Mariposa groaned, her eyes opening slowly to the light.  The back 
of her head throbbed, and she brought a hand up to it, fighting off a 
wave of dizziness.  She vaguely realized that the dry, orange-gold 
stone looked like the walls of no inn she'd slept at.

	"She's awake," a man commented.

	"Wha?"  She craned her neck towards the voice, focusing on mussed 
black hair.  The owner of said hair was looking away from her.

	"Then knock her out," snapped another voice.

	The face turned.  Its eyes studied hers for a moment, and then 
Mari felt a sharp pain in the back of her head.

	Everything went dark.

* * * * *

                            Slayers Glorious!
                         Started by Todd Harper

              Chapter 39: Rebirth!  The Demon's Last Laugh.
                          Written by Ardweden

* * * * *

	"Where's Torr?" Naga demanded as she scanned the area.

	"I don't know," Actinaea replied, a small globe of light hovering 
above one hand.  "But as soon as we find him, I-"

	"Over here!"

	The two women turned to see Luanni beckoning them from the 
entrance of a corridor.  They glanced at each other, then followed her 
in.

	"Getehl spotted him," she explained as she withdrew a pair of 
knives.  "He ran off ahead.  I don't know if-"

	She was cut off by a cry of pain.  The women's eyes widened, and 
as one they ran down the twisting corridor, Actinaea's lighting spell 
giving them just enough light to keep from smacking into a wall.  They 
rounded the last corner, squinting from the daylight that peered 
through the gate of Levar.  A man slumped against the wall, one hand 
clutching a bolt protruding from his leg.

	"Getehl!" Luanni gasped, immediately at his side.  "Are you hurt?  
What happened?"

	The man laughed dryly.  "I forgot he had another crossbow."  With 
a grunt, he pulled the bloodied bolt free.

	Luanni winced.  "That'll take a while to heal."  She blinked, 
then looked up at Naga.  "Can you do something about this?"

	Naga's eyes glazed.  She quickly turned away, muttering something 
about blood.

	The silver-haired Praetor rolled her eyes.  "Let me see," 
Actinaea demanded as she stepped from her position behind Naga.  
Kneeling, she held her hands above Getehl's wound.  "Recovery."  It was 
bathed in a healing light, and in moments it was gone.

	"Thanks," Getehl smiled.  Actinaea almost smiled back as she 
offered to help him to his feet.

	"That's a neat trick," Luanni commented as she stood on her own.  
She forced a smile.  "Maybe you can teach it to me sometime."

	Actinaea snorted.  "It's not a 'trick'.  And it takes years of 
dedication and practice, not to mention no small amount of talent."

	Luanni shrugged.  "I was just saying that it'd be useful to know.  
Besides, I'm a pretty fast learner."  She turned to Getehl and grinned.  
"Ne, Getehl?"

	He laughed.  "Yeah, you are."

	"Where's Mari-chan?"

	"What?"  Actinaea cut off her next statement in favor of looking 
towards Naga.

	"Where's Mari-chan?" The White Serpent repeated.  Her gaze didn't 
move from the gate.

	Getehl sighed.  "I saw Torr and... the man with a crossbow ride 
off with her and the Bell.  I tried to follow, but-"

	"So you spent all this time arguing?!"  Naga whirled, and the 
group flinched as one.

	"Naga," Luanni started, "I-"

	"I don't want to hear it!  Mari's in danger, and all you've done 
is argue!"  Her fists were clenched at her side, and a vein threatened 
to pop in her forehead.  Even Actinaea fought the urge to take a few 
steps back.

	Naga snorted and stomped off.  Just as she reached the gate, a 
liquid blackness filled it, and she screamed in pain.  Actinaea's eyes 
widened.  "Aqua Create!"  A splash of water doused the flames.

	"What... what happened?" Naga gasped, shock breaking through 
anger.

	Luanni stepped forward and examined the darkness.  "The seal.  
It's back up," she stated.

	"Seal?" Getehl asked.  Naga gestured, and white light covered her 
burns.

	Actinaea blinked in surprise.  Casting a spell, even a 
rudimentary one, without some sort of vocal cue was extremely 
difficult.  That Naga would have such knowledge for white magic...  She 
frowned and instead said, "Yes, the seal. Levar was supposed to be 
closed to all but dragons.  I don't know how we got in this time, 
but..."

