Shifters Alliance

by Shaun L Griffiths

  Where’s this going to end? he thought.

  Then he heard a scream from somewhere amongst the fleeing townspeople. Even to the ears of a panicked people in full flight, this one warned of a different horror. Jojo immediately recognised it was wrong, this was a shriek of terror.

  They’re here, he thought, feeling a terrible sickness in the pit of his stomach. He tried desperately to locate where it had come from.

  ‘They’re here!’ he tried shouting above the din, but it fell on deaf ears.

  In the chaos and confusion of the dust cloud, just for a moment, he thought he caught sight of red glowing eyes. Another scream rang out, a different voice, a man this time.

  Please, not here, he thought, Not like this.

  The continuous cries of agony sent a chill down their spines. The screams echoed around the empty town. Whoever was crying out was suffering, and very badly.

  Caldo and Fonz stopped for only a moment. Their exchanged looks told them both the same thing: move higher, and quickly. They tried not to look at the town, neither of them wanting to see what was happening down there. The two guards climbed above the snowline, heading toward the Western Pass, the crisp, fresh snows untrodden. After some hours of climbing, they found that the path they’d chosen was leading them higher towards the peak.

  ‘We need to work our way back down. The wind’s picking up. We’ll get lost up here in this visibility,’ Caldo, the lead guard, called back.

  With the darkness came the rising winds and fresh flurries of snow, making their progress slower. They pushed on, unable to see more than a few steps ahead, becoming more disoriented as the wind and driving snow increased. Suddenly, the lead guard disappeared from view.

  ‘Cal! Cal!’ Fonz called. He inched his way forward, and found his footing disappearing into an empty space where the ridge face fell away to the pass below, out of sight. He dropped to his knees and peered over the edge.

  Cal was clinging to a rock outcrop, struggling to climb back up. Fonz leaned over the edge as far as he dared, feeling the wind trying to pluck him off the exposed face of the mountain. Stretching as far as he could with the tips of his claws, he tried to get a hold on Cal’s outstretched arm.

  ‘Cal, I nearly got you, just pull a little higher,’ he yelled against the wind.

  Cal looked up seeing his friend’s outstretched claws. He swung his own arm, stretching to the limit, and felt them touch. Immediately, they both closed their claws around each other and pulled. Cal worked his way back over the ridge line, falling in an exhausted heap beside his friend.

  ‘Told you we’d come too high,’ Cal said.

  They both laughed with relief and exhaustion.

  ‘I’ll lead now,’ said Fonz.

  They followed the ridge down, keeping the edge well to their left, but within sight, until they felt the slope levelling out.

  ‘This must be the pass,’ he called back.

  They stopped for a moment to catch their breath and to get their bearings. Everything on the mountain seemed strange and unfamiliar in the dark, and with the howling wind it was difficult to understand exactly where they were. Cal cupped his hands close to Fonz’ ears. ‘I’m sure we must be at the mouth of the pass,’ he shouted against the wind. ‘We should head north now,’ pointing with his arm to show the direction.

  Fonz made an exaggerated nod, unable to compete with the noise of the storm.

  They moved forward into the drifting snow, testing their footing, conscious that they didn’t really know where they were yet. Fonz made another step forward but fell headlong into a deep drift. Brushing the snow from his face, he looked confused at a mound covered in fresh snow. Rather than feeling the touch of rock as he’d tripped, he’d felt something soft.

  A deep sense of dread came over him.

  ‘Cal, I think we’re in trouble,’ he tried shouting above the wind.

  They both knelt down, making themselves as low as possible, searching around for danger, but unable to see for any distance in the driving snow.

  ‘I’ve a bad feeling about this,’ he shouted again, but was still having problems being heard.

  Fonz turned and brushed away snow from the mound that he’d tripped over. Scrapping more away, he found himself looking down into the face of a fellow guard, the eyes unseeing, a look of shock on its face.

  ‘Not good,’ shouted Cal.

  They both pulled the snow away from where they assumed their comrade’s body must lie, but instead of white fur they found a matted red mass of hair, where their fellow guard had died violently.

