Dawn of the 13th Era

Shape shifting?

Hey bro, did you wake up on the wrong side of the bed this morning?”

“Why? Is something wrong?”

Rolling his eyes in sarcasm, Jerry looked at Orion and said,

“Why wouldn’t something be wrong when the greatest class boycotter suddenly starts coming to classes?”

“Out with it. What did you come for? I’m sure you didn’t come just to listen to the old man’s class.”

“Calling your revered lecturer an old man, you’ve got guts.”

“Okay, let’s cut to the chase. I came here to ask for your help.”

“My monthly allowance is finished. I’m broke.”

Twitching his lips, Orion said, “I’m not here to ask for cash. I just need your help for a few minutes.”

Looking at Orion in suspicion, Jerry said, “Are you sure?”

“Seriously? I’m not here to ask for money, bro. Just a few minutes of your time, that’s all.”

“Alright then. Hope you’re not thinking of collecting my blood to sell it?”

“Honestly man, stop the jokes. I’m being serious here.”

“Okay, what should I do then?”

“Follow me.”

Orion turned around and moved to a secluded area of the theatre and sat down while keeping an eye on Jerry.

“Alright, what’s this all about bro? You’re really starting to get creepy.”

“I learnt something interesting about a human’s pulse yesterday, so I’m trying to experiment on it.”

“What did you learn?” Jerry asked with a frown on his face.

“None of your business.”

“Hey, hey, don’t be so angry now bro. Don’t worry, it won’t take long. I’m only trying to check your pulse.”

“If you’re only interested in checking my pulse, why are you making it so creepy then?”

This time Orion didn’t reply and only stretched out his hand. Helpless, Jerry could only comply and stretch out his hand, knowing full well Orion didn’t mean any harm to him, they had been friends for years after all.

At this point, Orion’s heart had started beating fast as he took Jerry’s hand and took in a deep breath, then stared at his hand so intensely it felt like he was about to bore a hole through it.

After looking at it closely, he could see additional shades of red color beneath the obvious blue color, but it seemed the blue color had overshadowed it so much that the red color barely seemed to exist at all.

Looking even closer, he could see the shades of blue and red colors swirling deep in Jerry’s body and intertwining like there was a thin thread connecting each of them together as one.

Subconsciously, he looked back at his own hand and found out that while his outer shade looked like a rainbow with different colors intertwining, that was only on the surface. There was no real connection between them and in this case they only existed to cover the real core inside.

Deep inside, after the myriad of colors, everything was a deep shade of black and everything remained stationary without any movement, a stark contrast to the vibrant colors swirling and intertwining in Jerry’s.

A deep frown surfaced on Orion’s face as he tried to make sense of what was happening when suddenly he saw the shade of black on his finger rushing toward Jerry’s finger.

He almost threw Jerry's hand away in shock but the thought of what would happen if they couldn't return stopped him.

With his heart beating rapidly he watched the black balls take on the exact color in Jerry's hands then return to his fingertips.

In a panic, he dropped Jerry’s hand and looked as the black little balls in his finger change colors to blue and a light shade of red, the same as the ones that returned from Jerry then connect to the other little balls that had also changed colors.

At that moment, he couldn’t make sense of anything that was happening when suddenly his hand started changing form, becoming a bit slender and his fingers making cracking sounds as they grew longer.

Witnessing this sight, he got the greatest fright of his life and hurriedly glanced at Jerry and figured out he was not looking, as he was still disoriented since Orion had thrown his hand away badly in shock earlier.

Using the opportunity, Orion hurriedly kept his right hand in his pocket and looked up at Jerry.

“Hey bro, what was that for?”

Smirking, Orion said, “A prank bro.”

“You’re getting weirder these days. Did you get another rejection?”

“Nope, I have something to do. Bye.”

Without wasting another moment, he waved his normal left hand and left at what seemed like a normal pace, but in his heart he was panicking so much he felt his heart could jump out of his chest.

‘That hand… it’s definitely Jerry’s.’

Moving out of the hall, he removed his hand from his pocket for a moment and checked it again before returning it and affirming with a rapidly beating heart.

‘I held his hand, then the black balls copied his colors like some chameleon and turned my hand into the same shape.’

‘It seems only the part that came into contact with him changed form without affecting the rest.’

He hurried his steps and rushed out of school to the bus stop, then checked his hands again.

‘It’s changing back to the normal black but it’s taking time and will be back to normal soon, but this ability… isn’t it shape-shifting? Or is it something else?"

‘I need to get home soon. Yes, take it one step at a time.’

Saying this, he got on the next bus to his hostel.