As we sat, eating our breakfasts, I was in a very happy mood, as were the others. I did, however, notice that a few of the tables had empty places and wondered fleetingly if there were still some girls who didn’t accept what had happened yet...

The Chosen
By

Susan Brown

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Chapter 5

Previously...

‘Any news about my parents?’

‘Talks have recommenced between the respective governments and things should hopefully be sorted out soon.’

‘That is good news,’ I exclaimed happily as I bounced out of bed, took off my nightie and put it down the chute. Then I had an invigorating shower that helped rid me of my slight headache. It did not take me long to put on my uniform and I even managed to tie my neckerchief the first time. Things were certainly looking up!

I brushed my hair, noticing how long it had got and then as I scratched my sensitive nipples distractedly. I looked at my face and in particular, my eyes, noticing how dilated my pupils were. I shrugged, discounting it as other things came to mind. It was strange that I had slept so long, I must have been in a bad way yesterday, I thought.

As soon as I was ready, I left my room. Outside were a smiling Bethany and Davina; I could smell their perfume as I joined them. ‘Oh, I am a silly girl,’ I exclaimed, ‘I forgot to put any scent on. You go on ahead and I’ll catch you up.’

I returned to my room and opened to the dresser. Picking up the perfume bottle, I spritzed myself, breathing in the heady fragrance and then after giving my hair another quick brush, I felt ready for the world.

As I headed towards the dining room I wondered what would be happening today and how much further down the road to femininity I would proceed. I didn’t wonder about the lost hours, my dilated pupils, my euphoria, the acceptance of my situation or the fact that I still hadn’t spoken to my parents.

Perhaps I should have?

And now the story continues…

As we sat, eating our breakfasts, I was in a very happy mood, as were the others. I did, however, notice that a few of the tables had empty places and wondered fleetingly if there were still some girls who didn’t accept what had happened yet and were receiving some sort of special treatment. However, as soon as we got onto the subject of boys, all such thoughts flew out of my head.

I had, of course, had sex-ed while I was in boys’ school and knew about things from the male perspective. Any thoughts of having children had never crossed my mind, even though I knew that there was a possibility that I would be chosen for girlhood at some future date. Like everyone, we didn’t think too far into the future and just got on with our lives.

Now I was looking at it from a more feminine perspective and I was vaguely surprised that it didn’t seem to worry me very much; rather I felt a frisson of excitement at the thought of boys and having babies.

I became aware that the other girls felt the same and we all spoke animatedly about what type of boy we would like to go out with and how soon we would be allowed to have a proper boy friend. Davina, if anything was almost more enthusiastic than the others and it was amazing to see the U-turn in her feelings about her transition.

Once we had finished breakfast, the bell went and we proceeded to our first class. I had missed yesterday’s classes, but was told that it was just a “getting to know about where everything is” day and evidently, my Helper would fill me in later.

Today’s lessons were about being a girl, what we would be doing to attain that lofty status and how we should start to live and breathe femininity.

As we filed into the classroom, the gigantic vid screen at the front showed where everyone was to sit. My desk pod was near the front and my friends Davina and Bethany were on either side of me. The pods were the same as the ones in the boys’ school, with a glass touch screen vid and comfortable deep recliner chair. The V-R helmet was attached to the side of the screen for when surround -vid was required. I had always liked the V-R helmets, especially in Geog, where we were able to visit foreign lands and see, smell and experience different territories and cultures. Although some places were not allowed, of course, due to the troubles; one of them being Indo-China, where my parents were. I thought about them fleetingly and smiled as I remembered what Helena had told me.

Before long, everyone was seated and waiting expectantly for our first real lesson since the momentous changes had started.

A few moments later a woman entered; she was wearing what I now realised was the staff uniform, comprising of a cream coloured business suit with a tailored jacket and skirt, white silk blouse, black stockings and black heels. She had long blond hair, a thin figure and like all the teachers I had seen so far, was very beautiful, with immaculate makeup.

She paused in front of the class and looked at us, a slight smile playing on her full red lips.

‘Hello, girls, I am Ms Stanton and I’m here to help you become acquainted with your new selves. Now, hands up those girls who didn’t really want to become female before entering this school.’

