CHANGELING: Book Two in the Weaver Series Read online

  Ela stormed in our direction, a trailing cloud of cool color sucking the laughter from the other girls, Imini and Aniy alike, one alarmed footstep at a time. “What has happened? How were you hurt, Bogan? Who dared this in the House of Gebregdan?”

  Our brain struggled to make Ela’s words to us coherent. This was more than just a flesh wound, there had to have been poison on Fai’s blade. The soft blanket of our pallet overtook our field of vision as Lil laid us face down. Something ripped and a breeze from the vent hit the crosswise incision along our spine.

  Ela growled above us at Lil we assumed, “This is Fai’s work, or Tai’s. They cut with precision, I should know. What happened? Tell me now, Cilda!”

  Lil’s words tumbled out, shaken. “I didn’t see anything! One moment we were walking and the next Min Druta fell into me.”

  Our den mother persisted as her hands felt around the open wound about midway between our shoulder blades. “What did you do to provoke them?”

  Cass managed to get our head sideways. “Quit pestering Lil, it wasn’t her fault. They came spoiling for a fight and dressed for combat. We got tired of their suck ass attitude and showed off a little too much. Shut up and let Silver heal us in the Web. Fai cheated, I think she put poison on the blade so you better quit touching us Ela.”

  The prodding stopped abruptly. Tet’s voice came across the background chatter, “This I would like to see, Bogan.”

  I didn’t waste any more time with arguments, launching myself into the Web with brisk efficiency. Thanks to the heaping serving of waeta at breakfast and our lunch courtesy of Vel we were loaded for bear in the energy department. The drug or poison was affecting my judgment imperceptibly; for fleeting seconds it was hard to remember why I was here and what I meant to do. Maggie’s warm orange hearth fire almost overlapped us. Normally that would have irritated me but this time it woke me up.

  “Maggie?”

  Tone urgent she answered, “Yes, Dear? Something is wrong, Silver, why are you listing? You’re always so controlled. What’s happened?”

  If we’d had a tongue it would have been thick and my thoughts felt soupy. “No time to explain, Mags. You need to help me concentrate. We’re looking at an unknown poison or drug and a laceration with a sharp instrument.”

  Our aunt put on her physician’s cap and shoved her emotions to the background. She snipped off a flaming comet of light and sunk into us. Our tag along sessions of shared knowledge weren’t forgotten. Every time our mind got hazy she burned me with heated flares of urgency and concern, successfully keeping me on point.

  The damage was minimal from Fai’s slashing attack. The muscle wasn’t damaged, only the flesh but it was through all layers of our skin. The cut was clean and bleeding far more than it should be but that may’ve had more to do with the unknown drug. It was part anticoagulant whatever it was. Thankfully it wasn’t permanently damaging, and the excessive bleeding was actually helping to flush out its unwanted presence, at least locally. Maggie helped us stay on task as we sealed the open flesh with healthy unaffected tissue. The part that was truly bothersome was the hindrance to our cognitive function and our inability to focus for long periods of time.

  Maggie redirected again with a zap. “Silver, get your head in the game. How do you plan to flush this out of your body? I think it will wear off on its own but do you have that kind of time? Can you increase your metabolism temporarily?”

  I answered but I felt like a snake slithering through hardening glue. “Yeah, I can but it’ll burn through our reserves pretty quick.”

  Maggie prodded, “Then do it now, Silver.”

  Without any sense of urgency I complied. The effects lessened fairly quickly but I could feel our body’s discomfort as our pulse sped and our skin was drenched in clammy sweat. Cass was taking shallow rapid breaths and I could sense we were sitting now. I sent my desire for food in the form of waeta and a dreamlike echo of her speaking to Ela came back plus some repugnance at the thought of possibly being forced to eat it if I was otherwise occupied.

  Our Aunt poked at us again and I pushed back. Her amused relief rained around like a mist in high summer to be followed by every worry she’d held in check.

  “You seem pretty steady now. Are you gonna tell me what happened to ya’ll or leave me imagining bad things?” She was getting angry.

