"Delrahj!"

The word was ripped from Myrkr's lips. She didn't understand why she cared about him. He was a potential enemy. But there's something there...!

Through the attacker's eyes, Delrahj was on the ground glaring hatred at her. He wore a black T-shirt and some kind of fine vine-woven suit under it. He had blood on his arm, a cut through the vines that regrew as a green scar. Blood dripped through it.

"You horrid bitch," the Cí'mehia snarled as he pushed himself up. "What did you do to Amakí? What have you done?!" Fangs grew from his mouth, and his eyes—though already feline—gained a feral gleam to them.

"Oh, poor, poor Delrahj," a female voice purred through a mask. Who are you? Who am I looking through? "Thought you could usurp Her Majesty? All for this little, lost Cí'mehia girl you found for us? Oh, I'm sure the queen will be happy to hear you helped us. Too bad for you, though. You'll be the new interest to her."

"You will have to kill me first," he growled. He was finally standing. "You won't take her and me alive."

"Oh, well that's just as fine. We only need her." The Cí'mehia lunged at Delrahj, suddenly in a cheetah form. "You are free to die."

Delrahj jumped back, and his claws raked on her face. She woman growled something feral. Myrkr felt the pain and yowled. Nothing of what she said came from the woman's mouth, though. Just in Mykr's mind.

"You have awakened a force and you have no idea how powerful it is, Delrahj. It would have been so much easier if you had submitted. We could have used you to get her, and no one would have felt any pain. Plop her in the plasma and be done with it all. No one cares about one little cub. She can die and Dhalra will never be the wiser.
"But either way, she'll die. You didn't have to, though... you know this."

Delrahj's face turned partly cheetah. "I would rather put myself through that for her. Harm will not befall Myrkr. I care for her too much for that!" He launched himself at the woman. "She's been dead in my heart for thirteen years! I just found out she was actually alive!" She hissed a word and Delrahj froze, midlunge.

"I'm afraid you have no choice in the matter," she cooed. "I think you should die, but... Her majesty requires you alive. Pardon me, Delrahj. It's time to capture this girl you so love.
     "Myrkr Mkhoal, I'm coming for you." The vision faded. Myrkr felt strange and confused as she regained conciousness, but not sight.

"Myrkr!"

What in the Isles...? Myrkr couldn't open her eyes. Was it a dream? Why can't I—

"Myrkr!"

There was that sound again. Myrkr opened her eyes the tiniest slit, and she saw colorful blurs. Who are you? Mid-thought, Myrkr went full-on aggressive mode. She felt the rumble of a snarl escape her as she tried to push herself up, which accomplished only flailing her arms at one of the color blobs. Where am I?!

Something was said in a calm, soft voice. The confused Cí'mehia ignored it, identifying black, silver, and red.

"Myrkr!"

"Calm down, Sanguine. She's awake."

"Shut up, Shimmer."

Sanguine... Shimmer... Does that sound familiar? No... But they aren't hurting me. I feel no pain. Myrkr assessed her situation as she forced herself up and her eyes open.

"Get away from me," she hissed, the feeling of her fangs growing and claws barely registering. She glared at the three Drómdí. Was that the word? Doesn't matter. I have to find... who? Someone!

The man in red seemed confused. "Myr, are you...?"

Myrkr hissed, and the red man stopped talking. In a low growl, she spoke. "Leave. I don't know who you are or why you know my name. I have to do something. Something important. Find someone." She got off what appeared to be a bed and left the room.

"Myrkr!" It was the red man again. "It's Sanguine! You have to remember me." He started following her.

Without looking but halting, the Cí'mehia responded coldly, "I know no one. You lie, 'Sanguine.' I do not know any of you." She shifted into a cheetah and ran.

Strange scents, unlike those of the Drómdí in the room, led her to a hallway where she hugged the wall as she ran, and she followed the scent straight into the wall. Rearing up on her hind legs, she smelled the scent among the bricks. To Myrkr, one of the bricks smelled of many scents, and she pawed it. Nothing happened, but she heard the sound of stone moving—even if it wasn't very loud. More scents wafted through where the one scent vanished, and the Cí'mehia walked straight through the wall. Sound told her the wall closed back up behind her.

With nothing else to do, she ran, using sound to help guide her in the darkness.

     You have found me, a voice said, on a breeze.

     Come this way. Forward, hurry. Careful. This voice was different. Familiar? No. Nothing here was familiar.

     Myrkr bolted through the darkness, and the metalic, warm scent of fresh blood hit her nose. She staggered but ran on.

     "Ah, so she did come. Makes my life so much easier." A lady walked out of the shadows, holding something between humanoid and animal. "Thank you, Miss Mkhoal. I appreciate it." She dropped the creature, which gave a grunt. "Help me finish off this rogue?"

