The Change

by Lori Aisling

  Sighing deeply, Bristol snuggled herself deeper in his embrace. “I will remember, Ristan. I will not forget again. We will figure out how to save this realm and I refuse to just leave you and start this over again. I can’t keep doing this, none of us can. Maybe the key to everything isn’t just saving the realm. Maybe we have to save us, too.”

  “I actually have hope that this time, we might have a chance at that,” he whispered into her hair as he kissed her temple. “We need to meet up with the rest of the group. As much as I would love to just stay here all night keeping you naked and under me, we really do need to go. Fear will be communicating with Chaos about tonight’s events and there will be plenty of chayn and gods know what else on their way. I don’t think Fear saw you on Phase, I think your secret is safe, but a chance to take out one of your Others will not be something that Chaos will let go freely. That would make her job that much easier if you were not able to fully access all your power by losing an Other.”

  “So basically, I put a big bullseye on your head by falling into his trap at the bar. Great.”

  “There was no way for us to know. You couldn’t have avoided it, Bristol. He was there to feed and you were available to him. That’s how Fear works.”

  “I have never been so scared, Ristan. From the second I bumped into him, the fear grew. I was terrified. I saw you talking to that girl and I was instantly so scared you were going to leave me. I remembered everything that frightened me from the time I was a little kid. I mean, everything! And visions of things that have never happened, but would be just awful. It was unlike anything I have ever experienced. I cannot imagine being in his grasp for long. Anyone would lose their mind suffering that kind of emotion for any length of time.”

  “Yes. The Others for Chaos are succubi of a sort. Fear will feed off a victim until their psyche collapses. At that point, Desperation will feed until the person takes their own life, or their mind completely snaps. Rage and Sadness often go hand in hand and will work the same way. Once you have fully come into your power, you won’t be as susceptible to their sway over your mind. It would take them a lot of time and effort to control your emotions. That is one reason that Fear had no reason to think you could be The Balance. It was too easy for you to fall into his trap.”

  “I felt my magic. I felt the tingling and then I started seeing the yellow around the edges of things that could be used to help me or could be made into a weapon. When the sensation started, I still felt the fear, but it wasn’t as uncontrolled and all-consuming. I can’t wait to come into my powers. It’s hard to fight all this knowing I’m not prepared.”

  “You will get stronger and more resiliant. And once Bane and Caspian find us, you will come into the rest of your strength right away. With all the crazy differences in this realm, compared to all the others, I’m not even sure you will need all your Others to continue to elevate your gift. You have proven yourself quite advanced already, growing your power before Bror or I ever found you.”

  “Is that why you were willing to die back there?” She whispered.

  He was silent for a moment. “No, love. I was willing to die back there for you. So you could live. Because I do have faith in what you can do, even if you lose me. I think you have a chance against Chaos without all four of us, should it come down to that.”

  “I will never leave you to die, Ristan,” she reiterated. “Even Phase was not willing to abandon you. He was coming for you.”

  “He was coming to die with me, Bristol, not save me. Phase and I are connected. He will never exist in a realm without me. He would return me to Hades, his maker, his ultimate master. We would rejoin you and the Others in the next Re-Order.”

  “Jesus! That is morbid! What the fuck kind of thought went into this shit show when the gods made this? That is awful. He sure didn’t act like he was wanting to die when we were making our get-a-way!”

  “I have never seen anyone else ride Phase before, Bristol. He is not what most would call a friendly animal. Usually, when approached, he will bite and kick anyone that tries to mount him. Seeing you on his back, controlling him, was a first for me.”

  “Maybe it’s because I am a horse shifter?”

  “Maybe. Or maybe he knows something we don’t. Perhaps he has faith in you, too.”

  Bristol pulled herself up and looked in Ristan’s eyes before pulling herself to her feet and gathering her clothes. “So when are you going to tell me what you are?”

  Ristan chuckled, still lying on the ground with his arms behind his head. “That takes more time then we have right now, love. I am many things. You know that Death contributed to my power and you know that Hades provided my steed. Vulcan, the Roman god of fire, was convinced by Hades that making a contribution to the cause would be in his best interest. So much of this will make more sense when all four of us are present to explain more to you. Since Adrestia was the goddess that started all of this, and Libra was firmly in her corner, rest assured that all of your Others are equally balanced with the contributions from numerous gods.”

  “I heard Fear call you Death. Like Hades, Death?”

  “No. Like Christian Death.”

  “I don’t follow. Christian Death?”

  “Christianity. The horseman Death, my love. I figured that would be the easiest one for you to follow since Christianity seems to be a very popular religion in this realm.”

  “Holy shit. Like Death as in the Four Horsemen, Death?”

  “Well, I am not the Death like you are thinking. Your Other’s are not the four horsemen of the Apocalypse that you read about in your Bible. Like all the other gods, Jesus Christ, or God, contributed to the balance by granting us traits from his most loyal and fierce servants. So yes, I am Death, with an added scoop of this and that from numerous other gods. See, Bristol, we need much more than just one playbook to defeat Chaos. This is centuries of battle that stretches across countless realms, religions and races.”

