The Story of Kodiak Pt.1: The Conversion Gene

When Kodiak transforms into a dragon one night under a full moon, many mysteries arose from it. One of them, a mysterious fox who claims she can help him control the genetic advancement transforme him

                A stirring woke Kodiak up… for the third time that night. The room was quiet, as usual, and judging by the amount of times he woke up that night it had to be a bit past midnight. He glanced beside him to see copper, his future mate, asleep beside him. Exhausted and sore, for some reason, he stretched and let out a big sigh. His den was comfortably cool and the outside temperature was not as bad either. The trickling from the nearby stream provided ambience for sleepless nights like this… but for some reason he just could not stay asleep this particular night. He glanced out of the window of his den to see the bright reddish-orange glow of Luna, Terra’s third and rarest moon. Luna only comes in view for two weeks every two years. Rumors and superstition have spread wildly about the appearance of Luna, but neither he nor the other members of his pack thought twice about it. He rolled over to make another attempt at getting back to sleep before he found himself in a more difficult position.

                This time, the inside of the den felt uncomfortably hot. Kodiak’s thick black and white fur felt like a heavy blanket in this heat. He tossed and turned trying to find a more comfortable position before he finally decided that going back to sleep was just impossible. Tiredly, he pulled himself up on his paws and slipped outside quietly as to not awaken his mate. A calm breeze brushed through his fur as he walked through the Veridian forest headed towards the stream. The faint glows of fireflies guided him through the thick, tall grass and around the tall trees. The sounds of crickets and other insects filled the forest as he approached the small stream where his pack is centered around. He sat at the banks for a while, enjoying the serene sound of the stream and the forest blending together. The clearing in the forest allowed for a perfect view of the night sky, which was a reddish-orange color just like the moon. He looked down to see the reflection of the moon which was slightly distorted by the unsettled water. As he leaned in to get a drink he got a quick glimpse of his own reflection.

                He jumped back quickly, His heart racing at what he thought he saw. His reflection appeared to be different… well… different than what he was used to. He could’ve sworn he had seen the reflection of some sort of monster… but he didn’t wait long enough to be sure. Slowly, he returned to the banks of the water to take another look. Slowly he peered over the banks into the water to see himself… his normal self… looking back at him. He sighed and smiled to himself. “I really must be tired.” He muttered and proceeded to tasting the waters of the stream. It was getting pretty late, not like Kodiak would be able to get a decent amount of consecutive sleep anyway, but he decided to return home. On the way, a pain in his chest caused him to stop. It felt as though his heart began beating faster out of nowhere. To compensate for his heart’s elevated rate, his breathing began to intensify as well. “What the hell…” He thought to himself as he tried to control his breathing. Suddenly his vision began to become distorted. He struggled to walk faster… to try and get help maybe… but he started to become lightheaded the faster he walked until he could barely stand.

                Something was happening… was there something in the water? Was it some sort of long term illness that he had that just now began to show symptoms? So many thoughts crossed his head as he fell to the ground. The forest was spinning, from his perspective. His heart was beating so fast he thought that it would explode. The sounds around him seemed to have amplified along with his symptoms as well. Out of nowhere, an unfamiliar pressure began expanding in his body. He cried out in pain as the pressure intensified. “I’m going to die…” he kept thinking to himself, “what the hell is happening to me?” All of a sudden, his body ripped. He felt his spine expanding rapidly along with his arms and legs. Extra appendages ripped out of his shoulder blades and expanded just as fast as the rest of his body. It felt as though his bones and organs were growing rapidly. His skull and tail felt the same way as well. He felt what seemed to be horns begin to protrude from the back of his skull. Glancing sideways a bit, he noticed that the appendages that ripped from his shoulder blades were actually what appeared to be huge wings. Before he could react, his muzzle grew heavier. What used to be a soft, regular sized muzzle began to grow longer and developed a thick sheet of steel that wrapped all the way to about the back of his jaw. The wave of growth traveled from the tip of his muzzle and continued on to his neck which felt as though it was lengthening as well. The snapping and reforming of his vertebrae, ribs, and skull echoed in his ears, which also seemed to have grown a bit. The process was excruciatingly painful. His teeth bared and breathing still heightened, Kodiak tried to handle it. He was in too much pain to try and figure out exactly what was happening to him.

                The wave of growth passed through his spine and continued on to his tail which snapped and reformed the same way his neck and spine did. He glanced behind him, to try and see what had happened, but his vision suddenly disappeared… only for a moment though, before it returned. The new vision that had appeared was different than what he was used to. It was different than the optical-bioluminescence he was born with… even though it felt the same, it was sharper. He could see further and contrast better. Even though it was night, he could see almost as clear as day almost the same way his glowing eyes gene (Bio-luminescence gene causes the carrier’s eyes to glow at night. It allows the carrier to see clearly at night.) Works but somehow better. With the wave of expansion finally reaching the tip of Kodiak’s tail, the pressure in his body disappeared and the pain stopped. His heart rate began to slow… almost as fast as it had begun. Kodiak was terrified. “What the hell was that…?” he said trying to get on his feet. But there was one thing he immediately noticed. Gravity had intensified! No, couldn’t be. He must have gotten a lot heavier. Kodiak, still breathing hard, looked back at his body to see what had happened to him. One thing was for sure, he realized. He definitely was not himself any more… as a matter of fact… he wasn’t a wolf anymore either…

