She was chasing me. I had to get away. I had to run. Between the towering buildings, down the unlit alleyway. But I knew I wasn't fast enough. The streets were branching, snaking, forming a maze. And no matter which path I took, I knew she was always right behind me. Always on my heels.

But then I found it. A metal door with a little barred window. I didn't hesitate and pulled it open before scuttling in. I slammed it shut behind me, took the keys from my pocket, and locked it. I took a few steps away from the door and huddled on the floor, waiting for my pursuer to give up.

And then she appeared behind the barred window. Bright red hair, and flaming eyes. Flare stopped in front of the locked door without even trying to pull it open. Her face distorted in a frown. But not an angry kind of frown. It felt more like disappointment. And those eyes pierced through me, made me feel uncomfortable. I didn't like it one bit.

She turned around and left without a word. But even though I have escaped my pursuer, I wasn't happy about it. I felt guilty. Extremely guilty. My stomach turned. I regretted running away. Hiding.

I had no idea how long I sat there, wallowing in regrets, but I eventually stood up again and headed for the door. Light shined through the little window, I couldn't clearly see outside. I clicked the handle and swung the door open.

Crowds of people were around me. Walking from point A to point B. Not a single person was looking at me, everyone minding their own business. And yet, something felt uncomfortable. My chest. Nothing covered my chest, it was exposed. I quickly hugged myself, trying to hide my completely naked chest in embarrassment. But still, not a single person looked at me. They didn't care. A boy exposing his chest wasn't anything scandalous, after all.

But I wasn't a boy. I wasn't. I ran through the crowds, still hugging myself, caring about something apparently nobody else cared about. I wanted to scream, but no sound came out. Again, I was running away. The crowds of faceless shadows warped around me, twisting into a gray fog. My legs were still moving, but I didn't feel like I was going anywhere anymore. I felt lost, scared, confused. But I had to keep running. Running away from-

 

---

 

Beeping.

My hand shot out and expertly turned off the alarm on my phone.

I shuddered as I stared at the ceiling. Sweat covered my entire body. My breathing ragged. I just woke up from a dream, a nightmare. But I didn't even remember anything about it. Just the fact that it was a nightmare. I didn't know whether to be disturbed or happy that I already forgot what it was about.

I sat up in my bed and yawned. The high pitch of my yawn jolted me. I looked at my hands. They were small and hairless.

Right. Starstorm. Got hit. Black root powers. Turned into a girl. Went outside. Saved a woman from some thugs.

Now that. That wasn't a dream. I had already established that yesterday. My powers, me being a transgender girl, all of that was very much real. But I still didn't know what to do about it all. How to feel. For one, besides the nightmare, I didn't feel like crap like I usually did after waking up. There was still some anxiety, sure, but overall, I felt happy to be alive.

And that was scary. Why? Why was happiness scary? What the heck was wrong with me?

With my thoughts turning into a confused mess, I got out of my bed and picked out some fitting clothes from the drawer. Black pants and a shirt with a slogan in some language from the old world. I already forgot what it was supposed to mean, but it didn't matter. I put it on all the same, grimacing as I was reminded of my lack of a bra. But I wasn't planning on going outside today. The school was out till Monday. So I could tolerate my chest's vulnerability for the time being.

I slowly headed to the kitchen next. Opened the fridge, took out the eggs - uh, there were no eggs anymore. Right, I wanted to go to the grocery store after school yesterday. Instead, I turned into a cat and beat up some thugs. And, although definitely cooler, that decision didn't end up with me having eggs in my fridge.

I had to go outside after all. But it was a day just after a starstorm. Would any stores be open? I didn't know, but I needed my breakfast. Besides, I also needed to buy more milk and perhaps some fruits or veggies. Eating healthy was important, my mom always told me. Or actually, maybe it wasn't necessary for me anymore. Could I just eat junk food all day and then use my power and make my body healthy as if I was on a perfectly balanced diet? Perhaps. But it would still make me feel better about myself if I simply ate healthily in the first place.

