Taiki wasn’t sure where she was when she first opened her eyes. She was only aware of warmth, so much warmth that it was almost unbearable. Still, it had a pleasant feeling to it. The feeling of a loving figure, who cared for nothing more than her happiness. It reminded her strongly of Master Sato, and of a distant parent her mind had long forgotten. So warm. It was enough to wipe away her worries, and more importantly, her rage.

Finally, she allowed her eyes to open. At first, she thought she was under a tree. The crossed vines above her closely resembled a tree’s foliage, though it blocked out more light. The ground under her wasn’t ground at all, she realized, putting a hand to it, but moss. Dense enough to serve as a bed. Much of the warmth came from there. How long had she lain on the moss? Wasn’t there something that she was supposed to be doing? She didn’t have time to lay here.

In trying to raise herself up on one arm, she noticed something missing. Her arm. She let out a low sigh of concern and heard someone stirring beside her. A thin girl, with a tangled nest of rainbow-colored hair and piercing green eyes. But Taiki had another image, that of an angel surrounded by warm green light. It didn’t last long, though the feeling of affection persisted. It was Falynn, she remembered. The innocent druid girl that she’d met when she arrived in Tyrman.

And then, as such things always happened, it all came rushing back. The memories crashed down on her mind, hammering it in a ruthless wave of information as she remembered. The mad rush to save a city. The journey back to Nihon-Ja. Fighting off not one but two assassins. Then the final confrontation where she’d been disabled. She wondered what had become of that last assassin. Given that they were all alive, she assumed he’d been killed by one of the others. Perhaps Leonov.

“Taiki?” Falynn spoke tentatively as if she didn’t want to believe her eyes. “You’re awake?”

“I think so,” Taiki said, looking from her missing arm to the druid girl. “Were you not able to save my arm, then?”

She shook her head. Tears were beginning to fill her eyes, but she didn’t say anything else just yet. Another sound drew Taiki’s attention, and she turned towards the entrance of the dome to see Leonov’s face, also etched in concern. He looked exhausted, she thought, and grinned. He seemed at a loss for words, but finally said, “What’s so funny?”

“I’m just surprised to find you so tired,” she said. “You all look like you’ve been through hell.”

At last, he seemed to understand. “No worse than you.”

As he inclined his head in the direction of her missing arm, she looked again. “Where is Roni? Don’t tell me she was killed by the assassin.”

“You wish,” said a voice from just outside the shelter. “I’ve been keeping watch for these layabouts.”

“I understand you might want to get right back to the fight,” Leonov said. Falynn’s head whipped around at him, but he held a hand out. “But you need to rest. You’re nowhere near fighting shape now. No matter how angry you are, I’m not letting you throw your life away to chase Shimonseki down.”

At the name, another memory came to her, and she frowned. “I’m not angry. I should be, shouldn’t I?”

Now it was Falynn’s turn to frown. “You’re not? I thought you’d be furious.”

Taiki sat herself up and flexed her good arm. “Well, I’m upset that I was wounded. But magic can replace that. But I’m still going to hunt down that mage.”

“Shimonseki isn’t going anywhere,” Leonov promised her. “Once you’re recovered, we’ll hunt him down. You have my word.”

But Taiki was shaking her head. She wasn’t sure why, but she couldn’t muster the resolve to chase the man down. That memory was forming in her mind still. Not clear enough to make it out, but it nagged at her, telling her that she was missing something. “I’m not sure we should.”

She hadn’t meant to say the words aloud, but she saw the shock on Falynn and Leonov’s faces. She couldn’t blame them. It was a direct contradiction to their mission of the past few weeks. Leonov opened his mouth. “Why?”

“I’m… not sure,” she said slowly. “Something feels wrong when I think about fighting him. Like he’s not my real enemy.”

Falynn still looked confused at this reply. Leonov was the same, but he was thinking through something. “Is there a chance he’s possessed?”

“Possessed?” Falynn asked, seeing what he meant in an instant. “You mean in the same way that an Infernal possesses someone?”

He nodded. “We previously thought that there were no Infernals before the invasion.”

“Because there wasn’t,” Falynn said, frowning. “Lord Longfang sealed them all away, long ago.”

“But Lord Breeden told me that he has a friend who was possessed long before the invasion,” Leonov said. “Samuel Bragg’s daughter too, that seems like an after-effect of an invasion.”

“But Bragg’s an ancient,” Taiki put in. “That means that his daughter is too. Wouldn’t she be immune to  possession?”

They both looked to Falynn, who shook her head. “Not if she was young when she was possessed. I was told by an elder druid that Ancients are actually incredibly weak when they first form. They need time to grow and gain power.”

“That would explain why she was a child for so long,” Leonov said, nodding as he thought it through. “So what if there was another Infernal in the world, but they just kept their presence quiet? It’s possible.”

But this time it was Taiki’s turn to shake her head. “Not possible. Infernals can be sensed, and Grandmaster Tokugawa already inspected that idea. There’s not a single Infernal anywhere in Nihon-Ja.”

“I see,” Lonov said, looking disappointed as his theory was disproved. “Well, I don’t know of other races that can just hide themselves away and not be noticed.”

“Hang on a second,” Falynn said, her face clearing suddenly. “Yes, you do. We all do.”

They looked at her, uncomprehending for a few seconds, then Taiki realized what she meant. “Roni!”

