Transporter
By Deane Christopher
Ever since Helen Miller, Felicia Rivers, Daniel Gibbons and Robert
Alexander met during their freshmen year at Union Hills Institute of
Technology, the four of them had remained close friends. Each of them
had earned a Bachelor of Science degree and had elected to continue
their education as graduate students at Union Hills. Occasionally,
they would find the time to aid in one another's research. And that in
a nutshell is how Mr. Daniel Joseph Gibbons ended up becoming Miss
Danielle Josephine Gibbons.
It all started one Friday evening when the four of them were having
dinner together at Nelson's Pub. While they were eating, Rob announced
that he had been working on something that he thought the rest of them
would be interested in seeing. Though Helen, Felicia and Dan pummeled
him with all sorts of questions in an effort to get him to reveal what
this mysterious project of his was, all Rob would say was that they had
to see it to believe it. However, having whetted their curiosity, Rob,
eager to show off his pet project, suggested that after they finished
eating, he would be more than happy to give them a hands-on
demonstration of the research project he had been working on.
After the four of them left the pub, they headed over to the Union
Hill's Applied Physics Annex Building. Once inside, they took the
freight elevator down to the sub-basement. On the ride down, Rob
cautioned his friends not to touch anything, owing to the fact that the
much of the electronic apparatus was powered by hazardous voltage
feeds. He also warned them to be careful of the cabling that was
haphazardly strewn across the floor.
The room into which Rob lead his friends was extremely large, situated
as it was beneath the whole sub-basement of the east wing of the
Applied Physics Annex. Added to that, it was cluttered with a
hodgepodge of mainframe and supercomputers, some of which were quite
antiquated, while other units were one generation removed from being
state of the art. What dominated the huge room, running down its
center as it was, was a set of rails, giving all the appearance of an
indoor railroad track, for that is basically what it was. About two-
thirds of the way down the room, sitting atop the rails on a multi-
wheeled under-carriage was a platform upon which sat a telephone booth
sized Plexiglas tube. At the far end of the room, just beyond the
terminus of the rails, sat another raised platform upon which was
situated a duplicate of the telephone booth sized Plexiglas tub.
Rob led his friends to the far end of the room where the second of the
Plexiglas tubs was surrounded by several jury-rigged desk-like
consoles, containing what appeared to be a whole shitload of
cannibalized PCs and other electronic gizmos and gadgets.
"Well..." Felicia Rivers smirked. "As impressive as this electronic
junkyard of yours is, I only have two questions. What the hell is it?
And, what the hell does it do?"
"This," Rod proudly proclaimed, "is a transporter."
Incredulously, Helen Miller chimed in, "You mean, transporter, like in
Star Trek?"
"That's right!" Rob, enjoying the moment, eagerly replied. "That's
exactly what it is, Helen. And guess what! It works!"
Rob continued on to provide his friends with a brief history of how the
transporter came to be. In a nutshell, Rob explained that the
transporter system before them was an unexpected outgrowth of the much-
ballyhooed Philadelphia Experiment. He told them how Dr. Franklin Reno
was endeavoring to apply the Unified Field Theory to a military
application. The idea was to use electromagnetic radiation to bend
light around an object in such a way as to render it invisible. The
USS Eldridge, a US Navy destroyer escort was fitted out with the
required equipment to conduct the initial testing. It is alleged that
on October 28, 1943 the Eldridge not only became entirely invisible,
but that she actually vanished in a flash of blue light. Concurrently,
there were alleged sightings of the Eldridge offshore of Norfolk,
Virginia. However, shortly after the Eldridge was sighted by
crewmembers of the merchant ship, the SS Andrew Furuseth, the Eldridge
vanished, only to reappear in the Philadelphia Naval Yard, some 215
miles away.
"Come on, Rob!" Daniel Gibbons scoffed. "You don't actually believe
that happened, do you?"
"No." Rob replied without any equivocation whatsoever. "I don't
believe that the Eldridge ever teleported anywhere. What I do believe
is that the Unified Field Theory worked and that the Eldridge did
become invisible for a few seconds before re-materializing. That's to
say that I don't think the ship ever teleported anywhere. All it did
was momentarily disappear, only to re-appear a few seconds later, owing
to the fact that they weren't able to maintain a stable electromagnetic
field."
Not satisfied with Rob's explanation, Felicia demanded, "Okay,
smartass! If that's the case, how to you explain the sightings of the
Eldridge in Norfolk?"
"From what I gather from the classified reports that Professor Calvin
allowed me to read, the sightings in Norfolk were the results of an
electromagnetically created mirage."
"Calvin actually let you read classified reports?" Helen blurted.
"Couldn't he get in trouble with the government for doing that? And,
why in the hell did he let you read them in the first place?"
"To answer your first question -- yes. Calvin let me read the
classified reports" Rob countered. "However, he only did so after he
gave me a demonstration of how the transporter worked. In fact, he let
me read all the files involved with the Transporter Project. And, he
did that so that I had some idea of what I was getting myself involved
with. And, yes, to answer your second question: Calvin probably could
get in trouble for granting me access to all the data that's been
amassed, dating from the early days of Philadelphia Experiment all the
way to, and concerning, the development and testing of the transporter
system you see before you. So, do me a favor. Let this be our little
secret. In other words, I would really appreciate it if the three of
you resist the urge to tell anybody about this. The last thing I want
to do is to get Professor Calvin in trouble. Trust me. He's one of
the good guys."
The three of them all gave Rob their solemn promise that they would not
to tell a soul about the transporter, or Professor Calvin involvement
in divulging classified information. Rob, confident that his friends
would keep his secret, continued on to explain how the Philadelphia
Experiment had led to the development of a working transporter system.
