The Forgotten Zodiac

Welk blinked at him, then said "I haven't seen them. ...Hey, that means my dad should be around here somewhere too." He looked around, apparently expecting to see Leodhaius and Sylas appear from the darkness like Cynyr liked to do, with tiny Dark trotting after their heels. But this didn't happen, so Welk just went back to watching Werr closely. He bent his head and nuzzled Werr's cheek lightly, saying "You're not a bad boyfriend to her, Werr. If you were, she wouldn't still be here, would she? She would've left a while ago." He nudged him a bit, making Werr shift closer to the seemingly fragile girl at his side.

Werr sighed. "She...tried to. She basically did...Remor kidnapped her and a lot of the others. I was alone for a little while, but they fought him off." He scratched the back of his neck, then did the same to Welk. "I still feel bad about it...but I really need to talk to my dad. There's something I need to ask him. Can we go find him?" He sat up, tucking a strand of Lexi's hair behind her ear before slipping out of the bed and standing up.

"Sure," Welk said, pausing to bend his head and take Isslia by the scruff of her furry doggy neck, lifting her as easily as a mother dog lifting one of her puppies. He slid from the bed and trotted over to the panther in the corner of the room, knowing Isslia trusted him. If she woke while he was gone, he wanted her to feel reassured and know she wasn't alone. He tucked her gently down against Cynyr's chest, into his arms, and smiled when she snuggled up to him and the panther's arms shifted slightly, cradling her against him.

Welk then turned and moved over to Werr, closing his eyes and nuzzling up against his legs gently and lovingly.

Werr smiled, then eased himself onto Welk's back. "Man, I missed riding." He smiled a bit, gripping Welk's mane, as he usually did. "Let's go," He nodded, and Welk trotted off in search of their parents. It was a pretty boring search; they didn't find them in the kitchen, their room, or any other area Werr thought they might be in. His last guess was the Library, but they weren't there, either. "Alright," Werr sighed. "Your turn. Where are they, Welk?"

The half-cat paused, thinking it over, then said "Well, Leo is me and Cynyr's father, but Cynyr turned out like him, while I turned out like Briana. Sooooo, it would stand to reason that Leo would go somewhere Cynyr would go, since Cynyr is like him! And Cynyr likes all places dark and shadowy. BUT, Sylas is Leo's best friend, so Leo would follow him into the sunniest of places. So a mix of the two would be the Eternal Garden, where there's lots of sunlight and soft grass, but plenty of shadows under the trees!"

Werr blinked. That was actually fairly sound logic. "Alright. To the garden, then." He nodded, smiling a bit. "Not a bad idea, but we don't know if they're actually there at all. Let's test your theory, hmm?" He leaned in a little closer to Welk, spurring him into running faster than before. "Let's go!"

Welk's eyes brightened and his stride immediately lengthened. He raced down the hall at full-speed, turning corners easily, fire flickering along in his wake. He laughed suddenly, despite the lateness of the night, feeling Werr lean against his shoulders in order to feel the lion's smooth, rolling gait. Welk smiled and moved onward, their Naybrin-given bond mingling and melding until their hearts seemed to beat in-time, until each breath was felt by the other.

Werr couldn't help but grin. Welk only put on more speed as their hearts seemed to resonate with each other, which only seemed to make Werr happier. But of course, they could only run around for so long; before too much time had passed, they found themselves in the Eternal Gardens.

"You seek your parents," Resu greeted them as Welk slid to a stop. "They're here, somewhere. I won't tell you where. It'll be fun watching you hunt them down." She smiled.

"Thanks for nothing, then," Werr snorted. "See you around."

"Certainly."

"It's okay, I can feel 'em!" Welk said, rearing happily onto his hind legs and plunging off into the undergrowth. He didn't explain how he could 'feel' their fathers' presence, but it didn't seem to matter much. He charged off at a gallop, letting his long, golden wings burst forth from his shoulders. He hadn't flown since his return to life, and now he spread his wings wide and leapt high, arching into the sky and giving a loud shout of joy.

