by Gene Rager
Tirana’s laughter was stopped by the sound of a twig snapping. Her head snapped over to see two crimson eyes staring at her. The eyes began to back away when she called to their owner.
“You don’t have to leave.”
The footsteps stopped. The person that had seen her might know who she is. Tirana couldn’t let them go not with her new identity.
“Come back, please. It would be nice to know who was looking at me in such a way.” Tirana purred.
The figure came to the edge of the forest, and stopped.
“Come on, you have seen all there is to see of me, but I have not seen even your face.”
The figure step out on to a beach she would never see. The bow was enchanted and gave her eyes the red light that was known throughout the land.
“What is your name stranger?” Tirana called, knowing that she was addressing the demon archer.
“My name is Ileana the dem…” Ileana stopped, was she really going to say she was the demon archer of Santrose?
“Welcome Ileana, my name is Murna.” Tirana said, “Would you, like to go for a swim?”
Ileana was embarrassed, she had indeed come to the pool to bath and swim. But when she saw that someone else was there she was going to leave and come back later.
“Why are you just standing there? You act as if you have never seen a naked woman before.” Tirana called.
“I haven’t, to be honest; my bow lets me see heat. I am blind without it.” Ileana said self-consciously.
This was great! Ileana had not seen her change her form or looks. A thought crossed Tirana’s mind.
“Ileana, would you mind if I tried something with you?”
“Murna, I don’t know. I have just had my heart broken, and I don’t think I want to trust anyone right now.” Ileana said, the sadness soaked her words like foul water.
The splash was Tirana’s answer. Before Ileana had time to draw her bow, hands were touching her! The warmth penetrated her body. Tirana dove into Ileana’s body searching for what made Ileana blind. She found it! A birth defect, she had been blind her entire life! Tirana slid around Ileana’s body until she was in front of the blind woman. Ileana was beautiful her face was marred by a single scar that slid down the right cheek.
“It will be okay Ileana. I really need a friend in this world. Will you be my friend?” The words caressed Ileana sending shivers down her spine.
“Yes.” She answered quietly.
When Tirana moved her hands Ileana saw the blond woman before her. Ileana blushed as she realized the woman was completely nude.
“It’s okay Ileana. We have all the same parts.” Tirana giggled.
“I can see!” Ileana nearly cried.
Tirana hugged the weeping woman pulling her into her breasts. Ileana felt weird being this close to another woman, but then again she had flung herself at Nathan and look how that turned out. Ileana began crying harder now. She was alone again! Her sorrow crashed down upon her like waves on a desolate shore.
Tirana held the near hysterical woman tighter, “What is wrong Ileana? I thought giving you the ability to see would make you happy, but you are so sad.”
“I am so grateful to you for giving me my eye sight.” Ileana began, a brief smile danced across Tirana’s face. “My heart was broken by a boy, and I can hardly bare the pain.”
“What was this boy’s name, my poor dear?” Tirana purred.
“Nathan, he is the phoenix mage, he left me for, for, the elf princess!” Ileana wailed.
The phoenix mage and the elf princess both! This was too perfect! She could destroy one and watch the other suffer! But first what to do with this broken woman in her arms? The endless possibilities began to unfold in Tirana’s mind! She could use the woman’s skill with a bow, the bow! How could she be so stupid! The bow probably wouldn’t work right. She had healed Ileana, but the bow was designed for a blind woman! Slowly she pushed Ileana away from her tear stained breasts.
“Ileana you need to calm down for a moment. I might have done more bad than good healing you.”
“Murna, what do you mean?” A sinking feeling began creeping into Ileana’s stomach.
“Pick up your bow and tell me what you see?” Tirana said.
Panic filled Ileana. Her bow was the only thing she saved from Santrose! The last thing her father made her! Slowly she picked up her bow. Her eyes filled with a red glint. Ileana screamed, and dropped her weapon. She fell into a heap, crying once more.
Tirana already knew the answer before Ileana spoke it.
