Gift of Bones ( One of my shorter book ideas)

[ChickenPlague he/him]

I was asking about other bodies. I think the real one does heal.

[bobsaveg he/him]

Yes the real one does heal

but also if you change out too many bones from another body it becomes difficult to fully copy their body.

[bobsaveg he/him]

Alllllllllllllllllllllllllllll Right so I wrote some more over the holidays and here it is

 

 

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The First few days after the fall had not been so bad. Wren spent most of the days sleeping only leaving his hut to gather wood for the fire. Then his food ran out. Gathering food for Wren was normally not too bad, but with a broken leg begging became his only option. Having a broken leg won him some sympathy from most people luckily though so he made it by at first, but then they began to get used to the sight of him and their kindness faded. He was now approaching his third week and his leg still throbbed dully now and then and it really hurt to walk on it, something Wren was forced to do occasionally. Though with the help of the makeshift crutch and the leg splint he had made it was not to bad and he was able to hobble around.

It was nearing the end of his fourth week and Wren hadn't eaten anything in two days. He could barely find the motivation to move around or gather wood for the fire, he just felt so tired. He took a nearly an hour to crawl his way to his begging spot near the main street, and sit with his hands open on his knees head bowed tiredly. He sat there for hours feeling tired and cold despite the sun's rays on his head and chest. Then he heard the voices.

"Father look at him can't we just give him something?" A young feminine vice asked quietly.

"The Greatest watches over these types dear if it is his time to be brought back then so be it." a much older stern voice replied.

"Are we not instruments in the Greatest's hands though Father can't we watch over this one?" the girl asked again more fervently.

"Yes, But we watch for something else and are a different type of instrument, ours is not the role of caring." the girl's father answered his voice growing distant "Come girl".

"Yes father," the girl replied. her voice still near.

Wren felt something warm touch his hand. He opened his eyes to the sight of a loaf of bread in his hands.

"Take this also and get well young one." the girl whispered her head now bending down over him as she pressed a coin under the bread and into his hand.

Wren could feel a tear slide from each eye and make their way down his grimy face as he lifted his head up with effort to see the face of his savior. His eyes locked onto hers and he smiled lips parting beginning to express his gratitude, Wren froze and he took in the girl's whole face. He knew that face, he had worn that face. A face looking back at him in the mirror with Black hair and light skin, freckles splashed about the nose and cheeks, only the eyes were new. The girl from the roof top with the crossbow. A blue robe, one that had seen his true face.

Wren quickly bowed his head again wiping at the tears as an excuse for the motion. The girl looked at him a moment longer then touched her fingers to his forehead and walked away. Wren sighed in relief as he listened to her footstep retreating. Then they stopped. Wren looked up in alarm, and that was him fatal mistake. The girl had turned to look back at him a puzzled look on her face. When she saw his face again from a distance Wren knew that the memory of their last meeting was making its way through her brain. He tried to muster the strength to run, but could hardly get his legs to move. He stopped his futile efforts and looked at the girl again. She was standing there the realization of who he on her face. She took a step forward, then a step back. She then turned and walked away stopping after a few steps then looked back at him meeting his eyes. Wren saw her hang her head as she turned away and ran after he father catching up to him nearly a hundred paces away. wren watched as the two continued walking until they left his sight. Long after they had gone from view Wren sat staring after them. He then looked down at the bread in his hands and took a bite.


Wren couldn't believe the wealth he now possessed. Arrayed in front of him was a large sac of rice as well as several smaller bags of different beans and a pot of flour. The girl from the market had given him an actual silver coin with the bread. Several hours after eating the bread Wren had felt strong enough to go buy the supplies he now had before him in what was becoming his permanent hideout. Wren wanted badly to feast, but he remembered the food he had stolen when he had broken his leg and it had not lasted as long as he had thought. He knew that he needed to make these supplies last. He also thought that today was an exception due to his needing to restore his strength. A long overdue smile spread across his face and he began scooping rice and beans into the water that had just started to boil.

