Revenge of the Red Witch

“I still can’t believe that it’s her.” Amelia whispered quietly as she sat with Sylphiel at the diner in the inn. An untouched cup of tea lay before her. “I mean, Lina-san has always has a…questionable sense of morality. And I can understand wanting to wreck justice, but it just seems so…overboard.”

Sylphiel was quiet for so long that Amelia did not think she was going to answer. When she finally spoke, Amelia jumped a little. “We weren’t there. Who are we to say if the punishment fits the crime? Besides, Gourry-sama was killed. If bandits killed Zelgadis-san I’m sure you’d be doing the same thing.”

“But not by that gang! I mean I can understand if it was just Jaxon’s gang…”

“I get it, Amelia-san.” Sylphiel said quietly, “She wants Jaxon to fear her. She wants him to feel as fearful and helpless as she did. This is the prologue. That’s why she stages the bodies and the camps the way she does. She wants him to know that she’s out to finish him.”

Sylphiel brushed her hair from her eyes before continuing, “She also wants to rebuild her fearful reputation. So no one tries it again. She can’t stand to be seen as weak.”

Amelia studied the other woman for a few seconds. “I’m amazed you have the stomach for it, Sylphiel-san.”

“I don’t. That’s why I’m glad Lina-san does.”

**************

Usually after a good slaughter, Lina found some nice in to stay at for the night. She’d wash the blood from her body and clothes and would sleep rather well. The night that Amelia and Sylphiel caught up to her was different. She was so exhausted that she did not even bother to protest when they rented rooms at the same inn. She merely went to her room, locked the door, and collapsed onto bed and into a deep sleep.

It was still dark when she woke, sweaty and disoriented from yet another nightmare. After she calmed herself down, she got up and went straight for the basin and filled it with water. She took off her clothes and gave herself a quick sponge bath. She really did not want to risk meeting Amelia or Sylphiel at the communal baths.

She didn’t want their questions, their pity or their judgment. She didn’t want them to notice the rash, a lasting memento from her time with the bandits. She didn’t want to see them ever again.

Seeing them at the bandit camp that night had been bad enough. Lina felt as though she could draw a line through her life before the attack and after. Before she had been carefree, invincible and happy. Now she was bitter, vulnerable, and miserable. Her friends were a painful reminder of all she had lost.

Then there was the endless, relentless questions they kept asking. She could understand why Sylphiel would want to know what had happened to Gourry, but she didn’t want to think about it. Losing him was more painful than anything else the bandits did to her. She spent most of her time now trying not to think about it. Building barriers in her mind helped her to live with it. Unfortunately they were weak. They had cracks and could be unleashed way too easily. The resulting memories would be unleashed like water from a dam and overwhelm her. And it was humiliating when it happened in front of others.

She closed her eyes in an attempt to block out her break down in front of Amelia and Sylphiel. She tried to push away her questions about what her friends thought of her now. She had to move on. One of Jaxon’s hideouts was close by and she was determined to reach it. But she couldn’t do it if she couldn’t pull herself together.

She took a deep, steadying breath and donned some fresh clothing. Soon she was dressed and ready. She opened the window to her room and casted a ray wing spell. She soon made her way to the path that led out of town, figuring that once she was a good few hours away she could stop and make breakfast. She never ate what she couldn’t be bothered to prepare herself now.

She became more alert as she realized that someone was on the path ahead. Her eyes narrowed as she kept whoever it was in her sights. Anyone who would hang out in the middle of the night on the road out of town was suspicious in her book. Her stomach tightened as she got closer and realized it was Sylphiel.

Lina kept walking, right on past her. Sylphiel followed her quietly.

“Leave.” Lina ordered, not even bothering to turn around.

“We’re going in the same direction. You want to kill Jaxon, I want to see him dead.”

Lina continued to look straight at the road ahead as she asked, “And Amelia?”

“She went to smooth things over with the Kingdom of Dils.”

Lina considered her options. “Don’t talk to me.”

She did not see Sylphiel nod in response. She did take comfort in the fact that the other woman was quiet at least. She was frustrated beyond belief with her. There was a time she would have cast a sleep spell and continue on her way, but she had learned about the dangers of that the hard way.

**********

After they had looted and torched the camp, Lina and Gourry had rented a small cabin on the outskirts of town. Neither was feeling particularly trustworthy of inns. For her part, Lina had just wanted to collapse into bed and sleep for a month. But there was stuff to take care of. Such as healing spells for Gourry and herself.