	"I heard nothing of a seal," Naga said.  "And I have documents of 
a couple treasure hunters exploring this ancient city."  She waved a 
few loose, dirty pages as proof.  Getehl nodded.

	Actinaea scowled.  "That's strange.  It's almost as if... as if 
someone was toying with us."

	A high-pitched titter bounced off the walls.

* * * * *

	Torr held his reins carefully, adjusting the young blonde in his 
arms.  Mariposa twitched and for a moment he thought she would awaken, 
but she didn't.  He sighed.

	"Is something wrong, fearless leader?" Korvadus asked, a hint of 
sarcasm in his voice.

	Torr glanced at the mercenary in surprise; he didn't expect such 
good hearing from one... not of his race.  Then again, Korvadus was no 
ordinary man.  "No, of course not," he said, trying to keep a frown 
from his face.

	The bowman nodded and shifted the Silent Bell, causing Lilen to 
snort.  She didn't lose pace, though, and easily kept up with Torr's 
mare.  "Why are we taking the girl?"

	"Why do you ask?" Torr retorted, glaring at Korvadus.  He was 
just beginning to enjoy the silence.

	Korvadus shrugged.  "Curious.  I don't care, really.  As soon as 
Erika pays I'm gone."

	"I see."  This time, Torr didn't keep the frown from his face.  
"There's more to it than that."

	"I can imagine!" Korvadus laughed.  "Erika didn't speak too 
highly of you, you know..."

	"I don't care," the assassin stated as he adjusted Mariposa yet 
again.  "I work for a higher purpose than her."

	"Partners?"  Torr didn't answer, and Korvadus nodded.  "That's 
fine," he said.  "I just work here."

	Torr looked down at Mariposa, who didn't stir.  Soon the Silent 
Bell would be delivered to Erika, and revenge would be had for all 
their kind.  The frown didn't leave Torr's lips.  Then what did Erika 
want with Mariposa?  He shook his head.  She probably just wanted her 
to return to her kind, where she should be.  Erika wasn't heartless.

	He hoped.

* * * * *

	"Where is that laugh *coming* from?" Getehl yelled, his question 
nearly drowned by the giggles echoing throughout all of Levar.

	"I don't know, but it's getting on my nerves," Luanni grated.  
They had been listening to the laughter for a good hour now, searching 
for its source, to no avail.  She was surprised they hadn't gone 
insane, but in retrospect...

	"OOOHOHOHOHOHOHO!  Come, there is but one tunnel left!"

	Luanni blanched.  In retrospect, they had plenty of practice with 
annoying laughter.  The other laugh clashed with the first in a 
dissonant chorus, causing everyone (except Naga) to wince.

	"Will you *stop* that?" Actinaea snapped as she ran over to Naga.  
"One is bad enough!"

	"Tsk, my dear Praetor.  Surely even one such as yourself should 
know better than to compare the refined voice of the White Serpent to 
mad laughter such as this," Naga admonished.  She took a deep breath.

	"So you think it's coming from in there?" Getehl hurriedly asked, 
pointing at the gaping maw of a cave behind Naga.

	The sorceress sniffed.  "Of course."

	"Then let's get moving.  The sooner we can shut this guy up, the 
better," Luanni suggested as she entered the cavern.

	The laughter turned into shrill giggles as they made their way, 
the only light provided by the small globes both sorceresses created.  
Slowly, the brown-red rock gave way to gems... small ones, mostly 
embedded and twinkling in the light.  The passage narrowed, then 
widened, more and more until they found themselves standing before a 
massive, white marble staircase.  The laughter intensified.

	They glanced at each other, then ran up.  At the top was the cave 
wall... and a doorway framed by two identical marble dragons staring 
ahead with glittering eyes.  It was a faceless wall, save for a pair of 
gem-inlaid doors opening inward, beckoning them.

	Naga steeled herself and made the first step into the light.  She 
doused her Lighting spell and glanced around, her eyes adjusting.  The 
domed room was enormous, and could easily have fit a hundred dragons.  
In the center of the dome was a window of glass, setting the temple 
awash with natural light, causing the gemstones in the wall to glint.  
Naga's eyes glazed for a moment, then she shook her head.  Must think 
about Mariposa.  And shutting off that stupid laugh.

	In each of the four headings -- North, East, South, and West -- 
was a statue of a dragon.  "The Dragon Lords," Actinaea murmured, and 
Naga nodded.  Which meant in the middle...

