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SHIFT

Mission 003: Lost in the Woods

SHIFT Mission Briefing: Reports have come in of strange lights appearing in the Torsion Forest. Local villages have sent their own investigators... None of which have returned. Find the cause of the lights and disappearances within the forest. If you judge it to be dangerous eliminate it.

SHIFT Heroes Deployed on this Mission

Cobalt

Frinkel

Kickaha

The light blue shark with black stripes known as Cobalt stood in the middle of a forest clearing examining his map. The two foot tall squirrel dressed in a green cape that was Kickaha looked absolutely miniscule next to him. Then the tiny mouse that was all that remained of Frinkel after his last adventure was barely noticeable next to them.

"We've been out here for a few hours and nothing out of the ordinary." Cobalt growled. "I'm beginning to think this was a huge waste of time."

"Now now!" Kickaha responded. "We can't go assuming things! Perhaps the problem is we're simply not lost enough!"

"Squeak!" Frinkel contributed as he ran up onto Kickaha's shoulder.

"Oh I do concur!" Kickaha nodded to Frinkel. "That does seem like a good course of activity."

"Squeak!" Frinkel twitched his whiskers in excitement at this.

"Wonderful I'll get snacks!" Kickaha responded.

"Squeak!?" Frinkel cowered at this remark diving off of Kickaha's shoulder.

"I didn't mean you!" Kickaha said. "I'd never snack on a teammate... Especially not while I look like this."

"You can understand the mouse?" Cobalt asked giving Kickaha a quizzical look.

"But of course!" Kickaha responded. "We're both bound into the unholy bond of those who have been forced into the brotherhood of rodents."

"I see..." Cobalt fixed his two companions with a less than amused look. "Well fine then what was his plan?"

"Well..." Kickaha smiled. "He pointed out the mission briefing mentioned strange lights appearing in the forest. If we wait until the evening when there's less sunlight out these lights might be easier to seek out. It is a rather illuminating plan is it not?" As Kickaha finished his sentence there was suddenly a loud popping noise. The squirrel shrunk down to just about six inches tall as his curse kicked in, transforming him into an ordinary every day squirrel. While this made it impossible for him to talk he wore an expression on his face that was easy to translate as 'worth it.'

"Ugggh." Cobalt groaned as he sat down in the grass and stared at the two tiny rodents that made up his party. "Why do I get the feeling I'll be doing all the work while you two just make a ton of noise?"

"Squeak squeeeak!" Kickaha replied while twitching his noise and staring up at Cobalt.

"Squeeeeak." Frinkel approached the tiger-shark and patted him on the side of the leg in a comforting manner. "Squeak!"

"Evening cannot get here soon enough." Cobalt muttered.

Hours passed as they waited for it to get darker. As twilight broke and the woods began to darken a popping noise sounded as Kickaha returned to his two foot tall form. Not much later than that an eerie blue light began to shine between the trees.

"Well..." Kickaha redressed himself in his green cloaked as he stared at the light. "Do we count that as odd?"

"What do you think?" Cobalt hissed as he jumped to his feet.

"Well I have a number of thoughts!" Kickaha responded "Including but not limited to-"

"Quiet!" Cobalt placed over Kickaha's muzzle. "You're not exceptionally useful in your other state."

"But it was a good one!" Kickaha whined as he slipped out of Cobalt's grasp.

"Squeak?" Frinkel jumped up onto the squirrel's shoulder.

"See!" Kickaha insisted. "Frinkel wants to know!"

"Don't care," was Cobalt's response. "Just focus on the mission." With that he took off past the tree line until he found the source of faint blue light. It simply looked like a ball of glowing energy that was moving slowly through the forest leaving a trail of pale energy behind. Unsure of what to do Cobalt drew his golden trident. He didn't strike... But kept it ready should it turn out to be dangerous.

"Oh heeeeeey." Kickaha responded as he caught up. "That looks shiny."

"But what is it?" Cobalt asked. "A spirit... A spell?" He looked at it. He had a few ideas but he wasn't 100% sure.

"Squeak!" Frinkel chimed in.

"What's he saying?" Cobalt asked.

"Ah Frinkel says he's a druid!" Kickaha explained. "So he knows about spooky forest things."

"Ok so what is it?" Cobalt asked.

