For the next three days Karen travelled, from dawn to the night and further on. She was still growing accustomed to her new form, and by the end of the second day, she had run out of food, she still could not bring herself to eat grass after the pendant incident on the road. To her relief though, she soon reached her destination, Gull Point.
‘Gull Point, home of the seaside spellcaster Mazsha.’ A sign said, noting the small city’s one claim to fame. Glad to see the information she had received back in Seagale bore truth, she went into town. When she walked in though, she noticed many of the people were looking at her and speaking.
“Did someone leave their horse unattended?”
“Is it wearing jewelry around its neck?”
“Why is that mare looking this way?”
Such sayings were said around Karen, making her more nervous about the enterprise. She knew her behavior would gain attention, but she had no idea it would be that much. Besides that she was hungry and needed to get to that spellcaster. As she continued she found herself in the market, the cacophony of business once again shielding her from some suspicion, looked around, she saw that among the crowd, there was a single familiar face.
It was that one raccoon, the one who had sold her her necklace. Growing livid, Karen immediately gave off an enraged neigh before charging at him. Gulping, knowing instinctively he was the target, the gray furred being ran as well. It created quite the hubbub among the dwellers of Gull Point’s. When she approached the fearful crowd, Karen jumped, dodging them all entirely. Once she was over them she pushed herself to go faster and faster, doggedly pursuing the raccoon.
She could hear him panting, his body struggling on adrenaline to keep his rapid pace up. The long chase with the determined Karen continued to go on, not giving him a moment’s rest. After ten minutes of full on running, the false merchant’s knees finally gave out and he fell to his knees, gasping and panting for air near the market. Karen cornered him, looming above like a vengeful specter.
“Crazy horse, why’re you cha-“ he began, when he saw her necklace, “Shit.”
Karen pushed him back against a stand with her foreleg as she snorted at him. Chuckling nervously and fearfully, he tried to hastily search for an escape.
“Ah, well well, looks like my old customer came back. That necklace I gave you looks to be in order as well.”
Karen neighed angrily, pressing her foreleg harder into his chest.
“Bein’ an animal ain’t so bad.” He said with a nervous grin. Before quickly grabbing some beads form the stand Karen was pushing him up against, and throwing them in her face.
Karen recoiled briefly at the sudden attack, but that was all he needed to escape, climbing up the stand and over a wall. Karen tried to follow, but the wall was too high for her to jump over. And she couldn’t see a way around. Pacing angrily in front of where the Rodent disappeared, Karen neighed angrily, hoping to get him to come back. Surprisingly he did, standing on top of the wall, out of her reach.
“You probably came for the wizard who lives here, right? He’s the real deal, but won’t be able to help you like you are, the man’s blind. Your best bet is to talk to him, but since I’m guessing you can’t considering you’ve been making me deaf with your neighing.” He said before reaching down into a bag he had. Tossing two items down to her, one was a picture of a flower, while the other was a satchel of coins.
“Your refund and a picture of a flower that might help cure you. If that’s all, I’ll be gone and out your mane, er I mean hair.” He said before retreating hastily.
With a snort, Karen picked up both. Craning her neck around and tossing the money in her backpack, and studied the image of the flower closely. The paper read “Azuchroma.”
Karen recognized it as the flower from in front of the Barons house and the runebook the quack shaman had recommended. She stayed there and studied it until the image was emblazoned within her brain. When it was she placed it in her backpack and walked away, deciding to start her search for the flowers right away. She thought she had seen a old growth forest not too far from Gull Point, and hoped they might be there.
Wasting no time, she ran that way, once again leaving civilization in her search for normalcy. By the time she reached the forest trail, she hadn’t noticed the mysterious flowers she had been searching for yet, but she had noticed the signs of human travel. Karen had to be wary; otherwise she could be captured due to a misunderstanding. Inside her mind, she repeated the mantra of finding the flowers and getting out.
The search took the better part of 4 hours; with her looking through shrubbery after shrubbery in search of the flower she so desperately hoped would cure her. It was an absolute joy when, at last, she saw one of the flowers that was on the page the raccoon merchant had shown her. Eagerly, she went to eat it, only to hear a shout.
“Eh? What’s that noise?”
“Sounds like a horse, see?”
Karen tried to eat the flower hastily, but before she could, she noticed a collection of bees impeded her. Try as she might, she couldn’t get past them without them threatening to sting her before the other people arrived. When they did, she noticed it was a man and a woman, the two of them young adults. The man had blonde hair, slightly matted and bright teal eyes. Karen considered he could have been handsome, but he seemed simple, much like a farmer’s boy.
