Cool!

            X-Change Wild, in its early days, was not quite so popular in the States when it first came out. Activists questioned the point of a pill that would not only swap out your species, but would also very likely leave you so addicted that you would eventually go for the Plus Pills. Internationally, however, it was a different story. Many tourist attractions across the world would get their hands on them to allow vacationers to try a different kind of experience, one that would change their lives forever.
            Never was it more popular than in Oceania.

            The Winter Sun blazed across the highway as a red Subaru rental purred east through Northern Queensland, Australia. From inside, the family of four looked out peering at the great expanse of blue lying well beyond. After touring through most of the continent's natural landmarks and a near deadly encounter with a funnel web spider in a toilet, everything about this vacation led to this moment.
            Nancy sat in the backseat by her brother, trying to get a decent signal on her smart phone. Wearing the summer attire of short shorts, flip flops and an oversized Van Halen t-shirt, her dark hair was pulled back and held in place with a pair of hair sticks. With no luck, she instead looked on at their destination.
            The Sea. More specifically, the Great Barrier Reef. A country almost to itself, Nancy had long dreamt of exploring the reefs and seeking dangers and treasures unknown. It had been her life long dream and her parents took advantage of that by trying to get her to work hard in school.
            “Work on getting you GPA up to 3.6 and we'll pay your way to have a trip out to Australia. We promise,” They had said to her five years ago.
            Nancy was only eleven at the time. Living most of her life in Michigan, a near death incident where she fell into one of the Great Lakes left her fascinated with the water. Taking swimming courses, learning about marine life and even taking up diving, she swore to her family that she wanted to become a marine biologist one day. She spent every day in her academics studying hard to get to this point.
            Yet now, at sixteen, she found herself more fascinated with checking her twitter account. She looked out at Australia and found there was a whole lot of nothing to be seen out here. The mystery and wonder was gone just from being here and everywhere she went, there were poisonous toads, spiders and snakes to be found.
            Not that she had said anything to her parents about changing her mind halfway to the airport. It remained bottled up inside her, building up little by little. By the time they got to Ayers Rock, she finally made it clear to all of them that she wanted to just go home. They were all dismayed.
            “Here we come to the Great Barrier Reef,” Her father looked behind from the driver's seat with an excited smile on his face. “You excited, baby girl?”
            Nancy dropped her phone into her lap so he could see her roll her eyes. “Dad, don't call me that, please.”
            “You're excited, though, right?” He repeated himself.
            “Yes,” She hissed, barely able to hide her irritation. Part of her already regretted the choices she'd made in her life as a child. Were they going to torture her about it?
            “Harry, eyes on the road. We're getting near our exit,” Her mom chided.
            Her father shrugged and focused back on the road, checking his GPS to while her Mom continued talking to Nancy. “We got something really special planned. We're planning to swim with the Great Whites! That's something you always wanted to do, you know? Check out the reefs, look for buried treasure?”
            Nancy sighed, biting down on her lip. It was useless to fight about it. She couldn't even look at her mom as she nodded solemnly in defeat. Inside, she was hating every moment of this. Her body was shaking with tension. When her brother bumped her into her shoulder, she nearly got ready to claw out his eyes.
            “Nancy's just being a ****!” His brother laughed. “I'm so looking forward to watching her **** her pants in the water.”
            “Reese! Language!” Her mother scowled, shaking a finger disdainfully.
            “Well, what? Am I supposed to say scaredy-cat? I'm not eight, anymore, Mom!” Reese snapped back at her. Her disapproving glare of death finally got him to shut up. Her mom looked back at Nancy's frustration and shook her head.
            “You can stay on the shore, if you want. You're a big girl now. Nothing says you have to go out there with us.”
            Nancy had a look of bewilderment, eyes wide with offense. “Look, I'm going to do it. I'm sorry for even saying anything about it back at Uluru. G--”
            She was nearly about to swear before her Mom pointed her finger at her to stop. Pulling out her duffle bag, she found herself staring at the Great White Shark patched onto the zipper. She had prepared her whole life to meeting her favorite animal up close. It would Reese, not her, who'd be peeing into the water.
 
            Why had Nancy opened her mouth at all? This was what she'd been waiting for her whole life and now she found herself at odds with the whole family for bringing her along at all. She couldn't bring herself to apologize about it, either. While the rest of the family was getting arrangements for the ride out into the water, she sat by the docks to sulk in self-pity.
            There was a time long ago where she would've been more than excited about pursuing her dream. Then Middle School happened and the cruelty of her peers and the animosity and contempt of her teachers beat it out of her. Her family didn't deserve her lashing out, though.
            She looked out into the ocean, peering at how empty and serene it was and the mysteries that lied underneath. If she could breathe water, she secretly wished that she could disappear where no one could find her. Looking at her reflection in the water, she saw something bitter glaring back muddy and distorted. 
            The longer she reflected, the more her mind grew muddled with resentment. The reflection seemed to change with her mood, turning more grey and the eyes turning black and lifeless, like a doll's eyes. When she found herself staring at rows of more teeth than she could count, it dawned on her that her reflection was alive, staring back at her. Then, with a mighty splash, it leapt out, enormous maw flying straight at her.
            Nancy shrieked, barely getting out of the way as it landed against the dock with a loud, wet thump. It was a great hammerhead shark and, going off her best insight, it was at least twenty feet long from tail to snout. She watched as it flapped anxiously against the dock, gasping for breath. What was it doing so far inland and what compelled it to jump out of the water?
            That was when Nancy began to notice the oddest thing about the creature. Normally Hammerhead Sharks had five gill slits on each side of their head. This one only had no less that three. As she watched closely, it was now just two. The remaining slits faded into its scaly hide as the shark began spitting out entire stream of teeth out of its maw, the black eyes beginning to change color to something uncharacteristic of a shark.
            Now, she was just largely perplexed by what she was seeing. The shark was diminishing in size, the scales on its body seemingly disappearing completely. It's head crunched in on itself as its dorsal fin withered into its body, and the fins around the underbelly began stretching out like putty, shifting into something reminiscent of human limbs. She found herself almost disgusted by what she was watching, barely able to keep watching as the creature shifted into a human.
            A very lanky man, to be exact. He looked to be no more than in his late 20s. His skin was pale and wrinkled up, his body slim and lithe. His stomach was covered in bald human hair, his backside speckled with discolored splotches around his shoulders. As his hair grew in, Nancy could see he had a mop of dirty blonde hair, bangs going over his eyes.
            He slowly looked around, shakily trying to balance himself on his legs. Bracing himself with his arms, he hurriedly tried to stand but fell back over. It was as if he had forgotten how to use them. Out of all reason, Nancy hurried over and helped him get back on his feet.
            He wet his lips as he tried to say something quiet. Nancy leaned in, “I'm sorry, what did you say?”
            “Shack. Get me...to my shack. I got clothes in there all ready.” He said.

