Seeds of Autumn

  Chapter Six

  When Ariana woke she was in a bed in a dimly lit room. She felt the residue of sweat all over her body and her skin was covered in goosebumps, though she lay under a warm blanket and had been dressed in loose sweats. Her eyes adjusted to the low light emanating from a lamp in the corner. She could hear traffic and the occasional yells of passing people from the busy street outside. Ariana sat up slowly, her arms shook under her weight as she pushed herself up.

  There was a tall glass of water on the bedside table and she took it, and holding it with both hands she sipped slowly. Her eyes scanned the room, the walls were faded and peeling. As her eyes passed the dark corner next to the door her heart leapt into her throat and she let out a cry, sloshing water over herself at the sight of someone sitting silently in the shadows. He leaned forward, his arms resting on his knees, his face slowly entering the reach of the lamp light.

  Ariana drew her knees up to her chest and put the glass down slowly, not taking her eyes off him. She felt suddenly very confused as the memory of what had happened in the street came rushing back to her. Her breathing quickened and her eyes left her watcher to dart around the room. Her gaze went to the bare window, but all she could make out was that she was in an upstairs room, orange street lamps cast their eerie glow.

  'Be easy,' the dark figure finally spoke and Ariana's eyes snapped back to him. He was staring intently at her, his dark skin glistening in the odd light, the whites of his eyes standing out in stark contrast. 'You are perfectly safe here and you will soon understand everything that has happened to you.'

  Ariana was shivering slightly but she stopped at the sound of his voice. She had expected to hear a Indian tang to it, but there was none. She looked at him carefully and saw something familiar in his eyes, there was a spark there that she had seen before and as she stared into them she saw the amber eyes of the fox.

  'It's you. This is your human face.' A trace of confusion prickled at her senses as they worked hard to wrap themselves around this reality, but she had faced the worst of it already; her own change. As she remembered the panic, the disorientation, the random shifting of form, her heart began to pound furiously and her senses again started to feel too big for her body. She shook violently and felt her body start to change. 'No!' she screamed. 'Not now!'

  The man stood and moved swiftly to her side. He was whispering words she could barely register through the pounding in her ears and the overwhelming feeling of her senses being amplified. Something about the sound of his voice soothed her and she felt the panic begin to dissipate. Every now and then she recognised a sound he was making as he drew closer to her and gently stroked her clammy arms.

  'Quiet... safe... help you.' The familiar words penetrated her foggy mind.

  She fell into an uneasy sleep again, with this stranger at her side, stroking her hair and speaking those soothing words.

  She didn't sleep for long, however, and when she woke again it was still dark. She opened her eyes and looked towards the chair in the corner. He was sitting there watching her intently, a small smile on his lips. 'Are you ready now?' he asked softly, and she sat up slowly and nodded. She knew he had answers for the thousand questions she was ready to ask now that the shock was wearing off a little.

  'What's happening to me?' she asked, her throat felt hoarse and dry and she reached for the water by the bed. He watched silently as she sipped the water and took a deep breath before speaking.

  'You are changing. You have always felt different from those around you, your passions have always bubbled close to the surface and you've been in trouble for your short temper before.' Ariana blinked at him, surprised at his insight. 'Your body is now catching up to your feelings, you are...' He paused, considering her for a moment.

  'Please,' she whispered, 'please don't be afraid to tell me the truth.' He nodded slowly and moved forward in the chair.

  'In terms you will understand, Ariana, you are a shape shifter. As am I. You have always been one, but you have never shifted fully before tonight.'

  'I don't understand,' she said slowly, rubbing her temples. 'How can I be a shape shifter? How is this possible?'

  'I know it's a lot to take in. Your entire perception of the world is changing. It will take time for you to accept it. Ariana, tell me, have you always felt connected to the moon? Have you ever dreamed of being an animal and woken up needing to check in a mirror to reassure you that it was just a dream?'

