Though the princess and I never quite became close friends, we reached a mutual understanding: both of us simply wanted to complete basic training with minimal complications. Neither of us had the energy to engage in any unnecessary drama or feuds that would only serve as distractions.

Once my tail had fully healed, I was amazed at how much it restored my ability to walk and maintain my balance—I hadn't realized just how reliant upon it I was. This newfound stability also allowed me to regain my effectiveness in hand-to-hand combat. However, I found that the techniques taught to me didn't quite cater to my unique strengths, making my movements feel rigid and cumbersome.

In my quest to excel in combat and secure a spot on the front lines, I've realized the need to truly understand and utilize my body's unique abilities. As I study the elegant, swift movements of the elves in combat, I can't help but admire their high stances, yet recognize that their style would not be complementary to my own skills. Instead, I've discovered that adopting a lower stance and striking upwards have proven more successful for me.

As I lay on the rack, staring at the ceiling and pondering how best to adapt to my new form, it occurs to me that while my transition into a female physique has become more familiar, embracing my feline attributes remains an ongoing challenge. Relearning previously natural actions and adapting them to my transformed body requires deliberate focus. On the bright side, I have discovered an unexpected pleasure in rubbing against rough surfaces. Thankfully, I don't have any aversion towards water - though swimming is an experience I have yet to try.

"Warning, warning. Bean, we have an issue," Kitty urgently whispered, jolting me out of my deep thoughts.

"What's the matter, Kitty?" I inquired, beginning to rise from my resting place.

"We've just been scanned by another combat AI. They're present in this very room, but I can't determine their exact position," Kitty elaborated with concern.

"What information did they obtain during the scan?" I probed, scanning the room with my night vision ability to detect any unfamiliar faces. All I could see were the other recruits in their bunks.

"I'm uncertain of what they uncovered since I didn't have an active defense barrier against such intrusions. I've attempted multiple scans to pinpoint their location, but their defenses are impenetrable," Kitty informed me while continuing to survey the area.

"So, you're suggesting that this hostile AI originates from one of the women we've been cohabitating with for the past month?" I questioned incredulously.

"It certainly appears that way," Kitty replied, persisting with her scans. "I've managed to narrow down the general vicinity of the AI and am now displaying it for you."

As I carefully examined the room, I spotted the AI's location within the section where the elves were resting. Silently leaving my bunk, I tiptoed towards their area to check if any were awake. "Bean, it seems Recruit Silvarin is our source," Kitty revealed.

"Why are we only uncovering this now?" I queried as I approached the unsuspecting elf princess.

"I hadn't been screening for other combat AIs as my generation is exceedingly rare; thus, no additional AIs should be present," she responded solemnly.

Upon nearing her position, Princess Silvarin sprung from her bed, a look of astonishment painting her face. Quickly gesturing for silence, I ushered her into the latrine with me. Once inside, I abruptly confronted her, "How on earth did you end up with a combat AI in your brain?"

Simultaneously, she fixed her eyes upon me and uttered, "You were once a boy?" Heat flooded my cheeks as embarrassment set in.

"What else did you discover about me when you infiltrated my thoughts?" I asked, my voice tinged with bitterness.

"Just a bit about your origins and identity in your previous life. I didn't intend to pry; however, when my AI detected another AI within the room, I needed to know whose it was. I feared it belonged to someone intending to harm me or carry out a sinister plan. The last thing I anticipated was that it would be you. Rest assured; your secret is safe with me. But how did an AI find its way to you?" She questioned anxiously.

"When my transformation occurred, it somehow spawned an AI within my mind. What's your experience with AI?" I inquired, genuinely curious.

"My dad had one integrated into me during childhood as a safety measure. Originally, it was an experiment to observe my potential interactions with it. Once I acquired nanites, it evolved into a more battle-focused AI. However, the complete switch to combat mode has been quite sluggish," she elaborated.

Concerned about potential challenges, I questioned her further. "Do any of your guards possess AI?" Upon witnessing her negative response, a sense of relief washed over me—dealing with just one AI would be easier.