Anyway, I needed food. I was extra hungry after not eating anything yesterday evening. So I headed back to my room and grabbed my bag. Then, I realized I couldn't go outside like this. At home, sure, there was nobody to stare at me. But if I was going outside, I had no choice but to give my two new friends the band-aid treatment. That, and pull on a hoodie over the shirt, just to camouflage it even more.

Next up, my phone. I pulled it out of the charger and the screen lit up. Showing me the wonderful hundred percent battery as well as some missed calls. Four from Flare. And five from-

"No no no." My blood ran cold.

Five missed calls from dad. As well as some unread messages.

I wasn't ready for this. Not yet. Yesterday, I thought I could, but now I felt meek again. Where did all my courage go when I needed it?

I slowly pulled up the phone again and tapped to open his messages. They read 'Chris, are you alright!' 'What happened??' 'Please tell me you are ok!'

Right. Of course. He knew about yesterday's starstorm. And since I didn't pick up my phone, he must have assumed the worst. I contemplated calling him and telling him I'm fine but stopped myself. My voice was different now, he wouldn't believe it was me. And even if he did, he would ask questions. Questions, I wasn't ready to answer just yet. My other option would be to change my vocal cords back. But I really really didn't want to hear the deep masculine voice I used to have again. The mere thought made me uncomfortable.

So I simply shot him a message. 'I'm fine. Sorry. Battery died yesterday when I was in the shelter.'

I had a strange sense of deja vu. Like something similar recently happened. This. Me running away from something I had to do. Something I was better off doing as soon as possible.

The phone buzzed a minute later. His reply read 'Thank god. Your school said you were fine but I was still worried. Stay safe Chris. I'm definitely gonna come back home next weekend. I'm sorry. Everything was already busy and now the starstorm... ugh sorry I'll make it up to you when I come home.'

"Yeah. I imagine your work keeps you busy." I whispered to myself as my face turned into a grimace.

I felt terrible about myself. He was worried about me, and here I was, barely even considering his existence until I saw his missed calls. And then I was mad at him for not coming home. But despite everything, he was still my dad, even though we rarely saw each other ever since mom died.

With yet another sigh, I put the phone into my bag and hefted the bag over my shoulder. I headed outside. I must have been one of few who did so at this time. A day right after starstorm and all.

The door clicked as my key locked it. I headed for the elevator out of habit. But then I frowned and decided to use the stairs instead. Screw the elevator. What good did it ever do to me? It always forced me to wait, locking me in with just my thoughts, which made me depressed. The stairs would at least give me some exercise, not that I needed it as a Felice and with the power I had.

So, I dashed down the steps, ignoring every other one. Then it turned to skipping over two steps, then three, until I was jumping down entire sets of staircases.

By the time I got to the ground floor, my blood was pumping, I was full of energy. The feeling of being unstoppable returned. I wore a wide smile as I skipped towards the main exit door. But as I approached the main door, I froze.

The main doors in these flat complexes were often partially made out of glass. My place was one such case. That was why when I stood in front of them, I could see my own reflection. There were black triangular ears on my head and a feline tail sticking out from behind me.

Shaking my head, I willed my hybrid form to go away. And luckily, when I looked at my reflection again, I was back to normal. I sighed in relief and then froze again as I quickly looked around. There were no people in my vicinity. Nobody has seen me transform. And as far as I knew, nobody on the upper floors watched me as I dashed down the steps.

Then the elevator pinged.

I jumped and turned around to look at it. As its doors opened, the familiar old lady stepped out.

"Oh my, good morning little miss." She smiled at me.

"He. Hello." Though I was startled, a subtle wave of delight permeated me as she said 'miss'.

"My, I don't remember seeing you around. Are you visiting someone?"

"No. I. I Live here." My inability to speak to strangers was showing.

"Oh, a new neighbor?"

"Uh. I guess?" I wasn't really. But I did feel like a new person, so maybe that counted.

She nodded. "Have a good day then little miss." And then headed for the main door before leaving the building.

I breathed out a sigh of relief once again. That was really close. Didn't want people finding out I'm a hybrid. Especially not strangers. That lady was always kind and polite, but. Yeah, still no.

