Jon wasn't sure what to expect as she ran quickly into the darker part of the woods, chasing her belongings. She was moving with a somewhat higher speed then she ever had as a human, with surprisingly high stamina. Her new gait and motion was starting to feel a little more streamlined as she positioned her wings towards her sides; her talons flat upon the earth. It was... 'almost' like flying, if not for the feeling of soft earth with each hop. Naturally this left a most unusual set of prints behind her. To stop or slow down, she subconsciously nudged her feathers just a bit to subtly change her balance not unlike a jogging human with their arms- only with far more finesse. Not that Jon was really thinking about 'how' she was running... she just ran. "Get back here!" she screeched slightly surprised by how forceful her voice was.
The strange blur was in the air, carrying her comb. Jon quickly caught up to it trying to figure out what it was. Some kind of insect? She must have startled the creature as it dropped the comb about twenty feet away from her. The harpy-girl spread her wings to make a sudden stop, slightly jumping 'backwards' in the process as muscles performed a motion she had no conscious understanding of, but was coming to her with simple trial and error in her new form.
Jon went to pick up the comb with her talon- only to feel a sudden zap of static from it. It was sharp and strong enough to feel like a very odd pinch. She stumbled back, gasping as suddenly strange vines grew trapping her feet. She tried to pry them away but- her wings were useless! They simply batted and pressed against the plant matter, a few of her smaller feathers fluttering off "What the hell-"
"Hello!" said a voice tinged with merriment.
Jon looked surprised to note the diminutive creature. It was quite a strange looking thing, a human-like body standing only about four inches high as far as she could guess. Bare legs and... naked. Completely naked...
Jon's eyes were drawn to her bare chest but was later distracted to the strange shimmering wings. They were similar to an insect, but appeared to be made of... light, with the way they shimmered making a prism effect on the surroundings. The strange girl had short red hair and bright green eyes. Her voice seemed as strong as any human as she could hear her clearly.
"Hehe. It's so adorable to watch harpies get stuck. Not so tough are you with your legs tied up!" she giggled as she buzzed around Jon's head.
Jon struggled a bit more but she was clearly stuck. She turned her head trying to follow the fairies flight. "Who are you? Why are you taking my things!"
The fairy fluttered before Jon's face, not at all intimidated. "Hey I just took some stuff you were not going to miss..." She crossed her arms looking slightly to the side. "I uh- I just needed it, alright? Do you know where you are?"
Jon was very confused. How in the world was this an explanation? "Look... I think we got off on the wrong foot-"
"Talon" corrected the fairy with a giggle though her eyes lit with understanding. "Oh I see! The modesty, the looking around.. using your wings like they were arms... Not been a harpy for long have you! I can tell." the fairy seemed even more excited at this. "I haven't seen this happen in centuries. So wonderful! Is old magic finally returning to the world?"
Jon glanced down at her bird-like legs struggling once more to pull away, thrashing at the plants that gripped her so tightly. This was fairy magic.. wild and untamed nature gripping her form.
The fairy gave another giggle. "Hehe. You're kinda cute." She looked very curiously flying into Jon's eyes. "So is this one of those twenty-four hour curses maybe? Hey why are you looking at me like that- Oh my goodness you're attracted to me! A harpy attracted to a fairy! Oh you're gonna make me blush. Let's see this spell you are under..." The fairy started to glow, with her eyes a curious shimmer of light. "Huh? I don't see any spell! What gives?" It was now her turn to be confused.
"Mph!" Jon blushed. "Yes I was human before! Get these vines off me!"
The fairy looked very perplexed for a moment. The harpy was clearly someone under a shape-shifting spell... "Odd.. very odd indeed..." Still, this was a curious situation. She half wondered if someone had messed with the harpy's mind to make her think she was human? There was no evidence of that though... "Fine fine, I'll free you." she dusted herself, somehow making a strange pinkish dust appear in the palm of her hands. "You'll behave dear? You're inside my circle of power, so there's pretty much nothing I can't do to you if I wanted to!" She blew the dust into the vines, and they shrank away into seeds. The fairy started to pick up the grains. "So you really were human huh? Tell me why I don't see any spell on you... you've have peeked my royal curiosity." she buzzed around some more.
Jon wasn't quite sure where to start. "W-What's your name..." She really needed to take this slow. It was confusing enough.
"I'm Bez'ahri Shasiril Aria. You can call me Aria. No that isn't my True Name either, so don't get any ideas." She winked again and gave a half bow in mid air.
"Can... I have my stuff back," said Jon exasperated.
The fairy looked sheepishly with a little strum of her light-wings. "Um.. can't. Sorry." the fairy did seem genuinely apologetic, though it was tinged with a bit of mirth in her voice.
"Why!" Jon asked exasperated, throwing her wings outward.