"I used to be a boy until I emerged from a stasis pod upon arriving here. My whole existence has felt topsy-turvy since then, and nobody can figure out why it happened," I confided in her.

She then asked hesitantly, "Were you attracted to men before?" The query took me aback.

"No, not at all! Now, I guess you could say that I'm a lesbian but never had any interest in men." Stumbling through the words, I attempted to clarify my situation.

With genuine curiosity, she asked how I managed to keep myself composed around so many women. "My AI suppresses my arousal, and over time, being surrounded by all these women became normal—I don't ogle anyone," I explained.

"That's intriguing because I've honestly been finding it difficult not to admire some of the captivating women here," she casually remarked.

"Wait, are you a lesbian too?" I inquired further.

"Yes, but eventually, I'll be married off to a man for political reasons," she sighed heavily. My heart went out to her; no one should have to marry someone they don't wish to be with. Instinctively offering her a hug, we embraced while hoping for better days. "Your fur is so incredibly soft," she remarked while gently rubbing my back.

As we pulled away, the mutually acknowledged intimacy left us somewhat bashful. "Apologies, I didn't expect to get that close," I admitted, hiding my hands behind me.

She also apologized for the unexpected closeness and the unsolicited back rub. We both shared a laugh over the moment that had just transpired.

In a hushed tone, I added, "I honestly enjoyed that back rub so much—if I hadn't pulled away, I might've started purring right in your ear!" My cheeks burnt at the confession.

Smiling, she informed me that she would share her tag with me so we could communicate anytime she wanted to learn more about my experiences with AI. With that, she turned and walked back into the bay, allowing me a moment of solitude.

"Bean, would you like to send her your tag as well?" Kitty inquired softly.

"Yeah Kitty, let's do it." I told her as I walked back into the bay as well to lay back down for a bit to relax till drill sergeant came in. This was going to be different; how do I react to the princess now. She seemed excited about being able to talk to someone that also had an AI in their head. I think it must have been lonely for her being the only one. It might look weird if we started being all friendly towards each other, but to be honest I wanted to talk to her too about her experiences with her AI. Even if it wasn't a combat AI in the beginning.

It helped that she knew my secret, and I needed people that knew about my past to talk with. I do agree with her on her assessment on the way some of the women in here looked. It did take me quite a while till I was able to peek at them while we were in the shower and not want to ogle. I think I was subtle enough that I did not show my attraction to them.

I couldn't help myself. I wanted to see what it was like to talk with the princess through our AIs. "You still awake princess?"

"Yes, I can't sleep either. I think this is the first time I have ever met anyone that has an AI in their head like me. It's amazing to be able to share this experience with someone else. And please call me Mir'tan. It's not like I am going to rule or anything so I'm not that special." she told me.

"Ok, Mir'tan, I was just wondering why you hated me so much when we first met?" I asked her.

"I didn't hate you; I was just angry. I was angry because my father had brokered a deal with another leading family on my planet to have me marry his son. I got told that I had to marry him once I finished my military time, my father told me the day he shipped me off to come here. I don't know why I chose you to be mad at but once I did, all my hate for my family got transferred to you. I'm sorry for how I treated you in the beginning. I have been trying to say I was sorry for a while but I didn't know how to say it." she explained to me.

I thought about what she said for a while. "I accept your apology and I guess you were not the only one to blame here either. I was just as angry as you were at that time." I told her.

"I think your reason for being angry was more understandable than mine. I knew that someday my father was going to do this to me but I didn't consider that you had an even worse reason for being mad at the time." She told me.

"So, what would happen if you married someone while doing your military time?" I asked her.

"Oh my god, that would cause a huge scandal, especially since the only one that would consider marrying me is a non-elf. That would be seen as a huge slap in the face to my father. I wouldn't put it past him to have me put in prison or even killed for the slight of defying him. Oh, and since I wouldn't marry a man that would make it worse." she said with a shiver.

"I truly sympathize with your situation. I can't even fathom having a family like that. My own family simply hoped I'd become a farmer like them, but they never restricted my siblings' and my choices with regard to dating," I shared with her.

"You'll undoubtedly draw the attention of many admirers, given your stunning beauty and intellect," she remarked, somewhat bashfully.

