Toshi's consciousness was nagging at him. It told him to open his eyes and get up. But it was so warm and comfortable here. He just wanted to sleep. His consciousness was a stubborn beast. It kept nagging, and just as someone will often do something for someone else if the request is repeated enough, Toshi's eyes slowly opened.

As his blurry vision returned to normal he noticed that the hearth was still well lit.

How long have I been asleep? he questioned himself as he stretched and yawned.

Toshi noticed a tray of food on a small study table in front of him that he knew wasn't there before. He looked over to Kleo who was still snoozing contentedly. Another small table with a food tray had been placed near her. Toshi also noticed that Kleo's wardrobe had been changed. She now wore a woolen robe and wool slippers.

"Hey, Kleo! Wake up!" Toshi shook her shoulder.

"Hmm, wha-?" she muttered, "C'mon, mom. Gimme just five more minutes."

"WAKE UP!" Toshi shouted.

Kleo sat straight up blinking widely. "Wha-? Was paßiert?"

"You fell asleep, and I guess I did too,"

"Oh. . .I hope Zelgadis-san didn't decide to not meet us because we were asleep,"

"No, he's decided to meet you," a voice from the other side of the room responded, "You two must have had a pretty long trip. Please feel welcome to eat what's in front of you."

Toshi and Kleo looked to where the voice came from. Their odd host could be barely seen in the shadows across the room. He was sitting in a wooden chair like Toshi's and was waiting quietly.

"Umm, thank you. . ." Toshi stated feeling slightly embarrassed that their host had apparently been waiting for them to wake up, "How long have we been asleep?"

"At least twelve hours," the host responded, "I stopped counting after that."

"I'm sorry. . ." Toshi apologized.

"Don't worry about it,"

Kleo was already eating the food on her tray. "Thanks, mister! It's really good!" she mumbled between mouthfuls.

Toshi began eating his food too. It was quite good. The meal consisted of some sort of spiced meat, a salad of lettuces and greens, and a glass of some sort of liquid. Upon smelling it Toshi discovered that it was wasabi sake. He mentally complained about what he personally thought was a revolting drink, but Kleo was drinking hers and seemed to be enjoying it.

"You're not old enough to drink, are you?" he asked her.

"Let her, one glass won't do any harm. Besides, wasabi is good for waking a person up," the host put in.

Toshi preferred his water skin with red wine. He took a quick swig from the skin.

"What is that?" the host asked.

"Red wine," Toshi replied.

"Ahh, red wine. I like your taste!" the host said.

Kleo, who just realized that she was wearing different clothes, suddenly interrupted the conversation between Toshi and the odd host.

"Hey, what's the deal here?" she questioned.

"That was my doing," the host replied, "I thought you would probably be warmer in less revealing clothes, so while you were sleeping I changed them. I'm keeping your clothes in another room."

"You dared to take advantage of a sleeping girl?!" Kleo asked angrily.

"Don't misunderstand me. I'm way past the point in my life where I cared about that sort of thing," the host calmly answered.

"How old are you?" Toshi asked.

"I'm not entirely sure, I stopped counting a few decades ago. Probably somewhere nearing 120,"

"120! But you look like you're in your late thirties!"

"Yeah, well, there are a few advantages to being cursed with such a hideous body," the host said as he lowered his hood and the cloth covering his face.

"You! You're a chimera! That means. . .you're Zelgadis-san!" Kleo realized.

"You're Zelgadis Greywords?" Toshi asked in astonishment.

"I guess so," Zelgadis flatly stated.

"I-I'm so sorry! Please forgive me for the disrespect I showed you earlier!" Kleo referred to her "taking advantage" accusation while bowing deeply to Zelgadis.

"Don't worry about it. Now that you know who I am I think it's only polite if you two introduce yourselves,"

"I'm Kleo Remm. I was a student at Ebonheim college until. . .well. . .let's just say I had to leave,"

"My name is Toshi Yokutsu. I'm a bandit hunter and sorcerer who works in the region of what used to be Seyruun,"

Zelgadis seemed to flinch as Toshi mentioned Seyruun.

"Is something wrong, Zelgadis?" Toshi asked.

"No, nothing," he replied, "And please, you don't have to be so formal with me. Zel will do just fine."

Zelgadis paused for a minute and studied Toshi's face.

"Have we met before?" Zelgadis asked Toshi.

"Met? I don't think so. I'm pretty sure that I would remember it if I had met a legendary chimera,"

"Hmm, I guess you just look a little like someone I used to know,"

"Oh? Who?" Kleo interrupted.

"It was years ago and I never got to know him that well so I don't currently remember his name. But I do remember that he said he was one of the highest-ranking servants of the Earth Dragon King. Anyway, enough chitchat. Why have you come here?"