"Squeak squeak!" Frinkel's whiskers twitched as he spoke from Kickaha's shoulder. "Squeeeeeak! Squeak! Squeeeeek!"

"He says it's a will-o-wisp." Kickaha explained. "They show up to lost travelers sometimes. Though... Stories of them are apparently a bit unclear. They either lead people away from danger... Or possibly into danger. I guess they're a type of faerie, so could just be it depending on their mood."

"Lovely." Cobalt kept his trident pointed at the will-o-wisp now that he knew what it was. "Well... We're not in danger now."

"So by process of elimination it must be leading us into danger!" Kickaha responded.

"And likely to who or what is behind these things suddenly showing up." Cobalt grinned. "Let's go say hello." He began to follow after the will-o-wisp as it moved through the forest.

"Oh wonderful!" Kickaha responded. "I do enjoy making house calls. Though in this case it might turn out to be a tree-house call." POP! Suddenly Kickaha had shrunken down to his normal squirrel form. His cloak fluttered to the ground tangling up both him and Frinkel.

"Seriously? Right now?" Cobalt growled.

"Squeeeeak!" Kickaha replied and held up his forepaws in a 'what can you do' motion.

"Squeak..." Frinkel responded slightly more annoyed at having lost his perch.

"Squeak!" Kickaha pointed a paw at Cobalt.

"SQUEAK!" Frinkel's eyes lit up. Then in one fluid motion the two rodents ran to Cobalt and straight up his back. The squirrel settled on his left shoulder while the mouse sat on his right.

"I do not recall agreeing to adopt two animal companions." Cobalt glowered down at them. "But if you stay quiet at least you can stay out of trouble there." Then with purpose he continued to stroll after the will-o-wisp.

After a few minutes they entered a dark section of the forest. A single cottage stood by itself overshadowed by the trees. The will-o-wisp approached the door of the cottage before vanishing.

"Well not quite what I was expecting..." Cobalt studied the door. "But I'd bet money whoever is responsible is inside and probably set a trap." He looked to the rodent on each of their shoulders giving them a warning stare to be quiet. The shark then tried the front door. It was unlocked "Trap it is." He muttered. He opened the door as slowly and quietly as possible. He kept a watchful eye for any trap wires, runes or anything that might go off.

What he found on the side was a surprisingly pleasant cottage. As dark as it was outside the inside seemed pleasantly lit. There was a small kitchen with a wood stove sitting across from a table with two chairs. There was a small living room that consisted of a cottage a bookcase and a very comfortable looking chair. Either than that the cottage was open space except for a small door ajar at the back.

Cobalt gripped his trident tightly as he approached the doorway. Each step was deliberate and slow as he anticipated a trap any moment. He made it to the doorway and looked inside. There was a single large bed with a sickly old human woman laying in it.

"Reeeeeeeed." The woman called. "Is that you? Come closer my dear."

"What kind of trick is this?" Cobalt asked. He looked around. The room looked normal as did the old woman. Yet he was not about to be caught off guard. The will-o-wisp had led them here for a reason and people had disappeared in these woods. He kept his distance from the bed and gripped his trident. "Who are you?"

"It's me, grandma." The woman replied. "Red... You look different today."

"I don't know who Red is." Cobalt responded. "Are you alone? Is there a Red here?"

"My... What big eyes you have Red." The old woman replied.

"That... Wasn't really an answer to my question." Cobalt sighed. He knew something was up... But he was slightly reluctant to impale an old woman from across the room on little more than a hunch. Plus he had no way of knowing if she was a villain or a victim."

"And oh my! What big ears you have..." The woman replied.

"I don't even have external ears." Cobalt narrowed his eyes. He still hadn't quite made his decision on the woman but starting to feel concerned about her mental state.

"And such big teeth you have..." The woman continued.

"Squeeeak." Frinkel spoke some kind of warning. But there was no way for Cobalt to understand what he had been saying.

"This isn't going anywhere." Cobalt growled. He looked around trying to find if there was any sign that someone else had been caring for the woman.

"SQUEAK!" Frinkel was the first to notice. He pawed at the side of Cobalt's face trying to get his attention as he heard someone else enter the front door of the cottage.

