The Forgotten Zodiac

Nate snarled and pulled Luna closer to himself, desperate to not lose his meal. He snapped at Welk's hands, trying to throw the half-cat off without letting go of Luna. He swung at Welk with his tail, grabbing him by the ankle and pulling sharply, causing him to fall over. He sank his teeth back into Luna's shoulder, this time tearing off a piece of flesh and muscle.

Welk yelped as he was overturned, falling flat on his back. He scrambled to get back up in time, but Luen was already there. Foregoing Luna for the time being, he was quick to stab the needle into Nate's neck and shoot the contents into the dragonian's bloodstream. Like Allie had said, the liquid inside caused Nate to slip unconscious, where Welk managed to catch him and gently lower him to the ground.

Luna, however, had clearly been at her breaking point.

She screamed and lunged up, fleeing desperately from the cave. Naybrin threw a wing out, preventing her from running away, and could only watch as she fell against his chest, sobbing. He quickly grew bigger, tucking her down between his arm and chest, then covering her with his wings, where she couldn't be seen by anyone. When he tried to lick her wound to heal it, she screamed and started crying louder. He left her alone for the time being.

"Skies above..." Werr entered the cave next, frowning down at Nate. "We need to get some water to clean up this mess. Oh...oh, gods, he killed something." Werr's upsetness changed to worry as he spied the mice. "Will he...come back at all? Allie said that we were lucky he hadn't killed anything yet...I mean, I know they're just mice, but...they were still alive at one point..."

"He'll be fine," Welk said, brushing himself off. "He's Nate. He has to be fine! ...Right?" He frowned, then shook himself and brushed gently against Werr, saying "Come on, outside you go." He pushed the boy carefully, nudging him outside. Once out there, Welk sat down and waited for Werr to join him. He glanced over to where Isslia was, then tilted his head. "Hey...Werr?" he said, sounding a bit dazed. "What was it like for you? When you first knew you loved Lexi. What did it feel like? What does it feel like now? You know, how do you know you really love her?"

"What? Those are odd questions, coming from you." Werr nudged his friend with a knowing smirk. "Well, it was...unusual. I don't really know how to describe it. I knew she was a good friend, but for awhile, that slowly grew to be...more than that. I cared about her as much as I care about you, if not a little more. I want to protect her, though I know I can barely protect myself. She just seemed so alone, and...I knew that I was going to be the one to fix that. As for now, I still feel that way. It sounds a bit mushy, but...I want to save her from herself...so that I can have her all to myself." He snorted a bit at the riduculousness of his own words, then shook his head. "I dunno if you ever truly know if you're in love. There were times that I've doubted whether or not she loved me. But right now, I have no doubt in my mind that she's trying to find us. She could just find her way back to the city and run back home, but...somehow, I think that she wouldn't do that."

Isslia was currently attempting to annoy Spy. But the Chimera had apparently boundless patience, and tolerated even her pulling on his tail a bit.

Welk listened quietly, then slowly turned his head to face Werr and smiled softly. "Werr, she loves you. A lot," he said. "More than I think you know. You're all she ever talks about to me. Her mind always goes to you. I can barely keep a straight conversation up with her." He chuckled, then said "It's like an obsession, but...not. Her love is just boundless like that, I think. And have you seen in her art books? You're her main subject. And...I might've snitched a piece I liked." He dug around in his pocket, then pulled out a very neatly folded piece of artwork, holding it out to Werr.

It was Werr, Lexi and Welk, all sitting quietly together under a tree. Welk was in lion form, laying on his side, head down and eyes closed. Werr was leaning back against his friend, settled right in the crook of the fire mage's hind legs. Lexi was laying against him, with Werr's arms wrapped around her tiny figure and her legs draped over his lap. All of their eyes were closed, and she was positioned just so against him, cuddled up to his chest with his chin on the top of her head. On the tree above them was a heart, carved into the bark, with Werr and Lexi's names inside. Welk had chipped his name on the edge, in a side heart with the huge letters 'BF!' on the side, coupled with a smiling face and an arrow pointing towards Werr's name.

All in all, a perfect, detailed, adorable little scene.

Werr's grin quickly changed to a happy smile. "That's amazing...she hasn't shown me too many of her drawings...I wonder why." He sighed, then looked out over the plains, towards the forest. It was almost evening, signaling the third day of their time on the warzone. It looked like a storm was approaching, judging from the clouds over the forest. Werr was surprised that they hadn't seen much action yet. But of course, that thought in itself was practically cursing their luck.

In the dying light of day, Werr realized that the dark clouds gathering over the forest weren't clouds at all. Red light was reflected off the bottom of the clouds, a light that Werr had first thought to be the sunset. But it wasn't the sun causing that light, and there wasn't any sort of storm coming; well, not a rainstorm, at any rate.

Flames were slowly engulfing the forest.

