Jaiden, a hard worker and an astute student, was being prepared for a life he didn't want. Everyone around him seemed to have plans for his life. But Jaiden wanted something more. He had a deep dark secret. He was not who everyone thought he was.

Transcendent - 1:
~Beginnings~

Jaiden paused in his work as he felt the cool air blow across his back. Sweat dripped down his back and he rolled his shoulders working out some of the stiffness that came with long hours mucking the stables. The strong scent of horse sweat and manure was briefly replaced with the sweet smell of roses and lilacs from the nearby garden. He took a moment to enjoy the cooling sensation and breathe deeply before the wind shifted again ending his momentary relief from the hot summer sun.

He set back into his work quickly and returned his thoughts to considering his future. He wasn't sure what was in store for him, but he was sure of one thing, whatever course destiny had plotted for his life, it wasn't staying here. In only three more years he would be eighteen and he would leave the farm once and for all. He would never look back. Of that one thing he was sure.

As always thinking of leaving and the future also brought back memories of his past. Memories of when he discovered that he was not like other Children. He was about five years old when he first discovered his secret. He could remember it as clearly as if it were yesterday.

*****

He had been playing in the orchard with Rachel. They were climbing the trees and laughing together. Rachel had kept climbing higher and higher. Jaiden had always felt a bit scared of heights but wasn't about to be outdone by his best friend so he followed her closely. She looked down at him with an impish grin and laughed sweetly. “Come on Jai! Catch me if you can!” She called down to him before swinging up to grab the next branch.

He grinned back at her forgetting his fear and grabbed the next branch when it snapped in his hand and sent him crashing down towards the ground. He bounced off branches on his way down and he landed with a splash in a large puddle of mudd at the bottom of the tree. He lay there stunned and in shock. Above he could hear Rachel screaming as she quickly descended from the tree.

“Jai! Jai! Are you OK?” she sobbed.

He slowly got to his feet and went over to Rachel. He wrapped his arms around her, “I'm OK. But we're going to be in trouble.”

Rachel sniffled, “Why?”

“Because you ripped your pretty dress and got mud on your shoes. Aunt Tess is gonna be so angry.”

Rachel looked down at her torn skirt and muddied shoes. “You're silly Jai.” She giggled, “You care more about my clothes than I do.”

“Well one of us has to. When we get in trouble you just have to help in the kitchen. I have to go work in the barn.”

She giggled again, “You aren't like the other boys.”

“No.” he said seriously. “No I'm not.”

*****

That was the beginning of it all, where it all started and Jaiden had began to discover who he really was. There were a lot of other signs and events through the years that followed that lead him to discover his true identity. An identity that he knew he had to keep a very deep dark secret. If others knew who he really was, he knew that they would have a very difficult time accepting him. He knew that they would likely send him away. No one here would want someone like him around. No... if his true identity was known, it would bring nothing but trouble.

Jaiden looked around and realized that he had finished cleaning out the stalls. As usual while he was lost in thought about the past he had worked tirelessly and efficiently. His conscious mind may have been somewhere else, but his subconscious was focused on the task at hand and as usual had done it perfectly.

He hung the pitchfork back on the wall and stretched his stiff muscles. The work on the farm had been hard and tiring once, but now he had been doing it for years and he barely felt the strain of it. A glance at the shadows on the wall as he left the stables estimated the time to be about an hour after noon. He had in fact finished even earlier than usual. Jedd would be very happy about that. Although you wouldn't know it too look at him. The man had a face cut from stone. Jaiden had known him his entire life and even he usually didn't know what Jedd was thinking.

Jedd was an old soldier that worked at the farm. He was hired to protect it from the local bandits and any other kind of trouble that might come their way. Apparently before he came Master Valin, the owner, could hardly keep enough food on the table let alone make any profit. What wasn't stolen was usually not even fit for animals, but it was all they had to eat. Jedd came through and offered to drive off the thieves in exchange for a place to sleep and meals. Master Valin figured he had nothing left to lose by this point and decided to give Jedd a chance. He was desperate to save his farm and hoped Jedd would be able to help.

Now, many years later it was the most successful farm in the district. The bandits quickly learned it was much less costly to raid elsewhere and as a result all the farms in the area began to do well. Master Valin became a local hero for solving the problem and soon was elected mayor of the small farming community.

Jedd was also something of a local hero and a local legend. It was said the first night the raiders came to the farm he had cut down more than twenty of them in less than fifteen minutes by himself. Some people scoffed at the tale and considered it local boasting to keep the bandits away, but not Jaiden. He had seen Jedd practicing his skills and if his stories were true, knew the man was a veteran of three wars. Also, the bandits were little more than peasants themselves, armed with rusty axes, swords and daggers that were old relics used by past generations. The only reason they had been able to terrorize the area was that no one else had any weapons to try and drive them off with.

Jedd and Master Valin had changed that too. Now all the boys on the farm were trained in armed combat at least an hour a day. They also practiced with bows and had regular archery competitions. Jedd and Master Valin wanted to make sure that anyone that became jealous of the area's prosperity would think twice before attacking it. Master Valin had placed Jedd in charge of a local militia and he would spend time at the different farms in the district training the young boys. However, Jedd still spent most of his time on Master Valin's farm, the unofficial headquarters of the militia, and the place Jedd called home.

Jaiden was on his way to report to Jedd now. For some reason or other Jedd seemed to have taken a special interest in him. He always insisted on Jaiden coming to him early for extra training once he finished his work. He always pushed him harder than the others and held him to stricter standards. What was acceptable technique for the others was not acceptable from Jaiden. He even occasionally took Jaiden along when he traveled to other farms. As a result Jaiden had become more skilled than any of the others in combat. Jedd trained him with many different weapons and even in unarmed combat.

Jaiden suspected that Jedd had selected him to become his future replacement once he was ready to retire. That would probably be as soon as the man felt Jaiden was ready to take over the training and running of the militia himself. Jaiden figured that it would probably not be for a few years yet, which was just fine by him. Although he loved Jedd like a grandfather and didn't want to disappoint him, he knew that his destiny had something else in store for him. Once he was eighteen he knew he was going to leave this place for good and never look back.

It really would be best that way. The life that he was going to be living was going to be a hard one. Of course there was going to be a lot of challenges that he was going to have to face and problems that he would have to solve in order to get that life. He knew it would be possible. Even in a small backwater district like this one he had heard the stories. Jaiden knew there were those that had the power to help him with his problem. There would probably be some big price involved, but it was one that he was more than willing to pay. He just knew that his destiny was not this, that he needed something other than this.

*****

Jaiden found Jedd at the small training ring right where he expected him to be. He was a soldier and used to following strict routines. Although his daily routine was the only thing predictable about him. Jaiden was also not surprised to find Rachel there with him. She was dressed in quilted armor and was completely focused on hacking and stabbing at Jedd with a long thin practice sword.

Jaiden watched as Jedd danced around her blocking her attacks every now and then striking back at her. As he watched he had to admit to himself that hacking and stabbing was a poor description of what Rachel was doing. Although it may have been that way once, he could see that she was actually quite graceful in her movements. She was dancing lightly on her feet and moving with a speed that Jaiden found strangely beautiful. He sat on a stool near the ring and watched as the two danced around waiting for them to finish.

Rachel caught a glimpse of Jaiden watching out of the corner of her eye and winked at him. He smiled back at her as she suddenly dropped low and sent her sword sweeping out at Jedd's knees. Jedd didn't even seem to notice as he fluidly stepped down on the wooden blade while bringing his own wooden sword to Rachel's throat.

“You let yourself be distracted again girl. Maybe I should send you back to the kitchens were you belong eh?”

Rachel's face colored slightly before she nodded.

“I'm sorry sir. I won't let it happen again.”

Jedd studied her face carefully before grunting. “See that it doesn't.” He turned towards Jaiden. “Well? What are you waiting for boy? Get in here!”

Jaiden pulled off his sweat soaked shirt and climbed into the combat ring. Immediately he dropped and rolled to the right as Jedd's foot passed through the space he had just occupied. He came out of his crouch and tucked his shoulder into Jedd's chest taking him up off his feet and crashing him down into the ground. As they fell he felt a blow to his head from Jedd's elbow, and another to his knee from Jedd's foot. With a grunt he landed on top of Jedd and immediately struck at his face with both hands and at his waist with his knee. Jedd rolled knocking him off balance and soon it was Jaiden who was on the bottom with Jedd striking at his nose. Jaiden caught Jedd's fist with the palm of his hand and deflected the blow to the side so that Jedd struck the ground harmlessly. For an old man Jedd was still quite strong and Jaiden knew it would be foolish to try and just catch an attack and hold it.

Jaiden kicked his right leg out and rolled hard to his left trying to force Jedd off balance. Jedd locked his leg around Jaiden's knee and kept his place right on top of him. He also managed to get his arms around Jaiden's neck.

Jaiden felt his air become cut off and knew he was seconds away from losing this fight. Desperately he smashed his head up and into Jedd's face. Jedd reeled back in stunned surprise blood streaming from his nose. Jaiden didn't let up, he pushed himself off the ground as hard as he can and struck Jedd in the side of his head with his foot. Jedd fell to the ground in a crumpled heap.

Immediately Jaiden and Rachel were beside him. Together they lifted the heavy man and brought him into the shade of a nearby tree. Rachel pulled out a bandage and held it to Jedd's bleeding nose. Jaiden filled a bowl with water and brought it to Jedd's lips.

Jedd drank greedily and looked up at Jaiden. “Well boy, looks like you finally took me down.”

“It was a desperate move. You had me and I did the only thing that I could think of to stay in the fight. It wasn't planned at all. I just got lucky.”

Jedd laughed and winced in pain. “Luck is sometimes the best defense a soldier has. Even the best of us can't dodge everything. Best you remember that boy.”

Jaiden nodded. “I will sir.”

“Good, now... quite crowding me, I need some air. I'm not so fragile that I can't get up on my own you know.”

Rachel and Jaiden smiled as they stepped back. Jedd got up from the ground and made his way back to the ring. Jaiden had never known anyone quite as tough as that old man. He seemed to be able to shake off anything and keep on going. His nose had already stopped bleeding.

“Alright you did well today boy. Especially since you didn't pull your attacks once I was hurt. We're gonna make a real soldier out of you yet.”

Jaiden grinned, praise like that from Jedd was very rare. “Thank you sir.”

“Wipe that smile off your face boy. You still have a long way to go yet. This is only the beginning.” Jaiden nodded and composed himself. “Good, now go to the kitchen and fetch me some bread and cheese, let's get some food into us before the other boys show up for their sword practice.”

“Yes sir!” Jaiden turned and headed off towards the kitchen.

“Hey wait for me!” Rachel ran up beside him. “I ought to be getting back there now anyways.”

“I thought you had given up on the kitchen work.” Jaiden laughed. “Didn't Aunt Tess say that you were a lost cause?”

“Well... yes she did say that. But only because she knows she's never going to turn me into a proper lady. Not because I don't help out at all!”

“Right and that's why you are out in the ring with Jedd rather than in the kitchens where you belong.... OW!” Jaiden rubbed his red cheek.

“Serves you right! You know I don't belong in that kitchen anymore than you do! I can do everything that you can.”

“I'm sure you can. In fact, I've seen you do most of it, and you're right. I do belong in the kitchens as much as you do.”

“That's right you do and don't forget it mister!”

“I won't Rach, believe me, my cheek's gonna remind me of it for at least a little while.”

Rachel grinned that impish smile of hers and walked with a bounce in her step. Jaiden couldn't help but admire her as they walked. She had been his best friend for as long as he could remember. He was going to miss her more than anyone when the day came for him to leave. He wished so much that he could take her with him but he knew that it could never be possible.

Rachel had changed so much from the little girl that he used to climb trees in the orchard with. She was developing into a tall young woman. Her dark red hair was down to her shoulders, and framed her round face beautifully. Her large green eyes swere always filled with life and excitement and her full lips were always smiling. She had in Jaiden's opinion the most beautiful face he had ever seen. Her skin was tanned from long hours in the sun, and her legs and arms were long and graceful. Although she trained as hard as the boys, Jedd had given her a specially crafted sword to use. One much thinner and lighter than those the boys used. As a result it was her speed rather than her strength that she had learned to rely on in combat. Her training had also left her with a thin but well toned body. Her breasts were small but firm. She had the look of an athlete or a dancer.

As they neared the rose garden by the stables, Rachel suddenly stopped. She walked in among the rose bushed and over to the lilac trees where she stopped to smell the flowers. Jaiden stopped as well and watched her quietly. She looked back over her shoulder at him and moved into the trees.

Jaiden sighed. He knew that she wanted him to follow her and he had a good idea of what was about to come. He had been dreading this moment, but he knew that the sooner he dealt with it, the better things would be. He followed her in among the lilacs. Looking among the trees he searched for her wondering where she had hidden. Suddenly she was in front of him and she wrapped her arms around his neck.

“Jaiden. I love you, I have always loved you and I always will.” She looked deeply into his eyes, her smile lighting up her face.

Jaiden looked back at her, “Rachel... I know... I've always known how you felt.”

Her smile grew bigger and she leaned forward to kiss him. Jaiden turned his face to the side and stepped back. Startled and thrown off balance, Rachel nearly fell to the ground with a squeak of surprise.

“Rachel... let me finish.” He said his tone was serious and his body stiff. He knew that she could feel his tension and that she realized he was going to say something very serious. She stepped back from him and folded her arms under her breasts, waiting for him to speak.

“Rachel. I really don't know how to tell you this. It's not easy for me.” He began tentatively. She just watched him carefully, the smile gone from her face. “I... I... I want you to know Rachel that I love you too. I love you more than anything.”

She let out an explosive sigh of relief. “Oh thank god! I thought you were going to reject me. I know there must be something important for you to tell me, but whatever it is we can work through it, because we love each other.”

Jaiden winced. This really wasn't going well, not at all the way that he had planned. “Rachel... you don't understand... I love you. But I love you as my best friend, I love you as a sister, I love you like family.”

“Oh.”

“I'm sorry Rachel... I don't want to hurt you, but there can never be anything romantic between us. It's just not possible. I just can't feel it.”

“I see.”

“Rachel... please try and understand.” he begged.

“No... I understand... I'm just not...” She turned and ran sobbing into the lilac trees. He thought about going after her as he watched her go. More than anything he wanted to go after her and comfort her. But he knew this time she had to get through it alone. This time, he couldn't help her because he was the problem. I am sooo sorry Rachel. I wish I could tell you everything but I can't. You don't know the real me. No one does. I hope one day you can forgive me... I hope one day I can forgive myself.

Jaiden learns about the origin of the Transcendent while Rachel makes plans of her own.

Transcendent - 2:
~A History of Darkness~

Jaiden came into the classroom and looked around. Many of the boys and girls that worked at the surrounding farms were already there, but there was no sign of Rachel. He took his usual seat and waited for the class to begin. More importantly, he waited for Rachel to arrive.. Jaiden knew that these classes they had in the study was something that he should feel honored to have. Most people in the peasant class were unable to read or write and knew next to nothing of the world outside of their small community.

This was not the case in Davenshire. Thanks to Aunt Tess, Master Valin's wife, everyone that was interested in learning had a chance to study with her. Three nights a week she would hold lessons in the big study in the farmhouse for three hours. Aunt Tess had been born in the capital city, Shiran, the daughter of a butcher. However, a terrible fire in her home left her as the only surviving member of her family. The priests at one of the local temples took her in and gave her a good education. When it became clear that she had no interest in joining the priesthood, they set her up as a tutor in the home of one of the noble families.

She had been very happy there, and found she had a passion for teaching. Yet it was not to last. A few bad business decisions soon found the nobleman buried in debt and he had to give up his family home. Tess decided that she had lost enough and seen too much suffering in the city and so left to find another place to call her home. She was passing through Davenshire when she met Master Valin. She quickly saw that he was a good man trying to improve the lives of those around him and so decided to stay in Davenshire. The two worked very closely together and it wasn't long before they fell in love and were married. Since that time she has been doing whatever she could to help the people in any way that she could. Everyone in Davenshire knew her and usually came to her with their problems. She was the wisest person that Jaiden had ever known. She was also the kindest woman and insisted on everyone calling her Aunt Tess, even old Jedd who looked old enough to be her father.

Jaiden thought that Aunt Tess was one of the most beautiful woman he had ever known. She looked to be no older than her mid thirties, and although he didn't know her real age, she had looked the same for as long as he could remember. Most newcomers to the area thought that she was too young for someone like Master Valin, yet if you looked carefully you could see a wisdom and a deep sorrow in her eyes that belied her apparent age. Not for the first time Jaiden wondered what kind of secrets Aunt Tess was keeping. He just knew there was more to this woman than there appeared on the surface. I guess we all have our deep secrets we keep hidden from everyone else.