  “OK. I’m getting it. Do you shift, too? I have seen the fangs and been on the receiving end of them. Do you have some vampire in your make-up? Is that a ‘thing’? You seem to get bigger and meaner when the fangs appear, so does Jayson.”

  “No vampire. Yama is a very compassionate god and all I can guess is that he created my inner beast to help conserve my humanity. In times of intense violence, the beast will emerge. Not only does he make me stronger, but he absorbs much of the rage and wrath. I am still in control, but it really is like I am looking at the battle through someone else’s eyes. Being Death incarnate would be a difficult burden to shoulder without the beast,” he admitted. “We have all lived for so long with the gifts the gods bestowed upon us, that we don’t really see it as being different, I guess. Kind of like people with different color skin, eyes, or hair. It’s just a trait. But I understand it really is quite shocking for someone such as yourself that until a few days ago, didn’t even know the gods existed.”

  “So you are all some kind of genetic cocktail mixed up by one team of deities to play against the other team.”

  “Kind of. But don’t think that because a specific god had a hand in creating us, that they are always on our side. Every realm is different. Hades may have gifted Phase for Adestria to bond to me, but he has more than once given Chaos entities from his depths to fight against us. It’s about control of the realm, reaping of souls and power, worship, and any other such means of might.”

  “We really don’t have anyone on our side, then? No one to trust? That’s kind of depressing,” Bristol grumbled, pulling her shirt over her head.

  “We have each other, and it’s enough,” he winked, as he stood and began dressing. “Bror is going to be worried. We need to go.” A sharp whistle and a moment later, Phase appeared out of the dark, silently. He sniffed at Bristol’s hair, and when she turned to him, he lowered his muzzle into her hand. She patted his forehead then leaned her head against his.

  “Thank you, my friend,” she whispered to him. “I could not have saved him w
ithout you. You gave me courage and speed.”

  “He likes you. I still can’t believe it,” Ristan chuckled.

  Swinging into the saddle, Ristan offered Bristol a hand and she swung up behind him. Phase took off at a gallop as Ristan reached out to Bror. “We are close. Be there in a few minutes.”

  “Took ya long enough,” Bror responded, sounding irritated. “That shite was way too close ta end game, Ristan. We need a better plan. Bein’ reactive sucks.”

  “Agreed. We’ll discuss it. We went to that town for answers and I got them. I hadn’t planned on getting them from Fear, but nonetheless, we have intel.”

  “I plan on having a talk with you too, woman. You scared the hell out of all of us,” Bror scolded.

  “I fully expect that. But before you get into your ass-chewing mode, remember I will do it again if I have to. I would have done it for any of you,” Bristol stated sincerely.

  She was met with radio silence to her response and she sighed. Her friends and her Others needed to understand that it was them against the world. Literally! And she would not let any of them sacrifice themselves. They were strongest when they were together. Suddenly, she had a revelation. “Ri! I just had a thought. Why are they called the chayn?”

  “I don’t know. They just always have been, why?”

  “Because I think the gods have planted clues in everything. Clues to aid us in restoring balance. That is what this whole game is about, is it not? The chayn, when in a horde, have a hive mind of sorts. You explained that they cannot communicate across long distances, but they can communicate amongst the horde, correct?”

  “Yes. From what we have learned throughout the realms, the chayn use the horde to know where and when to strike by sending in a few of their own to assess the strength of the enemy and make the most of the situation to inflict the greatest damage and feed Chaos with what they create.”

  “OK. Then we need to figure out their chain,” she stated simply.

  “Ah, I see where you are going with this. As in figure out if all the chayn have this ability or just a select few. That would explain why each horde can only communicate with each other. Each horde would need a conductor. A demon that communicates the thoughts and intents of the others to the rest of the group.”

  “Yes. Take out that link in the chain and the horde of chayn will fall!”

  “If this is correct, this will be a huge tool to help alleviate a lot of chayn, really fast, Bristol. The remaining members of the horde would be unable to communicate. This could be a huge breakthrough for us. Now we just need to figure out how to ascertain which demon is the communicator.”

  “It just doesn’t make sense any other way. They either have a hive mind, or they don’t. Distance should not make a difference. It doesn’t for us when we talk in our minds.”

  Phase snorted and flicked his ears forward. A few moments later, Bristol could make out a rock overcropping and the rest of her group settled under its protective overhang.

  “Head on over. I will take care of Phase and be there shortly,” Ristan offered.

  Bristol swung down, patted Phase on the rump and headed to face the music, knowing every person under that rock was going to be pissed that she had risked her life. Jessie was the first to her feet, rushing over to envelop her in a hug.

  “Damn, it, girl. You scared the shit out of me. Fucking Fear? I mean seriously, who the hell writes this stuff?”

  “I am sorry I worried you, but I will not apologize for what I did. I would have done the same for any of you.” She focused her gaze on Bror, knowing he was ready to tie into her judging by the clenched jaw and stiff shoulders.

  Climbing to his feet, Bror walked to her. Jessie stepped away as he cupped Bristol’s face in his hands. Staring into his ice-blue eyes, she could see the relief mixed with anger as he looked back at her.