  Ariana remembered her recent nightmares and the occasional dream throughout her life that had had that effect. He was right. She nodded slowly as images flashed through her mind, memories of the monsters in her dreams.

  'It wasn't a dream, running through those twisted streets, the fox...' She faltered and looked into his eyes again. 'That was you.' He nodded and looked at the floor.

  'I am Shadow's Step. The one who was following you for the last few weeks is Fortune, he is the leader of our pack. This awakening of your abilities is not a sudden one, it builds gradually and over recent months you have been slowly changing, sometimes even crossing into our own realm, Hepethia. I found you there, tracked you and tasted your blood so that we could easily find you when you changed in this realm. I am sorry that it had to be that way.' He looked sad, his eyes fixed resolutely to the floor. She watched him closely, looking for any sign of deception. She could see none.

  'You were the snake too?' She spoke slowly, her mind racing to catch up to everything.

  'Yes, though not all of us can take multiple forms.' Shadow said, a small smile playing on his lips. 'We all have an animal form, which is determined by which moon we change under. You, like me, changed under the new moon, the fox's moon.' He smiled and she couldn't help smiling back.

  She was going to be able to change into a fox and run through the city at night. That thought ignited her enthusiasm.

  'Hepethia?' she asked, her curiosity was intense and hopped from one subject to another.

  He smiled and looked up.

  'We are not human, we can live like humans most of the time, but we are not of this realm. Our magic comes from another place, Hepethia. It's a sort of alternate reality. It's a place we can go to recharge our spirits, get away from the white noise of the human world and shift freely away from prying eyes. There is a veil that separates this realm from Hepethia, a sort of cloak that hides Hepethia from human eyes.'

  Ariana listened, fascinated by his words and this entirely new reality unfolding before her.

  'You asked if I had always felt connected to the moon. I've been getting sick at the new moon recently. I changed under a new moon. So does the moon control us?'

  'We are creatures of Artemis, the goddess of the moon, the hunt and wild animals. Luna's form is ever shifting, just like us. Artemis created us and gives us our abilities, but no, she doesn't control us, nor does the moon itself. She casts her beautiful light down on those who walk the night, guiding and ever watchful.' Shadow's Step spoke with a serene smile. Ariana shifted her weight uncomfortably at these words, this was the first thing he had said that she didn't quite understand, it didn't seem to relate to her and she twitched her mouth, wanting to speak up but unsure which words to choose.

  He paused and looked at her for a long moment, then he moved over to sit at the end of the bed. 'We are different, we were born under the new moon, you and I. Our path is not lit with silver moonlight,' Shadow's Step said softly, locking eyes with her. 'Ours is to walk in the dark places, to see when others are stifled by the black oppressive sky. The others of our kind bathe in her light, we do not, but she cares for us too. We are the chosen few who must keep humanity close to our hearts, for if we fail to do so we fall into despair. Sometimes you will need those who loved you before to remind you of all that you are. It is lonely in the blackness and most shifters will never understand, that is why it is me here with you now and not Fortune, with whose human face you are more familiar. He changed under a full moon, so he is our opposite in some ways.'

/>   She nodded, though she didn't really comprehend everything that he said. It was so much to take in. His last words hung in the air for a long moment as she considered them. A wry smile tugged at Shadow's lips and Ariana caught his eyes with hers.

  'What does he change into?' she asked, though she suspected she knew the answer.

  'A wolf.' Shadow smiled.

  Ariana laughed, she couldn't help herself. A hysterical sound bubbled out of her. As the shock of his words subsided she thought of the wolf who came to her rescue with Shadow that night that the feral wolves chased her. That was Fortune, her guardian angel, or guard dog.

  'Who were those other wolves who chased me on bonfire night?'

  'They were from a rival pack,' Shadow said with a sigh. 'We share a border along Redfield Park. They must have caught your scent and were attempting to claim you for their pack. Fortune saw them off our territory. They won't bother you again now that you've changed and become one of us.'

