The Forgotten Zodiac

((Haha.

And yeah, Nate is good with scents. And he can put two and two together. xD))

"Hmm...yeah. An apple." Airlia said, examining her feet. She was still barefoot. She had a few scrapes on her toes, but she was used to walking around without shoes. That, and she hovered an inch off the ground as well, which certainly cut back on the foot uinjuries.

"Alright," Nate nodded, ordering the fruit and dropping an extra silver coin for whatever Welk broke upstairs. "Well, I'm off to bed," He said, counting how much money he had left. It would be enough, but he didn't have any for the festival tomorrow...and he definitely wouldn't if he drank tonight.

((Lolololololol.))

Seria dug into her pocket and got something, then dropped it on the table in front of Nate as she passed him. It was a small hand-sized bag with a decent load of money in it. "Keep it." she said, taking her fruit once it was brought out. "It doesn't matter to me." She left the bag on the table and went upstairs.

Luen had been sitting in one of the thick chairs, dutifully putting the salve on his burns. He had already finished with his legs and was carefully rubbing the medicine over his arms. Once he was done with that, he started to bandage them, which was a bit more difficult for him. Some of his fingers had been caught in the fire that had burned him, so it was a little hard for him to bend them.

((Good call with the money. xD It probably would have been taken (though temporarily). :3))

Airlia saw Luen struggling and moved over to him, wanting to help. "Here, let me, I know how," She said, pulling the bandages away from his hurt fingers, smiling brightly.

Nate counted the money again and gratefully bought himself a shot of whisky, downing the little glass before heading up the stairs, off to bed.

((Hrm hrm. -eyebrow raise- ))

He smiled slightly and held still, making it as easy as he could for her and himself. Once the burns were bandaged, he said "Thank you very much." He smiled softly at her, then let it fade as a thought ran through his mind. "Was Cynyr really as mean of a person as I've been led to believe?" he asked. "I don't mean to pry, it's just...well, I've not seen or heard of a wind mage in some time, so I'm curious."

((-is excited-

...Oh yeah, do you mind if I bring in two new characters? One of them doesn't talk much (like, ever), and the other has a bad attitude. I forgot to ask. oxo))

Airlia thought for a moment. "He was kind at times...he freed me from the coffin and he saved Welk and Werr from a giant bear that was going to eat them, and then he and Nate saved Welk and Werr again, when Kolo was torturing them. He never hurt any of us, though Welk did start a couple fights with him." She thought some more, then added, "I think he's a kind person deep down, but something happened to him to make him sad and mad all the time."

((I don't mind. Permanent characters or no? It doesn't matter to me, but I'd like to know.))

Luen looked down for a moment, mulling over what she had said, then spoke. "You never truely know about people, I suppose." He was quiet again, then said "I wonder what happened to him to make him act like that? Hmm." He shrugged, then yawned softly being an upraised hand. "Pardon me. I think I'll go to bed. I'm really exhausted." He stood up and smiled slightly at her, then wandered to the stairs and carefully stepped up them.

((Permanent, unless I get other ideas.))

"Oh, okay," Airlia stood as well. "I'll head off to bed as well, then." She straightened her dress and followed Luen up the stairs, though entering the room that she and Seria were sharing.

((Almost time. -overexcited-))

((o3o -excited-))

Seria was sitting on her own bed, brushing her hair. Once she had all of the tangles out, she curled her tail around to the front and brushed it as well, running her brush through the silky red fur. When that was finished, she slid under her covers and fell asleep almost instantly, her fluffy red ears tilting backwards against her head.

((Skiparoo.))

The moon was high in the sky as the time neared midnight, silver light bathing everything with its faint glow. The inn was locked up for the night and the town had long since settled into silence. But plenty of creatures still stirred, and one was going after the door to the inn.