"Oh.. haha.. funny story. I traded it..." she gave a little blush. "I needed something to trade with a customer... you see and she wanted something quite rare. Clothing!" she giggled. "I thought I would have to go all the way into the human farms, or one of the other settled mythosians. But then I saw you! So..." she trailed off. "Besides- you didn't really need them! I thought humans were making you do that. I've never seen a harpy wear clothes before..."
"So you stole my clothes and traded it... what did you get for them?"
"Sugar!" the fairy exclaimed suddenly making a bag of sugar appear the size of her entire body. She started to bury herself into it. "Yummy! It's so good!"
Jon slapped her left wing into her own face in response- which didn't exactly make for a very satisfying slap, more of a 'flump' as feathers became ruffled on her nose. She was starting to realise fairies in this world were not exactly easy to deal with. This one might have a sugar addiction to boot. "Look... I've got a really long journey ahead of me. I'm trying to get back to my own world." she flushed a little at the fairy's display of her girlish figure causing her to giggle again. She didn't seem to really care or understand Jon's dilemma.
Aria was about to speak when suddenly there was a giant rumble in the ground. It seemed to move with a steady rhythm, getting louder. "Uh, we got to talk about this later. I'll make you invisible. Just don't say anything unless you really want to end up a song-bird in a cage." She threw some more dust upon Jon, and the harpy gasp as her body faded away.
Jon looked down not.. seeing anything. It was a disconcerting experience really, to have ones form just... melt into background. She couldn't help but cringe. Having this body turn invisible was... just odd. She knew she was still there, she could feel herself.. her... her feathers. But nothing else.
Suddenly the trees parted. A huge.. incredibly huge figure approached. It was at least thirty feet high! Jon couldn't help but gasp as he beheld a giant... he was clothed only in a loincloth, but nothing else. He rather well muscled with tanned bronze skin. He didn't see any hair on his head though, as it was as balled as a boulder. "Bez-Aria..." He spoke with a deep voice as he sat down. Jon could now see his face a bit more clearly. There was a beard on his chin.. not big but... it was there. He wasn't sure if he could see his teeth were slightly enlarged as well from human norms.
"Hello King Braga! Welcome to my circle!" Aria spoke calmly buzzing to his face with a bow in mid air to greet him. She was a true insect to him in scale; the size of a fly. Still she was clearly not worried... maybe because of this 'circle of power' she was in.
Braga the giant nodded back to her as his huge brown eyes crossed slightly to her. "My daughter... enjoyed the garments. They adorn her.. dolls..." he shrugged with his massive shoulders.
Aria seemed relieved of that. "I'm always happy to help out the King of Giant Forest," she said with a smile. "I also got this comb. Do you want it?" She offered it with a little whisk of her hand making it float to his palm.
"Hm... her pet human might have need of it... I will buy it." He passed a small bag of sugar.
Aria smiled taking the little sack hefting it onto her shoulders as the trade was made. "Oh yeah, the 'pet'... how's that getting on?" Aria had heard a bit about this and well- she was rather curious. She flashed a slight gaze to where Jon was, knowing she had to be curious about this too- if she had once been human anyway.
King Braga shrugged. "I... do not understand... humans. I explained he was free to go... he came right back. Erasil said she would keep him safe... but... sometimes it's hard to get these things he needs...humans.. need many.. many things..." He then paused before thinking. "Erasil would like to have another bird to play with... have you seen one?"
Jon tensed, a shiver going down to the tip of her new tail feathers.
"Oh, not a bird... nope... definitely not." Aria said.
King Braga nodded again as he lifted his mighty form up, poking high above the trees. "Well if you do see one... I have taught Erasil to be responsible... keeping a pet human though is... a rather big responsibility. I wish she had started with something... a little easier. Something without so many needs..." I best.. be away now..."
The giant retreated and Aria sighed. "Right, dispellia!" She gestured to the air, as Jon appeared. The harpy looked taken aback. "Is- is that giant keeping a human as a pet?!" she screeched appalled at the thought.
"Hey keep that voice down sweetie, giants are pretty good listeners." She glanced around as she enacted a few more spells around the circle. "It's... it's a lot more complicated then that. Giants do like to play with those smaller then them, and they do keep pets... but usually only for a short time. Fortunately they tend to get bored quickly. There's lots of small creatures for them and it's usually just fun for them to watch in our natural habitat...But well- the Giant King has a daughter, Princess Erasil... she's fond of humans and very spoilt. She likes to visit their villages and watch them... one of the humans followed her right back to the castle. Apparently he's in love with her." She giggled.
Jon scratched her head with her wings again. "He's... in love with her? A giant?"
