The Changeling Read online

  “Don’t you threaten me!” Katie said angrily. “I am a noble and I will not be threatened or dressed down by you. Do you understand?”

  “Get this animal off…,” the Archmage said as Tam let out a loud roar very close to his face. The Archmage shut up immediately and Tam was surprised the man didn’t evacuate his bowels.

  “I said am I clear?,” Katie demanded angrily.

  “The king will hear about this,” the Archmage said.

  “I am sure he will,” Katie replied. “He will hear how your animal attacked my changeling unprovoked and about how you attacked my changeling once yours was getting itself throttled and how you threatened me right before I blew you into the wall.”

  “She is only acting all tough because her changeling is feeding her power,” Ashley piped in. “She is a horrible mage without him. Her beast must be very powerful.”

  “He is powerful,” Katie said. “And he is mine.”

  “Get him off of me. Your threat has been heard girl,” the Archmage said, as Tam got off him.

  Tam limped along as Katie tugged him. He knew he was going back to his room where he and would get a good meal and go to sleep. Tam was surprised though, when Katie left him there. He thought the girl wouldn’t go back out without him. But he supposed she could still draw on his power if she needed to. Wherever they were hunting couldn’t have been too far away since Katie couldn’t physically get too far away. The idea made him pause. Leo and Kion belonged to powerful humans. Those same humans had to be in the city somewhere.

  CHAPTER 7

  “Baron Glades’s daughter has transformed into something fearsome,” Archmage John Doe said. “Vicks attacked her bonded. The beast fought him off then helped her defeat me. Even without his physical help, the girl showed enough strength that I would have had to empty my reserves to put her and her beast down. I think having a pureblood bonded is something only the very loyal should have.”

  “You don’t think we should go on a hunt for more?” King Dazin asked.

  “I think it should be done as secretly as possible,” the Archmage replied. “The upcoming fight with the Jett Empire is something I am very wary of. We will need as many strong mages as possible.”

  “It gets worse,” King Dazin replied. “From what I hear they are slowly turning themselves into a changeling society. They welcome the bite from the animals. They like having an alternate form. There are many people in Jett that can change. Fortunately their magic is so diluted that they barely have any.”

  “How diluted?”

  “Many can only change during the full moon. The changeling magic inside of most of them is strongest then. They do not get the rapid healing of most of our animals have. They have our knowledge about generations now, though. Those unbitten all want to be bitten by someone as close to possible to being a pureblood. They are coming through us to get to the great forest. Along the way they will take any changeling of power they can find. The rumor is that they can now tell how much magic is inside one of the animals.”

  “A changeling kingdom? Maybe we need a culling, only let those with mages survive.”

  “I hope it doesn’t come to that. The animals have their uses.”

  “Your Majesty. I do not think you should allow anymore hunts into the great forest unless one of your agents are there. I know the Glades haven’t done anything disloyal in a while, but it is a shame one of them has power approaching my level. Fighting her beast off was difficult. I hit it with strong spells and it shook them off. You cannot afford for anymore mishaps like this one.”

  “Well then just kill the thing and be done with it. I will reimburse the family for it and all is well.”

  “My counsel is not to go down that road. There are many strong changelings in the kingdom. If you take one, their mages will ask themselves how long it will be before you take another? What if some of your nobles decide to use it as a precedent and kill their rival’s changelings then try to make everything go away with money?”

  “Then what are you asking me to do?”

  “I think we need to let everyone know that any unclaimed changeling will be tossed in the great forest,” the Archmage said. “We cannot chance them joining them up with our enemy. And I am unsure of how many there are, despite our precautions. We keep unbonded ones chained up during the full moons, but some probably get out. There have been stories of changelings biting those they hate during this time. There is already a rumor that one of Duke Satchel’s sons was bitten by a changeling woman he had taken advantage of.”

  “That probably would go over better than culling them outright,” King Dazin said. “But we will still need workers as well as fighters for this war. Maybe instead they can have their own town somewhere protected from the border?”

  “That could work,” the Archmage mused. “If they are tasked to produce goods and materials for the war, that would help produce the items we need. Plus our mages would have a ready source of changelings to pick from when the time comes for them to search for a bond partner.”

  “I have made Baron Glades go back into the forest to look for more of those fell beast animals. I think he and his daughter were just lucky to find the one they did. The group they hired for their first hunt came up empty when I hired them to go back to find another one. Are those things really that impressive?”

  “Fell beasts who are not changelings are unique because they adapt after every injury. But they do not heal faster than any other animal. A changeling fell beast however, has magic to help it heal. Its body adapts to injury far quicker than a normal fell beast and injuries that would take months to heal are healed in days. The magic heals what would be crippling wounds in such a way that the beast is stronger and harder to hurt the same way in future. The one the Glades girl has, had to be broken over and over again. It is highly resistant now to a lot of spells and attacks. It is large now and will only get bigger. It eats like four changelings and in a year or two will be bigger than Leo when in its human form.”

