The Forgotten Zodiac

Werr held Welk gently in his hands, his eyes half-closed as Cynyr comforted him. "There you are," Another familiar voice came from the entrance. But this time, it was Nate. "Werr, you look downright sick. Should I help you get to bed?"

"No...I want to go back to Naybrin." Werr shook his head.

"But...you need sleep..."

"Naybrin. I need Naybrin. And all of my friends."

"At least sleep when we're with Naybrin," Cynyr said, nudging Werr gently until the boy climbed up onto his back, still holding Welk in his hands. The panther glanced up at Nate and gave a slight nod, then turned and cantered out of the room, heading back outside.

Naybrin had actually managed to shift to his other side, resting wearily. He was able to lift his head at their approach, giving a very weak smile. "Hello," he said quietly. "Are you alright?"

"Just tired. Exhausted, really." Werr smiled slightly, which grew as Cynyr let him down right up against Naybrin's neck. Werr decided that he might as well sleep here. He had Cynyr and Naybrin to keep him warm, and if he got uncomfortable, he could climb on top of Naybrin and sleep there. "So very tired," He murmured, closing his eyes.

"Sleep well, Werr." Forin said. "We'll keep watch while you rest."

"Yeah! We'll make sure nothing bad happens." Diana nodded eagerly.

Cynyr flopped down next to Werr, sighing tiredly. His insides still hurt from being thrown against a wall by Malice, but he was doing better. He was asleep in moments, dozing quietly. Welk also fell asleep, still holding onto Werr's finger.

Luen watched them all, then murmured "I'm sorry for how I had acted previously, Werr. We seemed to clash for a while there, and I felt like I would never have another chance to say I was sorry. So...I am." He looked down and Luna reached out to touch his shoulder, smiling at him before leaning against Forin and kissing his cheek gently.

"That's okay, Luen..." Werr murmured softly. "I wasn't the nicest of people, either. I'm sorry, too. But...I've learned. We all only have one life to live...we can't spend it bickering with other people and forming hatreds for one another. Especially not in a time of war. So...all is forgiven. No harm done."

Forin put a hand against Luen's shoulder, smiling slightly as Luna kissed him. He turned to return it. Werr had to open his eyes a bit further at that, but he was too tired to say anything. So he slept away.

Luen smiled at Forin's touch, then took deer form and nudged Diana towards his saddle, saying "Come on, Diana, let's go have a look at the gardens!" Once the girl was seated on his back, he trotted off eagerly, smiling softly.

Naybrin sighed quietly, taking strength from the feel of he and Werr's connection, then he looked over at Forin and Luna as they kissed softly. He watched knowingly as they slowly pulled apart, leaning against each other, then he spoke. "I know how grave a relationship between you both is," he murmured. "Normally, I would be quite stern with you. But...we are in a time of change. Perhaps it is time for Amnairians and Tartarans to once again mingle as they used to. Nevertheless...Forin Dulce and Luna Vevila, I wish you both the best of luck...and you have my blessings." He gave a slow dragon wink and said "Just make certain that you always remain true to each other and enjoy your time together. There's something...so perfect...about finding your one true mate. It's a feeling I experianced a long time ago, and I wish with all my heart that I had it back."

Luna blushed at his words, but she smiled nonetheless and tucked her chin against Forin's neck and wrapping her arms around his waist.

Forin closed his eyes. "Thank you, Naybrin. It means a great deal to me that you are willing to give us blessings such as that." He murmured, walking over to the side of the courtyard with the benches. Here, they could keep watch under the light of the moon, together. However short their time might be.

And somewhere inside the library, Obelisk fumed until dawn. Then, as the sun rose (only to be obscured by quickly approaching clouds), Obelisk fumed some more. As leaves fell from trees, one by one, Obelisk fumed still. He was a little more than angry this time.

Seria slowly opened the library door, glancing around cautiously. She knew Obelisk was in here somewhere, and she knew he was angry, but she could only remember the time she had chosen to hug him and keeping moving inwards. "Obelisk?" she called softly, putting one hand on a bookcase. "Are you alright? I...I know you're upset..." She kept her tail tucked between her legs, her ears at a half-way point on her head.

((What happened last night? With the kicking? Was there a fight? pDp))

((Obelisk is fighting with Remor, because Obelisk doesn't want his old body back, but Remor does. Obelisk doesn't see the point because Cici is going to 'kill' him soon, and Remor just wants to stop hurting. The kick was Obelisk being mean and wanting to hurt Werr, but Remor held him back from further damage. :T))

"Upset? Me?" Obelisk snorted. "What could you possibly want, Seria?" He sighed, dropping the sarcasm. Seria...she was the only one who had ever willingly showed any sort of compassion for him. Even after what Malice had forced him to do to her friends. It was a bit curious, and he was confused by it a little, but he wasn't about to let her kindness towards him be ruined by his hatred.

