Myrkr growled as the vines wrapped around her limbs. Yeshíva didn't sound too happy either, but there had been a snort of victory that came when Myrkr was immobile.

"I told you to calm down, little Cí'mehia," Yeshíva said calmly, no mockery or superiority in her voice. "Now back to the med wing."

Yeshíva walked through the door first, and before Myrkr was in the light, she noticed the ruby Drómdí, Sanguine, the icy Drómdí, Shimmer, and the other humanoid she saw before when she first woke up.

"Myrkr!" Sanguine cried, happiness audible in his voice. "Thank Ysamaldrí you're safe."

"Of course she was safe," Yeshíva said. "She was with me. My name is Yeshíva, head of the med wing and med lab."

"This is Shimmer, and I'm Sanguine."

"We know, we've watched you for some time, Sanguine. Greetings, Cedric."

     "Yeshíva," was Cedric's reply.

     "Mind putting me down now?" Myrkr growled.

     Yeshíva turned to regard Myrkr. "You tried running, how do you tell me you won't?"

     "Where would I run?" Myrkr retorted.

     "True," the life dragon agreed. "But no."

     Sanguine looked between Myrkr and Yeshíva. "Please let her down?"

     "No. If you would wish to accompany her in the med lab, you'll be more than welcome."

     Myrkr flinched at the word lab. "Why am I going to the med lab?"

     "To recover your memories."

     Cedric also looked more wary. "You know, Tahl'drí wants to put her in a lab..."

     "This will be nothing like that Cí'mehia's lab. She will be fine."

"She will be fine," a soft voice echoed. A Drómdí stepped into the room, her darker clothing making her seem smaller in the bright, white room. "Trust me, Cedric, Sanguine. Tahl'drí is the one who took her memories, but we will get them back. From what I hear, this isn't the first time amnesia has happened. However, it is the first time any memories have come back before the process, or at all. Come, let us get to work."

When, with the help of Yeshíva's vines, Myrkr was perfectly immobile on an examination table, she was not the happiest Mythic in the world. However, immobile didn't necessarily mean mute.

"Let me out!" the Cí'mehia screeched. "I'll kill you, Yeshíva!"

The ceiling directly above Myrkr's head opened up and some device was lowered toward her head.

"Now, Myrkr," a speaker said, Yeshíva's voice. "This device will latch onto your whole head to try and jumpstart your memories. The material is malible, so it will fit to your head after a moment of contact. Are you ready to proceed?"

"Let me out of here, damnit!"

The device set itself on Myrkr's face, and briefly for a moment she wondered how it could possibly latch onto her entire head. Then she felt it extend around her head, connecting in the back, catching her hair.

She tried growling, but in the middle of the hostile noise, she felt something stick to the back of her neck. Her whole body went limp as a shock passed through the device, and she lost sense of time for a bit.

Seemingly only seconds after the shock, the device lifted from her head. The vines retracted. "Brain activity increased," a mechanical voice said.

It felt like seeing after being blind.

Myrkr sat up from the table, instantly saw a window framing her friends and Sanguine. "Sanguine!" she cried, starting to tear up. How atrocious she'd treated him! There was a door made entirely of some kind of metal between the two rooms, and Myrkr made a beeline for it. Sanguine was half a second ahead of her, and she threw her arms around him as he opened the door. "I'm sorry," she cried into his shoulder. "Sang," she got out.

     Sanguine immediately returned her embrace, adding his wings, too. Red light filtered through the membranes and glittered off the few scales she could see. "Welcome back, Myr," he murmured.

     Myrkr then felt a sigh pass through Sanguine, and a second later his embrace was gone, and she let him go. "Myrkr," Luna said, from behind. "Everyone. We must go back to our dorms, it's late at night and we've all skipped the second portion of Waterfall's class."

     "What about an explanation?" Myrkr asked, turning around.

     "Sharp, aren't you?" Yeshíva commented. "Not now, it's too dangerous."

     Myrkr felt a hand on her shoulder. "If it helps," Luna said softly, "I don't know too much more than you."

     The door Mykr had entered from before opened, framing Chivriel. "If you'll follow me," he said, looking each of them in the eyes. He lingered on Myrkr's. "Welcome back, Es of Ysmí." Turning, not waiting for them, he left the room.

     Luna was the first to follow, then Cedric and Shimmer. Sanguine took Myrkr's hand and led her after the others. Yeshíva called a farewell to the group of students.

Before she went to see Waterfall, Myrkr found Chivriel in the next room over from Resivora's room smithing with some kind of dark metal. Chivriel greeted her politely, but evaded naming the metal when asked.

