Chapter 4: Chapter 4. From the rain to the hail

There was a hut in the Great Forest that was covered with lush of leaves and branches to make it less noticeable to alien eyes. Inside of it were three men whose states were quite different from one another. One of them stood holding a bow and an arrow, aimed at another one. He was Randel, who still hadn't loosened his alertness. Another man, Solan, was leaning onto a wooden wall, bored and fatigued look on his eyes, his bow lowered. He couldn't keep his vigilance that long like his fellow hunter. Besides, their captive didn't even look that threatening. Lastly, the third person, Felix, naked and tied up, was sitting on one corner, not moving much.

He had tried some Earth's languages that he had known a little while he was being brought here, but none of them had been effective. After only receiving more menacing glares from his captors, he had no choice but keep his mouth shut and think of the recent events to know what he had done wrong to get himself into such a pathetic situation.

Driven by hunger and excitement, he hadn’t noticed the hunters, which the carelessness resulted in him being captured. He could've even gotten himself killed if he hadn't acted obediently. Most frustrating thing was being unable to understand their language. Maybe he could've talked out of these circumstances. He at least had made sure he was in a different world, which seemed totally useless information at the moment.

He supposed he was in a warehouse where hunters could store their kills, since the place was damp and chilly. Being in a nude state was worsening his weakness for cold.

It was a mystery what the hunters might be planning to do with him. If the world was not unfamiliar with magic, shapeshifting should not have been a shocking sight. But they reacted completely opposite of what he had imagined.

Were the magic users considered demonic artists or evil beings? Would they be sending him to a church to cleanse him by burning in a bonfire in front of a huge audience? The cold got doubled from these thoughts as he contemplated what would be waiting him ahead.

The door of the cabin was opened and the familiar bearded face of one of the hunters appeared behind it, followed by a young man at around Felix's age. He wore simple black robes, a straight sword hung on his waist. He had walnut-brown hair and hawk-like eyes. The man’s facial expression gave off fierceness and seriousness.

The swordsman regarded every person in the room with his appraising gaze, and it lingered far longer when it came to Felix, whose heart was beating faster than ever, like a sheep waiting for a butcher's cleaver. After the man observed the whole interior of the cabin, he looked toward the door, which was left open.

A woman entered the warehouse, folding what looked like a robe in her arms. Her clothes weren't quite suitable for the place; mixture of black and red from the neck to the ankle, sleeves were long, similar to Chinese traditional style. She had long dark hair and black eyes to match it, had a sharp chin that further beatified her appearance. Her nose was straight and the edges of her crimson lips were slightly curved upright as if she was accustomed to smile a lot. She could've been a model back on Earth.

The woman exchanged some words with the hunters, and started walking toward his direction, a gentle smile on her face. He felt a little ashamed of his current condition, but it couldn't be helped. She approached him, but didn't get too close. And started speaking in languages he had never heard before, except the one he kept hearing from his catchers.

Seeing the unproductiveness of her attempts, the woman quieted down and lifted her slender hand up to her chin, puzzled. Then, she spoke a few words again, in the hunters' language. But this time, surprisingly, he understood what she was saying.

"Where are you from?"

Although the words were completely foreign for him, he got the meaning of what she said.

He peered at the other people in the cabin, as if trying to ascertain whether he truly understood her or not. They kept looking at him warily, and the man with the sword, Felix supposed he was her bodyguard, looked like he was ready to cut him in half if he uttered a wrong word.

"I.. I'm from Liverpool. But I doubt you have heard the name before," he replied at last.

The woman puckered her lips faintly and quickly answered.

"Yes, I haven't. Which country did you come from?"

Felix made a bitter expression before answering. "Have you heard of England or Great Britain before?" Her brows furrowed after hearing that. She obviously didn't trust his words, so the problem was how to convince her where he really came from.

"I'm not lying, it's just... It's not the location that exists in this world. Have you ever heard about outworlders, otherworlders or whatever?” he paused momentarily, squinting his eyes at her to know if the words rang a bell. “I'm not from this world. I was teleported here, or transmigrated, maybe," he stopped himself from going any further, because he noticed the sword in her guard's hand was ready to be unsheathed.

The woman kept silent for a while, digesting what she just heard.

