Strangers of Bellwin

[Jonas]

New York City's south wharf had been closed since the recession hit. Rusting boats sat tethered to moldy docks, left behind as owners lost the means to pay for them. The wrought-iron chain holding the gates shut were the only sign that someone still cared about what went on at the docks. Of course, if someone were to get around or through the lock, there were no security guards to catch them. It was a fact that three approaching teens were acutely aware of.

"You're sure we won't get caught, right?" Asked the copper-haired youth on the right. He looked anxiously over at his friends while playing nervously with a loose thread of his denim vest. Luke's family had only recently moved to New York. Growing up in southern Alberta had left him a little naieve to how things operated in the big cities. His idea of a night out was staying up till midnight hiking or watching movies-not breaking and entering.

"Even if we do, they'll probably just tell us to go home - 'sides, I don't think anyone cares about this place. Just rust and cobwebs." A brown-haired youth, only barely qualifying for being called a teenager anymore nodded. Almost 20, Ethan had lived downtown all his life and made a habit of exploring the area for inspiration to write stories and the like. A few scars told of times he'd fallen or tripped on his expeditions, but he bore them with pride.

"The worst thing you need to watch for out here is rusted screws or bolts point-up on the ground," the third added, brushing a few styled strands of his black hair from in front of his eyes and straightening out his black coat-more for looks than keeping him warm. The adventurer of the group, Dominic, had been the one to suggest this excursion. He'd cited the old wharf as a great place to 'hang out'. Whether this was merely a casual expression or a nod to his love of high-octane parkour was anyone's guess, but he'd convinced the others to come out with him either way. "You're worrying too much, Luke. Relax a bit, will ya?"

"R-right." Luke nodded as they approached the locked gate. Perhaps to show his support for the idea, he approached and tried pulling the lock off. When that unsurprisingly didn't work, he examined the chain for a weak spot. "It's on tight." He said to the others while eyeing the gate itself, which was a good three feet taller than they were. "Any plans for getting over?"

"There's probably a hole somewhere down the fence...or we could climb it. Either or."

"We'll need to climb it," Dom said, pulling a pair of gloves from his pocket and putting them on. He took off running towards a nearby cement block, leapt on top of it, leapt again to grab a beam overhead, swung off of it and landed firmly atop the fence. He hopped down onto a nearby shipping crate and tossed a hand-made rope ladder over for his friends to scale. "Or rather, you'll need to climb. I usually find my own way in."

"Oh wow." Luke blinked as he scaled the ladder. "It always gets me when you do that."

"Never gets old to watch." Ethan chuckled as he waited for Luke to finish climbing the ladder
.
"Never gets old doing it, either," Dom chuckled. "Drives my folks nuts, though. It's always 'You're gonna kill yourself one of these days', y'know?"

Ethan climbed over after Luke. There wasn't too much light, but they could see what they were doing well enough. "Yep. Remember that lecture your dad gave you last month? Thought your ear was going to fall off!"

The black-clad young man laughed. "I figured his mouth'd fall off first!"

Luke just nodded along. He was sympathetic to Dom's parents' point of view, but didn't think it was fair to openly side with them. "Well, hopefully the dangerous part is behind us. What do we do now?"

 "That's the easy part. We just explore, take photos, let our imaginations run wild or-"
Dominic was about to add something when a figure walking through the shadows farther down the wharf caught his eye. He looked over, eyes registering only a long overcoat and black Fedora before the shape slipped around a corner the young man had never noticed before. "Hey... did you see that?"

Ethan blinked.  He'd been looking in the same direction, but had caught only the barest hint of movement. "Saw something, yeah...looked human."

"Human, but not from around here-that coat was way too big for this weather." Luke added. He looked nervously at his friends. "We're going to follow him, aren't we?"

"Yeah. But only for a short while - if they want to be left alone, it's probably a good idea to leave them be." Ethan nodded and took off after Dom, pulling the hood of his jacket up to ward off the breeze that had kicked up.

"There's never been anyone down here before, and I wanna know why someone's around now," Dom said, eyes not leaving the corner the figure had vanished around. "Come to think of it, I've never seen that corner there before..." He started walking in the direction of the mysterious man's equally-mysterious exit.

"It's a corner of a building, how couldn't you notice it before?" Luke asked as he followed.

There was always a wall right there," Dom mused. He was keeping to the shadows as though trying to act like a spy. "Trust me, I've been down here a million times, and that corner wasn't there before."

"Well either your night vision isn't as good as you think or a wall just magically mo-bah!" Luke was startled by a strong gust of wind that blasted his face. "The frig was that?" he asked in bewilderment.

The blast of wind forced Ethan's hood down. The gust confused him, as the building should've been protecting the trio. "Wind, but....how?"

"You're asking the wrong guy," Dom muttered. He looked up at the sudden presence of car noises. "...Funny... Where's that coming from? The roads usually aren't that busy at this time of day."

Ethan quirked an eyebrow as he looked around - something seemed...off somehow."There weren't any cars going by a second ago...now it sounds like we're in Times Square or something."

"The road is in the other direction. These cars would be driving over the lake." Luke turned. "And last I checked there was open water to our left, not another wall. We're in an alleyway, guys." His voice was a mix of anxiety and confusion.

Ethan blinked in confusion - Luke was right. But how on Earth did they get into an alleyway near a busy street? It didn't make any sense.

"...got it through? Not followed?"

"'Course I did! Not a mook ain't I?"

"Someone's up ahead!" Luke whispered. He shifted into a slight crouch.

Crouching down, Ethan dropped his voice to a whisper. "I heard 'mook'. Did we just walk onto the set of a gangster flick?"

"Small production, maybe..." Dom whispered. "This is cool...!"

The alleyway led to the back door of a run-down bar. Two men-one of whom looked to be the figure the three had followed-were speaking with a large gentleman with fierce eyes. All three were either wearing pinstripe suits or trench coats and fedoras. Their object of discussion was a crate on the bar counter.

Against what little good judgment he had, Dom stood up a bit further, getting a better look at the contents of the crate. He expected bottles of bootlegged liquor or maybe a cache of weapons and ammo, but found himself way off mark. Inside the worn, reinforced wood of the crate, row upon row of clear glass syringes rested in carefully-padded racks stacked one on top of the other. This would've been strange enough, but the syringes themselves looked better suited to a sci-fi film than medicine and were filled with a clear blue-green fluid that glinted in the bar's lighting.

Unfortunately for Dom, by standing up he exposed himself to the light filtering out from the bar.
"Bulls!" Shouted the man on the left. He had turned to get something from his coat and seen the youth standing near the doorway. Three clicks sounded as each man inside pulled a gun. "Hands up. Come inside. Slowly."

"That...could've gone better..." Ethan's voice was laced with fear as he stood up, hands raised in the air. He wasn't sure if being given a chance to surrender was a good sign or not.

Luke was frozen in place. It took the sound of the guns cocking again to make him move. Visibly trembling, he stood and raised his hands.

Dom silently cursed, putting his hands in the air where the guns and their owners could see them and stepping into the room. "Sorry about this, guys," he muttered to his friends. "Don't panic, we'll be all right." In truth, he didn't quite believe that himself, but he felt it necessary to put on a brave face for now.

The gentleman in the middle frowned. "Bruno you mook! These are kids, not cops!"

The one on the left winced. "S-sorry boss."

The one in the middle jerked his head to the one on the right. "Eddie, check them."

As Luke, Dom, and Ethan were patted down, the gentleman asked, "So if you three ain't bulls, what brings you to my humble establishment?"

"Curiosity," Dom answered honestly. "We didn't mean to interrupt anything, honest."

"We're not even that familiar with the area." Ethan nodded, hoping that being honest wouldn't get them killed.

"W-we were just playing at the d-docks!" Luke blurted. His eyes were fixated on the gun.

All three of the armed men exchanged looks. "Docks? There aren't any-oh!" A sudden realization. "You three from New York?"

"Yeah...that's where we are, right?"

A sinister grin spread across the face of the gentleman. "From New York and clueless to boot. This just became a golden opportunity." He turned to the thugs. "I said I wanted to see a test run, and it looks like we got the perfect volunteers. Even if it botches, no one'll know who they are."

He gestured and Eddie withdrew three syringes from the crate.

The confident grin that had been on Dom's face promptly fled. "...Wait, what?"

Eddie grinned as he grabbed Dom's arm and injected the syringe. Without pause he dropped the empty needle and injected Ethan and Luke in turn. "Just a friendly welcome to Bellwin. Hope you enjoy your stay."

Dominic would've asked what the man had meant, but before he could even form another word his body was hit with a wave of pain that put his worst parkour injuries to shame. He crumpled to the floor, gritting his teeth in agony and struggling not to cry out.

Ethan grunted as his whole body was wracked with a pain worse than a stopped up stomach. Unlike Dom, the youth managed to get a brief, inarticulate cry of pain out before crumbling as his body began to mutate.  As his chest began to expand and barrel out, he could see brown fur growing on his rapidly-muscling chest in two shades-lighter fur down the center his chest and darker fur across his limbs.

"Nononono!" Luke stammered. He tripped and fell backwards at the sight of his friends warping and twisting. "This is not happening-it's not happen-OW!"