He was roused from his thoughts when Rachel entered the room. She looked directly at him and then quickly looked away again before taking a seat on the opposite side of the room. Jaiden sighed deeply. It had been three days since the lilac garden. He knew that she was going to need some time to accept things between him, but he missed her terribly. They had always been together for as long as he could remember. She was the closest thing to family that he had ever known.

Once again he felt tortured by indecision. He wanted nothing more to go to Rachel and explain everything to her. Yet he knew that would be a mistake. Certainly she was a strong, perhaps she could even handle his secret identity, but he really did not want to put her in that position. Things between them were strained enough right now. He had barely even seen her the last three days and it was clear to him that she was avoiding any contact with him. She even missed training with Jedd in the afternoons, something she had never done since the first time she had been allowed to join in. He hoped that she was not giving up things that she so clearly enjoyed just so that she wouldn't have to see him. Maybe he should try and talk to her.

Jaiden was pulled out of his thoughts again as Aunt Tess called for attention. “Alright class, can anyone tell me what we were talking about last time?” She looked around the room. “Yes Celina.”

“We were talking about Praxtor and the transcendence Aunt Tess.”

“Good, and what can you tell me about Praxtor?”

“Well...” Celina looked thoughtfully at the table. “Praxtor is one of the protector gods. His chosen people are us, the people of the north kingdom. He uses his power to protect us from our enemies and bless his people with prosperity. He is a warrior god and his chief enemy is Setesh god of dark magic.”

“Well done! You remembered it beautifully Love.” Aunt Tess smiled at the young girl who grinned widely at the praise. “Now, about the transcendence. As Celina reminded us, Praxtor is the patron god of our kingdom, and it was in one of his temples that I was raised. That means that this is the subject I know the most about so bare with me if I get carried away.”

“As we all know about 4000 years ago Praxtor appeared in Human form in the Capital Shiran. It seemed that war had broken out among the gods, and Praxtor had to give it his full attention. As a warrior god, he was to lead the protector gods and turn back the others seeking to increase their power and dominance. As a result, he would not be able to focus his attention on us his people. Praxtor decided that the best solution was to empower King Nathanial the ruler of the time with a portion of his power. He granted him much power including immortality so that he could protect the kingdom and bless it in Praxtor's absence. Thus King Nathanial became the first transcendent.”

“Praxtor had been thorough in his planning to make certain that the king would not abuse his power. He set some rules and limitations that were to be followed. The first rule was that the King would only hold the power of Praxtor for 1000 years before passing it on to his son. Although it could be passed down earlier, it was important that it is not held for more than 1000 years. Human bodies and minds were not meant to contain the power of gods, and holding it longer than 1000 years would eventually drive the ruler crazy.”

“He also knew that the king would likely become accustomed to this power and not want to give it up. He expected that the sons of the king would fight among themselves to gain their fathers position so he prepared for this as well. He changed the King and also the Queen, who was the high priestess of Praxtor, so that they would only ever have one son at a time. Once the son was of age to take the throne, if his father had held his power for 1000 years or more, the power would leave him and enter his son. The transfer could not be stopped. The Queen was also granted immortality and would live as long as the king. Only she could bear his children. The King was given a powerful desire for her so that there would always be an heir to the throne.”

“At first this system worked well. The sons too were immortal and could not be killed. The power transferred like it was supposed to, and the aspect of Praxtor inside them made the kings good protector rulers. Their power was tied to the Capital city. The farther they moved away from it, the less they could do. If they were too far, all they would have was their immortality. This stopped them from becoming aggressive warrior kings that would conquer the neighboring kingdoms.”

“Then King Rhyum came to power. As he neared the end of his 1000 years he became desperate to hold onto his power. So desperately did he want to hold it that he did the unthinkable. He formed an alliance with the Dark mages of Setesh. Together they found a way to stop the transfer of Praxtor's power to King Rhyum's son. Rhyum has ruled in the kingdom now for nearly 1500 years. He has become completely mad. The dark mages of Setesh have taken power and prosperity was lost in the northern kingdom. We know that sons have been born to King Rhyum, yet the power is never transferred. Although the sons are immortal and he should only have one, we know Rhyum has had many. We can only suspect that the dark mages have found some way to kill the sons in spite of Praxtor's protection. Perhaps the dark magic granted to them by his chief enemy gives them power against Praxtor. We don't know.”

“All that we do know is that they will do anything to stop the transfer of power to the heir of the throne. If that were to happen the new king would be of sound mind and in complete control of his power. He would attempt to banish the followers of Setesh and restore order to the kingdom. Something that those mages do not want to happen.”

“Sons of Rhyum have been snuck out of the capital by the priesthood, supposedly on the orders of the queen who is kept as a prisoner by King Rhyum. King Rhyum's army has hunted the priests mercilessly and butchered completely the inhabits of any community, town, or city where they have been found. Harboring a son of the king and protecting him and his keeper even unknowingly is a crime punished by death. Nearly 50 years ago one of the priests brought a child to the city of Puinaroth. When the king's armies found them there, they destroyed the city and slaughtered everyone in it.”

“It is said that the queen wept for weeks at the death of her people. She promised never again would she let her people be murdered like that. She vowed to give every child to the king willingly. Since then no child has come out from the palace. The dark mages are no longer searching for children of the king. The Queen has kept her promise sending every child to the mages of Setesh. Such is the sacrifice she has made for her people.”

“Dark times have fallen on the kingdom. It seems that there is no hope. The priests of Praxtor now pray only that he will return and set things right. It is the last hope of our kingdom.” Tess finished her lecture with a grim face. The room was eerily silent.

“Aunt Tess?” Alen a 10 year old boy from a neighboring farm called out tentatively. “Why hasn't Praxtor returned to fix everything? 4000 years is a long time. Shouldn't the war between the gods be over?”

“A good question love. 4000 years is a very long time to us, but it is a short time to a god. They are immortal and live outside of time. They cannot be killed unless they are forgotten, their worship ceases.”

“If they can't be killed, how do they fight wars among themselves?” asked Layl one of the other boys from Master Valin's farm.

“The gods have followers in their realm as well as ours. Their power is weakened no matter where their followers are killed. If they lose to many followers in their realm, they cannot as easily work in ours and are thus easily forgotten increasing the power of their enemies.”

“Then why hasn't the dark mages of Setesh wiped out the priesthood of Praxtor? Certainly their god would want them to. Wouldn't he?” Asked Rachel.

“Yes, of course he would Hun. But King Rhyum stops them. As mad as he has become, he still is aware enough to know that the priesthood and believe in Praxtor is the key to his power. He would destroy the mages in an instant if it meant protecting his power. The dark mages cannot out right try and kill the followers of Praxtor. Instead they have built temples to Setesh in our Kingdom, in hopes of increasing his power by converting people to his worship. The king believes these temples are only for the followers of Setesh who inhabit the kingdom now, so he allows the temples to remain.”

“It's time to finish our lesson children. Remember what you have learned today.”

Jaiden looked thoughtfully over at Rachel. She had been listening very attentively to Aunt Tess and seemed almost like her old self again. She even participated in the discussion of the lesson. It was really good to see her acting like her old self again. Maybe it was time for him to talk to her. He started to get up but was stopped by a hand on his shoulder. He looked behind him to see Aunt Tess standing there.

“Jaiden Love, I know that this is hard for you but trust me on this. She isn't ready yet. Give her a little more time and she will come to you when she is ready.”

“Are you sure Aunt Tess? I just want things to be the way that they were again.”

“Hun, thing will never be exactly the same as they were. Your relationship with her has changed and she needs to decide what she wants to do about it. But I know that she is not going to abandon you. She still loves you deeply and I am sure that she always will.”

“Aunt Tess... that is exactly what I am afraid of. I can never give her what she wants, it's not who I am. I can't be the person she wants me to be.”

Aunt Tess looked puzzled, “What on earth are you talking about Love?”

“Well... it's... I mean... oh never mind! I can't explain it. Please just talk to her for me will you Aunt Tess?”

Aunt Tess stared at Jaiden and he began to feel a bit uncomfortable. He had almost said too much and now Aunt Tess was suspicious. Why had he said all that to her? She couldn't possibly know or guess his secret could she?

Finally Aunt Tess nodded, “OK Hun, I'll talk to her tonight. I can't promise that it will help but I will try.”

Jaiden smiled in relief, “Thanks Aunt Tess. I really appreciate it. Good night!” He nearly ran out the door to get away from her. Someday he was really going to have to learn to think before he speaks.

*****

Tess watched as Jaiden nearly ran from the room. The boy had become such a mystery to her. It was clear that he was hiding some kind of secret. She had been so surprised to find out that he had rejected Rachel. She was so sure that they really loved each other.

Had her instincts really been so wrong? They had never failed her before. She was more than a little concerned that she had read him wrong. Perhaps she was losing touch with her gift. She would have to take some time to see what she could do about that. It had been some time since she last practiced the rituals. The next full moon was almost a week away though, so it would have to wait. In the meantime, she would have to see what could be done about Rachel and Jaiden.

They may not be meant to be together romantically. She was willing to admit that she may have been wrong about that, but she was sure that their destinies were still tightly tied together. She would have to keep her promise and talk to the girl tonight. Help her see that he still needs her and that she still needs him. Even though it may not be in the way that she wanted.

Rachel had always been in love with the boy. It was clear she had always wanted to be with him. She worked hard at the things that he enjoyed, trying to prove that she could do them too. She wanted him to notice her and take interest in her. She wanted to show that she was interested in him and the things that interested him. Her drive to be successful in everything she tried came from Jaiden. It would be sad to see that potential wasted because of a failed relationship.

Tess sighed, in all her years of service, this was proving to be the most difficult task she had ever been given. Normally winning the trust of her charges was easy for her. Usually they would feel so at ease with her they would tell her everything she wanted to know without even realizing what they were doing. There was definitely something odd about Jaiden. That he was able to resist her was quite amazing. Still it could just be the need for the ritual. Perhaps she had just let too much time pass since the last one. Well Jaiden could keep his secrets for now. We all have our secrets that we keep to ourselves. In time she would know everything. There was no rush for her to know now.

She glanced over to where Rachel still stood talking to Alyssa, a friend she rarely saw from a few farms over. Tonight she would find out what was going on with Rachel. Tess had a feeling that the girl was the key to the boy. She took one last look before leaving the study and heading towards the kitchen. There was still work to be done and appearances had to be kept up.

*****

Jaiden sat on his bed and looked out the window. He really hoped that Aunt Tess would be able to help things with Rachel. Something felt a bit odd to him though. Why had he felt such a need to tell Aunt Tess his secret. He had never felt such a strong compulsion to share it before. Was Aunt Tess more than just the simple farmer's wife that she seemed? Jaiden was starting to think that she was. No normal human had ever affected him so deeply before. Could there be magic involved somehow?

He was interrupted in his thoughts by a knock at his door. It was soft as if the person on the other side wasn't sure they wanted him to answer. Jaiden pulled open the door and was surprised to find Rachel standing there. He stared at her in shock and she looked back shyly at him.

Finally she seemed to gather her courage, “Hi Jai, I'm sorry how I reacted to you the other day. I realize that I have been coming about this all wrong. I tried so hard to share interests with you and to be good at all the things that you are good at. I realize that I treated you as a friend and as a big brother. I never was what you really needed. I never was a proper lady. All that is going to change now. Jai, I can be whatever you need me to be. I just wanted you to know that!” She lifted herself up with her toes and kissed him lightly on the cheek before turning and running down the hall, her face turning a bright shade of crimson.

Jaiden stared after her as she ran still in shock. Finally he came back to his senses, closed his door and collapsed on his bed. Oh was this going to be fun... Where could she possibly have gotten this idea from? Wherever it came from Jaiden was not looking forward to the results of Rachel's efforts. It had always been clear to him and everyone else that Rachel would never make what would be considered a proper lady. It was going to be even more painful for her when she found out that this still wasn't the problem and that he was going to have to reject her again. Maybe he was going to have to tell her the truth, that he was not the person that she thought he was. That he was truly someone else, something else.

Maybe he should let Aunt Tess talk to her first. Maybe Aunt Tess could help. Life was definitely about to get a whole lot more interesting around here for awhile.

As Rachel puts her plan into action, Jaiden is in for a rougher ride than he ever expected with consequences he never dreamed of.

Transcendent — 3:
~She's a Lady~

The first light of dawn broke through the window and chased the darkness from the room. Jaiden woke from his deep sleep and strange dreams. He tried to recall exactly what he dreamed about, but as usual it slipped away from him. For some reason he had never been able to recall his dreams upon waking. He just remembered having them. It was very odd to him as normally he could recall things clearly and accurately with little to no effort.

He quickly climbed out of bed and filled the wash basin from the pitcher of water he kept next to it. The water was cool on his face and chest and left him feeling refreshed and alert. He dressed quickly, straightened up the room and left to get a quick breakfast from the kitchen before starting on his chores.

He was looking forward to the work today as he had a lot to think about. It had taken sometime for him to fall asleep after Rachel's visit to his room. He needed to decide what he was going to do, what he could do and he always felt most relaxed and in control when he was working with his hands. He wondered what Rachel was going to surprise him with today. Knowing her, he knew that whatever she was planning was going to start soon.

Before he could reach the stairs going down to the kitchen, Master Valin came out of the room he shared with Aunt Tess. He was a stocky man in his early fifties and his black hair was thinning out and tinged with gray. His weight seemed to grow in direct proportion with the farms prosperity and judging by his current looks the farm was doing very well indeed.

“Ah good, Jaiden you're up.” He said, his deep voice was entirely too cheerful for the early hour. “Elayne needs some more wood for stoves. I need you to take care of that first thing this morning.”

“Yes Master Valin, I'll start on it right away.”

“Good man.” Master Valin clapped him on the back and continued on down the hallway.

Jaiden waited respectfully for the large man to disappear around a corner before continuing down to the kitchen. Master Valin was a hard man and strict on formalities. He insisted on being treated with the respect due to his station and was fond of pointing out that he had earned everything he had through hard work and determination to succeed.

While Jaiden was convinced that the real key to Master Valin's success was Jedd driving off the local bandits and keeping trouble away, he did have to admit that the farm had come a long way from the time that it was worked only by Master Valin and his two sons. It had nearly tripled in size and now employed a dozen farmhands as well as a number of women who helped Aunt Tess manage the house.

Master Valin's real pride however was the stables and the half a dozen horses it held. Most farmers were lucky acquire a single old horse while Master Valin kept two young Stallions and four mares. In fact, his two sons no longer even lived on the farm, now the were partners in breeding and selling horses. Seth, the older of the two spent much of his time traveling to nearby towns and cities selling while Gavin was in charge of the breeding. The horses on the farm were some of their finest stock.

Jaiden entered the kitchen and was immediately greeted by a hard cold stare from Elayne, the woman in charge of the kitchens. “Good morning Elayne, I promise I'll get to the wood as soon as I've had a quick bite to eat.”

“Ain't nothin' good about this morning, and it ain't the wood that I'm worried about.” She spat back her voice dripping with vehemence. “You've got some nerve comin' in here after what you've done. You want to eat you'll eat what she's prepared.”

Jaiden stared at the usually jovial woman in complete shock wondering what had gotten her into such a mood. Suddenly all the color drained from his face as her words sank in. “Wait... you mean... Rachel's in there? And she's cooking? Not just scrubbing the pots or cleaning the kitchen, but actually cooking?”

“Aye, she came in here early this mornin' insistin' on cookin' a meal for you. She wouldn't take no for an answer and she's made an absolute mess of my kitchens! I'll be expectin' you in here to clean it all up.” Elayne glared at him threateningly.

Jaiden's face took on a shade of green. “I'm... um... suddenly... I think I'm not that hungry after all. You know Master Valin told me to start on that wood pile first thing this morning. I better get to it.”

“Ah no you don't! You ain't gettin' out of this that easily. You sit right there and you wait for that food. Ain't no one else gonna be eatin' it.” Her words were punctuated by a loud crash, a billow of smoke escaping from the kitchen door, and some very unladylike shouts. Elayne's face turned red and she almost ran back into the kitchen. “She'd better not start my kitchen on fire again or you're in for it!”

Jaiden took a seat at the table and sighed. As much as he and Jedd often teased Rachel about her place being in the kitchen the truth was she had been banished from it quite awhile ago after her last attempts at cooking left half the farmhands laid up in bed for a week, and the kitchen almost completely gutted by fire the following week. At the time Rachel was happy to be banished from that work which Jaiden took as a blessing, because no one had ever really been able to stop her from doing something once she had set her mind to it. He winced as shouts drifted out the door of the kitchen.