                Kodiak’s body had increased in length, which explained the snapping and reforming of his vertebrae from the base of his skull to the tip of his tail. He also got taller as a result. The first thing he noticed was the pair of massive wings that grew up and out of his shoulder blades which were white, the same color of most of his body. Second, he noticed his paws had changed from small furry ones to massive, scaly ones similar to a reptile’s. Huge, sharp claws protruded from them. The scales on his legs went to about halfway up his forearms on his front legs and up to his knees on his back legs before a new, thicker form of fur replaced them. The fur kept his same black markings. The bottom half of his belly and tail was covered in thick, scaly textured skin similar to the bottom of a snake. The top half was fur with his normal coloring. The scales on the bottom half of his neck, abdomen, and tail appeared to be black, while the scales on his legs appeared to be gray in color. He grabbed his muzzle and felt the thick steel plate that replaced his soft, furry one. It wasn’t the same shape either. He felt his face, all the way from the tip of his nose to the back of his head, which had four horns protruding out. “What…” He thought to himself as he took second looks at his body. His tail was longer as well, and moved similar to a snake when he tried to wag it. He realized, after a while, that he was indeed no longer a wolf… but a dragon instead.             

                “This can’t be real…” He couldn’t stop thinking to himself, “this can’t be happening”. In disbelief, he observed himself over and over. It happened so quickly, but the experience was so painful that it felt like hours had passed. Kodiak noticed, after the transformation, that his energy had almost disappeared. He felt so close to passing out from it. “I can’t stay out here…” he thought to himself as he slowly felt himself losing consciousness. He struggled to pull himself to his feet, but even that was a challenge. Standing up took so much of his energy that the closer he got to standing up, the more intense his light-headedness got and he got closer to losing consciousness. He laid back down, in an attempt to save energy, while thinking of his next move. “Worrying about the circumstance isn’t too important right now…” He thought to himself, “But I definitely can’t stay here… in the middle of the forest.” He glanced around him, with hopes to discovering a solution, but he could hardly see anything. His vision, along with his consciousness was slowly fading. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw a strange, animal-like figure. When he looked up towards it, it was gone. “Somebody must have seen it…” he assumed to himself, “I wonder who it was though…” Minutes passed and Kodiak, now almost completely passed out, decided that returning home or getting help was impossible at that point. The least he could do was to try and conceal himself… but he couldn’t move at all. “Crap… what’s copper going to say…” he thought to himself as he drifted closer to sleep. “Copper loves dragons though… so maybe I’ll be alright…?” he thought before finally losing consciousness. From a distance, the strange animal-like figure watched cautiously. “There’s no doubt about it…” It whispered to itself, “That’s got to be him.”

                “Hey!” A sudden cry rang out, jerking Kodiak awake. The area that he had been sleeping in was flattened due to the transformation that night leaving evidence that it did actually happen. But Kodiak immediately noticed that he was a wolf again. “There you are! I’ve been looking all over for you!” The familiar voice cried out playfully. Kodiak, still barely conscious, glanced up to see Copper, his (future) mate running towards him. Her short red hair trailed behind her and the wind swept through her tan and medium brown fur as she ran from the forest where they lived. Scarlett, his friend and close co-worker, was close behind. Scarlett isn’t Veridia, but Incarnadian. Meaning her eyes are a darker shade of purple than would be expected from Veridian wolves. Her fur is a tan color with reddish-brown markings and an orange underbelly. “What are you doing sleeping out here? Don’t you know how dangerous the forest can be at night?!” She scolded, “Was I snoring or something?” He didn’t know how to reply. “Should I tell her…?” He kept thinking to himself, “What will she say? Will she believe me?” So many thoughts crossed his mind before she interrupted him. “We were going to go hunting… if you wanted to come with us…” she said smiling shyly, “I’ve gotten a lot better at it you know… Scarlett’s been teaching me.” Kodiak’s body was sore and his stomach was terribly upset… probably from the transformation the night before. “Hey are you alright? You don’t look so good…” Scarlett said stepping closer to him, “Did you catch a cold?” He nodded, “Yeah I might have… it was colder than I thought last night…” He decided to tell them about the transformation later, at a better time. “Well you can go back and rest if you want.” Copper said quickly, “If you’re sick it’d be dangerous to go with us.” “I’ll be fine,” Kodiak replied quickly standing up, “I just need some water. You guys can go ahead; I’ll meet you up there.”

