Two teenage boys, working for a super secret R&D lab learn that sometimes accidents happen...continued.

Transformers
(sort of)
Book Two, Chapter One
By Catherine Linda Michel

 

Reintroducing our cast of characters. Donnie/Donna, Jerry, Donnie's best friend. Martin and Janet, Donnie's parents. Fred and Annie, Jerry's parents. Claire, Jerry's younger sister. Debbie, Donnie's girlfriend. Cindy, Jerry's girlfriend. Paul, a private eye. And introducing two new characters, P.I.'s Terry and Pete, Paul's friends/associates. Dr. Fine. Inventer/reverse engineer of the suits.

From last time: “I settled into Jerry's embrace, realizing that what I was gonna do next was gonna change my life more than anything ever had, but knowing that I had to do it. I let out a long sigh, accessed that portion of the HUD…….and flipped that little switch.”

For a moment, nothing happened. Then, suddenly, a window opened in my HUD, asking if I was sure I wanted to do this! I must have jumped just a bit, because Jerry said,

“What's up, Don..na? Damn that's going to be tough to get used to.”

Again I was presented with a choice. I could continue and activate the changes, or I could 'abort' as it were, and go back to the way things were.

“Jer.” I responded. “This thing is asking me if I want to continue. We all know I gotta do this thing, right? I mean, there's no real alternative is there?”

“Donna.” He replied. “This choice is completely up to you. You know that I'm gonna back your play, no matter which way you decide to go, but you're right. There doesn't seem to be any other logical choice. It's gonna be easier on you if you go ahead and accept, I think. If you try to go on the way things are, you're gonna go loony tunes on us, and we need you sane and ready to fight whatever forces we come up against.”

I thought about it again, for a couple of minutes and then, sighing resignedly, I mentally clicked 'yes/accept.”

Instantly my mind was filled with images and behaviors, knowledge of many, many things, and somehow, a feeling of 'rightness.' Almost as if I was being told that my actions were exactly what was needed.

All of a sudden, how to 'do' makeup, how to behave as a female, gestures, attitudes, even phraseology and word choices were, seemingly downloaded into my brain at a rate of speed so fast, that I couldn't make heads nor tails of them. I knew somehow that as I needed these things, they would be instantly available to me, eventually becoming 'second nature.'

There was a pause after all this stuff went thundering into my brain, and I thought it was done. Then, without warning again, another window popped up and it had, as a heading, design parameters, recharging alternatives and upgrading instructions, as well as a way to remove the suit without special equipment!

I literally jumped about three feet in the air yelling,

“GODDAMN YOU, DR. FINE!!!!!”

That sonofabitch had led everyone to believe that these things couldn't be removed without special equipment, knowing that the instructions were in them all along!! He'd deceived, connived and downright lied to everyone, and to me and Jerry the most!

“Donna! Dude..ette! What's wrong? Did something go wrong in the download or something?”

I heard Jerry's voice, although his words didn't make much of an impression on me. I was too damn mad to hear anything said to me just then. I knew, however, that ranting and raving was going to do no good at this point in time. I also knew that there would be a reckoning between Dr. Fine, and me and I guaranteed myself that it wouldn't be a pleasant thing for him.

I stood there, breathing heavily, trying to get my temper under control and, when I finally could think somewhat clearly again, I turned to Jerry and said;

“Sit down, Jerry. I got something to tell you and you have a choice to make.”

“What is it, Donna? Are you okay? You gotta tell me what's going on here! You know that I worry about you and I'm gonna stand by you all the way through this, no matter what it takes or how long it takes, right?”

“I know, I know all that Jerry and you know that I appreciate all that, more than I can say, but this is a blockbuster, at least for you, and I gotta make sure I say it right.”

Jerry sat back down and looked at with a worried look on his face, but he stayed quiet for a change.

“Okay, here goes.” I began. “You know that the download I just did was to help me adjust and learn stuff so I could be comfortable in this skin, right?”

“Right. You told me all that before, but....”

“Just sit tight for a few minutes Jerry. This is gonna blow your mind and probably piss you off. I know it pissed me off!

Taking a deep breath, I continued.

“Along with all that stuff, there was another download that started after the first one finished. It told me how to recharge the suits without plugging in, in an emergency, how the suits are designed, and how to remove the damn things without special equipment!”

Jerry jumped up again, saying;

“You mean you can get outta that suit now?”

“No.” I replied sadly. “I'm stuck for the rest of my life, but you aren't! I know how to take that thing off you! You can go back to yourself! I don't know why that bastard, Fine, did this in this way, but you can bet your ass I'm gonna find out when he's fit to talk to again!”

Jerry goggled at me, not believing what I'd just told him.

“Dude...ette! You mean I can take this thing off? I'm not stuck in it? Holy crap, man....I mean woman...I mean...oh hell, you know what I mean! I can be ME again! I can see my girlfriend again! I can....I can.....oh shit. Donna. You're still stuck and always will be. If I get outta this thing, you'll be alone, right?”

“Yeah, Jerry.” I sighed. “No matter what, I'm stuck like this for, well, what looks like forever to me. Listen. It's not so bad. I mean, I'm alive. I have powers no other human has ever had, and I'm good looking to boot. Okay, yes, I'm now a girl, but I'm getting used to it, well, I think I'm getting used to it, and with the extra help of the new info that Dr. Fine so thoughtfully included in the suit, I have a much better idea of how to be just what I appear to be.”

I tried to say more, but I suddenly dissolved into a mass of tears and shakes! I was crying so hard and so loudly that Jerry didn't know what to do. I couldn't even think. All I could do was cry. It was as if everything that had happened to me since this whole crazy damn adventure began, finally got to me, all at once.

Jerry tried to comfort me, but I couldn't even hear what he was saying. All I knew right then was that everything I'd ever hoped for was gone. Marriage to my girlfriend, having kids with her, building a life together with her, college, job, career...all gone. Instead I was left with a life of uncertainty. A life that would last far longer than anyone I knew or would know, and I'd have to live it as a woman.

After a few minutes, I sort of wound down and was merely sniffling and very tired. Jerry, not knowing what else to do, bent down and picked me up, cradling me in his arms, and began to carry me back to the cabins. I thought about trying to stop him from carrying me like some helpless female, but it dawned on me that, that was just what I appeared to be, and Jerry was, no doubt, just reacting to what he saw, not thinking about who was really inside that so feminine exterior. I just relaxed in his arms and allowed him to carry me.

When we arrived back at the cabin sites, we were greeted by my parents, Jim, Penny and Paul. They were concerned because we had been gone so long, but when they saw Jerry carrying me, they burst out in a babble of conversation, each one trying to outshout the other. Finally Mom, remember Mom? Mom simply out screeched everyone else and took over in her own inimitable fashion.

“WHAT IS ALL THIS ABOUT?” She screamed.

She was so loud that everyone else just shut up and turned to look at her, wondering no doubt, how such a small woman could generate such incredible volume.

Jerry started to explain, but I stopped him and disengaged myself from his arms. When I was standing on my own two feet again, I straightened out my clothing, composed myself and gave everyone an abridged version of the recent events.

I told them that I now knew how to free Jerry from his imprisoning suit, how we could recharge them using sunlight and an improvised solar collector array, even use thermal energy to recharge if we could find a way to adapt the heat to electricity. I also told them that I had resigned myself to my life as it now was, and that I was okay with it.

I didn't bother to tell them about breaking down in tears, since I knew it would only upset Mom and cause her to go into what I call, “MOM mode,” a state of mind in which nothing mattered but her comforting, babying, and generally embarrassing the hell out of anyone on the receiving end of her 'concern'.

She still tried to cluck around me like a mother hen, but I managed to stave her off by introducing another, yet undiscussed topic.

“Look.” I began. “We can't stay out here forever. We have to come up with some kind of plan for returning to civilization and dealing with those terrorists, or whoever they were. There's also the matter of Jerry's and my girlfriends. They have to be either told, or offered some kind of explanation for why we all just vanished, and all at the same time.”

Just then I heard something that sounded like a vehicle approaching our site! We quickly split up, Jerry and I headed for cover by the road in, while Jim and Penny took charge of my Mom and Dad, hustling them out of sight, safely behind one of the cabins. Paul grabbed a 12 gauge and a handful of shells from one of the cabins and took up a stance where he could see the clearing between the cabins, loading as he ran.

Jerry and I powered the suits up and waited behind some trees, while Jim and Penny cocked their pistols and got ready for a shootout if there was no other way out.

Soon, an SUV appeared, going slowly. It looked a lot like the ones the terrorists had been using and Jerry and I tensed up, ready for a fight. It stopped about 50 feet from the clearing and the driver's door opened. A man in ordinary clothes stepped out slowly, his hands in plain view so anyone could see he wasn't armed.

“Paul!” He yelled. “Are you here? It's Terry and Pete with the kids parents and sister!”

Paul broke from his position of cover and practically ran at the vehicle. Jerry and I tensed, expecting a fight, but Paul stopped, laid the shotgun down on the ground, facing away from the clearing, and rushed the driver of the SUV, greeting him with a 'manly hug.'

“TERRY! You sonofabitch! Where the hell have you guys been? I expected you yesterday or sooner?”

Paul hollered at the rest of us. “Come on out! These guys are okay, and Jerry? They've brought your folks and sister!”

Well, for awhile there it was pandelerium with all the greetings and hugs and questions. Jerry was practically smothered with hugs from his parents and Claire, while Paul, Jim and Penny fired question after question at the two new guys.

When everything settled down, we finally got a rundown on all that had happened. It seems that, when Terry and Pete showed up to pick up Jerry's family, they had been followed, and a short, but vicious, firefight had ensued. Terry and Pete had managed to kill two of the terrorists and disable their vehicle by shooting it's tires out, but they had been forced into hiding by that incident for a day or two until they were sure they hadn't been followed from Jerry's house. Once they were sure they had gotten away, they hightailed it for the meeting spot that Paul had pre-arranged with them, finally arriving just now.

Meanwhile, Jerry and I were helping Jerry's parents get settled and I was being bombarded by what seemed like a thousand questions from Claire, Jerry's sister. She still seemed somewhat intimidated and jealous of me, and I decided that, after everyone was settled in, she and I would have to have a long, private talk.

Things got a little bit crowded with two families, two private security people, their luggage and bags, and three detectives/bodyguards in residence and it was decided that we would have to leave within the next day or two, taking our chances with whoever the hell it was that was after us and the suits. For now though, it was a matter of planning and getting reacquainted. Jerry's family had to be brought up to date on everything and that took quite a bit of time. We also finalized plans to either bring Cindy and Debbie into this, or trying to cook up some story they could believe as to why Jerry and I and both families had mysteriously and suddenly left town. Oh yeah. One other thing. What were we to do with the four extra suits?

I got tired of the planning session somewhere into the third hour and managed to catch Claire's eye, indicating that she should follow me outside. Once outside the cabin, I finally asked her, point blank what her problem with me was.

She sighed and, after a couple of false tries, said;

“You remember when I offered to show you all about being a girl and stuff?”

I nodded my head and she continued.

“Well, you turned me down, nicely, but that kinda hurt my feelings a bit, 'cause I wanted to help and you wouldn't let me. Then I guess I got a little jealous of you. I mean look at you for god's sake! You look like every boy's wet dream and you didn't have to go through all the stuff I had to, growing up! It was just handed to you! You didn't even have to worry about periods and stuff, you just got....gorgeous overnight, and I guess I felt like it was unfair or something. I mean, now I understand a bit more about what happened, since those two guys kinda told us what was happening to you and Jerry. I'm sorry if I acted like a little kid, Donnie....um, do I call you Donna now, or what?”

I felt like crying all over again. In my preoccupation with what had happened to Jerry and me, I had completely overlooked the effect it had on others. I pulled Claire into a hug and apologized to her, saying;

“Oh Claire! I'm so sorry I shut you down like that! I never realized that I was hurting your feelings or ignoring you! I've been so self absorbed and worried about myself and Jerry that I even kinda shut out my parents. Donna will do just fine, and can you forgive me?”

“Of course I can, Donna! You and my brother have been friends like, forever, and I feel like you've always been at our house, or Jerry was at yours. It's almost like I had two brothers, and I kinda felt left out when this all started. My offering to teach you about girl stuff was just a way of getting back in with you and Jerry. It was dumb of me and I'm sorry too. Can you forgive me?”

“I can, easily, Claire.” I promise I won't do that to you, ever again, and if you want to try to teach me all about girl stuff, I'll be pleased and grateful to try to learn from you. After all, I haven't ever been a girl before, so it's all new to me, right?”

Well, we cried together for a bit and, when we ran down, Claire and I talked some more, but I noticed something happening to me, while we were talking. I seemed to be relating to her much more easily than I had ever done before. It was almost like I could feel her feelings, and they engendered reciprocal feelings in me!

While I was trying to figure that out, Jerry stepped outside and hollered at me and Claire to come back in. I mentally tabled those other thoughts, and we headed back inside, where our families and friends/allies were waiting.

Paul seemed to have taken over as spokesperson and he welcomed us back inside, saying;

“We've reached some decisions, but we didn't want to just go ahead with them until we ran them past you, Donna. First of all, what to do with the extra suits. How easy is it, exactly, to get that suit off Jerry?”

“Well, according to the additional info that I got when I made my decision and flicked that little mental switch, all it requires is that Jerry and I have to kinda 'link up' via built in software in the suits themselves. Then we have to visualize Jerry taking it off and I have to assist him. It takes about an hour to completely remove it, because there are some things that have to be carefully disconnected and stuff. Why?”

Well, if these guys we're up against are as bad as you've said they are, and from all appearances they are, we might need the extra suits to tip the balance in our favor. The two older suits can be donned and removed with very little trouble, right?”

“Yeah. It only takes about 15 minutes to put one on and about a half hour to take it off. With the two other newer ones, it takes at least a half hour to put them on, and the full hour, like I said, to get them off again. One thing though. With the two older suits, there's no danger of 'bonding' taking place. However, with the two newer ones, 'bonding is a definite possibility! The only reason it hasn't happened to Jerry is that he hasn't experienced the right circumstances that lead to bonding. Who's gonna take those chances?”

'Well, we sort of drew straws and Jim and Penny drew the two newer suits. Me and Terry drew the two older ones. We're gonna need you and Jerry to help us get acclimated to the suits and show us how to use them, okay? Now we aren't gonna climb into those things yet, but if things look like they're going downhill, we'll use them as last resorts. Hopefully we can plan far enough ahead so we have the time to get into them before a situation goes south on us.”

I looked at Jim and Penny.

“Is it too much to hope that Jim is gonna take the female suit?” and I giggled. I giggled! While I was getting embarrassed about giggling, Jim said;

“Let me tell you something Donna. Since this whole thing began, I've been impressed by the way you've handled what has to be the weirdest situation I've ever heard of. Yeah you've had your moments when you needed a verbal ass kicking, but for the most part, you have impressed the hell out of me, kid. If you think I should join you, I will! Naturally I'd prefer to wear the male suit, but I'll wear the other one if you ask me to.”

Tears came quickly to me now, it seemed, because when Jim said that, I just started to cry! How marvelous was it that a guy like Jim would make that kind of sacrifice for a kid like me? I was so blown away that, for a minute I couldn't talk, but I smiled through my tears and looked at Jim like he was the most wonderful guy I'd ever met. Then I just hugged him and said;

“Jim, that's the sweetest thing anyone has ever offered to do for me, and as much as I'd like some company in weirdness, I think I'd prefer you to use the male suit. That is, if Penny is okay with that. I mean, she might have been looking forward to seeing how it is to be a guy, you know?”

Penny spoke up right then, also giggling.

“You know Jim, it could a very interesting experience for us both! Are you sure you wouldn't mind using the 'girl suit'?”

Well, that broke some of the tension that had been building up in all of us, and we all had a good laugh at Jim's expense, but I think he knew we were laughing with him, not at him. After all the laughter died down, and Jim managed to lose some of the redness in his face, we continued with the 'briefing'.

“Okay.” Paul continued. “Jim will use the male suit and Penny will use the female one. Terry? You wanna match me for who gets which of the other ones?”

“Naw.” Terry said. “You seem to be the guy in charge here, so you go ahead and take the guy suit. I'll make the supreme sacrifice and use the gal one. Besides, it ain't like it's permanent, right? But look, just who are these assholes we're up against? Anybody got any ideas on that?”

We all kinda looked at one another, but nobody seemed to have a clue about the identity of whatever organization had sent those bad guys after us.

“What if they were, like, some kinda 'Men In Black' kinda guys?” ventured Claire. “I mean, like, oh my GOD, you know that the government hides all sorts of stuff, right? So suppose these guys were, like, told to get the suits from Dr. Fine, but then they, like, found out that, like, Donnie and Jerry still had two of 'em, right? So then, they tried to kill Don and Jer, but got their butts handed to 'em and now they're, like, looking to kill or kidnap all of us so they could get the suits, ya know?”

“I suppose that is a possibility,” said Paul, “but I don't know how they could be so 'out in the open' as it were, about what they were doing and how they were doing it. It seems to me that if they were a government agency, they'd be a bit more discreet, you know?”

“Well, whoever they are, we are gonna have to deal with them, one way or another.” I replied. “They sure aren't gonna let us off the hook, especially now that we hurt them bad the last time we ran into 'em.”

“You're dead right about that Donna.” said Jim. “I've never heard of anything like that operation you and Jerry interrupted, and the attempted kidnapping of me and Penny was way too 'out in the open', I'd think, for a government bunch. It seems more likely to me that they're a privately funded group, after the technology the suits represent.”

Well. We kicked that subject around for an hour or more, but, lacking any real information, we never arrived at any kind of real idea of who they might be. Then we tackled the subject of my and Jerry's girlfriends.

“I know that Debbie would freak right out if I approached her with this story.” I said, with a snort of amusement. I doubt that she would even try to understand, and I know she'd never agree to stay with me. Not with me looking like this!

“Cindy, on the other hand,” I continued, “would probably believe Jerry, especially if he got outta that suit and showed up looking like his old self. Problem is, though.....if Jerry showed up looking like his old self, those guys are gonna obviously be looking for any of us, and that'd leave not only Jerry, but Cindy vulnerable, as well. That doesn't sit well with me.”

Jerry spoke up, saying;

“I agree with you, Donna. Actually, I think it might be best if we just get word to the girls, telling them that we took off for a summer trip. Later we could, maybe, write or something and tell them that we found jobs somewhere far away from home and won't be back. I know it sounds kinda cruel and cold, but I really don't wanna involve Cindy or Debbie in this thing if we can avoid it, and this might be the best way to keep them out of it. Who knows what those bastards might do if they found out about the girls, right?”

“That's smart thinking, Jerry.” Said Paul. “I agree that your girlfriends should be kept as far out of this whole mess as is humanly possible. We have more than enough people to keep an eye on as it is. In fact, that's one other thing I think we need to address. Pete? How about you take the parents and Claire somewhere and keep them safe until we figure some of this stuff out. Maybe at that place you have out in Colorado?”

“Yeah, I could do that, Paul, but are they willing to go?” Pete replied. I mean, these are their kids we're talking about here and, from what you've told me, this is some seriously dangerous shit!”

Well, about that time, Mom spoke up. I thought, 'oboy! Here we go!'

“Now just one darned minute here!” She began. “ Yes, these are our kids we're talking about here and I, for one, am not going to have my son...I mean daughter, running around getting shot at, for goodness sake! She was working up a great head of steam and I was bracing myself for the onslaught when Dad....DAD broke in!!

“JANET!” He bellowed. I've kept silent through all these years, knowing that when you got started and had made up your mind about something, you'd simply refuse to hear anything to the contrary of your thoughts and ideas, but this time, I have to speak up! Donna and Jerry have gotten themselves into one hell of a mess, but most of it is not their fault! However, they can't just run away from it. They have to face it, and as much as I hate that idea, it's what I would do under the same circumstances. We can't trust any of the authorities or even the government to give us any help in this because we simply don't know who the hell is involved and who isn't!

Mom was absolutely goggling at Dad, but he plowed straight on, not giving her a chance to get started again.

“Donna and Jerry have some great help in Paul, Jim, Penny, Terry and Pete, and I think their plan of getting us to safety is a good one. They've got enough to worry about without having to keep us from harm as well. Of course I'm worried about the kids, but with those suits at their disposal, they are much better equipped to handle trouble!”

Jerry's Dad, Fred, chimed in as well.

“This is the damnedest situation I've ever heard of, and I don't mind telling you all that I'm scared shitless for our kids, and for us! However, having said that, I have to agree with Martin. The kids and Paul and his friends are much better qualified to get to the bottom of this without us to worry about. My vote goes for us going with Pete here, to someplace safe until this all gets settled. I know that we'll be giving up a lot. Jobs, incomes, friends and all that, but our lives are worth more than all of that, don't you all think?”

All of the parents seemed to agree, even Mom, although her agreement was grudging, at best. She still looked a little shocked that Dad would stand up to her! Claire wasn't so sure, but she also knew that we'd be better off if we didn't have to worry about her safety. She didn't want to leave me and Jerry so soon after finding us again, but she knew it was for the best.

“Okay.” I said. That pretty much settles most of what we had to get settled. There is one other thing though. Have we heard anything about, or from, that sadist, Dr. Fine? If anyone would know who the hell is after us, I'd think he would.”

Paul spoke up again.

“I've been listening to the news and also have been in contact with some friends, and I haven't heard word one about him or his condition. I have to assume he's still in a coma, but I agree with Donna. I think we have to get to him and hope we can get some information out of him, somehow. We run the risk of a confrontation with the terrorists or whoever they are, if we go back there though. I think it's a risk worth taking.”

“You know,” I mused. “There might be a way to help bring him out of his coma, if these suits can do more than we know. I mean, they can heal us, so why couldn't they help heal somebody else? I'm gonna search the database in this one tonight and see if there's anything that'll help. Hell, maybe we could stuff Dr. Fine into one of the newer suits and let it heal him, or regenerate him, or something.”

I briefly chuckled at the thought of Dr. Fine, stuck in one of these suits....particularly the female one. Now wouldn't that be some kinda poetic justice?

Well, we decided that we'd decided enough for one night. Jerry's parents and Claire were pretty wiped out from their journey here, and the rest of us were pretty tired anyway, so we called it a night at that point. The parents borrowed a Sat phone from Pete to see if they could get some or all of their savings accounts transferred to a bank Pete recommended adding that he had a friend who could handle that and run it through several different accounts so no one could trace the money. The houses would just have to remain unoccupied until this mess was cleared up, one way of another.

Paul, Terry, Jim, Penny and Pete stayed up a bit longer, checking weapons and ammo and stuff for readiness at a moment's notice. We had quite a cache, thanks to our fight with the bad guys at the lab, including automatic machine pistols, and various auto rifles and handguns, as well as the shotguns and personal weapons brought in by their respective owners.

Cabin assignments got changed due to the increased number of residents, but it all worked out and we retired for the evening......well, all except me. I sat down in a quiet area and accessed the HUD for any info on healing/regeneration, etc. What I found was very interesting and possibly promising.

Apparently, under the right circumstances, the suits could heal or help regenerate someone other than the wearer, but it required skin to skin contact and several hours of it. It also wasn't real specific on what it could help and what it couldn't, regarding coma recovery.

I had also been wondering about the way I was suddenly able to relate to Claire and her feelings and the giggling I'd been doing! Folks, I've never giggled in my life, yet all of a sudden, it seemed like the thing to do under certain circumstances, and that was scaring me a little bit.

Well, it turned out that the female behavior modifications built into the suit were to blame for all of that, and more. For example, I now knew how to 'do' hair and makeup even though I'd never done either before in my life. I could access all that kind of information with just a thought, as well as knowing how to dance backwards in heels, and how to act on dates! Dates? Yeah. Like that's gonna ever happen! Man! When I finally get my hands on that miserable Dr. Fine, it's gonna take more people than there are to pull me off of him!

I mean, I guess all this girl stuff would be okay for someone who wanted to be one, as if that could ever happen, but for someone who never wanted it and was forced, by circumstances to become female, it was just one more reminder of how much my life had changed and how much I'd lost.

Anyway, having located the best info I could, I decided to hit the bed and recharge the suit. I headed back inside and got ready for bed, plugged in, and was out cold, almost before my head hit the pillow. We had a huge day ahead of us tomorrow, and I wanted to be fully rested and charged up, as it were. I could pass along what I'd found out in the morning.

When I awoke, I could hear people moving around, and I looked out the window, noticing that it was full daylight outside. I checked the HUD and it told me that the suit was fully charged, so I got up, unplugged, and hit the shower. Yeah, I knew I didn't have to bathe since the suit takes care of stuff like that, somehow, but I felt like I needed the feeling of the water rushing over me.

I got the temperature adjusted just right in the shower and jumped in...then I jumped right back out! My mind was refusing to accept delivery on the sudden knowledge that the needlelike spray from the shower, hurt my nipples! That had never happened before, and it scared the crap out of me!

The bathroom door suddenly burst open and Mom was standing there, a wild look in her eyes!

