by Power, P. S.
Timon nodded.
"I see. That sounds hard. Good work. I'll need to talk to some people, but first we should get those things off of you both. I think it might be best if you stayed here for the time being? You aren't a prisoner, Lynd, but it would be easier for me that way. Is that all right with you?"
The other man stared at Timon, then snorted just a little.
"I have nowhere else to go. Do you think the law here will... Send me back? It would mean imprisonment and a work crew. I broke the law, so I can't blame them. It had to be done. The boy here, he isn't responsible for it."
Dareg started to shake his head, but Timon, not looking very old himself did the same.
"He kidnapped you. Taking you from custody, of his own free will, knowing that it was illegal there. That means we'll have to have a hearing about it. Until then... I imagine you can't leave. It will give us time to figure that out. Of course, as a Prince of Harmony I have to assume that the hearing won't go against him too easily. Nepotism is a tradition, even here. Let me..." He moved behind the muscular silver haired man, and after a few moments did something that sliced through the links of the chain, freeing the arms to move in front of him. Then very carefully Timon made two cuts on each cuff, pointing at them with his right index finger. The look and sense of focus was fierce from the man, but it worked.
Then he did the same for Dare, freeing him. A bit of the cuff on the left hand side was part of his flesh, so he and Lynd pulled it off, tearing the skin open again. It hurt, horribly, but he knew it would heal, which helped a lot in getting it done.
Then waving to them to sit and wait, the man left.
Kimi was in the center chair, her face flat and expressionless. It wasn't until she spoke that Dareg really understood what was going on in her head.
"You... Killed that beast? Like the ones that killed my Erid?"
He nodded, slowly. Then he turned to look at her, sinking in right beside her.
"We did. We didn't want to, but I didn't know what else to do. I was afraid that if we fought openly, trying to take him prisoner, we all would have died. What we, what Lynd and I did, was evil, and bad, but..." Dare didn't know what else to say.
He was happy that they'd lived. That they'd won. At the same time he felt horrible that Lynd had to leave his home and life behind for it. Dareg didn't know what else he could have done. Perhaps he could have managed it alone, killing the other man without help. It would have worked, he thought, as long as he had the right weapons for it. At the time he hadn't known that for certain.
So he'd let the other man come along, in case he needed help. It was probably cowardice that had let him do that. Fear of failing to save the others. Doing that had, in the end, cost the other man his life in a very real fashion. At least if he couldn't fix the situation now.
Not that it was the real issue.
Looking at the others, he shrugged, trying to stay calm inside.
"I... Merriland the Forten... It's kind of clear that she's the real thing. That means my mother wasn't. That she was... One of the Adversaries. Only, I'm Tor's son. We've tested that in a lot of ways, and that's real. I don't know what this means for me. They... The people here... They might have to kill me for that. I don't know. If so..." He looked over at Lynd, who was watching him very carefully suddenly, and frowned a bit. "If so, I'll tell the Forten that I made you do it, somehow. That I used magic to force you to do my will. I actually have the ability to do that. In fact I have to use special magic not to. I can back that up if I have to. Then kidnapped you, using my command abilities. Will that get you out of things?"
The man stopped for a second and teared up, his eyes filling, but nothing coming down his face.
"Probably not. Our laws aren't built for magic like that. It's really the problem we had with you there. No one knows what you can do. Forten are always held responsible for their own actions however. No matter why a thing was done. The honest truth is that I probably won't be able to ever go home. I could tell your people that I forced you to help me escape? Would that help you? As the adult it would have been my responsibility to protect you anyway. Plus, you saved all those people..."
As they spoke the airlock wall opened smoothly, and several people moved inside at once, with Timon. One of them was Gerent, with the other two being Queen Tiera and Smythe. That last one was a surprise, since he would have figured the man would have been on the ground, in Noram. He was some kind of government official for King Richard.
Tiera moved over directly, and gave him a solid hug.
