"All clear." The security guard walked back down the corridor, oblivious of the boy walking behind him. As soon as the coast was clear, he quietly opened the office door, swiftly stepping inside. Shutting the door behind him, he walked over to the filing cabinet, reaching into his pocket and pulling out a pen. Outlining the lock, smoke rose from the cabinet and the lock fell into his hand. He smiled, pulling the drawer open.
"Scenes, Shifts..." He pulled out one specific file. "Look's like our Intel was right," he said into his wrist. "Heading back no-" As he placed the file into his bag, he sensed someone approaching. Quickly, he shut the drawer and hid under the desk. How can the principal be back already? he thought. The door creaked open and the light turned on.
"What's going on?" an urgent voice said in his ear. He tapped his wrist twice. "Got it. Creating a diversion." The footsteps came closer and closer until he could see them. The man sat at his desk, not aware that a teenager was hiding underneath.
"So many write ups to be written," he said, placing something on his desk. "Rodney," he growled. The boy perked up at hearing his name, worried his cover had been blown. "Always skipping class. It's a shame all of this goes on his record."
Rodney stifled a chuckled. Yeah, a record that doesn't exist, he thought. "Rod," the voice returned. "When you hear the alarm, wait 10 seconds and then book it out of there." 10 seconds, that's all you could get me? He shook his head. Xero knows what he's doing, he told himself. Suddenly, a loud alarm resonated throughout the building.
"You have got to be kidding me!" The principal slammed his hands on his desk, rising out of his chair. He rushed out of the office, leaving Rodney behind.
Sighing, he got up, looking out the window. "You've really outdone yourself, X." He watched as everyone rushed out of the building. He chuckled, watching some of his classmates freaking out.
"Yeah, yeah, thank me later. You'll need to use the collar for a clean escape."
"Are you crazy? It's bad enough I almost got caught in here. Now you want to risk-"
"You either risk getting caught as a spy or by animal control. Which would you prefer?"
Rodney groaned. "Fine, fine." Opening his backpack, he pulled out a collar, wrapping around his neck. He took a deep breath and opened the window. Perfect, he thought as he stared at a tree. He launched himself, claws extending from his changing hands. He gripped onto the tree, growling at the sudden weight shift. The transformation was complete. Replacing his human body was that of a dog's, a young one. Without hesitation, he dropped to the ground on all fours. He kept his bright white tail tucked underneath him as he ran, keeping his white tipped ears perked. His black paws scraped the earth beneath him, leaving footprints that any normal person would identify as a dog or large cat.
"Look!" he heard. "A dog with a backpack!" Crap, he thought. Someone had spotted him. Growling, his collar activated. A holographic display appeared in front of his eyes. He didn't dare look back.
"Need some help here!" he yelled.
"Already on it," Xero said. Rodney heard the screech of tires in front of him. He nearly collided with the side of a van, skidding to a stop. "My bad. Should've warned you." He grabbed the bag, throwing it inside.
Rodney growled, baring his teeth. "You could have killed me!" he whispered. Xero attached a leash to his collar, leading him to the back of the van.
"Get inside, boy. Come on!" Rodney rolled his eyes. If it was one thing to be out in public in this form, he didn't want to be treated like the animal he was. All he could do was comply. He was a dog in the public's eyes. The doors shut, leaving Rodney in the dark.
He shifted back, pulling the collar from his neck. "You know I hate when you make me wear this thing," he yelled when he heard the driver door open. Xero chuckled, pulling away from the front of the school.
"Whatever, man. Tell me you got the right file this time?"
Rodney looked over the documents. "Yeah, yeah, it's the right one. But why would the principal have it?" The files made references to various conspiracy theories, including the existence of shifters.
"Who knows? What's it say?" Xero peered over before swerving the van.
"The road! Watch the road before you kill us both! I'll skim it."
"History has shown evidence of creatures that are able to change form. Most people call these beings 'aliens', but they're actually known as 'shifters'. They look walk and talk like us, but, at their will, they can transform into an animal. What's not to say the animals in the zoo aren't actually 'shifters', imprisoned by our government? Forced to breed and entertain us humans for money. The government does some shady stuff, but this is by far the shadiest."