            “Thank you for that. I'm honestly glad no one was around when they saw me change back. That would've been honestly embarrassing.”
            The stranger and Nancy sat together in his small beach house, surrounded by nautical memorbillia. Now that he was properly clothed in a fisherman's outfit, Nancy felt far less embarrassed to stare at him and admire his features better. He was certainly rather handsome to look at, though he still had the smell of seawater and fish oil on him.
            Pulling out a hatch from the floor, he unveiled a secret refrigeator stash, filled with australian beer. He took one out and took a large swig. He let out a small gasp, smiling big. “Ah, that's nice. Blimey. Sure beats seawater and tuna. Can I get you one?”
            “No, thanks,” Nancy declined. “Who are you, though? What are you? You some kind of a...were...shark?”
            “A wha? Nah, not at all. Name's Leon. I'm a warden at the Great Barrier Reef, see. I run a boat tour for divers out north, but lately, I started a different kind of business,” He fished through his pockets and pulled out a glossy green pill. Nancy stared at it, almost wondering if he was giving it to her.
            “What is it?”
            “That's X-Change Wild right there. Quite a funny little thing, this pill. It changes your species for however long the pill lasts. Take it, go on. My token of thanks,” Leon waited until she grabbed it and he laid back in his seat. “After a certain fiasco with a pair of tourists, I decided I needed a break from it all. So I took an Xtra-Strength pill, closed down shop and have been cruising the pacific as a Hammerhead for the past couple of months. Now I'm back and I need to start getting ready to open up for business. Bet I've got a line of people all waiting to sail out, eh?”
            Nancy's head was hatching all kinds of ideas about the things she could do with such a pill. She couldn't believe she'd never heard of such a thing before until this stranger came to her about it. She remembered her parents mentioning an eccentric Skipper who had disappeared for a couple months, only being able to book a ride out to sea recently. Leon's something, she recalled. It couldn't have been this coincidental.
            She then asked him, “You take people out to swim with the sharks? In cages, and all?”
            “That I do, lass,” He winked. “The sharks used to be pretty scarce until some of the consumers of the pills got a bit too overexcited. For a while they were helping keeping things entertaining but my two best mates, Cassie and Genis...I don't know if they're still swimming around here, no more.”
            There was a sudden pause as he saw the strange grin on Nancy's face and he then waved his hands in dismissal. “Ah, no. I know what's going on in that head of yours. It ain't happening. You've got a pretty face, you do, but I'm not letting a minor out there in the ocean. I'd rather--”
            “Please?” Nancy asked him, holding her hands up to beg. “I've always...I always loved the ocean and this would be so cool! Plus, I think you'll be driving my family out there.”
            He sighed, rubbing his hand against his head, looking back at her several times, saying. “I might be able to arrange something, but only because I like you. Just follow my instructions and don't stray too far out at sea.”
            Nancy already could tell this was going to be an amazing day for her.

            Nancy had no idea today was going to end anything at all like this. One moment she was going to begrudgingly get on a boat to fulfill a lifelong dream with her family, and the next moment she'd run into the guy running the boat, revealing he had a secret addiction to shapeshifting pills. Now, taking a private jet ski 10 miles away from his boat, they would enact a plan to mess around with their family.
            She could make out the tiny glimpse of a boat out in the distance, the land far behind her. She had been told to come out bring nothing with her but an expanding radio collar/tracker and basic snorkeling equipment in case of an emergency. Fitting the collar around her neck, she fitted an earpiece receiver listening keenly for Leon to let signal her when to dive in.
            For what felt like an eternity she waited idly with the wind in her fae and the sea spraying on her feet. The sun was cooking her delicate skin and the life vest covering her naked chest seemed to chafe against her breasts. Finally, at long last, the earpiece came to life.
            “Right, then. Family's getting suited up to take a dip. Showtime, eh!”
            Nodding to herself, Nancy put the earpiece away into the jet ski compartment, making sure she had a extra tracker placed in there so that Leon could find it later. Taking the pill into her mouth, she swallowed it quickly as she dived feet first into the sea.
            The salt burned away at her eye as she fought against the current to push her further down—as deep as she could. When she realized she wasn't sinking fast enough, she realized that she'd forgotten to take off her lifevest. She had no time at all to pull it off when the transformations began to take effect, causing her chest to expand rapidly.
            The vest came off with an audible pop, rising up over her head and well to the surface. She fought to dive further down when her lungs collapsed. She suddenly panicked, seawater rushing into her lungs. Yet she didn't suffocate. As her webbed hands felt the side of her neck, she breathed a sense of relief. Her gills were starting to come in.
            That wouldn't do, however. If she knew anything about sharks, it's that they needed to stay mobile in order to breathe. As a human and without diving equipment, she was slow, but her growing caudal fin allowed her to propel herself forward with a strong thrust. At first she swam using the breast stroke; however, soon her arms began to wither into her streamlined, sleek body and found she needed to use her pectoral, pelvic and other fins to a minimum.
            Her blackening eyes moved to the sides of her head, her neck now nearly nonexistent. As the bones in her body softened into cartilage and her organs rearranged, the majority of her face merged into a large predator's maw, rows of teeth the size of shotglasses forming behind her human teeth. Eventually, those fell out in favor of the more powerful teeth of the Great White.
            The pale human skin covered her large body drifted behind her and she kept swimming until it had completely peeled off her gray hide. Remoras nearby drifted closely and began feasting off the dead tissue and she powered on ignorant of their busy jaws. If she could look at herself, her squaline heart would swell with pride. As a strong female Great White Shark, she was at least twenty-eight feet in length—feared by all dwellers of the pacific.
            All of her senses worked at full throttle. She could smell, see and hear keenly everything going about her. But there was more to that—she could feel them. She could sense the movement of the water, the splashing of fins pushing against her. It was like she could hunt purely on sound alone.
            The radio collar around her thick neck began beeping quickly as a voice began to speak to her “ear”. It was her master—no, Leon, speaking again. “Right, so we're going to spread some chum around the boat to draw you in. Feel free to get a bite before you start entertaining the family. Just be gentle, remember; you don't know your own strength as a shark.”
            If she were still human, she would've rolled her eyes at that. She could smell that fresh meat and blood from here. She was so close now. Her jaws were practically “drooling”.
            The boat soon came into view and the shark cage with it. Seeing her family drift helplessly around the cage at her very presence back away at her presence gave her such a sense of power. She munched away at that chum practically drunk from her ego trip. Then, when she was done feeding, she began to make her way around the boat for a quick wind up before she began chomping playfully at the cage, her family screaming through their devices. This would go on for at least a half hour.
            There was a scent in the water she didn't quite recognize. When she reverted back to human form, she had it confirmed that her little brother had indeed peed himself at the very sight of her. It was the best vacation she ever had.

