“Hey, Store-lady! Another three of these beef skewers, please.”

The woman in question only looked at me unbelieving. “Are you sure? You already had six...”

An annoyed growl escaped my throat. “Yes, I am very much sure that I want more... I am giving you a bunch of these credits for them after all, right? Oh and this time make them bloody instead of just rare.”

“Ah, uhm, certainly Miss.”

“Good girl.” I send her of with a bright, toothy smile. For some reason my gaze was constantly drawn towards the women around me. Maybe it was some sort of biology thing? I mean it kind of was the first time that I had working male parts. Now while my human side had known all about female biology, I couldn’t say that I knew all that much about male one. Just looking at some of the people around made me kind of excited. I mean not the men, after my last boyfriend I was very much over those. Yet I did find my self looking at other attractive women in an entirely new way.

Sadly in turn it seemed to be mostly men that were checking out me. In fact those that weren’t confused or weirded out by my admittedly odd features had looks on their faces I really didn’t like. One particularly lecherous specimen had been staring at me for the entire time that I had been standing at the food stall. I truly hoped he would stop soon; his eyes seemed to try their best at boring straight into me. It wasn’t that I was particularly against being naked just... there were some bad memories of my time before I became Luna.

Trying to push those thoughts out of my mind I fished out Lu’s – or well technically now my – phone. I had to say I really liked these little devices. I could pay for food, watch videos, call people half a world away and so much more. ‘Uh! Look at this I have messages! Wait... aren’t this technically my first messages ever received? I mean sure as Lu I got messages but I am neither her nor the spirit anymore... to be fair I am more Lu than Spirit. After all spirit me didn’t even have a name. Damn, this is actually kinda confusing.’ I was ripped from my thoughts by the owner’s voice calling out to me.

“Here you go. That makes a total of twenty-five credits... you can pay right?” Before I could even retort somebody else cut into our conversation.

“It’s alright Madeline. I’ll pay for the young lady.” Looking up I saw the same guy who had been staring at me for quite some time now. From up close I could see that he was actually quite handsome... handsome and dressed in a rather well fitting dark suit.

“Sure Dave. But I don’t trust these mod-fiends... could have sworn she growled at me. Hmph!” The woman gave me a clear stink eye before she rushed off to other customers.

“It’s okay, don’t mind Madeline. She is a good person... just a bit bad with new things.” I couldn’t tell if the smile he gave me was genuine, so I was obviously guarded when answering.

“I’ll just believe you for now... that still doesn’t explain what you want from me. Upfront you aren’t getting in my pants. Last guy that tried got his dick bitten off.” Looking him over I could tell that he was quite well build under the suit, certainly not enough to actually stop me but it never harmed to be prepared. He did manage to catch me off guard though when he suddenly started laughing.

“Hahahaha! Did he now? I am certain that is one hell of a story. But excuse me for my rude manners. Let’s start over, shall we?” This time I was almost certain that his smile was genuine.

“Okay?” I had to admit this man confused me a bit, I just couldn’t figure out what he wanted.

“Cool, cool... so right! Introductions! The name’s Dave Miller. Detective Dave Miller actually and to sway your fears, I am happily married and there is a daughter on the way.” He stretched out his hand in greeting, with what I assumed to be a winning smile. “Pleased to meet you, Miss?”

“Lu Myang... but I prefer to be called Luna.” Though when I grabbed his hand the smile on his face wavered for the first time.

“Myang, is it? Hmmm...” He was still grasping my hand seemingly lost in thought.

“Is everything alright, Detective?”

"Huh? Oh! Yes, certainly.” In a split second, the charming smile was back on his face, even if it seemed less sincere than it had been before. “Sorry about that, I simply wasn’t expecting your modifications to feel this real... or for your hands to be as cold... I have to admit a lesser man could have easily been fooled into thinking you a spirit from legends!” Again he laughed but I didn’t miss the way his eyes looked upon my twitching ears.

“It’s alright, Sir.” My lips now mirrored his facsimile of a smile. “People often forget just how far body modification has come these days. But it shouldn’t be that much of a surprise, after all these days it is “be-who-you-want-to-be”, no?”

“Cetainly, certainly... now I have to ask though; is it a rather recent acquisition? After all you don’t seem to be all too much into the modding-scene. I always thought that most people who were into this would start out with piercings and such. Especially ones so young that one could still think them students.”

“Oh my, Detective. You seem awfully quizzical all of a sudden. I wonder what a girl like me could have done to earn that attention. Did nobody tell you that such attention can be most...” I leaned in closely before calling upon the power of the silent dead and the cracking frost and whispering a single word. “Dangerous.”

I could feel reality bend and crack around us at my demonstration. My smile turned into a frown as I noticed something in the distance. Something or rather somebody was responding to the veil between the worlds growing thinner. If I remained here the consequences would certainly not be all that entertaining. Grabbing the synth-leather jacket I had picked up on my stroll through the city and shoving the last skewer down my gullet I went to leave. Looking over the little room it seemed that most people were still half-unconscious from fear, yet to my surprise the Detective was awake. Though he couldn’t suppress the full-body-shivers as he turned towards me.

“What... are you?” His words came out slow and drawled.

“This world is changing... I cannot say if for the better or worse. But it is changing. Look to your fairytales if you want answers. Know that I am impressed that you managed to shake of the power of the wolf’s word. Goodbye.”