I needed to really practice controlling my hybrid form. Spontaneously turning it on without even realizing it was not ideal. I could imagine something like trying to make it to the bus station when sleeping in late, and instinctively going all cat mode, sprinting on all fours with cat ears and tail. That would have been a very dumb way to out myself.

But that was something to do after breakfast, my groaning stomach reminded me.

I headed out. As the building door closed behind me, I took in the sight of the city once again. Just yesterday I would have to squint to see some signs properly from afar. Almost bad enough to consider getting glasses. But now? Even tiny texts two blocks away were clearly readable for me.

As I walked between the buildings, heading towards a small local grocery store, I once again took a notice of the surrounding destruction. The leveled pharmacy, the other local grocery store that got wrecked by the dragon monster. Yesterday, I grimaced at the sight, feeling powerless and hopeless. But now, things were different.

I had powers, I could do something to help. To save people. To fight against monsters like that dragon. Heck, I already saved someone last night. And it wasn't even that hard. Right, I didn't need to be a helpless bystander watching the chaos unfold before me anymore. I could actively help the situation.

And even more importantly, I had confidence. Lack of it always kept me out of the way, made me wanna blend in with the background. But ever since I let my power fix my body, I felt more and more confident. And besides confidence, I also felt hope. It's been a while since I did. Living in such a messed up world, hope was a rare commodity to come by. But ironically enough, starstorms, the very same thing that whittled away at humanity's hope ever since the first one, were the thing that indirectly gave me hope now.

As I walked, thinking about me, my powers, and the future, my eyes flicked over a certain store I had always been ignoring in the past. Clothes shop. Or more specifically, women's clothes shop. I stopped walking and stared at it. I noticed the lights were on and there was someone inside. It must have been open.

I was torn. Part of me wanted to finish my mission, go to the grocery store, and buy myself some breakfast. But another part of me craved to visit this little store I always ignored.

The other part of me won.

Carefully, meekly, I walked up to the entrance and pulled the door open. The bells above the door rung and I found myself inside. I stood at the entrance, looking around in a daze.

"Can I help you?"

I jumped at the voice addressing me. When I looked to see the culprit, a young woman with brown hair and eyes dressed in a simple light blue blouse and black pants greeted me.

"I'm. Umm. Just looking." I managed to answer.

"Are you looking for anything specific?" She smiled.

In my mind, I already regretted the decision to come here. But I pushed through and managed to open my mouth again.

"Uh. Some underwear?" I remembered my band-aid situation.

And so, as helpful as she was, she guided me to the underwear section. My eyes widened at the sight. I felt like I made a huge mistake. All of it was women's underwear. Duh, obviously. No, but. I would be wearing it. Me. There was some kind of block in my mind preventing me from even imagining it. Like it was a crime to even think about putting it on.

"What size do you need?" The dangerously helpful lady asked.

"I. Um. Don't know."

She looked me up and down.

"I see. Well, how about we pick a few different sizes and you try which ones fit for now?"

"O. Okay." I said, signaling the beginning of an experience I would never forget.

 

---

 

I never knew there were so many types of bras. I felt enlightened. And embarrassed. Very, very embarrassed.

Even now, as I finally reached my flat complex after getting the groceries, my newly acquired chest extensions were being protected by one of those mystical pieces of clothing. It made me feel safe, but it sure as heck would take some time getting used to.

I was grateful that the lady in the shop didn't mention I wasn't wearing one, to begin with. Good thing she was understanding. It would have been pretty awkward trying to find an excuse.

I rode the elevator up to the fourth floor, entered my flat, and unloaded my spoils out of the bag into the fridge, the fruit basket, and the cupboards.

At last. The time for breakfast has come. Since I was already breaking my usual routine so much, I decided to forgo the usual bacon with eggs or milk with cereal and made myself a sandwich instead. Two pieces of bread, some salad, sliced tomato, ham, cheese, and some sardines just to mock myself.

As I began the process of moving my creation from the plate into my stomach, my phone rang. I instinctively tensed up with dread. But got up and walked over to the chair where I left my bag. Then reached into it and took out my phone. The screen informed me Flare was calling.