"Once the scientists who had work on the Eldridge Project became aware
that the ability to sustain a Unified Field was nigh on to impossible
for the extended periods of time necessary to make the idea of
invisibility practical for military applications, several of the
project's scientists embarked on a totally new project. Using the
Unified Field Theory along with Einstein's mass to energy equivalency
theory (E=MC2), they theorized that with enough energy, they could
teleport matter from one location to another. However, unlike with the
Eldridge, they would need two transceiver terminals to achieve the
desired results."
Helen, who was impatient to get to the crux of the matter, abruptly
interrupted. "And, you're saying that this teleportation device
actually works?"
"Yes." Rob, just shy of being boastful, curtly replied to Helen's
inquiry. "It sure does. In fact, it works just fine."
"Well..." Dan interjected thoughtfully. "If it does work like you say
it does, why isn't it being used?"
"That, Dan, is a very good question." Rob smiled, as he continued on
to explain that there were several reasons why the transporter system
had never been developed for practical use. The first reason was that
massive amounts of electrical energy that were required for the both
the transmission and reception of any teleported object. Secondly, a
physical transmission link, while not mandatory, was preferable. Early
testing showed that any form of outside interference to the broadcast
signal, interference such as: sunspots, radio waves and refraction
caused by atmospheric conditions could result in the teleported
object's degradation. And lastly, while it appeared in theory that
inanimate objects could be teleported to any location around the world,
animate objects could not. Extensive testing showed that animate
objects could only be teleported over distances of ten meters or less.
Anything greater than that and the animate object would perish. While
wood could be teleported beyond a distance of ten meters, a tree could
not. It would die, as would an animal.
"Oh!" Felicia exclaimed. "I guess that explains the rails and the
movable platform."
"Very perceptive, Felicia." Rob congratulated his friend. "You go to
the head of the class, girl. But, you guys needn't worry. Terminal B
-- that's the one that situated out there on the rails -- is located
only seven meters distance from Terminal A, and that's the one that's
right here in front of us. Added to that, Terminal B's dolly's wheels
have been welded to the track. So, it isn't going anywhere."
Rob continued on to explain that over the years various theories have
been tested in order to tried and break the ten meters barrier. Faster
computers, enhanced paralleled data transmission facilities, even fiber
optics had been tried, but to no avail. Try as they might, no living
objects had successfully been transmitted beyond the ten meter barrier.
"So..." Dan thoughtfully mused, "Basically, while it's a tremendous
technological achievement, this transporter system is nothing more than
a scientific white elephant. While it works, it's not practical.
Given the enormous amounts of power needed to use it, it's actually
more economical to ship items by land, sea or air than to teleport
them. Added to that, as a people mover, it's a complete failure. So,
Rob, tell us. What in the hell are you doing with it? I mean, correct
me if I'm wrong, but don't your academic interests lie elsewhere?"
'Yes..." Rob freely admitted. "They do... or, make did. You see guys,
after Professor Calvin gave me a hands-on demonstration of how the
transporter works, I started thinking outside the box and I came up
with an idea of how to put the transporter to a practical use. You see
guys, the group of scientists who were initially responsible for the
design and construction of these two teleporter terminals took Murphy's
Law into consideration to prevent the type of accident that was
portrayed in the Vincent Price movie The Fly. Simply put, they
designed the system with a discriminator circuit to address that very
problem. So, that got me to thinking that we could reprogram the
transport's discriminator circuitry to, shall we say, identify tumors.
By doing so, we could use the transporter to remove the tumors by
simply deleting them during the patient's reconstitution. And that
idea of mine led to another. I got to thinking that we might be able
to use the transporter to eliminate the need for either re-constructive
or cosmetic surgery. Hell, we might even be able to use it to
eventually regenerate missing limbs, and correct various birth
defects..."
Rob's enthusiasm was contagious. It was not long before he had
convinced Helen, Felicia and Dan that he was on the threshold of
something fantastic.
Figuring it was time to give his friends a demonstration, Rob
congenially inquired, even as he began to power up the equipment,
"Okay! Who wants to go first? Or, would you guys prefer that I go
first; you know, just to prove to the three of you that it's safe?"
Though leery, figuring that it would be better if Rob remained at the
control console, Dan, feeling that it was the manly thing to do,
reluctantly volunteered to go first. "Okay! So, what do I do?"
"Just step inside Terminal A's tube," Rob distractedly directed, as he
continued flipping switches. "And, I'll take care of the rest from
here."
Though squeamish about the idea that he was about to be deconstructed
into pure energy; coded into God knows how many zeros and ones,
transmitted over a distance of seven meters; and then, using nothing
more than raw energy, reconstructed, Dan somewhat sheepishly did as Rob
had instructed.
"Okay, Dan!" Rob said as he pushed a green button on the console. "The
first thing I'm going to do is to do a pre-transmission scan." As he
did so, two concave semicircle scanner-heads began to descend along the
outside surface of the Plexiglas tube, while another pair of scanner-
heads began to travel upwards from niches built into the platform's
base. Upon meeting at the halfway point, the scanner-heads began to
return to their starting positions. When the scanner-heads were fully
retracted, the drawers of the six DVD writers that were mounted next to
the control console popped opened. As they did so, Rob removed each of
the DVD +R disks in turn. In doing so, he placed each one of the DVD
disks in a jeweled storage case. As he did so, Rob took special care
to write Dan's name on each one of the disks.
"Not to worry, Dan," Rob explained. "This is merely a precautionary
measure. Each one of these disks contains a comprehensive data map of
your physical and mental makeup. Added to that, there are a total of
twelve PC hard-drives that contained the same information that is on
these disks. Having said that, Rob placed six new DVD +R disks into
the rack mounted writers and pushed the buttons that would cause their
drawers to close.