"What!?" Cobalt looked up just in time to see the newcomer charge him. It was a large human man. He was a woodsman. Cobalt wasn't sure how he knew that... But judging from his flannel shirt and thick boots somehow knew there was nothing else he could be. The woodsman carried an axe that he swung directly for Cobalt. The shark had just barely enough time to bring his trident up to stop the axe from making impact with his face This did little to stop the gargantuan man's momentum though as both shark and woodsman (along with mouse and squirrel) crashed through the side of the wall of cottage and out into the forest.

The change was almost immediate. Cobalt didn't even notice it at first as he untangled himself from the woodsman. He was still over seven feet tall and built like a tank. He was looking around for his trident as he came up. It had been knocked from his hands when he tumbled through the wall. The woodsman meanwhile still had his axe and was up and coming for a second swing. Cobalt threw out his hands to catch the woodsman's arm before the axe came down. When he saw his hands... Covered in dark gray fur with massive claws that was when he became aware of the rest.

He now had a canine muzzle... It had large canine eyes behind it and big pointy teeth within it. Two large ears sat upon his head and his tail was not long and fur covered. He had transformed into a wolf! A very big and bad looking wolf.

"What the heck just happened!?" Cobalt shouted. He hadn't seen anyone cast a spell or chant an incantation. There had been no flash of light or puff of smoke. He was simply a shark one moment and then a wolf the next.

"SQUEAK!" Kickaha let out a shout. Him and Frinkel had been thrown from Cobalt's shoulders and were dazed on the ground.

"Very informative!" Cobalt shouted as he struggled to push the woodsman back. He wasn't exactly a slouch in the physical department before this sudden transformation hit... And now he felt even stronger... But the woodsman despite being human had a savage strength. "Now will you two contribute something!?"

"Squeak squeak!" Frinkel stood on his hind paws and saluted. He then ran for the woodman's boots tackling the laces. He began to chew at the laces and worked on unraveling them.

"Squeak!" Kickaha seeing Frinkel's plan jumped in to help. The mouse and squirrel worked together as Cobalt held back the woodsman. They then tied the laces of the two boots together before jumping off him. Cobalt took this chance to free himself. He slipped to the side of the woodsman and let him lumber forward. The human tripped with his boot laces tied before falling face first into the floor. He growled and began to stand back up.

"Stay down!" Cobalt shouted as he swung the backside of his massive paw against the side of the woodsman's head. The woodsman jerked then fell into unconsciousness in the grass. Cobalt observed him for a moment... Then once sure he wasn't getting back up he retrieved his trident from the ground. He looked back at the hole that had been left in the cottage. He could see the old woman inside... And now there was a second person. A young girl in a red cloak.

Young girl in a red cloak... An old grandmother... A woodsman... And a...

"You have got to be kidding me." Cobalt looked down at his wolfish body immediately realizing who he was in this little setting.

"Squeeeeak!?" Frinkel shouted. He gestured wildly while pointing into the woods.

"What is it now?" Cobalt groaned as he turned around. He then stared in silence. There was an entire town of small cottages like the one they had just been inside just sitting in the woods. "Well..."

POP! Kickaha suddenly returned to his two foot tall form.

"Now that's strange..." Kickaha interrupted as he returned to his normal form.

"Oh good you're back." Cobalt rolled his eyes. "Think you can try to keep your voice long enough to use some magic this time?"

"I can try!" Kickaha replied. "But I can't make any promises!" His voice then became more somber. "But... Whatever we're dealing with probably has a lot more mojo at their disposal than I do. Your change was seamless."

"I noticed too..." Cobalt muttered. "I'm hoping we didn't bite off more than we can chew... Still it's too soon to jump to conclusions. Could be someone with an artifact... Or a curse that's gone out of control."

"Still we should be careful." Kickaha muttered. "And you know it's serious because I'm the one promoting caution!" He looked down at Frinkel in the grass. "Perhaps this situation called for someone more equipped for subterfuge.

"Squeak!?" Frinkel looked up at Kickaha.

"I get your meaning." Cobalt nodded. "Whatever trap we walked into... Going into the house probably set it off. In his current form though... Frinkel might be able to enter the houses unnoticed."

"Squeak?" Frinkel's ears drooped as he looked up at the two.

"We'll be right outside if you get into trouble!" Kickaha assured him. "Just start taking a look around each house and come back immediately if you see anything suspicious."

