SHIOBI’s First three chapters. (Find the whole series here)
There are multiple points of view, and this is one of the main characters.
“Kill them all!” a shifter bellowed as he dropped the remains of his newly-formed child into the river. “Kill them all!” His voice was much higher pitched the second time, as he tried to form a mouth to scream, but couldn’t hold his shape. He fell back into a puddle.
Shiobi stayed in her pond with her longtime friend, Thundral —Thunder to her friends.
The shifter community had suffered the worst attack in its history. Fifteen newly formed infants, including their guard— Thunder’s daughter, had been burned by …. Shiobi wasn’t sure who, but it was either an elf or a human because there were footprints and red blood. Shifters had gels, not blood like humans or elves.
Shifters didn’t leave footprints- unless they meant to. They could take on any form they wanted. They could be a rock. They could be a human. With practice they could be so detailed that no one could tell the difference between a shifter and whatever they were forming. Most adult shifters were experts at taking and holding the form of something else. Forming a rock was popular, as was a tree. But forming animals such as marmabears or roonhounds was also popular.
This was an extraordinary blow not only emotionally but in terms of population as well. Reproduction wasn’t the same for shifters as it was for the elves and humans. Humans and elves could have as many children as they wanted. Shifters split. A part of themselves would develop and fall off to form a youngling. This happened only one time in a shifter’s life. The shifter community was now permanently fifteen…no sixteen residents short.
Shiobi remembered the joy at the formation of her own daughter. She also remembered the joy as her daughter formed her grandchild. He was now five years old, and thankfully, not in this youngling pond.
Shiobi couldn’t bring herself to speak. She was still in shock over what happened. Unable to hold her shape, Shiobi puddled next to Thunder. Thunder tried to push the gooey remains of Thunder’s daughter and newly-formed grandchild into the river. The two of them had formed a puddle just outside the main pond that had been formed by shifters gathering for the memorial service.
Thunder was having a hard time keeping a tendril extended to perform the act. Thunder’s tendril would splash back into their little puddle. Shiobi wanted to help, but knew it was inappropriate. Only family could do it, and while Thunder and Shiobi had grown up together, they were not family.
Thunder shuttered, and finally pushed the remains of her family into the river.
They sank to the bottom. The wail that Thunder made as they sank sent ripples of pain throughout Shiobi’s body. As part of the memorial service, a shifter’s remains would be rejoined with the river so it could travel back to the sea. There the remains of a deceased shifter would be rejoined with the great Lord of the Ocean.
“We are diminished!” Someone yelled from a few feet away. Shiobi couldn’t be sure who was talking but it sounded like King Melkoora.
Thunder pulled her tendril back into the great shifter pond that had formed for the memorial service, her form shuttering with grief as Shiobi tried to comfort her as they rolled in to join with them. Shiobi felt a rush of relief mixed with grief as her own daughter reached out and connected with her, a feeling poor Thunder would never have again.
Thunder found her voice. “Kill them all! Let them know our pain!”
“Kill them all!” many chanted with Thunder.
Shiobi said nothing. There were a little over fifty-six thousand shifters remaining. The bipedals were no match for battle trained shifters. If they banded together to reform their army the elves and humans could be wiped out in less than a year.
“We cannot engage in genocide.” Mansrader, the shaman said.
Shiobi knew he was right, but now wasn’t the time for rational thought. Now was the time for grieving. Perhaps people could think more rationally tomorrow, or next week?
It didn’t matter what Mansrader tried to do to save his precious humans- nothing would stop the coming war. The memory of the scorched youngling pond was burned into the minds of the people.
Why would the bipedals risk coaxing the shifters out of their colony again? If they needed shifters, why wouldn’t they just ask for help?
Shiobi held onto her daughter and grandson, letting go of Thunder. Peace had a good run, but it was over now. Soon she’d be taking up her old role in the system, and would probably be leaving the colony for a long time.
Shiobi
Shiobi landed in a high tree branch outside the southern, human Kingdom of Ayres. Her talons gripped the branch. They worshiped the Goddess of Life, a fire-based religion. Because of that She’d learned a lot from the Ayrian during her last visit, including how not to fear fire. Too Bad only two shifters had engaged in her fire training sessions after she’d returned to the colony. She had accidentally learned a technique that would allow her to consume the fire rather than the fire consuming her. It was the main reason she’d been chosen to return here.
