I climbed off the treadmill and wiped the dripping sweat from my face. Then I took a drink from the bottle of water I’d brought down to the gym before turning my attention back to the treadmill. I’d been running all out for over half an hour, yet I felt fully charged and ready to go at it again.

Ever since my sisters had gone off on their mission the day before yesterday, I’d been left on my own and had to find things to occupy my time. I’d explored the base on my own, found a cleaning closet and cleaned Heaven, and I decided to test the physical abilities that my sisters had mentioned. Over the last couple days, I’d discovered quite a bit about what I was now capable of.

When I lifted weights, I found that I could lift quite a bit more than a normal woman of my size and build. I could actually bench press three times my own body weight, which while not super strength, was still pretty impressive. And while running, I could go at an all out sprint for half an hour and barely feel winded. I’d never been particularly athletic before, but now I wanted to exercise more just to test my limits.

“And to think,” I muttered with a shake of my head. “I haven’t even been in a gym since high school.”

I was about to head back upstairs so I could take a shower when I heard someone calling, “Monica, are you here?”

I stepped out of the gym and saw Hannah down the hallway, standing near the pearly gates. “Here,” I called back, walking in her direction.

When I reached Hannah, she looked me over and said, “You look like you’re adjusting well.”

I glanced down at myself, and the sweat soaked workout clothes that I’d borrowed from Rebecca’s closet. I blushed at how nicely they showed off my new body and responded, “I’m trying.” Then I asked, “Is something wrong with Angel Squad?”

“They ran into some unexpected complications that I can’t go into right now,” Hannah told me with a sigh, then gave me a reassuring smile. “But last I heard, they’re doing fine and should be back later this evening.”

I let out a sigh of relief at that. The others had been gone long enough that I was starting to get really worried about them. Images of Rebecca with a shattered arm and of Nicole with her side sliced open kept coming into my head whenever I thought about how they might be doing.

This time when Angel Squad left, I had already completed my transformation so didn’t need Dr. Merrit or any guards to come check on me. However, Hannah had volunteered to come and look in on me herself, stopping by yesterday to ask if there was anything I needed and even bringing me a bunch of files and papers to read through.

“How are you doing?” she asked, just like she had yesterday. She actually seemed sincere with that which made it easier to relax around her. The fact that the others seemed to like and trust her helped with that as well.

“I’m doing all right,” I told her with a shrug, then admitted, “I’m just not sure what to do. I did finish reading that stuff you brought over.”

“All of it?” she asked in surprise.

“I didn’t really have much else to do last night,” I said with a chuckle. There had been a lot of files and papers on the 1st DSU and Angel Squad, but it had actually been pretty quick reading and I’d gotten through it all pretty quickly. “I’ve got it upstairs if you want to come up and get it.”

The two of us went upstairs and I noticed that Hannah was careful not to touch the railing or anything else. Of course, that made sense. Heaven had been set up as a sanctuary for Angel Squad, a place where the angels could relax and not have to worry about infecting anyone else. This was where Rebecca had come to recover after her arm had shattered, the place where her infected blood had gotten on the floor. It was no wonder Dr. Merrit and the guards had been so careful when they came to see me. The fact that Hannah had come in here without any of those precautions suggested she either didn’t understand the risks or wasn’t afraid of them. She didn’t strike me at all as being stupid so it was probably the latter.

“I spent a couple hours cleaning up yesterday,” I told her casually, trying to assure her that it was safe here. “You know, washing things up with bleach and stuff.”

The truth is, my old apartment might have been a bit sloppy, but the kitchen and bathroom had always been spotless. I’d always been a bit of a neat freak about those areas, and when I had nothing to do, I’d started cleaning them here. From there, I’d spread out and began cleaning a lot more of Heaven, specifically taking into account that some areas might have been inadvertently contaminated and would need some strong cleaners.

“Here,” I handed Hannah the stack of files, quickly adding, “They aren’t contaminated or anything.”

“Thank you,” she responded, taking the files without hesitation. I couldn’t resist smiling faintly at that since her lack of hesitation suggested that she trusted me.

“Do you want something to drink?” I asked, gesturing towards the kitchen. “We’ve got beer in the fridge and some sodas.”

