Catherine stared at the large form of the Arctic wolf that had torn apart her dogs. She had already eliminated the possibility of using the DNA of smaller animals in her desperate efforts, since it would be likely she would end up as a snack for something else like the Arctic wolf. While she had at first considered using the dogs' genetic material, they too were smaller than the wolf, especially this wolf. While most Arctic wolves were smaller than their more southern cousins, this one was enormous. It was much larger than the sled dogs, and probably would be taller than Catherine herself if on its hind legs. In fact, Catherine realized as she examined the corpse, it was probably the largest Arctic wolf seen in decades.
However, why would such a large wolf be hunting alone, and be belligerent enough to kill an entire group of sled dogs? While it might be territoriality, the wolf itself seemed rather malnourished, its ribs clearly visible. The changing environment had clearly also had an effect on this top-notch predator. It was an utter shame that such a creature should meet such a pathetic end. Finally steeling herself, Catherine plunged the syringe into the wolf's neck, quickly drawing blood from the jugular before the corpse froze.
Pouring the blood into the retroviral reagents, Catherine swirled the vial around and placed it inside her jacket to keep it warm and in liquid form as the genetic code for the wolf was gradually imprinted upon the retroviruses which would soon be flowing through her veins. However, before injecting herself, Catherine realized that there were more important issues at hand, which would clearly require the dexterity of a human.
Before the corpses could get cold, with a hand well-used to dissection, Catherine quickly skinned and deboned all of the dogs and the wolf, cutting the meat into manageable pieces, wrapping them carefully, and loading them on the sled. She also loaded her sleeping bag and tent, although she wrapped them in a manner which would make them easy to remove without dextrous hands. Finally, using the remnants of the dog harnesses, she fashioned a slightly larger adjustable harness which would allow her to pull the sled herself. Satisfied she had taken all necessary precautions, and leaving her heavier scientific instruments behind, Catherine knew the moment of truth had arrived.
Taking a deep breath, Catherine inserted the vial into the injection gun, taking care to ensure no air bubbles were present. Removing her left arm from her polar suit and rolling up her sleeve, Catherine gritted her teeth, then pressed the trigger, wincing as the slight sharp pain of the needle entered her vein. When the vial was emptied, she released the trigger, then dropped the gun as she stared at her arm. For a moment, she stood there motionless in the wind, almost expecting to see white fur sprouting from the injection site. Shaking her head, she disabused herself of the notion and rolled her sleeve back down, putting her jacket on. She knew better; in all experiments, the changes had been gradual in all her lab samples, and those samples had been stem cells, basically blank slates. The other branch of research, which had been into rewriting the cells of existing animals, more relevant to her current situation, had only focused on animals relatively similar to the desired results. For example, turning large dogs into Arctic wolves, or black bears into polar bears. In those cases, the changes had been even slower, since the retrovirals had to spread throughout the bloodstream and interact with many different types of cells.
And even where that succeeded, the animals utilized had been relatively close in physical structure and genetic structure to the creature they were being change into; no one had ever bothered with a completely different animal, let alone a human. The deciding act completed, Catherine wiggled into the harness and began dragging her sled behind her on the long trek back.
After hours of battling the howling wind, Catherine finally had to have a rest. Falling to her hands and knees, Catherine hung her head and tried to catch her breath. Her body had been feeling achy and miserable since the injection, and it had taken all her willpower just to get that far. Just as she began to wonder if injecting herself had been a foolish mistake, she suddenly noticed...