It’d been a long flight as a large hawk. Her outer layer fluttered. She was hungry- too hungry. By not eating, she’d been able to shrink to the size of a hawk. She couldn’t risk being seen. It’d been a little more than a generation since shifters had been seen by humans. That would make it easy to sneak in without suspicion. That was an advantage she didn’t want to give up, making the extra day’s flight a necessary time expense, and the hunger a minor cost.
Castle Ayres loomed in the distance. It’s five boroughs had smaller castles at the inner wall that walled off the central kingdom. Travelers were strolling to and from Ayres and its surrounding city some of which had spread outside the outer walls. It wasn’t as big as Sundre, but impressive in its own rights. The stink of the place made her recoil. A mixture of body odor and waste, both human and animal. Add in the heat of the day and it was nearly nauseating.
She spotted a small pond too far from the road to attract travelers but close enough for her to eat. The bamboo forest was too thick to find a proper small lake to eat in. She flew down to the pond, spiraling into it allowing the hawk form to melt away as the refreshing algae rich water satiated her hunger. She floated there, absorbing the algae and five Blue Gills before rolling out onto the mucky shore of the pond. She continued to roll in a ball form to avoid getting her human form stuck in the mud.
She chose to form a peasant girl she’d absorbed during her last assignment to Ayres as a spy. Peasants blended and their fashion didn’t change that much. Never underestimate the folly of a poor fashion choice. Nothing says I don’t belong like wearing close that don’t blend with the crowd. It would invite too many questions, attract too much attention.
During the Elven Revolt, Ayres had made a pact with the Elves- to stay out of the war. While Shiobi hadn’t wanted the Elves to win, she found it appalling that Ayres’ action had cleared the way for the Elves to crush several of the other human kingdoms. Four of the nine, kingdoms had been destroyed, only remnant populations lived there now. If Ayres had joined Sundre and Kolvira the smaller human kingdoms would still be there. The humans as a species would be better off. But the smaller ones were no more, and now only larger kingdoms remained.
But Ayres was a place unto its own, surrounded by a low mountain range and buried deep in a sub-tropical valley. The mountain snowmelts formed three great rivers. One of them ran through Ayres and eventually out to the South Sea. The largest one ran through to Sundre and out to the Western Ocean. The other ran through Kolvira, nothing more than a wide spot in the river. To the south a large mangrove and swamp stretched out miles before the ocean finally took over. Maybe she would fly to the edge and see what she could see of the ocean while she was here. She’d pray for answers as to why this terrible thing was happening.
More than five hundred years ago, Kolvira had once been home to a small group of shifters. But they had moved on long before the Elven Revolt. Shiobi had grown up hearing the legends and tales about the people setting the river on fire with a special oil. Half the shifters had perished, including younglings. The other half had returned to the main colony or off into the wild. She had grown up in the youngling ponds with the child of one of the survivors- a survivor who now also suffered the loss of a child at the hands of bipedals. Poor Thunder carried the memory of her greatmother’s experience in Kolvira and now carried the deaths of her daughter and grandson.
Why King Melkoora had allowed the humans to continue to exist was beyond Shiobi’s comprehension. But making such decisions wasn’t within her authority. Even being in meeting ponds to ponder such concepts wasn’t her place. There must be a reason. Today she’d begin to unravel why Ayres was again on the king’s list to investigate.
Ayres should be thankful she wasn’t in charge, or they’d been wiped from the earth decades ago. But they remained ignorant of their need to be thankful for King Melkoora and be blessed by their dumb luck that she wasn’t the ruler.
She thought of some of the people she met last time and a sorrow filled her. She’d not allow anything to happen to them, or more to the point, their ancestors. Not all humans would be wiped from the earth, just the ones who meant them harm.
She kicked at the dust with her feet, practicing keeping them formed into shoes while absorbing the blows from the little kicks. She could feel the hoof beats of a group of horses coming up behind her, and it wasn’t the time to wonder if she was still in practice. She didn’t want to lose her form in front of anyone.
She could now hear the jostling of the horse’s gear and reigns as they pulled a wagon- no, a carriage. She smiled. Rich people owned carriages. Rich people also usually controlled the information. She sharpened up her peasant’s dress and made sure her hair was perfectly manicured. She couldn’t be too peasant-like. She had to be just right to get their attention.