Jaiden sighed in relief a few minutes later when Rachel came out carrying a large tray with a big smile on her face. For a minute there he had thought the two women were going to kill eachother. Although his relief quickly faded when Rachel set the tray in front of him.

“Good morning Jai. Isn't it a beautiful morning? I hope you're hungry I made this all for you.” she took a seat across from him and watched him expectantly.

“Um... Good morning Rachel. I.. uh.. I'm not that hungry... it's an awful lot of food on that plate. Why don't you help me eat it?” Jaiden asked hopefully.

No such luck, as Rachel shook her head. “Oh no... I couldn't possibly, I have to watch my figure and you need your strength. You've got a lot of work to do today.”

Jaiden looked at the plate in front of him. The black hunk of what he could only assume to be bread looked more like a loaf shaped lump of coal, and he was pretty sure the green things were eggs. How in the world did she manage to make green eggs?? At least the ham looked edible, although he wasn't too sure about that either. Maybe if he dipped soaked the chunk of rock that passed for bread in his milk...

“I do have a lot of work to do, but it would be impolite if I ate while you had nothing.” He tried one more time.

“Jai. I made this all specially for you. Don't worry about me, I already ate something earlier.”

When she put it that way it was hard to argue with her. She probably didn't eat her own cooking though. Then again, maybe she did. Her eyes sure seemed to be twitching a lot. Or maybe she had just gotten something in them.

“Hey, are you ok? Are you feeling alright?”

“Whatever are you talking about? I'm perfectly fine.”

She sounded confused about my question. Either she didn't eat her own cooking, she ate it and has a cast iron stomach, or she was trying to act strong. Judging from the way she kept twitching her eyes when she was looking at him, he guessed it was the later.

He looked over at Rachel who smiled at him expectantly. He swallowed and licked his dry lips. Well... he did owe her something after all that he had put her through. With luck he might get sick and be unable to eat for the rest of the week. Picking up his fork he looked again at the pile of food on the plate and took a big scoop of green eggs, and smiled back at Rachel. Here goes nothing...

“Well? How does it taste?”

Like I just ate a forkful of gravel. How did he know what gravel tasted like? Simple. He ate Rachel's eggs.

“Um... They're good.”

“Oh I'm so very glad you enjoy them. Maybe I'll make them for you everyday.” her face took on a look of concern. “Are you quite alright? You look like you've seen a ghost.”

“Oh I'm fine.” Something very odd was going on here. Rachel had never sounded like this before. It was almost as if he was talking to a completely different person. Why was she talking so funny?

*****

Jaiden swung the axe as hard as he could splitting the wood. He paused and took a moment to rest as his stomach felt like it was turning inside out. Rachel had sat there the whole time he was eating watching until everything was gone from his plate. It had taken him nearly an hour, but somehow he managed to get through it all and keep it down. Rachel had clapped and kissed him on the cheek again excited at her first successful meal creation. Once she disappeared up the stairs, Jaiden made a beeline for the door and barely made it outside before emptying his stomach. It had only been sheer will power on his part that had made it possible for him to hold everything down as long as he had. He certainly hoped that she would give up on this soon because he didn't think he could face another one of her meals.

He wondered if Aunt Tess had talked to her last night like she had promised. If she had, then things obviously hadn't gone as well as he hoped. In that case he would have to come up with a solution for the problem on his own. There had to be something that he could do to convince her to give this up without hurting her again.

He thought long and hard about it, but nothing came to him. He supposed that he could just be a jerk and refuse to eat her cooking. She was bound to find out sooner or later that he couldn't eat it. A part of him was telling him to trust her with his secret. But he couldn't do that could he? He just knew if he did that it was not going to end well for either of them.

Maybe the best thing he could do was leave earlier than he had planned. Just pack a bag and slip away quietly during the night. He had already learned a lot for Jedd and could take care of himself. The lessons from Aunt Tess had prepared him well too. He could read and write, he had a good knowledge of the world outside Davenshire. He was convinced that he could make it on his own if it came to that.

Sure Rachel would be hurt, but in the end it would be the best for both of them wouldn't it? He knew that she would hurt for awhile, but maybe it would be the best way for her to be able to move on and to get over him. He was definitly going to miss her when he left, but that would be the case whether he left now or later. Still it felt like the coward's way out. He was going to have to give it more thought.

His stomach finally settled again and Jaiden set back into his work with a fury. He wanted to lose himself in the mindless repetitiveness of the task at hand. There was just too much going on right now that he didn't feel ready to deal with. He felt like he had been tossed in the ocean and swept up in a storm. He need to be calm and rational about all of this.

*****

Rachel stood quietly in her room watching Jaiden out the window as he worked at chopping the wood. He looked just a little ill she thought. OK so maybe the kitchen was a bad idea... cooking had never really been one her strong points. More than once she thought that Elayne was going to skewer her and roast her over the fire.

Everyone always talked about how friendly Elayne was, but Rachel was convinced they just didn't spend enough time around the old sow. Elayne acted like the kitchen was a castle and she was the queen there. Everyone was always supposed to do whatever she told them to do when she told them to do it. She acted like she knew better than anyone else.
Sure she was the cook, but that didn't give her the right to hit girls with spoons. Rachel sat down and winced in pain. Somehow or other she was going to teach that old sow a lesson. She would have loved to have fought back, but Aunt Tess had spoken to her quite sternly about not being welcome anymore the last time she broke one of the stablehand's arms.

Not that he didn't deserve it! All that talk about mounting and then the pinch. Most of the girls secretly congratulated Rachel on that one. Even Aunt Tess seemed sympathetic, which was the only reason she wasn't out the door that time. Rachel had been pretty steamed up by the lecture at first until Jaiden told her what Jedd had done to the boy. She realized she had gotten off easy with only a lecture. He was gone from the farm as soon as his arm was healthy again. She had heard he was now working two farms over but he never came back for any of the classes or holiday celebrations.

Besides Aunt Tess' threat there was another reason that Rachel couldn't fight with Elayne. She had committed herself to being a proper lady for Jaiden and a proper lady would never get in a fight. She should have realized a long time ago that he wanted a really feminine woman. After all, they had been friends for years, as long as she could remember and he had never once tried anything with her. He must have always seen her as one of the boys and never thought of her as a girl.

Well all that was going to change now. She was going to make sure that he noticed her from now on. Of course she was going to have to learn to cook food that was edible. That would mean sucking up to the old sow in the kitchen. Rachel shrugged it was going to be hard for her to do that, but the end result would be worth it if Jaiden liked her cooking.
She looked at the beautiful ornately carved chest in the corner of the room. It had been there as long as she had, inside was all that she had left of her mother and father. She felt a touch of sadness at that thought. She wished that she could remember her parents. She didn't really know anything about them, no one in the small community did. Rachel had been told that she was brought here and left by a man who was supposedly her uncle. He had said that he was left to care for her when her parents died, but that he traveled too much and it was no life for a young girl. He had begged Master Valin and Aunt Tess to take her in, and they agreed. She had been on the farm ever since.

Aunt Tess and Master Valin had been kind to her. They treated her well and looked after her, but they always felt like an aunt and uncle who looked after her because they had to, not because they wanted to. They meant well, but the closeness was just lacking. Over the years she had seen many young people come and go from the farm. Some left to seek their own destinies, some left to find what they could of their past, and others left because they were deemed to be trouble makers or behaved in an unacceptable manner.

To be honest, Rachel sometimes wondered why they still allowed her to stay. She definitely fell outside of the standard behavior that was expected at the farm. Although they were strict with her about things like fighting with the other people there, for the most part they gave her some free reign. She wondered if perhaps her uncle had been paying something to Master Valin and Aunt Tess to keep her there. It would explain why she was given more freedom and chances than the others at the farm.

Aunt Tess had always watched Rachel a bit more closely than the others as well too. At least Rachel was pretty sure that she did anyways. It felt as though for some reason that she couldn't explain Aunt Tess had taken a special interest in her and Jaiden. She often saw Aunt Tess looking at them while they went about their day.
She thought back to the conversation the two of them had the night before. Aunt Tess had come in and asked to talk to her. She wasn't at all surprised to find out that it was about her and Jaiden. She always seemed to know everything that was going on everywhere on the farm.

Aunt Tess had tried to tell her that Jaiden she wasn't interested in romantic relationships at all right now, and that she should just try and be his friend for the time being. She told her that he would probably come around in time and that when the time was right he would let her know. She reminded her that Jaiden loved her dearly and that she was still very important to him. They were family to each other.

Rachel wasn't so sure that Aunt Tess was right. She had talked to Alyssa after the lesson in the classroom and thought what she told her made much more sense than what Aunt Tess was saying. Alyssa had been telling her for years that she was much too boyish if she ever wanted to get a man interested in her, she was going to have to change. Alyssa always tried to look her best even when she was working. She would spend hours painting her face and styling her hair. She always wore a dress or skirts. Most importantly she always had guys following her wherever she went. Yes Alyssa knew what she was talking about and if anyone could give her advice on how to win Jaiden over, it was definitely Alyssa.

Although Alyssa's method wasn't going to see immediate results either. Maybe Aunt Tess had a point after all. Hadn't she told her that Jaiden would eventually come around? Rachel was just going to do what it takes to make sure that it happened sooner rather than later.

Rachel looked again at the chest in the corner of the room. It had been sometime since she last looked at the things inside. It seemed it was about time that she looked inside again.

*****

Jaiden grinned genuinely when Jedd called for the end of combat training for the day. He was sore, exhausted and still a little sick. It had been a long and very tiring day and one that he was glad was almost over. Tonight he wanted nothing more than a long soak in a nice hot bath followed by an early night in bed.

He lowered his sword bowed to Lyal his sparring partner and began to pack up his equipment. Lyal grinned at him as he removed the quilted armor they wore during practice. “Hey Jai. I heard that you and Rachel split up. Seeing as she isn't attached to your hip anymore, I guess it must be true.”

Matt and Glen looked over from where they were also packing up their gear. “Yeah, I heard that too. It was a good move Jai. Now you can find a real girl to take her place. There are plenty around here that would love to take that chance too you know.” Matt said with a wink.

Glen laughed, “It's really too bad that Rachel is so boyish, she's a pretty girl, it's a shame that she wastes her looks.”

Jaiden snarled and had Glen's neck in his hand almost before Glen knew what hit him. His face turned deathly white and his eyes were wide with fright.

Jaiden felt hands grabbing his shoulders and pulling at him, he swung a fist back dropping Glen to the ground in the same motion. Matt staggered back holding a hand over his eye. Lyal stepped in front of Jaiden holding his hands in the air.

“Easy Jaiden, we didn't mean anything disrespectful about Rachel. We were just joking weren't we guys.”

Glen and Matt nodded emphatically. Glen was rubbing at his neck and Matt was still holding a hand over his right eye.
“Yes of course. We love Rachel like a sister too. It was just a harmless joke.” Glen said hoarsely.

Jaiden glared angrily at Glen. “I had better not hear you talk that way about her again. Joke or not.”

Glen swallowed and took a nervous step back. Jaiden took a deep breath and visibly relaxed. “I'm sorry guys. I don't know what came over me. It's been a long day. I think I need to go and lie down for a bit.”

Lyal nodded. “Go ahead and take a rest Jai, I'll clean up the rest of your gear for you. You don't look so well.”
Jaiden nodded and started slowly towards the farmhouse. A wave of dizziness washed over him. Maybe he was going to need that rest this afternoon instead of tonight.

“Of course he doesn't look good. He ate Rachel's cooking this morning.” Matt muttered.

“Not so loud. He'll hear you!” hissed Glen.

Jedd came over to Jaiden frowning and looking a little worried. At least Jaiden thought he was looked worried. “You alright?”

“I'm not sure. I feel a bit dizzy.”

“Is that why you looked like you were going to kill those boys?”

Jaiden looked at Jedd expecting see angry or accusation in his eyes, instead his expression was blank. “I don't know what came over me. They were joking around about Rachel and not too kindly when suddenly I felt so angry.”

Jedd just nodded. “Well get it under control boy. Get back to the house and take a rest, you look like a dead man walking. If anyone gives you a hard time about your work, tell them to take it up with me.”

Jaiden smiled appreciatively. “Thank you sir.” He said as the world suddenly spun. The last thing he heard was a curse from Jedd as the world blacked out.

Transcendent — 4:
~Trouble in the Winds~

Jaiden groaned and clenched his teeth as he woke, his entire body ached with a dull pain. He peered around the room with blurry vision and recognized that he was in his own bed in the farmhouse. The sheets of the bed were soaked with sweat, and his stomach was a rolling and seething knot. He felt a cold damp cloth being placed on his forehead as someone wiped the sweat from his brow.

“Good, you're finally awake. Drink this Hun.”

Jaiden sniffed the cup Aunt Tess held in front of him. His stomach heaved at the vile smell. Taking a deep breath he tried to steel himself before drinking it all. His eyes began to water and he gagged at the taste. It was the worst thing he had ever tasted. It felt like slime sliding down his throat.

“That's horrid! I think I'm going to be ill!”

“Are you Love?” Aunt Tess asked looking a bit amused. “As opposed to how you feel now?”

“Alright. Well then, if anything I'm going to be even more sick.”

“Really?”

“Of course! How could something so vile tasting be good for me? I've been having a hard enough time keeping things down. That's just going to make things worse.”

“Is it?”

“Yes! How many times do I have to tell you! I feel... well... actually... I feel better.” Jaiden said somewhat sheepishly. His stomach had slowed in it's churning, and the ache in his muscles seemed to have lessened as well. “In fact I can even see clearly again.”

Aunt Tess laughed loudly. “Of course you feel better. I do know what I am doing. You should be up and on your feet again in a couple of days.”

Jaiden smiled. He really was feeling a lot better, and he assumed it would only get better from here on in. A few days in bed resting would be a very nice break from his daily routine.

“So what's wrong with me?”

“It seems you have severe food poisoning Hun,” Aunt Tess said sympathetically.

Jaiden heard a sharp gasp from off to his right and looked over to see Rachel standing in the corner looking down at the floor. Her back was to him, and he couldn't see her face, but he knew that she must be very upset.

“Rach, look at me.”

She shook her head continuing to stare at the floor, unwilling to face him.

“Come on, come over here. I'm not angry, I don't hate you, and I don't blame you for this.”

She turned suddenly looking right at him. “You don't blame me?!? This is all my fault! I almost killed you! If you had died... I... I... I don't know what I would have done!” She burst into tears.

“Rach, look I'm going to be fine. Aunt Tess said I'll be back on my feet in a couple of days. I'm already feeling much better. I'm going to be OK. Everything is alright.”

Jaiden stared to feel really torn. He knew that Rachel needed to hear this, he wanted to tell her that everything was going to be OK and alright. Yet, he knew that everything was not going to be alright. Sooner or later he was going to have to leave. Things were never going to be alright as long as he stayed here on the farm. She was always going to want something that he couldn't give.

Rachel sniffed and dried her face. “I'm so sorry Jai. It really is all my fault. I'm going to take care of you. I won't leave your side until you are better. You'll see.”

Jaiden could see the guilt in her eyes. He knew that she really wanted to do this, that she really needed to do this in order to get over her guilt. But how could he agree to it? If he agreed, he knew that it was likely that she would read something into it. She would think that he was coming around to her way of thinking, that they were meant to be together. They still hadn't sorted out all the issues between them. He didn't want to lead her into thinking things were going that way when they weren't. He should tell her the truth about his feelings, that they haven't changed. She was so fragile right now, a wrong word would set her off again. He knew he really needed to be careful about what he said.

“Rach, I'm OK... you really don't need to do that.” Well... one attempt at the cowards way out couldn't hurt.

No such luck, Rachel shock her head again. “No I do. I really do. I insist on it. It's my fault so I am going to be the one that takes care of you.”

Jaiden nodded. “OK Rach, you can take care of me. Um... Rach... this isn't going to change the things we talked about before... I still feel the same way as I did before...”

Rachel smiled. “Don't worry about it Jai. I know that. I'm just going to help the best that I can. What are sisters for.” She turned away from him again, busying herself by grabbing a fresh cloth and dipping it in a bucket of water.

Jaiden didn't buy her cheery facade. He knew her well enough to know that his words had hurt her. He could hear a tightness in her voice at the last bit. Still it was a sign that she was starting to come around, or at least trying to wasn't it? Or maybe she still had some plan that she thought would bring him around.

“It looks like the drink I gave you is working better than I expected. You seem to be feeling a lot better Love.”

Jaiden looked back at Aunt Tess, he had forgotten that she was even still in the room. “I am feeling quite a bit better. Thank you Aunt Tess. What was that drink you gave me?”

“Oh just an old family tonic that's been passed down in my family for years.”