The woman with him seemed as if she had a more serious mindset. She had intelligent eyes, ones that were green and had a greedy quality about them. She was obviously the older of the two, though not by much. Her stature was similar to that of Karen’s true form. Her hair was short and gray despite her youth and she had black lipstick and dark lashes. Something about the woman evoked the feeling of smoke or smog.
“Wow Ashley, look a loose horse!”
“Yes, and a fine one as well. She appears to be a quarter horse.” The woman said, an accent punctuating her words. “Well trained and in good shape…By the way Bradley, don’t forget I am still a commander.”
“Sorry Commander Ashley.”
“It’s quite alright. “ Ashley said as she looked Karen in the eyes. Karen wasn’t quite sure what to do. She could have easily made a run for it, or tried to knock them back, but she didn’t know what to do. She watched the bees buzz towards Ashley, only for her to produce a gray bag and some matches. Lighting it, she tossed both near the hive where the bees emanated from, the ground. When the bag exploded in smoke, Karen noticed all the bees had died, the ones currently buzzing were falling on the ground in death throes, giving off weak, desperate buzzes. When silence came moments later, Karen saw the woman smile.
“Much better. Now then we better take this mare along with us.”
“Yes ma’am, but doesn’t she have an owner already, judging by the things she has on her?”
“I would wager she’s a stray. No one is daft enough to leave a horse as fine as this alone, and if they are they don’t deserve her.”
Before Karen knew it, the woman had situated herself upon her back. Indignantly, Karen tried to buck her off, but the woman seemed adept at horse riding. She held onto Karen, still having her share of struggles, but her resilience keeping her from faltering. During her struggles, Karen saw the boy, Bradley, watch Ashley closely. To her surprise, she was soon utterly tired and Ashley was still on her. Panting and breathing heavily. Karen decided to yield. When she looked to the ground under the nest of slain bees, she saw the flower was burned now too. With little other choice and lack of energy, Karen gave in for the moment.
“You did it commander, you tamed her!”
“I’m not entirely sure of that, but she’s docile for the moment. We better get back to the camp for now.”
Urging Karen on, Ashley motioned for Karen to follow a trail, Bradley walking alongside her at a leisurely pace. For now all Karen could do was observe the duo and try to figure out an escape path. From what she gathered, Ashley was the smarter of the two and in a position of power. It was implied in the way that Bradley, while taller and more muscular, deferred to her without question.
Ashley herself was a real anomaly. She had the bearing of one who knew something of military command, and yet at the same time she was more independent in action. The dour woman also made something within Karen stir, not fear, but caution. It was as if she was being told by her animal instincts to be wary.
It took two hours before; at last, they arrived at a camp. The camp was sizable, with around ten or so people there. Karen saw there was a stable. Apparently they had set up in the remains of an old ghost town.
Walking in, Karen saw a couple of armored figures and another couple in plain clothes.
“Commander, Brad, you two’ve returned.” Said an older man, this one in his middle ages with thinning hair. He had the air of being book smart, a small medic back on his belt indicating some kind of medical training , though he was quite skittish by appearance.
“Was there a doubt?” Bradley asked, “Commander Ashley is famous for her recon. How else do you think she got her old war name?”
“Right, The Smoke.” Another said, a man who held a lance and had a scar on his face. It didn’t take long before something clicked within Karen. It was a woman known simply in rumor as the infiltrator. She was from the neighboring republic of Udrame, said to have been admitted to the army early on as a child spy. Called smoke for her calling card, a burning village, once her mission was completed. It was assumed she had a case of pyromania, but from what Karen observed she was far more interested in the smoke, seeing it rise up and filter through the air like the souls of the slain leaving the physical plane. Karen had been taught that the smoke infiltrator was one who should be watched for, and she had to admit now she knew for sure it was true.
“Now’s not the time for campfire stories. Rosen, Dr. Yurel, please put this horse with the others at the stable. Charlie, you can go and bring out the rations. We need to discuss our plans for next week at Gull Point…”
Karen’s ears perked up at that statement. She tried to gain control from the man called Rosen, managing for a time and even throwing him off. This caught the attention of Ashley who smiled.
“She’s a fine horse indeed, though more unruly than my own Cinder.” With a momentary glance, the dark eyed woman looked at her attendant. “Bradley.”
“Yes ma’am?”
“Put the horse with the others and I’ll consider letting you keep her.”
With a smile that was gleeful, filled with happiness, Bradley obeyed. At first Karen expected him to have less trouble with him than she had with the last one, when from nowhere he managed to pull her along. Though she resisted, her own tiredness coupled with his great strength enabled him to lead her along.
