<html> <head> <meta http-equiv="content-type" content="text/html; charset=ISO-8859-1"> </head> <body bgcolor="#FFFFFF" text="#000000"> A bit of a longer part this evening, partially celebratory since I just officially finished this portion of the narrative! -Lurkingwolf ___ <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=ISO-8859-1"> Balrog was quick to prepare and Nathan, woken by his companion’s stirring, was ready even before the mage under his command. Julian also notified Alex of the breakthrough, but the lynx took his time to wake up, and even as Julian left him sitting on the edge of the bed he wondered if he would simply lie back down as soon as the moondog stepped around the corner. It was not vital for Alex to accompany them for the discussion, however, so Julian did not bother to check on his again before leaving with Balrog and Nathan in tow.<o:p></o:p> <o:p> </o:p> They found Lucy waiting for them, a pot of tea sitting incongruously atop the wooden cage in the center of the room. She had evidently not been expecting Nathan to join them, but a fourth cup joined the three she had already prepared in moments, all filled with the same dark liquid that perfumed the air around it. Julian and Nathan took their cups with nods of gratitude, while Balrog sniffed at his skeptically before taking a sip of his own. He nodded approvingly and echoed the gratefulness of the others before he stepped back from the table to enjoy it with the others.<o:p></o:p> <o:p> </o:p> “I heard that you had some sort of breakthrough,” he said. “What have you found?”<o:p></o:p> <o:p> </o:p> Lucy explained her theory as the rest listened. Even Nathan seemed to be able to follow the discussion without much effort, and that allowed Lucy to finish her explanations very quickly. Balrog took one more sip of his teas after she finished, thinking through all that she had proposed.<o:p></o:p> <o:p> </o:p> “It does sound possible,” he decided. “To be honest, however, I had always thought that the stories of people remaining in their fully Cursed forms after the countercurse had been cast were no more than legends. The nature of the interplay between the two spells would tend to favor the hybrid forms that we all wear.”<o:p></o:p> <o:p> </o:p> Lucy conceded his point with a nod and a wave of her hand. “That may be true, yet all of us may adopt the forms that the Curse originally forced upon us with little more than a simple exercise of will. Perhaps the magic cast two nights ago forced him into the form of an animal, and with no similar exercise of will he has remained in that state.”<o:p></o:p> <o:p> </o:p> Balrog nodded and twisted his beard over and around his thick fingers. “It seems almost probable,” he stated. “It is so far the only theory I have heard that accounts for the lack of magical influence with more than a way of the hand. The question that remains unanswered, then, is why his mind was not returned to him. I think we can agree that this is the case?”<o:p></o:p> <o:p> </o:p> Lucy nodded. “I have seen many Keepers take on the forms of animals for training exercises or purposes of utility, and the difference between these people and a person whose mind is completely lost becomes clear after only brief observation.”<o:p></o:p> <o:p> </o:p> Balrog nodded. “I have noticed the same in my own observations. If there is no magic beyond what encompasses every other Keeper’s form affecting him now, then why has his mind not returned?”<o:p></o:p> <o:p> </o:p> There were several moments of silence before someone spoke. It was Julian who finally did break the silence. “I do not mean to be pessimistic about our chances, but perhaps his mind is utterly overcome. Perhaps there is nothing left.”<o:p></o:p> <o:p> </o:p> “Is that even possible?” Nathan asked, looking about the room. “Wouldn’t there have been signs before a man’s mind simply collapsed?”<o:p></o:p> <o:p> </o:p> “One would expect, yes,” Balrog admitted. “Still, with so little certainty about anything, we have to consider any reasonable possibility. Perhaps…” He sighed, rubbing his forehead to stall for a few moments. “Perhaps destroying Lois’ mind was the intention of the spell. If Nasoj or his allies could perfect such a spell, he could quickly and totally defeat Metamor without even needing an army.”