When pointedly tried not to think about what had happened in the market earlier as he ate. Despite his efforts the girls actions kept popping into his mind, he could replay the look on her face as she realized who he was. "Why? Why had she not raised the cry of alarm?" Wren pondered. Thinking of her made him put down his clay bowl and unravel a loop of the steel silk that he kept wrapped around his waist. He wanted to hold the crossbow again but it was still at his other hideout and he had not been able to make it back yet. Sadly his mirror was there also. Holding the cord by the end that was still stained by his blood Wren began to relive the moments during and after the fall. The images and feelings started giving him chills so he opened his eyes and concentrated on the cord again. So far it had only brought him a whole heap of trouble. He glanced back over his supplies, "I can't let myself get weak again," he thought. "I need more supplies if I'm going to be able to heal. I need money,". It was in that moment that Wren realized what a stupid idiot he was. " I could sell this cord, steel silk is very expensive and has lots of uses," Wren thought. If he had thought of selling the cord months ago he wouldn't have a broken leg and would be able to spend the money on more important things then food. If his luck held though he would make enough off the cord to get supplies to last until his leg healed.

Wren picked his bowl of rice and beans up and continued to eat while he thought of all the places that might buy steel silk. He concluded that tomorrow he would try tracking down some more information on it and how much it normally sold for. The last thing he could afford was to get cheated, and if he picked the wrong merchant he might just get beaten and robbed. He mulled these thoughts over in his head as he ate and before long he was scraping at and empty bowl. After pouring water in the bowl and swishing it around then drinking to get the last of the food left in it Wren set the bowl aside. The night rarely got very cold in the city, but Wren could still feel a chill in the air as the wind blew though the many holes in his hut. He missed his hideout by the river, the easy access to vast amounts of mud and clay had provided him with better materials to build his shelter there. Here in the markets he relied on old crates and planks of wood with leaves stuffed in the gaps. the wind made his fire flicker, making him reach over and stoke it with more wood. the flames licked hungrily at the newly added wood and Wren sympathized with them. His constant hunger was something he had lived with for a long time now. Sitting there watching the flames flicker and dance Wren smiled as he felt the heat from the fire's light dying out his eyes while warming his face. He love fire, something about watching it always made Wren feel better, warm, and not just on the outside, but an inner warmth that burned along with the flames.

After having sat and stared at the fames for the better part of an hour Wren started as he felt a sharp pain from his broken leg. Now fully alert to his bodies functions Wren began probing at the sensation with his mind. His leg had fallen asleep from sitting in one position too long, but that was not the whole of it. He could feel how sluggish and weak the muscles in his broken leg had become and the ones wrapped around the broken bone were starting to loosen again. Wren started the now familiar procces of changing our all the mucles in his bad leg for those in his goo leg and some from his arms. He had had to do this several time since the break. the First time Wren had not known what was wrong, only that his body kept sending him signals that something was not right. It had taken him days to figure it out and even then he had only gotten it because the muscles he had wrapped unnaturally around the break like and bandage had grown weak and loosened. He called it lazy muscle issues, and figured his flesh was getting weak from sitting still for too long and not moving. Like a door that if never opens rusts shut and is more difficult to move when you do need it open. the Process of swapping out the muscles was a long one and tiring for Wren. I was not a natural process for his body and he had to oversee each placement of a muscle to get it to attach right. By the time he finish He was exhausted and ready to sleep. After Feeding his friend a final bit of wood he slipped into sleep with is face bathed in flickering light.

[Stormgate he/him]

I don't have much backstory, so it doesn't make much sense, but I think it's good.

[bobsaveg he/him]

So for those new to this thread  who don't want to read back through everything in order to piece together the story this is the whole story so far along with its magic system

 

 

 

 

 

Gift of bones magic system

 

 

Rules

1. Shifters can only die in their real body          
2. Shifters can only age and grow in their real body     
3. Shifters can only reproduce in their own body
4. A Shifter can manipulate any part of their body except the bones
5. Shifters cannot perfectly copy someone else unless that person is dead and they have their bones
6.  shifters can build then cover frames with their flesh to control. These can be made from metal wood whatever and are only limited in size by  the amount of flesh need to operate them.
7. Using their blood shifters can create a room or "closet" that they keep their "frames" in. These frames can be accessed by the shifters powers from anywhere allowing them to change into any of their forms.
8.  No other shifter can access another's closet unless they have absorbed some of the others blood.
9. There is a time delay when changing between forms.
10. This time delay does not exist if changing to or from their original body.
11. Shifters can't get sick unless they want to and have near perfect memories.
12. Their real bodies do not scar, all harm inflicted on the flesh is healed. Bones can be broken and limbs lost though.

Gift Of Bones.docx

GiftOfBones.docx (2).pdf

[bobsaveg he/him]

I don't have much backstory, so it doesn't make much sense, but I think it's good.

 so If you look at the above post I moved the whole story so far so you could get it easy if you have not been following this thread. thanks for reading