it all began under a full moon. no one quite understands it but the moon itself seemed to be the cause. the first report was of a man in the Louisiana Bayou transforming into an overweight alligator. As the moon passes over the earth more reports of strange things begin to happen. some were minor like increased sexual activity and increased body hair.
in a college dorm, a student doing night classes finds himself an anthro donkey who can't speak anymore. his bays unintelligible as his human mind and instincts clash with each other. there have even been some reports of mythological beings appearing. in the badlands, two hikers were sitting by a campfire when their bodies grew fur and wings. the two griffins also swapped genders as their instincts told them to make more of their kind. in Utah, a night guard finds himself a nine-foot anthro t-rex. the next day scientists all over the world were trying to find out what happened to their fellow humans.
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a woman walks through the once-condemned hospital. She pulls her card from her lab coat and puts it on the scanner. entering her office the scientist sat down and turned on the camera. "this is Dr. Nicole Taylor. log code #30. the facility is now fully functional. it will be used to monitor those affected and those who might become infected during the full moon tonight." she looked a little nervous before shaking it away.
"it seems that the moon is most transformative during its fullest phase. however, more minor changes have been reported across the globe. like the initial time of change, these only happen in the midnight hour. These range from mental state to muscle tone. thankfully only those exposed to direct moonlight have seen said changes. however, I'm told to update this every day until a solution is found." she paused the video then grabbed the large stack of folders and picked them off one by one.
Cash Victor:
age: 43
location at the point of transformation: Louisiana Bayou
status of changes: increased size and weight. appearance has become a mix of human and alligator. not contagious.
mental state: Mr. Victor is safe for now. does not seem bothered by his new appearance. It's unclear if he loves alligators or if his mind changed. The latter might be true as he can use his new body like he always had it.
as the senior analyst in this 'instinct moon,' that people were calling it she was to visit and monitor each affected individual she could. Mr. Victor was a nice man and happy with his new body. "people will come from all over to get a taste of my food now" she remembered him saying as he cooked. his only complaints were that he lost his hair and gained a ton of weight. moving on to the next file she read it.
Maxwell Shelton:
age: 21
location at the point of transformation: Benton College
status of changes: appearance is a mix of man and donkey. the latter being more prominent above the neck and below the waist. torso and hands have fur. speech was lost during the change. any clothing on his pelvis and legs will be ripped off by the subject. Mr. Shelton appears unable to control this action as found by typing. specialty glasses have been made for the subject. not contagious.
mental state: Mr. Shelton seems distressed at his new form. he frantically types about wanting to be human and having trouble using his new legs. his instincts clash with his human mind almost constantly.
Dr. Taylor sighed as she could see the distress in the man's picture. unlike Mr. Victor Mr. Shelton is not happy with his form. however, a vague similarity was discovered between the two when the doctor went to the man's room. she noticed how his fraternity had a donkey as their mascot. the next case she went to prove this theory correct.
Earl and Stacy Norman:
age: 22 and 23
location of change: the Badlands
status of changes: both have changed into feral griffins as well as changing gender. Stacy is now the dominant black-coated male while Earl is the submissive blond-coated female. over the month they have made a nest near their campsite. not contagious.
mental state: they do not seem to remember their old lives or understand humans anymore. from observations they have the same intelligence as they did when they were human but do not recognize family members. recently eggs have appeared in their nest and Earl fiercely guards them.
an observation of their campsite proved the doctor right. they had several books in their vehicle regarding mythological creatures. this coupled with their love of the outdoors made her realize the connections she had made were true. a facility must be created to observe all the changes. during her trip to the next reported person, she noticed some changes in people. a man talked to his dog and the dog was responding. a woman had cat eyes that she said after she stared at the moon late last night and more. grabbing the final of the most publicized reports she read.
Malcolm Watts:
age: 37
location of change: Utah dig site
status of changes: the subject's body has become heavily muscular. appearance resembles a t-rex with human proportions. existing body hair did not fall out, unlike Mr. Victor. not contagious.
mental state: Mr. Watts or rather Mr.Rex as he prefers to be called now has had several major mental changes. friends and family have noticed he is now more assertive and dominant. this could be because of his overweight problem which has been fixed now. he is now very sexually active.
doctor Taylor found out about the last part personally. She kept out the more sexual of the encounters to keep her professionalism. later she found even those dating or married wound up hooking up with him. it was a possible change in his pheromones but not one she wanted to find out personally. sighing she resumed the recording and spoke.
"due to the smaller events, I have determined this was not a one-time thing. it is unclear if this 'instinct moon' could change any more than two people at a time. it is recommended that a news report of the future change is announced in the coming hours. This is Doctor Taylor signing off" With that she stopped talking and grabbed her cup. Leaving her office she went to the break room. a foot from the door she could hear the sounds of her assistants. "I'm telling you Celina we should go out during the instinct moon and take notes on how we're feeling when we change" Nicole recognized this voice as Simon Smith. "you're crazy we are assistants, not mad scientists. besides there's no grunted way of knowing what you'll become" Celina said.
with this, Dr. Taylor opened the door as swiftly as possible. She passed by a surprised Celina and a nervous Simon. After she poured her coffee she spoke. "Mr. Smith you understand the risk of this moon. not only is it irreversible at this point but it can also alter your mind to a point you won't know who you are?" the stern look on her face made Mr. Smith gulp.
"I understand the risks, ma'am. I feel as though an experiment is needed to understand its full effects and what causes it." he then pulled out a toy robot from his bag and explained. "each person who changed had something influence their changes. a love of alligators, a fraternity mascot, belief in mythological creatures, and guarding a dinosaur dig site. if I'm right then we are one step closer to unlocking what exactly this is" Simon panted after his speech. after sipping her coffee Dr. Taylor spoke "Okay then Mr. Smith" She then sat down her drink and gave him her speech. "however everything about this must be monitored. also if after this you are unable to continue your duties then you will have to be let go understood." the young man nodded with little hesitation.
"we'll have to get the equipment set up in the parking lot. ill all the government and tell them of your plan. if they okay it then it's settled" She then picked up her coffee and left before either of her assistants could speak. Turning to his colleague Simon gave a nervous smile "I guess it's settled then". after Celina was gone he grasped the chair and bent over heaving for air.
back at her desk Nicole contacted the government and got the green light for the experiment. glancing at the clock the sun was about to set. soon the full moon will come out and when the midnight hour hits so do the changes.