The Forgotten Zodiac

Werr blinked up at Naybrin. He would be shivering, but the heat that came off of Naybrin in thick flows was plenty to keep him warm for a long time yet. "Naybrin..." He said quietly, then decided against speaking. He stared up into Naybrin's great eyes, then suddenly moved forward and wrapped his arms around Naybrin as far as he could. Which was barely an inch to the great dragon, but he did it anyways, trying to give Naybrin as much of a hug as he could manage. Still, he said nothing. But he knew that if Naybrin wanted to hurt or kill him, he would have done it already.

A long ripple went through the first dragon's huge body, which Werr then figured out was a flinch. The giant dragon trembled, then the biggest tears Werr had ever seen came sliding down his face. They fell to the ground with loud splatters, leaving steaming puddles behind. Naybrin laid down and rested his head on the ground, giving in to Werr's touch and just crying. Finally, words so faint that, even though Naybrin's voice was normally loud and thunderous, they came out as only a trailing whisper.

"I'm...so s-sorry... I burned your kingdom out of rage. I shouldn't have done that. Grey was one of the few things left to me. Like your Welk was your comfort, so too was Grey mine. If I had k-killed both of your friends, I imagine your only thought might've been of revenge as well... But who am I to say that? I'm just a worthless, senile old dragon that probably needs to die off..."

"No, Naybrin. You had every right to be angry. I was angry, too; Obelisk knew that Grey was dead, and he knew that his body was in the dungeons of my castle. It would have been so easy to bring the body to you, explain, and mourn with you without any of this trouble. But Obelisk didn't tell me...I didn't know..." Werr said quietly, tears welling up in his eyes and running down his face. "You're not worthless, Naybrin. You saved my life before. Without you, I would have been dead, and Obelisk would still be under Malice's control. But now...we stand a chance against Malice. I'm going to take him down...for my kingdom, my friends, and...your son, too."

Naybrin was silent, his large green eyes dull. "Your words are too kind for me," he said softly, flicking his tail. "I...am ashamed of myself." He sighed heavily, then said "I still, even after all this, enjoy your company. Simply for the reason that I think of you...as a friend. It makes me feel all the worse for what I did, but I cannot hide my feelings any longer. Like Nate to Zephyr and Tasia to Vaira, I do believe we share a bond, as you are the only human through thousands of years that I've taken an interest in. Though I fear I might've tarnished it..." He closed his eyes, letting out a shuddering sigh.

"It's alright, Naybrin...I forgive you." Werr said. It was actually a little hard to choke out his words, but he did it anyways. He actually did like Naybrin very much as a friend, and he had seen what damage the great one could cause as an enemy. "Bond or not, you were always a friend to me, Naybrin. That never changed." He finally pulled away, walking forward so he was next to Naybrin's head. He sat down there, leaning against the large dragon's cheek. "And it never will..."

Naybrin closed his eyes and said "Allow us to repair the damage we have done to your kingdom, at least. What I destory, I am capable of repairing. Dragon magic far exceeds that of mages and magicians. While I can't bring back the people, I can restore their homes and fields. ...Would you accept my help?" He curled one giantic paw around and rested it in front of the boy, a single claw twice Werr's size.

"I would gladly accept your assistance. Which..." Werr's mind trailed to Welk's mother, and his own hometown. Then to his many subjects. "Which towns or cities were burned?" He asked quietly. "And did you see any signs of Storaphians? I have no doubt that King Alastor would have tried to do something..."

Naybrin thought for a moment, then said "Besides the castle, then there's the surrounding towns, one oceanside port, and three towns called including Ulles, Nahran and Kash." Kash was the one that Briana lived in, though most of the people had been exvacuated. Many, however, hadn't escaped alive.

"I when our initial days of attacking began to subside," Naybrin said. "I did see many Storaphians coming to the aide of their neighbor land. It seems that their king still regrets what he did to your Luen friend." He sighed heavily, opening an eye that held a pupil that was taller than Werr.

"I hope you realize that I cannot calm all of my subjects. Some of them may thirst for revenge and begin to hunt your people as a result of this." Werr said, scratching the back of his neck. He wasn't happy about it, but it was definitely so. Even if he were to outlaw dragon hunting, there would still be those with bitter feelings about this long and painful week or so. "Hopefully Alastor had the presence of thought not to attack your kind and instead focus on saving the people. Otherwise..." Werr ran his fingers through his hair. "Welk would be upset. Kash was where his mother lived..."