	In the middle was Ceiphied, a monstrous statue towering over the 
humans and the Dragon Lords.  He looked down at them, garnet eyes 
fierce but kind.  The laughing stopped.

	Getehl blinked, then sighed with relief.  "I thought we'd never-"

	"WELCOME, WHITE SERPENT!" a voice boomed, echoing impressively 
off the ceiling.  The group's collective heads snapped up, noticing for 
the first time a small figure perched precariously atop Flare Dragon 
Ceiphied's head.  It posed dramatically.  "TODAY WILL BE YOUR DOOM!"

	"How did he get up there?" Actinaea wondered, squinting up at the 
Captain.

	"Heheheheheh.  Mwahahah.  Ahahahahahahaha!  EEEHEHEHEHEHEHEHE!"

	"SHUT UP!"

	The Captain clutched his throat and tumbled down, down, landing 
face-first on the cold, unforgiving marble below.  The group 
collectively winced, then turned to see Luanni panting heavily, one 
hand forward and a disturbing gleam in her eyes.  She blinked, then 
flipped her ponytail over her shoulder and coughed.  "I was just tired 
of that laughing."

	"Right.  Um.  Good shot, Luanni," Getehl offered weakly.  She 
beamed.

	Actinaea scowled.  "Let's get the seal down and be done with it."

	"My flat-chested colleague is right," Naga stated as she strode 
forward.  Actinaea's scowl deepened.

	"Not... so... fast."  The Captain's hand scraped the ground, and 
he sat up, knife still in his throat.  He stared forward with unfocused 
eyes.  "White Serpent."

	Luanni stumbled back.  "You're supposed to be dead!" she gasped 
as the Captain grabbed the knife and yanked it out.  Blood spilled from 
the wound.

	Naga gasped.  "B- b- bl-"

	"You don't like blood?" he smiled as he brought the knife up to 
his lips.  Naga turned an interesting shade of blue, but didn't look 
away.  He ran it along his tongue, then smiled, and the most jarring 
thing about him was that his look was perfectly sane.

	"Naga," Actinaea hissed.  She shook the other sorceress by the 
shoulders.

	"Huh?  Wha-?"  She shook her head.

	"Look!"

	The White Serpent blinked, tearing her eyes to where Actinaea 
pointed.  The cut was no longer dripping blood; in fact, it was rapidly 
closing.  "Mazoku," she half-whispered.

	"How could you tell?" he chuckled.  The smile didn’t drop from 
his face.  He took a few steps backwards, flipping the knife in his 
hand.  In one smooth motion, he brought it up to the statue of Ceiphied 
and pressed it in, then drew it down its side.  He sighed contentedly 
at the mar.  "I've always wanted to do that."

	Actinaea growled.  "What do you want, Mazoku?"

	He blinked.  "Me?  Oh, just a little pain will do fine.  It's 
been so long since I've had a body."  The Captain stretched.  "Sooooo 
long.  Though this one isn't up to my standards."  He eyed the group 
speculatively.

	Getehl reached for his sword, then felt Naga catch his wrist.  
"No," she warned.  "That would just make him angry."  The mercenary 
scowled, but didn't draw his sword.

	"A quick one, aren't we?" the Mazoku grinned.  "Though that 
should be expected from one such as you."

	Naga posed.  "Of course!  The beautiful and graceful Naga is 
known throughout all the lands!  OOOHOHOHOHOHOHOHO!"

	"Naga?"  His eyes twinkled.  "Who is this... Naga?  All I see is 
a little girl without her mother.  All alone and afraid."

	The White Serpent paled.  "I... I don't know what you're talking 
about."

	"Of course you do!  Wouldn't it be delicious, Princess, to 
destroy the world with Mazoku power?  The only one left to represent 
the bastion of white!"

	Naga heard a sharp intake of breath, then glanced at Actinaea to 
see a growing understanding in the other woman's eyes.  "No," the 
serpent whispered.

	"Oh, yes."  The Mazoku cackled gleefully as he bounced from foot 
to foot.  "Already dragons do our bidding; why not humans as well?"

	"Dragons do your bidding..." Actinaea began, just as Luanni let 
out a strangled cry of, "Mariposa!"

	"No!" Naga screamed, cupping her hands.  "Elmekia Flame!"

	A pillar of light shot forth, smacking the Captain in the chest.  
He fell back.  The group cringed, sure of what would be next... but 
Naga just stared, breathing in short, ragged gasps.  Getehl opened his 
mouth, and Actinaea made a curt gesture, shushing him.

