The Forgotten Zodiac

Cynyr suddenly placed his hands on her shoulders and, to her utter shock, placed a careful kiss on her head. The move was so unlike him, being such a dark and twisted being, but he was doing it nonetheless. A faint tinting of blush crept along his cheeks, but he just flattened his ears and nuzzled her gently. "I'll stay," he said. "One way or another, how it happened I still don't know, but I'm your summoner. Shrewd as I am, I won't just leave you. I'll help you anyway that I can." He forced himself down on one knee next to her, unable to muster up another smile. "It's okay," he said, looking at her calmly through his single eye.

His dead one had already sealed closed, permanently.

Airlia shivered a bit, then nodded quickly. She turned back to Galai, thinking about what she might have to do. Meditate? A challenge, or a puzzle? She swallowed hard, doubting whether or not she would be able to do it. What would happen when (not if) she failed? Airlia clenched her fists, looking back up at Galai. "I...I'm ready to find my true form. What do I need to do?" She asked timidly, biting her lip.

Galai gently brushed her fingers along Airlia's cheek, then moved back and slipped her hand into Titus'. She smiled up at her mate, wrapping her wings around him and leaning against him, then looked back at Airlia and said "There is no trial or test for what you must do. You only need to look within yourself and unlock it. It's been within you this whole time, after all. You've just never known. If you would've grown up here, you would've be told and prepared from the moment you were made. But you haven't had that preparence."

"I believe in her," Cynyr said, standing to his full height once again. "She can do it."

Galai glanced over at him and nodded, then looked back to Airlia and said "Just concentrate and look inside yourself. The form is there. Waiting for you."

Airlia looked back at Cynyr, then back up at Galai. She sat down, delving into her own mind for once. She mostly thought about others, to be honest...she did so anyways, closing her eyes and pushing away all other thoughts. She still feared it somewhat; what if it came out to be all wrong? What if her true form was a monster of some sort, or even worse...just dead?

"Let go of your fears, little one," Titus said quietly, sensing her thoughts. "You cannot possibly hope to find any part of your true form if you are afraid of it. Do not be concerned. We would not put you to this task if we thought that it would hurt you in any way."

Airlia nodded, keeping her eyes closed. Let go of her fears...was that even possible? Airlia struggled to even try...would she fail even this? Her questions and fears faded in an instant when something moved within her. A warm light, roused by Airlia's seeking, calling out to her.

A bright light erupted from her in reality, and slowly started to change. When the light faded, she certainly looked different; her wings were larger, and her golden hair turned white. Feathers covered her arms and legs - white feathers, tipped with gold. Her wings bore the same feathers, no longer just white. Long ones hung from her now-white hair, which had grown to just slightly touch the floor behind her feet. She stared at the tips of her fingers, poking through the feathers. She felt oddly...free, somewhat. And she was certainly even more beautiful than before, though she hardly cared about that.

"It's partial for now," Titus nodded. "Give it time; when you need it the most, it will come to you."

Cynyr shifted his weight onto his opposite leg as he watched Airlia transform, an interested gleam in his eyes. It was true that he felt some sort of...attachment, to the girl. He didn't love her like he loved Seria, of course. That was different. But it was true that he felt protective of Airlia, though he supposed, now that he thought about it, she was meant to protect him. He couldn't help himself from scoffing at that notion. He was a protector, not a protectee. Though he was, somewhere in his screwed-up soul, happy for Airlia. "You look...nice," he said, nodding slightly at her. "It's really...feathery."

Galai chuckled, then moved forward and put her hands on Airlia's cheek. "You look beautiful," she said, smiling widely at the girl. "Titus is right. Your true form will show all of itself when your need of it is great. I suppose this is a side-effect of being gone from your home world for so long..." She sighed, then hugged Airlia again, rocking her back and forth, then let go and took a step back. She glanced over at Cynyr, but the look he gave her clearly dispelled any thoughts of giving him a hug.

