Shapeshifters

Prologue

Once upon a time, in a land far away. There was a small quiet kingdom. Ruling the small kingdom was a wise old king. He was kind and helpful. And he made the little kingdom prosper. But sadly, he got sick. And so, the king gave his kingdom to his eldest son. Soon after, he passed away. The new king was just like his father. But as time went on, He grew restless. He wanted to expand his kingdom. The only thing he could think of to get more land was war. He prepared his army and marched them to the borders of the other kingdoms. But each time, the king got defeated. Eventually, his army grew smaller and smaller.

Then on one rainy night, while the king was studying, he came across an old book. The book tells how some people had the gift of becoming fantastic and powerful beasts. After the king had read this, he proclaimed throughout the kingdom that those who had the power to transform into Magical beasts report to the king. And he will reward you with the greatest treasures of the kingdom.

Weeks passed, and no one came. So, the king went and searched the kingdom himself. He went through every house dressed as a poor older man. He searched and searched, but still, he couldn't find his beast.

But one day, while he was on a hunting trip, he had just shot a great elk with his bow and arrow. When he went to claim his prize, it was gone. And there were tracks on the ground. The king followed them, and they led him to a peaceful cottage. He knocked on the door. And a young woman answered it.

"How can I help you?" She asked.

"Hi, I was hunting, And I shot a great big elk. But when I went to get it, it was gone. I saw some prints in the dirt. So, I followed them. And they led me to your cottage. Do you know where it is?" He asked.

"Is this your elk?" She asked as she stepped aside to reveal the elk.

The once-dead elk was now alive and eating grass from a wooden bowl.

"How?" The king asked, astonished.

The young lady turned to the king and said,

"This is not part of your kingdom, and you don't have the right to hunt on it. So, leave now, or I will call the guards."

As soon as the king stepped through the door, The door slammed shut. The king was puzzled how the dead elk had now become alive. So, he devised a plan to see how this magic had happened.

The next day he came back to hunt again. And as soon as he had shot another animal, a blur of fur let on him. His eyes focused on a giant cheetah.

"I told you never to come back." It growled at him.

"Who are you?" asked the startled king.

The giant cheetah suddenly changed into the young lady the king had encountered the day before. Then she went to the dead fox. As soon as she touched it, the fox breathed and stood up. It then licked the young woman's hand and then ran away.

She then stood up and looked at the king, and asked,

"Why did you come back?"

The king recomposed himself and replied,

"I came back because I was curious about what had healed the animals. But I was not expecting you."

"Leave now, and my king will be at peace with you. But if you don't, I will go to the castle and tell my king that you have been hunting in his forest." The young woman threatened again.

The king left and traveled back to his castle.

But the king was still very tempted to go back to the forest. At last, he had found his warrior. But she was stubborn and did not listen very well. So, he sent for his best wizards, and they crafted a beautiful necklace made from the purest moonlight crystal. Then the wizards put a spell on it that whoever wore it had to listen to the king.

After carefully placing the necklace into a red velvet pouch, the king again left for the forest. When he arrived, the cheetah was waiting for him.

Before the cheetah could growl or pounce on him, the king slowly got off his horse and pulled out the velvet pouch.

"I have come to give you a gift for all the trouble I have caused."

He then pulled out the stunning necklace and dangled it. The sunlight glistened off it and made a colorful splash of colors on the forest floor.

The cheetah cautiously came closer. And before reaching the king, she turned back into a human. She stared at it for a long time. And finally took it.

She clasped it around her neck.

"Thank you." She said without looking up.

The king smiled and said,

"Come on; I want you to be my special guest in my kingdom."

The young lady started to laugh.

"Why would you think that I...."

But her sentence was cut short. She started to follow the king. She tried to stop, but her vision would blur every time she resisted the command, and her ears would ring.

"What did you do?" She shrieked.

The king did not answer but just looked straight ahead.

After the king had accomplished his goal, his kingdom expanded. With his great beast, he took kingdom after kingdom. He took over every kingdom except for one. He tried but failed. Finally, the queen begged him to stop. The king took the queen's advice and eventually stopped going to war and settled down.

Years and years passed, and the kingdom became very prosperous and prominent. But no one has seen or heard of the great beast ever again. Some say that the great beast was only a legend.