The first memories I have are of the warmth of the sun on my face and the sound of lapping water all around me as I lay on what my body perceives to be a shore of some sort. The softness of the ground below me seems to envelope me and yet supports me at the same time. I wonder what has happened that I should wake to find myself in this place. Well not really wake, for I haven’t even opened my eyes as yet.

As I try to force my eyelids apart it seems that I have to use all the strength I can muster just to attempt it. The smallest crease forms and my eyelids part just the slightest and a blinding light enters my skull through the opening. My head immediately pounds as if a hammer were inside my skull beating on the soft tissue of my brain to the rhythm of the surf.

I work through the pain and open my eyes the smallest amount more. What I see next confuses and astounds me and yet seems perfectly normal too. My skin is changing- morphing if you will- from what appears to be a hard fishlike scale to a soft pinkish brown skin. I look down at my legs that are still submerged in the water, salt water I assume from the smell of it, and I see that this transformation is not yet complete. My upper body from the waste up where my skin is not touching the water is definitely the skin of a man. But from the waist down I appear to be a sea creature of some sort with fishlike scales as hard as metal that radiate a rainbow of colors as the sun strikes each one individually.

I slowly force my muscles to work. To my credit I did not yell or scream or even make a sound from the searing pain I felt that was going through every fiber of my body. The slow methodic crawl the rest of the way out of the water took what seemed like a couple of dhals (movement of the sun across a sundial measured in strokes equal to 100 movements or mhons per dhal) but I know that it was only a couple of heartbeats or shonds.

At this point I have to admit the curiosity was getting the better of me, so I looked down to observe this wonder that my body was going through. The scales for lack of better words shimmer and glowed with a thousand colors from the bluest blues to the greenest greens then proceed through the colors of the rainbow till they finally set on the pinkish brown that my arms had changed in to. The thing that I notice is even though it appears that this transformation expended a tremendous amount of color an energy I do not feel weakened from it and when I touch the transformed skin no heat is given off.

Now that my body is out of the water, I roll over onto my back an experience yet another sensation. There is something stabbing me in the back and it is cold and hot at the same time. I reach for my back an realize that there is a wide thick leather strap running diagonally from my upper left shoulder across my chest an down towards my right hip. In the center of my chest there is for lack of better words a buckle, but a buckle most unusual there is not a way to open or close it. It is a solid piece of the strangest metal with its color shifting as the sun hits it from silver to gold then to brass then to the blackest ash. It is as if it is trying to settle on a color but has not the (and I use this term loosely as well) ability to make up its mind what it wants to do.

On the face of the buckle there appears to be a crest of some sort with a jewel about half the size of my closed fist in its center. The crest is divided into five separate sections that form a pentagon. The upper left quadrant has a magnificent bird with its talons, beak and wings all outstretched as if it was about to catch its prey from a lake or field. The upper right quadrant has a wolf silhouette in what appears to be a howling at the full moon on a cold winter’s night. The lower left area has what can only be described as a sea creature manlike in appearance but with large bulging eyes, webbed feet and hands with no hair and scales completely covering it from head to feet. The bottom right area has a very large primate, a gorilla perhaps standing on its hind legs arms outstretched mouth open with teeth barred in what can only be assumed as a roar. The fifth and final area is the center bottom. There we find the figure of a man with a strap across his shoulder and a buckle on his chest standing with his arms holding an item approximately three feet in length in a defensive position.

The last image jars me back to the sensation in my back. I reach over my left shoulder and grasp what can only be a metal rod not completely round, oval in shape an as thick as my wrist in diameter. I pull it over my shoulder and it makes a clicking noise as if there was some type of release mechanism.

The rod it appears is the same metal as the buckle on my chest. It also is undergoing a transformation of color just as the buckle is. But one thing is different. The rod is vibrating and giving off warmth. It almost feels as if it is lengthening or morphing into something else.

As I watch disbelieving what my eyes see; it changes. It morphs first into a rudimentary sword, then into a blunt axe, then a long 2 handed hammer and then continues to change into a spear then finally settles into a staff that appears to be the same length as my body from my shoulder to my feet.

The color I notice has transformed with each change. From the glinting silver of a sword, to the dark black of an axe, then the brass color of a hammer, to the sky blue of a spear to the dark brown of a staff. Not only has its color changed its appearance did as well. No longer was there the solid hard piece of metal, but in its place were the lines and twists of what looked like tree bark with knots and curves.

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I shake my head in disbelief thinking that my mind was playing tricks on me or that I was either hit really hard on the head or was under the influence of some mind altering food or drink.

But I have to rule that out. The shaking of my head confirmed two things. I was not hit in the head because when I shook it I felt no pain and there was no dizzy or fuzzy feeling or any effect that would suggest I was under some influence.