“It's pretty powerful stuff. I can't believe how much better I feel already.”

“I'm glad you like it.” Aunt Tess grinned. “Maybe I'll make it your new daily breakfast.”

“Ah... no... I don't think I'd like that.” Jaiden grimaced remembering the vile taste.

Aunt Tess laughed. “Alright, I've got a lot to do today. I am happy you are feeling better, and I am sure Rachel will take great care of you.”

Jaiden breathed a sigh of relief as she left taking the rest of the foul tonic with her. He was afraid that she was going to leave it here with instructions for Rachel to give him more.

“She's right you know. That tonic really helped. You do look a lot better.” Rachel said.

Jaiden agreed. “I know. I almost asked her what was in it, but somehow I think I am better off not knowing. I am glad it worked, but honestly, I'd be happy if I never tasted that stuff again.”

Rachel wrinkled her nose. “It did smell pretty bad didn't it?”

“Oh it was the worst thing I ever smelt. I didn't thing anything could be worse than your cooking but...” Jaiden's face turned bright red. “I mean...”

Rachel's eyes took on a dangerous glint. Jaiden looked at her fearfully cowering a little in the bed. Suddenly Rachel burst out laughing. “I suppose it's true. My cooking really is that bad isn't it?”

Jaiden smiled. “Rach your cooking could make a god sick.”

Rachel feigned an indignant look and smacked him playfully on the arm. It felt just like old times again.

*****

Tess stood outside the door of the room listening as the two continued talking. There was something very strange going on here. She knew that Jaiden had to be important somehow as she had been sent there to watch him. There was definitely something unusual about him. He had started to recover much faster than even she expected. Her cure was powerful stuff, but it had never worked quite that fast before. He was much too alert and a lot less sleepy than he should be. He should have felt a bit better and then fallen quickly asleep.

Not for the first time, Tess began to wish that she had been given more information about him when she was first assigned the task of watching him. She had been on the farm almost as long as he has been there and still had yet to discover anything truly significant about him. Sure there were mysteries about him that she had discovered, but it was all questions with no answers. What could possibly make him so important?

The biggest question to Tess was how had the boy managed to resist her gift? At first she thought she had gone too long without the ritual, but her gift seemed to still work on everyone else she tested it on. For some strange reason, he alone was immune to it's effects.

Tess wished that his mother was still alive. Perhaps she would have had the answers Tess needed. Unfortunately, the woman had died in an accident on the farm shortly after Tess first arrived herself. Valin had been no help in that area either. He only knew that the two had arrived seeking shelter not long after the bandits had been chased out of the area. In fact, they were the first to arrive after Jedd and the beginning of Valin's agreement to let people stay if they were willing to do their share of the work. They had come seeking safety from dangerous places in the world, and in a tragic twist of fate, Jaiden's mother died shortly after arriving when a bull broke free of it's pen and charged her where she sat milking. Tess couldn't help but wonder if she would have shown the same immunity to her gift as the boy, or if she would have provided something useful.

She sighed and walked away from the room. That is all in the past and there is no point in dwelling on things that can't be changed now. From the sounds of things, Rachel was about to get Jaiden to sleep, and it wouldn't do to be caught standing outside the door. As she headed back down towards the kitchens, her thoughts turned to Rachel.

She was the other one that Tess had pledged to watch, and the fact that the two were so close made it only that much easier to watch them both. Rachel's past was well known to Tess, although not well known to the girl herself. Tess did not have many questions about her, but she did wonder what the connection was between her and Jaiden. What a peasant's son had to do with Rachel was a mystery. That the two were connected was very clear to her, the only question was why. She hoped that one way or another she would have her answers soon.

There were still four more days before the full moon. She would complete the ritual to strengthen her power and try talking to Jaiden then. She doubted that he would be able to resist her gift in those conditions.

Yes in only a few more days she would know everything. Her instincts were telling her that time was off the essence. If she didn't find out what was going on soon, it would be too late. Tess knew that this was more important than it appeared. She had been told by the one who sent her that what she did on this farm may be the most important thing she has ever done. It was something to think about as she continued about her day.

*****

Rachel quietly closed the door to Jaiden's room and listened carefully to his steady even breathing. He had already drifted off to sleep again. She wasn't surprised, Aunt Tess had warned her that the drink would likely knock him out almost immediately after drinking it.

What exactly had just happened in there? Somehow she and Jaiden had fallen back into their old habits. They talked in the same way that they always did. He had told her again that he did not want to be her lover. It had hurt but somehow she had been drawn out of the hurt and into their old patterns. It was very strange. Even now she still felt OK with everything. It was as if something was affecting her mind. Like something was making her feel that everything was going to be alright no matter how bad things looked now.

Perhaps it had something to do with the rest of her plan. She was pretty sure that had to be it. She was feeling confident that once Jaiden saw what she had planned everything would come together like it is supposed to. They would be together and live a long and happy life.

She was relieved when she heard that Jaiden would only be in bed for three more days. It would have ruined her plans otherwise. In four days they would be celebrating the summer solstice. It was always celebrated with a traditional feast and a dance that went late into the night. They would stop all work on the farm and celebrate for four days. It was one of the most significant events of the year and this year Rachel had it all planned out. By the end of the celebration, Jaiden would be hers forever.

When she had heard that he had collapsed, she had been so worried. She had felt certain that her cooking must have been the cause. If only her stupid pride hadn't gotten in the way. She would have admitted that she can't cook and thrown out the food with no harm done. Of course hearing Aunt Tess confirm it wasn't something she really wanted to hear. She was worried that Jaiden would hate her because of it, but he forgave her. If that wasn't a sign that he really loved her, then she didn't know what was. Yes, Jaiden truly loved her, and they really were meant to be together. He just didn't realize it yet. But that was going to change, she was going to see to it. Rachel smiled to herself and returned to her room. Things were going to work out just perfectly.

*****

Jedd stood in the practice ring watching as Lyal and Matt circled each other looking for openings to strike. He always felt pride in what he had accomplished with these boys and how well they were coming along in their training. Today however, he just couldn't concentrate on watching the boys. He was too concerned with Jaiden.

When the boy had collapsed in front of him Jedd was taken completely by surprise. He could not remember ever seeing the boy get sick before. He was by far the healthiest and strongest person on the farm. Jedd had even started to think that it wasn't even possible for the boy to get sick. Rachel's cooking was pretty powerful stuff indeed. Jedd briefly wondered if there was some way to use that to their advantage in the case of an attack... No of course not. What was he going to do? Toss a muffin in the enemies mouth while they were fighting? It was a shame though. Jedd never liked to pass up any advantage no matter how small or unusual it might be.

It was a silly idea anyways. He had much more important things to worry about. He needed Jaiden to get well soon so that he could continue his training. There was still a lot that he had to teach the boy before he was ready. Jaiden was the most apt pupil he had ever taught, the only other person at the farm that even came close was Rachel. Now there was a girl with talent. Jedd had been watching over her for many years now and taught her everything that he could. She was certainly more than she seemed to everyone around her. Jedd knew that when it came right down to it, the girl could easily take care of her opponent in most fights. With the advantage of being a female, her opponents would be even more likely to underestimate her. He knew that because of that, she could probably beat just about anyone.

Jaiden was a fool for letting her go. Worst of all by doing so, he interrupted her training! Jedd was going to have to find someway to get her back out in the ring. He had a feeling that she was going to need the skills he was teaching her someday. It had been a long time since he was a young man, but he did remember how love could affect someone. It might not be easy to get her back out here. Yes, Jaiden was a fool for letting her go, or perhaps he is wise. Could it be that he sense something he is not supposed to know?

Jedd was so occupied with his thoughts and the issue of Rachel and Jaiden that he had not been paying as close attention to his charges as normal. Nor was he keeping as close a watch as he normally would on the surrounding area. He didn't notice that they boys in charge of watching the fields were paying more attention to the ring than the skies. No one saw the raven that circled the farm several times before heading straight east in a direct line towards Shiram. Trouble was riding on the winds and change was coming.

As enemies prepare to descend and chaos is about to erupt, many secrets are revealed.

Transcendent — 5:
~Secrets Revealed~

The raven flew high over the city of Shiram heading straight for the palace of King Rhyum. A tall tower with wide open windows rose high above the large ornate complex. The raven swooped through an open window of the rookery and landed on a perch with a loud caw.

A young man sitting at a desk looked up at the raven in complete surprise, a look of shock clearly on his face. “Master Tarul!” he called out excitedly, “The raven we sent out East has returned!”

Master Tarul quickly rose from his seat and dashed up the stairs. He moved with a surprising quickness for someone so old. His small beady eyes light up and his mouth broke into a yellow toothed smile at the sight of the bird.

Finally one of his scouts had returned. He had been sending Ravens out for almost fifteen years now searching the surrounding area. Many of the birds never returned home. The people of the Northern Kingdom recognized that Ravens were the spies of the dark mages of Setesh and often killed them on sight. Of the few that had returned, none had ever returned from the east.

This only led Master Tarul to believe that what they sought was hiding somewhere in the east part of the kingdom. He and his apprentice Zikor had talked about it frequently and both were convinced that the east was the key. Now finally after all these years, one of his birds had made a successful trip. It was time to find out what it had learned.

There was of course a chance that he was wrong about the east, or that the bird had not found anything useful. Master Tarul rubbed his hands together in anticipation. There was only one way to find out. Talking softly and moving slowly, he reached out for the bird. The raven hopped from it's perch and landed lightly on his outstretched arm.

Master Tarul placed one hand over the birds head and sprinkled some glowing dust over the birds head. As he sprinkled the dust he began to chant in a spidery sounding tongue.

Finally after what felt like hours but was actually only ten minutes he stopped his chanting and smiled. His spell had allowed him to see everything the bird had seen on it's flight. Tarul had sped through most of the images stopping only when he found something that looked important. Watching the scenes of a small farm carefully and closely, he let out a loud cackle.

“We were right Zikor! The east was the key we thought it would be.” He was trembling with excitement.

“You mean you found him?” Zikor asked. “He's there?”

“Yes, he's there. I found him on a small farm in Davenshire.”

Zikor leapt from his chair in excitement. “This is perfect! I'll prepare your best robe immediately and have a messenger set up an audience with King Rhyum.”

“No, that won't be necessary. I won't be telling the king. I'll pass the information on to Nesath. He can tell the king.”

Zikor looked at his master with disappointment clearly written on his face. “But why? If you let Nesath tell him, he will take all the credit for your discovery. He'll gain influence, and you'll be left here in the rookery.”

“Exactly. That is precisely what I want.” Tarul smiled at the boy.

Zikor frowned. “Why master? Why wouldn't you want more power?”

“Because King Rhyum is insane. He'll kill for no reason at all. I value my life as a spymaster more than being a convenient blast target for madman.” Tarul explained patiently. “If you were wise you would take my advice. Leave court politics to the foolishly ambitious. Let Nesath keep the ear of the king. He can be the one to tell him that Tyrone has been found.”

*****

Jaiden stretched as he lay on his bed. The first day of rest was quite pleasant. He had spent most of it sleeping and the rest of it talking with Rachel. Things seemed like they were getting back to usual between the two of them. The strain and distance he had been feeling was gone and he was relieved. She hadn't even mentioned anything about her feelings to him. It looked like she was ready to be friends again. He sincerely hoped that all the talk of a future together was gone for good.

He had taken Aunt Tess' tonic twice more that day as well. It tasted even more foul as he got better. It seemed that his sickness had been affecting his sense of taste. It was almost a shame that he was getting it back so quickly. Although he had enjoyed his day of rest yesterday, he was feeling restless today. He felt as healthy as he ever had and he wondered why he was supposed to remain in bed for another day and a half. He had thought that he would enjoy the break, but in actuality, he missed his work and his training.

He thoughts were interrupted as light burst into the dark room. Rachel came in carrying a small tray covered by a cloth. “Good morning Jai. Did you sleep well?” she asked cheerily.

Jaiden stretched again. “Very well. I'm feeling really good today.”

Rachel smiled, “Great! Then you must be hungry.”

Jaiden eyed the covered tray warily. “You know Rach, I really do feel much better. I don't think I need the tonic today.”

Rachel laughed, “Well then you are in luck. Aunt Tess decided that we were going to start you on some real food. You won't need the tonic anymore.”

Jaiden sighed in relief then his face grew serious. “Um... Rach... I have to ask...”

“Don't worry Jai.” Rachel interrupted. “I didn't cook the food.”

Jaiden smiled. “Well in that case, hand it over. I'm starving!”

Rachel looked at him a hurt expression on her face. “But I've been working so hard at learning to cook! I spend every free second I have in the kitchen. Don't you want to try my cooking and see how much better I've gotten?”

Jaiden blinked, “Uh...Of course I do. I just think that I need to get better first. I still feel pretty sick, and I think I better be at my best before I eat your food. I mean... I am sure it will be great, but if I get sick again it'd be because I can't handle real food again yet. I wouldn't want you to blame your cooking.”

Rachel suddenly burst into a fit of laughter. “I'm kidding Jai! I have been trying to learn to cook, but I know I still have a long way to go to get to the point where I making something edible. Don't worry about it.”

Jaiden grinned back at her. “Don't be so hard on yourself Rach, I am sure that you've gotten a lot better already. I'm sure your food won't cause mass sickness anymore. You've always done well at anything you've tried hard to do. I am sure it's true about your cooking too.”

“You're only saying that because there's none here for you to eat right now.”

“You got that right!” laughed Jaiden. “What did you bring me anyways?”

“Nothing to special. Just some bread and a bowl of soup. Aunt Tess wants to make sure you can keep this done before giving you something more substantial to eat.” Rachel said apologetically.

Jaiden didn't care, after two days of only drinking Aunt Tess' tonic he would eat almost anything happily. He smiled at the tray Rachel placed in front of him. Finally some real food! He eagerly dug into the soup; it tasted divine. Rachel smiled as she watched him eat, occasionally a moan of pleasure would escape his throat.

“I have another surprise for you.” she told him once he had finished eating.

Jaiden was busy collecting the bread crumbs off his plate. “Oh? What is that?” he asked warily.

“Well I figured you'd be pretty tired of resting in bed by now, so I brought you a few books to read from the study.”

She took a bag off her shoulder and handed it to Jaiden. He took a look inside and scanned the titles. He smiled as he recognized the titles of some of his favorite stories about past heroes. Some of which he hadn't read since he was a young child.

“Thanks Rach, that was pretty thoughtful of you. I was feeling a bit restless this morning.”

“Of course you were. I know you better than you know yourself.” She smiled, “Anyways, I'll leave you to your reading for now. I'll come check on you again in a couple hours.”

Jaiden pulled out a book as he watched her leave. She may think that she knew him better than he knew himself, but she would be in for a big surprise on that front.

*****

Nesath grinned wickedly as he listened to Tarul's report. “You are absolutely certain that it is him?”

“Oh yes. I am very sure. He does look quite different but it is most definitely him.” Tarul assured.

“Excellent. I shall inform his majesty immediately. You are dismissed.” Nesath sneered as he spoke. His majesty indeed. Nesath was the true power in the Northern Kingdom these days. He had held the ear of the king for the last fifteen years. The king just accepted anything that he said and made it official.

Still Nesath was looking forward to bringing this news to the king. More than anything else, both of them had wanted to find Tyrone. Not that he had been found, Nesath was certain that his power in the kingdom would be absolute. Bringing Tyrone to the king was the very thing that would lift above the other advisers permanently.

After Tarul had left his room Nesath prepared to go before the king. He donned his official black robes and smoothed his long black beard. Finally he took the long black staff from the corner near the door. He left his sword on the table as no weapons were permitted in the throne room.

Nesath chuckled a bit. The King was really starting to lose his mind. He seemed to forget on occasion that he was immortal and that no weapon could really harm him. It was a pretty ridiculous rule. Instead Nesath had to make due with only carrying the staff of his office as royal adviser.

As he walked through the halls towards the throne room he took pleasure in the terrified looks of servants and the various nobles that he passed on his way. They would offer a quick bow and find some hurry along in an attempt not to attract his attention. On a normal day, he usually found some reason to send some to be tortured as he walked through the halls. Not this time however. He was in too much of a hurry to present his information to the king. He had to make certain to do it as quickly as possible before someone else beat him to it.

He trusted Tarul as much as he ever trusted anyone. He was certain the old man had only told him what he had learned, but even the best kept secrets had a way of being found out and spreading in this palace. A spying servant, a magical spell for eavesdropping... there was always something.

He reached the large gold doors of the throne room where a half a dozen guards stood watching the people that passed down the halls. The guards were heavily armed with long spears, long curved blades on each hip, and a golden shield on their back. They were incredibly large men wearing impressive black spiked armor. They looked like merciless killers.