“Sorry Starshot, but I can’t just let you cause trouble for the commander. I’m sorry you got roughed up.” He said with a genuinely apologetic tone while patting her pure white patch of fur. The action soothed Karen and made her give off an involuntary nicker. Bradley smiled before reaching into a bag of his own and picking out a sugar cube. “I promise things will be okay and I’ll keep a good watch on you.”
Karen wished to refuse the treat, but couldn’t imagine seeing the young man’s feelings hurt. He didn’t seem dim, a bit oblivious yes, but not an idiot or mentally impaired. Still, what was a man like this doing with such a sketchy group?
Knowing she’d get more answers by listening in, Karen simply ate the sugar cube. Somehow, she guessed he saw her pleased smile because he laughed to her once she finished. Gingerly taking her backpack off and hanging it on a nearby hook as he put her in a stall, placing a hand on her necklace before going on.
“I know you can’t understand me, but I hope I can work things out with your owner. Someone must have liked you very much to have given you that necklace. I’ll try to give you the respect I think they give you. Stay safe, I’ll be back before long.”
With that, Bradley made his departure and left Karen in the decrepit barn. For the most part it was still functional, though she could see the wood rot and even cracks. Making an escape wouldn’t be hard by any means, but it would be noisy. Karen decided it would be best to play along for the time being and see what happened come nightfall.
As time passed, she saw three other horses, one of which was a large Clydesdale with gray and black fur, it seemed as if the creature took up the whole space by itself. For now it was asleep though and Karen simply wished to wait. The hours grinded by slowly, almost painfully so, but come dusk she could hear the light crackle of a campfire and see the lights cutting through the darkness through holes in the wall. Keeping her senses sharp, she listened up and watched.
“So the plan is to make a pass through Gull Point and do what?” the one called doctor Yurel asked.
“Hop a boat of course, to Tema Island. Rumor has it that an old friend of mine resides there.” Ashley said, “I simply need to speak with them and we move on from there depending on what we learn, doctor.”
“Naturally, Commander. I have to say though Bradley is more useful than I imagined. Where is that farmer’s boy anyhow?”
“With Rosen gathering supplies from town. He’s a kind enough child, it was wise of us to take him in. Be that as it may though, he’s untrained and a liability once we truly begin our mission. We can always use him as cannon fodder though, if we must.”
“Right, Charlie’s writing the message with what we’ve learned, isn’t he?”
“Yes, and putting it in the spot I marked while we were in the forest. In three days our courier will take it back to the republic. For now though we should stay vigilant, and stay silent.”
If Karen was still capable of laughing, she would have done it then and there. Ashley had said far too much thinking they were in private. With this information, Karen could turn in the lot of them and help the kingdom.
All she needed to do was wait until they all fell asleep, but odds of that were low. In all likelihood, the result would be them taking turns keeping watch. In that scenario, all Karen would have to do is attempt to make her escape and find an Azuchroma as well as the letter the duo had mentioned.
Within another two hours, the group would find themselves going to bed. With Dr. Yurel seemingly being the only one awake at the time. Fortunately he was a poor watchman and Karen knew exactly when he would fall asleep. She could see his head dip as he began to go in and out of consciousness. When she finally saw his body go lax, Karen made her move, grabbing her bag off the wall and kicking the door of the stable as hard as she could.
It made a fair amount of noise and took the door off its rusted hinges, leaving her with an escape. Karen was filled with self-satisfaction before she departed, as fast as she could.
The noise woke Yurel, who gasped and looked around nervously. Karen knew the others would be roused but she doubted they would cause trouble over an escaped horse that was technically stolen. She dashed off towards the forest, hoping she could find some way to find the blue flowers she needed. Surprisingly, there was a single flower that gave off a faint, ethereal blue glow that gave away its position to Karen as she fled. Going to it, Karen took a small bite and felt a light tingle go over her body. With a quick clamp of her jaw, the horse girl snatched up the azure flower from its roots all the while keeping a steady pace.
“You see her anywhere?”
“Where the Hell is that horse!” A few of the patrolling party had already spread out to search for the wild beast. Though some gave less than a stellar look because of the rather menial task.
“Who cares? We don’t need it, Bradley’s just going to have to do without.”
When Karen was certain the men had relented, she breathed a sigh of relief, feeling the tingling intensify slightly, as she started to digest the flower. After about 15 minutes, she spied the first change, the fur on her body receding, beginning to thin out in a few areas. “It’s working!!” Karen thought, eagerly watching the changes as they slowly progressed, trotting in place with excitement. She watched as the changes continued over the next hour, small fingers starting to appear around her hooves, her legs starting to change in length and proportion. She felt relief as she watched her snout begin to draw back, eagar to be able to talk again. She lay down, finding the slow changes strangely draining compared to the ones that had turned her into a horse, eventually slipping to sleep as her body continued to revert.