  Ariana swallowed the hard lump that had formed in her throat. She shuddered at the thought of being bitten and claimed by those wolves, like she was property.

  'We have a pack? I think I could feel them, after I changed.' Her heart started pounding again as images of her terrifying change ran through her mind, but she steadied herself.

  'We do. We call ourselves The Blue Moon. You met Fortune, there are two other experienced packmates and three youngsters, like you. You'll meet the rest tomorrow. You'll also begin training. I'll teach you to fight.'

  'We'll see,' she laughed. She doubted there was much he could teach her but she stopped laughing as his lips curved into a slight snarl. A submissive sensation spilled over her, which unnerved her, it was unlike anything she had felt before.

  'You will need to forget almost everything you know about combat, young Ariana. You have a whole new body now, it won't move the way it used to.' She nodded meekly. 'I mustn't burden you with too much at once,' Shadow said, standing slowly. 'Try to rest and I will see you in the morning.'

  'Shadow?' Ariana reached out a hand, grabbing his and he looked down at her, his eyes soft and caring. 'Will I change in my sleep? I don't feel completely in control.'

  He placed a warm hand on her shoulder.

  'I do not believe so, you have adjusted from the initial change. But we are all nearby and we will sense it if you become afraid enough to change again. Fear, I'm sorry to say, remains a powerful trigger for change however long we live. But you will grow more accustomed to it and learn to dominate it most of the time.' He smiled reassuringly and left the room quietly without another word.

  Ariana sat for a long time looking out of the window by the bed. She recognised the road, she was still in St. Mark's. As she watched the night go by she understood that this was her territory, the beast in her claimed this place and somehow that helped her feel safe. Eventually she drifted off to sleep once again.

  Shadow's Step's words drifted through her fractured sleep, along with images of changing, but the fear didn't overtake her.

  16th November

  She woke again late in the morning. On the chair in the corner was a small stack of her own clothes, the wet ones that had been in her bag. Now they were cleaned and dried. She tentatively got up and dressed and cautiously opened the door. There were noises coming from below as Ariana stepped into the narrow corridor. The wallpaper was peeling and there were two other doors on the passage. Ariana moved quietly to the corner and looked down the stairs, she could hear the noises more clearly here, raised voices and the sound of a dozen televisions blaring sports' commentaries.

  She jumped as a door opened and closed behind her. Her head snapped to face the sound and she saw Shadow's Step smiling calmly.

  'I'm glad you're up. We have much to do.' Ariana was relieved, for a second she had felt like a naughty school girl caught out of bed and about to be scolded. He moved down the corridor, passed her on the corner and set off down the stairs. Ariana followed, eager to see what he had to show her. At the foot of the stairs a passage led back to what looked like a kitchen and in front of her was an open door to where the noise was coming from. It was a smoky room, full of people all jostling and shouting. Light spilled through the doorway and Ariana took a step towards it, drawn to the energy, but a gentle hand on her shoulder stopped her. She looked at Shadow and he gave a single shake of his head. He turned and moved towards the kitchen, after one glance back towards the source of the noise, Ariana followed him.

  Just before the kitchen door he slipped through a small door under the stairs, moving silently down a narrow stair case. Hesitantly, Ariana looked down into the dark and slowly followed, chewing her lip nervously. Her better judgement knew that it was foolish to follow a stranger into an unknown basement and yet she trusted this man utterly. Something inside her told her that he was her brother.

  She trotted down the stairs after him and blinked as a light flared up to her right. A single bulb swinging on a cord lit the dry and surprisingly clean basement. A punch bag hung from the ceiling to one side and free weights stood on a rack to the other and she smiled broadly.

  'I will teach you to use your body. You will be strong and fast and deathly silent.' Shadow spoke softly, his voice deep and enticing. Ariana nodded and moved into the room.

