The Forgotten Zodiac

Werr did nothing but smile at her as he turned on heel and walked towards the castle. "Follow if you want. Or leave. But there's food, fresh water, cool air and soft beds in the castle. But of course, I won't force you into anything." He didn't turn back, and when he opened the door, Nate was waiting on the other side. He was actually on his feet now, though he still looked weaker than normal. He was dressed in rather dressy attire, as though he were a general of some kind.

"There you are. You had me worried," Nate smiled, patting Werr on the shoulder.

Welk walked over and rubbed up against Werr's legs, staring up at Werr with his bright red eyes. "Nice to see you normal again, Natey," he said, flicking his tail. He was acutely aware of the gryphon stalking around behind them, glaring and trying to puzzle out if she wanted to go inside or not.

Welk ignored her, instead batting at one of Nate's wings with his paw. "We thought you were a goner for a while there," he said, spreading a golden wing and resting it over Werr's shoulders. It was as light as air, yet warm and calming.

"I thought I was too," Nate shook his head. "But, lady luck smiles down on me. I'll be back up to full strength in another day." He looked towards the Gryphon, which sparked a memory. "Her...I know you. You were on that carriage. Are you quite alright?" He asked, taking a step towards her.

She promptly threw a wing out and bowled him over, taking this as her chance to lunge over their heads and race inside, panting rapidly as if she was afraid of them.

Welk had quickly threw his wings over Werr, pinning the boy to the ground under him as if he was afraid the gryphon was going to try and hurt him. Once she was gone, he nuzzled under Werr and helped him up, the moved over to Nate. His reaction had been so swift and so skillfully delivered that Werr knew he had the perfect protector and friend. One that he knew would give his life for him.

"Well...that was...eventful," Werr smiled a bit. He had never given any shadow of a doubt to Welk's abilities, really.

Nate groaned as Welk helped him up. "Some people...yeesh..." He spluttered. He had been feeling a little weak before, but the simple action of having to push himself upright had drained him drastically. "I'm going back to bed. Goodness knows I need it..." He muttered, walking away. He stuck close to the wall, using it to support him.

Nate staggered in and dropped himself on a bed, yawning deeply. He may have passed out, he went down so quickly.

Marion looked up at the others, and her look turned into a glare. "What do you want?" She demanded, recognizing Werr on the spot. "Leave us alone. We're recovering from trauma. Shoo."

"Hey, hey," Welk said, flicking his tail from side to side. "We just want to help. We heard there was an assasination attempt on Dmitry. Is there anything they would want to kill him for? Something only he does that none of the other heirs do?" He tilted his head, watching as Dmitry opened his eyes slowly, looking a bit distant. He moved a paw out and gently touched Marion's back, blinking as he woke more and more.

Marion snorted. "What do you think?" She said, patting Dmitry's muzzle.

"Wait...that's Dmitry?" Werr blinked.

"Idiot," She rolled her eyes at him. "Yes. He's a wyvern. Technically not even Izan's son, but I don't know if that's worth killing him over...I certainly don't think so. I don't know about anything else...I mean, I know he sneaks out slaves when he can, but...it doesn't happen too often, and I still don't see why anyone would kill over something like that." She sighed heavily, worried about her dear friend.

Dmitry finally lifted his head, staring evenly at them. "Wyverns are the rarest lerloch there is," he said. "We hold unspeakable powers, some I myself am even not aware of. We take completely human forms to hide ourselves, but our true forms are stunning." He shook his head, then said "Despite being very small, we are some of the greatest mages known. I...haven't tapped into my powers yet. I don't know how. But I don't think it would be so bad that someone would want to kill me..." He sighed, nuzzling Marion gently.

"Perhaps Dmitry's death would devastate Izan?" Nate suggested, frowning a bit.

"Uh, no." Werr shook his head, "Izan wouldn't be hurt by that. He's too...apathetic about them. I dunno," Werr started pacing. "But...the other heirs...Dmitry is next in line for the throne. If Izan was taken out, the new king would immediately be Dmitry. If there was someone they wanted different in line...curses," Werr spat angrily, grabbing Welk by the arm and dragging him away. "We have to ask Izan to let us talk with the rest of his heirs! Someone wants this place gone, and what better way to topple a kingdom than to topple their trust in the ruling body?" Werr snorted. The exact same thing had happened to him only a couple years ago. The incident with Ina. The Silver Tornado had nearly killed him twice...and they would have replaced him with a tyrant who wanted nothing but power, power, and more power. The Herraces would destroy Bulliete from the inside out! They didn't want power, they wanted the land, and it was clear now that they weren't hesitating anymore. His arrival had put them on edge, perhaps.

((So what does that mean? Evil-heir?

And Dmitry SO has powers, too. >;3 ))

Dmitry blinked and watched them go, then sighed and put his muzzle down to Marion again, brushing it gently against her side.

Welk too lion form and cantered alongside Werr until the boy could throw his leg over his friend's back. Then Welk was off like a bullet, heading wherever Werr wanted him to go. He had absolute faith in the boy, which was reciprocated without question. Like Werr and Naybrin's heart-bond, he and Welk had one all to their own, forged by blood, tears, and time.

((That's what Werr thinks. o3o

And I didn't think otherwise for a second. xD))

They slid to a stop in the throne room. "Izan!" Werr panted a bit as he slipped off of Welk's back. "We need to speak with your heirs."

