“Hi there,” she called.
“Where’d you come from?” the man in front of the group demanded. “We saw you appear on our sensors, but no one told us to expect a ship today.”
“Sorry for arriving unannounced. We’re just passing through and needed to land for a bit. Unfortunately, your outpost is a bit too small for our ship.”
“What’s your planet of origin?” another man demanded, stepping forward, rifle aimed at her head.
“I was born on a ship,” Reaghan replied. “After that, I just travel wherever my ship takes me.”
The pair fell silent, though Reaghan could feel their eyes boring into her. She thanked whatever powers might be listening that she’d lost the habit of casting illusions over things like her claws or they’d likely think she was hiding something bigger.
“You a shifter?” the man asked.
“Shifter?” Reaghan repeated, curiosity rising, despite the weapons aimed at her chest.
“Yeah, there’s some that can use Eiha to shift their forms or part of them. Your claws made me think you might be one of them.”
“Never heard of them, but they sound cool. Is it something you can learn?”
A woman chuckled. Her deep chestnut hair was streaked with gray. Lines from weather and laughter accented her kind features. “I don’t think she or the automaton mean us any harm.” She stepped to join the other two. “I’m Eldar Tria. Welcome to Mriaam.”
“Eldar!” the man protested. “But the attackers were automatons.”
“They were also living,” the Eldar said, then turned to Reaghan. “And to answer your question, it could be. If you have the talents and desire to learn. But I warn you, it’s not an easy path. But I’m curious, if you’re not a shifter, how did you get those claws?”
Reaghan wrung her hands, suddenly self-conscious of the fact that everyone was staring at them. “I was born with them. I figure it must be some throwback to some distant relative.”
“What about these creatures that attacked you?” Twi asked.
“They’re forces of destruction,” the man muttered. “They—”
A loud roar made the hair on the back of Reaghan’s neck stand on end. She whipped around, trying to locate the source.
“It appears as though you might meet them,” Eldar Tria said quietly.
“To the outpost!” the man bellowed. “Move!”
Reaghan turned back just in time to see half the group drop their weapons to the ground, glowing with their respective Eiha energies. Their forms twisted and pulled, parts grew and shrank, warping until massive animals stood in place of the humanoids. Some, large hawks, took to the skies, calling out an alarm ahead of the main force. The rest raced off, vanishing among the trees. The few who were left silently gathered up the discarded weapons before following, leaving Reaghan behind.
“What are we going to do?” Twi asked quietly.
Another roar echoed through the trees. Reaghan listened to the silence that followed, then nodded, though it was more to herself then anything. “Let’s go help. I have a feeling we know exactly what’s been attacking these people.”
“More of those machine-beasts. And if I remember right, the last time we fought them, I had to use the ship so you could get away.”
“It was also just the two of us. And I hadn’t unlocked the next stages of my powers yet, either.”
She rose on a gust of wind, then raced through the trees as fast as she dared. Despite the vastness of the trunks, there was enough space between them to make it easy to navigate. She could make out the small army in the distance, their cries of battle just now filling the air in earnest.
Reaghan broke free of the trees to narrowly avoid a heavy arm coming down. She jumped out of the way, lightning gathering on her fingertips. Like the beasts from before, this one was also equipped with cybernetic augments. The weapons on its shoulders fired indiscriminately in the hopes of finding a target.
“That’s the first thing to go,” Reaghan said. She wound up, throwing the ball of lightning at one of the cannons with all her might. It exploded in a hail of sparks and fire. The beast reared, throwing off three of the shifters in the process.
“Fire!” the man yelled.
A barrage from rifles struck the beast across the flesh portions of its exposed belly. In the brief breaks between rounds, she could make out large wounds that still smoked and oozed blood. It was as black as oil. The shifters latched back on, hacking away at anything they could reach with their claws and teeth. It was messy, but seemed much more efficient than anything else they were throwing at the thing. The beast turned, lashing out with its limbs in an effort to swipe the shifters off. Vines rose from the ground, wrapping around the limbs and holding them down. They snapped easily and the beast charged toward the offending casters.
Reaghan raised a hand, her Eiha casting out toward him. Vines of her own balled up around the beast, carrying an electric shock to augment her attack. They wound around the body, though the beast struggled against her. Reaghan’s fist clenched, commanding the vines to tighten their hold on the beast.
“Now!” someone bellowed. “While it can’t strike back!”
“Wait!” someone else yelled. “Get back! Get back! Energy is building within the cybernetic components.”
The shifters helped herd everyone to safety. Reaghan fell back to the trees, hiding behind a fallen log along with a few others. Peeking over the edge, she saw sparks coming off the cybernetic parts, some of which managed to deal a decent blow to her vines.
“I don’t think we’re even safe here,” Twi said. “I’m using the ship’s sensors and the levels that are building up…”
Reaghan studied the beast. The air around it was warping with the amount of energy it was putting out. The vines held on, but only just. She doubled the amount of power they were using. With this much power gathering within the beast it would be disastrous to have it charge toward where people were taking shelter. As the beast managed to take a few lumbering steps, she quickly realized even that wouldn’t be enough. Reaghan set Twi on the log and wrapped another vine around her abdomen.
