The Princess's Feathers

I could smell the stench of death long before I arrived back at the hollow.

I wouldn’t have had to rely on scent alone to find my way back, though. As I approach the area, vultures circle the sky above the grove. It won’t be long before they get to work on the animals that lay there.

A terrible thought crosses my mind. No, I won’t even recount it to myself. What an undignified end to someone as gallant as Calypso! He, Bodie, and Laurent all deserve to be mourned in Varecia as heroes!

Fetid creatures! Don’t you have any sanctity for the honorable dead?

“Get away from them!” I shout, attempting to break off their slow descent. But they simply continue spiraling down as if I hadn’t said a thing.

Damn birds! If I knew how to fly, I'd go up there and scare them away myself. If only I could shout at them louder, why I’d…

…

I clinch the back of my throat and let out a piercing screech so loud I feel the ground shake beneath my talons. The vultures veer off as if blown apart by the force of my cry, shrieking and flapping their wings hard to escape. The sound travels across the prairie, ejecting a flock of birds in a grove at the far side and sending them into a tizzy. My voice bounces off the trees and returns to me on the cries of terrified starlings.

…Wow?!

I can be that loud, and cause that much terror in the hearts of ferals?

I stick my neck out, watching still more flocks of birds take flight from thickets of grass beyond my view. A sensation builds in my chest. It rises, dissipates, and spreads to all corners of myself. It makes me feel…

Powerful.

With just my voice alone, I’ve caused the moon itself to tremble. I gaze down at my talons and clench them back and forth, mesmerized by their constricting and expanding movement. I’m as tall as a building, able to rip apart ferals with my jaws, and possess machetes for fingers. Just what sort of terror could I cause in the hearts of Lemurs, Martens, and Rabbits? To those who are enemies of the Kingdom?

The animals that killed Calypso sure paid the price. They may have deserved fair judgment, but I won’t be shedding any tears over what I did to them. Whoever they worked for, whoever sent them here, that is who I will use this body against.

The scene in the hollow was exactly as I left it: Six bodies, mercifully undisturbed. Thank the Goddess nothing happened to them.

And I mean that for more than just the animals who were on my side of the fight.

It pains me to see this morbid scene again, but I told myself I’d return when I was prepared to see Calypso. The retribution from mom for an attempt on my life is going to be hard and fast. To say nothing of the response to what’s happened to me. I won’t have another chance to be alone with him, and I owe a personal debt.

I feel like a completely different beast than the one who walked away from here earlier scared and confused. I’ll admit, I’m still confused about what’s happened to me. Turning into a Lithan against my will and having an insatiable bloodlust… none of it makes any sense. But I’m no longer scared of what I’ve turned into. In fact, I’m feeling a little bit grateful.

If this supernatural event hadn’t occurred to me, I’d surely have joined the rest of my group in a pool of blood on the floor of the hollow. I would have died here, leaving the throne to Sofl, monumentally unprepared for such a burden. It’s hardly an ideal situation, but I’m alive and I can still talk. That’s what’s important.

The brambles that prevented my escape during the fight are no match for me now as I bound them in a single stride. The hollow is small and crowded though, and I must be careful with the placement of my talons to not trample anyone. I keep my wings folded tight against my sides so they don’t disturb anyone.

It’s not like Orie, Starla or the Owl deserve respect in death — if anything, the exact opposite. And that is what I intend to give them.

I don’t know anything about how to handle a crime scene, but I’m certain desecrating the body of a suspect is the opposite of what you’re supposed to do. In this instance though, I feel it’s appropriate.

Starla’s neck tasted so good earlier. I need to find out what the rest of her tastes like.

It’s not like they need her body to find out who she is, right? Well, most of it. I’m sure they’ll need her face to help determine her identity and where she came from. But I can leave that on her. Her organs are superfluous — quite frankly, I believe they’re owed to me. You helped murder my bodyguard, you bastard.

She’s lying on her stomach near the slope we descended, caught by me in a futile attempt to escape. I can see the scar I left on her neck, where my growing fangs punctured the artery to her head. It won’t be the last mark I leave on her.

Using my muzzle, I turn Starla over and onto her back. Chesnut hair partially obstructs her pale face, frozen in time at the moment I took her life. Then, using my fangs, I rip apart the cloak and armor that surrounds her — setting it aside for those who will try to determine her identity in the future — and reveal her fuzzy brown abdomen.

I will have to justify my actions, what I’m about to do… but it’s fine. I’m prepared to accept whatever comes my way for the chance to sample her again. Anyone who admonishes me will never have the chance to taste something as delicious as raw meat. How could they possibly know what they’re missing?

