Naga laughed victoriously as she galloped along the country road on a 
rented horse that the group had acquired in Waymeart.  The horse winced 
and cursed its own existence every time that horrible sound emanated 
from the White Serpent's mouth, though it was unable to complain, being 
a horse.  The others followed her at a very quick pace, wasting no time 
to catch up with Torr.

"I hope you're satisfied," Actinaea griped as she galloped along side 
Naga.  "These horses cost the remainder of our money!"

Naga laughed once more for good measure.  "Worry, not, dear Praetor!  
We'll be able to recover the bell, save Mariposa, and punish Torr all 
in one swoop!  He will most definitely regret the day he ever heard of 
the name of Naga the Serpent!"

"Are you sure you can be so confident?" Actinaea asked.

"Ooohohohohohoho!" Naga bellowed, "Just relax and enjoy the ride!"

"We've only been back together a day and they're already arguing," 
Getehl sighed to himself.  At least this was almost over.

-----------------------------------------------------------------
Improfanfic Presents: 

Slayers Glorious
Chapter 40: Rage! The Penultimate Battle!
This part by: Adam Pace
Started by: Todd Harper
-----------------------------------------------------------------
 
"Why are we stopping here?" Lilen asked inquisitively as Torr brought 
his horse to a stop by a small stream that ran adjacent to the road 
they were travelling.  "I'm sure that the White Serpent will be 
following us as fast as she can, plus she doesn't have all the extra 
baggage that we do, carrying this bell and the girl and all."

Korvadus nodded in agreement.  "Even though death is nothing for me, 
Naga is pretty dangerous.  We better get as far from her as we can!"

"It is just for a moment," Torr replied quickly as he pulled out his 
crystal ball.  "I suggest you let your horse drink.  We've been riding 
for a while.  I've got to contact Erika and tell her that I've 
accomplished my objectives." 

Slowly the ball began to light up, and the shadowy figure of Lady Erika 
appeared on the other end. 
"I trust that you have good news," Erika said bluntly.

Torr glared back into the ball and said, "Yes, Erika.  You can stop 
worrying about things, since I've got the bell and the girl with me 
now.  I'll meet up with your carriage soon.   I've risked too much to 
get this damn thing, you know.  It better be worth it."

"How dare you doubt me!" Erika snapped, "Just remember who you're 
dealing with!"

"Oh," Torr replied sarcastically, "I forgot that you always have 
everything under control, Erika.  Anyway, once I deliver the bell, this 
is completely in your hands.  I'm tired of running all over the place 
for you."

Erika stared back at Torr in amazement at his defiance; "You never 
cease to annoy me, Torr.  Fine, I don't care what you do after you get 
me the bell.  Just remember that I want Naga dead too.  I want all of 
the royal family dead, especially that thorn in my side!  And do hurry 
Torr! Our sponsor is getting restless."

"Sponsor?" Torr laughed, "It was never my idea to make deals like you 
have.  That is entirely your problem, Erika, not mine!  I'll be there 
soon enough.  Why don't you knit a sweater until we arrive or 
something?"

Erika's face turned red as she screamed, "TORR!"

Torr sighed, and then tossed the crystal ball into the stream.  "We're 
moving out!" He announced.

"Was that such a good idea," Lillen asked as she watched the ball get 
carried off by the current.  

"Sometimes she just gets a bit aggravating," Torr explained, "She has 
what she wants from me now.  We're going to meet up with her carriage 
soon anyway.  After that, I think I'm going to open up a bar on the 
beach somewhere."

Mariposa began to stir again.  She cautiously opened her eyes, 
recalling that the last time she came to she received a whack in the 
head.  It still sort of hurt, but this wasn't the time to think of 
herself.  She had to destroy the bell somehow, or stall Torr enough so 
that Naga would catch up.   She needed some sort of plan.  Torr was 
still off of the horse, so maybe she could do something to create a 
diversion.  She had to clear her head and think.  Quickly she did 
formulate an idea.  It would be hard in the state she was in.  Still, 
she had to try, and without Torr noticing.  Slowly she began to 
concentrate.