                The two agreed and went on their way. “If you need to rest, just let us know okay?” Scarlett called out from a distance and disappeared in the dense forest. Kodiak sighed and walked towards the small stream where he had first underwent the transformation. It was as he remembered it, calm and clear water rushing down the middle of the forest. He sat at the banks, observing himself like he had done the night before. His face was the same; white hair with black tips forming loose spikes hung over most of his face, covering a little bit of his left eye. His dark red eyes reflected tiredly back to him. He turned to his left side to see the small black, curved triangle marking over his left eye and on his chin. He then felt his ears, which were also white with black tips. He nodded and then glanced over at his tail, which was positioned right beside him. The thick tuft of hair which lined his back (referred to as the mane which many male greater wolves grow) was still there as well. “Good, everything is still here…” He sighed in relief. “Nothing’s changed on you, you know.” A voice said softly behind him. He glanced over his shoulder to see a small female fox sitting a little bit far behind him, “It was a temporary transformation that won’t affect your physical appearance.” She had brown fur and black hair but the first thing he noticed were her eyes, which were two different colors; purple and yellow. “Who…” Kodiak began to ask before she interrupted. “Asuza, My name’s Asuza.” She said walking closer to him, “I’ve been watching you, Kodiak, and I can help.” He didn’t trust her, obviously. A strange new figure appearing and asking a bunch of questions made him uneasy, along with his current state of sickness. “I’ll be fine, thanks…” He replied quickly walking away.

                The further away he got, the more he figure he should have asked Asuza questions to better understand his situation. Even though their meeting was a bit awkward, it would have been beneficial if he had at least hung around long enough and listened to her. “There you are!” Copper cried out as he approached them, “Did you fall asleep or something? There was just a huge deer herd here, but they left.” “Sorry,” Kodiak said scratching his neck nervously, “I got sidetracked.” Copper smiled, “That’s okay, Scarlett was following them anyway so if we find her, we’ll find them again.” He nodded and followed her as she followed Scarlett’s scent. “Are sure you’re okay, Kodiak? You’ve been acting quiet today.” Copper asked curiously, “Something on your mind?” He didn’t know the best way to respond to that, so he decided to go with a hypothetical approach. “Hey Copper…” He asked smiling nervously, “What would you do… if… I turned into a dragon suddenly...” Copper laughed, “Well… y’know… that’s always been a secret fantasy of mine… you know I love dragons.” Kodiak stopped, “Wait… what? Really?” Copper stopped and turned around, “Yeah…? You didn’t know? I’m in love with them.”  Kodiak forgot... Copper, ever since she was puppy, loved dragons more than anything. She would sneak out of her house at night to see them taking off for their night hunts. She always fantasized about marrying one too, but he didn’t know that, because she never admitted it. “No, I remember… just… I was curious.” He said recovering from his mistake. She smiled and continued walking, “That would be so awesome though, don’t get me wrong, I’d miss the wolf-you… but a dragon-you would be sooo much cooler.”

                The two continued across the wide Veridian grasslands until they reached a single tree which stood in the middle of the wide plains. Scarlett was hidden there, observing the massive deer herd her and Copper had been following all day. “FINALLY,” she sighed as they approached her, “Took you guys long enough.” “Sorry…” Kodiak said smiling. “We could go for a male… but there are only three of us…” Scarlett said watching the herd, “I think it’d be safer to just settle with the slowest female for now.” Kodiak nodded. Even in his current state, it shouldn’t be too hard to hunt down a weaker deer. “It’s a big herd though; do you think we could do it with only three of us?” Copper said glancing over the vast ocean of deer grazing on the plains, “I don’t think they’ll run if they outnumber us by that much.” It was a good point, since many herbivores defend their herds rather well against smaller numbers of predators. “We run the risk of causing a stampede too right?” She asked nervously. There were hundreds of deer in that particular herd, one of the largest that cross Veridia seasonally. Many predators pick off of herds that size, leaving only the fastest, strongest survivors. On the other hand, deer are the easiest and most common prey for predators in that area. Others, including elk, alicorns, horses, and unicorns were there too, but are much harder to hunt in smaller groups. “Should we risk it?” Scarlett asked Kodiak, “What do you think? If we can send them running, we could easily grab any stragglers.” In actuality, he didn’t listen to a word any of them said. He was much too sick to be thinking about the matter at hand. He felt nauseated, confused, and his body ached all over… probably from what had happened that night. “Actually… you guys go ahead…” Kodiak said tiredly, “I’m not really up for it now…” “Are you okay?” Copper asked nervously walking up to him, “Do you have a stomach ache or something?” He nodded, “Yeah, I’m going to go lay down… see if that’ll help a little…” As he walked back towards the forest, he felt the nervous stares of Copper and Scarlett following him. The once beautiful, windy day became hot and humid to him. His head was pounding and it felt like he had lost all his energy just walking as far as he did. “Crap…” He muttered to himself as he neared the forest. He felt like he could throw up any minute. His stomach was upset and the aching all over his body didn’t help either. His tongue hung out of his mouth, his eyes were barely open and his tail dragged behind him as he finally crossed the shady covering of the trees. The cool breezes that swept through the forest seemed to cool him down a bit, but not much. Slowly, he made his way back to his den to try and rest.    