I put my hand up hesitantly and looking around, was surprised to see that a good eighty percent had put theirs up too!

‘That is about the average split. Well, you’ve all been here for a few days, so put your hands up those who still feel the same way?’

I was going to raise my hand, but for some reason I didn’t. Glancing around, I noticed that five girls did raise theirs.

‘Alright, you five girls, would you please go next door and we’ll try to help you. We can only allow you to take this class when you’re totally happy with your situation; don’t worry you aren’t in any trouble.’

The girls all stood up and left. Three of them looked upset, one puzzled and one, I noticed had a scowl on her face as she passed me similar to the one that Davina had when she was still David.

As they went into the side room and the door swished closed behind them, Ms Stanton spoke up; ‘Well now, let’s progress, shall we? Don’t worry about the others, they will soon be assimilated,’ she added, smiling.

Her remark left me wondering once again what was meant by ‘assimilated?’ Then I forgot about it as the Ms Stanton spoke again.

‘During today’s lesson, I will give you a general outline and start you off on your exciting new journey. You are extremely privileged to be in at the start of something which, we hope, will literally change the world. My job and the job of your other mistresses, helpers, ’puters, personal psychiatrists and others is to help you merge into our sisterhood and embrace your femininity. We want you to be happy, fulfilled girls, ready and able to go out into society to be wives and mothers. You will be part of a unique–and initially elite–group, since we believe that we can help you become mothers, not ordinary mothers but mothers who give birth to girls. Project Phoenix is at the forefront of research and development of the new treatment which you have just embarked upon. You are probably already experiencing some physical changes and you should not worry about this. It is expected and an encouraging sign that our treatment is working successfully.’

She paused momentarily to take a sip of water before continuing. Glancing around, I was aware that my fellow pupils were totally absorbed in what she was saying. I kept on having flashbacks to my last conversation with my parents for some reason. There was something nagging away at me and I wouldn’t be completely happy until I was able to see them safe and well. I still felt guilty for some reason that I hadn’t put my hand up when Ms Stanton asked if anyone had any misgivings about the changes.

Shaking my head, I cleared my thoughts as Ms Stanton continued.

‘At the moment, you are just chrysalises but soon you will become real girls physically and mentally. The medication that you are on and the operation you had will swiftly prepare your body for the exciting times to come. But being a woman is not just physical; we have to help you to become a woman mentally also. That is where your training and the psychiatric support will be invaluable. Please don your Virtual-Reality Helmets.’

I pulled the helmet away from the side of the vid and put it on. It fitted perfectly and that was strange as normally you would need to have a proper individual fitting as everyone’s head was different. Then I realised that it was probably measured from the one that I used in the boys’ school.

The helmet automatically and smoothly pressed against my head, the padded sides making it feel as if fitted like a glove. The school crest was glowing dimly on the vid in front of me and the sides were still dark. There were no sounds from the outside–all I could hear was some very soft music. Cool air gently passed over my face and I could feel my chair recline and I was soon almost horizontal, my body softly but firmly supported by the deep cushions of the chair.

‘Now, listen to my voice, girls,’ said the soft, almost hypnotic sound of Ms Stanton, ‘we have a lot to get through so we have a new system of accelerated learning. You will begin to feel sleepy but don’t be alarmed and don’t fight it; this is perfectly normal. I just want you to relax and watch the screen––’

The school crest disappeared and gradually I realised that I was in a forest travelling on horseback. I was riding a beautiful white horse. The reality of it all was breathtaking. I could feel the horse under me, its warmth and vitality was very real and I was riding it bare-backed, gripping the horse’s strong head by its mane. All this seemed very strange as I felt like an expert rider in spite of the fact that I had never, ever, ridden a horse in my life!

I felt the breeze blowing through my long hair and discovered I was wearing a long white flowing dress that billowed and moved as we sped on. The sun was filtering through the trees and was lightening the forest floor in a myriad of wonderful colours. Then we were out of the forest and galloping along a sloping grassy plain, suffused with wonderful fragrant flowers, that went gradually downhill towards the deep blue sea in the distance. The colours were so bright and vibrant and it all felt so real and wonderful. I breathed in the heady scent and then gradually felt myself relax. My eyes drooped and I fell asleep.