With a hairpin, to be precise. The lock clicked and the door was ever-so-quietly opened. Swift as a fox and silent as a mouse, not even the wooden floors creaked as the figure made its way up the stairs. His feet hardly touched them anyways. He was clad in mostly black, with the exception of the silver emblems on his shirt and forehead. A simple circle, with two thick lines parallel on either side of it.

The thing peered into Nate and Luen's room, his silver eyes scanning the two to be sure they were asleep. Nate was sleeping in a chair again, though there was a bed available this time. Luen, of course, was asleep in the other bed. The person moved on. His black hair was long and swished behind him ever so slightly, though it made barely any noise at all.

He peered into the next room, and smiled in satisfaction. There lay Airlia in one bed, snoring slightly, and Seria in the next. A heartbeat later, and he had Seria pinned to himself by his arm and a sharp, jagged knife. "Don't move," He hissed at her. "You will make no sound, nor will you make any attempt to alert your friends. Or I will kill all of them." Something red flicked across the top of the knife, looking much like electricity of some kind.

Actually, it was much more sinister.

Shadow Magic.

((Not dark magic, though it might feel that way to Seria. xD They beez differentz. I'll explain in due time.))

Seria's eyes flashed open, deep blue in the moonlight. Fear didn't show in her eyes, but anger did. She glared as furiously as she could manage at him, but didn't say anything. She was sorely tempted to kick him, but decided against it. Instead, she had to go along with whatever he wanted. Several names and words that no healer in their right mind should ever use flickered through her mind, but again, she said nothing. Hopefully, there would be time for that later.

If she survived that long.

((I dun't like this guys. D: ))

((Nah, he's not bad. You'll see.))

The boy (as he really only appeared as no older than Werr, but scrawnier) pulled Seria towards the door, leading her down the stairs and out through the door of the inn. He hooked his foot around the door and pushed it shut.

Even though they were outside, he refused to release Seria, though he did stop. "I'm sorry. I wasn't sure how else to get you out of there. I require your assistance. I sense your healing powers. I need them." He cleared his throat with a raspy sort of noise, moving the blade away from Seria and sheathing it. He kept his hand on Seria, though, just below her throat. "So, you have two options. One, you can come with me and use your powers where I need them. I'll let you go, we'll all be happy. Or two, I could tear your magic out of your body and use it myself. The stress on your body during the process will likely kill you." He said all this lightly, as though he had done it many times before. "I've been watching for awhile. Your name is Seria, yes? I am Forin. The pleasure is all mine, since it is somewhat illogical for me to expect you to be happy at the moment."

Seria was most definitely not happy, and she was sure to let him know it. "What, and you couldn't have asked me during the day?!" she snapped. She did lessen a bit at the mention of him needing her healing skills, however. That didn't stop her from protesting against his methods of making her use them. "Congratulations, you've basically told me 'help me or die'." she said dryly. When she was angry, everyone knew it. "Fine, I'll help you, since I am not about to die right now. What do you need?" She refused to stop frowning, though.

"I couldn't risk being seen by the guards." Forin said flatly, unfazed by her anger. "I put it in a complex manner to help you make your descision the way I wanted you to. Thank you for doing so." He pulled on her arm a bit. "It's not me who requires your talents. Come, this way," He pulled her towards a nearby alley, the grip around her upper arm like iron.

Seria fumed and flicked her tail around to smack his arm, snarling "Watch it! You're hurting me!" She followed, however, having no other choice. Her ears never rose more then an inch away from her head. Her frown lessened a bit as she listened to him. "Well then if you aren't the one my powers are to be used on, then who is?" she asked, a hint of curiosity seeping into her voice.

Forin didn't loosen his grip at all, despite her tail. "This way," He pulled her into the alley, stopping at a wall that was covered by a decorative flag. He pushed the flag out of the way, revealing a door. Past the door was a cramped little room with a single bed and a grimy dresser, along with a few other things. Everything, even the circular rug on the floor, was covered in a thin layer of dirt and dust. The room looked like it had only been inhabited recently; there were smudges on the mirror in the corner, like someone had tried to clean it off. The bed definitely looked like the cleanest thing here, aside from the girl sleeping in it.

