Forged by Greed

by Angela Orlowski-Peart

  Jasmira jumped onto the Garhanan. Her teeth bore into its neck. She tossed her head to the side, tearing a huge hole directly above the beast’s collar bone. Hot blood pumped from the monster’s torn artery in short, powerful jets. It stained the Garhanan’s white fur and Jasmira’s black coat. Still roaring, the beast fell with a thud. She let go of its neck and leaped off, toward the wolf. He lay on his side, panting, his eyes unfocused. The leopard prodded him with her muzzle and whimpered. Jatred’s torso moved up and down with each wheezy breath, and then stopped. His eyes stared ahead, unmoving, dead.

  Jasmira whined, pacing back and forth along and nudging him with her nose.

  “No, no, no, no!” she screamed with her mind, waves of horror and disbelief washing over her. “You can’t be gone. You have to get up, please!”

  From the corner of her eye, she saw six more Garhanans running in her direction. Their angry growls filled the air. She wasn’t afraid. She only felt rage and a desire to avenge Jatred. With a snarl, the leopard dashed to meet the monsters. Her upper lip was pulled back from her sharp, blood-stained, teeth. She felt hot air hitting at her muzzle and rushing past her body. Running with the speed only known to the Shifters, Jasmira was fast closing the distance between her and the Garhanans. She didn’t slow down, and neither did they. The ground shook from the beasts’ heavy steps, their snarls full of hatred.

  Without hesitation, the leopard jumped at the biggest of the Garhanans. Her teeth closed on the monster’s face.

  “Jasmira.” Penelope whispered loudly close to Jasmira’s ear and shook her arm. “Wake up, wake up.”

  Jasmira sat up, panting. Warm sun caressed her skin. She looked around, confused. Sweat dripped from her face and neck. Penelope leaned over from her chaise longue. Jasmira was shaking and felt like crying. She stared at her friend’s face, slowly calming down.

  “You had a bad dream?”

  “Uhm… yeah.” Jasmira blinked and rubbed her eyes with her fists. She shuddered and reached for her water tumbler, but it was empty.

  “Here.” Penelope pulled a bottle of Perrier from the ice-filled bucket.

  Jasmira twisted off the metal cap and took a long swig.

  “What was your dream about?”

  Jasmira’s face was set in a mask of dismay. She shook her head and said slowly, “It was awful. Jatred and I fought a Garhanan. We killed it, but it smacked Jatred really hard. And I think J. died.”

  “A Garhanan? Aren’t those the Winter Goddess’s creatures of torment?” Penelope asked.

  “Yeah, I’ve only seen some old drawings of them. But in my dream they looked so vivid, so scary. I wonder if they can even leave the Winter Realm… but Jatred and I weren’t in the Winter Realm. It was really hot and green, like in the Summer Realm or the Human World.”

  “I’ve never been to the Summer Realm,” Penelope said wistfully. “How about our Goddess’s nasty beasts? Are they as scary as the Garhanans?”

  “I think so. I read about those Summer Mahrasets.” Jasmira nodded. “Grannie is the President of our Historical Society so she has access to those very old books about our Race.”

  “You know, sometimes I think this is just a bunch of crap. Most of us never even go to the Summer Realm—”

  “It’s true. It’s all there, ”Jasmira interrupted. She watched their friends playing in the pool or sitting around it. “I need to text Jatred to see if he’s okay.”

  CHAPTER 12

  Human World. September 7, morning.

  Erik closed his locker and swung a backpack onto his shoulder. He wore a bright-red t-shirt, tightly hugging his muscular chest. A head of a gray, snarling wolf was screen-printed on the front of the shirt. A tall Samoan girl took a book from the locker next to Erik’s. Thin bracelets of thorns were tattooed around each of her wrists.

  “Hi, Maéva.” Erik smiled, revealing white straight teeth. “What’s up?”

  She looked at him, and then rolled her eyes. “I hate Social Studies. I wish I could skip it.”

  He laughed, leaning on the door of his locker, arms crossed over his chest. “Yeah, good luck with that. I’m sure you can go unnoticed.”

  “You know how to make a girl feel special.” She scoffed. “Nice shirt.”

