful it is!" replied Lina, as if it were the most rational thing in the world to be worried about. "If I had that, I'd be the most powerful person in the world! I can't stand thinking that someone else owns it!" Sylphiel put her hand to her face and let out a small sigh. "What's wrong? Does your stomach hurt or something?" asked Lina. They talked a bit longer. Sylphiel was still worried that Lina and Gourry were a couple, but Lina wasn't even listening any longer. She had turned around, facing the direction of the golems. She gestured for Sylphiel to be quiet. "Hm... Must've been my imagination..." she muttered, having heard a sound before. A golem fist clenched again, and both Lina and Sylphiel let out surprised shrieks as a huge golem that towered over them swung down his fist to smash both of them. They both managed to jump out of the way in time, but barely. "It can't be!" Lina exclaimed. All of the golems that had been motionless before had come to life... "Why are the golems...?!" she thought, and then called out, "Sylphiel!" Sylphiel had stood up, ready to fight. "It's up to me now!" she declared. "Flare Arrow!" She did the appropriate motions, and her spell charged up. "Go get 'em, Sylphiel!" Lina supported her. Surprisingly, Sylphiel's Flare Arrow formed the shape of a carrot and just hovered there, and then moved astoundingly slow toward the golems. Lina fell over at how ridiculous it looked. The spell kept going toward the glum-looking golems, and then hit the golem in the face, doing nothing. In fact, it made the golem smile. "Sylphiel...!" Lina exclaimed, grabbing hold of her in alarm. Sylphiel fished a magic book out of nowhere, causing Lina to become dumbfounded with how ridiculous Sylphiel was being. "Hold on..." Sylphiel said, "...and let me take another crack at it." Lina's head became exaggeratedly big anime-fashion. "This is no time to be reviewing your lessons!" she shouted angrily. All of the golems surrounding them suddenly slammed their fists down in the center, causing Lina and Sylphiel to jump up and dart away to avoid being crushed once again. Zelgadis was still studying, and the piles of books had grown considerably. "Wait, did Rezo try this?" Zel muttered to himself. Amelia, apparently out of boredom, was leafing through a book as well. "Oh, what's happened to Miss Lina and the others?" she asked. "They've got me worried." She threw the book aside. "And not in the usual way..." "Don't wander off, Amelia," Zelgadis warned. "There's no telling where we'll find a trap here." Amelia let out a shriek, and Zelgadis got a look of great annoyance and frustration on his face. He put his book down and got up out of exasperation, heading in Amelia's direction. "Didn't I say so?" he demanded. "What a bother..." he muttered, his eyes closed. He let out a surprised gasp when he opened his eyes. Amelia's arm was partway through the wall, and there was a red outline along the part that had gone through. "I swear I didn't do anything!" she yelled. "I just touched the wall!" "Amelia!" Zelgadis shouted, running up and trying to pull Amelia out. "It hurts!" Amelia yelled, as more of her went through the wall. "It's too powerful!" Zelgadis managed to gasp, being pulled forward as he held onto Amelia's arm. In an instant, both of them went straight through the wall. An image of the carving of Rezo is seen... Back in Lina and Sylphiel's chamber, they were both still running from the golems. They gasped when they were surrounded once more. Lina fired a Burst Rondo, destroying all of the enemies surrounding them, but more huge golems just came up again. "Oh, there's no end to them!" Lina said. "What do we do?" asked Sylphiel. "That's a good question!" replied Lina, and then deduced that something must be controlling the golems, making them come to life. There was a scream from above, and Lina and Sylphiel both turned in astonishment as Zelgadis and Amelia tumbled into the chamber. Amelia landed with Zelgadis on the bottom, both sprawled in a heap. "Miss Lina! Miss Sylphiel!" Amelia exclaimed. "Sylphiel, are you OK?" asked Zelgadis. "Uh, yes," Sylphiel replied, unsure of why Zel was singling her out. "I'm-" Lina started. "Hey! What about