“What are you doing?” The automaton pulled at the bonds.
A second shield layer bubbled up around her. “Stay here,” Reaghan ordered and strode toward the beast.
Twi continued to call out to her, but she ignored it. A wall of earth rose around the perimeter of the clearing to protect the others from shrapnel. The beast twisted around, aware that it wasn’t alone. Reaghan said nothing, just wove her hands around, manipulating her Eiha until another shield formed around it. Reaching deep, she funneled more and more power into her spell, trying to keep ahead of what she was sensing coming off the beast.
Cracks began to form in both its shield and her own as fatigue began to set in. She gritted her teeth, refocusing since she wasn’t used to maintaining so many full-strength spells at once. One of the cybernetic limbs fell to the ground as the joints gave out. Reaghan drew in a deep breath and braced herself for the explosion that was likely seconds away. In the silence that fell over the clearing, she could still make out Twi’s muffled attempts to call her back.
I’d be glad to, Twi, she said silently. If only line of sight wasn’t needed to work a shield like this.
She could feel the resistance to her vine around Twi go slack and wondered if the AI realized she was inadvertently draining her more. Even the beast went still, as though readying itself for the inevitable.
Reaghan’s vision was bleached white as her shield strained to hold back the energy being released. Then, as sudden as it had happened, the light went dark. What was left of the beast floated in midair, contained by her cracked shield. Reaghan wavered where she stood, releasing the spells. The earthen wall crumbled into the ground. She reached out, poking one of the floating beast’s limbs with a claw. It moved at her touch.
&
nbsp; “What are you thinking?” Twi bellowed. “You might have a large reservoir, but you don’t have an endless one! Maintaining five spells at that level…”
“Come,” it was Eldar Tria. “You need to rest.”
“We’ll clean up and make sure your ship is protected.” The man who had been so distrusting when they landed now spoke with a note of awe on his voice. “We owe you that much.”
“I didn’t do much,” Reaghan said.
“Didn’t you pay attention when I said the explosion would destroy the entire outpost?” Twi grumped.
Tria’s grip on her arm tightened as she wobbled a bit. Reaghan wanted to insist that she would go back to the Aeon, but found she was too tired to care. Their destination was a small house on the outskirts of the outpost. It was rustic, yet modern based on the lights and computer interfaces inside. Tria guided her to the bedroom and helped her sit down.
“When you’re up to it, we’ll talk more. I think we might be able to help one another.”
“What?” Reaghan murmured.
Tria eased her back like she was tucking a child into bed. “Rest.” She turned to Twi. “Does she wear herself out to this point often?”
“You have no idea.”
Reaghan awoke in darkness. Someone, likely the Eldar, had put a thick quilt over her while she slept. She sat up, hand to her head an effort to keep the last bit of weariness at bay.
“I shouldn’t have been that wore out, should I?” she wondered.
“Like I said, five spells!” Twi cried. The glow from her eyes washed over Reaghan. “All at the highest strength you could muster. Some of the fighters tried to break through your wall and couldn’t even make a dent!”
“I haven’t been using a lot of Eiha since we retook the ship,” Reaghan pointed out. “My reserves should have been full.”
“It doesn’t matter when you’re holding back a catastrophic explosion on top of everything else!”
“What time is it?” Reaghan asked.
“Almost midnight. And before you ask, the Eldar already ordered that you stay in bed until at least noon tomorrow. The Aeon’s under a good watch. I’ve been checking in on them from time to time on the sensors.”
“I should’ve just gone back to the ship. I should’ve insisted on it. I never wanted to come to the outpost in the first place.”
“Then why did you help them?” Twi asked in a teasing tone.
Reaghan’s face scrunched in her displeasure. “When have I ever let people get walked all over by a threat that would easily wipe them out? Though really, I should stop that habit since it just seems to get me in trouble.”
“But you won’t. And you should realize that offering you a room is their way of repaying you for your help. They might have some tech, but nothing I’ve searched for indicates that it’s more than standard stuff. My guess is either this place is too far away to have much trade or they just don’t have it set up fully yet.”
“I suppose,” Reaghan sighed, leaning against the pillow. Her weariness was getting the best of her, despite her efforts to stay awake. “I’ll just rest my eyes for a moment.”
A faint breeze from Twi’s wings washed over her. “Good night, Reaghan.”
Quiet voices greeted her the next time she awoke. Turning over, Reaghan found Twi already in deep conversation with Eldar Tria and the man from the day before. All three were seated at the small table in the front of the house. She ran a hand through her hair in an effort to make herself look more presentable.
“She lives,” Twi cried with such cheerfulness that Reaghan wondered if she’d altered her emotional parameters while she slept.
“We have a bit of coffee and food,” Eldar Tria said. “Please.”
Reaghan poured herself a cup and took the vacant seat. Twi took her customary place on her shoulder. Her tail lightly brushed the back of her head in greeting. “How are things going?” Reaghan asked.
