Needless to say, after that display, Jake had no doubt that the pendant had to be real. And he was quite into the idea of changing people with this new toy. He’d fantasized since he was five about having the power to change people, and how weird things could get. And he wasn’t going to look a gift horse in the mouth. He considered who to test it on first.
He looked down at his own teenaged body. Shorter than he’d like, rounder than he’d like, pale dry skin, messy black hair… there was definitely room for improvement. But he wasn’t sure he’d want to test it on himself right off the bat. But with his brother, Axel, at home, there was still another option.
Jake turned around, and stepped back into his family’s home, a two story house in a quiet suburb. The interior walls were pale blue, with at least one family photo hanging on one somewhere in each room. Jake could still hear the sound of video games coming from the living room, meaning Axel was still going at his latest open-world medieval fantasy game.
Jake had occasionally watched as Axel had played it, finding the game’s race of bird people pretty cool, while Axel felt they’d kinda come off as overconfident jerks, and preferred the game’s fish people race, the Kora, instead. So Jake’s first use of his new toy was pretty clear.
He stepped into the living room, his brother in front of him, reclining on one of the two couches set up around the TV, the room still brightly lit by the spring sun pouring through the bay window. Alex was tall, thin, his hair a tangle of black. He’d consistently gotten good-but-not great grades, and, while polite to anyone that took time to talk to him first, tended to keep to himself.
Alex, too absorbed in his game to notice that Jake had entered, continued to guide the elf knight on the screen swiftly between the blows of a massive troll’s club, getting in little stabs on the giant’s toes whenever it took a moment to catch its breath.
Now came the tricky part. Jake wasn’t sure just how thorough that promise that “the transformation will never harm a person,” was. But on the other hand, the note also said that he could change their personality, attitude, even their past and future… He had to wonder how much control that was giving him over people he hadn’t yet changed, by proxy… But more importantly, it gave him a way to assure that this would essentially amount to a permanent, but harmless prank on his brother that only he would be in on.
He touched the pendant with his finger, (even if it could respond to his thoughts, Jake still liked the idea of touching it to activate,) and thought carefully about the changes he’d make, or rather, how much he’d try to keep the same. The only change to history that was guaranteed was that their new form would have “always been so,” and he wanted to be sure he wouldn’t cause too much trouble with it, yet.
‘Axel has been born in his new, anthro cardinal body since the day he was hatched. My mom, and the news, and society in general, didn’t freak out, because anthros are considered just an extremely rare genetic mutation, and aren’t thought of as being any weirder than being left handed. They’re still ‘compatible’ with humans, and able to use most food and medication to the same effects without complications. Axel’s life, relationships, and personality will only change in minor ways that would make sense with his new form and ability to fly.’
Jake moved his hand off the pendant, and watched with baited breath.
Axel’s body twitched slightly, as red feathers began to sprout over his arms, which appeared to press down wider and flatter. His hands were absorbed into the mass of feathers, seeming to grow broader with the rest of his arms. Much to Jake’s surprise, Axel continued playing without missing a beat even as his fingers each sprouted into large, dexterous… feathers? Must have been some part of the Pendant’s magic.
His shirt seemed to fade out of existence as brighter red feathers spread all over his torso. Jake was a little confused, but remembered one of the odder statements in the note, and figured it just happened on it’s own if he didn’t say otherwise. A fan of long tail feathers slowly grew upward out the back of his pants, until the clothes vanished completely, the tail flicking quickly down to its natural position. The feathers already covering Axel’s hips seemed to keep him “decent” as the change continued down his legs, his thighs growing a layer of feathers, while from the knees down, his legs took a scaly texture, and turned a pale orange color. His feet became almost impossibly thin, while his toes stretched out several centimeters long, nails disappearing as the bones stretched out into short, dulled talons.
Lastly, his face and neck began to grow feathers as well, his hair black hair turning bright red as the strands merged and hardened into quills, rising up into a feathery crest. His ears shrank into nearly invisible holes in the sides of his head. Black feathers grew over the front of his face, and his nose and mouth hardened, pushed forward and merged into a short, conical, bright orange beak.
Triumphant music played on the TV as the giant troll tumbled down.
‘It worked!’ Jake thought, a grin on his face. ‘It really worked!’ He stopped himself. ‘The physical change worked,’ he corrected himself. ‘We’ll need to see about the rest. But for now, he really doesn’t seem to have noticed anything...’
“Nice work, Axel,” Jake said, leaning on the top of the sofa. “I remember that guys giving you a lot of trouble last time.”
Axel shrugged. “Eh, I took a detour and got some better equipment, which accounts for most of it.”
“Still, not bad.” Jake paused a moment, then continued. “So… how do you like the Flito race in this game?”
Axel sighed and rolled his eyes. “Yeah, yeah, you and everyone at school have made the ‘bird people’ comparison every week since the game has come out.” He moved the elf in to start nabbing loot from the fallen monster. “If you want an actual answer, I don’t care for ‘em, they’re overconfident jerks.” He paused, then quietly added, “and the Kora princess is way cuter than any of the bird ladies, anyway.”
Jake chuckled to himself as he left his older brother to his game. He debated whether to find another person to transform, or to look through his brother’s room for a bit and see how the world had changed for him.