  “I understand why you made the choice you did, love. I would have done the same thing for you. But you are so important. Yet so vulnerable right now. Can you please promise me you won’t make hasty decisions. I canna lose you so soon.”

  Bristol leaned into him and rested her head against his broad chest. “I can’t make a promise I can’t keep, Bror. I will promise you that I will do everything in my power to keep us all safe. Is that enough?”

  “It will have ta be. For now. But we need a better plan than what we are doin’ currently. Running blind from one fight headlong into another is a sure plan for disaster.”

  “Agreed. And Bror, I have to tell you something. When you and I bonded the other night, I felt a sense of deja vu, almost like I remembered things about you; about us. Tonight, I had sex with Ristan and I remembered him, Bror. As in I recalled exact times, places and emotions from being with him in my past cycles. He said that has never happened before. He thinks this time might be different. Maybe we can make a real difference this time?”

  Stepping away from her, Bror stared at her in amazement. “You remembered him? You actually recalled a past realm?” he asked aloud, in disbelief.

  “Yes, without a doubt. It was actual memories, Bror. It was when we were... together, ya know, then all of a sudden all these visions started rushing into my head.”

  “Wait a second here! I know you two were just doing that ‘mind talk’ thing, but then you started talking out loud and I am just here putting pieces together but are you telling me that while we were freakin’ out, hoping Fear wasn’t hot on your ass or tearing you apart, you two were getting it on?” Jessie yelped.

  Boz chuckled and Jayson picked at an invisible piece of lint on his jeans, smirking, as Jessie read Bristol the riot act. As Ristan walked into the circle, she turned her tirade on him.

  “Seriously, cowboy? We were friggin’ worried and Bror was totally freaking out. And you are all sliding up on our girl here? Good Lord, Bristol. In all the time I have known you, you have never even granted a man a second look. And all of a sudden you are like this kick-ass warrior woman with a more active sex life then Lady-friggin-Godiva!” Exasperated, she huffed and flopped down on the ground in between Jayson’s legs. He pulled her to his chest and Bristol could see his chest moving as he laughed at his girl.

  “Can you at least tell us you gave her a stern talking to before moving into Casanova mode?” She asked Ristan.

  He tried to hide a smile. “That I did. Not sure how much good it did me, though.”

  “Bror had a good point earlier. He told us that we need to stop being so reactive and figure out a plan. Not to change the subject or anything, but perhaps we should spend some time talking about that?” Boz asked, still trying to hide a grin.

  “Actually, Bristol had a really good observation. She thinks that perhaps the gods have incorporated clues into these realms. Or tools, if you will. She compared the chayn to an actual chain. Bristol, why don’t you take over and let’s see if we can come up with something we can work with.”

  Excitedly, she told the group her theory on the mental conductor that could be part of every horde of chayn. “We need to get close enough to a horde to observe them and see if we can figure out which one the communicator is. If we can take out that one demon, the horde should basically fall apart. They will have no one directing them. I’m sure they will still kill and basically just wreak havoc, but they would no longer have focus. It would be like an army of soldiers with no orders. Plus, there would be no way for them to report back to Chaos.”

  “Any thoughts on how to get close to a horde without sure death?” Boz asked with a hint of sarcasm.

  “Actually, I do. Now, before you shut me down I need you to just listen to me for a minute, ok?”

  “I already don’t like this,” Ristan grumbled.

  “Jessie and I are going to do it,” she stated matter-of-factly.

  Not a word could be understood with Jayson, Bror and Ristan all jumping in to argue, adamant that the girls not risk themselves.

  “For the love of all the gods, Bristol. What are ya thinking? You just promised all of us yo
u wouldn’t put yourself in unnecessary risk! This is my idea of unnecessary!” Bror snarled at her. “I, for one, cannot condone this.”

  “Stop. All you of just stop a minute!” Bristol yelled. “If you hate my plan and you can convince me of a better one, then we’ll go with that. But enough with the overprotective protect the females crap. Hear me out.” Bristol noticed that Jessie had not spoken up, instead, she was looking at her friend curiously.

  “I’m down for listening to her plan,” Jessie stated. “She has made some good choices so far, the last hour aside I must add. Even if we don’t agree with some of her decisions, you know she is acting in a way that is her nature; balance.”

  “Thanks, Jess. Once we find a horde, we can set up a perimeter to scope them out. Jessie and I will shift. She can blend into the foliage and trees, it will be harder for the chayn to see her. Max and Sly will follow me, we will be able to get close to them. They won’t notice three stray horses wandering around. It’s not unusual at all.”

  “We can rub some mud on all three of them to make them appear as just a few wild horses,” Boz added.

  “What if they see the tiger? They are not native to this area,” Bror said.

  “She can act like she is a shifter stalking us if they do see her. With all the time we have spent shifted, her tiger is used to the horses. I thought of using Phase since he will take a lead from me, but I worry that the communicator or other chayn might recognize him. Chaos doesn’t know that I can shift. The last thing she will be looking for is a few stray horses, and I feel her communicators will be the same. The horde doesn’t eat horses, do they?”