The Forgotten Zodiac

Forin held onto Vorpal tightly, smiling slightly. "Crying, Vorpal? That's so unlike you..." He murmured. "Just rest, then, my loyal friend. Rest and get better. I'll take care of you." There was peace for a long moment, but then Cyprus broke it again.

"Wait, wait, wait," Cyprus whimpered from under Naybrin. "C-can you hear it? The silence...it's coming for me, Naybrin, it's going to kill me this time, I know it is..."

"Someone get a gag on him or something," Forin grumbled.

"Honestly, it's a shock he's alive at all..." Obelisk chortled. "Insane or not. I thought he would die for sure..."

"Cyprus," Naybrin crooned, resting lightly on one leg in order to give the demigod room to move. "You really must rest. It is a time for quiet and peace. Shush, my dear friend, and try and sleep some. I must continue to search for the thing that will help you. Rest, my friend..." He tilted his head back, sending his other-worldly powers out to search more.

Vorpal rested his head and one arm over Forin's arm, laying weakly against his chest. He peeked out once with a large silver eye, but said and did nothing other than slowly rub his face with a tiny hand. He sighed, closing his eyes again and pressing his face into Forin's clothes.

Naybrin tilted his head and considered the Tartaran's words, then nodded once and said "Yes. I think that would be the best course of action for now. Zephyr, would you be so kind as to take them?"

"Of course," the king said. "And I'll bring them back as well."

Naybrin smiled and licked his nose in thanks, then said "I suppose that's set, then. You should prepare to leave soon, Forin. The best in order to return quickly." He bent his head forward and gave Vorpal a small nudge, watching him push at his nose with one tiny limb, saying "Get off, mutt!"

Luen sat up groggily, blinking up at Forin, then sighed and nodded with a small smile, saying "Alright. Thanks for the heads up." He turned to Allie, then, and gently kissed her, pulling her close. "When I get back, I have something in mind for us to do," he said, stroking her hair. Much like Welk wanted to care for Isslia, so did he for Allie. In fact, if he settled her into a chair and went outside to do something, she could call him back over and over to move her into another chair and he would do it without complaint. He kissed her again, then slipped out of the bed and lifted her gently, carrying her downstairs.

Allie was soon settled next to Naybrin. She smiled at the First King, quite happy to have his company. "So you're leaving?" She looked up at Luen. "Be careful, wherever you're going..."

"Are you gonna ask Resu about scapegoating for her?" Forin questioned, quirking an eyebrow. "I don't suggest doing it right away, but...well, Resu's tests are never impossible, but they're not exactly for people with weaker minds and bodies..."

"I'm not completely useless," Allie muttered.

"No, no, I didn't say that..." Forin stammered, shaking his head. "I'm just...Resu's challenges are hard. They're physical challenges sometimes, too...that's mostly what we had to deal with."

Luen kissed his girlfriend again, nuzzling her softly, then said "Yeah, I'm going to see if Resu will allow someone else to take Allie's trial for her." He stroked her hair back again, murmuring "You're not useless at all. At all, Allie." He tilted her head back gently and kissed her again, then pulled back and looked up at Forin. "Got Vorpal?" he asked. "We should get Diana settled..."

"Yeah. Diana is still sleeping. The poor girl had a rough night. She'll be fine," Forin shrugged. "We need to talk to Seria, though." He walked to the guest rooms again, finding Cynyr and Seria's room. He knocked once before opening the door, not entirely sure what to expect. He wasn't even sure Seria would be up to keeping an eye on Diana, but...he was the only one awake that he trusted. Nate was definitely not up to the task, after all...

The husband and wife were sitting quietly together, and as Forin opened the door, Seria's voice became obvious. "-I want to, Cynyr, why can't you just agree with me?"

"Because I just can't, okay?" the panther answered, his voice low and his eyes flicked back. "I keep thinking about what happened last time. It was almost too terrible to bear. I couldn't stand seeing you like that. Like you had no life anymore!"

"But I want a family!" she cried. "I want a little one to hold and love on. Don't you want that?"

"I...I do, but..."

"But what, Cynyr? What?!"

"But I don't want to see you suffer!"

"I can be safer this time! Cyprus healed me, Cynyr. I can bear little ones again, I can take pleasure out of being with you instead of pain. Do you understand? It doesn't hurt to do it anymore. Everything is healed. I can hold a little one inside my womb again. It won't be like last time, this time I can-"

So absorbed in their heated conversation were they that it took a while to notice Forin's presence. It wasn't until Vorpal said loudly "You know, your love life is unimportant right now."

Seria turned red and jerked around to stare at them, mortified.

Cynyr froze, his single eye very much blank, then he stood and walked out of the room.

"Vorpal, don't say that," Forin scolded. "Seria and Cynyr have been through a lot as a couple, and their discussions are more important than my favors." He stepped out of the room and dropped Vorpal on the large bloom of a sunflower just out in the hallway. "Stay there while I talk with Seria. I'll pick you up again in just a minute." He stepped back in the room and cleared his throat.