Werr clung close, smiling away. Welk's happiness radiated through him. It wasn't the same as his own happiness, but he did indeed draw quite a bit of happiness from the lion. "I've always wanted to see what that glowing orb was made of!" He pulled on Welk's ears, guiding him up to it. It was a strange crytsal of some kind, that glowed so brightly that it acted like a sun in itself. It was dimmer now, simulating the moon rather than the sun.

Welk laughed happily and flicked one wing up, grazing the edge of the large, burning-bright crystal. His feathers were singed, but he didn't care. With a ringing whoop, he plunged downward, his muzzle pulled back in a grin.

Not long after, he located Sylas and Leo sprawled calmly under the shadow of a weeping willow, Sylas with a fishing pole resting against his leg, the hook of which bobbed pleasantly in a nearby lake.

"Sylas!" Werr slid off of Welk breathlessly, grinning.

"Oh! Hey there, lad." Sylas blinked, then stood and brushed himself off. "W-wait a second, Galai said you were poisoned. Are you alright?"

"I'm fine, for now. It doesn't matter, we're going to fix that."

"Sure, but...when?" Sylas raised a brow. "Last I tried to check on you, you were unconscious in the infirmary. Airlia said you had a heart attack."

"You're not exactly worried," Werr frowned.

"Well...no." Sylas chuckled. "You're a tough kid. I know you can handle yourself. Anyway," He shook his head and smiled again. "What's up?"

"Well...er...I actually had a question..."

"Hmm?"

"Erm...what's the, uh...how would I go about..."

"Spit it out."

"How do I propose to Lexi?"

Welk immediately grinned and threw an arm around Werr's shoulders, saying "Buddy, if a guy like ME can propose to a girl like Isslia, I'm sure you can easily say it to Lexi. All I did was babble through a line about how I lost the ring I made for her because I died." He patted Werr's head lightly, smiling mischeviously.

Leo raised an eyebrow slightly at this, saying "You...proposed, Welk?"

The blonde half-cat understood his father's confusion. "Yep. Even someone as goofy as I am can find true love." He smiled, then said, quite coyly, "Briana's invited to the wedding, when I decide to have it."

Leo's expression didn't change in the slightest, but they could swear his face turned a slightly red shade.

Werr sighed. "It was mostly the moment that did it, but I have no doubts that Isslia is ecstatic. But I have a ring," He reached into his pocket, pulling it out. "Huh. I thought I had dropped it...oh yeah, I think Airlia picked it up. I certainly hope she didn't show Lexi..." He sighed.

"Well...you know the whole dropping down on one knee bit." Sylas rubbed the back of his neck. "But you've gotta make it something memorable, don't you? You've got to stun her with something beautiful first, perhaps...something she'll like."

"Like what?"

"You're the one proposing, lad." Sylas laughed. "Shouldn't you know what she likes?"

"W-well, I do, I just...don't know what she would like more..." Werr mumbled.

"Well, perhaps you could ask someone with more experience."

"Like who?" Werr frowned.

"Obelisk," Sylas said, quite serious. "He's likely been taking care of Lexi where you haven't. Not to mention he's been married twice. That Fawn girl is quite the catch, too. Talk about a tall glass of water..."

"She's dead." Werr sighed heavily. "Dunno if Obelisk will be willing to do much of anything for me..."

"Is she? That's a shame...but hey, he might surprise you. You won't know unless you talk to him, of course." Sylas smiled.

"Right..." Werr nodded. "I guess. Thanks for nothing, dad."

"Hey, hey, I'm trying," Sylas laughed, knowing his son was only jesting.

Welk, meanwhile, had snuck closer to Leo, who had turned his head away, Sylas still leaning against his wide, furry back. The huge black panther had his forefeet dipped lightly in the edge of the lake, distantly watching the far edge of the water. Welk siddled closer to the half-cat that had sired him, watching Leo's face, of which his older son looked so similar to him. "Do you still love Briana?" he asked, watching his father's face closely.

Leo said nothing for a long moment, then slowly said "...I...am not sure. It...it's been a long time, since I last spoke to her. A long, long time..."

