1 From two to a new one.

Darkness.

All over him was shrouded in darkness as he regains consciousness. His body was no more, his memories were no more, his life was no more, but here he stood in complete darkness, in none other forms that a small cloud of cerulean blue mist.

Without any memories to link to this particular state, he could only stand, unmoving, looking around with the curiosity of an unafraid child, while trying to comprehend what to do from now on.

With gone memories and body, any fear that should have been deeply rooted in is subconscious had vanished, leaving him truly breaking of the shackles of his previous humanity.

One could ask then, now that it was nothing more than a blue cloud of gas, why does he think itself as a male then? The response is quite simple, it was due to the simple fact that his new instinct, born of his actual state, dictate him that he was actually who he was. A somewhat shapeless mass of indefinite matter that would have either been male or female and hazard had made him male.

So now here he was in the middle of nowhere with nothing to do more than look at the infinite darkness surrounding him. Being a new leaf of its former self without is awareness, concepts like time, space, anger, sleepness could affect him.

After who knows how long, something finally starts to change in the darkness. Moved by nothing more than the new change the space around him was subject to, he slowly drifts toward what appears to be nothing more than three dots floating like him.

The dots were like nothing he had been subjected before, not that it was something difficult when you are a memories less cloud of mist in infinite darkness without matter around you.

But the sudden apparition was just that. After they came to existence, nothing more happened, returning the space where they were to its previous state with just three new residents.

When is excitation toward them starts to fade, he just returns to his previous state, gazing in the darkness while drifting aimlessly around his new point of anchor.

Its was only after taking them as is anchoring space that this very concept resurfaces, bringing forth with its multitude of other concepts and sensation. Slowly, the knowledge he had once in his past life resurfaces, bringing along new sensations and feeling to it. While they resurface, they couldn't erase the time he had to spend here.

Merging his new and old personalities was nothing easy, knowing that you float in the space with nothing to sustain his existence here and needing nothing ever so.

After all, who could boast to have a similar experience and feel nothing but acceptance in one part and dread that something could happen anytime in the other? Those kind existential issues couldn't be anything than armful to his mental fortitude, thus his subconscious takes a choice for him. He has live eons is that darkness before taking conscious of what it implies and had been fine, now that he knows it and understand it why should it be different?

It was those situations that refine is two personalities in a new one, taking the good of each one and leaving its previous weakness aside, forging a greater fortitude able to bore those extreme situations.

While he was subject to those, his mind wasn't the only thing that evolves, or it could be said that one was linked to the other. That right is physical representation also evolves alongside his forming mind.

Before any change, if is shape could be compared to an ethereal cerulean cloud-shaped mist, now is form could truly be counted as one. As wisps of mist appear and thicken, they immediately merge with the previous shape, adding more and more a 'consistent feeling on it. The ethereal cloud slowly turns into a real tangible one. One that was unable to be seen through, as every memories, concepts, and emotion where adding physical weight to it.

When his two personalities finish merging, it leaves a thick deep dark blue cloud three times larger than before and much more solid. The only way he knows that he was that large was simply due to the existence of the three dots who were previously like a bowling ball to him and now appear like tennis ones.

Another fact concerning those balls of matters was that he was now able to identify them or at least have a good idea of where they were. The only reason that he could only suspect and not be sure was that he never seen one in is previous life, only synthesis images of them in documentaries.

Coming closer to them until nearly touch them, and carefully observe them, his first impression where confirmed. those weren't dots of matter but eggs, none fertilized human egg's.

It's only then that he was able to somewhat gain an idea of measure. What was left of him was surely something akin to a soul or similar and compared to its previous size, ether the soul is extremely tiny or it was just him.

Completely lost in his through he wasn't able to see that three tendrils coming to his own cloud slowly extend and enter the eggs. It was the semi-transparent white window popping out of nowhere that brought him back and let him know what happens.

{Compatible genetic material found. Please enter the new genetic code.}

'What..?'

Before he could even think of the meaning of those two simple lines, thousands upon thousands of possible genetic genome starts to appear in the elongated white window, before a cursor appear on the right size and reduce significantly in the space of mere seconds.

