The Change

by Lori Aisling

  When they reached the door, the blonde dropped her hand and pulled her close to him. He leaned down to her ear and whispered, “Bror. My name is Bror, and you never need ta fear me. I will always help you and protect you.” This did not help the confusion level in Bristol’s head or answer any of her questions. Then he pushed her behind him and began to move random boxes and lumber pieces out of the way to give clear access to the door. Boz stepped forward to help him and the two of them quickly cleared a path. Bror grabbed the knob and surprisingly, it turned. Bristol had feared it would be locked and they’d be making more noise trying to get out, drawing the chayn to them. The door opened into a dim warehouse and the group of six filed out, scanning the open area for any movement. At that moment, it appeared the coast was clear. Bror closed the door and Ristan grabbed an iron bar to brace under the knob to reinforce it and buy a little more time when the chayn followed them through the tunnel.

  “Time to get out of town,” Ristan whispered, as he took the lead and headed towards the entrance of the large warehouse. “Stay close to each other, don’t get separated and if we meet up with any chayn, fight like your life depends on it. Because it does.”

  Bristol noticed that Ristan and Bror kept her between the two of them as they quietly made their way through the warehouse. Jessie’s stiletto heels clicked against the concrete, but Bristol could tell she was walking on her toes to cut down on the noise. Approaching the door, Bror slowly opened it. It groaned loudly on its hinges and everyone held their breath. Sneaking through, they found themselves surrounded by silence, the heat of the afternoon sun blazing down on them. Judging from its position in the sky, Bristol guessed it to be about 3 p.m. She had been right about the time, regardless of how long the day had drug on while waiting in the basement. It had felt like an eternity. The four friends followed closely behind Ristan and Bror, setting a quick pace towards the outskirts of town. Reaching a grove of native trees and amber bushes, the air was filled with the scream of the chayn. Spinning around, they saw about a dozen of the creatures moving rapidly towards them. Time to fight, she thought as she saw her friends ready their weapons. She felt a whisper of magic in the air as Jessie shifted. Where her beautiful, red-haired friend had stood was now a massive tiger. The tigress looked at her with Jessie’s green eyes and blinked. When the cat looked back at the approaching chayn, she let out a wicked snarl. Bristol had always known that Jessie’s cat would be imposing, but she was shocked at the beauty and sheer size of her beastly form. Jayson had gone full vamp and he looked absolutely evil. The group formed a circle, their backs to each other, and Bristol saw Bror and Ristan share a look and a nod right as their runes began to move and illuminate. She had seen Ristan’s glow that same deep shade of amber as his eyes, the color rich and vibrant as it crept across his skin. When she turned to look at Bror, she saw that his runes also matched his eyes. Ice blue color danced with the black of the runes and she could feel the power of their group in the air. As the first two chayn met them head-on, Ristan easily sliced the creature's head from its shoulders. The stench of rot filled the air and the creatures continued to advance. The next chayn headed straight towards Jayson. Her friend spun to the side as the demon sliced his claws towards Jayson’s stomach. The vamp moved at an inhuman speed, spinning around and stabbing his claws into the chayn’s face. He used his other hand like a dagger to penetrate its ribcage, ripping across its midsection, spilling entrails and black sludge onto the ground. At that point, Bristol lost track as the chayn approached them en masse. Using the sword Bror had given her and the knife from her boot, Bristol sliced and stabbed at the creatures as they continued their assault. She could see the hate in their pus-filled eyes as they tried every approach to find the weak link in the group and get to her. She believed Ristan now. These creatures wanted to kill everyone, but their goal was to get to her. With her knife shoved deep in the belly of one chayn, she swung the short sword in an arch to remove its head. She saw movement from her peripheral vision on her right and saw another chayn mere feet from her and coming fast. Spinning to meet it head-on, fearing it was too close, Bristol saw Jessie appear beside her and the demon’s entire torso disappeared in the huge tigress’s mouth. Trapped between the vice-like grip, the creature screamed and sliced at the tiger's face, drawing blood. The tiger shook her big head hard and the chayn literally came apart, dowsing them with black, putrid blood and pieces. Boz moved through the fray like it was a dance, calm as always, yet deadly, as he kicked, spun and sliced through the chayn. The dozen they had started with had decreased in number, and the group was gaining the upper hand. The problem was, no one knew how many of them there were left in the vicinity and their screams attracted others. Seeing another group of 15 or more down towards the other end of town, Bror hollered to the group.

