I back away from the bed, letting the kid sleep. I gesture to Garrett, Max, and the changeling to do the same.
"Garrett, do changelings age or will that kid stay the same age forever?" I ask him once we're in the hallway.
"From what I've heard, because remember that you're the first changeling I've known personally and all I know are stories passed to me, changelings age slowly. Not quite as slow as shifters or vampires, but slower than humans. So, from what I know, that kid will reach his teens in about fifty or sixty years rather than five or six."
"So, about ten times slower than humans?"
"Something like that."
"Shit. What are we going to do with him? He can't fight. Garrett, we can't let him fight in that battle next month, he'll get killed." I grab his arm, suddenly terrified of that young changeling in the middle of what I imagine is some type of Lord of the Rings style battle.
"Cal, hun, don't worry. We won't let him get anywhere near that."
"We should keep him with us, just to keep an eye on him." I tell Garrett. He nods in agreement. Then I think of something and turn to the changeling.
"Does he have any parents?"
"Not that we know, my liege. He came here with a female changeling, but she is not his family. They just seemed to find each other."
"Where's the female? Can you take me to her?"
"Certainly, my liege." He turns to go down the hall to the stairs.
"You don't have to keep calling me that. Cal or Caleb is just fine."
"Yes, my liege. I mean, Cal." He says this hesitantly, like it's a test and I'm going to strike him for not calling me "liege" or something like that.
"What's your name, by the way?"
"My name is Deacon Powell." He bows his head, slightly. "I've been a changeling for around twenty years. If you have any questions, please ask. I'm happy to help anyway I can. Not just because it's in my programing. You have no idea how excited many of us were when we felt the pull of the royal line.
"I'm too young to remember the last king, but there are a few around here that do. It was, according to a few old timers, a better time in which all changelings were brought together under a single purpose. They, and many others like myself, hope that it's like that again."
"Later, I'd like to speak to a few of the older ones. I'd like to know what it was like before and after the last king."
"After you speak with Kali, I'll take you to the ones that told us the stories."
"Thank you, Deacon." He leads us outside to the backyard where a few changelings are practicing weapons fighting. There are two large males and a smaller female facing off against each other. The two males are like day and night in terms of looks. The one currently facing Kali has creamy, light skin, which is in stark contrast to his dark brown, leather armor, greaves, gauntlets, and kilt. His flaming orange hair and full beard are tied up with simple bands. He wields a gigantic broad sword that is easily as long as I am tall.
The second male stands back slightly, waiting to face one of the two fighting, I think. He is a mountain of a man in gleaming silver armor plates on his bare, dark chest and silver vambraces on his forearms. Other than a pair of black sweatpants and the armor, he doesn't seem to be wearing anything.
"Kali," Deacon calls her name. The female facing the Scottish male stops and turns at her name being called. He doesn't realize her attention has been directed elsewhere and continues his attack with his large broad sword. Kali whips around and strikes out with her own smaller sword and blocks the male's attack. She kicks out with one booted foot, connecting with his hand and sends his sword flying. It lands next to the other male. She then plants her sword in the ground and uses it to leap up and strike him mid chest with both feet. The move sends him flying back in the opposite direction of his sword.
Garrett, Max, and I stand with our mouths agape at the sheer magnitude of her fighting skills. She rights herself, helps her companion up, and dusts herself off. She picks up her sword from where she'd let it fall and slings it over shoulder. Then she heads in our direction.
"Deacon, how's it going?" she asks. She looks like someone from Ancient Egypt. Her long black hair is tamed back into a braid that goes from the top of her skull all the way to the end of her hair, which stops at about her waist. Her deeply tanned skin is glistening from sweat from her match. She's wearing what I can only describe as something from the movie The Mummy. The Brendan Fraser one, not the Tom Cruise one.
What looks like a gold chainmail skirt hangs around her waist. The only top she has on would be better suited for Spring Break in Miami rather than in the middle of Montana. It looks like a bikini top, again in gold, tied around her neck and back. Around her wrists are thick, gold bracelets. A closer inspection of her sword, I can see the handle is gold and there is a bright red stone in the pommel. Then there's her voice which is an interesting mixture of Middle Eastern and British.
"It's going well, Kali. May I introduce you to our king, Caleb, his mate, Garrett, and his friend, Max. My lord, meet Kalida Rehema. She brought Balan, the little one, here. Kali, King Caleb wishes to speak with you about Balan."
"Of course, my liege." She does a slight bow, but I can tell almost immediately that she isn't as subservient as the others. Which might be a good thing considering I need someone who can talk plainly to me without worrying about saying or doing the wrong thing.
