After breakfast, I moved to the balcony for another cup of coffee. It felt good to be in my own body, and I was in no hurry to shift again.
Stepping outside with me, Karen asked, “Ready for a history lesson?”
“No, I just want to chill.”
Karen smiled. “So let’s begin. We are human, and all humans are shapeshifters.”
“Wait, I want to–”
“Don’t interrupt me.”
I was beginning to feel like I was no longer the teacher’s pet.
“IN THE TIME BEFORE TIME—how’s that for dramatic effect?”
I nodded, and she continued.
“There were three disasters, each with its own misery: a plague, asteroid impact, and flood; the plague being most devastating because it killed the adults, leaving their children to fend for themselves. Without their parents, all shapeshifting knowledge was lost, albeit for a few older ones who had already transitioned.
“As years went by, these loners searched for others like them, making skin contact with everyone they met. But encounters with non-shifters usually ended violently as these, now adult, kids had learned to kill or be killed. A new world was developing. One shapeshifters no longer fit in.
“Legends began to form around these misfits. Stories about werewolves, vampires, witches, and the like. And while these creatures did not exist. Many believed, and the sight of a shapeshifter in transition was all the proof they needed, which meant certain death for those caught in a frenzied witch hunt.
“Today, we face the same dilemma, but our enemies do not come in the night with torches. A new One-World Government is forming, and technology is their weapon. We have been able to hide in plain sight up to this point, but it’s becoming more complex, and some tribal outliers want to stop this new government from advancing any further.
“You have got to be shiten me!”
Shift is an online work of fiction.
This is the first draft of my manuscript Shift – Don’t judge a book by its cover. I am writing it online in sections as I go. So feel free to comment, good or bad. If you see mistakes, point them out.
The story centers around shapeshifting.
I’m currently working on chapter nine.
Timothy French 