~o~O~o~

 

 

Insert standard disclaimer here: The one that reminds everyone that this is a work of fiction. No one is real and any resemblance to someone who is real is just the reader's imagination. This is also a Fan Fiction set in the Whately Story Universe. No Canon characters were permanently harmed in the making of this story. I hope. :)

 

Notes: Added about 2k more words with this revision. I hope those extra words actually helped the story. :) Thanks to djkauf for correcting my many grammar mistakes!

 

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fsck...complete

Additional Kernel Modules found...Installing

JTRS...loaded

WPSRM...loaded

IX-LRAS3...loaded

IFSFCS...loaded

C3...loaded

VIK...loaded

Compiling Kernel...complete

Initializing Kernel...complete

Init Run Level 3

 

And I enter hyperspace and a tunnel of laser lights twist around me before snapping into place...I wish it was something cool like that, but no; I just open my eyes. I see a ceiling and I’m lying in a bed again.  That is as far as I get before all hell breaks loose for me as I sit up with a gasp, and then freeze from information overload for exactly 2.443 seconds.

 

A lot happens during those 2.443 seconds.  During that brief time, I am overwhelmed by more inputs than I have ever experienced.  I “hear” every electronic gadget in the room screaming at each other. I feel two different Wi-Fi networks trying to get my attention with login and password requests. In addition to that, I feel five different cell phones within 3 meters of my location.  Two of those cell phones have active Internet connections; they must be smart-phones of some kind.

 

At the 0.592 second mark, all of the different radio and sound frequencies bouncing off the walls and objects in the room combine to show me a ghostly 3D map of the room.  Wire-frame models show seven people sized objects in the room. Based upon their shape, two of the seven people objects are female.  Additionally, there are two chairs, one rolling cart with computer equipment in a room that measures 6.096 meters wide by 7.3152 long with a partially open doorway on the right wall exactly 6.4008 meters from the wall behind me.  The wall to my left has a double paned glass window that is exactly 1.2192 meters long by 0.9144 meters tall.  Five of the person objects are on the right hand side of the room and two male person objects are on the left side of the room. One of those two is standing next to the cart object 0.532 meters from me at a ten o’clock vector, while the other is standing 1.12 meters from me at an eleven o’clock vector.  The female person object located 0.312 meters from me at a three o’clock vector is rapidly moving towards my current location, while the person object at the eleven o’clock vector is also moving towards my current location.  That object’s rate of closure is less than the nearer object’s rate of closure.

 

At the 1.249 second mark, I somehow ‘see’ a camera facing me that is mounted in the upper corner of the wall and ceiling.  It is emitting an Infrared signal that I identify as a range finding signal. Above the door and above the window are active motion sensors.  I can see the pattern that they are scanning for and note that there is a gap in their coverage area that someone could easily use to avoid the sensors.

 

At the 1.54 second mark, my vision rapidly cycles through four different modes.  Thermographic, Ultraviolet, Low-Light and finally back to normal as I blink my eyes trying to remove the spots caused by the Low-Light mode getting overwhelmed by the lights in the room.

 

>Flare Compensation Enabled

>Optimum vision system auto-selected

 

At the 1.809 second mark, my view of the world expands beyond the room to take in the entire lab.  I see the locations of an additional 7 cell phones that display as yellow dots in the center of a small semi-transparent yellow circle overlaid on a map of the lab.  Parts of the map look very solid and I notice that those parts are the sections that I visited during the field trip.  The parts that are less defined and slightly hazy are the parts that I only saw via the faculty map located in the lobby.  The additional cells phones are only showing up in the section of the labs that I visited and in the front office. Most of the cell phones are stationary, but a few of them are in motion.

 

Two blue dots show up in the lobby.  I wonder what they are and a text bubble appears next to the each dot.  I see the name, rank and health status indicator of two soldiers who are using the Land Warrior System.  I note that they are active nodes on a larger network.  I wonder what else is on that network. That somehow causes me to automatically query that larger network and more data begins to flood in.  The map of the lab turns solid as every room is filled in on my display. I am surprised to see five additional below ground levels display on the map. A very detailed topographic map that covers a thirty kilometer area surrounding the lab springs to life.

 

At the 2.129 second mark, my world expands outside the lab and to the entire perimeter of the lab.  I now see every soldier’s location in relation to my current location.  The guard post at the entrance is displayed on my map along with a Humvee that is parked at the guard post.  There are two enlisted soldiers and one officer manning that post.  There are two four man patrols riding in Humvees in motion around the perimeter of the lab’s grounds.

 

At the 2.332 second mark, I can make out at least three different radio conversations.  One is a pilot asking for clearance to land, the second is a state trooper asking to run a license check and the third is a ham radio operator talking to someone in Germany.

 

At the 2.392 second mark, my world expands again.  I start to see the entire states of New Mexico, Colorado, Utah and Arizona display on my map with Los Alamos represented via a blinking blue dot in the center.  Additional symbols and data begin to flow in and I’m really starting to feel the overload.  I need to find a way to turn all this stuff off, right now.

 

At the 2.444 second mark, I find that mental ‘off’ button.  The maps, dots and all the other strange symbols minimize to a single icon that looks like a “C” superimposed with a “3”.  I sigh with relief and it is then that I notice that the female person object that was initially located at the eight o’clock vector is now hugging me while saying some words to me. I think that they are important so I focus my attention on the words she is saying to me. She smells familiar.  She sounds familiar, too.

 

“Mom?” I ask.

 

She hugs me tighter and I feel a drop of water hit my shoulder.  “Oh Brian!  I was so worried about you. How are you feeling honey?”

 

I feel my eyes fill with tears, but this time I just don’t care as I return her hug. “Mom;  I’m not sure yet.  Can I get back to you on that?”  

 

She laughs and hugs me tighter. We hug and cry on each other for 1 minute 23.3 seconds before she lets me go.  I think that automatic timer thing is going to get annoying. 

I look around the room as my mom pulls away. A green bracket forms around her with a name plate floating above her head. “Jennifer Peters” is what it initially tells me, but as I think, “No, that’s my mom”, her name changes to “Mom”.  I see a message display in a small box located in the bottom left corner of my vision, kind of tucked away until I need it.

