Shifters Alliance

by Shaun L Griffiths

  ‘Beyond recognition!’ agreed the second cat, ‘He’s always angry with someone, and usually at me.’

  ‘We’ve no time for your lies. You two are coming with us. You’ll tell Duma that we have his son, and we’ll do him harm if he doesn’t return the box.’

  ‘It won’t do any good. He’s disowned you, Sonny. He doesn’t want to hear your name.’

  ‘What, disowned his son? You can never trust a cat!’

  ‘Never trust ‘em,’ echoed the guards, louder and even more irritated.

  ‘Guards, make sure these two keep up with us and don’t go wandering off. We need to move, now.’

  The boss led the way down the mountainside towards the town.

  Arriving at the ridge, the scene below looked peaceful and tranquil. The town’s people were going about their daily lives seemingly without a care, until the bears showed up.

  They stood proud in the full glare of the sun, wanting to be seen, wanting the town to be intimidated by their size and numbers. The panic started immediately when the first person’s finger pointed out the guards standing on the ridge over them.

  ‘This is what we’ll do,’ said Jojo. ‘Naz, your team behind Sonny, make sure the town can see him, but make sure he doesn’t try to flee. The second team, work your way around the town and cover the way out. Nobody leaves.

  ‘The rest of you, come with me to the main track. We’ll try to negotiate a trade. At the first sign of trouble, you all come running. We think the crystal’s in the house at the centre of town, to the north. That crystal’s coming with us today,’ said the boss.

  ‘Mean and moody, Vin, and remember what I told you about the eyes. Little slits like this,’ Naz demonstrated how to look like a mean bear.

  ‘And no gratuitous violence. I want minimum casualties,’ reminded the boss.

  Dray stepped forward, ‘May I speak with Sonny before we leave?’

  ‘Speak so that we can all hear what you have to say,’ said the boss.

  Dray nodded, ‘I’ve no intention of working against you. I want this finished as much as you do.’

  ‘Finished? This is only the beginning.’

  ‘Sonny, what I want to say is your father may have disowned you, but the others down there, they want you back. Your father is losing his power. People don’t like the things he does or says. No one understands why our lives seem to have disintegrated around us. You talk to them, Sonny. He’ll try to shout you down, but they will listen to you.’

  ‘Remember to tell them exactly what the Boss told you,’ said Jojo. ‘We are no longer the problem here. What’ll come rampaging out of that forest is your real problem.’

  ‘I’ll try my best.’ Sonny led the way down the slope with the bears en masse behind him.

  It was an imposing sight, to see a troop of mean-looking bears standing to their full height, advancing towards the town. Mothers ran, scooping up their children to hide indoors. The men, already changed into cats, advanced to meet them, trying to block the track.

  ‘That’s far enough,’ the boss told Sonny. ‘You can shout from here and everyone will hear you.’

  Sonny stepped forward, recognising his uncle in the front rank of cats.

  ‘Uncle, the bears have only come for the return of a golden box, stolen by my father when he...’

  ‘Stolen!’ came a roar from Duma, advancing through the lines of cats.

  ‘Who dares to imply that I stole anything? You?’ he shouted with such contempt the words were spat from his mouth.

  ‘Why didn’t you tell us you found the northern border, father?’

  ‘Do I have to answer to you now?’

  ‘Did you keep it secret to hide from us that you stole their treasure?’

  ‘How can I steal what doesn’t belong to them? Where did the Northerners get this treasure? It was taken from those in the east. What right do they have to own such a thing?’ he shouted

  ‘It was being guarded, to protect us all from the evil of those creatures,’ Sonny said, pointing to the east.

  ‘To protect us?’ his laugh full of derision. ‘You’ve no idea of the power of this treasure. What it’s capable of, what I’m capable of with it in my hand. What use is it locked away out of everyone’s sight? It’s here to be used.’

  ‘It’s corrupting you. It’ll destroy you and everyone around you.’

  ‘So you’re an expert on this treasure you’ve never seen?’ he laughed again, scornful. ‘From where do you know these things? From an enemy you’ve guided to our door? From an enemy that you’ve sat with, ate with, and discussed all of our secrets with?’