     "Myr... kr... Please, help... me..." The other was clad in something green, and sounded male. His breathing sounded labored.

     Which of these people did I have to find so badly? Was the lady in trouble, or is it because the male is close to death?

     The name came back. Last night's talk did as well, though Myrkr wasn't sure why she wasn't supposed to trust this Cí'mehia.

     Obviously, the lady was very able to attack, while the male was in dire straights. There was one way to make this choice.

     Myrkr strode towards the male with claws extended.

     "Yes, Myrkr. Kill him. His death should be your glory."

     "I agree that the death will be my glory," Myrkr replied, kneeling down next to the wounded male. She faced away from the lady. In a barely audible whisper, she whispered, "Are you okay?"

     The Cí'mehia blinked and mouthed Yes.

     "Be ready to run," Myrkr whispered. She turned and strode toward the lady. "He's going to die. Why don't we just leave him? It can be a... warning." Does that work?

     The lady shook her head. "Kill him and we can leave. This was our mission."

     "You're right, this was our mission. Right, Delrahj?" Myrkr launched herself at the lady, who wasn't expecting it. Myrkr dug her claws into the lady, who hissed in annoyance and growled from pain. In that one motion, Myrkr was on top of the lady, in her cheetah form. She sheathed her claws into the lady's shoulders, extracting curses and sounds of pain.

     "Too bad you can't take a message." Myrkr rose her claw to slash the lady's throat when a shadow knocked her off, grabbed the lady and flew off. "Ysamaldrí damn you," she growled.

     "Thank you... Myrkr..." Delrahj's head lolled.

     "Delrahj!" Myrkr wasn't sure if he was unconscious or dead, but she wasted no time. She grabbed his limp form with difficulty, but managed to stand. "Help! Someone help me!" The darkness gave no answer.

     Leaning on the wall as she moved, Myrkr carried Delrahj a few steps before something grabbed them. No! Her arms tied to Delrahj, she felt the thing—vine, tail, or something else?—wrap her legs all the way down, and she started to flail as it wound around her neck, up to her face. Only her nose was uncovered, and it didn't strangle her neck.

     She let out a growl.

     Footsteps sounded not far away, followed by the soft wingbeats of a bird or Eltrí. Myrkr smelled something on the vine-like thing and she felt herself slipping away.

✦ ✦ ❦ ✦ ✦

      Sanguine watched as Myrkr changed in an instant. He felt his eyes glowing, and his wings unfurled to hurl him forward, past the lycans. In a very deep growl, he commanded, "Leave her alone." With his wings spread wide, he glared at the girls, daring them to attack. He backed up and around to Myrkr, picked her up, and curled his wings in around her. Without a word from the shocked lycans, he left the room.

     "Myrkr? Myrkr!" Sanguine tried getting his friend's attention, but to no avail. He spread his wings, flew to the cafeteria, got Luna, Shimmer, and Cedric's attention, and followed as Luna led him to the girls' rooms. He laid her on her bunk and briefly explained what had happened. Or, more specifically, what he didn't know about what happened.

     Luna took Myrkr's bag and hung it on one of the bed posts. "Maybe we should find the healer," she suggested.

     "Bad idea." Cedric's eyes never left Myrkr. "Trust me on that. That would make things worse. Much worse."

     "Okay," Shimmer said. She was at the door, making sure no one came in. "How about we—"

     "Myrkr!" Sanguine half commanded, half pleaded. "Myrkr!" Did her eyelid twitch?

     "Sanguine," Luna started softly. "Maybe we should get some kind of help." Myrkr started to move, but she slapped him instead.

     "Myrkr!" As he said it, a growl rose from Myrkr's throat. Surely she thought she was still fighting the lycan girls.

     "Calm down, Sanguine. She's awake." Shimmer moved from the door to stand near the bed.

     "Shut up, Shimmer."

     Suddenly, Myrkr was more than just awake. She pushed herself up, successful this time. "Get away from me," she hissed. She started to shift, cheetah aspects forming. What's wrong?

     "Myr? Are you—"

     Hiss. "Leave." Myrkr's voice was still a growl, almost a snarl. "I don't know who you are or why you know my name. I have to do something. Something important. Find someone." She got off the bed and pushed through the door. Something's not right.

     Sanguine followed. "Myrkr! It's Sanguine. You have to remember me." He took a few steps after her before she halted. She didn't face him.

     "I know no one. You lie, 'Sanguine'. I do not know any of you." Her voice was cold as stone, and she shifted into a cheetah and bolted down the hallway. Her paw steps echoed on the stone floor.

     He was about to pursue when he felt a hand on his shoulder. "No, Sanguine," Luna said. "We can't chase her. Something is wrong. She has amnesia, except for one thing, the thing she is going to. We have to let her come back."

