The Forgotten Zodiac

"Yes, planning is good. And with the current events, as we said before, it's important that this happens soon." Versha dragged over a couple of chairs, handing them to Sylas and L'arc.

"Yes, I agree. I think the most important factor is location." The youngest of the councilmembers said. "We don't really have a place well suited for a fancy ceremony. We use the clearing below us for city-wide announcements, but I'm not sure if that would work for the ceremony..."

"It's either that, or we have it completely privately, in here. Which, according to what you said before, L'arc, would not do well. You wanted it to be more or less public here, no?" The eldest sighed.

"Yes, that would be preferable. I'd say that I don't want you to go to any trouble, but I know that's all this is. Thank you again," he said, taking the seat from Versha with a smile. He sat down and faced the council, thinking.

"Right. Well...we'll have to set something up in the courtyard. It's the biggest space we have, although it's not very secure..." The elder frowned. "Versha, is it possible to set up a ward around the area?"

"Yes, a ward would keep out wildlife. Goodness knows we don't want a bear interrupting our ceremonies." Versha smiled wryly. "Or a pesky squirrel."

"Right. We can try to get walls up, as well. They won't do much good for more than a wandering soul, though. Well, either way..." The elder sighed.

"What must be done must be done." The youngest smiled. "We have enough chairs around, you know."

"You're missing something important," The second growled. "Walls and wards and chairs aren't important. We don't have a crown. If we're going to follow the usual ceremonies, we need a crown."

L'arc fell silent as someone pointed out this obvious problem. "A laurel would do," he decided, nodding. "Even though it's not metal, the principle's the same. Though I wish we could find the one my father used to wear..." he said, sighing a bit. "But I suppose it... you know. Came off with his head." The forest prince grimaced and shook himself slightly, looking back at the council to see how they would react to his suggestion.

"Actually," Versha spoke up, smiling a bit. "The crown was recovered by the witches of the western plains. It's intrinsic value attracted them to it, and I believe they stole it from the human regiment near the very start of the war. It's highly probable that they still have it."

"But they're not just going to hand it up. Particularly to us," Sylas frowned. "Not unless we have something valuable..."

"Or, we win another bet," L'arc suggested, grinning slightly. "Of course, after how the last one went, they might not be so keen on trying their luck again," he said.

"Or they might just not pit Nana against us this time. I wouldn't be surprised if they tried to pull something against us this time..." Sylas shook his head. "But we have to try, L'arc. It'll be worth it. What better way to secure your kingship than wearing the king's crown?" He grinned.

"So long as the risk's not too great. I mean, I'm good with the laurel," he said, shrugging slightly. "But if we can get the crown back, I'd like that," he said, nodding.

"I'm not too certain what we'd bargain with." The elder sighed. "We can't risk it. Maybe we can get it later. For now, we have to focus on the main problem, the most serious of the lot of them."

"And what would that be?" Sylas frowned.

"We don't exactly have the Tree of Ether, or even the Ether itself. How are we to bless his rise to the throne? If we're not going to do at least that properly, there's no point in the ceremony in the first place."

Sylas grinned. "You're in luck. I happen to have quite a few shards of Ether. It's not the whole thing, but...will it work?" He pulled the bundle of shards from his pocket.

"By the stars, how does a human like yourself have so many?" The youngest councilman took it from Sylas, inspecting the whole batch curiously. "This is at least a solid fourth of the Ether. How did you find all this?"

"We pick it up here and there. I hold onto the majority of them because I can use it." Sylas blinked.

"That's right," Versha smiled. "Humans can weild the Ether's power...to either destroy the forest, or restore life to it."

"I prefer the restoring bit." Sylas rolled his eyes. "But you can use that if you need to. It's not mine, anyway. It's the forest's."

L'arc smiled brightly at Sylas, glad that, in this, things would go according to tradition. He looked back to the council. "Most of the original Ether is in the hands of the Manakete people. They keep it in their Sanctuary, a place that demons can't go in to. So most of it is safe." With this reassurance, he looked back over to Sylas, still grinning. "Thanks, Sy."

"This is quite the development, though. The trees on the northern border were only barely saved from the flames. They could be fixed, and the Tree of Rebirth could be secured..." The second councilman murmured.

"That's not what we're focusing on right now." The elder shook his head. "This will be enough to perform the ceremony properly. We can get prepared immediately."

"Very good." Versha beamed. "I think that's all we needed to cover with L'arc, considering. Ah, but after the coronation, you're welcome to give a few words to those watching, prince L'arc. If you wanted to say something or not is up to you, of course."

L'arc blinked, as if he had never heard of such a thing as public speaking before. "Oh, ah, right. I'll endeavor to be inspiring," he said, grinning somewhat sheepishly. Acknowledging the dismissal, he stood, beckoning for Sylas to come after him.

"Come on, Sy. Thanks again," he said, smiling at the councilmembers. "Yeah. Thanks for everything." With that, the two exited.

"That was easy," Sylas smiled. "I feel a little light-pocketed now that they have the ether shards, though. Not that it matters, I'm just so use to having them there. And--" He stopped suddenly, staring down into the bushes below. "Huh. I thought I saw a dog..."

"It was probably one of Erwin's," L'arc said, glancing down. "You sure it was a dog? Maybe it would have spoken to us, though," he said. "Dogs are usually polite."

"Maybe it was busy." Sylas frowned, then shrugged. "Hunting or something. It was on the ground, anyway...maybe it didn't see us." He sighed, running his fingers through his hair. "Whatever. Let's go find the others, L'arc."

L'arc gave the ground a second glance, then followed after Sylas. "...you're doing okay, right?" he asked, looking the human over.

"I'm fine," Sylas blinked, then smiled at L'arc. "Why would I not be? This is great, L'arc, you're going to be crowned king! I call being your head guard," He grinned jokingly, though some part of him wasn't joking in the slightest.

"Oh, Sylas, I don't know. There is a strict screening process," L'arc said with a serious face. The smile that broke over it a second later made it obvious that he was joking, however, and he quickly said, "Sure, you got it. Just stay close, yeah? Wouldn't want anything bad to happen to you in the first week."

"What the heck else does a head guard do?" Sylas laughed. "Stay close and cover you in case of any danger. It's what I do every day. You'll be fine under my watch, L'arc."

L'arc smiled brightly at Sylas, not saying anything as he felt the expression said all that was needed. He headed back in to the guest house, keeping the smile on his face as he looked at the others.

"The coronation is on the calander. We're going to do this thing," he announced.