  ‘Father, you...’

  ‘I’m not your father; you’re no son of mine. Traitor!’

  ‘I must talk to the people.’

  ‘When you’re strong enough to take this treasure from me, then you can...’

  ‘You mean when I am strong enough to steal, and to lie to my people, and strong enough to kidnap children from another land, to protect YOU!’ The anger in Sonny’s voice could be heard throughout the town.

  ‘Leave now, traitor, before I make you sorry you returned.’

  ‘I have a right to talk to my people. Please listen to me,’ he called to the town. ‘A horde of creatures will come through the valley ...’’

  ‘NO!’ Duma roared. He advanced towards Sonny, intent on stopping him.

  ‘Let him speak,’ Dray pushed his way through the lines of the bears to stand beside Sonny.

  Duma stopped short. ‘You betray your own people as well?’

  ‘He has the right to be heard by all,’ Dray called to the town.

  Sonny noticed the women coming from their houses to stand behind the men of the town. He coughed to clear his voice.

  ‘From the east, a horde of creatures will come here, in search of a crystal that my father stole from the land to the north. These creatures are corrupted by an evil the like of which we’ve never known. If they find the crystal, no land around us will be safe. We must return it and...’

  ‘No!’ screamed Duma, charging at Sonny.

  Sonny saw only a flash of grey fur as a bear leaped through the air, knocking Duma off his feet. Vin lifted himself up to his full height, and let out a deafening roar into the face of Duma, who lay physically trembling on the floor. The other cats held their ground, unsure how to react.

  ‘We must return the crystal to the bears and prepare ourselves to face this coming evil,’ Sonny finished.

  ‘I’ll return it.’ Dray stepped forward and looked along the line of cats, poised ready, but confused as to what should be done.

  ‘I’ll help you,’ came a voice from the line of cats.

  ‘And I,’ came another, then another.

  Dray called out to the town. ‘There are no traitors here, only patriots.’

  The cats moved aside for Dray to walk through.

  ‘Well done, Vin,’ whispered Naz, ‘you’re getting quite good at this.’

  ‘Thanks, Naz,’ he whispered out of the side of his mouth. Vin stood over Duma, letting out big growling breaths, his lips drawn back to show off his rows of white, razor-sharp teeth, while salivating over him.

  Dray returned with a golden box, held in front of him like it was too hot to hold. He approached the bears, but stopped, hesitating for a moment, staring off into the distance. Those closest to him realised he was staring at the ridge line to the east and followed his gaze.

  ‘They’re here,’ he said. Everyone turned to look.

  Duma lay there, wailing in grief for the loss of the crystal. Whenever he tried to raise himself, Vin held him down. His thrashing and wailing did him no good with Vin’s leg on his chest, pinning him to the ground.

  Dray approached the boss, holding the box out towards him, eager for him to take it.

  The boss nodded his thanks. He stood staring at the box in his hands, feeling its warmth, and it looked for just a moment as if Jojo was tempted to open it, to look inside. But then his expression changed almost to a smil
e, knowing he could hold it and overcome his own temptation to possess it. It looked like a personal battle won.

  ‘Please, don’t judge us all by the actions of one man’s greed. There are good people here.’

  Jojo’s concentration was pulled back to reality.

  ‘I can see that now,’ he said, and looking again at the women and children of the town, he felt immense sorrow for what was to come.

  ‘Sonny,’ called the boss. ‘You must tell these people everything. You’re going to need help. I don’t believe it’s safe for you to stay here. You should leave, immediately.’

  ‘We’ve nowhere else to go,’ said Dray.

  ‘The most important thing is to get the crystal across the border to safety. Guards! Take this back to the Boss, as fast as you can.’ He handed over the box containing the crystal.

  ‘Tell him an ape has been seen on the ridge line above the town. Don’t stop for anything.’

  They took off in a cloud of dust, heading back up the track to the ice caves.

  ‘Vin, let him go,’ he called over.

  ‘You’ll leave now,’ Vin said, looking down at Duma, still trembling on the ground.

