The Changeling Princess (35 page)

“
Next show tomorrow morning,” said the man sitting next to me.

“
What show?” I asked.

“
Cayland execute prisoners that break law.”

“
What kind of laws?”

“
Some not pay taxes. Some not bow to Cayland when he pass by.”

“
Does the execution take place here in the coliseum?” I asked.

“
No. Take place on shore of water. Cayland call Graga from sea. Graga eat prisoners.”

I turned to Wade.
“I guess we’ll have to attend tomorrow’s execution.”

“
I hope we’re not going to stand by and watch people being eaten by a monster?”

“
We’ll see. It’s one thing for an evil Demon to be eaten. It’s quite another for a citizen to be eaten simply because he didn’t bow to the mighty Cayland.”

“
I couldn’t agree more.”

CHAPTER 62

We left the coliseum and went for a long walk. We were on the outskirts of the settlement when we came upon a pub advertising beef. Wade said he was hungry enough to eat two steaks.

“
You just had an orange,” I snickered.

“
Oh, wow, how could I possibly be hungry?”

The pub wasn
’t crowded, so we sat in the corner where we could be by ourselves. The peaceful atmosphere was shattered by a loud mouthed Demon sitting by himself at the other end of the pub. “More ale,” he shouted, as he bagged his mug on the table.

“
Another Demon jerk,” Wade said, looking disgusted.

I noticed that Beef was the only meat on the menu.
“The idea of a big steak sounds really good right now,” I said cheerfully.

“
And a mug of ale,” Wade replied.

I smiled.
“I’ll probably have to chill it for you.”

“
I’m counting on it.”

Twenty minutes later, Wade
’s eyes lit up after taking the first bite of his steak. “Excuse my French, Janis, but this is a damn good steak.”

I took a bite of my steak and savored the taste.
“You won’t get an argument out of me on that one.”

Everything would have been perfect if it weren
’t for the loud mouthed Demon. I thought about doing something to shut him up, but we didn’t want to draw attention to ourselves.

Wade finished his steak and leaned back in his chair, obviously satisfied with his meal.
“I was wondering, Janis, what kind of creature do you think Cayland is?”

“
Judging from his powers, I think he fits the description of a Sorcerer. He’s a master of illusions and he controls the minds of creatures like the dragon we saw in the arena. Unfortunately, Cayland is evil and his powers have been magnified by the crystal.”

“
Cayland will have to be dealt with.”

“
In due time, Wade. We need to learn more about these people.” 

My senses flared when I saw an angry girl enter the pub, slamming the door behind her. She was about my height and age, quite stocky, and she was armed with a sword and shield. Wade turned to me and whispered,
“That girl who just walked through the door is a Witch.”

The girl had an icy cold stare as she approached the Demon. The Demon looked up, and then jumped to his feet.
“You are lawbreaker,” he said.” You will come with me.”

The young girl was sporting a devilish smile as she drew her sword and assumed a defensive stance. I knew immediately she was a young warrior who had no fear of Demons.

The owner of the pub was standing behind the bar screaming,
“No killing! No killing! Cayland close me down. I have family to feed.”

Wade was wearing a wide grin as the girl displayed her skills with a sword. She had the Demon retreating from her vicious attack, moving like a seasoned warrior as she countered every move the Demon could come up with. There was little doubt that the girl was a master swordsman.

The Demon couldn’t believe what was happening to him. In less than five minutes, he had slash marks on his arms and legs and a large gash across his chest. The Demon ended up on his knees and he could barely lift his sword. 

“
We can’t let that girl kill the Demon,” said Wade. “He rushed to his feet and hit the Demon in the back of his head, knocking him unconscious with a single blow.

The girl looked stunned.
“You knock out Demon with fist. No one that strong.” The girl was suddenly aware of Wade’s scent. “You are Witch,” she said. “I am Yolla, member of Zema Clan.”

“
I am Wade. I am a member of the Zandar Clan. This is Janis; she is a Changeling from the Vascadon Clan. We are strangers in your land.”

Yolla grabbed Wade by the arm.
“We hurry. More Demons arrive soon.”

The owner of the pub looked like he was about to have a heart attack. How could he explain a Demon being beaten up in his place of business? I had an idea.

We placed the Demon in his chair and rested his head on his arms. This made it look like he had too much to drink and had passed out on the table. The final touch was using my rejuvenation beam to erase the cuts from the Demon’s body.

I approached the owner of pub.
“If the Demon asks about the fight, tell him he got drunk and he had a bad dream.”

The owner nodded his head.
“I…I do that.”

We had no sooner made it out the front door when I saw several Demons on horseback riding our way.
“It’s time to disappear,” I yelled.

Wade placed his arm around Yolla
’s waist. We turned invisible and flew up into the sky for a fast getaway. We were miles from the pub when we landed on the ground and turned visible. Yolla was so stunned she had trouble speaking.

“
Who…what…what are you? You Wizards?”

“
No, I said. “We are warriors from another world. We are here to fight the evil people in Cayland Town.”

“
We go to my village,” said Yolla. “You talk to Clan Elders. First, I go back for horse.”

“
You wait here, Yolla. I’ll go get your horse.”

I made a quick trip back to the pub. It wasn
’t hard to determine which horse was Yolla’s because it carried her scent. I placed my hand gently on the horse’s neck and we turned into a Mist. Yolla was shocked when we materialized next to her. “You have powerful magic,” she said.

We followed Yolla to an area deep in the forest. When we came to a halt, Wade and I floated to the ground. I sensed traces of a powerful cloaking spell to hide the scent of the Witches in the area. Two male Witches with swords stepped out from behind a large tree. One of the men raised his voice in anger.

“Yolla, why you bring strangers? Is forbidden.”