Waterfall was less than thrilled with Luna, Shimmer, Sanguine, and Myrkr skipping his class. He called them forward to explain themselves, and explain they did. Sanguine told of the fight Myrkr had agreed to, and then her lapse of sentience instead of her amnesia. Late into the night the friends watched over the Cí'mehia, and in the morning she was better.

     "Why did you not seek out a healer?" Waterfall rumbled, still displeased. But he wasn't stupid, he understood it seemed, and some of his anger drained away.

     Only some.

     "I suggested it," Luna said, truthfully. "But no one wanted word of Myrkr's feral misfortune to get out and worry everyone. We didn't know how long it would last or if she'd come out of it, but Sanguine was certain she would be fine in the morning, which she incidentally was."

     Waterfall huffed. "So be it. Get back in line."

     And, thanks to the Order's vast knowledge of mental flues, Luna was able to substitute Myrkr's mysterious amnesia for a rare but not unheard of condition. Waterfall left them alone for the entire class, even, and gave suggestions to all during sparring in the form of commands.

     After the day was done, and the group minus Maple was in the courtyard talking, Delrahj stepped out of the shadows. He was bandaged, and had a stick to keep balance should he need it, but his eyes were as clear and alive as ever. Suddenly, Myrkr felt admiration for him. "I'm sure you'd all like some explanations," the Cí'mehia stated. "Chiv, if you would."

     Turning around towards the way they came, Myrkr saw the Wí'chú. That was what he'd called his race, right?

     Chivriel whispered something, and the world went black and white. Cedric gasped, as if he understood what was said and why this happened. "I'm not good with magic, so this will be short. We are the Order of the Eltrí. We want to prevent the war that is threatening the Isles — all of them. Tomorrow night, I will go down the old parts of this ancient castle. Find and follow me. You've all been there, but only Cedric has any reason to go there. Find a reason or do it stealthily. We must retire now, this is taxing energy. Goodnight, Mythics. Keep your eyes open for those who might betray you." He looked directly at Myrkr, and then Sanguine. "But one of you will betray you. Felines are far more secretive than you may know."

     His ears flicked, and suddenly the world regained color, and the breeze resumed. Myrkr realized he had stopped time. "And Myrkr," Chivriel added, before he turned to leave. "Keep an ear out for the Tí'dak."

     He continued out of the courtyard, Delrahj turning into his shadow, bandages and all, behind him.

     "One of us isn't trustworthy?" Sanguine asked.

     "Maybe it's Maple," Shimmer said. "Did none of you notice she was absent since Myrkr had her problem?"

     "But he said it was one of us," Myrkr said. "She wasn't here."

     "They also didn't want to tell her, obviously." Cedric looked into everyone's eyes. "We can't let this tear us apart, alright? Come on, let's head back. Let me tell you, tomorrow isn't Resivora's class before the weekend."

"Agreed, and thanks for the heads up," Myrkr said. "I'd prefer a normal day tomorrow." She started to head back, and she heard Sanguine behind her. Shimmer hurried past in her dragon form in the air while it sounded like Cedric and Luna were talking in hushed voices back in the courtyard.

"Do you think they can be trusted, Myr?" Sanguine asked. "I feel like Cedric is trustable, if not Luna and Shimmer."

Myrkr wanted badly to say that no, they can't be trusted, that no, she didn't trust them. But she did, and she knew it. "I don't know, Sang," she answered. "Luna has some kind of ability or power. She wasn't with us, nor was Cedric, when we woke up in the med wing. And they are a group, so if we trust one of them..."

"We trust them all," Sanguine finished.

"Yes," Myrkr said quietly. "Come on, we still have no way to get anywhere, anyway. By the time we do, we should know if we can trust them." Myrkr hurried on, and Sanguine kept pace until they had to seperate.

✦ ✦ ❦ ✦ ✦

Luna watched as Myrkr made to leave, Sanguine and Shimmer behind her. Cedric just turned when Luna put a hand on his shoulder and whispered, "Hold up a minute, Cedric?"

He froze midstep, and slowly turned. "Yes?"

Taking her hand off his shoulder as he turned and taking a few steps back, she steeled herself. "Who were you?"

"I could almost ask the same of you."

"I'm not the one who ran from my past, Cedric."

"...Fine. You want to know who I was? Let me start with a question. What is your opinion of Mion and Tahl'drí?"

"Indifferent, though I've heard she is ambitious. And her taking Myr's memories..."

"That's an understatement to the truth." Turning away and looking up at the nearly-full moon, he continued. "She breaks promises, does whatever it takes to get something she wants, and has the ability to keep it all a secret from the populace."