Enough stalling. My maw is practically drooling onto her, I can hold it back no longer. I deserve this for all the crap I’ve gone through today!

I bite into Starla’s stomach with the tips of my front fangs, tearing her apart like a can opener. Then, using small and delicate bites, I sample her flesh once more.

…

She’s Wonderful. Just, wonderful.

I think (and I don’t think this lightly,) that was the best thing I’ve ever eaten. The Goddess herself couldn’t have served up a tastier little snack. It’s a good thing I’m at the point of diminishing returns for a creature as big as me because I’d down the rest of her in a heartbeat if I could.

As content as I am with how she tasted, she wasn’t anything more than a morsel, a single bite from the best dish that’s ever been served. I suppose I could stay here and take a quick bite out of Orie and the Owl too, buuuuuut…

My plan for handling this whole sordid mess was to take the initiative and fly back to the airship, letting Duncan and everyone else know my side of the story before they see just how bad things got out here.

Will he trust a talking Lithan telling him that his partner is dead and the royal he was ordered to protect was turned into an enormous, winged monster against her will? I have no idea. I’m anxious about how this part of the plan is going to go, but I have to trust that I’ll be successful in convincing him. What other choices do I have?

My plan, of course, hinges on my ability to fly to the airship. And right now, I don’t know the first thing about flying.

Sure, I’ve overheard avians talking amongst themselves about flight conditions before. Updrafts, downdrafts, that sort of stuff. But it’s not like I’ve ever gone up to one and asked, “Hey, just curious, but how do you birds fly around anyhow?” Besides being creepy, just what use would a Ruffed Lemur have with knowledge like that?

So, I’m going to have to have to give myself a quick crash course on how to fly. A literal crash course, I’m sure.

The instincts I gained when I took this form helped me defend myself when my life was in danger, perhaps I can rely on them to get me up in the air? I sure hope so. I don’t know what I’m going to do if this part of the plan falls through.

But before I get started on any of that… there’s someone I need to talk to.

I cross the hollow and stare down over Calypso’s unmoving body. Until this point, I’ve tried to avert my gaze and not be reminded of the tragedy of his death, but I won’t allow myself to ignore him any longer. He’s remained in the same position since he took his last breaths, lying on his back with his eyes closed in a gentle state. He knew in his final moments he had fulfilled his duty and protected me — it's because of him I was allowed another chance at life.

I’ve lost two people close to me, and only one of them I was old enough to remember. Grief is not something I have a lot of experience dealing with. Even now, seeing Calypso extinguished of life, I don’t think the full weight of his passing has truly hit me. If he’s out there somewhere watching this scene, then I hope what I have to say will be enough.

“Hey Bristlebody,” my voice cracks. “It’s me. Asha.”

I pause as if waiting for a response that will never come and sigh placidly. How can I eulogize him in a way that does him justice? What could I possibly say that lives up to the sacrifice he made?

…

I anchor my talons to the ground and begin again.

“Listen. I’m not as good as my mother yet when it comes to these things. But there’s no possible way I can adequately thank you for what you did today. You are a true, honest-to-goddess hero of the Kingdom, and the taking of your life has afforded me another chance at my own. As your Princess, I promise that your sacrifice will not be in vain.”

I pause again, letting my wings relax against the ground. Calling him a hero was the easy part. I take a deep breath.

“This isn’t easy for me to admit, especially after what happened earlier today. But I deeply regret I couldn’t say how much you meant to me… as a friend,” The words escape my mouth, and a weight is lifted. “You are my friend, Calypso. Perhaps the only friend I really… had.”

Tears begin flowing as the realization my only friend passed away rises and spreads over my consciousness like a dismal fog. He died for me, and in life, I couldn’t even find the strength to admit I reciprocated his feelings of friendship. How truly pathetic am I, compared to a hero like him?

Just once, I wish I could see his dumb face smile again.

“I was too closed off. Too suspicious of everyone around me. But you were the only person outside my family I felt comfortable being around. The only animal I could relax with and take comfort in knowing you wouldn’t try to use me for some ulterior motive or manipulate me into holding a belief that would benefit you when I become Queen. I don’t know what I did to deserve a friend as loyal as you, Calypso. And I don’t know what I’m going to do now that you’re—“

…

Something’s approaching the hollow.

I raise my head and draw a breath. At least 4 distinct scents moving towards me on the wind from the direction of the grove, flirting with the artificial smells of tanned leather and forged steel. Two Lemurs, a Pine Marten, and…

Oh, no.

‘Please return before the sun starts setting,’ he said. ‘I don’t want to come looking for you in the dark.’

It’s Duncan.

…I completely forgot!