Falynn nodded gravely. “Changelings can hide their true appearances, can’t they? So they would be able to commit all those crimes that Tokugawa mentioned and not be noticed. Roni, is that something you could do with Changeling powers?”

“It is possible,” came the dry reply. “But before you get any ideas, no, you cannot sense that someone is a Changeling. By the time we’ve learned how to make a disguise, it is a complete transformation. There’s no magical sign of it.”

“But a disguise can be countered,” Falynn pointed out. “There are wards that can disable them, and if the Changeling is knocked out or killed, it’s revealed.”

There was a lengthy pause, then Roni replied, “That is true, yes. But some Changelings are true masters. They can hide their identity even while unconscious.”

“Come to think of it,” Leonov said thoughtfully, “You kept your disguise up every time we camped out for the night.”

“Yes. I am a Master Changeling, after all. I can even use my illusion powers in combat.”

Falynn thought of the illusory copies of Roni she’d seen and realized she was right. “So a Changeling could be behind it. But wouldn’t they have been noticed when they were young? I imagine that someone would remember a Changeling, even if it’s been a few years.”

“Not in this country,” Taiki said. “People aren’t distrusted for their differences.”

“Unless you’re from another country,” Leonov quipped. “Otherwise, you’re fine.”

Taiki nodded slightly. All of a sudden, the heat of the shelter was becoming too much. She pushed herself to her feet with her remaining arm and stretched. “I need fresh air.”

Leonov quickly moved out of her way, and she stooped, stepping out into the bright sunlight of the coast. She squinted against the sun for a moment or two, studying their surroundings. “We’re still in Nihon-Ja?”

“Yes,” Falynn said, stepping around her as she too exited. “You were only out for four days. We’re about ten miles away from the port city we were in.”

“Nobody’s come looking for us this far away,” Roni said. “We’re hidden for as long as we like.”

“A Changeling,” Taiki said, humming thoughtfully. “It’s possible. But I’m still not sure. Can they change your memories?”

“Memories?” Roni asked, thinking about it, “No. I definitely can’t do that. I’ve never heard of that kind of magic. Why do you ask?”

“Because it’s one of the things he does,” Taiki said darkly. They didn’t have to ask who she meant. “Whenever he’d wipe out a village or kill a large group of people, the survivors always forgot his appearance.”

“Except you.”

“Yes,” Taiki said with a nod. “I ran before he could reach me. I remember his voice and what he looked like.”

“Was he pale?” Roni asked. “Our natural forms are always pale. With blue or red eyes. That’s the one thing we can’t hide unless we disguise ourselves.”

Taiki closed her eyes and searched her memory for a moment. The man’s face was one thing she’d never forgotten. The image had been burned forever in her mind, appearing to her each night as she slept. It was the face of evil and hatred for her, the ultimate enemy. And, of course, as she remembered his face now, the rage came back. She opened her eyes and met Roni’s. “No, it was a Nihon-Jan face.”

Nihon-Jans were well known for the dark tint of their skin. It was easy to spot one in the world. That same distinction also made it very easy to spot outsiders. If you didn’t look Nihon-Jan, you weren’t trusted. No outsider would be nearly as successful as the mage when it came to hiding themselves away.

“So not a Changeling,” Leonov muttered. “But definitely a mage that knows how to warp the mind.”

“Well it’s possible to make more than one disguise,” Roni interjected. “Most Changelings go through a few changes before they settle on their favorite appearance.”

And to prove her point, she shifted in front of their eyes, taking on the form of Falynn, even growing a few inches taller. Even the signs of exhaustion such as the messy hair, wrinkled green dress, and general slump of the shoulders were mimicked. Falynn let out a soft gasp as she saw that, then shivered. Roni knew that reaction well. It was never comfortable for a normal person to see their appearance copied perfectly. In the blink of an eye, she’d resumed her normal elven form. “This is the appearance of my mentor. I take it as a way of honoring her.”

“Could you mimic a man?” Leonov asked. “The mage we’re hunting is male, after all.”

And in a moment, her form had shifted again, and Leonov was blinking at an identical copy of himself. Even when Roni spoke, he heard his own voice echo back at him. “Gender means nothing to our disguises. It is more difficult for me to turn into a male. I make small mistakes, no matter how much I practice. It’s just easier to maintain a female form.”

She shifted back to her usual self. Falynn moved closer, looking thoughtful. “Can I try something, Roni?”

The archer shrugged neither accepting or denying the request. But Falynn took that as a yes, and raised one hand, coating it with mana. She clicked her fingers, emitting a small pulse of that chaotic magic they’d noticed before. Immediately, Roni’s form disappeared, revealing the pale Changeling appearance below it. In an instant, it was back, but her true form had shown long enough to be clearly identified.

“So if someone’s hiding,” Falynn said, “I can prove it.”

Leonov was grinning now. “And then there won’t be any question of it.”

“How do you mean?” Roni asked. She looked a little troubled at her disguise being forcibly removed, but was moving past it. “Even if we reveal them as a Changeling, who cares?”

“Lady Shimonseki will,” Taiki said suddenly. She’d understood at last what the others meant. “She’ll recognize that they’re lying, and arrest them.”

Falynn nodded. “We can end this quickly if we just reveal them. We might even be able to do it without fighting.”