Chapter 6 #2
Natalia’s change is much slower than Maxsim’s and looks much more painful, with it taking longer for her bones to reform into the desired form.
A forced change isn’t easy on any kind of shifter.
When she finishes, she looks up at him with a scowl and snarls.
She struggles to her feet, and I avert my eyes.
I don’t need to be looking at a naked woman who is not my wife.
Xavier must understand my dilemma, because I feel his power flex, and then she’s covered with their traditional loincloth garb.
Unfortunately, so is Maxsim, and we hadn’t gotten a look at the front yet. My kraken grumbles deep inside.
“What were you thinking, attacking like that?” he demands angrily, stepping toward her aggressively, and she rolls her eyes.
Natalia is a beta and below Maxsim in the pecking order, so she is being incredibly disrespectful.
I guess her mother being the matriarch has made her cocky.
I have a feeling she will end up regretting her attitude.
“They barged into our den uninvited. I was well within my right to do so,” she sneers before baring her teeth at us and hissing. Down, kitty.
“This is not Iceen. Those are not the rules we live by here,” he scolds her before turning to look at us, raising an eyebrow and crossing his arms. “Natalia isn’t really wrong though. You did come in uninvited, which in Iceen would get you attacked. What is it you want?”
The lightning cats tend to stick to themselves.
They don’t come out and join the rest of the crew to socialize between shows, so I don’t really know anything about this streak except for the information they shared with Link, and that’s not really anything personal about each individual.
It’s a shame they remain aloof from everyone else, but I guess if they have their own internal issues, they wouldn’t have time to cultivate friendships.
By now, the rest of the cats have joined us.
Three huddle around the entrance of one cave, staying well out of the way.
I guess they don’t want to draw an irate Natalia’s attention.
Above us on the ledge of the other cave, the pure white cat, Echo, lounges, his head resting on his paws as he watches everything silently.
“I have it on good authority that there is a cyborg hiding in your caves,” Xavier explains, still in his mist form. “He is wanted for treason. He assisted in trying to kill the Adams brothers’ granddaughter, Lila, and I would like your permission to search for him.”
This has Maxsim’s eyebrows jumping in surprise, but Natalia just scoffs behind him.
“Unlikely, warlock. We would know if he were here. We could smell a stranger in our area, so he would not be able to hide himself.” She sounds so confident and smug, it’ll be nice when Xavier proves her wrong.
“Well then, either you know and you are in on his treason,” Xavier suggests, which is something that had already been rolling around in my mind, and it has Natalia paling, “or he has managed to get past you. Either way, I still require permission to search for him.” Xavier’s mist rolls back from his body, and he shows himself to the lightning cats.
It is the same glamour he assumed for his harem, and not the one that I know is his real form.
He puffs up his chest and his body crackles with power.
I see the fur on the tips of their ears stand on end.
“Actually, I don’t even require permission, I can search, but I thought I would try the polite way first.”
Natalia’s fur bristles, her claws lengthen on her fingers, and her tail crackles with electricity once more as she starts to growl. “You will not,” she says through a mouthful of teeth, but Maxsim holds up a hand, silencing her.
“Quiet,” he demands before bowing his head in consent at Xavier. Natalia cowers under the alpha command, but the look she gives him would strip skin from a body.
“I will show you through the caves. I apologize for my streak member’s rudeness.
I will inform her mother, the queen, that she will need a few more lessons in diplomacy when we return to Iceen.
” He turns to the three cats huddled in front of the left cave.
“I’m assuming there is no cyborg hiding in your caves?
” All three of them shake their heads in unison, and I have to smother my chuckle.
They look like cute kitties at the moment, but Natalia proved how deadly they can be.
“Very well, they are not in my and Echo’s either, which leaves us with five to search. ”
Natalia screeches. “You’re not suggesting I am hiding the cyborg, are you?” she demands, putting her hands on her hips and standing defiantly in front of her cave. “I will not let you search my private quarters.”
Because that’s not suspicious at all. The chuckle I was holding finally releases in the form of a choking cough. I wouldn’t put it past her to be conspiring with Josa. She doesn’t like Lila either, and getting rid of her would solve a problem for her.
Maxsim starts to argue with her, but Xavier quickly steps in, putting his hand gently on the big alpha’s shoulder.
“That’s okay, we don’t actually need to see inside her den.
” He waves a hand and produces another flickering ball of light similar to the one that is floating above us, lightening up the area.
It splits into five other balls, and my mouth drops open as they shoot off in the directions of the five different caves.
The one heading for Natalia’s shoots cheekily between her legs, causing her to jump and scream. Xavier chuckles with amusement.
“They will tell me which one he is in, and then it is only a matter of dragging him out,” he explains to Maxsim.
We all wait in silence, anticipation prickling the air around us, and I see Xavier shudder. I step up next to my friend, putting my hand on his shoulder. “Are you okay?” I ask as one of my tentacles sneaks out and wraps gently around his leg in comfort, uncontrolled by me.
“Yes, of course. I can just feel his terror, and it is quite heady.” He sways slightly, almost like he’s getting drunk off the emotion.
Ah, so he’s absorbing the cyborg’s utter despair.
“I can’t wait to take a crack at his mind before you dispose of him.
I’ve never rifled through a cyborg’s brain before, and I’m looking forward to the experience. ”
Xavier sounds absolutely giddy.
I drop my hand back down to my side, but my tentacle caresses him reassuringly before it drops as well. Stupid horny beast. You’re almost as bad as the damn merman.
This is why Xavier is terrifying. He can talk about rummaging around in someone’s mind quite casually, but to everyone else, it’s horrifying. I’m just glad I’m not on the receiving end of that torture.
He stiffens and turns to face the cave on the far right. “That one.” He points at it, and the three cats that are still in cat form race toward it and disappear into the darkness, their footsteps silent over the icy terrain.
I go to follow them, adrenaline rushing through my veins, but Maxsim puts a hand against my chest, stopping me in my tracks.
I glance down at it before looking back up at the alpha cat and arching my eyebrow.
“Let them bring him out. There’s nowhere for him to go, the cave is a dead end.
Now that they know he’s there, he won’t be able to hide from them like he has been. ”
I remove the cat’s hand from my chest but does as he asks, grinding my teeth with impatience.
This psychotic cyborg is mine.