	The Captain sat up, chuckling.  "Was that supposed to hurt?"  
Naga took a few steps back, and he tsked.  "No leaving."  The stone 
doors slammed shut.

	"If you're going to kill us..."  Luanni swallowed.  "If you're 
going to kill us, why don't you get it over with?"

	"But your fear is so lovely, human!"  The Mazoku flipped the 
knife again and made another scratch in the statue of Ceiphied.

	Naga stumbled.  Fear.  The White Serpent was not afraid.  She 
didn't know fear.  She was calm, assured, confident.  Powerful.  A 
graceful woman who could defeat any foe, male or female, without the 
slightest bit of effort.  Someone who-

	"So delicate and sweet."

	-oh hell.  Who was she kidding?  She was nothing compared to her, 
nothing.  Goldfish feces!  Nothing but a pair of breasts!  Couldn't 
even take out some Mazoku...  How Lina would laugh!   She was never the 
best and would never be; anything she said otherwise was a lie.

	"It's been a long time since I've tasted such things."

	A lie, a lie, all of it was a lie.  She ran, she was a coward, 
she turned her back on her people, her *family*, when they needed her 
most.  It was some hopeless quest for revenge that never came to 
fruition.  She never did become powerful enough.  She would never *be* 
powerful enough.  Naga wailed, sinking to her knees.

	"Naga?  Naga!" Getehl yelled, shaking the stricken sorceress, but 
she only shuddered and stared ahead.

	"What Naga?"  The Captain licked his lips.  "There's only Gracia 
now."

	"Snap out of it!" Luanni ordered.

	Naga groaned, putting her head in her hands.  She was nothing, 
less than nothing.  A lie of nothing.  A little girl who ran away from 
home.  And now, others were going to suffer for her, and she couldn't 
even run.  "I'm sorry," she murmured.  "I should have done more.  I 
didn't."

	"And now you die," he smiled.  The temple darkened as the 
Mazoku's eyes turned a malevolent purple.  A sudden wind sprung up, 
crackling with energy.  He casually formed a sphere of electric 
darkness in one hand, tossing it from side to side before throwing it 
forward.

	Actinaea grit her teeth and released her spell.  "Windy Shield!"  
The darkness dissipated.

	"That's right, another sorceress!  I almost forgot about you."  
The Captain clapped.  "Very good, very good!"  He threw another.  It 
hit the shield, and Actinaea winced.

	Luanni edged closer to Actinaea.  "The shadows are moving," she 
warned.

	The silver-haired sorceress' eyes glanced from side to side.  
Sure enough, inky creatures were making their way... silhouettes of the 
four Dragon Lord statues.  Actinaea cursed under her breath.  "I can 
only hold one spell at a time!" she shouted over the howling wind.

	"Think of Mariposa!"  Getehl sounded miles away.  "We have to 
save Mariposa!"

	Naga rocked back and forth, her head pounding in her hands.  
Mariposa, she'd failed her, too.  Just like she had failed...  And 
Luanni, Getehl, Actinaea.  All dead, because of her.  Because she 
wasn't strong enough.  Never strong enough.

	~You are strong.~

	She knew those voices.  Different, but somehow the same, she knew 
them from what seemed ages ago.  "Strong?" she asked.

	~Yes, strong.  You know you are strong.~

	"But I- but..."

	~Failed?  No.  There was nothing you could do.~

	"But I ca- I ca-"

	~Can fail, yes.  Lives depend on you.  Do you want to fail?~

	Luanni, Getehl, Actinaea... Mariposa.  She drew a ragged breath.  
"No.  No, I do not want to fail."

	~Then stand, Gracia of Saillune, Naga the White Serpent.  And do 
not fail.~

	Her eyes flew open.  She screamed to the sky as everything 
distorted and bended, around and around and around, an eternity and an 
instant.  It snapped.  She blinked.  Clear, it was all so crisp and 
focused: the shouts for help, the Mazoku's laugh, the shadows and the 
lightning and the wind and the ground.  She stood.

	"So the princess decides to play, hmm?" the Mazoku grinned as his 
entire being took on a purple aura.  "It doesn't matter.  Your body 
will be my own."

	"About time," Actinaea growled.  She grimaced as the shadows of 
the Dragon Lords tore at her shield.  "I can't keep this up!"

	Naga stared straight ahead.  "Light of Ceiphied," she chanted, 
raising her arms above her head.