I relaxed just a little, before tensing up again, realizing I couldn't talk to her in my current form. With great guilt, I declined the call and swiftly composed a message saying 'Sorry, can't talk right now.'

She replied nearly instantly. 'Hey, Chris! Are you alright? Did you forget to charge your phone?'

I slapped myself in the face. I saw all these missed calls earlier from Flare. But dad's missed calls completely hogged my attention back then, I completely forgot to send Flare a reply.

'I'm fine. Yeah forgot to charge it. Then overlooked your missed calls sorry.' I replied.

'It's okay. I'm stuck inside Neo Wardens HQ now. They wanna make sure my powers are stable and whatever. Mom and dad came over but it's boooring here! :('

Of course. Flare had powers too. And they were clearly way more dangerous than mine. As much as I hated to admit it, they couldn't just let her go and risk her accidentally melting something or someone. Still, I had to smile at Flare being Flare even despite the situation.

'Hang in there soldier. We'll hang out tomorrow to make up for it!'

'Yeah, they should let me go by then. Looking forward to it!'

'See you then!'

'See yaaa'

I didn't tell her about my little, uh, change. I was scared to do so. Sure, part of me believed she would take it in stride. But another part of me still nagged inside my brain, asking 'what if' questions.

I shook my head to clear it. I would cross that bridge when it came down to it. For now, I finished my sandwich and washed the dishes. And then, I had nothing to do. The school was still out because of the starstorm and Flare was unavailable. And honestly, it has been a little too intense, between getting powers, beating up crooks, and literally recreating my body. So, wanting at least a bit of normalcy after all the craziness, I did what I always did when I had nothing else to do. I went back to my room and booted up my computer.

First, I checked my messages and made sure Brock and Sally, my online friends, were alright. Sally replied, saying that the starstorm hit their city pretty hard, but they were more or less alright and were looking forward to tomorrow's gaming night. A slight smile crossed my face as I replied that I would be looking forward to it too, as well as reminding her that I would bring a friend over if she could make it.

After a bit more back and forth chatting, we said goodbye and I moved on to the forums. They were even better than the news, since the forums had pure unfiltered information, whereas the news was often shaped and spun to grab attention as much as they could. And while it was true that the forums had plenty of conspiracy theorists who couldn't be trusted, at least their lies were mostly obvious. The news sculpted their lies to make them look real.

So, maybe a little ironically, I went ahead into the 'news' section of the forums and browsed the topics that popped up.

'September 20th, 2351 starstorm megathread'

'Explosion at the Krish's jewelry store'

'Plasmoid captured!'

'Anyone else seen a pitch-black Felice hybrid with yellow eyes?'

I froze as my eyes reached the last topic. Pitch black Felice hybrid with yellow eyes.

Now, it was very rare for two hybrids to look alike. Moreover, Felice hybrids were the most uncommon type. That article. Was it talking about me?

I clicked on it and read on.

 

---

 

Topic: Anyone else seen a pitch-black Felice hybrid with yellow eyes?
Original poster: GoldenBird46

GoldenBird46 (Original poster)
On: September 21st, 2351

So, last night, I was going back home after being huddled up at my workplace because of the starstorm. And due to my amazing luck, my usual route home was blocked by debris (apparently that's where the dinosaur guy rampaged). I took a bit of a detour and got lost. Somehow found myself in the northern slums. And naturally, there were thugs around. And me, being a beautiful maiden that I am, was the perfect target for them.

Couldn't get any worse, right?

Well, when those thugs surrounded me, that's when I met her (Or him? It was hard to tell).
Completely pitch black. Skin and hair and all. Even the clothes were dark gray. The only non-black part was her creepy yellow eyes staring into my soul. I could only barely make out the ears and tail in the darkness, marking her as a Felice hybrid. But the worst part? The blackness looked like it was MOVING! LIKE IT WAS ALIVE!

Anyway, she suddenly appeared out of nowhere and completely annihilated the thugs in seconds! And then she just.... STARED at me! Holy crap it was so creepy! I thought I would be next!

But she didn't do anything. After staring for a while, she just turned around and booked it! I couldn't even tell which way she went! She completely blended in with the surroundings!