“What's wrong?” she screamed. “Are you okay? I heard you scream!”

I was just standing there, trying to make sense out of what had happened and Mom grabbed me, shook me and asked me again if I was okay. It finally registered on me that someone else was in the bathroom other than myself, and I turned to face Mom and suddenly began to cry! I didn't have a clue what the hell was happening to me and, for the first time since all this began, I was scared!

Mom quickly took me in her arms and hugged me tightly, while simultaneously kicking the bathroom door shut. She just held me and let me cry myself out before asking me what had happened again.

In a shaky voice I told her, feeling ashamed, but wanting to know what was going on.

Mom actually started to laugh! She started out giggling, and then broke into full laughter!

“Mom!” I pleaded. “Don't laugh at me! I'm scared right now and I need to know what the hell is going on with me!”

She stopped laughing and slapped me gently right across my face!

“Don't you curse at me, young man!” She barked. “I thought something horrible had happened and you were in danger or had hurt yourself somehow! So I rush in here, only to have you tell me something that every woman since time began knows. Hot water, in a needle spray, hurts their breasts! I laughed because I never expected to have to tell you things like that, but it seems I'm going to have to do just that.”

Then she grabbed me again and held me, saying;

“Honey. I wasn't laughing at you so much as I was laughing at the silliness of this whole thing! What happened to you in the shower was just the capper for this lunacy and I finally just lost it, I guess. I'm so sorry. Can you forgive your foolish old Mom?”

Well, that certainly was information that I'd never heard before and had never even anticipated having a need for stuff like that. It struck me that I'd better check the HUD and see if there was some way to turn down the sensitivity um, up front. It didn't make sense to have anything be that sensitive on this suit.

I told Mom that, of course I would forgive her, but only if she'd forgive me for cussing in front of her. That was something you just didn't do where my Mom was concerned. I started to get back into the shower, adjusting the spray to something less...intense, when Mom stopped me, saying;

“Donna, honey? You do know about, um, your private area, I assume? That it, too, will be very sensitive when you wash?”

I could actually feel myself turning red from embarrassment.

“Mom!!! Jeeze! I don't wanna hear that kinda stuff.....but it seems like I'm gonna have to hear it, huh?”

“Donna.” Mom said. “I don't know what kind of information that...thing put into your head, but it's obvious that there are still some gaps. Who better than your old Mom to set you straight on this kind of 'stuff?' Hmm? Now you go ahead and get your shower taken care of, although you must remind me to clue you into the pleasures of a nice, long bubblebath. Why sweetie, it's one of the nicest things a woman can do for herself! So warm, and fragrant with bath oils and lots of soft, foamy bubbles....”

No doubt she would have gone on and on like that for God knows how long, if someone hadn't called from outside the bathroom.

“Hey! Is everything okay in there? Anyone need any help?”

The door started to open and I quickly called back.

“Everything is fine in here. Stay out! I'm not dressed!”

The door closed again, and I breathed a sigh of relief. At least I now knew what had happened and what to expect. I'd also learned that my Mom, ditsy as she could be, was a pretty nice old gal, with a lot of love and understanding in her. I hugged her and promised that we'd have a long talk when all this was over, and gently urged her to the door.

“Go ahead on out, Mom. I'm okay now. That just shocked me, hitting me all of a sudden, like it did...and Mom? Just in case I haven't said it lately? I really appreciate all you and Dad have done for me all my life, and how well you're both taking this madness. I don't think I could be doing anywhere near as well with the changes I've gone through, if I didn't know that you and Dad love me and will stick with me. I love you Mom.”

Her eyes kinda got a soft, kinda misty look to them, and she hugged me again.

“Donna. We told you when this first started, but I guess you needed to hear it more. Your Father and I love you and will be on your side, no matter what happens. You've always made us proud to be your parents and that hasn't changed, even with as crazy and strange this whole situation has gotten. Whatever happens honey, know that your Dad and I will always be here for you.”

Well, we both started to cry but somehow, I didn't mind this time. It actually felt..good, somehow, and when we both ran down, Mom left the bathroom, closing the door behind her. I eventually did get my shower, but I was thinking about that bubblebath Mom had talked about. 'I'm gonna have to try that sometime.” I thought to myself.

When I was finally dried off and clothed, I went into the main room and found the everybody already up and there, waiting. Apparently some further decisions had been made, so I just greeted everyone and then sat down, waiting to hear what I'd missed.

Paul began, saying;

“Welcome back to the world of the living, Donna. We've all decided that there's no sense in waiting any longer to get started. Both your parents and Jerry's, along with Claire, will be leaving today with Pete. We aren't going to reveal the location of Pete's place, just in case something happens. What you don't know, you can't tell, right? Pete? Are you all set? Is there anything else you think you might need?”

“Nope, Paul. I got everything either in the SUV or at my place. Whatever else comes up, we can pick up on the way there. I figure we'll be about three days on the road, but I got 'safe houses' damn near everywhere, as you know, so we won't have to depend on hotels or motels. Much safer that way. Donna? You and Jerry better get your goodbyes out of the way now. I want ta get goin' before it gets too much later. I wanna be on the road within the hour.”

Jeeze! Jerry's folks had just gotten there and were gonna be leaving so soon? Still, I knew that it was probably for the best. I knew that I wanted my folks safe and well hidden until some stuff got settled, and I know that Jerry felt the same way about his family.

Well, we did our goodbye things, and I'm not gonna bore you with the details of that, other than to say it wasn't without tears and regrets and all that emotional stuff, but we all knew it was for the best. When that big SUV pulled out of the parking area we watched until it was out of sight, waving all the time. Jerry and I took a few minutes alone before we turned and walked back inside. Somewhere along the way, my hand found it's way into Jerry's...and it didn't feel all that bad to me.

Once we got inside though, it was all business. Paul, Jim, Penny and Terry began laying out different plans of action, all designed to accomplish one thing....getting us out of the situation. Additionally, we had to find out who the 'bad guys' were, and either end their threat, or go into permanent hiding. That last didn't sound good to me though, as I wanted to get back out there and just be, you know? I really missed the interaction between kids our own age and, even though I was gonna be on the opposite side of the gender fence, I still hungered to just hang out with friends, and I knew that Jerry felt the same way.

Crazy as it might sound, we decided on the boldest plan of action of all the ones we had discussed! We had to get back and try to get Dr. Fine up and about, even if it meant going up against those 'bad guys' again. At least we now knew that they were out there and could plan for if or when they hit again.

I clued Jerry, and the others in on the regeneration capabilities of the suits, although the two older ones would only work for the wearers. The rest of the morning was spent getting everyone into their respective suits and getting them used to them and what they could and couldn't do. We had plugged them all in the night before, so each suit had a full charge.

As I had expected, Terry was decidedly uncomfortable in the female suit, but he also immediately recognized the value of being much faster, stronger and practically bulletproof against anything but armor piercing ammo. We all had our laughs, including Terry, as his attempts to become used to looking, sounding and moving like a pretty woman. Remember, the female suits made their wearer move and sound naturally feminine.

Anyway, when all that was done, we packed up and closed the cabins down. We left them as we'd found them as much as possible. We tossed all the perishable food we couldn't use, trusting that the local wildlife would soon find, and dispose of it, blocked the fridge doors open, snapped off all the circuit breakers and turned the water off. We loaded the vehicles with the weapons, ammo, and assorted other stuff and prepared to take our leave of our little safe haven. I felt kinda sad and a little bit worried about leaving a safe place, but it had to be done. Jerry and I, along with our families, could not live the rest of our lives on the run and in hiding.

We found out, quite by accident, that Jim's and Penny's families had been picked up by another friend of Paul's and Terry's, and were also on their way to Pete's place. That meant that all the 'innocents' were safely stashed away, out of the reach of the 'bad guys.'

The only two remaining were Debbie and Cindy who weren't directly involved and would probably be safe enough where they were, since they knew nothing about where we were or what had happened to us. When this was all over though, I knew that they deserved an explanation. Just how much we could tell them was up for grabs, since a lot of it, nobody would believe and some of it was just as well off being secret. Still, I promised myself that Debbie would know what had happened to me and why we couldn't be boyfriend/girlfriend ever again. I also promised myself that these bad guys, whoever they were, were gonna pay big time for everything they'd put us through.

One other issue came up as we prepared to leave. What to do with the “Beast”. Now that I understood the gravity of the situation, I saw the sense of being as covert as we possibly could, and the “Beast” was anything but stealthy. A 1960 Cadillac Sedan DeVille was probably the least stealthy vehicle on the road. As much as I hated to do it, as much as I loved that car, I loved my life more and there was no way I was gonna risk screwing things up by showing up in a highly recognizable car like that. We found a place to park it, put it up on blocks, poured some sta-bil(tm) in the gas tank, and covered it up with tarps, leaves, tree branches and other stuff, trying to make it look like just another pile of vegetation. Once all this was over, I was coming back for my baby, and I wanted her ready to go when I got back.

We paired off in the two remaining SUVs, me, Penny, and Paul in one, Jerry, Terry and Jim in the other, and headed out.

I won't bore you with the journey back, other than to say that nothing of any great importance happened. In fact, it was downright boring! It took us a couple of days to get back home, and we were glad to be back, although it could have been under better circumstances.

Since the older suits didn't look like the newer ones, although they were still perfectly human looking, Jim and Penny were the likely two to go 'undercover' as it were. They became our info gatherers while Paul, Terry, Jerry and I holed up in two different motels just outside of town. We though it best to split up like that since two identical sets of twins checking in at the same time might draw suspicion. Paul and Terry had visited several electronics stores on the way back and we had police scanners, CB radios, and pre-paid cell phones, as well as our own laptop computers, plus the communication capabilities of the suits themselves. We spent the first day, monitoring the various police, fire, and other frequencies, just to see if there was any talk at all about what had happened at the lab. Curiously, there had been NO mention of anything untoward happening there in all the time we had been in hiding.

There was no talk on the scanners either, and careful, cautious questioning of the people at the motels turned nothing up either! It was as if nothing had ever gone wrong out there at the lab!

I was slowly getting used to some different stuff as well. It seemed as if the new software I'd accessed was slowly changing me, making me more feminine and more aware of males! I found myself idly wondering how good Jerry or Paul would look, naked! It scared me at first, but that also seemed to pass quickly, replaced by wonderment at the amazing technology these suits represented.

The next day promised to be the same as the first and Jerry and I were slowly going stir crazy. Here we were, back in our own hometown, and we couldn't take the chance of being recognized by the bad guys, if they were still around! Finally, that evening, I couldn't take it any more. I felt more useless than a screen door in a submarine, just sitting in that damned room!

“Paul!” I shouted. “I can't take this crap anymore. I gotta get outta here for awhile. Maybe Jerry and I could get out, do some shopping, or get something other than pizza to eat? We'll be careful, and remember, Jerry and I are the only ones who have actually had run-ins with these people, so we know what to look for. I promise that, if anything happens, we'll stay out of it and call for backup. Please?”

Paul seemed to think about it for a few minutes and then he said;

“Okay, but you listen to me. I want Jim and Penny to be near you both in case something does happen, get me? As quiet as things are, it seems unnatural to me. There should be some talk about a firefight at the lab! You and Jerry get 4 hours out of this hole. No more, and I want you in constant communication with me and Terry. If you two kids can abide by that, go ahead, but be damned careful, okay? It might just draw someone or something out of the woodwork if the two of you are spotted.”

“You got a deal Paul!” I said, excited at the opportunity to get out of that room and see some old favorite places and faces again, even if none of those faces would ever recognize me or Jerry. Still, I couldn't sit still in that room for one more minute.

Well, Jerry and I wandered around for a couple of hours, doing some minor clothes shopping, got some fast food at the Golden starches, and just generally enjoyed walking around to places we both had known since birth. We even took a chance and visited the local teen hangouts and saw some of our old friends, but Debbie and Cindy were nowhere around, at least they weren't while we were there.

I wanted to go check out our old homes, so we grabbed a cab and headed that way. It seemed odd to see my old house just sitting there, seemingly abandoned, with newspapers scattered all over the lawn, and mail spilling out of the mailbox. I thought about grabbing the mail, but then I thought better of it. If anyone was watching our houses, they'd surely see someone grabbing the mail. 'Maybe.” I thought to myself. 'I could sneak back under cover of darkness and get it?'

Well, nothing happened. Jerry and I wandered all over downtown and no one even gave us a second glance. Well.....nobody gave Jerry a second glance. I, on the other hand, was more than aware of being 'ogled' by damn near every guy we went by! It was a very strange feeling, being the center of attention of every guy we went past, but I found myself kind of being proud of the way I looked and the fact that I could be considered pretty enough to merit that kind of attention! I was beginning to accept that I was gonna be a woman, the rest of my life. At least I was a strong, capable, good looking one.

Both of us got some new clothes, and a couple of handheld video games to help keep us occupied while we waited for something to happen, and headed back to the motel. We were almost back there when Jim called on the suit com system.

“Hey everybody! I think I'm onto something here. I'm on a hilltop, out near the old lab and the building looks weird, like something is missing, or changed. The outline of the building is different somehow!”

Penny chimed in about that time, saying;

“Yeah, and I'm over by the police station, and there's something odd here as well! there are a couple of 'out of place' looking, black SUVs in the back lot with heavily shaded windows. I can't see anything through them, and the plates don't look right either. I think we're gonna have to do some covert, nighttime surveillance of both places. What do you think, Paul?”

“Damn!” Paul spat. “This could be bad! If these guys have somehow gotten influence, or worse, control of the cops, we could be in for a much rougher time. I'm gonna get hold of a friend of mine in the State Police and get an emergency backup plan in place with them, just in case. Jim, you stay where you are. Penny? If you can keep a watch on the cop shop, without being spotted, do it. Otherwise, hightail it back here and we'll work something else out. We might have to go on the offensive if something doesn't break in the next 12 hours.”

Jim and Penny replied in the affirmative and we settled back in to wait....again! Fortunately, or unfortunately, depending on your point of view, we didn't have long to wait. Jim came back on the com saying;

“Hey gang! It looks like something is going on out here! A couple of big rigs have pulled in and backed up to the loading docks! I can't tell what they're doing there, but there is also one of those black SUVs back there with them! I can also see a guy with what looks like a machine pistol, although he's keeping it pretty well hidden. Maybe Donna and Jerry oughtta hotfoot it out here while Paul and Terry keep a close eye on Penny. What do you think, Paul?”

“You might be onto something there, Jim.” Paul sent back. “I'll get the kids on their way out to you. Terry? You on?”

“You bet chief!” Want me to join Penny over by the police station and you stay where you are, to monitor everything?”

“Sounds like a plan, Terry. I'll get the kids on their way. You head out and back Penny. I'll monitor things, but I'm going to head over to the hospital to check on Dr. Fine.”

“Okay Paul. You watch your butt over there though. There's gotta be a watch, set on this Dr. Fine guy and they'll be looking hard at anyone mentioning his name.”

“Will do Terry. Everybody! Time to get smart and on top of your games! I don't want anybody getting hurt. If things get sticky, make your way back to the motel and we'll go from there. Secondary fallback location will be the local 'lover's lane'. Everyone copy?”

We all heard and understood. Things could get ugly real fast and having a secondary fallback spot was a smart move. Especially one that was outside of town.

Jerry and I went out the back door of the motel and headed toward the lab. We jogged until we were out sight from town, then turned on the speed, arriving about ten minutes after we had left the motel. Jim gave us his position on the com, and we found him easily, staying low so as to avoid being spotted.

We all put the coms on standby and talked quietly. Jim brought us up to date on what, if anything, he'd seen going on, but there wasn't anything to report. I was getting impatient and i told him and Jerry that I was gonna try getting closer. They tried to tell me to stay put, but my temper was getting the better of me and I was anxious to begin settling account with these jerks in the black SUVs!

I did the classic low crawl until I was within about 20 feet of the parking lot the loading dock was located in, without seeing or hearing anything. I was just about to try getting closer when I heard voices coming out the back doors of the lab building! I accessed the HUD and brought up the hearing assists.

One guy was saying to another one;

“This'll be the last load going outta here. I'm glad we can shake the dust from this stinking little town from our boots, I can tell you!”

The other guy answered, saying;

“Ah, it hasn't been that bad. Easy work for some big bucks, although I'm glad we didn't run into those two wearing those damned suits! I wonder what happened to them anyway, and what they did with the other suits they took from Jimmy's crew?”

“Hell if I know!” Said the first guy. “Jimmy caught 12 different kinds of hell from the boss for letting them get away and losing those suits though. I still don't know what the hell they want with those suits, but for what they're paying, I don't really care, either.”

They both lit up cigarettes and continued talking.

Guy number one said;

“Think they'll miss us if we take this smoke break?”

“Nah!” Said guy number two. “Everything is loaded up and ready to go. All they're doing is planning stuff that we wouldn't be allowed to know about anyway. Just drive your truck, take it where they tell you to, and pick up your pay. It never pays to get too nosy about stuff like this.”

“What do you think all that stuff is anyway? It all looks like something from Star Trek or something!”

“Hey! I just told you! I don't know and I don't wanna know. I'm just gonna do what I told you to do! Drive my truck and get paid!

While they were occupied and not paying attention, I had snuck closer and closer. I was just about under one of the trucks when I heard the warehouse door start to open! I quickly moved completely under the truck, hoping the noise of the door opening would cover any noise I might make.

I heard;

“Hey you two! You ready to get outta here? We got about ten minutes left before we head out to the plant. You got the routes down for sure? I don't want either of you yahoos getting lost.”

“Yeah, yeah. We got the routes down! We ain't gonna screw up a simple driving job!” Guy number one threw his cigarette away, irritatedly. “We get paid when the trucks are unloaded at the plant, right?”

“Oh don't worry about that. You'll get your pay. This ain't no cheapskate outfit, and this stuff is way to valuable. Do this right and you two will get a lot more work from us. Screw it up....well, you won't be able to drive a wheelchair, much less a semi. Get it?”

I waited for a good moment to sneak out from under the truck and hide in the nearby underbrush, but these guys didn't seem to be in any hurry to go back inside. If they started to pull out and I was still under the truck, I'd either be spotted, or maybe even run over! Now I knew that the suits were tough and probably could withstand the weight of a tractor trailer, but I wasn't anxious to test that out!

I heard them move down from the dock towards the fronts of the trucks and I frantically looked around underneath the trailer I was under, for any handholds I could hang onto.

My com unit sounded off.

“Donna! Donna! What's happening down there? Are you okay?”

“NO!, I'm not okay! It looks like these trucks are gonna move out and I gotta find a place under here to hang onto! They said something about a 'plant' that they were going to. Maybe I can latch on under here and ride with them. I could probably take these three guys out, but if I do, we'll lose a chance to see where they're going.”

I finally found a place where I could lock the suit's grapnels to and I did so as quietly as I could. I wasn't worried about coming loose during the trip. Only about being discovered. Then, the game would be on, and I didn't want that.

My com sounded off again.

“Donna!” We're coming down there to get you out!”

“NO!, I whispered fiercely! “This is too good a chance to pass up and I'm not gonna! You guys get back to the vehicles and follow far enough behind so you don't get spotted! I'll try to give you directions and landmarks as we pass them, but do NOT come down here!”

The guys got into their trucks, after checking their tires with that big metal bar all truckers all carry for that purpose. They started the engines and let them warm up for a minute. I heard another voice saying;

“Okay. You two take off. We got about 6 hours to the plant and I don't want either of you stopping for anything, you got it? If you get a cop on your tail, let us know over your CB and we'll take care of it, but do NOT stop! Do this right and I'll see you both get a bonus. We'll be about two miles behind you. Keep us informed if anything happens. Now get outta here!”

The trucks engines revved up and then we started to move. I made certain my position was secure and then I relayed what I'd heard to our whole team.

“Okay Donna, we copy. We'll stay a mile or so behind the SUVs, but if you get in a spot, you holler and we'll be there faster than you can say help, okay? For God's sake, be careful! Don't try to take these guys on, alone! Right now, Paul is at the hospital, but he hasn't seen or found Dr. Fine yet. Penny says there's some action going on at the police station. Seems like the SUVs are getting ready to move out, but there's no sign of any of the cops.”

“Okay Jerry, I gotcha. Don't worry. I'm no hero..ine. I just wanna know where these guys are going and what's there. When we get there I'll stay hidden for as long as I can, but if they find me, I'll make 'em all wish their Mommas never met their Daddies! Looks like we're moving out., I'll keep you informed. Right now we're turning right out of the lot, onto the main highway, going north, copy?”

“We hear ya Donna.” Jerry replied. “Hang in there! We'll be right behind you! You know...for a girl, you got one big set of balls! Be careful, okay? We've come too far for me to lose you now.”

I played it up a bit to yank Jerry's chain.

“Awww, Jerry! That's so sweet of you to say! I love you too, sweetie.”

For a minute there was silence. Then;

“Very funny Donna! Ha ha! Quit screwin' around willya? This is some dangerous shit!”

“Oh. And getting shot at wasn't? C'mon Jerry. I know what I'm doing here. Just you guys don't lose me, hear me?”

“Don't worry about us, Donna. You just watch your own butt, okay?”

“Well, I'd rather you watched it honey.” I purred. “But you're a bit too far away for that right now. Maybe later? Toodles! Oh, by the way? We're up to highway speed so get your asses moving!”

Jerry acknowledged and then there was silence except for the humming of the truck tires on the highway. I'd chosen a good spot, with plenty of clearance and away from the tires, so I just hung on, knowing the suit's strength wouldn't fail me.

Every so often I'd check in with the guys, giving them a landmark we'd passed, or a turn we'd made, but for the most part, it was a pretty boring ride. Boring! Just a few months ago I'd have thought this kind of stunt was suicidal! Now, I seemed to accept it as part of the price of being different.

About an hour or so later, I noticed we were slowing down, and I activated the com, saying;

“Hey! Guys! We're slowing down. We just passed the Quicktime Diner and we're turning let, off the highway onto a gravel road. There's no sign, but I think it's the old Bremmer road. If we pass that old barn.....yep, we just did. It's the old Bremmer road for sure. Hey! I think I know where we're going! There's an old factory out here about two miles from the highway, remember Jerry? It's where that quarry is where we used to take the girls.”

“Yeah! Yeah! I remember that, Donna. Hey! We know that place pretty well. I think we can get up in there without being seen. Jim! Turn here and follow this other road. It leads right up to that old factory but it's shorter than the Bremmer road. Big trucks can't take it because it's too narrow, but this SUV can handle it with no problem! Unless I miss my guess, we can probably beat them there and get a good hiding place. We'll be waiting for ya, Donna!”

The trucks slowed a bit, since the gravel road was kinda rough. The Bremmer road led out past the old Bremmer Copper Plant, which had closed down years ago. Eventually it led out into the puckerbrush and just petered out about two miles past the plant. The whole place was overgrown and was hidden by trees from above. The perfect place for a hideout. There was a deep quarry there that was clean and free from bad news wildlife because the sides were so steep. Us kids had rigged ropes and stuff to help us climb back up after diving in from about 20 feet above the water. We'd also cleared a space near the quarry for picnics and a bonfire pit. The cops knew about the place, but left it pretty much alone, only checking it once or twice a night. They knew us kids were out there, but they also knew we weren't doing anything illegal, so they let us have our fun.

Sure enough. About two miles later, the trucks began slowing down and we pulled right into the loading dock area of the old factory. They turned around and backed up to the docks with a small bump, and shut off their engines. I thought it seemed like an awfully short trip for having such valuable cargo on board, but I didn't have time to think more about it just then, because the drivers dismounted and lit smokes, right near the back of the trailer I was handing onto!

A few minutes later, three of those black SUVs pulled in and parked near the trailers. Several men got out and headed into the warehouse and, a few minutes later, I heard the sound of the big doors slowly opening. There was the sound of forklifts and people talking, so I took a chance and keyed the com.

“Jerry. Jim. Are you guys out there?” I whispered.

“Yeah Donna.” came a quick answer from Jerry. “We're over by the quarry with a good view of the plant. You still under the trailer?”

“Yeah. I haven't had a chance to get out from under here and there's too many people walking around to try it right now. I'm okay where I am, unless someone thinks to look underneath, which I don't think they will. They seem pretty confidant that nobody is gonna mess with them. They're unloading whatever was in the trucks right now, so I'm just gonna wait til they're done. When I think I have a good shot at getting outta here without being seen, I'll take it and head your way. If things go haywire, I'll head in the exact opposite direction, away from you two, into the underbrush and trees. Then I'll circle around and get back to you. I think we need to take some chances here and find out what's going on inside though. Do either of you think you can find a place to spy on them?”

“I dunno, Donna. There are, or were, plenty of places where you could see inside, but they might have blocked them. Jim and I'll take a look while we're waiting for you. Be careful.”

“You too.” I replied.

It didn't take too long before both trucks were empty. Once the activity outside died down, I took a chance and slipped out from under the trailer and low crawled toward the quarry. I got there safely, but didn't see Jim or Jerry anywhere. I didn't worry too much though, because I knew they were trying to see inside the old plant.

