The Shapeshifters

Last One Standing: Part 2

"No, no, no, no, this isn't what it looks like!" she started, hyperventilating. She accidentally turned into a human again. That sometimes happened when she was scared or weak and didn't have any control over her powers. However, the fish swam towards her and smiled.

The beautiful fish slowly flashed. Amelia covered her eyes with her arm, to protect herself from not turning blind from the bright light that was coming from the fish. When she opened her eyes, the fish was gone. Instead was a beautiful girl about her age. She was blonde, light skinned, and looked quite friendly. The girl wore a pink dress.

Amelia gasped. She had met another shapeshifter!

"HimynameisAmelia, What'syourname?" she blurted, not able to contain her excitement.

"Hi! My name is Alice. I've never met another shapeshifter!" greeted Alice.

"Me neither. I think we're the last ones, to be honest. My parents were killed by the humans in Humanland. I somehow survived." Amelia sighed sadly when she thought of Alice and herself being the last shapeshifters in the whole world. She'd gotten used to the idea before though, so it did not create as much grief as it did before.

She swam closer to Alice. Alice somehow made her feel safe and understood. Is this how it felt to have a friend?

"Oh, I don't remember anything about my family. I just remember turning into a fish and jumping into this lagoon, which shielded me from the smoke and fire from beyond the Forbidden Forest." explained Alice.

"From Humanland?" specified Amelia. Alice nodded.

Amelia shared her past with Alice. Only then did she realise that she had been so lonely before. It turns out Alice had been living in a lake close to Frogville, Amelia's new home, called Capri. Apparently, this lake was called Lapis. Alice had also been very lonely, but here and there some fish acquaintances talked to her.

After a while, the sun was low in the sky. A magnificent spectrum of red, orange, and yellow painted the sky, and singular pink clouds littered the view. It was amazing.

The two new friends stepped out of the water. Inside of the water they were warm. Outside, they were freezing. The two girls shivered as they walked through the forest to Frogville and Capri. Soon, they could see the outline of the big, multicoloured houses from Frogville and the sparkling (but not so beautiful) view of Capri lake. If you squinted and looked close enough, inside Capri you could see the shadows of an underwater fish city, with houses, paths, and even seaweed gardens. Amelia and Alice turned back into their animal selves-Alice had to transform close to the water and then quickly jump in. Amelia hopped happily back to her house. She tucked into her bed, almost instantly falling asleep. And there she was, laying still in the twilight darkness, comfortably asleep.

Amelia's eyes fluttered open. It was a brand new day. She dipped into the cold water of Capri which was a few steps from her house, an advantage of living in Frogville. Frogs were on lily pads, catching their breakfast with long tongues. Amelia copied them. She was excited to see her new friend again. But, suddenly, she heard a familiar scream. It was coming from the city hall.

Like a lightning bolt, she dashed from Capri to the city hall. It was not far, for Frogville was a small town. When she got to the city hall, the air was hot and tense. She could barely breathe. Some frogs from the lake had followed, probably curious. Amelia gasped at the sight of Alice tied to a whipping post, frogs crowded around her.

Suddenly, a frog took the spotlight.

"I saw her change into a human and then a fish last night! She's one of...them! We gotta do something! Shapeshifters are dangerous!" yelled the frog. It was a gross mustard coloured frog. It said the word shapeshifters as if it was a bad word. Also, when he said it, various frogs paled slightly and gasped. Suddenly, Amelia heard a frog say,

"Wait! I am the mayor, so I will decide what to do!"

All of the frogs turned. They cleared their way to the red frog Amelia had tried to befriend the day before. So he was the mayor?

"You say that this human is a shapeshifter, huh?" asked the Mayor. The mustard frog nodded. Amelia looked back at Alice. Alice seemed afraid for a moment, but then toughened up.

The Mayor considered the evidence.

"Call the Torturers. Let them do their thing. They already paid with everything they had. They are well trained." decided the mayor. Amelia gasped.

The Torturers were these big, tough frogs. They had magic inside them. Evil magic. Magic so evil and powerful that to use it, you had to pay the price. It was a really bad price. It was to kill or destroy the thing or someone you loved most. That's why the Mayors of the past always chose nice and good frogs to be Torturers: selfish frogs would have to kill themselves.

The Torturers walked into the scene, dressed in dark red capes, their long hoods dripping over their hidden faces like blood. Amelia felt a shiver go down her spine. She slowly hopped towards Alice, who had caught her eye, and was trying not to cry at the sight of her friend.

Suddenly, Amelia heard a great foosh. She turned to the Torturers. They were controlling a huge wave of fire, lined up in a circle around Alice. The heat from the wave was immense, as though the sun were right above Frogville. The Torturers were moving their hands in sync, making the fire wave curl around alice like a snake about to squeeze its victim to death. Only then did Amelia notice how many there were. Dozens. Dozens of frogs sent to kill. She shivered.

The Mayor stepped forward. "Now is the time to redeem yourself, girl. Are you a shapeshifter?"

Alice bit her lip. The Torturers stopped moving their arms and hands, yet did not drop them, leaving the fire hesitating over Alice. Nofroggy spoke.

Amelia wished that Alice would lie and deny, but deep inside her, she knew that they had to carry on every dead shapeshifter's pride. They couldn't be cowards. She knew that Alice had to say the truth.

Alice took a deep breath and exclaimed, "Yes, I am a shapeshifter, you disgusting little frog. And I am proud of it!"

The words echoed across the town. Frogs gasped. The Mayor nodded at the Torturers. They continued to control the fire.

So suddenly that it almost made Amelia jump, the wave of hot fire plummeted into Alice's heart. Amelia cried in pain and ran towards her, but it was too late.

Alice screeched in pain, on fire, glowing like a torch. The Torturers let the pain and moment sink in. Then, they started moving their hands again, making the fire shoot out of Alice's chest and then crash again into Alice...

Amelia screamed, transforming and jumping just in time to save Alice. The heat burned through her, making her wail in pain. She had destroyed her peace in one jump. She had thrown away her shot at a better life.