"Zel," Toshi began after a moment's pause, "One hundred years ago. . .the Mazoku Lord Shabranigdo was resurrected, correct?"

"Yes. . .why do you ask?"

"How did you kill him?"

"I didn't," Zelgadis simply responded.

"What?"

"I said I didn't kill him,"

"Then who did?"

"Lina Inverse killed him by summoning the Giga Slave. Well, actually, that's how she killed the first seventh of him. All seven pieces of Shabranigdo have been destroyed thanks to Lina and her companions. I was only there when she destroyed the first and last pieces,"

Zelgadis looked very pained for a moment, but then attempted to hide his expression be standing up and walking further into the shadows of the room.

"Where are you going with this?" Zelgadis asked.

"Well, regardless of whether or not Lina killed all of Shabranigdo, he's back," Kleo informed the chimera.

"What?! Impossible! There's no way that he could have been resurrected again if all seven pieces of him were shattered!" Zelgadis exclaimed.

"For some reason, which we're currently not sure of, I can't remember anything that happened during the resurrection, but Kleo and another woman who was with us until recently named Sierra do remember," Toshi gravely stated.

"Shabranigdo was resurrected into the body of a blind woman named Terra," Kleo told Zelgadis, "We're not sure why Ruby-Eye hasn't been rampaging around the world in the past week, but we can't just stand here and assume that he's decided to be pacifistic. We need you to help us kill him,"

Zelgadis stood silently while digesting the information just given to him. Finally he spoke.

"Do you two know why I tried to hide in this mountain for the past ninety years?"

"No," they responded simultaneously.

"I'm in hiding. And while I'm hiding here I've been researching the mechanics of time,"

"Why?" Toshi asked.

"I'm hiding because there's a psychotic Mazoku priest out there named Xellos Metallium who wants my blood. I've surrounded my 'house' with a special barrier that prevents spying from the Astral Plane. It also acts as a prevention source for teleportation. In here I'm safe from that lunatic,"

"Xellos. . .yes, I remember. He was with Shabranigdo," Kleo informed Zelgadis.

"That isn't too surprising," Zelgadis responded.

"Why are you researching time?" Toshi inquired.

"So I can go back to that day ninety years ago when we fought the last seventh of Shabranigdo. That was the day everything went wrong. I want to go back so I can change things to the way they should have been. So I can get my revenge," a dangerous hatred could be heard in Zelgadis's voice. His face was perfectly calm, but anyone could tell that he was violently angry.

"Revenge for what? What happened ninety years ago because of the destruction of the last seventh?" Toshi asked.

"Follow and you'll see," Zelgadis instructed the two while he walked over to the door in the corner of the room and opened it.

Toshi and Kleo looked at each other for a moment, not quite sure whether they should take the chimera's offer or not. After a moment Toshi stood and entered the doorway, Kleo followed after another moment.

The next room was pitch black. Toshi lit it with a lighting spell.

"What is this?" Kleo gasped when the room became visible.

The room was filled with carefully spaced gravestones that had little wooden dolls sitting atop the graves.

"This is where my memories are buried," Zelgadis said.

Toshi walked along the lines of graves, looking at the writing and at the dolls. Toshi read off the names on the graves aloud. "Amelia, Lina, Gourry, Rezo, Sylphiel, Martina, Zangulus, Zolf, Rodimus, Luke, Mirina. . ." Toshi stopped right before the last grave. The dolls that stood on the graves looked like wood carved replicas of the people that they stood for.

The last grave and its doll shook Toshi. The doll looked just like Toshi except its hair and eyes were silver. It wore white robes with a long scarf that had a serpent and wolf on either end. Toshi read the last name with a shaky voice, "Rekos. . ."

"Ah, yes. That's the name. That was the person I thought you looked like," Zelgadis informed Toshi.

"All these people are dead?" Toshi asked.

"Yes. Well, that not quite true. Lina technically isn't dead, but. . .well. . .I'd rather not talk about that right now,"

"So almost all of the legendary slayers knew each other," Kleo mused, "But there's on thing that I am troubled by."

Kleo walked over to where Toshi stood staring in horror at the doll of Rekos.

"Toshi," Kleo began, "Isn't Rekos the Ryuzoku that Sierra's shrine respects as a martyr?"

"Yes. . ." Toshi whispered.

"When you couldn't remember what happened in the Tower of Rezo, I told you that you were acting very strangely and that your hair and eyes were silver, didn't I?"

"Yes. . ."

"I also told you that Xellos seemed to know you, didn't I?"

"Yes. . ."

"Toshi. . .who are you really?"

"I wish I knew. . ."