  “Leo told me of his loss. He said he was caught off guard but wants to fight the beast again.”

  “I don’t see how he could get around the spines. That animal can aim them and is very accurate. If it bites, the wound it leaves is poisoned and starts to fester after a few hours. Even if Leo manages to win a fight then he would still likely lose the war.”

  “I want another one of these animals to have around.”

  “You would need another fell beast. Only one of the parents has to be a pureblood, the other can be an animal.”

  “Why not just have him bite someone? I am sure Ashley can get to know the Glades girl and persuade her animal to bite someone.”

  “He hasn’t bitten any human yet. But I don’t know how successful the experiment would be Your Majesty. His poison is much more potent against regular people. I don’t think their body could fight it off to become changelings before it killed them.”

  “Well just keep an eye on them both. Send out the decree about unbonded animals. The relocation effort needs to start immediately. That situation need to be cleaned up anyway. Let the breeders and the breakers know that specifically includes them. I do not want any unbonded roaming around in a way that threatens our security for any reason. Their families can move along with them if they want. Maybe the first thing they can all do is build suitable housing.”

  CHAPTER 8

  “Scratches,” Katie said looking at Tam. “We are getting the night off and I want to go out tonight.”

  “Well then go human. I don’t need a status report from you,” Tam said.

  “You don’t want to come with me?” Katie wheedled.

  “Are you daft Mittens? Why would I want to go out with my captor? I don’t want anything to do with you.”

  “Scratches, everyone is going to be there. Tomorrow we are going to help round up all of the unbonded changelings. Tonight is the full moon so we don’t have to worry about being bitten tomorrow if our mission goes long into the night.”
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  “I will do no such thing. I am not one of those broken little doggies you have back at your home. I won’t betray my own kind for your benefit.”

  “You should be happy that it is them instead of you. This bond you hate so much has seen you keep a full stomach and a nice warm place to sleep.”

  “And I suppose you think I should be grateful to get beaten and starved for months. And to lose my freedom, you mustn’t forget that. I am not going anywhere with you or on some silly hunt. If you want to resume your status as torturer, then go ahead and try me.”

  “That cheetah I hear you have been cuddling is going to be there.”

  “What is that supposed to mean? Is she going to grant me my freedom?”

  “I just thought you would like to be with your friend. I can mate you with her if you want. It is not unheard of for cats of different species to be together.”

  “That is disgusting. She is a broken one like all of you. If you let me breed you with the Archmage I’ll go.”

  “Fine! Then stay here,” Katie pouted. “I only wanted to go out somewhere instead of being stuck in here all of the time.”

  Tam ignored her and changed back into a fell beast. He enjoyed chewing on the chains Katie had laying around the place and had graduated to chewing on thicker pieces instead on the thin chains like the least she attempted to keep him on. Katie eventually went to sleep in disgust. Tam laughed to himself at how angry he could make her. Whatever bond she was hoping to have would never come. He was wild and didn’t care what she did for him. He was happier when he lived back in the forest and worried that living with her was making him soft. Tam was just about to fall asleep when he smelled it. It was blood. And his keen ears could hear faint screams. Tam stood up and paced. He thought the screams were getting louder. He knew whatever was happening was out of the ordinary.

  “Wake up human,” Tam demanded as he shook Katie awake. She tried to pull the blanket over her tighter and turned around. Tam extended his claws and slightly gripped her bottom. Katie shot out of bed cursing, but she soon realized something was out of place and stopped abruptly in the middle of a profanity.

  “Something is not right,” Tam said. “I can smell blood and hear screams.”

  “What do you mean?” Katie said as she started getting dressed.

  “It is as I said. “I don’t know what is going on but I know I can’t just leave you or I already would have. If I kill you then I would be hunted down and I am too far from the great forest. If someone is able to take you down then I am guessing I will fall not too far behind you.”

  “Well let’s see what is happening. My father always told me to trust my gut and not to discount anyone else's.”

  Tam left the room and padded down the hall. The screams were a little louder now and he was sure the human could hear it. He stopped moving and gave a low growl as he got into a fighting stance. Katie took the hint and readied herself to strike. Just then, Leo and Mary came through the door along with princess Ashley. Both changelings were in their animal forms. Mary looked like she had been chewed up and Leo looked to be marked up as well.

  “What is going on?” Katie asked.

  “The changelings are going mad,” Ashley said. “They are trying to kill everyone!”

  “Everyone?” Katie said confused.

  “They are targeting our bonded first,” Ashley said. “Then they are going after mages second. I have to get out of here and to the palace. They were right behind me.”

  “How many have made it?” Katie asked.

  “I don’t know,” Ashley screamed. “Now get me to the palace!”

  “Scratches lead the way out the back door,” Katie said.

