Part TenJourney's Destination

Lina's head slipped down and just before she lost her balance, she caught herself, waking up. Looking down, she saw that she was leaning back in her seat with a blanket around her. Damn it! Someone must have seen us! As soon as she thought it, however, she realized that she really didn't care who saw her with Zel. There was something about the Mazu Slave she had cast before that gave her peace when she was with Zelgadiss. Before she cast the Mazu Slave, she felt right around Zelgadiss. Safe and secure. Now that peace she had felt briefly came back to life when he was near.

Lina got up from her seat and sat on Zel's bed, resting her head on his bare chest. She could hear his hear beating and his skin was warm. Soft footsteps went by their door.

"Come, Amelia," said a voice. It sounded like Sirus. "We can sneak into the faction tonight."

"And justice will be served!" the princess replied enthusiastically. Lina couldn't help but smile. Those two were a perfect match. The Hammer of Justice went along well with the Man of Innocence. She listened to them leave and then snuggled up against Zel again. It felt so right to be by his side. She started to doze again when she was suddenly flung to the floor as Zelgadiss woke up with a start. Lina groaned on the floor. A part of her wanted to get up and Fireball him, but she just wasn't angry. She felt concern. She poked her head up from the foot of the bed.

"So what was the dream about?" she asked. Zel, who was only in his boxers, stared at her.

"Lina??"

"Yup. It's about time you woke up."

"What….aren't you going to Fireball me?"

"Nope. You've been through enough with Copy Rezo, so I'm going to refrain from beating you." She paused for a moment. "Even if you deserve it," she smiled. Standing up, she took her seat on his bed again. "So what was so bad about that dream?"

Zelgadiss stared blankly off into space. "I saw myself being turned into a chimera again. Eris was standing over me with Rezo and Shabranigdo. I saw myself at Rezo's Tower when he took control of me and forced me to attack you and the others." A small tear slid down his face. "Normally, the dream stops there, but this time, it continued. I saw Kotowa and Copy Rezo. Both were controlling me when I..lost..you." Zelgadiss blinked, acting as if he wished he hadn't said anything.

"Well well well, Zel!" Lina said, patting him on the shoulder. "So you do have a heart!" He glanced at her. "You always go around acting like you're the stone monster you think you are, but you're just fooling yourself. Congratulations, you've just taken the first step to accepting that you're not such a bad guy." Lina didn't know where this was coming from, but she had a sneaking suspicion that the energy she released with the Mazu Slave had something to do with it.

"So what have I missed?" he asked. Lina filled him in on what had been happening the last three days. She glossed over the mind playing that happened to Amelia and Gourry, saying they had to fight their past like he did.

"So we have a plan for going after Drrael. It's a long shot, but it might work," she concluded.

"I see." Zelgadiss sighed and leaned back against the headboard. Lina decided to do something a little bold and leaned up against his chest like she did before. Zel didn't seem to mind and rested his chin on top her red hair. They stayed like that for a while. Lina's thoughts drifted back to when they had kissed. She had wanted to continue that conversation for some time, but had never gotten the chance. Now seemed like a good time and deep down, a peaceful part of her said to do it. Her more rational part said she couldn't do that because her reputation would be ruined if she thought of settling down. Lina agreed that she didn't want to settle down, but she also agreed that she really did feel for Zelgadiss in ways that were very rare to have. These feelings were meant to be cherished. She told her collective mind to shut up.

Zel's arms snaked around her waist and she held his hands close. She was grateful that her shoulder guards, cape and sword where left in her room. It made things all the more comfortable. The sat like that a while longer. The moon shined brightly, giving everything a gentle glow. The two parts of her that had been arguing seemed to quiet down and observe the soft light. In that moment, the peaceful side of Lina that had only come into existence after the Mazu Slave, took control. It explained, in calm clear terms that Zelgadiss was the man that Lina wanted to spend her life with. Lina agreed. So if she wanted to spend her life with one man, she could afford to be impulsive with him. Lina agreed. Besides, no one ever said anything about settling down in order to spend your life with someone. Lina agreed.

She and Zel continued to stay still for a while. It just felt good. Lina decided that just feelings weren't enough. It was time to make a commitment. The peaceful side of her agreed. She turned to Zelgadiss, who brought a hand up to brush some hair from her face. His hand caressed her skin gently. Lina knew it was definitely time. She moved her face closer to his. She could almost hear his heart pounding as she delivered a kiss that would stop most other hearts. She finally pulled away. Normally, she imagined she'd be out of breath, but somehow, that peaceful side of her kept her calm.

