>At this moment, Zelgadiss found himself thinking particularly about Xelloss. He didn’t know why, he and Xelloss had never gotten along, but Zelgadiss couldn’t shake the feeling that Xelloss would be involved in his life again ver soon. It was then that he saw it, a long one-storie building appearing at the crest of the hill. As he approached, he could see inside the windows. It was dark inside, with only the last rays of the setting sun casting light into the many rooms. Coming up to the front door, he could see the remains of a broken sign. Without bothering to pick up the broken pieces from the lawn, Zelgadiss read “inn” and decided to enter. Slowly and carefully he opened the door.>Upon entering the front room, Zelgadiss discovered that this was far more than just an inn. The main room was huge! All about the room were many tables with many more chairs. On the walls all around the room were various items and shelves and cupboards filled with items, all emitting magical auras. At the other end of the room was a counter lined with stools, with an archway to a dark hallway beside it. He walked inside and closed the door, letting his demon’s eyes pierce the darkness.
>Walking farther into the room, he called, “Hello! Is anyone here?” He stopped in the middle of the room, casting a small light spell. In the dim light, he looked all around him, ears sensitive to any noise. Suddenly, he heard it, from beyond the archway, a small, scared voice, coming slowly closer.
>“W…who are you?” the voice said.
>Zelgadiss put his most gentle voice into play and said, “Just a traveler. I saw the sign outside and thought I might stay here for the night.”
>Silence was his only answer. For several minutes, he stood, listening, watching, waiting. Until finally a figure appeared under the archway. The candle in her left hand highlighted her form. Zelgadiss saw that she was a lovely young woman with long brown hair and pale skin. The dancing flame reflected in her unusually silver eyes. Her clothes and skin were dirty and tattered. The dagger she held in her right hand confirmed her fear. Zelgadiss tried his best to look as friendly as a demon/golem/human can and quietly admired her beauty. She looked at him for several moments, trying to see him clearly through the darkness without getting any closer. Her face was filled with fear and sadness.>Suddenly, she gasped, almost as if she recognized him. Taking a few steps forward she muttered, “What is your name?” The fear was still evident in her voice and she stopped a good, safe distance away.
>Zelgadiss blinked and stood silent for a moment before answering. “Zelgadiss Graywords,” was all he said. A new look over came her. A look of hope. She rushed over to him, candle and dagger still in hand. She stood directly in front of him, studying him carefully. Zelgadiss looked at her in confusion, regarding the dagger with only a quick glance. Finally, he asked, “Do I…know you?” The woman shook her head.
>“But,” she said, smiling slightly, “if you really ARE Zelgadiss Graywords, you are the answer to my prayers.” Zelgadiss blinked again. “My name is Jaynis,” she continued, “and I desperately need your help.”
>“How do you know who I am?” Zelgadiss asked suspiciously. Jaynis motioned for him to sit down at on of the tables. He did so and she sat down across from him, placing the candle in the center of the table and the dagger back in its sheath at her side.
>She did not look at him, she looked down at her small, tattered hands, folded lightly on the table. “He used to talk about you,” she whispered after a short silence. “He used to tell me about his travels with you and Lina, and all the others. He would joke that the lot of you were the reason he stopped traveling.”
>“Who?” Zelgadiss asked hastily.
>Jaynis looked up at him. There was a new kind of fear in her eyes. Zelgadiss recognized it as the fear of being rejected. She looked at him sternly. “It has been three days since the attack, where the mazoku came and stole him away. My children are lost in the woods and I have not left this house since, for fear of being found. But I cannot live without him much longer. Please, you must help me! You must save my beloved Xelloss!” Zelgadiss blinked again and drew back in his chair. Jaynis looked back down at her hands. “It happened like this…”
****************************************
>Jaynis sat just outside the back door, totally engrossed in her new pastime. She had taken a liking to tanning leather since Xelloss had shown her all the finer points of the art. She looked up from her work to gaze down the hill toward the lake. Xelloss was running around, playing tag with their two young children, Hope and Donovan. Jaynis smiled to herself. She would very rarely play with the children, having much less hyper-energy then they had. Xelloss, however, seemed to have an endless supply and would always indulge his children’s need for fun.>Jaynis frowned slightly as she saw Hope trip and fall. She knew, even from this distance that Hope did not cry, Hope had always been the tougher of the twins. She smiled again as she saw Xelloss and Donovan kneel next to the girl and sighed as she watched Donovan cast a small healing spell with Xelloss’ instruction.