  Tam wanted to snarl but did as he was told. There was nothing out the back door. Tam ran to where the carriages were kept. Leo transformed and started bringing the horses over. The horse animals smelled good to him. The humans used them for work but he always wanted to eat one. Katie gave his ear a small tug. Tam realized that he had stopped moving and was just staring at the horses as a predator. He stopped thinking about his stomach and ranged out front of the carriage. The gates opened on masses of wolves fighting with each other. The confusion made it hard to determine if any of them were friends.

  Tam laughed at himself for thinking of any of the broken ones as friends. He raced out to clear a path for the carriage with his spines bristled. Any wolf that got too close to him was clawed. At the end of the street lay a pack of twenty wolves in wait. These wolves were blocking anyone from leaving. Tam could see dead humans lay all about them. Tam leapt into the centre of the pack. The wolves started trying to tear into him but discovered his spines shielded him completely from harm. They and backed away and encircled him. Tam used his formidable speed to attack from the inside of the circle in order to keep their attention from the carriage that was thundering down the street. A few of the wolves recognized what was going on and stopped the horses by snapping at them. Tam pursued one of those wolves and did not let him escape. Very quickly his enemy lay dead. Wolves started backing away from their armored foe. By habit Tam always fought low to the ground so his softer under belly wouldn’t present a target for anyone to attack. The only areas that could be attacked to any effect were his face and tail. Both areas were marked up and probably bleeding badly by the time Tam and the carriage finally broke free. With several of the pack laying dead and most of them injured, the wolves did not harass them further.

  Tam followed as a rear guard until the carriage approached a large human dwelling. Many guards were posted out front ready for an attack. Princess Ashley was recognized and let inside the gates. Tam could see the thing was built like one very big cage. Listening to his instincts, he opted to stay outside in a large tree that was just outside the gates. Multiple humans in their steel-armored shells started pouring out of the gate. Tam knew they were off to fight. The humans marched out into the night in the direction from which he had come. He watched but did nothing. Tam mused about how he would fight off an enemy like this when he felt a strong pull on his magic. His captor was trying to locate him through the bond, so he tugged back sharply. For a moment he could feel where she was at and got a brief glimpse of the humans around her. The hyena was there in human form. There were two lions and the cougar Kion was present as well. Tam stayed put and closed his eyes. None of those idiot dogs could climb very well so he was probably safe in his tree. Tam went back to sleep despite Katie using his magic to heal people and ignored her attempts to locate him. She probably wanted him to come inside but he was happier where he was.

  In the morning Tam left his tree and stalked the streets. When he was almost out of the human city, he felt a strong pain that almost brought him to his knees. It was a pain he had never felt before and it made him smile. Tam fought against the pain for around two hours. He needed this pain. Pain was always a teacher that helped him to grow stronger. Tam’s training against the pain of the bond eventually ceased when he could feel his captor on her way to him. He thought about slowly making his way out of the human lands with her following. But he knew he would eventually be found. The horse animals were fast, and they could keep moving for a long time without long rests. Tam sat down where he was and waited while he felt his captor getting closer. She eventually appeared alongside ten of the steel-armoured fighting humans.

  “Where do you think you are going Scratches?” Katie demanded as Tam stared at her. “There is going to be a culling. You don’t want to be outside for that.”

  “Leave me alone human,” Tam snarled and looked away.

  “I can’t understand you,” Katie said. “I have food for you. It isn’t cooked and tastes good. The king himself told me to give it to you as a reward.”

  “I don’t want your food human.” Tam snarled and turned back around.

  “Follow me you stupid cat,” Katie said as she turned to head back into the city.

  Tam thought about defying her. But he did not know what a culling was. She made it seem like
it was something terrible. He did not want to chance it. The human weapons were sharp and they probably had other things that could kill. Tam followed behind her and jumped onto the large carriage she had arrived in. They went back to the large human building. Tam wanted to go back into his tree but stayed on the carriage waiting. Katie eventually got out and called for him. He ignored her and stayed where he was. Eventually the pair of lions came out of the settlement and snarled at him.

  “Go away broken ones,” Tam said as he laid back down. “I don’t want to fight with you right now.”

  “Get down here cub or I am coming up there to get you,” Leo roared.

  “What do you want?” Tam said as he leapt down and got into his fighting stance.

  “The Queen wants to meet you,” Leo said.

  “I don’t know what that animal is,” Tam snarled as he started backing away.

  “She is one of the rulers of this place,” Leo said. “I belong to her.”

  “Well I'm happy for you,” Tam said. “I am not going anywhere with you, broken one.”

  “Why does he keep calling you broken one?” the female lion asked.

  “He is wild born,” Leo replied. “He sees anyone with the bond as being broken, Kira.”

  “He has a bond,” Kira said.

  “And he also eats far better than he would in any forest, but he still wants out of his bond,” Leo said.

  “I never told you that broken one,” Tam said.

  “You didn’t need to kid,” Leo said.

  “He is young?” Kira asked.

  “Fifteen,” Leo said. “And he is a pain.”

  “This is the one Mary talks about?” Kira asked.