                With the exception of a few passing animals, the rest of the day was quiet. Kodiak lay motionlessly in his den trying to fall asleep to no avail. His headache was still in full swing and his body still ached painfully. Instead of his body feeling hot, however, he now felt cold. Even though it was rather warm outside, he shivered violently, as if he were drenched in ice water. He curled up as tight as he could, tucked his muzzle under his tail and finally fell asleep. It wasn’t long until he woke up again though; this time the sun had begun disappearing behind the horizon. His body ached slightly less after the nap, he still shivered, however, and his headache was still there, although it had lessened a bit. He sighed and rolled over on his back. “Seriously though… what the hell was that…?” He thought to himself as he stared at the ceiling of the den, “How can I explain this to anyone? They’d think I was insane….” The door to his den creaked open and Copper entered, carrying pieces of deer meat in her mouth. “I’m home…” She said walking towards him, “How are you feeling?” He stretched and yawned, “Like crap…” She smiled and placed a piece of meat beside him, “Hopefully you’ll feel better soon…” Even though he was starving, Kodiak was too exhausted to eat. “Maybe you caught the flu?” Copper suggested lying next to him and feeling his forehead, “Your body is cold though…” Kodiak shrugged, “Maybe…” Copper curled up beside him, “Well geez, maybe you shouldn’t have slept outside last night.” Her small body warmed his as she huddled up against him. “You’re so cold…” She said burying her face in his chest fur and wrapping her long tail around his. The heat from her body seemed to warm up the entire room, not to mention energize him. Kodiak sighed comfortably and wrapped his arms around her. He set his head atop hers and pulled her in tightly, “I love you so much…” As the two laid together for a while, Kodiak began to feel better. His body no longer felt cold, and his headache and nausea subsided. He comfortably drifted off to sleep again.

                He woke up to Copper gently brushing her muzzle against his. “Are you awake?” She whispered. She had pulled away from his tight grasp and was now standing over him. “Yeah…” He replied, still half-asleep, “What’s wrong?” “Nothing…” she replied smiling as she kissed him, her nose rubbing up against his. She pulled away slowly, and walked towards the window of the den. He wasn't too sure of what time it was, but the sun had disappeared behind the horizon completely and was replaced by Luna, the Reddish-orange moon. He immediately noticed that he was no longer sick as well. He stretched, stood up, and followed Copper, who was now sitting at the window staring at the moon. “Isn’t it beautiful?” She said resting her head against Kodiak as he sat beside her. He gently brushed his muzzle against the back of her neck and wrapped his tail around hers, “I wish it could stay like this forever…” Copper glanced back and rubbed her muzzle against his. “Yeah….” She said turning around to face him, “Me too…” Kodiak softly pushed her against the wall and kissed her. Her shiny green and blue eyes shimmered in the moonlight before she closed them and rested her paws on his shoulders. Kodiak brushed back her soft red hair, embraced her warm cheeks in his paws and continued kissing her. He pulled away gently, but she pressed on, pulling his body towards her and squeezing her tail tighter around his. She slid to the ground pulled Kodiak down against her, rubbing her nose against his and welcoming him inside her. Suddenly, the feeling Kodiak had experienced the other night had returned. “No... not again…” Kodiak said fearfully pulling away from Copper’s intimate grasp. “What?” Copper replied nervously, “What’s wrong? Did… did I do something wrong?” Kodiak’s breathing and heart rate increased, vision blurred, and the feeling of growth returned. This time the transformation was happening faster than it had before. Copper ran up to him and grasped his face, “Kodiak, what’s going on, are you okay?!” She was panicking. He pulled away from her and ran outside. Right when he made it out to the moon rays, his body began transforming. He felt his spine extending, his wings expanding, and his tail and horns growing. His head and paws had transformed soon after. As shortly as the transformation had begun, it was over. Kodiak had returned to his new dragon form for the second time.

                It was a lot less painfully than the night before, but the feeling was still very uncomfortable. Kodiak’s breathing and heart rate returned to normal as his cognition returned and the scene calmed. He turned around to see Copper staring at him, her eyes widened and mouth hanging open. “K-K…Kodiak…?” She whispered. “…yeah…” He replied nervously awaiting her response. He was way bigger than she was now, his massive wings and head brushed up against the canopy of the trees surrounding their den. His tail was setting still beside him. Copper didn’t appear afraid, as Kodiak that she would have been. Instead, she appeared to be more pleasantly amazed than anything else. “Is this a dream…? Am I dreaming…?” She said aloud to herself observing Kodiak, “What… happened to you…?” “That’s the conversion gene,” A voice said behind them. Kodiak turned to see Asuza and Scarlett walking down the path towards their den, “Right on time.” “Scarlett?” Copper asked surprised to see her, “What are you doing here? Who is that with you…?” Before Scarlett could say anything Asuza replied, “My name is Asuza. You can consider me an expert on what’s happening here.” Kodiak glanced at Scarlett, who was about as surprised as Copper appeared to be. “How did you know?” Kodiak asked her. “I saw… the other night.” She replied quietly, “I’m sorry… I didn’t tell you… I couldn’t believe it myself.” Asuza circled Kodiak, observing his dragon form, before explaining exactly what was happening.