"Anyway," Torr said, "Let's get going!"

Mariposa began to sweat as Torr approached the horse.  She had to do it 
now.  She concentrated.  Quickly she chanted, "Wind and Red flame, come 
to my hands and be lightning, and release the power of judgement."

"Crap!" Torr exclaimed as he noticed Mariposa casting a spell.  He 
began running quickly towards the horse in an attempt to stop her 
before it was too late.

"MONO VOLT!"

Too late.  Torr jumped back as electricity flared out of the girl.  His 
horse neighed out in pain, and then began galloping wildly without 
direction.   Mariposa smiled to herself and then fainted again, having 
spent all her energy.  She prayed that this would be enough of a 
disturbance to buy her friends some time.

"Damn it!" Torr cursed as he hopped onto Korvadus' mount.  "She's 
getting away with the bell!  Hurry up and follow her!"

"I told you it was a bad idea to stop!" Lillen exclaimed as she 
galloped in pursuit.

Korvadus just shrugged and sat down by the stream.  "Damn sturdy bell, 
I must say."  

It was times like these that made Torr wish that he had gone into a 
more reputable line of work.  Here he was, just about ready to finish 
these blasted chores of Erika and retire.   Now he was involved in some 
mad chase tracking down a runaway horse, with hostage and Silent Bell 
attached to boot.   He had a feeling that things were going to get a 
lot worse for him before they got better.  His head sunk deeper as he 
realized that if he didn't get the bell back, Erika would probably 
demote him to latrine boy in her mansion stable, or worse.

-----------------------------------------------------------------

If there was one thing that Getehl had learned on this wacky voyage, it 
was to sit down, shut up, and invest in a good set of earplugs.  
Unfortunately, he had failed to find a pair in any of the towns he had 
visited, and so he was forced to hear the constant bickering between 
Naga and Actinaea.  

"Why my dear, sweet Actinaea," Naga laughed obnoxiously, carrying on an 
argument that had at least been going on for an hour, "If you had 
actually been a proficient instructor to Mariposa, then I highly doubt 
she would be in the predicament she is in right now."  

The Praetor quickly countered, "That's positively ridiculous!  I rather 
believe that this is all because she somehow managed to acquire an 
arrogant, self-serving, over-inflated excuse for a magician!"

"Ooohohohohohoho!" Naga laughed, "You are obviously quite mistaken, my 
figure-less friend.  What do you think Getehl?"

Getehl sweat dropped and shrugged.  "No comment," he managed.

"Leave Getehl alone," Luanni said, defending her friend.  "Don't we 
have other things to worry about than an ego battle?"

"Hmph," replied Actinaea and Naga in unison.

Luanni looked at Getehl.  "Why don't we both settle down somewhere 
after this is over, Getehl?" she asked.

"What?" Getehl exclaimed.

Luanni smiled innocently.  "Oh, nothing.  It is just that this life 
that you've chosen for yourself seems rather depressing.  Running from 
town to town, living from job to job.  It has to take its toll."

"It sure does," Getehl affirmed.  "But I think that it is worth it in 
the end."

"Is that so?" Luanni asked, "Even with ladies like these two?"

Getehl groaned.  "Maybe you have a point."

"I heard that!" Actinaea snapped.

"So did I!" Naga added.

"Never mind!" Getehl laughed, "Never mind at all!"

-----------------------------------------------------------------

Mariposa slowly gained consciousness.  At first the world seemed fuzzy, 
but she quickly regained her senses enough to tell that she was no 
longer moving.  The horse she was on, along with the bell, were in one 
piece, surviving both the mono volt spell and the mad dash that 
followed.  She sighed as she tried to make out where she was.  As far 
as she could tell from her limited view, being still bound to the 
horse, she was in a sparse forest of some sort.  She didn't know how 
long she had been out, but judging by the shadows she could make out, 
she estimated to herself that it had to be early evening at the latest.  
She knew it was only a matter of time before she was found by Torr, and 
knocked out again.  Magically, she was spent.  The conditions of her 
travel, and the mono volt, had pretty much spent all the energy she 
had.  She hoped that her plan had worked, at least a bit.  She also 
wondered that if it didn't, if she would ever see her friends again.  
She was a bit scared of what Lady Erika might do with her for her 
disobedience.  Suddenly, her eyes shook with fear as she heard steps 
coming towards her.  

