Type: Anime

Crossover: Slayers/BASTARD!!

Parings: DS/Yoko, Zel/Kal

Disclaimer: I own nothing but Azrial. Inspired by the epic "Aftermath", the arc "Slayers AD", and my own twisted mind.

Warnings: yaoi alert!

Rated: R for language and violence

To the Rescue!

Save Yoko.

By Youko Rayah

It was very late in the evening when Lina and DS left the inn and headed north.

"Tell me again why we're doing this, Lina?" Darsh asked.

"Sigh. Bandits, contrary to popular belief, have a very extensive communication system. You remember the underground smugglers in the old days?"

"Yes. They had the best information resources of the 20^th century."

"Well it's like that. There's a bandit gang just north of here that showed up a few months ago. Considering where the gate is, the kidnappers had to have taken her through here."

"Which means, the local bandits will most likely know where they went."

"Not only that, but they'll be able to tell us if any of them are magic users, the number of troops, the kind of people they are, and what kind of training they have."

Darsh nodded. Lina had always known the best ways of obtaining needed information. Get in good with the street snitches, the black market, and the smugglers. Don't underestimate those you are talking with, expect a knife in the ribs, and if you have to, kill one of them so they know to take you seriously.

The Fire-mage wondered if her traveling companions knew just how ruthless the red head could be. The bubbly girl with the justice obsession would probably have a coronary if she ever found out that Lina Inverse had once been a Mafia enforcer.

The blond man probably knew she was capable of it. He wasn't as oblivious as many seemed to think. He just had no concept of magic. But he had been a mercenary, and that had a very dark side to it that Goury must have experienced.

Zelgodis moved like a professional. That meant, most likely, that he'd had dealings with the shadier side of the world. Darsh remembered Lina vaguely mentioning that Zel had been part of the thieves' guild in his youth.

And Darsh's impression of Xellos? Well his first thoughts after shaking the man's hand had been, if he was human, I'll kiss Crown Prince Lars' ass. He had told Lina his suspicions in privet, and Lina had laughed.

"He's a Muzuko. Don't underestimate him, Darsh. During the War a thousand years ago, he took out an entire swarm of gold and black Dragons."

"A thousand years ago?!"

"I told you, he's Muzuko. His master is over five thousand and damn powerful."

Darsh had nodded and they had spent the rest of the night terrorizing the local bandit gang. Darsh hadn't had this much fun since he'd tried to take over the world. Then he made the mistake of telling Lina this.

"You tried to do WHAT?! Why would you do such an asinine thing?!"

"I was bored. I'd been around for four hundred years, Lina. It was getting old!"

In response, Lina bashed him over the head with a handy bolder.

The next day, the travelers walked down the road, the sun blazing on them from above. Lina and DS led, talking quietly about what Lina had learned the previous night from the bandits she had 'questioned'. It seemed that Yoko was being held in a fortress to the north. The two timeless mages were hammering out the last details of a plan. DS just hoped it worked.

Zelgodis and Kal-So spoke quietly as they walked behind the two. Zel had been surprised to learn that Kal was half-human. His father believed to be some kind of a demon.

"But you never met your father?" Zel asked.

"No. I don't even know what he looked like or what his name was. My mother and I were… treated as out casts in our home village."

"I know how you feel, my mother was a Muzuko. That didn't exactly endear me to many people. It only got worse after I was transformed into a chimera." Zel paused before continuing. "Your companion said you're an Ice-mage. Have you ever tried to learn fire magic?"

"Yes, but the spells made no sense. I literally could not read them."

"Hmm. Than your father was most likely some kind of an Ice spirit or elemental. That would carry over into you. You can probably survive in extreme cold and aren't comfortable in warmer climates."

"How could you possibly know that?"

Zel smiled and said, "It makes sense."

Next came Amelia and Geo. They were discussing White magic and various ways to amplify it by drawing on religious strengths. And bringing up the rear was Goury alone, since Xellos had disappeared again.

They traveled for two days on foot before they found Yoko's abductor's strong hold. They made camp and Lina explained the plan.

"Darsh is going to cast a Glamour on me to make me look like Yoko. I'll reinforce it with my own magic. Then I'll sneak in with Zel and get Yoko out."

Darsh took up the explanation then; "The guards would sound the alarm instantly if the cell is left empty, and with the lack of information we were obtained, we don't know how often they check on Yoko. There might not be enough time to get her out, so Lina is going to take her place in the cell."