  “Thanks. I ended up in the Principal’s office this morning because of this shirt. I’m gonna miss part of Social Studies.” Erik chuckled.

  “Oh?”

  “He wants me to go home and change,” he said with his mind, glancing around. “Mr. Eberhardt said this kind of clothing promotes animosity between the Races.” Erik pointed to the wolf on his shirt, grinning.

  “At least the humans have no clue what’s going on,” Maéva answered in the same mind-communicating manner, shrugging.

  “We’re all careful around humans. But it’s kinda cool that Mr. Eberhardt even wants humans mixed with our Races at school.”

  Maéva gave a short, humorless laugh. “Seriously, he doesn’t want them for kicks, Erik. It’s just another way of hiding the Shifter communities from the world. If none of the human kids were accepted here, it could get suspicious.”

  “Plus the income, I bet. Since there aren’t so many of us, he needs other students in here. Can you imagine our tuition without the human students? Besides, everyone on the staff is a Shifter, so he’s got things under control.”

  “I don’t have a problem with humans. They do keep that tuition low. Anyway, I guess Mr. Eberhardt is damn serious about keeping our differences out of his school, so no cool t-shirts.” She grinned, pointing with her chin to the wolf image on Erik’s shirt.

  A group of Summer Shifters passed Erik and Maéva. Some of them ignored the Winter kids, talking and laughing; some shot them unfriendly glances. Erik regarded them coolly.

  “I saw Jatred with the Summer Princess. What’s up with that?” Maéva asked.

  Erik turned his face away from the Winter kids and looked at her. “Nothing. They just hang out. She’s cool.” He shrugged.

  “Yeah? Not everyone thinks that. They aren’t dating or anything?” Maéva shook her head and her dense dreadlocks lazily moved down her back.

  “Once you get to know Jasmira, you can see she’s not bad.” Erik reached into his backpack. “PowerBar?”

  Maéva eyed him suspiciously but didn’t comment. She took the protein bar and rushed away. “Thanks. See you in class. Better hurry, second period’s about to start.”

  Erik put the ear-buds in his ears and walked along the row of lockers that stretched all the way to the crossing hallway. He stuffed his hands in his shorts pockets, glancing around. Students hurried past him, going in both directions. Some climbed the tall winding staircase to the classrooms on the second and third floors. Erik’s eyes moved over the twisted wooden balusters. The balusters supported a thick handrail that bent sharply upward, coming in a swooping curve to the next floor. A slender, pretty girl stood on the second floor landing. She rested her hands on the railing. Long red hair fell almost to her waist. She looked straight at Erik, a smile playing on her lips.

  “Hey,” she said with her mind.

  “Hi, there. It’s Penelope, right?” Erik nodded.

  “You got it.”

  “I’m Erik.”

  “I know,” she said, turning around and striding away.

  He shook his head, smiling to himself, and then walked toward the massive double front doors. The doors were two stories high, set between two flat columns protruding from the walls on both, interior and exterior, sides. A semi-circular carved arch encased the top of the doors.

  Erik opened the door and stepped outside. He shaded his eyes with his hand and, squinting, looked at the cloudless sky. The door closed with a dull thud behind him as he started down the wide stone stairs. Strings of green ivy clung to the solid-stone balustrade on both sides of the steps. The stone was aged, its natural color richly variegated. Two huge urns flanked the staircase. Their color scheme matched the balusters.

  “Where are you going, bro?” Erik h
eard Jatred’s voice in his head. He looked up and saw his friend sitting by the window in one of the second floor classrooms.

  “Home. I’ll be right back,” he answered with his mind and jumped over six steps, down to the concrete path.

  “Lucky you. I’m stuck in STEM. Let’s shoot some hoops in the afternoon.”

  “Complaining much? I thought it was your favorite subject.” Erik grinned.

  Jatred chuckled. “Yep, it is. See ya.”

  “Let’s work on that robot, dude. I’ll be back in a few minutes.”

  ***

  Human World. September 7, early afternoon.

  Jatred sat on the top of the spiral staircase with his elbows resting on his knees. Summer, Winter, and human kids walked up and down the stairs, passing him. He looked up at the ceiling. His eyes traced the acanthus leaf castings clustered in the corners and along the sides.