Welk blinked at him, then turned his gaze to Werr, deciding to abandon his efforts to get Leodhaius to talk and instead stay near his best friend. He walked over and rubbed up against Werr's legs, saying "Werr, Lexi loves you. Sure, you've hit bumpy patches, but she's still here, isn't she? She's still willing to cry over and for you. The second you drop that knee, I promise you...she'll be yours. More than she was before." He nuzzled under Werr's hand, purring. "If she really loves you, it won't matter to her what you do to propose. Just as long as you propose." He smiled, then said "And to the question of what she'll like, she loves to draw, but I think she MIGHT love you a little more. Maybe."

"You're right. She does like to draw." Werr blinked, then smiled. "I'm gonna go ask Toroph for some things. Then maybe Obelisk for a little help setting it up. C'mon, Welk, let's get back to the castle." He climbed onto Welk's back again, grinning. "Oh, and Sylas?"

"Yeah?" He looked up, smiling a bit.

"Thanks. Let's go!" He looked back to Welk, grinning.

The half-cat immediately leapt high, flaring his wings open and arching into the sky, giving a joyful whoop that echoed throughout the cavern.

*

Cynyr had woken to find Werr and Welk gone, but hadn't worried; he knew if they were together, they would both be safe. With Isslia still sleeping soundly in his arms, he had stood up, deciding to check on Seria. It was still dark, hardly even midnight yet, so he would take care not to wake his heavily pregnant wife. He just wanted to cement in his mind that she was safe.

((Nate's around, yeah? If so, have him bump into our favorite tortured soul. I need more Nate.))

((Sure. xDD))

"Hey," A voice said softly in passing. It was Nate, returning from the library with some books. Mostly books on Titans. "I, uh...thought we may as well know the enemy. Obelisk probably knows more than these books do, but I figured I may as well have the basics down. Did you know that all Titans, if they make contact with humans, are bound to truth? They don't have to talk at all, they can just do what they want regardless. Not like Demigods, who are punished when they interfere with human lives...bound to truth. That being said..."

He approached calmly. To a stranger, he would seem hostile and scary. His larger frame usually did that already, and the dim lighting at the moment only cast gloomy shadows over him. But Cynyr knew him well enough to know that he was nothing but worried at the moment. "Are you still...Cynyr? Obviously you're not a disguised enemy or something ridiculous...Obelisk would have seen it by now. But...on the inside. Are you still truly Cynyr, or has he gone somewhere else? I've looked up those wraiths you keep summoning...this is taboo magic. This is the kind of stuff that condemns people to the underworld. Yet...here you are...I guess you don't have to answer me. You're not a titan. You can lie. But I'm still worried. If not for myself, then for Werr and Welk...they need Cynyr as much as they need each other. Even if it doesn't seem like it."

The black panther stared up at Nate through his single eye, his expression stony, his ears swayed backwards against his lank hair. Of course I'm me, he growled, his tail lashing from side to side behind him. The only thing that's changed now is that I'm powerful. More powerful than anyone else here. Being a possessor isn't so bad, really. It's not 'taboo magic'. It's just that people are too afraid to take the risk. To learn. Well, I took the risk and more, and now...

He smiled slightly, his lips forming a thinly cruel expression.

...now I'm strong.

He turned to keep walking, still holding little Isslia in his arms.

"Don't you realize that in doing so, you've made yourself weak?" Nate frowned. "You didn't trust yourself and your powers to be strong enough to face what you had to. You didn't have confidence that you could do it, so you turned to others...but instead of asking for help, you destroyed lives and stole what was never yours to take. That's not strength, Cynyr...and I don't know what's worse; you believing it to be a strength, or you refusing to accept that it's not. You're not the strongest out of everyone here. I can't say I wouldn't do the same if I were in your shoes, but I have faith that Obelisk would never stoop so low. And I'm thankful that I do, him being immortal and all..." He sighed and turned away. "You're not Cynyr. I had hoped, but...I guess now I can just hope that he'll come back someday."