   They did not understand at all how the human could have survived.
   Their queen's hive had started small but with enough resources and time, they had built herself an empire worthy of her new kin. Their honeycombed hive thick as trees lined the barn with workers and soldiers busily tending to new young and food stores while their defenses worked to fend off the intruder outside. Their numbers were large enough to kill entire herds of cattle and humans alike and could make quick work of their measly protection. They fought bravely for their queen with no fear of death. The message that echoed across their mind, however, left them quelled for a moment.
   You started small and you'll end small.
   Where did that come from? The entire hive shook with outrage. Their hearts and minds were one. There was no individuality, nothing that would contradict their motivations or actions. Who dared defy them with such poisonous thoughts?
   As if in answer, the barn doors, barricaded by honeycomb and chitin, burst apart with inhuman prowess, honey and larva scattering on the floor. All eyes were on the intruder, all antennae smelling him out. Their senses were their Queen's and she observed the intruder to make sense of it. Something was wrong. Its smell was not the same.
   It smelled as their own. It stood as a human, tall and alien, yet its shape, its limbs, its posture and wings were that of their kind. It had a permeating scent of a male—a wandering drone offering life to the hive. It folded its lower chitinous arms against its thorax as the upper arms began fiddling with human equipment, mandibles clicking between its proboscis. It was a bee shaped like a man.
   Curious.
   The fighting had ceased. New chemicals were and dances were being orchestrated between the Hive to make sense of this curiosity. It was connected to their Queen and the Hive yet acted as its own kind. The Hive buzzed and clicked for answers. It demanded answers mixed with threats. The voice laughed…it had a voice? Where was theirs…no, that was wrong.
   You're confused. You've been changed for so long that your mind's drifted. You don't even know how to speak—you can't. A few moments and I will help you find your voice again.
   There was no time to ask when the noise echoed across the hive, clawing into the brains of ever bee in the hive. The swarm screeched and the queen writhed in agony, unable to crawl away or fly to safety. It felt terrible pain, like when a cruel human child burned ants with a magnifying glass.
   The agony subsided, however, and the hive halted. An idea was spurring up from nothing. Hamburgers. They liked hamburgers, beyond all insectoid rationale. Cats were suddenly not a threat but endearing. The concept of reading a book felt like a nice alternative to gathering food. They understood the english language. It was wrong yet they did not want this to stop. What had this drone done to them to give them this insight?
   Tell me your name. You have a name, remember.
   The Hive quivered. A name? Unheard of--names were not for bees. Bees were designated by scent and their role by birth. Yet everything they were feeling now, so alien yet familiar, clashed with their purpose of being. They had a name once. No, they still had a name. The Queen rubbed its mandibles and, with little understanding of how it could speak, called back to the voice with growing clarity.
   It was…It…we…were…are…we are…Veronica. We are Veronica. Who are you?

   Surviving the attack by the swarm had been extremely tricky for Agent Reagan. He had to pull out a non-lethal bug repellent to spray enough of a cloud to ward off the insects to pull out his secret weapon. It was a last resort only if Veronica had proven to be too violent and hostile to communicate with peacefully.
   Upon using an X-Change Wild Fantasy Performance Pill, however, Reagan was able to confuse the Hive long enough that he could infiltrate the Hive and set up the equipment that he'd brought with him. An electronic device quietly pulsed high-wave frequencies within enough of a radius to disrupt the Hive mind's instincts and restructure it back to a coherent, unified and almost individualistic series of thought patterns. It could then be translated via an audio output speak and recorded for later use back at X-Change Inc.
   “At least, that's one of the more elaborate ways of putting it,” Reagan's voice said through the device as he cleaned his clawed hands with his proboscis. “You still don't have all your brain functions to understand its complexities, so I'll just say that we can talk to insects using this machine, whether they're hive minded or solitary. Just talk to me using your thoughts.”
   After a long pause inside the honeycomb infested farm, oozing with honey, the voice that was very likely Veronica's as a human spoke to Reagan. “We are Veronica. We are Veronica.”
   “Yes, I know that. But tell me more about yourself besides your name.”
   The Hive made the equivalent of a long, drawn-out groan. More of this non-insect nonsense! The soldiers grinded their mandibles and stingers, pleading for them to just kill the Drone. The workers looked on confusedly as to why they were not working to collect honey. Everything was on pause because their matriarch continued to hesitate. Why, they asked.
   The queen cleaned its antennae in irritation before coaxing the Hive to talk once more. This drone-man asked such annoying questions—yes, it was so hard to think to its level. Some corner of her mind, however, compelled her and the rest of her children to try. “We are Veronica. We live here. This land is ours. We took it from the ants and wasps and the beetles down below. All who intrude are the enemy. You are intruder yet you smell like us…but you are not us. You smell of Bee but you act and speak like a human. You are an individual. We are many. We demand answers.”
   “So would I, Veronica. And so would your grandfather. Perhaps we can work together.”
   “What is a Grandfather?”
   “Your Grandfather is the one who owns this farm.” Reagan said coolly.
   “Ah, the human slave. He belongs to us freely. It was he who awakened us, freed us. We were released from our cage of flesh. We tolerate his presence but no other intruders. Not like the past few humans who have intruded. They were to be dealt with immediately.”
   “Is that how you really think of your grandfather? I would assume you would be more sentimental than that…”
   Veronica paused. “You mean…as in 'love'?”
   If Reagan were biologically capable, he would be smirking. “I didn't say that, specifically. The fact that you were able to come to that concept on your likely means that the insect mind has far less control. You've been on an X-Change Wild Clean pill with the Xtra-Strength Formula for weeks now. You are due to regress back in exactly 36 hours, but we need to know all about how your story and how this all came to be. Are you willing to cooperate now, or am I still talking to the hive called collectively as Veronica?”
   The Queen's voice ached and staggered. It was remembering so many things about itself now and it was leaving her hive emotionally paralyzed. She was losing her connection to her children. She needed them to help her. How could she survive? “W-we…we…I don't know who I am, anymore! Who is anyone? I am Veronica but I am also…Veronica? What's happened to me?”
   “It's all right. As I said, I'm an agent from X-Change Incorporate and I'm here to help.” Reagan clicked a button on his equipment as his voice grew clearer. “We need to know all about how this situation got so out of control and how it all began. Doing so will help us be able to help you. So please. Start from the beginning. Tell me everything that you know.”
 