                “The conversion gene is an extremely rare genetic advancement where the carrier converts to this dragon form under certain circumstances.” She said as she continued to observe Kodiak, “A full Luna like tonight is primarily the trigger.” The group glanced up at the moon as Asuza continued, “Yours has just awakened, which explains why the transformation was so painful the other night, but not so much tonight. It was also a lot faster. In other words, your body is getting used to transforming.” “Does he change back?”  Copper, who was also observing Kodiak, asked. “Yes,” She replied, “He’ll be normal before the sun comes up.” Kodiak was relieved, “Well that’s good…” “Anyway, just be sure to drink a lot of water, to avoid being sick in the morning.” Asuza said disappearing into the forest and leaving Scarlett behind. “Are you feeling okay? Kodiak?” Scarlett asked anxiously staring at him. “I feel fine…” He replied looking around, “Where did she go?” Almost as sudden as Asuza appeared, she was gone again. “I don’t know… but I have a feeling she’ll be back.” Copper said rubber herself against Kodiak, “What are the chances right? That you’d get such a rare gene like this…” The three sat together in silence for a while. Kodiak’s transformation was a lot to take in at one time. “Anyway… it’s late… so… I guess I’ll be going then…” Scarlett said quietly standing up, “Are you going to work tomorrow?” Kodiak nodded. He worked with her in Veridia’s internal and external defense and intelligence force, called the Veridian Intelligence Agency. “Are you sure you’ll be okay? What if… you know…” She replied uncertainly. “I’m sure I’ll be fine.” He replied reassuringly, “She said the transformation only happens at night… during a full Luna. So I think I’ll be okay during the day…” She nodded, “Okay then… well… I’ll come back tomorrow morning.”  Scarlett disappeared into the forest leaving Copper and Kodiak alone again. “Well I’ll try to sleep it off…” Kodiak sighed as he walked towards the den. He stopped at the door, which now was only about a fourth of his size. “Oh yeah… that’s right…” He muttered. “Well that’s okay, maybe you should go get some water, you know, so you don’t get sick tomorrow.” Copper suggested, “I’ll go with you!” He agreed and the two walked over towards the stream, where Kodiak had his first transformation.

                The stream was as calm as he had remembered the night before. The moon’s lights reflected off of the surface of the water showing their faint reflections. As expected, Kodiak was in his dragon form. His eyes glowed red behind the heavy steel external skull his face changed into. Several large horns protruded from the back of his head behind his now enlarged ears. The only thing he noticed that stayed the same was his hair, which still hung in front of his eyes in four spikes. He sighed, knelt down and drank the cold water from the stream. “This is really amazing Kodiak.” Copper said rubbing her paw against his steel skull, “I know it may seem scary at first… but I’m sure a lot of good could come from it.” He continued drinking. Copper was always positive like this, but he was worried about how she really felt. “That explains what you asked me the day before… when you asked me how I would feel if you changed into a dragon.” She said laughing, “I thought you were kidding… but… wow… you were serious!”  “So... how do you feel?” He asked nervously. His voice seemed the same, but stronger. “I’m excited! I mean… I don’t mean to counteract your feelings or anything… but… I think it’s pretty cool.” She replied enthusiastically, “I love dragons… and… well… I love you too… and now you’re a dragon… wolf… mix… so… I don’t know, I think that’s pretty awesome.” Kodiak smiled, “That’s good.” The two sat together beside the stream for a while staring at the sky. Countless stars helped light up the night, along with the moon, which was now being hidden behind a thin layer of clouds. “Still… it sucks I won’t be able to sleep in the den at night…” Kodiak sighed, breaking the silence, “it gets pretty cold out here.” “I can get Charity to dig us a bigger one.” Copper replied curling up next to him, “in the meantime, I’ll keep you warm.” “I don’t know…” Kodiak said playfully, “You sleep talk and drool a lot sometimes; I won’t be able to fall asleep.” “Shut up,” She replied curling up against his belly, “If you tell anyone else, I’ll kill you.” Copper’s small body warmed Kodiak up a tiny bit, but as the night progressed, it only got colder. “By the way, you never ate that meat I brought you…” Copper whispered, probably in her sleep, “I’ll never hunt for you again… stupid.”

                The rays from the sun sliced through the trees waking Kodiak. The morning came a lot faster than he had expected… maybe they were up later than he had thought. He yawned, sat up, and observed himself. “Figures…” He muttered to himself. He had returned to his normal, wolf form. Copper was still there peacefully sleeping in a puddle of her drool. He shook his head, “Told you…” It was a lot warmer out, since the sun replaced the moon in the sky. From a distance he could see the other members of his pack going about the day. “Good morning Kodiak!” Blue, a member of his pack, said walking past him, “Did you sleep well?” He nodded, “Yup, thanks!” She smiled and continued on. “I figured you’d be out here.” Scarlett’s voice called out from the direction of his den. He turned to see her walking his way, “I knew you wouldn’t be able to fit in there. Ready to go?” she asked. The two usually walked to work together. “Yeah,” He replied standing up, “Let’s go.” Every step he took was awfully painful, despite him following Asuza’s orders. The transformation had left his entire body sore, as usual. But the headache and nausea was no longer there. The two slowly crossed the dense Veridian Forest which was now illuminated by sun rays peering through the forest canopy. Wind swept through the forest rattling the leaves on the trees and causing the grass to wave peacefully. From a distance, wolves from other packs moved out to hunt. Massive herds of alicorns and deer had just returned to gather in the highlands and graze. Eventually, they reached a clearing to the forest which led to the wide, lush plains which cover most of Veridia. The green grasslands as well as the many herds of herbivores who call it home stretched out as far as could see. The sun was hidden by large clouds that covered the clear blue sky, making it a lot less hot than usual and the walk more pleasant. “Are you sure it was okay to leave Copper sleeping there?” Scarlett asked Kodiak as the two continued on. “She’ll be fine.” He replied as they reached another dense forest, which hid the headquarters of the Veridian Intelligence Agency. Built by dragons, the building is made of large marble sheets mined from the southwestern Veridian mountainous region. It housed many members and agents of Veridia’s intelligence agency, the center piece branch of Veridia’s internal and external affairs.  Before he could enter, Kodiak was met by Nyala, a tall, older female wolf who also happens to be his boss. “I was just looking for you.” She said walking towards him, “We have a meeting at the castle, so we’ll be there for today.” Nobody knows how old Nyala is. Not even her many puppies… or even her mate. She has light, bluish gray fur, and brown markings, with blue hair. Her tired, but serious, eyes are yellowish orange.