While he was stunned by what appears in front of him, his gaze caught the appearing icon on the top of the list. Those icons where divides in threes simple one:

-animal

-vegetal

-mineral

The one open was the animal one and the second line of icons divided in a further two:

-vertebrates

-invertebrates

The first divide in five other icons and the second one in two. On the third lines linked to the vertebrates were:

-mammals

-birds

-fishes

-amphibia

-reptilian

As the same that the previous one, the first choice lead to a larger than before listing of icons choice, but the one than displayed in front of him was the same as his previous race: Human.

For a few seconds, is mind fail to identify what was display before it came to him abruptly.

'No way is that...' Dumbfound by the very answer he came with that seem to prove itself as the structure in the image in front of him start to slowly rotate.

He was completely awed by the lines of texts that start to fill both sides of the screen and progress further as the structure start to ascend.

'The complete human genome completely undecoded.' Should he have a body at this time, only a whisper of awe would have exited his lips, fearing that any disturbance would have vanished the very thing that countless researchers he knows were still trying to achieve, while he, a complete novice in the field could leisurely look at, without understanding a single thing that was described.

His dreaming state was shattered by the apparition of another window.

{Egg genome found, had the second genome desired to process the evolution.} After leaving him enough time to read it, the window vanishes, bringing forth a second one similar to the one he was looking at with the only difference of a search bar above the first row of icons.

'Does it want me to add the completing genome I want to the egg? How does it work, two different species shouldn't be able to merge together.'

As if hearing him, a third window opens in front of the two.

{No worries need, the system will run every possible simulation until a solution could be found.}

'So I could add anything?'

{affirmative}

'how about it? System search for Felis uncia!'

{searching, possible match found. Class: animal; vertebrates; mammal; carnivorous; feline; panther; snow panther. Confirm choice?}

'It actually found it?! YES! Confirm choice!'

{Choice confirmed, starting the simulation.}

As the text appears, the second window starts to open different icons, refining the search before displaying a second genome completely different from the first one. Once the choice was confirmed, the two windows merge in a single one with a genome on itch side.

{Class animal: compatible.} As soon as the line appears, part of both of the genomes start to drift in the middle of the two, starting to form a third, new genome.

{Class vertebrates: compatible.} More part starts to detach and go for the new one, starting to connect part of the genome and start the chain in different places.

{class mammal: compatible} New pieces and larger chains appear in the central genome as a new line appears.

{Class carnivorous-omnivorous: partially compatible. Omnivorous genes added for a further survival chance.} This time, only part of the human genome parts themselves and came to complete further the appearing genome.

{Class human-feline: non-compatible: Feline genes add for a further survival chance.} Again, only one of the two genome parts of a few genes and merge them into the growing third.

{Class feline-panther: compatible.} A large batch of genes previously connected to the departed part flee to the near-completed genome.

{Sub-class snow panter add to the new genome.} This time, it was the third genome that reacts as it expulses and gains few genes, before starting to links the different chains that have formed. Slowly the new genome came to birth while minors changes would appear to accommodate it into a viable living being.

Once completely merged a 3D image resulting from the read genome form on the side. What he witnessed was a being that was not completely unknown to him.

'Did I just create a mink?'

{Does the user confirm the created genome?}

'It wasn't exactly what I was thinking. Is it possible to further change the genome to give it a human appearance with only the minimal animal trait?'

{Simulation in progress, please wait for an instant.}

Just after the window apparition, genes of the human side start to merge with the existing genome, bringing change to the existing model displayed. The fur present on the body receded into it, leaving behind human skin. The paws vanish to let hand and feet appear but leave the third articulation on the legs. Hairs sprout while keeping the snow panther coat on the two animal ears on it. A trail of fur running on the entire spine and covering it let place to the long bushy tail of the snow panther.

{simulation complete does the user wish to process the new genome?}

'It better but there still some trait left. Is it possible to further refine the genome?'

{Impossible, the genome has been refined to the maximum of its capacity before mutation occurs and destabilized the entire genome and lead to a fatal result. The other alternative is a dormant bloodline need to awoken via still unknow means.}

'Would I still gain something with a dormant bloodline?'

{Processing ... minor enhancement of sight, hearing, smell, strength, and agility would be gain. In order to maximize the gains, a full awaking should be needed.}

'I don't know where I will land, better be safe than sorry and go with a human physique and hope that it will be alright. Confirm the second alternative.'

{confirmed second alternative, processing the evolution.}

As soon as the window vanishes, the tendrils still connected to the eggs snap and enter them, merging the two genomes into the new one.