<o:p></o:p> <o:p> </o:p> “No, that can’t be it,” Lucy insisted. “That, at least, we can confirm. Although Lois was the only one to show long-term effect from the spell, all of us felt the magic. Whatever was cast that night, it had a wide enough area of effect that it should have done the same thing to all of us.”<o:p></o:p> <o:p> </o:p> “You failed to mention that before,” Balrog noted. He sighed and paced about the table, venturing closer to the stove that heated the chamber while keeping his eyes on Lois. “That complicates matters even more, but I would say that it makes your original theory even more likely.”<o:p></o:p> <o:p> </o:p> “That is what I was thinking as well,” Lucy agreed. “If some people affected by the original Curse did not take their hybrid forms, it would parallel the effects of this spell among our patrol.”<o:p></o:p> <o:p> </o:p> “If this theory is correct, is there anything we can do to save him?” Julian asked. “Lucy, did you ever hear what became of the Keepers you mentioned after the Curse?”<o:p></o:p> <o:p> </o:p> The girl mage shook her head with resignation. “Honestly, I have not even thought of the stories much since I found out that my father was safe,” she admitted. “I never thought they would be important.”<o:p></o:p> <o:p> </o:p> Silence fell over the room as everyone present attempted to think of a way to apply their new theory. A few moments after it had begun, the silence was broken by the sound of knocking on the chamber’s door. The lynx on the other side did little more than grunt to Julian as the moondog opened the door, and took the cup of tea he was offered by Lucy with barely a look, downing most of it in one gulp before wincing at the amount of unsweetened spice in the flavor. Lucy chuckled quietly.<o:p></o:p> <o:p> </o:p> “Rough night?” she asked.<o:p></o:p> <o:p> </o:p> Her commander regarded her with an exhausted glare. “Why it should be easier to sleep in a bed of leaves on the forest floor than in an actual bed?” he asked. His tone was mournful, but was clearly meant in a very sarcastic way. “At least I’m up now. I’ll be more talkative once my brain joins my body in wakefulness.”<o:p></o:p> <o:p> </o:p> He was filled in on the speculation that had circulated about the room during his absence, and he listened while taking his time to finish off what remained of the tea in his paw. He nodded in quiet thought as they regaled him with their theories, finishing his cup of tea just as Lucy gave the last few words of information. He scratched at the fur on his chin for a moment before speaking.<o:p></o:p> <o:p> </o:p> “So, if he was forced into the form of an animal and has lacked the ability to change back, but was not magically prevented from it, could he not be similarly forced into his hybrid form?”<o:p></o:p> <o:p> </o:p> Everyone in the room fixed him with an incredulous look. Alex noticed after a few moments, glancing like a trapped deer at an assembled pack of wolves. “What? I know I’m hardly conscious at the moment, but if our enemy can force Keepers into their most Cursed forms by means of magic, why could the process not simply be reversed?”<o:p></o:p> <o:p> </o:p> “That actually makes sense,” Lucy admitted.<o:p></o:p> <o:p> </o:p> “You don’t have to sound so surprised,” Alex griped, playing with the small cup between his claws. “I may not know how to cast magic, but I’m intelligent enough to make logical connections.”<o:p></o:p> <o:p> </o:p> Julian chuckled and shook his head. “Is that even possible? I mean, it makes sense, but I’ve never heard of it being done, or even attempted.”<o:p></o:p> <o:p> </o:p> “I don’t think it ever has been attempted,” Lucy confirmed. “It would be of barely any use to our enemies, and the only people in Metamor I can see using it would be a prankster here or there, and I doubt any common urchin would have the magical experience to even consider the attempt.” She paced around the room a bit in deep thought. Lois, still trapped in his cage, watched her go, likely hoping that she would provide him with something more to eat before long. “If we did attempt it, it could return him to his hybrid form, but what of his mind?”