                The castle, which holds the Alphas (The main leaders) of Veridia, is situated on the coast of Veridia, south of the Veridian Intelligence Agency building where Kodiak and Nyala were. It was a little far off, to the disdain of Kodiak, whose body was still unbearably sore. “You don’t look so well, Kodiak.” Nyala said breaking the awkward silence of their walk, “Were you up all night with Copper again? You’d better slow it down,” She warned, “Or you’ll end up with three litters of puppies… and at your age too.” Kodiak laughed, “You had three litters of puppies at my age? And you always say I’m the wild one.” Nyala rolled her eyes, “Every animal has their fun when they’re young. I was an idiot, just like you, and ended up with more than I could carry. Do you know how hard it is to feed eighteen puppies, Kodiak?” He shook his head, “I don’t think I want to.” The three crossed the dense forest and reentered the wide open grasslands which were just starting to be covered in hills. “Great…” Kodiak muttered to himself as they approached one of the large hills. “Quit being a baby.” Scarlett replied heading up the hill. He followed close behind, trying to ignore the burning of his muscles and.  A large breeze met the two at the peak of the large hill and continued on south. From here, the Veridian Castle on the coast could be seen in the distance and the ocean replaced the land behind all the way to the horizon. The smell of salt water and the cool ocean breezes which had been previously hidden by the hills rushed up and greeted them as they started down towards the coast.

                “What’s this about anyway?” Kodiak asked following Nyala, “Did we screw up or something?” She shook her head, “Actually the opposite. Nikki was impressed with you and Scarlett on the last mission; she wanted to see you guys personally about another one.” Veridia’s Intelligence Agency’s focus is to prevent outbreaks of war which had plagued the territory in the past, specifically against Incarnadia, the Territory north of Veridia. They train agents to go out and “defuse” situations which could cause conflict as well as support allies and provide homeland defense if necessary. Kodiak joined the agency as an operative and has since been promoted to a prestigious and well-known agent who had successfully completed many important operations in the defense of Veridia and its allies. “I’m also getting promoted, so she’ll probably ask you to take my place.” Nyala continued on about why the two were summoned to the castle, “If you were smart you’d take to it.” “I thought you would have retired by now.” Scarlett said, “Haven’t all of your puppies grown up and left yet?” Nyala shook her head in disappointment, “All but one. I don’t know if you’ve met Nichole, but she’s… different. Besides, I’d start getting old if I retired from this.” Thin forest surrounded the huge outer walls of the castle where guardian wolves patrolled on top of and around the outside. A wide, dirt path led to the massive front gate which was usually closed at night, but was opened during the day time. The castle was bigger up close. Huge marble plates constructed the castle which had many walls and towers. From behind, a massive balcony overlooks the sea atop a cliff which rose about two hundred feet above the surface of the sea. The outside “front lawn” of the castle was pretty much untouched, thin forests. The same as outside the walls except, a large lake was situated in the center of the yard. A wide bridge connected both sides of this lake which wrapped around the entire castle and eventually met the sea through three large waterfalls. Two of these waterfalls went around the castle, and the third went through it.

                “It was built around this lake.” Nyala said referring to the castle as the two crossed the bridge, “Through the years, they made editions to it.” Kodiak had been there before, but the magical scene never ceased to amaze him. The bridge had been slightly overgrown by the surrounding forest which was alive with the sound of birds and insects. The water below the bridge was calm with the occasional surfacing of fish. “Beautiful isn’t it? As a puppy, I always imagined I’d live in a place like this when I got older.” Nyala continued, “I guess it somewhat came true, since I come here so often I practically live here.” They continued through the thin forest, cautiously following the dirt path until the two reached the front castle doors. The third river exit led right through the center of the castle. Another bridge allowed access into the lobby which was even more impressive than the outside. Inside was perfectly symmetrical, one flight of stairs on each side led to the top floors which met in the center producing a balcony. Below the balcony, the small river that flowed through the castle exited out the back producing the third waterfall. The walls, floor, and ceiling were all made of different shiny colors of marble, the walls being shiny beige, the ceiling a faint, light gray color, and the floor was an even lighter shade of tan. Statues of past Veridian Alphas lined the walls to both sides along with impressive looking artifacts, apparently from different Territories. A large Veridian flag hung over the rear opening of the castle, which allowed the exit of the river and sunlight to illuminate the room. A few guards stood by, but other than that, there was no one else. “Wow,” Kodiak said looking around, “If I could live in a place like this…” The rushing of the waterfall was soothing over the somber silence within the castle. “Shall we?” Nyala said and proceeded up the stairs to the right.

