The Forgotten Zodiac

"Maybe...I dunno. It'd be nice to have a mom again." Werr blinked up at the ceiling. "Even if she isn't my real one." He smiled a bit. "When should we leave, then? I'm voting for, the second Naybrin gets back. Any objections?" He looked from Welk and Cynyr, then nodded. "Right, then...I suppose we might as well see if Obelisk wants to follow. He should know by now that he'll be welcome in Alastor. He's...surprised me, really. Having a wife has done him a great deal of good. He's gone from a terrible enemy to a begrudged ally, and now a great asset. He's well earned our trust, at this point..."

"Yeah," Welk said quietly, gently pawing at Cynyr's ripped-up ear. The panther ignored him and instead buried his head under Werr's arm, safe from the intruding paws. Welk smiled, then looked back at Werr and said "Briana - I mean, mom - liked you too, you know. Since you're our brother, that means she'll be your new mom too!"

He said 'too', as he had never really gotten the chance to become close to his mother.

"It'll be nice." Werr smiled. "Peaceful, again. I hope." He then moved to stand, smiling still as he walked out the door and into the sitting room, where the others were. "Hey, where's Zephyr?" He frowned, looking about for the second king. "And Sylas. Leo?" He looked around.

"They had some...errands to run, according to Sylas." Obelisk shrugged. "Don't worry, they'll be back." He flicked his finger, sending a shadow to force Werr to sit down. "Don't show yourself in the window. I blocked yours off for a reason."

"Right. Sorry."

"There it is. The Temple of Stars." Sylas sighed. "Didn't you say you had something to do here too, Zephyr?" He questioned, frowning.

"Yes..." the dragon king said quietly, looking faintly depressed. He shook his head, sighing, and felt a hand on his neck. He looked down to see Leo standing here in human form, his expression rather soft and understanding. "Are you alright?" he asked, and Zephyr tried to smile as he said "Yeah...I'll be fine. But...you both should probably stand back."

"No, we've got something to do inside." Sylas frowned at him, then slid off of Zepyhr and walked confidently to the trapdoor. He made his way inside and collected the Gauntlets, then sighed at the shadows. "I know you're watching me, Titus. Here, take them. To Kaislun, where they'll be safe." He held out the gloves. Slowly, they were lifted into the air, then they disappeared altogether. "Nothing to worry about." He shrugged, aware of the fact that Titus had been suspicious of his intentions with the gauntlets. But Sylas waltzed right back up the ladder and out of the temple.

"Right, the deed it done, Leo. We can get dark back now, hopeful--" He stopped short when he saw who was standing there.

Snider, looking giddy. An unconscious Dark in his arms. "Eeek, this is so exciting! Here, have your munchkin back. Good work." He dropped Dark without a care, grinning up at Zephyr. "Do it, do it, do it!"

Dark hit the ground and curled up at once, letting out a strangled sound of pain. His clothing was ripped and torn nearly to the point of no longer covering him, and he looked like he had suffered abuse at the crazed demigod's hands. Zephyr snarled at the sight and turned at Snider, but he knew better than to actually touch him. That didn't mean the sharp mock-charge didn't startle him, though. The king turned back to the temple, exhaling heavily and slowly spreading his wings. He lifted into the air, flying up and hovering overhead, then concentrated and did his best to channel the internal powers Naybrin had given him. He opened his mouth and red vapor started to form inside it, and once he felt it was ready, he released it at the temple.

It came out in a fiery red blast that hit the temple and began to destroy it at once. It was nearly the same power Naybrin had used against the soul-weapon. Nearly. Naybrin was still the most powerful being in existance, with magic they hadn't even seen yet. But this power was enough to consume the temple in red fire, which quickly caused it to fall.

((Don't forget, we still haven't had that big 'Welk dies' scene, where he gets the burns Werr saw on his arm in the coffin in that nightmare. He'll rip the eternal crystal or whatever out of Obelisk to 'destroy' Remor, and there was something we had decided, but I forgot. 936 ))

((That'll be when the Titan comes around, obviously. :3

And you can't destroy Remor yet, that'll be in the fourth book. -nodnod-))

The ground above the temple sank in as the temple itself was lain to ruin, the sound of rattling chains coming from the breaking enchantments. Powerful magic that only a Dragon King could ever hope to destroy. Sylas watched in wonder and curiosity, as usual. Snider watched with unbridled excitement and joy.

