Casper appreciated having some time to just walk alongside Ashley for a bit, their skin squeaking softly as they held each other’s hands. It hardly seemed like any time at all before Ashley spoke up. “This should be the place!”
The two entered the apartment complex, passing a pair of parents, with two very excited looking young boys, heading out. Casper used the ring, looking over his shoulder as the magic went to work.
The father’s clothes, save for his wedding ring, vanished, his hair vanishing as well, as his skin turned to smooth lime green latex, a black bar code appearing on his backside, with a short, rounded tail inflating above it. Mold lines appeared on the seams of his body, and a nozzle popped into existence on his belly, a slight bulge appearing on his crotch, to mark him as still male. His feet grew longer, and a little broader. His face stretched forward slightly, and his front teeth became a good bit longer, while his ears stretched out dramatically and moved to the top of his head, becoming a distinctive pair of rabbit ears.
The mother’s clothes were gone just as quickly, her skin turning a deep purple color, her hair disappearing, as well, leaving her ‘bald’. Her arms grew wider, and a little thinner, becoming a set of elegant, feathery-looking wings. Her hands became thinner, as her fingers extended into talon-like claws. Her legs slimmed down significantly, while her toes elongated into talons as well. Her ears shrank back into her head, becoming nearly invisible, while her nose and mouth stretched out into a long beak. A set of tail feathers fanned out above her rear, as a brighter-colored bar code appeared to contrast with her darker skin. A nozzle appeared on the crow woman’s belly, while her breasts lost any sign of their nipples, and her crotch was rendered completely smooth.
The two little boys’ skins took a similar shiny texture, as they too turned into colorful, naked anthros, their hair fading to nothing as they grew nozzles on their bellies, and mold lines where the seams of their bodies formed. One turned a bright, sunny yellow, and to Casper’s surprise, grew a few inches taller. His jaws grew larger and longer, his rubbery teeth becoming large fangs, while his ears shrank back into his head. A thick, shiny tail pulled out above his bar code, waving back and forth in excitement. The boy’s arms seemed to lose mass, (well, more mass than most lost when turning into living inflatables), while his legs grew thicker, his feet spreading into the broad claws of a tyrannosaurus.
His cyan brother’s arms and legs both grew wider, his fingers becoming a bit shorter and stubbier, while his feet receded into his legs, his toes just barely sticking out of his stumpy limbs. Like his brother, a thick tail grew out above the bar code on his behind, though his was a little shorter. The boy’s head underwent the most dramatic shift out of all of his family, his jaws pulling forward into a beak-like snout, and a horn forming on his nose, while a wide crest expanded from the back of his head. Two more horns rose up above the boy’s eyes, confirming his new species as a triceratops.
And all of this happened without any of the four even skipping a beat. The parents continued to try and keep their still quite excited children within arm’s reach as they went out the door.
621 in, and Casper was still finding new possibilities. Apparently extinct species weren’t out of the question either, now. Though, he supposed, if the ring could create creatures that had previously only existed in legend, it probably shouldn’t be too surprising that it could create anthros based on animals only found in the distant past. He also noticed the lack of feathers on either of the boys, before they left his line of sight. Casper hadn’t been keeping track of which dinosaur species had been found to have feathers, so he wasn’t sure if the two had become accurate representations of their new species. Maybe the ring bent their appearance toward how the kids perceived their favorite animals?
The two anthros stopped in front of apartment 114, and knocked on the door. After a few seconds, there was a muffled cry of “Coming!” before the door opened, revealing the familiar black and red dragon. “Ah, Casper! I didn’t expect to see you so soon. Please, come in!”
Casper and Ashley stepped into the apartment, their eyes meeting with bookcases full of dozens of tomes of varying ages, a desk with several charts displaying what Casper assumed were magical symbols, and a handful charms and trinkets lying around in various spots in the living, as well as a few dragon statuettes on the coffee table. “Apologies about the mess,” Haeliax said, “I don’t get company often, and until yesterday, so much of my time had been dedicated to pursuing my life’s dream, I rarely took time to put the tools of my trade away.”
“It’s fine,” Ashley said. “We were just dropping by to thank you for what you did yesterday.”
“Yeah,” Casper nodded “the boost you gave the ring let us make a lot of interesting synthetics.”
“You’re welcome,” Haeliax said, “Though I ought to be thanking you, again. Your ring helped me where my magical abilities had failed for years.”
“So… You got into the occult in order to make yourself a dragon?” Ashley asked.