"Interesting," she said. After a short pause, she continued speaking to him, but now in a different language. "I can get you out of here. Alive and Safe. But in return, you must help me do something I need. Will you agree?"

Of course there is always ‘but’.

"What might it be?" Felix asked hesitantly.

"Nothing impossible. Something you can manage with ease with your ability, of course."

Felix glanced at the other people again, who wore confused expressions, except for the guy with the sword, probably since the woman spoke in the language they couldn't comprehend.

Her offer was possibly his only way out. This magical land was entirely new to him; there should definitely be monsters far deadlier than the ones he had encountered. For that reason, he needed someone to explain things, things to adapt, to survive. He didn't even know the native language. Although the woman before him could communicate with him, how many others could do the same? Could he learn it as well? He had to. He had no other choice, anyway.

"I'm not really good at my stuff. I tried shapeshifting for the first time just yesterday, honestly. But I'll do my best to help you. If you help me," he said finally.

The women's expression showed a surprise for a moment, quickly returning to gentle again. She turned and walked back towards one of the hunters, to the one with a bow, which was still being pointed at him. She said a few words that made him lower her weapon, which could be said a fatal mistake since what happened next no one could've predicted.

The woman took out a small dagger seemingly out of nowhere and it found its place in the archer's throat in an instant. The bulkier hunter looked shocked, but quickly regained his senses when he saw the man with the sword approaching him. He pulled out his daggers, and shouted some words to his remaining partner, the young man who stood petrified by the way events unfolded.

However, when the young man got himself together, it was too late; his fellow was being pushed back effortlessly after three slashes of sword, which second one left a deep cut on his left upper-arm. He resolved to support his fellow hunter as he tried to put an arrow to his bow clumsily, but before he moved any further, a spherical ball of fire hit him on face, making him scream from the pain. He didn't get to take any other action, since a dagger struck his throat. The other one was also lying, clutching his throat to stop the spurting blood.

Felix's face was deathly pale, describing fear and disbelief of what had just happened. The impact of killing the monsters had helped him to be more emotionally stronger than before, but witnessing such a bloody scene right in front of him for the first time made him quite sick. Although he was present when Maria and Michael died, he had run away from the monsters before they started ripping those two's corpses. But he had been resisting himself from thinking that incident since then.

He stayed where he was, not daring to do anything when the woman's guard came up and cut off his bindings. Then the swordsman handed him some clothes that weren't bloodied. He put them on absentmindedly, slowly realizing what he had just got himself into.

These two just killed three people as if it was merely a part of their daily job. Although he didn't know exactly how the woman had thrown a fireball, it was, without a doubt, magic. There was some relief as he was not the only one who could use this mystic art. And fear what they would be planning to make him do. Would they force him to murder someone to make sure he was up to the task? What if he couldn't prove his competence?

While he was dreading, they exited the cabin to meet another pair of men standing guard. The woman spoke to them in a commanding tone, which they nodded and got into the cabin. She put on what she had been holding and then they all set out to a place Felix could only imagine.

The forest wasn't that scary at this point to Felix as he was accompanied by two powerful individuals on both sides. Probably they were wary of him trying to take a slip.

While traveling, Felix had time to process the event took place in the hut. The two were obviously much stronger than him. The man's movements were suspiciously fast and his reactions were no simple matter either. He literally toyed with that hunter, and could've dealt with the younger one easily, but the woman had assisted anyway. Felix now remembered that he heard some words like 'torch', 'will' and 'fire' during that butchery. She must have performed an enchantment.

It was good news, Felix thought. If he learned how to use his magic by enchanting, maybe he could avoid some bloody gashes like on his body left from those monsters. Granted, he would be able to fight on both close and distant range, while using chants and his body strengthening method. Maybe he could even acquire some techniques from these people how to use his magic more efficiently.

While Felix was musing with the past occurrences, they had walked around two hours when two peaks of towers came into view among the trees. When they reached it, Felix could evaluate the wall of a town. The borderline of the forest were some hundreds of meters away from the town wall and between them was a thick line of paved road. The gate was swung open. It was built neatly, with meticulous labor, and around it was half a dozen guardsmen patrolling it. The style of the gates reminded him ancient Chinese architecture, but not that developed and decorated. Its gate was accompanied on both sides by two giant towers whose top parts were intended to scouting farther areas, while their middle parts was made specifically for archers.

