Time continues, never stopping, never ceasing. A year goes by.

Rodimus was proud of Zelgadiss. In the year since they left Rezo, his skill with a sword was almost beyond expert, though he still wasn't very strong. Even more impressive was the fact that every time they went into a town, Zelgadiss would hunt down a Shamanist and ask him to teach him one spell. The only thing about Zelgadiss that he didn't like was that he had his mother's seriousness. He did not joke or laugh often. Currently, they were on their way to Sairaag to meet Rezo. All they had to do was go around the Great Flagoon to reach the city. They had just bedded down for the night.

"What will you tell Rezo, Master Zelgadiss?"

"I still don't know."

Rodimus awoke the next morning to a scream. He looked over and found Zelgadiss gone. He expected that. Lately Zelgadiss would get up to practice with his sword. But Rodimus' blood froze as he realized who was screaming.

"MASTER ZELGADISS!!" Rodimus grabbed his axe and ran. He jumped over a dead tree and headed up a hill where there was some sort of red glow behind it. Once he crested the hill, he stood in horror. There on the ground, with his back to him Zelgadiss lay, curled up in a ball, shaking. Standing before him was Rezo, smiling. Rodimus knew something was wrong. Zelgadiss' hair, which had always been the same medium purple of his mother, was much much paler. Rezo's voice filled the air.

"My half of the bargain is done. You are a honorable young man, Zelgadiss. Don't forget your half." Rezo disappeared. Rodimus ran to Zelgadiss. He tried to shake him, but he would not waken. Rolling Zelgadiss over onto his back, Rodimus gasped as he got a good look at Zelgadiss' face.

Zelgadiss now had long pointed ears. His once pale skin was as blue as the sky, but all over his face were dark rocks protruding out. "Master Zelgadiss, what did he do to you?" Rodimus whispered. Zelgadiss' eyes fluttered open. Rodimus sat back in horror. Zelgadiss' eyes, always his pride and joy, had looked exactly like his father's. Midnight blue, intelligent, and sharp. Though still as blue, they were slitted. Zelgadiss looked over to Rodimus.

"Rodimus, I just had a nightmare," he said. Then he blinked. "Rodimus, what's wrong?"

"Master Zelgadiss," he replied. "I think your nightmare is a reality." Zelgadiss' eyes grew wide and he looked down to his body.

"NOOOOOO!!!!"

Time is not cruel as people age. Things grow older and pass, such is life. Another year began, grew and ended.

Rodimus was having a lousy year. After Zelgadiss became a chimera came a long a tedious period of adjustment for the two of them. Both had agreed that as a man of honor, Zelgadiss had to find this Philosopher Stone. Once that was done, they would ask Rezo to turn Zelgadiss back into a human. That was the plan. The hard part was finding the Stone. Zelgadiss was convinced that being a chimera was only temporary. But Rodimus suspected differently. He had watched in terror as Zelgadiss' magical ability increased, and he casted a Ra Tilt like a Fireball. The worst part was that Zelgadiss was loosing his mother's gentleness. Being a chimera had given him a sour look to the world. He was becoming harder as the days passed. Rodimus wondered if there was any way to bring back the gentleness that had been robbed from Zelgadiss.

Rodimus sighed and continued through the town. That was another thing that Rodimus had trouble adjusting to. Though Zelgadiss could always take care of himself, Rodimus was no longer by his side. Instead, Zelgadiss stayed at the ruined castle nearby, hiding behind his mask, while he sent out Rodimus and Dilgear to find the stone.

Dilgear was yet another thing that Rodimus didn't like. From his experience, manbeasts were untrustworthy. To make matters worse, it wasn't like Rodimus could challenge Dilgear to a duel. Dilgear was half troll, half wolf, and all ugly. Rodimus understood that he wasn't getting any younger, and fighting a wolf troll would definately kill him. He sighed again. It had been a long year.

Rodimus walked into a tavern and sat down at the bar.

"What'll it be?"