Keying the com I asked;

“Where are you two? I'm at the quarry.”

“We're checking to see if there's a place where we can peek in, Donna. Stand by.”

“Okay. I'm gonna go around the other way from you two. We gotta know what's going on in there.”

“Okay Donna, but be careful.”

“How many times you gonna say that, Jerry? I'm gonna be careful. I don't wanna get caught anymore than you do, okay?”

“Okay Donna. Sorry. I just worry about you, ya know?”

“Well, like I said before Jerry, that's very sweet of you, but let's just assume I'm gonna be careful, to save radio time, okay?”

“Okay Donna.” Came the reply, but it sounded like Jerry was somehow disappointed or something. Oh well, I'd ask him about it later, if and when I had the chance.

Seeing that Jerry and Jim had gone around the left side of the old factory, I went to the right. I figured we'd meet somewhere in the middle unless one of us found a way to peek in, or get in, unobserved.

I was just passing by an old, seemingly unused, door, when it suddenly burst open! A man came running out, looking back the way he'd come! Just as he was about to run me over, a shot rang out and the man dropped, almost at my feet, skidding to a stop about a foot past me!

For a split second, I just stood there, paralyzed by the suddenness of a man's death, then I moved, and my friends, when I say I moved, I think I blurred! I was around the corner of the building before I knew it, sliding to a halt and peering back around the corner. I saw another man come out, his pistol at the ready, peering around as if he'd seen something. I didn't dare to move, for fear he'd notice the motion, but just then, my com unit sounded off, and I jumped a little bit!

Well, that tore it! His head swiveled around, followed by his pistol. The com squawked;

“Donna! We heard a shot! Are you okay?”

Shit! Shit! Shit! He'd seen my head move! His gun came up and he snapped off a shot at me, missing by what seemed like millimeters! I had two choices. Run away, which is what my reflexes were trying to get me to do, or rush him, take away the gun, and knock him out, or kill him, which is what my brain was trying to tell me to do. I chose the latter.

With no more thought about it, I rushed straight at him. He tried to get off another shot, but I think he was shocked by the image of a beautiful woman, seemingly running to him, or into his arms. He hesitated just long enough for me to take an awkward left handed swing at him. Fortunately for me, I connected. He went down like he'd been hit with a truck, the gun falling from his now nerveless fingers.

My com sounded off again, sounding more urgent.

“Donna!! Answer me! This is Jerry!! Answer me. Please!!!”

“I'm okay for now Jerry, but stay off the com until I contact you again. A man was just shot and killed, and I took out the guy who did it. I think all hell is about to bust loose, so be on your toes. Whoever's inside that plant has to have heard the shot and they'll be looking for the other guy to come back in. The one who got shot looked like one of the truckers. I'm heading for the woods!”

I took off at a dead run, as fast as I could go. I had just reached the first trees and ducked behind one when I heard a voice call out, behind me.

“Frankie! What happened man? What hit you?”

Frankie wasn't answering and I backed slowly further into the trees, and keyed my com.

“There's another guy out of the factory. He's leaning over the guy I took out. Watch yourselves!”

“Gotcha Donna!” came the reply. “We're just on the south end of the factory, heading for the trees on this end. No action here, yet.”

“Get into the trees and let's try to link up. I got a bad feeling about this whole thing all of a sudden. You two head north and I'll head south. I'm on the east side, you?”

“East side, Donna. We'll meet up with you in a few minutes..”

Using the infrared filter on the suit, I picked out two figures headed my way, dodging from tree to tree. They had to be Jim and Jerry, so I started going toward them. We met in a small stand of beech trees and Jerry grabbed me, hugging me tightly.

“Oh God! You're okay! I was so scared that you might have been hurt again!” he cried.

I pushed at Jerry, trying to break his hug, confused by his reaction, when it dawned on me! Jerry was treating me as he would a woman! I was shocked, yet I sort of understood. When Jerry looked at me, all he could see was this beautiful woman, not his lifelong male buddy. He was reacting the way most men do, trying to protect a woman.

I finally succeeded in backing Jerry off a little bit and, while I wasn't sure how to handle this, I didn't want to hurt his feelings, so I gently disengaged from his arms, saying;

“Um, Jer? Don't forget who's really inside here, okay? I know what I look like, but I'm still your pal, Donnie. I really appreciate the concern, but I'm okay and besides, you know that the suit gives me protection better than a bulletproof vest. I'm still getting used to a lot of things, Jerry, and although my feelings and the way I look at some things are changing, they haven't changed that much yet.” Maybe, in the near future they will, but for now, just take it slow and easy, okay? Now, we've got bigger problems to deal with.”

Jim was looking at us both with a look of amusement in his eyes.

“You damn well better not laugh, Jim!” I said through clenched teeth. This,” and I indicated my shape, “is hard enough to deal with without being laughed at!”

Jim's eyes looked down and away from me immediately.

“I wasn't gonna laugh at you, Donna. I was more pleased that maybe you'd started to adjust better to being forced to remain female for the rest of your life. I've been hoping, as have we all, that you'd come to grips with it and accept, maybe even embrace it.”

He continued to look away from me and at the building, I guess trying to convince me that he was watching for bad guys, and maybe that's what he was doing. I tried to get my feelings under control, saving them for a time when I could afford to indulge them.

“Okay.” I said. “We have two choices here. We can cut and run, without ever finding out what's going on here, or we can invade with all guns blazing. We already know that there's nobody but the bad guys in there, and we still have the element of surprise on our side, although that won't last much longer. They're gonna wonder what knocked that guy out. What do you two wanna do? I, for one, am sick of pussyfooting around! I want answers and I want them now!”

“I'm with you Donna!” Jerry chimed in. “We've been chased, shot at, had our lives ruined, and all because of these damned suits! Well, we have them, I say we use them!”

Jim tried to talk us out of doing something he considered foolish, but Jerry and I were beyond reason at that point. We had something to prove to ourselves and we were gonna do it!

“Okay, okay you two!” Jim interjected. I want to get some payback as well, but can't it wait until we find out more? We don't know for sure who's in there. For all we know, they have other hostages or innocents in there! Tell you what. You two stay here while I scout a bit more. If I can satisfy myself that we'll only be hurting bad guys, I'm all for getting it done, but let's have some kind of plan, for crying out loud.”

Jim left us standing there and took off toward the factory, ducking from tree to tree while Jerry and I hid behind a couple of large ones. He went out of our sight for a few minutes and then he called us on the coms.

“Okay you two, here's what I can see. There are about 15 people inside. All of them are either armed or have guns near enough to grab at a moment's notice. A couple of them are trying to tend to the guy Donna knocked out, but it doesn't look like they're having much luck. He might be dead. Most of the people inside are clustered around some equipment that they seem to be trying to set up. There are four guards, one at each of the warehouse doors, and one more kind of covering the other two doors. I say we hit both regular doors and one of the warehouse ones at the same time. I think the suits have enough horsepower to go through that old pull up door. I know they can go through the normal doors like tissue paper. I'll let you two get set at the regular doors. I'll take the warehouse one. Let me know when you're ready.”

“You got it Jim!” I exulted.

Jerry went to his assigned door and I went to mine. I gave Jerry a thumbs up and he returned it. Then I gave Jim the all ready call.

“Okay! On three! One.....two......THREE!!!!

Transformers
(sort of)
Book Two, Chapter Two
By Catherine Linda Michel

I summoned all the strength in the suit, and when I hit the door, I didn't just knock it down, I shattered it, with pieces of it preceding me into the room like shrapnel. I charged into the room beyond like a runaway semi, taking in the scene inside as I went.

There were about 15 or so people inside, with guards where Jim had told us they were. I ran right over the one stationed at the door I'd demolished, staightarming him into unconsciousness. His weapon spiraled away somewhere, but I didn't bother to see where it went. I concentrated on the rest of the men inside, noticing that more than a few of them were making motions like they were drawing weapons.

Out of the corners of my eyes, I could see Jim and Jerry charging in the same way I had, taking out their assigned guards the same way as well. For a few minutes, it was bedlam inside that plant. Jim, Jerry and I went in so fast and so suddenly that most of the men never got a weapon out. The few who either already had one in hand, or were fast enough to draw one, were somewhat hampered in getting a clean shot at any of the three of us, with their own men getting in the way.

We took out most of the, as yet unarmed, men in less time than it takes to tell about it. I'm sure there were many serious if not critical injuries among them, but I didn't bother to just try knocking them out. I was too angry and too hyped to waste any time being gentle. I hit them with all I had, taking no more than one punch, straightarm, or kick at each one, always watching the ones who had managed to get a weapon into their hands. I heard a few shots, but I didn't feel anything hit me.

Somewhere in there, I did notice that there had been one man, sitting in a chair. He didn't move much after we crashed through the doors, and he didn't seem to have a weapon, or at least he wasn't trying to get to one. I noted his position and concentrated on the armed ones, racing past them, trying to disarm them without getting shot again. Once was more than enough for me, thank you very much!

Jim and Jerry seemed to be using the same tactics I was, depending on speed, surprise and superior strength to hit as many as possible. I raced through the group, skidding to a stop and turning around to make a second run. I saw one guy raise his weapon toward Jim or Jerry and I closed on him with all the speed I could muster, hitting his gun arm with a very hard downward chop of my hand. The gun spun out of his grasp, and his arm.......well, it shattered. I felt it give and although It made me somewhat ill to cause that kind of serious damage to another human being, I didn't really have time to think more about it right then. He screamed and went down, and I gave him a kick on the way past him, headed for another, still standing, bad guy.

In just a few minutes, all the bad guys were down, with one trying to make it out a side door. I started toward him, but before I could take more than a step, the door exploded inward, knocking the guy down! I immediately went on guard, not knowing what the hell was going on, but as I slowed to a defensive stance, I saw someone who looked just like ME, coming through the door, into the plant! Immediately I knew who it was.

“Penny!” I exclaimed. “What are you doing here? I thought you were still watching the cop shop downtown?”

Penny walked in, taking a second to make sure the guy she'd knocked down wasn't getting up anytime soon, and then she said;

“I heard what you three were talking about on the com, and I left Terry to watch the cops. I thought you all might need a hand here and besides, you and Jerry are still under Jim's and my care. If anything happens to either of you, not only will we feel like crap, but your Mom will never let us forget it. I'd rather face a battalion of bad guys than try to stand up against her when she gets going!” Penny said with a chuckle. “Anyway, it seems like you three have things pretty well in hand. Need a hand tying these jerks up?”

“That'd be great Penny and thanks for the backup.” Jim said.

We took a quick look at ourselves and no one seemed to have been hit by any bullets, or damaged in any other way. The guy I had noticed before was still sitting in the chair, only now I noticed that he was actually tied to it. His eyes were bugging out and he had a scared look on his face as he watched us. I stalked over to him.

“Who the hell are you and what do you have to do with the rest of this garbage?” I grated.

“Who the hell are YOU people?” He replied with a shaking voice. “Jesus Christ! These sonsofbitches were gonna kill me just like they did Tommy when you people come bustin' in here like some kinda Avengers superguys, or somethin'! Me and Tommy were just drivin' them trucks out there, but after we got here, that guy, whose arm you destroyed, was gonna do me in! I shoulda knew better than to trust these sneaky bastards, but the money they offered was too good to turn down. I swear I don't know nothin' about what the hell they was doin' or anything like that. Please don't hurt me?”

I recognized his voice as one of the drivers I'd heard talking back at the lab, so I knew that part of his story was true. Beyond that, I wasn't sure of anything, but I was damned certain I was gonna find out!

“You just sit there and shut up.” I spat at him. “I don't trust anybody in this place except for those I know right now, and you aren't in that category. Just keep your mouth shut until someone asks you a question, got it?”

“Y..y..yes ma'am.” He quavered. And he did just that.

I took a moment to try to calm down a bit, again checking with the rest to make sure no one had gotten hurt other than the bad guys. None of us were hurt in any way, but Jerry was as high as a kite on adrenaline, almost shaking from the excitement.

“Man!” he shouted. “Did you see that? Shit Donna, we went through those guys just like we were superheroes! Guys flying here and there, bullets flying everywhere! It was too damn cool, I tell ya!”

I let him babble for a few minutes and, to tell the truth, I wasn't that far from joining him. It was cool, damn it! Every time we had a chance to use the suits that way, it cranked my adrenaline way up as well, so I understood how Jerry felt. We needed to cool down, and fast though, so I made a real effort to calm down and tried to get Jerry under control as well.

While Jerry and I were trying to come down off our combat highs, Jim and Penny were busy tying up bad guys and assessing injuries. More than a few of them had broken limbs or ribs etc, and none of them were moving much at all, at least those who were still conscious weren't moving.

I contacted the others over the com and brought them up to speed, letting them know that things here were well in hand. They answered, saying that there was no sign of anything happening in town or at the lab. That puzzled me a bit, but I didn't have time to think about it just then. I had other things to think about.

We got all the bad guys tied securely, and then I faced the trucker. He was pretty much scared spitless and I didn't think he really knew anything. The problem was, if we let him go, would he talk? Would he tell everyone what he'd seen and experienced? I had to make sure, so I knelt down in front of him and put my face about three inches off his nose.

“The way I see it, we have two choices as to what to do with you.” I began, in the hardest voice I could manage. We can just deal with you right here and now and not have to worry about what you'll do. The might be the easiest and safest course of action for us, but you know something? I think you're telling me the truth. You had nothing more to do with these guys other than driving their truck, so here's what I propose. I'm gonna untie you. You're gonna get up off that chair, go to your truck, drive the hell outta here, and never say a word about any of this to anyone! How does that sound to you?”

“Shit yeah, lady!” He responded shakily. “You got yourself a deal there. Besides, who the hell would believe me if I did say anything? Hell, I'd probably get locked up in some padded room somewhere! Even I don't believe what I saw you people do!”

I had another thought just then, and I called a quick conference with the others.

“How about we take these idiots...” and I indicated the 'bad guys'...”toss them in one of the trailers, and have this trucker just drop it off somewhere? I don't feel like dealing with them, and I don't believe we are gonna get any info out of them anyway. At least this way they're outta our hair for awhile, and by the time they get loose we'll be long gone. Something tells me that these guys are some sort of commando group or something, and they know how to resist torture and stuff, and I'm really not into any of that crap anyway. I already feel bad enough that I hadda hurt some of them.”

We talked it over for a couple of minutes and they agreed with me, although Jerry was still in favor of trying to get some info. I think we all knew we wouldn't get anything out of them though, and this way we didn't have to.....well....kill them to keep them quiet and out of our way.

“What do you three think? Should we just let this poor fool go, or just leave him here for the bugs and vermin to clean up?” I said, in a bloodthirsty sounding voice.

Over the com, in a voice too low for him to hear, I told them to play along and scare thus guy half to death before agreeing with me that we should let him go. We pretend argued back and forth with Jim and Jerry taking the bad cop roles and Penny and I playing good cop. Finally we reached an agreement and I started to untie the trucker.

As he got up from the chair and began to try to get feeling back into his hands and feet, I grabbed him by his shirt front and started lifting him off his feet, snarling into his face again.

“Buddy, you better be telling the truth here! If any of us ever hear of you running your mouth about what happened here, we will hunt your sorry ass down and make you wish your Mother had never met your Father! Do I make myself clear?”

At that point.....well, he soiled himself. I know he felt the strength of the hands holding him up in the air, and the sincerity of what I said to him.

“Lady?” He said. “You better bet your uh, butt, that I ain't never gonna say nothin' to nobody about this! Look. I was just tryin' to make some bread, you know? These guys offered a pile of cash for a minor driving job, and me and Tommy jumped at it. It ain't easy to make a living anymore with diesel prices what they are, ya know? Lettin' me outta here with a whole skin will be more than okay with me, lady. Okay?”

Well, I kinda felt bad for the guy, and he had lost his friend as a result of all this madness. I put him back on his feet and told him;

“Go through these guys stuff and gather all the cash they're carrying. Since they aren't gonna object and since your trailer is unloaded, you can load these fools and do us a favor. Just load them up and take your trailer somewhere and leave it. If you want to, and have a way to do it, you can take a couple of their vehicles with you and get rid of them any way you want. One thing. I want half of what you get to be sent to your pal's family, clear? If you let us know where he lived, we'll make arrangements to get his rig back there, or leave it somewhere you can get it. One! Damn! Word!, out of you that we ever hear about, and Tommy there won't be the only one who leaves a bereaved family behind. Is that clear?”

“You got it, lady! I don't need to have a building fall on me! I'll be outta here before you know it, and I won't never say nothin'!”

He turned away from me and hesitantly made his way over to where the bad guys stuff was stacked. He went through all the wallets, taking all the cash, along with a wad that the guy with the shattered arm had in a money belt. He walked to the door, looking back at us like he still wasn't sure we were serious about letting him go.

I stopped him just before he went out the door, saying;

“Give us 4 hours after you leave to get this mess cleaned up. You can then go tell the cops where to find your pal's body, but that better be all you tell them. If they ask how he got shot, you don't know a damn thing. You two stopped out here for a break, and he got shot. Maybe by some hunter, or target shooter, or something. You make something up and make it believable. Got it?”

“Yes ma'am!” He stuttered, and then he was gone. Penny went out to help load the vehicles and conscious and semi-conscious bodies into his trailer.

We took Tommy's body and arranged it outside the old plant, just by the pull up doors, making it look like he was just sitting there, taking a break, when he was hit by a stray bullet. I hated leaving him there like that, but I knew it was necessary. As for the trucker, I didn't really trust him, but I didn't see any other choice. I certainly wasn't gonna be any part of killing anyone unless they were already in the process of trying to kill me, or any of my friends or family.

We took all the weaponry and dumped it into the quarry, which was, in places, over 100 feet deep. It was rumored that there was a full size locomotive down there somewhere, so we didn't figure a few weapons would be found anytime soon. Besides, with the powers we all had there really wasn't a need for any more weaponry.

Then we legged it back toward town, thinking we'd try to unravel why the cops hadn't stopped these guys. Penny had told us that, even after these guys had left, there wasn't any movement at the police station, and all the patrol cars were still parked in back of the jail. That sounded really strange to me, and we made our best speed, which was pretty fast, back to town.

When we got there, we sneaked around through some of the alleys until we arrived at the jail. Once there, we decided that only me and Paul would go inside, with Penny and Jerry staying outside. Paul and I would just look like a normal couple, and Penny and Jerry would be there for backup if we needed them.

We tried to enter the cop shop, but the door was locked! That was very strange to me, and I applied a little pressure to the doorknob, breaking the lock, and we walked cautiously inside, closing the door behind us. I called out, but no one answered. Again, very strange.

We made our way back toward the jail section and, when we arrived at the locked steel door that led inside, I called out again. This time, I heard a faint cry, or voice, coming from inside, but no one came to open the door or question who we were. Paul grabbed the steel door and applied pressure, but it still didn't open, so I added my strength to his, and the door finally opened, darn near coming right off it's hinges.

Immediately I heard several voices calling out, asking who we were and could we help them! Rounding a corner, we were astounded to see all the cops locked up in the cells! They all started yelling at the same time, wanting us to let them out, and I held up a hand and yelled,

“One at a time, please! I can't understand a darn thing you are trying to tell us!”

They quieted down and one cop, who I recognized as the town police chief, spoke up, saying

“I don't know who you two are, but you have to let us out of these cells! There are some really bad guys out there! They left us a few hours ago, locked into these cells, and I heard them say they were going to steal things from that lab outside of town, and also they were talking about doing some serious harm to, or even kidnapping some people! Look, the keys should be in the outer room, in one of the desks. Please let us out so we can do our jobs!”

I went back into the other room and, after a couple of minutes I located the keys, returning to the jail area where we unlocked the cell doors and let the cops out. I started to open one other cell, but the Chief stopped me, saying that those men were real prisoners, waiting for trial. I left that cell locked and we all went back out into the front office area, where the cops re-armed themselves and found keys for their vehicles. Then they took off out the door, headed for their cars to resume their patrols and search for the bad guys who had locked them up.

The Chief thanked us and asked again who we were. Paul sorta sidestepped that question by asking the Chief how those guys had managed to catch them all unaware.

“Well,” said the Chief, “There were just a couple of us here, everyone else was out on patrol. They came in with weapons drawn and took us by surprise, taking our guns and locking us up. They made me call the other cars and have them come to the station, one at a time, and ambushed them when they came in, locking them up as well. They never said who they were, and they never asked us for anything else. Just locked us up and closed that jail door, after disarming all of us. I only heard bits and pieces of what they were saying among themselves, but that was enough! I didn't think they'd leave us alive, but they left in a hurry, after a few hours. I heard the phone ring a few times, but I never heard what was said to whoever called. Anyway, after they left, we tried to call out to anyone who might hear us, but you say the outside door was locked?”

“Yes, that's right.” I replied.

“Well, that's why nobody else came in after those guys left then. Say. How did you two get in here if the door was locked?”

“Well, I'm ashamed to say,” said Paul, “I forced the door. I thought it was damn strange that a police station would be locked in the middle of the day, and I saw all the cars out back. I figured something was wrong. I'll be happy to pay for the door if you want.”

“Oh hell no!” The Chief replied. “You two got us out of a bad situation! You ought to get s commendation or something! We'll eat the cost of the door. Say. Who did you say you were again?”

I let Paul handle that question while I contacted the others on the coms, letting them know what had happened, and asking them to stay where they were until Paul or I called them in.

The Chief seemed to be satisfied with what Paul told him, but he still looked a bit puzzled.

“Didn't I see you two here in town a week or two back? I swear you two look familiar to me.”

I looked at Paul and he looked at me. Finally I said,

“Hey Paul. We gotta trust somebody, sometime. I've known the Chief for a long time, through my Dad, and you and Penny know him too. He's an honest guy and we need somebody on our side who has some legal authority. I say we tell him the whole story and see what happens. What do you think?”

“Kid,” said Paul, in a somewhat exasperated tone of voice. “I don't really want to have to trust anyone outside of our group, but I think you're right. We can't handle this alone any more, and I'm tired of having to sneak around. Why don't you fill him in while I contact the others and let them in on this?”

I sighed and said to the Chief, you better sit down. This is gonna be a long, strange story, but I swear it's all true. When you hear what I have to say, I'll answer any questions you might have. Fair enough?”

“Okay.” Said the Chief, but this better be good and it better tell me what the hell's going on around this town. We've had some people just up and leave for no good reasons, and then these commandos or whoever the hell they were, come in here and lock me and my officers up in our own damn jail!”

“Oh trust me Chief. Once you've heard what I have to tell you, you're gonna know the whole strange story and hopefully, you'll see your way clear to help us.”

Well, I sat there and related the whole tale to the police Chief, leaving nothing out, including the fight at the old warehouse and where the bad guys could likely be found. I didn't tell him about the trucker we had let go, hoping that he'd do as he'd said he would and just forget he'd ever seen us. Anyway, by the time I was done, the Chief was just sitting there with an incredulous look on his face.

“You mean to tell me....you're....Donnie? In some kind of science fiction super suit? And there are more of you? How many?”

“Well,” I said. “There's me and Paul, Penny, Terry and Jerry, my best friend. I know you remember that we got jobs at that lab, and you know my folks and his. They're safe with another friend of ours, along with Jerry's sister, so you can set your mind at ease as far as they're concerned. I'm not gonna tell you where they are, because if you won't help us, then you won't be able to say anything about where they are. It's not that I don't trust you, but we've been on the run and we're getting tired of having to hide and sneak around, and like I told Paul, we gotta trust somebody, sometime.”

The Chief just sat there, looking at me for what seemed like forever, before finally saying,

“Kid. That is the damndest story I've ever heard, but I remember Donnie, if that's really who you are, and Jerry getting jobs out at the lab, and I've always thought that there were some mighty strange folks working on God knows what, out there. After what's happened today, and you doing what you did, I'm inclined to believe you though. I can see that this is gonna be a big deal, and I want you to know that I'm gonna help in any way I can. I've known your folks for a long time, ever since I moved here and got elected Chief, and everything you've told me matches up with what I know about them.”

He got up from behind his desk and walked over to me with his hand out.

“You can count on me and my men, Donnie....er...Donna....oh what the hell do I call you anyway?”

“Donna will do, Chief. I've gotten sort of used to how I look inside this suit and Donna is a better name for the way I look than Donnie, don't you think? Now that I've told you the whole story, why don't I call the rest in here so you can meet them and verify what I've told you, further?”

“Okay, Donna.” He said. He walked back around his desk and sat down, giving a big troubled sounding sigh, and I called the rest in, except for Terry who decided to head back to the hospital to continue trying to locate Dr. Fine.

After the rest had joined me and the Chief inside the station, the Chief verified what I'd told him, along with some other information and then told us all what he'd told me about us being able to count on him.

“I don't care much for people busting in here and locking me and my officers in our own damn cells, so if helping you all will get me closer to who they are, then count me and my officers in!” He said, forcefully.

We called out for delivery food and began making plans for ending this idiocy the best way we could, but I had a feeling that, even with a town Police Chief and force on our side, it wasn't gonna be easy to get anything done unless we had a clue just who those commando dudes were, and until we found Dr. Fine.

