Chapter 16: Shapeshifters

The sextet was complete.

David had become the unofficial leader of the sextet even though they were theoretically equal. He brought his fellow team members up to speed with what Master Bart had told him regarding the political situation in Federation.

Keven recommended that they go to see her grandmother, Domo Leslie and that they should get her side of the story. Keven’s sisters, Levi and Selwyn, also agreed this was a good place to start. The rest agreed, and they all blinked to the palace at Greco City.

Domo Leslie was surprised by the eight people who suddenly appeared in the middle of her courtroom. The guards went to detain them when they recovered enough from their unexpected appearance. Leslie told them to stop. She stepped down from her throne and bowed deeply to the visitors to the surprise of her court.

“Welcome, exalted ones. I see my daughter was successful, as you are all here,” she said.

“More fortunate than you know, grandmother. I am Selwyn, one of Carline’s twin daughters. Selene, my twin sister, is still in Golden City with Mother and Sharon. Mother sends her love, but she said to tell you that she and Sharon wouldn’t be coming home.”

“They have decided to stay and help Wizard Ulu and Selene, as she is his apprentice wizard. She is married to Wizard Ulu and expecting twins with him.” She turned to her sisters, “This is Keven, she is Sharon’s first daughter, and Levi is their shared daughter.”

She then introduced the other people who were with her. “I am the Nature Wizard of this sextet and my partner Kale is the Physics Wizard. David is the Earth Wizard and his partner Kelli is the Psychic Wizard. Raina is our Energy Wizard and her partner Ben is the Lore Wizard. But, we are not the only Wizards.”

Her last statement caused gasps around the room, but she ignored them and continued, “Lord Wizard Storm is a man from a planet that he calls Earth. He claimed the old Lord Wizards box that was on this planet. He has also found three of his other wizards and three of the apprentices for his Decad. David and Kelli brought our boxes from the Planet called Hades. The planet that our ancestors had fled.”

Her last statement caused a huge amount of babble around the room, and a few noticed a couple of other people that slipped out of the room. Her grandmother was aghast and asked, “There are two sets of wizards?”

Selwyn nodded at her grandmother. She and her sisters were pleased that they had accomplished the mission they and their parents had been sent on. Carline was the younger of the Domo’s two daughters. She had accepted because she had assumed that she wouldn’t replace her mother on the throne.

Others had been chosen, but Carline and Sharon were the only ones who had volunteered to go. Domo Leslie had been made proud when her daughter had accepted the mission. The fact that she had also succeeded was fantastic.

Lady Maris scowled at her sister’s success and that her daughters were here spruiking her achievements and their own. The fact that two of the daughters had also become wizards was galling. She suspected from their glows that the other two daughters supported strong mage diadems.

She still hadn’t gained a diadem, and neither had her one daughter. She had even been unfortunate in having a useless son. Every time that she and her daughter had attempted the test to gain a diadem they had been found wanting. It had become hideously embarrassing.

Maris couldn’t inherit if she didn’t wear a diadem, as it was written in their laws. The fact that Carline didn’t come home suggested that she didn’t know she was the heir. Maris wondered if her mother would pick one of Carline’s daughters to replace her, as was her right.

Maris had considered buying a diadem from Domo Ethan, but she knew her mother would disown her faster than she could spit if she detected that she was wearing a tainted diadem. Leslie had already banished several people who had entered court wearing them. Lady Anne, one of Leslie’s consorts, had a nose for picking them out. However, they didn’t seem to be able to remove the diadems from the person, if they had more than one gem on them.

Domo Ethan’s spies didn’t have to wear diadems to do their jobs. Ethan had said that he would give her one and she would able to claim her throne and then marry him to reunite the people under their rule. He was the father of both her children, although her mother didn’t know of their relationship.

The problem was that Maris wasn’t sure she that she trusted Ethan. He seemed to have some sort of control over her when he was near, but when they were parted for a length of time, she couldn’t work out why she desired him at all. He wasn’t even a shape changer. Ethan was Genteli crossed with a healthy dose of Pix.

To her disgust, his son was even born with the pointy ears. When she knew she was pregnant, and an old sorceress said it was going to be male, she had gone to her cousins down the coast. They spent more time in their mermaid form. Maris had paid one of them to take the boy out to sea and drown him.

At far as she was concerned the child was a monstrosity. For a shape-shifter to have a son was a catastrophe. Boys couldn’t shape change, and they couldn’t inherit. Other shifters rarely mated with a male born of a shifter, as they didn’t pass on the genes for shifting from their line and often produced more male children.

If the father of a child, wasn’t a shifter, as long the mother had a daughter then the child would carry the gene. It was rare for a non-shape-shifter father to give the shifter a son. So they were preferable to their own males. The fact Ethan had given her a son was disastrous. She didn’t tell him either.

Some shifters liked to maintain the male gender for most of the time they were in human persona, but that was acceptable because they can revert to female to bear a child. Most of their race didn’t tend to produce large families and often only gave birth to two to three children each if they were capable.

Being a long-lived race, this kept their populations down. Those who tended to shift into a pack animal form did have larger broods, but they also lived shorter lives and many spent a lot of their lives in their animal forms. Domo Leslie’s primary animal form was a mermaid, and her two daughters could take this form.

Carline could change into a woolly from her other parent, but Maris’s other parent’s chief form was a mermaid. Selene and Selwyn also had the ability to take lanky and wolf from their other parent. Keven’s forms were Catalo from Sharon and lanky from her other parent.

