Chapter 1: HIstorical Accuracy

You wouldn’t think museums would be a tricky place to get a job. But much to Ewe’s surprise there was a lot to go through to get anything more than a volunteer position. However, thanks to a stroke of good luck, her archaeology professor had an in with one of the local museums for extra credit. So, on a Saturday morning, truly the worst time to be awake, she was there in some worn jeans, a tee shirt with a cartoon sheep on it and a lanyard with an ID badge.

“Let’s do this,” she said, fighting back a yawn. She moved some fluff from out in front of her eyes and walked towards the heavy old doors to the building. It was about as heavy as you’d expect from a door made of wood, metal and glass. Just enough that you had to put in a bit of effort to open the doors and they wouldn’t just casually open. The lobby had ambient classical music coming from somewhere, probably an office speaker system from the employee only areas.

There was one other person there now, an older hyena woman sitting at the desk. From where Ewe was standing, she could see the standard grandma clothing, a cardigan, scarf and a smile that just screamed she would in fact know if you hadn’t eaten yet. And judging from how her ears perked up and her eyes glowed the standard Grandma Sense Red.

“Good morning, dear!” She said, her voice hoarse from talking from across the room. Ewe could tell she was reaching for something under the desk. The sound of a tin lid opening let the sheep know it was too late to escape a muffin or biscuit. “Are you here for a visit?”

“No, no I’m here to see-” and there was a chocolate muffin in front of the old woman. Her hands had moved too fast to see where she got it, the fancy napkin, and a cup of apple juice from. “-I’m here to see the head curator?”

“Oh of course dearie! The hyena woman said, grinning as she motioned Ewe closer. There was no escape, the student was trapped. “But have you eaten? You look positively starved!”

“I, uh, I did eat.’ the student said, a feeling in her gut reminding her that a cup of coffee and half a pizza slice was not a proper meal. “So, thank you but-” She was cut off with another muffin appearing out of nowhere, there was no sign the kindly hyena had even reopened the tin she had stored somewhere. “I’m not getting out of eating these, aren’t I?”

“They’re chocolate and cinnamon dearie,” the woman said, Ewe now able to see her name was Margaret. The name tag was old and weathered, easily had gone unreplaced for several years. “You’re early, so eat, eat!”

Ewe sighed, the kind smile making her feel guilty at just the idea of denying this kindly woman’s baking. So, she took the muffins, even the third one that had mysteriously appeared and started to eat. Despite possibly being in the tin for over an hour, they were all fresh and warm. The first one disappeared before Ewe had realized she had finished it. The chocolate and cinnamon combining on her tongue and getting her to immediately take a drink of the apple juice. The amber juice moved down easily and sent a jolt of energy through the student.

The remaining muffins disappeared quickly, Margaret keeping up a smile the entire time before a phone alarm went off from Ewe’s pocket. She took it out as a fourth muffin appeared in the interim, and it was the five-minute warning for her meeting.

“A bag for the road dear?” the woman said, the muffin now mysteriously in a little lunch bag with Ewe’s name on it. She would’ve questioned it, but she was wearing a name tag. “Just go in the door beside me and you’ll see the office. The curator’s a lovely woman.”

“Thank you and thank you for the muffins.” Ewe said, trying to move away before a dozen muffins were put in the bag. She already could tell the woman had managed to sneak in another two baked delicacies in the half second before she was holding it. Margaret waved as she walked down the surprisingly barren hallways towards the more office-like part of the building. There weren’t many people in the office, probably because of how early it was, so Ewe had the unfortunate task of trying to find the right office.

With name plates it at least made things a little easier, but admittedly the student was surprised at how many rooms there were. Some rooms were offices, the open ones being forgettable aside from people’s own additions like pictures or figures. There was one break and meal room with a couch, fridge, drink machine and table. Not the worst type of place to rest but it felt barren. And dozens, dozens of rooms full of art exhibits not currently on display. What did get Ewe about the last room was the lack of doors or visible security around everything. The closest she could see was a broken security camera and a display case.

“Guess the main storage is full…” she muttered, moving some wool out from in front of her eyes. Bangs were always a problem when she wanted a clear look at things. “I'll ask about it… later?”