“Girl,” a man sitting atop a white carriage in a red uniform waved and then pointed toward her. A black silhouette of a celestial bird adorned the door. Gold outlining on the wings made it look like it was on fire. “Bring me some water.” The same silhouette of a celestial bird adorned the front of his red tunic. A tightly pulled brass belt, cinched at his waist. He rested a black, leather boot on the front frame of the driver’s seat, as he held the reins in his hands.
She stared at him. Should she get it? Who was he that he was comfortable ordering a stranger around? She nodded. She’d protect her cover for now. And perhaps her kindness would profit later. This carriage belonged to a person rich enough to afford a driver and eight armored guards on horseback. She looked at the four in front and the four in back.
He pointed to a brown flagon on the side of the carriage, just out of his reach.
She sprinted up, grabbed it, and handed it up to him, being careful not to stretch her arms up too far. He took it, and then nodded for her to leave.
“You should thank her,” a deep, baritone male voice came from behind the curtain in the carriage. “She just saved you having to brake and dismount.”
“Thank you,” the driver said, offering a curt nod as his narrowed, black eyes met hers.
“You are welcome.” Shiobi turned to leave. What a prat. He could get his own water next time.
“Girl,” the voice from behind the carriage curtain called, “Can you tend to my daughter’s hair- the same as yours? She needs a new handmaiden.”
“Yes, Grand Sir,” Shiobi smiled. The outfit might be poor, but the hair was on point and exactly what she needed.
“You should come with us and meet her,” he said, peeking one dark brown eye from behind the curtain before closing it again.
“It would be an honor, Grand Sir.” She bowed.
“You can ride with the rear guard.” Fingers pointed out of the curtain, but she still didn’t see an entire person.
She nodded, “Yes, Grand Sir.”
She climbed up the tiny white ladder to slide next to the rear guard who nodded to her before smirking.
“Don’t know what you’re in for,” he whispered, pursing his lips tight.
She nodded, respectfully. “I’d be grateful to have a place to stay.” And- these people didn’t know what they were in for. If the little miscreant stepped too far out of line Shiobi would just eliminate and replicate her. The daughter of a Lord would be easy access to information. The only thing that stopped her from using that as her first plan was the fact that a servant would have freer and lower profile access to whatever manor or borough this Lord commanded.
The driver tapped the horses with the reigns and the carriage started forward again.
Shiobi
Shiobi looked up as the small heavily guarded caravan entered a walled estate. Two armored guards cranked an overhead gate open. This man wasn’t just a Lord of his manor, he was a Minister to the King of Ayres. This job was going to be much easier than she thought it would be. All the Ministers sat on the King’s Arm Council. Arm being a reference to the fact that the ministers acted as the King’s right arm.
“Ever been inside a manor?” the guard sitting next to her asked.
She nodded. “But this isn’t a manor, is it? It’s a castle- of the Safety-Keeps of the Kingdom. For the people to hide when the city walls are under attack.” Because humans had the worse sense of species survival ever as they burned other human villages.
“True enough. We offer the Northern Borough protection.” He said with more than a hint of pride in his voice.
“What about those in the center of town?” There should be an inner wall to the city.
“They go to the main castle, Ayres Grand Castle through the borough gates.”
She nodded, again. Nothing had changed. Their city structure was exactly the same. An unearthly enormous outer wall that took hours to get clearance through- even with a nobleman, four smaller boroughs with smaller walls, and one central borough with the extremely wealthy or ruling class. If memory served her this castle would have its own, private gate that led to the inner circle. All four castles had their own access. The peasants and non-noble traders could use the public gates if they could even gain clearance to move about in the boroughs.
She curtsied to the Lord as he exited his carriage. His dark brown eyes had a kindness in them that complimented his olive skin tone. “I’m Minister Eventin, I handle the King’s internal infrastructure.” He motioned for her to follow him. He was thin, with expertly made silk robes. Those would take some study before she could replicate them.
As he walked, fine leather sandals with gold laces showed off his wealth. It was clear they had been cobbled to fit his feet. Good- lose shoes were difficult for a shifter to form. But this guy would be easy. She wouldn’t have to worry about leaving awkward gaps. Infrastructure- so he keeps the city running. He wasn’t the person she needed. Too bad she couldn’t have been picked up by the war or foreign minister. But still, he would have passive access to everything because it all needed protecting. It was just a matter of patience for Shiobi.
