Slayers: Chaos

Chaos 29

Slayers: Chaos

Episode 029: Visitors! To The Kingdom Of Chaos And Beasts

Other than some basic knowledge about how the world worked, which included the names of Ceifeed, Shabranigdu and the five monster lords, Zelgadis didn't know much else. He didn't know the names of any of the minions of the major monster lords and didn't question Filia's claim about being Beast Master's general priestess. He just looked at her strangely.

Noticing the stare, Filia elaborated, "I assure you, I speak the truth." She did a very short range teleportation, moving from the area behind Xellos to right next to Zelgadis. "However, even if you are the escaped pet of Lord Deep Sea Dolphin, I have no reason to return you to her unless I am ordered to do so, as I serve only Lord Beast Master."

All these people seemed to be familiar with Amelia and with him, Zelgadis noticed. He wondered what kind of strange life he lived before. If someone like Filia was his acquaintance, then maybe he shouldn't even be surprised that he ended up the way he did, getting involved in monster business like that.

xoxox xox xoxox

It was decided that Zelgadis would accompany the group. Though he could get around on dry land with the use of levitation, they couldn't exactly be seen with a merman. Then again, their group was strange already and they had been seen with a chimera during their past adventures. Plus there was the fact that Xellos had his tail out all the time, revealing his current species too. Even so, there was no need to make people talk about the merman. It might catch Dolphin's attention and she might just decide to make room in her busy schedule to find him, or pull a minion away from a different task and send someone over to take her pet back.

Thus they resolved to disguise Zelgadis with long robes that touched the ground and made him look a whole lot like Rezo. Zelgadis didn't fully remember Rezo, but he had the vague knowledge of having an ancestor, a grandfather perhaps, with such a name. He didn't remember the later part of his life with Rezo when he became a bitter chimera, but recalled bits and pieces of the happier times. Given that, even though the clothing was not really what he would call his style, he didn't protest to wearing the long robes if it would allow him to blend in at the towns they passed.

Lina decided that they should continue looking around and gathering clues about any unusual activities, as that could enlighten the unknown aspects of the world's current situation. As long as the journey continued, Filia had no complaints with Lina's directions. They traveled from one town to another aimlessly and followed all the rumors they heard. From haunted caves in the middle of dark forests, to holy mountains said to grant miracles to those who climbed to the top, they traveled all over the peninsula waiting for a reliable clue to surface.

Just as before, most of the rumors turned out to be false and many times the hauntings were actually stories made up by bandits to protect their hideouts. At least they got some treasure out of those occasions. There was, as expected, plenty of chaos along the way. Filia and Xellos still argued and insulted each other. Zelgadis blushed every time Amelia did something to show him her affection and was slowly starting to understand why the energetic young woman was indeed someone he would like to have as his fiance. Gourry and Lina further developed their friendship, yet there was an invisible barrier that prevented them from discussing feelings beyond those of companionship. They didn't want to get hurt again, even though their break up had all been due to a misunderstanding being blown out of proportions. Yet deep down, neither of them gave up.

Eventually, their travels led them to the kingdom of Zoana, which had been completely restored with some help from Beast Master. As most of the original subjects had left, the place was now populated mostly by black magic users and monster supporters. It was like a giant magic guild that specialized in offensive spells and spells related to Lord Beast Master. Amelia shuddered and silently vowed not to let Seyruun become that way, though it was perhaps in Zelas' best interest to keep Seyruun centered around white magic, to have some interesting variety in her forces should the need arise to bring up the kingdom's born-from-necessity alliance.