Looks like sneaking around in the science lab had some bad side effects.

Have a story!

Naturally when Dreki was left alone in the Science™ lab, he couldn't help but snoop around. He had been warned to avoid the lab, as it contained all sorts of things that were hazardous to the well being and natural state of any creature, but his curiosity had gotten the better of him.

With his goggles on for safety, the rubber dragon browsed through the collection of unlabelled jars with a smile. They were all sorts of bright colours and different shapes and sizes; there wasn't any real organization to them. Dreki picked up one or two of them and gave them a good swirl, wondering what their contents held.

He paused on one of the bright green jars. It was particularly attractive, an sphere with ornate flower designs embossed in the side. It looked like it would be something particularly special.

He opened it and gave it a sniff. It didn't smell like much, perhaps a little like vinegar, but nothing as potent as he imagined. He gave it another swirl in hopes that this would give more hints as to what it did, but the effort was fruitless. He inhaled deeply and shook his head.

Out of nowhere his paws tensed up and he dropped the jar. It shattered on the ground with an ear-splitting crash as green liquid splashed everywhere.

"Ew," Dreki said, as he tried to wipe it off. He breathed a sigh of relief. Some of the stuff had gotten on his nose, but not in his muzzle. Most transformation serums needed to be taken internally for them to have any effect. The rubber dragon turned back to the shelf to look for something to clean up the mess with.

There was a mop in the corner that he could use, so he went to grab it. But as he took a step Dreki noticed something different. No longer did his feet squeak when he walked, but each step produced a solid thunk. Not only that, but his feet felt heavy and stiff.

He closed his eyes for a moment, not wanting to look. He could feel the transformation spreading up his legs now, so he forced his eyes open. He could see the typical shiny black latex of his body, but something was wrong. His toes had turned a dull shade of grey and were impossible to move. He could feel the floor underneath them as if they were still part of his body, but at the same time they felt cold and stiff. This made him panic, as the solidity was rapidly spreading up his legs. He tried to take a step, but his legs were so heavy now that he couldn't even lift them off of the ground.

Dreki tried again as his arms started tingling. He clenched a fist and put all the force he could into it, but they were stuck solid there, a start contrast to his usually flexible body and now he couldn't even move his hand out of a fist. That was when he stared to seriously panic.

"Help!" he cried out in vain. Nobody else was there, but regardless he yelled again, "Help! Help! H-" The words stuck in his throat. He felt his muzzle with his free hand. That was his next mistake. He got some of the goo from his nose onto that hand, which began to rapidly seize up too.

He wheezed wordlessly until even that stopped. His mouth was stuck open, like it had been glued that way. His head was getting heavy on his neck, but that too was becoming difficult to turn. Even his tail had started to seize up.

Dreki scanned the lab for something that could undo this, and there it was, sitting on the desk right in front of him: the elixir of life, the reversal unit, the antidote to his stupidity. He reached for it, but as he leaned over, his arm started to seize. It spread up over his shoulder as he forced himself to lean in, creating noisy crackling and groaning. His wings were frozen now, all greyed over, as was his tail. The only thing left was his shoulder.

No... Dreki thought, as his stone fingers touched the glass jar. All he had to do was tip it onto himself, but a cruel fate had sealed his destiny. His body froze, finalizing in a pose of desperation, just inches from the jar.

He could still feel a slight breeze on his body, from the air vent above, and somewhere outside he could hear a car door slam. The dragon statue tried to turn his head to look, but all he could do was keep staring straight at his only method of escape.

"Dreki?" a voice called. "Dreki, are you in here? Oh, where did this come from?"

Another dragon stepped into his field of vision and gave him a cruel smile. "Well, what a nice gift Dreki left me. But something like this doesn't belong in the lab. It belongs on the lawn."

He felt himself hoisted onto a roller cart and watched as the antidote rolled out of sight. Soon, he had been placed on the front porch of the building, in the grass beside the door.

"I think I'll leave it here for a little while, until it learns its lesson to not snoop in other's business." Dreki felt a hand brush over his head. "I wish you were in a bit more of a regal pose though. Guard the door, will ya? That's a good dragon."

The door closed behind him as Dreki stared out into the street. For all anyone else knew, he was just another statue.