 

>Friendly Target IFF designator changed

 

Just behind my mom and on my right, I see Nikki standing there wiping her eyes and with a smile on her face. A green box surrounds her too. I need to remember to call her “Fey” instead of “Nikki”. 

 

>Friendly Target IFF designator changed

 

And her name plate now reads, “Fey”.  Okay, that’s kind of cool.  To her left is someone I don’t recognize.  He’s wearing a strange British style suit from the 60’s.  A red bracket forms around him.

 

>Unknown Target IFF...Request Identification

 

I notice that he has a badge on his jacket and another box appears around that.  My vision quickly zooms in and scans the badge. 

 

>Friendly Target IFF...designator changed

 

The red bracket turns yellow and “Sir Wallace Westmont - VISITOR” appears above his head. He must be the Sir Wallace that Fey mentioned.  As I think that, his bracket turns green.

 

Next to him is another man that I don’t recognize, but he’s wearing a modern suit. Unlike Sir Wallace, he has a CAC ID card that contains an embedded RFID chip clipped to his suit and his bracket changes to green as the ID identifies him as:

 

>DOD/DARPA/DIRO Deputy Director/EX07/Nicholas//Reilly, Sr./xxx-xx-xxxx/B+/FALSE 

 

That’s Nikki’s Dad. As I realize that I can read their IDs via the RFID chip, all of the CAC ID cards return a response to my automatic identification query.

 

>U.S.Army/RA/Colonel/O-7/Brian/Allen/Thompson/xxx-xx-xxxx/A-/FALSE

>DOD/DARPA/Senior Research Manager/GP12/Allen//Edmundson, MD/xxx-xx-xxxx/O+/FALSE

>DOD/DARPA/Senior Research Associate/GP10/David//Johannson, MD/xxx-xx-xxxx/B-/PENICILLIN

 

All of their target brackets turn green. I kind of wish that there were also those cool computer beeping and buzzing sounds that you hear on TV when those fake computer systems are scanning targets, but my system just gives me the facts, boring.

 

My mom holds my hand while Dr. Edmundson speaks to me. “Brian, I’m sorry about all the people in here, but when Fey told us that you thought that you would be finishing up the re-org process right about now; we all wanted to be here.”

 

I blink my eyes from the vision test thing and tears that I cried. I am not sure, but all of the colors look brighter and more distinct to me.  Dr. Edmundson’s red tie looks discolored. I can see spots and stains on it and I can’t believe that he would wear such a dirty tie.  His white lab coat has even more stains.  His blue eyes look brighter then I remember from the field trip.  I turn my head to look at the rest of the people and all of the color variations captivate me.  I can’t believe that I never noticed all of the colors before.  I am drawn to Colonel Thompson’s uniform.  I notice that his dark green uniform pants and jacket don’t match each other like they should.  The jacket is a slightly darker green than his pants and I wonder why he would wear such mismatched uniform.  Actually, everyone in the room has mismatched and stained clothing, even my mom and I know that she is a demon in the laundry room when it comes to stains.  The colors are so much richer and varied then I can ever remember seeing.  I wonder why I can now differentiate the colors so well now and if I can turn it off.

 

>tetrachromaticvision channels disabled

 

I blink again and now Colonel Thompson’s pants and jacket are the same color.  What the?  I turn back to Dr. Edmundson and notice that his tie and lab coat is now stain free, while his eyes are just blue.  That’s it. Nothing special and now I think that I liked the colors the way they were.

 

>tetrachromatic vision channels enabled

 

Pop go the colors again as I smile at him. “Oh, that’s okay, Dr. Edmundson.  I understand.  I wanted to be here too.” That gets me a giggle out of Fey and a few chuckles from the rest of the folks.

 

Dr. Edmundson looks a little uncomfortable with my attempt at humor. “Well, I just want to say how sorry I am that this happened to you, but how glad I am that you are now awake and in good spirits.  We were and still are, very worried about you.”

 

I start to tear up again.  Damn tears. “Thank you Dr. Edmundson,” I turn to look at Fey. “And thank you Fey.  I don’t think I would be handling things nearly as well if you hadn’t been able to visit me inside here.”  I say as I point to my head with my other hand.

 

Fey brightly smiles at me. “No problem Brian.” 

 

With all the different shades of red now visible to me, her hair looks like it is on fire.  This enhanced color vision thing is going to take some getting used to, but it sure is cool.

 

I hear Dr. Edmundson clear his throat as if to get my attention. I turn back to look at him. “I know that most of the people in here are strangers to you, so allow me to introduce them to you.”

 

I casually wave him off. “Oh, that’s okay Dr. Edmundson. I already know who they are.”

 

His eyes widen with surprise and except for my mom and Fey, I see everyone’s posture stiffen as they mirror Dr. Edmundson’s surprise. “You do?  How?”

 

>Warning: Target Voice Stress Level Moderate

 

Oops, maybe I shouldn’t have admitted that?

 

Now another semi-transparent window is floating above Dr. Edmundson’s target bracket thing. This window shows me something that looks like a cool graphical equalizer sound display. As Dr. Edmundson speaks, the graphs go up and down.  There are three gradient colored areas on the graph.  A green zone that merges into a yellow zone that merges into a red zone.  Dr. Edmundson’s last words hit into the yellow zone.  Hmm, I think I need to downplay my knowledge right now.

 

“Ummm, I noticed their name badges as I scanned the room?”  I didn’t lie to him, but I do feel a twinge of guilt for not telling the complete truth. They all relax when I say that.  I’m guessing that I can tell them about somehow reading the RFID tags in their badges later.

 

“Oh.” Dr. Edmundson says with an expression that tells me that he thinks that he should have thought of that simple explanation.  His voice sound gizmo stays all in the green with that word. One word probably isn’t much to go on, but I will have to pay more attention to that voice stress gauge.  It looks like it could come in pretty handy.

 

His pause gives me a chance to think and notice that I’m feeling more than a little thirsty.  I see a blinking Red Cross icon and when I wonder what it is trying to tell me, another window pops up and displays:

 

>Priority 1 Condition: Dehydration at 5%

>Treatment: Immediate consumption of 1 liter of isotonic fluids followed by an additional 2 liters of fluids over a period to not exceed 3 hours. 

