Summertime was coming a lot faster than anyone would have expected, in more ways than one. For some, it felt like the long winter was skipping directly to summer. But there was also the fact that the last day of school will be coming soon. The start of summer vacation signaled a lot of things: trips to the new colonies of New Zerzura and Maelewano, the unveiling of the Dinotopian colony, and Project Mesozoic becoming officially available for the public. Of course, part of the last two things was Sophie and Roland becoming Pterodactylus Animalians as well as Sophie's parrot, JC, becoming a Microraptor Animalian along with Pauline.
In order to facilitate JC's transformation, Project Newrad had to get busy. They proved the basic concept worked with Compy. However, that was a devolving of flightless bird to flightless dinosaur. Now they needed to see if the process will work with flying birds and flying dinosaurs. While scientists have extrapolated a lot from the fossilized remains of both the bones of near-avian dinosaurs and the feather imprints found around them, there were still more unanswered questions. As near as they could tell, the first feather-flyers were not as gifted in the air as the pterosaurs. Several scientists theorize that those dinosaurs capable of flight were only capable of flying for short distances at most or just being restricted to gliding. The truth was yet to be determined, but this experiment would see if these uplifted Dinotopians would inherit full-flying capabilities from the birds they once were.
Originally, this experiment would have involved transforming a crow into an Archaeopteryx, but a bit of serendipity allowed for a more interesting experiment. Arcelia was a pet magpie who had been recently given to Project Phoenix for uplifting. She had been hand-reared by the Perez family, a family of Mexican-Americans who lived in California. Arcelia was well-loved by her owners, who found her ability to mimic sounds delightful. However, the dad of the family had gotten a big raise that allowed him to move the family to a better apartment, but unfortunately pets weren't allowed at the building. They didn't know anyone who would be willing or able to take care of a magpie and Arcelia couldn't be released into the wild. But since Animalia could uplift animals, it seemed like Arcelia could have a better life there. And it turns out that Arcelia would have a more exciting life than they could have imagined.
Arcelia was chosen to be in Project Newrad just because of her striking plumage. Magpies aren't just among the most intelligent of the corvid family (which by extension the most intelligent of all birds), but one of the most intelligent animals on the planet. Not only were they capable of remarkable problem-solving and tool-usage, but magpies also had a very good memory. They've also been known to exhibit complex emotions such as grief, there have been sightings of magpie 'funerals' where magpies stand near their dead comrade's body in what could only be described as mourning. They're also one of the few animals that have enough self-awareness to recognize their own reflection in a mirror, which puts them in the level of intellect as dolphins and apes. Arcelia wouldn't be the first magpie in Animalian society, but she could provide more insight in this particular uplifting process.
Arcelia was rather well-behaved when she was brought into the testing room. She did seem scared of Rex, but what animal wouldn't? But she seemed placated enough when she was left with a bowl of cubed meat. She did squawked indignantly when she was given her injection. But she returned back to her meal as the scientist left her in the room.
However, Arcelia didn't get to enjoy her meal for much longer. Before she had finished the bowl, she let out a few groans of discomfort. Before long, she started growing larger. And much like Compy, there were already several signs of her change in species. Namely, the molt of feathers from her tail and head. But her wing feathers didn't molt. Instead, like with other bird Animalians, they were being pulled onto her back to where her shoulder blades were. A new pair of limbs were growing from her shoulders where her wings previously were. Interestingly, they weren't covered completely in feathers. The feathers stopped a little bit past the shoulders, leaving the rest of the arm scaly and looking a lot like a lizard's. Her wings also grew some claws on them, but not as dexterous as her new hands.
However, the process wasn't comfortable, even without Arcelia's wings repositioning. Having her tail stretched out into a lizard-like tail was very unpleasant, each new vertebrate making a small painful pop into existence. But that wasn't as bad as the reshaping of her head. While Archaeopteryx's head was closer to a bird's than Compsognathus, it still did not have an actual beak. The cracking and peeling of Arcelia's beak made her cry out with pain as each bloody chip fell from her face. She was so blindsided by that pain that she didn't pay attention to the more human features appearing on her new body. Her hips widened quite a bit, making it easier for her to lay eggs. Beneath her reptilian tail, her rear expanding to a pleasant shape. The feathers on her chest rippled as two mounds started surging out. Black scaly nipples appeared on her new mammaries, their aroused position making them stand out among her white feathers more noticeably.
Eventually, Arcelia's transformation completed, leaving her a humanoid Archaeopteryx. Her body was now a perfect blend of avian and reptilian features, with noticeable mammalian features included. Her magpie coloration remained and extended to her scales. All of her visible scales were black, except her tail which was the same dark blue as her wings. The feathers on her shoulders and the front of her torso remained white, as well as the primary feathers on her wings. While she grew a separate pair of arms like the bird Animalians, Arcelia's wings still had claws that like bat Animalians' in comparison. Like other small bird Animalians, she wasn't particularly tall, though she still had a curvy figure to match her size.
Arcelia looked at her new scaly hands and felt herself over. "I'm not a bird anymore, am I?" she asked, a Latina lilt to her voice.
"No, you're now an Archaeopteryx, one of the ancient species that were a link between birds and reptiles," said Gerry over the intercom.
"Is that so?" asked Arcelia before looking over her shoulder and stretching her wings, "I can still fly, right?" Other than the claws on them, her wings looked like the other bird Animalians, which probably made them stronger than the flying dinosaur's.
"That shouldn't be a problem," said Sal, "You're not an exact replica of Archaeopteryx. I mean asides from the fact that you're Animalian."
"But before we test your flying capabilities, perhaps you'd like to know more about Animalia," said Rex.
"I'm listening," said Arcelia, "But it better be quick."