Zypher

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It was another day in the workshop. Zypher had been tinkering around with his latest invention, a machine that was supposed to erase genetic diseases from the DNA of people to prevent the disease from being passed down onto their children. He had recently come to a stop in production because he still needed to figure out how to get the machine to work. He had figured everything out using an old manuscript detailing the creation of a machine used for a similar cause, but the page explaining how to make sure the machine targeted the right strands was missing. Zypher had concluded that the only way to move forward was to improvise. He made a few adjustments to the machine, and decided to begin experimenting the next morning.

When Zypher returned to his workshop, he found everything as it had been the previous day, except the manuscript was missing. He decided to continue with his plans, assuring himself that he must have misplaced it. He called over his assistant and together they prepared the experiment. Zypher would stand inside a glass box with a small hole in the side in which the end of the machine was pointing through. His assistant would start the machine, and if all went well, they would look at his DNA under a microscope after a week. Zypher stepped into the box. The machine powered up. The countdown began. When the timer reached “3”, Zypher realized that they should have started testing on a plant or animal first and yelled at his assistant to stop the machine, but no matter how many times the assistant tried, it would not stop. Zypher attempted to get out of the box, but the door was jammed. A blinding purple light filled the room, and all went silent. Suddenly Zypher felt his skin burning, as if he had been standing in the sunlight for too long. His limbs felt as if they were being crushed by an unbearable force. He tried to yell for help, but nothing came out. Zypher’s mouth felt drier than ever, and his head felt like it was being stretched.

Zypher was sure he fainted, because the next thing he knew he was all alone, surrounded by the ruins of ancient buildings. He tried to push himself up, and stepped on a midnight tail with blue streaks running down the tip that was evidently his, given the pain that shot up to his head. He tried to stand up more carefully. He looked over himself and almost fainted again. His skin was tough, and covered with ebony scales. What used to be his arms were now short limbs with sharp claws instead of fingernails. His hind legs were long and muscular, and the largest toe on each foot had become a giant sky-blue talon. Most surprisingly, he had a pair of large, feathery wings stretching out from his shoulders. He opened them and gave a little flap, sending dust into the air. Zypher suddenly felt very thirsty. He walked out into the expanse to search for some water.

Short story by oldjammerj!

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Art:



By Yeehaw!

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work in progress

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