 

Oh, I guess that is why I am thirsty.  I decide that now would be a good time for me to ask for some of that isotonic fluid stuff. “Ummm, sorry, but I’m feeling a little thirsty and some medical system thing is telling me that I’m 5% dehydrated and that I need to drink a liter of something called an ‘isotonic fluid’.”

 

Dr. Edmundson blinks as he takes in that bit of additional news. “I am sorry. In all the excitement, I forgot that we weren’t able to get an IV in you.”

 

I don’t see how that is a bad thing. IV needles are huge. “Oh, that’s okay.  I don’t really like needles anyway.”  That earns me a giggle from Fey and a smile from my mom.

Mr. Reilly frowns. “Why couldn’t you get an IV into her?”

 

“Her body rejected the needle.” Dr. Edmundson says, wincing.

 

“Rejected?” Mr. Reilly asks, looking confused.

 

I start to wonder how my body could reject a needle, too.

 

“Yes.  The nanites responded to the IV needle as a foreign invader, ate everything below the epidermis within two minutes and healed the entry wound without a trace. Needless to say, we were all pretty shocked to discover that little trick.”

 

Mr. Reilly ponders that news for a second. “Hmm, so does she need some water or something then?” 

 

I can tell that this female pronoun thing is going to take some getting used to for me.  I’m having trouble identifying myself when they are referring to me as a girl.

 

“Well, since we couldn’t get an IV in her,” I notice a quick spike in the stress gauge there when he said ‘her’, “an electrolytic sports drink would work best for now.  We have a spare case under the front desk.  I will call and get someone to run some bottles down.” Dr. Edmundson uses the room’s phone to call the front desk and ask for a few bottles to be brought to my room. After he hangs up the phone, he stops to think for a second. “I would imagine that you might be a little hungry right now too.”

 

Now that he mentions it, I am pretty darn hungry. “Starving...”

 

“I’ll get a meal brought over from the cafeteria as soon as you get some fluids into you.  I know that it has been a few days since you last ate, but eating while dehydrated wouldn’t be a good thing.”

 

I smile at him. “Thanks, Dr. Edmundson” Once again, he looks a little uncomfortable and this time it isn’t because of one of my attempts at humor.

 

“Is something wrong, Dr. Edmundson?” I ask, looking down at myself with confusion.  I’ve never had to worry about it before, but maybe I’m flashing him or something. Nope, I am covered up in the front with one of those drafty hospital gown things.

 

I hear a polite cough of attention before a man begins to speak with a British accent. “Nothing for you to worry about right now lass.”

 

Lass?

 

I turn and look at Sir Wallace. “You have a bit of glamour effect going on right now that makes you more attractive to people.”

 

“Umm, what’s a glamour and can I turn it off?” I ask, embarrassed that I am somehow causing that kind of confusion for Dr. Edmundson.

 

Sir Wallace pauses before he answers my question. “In essence, a ‘glamour’ is a magical spell or effect.”

 

I gasp with surprise while I look to Dr. Edmundson and back to Sir Wallace. “But, I haven’t cast any spell.  I don’t even know how.” I say, almost whining from a combination of desperation and fear.  I don’t know any magic and I certainly wouldn’t want to somehow cast some fireball spell and blow everyone up by accident.

 

“Yes well, in your case, it is an innate ability that comes with being what you are. It causes people to feel more attracted to you and react more positively towards you.”

 

Oh, that’s a relief. I’m not casting a spell.  Wait...Oh crap, I am in so much trouble. “But, I don’t want people to be attracted to me!” I say, desperate to not have that happen to me. I catch the sight of Fey looking sympathetic to my dilemma.

 

Sir Wallace recaptures my attention. “Yes, well, it could be worse.  Unlike Fey, your glamour appears to be more focused.  Currently, your glamour only affects someone that you are focusing your attention upon.”

 

“Currently?” I ask, worried if that means it could get worse.

 

“You did just wake up.  Your glamour could grow more powerful as you regain your strength.” Sir Wallace says, shrugging apologetically.

 

“Oh,” I say, simply. ‘Oh crap!’ is what I really wanted to say, but I think my mom would yell at me. I feel a little worried about the glamour thing.  Compared to being turned into a girl, changing species and having a computer stuffed into my head, I don’t know why that little thing worries me so much.

 

Sir Wallace looks to Mr. Reilly and then back to Fey. She nods her head, “Fey and I will be here until tomorrow afternoon.  We need to get Fey back to school before Monday morning.  I will see what I can do to assist you before we depart.” Sir Wallace says. 

 

We are interrupted by a knock at the door and when Colonel Thompson opens it, Brenda is standing there with four bottles. She smiles her thanks to Colonel Thompson as she looks to Dr. Edmundson.  “Sir, I heard you needed this brought down for Brian.  Where do you want me to put them?”

 

>DOD/DARPA/HR Specialist/GS9/Brenda/Ann/Koshnik/xxx-xx-xxxx/B-/FALSE

I glance up and at the sight of Brenda, I suddenly feel very self-conscious.  I absently tug on my sheets to make sure that I am fully covered. I know that I’m now a girl, but still find her attractive.  Nikki is attractive too. More than attractive, she’s drop dead gorgeous, but I don’t feel attracted to her like I still do with Brenda.  I know that she was and is too old for me, but there’s just something about her that gets my motor going. If I was still a guy, I’m sure that my junk would be making a tent right now. Instead, I feel a little tingle like I did with Sara.

 

Dr. Edmundson gestures to the foot of my bed. “Oh, thanks Miss Koshnik, you can just set them on the end of Brian’s bed.”  Once again, his voice stress gauge goes up into the yellow zone with my name.

 

Brenda smiles at me as she sets them down at the end of my bed. “I wasn’t sure what flavor you wanted, so I just grabbed one of each.” 

 

Her smile confuses the crap out of me.  I try to distract myself by looking at the drink bottles instead of her. I see a bright orange colored bottle that looks so much more inviting compared to the pastel yellow, neon green and purplish blue colored bottle.

 

Brenda looks at me expectantly. “Which flavor do you want, Brian?”  With my name, her stress gauge thing goes up a bit there too. 

 

“Umm, can I have the orange one, please?” I ask, looking back up to her by reflex.  I shyly smile at her before I remember that I have that glamour thing Sir Wallace mentioned. 

