Xander vol.1 Transmutation (9 page)

With a heavy sigh, Agent
Elba crossed his arms, his feet spread a fair distance as he gave
the area a once over. A grimace took over his features as his
thoughts caught up with him. He’d gone nearly a month with no
leads, no answers, and no convictions since Saphora.

Both Fran and Maverick had
disappeared without a trace, but he had believed that wherever they
were, they were with Saphora. Whom they also could not find. The
agency was getting tired of having no answers.

In the time they had to
rethink and analyze what happened with Saphora, they realized that
how they handled the situation was not best. But there were still
questions that needed to be answered. Reasons that needed to be
given. And without Saphora, they had no chance of getting them. Or
so they thought.

Walking up to him, with a
clipboard and pen in her hands, was his partner, Agent
Whitestone.

“So, you know her?
Like,
know
her?”
Nora asked, leaning forward on the sofa.

Her eyes and body language
were clearly showing off her interest in the current subject
matter. After things had calmed down after Loni’s departure, Nora
finally felt up to speaking, having gotten understandably skeptical
of her company. She and Xander had spent the last few hours talking
about themselves, and sharing various information about where they
lived.

Xander had gotten some
information out of Nora about Earth, but the conversation always
seemed to curve back into Athena and its inhabitants. Which Xander
had no particular problem with. Only he was eager to learn more
about Nora and the Chimera that she had mentioned, which they still
had not gotten to in full detail.

Every time they had, Nora
had found a way to relate it back to Athena, or to change the
subject to Xander and his people. Eventually they had fallen on the
topic of Saphora, and her connection with Earth, having lived there
for such a large portion of her life. This triggered more interest
in Nora, having seen Saphora several times on the news when she was
still Earth-bound.

Xander smirked, nodded in
response to her question. He was to wed her, but he didn’t think it
was necessary for her to know such details.

“
I do,” he simply put.
“Our families are very close.”

“
But then … why was she
here? And why was she killing people? And talking to
dragons?”

Xander grimaced at the
accusation. Saphora had mentioned the human’s refusal to believe
what had happened with the man, Gary Jones, while she was there.
Until it was too late.

“
She did
not
kill him,” Xander
corrected. “Tebias did.”

“
Who’s Tebias?” Nora asked
with scrunched brows, never having heard the name in reference to
Saphora before. “Another Athenian?” she guessed.

“
Yes. He was sent here
after Saphora to kill her.”

Nora’s eyes went wide at
the blunt and unexpected answer.

“
What? Why? Because she
was on Earth?”

“
Yes,” Xander paused. “But
not in that context. She wasn’t an outlaw, mind you. She is a very
powerful asset to the Kiran kingdom in an approaching war. Tebias
was sent to kill her while she was young and vulnerable. But she
acquired memory loss, and her power signal was low enough to avoid
him for some time, giving her the time she needed to survive and
return.”

“
There’s a
war
going on?” Xander
nodded. “Then why are you here? Aren’t you allies?”

“
The war hasn’t actually
started,” Xander clarified. “And when it does, I will be called
back to Athena to fight.”

Nora fell silent at the
sudden realization that Xander would not be staying to help her.
She held back the urge to frown. She had been foolish in thinking
that one act of kindness would continue throughout her entire
mission. Her eyes lowered, which was noticed by Xander. He
chuckled, misinterpreting, and said,

“
Don’t worry. I do not see
death in my future. I am fairly capable,” he gushed proudly. Nora
gave half a smile.

“
I hope so. I’ve never
been in a war, but I’ve learned about them.”

“
Oh? Have there been wars
here as well?” Xander asked curiously. Nora scoffed,
nodding.

“
Plenty. Even now, this
very minute,” she said solemnly. She thought of the wars going on
in her own mind, which would soon enough manifest themselves in the
world. Xander’s brows rose in shock, hearing of ongoing wars so
casually.

“
And we sit here idly? Why
do you not fight if you know of them?” he asked, obviously
perplexed.

“
There are militaries –
soldiers that go out to fight. While we stay here, awaiting the
outcome.”

“
Waiting – That’s
ridiculous. Everyone fights on Athena. At least in
our
kingdoms. Most
everyone is trained in
some
level of combat.”

“
Really?”

Xander nodded.

“
And how can you just sit
when you know that there is war around the corner?”

“
No,” Nora corrected.
“They’re not actually
here
. Our troops go to other
countries. Other nations and fight. We haven’t had a foreign war on
our soil in some time.”

“
Hm,” Xander thought
aloud, considering the tactic. “I see.” he said, rubbing his chin
with the palm of his hand.

He was juggling a handful
of questions, from which he was trying to choose. But Nora beat him
to it.

“
So Saphora is going to
fight, too?”

“
Of course,” he answered.
“She is their secret weapon.”

“
What do you
mean?”

“
Her power, once fully
tapped, will be unmatched by any living Athenian. And quite
possibly Guardian.”

“
Why? Why is she so
powerful?”

“
She is an Ekechi,” he
pointed out, his index finger raised theatrically. “A cross between
an Athenian and a Guardian. The first of her kind, and quite
possibly the only.”

“
A cross between …” Nora
trailed off, thinking of Loni.

The lioness. Her brain
struggled to process the explanation, before the fitting term of
bestiality struck her. Her face scrunched in disgust and she
instinctively leaned back, physically rejecting the
conversation.

“
Ew!” she
exclaimed.