"Squeeeak." Frinkel didn't seem to be of the plan. He did as he was asked though. The tiny mouse crept towards another of the cottages and squirmed his way under the door. This one looks similar to the other... Though perhaps a little less clean. He crawled around the house as quiet as could be. He didn't see anyone or anything. He climbed up onto a bed to check if anyone was in it. No one. This cottage was abandoned. He turned to leave when he heard someone coming in the front door.

Looking for a place to hide Frinkel glanced around. Seeing a pair of old boots near the bed he quickly dived into one and kept just his snout poking out as he watched for who was coming in... But then suddenly the boots started getting smaller! Or no... He was getting bigger!

It was as fast as Cobalt's change... Suddenly Frinkel was much larger! He wasn't human sized... But bigger than a mouse! The boot he had been hiding in now fit over his paw perfectly... And somehow he had managed to stick his paw into the second boot.

"Puss there you are!" It was a young boy that came running into the room. "You told me that you had a plan to follow?"

"I... I did!?" Frinkel asked marveling at the sound of his own voice. It had been awhile since he was able to talk. The human boy was much bigger than him. What had he called him? Puss? He slowly looked down at his body. He had short blue hair and black stripes. He had a long striped tail and retractable claws on the tips of his forepaws. (And likely his hind paws from the feel of them.) He was a cat now! It was strange though... He was standing on two legs and talking... But he didn't think he was an anthro... It was as if he was just a normal cat that could talk and walk on two legs.

"You said you could make me live like a king!" The boy insisted. "That I just had to follow your plan."

"Quoi!?" Frinkel shouted. "But... But I have no idea what you're talking about!" It was at this moment that the door burst open again and this time it was Cobalt and Frinkel who entered.

"We heard you shout!" Kickaha shouted. "Though it took me a moment to realize it was your voice."

"Wait which is he?" Cobalt asked as he saw the blue cat and the human boy in the room. Frinkel had obviously been transformed but they didn't know to what.

"I think the blue one." Kickaha responded.

"Puss! Do something!" The boy shouted as he moved away from the giant wolf.

"But they're my friends." Frinkel responded.

"M-m-monsters!" The boy shouted before trying to run out of the room. With the door being blocked he instead dove out the window before he took off running.

"Well that was easy to deal with." Kickaha shrugged. "But doesn't seem he found anything promising. I guess being small isn't enough to go unnoticed."

"Maybe not..." Frinkel muttered. "I don't think I actually changed till I landed in the boots... Then I was a cat and that kid was demanding to know what my plan was. And... Mince alors. I'm Puss in Boots now aren't I?"

"It establishes a pattern at least." Cobalt growled. "So... Whatever magic we're dealing with has to do with faerie tales."

"And we encountered a will-o-wisp that led us here!" Frinkel added. "Meaning the faeries in question might be more than just tales."

"At least we know a little bit about what's going on now..." Kickaha mused. "I take it the people who disappeared are probably different characters from different stories now. That's going to be problematic. Think the Woodsman and that boy were victims?"

"If they are it means the place can affect us mentally." Cobalt grew concerned at this. "We need to find the source of this magic and stop it quickly."

"Even faeries would normally have to be present to cast a spell on someone though." Frinkel muttered as he put a paw to his chin. "This sudden transformation just doesn't make sense."

"I get it..." Cobalt grinned. Like Kickaha and Frinkel he was also a spell caster in his own right. He specialized more in learning the powers of monsters... But that didn't mean he didn't know the basics of other types of spell casting. "So there has to be something that's casting the spell."

"Right..." Kickaha thought out loud. "I suppose it could be some kind of ritual... Or something like... Ah! A Fisher Kingdom scenario! Anyone who enters the domain could be subject to the spell or curse!"

"That would be trouble..." Cobalt replied. "That would mean everything within the spell's domains can be changed immediately.

"And yet you two only changed when entering cottages." Kickaha twitched his tail.

"Maybe the cottages are unrelated?" Frinkel suggested. "That might not be what triggered the spell to go off."

"The only other thing I can think of in common though was..." Cobalt thought for a moment. Then his eyes lit up. "Frinkel... This is important. Did you change before or after the boy entered room?"

"Before I think!" Frinkel said. "Wait! Maybe right as?" He thought for a moment. "I heard him enter the cottage and got spooked and fell into the boots then the changed happened."

"I changed after interacting with the grandmother... Right as the woodsman appeared." Cobalt responded. "And if this spell is tied to faerie tales."