  As he strolled away, the boss winked at him.

  ‘Well done, Vin, good show of initiative.’

  ‘Thanks, boss. At the end of the day, I knew he was only a bully.’

  ‘I’m promoting you; you’re in the guards now.’

  ‘Really? Thanks, boss.’

  ‘The Boss is going to pull everyone back across the border now that we’ve got the crystal. You two can go with them if you want. Leave now and you’ll soon catch them.’

  ‘What about you?’ asked Naz.

  ‘These people are going to need help. I’m going to offer what I can.’

  ‘But why, boss?’

  ‘Look at the women and children, they look frightened already.’

  It took only a moment for Naz to decide. ‘I’m with you.’

  ‘I got your back, Naz,’ said Vin.

  ‘There are no pies where we’re going.’

  Vin grinned, ‘I think I overindulged at camp.’

  ‘Thanks, guys,’ he smiled. ‘These people are not trained fighters. They’ve no idea what they’re up against. We should try to persuade them to leave here.’

  ‘For where?’

  ‘The apes will follow the crystal north until they hit the border, then my guess is they’ll turn around and destroy everything in their rage. If they’re lucky, these people have a small window to get themselves to the southern border. I’ve no idea if they’ll get through.

  ‘I did hear they had no more black stones in this land. But there is a gateway open down there. It’ll probably last another day or two. I think that’s their only chance.’

  ‘The Southerners may not allow them through. I’m not sure I would if they’d kidnapped my child,’ said Naz.

  ‘Why don’t you go ask them?’

  ‘What do you mean?’

  ‘You said the king had invited you to visit. Why not go now?’

  ‘That’s a plan, boss,’ said Naz.

  ‘It’s the only one I can think of. So, let’s get organised.’

  While Naz and Vin headed off across the plateau, Jojo took Dray to one side.

  ‘Where’s the ape creature?’ Dray asked.

  ‘It’s following the guards and the crystal north. But others will be coming soon. It’s time to put our past differences behind us,’ said Jojo. ‘We need to work together for the future to stop these creatures causing chaos to our world.’

  ‘What do you suggest we do?’

  ‘Has Sonny told you what the boss said?’

  ‘Yes. You’re suggesting we abandon our land without a fight?’

  ‘If you want to save your people, you need to leave very soon. My guards will have the crystal at the border by nightfall. It’ll then be out of their reach. And once they realise that, they’ll take revenge on anyone still in this land.’

  ‘We’re leaderless. Duma has turned in on himself. He acts insane, holding himself, rocking back and forth and crying like a child.’

  ‘I’ve seen it before. There’s no way back for him. The moment he touched the crystal, he lost control of his life. Someone needs to step forward and lead.’

  ‘Sonny’s too young, too inexperienced.’

  ‘I was thinking of you.’

  ‘Me? I don’t think the people ...’

  ‘At this moment, your people need a leader, and I believe they’ll follow anyone who takes the initiative.’

  Jojo watched Dray hold his head in his hands, unsure of taking on the responsibility.

  ‘I don’t ...’

  Jojo interrupted his protest. ‘You can and you must. I’ll help, but it must look like it comes from you.’

  ‘What should I do?’

  ‘Call everyone together, tell them the truth, and tell them they must go south, and quickly.’

  ‘But my people have kidnapped their children. They’ll never allow us to enter their land.’

  ‘Those Southerners are understanding people. They’re also very humane. Naz has left for the border already, to explain what’s happened, and to see if they’ll allow you entry. If only to move further south, or even west ...’

  ‘West, there’s only water.’

  ‘Do you know that for a fact?’

  ‘Well, no, it’s what we’ve always believed.’

  ‘Just as you always believed there was no end to your Northern Desert?’

  Dray scratched his head, as if the questions were too big and made his brain itch. ‘Is there land to the west?’

  ‘I’ve heard it said there is.’

  The confusion in his eyes made Jojo feel so sorry for him.

  ‘Why are you doing this? It was Duma and I that caused all of this,’ he said, swinging his arm to take in the chaos around him.