Xander’s brows rose in
wonder, before furrowing at the exclamation. His head shook just
slightly, his expression demanding an explanation.

“
You people mate
with
animals
?!”
she squawked. “And reproduce!”

Xander stared blankly at
her, his mind registering the comment as idiotic. Of course they
didn’t. That wasn’t how it worked. And then he realized, possibly
for the first time, that looking in on the outside that they in
fact did. His hands shot up, eager to explain the
misunderstanding.

“
No, no,” he rushed. “Not
in their born form! As Guardians – when they can change their
physical anatomy to match ours.”

“
But you –“

“
It’s not a common
practice, mind you. In fact, it’s forbidden,” Xander made note.
“All before Saphora’s mother have died either during pregnancy or
childbirth. And the offspring have never survived before Saphora.
She is the only exception.” Nora’s face was still a mess of twists
and frowns. “And they’re not just animals, as you’ve clearly seen.
They are people. They are Guardians. With emotions and compassions
and thoughts of their own. Capable of providing and receiving love.
Just as you and I.”

“
But they’re still
–“

“
It is forbidden for that
reason,” Xander noted, more to himself than to her. “Saphora is the
only exception. We do not know why her, or Vida
survived.

Nora fell silent, her
opinion of the subject a little less clear as she took his
explanation into consideration. If she had not seen Loni as a lion
before she came barging into the house, she would have never known.
She would have thought she was a person. Part of her still
did.

And thinking about it,
until she saw her as a lion again, she would most likely continue
thinking of her as a person. She could only imagine that it was at
least similar on Athena, to those who have been living with them
for so many generations. Her expression fell somewhat in the
beginnings of understanding.

“
I guess …” she trailed
off, “So, wait. That dragon that was at the zoo that everyone
thought Saphora was trying to talk to. Was she
actually
talking to it? Was it like
… Like Loni?”

“
A Guardian,” Xander
nodded. “His name is Arol, and he is her guardian. Perhaps one of
the strongest our kingdoms have seen thus far, and he is also
fairly young. They are quite the duo.”

“
Are they … a couple?”
Nora asked timidly, trying to grasp at strings of comprehension.
Xander’s brows furrowed in confusion of the term. Nora averted her
eyes, feeling her cheeks grow hot as she struggled to explain. “You
know …” she said, gesturing her hands together. Clicking, Xander’s
eyes shot open as he understood. He burst into a fit of laughter,
shaking his head.

“
No, no,” he urged.
“Goodness, no.”

“
Oh …” Nora fizzled,
embarrassed. “Wait so then, why was he at the zoo?”

“
I can’t say,” Xander
frowned, the laughter ceasing. “Your people attempted to imprison
him.
Him
,” he
scoffed. “A
dragon
. Your people are foolish.”

“
So … That giant thing
could turn into some guy?”

“
Yes. And I’d say he still
has some growing to do.”

“
All that,” Nora repeated,
somewhat in denial. “Into one person.” Xander raised a brow,
repeating his answer in silence. “How is that even possible? How do
they do that in the first place? And why would they chose to look
like that?” she whined, finding herself overwhelmed once again with
the anatomy of the Guardians and their lack of
consistency.

“
No,” Xander offered.
“Taking our form is not their immediate decision. It is because
they choose
us
as
companions, that they take
our
form,” he explained.

“
So …” Nora began. “If
like, Loni’s companion was a tree?”

Xander laughed but
nodded.

“
Then her form of choice
would be a tree, though not very practical.”

“
So if I were to go to
Athena could I get a Guardian?” she asked, her eyes brightening at
the thought of the possibility. Xander chuckled, seeing her
profound wonder.

“
It is possible, yes.
Though it takes years to be able to create a bond strong enough to
have the link made between us. Athenians go large portions of their
life without so much as beginning. Some, anyway,” Xander explained.
“Most are able to find a connection, on average, by their
eighteenth year.”

“
Why? Is it like a rite of
passage, thing?”

“
No,” Xander shook his
head. “It just happens to be that most Athenians have mastered some
level of their power at that age.”

“
How old were
you?”

“
Sixteen,” he gushed,
obviously proud of his somewhat early blooming.

“
How old was
Saphora?”

“
Six,” he grumbled. He
waved off the fact nonchalantly, trying to move on. “But she had an
unfair advantage,” he said waving his hand around. “Being an Ekechi
and all.”

“
So then … What do they do
before they get a companion?”

“
Hm,” Xander pondered. “I
suppose nothing. I’m not heavily involved in their field of study.
I’m not sure if they roam as they are, waiting for their
companions, or if they are able to morph at will. I’ll have to ask
my father.”

“
And what if their
companion dies?”

Xander frowned, his hand
lowered from his chin.

“
They lose the ability to
morph to that form. The link between their anatomies is broken. The
brainwaves necessary no longer exist.”

“
And what about for the
Athenians? Does anything bad happen to them if their Guardian
dies?”

“
We become significantly
weaker. And vice versa. The bond between us makes us stronger. The
closer we are to one another, physically, mentally, and
spiritually, the stronger we both become. When one link is broken,
we steadily grow weaker.”

“
Can you get new ones?
Like, new Guardians or companions?”

“
It’s very rare for
Athenians to bond with another Guardian. And even more so for
Guardians to find another companion,” Xander explained. “In fact,
it’s yet to be recorded – Guardians taking on another companion.
Though when speaking to those that have lost them, they say it is
based on a sense of loyalty and grief, rather than an incapability.
So the answer remains unclear.”