There is one last thing to note about these aliens and that is that they believed in uniformity. That being that all beings should exist as variations of the same species. That is why on their planet there was no other life besides themselves because the other life’s dna was absorbed into the aliens.
So the pods were programmed so that when they arrive at a planet with life they should take the dna of all beings on this planet and merge them into a single species.
And that is where our story begins.
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Teens were loitering around shops, men waited for their wives and a number of others were getting an early supper, hoping to beat the 5pm rush. All in all, a typical Thursday evening at the East Mall.
Suddenly, a loud bang echoed down the corridors, followed by the sound of metal and glass collapsing from the roof. Nobody was close enough to be injured but it did startle a number of patrons. Several of them immediately high-tailed it to the exits. Many others ran towards the sound to see what was happening. Those who investigated were greeted with a pile of debris under a large hole in the roof. People were whispering that it might have been an explosion, but nestled in the debris was an egg shaped object, smooth except for a series of lines etched along the surface.
Some ignored it, going back to their shopping. A few decided to leave in case it did turn out to be an explosive device. Those who were left began to form a crowd. Witnesses who had come from outside tried to explain what they saw moments before the impact.
The mystery object fell through the sky, gradually slowing it’s decent with small bursts of light until it smashed into the mall. Some guessed that it was some kind of meteorite while a few louder individuals chanted religious assumptions. Only a few people accurately guessed that it was an alien craft.
Before long, mall security arrived to sort out the situation. One guard stepped over the debris and against his better judgment prodded at the object with his baton. The surface pulsed with a greenish hue and began to hiss. Little did he know, it was releasing a highly infectious chemical vapor.
This invisible gas was meant be absorbed into nearby lifeforms, sharing advanced knowledge with those who had the means to read it and merging nearby species into one uniform species. This was standard protocol for the pod after it detected carbon based life in close proximity. Whether the life forms could support being merged into one species was an entirely different matter.
Before anyone understood what was happening, the entire area was full of gas. Government officials arrived and began to quarantine the object. But their attempt to isolate it came too late. A number of people who had breathed in the vapor had long since left and the few who were detained were allowed to go after giving witness statements.
Like lightning, this mysterious infection bounced from one person to another, rapidly spreading across the region. Within a week, nearly all disease was cured in the city and several surrounding suburbs. While many celebrated the spontaneous recoveries, the alien infection was hard at work merging millions of years of evolutionary data into the human genome.
It wasn’t long before people began to change...