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Chapter 7 - Transformations

Kai jumped up from the baked roof of the building. His golden hair looked lighter in the clear sunlight and it was obvious now that his eyes were a dark brown.

"Transitioning from a sheltered life in the Five Nations to a life here..." he trailed off, looking down at her with doubtful eyes. "I can't say that it's going to be easy."

She had anticipated this. "I'm ready to learn."

The right corner of his lips flicked upwards at her words. "And learn you shall," he said, offering a tanned hand to help her up.

Nereyda looked up into his kind face and, completely unable to express her gratefulness, could only take everything he was offering.

"I will be forever indebted to you sir- I mean Kai," she said, dipping into a wobbly curtsey. Here was an amazing man going out of his way to help her and she couldn't even curtsey right for him!

He nodded awkwardly in acknowledgement of the formality before spinning on his heel and bounding across the roof to the new building's peeling fire escape door.

"Force is the Land of the Dalatzef," he proclaimed, waving one hand at the land around them and pulling open the door with the other. "When we were very young," he paused to look her over, "or perhaps not even born yet, Force was, quite literally, on the rise."

He started descending the stairs but his pace was slower this time so he could continue talking.

"As the people got richer and the technology more advanced, the buildings just kept going up and up, most noticeably in cities like Craine. The parties got bigger, the music got louder and the cities were great places to be, or so I hear. But the dalatzef are a destructive race. You would do well to remember that," he turned to give her a pointed look over his shoulder.

"There was no end to their greed and they abused every resource that the Gods lay down on this side of the world."

It was silent as they descended the next flight of stairs.

"The Quakes was the end of it all: the apocalypse. There were once millions of humans spreading across the world, now there are maybe a couple of thousand remaining, if that."

Nereyda couldn't conceal her gasp as he unveiled the shocking statistics. Millions of dalatzef freely roaming the world? To even think it! It was no wonder no one in Paladu spoke of such things.

They had reached the bottom of the stairs and Kai pushed down on a long horizontal bar across the middle of the door, popping the latch.

"Anyway, that's all in the past now. At present all you need to know is that the Aris rule." He held the door open for her, again holding her eyes. "And you either join the Aris, or you die."

It was silent for several moments with the weight of his words. The brown of his eyes swirled with secrets and mystery.

"And how would one propose to join this...Aris?" Next to him, her voice sounded inappropriately soft.

He barked a laugh as if what she'd said was funny. "With great difficulty," was all he had to say.

The streets of the city were several metres wide, wide enough for three carriages; her mind drew up the quick estimate. The buildings surrounding them were of varying heights but they all looked as unordinary as the one they had exited. Occasional piles of rubble lined the edges of the road and the holes in the buildings which the material had once occupied were plain to see.

Outside a few of the buildings to her right, there were large crates piled high with rubbish. Why they left such distastefulness on display Nereyda couldn't imagine. In one of the bins she thought she saw a small figure moving around within the rubbish. A child perhaps?

The small figure had turned to face them before promptly disappearing, presumably ducking into the apparent safety of the bin.

Kai didn't acknowledge its presence although she was sure he must have seen it. He was too sharp to have not.

As they walked, Nereyda found herself wondering about this mysterious 'Aris' that Kai spoke of. The woman, Rita, from the day before had also mentioned such a thing and, if Nereyda's memory served her well, she thought she'd said something about wanting to turn her in 'to the Aris'. If the company consisted of people such as Kai and Rita, then Nereyda found herself concluding that they must be good.

It was several minutes later that Kai pushed open an unremarkable looking door on the right side of the road. Nereyda could hear hushed talking from inside the house, female, she thought.

Kai went in first and she followed him down a narrow corridor. There were pictures on the wall, paintings so clear and perfect that it looked as though the people might jump straight off the page.

"They're photographs."

Nereyda jumped from where she realised she'd paused to marvel at the pictures. Kai looked back at her from a few paces ahead. She took one last look at the insanely realistic smiling faces before taking the steps to continue following him.

They passed a staircase to the right but, unexpectedly, Kai made no move to climb it. Instead, he continued onwards a few more steps to a doorway covered in cascading beads.

In a moment of dizzying recollection, she was transported back to Gelina the witch's small cottage in the suburbs of Paladu city. The way Kai pushed aside those strands of beads made her squeeze her eyes shut. No. This was a different world. She couldn't, wouldn't dwell on her past life.

Behind the colourful curtain lay what Nereyda realised was a shop. This wasn't a house at all.

Two women sat behind a till just to the right of the door they'd entered through. They shot to their feet as they entered the room.

"Kai!" One of them exclaimed upon seeing him. She was an older woman, crinkles lining her eyes and streaks of grey decorating her brown hair. "The back door was locked," she said, obviously very flustered.

Nereyda's eyes narrowed at the woman's words. Kai had opened the door and walked straight through; there hadn't been any signs of an attempted break in.

"Was it?" he asked blandly, leaning forward to peck the woman's cheek in greeting.

