A normal pigeon would know to be on the lookout for dangerous predators that lurked in the air, but Theo was no normal bird, but a human. Without much fear of predation, Theo had been tailing the monkeys, looking for a chance to get at them.
Rotten luck struck at him again, a falcon came swooping down and grabbing the bird for a quick snack. Perhaps, given how his luck was, Theo should have guessed something like that would happen, but the man found himself once more battling with a dangerous predator. This time, well up in the clouds.
Theo transformed into a human, and as he did, he fell hard. However, he also used his hand to grab onto the Falcon and absorb its essence. He then began the transformation into a falcon.
That had to be the fastest transformation Theo had done. he didn't even have time to enjoy the pain that came during the transformation, but by the time he was nearing the ground, he had turned into a falcon and flown off.
All this had happened during the day, and countless people had seen him. Fortunately, while falling, given the nature of his stance, all they saw was a man battling with a falcon before turning into that falcon and flying away.
By evening, the entire Fort knew of the occurrence, and it was all anyone could talk about. Many did not even believe such a thing happened. Those that did could only guess what it meant, seeing such a thing.
Some of the more superstitious ones believed this to be some omen, while others insisted that it was nothing more than the antiques of an illusion mage. No one could have guessed that that had happened unless they knew something like that could happen.
Meanwhile, the target of all this scrutiny was happy leaping from tree to tree. He had climbed trees before as a human, but as a monkey, he felt like whatever he had done before could not be called climbing.
Theo leaped from tree to tree, branch to branch. Nothing could distract him as the giddy joy of it all filled him. For a moment, Theo forgot he was, had been, a human, the pure emotion and instinct of the monkey kicking in.
It took Theo nearly the rest of the day to finally regain his consciousness. This seemed to happen when he took on an animal form for the first time. It had been very terrifying when he came back to realize that for the better part of the day, he had been nothing more than another monkey in the jungle.
Nightfall. Armed with his morphs and the knowledge that he had lacked previously, Theo went into the old apothecary's chambers, where he was sleeping, in the shape of a pigeon.
Once inside, he transformed into a monkey and pulled out the keys from the apothecary's bedside and crept to where the medicine was.
Unfortunately, Theo did not know that the trap had been set. After failing to succeed previously, the guards figured the thief might try again. The guards weren't sure if he had died in wolf country, but to be sure, they had laid a trap for the thief.
To their shock, the thief was a pigeon that transformed into a monkey!
"Sorcery!" Shouted the lead guard as he raised his sword, ready to stab at the monkey.
"Kill the monkey!" The other guards came out with their weapons drawn.
Theo was in a tight spot. Before he could recover, he found himself surrounded by several armed guards, all charging at him.
Springing like the monkey he was, Theo made for the window. This was more instinct than thought, a cornered animal will look for a way out.
Stabbing pain hit his back as 2 crossbow bolts pinned his lower abdomen. However, Theo would not dare stop as he shot forward with everything he had towards the window.
A small monkey had its advantages, but many of the men present here were hunters, and once in a while they would take down monkeys, especially those that dared to venture into the fort. As such, swatting this small fly was easy for them.
Theo's heart sank. From the air, there was no way he could escape the incoming sword attack. He knew he was doomed.
Suddenly, a blinding light shot from the direction of the window, instantly bringing everyone down. Theo did not have that luxury as he cruised through the air.
Before he could land, Theo found himself in the arms of a woman, but then something magical happened, she flew away.
Theo did not have time to contemplate these issues. He was losing too much blood from the bolt that was still pinned into him. He reached out and pulled it off, an action that caused him immense pain.
However, the next moment, he started transforming back to himself. He got too big for the woman to carry. That was when he discovered that she was not flying, but was on a flying mount.
The frost-winged wolf was majestic, but could not take the weight of 2 adult humans. Theo transformed into a falcon and followed the woman.
Strangely, she wasn't going into the fort or the residents. She turned and ventured deep in the forest, into many forbidden lands. Theo was scared but he had no choice but to follow his guide.
Many stories, a lot of superstition, myths, and legends surround the forbidden lands. Everyone was careful not to go there. Hunters would prefer to go to wolf country than to venture into the forbidden lands.
After flying deep within these lands for almost a day, they had come upon a mountain that stood out. It seemed to pierce the clouds. Moreover, it was very steep, yet this was the mountain that the lass was leading him to.
Theo was cautious at first, but then he discovered there was a compound. There huge hedges surrounding the compound. In the compound, there were several buildings, and some people milling around. There were also a lot of weird-looking beasts.
Moreover, people there did not seem shocked when they landed. However, he did receive looks of fascination when he transformed back to the monkey form. He opted not to go human on account of not having any clothes.
The happiest moment for Theo was when he found his mother in a cottage within the compound. She had bee healed by magic. His life was complete.
Later on, Clarissa, the maiden who had brought him here, invited him for the formal welcoming party.
***
"Alright, now that I am all caught up," Barda said, "Why are you telling me all this?"
"These people took me in, clothed me, fed me, and took care of my family. All because they learned I was a mage. They can do the same for you as they did for me. We mages have to stick together," Theo added.
"Look around you man. Does it look like I need help?" Barda had been tempted to call Theo Kid as that was how he saw him, but he remembered that in appearance, they were roughly the same age.
"You planning to attack the fort tomorrow?" Theo tried a different tactic.
"Yes, you want to come?"
"No, because you will fail."
"What makes you so sure?"
"That fort has a lot more than meets the eye. If you go in blindly, you will only end up dying."
"I still want them dead."
"So do I, and so many others. Going in half-cocked is not the solution. If not for anything else, do it to preserve the lives of your men."
Barda took a moment to consider this. He may have been overpowered, but he was not powerful enough to claim to be invincible. Whatever Theo alluded to seemed to scare him, and Barda was not sure he could take it on himself. Not without proper information first.
Sudden realization hit Barda. His mission was not to attack some fort in the middle of nowhere. His target had been finding the key. The reason he had made such a splash was to stir up the water, see what came out.
Now that he had a faction that was willing to be friendly to him, why would he turn them away? He called Pius and informed him to lead the men back to camp. He had work to do. Afterward, Theo transformed into a Frost-winged wolf, and with Barda riding him as a mount, he led him home.