Neither said a word to the other as Lina cast her spell. Gourry was easily mended. Her own wounds took longer. Once done, she knew she would never be able to fall asleep until she had washed all of the bandit filth off of her, so she prepared a bath. The hot water felt good against her sore, aching body, but she did not give herself time to luxuriate in it. She grabbed a rag and started vigorously scrubbing every square inch of herself, wondering if she would ever feel clean again.

Then there was the fact that she was still bleeding. Despite her recovery spell, blood still flowed like it was ‘that time of the month.’ Lina felt she should be more alarmed by it than she was. Instead once she had finished bathing she calmly got some cotton to put on her panties like she would have during her period. She left the tiny washroom and crawled into bed.

Gourry was sitting at the table. “Aren’t you coming to bed?” she asked. She was scared that he wouldn’t want anything to do with her now. His sense of chivalry was strong, and it had been so important to him to wait until marriage. Now that she had been used by bandits would he consider her fit to be his bride?

Gourry kept his eyes on the table. “I thought you might want to be alone.”

“I don’t want to be by myself.” She needed to know that she was still loved, but she didn’t know how to say it.

Gourry stood up and made to short trip to the bed. He got in, and laid his sword beside him. Lina turned towards him and wrapped her arms around him. He gingerly returned the embrace. Feeling secure, she drifted into a deeper sleep than she thought she’d be able to attain.

She was woken by an unbearable pain in her lower abdomen. Her body tensed. It was like the world’s worst menstrual cramp. “Lina! Are you okay?”

Lina dug her fingers into the sheets. “I’ll live.” She gritted.

Gourry sat up and brought his hand to his face. It was covered with blood. He pulled back the sheets to see that she had bled all over them. “We need to get you to a healer.”

Lina shook her head, “I don’t want to.”

“If this keeps up you could bleed to death!”

Tears welled in her eyes, “I don’t want anyone to know.”

Gourry looked at her sympathetically. Then he actually said something smart. “The healer doesn’t need to know who you really are, does she? You could just be an ordinary girl.”

Lina thought for a moment and said, “Help me up.”

As she dressed in regular girly clothes and set off into town with Gourry, Lina wondered how she could not have felt the pain before. Had the shock just been that bad and numbing? And what was causing it anyway? That her encounter with the bandits could have such permanent effects scared her.

Eventually it got so bad that she had to let Gourry carry her. It was a relief when they finally reached the healer’s. She was an older woman, who quickly had Gourry set Lina on a bed and went to work.

“What happened?” she asked.

Lina avoided the other woman’s gaze. “We were attacked.”

“That bandit gang that moved in? They’ve been a major headache for us. You’re lucky to be alive.”

Lina was silent. She had a question she wanted to ask, but was scared to hear the answer. Eventually she spat it out, her voice sounding distant as she did. “I’m not…there’s no chance that I’m pregnant, is there?”

Lina felt her cheeks burn. She kept her gaze on the floor. The healer’s answer was worrisome, but not in the way she’d anticipated. “I should say not! They really did a number on you, you’re womb’s been crushed. That’s why your bleeding the way you are.”

Lina’s eyes widened, “So I’ll never be able to have children?”

The healer patted her hand, “Not to worry dear, I’m fixing that right now. You can go on to have all of the children you want, provided you don’t end up with a venereal disease that makes you infertile.”

Lina sat up straighter, “What? How will I know if I have one?”

“No choice but to wait and see. If a rash develops you’ll need to stop by and let me see. That’s all I can tell you.”

Lina felt her stomach drop as Gourry placed a hand on her shoulder. It didn’t seem fair! She felt the feeling of shock return as the healer finished up and collected their payment and sent them on their way.

“We should pick up some food, then head back to the cabin.” Gourry said as they passed by a grocer. Lina nodded.

It had been days since she’d had a good meal, but she did not feel hungry. She watched as Gourry selected some food she otherwise would have loved and paid for the items. She was relieved when he finished and they started to make their way out of town. It was getting busier as dawn turned to morning and Lina felt as though everyone was staring at her like they knew.

When they got to the cabin, Lina went and sat on the bed while Gourry started cooking. Things had been so unusually quiet between the two of them that Lina looked up in shock when he said, “I’m so sorry, Lina.”

