The Marked People

Shades

Three weeks. It takes three weeks for Gwydo to peel my skin back and rearrange me. Most people would think that having my skin lined with synthetic markings and forcing my body to suddenly grow a tail complete with feathers as well as gliding skins beneath my arms would be the most painful thing to happen to me.

How wrong they are.

It seems my earlier experience with experiments has given me a certain kind of tolerance. Gwydo's 'operations' still leave my blood writhing in my veins while my voice is hoarse from screaming but while my body feels like it's slowly burning away, my mind seems to retreat back. Phoenix says that my earlier transformation into a hybrid is the sole reason I can survive this transformation but it's also given me something to rate my pain against, and so far Gwydo hasn't come close to the kind of pain I once felt.

Phoenix's blood may have altered me but Gwydo takes it to a new level. My skin burns for the first week as it tries to keep up with Gwydo's assault on my body as he applies new synthetic nerves into my skin that will attach themselves to my markings. My bones shriek as my body goes into overdrive while it begins to grow bones for my tail. Personally the most disconcerting thing I've found so far is the fact that I now have bright blue and green feathers as a part of my body. It makes me wonder if the Marked people share some aspects of DNA similar to the parrots we use to hunt in the forest.

These kind of hazy thoughts have become common for me, mainly because I'm pumped full of pain killers that put Morphine to shame. The painkillers work well, when they're in my system. Unfortunately it seems my increased metabolism that comes with the territory of being a hybrid means they run out after twenty minutes or so.

The only joy I get from the pain is that I can still feel it. As far as I know, that means I'm not dead.

Whenever my head is clear I admit -though it is grudgingly – that I'm impressed with Gwydo. The idea of remaking someone seems impossible to me and yet here he is, doing it within a month. Phoenix had been surprised at the time, he thought it would take at least four.  Seeing this kind of technology that the Marked people possess has me doubting any chance I have of ever winning against them.

"As far as I know these marks should tune into your emotions," Gwydo says while running his finger down my arm as he inspects the markings he implanted into my skin. At the moment they're a deep blue colour, the default colour setting for markings to be when ones emotions are fairly steady.

"Why? Wouldn't it be better if others didn't know how I was feeling?" I ask while wincing slightly as he hits a nerve that hasn't quite been accepted into my body yet.

Gwydo frowns, though not because I asked a question. Instead he's frowning at the unruly nerve and says, "This one has been playing up since I first applied them. I might have to strip it off and reattach it, the connection might be faulty."

Over the weeks we've spent together Gwydo has begun to at least tolerate me asking him questions, mainly because he likes knowing so much more than I do.

Continuing his observations he finally  answers my question, "Because if your marking were always neutral people would begin to suspect something. I know it's common for humans to hide their emotions from each other but that is not the case for my kind. We are open with our emotions, people would immediately spot that you're not really one of us."

"Of course," Gwydo winks "I am giving you the privilege of being able to lie, it wouldn't do for you to be exposed because you can't lie about your origins."

He gives a longing sigh "I've spent years trying to make my own markings impervious to lies but unfortunately I have no aristocratic blood in me. Perhaps Phoenix would be willing to let me observe his markings to see if I can find the reason why he can lie."