Something odd started to happen, though; white orbs dragging themselves together and being picked up into the sky, wandering away with the four winds. One of them flew away faster than the others, clearly having a destination. It wasn't long before they couldn't be seen any longer. Sylas frowned slightly; from watching Cyprus' work, he could have sworn those were souls of some kind. But very large and more white than normal. Sylas shrugged it off, knowing better than to question things.

But knowing how Snider was laughing and clapping, it couldn't have been anything good.

((Will that be in this book or the next, Welk dying?

And we should switch to Boko soon. I want to see him complete the trials. ))

"Be gone, you twisted freak," Zephyr snarled. "I've done your dirty work. Leave." He shook his head at Snider, making him run out of the way, then bent his wings low so Sylas could carry Dark up onto his back. Leo bounded up after him, then the dragon rose wearily up into the air, looking exhausted.

((You pick. xD

Okaaaaay~))

"Fine, fine, fine!" Snider laughed. "See you later," He waved, then spun on the spot and vanished.

Sylas took note of the great dragon's tiredness. "You should probably stop somewhere and rest. Aren't we close to the Sacred Plains? I wouldn't mind heading there, if you wouldn't mind taking us. I know you would want to see your mate and child, after all..." He smiled a bit. The sun was rising slowly, signaling the end of the evening that had seemed to last forever.

((This book. : D Something needs to happen during that scene, something le important.))

"I would like that..." Zephyr murmured, looking faintly depressed. He shook himself and flew onwards in silence for a while, then, once they were nearing the Sacred Plains, remembered something. "Today is the ceremony!" he said. "I need to be there for it. Thank goodness I remembered..." He flared his wings and went faster, unaware that this would be the most memorable coming-of-age trial ever.

*

Shiya was nervous, to say the least.

It was bright and early on the day of the trial, and Boko had managed to get in some practice with his temporary wing. She was still afraid for him, however. Though she needed to be afraid for herself.

Leonen was acting worse than ever, bullying as many dragonlings as he could. Luckily, he wouldn't risk coming close to Shiya while Vaira was around.

Boko made doubly sure that Shiya stayed with Vaira. He was a little bundle of overstimulation; he was flicking from one thing to the next, happy and overly active. Vuker had to stop him out of fear that he'd wear himself out.

"Does it start yet? Is it starting?" Boko questioned, nosing around Shiya. "I'm ready. Are you ready? This is going to be INSANE." He beamed, but remembered his promise.

Even if he lost, he'd fight against Leonen's disgusting bullying. He'd fight it to the death, if he had to,

((Also, he should totally have his temporary wing break halfway through. SABOTAAAAGE.))

"I'm ready," she answered timidly, shivering with trepidation. "I'm really scared, but...I'm ready." She bumped her chin gently against his, then looked up as the Elders rose from their vairous dens, beginning to gather at the large cliff-side ring of stones that surrounded the area in the Sacred Plains meant just for this occasion.

The oldest of the Elders, which was Mithor, stepped forward, shaking himself and lifting his head to speak. "Today is a new day for our younglings," he called to the gathered. "Today, our eighty-yearlings will take their first step towards adulthood. They will still be considered very young for many years to come, but today, they may very well find their future life-mate. Several trials lay ahead for our young males and females alike, but rest assured, dear friends, that they will be protected in this trials as best as possible." He blew a short blast of murky-brown flames, then said "The rules for each trial are simple. There is no killing. There is no cheating. There is no bribing. Those are the basic rules, really, and you are expected to adhere to them. Anyone found cheating will be removed from the trials at once. Will our younglings who wish to participate step forward now?"

Leonen loped forward at once, looking prideful.

((Okay.))

A few more stepped forward, ranging in size and stature, but all of them much larger than Boko or Shiya. The drakeling looked a bit odd, his silver scales standing out like a sore thumb among various hues of reds, navy blues, and dark greens. But he still stood up as tall as he could, shifting on his only set of legs excitedly as he tried to contain his joy. He didn't care about the judging glances the other elders were giving him; he was going to participate, and he was going to do everything he could to secure Shiya's safety.