  We so did not have time for this shit but I knew I had to pay the toll. I grabbed the memory of every run in with Flotsam and Jetsam—past to present—copied it and shot it like a fully loaded missile none too gently at Maggie. She caught it with effort before it streaked off into the ether and paused to digest it. Sparkles of fiery combustion burst in a corona around our aunt. Surprisingly enough she didn’t overreact or start yelling threats.

  Her tone was cold, controlled menace as she said, “You don’t pull any punches with those bitches. If they come at you again you aim to maim and you run like your ass is on fire.”

  Heartened, I threw out, “I thought it was stop, drop, and roll if you’re on fire?” We really didn’t need to add that we planned on killing them both dead if the chance presented itself. Offing one wouldn’t work because the other would just want revenge.

  Her essence bulged then shrank to its normal circumference. Maggie’s response, whatever smart assed rejoinder it would’ve been, was interrupted by Mez. His light came upon us with a roar of raging emotions, the chief of which was fear for our safety.

  I rushed to say something. “We’re alright, Mez. The danger was minimal and it’s over. Maggie helped us and we’re fine other than our reserves being low. Ela’s gonna get us some grub to resolve that issue.”

  Yellow shell trembling as if it might shatter, Mez thought a narrow stream, rudely excluding my aunt, “You did not call for me when you were in danger again, Silver. Again! I heard from Kal who heard from Lil. Sil even knew before me because of Ela. Here I see your relative from Earth even knows. I am your Leoght Cor so why am I always the last to know?”

  I didn’t bother to exclude Maggie when I screamed, “Everything isn’t about you, Mez! I was temporarily mentally impaired and busy trying to heal us. Oh, and yes, we’re just fine now spank you very much for asking you asshole!”

  Maggie darted in her two cents, “Let me guess, communication issues, huh? Her uncle is the same way—it runs in the family or something. You have my sympathy, dear. Good luck!”

  After that little gem she vanished and I was left with an angsty boyfriend that I had no idea what to do with. Kal appeared from nowhere leaving me to ponder just how long he’d been silently observing our exchange. His presence was a calming influence we didn’t try to resist.

  “Your Eam’s gebedda has a point, Silver. You should share more with min Nefa than you do, but Mez should also understand that he can trust your judgment. There is not always time for consideration when only action will do.”

  Kal didn’t linger on our personal troubles. “Tonight at the banquet, Lil will reveal her gifts. It is too dangerous to wait longer. The Elder has something big planned. She has invited the other two Elders, all of the Fid from every major city, every Guild Master, and the Imini council. This does not bode well.”

  Disquiet fogged our trio and then I felt Cass tugging insistently for our attention.

  Kal and Mez asked at the same time, “Is something wrong?” It echoed and hummed like a pale imitation to the double timbre of our chimeric voice.

  Ela was back with the food and my twin wanted none of it. “Nah, it’s all good. Cass just doesn’t wanna eat boogers. I’ve gotta go restock our energy and get clean again. Are either of you guys attending the festivities?”

  Mild confusion laced Mez’s response. “All Discovery Guild Agents in training and any stationed on Axsa are required to attend. It is very uncommon for any males of minimal rank to be invited to such an event. I do not think this is good. It has the feel of a trap. A large target is better than many small ones.”

  Kal said cryptically, “Never sit at a tabl
e you can’t walk away from.”

  His words sounded familiar and a quick mental sift brought an answer. “You’re seriously quoting Joss Whedon? That’s unbelievably surreal right now and out of context, too.”

  Kal chuckled and disappeared.

  Mez hung motionless, too motionless.

  “So are we good, Butthead?”

  He vibrated as if shaking himself aware to say, “My Eam is very strange. Will I become so strange in my travels? Is Earth really so different that it will change me?”

  I took a moment to think it through. My answer probably wasn’t going to be much comfort but it was based on the truth of my experience. “With luck, yes, you will change. Maybe even into someone you won’t recognize and can’t imagine at this moment. I’ll be there though, and hopefully we’ll change together. Sound like the adventure you signed on for?”

  Mez tugged us closer for a diaphanous embrace. “Very much so, Leoght Cor.”