No sooner had he pulled out a charming smile, the woman seemed to forget all about how the situation didn't line up.

"What can we do for you today Kai," the second, younger woman asked, a dazed look in her eyes as she stared at him. Nereyda couldn't really blame her. Like she'd already concluded; best looking blonde man she'd ever seen.

"I need some clothes for my good friend here," he said, a hand wrapping around Nereyda's wrist to pull her forward. She started, so surprised by his statement that she almost attempted to fight her way out of his grip.

Not that she hadn't realised that this was a clothes shop, with its racks of shirts and trousers and the sewing machine lying in the corner. At least some things didn't change.

The older woman took her in with cautious consideration, her gaze flickering over the tattered Anellian attire that adorned her frail body. The second lady came around the till, smiling a smile that didn't quite reach her eyes. Nereyda thought she might be the first woman's daughter.

"Where did you find this pretty thing?" She asked, her eyes positively predatory as she leaned towards Nereyda.

"She comes from the South," Kai said in a clipped tone, pulling her back behind him.

Nereyda wasn't sure how she felt about him pulling her around everywhere but she kept silent for the moment. She wasn't yet in a position to tell him what to do: he was saving her after all.

The young lady smiled with an incline of her head while the older woman pushed past them. "Well do come this way," she said, walking through the beaded doorway and starting up the stairs.

Kai motioned for her to follow before taking up the rear.

The shop wasn't big but it continued upwards, as everything seemed to do in this strange world. The younger lady stayed behind downstairs, presumably to attend to any other customers that entered the shop through the main door facing the main street.

The seamstress woman opened a door which was immediately to the right of the top of the staircase and held it open for them to walk through. The room was smaller than the main space downstairs but similar in content, racks of clothes surrounding the walls and with the addition of a screen in one corner.

If there was one thing Nereyda had been extremely well trained in throughout her childhood, it was the knowledge of clothes. She could see immediately that the clothes that lined this room were of higher quality than the ones beneath them.

The woman had taken them straight to this room after seeing Kai. Who exactly was this mysterious man that held her life in his hands?

"Do take a seat," the lady said, gesturing to a slightly old, but clean looking hard backed sofa that occupied the middle of the room.

On the way to the sofa, Nereyda caught a glimpse of her own reflection in one of the full body mirrors dotted around the room. She flinched.

If her mother saw her now she probably wouldn't recognise the bedraggled girl with dirt on her face and smudges under her eyes. Princess indeed.

Seeming to sense her disgust, the seamstress asked, "Would the lady like to use a washroom before her fitting?" Her eyes flitted from Nereyda to Kai, as if asking him for permission on her behalf. Well, it wasn't like she was unfamiliar with the concept of men making decisions for her.

Kai shifted from where he'd plopped down on the couch. "Er, we can't stay for long, Anne, but a washroom sounds appropriate...if the lady would like?"

Anne's eyes jumped immediately back to Nereyda. She hated the feel of the two pairs of eyes scrutinising her and found herself lowering her own to the ground in a life learnt reflex. She nodded.

The washing experience wasn't what she was used to from back home but that didn't mean she didn't feel like a whole new person once the grime had been washed off of her. The seamstress had left some kind of robe for her to donne once she was clean. It was a strange fabric, not quite silk and yet somehow still giving the illusion of the fine material.

As she walked back towards the room she heard what could only have been Kai's voice. She thought he must be talking to the Anne woman but then she heard strange crackling accompanying his apparent conversation. She was sure she'd heard that sound before.

Back at the original room on the first floor, she found Kai standing there, a black box in hand. Her hand flew to her mouth in shock and remembered terror. Greasy hands were clawing at her once again in the shadows. Was Kai affiliated with those repugnant people?

He didn't seem to see how she fought with the memories, distracted as he was by his little black box.

"Look Nefasu, I can't do the runs today and that's final. I'll see you shortly. Over." He flicked a switch, silencing the black box while looking up to smile at her.

Her hand still lay anxiously on her collar but she managed to soften her features as she met his eyes.

He looked slightly abashed as he took in her affected expression but smiled lightly as he lead her back into the room.

Anne tsked at the sight of her hair as they entered. Nereyda fingered a severed lock self consciously. She knew it was a mess and it really broke her heart to see the jaggedly severed locks in her reflection.

"Did this yourself dear," Anne said flicking a piece of her hair. Nereyda did her best not to flinch; she had never had someone touch her so familiarly and without reservation. Anne turned to Kai who was back on the sofa, "Do let me fix it, sir," she said eagerly. A little too eagerly. Nereyda wondered if she would charge for the extra bathroom and hair services.

Kai had pulled out a piece of paper from his pocket and was examining it closely. He absentmindedly waved his hand at Anne in concession. She was reminded of how he had waved his knife through the air in a similar fashion not too long ago.

Anne smiled as if she couldn't believe her luck before pulling a sheet out of a drawer and spreading it on the floor. She pushed Nereyda down onto a stool which she thrust onto the sheet.