"Are you all right? This news isn't good. Remember, you're still you. You're still human, and my nephew. We know that, for certain. The rest of this is... Different, but doesn't reflect on you at all. Hold to that. This won't change anything for you. Understood?"
He nodded, a bit numbly, since that was both nice to hear, and probably not true. His mother not being what he'd thought she was the entire time he'd known her made a vast difference. Plus, she might still be alive. That, or in her grave, like she was supposed to be. If that was the case, he didn't know what to think. It was possible, he guessed that the women just looked alike, without there being any real cross over at all. That could happen. There were enough differences that it might have simply been his imagination.
Only he knew that wasn't the case. Sighing, he shook his head.
"I need to know. I'm..." He stood up, which got Smythe to step toward him. Instead of pushing him down, or restraining him the man, who was older than the twenty or so he looked, helped to pull him up.
"We'll go with you. Timon and I. It's dark work, having to exhume a grave, but I can see the need for it. Can you get us to the right spot?"
He nodded, since the space, unmarked as it was, had been burned into his memory for all time. Tiera put her hand out then, and shook her head.
"We... Need to handle this more officially than that. Richard will need to be involved in this. Tor, too. Especially him. If we don't do this right, we'll end up with people being hurt or dying. First, we need to get with the Forten and let them know about how you stole their man from them, and that we need to hold him here for the time being. Then we'll change his genetic pattern, to hide him. That should keep you safe, forever. You can do that, Tim?" It wasn't really a question.
Dare could feel that, since the man knew it was possible. It was a request, that his sister was making an effort not to simply order.
"I can. Dare, too. I have some things planned there anyway. The ones we discussed Dare? Come on, both of you. I'll work better at my place. You can both stay with me for a few hours. We'll get the rest of this together for you Dareg. Tiera, can you get with everyone for this?"
They moved out then, but he stopped, bowing to Kimi first. He didn't know what to say, so after they both stood up, he hugged her, even if it wasn't appropriate.
"If you ever need anything, let me know." It was a dangerous thing to say, since she could ask for anything, and he was honor bound to try and get it for her, no matter what it was, but she just hugged him back, very briefly.
"Thank you. I'll be fine." Her words sounded a little bit lost, but strong enough.
Gerent moved in and patted her shoulder a bit, then Timon led Lynd and Dareg away. They walked to his place, which was empty when they got in. Dareg felt exhausted, but all he had to do was sit and wait, while Timon altered him. It was work, for the other man, but after five hours or so, he stepped back, grinning.
Then he locked eyes with Lynd.
"So, hiding you. I don't suppose you'd mind being a woman? Taller, too. With a different color... This will change your DNA. You know what I mean by that?" It was a good question, but the man just snorted at them.
"Of course I do. We all do. If you can change that... Well, let's do it. I never wanted to be a woman, but a warrior will do what they have to in order to survive, and this seems my best path. Try not to make me too weak? In case I need to fight." That part sounded serious.
Timon just agreed.
"Not a problem. I can make you stronger in fact. I just did that with Dare here. Let me see..." He started to work, then stopped and looked over at his nephew.
"Healing amulet? It will itch. The end result won't be that different looking, but almost everything about you will change. Well, you'll see. The sooner you heal the faster the changes will take place. Go ahead." Then he moved slightly, his focus sinking back down.
The man wasn't totally incorrect however. After a few seconds he did start to itch a bit. Then it became horrible. After that he felt both like he was on fire and freezing at the same time, which became pure agony. It lasted for a long time. Longer than he would have guessed it might take, to be honest. He was still undergoing things, breathing hard, like he was sprinting full out, when Lynd was handed an amulet for his own change.
That one didn't seem to hurt as much. The man got taller over the course of an hour, and the form melted and reshaped, like the wax of a candle. Soon enough he was clearly not a man any longer, and about the time the pain receded for Dareg, a rather attractive blue haired woman sat there. She was thin, and probably about six-six, with curves and a mid-sized bust line that simply hadn't been there before.