  An enormous antique chandelier hung down by thick chains. A solid ring, covered in intricate patterns, encircled a massive hand-painted globe. The pale colors of the land and surrounding oceans looked subdued as if the map was an antique. Twenty-four sweeping, rounded arms reached out from the metal ring and curved up and out, ending in elongated candle-shaped electric lights. The sphere rotated lazily, as if imitating the real Earth. Jatred gazed transfixed at it, wishing it was dark and the whole thing would light up as it always did in the evenings.

  Jasmira slid up next to him.

  “Hey, where did you come from?” He laughed. He wanted to kiss her, but they wouldn’t dare to show their feelings for each other at school, among so many Shifters of both Races.

  “Algebra. We had a test and the touch-screen on my tablet didn’t work. Luckily, there was a spare one. I gotta remember to check the school intranet at home for results. I’m not sure how I did today.”

  “Something didn’t work in this school?” Jatred raised his eyebrows in a mocking horror. “Inconceivable.”

  “Really, Vizzini, it didn’t work. What did you have today?”

  “STEM and Calculus. Now I’m going to PE. Hey, you’re taking the filmmaking class again, right?” He turned to look at her.

  “Yep. We started to work on a stop-motion animation.”

  “Cool. What do you use for the figures? Clay?”

  “No, just a regular Play-Doh. I love it. It’s like a preschool all over again.” Jasmira giggled.

  “That’s awesome. What movie are you guys working on this time?”

  “Coraline. I created her parents. So far, they’ve already got six to eight faces each, with different expressions.” She beamed, her face lit. “And get this—this year we’re hosting a real gala, like the Oscar’s night. We’ll even have nominations for various categories.”

  “That’s so cool,” Jatred said with a lopsided smile.

  “When will you guys start building that new robot in STEM class?”

  “When the parts get here. Mr. Krauss wants us to enter the national competition this year. Everything is set up for the class on Ning. He thinks we have a good chance to compete on the national level now, since we built that cool remote-controlled golf ball launcher robot last year.” Jatred gave a breathy laugh. “Man, that was a fun project.”

  Jasmira watched him with a smile. Forming a mental shield, she said, “I missed you. I want you to hold me. But not here.” And out loud she added in casual voice, “What are you doing after school?”

  “I missed you too, J,” he whispered, and then added louder, “I asked Erik to come over to play basketball.”

  “You mean to goof around. Can I come too?”

  “Sure. Ask Penelope to come, so you won’t be bored.”

  “But she doesn’t know Erik or any of your friends. Speaking of Pen, I need to run to the library before the third period starts. She’s been waiting for me.” Jasmira got up and dusted off her red Celine skirt. She looked intently at him for a quick moment, fighting an urge to kiss him right there, in front of everyone, despite the consequences. But, instead, she blinked and said, “I’ll call you later.”

  Smiling, he watched her run down the stairs. She disappeared behind the double doors to the school library. Jatred frowned, his jaw working. He thought about the Winter Goddess and his last summons to the Winter Realm. She’s gonna kill me when she finds out I’m still with Jasmira. Oh, screw that. What can she do? I’m the last of the Royal family.

  CHAPTER 13

  Winter Realm.

  When Jatred stood to walk down the stairs, he immediately felt as if invisible, gigantic arms closed around his shoulders and pulled him forward. For a moment he saw the stairs below him and, to the side, the cast-iron railing topped with dark-brown polished wood.

  Next, he lay on the snow-covered ground. Although the exposed skin on his arm and legs prickled some from the frost, the cold did not affect him as the heat did, because he was a Winter Shifter.

  Jatred had snow in his mouth and eyes. He spat, lifting his head and pushing himself up. The air around him pulsed and shivered in thin visible waves when he shifted.

  “Prince Jatred!” The Winter Goddess’s voice sounded angry. She marched fast toward him. A deep frown settled between her brows.

  Watching her, the wolf lowered his head between his shoulder blades, his tail between his hind legs. A quiet growl rumbled in the back of his throat. Freezing gusts whipped at her hair and clothes. The Goddess’s long black dress trailed behind her, loose sleeves flapping in the wind. Her nails were painted black and matched the series of complex black tattoos covering her face. She appeared as the Celtic goddess Morrigan.