"I get it!" Kickaha said. "The spell takes effect when you interact with other characters from the story. You then change to fit whatever role they need at the moment. Ah... But that means we can't interact with anyone to ask them questions. That's going to make it harder to find whatever focus is maintaining this spell."

"Not necessarily..." Cobalt looked at the town. "If this is some kind of domain based spell there's a good chance the spell is centered on whatever is casting it."

"Quelle chance!" Frinkel gave a shout. "That means it's probably right at the center of this town! We can find it now and put an end to this quickly!"

"By the way..." Cobalt muttered. "Did... You always talk like that?" It was Cobalt's first time being partnered with Frinkel. He had never actually heard him speak as the druid had been a mouse when they met.

"Speak like what?" Frinkel asked.

"The whole shouting in another language thing." Cobalt explained. "I mean I get the idea of what you're saying I just don't really know the words."

"What... what are you talking about!?" Frinkel asked.

"Huh he may not even be aware he's doing it." Kickaha smiled. "Frinkel every time you get shocked you switch languages."

"Je n'y cros pas!" Frinkel shouted. He then covered his own muzzle as he realized for the first time what he was doing.

"Let's just find the focus for the spell and get this over with." Cobalt growled. With that the three headed for the center of the village. They were keeping their eyes out for anything that could be the source of magic that was causing the transformations. There was nothing that was readily apparent... But at the center of the village was a large church.

"It's probably in there." Cobalt drew his trident again. "Be ready. We don't know what's going to be protecting it." The other two nodded. Frinkel summoned vines from the Earth that wrapped around his paws as he prepared to fight. Kickaha created bolts of lightning between his own paws as he prepared a spell. Cobalt then kicked open the door.

The church was empty except for the altar. There were a few books stashed beneath the altar... And then atop it was a beautiful young human woman who appeared to be deep in slumber.

"Okay..." Kickaha muttered. "I'm going to guess none of us were predicting sleeping girl as the final boss here."

"Feels a bit anticlimactic." Frinkel muttered. "But... Then where's the spell focus?"

"It's not the girl is it?" Cobalt growled. If it was that would make this very dark magic at play... That would also make breaking the spell a lot harder to do without harming any innocents.

"I don't think so?" Kickaha spoke as he approached the altar. "She might be another victim. Maybe there's something hidden in the church we're not seeing." He climbed up atop the altar being careful not to touch the sleeping girl. He was looking to see if there was any evidence of a hidden compartment within the altar beneath her or anything that might be a clue.

"There you are!" A high pitched voice suddenly called.

"Oh dear..." Kickaha muttered. He turned around just in time to see two bright lights fly in his direction from deeper within the church. They stopped in midair just before Kickaha. Peering at them he saw they were tiny people with wings.

"Kickaha!" Frinkel shouted. "Whatever you do don't interact with them!" But it was too late.

The change was seamless just like the other two. Kickaha looked down at himself then stared at his body in shock. He was normal again! He had his normal fox-coyote fur pattern! His normal tail! Ears! He was the proper species! Glorious canine-ness! It had finally returned to him! He then looked up at the faeries... And realized they were the same size as him now. He looked to the unconscious girl noticing that she was now much bigger than she was a few moments ago.

"Dang it." Kickaha muttered realizing he wasn't quite normal. He was only about two inches tall now. He was also still a kid at only eleven years of age. The biggest change though was the giant pair of butterfly-like wings sticking out of his back and the fact that his fur now actually glowed and small specks of dust dropped from his body. He was mostly him... But a small faerie version of himself.

"Have you found any sign of her true love yet?" One of the faeries asked.

"What was that?" Kickaha asked unsure of where this was going.

"Only true love's kiss can save Briar Rose from her death-like slumber!" The other faerie explained.

"Ah we're in that story now..." Kickaha muttered. "Um well the thing about that is... Wait! WAIT!" His eyes lit up. "I need to verify something." He looked to the giant girl next to him and then down at his own tiny body. "Well this could prove to be a _small_problem." Nothing happened. "It's fixed!" Kickaha flew into the air with his new wings and danced for joy. "The curse! It's gone! Ohhhhhh I have so many jokes I've been saving just to annoy that little imp when I get back to base!"

"Um are you alright?" One of the faeries asked. "You seem to be talking nonsense."

"I'm better than I've been in over a month." Kickaha smiled.