"Do you?" Zel asked quietly.

"I do."

"But, I'm…I'm"

"Who cares what you look like?" she asked quietly. She could not get angry or frustrated at all. Instead, she explained herself calmly. "All that matters at this very moment is that there are only two of us. If someone has a problem with the commitment I want to make to you right now, they can take it up with me. Now kiss me." Her tone was both commanding and childish. She managed to balance the fact that she wished he would just hurry up with the fact that she understood that he was always afraid.

Zel looked at her, obviously unsure of the peaceful side of Lina that was in control. "Zel," she said pulling his head closer to hers. "Just trust me."

"I do." They're lips came together gently. Lina wanted Zel to set the pace. She had been ready for a long time. She could wait a little longer. As Zel started to intensify the kiss, a sort of understanding passed between them. Lina understood that Zelgadiss' fear had nothing to do with what other people thought. Well not really. It was a fear that he would hurt her. Zelgadiss suddenly understood the peace that Lina felt. He came to share it.

Lina pulled away gently, reaching for the buttons to her shirt. Zel pulled her hands away and did it for her. In an agonizingly slow pace, he undid one button at a time. With each movement, his nimble fingers gently caressed her skin, tickling her. He started to put his hands onto her shoulders, under her shirt to get it off. A wave of modesty fell over Lina. Even though the peaceful side of her said it was silly, she felt embarrassed that she was so small. Zelgadiss kissed her again. Another understanding seemed to pass as their lips met. Lina understood that Zelgadiss felt just as strongly towards her as she did to him. Zelgadiss understood that Lina saw this as a commitment and not just something for a moment's pleasure.

Zelgadiss moved his hands over her shoulders and Lina's shirt fell to the ground. Her chest was now bare in front of him. In that same kiss, Zelgadiss also understood that Lina was feeling modest. He caressed her cheek with the back of his hand.

"They're not to small, Lina-chan," he whispered. "They're just perfect for who you are."

"And who am I?"

"The Beauty, who fell in love with the Beast."

[Bet you thought we'd describe it didn't you? Sorry! But you get the idea. There's no need to go any further. ^_^]

The next morning, Zelgadiss awoke very content. Even though he probably only had a few hours sleep, he could not help but smile. Currently in his arms was Lina. Though he didn't know what possessed him to actually do what he did, he was glad that it happened. He was now committed to Lina, body and soul and he believed she was to him as well. It didn't matter that they were going to have to fight Drrael soon. Somehow, everything was going to be alright. The peace that Lina had infected him with last night was overwhelming, and welcome. Zel gently kissed Lina's neck.

Program Rezo? he called softly.

>Yes? Oh my,< Program Rezo gasped. >Give me all the details!!<

Back off.

>Sorry. Old habits you know.<

Old is debatable.

>So what do you wish of me?<

Zelgadiss hesitated a moment, but asked anyway. What did Rezo really want from me?

There was a very long pause. Zel wondered briefly if Program Rezo had left, but pushed the thought aside. It wasn't in Program Rezo's personality.

>All I know is this,< Program Rezo finally replied. >Rezo programmed me to think and act like he would have if he didn't have Shabranigdo inside of him. I know that I want you to be happy. I may joke about continuing the bloodline, but that's just a load of bull. If you're happy, then I don't need anything else.<

Then why did you attack Lina when you first "woke up"?

>Because when I was finally activated, I scanned your memories. I didn't look into them thoroughly. All I saw was the death of both Rezo and Copy Rezo. Needless to say that infuriated me. It was like you killed me twice. It wasn't until I understood you had feelings for Lina did I do a more in depth scan. I am sorry for what I did.<

I think I understand. Zel paused a moment. Is there a cure for me? Program Rezo was silent for a long time.

>No, I don't think so. Though Rezo did all of the programming on you, it was Shabranigdo who guided Eris in making your body. Gomenasai.<

Zelgadiss sighed mournfully. Thank you. Program Rezo returned to his sleep. Zelgadiss held Lina a little closer. Though he tried to stop it, a small tear fell into her red tresses. He could never go back to the way he was before. He could never have that weak, but gentle body he was born with. He could never give to Lina without the fear of hurting her. He could never have peace.

Almost as soon as the thought manifested itself, he glanced at Lina and the peace she had the previous night infected him again. She was beautiful in the gray light before dawn. He gently caressed her cheek. In the room next to his, he could hear people starting to get up. He looked at Lina again. She probably doesn't want to be discovered just yet.