Her heart seemed to be swallowed by her stomach. Was he about to break up with her? Could she blame him? Not only had she been used as a bandit whore, but she could now be carrying a venereal disease and be unable to give him children. Who would want her after all of that?

Lina put her face in her hands and started to cry. Gourry was in front of her in a heartbeat, placing his hands gently on her shoulders, “Gods, Lina forgive me! I’m your protector, I should have stopped them. Instead I…I was the reason you went through what you did. If you’d not had to worry about me…you should have just let them kill me.”

It took Lina a moment to comprehend what she was hearing. He was apologizing for being used as bait, not for leaving? “So…so you’re not leaving me?”

His eyes widened, “No! Well, not unless you want me to go. And I can understand if you do.”

Lina slapped him across the face. “Idiot! Don’t you know how scared I was that you were going to leave? And don’t walk around feeling all mopey and guilty if I decide to get all sacrificial on you! I told myself we were both getting out alive and I did what I had to do. And here we are.”

Gourry’s eyebrows shot up, “You thought I was going to leave? What gave you that stupid idea?”

Lina rubbed her temples with her forefingers, “Do I have to spell it out for you? You were there! You saw what happened, the things they did. And did you not understand what the healer said? If you marry me you may have a hard time exercising your rights as a husband without picking up something nasty in the process. And I know you want kids and…”

His expression softened, “We’ll worry about that when and if it happens. But no matter what, I want to be with you. If you’ll still have me.”

Lina drew him into a hug, tears pouring down her face. She was about to say something when she smelled something burning. “I think breakfast is done.”

Gourry shot up and ran to the stove to salvage the remains of their breakfast. Lina sat at the table and waited for him to bring it to her. “Hey Lina, so what’s the plan now?” he asked.

Lina ran a hand through her hair. “After breakfast we’ll go into town and see if anyone there knows where the remnants of the bandit gang ran off to. Then we find them and kill them.”

Gourry sat a plate before her and Lina forced herself to eat it. Even if it hadn’t been burnt it would have been a chore to finish. But she knew she needed her strength. He sat down opposite her. “Then once we’ve killed them what will we do?”

Lina nearly choked on her bacon, “I hadn’t really thought about it.”

“Are you still wanting to go home and get married?”

Lina took a sip of juice and gathered her thoughts, “I can’t go home. Not after this. After what happened…and if my folks ever knew, I don’t think I’d be able to look at them.” Lina grabbed a knife and started to slice her pancakes with it. “I guess we could find a quiet town somewhere where no one knows us and settle down.”

Gourry swallowed his eggs, “Whatever you want.”

********

Returning to the restaurant where they had been drugged had not been easy, but it was necessary. Lina peered through the windows and spotted the waitress who had served them that morning, and then paid a young girl to go in and lure her out. Lina and Gourry had positioned themselves in an alley close to the restaurant and secluded enough that no one could overhear.

Lina was worried that the waitress would send the young girl off. Fortunately a few minutes after entering the restaurant, the girl appeared with the waitress trailing behind her. The girl led her into the alley, and Gourry moved to block the exit to the street. The only place she could run to was brick walls. Lina noted that Gourry looked troubled. She hoped his chivalrous nature wouldn’t get the better of him.

The waitresses eyes widened in fear as she recognized Lina. The young girl held up her hand, “Here you are miss!”

Lina placed a gold coin in her hand, “Thanks. You did great. Now get out of here.”

The girl did as told, while the waitress suddenly seemed to find her fingernails interesting. “I presume you know why I brought you here.” Lina said.

She shook her head. Lina scowled, “Oh, we’re going to play dumb, are we? Let’s cut to the chase. I know you poisoned us and handed us over to those bandits.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

Lina slapped her. The waitress jumped and put a hand to her face before turning to run. She stopped before Gourry, her eyes wide and pleading, “You’re not going to let her hurt me, are you?”

Lina could see it in his eyes. His resolve was waning. She caught up to the waitress and grabbed her. She threw her down and pinned her to the ground, twisting her arms behind her in what Lina hoped was a damn painful manner. “Trying to get sympathy won’t work on me! Not after what I’ve been through! Now you’re going to talk. And may be if I like what I hear I’ll let you go.”

The waitress was sobbing now. “What do you want to know?”

“Anything you know about the bandits you sold us out to. I want names, I want their location, hideouts. Everything you know, I want to know.”