Naybrin was the next to notice the distant flames. He blinked, as if in horror, then looked to Werr and said "Gather everyone immediately. We must move from here. The fire will reach us within the hour." He grew to his largest size, shaking himself, then said "I will take you all to a safe place I know of, where the fire will never harm you, then I must go. Lives are being lost in that fire, and I cannot allow it anymore. I must..." He closed his eyes, then said "Move, quickly!"

Welk took charge instantly.

"Luen, get as many people as you can into the carriage!" he snapped. "I don't care if Dmitry is still sick or not; get them in there. Everyone else, get on Naybrin and strap in. Move, please!" He started counting heads, making sure they had everyone.

Luen ran to Nate and, with Welk's help, managed to carry him to the carriage and get him settled inside. Then the kirin bent and scooped Allie into his arms without thinking, lifting her right out of her chair. He settled her up on the driver's seat, then folded her chair and put it away. Seria was running back and forth, looking concerned. "Cynyr went out hunting!" she cried, attempting to run towards the forest, but Naybrin stopped her.

"No! He is a smart lerloch," he said. "We cannot afford to go after him."

"He's my husband!" Seria shouted, trying to dodge around Naybrin's claws. "I won't leave him!"

"I will personally return and make certain that we find him, but for now, you must go with the others and protect them," Naybrin ordered, his voice stern and harsh. "Now get into that carriage this instant."

She stared up at him, tears blooming in her eyes, then bent and nabbed Spy into her arms and ran over to Cyprus, guiding him towards the carriage.

"The trees...the trees and the grass are all dying..." Cyprus had started weeping at the sight. A warzone really wasn't the place for him. Spy left Isslia and climbed up to Naybrin's back from the dragon's tail. Werr climbed onto Naybrin's back with little hesitation. He would have objected to leaving Cynyr, but he knew that Naybrin was right. The Half-cat knew how to fight, and he knew how to avoid fire. Carlyle, who had been quietly watching everything, slipped into the carriage as well.

((Oh man, if we left Nate... ((Fixed))

"Run, Diana! Into the cave!" Lexi ordered, turning to help an injured doe move quicker. Ronan led the younger human into the rocky crevice. It was cool and damp in here, albeit dark and full of echoes. Diana inched her way to a back corner of the cave, terrified of the flames outside that were simply waiting to devour them. Diana felt with her hands towards the back of the cave, until her hand bumped something soft and warm.

It took several minutes before her eyes were adjusted to the gloom. She peered through the darkness, feeling with her fingers to help reveal what she was examining. She didn't like the results; with a scream, she bolted back to Ronan's side. "Lexi, it's a Thing! There's a Thing here!" She wailed, terrified. Ronan took a step forward and sniffed the sleeping Skinless Strider, giving a small snort of disapproval. But that only seemed to make the Skinless Strider stir.

Nate sat bolt upright and immediately let out a yell of shock, recoiling as much as he could. "Bad! Bad deer! Shoo!" He tried to wave Ronan off, his voice still rough and indiscernable. He slowly stood, backing away until his back (which was sensitive to touch, now that his nerves and skin had slowly started regrowing) hit the rock wall. He let out a yelp, but fell silent again when Ronan advanced with horns pointed threateningly at Nate.

Bahahaha...))

((Haha. xD But Luen wouldn't forget him. .w. He's not that far into the werewolfyness yet. Plus they had already moved him into the carriage. 9.9

Also, I said he picked Allie up. -roll roll-))

Once everyone was settled, Naybrin forced Luna up and into the carriage, though she tried to protest. Once Luen grabbed her and dragged her into the carriage, Naybrin stood, Werr clinging to his spikes. Welk didn't get on for a long moment, and at first he just flat-out sat down and wouldn't move.

"Welk, move!" Naybrin snapped, but Welk shook his head and said "Huh-uh!"

"Why not?" Naybrin said, watching as Welk reached out to Isslia and stroked her back gently. "Because you're leaving Cynyr behind, and I don't like it," he answered, looking angry. "He's our first brother! The last piece of our threesome! We were there from the beginning, and you're just trying to get him burnt to a crisp!"

"I already told Seria I would return for him," the dragon snorted. "My priority now is getting the others to safety and then returning. Alright?"

Welk glared, but slowly picked up Isslia and walked over to Naybrin's scales, clinbing on behind Werr.

"Good," Naybrin said, then watched as Luen took the carriage's reins and got the horses moving. The dragon rose up into the air, leading towards a place he knew was safe.

((Well I'm bad at reading. xD Fixed it.))

Allie didn't object, although they had left most of her supplies lying on the ground. She held her bag tightly, which had the rest of her chemicals in it. They'd find more pots and glass cylanders, right? Right...

"Where are we going?" Werr questioned Naybrin, not knowing if anywhere was safe out here. 