“When you say it like that, it just sounds foolish,” the dragon gave a toothy grin, “but I can’t say I blame you. There were quite a few days where I told myself I was crazy, and just wasting all my time and magical potential. But in the end, it all proved worthwhile.” Haeliax spread his wings, and gestured to them. “It’d be hypocritical to criticize your choice of species, Casper, given how many years I spent pursuing an impossible dream myself, but you really should have chosen a creature with wings. Flying under your own power… It takes some work, but nothing can compare to the sensation of seeing the world below you, with the wind under your wings.”
Casper smiled. “That does sound like quite an experience, but I’m happy with my choice. I honestly have a hard time seeing myself content as anything else, anymore.”
“Fair enough,” Haeliax nodded, “obtaining a form I could feel content with was why I went to all this effort in the first place. And knowing your ring might help others who felt like I did, but had even less magical potential, gives me a sense of satisfaction as well.”
Ashley nodded. “Now that you’ve got your big, lifelong dream, what’re you gonna do next?”
Haeliax folded his wings, sitting back in one of the living room chairs, which had a hole for his tail to slip through. “That is a good question. I suppose I’ll find a new dream to chase, but for now, I’m just taking life one step at a time.”
“So you’re winging it, then?” Ashley grinned, as the former wizard facepalmed.
“I suppose I walked right into that one. Or flew into it. But yes, I’m just focusing on what needs my immediate attention for now. Such as figuring out what to do with all my old spellbooks and artifacts, since my soul no longer has the magical potential for them. I don’t suppose you know any humans who are occult practitioners? Oh, what am I saying? For you to be able to get your hands on a ring with power like that, my books would be comparable to kindergarten reading.”
“Well, the wizard I bought this ring from probably has a large stock of this kinda stuff in his shop, you’re right,” Casper said. “But why did you specify humans? Can synthetics not do magic?”
“Well, that’s a bit hard to say for certain, since in this changing world, it seems they’ve only been around a few decades,” Haeliax said. “But the… Soul energy, for a lack of a less technical term, of synthetics is definitely different enough that even if I hadn’t sacrificed my potential, I wouldn’t be able to perform most of the spells in these books, or ‘recharge’ any of my artifacts. It’s like trying to fuel a truck that runs on diesel fuel with regular unleaded; it’s just not going to work, and may even damage things. Ironically, the only charm I have that still has its magic ’charge’ is the first item I ever enchanted: a cloth that, when placed on a pillow, allows the user perfect lucidity in their dreams. And I discovered last night that synthetics don’t dream. At least, not close enough to the way humans do for the charm to take effect.” He shrugged. “Still, I imagine if some synthetic does find themselves interested in the occult, it may be possible for them to eventually learn some new form of magic. Perhaps the difference in their energy might even allow them to perform feats human practitioners would find difficult, or even impossible.”
Well, that was comforting. Casper may not have been interested in the occult himself, but the apparent difference in a synthetic’s soul was something he was very curious about. “Does this mean I’m changing people on a spiritual level too?” Just how deep did the implications of this go?
“You could be, but… It’s a little more complicated than that. I can’t fully understand the nature of the soul myself. It’s a bit hard to explain what I do know for someone less involved…” Haeliax scratched his head. “Sometimes, a seemingly drastic personality change can occur if a soul is altered, but all that really happened is that traits a person had kept hidden were brought to the surface during the change. And I have heard of brainwashing magics that can seemingly alter a person’s entire sense of self, yet their soul energies don’t change at all. I can’t really say how much you’re changing who a person ‘really is,’ nor if synthetics would go to some different afterlife, if there is one, if that is what you’re asking.”
Casper sighed. “Right. Sorry, I guess some questions are just too big to have an easy answer.”
“It’s fine,” the dragon assured him, “and your question is understandable. You’re doubtlessly planning to keep making more humans into your… well, our race. It’s only natural you’d want to be sure you weren’t making them ‘lesser’ in some way.”
“Thanks,” Casper said, before looking back at Ashley, thinking of their child, which he still needed to tell her about. “Anyway, we have to go. Ashley and I got engaged, and we’ve got some preparations to make. Plus, there’s more people to change out there.” The ram-man grinned.
Haeliax stood up and smiled as well. “Well, congratulations! You two enjoy yourselves! Feel free to drop by anytime. I may not be able to offer magical favors anymore, but I’d be happy to lend a hand if you ever need something flown around.”
As the couple headed out the door, Casper turned back, to ask one final question. “By the way… Why ‘Haeliax?’”
“I thought it sounded impressive, and would fit the dragon I sought to become.” Haeliax shrugged his wings. “It wouldn’t do to have a dragon going around calling himself ‘Raymond,’ would it?”
Ashley giggled as they closed the door behind them.