She shook her head, “They never gave me any names. They stopped me on my way to work and told me that if I valued my life I would do exactly as they said. They said they had men at every table in the restaurant and if I didn’t go into the kitchens and poison your food, they would storm the inn and kill everyone in it. I didn’t know what else to do! I had no choice!”

Lina pulled out her short sword and lifted the waitress’ head up by pulling her hair. She slid the knife around so it was at her throat. The waitress sobbed, “Oh no, please…”

“Lina!” Gourry exclaimed.

“You buy that load of crap?” Lina asked, “You always have a choice.”

“This is wrong.” He said as he sheathed his sword and drew closer. Swiftly he grabbed the hand holding her short sword and drew it away from her. “Take it out on the bandits when we find them. She was just another pawn.”

Lina lunged for him. The waitress wasted no time in getting up and running. Lina barely noticed as she started punching him. “How dare you!” she screeched, throwing a few more punches before dissolving into tears.

He put an arm around her and drew her close. “I’m sorry. But she didn’t know anything. Hurting her wouldn’t have helped. We will find them, though. I promise you, we will find them.”

************

It was while they were shopping for groceries to make for lunch that they got their big break. They were at the counter paying for their food when two men walked in, looking rather the worse for the wear.

“Steve! Greg!” the store owner exclaimed, “What happened?”

“Bandits got us on the road into town. They grabbed all of us stuff. Sorry Manny, but they got the merchandise.”

Gourry looked at Lina, who casually asked, “Where specifically were they?”

“Why do you want to know?” Steve asked.

Lina ran a hand through her hair, “We’re just passing through. We’d like to know what places to avoid. A girl can’t be too careful.”

“I see. If you follow the northern road far enough you’ll hit a lake. If you walk around it clockwise you’ll run into a series of caves. That’s probably where they’re hiding out. Personally, I’d avoid the road all together.”

Lina nodded. “Thanks, will do. Come on Gourry.”

He grabbed their bags and followed her out of the store. “Let’s head to the cabin first and have lunch. Then we’ll attack the camp.” Lina said quietly.

“Right.” Gourry agreed.

They walked in silence for the rest of the journey. Lina was unusually troubled. She kept thinking about earlier with the waitress. She hadn’t planned on killing her, but she had wanted to scare her a bit more. Only Gourry had intervened.

She had every intention of killing the bandits. Slowly and painfully. She wanted to humiliate them like they had humiliated her. And while she could see Gourry fully supporting her if she quickly killed them and moved on, she was scared that he would wimp out once she put her plans for them into action.

She couldn’t let him do that.

They reached the cabin without incident. Lina unlocked the door and walked in, Gourry following her. He set the groceries on the table and started to rummage through the bags. “I don’t know about you, but I sure am hungry…” he started.

“Sleeping!” Lina cast. She caught him before he fell to the ground. “Levitation.”

She brought him to the bed and set him down gently. She brushed the hair from his eyes and kissed him gently on the lips. “Forgive me.” She whispered, “I’ll be back before you wake.”

*********

The remaining bandits were right where the merchants said they’d be. There were five in all. Lina had no trouble rounding them up, but she was concerned that the leader was not among them. Had she gotten the wrong gang?

“Okay, I’m only going to ask this once before I start cutting things off. Where’s your leader?” she asked as she grabbed one of the bandits by his shirt.

The bandit started sweating profusely. Lina took the time to enjoy his fear. Bandits sure were tough when it came to picking on those who were defenseless. But when faced with someone more powerful, that toughness melted away like butter. “You just missed him. He found out about the cabin you are staying at and took a group over there to finish you two off!”

Lina’s heart sank and fear seized her. Gourry was there alone, under a sleep spell and defenseless! She swiftly snapped the neck of the bandit before her before shooting off a volley of lethal flare arrows at the remaining four and cast a ray wing spell, hurrying as fast as she could.

***********

The door was ajar. It had been kicked in. The groceries were splattered all over the place. There was blood smeared all over the walls forming words and phrases but Lina couldn’t make them out. Her shock was so great that her ability to read appeared to have fled. The scent of death hung heavily in the air. Lina felt as though the wind had been knocked out of her. She could not take her eyes off the bed.

Gourry lay on it, unnaturally still and covered in blood. His throat had been slashed. Under her sleep spell, he never had a chance. Guilt flooded through her she started to wring her hands through her hair. Huge rasping sobs devoid of tears raked her body as she collapsed to her knees. What had she done?