The thief currently known as 'Missy' was expecting to spend up to five months in Animalia's jail. Not that the cell wasn't comfortable than clean. 'Missy' was the only criminal who has been in a cell so long. Most of the others were just loud drunks who needed a place to sober up. And the ache in her broken leg wasn't making time pass any faster. But it seemed like an awfully long wait for a death sentence.
Well, not a death sentence in the literal sense. At the end of this would be the death of her identity and career, if her career wasn't already dead. What was supposed to be the biggest theft of her career ended up with being thrown in a jail cell with a broken leg, all because of a stupid skateboard. The FBI has been making a lot of progress with finding out her past crimes. They've probably uncovered her true name by now. As such, this jail time could stretch out into a decade or more if she served her full sentence. And if she did find a way to mistake, her broken leg might give her a career-ending limp. Not to mention she'd be the laughingstock of the underworld.
On the other hand, she could serve out a much shorter sentence in this jail, but afterwards would be a conversion and recruitment into the Rhino Guard's Stealth Division. It was a little galling for a thief like her being force to work for the police. But it was clearly the better of the two options, as well as healing her leg. But giving up her humanity wasn't something she was completely happy about. But still, she had seen how well-built the women of Animalia was and she felt a bit of envy towards that.
Then 'Missy' heard the opening of a door and she looked up. The FBI agent who had been interrogating her had walked into the jail. 'Missy' gave an annoyed sigh as he walked over to her cell. He unlocked the door and walked in. It's not like she could make a dash for it on her broken leg. "What do you want now, Mr. Smith?" asked 'Missy' in annoyance. 'Mr. Smith' wasn't the agent's actual name, but 'Missy' didn't want to use real names which would mean revealing hers. Besides, he looks so much like that blank federal agent stereotype.
"Well, 'Missy', it seems that you're being shown mercy," said 'Mr. Smith', "A few of Animalia's upstanding citizens have been pushing for your early conversion and release on probation. They felt like no one should spend the holidays in a jail cell."
'Missy' resisted the urge to roll her eyes. How could these Animalians be so peaceful and loving when half the government have been looking for an excuse to shut them down. "And who are my benefactors?" asked 'Missy'. Of course, she expected him to say it's 'classified' or 'they wish to remain anonymous'.
"Heather Green and Mary Piper, if you want to know," said 'Mr. Smith'.
'Missy' gave a surprised look. "Those two?" she asked. The two of them had an infamy that spread outside of Animalia, what with Heather's non-lethal rampage and Mary's surprising kidnapping. "Isn't there some kind of law about criminals not bailing criminals?" asked 'Missy'.
"There is not," said 'Mr. Smith', "And those two ladies are no longer criminals. They've paid their debts to society and are upstanding citizens now. But they know the stigma you'll be facing because of your past and want to make you feel more accepted."
'Missy' was actually touched by this. Of course, burglary wasn't much compared to attempted murder and kidnapping, but she wouldn't have expected the two of them to care. But as life has taught her, everything has a price. "So, what's the catch?" asked 'Missy'.
"The catch is that after your conversion, you'll be spending the rest of your term under house arrest," said 'Mr. Smith'.
"I don't have a house here," said 'Missy'.
"An apartment will be provided for your duration," said 'Mr. Smith', "If you wish to keep the apartment after your term is up, it will be yours, though you will have to pay for the rent. You will only be allowed to leave the apartment for remedial lessons about your new species, lectures at Police Headquarters, and permitted trips approved by your parole officer."
"So I'm just moving to a bigger, more comfortable cage," said 'Missy' a little bitterly.
"It's not as bad as you think. And you will have a shorter time before you're free," said 'Mr. Smith'.
"I'm not so convinced that I'll be truly free," said 'Missy'.
"Is anyone ever really?" asked 'Mr. Smith', "But I think you should appreciate what you can get."
'Missy' sighed. She didn't have much of a choice in the matter. Speaking of which... "I at least get to pick out what kind of Animalian I'll be, right?" she asked.
"Of course," said 'Mr. Smith', "Though any flying Animalian you would choose would mean we would have extra surveillance to make sure you don't fly off."
"So how am I supposed to pick?" asked 'Missy'.
'Mr. Smith' handed her a tablet and said, "This is linked to an online encyclopedia of Earth's animal species. Don't waste time looking at other sites." With that, he walked out of the cell and locked it behind him.