"What?" Luna asked, appalled. "How do you know this? How could you know?"

"Because the thing she uses to keep things secret are her Shal'jí, Elites, her royal guards, assassins, and agents. And I was one of them."

"Cedric..." Luna said softly, softer than usual. "I've heard rumors. Is she going to join the War of the Isles?"

"I wish I knew myself. I... escaped... a little more than three years ago. But something I know is still relevant. You must trust me, for I can't bring myself to betray a former partner, a current enemy." At this point, Cedric was staring intently at the moon. Luna noticed the tears in his eyes, threatening to spill. "I hope to tell Myrkr before it's too late. Tahl'drí senses something in her, as do I. As does my adversary. And I'd bet you sense it too. But she doesn't know how to reach out with it, to sense other's power."

"So let me get this straight, Cedric. What are you?"

"I am a mistake, now. I once was a Cí'mehia, like Myrkr. But then Tahl'drí, along with who was at the time the head scientist, Delrahj's mother, changed me. See, the short version of this is that we, the Tí'dak, all humanoid animal shifters, were once human or chimaera. The genetically modified humans had offspring with the chimaera, and we were created. I believe Chiv is a Tí'dak of lupine origin, a Wí'chú.
"Tahl'drí somehow got both werewolf and Wí'chú essence, and I agreed to be the subject for a new species of Tí'dak." Slowly, Luna could tell Cedric remembered the day and the pain that must have come with it. "My partner at the time had begged me to not be the subject. She was afraid she would lose me. And she did."

"Cedric you don't have to share this..."

"I have to, Luna. And because you keep your own secret, you are the only one I can tell. I've kept this a secret for years, thinking about her every night until I met Myrkr and Sanguine. Now I worry about Tahl'drí getting Myrkr and killing her for some sick experiment.
"With the help of an Eltrí named Azure Star, I escaped. I faced my partner in my escape alone, and she refused to come with me. We fought, and I escaped. For two years, I lived in a Mythic village in the human realm near a tree portal before word came of enrollment in the Ziix Academy. You pretty much know the rest, as I met you and Shimmer last year."

Luna let the silence hang before Cedric looked at her again. Nothing but the few tears he shed showed he was so low. She hugged him, her wings growing and adding to the embrace. When she released him, he looked her in the eye, and she confirmed who his partner was to him.

"You love her, don't you?"

"And she loves me." Cedric's voice was as strong and normal as ever.

"Loves?"

"She was never happy about hunting me down, though no one would have ever known. She is a different person when doing a job she doesn't agree with. Maybe it's a gift, or curse, but it makes it easier. And it became instinctually hard-wired by the time I left. I think she's trying to face what she's done, though I don't know if she'll fix it in time."

"And that's why you wish to keep her a secret."

"It is."

✦ ✦ ❦ ✦ ✦

Cedric looked at Luna. "This conversation never happened, okay? No Mythic, even the Order, can know about this now. You just need to trust me."

Something swirled in those gray eyes. "Cedric, I've always trusted you. Now I'm going to bed. I sense you want to be left alone for a while."

"Yes, I would, thank you."

Luna turned and changed to her dragoness form, looking over her shoulder once before taking off, her music symbols on her wings seeming to move and glow.

He was now alone. Behind him, he felt more than heard the soft landing in the grass. "Where have you been?" he asked.

"Away. I just got back in time to hear your tale of escape. Why did you not tell her who I was?"

"Because I still love you, Maple."

"Then face me, Cedric."

"I can't do that, Maple. Not unless you follow me."

"I can't," Maple said, her voice pained. "You know I can't. I'm lost, my love. But the way out you show me isn't where I want to go."

"Then we have nothing more to speak of." Cedric started to leave, but Maple grabbed his shoulder.

"Can't I have this moment, Cedric? I need the calm before the storm."

Cedric sighed. "I do, too."

Cedric turned around and hugged Maple, then kissed her on her forehead. "Your fur is softer than I remember," he murmured.

"Let yourself have your ears and tail for once, Ced... pretend the last three years never happened."

"Gladly." His ears, thicker and bigger than hers, formed, as did his tail. The black cheetah spots that once adorned them were now gray-silver, like a wolf, and his tail was bushier, with only the tan on it.

Maple started to tear up. "I've missed you."

"I missed you, too, Maple. I love you."

♪ ♪ ♪ ♪
Well! What do you guys think of this? I made a lot happen here... That's partly because I wasn't sure where to go when they were leaving the Order's place. But I realized I could make some characters, such as Waterfall and Maple, not evil or mean completely. So that is going to change.