"Although I've grown accustomed to my new body, it hasn't made me feel genuinely feminine yet. Every movement serves as a reminder that I'm no longer a man. Kitty, my AI, is the only thing keeping me functional at this point. So, I concentrate on making it through each day without dwelling too much on the transformation," I confided in her.

"I could never have imagined the immense challenge of adapting to such a radical change. Even when I initially believed you were already female, I hadn't grasped the magnitude of these alterations for you. But now I must ask: why did you choose the name 'Kitty' for your AI?" she inquired curiously.

"Actually, she named herself," I revealed with a chuckle.

"That's rather fitting! My AI is called Tri'na--she's been my sole companion ever since she was implanted within me," she shared candidly.

"Why didn't your people install AIs in others' minds? What made them choose you?" I couldn't help but ask.

A sigh escaped her lips as she recounted, "A near-fatal accident left me with significant brain damage. My father offered me up as a test subject in hopes of restoring my ability to lead a normal life. The experiment proved to be too successful; consequently, my father outlawed any further trials on elves. They can't remove Tri'na from me, so I remain the only elf equipped with an AI."

"So, we are most likely the only ones who have this." I pondered to her.

"Two of a kind," she thought through the link.

As the lights flicked on, we were abruptly pulled from our conversation and back into reality. I hadn't even noticed the drill sergeant entering the room, so when the sudden brightness hit my eyes, it was a shock to my system. It took me a moment to regain my focus, but when I did, I found Sergeant Davis urging us all to get on our feet and start moving. I had been eagerly anticipating this day because we were finally going to practice shooting live ammo at the range. No more pretend "pew, pew" sounds as we aimed our rifles. Today, we would be putting our skills to the test with the powerful Kepler 25 pulse rifles and realistic halo targets that resembled humanoids.

After arriving at the halo suite, we started off with a drill that felt like we were repelling invaders. We had to shoot from cover and take out targets as they appeared. With the reticle overlay in my eyes, I was able to hit every target effortlessly. Next, we transitioned to a planet fight scenario where we had to defend ourselves from attackers. The thrill of shooting the powerful rifle and hitting targets with precision was unlike anything I had ever experienced before. I moved between targets seamlessly, and soon with a huge grin on my face as I progressed through the tables. I felt a sense of empowerment and realized how lethal I could be with a rifle.

When I finished my tables, I reluctantly checked my weapon and made my way off the range. The princess came over to me with a beaming smile. "Let me guess, you hit all the targets too?" she asked. I nodded, grinning from ear to ear. Enchina walked up next to me, looking a bit defeated. I put my arm around her shoulder and gave her a reassuring hug.

"Alright, let's check out the rankings board and see where everyone placed," Sergeant Davis called out. Looking at the board, I could see why Enchina was feeling down. She had missed qualifying by just one point. I knew she had been working hard on her fundamentals and felt for her disappointment. I gave her another hug; I told her that I would help her and try to see what she was doing wrong.

"To my surprise we had two perfect runs, Recruit Carver and Recruit Silvarin. That is unusual for the first time on the range. Let's see if they can maintain it the next time out." Sergeant Davis said, and we both got some cheers from the rest of the recruits.

The women were still cheering for us when we got back to our barracks. It felt good for people to be proud of me. I finally felt like I was where I belonged.

***

Vice Admiral Cook was anxious about Recruit Carver's progress, "Any update on Recruit Carver?" he asked Commander Taylor.

Commander Taylor took a moment before responding, "Yes we do have an update, Sir. We have been monitoring her progress and I must say, she has shown incredible potential. We have the video of her fights ready for your review."

As the board watched the footage, Commander Taylor commented, "Recruit Carver exhibited some reluctance during her initial bout, but was eventually able to finish off her opponent. However, the real spectacle took place during her fight with Recruit Silvarin. Despite a lack of confidence during weapon selection, Recruit Carver's extraordinary fighting ability and speed eventually won out over Recruit Silvarin's more seasoned experience.

General Bishop was clearly impressed, "It seems she has not had much experience with hand-to-hand combat and yet was able to defeat a more experienced opponent. If we can hone her skills in this area, she will be a formidable asset. What about her ability to use weapons?"

