The Forgotten Zodiac

Namanai nodded, then said "We will work from here, as we do not wish to injure you further by moving you. Seria, I have considered your request..."

Seria gulped softly, straightening fully.

"...and I accept," the wizened healer finished.

Seria beamed happily, though her smile seemed...sad.

"You are to stand near me," Namanai continued. "Make sure to watch everything I do closely. Place your hand on my shoulder, so you will feel the magics I use." She raised her head and spoke to her sisters, saying "We will be beginning shortly. Prepare yourselves, sisters." To Nate and Tasia, she said "This process will take several hours, I warn you. Once you take your places, you will not be allowed to leave, lest you risk disturbing the magic flow." She spoke evenly, her gaze centered on Tasia.

The female dragonian said nothing, instead glaring back. "I'm not leaving," she said, holding Nate's head in her lap.

Namanai nodded once, saying "Very well then. We will begin shortly."

Tasia kissed Nate once on his lips, gently moving hers against his, then pulled back and helped him turn over and lay on his front.

Nate closed his eyes, unable to keep back a scared whimper. He wasn't really afraid of pain or the pain that came with the surgery. But he definitely feared being unable to walk ever again. He knew it might be fine if he had Tasia - well, he knew that everything would be fine if he had Tasia - but he wanted to be able to defend his girlfriend, help his friends, and so much more...but he couldn't do that if he couldn't walk.

Suddenly, he got the image of him in a wheelchair, proposing to Tasia. Not kneeling like he should be. That was just the last straw; Nate passed out, unable to keep himself conscious with the combination of stress and quiet panic.

Namanai sighed, watching Tasia quickly touch Nate and try to figure out what happened to him. Once she was satisfied that he was unharmed, she simply held him close and waited.

Namanai nodded to her sister healers, then held still as they started up a flood of magic. One administered a spell to block all pain while another settled the relaxation spell around the dragonian, on the off-chance that he woke up. When Namanai moved to remove his shirt, Tasia hissed and warned her away, then did it herself. She was very protective of Nate, obviously, so it was hard for her to push past her dragon-raised side and allow this other woman to lay hands on her eventual-mate. Finally, Seria had to make her leave the room, though that took some time in itself. She ran off once the door was locked behind her, crying and feeling lost.

Namanai sighed, then said "I'm sorry to force the poor dear, but..."

"I understand, Namanai-elda," Seria said. "Please, begin."

The experianced healed nodded, then moved forward and started her work. She carefully slit open Nate's back, from the back of his neck to just above his pants. She made her way down to his spine, her movements guided by the hands of seven healers, along with herself. Starting at the top, she took hold of his spine and began to slowly, mere inch by inch over a matter of several long minutes each, began to destroy the broken spine and replace it with the new bone, cells, nerves, and everything a normal, healthy spine would have. This process took hours, seemingly on end, until Namanai finally fixed the last tiny segment of bone, down to the last cell, fragment and nerve. His spine was whole and complete once more, but she went a step further.

She placed both hands over his shoulder blades and slowly began recreating his wings, the ones he had lost so long ago at the jaws of a dragon.

This alone took an hour for each wing, then around thirty minutes to remake his tail. Finally, after a long span of time, hours and hours of non-stop work, the process was finished and Namanai could sew him up.

He now had a normal spine and his own, true wings and tail back, which were dark royal blue in color.

((GREEN. Not blue. :T))

Nate had woken up just after his spine had been rebuilt. He watched things dully, feeling...nothing. He didn't really feel anything. Which he thought was strange, but he saw the healer working out of the corner of his eye, so he didn't move. Then he spotted the edge of a wing; he wondered what was going on, but he slowly closed his eyes again until they were finished. And even when he opened his eyes once it was announced that he was done, he seemed hesitant to move or look around. He just stared straight ahead, twitching every now and then. He suddenly flared his wings, opening his eyes a little wider. He tried to sit up, but collapsed, the sedative still working quite effectively.

((Sorry... -flails miserably-))

Namanai watched him with a slight smile, then turned to Seria and said "Our work is done. You will report to me once you've finished here. Agreed?"

The half-cat nodded once.

"Good," Namanai said, then beckoned to the other healers. They filed out, one-by-one, until there was not even a trace of them left behind.