“Fine. No trouble overnight,” the man said.
“They attack often?”
“Every few days it seems. Different beasts. Different weapons. We don’t know where they come from, but it’s becoming more and more of a challenge to lead them away from the outpost,” he replied.
“You seemed to have fought them before,” Eldar Tria noted.
“I’ve encountered one once, but I’ve seen them around since then.” She swirled the coffee around in her cup.
“Do you know where they come from?” the man asked.
She shook her head. “The first time, I was in a remote region of space with nothing around for at least ten systems. It looked like the beast drove out whoever lived there with them.” She wasn’t about to tell them they couldn’t confirm that detail since she had preferred to exercise caution.
“Is there any help you can get?” Twi asked. “As formidable as you are, you can’t hope to hold them off forever. Especially, if they self-destruct like that one did.”
The pair exchanged a dark look. “Jirao has been bringing up that same point.”
“I’m a realist, Mother.”
“That shifting gives you a bit of an edge; they aren’t able to deal with their opponents being that close,” Reaghan pointed out.
“Unfortunately, that edge can’t last much longer. Every new attack brings more injuries.”
“Not all your group can do it?” Twi asked.
“Like I said, you need a certain affinity with your Eiha to manage it. An affinity I think you have, young woman.”
“Me?”
“You favor a druid’s way of using Eiha, not a mage’s,” Jirao said. “That much was evident by the wall you made and the way you restrained the beast.”
“I can use it the other way,” Reaghan felt obligated to mention. “I just started using it this way is all.”
“After you read that book,” Twi pointed out.
“What book?” Eldar Tria asked.
“It was half a book and it was about ancient cultures on the originally settled worlds. Some had great powers that they used for combat and they used them to also heal and protect the land. I had no land but I could mimic what they could do. I just added my own twist on it.”
“Most of us are either full druids or are in various stages of learning,” Eldar Tria said. “We were sent ahead of the main colonizing force to ensure the planet was ready for them and the terraforming process stable.”
“If there’s a colonizing force, won’t they have to destroy all these forests we saw to build?” Twi asked.
“We’ll manage to help them live in harmony with the trees. It’s a new type of colonizing that’s being done here. More in tune with nature than past attempts,” Jirao said.
“Will the ship be able to land with the attacks happening every so often?” Reaghan asked.
They shook their heads sadly. “Even if they land, the ship will be packed back up the second the attack happens. If they come back after that, it’ll only be after the planet is deemed fully secure.”
“But they might not come back. And then your work and the terraforming that happened will be for nothing,” said Twi.
“Which is why we’d like your help,” Eldar Tria said. “We know it’s asking a lot, but we can teach you more about the school that you’ve chosen to follow. We can even teach you to shift your form at will. All we ask is that you help us defend ourselves and, if possible, find out where these attacks are coming from.”
Reaghan stared at the black liquid in her cup. She did the best she could to follow the directions of that old book but there was only so far she could go with its guidance. She glanced at Twi on her shoulder, the conversation from last night filtering through her mind.
Again, why do I keep letting myself get in these situations?
Based on the bit they’d seen, the outpost was only a couple hundred people strong and she had
no idea how many of them were unable fight. She let out a low sigh, unable to see a way out without leaving them to die.
“When do we start?” she asked.
Shifting, as it turned out, took more than a little concentration to master. Reaghan couldn’t remember the last time anything with Eiha took so much effort. It didn’t help matters that her mind was all over the place. Where was Miraz? Were they done being in the Void? What was the next step?
“Try again,” the master instructed as her body snapped back to its original form. Once more, Reaghan was struck by how patient he was being with her since this was the fourth day in a row all her attempts had been interrupted by her own lack of focus.
Reaghan closed her eyes, imagining the lion they were using as a model for the lesson. Eiha flowed through her body and she could feel the structure of it begin to change. Bones and muscles altered into that of a four-legged predator. Her feet shrank slightly and widened into paws. Luckily, she had shed her shoes for the exercise so she wouldn’t ruin them. The rest of her clothing had been spelled to meld with her, even though the shoes still had to be removed. She could feel the temperature change around her as skin was covered with a thick pelt.
Panicked cries made her eyes snap open just in time to see the ground rise to meet her. The last of the visible changes were still fading as the master helped her to her feet.
“The lesson is done for today,” he informed her.
“Why?”
He motioned behind him. Another student was helping a large wolf to get unstuck from a tree. The claws were deep, likely due to a missed attack during combat practice. Besides the master who was teaching Reaghan, three others joined them, though none moved to step in. Reaghan broke her gaze away and searched for Twi. She found her friend perched atop a small bush. She shook her head; she still didn’t know why the AI insisted on coming with her. She had to be bored out of her mind just watching them work. Then again, she supposed, as the most advanced thing on the planet besides the terraforming equipment itself or the Aeon, there was little that interested her. Reaghan tilted her head to the side; Twi hadn’t responded to the commotion.
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