me?!" Zelgadis got a sheepish guilty look on his face. "I... I didn't mean it like that," he szaid helplessly. He turned and his gaze got cold again. "And would you please get off me, Amelia?" "Oh, sorry!" Amelia apologized, getting to her feet. Zelgadis "smoothed out" some of his wiry hair, but he still looked a bit awkward. "Look, he's blushing!" Lina commented accurately. "Leave me alone," replied Zelgadis. One of the golems swung its fist towards them. Zelgadis cast a barrier, and all of the golems began pounding relentlessly against it. They thought a little of what to do, and then Lina came up with a plan. "Zelgadis! When I give the word, drop the barrier!" she ordered. "Sylphiel, when he does, I want you to find whoever's controlling them!" Both Zelgadis and Sylphiel couldn't believe their orders, but Lina explained that Sylphiel should be able to find the thing behind the golems because she was a shrine maiden. "Don't worry. We'll block any attack from them," Lina stated confidently, referring to herself, Zel, and Amelia. Sylphiel nodded. "Boy, you really know how to manipulate people!" commented Amelia indignantly when she found that she was to be one of the protectors. Lina gave Zelgadis the signal. The barrier was lowered, and immediately Lina cast a Burst Rondo that cut all of the golems to pieces. The four of them ran through the area as quickly as they could. Flare Arrows, Fireballs, Freeze Arrows, and other spells destroyed the golems as they ran. Lina, Amelia, and Zelgadis were all doing an excellent job of protecting Sylphiel as she tried to concentrate to find the source of the chaos. Sylphiel concentrated, and then she understood. The strange carving of Rezo on the wall was the source of the evil power. "Thanks, Sylphiel! I'll take it from here!" Lina decided. As she jumped over the golems, Zelgadis cast another spell to keep a golem from grabbing her. Lina cast a Fireball at "Rezo", and the blast destroyed the carving utterly. Immediately, the golems chasing the other three crumbled to dust. "Rest in pieces, guys," commented Lina smartly as she landed on the ground. "That was close!" Amelia commented. "Wait a minute, where's Gourry?" asked Sylphiel. All four of them looked around, but of course they had no clue. "I'd say he was taken to some other place by himself," Zelgadis decided. "Oh, no..." Sylphiel said. "Gourry..." whispered Lina under her breath, genuinely sounding worried. The Sword of Light and the Howling Sword clanged together. Lina heard it, though the others didn't sense it. They asked her what was wrong, and her gaze travelled behind her. Gourry and Zangulus continued dueling. "I hear a sword fight!" Lina declared. The others reacted towards that, knowing that Gourry was nearby. Gourry and Zangulus were still matched, and each complimented the other. They both fell back and charged again. "It's been ages since a battle excited me like this!" commented Zangulus as he ran towards his opponent. "I never asked you to get so worked up!" replied Gourry, smirking. Zangulus replied with equal confidence, "It can't be helped! Such is the destiny of the swordsman!" Zangulus fired another blast from the Howling Sword, and Gourry swung his sword to block it. There was an explosion, and Lina, Gourry, Amelia, and Zelgadis broke a hole through a wall. "Good work, Sylphiel. You learn fast!" Lina complimented whatever Sylphiel had done. "Straight this way!" Lina ordered, pointing to another wall in front of them. Sylphiel fired without hesitation, and the blast appeared perfect... until it was seen that all four of them burned and covered with black stuff. "Work on the control, okay?" asked Lina dryly. Gourry fell back down to the ground, grasping his sword. The blast went over him. "Show me your real power, Zangulus! I know you're capable of more!" Gourry demanded. Zangulus looked back with confidence. "Good! I'd be disappointed if you didn't try!" Gourry got to his feet. The far wall exploded, and Lina, Gourry, Amelia, and Zelgadis entered, having finally found Gourry and Zangulus's "arena". Cries of "Gourry!" and "Gourry dear!" greeted the sight, and Gourry shouted back, "Hi! You all okay?" Zangulus, however, got a look of