As Nesath approached the door a look of fear flickered across the face of the men standing guard. He smiled slightly to himself pleased to be able to invoke fear even in these hard men. Without a word they pushed open the large heavy doors. It took all six of them to open the doors, three on each side.

Nesath didn't wait for them to finish pushing them open. He quickly stepped through as soon as space allowed. “Your Majesty,” He called out loudly, “Forgive my intrusion but I bear important news.”

King Rhyum glared down at him from his tall throne. He looked to be a man in the prime of his life. At most he looked only thirty years, yet he radiated an aura of respect and command. His body looked as if it had been chiseled and sculpted by an artist. He was the closest thing to a perfect specimen of the human species as anyone could be. Only his eyes gave hint to his true age, they flashed with a spark of insanity.

Nesath felt a shiver of terror as he looked upon the king, but he refused to let it show. He knew that all the feelings that were passing through him, awe, reverence, admiration and fear were from the power of the god contained by the man before him. Nesath took a moment to compose himself and keep control of his emotions before the man. Rhyum could of course control the strength of the reaction on the people around him, but he had been using the ability at full power for sometime now.

“What are you doing here Nesath? I did not summon you.” Rhyum spoke angrily.

“Yes majesty, forgive me. But I come bring important news. News I knew you would want to know immediately.” Nesath said humbly kneeling before the throne and touching his head to the floor.

“Do not presume to know what I would and would not want to know worm! I am a god made flesh! You are nothing!”

“Of course my lord,” Nesath said quickly and soothingly, “I know absolutely nothing and have no understanding of your will and your ways. Forgive my impudence.”

Rhyum glared at him a moment. “I should kill you for your insolence. Perhaps I still will. Let me hear what you have to say and I will decide afterward.”

Nesath spoke slowly. “Yes oh mighty king, as your will commands. Today I have learned the location of the fugitive Tyrone.”

Rhyum leapt from his throne. “Tyrone! Where is he? What hole has he been hiding in? He shall suffer indefinitely once I have him here!”

“Yes majesty, he shall not again escape the fate he so richly deserves. I have discovered that he is taking refuge at a small farm in Davenshire. By your leave, I can assemble some troops and collect him immediately. I will have him back here for you in two days time.”

“Prepare the troops immediately. We shall leave tonight.” Rhyum commanded.

Nesath hesitated, “We? Your majesty?”

“Yes, I shall be accompanying you. Tyrone has escaped my grasp for far too long. Now go and prepare everything as I ordered before I find someone more competent to replace you.” Roared Rhyum.

Nesath turned and ran from room. He might not fear much in the world, but incurring the wrath of an immortal madman with the power of a god was not something he wanted to do. He would see to the preparation of everything. After Tyrone was collected, he would collect his reward.

*****

Jaiden awoke bright and early as the first rays of the sun crept into the room. He smiled as the light fell across his face. Today was the day he would finally be allowed to leave his room. It was also the first day of the summer solstice feast. That meant he would have no work to do officially, but on a farm a few things always had to be done. He decided that he was going to do as much as he could today since the last few days of recovering from his illness had left him feeling restless and eager to work.

He got out of bed and pulled on a pair of linen breeches. After a quick wash at the wash basin he decided he had better shave as well. Once he was fully cleaned up and feeling a bit more human he made his way quickly down to the kitchen. He was really looking forward to a good breakfast before getting into his work. He also expected that once the few required chores for the day were done, he would be able to get some time in the practice ring in with Jedd. It looked like it was shaping up to be a very nice day.

As he was eating his breakfast, Master Valin entered the room. “Ah Jaiden, good to see you up and on your feet again. I expect that you'll be heading to the stables this morning?”

Jaiden nodded emphatically. “Yes sir, thank you sir. All that time sleeping has left me feeling more than ready to get back to work.”

“Excellent.” chuckled Master Valin. “Ah the exuberance of youth. What I wouldn't give to be 30 years younger and have your energy again.” His face took on a more serious look, “Don't push yourself too hard today. I wouldn't want you to relapse. Besides, the young ladies will be disappointed if you are too tired to dance tonight.”

Jaiden felt a bit of color rise to his cheeks. Dancing late into the night had always been a part of the summer solstice feast, and he had never been lacking in willing dance partners. Aunt Tess had insisted on teaching dance to the locals as well as their regular lessons. She felt that if they were going to celebrate the holidays with dancing then they were certainly going to be doing it properly. As it turned out, the grace and balance that he had gained from weapon training transferred over to dancing rather well. As a result most of the local women considered him the best dancer in the community.

Jaiden quickly finished his breakfast, bid Master Valin a good day and made his way out to the stables. When he arrived Lyal was already inside at work. Normally these tasks would be left only to one person, but as today was a holiday, the boys often worked together on the lighter work load hoping to finish quickly and start the festivities earlier.

“Good morning Jai, good to see you on your feet again.” Lyal greeted him smiling.

“Good morning Lyal it's good to be working again.”

“You probably enjoyed all that time off didn't you? Slacking while the rest of us worked hard to do your share of the chores. I've got half a mind to leave you here by yourself this morning.” Lyal grinned.

“Well if you really feel that way, I am sure I can get Rachel to cook you some breakfast tomorrow. Or even lunch today if tomorrow is too long to wait.” Jaiden offered.

Lyal's face paled, “You know... on second thought I don't think I need a rest that much after all.”

Jaiden laughed, “Are you sure now? It'd be pretty easy to arrange.”

Jaiden ducked still laughing as Lyal flung everything on his heavy shovel at him. Jaiden retaliated with a shovel load of his own, and before long horse dung was flying everywhere.

When things had settled down again Jaiden looked around as he caught his breath from the exertion and the laughing. This was probably the very reason that Master Valin insisted on keeping the boys from working at the same task. The stable was messier now then when they first came in. He glanced back over at Lyal whose face was still flushed with excitement.

“I guess we better get started at actually getting something done.”

“Right.” Lyal answered picking some straw from his hair. “Hey Jai, what are you going to do about tonight?”

Jaiden sighed, “I don't know, I really haven't thought about it yet.”

“You know that once it gets around that you rejected Rach's claim on you girls from all the farms in the area are going to be lining up for a turn with you.”

Jaiden nodded. It was true, on past holidays he had danced with many of the local girls, but for the most part he spent his time with Rachel. It had been generally recognized that he was hers and it wasn't long before he noticed that it was only her friends that ever asked to dance with him. He would occasionally notice others watching but they kept their distance. Without Rachel and her friends keeping them away, he knew that tonight was going to be a bit more crazy. He really was not looking forward to that.

“Maybe things aren't going to change. Rach and I seemed to have patched things up over the last couple of days.” Jaiden said hopefully.

Lyal chuckled, “Good, I'm glad to hear it and I am sure the other guys will be too. It'll give the rest of a chance.”

As they continued with his work Jaiden began to feel an increasing amount of nervousness. He couldn't stop thinking about the dance that night and the ways that it could possibly go. He started to wonder if he could find a way to skip it. Aunt Tess wouldn't be pleased if anyone was missing for it, but perhaps he could claim he was still recovering from being sick. It was something that he was sure he was going to be giving a lot more thought as he continued about his day.

*****

Rachel sat at the small table in her room looking into the mirror. A number of girls from the outlying farms were busy around her helping her to prepare before the dance that night. She was glad that she had so many willing friends to help her prepare for this special night. The ornate chest in the corner of her room was open, and the girls were digging through it taking out their choices of some of the best jewelry and clothes inside.

“Wow Rach, where did you get all this stuff?” asked Lecillia one of the girls from a neighboring farm.

Rachel smiled sadly, “They were my mother's things. I don't really know much about her or where she got them from. I've been told my parents were successful merchants before they died.”
“Oh I am sorry.” Lecillia apologized, “They really are quite beautiful though. Jaiden won't be able to resist you tonight.”

Rachel smiled again, this time a genuine smile. She certainly hoped that Lecillia was right. She had never worn any of her mother's silk dresses or expensive jewels before. Well she had tried them on so that she knew they would fit, but that was only briefly. She knew her parents must have been very successful to afford the few things the chest contained. She imagined that her father had worked hard so that he could surprise her with some expensive gift and that her mother had valued these few small treasures greatly. They were likely some of her most prized possessions. She could picture them as a very happy couple and thought she would have grown up in a very happy family.

“So Rach... if things don't go as you've planned does that mean Jaiden is up for grabs?” her friend Anna asked.

“Oh I hope so!” chimed in Trina. “He really would be a good catch.”

A murmur of agreement filled the room as a few others also voiced their opinions on the topic of Jaiden's availability. Rachel's face turned crimson as she listened.

“Girls!” Alyssa yelled out. “Rachel still has first claim on Jaiden and things are going to work out no matter how tonight goes. He's not available until Rachel tells us otherwise. Is that clear?”

“Oh alright.” pouted Trina. The others also nodded their understanding if a bit grudgingly.

Rachel looked up at her friend, “Thanks Alyssa. I needed to hear that.”

Alyssa smiled back at her, “Anytime Rach. Besides, we all know I get the first turn if things don't work out!” she teased.

Rachel laughed, Alyssa always did have a way of making her feel better about everything. She was lucky that she had such a good close friend. Everything was going to work out well tonight. She was certain that things were about to change around here.

*****

Nesath sat on top of his horse watching the approaching rider. King Rhyum rode with the rest of the party behind him, mounted on a stunning black stallion and looking fearsome in his black and gold armor. As the scout approached Nesath felt a eave of impatience pass through him. He wanted nothing more to reach this small community and find Tyrone. Riding with the king was aggrevating and a royal pain. Once Tyrone was apprehended Rhyum would return to Shiram leaving Nesath to do what he did best. Punishing the community for harboring a wanted criminal. Nesath could almost smell the blood and hear the cries of terror as he imagined it.

He was broken out of his fantasy as the rider came to a stop and saluted in front of him. “My lord! I have located the enemy.”

Nesath grinned, “Excellent news. How far away are they?”

“A half a days ride my lord. We can reach them tonight.”
Nesath grinned in pleasure. This was working out even better than he could have planned. A slaughter in the confusion of the night was always more fun than one in daylight. The confusion of the darkness and the bright light of burning homes always brought out even more terror from his victims. It was going to be a glorious massacre.

“Return to your post immediately. I'll inform the king.” He commanded.

“Yes my lord.” The rider saluted, turned his horse and rode out to scout ahead once more.

Nesath turned his own mount back towards the main force. Things were really starting to look up. Half a day until he was rid of the king and engaging in his favorite pastime. Yes things were looking up indeed.

*****

Jaiden looked around the assembled people nervously. The music had just started and there was no sign of Rachel anywhere. Already he could see a few girls eying him. He felt like nothing more than a piece of meat. He had been searching for Rachel ever since the feast had started, but almost the entire community had come out to Master Valin's farm for the feast. There were about two hundred people wandering around and finding her had proven to be all but impossible. He was beginning to wonder if she had decided to skip the festivities altogether.

Now darkness was falling and it was hard to see the people around him by the light of the bonfires and the full moon overhead. A few of the girls started moving towards him and Jaiden, pretending not to have seen them, stepped back into the crowd hoping to blend in and lose them. Suddenly he felt a hand on his shoulder.

Turning around he found Alyssa looking up at him a big smile on her face. “There you are. I've been looking for you.” she purred.

“Hi Alyssa, have you seen Rachel?” he stammered.

Alyssa kept a steady gaze looked on his eyes, he found that he couldn't look away. Deftly she reached up and stroked a finger along his jaw. Jaiden felt more and more uncomfortable as she continued watching him like a cat eying a mouse.

“There will be time for Rachel later Jai, right now this is about you and me.” she took his hand and began pulling him through the crowd.

Jaiden couldn't believe what was happening. Had things between him and Rachel really come to an end then? Alyssa would never do something like this if she thought her friend still claimed him. Would she? He actually didn't know Alyssa all that well himself. He started to try and pull away from her but suddenly she released him and stopped walking.

“Here he is Rach, I am not sure he is worth all the effort. He hardly resisted at all when I pulled him over here.”

Jaiden stared ahead in shock. “Rachel?!? Is that really you?”

“Of course it is Jai. Who else would it be?” Rachel asked coyly.

Jaiden just stared at her. Rachel was stunning. She stood in front of him dressed in a long silk green gown that matched her eyes. Her red hair was adorned with dark green emeralds and she wore a gold chain around her neck, with a small heart shaped pendant hanging just above her breasts. The gown had a low deep cut and displayed an ample portion of Rachel's chest. Jaiden felt weak in the knees.

“So what do you think?” Rachel asked nervously.

Jaiden continued staring at her in stunned silence.

“I think he likes it.” Alyssa said with a grin.

Jaiden finally pulled himself out of his stupor. “Rachel you look gorgeous!”

Rachel smiled brightly and came up close to him. She smelt so good. She looked absolutely amazing. Jaiden couldn't believe that this was the same girl that fought in the combat ring and broke a stableman's arm. He couldn't believe it was the same girl he had grown up with all these years. He was absolutely amazed.

“Well aren't you going to ask me to dance?” She whispered into his ear.

Jaiden's mind began to whirl. Was it a good idea? He was trying to pull away from her. This was going to make things worse. Maybe just one, one dance wouldn't hurt.

“Rach, would you like to dance?”

“I thought you would never ask.” She took his hand and pulled him out towards the other dancing couples. Jaiden caught a glimpse of Matt and Glenn staring at him in envy as they danced with their own partners. They weren't the only ones, it seemed that everyone was watching the two of them as they danced.

*****

Rachel smiled as she danced with Jaiden. He was finally holding her the way that she always wanted him to, and the look in his eyes told her she had won. Dance after dance they went on without stopping. Rachel was feeling like she was in heaven. Everything was going according to her plan. She had him right where she wanted him.

Looking up deep into his eyes she whispered, “I love you.” Standing up on her toes she kissed him full on the lips. She could feel Jaiden start to respond to kiss her back. He was really hers, he was really finally hers. Her heart was racing and she felt so completely happy.

Suddenly Jaiden froze and pulled back, “Rachel... I'm sorry I can't do this.”

He turned and ran off into the crowd of people. Rachel called to him to wait and come back, but it was too late. He was gone. Rachel pushed through the crowd tears streaming down her face and ran towards her room. All around people were staring at her bewildered looks on their faces, clearly wondering what happened. She spotted Alyssa whose face was filled with sympathy. Rachel couldn't face her. She kept pushing through the crowd and ran towards the farmhouse. What happened? How had everything suddenly fallen apart?

*****

Nesath looked down the dark road, in the distance he could make out the large bonfires of a summer solstice celebration. This really couldn't be any more perfect. All of the people gathered in one place. Killing them all was going to be the easiest thing he had ever done.

He turned back to look at his assembled captains. “Our target is in sight. Here is the plan. We are going to surround them completely and take them by surprise. Torris, you take two squads around to the north. Darren, you have the east. Take three squads with you. Mikkel, your two squads will come in from the west. Risaro you have the south. I will go in with King Rhyum and collect the prisoner. Attack as one on my signal and let none survive. You have your orders. Dismissed.”

The men saluted as one and turned to ready their troops. Nesath went to join King Rhyum. He had a dozen of elite bodyguards to join them in finding Tyrone. It would not be much longer now.

*****

Tess stood in the full moonlight in the middle of a small clearing a short distance from the farm. In the middle of the clearing was a small dark pool of water. Tess began to remove her clothes to start the rituals when suddenly the pool began to glow.

The water stilled and an image appeared and a deep powerful voice called out, “Daughter, there is no time for that now.”

Tess looked at the image in the pool. “Father, what is happening? What is wrong?”

“Enemies have come. They are going to kill everyone.”

Tess breathed in a sharp breath. “Then I must go, I have to help them. I have to save them.”

“It is impossible, the power of the Yuh-Yi-Joo tells me that you will fail.”

“Then help me father, you could stop them.” pleaded Tess.

“I can not. It would be a violation of my oath.”

“Fine then I will go myself. I will save them or die trying.” Tess said with determination.

“You will fail. It can not be done.”

“I have to try. I can't abandon them to death. They are my friends, they are my family.” Tess turned and ran through the woods back towards the farm. The image vanished from the pool and it ceased glowing. Tess could see the light of the bonfires at the farm. She ran even faster. She needed to make it on time, she needed to try and save them.

*****

Jaiden dug through the chest in his room, he began to make a pile of necessities on his bed. He was leaving tonight, and he was taking only what he could carry with him. After tonight, he knew he couldn't stay here any longer. He felt foolish for waiting as long as he had already. He knew that if he stayed much longer he would never be able to leave.