"Ah, well, this is different, isn't it?" The voice certainly was, since it had a nice, but very feminine tone to it. Timon had just been sitting, watching them both, and waiting.
"We should call you something new. Linda? I can change you back, or just shift the gender, when you want. You'll need to be careful if you have sex however, since you can get pregnant. Your strength and speed are probably about fifty percent better than before. You were pretty high end that way. You'll need to eat. Both of you." The wizard, and there was no doubt that was what he was at that moment, moved to a desk on the other side of the room, and got an amulet, which he tossed toward the new lady.
Dareg watched it float across the space. It took him what felt like a few moments to realize that it wasn't actually doing that by magic. His perception of it was just different. He heard the words normally however, which was interesting. Everything just looked a lot slower. When he moved to the desk, next to Timon, it felt like he was doing it normally, but picking up a writing stylus, and dropping it, the thing moved like it was a tomato in oil. After watching it fall for a long time, as it got near the ground, he reached out and snagged it with two fingers.
"I see. Interesting."
Tim smiled at him, very slowly, and shook his head.
"That's way too fast to understand. Speak more slowly." That part was very strange, but he did it, even if Timon speaking felt normal to him. Which made his brain hurt to watch, since his lips were both tracking with the sound, and seeming to take a long time to move at all, but it sounded right, anyway.
"Iiiiiii ssseeee." That part was going to get old, he decided. He got the idea however. It wasn't true time distortion, but a strange kind of physical speed that would allow him a slightly better chance at survival. There was a real cost to it however, since being a human, he needed to interact with everyone else too, and that had to be done in a way that would make sense to them.
Timon shook his head again.
"I nearly got that. Slower. I think that will work for you."
They had to practice for about half an hour, before he could carry on a real conversation. The thing there was that the real time that had taken place was more like two minutes. At the same time he felt like leaving there and going running. Full speed. His body wanted to jitter and move constantly, though he forced himself to stay still. Not that it worked totally.
About that time hunger slapped at his middle, and he looked around, rather desperately, for a food unit. Thankfully, Timon being a wizard, the stone cave inside the moon had one, recessed into the far wall. He jogged to it, and started processing the needed instructions to make it work, about halfway there. Making it happen without contact. That part was much easier now. Almost effortless, to be honest.
He wanted to focus, and most of the rest of the world very nearly fell away, allowing it to happen. He set it up for the cheese chips with thick white cream and spicy tomato that he'd had at Marissa's. It felt like it took forever for the things to appear, but the second it did, he removed the large platter that he'd created with the thing, which got Timon to roll his eyes.
"That unit isn't designed to make flatware. So, good work? I thought it might help out with magic. Probably mathematics too, if it ever comes up? There are some real drawbacks with this however. You won't need to sleep, but that means keeping yourself fed regularly. If you don't eat for about a day then your body will slow down to save itself from starving. As for the rest, you're pretty well set. Intelligence, concentration and memory, all boosted by about four times. You weren't doing badly before, so that's saying something. On the good side, you won't notice it that much, I bet. Your speed is greater, and your reflexes probably can't be calculated now. Strength is up, but not to the level of your speed, since I cheated to get that to happen for you. If you have the energy, you should heal nearly as fast as if you're using an amulet for it too. Immortal, of course. Remember, I can change part or all of this, if you can't handle it. It will be hard, but this is about what you asked for."
Dare ate, and nodded, then did it again, as slowly as he could manage, which seemed to be at about the right speed. After he finished eating, Linda spoke, her voice playful seeming.
"I didn't know that immortality was an option. I should have signed up for that." There was a smile, which seemed happy enough. If very, very slow.
