by Romi Hart
“You can’t save those creatures, Val.” Her shoulders dropped as she took defeat like a champ. “We don’t know this place. We can’t help them at all. If we stay here, we’ll end up in one of two ways. One, we’ll be put in a cage just like they are. Two, we’ll be slaughtered and fed to the beasts.”
“Gross.” My stomach turned. “But I get what you’re saying.” Only I couldn’t get the idea out of my head that if we left this place, it would be a very long time before someone else stumbled here the way we did and took the initiative to try to save these fellow beings – human or not.
“Tragedy happens all the time. It’s not pleasant but there’s nothing you nor I can do about it. Sorry, Val. That’s just the way it is.”
“We haven’t even gone through that castle yet. There might be some things we could use to free them. All we have to do is set them free. Together, they can defeat that dragon. I know they can.”
“So, you’re willing to get yourself killed for things you don’t even know?” She gave me another eye roll. Perhaps the millionth one since we’d begun working together.
“You know, I get it. I’m a bit out there. Not everyone understands me. I’ve got issues that others don’t. Maybe it was because I lost both my parents and had to take over the household all on my own. My siblings were of no help. They were actually so helpless that I had to do it all, including taking care of a couple of kids who were devastated. I didn’t have the time to be devastated. There was far too much that had to be done.”
“It’s a hell of a lot easier to be a hero to your younger siblings than it is to be to a bunch of whatchamacallits in a place you know nothing about. For all we know, once the sun goes down, ravenous beasts come out to devour everything with flesh.”
“I’m pretty sure that dragon would have them penned up in his castle, saving them to use in his domination campaign. You have to see that he’s planning on taking over the world. I mean, he’s got all kinds of powerful creatures. And he’s not holding them for nice reasons.” Like most villains, this one had to be set on world domination. It’s what they do.
With another shrug, it seemed not much mattered to her. “So what if he does? If he comes into the world with those things under his power, then the armies all over the world will unite to fight them.” She smiled as she held up one finger. “That might actually lead to world peace. If we interfere, we might stop that from happening. We can’t stop that from happening, Val. Come on. We’ve got to go back.”
“And if we go back to a world that’s not what we left behind and we struggle there, then what?” I wasn’t sure we weren’t in the place we were meant to be. “Zoe, we’re not like most women. We seek danger. We chase monsters. The dragon-shifter is just another monster we can chase.”
“We don’t kill monsters.” Her frown went all the way down her face. “Except for the Wendigo, we never got close enough to see any real monsters. We’re a couple of frauds, Val.”
The way my back straightened and my head flew up told me she’d struck a chord in me. “I’m no fraud. Not even a little one. I set off to find the reality behind the myths. If there was no reality to it, I was ready to report that to our viewers.”
“Oh, the low IQ morons who subscriber to our channel? Those people?” Her lips pulled up to one side. “Come on. They’ll believe anything.”
“I would love to know how you became so jaded, Zoe. Like, what the fuck happened to you that made you this way?” Standing up, I crossed my arms over my chest. “I lost both of my parents at the same damn time and I have more faith in life than you do. How is that?”
“You’re what I call a dreamer, Val. You dream it and you think it can come true. But it can’t. There are bad things that happen in this world and you can’t stop them.” She got up too and looked at the portal. “I’m aware of what I might find out there. And I’m willing to accept that. But I won’t accept that we have to save some freaks from a dragon.”
“You wanted to be a mermaid and you just called the one you just found a freak. Nice, Zoe. Real nice. What do you think she’d feel about knowing that you think of her like that?” I wasn’t leaving. If I had to do it all on my own, then I would. “Go back if you want to. See what’s there. I’m staying here until I set those fellow beings free. That’s my mission now. Set them free and give them the chance to get back to the lives they were taken from. You know he stole the Wendigo. And you don’t even care. That creature did not come here on his own. He did not go into that cage because he wanted to.”