He had been lying to everyone his whole life, he had been living a lie for so long. Yet tonight he finally had to admit that he had been lying to himself as well. He had always told himself that he was not in love with Rachel because he couldn't be, he had told himself that he could only be a brother to her. He had even started to believe it. But tonight had revealed the truth to him, he really loved her and he always had. She had been right all along, and it was him who had been wrong.

That is why he had to leave and he had to leave tonight. He could not stay here because he knew that if he stayed much longer he would never be able to leave her. Yet he also knew that he had to, he had to do what he needed to do.

Life was so unfair. He really hated what fate had done to him. He wanted to scream out to the gods, he wanted to ask them, “WHY ME??” He felt so torn and so much anguish. It seemed that the gods or fate, or whatever was responsible for this situation he found himself in got delight in tormenting humans. They would give them hopes and dreams that could never be, and watch and laugh as they were squashed.

Jaiden took a deep breath and focused on what he needed to do. He took the large pack he used when he traveled with Jedd and began to fill it with clothes and his sleeping supplies. He laid a couple water skins on the bed intending to make a quick stop at the kitchen before he left. He would need to get some food as well as enough water for a few days supplies. After that, he was going to have to hope that he would be able to catch something with snares, or use his bow to get food. It was going to be hard out there alone, but he knew he would do what he had to do.

Suddenly the door to his room flew open and Jedd walked in. “So you're just going to run away are you boy?” he scowled.

“Jedd... what are you doing here?”

“I saw what happened tonight, everyone did. I knew I would find you up here. I didn't expect you to be such a coward as to run away though.”

Jedd crossed his arms and stood between him and the door. The look that he gave Jaiden was filled with contempt. Jaiden felt ashamed and guilty for disappointing the one man he respected more than anything. Suddenly he felt anger building up inside him, it burried the feelings of shame and guilt.

“You have no idea what this is about. I am not running away, I am doing what I have to do. This is not just for me, this is for Rachel too. My leaving is better for everyone.”

“Bullshit! You are doing the selfish thing, you are acting like a child rather than a man. I am not going to let you leave.” Jedd spat back.

Jaiden looked at his mentor and friend with pure rage burning in his eyes. How could Jedd judge him? Jedd has no idea what he is going through, what he has been dealing with all these years. Jedd didn't understand what was going on, and now he was going to have to fight him before he could leave.

Suddenly the door flew open again as Rachel burst into the room. “Jaiden! How could you do this to me? You love me, I know you do! I felt it! I saw it! I...”

She trailed off as she saw the pack in Jaiden's hands and Jedd standing in the room. “You're leaving? How could you possibly even think of leaving? Jaiden what is going on? Jedd, do you know what this is all about? You both need to tell me right now what is happening. Jaiden, there has to be something that you aren't telling me. There has to be something that you are keeping to yourself. I know you, I know you are not a coward that runs away from his problems. Jaiden tell me the truth. Why are you doing this?”

Rachel looked at him expectantly waiting for him to say something, anything. Jaiden could see that she was hurting still from what he had done to her earlier. Her eyes were red and bloodshot so he knew that she had been crying. Yet she had changed since she entered the room. When she came in she was filled with anger, it had driven every word. Now she was looking at him with frustration and concern clear on her face. He knew that she was certain he was hiding something from her, and he knew that she would follow him until she found out.

Jaiden took a deep breath, it was time to tell them the truth, to tell him everything. It was the only answer that he could see. He was leaving anyways, what difference would it make if they knew now. He was going to disappear so that no one would be able to find him. Would it really matter if they knew his secret?

Just then a loud voice roared out. “Tyrone! Come and face me!”

Jedd's face paled and for the first time in his life Jaiden saw fear in his eyes. “I was wrong boy.” He said panick sounding clearly in his voice, “It's time for you to leave. Time for both of you to leave. You need to go right now.”

*****

Jedd felt his heart fill with dread. He knew that voice, he would recognize it anywhere. Rhyum had found him, and now he was here to make him pay. For fifteen years he had managed to evade detection, for fifteen years he had been hiding. He had never once let down his guard, he had never once let himself be distracted from his charge. Yet the last few days he had let his attention wander, he had not focused all his attention on his duty, and it seemed that he failed. His distraction had cost them everything. Someone, or something had seen him, and he had not stopped the report from getting back. Rhyum had been lead right to the farm, and it was all his fault.

“Tyrone! Come out from your hiding place this instant, or I will kill all these people!” He heard Rhyum bellow again.

Jedd knew that it didn't make a difference one way or another if he obeyed Rhyum's command or not. All the people here were going to die. Rhyum was not going to let them live. Still... perhaps he could buy some time. Perhaps it was not too late.

“Rachel, Jaiden, you both need to go now. I will buy what time I can, but you need to run now. Don't look back. You have time, they are not watching the house. There will be soldiers in the woods be careful.” He grabbed Jaiden's sword and bow that were hanging on the wall. He handed them to Jaiden. “Rachel, grab your sword then go. There is no time to take anything else. Trust me, you need to leave now.”

Jedd turned and left the room. It was time to face Rhyum again. He had hoped that this day would never come, he had prayed but it seemed his prayers had gone unanswered. It looked like it was time for him to perform his last duty, it was time for him to die. He just hoped it would buy Rachel and Jaiden the time they needed to escape.

Boldly he walked out the front door of the farmhouse and towards the bonfires. He could see Rhyum sitting on a tall stallion staring at him. Thirteen heavily armed soldiers surrounded Rhyum on their mounts.
“Alright.” Jedd called out, his voice calm and stronger than he felt. “I'm here. Take me and let these people go.”

A mummer of surprise went through the gathered farmers at his words. Well it was time they found out who he really was. After all these years, Jedd's biggest secret was about to be revealed. Unfortunately it was a secret that was going to cost all these people their lives, and there was nothing that he could do about it.

Rhyum laughed, “Tyrone, how good it is to see you again. It has been a long time. I was beginning to think that you didn't want to be found.”

“Rhyum you are a mad fool. How could I ever continue to serve under someone such as you. Look what you have done to your kingdom, to your people. You've all but given us to Setesh. You are no king. You are a nothing but a pawn.”

“Insolent whelp! I am more than a king, I am a god!” shrieked Rhyum, “I control everything in this kingdom, and soon I shall rule the entire world! These minions of Setesh are my slaves, my tools that serve my will! Nothing can stand against my power!”

“Your power?” scoffed Jedd. “You have no power outside your palace. Here you are nothing. You couldn't find me on your own.”

“I have more power then you ever dreamed of!” Rhyum yelled as he raised his hand and pointed it at Jedd.

A dark beam of energy shot out from his fist and struck Jedd to the ground. Desperately Jedd struggled against the force that held him to the ground. He tried to raise to his feet, but could not move. How had Rhyum done that? He should have no power so far from his palace. It did not make any sense!

“You see Tyrone,” Rhyum grinned wickedly. “I have more power than anyone dreamed possible. I truly am a god!”

Just then lightning flashed from the sky striking three of the riders. They and their horse collapsed to the ground in a charred heap of burned flesh and smoldering metal. Jedd watched in shock as a figure approached. Tess has magic?!?

“Rhyum. Leave this place and I shall spare your men a painful death.” she said dismissively.

Rhyum let out a loud laugh, “Is that supposed to scare me? So Tyrone, you kept a mage with you to protect you. Even she will not help you. Don't you know that I care nothing for these men?” Rhyum dropped down from his horse and drew his sword as he approached Tess.

A bolt of lightning streaked from the sky striking Rhyum. He didn't even slow as he approached her, his armor smoking slightly. Another bolt struck, and another, and another. They rained down on him but nothing slowed him. He kept slowly approaching Tess laughing as he came.

“Fool, you can't hurt a god.” He said plunging his sword into her heart.

Tess looked down at her chest and the blade that ran through her, surprise clear on her face. Rhyum removed the sword and wiped it clean on her skirt before sheathing it again.

“Monster! Die!” Jedd heard a voice call out.

Jaiden charged in swinging his sword up towards Rhyum's face. Rhyum swung his arm intercepting the sword and striking Jaiden in the chest. Jaiden flew through the air and landed on the ground.

“Amusing. Sending children now to try and kill an immortal god.” He looked back at one of his soldiers. “Kill him.”

The soldier pulled a crossbow from his hip and fired at Jaiden. The arrow struck him straight through the chest.

“Such a waste. That child had courage, he might have made a good soldier someday. Of course I wouldn't expect anything less from someone trained by High General Tyrone himself. Tell me Tyrone, were you really trying to build your own army to overthrow me?”

The soldier that shot Jaiden suddenly fell from his mount as Rachel flew into him knocking him to the ground. Another soldier leapt down and grabbed her up off of him too late as her sword was pierced through the fallen man's neck. She struck her fist at the man holding her, and he laughed as he threw her to the ground.

“My this one is feisty.” he laughed.

Two of the other soldiers grabbed her off the ground as she struggled in their arms trying to break free. She growled curses at them yelling for them to release her. When suddenly she stopped struggling with a gasp.

Jedd watched as Jaiden rose from the ground pulling the arrow from his chest. “Tell me father,” He said as he tossed it on the ground, “did you really think that would kill me?”

Rhyum spun looking at Jaiden. “What is this? One of my sons? Here? How can this be?”

Jedd felt a tear roll down his check. He had failed. He had really and truly failed. All this time he had been protecting Jaiden, and in the end he was the one that had led Rhyum right to him. All of their hopes and dreams for the future were gone once and for all.

Rhyum approached Jaiden and place a hand on his head. He closed his eyes for a few seconds and opened them again. “He speaks truly.... he really is my son. But how is this possible?”

He turned back to Jedd. “I can see now your plot was more complicated than I ever thought. I don't know how you got him, or where he came from but you almost succeeded. Unfortunately for you, you gave him away yourself.”

Rhyum turned towards his men. “This changes everything. I need to invoke the rituals at once. I will return to the palace now with the boy. Bring Tyrone there to me. Kill the rest.”

One of the soldiers removed his helm and Jedd instantly recognized his former second in command, Nesath. “My king. It will be done as you command. But... my usual reward?”

Rhyum glared at him, “Yes, yes, of course. Take whichever one you want.” He grabbed Jaiden's arm and in a flash of light he was gone.

*****

Nesath smiled as the king and the boy vanished. So one of his whelps had escaped and nearly made it long enough to drain him of his power. It appeared his old commander Tyrone had more to answer for than everyone thought.

“Tie him up and throw him on the back of your horse.” He pointed over at Jedd. The man saluted and hauled Jedd roughly to his feet.

Nesath walked over to where two of his men held Rachel. Rhyum had told him to choose whichever one he wanted and he had made his choice. He liked her fighting spirit. She was going to make taming her a challenge.

“This one is mine. Tie her onto my horse.”

The men saluted and pulled her away. Nesath looked at the people gathered around who still sat watching him fearfully.

“Run.” He commanded them.

They stared at him a few seconds before rising to their feet and bolting in all directions. Nesath smiled. This was going to be fun. He pulled a horn from his hip and blew one long sharp note into the night air. Another note sounded from the north, then another from the south, another from the west and one from the east. The hunt was about to begin. Nesath waited a few more seconds before drawing his sword and running after the fleeing peasants.

*****

Jaiden blinked as he looked around the large room that suddenly appeared around him. His father, king Rhyum stood to his left holding his arm. In front of his was a large black stone altar in the shape of a spider. Around the altar stood four men in dark robes each at one corner. Rhyum lifted Jaiden easily and sat him down hard on the altar. Four of the legs of the spider began to move and wrapped around his ankles and wrists, holding him down. Jaiden struggled trying to break free.

The men around the altar began to chant. The eight crystal eyes of the spider altar began to glow a deep dark red. One after another, they rose into the air and circled him. As the chanting continued they spun faster and faster. Rhyum approached the head of the altar. Raising both hands, he placed them down on Jaiden's head.

Suddenly every part of Jaiden's body exploded with pain. He could feel things moving and shifting inside of him. Every part of his being felt like it was being burnt into ashes. He opened his mouth to scream in pain, but no sound escaped. Suddenly the pain was gone and Rhyum stepped back releasing his head. The eight crystals were back in the spider's head. Jaiden felt the legs of the spider release him.

Rhyum spoke, and his words chilled Jaiden with dread. “The ritual is completed, we will perform the bonding tomorrow. Lock her in the tower for tonight.”

Jaiden looked down at himself, his father spoke truthfully. His once hard and muscular body was now smaller, smoother, and softer. He could see two large breasts on his chest. His vision blacked out and he fainted with one last thought. He had been transformed into a girl.

*****

Jaiden woke on a soft bed he did not recognize. A strange woman he had never seen before stood over him. She looked down at him with a look of absolute sadness.

“Who are you? Where am I?” Jaiden was shocked by the strange sound of his voice. Instantly his mind recalled the events of last night and he opened his mouth to scream.

The strange woman placed her hand over his mouth. She held it there firmly he continued to scream. After sometime Jaiden stopped trying to scream. He was feeling a bit lightheaded from the effort of screaming with a hand over his mouth.

The woman looked down at him keeping her hand in place. “I see he found you. Then all our hope is lost. I will let you go if you promise not to scream again.”

Jaiden nodded emphatically. She released him and he took a few deep breaths. She offered him a mug of water which he took and drank deeply. Long blond hair fell in front of his face, and he could see smooth dainty arms and small dainty hands holding the mug. It was all he could do to keep from screaming again. Instead he put down the mug and moved the hair from in front of his face. He grimaced. I suppose I will have to think of myself as she now...

“Where am I? Who are you?” she asked one more time. This time the sound of her new voice did not surprise her and set her off into another fit of screaming.

The woman gave her another sad smile. Jaiden, you are in a tower in the king's palace in Shiram, and I am your mother.”

Jaiden's entire world changed in one instant. Now he struggles to adjust to the changes. Meanwhile Nesath has taken Rachel as his personal slave. Now she must overcome her personal demons and find a way to survive.

Transcendent — 6:
~Changes~

Jaiden stared at the woman in front of her. Her mother? She had always thought about her father, she had never really given much thought to her mother. She realized that her mother must have been thinking about her often all this time and she began to feel guilty. How could she have ignored her mother for all these years. She supposed that having a tyrant for a father that she was one day destined to replace as king was something that had kept her thoughts quite occupied.

“You are my mother? The queen?” she asked softly.

“Yes, I am. I have thought about you everyday since I sent Tyrone and Felicia to bring you somewhere safe. Now that you are here I can only fear they are dead.”

“Felicia died when I was still young,” she told her mother realizing that Felicia must be the woman who everyone on the farm thought was her mother and knew as Helen. “I don't know what happened to Jedd, or I mean Tyrone, he was captured by Rhyum.” She would not call him father! “I think he intends to torture him in someway because he told the soldiers to bring him here.”

The queen nodded her understanding, “I see. Forgive me Jaiden, but I hoped that I would never see you again. If you had managed to replace your father as king, I would have died with him. As much as my heart wanted to see you again, in my mind I wished this day would never come.”

Jaiden looked at her mother in surprise. She realized it must have been so terrible for her mother to be a prisoner here. Bearing children for an evil man like Rhyum, she probably wished that she would never have children. A thought climbed into her mind that she could have children now, but Jaiden pushed that thought away. She did not want to think of things like that. In fact it was taking all of her concentration to ignore her new breasts and the way that the fabric of her rough linen work shirt rubbed against the her nipples painfully every time she moved. No, she definitely did not want to think of those things and concentrated hard on talking with her mother.

Her attention came back to her mother and she realized that she had been silently thinking. Her mother was studying her face and watching her as she absentmindedly pulled the front of her shirt and held it away from her breasts.

“Jaiden, you must feel so strange and uncomfortable right now. I am sorry for what your father has done to you, and I know that you probably don't want to think about it, but I think you need to change into something more comfortable for your new body.” her mother told her sympathetically.

“You're right mother, I really don't want to think about that right now.” Jaiden frowned.

“Well trust me on this, the sooner we get you into some clothes designed for women, the more comfortable you will feel.” She placed a hand on Jaiden's shoulder and looked her directly in the eyes. “I really am sorry Jaiden, but this really is necessary.”

Jaiden groaned, she realized that sooner or later she was going to have to face this transformation, but she really wasn't sure that she could handle it right now. Every movement of her breasts, the weight of her longer hair, the empty feeling below, all of it was constantly reminding her that she was no longer a man. That she was now a woman and very well might be a woman for the rest of her life. She really wasn't sure she was ready to face that fact yet.

“Jaiden, please.” Her mother pleaded.

Jaiden groaned again, “Alright mother, I will change my clothes, but lets make it quick please! I really don't want to think about what just happened to me yet.”

Her mother nodded, “I understand that completely Jaiden, don't worry. I'll make this as quick as possible.”

