Shifter Universe # 2: Darkness

6. Little One

ATHELYNA

The pounding in her head grew heavy, forcing her to reach up gently, hand pressed against her temple. With a touch to the soft grass, she attempted to rise, but it wasn't until she blinked repeatedly that her predicament truly dawned.

She was blind. The daggers of pain persisted behind her eyes, a constant reminder of her loss.

Her deepest desire had been to see their world, but that was a dream shattered now. He had stolen that from her, and for what? She had surrendered her sight for... nothing. In fact, she felt worse than before.

Yes, worse. Blood trickled from her wrists, her face, even her eyes, the pain throbbing as if her flesh had been torn open.

He hadn't granted her wish; he had abandoned her, blind and forsaken. Left her to perish.

Tears welled in her sightless gaze, her breath catching in her throat.

Stretching both hands out beside her, she sought some anchor in the emptiness around her. Athelyna couldn't decide if the void was a blessing or a curse. Exhausted, she sank back onto the ground and sighed.

Left to herself, returning to her village was no longer an option. She had no idea how to get back; the evil man had moved her from his cave. And even if she could find her way, she knew they wouldn't accept her after what had happened.

She felt tainted; it churned within her, making her sick to her stomach. The darkness had seeped into her willingly—no, she had invited it in. Nausea surged, and she longed to tear it from her insides.

Clawing at her stomach, Athelyna felt the tips of her fingers meet with sharp, pointed claws. Apparently, he had altered her body.

Did this make her a shifter? If so, she was a rather inept one. Shouldn't she, even without sight, possess instincts to discern her surroundings? Sense the air? Or were those merely fanciful tales?

Why had she desired this? She hadn't a clue how to navigate the world as a shifter. She had ventured into it blindly and now found herself adrift, with nowhere to turn.

She might as well have stayed a healer in the forest. A solitary, blind shifter couldn't survive in this world; she couldn't even locate the villages.

Athelyna rested her palms against the cool grass and took a slow breath. It could be morning or night; she couldn't discern. Perhaps she sat in shade, or perhaps she teetered on a perilous cliff.

Though... as a shifter, the only truly perilous areas were those with healeroidoidoids... and those could be anywhere now.

Raising her arms, she pressed her hands against her cheeks. Carefully, she ran her claws over her flesh, feeling and exploring. Her face bore no scars, only smooth skin.

She did have pointed ears and perhaps markings; touch alone couldn't reveal for certain.

Despite the pain in her wrists and elsewhere, there were no wounds... which did nothing to explain why she felt blood trickling and staining her skin.

Athelyna continued to rub her arms to rid herself of the imagined blood. She wanted to shed her own skin. This was... she was something else. No longer pure or a healer; her powers had abandoned her.

Was she a full shifter? Or was she a monster like the creature that had taken her sight? Her bottom lip began to quiver, and tears stung her eyes once more.

She dropped her left hand to her side and suddenly felt something soft beneath her fingertips. Silk. She slid her hand further until she realized it was her normal clothes. Oh. Oh! She was still wearing her healer attire!