Just then, Terry called from the hospital. He told us he had a lead on Dr. Fine who had awakened from his coma, but had been transferred to a mental hospital because he went, as Terry said, bonkers! I let the Chief know what Terry had just told us and then Jerry and I headed for the hospital.

We had to know where Dr. Fine was, and I was gonna make damn sure we found him, one way or another. The Chief said he'd have a patrol car take us over, but we told him to just have it meet us there, as we could get there faster. He just shook his head and chuckled.

“If you all can do what you told me about, then you're probably right.” and he radioed the car to meet us there.

Jerry and I took off at damn near our top speed and, for once, I wasn't concerned about who might see us doing something strange, like running at much higher speeds than any human being had any right to reach. We were gonna get to the bottom of this mystery if it was the last thing we ever did!

More to come! Stay tuned to this Bat Channel!

Reintroducing our cast of characters. Donnie/Donna, Jerry, Donnie's best friend. Martin and Janet, Donnie's parents. Fred and Annie, Jerry's parents. Claire, Jerry's younger sister. Debbie, Donnie's girlfriend. Cindy, Jerry's girlfriend. Paul, a private eye. And introducing two new characters, P.I.'s Terry and Pete, Paul's friends/associates. Dr. Fine. Inventer/reverse engineer of the suits.

PART THREE In which we get some answers, finally, and our heroes(ines) come to a parting of the ways? By the way, I placed some movie quotes in this part. the first one to find them all gets a slightly used, but in great condition, no-prize!

Here we go!

Transformers
(sort of)
Book Two, Chapter Three
By Catherine Linda Michel

 

By the time we reached the hospital, I was nearing my boiling point, temper-wise. I wanted this crap done with, and the only way to end it was finding Dr. Fricking Fine! Jerry was trying to calm me down, but I was past the point of being calmed.

“Jerry!” I yelled, over the com. “Forget that shit! I'm mad as hell and I'm not gonna take it anymore!”

“Oh I see.” He shot back at me. “You're gonna quote movie lines at me now? You must be pissed off then! Look, we gotta be cool about this. We can't just charge into the hospital and beat answers out of anyone and everyone we come in contact with, you know?”

“How'd you know that's just what I wanna do?” I asked sarcastically. I figure once we cripple a couple of doctors, the rest will be more than happy to tell us anything we want to know. Of course I'm not gonna do that you idiot! We've finally got someone on the outside of all this, and he's a cop, for God's sake! You think I wanna risk blowing that?”

“Hey Donna, don't come down hard on me! I'm on your side, remember? I just don't wanna risk losing what little lead we might have on those weirdos in the black suits and SUVs. We gotta beat them to Dr. Fine and get this stuff figured out and ended, once and for all. I got the feeling that we're gonna have to fight those jerks more than one more time before this is over with, and I wanna do it with all the info I can get, on our side!”

“I know that Jerry! Look, I'm just pissed right now, but I'm not gonna do anything stupid, okay? Jeeze! I know what we have to do, and I want this to be over with worse than you do! Once we get to Dr. Fine, we'll get the answers we need and maybe then we can either beat those guys, or get them off our asses, at least. I've got quite enough with trying to get used to being a friggin' girl, without you worrying that I'm gonna do something dumb! Now just shut up and trust me, okay? There's the hospital up ahead.”

We breezed through the emergency doors on the run, running right past some confused patients and a couple of doctors and nurses who didn't have time to even say anything. We went straight to the records department, where we bulled our way in and confronted a bored looking woman. She looked up at us, and said.

“Are you here to settle a bill?” In a sort of whiny, tired sounding voice. You'll need to give me the patient's name and social security number so I can look it up on the computer. Name?”

I pushed Jerry to one side and said, “Dr. Howard Fine, and I don't know his damned social security number! We're in kinda a huge hurry here and I need that info now!”

“I'm sorry. If you don't have his social security number, I'll have to search the computer records and that could take much longer.” She said, in that same bored sounding tone of voice.

I hopped the counter and gently moved her away from the computer. She squawked and tried to push me back, but she might as well have tried to move the hospital itself. I tapped into the computer, using something I'd found in the suit's software and found Dr. Fine's name in nothing flat. It said that he'd been transferred to Arkwright Sanitarium about a week ago. Something about incurable mental trauma or some medical gibberish like that. He was diagnosed as incurable and his commitment was to be for the rest of his life unless he got cured. I thanked the, by now, thoroughly confused and distraught woman for the use of her computer and got on the com to Jerry, Penny, Terry and Paul. I relayed the info to them and arranged to meet them at the sanitarium as soon as we could get there.

They all gave me an 'okay' and Paul told us that the Chief was just pulling into the hospital parking lot. I tried to raise him on his police band, but I couldn't locate the frequency, so I just jumped back over the counter, and Jerry and I headed for the parking area.

We got there just as the Chief was getting out of his car, and I quickly ran over to him and told him where we had located Dr. Fine.

“Damn!” he yelled. “I was afraid of that! That place is bad news, kids. You wouldn't know about this, but I do. People have been sent there to be cured of one thing or another, but they come out....strange, if they come out at all.”

“What do you mean, strange? I asked.

“Strange like...different. I mean...oh hell, I'm not sure I know what I mean. They just aren't the same folks they were before they went nuts and got sent there is all. Look, I'm a cop, not a shrink! All I know is that I wouldn't send my worst enemy into that place for treatment. Hell, they've been investigated at least a dozen times over the years, and nobody could find anything wrong, but I know somethings fishy as hell in there, okay? We're gonna have to be careful as hell is all I'm saying.”

“Screw careful! I growled. I'm tired of being careful! None of this shit is my fault or Jerry's, and I want it over with! If I gotta bust into that place and tear it apart brick by brick, that's exactly what I'm gonna do! Are you with me, Jerry?”

“Hell yes, Donna!” He answered. I'm as sick of all this stuff as you are! Let's kick ass and chew bubblegum!”

“Well Jerry, I'm outta bubblegum, so I guess kicking asses is what we're gonna do! Hey, Paul, Terry, Jim, Penny. You out there?”

“Yeah Donna. Paul answered for all of them. “What's the play?”

“The play is that Jerry and I are going in, and we're taking no prisoners. We're gonna get Dr. Fine, no matter what shape he's in, and get his butt outta there. Then we're gonna go somewhere reasonably safe and squeeze answers out him! We need you four to back us up. Make sure nobody comes in to surprise us or get in the way, okay?”

“You got it, kids!”

I heard him giving out instructions to the other three, setting up a guard/backup team in case anything went wrong. The Chief wasn't sure about my plan, but he knew there was only one thing he could do, and that was to back us up as well. He got on his radio and told all his patrol cars to block the roads leading to the sanitarium until they heard from him again. Then he turned to us and said,

“I don't know if this is the smart way to go about this, but you two have made up your minds, and I ain't got the horsepower to stop you. I'll tell you this though. If you hurt any patients, or anyone else who is innocent in all this, I'll be on your asses from now 'til I either catch you, or die. I took an oath to uphold the law, and that's what I gotta do, no matter what. I know there are weird circumstances involved here and I'm willing to go along with this plan because it might be the only way to get what you need, but the law is the law. You break it, you go too far, and I'll bust you for it, got it?”

I listened to him politely, as if there was anything he could do to us to stop us, knowing that we were gonna do this no matter what. When he finished his little speech I said,

“I hear you Chief, but let me warn you! I've been through as much crap as I care to go through! Me and Jerry have been threatened, shot at, ambushed and intimidated. Our families have gone through hell because of these damned suits and that mentally defective Doctor! If you think you can stop us, you're welcome to try, but you didn't do so well with those bad guys. How much do you think you and your cops can do against the six of us? No offense Chief, 'cause I'd rather have you with us than against us, but you need to just stand aside and let us do what we gotta do. If we do anything really wrong, we'll turn ourselves in. Otherwise, just back us up and don't let us get surprised, deal?”

He thought for a minute, and I could see several emotions chase one another across his expressive face. Finally he seemed to settle something within himself and said,
with a heavy sigh,

“I guess you got me there, Donna. Look, I'll do what I can for you and Jerry, but I will not go against the law! Any damage you do, any people you hurt, it'll be my duty to try to arrest and detain you. If what you say those suits can do is true, I know I'll be on the losing side of the fight, but I'm counting on your honesty and your words. Keep it as clean as you can, and I'll back you as far as I can. Screw up, and I'll have the damn National guard after all of you! Got it?”

I sighed, knowing the Chief was only doing what he had to do.

“Okay Chief.” I finally said. “We'll try to keep the damages and mayhem to a minimum, but if anyone gets in our way or tries to attack or shoot us, don't expect us to hold back. That's my final word on it. Deal.”

Well, the Chief did as he'd said he would. He had all the roads leading to the place blocked, and gave further instructions to not let anyone in or out until further instructions from him. Then he turned to us and said,

“Okay kids. Go do what you have to do, and remember your promise.”

“We will, Chief, and....well, thanks for trusting us. I know that you're bending the laws you hold dear, and I appreciate it.” I said.

I hugged him briefly and then turned to Jerry.

“You ready to go?” I asked.

“You bet, Donna. Let's go do this!” He replied.

“Penny? Jim? Paul? Terry? You guys all set up?” I checked on the com.

I got four “rogers” back, and I told them we were going in on a count of five.

“Watch your backs and help the cops if it comes to that.” I told them. Then I started the count.

One....two....three....four....FIVE! And when I shouted the last number, both Jerry and I took off at a dead run towards the closed outer doors of the sanitarium. We paused, briefly, to make certain no one was gonna get hit by flying glass and metal and, seeing no one in the way, we busted out way in, scaring the crap out of a few people in the lobby.

We stopped only to ask the receptionist where Dr. Fine was being held, but she was so scared she just sat there, shaking and screaming. I jumped the counter and rifled through the files I found on the other side. Finding Dr. Fine's name, I grabbed the folder and jumped back to the other side. Then Jerry and I took off towards the room indicate in the folder, room 222.

We ran down the hallways, looking for the room number and avoiding people who might come walking out of doorways and turning corner after corner until, there it was! Room 222!

Stopping outside, I checked the door and it was locked, so Jerry and I 'gently' forced it open, and there he was, lying in a bed, seemingly either asleep or drugged out. I shook him gently, trying to wake him, but he just lay there like a rag doll. I told Jerry to watch the door while I checked the folder, looking for any medications they had him on.

Now I didn't know much about medicines and drugs, but there was a whole list of them in that folder. Too many, it seemed to me.

“Jerry? It looks like we're gonna have to carry him outta here. I'll do that, while you keep the way clear for me. Get with the others and have them pull in and meet us somewhere away from here. Someplace where we can be reasonably safe and not have to worry about interference. Okay?”

“Consider it done, Donna.” He answered, and I heard him contact the others.

We arranged to meet back at the jail, with the permission of the Chief, figuring that with all those cops, plus all of us, that would be the safest place in town. Leaving the place, we didn't run into any opposition and we took it easy, trying our best to live up to the promise we'd made. We ran out the door and deposited Dr. Fine in the Chief's car, telling him to head back to the jail while the six of us ran interference and backup.

He jumped into his car, locking the doors and took off towards town, siren blaring and lights flashing. We heard him call his officers and tell them what was going on, and to clear the way for him. I turned to Jerry to ask him if we should head back with the Chief or take a roundabout way to see if there was anything or anyone trying to stop us.

Jerry was about to say something when I heard what sounded like something hitting my suit! About the same time, I heard a gunshot, and I turned in a tight circle, trying to spot the shooter. Using the suit's infrared, I located a guy up on the third floor of the sanitarium with some kind of strange looking rifle! He looked to be wearing the same sort of black catsuit the other bad guys had worn, and I made him for one of them.

Jerry and I jumped into action by the time he'd had time to fire another shot and he missed both of us. We separated, with me going back in the front doors, and Jerry heading around back. On the way, I got on the com and told Jim and Penny that we were being shot at, and to get there, post haste!

I hit the doors at flank speed, making sure nobody was in the way, although I had to dodge and weave between shocked workers and patients. Finding the stairwell, I shot up the stairs, hitting the door to the third floor, taking it off the hinges, and hoping there was nobody near it.

Over the com I heard Jerry saying he was in the back door and heading my way as fast as he could go. I also heard Jim and Penny checking in, saying that they were almost there and what did we need from them.

“Watch the outside and make sure nobody gets hurt, or tries to get away.” I answered. Watch for snipers as well.” I told them.

“You got it, Donna.” Jim responded. “You watch your asses in there, hear me?”

“I think you better tell that to whoever shot as us, Jim. I'm gonna take him apart, one piece at a time til he tells me why he shot at us!” I said.

I found the door that most likely led into the room where the sniper would be, and I took it off it's hinges at full speed. Whoever was inside would have to watch out for themselves. I was too mad to care! Inside, I saw one man, turning from the window with a rifle in his hands, and a shocked look on his face.

“What the hell?” He said, just before I ran into him, shoving him into the wall and knocking the rifle out of his hands. He bounced off the wall and hit the floor, hard. I grabbed him by the back of his neck and clothes and held him up in the air, his legs kicking feebly.

“I want answers, and I want them now, you sonofabitch! Who the hell are you and why did you shoot at me? Who the hell are your people and what do they want with us? Answer me you bastard or I swear I'll break your damn neck!”

Well, I guess I either squeezed a bit too hard, or else I just scared the shit out of him, because he voided his bowels and fainted. I dropped him to the floor, gagging on the odor that filled the room. About that time, Jerry came charging into the room. He noted the guy on the floor and yelled,

“Shit, Donna! What'd you do? Kill him?”

“No, you dope! He musta fainted from fear....or I mighta squeezed him a bit too hard. Either way, he's still breathing, although he sure stinks!”

I stuck my head out the door and saw a nurse standing there, shaking in fear. I went over to her and tried to calm her, and told her that I wasn't gonna hurt her. She calmed down a bit, and I asked her if she could find some clothes for a guy about the size of the one who I had attacked. She pointed to a nearby door and told me that it was a supply closet and there should be something in there.

I went over and opened the door and found some 'scrubs' that I thought might fit, and went back into the room, where the guy was still passed out on the floor. I stripped the clothes off him, trying to ignore the stink, carried him into an en-suite bathroom and dumped him into a shower there, turning on the water and rinsing him off quickly. Then I dragged his naked butt back into the room and Jerry and I dressed him in the 'scrubs'.

“Maybe we finally got one who'll talk, Jerry.” I said. Let's take him back to the jail and see what we can get outta him.”

“Sounds like a plan to me, Donna. You wanna carry him, or should I?”

“I think it's your turn, Jerry. I cleaned him off, after all.”

“Well, ordinarily I'd argue the point with you, Donna, but I think we should get outta here before reinforcements arrive, so lets go!”

Jerry picked the guy up and slung him over his shoulder with no more effort than you would have, lifting a kitten, and we took off out of there. I grabbed the rifle on the way out, hoping it might be able to give us some kind of lead or clue about who these guys were.

I contacted the others on the com, telling them that we were okay, and headed back to town with a prisoner. They acknowledged my message and said they'd meet us on the way to town. We all met up and quickly took off for the jail at our best speed. On the way back to town, I brought everyone up to speed on what had happened, leaving out the part about the really bad smell in that room. I also had Jerry check me, on the run, to make sure that the bullet that had hit me, hadn't done any damage. He didn't find any, to my relief and once again I thanked Dr. Fine for at least making the suits strong enough to withstand gunfire, while cursing him for making them in the first place.

We arrived at the jail at about the same time as the Chief did, in his car, and we took our prisoner inside, along with Dr. Fine, depositing the prisoner in a cell, and Dr. Fine on a bed in another cell. I asked the Chief if he could get Doc Jamison over there to check on Dr. fine, and he said he'd do that right away, and left the cell area to make a phone call.

Several minutes went by without either Dr. Fine or the sniper showing any signs of waking up, and about that time, the Chief came walking back in with the town Doctor, Doc. Jamison. Doc took in what he saw with surprising equanimity, going right to Dr. fine, and then the other guy, checking them both out briefly before turning to the Chief.

“Okay Jim. You got me over here, now what the hell is going on, and who are these people?” He indicated the six of us who were, by now, all inside the cell area.

“Doc.” He said. “If I told you, you wouldn't believe me. Hell, I'm not completely sure I believe it myself, but there's just too much in their favor to doubt them. Just trust me when I say that they're friends, and they're in big trouble. This one guy over here is Dr. Fine, that kook scientist who got hurt in that accident at the lab a week or so ago. This other one took a shot at this young lady here, but missed, and was apprehended by me and my boys. I need you to look them over, especially Dr. fine, who seems drugged or something. This other one will keep until we find out more about the Dr. here.”

“I'm a Doctor, Jim, not a lab technician! Yeah this guy looks drugged, but I have no way of knowing what the hell he's on without taking samples and running them through a lab! As for this other one, he's just out cold and he smells funny too! Now you mind telling what the hell is going on here? Or am I gonna have to guess?”

I interrupted then, and began to tell Doc. The whole story, hoping he'd not only believe me, but help us if he could. By the time I finished, he had this look on his face like he thought I was crazier than a whorehouse bedbug.

“Come on!” He finally said, when I was finished. “You don't actually expect me to believe that load of crap, do you? That's the wildest tale I've heard in years! You aren't buying into this load, are you Jim? You can't expect me to believe that this beautiful young woman here is Donnie Franklin?”

The Chief scratched his head and looked right at Doc Jamison.

“Doc.” He said. “If I hadn't seen some of the things I've seen today, I wouldn't believe any of it either, but I've seen things that I never thought I would, and I do believe them when they say who they are.”

I took hold of a cell door, jacked up the strength of the suit to maximum, and pulled it off it's hinges, bending a couple of the bars in the process.

“Believe us now, Doc? Sorry about that, Chief. I'll replace that door when this is all over.”

I dropped the door on the floor with a resounding clang, and looked at Doc Jamison.

He looked at me like I was from Mars or something, his mouth wide opening and closing like he was trying to talk, but couldn't find any words. Finally he managed to sputter,

“What the hell is going on here? How did you do that, young lady, and why do some of you look like twins? Chief, if I don't start getting some straight answers here, I'm going to have to call the State Police and get them in here, since it looks like you've lost what you laughingly call a mind!”

I grabbed Doc's arm and gently turned him to face me.

“Look, Doc. I know this sounds like some kinda bad science fiction story, but I swear it's true. Ask me anything you want about my, Donnie's, life, and I'll answer it. If that doesn't convince you, then nothing will.”

Doc huffed and puffed, but came up with some questions that only Donnie Franklin could answer, and I get every one of them right, even adding some things he'd forgotten, and dropping a couple that were designed to trap me. Eventually, he shook his head in disbelief, but he also said,

“Well, I got to say that you're either an incredible fake, or you really are Donnie Franklin, and you say that this tall, handsome guy at your side is Jerry, your best friend? This is just too crazy for me. Look, I'll do what I can for these two unconscious folks, but I need to really think about all the rest. I still can't.......hey! That guy is waking up!”

I looked over at the sniper and he was moving a bit and moaning. I asked doc to go check on him, since I didn't wanna scare him unconscious again, not to mention I didn't wanna experience that smell again. Doc went over to him and checked his pulse and stuff and tried to ease him into full consciousness. Pretty soon, he opened his eyes and looked around.

“Oooooh! My head! What the hell hit me? Hey! Where the hell am I? ?Who the hell are you?”

Doc started to try to calm him down, but I needed answers, and when I saw that he was more or less fully awake, I moved into his line of sight. Then I walked slowly over to where he lay on the cell bunk.

“Thanks Doc, I can handle this from here.” I said.

I gently moved Doc out of the cell and stood, facing the sniper.

“The only reason you are alive is I need information from you, and you are gonna tell me everything you know about who you are, and who is after us. You have no choice, since your only other alternative is severe, continuing pain, which, after all I've been through these past several days, I will gladly inflict on you!”

Now I had no real intention of hurting the guy, but he didn't know that. To make my point, I picked up the damaged cell door and bent some of the bars to show I was fully capable of putting a hurt on him. His face went pale and he began to shake. Doc tried to horn in, saying something about threatening a patient, but I didn't move, and Doc, trying to push me aside, only succeeded in pushing himself away.

“Sorry, doc.” I said. “But I need what this guy knows, and I'm not leaving here until he tells me what I need to know. I've been chased, shot at, threatened, and I've taken all I'm gonna take from this twit and his cronies. Chief? Would you please take Doc here over to Dr. Fine and have him try to figure what he's on, while I question this piece of crap?”

“Now look, Donna,” The Chief said. This is my jail, and I won't tolerate any abuse of a prisoner while he's in my custody!”

I took the Chief aside and whispered in his ear.

“I'm not gonna really hurt him, but I need him to think I will. I've dealt with the bunch he's in with before, and physical force seems to be the only thing they respond to. Trust me Chief. You've gone along with us on this, trusting us up til now. We're not gonna do anything to break that trust, but I have to know what he knows. I also need info from Dr. Fine over there, but I don't know when, if ever, he'll be able to tell me anything, so I gotta get what I can from this guy.”

Well, the Chief kinda hemmed and hawed for a minute or so, but I think he knew he could trust me to not do anything stupid, so he grabbed Doc Jamison and was talking to him while he led him back over to the cell Dr. Fine was in. After they left, I went back into the cell the sniper was in and began questioning him.

“Now look you sonofabitch.” I said, quietly. “I want you to tell me whatever you know about your pals and what the hell they want from us. I know they want the suits, but why? Choose fast, because in a minute, the pain begins. I'm not a patient person, and trust me, I can hurt you so it doesn't show. I can put you in a wheelchair, in pain, for the rest of your miserable life, if you don't start talking!”

He started denying everything, claiming he was just a security guy at the sanitarium and he thought we were some kind of terrorists or something. I quickly convinced him that I knew he was lying. Eventually, I brought him around, with a little judicious pain applications, and he began to tell me what I needed to know! Or at least what he knew about it.

He claimed that he was hired to help reclaim some merchandise, namely the suits, for their 'rightful owner.' They were funded, he said, by a guy who claimed to have invented the technology, but had it stolen from him by Dr. Fine. Apparently, this “guy” had a load of money and wasn't afraid to spread it around to get what he wanted. Well, the pay was good, but this sniper guy also said that, with what we'd done to two of their 'special teams', he was thinking about getting out with a whole skin, but hadn't done that before we got to where he was working. He was there to keep an eye on Dr. fine and to let his boss know when Dr. Fine woke up.

I had been relaying everything through the coms, to the others. They listened while this guy told his story and gave up the information we had been needing to begin moving this thing toward an end. We now knew that it wasn't the government that was after us, and that was a huge weight off all of our shoulders. However, we also knew that, whoever this 'boss' was, he was someone with a lot of clout, and a lot of money. You don't have a semi-army of mercenaries without also having deep pockets to pay for them.

The sniper, let's call him Frank, told us that he didn't know where his boss was located, nor did he know how they kept being able to locate us. He did tell us that the guy was ruthless and, in Frank's words, crazier than hell, being totally fixated on the suits and their technology. His men were supposed to capture the suits, get everything Dr. Fine had, including his nearly undecipherable notes, and whatever information he had in his mind. Frank didn't know how they planned to get that last item.

When it seemed that Frank had finished his story, I sat back and assessed the situation. We now knew why we were being pursued and that we could trust the people we were supposed to be able to trust, our government. Yeah, yeah, I know. Some of you out there are choking on that last bit, but you gotta remember, we were kids, Jerry and I, and we still believed in stuff that we might not, later in our lives. I wondered if we could go to some government agency for help or protection, but Paul broke into my musings just then.

“Hey Guys!” He yelled into the com. “We got trouble! Inbound on the main road, looks like about 6 black SUVs loaded with men!”

I yelled to the Chief,

“Chief! One of our people has spotted several vehicles headed for town, with a lotta guys in them. This could be serious trouble! We gotta get people off the streets, or try to lure these guys back out of town so no innocent people get hurt if things go badly!”

The Chief immediately left Doc Jamison and went to his front office. He hit a button there and sirens began to wail. Tornado sirens!

“That oughta get folks off the streets and into shelters wherever they are, but you are gonna have to get these guys out of town. If they have the kind of firepower you said they do, they could wreck this town!” shouted the Chief.

Jim came in on the com and said that we could try luring them out of town, by showing ourselves and making them follow us, while the Chief was busy on his radio, calling in his officers.

“Sounds good to me, Donna.” Chief Adams said. Me and my officers can take care of the town! You and your bunch better get the hell outta here and keep those people from destroying my town! We'll keep Dr. Fine safe and back you up if we can.! Now get out of here!” and he shoved me and Jerry towards the door.

Well, we got! Headed out the door we could see people scurrying everywhere in response to the tornado sirens. Police officers were directing people into shelters and keeping panic to a minimum. We decided to try to intercept the incoming vehicles before they actually got into town, so we headed out of town on the main road. At the speed we were moving, it wasn't long before we spotted the SUVs inbound, and we split up, with me and Jerry being the bait to try to get them to follow us, while the rest moved in a flanking maneuver to try to trap them between us.