  ‘You caused it, and you’ll pay for it with your land, but I don’t want to see your people destroyed because of one person’s greed.’

  A deep breath seemed to clear his thoughts.

  ‘I’ll do it.’ Dray decided at last.

  ‘Tell them to travel light and to travel quickly.’

  On the plateau, the darkened fur of Naz and Vin made them impossible to see from a distance. They kept rubbing the fine sand and dust over themselves as they walked, to help them blend into the changing landscape.

  Naz could see from the way Vin’s eyebrows kept going up and down that he’d been chewing over a problem for several minutes.

  ‘So what’s on your mind?’

  ‘Are you really gonna stroll in through the gateway and ask to see the King?’

  ‘Don’t see why not, Vin. He did invite us.’

  ‘Wasn’t that more for a pie and a chat, rather than, ‘Can you let a town load of people come and live next door?’’

  ‘Obviously, I’m not gonna walk up and ask them to take care of a town load of women and children and oh, by the way, a troop of mangy cats that’s been kidnapping your children. There’s ways of doing things, Vin. First the pies and then spring it on ‘um when they’re happy and relaxed. It’s called diplomacy. It’s one of the skills you’ll need being a guard now.’

  ‘How do I learn it, Naz?’

  ‘Best if you watch and listen and try to do as I do.’

  ‘D’you think the gateway’s still open?’

  ‘I wouldn’t be going there if I didn’t. I’ve been counting the days from when that guy Casey came through. I reckon we should have a day to spare. But I’d like to push on, just in case. Come on, let’s step it up a bit.’

  Vin started jogging. ‘Hold up, Vin. We gotta pace ourselves.’

  ‘We’re too exposed here on the plateau, one of those creatures could see us from way over there. The quicker we get off it, the better. We can slow up when we hit the slopes.’ The gap between them lengthened.

  Naz smiled to himself. Vin is turning out to be a real asset, thinking ahead. He’ll make a g
ood guard, he thought.

  Naz started running to catch and then overtake Vin, but Vin pushed harder. By now, they were both sprinting, taking longer leaping strides, almost galloping to race each other to be first off the plateau, laughing like fools at the silliness of the situation.

  Before they knew it, they arrived at the point where they’d previously set up a guard post, and fell upon the two bears now taking their place, panting and laughing.

  ‘What’re you two idiots doing racing in here? Me and Fonz heard you coming from way over there,’ Caldo said, brushing the dust cloud away that had arrived on Naz and Vin’s heels.

  Vin managed to catch his breath first, ‘Message from the boss, your t’ get back to the border soonest, swing by the town and talk to the boss first.

  ‘We got the crystal,’ said Naz. ‘It’s heading home with the guards. Oh, and by the way, them ape creatures have started to invade already.’

  ‘What!’

  ‘‘Fraid so, we saw one of ‘um at the ridge near the town, but it’s probably chasing the crystal, best to keep to the west.’

  ‘If I were you, I’d run,’ said Naz.

  Caldo and Fonz both darted out from their cover, sprinting across the plateau with their own cloud of dust in their wake.

  Naz and Vin rested for a moment before starting the descent to the valley floor.

  ‘We need to be a bit stealthy now, Vin. That scree makes an awful noise once it starts slipping.’

  ‘You’re right there, d’you wanna lead, Naz?’

  ‘Okay, try to stay in my footsteps.’

  Picking their way down the slope, they could see the forest fire raging in the distance.

  ‘It seems much more intense than when I was last here,’ Naz said, ‘I bet they’re feeding it, making it spread.’

  ‘Look, Naz, all the high grass has been burnt off, there’s no cover at all.’

  ‘We’ll keep west and make our way slowly along the border until we find it. We just have to hope for the best, Vin.’

  ‘I got yer back, Naz.’ And for the first time, Naz was thankful that he did.

  Coming to the valley floor was a shock, seeing the once-verdant grasslands now scorched and blackened. They made their way to where they guessed the border lay, and then slowly moved east towards the forest. On the crest of a low hill, Vin stopped to check a large rock that looked out of place. He noticed there was no indentation in the ground.