   “Well, let me try to think back on who I used to be. I know that I was Veronica. In the singular sense. I had ambitions to go into construction engineering when I was out of college. I was one semester away from earning my Master's Degree. I was going to graduate with a GPA of 3.5. There was even a boy around campus who was looking to propose to me—he never thought that I knew about it. I had a lot of things going for me when I was going to school. I didn't have much time to myself but my parents were so proud of me.
   Then came the spring.
   Spring Break was the week that changed everything for myself. I was going off to visit my Grandfather on the farm. He had been so very proud of that home, being the home of his father and his father before him. There was entire generations of history behind that house and every family grew different crops. My grandfather specialized in bee farming.
   It was prosperous, initally, and he earned enough money to take care of my mother and her siblings. When they were old enough, they would help him out with taking care of things. Eventually, though, she had gotten married. They all did. Soon it was just him again and things went downhill from there.
   Did you know that bees are currently an endangered species? All the poisons that the humans…that we put in the air has made them so scarce now. Entire crops had been lost. Grandfather, unfortunately, was one of the people affected by their poison spraying. The bee hives almost never recovered.
   It was there that he had to pull loans after loans to pay off the growing debt to the farm. He was all by himself and could barely manage the farm when I was in college. Never did he make it our problems, however—this was a matter that he had to resolve on his own. Always the stubborn sort, my grandfather was. Even when a solution was presented within reach, he was never someone to take the easy road out.
   I had arrived to the house that day hoping to get caught with how life had been to my grandfather. However, I wasn't the only visitor at the house that day. Another Agent like yourself had shown up with promises to him about how to resolve his death. The look on his face was absolutely livid. He looked ready to throw the man off his property if they didn't get out anytime soon. Talking about it revealed nothing. I was simply told to ignore it and never ask about it again.
   How couldn't I ask him about it, though? I had spent the most time with him as his granddaughter. If he was in any kind of trouble, he could've just told me what the problem was. I wasn't like my mom or dad, who were always looking for big favors from him. I never asked for much—after all these years, I'd hoped that he would've come to trust me ages ago.
   That was when he came to me while I was reading and said that he'd changed his mind with the man at the door. He told me all about the debts he'd compiled since being left alone to himself and his regrets about never being able to convince his children never to stay behind to help him take care of the farm. The man presented the solution he was asking for, though. He just never dared to use it out of fear. With poverty and possibly losing his home on his doorstep, however, he decided that he had nothing left to lose.
   The pills were called X-Change Wild. They were special pills that let you become whatever animals requested by the company for the order. The agent was selling pills of the bee species trying to give my old grandfather a chance at trying to save his farm. For him, however, the price seemed too good at the time. He said that he had had enough time to think about it, this time, but I would also say that he was especially drunk. He would've had to have been drunk to ask someone like me to become a swarm of bees and help save the farm.
   Contrary to how I may have acted when you first met me, I was not ecstatic about my new transformation. I was mortified…apprehensive, for sure. I had plans and dreams—how could my grandfather have me throw all that away? Yet, still I approved of him doing that to me. It was here that my transformation began and where I would expand myself across the fields.
   I bet you get asked this question a lot involving hive minded animals…I mean, what exactly is it like to become a cloud of bees? Ever have the feeling that you're going to shatter into a million pieces? Ever watch science fiction movies and watch people get disentegrated. It's kind of something like that and far more unpleasant. At least in the science fiction movies, it's a quick and painless death. As a bee hive, I could feel my legs literally collapse beneath me, feel my lungs and heart crumble into bees, feeling my eyes and teeth crawl out of my face. I was melting like something out of a horror movie but I didn't die. I was alive during every second of it.
   The last bee to fly out of the pile of clothes underneath me was the Queen—the smallest fragment of myself that was acutely aware of who I was. I emerged like a newborn adult with a sense of emptiness. Pieces of me were flying all over the barn. I had to find the missing parts and make myself whole. The more I linked to myself, the stronger I became. I was one being spread across thousands of individuals. I was an army—fearless and full of mindless conviction. And together, we would invade and conquer these fields into an empire worthy of our kind.”
   I had grown quite accustomed to my new existence, content. My family visited often but I didn't recognize them. Now that I am myself, I would prefer to become blissfully ignorant that I was ever human. Are you satisfied now? May I return to my conquests?”
   The recorder on the device flashed red, indicating that the digital memory caches were completely full. It looks like Reagan got exactly what he needed from this. Closing up the suitcase, he could see the Hive around him beginning to pick up speed again. She would find herself becoming fragmented again in a matter of minutes. That would be when he would have to leave for his own safety. Unless…
   There is still one more matter that is left unresolved, my Queen, He spoke to her using their telepathic link.
   What is that? She asked impatiently.
   You've helped me a great deal by answering a lot of my questions, but I'd said that we could help each other out here. You've done your part and now it is time to do mine. What can I do for you to help you while I'm around. Be sincere, please.