 

Brenda surprises me.  She doesn’t just hand me the drink. She smiles at me, reaches over, wraps her arms around me and gives me a quick hug.  “Oh my god, Brian.  I was so worried about you!”

 

It really is one of those quick, catch and release girl hug things, but my stress gauge goes way up and I feel very confused. I glance at Fey.  She’s not much help.  She just has a happy smile on her face. I’m very aware when Brenda’s breasts brush against my aliens. I don’t know why, but I kind of expected Fey to look horrified or weirded out by this, but she’s not.  Actually, no one else in the room is acting like Brenda hugging me is wrong or unexpected behavior.  Her hair smells so nice.

 

Still smiling, Brenda releases me, takes a step back and hands me my drink. “Here you go!” 

 

She doesn’t seem at all confused or flustered by the hug. I know that girls hug each other all the time and everyone thinks it’s normal, but guys never hug each other.  I mean, if I was still a boy and she just hugged me like this, I’d be in heaven, but I’m a girl now.  Why do I feel like I just won the lottery, but at the same time, why do I feel, umm, guilty? 

 

My face feels very red, but I manage to mumble. “Thanks.”

 
She looks at me with alarm. “Oh! I’m sorry, Brian!” She glances around the room real fast. “I didn’t mean to embarrass you in front of everyone.”  She looks very sincere, but I don’t think she realizes that I’m, well, not sure what I’m feeling right now.

 

Then, she turns to Dr. Edmundson. “Do you need anything else, Dr. Edmundson?”

 

“I think that we will be fine for now Miss Koshnik.  Thank you.” Dr. Edmundson says, smiling at Brenda with gratitude as she turns an exits the room.  As she is leaving, she glances back and gives me a friendly smile as she closes the door.

 

I glance to Fey and my mom once more.  Fey smiles at me as if to say, “everything is fine. Nothing to worry about.”  I somehow feel reassured and my stress levels drop.

 

My mouth was dry before Brenda walked into the room, so now it feels like a desert in there. I am so thirsty that find my hands are shaking a little as I twist the top off, but the top comes off easier than I expected.  The liquid smells so good, I can’t help myself when I start to chug it down. 

 

Dr. Edmundson stops me. “Whoa! Not so fast Brian. You will vomit if you don’t start out slow.  Just take a sip or two to start, and then slowly increase your intake.”

 

“Thanks, Dr. Edmundson.” I say, embarrassed, but grateful for his intervention.  With all the first-aid and desert survival briefings that they give us in school, I should have known that. I so would not want to end up tossing my cookies in front of all these people.

 

Dr. Edmundson studies me critically for a second. “Okay, I think that we should give you a few hours to re-hydrate and get some food in you before we debrief you.”  Following that, he turns to Mr. Reilly. “Would you agree with that Director Reilly?”

 

Mr. Reilly nods his head in agreement. “Yes, as much as I would like to know everything right now, I think that would be best.  Let’s see, it is 0830 now.  How about we schedule a debrief with Brian for 1300 hrs?  Depending on how she is feeling.” Mr. Reilly looks around at the rest of the people in the room.  I notice that his voice stress meter spiked when he said “she”, but not enough to trip an alert. No one raises any issues, so he nods and everyone except for Dr. Edmundson, Dr. Johannson and my mom begin to file out of the room.

 

“Can Fey stay?” I ask, feeling desperate for her to stay for some reason.  Mr. Reilly looks to Fey and Dr. Edmundson.  They both nod in agreement.  I smile with relief.

 

“Okay, Brian. I would like to check your vitals now that you’re awake.  I will also get Annie in here to remove your catheter so that you can move around a bit more.”  Dr. Edmundson says.

 

I’m a little surprised about the catheter. “Catheter?”  I never noticed anything down there.  Well, now that he mentions it, I do feel a tube or something under my leg.  I decide to lift the sheets up and peek down there.  Yep, there is a clear plastic tube that passes under my left leg before it disappears off the edge the bed.

 

Dr. Edmundson checks my heart and lungs.  He is about to check my reflexes when a polite knock sounds at the door before it opens. A nurse enters, “Did you need help with something, Dr. Edmundson?”

 

“Yes, please. I know that you’ve seen Brian before, but now that she is awake I thought that it would be good to introduce you.”  Again, his voice trips the stress meter when he says ‘she’, “Brian, this is your nurse, Annie.”

 

I smile self-consciously and do sort of a half wave at her.

 

Annie returns my smile. “I’m so glad you are awake,Brian. We were all very worried about you.”  She says, without missing a beat or stumbling over my boy name.  She turns to Dr. Edmundson. “Was there something you needed, sir?”

“Yes, thanks, would you be so kind as to remove Brian’s catheter?”

 

Annie nods her acceptance as she walks over to the left side of my bed. “Certainly, Dr. Edmundson.” She pulls the sheets back and looks at me reassuringly. “Now, you might feel a slight tug here when I remove your catheter.”

 

I feel myself blush as avert my eyes and focus on my mom.  Just thinking about were that catheter thing must be is making me feel a little embarrassed. I wince as I feel a bit more than a ‘tug’ from down there.

 

Annie recaptures my attention. “Okay and all done!” She says brightly as she unhooks the bag from the side of the bed. “Will there be anything else Dr. Edmundson?”

 

“Thanks Annie, would you mind stopping by the cafeteria and grabbing a plate of food for Brian?” Dr. Edmundson asks.

 

“No problem sir.” She pauses for a second. “Umm, anything specific sir?”

 

Dr. Edmundson  looks back to me. “Do you have any allergies?”

 

I shrug my shoulders and glance to my mom who hesitantly shakes her head ‘no’. “Not that I know of.” I say, turning back to address Dr. Edmundson directly.

 

Fey speaks up. “Brian might not like meat as much as she used to.  Maybe light on the meat and extra veggies and a salad. If that is possible?”

 

That bit of news surprises me.

 

Annie looks to Dr. Edmundson and he nods affirmatively to her. “That should be fine.”