Jerry and I made sure the bad guys saw us by simply running past them in the opposite direction. They stood on their brakes and did fast turns, to chase us, and Jerry and I picked up the pace, staying just far enough ahead of them so they didn't have a good shot at us. We were doing great, keeping about a hundred yards between us and the SUVs, when, suddenly, I heard a thudding noise and, a few seconds later, the road in front of us blew up!

We were blasted with dirt and chunks of pavement, but we weren't hurt at all. Shook up? You bet, but we kept on going, changing our pace to a more zig-zag kind of pattern. I didn't know what the hell they had fired at us, or if we had triggered some kind of mine or something, but I wasn't gonna take any more chances than I absolutely had to! Jerry wanted to turn around and charge them, but I talked him out of it.

“Jerry! We don't know what they have for weapons! We know that regular bullets can't hurt us, but if they have armor piercing shells, or worse, we can still get hurt of killed! Let's keep going until we have them in an area where we have the advantage!”

We kept running, and kept in contact with the others over the coms. Paul said that they had found a good spot for a showdown, with good cover for us, on a small hill. I knew where he was talking about, so Jerry and I headed that way, taking a side road that would lead us where we wanted them to go.

It wasn't more than a couple of minutes later when, all of a sudden, one of the SUVs in the back of their caravan, spun around and crashed! I started to yell to the others, but Jim came on the com and told us that he and Penny had caused it to happen by simply running up behind the SUV and doing a sort of PIT maneuver. The SUV spun and then rolled over into a ditch, and Jim and Penny took out the occupants before they knew what had hit them. That left 5 still chasing Jerry and I.

“Are you and Penny okay Jim?” I shouted over the com.

“We're fine Donna!” Penny shouted back. We have these guys all tied up and unconscious! You and Jerry watch your butts though! These guys are playing for keeps! They've got automatic weapons and some kind of bazooka or something!”

Jim broke in, saying that what they had was a highly modified rocket launcher that could be used from a moving vehicle, or from a fixed position!

Well, Jerry and I picked up our pace until we were running almost at our maximum speed. It wasn't easy on that dirt road. We had to watch our steps and slow down for turns. Just a couple of minutes later, I spotted Paul and Terry, on a small hill, about 100 yards off the road, and Jerry and I swerved in their direction. As the SUVs slowed to a stop on the road, I saw yet another of them, at the end of their convoy, rock and then get pulled off the road!

“Hey kids!” Jim called. “These grapnels work great! Penny and I just hit that one with both of ours and it's on it's side with hurt bad guys spilling out of it! We got these guys. You all worry about yourselves. We're gonna fade into the underbrush and try to keep ambushing these jerks!”

“Okay Jim.” Jerry called back. “You watch your butts! We've gotten used to you two being around and we'd like it to stay that way!”

I heard a kind of excited joy in Jerry's voice, and that worried me. I didn't want him getting too full of himself and what the suit could do! I knew that he'd been on the verge of going nutso with it once or twice before and I didn't want him getting stupid/brave and end up losing him!

“Jerry!” I yelled to him as we ran. “Don't get dumb now! We can be hurt or even killed, even in these suits! If you go bonkers on me and get killed, I swear, I'll never speak to you again!”

“It's okay Donna!” He shouted back. “I feel like this is what I got into this for! These assholes have bugged us long enough, and I want my life back! I want my family and my girlfriend back! I want the sonofabitch who's behind all of this to suffer!”

I could hear Jerry getting angrier and angrier as he yelled, and I knew this wasn't gonna end well if he lost it.

“Jerry! Knock that shit off! You ain't friggin Iron Man or something! You're just like me! A kid, trapped in some kind of overblown forklift! Get your head together, or you'll get yourself or us all killed!”

Jerry kinda looked over at me as we ran, and I could see a grin on his face.
A grin I remembered. Jerry was gonna do something dumb! Before I could try to stop him, he veered off into the trees and disappeared!

“Damn it Jerry!” I yelled over the com. “What the hell do you think you're doing?”

“Don't worry Donna!” He responded. I got a plan!” and his com clicked off!

I had reached the small him where Paul and Terry were waiting, and I spent a few seconds trying to get Jerry to respond on the com, but he didn't. Paul said that I had to trust Jerry and hope for the best. In the meantime, we needed some kind of battle plan.

We decided to split into teams, with Paul, as an ex-SEAL going off by himself. Terry and I would stick together and keep their attention on us. Jim and Penny were still doing their guerrilla warfare thing, throwing rocks and stuff at the SUVs from cover. I heard Jim say, on the com,

"Hey Penny! Are those rocks falling on their heads? and she replied,

"If they are, they'll all be dead!"

Paul snuck around on their other side and began the same kind of thing, while Terry and I lobbed rocks from where we were behind the hill. We knew that rocks weren't gonna keep them pinned down for long, bit we didn't have any other weapons, or at least I thought we didn't.

All of a sudden, a flurry of gunshots broke out from Jim and Penny's positions, pinning a bunch of the bad guys down, and dropping a few of them.

“We took the weapons from those two SUVs we ambushed, kids!” Penny shouted over the com.

“Great Penny!” I shouted back, but there's way too many of those guys for just the two of you to handle, even with guns! We gotta take them out, and do it fast!

Just them, I heard a groaning sound, kinda like the sound a tree makes when it's getting ready to fall. Before I could figure out what was going on, a huge tree crashed into a couple of the SUVs, pinning some guys underneath it and flushing some out of their cover!

“Told ya I had a plan, Donna!” Came the exuberant voice of Jerry, over the com. Now, use the grapnels to grab them and disarm them! You know how, Donna!”

Jerry was right. I had almost forgotten what those grapnels could do. I took careful aim and shot one out, catching one of the bad guys unaware. I grabbed him by one arm and yanked him out from behind one of the SUVs, and tossed him into a tree! Before too long, the others caught onto the use of the grapnels, and it was only a couple more minutes before the fight was going our way. A couple of the SUVs tried to turn around and flee, but that tree was in their way, and they got stuck.

Well, we kept picking off bad guys like that. I don't want you to get the idea that it was easy, or not dangerous, because it was very dangerous for us. They had guns, we didn't. We had to expose ourselves to their gunfire in order to get a clear shot with the grapnels, but it wasn't too much longer before everything went quiet, and the last bad guys threw out their weapons and surrendered! Slowly we came out from our own places of cover and advanced toward the caravan of SUVs, watching very carefully for any tricks.

When we got to where the bad guys were, we found that many of them were hurt, either by rocks, or falling trees, or from being tossed around by our grapnels, into trees and their own vehicles. Somehow, I didn't feel sorry for any of them. Jim and Penny came up from behind them, Paul came in from their left, and Jerry came grinning out of the woods to their right, while Terry and I came at them from the front. Jerry was absolutely bubbling over his role in the fight.

“Did you see that tree come smashing down on their asses, Donna?” He asked me, his voice almost shaking with excitement. “Wasn't that great? See, I knew that they wouldn't expect.....” and he launched into the so-called plan he'd had. I sorta half listened, and half paid attention to Jim, Penny, Terry and Paul, tying up the bad guys and securing their weapons. The wounded ones were placed into a couple of the SUVs after being searched and immobilized. Then, Jim, Penny and Paul got the tree out of the way. It took all three of them to do it. That was one big tree!

Suddenly, I got the shakes, and sat down right where I was. Paul immediately noticed and came over to me, concerned.

“Are you hurt, Donna?” he asked, but I couldn't even talk! All I could do was shake and shiver.

“What's wrong Donna?” I heard Jerry say.

Finally I found my voice and said,

“Jerry, I'm gonna have to get you outta that suit. You're too damn dangerous in it! You're reckless and careless and, some day you're gonna get either yourself, or somebody else killed!”

“Oh come on Donna! I knew what I was doing all the time! I wasn't in any danger and I didn't endanger anyone else besides these friggin mercs! What's up your ass anyway? What. You want all the credit or something? Fine! I don't care about that! All I care about is getting this thing over and getting back with my family and girlfriend!”

“But Jerry!” I interrupted. “Don't you understand that we have to do this together? Alone, we don't stand a chance! It's only in our togetherness that we have the strength and courage we need to finish this and start over!”

“Oh c'mon Donna!” Jerry said. “Jeeze, I think this 'girl' thing has messed up your mind! Look. All my life, you and I have been friends, and all that time, I spent following you around, always playing second fiddle to your lead! Now you want me to 'take it easy', 'be safe', 'don't take unnecessary risks'! Jeezus, Donna! I'm sick of being pushed around! I'm sick of playing second banana to you, and I'm sick of being the 'nice guy!' Nice guys finish last, Donna, and now I have the chance to finish first! I've stuck with you through this whole thing so far, because we've always been pals, always been there for one another, but don't push me any more, Donna. Now that I know I can get outta this suit, if I want to, it opens up a whole new set of options for me, and I wanna explore them!”

“But Jerry!” I interrupted him, but he just waved his hand in front of me.

“Talk to the hand Donna! You're stuck in that thing, and I'm sorry about that, but it's time for me to stand up for me! We have more power at our fingertips than any 18 year old kid ever had short of comic books of movies, Donna! I, for one, intend to make the most of it. I'm all done hiding! I'm all done being picked on! I'm through being dictated to!”

The others had kind of stayed out of this 'fight' between Jerry and me. I think they hoped I could settle Jerry down better than any of them could, but I knew that I was fighting a losing battle right then, so I tried to distract Jerry.

“Okay, Jerry. I know you're upset, maybe even pissed off, but we still have to get these mercs back to town and locked up. Can we table this until after we do that and maybe get some more info?”

Jerry sighed and looked off into the distance for a few seconds. Then he turned back to me and offered his hand to me.

“Okay, Donna, but don't get the idea that this is over with. I know what I want to do, what I need to do for myself now, and I don't think you, or Jim, or Penny, or even Paul can talk me out of it, but I'll give you all just this one last chance. I guess I owe you that, for old times sake, if for no other reason. We'll take these bastards back to the jail and get that all taken care of, but then you and me are gonna talk, and one of us is gonna be right, and one wrong. I already think I know which is which, but I'll wait til we talk to make my final decision. Don't try to snow me, Donna, and don't try that old, hackneyed line about 'with great power, comes great responsibilities' crap either I'm responsible for myself now. I have been since this whole thing started. Nobody dictates to me anymore, got it?”

“I got it, Jerry. I said tiredly, dejectedly. I just hope I'm wrong about what I'm thinking and that I can convince you that you are wrong as well. Now c'mon. Let's get these SOBs locked up.”

I let Jerry help me up and then I helped loading the mercs into the remaining SUVs, all the time feeling like my life was changing way too fast. Now I ran the risk of losing my best, lifelong friend, and I think I hated that thought more than I hated being stuck as a female for the rest of my life. We got all the prisoners loaded and headed back toward town, but instead of feeling like I was heading for a solution, I felt like I was going to my own hanging, and I wanted to cry.......a lot.
 
 
More to come, folks. My muse is back and she's talking up a storm! Wheeeeee! Hang on everybody. It gets bumpy from here! ~~Catherine Linda Michel

        I was crying. I could no longer speak. All I could do was cry my heart out over the loss of my life, my dreams, my friend, everything. All the intrigue, all the danger, all the running, and fighting, and everything else from the last few weeks just came rushing in on me all at once, and all I could do was cry.
        “What the hell can I do, Jerry?” I tried to continue through my tears. “I'm so tired of all this. I just wanna go back and be me again!

Transformers
(sort of)
Book Two, Chapter Four
By Catherine Linda Michel

 

We got all the prisoners tied up and stuffed them into a couple of the SUVs, with the rest of us taking two more. Two of them were totally wrecked, and we just left them there after searching them thoroughly. All the time we were doing all that, I was thinking about Jerry's tirade and what it might mean, to me, and to the others. Also, if Jerry went rogue, we'd have to hunt him down and that wouldn't go well, I knew.

As if I didn't have enough to worry me! On the way back to town, things were pretty quiet. Everyone had heard Jerry's outburst, and I'm sure they were thinking about what they'd have to do as well. It was pretty grim inside that SUV.

When we got back to town, we found crowds of people everywhere, all talking at the same time, apparently trying to find out what the hell was going on in their, formerly quiet town. What with tornado sirens going off, and cars screeching into and out of town, and cops running all over the place with weapons drawn, well it was a panic scene.

I had radioed in and told the Chief that we were headed his way, and he had a couple of cop cars escort us the rest of the way into the center of town. We took the SUVs into the narrow driveway leading to the back of the police station and, when we parked them, we began unloading people and weapons.

The Chief was appalled by the amount and the numbers of weapons we unloaded.

“Christ on a crutch! There's enough firepower there to start a small war! Who the hell are these people, and how in the hell do they get access to fully automatic arms like these?” He remarked.

“I don't know much more than I did when we left town, Chief.” I replied. “But you can bet your ass I'm gonna have much more info before this day is out! First though, we have to deal with a personal issue that's come up suddenly. Would you and your officers mind taking care of these mercenaries while we handle that?”

“Man! This jail hasn't been this occupied in years, but of course I'll lock them up! I have the entire force on high alert, and anyone who tries to get these guys out, or take us on again, is gonna be in for a big surprise. With all this weaponry, we could hold off that small army I mentioned before! Don't you worry Donnie...er, Donna. We'll hold the fort til you and your friends get your issues settled. I hope everything works out for the best.”

“So do I, Chief.” I said, shaking my head. “So do I. Thanks Chief.”

I turned and walked out into the outer offices where Jerry was waiting, somewhat impatiently.

“Okay Jerry.” I said. “Lets go talk.

I was dreading what he'd have to say, but we had to do this and get it settled. My heart was aching, knowing that this could end badly, and I could lose a lifetime friend. Worse than that, I would have to be part of hunting him down, and bringing him to justice, if he went the way I was afraid he might.

We walked a way out of town, and sat down on a creek bank. It was a nice place and Jerry and I had fished for panfish here when we were little kids. When we became teens, we brought our girlfriends here for some quiet, semi-innocent making out.

“Okay, Jerry.” I began. “It seems you've got something on your chest and there will be no better time than right now to let it out. I'm hoping that what you were saying out at the sanitarium was just adrenaline talking?”

“No Donna.” He replied, cutting me off. “What that was, was me coming to my senses. We've been chased and shot at. We've been hidden away and we've had our families taken to some god-forsaken place somewhere out west! We've lost our girlfriends, our families, our lives, damn it, and I'm sick of all of it! Maybe worst of all, we've lost the friendship we had! It's changed, Donna, and you know why! You've been floundering around, trying to ignore the fact that you are a girl now, and there's no escape from that! Look, I just want to get away from here...a long way away from here! I'm sick of trying to be what you want me to be! I'm sick and tired of playing second fiddle to you, Donna! Even now, when you're a girl, you're still dictating to me, telling me what to do and when to do it! It wasn't so bad when we were both guys, but now it's like you think you're a grownup, and you treat me like some kid!”
“Jerry, Jerry!” I broke in. “That's now how it is at all! I'm only trying to get us all out of this and find a way back to normal for all of us!”

“Bullshit, Donna!” He hollered at me. “I'm just as old and just as mature as you are, and I'm not gonna take it anymore. Not from you, or Jim, or Penny, or any damn body! I'm gonna go back there and beat the truth out of those guys til I find out the name and location of the sonofabitch who sicced them on us! Then I'm gonna go find him and beat the crap outta him, and show everybody that I'm all done being messed with! You have been fooling around, crying over the fact that you're not a guy anymore, and that's led us into running away instead of standing and fighting! Well, let me tell you something, DONNA! You are a female now! Probably forever, and no one can change that! Accept it and move on, for shit's sake! Quit hiding from it! Unless Dr, Fine, if he ever wakes up, knows how to get you outta that suit, you're gonna be a girl for the rest of your now, very long life!”

I just sat there on the verge of tears, listening to my very best friend holler at me, berate me, and generally try to make me feel like I'd tried to dominate him of something. Finally the dam broke and I lit back into him!

“God DAMN you, Jerry! You think this is easy for me? You think I'm just fooling around? Who came up with most of the plans to save our asses? Who went charging in and initiated the fight it took to capture these sons of bitches? You stood around and acted like some kind of big kid! So impressed by the way you look now, and what you can do! Transformers my ASS, Jerry! Wolverine my ASS, Jerry! We ain't no damn superheroes you idiot! We're just a couple of kids who got caught up in some shit we never should have been any part of! You can go on and have a normal life! I'm stuck being every guy's damned wet dream! I wanted to get married some day, to a nice girl, and settle down with a good job and raise a family! Now what can I do, huh? Go fall in love with some cute guy and have babies with him? I don't even know if I can do that, and I damn sure don't want to have to! I'm a GUY, Jerry, in case you've forgotten that! I'm stuck in this damned thing and I can't get out! You can get out! You can go back and live your dreams! What do I do, Jerry? What the hell do I do?”

All of a sudden, I was crying. I could no longer speak. All I could do was cry my heart out over the loss of my life, my dreams, my friend, everything. All the intrigue, all the danger, all the running, and fighting, and everything else from the last few weeks just came rushing in on me all at once, and all I could do was cry.

“What the hell can I do, Jerry?” I tried to continue through my tears. “I'm so tired of all this. I just wanna go back and be me again! I just want....I want...oh hell! Jerry, I can't even talk about this kinda stuff anymore, without crying, for shit's sake! This damn suit is changing me! It's making me a girl, Jerry, and I..I...I don't want to be a girl!”

“Oh Christ, Donna!” Jerry broke in. “Get the hell over it, willya? There ain't nothing you or I can do about it, except accept it! But you don't have to take it out on me by treating me like a little kid! I hurt for you too, but there's nothing I can do about what's happened to you! I can't change it, I can't make it all go away, I can't even help you with it, because you won't let me! Every time I've tried, you pushed me away like I was some kind of pervert or something! That, along with everything else, has made me very, very angry, Donna, and I can't take this anymore either. I'm getting out of here while I can. Now that I know I can get out of this suit, I can lead a normal life, and maybe, just maybe, find Jerry the normal guy again. I'm sorry for you, but you won't let me help and you won't accept the inevitable, so there's nothing I can do for you. You're just gonna keep on attending your own pity party until you go crazy or something. And I can't stay here and watch you do that to yourself. Best of luck to you, my used-to-be friend. I hope you find some kind of peace. I just can't deal with you and your self pity anymore. If you ever find yourself, and adjust to your situation, post an ad or something in the local paper. Maybe I'll get hold of you.”

He touched me briefly on my shoulder, then he got up and walked away from me, going back into town. I just sat there, lost in tears, and hate, and sorrow, all at the same time. I tried to get up, but I just collapsed on the bank of that pretty little creek, and cried.

I don't know how long I lay there, lost in sorrow. It must have been quite awhile, because the next thing I knew, Penny was holding me in a tight hug.

“Honey, it'll be okay.” She was saying. “We'll talk to Jerry and make things okay. Please don't cry. I know it hurts. I know your whole life has been changed and you hate it, but I'm here for you. Jim, Paul, and Terry are here for you. Your family loves you, no matter what, and they're out there for you as well.”

“B...b...but Penny!” I wailed. “My best friend just walked out on me! He..he...he left me here and walked away, like I was somebody he doesn't know anymore and doesn't care about! I..I...I don't know if I can do this anymore. I just wanna go somewhere and lay down and give up.”

“Oh, Donna.” Penny replied. “I know, honey, I know. I want this thing to be all over too! I want you to get out of that thing and go back to regular old Donnie, and marry your sweetheart, but we have to deal with what is, not with what we want things to be. What is, means getting to the bottom of these mercs and getting that settled, once and for all. What is, is getting Dr. Fine well enough to find out if there still is a way to get you out of that suit. What is, is getting things back to as near normal as possible. Don't you think I miss my family? My life? Don't you think Jim misses his family and life? Sweetheart, I wish none of this had ever happened, but it did, and the only chance we have of putting things right, is by completing what we have to do.”

Penny just held me and talked, softly, to me for a long time. It was just us there. The rest stayed away, giving Penny her chance at getting me back on my feet and back into the game. The trouble was, I didn't know if I wanted to play the damned game anymore. I didn't want to have to be a girl any more, and yet, the suit was making me more female with each day that passed. I felt things I'd never felt before. I cried much more easily. I was coming to depend on the others instead of on myself. I was so much more emotional than I'd ever been, that it scared me, but the suit was trying to take care of that as well, pumping hormones into me, and changing the way I thought, the way I felt. I knew that was happening, but I couldn't stop it, and now Jerry, my best friend, was walking out on me and on everything else....and I couldn't quit crying! Penny picked me up and began to carry me back to town, murmuring things to me all the way. She kept up a patter of meaningless conversation all the way back, where she put me into a bed at the police station and covered me with a blanket.

“Sleep, honey.” She whispered to me, while softly, gently stroking my hair. “We'll try to get things straightened out when you wake up. In the meantime, Jim and I, along with Paul and Terry. Will try to get what information we can out of these mercs, while Doc Jamison works on Dr. Fine. Close your eyes and try to sleep. Right now, I think you need sleep more than anything else. Let the rest of us handle things for awhile. Shhh now. Don't talk, Just sleep. Shh, honey. It'll be all right, you'll see. Sleep, Donna.”

She kept that kind of talk up until I actually did fall asleep! What happened while I was asleep, has been told to me by the others.

Jim and Paul took on the interrogation of the prisoners, and apparently weren't too gentle about it. Several of them were wearing bandages they weren't wearing when I'd last seen them, when I did wake up. Penny and Terry began searching the internet for anything on this mysterious scientist who hated Dr. Fine, and who was behind all our troubles. They made phone calls. They searched files. They managed to get access, somehow, to stuff that the ordinary citizen had no business finding out.

Meanwhile, Doc Jamison was making some headway in getting Dr. Fine conscious. It seemed that he had been drugged nearly all the time since the lab accident, by others hired by his enemy. They were planning on shipping him out when we had showed up back in town, so we spoiled that plan.

Even The Chief was busy, getting things back in order in town, and lending whatever help he could give. He had some connections in the law enforcement community, and he used them to try to help in the information gathering.

They even got a name for this mysterious scientist. Dr. Charles had worked with Dr. Fine from the first finding of the power/battlesuits were found aboard some crashed UFO in the Nevada desert. They had disagreed on how to reverse engineer the suits and on how to best use them. Dr. Fine was determined to turn the research and the suits, over to the government, but Dr Charles got greedy and tried to steal the prototypes. He got caught and was expelled from the program, and from employment by the agency in charge. He plotted against Dr. Fine and spent a great deal of his personal fortune, trying to get the suits, only to be thwarted, first by security forces, and then by us. He sent team after team after us and the suits, hoping to take them by force if he couldn't get them any other way.

Apparently he was monitoring every test of the suits, somehow. When the accident at the lab happened, he saw a chance to take the suits, not knowing we still had the two we were wearing. When we stopped them, he got more and more angry, swearing to take the suits, even if he had to kill us all to do it. I guess he didn't think we could do much to stop him, but he found out differently after our first run-in.

Anyway, according to the prisoners, he was located somewhere in upstate New York, in a secret lab under his mansion. That's right, his mansion. Jim and Paul; actually got pretty explicit instructions on how to get there and where this 'mansion' was located. I guess they were very persuasive when it came to getting information from people who didn't want to give it.

I slept for most of the evening and into the night. My dreams...well, my dreams all centered around being trapped and changed against my will, and people leaving me, along with some really strange stuff I don't really remember. People who claim to know how to interpret dreams would probably have a field day with what I dreamed, but all I got out of it was sadness and helplessness.

I awoke at around 6AM the following morning, and for just a second, I looked for Jerry. Then, what happened the day before came rushing back into my mind and I started to cry again. Just a little bit of sniffling that slowly increased to a full sobbing cry......or at least it tried to. After just a few seconds, I noticed that, even though I wanted to cry, something was preventing me from doing so! Before too long at all, I stopped crying altogether, and began to think again, but what I was thinking was, 'What the hell happened there?'

I sat there, trying to figure out what had just happened, but just then, the door opened and Penny looked in.

“Oh! You're awake. How do you feel honey?”

“I feel kinda okay, but I just got freaked out a couple of seconds ago.” I replied.

“Why? What happened, Donna?” She asked.

I explained, as best I could, what had happened, and I saw a look of concern come over Penny's face. She came in and sat on the bed, taking my hand in hers.

“Donna,” she began, “I'm not going to sit here and tell you that things aren't going to be very different, for and for all of us. I know how disoriented and confused you must be right now. You feel as if your entire life and future have been taken from you and you're angry, frightened at the prospect of having to live your life a whole different way from what you had always planned. I'm not going to harp about the fact that half of the world is female and we do just fine, thank you. I'm sure I'd be just as scared and confused if I suddenly became a guy, against my will or want. What I will say to you is, what's happened, happened, and we can't change it. Maybe, maybe, Dr. Fine will know of a way to get you out of that suit, but I wouldn't count on it.”

She paused for a minute or two to gather her thoughts and then continued.