Even Titus reached down and gave her a small pat on the head. "You've done well. Now go, return to your friends and let them know of your good news. Oh, and give Werr this." He put a small black rock in Airlia's hand. She nodded, figuring it was a birthday present.

"I will. Thank you," Airlia nodded, truly grateful. "Thank you so much," She teared up a bit again, though she smiled as she turned away, looking expectantly at Cynyr. She realized the same thing he did; that she was meant to protect him. Honestly, Airlia knew that she wasn't really cut out for protecting someone. She could definitely help, though. Her energy was free for Cynyr to use, and would be for as long as she lived.

Cynyr reached out and touched her shoulder carefully, then pulled back when his hand started spasming. He tucked it lightly behind his back, keeping a neutral expression on his face, then reached out with his other hand and took the rock from Airlia. He turned to Titus, saying "Okay. What is this? Before we take anything to that trouble-prone boy and his trouble-causing lion companion, I want to know what this it. No offense, but I'm trying to keep Werr and Welk safe from anything that could hurt them, and if I don't know what it does...it counts as something bad."

Galai chuckled at straight-forward demeanour, looping an arm around Titus'.

"Hmph. If I wanted the boy dead, he would be dead. If I wanted him hurt, he would be hurt." Titus snorted. "I understand your distrust, though. Simply put, that rock will act like Airlia does; surely you are aware that Werr Grehi has miniscule amounts of light and shadow magic within him by now. The light magic helped him stand again in the arena; it blocked his pain sensory systems for him. The shadow magic will now serve to keep his mind clear in stressful situations. However, he is only human; the magics will wear off soon. That rock will keep them from wearing off too quickly. It's nothing that can harm him, unless he decides to swallow it and choke himself on it."

"I don't think he would do that," Airlia shook her head, giggling.

Cynyr snorted, then gave the rock back to Airlia and took a step backwards. "Just as long as it helps him and doesn't hurt him," he said, sticking his right hand into his pocket. His bandaged fingers brushed the glowing orb Forin had given him. He had forgotten about it being in his pockets this whole time. He briefly wondered what purpose it could possibly have, then rolled his eyes and turned. He stalked out of the throne room just as he had stalked in, his long black tail swaying behind him.

"Oh, and Airlia...please tell Forin to come here." Titus added. Airlia nodded and followed Cynyr happily, though she took off and flew ahead.

Forin entered the castle a few minutes later. He had entrusted Diana into Luen's care once more; he had felt a bit uneasy about this call, after all. He swept in, bowing a distance away from the throne. "Ah, good to see you, Forin Dulce." Titus said, though his smile was forced. He waved his hand; a silver and black piano appeared off to one side. "Play for us, if you will."

Forin blinked in surprise, though he said nothing as he stood and moved over to the piano, running his fingers along the keys before starting to play. Titus knelt on one knee in front of Galai, holding his forced smile. "Will you give me the honor of this dance, my dearest?"

Galai put her hands up to her mouth, her carefully pointed nails folding lightly over her lips. She composed herself and swept the edge of her dress backwards with one hand, holding her other forward with the palm facing the ground. "Of course, my lord," she said, keeping her delicate fingers where he could reach them. She bent daintily into an elegant curtsy, her long blonde hair falling past her shoulders and brushing against his ears as she kissed his forehead, placing her curved lips just so on his brow. She then straightened and held her hand out, ready for him to take it.

Forin played, not following any notes. He merely played, and quite beautifully, to boot. His talents easily matched Jag's, his fingers sweeping easily and expertly over the keys, gently pushing key after key in a beautiful melody. Titus and Galai, in the mean time, swept around the room here and there. Titus was in the proper positon, one hand in Galai's and the other on her hip. They moved to the music, a celestial couple only recently joined together again. A sway here, a twirl there...beauty and perfection incarnated.