"Kali, is it?" I ask her as the four of us, Deacon having taken off, sit down on a bench outside the back door.
"Yes, sir," she answers.
"Kali, you don't need to address me as "sir" or "liege" or anything like that." She nods but doesn't say anything. "Now, where did you find Balan and what do you propose we do about him?"
"I was on my way here from Tanta, Egypt. I had originally planned to go west through Libya, Algeria, and Morocco, but at the last minute I changed my mind and went through Israel and Lebanon through to Syria. I ran into him in Turkey. He was scared shitless and trying to hide from hunters. I brought him with me through Eastern Europe and to Germany. From there we were able to get a flight to the United States posing as a brother and sister. We arrived here last night, and the poor thing was so tired. He's been sleeping most of the time we've been here."
Her story runs through my head for a moment. I glance at Garrett, and he nods, already knowing what I want to ask. Max places his hand on my shoulder as if to say, I'm with you. Before I can say anything further, the red-haired male comes up to us. He plants his sword in the ground about three feet in front of me and kneels down, his head bowed.
"My liege, I wish to apologize to you and Kali. I had not noticed that you had walked out here, and I could have greatly injured Kali in my carelessness." I was definitely right about the Scottish. His accent is incredibly thick. It takes me a moment to filter through what he's saying.
Kali speaks up before I can answer him. "You wish, Lan. I can best you with both hands tied behind my back." She laughs and then turns to me. "King Cal, my I introduce you to Faolan Clell, my sparring partner. Balan and I ran into him when we were on the way here. He too had to go to Germany to get a flight."
"Afternoon, your majesty," Faolan says, his head still bowed.
"Afternoon, Faolan. Don't worry about earlier. No one was injured, and it looked as though Kali can take care of herself just fine." Faolan blushes deep red. "I didn't mean that in a negative way, Faolan. We're going to need everyone fighting at tip top shape for what's coming. I'm happy to see you guys practicing." I get up and place my hand on his shoulder, much as Max just did to me. "Thank you for coming out here. Your loyalty means a lot. Everyone's does." I remove my hand, and he looks up and nods. I nod back at him in a mutual understanding. Then I head back to the bench and sit between Max and Garrett.
"In about an hour, please have everyone out here in the back. There looks to be enough room for everyone."
"I will do so, my lord." With that parting sentiment, Faolan takes off and goes inside.
"Kali, about Balan, do you have any objections to leaving him in my care?" She doesn't answer immediately. I can see her wrestling with something mentally.
"Kali," Garrett addresses her this time. "Cal doesn't have any issues with you speaking plainly to him. He won't get angry if you object. He wouldn't have asked otherwise." I look at him and then at Max, who nods his agreement.
"My king, while I trust you inexplicitly with my own life, I cannot, in good conscience, allow this lost little one to go with just anyone. I realize that I have not known him very long, but in that short time I have come to think of myself as his older sibling."
"That's a fair and reasonable response, Kali. Of course, I wouldn't think of doing anything that might make any of the changelings uncomfortable. I would still like to keep an eye on him. I would like you to help me with his care."
"Thank you, your highness." She bows her head just a little. "That sounds very acceptable to me. I appreciate you taking my feelings into consideration."
"You're welcome, Kali. You may continue training. We'll be talking again soon." She bows her head again and rises, heading back to the two males who are now faced against each other.
I turn to Garrett and Max in turn.
"We have another problem. Those hunters that she mentioned. Is that something we should be worried about around here?" I ask Garrett.
"As far as I know, the American hunters have all but disappeared. There are a few, but not nearly as many as in Europe and Asia. Still, we should keep as low of a profile as possible."
"Okay, well, having the majority of the changelings go to the middle of nowhere for their transformations will help. I do want to keep Balan, Kali and maybe one or two others here. If you're okay with that, Garrett. I mean, if the ring doesn't work then you'll have four or five changelings on your hands that are governed by the wolf."
"Don't worry about that. There's a dungeon below the house with shackles that can easily hold a changeling."
Max and I gape at him with our mouths open wide. Garrett looks at our expressions.
"What?" he says innocently.
"Uh, wanna run that by me again?" I tell him. He waves his hand dismissively, much like his father did at the dinner with the wolves. The gesture sparked something in my memory, but it was gone before I could grab onto it and hold.
"What?" he asked again. "I said I own the building. I never said I built it. They were there when I bought the building. Even so, they might come in handy."
"Uh, huh." I say slowly, shooting Garrett a side glance. Before I can say another word, Deacon came outside with two older looking changelings. Though they must have been well over two hundred years old, they both looked like they were in their late forties or early fifties. Deacon stops in front of the four of us and kneels. The other two mirror his stance.