An advantage of having a grazing animal in your genes was that you could eat grasses and shrubs if nothing else was available. You could also hide in the brush for protection. Mermaid form didn’t hurt either, as long as the water was nearby fishing and water plants were always an option.

Unlike her sister, Maris had a lot more trouble changing to her mermaid form and back. She rarely used it unless she felt compelled to visit with Ethan. If she had a diadem, it would be easier for her. She found it harder each year to attempt the test to receive one.

The visitors were invited to a private dinner with her mother. Maris noted that she hadn’t been invited. She and her mother had not been close since Carline agreed to go and she had refused to mate with the person chosen for her and go to Saran as her mother had wished. She had always felt her mother never believed she was good enough even though she was the elder.

Maris had felt that her mother was trying to send her away and refused to go. She had never realised that her very resentment and churlish attitude were why she’d failed the test year after year. She considered being the heir was her right and not a privilege.

Disgruntled, she left the court to go and see Ethan.

Levi observed her aunt leaving in a huff.

Her eyes narrowed as she watched her. She could see why her parents barely spoke of her. On the few occasions Carline had spoken of her family, it was evident she didn’t think highly of her half-sister. Levi knew her parents wouldn’t be surprised to hear that Maris didn’t have a diadem.

Sharon had expressed a thank you that Maris had refused her and that Carline had agreed to have her as her partner. Over the years, the couple’s friendship had turned to love. It had deepened each year, and they were very happy together. Levi was glad that she had the parents she did.

Levi then picked out her cousin and noticed that she didn’t glow at all. Levi wondered what her grandmother would do. Her mother had said that she had to go to Federation since the twins couldn’t inherit being full wizards. She also knew Keven being Sharon’s daughter and a distant cousin couldn’t inherent either.

Levi had told her parents that she didn’t want the job. She didn’t know these people or want their problems. However, they had convinced her that her grandmother would expect one of them to turn up and they didn’t plan to go back.

Carline and Sharon were content in Golden City. They had both felt that Ulu still needed them. They had told her if she truthfully hated it, she could go back or go live with Kyle and Selwyn, the decision was ultimately hers.

Levi felt she was in a nest of vipers. She was thankful that she had the wizards with her. Her aunt was a problem she decided. She had a feeling if anything happened to her grandmother, Maris would do something to make sure that she became the Queen. She sure hadn’t been impressed when the sisters turned up.

Levi noted those that seemed to be in her Aunt’s court, and she wondered how many were also in Ethan’s court. She needed to find a friend and get a picture of what was truly happening here. He mother had given her a description of the twins other parent and said that she could be trusted.

Levi looked around the court and spied a man leaning against a wall. She grinned to herself. She removed herself from the group and wandered over to the man. “Hi, I’m wondering if you can help me locate a person called Tick?”

The bloke looked at her in surprise. She watched his eyes narrow and then a cheeky grin appeared. ‘Damn, if this wasn’t Selene’s parent, then he was a close relative, ‘ thought Levi. She looked at him more closely. Now she was beside him, and the shadows didn’t distort his face, she realised he wasn’t as old as she first thought.

“Sorry,” she said. “I think I’ve got the wrong person.” She went to step away when the man slid his hand into hers. She shivered and looked at him again. She could now see the glow, but she knew he didn’t wear a diadem.

“Tick would love to meet you,” he said.

“But you’re not Tick?” she replied.

“No, I’m her eldest child. I tend to prefer the male form,” he replied. “Lord Chris at your service, fair lady.” He bowed over her hand and turned it to gently and place his lips on her wrist. He looked up into her eyes and watched them sparkle in pleasure as he kissed her.

Chris had trouble controlling the one problem with being in male form caused. Levi was delectable. Her lovely grey eyes stole his breath. It took him several moments to compose himself after touching her. “Any chance you can meet up with me after the lunch?” he asked hopefully.

Levi looked over at her group and realised they were being herded away. “Out front?” she inquired.

“I’ll find you,” he said. He couldn’t resist, and he kissed her hand again, before reluctantly letting her go.

Levi headed back to her sisters and Selwyn quirked her head and said, “Damn sis, you found a hot one there.”

Levi grinned, “Yep, your big brother is kind of sexy. He even has your dimple.”

They all looked at her and then watched the young man slide out of the courtroom. Kale smiled, “I hope you’ve set up a meeting?”

Levi nodded in reply and had a feeling her date was going to be gate-crashed. She suddenly felt the in-laws wanted to look over her beau. She wondered what her grandmother would think if she got involved with him.

She would need to learn if Chris supported the Domo like her mother believed his mother did.

The group was seated at a long dining table.

Domo Leslie had two other women with her that they assumed were advisors of some description. Once they were seated, she informed the group that they were her consorts and advisors, Lady Anne and Lady Ray.

General pleasantries were exchanged, and the first course was placed before them. “Grandmother,” Selwyn stated. “Why is my Aunt not here?”

Leslie scowled, “She is Ethan’s property. He has twisted her thinking, and I believe he has a spell on her. She can’t pass the test to become my heir as long as she is spelled. The problem is I don’t think he had much trouble turning her. I could remove the spell, but I can’t change her nature.”

“Have you had any more children?” Levi asked hopefully.

Leslie moved her head in a negative response, “No dear, unfortunately, I haven’t been so blessed. I’ve not been able to impregnate either of my consorts either. We have tried several restoratives, but none have helped.”

Kale stood and came over to her, “Would you mind if I touched you? I’m a healer.” Leslie nodded her assent. Kale then said, “Oh! By the way, if anything is wrong and I can heal you I’ll apologise in advance as my healing tends to have a side effect.”