Naybrin's eye shifted and looked down at the human, then said "I understand. My people will retreat again into the mountains that serve as our home, like we did so long ago during the Dragon War. But first, I will publicly repair as much damage as possible. I will not allow any of my companions around when I do this; to better show that I mean to repair our relationships. If the people wish to bring harm to me during this, I won't stop them. They have a right to draw my blood, since I have drawn theirs." He sighed deeply, blinking once. "I would strip myself of every last scale to make amends. I would drain myself of all blood. Emotion can make beings do things that they later regret...with all their hearts."

"I've seen it before...I've done it before. I damaged my friendship with Cynyr, I lost Welk...I'm so completely hopeless these days that it drives spikes through my heart to think of what will become of the world should I fail." Werr shook his head. "I...will not allow them to harm you. You ache already...to add physical pain to your mental pain...I'm no monster. I would never let that happen. Never."

Naybrin lifted his head and glanced up at the sky, then spoke softly.

"To the mighty lizard that walks the ground and flies the skies, I grant you fire. I grant you strength. I grant you courage. I grant you sharp teeth and powerful wings. I grant you a spirit that, when quelled, is as timid and kind as any young maiden's. But with this same spirit I grant you a fiery rage, that, when angered, you amy smite your enemies and see them burn before you. To you, I name you Naybrin, the First and the One, the father of your kind. I name you dragon."

When he finished, he was quiet for a moment, then said "Those were spoken to me when the Goddess herself chose to create me. I can still remember them..."

"That's...that's beautiful," Werr said quietly. "But I'm nothing special. I'm a human; the spawn of hundreds upon thousands before myself. Sure, I'm a king, and I do my best at it, but...sometimes I can't help but think about how insignificant all of this is. If an entire kingdom can burn in a day, then what is it really worth? I'm not blessed by any goddess. If anything, I'd like to think I've been cursed, what with everything that happens. We can't go a day without getting attacked, or breaking a bond between each other, or..." He sighed, then nudged a rock with his toe. "I've always felt kind of useless. But you," He looked up at Naybrin. "You're a dragon. The first dragon. You're incredible in almost every aspect, I can't even begin to compare to you..."

Naybrin closed his eyes again, then said "Have you ever, even once, thought of yourself in a good light? You're alive, aren't you? You've kept your friends together and alive, haven't you? If your kingdom burns down, then you have two options. You can back down and let it sit there as rubble, your kingship with it. Or you can rise back up and rebuild it...more glorious than ever. What do you think I did during the Dragon Wars? I was the king then and I am the king now." He was quiet for a moment, then carefully connected his mind to Werr's for a brief moment.

Hundreds of them. Dead and rotting on the ground. The great dragons, the creatures that used to bond freely with humans and walk right through their streets, lay dead and dying. At their head was Naybrin, walking amongst his fallen people with Mithor at his side.

"How many?" Naybrin asked, his voice younger and his walk slow.

"Over three hundred, my lord," Mithor answered, his face still bleeding from three long gashes over his left eye. "That includes warriors, females and younglings together."

Naybrin glanced around at all of the dead dragons around him, then finally noticed the humans. Human corpses were scattered in thousands around the dragons, some with weapons still held tightly in their hands. "How many of them?" he asked.

"More than our own, my lord," Mithor answered. "We're lucky for that."

"Lucky? They lost their loved ones and homes too, General!" Naybrin said angrily, flicking his long ears back. "But they are more plentiful that us. How many of we are left alive?"

Mithor's breath caught in his throat, then he slowly answered "...Ten."

"What?" Naybrin said, glancing back at him in alarm. "Surely you jest."

"No, Naybrin," the brown dragon said, moving forward to stand near his best friend. "Only ten of our kind remain alive."

Naybrin dropped his head to the ground, a deep, agonized bellow tearing from his throat, then he jerked his head up. "My mate..." he gasped, his eyes going wide. "Is she...?"

Mithor slowly shook his head and said "No. She died with the others."

He then could only press his nose to Naybrin's neck as the king of the dragons cried.

