The Forgotten Zodiac

"I guess he did..." Arachne murmured. "Are you mad at him?"

"Mad at who?" Verolen questioned as he approached. "Glad to see you two have already caught up." He smiled, then looked at Israel. "What's wrong?"

Israel brightened immediately when he saw Verolen, and took the three steps required to go over to him. "Group hug!" he declared, wrapping his wings around Verolen, as his arms were occupied with Arachne. "Nothing's wrong! I missed you!"

Arachne didn't seem quite so sure, but she hugged her brother anyway and then leaned back against Israel. "I missed you too," Verolen smiled, then stepped aside. "Look here. This is Nana the witch, and her trusty corpse, Horace!"

"Hi," Nana said, feeling shy all of the sudden. She rested her chin on Horace's head, blinking down at Israel curiously.

Israel looked a bit confused as he gave Horace an up and down look. "He looks alive to me, though..." the siren said carefully, looking to Verolen.

"Powerful necromancers can make any corpse seem alive. The most powerful of ones can keep the body from rotting." Verolen explained.

"Berbaba, our leader, made him." Nana blinked. "She gave him to me. He's mine."

"Really? She sounds cool," Israel said. "Can she do that to anyone?" he asked.

"Yes...why?" Nana frowned.

"Don't, Israel," Verolen said warningly. "It won't be the same person...Horace, do you remember anything before Berbaba brought you back?"

Horace blinked at him, then said, "No."

"Do you know anything besides serving the witches?"

"...No."

Verolen crossed his arms and looked pointedly at Israel. "Can you fight against them?"

"I don't want to." Horace replied quietly.

"I didn't think so. Last question...do you feel alive? Do you have any memories up there? Feelings, even?"

"Stop it," Nana whimpered, wrapping her arms around Horace's head. "You're scaring me!"

"Don't scare Nana," Horace looked angry. "Don't you dare."

Verolen raised his hands in a surrender and backed up a step. "Sorry, sorry. I was just...demonstrating. It's not a person, just a puppet..."

"MY puppet."

"Your puppet."

"I was just wondering for Gabe," Israel said. "I mean, his dad was a warlock, so I thought it might be different. I think Gabe misses his dad sometimes, because Gabe didn't have anyone to teach him magic. But it's okay, I think," Israel said.

Verolen sighed, then said quietly, "I told you before, Israel. The dead aren't meant to come back to life. Even if it does work, it...it doesn't."

"Big brother doesn't like being resurrected," Arachne murmured softly. "The first time he died, when he got sick with a bad virus, he came back...and he was silent for a month. Didn't say a word. It...hurt him. On the inside. And the Verolen you know isn't the same one as what he was like as a little kid...he was a lot more innocent and playful, and--"

"That Verolen died." Nana blinked. "The Everlasting Curse. It must have passed down from your father...at least you kept most of your personality intact."

"Dead people don't ever come back. Even if it seems like they do, they're not the same..." Verolen turned away. "Bringing back Gabe's father will only be harmful, at this point. Gabe has Jerod to teach him magic, and Aries to give him love. He doesn't need the shadow of a man he barely knew."

"No, Verolen..." Sylas said quietly from behind them, walking with crutches, bandages still plentiful. L'arc was behind him. "Aries is dead."

((That was a great entrance.))

Israel's expression fell, his eyes going with with shock and his jaw slackening. Sorrow was quick to cross his face. "What? But... no, that can't... why? What happened?" he asked, the words rushing out of him as he tried to make sense of what he had just been told.

"...the demons chased her into the ocean, and she was eaten by a shark," L'arc replied softly. "I... they gave me... her ear... what was left of it, anyway," he murmured.

((I know, right? xD))

Sylas drew the ear from his back, handing it over to Verolen, who held it gingerly. Heartbreak spread over his face, and for a long moment, he felt as though he might take his words before back. He swallowed hard, then questioned, "Where...where is everyone else?" He questioned, but he already knew the answer.