When I awoke, I was still in the reclining chair, but the V-R helmet had been removed. The lights were low, but were fading up slowly. I was aware of some classical music–it was Beethoven’s Pastoral Symphony,* a divine piece of music to wake up to. All around me, others were stirring and the lights gradually became brighter.

I glanced at Bethany: she was smiling, looking relaxed, calm and very happy. On my other side, Davina was also just awakening with an expression that mirrored Bethany’s. For myself, I felt as if I had just had the most wonderful relaxing sleep that I had ever experienced. I was feeling more content than I had ever been about being a girl and just wanted to be the best and most feminine girl I could be.

Ms Stanton was still there, sitting to the side and keying something on her uPad. Once all the lights had faded up and everyone was awake, she stood and returned to the front of the class.

‘Well, girls, I’m sure you enjoyed that. I envy you all. You have so much fun ahead of you and I hope that I–and the rest of the staff–will be able to help your dreams come true. That is all for today so you will need to go to the dining room and then after that, you have some free time. Look at your mini uPads for your schedules and remember, I am always here if you need any help and advice.’

We left the classroom, chatting excitedly about the lesson. I went into the rest room with Bethany and Davina and after we had used the facilities, we spent a few moments doing our hair and making ourselves look pretty.

‘Wasn’t it great!’ Bethany bubbled.

‘Yes, I adored it when I was flying through the air on that huge bird,’ Davina added.

‘That’s funny,’ I told them, ‘I was on horseback, riding through a forest and then we rode through some wonderful green, grassy plains with lots of colourful, lovely smelling flowers. What about you Bethany?

‘Ooh, I was in the water, riding a dolphin; it was with some others and we were all jumping out of the water and then diving deeply. I could see some wonderful fish and corals and it was all so colourful.’

As we entered the dining room we were still enthusing about our virtual experiences.

‘If all our lessons are going to be like this,’ I thought, ‘bring on some more!’

The dining room was nearly empty and it was only the three of us at our table. The others must have eaten earlier. Glancing at my ring watch, I noticed with some surprise that four hours had passed since we had entered the classroom. No wonder we were hungry!

Like the others, I swallowed my medication without thought and tucked into some poached salmon and baby potatoes. The conversation, as usual revolved around clothes, boys, babies and other things that interested us girls. The time passed quickly and then, as we had the rest of the day free, we decided to change out of our uniforms and have a look around as we hadn’t really had much chance to do that before.

We agreed to meet in Davina’s room in forty minutes and after saying goodbye, I went to my room.

‘Hello, Rebecca, have you had a nice day?’

‘Yes, thank you, Helena. Has there been any news about my parents?’

‘We hope to have some news soon, since fighting has died down. The martial law and a curfew is keeping people off the street so it does seem as though we will be able to contact the embassy shortly. You will know as soon as we do,’

‘Thanks, Helena!’

I had a quick shower and then I decided to wear a pretty pink dress made of some diaphanous material. Before getting dressed, I inspected my sensitive breasts as I could feel a slight pain around my areolas and beneath the puffy breast tissue. I could see some small red marks, like puncture marks, but it couldn’t be that. It might be the beginnings of some sort of strange rash or something. I had never seen that before and I wondered how they got there. Then a voice in my head seamed to calm me down and I shrugged and forgot about it, meaning to ask someone later about it. For now, I had to get a move on or the others would be ready before me!

It was strange as I was able to put my bra on quite easily–almost without thinking–and I applied my makeup as if I had been doing it for years. I looked very pretty in my dress and after brushing and putting some pink ribbons in my long hair; I checked myself in the mirror and was very pleased with what I saw.

Leaving my room, I made my way to Davina’s, meeting Bethany on the way. She too looked very pretty in a pale blue satin dress. She was wearing more makeup than me, but then that was Bethany–showy!

We requested entry to Davina’s room and went in as the door slid open silently.