"There she is," Torr commented as he trotted towards the lost horse.  
"This girl has caused me a lot of trouble as well, though I can't blame 
her for it."

"I don't see anything special about her," Lillen commented.  "She knows 
a few magic tricks, that's all."

"Game over, little one," Torr said as he poked Mariposa with the hilt 
of his sword. 

Mariposa winced.  "Leave me alone!" she cried out.

"Don't worry," Torr replied, "I'm not going to hurt you.  Not 
seriously, at least.  Very impressive, though.  I can see why Erika 
wants you back where you belong, though maybe she wouldn't have this 
problem with some of our lost kin if she weren't so anal about things."

"I hope that Naga fries you both," Mariposa said spitefully.

Torr sighed.  "No need for that type of talk, kid.  Hey, at least 
you're going to see your parents again."

"Isn't this touching?" Lillen laughed.  "Anyway, shouldn't we get going 
now?"

Torr nodded as he grabbed the reigns of the stray horse and pulled it 
along with him.  "We actually shouldn't be too far away from where we 
started, since this thing ran around in circles."

Close by, Korvadus was humming a little tune to himself as he fidgeted 
with his crossbow.  He noted that the sun had already begun to set.  It 
was getting late, and he wondered if perhaps he should go on foot 
without Erika's lackey or the shape shifter.  Suddenly he heard a 
sudden sound coming from the woods to the South.  Quickly, he readied a 
bolt and turned towards the source.  "Who's there?" he demanded loudly.

Torr sighed as he looked at the crossbow that was aimed right for his 
forehead.  "It's just me.  Everything is under control.  We best get 
going before something ELSE happens!"  Korvadus nodded silently as he 
put his crossbow away.   

"Don't worry," Lillen sighed to herself, "I don't see how our luck 
could be so bad as to have anything else bad happen to us."

And as if by some secret curse or irony, at that moment a load, 
horrible, echoing, and not to mention obnoxious sound blared out of 
nowhere, filling the early evening sky with ear piercing volume.  
"OOOOOOOOOHOHOHOHOHOHOHO!" the voice bellowed. The four horses that 
were carrying the heroes appeared on the road in a timely, victorious 
fashion.

Torr groaned to himself in disbelief.  "What did I ever do to deserve 
this?"

Actinaea glared at her companion.  She quickly said, "That was rather 
unnecessary.  You just blew our surprise attack."

"Don't worry!" Naga retorted, "The White Serpent is in no need of 
surprise attacks when facing scum such as this!"

Getehl finally got the nerve to speak up.  "I hate to interrupt, but I 
think they're getting away!"

And he was right, as Torr, Korvadus, and Lillen were attempting to make 
a quick getaway, with the bell in tow.  "I see," Actinaea sighed.

Naga once again laughed and began galloping after the three.  "You dare 
insult Naga the Serpent!?"

Torr looked back from his mount and cursed again.  "She's following!"

"She looks really angry too," Korvadus hastily added.

Torr quickly made a decision.  "Leave the girl and the bell to me," he 
said, "You two stop them from following me!  If you succeed, I'll throw 
in 30 silver each on top of whatever Erika is paying you."

"Sounds like a deal to me," Lillen replied.

Korvadus smiled and said, "What the hell."

"Thanks," Torr replied, "I owe you one."

Torr and Lillen turned their horses around to face the oncoming White 
Serpent.  She was laughing, as usual, and as far as the two mercenaries 
could tell, she had every intention of running them down.  
"I just realized something," Lillen said to her companion.

"What's that?" Korvadus asked as he loaded a bolt up in his crossbow.

Lillen paused for a moment and then answered, "This Naga character. 
she's scary."

"That she is," Korvadus agreed as he fired.  The bolt flew swiftly 
towards the target.  With deadly precision, the shot struck the neck of 
Naga's horse.  It began bucking as it reeled back in pain.

