Before Jon could finish sprinting down the block to Karyn's house, his new legs were paralyzed with pain. "OW!!" Just because he had sculpted them to look muscular didn't mean they actually were muscular. They were the same old Jon legs underneath. The strain of running faster than normal forced Jon to stop for a moment. Did I distort my muscles too? wondered Jon. He guessed that in the world, people were trained from earliest childhood to remold themselves safely. Having never learned how to do so, Jon might have wreaked some serious damage to himself. He was on his hands and knees on the sidewalk. "Can't get up ... Maybe if I sit on the grass ... AAAH!!"
The grass didn't hurt, but his legs still did. He stared at their faux musculature. Should I try to massage them, or would that make things only worse? I have no idea what's happened beneath the skin. At least my bones are still OK ... I hope. This is embarrassing. I hope nobody sees me like this. But I'll have to face other people sooner or later. I might need a doctor. I'll call 911.
As Jon clenched his teeth and took out his cell phone, someone saw him lying on the lawn. It was ...