As they got close to the wall, Felix had to careen his neck to measure its height. It must be as tall as forty feet. Maybe even taller.

The guards at the gate let them pass without as much questioning, which prompted Felix to guess these two were from some influential organization or they worked to a noble of the town. After entering, he studied the state of the town; people who wore loose clothing, carts pulled by mules or horses, some of them even by humans. Main roads were paved, and smaller ones were kept clean. Houses resembled medieval times with a bit of eastern adornment, being constructed some of them with wood, while mostly of them with stones and bricks. He had thought, for some reason, the streets would be mess with waste, and there would be the poor homeless begging for money. But to his surprise, it wasn't the case whatsoever. There were some beggars on some corners, but it wasn't that many, as he had seen on movies.

It appeared the town's condition was not bad at all. There were small vendors in some places that made up tiny markets. Although there weren't children playing around freely, they were on the streets accompanied by the elderly. Furthermore, the strolling guards were an addition to this peaceful environment.

They kept going, passing various houses, hotels, choosing routes that were not overly crowded. Finally, they slowed down when they reached what looked like a mansion, built from concrete and stones. It was barely guarded. When Felix stepped through its gates, he saw people were busy with miscellaneous activities, majority of them were women. The lady he was with lifted up her hood, and this caused people who saw them bow deeply despite them being engaged at work.

You are reading story A story of the changeling at novel35.com

The construction behind the walls was a two-storey building. Its first floor reached four meters to Felix’s estimation. The façade of the structure was framed with decorations that substituted windows, especially on the second floor, and some real windows paneled with crude made glass.

So not totally eastern, then, Felix noted the materials of the architecture.

The front doors were huge and welcoming, leading to the inside that showed polished wooden floor and ornate staircase that guided to the upstairs.

Before Felix could assess the interior, his two companions turned right and followed a pathway that eventually ended in a solid looking wooden door after a few turns. The trio got in and went straight to the iron door at the opposite side of the hallway they were in with a tiny window-frame in the center. When the woman knocked, the window was opened from inside to reveal a bald man's stern face. They traded some words in their language, which caused the man to unlock the steel entry and let them in at once.

Felix wondered how he was able to understand her words that time back in the cabin. Could she affect his mind by using magic? If so, was it possible to read people's mind or even control them? Certainly, she didn't seem that powerful, but there was always a chance of encountering stronger individuals. Could she be leading him to such a person?

They had got into a long corridor and now reached its end, which was blocked with another iron door.

What is this place anyway?

When Felix started to question his whereabouts, the woman faced him and spoke to him in her magic tongue.

"It's a secluded compound that we keep secret from outsiders. So we have to cover your eyes before you enter. Don't worry, it's just a precaution."

Felix nodded to her after examining the door briefly. Her guard wrapped around his eyes tightly with a thick piece of fabric. Next, they passed the door after it was unlocked and descended from stairs to make multiple turns.

While they were walking, Felix could hear various kinds of voices. There were sounds of laughter, music, moans. Screams. Even clangings of metal objects.

What the heck is this place?

In the end, they settled in a room that barred all those sounds, and Felix's eyes were unbound. The place was lit by strange stone shaped crystalline objects. It was not a very large room, with a double bed inside and a few pieces of finely ornamented furniture. Its walls were colored with red and black along with adornments of pictures that portrayed women and men in the nude.

Once they entered, the woman stopped after taking a few steps pass the threshold and started speaking to Felix in a mild but business-like tone.

"Sorry for not introducing myself until now. My name is Tsilonee. I'm the head woman of this brothel. And this is my bodyguard, Seron"

So this was a brothel, he surmised. It explained the people's moans. But what about the screams and the sounds of the blades?

"Ah, I'm Felix," he said with some nervousness.

"Mr. Felix, you must be tired from the journey here and from the trouble the hunters caused. I'm going to leave you alone to give you some time to recover. A servant will deliver hot water for bathing and some food. If you need anything else, please feel free to ask." Felix nodded to her before she left with her bodyguard.