“I can’t use my bow anymore, everything turned red. There are no defining shapes. It is just a red blanket over my eyes!”
“I am so sorry Ileana” Tirana said. She really was sorry. Without her bow the woman was just a woman. Not that Tirana couldn’t find a few good uses for Ileana’s body. A thin grin spilled across her face.
“Maybe I can help you find a way to use your bow Ileana?”
Ileana was relieved! But why would this stranger help her? She looked at the nude woman, and then away. Why was she still nude?
Tirana noticed the look she had just got and slid down next to Ileana.
“Does, me being naked bother you Ileana?”
“Yes, I am sorry. Why haven’t you made a move to get your clothes Murna?”
“I am comfortable being naked. I was a slave to the Dark Queen. She preferred me this way.”
Ileana turned to look at Murna. She had a gorgeous body. She seemed so confident and strong even without a stitch of cloth on her body.
“I guess that was a hard existence.” Ileana said.
Tirana laughed, “You have no idea.”
Her lips pressed on Ileana’s! She felt hot and cold at the same time. It was too bizarre! When the kiss broke, Ileana looked into Murna’s brown eyes. Ileana’s mind screamed Murna has blue eyes! Sure enough Ileana looked down at her body, her breasts were far too large and her hair was golden yellow. She realized that she was naked too!
Only she was the only one nude. She began to back away, Murna had stolen her body! She watched as her body pointed and laughed at her expression!
“If you could only see the look on your…oh sorry, my face Ileana!” Tirana laughed.
“Who are you Murna? Who are you really?” Ileana asked fear slid into her stomach as she thought she knew the answer.
“You can call me Tirana, the demon archer!”
Ileana started to run away, the laughter followed her. She had lost everything now! Including her body! She was naked and the weather seemed to be changing soon it would rain, what would she do? She heard voices and ran towards them. Ileana broke through the forest into the village. A young man stopped cleaning the stable he was in, and stared at the beautiful woman before him.
“Are you okay, miss?” He called.
Ileana was terrified. She got her mouth to work after a few seconds. “Help me, please!” The man ran over to her with a blanket. The blanket was itchy and stank of horse sweat, but to Ileana it might as well have been a robe made of gold!
Tirana looked at her latest body. It was strong and sinewy, but what had gotten her excited was Ileana’s description of what she had seen! Ileana had thought the bow would no longer work. In reality the bow had to have the magic adjusted to the new eye sight she had! After picking up the bow the red veil fell over Tirana’s vision. After a minor adjustment the shapes became defined!
Ileana might make it back to the village, but that was okay. Even if someone believed her she had the bow! She could attack Lela or Nathan in the dark with arrows and they would never see it coming!. Tirana’s brow furrowed, where were the arrows? The body had no quiver, yet the legend said she could fire faster than any other archer. Tirana pulled back the bow string to get a feel for the new weapon when an arrow appeared! That was how she fired so fast, the bow made the arrows! Tirana laughed. All she had to do now is wait.
Ileana was taken to the building for healing. She sat quietly while she waited for the c
ouncilman to arrive. It seemed strange, some of the fragrances smelled so familiar to her. She saw the woman walk in, she was an elf! Her hair was golden and her eyes were crystal blue. She was attractive except for the bruise on her jaw.
Lela looked at the blond woman sitting on the table. She had been found naked running out of the forest. She laughed ruefully at that, lots of people seem to be running out of the forest lately!
“What happened to you?” Lela asked.
That voice! Ileana knew that voice. She was scared of what would happen if she told her the truth.
“I was at the pool and a snake scared me.” Ileana knew that lie wouldn’t fool the elf.
“Did you get bit?” Lela asked.
“I don’t know. I was so scared.” Ileana had to know if this was Lela or not.
“I don’t want to be rude, but what is your name?” Ileana asked.
“Lela, I am the councilman here and doctor. And who are you?” Lela asked.
“Ile…Murna.” Why had she done that? She was Ileana. She had to warn them. What if Tirana figured out how to fire her bow? A sinking feeling hit her. That was why she stole her body! The bow wouldn’t work for anyone else!