"Such an annoying brat...WHY ARE YOU SO HARD TO CATCH?!" Obelisk, back in Storaph Palace, quite literally screamed at a single white pawn, standing in the center of the chess board. He was in his room - or rather, what was left of it. Everything had been torn to shreds in his temper tantrum so far. Now he rounded on the chess board, his bandages throwing the pieces everywhere. Some of them were literally stuck in the walls after that. Obelisk seized the board in his own shriveled hands, smashing it against a wall until nothing but splinters were left.

He stopped when there was a knock on the door. "My liege, I've returned." Cern was at the door, smiling away. Obelisk ripped the door off of its hinges, hissing at him.

"I never told you to leave!" Obelisk roared in his face. Cern didn't even flinch.

"I know that, but you said you wanted something. From what you shared with me about your current situation, I guessed what it is that you wanted and I went to fetch it. I had to kill a few things and mess with a few heads to get to it, but I'm back now. Oh yeah, and I used that one thing you made, while I was at it, so no one has any idea that it's missing."

"What...is 'it'?" Obelisk growled at him, confused. Cern giggled and grabbed his hand, pulling Obelisk down the hall and to the dungeons.

There, in the cell with the writing in it, hanging by his wrists that were chained to the ceiling, was Werr Grehi.

Nelu had been in the throne room with Obelisk, calmly avoiding the things he had thrown at her in his rage. She had followed him and Cern when they had left, trotting dutifully behind them with her head held high and her tail flowing behind her. She blinked when she saw Werr hanging helplessly in the cell, then grinned widely and moved forward to sniff him. "Amazing," she murmured, coiling her body around his legs. "You actually caught him, unlike what those two bumbling idiots, Dark and Light, could do." She stepped back and took human form, smiling in a way that made Werr shiver. "Though those two idiots served another purpose as well," she said, flicking her tail. "Not only Werr, but Cynyr too, soon. Though I admit, catching you, Grehi, is the bigger feat." She stalked behind Obelisk and Cern again, brushing her tail seductively against Cern's leg as she passed him.

Cern giggled in his unusual way, eying Nelu curiously before looking back at the human boy he had snatched.

Obelisk stood there for seceral seconds before stalking forward, grabbing Werr by the cheeks and inspecting him. Werr flinched away, making his hostility quite obvious in his expression, though it was hard to hide his fear. "What do you want from me?" He spat, glaring.

"What do you think?" Obelisk practically purred.

"If you wanted me dead...I would be dead, wouldn't I? You want me to suffer..."

"Go on,"

"But physical pain for me isn't enough for you anymore, is it? W-what...what are you going to do?"

"All in due time, Werr Grehi."

"Yo-you don't have time...you might a-as well just kill me now, b-because Welk and Cynyr won't stand for this! None of my friends will! Th-they'll come for me, I know they will!" Werr snarled, jerking against the chains that he hung by.

"Oh, certainly. But by the time they arrive, the damage will already have been done. I predict two things; firstly, they will not realized what has happened for quite some time. And secondly, when they do come...you will have them all imprisoned. And then I'll kill you in front of them." Obelisk chuckled, which quickly turned to laughs that made Werr's skin crawl.

He knew it was true, too. Cern had already told him about the copy. The Werr Grehi that was with Welk and the others now was a carbon-copy. Everything down to the last memory, it was all exact. Welk wouldn't realize the difference. He doubted even Cici would.

"Do what you will with him. But leave him alive." Werr watched as Obelisk left, leaving Cern and Nelu to admire him more.

"I don't like you," Cern glared at Werr once Obelisk was gone. "You're too...sane."

Nelu tilted her head to the side, watching Werr closely. "I don't get it," she said, stalking around him in a circle. "What is it about you that makes people like Welk grow so hopelessly attached that they feel like they need to give up their lives to protect you? I just don't get it." She placed a hand on his hip, lightly running her hand up his body to his cheek. "You could be happy with us, you know," she said, her voice velvety and soft. "If you just did whatever Lord Obelisk wanted, like I do. He treats me well in return." She leaned closer in towards him, her lips pulled back to show off her white fangs. "You could ask for the lives of all of your friends," she purred. "Granted, they would be slaves to Lord Obelisk's will for the rest of their lives, but what could be better than that?"