Karen woke with the dawn about 6 hours later, finding she was back to normal, but nude.
“Well, at least this fixes one issue.” Karen said, glad she could finally speak again. Digging in her bag, she pulled out her original set of clothing, and put it on, glad to wear something she was familiar with again.
With her biggest issue out of the way, Karen decided to search for the message that was left. She meandered around the forest for a time, trying to look for any of the landmarks “Smoke” and her companion’s had mentioned. Eventually she noticed there was a large rock with an X carved into it. One who had a passing glance would have never noticed, but Karen was on the lookout and lifted it up, getting the letter. Putting it in her Backpack, she had all the tools she needed for taking the renegade troop down.
Descending out of the forest near the city, Karen quickly found the garrison of troops at Gull Point, and gave them the letter. At first they didn’t believe her, but the information the parchment held garnered their attention. The plan was to inform some local rebels in the area of Gull Point’s weakest areas that would be easiest to invade and conquer. Being a port town, it would be hard to burn, so a suggestion of an ‘accidental’ oil spill would be proposed days before the invasion to be then lit ablaze, trapping its people once the troop was safely at sea.
Immediately the garrison began making plans for defense, sending some troops to try and capture Commander Ashley and her men at the ghost town. Though Karen herself couldn’t stay and be part of them. Instead she went to buy new necessities that had been ruined over the course of the past few days. Once she had shoes, and a new supply of food, she went to the wizard and consulted him. As the raccoon had said, he was blind, but he wasn’t senile, understanding her tale quickly and immediately starting to study her pendant. After a few hours of the old man mumbling various enchantments over it, he sat down and sighed.
“It seems as if the necklace you have had a thievery charm attached. It was made poorly though as it targets the wearer and not the actual thief. Even so, not all hope is lost.”
“Why? Will the curse run out?”
“No, not until the end of your days or the original caster undoes it. You wearing the necklace allows you able to retain your humanity, though. It was likely a horse whispering trinket initially…” The wizened old man of the seaside said, “Nonetheless unless you continue to eat the flowers regularly you will revert back to a horse, I recommend gathering as much as you can before winter comes, as well as seek out the original owner of the necklace, I’m sure once you find them they’ll be able to end the curse.”
“So I need to search for one specific mage? That could take years.”
“I know, and I’m sorry child, but it’s all I can offer you.”
Karen puffed her cheeks but took the information as well as she could. Now it seemed her condition would be permanent, she internally prepared for the off chance she might be stuck like this forever…
Thanking the old mage, Karen headed to an inn, hoping a good night’s sleep would help her relax after the past few days. Along the way she saw the soldiers the garrison had sent out returning, with a prisoner in tow. It was Bradley, the young man who had been kind to Karen while she was in there care. He looked miserable, looking down at his feet, as he trudged along behind the soldiers, his hands in iron cuffs. Flagging down the commander, Karen inquired about what had happened.
“Used him as a distraction they did, knocked him in the back of the head and left him for us so they could get away.” The commander said gruffly in response.
“I know it’s not my place anymore, but from one soldier to another, be merciful with him, he was kind while I was their prisoner, and he obviously isn’t a real danger, just a kid caught up with the wrong people.” Karen asked him, hoping to spare the boy any more hardship.
The commander looked back at his prisoner, with thought, scratching at his scraggly beard every now and again before replying. “I suppose your right, he won’t get away Scott free, but if he cooperates he won’t face the punishment fit for the rest of his traitorous former comrades.”
“Thank you Commander” Karen said, heading back to the Bradley. Walking up to him she placed a hand on his shoulder, causing him to look up at her.
“Do what they say, and you will be fine” she said, before leaning in closer and whispering “Thanks for the sugar cube” before pulling back and waving the commander on, Bradley looking at her in confusion as he was led away, his expressing turning to shock as he saw her pendant right before he was led around a corner and out of sight.
Chuckling lightly to herself, glad that Bradley would be taken care of, Karen continued her journey to get a good night’s sleep, finding a pleasant inn nestled in a small grove of trees, the sky already starting to darken as night approached. After settling in, she took a good hard look at herself in the bathroom mirror, her ears had started to tingle a bit on her way here and she hoped it wasn’t what she feared. Already she could see the flowers effects wearing off, her ears starting to point, her nose looking a little wider than normal. The flower not being as potent as she had hoped, its effects barely lasting the 12 hours since she had woken up as her normal self.
“It’s going to be a long journey…” Karen sighed, taking one last look at her changes before blowing out the candle and heading to bed.