A subtle warmth was wreathed over my skin. I breathed in deeply, welcoming the earthy scent of grass and the heady aroma of wildflowers. A gentle breeze tousled my hair.
I felt like snapping my eyes open would ruin the dream, but as the memories returned to me, I couldn't help myself. Slowly, my eyelids fluttered apart to reveal a vast, desolate plain sprawled beneath a clear sky. There was not a cloud in sight; azure stretched in every direction, unhindered by the horizon.
It was such an idyllic view that I was thrown off by how peaceful and serene everything was compared to before.
Beside me, Oliver groaned.
"I am so done with this bullshit. What the fuck?" Her frustration echoed mine as we exchanged confused looks. Where were we now?
I stood, scanning the unfamiliar landscape.
Everything looked untouched. Serene. Undisturbed. That's when it hit me: there wasn't a sign of any human influence—no roads, buildings, fences—not a scrap of civilization.
Nothing at all.
I quickly patted myself down. "Well, at least we're still alive... and we're together."
Oliver muttered. "That's the only good thing about this mess."
"It's the most important part." I offered her a lopsided grin. Trying to lighten the mood always seemed like the right call.
"Fuck... and we're still..."
"Yeah... you're still women."
Somehow.
I guess we should've expected that. I sighed internally; no magical fix for gender-swapping, then.
And if I'm going to be completely honest, my friends didn't look half-bad as girls, though I was smart enough to keep that thought to myself.
I walked to Theo's side and nudged her lightly until she woke up, yawning and looking around in surprise, as if expecting us to have found our way home by now. The disappointment etched on her face when she realized we hadn't hit me hard in the gut.
Theo looked over at Oliver, a sympathetic smile gracing her features. She whispered. "Sorry."
"For what?" Oliver stared at the petite Theo with a confused frown. "You're in the same boat as we are."
That 'we' didn't include me. That side-eye right now confirmed it.
"Don't get so snippy! It might not be that bad, at least not all the time..." Jeremy chimed in, smiling.
"You shut your damn mouth! This isn't something you should ever consider normal!"
"...Okay, jeez. Just trying to offer a different perspective."
"That's enough, both of you." I interrupted them, stepping between the arguing duo. "We're all stressed here. Let's save the blame game for later and focus on our immediate issue: figuring out where we are."
I gestured towards our surroundings. The sun shone brightly, but not uncomfortably so. In the distance, a field of wheat glowed amber under its warmth.
"So, any suggestions?"
As expected, silence fell heavy in response.
"We might as well start walking. See if we stumble upon something that might answer our questions. Or get us back home, preferably." Jeremy finally suggested. Getting back home seemed unrealistic, but then again, what did I know about anything that's happening right now?
"Sounds as good a plan as any. We can't just stand here doing nothing." I agreed, casting a sideways glance at Oliver, who wore her discontentment like a crown. She didn't say anything, while Theo simply nodded.
And thus, our march toward nowhere-in-particular began.
"It looks beautiful." Theo breathed out, eyes wide open in wonder as she beheld the rolling hills and rich vegetation.
She looked so unfairly pretty that, with the scenery ahead, she could've passed off as a clueless fairy tale princess lost in the woods.
The fact that none of this should have been possible only heightened the sense of awe.
"Jeremy... are you serious?" Oliver deadpanned.
I turned to look towards the individual in question, only to deadpan myself when I saw her cupping her breasts and squeezing them curiously, muttering a fascinated, drawn out 'ooooh' sound.
"What are you doing?" My eyebrow twitched. "Is this really the moment to fool around with your breasts?"
"What? You jealous I got these and you don't? Who'd have thought I'd be a D-cup!" Jeremy's lips stretched in a grin, smugness written on his, or rather, her face.
I blinked, once, twice, trying to wrap my head around the surrealism of this whole scenario, then decided that it'd be much better to simply not acknowledge Jeremy's antics.
I shook my head and quickened my pace, leading our quartet forward.
My main concern at that moment, in spite of Jeremy's self-erotism, was finding someone. Anyone, actually. Even something would have been fine. A sign of human settlements, or even a damn shed.
However, as minutes ticked away into hours, we found ourselves trekking through dense vegetation and sprawling plains, yet we'd encountered no signs of life—no distant voices, no distant trails of smoke, and certainly no helpful arrows pointing the way to civilization.
I tried to keep my calm because I didn't trust the current fragile peace in our group, which could easily descend into chaos if we collectively panicked.
So I kept walking, determined and focused. Until...
"Hold up, I need to use a bush."
Of all of us, naturally, Jeremy spoke first, unceremoniously.
"Dude, seriously?" I arched an eyebrow, glancing at her. "Right now?"
Oliver, with a frown, eyed her with disdain. "Can't you hold it? What if you get caught with your pants down... literally?"
"Nah, don't worry about it!" Jeremy waved a hand dismissively. "Besides, there is no one else here!"
"We don't know that." I pointed out. "What if you run into a bear or something?"
"I'm just going to take a leak." Jeremy retorted, flashing a mischievous grin. "It'll be quicker than Sebastian's last date."
Oliver stifled a chuckle.
"Hey, that was uncalled for." I protested, crossing my arms. Jeremy, though, wasn't listening and wandered off into a nearby clump of foliage.
I watched her go before turning back to the others. "Let's take a break here for a few minutes." I suggested, seating myself on a smooth rock.