As quick as my legs could carry me I dashed out and away from the store, much to the surprise of several on lookers. Even if they stared or maybe made pictures I couldn't be bothered right now. If I had felt the veil crack, then so would have certainly any other spirits in the vicinity. And I really had no desire to fight a battle directly in the city, especially not with so many people around. My pace kept increasing to get away from the potential soon to be battle ground. At some point I had jumped up a low ledge and climbed all the way up to the roofs. Only after about half an hour of constant running and jumping I was ripped out of my trance by the repeated chiming of my phone.

“Ah!” I stopped in my tracks breathing heavily. “Gods... why did I run? There is no way that those things could be here.” Half buried memories from my time as a spirit flashed in my mind. Death and teeth in spirit form. Sometimes Spirits went mad and started devouring everything in their paths. They grew and grew until they finally either punched through reality themselves or a spirit lord stepped in to banish them.

A shiver ran down my back when I recalled a time from so long ago that I had almost forgotten it. The feeling of reality shifting and cracking it was the same from when I had been young. The idea that one of those might have managed to find a host in this world... I didn’t even want to entertain it. I slowly shook my head to try and clear the anxiety out of my system. ‘Panicking serves no-one. I need to focus on the now and not the past. Smartphone, right! Let’s see who is calling me... wait, Rin? What could she...’

The second I pressed the answer button my sisters panicked voice blurted out of the speaker.

“Lu? Oh god! Luna! Is that you? Thank the gods you finally picked up! You need to help me! I... I don’t know what is going on! I can see them everywhere! They are looking at me! I tried running away! But now I see them over other people too! And the other ones are still there! Watching me! I can feel their judgment! Oh, gods... Luna... I can feel their sadness, their mourning, their contempt...”

“Rin! Stop! What are you seeing? Where are you?” ‘Shit I could literally hear the terror in her voice. I have to find her!’ Still holding the phone to my ear started to dash off in direction of our house.

“I... I don’t know. I don't... my memories are so.... spotty. And their faces... I couldn’t stand them looking at me anymore. I just ran! Gods, please Luna! You need to get me! I don’t know where I am and I lost so many things... I cannot remember our last Christmas... I can’t even remember our parents' faces.”

“Rin, listen to me! Describe to me where you are, I need something to go on; I am running home right now. Should be able to pick up your trail from there.” Only a few blocks were left to cross, once more I picked up my pace.

“Uhm, there is a bridge... and a river, lots of trash... I think I ran south?”

“Alright, I know where you mean. Imma be there in a few minutes. Stay put where you are, I am coming to get you!”

Putting the phone in my Jacket and holding it in my teeth I let go of the bindings of my human form. Making sure not to damage my newest “purchase”, my Body twisted and warped. In the blink of an eye, I had changed back to what I really was and stripped myself of the shell of flesh and lies I wore. Only an off-hand thought was spend on thinking about the rest of my clothes. The shreds fell to the ground as I sprinted towards where my sister should be.

A few minutes later I could already smell her. Her sent was grave dust, pine needles and the unmistakable acrid stench of fear. My nose scrunched up in disgust as I also smelled all the garbage that had gathered around the river bank. It barely mattered if I was in my true form at least not in this area... there wasn’t anyone around except the occasional runt of society. And even I knew nobody would pay their words any mind.

Finding Rin herself was actually easier than expected, just a little down a slope I could see a large black wolf hectically digging in the soft loam. To say she looked erratically would have been an understatement. The nose-biting stench of death and decay got stronger the closer I came. Soon enough I knew what had her so upset she was digging up a corpse, half rotten too from the smell and looks of it. I made a conscious effort to make sound as I stepped over to my sister.

“Rin.” I softly nudged her in the side with my head. “Who was she? The girl, I mean?”

“Luna....” I could hear the sorrow in her voice even through the distortion of our admittedly rather canine biology.

“She committed suicide... recently. But in her last moments she changed her mind... it was already too late then. Nobody ever found her... this world Lu... the spirits, they are trapped here. There is no connection to the ancient wheel!” Tears fell from her dark eyes as she looked at me.

“The things I did... the things I did for our father and her, that vile evil woman... I thought they loved me...” The tears now streamed down her dirt covered snout and I could feel her form tremble.

“It wasn’t love, Lu! All they did was turn me into a monster! Oh, god Luna... the things I did....” With a last spasmodic sobbing her form collapsed back into her human guise.

Rin looked so frail all of a sudden. I had always looked up to her, she had been so full of self-confidence and dry sarcasm. But now I couldn’t even see a trace of the woman that had until yesterday been burning evidence without a single flinch. Now she was simply a young woman covered from head to toe in dirt and filth. Despite the awful stench I crouched down and put my jacket around her naked body.

“Come on Rin. I will inform the police of the girl’s corpse once we are home.”

“Thank you Lu... I just... I feel so empty.” When she looked up I could see that her eyes where a dark grey now, though from time to time one could see white shadows pass through them.

“Everything will be okay. Just climb on my back and I will get us home.”

The way home was thankfully a lot less stress full than the rest of the morning had been. Thanks to a carefully woven illusion nobody would ever recall or even believe a large wolf with a dirty naked woman on her back. I too changed back into my human form as I let Rin climb down in the small garden of our house.

“You okay, Rin?”

“No.” She softly shook her head. “But I will be... someday. Let’s go inside, I stink horribly!”

“Oh, gods! Yes! Yes, you do!”

Getting a little chuckle out of her I took the spare key from its hiding place and unlocked the back door. I was just about to go inside when I heard steps approach from inside. Before my unbelieving eyes, a tall blond woman in an expensive business suit stepped out from the shadows and into our hallway. In a haughty, almost sinister voice she addressed both Rin and me.

“The Myang sisters... all naked and covered in filth. I believe we have much to speak about, don’t we Rin?”