	The Mazoku blinked.  "No... it can't be."

	"Come to my aid!"  A small, blue-white light appeared between her 
hands.

	"It can't!  She's only a human!"  The Captain stumbled back.

	"Grant me the strength to sunder this darkness!"  Her entire body 
glowed with power, and she brought the globe down, palms first.

	"She's human!" he screeched, clawing at Ceiphied's statue.

	"Chaos Disintegrate!"  The final words spoken, and the light 
lanced out, around, and through, filling the entire temple.  The 
Captain howled, a thousand desperate souls' pain, as he clawed one last 
time against the Flare Dragon's skin.

	~He will rest now,~ she heard as she collapsed into nothingness.  
~You must stop our errant children's ways.~  And finally, ~Thank you.~

* * * * *

	"Naga?  Wake up!"

	Naga's eyes opened a crack, earning her a view of a frazzled 
Luanni.  "OOOHO-" she coughed.  "What happened?"

	The dancing girl grinned.  "You creamed that Mazoku/Captain guy 
is what happened.  Are you feeling okay?"

	She nodded as she sat up, looking around.  They were outside 
Levar, that was certain; the stars twinkled at her from the sky, and 
she took a deep breath.  Never was she so glad to be outdoors.

	"So the White Serpent finally awakens."  Naga blinked, then 
looked to her left.  There sat Actinaea, arms folded and leaning 
against a canyon wall.  Her hair was a mess, her robes not much better.  
"Taking your time as always, I see," she said, but it had a softer edge 
than usual.

	Naga chuckled.  "Simply getting my beauty sleep.  You obviously 
haven't been graced by such a thing in years, Praetor," she replied.  
"What happened after I passed out?"

	A small smile touched Actinaea's lips as she brushed a lock of 
undone hair from her face.  "We heard something say that the seal was 
down.  It wasn't... really hearing, so much as feeling what they were 
saying, but we all felt it.  Getehl carried you out."

	Said swordsman nodded and added, "After we left, the seal went 
back up."

	"So much for the ancient city," Naga mused.

	Luanni sighed.  "Yeah, so much for that.  Now what?"  She 
blinked.  "Hey, Naga..."

	"Hmm?"

	"Are you really royalty?"

	The White Serpent fell over.  "I... um..." she began 
intelligently as she picked herself back up.  She glanced at Actinaea, 
who wore a knowing smirk.

	Luanni laughed.  "Never mind.  We know what we know.  You don't 
need to tell us."

	Naga coughed.  "Yes, well."  She stood.  "It's time for us to 
save Mariposa."

	The others nodded as they got to their feet.  "We already figured 
it out," Actinaea informed her.  "They're heading to Saillune; the 
'bastion of white'.  Probably with Mariposa *and* the Silent Bell..."

	'You must stop our errant children's ways.'  Naga shook her head.  
"The fastest way would be to Raywing, at least until we can buy 
mounts."

	"I couldn't agree more," Actinaea said.  She looped her arms 
under Getehl's shoulders.  The mercenary turned his head in surprise, 
but Actinaea didn't budge.  "See you at Waymeart.  Raywing!"  And they 
were airborne.

	"He- aww, drat."  Luanni pouted.

	"Ready?" Naga prompted as she did the same to the dancing girl.

	"Yeah, I guess so," she groused.

	"Excellent!  Raywing!"  They floated, slowly at first, then flew 
forward.

	"Are you sure you can carry me all the way there?"

	"Of course!  OOOHOHOHO-"

	"Stop that!"

* * * * *

Author's Notes:

This part was a recipe for disaster.  A giant plot/continuity hole to 
worry about, inconsistent characterization, and on and on.  Then life 
intervened.  School, family, and writer's block yay!

But somehow I pulled through, and this is the result.  I did the best I 
could, given what was going on.  I wish I had more time to work on 
this, but then, doesn't everyone always wish for more time? :P  Much, 
much thanks goes to Calculus for giving me another extension when it 
was obvious this wasn't about to happen without it.

More thanks goes to Nathan Housley and Robin Strickland for prereading 
at various stages.  And thank you, gentle reader, for reading (and 
hopefully enjoying) my final part in Slayers Glorious.  That is, unless 
you skipped to the author's notes.  Then you deserve a bap on the head.

Wow.  Glorious is ending.  Wow.  This has been a fun story, and I'm 
glad I was part of it.  It will be greatly missed.

And there isn't much more to say about that.

Ardweden