With a better look at the display case, she noticed two things, the first that it was completely open, and the second was what was inside it. A hand carved wooden necklace, it was made of deep stained black oak, with thick aged, intertwined thread connecting each ring, whether it was from the absurdly lax security, curiosity, or something else, Ewe stepped forward. There was nothing stopping her, whatever this necklace was just calling towards her and-

“Can I help you?” A voice said, snapping the student out of whatever was making her focus on that artifact. It was someone new, presumably the director of the museum. A tall older wolf, or huskie, looking man. A tired suit that had seen both too many repairs and too much sunlight did seem to imply he was who Ewe thought she was. “Miss… oh, you would be Ewe, correct?”

The sudden conversation starter got Ewe’s hands behind her back like she was in a meeting. There was an awkward pause as she looked at who she assumed was the head curator, especially since she shouldn’t be in this room without permission.

“Well, this shows you do have an enthusiasm for history,” the curator chuckled, probably since nothing was out of place. “This is our reconciliation section, though you’ll learn more about that side of things here as we go along. Come now, let’s begin, Miss Ewe-nthusiasm.”

‘Does he laugh at his own jokes?’ Ewe thought, still feeling an odd attachment to this part of the employee only section. Something about the section kept her mind occupied, maybe it was the thought of a museum returning cultural items, maybe it was the fact that she was going to be doing archival work.

“So... for this position, I think I know what I’ll be doing.” she started, trying to avoid any chance at letting the man make more puns. “Filing and organizing things as needed?”

“Partially,” the man said, visibly looking like he was trying to come up with another pun. “Along that you will be working in making sure displays are in order, it never happens, but better to be safe than sorry.” They kept walking, eventually coming to an office that was somehow lavish and so plain it hurt at the same time. A fancy mahogany desk, a shining new computer monitor and a fancy chair.

And almost nothing else, not even an office fern to add some life to the room. But he invited her into the office and left the door open.

“Really, we just need to sign a few papers and then you’re all ready to begin working here.” he chuckled, looking at the college student with a smile. “Now then, I suppose I should introduce myself. Archibald, the curator of curios!”

If there was supposed to be fanfare, it fell flat and missed its cue. Leaving Ewe sitting there sandbagging the announcement before he gave a cough, as if to signal something. With a lot of chagrin in her mind, Ewe gave a small clap to applaud him.

“And with that...” he started, going over in more detail what her duties were and how the shift worked. She’d arrive, clock in, take her breaks when needed and clock out. The dress code was casual, probably because walking around in fancy clothes for hours would be the least enjoyable thing to do at a job. Even as a volunteer she’d have some help with making sure she had shoes that didn’t hurt to walk in, with Archibald joking about how he couldn’t stand it.

But the small room she had entered on her first day kept calling her, even though she knew she had no work to do in there. However, curiosity got to her after a few weeks. She was alone, everyone else was busy or occupied and she just took her chance to look around the storage area. The wooden necklace was still there, still leaving an impression on her from the short glance when she started work.

It took some time to find anything on it, but it was from a culture that practiced spiritual reincarnation. Unfortunately, due to the ongoing horrors of imperial colonialism, most of the tribe’s culture was lost. With a few surviving descendants showing up from time to time, which is why preserving the artifacts and anything they could find about the indigenous group was so important.

So, Ewe kept researching, learning and admiring the amulet. There was this feeling like she was supposed to be near it. To watch over it, and the thought had crossed her mind, to even wear it.

That last thought was becoming more prominent in her mind, with each day the urge to put it on when no one was looking. Just to find out if that would cause anything to happen. She had a feeling it wouldn’t, but the curiosity was becoming unbearable. Even making her lose sleep at night.

The room was empty, everything had been returned to its rightful place, aside from the amulet. She was the only one in the back room, alone and unsupervised. The world was her oyster, so now it was time to crack the shell and take the pearl. The glass case was opened, and the amulet was ever so carefully, gingerly and deliberately lifted above the volunteer’s head.