She bowed her head. “I am Shiobi. I am just a girl.” He’d mentioned her hair. She hoped he didn’t expect anything sexual from her. He’d be extremely disappointed. Some shifters had mastered keeping their shape and fooling humans during sex, but Shiobi never had. In fact, the one time she thought she had fooled a human- she’d exposed herself as a shifter. They’d captured her in a metal milk tin. It had taken weeks to escape and that was only after one of the kitchen staff had accidentally opened the lid thinking there was milk in there.
“You’ll be working in the house of a Minister- bow your head to no one under my rank or you’ll never be looking up.” He offered a kind smile, motioning for her to follow him.
“I am grateful.” She returned the smile and nodded, following him as he walked up the two steps that led to a grand entrance. The pillars were carved into women bearing the wings of a celestial bird. No- those weren’t ordinary women. It was her! She worked hard to maintain her placid face as she desperately hoped he didn’t recognize her. Perhaps it wasn’t wise to use this shape. She should have chosen another shape. But then, this one had gained her easy access to a minister’s home.
“Ah,” he said noticing her admiration of the pillars. “My grandfather had them carved. Said he wanted to honor the shifter who helped us avoid the Elven revolt.”
She smiled in an attempt to hide her sigh of relief. So, the Ayrian had appreciated her more than she thought. She’d escaped the Heigla- the group of 6 religious’ rulers of Ayres, by jumping up into the air, forming the wings of a celestial bird and flew off forming tentacles around the necks of the Heigla all while on fire. She’d left their bodies on the ground while she’d flown off with their heads. She’d flown all the way home. This was her first time back since then.
“She freed us from a terrible inquisition that seemed to build on itself.” He gestured toward the pillars again. “We call her the Phoenix.”
Shiobi walked silently next to him as they walked through the doorway. Guards shut it behind them as they entered.
“The Heigla had been taking people. Torturing them into making false confessions- and then as penitence, making them live in the wild after taking all of their possessions. I was lucky my father didn’t get hauled in himself.”
She looked up at him, his graying hair was perfectly manicured. Easy to replicate. But maybe she wouldn’t need to. Maybe he would simply be on her side. He seemed to put Ayres first.
“That’s why I knew as soon as I saw you. Your hair is a palace favorite, but your clothes speak of a peasant’s life.”
She stopped walking. He thought she was the grandchild of a religiously exiled noble. Rule one, never tell the truth when a convenient lie will serve the situation better. Better yet, it would be easy to remember. “My grandfather lost everything. But I am not bitter. My parents raised me well. I never knew the loss except by what they told me. My mother taught me this braid.” She ran her hand down the light-brown braid that crowned her head and hung nearly to her waist.
His face brightened. “That’s why I picked you. I can’t give you back what was taken, but I can at least provide you with better than what you have now.” He motioned an older woman over to them. “Zatina.”
She was dressed in red with gold trimmings, a black celestial bird was tastefully embroidered on the shoulder. “Yes, my Minister.” She bowed slightly, bringing her head back up.
“Please take Shiobi to the quartermaster for a uniform that identifies her as castle staff. Please make sure they know to make sure it’s my house and not Ministerex Laurah.”
“Yes, Minister.” She bowed slightly again. “Come, miss.” She held her arm out to the right to indicate for Shiobi to follow her.
“When you’re done. You will both join us for dinner so Shiobi can be introduced to Nimatari.”
The servant nodded to the Minister and followed Shiobi as they walked down a hallway toward what appeared to be a private gate to the palace.
Once they were safely clear of the Minister, the woman finally spoke. “You are to serve the young Ministerex?”
Shiobi nodded.
“Well, I wish you better luck than the last girl.” She continued down the hallway.
“If I may ask, what happened to her?”
“Caught stealing. The guards cut off both hands and her feet because she’d tried to run from them. She now struggles to get around on her elbows and knees.”
“Must have stolen something really valuable for that harsh of a punishment. I can’t imagine the kind minister I just met doing that.” Let them try to cut something off her and see what that got them.
“Oh,” she tilted her head back toward the castle, “the guards didn’t bother him with that. But I suppose you’re right- if he’d been involved, he’d probably just banish her from the entire borough. She had stolen a jeweled comb from the Ministerex. Probably not worth that much, but it’d been a gift from her mother, the last Day of Sun gift before her mother passed two years ago.”
She nodded. “Understood. I have no need for such things.” Day of Sun was a reference to the first day that a baby feels the sun on his or her face. Usually, the same as birth. Shifters also celebrated a similar personal holiday, called the Lone Water Day. Because that was the first day a shifter entered the pond alone. They would be with the other infants, left to play without their parent around. It usually happened three to four weeks after separation from their parent.