((I mean on Mumble. .n. Chzy said there was people being kicked off.))

"I...don't know," she said, leaning against a bookcase with her arms behind her. "I guess I just wanted to see if you were okay. Maybe figure out why you wanted the gauntlet? Cynyr told me you wanted it for something. What did you need?" She shifted from side to side, swaying a bit as she hummed quietly.

((Oooohhhhhh. Mmm...I know his internet was messing up. I don't think he was kicking anyone off. I'm on now. .3. There wasn't any fighting to my knowledge. It was just me, him and Nerd, and Nerd left shortly before I had to go eat dinner, and then he left while I was eating, which I expected.))

"The Gauntlet...that Artifact..." Obelisk sighed, showing himself to her from behind the book case. "I wanted it for a very simple reason. I want to be whole again. But at the same time, I do not see the point. It's not something you should concern yourself over, Seria. I'm not something you should concern yourself over."

((Okay. -huggles-))

The female half-cat jumped a bit, her tail fluffing out, but she calmed quickly and smiled softly. "But Obelisk," she said gently. "You're a person just as much as anyone else is. You deserve to have someone concerned over you. Why not me? If I can fall in love with someone like Cynyr and expect to have a family with him, then I don't see why I can't settle with talking to you peacefully." She smiled up at him, then said "We should've have left you behind, but I assure you, that wasn't our intention. I'm sorry."

((Also, I must go in 2 hours.))

"Lies. Why is life worth anything?" Obelisk questioned, his frown never seeming to leave. "Because it is fleeting. A privilege, if you will. Life is so precious to you people simply because it has an end. That proceeds to make me worth nothing. My ever-continuing existence is not life simply because it has no natural end to it. And after everything I've done and been forced to do, I do not deserve anything less than an eternity of punishment. Perhaps this is where I am now, though." He sighed, sitting on the floor. "No one cares for an old freak like me. Aside from you, at any rate. I have watched the Tartaran guards imitate my behavior in a joking manner. The Amnairians are wise to avoid me at all costs. It's all the same anywhere I go, really..."

((-sobcling-))

Seria looked sadly down at him, then slowly slid down and sat across from him, watching him quietly. "You still breathe," she said softly. "You have a conscious mind. You make decisions just like the rest of us. Isn't that considered life, even if it has no end?" She moved her hand out and carefully touched his knee, running her clawed fingers along the bandages. "I believe that everyone has a chance to redeem themselves for their wrong-doings," she murmured. "Nobody in this world is perfect, after all."

((( ;3; It's just Spanish, but I dun wanna gooooo.))

"Yes, well...you'd be the only one to believe such things." He sighed, unhappy as ever. "Perfection itself is one of life's greatest illusion. The second would be innocence." He was quiet for a moment, then continued. "I am unsure of what to do next. I could take the Artifact by force, as I stated I would. I could leave it untouched and disregard ever wanting it. But one thing is for certain, Cynyr would never be willing to simply hand it over."

((I neeeeeds mai bunnyyyy. pDp))

Seria looked sad as she said "Please, don't hurt him. He's just protective, and he doesn't exactly have good memories of you, even though the past wasn't your fault. Why don't you just talk to him about it? Maybe you could work together to figure something out. You never know, he's improved a lot in two years." She looked up at Obelisk's bandaged face, then flinced when something small hit her from behind.

Welk cling to several strands of her hair, panting and looking exhausted and scared.

((Meeeewwwwww.))

"I wouldn't hurt him unless he attempted to hurt me. I can still feel pain, you know." Obelisk sighed, but he was quick to spot Welk. He reached behind Seria's head and scooped up little Spectral Welk. "I saw you before, little one. The embodiment of a soul. Cynyr did a splendid job, as well. But why are you so far from Werr's protective fingers? It must have been quite a journey." He was gentle, his touch hardly noticed by Welk. He expected the Spectral to be afraid of him, of course.

Welk curled up, his eyes wide and shimmering with tears as he stared up at Obelisk. He quivered, obviously afraid, but with a small gulp he said "I-I was...t-training. With th-this new b-body." He gave a tiny wiggle of his ghostly tail, showing that he could fly, then just laid quietly with his arms folded over his chest. "Every m-movement is...s-so hard," he said. "I-I can b-barely lift my a-arms."

"Naturally. Spectrals are not meant to exist. The world fights against their very being. Every fiber of soul within you is being pressed upon from every direction as the atmosphere itself attempts to be rid of you. I doubt you will be free of this pain until Werr and Cynyr return you to your body." Obelisk shrugged. "Just remember, as long as you wish to be here, the world cannot destroy you. Precisely the opposite of myself. Now then," He stood again, using his free hand to give Seria a hesitant pat on the head. "Shall I return you to your friends?"