 

Once Annie leaves, I watch Dr. Edmundson test my reflexes with the rubber hammer thing on my knee.  Everything works and Dr. Edmundson even remarks that my reflexes look good.  Better than good actually. He finishes up by logging into the computer next to my bed. “Okay, just typing some notes into your record.” He turns and smiles at us.  “As soon as I am done, I will leave you ladies alone while I go fill out some more paper work and prepare for the one o’clock meeting.” 

 

More voice stress when he says ‘ladies’.  Mr. Reilly’s voice indicated a little confusion about my gender, but so far, Dr. Edmundson is the one who is the most stressed.  Well, other than myself.

 

I smile at him, causing him to get a little flustered. Crap, I can tell that this glamour thing is going to be a hassle. With the catheter out, I scoot up on the bed and sit up with my legs crossed under the covers.  I find that sitting that way is now way easier and more comfortable than it ever used to be. I do feel a little more umm, drafty between my legs, but I can’t get over how smooth my legs feel when I rub them together.

 

“Yes, well, feel free to get out of bed and walk around if you feel up to it Brian.  Oh, there are some urine sample bottles in the rest room here.” Dr. Edmundson says, pointing to the other door in the room, “If you have to use the restroom, please capture your urine so we can analyze it for nanites.”

 

I so did not want to think about the bathroom right now. I know that I was butt naked inside my head for a day and I did some virtual exploration.  That doesn’t mean that I am looking forward to my first bathroom experience as a girl.

 

With my first bottle empty, I reach for the purple-blue bottle of the sport drink stuff. I realize then that my entire back side is bare to the world when feel the draft up my back from the hospital gown. Embarrassed, no pun intended, I stop myself and sit back with a sigh. “So, umm, mom.  I just realized that this hospital gown is a little lacking.  Could you get me that purple-blue bottle of stuff, please?”

 

Fey and my mom look at me a little funny.  “Purple blue?  Do you mean the light blue stuff?” My mom asks.

 

>tetrachromatic vision channels disabled

 

Oh, it is a light blue color.  Hmm, I might need to just use normal vision. My mom hands me the blue stuff with a questioning look. 

 

“I have a weird vision thing.” She begins to look concerned. I hastily try to reassure her. “Okay...not weird, just different.  I can see using different modes like, low-light, ultraviolet and thermographic.  I can also see extra colors. Not just extra colors, but all of the colors look brighter and more ummm, I dunno.  Just more. When I tell the extra colors to go away, something called ‘tetrachromatic vision channels’ turns off.”

 

My mom still looks concerned, but Annie picks that moment to knock on the door. She enters the room and sets a covered plate of food on a small table that is attached to my bed. It rotates around, giving me a breakfast in bed table.  I eagerly lift the cover off the plate and discover that the plate is full of food.  There are a few small slices of roast beef with gravy, mashed potatoes with more gravy, a buttered roll, an extra large serving of steamed broccoli and a small side salad.  The plate of food looks okay to me, but the aroma of the sliced beef isn’t as appealing to me as it should be.

 

“Thanks, Annie!” I say with a smile.

 

She returns my smile, “No problem Brian.  Eat up.  Doctor’s orders.”  Before she leaves, she says, “Is there anything else you need?”

 

“Nope, all good here.  Thanks!”

 

After Annie leaves, Fey turns to me. “How does it look?”

 

I re-activate the tetrachromatic vision thing and the color of the broccoli and the salad shift to a vibrant green color, the mashed potatoes with gravy look kinda meh.  The brown gravy has colors that range from light to dark brown with a oily chromatic color mixed into the gravy.  That must be the fats.  The roast beef doesn’t look bad, but the smell isn’t making my mouth water like it should.

 

“Well, everything looked normal until I turned back on the vision thing.  Now, the salad and the broccoli is a nice healthy green color while the rest of the food just looks kinda, meh.” I say with a sigh.  I sure hope that Fey’s idea that I won’t like meat as much isn’t correct, because not liking Philly-steak and cheese sandwiches would suck big time!

 

I start with the salad and it tastes good even without any dressing. Next, I tentatively try a small bite of the roast beef and after a hopeful first chew, I decide that while it doesn’t taste bad, it doesn’t taste good either.  Maybe it’s just a standard over-cooked piece of cafeteria roast beef?

 

Next, I cautiously bite into one of the visually appealing green vegetables and next thing I know, I have drained the purple-blue drink and all but one pale green broccoli spear is gone. That lone broccoli spear looks a little over-cooked. I try the potatoes and those are good too, but I decide that the gravy is too salty and scrape off as much of it as I can.  I can only eat about half of the roast beef before I decide that I have had enough of the meat.

 

“This sucks.” I say with a sigh as I push the plate away from me.  I’m still hungry, but I can’t bring myself to eat any more of what is left on my plate. I almost feel like crying again, but my anger helps hold back my depression.

 

“Brian!” My mom exclaims.

 

“I’m sorry Mom.  It’s just that everything is different now.” I motion to myself, “I’m a girl. I have some computer thing in my head and robots in my blood.  I can’t eat the foods that I love and to top it all off, I have some attraction spell going.” I feel so frustrated and that makes me start to cry. “And now I’m crying, again! I hate this!” 

 

My mom pulls me into a warm hug as I break down and cry on her shoulder while she rubs my back, telling me things are going to be okay.  I don’t just cry. I think the technical term would be ‘sob’.  I sob, and end up with a nose full of snot for my troubles.

 

For some reason, having a nose full of snot makes me realize how pathetic I am being.  After all, things could be worse.  Up until Fey and Sara showed up in my dream re-org thing, I thought I was dead and would never see my family again.   That thought makes me give my mom a squeeze that causes her to gasp for air.  Surprised, I quickly let her go and sit back concerned that I might have hurt her.

 

“Sorry Mom, I didn’t mean to squeeze you so hard.” I say while trying to hold back the sniffles.

 

“I’m okay, but you’re stronger then you look!” She says, reassuring me that she is fine.

 

Fey hands me some tissues as I stop sobbing and I blow my nose.

 

Once I am done being gross in front of them. I smile gratefully at her. “Thanks, Fey.”

 

“Hey. No problem Brian. I know how hard this is on you.”