"Okay!" Rob glanced at the array of LCD monitors before him. "I've got
a green board, so it seems that we're all set to go. All right,
ladies. It's bon voyage time for Dan." Having said that, Rob lifted
the clear plastic switch-protector and pressed the red 'transmit
button'. As he did so, a brilliant, blue-white vertical beam
momentarily blazed for a fraction of a second in both Terminal A's and
Terminal B's Plexiglas tubes. As the dazzling blue-while column of
light winked out, it was clearly apparent that Dan was no longer
occupying the Plexiglas tube of Terminal A. Rather, he was standing
seven meters distance, inside the transceiver tube of Terminal B.
"Wow!" Dan exclaimed as he step out of Terminal B's Plexiglas tube.
"The damn thing really works!"
"So, what's your preference?" Rob enthusiastically inquired. "Walk
back? Or, would you rather I teleport you back?"
"If it's all the same to you, I think I'll walk..."
While Dan was in the process of rejoining his friends, Felicia
inquired, "So, tell me something, Rob. How does that data you had me
compile for you a couple of weeks ago tie in with this transporter
project of yours?"
As soon as Dan had rejoined them, Rob was more than happy to provide
Felicia with the answer to her question. Shortly after Professor
Calvin had given Rob his blessing to experiment with the all but
forgotten transporter system, Rob had asked Felicia for a favor. Given
that she was hands down the best number-cruncher of the four, and a
closet statistician to boot, Rob had asked Felicia to provide him with
a mathematical equation that defined the most desirable human
attributes for both males and females.
"Oh!" Helen smirked. "That explains the program you had me design for
you. And, here I was under the impression that you wanted it to
develop various characters for that fantasy computer game that you've
been working on for the last couple of years."
"Hmmm..." Rob thoughtfully mused, as he powered up another computer
screen. "I hadn't thought of that. But, you're right. I actually
could use it for that. Tell you what. Felicia, how about you go stand
in Terminal A's tube so that I can run a pre-transmission scan on you.
That way, I'll be able to show you guys what I've really been working
on."
Felicia, having clarified that Rob was not going to teleport her at the
moment, did as her friend requested. Once Felicia was in the tube, Rob
ran his scan. Then, as Felicia stepped out of the transporter tube,
seeing that Rob was preoccupied with something else, Helen removed,
labeled and stored the six DVD disks that contained Felicia's data map.
Dan, not to be left out, took it upon himself to restock the DVD
writers.
Using a wireless mouse, Rob accessed the program that Helen had
provided him with. "Look familiar?"
"Yes..." Helen dubiously replied. "But, I see that you made some
modifications."
"Actually, I didn't." Rob was not about to take credit for something he
did not do. "Dan did. You were busy working on your own project. So,
I asked Dan if he would make the modification that I needed. I hope
you don't mind that I did that?"
"No... Not at all." Helen, curious to see Dan's modifications, leaned
in to examine the new icons that appeared on the screen.
Accessing a drop-down menu, Rob clicked on the mouse's left button and
a rotating image of a nude Felicia appeared on the large computer
monitor. "Sorry!" Rob said, as he clicked on the 'View Menu' and
finding the 'Decency Option', clicked on it. As he did so, the
rotating image of Felicia was suddenly wearing a bikini. Having done
that, Rob clicked on the 20% tab of the pull-down menu, whereupon the
screen split as a second image of Felicia appeared on the screen.
However the new image of Felicia differed from the first, in that it
was apparent to all four of them that the image was a trimmer and
shapelier version of Felicia.
Without waiting for anyone to comment, Rob selected the 40% tab and
clicked on it, thereby causing a third image of the slowly rotating
Felicia to appear on the screen to the right of the other two.
Felicia, who had been chunky all her life, gleefully tittered, "Wow!
So, that's what I would like if I went on a diet and lost some weight."
"I don't mean to cast any dispersions," Helen, well aware that she was
as lacking in the 'looks department' as her roommate, ruefully smirked.
"But, I think it would take a lot more than just losing a few pounds
for you to look like that, Felicia."
Dan knew better than to offer any sort of comment and so, remained
mute. Rob, selecting the 60% tab on the pull-down menu, followed Dan's
example.
A fourth image of Felicia appeared on the screen. "Oh, my God!"
Felicia joyfully shrieked as she saw how pretty the new image of her
looked slowly twirling about on the computer screen. "What I wouldn't
give to look like that!"
Without waiting, Rob selected the 80% option, bringing up yet another
image of an even more physically enhanced version of his frumpy friend.
"Rob..." the gangly and flat-chested Helen tentatively inquired.
"Correct me if I'm wrong, but I'm thinking that this is more than just
a computer program. Let me guess. You've somehow integrated this
physical enhancement program into the transporter system, haven't you?"
"Yes!" Rob was exuberant. "That's exactly what I've done."
As the implications of what she had just heard Rob say registered,
Felicia gasped, "You mean to tell me that you can actually use the
transporter to make me look that beautiful?"
"Yes." Rob smugly replied, as he positioned the cursor over the 100%
tab and pressed the mouse's leftmost button "But, why settle for
beautiful when you could look like this, Felicia?"
"Oh, my God!" Felicia exclaimed in shocked amazement as she beheld the
sixth image of herself portrayed on the screen. "I'm gorgeous!
Absolutely gorgeous! And, you can do that? You can actually make me
look like that?"
"I sure can." Rob assured her. "All you have to do is to step back
into the tube and I'll have you looking like a goddess come to earth
before you can bat those baby blues of yours."
"But, I don't have blue eyes. My eyes happen to be green." Felicia
giddily replied as she made her way around to the stationary platform
upon which Terminal A sat.
"Well..." Rob replied thoughtfully. "Would you like blue eyes? I
mean, if you would, that won't be a problem. In fact, if you would
like, I can also turn you into a natural blonde?"
"No thank you. I think for the time being I'll go with what I've got.