And, so yeah. Does anyone know anything about her? Seen her? Is she a hero? A mute stage four hybrid? WHAT is she?

Edit: No, I was NOT hallucinating! She beat up those five creeps! I certainly couldn't do that on my own!

 

Suavenesslessness
On: September 21st, 2351

Uh, yeah, nope. Did not happen to see an eldritch horror from my worst nightmares. Thank you for asking.

 

MakiMaki
On: September 21st, 2351

Well, consider me spooked.
Are you sure you weren't hallucinating? Sounds like you had a rough day.

 

GuyNumber1
On: September 21st, 2351

So now we have horrors from nightmares stalking up the streets? Sweet! Just what I needed to sleep soundly.
I hope you were hallucinating.

 

GoldenBird46 (Original poster)
On: September 21st, 2351

I was not hallucinating!

 

TinPinLin
On: September 21st, 2351

Definitely hallucinating.
I mean, you said she was pitch black, how could you see the blackness move? Doesn't make sense.

 

OgresHaveRightsToo
On: September 21st, 2351

Hallucination theories aside, I wonder why she just saved you and left without saying a word?
Maybe she's going for the 'mysterious vigilante' kind of style?

 

DaCakeGirl
On: September 21st, 2351

OgresHaveRightsToo:
I bet she just had no idea what to say LOL.
A creature from nightmares is a shy introvert. That's my head canon now.

 

KinOfChickens
On: September 21st, 2351

Uhh, actually?
Last night, I was taking a smoke on my balcony as usual. And I saw... SOMETHING jumping on the rooftops. Pitch black, as you said. It never really looked at me so I can't confirm the yellow eyes, but yeah. I thought it was just my tired head messing with me, seeing shadows and whatnot. But if what you're saying is true...?

 

GoldenBird46 (Original poster)
On: September 21st, 2351

KinOfChickens:
Oooh, so she came down from the roofs? That's weird. I didn't even hear her land. Seriously, she's like some high spec assassin.
An assassin from the depths of hell, that is.

 

GuyNumber1
On: September 21st, 2351

KinOfChickens:
On great. So it wasn't a hallucination. Hooray!

OgresHaveRightsToo:
I just really really hope it's on humanity's side.

 

OgresHaveRightsToo
On: September 21st, 2351

Guys. You are all forgetting, she SAVED someone. She's probably a good person underneath all that blackness. Sometimes, you don't decide what you're gonna look like when you transform into a hybrid, you know? Don't judge the book by its cover.

DaCakeGirl:
You know what? She probably IS just shy.

GuyNumber1:
Why else would she go around saving damsels in distress?

 

GoldenBird46 (Original poster)
On: September 21st, 2351

OgresHaveRightsToo:
Well, yeah. She DID save me. But meeting her was way scarier than any of those mooks could ever hope to be.
You know, getting your wallet stolen is still better than having your soul eaten.

Just sayin.

 

DaCakeGirl
On: September 21st, 2351

So, uhh. What are we calling our eldritch horror from nightmares?
I vote for 'Shy Reaper'.

 

GuyNumber1
On: September 21st, 2351

I'm just gonna call her Eldritch horror from nightmares.

 

KinOfChickens
On: September 21st, 2351

 

GuyNumber1:
So, EHFN? Rolls right off the tongue, yeah.

 

DaCakeGirl:
I'm gonna go with Shy Reaper too for now.

 

---

 

I leaned back on my chair, hand covering my eyes.

"Eldritch horror from nightmares." I whispered.

I wasn't that bad, right? That golden bird woman must have been exaggerating. Sure, it was a little creepy, but 'An eldritch horror from my worst nightmares'?! That was just too much. And Shy Reaper wasn't much better. It wasn't as if I would go around killing people. Heck, I only knocked those thugs out! Not like I killed them! Such an unfair treatment. You could always count on the internet to come up with the dumbest names. Honestly, couldn't they just call me something nicer? Like. Like. Uhh.

Hmm. What did I even want to be called? Everything has been happening so fast and there was so much to think about, I didn't think of a hybrid name. Heck, I didn't even want to be an active hybrid at first. I was happy to fall into obscurity as I have always done.