Lina nodded. "Zel should be able to get Yoko out with out any trouble. Her captors are most likely expecting Darsh and his allies, not us, so any precautions they've put in place won't do them any good. I'll give Zel an hour to get clear, then blow the place to hell with a Burst Flair, or something."

The plan set, Darsh began to cast the spell, drawing on his memories of Yoko.

There was a brief glow, and when it faded, Lina's hair had taken a less orange cast of red and was a foot shorter, just reaching past her shoulders. She was dressed in a light blue sundress and slippers. The changes were minor and Darsh was surprised at how much Lina and Yoko actually resembled each other.

"Okay, I'll reinforce the spell and alter it to mach what she's wearing when we get to her. Zel, we go in at nightfall."

As darkness swept across the land, a disguised Lina and a black clad Zelgodis gained access to the bandit's fortress. Keeping in mind the fact that any spell casting might attract attention, they used no magic inside of the strong hold. Instead they relied on the training Zel had gained as an infiltrator and the skills Lina had relied on for almost a hundred years when she had worked the underground in the Mafia and when her magic had been burnt out.

They found the cell Yoko was being held in an hour after entering the hide out. The girl looked dirty and hungry. But most of all she looked mad. Lina knew that this girl was not one to sit ideally by while others decided her fate.

Lina eased over to the door to keep watch while Zilgodis picked the cell lock.

"Who are you," Yoko asked in a whisper.

"Friends," Zel replied quietly. "We're here to get you out."

The cell door opened and Zel led the young girl to the back passage they had used to gain entry. Lina joined them and said, "Darsh is waiting outside for you, Miss Yoko. I'll stay here and buy you time. Once you're out, Zel will send up a Gaav Flair. Then I'll send this place to hell."

Yoko could only stair as this girl who looked exactly as she had the night of her abduction murmured this. Lina could not help but chuckle at the look on the girl's face. A breath of magic and her cloths looked as ragged and torn as Yoko's. "Get going."

When they were out of the room and down the passage, Lina stepped into the cell and locked the door. She would wait for the signal that the two were clear and then this place was toast.

Ten minutes later and the guard brought Lina some food and water. It was no better than slop, and Lina didn't touch it. She would only be here a bit longer. With the next fifteen minute guard change, the uneaten food was taken away. The man to come next leered openly at the red head. Lina knew their master had most likely given strict instructions against touching the prisoner, or he probably would have tried something.

She was deciding on which spell of mass destruction to use when the door opened and a man dressed in silk robes stepped inside the dim room.

"Well Miss Yoko? Have you considered my proposal?"

Lina cursed silently at this. It was unexpected, and she hated surprises. She would have to play it by ear, and hope she didn't blow it.

"I have no intentions of helping you in any way, shape, or form. You kidnapped me against my will and when Rushe gets here you'll be sorry," Lina snarled. She couldn't help but be thankful to Kal-So for mentioning that Yoko called the immortal Fire-Mage by the name of the boy he had been reborn as. Slipping up and calling him Darsh would have aroused suspicions.

"I don't recall giving you a choice. We will wed, then I shall gain more power!"

Lina felt his power crash over and gasped. This guy was strong, as strong as that bastard who had tried to steel the secret of the Giga Slave from her had been! She hadn't felt that level of telepathic power in over two hundred years. She could feel him trying to brake into her mind, and was intensely grateful for the headband her Neechan had given her so long ago. The black strip of cloth, while invisible at the moment, was proof against mental tampering.

The psi-attack withdrew and Lina felt the man's surprise. He obviously hadn't expected such resistance. Dimly Lina heard an explosion and felt the magic resonance of a Gaav Flair exploding against the north wall. She allowed herself a smug smile.

The red head took a breath and said, "If you think you can get the best of me, than you're a bigger fool than I thought."

A quick wind spell threw the men away from Lina and gained her the space needed for her next spell.

Out side the citadel, Yoko watched with stunned amazement as the tower was consumed by magic fire. For one brief moment of horror, she thought her rescuer had been killed in the blast.

She needn't have worried. Lina appeared from the smoke and flames, held aloft by a ray wing. She landed and dropped the glamour that had hid her appearance, allowing Yoko to see her as she truly was.

"Hi. I'm Lina Inverse. It's a pleasure to meet you Miss Yoko."

"The pleasure is mine. And thank you."