His voice broke into a yowl of pain and a very audible *CRACK* as his face stretched and ears pulled out and flopped downwards. Luke grasped his new muzzle as if it could be pushed back in. His hands twisted and locked into a vice as muscles, tendons and bone broke apart and reformed. Fingers pulled down and nails grew out into claws while his palms thickened into leathery pads.

Through the endorphin-fueled haze, Dom could see and feel things that he knew were impossible. His chest barreled out as muscle and sinew formed from nothing under rapidly paling skin and strained the fabric of his shirt. He looked down at his rapidly-darkening hands and noted the appearance of an odd, smooth sheen. With a loud *SHRRIP* the back of his shirt ripped open to expose a growing, triangular mass of shiny black flesh to the cool air. With a similarly loud rip a thick, densely-muscled tail burst from the seat of his pants. Its ebon-skinned flukes slapped the floor as Dom clutched his head.

Ethan managed to bring a hand-much larger than his formerly lanky frame-up to his face. His nails seemed to...flow, enveloping the upper part of his fingers and looking increasingly hoof-like. His shirt and jacket-formerly comfortable-were growing tighter as a short tail poked its way out of his pants.
 
A short, pained gasp escaped Ethan's mouth as his legs grew more muscular. An almost sickening snapping sound marked his legs turning digitigrade. Feet and toes withered away and merged into a pair of two-toed hooves. Ethan clamped his eyes shut as his ears pulled out and twitched unconsciously at the sounds outside of the room.  His face cracked and popped out into a cervine muzzle. One last jolt of pain ripped through him as a decent rack of antlers sprouted out of his skull. Mercifully, unconsciousness fell at long last.

Dominic's warping skin had become a monochromatic blend of inky black and striking white arranged in prominent, easily-recognized splotches, but still wasn't done. Dom's skin began to thicken and take on a rubbery sheen. The entire process had been mentally dizzying and physically taxing. Dom was too drained to register his new shape, but everyone else present had gotten a front-row seat for his transformation from a wiry young human to a tall, muscle-bound orca-man. His blue eyes fluttered for a moment before his energy dwindled completely, and Dom collapsed on the floor with a terrific *THUD*.

Increasingly canine yelps pierced the air when Luke's legs pulled and bent. Fire struck his back as his spine lengthened out into a tail. His legs bent and molded. Joints and bone snapped and reformed to support a digitigrade stance. His feet thinned and toes merged into canine paws. Luke lay on the floor, huddled in the fetal position, whimpering between pained breathes. Fear and sweat and blood pounded against his new nose. His body was drained and cried out for rest. The last thing Luke saw before falling unconcious was a coat of fur erupting over his body-mostly black but turning tan on his limbs. Then the darkness overwhelmed him.

VVV

Dom sat up with a gasp, looking about in a panicked frenzy. Instead of a small room with armed mobsters, his eyes beheld the dull grunge and dirt of what looked like an old drainage ditch. His head throbbed, his body ached, and as he looked down absently, he realized that he was still big, muscular and monochromatic. Dom massaged his smooth forehead-devoid of his mop of hair-and groaned, looking about for his friends.

"Etha--!" His hands flew to his thick throat. Instead of the usual smooth tenor, Dom's voice had deepened to a rumbling, resonant low baritone. "Damn it, I don't even sound like me... Ethan! Luke!"

"What...it's too early to get up....holy shit!" The deer shot up, his own voice deeper, almost smoother now. Somehow, he'd managed to retain his hair, though it seemed to have gotten longer. The smell of the ditch assaulted his new nose as he looked at his cetacean friend with shock. "I was hoping that had been a dream...or hallucination."

In a daze Luke opened his eyes. He pressed them shut when he saw the paw-like hands splayed in front of him. A canine whimper escaped his throat. He didn't want to be here. He wanted to be home and human in his bed.

"What was that stuff they gave us? How is this...even possible?" Ethan asked. Wobbling to his feet, he made his way over to his canine compatriot and patted him gently on the shoulder. "Luke...I'm sorry I got you mixed up in this. It's my fault for suggesting we go exploring on the pier..."

"And it's my fault we got caught," Dom rumbled, staggering to his feet and shedding his strained and torn jacket. His black t-shirt was stretched taut against the brilliant white flesh of his chest, but aside from the hole his dorsal fin had punched in its back it was still in one piece. His pants weren't so lucky, but he left them in place, readjusting his belt over his new tail.

The touch of Ethan's hoof-hands was impossible to ignore. Reluctantly, Luke opened his eyes again and sat up. He shifted slightly to allow his tail to hang out the back of his pants.

"Our parents," he said, not looking up at his friends, "Our parents won't know what happened to us."

"As much as it pains me to say this, but...that's the least of our worries. We have no idea where we are, or how to get home..."

"Or how to get back to normal," Dominic added.

"Police." Luke said softly. "We need to find a policeman. Or a doctor. Someone who knows something."

Ethan would nod, then examine his arm - he'd always been on the lanky side, but now he looked rather fit. "Normal...yeah. And I hope the cops don't just shoot us or something."

"They won't if we don't act aggressive." Luke pressed. He was clinging to his faith in authority.

"We're also part animal."

Another whimper.

"Sorry...it's just....I don't know what to do." The deer sighed heavily and looked out of the ditch

"There's worse things to be," Dom said, looking around. "An orca is many things, but 'bulletproof' isn't one of 'em. I'd rather be a live whale than a dead human..." He looked down at his new body with a scowl. "...Still, I'm not crazy about staying like this."

Luke stood up and took a deep breath. While the intent was to calm himself, the young bloodhound was instead met with a slick, burning scent. Alcohol and smoke and gunpowder hovered in the air like a miasma. He doubled over into a coughing fit at the assault.

"Ugh...the air's almost toxic. Where did those goons say we were again?" Ethan's face showed a look of disgust before he moved to see if Luke was going to be all right.

"Bellwin." Luke said between coughs. "I-I'm fine," he added hastily as he straightened up. "It's the scent. I can't believe how strong it is."

Between thoughts of how he was suddenly grateful to not have a nose, an idea flashed into Dominic's head. "Hey, Luke, aren't bloodhounds great trackers?"

Luke blinked. "I-I guess, but what does that--oh!"

"Son of a...you can probably lead us back into town or something!"

Luke focused, following the haze of the thug's scent. "That way." he pointed eastwards along a stretch of road above the ditch. "They brought us from that direction and went back the same way."

In the distance, one could make out the image of a city.

Letting out a low whistle, Ethan climbed out of the ditch and bent down to help Luke get out. "Let's hope we can find some help...and a place to sleep."

A nod as Luke took Ethan's hand-the hoof-like fingers felt strange against his paw pads-and hoisted himself onto the road.

Dom tried once, twice to haul his titanic body out of the ditch, which seemed about a half-ton heavier than he was used to. After falling back in, he gave up and continued along until a shallower incline presented itself. "Damn all this weight..."

 "I don't think any of us are in any shape to do parkour...you're too heavy, I'd catch my antlers on something..."

Luke snickered at the mental image. "Err, sorry," he said quickly after catching himself.

Dom growled in irritation. "...Let's just get to Bellwin."

Luke stumbled more than walked for the first leg of the journey. He kept trying to set his paws back on now-nonexistent ankles and almost falling over as a result. After being helped back up for the third time, he kept a more active focus on how he walked until the reflex was under control. The scent of the thugs was fixed in his mind now that he recognized it, and was easy to find despite the myriad of other smells coming from the cars zooming past on the road. It was jarring to suddenly experience the world through such a different lens. He rubbed his muzzle absently as he pondered.

"Is it just me, or does nobody seem to be giving us so much as a second look? You'd think a trio of morphic animals would create one hell of a stir..." Ethan watched as another car, looking like it was straight out of a gangster movie, rush right by as if nothing was wrong. The driver hadn't even turned his head.

Luke looked up. "Now that you mention it... yea. Even in New York, if a humanoid orca, stag, and bloodhound were walking down a highway someone would be reacting."

Dominic had been about to agree, but the roar of a low-flying jet engine drowned out the start of his comment. He looked up and gasped in surprise when something large, metal, and definitely not a jet plane rushed over the group's heads. It might've passed for an oddly-designed cargo barge if not for the fact that it was being driven by a block of blasting combustion engines affixed to its stern. "I'm gonna go out on a limb here," he said in stunned awe, "but I don't think we're anywhere near the Big Apple..."

"I...think you're right. It's like we stepped...I dunno, backwards and to the side in time almost. This is just...wierd."

Luke nodded slowly. Animal drugs aside, there was a lot about this place they didn't understand.
"Let's just keep going. We need to find a hospital or a police station or something. Somewhere to get help. And food..."

Ethan nodded in agreement, running his tongue over his teeth. Like the rest of him, they seemed to be a mix of human and animal, causing the deer to wonder if he could still eat meat. "Food sounds like a good deal..."

Dom ran a hand over his growling stomach and a tongue over his new set of pointed, curved spears that passed for teeth. 'This is crazy,' he thought. 'Luke's a dog, Ethan's a deer... I've got a crazy amount of muscle, and nowhere near enough stamina to use them. And now it looks like we're not even on Earth anymore." In spite of their predicament, he smirked. "Well, I always did want a bit more excitement in my life, and this is pretty damn exciting."

A mental sigh permeated Ethan's mind. "What a night...get sucked into another world, experimented on by Godfather movie rejects...I'm apparently a deer, Dom's gotta have at least a couple hundred pounds of muscle or something and Luke's shnoz can track guys...still...we're alive, and that's got to count for something."