Shiobi remembered it well. She’d been upset, saddened that her parent was leaving her alone. The world had seemed so safe, that is until she joined the pond and began to play with the other younglings. The older ones had played rough, forcing her to form shapes and give up her liquid form. At first, she’d thought it cruel, but it had been a good thing. Her first form had been a rock. Her parent had been so proud of her for holding the form for a whole day. Now, if she kept her nourishment up, she could hold forms until she decided to change them.
“Well, I hope so.” Zatina gave her a sideways glance, her lip curling in disgust as she looked the peasant dress up and down. “Because you look rather desperate. And your hair is outdated, probably why the Minister wanted you. You are wearing it like his wife used to.”
“Is the ministerex more well-mannered than you?”
Zatina stopped. “Listen to me you petulant, little peasant…”
“No, you listen to me. Nothing is done by rudeness. I have not been rude to you. So, I have nothing to apologize for. I am, however, sorry for whatever experience you have in your past that makes you think it’s okay to talk to me that way about clothing that I have no control over.”
Zatina smirked. “If you talk like that to the…”
“Don’t interrupt me. You are not the young ministerex. I, of course, will use a different tone with her. But you,” Shiobi pointed in her face, “Have you failed to notice that the pillars outside resemble me? All I need are my wings.” She was still surprised Minister Eventin didn’t notice. Perhaps the stone color- along with the passage of time- distorted the pillars’ features too much.
Zatina laughed, “You’ll do fine here. And, yes, you do resemble the Great Phoenix lady.”
“Aren’t shifters sexless?” She smiled. It was prudent to asked obvious questions. It made them think you knew less than you did.
Zatina nodded, continuing out into a lush, green courtyard. She waved at the guard, who opened the iron gate that led to the inner city. “Yes, but she appeared to us as a woman. It’s the reason that hairstyle is so popular. She’s somewhat of a folk hero to us. And- I assume you to.” She pointed to Shiobi’s hair.
“Well, one can hardly be comfortable with self-worship.” Interesting—never tell a lie when no one will believe the truth. May as well put it out there and let the situation determine a course of action.
She smiled again, completely changing her tone. “Through here. Let’s get you suited up for service.”
They walked up to a quaint shop, with crosshatched windows. Colorful bolts of fabric were stacked so closely together that they blocked the view inside.
“Bellamey!” Zatina shouted, “It’s me. We need an Eventin uniform for the new handmaiden.”
A male voice came from the back. “Finally find a nutter to put up with that little …” His voice trailed off as he came out of the back. “Sorry, excuse me. She isn’t…”
Shiobi smiled. “It’s alright. I have dealt with the elite before. They do sometimes come off as intense.”
He chuckled. “Intense. I like her.” He looked at Zatina but pointed at Shiobi. “She’ll do exceptionally good with the young Ministerex. Zatina did warn you, didn’t she? Don’t touch anything that you aren’t told to touch.”
Shiobi nodded. “I like my hands where they are,” she smirked. Blades, it was always stupid humans trying to use a blade against a shifter. She would think that at some point the humans would learn that. But maybe they had, and that’s why an entire pool of younglings was dead.
“Well, let’s get some measurements and see if I have anything ready or if I need to start from scratch.
Shiobi
Shiobi smoothed the front of her new uniform. It was exquisite work, but it had to go. The last thing she needed was clothes. What if she had to shift? It’d leave conspicuous clothes laying around. She looked around the little shed she was hiding in. Bellamey had told her how to get back to Minister Eventin’s estate after Zatina left, but he’d finished early, so she took a small stroll looking for a place to hide. This place was full of garden sculpting tools.
She ran her fingers over the stitches in her uniform, studying them. She needed to replicate them perfectly. Next, she studied her new shoes. Thankfully, Bellamey had taken the time to make sure they were a good fit. No one would notice the lack of ‘floppiness’ to them. She took the uniform off and morphed her body into looking like it. She used a pair of choppers to cut off her hand to make a bag to carry the uniform in. She couldn’t leave it laying around for someone to find. It had to be disposed of properly.
She held up her arm, reforming her wrist and hand when she heard voices outside the shed.
“Do you have it?” a male voice asked.
“Have it? I already did it,” a panicky female voice answered.