  “Run towards the trees!” He let out a piercing whistle and immediately, Ristan let out one of his own. Jayson took out the last remaining chayn but not before it got a good swipe across his shoulder. The group headed towards the trees as even more chayn met up with the others already encroaching on them. Fighting a dozen was bad enough, taking on a group of 40 or more was going to mean death for most, if not all, of them. As they neared the trees, two large horses burst out from the foliage. Decked in full tack, one of them was huge and solid black. His long mane and tail caught the breeze as he jumped over a large fallen tree and skidded to a stop in front of Ristan. The other horse was a tall, cream-colored stallion with blue eyes. Both steeds were heavy-boned and well-muscled. The cream-colored horse stopped at the edge of the trees and nickered at Bror as the warrior approached him on the run. With the group approaching the horses, Bristol quickly realized the math didn’t add up: two horses, five people, and a tiger. Even riding two per horse, and the tiger running, that left a man out. She sighed and stepped back from the group.

  Ristan swung easily onto the back of the horse and reached his hand down for her.

  “Bristol! Come on!” he yelled.

  “There isn’t enough room for everyone,” she yelled back. “Take Boz with you!”

  “Bristol. Get over here and get on this horse, now!” he snarled, his pointed fangs appearing as he challenged her.

  “No! You and Boz together and Bror and Jayson,” she yelled. “Jessie and I will run. I can shift, and this might be the only time in my life that my shifted form will do any good,” she growled. “But I am warning all of you right now, do not touch me when I shift. I’ll hurt you. Ok?”

  Without waiting for a confirmation she took a backward glance at the rapidly approaching chayn and let her shift take over. She felt the warm tingles intensify as her body melted into its alternate form. Before their eyes, Bristol became a large, white horse. Her muzzle was dark and her eyes were the same prism of hazel colors, but her mane was long, past her shoulders and her tail touched the ground. Her forelock was long enough to cover her eyes and she shook her head to move it aside. She had long hair feathering down the back of her lower legs and she was as big as either mount that had just arrived. Ristan stared at her jaw slacked, and even Jayson seemed stunned. Jessie brought the group back to reality by swatting at Boz’s leg and snarling at Bror. The four mounted up quickly and turned the horses onto the road. Jessie and Bristol took off behind them, the four animals running for all they were worth. As she felt her muscles stretch and rebound from her strides, she looked over her shoulder and saw that they were quickly putting space between them and the chayn. Now running at full speed, Bristol edged her way up to the side of Ristan’s mount. She shook her head, hoping that Ristan would realize she wanted him to follow her and pushed more power into her muscles to take the lead. After a full run for miles, she felt the lather building upon her body and knew that if she were tiring the other horses were too, especially since they were carrying extra people and all of their tack. She slowed to a gallop to conserve energy. A couple of miles later, she saw the overgrown gravel driveway to her right that she was looking for. Slowing to a trot, she turned down
the path. She was glad they were able to outrun the chayn quickly. Jessie was panting and the other horses were breathing heavy, covered in white lather. She trotted along the path as it led down a steep slope and through thick trees. She had chosen this place because it was close enough to town to get to it when she needed to, but far enough off the road that it was unlikely to be discovered. Once they came out of the trees, they were met with an old, dilapidated barn and an equally ancient farmhouse. As they approached, she heard a familiar whinny. Max trotted up to her and flicked his ears in greeting. Regardless of horse or human form, Max accepted her and treated her the same. She loved him and did her best to make it out here at least once a week to visit him and Sly. Sometimes she would ride and other times she would shift and she would run beside them, the three of them running as a free herd, barrelling across the open land. The others dismounted and Ristan walked towards her. She took a couple of steps back keeping distance between them. He extended his hand and continued to move towards her. ‘It’s ok, Bristol. We are all safe, thanks to you.’ She heard his voice inside her head, but he had not spoken aloud. How was that possible? She thought about him in her mind, thought about projecting her thoughts to him ‘Don’t touch me, Ristan. I’ll hurt you. I’ll burn you!’ she pushed the thought as hard as she could towards him. She saw him visibly stumble and an amused smirk tipped his lips upwards as he looked at her. ‘I heard you, honey. But you don’t need to yell.’ She could hear the chuckle in his voice. ‘Don’t worry about me, you can’t hurt me, Bristol. It’s not possible. Trust me.’ He reached his hand out and touched her muzzle. Instead of the shocked scream and smell of burning flesh that usually happened when someone touched her, she just felt his strong hands gently stroking up her cheek and along her forehead. ‘You are beautiful, Bristol. Simply amazing.’ The awe he felt was apparent in his thoughts.

