[Mkguild] Long Distance Part 3

[Stealth]

Oh no! What happened to Stealth?

A full form keeper entered the town of Terreth. The keeper looked to be some
sort of cat wearing armour. People stared at the creature and he stared
back, he walked slowly and stared at everyone and everything.



            "Hello lad!" A man leaned down and said to him, "That's an
interesting thing you're wearing there."



            The cheetah just stared at him.



            "Are you alright there?"



            The cat blinked and didn't know what to do.



            The Terrether reached a hand over to the animal's muzzle. The
cat sniffed at the man's hand and looked about.



            "Vin, get the mage." The man turned and called out to someone,
"Tell him it's 'one of those.'"



            A ferret approached, "I'll take him there before he wanders
off." Vin held out a rope and tried to leash the cat but it jerked it's head
back in surprise. The ferret-man tried again but the creature didn't
cooperate. It pawed away at the offending rope while stepping back
instinctively, looking up at the morph in confusion.



            Vinnie scratched his head fur. "Now what?"



            A bear approached and lifted the cat up into his arms, "Hey,
he's really light! The suit must be magic or something."



            The cat stared at the ursine in confusion and flailed his legs
about for a moment. Though he resisted at first he felt very tired, why did
he feel tired? He didn't know but he settled in and looked about in his
daze.



            "Must be some poor traveller, I'll take him to Atherlney and see
what he can do. He might be better in time for the festivities tonight!"



            The cat looked about from his new vantage point =96 held aloft =
in
the great ursine's arms. He had no idea what was happening and just lay back
to take everything in. The bear walked toward a structure and entered a
small portal. Inside a male human looked up in bafflement.



            "Asser? What is this?" The man asked.



            "Some odd traveller. He just wandered into town like this, most
likely feral."





            Atherlney nodded, "Place him on the ground over here." He
pointed to a spot in the centre of the room.



            The cat was placed on the floor and looked up at the two people
in front of him. The mage looked back and said nothing for a long moment.
"Can you hear me?"



            The feline nodded.



            "Ah! Well there, he isn't feral." The mage said in relief.



            "Well what's wrong with him?" The bear asked.



            "It must be the suit, he can't change in it... pardon me." The
male GM said as he lifted the cat's fore leg. He eventually found a latch
and unbuckled the suit. It immediately regained it's former weight and fell
about on the floor except for the back plate that remained fixed by the
backpack the animal wore. The cat began to buckle and fall to the floor with
the sudden added burden weighing it down.



            The mage and bear carefully slid the plate out and helped the
creature into a sitting position on its haunches. "Can you change now?"



            The feline cocked his head.



            "You know, change form." The man reminded.



            The cat just looked at him.



            "Do you understand?"



            The cat thought for a moment and then shook his head.



            The mage put a hand to his chin and pondered, "Close your eyes,
picture your own body, you are becoming humanoid, you look like a person but
with your characteristics.



            The cheetah closed his eyes and concentrated while the bear
removed the discarded armour into a pile near by. The feline soon took on a
human-like form and kneeled on the rug carpet.



            "Are you okay now?" The mage asked softly.



            "I... I'm naked." The cat said and huddled up.



            After taking care of the armour suit, the bear returned and
draped a blanket over the form of the cheetah-morph, "What's your name lad?"



            "I..." He looked up at the mage, almost hoping that he would
know.



            "You don't remember?" The man looked at him for a long moment,
"It would seem you developed amnesia in your full form." The mage motioned
to the backpack that the cat still wore. "May we look in your pack? It may
shed some light."



            The morph shrugged, he didn't know what it contained so he
couldn't say either way. He had to drop the blanket to around his waist then
fight with some harnesses before it came free, whatever it contained, it
felt very heavy and he was more then happy to remove the burden.



            Atherlney carefully opened the bag, "There's a package in
here... no traps, it has a seal. A fox's head, ring a bell?"



            The cheetah timidly shook his head.



            "Well, there's some clothes in here too, perhaps they belong to
you?"



            The cheetah shrugged.



            "They smell like you..." The bear added as he sniffed the shirt
and breeches.



            The feline put them on promptly, he felt glad to do so... or was
he meant to be naked? He put the clothes on just in case.