“And you cannot guilt me into joining your mission of death, Val.” She took a step toward the portal only to hop back as two men came out of it.
My heart stopped as I saw Twilight and Mist. My mouth hung open. My arms flew open as well. “You came for me!”
Twi grabbed me up in his strong arms, twirling me around. “You’re okay! I was so worried about you. But you’re fine.” He held me up, gazing at me before he slid my body down his then our mouths met in a kiss that made me melt into him, losing myself to him.
“Um, hey guys,” I heard Mist say. “We should get back.”
Although I didn’t want to, I pulled my mouth away from Twi’s. “We can’t go. There are creatures being kept in cages here. We’ve got to set them free.”
Zoe huffed. “Don’t you recall, Val? We think that they are creatures too.”
“I don’t care if they are.” Who was I to judge anyone just because they were half human and half animal? “Twi, there’s this dragon-man named Codut. He’d got real live shifters in cages in that castle right there.” I pointed it out. “And he’s got the Wendigo, a bigfoot, and even a mermaid too. And they need help. I’m going to do all I can to set them free. Can I count on your help?”
“Of course.” He nuzzled my neck before putting my feet on the ground. Looking at Mist, he asked, “Are you in to help free those captives? Or are you going to take Codut’s side of things?”
Mist looked at me with more than a bit of conviction in his eyes. “Are you sure of what you saw?”
“I am positive.” Looking around him, I asked Zoe, “Can you tell them what we saw?”
She kept stepping back as she said, “There are some things inside that castle that are being kept in cages. And I’m not so sure that they don’t belong in them. Much like you two.”
I looked at Twi with compassion. “Honey, we think you two might be shifters. Fox-shifters to be exact. Now, please answer truthfully. I won’t walk away from you again. Now that you came for me, I know that what we have was real. Do you feel the same way?”
“This is real, my dear. This is the most real thing I’ve ever felt in my life.” His lips grazed mine. “I’m a fox-shifter.”
Running my arms around him, I kissed him with so much passion that it made me lightheaded before our mouths parted. “I accept you for what you are, Twilight Foxworthy.”
“You are all crazy,” Zoe said as her mouth gaped open.
She looked as if she was about to jump into the portal. “Zoe, wait! They can tell us what to expect when we leave here.”
Mist laughed. “Um, no we can’t. This is our first portal.”
“Useless, shifters,” Zoe muttered and then she walked into the portal.
I held my breath for a moment. “Do you think she’s gone right back to when and where we left?”
Twi smiled. “Pretty sure. I’ve never heard anything different than that.”
Shrugging, Mist said, “To be honest, I hoped she would stay here instead of taking that risk. That damn scent is still lingering and making me do things I wouldn’t normally do.”
“The scent?” I asked. “You talked about that before, Twi.”
“You two are giving off this scent that made us both aroused. I thought you did it on purpose to bait the Wendigo to come to you. I thought Zoe did it all and that you were unaware of it.” He cupped my chin. “So, is that the truth?”
I shook my head. “It’s not the truth at all.” But it made m
e think that he only came after me because of that and that bothered me. “Is that why you came for me?”
“No.” He shook his head. “I kind of hated you for a while there. I thought what we had was all a lie. But then I thought about it for a while and figured out that it couldn’t have been a lie. I’ve never experienced anything like what you and I have. And I’m not about to let you go, baby.”
My chest swelled as my heart danced in my chest. “Good. I don’t want you to let me go. Not ever.”
Mist cleared his throat as he looked at the portal. “Something is happening here, guys.”
Twi and I turned our attention to the rapidly dispersing green glow. Already it was no longer a circle. “Fix it,” I shouted.
Mist shook his head. “We don’t know a thing about portals, Val. Not even a little.”
“Do you think Zoe’s okay?” I looked at Twi. “Is there a way we can check?”