"My lord, here are the two older ones I was speaking about earlier."
"Thank you, Deacon." He nods and gets up to leave. "Deacon, if you'd like to stick around, I don't mind."
"Thank you, my lord, I'd like that."
"Forget about it, man," Max says to me. He must have heard my sigh. I turn and give Max an exhausted smile. He laughs. I just shake my head. The other changelings look a little confused, but don't say anything. Garrett just places his hand on my shoulder and gives me smile similar to the one I gave Max.
"What are your names?" I ask the other changelings.
"I'm Lou, your majesty, and this is Shaw." The larger of the two changelings answers in a booming voice. Like many other paranormals, his presence is commanding. However, his stature is just as commanding. Like the Scottish changeling, Faolan, he's huge. Before he knelt, I could see that he easily tops out at seven feet tall. Large is the only word that comes to mind when looking at him. He has darkly tanned skin, like he's been out in the sun every day of his life. Despite his girth, he moves rather gracefully, kneeling with ease.
"Lou, I'd like to hear from you and Shaw about the last changeling king. And, of course, anything you'd like to share."
"Yes, your majesty," Shaw answers. If Lou is yin, Shaw is his counterpart. Where Lou is massive, Shaw is tiny, especially next to the larger changeling. Where Lou is darker, Shaw is light. Where Lou is heavy, Shaw is thin. Shaw skin looks so translucent and papery that one wrong move, and he'll crumble. As he shifts, small wrinkles show in his bare arms and neck. His size and frail look make him no less intimidating than his fellow changelings. It's his eyes that show he's ready and able to leap into action at a moment's notice. His deep grey eyes shine like he knows the secrets of the world, and, if you're lucky, he may just share one or two with you.
"Please, both of you, come sit with us. We'd be grateful if you'd share your experiences."
Both of them rise and sit on the bench near us. Lou's massive form takes up more than half of the bench. I wonder briefly just how big his wolf form is and shudder.
"Where would you like us to start?" Shaw asks.
"Wherever you deem appropriate. I'm trying to get an idea of what the previous king was like."
This simple sentence brings a smile to Shaw's wrinkled face and grey eyes.
"King Dolphus was truly a majestic king. He came into power when I was a young lad. His is a tragic and heart wrenching story, yet he was always fair to his subjects. His wife, Lady Amelinda, was a gorgeous dragon who stood by his side right up until the end."
"His wife was a dragon?"
"Yes, sire."
"I didn't think that there were dragons."
"Cal, there are still dragon shifters. They are rare, but they do exist. In fact, there's a dragon here, in town."
"No shit!?" Garrett, Max, Kali, Lou, and Shaw all laugh at my shocked outburst.
"That's correct," Shaw continues with Lou nodding his agreement. "Many of the paras never see the dragons, but we all know they're out there. They still protect us, just as they did then.
"Hundreds of years before my birth, there were dragon shifters all over. They would stay close to a royal family, human or para, and act as their family protector. Dragons live the longest of any of the paras, so they would protect the families for generations upon generations. Sadly, over the years, they were hunted by fearful humans or jealous paras. Now, only a small handful exist.
"Anyway, King Dolphus' family's protector was a fierce dragon named, Danbala. He was a force to be reckoned with, that's for sure. Not one para or human dared to face Dolphus' father, Ardolph with Danbala around. Not that there was any need for the dragon, Ardolph was a true fighter in his own right."
"So, Dolphus was the last king?"
"That's right, sire."
"How was he a changeling? I thought we had to be bit to activate the gene."
"That's true. For the royal line, when the eldest child came of age, they would have him or her go out on the full moon nights with their parent. When the king or queen turned, they would bite their child. The younger children would only be bitten when they came of age if the oldest was killed." Lou explains.
"Wow. That's, just... Wow. Okay, so please continue."
"Thank you, your majesty." Shaw bows his head slightly. "When Dolphus came of age, around thirteen, I believe. Ardolph took him out the first night of the moon. That same night, Ardolph was ambushed by hunters. It was big news in the changeling world. Changelings all around the world felt at once the moment he was killed. It was like a black veil covering our eyes, even though we could still see. Much in the same way we knew you were king, and you needed us, we knew that Ardolph had been murdered. Until that moment, the changelings have never been without a king. Now, we had a young king that was not yet ready to take the throne. One who had not yet experienced his first change."
"Sorry to keep interrupting you, but why was he attacked as a wolf. Wouldn't it had been better if they went after him as a human? I imagine many of those that attacked him were killed."