"What are you doing!?" Cobalt shouted as he barreled down the aisle to the altar. "Just look for the spell focus!"

"EEEEK!" The faeries shouted and fled.

"That was mean. Scaring them like that." Kickaha hovered in front of Cobalt's face and stuck his tongue out at him.

"Don't care." Cobalt responded. Find what's powering the spell."

"Um guys..." Frinkel tried to interrupt.

"Well I'm certain it's not the girl now at least." Kickaha replied. "She's part of the stories... Though what she's doing here instead of a castle... I guess these aren't perfect recreations."

"GUYS!" Frinkel shouted.

"Maybe a secret opening in the altar?" Cobalt suggested.

"Thought of that..." Kickaha floated around it. "But I don't see one."

"CA ALORS!" Frinkel shouted.

"What!?" Cobalt asked and turned around. Then he saw. The woodsman he had fought earlier was standing at the entrance of the church. "Oh..." The woodsman charged. Cobalt brought up his trident and met the human halfway down the aisle pushing back against his axe. "You two figure this out! I'll hold him off!" It was going to be easier said than done... The human's strength was freakish... And Cobalt couldn't risk doing anything that might kill him. There was a real risk the woodsman was just another confused victim under a spell in this case.

"Okay we're on it!" Frinkel shouted as he looked around the altar.

"Puss!" The voice a young boy shouted. Frinkel turned around just in time to get grabbed and picked up by the kid he had seen earlier. "Come on we need to get out of here!"

"This is not the time for this!" Frinkel shouted. "Put me down!" He squirmed and flailed but the boy was bigger and carrying him away from the altar.

"Guess it's up to me..." Kickaha muttered. He circled around the altar examining it... Only to have the two faeries from before fly in front of him.

"We must leave now!" One faerie shouted. "We need to search for the prince that can wake her!" With that both faeries flew straight for Kickaha and started dragging him away from the altar.

"You've got to be kidding me!" Kickaha shouted as he struggled to free himself.

"I think we're onto something though!" Cobalt grunted as he dove to the side avoiding getting an axe slammed into his skull. "Them all showing up at the same time... The spell wants us away from here! We're in the right place!"

"Yeah but what can we do!?" Frinkel shouted as he squirmed. He then remembered the vines he had wrapped around his paws. He stretched out one paw as the vine shot out from it and grabbed the tip of the altar. He began to try to pull himself towards it.

"Puss no!" The young boy shouted. "Bad kitty! We have to get out of here! It's not safe!"

"But this is the plan!" Frinkel tried persuading him as he pulled on the vine trying to free himself. "I just need a few moments!"

"Nooo!" The boy refused to listen and kept tugging at him.

At this rate all three of them were at a standstill with their story counter parts. Cobalt couldn't take his eyes off the woodsman for a second or he'd lose his head. While Frinkel had a grip on the altar he wasn't able to escape the bigger kid's grasp... And Kickaha might have been able to overpower one of the faeries but with both of them dragging him he was getting further away.

"This is a fine mess." Cobalt growled. "Can't anyone do anything?"

"I'm trying!" Kickaha shouted. "Um... Sorry girls you seem like swell people but... This may be a bit of a shock." Kickaha generated the bolts of electricity between his paws. A moment later both faeries let out screams before falling to the ground. He was free! He dove for the altar and flew in circles around it looking at it. "Come on! Come on! There's gotta be something!" He paused as he looked at the books stored underneath the altar. Books... Everyone was turning into a character from a storybook. "I think I figured it out!"

"Got you!" One of the faeries had recovered and grabbed Kickaha by the tail. The other flew and grabbed him by the wrists to prevent him from conjuring more lightning at them.

"Ugh! The books!" Kickaha shouted. "It's gotta be the books!"

"I'm trying to get to it!" Frinkel shouted. He freed his other forepaw from the kid and tossed out his other vine. He managed to wrap them around the books and pull all three of them from the altar's storage.

"NO!" The kid shouted and jerked Frinkel to the side. Frinkel let out a shout of pain as both vines went limp and the books dropped to the floor.

"How are we being stopped by a bunch of children's stories!?" Cobalt shouted. He didn't recall the woodsman being this monstrous in any version of Little Red Riding Hood he had read! Then again the stories he had grown up with tended to gloss over exactly how the Woodsman defeated the wolf. He spun his weapon around smacking the Woodsman in the gut with the pommel of his trident. The woodsman then staggered back just long enough for Cobalt to turn and stab one of the books with the points of the trident. Nothing happened.