  ‘He’s still warm; it can’t have been long ago.’

  To their right, they could make out another mound covered in snow that looked out of place.

  Cal quickly scrapped the snow away and found another face staring at him with empty eyes.

  ‘We have a big problem,’ repeated Cal nervously.

  ‘How many guards were in the escort?’

  ‘I don’t know, but I can see at least five mounds over there,’ pointing to his right.

  He cupped his hands again to Fonz’ ear. ‘Keep low, keep close and keep quiet. Hand signals only.’

  They followed the line of mounds further into the pass, horrified at the number of lost comrades. Eight, then ten, and then twelve mounds they passed.

  How could this happen? Cal’s thoughts were screaming in his head. They were trained guards!

  He was desperately hoping that not all the snow covered mounds were guards. They moved further into the pass, finding another three mounds.

  For a moment, the wind stopped and Cal caught sight of a particularly high snow-covered mound ahead. He signalled to Fonz to cover him as he moved forward to investigate. Inching his way towards it, continually checking to the left and right, Cal reached the mound and began scraping the snow from the top. Moving the snow away, he touched the soft fur of a Bear’s head. Digging deeper he found a face he recognised.

  It was the boss, sitting upright in the snow, which had buried him. He frantically dragged the snow away to reveal his boss sitting with his head resting on his chest. Just for a moment, Cal thought he saw a movement. He watched again and saw the boss try to lift his chin from his chest.

  Fonz came running over, ‘Boss, Boss! Can you hear me?’

  The boss moved his head again. Cal gently helped him lift his face so that he could see them.

  ‘Boss, its Cal and Fonz. What happened?’

  The boss’s eyes slowly open, trying to focus on the guards. He struggled to raise a hand.

  ‘Boss, how many were you, how many guards with you?’

  Barely audible, the boss whispered, ‘Fifteen.’

  ‘Oh no.’ Cal groaned.

  ‘What happened, Boss?’

  He lifted his hand to point, ‘Him.’ he managed to say.

  They looked to where he pointed, to a mound close by.

  ‘Him? You mean one ape did all this?’

  The boss nodded his head.

  ‘He’s got the box.’ The effort of trying to talk making him gasp in pain. ‘Take it... quickly. Go now!’

  Fonz rushed to drag the snow away from the mound the boss had pointed to. He felt a wave of nausea when he touched the hideous face of an ape staring back at him. The lips were drawn back to reveal evil-looking teeth overhanging its jaw. He dug quickly around the body, finding its arms crossed, clinging to a golden box.

  Fonz tried to prize the hands away, but they were frozen in a death grip, clutching the box to its chest. He pulled on the smaller finger, hearing it snap as it came away, and then had to repeat it with the next, until every finger had broken loose.

  He lifted the box and there was an escape of air for the ape, like a last breath, making Fonz jump back in shock. Then the chest of the ape collapsed.

  Fonz returned to the boss. ‘I’ve got it. It’s okay, it’s safe, Boss.’

  He shook his head. ‘Not safe... go now... quickly,’ and pointed north into the pass and home.

  ‘C
ome on, we’ll help you, we’ll carry you,’ Cal said.

  The boss shook his head. With a mighty effort he managed to say, ‘No... go now... before it’s too late... more coming... please... go.’

  Fonz and Cal looked at each other. They knew they had no choice.

  ‘We’ll get it safe and come back for you, Boss.’

  He managed to shake his head again. With his last breath, he said ‘Runnnn.’

  His head fell back onto his chest, and he slowly toppled sideways into the snow.

  ‘How could just one of those things do all this?’

  ‘I don’t know, Cal, but we gotta get out of here. That way, now run.’

  Chapter 13

  Naz and Vin lay on the south side of the hill, keeping low, looking out over the valley of rolling hills and burnt grass.

  ‘This green stuff is amazing,’ said Vin. ‘It’s cured my head a treat.’

  ‘‘You’re right there, I can’t see your lump at all now.’

  ‘What do you think it is, Naz?’

  ‘Mosses, she said, but it’s not like any moss I’ve seen before. You should keep it safe. It may come in handy later.’