Besides, while I've never liked the way I've looked, the one thing that
I've always like about myself is my auburn hair." And with that,
Felicia stepped back into the transporter tube.
"Okay, Felicia!" Rob said as he type a few commands into the computer
keyboard that he had used to display the array of Felicia's enhanced
images. "Say goodbye to being Plain Jane and hello to Miss Drop-Dead
Gorgeous."
Much as had happened before with Dan, Rob lifted the clear plastic
switch-protector and pressed the red 'transmit' button. As he did so,
a dazzling, blue-white vertical beam filled the interiors of the two
transporter terminals. Though a frumpy Felicia had entered Terminal A,
seven meters away, an absolutely gorgeous Felicia stepped out of
Terminal B's Plexiglas tube, dressed in a black leather miniskirt, blue
satin blouse, coffee-colored pantyhose and a pair of standard issue
black stiletto heel pumps.
"Oh, my God, girl!" Helen gleefully squealed. "You look terrific!"
"I do?"
"Oh, yeah..." Dan readily agreed with Helen's assessment. "You look
great! In fact, I would say that you are the most beautiful woman I've
ever laid my eyes on. The only question I have is: do you feel any
different?"
"Yes!" Felicia beamed. "I feel skinny for the first time in my life.
Rob, by any chance do you have a mirror around here?"
"No... Sorry, Felicia... I wish I did. But, I don't..." Rob somewhat
distracted replied. "But, I do have my cell phone, so I can take a
couple pictures of you, if that'll help."
"To hell with that!" Helen abrasively interjected as she headed for the
Plexiglas tube of terminal A. "Rob, why don't you give Dan your
cellphone. That way he can take a few pictures of Felicia while you
scan me into your system, because I want one of those physical upgrades
of yours as well."
Five minutes later, Helen stepped out of Terminal B's tube looking
every bit as gorgeous as Felicia did and decked out in the very same
black mini-skirt, blue satin blouse, coffee-colored pantyhose and a
pair of black stiletto heel pumps as her roommate.
"This is fantastic!" the formerly gangly and flat-chested Helen
exclaimed as she took her hands and jostled those magnificent new
endowments of hers. "For the first time in my life, I've actually got
boobs! Dan, since you still have Rob's cellphone, how 'bout you take a
few pictures of me, you know, so I can take a look at the new and
improved me?"
"Hey!" Felicia interjected. "I just realized something. Helen and I
aren't wearing the same clothes that we were before being transported.
In fact, she and I are wearing the very same outfit."
"That's true," Rob freely admitted. "Look! I hope the two of you
don't mind, but in order to compensate for both of your bodies new
dimensions, I had Dan modify the program to reconfigure your clothes as
part of the teleportation process and I guess this is what he came up
with..."
The girls were understandably ecstatic with their new looks. However,
though they were, they both shared a concern. Though she was loath to
do so, it was Helen, rather than Felicia, who first brought the subject
up for discussion. "I hate to sound like a naysayer, because the last
thing I want to do right now is go back to looking like I did. But, I
wondering if these looks of ours might prove to be problem for Felicia
and myself."
Rob sought clarification. "You mean, because of guys hitting on the
two of you? I mean, given how good the two look, guys are going to be
fawning all over both of you, trying to sweet talk you into going to
bed with them."
"No, silly!" Helen countered. "While it goes without saying that will
certainly be a problem that the two of us will have to learn to deal
with if Felicia and I end up deciding to remain as we are, what I'm
really worried about is if people will still recognize us? I guess
what I'm asking is: is there enough of a resemblance between our former
selves and our new selves?"
"Yes. For my money, there definitely is," Rob quickly countered.
"That's to say that I certainly can see it. How about you, Dan? Can
you see a resemblance as well?"
"Yes," Dan replied emphatically. "However, I do understand the point
Helen's been trying to make. Added to that, there might also be a
problem when it comes to their IDs. While the variances in their
individual weight can easily be explained away, the variances in their
height cannot. I mean, it doesn't take a rocket scientist to see that
Felicia's several inches taller then she was, while Helen's a couple
inches shorter..."
After spending several minutes discussing the matter, Rob asked the
crucial question, with that question being: did Felicia and Helen wish
to remain as they were. They both admitted that they did. But though
they did, they still were uncomfortable with the problem that might
arise about their IDs.
Dan, having been giving the matter some thought, offered a solution to
the girl's quandary. He prudently suggested that since Rob could
simply reverse the process and restore the two young ladies to their
former physical disposition, they could remain as they were for the
time being. Truth was, he urged them to, as he put it, take their new
physiques for a weekend test drive. Then, having said that, Dan
continued on to suggest that should the girls choose to revert back,
they need not go all the way. Dan asked Rob if it were possible for
the girls to return to any one of the progression of physical
dispositions that had been portrayed on the computer screen after their
pre-transmission scan. Assured by Rob that such a thing was indeed
possible, Dan made another suggestion, with that suggestion being that
the girls could use the transporter to incrementally enhance their
looks over the course of the school year.
Then, having provided the two girls with several options, Dan sheepish
inquired, "Hey, Rob. Look! While we're here, I was wondering in if
maybe you could... a.... You know, tinker around with my looks a
little?"
"Sure... The Good Lord knows that when it comes to your looks, they
could sure use some touching-up," Rob brought up the rotating image of
Dan's pre-transmission scan. "Tell me. What did you have in mind?"
He asked, as he displayed the other five images that took Dan from
being an average looking graduate student to being Mr. God's Gift to
Women.
"Hmmm..." Dan mused as he examined the succession of physical upgrades
that were displayed on the screen. "Since I'm not looking to be an
Adonis, I think that I would like to go with 60%. You know, six-pack
abs and good looking enough, in a rugged outdoorsy sort of way, without
being too good looking, if you know what I mean? But, if it's at all
possible, Rob, when it comes to my... you know - thing..."