Zelgadiss delicately kissed Lina's neck, then got up. After dressing himself, he dressed Lina, being very careful not to wake her. She needed her sleep if they were going to fight Drrael. And they were going to fight soon. Zelgadiss could feel it.

Lifting her light frame into his arms, he went to the balcony of his room. The horizon was starting to lighten in anticipation of the coming sun. Two doors down was Lina's room, from what she had said, so he jumped over to her balcony. A small unlock spell got them into her room. He gently lay her in her bed, pulling the sheets up to her chin. He kissed her forehead and went back to his room.

He poured a cup of water, added some herbs, and with a small fire spell warmed it into a cup of tea. Sipping it, he looked out to the sky. The horizon was starting to turn into a pale blue, though the sun had not yet made an appearance. Clouds drifted by at a leisurely pace, one side being a dull purple from the night that slipped away, the other side being brought afire in pink and yellow as the light from the sun shined, even though the sun hadn't woken up. It was the fiery colors that made Zel smile, thinking of Lina.

What had happened last night was definitely not something to be done for a moment. It was a way of making a commitment to each other that they would always be there for each other.

His quiet contemplations were interrupted by a light knock on the door.

"Who is it?" he asked softly, knowing that most of the people in the inn were probably asleep.

"Fillia." Getting up, he opened the door and offered her a cup of tea. She declined.

"Thank goodness you're finally awake!" she said. "Rezo said that it would take three days before you would be able to wake up, but when yesterday came and went, we started to get worried."

"I woke up shortly before midnight," he replied. "There wasn't much to do, so I just rested a while. Are you sure you don't want some tea? It's not as good as yours, but it's the best I can do right now."

"Are you sure you're alright Zelgadiss-san?" she asked. "You don't seem to be acting like yourself."

Zel considered it for a moment. She was right. He didn't normally offer tea and act so hospitable. Somewhere deep inside, the peaceful part of Lina spoke up. Only it felt more like a peaceful part of him. Could he really have peace?

"I'm fine," he answered quietly. "While I was unconscious, I did some soul searching. If I'm different, it's because I found parts of myself I didn't like, so I changed them." In a manner of speaking that was true. Only it wasn't while he was out that this happened. In an odd way, it had happened while he committed himself to Lina. He wasn't really the same person he was when he woke up. It didn't bug him though. It seemed better. And maybe like how he was supposed to be.

"Zelgadiss-san," Fillia said. "I'm worried about Amelia and Gourry."

"Oh?" Fillia went into a bit more detail than Lina did about what happened to them.

"You mean Amelia was…" he couldn't finish it Fillia nodded. "I guess that explains a lot about her justice attitude," he whispered. "How's Gourry doing?"

"He won't come out of his room. I'm worried about him." There was something else that seemed to be bothering her.

"And?" he pried

"And Xellos is scared. He feels useless in the upcoming battle."

"I see."

Fillia started to say something when the inn was rocked by an explosion. Pulling up his hood and mask, Zel and Fillia ran to his balcony. Off in the distance a large fireball mushroomed in the sky. At the edge of town, several of its citizens were scurrying about.

"Come on!" Fillia said, starting to fly. Zelgadiss followed.

Xellos was knocked off balance by the explosion. He had been in his room, thinking about their battle plan, trying some way to find out if he could be more than just some transportation boy. He felt so useless. Running to his balcony, he saw Zelgadiss and Fillia start to fly off. Slamming his staff to the ground, he followed.

Gourry shot up out of bed, already drawing his sword. Dashing to the balcony, he saw Zelgadiss and Fillia fly by heading to the edge of town. Going back into his room, he quickly put on his armor. He looked down to his sword briefly. This damn sword is covered in blood. Do I really want to wield it? Running back to the balcony, he jumped down to the street below and raced to the crowd at the edge of town.

Lina was faintly aware of the fact that the room shook and that there was a large boom in the distance. Yawning, she rolled over to hold onto Zel. Needless to say, she was very surprised when she landed on the floor. Now fully awake, she looked around. She was dressed and in her room. She stood up and walked around her room in shock. Was last night a dream? Lina reviewed some of the finer parts of the previous night in her head. Nope. No way that could have been a dream. Lina was very pleased with that night. She had discovered that both she and Zelgadiss were very creative and neither wanted to be confined to just a bed.

Putting on her shoulder guards and cape, Lina grabbed her sword and went to the balcony. Looking over, she was surprised when Gourry came running out of his room and jumped down the street in full armor. Looking to where he was going, she saw a large ploom of smoke in the distance and a large crowd where Zelgadiss and Fillia were landing. Casting Levitation, Lina went over to the crowd. Xellos was already there and Gourry was just coming down the street.