Mist stuck his hand in what was now only glowing mist that swirled in the air, mixing with the crystal sparkles. “It’s gone.”
The way Twi sucked in air frightened me. “We’re stuck here.”
Mist nodded. “She dismantled the portal somehow. You’re right, Twi. We are stuck here.” His broad chest heaved as he took in a deep breath. “Okay. I’m in. Operation - Set the Incarcerated Free - is a go. Because we can’t get out of here without their help in bringing that dragon down.”
My brother and sister!
I’d been prepared to stay for a while to set everyone free. But after that, I was planning on going back home – even if home wasn’t the same way I’d left it. It was still home to me and this wasn’t.
My body trembled and my knees went week as I clung to Twi to hold me up. “We’re stuck. I can’t be stuck here. I can’t leave them alone. I worried a little about not being able to get back to them, but there was still the doorway to get back. Now that it’s gone, I feel hopeless about ever seeing my brother and sister again.” Looking into his green eyes, I felt the backs of mine burning with the tears that were about to break free. “Our parents are dead, Twi. They have no one but me. I can’t get stuck in this place.”
Smoothing his hand through my hair, he whispered, “I’m going to get you back home. I don’t want you to worry. Mist is right. We have to set the others free. You said there’re shifters in there. What kind of shifters are there?”
“A polar bear. A tiger. A cheetah. And…” I can’t remember everything I saw. “I… I can’t recall what I saw down there.”
Mist spoke up, “The bear has the power to open portals. I’ve seen them do it. Codut must have some way to block them from using their powers. I don’t know if any of them will be able to open a portal or not. He may have his realm built in a way that prevents others from making them.”
“How come you guys don’t have that power?” I asked.
Shrugging, Twilight answered, “We just don’t. Foxes don’t have any power that I know of – other than changing from human to animal. And I don’t know if all bears have the power to make portals or not. There are so many bloodlines of shifters it’s not even funny.”
“Yeah, like hardly any shifter is born a purebred anymore. To be pure, absolutely pure, you would have to have a straight line of only shifters who were born of other shifters who were born that way,” Mist explained. “You can be bitten and become a shifter. You would then inherit some or all of the powers of the shifter who bit you.”
Twi took over, “Or you might not inherit any of their powers. And the same thing goes for those of us who are born to shifter parents. My father has a pretty clean shifter bloodline. But my mother was a human our father bit to make her into a fox-shifter.”
“So you do have some real human in you then?” I ran my hand over his cheek as I gazed into his miraculous eyes.
He took my hand, kissing my fingers one by one. “I’ve got some human in me. But I’m three-fourths fox-shifter. So, more animal than man.”
A chill ran through me as I asked, “If I were to get pregnant right now, what would our baby be?”
With a shrug, he told me, “Who knows? There are many people who have a tinge of shifter blood in them. When they mate with a shifter, then it heightens the chances of having a baby with more powers than even the parents have. The same goes for when a human with small traces of shifter blood is bitten.”
“Wow.” Glad I’m on birth control. “What are shifter babies like? Do they come out in their animal forms or human forms?”
“Both ways,” Mist said. “I saw my twin sisters being born. The first one came out human, the second came out fox. Both were cute as could be.”
“I would imagine taking care of a baby who could be a human one minute and an animal the next must be pretty hard to do.” Shuddering, I envisioned holding a darling little baby in my arms who turned into a snarling beast then bit me. “Do you still have your human mind when you change into the animal?”
“We do.” Twi looked at Mist. “But I know of some who lose their human mind while in animal form. Wolves have a hard time holding onto their humanity when they shift.”
Mist added, “So do hyenas. It seems to be those in the canine family who have that condition the worst. But most foxes aren’t affected. I think because our minds are so sharp in the first place. Not to brag, but our brains are far superior to that of any other canine.”
“Is that so?” I smiled at Twi. “Are you some kind of a genius?”