((Mew~))

"A special place I know of, from when I roamed the land alone," he said, arching his wings in a tight flapping motion. "A unique cave, large enough for even me to fit in, with a river gliding through its center. You will all be safe there." He flew onwards, easily matching the pace of the carriage below him.

Welk stroked Isslia's gray fur, still unhappy over leaving Cynyr behind. He pressed his face into the center of Werr's shoulderblades, sighing heavily.

Isslia held still, and it quickly became apparent that she did not enjoy heights. She trembled terribly, having no choice but to push herself close to Welk out of fear of falling right off of this great Dragon.

Allie held onto Luen tightly, also afraid of falling. They were a bit cramped there, in the same driver's seat, and they were moving at very fast speeds. But she was confident that he wouldn't let her fall. He promised, after all. He promised to take care of her. For now...she saw no reason not to trust him.

Luen glanced down at her for a moment, then gently wrapped an arm around her, working the reins with his good hand. With his metal one, he held her close, tenderly bending his limb at the joints to properly cradle her. Eventually, they stopped near a long river, which fed right into the mouth of a massive cave. Lots of animals were already clumped inside, shivering fearfully. Naybrin landed nearby and let them off of his back, watching as Luen drove the carriage slowly inside. The animals within hissed and made noise at first, but Naybrin's voice boomed over them all.

"I am Naybrin, first King of this earth. I ask that you allow my friends shelter in this place. There is enough room for all. Any who oppose me or harm my friends will face my teeth."

The animals replied in their own voices, with a various storm of yips, chirps and squeals, then parted for the carriage.

Allie watched nervously, then realized that there were a few insects here. Moths and one or two butterflies, and plenty of grasshoppers. She quickly calmed down as they called out their greetings to her. Isslia calmed down as well, now that they weren't flying anymore. Allie, however, had a question for Luen. "Your...friends are out there still, aren't they? Diana, and the Tartaran..."

He nodded, looking upset. "I know they are..." he said softly. "But I'm too weak to run around and find them alone. Naybrin told me through my mind that he would look for them while he was out. That's one of the main reasons why he's going, to try and find stragglers..." He sighed, then muttered "I wish I was stronger..." He shrugged, then looked up as Naybrin nudged an injured rabbit into the cave, saying "Careful, little one." He raised his head, saying "I will go search for the others now."

"Right...good luck," Werr rasied his head and said quietly. "Tell me the second you find anyone, okay?" He watched the First King go, then opened the door of the carriage. "Is everyone okay in here?" He questioned, but had to step back to let Cyprus out. It was immeidately apparent that he adored animals. He nearly fainted at the number of them here in the cave. The Demigod immediately darted over to the injured rabbit, hugging it close and singing his usual 'mememe' chorus. The animals didn't mind his presence at all; they all knew him and who he was, obviously, and his aura had a calming effect over them.

A few stray deer wandered over to Luna, who was still clutching her wounded shoulder. She had screamed when Seria tried to approach her in order to heal it. She was now curled up in a corner of the cave, crying softly into her arms. The deer bent their long heads on their slender necks and nibbled gently at her hair and the edges of her wound, cleaning the blood away. She sobbed and flinched away from their ministrations, not wanting to be touched. They tilted their heads at her, then laid down around her to provide her with some warmth.

A howl boomed out over the distant plains, and a moment later, a small wolf pack bounded in.

They were not wolves of of the Ghost pack. They were strong and healthy, with silky fur that flowed behind them like waves in an ocean. Their pack leader was huge, with thick gray fur that bunched around his shoulders, like a general of an army. His steely yellow eyes scanned the ground, finally landing on Cyprus. Shaking out his fur, the great wolf barked to him.

"Cyprus! Great lord, who are these intruders in the Cave of Water?" Malu'urim's voice was a frighteningly loud bark that resonated throughout the cave, one that only Cyprus and Naybrin could ever understand.

"Friends who mean no harm," Cyprus said at once, letting the rabbit go and standing. "They hail from the lands to the east, where New Kaislun once stood. I implore you, let them rest here. Once the fires pass, I'll have them leave. Trust me, you're quite safe under their hand. I know you never had good relations with humans, but...leave these be, please." He fidged uncomfortably. Malu'urim was intimidating, to say the least.

Malu'urim growled for a moment, then barked to his pack and watched as they spread out, either moving to get a drink or lay down and try to sleep. They had run a long way to outrace the fire, and some of the wolves looked very tired. Nearly each of the six wolves, not including Malu'urim, held a pup in their mouth. They set the five little puppies down against the flank of their mother, who was a beautiful black she-wolf. Malu'urim walked over and nosed his mate, his yellow eyes roving over his seven-wolf pack. He looked forward at the animals and people gathered in the cave, then snorted. "Ronan is not here, I see," he barked lowly. "That shadow never makes appearances of himself and his herd, despite the truce. He only shows himself at the Summer Meet; never more."