“Lela wait, my name isn’t Murna, its Ileana.” She said staring at her feet.
Lela turned back towards the patient, “Excuse me, what did you say your name was?”
“Ileana the Demon Archer of Santrose.” Ileana said.
“That’s not funny, she died.” Lela said coldly.
“No she didn’t, I didn’t. You don’t have to believe me Lela. But know this, Tirana stole my body and has my bow. You are not safe here!” Ileana said.
“You hated me! You nearly killed me in the fortress and now you appear in a body I don’t recognize and tell me I am not safe here! Why should I believe anything you say?” Lela said as she started to leave.
“Because I once slipped you some sleeping root in your bread, I did it to get alone time with Nathan. But he chose you any way. So it didn’t matter! Nathan chose you, which means he is nearby somewhere. She wants revenge on him too.” Ileana said.
Lela spun around, only Ezra and Nathan knew about the sleeping root. They refused to tell anyone else in order to preserve Ileana’s memory. Lela slowly approached the blond stranger. Lela looked into her eyes.
“Ileana?” Lela said quietly.
“Nathan showed us his moving pictures with sound remember? The little girl that screamed a lot her name was Maddy.” Ileana said quietly, as if saying anything to loud would shatter any progress she would have made.
Lela looked at her once comrade, turned enemy. “How did this happen to you?”
“Tirana was in this body, she healed my eyes, I thought my bow wouldn’t work, but, but…”
“Slow down Ileana. We need to get Nathan in here to hear this. I will go get him and, no better yet you are coming with me now!” Lela grabbed Ileana’s wrist. Her grip was like iron. Ileana winced at the crushing pressure Lela was exerting. The two women wove their way through town into the house both Lela and Nathan shared.
“You, live together now?” Ileana asked. Tears threatened.
“It is complicated. We love each other Ileana, but with the spirit possessing me and then all the chaos afterwards. We haven’t really had any alone time yet.” Lela said a little embarrassed.
“Where is Nathan?”
“I don’t know. Nathan, where are you?” Lela bellowed.
Nathan came bounding in, he was happy that Lela was back home.
“Hi honey, how was the doctor call?” Nathan asked.
He stopped in the door way when he saw the blond haired woman beside Lela. The look on Lela’s face said there was trouble.
“What’s happened Lela?”
“You remember our good friend here don’t you Nathan?”
Nathan looked at the blond woman. He looked at her long and hard, but he had never seen her before. He was sure she wasn’t a villager. Shaking his head no, he spoke “Sorry I don’t recognize you Miss.”
The woman smiled, “You wouldn’t know me by looking at me Nathan. My body was stolen.”
Nathan smiled, it had to be a joke. Who would leave behind a beautiful body like that for a different one? He figured he would play along. “So what did you look like when you had your original body?”
“I was shorter by about three inches, my breasts were smaller, but my most memorable characteristic was my eyes.”
“What was so memorable about your eyes?” Nathan asked.
“When I pulled back my bow string my eyes turned red allowing me to see heat!”
Nathan’s smile dropped. “The joke has gone on too long, and it wasn’t funny.”
“My name is Ileana the Demon Archer of Santrose, and Nathan, Tirana has my body and my bow.”
Nathan crossed over to the blond, Lela stepped in front of him. “She is telling the truth Nathan. She knows about the sleeping root and about Maddy.”
Nathan looked back at the woman who seemed so vulnerable. She was staring at her feet. Her hair was golden, her eyes were blue, but she had to be twenty to twenty five easily.
Nathan looked like he didn’t believe her. Ileana spoke the first thing she thought of that might prove who she was. “You breathed for me, when the plant sprayed me with poison. We were fighting, I was trying to tell you I wasn’t as helpless as you were trying to make me feel.”
Nathan began to cry, it was her! He hugged Ileana. He whispered in her ear, “I thought you died in the fire. I have had nightmares seeing you die alone. I have wept for you every day because I hurt you, and wasn’t there for you when you needed me. Who burned your town Ileana who?”