 

That reminds me that I’m not alone. I’ve got her and Sara as super-powered friends and my mom is here. How pathetic am I acting here?  I might be a girl, but I’m hot and to top it off, I might even have some kick-ass super powers!  Just that idea makes me smile at the irony of it all.  Here I have been reading comics and wanting to be a super hero my entire life and now that I might have super powers, I’m upset because I can’t finish some over-cooked roast beef?

 

The open air on my back and butt reminds me that I’m still wearing a flimsy hospital gown and super heroes to be don’t fight crime wearing something that shows the world their naked butt. “Mom?”

 

“Yes, Brian?” she asks, patiently.

 

“You didn’t happen to bring me some clothes, did you?  This gown has got to go!” I say, half afraid that she didn’t bring me any clothes and half afraid that they will be all pink and girlie if she did bring clothes.

 

My mom scares me when she hesitates before replying to my question.  I’m not sure if that is a good thing or a bad thing.  “Actually, Barb and Lindsay went shopping for you last night and dropped off your suitcase with some new clothes for you this morning.” She reaches for a small suitcase that is sitting on the floor.

 

Oh great.  I can’t wait to see what my sister decided that I should wear as my first girl outfit.  She probably picked out a mini-skirt and pink girl shirt with “Princess” on the front.

 

My mom smiles reassuringly at me when she notices the panicked expression on my face. “Don’t worry honey.  Fey and I had a long talk last night about what you should wear.  I spoke to both Barb and Lindsay about what was okay and not okay for them to buy you for your first girl clothes.”

 

I look to Fey. She nods affirmatively and grins at me. “Don’t worry Brian.  I’ve checked them all out and while they are girl clothes, they aren’t girl-girl clothes.  If you know what I mean.”

 

I dubiously nod. “Umm, okay?”

 

Fey’s expression turns a bit more serious. “As a Sidhe, your clothing options are a bit more limited then you might be used too.”

 

That doesn’t sound good. “What do you mean?”

 

“Well, you can’t wear anything that isn’t a natural fabric.  No polyester, rayon, nylon, lycra, etc... Just wool, cotton, silk, linen, leather and other natural fabrics.”

 

“Okay, that sounds easy. All my t-shirts are cotton and so are jeans, right?”

 

“Yeesss.” She hesitantly says. I think she knows why I asked that question. “So! Here are some clothes for you to start out with.” She says as my mom lifts the suitcase onto the end of the bed and unzips it. 

 

First, my mom pulls out and hands me a pair of jeans and a simple white girl style t-shirt.  Things are looking okay so far.  The t-shirt is a lot smaller and the fabric is thinner than I am used too, but I don’t see any slogans or plastic gems stuck to it.

 

Next, she pulls out a pair of plain white leather flat soled girls tennis shoes.  They look like they could be pretty comfortable.  I’m not crazy about the girl style, but at least they aren’t heels or pink.  She matches the shoes to a pair of ankle socks.  I like my socks to come up to my calves, but I guess I can wear the girlie ankle sock things for now.

 

My mom and Fey save the best for last, a pair of plain white panties with a matching bra.  I guess they match anyway.  They are both white, so that counts, right?  I gulp when I see those two items in my mom’s hands. “Umm, I’m not so sure about those...can’t I wear my old underwear and do I really need a bra?”

 

My mom and Fey both look at each other and smile.  I know that smile. It’s a smile that says, “He really doesn’t know what he’s talking about, does he?”  Ummm...sorry, she. I decide that I’m not going to win this one and sigh. “Fiiinnne, I can tell that you all are going to gang up on me and yes, I’m a girl now.  I guess I will just have to suffer for now, but don’t think for a second that I’m going to like it!”

 

Fey flashes a mega-watt smile at me before she turns to my mom with a knowing grin. “See, I told you that she would understand!”

 

I groan and stick my tongue out to Fey. “Brat!  Can one of you help me get out of this bed? I would hate to jump down on my own and fall flat on my face.” 

 

My mom comes over and holds my arm while I gingerly swing my new legs over the side of the bed and hop down. I feel my chest bounce and my bare ass hanging out of the hospital gown.  Maybe one of those bra things would be a good thing to at least try?  I’m not sure which sensation to be more embarrassed about, but I am pleasantly surprised to find that my legs easily support me. It feels good to be on my feet again.  The floor feels a bit cold on my bare feet though. 

 

My mom reaches over and grabs my new clothes. “Here Brian, let’s go into the bathroom and get you changed.  I think you will need some help with the bra.” She says as she helps guide me into the room’s attached bathroom.

 

I can only smile at her while inside I’m horrified by the thought of wearing a bra. I was just beginning to pay attention to all the stories about how to remove a girl’s bra with one hand and now I am going to be learning how to wear one. Oh, joy.

 

The bathroom is surprisingly roomy, but I guess it has to be in case someone is in a wheelchair.  There is even a shower in there.  I’m not sure how I feel about taking my first shower as a girl.  According to all of those shower gel and soap commercials on TV, a woman’s shower is like some intimate and semi-erotic fantasy full of soft light, smooth skin and seductively hidden curves, while I guy’s shower is all about getting clean, energized and feeling manly. I’m not sure if I’m ready for the girl shower thing, but I am feeling a bit grubby. 

 

Of course, my mom notices me eyeballing the shower. “Why don’t you go ahead and take a shower Brian?  We can talk some more while you’re in there.”

 

“I dunno mom, are you sure we have time?” I ask, torn by what she will say. I really would like a nice hot shower to make me feel more, umm...human or whatever, but I’m kind of feeling a little self-conscious here.

 

“Oh yeah, we have time and a shower will make you feel better.” She reassures me.

 

Grreeaaattt!

 

I start the water and while I am waiting for it to get hot, my mom steps out and returns with a bar of smelly soap, a fluffy washcloth, and two travel size bottles of some shampoo and conditioner.  The brand looks like it is the same stuff that my mom uses and told me to never use because it costs so much.  Not that she ever needed to worry about me using anyway.  A simple non-smelly shampoo with conditioner is all I have ever needed.

 

Once I step into the shower, I really like how the warm water feels on my skin.  My mom makes sure that I use the washcloth with the smelly soap to ‘exfoliate’ my skin. “Okay Mom, this exfoliate thing I kinda understand, but umm, why the smelly flower soap?”