The fairy nodded with a sparkle of light dusting away from her hair. "Uh huh... so he's regarded as a pet, but he is trying to prove his worth to take the princess's hand in marriage. All I can say is good luck!" She sighed shaking her head. "He's not going to succeed I think. Still who knows, humans have done some pretty impossible things in the times I have observed them... Oh if you want to, you can demand your stuff back from them. The Castle of the Giants is just a few miles west of here... but everything there is 'huge', all animals and beasts. If you go there, you probably wont survive it... the giant Chicken-Hawk would eat you for breakfast."
Jon gulped.
The fairy flew again to jon's face. "But forget about that! I want to know more about you. How can you be a human under a spell when there is no spell! Tell me everything... I want to see this world you came from. Do they have sugar? I can do all sorts of magic for sugar..."
Sarah wasn't sure what was going on. Awareness flickered as she allowed herself to drift... curiously she found she didn't have to. She could feel energy continue to build even as she watched Tom sleep in the hollowed Earth of the Fox-den.
then a sound...
Sarah was not moving at all. She didn't really know what constituted an unusual noise here but... there was certainly some kind of commotion. What time was it?
Tom stirred in his sleep. He appeared to be having some kind of dream. He rolled about a bit before Millicent was before them. "We have to go outside. Something is wrong. They are calling a meeting and checking everything..."
"What's wrong?" asked Sarah, feeling the sudden discharge of her spring. It was interesting to feel herself 'rev' up... not like a car exactly, but a watch starting again.
Millicent looked very worried. "The Ancient Artefact... it's.. it's been stolen."
Tom and Sarah carefully made their way outside the town. It was starting to turn morning, with the rising sun. There was confusion around the central plinth where the ancient working computer used to be. The obelisk and casing were still there. Sarah noted the laptop had been unlocked and removed.
"The guards are being questioned," said Tom as he thought. "How in the world could they steal a heavily guarded Ancient Artifact.. and why just an art piece?"
Indeed the entire village was having that same thought. It just didn't seem possible...
Samantha was up. She knew... she kind of 'felt' something wasn't right. She got up quietly in the dark of her room and had a look around. Her husband Darren was sleeping. She glanced quietly to her daughter's room.
"...maybe... I could just check on her." Maybe they were being too hard on her... there had to be some way to help right? She opened the door but didn't hear the usual purring. "Diana?" She called out gently. She checked her bed... Diana was gone. Samantha didn't worry too much, Diana had gone out at night before.
Then she saw the note. She read it over a couple of times, feeling the need to sit down as she did so. She felt... numb, cold.. uncertain. Part of her even telling her that she shouldn't care given Diana wasn't even really her daughter, and Diana seemed to be affirming that- even if the way it was written made it seem so... dark. She felt a cold knife stab at her. She drove the child to this situation. It was her fault.. it was.. her.. fault...
"Are you alright?" Asked Darren with a yawn. He glanced around the kitchen, apparantly he had got up now, and wondered what Samantha was doing.
Samantha quickly took the note into the sleaves of her night-gown. "Oh.. yes. Diana isn't here. She's.. decided to go."
"Oh? Hm.. well, she'll be back, don't worry." Darren wasn't too worried. "This always happens."
Samantha managed a meek smile. "Yes.. she'll... be back." Darren gave her a kiss before going back to his room to finish sleeping.
Samantha stared at the note again. The note was so... final. She couldn't let it end like this. She knew one ritual from her great grandmother, and decided she had nothing else to do but try it. She lit two green candles and placed them together on the kitchen table, positioning them carefully. She then clasped her hands together. ".. I pray to the spirit of cats..." She whispered looking into the flames. It was said that the shape of the flame was akin to that of the eye of the cat spirit. If the flame widened... she might get Her attention. But then again, this was the city... a spirit of the cats isn't likely to be called.
...With no other avenue left though... this was all Samantha had now.
A prayer.
Was the flame maybe a little wider or was Samantha just thinking wishfully. How did this prayer go... the attention of a cat was so short... "Forgive me for I am human... but I need your help" she started. The cat-spirit was supposed to not think too highly of humans, and accepting one was not of the feline race was usually a good start. " I have failed in helping... one of your daughters... that I took as my own. I...I was wrong. I won't ask for her back, I see now she must journey on her own... I just... I just ask you protect her. Maybe.. if she can someday find it in her heart to forgive us... I know... I'll never see her again but..." she started to choke a bit. The lights suddenly flickered out.
Samantha was now in darkness, with just the moonlight from the kitchen window.
"Meow..."
Samantha was startled. A.. a cat? She quickly lit the larger candle in a lantern and saw that the door had been budged slightly. A stray cat had decided to help itself to the pantry. It was pure night black. It saw Samantha and didn't seem to care too much of her presence. Stray cats were around the city and.. it was hardly impossible for one to enter. Given what she had been doing though... could it have been some kind of sign? ".. are... are you..." she asked carefully. Dare she... hope?
The cat rubbed her leg, waiting to be fed. It seemed friendly. "Meow," it said again.