  'You know I can already fight, right? You've been watching me for weeks, you and Fortune.' Shadow nodded and lifted his shirt over his head, tossing it to one side. His dark brown skin glistened under the light and she noticed his extremely sculpted physique. All over his torso were scars that shimmered slightly in the light. There were a few old wounds, but most of the scarring looked deliberate and she stepped closer to look more carefully. A delicate string of tiny runes wound its way around his body, they were branded onto his dark skin.

  Suddenly he turned to face her, catching her off guard.

  'You haven't begun to know what your body is capable of. What skill you possessed in your human life will certainly help you now, but it doesn't even compare.'

  Ariana frowned and wrinkled her nose, she felt put out at this dismissive attitude toward her skills. She had always taken great pride in her abilities with her fists and blades and as she stood there feeling indignant she was taken aback to see Shadow suddenly transforming before her. His limbs changed shape and he dropped to all fours, thick hair sprouted all over his body, his jaw jutted out into a muzzle and ears sprouted up on the top of his head. He stood before her, a beautiful fox, but he was big, too big and looked dangerous. His trousers had completely vanished, they had merged with his body and been replaced by fur.

  Ariana stepped back reflexively, but when he didn't move she swallowed hard, recovered herself and looked him over. Ariana felt energy surge through her body as she realised that she too could take this form and she longed to try it.

  'How do I...?' she asked eagerly, stepping under the light bulb in the centre of the room. Shadow's Step moved around her, circling her, his breathing becoming more like a growl as he moved. She turned her head to follow him and waited to see what he would do. She sensed it coming, the strike, saw that his teeth were bared as he lunged for her arm. She whipped it out of his path and spun away from him. She wasn't afraid, she was fuelled by a roar in her gut and as she spun she dropped to her knees and felt her bones changing length, her muscles shifted and her face cracked and strained. Moments later she stood eye to eye with him, her skin also covered with thick red hair and her body that of a wiry city fox. With a start of surprise at seeing her altered form, Ariana let out a low growl. Her clothes had been shredded and she scowled.

  'My clothes,' she tried to say. She wasn't sure what she expected to come out of her mouth, but no words came, just a strange snarl. A surge of panic coursed through her and she stumbled around, clumsy on four feet. She slid back across the concrete floor and crashed into the weight rack, which rattled behind her.

  Shadow's Step moved over to her and nudged her shoulder with his nose. She looked into his familiar yellow eyes, and
she could feel him inside her thoughts. He wanted her to fight with him, to show him what she could do in this body. Although she also somehow understood that this was not the shape she should use when she needed to fight, this was where she was quickest and the most stealthy, but not the most powerful.

  There was something else, something he didn't want to frighten her with but he couldn't hide it from her and she grasped out with her mind, trying to latch on to the elusive thought. She caught images of herself running from the dojo, her body rapidly fluctuating between different animals, messy, clumsy and terrifying. She could be a lion, a bear, a gorilla. Any number of beasts that could easily kill a person with their claws, teeth or strong fists. But more than this even, was a terrifying monster not known to humanity. Something else that was far more deadly.

  As she stood taking in this new realisation, Shadow began to change in front of her. His body shrank initially, the fur receded and made way for scales. His form lengthened and his small head rose up to be eye level with her. He was a snake, a huge cobra with powerful muscles to crush with and venomous teeth to bite with. For the first time she was truly alarmed.

  She stumbled away from him, whimpering and lowering her nose to the floor. Shadow shifted gracefully into his human form, sitting cross legged in front of her. His thoughts became more fuzzy, harder to comprehend but she understood that he was offering her some relief, some privacy and she understood at once that it went both ways, he could feel her thoughts too but it was much less pronounced in their human shape.

  She thought about her first change, sprinting along the street shifting like that. What if someone had seen? She looked sharply at Shadow and with great focus she forced her body to change. Everything groaned and cracked and when she ran her eyes over herself she was frustrated to find that instead of her human self, she had managed to shift into a sleek, grey cat. She focused again and concentrated on shifting back into her human form. She found herself crouching on the floor, shaking violently. Her clothes a tattered mess hanging over her shoulders and scattered on the floor around the basement.