“It's... beautiful.” she mumbled, trying to keep an ear out for if anyone was going to ruin this little moment. The patterns on it felt familiar, maybe she had seen them when she was much younger? Or somewhere else, it was nostalgic, nonetheless.

“Claim it.” something said, coming from everywhere and nowhere at the same time. “Claim this power.”

Ewe looked around, half expecting her boss to be in the doorway as some sort of prank. But no, no one was there, nothing was around her, and she was alone with the amulet. Completely alone, but there was something making her feel like something was with her.

“Claim it!” the voice said again, causing Ewe to look around again, not even realizing she was moving the amulet towards her head. “Claim this power!”

You are reading story HIstorical Accuracy at novel35.com

There was no resistance, no hesitation once she realized what her arms were doing. Only the sound of ripping clothing was audible, and from the sudden draft hitting her body, Ewe knew that if she looked down, she’d find out what just tore. Once it was around her neck, there were more tearing sounds, the jeans that were snug around her hips and legs were starting to burst at the seams. Her shirt was starting to rip too as her muscles visibly started swelling. Normally this would get someone to panic, but maybe not entirely aware of her own actions, Ewe looked at her arms. They went from scrawny and more academically inclined muscle definition to so defined it looked like she could win an arm-wrestling competition.

There wasn’t time to look at any of her other features, however, she just had to go on the intuition that her pants were wrecked. As a flash of violet light emanated from the amulet cushioned on her shirt.

“What in the god damn?” was all Ewe could say, not being able to discern where she was. She had moved, that was for certain. Wind was blowing, creating a sharp whistle like it was moving between windows. But she couldn’t feel it, nothing, not even the touch of air on her skin or the clothes she was wearing. It was like she was between reality and dreams.

“Claim it,” the voice said one more time, once again coming from everywhere at once. “Claim the power and your rightful place.”

‘What the fuck is even going on...’ the volunteer thought, still baffled at the entire situation. Her hands reached out, trying to find anything in the infinite void of space to grab onto or give any grounding to the situation. It took a minute, the sheep woman trying desperately to feel anything before her body contacted something.

The ground, or at least, a surface that felt like a floor. Was she still inside the museum, if so, this was not a good prank. She was touching something cold, tile or stone maybe. But it was an actual grounded surface she could walk on. The space started to dissipate, leaving her once again not knowing what was going on or even where she was.

But the amulet was gone, not in her hands, not around her neck, not anywhere she could see or feel. Her eyes were heavy, or she was still just looking at the floor. It took a second for her to get her bearings, but slowly she managed to move her hands. Pushing herself up slowly, deliberately, but easier than she had expected.

A soft white surface greeted her eyes, leaving her guessing that it was some kind of marble tile that she was on. If anything, this just confused her more since if she had fallen, it would’ve hurt her. But no, she felt... fantastic. There was another pulse of violet light coming from her chest, this time however she had no clue as to the source. With the amulet missing she just had to try and guess what was going on.

“You’ve awoken,” a voice said, getting Ewe to look up and around for the owner. It seemed familiar, but not something she could place immediately. “It seems you were chosen after all.”

“Chosen... for...” Ewe started, her body feeling heavier as she slowly rose to her feet. Something wasn’t clicking, and it bugged her more than the whole being transported elsewhere situation. “Yeah... chosen for... what?”

“Oh, my dear, do you not remember?” the voice said, Ewe now looking around and finding a shorter woman in front of her. She giggled as the volunteer looked down at her. “Well, that would make sense, you’re new.”

Ewe shook her head, it was still ringing and frankly, she was having trouble collecting her thoughts. Did she have a concussion? Or did she fantasize so hard that she spaced out and forgot she fell asleep at home. Everything seemed too small, and as she cleared her eyes of her wool, she finally got a look as to why.

She wasn’t short to begin with, but now? Now she could tell that she was taller than she should be. The Hyena woman in front of her shouldn’t have looked like she was short either. That and the visible muscles leaving her tee and jeans in tatters made it clear.