'Why...? Why would you show me that? I get it, you rebuilt your entire kingdom and made it strong again, but...I was never strong to begin with.' Werr thought, shivering a bit and curling closer to Naybrin. "Sorry," He shook his head, realizing that Naybrin probably had heard his thoughts. "I'm sorry about your wife," He said, attempting to distract Naybrin from his negativity. 'No,' He mentally answered Naybrin's question from earlier. 'I've never thought of myself in any good light. I'm just...not.'

"Then you should be ashamed," Naybrin returned. "For you have a light that makes other lights shine brighter. Welk nearly worships his friendship with you. Cynyr, though you might've weakened it for a while, holds an actual feeling of friendship towards you, which is something hard for him to feel. Aren't you curious..." He brought his eye a little closer. "...to know what would've become of them if they hadn't met you? I can show you the alternate course. I can show you what would've become."

Werr thought long and hard about it. He couldn't really imagine what would have become of himself if he hadn't found Welk and Cynyr that day. If he hadn't fallen out of that tree. "Yes," He said carefully, after a long while. "If you would show me...I dunno, maybe that would help somehow. I don't know anymore..."

The unseen memories that never happened poured forth.

*

Instead of falling out of the tree, Werr just casually watched the two half-cats below him for a while, then left once they went on their way. The memories followed the two half-cats as they lived in the small town for little more than a week longer, then moved on. Nobody noticed their disappearance. There was nobody to notice, after all.

Cynyr took Welk on to the next town, where they set their roots down. Cynyr got a job and did his best to take care of Welk, but it wasn't long before their trouble started.

Welk got involved with the wrong people. Some of the kids at the school started abusing medicinal leaves, which they stole from the healer classes. One of them, whom Welk had called one of his only 'friends', got the innocent young half-cat involved in them. Cynyr had no knowledge of it for the first few weeks, but it wasn't long before he found out. This was the masked Cynyr, on top of that. The one that never had anyone to open up to. He yelled at Welk and get angery at him, who screamed right back. Their relationship just seemed to deterorate, after that. Welk spent less and less time at home and more and more time with the drug-dealers, until he finally just stopped coming home at all. When it had been more than a week without seeing Welk at all, Cynyr finally went out to look for him.

He found him dead, due to overdose.

The shock at losing the only person that had given his life even a snippet of meaning was so great that Cynyr slipped into depression. He drowned his heartache, which he didn't know how to deal with, in drinks too strong for his age and in cutting his arms to try and release his spiritual pain. It did a severe number on his body, until, at the young age of only 18, he took his own life in suicide. He never developed his mage powers, he never met up with Seria again, and everything that eventually showed him how to live life and overcome his past never happened.

Both Welk and Cynyr died because they had never met Werr, who changed the courses of their lives completely.

*

Naybrin was silent, processing the alternate memories that had never happened, but very well could've. They were as real as any honest memory, except that they hadn't come to pass.

Werr found tears running down his face. "I see...all that would have happened...i-if they hadn't met me? I..." He stammered, unsure of what to say. After a long while of thought, he realized what else would happen. Obelisk would have free reign over the world, with no one to rise up against him. Little Diana would have died without Seria being in that town that night, and Luen might even be just as monstrous as his sister. And...no, it was just too much to think about. "But...why? Why...someone like me, I...this can't be real," He sighed, shaking his head, but he knew inwardly that it was all quite real. And it made him ache inside.

Naybrin extended his tongue and, as gently as possible, licked the side of Werr's head. "Think of was has happened, however," he said. "Thanks to you, Welk didn't become intranced by the evil misuse of the drugs. Cynyr didn't kill himself out of depression. With you around, Welk retained his spunky spirit and Cynyr slowly came out of his shell of anger and hatred. Welk didn't become enamoured with drugs and Cynyr didn't kill himself. You changed their fates, little human. You should take more pride in yourself and stop doubting your abilites and strengths. Why NOT hold your head high and show your friends that you have pride in yourself? Why NOT think of yourself as having worth? Because to those two little half-cats, you're worth more than all the gold in every purse, wallet, dragon-cave and treasurey across the land. Hold your head high and don't tarnish their faith. When you need to, take strength from your companions and lean on them. In turn, they'll take strength from you and lean upon your shoulder.

Be their king. But more than that.

Be their dear friend."