  Chapter Twenty Seven: Cheap Date

  I sank into the physical with a sense of relief only to encounter a trembling plate of waeta propped on our thighs and a sinking feeling in our stomach. Ela was gone. We were surrounded by gawkers. Tet, Nik, Kit, Fyt, and Efl were huddled to our right side and Lil, Bel, Qyl, and Zay were lined up on the left. Our body felt ill-used and shaky. Itchy patches of dried blood clung to our back still and the sweat had dried on our skin in a pasty film that assaulted our nose with its unpleasantness. We were going to have to have a session in one of the red light alcoves and hope that it helped. The robes were toast and would probably need to be burned or something.

  Cass sent a silent goodbye, fleeing the food and company. Neither one of us liked a crowd and I felt betrayed by her absence just a tiny bit. Everyone was staring open mouthed but Lil—she just looked concerned.

  Voice high, Lil inquired, “Why aren’t you eating, Min Druta?”

  Tet asked, “What does it feel like when someone stabs you?”

  Kit clicked her teeth and said, “Hush, Tet, let her eat!”

  Fyt fired at Kit, “It is a perfectly reasonable question, Niedmaeg!”

  At first I thought it was an insult until I realized niedmaeg just meant a female blood relation or a cousin.

  Zay raised her voice over all the Aniy nitpicking; her words directed at Lil, “So this is the kind of life you wish for over Imini peace, Lil? Do you not see that they think us simple savages but kill and maim their own people at the slightest provocation?”

  Qyl spoke up with a side-eyed glance at Tet and a shy smile. “Zay, the Aniy are not all mean spirited. You judge the many by the few and call yourself better. The Imini make their own mistakes.”

  Zay gasped and opened her mouth wide to protest. In desperation to escape the argument I raised the waeta and did a face plant. It felt kind of good. I did need to eat it, not wear it, so I tore into the wiggly mass like a participant in a pie eating contest going for first place the seventh year in a row. Someone started laughing and I ignored them.

  The laughter was contagious and soon I was bombarded with giggles from all sides. I raised our eyes and licked our lips, wiping the back of our arm over our messy chin. It was impressive how much had actually made it into our stomach with this method. We’d see what my sister thought about trying this out at the dinner. She probably wouldn’t go for it—spoil sport.

  Our reserves were back at peak efficiency so my second mission was accomplished. Cass drifted back in and stood us up with the empty plate gripped in our left hand.

  The confused look my sister plastered on our face made the whole group bust out in renewed convulsive laughter—all but Zay and Lil.

  Cass asked, “What the heck are they all giddy about, Silver?”

  Feeling sly I said, “Gosh, I guess you shoulda stuck around, huh?”

  We felt like we’d been dipped in a compost heap then rolled in sour vinegar. Our thrashed robes got dumped and incinerated in a volcano igloo toilet and our cleanup was brief. Washing without water in an alcove was efficient but it never felt quite good enough. Lil helped us wrap our hair all over again. She’d only had to clean her hands and managed to stay blood free. The reprieve from curious stares and questions was altogether too short.

  Tet persisted, “Did it hurt? How do you repair your body like that? Are you tired? If you broke every bone in your body could you survive?”

  Fyt pushed her cousin in the upper arm none too gently. “What are you going to do, start following Bogan around so you can push her from a great height?”

  Kit walked between them, fixing a loose braid, and sat on the end of her pallet. “I would be more curious about why they were attacked than their ellorgaest tricks. This big event Ealdemodor has arranged is more worrisome. Ela has not been herself today—no one has.”

  Fyt got a shoulder bump from Efl, whose eyes were alight and whose hand cupped her mouth as she fake whispered, “My modor warned me to stay out of the way. She said every lavender acolyte of Nyt’s will be dressed for battle under their robes tonight but she would not tell me anything more.”

  Efl’s mother was in the yellow class and generally considered useless but sometimes her gossip was laced with enough facts to be handy. Most Aniy ignored the frivolous woman and they probably did occasionally talk about things as if she weren’t there. In the places where the red clad servants weren’t allowed to go the yellow robed of the clan were required to fill the gaps.

  Tet, whose mother was in the Elder’s inner circle sneered, “Efl, you should not be so eager to repeat your modor’s secondhand leavings. Take care or you will be stripped of your blue and end up just like her.”