   Agent Reagan had been sent by X-Change Inc to uncover how the consumer know as Veronica (CLASSFIED) had gone berserk and began a massive takeover of Farmer Burke's farm. After neutralizing the hive mind, he was able to get a viable enough testimony from the girl before letting her go back to her insectoid bliss.
   Now he only needed to tie some stuff up with the Grandfather, first by assuring him that he was who he said he was. After pulling out a handheld translator, he got the most important thing out of the way last.
   “Despite everything going on with, your granddaughter is fine. She is suffering from an identity crisis due to being a bee hive for so long but she will regress back to her human form in time. All of the bees that she had bred as a bee that she doesn't need to recreate her biomass will simply die off. The honey harvest that you collected, however, will remain and you will have yourself five years worth of harvest to sell to buyers across the country. I think you'll find that your productions have been very fruitful, indeed.”
   Burke's jaw hung widely out of his mouth. He was beyond astonishment. “You mean to tell me that I have a harvest? I actually money?”
   “That's right. Enough to help keep you on your feet for a long while,” Reagan said. From the distance, the bees were back in full swing. The hive-mind was once again in control. “On behalf of my company, I would like to thank you for choosing X-Change Wild to help you with your problem. We're glad to have gotten these last few loose ends tied up. When I get these reports in, we'll be making adjustments to the formula to prevent another similar incident.”
   “Well, that's fantastic!” Burke whooped, waving his summer hat in the air. “But does that mean I won't be seeing you again? I'd hate for you to go. I would hope to learn more about your skills with building homes.”
   “You may not have to. There's still one more thing for me to do here before I can leave. Before I let her regress back into the hive mind, I was asked to do two things.”
   “What's that?” Burke asked.
   “First, she wants to make sure you have an extra pair of hands to stockpile the honey to make your money's worth. I've still got some time before I regress back to human form, so I'll just act as your helping hand for the day. A convoy will be arriving in the morning to pick up your shipments. Secondly,” Reagan gestured as if to wink to the man. “She didn't want you taking X-Change Wild Pills to improve who you are and especially just to make your family proud. Or anyone else, for that matter. You just got to bee yourself.”
   Burke just frowned, greatly unamused. “Okay, that's it. I think I am going to have to get my gun, if you're going to make jokes like that.”

   X-Change Wild's Department had picked up far better than what many had been expecting. Despite multiple lawsuits as per usual with the Corporat…ion's line of work, the ability to swap species was widely successful. The only real complaints were being the pills became too habit forming and loss of identity—far worse than the pink pills which the company had started with.
   So, to answer these complaints, X-Change Wild Clean was made. It was a largely watered down version of the same pill and had a much smaller duration but there was absolutely no risk taking them. After two hours, the consumer simply changed back without question. No sexual urges, no risk of pregnancy, nothing. Of course, the Xtra-Strength Pill was now available on sail which was mildly stronger, but only last three weeks rather than three months.
   Nonetheless, the Clean version of the pill was widely praised by the critics and users alike, allowing it to be used for recreation, education, and, in cases like one consumer, agriculture and environmental issues. They were out in the farming regions of the Midwest and had been incredibly stubborn about accepting any of their products until a recent development. As per standard, an X-Change Wild Testimonial Agent was being dispatched to gather survey information for future advertisements and adjustments to later batches for similar requests.
   Driving up into the farmland spanning about fifty acres, X-Change Inc Agent (CLASSIFIED) stepped out of his black LTD car and straightened his tie. Normally, for city jobs, he would wear a professional business suit, suede shoes and tie as per usual standard. However, the consumer in question had taken a pill for a relatively dangerous species of insect and was reported to be hostile; in fact, a previous attempt had resulted in the agent nearly dying due to an unprecedented allergy to their venom.
   The newest agent had no such allergies but new precautions would need to be made. Out of his own pocket, he purchased thicker cottons and jeans, working boots and gloves and a meshed hood that he carried under a shoulder. He also carried a suitcase of equipment including something that would make speaking to the consumer much easier. As a last resort, he had a small pocket metal case of X-Change Wild Clean pills. They were strictly for self-defense but there were a couple issued to him that would prove useful for a Class B Hazard Specimen and a Hive Mind, at that. 
   His car rested at the very edge of a crudely constructed fence, the wood so old from weather and fire, it looked ready to collapse at the touch of a finger. The farmland itself was comprised of expansive field of manmade beehives, a disused horse corral and stables, a garden now overgrown with weeds, a barn full of alfafa and honey storage, and, at the far front, a large house built in the style American Colonial. The house itself, he was told, was over three hundred years old and had seen much maintenance and reworking for five generations. Notes on the the case's profile warned the Agent to be polite and respectful for this proud farmer.
   Even as far as here, there were small clouds of bees buzzing about, busily collect pollen from wildflowers and surrounding fields. The Agent kept his distance as he walked up onto the porch and rang the doorbell. No answer. It was so deathly quiet, he could hear the buzzing of the hive from a hundred yards away.
   Then, after a minute of waiting, he pressed the doorbell again. This time, he could hear the shuffling of feet creaking across rickety stairs and floorboards. Finally, the door opened up and the Agent was greeted by a tall, lanky man, possibly well into his 80s. He had a weathered face and a scraggly chin with one of the most bulbous noses he had ever seen. His right hand was inches away from a firearms left casually against the wall, but the farmer did not pick it up. Not this time.
   Wetting his lips, the old man leaned in close looking at the agent and gave a small harrumph. “Well, by the smell of you, you must be another one of those numbskulls from the company. You certainly look smarter than the last one.”
   “Agent Reagan, Sir.” He said, showing his business ID from his wallet. “I'm here to get that testimony, just like Agent Isaiah from before.”
   “And just as stubborn. My granddaughter doesn't want visitors.”
   Reagan cocked an eyebrow. “She talks to you?”
   “The message she left your company last time was pretty clear of that,” the Farmer noted.
   “Well, I have ways of being able to persuade her so.” Reagan smiled thinly. “I have to say that your house looks amazing from out here. It must look astonishing inside.”
   The Farmer grimaced, shaking his head solemnly. “Flattery's going to get you nowhere, son. Keep buttering me up and I'll have to ask you to leave.”
   “Well, actually, sir, I come from the heart of Nebraska. Lot of corn country. My parents and uncle built homes for half of the farming community and when I was old enough, I lended a helping hand of my own. I even minored in architecture, especially the older styles you see a lot like this. If you don't mind me saying so, I do appreciate a man who is good with his hands,” The Agent said holding out his hand.
   “It was my son who built it as it was,” The Farmer said, staring at the agent's hand. “Haven't seen him in ten years.”
   “Oh, well…” The Agent stammered in embarrassment before the farmer finally exchanged handshakes with him. His tone was much warmer than when they first entered.
   “But I did my share of the work. I may be old, but I don't let nobody do anything I can't do myself. I'm sure you get that. Why don't you come on inside and I can show you a bit more?”
   “Oh, sure. I'd appreciate that.” Agent Reagan said, peeking in at the house. He wasn't on any time constraint to get that testimony, so getting on his client's grandfather's soft side would be a nice way to ensure security. It seemed like he had been picked for this assignment on purpose, the more he thought about it.

