Gazing at herself in a mirror, she struggled to keep her balance. What she saw floored her. It was enough to have seen her transformed form in all its — glory… Her heart hammered in her chest, but despite how weak she felt, she wasn’t in any danger of again experiencing what felt like what a heart attack might be like.

She stood nude in the ship’s infirmary, eyes wide as she struggled to cope. At least Ken assumed that was where she was, her jaw was dropped in shock. Turning awkwardly she turned her eyes on Perkons who stood by the mirror. He somehow seemed smug.

“Are you having any difficulties with keeping your balance?” With a snap of his… paw-fingers? Digits? Talons? He created a set of freestanding crutches near her. Gratefully, Ken grabbed them, finding that they felt just like the real ones would, made of something like aluminum with padded hand grips and underarm pads with rubber tips for traction.

With a sigh, she settled onto them, propping herself up with them more like it. “Perkons… I feel wobbly. It’s hard to even stand.”

“That is normal.” Perkons essayed what he probably meant to be a reassuring smile. “It should pass soon enough. Our therapy programs will proceed with their work on your body.”

“Therapy programs?” Perkons, however, didn't bother to answer this question and Ken wondered about what he meant.

Her violet eyes twitched back to the mirror to watch the vulnerable-looking girl with long silver hair. Her hair reached her calves. Interestingly, her hair was longer than in her transformed form, reaching her posterior.

Beautiful, I guess… but it’ll be a nightmare to care for. Maybe I should cut it short as soon as possible.

Although Ken wasn’t an expert in such matters, merely an admirer of breasts she decided that hers were around the same size as while transformed, seeming a touch larger due to the lack of the support and constraints of clothing. They hung from her chest, but in a perky way. They only succumbed to gravity’s will very slightly. While she would have expected them to feel heavy, in fact they were light as the air — and… felt natural?

Returning her attention to her eyes or rather their hue, comparing them with her transformed form, they were now a more bluish shade. Her legs and hips were the same as before… or so she thought. Apparently the changes were limited to hair length, color and eye coloration.

Covering herself awkwardly with one arm, leaning on the other crutch in use, Ken stared at Perkons. “Um… would it be a problem to give me something to wear?”

Perkons tilted his head. “Are you feeling embarrassed?”

“Wouldn’t you be if you were me?” Ken asked dryly. 

“Curious, I have never considered such before.” Perkons mused as he rubbed at his chin, scratching lightly at the fur there. “If I wished to present myself as female, it would be a simple matter, but my kind doesn’t bother with gender in general, let alone clothing.”

“... wait… Wait… Whoa… You’re not a guy?” Ken raised an eyebrow with a twist of her lips. 

“I am a Felicitas,” Perkons said simply. “As for your question, yes.”

“Okay. Fair, I guess. What do Felicitas do?”

“We make things among many other things. We’re the universe’s caretakers.”

“... What do you make?”

“I create objects such as those crutches for you. They were created from light inside our ship, so they’re real as anything else here, but would cease to exist if it wasn’t for our light technology.”

“So you… create illusions in your UFO?” Ken now laughed, unable to hold back gales of chuckles. “That’s all that makes you think you’re gods, really?”

Perkons seemed offended, crossing his arms across his furry chest and scowled at Ken for a long moment before trying again, “Gods create. Just because those crutches aren’t real, that doesn’t mean we don’t possess the ability to create real matter that could leave this ship. Such is a trivial matter.”

“So you’re really able to create? Out of thin air or like light in general?” Could it be that they were actual gods as they claimed?

“Yes, we are creators. Not your creators, I confess. You’re the product of the universe as are we. Although, we won't make any particular assertions about your origins that might conflict with your private religion. Many things are possible that you wouldn’t dream of.”

Wiggling a talon, Perkons gestured for Ken to follow.

Muttering under her breath, she returned her upheld arm to its crutch and started walking. As they walked, the ‘infirmary’ faded from vision, and they walked through a tunnel filled with light, leaving behind the bed she had lain in until her vision recovered and regained her ability to support her own weight.

As they walked onwards, in a short time, she stepped forward and was somewhere else. This time, she stood in an engineering room, much closer to what she would have expected from an alien spaceship’s interior. It was made from an unknown metal that faintly sparkled. Despite this, there was a carpet on the floor that still resembled grass and had the scent of a garden with freshly turned earth. 

Perkons scurried over to a machine with a control panel made of that same sparkly metal. “What sort of clothes would you like?” It had a large tube filled with a peculiar fluid, filled with what looked to be syrup… assuming light could be made to be thick and tactile. The panel was indecipherable, covered by strange symbols that glowed softly.

Ken froze mid-step and shook her head, beholding the machine. It wasn’t just that, though. She was uncertain about what to ask for.

Tapping a talon on the panel, Perkon’s lip curled. “You seem hesitant. I don’t blame you for hesitating.”

“I just don’t know…” Ken muttered. “It’s a lot to adjust to.”

“Indeed.” Perkons nodded understandingly. “We understand your position and how awkward this must feel.” He patted the panel and went on, “— Given the extenuating circumstances caused by your unusual transformation, unlike with most lodestaran, you will be afforded what support we can provide. Material-wise, you most likely will require a whole new wardrobe to start with. Given your new physical dimensions, I assume that your old clothing will be ill-fitting.”

“True enough.” Ken considered how baggy her pants might be or how tight they might be around her wider hips as she was now. Would all her shirts feel tight or loose? Was she smaller or larger? She wasn’t sure how much taller or shorter she was. “Good point, I guess… but I still don’t know what…”

“Just think about it seriously and write up a list of whatever you would like sometime and we will transport everything you require to your bedroom.”

“I… That’s very generous.” Ken hesitated, still unable to think, but something interesting occurred to her that brought her back to life. They were able to make things out of light! If so, maybe it was possible to reverse what had happened to her… no, him… and make all this go away. Maybe there was a way to turn it on or off at will? “I have another question, if you don’t mind, Perkons.”

“Go ahead.” Perkons smiled again. “As I’ve told you before, we’ll answer any question we’re able.”

Rellawing

Please check out Assurbanipal II's work. I also want to mention MajorKerina, who has been writing much longer than myself.

Yay on time! *purrs* I hope you enjoy this release!

My misfortune has greatly reduced this week! <3 FINALLY! The snow melted! I was able to rig my bumper to not fall and twist around with the prudent use of a new bungie cable and stainless steel hooks that I attached to it. I should only have to get by with this setup for another week or so. My sister arranged to have a friend replace the bumper facade and splash guards for me. I have all the tools to get it done and maybe I could do it, but while I have ramps for the front tires, trying to drive up them alone resulted in my driving OVER them and almost having them wedged under the car. I sure am glad they're not as high up as I thought they should be. I've learned recently why they're only a few inches high. (A foot at most?)

Anyhow, now I won't have to try my hand at the repair job.

I also scored some cheap USB lights that really seem to do the job well, so my electrical issues in my bathroom aren't as troubling as of today. (Yay no more showers in the dark!)

Thanks for reading, everyone! Much love! =^.^=