What I do know, for a fact, is that you and Jerry are great kids. You two have handled this weirdness better than anyone I know could have. Of course there are going to be 'freakouts' from both of you. I expected them, and so did Jim. What's amazed both of us is how well both of you have been doing, dealing with all your changes. We both expected to end up being a combination of babysitters, and prison guards. Instead, we ended up becoming your friends!”

“Penny,” I interrupted. “I feel the same way about you, Jim, and Paul, but what about Jerry? He's basically told me to get lost! We've been buds forever and now he just walks out on me, on us, on everything? This has been tough enough on me, but I dealt with it by knowing that, whatever happened, Jerry was gonna be there for me! Now he's gone! I..I...I don't know if I can do this anymore if he's not gonna be right there with me!”

Penny started to answer that, when a commotion outside the room interrupted her.

“You people have no right to hold us! We ain't done nothin'! I want a lawyer! And how about some food you small town hick sheriff? None of us have eaten since yesterday!” is what I heard one of the prisoners protesting at the top of his lungs.

Then I heard the Chief answer, saying

“Shut the hell up you piece of crap! We've got all of you on so many charges, I can't even count them all! You'll eat when I say you eat, and not one damn minute before! As for a lawyer, I called several yesterday. There ain't one in this town that wants anything to do with any of you. You don't get it, do you? You jerks tried to kill kids from this town! You interfered with their lives, their families, their businesses, and everything! You'll be lucky if you get outta here alive! Now shut up! One more word outta any of you and I'll tie and gag the bunch of you!!!”

'Way to go, Chief.' I thought to myself. That cheered me up just a little, and I made a move to get out of bed, but Penny stopped me, gently pushing on my chest.

“You just stay right there, honey. I'll go get you something to eat and drink. You still need to rest and get your thoughts together. Remember, you aren't alone. You've got me, Jim, Paul, Terry, your folks, and a lot of others on your side, and we'll all help you as much as we can. Now just relax. I'll be back in a few minutes with some breakfast for you.”

Well, I took her advice. I really did have a lot to think over, and I still had a mystery to solve, as well as trying to get us all out of the situation Jerry and I had put us all into.

I decided to try to find out more about the suit by accessing the HUD displays. Maybe there was something in there that would help me, or everyone. I concentrated and pulled up the initial displays, which were just basic operating instructions for the suits. Nothing there. I started going into the sub-programs, looking for anything that might tell me something, anything! I kept searching until I found a file that was closed to me! I played around with it, trying to find a password, or key phrase, or something that would let me see what was in there, but all I got was some weird story about some guy who saw a spacecraft crash in the Nevada desert and who was supposedly on the run from everything and everyone, taking along some strange technology he found on the ship, picking up some new friends along the way, trying to get to Los Angeles! It seemed really goofy, and incomplete, and sort of perverted until I thought of my own situation, and then it began to make more sense.

What if this was a log of some kind that was inserted into the suits? What if it wasn't just a story? What if the ship in the story was the same one the suits had been found in? All of a sudden, the door opened and in came Penny, with a tray of food. I jumped up, almost dumping the tray right out of her hands! I had to talk to Dr. Fine right away!

Stay tuned. More to come. I need your comments, folks. How'm I doing? Want more? Don't like where it seems to be headed? TELL me!

For cripes sake! As if I didn't have enough other shit to worry about, now I gotta deal with guys hitting on me? Understand, I didn't blame the guy for doing that. Actually, I should have expected it, looking the way I did. I just still wasn't used to looking like that, and he caught me on a bad day.
 

Transformers
(sort of)
Book Two, Chapter Five
By Catherine Linda Michel

 
With everything else that had happened to us since this began, this was just one more thing...one big thing!

I charged out of the room to the cell where they were still treating Dr. Fine.

“Is he awake yet?” I yelled.

“He's been in and out of consciousness a few times, Donna.” Doc Jamison told me. “I don't know how long it'll be, if ever, til he comes completely out of this to full consciousness. With all the stuff they must've pumped into him over the past couple of weeks, there's just no telling. Hell, he might never come out of it completely! I just don't have the equipment here to even tell me what it was they pumped him full of!”

“Well then, why don't you take him to the hospital where they have the right stuff? I said. With the police on our side now, they can set up a guard over him, and some of us can back them up. We have to get him lucid and talking, Doc! I've got questions I need answers for, and he's the only one who might have them!”

“What do you think, Chief?” Doc Jamison asked. Do you think your men can protect him over there?”

“Well, with a couple of these people, and with the capabilities of their armor, I think we can keep him safe.” He replied.

The Chief got on the phone and talked to someone at the hospital. We could only hear one side of the conversation, but it sounded like it was going well. When the Chief put down the phone he turned to me and said,

“Okay, kid. It's all set up. I explained how it was an emergency that we get this Dr. Fine over there for tests and stuff. I told them that there was a chance that there could be violence, but that my men and you all would be there to keep order and make sure nobody over there got hurt. Can you all do it?”

“We have to do it, Chief. I replied. “You just get him there, and we will take care of the rest. If you could have your men stand watch outside the hospital and inside the emergency area, that would help a lot though. Make sure they know that nobody gets inside without either a legitimate emergency, or identification, and have them search anyone who even looks like they don't belong there, and thanks Chief. Having you on our side makes things a lot easier.”

“Aw hell, kid. It's my pleasure. These scum” and he pointed toward the locked up mercenaries, “have made things a living hell for you and your families, not to mention what they did to me and my officers! We'll get your Dr. over there, and then set up. Can your com units monitor the police frequencies?”

“They sure can, Chief.” I said. Some of us will head over there now, and wait for your guys to deliver Dr. Fine. Penny and I will ride in the vehicle with him, just to make sure nothing goes wrong on the way, okay?”

“That'll work great, Donna. With you two along, I'll feel better about sending my officers into this.”

He got on the radio and called in all officers, whether or not they were off duty. He even called the reserve officers and had them stand ready to come in at a moment's notice. I asked Jim, Terry and Paul to head for the hospital and set things up there, and they took off. Then Penny and I, along with four cops, got Dr. Fine into a police van. We made certain he was comfortable and secure in the back and then we got in. Two of the cops led the way in a patrol car, and two more rode in the front of the van, and all had their weapons ready, including some of the fully automatic weapons that had been confiscated from the mercs.

It was a short trip, and we arrived safely at the hospital. We took Dr. Fine in via a seldom used entrance and whisked him off, following a hospital representative who identified himself as the Director. Penny double checked his ID. And then we followed him to a secure wing of the hospital.

Once we got Dr. Fine safely into a room and got a guard order setup, I breathed a little easier. Doc Jamison said he'd be very busy for the next couple of hours, trying to identify what had been used on Dr. Fine, and he'd let us know when he'd found anything.

“Jeeze, Penny.” I exclaimed, after all the hubbub had died down. Dr. Fine has to wake up! I didn't say anything yet, but just before you came in with food this morning, I found a section in the HUD that had some kind of weird story about some guy and stuff he found in a wrecked UFO, out in the Nevada desert! I can't, for the life of me, figure out why that's in there, but the only thing that makes any sense to me right now, is that it has something to do with these suits! Dr. Fine had told us that the originals had been found in a crashed UFO in Nevada. It's just too coincidental!”

“Can you tell me any more about that story, Donna?” Penny asked.

“I didn't look at it for more than a few minutes, Penny, and then I only skipped through it to get the gist of it. It seems just too weird that, of all things, some story would be stored in the HUD, don't you think? It's almost like it's not a story at all, but a file of some real facts!”

“Well honey, why don't you give it a longer look. We have the time right now, and Jim and I, along with the others and the cops, can keep a close eye on things. Said Penny.

So I laid down and accessed that portion of the HUD again, only to find that file was unavailable! I tried several times, in different ways, but every time I came up against the same result. The file was there, but unavailable! I shut the HUD down, disappointed, but hoping that the answers I needed would be there when Dr. Fine finally woke up. I decided to go ahead and re-charge my suit, even though it'd only been a few hours since I'd last done that. You never know when you're gonna need everything you've got, right?

I found a wall socket and, covered by a chair I moved, I plugged in and sat down in the chair to think. I'd told Penny and the others what I was doing, always keeping in constant touch with them and with the police. Penny decided to re-charge also, so the two of us sat there and just talked small talk while I let my subconscious mind work on the problem of the unavailable file. Jim, Terry and Paul were keeping a close watch on Dr. Fine, Doc Jamison, and the elevator doors leading to the floor we were currently on, so I knew that things were safe for the moment.

After a few hours had passed by, I thought about getting something to eat, since I'd missed breakfast. I told Penny what I was going to do and where I was going, namely the cafeteria, and unplugged, having completely re-charged the suit. I then placed all systems on standby to conserve power, and headed to the elevators to go downstairs to the cafeteria. Paul was there, keeping his watch and I told him what I was up to as well, and that I was gonna bring back coffee and sandwiches for everybody. I was halfway down to the cafeteria when I realized, I didn't have any money! I hadn't had any since this whole damn thing had started, actually.

I was wondering what to do about that when I had another thought. I called the Chief on the radio and explained what I was doing and that I was broke. He, in turn, called the Hospital Administrator who told him that he'd call the cafeteria and have them give me whatever we all needed. 'Well, that was easy.' I thought to myself. I thanked the Chief and continued to the cafeteria.

I decided to sit down while there, and eat alone, planning on doing some thinking while I ate, but I'd only been at the table for a couple of minutes when some guy in scrubs, showed up, clearing his throat.

“Um, hi.” He said. I wonder if you'd mind if I sat here. I noticed you when you came in, and I really wanted to meet you. You're very attractive, you know?”

'Oh wonderful!' I thought to myself. 'I try to get something to eat, and do some thinking and this guy wants to sit with me! Aren't there any empty tables?'

He sat down without being told he could, and proceeded to introduce himself.

“I'm Dr. Jensen, a resident here at the hospital. Are you here visiting, or maybe for some tests?”

I decided not to talk to this guy, hoping he'd take a gentle hint and just go away, but that didn't seem to be working. He just went on and on about himself and the hospital, interspersed with questions about me. I was just about to tell this guy to go somewhere and do something physically impossible to himself when it finally dawned on me what he was doing. He was hitting on me! A guy was hitting on me! I started to get angry, but stopped myself when I realized that all he saw was a good looking female he wanted to get to know and maybe date!

“Look, Doc.” I said. “I'm tired, I'm irritable, and I'm not in the market for a boyfriend. I'm only here to eat and get back upstairs to wait for test results on a friend of mine. If you don't mind, I'd like to be left alone.”

That didn't seem to slow him down though.

“Oh?” He continued. “What floor is your friend on? I might be able to help you get some word quicker.” He didn't even seem to be fazed by my rudeness!

I sighed deeply, a mistake when I thought about it, since it lifted my breasts, and told him again that I just wanted to be left alone.

“Look honey,” he started again. “I only wanted to...” and I stopped him right there.

“Look yourself, Doctor!” I said, angrily. “All I want is to eat and be left alone! Maybe I didn't make that clear before, but I'm making it clear now! Get up and take a hike! I don't want or need your help, and I'm not interested in getting to know you. Is that clear enough?”

He looked at me with hurt looking eyes and said.

“Okay, okay! Jeeze! I just wanted to talk to you and maybe get to know you! I wasn't gonna do anything, you know? I hope your friend comes through okay!” and he got up, grabbed his tray and stalked away to an open table where he slammed his tray down and sat down.

For cripes sake! As if I didn't have enough other shit to worry about, now I gotta deal with guys hitting on me? Understand, I didn't blame the guy for doing that. Actually, I should have expected it, looking the way I did. I just still wasn't used to looking like that, and he caught me on a bad day. Heh. Bad day. I sat there just for a few minutes more, trying to remember if there had been a good day since this whole crazy adventure had begun. 'Nope.' I thought to myself. 'I can't recall one good day since Jerry and I got stuck in these damned suits!'

When I finally got up from the table and went to dump the trash, I looked over at the doctor who'd hit on me, and noticed that he seemed to be having a not-so-good day himself. He looked like he was ready to cry or something, with his face all scrunched up with a pained look on it. I don't know why, to this day, but I felt sorta bad for him. I mean he couldn't possibly have known my situation, or that I was just as male as he was. It was just camouflaged real well by the suit. Finally I had to walk over and say something to him.

“Excuse me, Doc? I just wanted to apologize for chewing you out over there. I've had a bunch of really bad days lately, and I just snapped. You just happened to be the one in the way of that, and I'm sorry.”

He looked up at me from where he was sitting and didn't say anything for a few seconds. Then, finally, he spoke saying,

“Hey, no. It was my fault. I should know better than to try that kind of thing inside the place where I work. It seems like I never meet anyone who is having a good day in here. Every day I have to see people on the worst day they've ever had, and I have to try to heal them, make them better. Sometimes I can...sometimes I can't, and those are the worst. When I have to tell someone that they are going to die...when I have to tell some husband, or wife, Father or Mother, that their loved one isn't gonna make it...well, it just eats me up inside. So I try to take whatever joy I can, in the moment. In your case, I wasn't lying. You are the most beautiful woman I think I've ever seen, and I let that thought dictate what I did. So, if anything, it's me who owes you an apology. Can you forgive me?”

While he was talking, his face and voice got all sincere and hurt sounding and looking. I found myself feeling sorry for this man who, every day, had to try to help sick and injured people get well, or to let down the relatives and loved ones of those he knew wouldn't make it. It kinda made my little problems seem really small, and I sat down opposite him at his table, reaching out to touch his hands which were clasped in front of him, on top of the table.

“Hey.” I began. “I guess I do sorta understand. Why don't we just leave it at this. We both owe the other one an apology. That way everything comes out even, right?”

He looked across the table at me, staring into my eyes. Then he said,

“Beautiful and smart! Also, kind and understanding. A rare find indeed, and yes, I can leave it at both of us owing the other an apology. Can I ask you one other thing?”

I found it difficult to look away. It seemed like I was mesmerized by his eyes and the earnest expression on his face.

“I guess so.” I replied.

He looked down for a second and then back at me.

“I really meant what I said. I do apologize for hitting on you, but in my own defense, you are incredibly lovely. May I make it up to you somehow? Maybe dinner, or dancing, or a movie or something? I swear I'll be a perfect gentleman...please?

I sat there, absolutely baffled! He was hitting on me again! I felt insulted, but...at the same time, I felt...special, somehow, and that freaked me out even more than getting hit on! I pulled my hand back from his and just sat there, not knowing what to say or what to do. Finally I just got up without answering him, and walked away. I was almost out of the cafeteria when I remembered the food and stuff I was supposed to being to the others, and I stopped dead in my tracks. I looked back at the doctor and almost fled the cafeteria, but instead, I went up to the counter, ordered the food and drinks, and waited while they got it ready to go.

I felt, rather than saw, the doctor get up and slowly walk to the trash cans where he dumped his tray. Out of the corner of my eye I saw him look at me for a few, long seconds, and then, with a big sigh, a shrug of his shoulders, and a hurt look on his face, he walked out. I breathed a sigh myself, from relief, but there was something else too. Did I feel disappointed? What the hell?

I was so lost in thought, I was surprised when I heard someone talking to me.

“Miss? Oh miss? Your food is ready. Miss?”

I snapped out of wherever I'd just been, mentally, and, seeing the food all wrapped up, I told the cashier my name and told her that the Director had assured me that the bill would be added to whatever bills my friend ran up while here. She checked a list attached to her register and, verifying that my name was on there, she said,

“Okay, honey. Everything is all set. You can go ahead and take this stuff to your friends.”

She busied herself making a note on her list, and I thanked her, picking up the tray full of food and drinks, my mind a hundred miles away. She must have noticed my pre-occupation because she reached out and touched my arm as I started to leave.

“Honey, it's probably none of my business, but I saw what went on between you and Dr. Howard, and I don't want you to get the wrong idea about him. He's really a sweet guy, but he has been getting more and more withdrawn over the last few weeks. I don't know what's wrong with him, and he never says anything, but he's not the same guy who started work here a couple years ago. I just don't want you to get the wrong idea about him. He's not a lech, or some guy on the make. I think he's just lonely and maybe even getting burned out here. It's a shame really. He's so cute, and such a good doctor. Maybe he just needs a good woman to straighten him out.”

I didn't know what the hell to say to her, or how to answer her. My mind was going a hundred miles an hour, with thoughts chasing each other around, faster than the coyote chasing that damned Road Runner! I just thanked her for her concern and walked away. I walked past the elevator three times before I remembered that it was the one I needed, to get back to the others. What the hell was happening to me? Had I actually agreed with that cashier, that the doctor was cute? My head was spinning, and, when the elevator car stopped at my floor, I got off, balancing the tray full of food and drinks, and wandered down the hallway to the waiting area, where I put the tray down on a table.

“Well, it's about time you got back, Donna!” I heard Penny say. “We're starving and dying of thirst up here,” She giggled.

As pre-occupied as I was, I didn't even respond to what she said. She must have sensed something was wrong, because she got up and came over to me, taking my hands in hers.

“What's wrong, Donna?” she began. “You seem like you're a hundred miles away from here. Did something happen while you were gone? Talk to me, honey.”

I didn't know what the hell to tell her, but finally, it all came flowing out of me, like a dam breaking.

“Oh my God, Penny! I was down there getting the stuff and this guy, some doctor hit on me! I didn't know what to do, and I was mean to him, but then I said I was sorry and he said he was sorry and then he held my hand and asked me out on a date or something and I didn't know what to say or do and I just got up and left, but then I had to go back and get the stuff and then he left like he was all sad or something and then the cashier was telling me who he was and how she was all worried about him, and, and, and, I thought he was cute!!” and at that point, I broke down in tears, shaking all over and very, very scared. “What's happening to me, Penny? I think this suit is turning me gay or something!”

Penny pulled me into her arms and hugged me while I sobbed on her shoulder. She didn't say anything, she just held me and let me cry until I began to wind down, while she made comforting noises in my ear and stroked my hair. When I calmed down a little bit, she led me over to a couch and made me lie down. She knelt down next to the couch and kept stroking my hair and whispering to me.

“Shhh. Shhhh honey. I don't know what's happening either, but I don't think it's something to worry about right now. We have too many other things to worry about. I'm sure that what happened is just a result of the past week or so, and the stress you've been under. Also, because of what you told me about the suit, it might be partly behind this as well, but let's not try to analyze this right now. You need to rest and the rest of us need to stay alert until we can get Dr. Fine awake and somewhere safe. After we get those things done, then maybe we can try to figure this out. For now, try to put it out of your mind and just rest.”

She kept talking to me quietly, and kept stroking my hair until I dropped off into a troubled sleep. What happened after that was told to me by Jim.

Apparently, about three hours after I fell asleep, Doc. Jamison came in and said he'd finally figured out what had been used on Dr. Fine, and he knew how to counteract it. He thought that Dr. Fine might be waking up sometime that evening, and should suffer no ill effects from having been drugged up for so long.

There had also been some kind of commotion when someone tried to gain access to the area we were guarding, and Jim and Paul had to forceably remove two people claiming to be doctors. My friends decided to let me sleep after conferring with Penny and learning what had happened to me, and turned the two supposed doctors over to hospital security. There had been no other incidents and, when I awoke, a few hours after that, they told me the good news about Dr. Fine, and about the two pretenders.

I awoke feeling somewhat better, though the incident in the cafeteria was still in my mind. I told the others that I was okay, but I don't think I was very convincing. Still, they let me take things at my own pace and no one referred to it.

Just for the hell of it, I accessed the HUD again, hoping maybe I'd find some kind of answer there. I flashed through the first few screens, checking for that story I'd seen before, but there was still nothing where it had been. There was something different in another area though. Under a heading that said; “Adaptability Levels,” and in a subheading, I found a file entitled “Hormone Inception and Progress!” What the hell??

It said that hormones had been being introduced into me shortly after the bonding process had taken place...female hormones! It showed a graph that showed me I was right in the middle between male and female, headed to the feminine side, and a timetable that said in 5 more days, I'd be at optimum hormone balance...for a woman!!

Chapter 6 of Transformers Sort of

I joined the others after a bit more studying of what the HUD was telling me. I was so disheartened and down but they all had a right to know what was happening to me.

“So, now you know what I now know. This suit is changing me into a real female and there's nothing I can do about it. I'm not happy about it at all, but I have to accept what is, so lets more on to our other more pressing problems. Who are these SOBs who keep trying to take the suits from us? We can deal with finding Jerry and trying to bring him back into the fold later, I guess.”

Penny rushed to my side and hugged me, followed closely by my Mom and Dad.

“I cried, but continued through my tears, saying: “I don't think there is any danger to any of the rest of you wearing the newer suits though. I think there was something special in this one, even more special than the one Jerry got. I also don't think this was ever supposed to happen to anyone. Somehow, Dr. Fine stumbled into some kind of special programming and put it in this suit. I don't doubt he intended to program all the new series of suits, but got derailed by the collapse of the lab and the kidnapping.”

Dr. Fine broke in, saying, “Now see here young... er... lady, man, person! I'll have you know that I stumbled into nothing! I knew what I was doing, but never thought anyone would have the bad fortune to experience what you have had happen! This is all the fault of your friend Jerry and his horsing around and that infernal thief Dr. Charles, that no good charlatan! I refuse to take full responsibility for all that has happened because of carelessness and thievery!

“I know, Dr. Fine.” I said. “However, you were messing around with things you barely understood. I don't hold you fully responsible for what's happened to us, but you do have to shoulder some of the blame. Well anyway, let's get on with what we're here for. Terry? Any news from your inquisitive friends?”

“Not a lot, Donna. They have nailed down a possible connection and a location for what might be a base of operations for this Dr. Fine, but they also don't think that he is much in control anymore, if he ever really was. They mentioned something about gun runners, but that seems a bit farfetched to me. These suits aren't guns after all.”

Jim piped up. “You're right Terry, and wrong. No the suits aren't guns, but they're much worse! Just think about what these suits can do, and then multiply that by dozens of them, or even hundreds! Anyone with the right amount of pull, and the resources, could literally command a damned army of these things! They could destabilize any government and practically take over whole countries! My God, the damage they could do is almost incalculable!”

“You're right Jim. I hadn't thought about that possibility. I guess I've been too close to the real danger to recognize the terrible things these suits could do in the wrong hands! Okay. My friends also gave me a location. It's in California, near L.A. They also said something about some underground mumblings about another group of people in possession of some alien tech. I think we should hear there as soon as possible and find out what's going on there. Who knows. We might even find some allies.”

Jim and Penny then sorta took over and began organizing the journey. I was still a bit muddled and didn't contribute much at all, but they had us ready to go in almost no time at all. We were on the road and preparing for what we might have to do and how to do it when we got to California and L.A.

Penny tried to spare some time to try to get me into the right frame of mind, but I was so caught up in what the suit was doing and about Jerry that she didn't have much luck at all. Finally she just pitched in with the preparations and left me to think about my life and where it was gonna go from here.

We purchased a large Suburban vehicle that was in good shape and loaded up. We decided to pose as a group of tourists, a couple of whom happened to be twins. Dr. Fine was left in the care and keeping of the Police Chief. We couldn't place him in any more danger than he was already in, but we took along a couple of satellite phones so we could contact him immediately if we needed him to identify Dr. Charles or anything else.

I couldn't help wondering what Jerry might be getting into. Probably trouble if I knew him. Without me around, Jerry was a bit of a wild man, given to take risks he shouldn't take. I tried to call his phone, but it went right to voicemail, which worried me even more.

What if he had been taken by the “bad guys”? What if he had done something hugely stupid and told someone else about the suits? Where was he gonna stay? Our parents were safe with Paul and there was no one home at his old house. Plus, if he foolishly thought he could stay at his old house, he'd be easy for the “bad guys” to find! What was he gonna do for money?

I shoulda known that Jerry would eventually live up to his “wild child” image. I mean, I'd kinda kept him on a pretty tight leash, so to speak. Every time it looked like he would go off the rails, I was there to keep him on the relatively straight and narrow. Well, there was very kittle I could do about it right now anyway, so I tried to put it in the back of my mind and hope that he was okay and would contact me if he got in too deep.

We loaded into the Suburban, a 9 passenger model, and pointed the nose of the car west, hoping to at least reach L.A. Without any more run-ins from the Mercenaries trying to kidnap us, or steal the suits, or both. With only the four of us in the vehicle, there was plenty of room to stretch out and still not be crowded by all our gear and the weapons we'd confiscated.

I tried to close my eyes and nap, but the suit kept on giving me more messages about the progress of this and that. Finally I found a mental switch that I could use to silence the messages for a set period of time. Emergency messages would break the silence function, so if anything happened, I would be awakened immediately.

There was very little conversation once we'd set off. I'm sure everyone was wondering what we'd find, what would happen to me and Jerry and making some kind of plans for what e were gonna do if and when we found who was after the suits and why.

Pennt woke me up after some time. I asked, “Where are we?”

“We just crossed from Nevada into California. There's been no trouble yet. Maybe we've lost those mercenaries for awhile. We could use some downtime from constantly worrying about them all the time.”