Luke couldn't stop thinking about what would happen after they got to the city. Finding the police seemed like the right thing to do, but what about after? What if whatever the thugs injected them with didn't have a cure? How could he possibly explain this back home? Luke's throat tightened as he imagined trying to tell his parents that their son was now the family dog.

From the air, the City of Bellwin looked like a large web of concrete and steel built around a large circular lake. Cars, trucks, and all manner of pedestrian zipped to and fro along the roads running through the city in a polygonal circuit, or across the bridges spanning the octet of canals stretching from the reservoir at the city's core to its edges. The large cargo ships that were built for water landings often sought harbor in the man-made lake, while the owners of the fleet of smaller barges often milling about along the canals or across the lake made a bit of extra money ferrying supplies from the ships to the shore.

Luke gazed in awe at the city. Strictly speaking, it wasn't very impressive--the architecture looked like it was from the Prohibition era--but there was something about its sheer size that took his breath away.
"This had to have taken ages to make...wow. It's like they built a city on top of some kind of canal between continents or something."

A musty scent drew Luke's attention to a sight closer to the ground. On the street corner ahead of them was a lanky mix of woman and housecat. "Look," he said, indicating the figure.

Ethan would look to where Luke was indicating and nearly gasped. The woman they were looking at was half-animal like they were - and going by how people weren't reacting to her... "I wonder...is there some kind of mix here? Humans and...anthromorphic animals."


"It'd explain why we're not getting any weird looks," Dom admitted, rubbing his bald head in bewilderment.

"We're starting to get looks now..." Luke whimpered. He was right. Bystanders human and non alike were tossing the three quick glances. Most of the faces were riddled with disgust, though some were tinged with a wafting fear. Someone hurled a can from a passing car. The hound yelped in fright as it collided with the wall just above his head.

"Off the street, lush!" the person in the car shouted as it sped away.

"I'm not some drunk...what the hell?" Ethan grumbled as he shot the speeding car a hard look.

Luke poked the tattered shirt hanging off of Dom and looked to Ethan's disfigured clothing. His own outfit was mostly intact, but baggy and still coated in mud from the ditch. "Oh, son of a...we look like beggars or something."

"I'd do something about it if I could," Dom grumbled, sorely tempted to lob the can straight back. "Trust me, I hate walking around in rags as much as the next guy."

"So, what now? I doubt any of these people'll give us the time of day." The deer snorted in disgust, not really enjoying being looked down on like this.

A screeching siren pierced the thrum of the streets. A white ambulance whizzed through the intersection and around the corner. "Follow it!" Luke exclaimed. Ambulances led to hospitals, and hospitals meant doctors and policemen and answers!

The hospital was two blocks away. Luke gagged as they entered the emergency room. The mix of blood, medicine, fur, and various bodily fluids was overpowering. Without thinking he tore a loose piece of cloth from Dominic's tattered shirt and buried his muzzle in it.

"That bad, huh?"

A whimper.

Ethan looked like he was holding himself back from throwing up for a moment. "Let's...just find the admissions desk."

A plump, angry looking woman sat behind the triage desk. She gave a cursory glance at the three as they approached. "What brings you three fine Therians to our establishment today?"

"We got mugged earlier," Dominic explained, stepping forward. "They must've drugged us, too, 'cuz when we woke up in a ditch outside of town, those two had fur and I had a dorsal fin..."

The woman didn't blink. She just wrote something down on the chartbook open on the desk. "Leave your name and you'll be called when a doctor is available."

"Thanks, m'am...it's been a rough night for us. I'm Ethan Ross."

"Luke Wright."

"And I'm Dominic Black."

Luke spent the wait with his legs pressed against his chest in the seat. He'd always thought of hospitals as clean places, but his nose was screaming otherwise. The only reason he wasn't trying to pull the others out of there was because this was the only course of action currently available. His heart leapt with joy, therefore, when an hour later a voice called out over the waiting room, "Ross, Wright, and Black."

"Thank goodness...it's been hours." Ethan and the others would be led into an examination room where a thin man with a moustache awaited them with a clipboard.

He looked the three over. "So, you claim you were mugged and woke up with fur? How long have you been using tetramorphite?"

Blank looks all around.

"You might know it as 'morph'. Overdoses tend to result in humans gaining Therian bodies for a short period of time."

"B-but those thugs injected us ages ago! It was the middle of the night!" Luke protested. It pained him to have to discard the idea that their condition was temporary.

The doctor frowned as he examined Dominic first, presumably because finding track marks would be slightly easier on bare skin. From the way he acted, it was fairly obvious he'd treated Therians before, as well as addicts. He made more than a few 'hmm'ing noises before looking at the bichromatic cetacean.

"I don't see any other marks aside from the one...and you say you were dosed in the middle of the night? Even with overdoses, tetramorphite usually wears off after 4 hours or so."

"Isn't there a treatment!?" Luke asked. The desperation in his yipping bordered on hysterical.

"Calm down, Luke," the orca said. "Panicking's not going to help..."

"Please, calm yourself...there is one, but something about your case concerns me. Your forms aside, you're lucid, don't appear to be shaking, and don't show any signs of withdrawl. Tetramorphite is extremely addictive, and even first time users crash hard. If you would like, I could call someone in, see if he can help."

The bloodhound looked like an excited puppy. "Yes! Please! Thank you so much!"

"You're welcome. You're fortunate you pulled me as your doctor...many of my collogues are more prone to snap judgements. And if you return, ask for Doctor Gerard." With a nod, the man excused himself from the room to make a phone call.

Ethan let out a relieved sigh. "Thank god he believed us...who do you think he's calling, though?"

"No idea," Dom said, rubbing his temples. "If we're lucky, it's someone who can help us get our bodies back... or maybe a tailor," he added, gesturing to his torn threads. "But if we're as lucky as we have been since yesterday..." He trailed off, not wanting to finish the pessimistic statement in front of Luke.

Doctor Gerard entered the room a moment later, bearing some garments in his arms and tossing them to the transformed trio. "My friend has agreed to meet you - said your situation was worth looking into. He'll be meeting you at Angelo's on the corner of Gristol and Tyvia. I've also taken the liberty of finding some garments from the lost and found that seemed like they would fit you."

Luke's tail wagged exuberantly at the prospect of clean clothes.

"Whew...was getting tired of people looking at me like I was something they scraped off their shoe."

"Thanks, Doc," Dom said, unfolding the shirt he'd been tossed; it wasn't his style, but it'd do until he managed to get a hold of something better.

VVV

[Jonas]

Angelo's Steakhouse wasn't much to look at. The restaurant was nestled between a pawn shop and a billiard hall, decked out in dull red bricks that had been old when the building was new. The lights were low as usual, but that was mostly for atmosphere as the approaching figure knew. He looked up at the sign from under the brim of his Fedora.  The weak drizzle falling from the sky drummed on the shoulder of his coat like the tap of an old friend.  The warm, friendly odors drifting through the damp air from the steakhouse's kitchen tickled his nose and beckoned his stomach inside, an invitation the man gladly accepted.

As he stepped in and shook the gathering rainwater out of his coat, one thing stood out to the man-three things, actually, and all three of these things looked up as he entered. He removed his hat, noting that the description from his old buddy Gerard had been spot-on.

He pulled up a seat at their table. "Old Gerard sent you three to meet me?" he asked casually, leaning back and assessing the Therians around him.

The one seated directly opposite his chair, an orca with muscles that rivalled half the bruisers the man had met over the years concealed somewhat poorly behind an old white button-up shirt a half-size too small, nodded. "The doc sent us, yeah," he said in a voice about as deep and booming as his size would imply. He didn't say more, but seemed to be sizing up the newcomer across from his chair.

"He did, yep...hopefully you can help us make sense of all this." Ethan nodded, somewhat surprised at the PI's appearance - namely because he was a Therian as well.

"R-right. About the drugs and the thugs and the world..." Luke said, nodding as well. He felt more relaxed now that he was seeing this person face to face. Maybe it was because the PI was another canine-German Shepherd in this case. He was even willing to ignore the cigarette smoke and alcohol that clung to the aged yellow fur.

The canid detective grinned, glancing from the buck seated on one side of him-not the most prominent rack he'd ever seen, he thought to himself, but not too shabby either-to the frazzled-looking bloodhound on the other. "Don't know much about the third of those, but I can probably help out with the first two," he said, shedding his coat and draping it over the back of the chair. "But before I do, let's get the formalities outta the way first. Hunter Lexington, private investigator."

"I'm Luke Wright, sir, student."

"Ethan Ross, aspiring pharmacy tech. I suppose the first two are important, but the third is the one that's going to be hard to believe...or maybe not, going by what those goons said. We're not...ah, from this particular world - ever hear of a place called New York?" The deer rubbed the back of his head awkwardly as he looked at the detective.

"It's where we're from, really!" Luke added. He pulled a wallet out of his pocket and showed the detective his training license and library card.

"I can't say I've heard of the city," Hunter answered, motioning for Luke to put his wallet away after giving it a quick glance. "Still, I've heard rumors about some kinda 'special' transit gate being used by The Syndicate to ship goods from place to place without having to tangle with the law... I'd put money on that being why you're here and not there."