  ‘How is this happening? How can you touch me? How can we talk like this?’ Bristol was a flurry of thoughts and questions as she reveled in the feeling of being touched in her shifted form for the first time.

  ‘I’ll explain everything to you. Don’t worry, we are here to help you.’ He said as Bror walked up next to her.

  ‘Can he touch me, too? Bror, be careful!’ She screamed the thought at him.

  ‘Bror can’t hear you yet, honey. You have not created a bond with him. But just like me, you can’t hurt him either.’ The thought came through at the exact moment that Bror traced his fingers down her neck and to her shoulder. His touch was light and it felt heavenly.

  Bristol saw Jessie slinking out of the trees, still in her tiger form, both eyes focused on Max. She was crouched down, looking ready to pounce. Bristol stomped her feet and threw her head walking between Max and her feline friend. Jessie swished her tail back and forth and hissed. Jayson walked up to Jessie, ignoring her snarl and tapped her on the head.

  “Hey, Jess. How abouts ya shift back into the two-legged bitch we all know and love. Quit threatening to eat our modes of transportation, eh?” He asked her, humor lacing his tone.

  Jessie took a swipe at Jayson’s leg, which he quickly sidestepped, then her magic filled the air as she shifted back to her human form. Bristol took the opportunity to do the same, not wanting to push her luck and accidentally hurt one of her friends if they touched her. Once they were back in their very human, very naked forms, the girls realized they were surrounded by four grown men and they were the only ones with no clothes on.

  “That’s the bitch about shifting!” Jessie giggled, “I ruined a perfectly good party outfit! And I suppose none of you gentlemen thought to grab my heels, did ya?”

  Boz pulled his shirt over his head and tossed it to Jessie, as Bror did the same thing for Bristol. As she slipped on the black t-shirt, it fell almost to her knees and she was surrounded by his smell. It was perfect. He smelled like campfire, pine, and man. It smelled ‘safe’ and made her blood heat. Trying to ignore the hormones that were raging through her, she addressed the group.

  “Welcome to my home away from home. This amazing bay horse is my friend Max and the bay roan standing back there is Sly. I have clothes and food in the house, and while we get something to eat, we can clean up and come up with a plan. I am assuming we aren’t going to be able to stay this close to town with the chayn knowing which direction we headed, is that about right?” She asked, pointing her question at Bror and Ristan.

  “Correct,” Ristan answered. “It won’t be safe here for more than overnight. They have our scent and have smelled our blood. They will be able to track us until we get more miles between us and them.”

  The six of them headed for the old farmhouse and for the first time in many years, regardless of how messed up the situation was, Bristol felt like she had a team she could trust.

