Casper wondered of . . . Haeliax (what an over the top name, but as Ashley loved to tease him, his ram form's color pattern was rather over the top too) had only lost his ability to cast magic, but still had his magical sense. Casper hadn't ASKED the ring to let Haeliax remember his existence as a human, but he did anyway. Haeliax also called him a Synthetic, his attitude implying that he didn't know Synthetics hadn't actually existed until Casper began to change reality.
He and Ashley had joked their new goal was 1,000, but was it? Then again, Casper realized he honestly did have no intention of stopping . . . but he began to think of his classes, he didn't want to FAIL THEM.
He thought of how Haeliax had increased the ring's power, and wondered if it could say make his teacher let him pass. Casper shuddered. NO! No way! No how! He had promised himself, even if he was changing what people were created as, he promised himself that he wouldn't directly manipulate or control what those choices would be for in their new forms. Not only would that kind of power take the surprise out of everything, it would also be far too tempting to constantly use for everything. Bills, a job, the ring was powerful, but it wasn't going to give him an easy life where all he did all day WAS transform people. He admitted that might be nice, but he still had a life to live, and he still had responsibilities and obligations.
Sure he had his fantasy of an ever growing population of Synthetics from humanity, but ultimately, he still had bills to pay, and classes to attend, and friends to socialize with, simple as that. He seriously doubted he could pass classes or pay bills and rent by simply altering reality so people had been living pool toys.
He had an additional vision, of the little blue horse girl who had worn the purple blanket as a cape at the birthday party, though now she was wearing a purple scarf instead, and now also had a horn from her forehead indicating she was now a unicorn, and similar 'upgrades' had been made to the human horse Synthetics through out the city. Similar changes happened to the birthday girl's big brother, and his girl friend who also get sets of both.
The birthday party he had changed just before reaching the beach, and the impression of the ring's pattern was burned into his hoof digit, as if to say he and the ring were now bonded by fate as soon as he used it to transform those people at the beach.
With all the horse Synthetics . . . he drabble with the fantasy of the mayor would turn into a horse Synthetic with a beige body with a silver mane, or a white towering awe-inspiring form with horns and wings.
Casper remembered how the wizard had warned him that trying to use the ring to rule the world or make himself a dictator would call down the wraith of the cosmic forces. But since he was changing people into Synthetics, and people voted, he guess that didn't count as a violation.
Thanks to Haeliax, Casper wondered what ELSE the ring could do now. He dreaded to think about it. He didn't WANT to know if the ring could now effect people choices, their outlooks, their futures, their fates beyond becoming a Synthetic, if he did know, he'd be tempted to use it, and would likely not stop and . . . he remembered how the wizard said how the LIMITS of one's magic ring, rather than the POWER were what gave it true meaning.
He thought of those he had changed before on his own artistic whims, rather than letting his own tastes decide what they'd be, now he actually felt a bit ashamed of doing so. But he chats with Ashley and Janet had made him realize that this was what they were now, and to change him again would feel, well, rude.
526
Huh? On instinct the turned around and saw the bar tender was changing. he couldn't really see his lower body, but he could see his upper body lose its clothes, and nipples vanishing as his skin became shinny rubber, and his inside became air. Right at the level of the bar his nozzle was just barely visible. His modeling lines forming over his body, and his barcode number stamping into existence on his rub. For a human being that barcode would have been seen as demeaning or dehumanizing, but they weren't human, and Casper realized that he would have felt NAKED or INCOMPLETE without his own (ironic given he now lacked certain parts and spent now the whole day naked).
Of course he kept his apron.
He body turned green with gold highlights, as his hands became claws, Casper spotted a lion's tail swaying behind him and knew he wasn't just some eagle Synthetic. The fully functional and flight capable feathery wings formed behind him. His ears vanished along with his hair, his face forming into a smooth beak, his figure become something out of a muscle magazine in the process. Casper didn't need to guess that he was as sealed up downstairs as all of them.
He wondered if, in universe, the reason Synthetics had to be humanoid had to do with them being made by humans and therefore their minds had been based off of humans themselves.
The bar tendered continued his job, added his body to the symphony of rubbery squeaking sound that would have begun to annoy Casper as a human but now was music to his Synthetic ears as it grew in the city.
Still, why 526? Of course.
"Excuse me for asking, but, you have grandchildren do you?"
"Heh. What gave it away Mr. Psychic?" The rubber griffin said pointing behind him at a family picture indeed showing a small flock of rubber griffins.
His wife bright pink and white with pearls. His son or daughter with his/her wife/husband. A pair of shinny silver and gold naked anthro griffins who looked nearly like walking rubber trophies. And a little daughter who was far more traditional colors for what you'd think a griffin would be with purple eyeshadow. And a son looking just out of diapers (not he would have anyway as a baby Synthetic) who was a silver and black baby griffin.
"Heh, yeah, ya caught me." Casper smiled and nodded.
"I know all the games kid, good try though."
"Thanks."
'Are there any mythological creatures you can't do? For example?'
~Mermaids, and centaurs, elves, and other such creatures have a base human appearance, and thus do not fit this rings definition of the transformation into 'anthrophic animals'. Also, centaurs are too far beyond non-humanoid form to neatly fit into being considered 'anthromorphic' in spit of rubber anthrophic snakes can function with only a tail for a lower body, it still functions mostly the same as two legs. These have nothing to do with my power level, they would contradict my purpose master.~
'So I can't make Synthetics of say, Harpies, because they're a human torso with feathered wings and legs, and that contradicts your base function of turning people into rubber ANTHRO ANIMALS! And you could only change Haeliax into a dragon, since it counted as an rubber ANTHRO dragon. But you can't really have say an rubber anthro ELF or a rubber anthro CENTAUR, or a rubber anthro MERMAID.'
~Technically master I could make a rubber anthro dolphin with a fin like lower body, but unless the subject was already paralyzed from the waist down as a human, the changes of fate would make their inability to walk on land would become beyond the restrictions you have given towards improving the lot in life and altruism of all those you change.~
'That's why that rubber shark at the beach had two legs.'
~Yes master.~
'So it STILL needs to be a Mythological creature, or, er, creature of imagination, that can be interpreted as an anthromorphic ANIMAL of some sort? Like Haeliax as a dragon, and the bar tender as a griffin, and the little girls as unicorns, pegasi, and Alicorns?'
~Yes my master.~
A thought occurred to Casper. 'What would happen if say, a model whose job was to model shoes, had a snake as their favorite animal? Logically they could have never had that job then if transformed.'
~Hypothetical situations are beyond my ability. A ring's master is expected to learn how their power effects the world.~
Casper thought what Ashley said about an after-party. She'd logically be right. And even if there may or may not be any humans to transform there, he OWED IT to Tommy and Lana to at least show up for that! He had missed their game. He was their friend and he had missed it. He had let the ring distract him TOO much from them.
He turned to Ashley, still enjoying the new blue strip down her body. Even if her extra memories now told her she had always had it.
"Come on, let's go to that after-party."
Ashley didn't object.