"Just some water." Rodimus mulled his thoughts over in his mind, prioritizing them. First and foremost was getting the Philosopher Stone so that Rezo could turn Zelgadiss back to normal. Luckily, Rodimus had done some inquiries and discovered that the Stone was in some sort of orihalcon statue. He took another sip from his glass, but soon found it spilled all over him from a drunk who had bumbed into him. Being in a sour mood, Rodimus snapped.

"Watch what your doing, little man!" He went back to his water. Soon, however, he discovered that the little man had friends. Big, burly, armed friends. Just perfect. Rodimus swung his axe to block a sword and quickly ran out to the street. Though the men were strong, Rodimus was fast and far more experienced. He took them down in no time without any casualties. He sighed once more, heading back to the tavern to finish his drink. He never reached the tavern as he was blown of his feet by a Fireball. Apparently the drunk also had a sorcerer as a friend.

Rodimus understood that he was out of his league. Swords, staffs, axes, javelins, all of those he could fight against. But Sorcery was beyond him. Rodimus tried to get in close to the tall sorcerer. A good punch to the jaw should knock him out, but Rodimus discovered getting close was impossible. The man threw spells like there was no tomorrow.

Rodimus fell back again, muttering all the curses he had ever heard, which was quite a few. All of them from the ancient language of his clan.

"Flare Arrow!" Suddenly, the tall man who was attacking him was nice and crispy. Another tall man walked out of the shadows. This man had ugly green hair and a black cape with a high collar. The man walked over and offered Rodimus a hand.

"That hardly seemed fair. I hope you don't mind, old man. Besides, I had a score to settle with that pompuss jerk. You gave me the opportunity."

"Thank you," Rodimus said. He briefly rememberd one of Zelgadiss' orders had been to keep an eye out for possible recruits. "My name is Rodimus. How about you?"

"Zolf."

"Would you been interested in a proposal that my Master has?"

"Master? You a servant?" Zolf laughed. "I never would have thought you to be a servant. Especially with how you swing an axe. I thought maybe a lumberjack!" Rodimus scowled a little. Being teased about his age was one thing. But he was a fighter, not a lumberjack.

Swallowing the urge to fight this half witted sorcerer, Rodimus repeated himself. "Would you be interested in a proposal with my master?

"Money makes the world go round," Zolf replied. "If he has good money, I'm game."

Time continues, as it will forever. Another four seasons pass by.

Rodimus locked swords again with the blond man. Though he was good, Rodimus was fighting with anger on his side. Zelgadiss had been so close to getting the Philosopher Stone when it was stolen by some girl named Lina Inverse. Now she had paired up with this idiot swordsman. Though Dilgear was with him, Rodimus did most of the fighting. Suddenly, the sky brightened with a light spell overhead.

"That's the signal from Zel. Well, now that he has her, there's no point in going after this guy. Let's go Rodimus," Dilgear said. The name Zel grated Rodimus' nerves further. Though an okay nickname, Rodimus could not get used to calling Zelgadiss anything other than Zelgadiss. Rodimus turned to the blond.

"Looks like you escape death this time," he said, seathing his sword. He and Dilgear ran off, the blond standing there dumbfounded. They caught up with Zelgadiss as they ran to the ruins. He had Lina slung over his shoulder.

"Why are you bringing her?" Dilgear asked.

"She doesn't have the statue on her," he replied coldly. Rodimus really missed the gentleness Zelgadiss had as a child. "We'll have to question her." When they reached the castle, Zelgadiss turned to Rodimus. "I want you to stand guard."

"But my men can take care of that!" Dilgear protested.

"I said Rodimus will stand guard. Do you want to disobey my orders?" Zelgadiss placed a hand on his sword.

"N-n-n-noo, Master Zelgadiss." Rodimus stayed outside.

Zelgadiss shot up from bed, breathing heavily and sweating. It had been the dream again. It had plagued him ever since his curse began. He looked down to his shaking hands. He clenced one into a fist. "Damn you, Rezo." He slid out of bed and stared out the window. Down below, Rodimus still was on watch. Even though Rodimus followed his every order to the letter, Zelgadiss couldn't trust him. Not any more. Rezo was his anscestor, but look at what happened to him by trusting him. No, there wasn't anyone he could trust. Rezo probably had all of Zelgadiss' servants under his control. Zelgadiss walked over ot his sword and belted it on. He grabbed his cape and hood. He didn't have a choice anymore. Rezo wouldn't cure him, even if Zelgadiss gave him the Philosopher Stone on a golden platter along with Lina's head. Rezo would probably use Rodimus against him. There was nothing else he could do. He would kill Rezo and take his revenge. Even if he had to slice out Rezo's beating heart and toss it to a river. Rezo would pay for making him a monster.