" well... we have a spare room. I.. guess you can stay." she gave a little smile and pet the cat, rubbing it's ears. "I.. I'm going to miss Diana. I wish... I could just.. help," she said softly.
The cat jumped onto her lap.
Her thoughts of Diana started to play in her head, and she felt strange. She stared down at the cat, feeling herself oddly content. "..can... I call you Luna?" she wasn't sure what compelled her to call the cat that but.. it felt appropriate.
"...meow."
Samantha managed another soft smile. Did the cat-spirit hear her? Was this... someone she should take care of now instead? It wouldn't quite fill the void of Diana but... if she had to take care of a stray to appease the cat-spirit... she would do so. Maybe the great cat spirit would now protect Diana in turn. She certainly hoped so. It was the only thing she had left to give.
Diana was free.
Freedom felt... good. She was racing on the rooftops. This new body was surprisingly agile- well- not that unsurprising, given she had some odd cat-traits. This clearly didn't just extend to her appearance. She was quicker then most kids her own age.
Moving like this she had never experienced such a thrill and call to adventure. Even in the imaginations of her own youth when human. A distant thought to her mind made her wonder.. 'is this life really... so bad?'
She observed the general technology of this strange steam-powered city. Curiously she didn't smell any soot. Whatever powered their machines must be very clean. She half wondered what it could be... Humans... the great engineers in any existence. They were everywhere... building their roads, machines, and had such a tenacity for technology in all forms. she wanted to get away from it now. She had seen enough of humans, and knew pretty much what they did. Whatever this place was though, technology was not the answer for why she was a cat-girl. She wanted to see more... and find those answers.
Diana quickly scampered towards the edge and suburbs. All too quickly, she found herself on grass land. She felt an urge to take off her boots but managed to hold off that instinct, becoming somewhat aware of when a cat-instinct was imposing itself. Could she start to control it? The dawning sun was approaching and it felt like it was welcoming her to her new life...
.. but...
.. this was Diana's life. As similar as she was to Diana, she wasn't her... somewhere... there was a little girl lost. "Maybe she's in my body," she thought to herself with dread. If that happened... goodness, she could only imagine what would happen in her world. That did offer some hope though. Diana might explain where it happened and they would know it had something to do with the odd arcade machine...
That was an awful lot of ifs though. There was nothing to suggest a 'Diana' existed. It could be that she was electrocuted, died, and this was some kind of.. new existence? what if... she was really stuck like this? As a cat.. girl.. thing... forever?
" it's not too bad," she thought. Sure this body was quite young but she would grow up..maybe even learn a few new things- then she felt a need to use the bathroom. She tensed as she realised this was the first time she would have to go without any in-door plumbing. As a boy this would have been an easy task...as a girl- and worse a girl with cat instincts... it was just slightly more tricky.
She quietly made her way to the bushes to take care of business. She was almost all set when... she saw an odd sight. Her ears twitched to the voices.
"Do you have the Codevoir?"
Diana furrowed her brow, her tail hanging limp as she saw the sight. A group of humans dressed in strange robes. They could have been mages. However the other figure... that intrigued her even more. She was a female wolf, dressed in dark clothing, pants and tight halter top with some kind of utility belt. A sword hanged down her side sheethed. She looked rather imposing, but somehow beautiful at the same time with her black hair down to the side of her hips. Diana bit her lip as she wondered how a wolf-girl could be beautiful... she noted a set of generous breasts and dark- rather fluffed tail.
"I managed to get it yes," she said gesturing to a casket. "I would like my payment now... this was not easy to acquire. It was heavily guarded. Curious trinket... why do you desire it?"
"You do not need to know."
The wolf woman chuckled. "True, however, I might have some other ancient items that would interest you. I hold a key that might instil life to the ancient machines."
Diana from the bushes looked at the small item in her hand... Ancient technology? That was a USB key...
The mages glanced to each other. "We will inspect the key first..."
Diana watched as they took out a strange computer. It looked to be cobbled together with valves, and a curious screen. Clearly it was a mesh between Ancient technolgy, and what the humans here understood as a computer. She wasn't sure what to make of it... how would someone from the 19th century relate to a modern computer... it wasn't as if you could simply connect a difference engine to it and expect it to work...
could you? Then again humans were ingenious...
The mages seemed very excited when the plugged in the usb key. "It's a loader..." said one of them.
"Told you it was valuable," smiled the wolf-woman.
"Very well Melia... for some reason, we know this machine in the village was self-preserving. We think its a property that could be put into other ancient artifacts and get them to work. We just need to plug them in... obviously the village isn't going to just let us have it... but this is for the good of us all... once we understand what the Geode is..."
The wolf girl- Melia's ears twitched. She glanced towards Diana's direction. "Hm... could be useful. So, you want more of these keys huh?"
" do you have more?"
"I might know a few places... we'll keep in touch..."