Oliver grunted her acknowledgement and plopped down beside me, her long legs stretching out in front of her, ankles crossed. She brushed back a strand of midnight-black hair.
"God, this sucks." Oliver scowled, digging the heels of her palms into her eyes.
"No kidding," I sighed, pulling one knee up to my chest and wrapping an arm loosely around it.
Theo settled nearby, gracefully tucking her slender frame against a tree trunk, the sunlight dancing on her soft, golden hair. Of all of us, she seemed to have adapted best to the weird changes in her body. Good for her, honestly.
"This isn't permanent, is it?" Oliver grumbled, tearing her gaze away from the peaceful landscape. "What the hell am I going to tell my parents?"
"No idea." I admitted. "But one problem at a time, yeah?"
Oliver groaned, dragging a hand down her face. "Easy for you to say; you don't look like a freaking anime girl."
Theo chuckled softly. "It might not be that terrible, Ollie. It could be fun to experience things from a new perspective." She paused. "Plus, imagine getting paid to eat fast food and review it."
"Hah. Imagine."
Suddenly, my attention shifted to Jeremy emerging from the bush, wearing a bewildered expression. The playful bravado from earlier seemed diminished.
"Everything okay?" I asked, instantly alert.
"Yeah, I'm alright, it's just..." Jeremy's voice trailed off as she nervously glanced down at herself. "Well, I've never peed like that in my life. I don't know how to cope with it."
"The fact that you're coming back and complaining about how different you feel isn't surprising at all."
Oliver rolled her eyes.
"Have a heart, I feel... exposed..."
"As if you're shy now..." She scoffed, shaking her head. "If anything, being a woman would suit your loud personality, wouldn't it?"
Jeremy was about to reply with something equally scandalous. I cleared my throat loudly, interrupting the escalating tension. "Knock it off, Oliver. We've got bigger issues than Jeremy's urinary dysphoria."
Oliver sighed and nodded. Jeremy rolled her eyes, arms crossed.
"We've wasted enough time dilly-dallying around. We should keep moving." I concluded, motioning for everyone to rise.
The others followed, albeit somewhat reluctantly.
xXx
We continued to trudge through the endless plain, the sun starting to dip below the horizon in the distance.
No people. No houses. No cars. Nothing. I kept my cool, but it was harder and harder not to feel overwhelmed with the weight of responsibility resting solely on my shoulders; the others, after all, weren't in the right mindspace to make decisions.
At least, Jeremy didn't make a joke about us dying as virgins, and if I could bet, I'd wager Oliver knew the importance of keeping one's mouth shut.
While we marched onward, the sunset cast long shadows across the rolling terrain.
I sensed their collective unease but opted not to stoke those fears with unnecessary conversation.
The sun dipped lower.
The shadows grew longer, stretching across the land like fingers.
I wasn't sure if it was just the quiet getting to me, but I began to feel that odd, nagging sensation in the back of my mind again—the feeling that something wasn't quite right. That it had been too peaceful so far.
That feeling amplified the longer we kept going.
The air itself was suddenly denser, making it hard to breathe properly.
Strangely enough, it took all but a second to get used to it.
In fact, it even felt... nice.
Then, I heard it. A rustling. Soft, quick. Almost too quiet to catch.
"Did you hear that?" Theo asked, her voice barely a whisper.
I nodded, narrowing my eyes. "Yeah."
The rustling grew louder, closer. My pulse quickened, and I instinctively reached for a nearby rock. Something wasn't right.
"Get ready." I muttered.
Without warning, a shape darted through the tall grass. Too small. Too quick.
"Is that…?" Jeremy started, but she was interrupted by another movement—a flash of greenish skin.
It was unmistakable: there was definitely something there.
"What do you want?" I demanded, my tone harsher than I intended.
More rustling.
Then, they emerged—short, wiry creatures. Their eyes gleamed with a malicious intent that sent chills down my spine.
"Goblins?!" Oliver squeaked, fear straining her voice.
And then one of them charged.
The goblin launched itself at me, baring needle-like teeth and claws as long and sharp as razors.
The sight of the creature charging toward me triggered an immediate surge of panic.
My body tensed, heart hammering in my chest. But then, as if a switch had been flipped, the panic faded, replaced by an unnatural calmness.
I could feel the tension in my muscles melt away as my mind became focused—sharp, precise. My thoughts slowed down, all the noise in my head fading to a dull hum, leaving only one clear command: survive.
Without thinking, my hand gripped the rock I had picked up earlier. The stone felt solid, familiar. A weapon.
The goblin lunged, its claws swiping through the air. I sidestepped, fluid and swift, my legs moving unconsciously.
I swung the rock down on the goblin's head. The impact was sickening—a crunch of bone, the creature's screech dying instantly as it crumpled to the ground, unmoving. Its fragile skull was visibly crushed.
Blood flowed. Not red. Not human.
It had all happened so fast that I barely had time to process it.
One moment, the creature was threatening my life; the next, it lay motionless, its life snuffed out by my own hand.
What surprised me most wasn't the adrenaline pumping through my veins or even the unexpected rush of exhilaration; it was that the violence hadn't bothered me at all.
I stood over the fallen goblin, chest rising and falling with shallow breaths. My grip on the gore-stained rock tightened, but my hands weren't shaking.
My friends looked at me in awe, initially, then in panic. I didn't realize why until I looked down, where I saw an arrow lodged into my shoulder.
Then the searing pain washed over me.