      "And if she doesn't?" A surge of anger rippled through Sanguine. He should be able to help! He has to, for what if she lets it slip their purpose here? She'll be killed! She could be killed by whatever this 'thing' was that she was headed for!

      "She will come back. She went down the old part of the castle. Come, I have friends who can and will help."

"Hey, guys, where did Cedric go? Did any of you see him leave?" Shimmer was looking around.

Luna sniffed the air. "His scent... It's gone. As if he vanished."

     Sanguine looked to Luna and Shimmer. "What do you guys know of his abilities? Does he know magic?"

     Both Drómdí shook their heads and replied a negative, as far as they knew. "Let's go find her," Luna suggested. "Cedric is fine, probably. Myrkr doesn't know anything. She is in more danger."

     The trio ran off, following Luna. She led them to the place Avient had led Sanguine before, and he was surprised when Luna knew. "It's dark, but trust me, okay? It's a straight hallway."

      "I smell Myrkr," Sanguine murmured. He followed the song Drómdí into the dark, and even her scales that had been glowing slightly faded, even though she was only a  few steps in front of him. Behind him, he heard the sound of wings unfurling as Shimmer grew hers.

     "Stay quiet," Luna whispered. "They're up ahead."

     "They?" Sanguine returned the whisper before he could stop himself. He didn't expect an answer.

     "Delrahj! Help! Someone help me!" Myrkr!

     Since Luna could apparently see in this darkness, it took all his self control to not run toward Myrkr's voice. A grunt sounded, and he wish he could see.

     Then he heard something. Something slithering over the stone. He drew breath to call a warning, but whatever it was wrapped firmly around his mouth. In Myrkr's direction, he heard growling. It faded pretty quick and he then heard Shimmer make a noise of surprise which changed quickly into a growl. The slithery thing wrapped around Sanguine's whole body, and he assumed it got Myrkr and Shimmer, but he hadn't heard anything from Luna.

     Something pungent wafted off the thing, and immediately Sanguine stopped breathing. Shimmer got quiet and her breathing sounded even. He went limp and tried calming down. Moving his chest to fake breathe, he let his head loll and his muscles relax. Within a few seconds he got his heartbeat down.

     "Why did you do that?!" Luna's voice. "Rul, they were fine. They couldn't see! Only Del could see, and whoever he was fighting—"

     "Enough!" Rul's voice was fairly deep. It rumbled like a dragon's. "They cannot come here without invitation."

     "Sanguine and Shimmer were invited by me! Delrahj would be dead if not for his calling of Myrkr! As it is, he is mortally wounded." Sanguine couldn't hold his half-breath anymore. He breathed in a lungful of the scent and the voices faded in and out of his hearing.

     "I did not think you were leader here..." Rul's voice faded as he spoke.

✦ ✦ ❦ ✦ ✦

     "I did not think you were leader here, Song of the Moon." Rul was not mocking, but stern.

     "I didn't think you would over react with a few Drómdí! Sanguine is even a Crím, and his uncle is one of us. You also sent Del to Myrkr, did you not? You were asking for intruders the way you did this! Look! Myrkr has no memory and she tried to save Del. You know what she means to Sanguine, and there was no way Shimmer was going to let us come alone. Your security was not great, since, from what I can gather from the scent, a Cí'mehia assassin made their way in here!" She started to pace and her gray eyes gained a blue-white glow. "For Ysamaldrí's sake, you could use extra talons, paws, or hands here! We have a skeleton crew as is."

She glanced at the vines holding her friends and Delrahj. "You know the toxin is in their body. They won't wake for a good deal of time, and Delrahj is close to death. Let's just get a move on so I can come up with a story to tell Sanguine and Shimmer when they wake up, and somehow get Myrkr's memory back. She needs to know what she knew to keep herself safe."

A shadow moved from the walls. Black, like a silhouette. The voice was distorted. "You know about Tahl'drí's plan too, then?" Rul sent vines toward the figure, but they stopped three feet from him wherever they tried. "You cannot get to me, but I am no threat."

     Luna growled. "You aren't making it very easy to trust you. Or not attack you, for that matter."

     The figure seemed to think a moment. "You would if you could see me, but then again you still probably wouldn't trust me very much."

     "Who are you, then?"

     A hiss of a word came from the figure, and the silhouette blackness vanished to color. Luna gasped. Rul's vines seemed to try harder to get to the now-visible figure.

     "You know who I am, Luna," Cedric said quietly. "But you don't know who I once was. First, before I share the story, we should tend to Delrahj's wounds. You can smell—and see—his blood. We have to heal him quickly. And," the lycan seemed to sigh," I will help create a lie for everyone else, if you wish to conceal this truth a while longer. Unfortunately, I've had the practice."