  ‘Why, d’you think we’ll be getting injured later?’

  ‘No, I didn’t mean it like that. It’s like a pie, better to have one and not want one than to want one and not have one.’

  ‘Hmm... See what you mean.’

  ‘You did well back there, Vin.’

  ‘Thanks, Naz.’

  ‘Where’d you learn that diplomacy?’

  ‘Dunno, it’s just something I felt inside, and I could see that Carter was hurting.’

  ‘Yeah, they must have been close, him and that Holly.’

  ‘He felt responsible.’

  ‘Terrible thing, Vin. Feeling responsible for something that you can’t change. Especially when it wasn’t really his fault. It was that scheming, lying Duma’s fault.’

  ‘You’re right there. How long d’you reckon we’ll have to wait, Naz?’

  ‘Dunno. Some things y’can’t rush. Especially diplomatic things.’

  ‘Is that right?’

  ‘Something to remember, Vin.’

  ‘I’ll tell you something, Naz, I wish I could use a stick like she does.’

  ‘Yeah, she’s real handy with that. Wonder how she learnt to do it?’

  ‘Dunno, but wish I knew.’

  They both looked out over the valley, with one eye on the terrain and half a mind on Kerri.

  ‘You know, she’s not really that mean after all.’ Vin concluded after much thought.

  ‘No, she seems really nice, her worrying about her fallen friend and all.’

  ‘Holly, yeah, that’s gonna be difficult.’

  ‘We’re guards now, Vin, life’s not supposed to be easy for us.’

  ‘Yeah, you’re right there, Naz.’

  ‘Have you noticed something, Vin?’

  ‘What’s that?’

  ‘That fire’s getting pretty close to us.’

  ‘Yeah, now you mention it.’

  They watched the pines burn ferociously, sucking winds in to feed itself. They could feel the air rushing over them.

  ‘Sure hope the wind don’t change direction, Naz.’

  ‘Hmm.’

  ‘D’you reckon they’ll let those cat people in?’

  ‘Difficult to say. They have a lot to be sore about, but at the end of the day, they seem decent people.’

  ‘What about us, Naz, how’re we gonna get home.’

  ‘You any good at climbing?’

  ‘Well... Hey look, Naz, they’ve opened a gateway, they must’ve made a decision.’

  They turned expectantly, waiting to see who would emerge. There was a flash as someone stepped out of the shimmering light.

  ‘It’s the one we spoke with earlier, Ben.’

  ‘Over here,’ they called.

  Ben heard them shout and ran over.

  ‘I’m glad you’re still here. Everything quiet?’

  ‘Yes, except for that fire.’

  Ben now realised just how close it was to the border.

  ‘Has it advanced much since you’ve been here?’

  ‘It’s still moving this way.’

  ‘How long have you been here?’

  ‘All night,’ they said.

  ‘This is weird; we’ve only been discussing it for an hour.’

  ‘Have you reached a decision?’ asked Naz.

  ‘We’ll help get the townspeople out. A decision on whether they can stay or just pass through will have to go before the clan, for everyone to have their say.’

  ‘I understand.’

  ‘I’m going to give the all clear for the others to join me.’

  ‘Okay, we’ll wait here until you return, then head back to find our boss. We’ll let him know you’re waiting.’

  ‘Okay, I’ll be back in a minute.’

  ‘No you won’t,’ said Naz.

  Another flash of light signalled Ben’s return.

  ‘I’ll put a marker out, in case anyone needs to find it in a hurry.’

  ‘Good thinking, Vin. I’ll be glad to get moving again.’

  Naz watched Vin pick up the only rock in the area and measure out fifteen paces north, where he placed his marker on the ground.

  He’s turned out to be a good guard, Naz thought.

  He took a last look around. Such a beautiful valley ... and such a shame they’ve lost it.

  Ben stepped back onto the Northern Plains, calling the others forward. ‘It’s all clear, Sam. Naz and Vin are still there waiting.’

  ‘Tell them I hope we can meet again.’

  ‘Okay, I’ll tell them. Keep an eye on the fire, Sam; it’s getting close over there.’

  ‘Will do... remember, Ben, no heroes.’