  The way Tet’s face turned cruel reminded us of Nyt and we felt bad for Efl as she flinched, all natural joy sucked from her expression. Whatever we might have said in her defense was interrupted by Ela as she stood in the entrance arch clapping her hands for attention. We lined up in no particular order although all the Aniy ended up in front with us as the divider. Lil tucked a stray strand of hair that was attempting to escape behind our ear back under the deep purple cloth.

  Ela raised her voice, “Bogan, come here.”

  Cass swatted Lil’s lingering fingers away and grumped, “What now?”

  If we could have wrapped our body in a light field and hid out somewhere we might’ve. The weight of our companion’s combined stares made heat bloom in our neck and face. I could only imagine how blotchy we must look. Not for the first time did we wish for the darker, blush hiding skin of an Axsian. Hiding our physical reaction after it had already been seen would be admitting it bothered us so we acted oblivious to it.

  The much taller, elegantly attired woman eyed our covered hair then fussed with our neckline before she leaned down to our level. Reflected light traveled in green-tinted lightning streaks all along her sleek black hair. Her breath smelled faintly of mint leaves and kush juice. The exposed cleavage of her firm chest was dark as the deepest lake of melted chocolate and warmly glowing with scented oil.

  “Nyt sends her regards. When I told her of your injury she informed me that she had already warned you to stay out of trouble. You are required to sit with me this evening at the host table. Do not speak unless you are spoken to. If in doubt, be silent. I will do my best for you, Bogan.”

  Cass gave a curt nod and we moved in front of Tet to take the head of the line.

  Tet took her demotion with poor grace. “Ealdemodor has given you a warning.”

  Ela clicked her teeth and said, “Mind your own self, Tet. You may look like our Elder but you will find looks are not everything.” She raised her voice to be heard over the excited whispers. “You will all stay at your table this evening, no matter what happens, no matter what is said—is that clear?”

  A chorus of agreements rattled off behind us. We stayed mute. It was best not to promise something you weren’t willing to deliver.

  Cass was worried. “Why separate us? Nyt’s included us in her agenda. Axsa is the only planet in the Galactic Alliance th
at can bend—what if she never planned to let us leave alive?”

  While we walked I ran through scenarios. “Okay, so the power structure is the three Elders, who represent the major houses; the Fid, which number one for every city and equal five hundred; and the Guilds, of which there are seven, each with a Master.”

  Cass added, “Per Kal, Nyt invited the other two Elders, the Fid’s from their home cities, and every Guild Master plus the Imini council and every Agent from the Guild of Discovery she could get.”

  The information you could garner from official records and teachings at the Hub painted a sunny sanitized version of Axsian politics with unicorns farting diamonds and everyone happy as kitten in string. Mez and Kal gave us the real rundown.

  The Fid came in at five hundred strong but they all voted along their clan affiliations rather than individually. Each Elder was from a major house—Nyt hailed from House Gebregdan, Lek from House Hring, and Sol from House Metgung. Every house claimed a major city as a seat of power and the Fid that ran those cities were a force to be reckoned with. Fid Tal ran Bleo for Gebregdan, Fid Ayl ran Beorht for Metgung and Fid Orn ran Blaecern for Hring.

  Kal had shared memories of what each Elder and Fid looked like so we could recognize them on sight and not make a blunder if we happened to run into them during our stay at House Gebregdan. We were glad for the help because the roar of excited conversation from the huge cavern ahead was daunting in the extreme. When we rounded the massive entry arch behind Ela we noticed the decorating had progressed in the short time we’d been away from it. No more red robes hastily darted about in frantic preparation mode; every face now holding a platter or patiently waiting against the colorfully covered walls was serene and attentive.

  Cass gave a subdued, “Ho-l-y hell.”

  The amount of beings crammed into an area we’d previously thought of as spatial caused us to skip a step and Tet scraped the heel of our foot with her sharp toenails before we could recover. Ela did a regal job of escorting all the girls to their seats as the crowd parted for us with curious glances and dignified head bows. When we walked away toward the host table with our den mother, Lil flashed worried puppy dog eyes before plastering a cheerful, wondering expression on her face along with a toothy smile.