"Dmitry is in the infirmary," Izan waved his hand at them, clearly busy. Parchment was in his hands, and Lennon was holding a stack of scrolls.

"No, we have to speak with the others," Werr shook his head. "How many more are there?"

Izan looked at him critically. "Dmitry is the only...public...heir. The others are safely hidden in the city. Four in total, Dmitry included. But I will not be telling you who they are or where they live...that's a very important security matter, and I'm not exactly...inclined...to trust you yet."

"What?! Izan, I think one of your heirs is a traitor. One other than Mirage, obviously. Why else would they want Dmitry dead?"

"He's hated by the public for his blatant disregard of popular ways, he's made several public appearances in which he buys slaves that mysteriously go missing...oh, and his dear slave Marion was a prize wanted by many. Nagas are known for their ability to be most...entertaining. She was haggled over in the market. They got it down to bidding, and then Dmitry steps in with a hundred gold pieces...I never understood that boy, really." Izan snorted, shaking his head. "At any rate, take your pick. There are a lot of people in the city that would rather see Dmitry dead. Why do you think we keep him inside?"

((Woo! ouo ))

"Because someone is trying to kill him by going through his health," Welk muttered, making sure he was behind Werr when he did so, to make certain that Izan didn't see. In his mind, he thought Soooo glad Dmitry got Marion instead of any freaking perverts. He seems like a nice guy who wouldn't...yech. He rubbed his face, standing back to back with Werr, his arms crossed over his chest. He was growing more and more inclined to like Dmitry as he learned more about the boy; he couldn't stand slave labor and usually set his free, he refused to use them in inappropriate ways, he was a wyvern, and despite being frail he obviously was hard to get around. He was definitely growing on them for being an upstanding young man.

Izan's frown turned to a glare as Werr just shook his head. The king finally spoke again. "No. That's not enough to send an entire assassin. Lennon, you saw the man! Was he large, or scrawnier?"

"Rather bulking, if I do say so myself. I would have disposed of him on my own, but Marion got to him first." Lennon shrugged.

"Right. Larger guys generally demand more pay for the disposal of their enemies. Besides, Dmitry is scrawny! No offense to him, of course, but it doesn't take a man that size to put him down in human form. But in Wyvern form...no, whoever sent that assassin both knew what they were doing and were willing to pay top price to get it done right. Izan, we can't just ignore this--"

"That's quite enough!" The emperor snapped. "If you want to hunt them down on your own, that's fine! I don't care what you do in your spare time! But I'm not going to freely give away information that could be harmful to my kingdom. Even Isslia does not know their locations, so don't bother asking her, at that! Now get out of my sight. You try my patience, children. This is not a wise thing to do."

Werr bit back a response, turning on heel. They had permission to look. That was enough.

Welk bit back a retort of "I'm 20!", instead choosing to stalk out at Werr's side. Once they were out of range, he smiled and purred up at the boy, saying "That went well, huh?" He bounced down the hallway, purring away and wagging his tail like an oversized dog. He rubbed under Werr's hand, saying "You're the boss. Let's go interrogate someone."

"Techinally, you're supposed to be the boss here," Werr chortled. "I got carried away back there. Sorry." He sighed a bit, then sat down on Welk's back again. "Hm...I think...we need a commotion." He suddenly smiled, then said, "Let's go see if Naybrin and Cyprus are done, yeah?"

((He'll use the commotion of Cyprus appearing to see who would remain in their homes, then question those people. o3o))

((Woo.))

"'Kay!" Welk said, purring and tilting his head back to rub against his best friend. He took off running down the hallway, spreading his wings to the sides, then made it outside and leapt into the air, feeling Werr dig his fingers into his thick fur. It was a powerful leap, punctuated with fire, so they were rocketed up into the sky. Werr knew right where to find them, based off of his link with Naybrin.

Cyprus' garden.

They were just finishing up. There was Naybrin's dragon form, rebuilt from Naybrin's memory and brought into the physical world. And then there was Naybrin's human form, lying unconscious next to the Demigod, who was sitting crosslegged, his eyes closed. Cyprus was linking the two now, chanting words of the First Language. The one the dragons spoke.

As Welk approached, a wall of colors flashed in front of him, pushing them away. It wasn't rough, just a simple push that threw the flight off course a bit, keeping them from colliding too hard with the actual barrier, which was invisible. Of course, this was delicate. Even the slightest disturbance would break everything and ruin it, killing Naybrin in the process.

So, Werr and Welk had to watch as Naybrin's dragon form seemed to dissolve, only to be soaked up by the human form. It was a pretty sight, but awful at the same time. It was hurting Naybrin, Werr could tell...oddly enough, he could feel it. A gut-wrenching feeling, as though something here being forced through him. Thankfully, though, it didn't last for very long, and faded the second all of Naybrin was completely inside his human form. The barrier dropped, allowing them inside.

Naybrin stirred as the two approached, blinking his eyes open and sitting up. He touched himself slowly, as if making sure he was okay, then suddenly threw his head back and laughed hard, rolling around in the grass. "It feels wonderful!" he proclaimed, standing up and racing about in circles. "Like I'm whole again! It feels...wonderful!" Upon this loud shout, he arched up into the air, his true dragon form exploding upwards to its fullest size. He arched about in the sky, swooping and diving in large, exaggirated circles and loops, his long ears tilted back against his head.