"That sounds like us," Rodney said. "Only, natural. Is that even possible? Who wanted this?"
"Anonymous tipster. Paying a lot of cash for it too." The boys pulled into an alley, ditching the van. "His email said to meet him here."
"How do you know it's a guy? And how do you know he'll pay?"
"I don't," Xero whispered. "Shift and act like you're my dog, in case something goes down." Rodney nodded. He looked around, making sure the coast was clear, and put his collar back on. He sniffed the air cautiously, ears perked for any sudden movements.
"I thought I told you to come alone," a deep voice appeared down the alley. Rodney sniffed the air, detecting another animal. Odd, he thought. I can smell Xero and another animal. What is that, fox, maybe?
"My dog goes with me everywhere," Xero said, patting Rodney's head. He suppressed a growl, opting for a 'happy' sounding bark. "He will give you the file. You will attach the money to his collar. Deal?"
"I don't think so," he said. "It seems we are in this together."
"What do you mean?"
The figure removed his hat. He did the unthinkable. He shifted into a red and black fox. Rodney and Xero's jaws dropped as the fox trotted over to them. "And I don't believe this is your dog either."
"How are you doing that without a device?" Rodney growled defensively, baring his teeth. "How do you know about us? Who are you?"
"I've been watching you both for a while now. I believe you two are the answer I'm looking for." The fox circled the two boys as he talked. "My name isn't important, not right now at least. The reason I had you get those files was to provide you with information. Information I already knew."
"So it's true?" Xero said. "Shifters are real?"
"Yes," the fox nodded. "I was hoping you two could help with my species. Seeing how young you two are in person, however, I'm not sure I want to take that risk." The man shifted back into a human, as did Rodney. "Unless..."
"Unless what?" Rodney said.
"You'd like to do a little more investigating." The man grinned, his beard shielding most of his face. His piercing gray eyes seemed kind enough, the boys thought.
Xero looked at Rodney and smiled. "What's in it for us?"
"Oh, once you find what you're looking for, you won't ask for payment." He turned his back on the two, walking back down the alley. "You'll be plotting revenge by then." With that, he disappeared, down the streets of the city.
The boys arrived just in time for lunch to end. People began whispering and chuckling as they headed to their lockers. "What's going on?" Rodney asked. "What's so funny?"
Xero laughed. "It might have something to do with..." He gestured to his neck. Rodney's eyes grew wide as he ripped the collar from his throat, shoving it into his pocket. "I thought you said you hated wearing it?"
"I forgot, alright?" Rodney blushed. "Let's just drop it." Xero rolled his eyes.
"Oh, the irony of you telling me that." Rodney slammed his locker shut, speed walking down the hall. "Hey, come on! It was a joke!"
The bell rang as the boys sat at their seats in their least favorite class: history. They were currently studying Greek mythology, a subject which bored Rodney to sleep. "Who can tell me what an Adlet was?" No one raised their hand. Is there anyone that actually does the history reading? "No one? Hmm... how about you, Mr. X?"
Great, Xero thought. "Wasn't it someone with legs of a dog or something?"
"Correct! At least someone did the reading. Adlet was a race in Greek mythology that did indeed have legs of a dog. Interestingly, there were reports of these creatures, as well as others, including sightings and artist renderings." A hand rose. "Yes, Ms. Samantha?"
"But, weren't they myths? How could people have actually seen them?"
"Good question. History tells us that many myths are based around actual facts, although this particular myth seems a bit farfetched. Many scholars believe that..." Xero tuned himself out of the class discussion. This whole Greek mythology stuff seems oddly related to those 'shifters' that guy was talking about. Maybe there's some truth after-
A ruler slammed on the desk next to him and he was pulled out of his thoughts. Rodney jumped out of his chair, falling to the ground. "Thank you for returning to Earth, Mr. Rodney. I really appreciate it." Rodney growled as quietly as he could as he sat back in his chair, scowling at his teacher.
A side effect of Rodney using the collar? He inherited a few dog traits,such as long hair and, of course, a growl. He kept his hair trimmed short, and managed to keep his temper under control. Most of the time. Xero looked at him, his face telling him to cool it, and Rodney complied, focusing on the lesson.