'Missy' perused the online encyclopedia somewhat randomly. She had been thinking of becoming some kind of black cat, maybe even a melanistic jaguar. But that mention of flying Animalians put her in mind of something. A childhood memory that has inspired her through most of her life. Rogue the Bat was her favorite character when she was growing up and one of her heroes. Which in hindsight made it a little obvious why she became a thief. Becoming a bat had appeal to it, even if she would have limited freedom to spread her wings. But 'Missy' wasn't about to become any kind of bat. She started looking for the most impressive bat she could find.
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It took some time to narrow down her selection. She didn't want to become one of the uglier bats with oversized noses. She also didn't want to become one that's vulnerable to White Nose syndrome. Looking for bats of the Americas did help her figure what kind of bat she wanted. Eventually, she found with something she could live with. The black mastiff bat is a very common bat in Central and South America. It was one of the free-tailed bat species, which mean it had a longer tail that extended past the membrane that connected it to the legs. A special ring of cartilage slides up or down the tail vertebrae by muscular action to stretch or retract the tail membrane. This allowed these bats to make very sharp turns rivaling daytime flyers like swifts and swallows. The free-tailed bats were also the fastest flying horizontal flyers of the animal kingdom. The black mastiff bat might not be as fast as the Mexican free-tailed bat, but it was bigger and it had completely black fur that appealed to 'Missy'.
Of course, that wasn't all 'Missy' would be getting. Part of the agreement with the FBI and Animalia was that she would be getting a new identity. After a bit of thought, she decided to go with the new name 'Mercy Elaga'. That along with her body should make her unrecognizable to anyone in her former business who would want to even the score or make sure she stays quiet about certain things.
At least 'Missy' would be able to transform in someplace more roomy and comfortable than her cell. The changing room at Horizon Labs was a good place for her to change. She stripped down to her underwear, a little self-conscious. She had always been on the slender side, her lithe figure being useful for slipping in and out of places. But now she was going to have a figure like Rogue's. She was also glad that her cast was coming off, even if it did hurt. The sting of the needle entering her injured leg didn't help, but at least the virus will repairing that soon. Then everyone left to give her some privacy before she transformed.
She soon cringed as she felt some painful spasms in her leg. She could feel her bones knitting back together as they started to change. She watched as black hair started becoming thicker across her leg. Her foot was also stretching out, her toes becoming long with long claws to help her grab at walls and ceilings. Her other leg was also changing, but with less pain. She winced in discomfort as her panties were getting stretched out as her hips widened and her ass grew in a very feminine way. But it also meant that her panties were getting too tight. She pulled at her panties, her longer fingernails helping to cut through the straining fabric. The hair around her privates had already blended with her spreading fur.
Her upper body was also changing a lot as black fur covered her more. Her muscles were toned already from keeping her slim, athletic figure. But now her muscles were getting bigger and getting even more definition. She could feel a lot of power going into her pectoral and back muscles. Speaking of her pectorals, her bra was getting more cramped as her breasts were getting bigger. She wasn't very undersized for a woman her age, but they were now getting much bigger than ever. Her back ached as she felt new protrusions coming out. Fortunately, her bra snapped off a lot faster than her panties. A pair of limbs extended from her back like long arms before the fingers stretched even more. Membrane started growing in to form new wings. Her lower back was also changing as a tail was coming out. It was certainly longer than most bats', particularly since not all of it was covered with membrane. Now free of restriction, her breasts surged in size, becoming bigger, rounder, but still buoyant. It would be harder to squeeze through windows with these breasts, let along her new wings.
The changes to her head were what would expect from a bat. Her ears became larger, rising up through her black hair which she had kept short. However, the upper edges of her ears extended forward along her skull until they ended about just where her eyebrows were. The muzzle she grew was also quite a bit broader than other bats. The combined look did make her resemble a mastiff for which the black mastiff bat species got its name.
When the transformation finished, the newly converted bat looked at herself in the mirror. She didn't get that much taller, mostly from her changed feet. But where she was lithe and slender before, now she was muscular and curvy. Her pitch-black fur really made an impression. She couldn't help but pose and flex in front of the mirror, spreading her wings as she looked herself over. "Not bad," she said as she looked her new body up and down, "The world better be ready for Mercy Elaga."