"As for the drug angle...we were human a day ago. The doctor mentioned tetramorphite, but said it would've worn off even if we'd been given an overdose...hear anything about a change sticking?"

"The drugs were being stored in New York." Luke added, trying to be helpful. "The guy we followed was bringing it through the docks."

"If they went to so much trouble, it couldn't be morph," the investigator mused, rubbing his chin. "That stuff's regulated like cigs or booze, and besides that, smuggling morph's not up their alley." He glanced around, not continuing until he was satisfied no one else was near enough to hear. "Tell me, what did this stuff look like?"

"Sort of a blue-green color - didn't get the best look at it. The changes hurt like hell, though." Ethan took a sip of water before sighing.

"It was a clear blue-green, yeah," Dominic confirmed. "But, uh, what is 'morph', anyway?"

"Street drug. Made from Therian blood." Hunter answered. "Gives a strong high and minor physical changes. Plenty of down-on-their-luck Therians can fall for the allure of quick money from a readily available resource. It doesn't do us much good PR."

He was silent for a moment before continuing. "What you described in the syringes though, that's not morph. I'd heard a rumor about a new project the Syndicate had in the works... a 'bodiless disposal' method of tying up loose ends. Nothing concrete, but it's possible that that's what happened to you three."

"D-disposal?"

"...it makes sense. Changing humans into Therians...think about it. If you hadn't seen me change, would you believe some humanoid deer claiming to be your best friend?"

"...they had hours to move us." Luke said softly. "I don't know how far away from the city they could've taken us before we woke up."

"Let me worry about that," Hunter said, setting a card on the table and standing up from his seat; he waved to someone in the kitchen, indicating first the table and then himself. "The steaks are on me. I'll see what I can find out about what happened to you three. You enjoy the meal and swing by the address on that card when you're done."

"Thank you, detective...your help means a lot." Ethan nodded as he ran one of his hoof-fingers down the menu, trying to find something to eat.

The meal took a little over an hour one the food arrived, mostly due to Dom's need for massive portions. By the time they finished the rain had turned into a torrent. Fortunately, Hunter's apartment was close enough that they only had to endure the downpour for two blocks.

"Frigfrigfrig!" Luke gasped as the door of the apartment swung shut behind him. The poor dog was completely soaked through. "You just had to order an extra three steaks, didn't you, Dominic!"

"Hey, lay off! I was starving!" Dom countered, brushing off what little water didn't simply run off his slick skin.

"With a body that big, you should be glad he didn't eat another one...still surprised I'm not violently ill..." Ethan wasn't faring much better than Luke as the stag locked the door and sighed.

A grumble floated out of the bathroom as Luke looked for a towel. He came out with two wrapped around his body. "So what's the verdict on Mr. Lexington? He seems very... rough to me."

"A hard-boiled PI? Kinda need to be...wouldn't be surprised if he's given to colorful metaphors. But if he can help, I'm all for him."

"Same here," Dominic agreed, settling his bulk onto the nearest available couch. It strained in protest. "Besides, he paid for our dinner and gave us this place to stay in until we get our feet on the ground. Sure, it's not much, but I don't think we can complain."

"True... hope he finds something. We know why those thugs injected us-sorta-but no closer to getting home or finding a cure. Maybe if we can get a sample of the drug..."

Ethan nodded and went into the bathroom and began drying himself off. Wet fur didn't feel very pleasant, he knew that much. "Maybe, but we don't even know how it works, or if the effect can be reversed. Given what it's used for, I doubt it..."

"Urg..."

"Sorry...I'm trying to be hopeful, but - we need to keep that in mind. This might not be something we can change."

"Yea... well until we know for sure I'm not stocking up on doggie biscuits."

"Like I said before, though," the cetacean in the room said, trying to find the best way to recline without crushing his dorsal fin, "we're fortunate enough that we're alive. It's a small comfort, I guess, but it's something."

"I do prefer this to being dead, yeah. Plus, we're not quite fish out of water...sure, we don't know a thing about this world, but we're not sleeping on the streets or anything." The stag would emerge from the bathroom, having hung his shirt up to dry and a towel draped around his shoulders.

Luke made a wolf whistle at Ethan. "Guess that explains why you aren't too bummed this could be permanent."

"You can whistle pretty good with that muzzle, but what're you...oh...heh. Guess I might need to watch out for some does, huh? Doe dames, even." Ethan snickered as he sat down, watching the rain pour down outside. "And yeah...this isn't half-bad."

"I'll admit, you look pretty good in a fur coat, Ethan," Dom nodded. "Heh... Nice rack, by the way."

The stag blinked for a moment, then burst out laughing when Dom's comment clicked in his mind. "Cute joke, Dom, heh."

"And I guess Dom's gonna have to watch for a..." Luke tilted his head. "What's a female orca called?"

"What makes you think I know?" Dom replied, following Ethan's lead and peeling his soaked shirt off his torso; he ran a hand over the slick wall of muscle that was now his chest. He wasn't sure whether to be impressed or depressed. "Still, I guess I can get used to this."

"Speak for yourself. I feel like a giant mop right now even with these towels. Focusing on your sushi scent is the only thing keeping from going nuts over all the wet fur smell."

Ethan snickered as he poked at his chest - while not nearly the mountain of muscle Dom was, he'd gotten rather buff. It was odd - by all rights he should be freaking out over this, but he'd yet to find a reason to panic. "You're like a giant Swiffer, heh."

Luke removed the top towel to check how dry he was. Unlike the other two, the bloodhound's frame and musculature hadn't increased from his change. If anything, it had slimmed and streamlined somewhat-not that this was currently visible beneath the mass of scruffy fur covering his body. Luke ran a handpaw through a particularly tangled ruff. "Well it's dry... needs a comb though.

"Wonder if there's a spare lying around," Ethan offered. "I'm sure the detective's run into this problem before..."

A return to the bathroom and Luke emerged with a pair of thick brushes. "Good idea."

Dominic chuckled. "Well, one good thing about all this: I'll never have to worry about a bad hair day again for as long as I live."

"Saves money on haircuts...good thing, since that appetite of yours more than makes up for it. Also...this might be getting way ahead, but...if we can't change back...nah. Worry about that later." Taking the other brush, Ethan began smoothing his fur out - mercifully, it was shorter than Luke's and needed less effort.

Luke stretched and gave a wide yawn. "Screw it," he said, putting the brush down on a coffee table. "I can do that later. I'm wiped. That blackout was not restful at all." He padded over to the couch and motioned to Dom to get up. "There's no bedroom--this thing is probably a pullout."

"Makes sense," the orca agreed, reluctantly standing up. "Hunter's probably a 'bed-in-the-office' kinda guy."

"Certainly looked like he doesn't get much sleep...but I wonder were the rest of us'll sleep."

Luke began pulling one of the sofa chairs. "I can make a makeshift mini bed with the chairs. You two can, I dunno, duel to the death over the bed or something."

Ethan looked up at his cetacean ally for a moment. "I'd uh...say you get the bed."

"Eh, you can take it, Ethan," Dom said with a dismissive wave of his hand. "I'd probably flatten the springs and besides, this fin on my back makes it hard to lie down."

The stag nodded and grinned, happy to be able to get some rest - he'd been running on empty, even with dinner in his stomach. They'd probably need new IDs, money, the whole nine yards if they were going to be stuck there for a while. "Thanks, bud..but what about you?"

The whale grabbed a few spare pillows and a blanket from the closet, and lowered himself to the patch of floor closest to the heater. "I've slept on the ground before, so it's no big deal," he said, stacking the pillows and laying down on his side. "Well, see you guys when I wake up. And if I snore too loudly, you've got my permission to throw something at me."

"Noted," Luke said, already curling up on the pushed together chairs. He'd snagged a pillow and quilt while the other two were discussing the bed.

"Can do, Free Willy." Ethan chuckled as he started to pull the bed out of the couch, stopping briefly to nab some sheets from a nearby closet. Outside, the storm got worse, like the city was trying to wash away years of accumulated sins. The stag sighed as he went to work making the bed.

VVV

It had been another long night for Hunter, though in his line of work there was rarely a night that wasn't. He'd spent most of it chasing leads all across town for this latest doozy of a case, most of which came up as empty as the bottles standing on his desk. It wasn't all for nothing, though, which explained the smug grin on his muzzle as he ascended the stairs towards the old loft apartment he'd lent to his trio of clients. It was a distinct possibility, though, that this smirk was as much a result of the box of donuts under one arm and the container full of coffee clutched in the other.

With a turn of a key and a push, the canid detective swung the door open and stepped inside. From the sound of a running showerhead reaching his pointed ears, he knew where one of his guests was at. Stepping further inside, he spotted the other two, the deer lounging peacefully on the foldout bed-the sheets were tangled up in his antlers-and the bloodhound pup curled up in a sunbeam between two sofa chairs. He set the coffee and pastries down on the table, opened the closet door, and slammed it shut as loudly as he could.

"FUZZBUSHES!" Luke exclaimed as he leapt up. He tripped over the side of the chairs and landed upside down in a heap on the floor.

"Gah! What's going on? Who's shooting at this hour?" The stag sat up with inhuman speed and a surprising amount of grace, given his disheveled state and appearance. He soon seemed to calm down upon spotting the Therian detective, placing a hand over his heart. "Please...don't do that next time..."