  He smiled, waving a farewell, and stepped back through to the valley with his men.

  Sam turned to Casey, ‘Let’s get a rotating guard on the gateway. Four hour shifts. I’m hoping the clan will be here by morning. It’s a waiting game now, so let’s get organised.’

  While the others set up camp, Sam sought out Carter and Kerri.

  ‘You two should be getting back to the Meeting Place. You’ve done more than your fair share.’

  ‘We’ve talked about it between ourselves, Sam; we’re staying, to help out where we can,’ said Carter.

  ‘You’ve done enough, you need to rest and recover. If you want, you can help at the island. I know they can’t wait to see you.’

  ‘We’ve been there, Sam, we know what these apes are like, we can help. And anyway, I want to be close to Casey now I’m back,’ said Kerri.

  ‘I can understand that. But I still don’t like you being in danger. After what you’ve been through you need to recover, here, in the mind.’ Sam tapped the side of his head.

  ‘Please, Sam,’ said Kerri. ‘It’s our choice. Besides, I need to take care of Carter, he still can’t run fast enough.’

  Sam gave a laugh, ‘It’s nice to see you two back.’

  They sat around the fire. Even though the night was hot and balmy, this was the place where everyone could relax for a while and forget about the possibility of a battle looming over them.

  ‘D’you think the rains will come this year?’ said someone in the darkness.

  ‘Definitely not tonight.’ answered another with a laugh.

  ‘It’s getting late. The crops are really struggling, if we have to feed another town... ‘ There was a murmur as people realised the seriousness of the poor harvest.

  ‘I remember one year the rains never came at all. I was a boy at the time, must’ve been nine or ten. But we had a good stock to see us through from the previous year.’

  ‘Our stocks are good this year,’ put in Sam.

  ‘And we’re catching more salmon than ever. We’ve plenty dried and smoked,’ added another positively.

  ‘Hope they like fish,’ someone added.

  ‘Sonny didn’t,’ Kerri said. ‘Nor
milk!’ Everyone laughed.

  ‘Imagine, a cat that doesn’t like milk!’ People around the fire fell about laughing.

  A voice in the darkness surprised them all, saying ‘What’s this, the calm before the storm? They’ll hear you laughing on the other side of the border!’

  ‘Avi! You’re back so soon.’ They all stood to greet him.

  ‘Yes, I’ve the rest of the clan with me. We ran all day. And I have someone with me, Sam.’

  ‘Hi, Dad, I missed you.’

  ‘Lu? What are you doing here?’

  ‘Sorry, Sam, I couldn’t stop her.’

  ‘It’s okay, Avi, I know the feeling.’

  ‘Kerri!’ she shouted ‘Carter?’ She ran to hug them. ‘I can’t believe how much you’ve grown.’

  She had her arms around them both. ‘I’ve missed you so much.’

  She gave Kerri a big squeeze and a kiss on the cheek. She turned to Carter, threw both arms around his neck, and held him very tight. ‘Carter,’ she had tears in her eyes, ‘I’ll never be able to thank you enough, for everything.’

  ‘Lu, I did nothing.’

  ‘No, Carter, you did everything. You supported us, you tried protecting us. You acted as a man would and we looked up to you. Holly told me how grateful she was that you were there with her. We wouldn’t be here now if you hadn’t taken the lead. Don’t you ever think you did nothing.’ She gave him another big squeeze. ‘What happened to us over there, what we went through, no one will ever understand. But I promise you, I’ll never forget what you did, Carter.’

  She tried to lighten the reunion. ‘Just look at you two, all grown up. I can’t believe it,’ Lulu said.

  ‘And so handsome,’ added Kerri, watching him blush in the fire light. The girls laughed out loud.

  ‘The young ladies will be queueing up to talk to you, Carter,’ joked Lulu.

  ‘You can always offer to teach them to swim,’ said Kerri, laughing again. ‘That’ll be a hit.’

  ‘It’s so good to have you both back,’ said Lulu. ‘Come on, let’s sit by the fire and talk. I’m so thirsty.’

  They walked off, leaving the men to make plans.