  Bror

  Starting down the concrete stairs, he knew he would lay his eyes on her at any moment. Ristan had told him she was there and his heart had beat triple-time in his chest. When he had approached this town late last night, he could hear the wretched chayn screaming and instinctually knew that she would be near. Leaving Sleip in the trees to graze, knowing the stallion would be safe and would never wander far, he made his way cautiously into the dark streets. Seeing Ristan fighting off a horde of chayn, the excitement of being reunited with his brethren and his Other had not been dampened by the aggressive demons. It had taken him a long time to find her. Every realm and Re-Order was different. But some things were constant throughout the centuries that they had cycled and the chayn were one of those constants. They appeared in every realm to track down and try to kill her. It was their purpose and the times that they had succeeded still haunted his dreams. He would make sure that never happened again. He would rather lose his own seemingly immortal life than that of his Other, the pain was too great. Then suddenly, he saw her. It took every ounce of fortitude to keep from grabbing her and pressing his lips to hers. He wanted to hold her, touch her, run his fingers through her long, thick hair and gaze into those beautiful hazel eyes. This was one of the hardest parts of every new Re-Order. Their Other was in a different body and had no memory of her countless lives before this one. They would have to teach her, explain her purpose, and as a team they would figure out what was needed for the Re-Order to succeed. Making their way out of the dark basement only to face off a horde terrified him. He had no idea of her skills and mental fortitude this early in the Re-Order; but watching her fight the chayn, he saw her fearlessness and vicious attacks to defend herself and her friends. Seeing Bristol shift into that majestic mare was awe-inspiring, their Other had never possessed such a gift. When she changed back to her human form, her beauty took his breath away. She was tall and dressed only in her waist-length, nearly white hair, and he could see her perfectly shaped breasts, tipped with pink nipples. Her stomach was toned and lined with muscle on either side of her hourglass waist. Her legs were long but shapely, showing the power she held. It never mattered how many times he met her in a different body, she was always the same woman on the inside: strong, resilient, a powerful fighter, passionate lover and fair to everyone and everything- every trait that the gods had created her for. Now that she had two of her Others, he had no doubt that the rest of his brethren would find them soon. In the meantime, he had every intention of bonding with his Other and getting to know her again.

  Bristol

  As the group of six made their way across the overgrown yard, Bristol was grateful that she had the foresight to secure a place off the beaten path to store emergency supplies, provide ample pasture and exercise for Max and Sly, and give her a safe haven to regroup. She just had no idea she would have five other people with her when she needed the safety: three friends that had fought viciously by her side and two strangers that felt like much more, somehow. Her previous suspicion of Ristan had faded when she saw how dedicated he was to keeping her safe. She was anxious to have a long talk with him and Bror and figure out what they were to her; why they could touch her in her shifted form and what Ristan
had meant when he said he had ‘bonded’ with her. She wanted to know if she would be able to speak with Bror in her mind as well. Ten years ago she would have run laughing if someone had told her this would be her life. They would have been crazy, at best. Now, people turned into animals. Some people, like Jayson and Boz, were completely different beings, and she didn’t even want to guess what Ristan and Bror were capable of.

  Entering the old house, Bristol saw a rodent of some kind scurry out of sight through a gap in a floorboard. It was dusty, but all her supplies were stored safely in pest-proof containers. The first step was getting some bottled water for everyone and finding some clothes for her and Jessie. Walking around covered with nothing but Bror’s t-shirt and seeing him bare from the chest up made her feel an intimate connection with him that confused her. She craved conversation with the tall, handsome man that looked at her so compassionately. Bror embodied the part of the warrior she had seen him play, but in his eyes was a softness and understanding she wanted to explore. Ristan stepped in front of her, defensively, as if protecting her in case someone, or something, was hiding in the dimly lit house. She couldn’t help but admire the broad spread of his shoulders and tight, toned muscles that were obvious under the black shirt he wore. She wondered how it was possible to be ridiculously attracted to not just one, but two men that she had just met. To muddle the scenario more, they were friends! Friends that were supposed to protect her. Bristol shook her head, pulling herself back into the current reality of the chayn taking over and killing the majority of the people in the town she and her friends had felt so safe in just 24 hours before.