The boar pointed in the direction of a large pool, and Ty was hastily pushed aside for the next human. As he made his way over,r it became clear that the pool was actually the top of a large aquarium, filled with all kinds of anthropomorphic aquatic life.
At the top, there were dozens of dolphins, sharks, and whales, which made sense since they were all mammals and adapted better to breathing air. But in the water below, Ty could see crabs, lobsters, dozens of species of fish, and other creatures, most of whom looked somewhat grotesque with their arms and legs contrasting strangely with their beady eyes and scaly skin. Ty decided that if he had the choice, he would be a mammal.
A female dolphin had already spotted Ty and carefully made her way out of the water. Ty noticed that even though she had legs to walk on, a long finned tail flopped and dragged behind her.
"Well, aren't you a cutie?" Her high-pitched voice hurt Ty's ears, but he quickly got used to it. "Let me guess: you want to be a mammal, right?"
Ty nodded.
"Afraid that's not up to you, sweetie. See, we make all the new arrivals take part in, for lack of a better word, tests. Pass with flying colors and you get to choose whatever beast form you want to be turned into. But otherwise, we decide what you become. And chances are, you'll wind up like those poor babies down there. You know they never get to come up, right? Their gills don't let them breathe oxygen. They'll spend the rest of their lives swimming in that tiny confined space. You don't want that, right?"
Ty nodded, this time with a nervous shake.
"Then let's begin."