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Jake awoke with a start. Something was wrong. He sat up in bed and pulled the quilt off with his left hand. What he saw sent his stomach into nausea. His right arm was stuck to his body; it was fused to his side from armpit to elbow, and to his stomach from elbow to wrist. His legs were fused at the knee and ankle. What was happening to him?
He tried to move his arm, but could not; he pulled and flexed, but was rewarded only by the almost painful stretching of skin. The fusion between arm and body was smooth; there was no seam or irregularity. Jake swung his legs to the side of the bed as if to get up, and noticed with horror that the bonding of his legs was even worse; already the joining had spread to his calves. From knee to ankle his legs were stuck. And the fusion was increasing; his shorts were starting to feel tight.
Jake attempted to stand, and promptly lost his balance. He put his free hand to his face, and instantly it glued itself to the side of his face. He tried to pull it away immediately, but it was too late. His hand was fused to his cheek.
Suddenly there was a ripping sound, and Jake's shorts tore as his legs fused completely. Even his feet had melded into a lump, and began stretching away from the rest of his slowly-transforming body. His right arm was no longer visible, and his left quickly merged with his face, neck, and shoulder. His entire body grew longer, and thinner at the same time. His skin grew shiny, then took on a more scaled texture. His under side became thick scales, and his back turned brownish with darker diamonds. Painfully his mouth grew larger, as his nose disappeared and his eyes spread apart. Jake's hair fell out, and his ears vanished.
Jake slithered out of what was left of his shorts. Confused and disoriented, he flicked out his tongue to test the air. Something was wrong…
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