The males and the females stood apart from each other as the Elders looked them over. They spotted Boko and almost all of them looked indignant. "What's he doing in there?" one said, not bothering to lower his wheezy voice. "Someone take him out. He's not a dragon; he doesn't deserve our trials."

"Touch a single scale on his hide and I'll make you pay," Vaira snarled, curling her lips back angrily. "Do you understand me? I am the queen, and this is my son. Would you deny your queen?"

The Elders shifted uncertainly. If they denied her and Boko, they would have to then deal with an angry Zephyr, and well...Naybrin had chosen well in his pick of the second king.

When nobody said anything, Mithor spoke again, in an amused tone.

"We will begin. The first task is the simplest. Dragon-dancing. In this, you pick your partner and take part in a traditional dance that we have performed for centuries. You are allowed to switch partners if you find yourself incompatible with your current one. The dance begins...now."

Several dragons moved towards large stones or logs, which were there instruments, aside from their own bodies and magic.

The music started up after a moment, rich and tribal. At once, several of the males turned the females, beginning to weave their bodies in time with the music, approaching the girls of their choice. They bobbed their heads or merely swayed in a seductive sort of way, trying to impress the one they wanted to try dancing with.

Dancing. Dancing, of all things to start with! Boko was...well, not a dancer. But he was eager and over excited. And fast, too. Much faster than Leonen, as was proven by the way he easily slid between a few dancing pairs and made it in front of Shiya before anyone else. "Hihihi," He spluttered breathlessly, grinning widely. He proceeded to twist his long body around, bobbing in time with the music and making a few shapes with his tail, like swirls and odd little triangles, and even a symbolic heart shape. He quickly remembered the dance that Vuker and Lutrez had spent so long trying to teach him. He started doing that, though he couldn't stop his tail from twirling about.

Shiya purred and titled her head at him, watching all of his movements closely. Really, he didn't have to do the dance for her; she just wanted to be near him naturally. But she found a certain like in the way he moved, and soon enough, she found her body replying of its own accord. She stood up and felt herself begin to weave from side to side, slowly, lifting one leg at a time as she approached him. Once she was close enough, she slipped up right next to him, tucking her head and neck down against him. His chin found the groove of the back of her neck as they wrapped around each other, swaying to the music. He felt her rest her chin on the back of his neck in return, purring softly.

Boko only got more and more excited by this, and slipped off beat. Shiya had to help him fall back into the rhythm, which he gladly did so. He twisted himself around and around her, making a protective cover over his dear friend. He found himself licking her scales, and forced himself to stop as he remembered that he wasn't supposed to do that. It wasn't part of the dance, after all.

But soon enough, the music stopped, and the girls and boys were separated again. Boko found himself under the glaring gaze of Leonen; the larger dragonling had been close to getting to Shiya first, but Boko had cut in front of him. Boko ignored it, shifting his new wings (which produced a small clicking noise) and holding himself up happily.

Shiya hummed at him, bending her head forward to give his nose a tiny lick with her soft pink tongue. Then she gave a sudden shriek of pain.

Leonen had trod hard upon the tip of her delicate tail, his gaze rivited on the stocky little purple female named Nilia he had selected to dance with at the last second. She seemed taken with him, but he was too busy being angry at Boko to care.

He tilted his head around on his neck and said "Oh, sorry. Didn't see you there." He flicked his tail at them and moved to step away with Nilia.

Shiya curled her tail around and stuck the throbbing end into her mouth, tears forming in her eyes.

Boko forced down his anger and licked the top of Shiya's head before slipping away from her. This trail was done; Boko was left to eagerly await the next one. What would it be, getting food? Boko was very good at food-fetching. He knew exactly what Shiya liked, too. Large birds! Boko knew this to be a fact, and he was ready to go hunt for her at a moment's notice. Heck, even if they weren't doing all these trials, he'd go hunt for her. What was next? He turned his attention back to Mithor, blinking.

"The next trial is for the males alone," the great brown dragon said. "You will fight, one on one, until pinned or otherwise unable to continue fighting."

Leonen's blunt, ugly green snout twisted into a grin, and he turned and looked directly at Boko. Something about his gaze was more unnerving than usual.

Mithor had continued. "There is no killing allowed, nor are you allowed to give permanent harm to another. It is more of a wrestling, brute-strength sort of match, anyways. We will deliberate to decide who will fight who, then resume."