“I’ll take a bottled water,” Hannah responded, which wasn’t one of the options I’d give, though there was bottled water in the fridge as well. Obviously she’d been here before.

After I got Hannah a bottle of water, she looked around the kitchen with a faintly amused expression. “You really have been cleaning. I’ve been in here a few times before and it’s never been this clean.” She chuckled for a moment and added, “Don’t tell them I said so, but Rebecca is the only other angel who isn’t a slob.”

“Oh, I am a slob,” I assured her with a grin. “Just a clean one.”

Hannah seemed amused by that and gave me a curious look. “Did you really read through all this last night?” she asked, holding up the files.

I nodded at that, “Yeah. Like I said, I was kind of bored.”

“So,” she asked me with a faint smile, “What’s the mission number we assigned to the outbreak in Kansas last year?” I thought about it for a moment, then gave her the string of eight numbers. Hannah nodded at that, giving me another curious look and asking, “Has your memory always been that good?”

“What?” I asked, wondering she meant until I realized that I’d just given her some numbers that I’d only seen once. “I don’t know why, but the number just stuck…”

“As did all the others, I’m sure,” Hannah mused, still watching me. Then she chuckled and said, “I assume no one told you that the angel strain augments your brain functions as well as your physical abilities.”

I stared at Hannah for a moment, feeling a little surprised by this statement. Then I remembered that Rebecca had hinted at this a few times, though neither she or the others had said anything specific. Whenever they talked about their…our augmentations, it was usually in terms of strength, reflexes, and healing.

“I’m not surprised,” Hannah told me. “Every angel is a genius, but the others don’t like talking about that aspect of their augmentation. I think that they’re intentionally trying to make everyone else forget about it. I don’t know if that’s because they want everyone to underestimate you angels, or if they just don’t want people to be even more nervous and intimidated by you than they already are. Knowing Rebecca, it’s probably a bit of both.”

“Who all knows about that?” I asked carefully.

“Anyone with clearance to read the files,” Hannah answered. “The Colonel, myself, and a few of the medical personnel.” She hesitated a moment before adding, “I suggest you keep it quiet until you talk to your sisters.”

I nodded at that, wondering why they hadn’t told me about that part of the augmentation. Of course, there were a few things they hadn’t told me yet, but I was sure this was more a matter of time and opportunity than intentionally deceiving me about anything. After all, Rebecca had made a point about wanting to show me what I was now capable of before she and the others got called away on their mission.

“So, what does this mental augmentation mean?” I asked Hannah quietly.

Hannah hesitated for a moment as she considered, taking a drink of water while she did so. Then she said, “Like I said, the other angels never talk about it but the file says that you all have a genius level IQ with the ability to process and recall information more efficiently.” She shrugged at that. “I can’t say that I’ve ever really noticed it, except for when Rebecca and the others are able to remember details and thing I’d forgotten.”

“Honestly,” I told Hannah with a sigh. “After all my other changes, that’s almost a side note.”

“I’d imagine,” she agreed, looking me over and shaking her head as though she still had a hard time believing it herself. “I don’t want to embarrass you, but you do seem to be doing a good job of adjusting. I can’t imagine how I’d react to suddenly turning into someone else…much less someone of the opposite gender.”

“It hasn’t been easy,” I told her with a wry smile. “But what choice do I have?”

Hannah nodded at that and told me, “I see your point. Anyway, this is probably a bit out of place, but you might want to consider getting your hair done at a salon. It looks just a little…messy. No offense.”

“None taken,” I responded, feeling just a little hurt though I couldn’t understand why. After all, it was just my hair and I already knew it was a mess. “Nicole keeps telling me the same thing.”

“There’s a salon on the other side of the base,” Hannah told me thoughtfully. “It’s not a great one, but they can help you out. And since they usually spend all day cutting hair for male soldiers, they’re usually happy for the chance to do something else. I would take you over there but I have to get back to my office.”

“It’s okay,” I told her. “I appreciate your coming over to check up on me.”

“It’s not a problem,” Hannah assured me with a smile.

The two of us talked for a few more minutes before Hannah had to leave and go back to work. It was nice having someone other than the other angels to talk to, especially when my sisters weren’t here right now. However, that thought just made me feel a little guilty, as though I’d somehow betrayed them by not going with them. I knew it was silly, especially since I wasn’t trained and they probably wouldn’t have let me go even if I had been willing.

