Chapter One: Botanic Boogaloo
Today's weather was quite pleasant for Montana. My buddy and I were out and about with our fishing poles making the short drive to the lake, so we could go fishing in our usual spot. An hour passed with no luck, aside from a 5-inch perch I caught. So at last my buddy decided to call it quits and head back. I stayed for a while longer and noticed a rather odd patch of plants a dozen yards away that weren't there before.
‘Ah why not, it's not like looking at them would kill me!’ so I packed my gear up and made my way down the shoreline to the scrubby patch and took a good look at them, and the flowers looked rather similar to snapdragons, except far too big, and teeming with broad leaves. They looked mighty pretty, but I had never seen them anywhere before. I decided some pictures would do, so I could look them up later. Right as I was taking a closer look, I slipped on a rock and fell in the bush! No immediate pain on my arms, so no thorns, thank goodness!! I snapped a photo of the bush, and took one of the flowers for better identification later, and began a hurried trek back to my friend's cabin, as that was the one place with decent internet around here. My arms had begun to itch ever so slightly… hmm, maybe it's a relative of poison ivy?
I got home faster than i usually do and pulled out my computer and began searching for the flower with no luck “...odd? no results?” I said puzzled “Well let's try a reverse image search! still nothing??” I was rather bewildered. ‘Why am I so ITCHY?!’ “maybe reddit might… BINGO!” i clicked triumphant! “wait, it’s only a month old?” i was confused at how recent it was, but continued “aannd absolutely NO information on the flower.” I was quite disappointed that it was no help. “Well that's just LOVELY. It's a rare flower.” I said rather grumpily.“Huh, they're saying to ask if we want more details” I typed out my question as no one else had already done so, “well, it'd be best if I try to do something about th… AUGH WHAT THE!?!'' I cried out in pain!
The itching had worsened to a burning sensation, like hot nails, then like molten steel was pouring down my arms! I felt like there was something putting pressure on my skin, from the wrong way?! I looked down and saw little slits forming on my arms, out of each slid a slightly blood navy blue scale. “HOLY SH— AAAUUGH!” was all I got out before doubling over and crying out in pure agony, as bones were cracking and reforming, and it felt like a blacksmith was pounding on my arms like pieces of steel! My friend busted in, his shotgun in hand, only to see me writhing and screaming in agony. The scales only spread further and further, my pinkie and ring finger fusing together, each growing a deadly silver talon, sharp as a razor. The scales began spreading down my belly, changing to large honey gold scales. I could feel my spine reshaping like I just got run over by a big truck, and pressure building up at the base of my spine. A tail exploded out of my backside whipping about with the rest of my agonized body. Legs began to stretch and reform, bones snapping like firecrackers; the feeling was like getting them run over by a tractor, backed onto, then struck with a sledgehammer for good measure. Feet were breaking and reforming to three toed paws right as my hips busted and shaped out for a digitigrade stance. I could feel pressure on my back , right at the shoulders. I tore off my shirt and saw long arm-like appendages with long bony fingers, with a leathery membrane spreading rapidly between them, it was the same shade of honey gold as my belly was. They grew and grew till they stopped at about seven feet each. I could feel the scales advancing up my neck, which lengthened as the scales made a race for my head, till the scales finally reached my head and began pulling and hammering my face into a scaly muzzle, as my hair began to fall out in large tufts. My ears lengthened and became pointy, and I felt more pressure from the back of my skull as two silver colored horns pushed their way out. I began hacking and coughing as I felt my insides rearranging like someone was using my chest like a mixing bowl. I felt my tongue grow longer and longer before it split at the tip, becoming forked. Then my eyes felt like they were burning, I shut them tight as the rest of my senses went out, as my whole spine seemed to catch fire. Then I felt something in my mind, just a little something. It wandered into a place in the back of my mind and seemed to disappear. I let out a final whimper of pain, and went unconscious.
I came to, standing outside a burning house, blood on my talons and the body of my friend before me, “No! NONONO! This isn't right!” I squeezed my eyes shut, “Just a dream, just a dream!” and the scenery faded. “Cleverrr one arrn’t you?” came a hissing a growling voice. there was only one thing that voice could belong to. “Oh no you don't! I have read too darn many stories!” I was panic stricken, as I wasn't expecting to deal with a major problem this soon. It was the one that would help with movement, my other half. and yet was as feral and bad natured as could be. “I’d rather die than let YOU have any part to play in MY head!!” I spat at the hulking beast before me, quadruped and huge. “It ssseeemsss you have alrready made yourrr choice then, ssshame.” it leapt for me, and grabbed my neck before I could react. Searing white hot pain made me roar in pain, but I clawed at its eyes, managing to gash one before it threw me into a mental wall. I scrambled up and dodged as it attempted to ram where I was. I tried conjuring up a weapon. The first thing that came to mind was a shotgun, that felt comforting in my hands er... claws. I managed to get off a blast and missed as the feral slapped the weapon out of my hands with its tail and sent me flying again. I tried something different, bringing in help. A single dragon came to mind, one I had read stories on over in DA, a massive fluffy red and cream western style dragon, who could use magic. All he did was nod, and began whaling on my other half as I tried to clear my thoughts. A cool idea came to mind, and I thought up the one person who would destroy that thing for sure, Doomguy. I even added the music in for that extra effect. The fluffy one stepped aside and vanished as doomguy started to tear the feral a new one. And finally he was sitting there cut open, I said coldly “my mind is my own. no-one else's, especially not pathetic mind parasites like you.” I ended him with a final stab through the heart with my talons.
Waking up from my unconsciousness, there was the sound of a shotgun being pumped close by. I opened my eyes and lifted my head to see my friend with said shotgun in hand. His hands were shaking it back and forth, and he had tears in his eyes.
“I don’t want to shoot you,” he said, lips quivering. “But I don’t know… I don’t know… “
I could see he was having a difficult time, so finally I said, “Then don’t.”
“Tell me what the name of your truck is.” he asked. “and I will know if it's you or not.” “Please tell me something hasn't happened to Ol’ Smoky!” I cried out sarcastically. Realization, relief, and joy all flashed across his face as he slowly dropped to his knees, laying the shotgun on the floor, slowly sobbing in joy and relief. “It is you!” I tried to get up to a two-legged stance, but found I had lost the knowledge. Instead, I used a four-legged stance that seemed a little more natural and easier to walk with than the previous one. ‘Maybe I can relearn it later, this feels too much like an animal.’ Using my wings, I wrapped him in a hug to comfort him.
“It’s okay, you didn’t know,” I said.
“Yeah, but… “
“No but’s. It’s all good.”
I felt him hug back, then we broke it off. We sat there for a few minutes, then, “So, how did this happen?” he asked finally.
“Some kind of plant I found close to where we were fishing today… “
“... Yesterday.”
“What!? I've been asleep that long?!”
“We went fishing yesterday. I’ve been trying to decide… whether I needed to leave you alive or not… “ he said with a sniffle.
“I already told you, it’s fine now. Though I will tell you, this muzzle sure is going to take some getting used to.” I flashed a smile, but that unnerved him a little. Razor sharp teeth and all that. “Oh, right. Teeth. My bad!”
“You were saying?” my buddy asked to get me back on track.
“Oh, right, um, so yeah, a plant that I didn’t recognize and also couldn’t find online, besides one Reddit post that didn’t give any information. Though it did have a picture where the guy was a dragon, which I thought was a costume instead.”
“A plant, huh? Wow… a thought just came to me. How are you going to explain this to your parents?”
“Craaaaap… “