Seria walked over to Nate and gently hugged him, murmuring "Hello, Nate. How do you feel? Better?" She curled up against his side, nuzzling him softly. He was a good friend to her and she hated seeing him in pain or upset, though neither of those things had happened now.

((It's okay, Trinny. ono))

"I feel...nothing, really," Nate said quietly. "My back feels...heavier, though. And its strange, like I have new muscles there...no, old muscles. Like...ones that haven't been moved in a very long time." He shifted uncomfortably, closing his eyes once more. "What did you request?" He asked quietly, frowning slightly. "What did they do to my back?"

Nate hugged Tasia tightly in return, stroking her hair back. "I'm better than okay," He said, pressing his forehead against hers. "My back is better, they gave me back my wings and tail...I feel amazing," He said, grinning widely. "I...I feel like a Dragonain again!" He said breathlessly. He never wanted to admit it, but he had never felt like a true Dragonian without his wings and tail. But now they were back, exactly as they once had been, and with all the strength of years of regular exercise and training.

"Tasia...would you fly with me?" He said, smiling with joy.

She stared up at him, tears brimming in hers eyes, then leaned up and kissed him gently, saying "I would love to!" She took his hand and headed out into Amnairus, already flaring her wings open. She wrapped her long tail around his, twinning them together, then they both lept skyward, flapping their wings using the powerful muscles they held. Tasia matched the beat of Nate's wings with her own, then let go of his tail and darted in between the beats of his wings, planting a soft, quick kiss on his cheek. She giggled and soared back, flashing her tail at him.

Nate pushed himself foward, chasing after her, smiling widely. "Wait up, I'm still not quite used to this, dear!" He pulled himself to a stop, hovering in place. He waited for her to return to him, smiling happily. He took her hand in his, tilting his head to one side a little bit. "You're beautiful," He said, feeling rather...euphoric. He looked down at her hands, his smile not fading one bit. "There isn't anything about you that I would change."

She blushed and looked down, holding a hand up over her mouth slightly. She flapped her wings in a hover, easily holding herself in the sky. She smiled widely at his words, turning her head slightly away from him as she blushed more. "Nate..." she murmured softly. He made her feel special, treated her like no one ever had before. Espeically someone like her, with what had happened to her. What Kage had done to her and how the knights had ruined her hands. But Nate made her feel unique.

Like she was worth something to someone in the world.

She leaned in and wrapped her arms around his neck, murmuring "I wouldn't care if you had wings or not. I would still, and always will, love you for you." She floated through the air around him, turning them both in graceful circles. She flicked her tail in a single movement, twinning it around his waist.

Nate smiled, pulling her close again. He didn't wrap his arms around her, or kiss her. Instead, he dropped to a height below her, kneeling in mid air. "Tasia...I don't have a ring or anything, but...if you don't care, then I don't. I can't wait to know anymore. Would you...do me the honor of being my bride?"

For a moment, everything was still. The female dragonian in front of him hung in mid-air, floating on the last beat of her wings. She fell for a moment, forgetting to flap, then quickly resumed her rapid wing beats. "Nate..." she murmured, tears pouring down her face. She flung her arms around his neck, holding on tight, pressing close. She sobbed freely, managing simple words that meant everything to her.

"Yes... Always and forever."

Nate wrapped his arms around her, his own wings beating heavily to keep him afloat. He started dropping, carrying Tasia downwards. He landed on the tallest peak of the castle, balancing on the small point there and smiling down at his new fiancee. "Thank you," He said, looking relieved.

Tasia folded her wings against her back, wrapping her tail around his. She held on tight to him, nuzzling his neck. They were perfect for each other, really. Both had many hardships in their lives, with relationships and physical struggles. But they had found each other out of everyone else in the world, each secretly in need of a person such as the other. Nate needed Tasia because she loved him no matter what he did and never saw him as anything other than her dearest love. Tasia needed Nate because he easily looked past her physical scars and saw her as beautiful and kind.

The female dragonian leaned against the male, her arms wrapped around him as tight as she could get them without hurting him, one hand gently coming between his wings to stroke his back.

Nate's back, which was straight and normal again, felt strange compared to the last time Tasia had felt it. But it was a good strange, obviously. It felt...normal.