“I did Nathan.” Ileana said.
The shock that slid across Nathan’s face was mirrored by Lela.
“You have to understand both of you. When Nathan chose you Lela It destroyed me. I ran through the forest. I didn’t care if I got hurt or not, nothing mattered. I found myself back in Santrose. I was half crazed with rage. Nathan had passed me over like all the other boys did! My first target was the festival hall. Three arrows shot into the building, the strange thing was my anger made the arrows burn! The next target was my house. It was small and pathetic like I had been, throwing myself at you with no pride at all! It went up in flames. I hunted through the entire village destroying every house that wasn’t good enough for me. Then I realized it, the whole village was in flames! I ran away. I wanted more, no I needed more! I ran until I could no longer move my legs. I slept in the area outside Cravenwood. I had ran all that way in only a night and a morning!”
“When I woke I hunted for food, it was during today that I decided to take a bath. But the pond I went to was occupied by Tirana. I didn’t know who she was at the time. She healed my eyes Nathan! I could see! I could also see she was naked, well this body was naked. She asked me to pick up my bow and I fell apart. I couldn’t see using it. She kissed me and when I opened my eyes I was looking at my own body! Nathan she has my bow and body! She could kill both of you!”
Nathan took all this in. Ileana was alive, but without her body. It was time Nathan finished this once and for all.
Nathan and Lela followed Ileana to the pond. Bloodied rags lay in a pile on the ground, but boot prints lead away from the pond. They followed the boot prints to the cave. Lela began to walk to the mouth of the cave when the first arrow hit the ground in front of the princess and exploded. Lela was thrown backwards landing in a heap and unconscious. Wicked laughter rang through the heavily forested area.
“How is that for history repeating itself?” Tirana yelled.
“You will pay for that Tirana!” Nathan yelled.
“Hardly, do you know what is interesting about body hopping Nathan? You get to experience all the body’s memories. Like when you went crazy and burned the store this body was standing on the last time Lela was nearly killed. The new trick is, I am standing on a cave. The rock that it is made of will withstand the heat of your power. What wil
l you do? Save the princess or try to kill me? Keep in mind I am wearing Ileana’s body, any damage you do to me will follow her for the rest of her life as scars!”
“What do you want Tirana?” Nathan asked.
“My kingdom back!” She screamed as an arrow zipped by Nathan’s face.
“That won’t happen, I wouldn’t turn all those people back into monsters for you!”
“Then I hope Ileana likes her new body, because she isn’t getting this one back!” Tirana yelled.
“I think she likes her new body just fine, she always wanted to be a blond.” Nathan yelled back.
“Oh in that case…” Tirana snapped her fingers.
Ileana began screaming as the changes slid back to the red hair, the tan faded to creamy white skin which began to have cut marks appear in it. Ileana screamed as each wound Tirana had healed once again sliced into existence.
“Believe me Nathan the last wound is a real killer!” Tirana laughed.
Ileana looked at Nathan as her thighs were crossed with deeper cuts. The final wound was a blade thrust to the heart. The wound over her chest opened, Nathan dove for the redheaded Ileana who was close to death now. Nathan found the old wound that was opening up. The last wound had killed the body! Nathan focused on the wound as it opened. The wound slowed down, and then stopped. Nathan began trying to close the wound, but it wouldn’t close.
The golem popped into his mind and him shattering the thing trying to close a similar wound, Despair crept into his bones, this could not happen to her. He had Lost Ileana once, he would not lose her again! Never again! The power flooded the wound and Ileana screamed as raw power poured into her.
The wound closed quickly, but like before Nathan remembered the golem and held his hands over Ileana’s damaged body. The power rebounded and tried to tear its way from the young woman’s body! Nathan bounced the power back towards Ileana’s cut thighs. The deep cuts healed and the power bounced back. Nathan redirected it to the shallow cuts that had appeared on her face and wrists the slices healed perfectly. The power bounced back again, Nathan did the only thing he could think of to do with the power…he absorbed it.