                Kodiak and Princess Nikki, the alpha of Veridia, had known each other since before she was given the crown. They were the same age as well, making Nikki the youngest wolf to take the crown as well as Terra’s youngest leader. The three climbed the stairs to the second floor where Princess Nikki’s Personal Assistant, Bella, waited. “Welcome, on behalf of the Princess, thanks for coming.” She said smiling, “You can follow me, Princess Nikki will be here shortly.” Bella is a brown and white wolf with dark brown hair. Even though she is very quiet and soft-spoken, her fierce reputation as a bodyguard, proficient in fighting, supersedes her looks. The two followed her down a long, open breezeway towards the rear balcony, which overlooked the Sea of Vitraia. The forest outside could be seen beyond the pillars of the breezeway. The ocean breezes cut through the open breezeway, shaking the trees outside and the vine thickets which covered the sides of the ceiling. The end of the breezeway led to the huge balcony to the rear of the castle which sat atop a large sea cliff and overlooked the sea. “Oh my god… it’s beautiful…” Scarlett gasped looking out over the sea, “I would kill to live someplace like this.” The waves from the sea smacked the rock walls of the sea-cliff creating an ambient atmosphere. “Thank you for waiting, please make yourselves at home.” Bella said softly before she returned down stairs. “This really is amazing.” Kodiak said looking around, “To think Nikki lives here, she is so lucky.” Nyala, Kodiak, and Scarlett sat staring at the beautiful scene until Princess Nikki finally appeared. “Hey guys, I’m sorry I kept you waiting.” She said running up the stairs. A dark gray Sabertooth followed behind. Nikki had brown and tan fur with shiny purple hair. She had confident blue eyes that reflected the shine from the marble pillars. “I was stuck in boring meetings all morning… you know how that is…” She said smiling, “It’s good to see you guys.” “Thanks for having us, Princess,” Nyala replied, “I can imagine it’s pretty busy around here.”

            “Before I forget! I want you to meet someone,” Nikki quickly responded, “This is Emer. A sabertooth from Inaria, she’ll be covering your position after you’re officially promoted, Nyala.” Emer was dark gray with a black underbelly. Her short black hair shielded one of her eyes, which were Bright red and orange. Her massive canine teeth were scratched, probably from fighting. “Nice to meet you...” She said. Her voice was strong and serious but, generally, she appeared to be very quiet. Princess Nikki, Emer, and Nyala began talking, leaving Kodiak and Scarlett behind. “Weren’t you supposed to take Nyala’s spot?” Scarlett asked quietly. Kodiak shook his head, “I turned it down. I couldn’t imagine sitting around all day like that, I’d lose my mind.” The two waited patiently for them to finish. “I wonder what kind of mission she was talking about sending us on…” Scarlett continued, “It must be serious for us to have to come all the way up here.” Kodiak nodded, “Probably one of those ‘off the books’ missions. These days, everyone’s losing their minds and trying to burn the world to the ground.” Suddenly, Scarlett turned his face towards hers. She had a terrified look on her face, “Oh my god…” “What?!” Kodiak whispered loudly, “What is it?” Scarlett glanced up to make sure the others didn’t see. She then rushed Kodiak to one of the water channels which lined the walls. “Look…!” She hissed glancing behind her. When Kodiak glanced down to see, a stream of blood poured from his and dissolved in the water. He quickly glanced up to try and stop the bleeding, “What the hell is this?” He whispered to her. “I don’t know…” She replied, “It just started bleeding out of nowhere…” Before Kodiak could respond, the all too familiar feeling returned to him. “Oh no…” He said quietly. “What…? Don’t tell me…” Scarlett replied terrified of his response. He nodded. It was happening… again. “We have to get you out of here…” Scarlett said quickly looking around. “…there!” She cried pointing to the stairs where they came up. The two rushed down the stairs as fast as they could to try and reach the outside. If he transformed now, he’d probably destroy the castle. As they ran, Kodiak began coughing up more blood. “Almost there,” Scarlett reassured him as they reached the bottom of the stairs. The two ran through the castle lobby and exited the castle… in perfect timing. As soon as he reached the front courtyard his transformation took place, this time it was almost immediate. His wings ripped through his back, his head transformed into the dragon’s steel-plated skull, and his body and tail extended. The entire time, he continued to cough up blood. After the transformation had ended, it was an awkward silence. “Do you think anyone saw…?” Scarlett asked nervously, “You didn’t bleed like this last night… what happened?” Right after she said that, the entire castle guard force crowded around them. Several wolves surrounded them, hundreds of them, in response to Kodiak’s transformation.

