The Forgotten Zodiac

"Well...I can't promise that. But I'll try." Ophile nodded, darting off.

"Who is it...?" A glum voice came from within, ever quiet. "I don't want to be bothered tonight..." Inside, he was lying on the bed, taking in as much of Luna's scent at he could. Her flowery, almost honey-laced smell was obvious, and Forin was trying his best to not let it fade from memory. He wasn't even crying, aware that the scent of his own salty tears would overpower the already faint smells.

Luen opened the door quietly, his blurry eyes hardly able to find his dear friend. He made out Forin's shape, however, and closed the door and wandered over, hitting a chair and the corner of the bed before finding Forin. He sat down on the edge of the bed and didn't bother with easing into conversation or touch. He draped over Forin at once, hugging him tightly. "Oh, Forin..." he said creakily, burying his recently reformed face into Forin's shoulder. "What happened?"

Luen looked sad at Forin's current state. He moved his newly-attached mechanical arm out and gently stroked Forin's shoulder, saying "Now hold on. She just...left? Forin, think about this whole thing. Luna's always been very smart and down-to-earth, you and I both know that. Something must really be shaking her for her to leave like this." He stroked his claw-hand down Forin's back, over and over, just trying to soothe him. "Maybe these powers aren't as good as you think they are," he said urgently, yet calmly, as much as trying to piece it together himself as help Forin understand. "Remember how I...how I reacted when you used those powers in front of me? Remember the things I said? I can't really remember them myself, but...it all has to mean something, doesn't it?" He bent his head and rested his chin on Forin's shoulder, hating hearing his friend cry. "Maybe you're not using these powers," he said simply. "What if they really are using you?"

"No!" Luen cried, flinching back as if burned. "No, Forin, no! How could you think that, after what we've just been through? I would've died if you hadn't come for me!" The ringing, sharp words were like a slap to both of their faces. "All I suggested was that you might not have mastered these powers yet!" A wetness gleamed in his eyes. "Forin...you're not acting like yourself. This isn't you. The Forin I know and love would never say these terrible things. You're letting these powers rule over your heart and mind. And you're hurting the people around you because of it..."

"No," Luen said firmly, clamping his arms tighter around Forin. "Forin, listen to me! You just need to seize these powers for yourself! You've used them to help us, yes, but you're lending more and more into them! It needs to be the other way around. The powers need to lend more into you. Why can't you see that?!" He was started to sound angry, and to a common person, they would think that wasn't a big deal.

But Luen being angry was a very rare thing, and it was something to be respected...but not as much as feared.

Luen stumbled back, slamming into the wall and slidding down in shock. His slitted pupils thinned sharply, hardly more than small black lines in his eyes, which was a bad sign. "You want me to make you?" he said quietly, sounding more hurt than angry, now. "Fine. Look in a mirror and tell me what looks back." He stood up, cradling his mechanical arm and blinking back hot tears, and walked to the door, slowly opening it and closing it behind him. He went back to his room, just feeling so utterly angry... Why had Forin become this blind? He was letting his powers rule him!

Pain suddenly stabbed through Luen's brain life a knife.

He fell to the ground with a limp thud and didn't rise again.

Forin turned to the mirror. Luna had put a sheet over it, to hide her own reflection during her miserable day here. He slowly pulled it off, staring at his reflection. At the dark red and black haze that swirled together under his crystal 'flesh'. He regarded himself unhappily for a very long time before moving.

Nate responded to the crashing he heard; it had just been two, but it was enough to make him slightly concerned. He found Luen in the hall and was quick to drag the Kirin to Seria. But then he investigated the room Forin had been in. There were a couple flecks of blood on the floor, but nothing serious. The mirror had been broken entirely, bits of glass scattered about the room. The window had been broken as well, and as Nate approached the window, he could spot the faint red glow of Forin in the distance. He was just...sitting. Sitting in a tall tree, like he would so many years ago when he wanted time alone.

And there he stayed for the remainder of the night.

Seria stroked her hands through Luen's hair, sensing his mind and body for anything wrong, and couldn't find anything. She settled him on the couch next to Diana and Zephyr, giving his snowy-white hair a soft tousle before moving back to Cynyr. The panther seemed to be doing better since she had been able to work on him, but she still looked very worried. She muttered to herself, still holding a hand over the spot, then settled down to sleep next to him.

Werr slept in Lexi's room, Welk curled around him. Nate eventually resigned to sleeping next to Zephyr, not at all disturbed by his dear friend's snoring. Diana was still alseep on the dragon's other side.