"The Phantom took them to the Underneath. We haven't seen anyone else since..." Sylas sighed.

"And what happened to you?! I was told there was a bomb, but...gosh darn it, Sylas, you look like a mummy! What happened?"

"Same thing that's happening to them, now..." Sylas murmured. "Bermuda, could you heal my bones now? I need it...especially if we're going to go save the others."

Bermuda hesitated a moment, then gave a hesitant nod. "I'll do what I can," he said quietly, but seemed to still be reluctant, holding something back. "Come on, let's have you lay down somewhere while I... yes, yeah. Come on," he said.

L'arc watched Bermuda move off with something akin to concern on his face, then turned back to the others. "Israel, would you heppen to have a sending stone on you? Or do you know if Verdi has one? We need to... contact the Selkies," he said. L'arc sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "Despite their betrayal, I just can't shake the feeling that... there's something more at play here. I think I should talk with Eltanin."

"I got mine taken away," Verdi blinked, watching Sylas follow Bermuda into their room.

"I'm a Sending Stone!" Nana raised her hand. "Or, at least...I can make one."

"I thought your magic was blocked," Verolen looked puzzled.

"Most of it is. But I can still do small things," She stuck her tongue out at him, then rummaged in the bag around Horace's shoulders. She took out what looked like a can, just a piece of garbage. She held it tightly, murmuring something. In response, the air in the room seemed to get heavier before she stopped.

"All done," She tossed the can at them. Arachne caught it. "Call whoever you want, but be careful. I heard a rumor that Oceanicans figured out how to tap into Sending Stone signals."

"...right. Thanks," L'arc said, smiling at Nana. He took the can from Arachne, then paused, looking at the stone. "Nana, how did you do that? Arachne's here," he said, wondering how Nana could use any magic at all.

Nana blinked, then stared at Arachne for a long moment. "Oh! A magic eater. Yeah, it doesn't matter. I don't use magic in the air around me, I use it from directly within myself. So long as I don't make contact with her, I'll survive." She giggled. "Other mages use a lot of magic from the air rather than within themselves. They just don't have the inner endurance like us witches are born with, so they add that to their own, and...well, yeah. Also, Horace here is my protection from a lot of things. Haven't you noticed? He's been keeping a good distance away from you and her. Her magic-eating is on low power right now...otherwise he would have run down the entire hallway," She giggled.

"I do try to keep it low-key when I don't need it..." Arachne murmured.

Israel held Arachne a little closer, eyeing Horace wairly. The concept of a walking corpse was a bit... offputting, and if it wasn't affected by Arachne, like most normal things would be, it left him feeling all the more unsettled.

Nana just smiled and stroked Horace's hair, but he didn't really react to her gentle touch. He seemed alive, by all human standards, but...he wasn't. It was obvious in the little things. He hardly moved much. He didn't even blink for minutes at a time. He didn't react to things, and he remained silent unless he had to speak.

"You should make your call," Nana suggested, smiling a bit.

"...what?" L'arc asked, then shook himself slightly, looking at the can in his hand. "Oh, right! Right, I forgot..." he said, grinning sheepishly. He lifted the can to his mouth and called into it.

"Eltanin? Anyone there?" he called, waiting for a reply.

There was no response for a long time. Then, a Selkie's voice. "Are you going to pick it up, Eltanin? You can't avoid them, you know that..."

((Sorry it's so crappy. xD I just wanna hide the fact that Aries is still alive. FOR AS LONG AS POSSIBLE. >:3))

There was a sigh, and then Eltanin's voice. "...L'arc? That you?" he asked. The druid's brow creased slightly at the selkie's tone. Just as L'arc had suspected, he heard nothing on Eltanin's voice except regret. That, and a faint tone of suprise. "You're all right?"

"Yeah, fine. Sylas and I both. We're staying at... I can't tell you that," L'arc said, barely remembering to censor himself in case there were unwanted ears listening in.