“Time for a shower,” I told myself, looking down at my sweaty workout clothes and sighing. “I definitely need one.”

I went to the showers and stripped out of my clothes, then paused to look myself over in the mirror. The sight of an attractive and well-built woman staring back at me wasn’t quite as shocking as it had been the first time I’d seen this, but it was still enough to make me take a second look. I didn’t know if I’d ever get used to seeing someone else reflected back from the mirror like this.

“Get used it,” I reminded myself, knowing that the image wasn’t going to change anytime soon.

I ran my hands down my body, stopping to cup my breasts. All in all, I had to admit that this wasn’t really a bad body. It was athletic, curved in just the right places, and rather nice looking. And now that I was getting a chance to see what it was capable of, I had to admit to being a little impressed.

Then I looked at my hair and let out a sigh, suddenly feeling self-conscious now that Hannah had pointed it out. It kind of made me look like I was homeless or something and couldn’t afford to get my hair cut right. Before my change, I probably wouldn’t have been interested in dating a girl who couldn’t bother to care for her own appearance like that.

“Maybe I should keep it in a ponytail,” I muttered. At least that way, no one would notice.

After a minute, I turned away from the mirror and went to take my shower. Without anyone else in here with me, I was able to relax and enjoy just how good the hot water felt against my new body. To my surprise, my nipples began to respond and become erect. It was a strange sensation but also very nice. I couldn’t resist taking my time as I washed them with my soapy wash cloth.

Once I was done with my shower, I got dressed again, putting on jeans and a T shirt rather than one of the Angel Squad uniforms which I just didn’t feel right wearing. I checked myself out in the mirror again when done, only to shake my head again. I had to get something done about my hair. If I was going to be stuck as a girl, the least I could do was take some pride in my appearance and try to look decent.

A short time later, I left Heaven and started to walk across base, though I couldn’t help but feeling a little self-conscious about my hair as I did so. Fortunately, this wasn’t really a very large base so it wouldn’t take me long to get where I was going.

“Hey Nicole,” one guy called out to me from a distance away. I glanced at him but didn’t recognize who he was so shook my head and continued on my way.

When I reached the other side of the base, a woman said, “Rebecca, I’ve been wanting to talk to you about…”

“I’m not Rebecca,” I quickly told her, embarrassed at these misidentifications. “I’m Monica.”

“Monica?” the woman asked with a blank look.

I rolled my eyes and said, “The new angel.” She still didn’t seem to get it so I just smiled and said, “I’m her sister…”

“Okay,” the woman responded. “I thought Rebecca only had two sisters… What were their names…Nikki and Danielle?”

I gave the woman a polite smile and said, “No, there are four of us.”

“Sorry for bothering you,” the woman said before turning and leaving, muttering, “I can’t believe how much those girls look alike…”

“I guess not everyone here knows about the angels,” I mused with a shake of my head before going into the barber shop and hair salon.

The woman who was working there looked my hair over with a slightly disapproving expression, then politely asked, “I’m sorry, but I can never tell you girls apart. Which one are you again?”

“Monica,” I responded with a forced smile. “This is my first time in here and I need to do something about this…” I gestured to my hair.

The woman nodded and gave me a faint smile. “Well then Monica, you’ve come to the right place. What are you looking for…?”

My first thought was that I should probably cut my hair short the way Dani did since it would be easier to deal with. However, I hesitated, not sure I liked that idea. After all, I’d always thought women were more attractive with longer hair and since I wanted to try looking nice…

“I’m not really sure,” I admitted to the woman, feeling embarrassed about this. “Maybe something to help me stand out a little from my sisters a little…”

We talked for a few minutes to discuss what we could do, then the woman went to work. I sat there patiently while she shampooed my hair and then began to trim and style it. I was still self-conscious about going through this whole thing, but I couldn’t help but feeling just a little giddy as well.

When we were done, the woman let me look into a mirror and asked, “What do you think?”

My hair had been trimmed a little and was now only two inches longer than Rebecca’s, which made it noticeably shorter than Nicole’s. I’d been given a style that would help me stand out from either of them, especially since the tips of my hair had been frosted.

“I…I like it,” I admitted, blushing as I did so. I just wondered what my new sisters would think.