"Your manhood?" Rob supplied, clarifying that he was onboard with what
Dan was referring to.
"Yes!" Dan, feeling uneasy discussing his genitalia in front of
Felicia and Helen, squeamishly replied. "Could you set me up with the
one from the 100% rendition?"
"Yeah, sure..." Rob smirked, as he typed in a few commands on the
keyboard. "I guess I could do that for you. But, if I do, you'll owe
me big time!" Then, as a new image of Dan displayed on the screen, Rob
asked, "How's that?"
"Oh, yeah!" Dan, thinking that his improved genitalia would really
impress the ladies, eagerly quipped. "That'll do me just fine."
"Okay, pal!" Rob said, as his fingers moved over the keyboard, typing
in a succession of commands. "Why don't you head on over to Terminal A
so we can get started turning you into a well-hung stud?"
Dan was too busy thinking about the pleasure he would derive out of his
upgraded equipment to take note of the fact that Helen, the practical
joker of the group, had engaged Felicia in a hurried and hushed
conversation.
"Rob!" Felicia impishly said, as she grabbed her friend's arm and spun
him about to face her. "Helen and I were just talking, and we thought
it would be a hoot if it were possible for you to..."
"Hey!" Dan, having popped his head out of the transporter tube in order
to be heard, impatiently called out, "What's the hold up? And what the
hell are the three are you talking about over there? Come on! Let's
get this show on the road!"
"It's nothing to concern yourself about, Dan!" Rob called back. "I
just need to make a few more adjustments and then, we'll be all set to
go. So, do me a favor. Get your ass back in the tube and just hold
your horses and let me do what I have to do..."
It was not a full minute later when Rob looked up from the console and
in a loud voice, called over to Dan. "Okay, pal! Here we go!" With
that said, Rob lowered his voice to a conspiratorial tone that only
Felicia and Helen could hear and light-hearted continued on to add,
"You're about to get more pussy than you ever bargained for." Rob then
flipped up the clear plastic switch-protector and jammed his thumb down
on the red 'transmit button'. As he did so, the now familiar blue-
white light momentarily filled both of the transporter tubes.
Teetering on those four-inch heels she now wore, a befuddled Dan
gingerly stepped out of Terminal B's Plexiglas tube.
"Oh, my God!" Felicia gleefully chortled, as a thoroughly bemused but
nonetheless breathtakingly beautiful blonde emerged from the
transporter tube seven meters away. "He's - make that she's -
beautiful!"
Having first grabbed the underside of those new boobs of hers much the
way Helen had done previously, Dan, in a frenzied panic, reached down
and frantically groped her loins, only to find that she was no longer
male.
"What the fuck!" Dan shrieked with that sexy, honey sweet new voice of
hers. "Rob! Whatever possessed you into turning me into a girl?"
Then, seeing that her three friends were laughing their asses off, a
disgruntled Dan irately quipped, as she lamely began to hobble her way
towards them, "Hey! This isn't funny!"
"You're right," Helen, trying hard to suppress her glee, impishly
snickered. "It's not funny. It's hilarious."
"Rob!" Dan fumed, as she reached down and plucked first one and then
the other of the treacherous pumps from off of her nylon clad feet. "I
asked you a question. Why the hell did you do this to me?"
"Dan, just so you know, it was the girls' idea not mine."
Not wishing to be the primary target of Dan's wrath, Felicia decided it
was time come clean. "Actually Dan, it was Helen who came up with the
idea in the first place. All I did was to help her talk Rob into doing
it."
"Thanks a heap, Felicia!" Helen teasingly smirked. "Talk about rats
deserting a sinking ship! Come on, Dan! You really need to lighten
up! There's absolutely no need for you to get those new titties of
yours in an uproar. Oh! And when it comes to titties, let me just say
that yours are superb. In fact, most of the women I know would kill
for a pair of knockers like Rob has fitted the three of us girls out
with."
"Aren't you forgetting something, Helen?" Dan heatedly demanded of his
friend. "While you and Felicia might be girls, I'm not! I'm a guy!"
"I don't mean to split hairs here, Dan... Or, I guess I should now be
addressing you as, Danielle" Helen playfully countered. "But, as it
stand now, you're not a guy. Granted, you used to be a guy. And, I'm
sure that Rob will be happy to turn you back into a guy. But the truth
of the matter is that you're not a guy now. All the guys I know have
dicks and unless I'm sadly mistaken, you no longer have a dick, do you
Danielle? The true is that you now have a vagina, the same as Felicia
and myself. Now, correct me if I'm wrong, but if I remember correctly,
having a vagina does in fact make you a girl. Oh, and while I thinking
about it, let me just say what a pretty girl you are. In fact, you're
not just pretty, Danielle. You're not even beautiful. You, my dear,
are gorgeous to the nth degree."
"Helen!" Danielle, having heard quite enough, irately fumed. "Knock it
off! Look! You've made your point! And as much as I hate to admit
this: you're right! As it stands now, I am a girl! I don't want to be
a girl. But there's no getting around the fact that I am one!"
Rob, curious to hear Danielle's take on what it felt like to be fitted
out with a body that reeked of feminine sex-appeal, sheepish inquired,
"So, how's it feel being a girl, Dan?"
"In a word, icky! It feels really weird and I don't like it one bit.
So, I guess the question is: when are you going to change me back,
because I sure as hell don't want to stay like this any longer than I
have to?"
"As soon as the systems recycles I'll be able to undo the damage," Rob
thoughtfully replied. "But, are you sure you want to change back so
soon. I mean, you really need to get a look at yourself like this,
Dan. I mean to tell you! You're a real knockout."
"All right, already! I get the picture. I'm one good-looking girl.
So, how long is it going to take for this system of yours to recycle?"