            "May the recipient forgive me..." Atherlney said as he broke the
seal and opened the package. "...Gears. It's the gears from the Keep that
Walric needs for tonight." He said to Asser, "Take these to him, ask him who
sent them."



            The ursine nodded and took the package. He looked once at the
blank cat on the floor then headed out towards the watchmaker's shop.



            Atherlney placed the pack with the armour in a corner then
returned to the courier, "Here, take my hand." The feline allowed himself to
be moved to a comfortable chair from his previous spot on the floor, "Can I
get you anything son? How about some tea?"



            He nodded, "Thank you sir. I don't know why I'm so tired."



            "Call me Atherlney." The mage walked over to his hearth where a
kettle hung, "From what I could see of your aura it looks like someone cast
a 'cloud' over you to fog your mind." He began to pour the tea into a cup.
"I'll remove it but it will take time for it to be fully lifted, perhaps a
day or two." he then handed the hot cup to the cat.



            The feline took the offered drink and mumbled a thankyou. He
soon placed the hot cup on a table and rubbed his arms before looking up, "
Atherlney?"



            "Yes, dear?" The man asked as he prepared bottles and flasks for
a potion on his work bench.



            "What am I?"



            "You're a cheetah, my boy." He answered, like a parent
explaining to a child.



            The cheetah looked at himself for a moment then he looked back
up.



            "They're a southern cat that can run very-"



            "What AM I?" He asked again sounding terse and indicated his
form.



            "Oh, you're a keeper."



            "What? Aye, you said the package came from a keep." The cat
furrowed his ridges.



            "No, I mean a person like you with your form."



            "What form? Am I supposed to have four legs or two or what? Am I
another race? Was I always like this?" He asked quickly.



            "Not always, no earlier then the Battle of Three Gates at the
most." The Mage answered and opened a flask of herbs.



            "I was in a battle?"



            "I don't know but you are not another race, you were most likely
a human and now you are a human-cheetah hybrid or a cheetah morph." He
answered distractedly. Not that he needed to explain this; otherwise he
wouldn't be working on a potion...



            "Like the bear... and that ferret guy?"



            "Yes, you are an animal morph." Where were the blue herbs when
he needed them? "You can also become a real cheetah as you already know."



            "Then how come I can't change into a full human?" He asked with
mild curiosity or hope... did he want to be a human? He wasn't sure.



            "Because it is a curse, everyone who is here for a week or two
gets stuck with a new form."



            "Then why aren't you affected?" He asked with a tinge of
jealousy. ...should he be jealous? "Did you used to be an animal?"



            The man paused in his work, "I used to be a woman."



            The cat just looked at him.



            "That's why it's called the Battle of Three Gates. The first
gate defenders became children, those at the second became animals and
everyone at the third changed their gender." She didn't work on the potion
at all as she explained.



            "But what does that have to do with staying for two weeks in the
valley?"



            The man turned his head down to continue his work, "The spells
and counter spells fused with the Keep's protective magic."



            "What 'protective' magic?" He asked.



            "It protects us from ballistics and destructive spells that have
the same affect." He added liquids from bottles to the herbs in the flask.



            "Sounds like this protective magic is more trouble then it's
worth." He scoffed.



            "We would have been destroyed rather then changed otherwise..."
She answered and gently mixed the liquid in the flask. It began to change
colour.



            "So it affects everyone here?"



            "Everyone who stays too long." 'Now just a pinch of saffron' the
mage thought to himself.



            The feline nodded, "I'm sorry ma'am."



            "For what?" He asked and softly chanted something on the flask.



            "For being jealous."



            "No problem, son." There, the potion was ready. "Besides, I can
leave the valley whenever I want... so long as people don't find out I'm
from Metamor."



            "Why, what if they know you're from... Metamor?" So that's where
he was.



            "Because they'll think I'm a demon for being touched by the
curse, a demon in disguise at the very least." The mage sighed.



            The cat looked up in surprise, "We can't leave?"



            He shook his head, "There are many... misled people out there."



            "Oh." He said simply. "Atherlney?"



            "Yes?"



            "Will I get my memory back?"



            "That's the idea, now drink up." He handed the cheetah a
steaming flask of liquid, "Don't try to taste it, just shoot it straight
down and KEEP it down."