She had short brown hair and green eyes, though those were closed. She was human, looking younger than Forin. She was small and frail-looking, and very pale. She was barely breathing, and a cold sweat had accumulated on her face. Underneath the blankets, the girl's shirt was torn to reveal a layer of bandages, which concealed a poorly stitched wound. Judging from the wound, it looked like the girl had been stabbed.

Forin shut the door and finally released Seria. "Heal her. Now." He demanded, grabbing a rag off of the dresser and cleaning the sweat off of the girl's face.

Seria's frown wiped away when she saw the girl. She stared at her for a moment, her healer mind already scanning and working through several spells, then she finally went forward and gently touched hands to her body, delicately running one of her pointed nails along the contours of the wound. Her touch was so light that it could've been mistaken for the brush of the wind or a butterfly landing. Through this touch, however, many things were revealed to Seria. She instantly knew which spell to use and how to work with the wound to heal it. Seria used a sharp claw to snip through the stitches holding the wound together, then took a rag and cleaned it. She completely tuned out Forin, still angry with him and definitely going to snap at him once she was done, and concentrated on the girl alone. If Forin tried to come close, Seria shooed him away with her tail. "I can't work a spell with you clustered around." she told him, then focused her powers, closing her eyes. She placed one hand on the girl's head and one on the wound, then began murmuring the right chants to heal the wound and dispel any sickness. A minute passed. Once the chant was done, Seria was a bit more tired than she already had been and the girl was completely healed.

Forin smiled with relief upon seeing the wound gone. "Beautiful work. As expected." He said, his voice as firm and cold as when he had grabbed Seria. "You can leave now, before she--" He stopped as the girl stirred, sitting bolt upright with a cry of fear. "...wakes up." Forin sighed, pushing his way between Seria and the bed. "Mistress Diana," He said quietly, his tone infinitely more gentle and kind, and filled with relief. "You're okay now. I brought a healer."

"Who?" The 'mistress' peered around Seria, looking nervous.

Seria tilted her head back a bit, still not fully inclined to trust these two. "I am Seria." she said, flicking her tail once. Her ears never rose from her skull. "How, may I ask, did a girl like yourself come about a wound such as what I healed?" she asked. "Since your friend captured me and whisked me away from my friends without giving them any notice when I would have done it happily if he had approached me normally, I think you owe me the explanation."

Diana ducked back behind Forin, grabbing his arm. Forin cleared his throat and sighed. "She's a witch. A summoner, to be precise. I am a creature of Tartarus, summoned by Mistress Diana into this world, to be her guide and guardian. She and I were found by an agent of King Asmodius. I fought in her stead, but the attacker made it past me and...you saw the result. I carried her here and did my best, but I could not revive her on my own."

"I already stated why I came at night. I couldn't risk being seen by those guards. Have you not seen them? They sit at the entrances of this ridiculous town, displaying the faces they've torn off of people...like trophies!" Forin shuddered slightly, making a face.

Actually, he was talking about the mask stands.

Seria listened as he spoke, but when he spoke about the guards, she gave him one of the flatest and most 'are you that stupid?' looks she had. "Are you serious?" she said. "The guards are wearing masks. It's a mask festival. They're wearing things made completely out of wood or metal and sometimes decorated with feathers or gemstones. Goodness..." She shook her head, then said "You have nothing to fear from this town, really. I am a healer and I've stayed safe this whole time. There are some people with me, my friends, as I'm sure that you already know, spy boy. Instead of hiding in this flithy place, why don't you come with me? My friends won't mind having more along. We even have a mage traveling with us, though no witches, I'm afraid. You would be safe enough." He voice had taken on a softer hint, as her nature as a healer was to comfort and heal people, though she could be extremely ferocious.