"What's this?" a rather shocked White Serpent asked to herself as she 
lost control of the animal.  With surprising reflex, she used a Raywing 
to save herself from being thrown from the bucking steed.

"We'd better help her," Luanni commented as she watched the fight 
unfold.

Getehl nodded as he drew his sword.  "These guys just don't know when 
to quit.  Isn't that right Ace?"

Actinaea let it slide.  "Honestly, I don't know how that woman stays 
alive," she whispered to herself.

Meanwhile, Naga was busy dodging pot shots from Korvadus' crossbow.  
"This isn't very nice at all!" Naga taunted, "How dare you raise a 
weapon such as that against a fair lady like myself?"

"Why are you so hard to kill!?" Korvadus screamed.

"I'll show you!" Naga replied, "FREEZE ARROW!"

Korvadus' instinctively jumped off of his horse, rolling out of the way 
of the spell attack. Several spikes of ice barely missed him.  He began 
to return fire with a few more bolts.  "I could use a little bit of 
help here," he yelled to his companion.

Lillen was already working on it.  She had to act rather quickly not to 
be noticed changing forms.  If she could do that, it would cause enough 
of a commotion to do what Torr had asked.  As the dust cleared from 
another round of spell attacks, Lillen quickly ducked behind a bush and 
commenced with her plan.

At the same time, Korvadus was losing ground, as he was now being 
attacked on all fronts by not only Naga, but the other magic user, a 
very irate swordsman, and a dancing girl with some very sharp throwing 
knives.  Things were not looking good for Korvadus, but he wasn't 
really worried.  After all, the worse they could do was to kill him.  
He just kept loading up his crossbow and firing.

"Having a little problem with aiming, are we?" Naga asked mockingly.  
"Perhaps it would be far less humiliating if you were to surrender 
yourself?"  The buxom sorceress began charging up yet another spell, 
when as luck would have it for Korvadus, another figure appeared out of 
the bushes, tackling the White Serpent.  

Everyone turned their gaze towards the disruption to find not one, but 
two Nagas lying on the ground.  Both were identical.  

"Oh great." Getehl sighed.

"Heh," Korvadus laughed, "Nice thinking, Lillen."  In the distraction, 
he quickly aimed his bow at Getehl's head.  "Say goodnight, hat boy."

"Look out!" Luanni screamed.  She instinctively threw a dagger at the 
assassin.

Korvadus gasped as he felt a sharp pain in his neck.  "Damn it," he 
slowly whispered as he collapsed.  

"Thanks Luanni," Getehl sighed with relief.  

"That leaves us with one more problem," Actinaea commented as the two 
Nagas stood side by side.  "Which one is the real Naga."

"This is like something out of a stupid fairy tale," Luanni remarked.

One of the Nagas spoke up.  "Surely all of you can tell that I'm the 
real White Serpent!  I'm insulted that you would even think that this 
other mere copy is as beautiful as the original!"

Getehl blinked.  "That SOUNDS Like that Naga I know."

The other Naga spoke up in her own defense.  "That is totally absurd!  
I can't believe that this unsavory villain would even dream of mocking 
the illustrious Naga the Serpent!"

Luani pointed out, "That also sounds like Naga,"

"Torr's getting away, you know!" Actinaea said, "There has to be some 
way for us to discern which is the real White Serpent."

This was naturally all part of Lillen's plan.  In the confusion of her 
taking Naga's form, she was buying Torr the extra time he needed.  Of 
course, things would probably get more interesting when Korvadus 
resurrected, though she wasn't exactly sure how long that might take.

"Indeed," one of the Nagas replied.  "After all, I AM a sorceress of 
reputable skill.  I'll simply show off my magic, and you'll easily see 
that I am me."

"That's a good idea," Getehl agreed.  

"Very well," Actinaea replied, "Show me."

The first Naga stepped forward and smiled.  "Light, born from flame, 
gather in my hands and be my power.  LIGHTING!"  As expected, a flash 
of light emanated from her hands.

"I guess we know who the real Naga is now," Luanni said as she drew her 
dagger and pointed it at the other Naga.