"I'm sorry I interrupted your conversation. I...I just needed to ask if you'd keep an eye on Diana while Luen and I were away. We're taking Cyprus to Kaislun in order to deal with his problems, my issue, and the issue of Allie entering Kaislun. We'll be back before too long, hopefully. Obelisk has informed me that he'll be investigating more while we're away. Hopefully nothing happens. And...I won't hold you responsible if she gets hurt. I just need you to make sure she doesn't run off and do something foolhardy. If that makes sense..."

Her blush fading quickly, Seria nodded, saying "Of course. You don't even have to ask, Forin." She stood up, brushing off her outfit and removing the tears from her cheeks. "We've been through a lot. Remember when we first met? You frightened me so much, but I was very fierce about it. And I saved Diana's life." She sighed, then said, in a soft, choked voice, "You're lucky...to have her. She...she's a beautiful little girl." She had to cough to hide the sob that rose in her throat. Then she slowly took a step toward Forin and hugged him, resting her face on his shoulder. "Forin...thank you for staying with us all this time," she said softly. "It really means more to us than you could ever think."

Forin hugged Seria in return, closing his eyes. "She's a beautiful child, indeed. It saddens me, though...I can never replace the true mother and father she once had. And how could I not stay with you? Something awful happens every time I try to leave, anyways. It's just better to have friends." He stroked her back with his crystal hand once or twice, then tore away. "And if it's any consolation, I think Cynyr is just being paranoid. I think you should try again; although perhaps it would be best to wait until we're safe at home first." He kissed her forehead in a simple sign of affection, then turned away.

"Right, then. I'm off," He picked up Vorpal again and headed back to the main room.

Seria watched him go, sighing deeply. She brushed the last tears out of her eyes, keeping his words tucked close in her mind, then headed out to find Diana and make sure she was safe and sound.

In Forin's hands, Vorpal lay quietly, his silver eyes blinking slowly. "Though I am loathe to admit it...that was quite good of you, master Forin," he said, leaning back into Forin's fingers. He sighed and closed his eyes, then said "I understand this form now that I've had time to process it. I've been growing, advancing in power, this entire time, ever since I came to be in your hands. First the red fire only you could control, then the switching of forms into a few other things. Now, I have a true form, so to speak. And I believe now, I can change into anything, not just weapons. A sword will always be my most powerful, but now...I am much stronger." His eyes gleamed lightly, then he clenched a small fist and said "I'm sure I can levitate, but I'm not willing to try yet. For now, I must continue as a burden."

"You're not a burden," Forin tutted. "Don't think such things, my weapon. You hardly weigh more than a feather. Here," He settled Vorpal on his shoulder, smiling a bit. "Just try not to fall off." He said as they reached the main room, where Zephyr was preparing himself for a long trip. "Are you ready?" He looked from the dragon to Luen, then back to the dragon, a small smile on his face.

"I will hold on until my fingers break off," Vorpal said firmly, and Forin knew he probably wasn't joking at all.

Zephyr looked up at him, returning his smile. "Eager to go?" he said gently. "I would advice you to piece together what you're going to say to dear Luna when you see her. When a girl is upset, it can be hard to calm them down unless you say the right things. I know quite well." He chuckled, saying "Though Vaira is a female dragoness, so I can hardly compare."

Luen smiled and patted the dragon's emerald flanks, saying "We're ready. Zephyr will carry Cyprus in his hands. We've already got the harness set up." He pointed to the dragon's back, where they saw a new, enchanted harness strapped on. Naybrin and Obelisk had combined their skills to craft it, and it was complete with spots for one to sit and buckle straps around their legs, with thick rings to hold onto, keeping them securely on the dragon's back.

"Yes, I know. I'm already thinking about that." He eyed the saddle suspiciously for a moment, then said, "It's perfect. I just have to get one thing..." He walked into the kitchen, grabbing a small bag. It was completely empty. "Vorpal, I refuse to lose you during the flight. You'll have to be either under my shirt or in this bag." He said, climbing up onto Zephyr's back. He strapped himself in, then waited on Vorpal to make his decision.

Vorpal stared at him indignantly, saying "A bag? Honestly? I will not be confined to a...a BAG like some sort of odd trinket! I-" He slipped at that moment, having been trying to stand in order to better shout out his argument, and fell headfirst inside with a yelp. "Rigged!" he shouted. "I never suspected a trap! Foul bag! You will feel my anger!" He punched the leather of the bag, only to yelp again and clutch his fingers. "Stupid bag..." he hissed, but then was quiet and said nothing more.

"Its for your safety, Vorpal," Forin tutted. "I'd rather not have you fall mid-flight." The bag was roomy enough to move around, thankfully for Vorpal's sake. But it tied onto Forin's belt easily and securely. "Alright, Zephyr, we're ready. Get us out of here, and on the way to Kaislun." He insisted, holding on tightly as Zephyr took a sleeping Cyprus up in his hands and lifted off into the air.

Welk, who was sitting quietly on the couch, watched as they left the house and took off. He was holding Isslia close to himself, just taking pleasure out of stroking her shoulders and back, giving her some joy out of being touched instead of fear. He exhaled into her hair, then said "I hope they find Luna and come back safely. We need all of our strength, at this point. Meanwhile, I think we should go and talk to that maid Gual mentioned soon. It's our only lead..."