"Oh, I'd say no more than another ten minutes or so."
Upon hearing Rob say that, Danielle breathed a sigh of relief. "Good,
because this being a girl is really freaking me out."
Felicia, in an effort to lighten the mood, chimed in with what she
thought to be a very apropos suggestion. "Hey! What you say we use
the time to take some pictures of you, Dan? You know, so you can see
how fantastic you look as girl."
"Sure..." Danielle did not see any harm in posing for a few pictures.
Truth is that while she was not about to admit it to her friends,
Danielle was dying to see what she looked like as a girl. "I mean,
given that we have a few minutes to kill, what the hell..."
"Danielle..." Helen teasingly chided, as she fumbled around in her
purse in an effort to locate her cellphone. "You might just want to
put your heels back on for the pictures. Trust me. They'll look far
better on your feet than in your hands."
While Helen and Felicia snapped a whole shitload of pictures of
Danielle posing both alone, and taking turns posing with one or the
other of them, Rob began to check on the progress of the transporter's
system recycle. However, though he did, Rob found that he was
constantly distracted. Try as he might, Rob could not keep his eyes
from straying to his three bodaciously built companions.
Interestingly enough, Danielle, thinking that she would be a man again
in a matter of minutes, actually began to loosen up and to get into
swing of things, to the point that she did not bat an eye when Helen
suggested that she strip down to her bra and pantyhose.
Having ascertained Felicia's, Helen's, and Rob's promise that no one
else would ever see the pictures outside themselves, or learn of story
of how the pictures came to be taken, Danielle quickly removed both the
blue satin blouse and black leather miniskirt she was wearing.
Egging Danielle on, Felicia gleefully exclaimed, as she snapped picture
after picture of her formerly male friend, "You go, girl!"
Danielle brazenly did just that, as she adopted one alluring pose after
another. Then, shocking the shit out of both of her female friends,
Danielle sidled up to Rob and asked him if he would be so kind as to
undo her bra. It was not long after that, that Danielle plopped that
succulent derriere of hers down on a stool and began to oafishly divest
herself of the pantyhose she was wearing.
"Okay, ladies!" Danielle seductively purred as she spread those long
and lovely legs of hers into a wide V, where upon she used the fingers
of both of her hands to draw those multiple lip folds of her vulva
apart. "Since I'm only going to have one of these for just a few more
minutes, make sure that you take a few close ups of this pussy of
mine..."
"Houston..." Rob disgruntled chirruped, "...we have a problem."
That statement of Rob's put a damper on the proceedings.
"What do you mean?" Danielle demanded in a panic. "What sort of
problem? I mean, I'm not going to be stuck like this, am I?"
"No. You needn't worry about that. I'll be able to change you back
all right. The problem is that I won't be able to change you back
until this time tomorrow evening. You see, Dan... or Danielle... or
whatever you want to be called, the transporter system's capacitor-bank
needs to recharge, and I'm sorry to say that's going to take a good
twenty four hours."
In an unbridle huff, Danielle fumed, "You mean to tell me that I'm
going to be stuck like this until tomorrow night?"
"I'm afraid so, Dan." Then, having said that, Rob endeavored to put a
positive spin on things. "But, look on the bright side."
"What bright side?" an extremely disgruntled Danielle despondently
scoffed. "I happen to be a girl right now, or haven't you noticed?"
"Oh, I've noticed all right. How the hell could I not have notice? I
might be a nerd, but I'm still a guy and you're standing right there,
not five feet away from me, as naked as a jaybird. Added to that,
given that you and I have been roommates since our freshman year, you
know I have a preference for long-legged blondes with a nice rack and a
great ass. So, in answer to your question -- yes! I've noticed! So,
do me a favor, Dan. Put your clothes back on, before I end up doing
something that is both illegal and immoral..."
Danielle, catching sight of the vertical bulge in her roommate's pants,
decided that though she trusted Rob explicitly, getting dressed was
probably the best thing she could do at the moment. As she did so, the
four of them entered into a round-robin discussion about Danielle's
unique situation. Rob, keenly aware of the effect Danielle was having
on his libido, suggested that it might be a good idea if Danielle
stayed with Felicia and Helen for the night. Felicia and Helen agreed
that it was probably for the best if Danielle spent the night with
them.
Once Danielle was dressed, Felicia brought up the fact that she was
getting hungry, suggesting that the four of them go grad a bite to eat
at the nearby McDonalds. Helen and Rob were up for it. Danielle,
however, was adamantly opposed. "If the three of you think I'm going
anywhere looking like this, then you've got another think coming! I
mean, what if somebody were to recognize me?"
"Recognize you!" Helen laughingly scoffed. "How the hell could anyone
recognized you, Danielle? May I remind you that you're a girl now?
Besides, you don't look anything like your former self."
"That's true, Dan," Rob added. "In fact, if it weren't for the
differences in your eye and hair color, along with variances in your
complexions, as far as I'm concerned, three of you look a lot like
sisters."
"Helen and Rob are both right, Danielle," Felicia put in her own two
cents worth. "Nobody's going to recognize you. Now, I can understand
how you might be squeamish about venturing out in public as a member of
the opposite sex, especially given how good looking you are as a girl,
but you're going to be with friends. And, you needn't worry about guys
hitting on you. The three of us aren't about to let anything happen to
you. So, come on! It's only McDonalds! Afterwards, I promise. We'll
head right back to our apartment. Okay?"
"Yeah... Okay..." Danielle grudgingly relented. "I may not like it,
but I'll go. However, be advised that I'm going to need some help
getting around in these friggin' heels..."
"Guess what, Danielle," Felicia countered. "For your information, when
it comes to these high heels, Helen and I are in the same boat you are.
While we might be girls, we're no more used to wearing high heels any
more than you are. Besides, if Rob is to believe, aren't you the one
who is responsible for fitting the three of us out with these overtly
sexy outfits? So, I would advise you to stop complaining."