“I wouldn’t say that. We have a lot of common sense. And we have the ability to decipher a situation and make it work to our advantage.” He sighed. “What we’re not, are heroes. I don’t have the first clue of how we’re going free anyone here without getting caught doing it.”
I looked to Mist for an answer to that. “Mist, what about you? Any ideas? I’d love to get this going so we can get back home. I have faith that if we can get the shifters out of those cages that they will be able to use their powers again. My thoughts are that the metal used to build them are what’s keeping them in a weakened state. They all look very tired.”
“You could be right,” Mist said with a nod. “I can say this for us, Twilight, we don’t have any powers to lose so we won’t feel any effects the way they are.”
“Right you are, cousin.” Lifting me up high, Twi grinned at me. “You are the most courageous woman I know. Most women would be nothing more than a bundle of tears right now. But here you are, asking important questions that will help us form a plan.”
As he put my feet back on the ground, I laughed with the joy that filled my heart. “You make me feel so,” I couldn’t find the exact word. But then it hit me. “Special. You make me feel like I can do anything.”
“Only because I believe that you can do anything. You are remarkable, Valentine. In every single way, you are simply remarkable.”
Mist turned in a circle as he surveyed the area. “Well, this place is about as dull as it can get. Seems Codut built himself a fortress and nothing more than that. What a pity. Dragon’s can create such magnificent realms. And he’s done so little with his.”
“Do you know other dragon-shifters?” I asked Twi.
“We know a couple of them. Tieris and Mako. They’re the sons of Gandor – an ancient dragon-shifter.” His eyes lit up as he went on, “Their realm was created by their father. There’s a gorgeous castle, a waterfall that flows into a huge pond.”
“Huge?” Mist asked. “If a couple of dragons can swim about in it, I would call it something even bigger than that.”
“I can’t exactly wrap my head around that. A couple of dragons swimming in a pool of water?” It defied imagination – at least mine, it did. “And you two have been there?”
Shaking his head, Twi answered, “Mental pictures are how the brothers showed their realm to us at a shifter meeting we had many years ago. It’s been ages since we saw them. But seeing the little Codut has done with his place reminded me of them.”
“Funny guys,” Mist mumbled. “We’ll
have to try to catch up with them someday, Twi.”
“We’ll have to get out of here first,” I said. “And you may find that you know some of the shifters who are being held here. Oh my! I’ve just thought of something. What are we going to do with the legendary beasts that are in there? How will we be able to transport them? And there’s a mermaid too. How will we be able to move her and keep her wet at the same time?” There was so much to think about and plan. And so little that we had to work with.
“Once we scout out the castle, we can see what’s available to us.” Mist looked toward the castle. “I’m thinking nightfall will be the best time to sneak in.”
“I agree,” Twi said with a nod. “We’ll wait until dark, then sneak in.” He wrapped his arm around me tightly. “And you know the way in already, so that part will be a snap.”
“Getting to the dungeon was easy. I’m not sure how easy it will be to get to the rest of the castle. And we’ll have to try to stay out of Codut’s way. And whoever else he has living and working there.” There had to be more shifters in the castle who helped him tend to his captives.
“We can move closer though,” Mist said as he began walking in the direction of the castle. “We’ll stop well before Codut can catch a whiff of us.”
Following him, Twi took my hand, swinging it between us. “This is nice. Me and you on a mission together. I’ve never been on a proper mission and it’s so much better having my first one with you, Valentine.”
“To the first of many,” I said with a smile.
“To the first of many,” he agreed.
Twi looked ahead of us at Mist. “Look at you, cousin. You were against joining this crusade from the start and here you are, heading up a revolt.”
That sounds a hell of a lot like how a war starts to me.
17
Twilight
It wasn’t long until the sun began to set, and we heard the sound of thunder, signaling Codut’s shift. And that meant we had to hide and quickly. “On my back, Val. We’ve got to run like the wind to make it to the castle before Codut sees us.”