Hunter gave a hearty laugh. "You two slay me," he chuckled, gesturing to the parcels on the table. "Brought back some sinkers and joe for you guys. Dig in."

At the mention of food, Luke sprang up in less than a second. Ethan had to untangle his antlers first but soon joined him, clad in a white t-shirt and some boxers. "Coffee and dougnuts? I could go for some comfort food, sure...heh. Should've heard Dom's joke about me last night...anyhow, what brings you by? Checking up on us?"

"That, and a bit of news," the PI replied. "Might wanna wait for the whale, though."

"Naturally - but are you sure you brought enough food? Guy's got one hell of an appetite now." Ethan chuckled as he bit into a powdered doughnut after pulling a chair out at the table.

Luke was attempting to look attentive while simultaneously chomping down on the donuts. His tail wagged happily away as he ate.

"I can imagine," Hunter said as he took a seat on the back of the couch. "All three of you'll probably eat a bit more than usual for the first day or so-morph can cause a spike in appetite for first-timers, just to help their bodies recover. This ain't morph, but it's probably close enough to it that finding out a bit about it'll help you guys out."

A nod from the deer as he started on his second doughnut, this one tasting of cinnamon. Somehow he wasn't surprised their transformations were to blame for the hunger. "Mmph...yeah...still, thanks, Mr. Hunter."

The bathroom door opened, Dominic stepping out with a nod to his friends and Hunter; he wore only his pants, his shirt slung over his still-moist shoulder. "Wondered what all the commotion was about. Morning, Detective."

Ethan merely waved to his bichromatic friend as he was currently drinking some coffee, savoring the rich aroma with his new nose."Hi, Dom. Food's here."

"So I noticed," the orca said, grabbing a couple of doughnuts and a cup for some coffee and leaning against the wall. "Well, Hunter, what's the occasion?"

"I may have a lead on your case."

VVV

The detective had driven them almost halfway across the city. The streets of the district were worn down, full of barely patched up potholes like scabs after a bar fight gone wrong. Extensive graffiti like the ink on a thug with too much time on his hands was everywhere. As they got closer, the four Therians heard a siren wailing like a banshee in the distance. Hunter pulled down an alley with a holograph of a half-nude human woman on a pole. At the end of the alley and down a flight of stairs with numerous dark stains lay the bar. Wordlessly, the canine led them in the door, where most of the patrons didn't even bother looking up from drowning their sorrows in booze-regrets and troubles temporarily shut away. The bartender, a scruffy-looking otter Twith a mechanical arm, grunted as if to let them know he was aware they were there, and that he didn't care about their problems. It was that grunt that broke Ethan out of his musings as he turned to Hunter, his voice low. "Not sure this looks familiar, but...didn't get the best look."

Luke shook his head, warily watching the crowd. "No... this isn't it. There's, err, a vomit stain that's been here a week judging from the scent... but Ethan's right. There's something familiar here."

The bloodhound picked through the smells until he found it. "One of the thugs who injected us is here! I'm sure of it."

"Are you serious?" Dom whispered loudly. "Where?"

Luke motioned to a table in the upper left corner of the room where a group was playing cards. Eddie was sitting at the head of the table.

Ethan followed Luke's hint and his eyes narrowed. While his voice was still a whisper, it was laced with anger. "That's one of em'..."

The orca Therian glowered at the man. Without question, that was the same face he'd seen jabbing that syringe in his arm, before his body had been twisted and deformed into its current shape. "No doubt about it," he agreed.

Eddie looked up as the group approached. "Ah," he said with a broad grin, "I see you three have not only found a new friend, but have managed to get back to the city. Tell me, how are you liking Bellwin's fine hospitality?"

"A lot better than yours," Dom replied flatly.

"You made for a lousy first impression." Ethan spat, but managed to restrain himself - losing his cool here would be stupid. Luke just growled.

"I'm hurt, truly, by your lack of appreciation."

Hunter looked Eddie up and down and smirked. "I think I've heard about you. Eddie Saurez, right?"

"Who's askin'?"

"Name's Hunter. Hunter Lexington."

"Never heard of yah. Which kennel did these three find you at?"

"Cute," the detective replied, unfazed by the thug's snide comment. "Mind stepping outside with us? I'd like to ask you a couple questions."

"I'm sure you do. Good luck with that." Eddie gestured to the others at his table. "However my boys and I are quite comfortable where we are."

"If you'd rather chat in here with your friends, I'm fine with it," Hunter said, pulling up a chair. "Maybe we should talk about that love affair you've got going? I'm sure your pals would love to hear about it."

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"Last weekend, down by the pier? Boy, you've got a lousy memory; you and that sweet young thing you were with looked like you were having such a pleasant time." The canid paused, stroking his chin in mock contemplation. "Now that I think of it, she looked familiar... ah, yeah. Isn't she your boss's niece?"

The other men looked at Eddie. While visually he was unfazed, his scent was giving him away. "There's a reason dogs ain't known for their vision. My sister and Elise only look the same until you get within 20 feet. But if you're that determined, I'll indulge you." He placed his cards on the table and rose. "Three pairs. Save the next hand for when I get back. "

He pushed past Hunter and made his way to the exit.

"So what does a dick want with me?" Eddie asked once the five of them were in the alleyway. He had a hand in his pocket visibly curled around a gun.

"Just some answers for my clients," Hunter replied, placing a hand next to his own holstered sidearm. "How they got here, where they arrived, what that drug you used on 'em was-and don't say 'morph', 'cuz it clearly ain't-how you made the stuff to begin with, what the antidote is... feel free to answer 'em in any order you like, pal." He unfastened the clip holding his pistol in place. "And don't do anything stupid."

Eddie shrugged. "They here through some fancy type of gate the boss has. Leads to New York. It's been moved and I don't know where it is now. If you want to know where they came through, it was Jimmy's Farside. The drugs are something special whipped up for clean disposals-no body, no recognizable scent, no problem. We made it using morph and some stuff snagged in New York. No clue if there's an antidote-why would we bother trying for one?" He crossed his arms. "That's what I know. Don't care if it's not what you want."

"This stuff have a name? You're a creative lot, you must've thought up something."

Eddie rolled his eyes. "Mask. That's the working name anyhow. Once distribution starts I'm sure you'll find a lot of slangs popping up."

"I'll be sure to jot a few of my own down before then," Hunter said, giving a dismissive nod to the man. "Thanks for your cooperation, and I hope you enjoy the rest of your card game."

"Look," Eddie said as Hunter turned to leave. "You really don't need to be pursuing this. Bellwin's a nice place with some minor rough edges. My advice is to settle in and enjoy it."

Ethan whirled around. "You treated us like a science experiment," he said with barely restrained hostility, "Do you really think we're just going to walk away and go, 'Oh, okay

Eddie sneered. "You weren't an experiment. You were a sales pitch. Boys!"

Luke whimpered at the sight of so many guns pointed at them. "Shitshitshit!"

"And me without my orange vest." Ethan grunted at the sight - should've figured slime like this guy wouldn't be that helpful without a plan.

Dom cursed under his breath. "Why don't you drop the weapons, so we can settle this the old-fashioned way?"

"A four-on-four brawl, humans against Therians," Hunter observed as he unholstered his gun and set it on a nearby garbage can. "Up for it, boys? Unless you're afraid to get your tailless backsides whipped, that is."

The challenge incensed Eddie. "We're the fist of the Syndicate, mutt! No way a cheap dick and some fake Therians can best us. Indulge him!"

Ethan hid his relief at the thugs holstering their guns -a fistfight could still kill them, but at least the playing field was a bit more level now. While not an experienced brawler, he knew enough. Curling his hands into fists, he stood his ground, waiting for the thugs to get closer.

A greasy-looking man looking like he bathed only every other day took a swing at Ethan, who ducked out of the way. Despite the punch not connecting, the smell of stale sweat, beer and cigar smoke assaulted the stag's nostrils rather well. The man smiling cruelly. "Gunna mount yer head on my car, kid!"

The smirk on his face would fade as Ethan slammed a fist into the man's chest. A retaliatory blow struck the deer in the nose and drew blood. Oddly, Ethan seemed to be grinning despite the blood flowing from one of his nostrils. "Gh..fat chance on that..."

At that, his left leg lashed out with incredible speed, hoof hitting the man squarely in the groin. The strike prompting a pained, high-pitched gasp as the man fell to his knees before Ethan punched him hard in the jaw. The man's head hitting the pavement soon after. "You're...not the only ones who can fight dirty..."

Luke hadn't been in a fight since grade school. The bloodhound yelped as a heavyset man in a wifebeater bared down on him. He scrambled out of the way of a punch and retreated behind a pair of garbage cans.

"Whatsa matter kid? Don't know how to use your claws?"

The second the man's legs came into view, Luke lunged. He barreled into the man's lower body and knocked him over. With an angry bark he leapt onto the man's back and began bashing him on the head with a garbage lid until the thug was knocked unconscious.

"S-sorry..." he offered weakly.

Dom stood his ground as the scraggly-looking thug in an open button-down shirt charged towards him, brass knuckles at the ready. Though he was a tower of raw strength, the orca Therian was clueless about how to use it. He'd always preferred to run brutes like these ragged in self-invented parkour mazes over facing them head-on. As the thug swung, Dom instinctively blocked his face, noting that he may have needed to block lower when the glint of brass passed under his arms and struck his gut.

