Attempting to get to her/his feet, Cassia was overwhelmed. Her new body felt very alien to her. She felt like screaming at the top of her lungs, but didn't have energy to do so.
"I sacrificed everything, and for what?" Cassia bitterly remarked. "The privilege of becoming another brute in Kasergrov."
As she was brooding, a green mist appeared in front of her. The cloud shifted into the shape of some kind of humanoid creature.
"Hello, child" it bellowed. Cassia immediately recognized the voice; it had led her on this transformation.
"You.....you did this to me!" Cassia screamed, only to stop, still recoiling from her now much deeper voice. "What purpose did this serve? Did Father truly desire a male heir this much? Was it Turet? I WANT TO KNOW!"
The creature suddenly had a befuddled look on his face. Did what to you, he asked?
"You transformed me into....this!" Cassia responded "I know that I wasn't exceptionally strong as a princess, but my god, I didn't realize that non-humans could be misogynistic too."
The creature just stared at her, baffled, before it suddenly dawned on him. "My child, I'm not sure you understand what we've given you." It moved toward her. Cassia started backpedaling before falling on her feet. It put his hand on her shoulder.
"Say this phrase in your mind: althra houthk." Cassia thought that was gobbledygook but as soon as she thought of the word, a searing pain went across her male body. She felt her bones breaking and contracting. Her flesh began to remold on her body. The hair that had been littered all over her body began to receded, and the hair on her head began to grow back out.
The pain lasted for what seemed like hours, but in reality only took minutes. After it was done, Cassia stood to her feet, and ran over to the water. She started screaming giddily. Somehow, someway, she was back in her original female body. The giddiness quickly gave way to even more confusion on her part.
"What was the point of all that?" Cassia asked.
"You see, but you do not understand." the creature responded. "I am Unth-Ruhk, the last surviving member of the Cyroclian people. You were chosen for a very specific purpose. Let me show you."
His body turned into green mist and expanded. In front of Cassia lay a vision of an ancient civilization, presumably the Cyroclians.
"We were scholars, artisans, mages, leaders, and warriors. We were all of these things in one." Cassia watched as the creatures in the vision changed form repeatedly like it was nothing. The old sages suddenly became young warriors who became fierce clerics and so on.
"Our civilization thrived because we realized that our minds could exert themselves beyond one physical form. We lasted for a millenia before your kind learned language. Eventually we were done in by greed, indifference and brutality. The same will happen to Kasergrov unless action is taken."
Unth-Ruhk appeared before her again. "Child, as my final parting gift to this world, I have bestowed upon a small hint of my civlizations' ability. You are Princess Cassia, but you are now also something else. Your mind can inhabit and switch between these two forms like breathing air. Your bravery and determination to fight against cruelty make you an excellent warrior in the battles to come, but your intelligence and empathy make you the perfect future ruler of Kasergrov. Using these two vessels, you will make a difference."
Cassia watched as the creature dissipated and vanished. The idea of having to be two different people at the same time worried her, but also gave her an unexpected rush of adrenaline. For too long, she had to play the role of bystander while her father destroyed everything around her. Now, she could make a difference.