Her expression was a masterclass in neutrality, yet the words she delivered hinted at worlds and wonders beyond my grasp. "Then they were likely Kitsune and were using magic. Most of our technology uses magic in one form or another." The revelation hung in the air, sparking connections in my mind to past events and the subsequent quirks in my AI's behavior. "This may sting," she warned, her voice steady.
The pinch came without further ceremony, a sharp sensation at the nape of my neck and another, unexpectedly, just above my tailbone. "What is that for?" I asked, trying to keep the edge out of my voice.
"Taking a bit of blood to test," she explained, her movements efficient, her focus clinical.
"Why there, though?" I pressed, curiosity laced with a twinge of discomfort.
"We lack comprehensive data on human anatomy, and given your circumstances, standard references might not suffice." Her explanation did little to quell the rise of alarm within me.
As I rose abruptly, my glare was met with an unflinching gaze that gradually softened into something more empathetic. "You haven't pulled up information on yourself, have you?" she asked.
My reply was defensive, "I have, but it revealed nothing new."
"Did you explore the annotations?" She tilted her head, her voice a mix of instruction and patience.
Confusion furrowed my brow, "Annotations?"
"Look for the star-like symbols; they denote notes—multiple stars, multiple notes."
The notion of hidden layers of information sent a ripple of anticipation through me. "How do I access this on command?" “Focus on what you want to scan and will the system to display the information. This will get easier as you do this again and again. Eventually, the information will automatically display about items that you want without your prompting.”
Lifting my arm, I looked down at it and tried to will the information into being. It took a few awkward seconds of staring before the window finally popped up.
None of it had changed minus the power level. Apparently, my armored suit counted but general clothing did not. The first thing I pulled the notes on was that linked to my species. A new window popped up with two pieces of information. The first piece was a bit informative, but not all that surprising.
‘Species: Human. Species information limited. Technological based society. No signs of modern magic detected. Technology development has reached minimum threshold. Ambassador fleet dispatched. Thirty-seven candidates found for transfer. Sixteen have agreed to species transition.’
It was the second note that had my heart speeding up in fear.
‘Species transition in progress. Starting species: Human*. End Species: Kitsune*. Transition progress: 24%. Estimated time of completion: 86.85 hours.’
According to the information, I was no longer fully human. I was turning into something else. I did the only thing I could think of, I yelled at the nice Kitsune next to me. “Why is this happening to me? Why am I becoming a Kitsune?”
She sighed as she said, “Every time there has been a new species discovered, a few of their number is selected to transition into a current member species. At the same time a number of other members are given the opportunity to transition to the new species. This allows for both sides to have someone who sees both points of view. At least that’s how it is in theory. That hasn’t always worked out well for either party.”
My eyes widened as I realized something else. There had been more notes on my information. Quickly pulling the page to the forefront of my mind. I pulled the note attached to my information. What I saw had me curling up into a ball and crying.
‘Sex: currently transitioning to female in order to match species requirements and norm. Transition progress: 37%. Time to completion: 37.5 hours.’
The bed tilted a little as something pressed down on it. One arm wrapped around me, then the other. Pulling me into her chest. She held me there as I cried until they no longer could. It could have been a few minutes, or a couple of hours. I didn’t know. All I knew what that I felt raw. Like my world was coming apart and that there was nothing I could do.
Silence descended in the room as I took deep breaths. Curling up against her as I tried to relax and calm myself. She let me. I was the one that broke the silence. “Is there anything else I need to know about? Is there a way to reverse the changes? Am I suddenly going to sprout tails?”
Her chest rose and fell as she took a deep breath before speaking. “No, there is no way to reverse the change. Such a massive change is a one-way trip. The system won’t even allow you to try. Your first tail will not come in until the end. It will also mark your ability to use magic.”
“Is anyone going to explain this magic thing that everyone keeps talking about?”
“The topic is a bit, complex.” She latched onto the slight change of topic from my change. “There are lines of power that flow under space. They crisscross the galaxy in every direction. No one knows why they exist, just that they do. Different species have found ways to tap into these lines and pull power or travel great distances.
“Some species have even found ways to harness the raw power and channel it through their bodies. That energy has some odd properties that allows one to shape it. The right shapes as well as enough energy can have various effects.”
“Like throwing a ball of plasma?”
She chuckled. “Like throwing a ball of plasma. But there are other spells that one can cast. Most of them are not used for fighting.”
“What is with the number of tails?”
“For a Kitsune, their tails serve as their access to the lines of power. As a Kitsune grows in capability, their body able to handle more and more power, they will grow additional tails. Thus, allowing them to tap into and pull more power at any time.”