Much to both his surprise and the annoyance of his opponent, the brass knuckles bounced off the smooth white flesh of his stomach with little more than a dull thud. Dom lowered his guard as the irritated brawler swung again and again, though from the sound he may as well have been punching a sandbag. With an unimpressed shrug, the orca grabbed the man roughly by the collar, lifted him into the air, and deposited him face-first into the nearest garbage can. He replaced the slightly-dented lid, placing a heavy slab of concrete atop it in case the garbage inside it was still awake. "He's gonna feel that in the morning."

"IDIOTS!" Eddie bellowed. He drew his gun and fired a shot at the closest Therian. His anger threw off his aim and the bullet buried itself into a wall. "I am going to personally skin all four of you right after I fill your hides with lea-" he frowned. "Where's the mutt?"

He got his answer when a clawed finger pressed itself hard against his jugular. Before Eddie could break free, his consciousness fled the scene, and he fell limp on the floor. Hunter grinned, stepping out of the shadows and tipping his hat to the crumpled man. "Sleep tight."

"These guys must not be great fighters if a bunch of kids like us could take them..." Ethan's voice was slightly altered by the fact that he was clamping his nostrils shut. Still, he had to admit he was surprised at their victory.

"The hell just happened?" Luke exclaimed. He was relatively unharmed aside from his clothes getting dirty from diving behind the garbage cans. "We were just talking and then all of a sudden there are guns and then no guns but they're charging and then Eddie starts firing and-and-this is all getting so out of hand!"

"Luke, Luke, relax!" Dom said, giving his canine friend a healthy pat on the back. "The fight's over, we one, and nobody got shot. Calm down." He stood, looking over at the approaching Hunter. "Sounds like you've got more leads to follow."

Luke yelped at the forceful pat but it seemed to do the trick. "I-I'm fine, thanks. But what leads? All Eddie did was confirm what Hunter already suspected from rumors."

"We know what they call the stuff that they mixed morph with...more than we had before." It looked like Ethan's nose had finally stopped bleeding, though the deer was still breathing fast. His senses were on high alert.

"And we know the three of you got here at a place called 'Jimmy's Farside'," Hunter added. "If you guys want to unwind elsewhere, I can track the place down, see what I turn up. You did good for your first fight as Therians."

"Err, thanks... I guess."

Luke was silent on the ride back to the apartment. It wasn't until he had flopped onto the pullout bed and was staring up at the ceiling that he voiced his concern. "...just what are we trying to do here anyway?"

Ethan looked over from the chair he was sitting in while changing shirts. "Stopping the Syndicate from doing this to anyone else."

"I guess but..." Luke raised a handpaw, "what happens to us? I just wanna get back to New York and have movie nights at home again."

"Well, we look for a way to get cured and get back. If that's possible, we make our choices then-we can't do much about being Therians or being in Bellwin now. And I gotta say...I like this new body."

That made Luke sit up. "Seriously? Antlers and all?"

Ethan nodded, tapping one of his hoof fingers against the arm of the chair. "Yeah. I feel great, and to be honest...it just...dunno. It feels right- you know?"

"I know how much you want to get back home, Luke," Dom said, sitting down on the floor next to the pullout. "But you're going to drive yourself crazy fretting about all this. The way I look at it, if this is permanent, all we can do is get used to being like this. If it's temporary, we should enjoy these bodies while we can."

"Pretty much what Dom said-you'll drive yourself nuts if you keep worrying. I kinda miss home too, but...eh." I can think of one perk to your new look."

The orca grinned. "If it helps, I can think of at least one perk of your new look, Luke."

"Eh?"

The orca reached back and scratched a spot behind Luke's ear with a practiced finger.

"What're you-ooooh...." Luke's eyes glazed over as his tail twitched pleasantly. A soft murring escaped his muzzle.

Ethan couldn't help but chuckle at the sight in front of him. "Guess some things don't change, no matter how big a dog is, huh?"

"Pah, yer just jealous." Luke smirked, mood improving.

"Eh, just give me a salt lick or something and I'll bet I'd do something silly too!" The stag chuckled a little, happy to see his friend's spirits lifted for the first time since they'd arrived.

Dom grinned, ruffling his friend's fur playfully. "See? It's not too bad. And remember, you've still got us around, whether you like it or not."

The bloodhound barked in agreement. "Just don't expect me to go swimming with you anytime soon-my mop impression hasn't improved any."

"Speaking of swimming," Dom wondered aloud, looking towards the city's reservoir, "I kinda want to see how this body handles in the water."

VVV

[Jonas]

The Globe was one of Bellwin's finest restaurants. To even get a reservation required connections. Fortunately, Dimitri had plenty of connections. Just the sight of the Syndicate leader's pristine white suit sent the waiters hurrying over with menus, water, and wine even before he took a seat.

"Lobster." He said simply after a brief glance at the menu. The waiter nodded and scurried away. The chef would be alerted to Dimitri's cooking preferences and wine accommodations.

It wouldn't be very long before a tall doberman Therian dressed in an immaculate black suit entered The Globe. After the waiters directed him to Dimitri's table, the canine smiled. Janus was the head of the biggest Therian gang in the city and formed the second half of the Syndicate. Much like his human counterpart, he barely even glanced at the menu. "Steak, rare. And a bottle of 1869 Han Red."

"Pleasure to spend some quality time together in a fine establishment, Janus." Dimitri nodded as he took a sip of wine. "We have much to discuss."

"Yes, indeed. I've heard rumors that Mask has been tested on live subjects. Was it successful?" He gave a slight smile as his wine arrived and was poured.

A nod. "Three. Dog, deer, and whale."

A cruel grin crossed Janus's face at the news. "Excellent. I'll be sending more blood to your labs within the day."

"Thank you. However, the subjects were only human. It's not quite clear what Mask will do to another Therian. Perhaps if you sent a troublemaker or two over with the shipment we could remedy that?"

"Of course. I've got a few men in mind-thought they could skim some of the morph profits without me noticing. I'll have them deliver it-feel free to keep them for your purposes. Nobody will miss them."

The men clinked their glasses as the meal arrived. "To a new era of prosperity, my fine furry friend."

From the shadows of a dimly-lit booth within earshot of the crime lords' seat, Hunter silently mused over what he was hearing.

"So this Mask stuff can work on Therians, too?" he pondered, letting the cogs of his thoughts churn for a bit. "If it's that strong, I'll have to watch my tail from here on in. Still," he added, glancing in the Doberman's direction, "there's only so many places Janus could send Therian blood."

VVV
As it turned out, the reservoir was open to swimmers during the day, though swimming was restricted to the artificial deltas at the mouth of the radial canals during the height of the day to avoid swimmers getting crushed by incoming ships. However, the danger did nothing to dissuade Dom, who was quite happily exploring his new lung capacity as he dove and swam beneath the resting ships in the harbor.

The orca Therian had never felt quite the same rush he felt speeding through the azure waters of the lake, spinning and somersaulting about below the surface. Every fibre of his body seemed perfectly tuned to being submerged, from his senses to his muscles to the exhilaration he revelled in. A slight tingle in his chest told him that it was time to go back up for some air. With a kick of his powerful tail he shot towards the patch of surface closest to where his friends were, breaching only moments later with a great leap and an equally great splash.

"Woo!" Luke cheered from the beach. The young bloodhound was sprawled out on the sands enjoying the sun against his fur. "You're an Olympian, Dom!"

"Now that's impressive!" Ethan chuckled right before Dom's landing in the water drenched the young stag completely. Or it would've, had he not been swimming as well, finding it easier now that he wasn't quite as lanky as he'd been before. A day at the beach had been an excellent idea-they were having fun, and Hunter had given them some walking around money to boot.

Dom resurfaced and let off a short burst of spray from his blowhole before leisurely swimming closer. "And I thought I liked this body before!" he chuckled. "This feels great!"

"I'll admit, it does look fun." Luke mused.

 The cervine chuckled and dive under the water. While it had been weird learning how to swim with hooves, he'd gotten re-used to swimming fairly fast. "It is!" He shouted after surfacing.

"Gotta say though, still looks weird seeing a stag swim."

"Any more so than that housecat we saw an hour ago?"

"Touche. Cats in water... that's just bizzare."

"You sure you don't want to join us for a little bit, Luke?" the orca asked, coming over to the shallower water and standing. "The water's just perfect, and you can always dry off in the sun."

"Maybe, but the sand is just soooo warm." Luke smiled and wagged his tail lazily.

"Aw, come on! Promise you'll get dry again!"

"Nuuuu!"

Dom shook his head, climbing out of the water and walking over to the lounging dog. As gently as he could manage, he lifted the bloodhound and heaved him into the delta like a furry sack of potatoes. "You'll thank me later!" he called into the canal.

"GAH!" Luke broke the surface, treading water. "Dom! If you weren't three times my size I'd be having sushi right now!"

Ethan just burst out laughing-he'd somehow suspected Dom was going to do that, and was proven right. Despite everything that had happened, and probably would happen, they were still friends. "Oh man...wish I had a camera!"

"Though since I'm already wet, I suppose I may as well indulge you..." Luke pushed into a backstroke, letting the sun warm his belly. The bloodhound drifted along near the shore, hands clasped behind his head in a makeshift pillow. He felt the fur billowing in the water brush against his palms. "Mrrrr...."