  'Damn,' she muttered, looking around and trying to cover her body.

  Shadow moved quickly and passed her some more sweats from the corner cupboard.

  'What was that?' Shadow asked as he helped her cover herself.

  Ariana stopped and looked at him. His question caught her off guard. She had wanted to ask him the same question, she expected answers from him, not questions.

  'What do you mean?'

  'You took the form of a cat. You shouldn't be able to do that. It takes a great deal of practice and some ritual magic to be able to take forms other than the one Artemis, or another of the gods blesses us with. Aside from the Agrius, the bestial form you find so frightening. I'm sorry, we all struggle with that one at first. Only those born under the gibbous moon can turn into cats right away.'

  Ariana felt confused and vulnerable. She shrugged her shoulders and tried to make sense of his words.

  'I thought it was normal. When I changed last night I shifted through lots of animal forms. Didn't you see that?'

  'No, we only caught up with you when you were changing back into your human self at the end.'

  'So I should only be able to take the form of a fox and that, that other thing?' she asked, shuddering at the thought of the beast within.

  'Yes,' Shadow said softly, a deep frown etched onto his face.

  'Why can I change into other animals?' Worry filled her.

  'I don't know. Best we keep this between us for now. I'll ask some discrete questions and see if any of my associates have heard of this before.'

  Ariana nodded in agreement. She didn't want to draw any attention to herself. It was a big enough shock to discover that she was a shape shifter, never mind finding out that she was an unusual one.

  'I'll give you a moment.' Shadow said softly. 'I think that's enough for now. I will be upstairs in the kitchen when you are ready, we will eat and I think it would be a good time for you to meet the others.' He moved silently up the stairs and out of sight.

  Ariana quickly put the clothes on, they were a woman's but were too long for her. She rolled up the trouser legs and paced the basement in her bare feet. She was afraid of the monster within her, the beast that she could be if she lost control. The news that she was somehow odd for a shifter was unsettling too. How was it possible for her to change into other animals? What was she?

  Sitting down on the bottom step of the stairs, Ariana rubbed her face and covered her eyes with her hands. Hot tears stung the corners of her eyes as the reality of what she had become finally took hold of her. She wept, her shoulders shook. Her life would never be the same, everything had changed, not just her body but the whole world. Things she never knew existed before were real now and she was one of them. She could be a mindless killing machine rampaging through the city of Caerton, and although she knew that she could also be a graceful fox, or cat, silent as the shadows, the knowledge of the other side of her new nature was overwhelming.

  Eventually the tears slowed and stopped and Ariana sat for a few minutes feeling the cool air dry her face. Giving herself a shake all over she stood and walked slowly up the stairs. The front of the building was still noisy and again she felt drawn towards the hubbub. Pausing in the hall, she could hear voices and smell bacon frying in the kitchen behind her. Suddenly a fierce hunger fired to life in her stomach and she moved quickly towards the sound of the frying pan spitting fat and the voices talking over one another.

  Ariana approached the kitchen and she could feel the presence of her pack before she saw them. She also knew that they had sensed her approaching, although their voices did not change. This new heightened awareness was going to take some getting used to, but so far she quite liked it. She had never had a close family, but now she had brothers and sisters clamouring for attention inside her head.

  'Ariana,' a warm voice carried towards her, the others dimming around it and she entered the large kitchen to be greeted by smiling and welcoming faces. She couldn't help but return the smiles with one of her own. She felt as though she were coming home to dear family. Her familiar stranger, her guardian for so many weeks was standing with his arms open toward her and she moved straight into his embrace.