Shiobi didn’t want to move and risk making the sound of footsteps, so she stretched her eye out to see if she could see through the crack around the door. The black-haired girl seemed short to Shiobi; she was wearing a uniform that identified her as Eventin staff. The blond boy was wearing a green tunic with a silver marmabear on it, as if those mammoth bears lived this far south. Must be the Minister of War- the marmabear was very aggressive, and it used to belong to the war minister’s house. But there was no way of telling if that were still true. After all, sigils followed families, not positions or titles, at least not in Ayres.
“What do you mean? I told you to wait to hear from me.”
“He allowed my sister’s hands and feet to be cut off.”
“He knew nothing of it. It was the guards that didn’t tell him what they did.” The male argued with a half-pleading and half-annoyed tone. “I paid to have a nursing maid tend to her.”
They must be talking about the minister.
“You’d better move up your schedule then. He’ll be dead by morning.” The girl nearly giggled as she walked off.
Once out of earshot, the boy hissed. “As will you.” He kicked at the dirt. “Treasonous little peasant. She wasn’t supposed to kill him.” He jogged off, heading for the main gate back into the city.
Shiobi smirked. This coward was risking whatever he had planned by allowing this to continue. When she was sure it was clear, she exited and walked quickly back to Minister Eventin’s estate. Perhaps she could heal him by eating the poison before it killed him.
She made her bag invisible and stuffed it into a large vase as she entered the castle. She had no idea where to find the minister, but given the time of day, he would probably be in his audience chamber. She started to turn toward the main hall they had first come down when they had arrived. Then it occurred to her that the minister might not be feeling well and may have retreated to his quarters.
Now she was confused. Where on Earth would his quarters be in this massive castle? She walked at a brisk pace back toward the way she came. The kitchen should have a direct staircase upstairs. This would make it faster for the servants to serve meals and clean quarters. She went back to the gate and found the staircase down into the kitchens below.
She could feel the intense heat of the kitchen fires as she descended. People were busy running to and fro in the heat. The sickening smell of spices and armpits mixed together nearly stifled her as she passed. Then she spotted it; over to the right was a narrow passage. She quickly walked over to it, hoping nobody would pay attention to her with the uniform.
Once out of view, she ascended the stairs two at a time. If she remembered her castle security well, the minister’s quarters would not be close to this passage, as it would invite invaders to find quick passage to the master of the castle. Once at the top of the stairs, she walked briskly down the long hallway. She was thankful for the red, plush carpet that ran the length of the hall, since her feet would not make the sound of shoes clacking, revealing her. At the end of the hall was a set of double grand doors with two guards standing out front.
She passed two more sets of grand double doors but remained on track to the ones at the end of the hall. She was taking a risk that those would be the correct doors. It seemed logical since no one else’s doors would be guarded.
“Who are you?” one of the guards in leather-clad armor asked. He was tall and rather handsome for a human. He also looked too young. Much too young to have earned the honor of guarding the minister’s private chambers. She was about to wonder if she had made a mistake when the other guard spoke up.
“The minister isn’t seeing anyone right now,” he said, glancing down at her. “He isn’t feeling well. We think he may have eaten something bad at lunch.”
They had no idea just how bad it was. What was she going to say to get in?
She put her hands together under her chin and smiled up at them, “Kind sirs, the minister asked me to find him before dinner. He wanted to make sure I could do this hairstyle,” she pointed at her hair. “It’s the reason he asked me to be reviewed for his daughter’s new handmaiden.”
“Ah, yes, we heard that.” The younger guard nodded. “When we took up position from the previous guard, they had mentioned he had brought a stray dog home.” He sneered down at her curling his lip.
Seven tsunamis of Hell. They were going to make her kill them and stuff their bodies somewhere. Because one thing was certain, she was going to get through these doors and save the minister. She needed him to be in his position, especially if he was going to be sympathetic to the peace cause.
The old guard punched the younger guard in the shoulder, “Show some respect. She’s working with Zatina. She has also been properly uniformed as a castle staff member. He was very taken with her during the journey.”
It was then that she recognized him. It was the guard she had grabbed the water for off the side of the carriage.
“You may enter, dear maiden,” he said, opening the door for her.
“Thank you, kind sir,” she said nodding to him. She entered, and he closed the door behind her. The minister was laying on his chaise lounge his hand over his stomach.
“Grand sir, are you all right?” She rushed over to him.