"Never," Werr said, though he was shaking, as was his voice. "Obelisk is pure evil. I'll never join him, or anyone who works for him!"

"I think you will. Like I said before, you fear too much. And your fears run deep, deeper than you think. You've lived with these fears for your entire life, they're far from new..." Cern giggled again, grinning madly as he pulled off his hood. "You fear pain, which originally came from being pinned under a cabinet amongst a blazing inferno. You fear loneliness, which comes from the same area in your memory; being abandoned by your parents who consider you dead to this day, if they're still alive at all. What else...you fear--"

"Stop it!" Werr said desperately, wondering how much else Cern knew. And HOW he knew.

Nelu grinned and said "Well, you won't have long to wait before you get some company. Though I don't think you'll like it." She blinked her long lashes at Werr, then turned and moved to go out. She paused in the doorway, glancing back at Cern. She didn't seem to care about his grotesque appearance. All she cared about was the fear he put in others, much like how she liked Obelisk.

She winked at the Tartaran, then left the room.

Werr was left with Cern. Cern left eventually, licking his lips in satisfaction. Werr was left with a shallow cut down his leg that had already been cleaned of blood.

Need I say more?

Back in Amnarius, Forin performed three songs before Titus dismissed him. He was quick to return to Luen and Diana, just short of smiling. He certainly seemed happier now...if only just a little bit.

Welk was curled up on the couch next to 'Werr', having no idea that he was laying next to a clone. He flicked his ears up when Cynyr walked past, looking a bit haggard. Welk lifted his head and watched the panther carefully, glancing down at his bandaged hands. To his suprise, the bandages had turned black in spots, as if the black goop inside Cynyr's arms was still leaking out. Welk frowned, feeling his eyes tear-up slightly. Why did Cynyr always have to be suffering? It just seemed like the world itself hated his very exsistance and was trying to find some way to kill him. Welk was just worried that somehow, the world was going to suceed and the panther would eventually die. He turned and pressed his nose into Werr's side, sighing deeply.

Cynyr walked past without a word and went upstairs to his room, where he shut the door. A moment later, the sharp click of a lock was heard, then total silence from the dark room upstairs.

Werr wrapped his arms around Welk comfortingly, letting out a sigh. "It's alright. Do you want to come with me to talk to Nate about what actions to take next?"

"Don't bother getting up," Nate stepped in the next second. "Tasia is taking a nap, I was going to see if you were awake...you really need rest, though--"

"No," Werr frowned at him. "We're only moving backwards at this point. We need a plan."

"Well...fine. There are multiple things we could do," Nate started explaining, letting out a sigh.

"Firstly, we could hide until we see a chance to strike." Werr cut him off. "Which would namely be whenever Obelisk leaves that fortress of a castle of his. Secondly, we could return to Alastor, collect a small group of soldiers to come with us, and head towards the castle. From there, we could come to several different attack strategies. Lastly, we could move straight towards Storaph Palace and proceed with frontal attacks and whatnot."

"Right." Nate nodded. "Knowing you, you definitely won't go for the first option. But the second and third..."

"The second option would be easiest, if the soldiers actually listened to my planning."

"You are their king, aren't you?"

"I know, but..."

Nate sighed. "They wouldn't respect you as much because of your age."

"Unfortunately," Werr nodded. "But the third option hasn't really worked before...but we need to get on the offensive for once. If we keep getting attacked like that, we'll be finished before too long. So..."

"Head for Alastor Palace first."

"Hurst and his men are rash and foolish, but they're the best Alastor has. If anyone can help us, it's those group." Werr nodded with a small sigh of his own. "Don't worry, Nate, they already know not to hurt you..."