                “Wait!” Nikki’s voice cried out from the castle entrance, “Stand down, he’s okay!” At her command, the crowd dispersed. He received nervous looks from the others as they left, many of them probably surprised at what just happened. “Oh my god… Kodiak… are you okay?” Nikki said fearfully, “What… happened?” Nyala and Emer were with her, “It’s the Conversion gene…” Nyala said unexcitedly, “interesting…” Scarlett glanced up at him, “We need to go find Asuza… can you walk? Are you okay?” Kodiak was embarrassed. There was blood everywhere, but he was uninjured. All the attention he had brought caused him to turn red. “I’m fine…” He said quietly. “I’m sure you have so many questions… but we have to get him help…” Scarlett quickly said turning towards the bridge that led to the entrance. The two left quickly, leaving Princess Nikki, Emer, Nyala, and the Castle workers in total confusion. “Wait… what just happened…?” Nikki asked nervously. “What a day this has become….” Nyala replied sitting down. The two jogged back up the hills of the highlands and back through the forests from which they came. Kodiak’s massive weight caused the ground to shake with every stride he took. “You have wings… can’t you fly?” Scarlett cried out exhaustedly behind him, “let me get on your back, I can’t keep up.” He stopped and let her climb on his back. “I’ve never tried it before…” He replied flexing his wings, “But it’s worth a shot I guess.” He started flapping his massive wings in the same manor he recalled birds did. This produced a massive gale which rustled the trees and the grass, but didn’t pull the two off the ground. “It’s not working…” She said, “Stop… everyone is looking at us…” With that, Kodiak glanced around. The animals that populated the forest and the highlands had stopped and looked at them. Hundreds of alicorns, deer, buffalo, and many wolves stopped in their tracks to see where the gale had come from. “Sorry…” Kodiak said shyly. “Let’s get out of here…” Scarlett whispered. The two quietly entered the forest towards his den.

                “Did she tell you where she was going to be…?” Scarlett asked referring to Asuza. “Not really… she usually just shows up out of nowhere.” They walked for miles through the forest, catching the eyes of every animal they walked passed. The birds hushed and the other animals stopped to look. The two could hear nervous whispering from all around. A few awkward miles later, they finally reached Kodiak’s den. “I’ll get Copper.” She said hopping off of Kodiak’s back and running into his den. “K-kodiak?!” A voice from beside him called out. He turned to see Red and Arko, his two closest friends, coming towards him. “No freaking way…” Red said stopping, “Is that you Kodi?” He nodded, “Surprise…” “What happened? What did you do?” Arko asked cautiously approaching him. “It’s the conversion gene.” Asuza’s familiar voice called out from atop Kodiak’s den. Everyone glanced up to see her sitting on the top of the hill where his den was dug into. “You’ve attracted a lot of attention I see.” She said jumping down. “Who’s she?” Arko whispered to him. “Asuza.” She replied, having overheard him, “My name is Asuza.” Scarlett and Copper emerged from the door along with Blue, Red’s mate, who had been visiting Copper. “Oh dear…” Blue whispered to Copper, “You were right…” The area was alit with conversation about him. After a while, the rest of his pack ascended in front of Kodiak and Copper’s den to see their Alpha’s new form. “That’s so cool…” Sieri, Copper’s sister, said excitedly. “That’s insane!” Another member of his pack said to another amidst the conversation. “If everyone would calm down, I can better explain the situation.” Asuza said boldly. The crowd quieted down for a bit to allow her to speak. “Kodiak has the conversion gene, which is a rare genetic advancement where the carrier transforms into this dragon form under certain circumstances. This gene has been awakened by the full Luna moon a few nights ago. His body is undergoing a process where it changes constantly to get used to the major changes the body undergoes during the transformation.”

                She looked at Kodiak, “This explains why you are randomly transforming without the trigger of the moon.” “He coughed up blood this time though…” Scarlett said quietly, triggering a roar of responses from the crowd. “It’s nothing serious.” Asuza responded, “That just means there’s a second gene that has awakened along with the conversion.” “A second gene?” Kodiak asked nervously, “What could it be?” She shrugged, “It could be anything, but I would have to guess that you’ve also obtained the agility gene, which allows you to move extremely fast. I’m not too sure though.” “Is there a way he could… like… control it…?” Copper’s sister asked curiously, “Like could he turn it off and on?” Asuza nodded, “There’s a way he can. I’ll have to train him to though.” The group continued to converse amongst each other as Asuza approached Kodiak. “I can help you control it.” She said rubbing her paw against the steel plating of his skull, “Like the little girl said, you’d be able to switch it on and off at will.” “How do you know so much about this… the conversion gene I mean? How do you know how to control it?” She sat beside him, “I have the conversion gene as well.” The crowd dissipated after a while leaving Scarlett, Copper, and Kodiak by themselves. “What do I have to do…?” Kodiak asked Asuza, “to control it I mean.” “It’s a training process,” Asuza replied, “I can help you, but I have a favor to ask of you first.” “Anything…” Kodiak replied. “My territory, Merida, is under attack from a dangerous enemy… a research branch in the Archechestrian government. I could go deeper into detail… But not here.” She continued, “I need your help. Two of us with the conversion gene… they couldn’t stand a chance.” Kodiak nodded, “Okay, I’ll do what I can.” “Wait, you’re not planning on going by yourself are you?” Copper asked nervously, “I’ll go too.” Kodiak shook his head, “It might be too dangerous… I wouldn’t forgive myself if something happened to you.” “Then I’ll go with you.” Scarlett suggested, “I promise I’ll make sure he doesn’t do anything stupid. Copper reluctantly agreed.