  Fortune was tall and covered with dark brown hair, it fell to his shoulders and his jaw hadn't seen a razor in some time. Thick hair covered his muscular arms and was visible at the neck of his t-shirt. He was painfully attractive and appeared to be in his mid forties, but she sensed a great wisdom and depth of experience from him and it occurred to her that his apparent age might be deceptive. She could feel his power emanating from him, she felt automatically submissive to him and knew without any hesitation that he was her alpha male, her leader. But she felt safe and warm in his arms too and could tell how protective of her he felt.

  He released her and gestured to the other people in the room. 'Shadow's Step you already know, of course.' Shadow was sat at the big, pine kitchen table. He nodded once and Ariana smiled to him. 'This is Flames-First-Guardian.' Fortune indicated the man sat opposite Shadow. He was big, she couldn't tell how tall, but he was heavy set, it was largely muscle but he carried some extra bulk, and he carried it well. His hair was fairly short, but it was thick and wild and his face was hard with a prominent jaw and cheekbones. He was wearing several layers of clothing and had a dozen or more necklaces on display, each adorned with small trinkets, some of which looked like bones. He nodded and tapped the table with his thick fingers.

  'If you would like to meet me later I will place a blessing on you, so that your clothes change when you do.' He looked her up and down, taking in the too-big clothes she had on and her bare feet. She felt a flush of embarrassment.

  'Yes, thank you, that would be much appreciated,' she said softly, in a voice quite unlike her own.

  'Don't mind Flames,' a bold, female voice darted from by the cooker. Ariana looked over to see a very tall woman with long auburn
hair stood over the bacon frying in the pan. She was watching them and smirking. 'He has a way of making people feel like kids again, but he's mostly harmless. Mostly.'

  Ariana gave a hesitant smile. The woman crossed the room and extended a hand, which Ariana took and shook briefly. 'I'm Speaks-with-Stone. You can just call me Stone.'

  'Are these yours?' Ariana asked, looking down over her clothes. Stone nodded and smiled.

  'Yeah, don't worry, keep them as long as you need them.' She smiled and went back to the bacon.

  Fortune gave Ariana's arm a friendly squeeze and flashed a reassuring smile.

  'You'll meet the others later, they're sleeping now. You're the fourth new pack member in recent weeks. We've never had such a large pack before and it is challenging for us to see that you are all well educated and well looked after.' He gestured around the room. 'The Blue Moon has been the four of us for a long time, seeing our numbers double so quickly tells us that something big is on the horizon and we must make sure we take care of you all.' He released her arm and moved over to the cooker to help with lunch.

  Ariana took a seat at the table next to Shadow and the conversation began to pick up again. She sat and listened to them chatting, some of it she understood, other parts passed her by. They were talking about names and places she didn't recognise, and some of what they said just didn't make any sense to her at all. She thought of the other newly changed pack members and she sat thinking about what it might mean to be the youngest of such a group. She felt a little insecure and somewhat less special.

  Stone passed her a bacon sandwich with at least four rashers stuffed into thick bread and Ariana took it gratefully, polishing it off quickly with very little thought of table manners. The others each took a similar sandwich and all ate in much the same fashion. Stone sat next to her and leaned close while the men talked loudly around them. The air almost stilled around this strange woman, like a calm aura touching those closest to her.

  'How are you?' she asked, her voice very soft. Ariana finished a mouthful of her sandwich and smiled weakly.

  'Oh well, it's a lot to take in. But I think I'm okay. It all makes sense.' She glanced at Fortune who was reeling off names from a list and pointing at a small hand-drawn map on the table. 'Well, not everything, but just the existence of shifters and me being one. I don't know, it doesn't feel wrong. Am I making sense?'

  Stone chuckled.

  'Yes, completely. We were each born to this. We don't just change over night, or even over several months. We are born shifters, and it will affect us our entire lives, long before we first take an animal form. Some of our kind are raised by their shifter kin, and will know much about our world before they ever shift. Others, like you, will have no contact with our kind and have a lot of adjusting to do. But that's what the pack is here for, we're a family.' She smiled warmly and Ariana felt a bubble of gratitude well up inside. This was her sister, she felt it with all of her being.