            Unfortunately, Agent Spencer would never see his partner again. During his time in the custody of the rat-men, the merc was attacked by the Skaven and killed abruptly before he even had a chance to react. It's hard to explain how a soldier of fortune armed with the best available gear on the market could lose to rats armed with primitve weaponry. The Private Military Contractors who sent him are pulling the plug. First, however, they want confirmation of KIA and are demanding their equipment back. More importantly, it needed to be decided whether or not this would need to call for official government intervention.
            The people on top were quietly working on that while trying to gather any information to confirm whether this was a Class-S Biohazard they were dealing with. To do that, Reggie and Kevin, video technicians who helped to edit and cut videos into digital testimonies to further promote all variations of X-Change Wild, were busy reconstructing the lost footage gathered from the encounter. They had been at this for hours with no breaks. At the very least now, progress had been made.
           The video from the PMC's van had been largely corrupted in some parts due to some unknown interference. After enough time, though, they were able to rebuild the footage to get confirmation of the mercenary's death. Their hired guns would get what they were after, in time. First, however, they needed to salvage anything off of their own Agents.
           Agent Spencer's recording was in much better quality, but the audio or video would glitch out quite frequently. At some point, it had completely crapped out. It didn't matter, though. Whatever footage they could use, however, would go a long way to putting out more profit to X-Change Inc; true, people had died and this was likely something worth worrying about, but people were ignorant, whatever they didn't know couldn't hurt them.
            Hours passed by. After defragmenting the file and running it through a software restoration program, they were able to undo some of the corruption and were picking up a more valid story. Things started simple, but the longer the video drew out, the more the two of them didn't like what they were seeing at all. There was something offly wrong about the Skaven as they appeared, the wyrdstones and the sickly green hue everywhere. It was certainly insightful on what had become of Spencer, but things were taking a sudden turn for the dark as it became clear X-Change Inc was in way over their heads.
            At some point, the video cut out, and the Skaven Lord and Lady make a point by saying, "Only those of likeness to Skaven would dare scuttle-come to their nest and demand parley." Reggie, the skeptical one, simply shrugged it off. Business at the expense of others well-being didn't make them evil. X-Change Inc and its sub-branches were all just doing their jobs for profit. Regardless of what others claimed, their lawyers always cleared them of any blame. Who was a random customer to judge?
            Taylor, however, found himself more inclined to believe they were so different from the rats. It had been debated whether or not X-Change Wild Fantasy pills proved the existence of gods and demons--defining proof of good and evil. The demons and angels were always proved false--just another costume for people to put on. Yet these things left a growing dread in his heart, doubt gnawing at his beliefs. He had stared into the eyes of Qun and Zhan and found that their humanity had been completely purged; not from long-term use but rather a force beyond their understanding. Gone were their morals, their sense of right and wrong, life and death. Their gleaming red eyes were the reddest eyes they'd ever seen--the eyes of feral animals driven with only the urge to hurt and destroy and all to survive.
            Things weren't looking so good when the Agent made a claim that he'd been just poisoned. The video cut out briefly after, the next two minutes of it not yet fully restored. When the video returned, as the Agent's camera looked down at his warped handpaws, his fate was quite clear.
            It was in the middle of their agent giving the Skaven Warlord a blowjob did the camera suddenly make a jarring tumble across the ground. A green haze and static caused the camera feed to glitch out and freeze. The sound of wet suckling and squirting of fluids splashed out of view, the agent and the warlord no longer in sight. Then the camera cut to the Grey Seeress observing the device. It was zoomed it so close, the video editors could actually see the plaque and dry blood on her fangs. "What an interesting scryer orb. Crude and flawed-bad, but can be fixed-fixed! Clan rats! Come here now-now! I have a special plan for our friends--a perfect reward for the Man-Things at X-Change Inc."
            The video came to a halt there, seeing the the red maddened gleam in her eyes. The two video editors stared blankly at what they witnessed and back at each other. Kevin cleared his throat. "Well, um...there's not much we can use of that footage. I think we should scrap it."
            "Are you crazy, man?" Reggie slapped his hand from the button. "The people on top need to see this. This is evidence of a Class-S Biohazard. They need to know the situation's gone well out of control. It's shown here in the readings that the hired gun Spencer brought up with him has gone dark. His vitals read at zero. He hasn't even reported back yet."
            "We've had a godzilla crisis that amounted to nothing. What can possibly go wrong here that we can't deal with" Kevin said to the wincing noise of fire alarms. "A fire drill?"
            "Maybe. Or..."Flipping the TV from drive files to security surveillance, Reggie used his green card to access what was strictly for high level security personnel only. From all around him, it was chaos. Skaven were pouring out from drains, from the front doors, from ventialation shafts. Hundreds of rat men in tattered clothes, bearing strange weapons and arms, of every shape and size. Building security didn't even stand a chance against them. Any staff who were not killed in the battle frenzy were captured by creatures using odd polls and then given something to consume. Doing so seemed to only convert them into more Skaven.
            "Oh, ****..." Kevin whispered. "Well, they certainly didn't predict this would happen of all things."
            "They're making their way into the lower levels. We can't get out through the main fire exit. We'll have to use the emergency hatch to get to the bomb shelter and then take the alternate exit out. There's no way they can get to us there. Only someone with Level 5 Security could get in."
            "There's an emergency escape route? Gah. I knew I shouldn't have slept during orientation," Kevin mumbled. "Who would think something like this could happen?"
            The sound of sharp metal, scraping claws and teeth could be heard against the walls. Reggie pulled Kevin out of his seat and had him help lift away a table, revealing a heavy security hatch. It had two extremely heavy locks and a retinal scanner built in--X-Change Inc must have been preparing for a scenario like this for the longest time.
             "Come on!" Reggie shouted as he strained to pull the door open. It took some force but together, they pried it open and disappeared into long tunnel down below. Kevin made sure to fasten the hatch tightly before hurrying through. Flashing orange lights turned white paint amber as the made it to the catwalk. They might have made it past the catwalk to the bomb shelter if there hadn't been someone...or something....already standing there waiting for them. Garbed in tattered Agent gear, the Skaven held a submachine gun in its paws as it grinned maliciously.
             "Greetings, Man-things. Skaven come now-now to thank X-Change Inc. Man-things shall serve the Underempire well, yes-yes." He giggled and hissed. a power line sparked out, shutting off everything but auxilary power, highlighting the edges of the catwalk. Keven and Reggie's vision was still refocusing when Spencer came up close to them, green warpstone around his thick furred neck hauntingly highlighting his rodent face. Before Kevin could yelp, he placed a paw across his mouth.
             "Shhh! Listen well-good, Man-Things! Hear that, yes-yes?" He whispered in a cold, menacing tone tone.
             Keven and Reggie paused, hearing something faint and growing louder and louder. Gnawing, scratching, gnashing of teeth and hisses. Voices. Rats in the walls, rats in the drains. Everywhere. Washing up all around them like a flood, a sea of vermin. They could not see anything but only the faint glimmer of red eyes here and there. It became a roaring storm of screeches, coming in all directions.
             Reggie shuddered as the swarm closed in.