<o:p></o:p> <o:p> </o:p> Balrog finally spoke up. “Well, our theory so far is that his mind was somehow weakened by the original spell. Perhaps, trapped in the form of an animal, it is simply more natural for him to think as an animal?”<o:p></o:p> <o:p> </o:p> “I can confirm that from experience,” Alex replied. “While not to such an extent as Lois is experiencing, I can certainly say that instincts and animalistic actions are far more natural when I take on my most feral form. I don’t know if it is related at all, but I cannot see a change of perspective as a negative influence.”<o:p></o:p> <o:p> </o:p> “The question now is whether the attempt could harm him.” Nathan, who had been standing by the wall of the room listening in silence for quite some time, added his thoughts to the discussion.<o:p></o:p> <o:p> </o:p> “No,” Lucy argued with a shake of her head. “The question is not whether the attempt could harm him; the question is whether it would harm him more than remaining as he is. With so little understanding of the spell that was used against him, I can only assume that the longer he spends as an animal, the less likely it is that he will be able to return to normal. If no one objects, I say that we should make an attempt.”<o:p></o:p> <o:p> </o:p> Nathan scoffed incredulously. “You admitted mere moments ago that you do not even know if such a casting is possible. How can you go from that admission to recklessly creating a spell from scratch within seconds?”<o:p></o:p> <o:p> </o:p> Lucy’s confident expression soured as the wolf objected. “Just because I have never heard of the spell being used before does not mean that I do not understand the theory behind the Curse well enough to conceptualize such a spell with little trouble. You seem rather intent on preventing any possible aid to Lois very suddenly. If I didn’t trust you, I would suspect that you stand to lose something from the reversal of this spell?”<o:p></o:p> <o:p> </o:p> The wolf snarled at her implication. Despite the clear difference in size and the advantage of strength heavily leaning towards the wolf, Lucy stood her ground. The others in the room seemed frozen, waiting breathlessly for the two of them to make their moves. Although the moments stretched uncomfortably long, Balrog finally stepped between the two hostile Keepers.<o:p></o:p> <o:p> </o:p> “We gain nothing from this argument,” he barked, staring at the wolf particularly. “We need to take action, or Lois could be lost for more than a few days. I will not allow that!”<o:p></o:p> <o:p> </o:p> Nathan cooled slightly, but made no move to apologize. Instead, he spoke tersely to Balrog. “We need to discuss these matters privately,” he said in a growl. Without waiting for his friend to acknowledge his words he turned and stalked through the door.<o:p></o:p> <o:p> </o:p> Balrog sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. “I am sorry,” he said, turning to the rest of the company in the room. “I do not know what he is thinking, but I assure you he means only the best. I will go see if I can determine why he is so agitated this morning. Hopefully the matter can be resolved quickly.”<o:p></o:p> <o:p> </o:p> As the human stepped through the door to follow the wolf, the three remaining people in the room looked towards each other.<o:p></o:p> <o:p> </o:p> “Should we follow him?” Julian asked.<o:p></o:p> <o:p> </o:p> <span style="font-size:11.0pt;line-height:107%;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-fareast-font-family:Calibri;mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;mso-ansi-language:EN-US;mso-fareast-language: EN-US;mso-bidi-language:AR-SA">Alex hesitated, but slowly shook his head. “I believe you two have a casting to prepare? I suggest you begin, and leave the tension to the men who actually know each other.” <meta name="ProgId" content="Word.Document"> <meta name="Generator" content="Microsoft Word 14"> <meta name="Originator" content="Microsoft Word 14"> <link rel="File-List" href="file:///C:%5CUsers%5CNathan%5CAppData%5CLocal%5CTemp%5Cmsohtmlclip1%5C01%5Cclip_filelist.xml">  <link rel="themeData" href="file:///C:%5CUsers%5CNathan%5CAppData%5CLocal%5CTemp%5Cmsohtmlclip1%5C01%5Cclip_themedata.thmx"> <link rel="colorSchemeMapping" href="file:///C:%5CUsers%5CNathan%5CAppData%5CLocal%5CTemp%5Cmsohtmlclip1%5C01%5Cclip_colorschememapping.xml">  <style>  </style> </body> </html>