Timon nodded, taking his sweet time about it, as Dareg looked across the room, and focused on the food machine again, making a pitcher of protein shake. One that tasted like what he'd gotten from the people at the restaurant that one time. Cold, thick and more filled with fat than before. He wasn't that hungry at the moment, but it was clear he would be soon. That would, he hoped, calm down. He could feel his body still changing however. Very fast. It left him feeling hot, and tingly in several places. Mainly through his stomach, and the front portion of his head.
There was a slot for any extra food or waste to go into, next to the device on the left hand side, so he returned the plate when he went for the pitcher. Timon got him a glass from a cupboard near the thing. It was real seeming, and nice. Made of sturdy, but clear and flawless, crystal.
It didn't even have bubbles in it, and made almost no distortion to the light that came through it from the magical lamps overhead.
Timon watched him doing all of this, and spoke, looking at Linda directly.
"You already have that one. Immortality. I added it in, since you're one of a very few people that we've met that's taken out one of the Adversaries. You'll heal a lot faster, too. Not like Dareg, but... It isn't fair, but we have to try what we can. If he can survive this, then others might need to be made the same way. So, try to make it work?" That was for him.
Moving quickly he drank a full glass of the cool but thick, liquid, which felt funny to his mouth, and nodded. The room smelled, too. Not horribly, but he could tell a lot more than he would have been able to before that way. Like that Linda was a female now. He could see that, so it wasn't some kind of big deal, but the scent was different from his or Timon's. There were also currents in the air that held a faint shimmer of color. Heat, coming from the warming unit along the back wall, and an even fainter version from their bodies. More from him than the others, but he wasn't feeling it yet.
Linda slowly settled into seeming surprised, as Dare finished his beverage. He did feel full suddenly, so didn't finish it all, just dumping the remainder. Then made himself slow down, so that he could talk to everyone.
"You should eat as well, Linda. I should have let you go first." He meant it, but no one seemed upset at him over it. Even if he had been rude.
That part took so long that Dareg nearly left, halfway through. Before the new woman had finished her meal, which was a strange looking stew over what seemed to be rice, several other people came in. Nearly hal
f a day had passed, so it wasn't too shocking that Tor was there, looking grim, as well as Tiera.
She moved in and hugged him, pressing herself against his body. It was strange to him, but felt nice. It also took so long that his body started to respond. Pushing her away wasn't an option, so he focused and tried to get his body to calm down that way. It didn't work perfectly, not having enough time he was willing to bet, but he wasn't left with a tent in the front of his trousers, so it was good enough. By the time she pulled away on her own, he'd learned two things.
The first was that she clearly liked him well enough, since her nipples were erect and the room wasn't cold. The other was that he probably wasn't going to be able to have sex any time soon. That left him feeling a bit sad, since that kind of thing was fun. After a few moments he came to understand that it was one of the things he had to sacrifice for this new power. It wouldn't be the last thing either. There was no way he could move with a normal woman and not harm her eventually if they were that close.
Tor moved toward him, his face blank. Inside he was feeling conflicted. That was an intensely sharp and divided thing. Part of him simply doubted that Dareg was human, of course. The rest knew the truth. They'd both been fooled. Possibly. There really was the chance that Dareg had simply been wrong, and when they went to the graveyard there would be the wasted and rotted body of his mother in her burial shroud.
It was horrible, but he kind of hoped that would be the case. It was a thing that he simply couldn't speak of, out loud.
"Dareg..." The word felt sad.
Thankfully Timon started to speak instantly, almost right on top of Tor.
"I made some changes to Dareg. He's a lot faster now, so things will seem odd and slow to him for a while. Like the whole world is in slow motion. Crawling, in fact. If you look closely you'll see that his body is a bit different? His arms and legs are a bit longer, and the tendons connect in different places. He can pass well enough, I think, but just talking to you is going to be hard for him. There are other things, but we can go into that later. How are you holding up so far?" That was for him, he thought, so he nodded, taking a while to do it, and spoke at the pace that they'd agreed upon in their practice session.