Nereyda closed her eyes and tried to ignore how uncomfortable the snipping sounds by her ears made her. By the time the seamstress shoved a hand held mirror in front of her face, Nereyda was positively itching to jump up. Her hair hung to her shoulders, brushing the nape of her neck in an even line. It looked much better than before.

"So what kind of clothes are you looking for?" Anne asked Kai, as she cleaned up.

Kai blinked as he looked up from his work. "Er just normal girls clothes is fine," Kai replied slowly. "Shirts and trousers. Perhaps a couple of outfits suitable for the club, but nothing ostentatious."

Trousers? Nereyda thought to herself. They were men's clothes! The woman strode over to a rack at the far end of the room purposefully, nodding her head.

"Oh, and shoes," Kai added.

Nereyda turned to look at him, sure that her incredulous expression leaked onto her face. Shoes? Now that was just too far: she might be homeless but she wasn't a peasant.

Kai's eyes sparkled as he met her gaze and she knew he found her discomfort amusing. He beckoned her over to the couch with one hand.

She reluctantly complied, going over to sit next to him and pulling her robe tighter around herself. The synthetic material was starting to make her skin itch.

He turned his whole body to face her and she was assaulted by the effects of his full attention. "I know it's not easy," he said, murmuring so quietly that she could barely hear him herself. Out of the corner of her eye it was plainly evident that Anne was trying - and failing - to eavesdrop.

"You have to trust me and do as I say if you want to adapt to your life here," he continued. "All the traditions, conventions, preconceptions, everything you know...you have to forget it all." His dark brown eyes shone with sincerity.

Several long seconds passed before Anne cleared her throat from across the room. They broke their eye contact and looked towards where she had a rail of clothes waiting.

Nereyda said nothing as Anne quickly took her measurements, also getting her to step into a few pairs of shoes and walk around.

She thought he must be well off if he was going to buy her a whole wardrobe and not bat an eyelash. Thinking about the cost, she felt really bad that he was paying for her and silently resolved to pay him back when she could. She wondered if he would help her find work somewhere.

They concluded their business in the shop, Anne promising that she would have their belongings ready by sunset. Nereyda watched Kai, expecting him to pull some jewels out of his pocket but he simply signed the piece of paper Anne presented him with. She looked happy enough about it that Nereyda knew it was an equivalent of payment.

As they exited through the front entrance onto a street with many more shop fronts lining it, the sun was high in the sky and the air shimmered with heat.

Taking long strides to keep up with his fast pace, she asked, "Where are we going now?"

He glanced back at her, and she was confused by his strangely grim expression. "To see the chief."

+++++

The sky was dark in Paladu, casting all the white buildings in grey shadow.

Braeden didn't make eye contact with the citizens as he stalked through the streets. The pack had failed them all. He had failed them all.

As usual they all hid inside, peeking through closed shutters at the forsaken city around them. Where Braeden may have stopped to chat with them in the past, he was now well aware of how little fun his current character provided.

His heart ached. Ever since she'd left.

He was a silent shadow moving through the darkness, hardly there and yet aware of every detail around him. His hair fell in his eyes as he glided between buildings, his feet silent on the marble floors of the central city.

He wore black from head to toe, mainly to spite the crown but also because it was the colour of what he was. He'd spent a lot of time in the past fumbling around, moving from place to place, never feeling like he quite belonged.

As ironic as it was, he thought some of his happiest memories had been made in the deadly mines of Creta. He'd had his mother, his brother...

Then the Quakes had come and everything had gone to shit. He could see his mother before him now, her mouth open as death caught her scream, a huge rock lying on her back and crushing the beautiful woman that she'd been. He could even see the single drop of red that ran like a tear down the side of her face as her soul was stolen from this world.

A low growl rumbled in his chest and he tore himself back to the present. He was sweating with the force of the image. He hadn't relived that scene in such a long time, why his seven year old memories were coming back to him now he didn't know.

He pushed his damp hair out of his face as he entered the campsite only just managing a smile for the children sitting in a circle outside one of the tents.

The other pack members stood as he walked past, bowing their heads in respect. Braeden appreciated the gesture, even if he wasn't sure he was deserving of it. He was just barely holding the pack together by threads.

He made his way straight into the centre tent, the sound of the shaking sky following him inside.

On the floor, sitting cross legged next to his favourite witch, was the ash blonde man himself. His charcoal eyes were sharp as flint with pain, freezing Braeden in his steps.

"Asher."

Outside, lightning struck. 

--- A/N ---

(cue evil laugh). Sorry I didn't upload this yesterday, I was out doing stuff. HOWEVER I thought I had to wish you a happy 2017 so here you go! Next one won't be for a couple weeks most likely but who knows, I might have some time to write up to next week. I love you all so so much for supporting my book, you're my inspiration! Vote if you liked and wishing you all a happy happy new year!! 

- Zoe x