“Amaranth,” the woman said, chuckling as she let Ewe get a better look at her. Soft green robes and what appeared to be a similar talisman around her neck. So similar that Ewe could’ve easily mistaken it for the exact same one. Even though Ewe really should be panicking right now, Amaranth was calming to be around. If only for the possibility of an explanation. “And your name, Ewe. If the goddess is not mistaken?”

“The... goddess?” Ewe mumbled, shaking her head, everything felt strange. “But... that is my name.” She looked at Amaranth, who was still giving her a calm smile. The green robes moved in what seemed to be an intangible breeze as the other woman took careful, deliberate steps around the volunteer. “Where am I?”

“Everywhere and nowhere,” the hyena chuckled. “Past, present and future, unless you mean geographically of course.” The deadpan stare she got in response got a cackle out of the woman. “Yes well, that one's a little trickier, but you are where you were. And will return there soon.”

“Okay, can I have an answer that doesn’t feel like a riddle?” Ewe winced, her body tensing up as the sound of fabric tearing hit her ears. “Please?”

“You will understand in your own time,” Amaranth said, now turning away from Ewe. “Or I could tell you now, decisions, decisions.” more clothing ripped, and Ewe could now tell she was barely covered without a mirror. “You are becoming an avatar of our goddess who, perhaps from some cosmic irony, shares your name. Or coincidence, I honestly don’t know how common your name is.”

“But, for now, this power will be yours, enjoy it. You have found your history.” she laughed, watching Ewe crane her neck to try and see what was happening to her body. “Perhaps, this will help?” she reached a hand into her sleeve and in a flash of that same violet light, a full body mirror appeared.

First, she was definitely larger than she remembered waking up. Her clothes were barely covering the basics. Jeans that should’ve been perfect for fall were ripped to the point of barely qualifying as a pair of shorts. Her top was valiantly holding itself to keep her chest covered, but the sleeves were completely blown off. The wool that covered the sheep woman's body has grown out, both to make her hips look wider than was physically possible, and in a pattern crisscrossing her body.

Second, by whatever power she was believing in, she was shredded. Abs were barely visible under a heavier power lifting ready body, her legs were toned to the extent that they looked like they were carved from marble and her arms crafted from gold. A body of sheer physical peak performance and strength.

Then there was her chest, the one that was barely covered by a now forcibly shredded into a crop top shirt. Ewe didn’t know if the sudden endowment was muscle or if her breasts had actually expanded large enough to where she didn’t believe a bra existed with the band size to handle her.

 

“I will say, you do fit the goddess’s power and image nicely.” Amaranth laughed, her adorable yet shrill hyena laughter. “A fitting representative you are, Miss Ewe.”

‘Claim it.’ the voice from earlier said, only now Ewe knew it wasn’t from Amaranth. ‘Claim your power and place.’

She looked around, whatever this dimension was it was just the two of them. And really, if she was the embodiment of a goddess, shouldn’t she have her body worshiped like one? And this hyena in front of her was on the cute side, now that she could see more of her.

It was impulsive, yes, but Ewe put a hand on Amaranths' shoulder. The fabric felt soft between her fingers as she let out a polite cough. The other woman had a quizzical look on her face, or at least that’s what it looked like from Ewes elevated angle.

“So, if I'm the embodiment of a goddess...” Ewe started, trying to play it smoothly. “Maybe I should try out this power.” She was not the best at the whole flirting thing, but it was worth a try. Her body was much different, and while a chubby nerdy girl had its own appeal, there was some sense of attraction that came from a woman who could pile drive someone into the dirt. “Why don’t you… educate me. In private? After some coffee?”

“It would be an honor to date the goddess’s champion.” Amaranth giggled, getting a blush out of Ewe despite the physically imposing stature. “Shall we return and agree on a time, my lady?”

It was impulse, again, but Ewe hoisted the hyena woman up into her arms with no effort. But the agreement was made. Granted, they still needed to leave wherever they were, and if they were still in the museum, physically leave the building.

But right now? They had more than enough time to figure that out.

You can find story with these keywords: HIstorical Accuracy, Read HIstorical Accuracy, HIstorical Accuracy novel, HIstorical Accuracy book, HIstorical Accuracy story, HIstorical Accuracy full, HIstorical Accuracy Latest Chapter