Commander Taylor showed them the recording of Recruit Carver's run at the weapons range, "It was not just her fighting skills that amazed me. Recruit Silvarin, with all her experience, was not able to outperform Carver. In fact, both their runs were identical, with Carver finishing just a tenth of a second faster."

As they watched the videos side by side, the board was taken aback by the precision and accuracy of Recruit Carver's skills, her movements and strikes identical in style to Recruit Silvarin. It was statistically impossible for them to have been exactly the same like that. General Bishop commented, "There is something else going on here. Something that we have not discovered yet. It is near impossible for two people to shoot exactly the same. What did the sniper's report say?"

"The report stated that all shots were placed dead center of the target, the stance and timing were perfectly synced, and that it was like watching a robot shoot. Once the target was acquired in vision, they had the rifle fixed on the target and fired at it in under a second. Where ever they were looking was exactly where the bullet went." Commander Taylor replied.

"General Bishop is correct. There is no way a new recruit could have performed like that, let alone two of them. There is something different about these two recruits. What do we know about Recruit Silvarin?" Vice Admiral Cook inquired.

Commander Taylor replied, "second princess of the house of Silvarin, not much is known about her. The family kept her hidden from the public eye. She has obviously spent a lot of time training in martial arts. Her grades were in the top five percent of her class, and she is slated to go to infiltration training after basic training, just like Recruit Carver.

"Pull Recruit Silvarin's stasis pod information. I want to see if there were any anomalies in her pod. We may have had a lucky break and both were changed to be superior soldiers. We need to find out more about what happened to them and see if we can replicate the process." Vice Admiral Cook ordered. "I want to keep them together and see what they can do when they are on a mission together." Vice Admiral Cook added.

"It has been reported that the two of them have a bit of a feud going on. It may be beneficial to keep them separate." Commander Taylor offered.

"No, put them together." Vice Admiral Cook replied.

"Yes sir." Commander Taylor answered.

***

Mir'tan and I spent many nights talking about various things. We just had fun chatting with each other and sharing ideas about the Alliance and our place in it. We would also have friendly competition on the various training courses we did. It even spilled over into more verbal conversations at times. That I think meant more to me then the chats we had via the AIs.

She wasn't the only one that I started building a friendship with. I was on good terms with most of the other recruits. I was helping them with their training and they were helping build my confidence in how I converse with people. We built a good team and when we went to our final test, we knew how to motivate each other and help each other out in the more physical aspects of the test. The weapons training portion we couldn't help each other but with the assistance Mir'tan and I had given them they were all able to pass.

Graduation was a wonderful event, after all the hours of standing at attention while this officer and that officer made speeches. I was finally done with the ceremony. We had a few days of leave before we were to report to our next duty station.

Emily, Enchina, and I decided to go out for a night out in the town. We were off to get some drinks and do some dancing. We get to the enlisted club and are let in. There were a lot of people in there, mostly soldiers like us that had just finished basic training. I again was attracting a lot of attention from both the male and female soldiers. The males just wanted to have sex with my while the females just wanted to feel my fur and to tell me how cute I was.

I was not keeping track of how much I was drinking but I know that I was drinking a lot. I was feeling good and enjoyed moving to the music on the dance floor. I was having a great time. Kitty was making sure I was not being taken advantage of by the males. She would warn me when someone was getting too close to me. If I didn't know them.

So, I was surprised when I was spun around quickly and then lips crashed into mine. I was caught off guard by the kiss and so I pushed him away from me. He was laughing like it was some sort of game. "Come on baby, I know how to take care of you." He said slurring his words. I was angry but before I could react to this violation a hand came flying towards him smacking him hard in the face. He stumbled back from the blow.

My head turned to the attacker and I saw Mir'tan standing there, her face twisted in anger at the man. "Keep your hands off her," she yelled at him.

The man turned to Mir'tan, "fuck you bitch. I was just having a little fun with my girl here." he said as he gestured to me.

