Chapter Seven:
Misunderstood Metamorphosis
Violently waking, I can't hold back coughing. Covering my mouth to stifle the noise, I cycle between deep, obstructed breathing and a moist hacking. It feels like my lungs are trying to liberate themselves from my chest.
Minutes pass, stars dance before my eyes, tears and snot run down my face. The flavor of bile from my earlier vomiting is joined and then replaced by the metallic flavor of blood. Finally, I feel like I can breathe normally with only the occasional cough coming forth. Laying on the ground, I consider how poorly my day is going.
Whatever that elixir was, it apparently had my desired effect of healing my body. Well, only for me to almost die from the blood that was already pooled in my lungs. Thankfully, I appear to be born under some lucky star and am as tenacious as a cockroach. I feel about as disgusting as one too. Someone please find me a river or lake and toss me in. No takers? Guess I'll just die here.
All jokes aside, thank the Emperor I'm alive. No, don't. Thank who ever made that elixir. I lived, and I got my loot. Not quite though. First, I need to get back to the surface alive, but I'm relatively confident in my ability to evade detection now that I'm in the city.
It takes a few hours, but I safely make my way back to the exit tunnel. Considering the hell I've been through today, I figured I would be worn out. On the contrary, as time moved on I felt more energy flowing through my body. Like I could run all the way to the surface. Must be the rush from surviving. Better to not overdo things for when I inevitably crash.
The surface greets me with a dawning sky. Just how much time had passed? My eyes that had adapted to the dimly lit underground began to ache, assaulted by the daylight. There's nothing for it, I'll just deal with the growing headache. Focusing my gaze downward at the more favorable darkness of the earth and deep green flora around me, I forge my way back.
As much as I would love to go straight home, the vile feeling of my body drove me to seek out a small lake I found earlier this season. I'd love to wash my clothes too, but that would have to wait until later. Walking around with soggy clothes didn't seem like much fun.
The lake itself was crystal clear, the far shore mirrored in its water only to fade as it approached the closer revealing the colorful stones that made up with lakebed. It's strange how a brush with death can give you a newfound appreciation of the beauty in this world. Shedding my pack and peeling off my shirt, I -
…
Thick black tendrils painted themselves across my flesh, glittering slightly in the sunlight. They lazily swirled here and there only to split or taper off., eventually ending down my forearms. Scraping at the inky substance on my flesh did nothing but pull loose some body hair. The markings plunged past my waste-line, stripping free of the rest of my clothes showed them continuing all the way down to my ankles.
The color reminded me suspiciously of a certain elixir. Calm down. Steady your breathing. They're just tattoos. People in the big city sometimes get them, thugs and adventurers and other rough types. Nothing to be concerned over. Just your everyday tattoos magically appearing on my skin. I feel fine, great even. Nothing to worry about. I find myself scratching them as a slow my breathing and my heartbeat slows as I take in my freshly decorated skin.
Small flakes of blood crumble from my sweaty palms and stick to my skin. Yuck. Right, I came here to bathe right? I can get a better look at myself when I'm clean anyway. Not having learned to swim, I only go so far as to have the water reach my knees, sinking down to clean my hand and wash my body. Blood, sweat, hair, and dirt are brushed from my skin. Wait, what?'
In the water surrounding me are little scraggly hairs and my skin was bare. I mean, I'm not overly attached to my hair. I always found it more uncomfortable and annoying than anything else, but I might actually be sick. My pathetic stubble that amounted to my facial hair also pulled free, but my scalp thankfully remained covered. I guess I could live with being bald, but I would rather not. It could also indicate maybe this wasn't some life-threatening sickness?
Nervous as I am, I'm not really in a place where I can do something about what is going on. Maybe with the money I'll make from selling my loot I should see a physician in Truring. It would cost a ton, but I'll be able to afford it.
There was cloth in my pack I had used to muffle the sound of my treasures rattling together, having served that purpose I used it to towel off my body. Donning my still filthy clothes I spend the next several hours hiking home, scratching at my clothed body absent-mindedly.
Something felt off. Not with my body, but with the forest. It took a while to place a finger on it. The forest was quiet. Several trees toppled over where they had stood a few days prior. Rocks were cracked and slid out of place. Returning to my shack found some wooden walls cracked and items tossed about as if it had been ransacked by a wild beast. The quake I felt so far away came to my mind and I shuddered. Had it been felt all the way here as well?
The next few days found me trying not to think about my body or the quake while toying around with the enchanted gems and tools, seeing if I could figure out what they could do and how to activate them. Unlike the flashy flame-sword I left back in the palace that ignited automatically, the dagger seemed to only activate when willed to... if that makes any sense. Cutting into a tree while activating it gave a sensation of something leaving from my body into the blade. The tree blackened and rotted, collapsing when it could not bear its own weight.
Quite nasty and it made me cautious of the rest. A gem doesn't have the safety of a handle separating me from the enchantment. If they were meant to be set in something before being used, I might find myself in a very dangerous predicament.
One other item of note was a bracelet. It had a dainty form that clasped around the wrist, the band being what I initially thought was silver, though it was too white to actually be. An onyx gem, perfectly smooth and ovular, was set as the only adornment. Similar to the dagger, it had to be activated and proved to be rather draining. When used, it turned me invisible. I think I'll keep this one for myself, it could help me out in the future.
Eventually I became unable to avoid my physical changes. The pink of my skin faded away, and under its pale surface showed blue veins that darkened every day until they were deep black. Pricking my finger confirmed my fears as black liquid welled out instead of red. While slightly improved over time, my eyes still hurt during the brighter times of the day, leading me to seek shelter in my home until dusk.
I had to go to Truring, I had to see a physician before something irreparable developed. It might already be too late. As if to disregard my fears, my body felt stronger. More powerful. Don't let it fool you, it's better to be safe than sorry.
So, I found myself again heading into Himalpoint proper to secure supplies for my journey. Not that there really is much of a proper Himalpoint. It was more busy than usual, what few wood workers that lived in town could be seen repairing buildings, and stone foundations showed signs of recent cracking. Here too, it seems. I spy an idle boy and tug at his sleeve to grab his attention.
“Excuse me, are any shops still open?” Hopefully so, though many seem closed while they work on fixing damages.
He turns to me. His eyes go wide, and he falls to the ground, scurrying away.
“S-s-stay back demon!”
Wait. What?
Oh goodness. I'm enjoying your work. Keep it up.
I'm glad you enjoyed it.
I'm quite enjoying this so far.
Dawning my still filthy clothes
Probably meant donning rather than dawning?
Good catch, thanks for letting me know.