Lina wasn't very happy. She had been woken up from a very nice dream (which was also a partial reality) and she didn't even have a chance for breakfast. There seemed to be a rather important looking man who was trying to guide the crowd in digging a ditch. Lina grabbed his ear and pulled it close to her mouth.

"WHY THE HELL DID YOU GET US UP AT THIS UNGODLY HOUR!" she demanded politely.

The old man proceeded to explain about some law made back during the Kouma War forbidding chimeras (Zel pulled his hood down lower) and that some rogue faction of the rather weak local magic guild starting making chimeras and that the Holy Princess of Sailoon along with some man…Lina interrupted him at that point.

"You mean to tell me that Amelia and Sirus went off to tackle them?" she yelled. He nodded. Well that explains their sneaking off last night.

"Yes, they went to exterminate every last one of those horrid beasts, the chimeras," the guild director said.

Zelgadiss started to sneak away from the crowd. The director turned to him. "You needn't worry, chimera," he said loftily. "We are not like you monsters. We saw that you were injured and we let your cohorts here have the chance to heal you. Why the Holy Hammer of Justice keeps you in company is beyond me. She must see you as some sort of pet."

"You knew what I was?" Zel whispered.

"That purple haired man didn't do much to hide you. He and the others were more concerned with healing you than with hiding you."

Xellos was suddenly on the ground with Zelgadiss standing above him. "Oh excuse me, I'm so sorry about that," he said acidly.

Zelgadiss was suddenly on the ground with Fillia standing above him. "He is human!"

Lina turned to give the guild director a piece of her mind only to find that he wasn't there. He was approaching Amelia with loud congratulations. Lina cut him off.

"AMELIA, WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON HERE?!" Amelia stepped back in shock. At her feet lay Sirus, seriously burned and coughing harshly. Fillia rushed over and started to heal him. The minutes inched by as everyone grew silent. The crowd gathered round, all wanting to make sure that Sirus, one of the two heroes who saved their town, was safe. Finally, his pale blue eyes fluttered open.

"Amelia-chan?" he said quietly, sitting up. "Amelia are you all right?"

"Hai, Sirus!" she said. "You're brilliant plan went perfectly and I blew up the chimera lab so that no one else can.."

"Lab?" Zelgadiss repeated. "You blew up a lab?? Do you realize that a book in that lab might have contained my cure!" he shouted. Xellos immediately grabbed onto Zel's waist while Fillia pulled on Zel's cape. Lina stepped in front of Zel and tried to hold him back. Despite all this, he slowly inched his way forward.

"Demo," Sirus said. "But you are just an Artificial Intelligence. You can not have cure." All parties except Sirus went chibi. Sirus was just impossible to talk to sometimes. After several moments of chibis running around trying to hurt Sirus, Zel went back to normal and sighed mournfully.

"It doesn't really matter," he said quietly. "Even knowing there is no cure, I jump when a possibility arises." Lina wanted to answer that, but someone in the crowd caught their attention.

"LOOK!" Everyone turned to see an army of chimeras heading their way. Lina and company got a variety of spells ready.

"Stop!" Sirus shouted. "Stand away from the ditch. Zelgadiss, fill it with water." Zel glared at him, but called upon a water spell and the ditch, which looked more like a mote now, was ready. As the chimeras approached, they did nothing to attack. They just dove into the water which ended up their graves.

The guild director turned to Sirus in admiration. "How did you do that?"

"Books are my passion and I've seen several on chimeras and how they are made. It was an easy task of reprogramming them to love water and seek it out." Cheers arose in the crowd.

That evening, after an impromptu feast in honor of the Holy Princess of Sailoon, and her Companion of Justice, Sirus and Zelgadiss were arguing about Zel's humanity again.

"Sirus, I was human for the first eighteen years of my life. I am human, at least in part, now!"

"No you are not."

"I have human feelings, thoughts, emotions, memories. Programming can't replace those."

"No, programming can not, but the corpse you were made from had those qualities that you hold so dear as human."

"You mean Rezo killed me, his own descendant, in order to make me into this form?"

"No he did not. A body has to die a natural death in order to be used to become a chimera. Otherwise, the same things that caused death in life, such as bleeding, would kill it again when the body was resurrected in a chimeric form."

"But why.."

"So basically, looking for a 'cure' is self defeating. By searching for some way to be human again, you are merely searching for some way to die and revert back to the corpse you were."

Lina sighed. There was just no talking with Sirus sometimes. Zelgadiss leaned back in defeat and sighed.