Werr was sitting up on the edge of his bed, his elbows rested on his legs. He stared down at his hands, going through the memories he had regained. His mother and father...were either of them still alive? All this...it explained everything. His parents weren't the Grehis. His true surname was Rowe. He was a victim of verbal and physical abuse, thanks to his mother.

But still, he was Werr, Grehi or Rowe. He was the king of Alastor, friend to all who strive after peace, one of the few who fought to bring ruin to Obelisk. Obelisk...the eternal being was in his own room with his crackling magicks. Werr found it hard to believe that he ever had fun with the freak. Yet he claimed to have been controlled the entire time...Werr also found that hard to believe.

There was just too much to think about. But no matter how much he tried to focus, the image of his real mother kept popping into his mind, her face taunting and angry, the look she always wore when punishing him. Werr dropped his head into his hands, dismayed.

There came a timid knock at the door, which opened a moment later. A younger-looking Amnairian stepped in, carrying Welk in her arms. "Um..." she murmrued, rather scared. "I-I was supposed to deliver this half-cat to, um...Werr? Is...is that you?" She didn't wait for an answer, instead hurrying forward and carefully depositing the limp lion onto the nearby bed. "I-I'll leave you alone now," she said, running out.

"Thank you!" Werr called after her, letting out a sigh. He turned to where Welk was, sitting on the edge of the bed next to the lion. "...Welk?" He said quietly, looking down at his friend. He was a little afraid of what might have become of his dear friend. But if Welk wasn't okay, Werr would definitely return to the bridge between worlds and...give that Divine a talking to. It wasn't like Werr could pull out a sword and attack.

Welk's eyes were open, but he didn't appear to be seeing anything. Finally, he spoke. "We're both people, right? Everyone in this whole world is a person, right? Yes, they are." He sat up, slowly and strained, like it was hard for him to move his body. He shook and trembled, but managed to look up at Werr.

The bright light of insanity shone in his crimson eyes.

"I saw things, Werr!" he said, his voice happy and excited. "I saw so much! That Divine wouldn't stop showing me these terribly wonderful things! I saw you die in front of me, over and over! Cynyr was ripped to pieces by wild dogs! Seria was burned to death, screaming the whole time! You all died and I could do nothing! So I've decided." He stood up from the bed, a smile over his face. He flung his arms to the sides, staring at the wall. "I love everyone!" he said, his body still shaking violently. He hugged himself tightly, still grinning away. "Everyone, everywhere!" His smile slowly faded, replaced by a dark snarl. "But...you see...everyone doesn't love me back... And if they don't love me back, then they must hate me, yes? And if they hate me...then...then...!"

He couldn't tell Werr. He couldn't tell him about the hours and hours of time he had spent in the Divine's mind, being forced to listen to the his best friend shout terrible things at him. Every word had been torment, every sentence the Divine had forced him to hear.

"You're weak."

"I despise you."

"You can't protect me."

"I wish I had never met you."

"You're never there when I actually need you."

But the worst. The worst one, the one that hit him the hardest.

"I hate you."

Tears slipped down Welk's cheeks.

"Welk...c-calm down," Werr said, looking at his friend with bewilderment. "You're crying...please don't cry, Welk." He pulled a handkerchief from his pocket, using it to mop up his friend's tears. "Please, Welk. I would never hate you. Whatever you saw in there...j-just forget it, okay? Ignore it." He wrapped his arms around Welk, stroking the back of his head. "You're okay now. You're okay..."

((You know, having Welk hurt Werr would be fuuunnn...))

Welk was silent for a moment, his eyes starting to take on a more normal tone, then he flared up and shoved Werr away. "Don't touch me!" he shouted, shaking. "You're lying! You're lying! You...you hate me too, don't you? Because I...I'm just an abandoned cat, aren't I? Nobody wants me. Why would they? Everyone hates me! ...Including you." He lunged forward and knocked Werr over, pinning the boy to the ground. He clamped his claws over Werr's throat, holding on tight while tears continued to pour down his cheeks. And still he shook, nearing convulsion-like levels. "They all hate me. Cynyr, Seria, Nate, Airlia. All of them. And you. You hate me. He said you did! You hate me!" His claws threatened to plunge down into the boy's neck. Still Welk smiled, grinning away through the tears cascading down his cheeks. "You didn't always hate me..." His smiled dulled. "Why do you hate me now? I don't understand..."