Davina was just finishing her hair. She was wearing a stunning above the knee cream tunic dress with a round neck and I could see that she was already developing a small bust. I was quite jealous and wondered why she and Bethany also seemed to be more advanced in that department. All right, my nipples were very sensitive and seemed a bit puffy, but nowhere nearly as advanced as the other two. I made a note to ask Helena later why I wasn’t developing as quickly as they were.

Before long we were making our way down the corridor, arm in arm, excited about the day we had just had and the incredible experiences that had been so real and so very wonderful.

The school was built around a quadrangle and we went into the gardens which were covered by a positive charge field that kept out bad weather. The quad was mainly grassed over, with some fountains in the centre and many flower beds which were a riot of colour. Other pupils, like us, were strolling about arm in arm and everything seemed very peaceful.

As I lay back on the grass looking up at the sky, I felt very happy and contented with my lot. Finally, I was coming to accept that I would never be a boy again and instead of feeling a sense of loss, I was looking forward positively to my new life and experiences to come. I hoped fervently, that once I graduated, I would find a gorgeous husband and be able to have wonderful sweet children with him and above all, I hoped that those children would include girls.

After a while, we got up and brushed some loose grass off our frocks and went exploring. By consulting our mini uPads, we were able to use the maps to find places such as the gym, the holo chamber for experiencing near real life experiences–you had to book it as it was very popular–the vidi-theatre that linked the great theatres of the world. Then there was the great hall where graduating ceremonies and other great occasions took place. There were also two restaurants where you were expected to dress up, not down; fun areas where games were played, some of them physical like netball and rounders, others with state of the art vidi game equipment where you could pit yourself against anyone else who wanted to play.

Then there were the quiet, reflective areas where we could go to find privacy and calm. Other areas included the offices, staff rooms and treatment centres–some of which, we had been told, we would become acquainted with intimately.

Everywhere we went we saw other pupils, two, three and four petals. A few five petals were around but we were led to understand that they tended to spend more time with the staff rather than us “mere mortals”.

One thing I noticed was that there were no windows that looked out on the outside of the building–just vidi-windows that showed beautiful scenes from around the world. I made a mental note to ask Helena why that was when I got the chance. All the exits of the building leading outside were barred to us; I did try one door, but instead of it slipping open a disembodied voice told me that the exit was barred to two-petal pupils for their security and the maintenance of asepsis. Another thing to ask Helena or my Helper.

After a while, we began to feel tired and we made our way back to our rooms. I said goodbye to my friends and entered my room. We had all decided to eat in by ourselves tonight as we were so tired–a by product of our treatment we had been told at some point.

‘Hello, Helena,’ I called, taking off my shoes and rubbing my aching stockinged feet.

‘Hello, Rebecca, have you had a good time?’

‘Yes, lovely; any news?’

‘About your parents? No, I am afraid not; it’s all taking longer than we thought, but no news is good news, as the saying goes.’

‘Mmm.’ I said, unconvinced but not too worried; nothing seemed to worry me much at present.

I felt quite sleepy, so after removing my makeup and putting my hair in a scrunchie, I changed into a long pink satin nightie and sat at a table to eat a syntho-lamb cutlet and salad, not forgetting my medications, of course.

I watched an old Bugs Bunny cartoon while I ate. I adore Bugs Bunny and giggled whenever he managed to get one over Yosemite Sam, again!

After that I switched to the news channel.

‘The main headlines, The US of A & C has called in the Indo-Chinese Ambassador to protest about treatment of their citizens in that troubled country. The life president has threatened to impose a trade embargo and also to call in old debts if the situation does not improve. The combined governments of England, Scotland, Wales and Eire under the leadership of Alysia Wellgood has stated that the situation in Indo-China remains fluid and it would be well, at the moment, not to antagonise the government of that troubled state.’

In other news, the male-female ratio continues to widen as more boys are being born. The government are aware of the situation and have stated that exciting things are being developed that will ensure that the balance will be restored sooner rather than later. The real hope is that girls will start to be produced within the next five years if not sooner.

