Earth & Sky (13 page)

I dropped my eyes and turned on a heel, hurrying to my
guest room and my borrowed clothes without a backward glance.  I was afraid if
I looked back he would still be watching me- and I wouldn’t be able to leave.

I
bbe
strode into the room, Marshall close on her heels.  I stared at the slender
beauty in surprise.  I had never seen her wear pants.  She was outfitted in
stretchy, form fitting black pants, tall, flexible leather boots, and a long
white shirt similar to Ville’s.  She was in the process of twisting her long,
pale hair up into a severe knot at the nape of her neck when she entered the
room.

Ville stood, frowning in concern.  “What’s happened?”

Ibbe’s dark blue eyes narrowed as she glanced at me, then
back at Ville.  Marshall put a hand on her shoulder and addressed Ville.  There
was no sign of his usual flirtatious jokester.  “There’s been a shifter attack
in the town.  Several humans were killed.”

I jerked my gaze to Ville.  “Shifters don’t kill humans.”

Ibbe scoffed at me.  “Do you think we’re stupid?  Or are
you really that naive?”  Marshall’s dark eyes watched me intently. 

I grasped Ville’s arm, pulling his attention to me.  “You
mean to say that this has happened before?”

His blue eyes were sad.  “Wren, a large part of what we do
in this war is to protect the humans from predation by Shifters.”  He sighed.  “It’s
never happened in the capitol though.”

I shook my head.  So much of what I knew was based on
lies.  But not this.  Gods and angels please, not this.  Shifters did not eat
people.  “I want to see it,” I said flatly. 

Ibbe spoke immediately.  “There is no way we’re taking a Shifter
to the village.  We can’t endanger more people.  And besides, everyone will see
her and know she’s with you.”  She stepped closer, getting in my face.  “You
shouldn’t even be here.  Why won’t you just go back to where you belong!”

I clenched my fists and stood my ground.  There was no
back to where I belong to go to. Ville heaved a sigh and pushed his way between
us, crossing the room to get his katana from its resting place over the
fireplace.  “I’d like Wren to come.”

Ibbe turned her back on us and marched out of the room.  I
met Marshall’s eyes, frowning when he winked at me.  He nodded and followed his
sister from the room.

Ville’s back was to me as he fastened the straps of the
katana’s sheath across his chest.  “Shifters don’t kill humans,” I said
quietly.  “We protect them from Fallen.”

He shook his dark head.  “You’re wrong.”

I lifted my chin and met his gaze as he turned to me.  “So
are you.”

He stared at me for a long moment, no expression on his
face.  “I hope so.”

We reached the outskirts of town in no time.  If Shifters
had done this, then they had gotten extremely close to the mansion- and to the
emperor. 

I stood with Ville and his cousins while we waited for a
black motorcar to chug by, its occupants gawking at the military looking group. 
The town looked no different from any of the towns in the Shifter territory.  I
was surprised to see there were a fair number of humans- and they all looked
perfectly healthy and content, just like the humans in our towns. 

There was a group of people gathered near a small house on
the edge of town.  The humans didn’t notice that I shouldn’t be there- couldn’t
tell that I wasn’t one of them- but I felt the eyes of the Fallen now and then
as we made our way to the place where the attack had occurred.

The bodies of three adults were inside the house.  Ville
entered and I followed him up the porch stairs.  Marshall took up a stance
outside, watching over the people who milled about on the street and sidewalk. 
He looked relaxed and at ease, but I could tell his eyes were constantly
scanning.  “You can help me out here if you want,” he said softly, trying to
spare me from the sight inside. 

I ignored him.  Taking a deep breath of outside air, I
stepped into the house.  Ville knelt to inspect one of the bodies.  They had
been mauled, covered with scratches and bite marks.  It certainly looked like a
big cat had been at them.  I stepped over an outstretched arm and crouched by
the body, opposite Ville.  I didn’t look at the face.  My gaze traveled over
the wounds.  Not good.

I stood and backed away, letting Ibbe and Ville
investigate.  There were other Fallen milling about, collecting evidence, but
they went about their work in a half-hearted manner that made me think they had
already drawn their conclusions.  There would be retaliation for this.  More
fighting.  More killing.

Finally, Ville came to me.  His face was neutral.  “We’re
leaving now.  I think we’ve seen all there is to see.”