"It doesn't really matter," he muttered quietly. "There is no cure for me out there." Lina, along with the rest of the table gasped.

"There must be one!" Fillia said.

Zel sipped his tea. "I had a long talk with Program Rezo this morning. There is none."

"But," Xellos said. "You must keep trying!" Lina was slightly surprised at the compassion in his voice, but she pushed it aside and focused on Zel.

"Rezo was the one who tried to keep me normal in the programming he did. That's one of the reasons why he gave me Program Rezo. To keep me sane. Shabranigdo, on the other hand, was in complete control when he and Eris collaborated on my body. He wanted to make sure that I was his personal meal. In order for me to suffer, he made sure there was no cure out there." He let loose another long sigh. "It's been a long day and tomorrow we're going out after Drrael. I'm going to bed." Taking one last sip of his tea, he got up and went upstairs.

The table was quiet for several minutes, despite all the celebrating going on around them. Lina looked at Zel's door. Finding out there was no cure must have been one of the greatest disappointments in his life. Lina wanted to help him get through it. She stood up and headed to the stairs.

"Wait, Lina-san!" Amelia called. "Shouldn't he be alone right now?"

"We're going to need him in good fighting condition when we face Drrael. The same goes for Gourry, but I can't talk to him without yelling." Several eyes turned to Gourry, who had been unusually quiet all day. Currently, he was looking intently at his sword.

Lina opened Zel's door and found him with his chair pulled out on the balcony. He was starring up at the sky which glittered with stars.

"Gomenasai, Lina-chan," he whispered.

"Why?"

"Because you can't show me off."

"?!"

"Face it Lina," he said quietly. "You like to show off what you can do. That's one of the reasons you always threaten people with a Dragu Slave and why you always grab gold. You like to show off what you have. You can't show me off because crowds and I don't mix."

Lina wanted to hit him, but she understood that it wouldn't help matters much. She pulled a chair up next to him. "I don't suppose saying 'It doesn't matter to me,' is going to help much, is it?" she asked.

"You can't change who you are. I love you for it, but I'm sorry I can't be shown off."

"Look, Zel," she said, snuggling to his shoulder. "When I cast the Mazu Slave, the spell backfired on me after it killed Kotowa. When it hit, it healed me and gave me something. It gave me a sense of what peace is." Zel's arm slipped around her waist. "Lately, that peace has been telling me what to do. I'm still the same person, but I don't want to show off anymore."

"Did you realize that your peace is infectious?" Zel asked. Lina looked quizzically up to him. "I don't think I would have done that last night if I didn't feel this overwhelming peace. You gave part of it to me. Domo arigatoo."

"My pleasure." They sat together looking up at the sky. Both were content to just stay like that, with nothing needed to be said. Nothing but one thing.

Zelgadiss turned to Lina. "We're going to be on Drrael's doorstep by the end of the week," he said. "I can feel that presence. It's overwhelming. He could give L-sama a good fight if he wanted to, I think. He is, however, scared of The Golden Eye Lord. I can feel defenses that he has put up, but I don't know what they are. It's not much, but it's something."

"Give L-sama a good fight? Oh crap." Lina looked out the window to the moon and prayed that they could win the upcoming battle. She got up and went to the door. "You coming Zel?"

Zelgadiss sighed, but stood up, pulling his hood back over his face. "Yes, I think I will." The left together. Unseen, a golden comet flew by the moon.

Once they got downstairs, Lina was confronted by Gourry. He was holding out his sword for her to take.

"Huh??"

"Take it," Gourry said. "You've always wanted it, and now you can have it with my blessings."

"He's been trying to give it to anyone who walks by," Xellos said.

Fillia added, "He refuses to fight in the upcoming battle."

"I want a normal life," Gourry replied in a weary voice. Zelgadiss scoffed.

"Normal? How?" he demanded.

"Normal with a wife, maybe children," Gourry countered.

"When Drrael is done with this world," Zel said coldly, "there won't be any women left to marry."

Gourry sighed. "Maybe I should go and find Vulun then." Several faces hit the floor.

"Gourry, you idiot," Zel said. "Drreal will kill everyone and everything, just to satisfy his endless hunger! He'll even kill you!"

"You fight him, Lina," Gourry responded, turning to her. "You can beat him, just like you've beaten everyone else."

"Gourry, have you been listening to the plan we so carefully made?" Lina demanded. "We need you to fight with us!"

"I can't," Gourry whispered. "I just can't." Gourry went up to his room, leaving everyone baffled.

"Where did this come from?" Amelia asked.
Ack! To long!