He groaned, “I don’t know. I’m not sure what’s wrong. I feel very funny, like I want to peel my skin off and climb out of my body. It hurts.” He grunted, doubling over.
Sadness filled her. Such a kind man didn’t deserve this. She walked over to him and knelt next to him, taking his hand in hers. “I fear I overheard some treachery, grand sir. I heard a young kitchen wench making a plan of assassination of you with a young man clad in green. He had a marmabear sigil on his chest.”
His eyes widened, and his grip tightened on her hand. “You know not what you say,” he wheezed.
She allowed tears to fill her eyes. They would be a very good effect. “Good sir, I do know what I say. Please think about the way you feel, my dear minister. I would not come to you with such a horrible lie. I can help you, but I need you to trust me like you’ve never trusted anyone in your life.”
His gaze met hers, “The marmabear is the sigil of the king. No one in the king’s court would assassinate me. If he were displeased with me, he would simply remove me from office. It’s a simple matter. If he thought me guilty of treachery, he would have me executed as an example to others that loyalty belongs to the throne. Assassination is something he simply would not have to do.”
“But does loyalty belong to the throne, or does it belong to the kingdom? Good minister, I beg you, please let me help you now, but I need your assurance that you trust me enough to maintain your silence.”
A pained expression came over his face as he lurched to grab his stomach and grunted loudly. “Yes,” he said, “I trust you, please do something. If it’s poison, do you have an antidote?”
“I don’t know what poison he and the girl used. I do know little bits of it are only supposed to make you sick. But she was angry with you and gave you all of it, enough to kill you.” She formed a blade with her pinky finger and pricked his wrist. She put her hand over it and allowed tentacles to go down into his bloodstream as she searched for the poison. The poison had been doing its work. It had seeped into his organs. She was too late.
His eyes widened as though they were going to bulge out of his head, “You’re a shifter.”
“Shh…” She patted his mouth with her forefinger. “Do not say that too loud, my lord. I am on your side. After all, I am here trying to save you now. I could have easily killed you if I were against you.”
“Shiobi,” he whispered, “It’s you, isn’t it?”
She nodded, allowing her celestial wings to come out of her back. She rolled them back in just in case the guards came in. She allowed her tentacles to find his brainstem. The very least she could do at this point was make sure he couldn’t feel any more pain. His breathing quieted, and his voice steadied.
“Shiobi,” he cradled her face with his left hand, “You must warn the other shifters. The king means to bring them into a war that is not theirs. I have been arguing against him in private. That is how I know that if he wanted me dead or gone, I would already be. And it would’ve been public. He means to send an assassin to burn one of your ponds. I just found out a few hours ago.”
She held up a finger as if to shush him. “They already have, kind minister. He carried out his plans last month.” This time, her eyes really did burn with tears. “That is why I’m here. The colony has moved to a location so remote that the soldiers who have left the colony will never be able to go home. But there is a reckoning coming,” she paused, she’d been too harsh to think that they should all be dead. They weren’t all against the shifters, “and I’m going to see to it that as many lives, both human and shifter, and even elven can be saved.” But the king was going to go down hard and as painful as she could make it.
His vital signs weakened as he let go of her. “Find the Minister of Coin. Tell him that I told you that he has the best lemon cakes. He will be able to help you, but he needs to know he can trust you. Tell him that, and he will know that I sent you. Now get out of here before I pass. I don’t want you caught up in this. You need to be free to do what you need to do. Getting caught up in an assassination investigation would only expose you as a shifter. The guards must see me alive when you leave.”
She smiled, “My dear, kind minister, they will.” She squeezed his brainstem with her tentacles and put him out of his misery. She stood and quickly stripped his clothes off, forming a blanket and absorbing him. Within minutes, she had his form, down to his sandals, perfectly replicated.
She changed back into the handmaiden and exited the chamber. “He wishes to sleep now. I’ll have the kitchen staff bring up his soup for dinner.”
They both nodded, closing the door behind her and resuming their guard positions outside his chamber.
She went down one flight and went out into the side courtyard. She found what she thought was the minister’s window. She leaned against the wall, taking the form of the wall, and slid up it. Once she got to his window, she slid into the cracks of the frame and then took the minister’s form as she entered the room.
She hoped to have at least a couple of hours, since she had expressed that the minister wanted a nap, this would allow her to look around his chambers and make it easier to impersonate him. She walked over to his desk and pulled out what looked like a journal. She sat down and started to read it.
Karine-Green 