extreme annoyance on his face. "They're going to interrupt us again?!" he demanded. "I'd say we have good timing," nodded Lina. "Gourry dear, we'll help you-" Sylphiel began. But Lina cut her off; apparently, she wanted the duel to play out on its own. "All right!" Gourry said triumphantly. "They understand!" Zangulus smiled. "So, we're free to fight to our hearts' content. Then let me show you the might of the Howling Sword!" Zangulus swung his sword again, and a furious blast of green shot toward Gourry. Although Sylphiel was worried, Gourry dodged neatly out of the way. But the blast surprised everyone when it doubled back like a homing missile. Gourry jumped out of the way again, and ended up having to dodge over and over again; it looked very difficult. "What the...?" Zelgadis began. They were all worried now, but Lina called out, "Hey, Gourry! If you win, I'll buy you dinner!" Gourry's ear twitched, saying that he would remember that promise. Zangulus had a near-insane look on his face. "Now it ends!" he shouted. "No, it's just beginning!" countered Gourry, as Zangulus charged up another blast. Gourry charged toward Zangulus at full force with the Sword of Light. "Too slow, Gourry!" Zangulus shouted, and fired the blast. Gourry, however, was able to hold back the Howling Sword's blast with his own sword, amazing everyone. "He's resonating the Sword of Light with the Howling Sword to absorb the shockwave!" Zelgadis realized. "Absolutely incredible!" "Go Gourry!" Lina shouted. With a mighty cry, Gourry swung his sword back at Zangulus, sending the energy shooting back to its original source. Zangulus was overwhelmed by the force of it, and though he tried his hardest to block, his sword was broken clean in half, and he was flung to the ground. He turned about with his useless broken sword, and met Gourry's Sword of Light, held right up next to his head. Gourry had won. Zangulus dropped his sword, giving up. "Yay! I knew justice would triumph in the end!" shouted Amelia happily. All three of the girls suddenly became more... girlish, shouting, "Hooray! Happy ending!" in victory. Even Zelgadis was smiling. Zangulus had lost at last, and Gourry walked right past him without paying any heed. "Wait!" Zangulus called out, holding out his hand. "Aren't you going to finish me?!" Gourry looked back coolly. "No way. That's not my style," he stated. "Gourry...!" Zangulus gasped. Gourry headed back to his companions, where he was met with much congratulations. "Hey, Lina! I heard with my own ears!" Gourry shouted triumphantly. "I never thought you'd ever treat me to a meal!" "Oh?" Lina inquired. "What are you talking about?" For once, Gourry grabbed her in a headlock. "Oh, no you don't! You're not getting out of this one!" he hooted. "What's the big idea?!" demanded Lina, countering by getting out of the headlock and pulling one side of Goury's mouth way to the side. "I said I'd love for you to treat me to dinner if you won!" "You said you'd treat ME if I won!" Once again, Lina had not went through with her promise.. "Their relationship just gets weirder and weirder..." Amelia commented, as Sylphiel observed the scene silently. Zelgadis picked up Zangulus's hat, commenting, "It's a mystery to me how people with so much talent can seem to be so empty inside," as he gave the article back to Zangulus. "The minute they start to act serious around each other, it always turns into this foolishness." "So it would seem," Zangulus smiled, putting back on his hat and standing up. "They're after something in the deepest chamber, you know," Zangulus informed, catching everyone's attention. "But I'm afraid I don't know what it is they want down there." "Zangulus, thank you!" Lina said, and then the five of them set off for the deepest chamber out the door that had been blown in. Before Gourry went out the door, he shouted one last respect to Zangulus; each thought that the other was a great swordsman. With that loose end tied up, Rezo was now the main target. And as they continued to rush to find a way, Lina wondered who would get there first - them... or Rezo... |
| Overall Episode: 21 |
| Episode 1 of Video 7 |
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