Nate clopped along his street's sidewalk. He tapped at his new Chronivac, exploring the different settings the device offered. Owen kept chiming up in his ear. Nate had to admit the new earpiece he (it?) had created was much more comfortable than any headset he had ever used.
"Are there any presets you'd like me to prepare sir? Where are we headed?" The AI spoke up as he turned onto a new street.
"I'm not sure. Usually I just stay home after work." He scanned the road. All the humans were scurrying around with their various afternoon chores.
"Owen, are your transformations reversible? I don't want to cause a panic in the city. I just want to help give people... a different perspective?" He wagged shyly. "Is this a bad idea?"
"Not at all!" The device reassured him. Of course it was. "You can set a perception filter on your changes so no one finds them unusual."
"Really?" Nate's ears perked, "That sounds perfect!" He rubbed his chin, "But I'd still want to watch."
"You may omit yourself from the perception filter if you'd like." Owen suggested.
"Really? Alright then." Nate glanced at the screen, "I'd like you to configure your perception filter so no one except for me notices any of the changes you make."
"Preference updated!" Own beeped, "Please note, this setting does not apply to any previous transformations."
"Uh huh." Nate snickered. Silly gadget, he hadn't done any transformations yet.
Nate stopped, looking up at the store in front of him. "Oh, I hang out in this coffee shop some on the weekend. Maybe we could start here?"
"Of course sir." Owen said agreeably in his ear. "Sir, if you'd like to speak with me discretely, you may pretend to be on a phone call. I can do my best to interpret your wishes." The device vibrated in his hand, "I've also configured a text chat option for us."
Nate looked down at the Chronivac. A chat bubble icon popped up on the home screen. Tapping on it brought up something that looked just like a text message screen. Instead of texts however, it showed everything he and Owen had recently said to each other. Mark pulled up the keyboard, typing out a quick response.
> Thanks Owen!
"Happy to help sir." The assistant spoke in his ear.
Nate clopped into the franchise coffee shop. He always wished his neighborhood had a friendlier local coffee hangout, but this place was better than nothing. He popped in here most weekends, but none of the employees seemed to be giving the massive centaur an acknowledging nod. They weren't staring at him either, so at least there was that.
He ordered a chai latte and walked over to one of the handicapped tables. It was way too low for him, but at least he didn't have to deal with a chair.
"So what's the plan Nate?" Owen asked curiously.
> Do you like puns Owen?
"I have a humor module installed sir. All Chronivac AI constructs go through extensive wordplay training." Owen sounded almost boastful for a moment.
> Can you... turn this place into a Satyrbucks?
A spinning indicator appeared in the chat. Owen was thinking.
"A coffee shop for satyrs or run by satyrs sir?" Owen finally asked.
Nate looked around the coffee shop curiously. There were two bored teenagers working behind the bar, a middle aged manager sweeping the floor, a businessman in a sports jacket ordering coffee, and someone trying to sleep in the corner.
"Both." Nate said softly into his earpiece, "Skip me and the guy sleeping in the corner though."
"Affirmative sir. Initiating transformation." The Chronivac beeped.
Nate sipped his latte, already noticing an immediate effect. The telltale green branding of the coffee shop shifted into an earthy brown tone. This store still had a circular logo, but the mermaid in the design quickly shifted into a pair of ram horns.
No one seemed to notice the changes at all. The shop kept shifting, becoming a bit more... homely? The corporate uniformity had been replaced by hodgepodge touches of comfort. The sweeping manager seemed completely unfazed when the plastic chair he was sweeping around shifted into a sturdy wooden seat with a padded cushion.
Nate reached down to take another sip of his tea. He blinked, realizing the paper cup he had been drinking out of was now one of the many purposefully mismatched coffee mugs scattered around the store.
"Baah, everything alright Nate?" The sweeper asked curiously. Nate shot his head up, watching as a wispy goatee grew out on his chin.
"Yeah, I- Everything's great." Nate nodded. The man's face was becoming framed by a set of ram horns that looked suspiciously like the store's logo.
"Hey boss, can I offer him our old cookies?" One of the teens behind the counter reached into the display case. When he pulled his head back up, he had a pair of short horns poking through his head.
The manager bleated in amusement, "Don't call them old!"
Nate was only half listening. The teen had picked up a small plate of cookies and was currently making his way across the back of the counter. As he crossed, Nate could hear the telltale sound of hooves clopping. He wasn't used to hearing anyone else make that sound.
Sure enough, the barista walked out from behind the corner on a sturdy pair of goat legs. They were covered in scruffy brown fur that had more than a few pastry crumbs in it.
It took Nate a moment to realize he was looking at the kid's furry legs and not a pair of work pants. His eyes spun around to the manager just in time to watch his pants vanish into nothingness. The older satyr had black fur on his legs, with a bit of gray mixed in around the edges.