I love these stories you write man. I wish more people were doing these, too. X3 When are you gonna write a sequel to the dog one?

Oh, that would be interesting. I would very much like to see that.

            …and looking upon the wretched Skaven with his swollen testes out, Sienna found it impossible to believe that the thing could've ever once been Victor Saltzpyre, despite what evidence it could muster. The fact that it made such a claim and the very idea that it's blood-red eyes could show any hint of what it was proposing was absurd enough to not make her kill it right off the bat. It breathed through it's incisors and spoke with shaking lips.
            "I love-love you…need you…" The Skaven repeated.
            "But you're Skaven! Skaven don't know a damn thing about love or mercy…" Sienna said haughtily, threatening the rat-fiend at staff's length. The creature calling himself Victor, however, dared to approach unarmed. The stench from his erect rodent's **** befouled the air. His entire body reeked of Wyrdstone, a sickly aura of green around him. It was very possible that this black furred rat garbed in the plate armor of Clan Skyrre may have once been a man—tortured and warped by the powers of Chaos. Now the very Gods who sought to bring about the End Times compelled him to undo everything Sienna and the others held dear. Sigmar preserve them all! If he was allowed to touch her, humanity would be doomed.
            Yet she could not kill her prey, not even out of mercy. Marcus and Bardin were separated from her; there was no one else to do what needed to be done. What caused her body to freeze as he got inches from her, coaxing her to drop her staff? How could she let him get close enough to sniff her face? Was this where his true nature showed itself? She expected him to bite off part of her face at any moment. Skaven were notorious for being constantly hungry…
            "Skyrre slave man-things…won't let them…you are special man-thing with power…you meant for great things…" He growled in that Queefish gibberish before catching Sienna by surprise. The Skaven shared a passionate kiss; at the very least, the closest it could be capable off. Sienna's screams were muffled by his large maw, the grip of his strong handpaws keeping her from escaping. If she could still breathe, the Skaven would've spontaneously combusted by now.
            Something was passing over from him to her. It was faint and subtle, but her Bright College training recognized trace of magic in all forms and this was quite terrible indeed, passing through her like an addictive poison and consuming her with greater pain than the flames she commanded. This time, however, there was no second thoughts or self-control. This power was far more deliciously seductive than any firestorm.
            After withdrawing from the kiss, Sienna's legs gave out, leaving her limp in the air. Victor released her, letting her collapse to the floor and gasping for breath. She could not see the gray fur sprouting on her cheeks or the growing nubs on her forehead, but she felt different. Her nose began to twitch as she looked up at the skaven with widened doe eyes of red, looking oddly meek as a pair of incisors began to show underneath her upper lips.
            "What have you done to me? I feel the grip of Chaos…I've been tainted…" She whispered.
            "Make you perfect-good," Victor said, kneeling down to kiss her again gently. "I love-love you as man-thing…love-love you more as Skaven…"