  “You know why you’re here.” Crystal’s voice reverberated in the wolf’s head. Her lips were pressed together.

  He didn’t answer but kept his eyes on her. The Goddess stood in front of him, glowering, her hands on her hips. Her body stretched and grew until she was over ten feet tall, muscular and commanding. The wolf crouched down, baring his teeth.

  “You are going to leave her today!” The Goddess’s voice boomed in the air. It echoed several times, bouncing off the mountains. Her face contorted in anger. She waved her hand, and a wave of freezing air hit him like a tornado. He tumbled uncontrollably, clawing at the snow. Crystal moved her hand again, and Jatred stopped rolling. He tried to stand up but he felt too dizzy. His body ached as if it was bruised all over.

  “Prince Jatred,” the Goddess hissed. Her eyes were furious.

  Jatred got up and stood, panting, his legs wobbly. He took an unsure step forward, testing the ground. A low snarl escaped him, his ears flat.

  “No,” he said with his mind, growling louder.

  Crystal flicked her wrist once more, and the wolf flew back several feet, as if hit by a truck going at full-speed. He yelped and fell, sliding in the snow on his side. Gasping, Jatred snapped his eyes open and bared his teeth. He growled and wrinkled his muzzle. The Goddess walked up to him. She stopped and folded her arms over her chest.

  “Stop resisting. I don’t really want to hurt you.”

  “We have a different understanding of the word ‘hurt’,” he wheezed with his mind.

  “You will obey me this time, my Prince. Don’t make me summon you here again to remind you of your duty. Or it will be more than physical pain that I will inflict on you. Think of those you love that are my Shifters.” The Goddess’s voice was calm, barely above a whisper. “Now go back to the Human World.”

  Crystal stretched her arms, palms flat over Jatred. Shimmering dust rained from her hands down to his fur. The pain in his body subsided, and calmness enveloped him. He squeezed his eyes shut and forced himself to shift into his human form, before she let him return to the Human World.

  ***

  Human World. September 7, early afternoon.

  Dark-wooden shelves stretched over the length of the walls and all the way to the ceiling. The library was quiet, unlike the halls beyond the door, which buzzed with conversations, shouts, and laughter. Penelope sat at the end of the library. There was a stack o
f books to the right of her laptop. She typed feverishly. Although her fingers flew over the keyboard, she knew not to use her Shifter’s speed in front of the human students.

  Without stopping, she said to the approaching Jasmira, “I need to finish this before third period. I won’t have time later.”

  “Do you want to go to Jatred’s with me after school?”

  “Can’t. I’m going to work. You know Doctor Bigbee lets me work one afternoon a week at Saint Andrew’s hospital.” She stopped typing and looked at Jasmira, who grabbed the edge of the table, and doubled over, gasping.

  “What’s wrong?” Penelope stood up. Her eyes opened wide.

  Jasmira lowered herself to the floor. “It’s Jatred. Something’s going on. He’s in pain. I can sense it through our bond. I… can’t… breathe.”

  Penelope rushed to her friend’s side. “Do you want me to get the nurse?”

  “No.” Finally, Jasmira took a deep shaky breath and looked around. A couple of Winter kids and three human girls stared at her.

  “She’s fine. Mind your own business.” Penelope snapped at them. She put her arm around Jasmira. “What’s going on?” she whispered.

  “I don’t know. I just saw him. He was sitting on the stairs.” Jasmira pointed with her head toward the heavy door.

  Penelope swore under her breath. “Are you okay to wait here by yourself? I’ll be right back.”

  “Yeah. I’m better. Go.” Jasmira looked more composed. She propped herself up, leaning against the ornate table leg.

  Penelope rushed to the door, opened it, and stepped out of the library. A few minutes later, she returned with Jatred.

  He hurried to Jasmira and kneeled by her side. “Are you okay?”

  Jasmira buried her face in her hands. “I was so scared. I could feel you were in pain.” She looked up, inspecting his face. A few bruises on his cheeks and forehead were already fading. “Were you summoned again?”

  Jatred looked away. “Yes.”