But after yesterday's ordeal, my viewpoint has changed. I wanted to make use of my powers. I was done being the idle spectator watching from the sidelines. I wanted to be in the middle of everything and have a positive impact on the world. Whether I did it by preventing a few thugs from mugging a woman or warding off a monster bashing down buildings, it didn't matter. I wanted to help.

So, names. Something less extreme than eldritch horror and less edgy than shy reaper.

I closed my eyes and brainstormed some names. First to come to mind was Panther. Named after the extinct black feline. But I didn't like it. It kind of described how I looked, but said nothing about my powers. So, I thought about other options. Rooter. Because these things were like black roots. I didn't like it either. That just sounded like I existed to provide an internet connection. Shifter? Sounded kinda creepy. Like I was some kind of formless inhuman entity. That didn't paint me in a good light.

Hmm, paint. In a way, my power was a bit like that. It replaced, painted over, what was there before, with something else. But Paint sounded a little off as a name. I pondered over it. Something else that was similar to paint. Something that was also always black.

Ink.

Simple, memorable, and alluded to both my appearance and my powers. I thought about it for a few minutes. And the more I did, the more I liked it. Ink, the vigilante who struck from the shadows. Much better than whatever the internet could come up with.

I smiled, rocking back and forth in my chair with hands behind my head. But then, I stopped, realizing I got sidetracked.

Having a name that didn't induce panic and fear was great and all. But I still didn't address the fact that my appearance freaked people out. Of course, I had no doubts the woman I saved completely exaggerated everything about it, but even then, I didn't want people running for the hills as soon as they saw me. Unless they were villains, that is.

I got up and walked into the bathroom. My twin in the mirror greeted me. I greeted her back with a small smile. It was time for a little fashion show, and to prove that the internet was wrong, as always.

I let my face dye black with the roots and tried to manually turn on my hybrid form. I wanted to practice turning it on and off at will anyway.

In about a minute, the pitch-black cat stood inside the mirror. The predator eyes staring back at me. Creepy? Uhh, yeah, sure. Kind of. But in no way warranting being called an eldritch horror from nightmares. Yup, I was right. People on the internet always blew everything out of proportion.

Then I realized, the woman I saved saw me in a mostly unlit street in the middle of the night. This bathroom, on the other hand, was pretty well lit. So, I found the light switch and flicked it off before closing the door. Then, still being able to see despite the darkness, I turned to face my reflection once again.

And nearly jumped at the sight.

Staring back at me were the glowing yellow eyes, all while the blackness coiled all around the rest of my body. The roots were completely black, but somehow, I could still see the subtle movement they always made. Just like what the bird woman described.

She was right. Without proper lighting, in the darkness, my appearance would give anyone the creeps.

"Eldritch horror from nightmares." I repeated to myself with a sigh.

Breaking news. The average household water bills have risen due to an increase in pants and underwear washing after an idiot dressed up as a living nightmare went for a stroll in the middle of the night.

"Aaah, dammit." I swore to myself.

I didn't want to be seen as a menace. A monster. I thought it looked cool before, but maybe I should have dialed it back a bit. Not covering my face in full.

I nodded to myself and called back the roots, only leaving a select few ones crawling around my face. As a sort of face paint. Then, I looked into the mirror again. Still a little creepy. But much better than before. I flicked the light switch back on and looked again. I would probably still scare some, but for the most part, I passed as a non-eldritch horror.

Good.

The disguise part of it still worked as well. Of course, there were the eyes, ears, and tail when I was in my hybrid form. But also, the roots changed the apparent shape of my face if I left them in the right spots. A neat trick. Moreover, I could also literally change the shape of my face with my roots. But then, I would have to change back to what it was before. And it wasn't like I could perfectly remember the arrangement of all molecules that made up my face. I was bound to remake my face a little differently each time I turned back. And people would notice. So for now, I wasn't going to do that.

I left the bathroom behind and trotted back to my room. My eye caught the window once more. It was still relatively early in the morning. The sun shined brightly and the darkness wouldn't enhance my creepiness. And thinking that my appearance was a lot more acceptable now, my body moved on its own.

I went for my second outing.