 I pushed away from the wall where I had been leaning,
trying to be invisible.  The other Fallen in the room eyed me warily.  I sidled
closer to Ville, which just seemed to make them even more watchful.  “I want to
shift.”

He raised a dark brow, and gave me an incredulous look. 
“Here?”

I nodded.  “I can’t smell worth a damn in this form.”

He ran a hand through his hair.  “Look, I can smell Shifter
here.  Probably a cat.”  His eyes met mine and his voice was resigned.  “Wren,
I know you don’t want to believe this, but Shifters killed these people.”

I planted my hands on my hips and glared.  “I know you
have a decent nose, but you’re wrong.  Something here just isn’t right. 
Shifters don’t go around killing humans for the fun of it.  And if we made it
this close to your home, we certainly wouldn’t be bothering with a few humans. 
This was not Shifters.  If Shifters were here, they would have gone right for
you.  This is not the way we work.”  My people would have rushed toward their
enemies, aiming for the biggest, baddest target- the emperor.  I gestured at
the bodies, now covered with sheets.  “This is pointless.  It’s not battle. 
There’s no honor in this.”

“Please, Ville,” I pleaded.  “My senses are a hundred
times sharper when I’m in my wolf form.”

He reached out a graceful hand and cupped my cheek.  “I
must be losing my mind.”

Then he turned to the lingering Fallen.  “I need everyone
to clear out,” he said firmly.  “Set up a perimeter outside the house.  Make
sure no one comes in until I give the okay.”  Ibbe raised an eyebrow at him and
stood from where she was supervising data collection. 

“Marshall and I will make sure no one comes in.”

Once the room was empty, I retreated to the corner and
stripped off my clothes.  Ville waited impatiently as I shifted, then stood
back and let me do what I would.  I stretched, feeling my newly formed muscles
ripple as I settled into my other self. 

I smelled it almost immediately.  There were all the usual
scents of death layered over the smells of living- humans, laundry detergent, and
old house.  Someone had baked bread here not too long ago.  There was also the
distinct smell of a large cat- mountain lion.  I had smelled that in my other
form.  What I hadn’t been able to smell was the faint whiff of magic that was
intertwined with the cat smell.  My nose sifted through the complexities of the
scent.  It was artificial- created.  No Shifters had been in this room before
me.  No Fallen either.  I only caught the familiar scents of those who had been
present just now.  

I padded over to the nearest body.  Bracing myself, I
sniffed about.  The sheet that covered her smelled of sunshine.  It must have been
dried outside.  It also smelled of an unfamiliar Fallen.  All of the sheets
did.  He must be the owner of the linens.

I whined and Ville came to pull the sheet away from one of
the bodies.  Grimacing, he gestured for me to get on with it.  I delicately
inhaled, scenting her skin near one of the big scratches.  There was that
nasty, artificial, magic-laden cat smell- and something else… the scent of
another human.

I shifted and hastily pulled on my clothes.  Ville looked
relieved.  I didn’t want to think about how much trouble it would have caused
had one of the other Fallen walked in when I was in wolf form.  But it had been
worth it.  “It wasn’t a Shifter,” I said firmly.  “That scent is fake.  It’s
magic.”

He didn’t argue with me.  “Then what killed them?”

I shook my head.  “I don’t know.  I picked up one more
Fallen scent, on the sheets.  There was also another human scent.  I would
guess a human did this, but I can’t prove it.  That other scent might be that
of a neighbor, or a lover, or the grocer who shook her hand this morning.”

He sighed.  “You’re sure there aren’t more Shifters hiding
out, planning an attack?”

I shook my head.  “Someone made it look like the Earth
clan did this.”

He crossed his arms.  “Why?”

I shrugged, my brows pulling together.  “I have no idea.”

We joined Ibbe and Marshall and made our way back to the
mansion.  Ibbe was furious that I had been allowed to shift.  “What if she had
attacked you while we waited outside?”

Marshall snorted and Ville rolled his eyes.  “If I can’t fend
off one little Shifter, I would deserve whatever wounds I received.”

I glared at them.  “I’m not one little shifter.  If I
wanted to kill your emperor, he’d already be dead.”

Ville smiled at my anger.  “I believe it.”