Zelgadiss sneaked into the room where Lina hung from a rope. Though Zelgadiss believed she had gone through enough with Zolf's insults, he needed her to take him to the Philosopher Stone. She woke up as he approached.

"Please, be quiet," he whispered, raising his sword into the air. He choked down a laugh as he saw disbelief written on her face as she looked at her now free hands.

She looked up to him. "But why?" He tossed her sword and cape to her. No sooner did she stand up than did she start talking.

"Ah, I think I know why you did that!" she said going all starry eyed. "You must have fallen for your lovely captive! That's it isn't it?" Zelgadiss ignored her and looked to Zolf and Dilgear. They were both still asleep. "Or maybe not," she said with a sigh.

"I thought you wanted to escape," he said harshly. They didn't have time to dawdle.

"Oh don't worry! I'm escaping! I'm escaping!" Zelgadiss shook his head. The next few days were going to be very long.

Very quietly, they sneeked out of the castle. Zelgadiss looked sadly at Rodimus, who was sleeping at his post. "Old friend, your age has finally caught up with you. I'm sorry," he whispered.

"What was that?"

"Hurry."

Time goes on. Three days pass.

Rodimus made lunch with Zolf again. It had been three days since Zelgadiss had taken Lina. Or Lina had taken Zelgadiss, Rodimus didn't know which. But Rodimus was honest with himself. He knew that Zelgadiss was extremely powerful, especially now that he was a chimera. But Lina Inverse had a reputation of also being very powerful. Even if it was that time of the month for her, Rodimus didn't know how quickly her powers would return. It could have happened either way. Rezo had told Dilgear that Zelgadiss betrayed them, but Rodimus doubted that. Rezo was someone who couldn't be trusted, but Dilgear believed him in a second. The only thing Rodimus didn't undertstand was why Zolf was joining him in his search. Rodimus had been trying to figure it out for the past three days, but to no avail. He sighed.

"Zolf?"

"What is it, Rodimus?"

Rodimus took another sip of his tea. "Why are you coming with me?"

"Because you're looking for Zelgadiss, same as me."

"But you could have followed Dilgear."

"Oh, please. That pompus halfbreed? Besides, Wolf-Boy follows Rezo. I don't want to be part of that crew."

"But Rezo pays better than Master Zelgadiss. Why stay with my master?"

"Because I'm not following Zel. I'm following you."

"What?"

"Look, I don't particularly care about who is right or wrong. Rezo wants to cure his eyes, Zel wants to kill Rezo for turning him into a chimera. Both are good causes. But you are my friend. I will follow you."

"You never treated me much like a friend," Rodimus said quietly. The last time someone called him friend was Greywers. Zelgadiss was used to having Rodimus as a servant. Though his opinion was valued, Zelgadiss never thought of him as a friend.

"I tease you, so what? Don't all your friends do that?"

"Thank you."

"For what?"

"For being a friend." Rodimus took a deep breath. "Let's go find Master Zelgadiss."

Time again goes by. Two days later.

Rodimus walked over to Zelgadiss, who looked nervous about the idea of fighting a friend. Rodimus kneeled before Zelgadiss. "We have finally found you."

"Rodimus," Zelgadiss whispered.

"Rodimus...you're...What are you doing?" Dilgear screamed.

"You fool! My loyalty lies only with Master Zelgadiss. Whatever nonsense the Red Priest goes on about, my duty does not lie with him!" He finally had a chance to be rid of that manbeast once and for all. He thrust the point of his axe into Dilgear's heart.

"Rodimus...damn you..."

"Don't forget about me!" Zolf picked up Dilgear's fallen sword and slashed it across the wolf's chest.