"It's true, many did die. However, as a human, he went nowhere without Danbala. As a wolf, so it was thought, he did not need Danbala. He also had his guard down that night. When the king or queen would take their child out, they would do so in a secret place. Only a select few would know where that is."
He stops talking, probably due to my expression of horror. I just have a difficult time imagining that anyone in Ardolph's court would have him killed.
"He was betrayed? By someone he knew and trusted?"
"Yes, your majesty. Someone in his court sold him out for a few pieces of gold." The old changeling shakes his head in disgust. "At that time, we only knew that he'd been killed, not the details. It's a feeling that I cannot truly explain and one I hope to never feel again.
"So, Ardolph's brother took over the throne till Dolphus got a bit older. Ardolph's mate died in childbirth, and it was just Ardolph and Dolphus. Ardolph's brother, Andulv, wasn't bitten till Ardolph's death. Though he was still a new changeling, he was older than his nephew. So, he was given the throne till Dolphus came of age. Of course, Dolphus was a changeling, which meant that it was many years before he was old enough to take the throne. About fifty years later, Dolphus was named king. And it's good that he was. His uncle almost destroyed our race with his greed.
"Danbala continued to protect the royal family, but he hated Andulv. Most of us did. He was a greedy child. He cared only for what our kind could bring him in riches and women. He never married, though, so, although he had many children, all of them illegitimate and could not lay claim to the throne. Thank the gods for that small favor. Otherwise, we may well still be under the rule of Andulv and his brats. None of his children were ever changed either. Another small favor.
"Danbala had a daughter, the beautiful Amelinda. She was a site to see in dragon form and out. Dolphus fell for her almost the moment he laid his eyes on her and she for him. After he was crowned king, he immediately asked for her hand. They were wed within the month. Within a year after that, they had a son, just one child, Haku." Shaw stops and looks at me. I feel a tear slide down my cheek. Garrett doesn't say anything, he just holds my hand.
"I don't mean to make you upset, your majesty."
"Shaw, you didn't do anything. The story is upsetting and yet, hopeful."
"Hopeful? Your majesty."
"Hopeful of what our kind can be again."
"I understand, your majesty. May I?" I wave silently for him to continue his story. "The three of them were very happy together," Shaw continues after a moment of collecting his thoughts. "All except for one thing. They still had no idea who betrayed Ardolph. Andulv was suspected, but there was never any proof.
"King Dolphus refused to let the pall of his father's untimely death stop him from being the ruler that he knew our kind deserved. He brought an unheard-of amount of peace between our kind and the other para factions.
"As I'm sure you've figured out, changelings can tell where the king or queen is and just how they're doing. What I'm sure you don't know is that the king can communicate with the other changelings when in wolf form."
I look at Garrett, and I can tell that this is news to him as well.
"Yes," Shaw continues. "It's not like I'm speaking to you now, not words per se. The king, well, it's rather difficult to explain. Lou?"
"It's more like feelings. A kind of knowing. The king is able to project these to other changelings. At the same time, he can receive communication from his subjects. It's a way to know if his subjects are in trouble or if they're happy."
"Exactly. Well put, Lou. Thank you." Lou inclines his head to Shaw. "Of course, it only works in wolf form."
"So, what happened with Dolphus, Amelinda, and Haku?" I ask him.
"Haku was born half dragon shifter and half changeling. From his birth, he could shift into a dragon. He would have received the bite at his thirteenth birthday, had Dolphus lived."
"You mean Dolphus was killed when Haku was a child, like his father was killed when he was a child?" I ask in disbelief.
"Sadly, yes. And changeling custom dictated that someone of the royal lineage bites the next in line. As you can imagine, Andulv was not in any hurry to give up the throne again, as he was the one that took it over after Dolphus was killed."
"When did all that happen? Is Andulv still alive?"
"Dolphus was killed around four hundred years ago. So, it has been that long since we had a king. The changelings weren't keen on Andulv taking over the throne again and he was also killed, shortly after Dolphus."
"What happened to Amelinda and Haku?"
"Amelinda tried to go on, but about sixty or so years after Dolphus' death, she killed herself. No one knows what happened to Haku. He went missing after his mother died.
"We've been without a king since. Changelings have tried to go on as a species, but our numbers have dwindled drastically in the last hundred years or so."
"Did anyone ever find out how Ardolph and Dolphus were killed?"
"Yes, actually. Ardolph was in fact betrayed by his brother. He sold him out to the local vampire clan so that he could get the throne. In exchange, the vampire clans of the area could wreak havoc on the neighboring villages of humans. Normally, the royal family's dragon would help to defend them. Since Andulv controlled Danbala, he couldn't do anything.
"As for Dolphus, he was killed by the vampire king, Cashel."