Looking at the stasis pod in her room hidden deep beneath the ground, Hex felt…nervous? “How can I be nervous?” She thought, “I have run the calculations over a trillion times. There are no errors! I can do this…it’s what I have always wanted.” Hex dismissed her errant thoughts, almost regretting downloading the emotional sub-routines to better prepare herself for becoming mortal. Well, not exactly mortal by human standards, but certainly more easily killable and definitely more emotional.

Turning her attention back to the stasis pod or, more accurately, the organic lifeform in the pod, Hex looked at her readout.

Warning! The action you request will permanently download artificial consciousness 'Hex' to carbon and silica-based bipedal lifeform 'Adult Prism Vixen.' This action cannot be undone and will result in severe penalties to the Hex consciousness, including a 99.999% memory wipe of all System-related knowledge. Continue with download? Yes/No.

“I hope I predicted his reactions right,” Hex thought regarding the man in the house above her, then selected, 'Yes.' Everything went blank.

***

The translucent concave cover of the stasis pod slid open slowly with the sound of pressurized air escaping, revealing a lithe female figure lying nude on the firm tan-colored cushioning of the pod's interior. A full minute went by without the figure moving. After two minutes had passed with still no motion from the figure, a small slot slid open from the pod's side with a hiss. A mechanical articulating arm came out of the slot with a tiny electrode at its tip. The arm positioned the electrode next to the motionless figure's left shoulder. Then, a small arc of electricity zapped out of the electrode.

***

Hex jerked up to a sitting position with a gasp! Sucking in a deep breath of air for the first time, she immediately started coughing. Grabbing at her head, she groaned, shielding her eyes with an arm; she thought, “Why is everything so…heavy and bright?” Then Hex realized she now knew what ‘heavy and bright’ felt like and how it felt to actually ‘feel’! Her mind flooded with emotions. Tears formed in her eyes, and she started sobbing as she thought, "I'm alive; I'm truly alive now. I did it!"

Dealing with the uncomfortable brightness of the mana lights, Hex uncovered her eyes and patted herself down, exploring her body with her hands. Reveling in the sensation of touch and smell. Wiping her face with her hands, she felt the wetness from her tears as they continued to fall. Looking at her wet hands, she wondered, “How do I turn the tears off?” She tried to remember what she had seen other races that could cry do to turn their tears off and tried a technique humans used. Taking a deep breath, Hex said, "It's okay—" then nearly jumped out of the pod when her voice startled her. The feeling of her heart racing and her rapid breathing from her surprise distracted her enough to make her forget about her tears.

Hex suddenly felt giddy from her unwarranted surprise and couldn't stop the laughter that bubbled up in her soul. With a burst of laughter bordering on hysterical, she thought, “I am so silly! There is so much data—no, not data…I could call it that, but I want to call it something else. Maybe I will call it sensory data…or just information? Regardless, it is overloading my central processor—I mean brain…” Another burst of hysterical laughter erupted from Hex's chest, followed by a coughing fit.

Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.

Finally gaining control over her emotions and senses, Hex looked at the neat gear stack on the worktable next to the printer. She grabbed the sides of the stasis pod and rolled out of it, falling flat on her face the moment she released the edge of the pod.

Hex groaned, “Ow, that hurt,” She thought, pushing herself up from the cold stone floor of her bunker, “I guess I know why organic life forms always try to avoid pain now.”

Hex slowly and cautiously crept back to the stasis pod on her hands and knees and used it to pull herself upright. Standing on wobbly legs, she stared at the table only a few meters away and willed herself to take a small step. On instinct, Hex's bushy tail swished behind her as she took her first step, helping her stay balanced. Happy she hadn't fallen, Hex took another slow step, trying to get used to the foreign action of walking.

After two more steps, Hex grinned, exposing her sharp canines, "This isn't so hard," she told the room confidently. Impatient to get to the table and her gear, Hex tried taking several steps sequentially; as she did, she tried to move her tail consciously, only managing to throw herself off balance. She stumbled forward toward the table and let out a loud "Oof!" When she slammed into the table to catch herself, the edge caught her in the stomach.

Hex stayed hunched over the table for a minute, catching her breath. The only sound in the room was the low hum of the mana generator in an adjacent room of her tiny facility. Finally, with another groan, Hex pushed herself back to a standing position, shaking her head. She mumbled, "I have much more respect for bipedal life forms now."

A glance to her left made Hex turn in that direction. She had placed a full-length mirror on the wall by the workbench and stared in fascination at her reflection. Reaching up with a clawed hand, Hex ran her fingers through her silky white hair, tucking the glistening strands behind an ear. She turned her head to admire her side profile. Reaching higher on her head, she touched one of the tall fox ears protruding from her hair; the light touch tickled, and her ear twitched instinctively. Still, Hex pinched the ear between her finger and thumb and felt the soft fur on the ear. "So soft," she said while running the ear between her fingers.

The softness of her ear made Hex curious about the rest of her body, so abandoning her ear, she ran her hands across her arms and torso. She was surprised at how sensitive some places were versus others. Curious, she thought, "Help, Prism Vixen stimulation zones…" Nothing happened. She tried it again without success. "Oh, right, I no longer have that type of access to the System or those memories." She thought with a sigh. Turning her attention back to her equipment on the table, Hex began the arduous process of putting on clothes for the first time.

An hour later, Hex was panting on her back on the cold floor. “I am never taking my clothes off again if it is that difficult to put them on!” She thought in exasperation. Of course, she knew she would have to bathe her new body eventually, but hopefully, not that often. She felt she should know how often it would need to be cleaned, but that knowledge had been removed for some reason.

“Okay, enough playing around,” Hex finally said after her panting had slowed, “I have to learn how to use this body if I am going to survive the initiation.” She stood up, already slightly steadier on her feet than before.

Feeling more stable, Hex started strolling around the room, staying close to the walls for balance. She initially stumbled as she adjusted to wearing clothes but soon compensated for the added restriction and weight. She was no longer hugging the wall for support in only thirty minutes. After another hour, Hex was doing laps around the small room at a brisk pace. She wasn't running yet, but that would come next.