>Suddenly, the sky grew dark and Jaynis felt someone grab her from behind. Down by the lake, Xelloss hurried his children up the hill, anticipating the fierce storm approaching. He was a bit surprised to find that Jaynis had abandoned her work outside when there was a storm coming. Then he stopped, just outside the open door, stopping the children from going inside. He quickly stepped to the side, pulling the two children with him, just in time to dodge the speeding ball of flame that came flying out of the open door.
>Xelloss looked toward the door, hiding the twins behind him. From the darkness within the house appeared a tall being with huge bat-like wings. The being had short blond hair that stood straight up and dark black skin to match the color of his wings. His arms were unusually large in comparison to the rest of his body and his hands ended in five sharp talons. His face was long and slender, his eyes were just two narrow slits glowing yellow on the black surface. He had no nose, but two small holes for nostrils, and his mouth was large, taking up more than half of his face.
>“Gal’ Kelor?!” Xelloss said, “What are you doing here?”
>Gal’ Kelor, the mazoku who rides the thunderclouds, grinned. He stepped out of the doorway, walking toward Xelloss. Xelloss backed up, still shielding his children. Gal’ Kelor stopped. “Time to come home, Xelloss,” he said. “You’ve been away long enough. Zeras wants her priest back.”
>Xelloss scowled and bared his teeth, letting out a low growl. He reached behind him and gently pulled the children closer to him. “I’m not going anywhere. I’ll ask you just once, leave now!” He could feel Hope and Donovan clinging to his cloak. Gal’ Kelor laughed.
>“Don’t try to act so big, Xelloss. You have no power over us.” Gal’ Kelor stepped closer.
>Xelloss smirked. “I still have the power to defeat you.” He held up his hand and muttered a spell. A small ball of energy slowly gathered in his hand. “Uh-uh…” Gal’ Kelor waved his finger through the air and smirked. “I wouldn’t do that if I were you.”
>“Eh?!” Xelloss looked on in horror as Gal’ Kelor motioned to the doorway from which another mazoku emerged. This mazoku was much larger, black with short hairs all over its body and eight red glowing eyes in a cluster in the middle of its upper head. Its mouth consisted of a pair of pinchers. Its body was fat and round and it floated just above the ground, having no legs. In one of its eight hands, it held a beaten, bloody form.
>“JAYNIS!!!” Xelloss cried, bursting into tears. He tried to run to her, but the two children were still clutching his cloak. He glanced back at them out of the corner of his eye, making sure he didn’t take his eyes off the two mazoku. **Donovan, Hope, run away,** he sent. They looked up at him in surprise, eyes wide and questioning. **Go, into the forest. Hide yourselves well and wait until I come for you.**
>“I want to fight with you, Father.” Hope whispered, tugging on Xelloss’ cloak. Donovan, however, understood the danger and started to back away slowly, pulling his sister with him. As soon as they had let go of his cloak, Xelloss raised his arms in the air and cast a spell.
>“Daku Misuto!” The clouds above swirled and sent down a cloak of black cloud, covering himself, Jaynis, and the two mazoku. Without looking back, the twins ran down the hill and into the thick forest.
>**Mother, Father! We love you!** they sent back up the hill. They felt, however briefly, the quick touch of their parents’ minds affirming mutual feeling before they were shut out. With tearful eyes, the children disappeared into the forest.
********************************************
>“With the children safely out of the way, Xelloss proceeded to battle Gal’ Kelor. Ultimately, the mazoku were able to subdue Xelloss by threatening my life. Xelloss surrendered and was taken away.” Jaynis finished the story and looked up. Zelgadiss was staring at her with an odd expression on his face. Jaynis looked back at him curiously. “What is it?” she asked.
>Zelgadiss blinked as if startled out of his sleep. He looked at her for a moment, then managed to stutter out, “Y…y…you have ch…chi…children?!” Jaynis blushed and looked away, nodding. “But…you don’t look old enough to have children.”
>Still blushing, Jaynis looked back up at him. “So, will you help me?”
>There was a long pause. Zelgadiss thought long and hard. His expression hardened and he shook his head. Jaynis gasped. He looked up at her and said, “No offence to you, but I’ve never cared much for Xelloss. Whatever trouble he’s gotten himself into, he deserved it.”
>Zelgadiss jumped as Jaynis suddenly stood up and slammed her hands down on the table. “Why you heartless, insensitive monster! At the very least you should think of his children! They’re still out there, in the woods, waiting! What will become of them?!” Despite her hard, commanding voice, Jaynis was crying. Zelgadiss’ expression softened and he went over to her.
>He hugged her close to him, trying to comfort her. She continued to cry on his shoulder. “Don’t worry Jaynis,” he said in a calm, soothing voice, “I will find your children for you.”
End Part I…
ON TO PART TWO...
BACK TO THE LIBRARY