 

“It’s not a smelly flower soap, it smells nice and Fey recommended it. She said that it is an all-natural soap that shouldn’t irritate your skin as much as a regular store bought brands.”

 

“But, it’s going to make me smell like a...” I stop myself before I complete my thought.

 

“Like a what, dear?” My mom asks, all sweetness and innocence.

 

I sigh with defeat. “Oh, never mind.  I know, I know.” 

 

The soap does smell nice, but I can’t admit that now.  I won’t lie, as I am washing, the hot water with the soft soapy washcloth on my skin feels nice.  Way nicer than it ever did before.  Now I know why girls take so long in the shower.

 

“So, Mom, ummm, did you have a name picked out for me if I had been born a girl?” I ask, anxiously over the sound of the running water.  Just asking that question makes me feel like I am stepping off a cliff.

 

She doesn’t respond right away. “Yes, and I am surprised that you are asking me so soon, but your father and I had three names picked out.  Your sister got our first choice for a girl name, but we also had Elizabeth Olivia and Brianna Nicole on the list.  Why, do you think you should pick a girl name already?”  She asks, sounding purposely casual, yet supportive at the same time. 

 

“Ummm, I think so.  I noticed how most of the people are having a hard time with my name now that I look like this.” I say as I squeeze out some of the shampoo and give it a sniff.  It does smell nice, but not something I would have wanted on my hair as a boy and I’m still not sure I want it in my hair now.

 

My mom pulls out her trump card. “I don’t know if you need to rush out and change your name dear. Your father and I love you no matter what.”

 

That brings a lump to my throat. “I know and I love you too Mom, but the sooner I get it over with, the sooner I can start to feel normal.  It’s hard to feel normal if everyone jumps when they say my name. I mean, do I really look like a Brian to you?”  I ask as I close my eyes and start rinsing out the shampoo.

 

“Well, no...and don’t forget to use the conditioner too.” She says, helpfully.

 

“How about ‘Brianna Nicole’ then?” I ask as I’m trying to figure out how much of the conditioner stuff I need to use. “I mean, Brianna is pretty close to Brian, so maybe it will be easier for everyone, right?”

 

“Hmmm, I like it, but before we make it official, how about if we ask your Dad what he thinks?”

 

“Okay.” I say as I wash the slimy conditioner stuff out of my hair.  It seems to take forever, but my hair does feel silkier.  I turn the water off and my mom hands me a towel.

 

“Here, wrap this around yourself while I take care of your hair.”

 

I hesitate with the wrap for a second. I was just going to wrap it around my waist like I normally would, but I remember about my new, umm, bits and wrap it around my chest instead.  That feels weird and the bottom of the towel touching the tippy tops of my thighs feels strange too.  I glance down and I am overcome by the sheer girlness of it all.

 

My mom grabs a second towel. “Okay, turn around and tilt your head back.”  She wraps the second towel around my head, turban style.  Now I really feel like a girl, but my skin is still mostly wet.  What a hassle.

 

“Ummm, why can’t I just dry myself off like I always do?” I foolishly ask.

 

“You mean, just rub your hair a few times with your towel and follow that up with the rest of your body and done?”  She asks, completely understanding my unsaid question, yet still managing to sound like I am asking for something silly.

 

“Well, Brianna, if you try to dry your hair with the towel like you used to, then your hair will end up a tangled mess.  Additionally, you may find that your skin is now a bit more sensitive and if you dry yourself off like you are used to, you may not like the feeling.  You will probably need to be a bit gentler with your skin.”

 

I notice that she used my unofficial new name.  I guess that she likes it too, so that means that Dad approval is just a formality.  “Oh, okay.” I say.  I can understand the hair part, but skin is skin, right?
 

She smiles at me. “Okay, all done with your hair for now.  Go ahead and dry yourself off.”

 

I unwrap my towel and start to dry myself like I normally would, but I can feel the difference almost right away.  My skin is more sensitive, especially those nipple things.  I quickly change to a gentler pat and light rub drying technique.  Once dry, I decide that the wet towel on my head is a little annoying.

 

I start to reach for it and she slaps my hand. “Not yet.  Okay, wrap the towel around your chest to cover yourself up and go sit on your bed. I’ll call your dad and we can see what he thinks about your name while we wait for your hair to dry enough so that we can blow dry it.”

 

The towel may cover my new chest enhancements, but it just barely covers my butt.  I’m not so sure that I will be able to jump onto the bed without flashing Fey or losing the towel completely. I look at the bed, then back to my mom. “Umm, can I just sit in the other chair?”

 

“Yep, just make sure you keep your knees together dear,” My mom says with a smile as she calls my dad. 

 

I’m not sure, but I think that she has been calling me ‘dear’ and ‘honey’ a lot.  I jump up a little as my naked butt hits the cold vinyl seat cushion. The cold butt thing plus  somehow ‘hearing’ my mom’s cell phone ringing in my head distract me from the next message.

 

>Medical Alert: Allergic reaction detected!

 

Another window opens up and flashes a few times with an alert chime that draws my attention to it.  I see my mom’s cell phone number displayed on the top.

 

>Active CDMA Signal from device: Jennifer Peters <555-123-9909> to David Peters <555-123-0763> 

 

A graphical sound display displays my dad’s voice as he answers his phone. “Hello, Dave here.”

 

I’m absolutely floored by that.  I am somehow intercepting my mom’s call.  I start to fidget in my seat as I hear my mom with my ears and inside my head. “Hi honey.  Sorry I haven’t called you sooner, but it has been a little crazy here since Brian woke up two hours ago.”

 

“Oh, he’s awake? I mean, she’s awake?  How is she?” I hear the confusion in my dad’s voice and see the little voice stress gauge hitting the mid-yellow range. 

 

I miss what my mom says next because my butt and legs start to itch like crazy.  I look around to try and figure out what is making me itch.

 

Fey glances over at me and jumps up from her chair. “Brian! Get up!”

 

I absently note that I need to tell her about my new name as I jump out of the chair. I twist around and check the back of my itching legs. I see an ugly red rash.  Oh man, if that rash stays, it is going to be hard to sit down later.

 

“Sorry that I didn’t stop you before you sat down, but the chair is made out of vinyl.” Fey says.

 

I didn’t realize that vinyl was that bad. I’ve sat in tons of vinyl seats in the past. 