"Yeah," Danielle contritely replied. "I guess I sort of goofed when it
came to high heels."
"Yeah!" Helen sarcastically chimed in. "You goofed big time. Let me
guess. You were thinking with that dick of your -- you know, the one
you no longer have -- rather than the brains God gave you. I mean,
decked out like we are, the three of us look like high-class hookers
out trolling for johns..."
+
After McDonalds, the four of them headed over to the apartment Felicia
and Helen shared. With less than one block to go, streaks of
lightening began to lance down from the southwestern sky, followed a
few seconds later by the ominous sound of rolling thunder.
"They were calling for thunder storms earlier," Felicia offered.
In rebuttal, Danielle replied, as more thunder loudly boomed, "Well, it
sure looks like we're going to get them."
Feeling a single raindrop on the back of his neck, and taking note that
the wind had begun to gust, Rob prudently suggested that the four of
them pick up the pace. "Come on, Girls! From the looks of things,
we're in for a real storm. So, I would suggest that we put some hustle
in our bustle. In others words, we need to shag ass."
Danielle learned a very important lesson, with that lesson being that
when push came to shove, women really could run in heels. In fact, she
surprised herself by just how quickly she had acclimated to wearing
such daunting footwear.
Luckily enough, they just got inside when the skies opened and the
deluge began.
Arriving at Felicia and Helen's apartment, Felicia requested that Rob
to go into her bedroom, find her stand-alone mirror and bring it out
and into the living room. Rob did as Felicia asked and the three girls
spent the better part of the next hour taking turns giddily appraising
themselves of their new looks. Interestingly enough, Danielle spent as
much, if not more time in front of the mirror than either Felicia and
Helen did.
"Oh, my God!" Danielle sensually squealed the first time she got a good
look at herself in the mirror. "I'm hot! Added to that, I'm actually
turning myself on!"
"Well, that settles it then," Rob chuckled. "You might be a girl
physically, but on inside, where it counts, that libido of yours is
still as manly as it ever was."
"Yeah!" Danielle sarcastically smirked, as she jostled her boobs for
the umpteen time since acquiring them. "You've got that right! You
guys know what really crazy about all of this? Ever since I starting
liking girls I would have given my right nut to go out with a girl who
looked even half as good as I do. Now, thanks to Rob and that
transporter of his, I've become the girl of my dreams..."
+
Somewhere around twelve, Rob announced that he was calling it a night.
He bid everyone a goodnight and headed directly across the hallway and
into the apartment he shared with Dan. Once Rob and taken his leave of
the 'girls', Felicia and Helen, working in conjunction with one
another, made up their living room's pullout sofa bed for Danielle.
However, the three of them found that they were far to keyed-up to call
it a night. That being the case, they talked for another two and half-
hours before Helen finally announced that she was calling it quits and
going to bed.
Somewhere around two, Felicia, out the clear blue, defiantly announced
that she had arrived at a decision. No matter what Rob said to the
contrary, she was bound and determined to keep her upgraded physique.
"Hey, I been a wallflower all my life. But I'm not going to be one any
longer. I like the new and improved me. What do you say, Helen? Are
you with me?"
"Damn straight!" Helen, sounding even more dogmatic than Felicia,
readily agreed with her roommate. "There's nothing that Rob can say or
do that'll get me back in one of transporter tubes. "
"I hope the two of you aren't expecting me to jump on the bandwagon,"
Danielle injected herself into the conversation. "Had I been born a
girl, I'd probably want to keep this new body of mine, much that same
as the two of you. But I'm not a girl. I'm a guy, a guy who wants his
old body back more than either of you can begin to imagine..."
+
Felicia waited until Helen closed the door to her bedroom before
producing a stubby plastic cream colored rod that had a conical head on
one end and was flat on the other. "Here you go, Danielle," Helen
said, as she tossed the rod onto the sofa bed. "I thought you might
like to use this tonight. Since you're only going be a girl for
another day, I thought that you might like to experience what orgasms
are like from a girl's point of view. All you have to do to turn it on
is to twist the cap on the flat end. I sure that you can figure out
the rest all by your lonesome."
Gingerly, as if the thing might bite her, Danielle somewhat timidly
picked up Helen's vibrator. Then, after a cursory, if not curious
examination of the pleasure-giving device, Danielle twisted the gnarled
cap and the vibrator came to life. Turning the vibrator off a second
or so later, Danielle rather glumly said. "Thanks, Helen. I really
appreciate the offer, but I doubt that I'll use it."
"Trust me, Danielle. You really should give it a go. Who knows? You
find that you like it," Helen gently admonished, as she turned about
and seductively sashayed into her bedroom.
As she watch Helen's bedroom door close, Danielle murmured to herself,
as she gingerly placed the vibrator on the end table, "That's exactly
what I'm afraid of. I might find that I like it too much for my own
good."
And, that just what happened. Though she fought and an on-again off-
again battle with herself on whether or not to experiment around with
Helen's vibrator, Danielle finally gave into temptation. She grabbed
Helen's vibrator off the end table and, throwing caution to the wind,
proceeded to used it to induce a string of clitoral orgasms.
+
The next morning, as a bare assed naked Helen reclaimed her vibrator,
she teasingly smirked, "Pretty nifty device, isn't it Danielle?"
Taking umbrage with Helen's implication that she had actually used the
vibrator to get those girlish rocks of hers off, Danielle bristled,
"And, what makes you think I actually used it?"
Felicia, who was just emerging from her bedroom at the time, took it
upon herself to provide the answer to Danielle's question, "Well... I
would say that the way you were moaning and groaning and screaming your
head off is pretty good indication that you got off on yourself last
night. So, tell me, Danielle," Felicia inquired, as she parked that
tantalizing re-sculptured derriere of hers down on the sofa bed beside
Danielle. "How was it? Did you by any chance experience an orgasm?"
