"After what happened . . . I prefer not to have to walk across back to my place again. So yeah . . . I think I'd like that . . . "
Casper gracefully let her in.
They been at 435 when they left the fast food joint. The little turtle girl, the receptionist, and Minerva and her husband brought the total up to 439 Casper calculated.
That meant they were 61 converts away from their goal of 500 transformed humans. Then again, one of those 439 had never been anything BUT a Synthetic, and were still in their parent's womb.
So should he count that life as one of the 500? Either way, Casper chose to wait until morning.
He spotted the apartment's land lady out of the corner of his eye, locking up her office for the night.
In for a penny, in for a pound. And she unconsciously chose her new form.
First he thought she was an orange and brown raccoon, but then realized she was actually now a red panda Synthetic. She just hung the keys she had been holding around her neck. The rubber anthro walked off to her room, not showing any discomfort at all at being naked outside in the middle of the night.
440.
Sixty to go.
He thought of the ring. He had transformed a person without his orders. It was to protect him. But this worried him. What other 'command decisions' would the ring end up making? What if he was arrested by the police for something he didn't do? What if Ashley got angry over a misunderstanding and slammed him? What else might it do? What if he chose just to walk straight into Fort Knox?
Casper actually felt the ring quiver, like it actually sensed his disapproval of its reaction.
Casper sighed. The wizard had said the ring would grow in power and complexity the more it was used. But he didn't think about how far it would go.
He was too tired for this. After locking his door, both Casper and Ashley fell onto the bed, Ashley wrapped her tail around him and pulled him closer. Both fell into their trace like state that was their equivalent of sleep and simply laid there.
Both broke out of their trance by morning, but Ashley didn't want them to break apart yet, and neither did Casper, but both of them had classes today. B-Day classes meant whole new classes and teachers to transform.
They'd hit 500 and likely higher before the day ended for sure.
This would be it.
Ashley showed first. Then Casper.
Casper wondered about Minerva and her family, what explanation reality came up with for them being at a retirement facility. Maybe her family now worked there now and rented one of the rooms?
Ashley left to get her things for the school day. "Remember, I want to be there for # 500."
"I won't forget," Casper said.
So the pair went their separate ways around.
Casper looked outside his window and saw some of the families and beach goers he had seen yesterday going about their daily business, bright and shinny among the city's population of . . . around 10,000 last casper checked.
He went by bus again . . . of course a different bus from before.
The bus didn't have a barcode scanner when he got on, but it did soon enough.
There was actually something rather entertaining when the woman driving became a mostly naked rubber argali ewe. It was actually a bit fun how wool looked in fur. The orange living balloon picked up the scanner and Casper calmly turned around as his rear's barcode got scanned. After the major number increase from yesterday, he found himself no longer embarrassed or humiliated. Why would he?
441.
59 to go.
There were a dozen more people on the bus, including a noisy teenager, and a war vet and his wife, and a woman with her children. He also saw on the boss was Janet, actually sing her beach ball chest to hold a copy of War and Peace she was reading. What was stunning to Casper was how little people around her reacted to them.
"Hey Janet," He waved as he sat down.
"Hey Casper, enjoy the movie last night?"
"I'd say so, you?"
"It's not as much fun when you've read the comics, and you know all the changes they've made to your favorite heroes."
"Sorry."
"It's alright. So you and Ash go home together last night again?"
"Yes, first we ran into and helped a little girl."
"Heh. Good Samaritans." The pink hedgehog said still reading her book.
"Janet, if you could another kind of Synthetic other than a pink hedgehog, would you?"
"That's a weird question."
"Humor me?"
"No way Jose. A pink hedgehog is what I am, a pink hedgehog is what I'm happy to be."
Casper nodded.
"So you plan on getting pregnant instead of Ashley to see what it's like?"
"NO! I mean, I hadn't really thought about it!"
"Heh. Just teasing." She smirked, still reading.
Casper focused on the humans on the bus. He was able to handle 21 when he was just starting out before, but that had been one two types of TF, the orca couch and the otter boys. Didn't hurt if he did them systematically.
The vet and his wife both became Pronghorns, the vet became military green with camouflage patching, around his neck was his dog tags. While he LOOKED younger, the rank and insignia he was wearing were now emboldened into his body. Casper wondered if there was a point that Synthetics simply stopped getting older. He actually had a green patch over his nozzle.
His wife became pink and orange pastel colors in a fading gradient effect. Her nozzle was exposed, and she leaned against him lovingly, their clothes and canes having vanished but no longer needing them. Both a pair of walking rubber pool toys, one having served his country.
443.
The nine remaining humans were changed in quick succession.
The punk . . . became a rat. Guess some stereotypes were stereotypes for a reason. But he DID turn down his music and plug in his ear pieces so he could listen to his punk rap without bothering the other passengers. Becoming a mix of black, and neon pink and neon green jagged patterns around his body.
444.
The woman's two boys became turtles, one olive green and one jade green, you couldn't tell if they were boy, or tomboys just by looking at them. The girl with them became a minty green pony with a pink mane. The mother . . . became a lemon yellow lama. The family of naked rubber animals going about their day, if slightly more subdued.
Another teenage boy who was a lot more quite, became a bright orange fox with red eyes, and continued to just look out the window looking at the people outside.
The girl a couple years older than him became a sand colored camel, complete with a big rubber hump on her back.
The two men in business suits and brief cases in the back . . . both became naked except for a pair of ties, and still had their cellphones they had been talking into. And both became lions, complete with a pair of big rubbery manes. One was white and nearly transparent, Casper could almost make out what was gong on behind the lion man while he was made of glass instead of rubber. The man next to him became a rubber lion so black it was like he sucked in the light around him. Well, tastes were tastes.
The transparent business man got off before Casper, he could see his barcode through the other side of him! And it did confirm once and form all that yes, Synthetics did NOT have any internal organs, at all. The nozzle just led to more air, and the bulge between is legs contained nothing. And his mane was as much a part of his body as his fingers and tail that he politely wrapped around his waist in a business like manner.
His wife greeted him at the bus stopped. They hugged. Casper transformed her JUST as the bus doors closed. She transformed into a baled naked lioness, her colors actually looking CRYSTAL, the way the light shinned through her creating a rainbow effect to everything around her. The way her body moved made it even more beautiful as her rubber body squeaked.
553.
The bus stopped, Casper got off along with Janet, and the Synthetics went off to their B-day classes.