            He shivered from the smell but quickly downed the drink. He
almost retched instantly but gulped it down. The cat shivered and gagged but
he held it down.



            "I'm sorry. The taste won't last, you should start to remember
things."



            The cat tried to speak but broke out into a coughing fit. It
tasted bad, really, really vile and he had to choke back the reflex to
vomit. The mage tried to ease him and handed over another cup filled with
water.



            "Thank you." He managed after a deep breath.



            At that moment the door opened. Asser entered, back from the
watchmaker's workshop. "Hail again, anything yet, lad?"



            The cheetah looked at him for a moment. "Not yet but I'm keeping
down the potion."



            "Well that's a start, but I can tell you old Yeun sent for parts
from someone in Metamor Keep who goes by the name Brightleaf."



            The mage nodded and looked to the cat, who by the look of him
still hadn't recovered from the putrid potion. "Anything?"



            The cat thought for a moment then he slumped with drooped ears,
"Sorry."



            "Don't worry, just take your time." The man said softly.



            "What should I do in the meantime?" The cat asked shyly.



            "Well, how about you come out into the fresh air. Perhaps a meal
from the inn like a nice hot soup or some treats, can you eat pastries? Say
pies, bagels, muffins?" The bear asked.



            "...muffins." He furrowed his brow in thought but the thought
slipped away. "I don't know, I can try."



            "Good, and don't worry about the coins but it's cold out so
you'll need a coat." Asser pointed out as he headed to the door.



            'Coat... coat', like the suit he wore earlier? The thought was
interrupted when the mage dropped a cloak over him.



            "Remember to return it afterwards." He said and began to put
away the bottles and flasks.



            "I will. Thank you." He got up and slowly followed the ursine
out the door.



--------------------------



            The remains of a muffin sat on the table before him. The cat
pulled it apart as if the pastry would unveil a secret. He didn't have much
appetite for the wheat based food save the meat pie; everything else just
had one or so trial bites until he settled on destroying the last bit of
pastry.



            "Playing with your food?" a muskrat asked from behind the
counter.



            "No... Never mind." He sighed.



            "You know." Asser started from near by, "We thought you were
feral. Why didn't you give us an indication you weren't?"



            The cheetah looked at him and brushed some crumbs out of his
palms. "What do you mean by feral?"



            "It means someone who has become an animal in mind; we thought
you lost your mind." The rodent behind the counter explained.



            "I guess I didn't understand. I didn't know what I was or what I
was supposed to do." He shrugged, "I don't know who I am... I'm still not
entirely sure what kind of creature I'm supposed to be." He looked at his
hand, "Cheetah-human. Doesn't sound... natural."



            "It doesn't to most people but there is nothing you can do about
it so try not to worry about it."



            The feline nodded. The scary thing was he had no recollection of
being an unaffected human. He just couldn't remember or imagine life without
his fur or tail.



            "Lyng, mayhap make some coffee." Asser suggested.



            The Inn keeper shook her head and turned to the cat, "If you're
tired perhaps you should head upstairs and get some rest." She offered.



            "No, it's not that. I think I should see the watchmaker... can I
take this with me?" he pointed a claw to the last muffin he hadn't yet
destroyed.



            "Of course, but promise to eat it." She scolded.



            "I'll try, they are very nice." He said. Though they didn't
taste that nice to his carnivorous tongue he could still enjoy the taste
somewhat. Did he eat them as a human? Perhaps they tasted much nicer back
then but he couldn't recall.



            After leaving the inn he had to navigate around a large bonfire
being built for the night's festival. The night would be very cold but the
fire would keep people toasty and create a pleasant atmosphere. He asked
someone adding on lumber where he could find the town's watchmaker and was
guided to a building across from the commons. The building was constructed
of lumber and had a small clock tower. On the other side of the alley was
what must be the town hall or the lord's residence or mayor's office or all
three in one seeing as it was a very small hamlet.



            The whole village couldn't have been any larger then the Glen.



            The Glen! He remembered travelling there. He remembered a
hedgehog in a tree... nothing more then that. Why did he go there and what
happened there? Was the place really built into the trees? It had to be, he
remembered it! He tried to focus on that positive thought rather than the
many questions it brought up as he headed to the watchmaker's workshop.
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