“Yeah Penny.” I snorted, a bit sarcastically. Sure. Why they've probably given up trying to kidnap us, capture the suits and gone to sulk somewhere. Don't get our hopes up Penny. They aren't gonna stop until they get us, or we hurt them bad enough that they can't do anything for a long, long time.”

“Yeah kid.” Terry interjected. Unfortunately I agree with you. Those so and so's won't give up until they're either called off by their boss, whoever that is, or until we hurt them so badly that they can't do anything more than lay flat on their backs in a hospital healing up for a long time. Actually I'm almost as worried about running into some overzealous public servants, cops. God knows how we're gonna explain who we are, especially with the load of weapons and ammo we're carrying with us.”

“Heh, yeah!” I laughed. I can just hear us trying to convince them that we're just a touring group or something, and just wait til they try to search us of restrain us. I don't think standard issue handcuffs would hold any of us if we don't wanna be held.”

“Maybe we oughta travel only at night.” Jim put in. As long as we stay below the speed limits and don't do anything suspicious, they might not think we're anything other than we're trying to make it look like we are. We just want to make sure there are no other reasons to stop and check us, like having a headlight or taillight not working.”

“Tell you what.” came from Terry. Let's stop at the first fast food place and get something to eat. We can check all the lights and other stuff then. The dealer we bought this thing from set us up with plates, registration and insurance, but our drivers licenses don't look anything like we look like in these suits.”

“Sounds like a plan, Terry.” Penny said. “I am kinda hungry and we could use that time to check those lights and things you were talking about. Sound good to you, kid?”

“Yeah. It sure does. Seems like it's been forever since I had any fast food and I'm really up for a double Quarter pounder from the Golden Starches or maybe some chicken from the Colonel.” I said, licking my lips at the thought of some of that lovely greasy food.

So, we settled on the plan and took the next exit that advertised several fast food places. We ended up at Mickey D's after all and, while Terry and Jim checked the vehicle over, Penny went inside to order food for all of us. After a fast check of lights and stuff, Jim went inside to help penny carry everything out to us. We hadn't used the drive-thru to order because there was too much chance that someone would notice the twins and remember us because of that. As it was, just Penny and Jim would cause a bit of a stir because of the good looks the suits imposed on them.

We sat in the suburban and ate our food, always on the watch for anything suspicious, like overly interested cops, or gangs of armed people rushing the Suburban. You know, the usual stuff like that.

'Usual.' I thought to myself. 'What could possibly be considered usual in our situation?' Hell, at this point I was almost ready to see a dancing bear on rollerskates, wearing a Lolita outfit and juggling stuffed animals! Usual!

When we finished our meal we drove off, looking for somewhere to park the 'Burban and to get some rest. We wanted to wait until dark before we hit the road again.

SPOILER BELOW!

An Interlude: Somewhere else.

“I told you we should have never hired that Earthling to find the relics we were sent here to recover! All he's done is let his greed get in the way which has led to others getting involved and several of the Earthlings who have had nothing to do with and didn't even know what the suits really are, have had their lives changed by that cursed Dr. Charles.

Why, he and his minions may very well try to keep the suits, if he recovers them, and keep them for his own nefarious purposes! This screwup on your part is almost worse than when you lost track of that other human who took things from the crashed craft in the desert!

I'm telling you Zox, if this gets back to the home planet, we will both be disassociated and forgotten. Stricken from the Family's memories as if we'd never existed at all!”

“I know Xalxn! Gods know, I know! Who would have dreamed that humans were so greedy and violent? That scout ship should never have gotten so close to that large, rocky thing that damaged their ship!”

“Mountain Zox. They are called mountains by the earthlings!”

“ The scout ships are called mountains by the earthlings? How did they even know about them?
We have been observing this planet for centuries and have never been discovered by them.

“No you colossal idiot! The rocky things are called mountains! How in creation did you ever qualify for this recovery mission? Anyway, your picking that Dr. Charles as an undercover recovery source may be the most colossal blunder in eons! Now we are faced by the almost impossible task of not only recovering those suits and the disguise kit, but we will have to come up with some way to do all that and keep the earthlings from discovering more than we can afford for them to know and keep the home world from finding out that we so massively blundered!”

FROM THE AUTHOR: I'm reaching a difficult point in this story, and the next part might be a bit longer in getting done. I'm having a few personal problems, related to my HRT and finances, that are getting in the way of writing as well. Please bear with me as I work through this small crisis, and comment, comment, comment...please?

FROM THE AUTHOR. SINCE IT'S BEEN SEVERAL YEARS SINCE I LAST POSTED ANYTHING IN THIS SERIES, I DECIDED TO REPEAT PARTS OF CHAPTER 5 TO MAKE IT A BIT EASIER FOR OLD FANS AND NEW READERS TO EASE BACK INTO THE STORY. THERE IS A BIT OF A SPOILER AT THE END OF THIS POST, SO IF YOU DON'T WANT TO SPOIL THE STORY FOR YOURSELF, DON'T READ IT. I'M POSTING THIS IN THE HOPE THAT I CAN FINALLY COMPLETE THIS LONG NEGLECTED STORY OF MINE, ALONG WITH ANOTHER ONE, MY "LUCK BE A LADY."

IF YOU HAVEN'T READ THE PREVIOUS CHAPTERS OF THIS STORY, I SUGGEST YOU DO SO BEFORE YOU READ THIS CONTINUATION. ALSO, MY STORY "LUCK BE A LADY."

For cripes sake! As if I didn't have enough other shit to worry about, now I gotta deal with guys hitting on me? Understand, I didn't blame the guy for doing that. Actually, I should have expected it, looking the way I did. I just still wasn't used to looking like that, and he caught me on a bad day.

Transformers
(sort of)

Book Two, Chapter Five

By Catherine Linda Michel

With everything else that had happened to us since this began, this was just one more thing...one big thing!

I charged out of the room to the cell where they were still treating Dr. Fine.

“Is he awake yet?” I yelled.

“He's been in and out of consciousness a few times, Donna.” Doc Jamison told me. “I don't know how long it'll be, if ever, til he comes completely out of this to full consciousness. With all the stuff they must've pumped into him over the past couple of weeks, there's just no telling. Hell, he might never come out of it completely! I just don't have the equipment here to even tell me what it was they pumped him full of!”

“Well then, why don't you take him to the hospital where they have the right stuff? “I said.” With the police on our side now, they can set up a guard over him, and some of us can back them up. We have to get him lucid and talking, Doc! I've got questions I need answers for, and he's the only one who might have them!”

“What do you think, Chief?” Doc Jamison asked. Do you think your men can protect him over there?”

“Well, with a couple of these people, and with the capabilities of their armor, I think we can keep him safe.” He replied.

The Chief got on the phone and talked to someone at the hospital. We could only hear one side of the conversation, but it sounded like it was going well. When the Chief put down the phone he turned to me and said,

“Okay, kid. It's all set up. I explained how it was an emergency that we get this Dr. Fine over there for tests and stuff. I told them that there was a chance that there could be violence, but that my men and you all would be there to keep order and make sure nobody over there got hurt. Can you all do it?”

“We have to do it, Chief.” I replied.” “You just get him there, and we will take care of the rest. If you could have your men stand watch outside the hospital and inside the emergency area, that would help a lot though. Make sure they know that nobody gets inside without either a legitimate emergency, or identification, and have them search anyone who even looks like they don't belong there, and thanks Chief. Having you on our side makes things a lot easier.”

“Aw hell, kid. It's my pleasure. These scum” and he pointed toward the locked up mercenaries, “have made things a living hell for you and your families, not to mention what they did to me and my officers! We'll get your Dr. over there, and then set up. Can your com units monitor the police frequencies?”

“They sure can, Chief.” I said. Some of us will head over there now, and wait for your guys to deliver Dr. Fine. Penny and I will ride in the vehicle with him, just to make sure nothing goes wrong on the way, okay?”

“That'll work great, Donna. With you two along, I'll feel better about sending my officers into this.”

He got on the radio and called in all officers, whether or not they were off duty. He even called the reserve officers and had them stand ready to come in at a moment's notice. I asked Jim, Terry and Paul to head for the hospital and set things up there, and they took off. Then Penny and I, along with four cops, got Dr. Fine into a police van. We made certain he was comfortable and secure in the back and then we got in. Two of the cops led the way in a patrol car, and two more rode in the front of the van, and all had their weapons ready, including some of the fully automatic weapons that had been confiscated from the mercs.

It was a short trip, and we arrived safely at the hospital. We took Dr. Fine in via a seldom used entrance and whisked him off, following a hospital representative who identified himself as the Director. Penny double checked his ID. And then we followed him to a secure wing of the hospital.

Once we got Dr. Fine safely into a room and got a guard order setup, I breathed a little easier. Doc Jamison said he'd be very busy for the next couple of hours, trying to identify what had been used on Dr. Fine, and he'd let us know when he'd found anything.

“Jeeze, Penny.” I exclaimed, after all the hubbub had died down. Dr. Fine has to wake up! I didn't say anything yet, but just before you came in with food this morning, I found a section in the HUD that had some kind of weird story about some guy and stuff he found in a wrecked UFO, out in the Nevada desert! I can't, for the life of me, figure out why that's in there, but the only thing that makes any sense to me right now, is that it has something to do with these suits! Dr. Fine had told us that the originals had been found in a crashed UFO in Nevada. It's just too coincidental!”

“Can you tell me any more about that story, Donna?” Penny asked.

“I didn't look at it for more than a few minutes, Penny, and then I only skipped through it to get the gist of it. It seems just too weird that, of all things, some story would be stored in the HUD, don't you think? It's almost like it's not a story at all, but a file of some real facts!”

“Well honey, why don't you give it a longer look. We have the time right now, and Jim and I, along with the others and the cops, can keep a close eye on things. Said Penny.

So I laid down and accessed that portion of the HUD again, only to find that file was unavailable! I tried several times, in different ways, but every time I came up against the same result. The file was there, but unavailable! I shut the HUD down, disappointed, but hoping that the answers I needed would be there when Dr. Fine finally woke up. I decided to go ahead and re-charge my suit, even though it'd only been a few hours since I'd last done that. You never know when you're gonna need everything you've got, right?

I found a wall socket and, covered by a chair I moved, I plugged in and sat down in the chair to think. I'd told Penny and the others what I was doing, always keeping in constant touch with them and with the police. Penny decided to re-charge also, so the two of us sat there and just talked small talk while I let my subconscious mind work on the problem of the unavailable file. Jim, Terry and Paul were keeping a close watch on Dr. Fine, Doc Jamison, and the elevator doors leading to the floor we were currently on, so I knew that things were safe for the moment.

After a few hours had passed by, I thought about getting something to eat, since I'd missed breakfast. I told Penny what I was going to do and where I was going, namely the cafeteria, and unplugged, having completely re-charged the suit. I then placed all systems on standby to conserve power, and headed to the elevators to go downstairs to the cafeteria. Paul was there, keeping his watch and I told him what I was up to as well, and that I was gonna bring back coffee and sandwiches for everybody. I was halfway down to the cafeteria when I realized, I didn't have any money! I hadn't had any since this whole damn thing had started, actually.

I was wondering what to do about that when I had another thought. I called the Chief on the radio and explained what I was doing and that I was broke. He, in turn, called the Hospital Administrator who told him that he'd call the cafeteria and have them give me whatever we all needed. 'Well, that was easy.' I thought to myself. I thanked the Chief and continued to the cafeteria.

I decided to sit down while there, and eat alone, planning on doing some thinking while I ate, but I'd only been at the table for a couple of minutes when some guy in scrubs, showed up, clearing his throat.

“Um, hi.” He said. I wonder if you'd mind if I sat here. I noticed you when you came in, and I really wanted to meet you. You're very attractive, you know?”

'Oh wonderful!' I thought to myself. 'I try to get something to eat, and do some thinking and this guy wants to sit with me! Aren't there any empty tables?'

He sat down without being told he could, and proceeded to introduce himself.

“I'm Dr. Jensen, a resident here at the hospital. Are you here visiting, or maybe for some tests?”

I decided not to talk to this guy, hoping he'd take a gentle hint and just go away, but that didn't seem to be working. He just went on and on about himself and the hospital, interspersed with questions about me. I was just about to tell this guy to go somewhere and do something physically impossible to himself when it finally dawned on me what he was doing. He was hitting on me! A guy was hitting on me! I started to get angry, but stopped myself when I realized that all he saw was a good looking female he wanted to get to know and maybe date!

“Look, Doc.” I said. “I'm tired, I'm irritable, and I'm not in the market for a boyfriend. I'm only here to eat and get back upstairs to wait for test results on a friend of mine. If you don't mind, I'd like to be left alone.”

That didn't seem to slow him down though.

“Oh?” He continued. “What floor is your friend on? I might be able to help you get some word quicker.” He didn't even seem to be fazed by my rudeness!

I sighed deeply, a mistake when I thought about it, since it lifted my breasts, and told him again that I just wanted to be left alone.

“Look honey,” he started again. “I only wanted to...” and I stopped him right there.

“Look yourself, Doctor!” I said, angrily. “All I want is to eat and be left alone! Maybe I didn't make that clear before, but I'm making it clear now! Get up and take a hike! I don't want or need your help, and I'm not interested in getting to know you. Is that clear enough?”

He looked at me with hurt looking eyes and said.

“Okay, okay! Jeeze! I just wanted to talk to you and maybe get to know you! I wasn't gonna do anything, you know? I hope your friend comes through okay!” and he got up, grabbed his tray and stalked away to an open table where he slammed his tray down and sat down.

For cripes sake! As if I didn't have enough other shit to worry about, now I gotta deal with guys hitting on me? Understand, I didn't blame the guy for doing that. Actually, I should have expected it, looking the way I did. I just still wasn't used to looking like that, and he caught me on a bad day. Heh. Bad day. I sat there just for a few minutes more, trying to remember if there had been a good day since this whole crazy adventure had begun. 'Nope.' I thought to myself. 'I can't recall one good day since Jerry and I got stuck in these damned suits!'

When I finally got up from the table and went to dump the trash, I looked over at the doctor who'd hit on me, and noticed that he seemed to be having a not-so-good day himself. He looked like he was ready to cry or something, with his face all scrunched up with a pained look on it. I don't know why, to this day, but I felt sorta bad for him. I mean he couldn't possibly have known my situation, or that I was just as male as he was. It was just camouflaged real well by the suit. Finally I had to walk over and say something to him.

“Excuse me, Doc? I just wanted to apologize for chewing you our over there. I've had a bunch of really bad days lately, and I just snapped. You just happened to be the one in the way of that, and I'm sorry.”

He looked up at me from where he was sitting and didn't say anything for a few seconds. Then, finally, he spoke saying,

“Hey, no. It was my fault. I should know better than to try that kind of thing inside the place where I work. It seems like I never meet anyone who is having a good day in here. Every day I have to see people on the worst day they've ever had, and I have to try to heal them, make them better. Sometimes I can...sometimes I can't, and those are the worst. When I have to tell someone that they are going to die...when I have to tell some husband, or wife, Father or Mother, or even worse, their children that their loved one isn't gonna make it...well, it just eats me up inside. So I try to take whatever joy I can, in the moment. In your case, I wasn't lying. You are the most beautiful woman I think I've ever seen, and I let that thought dictate what I did. So, if anything, it's me who owes you an apology. Can you forgive me?”

While he was talking, his face and voice got all sincere and hurt sounding and looking. I found myself feeling sorry for this man who, every day, had to try to help sick and injured people get well, or to let down the relatives and loved ones of those he knew wouldn't make it. It kinda made my little problems seem really small, and I sat down opposite him at his table, reaching out to touch his hands which were clasped in front of him, on top of the table.

“Hey.” I began. “I guess I do sorta understand. Why don't we just leave it at this. We both owe the other one an apology. That way everything comes out even, right?”

He looked across the table at me, staring into my eyes. Then he said,

“Beautiful and smart! Also, kind and understanding. A rare find indeed, and yes, I can leave it at both of us owing the other an apology. Can I ask you one other thing?”

I found it difficult to look away. It seemed like I was mesmerized by his eyes and the earnest expression on his face.

“I guess so.” I replied.

He looked down for a second and then back at me.

“I really meant what I said. I do apologize for hitting on you, but in my own defense, you are incredibly lovely. May I make it up to you somehow? Maybe dinner, or dancing, or a movie or something? I swear I'll be a perfect gentleman...please?

I sat there, absolutely baffled! He was hitting on me again! I felt insulted, but...at the same time, I felt...special, somehow, and that freaked me out even more than getting hit on! I pulled my hand back from his and just sat there, not knowing what to say or what to do. Finally I just got up without answering him, and walked away. I was almost out of the cafeteria when I remembered the food and stuff I was supposed to being to the others, and I stopped dead in my tracks. I looked back at the doctor and almost fled the cafeteria, but instead, I went up to the counter, ordered the food and drinks, and waited while they got it ready to go.

I felt, rather than saw, the doctor get up and slowly walk to the trash cans where he dumped his tray. Out of the corner of my eye I saw him look at me for a few, long seconds, and then, with a big sigh, a shrug of his shoulders, and a hurt look on his face, he walked out. I breathed a sigh myself, from relief, but there was something else too. Did I feel disappointed? What the hell?

I was so lost in thought, I was surprised when I heard someone talking to me.

“Miss? Oh miss? Your food is ready. Miss?”

I snapped out of wherever I'd just been, mentally, and, seeing the food all wrapped up, I told the cashier my name and told her that the Director had assured me that the bill would be added to whatever bills my friend ran up while here. She checked a list attached to her register and, verifying that my name was on there, she said,

“Okay, honey. Everything is all set. You can go ahead and take this stuff to your friends.”

She busied herself making a note on her list, and I thanked her, picking up the tray full of food and drinks, my mind a hundred miles away. She must have noticed my pre-occupation because she reached out and touched my arm as I started to leave.

“Honey, it's probably none of my business, but I saw what went on between you and Dr. Howard, and I don't want you to get the wrong idea about him. He's really a sweet guy, but he has been getting more and more withdrawn over the last few weeks. I don't know what's wrong with him, and he never says anything, but he's not the same guy who started work here a couple years ago. I just don't want you to get the wrong idea about him. He's not a lech, or some guy on the make. I think he's just lonely and maybe even getting burned out here. It's a shame really. He's so cute, and such a good doctor. Maybe he just needs a good woman to straighten him out.”

I didn't know what the hell to say to her, or how to answer her. My mind was going a hundred miles an hour, with thoughts chasing each other around, faster than the coyote chasing that damned Road Runner! I just thanked her for her concern and walked away. I walked past the elevator three times before I remembered that it was the one I needed, to get back to the others. What the hell was happening to me? Had I actually agreed with that cashier, that the doctor was cute? My head was spinning, and, when the elevator car stopped at my floor, I got off, balancing the tray full of food and drinks, and wandered down the hallway to the waiting area, where I put the tray down on a table.

“Well, it's about time you got back, Donna!” I heard Penny say. “We're starving and dying of thirst up here,” She giggled.

As pre-occupied as I was, I didn't even respond to what she said. She must have sensed something was wrong, because she got up and came over to me, taking my hands in hers.

“What's wrong, Donna?” she began. “You seem like you're a hundred miles away from here. Did something happen while you were gone? Talk to me, honey.”

I didn't know what the hell to tell her, but finally, it all came flowing out of me, like a dam breaking.

“Oh my God, Penny! I was down there getting the stuff and this guy, some doctor, hit on me! I didn't know what to do, and I was mean to him, but then I said I was sorry and he said he was sorry and then he held my hand and asked me out on a date or something and I didn't know what to say or do and I just got up and left, but then I had to go back and get the stuff and then he left like he was all sad or something and then the cashier was telling me who he was and how she was all worried about him, and, and, and, I thought he was cute!!” and at that point, I broke down in tears, shaking all over and very, very scared. “What's happening to me, Penny? I think this suit is turning me gay or something!”

Penny pulled me into her arms and hugged me while I sobbed on her shoulder. She didn't say anything, she just held me and let me cry until I began to wind down, while she made comforting noises in my ear and stroked my hair. When I calmed down a little bit, she led me over to a couch and made me lie down. She knelt down next to the couch and kept stroking my hair and whispering to me.

“Shhh. Shhhh honey. I don't know what's happening either, but I don't think it's something to worry about right now. We have too many other things to worry about. I'm sure that what happened is just a result of the past week or so, and the stress you've been under. Also, because of what you told me about the suit, it might be partly behind this as well, but let's not try to analyze this right now. You need to rest and the rest of us need to stay alert until we can get Dr. Fine awake and somewhere safe. After we get those things done, then maybe we can try to figure this out. For now, try to put it out of your mind and just rest.”

She kept talking to me quietly, and kept stroking my hair until I dropped off into a troubled sleep. What happened after that was told to me by Jim.

Apparently, about three hours after I fell asleep, Doc. Jamison came in and said he'd finally figured out what had been used on Dr. Fine, and he knew how to counteract it. He thought that Dr. Fine might be waking up sometime that evening, and should suffer no ill effects from having been drugged up for so long.

There had also been some kind of commotion when someone tried to gain access to the area we were guarding, and Jim and Paul had to forceably remove two people claiming to be doctors. My friends decided to let me sleep after conferring with Penny and learning what had happened to me, and turned the two supposed doctors over to hospital security. There had been no other incidents and, when I awoke, a few hours after that, they told me the good news about Dr. Fine, and about the two pretenders.

I awoke feeling somewhat better, though the incident in the cafeteria was still in my mind. I told the others that I was okay, but I don't think I was very convincing. Still, they let me take things at my own pace and no one referred to it.

Just for the hell of it, I accessed the HUD again, hoping maybe I'd find some kind of answer there. I flashed through the first few screens, checking for that story I'd seen before, but there was still nothing where it had been. There was something different in another area though. Under a heading that said; “Adaptability Levels,” and in a subheading, I found a file entitled “Hormone Inception and Progress!” What the hell??

It said that hormones had been being introduced into me shortly after the bonding process had taken place...female hormones! It showed a graph that showed me I was right in the middle between male and female, headed to the feminine side, and a timetable that said in 5 more days, I'd be at optimum hormone balance...for a woman!!

FROM THE AUTHOR:
This is where my vision for this story hit a series of landmines and I lost the thread of how I was trying to finish the story.Well, a few years have passed and some of my landmines have been replaced by others, but I found, in the new minefield, inspiration for the end of the story so without further ado I present...The beginning of the end of TRANSFORMERS SORT OF, NOW RETITLED "SUITED FOR ADVENTURE", "SUITED FOR DANGER" WITH MORE YET TO COME..IF YOU, THE READERS WANT.

TO REMIND MYSELF AND YOU AS TO WHO IS WHO

Paul and Terry are wearing the old suits. Jim and Penny are wearing the newer suits. All the family members of Don, Jerry, Jim and Penny's have been secured with Paul as guard, in a secret place known only to Paul and Terry.

Don(na), Jim, Penny and Terry are moving on to find out who is behind the attempted attacks and who kidnapped Dr. Fine and why. Jerry has seemingly gone rogue, and the “Bad Guys” make themselves much better known!

Chapter 6 of Transformers Sort of

I joined the others after a bit more studying of what the HUD was telling me. I was so disheartened and down but they all had a right to know what was happening to me.

“So, now you know what I now know. This suit is changing me into a real female and there's nothing I can do about it. I'm not happy about it at all, but I have to accept what is, so lets more on to our other more pressing problems. Who are these SOBs who keep trying to take the suits from us? We can deal with finding Jerry and trying to bring him back into the fold later, I guess.”

Penny rushed to my side and hugged me, followed closely by my Mom and Dad.

“I cried, but continued through my tears, saying: “I don't think there is any danger to any of the rest of you wearing the newer suits though. I think there was something special in this one, even more special than the one Jerry got. I also don't think this was ever supposed to happen to anyone. Somehow, Dr. Fine stumbled into some kind of special programming and put it in this suit. I don't doubt he intended to program all the new series of suits, but got derailed by the collapse of the lab and the kidnapping.”

Dr. Fine broke in, saying, “Now see here young... er... lady, man, person! I'll have you know that I stumbled into nothing! I knew what I was doing, but never thought anyone would have the bad fortune to experience what you have had happen! This is all the fault of your friend Jerry and his horsing around and that infernal thief Dr. Charles, that no good charlatan! I refuse to take full responsibility for all that has happened because of carelessness and thievery!

“I know, Dr. Fine.” I said. “However, you were messing around with things you barely understood. I don't hold you fully responsible for what's happened to us, but you do have to shoulder some of the blame. Well anyway, let's get on with what we're here for. Terry? Any news from your inquisitive friends?”

“Not a lot, Donna. They have nailed down a possible connection and a location for what might be a base of operations for this Dr. Fine, but they also don't think that he is much in control anymore, if he ever really was. They mentioned something about gun runners, but that seems a bit farfetched to me. These suits aren't guns after all.”

Jim piped up. “You're right Terry, and wrong. No the suits aren't guns, but they're much worse! Just think about what these suits can do, and then multiply that by dozens of them, or even hundreds! Anyone with the right amount of pull, and the resources, could literally command a damned army of these things! They could destabilize any government and practically take over whole countries! My God, the damage they could do is almost incalculable!”