“
Strangers are friends, have great powers. I want meeting of Clan Elders.”

“
We take you to Borgof. He decide.”

We were escorted into the village. Judging from the number of log cabins scattered throughout the village, I estimated the population to be around three hundred. Everywhere I looked, the children were practicing with swords and shields.

“This is a warrior village,” said Wade. “Warrior skills are taught to the children as soon as they are able to walk.”

The man called Borgof was waiting for us as. He looked mad as he placed his hands on Yolla
’s shoulder. “Yolla, you break rules. You leave settlement without permission. Now you bring strangers to village. What you say?”

“
I sorry, father. I went to kill Demon, show bravery. I was wrong.”

“
What about strangers? You know is forbidden.”

“
I know, but they possess great powers. Maybe help destroy Cayland.”

Yolla
’s father approached us, looking concerned. “I am Borgof, leader of Zema Clan. Who are you? Where you from?”

“
My name is Janis and this is Wade. We are warriors from another world. We are gathering green crystals like the one Cayland wears around his neck. We believe he is using the crystal for evil because he surrounds himself with Demons. We will take the crystal from Cayland, and if we have to, we will destroy him.”

You have that power?
” Borgof asked. “You is youngsters.”

We were about to put on a demonstration when I heard a screeching sound in the sky. I looked up to see a swarm of winged creatures bearing down on the village. I thought they looked like overgrown bats with long teeth. I counted fifty of the huge creatures, clustered together as they prepared to attack.

Borgof raised his sword over his head and screamed “Prepare for battle.”

I looked at Wade.
“I think it’s time to help our new friends.”

We flew to meet the winged creatures head on. It was like a carnival shooting gallery as we fired a series of energy bolts, blasting the ugly creatures out of the sky. In a span of less than five minutes, the sky was clear of the creatures, leaving nothing but body parts spread over the forest. We landed in front of Borgof, who nodded his head and smiled.

“Yolla right. You have great power. Destroy evil Zards like helpless chickens. Borgof stared at Wade. “I sense you are Witch.”

“
That’s true. I am Janis’s companion because she is the strongest.”

“
Is odd for woman to be stronger than man. Borgof looked at me. “Janis know how to use sword?”

“
Let me borrow a sword and then fetch three of your finest warriors.”

Yolla stepped forward.
“Take sword. It honor me.”

I faced off against three of the Zema Clan
’s finest warriors. They looked hesitant, so I assumed they didn’t like the idea of ganging up on a female. They drew their swords, but didn’t step forward. I decided it was time to make my move.

I moved so fast I became a blur. I knocked the swords from the warrior
’s hands, then I stepped back, waving my sword in their faces. They looked at one another, not quite sure what had just happened.

“
Way to go,” I heard Wade say. “I didn’t know Janis French had that kind of speed.”

“
No one move that fast,” Borgof said.

“
Janis does,” said Yolla. “She great warrior. Wade great warrior, too. He knock out Demon with fist.”

I suddenly became aware of a middle aged woman in a long black dress moving toward me.
“This woman is a powerful Witch,” Wade whispered.

“
I am Andra, the High Priestess” the woman said as she raised her hands and began chanting a strange spell. “Zabo, za, menbezo, hexda, wandoa.

I felt a tingling sensation over my entire body as Andra
’s eyes turned a bright red. I concentrated on hardening the air around me; similar to the method I used to build force fields. Andra looked puzzled and finally lost her concentration.

I approached the woman and got down on one knee. I bowed my head and spoke softly.
“I am honored to be in the presence of the Great Andra. Please grant me your blessing.”

Andra smiled and held out her hand, guiding me to my feet.
“I am one who is honored. You are good person with great, great power. I thank stars for sending you to village.”

Yolla came running up to me after Andra walked away.
“You beautiful and strong. I like to be you someday.”

“
That’s really sweet, Yolla, but you’re already beautiful and strong. And you’re a born warrior and an independent thinker. You won’t need any super powers to make your mark on the world.”

Borgof spoke next.
“Why you need us? Why not destroy Cayland?”

“
We do not interfere without knowing all the facts,” I answered. “I have many questions.”

“
Borgof replied. “Me take you to meeting place. You talk to Clan Elders.”

* * *

We were treated with great respect as we entered a large wooden structure in the center of the village. I watched as the four Clan Elders entered the room and sat at a long table with their backs to the wall. Wade and I were seated directly in front of the Elders. Borgof stood up and made his voice heard.

“
Janis and Wade enter village with peace in heart. Destroy evil Zards, save many lives. They have questions.”

The head Elder nodded to me and I stood up to speak.
“We are travelers from another world. We are searching for crystals that fell from the sky, countless years ago. We do not know who, but someone who possesses one of these crystals has created a Portal of Darkness, a gateway for evil Demons to enter our world.”

The Elders spoke among themselves and then the head Elder rose to speak.
“We not familiar with crystals or Portal of Darkness. We sorry.”

“
Cayland,” I said “is wearing one of the crystals I’m talking about. What can you tell us about him?”

“
Cayland evil,” said the head Elder. “Stories handed down by Elders tell of time when everything is good. Cayland come, bring Demons, everything turn bad. He not even let villagers bury dead. They delivered to castle, eaten by Demons.”

“
If that’s the case,” I said, “I will destroy Cayland and his Demons.”

“
That be good thing,” said the Elder.

Andra, the High Priestess rose to her feet to be recognized.
“We listen to High Priestess,” said the head Elder.”

“
Janis and Wade have hearts filled with good. When Cayland is destroyed, I ask permission to take them to Enchanted Forest. They speak with Princess Meea, leader of Fairy Clan. Maybe she know of Portal of Darkness they ask about.”