Obelisk, however, could not sleep. Whether he would not or just couldn't was beyond anyone, though. He just sat in his chair, regarding the dying flames. Finally, he spoke to the First King, who was dozing off nearby. "I'm unsure of how to deal with this, Naybrin. It is...alarming, at best." He said quietly.

Naybrin opened an eye slightly, curling his lips back into a yawn moments later. "What do you mean?" he questioned. "You could be talking about the king killing his own sister and pinning it on an innocent demigod, Cynyr's body slowly destroying itself due to years of strain - both magical and physical - or even the states of Forin or Luen or Luna. We've encountered a number of recent problems that seemed all rolled up in one."

"All of it. And more." Obelisk sighed. "Your little posse is just downright cursed, isn't it?" He chortled, then grew serious again. "That king...there was something unsettling about him. Did you not notice? First he screams about noise, dimming the lights seemed to help calm him down, then he stabbed his own kin in the throat. The noise was undoubtedly generated by a seed of dark magic lodged in his mind. Such a thing would also cause excruciating headaches, which can be helped by immersing one's self in darkness. And that seed...will eventually drive its inhabitant to kill. Knives are favored due to their simplicity and ease of access.

"So basically, what I'm saying is...the king of Herrace has been infected with Dark Magic. Not the kind that lends him power."

Naybrin contemplated this, then said "It must be so. It only makes sense. Except for one thing. The girl he murdered was not his kin in any way. She had no blood-ties to him, or even ties through marriage of others. She was as much related to him as to you or me." He tapped his chin thoughtfully, then mused "This troubles me. I can only wonder if this is not the first time he has done this..." He shrugged, then said "We've gotten permission, at least. We should move according to it tomorrow. We'll intercept our army and join Herrace's forces."

"Really? She seemed very much okay with being his 'sister'..." Obelisk frowned. "Perhaps she was brainwashed..." He lapsed into silence, then slowly nodded. "Yes. I agree. At the same time, we have to ensure Werr comes with us, Lexi or not. I'm okay with the injured and incapacitated remaining here. I myself will stay to ensure their safety. And...the safety of Cyprus is a major concern for the balance of the world. His magic is already weakened, as you know...if he loses touch with it completely, he may become more of a hazard than a Demigod. While I understand that the army of Alastor must be contacted before they reach the battlefield, I'm desperate to not lose anyone. I dislike admitting it, but I've grown fond of this group in my absense. It troubles me so to see them falling apart at the seams. We--" He stopped short as there was a sharp knock on the door.

"Castle guards," Cern announced quietly from his corner.

"They must have come to question what happened," Obelisk stood with a sigh. He opened the door slowly, his stance and facial expression akin to one who perhaps recently woke up. "Can I help you? What business do you have here at such a ridiculous hour? I do hope it's important..."

"It is. We've come for the healer. Seria InsertlastnamethatIdon'trememberhere." One of them grunted. "The king wants to see her immediately. Resistance will only result in us taking her there by force."

"Can it not wait until morning...?"

"No. It can't."

"Seria?" Naybrin said, immediate concern lighting his features. "What do you want with our healer? She's been busy all day, what with her husband's illness and what not..." But his words were unheard by the guards, who had never drunk dragon's blood, and they insisted that Obelisk go and get her. Right now.

Seria was laying on the couch with Cynyr, both sleeping quietly and twinned tightly in each other's arms.

((Uhm, in case you didn't catch that...

I forgot Seria's surname again. xDD))

Obelisk sighed heavily, turning away. He was a law abiding citizen of this city, but he may just have to deny the king's demands...where would that get him?

"Get her, or we'll do it ourselves," One guard growled.

"Calm down, calm down. I'm not exactly young, you know." He shuffled slowly towards the sleeping lovers, using his powers to untangle the two so he could pick up Seria. He woke her up, and made her walk towards the door. A little shadow on her shoulder spoke, however. "Seria. Don't object to any of this, it will only get you and a lot of the rest of us hurt. Whatever you do, don't panic, scream, or shout. I'm watching over you, and I swear, I'll get you out of this." The shadow shifted, subtly forming a charm that slipped onto her sapphire necklace easily. It would enable communication between them, though Obelisk wouldn't be there.

((Kaelen. :3 ))

Seria jolted, looking scared and frightened, especially at the prospect of leaving Cynyr's side. She clenched her hand over her necklace, which was a trinket gifted to her by her husband shortly after they had been married. She, like Lexi, was one of the few able to truly enjoy Obelisk's presence. She had been the first to accept him, and she had even hugged him, back when he had been his heavily bandaged self. So she trusted what he said and let her fear ebb, tilting her head back defiantly as she walked over to the guards.