“You're right Jim. I hadn't thought about that possibility. I guess I've been too close to the real danger to recognize the terrible things these suits could do in the wrong hands! Okay. My friends also gave me a location. It's in California, near L.A. They also said something about some underground mumblings about another group of people in possession of some alien tech. I think we should hear there as soon as possible and find out what's going on there. Who knows. We might even find some allies.”

Jim and Penny then sorta took over and began organizing the journey. I was still a bit muddled and didn't contribute much at all, but they had us ready to go in almost no time at all. We were on the road and preparing for what we might have to do and how to do it when we got to California and L.A.

Penny tried to spare some time to try to get me into the right frame of mind, but I was so caught up in what the suit was doing and about Jerry that she didn't have much luck at all. Finally she just pitched in with the preparations and left me to think about my life and where it was gonna go from here.

We purchased a large Suburban vehicle that was in good shape and loaded up. We decided to pose as a group of tourists, a couple of whom happened to be twins. Dr. Fine was left in the care and keeping of the Police Chief. We couldn't place him in any more danger than he was already in, but we took along a couple of satellite phones so we could contact him immediately if we needed him to identify Dr. Charles or anything else.

I couldn't help wondering what Jerry might be getting into. Probably trouble if I knew him. Without me around, Jerry was a bit of a wild man, given to take risks he shouldn't take. I tried to call his phone, but it went right to voicemail, which worried me even more.

What if he had been taken by the “bad guys”? What if he had done something hugely stupid and told someone else about the suits? Where was he gonna stay? Our parents were safe with Paul and there was no one home at his old house. Plus, if he foolishly thought he could stay at his old house, he'd be easy for the “bad guys” to find! What was he gonna do for money?

I shoulda known that Jerry would eventually live up to his “wild child” image. I mean, I'd kinda kept him on a pretty tight leash, so to speak. Every time it looked like he would go off the rails, I was there to keep him on the relatively straight and narrow. Well, there was very kittle I could do about it right now anyway, so I tried to put it in the back of my mind and hope that he was okay and would contact me if he got in too deep.

We loaded into the Suburban, a 9 passenger model, and pointed the nose of the car west, hoping to at least reach L.A. Without any more run-ins from the Mercenaries trying to kidnap us, or steal the suits, or both. With only the four of us in the vehicle, there was plenty of room to stretch out and still not be crowded by all our gear and the weapons we'd confiscated.

I tried to close my eyes and nap, but the suit kept on giving me more messages about the progress of this and that. Finally I found a mental switch that I could use to silence the messages for a set period of time. Emergency messages would break the silence function, so if anything happened, I would be awakened immediately.

There was very little conversation once we'd set off. I'm sure everyone was wondering what we'd find, what would happen to me and Jerry and making some kind of plans for what e were gonna do if and when we found who was after the suits and why.

Pennt woke me up after some time. I asked, “Where are we?”

“We just crossed from Nevada into California. There's been no trouble yet. Maybe we've lost those mercenaries for awhile. We could use some downtime from constantly worrying about them all the time.”

“Yeah Penny.” I snorted, a bit sarcastically. Sure. Why they've probably given up trying to kidnap us, capture the suits and gone to sulk somewhere. Don't get our hopes up Penny. They aren't gonna stop until they get us, or we hurt them bad enough that they can't do anything for a long, long time.”

“Yeah kid.” Terry interjected. Unfortunately I agree with you. Those so and so's won't give up until they're either called off by their boss, whoever that is, or until we hurt them so badly that they can't do anything more than lay flat on their backs in a hospital healing up for a long time. Actually I'm almost as worried about running into some overzealous public servants, cops. God knows how we're gonna explain who we are, especially with the load of weapons and ammo we're carrying with us.”

“Heh, yeah!” I laughed. I can just hear us trying to convince them that we're just a touring group or something, and just wait til they try to search us of restrain us. I don't think standard issue handcuffs would hold any of us if we don't wanna be held.”

“Maybe we oughta travel only at night.” Jim put in. As long as we stay below the speed limits and don't do anything suspicious, they might not think we're anything other than we're trying to make it look like we are. We just want to make sure there are no other reasons to stop and check us, like having a headlight or taillight not working.”

“Tell you what.” came from Terry. Let's stop at the first fast food place and get something to eat. We can check all the lights and other stuff then. The dealer we bought this thing from set us up with plates, registration and insurance, but our drivers licenses don't look anything like we look like in these suits.”

“Sounds like a plan, Terry.” Penny said. “I am kinda hungry and we could use that time to check those lights and things you were talking about. Sound good to you, kid?”

“Yeah. It sure does. Seems like it's been forever since I had any fast food and I'm really up for a double Quarter pounder from the Golden Starches or maybe some chicken from the Colonel.” I said, licking my lips at the thought of some of that lovely greasy food.

So, we settled on the plan and took the next exit that advertised several fast food places. We ended up at Mickey D's after all and, while Terry and Jim checked the vehicle over, Penny went inside to order food for all of us. After a fast check of lights and stuff, Jim went inside to help penny carry everything out to us. We hadn't used the drive-thru to order because there was too much chance that someone would notice the twins and remember us because of that. As it was, just Penny and Jim would cause a bit of a stir because of the good looks the suits imposed on them.

We sat in the suburban and ate our food, always on the watch for anything suspicious, like overly interested cops, or gangs of armed people rushing the Suburban. You know, the usual stuff like that.

'Usual.' I thought to myself. 'What could possibly be considered usual in our situation?' Hell, at this point I was almost ready to see a dancing bear on rollerskates, wearing a Lolita outfit and juggling stuffed animals! Usual!

When we finished our meal we drove off, looking for somewhere to park the 'Burban and to get some rest. We wanted to wait until dark before we hit the road again.

SPOILER BELOW!

An Interlude: Somewhere else.

“I told you we should have never hired that Earthling to find the relics we were sent here to recover! All he's done is let his greed get in the way which has led to others getting involved and several of the Earthlings who have had nothing to do with and didn't even know what the suits really are, have had their lives changed by that cursed Dr. Charles.

Why, he and his minions may very well try to keep the suits, if he recovers them, and keep them for his own nefarious purposes! This screwup on your part is almost worse than when you lost track of that other human who took things from the crashed craft in the desert!

I'm telling you Zox, if this gets back to the home planet, we will both be disassociated and forgotten. Stricken from the Family's memories as if we'd never existed at all!”

“I know Xalxn! Gods know, I know! Who would have dreamed that humans were so greedy and violent? That scout ship should never have gotten so close to that large, rocky thing that damaged their ship!”

“Mountain Zox. They are called mountains by the earthlings!”

“ The scout ships are called mountains by the earthlings? How did they even know about them?
We have been observing this planet for centuries and have never been discovered by them.

“No you colossal idiot! The rocky things are called mountains! How in creation did you ever qualify for this recovery mission? Anyway, your picking that Dr. Charles as an undercover recovery source may be the most colossal blunder in eons! Now we are faced by the almost impossible task of not only recovering those suits and the disguise kit, but we will have to come up with some way to do all that and keep the earthlings from discovering more than we can afford for them to know and keep the home world from finding out that we so massively blundered!”

IF YOU WANT THIS STORY CONTINUED, PLEASE COMMENT! YOUR COMMENTS WILL BE THE DECIDING FACTORS.

CATHERINE LINDA MICHEL

FROM LAST CHAPTER. THE ALIENS. “I told you we should have never hired that Earthling to find the relics we were sent here to recover! All he's done is let his greed get in the way which has led to others getting involved and several of the Earthlings who have had nothing to do with and didn't even know what the suits really are, have had their lives changed by that cursed Dr. Charles.

Why, he and his minions may very well try to keep the suits, if he recovers them, and keep them for his own nefarious purposes! This screwup on your part is almost worse than when you lost track of that other human who took things from the crashed craft in the desert!

I'm telling you Zox, if this gets back to the home planet, we will both be disassociated and forgotten. Stricken from the Family's memories as if we'd never existed at all!”

“I know Xalxn! Gods know, I know! Who would have dreamed that humans were so greedy and violent? That scout ship should never have gotten so close to that large, rocky thing that damaged their ship!”

“Mountain Zox. They are called mountains by the earthlings!”

“ The scout ships are called mountains by the earthlings? How did they even know about them?
We have been observing this planet for centuries and have never been discovered by them.

“No you colossal idiot! The rocky things are call mountains! How in creation did you ever qualify for this recovery mission? Anyway, your picking that Dr. Charles as an undercover recovery source may be the most colossal blunder in eons! Now we are faced by the almost impossible task of not only recovering those suits and the disguise kit, but we will have to come up with some way to do all that and keep the earthlings from discovering more than we can afford for them to know and keep the whole world from finding out that we so massively blundered!”

“Xalxn, we still do have one other agent with that group with the disguise equipment. Surely she can maneuver that group to somewhere we can capture them and retrieve it.”
“Zox, you forget the long term agent in the earth city of Los Angeles. We do still have a hope that he will help us get out of this galacticaly hopeless situation that you and your bumbling have placed us into. So help me, if your stupidity causes me to lose mating privileges back at home, I will hunt you and all your misbegotten progeny down and subject you all to the worst punishment I can visit upon you! Now shut up and continue monitoring both groups... if you think you can manage that simple act without, as the earthlings say, 'screwing it up!' I have to go prepare a report that might not condemn us both to the galactic rift!”

AND NOW:

Meanwhile, our reluctant heroes are making progress toward L.A.:

I finally calmed down enough so I could close my eyes and turn off my brain, ignoring anything but emergency messages from the suit's A.I. Terry and Penny were talking quietly, thinking I might not be able to hear them... but I could.

“Terry, I'm very, very worried about Don..na. He... well I guess now, she, is very close to losing her fight against being turned into something she doesn't want to be! She still hasn't accepted that there doesn't seem to be anything anyone can do about it and the fact that it's inevitable. I believe she thinks that there might possibly be a way she can stop the process and return to being Don.”

“Yeah Penny, I got that message from what she's been saying and I'm worried too. I haven't known her very long, and not at all as Don. I wish there was something I could do or say that would help her adjust, but I guess all I can do is help her and all of you find the end of this crazy adventure and help her at least do that.”

“Sigh. You know, Terry that you aren't obligated to finish this at all, right? I mean you know where Pete has the families secure and safe. You could just go there and help him protect them.”

“Oh hell no, Penny! What's happened to Don and Jerry is wrong! As for Dr. Fine... well he might be a looney, but he's one damned educated looney! I mean, he figured out what those suits are and, along with this Dr. Charles, they not only figured out what they were, but they re-engineered and improved them! I wouldn't have believed a word of any of this if I hadn't seen with my own eyes what these suits can do! As for me just taking off and joining Pete, well that ain't gonna happen. He's fully capable of hiding the families and protecting them without me there and this kid needs me more here. I jumped into this thing because it seemed right to help if I could and with every day it feels more right, so me deserting her and you and Jim just ain't something I can do!”

“Thanks Terry. You know, I didn't know the kids at all until me and Jim got wrangled into keeping an eye on them, but as time went on, we kinda grew to think of them as nephews and just... well, grew on us. We never imagined that all this would or even could happen, but when all hell broke loose, those two kids showed more guts and determination than I would ever have imagined they had in them!”

“Penny? Can you come up front please?” Jim called.

“Be right there hon.”

I came fully awake when she called back to Jim, who was driving.

“What's up, Jim?” I called out.

“I don't know for sure Donna. It could be my imagination or it could be trouble. I need Penny up here so we have two sets of eyes to monitor a possible situation. We're on the interstate on a direct route to L.A. and there's a lot of traffic, but something I saw, or think I saw, could be a problem. Traffic is slowing and there might be a wreck or something further down the road that 'll slow us down or possibly even stop us. We don't need any more eyes on us than are absolutely necessary. We certainly don't need police or emergency eyes on us!”

“Donna, can you monitor the police frequencies with that suit?” Terry asked.

'Let me check, Terry. Hang on a sec.”

I accessed the HUD and scrolled through it quickly. I did find a way to hear the police frequencies, but when I tried to do it, it wouldn't work.

“Come on! Come on, work!!” I yelled. Finally I spotted a little toggle that was blinking. When I mentally reached out and flipped it, I heard voices talking about needing medics and the jaws of life, whatever those are. 'We got three people trapped in their cars and the cars are pushed against the guardrail by a big rig that's overturned!' the voices said.

“Jim,” I said, there is a bad wreck up ahead with people trapped and cops all over it! Is there a turnoff we can get to quickly? We gotta make ourselves scarce!”

“Damn! No Donna. We just passed the last one before the interchange we need to get on for a more direct shot at L.A.! Look, if we just stay calm and Donna, you stay in the back looking like you're sleeping or something, maybe the cops won't give us more than a glance. We just gotta seem as normal as we can. Terry, you stay back there with Donna. Hopefully we won't have to stop, but if this wreck is as bad as Donna heard, we'll likely be tied up in a traffic stop until they get the trapped people out and into ambulances and then get the wrecked vehicles cleared off the highway. Damn!”

“Just stay calm, Jim.” Penny said. “There's no reason why the cops will show anymore interest in us than they will be with any other vehicle there.”

I hated to sound off, but something in the programming of the suit made me say: “Maybe we could help? These suits make us a lot stronger and more capable than anyone normal could ever be.”

“Oh HELL no Donna!” came from both Jim and Penny. “If the cops or anyone sees what these suits are capable of we'll get locked into a cell until the 'Men In Black' come to get us. Then we'll likely never be heard from again!”

“Look Donna.” Terry said. “They're right and you know it. I know you wanna help someone who might be in danger, but we can't take the chance. Believe me, if things were different, I'd be one of the first to offer help to the cops and medics, but we can't right now. Maybe, if things get settled, we find these guys who want the suits and don't care how they get them, we find this Dr. Charles and settle his hash, maybe then we can chance letting someone in authority about the suits and what they can do, but we ain't the Avengers or The X-Men. Hell we ain't even Rescue 51! All we are is a buncha normal people who've gotten themselves into the biggest pile of crap anyone's ever been in! We gotta remain as hidden as we can.”

“Oh, I know, Terry, I know. It's just I can't help wanting to help if I can. Don't worry, I'll keep quiet and try really hard to stay that way. It just hurts, wanting to help and not being allowed to, you know?”

“Yeah kid. I do. You got a big heart and even though you're going the strangest thing that's likely to have happened to anybody, you still have room to feel for someone else in trouble. That says a lot about you and your character, kid. The further we get into this mess, the more you impress me and I don't impress easy.”

I think I blushed! This great guy thought I was somebody special! I couldn't say anything, I just lowered my head and sat back in the seat.

“He's right you know, Donna.” Penny said. “I don't know how you've kept it all together through all this stuff, but you've impressed Jim and me too. We're in it with you until we get this all settled, okay? We got your back.”

Aside from the inescapable fact that this damned suit was turning me into a girl, which I damn sure didn't want to be, to have the respect of these three capable adults meant a lot to me.

“Stoppage coming up.” came from Jim. “Everyone just stay cool.”

Penny straightened up in her seat and Terry and I sat back, trying to be unnoticed. I closed my eyes and Terry grabbed a book to make it look like he'd been reading. All around us cars and trucks were stopped and up ahead there were several vehicles with red, orange and blue lights blinking like mad.

There was a lot of commotion and Jim said he could see what looked like a semi toppled over against the outside guardrail. Most of the cops seemed to be occupied with controlling the stopped vehicles that we were in the middle of, while the medics and fire people were busily working around the side of the semi, apparently trying to get the trapped people out so they could do first aid and get them in the ambulances.

When one of the cops came near the suburban, Jim called out to him.

“How long you think we're gonna be held up here, officer?”

The cop scratched his head and, seeming to be a bit out of sorts, answered. “I dunno pal. Could be an hour, could be more. It all depends on how long it takes to get those poor folks outta those cars and into ambulances and get the wrecks cleared. Why? You in a hurry or something?”

“Well, we were. We got an appointment in L.A. We'd hate to miss it, but it looks like we're gonna be late. Guess I better call them and let them know. Thanks officer. Be careful out there.”

“Hey, thanks fella. Most folks don't seem to give a damn about us cops unless they're in trouble. I appreciate the sentiment. Tell ya what. If I can get a lane clear enough for you to back up and get to that exit back there, I'll try to help ya.”

“Wow! Thanks officer. We'd sure appreciate any help you can give us.” Jim said.

Well, believe it of not, that cop worked on the cars around us and got us space to turn that big suburban around and used his cruiser to help us go back to the exit. Meanwhile, Terry had gotten a call from a Private Detective friend of his who had a possible contact for us to talk to. Apparently Terry had put out some private feelers of his own to try to help us!

“Terry? Why didn't you let us in on this?” Penny asked.

“I didn't wanna get anyone's hopes up in case it turned out to be no help, but this pal of mine is into some strange stuff and I figured he'd either know someone or would just not be able to help. As it turns out he knows somebody who knows somebody, if you get what I mean. Evidently if there's something, anything about aliens or strange stuff, this guy knows 'things.' He may turn out to be some nutbar, but at this point I figured we needed all the info we can get so...”

“Well, Terry.” Jim said. “I wish you'd discussed this with the rest of us, but I guess you're probably right. The more info we can get, the better we'll be able to come up with a workable plan for ending this mess. Just do us a favor? Any ideas you might get, no matter how off the wall they might sound like, let us in on them?”

“”Okay Jim. I will. Sorry to keep this from you but I didn't want you all to think I was losing it, you know?”

Jim and Terry fist bumped and then Jim concentrated on following the cop car as it cleared space for us to get out oversized vehicle through. Before too long, we came up on the exit and the cop turned around, gave us a friendly wave and took off back toward the accident scene.

I guess not all cops are sarcastic assholes, huh? Then again, maybe cops ARE the good guys. God knows they usually contact people in the worst possible circumstances so maybe it's just that the cops become proactively paranoid and expect the worst from people so when they don't get it, they revert to being helpful kinda guys. Who knew?

Anyway, we took the exit and found a way around the accident scene and got back on the highway. Jim kept the 'burban at 2 MPH below the posted speed limit, even though we kept getting passed by other drivers to whom the posted speed limits seemed to be just suggestions. How many times can you flip off pissed off, fast drivers before it just becomes an exercise in futility?

We hit the outskirts of the city proper a couple of hours later. Penny suggested a restroom stop and that sounded good to me, as well as maybe some good, greasy fast food, so we found a burger place that actually advertised clean rest rooms and stopped there to refuel the burban and ourselves and answer nature's call.

Reasoning that we were now in what's unofficially known as LaLa land we all exited the burban. Yeah, Penny and I got some whistles and stuff from some guys and Jim and Terry even got some from some women! We paid the wolves no mind, completed our businesses, and went to order some food.

Again we ate in the vehicle, not all that happy with the attention we were getting, but we figured that, with all the good looking people in L.A., we would just be counted among them and no really differently.

Terry contacted his friend and set up a meeting with this guy who knew a guy. When we finished eating we took off for the meet. When we got there this scruffy looking guy in a really used suit met the burban and shook hands with Terry who got out for the meet. In a few minutes Terry got back in and I could see the scruffy guy putting what looked like quite a few 20 dollar bills in his pocket.

“Terry? I thought this was a friend of yours. How come you hadda pay him?”

“He is an old friend of mine Donna. He's been down on his luck for some time now and I figured to stake him to a few bucks and maybe give him a chance to get outta the gutter and back into the P.I. business. He was damn good before he hit the skids and dove into a bottle. Don't worry though. His info is solid. He'd never put the screws to me, knowing me and knowing that, if he stiffed me he'd be real sorry afterwards.”

We followed Terry's instructions to an old, rundown looking motel. The place looked like even cockroaches wouldn't live there, but when we pulled in, a guy came out, came to the side of the vehicle and talked to Terry. A few more bills were passed between them and Terry got new instructions.

We followed them and came to a funny looking place. It was a house... sorta. It looked like it had been built by five guys who didn't speak the same languages and didn't have the same blueprints. Rooms looked like they'd been added on as afterthoughts and the most prevalent color of the place was... well, varied. Like it had been painted with leftovers from other jobs.

Terry warned us to stay in the burban and went to the door alone. He did some sort of complicated looking series of knocks on the door and, when it opened, there stood the strangest looking person I'd ever seen. He was wearing what looked like a housecoat and rainboots. His hair, if you could call it that, stuck up in odd tufts,like someone had been randomly been pulling it up and them spraying the tufts with hairspray to hold it in place. He and Terry talked for a couple of minutes, then Terry handed the guy yet some more money and motioned toward the Suburban.

The guy looked at the suburban, at us, back at Terry, back to us and then started backing away towards the door to his um... house. Terry reached out and seemed to be reassuring him that we were okay and he had nothing to worry about, but he seemed to be afraid of us. That is until Terry took out a fistful of money and handed it to the guy.

All of a sudden the guy became real friendly and smiley. He motioned to us and we got out and followed him inside the house.

I would try to describe the inside of that place, but words fail me. Suffice it to say that,if you took a hoarder, crossed him with a modern impressionist painter, and then crossed that with a junkman, you'd be close to what that place looked like. There were actually aisles around, between and sometimes over stuff that defied description. Pieces of equipment, pizza boxes, just... well, junk! To my eyes it was junk, but it seemed like every piece of it held some kind of interest to this weirdo.

He led us through this melange of stuff to a room with a closed and locked door. Locked. Well, if you consider two padlocks, a chain, an actual guillotine trap, and a combination lock, locked. Looked safer than Ft. Knox to me. He turned his back on us, as if making sure we couldn't see him unlocking anything. When he finally opened the door, he warned us to not touch ANYTHING that we might see in this room. We looked at one another and nodded, assuring him we would follow his orders.

When he turned on the lights, my eyes damn near popped out of my head! Strange... well, alien looking pieces of equipment was stacked everywhere, some opened up with wires running everywhere, others dusty, looking like they hadn't been moved or ever touched in years! There was even something that vaguely looked like some of the things Dr. Fine had been working with, just a lot older looking than the Doc's stuff.

He then led us to a cleared area in which he had what looked like an old time ham operator's station, telling us that this was what he used to communicate with alien races. I didn't think he meant Germans or Spaniards so I assumed he thought he was talking about real extraterrestrials. Uh-huh. Nutcase. But then again, WE were dealing with real alien stuff so... okay maybe not so nutty after all.

He dug into a pile of papers and finally located a notebook that he hugged to his chest as if it were his greatest treasure. He looked at Terry, then at the rest of us and, very slowly and reluctantly handed it to Terry.

“You can't keep this! It's much too important to let it get out of this room. It's years and years of information, contacts and other people who have had interactions with the aliens. One group even had some sort of enclave where they keep many more artifacts and things than you see here.”

“Really?” Terry asked him. “You know, that's just what we really need. Do you know who these folks are or where they are? It would save us a lot of time and we wouldn't have to impose on you by taking your time while we read through this incredible gathering of information that you have in this book.”

The guy grabbed the book back from Terry with a look of relief on his face.

“Oh, is that all you wanted?” He babbled. Why that's easy. Here.” He scribbled an address on a wrinkled piece of paper and handed it to Terry. Jim, Penny and I hadn't even opened our mouths yet.

Terry reached into his pocket and began getting more money, but the weird guy stopped him.

“You already gave more than I expected. I consider us even. The only other thing I ask is tell no one about me or this place. My work here is much too important and I'm not ready to share it with the authorities yet. Oh, one other thing. Don't try to use money to get into that place. They don't need it and it'll put you on their wrong side. Tell 'em who you are and be prepared to back up any claims you make. They're a bit strange, y'see.” and he winked one eye at us. I tried very hard not to laugh.

He sorta bum rushed us back out of that room and locked the door to it carefully after we were out. He led us back through the maze of stuff to his front door. After what seemed like fifteen minutes he unlocked all of the locks on THAT door and pushed us out the door like we were unwelcome vacuum cleaner salesmen. As the door slammed shut behind us, I looked at Penny, she looked at Jim, we all then looked at Terry as if to ask him, WTF was that!?

Terry smiled at us. “I expected that. I'd heard of that old guy but didn't believe most of what I was told. Seems like they were severely poorly informed, since that place was much, much more than I was ever told it was. He may seem cracked and crazy, but at one time he was a respected college professor who specialized in xenobiology, ancient cultures and interaction. Everyone thought he was a bit odd, but one day he seemed to go completely around the bend and became a recluse, like you saw. He lives on his savings and occasional pieces he sells to collectors and articles he sells to UFO enthusiasts. No one takes him seriously anymore, but he was a very well respected man. No one knows what happened to make him the way you saw him.”

“Nevertheless, I think we got what we need and hopefully it'll lead us to a safe place where we can catch our breaths and come up with a plan. Lets go. The more time we spend out in the open, the greater the chances we'll be discovered by this Dr. Charles and his mercenaries.”

We piled back into the suburban and followed Terry's instructions from that piece of paper.

Please, please, please comment?

Catherine Linda Michel