Jaiden got out o bed and followed her mother out of the room. The room they entered was much larger than where she had been sleeping. It had a huge four post bed that looked like it could hold ten people comfortable. A large wardrobe stood in the corner of the room. There was also a sitting area with sofas and chairs that looked incredibly soft. A small dining table occupied another part of the room, and she could also see a large ornate desk. The room was quite elegantly decorated and everything was arranged to make it look spacious and comfortable. It looked fit for... well a queen.

Her mother laughed as she watched Jaiden staring around the room. Her laugh was quite pleasant and made Jaiden feel better just from hearing it.

“It might look impressive from where you have been, but it is an impressive prison.” her mother told her.

Jaiden remembered that Aunt Tess had told them all that it was believed the queen was kept as a prisoner in the palace. A feeling of intense grief filled Jaiden as she thought of Aunt Tess and all the people at the farm. Suddenly tears began streaming down her face. All of the people that she had ever known were dead and lost to her. Rachel, Lyal, Glenn and Matt, Alyssa, all of them. She could still see Aunt Tess with the sword through her chest. At the time she had been filled with sorrow and rage, she had used those feeling to attack. Now she only felt sorrow and grief.

She felt her mother's arm wrap around her and felt herself being drawn into her mother's embrace. Her mother whispered to her soothingly and held her close gently running her back. She cried for what felt like hours, until there were no tears left to cry. Finally she began to calm down..

“I'm so sorry, I don't know what came over me.” Jaiden sniffed, “I've never cried like this before.”

Jaiden felt so embarrassed. She wondered what her mother must be thinking of her. She was so weak, she couldn't control herself. She had spent hours just crying, letting her emotions go wild. Her mother must hate her. She must be ashamed of her. She prob ably was even glad that she was caught, after all, what kind of king would she have made if she couldn't control herself? All of these thoughts made her almost start crying all over again.

She felt her mother stroking her hair and she looked up at her. To her surprise, there was no shame or embarrassment there, only love and compassion.

“Jaiden, there is nothing to be embarrassed about. You are a girl now. Girls are more in touch with their feelings. This is a perfectly natural reaction for someone who has been through everything that you have.” her mother said comfortingly.

Jaiden felt a wave of anger roll through her. “I don't want to be a girl!” she yelled angrily. “Why did they do this to me?”

Jaiden's mother stepped back from her, her eyes had filled with rage and she was becoming more and more agitated. Her hands had clenched into fists, and her eyes took on a dangerous glint. Jaiden was seeing red, and she wanted blood.

“I'll kill them. All of them. For what they did to me and everyone else. Somehow I will find a way to make Rhyum pay for what he's done to me!” Jaiden snarled. “I'll make them change me back!”

“I wish that you could. I would give anything to see that happen.” her mother replied her voice filled with venom.

Jaiden looked at her mother in surprise. She had not expected a reaction quite like this. She realized that her mother had just as much reason if not more to hate Rhyum. “You hate him too, don't you mother?”

“I do, I hate what he has become, what he had done. He was once a good man, but now he has changed so much. So much has changed.”

Jaiden looked down at herself. She made herself look at her body, the changes that had happened to her. She forced herself to come to terms with the fact that she was now a girl. She looked at her thin slender legs and arms. Her hips had grown wider and she was much softer and rounder. Her hands which where once large and powerful were now small and dainty. Her shoulders had narrowed considerably. Her whole body had become slim and petite. She was still well toned for a woman, but had nowhere near the strength she had before. Judging by the looseness of her clothes, she figured she had lost quite a bit of weight and was now shorter. She guessed she had shrunk down four or five inches.

Finally she could avoid it no longer. She looked at her chest. She groaned at the sight of the two large mounds peeking out from under her shirt. They were enormous! They had to be at least as big as Rachel's had been.

A tear trickled down her check as she thought about Rachel and how she would never she her friend again. The truth was that she loved Rachel, she always had and she always knew it even though she tried to deny it. She believed that she couldn't be with Rachel because her secret was too dangerous for anyone that stayed close to her.

Now it didn't matter anymore. Rachel was dead and so was everyone else that she had ever known. Well everyone except Jedd, and he would probably end up dead or worse in the near future. Rachel struggled to hold back fresh tears.

She turned her thoughts back to what she had been doing. Her new body... right, she was trying to come to terms with it. Her breast, yes, those two new enormous things hanging from her chest. She had been constantly aware of them since she received them, although she had been trying to ignore them. She could feel their weight tugging down at her, and she felt them bounce, shift, or rub against her rough clothes with every move she made. The rubbing was the worst! Her new feminine skin was so soft and sensitive. Every movement made her itch or feel pain as her skin rubbed the rough work shirt she was wearing.

Finally there was the emptiness below. She was surprised however to realize that this although an odd sensation was not the one that caused her the most distress. Perhaps it was because she hadn't seen down there yet, while the rest of the changes were clearly visible to her right now. However her distress rose quite a bit when she realized that she could now bear children. She quickly pushed that thought out of her mind. That was not something that she really wanted to think about right now.

Her attention shifted to her face and the changes that were made there. She saw a mirror on the desk in the room as well as a couple full body mirrors near the large wardrobe. She opted for the one on the desk. Right now she only wanted to think about her face. She would look at the full image later.

Looking into the mirror she didn't recognize much of anything of the person that looked back at her. She still had blond hair and hazel colored eyes, but that was about the only thing that had not changed. Her eyes looked much larger in her smaller oval shaped face. She also had much longer lashes and thinner arched eyebrows. Her hair was now down to her mid back and looked pretty wild. Her lips had also grown fuller giving her a rather cute mouth. Her nose was much smaller and her whole face looked much softer. She had to admit that the reflection that looked back at her was quite beautiful.

Jaiden stared in the mirror for awhile continuing to study her face. So this was it, this was her life now. This was who she was going to be from now on. She knew that all the talk of forcing them to turn her back before was just that. Talk. The truth of the matter was her father was immortal and short of Praxtor himself returning and setting things straight, Jaiden was likely to be a girl for the rest of her life. She decided that she might as well try and accept it and move on.

She turned again to face her mother who had been watching her silently. Once again she realized she had suddenly gotten distracted and jumped from doing one thing to another. She realized she had been doing that ever since waking up.

“I'm sorry mother. It's just this is all so much to handle. I just haven't been able to concentrate on one thing at all. I think I will be OK now though. I...” she paused and took a deep breath, “I have accepted that this is my life from now on.”

Her mother looked at her looking both surprised and impressed. Now that she had seen what she looked like in a mirror, she realized that she resembled her mother quite a bit. Like her father, her mother was also immortal, so she too looked quite young giving Jaiden a good idea of what she would look like in a few years.

“How did you do that? How did you manage to accept what has happened to you so quickly? What were you doing?” her mother asked with genuine curiosity.

“Oh, it was a combination of something that Jedd,” she paused wrinkling her nose, “I mean Tyrone and Aunt Tess taught me. Jedd... I mean Tyrone, taught me show meditation techniques that help me control my emotions, he taught me that emotions can get you killed on the battlefield if you let them run free of self-control. It took sometime, but I eventually realized those techniques could help me with this too. It feels... harder now thought. Aunt Tess, she was the wife of the farmer who owned the farm where I lived, taught me how to accept things I can not change. She told us that life will give us a lot of difficult things to handle, and that by focusing on it slowly, taking one thing, or one part of it at time, we can eventually bring our minds around to accept it. It's going to take some time, but if I keep on doing this... I think I will eventually be OK.”

Her mother smiled at her. “Of course, I should have expected Tyrone would teach you something like that. This Aunt Tess sounds like she is a very wise woman.”

Jaiden smiled sadly, “She was. It turned out she was a mage of some sort. She tried to stop Rhyum, so he killed her.”

“Oh I am so sorry, I should have known better.” She wrapped her arms around Jaiden in a comforting embrace. “I am so sorry Jaiden, I am here for you.”

Jaiden returned the hug then pulled free. “It's alright, I am OK right now. I have myself under control for now. Right now I really have so many questions about everything.”

Her mother looked at her with uncertainty, “Alright, if you are sure you are OK. I know you must have a lot of questions and I will answer them as well as I can. First though, let's get you changed into something more comfortable. We don't have much time, they will come for you tomorrow so let's get this taken care of as quickly as we can.”

Jaiden nodded and followed her mother to the big wardrobe. She supposed it was time to get her first taste of what life as a female was going to be like.

*****

Rachel lay bound on the back of a horse exhausted. Her wrists were raw and bloody from struggling to get free of the ropes that held her. It had been no use, the men who had tied her up obviously knew what they were doing. Still she had struggled, desperate to get free and help her friends.

She had been reliving the events of the night over and over again since leaving the farm. Every time that the events of that night finished playing out in her mind, it would start over again. She realized that it was something she was going to have to deal with for the rest of her life. The nightmares from that night would probably never end. She felt like she was going to go insane. Once again the whole cycle started again.

*****

All around her she heard the frightened screams of people running for their lives. She saw people running among the fire light in an attempt to escape. She hoped that some of them would actually make it out of there alive. Surely in all the chaos some of them would had to make it out alive.

Everywhere she looked she could see men in black armor carrying heavy swords stained red with blood. The men were merciless, they cut down men, women and children with ease as if they were doing nothing more then cut the wheat at harvest. She saw many a familiar face being struck down brutally.

Rachel felt a helpless rage building up deep inside her. She struggled with the tight ropes that bound her in a vain effort to free herself. Tears streamed down her face as she listened to the screams of death all around her. Soon the entire farm had been light by bright flames as the soldiers burnt everything. All the buildings and even the fields were engulfed in flames. Shadows danced in the firelight, shadows of death and violence. Blood flowed freely like water. This night was suposed to be a night of festivities and happiness, instead the night was filled with one gruesome image of death after another. Rachel closed her eyes tightly and soon was screaming herself as she tried to block out the sounds.

Rachel was broken out of the shock that had taken her over by the sound of someone calling her name. She could feel a hand on her shoulder shaking her, trying to bring her back into the real world. She open her eyes to see Alyssa crouching among the horses, looking at her in concern.

“What are you doing?” Rachel hissed loudly. “Get out of here! Get away while you can!”

Alyssa shook her head, “Not without you. I'll untie you and we can go together.” She started working at the knots that held Rachel bound.

“Alright... I won't waste time arguing, just hurry.”

Rachel waited as Alyssa struggled. Finally Alyssa sighed in defeat. “I can't get them lose. I'll have to try and take the horse.”

Alyssa moved from the shadows and into the light as she stepped around to the front of the horse. Rachel screamed as a sword blade flashed connecting with Alyssa neck. Rachel watched in her horror as her friend's lifeless body fell to the ground coating her in blood. Alyssa's head had flown somewhere out of sight.

A face leered at Rachel and she recognized it as belonging to the man that had ordered her to be taken in the first place.

“Looks like you aren't the only girl around here with a backbone. Pity I could only take one of you.” He smirked at her.

Rachel glared at him in anger and spat in his face. Laughing, he wiped the spittle off his face.

“Thanks for showing me I made the right choice. I'm going to look forward to breaking you and turning you into a proper little whore. When I am done with you, you will know your place. You will be begging for me to take you.”

Rachel growled a curse back at him and spat again.

“Your first lesson starts now bitch. You will learn to treat me with respect.” he said and casually backhanded Rachel across the face so hard it caused her vision to swim and her ears to ring.

Rachel glared at him in defiance and he struck her again and again. Eventually the pain became to much and she sank into glorious blackness.

When Rachel came to, she was on the back of the horse still riding behind the man that he beaten her. The movements of the horse were uncomfortable, and her face was a throbbing mass of bruises covered with blood. Her tongue felt dry and swollen in her mouth. She could smell the stink of the man on the horse in front of her, he smelled of sweat, blood and death. Shortly after that the memories came and she began her cycle of remembrance..

*****

Rachel was brought out of her thoughts as she felt the horses come to a stop and she was pulled roughly down to the ground and set on her feet. As soon as the hands that dragged her down released her, she collapsed to the ground unable to stand on her own. It was now almost a full day since the men attacked the farm, and Rachel's feet and legs were numb from a combination of the ropes tight ropes that bound her and lack of use.

The man that had beat her began to shout orders to set up camp for the night. Rachel was left lying on the ground where she had fallen as the men rushed to obey their commander's orders. She lay there with her face to the ground, her hands bound behind her back with a rope connecting them to her feet which were also tightly bound. She could not move if she tried. In the end it didn't matter. She didn't even have the energy left in her to make the effort. She barely even felt the rocks and sticks on the ground that were poking into her.

She was mentally and physically exhausted. Her whole body ached with pain from the beating and the rough treatment that she had suffered. She wished that the men would forget about her and leave her where she lay so that she could die and find peace.

As these thoughts passed through her mind, something built up inside of her. It was a deep and primal feeling, something that was as old as the beginning of time. Rachel embraced that feeling and felt strength flooding through her. She thought about all the challenges that she had faced in her life. Although none of them were anything near what she went through today she realized that she had never given up before, and that she was not going to start now. She found her will to survive again. These men all needed to die for what they did today. As the desire for vengeance consumed her, it burnt away her doubts and fears. She stopped weeping at the memories of what happened and used them as a tool to shape her anger.

Rachel began to think about what she could do. Somehow she needed to escape this situation. After escaping, she was going to need some help to take her revenge. Perhaps she could rescue Jedd somehow. With his help she would have a much better chance of success against these men.

Jaiden might also be alive somewhere. They didn't kill him outright so maybe he was still alive wherever they took him. If she could rescue him, then she would have another person to help her. Sure the three of them would still be out matched by the one hundred or so troops here, but it would be a start. Perhaps they could raise an army of their own, start a revolt.

Rachel wasn't sure how she was going to do any of these things, but she committed herself to looking for opportunities to escape. She began to watch the men around her that were busy setting up the camp. She tried to memorize the layout of the camp.

After the camp setup was complete, Rachel felt she had a pretty good idea of the basic layout. It was already fairly dark when the man that beat her returned and hauled her roughly to her feet. “Let's go bitch. I know you farm girls are all sluts, it's time to see what you can do.”

He cut the ropes that bound her feet with his dagger and began pushing her towards his tent. Rachel watched carefully how they moved from the horses to his tent. If a chance came for her to escape, she wanted to take a horse with her when she went. She kept n eye open for where Jedd might be, She hadn't seen him since they were both dragged away to be tied to the back of a horse. Still.she knew he had to be here somewhere, and she wanted to take him with her if she had a chance to get away.

Everywhere they went in the camp, men would leer at her and shout out crude comments. A few even reached out and pinched her as she passed by. Her captor only laughed whenever she jumped from a pinch.

“Don't worry men, you'll all have your turn when I am done with her!” He called out to cheering and raucous laughter. Rachel had never encountered such vile men before in her life. She didn't know it was even possible for someone to be this evil, to give no value to another person's life. She realized that she had been very lucky and very sheltered growing up on the farm in Davenshire.

She was almost relieved when they finally reached his tent and she could finally escape the attention of the rough lot of men outside. Almost relieved that is, until she remembered what was in store for her in here. Once that thought crossed her mind, she decided she'd much rather be paraded around the camp a few more times.

The tent was the largest tent in the camp but not by much. It was lit by a couple of oil lamps, and in the middle was a large sleeping roll. There was also a pack near the door which Rachel guessed must be filled with basic supplies. All in all the tent was much less elegant than she had expected for a military commander.

Almost as if reading her mind her captor spoke to her, “You're in luck bitch. Normally I travel in much nicer accommodations with a lot more luxuries. You serve as my personal slave. This time since speed was of the essence we traveled light. So there is a lot less for you to do.”

“I am not a slave!” Rachel said indignantly.

Rachel reeled back as the man struck her and fell to the ground. “You are my slave, and you will speak only when asked a question.” He said calmly. “Do you understand bitch?”

Rachel glared at him angrily. Her breath exploded out of her as he kicked her in the stomach. Tears ran down her face from the pain and she gasped for breath. Calmly he watched her and waited for her to recover. Once he was satisfied that she was breathing normally again and listening to him he spoke again.

“When you train a dog you treat it badly when it misbehaves, you reward it when it behaves properly. Show me proper respect and you'll be treated much better bitch.” He stared at her intently. “Now do you understand?”

Rachel's body ached with pain. She realized that she was only hurting her chances of escape by defying him. If she was too hurt to take advantage of an escape opportunity it would be her own fault. She needed to play his game for now.

“Yes I understand.” she said her eyes downcast.

“Excellent! But you are to address me as Master Nesath from now on. Understood?”

“Yes, Master Nesath.” she answered keeping her eyes downcast. She felt physically ill as the words left her mouth. It was a struggle to sound submissive as she thought about calling such a monster master.