Marshall chuckled.  “In our society, it’s mostly the men
who are involved in fighting.  Is it different for Shifters?  I don’t recall
seeing many women on the field- but then, most of the enemy are in animal
form.”

I shrugged.  “My upbringing was a little different than
the average woman.”

Ibbe snorted.  “Obviously.”

But Marshall looked intrigued.  “Ville,” he said slyly. 
“Be honest now- if you and Wren fought, who do you think would win?”

Ville regarded me with a look that would have made my hair
stand on end if I were in wolf form.  “I think our abilities would be evenly
matched,” he said slowly, “but in the end, if she were serious…Wren would win.”

I gave Ibbe a smug look, but I wondered what made him say
so.  I was confident in my skills, but if anyone were a match for me, it would
be Ville. 

Marshall grinned.  “I’d like to see that.  No one ever
beats Ville at anything.”

My footsteps slowed.  What had I just gotten myself into?

W
e
made our way to the training field, where dozens of young Fallen were currently
in the middle of martial their arts practice.  I stood near the armory in the
blazing sun, watching the smooth, choreographed movements.  They moved slower
than Shifters, but each strike and block carried a strength and focus that I
didn’t think many of our new recruits could have mastered.  I had to admit, it
was beautiful to watch.

Marshall waved at me from a table of practice weapons. 
Feeling the curious eyes of the soldiers on me, I self-consciously made my way
to his side.  We had decided that we wouldn’t use real weapons today- me
because I didn’t quite trust being surrounded by armed Fallen; Ibbe and
Marshall because they didn’t want me to have a real shot at their emperor.

I scanned the table.  The weapons were similar to what I
was familiar with, and yet different.  I was used to heavier, more solid
pieces.  I glanced at the slender wooden “blades” laid out before me and shook
my head.  “Do you have a staff?”

Ibbe raised a pale eyebrow disdainfully.  “Against
blades?”

Ville inclined his dark head toward the far wall.  “Take
any of those you want.”  There were a couple of boxes filled with practice
staves.  I examined them for a moment, please to find a familiar Bo staff among
them.  I hefted it experimentally.  It was more comfortable than the wispy
things they called weapons.

We made our way to the practice field, choosing a place
out of sight of the main training area.  Marshall paced forward, swinging his
“katana.”

 “I want Wren first.”

Ville frowned, but took up Ibbe’s invitation and joined
her at the far side of the field.  They bowed to each other formally, then
attacked.  I was surprised at how evenly matched they were.  I had expected
Ibbe to be outclassed by Ville, but she was holding her own, with a deadly
focus.  I watched their graceful play for a moment before turning my attention
back to Marshall.  He inclined his head and beckoned me forward.

I spun my staff above my head and came downward in a heavy
overhead strike, aiming for the junction of shoulder and neck.  Marshall
parried at the last moment, knocking the heavy staff aside.  I spun and danced
away, blocking his blows as he came forward.  He thrust at my heart and I
dropped to the ground in a crouch, dodging his blade and sweeping his legs out
from under him. 

He spread his wings, caught himself, and launched into the
sky.  I frowned up at him.  “Coward.”

He chuckled.  “If this was a real fight I’d use every
advantage I had.  Why aren’t you shifting?”

I rolled my eyes.  He was just trying to get me to shift. 
“No need.  I can take you without using magic.”  I hefted my staff like a spear
and thrust it at him with all my strength.  He dodged, but it clipped his wing,
and he had to land. 

I fell into a defensive posture and he came at me.  “Now
you’ve lost your weapon,” he taunted.  “What were you saying about not needing
magic?”

He swung at me and I stood still, taking the hit to my
left shoulder, then spun and brought the side of my hand down on his sword arm,
striking his forearm and biceps in rapid sequence.  The pressure point hits numbed
his arm, and he dropped his weapon.

“Shit!”  He shook his arm and danced back as I crouched
and claimed his sword.  I swung the lightweight blade in an arc, just missing
his torso.

He dodged my strikes expertly, but I kept at him, driving
him backward.  I grinned when I reached my goal.  I leapt forward and he leapt
back- and tripped over a large rock.  He spread his wings to fly, but I was
ahead of him, thunking the top of each wing with my sword.  Planting my foot in
his chest, I drove him to the ground.  My sword tapped him in the chest, then
swept in a smooth arc just below his chin.