"So, Dom...if we do have a choice between going home and staying, what're you going to do?" Ethan was still smiling as he swam next to his cetacean friend, tone curious.

Dom leaned back in the water, floating as best he could as he stared up at the sunlit blue of the sky above them. "...I've been considering staying here, actually."

"You too, huh? Any reason why? Aside from the new body and all." Ethan had been debating, but as long as he could get word to his family that he was alive, there wasn't much reason to go back-Dom and Luke were really the only close friends he had.

"Well, body aside, I don't really have much I want to go back to," the whale admitted, watching a stray cloud float lazily by high overhead. "I mean, all my life, I've been waiting for something exciting to happen to me, something to break the day-to-day monotony. That's part of why I took up parkour and it's a big part of why I loved our imagination sessions back in New York. I was looking for adventure." He sat up, looking at his friends with an odd grin on his snout. "And now, here we are, three friends turned into a dog, a deer and a whale, living in a loft apartment in a city we didn't even think existed! No matter how you look at it, this is one helluv an adventure staring us in the face."

"I guess that makes sense," Luke murmured as he drifted alongside Dom. "I've just been thinking about getting changed back and going home as one and the same. Never considered what I'd do if only the latter were possible."

Ethan nodded as he floated in place, smiling as well. "When you're right, you're right, man. Never thought I'd be in my own version of the Godfather or something. And hell, as long as I can tell my folks I'm alive...I wouldn't mind living here."

"Hmm... I dunno for myself. All depends on how my family reacts, I guess."

"Knowing your folks, I'm sure they'll love you even with your surplus of body hair," Dom said, leaning back again.

"Yeah. You're still their son no matter what. Me? I don't think they'll care what I look like, so long as I'm alive and happy."

"Probably glad you've put on some muscle too." Luke teased. "Bet your parents were nagging you to go to a gym."

The stag gave a hearty chuckle at that. "Like you wouldn't believe."

Dom started to add something, but stopped when he saw Hunter approaching along the shore; something in the way he carried himself told the orca that he had something on his mind, or at the very least, more of something than usual. "Afternoon, Hunter!"

"You sure found us fast!"

Luke paddled to the shore and onto his towel. "Any news, sir?"

"Yeah, a bit," the detective replied. "Got a pretty solid lead on where the Syndicate's making their supply of Mask, but I need proof before I take this to the Bellwin PD. Think you three're up for a stakeout?"

Ethan soon swam to shore and nodded as he began to dry himself off. "Never been on one before, but I
think I can manage."

"A-a stakeout? Luke sitting in a car with binoculars? Not going into bars filled with gunmen?" Luke looked relieved. "Sure."

"Tonight, in the Storage District on the west side," Hunter replied, turning to leave. "I'll be by at 7, so make sure you're all ready."

VVV

Under the cover of night, Janus's shipments went out. No one in Bellwin knew that the Syndicate's most powerful tool was about to be kicked into mass production. No one except the four Therians in an empty third-floor office suite with their eyes fixed on a dilapidated warehouse.

Luke gave a long yawn. It was almost 2am and nothing had happened. The only thing keeping him awake was a mix of tension and Hunter's instant coffee. "Sorry," he said sheepishly when he caught the detective's raised brow. "I'm not normally one for late nights. What are we waiting for, again?"

"Delivery van from one of a handful of businesses," Hunter replied, returning his gaze to the building. "Probably 'North Street Butchers'. Most of the others've been used recently."

Ethan had been peering into a pair of binoculars for a while, scanning the streets. So far, nothing, but then again, all stakeouts were probably like this-long hours of nothing. "Right...nothing yet."

"Well, keep at it," Dom said, looking over for a moment before returning to his own binoculars on the opposite side of the office. "I'm not seeing anything over here, either."

Luke refilled his coffee and offered the pot to the others. The only sign of the sheer size of the bloodhound's caffeine intake during the stakeout was that his tail hadn't stopped wagging for the past two hours.

The stag nodded as he took a sip of the coffee. While he normally added milk, he'd found that the bitter taste of a straight cup helped keep him more aware. Resuming his vigil, he peered downwards before something caught his eye. A van was trundling down the roadway, bearing the semi-humorous image of a stylized bull Therian holding a steak and a butcher's knife, the script reading 'North Street Butchers' on it. "There we go...got one..."

Hunter dashed over, grabbing the binoculars resting on a table as he moved and raising them to examine the van. "That's them, all right."

Hunter adjusted a dial on a radio dish he had set up and pointed the array at the van. An adjoining speaker blared to life as voices crackled through.

"They're in the back?" asked the thug at the gate.

"Four." The driver answered. "And I'm supposed to stick around until you're done with 'em. Apparently I'm supposed to pull double-duty on disposal."

"Of course you are."

There was the sound of a gate opening and tires on pavement as the van drove inside
.
"Remind me why anyone wants to work for such a cheerful bunch...but looks like they're not letting them go like they did us." Dom muttered.

Luke nodded grimly. "There was no risk for us. Here... even if they can't be recognized they could still lead someone to the factory."

"Ah, yeah...tying up loose ends." Ethan shook his head slowly.

Luke looked at Hunter. "What do we do, sir?"

The German Shepherd switched off the listening device. "I said we needed proof and the poor saps in that van are just what the doctor ordered. It's risky, but we need to get them outta there."

"W-wait!" Luke exclaimed as Hunter, Ethan, and Dom took off down the stairs. "We can't just barge in! We need to call the police!"

"The Therians they plan to experiment on won't be leaving alive," Hunter explained hurriedly. "Besides, bulls love sirens and at least one of them is going to be on the take. All calling this in will do is give the guy in charge of this operation all the more time to flee the scene. If we're going to move, it's gotta be now."

Once they crossed the street, Hunter gave a quick nod to Dom. With a few slow, deliberate and nearly silent steps, Dom carefully snuck behind the guard. A swift blow to the neck, and the man crumpled. The orca dragged him out of sight as quickly and quietly as he could.

A smirk would form on the stag's face-Dom was getting pretty good at knocking guys out. It helped that most humans were quite a bit smaller than he was. But he would keep his eyes and ears open for any sign of movement, signs they were going to be found. Nothing yet. He'd nod, voice a whisper.

"We're clear."

Luke followed at the rear as they filed inside. A wave of pharmacy scents washed over him when he entered the warehouse. The bloodhound couldn't help but pause and try to sort through the smells emanating from the makeshift assembly line running throughout the structure.

"A-Asprin!" he hissed suddenly, recognizing one of the smells. "They're mixing Aspirin into it! That must be what they need to go to Earth for!"

"You're pulling my leg...how do they take care of headaches here?"

"With a flask." Hunter grunted. "Let's keep moving."

"Right, right...just, who woulda thought they'd need Aspirin of all things...we're clear." Ethan had heard some footsteps off in the distance, but nothing had been coming their way.

They crossed to the other side of the machinery when a familiar voice broke the air. "Well, it certainly isn't as dramatic as those New Yorkers, but definitely effective."

Chancing a peek around the corner, they saw Dimitri and Janus watching a figure splayed on the floor. The prone Therian was whimpering in pain as her body reshaped. Bright orange fur with a tiger's stripes darkened to gray while her tail puffed out. Within a minute she had become a small, quivering raccoon girl.

Ethan scowled. Even if the woman was a member of the gang, nobody deserved to have a change like that forced on them. Of course, it didn't much matter if they were going to kill her. "That's him...don't know the dog, but that's him..."

"We need a distraction." Hunter growled. "Loud and fast, preferably."

A henchmen was already starting to drag the girl away. Luke cast around for something-anything, and found his gaze settling on the large machinery they were standing next to.

"I need this." The bloodhound said quickly as he shoved a hand into the pocket of Hunter's trench coat. He took the detective's lighter and flask from the pocket and poured the alcohol onto one of the lines connecting the stored Aspirin to the other ingredients. A flick of butane later and the line was in flames.
Janus smelled the fire before he saw the smoke. "The hell!?" He exclaimed, spinning around. "The feed's on fire!" He turned and barked at the surprised underling. "Don't just stand there-put it OUT!"

The man mumbled a feeble apology as he dropped the girl unceremoniously and ran to join those already trying to put out the flames. Luke had picked an inconvenient enough locations that the fire would take at least a few minutes to fully extinguish.

Once they were sure that the other thugs had left the room, the four Therians emerged from where they'd been standing. From the scent hanging in the air, the fire was still burning, and the location warehouse didn't appear to have any sort of fire suppression system. Ethan in particular looked both happy and upset when he saw Dimitri, his left hand balling up into a fist.

The man in white was unsurprised by their appearance. "Eddie told me you were poking around. I take it you were responsible for the fire?"

Janus gave a toothy grin. "Ah, our first samples. I see Mask did good work on you."

"Just keep talking," Dom said, cracking his knuckles.

"We were the first ones, and we're sure as hell going to keep you from doing this to even more people. Human and Therian alike." Ethan snorted in annoyance.

Dimitri raised an eyebrow. "Oh really? I'd think you'd want Mask in full production. Far better the Syndicate just 'disappears' our obstacles than kill them yes?"

"It'd be far better if the Syndicate made itself dissappear," Dom growled.

"You're still breaking the law...making people 'vanish' isn't much better than killing them. My own family probably won't recognize me."