            "And that's all I have so far for that story. Basically expanding on that one piece I had done of the heroes from the first game get turned into Skaven. What do you think?"
            The basement lights hummed dimly over the gaming table. Large enough for ten people, Ken had taken the time to set up a playing field of the Reikland with a plan multiple skirmishes and scenarios he would set up for his players to engage in. All of it was to be built around his newly built and painted armies of Chaos he'd purchased from the Age of Sigmar®. A mixture of enemies were on display for the next game, but they were largely composed of Skaven--his favorite faction in the game. It was all part of the Warhammer® series, but it wasn't anything he expected his best friend to know about or care for.
            To be fair, though, they both cared about Furry ****. He dabbled in it himself and had commissioned an artist to redraw the heroes from the video game adaptation, The Endtimes: Vermintide®, as skaven. Now he was writing a story to tie it together where Victor and Kerillian first turned and then began to spread it to the others. The unfinished story he shared played on the love-hate relationship that Victor and the Bright Wizard shared. Ken waited eagerly to hear his thoughts on the matter, hoping for some constructive criticism.
            Nick just smiled devilishly as he put the story down. "…it's practically perfection."
            "Really? Well, thanks! I'm glad I got it to you first. That editor's job really paid off since I know I can go to you about anything if there're problems with the plot," Ken said graciously.
            Nick honestly didn't care about any of that. Warhammer® had always fascinated him. He also liked Transformation fetish work and combined with the Skaven, this was like his wet dream. It was everything he could ask for from a Warhammer® Adaptation feature TF.
            As always, Nick let him know he was being too hard on himself, but it was the only way to get better for him. Trying to write a story like this wouldn't have been easy to pull off without the lore and there was a lot of that hanging around. Anyone who wasn't familiar with Warhammer® or willing to put up with a ton of backstory would've been very easily lost, but he knew enough people in his circle of friends who would appreciate; at least, they would tolerate it. Suffice to say, there were a lot of people who'd disagree with his favoritism of the Skaven.
            To be fair, Games Workshop® made them to be unintentionally unlikable. They were one of the most unpleasant races in the Warhammer® series, if not the worst. They made the orcs from Lord of the Rings® and even the Vermin clans from the Redwall® series look like they had standards by comparison. Yet, in a way, that was precisely why he liked them. It was because of how over the top and by the numbers evil they were and with how many cool little toys and gadgets they got as villains which was what drew him to them…well, besides the fact that they were one of the most abundant furry races in the series. The villainy gave them an identity and a clear side to root for than most of the other factions who were borderline evil, including the so-called heroes.
            Villainy, however, was entirely subjective. His understanding was that their villainy was out of necessity. The Skaven were plagued them with an insatiable hunger and capability to breed beyond what most races were capable of, which is what drove them into their self-destructive and disloyal nature. But that alone didn't make them evil. Self-Preservation was base and even noble; after all, humans were like this all the times. The key difference was they were far more convoluted as a species. Ken admired the Skaven's purity—indiscriminate, villainous survivors unclouded by any sense of morality or conscience. Much like the idea of Chaos, it brought balance to things. It was fair.
            He enjoyed them so much that he even had a Skaven cosplay outfit that he would take to L.A.R.P. sessions with other Skaven fanatics to engage in battle. Although it honestly would've been better if the costume weren't so bulky--something light and skin tight. Their bodily structure was very different than humans, however, so Ken had to make do with what he had. At least for now. When Nick pulled out his special surprise, however, they may not ever need cosplay again.
            "Of course, I am kinda biased towards them, so you might wanna ask someone else too. On that subject, though…" He grinned and pulled something out of his pocket. Two things, in fact.
            "Eh?" Ken eyed Nick's hand fishing through his pockets. "What're you up to, there? Did you have some kind of figurine to show me?"
            "Well, ever hear of those X-Change Wild Fantasy things?" He shook them around briefly before patting more in a case, grinning. He'd paid a pretty penny for what he had in mind, but it would be worth it, it would totally be worth all of the time he'd spent.
            "Well, no, not really. I do spend most of my time in the basement and I don't really explore the sites you do." Ken looked as Nick pulled out a pair of red capsules, no bigger than cold medicine. They gleamed in the lighting overhead. There was also a pink pill thrown in there as well, but they were all unfamiliar to him. Nick seemed to know more about them, so Ken proceeded to ask what they were. "Some kind of a special headache medicine? Or dope?"
            "Oi! Be nice. Anyhow, these things can do damn near anything -- it's more like medicine combined with powerful gene editing." He grinned as he showed three of them to Nick, taking three of them for himself. Getting Ken to take them would be the hard part, but he could hope. "But if we take them, we can turn into Skaven. Like, actual Skaven. In real life."
            Ken's eyes glared skeptically at the pills. They didn't seem that special to him. Instead of directly calling Nick out on being scammed, he played Devil's Advocate. "You know, I think the novelty of the Skaven would be lost in real life if they really existed. Why would you want to become one for real?"
            "Think of the cosplay possibilities, man! And being a powerful Grey Seer, for you."
            Ken just stared at him, baffled. "You're serious, aren't you? You actually believe these pills will make us into Skaven?"
            "What do you have to lose by trying it? If it doesn't work, you can laugh at me all you want." Nick moved the pills he wanted to take through his fingers as if they were coins.
            Whether the pills were real or not, Ken questioned taking anything he had no idea what it could be. His thoughts turned to all those PSAs about how to say no to doing drugs. They were going to be opening up a real can of worms here if he went through with this. Grabbing a pair of water bottles from his mini-fridge he took one of the red pills from Nick only to have Nick give him the pink pill as well. "What's the idea with giving me that pill? What's so special about it?"
            "Eh, I think it's just from a different lot or something." He waved his hand dismissively as he got himself a glass of water and internally grinned. He had a plan in mind indeed, but this would be fun. Sticky fun, if all went well. The pills were not simply basic pills, but were in fact the Plus Pills. If this worked, they would stuck as Skaven forever.
            "Okay, well, here goes." Ken slid both pills in his mouth and downed it with a mouthful of water. He could feel them riding down into his stomach but overall didn't feel any different. Once Nick finished his, it was all a matter of waiting. Yet they found themselves awkwardly looking at each other waiting for something to happen for a minute. Ken made a motion to question him a couple times, but Nick gestured to stay quiet. That felt rather irritating. Where exactly did Nick get off telling him what to do, all of a sudden? He should have to learn his place here since no one dared speak to someone as important as himself.
            Before Ken could question where the sudden pride came from he noticed Nick staring at him with a widening grin, as if he knew some kind of joke without letting him in on it. He would suffer an evil-bad punishment--take a beating if Ken was at the center of it. "Whath tho funny?" Ken mumbled, confused at his sudden lisp.
            Nick grinned as he saw Ken's teeth change-sharpen, his scheme-plan was working! The pills he'd gotten from the Man-Things from the internet-web worked! The sclera of his eyes were turning red as his pupils turned black and beady as he rubbed his hands together. His muscles started to bulk up as well. His bodyhair was turning black. "Nothing, nothing! You look fine-good."
            "Why are you thal--wait…" Ken brought a hand to his lips and noticed what was immediately wrong. His front teeth were far larger than he remembered, too large for his mouth…yet why did his mouth feel so much bigger than before? Why did his nails hurt scraping against his skin? Upon closer inspection, his hands now had rather long claws on them. They were perfect-great. What was happening to his speech-talk with how simple it sounded? It all felt familiar yet a fog shrouded the true intent of his very hairy-furred friend. The smell smoking off the man-thing's body was repulsive yet it mixed with something that left him impassioned. Was he turning gay?