"Zolf! You can't!" Dilgear said. Zolf cast a series of Flare Arrows at him, turning his body into a pincushion.

"You won't get away with this! Just wait till I come back to life!!" Dilgear finally slumped down. Rodimus looked over to Zelgadiss. Ever since his transformation, Rodimus had a slightly harder time reading his body language. Still, Zelgadiss had relief washed over his face. He chuckled.

"Come. We have to find Lina. And Zolf?"

"Yes?"

"We need to work with her. Can you put your ego aside?"

"Sure thing."

Time never ends. The following day.

Rodimus noted something different about Zelgadiss. As they walked out of the restaurant, he watched Zelgadiss closely. It was in his walk. It wasn't the same as before. It was like he felt his life had a purpose other than revenge. Zelgadiss stole a glance at Lina. Rodimus' eyes grew wide. Who'd have thought. The almighty Zelgadiss Greywers had finally fallen for a pretty face. Rodimus doubted that Zelgadiss was even aware of it. Chances are, only thoughts of Rezo filled his mind, but it was still there. Suddenly, Lina bumped into something. Both Zelgadiss and himself went for their weapons. They all breathed a silent sigh of relief to see it was only a child.

Time goes by once more. And just as life begins and ends, one life draws close to its end.

"Gourry's stupid, but this guy's crazy!!" Zolf started to chant a spell. "A Dragon Slave? From that third rate wizard?" Zolf continued to chant. "That's the strongest spell attck in all black magic! Stop it Zolf! It won't work! Get back!!"

"Zolf, no!!! Stop it Zolf!! Don't!!"

Rodimus watched in horror. Zolf was casting a Dragon Slave at Shabranigdo, the Ruby Eye Lord. Rodimus agreed with Lina. Zolf was crazy.

"I did it," Zolf muttered as the smoke cleared. But when the smoke finally disapated, Shabranigdo still stood there. He pointed his palm at Zolf. All to quickly, Rodimus realized what was going to happen. He was going to loose his friend again. He had to do something.

"He's still alive!" Rodimus ran toward Zolf. "Run, Zolf! Move it!" Rodimus grabbed Zolf's arm and started to run. He would not loose a friend again.

"Rodimus! Zolf!" Zelgadiss shouted. Rodimus ignored him for the first time. He knew that Zelgadiss could take care of himself. He didn't need to be protected anymore. Rodimus suddenly saw red, and then, nothing.

Time pays no heed to what happens during it. A great battle is fought and won.

Zelgadiss prayed to the stones one last time. Both had writing on them. On one stone, it said: "Zolf. 32. A friend to one who needed it." On the other, the one Zelgadiss prayed to, it said: "Rodimus. 48. The strongest of his clan, who lived humbly as a servant to his friend and his friend's son. May all who read this remember that the name Rodimus means loyalty. May he rest in peace."

Zelgadiss sighed. He got up and brushed off his pants from where he was kneeling. Turning, he was surprised to see Lina standing behind him, her white hair glowing in the moonlight.

"You should be in bed. You overdid it against Shabranigdo, and you need rest," he said.

"Are you okay?"

"Do I have to carry you back to bed?" She punched him.

"I can walk by myself." Zelgadiss shrugged and walked back to their small camp. Lina walked beside him, with her arm around his shoulder. She claimed it was to comfort him, but Zelgadiss wagered it was because she couldn't walk by herself. "Look Zel, if you want to talk about it, let me know."

"I'll be fine," he said. Looking up at the stars he sighed. "I'm just going to miss him."

"Let me guess, good help is so hard to find, right?"

"No. He saved my life when I was a child. He protected me after my parents died. He taught me how to use a sword. He did so much for me, and I didn't trust him. I will always regret that."

"Look," Lina said quietly as she sat down on her blanket. "What's done is done and you can't change it. In the end, you trusted him, and he'll always be there if you need it." She yawned, stretching. "Why not tell me about your family? This is the first time I've heard you mention them."

"I'd rather not," whispered Zelgadiss. "You need sleep. I'll stay watch." But she was already asleep. Once more, Zelgadiss looked to the sky. "Thank you for everything, Rodimus."

The End