Fey walks over with a concerned expression on her face. “Here, let me look at it. I might be able to heal you.”

 

She wants me to show her my naked butt. I blush and turn to let her look at it. If I could have only had a pretty girl want to look at my naked butt a week sooner!

 

My mom holds her phone off the side as she comes over to look at my butt with Fey. How embarrassing.  Hehe.

 

“Hold on honey.” My mom says. “Brianna just had an allergic reaction to the vinyl chair.”

 

Fey looks at it for a second or two and the rash starts to feel better.

 

“Ahh, thanks Fey.  What did you do?” I ask.

 

“Nothing, your rash started to heal on its own.”

 

Surprised, I turn to look back there as best I can and the redness is already almost completely gone.  I look at Fey and she just shrugs her shoulders. “I have some natural regen, but maybe you have a bit more than me or the nanites are healing you?”

 

“How did you sit down on the chair?” I ask Fey before I realize that, unlike me, she’s wearing clothes.  I think she feels my realization when she just smiles at me. “Oh...”

 

My mom smiles and restarts her conversation with my dad. “Crisis over.  It looks like our ‘daughter’ as some self healing powers.” She fills him in on how the morning went before she gets to the important question. “Brian and I did some talking while she was in the shower and she wants to ask you something.” She holds the phone out for me with an encouraging smile.

 

What?!  No I don’t. I look at my mom with desperation.  She was supposed to be the one to ask him, not me. I can see that she is determined that I be the one to ask my dad about my girl name.  I decide to see if I can just talk to him using the cell phone thing in my head.

 

“Umm, Hi Dad.” I say, hesitantly inside my head without actually saying a word. The sound graph thing moves in time with my words, so maybe it is working.

 

“Hi, Brian.  I am so glad that you are okay!  You had us all worried, even your sister.” He says with a chuckle. 

 

Holy cow!  It works!  How cool is that?   Wait a second; did he just say that even Lindsay was worried?

 

“Brian, I know you might be nervous, but talk to your father.” My mom says while pushing the phone into my hand.

 

I point to me head and smile. “I am, Mom.”

 

She looks confused. “What?”

 

I point back to her phone “Listen.”  She puts her phone back up to her ear.

 

“Back, sorry, I didn’t mean to make you all worry about me.” I tell him with a slight whine in my mental voice.  I’d be surprised if he actually thought I tried to turn myself into a girl, but it just seemed like the right thing to say. 

 

I guess that my mom can hear my ‘voice’ on her phone since eyes widen with surprise. “How are you doing that?” She asks.  

 

I shrug and mouth. “I don’t know?”

 

“Doing what?” My dad asks. 

 

“I’m kind of talking to you by just thinking about talking to you; if that makes sense, while mom is standing a few feet away from me with the phone in her hand.” I say inside my head.

 

“You’re wwhhaat!?” My dad asks, surprise and concern evident in his voice as the stress meter thing spikes into the red zone.

 

“I somehow ‘saw’ and ‘heard’ Mom’s cell phone in my head and I am able to ‘talk’ to you using that connection.” I try to explain.

 

“Ookkaay...that’s kind of scary, but cool, I think.” My dad says, hesitantly.

 

“Yeah, I know.” I say while I start to worry as I consider the implications.  Intercepting cell phone calls is so James Bond.

 

“So, Brian, what was it that you wanted to ask me?” My dad asks.

 

“Umm.” I begin to reply, feeling very nervous and then I remember that I’m standing there with a wet towel that barely covers my butt with another wet towel wrapped around my head.  That kind of distracts me for another second or two.  Thank god the timer thing didn’t tell me exactly how long this time!

 

“What is it Brian?  It’s okay, you can tell me.” My dad says, sounding more concerned now.

 

“Well, Mom and I were talking and I’ve kind of noticed that everyone is a little, umm, nervous? When they say my name.  So, I was wondering if it okay if I just start using one of the girl names you and Mom had picked out for me if I had been born a girl.” I say in a nervous rush to get it over with.

 

My dad laughs with relief. “Oh, is that all?  Of course, Brian.  I don’t remember what the names were...”

“Besides Lindsay, we had Elizabeth Olivia and Brianna Nicole picked out,” My mom helpfully adds.

 

“Oh yeah, I don’t know. I like them both. What are you thinking Brian?” My dad asks, not being helpful in the decision making process.

 

“Well, I’m leaning toward Brianna Nicole, just because Brianna is closer to my current name and it might be easier for everyone.” I say.

 

“Okay, if that is what you want and it is okay with your mom, then Brianna Nicole it is!” My dad says, submitting his official approval stamp on the name.

 

My mom grins at me. “Yep, it is okay with me, Brianna Nicole.” 

 

Fey jumps a little and smiles.  “Brianna Nicole, huh?”

 

I smile and nod affirmatively to her.

 

“Well, that’s a nice name.  Especially the middle one since that’s my name too.”

 

Oh yeah, her name is Nikki.  I guess that Nikki is a nickname for Nicole.  With that thought, I smile back at her.  “Well, I need to get dressed still, so I think I will see if I can hang up now.” I say via the phone connection thing. 

 

“Okay, Brianna, Love you!” My dad says, warmly.  Hearing him say that to me causes my throat to catch a little.

 

“Love you too Dad, bye.” I reply, softly.  I’m feeling a little more choked up then I expected. I think about the conversation going away and the window disappears. 

 

My mom frowns and looks at her phone. “It looks like you hung us both up dear. Oh well, I was just going to say good-bye too.” She shrugs and puts her phone back in her purse.

 

Once the phone is put away, she snaps her fingers. “We need to get you dressed Brianna! Come. Let’s get you back into the bathroom so we can dry your hair and get some clothes on you.”

 

I groan. “Oh joy.”  I am so not looking forward to this experience.

 

“Brianna Nicole Peters!” My mom mock yells at me.

 

I decide that maybe I should have waited on the name idea.

 

She stops and horrified, I watch as her patented evil Mom smirk shows up on her face. “I can’t wait to get you to a mall so we can get some real mother and daughter shopping done!” 

 

I look at Fey, expecting some sympathy and support, but she just snickers at me.

 

“Traitor!” I whisper as she responds by sticking her tongue out at me.