He smiled, “I know you are just playing along right now. I'll let it go for the tonight.” He took a water skin from his pack and tossed it to her. She took it and drank greedily. The water was warm and it wasn't fresh, but it was exactly what she needed. Nesath watched her as she drank. The man never seemed to show emotion, when he beat her it was not with anger but a cool aloofness. Even his most provocative and insulting statements were devoid of emotion. That cool detachment from everything that happened around him and everything that he did made him terrifying.

When she had finished drinking he took the water skin and replaced it in his pack. Then turning back to Rachel, he told her, “I don't care who you were or who you thought you were. Your name is not important. What is important is you are mine now. You are my little bitch whose only job is to satisfy me in any way I desire. You do not have any name anymore unless I wish to give you one. A dog needs to learn to respond only to it's master's voice.”

Rachel watched hungrily as he took some bread and cheese from the pack along with a wine skin. He broke off a large chunk of bread and ate. Rachel's stomach growled loudly. She had not eaten anything since the feast and she was quite hungry. Playing his game was starting to get much harder than she expected it would. She sat in silent torture as she watched him eat every last bit of the food he took from his pack and washed it down with the wine. She desperately wished to ask for something to eat but knew that if she did she would be beaten again.

“Come over here bitch.” Nesath beckoned her to him.

Obediently she got up from the ground and stood in front of him. He took hold of her head with one large hand and began to study her carefully. He turned her head to look at each side. Rachel half expected him to tell her to open her mouth so he could inspect her teeth. Finishing with her face, Nesath moved on to inspecting her body. He let his hand wander all over her body leaving Rachel feeling very violated. Still she submitted to his attentions all the while planning how she was going to kill him.

“Well it looks like I made a decent choice. You will do nicely.” He grinned wickedly at her, “This is where your training can be fun for both of us. If you behave we can both enjoy ourselves.”

He undressed himself tossing his clothes in the back corner of the tent. His weapons had been left outside the tent. Rachel looked at him in apprehension as he lay on the bedroll and summoned her to him. She came and knelt beside him.

“There you go. No fighting at all. You want this as much as I do, don't you bitch? You're nothing but a dirty little whore.” He pulled her close and kissed her hard on her lips. Rachel swallowed the urge to bite down hard on his lip.

“I like to undress my girls myself.” he said as he pulled at the back of her dress. “It feels like I'm opening a gift.”

He began to pull the dress over her head and Rachel saw her chance to strike. She reached down to the inside of her thighs and drew two long knives. Quickly she reached her arms around him and plunged the knives deep into his kidneys. She stabbed again and again and again. Nesath let out a loud scream of pain and slumped forward.

Finally she came to her senses again and stopped stabbing into Nesath's corpse. She dropped the knives and pulled away from him. His face was locked in a mix of pain and surprise. She hoped that if anyone had heard the scream they thought it was something else. She looked at the blood that stained her hands red. She had done it. She had killed a man. Rachel felt guilt and revulsion fill her. She felt like she was going to be sick.

Rachel pushed the feelings deep down inside of her. She needed to focus and move quickly. She didn't have time to break down now. Sooner or later, someone was bound to show up to speak to their commanding officer. She only hoped that they expected him to be busy with her for awhile yet.

She picked up the daggers and wiped them clean on his discarded clothes before replacing them in their sheaths. She was thankful that Jedd had given them to her with the instruction to always keep them with her. He told her that most men would never expect her to have them, and that they could end up saving her life one day. It looked like he was right.

Next she went to the large pack and opened it. Inside she found enough basic supplies to last a couple days. There was also a small money pouch filled with gold and silver coins. She decided that she was going to take the entire pack with her if she could manage it. Lifting it, she found that it was quite heavy, but she thought she would be able to handle it.

She considered trying to grab some of his weapons from in front of the tent but quickly discarded the idea. There was a torch out front and with the commanders tent being in the middle of the camp, she didn't think she would be able to get any weapons from there unnoticed.

Instead she blew out the small oil lamps. Once it was dark inside, she moved to the darkest side of the tent where no torchlight was shining in and drew one of her long knives. Carefully she cut a long slit in the wall of the tent. Once it was large enough for her to slip through, she shoulder the pack and slowly crept out of the tent and into the night.

Emerging from the small hole, Rachel found herself in a small gap between tents. Moving low to the ground she slowly made her way to the corner of the tent. A nearby torch bathed the ground in a pool of light a couple feet in front of where she stopped. Glancing out from where she remained hidden between the two tents, Rachel could see men gathered at fires, or moving up and down the makeshift paths between the tents.

Most of the men were eating, drinking and talking loudly. They all seemed occupied in what they were doing and she couldn't see any guards nearby. She suspected that the soldiers didn't fear an attack and that anyone working on guard duty tonight was a mere formality. It made sense to her, they weren't in a war right now. What they did the other night was slaughter a bunch of farmers and peasants. There would be no one coming to attack them in the night. All of this worked to Rachel's advantage as she planned to make her escape.

Taking a deep breath and holding it tightly she dashed out from her hiding spot, across the small path, and into another small gap between another group of tents. She stopped and waited listening to see if anyone was going to call out an alarm about an escaping prisoner. When no shouts came she smiled to herself at her success.

She considered breifly trying to find Jedd and seeing if they could escape together. However, she quickly discarded the idea as she had no idea where he was being held in the camp. Instead she tried to orient herself so that she could find where the horse had been tied when they first arrived.

Once she had her bearings, Rachel continued dashing from shadow to shadow and flitting between the tents. Each time she dashed into the open she would pause upon entering the shadows again and wait to be detected. It seemed that none of the soldiers were really watching anything other than what they were currently engaged in. Since she stuck to the shadows as much as possible, she was beginning to feel like she just might make out of there alive.

Rachel came out of the gap between the tents to find the horses picketed in front of her. She knew at this point she would have to be very careful. The last thing that she wanted to do was startle the horses and alert the soldiers that something was wrong here. She also expected that there would be men guarding the horses. She moved into the shadows of a nearby tree and knelt down in the grass watching carefully.

After awhile she still hadn't seen any guards patrolling along the horse lines. She figured they must be very confident that no one was going to try and steal their horses. She guessed that the guards probably were sitting by a fire somewhere nearby counting on the horses to alert them to anything unusual happening.

Slowly she crept among the horses moving slowly so that she wouldn't startle them. She had spent a fair amount of time among the horses at Master Valin's farm. Jedd wanted all of them to learn to ride in case of an emergency. He had even taught them how to ride bareback. Master Valin hadn't been thrilled at the idea of letting them ride but gave in grudgingly when Jedd insisted that it was a necessary skill to help with the defense of the community.

As it turned out, she would not have to ride bareback tonight. The horses were hobbled in a large group with their riding tack nearby in case there was some need to move out quickly. Rachel just needed to choose a horse, saddle it up and go. She was surprised at how easy escaping had been so far. It was almost as if they wanted her to escape.

As she walked through the line of horses, she felt more than a little intimidated. There were many large horses including a few young stallions that she was sure she would not be able to handle. Master Valin had always been proud of his excellent horses, but she now realized his horses were average at best. She wandered through the lines until she came across a smaller mare. It looked similar in size to what she had ridden before. She approached the mare slowly so as not to alarm it. The horse looked at her calmly and sniffed at her before turning it's interest back to it's feed bag.

It seemed like a gentle and calm enough mount not to be easily spooked by a stranger. She turned to the riding tack and started to saddle the horse. As soon as the mare felt the saddle hit her back, she immediately stood still and ready. Rachel was pleased that the horse appeared to be so well trained. Stealing it was going to be an easier task then she expected.

Rachel tied her new pack on the back of the saddle. It looked like she was all ready to go. She looked around one more time for guards and still not spotting any, she climbed into the saddle. With one last glance over her shoulder, she kicked her heels into the horse's flanks. The mare shot off into the night at a quick run. Rachel made for the cover of the woods and kept the horse moving at a fast pace. She knew that sooner or later she would need to slow down or she would risk the horse breaking a leg in the dark, but first she needed that cover.

*****

Zikor watched the girl racing into the darkness. After she disappeared into the trees, he turned and walked back towards the center of the camp. Passing many fires he saw a large number of soldiers eying him with suspicion. He knew his profession was well known among these men. He couldn't wait until that suspicion would be replaced with fear. After tonight, he knew it wouldn't be much longer.

He entered a tent and Mikkel turned to look at him. “It's done then?”

“Yes lord Mikkel, she killed Nesath and I watched as she fled into the woods.” Zikor answered.

“Good. Then command is mine. Nesath always was a fool. His appetites were always going to be his end.”

“How did you know that she would be able to kill him?” Zikor asked curiously.

“That was the easiest thing of all to predict. Nesath had gotten careless, he thought himself untouchable. He should have expected a girl like that found with Tyrone would be more than what she appeared.”

“I understand. You are very wise my lord.”

Mikkel laughed, “Zikor I have no need of that kind of ass kissing. If you really want to take that route with me, you would be better of licking my boots clean. I won't respect you anymore but at least you'd be doing something useful. You are dismissed.”

Zikor turned to leave then paused in front of the door to the tent. “My lord, one question if I may.”

He waited and when Mikkel said nothing, he continued hesitatingly, “Why did you allow the prisoner to escape? Why not just kill her?”

Mikkel stared at him intently, “I always reward those that help me. Even those that help me unknowingly.” he answered finally, “You did quite well yourself tonight. Continue to serve me as well as you served your old master, and I can promise you that you will have the power you crave.”

Zikor nodded his understanding, “I see, thank you my lord.”

He gave a sharp salute and exited the tent. Things were definitely changing quickly around here and he was going to ride along as far as it would take him. Once that had taken him as far as it could, he would move on to the next person that could carry him up with them. It wouldn't be long before he was the one giving all the orders. His future was looking very bright indeed.

*****

Jaiden stood looking uncomfortably into the mirror. It seemed that she and her mother had very different ideas about what would be considered comfortable. Although to be fair it was more the fault of the lady's maids that dressed her than her mother. She wondered if what she had on now was their idea of revenge for being woken in the middle of the night. She stared at the long rust colored skirt and of her dress thinking not for the first time how much she would have preferred to be in pants. That however wasn't the worst of it. The skirt at least was long and modest. The same couldn't be said of the rest of the dress. She was wearing a black corset form fitting bodice that she was told was perfect for emphasizing her figure. Apparently she had excellent shoulders so the maid's decided she needed something strapless and sleeveless that showed them off. All in all she had to admit that it fit well and made her looked incredibly beautiful. The problem of course being that Jaiden wasn't sure that she was quite ready to look quite like this. Damn it! She still had the mind of a male after all!

They had also decided that there was no way she could walk around with such wild untamed hair. After deciding what she would wear and taking her measurements, they sent the clothes off with one girl to be adjusted and she quickly found herself pushed into a seat near the mirror. One of the maids began cutting her hair, while another set in on her face working at her eyebrows. A third took her hands and started working on her nails.

By the time they were finished Jaiden couldn't recognize herself. Her long blond hair now came just past her shoulders with bangs pulled to the side to frame her face. Her eyebrows were thin and arched making her face look even more feminine. Her nails were neatly trimmed. The girl working on her hands seemed disappointed that she didn't have longer nails. Jaiden was pretty happy about that fact herself. Still the girl made do with what she had to work with and settled for painting them a black. They wanted to paint her face but Jaiden refused that and threatened them with violence if they even dared to try. The maids looked at her in shock and fled the room. They returned a little later with her dress and after helping her into it made another quick retreat.

Her mother had watched the whole thing with a big grin on her face. Apparently she was enjoying all this immensely. Jaiden glared at her coldly which only succeeded in making her mother laugh loudly.

“You're the one who said that you were ready for this.” she reminded her.

“Alright, I did say that,” Jaiden admitted, “but I didn't expect something quite so... feminine to start off with. Why couldn't I wear pants?”

“That would be because I don't have any pants in my wardrobe. Your father never lets me leave this tower, let alone the palace. As far as he is concerned I have no need for pants. My only job is to look attractive and pleasure him.”

Jaiden frowned, “That man is not my father... he may have sired me, but that doesn't make him my father.”

Her mother nodded, “You have a point there. He's not been a true father or husband for nearly five hundred years. Come with me. We need to have a long talk.”

She led Jaiden over to some chairs and a sofa near a large fireplace. Since it was summer, the fireplace was unlit, but Jaiden imagined it would by a cozy place to sit in the winter. She watched as her mother smoothed her skirts and took a seat on the sofa. Jaiden did her bet to emulate her mother's actions and took a seat beside her. She had watched Rachel do the same thing countless times and knew the importance of sitting properly when wearing a skirt.

“There is a lot to tell you,” her mother began, “I'm not even really sure where I should begin.”

“Why don't you begin with telling what just happened to me.”

Her mother looked at her in surprise, “Isn't that obvious? I thought you would have figured it out. Rhyum transformed you into a girl in order to stop you from receiving your birthright as his son.”

Jaiden nodded, “I had expected that,” she said speaking slowly, “What I mean is... how did he do it. I thought that Rhyum couldn't use his power to do anything to his sons.”

“He can't. At least not on his own. That is where the dark mages come into the picture. They combine their magic with his power and that allows the transformation to happen. When they are finished, you are the person that you would have been if you were born a girl. Such a thing only works when the dark magic of Setesh is combined with the power of Praxtor. Such an even was inconceivable even to Praxtor. Therefore it was never even considered when he shaped the rules about how his power could be used.”

“Does that mean that I am no longer immortal?”

“No, that was in you before the transformation and cannot be removed. There are worse things though than death.” Her mother answered softly.

“What do you mean? What can be worse than death?” Jaiden asked incredulously.

“The reason that mages of Setesh first offered this alliance is because they found they benefit from it as well. You see, Rhyum was born early in his father's reign as king and so he was nearly two thousand years old as his time was drawing to an end. He had lived so long that he feared death. He feared it more than any of us released, so when a dark mage of Setesh approached him with an offer, he took it instead of banishing him like he would have in the past. Four mages joined your father in performing the ritual on your first brother. When the ritual worked Rhyum was estatic and readily agreed to the second ritual. He gave his new daughter to the dark mage that first offered the alliance. He used a second ritual to bond with her. This allowed him to access her limitless life force to power his magic. This granted him immense power and a kind of immortality of his own. It is different in that he is not a true immortal in that he could be killed if he was attacked. Since then everytime a son has been born, he has been transformed and given to the mages afterwards to provide power to them.”

Jaiden looked at her mother with shock clear on her face. “This is going to happen to me tomorrow?”

Her mother looked at her sadly, “I am afraid so. Tomorrow you will be bound to a dark mage. Once that happens you will have no free will as long as he lives. You will be compelled to follow and act upon his every whim.”

Jaiden sat silently filled with dread of what tomorrow would bring. Her mother wrapped her arms around her.

“I am so sorry, I tried to save you from this. I really did. I never wanted to see this happen again. I had hoped you would live long enough to take your father's place and correct his wrongs. I really wanted a better life for you. For all of you... I always tried to protect my children, but the cost became too much.”

Tears began to stream down her mother's face and Jaiden also began to cry. They held each other tightly for quite some time. After awhile they were both completely cried out and feeling a bit better.

Jaiden looked at her mother, “I am scared. I am more scared of what is happening to me than I have ever been scared of anything. I hate Rhyum, and I hate what he has done to me. I don't want to be a girl. I am afraid to lose control of my life. Mother I am glad that I have you, without you I would be lost right now. I never gave any real thought to my real mother before today. Now that I finally found you, I realize how much I really needed you. Thank you for being here for me when I needed you more than anything. Thank you for everything you have tried to do for me. I love you.”

Her mother looked at her with tears glistening in her eyes. “I love you too Jaiden.”

Jaiden hesitated then spoke slowly, “Mother... I think... Well... I think the name Jaiden doesn't work for me anymore does it? I... I should have a new name.”

“Are you sure? What would you want to be called then?” her mother asked.

“What would you suggest? You are my mother, I want you to choose it.”

Her mother thought for a bit, “I think Maria would be nice. After my mother.”

“That sounds good to me. I would be honored to be named after your mother.” Maria answered.

Her mother smiled and hugged her tightly. Maria held her mother tightly not wanting to let go. She knew that come tomorrow she would probably never see her mother again. She planned to take advantage of whatever time they had together, she was not going to sleep tonight.

Maria took a deep breath then began, “Mother, there is something else that I have really been wondering about.”

“What is it? I will tell you anything that you want to know.”

“Rhyum seem surprised when he found me with... Tyrone. Like he didn't even know I existed. How did you manage to get me out of the palace without him ever knowing I was born?”

Her mother smiled sadly, “That is a secret that was known only to me, and to the two women that assisted with your birth. The reason that Rhyum didn't know about you is because you had a twin brother.”