Nate stood up a bit straighter, looking over towards the register. The other teen was much more lively as he took the order from the businessman. Both of them were wagging a stubby goat tail as they discussed the city's unpredictable weather.
"The cookies are from this morning," the sweeping satyr explained. "We have to throw them away at the end of the night, but we like to give 'em to regulars if we can."
Nate nodded his head. The man's shirt was likewise vanishing from reality. He had more than few chest hairs poking up out of his apron.
"You wanted a friendly neighborhood coffee shop, right?" Owen whispered in Nate's ear, "I just made him the owner. His name's Adrian. He likes to get to know his repeat customers."
"Oh wow, thanks Adrian." Nate tried not to fiddle with his earpiece.
"And this is Barry," Owen chimed in as the teen approached with the cookies. He likewise only had an apron on.
"You still eat like a horse, right Nate?" Barry grinned, setting the plate down. "You usually don't come by the weekdays. Anything going on?"
This was surreal. Nate had just given Owen one simple command and here he was slipping into a whole new reality.
"Nothing too much," Nate smiled, picking up one of the cookies, "Just wanted to stretch my legs."
He chomped into the dessert. "Mhmm... I didn't realize I had worked up such an appetite." Nate grinned.
"Well don't be a stranger." Barry grinned. He left most of the cookies on Nate's table, but he was clopping around and offering the rest to the remaining customers in the store.
Nate was a little surprised the business-satyr took one, but he seemed to have loosened up with everyone else. It was funny seeing someone clop around pantsless while still wearing a crisp sports jacket. Even his fur seemed particularly well brushed.
"How did I do? Want me to dial it back?" Owen asked curiously.
Nate bit into another one of the cookies, "Oh no, this is perfect." He said to both Owen and the baked good.
Barry clopped over to the sleeping patron, quietly setting the cookie down beside him. Owen spoke up again, "Why did you leave that person unaffected sir?"
Nate got out the Chronivac. He brushed the crumbs off his fingers before typing a quick response.
> They stay you should let sleeping cats lie. Why don't we turn him into a cat?
"What a splendid idea." Owen sounded eager, "Which type?"
> How about... a sphinx?
"Excellent choice sir." The Chronivac beeped.
The sleeping customer looked like another businessman. He was wearing khaki pants and a blue button down shirt, and had apparently dozed off while reading the newspaper. After Owen's beep, Nate started watching the man for any signs of a change.
It took Nate a minute to pick up on it. The man looked positively normal for several moments... until Nate noticed that his pants had been replaced by tawny strands of fur. The pants lost definition, melting onto his figure as it shifted into a fur coat.
He yawned, stretching out. The seat he was resting on turned into a sofa, letting the man lie down. His feet began to shift into lion paws, and Nate finally noticed his shirt beginning to disappear.
"Are you a bit of a nudist Nate? I'm beginning to detect a trend," Owen teased.
> Hey, it's just a coincidence!
Nate tried not to spend too much time staring down at the screen. The fur was traveling up the man's chest now, before trickling down his arms. His entire body shifted in proportion as his thumbs folded under his hands and he grew another matching set of paws.
The sofa lost definition under the cat man. He slowly sank to the floor and stretched out on a series of pillows left there for quadrupedal guests. He began to purr a bit as the fur started to grow up his neck.
When the fur reached the base of his scalp, his hair suddenly started growing out at an alarming rate. Within moments his face was framed by an imposing brown mane. To Nate's amusement, the fluff of fur still had the same part as the man had before. A pair of lion ears perked out of the mane, but after that his changes started to slow down.
He yawned, raising up onto all fours. He looked down at his newspaper with a pair of slit yellow eyes, but then his nose twitched curiously. He purred excitedly when he saw the cookie sitting beside him.
"Enjoy!" Barry waved.
He waved a paw, "Nyao! Thank you!" He purred in a deep baritone.
The sphinx bent down, biting onto the cookie as he resumed reading his paper. He sat on his haunches, a large tasseled tail swishing back and forth as he caught up on the events of the day.
> That was incredible Owen! He seems so... oblivious!
"That is what you asked for." Owen beeped, signaling the end of the transformation.
> How long is it going to last?
"Last? The transformation's complete Nate. He is and always has been a lion with a man's face." There was a brief pause, "I believe he does radio jingles."
> Really? Wow, you're pretty powerful Owen.
"Thank you sir." The device spun for a second, "Sir, a group of college students is approaching. Should I keep changing anyone inside of this Satyrbucks into a satyr?"
Nate glanced over at the window. Oh wow, there were six people walking straight towards the coffee shop.
"Err, no- Well." Nate mumbled to himself, "Okay, do this last group and then stop."
"Affirmative sir." Owen beeped.
Nate sat back, enjoying his post-work latte and snack as he watched the students shift into young goat men. In a matter of minutes, the mythic population in the city had increased nearly tenfold.