"Ooooohohohohohoho!" The second laughed.  "I find it hard to believe 
that you would fall for such a simple trick!  Nowadays every country 
peasant knows at least one simple spell.  How about this?"

"I'm warning you," Actinaea replid, "No tricks."

The second Naga nodded.  "Do not fear, Praetor.  I'll show this upstart 
REAL magic."  She looked at her duplicate and smiled.  "FLOW BREAK!"

Lillen winced as the spell's power emanated.  She didn't realize that 
Naga, a supposed black sorceress, would know flow break.  The magic 
test wasn't such a good idea after all.  Her illusionary form quickly 
faded, and she was quickly revealed as the imposter.  "Oops," she said 
as she smiled innocently.

Naga laughed the unmasked foe and boasted, "As I suspected, this 
ability to change forms is nothing more than a magical illusion.  
Breaking such a thing is mere child's play for the one and only Naga 
the Serpent!"

Luanni drew her dagger and approached the shape changer.  "I'll take 
care of her."

"There's no need for that," Getehl said, "Since when did you become so 
aggressive? We'll just tie her up.  Our real enemies are Torr and his 
boss."

"Sorry, "Luanni apologized as she put her knife away again.

"Two down," Actinaea said as she procured a rope from the back of one 
of the horses.  She began to tie Lillen up.

Getehl smiled.  "Now Torr is the only one of these bastards left."

"Think again!" a voice called out.  It was Korvadus, back to life, and 
ready to fight again.

"Getehl!  Look out!" Actinaea screamed as she saw a bolt fly for 
Getehl's back.

Getehl began to turn around as he drew his sword. He was too slow, 
however, as the bolt tagged him in his side.  He winced back in pain.  
"Sorry, Luanni," he manage to say.  Then he dropped his sword and fell 
over.  Blood spilled from the fresh wound.

"GETEHL!" Luanni screamed terribly.  "Someone do something!"

Naga rushed over to Getehl's side.  "RECOVERY!"  The bleeding lessened, 
but it was still coming strong.
"This is going to take some time," she said.

Korvadus smiled.  "Who's next?"

Actinaea just stared blankly at the scene, as Naga desperately tried to 
heal the swordsman.  "Getehl," she said softly, "Don't die."  

Getehl smiled weakly at her.  "I'm okay, Ace!" He laughed.  The fact 
remained that he was losing blood at a quick pace.  

The Praetor clenched her fist and looked at Korvadus.  "If he dies."

"It'll be fine!" Luanni said, "I hope."

Korvadus raised his crossbow again, aiming straight for the Praetor. 
"If he dies, then at least you'll see him in hell."

Actinaea stood her ground.  "BOMB DI WIND!" she cried out.

Korvadus' hand was blasted with a gale force wind, taking him by 
surprise.  He looked on without emotion as his crossbow flew out of his 
hand and to the ground several yards away.  "You can kill me all he 
want," he said, "But I'll just keep coming back."

Actinaea remained silent, but everyone could tell that she was mad.  In 
fact, this was the angriest anyone had seen Actinaea.  "I'll make you 
pay for this."

"I'd like to see you try," Korvadus said, "Do you think death is 
anything to me?"

"Uh," Luanni said, "Are you okay Actinaea?"

Actinaea stared at the assassin.  Without saying anything more, a red 
glow enveloped her hands.  "Black dragon who sleeps in red flame; Burn 
my enemies down with your mighty roar!"

Korvadus, remembering the deal he had made over one hundred years 
earlier, began feeling nervous.  At the very least, this was really, 
really going to hurt.

"GAAV FLARE!"

And hurt it did.  In his entire career, Korvadus had never been killed 
with a spell this powerful.
"It is going to take a long time to recover from this one," he thought 
to himself.  Then he died again.

Luanni stared blankly at the Praetor, who was breathing deeply.  "And 
they thought I was aggressive?"
She backed away from Actinaea and turned towards the others.  Naga was 
pouring healing power into Getehl's wound.  The bleeding had reduced a 
lot, but he was still in bad shape.

"I could use some help here!" Naga called.

