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Haldhaa - Kaynta shapeshifter druid

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The Exile - part 4 – A new home

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Escaping the old continent, or, the “old world”, as the humans called it, was only the beginning. So much remained to be done: build homes, explore this new land, plant crops… The first colony was named Hopeharbour, and would grow to become the capital of the “Duchy of the new world”.
As expected, I was assigned to a scouting party. The continent seemed bigger than the old one, and most of it was covered in a dense forest filled with murderous animals, which didn't make our task easy. Bears were the worst: bigger, and way more aggressive than those in our old land. Several smaller towns were founded along the way, and the duchy of the new world grew and prospered.

Nearly 90 years passed until the events I will narrate now. It started in 1054, as a rather unusual mission:
“Sareena, something wrong is going on at Northpoint outpost. Sixty people savagely murdered, apparently by bears, from what the few survivors tell! “Dozens of them!” Complete and utter nonsense made up by simple minds, obviously, but the rumor spread and no one wants to go there anymore. Find out what really happened.”

When I arrived at Northpoint a few days later, all signs indeed pointed to a bear attack. After a few hours of searching, I was about to go back to Hopeharbour when a bear emerged from the surrounding forest and charged me.
“Killing humans is one thing, but let's see how you handle a Shadow...”
I easily dodged the charge and drove my dagger deep into its back. It roared with pain, then collapsed. I would never have imagined what followed… The bear's shape started distorting and, a few seconds later, a young woman was lying in its place, bleeding from a deep wound on her back.
I found healing herbs in the buildings of the outpost and tended to her wound, then dragged her into one of the abandoned buildings and let her rest. She was weak, but she would live. When she recovered, I tried interrogating her, but she didn't speak our language. Instead, she gestured me to follow her.

She led me to a village perched in trees (which, after witnessing her transformation and realizing that there were other humans living in the forest, barely impressed me), talked to a few people in her language, then came back to me. From what I understood, I was invited to stay with them. My curiosity led me to accept. Over the months, I learned their language and culture.They called themselves the Kayntas. They had been inhabiting the forest for as long as their legends go. They live in numerous small villages spread across a huge territory, with only a single major town, Asalahaan. Haldhaa was the name of the woman-bear, or rather, as she called herself, the shapeshifter druid. She told me that she could take the form of many animals, not just of a bear. There were other druids, with other capacities, just like the human battlemages specialize in a domain of magic.
When we arrived from the old continent, they watched us, but remained hidden. Northpoint outpost was built dangerously close from one of their villages, and they feared they'd be found. So, they gathered a group of shapeshifter druids and raided the outpost, attempting to disguise it as a bear attack.

Meanwhile, as I didn't come back, the duke had sent a whole regiment to Northpoint. It became clear that they would discover the Kayntas sooner or later. I discussed it with the Kayntas:
“It's a matter we cannot handle here. We must go to Asalahaan, to see the council. They will decide. Sareena, you would do us a favor going yourself, you will explain the stakes much better than us. Ask Haldhaa to guide you through the forest, I'm sure she'll be pleased to do it. You know, I think she likes you”

I could – no, should - have minded my own business, let them handle their little privacy issues. I'm not sure why I accepted. Maybe I was starting to like Haldhaa too...

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