Now the sports news––’

Before going to bed, I went and used the loo. I was a bit tired and fuzzy around the edges, but noticed that my penis was getting a bit smaller–more shrunken somehow and it ached slightly. That was strange; surely the medication wouldn’t be working that quickly? I also noticed some more of those strange red marks like the ones on my breasts, around the base of my penis and they stung a bit when I touched them. Another thing was that I had to wipe myself carefully after using the toilet as I was making a slight mess and my pee was going everywhere. I mentally shrugged at my discovery, meaning to mention it to someone when I wasn’t quite as tired.

When I stood up and washed my hands, I gazed at my face and smiled, driving all thoughts of what I had just discovered out of my mind. My face seemed a bit softer, thinner and more feminine now and my eyes looked big and rather lovely, although my pupils did seem a bit dilated–something to do with the medication, I supposed.

My breasts, when I felt them through the thin slippery fabric of my nightie, were rather tender and now quite definitely larger than even yesterday, maybe even an A Cup! I smiled at my reflection thinking that I was probably one of those lucky girls on accelerated treatment and that I really had no need to worry about things like that.

I finally tore my eyes away from my gorgeous reflection and went back into my bedroom, quickly slipping under the covers.

‘Goodnight, Helena.’

‘Goodnight Rebecca, sweet dreams.’

The lights went down and soft music filled the room. Something was still nagging at me though, it was once again that final conversation that I had with my parents. What was it? I couldn’t remember and I was getting so tired that I could stay awake no longer, and succumbed to what my body was telling me to do as I gradually fell asleep.

I had a dream. It was vivid and involved my parents. They were holed up in the embassy and there were the sounds of gunfire and lasers outside. My parents were burning documents and clearing off computer records as the sound of pounding and explosions got ever nearer. Eventually there was a tremendous explosion and the door of their office blew inwards. They looked around and then put their hands up in horror––

I woke up suddenly, bathed in sweat. I had a headache and felt like crying; it was all oh-so real. The lights dimly faded up.

‘Are you all right, Rebecca?’

‘Yes Helena, just a bad dream and I have a headache.’

‘I will provide you with something for that.’

‘Thanks.’ I said as I got up and went to the bathroom. My heart was pounding and I was feeling sweaty. I used the loo–making a mess again–and then I wiped myself down and changed my nightie. I could have had a shower, but thought that it would wake me up too much.

Returning to my bedroom, I noticed that the serving hatch had a green light above it. Going over, it slid open and there was some clear green liquid in a glass.

‘Is this for my head?’ I asked.

‘Yes, Rebecca. It will make you feel much better.’

‘Thanks,’ I said and drank down the peppermint-flavoured liquid and replaced the glass on the tray.

I went back to bed and noticed that the bedding had been changed. That was good because the other had become quite damp with my perspiration.

I slipped into bed, the lights faded again and I shut my eyes.

‘Goodnight, Rebecca.’

‘’Night,’ I replied sleepily.

I shut my eyes but for some reason could not sleep for thinking about my parents. Something was still at the back of my brain and I just couldn’t grasp it and then my eyes snapped open. I nearly gasped but just put my hand over my mouth as I didn’t want Helena to hear me as I had no idea how well the room and in particular I, was being monitored.

I was blessed with an almost photographic memory and I could recall almost word for word what my father had said. My Dada said that I should contact Auntie Connie in Brighton. “She’ll look after your interests. You know what she’s like–a bit scatty, but her heart’s in the right place and she’ll look over you and protect you, whatever happens. She knows about all this and is expecting a call”.

Why I didn’t take all of that in at the time of my conversation with him, I don’t know. Maybe my being upset at everything that had happened might have made me not pay as much attention as I should have at the time.

I did have an Auntie Connie, but she lived in Bournemouth–not Brighton–and I had never met her so had no idea what she was like; but Dada said that I knew what she was like. Was there some hidden message there?

Dada never would make a mistake like that; so if it wasn’t a mistake, what was he trying to tell me? Was it some sort of warning?

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* Pastoral Symphony (No. 6in F major Op. 68) by Ludwig van Beethoven–If anyone saw Soylent Green, you will realise that this influenced and gave me inspiration for this section of the story.

See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soylent_Green

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To be continued…

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My thanks go to the brilliant and lovely Gabi for editing, help with the plot-lines and pulling the story into shape.