Dawn- An age of Darkness

I was in an underground prison: the spiral stairway led up. With every step, I felt freer and freer, and more and more pain along with it. I really wanted to get out of this place, so bearing the pain wasn't a big deal.

Once I got out, I saw the capital and the palace: It was a little past morning. The prison was on the other side of the city from where we had entered. The calm breeze pressed on my skin and I witnessed the capital's beauty. No matter how I looked at it, the elven capital really was beautiful.

And so the storm passes.       

I was silent. I didn't know what would have been good. 

My dear bunny rabbit followed me and was now on top of my shoulders. It was lighter than I remembered. Come to think of it, I was lighter too. 

My body swayed and it was hard for me to maintain my balance, but not impossible. I guess missing an arm had way more complications than just less power.

The guard that escorted me out handed me a bangle. I recognized it. It was Brenda's. 

"Where did you get this?"

The guard was kind of slender and looked rather skeptical. He probably didn't trust me. And I didn't know how much he knew either. He might have even thought I killed the emperor. "Lord Jowy had given it to me. He instructed me to make you wear it and escort you to the palace." His voice was calm and so was his demeanor. But strangely I got a little hostile vibe from him.

So that was your plan… 

The bangle could change one's appearance. It made Brenda a guy. I wonder what it'd do to me: would I look like Brend? I didn't know who had possession over Brenda's things and I hadn't asked either. And now I knew.

I was tempted to leave the damn place as I was. But they had all my equipment, so I had to go.

The guard was cautious around me. I couldn't blame him. Maybe he was a trusted guard of Jowy's. 

But I can't go on like this, now can I?

Reluctantly, I put on the bracelet. Its jewel shined brilliantly and covered me in an eerie light. I'd seen Brenda use this before but now that this was happening to my own body, I felt a tingling sensation all over.

The guard stood there, with a hand on his sword. He was ready to slit my throat at a moment's notice. I didn't let my guard down either. If he came for me, I was ready to counter.

My proportions started to change. My height shortened and my chest puffed up. My hair flowed down freely. My body felt weird: and a little more sensitive in certain parts. 

Did I just turn young?

The guard was more surprised than me. Jowy must not have told him about the bracelet's powers: But then again, I didn't know about it either. I looked around at my body. And I wasn't just wrong, I was dead wrong. I didn't turn young, no sir. I  turned into a woman!

I really turned into a woman! I was only wearing a pant, so my top portion was pretty exposed. However, since I was covered in bandages only the outline could be seen. But since the proportions were different a lot of the bandages were loose and a fair amount of skin was exposed.

Just what the hell!

What the hell indeed.

The first thing I did was poke my chest to make sure they were real: they were. Rather bouncy too: very sensitive. 

Should have expected that I suppose. 

Amazingly, I didn't feel a lot of emotion regarding my body. It felt a little natural: too natural. Maybe the bracelet could change one's mindset of what's normal too?

The guard's expression kind of changed. He looked sideways, casting glances at me from time to time. He was kind of flushed. 

I stared at him blankly. "Can I get something to cover my top, like a shirt perhaps?" I was surprised by my voice. It was surprisingly feminine and soft. 

Am I allowed to find my own voice soothing?

It wasn't like I was embarrassed or something but I wanted to maintain etiquette. So I had to ask for clothes.

"O-of course." The answer was immediate.

Hard to imagine it was the same guy who had a handle on his sword just to slit my throat even a moment ago. He didn't have anything at hand, so he gave me his shirt instead. 

How chivalrous? Did he forget that I'm a guy? 

I still stared at him with a dull look. "Oh, thanks."

"You-you're welcome!"

"Okay then, lead the way." The shirt wasn't a great fit but I didn't have much of a choice.

I didn't understand his reason. Elves generally never showed too much emotion, so maybe he was weird. I'd seen Jowy act around women. He never showed any weakness. But maybe that was just an act as he definitely showed enough around that demi lady. 

The shirt was a little too big for me: it made me look a little weird by the grace of gravity. The guard on the other hand had something underneath so he wasn't shirtless. 

Biteria now hid behind my hair. I could get how Brenda felt. The little devil tickled me so hard, that I had a smile on my face unconsciously.

Standing was tough alone, but now I had to walk around. And not to mention I had extra weight on my chest. Even my downstairs felt weird. 

Come to think of it… it didn't just feel weird. There was no downstairs to begin with. I didn't have the luxury to take a look but I could feel it. I didn't have my family jewels between my legs anymore. Just the thought of it made tears well up in my eyes.

They will grow back!

I didn't know if that was true or not, but I most certainly hoped so. If they didn't, Jowy would have to bathe in his own blood.

***

The town was bustling as always. Traders were shouting prices. People were running around buying. But the greens were all I saw. 

How do they live off just vegetables?

"Lady Daarc, would you like to secure clothes first?"

Lady Daarc? What the hell! 

It was weird being called that. "Just Daarc is fine. And no, I want to get out of this place as fast as possible. So-"

"But are you sure?" Something about his gaze indicated about the people around us. Till now I hadn't really paid any attention. I never had to. But I'd almost forgotten that I had a different body and it might have been a little stimulating with the drowsy shirt and somewhat exposed chest. 

I took a good look around me and turned to the guard. "Yeah, maybe you're right. Let's go get some clothes first." My voice shook with nervousness. Biteria poked out in confusion.

Apparently, everyone was staring at me like I was their long-lost lover. I didn't understand why people were staring at me like that: even girls. I really couldn't understand. Weren't elves supposed to be elegant?

***

We walked into a clothes store. I'd have preferred to buy armor but the guard was paying, so didn't have much say on the matter. The shop had a variety of clothes. They all looked beautiful and that was it. I never understood fashion so I couldn't really tell.

"Is there anything to your liking?" The guard inquired, eyes glimmering. 

That was a very loaded question. I gulped and prepared to answer. That's when the store attendant spoke up. "I-I think this dress would go nicely with the lovely lady!" Her voice was loud and nervous. What was wrong with people today?

I looked at the dress. It was a black dress. Kind of like those traditional clothes of Southern Asia. Come to think of it, most of the elves wore a blend of traditional and somewhat modern clothes. 

This one had embroidery of different things. Most of the threads were either made from crystals or gold. It looked beautiful alright, but something troubled me more. 

How frigging expensive is this thing? And how do you put it on!

"It might be a little over bud-" I was more worried about putting it on, by the way.

"Why don't you try it on!" The guard was pretty assertive. Was he dumb? This thing was bound to cost at least a small fortune, and not to mention I was a guy!

"Are you sure, we can afford this? I don't have any money, remember? I could only pay you back when I get my things back… but," I whispered.

He nodded and the attendant showed me the changing room. Apparently, he didn't seem to care about money. 

I went into the dressing room. It had a mirror and I finally took a good look at myself. Biteria had jumped out before I went in. 

Honestly, I couldn't blame the lookers. If I didn't know it was me, I'd have fallen for myself as well. And I didn't use that term loosely.

My eyes were pure black and so was my hair. My features were a little different from when I was a guy. My slender build as a guy translated rather well in this girl form. By chest was modest and they went flawlessly with the body I had. My skin seemed softer and more pinkish. Even my ears were a bit pointier: not as much as an elf's though.

But my muscles were gone. Instead, now I had a flawless body, even the scars were gone. 

Never thought I'd admire my own body…

And then I looked at the dress, instantly realizing the fatal mistake in my judgment. 

How the hell do I put this on?

I trembled in nervousness.. Sweat drifted from my forehead, swam through my cheeks, and fell on the floor.