At this point I decided that the best thing to do was to look about and see what I could find. As I peered up and down the shore in the distance I could make out some buildings.

That seems as good a place to go as any so I decided to start there.

There was only one problem.

I was NAKED.

I just realized that when I looked at my body before and saw the transformation there was no clothes on the fishlike lower half of me.

Now this is a problem. Here I am, what appears to be a wet and disheveled person with nothing on but a leather strap with a buckle and now a walking staff, who needs to enter that area up the shore where I probably will encounter at the least someone and possible someone of the opposite gender.

I can see it now. I show up naked the authorities are called and I am detained for public nudity.

I must rectify this… but how.

Well no time like the present.

As I stand to my feet I feel the muscles in my legs stiffen and stretch into place. It seems that the sea creature legs use different muscles and this human form had to realign them to fit its use.

Now that I am on two legs and walking my lungs begin to stretch as well taking in vast quantities of air to fill the blood that is circulating through my body. I feel revitalized and somewhat euphoric.

As I leave the sand and enter the brush line I notice how dense the growth is. It is as if it has been ages since anyone has visited this part of the shoreline and walk Emong the trees. I quickly find the smallest hint of a trail- probably a game trail- and proceed to follow it up the shore towards the buildings.

As I get closer I notice that the windows in the building closest to me are partially broken out.

I stop to listen. And I hear not a sound. No voices of any kind.

I proceed forward, walking at a guarded pace to the edge of the trees. The yard surrounding the building is overgrown. It appears that no one has been in this building in some time.

I mentally measure the distance from the tree line to the building. It appears to be no more than thirty paces. I look around in all directions and decide why not and make a run for it.

I get to the building without a problem. It is a two story rectangle building with smooth stone finish. The door is of heavy wooden make an the upper windows are of a four glass pane design. The lower floor has no windows on this side so therefore I do the most obvious thing I try the door latch.

It creaks and moans so it seems this latch is discolored and rusty and has not been used in some time. I shake the handle and nothing happens. I then shake the handle and push on the door with the same result. My mind then comes to the obvious conclusion. Use your shoulder idiot!!

So I shake the handle an put all my weight into the door using my shoulder an bang the door opens and I almost trip an fall flat on my face.

Inside at last I look about and decide I am more of a idiot than I really would like to admit. Approximately thirty percent of what I presumed was the rear wall was missing an open to the outside.

Mental note- WALK AROUND THE BUILDING – next time and check to see if there are any other entrances.

As I look around I can’t help but to notice the layer of dust and dirt on everything. It has indeed been some time since this building was used. I appear to have entered through the rear of the building into a storage area of sorts to my right was what appears to be a food preparation area and to my left a dry goods room.

At this point my stomach grumbled. Well no time like the present I opened the dry goods area and was severely disappointed. The shelves were empty, not a scrap of any food of any kind and the dust layer here was thicker than the entrance I had came in.

I proceeded to go to the food prep area and found nothing there to eat as well.

I looked around and in the front right corner there was a staircase to the second floor. Well, what was left of a staircase. Half the steps were rotted out and the other half had seen their better days.

I cautiously climbed the steps only loosing my balance one time but was able to catch myself before I fell to the lower floor.

The second floor looked more promising. There was a long hallway with doors opening to either side with the doors still closed. This is a good sign since the closed doors mean no stray animals have probably entered and destroyed the contents.

Opening the first door I found a child’s room. There was a small bed with a sitting bench and table. The fabric was deteriorated but I could tell it was probably a little girl’s room from the general look of things.

The second door revealed another child size bed but in 1 corner was a toy chest. Defiantly a boys room this one.

Two other doors opened into small cupboards used to store linens but the last door was the one I had been looking for.

Inside it was a large bed frame with a large corner cabinet used to store clothing.

I opened the cabinet and found what appeared to be both male and female garments.

The clothes were not the best of quality with some small moth holes here an there but by far it was better than what I had – which was nothing.

I held up several items against my body to get a approximate sizing and found that the former owner was close enough in size that I would not appear to have outgrown or under grown the garments.

Fortune did not smile upon me. There was no salvageable footwear to be found. But a pair of pants, shirt and coat was there for the taking. I proceeded to dress and decided I had no idea where I was and what the season of the year was so I had also better try to provision myself with a blanket and any other items I might need to travel. There was two other building still to be inspected so I decided to proceed and check them as well to see what items I could possibly use might be there.

I left the building I was in, and after an exhaustive search came up with a fair bedroll and travel pack and some rudimentary tools and items that might be needed.

At one time this property had a small road that had been the main access to what I assume was a village or town running in front of it. So I did what anyone would do. I started walking. I had a fifty – fifty chance to find a town so I went left. Boy was that a mistake.