He sat leaning onto the bed's side, while inhaling deep and sighing long, calming his tense nerves. He felt relieved for not being forced into some kind of test for his ability. And then felt exhausted when he realized he was not in as dire situation as he thought he was.

True to her word, Tsilonee had sent a maid who brought him hot water and fresh clothes. He took a bath first in spite of his grumbling stomach's protests, in a small room that intended for this very reason. Its door was the same color and material with the wall, so he hadn’t noticed it when he first entered here. He washed away the wounds from the previous fights, which now had left waning scars.

That's a pretty amazing regeneration power. A few more shifts, and it'll be as if nothing happened.

Having finished the bath, he pacified his hungry belly that had been bothering him since he started having his bath. After the bloody event in the woods, he had lost his appetite. Now he was clean and safe, he felt like he was ready to devour an elephant.

Felix had finished his meal and rested in bed for some time when the servant came back and took away the things she had brought. Now he was full and fresh, he observed the servant more thoroughly. She was, in a way, a beautiful girl, at around twenty. She had long dark hair and was wearing a not-so-tight clothing. Probably one of the prostitutes.

After some time she left, a knock echoed on the door, and without accepting permission, it was opened. Tsilonee and her bodyguard, Seron, came in through the entrance.

"I see you've recovered quite well, Mr. Felix" she said to him with a beaming smile as they busied the chairs placed at a table on the center of the room. "Now, can we discuss things about some matters? We are still not sure where you came from and how."

Felix took a deep sigh and shared a small explanation about his condition.

"As I said, I'm not from this world. I came here just yesterday, along with two people. But unfortunately, we were attacked by some strange wolves, and... they couldn't make it," he concluded, avoiding the two's gazes out of shame and some regret.

On the way coming here, he had contemplated his actions at that time. Even supposing he rescued Michael, he did not believe they could have fended off the beasts in the open. He survived because he had the advantage of being in a closed space, which allowed him to take down two of the creatures smoothly. Still, there was a chance of Michael managing to shapeshift as well. In that way, they could easily repel the monsters. Now he was alone and sitting in a brothel, his fate was in the hands of a magician prostitute that God knew what she had planned to do with him.

"Ah, Mr. Felix, you were saying to be from another world, right? Do you have anything to prove it?" She inquired him after exchanging a glance with her guard.

That was the problem. He had nothing to confirm what he was telling them. He had dropped off his mobile phone somewhere he didn't know, and didn't even remember it was missing when he set out from the cave. It could be his knowledge, but he doubted he could explain the modern world with words and theories that could convince the lady or her guard.

"No, I don't have any" he replied eventually, turning his head down. "But I can answer any of your questions related to science, I guess. The world I came from was, I suppose, is far more developed than this one in technologies. We had invented cars. They are like carriages without horses, and we had made airplanes that could fly in the sky. We even invented rockets that were able to fly above the sky, and to the Moon and even beyond," he talked with hope and enthusiasm that he could convince the two with his influential little story. But it was clear the two didn't buy it.

He sighed and groaned inwardly. There was no choice but to give up and do whatever the lady would like him to do.

"Ok, I can't prove it right now,” Felix said, shaking his head. Next, he followed with his own question, “I don't understand how things worked in this world. So, could you tell me a little about this, please?"

"Of course, we can. But I have to confirm one thing first. Those hunters told me you could shapeshift. Can you show me how you do it?" The woman asked.

In the end, she is going to test me if I am really useful to her. Felix concluded.

He pondered about her behavior. She was clearly trying to look harmless, or even kind to him. But what was the purpose of it? She looked smart and caring, though he had a feeling that she was actually really cunning.

"I can only turn into a wolf, so-"

"It's called a barghest," She said with a smile, interrupting him.

So it was a mythical creature. No wonder it was weird. But... were they supposed to be furless? Felix thought to himself. Maybe this translating magic was adjusting her language according to his own knowledge.

He stood up and faced the other two, "Alright, I'm going to transform now then. I will take off some clothes, since they will be torn out anyway".

Felix started removing his clothes and prepared to change.

You can find story with these keywords: A story of the changeling, Read A story of the changeling, A story of the changeling novel, A story of the changeling book, A story of the changeling story, A story of the changeling full, A story of the changeling Latest Chapter