Actinaea sighed.  Blowing off some steam felt good.  She returned to 
the injured swordsman and crouched down next to Naga.  She placed her 
hands over the wound as well and began to aid Naga's effort.  "I won't 
let you die, Getehl."

"I'll go get bandages," Luanni offered.  

"Don't worry," Naga said to the Praetor.  "I'm going to make sure that 
Torr and Erika pay for everything they've done."

-----------------------------------------------------------------

Torr smiled as he approached the awaiting carriage.  His job was 
finally over.  Erika was waiting for him.  
She didn't look especially pleased, though Torr didn't really care how 
she felt.

"You're late," she bluntly announced.  "You know, it is very annoying 
when you try to contact your supposedly faithful follower, and instead 
all you see in your crystal ball is a school of fish."

Torr smiled as he got off of his horse.  "Never mind that.  The task is 
complete."

Erika gazed at Torr's horse.  "Yes.  Despite your incompetence, I see 
you've got the bell, and the girl."

"You do know that she hates you." Torr said as he looked at Mariposa, 
who was knocked out on his horse.  "You better return her to her 
parents.  You owe them all that much."

Erika remained silent.

"Anyway, now that you've gotten the bell, I'm sure you're going to head 
back to Saillune."  Torr said, "Though I still don't understand why you 
insist on destroying innocent lives.  It should be the royal family 
we're after."

"My dear Torr," Erika replied, "You've known from the very start that 
my plan was to not only kill the royal family, but to destroy all they 
have built.  You won't be complaining when I begin to construct a 
glorious new kingdom for our people over Saillune's ashes."

Torr shrugged.  He'd have no part in killing innocents.  He did his 
job.  "Well, have fun," he said as he turned around and began walking 
west.

"Where are you going, Torr?" Erika asked.

"Vacation," Torr answered.  "I'll send you a letter from the beach."

"I've got another task for you," Erika said.

Torr paused and turned around.  "What?"

"I still need you to kill Princess Gracia," Erika commanded.

Torr turned back and kept walking.  "Naga?  I'm tired of seeing, let 
alone hearing, that crazy sorceress.  Kill her yourself." 

Erika glared at her follower with contempt.  "Why do you defy me, Torr?  
Is it not enough for you that I will save our entire race?"

Torr paused again and said, "I don't disagree with what you seek.  I 
just don't like your methods.  Blackmailing children to do your 
bidding, and destroying whatever gets in your way.  You're making us 
seem as bad as those who persecuted our people."

"Is that all?" Erika asked.

Torr smiled.  "That, and I'm not your monkey boy."

Erika sighed.  "It is too bad that you have to see things this way."  
She raised her finger at Torr.  "I do, however, need you to do one 
thing weather you like it or not."  A spark of energy flew at Torr from 
Erika's fingertip.  Torr gasped out as he was struck, and subsequently 
electrocuted.  After a few moments he fell to the ground.

"Eliminating me as well?" Torr groaned from the ground.

"On the contrary," Erika said.  "Naga will be here soon.  Since you 
won't be going anywhere for a while, tell her that if she wants to save 
the girl, to come to Saillune."

"You're holding her hostage?" Torr asked.  He received another shock 
for that.

"Tell her!" Erika demanded, "After that I don't care what you do."

"You always have to have your way," Torr commented.  Then he passed 
out.

Erika turned around and said to her servants, "Get the bell onto the 
carriage.  The moment we've been waiting for is almost here!  Soon, the 
Kingdom of Saillune will be nothing more than a footnote in history 
books.  Not even the White Serpent, or should I say, Princess Gracia, 
will be able to stop us now!"

--Chapter 40 End-------------------------------------------------

Author's Notes:  At least it was better than my last part.  
One of the hardest things in Slayers Glorious was writing for
our favorite minion, Torr.  Obviously, he's torn between his
obligation to his race, and having to follow Erika, who is up
waist high in a mazoku plot.  Hehe.  This has been one wild
and interesting ride since a year ago when I wrote chapter 12.
Good luck to Ravi on finishing it up.  Maybe (hopefully) there
will be a sequel after everyone forgets the slight problems
we had with this one.

-Adam (ruri@ucsd.edu)