Her head was pounding, like an airship struck her at full speed and backed up over her for good measure. Whatever that creature had carried in its bite had changed her. She was no longer a zebra. In fact she no longer was certain what she was. Her hands and feet now carried deadly and lethal looking claws. She possessed long ears that ended in curls along with a thick and muscular tail. If this were her natural body she was certain she carried the potential to be a dangerous fighter. The problem was, this was not her natural body.

Lauren struggled to move, this unfamiliar form fighting her every step of the way. Her hands cooperated well enough, but she could still hardly speak, her muzzle now a vastly different shape. Words were useless anyway without someone to hear her. She slipped against the wall, falling to the ground. As she stood her eyes settled on the deep grooves her claws left on the pavement and bricks.

The transformation left her weak and disoriented. No longer certain where she was or where she was going, she begn to shiver from nervousness or sheer exhaustion. All she knew was that her name was Lauren Rivers. Despite her altered form she struggled forward, each step harder while her brain attempted to rewire her gait for having feet and toes far larger than her zebra hooves.

Skittering in the distance told her she was still being watched. Lauren knew she needed shelter, but if the creatures attacked her now she would be helpless against them.

Lauren stepped off of the sidewalk, tripping over her own feet and falling to the ground again. She whimpered as her eyes became too heavy and consciousness began to fade. The shape of a creature like the one she had become filled her vision in her last moments of consciousness.

"Help me..." she said, her voice slurred.

Art by omadaun