Oh hell no. "I will never be your girl; you piece of shit. I'm her girl." I slurred and turned to Mir'tan and pulled her in for a kiss. My lips met hers and I melted into her arms. Her arms wrapped around me and pulled me close returning the kiss. I was lost in her. I felt her tongue and it felt so good as she pulled my head tight to her and deepened the kiss. The crowd around me no longer existed to me. I felt like it was just the two of us alone in this moment.

When we finally pulled apart, I couldn't stop looking in her eyes. I wanted her. I wanted to be with her. I needed to be with her. I couldn't fight my desires anymore. I saw the same desire in her eyes. I was breathing so hard and I couldn't slow my heart down. She smiled at me and pulled me through the crowd and out of the club. She waved down a shuttle for us and put the address into the system. Once the door was shut and the shuttle was in motion, she climbed on top of me and held me tight.

I pulled her head down to mine and kissed her deeply. I knew she wanted me just as badly as I wanted her. Our hands were all over each other, I couldn't wait to get her someplace private and get her out of her uniform. She moved from kissing my lips to my neck and then had a hand on my breast.

We heard the shuttle announce that we had arrived at our destination. Mir'tan led me into a hotel and up to a suite. As soon as the door closed behind us, I started to unbutton her uniform, her lithe body undulated as I unbuttoned her top and pulled it off her. She had led us into a bedroom and then she pushed me down on the bed. She straddled me and started to kiss me again while unzipping my pants.

She climbed off to pull my pants off as well as my panties in one swift motion. I quickly took off my shirt and laid there naked in front of her laying wide open for her. She finished stripping her clothes off and climbed on top of me. For the first time in a female body, I was feeling desire and lust and I mentally thanked Kitty for not blocking the hormones this time. I reached up and cupped her face in my hand and brought her down to kiss me.

Our naked bodies rubbed together as we kissed and our tongues dueled in each other's mouth. The way that her hands were touching my body brought me such a sense of pleasure and desire that I felt like I was going to explode it I didn't get any relief. "Please Mir'tan, I need you inside of me." I gasped as she pushed down on my mound and then slowly rubbed between my folds. I couldn't help but moan as she rubbed me and then slid her finger inside of me. My body was on fire and I felt like I was going to lose my mind. I was so distracted by the new sensations that I didn't notice that she had stopped kissing my neck, untill I felt her tongue slide over my nub. I screamed out her name as she sucked and licked me while sliding her finger deep inside of me.

Then like a wave crashing over me I felt my climax. I had never felt anything like it before and I couldn't hold it back. My body tensed and then spasmed as I released all of the tension that had I built up inside of me. I laid there like I couldn't even move as I felt the aftershocks of my climax. I panted as I tried to catch my breath. "Wow, that was the best thing that has ever happened to me. Mir'tan, you have no idea how much I needed that. I've been so lonely and I have never felt passion like that before. Thank you." I said as I looked up at her with the biggest smile on my face. We kissed again and again. I felt a connection to her that I never thought was possible. I don't know if I could bare to be away from her.

"I'm glad you like it; it was amazing for me as well." She said to me as she laid her head on my chest and caressed my stomach.

"But what about you? Don't you want me to do the same for you?" I asked as I looked down at her

"Oh, Lor'hi, I am very much content this time was about you. I know you have had a hard time being a woman, so I wanted to make tonight about you and your pleasure. Next time I will let you try to please me as well." she said as she lifted her head and smiled at me.

"What is Lor'hi mean?" I asked as I smiled and stroked her hair.

"That's my secret for now, but I promise you will know soon enough." She said as she kissed my breast.

I started coming down from the sexual high I was on and I could feel the alcohol still in my system taking effect. I wanted to stay awake with her but I couldn't help but drift off to sleep.

I woke up in the middle of the night having to relieve myself. I was still tangled in Mir'tan's arms. I had to untangle myself from her to use the bathroom. Once I finished and cleaned up, I smiled as I looked down at her. What would I do whenever she has to go back to her home and marry some unknown man? I didn't want to think about that. I climbed back into bed and spooned up behind her and wrapped my arm possessively around her waist. The smell of her hair and body was intoxicating. I started feeling more relaxed and drifted off to sleep again.