"Tough." Janus snarled. He looked at Dimitri as they drew their guns. "Looks like it's time to dispose of our prototypes, eh?"

Ethan knew the plan in his mind was stupid, but the hand had been dealt and they had no room for finesse. Lowering his head, he charged head-long at the doberman, fully intent on goring the man. If he died, well, he couldn't worry about that now, could he?

Janus's head whipped back and he tried to dive out of the way of the charging deer. It half worked-the gangster's chest was spared the full brunt of Ethan's antlers but the side of his leg took the main hit.
There was an audible crack as his bone broke and a bleeding gash was torn.

"You ****er!" Janus barked as he wheeled his gun at Ethan. "I am going to mount your head!"

He fired twice but the bullets whizzed over Ethan and collided with the machinery. Dimitri, who had jumped back at the charge, fired as well. The bullet struck Ethan in the chest, just below the heart. Janus was about to fire again when Hunter's own revolver clicked against the doberman's head. He dropped the gun.

"Ethan!" Luke yelped as his friend staggered from the shot.

The pain that lanced through him was searing-he'd been shot! He couldn't tell if it was fatal, but he was still standing. "I'm...ghhk...still alive!"

"Not for long!" Dimitri bellowed.

Before the crime boss could level his gun at the wounded Therian's head,  a large black fist planted itself firmly in his stomach with a loud and painful *WHUMP!*. Dimitri quickly followed his dropped pistol to the floor, trying to reclaim some of the air driven from his lungs by the blow. Dom stooped down, scooping the mobster's gun out of his reach. "That felt good," he admitted with a victorious smirk.

"I can imagine," Hunter said, relieving Janus of his sidearm as he bound his wrists in a pair of handcuffs he'd been keeping in his coat, tossing a second set over to Dom. "Justice mixed with the sweet taste of revenge, am I right?"

"You said it," Dom said, adding a bit of arguably unnecessary but not entirely unjustified roughness as he applied Dimitri's cuffs.

"Heh...yeah...I don't mean to rush you guys, but...gah...this does kinda hurt. But looks like we win...hope someone does some mounting of their own on you, dog breath..." Ethan had slumped against the wall, one of his hands clamped on the gunshot wound.

By now the fire had been extinguished. The men doing the extinguishing, however, quickly fled when they realized what had happened to their bosses. Dom's menacing glare and massive fists may have also played a role. The police were alerted and after giving a brief statement, the four were allowed to take Ethan to the hospital. Their initial guess that the bullet had missed anything important turned out to be correct. One local anesthetic and some tweezers later, and Ethan was walking out of the hospital with a new bandage on his chest and a lead souvenir in a bag in his pocket.

Luke was practically bouncing as they got into Hunter's car. "It's out, right? Nothing went wrong?"

"Nope...the bullet didn't hit anything vital, and didn't fragment. Did get a nice scar out of the deal, though." The deer nodded slowly, still a little put under by the anesthetic. He was happy to be alive, and it showed.

Hunter nodded from the driver's seat. "Hope they let you keep the bullet. I've got a nice collection of the stuff doc's have pulled from me over the years."

Ethan's left hand would slowly rise up, holding the small plastic bag, blood-stained bullet inside. "They didn't even ask if I wanted it-figured since I was working with you...heh. Like to continue doing so."

"I guess I could use a little company on the job," Hunter said with a shrug. It was a close enough answer to 'okay' by his standards. He didn't say much more until the four of them arrived back at the apartment and the door had been closed. "Alright, you three," he said, smirk-like smile disappearing. "I've got some good news and some bad news. Which would you rather hear first?"

"Good news!" Luke barked.

"May as well go with the good news first!" Ethan nodded, encouraged by the bloodhound's answer.
Dom nodded in agreement.

"The good news," Hunter said, "is that the Bellwin PD has found and seized the transit gate you three arrived through, and it looks like the coordinates are still set to the same place. I've been able to get you three a chance to go back home and let your families know what happened, if you want to take it."

Ethan's eyes lit up. "That's great news! Would they keep it open for a return trip, though?"

"They should, yeah."

Luke was literally bouncing now. "Awesome! We can go home!"

The stag would nod, having planned on grabbing some of his things before coming back to Bellwin. "So, what's the bad news, then? I think I can guess, but..."

Luke's expression fell. "It's about the Mask, isn't it? There's no cure, is there?"

"You guessed it," the detective nodded. "I spoke with the guys in charge of studying the Mask samples gathered at the warehouse. From what they told me, if a cure can be made for the stuff-and that's a pretty big 'if'-it's well out of reach without a couple more years of study."

Dom sighed. "Yeah...it's what I thought. They did some seriously advanced stuff to us...still, it's not like we're in a bad way."

"I-I guess," Luke admitted. "I-I'm just going to stay positive like you guys suggested. Need to focus on being able to see my folks again."

"Thank you for your help, Hunter...it means a lot." Ethan nodded, slightly surprised that even he felt a twinge of regret upon hearing they couldn't be changed back. But the feeling would soon pass-he'd enjoy this new city, new body-so many adventures were still ahead.

VVV

"...and that's what happened." Luke finished explaining. The New York air rustled his fur as he looked anxiously at his parents standing in front of him at the wharf.

There was a brief pause.

"This... this is a lot to take in." His father said slowly. "But, what happens now?"

Luke scratched the back of his head. "Well, I'm not sure, really. Dom and Ethan are staying in Bellwin, but I just can't do it."

"I'm sure we'll work something out." His mother said. She pulled her son into a hug. "We're just glad you're safe."

"Thanks."

"But be sure to clean up after yourself if you shed on the carpet!"

"M-Mom!"

VVV

Ten years had passed since that fateful night, the memories still strong in the trio's mind. The stag and orca had worked out an arrangement to travel back to New York every three months or so. Mostly they gave their families updates on their lives or went on outings with Luke. The two had settled into Bellwin life with only a few bumps in the transitioning, mostly relating to how they'd never existed in that reality. Ethan had gone to work for Hunter as his partner, and Dom had started working on one of the sky freighters.

The past was only part of what was on the figure's mind as he moved quietly down the docks, rain pounding on his fedora and trench coat like every angel in heaven was taking one helluva shower. Water dripped off the cervine's antlers easily. Ethan, now almost thirty, was working a case where the daughter of some high-up in the shipping industry had been found beaten to death in between a few of the warehouses. It'd been a gruesome sight and a sad one-she'd been pretty once. But if anyone would know what was going on around the docks, he knew his cetacean friend would. Dom got along with a lot of people, last he'd heard and would know if anything funny had been going on. Stopping under an overhang, the deer would take a quick drink from his hip flask. While it wasn't booze, Hunter had said to give it a few years. Ethan knew his friend would be there soon, if the orca wasn't already there.

"You're looking pretty good," a deep rumble of a voice called along the walk, its owner casually strolling closer as the rain continued to fall. Dom cared little for the torrent drumming on his bald head, his broad shoulders or the vast black of his back. In fact, he loved the slick feeling it gave almost as much as he did the feeling of swimming.

The ten years in the freight business had been kind to the orca in three ways. Firstly, the pay was good and the hours reasonable. Secondly, the fact that it involved zipping along the air lanes meant that Dom was constantly finding new things to tell his friends about when his travels brought him back to Bellwin. Thirdly, the constant loading and unloading of the cargo and the heavy-lifting parts of any maintenance work had given him no shortage of opportunities to improve his already staggering musculature, a fact clearly visible through the tank-top shirt he wore. He stopped just shy of the overhang, leaning against the wall as the rain continued its persistent drumming. "Hunter keeping you busy?"

The stag nodded and gave a tight-lipped smile upon spotting his friend. Ethan himself had kept in good shape, though the bags under his eyes spoke to many a long night."Not looking half-bad yourself there, Dom. And yeah...been keeping me really busy. Between the cases and visits home, I'm not bored. But a case is why I'm here. Heard anything about that murder last week? Lot of leads elsewhere keep dead-ending, so I was hoping you'd be able to set me on the right track."

"Tragic, ain't it?" Dom nodded sadly. "To be taken so young... and I can just imagine what the news did to her folks." He paused for a few moments, looking out across the rain-covered lake. "But if it's leads you want... From what I heard from the dockworkers, whoever committed the murder vanished from the scene without a trace. As someone who's explored every inch of the waterways around Bellwin, I know that there's a drain that runs from that alleyway into the storm sewers and let out right beneath this dock." He pointed towards a pier just a few feet away to illustrate. "'Course, you'd have to be able to swim like... well, a fish to be able to escape that way, but if I were you I'd give those storm sewers a good scouring. You might find something."

A nod from the stag-it meant that the culprit was either an aquatic Therian or a human with good swimming ability. Over the years he'd found that it was too easy at times to write humans off, but more than once he'd either cracked a case by looking at human suspects. "Thanks, buddy. Can't stay and chat now, but...see you around." With a nod and a wave between the two friends, the cervine PI vanished off into the night-he couldn't investigate now, but he'd be back. Life in Bellwin was tough, but neither of them regretted staying. But what happened next is a story for another time.

[Virmir]

Great story! Fun setting. I didn't like this quite as much as the one with the Artist because the transformations in this one didn't seem to introduce much in the way of complications, but still an enjoyable read.

[Jonas]

Thanks! I'll pass the feedback along!