"Try the other two!" Kickaha shouted. He was struggling to try to free himself. The faerie that had grabbed his tail now had one hand on one of his wings. He couldn't stay airborne of his own power now making it more difficult to escape.

"Ugggh come on..." Frinkel had managed to hang on to the vine still attached to the altar. He tried to gather the other vine he had lost back to his paw. "Can anyone distract this kid just for a moment."

"On it!" Kickaha responded. He couldn't do most proper spells... But he let himself go limp for a moment. The faeries carried him further away from the altar now that he was no longer fighting. As he passed Frinkel and the boy he let a ball of light release itself from his hands flying into the boy's face.

"AHHH!" The boy shouted and covered his eyes.

"C'est magnifique!" Frinkel shouted as he squirmed out of the boys arms at once. He used the vine he held onto to pull himself towards the altar and the books. He then called his other vine to his arms, gathered it around into a spiral of thorns and slammed it down into the second book tearing it into two. Still nothing happened.

"You bad kitty!" The boy grabbed Frinkel by his boots causing him to trip over and land on his face. He stretched out his thorny vine to try to go for the final book only for the boy to grab his arm and dislodged the vine from it.

"You're making this way harder than it needs to be!" Frinkel whined.

"Just one to go!" Kickaha resumed struggling now that Frinkel was captured again.

"I'm trying to go for it!" Cobalt called. He brought the bar of his trident up just in time to block another axe blow. "Trying being the key phrase. If I could just get him off me!"

"I... I have an idea!" Frinkel still had one vine he could control wrapped around the altar. He released it from the altar and instead sent it to the Woodsman's legs wrapping it around them. The Woodsman fell over freeing Cobalt.

"Thanks!" Cobalt turned and ran for the last book. He heard a savage roar as the Woodsman shredded Frinkel's vine through sheer leg muscle strength. He stood up bringing his axe up and charged after Cobalt. Cobalt swung the points of his trident down at the final book. The Woodsman swung his axe straight for Cobalt's neck.

There was a shattering sound.

Everyone froze. Bits of orange glass fell from the final book that Cobalt's trident had impaled. The Woodsman's axe was millimeters away from Cobalt's throat. Cobalt could barely move without risk of the axe cutting it open.

Then the world melted. The church just seemed to turn to liquid and melted into the ground around everyone. The other houses in the village did the exact same thing. Trees sprung up out of the ground and in a few moments everyone was back in the forest. There was no sign of the town having ever existed except for the three destroyed books on the ground.

"What..." The Woodsman spoke. He dropped his axe to the ground without harming Cobalt and looked around. "Where am I?"

"Ugggh." The boy that was holding Frinkel let alone and looked around in confusion. "Did I get shorter?"

"What... What are we!?" The two faeries released Kickaha as they looked at themselves in horror. Then the sleeping girl on the altar stirred and began to wake up.

"Curse is broken." Kickaha landed next to the books panting.

"Ha haaa... I see that." Cobalt fell backwards on the ground. He had come far too close to death for his comfort today.

"But no one is changing back physically!" Frinkel said. "Zut alors."

"And you still speak Fancy." Kickaha muttered. He walked over to the destroyed books and examined them. Then he paused as he saw the broken pieces of glass. "I think... I was wrong... I don't think it was the books after all... Someone bigger than me turn this book over!"

Cobalt grunted and sat up. "Why what is it?" He turned the book over. On the back end of the book was an indent where a gemstone in the shape of a sun had been sitting in it. The gemstone was now shattered into several pieces thanks to Cobalt's trident but enough of it was there to be recognized.

"That looks important..." Frinkel muttered.

"Who put it here?" Cobalt looked around at the other people present. They all looked confused and were stunned to see their current forms. He doubted anyone here had the abilities to produce an item like this or cast the spell.

"I... Don't know." Kickaha muttered. "But judging by what it did... It had to be someone powerful." Everyone fell silent. They had accomplished their mission... But at this point they had no idea who had set this up or why. If there was a spell like this someone had to cast it and they had to have a reason.

And they were still out there.

SHIFT

Mission 003: Lost in the Woods

Mission Complete