Xero, too, had a collar, but he rarely used it. It would transform him into a black cat at will. He never found a good use for it, so it usually sat in his safe at home, unless he worked on modifications. It truly was a scientific breakthrough, what he and Rodney created. Though, admittedly, it was not ready to be mass produced, let alone revealed to the public. "How's the software going?"
Rodney didn't look up from his computer, typing furiously. "I think I managed to trim the file size down, but it's not completely ready yet. What about the hardware? How's the necklace lookin'?"
"Well, it looks fine," Xero said, holding up a metal paw print. "But unless we can get everything we need to fit inside, it'll be pointless." He rolled his chair over to some mini circuit boards, checking each and every one before handing Rodney one. Rodney plugged it into the computer, offloading all it's information onto it. "How sure are you this'll work?"
"Well, I'm 75% sure it'll work. 15% chance it doesn't."
"And the other 10%?"
Rodney sighed. "It sends an electric shock straight to my heart." The computer dinged, indicating the download was complete.
"Great! Nothing to worry about then!" Xero installed the circuit board and microchip into the paw print. He attached the metal chain to it and examined it for defects. It was exactly how they designed it. An all black paw print. The back of the device, like the inside of the collar, would connect through his veins up to his brain, where he can control it it. "Are you sure you want to do this?" he asked as he handed Rodney the necklace.
He shook his head. "Yes," he said, placing the necklace over his head. He held the paw in his hand. "On the off chance I do get shocked-"
"I'm not giving you mouth to mouth," Xero laughed. "But, I'll be right here." Rodney nodded. He took a deep breathe and concentrated. The paw glowed a deep blue through his shirt. A bright flash filled the room for a millisecond, engulfing Rodney.
Standing in his place was Rodney's dog form, this time, with a black collar. His tail fur has morphed from white to black, but he retained his white tipped ears. Otherwise, he was a black German shepherd.
"It worked!" he barked. "It really worked!"
"How do you feel?" Xero asked, remembering the very first time they experimented with this technology. "Light headed? Headache? Nauseous?"
"Nothing right now," he replied with his tail wagging.
Xero wrote down his observations. "Alright, how about you-"
A banging on the door interrupted him. "Xero?" his mom called out. A flash filled the room as the door opened. "Who are you- oh! Hello, Rodney! I didn't know you were here?"
"Hi Mrs. Wright," Rodney said, back in his human form. "Just working on our science project!
"Yep, and I think our test run was successful, wouldn't you agree?" Xero said, not missing a beat.
"Of course it was!"
Xero's mom grinned at the two. "I'll just leave you scientists alone. Rodney, stay for dinner. I'm making meatloaf!" She shut the door. The boys sighed with relief.
"That was too close," Xero said. "But, now we know you can transform faster. Very useful. And your fur is darker."
"Must be a side effect, but at least it's useful." Xero nodded, jotting some notes down. "Hey," Rodney said with a low voice. "What was all that stuff about Adlet's in class today?"
"You know, a lot of the stuff in Greek mythology sounds just like the 'shifters' our anonymous guy was talking about."
"You didn't actually believe him, did you? He didn't take the information, plus he didn't pay us."
"Eh, maybe you're right. Speaking of him, anymore investigations we need to do?"
"Haven't checked." Rodney sat down at his computer, checking their email. "Look's like we've got another one. Whoa, high profile."
"What's it say?"
"They sent me classified documents. Want us to look into it further." He printed the documents out, looking them over one by one. Xero walked over, looking over his shoulder.
"Same guy?" he asked.
"Yeah, with proof this time. Look at this." He was holding a photograph. Of a man with the upper body of a tiger. The caption below read 'mid-shift'. The computer dinged. "Another email?" He opened it. "It's a video." His eyes widened. "Dude, check this out."
On screen was a group of teens, all relaxing around a fire. Only, they had tails and pointed ears. One of them even had a muzzle. The camera zoomed in on one. He appeared to be part wolf. In the blink of an eye, a full-blown wolf was in his place. No collar. No jewelry of any kind.
"Do you know what this means?" Rodney said.
"Yeah," Xero said. "Our anonymous guy knows a lot more than he's telling us."
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