8 Hybridization

He approached me, walking slowley towards me not used to his new bug leg, although even after a week he would probably still have trouble walking. Then when he reached me, he grabbed my coat with shaking hands and looked at me eyes full of fear and anger. 

"W...hat did y...ou do t...o me?"

Getting a closer look at him, I could tell that perhaps the hybridization wasn't over yet as more of his skin was changing right before my eyes. Sighing, I gently removed his hands even though he tried to hold on tight to me, he still wasn't strong enough even though he went through hybridization. However, that was to be expected as he probably doesn't eat very often and isn't in the best of shape right now. 

"Calm down, let me give my employers a call, and hopefully they'll explain to me what's happening to you."

Getting a flip phone out, I pretended to dial a number turned to the side, and whispered so that he didn't see my lips move or hear me. 

"System does this have to do with synchronization or compatibility, whatever it is you called it?"

[Yes Host, the homeless man is much like yourself in that he has 90% compatibility with the Blattodea or the cockroach and is slowley transforming into a humanoid cockroach]

"So why does he look like that?"

[There are many factors to consider when hybridization occurs, one is the environment, second is the current health of the being in question, and third is compatiblitly]

[Due to the poor environment the being in question lives in, alongside their age and poor health their hybridization is extremely slow and possibly painful regardless of their compatiblity]

Meaning that even if a being has perfect compatibility with the arthropod species, it could be brought down by the two other factors. This meant there was the possibility that I would suffer from poor environmental conditions and poor health due to the old Jason's alcoholism, and if I was going to use a Tarantula then the compatibility would suffer quite a bit as well. 

Pretending to disconnect from the call, and putting my flip phone away I turned back around and looked at the homeless man who was now shaking on the ground in the fetal position. 

"Well theirs some good news, they expected this to happen and are working on a cure to get rid of any negative side effects. Don't ask me how they knew this would happen or how they knew they needed a cure to be made, I just do the grunt work."

Instead of calming him down, he just got angrier and more frustrated and got up much faster than most people would expect. When he spoke this time, he sounded much more articulate and didn't speak as slowly as well, probably due to hybridization affecting his inner body parts now. 

"So th...ey knew this wo...uld happen but still te...sted it anyways?"

"How does th...at make any se...nse?!"

Honestly, I could understand his frustration, if I was in his shoes I would probably be angry as well. So I just sighed and got out the fifty bucks handing it to him, although he probably didn't care about the money at this point. 

"Just please take this, there's nothing we can do right now until a cure can be developed, so please be patient while they get this matter sorted."

Hearing that he took the money out of my hands and sat down, shaking with rage but I could see the tears streaming down his eyes. I sighed and walked away, knowing that for right I couldn't help him, honestly, I half expected him to rush me and try to kill me. But nothing like that happened, he didn't get up or do anything because when I looked back I saw him going towards a manhole and using all of his strength to lift the entrance to the sewers he went in, putting it back after he got in. 

Getting back to my apartment, I went inside and looked at my Tarantula and the Jungle Juice spray in my hands. While Jason felt emotionally close to the spider in front of me, I did so because it could prove useful or perhaps I still had some of his old feelings inside of me even now. After all, while I loved studying insects and certain kinds of arthropods, this was another matter altogether. I needed to figure out the best ways to survive in the universe I found myself in and right now hybridization was a good way to do it, and the most immediate solution to my problem as well. 

Right now though, one of the things holding me back was my emotions or perhaps Jason's old emotions, no it was the mixture. I still wanted to hold onto some of my humanity however the system was trying to make me something else, to make me a god of multiversal level. So I needed to take the first step towards becoming one, and right now it was in front of me. So I took the can out and lifted the log out of the spider's home revealing her and leaving her no place to hide. 

They tried to scurry away and hide, but there was no good place to hide nor would climbing up the terrarium walls do any good. So throwing away the last remaining bits of Jason's emotions and any that I might've had for the spider I sprayed the Jungle Juice directly in its direction. It died almost immediately and from it, dust went into the air coming directly toward me into my nose, mouth, eyes, and even ears it was an odd experience, to say the least. 

Looking at my body I didn't see any immediate changes and sat on the bed with my arms resting on my knees and the Jungle Juice I used on the side of the terrarium. 

"System how long should the hybridization take?"

[It should begin once the Host falls asleep, and will continue to do so until the entirety of the Host's body changes]

Sighing, I just laid down on the bed hoping that my bed wouldn't be destroyed during the transformation alongside my pants for the matter. That night, however, my first transformation nothing could've prepared me for what was about to happen to me that night.