‘While in his body Ilearnt how to change to newman male and female forms as anexercise. Unfortunately we became separated, so I still have hisbody and he has mine, until we can get back together to swapback.
‘So I’m a newman spiritin a Logicon body, but it's strange - I’m thinking more like aLogicon every day. I’ve learnt to shape into a reasonable copy ofmy original body, but it’s deceptive. I have no real heart in thischest. These fingers give me feeling of a sort, but I know itdoesn’t feel like it did when I was a newman. My eyes function, butnot as well as before. I feel like a fake, since I can stillremember what it was like when I had the real newman body. I guessif I stay like I am for too long I’ll forget.’
‘I’m sorry,’ saidMiranda. ‘I know another newman trapped in an alien body like you.I know how difficult it is. As time passes, you will forget what itis to be a newman. You will wish to turn away and be yourself.You’ll be neither newman nor Logicon. You’ll be unique but alone,and that is too great a burden for most to bear. Please stay amongnewman and keep newman form as much as possible. This will delaythe day you turn from them, for once you do it will probably be aone way trip.’
‘Thanks for your kindsentiments, but I’ve a while before I have to travel that path andI intend to get my own body back again long before there is anyreal damage. You asked me before why I am really here. I am here tolearn how to control a rage that affects my judgement. I am not anordinary wizard that uses magic based on words of power gleanedfrom the language of the dragons. I am a mind wizard. Power isstored within me and I should be able to control it using my mind,but in times of danger I have become violent anduncontrollable.
‘I have purposely notlearned any destructive magic powers, as my family has always beenworried that I might harm friends and foe alike. My source, thecontainer of my power within, is also very limited, although Idon’t know why. With other mind wizards their source and powergrows with practice and age. Mine has not. It’s been veryfrustrating.’
‘You told the HighWizard that you were in trouble and fled Panmagica with the lawafter you?’ queried Miranda.
‘That’s true.’Everything I told Featherdown and Quab is true. Shape changing isillegal in Panmagica, with a penalty of death. One day when we hadexchanged our spirits between our bodies and I was practising myshape changing, we were interrupted by an Archon, a very powerfulcreature that hunts criminals.
‘We were captured inspheres of arcane force, which wouldn’t allow the passage of ourspirits, so we ended up trapped in each other’s body. I was laterable to escape, but I don’t know what happened to him. Mygrandfather was going to try to get him freed so that we could swapour spirits back to their correct bodies.’
‘That makes sense. Iwould have fled as well, but why did you come here? Surely therewere less remote places to go?’ asked Miranda.
‘My grandfather told methere were pretty women druids here,’ he said with a cheekysmile.
‘That’s not answeringmy question,’ she replied with an amused glance at him. ‘Why didyou come here?’
‘Maybe I’ll tell youthe answer if you can tell me what’s going on here. Why is there somuch security around the gateway? Why are there a hundred guardswhen twenty would do? Why two archwizards? Why are the troopstraining for battle? Why does Quab lay down wards on a sanctuary?And what is the High Wizard afraid of?’
‘Is it that obvious?Yes I suppose it is. There is tension everywhere even among thelittle people,’ she replied.
‘I will tell you. It’shardly a state secret, although I dare say that few will speak ofit openly in the town. You may have heard that this world wasdevastated by a terrible cataclysm a few hundred years ago. Nobodyknows how it started, but we do know it involved many of the magicnodes. The great storm must have lasted for many years, for theworld almost froze over before it recovered. But by that timealmost all plant and animal life had been wiped out.
‘A couple of hundredyears ago the Inter-World Druid Federation found out and sentdozens of druids here to rebuild the world to what you see today.About fifty years ago they opened the first temporary gateway toallow colonists to live in their creation, and now there areseveral thousand here in three large settlements and a dozen ormore smaller ones. But a little over twenty years ago the YithFederation suddenly claimed that the whole world was a sacred siteto them, and demanded it be handed over.
‘The Druid Federationcouldn’t bear to part with it after so much loving restoration workand refused. They asked the Council of Panmagica and others to helpprotect it. From what I’ve heard, that was the beginning of the warbetween the newmans and the Yith that has raged ever since.
‘About three years agoa druid thought to be a newman walked into the Ugly Bear Inn and atsat at a table opposite Featherdown, and shape changed to a Yithlizard form. The place cleared pretty quickly, leaving Featherdownand the Yith talking together.
‘The High Wizard hasnever revealed to anyone as far as I can tell exactly what the Yithsaid, but he did go to the High Druid who is the Head of the DruidCouncil and tell him of the meeting. Whatever the Yith said hascaused much tension between the High Wizard and the Druid Council.Since then there have been many rumours about Yith being seen hereor there, but I have never seen one alive or dead.
‘However, there is onerumour which seems to be very common and very wide spread acrossthe land, and that is that something momentous is imminent. That iswhy everybody is tense. Some fear another Great Storm, others feara Yith invasion, others are more fanciful, suggesting that the godshave various plots. No one knows for sure, so rumours continue