"Oh, yeah!" A broad shit-eating grin blossomed on Danielle beatific
face. "In fact, I didn't just have one orgasm. I had a whole slew of
'em."
"Oh!" Helen chimed in, as she followed Felicia's lead and parked that
man troubling tush of hers down on the opposite side of the sofa bed,
in effect bracketing Danielle between them. "So, what you're saying is
that as a girl, you're multi-orgasmic?"
"Yeah... I guess I am at that."
"So..." Felicia teasingly taunted. "Did you enjoy the experience?"
"Oh, yeah! I definitely enjoy it! Actually, I loved it!" Danielle
giddily replied. "In fact, if there's one thing I going to miss about
not being a girl, you know, after I get back to being a guy again,
it'll be that..."
+
When Helen and Felicia went to get dressed, to their chagrin, they
found that none of the clothes in their respective wardrobes fit them
anymore. Having been both plump and short prior to her physical
upgrade, Helen found that all her dresses and tops were way too baggy,
in that they hung almost tent-like about that goddess-like new torso of
hers. As far as her pants, jeans and skirts were concerned, the
waistbands were way too large and when it came to their length, they
were all way to short. Added to that, Helen's shoes no longer fit
those slightly larger feet of hers. And, when it came to undergarment,
not a blessed thing came even close to fitting comfortably.
Felicia had the opposite problem with her clothing. Her shoes were too
big for her re-sized feet. Tops and dressed were much too tight,
especially across those ample endowments of hers. And, while her waist
was not a problem when it came to pants, the splay of her hips was.
However, even when she did manage to cram herself into a pair of her
jeans, they proved to be far too long for her to wear, even with the
extra height supplied by the new four-inch stiletto heels that the
transporter had provided her with.
Though it unnerved her to no end, Danielle, taking the pragmatic view,
had simply re-donned the clothes that the transporter had provided her
with. Unable to find anything that came close to fitting their
reconfigured frames, Helen and Felicia found that they were forced to
follow Danielle's example. "Well, you know what this means, don't you
Helen?" Felicia scoffed as she finished buttoning up her blue satin
blouse.
"I sure do," Helen replied with a knowing smile. "Right after Rob
takes the three of us out to breakfast, he's going to run us over to
the mall. Because, the three of us girls are going on a shopping
spree."
"You two can count me out," Danielle dogmatically interjected. "You
guys can go. As for me, I'm staying right here until this evening."
"Come on, Danielle!" Felicia enthusiastically urged. "It'll be fun!"
"Maybe for the two of you," Danielle replied, in an all out effort on
her part to beg off. "Since the two of you are still adamant about
staying as you are, you guys really need to pick up some new clothes
for yourselves. I, on the other hand, do not. What I have on right
now will do me just fine until its time for Rob to change back."
"That might be true." Helen started off by acknowledging the validity
of Danielle's assertion. However, having done so, she laid down the
law. "But, true or not, Danielle, there's no way that you're going to
spend the day cooped up here, or for that matter, across the hall in
your own apartment. Like it or not, you're going to the mall with us.
In fact, I don't give a rat's ass if you buy anything or not. You're
at least going to try some stuff on, because that's what we girls do.
Oh! And, don't trying telling me that just because you've still got a
man's mind, that you're not really a girl. That body of yours says
otherwise..."
It was right about then when the phone rang. Felicia answered it and
informed the others that it was Rob. Whereupon, Helen said, "Tell, him
that if he any plans for the day to forget 'em, because he's taking the
three of us out to breakfast, and form there, to the mall."
+
As it turned out, Rob was more than happy to take the three young
beauties out for breakfast. In fact, he had already planed on taking
them to Denny's for breakfast. The only thing he hadn't countered on
was picking up the check. But after he thought about it, it made
sense, given that Felicia and Helen were going to have to purchase a
week's worth of outfits, along with underwear and at least one pair of
sensible shoes for themselves.
"Hey!" Danielle registered a complaint while waiting for their waitress
to bring them their orders. "Those guys over there are really creeping
me out. I mean, have you noticed how they've looking at us."
"Which guys?" Helen asked. "Do you mean the guys who are seated over
at the counter, or the ones at the table over there in the corner?"
"You mean to tell me there is more than one group of guys gawking at
us?" Danielle twisted her head about trying to catch a glimpse of the
offenders.
"Actually," Felicia added, "we've caught the attention of most of the
men in here. And oddly enough, having never before experienced such a
thing before, I find it all to be both flattering and to a degree,
amusing."
"Funny you should say that, Felicia," Helen chimed in. "Because I do
too. Like you, it's kind of nice to be a piece of eye-candy for a
change..."
+
Interestingly enough, though Danielle had not intended to purchase
anything of a girlie nature while at the mall, she ended up buying
herself a pair of designer jeans and a light-weight turtleneck sweater
to go with them. In doing so, she used the excuse that she felt too
exposed walking around in a mini-skirt. Danielle also said that Helen
and Felicia could share the outfit after she changed back into her old
manly self, given the fact that the three of them were the exact same
size.
Interestingly enough, Danielle suffered a pang of jealousy later that
afternoon when she accompanied Helen and Felicia into A Victoria
Secrets. They needed women's undergarments, where as Danielle did not.
However, though she felt foolish for doing so, Danielle, telling
herself that she wanted a keepsake for her day spent as a member of the
fairer sex, bought herself a very alluring and down right sexy bra and
panty set.
Knowing that Felicia and Helen had charged more than then should have,
Danielle prudently suggest that she and Rob split the diner tab. Rob
had no objections and so, that's is exactly what they did.
+
After diner, Rob, who had thoroughly enjoyed spending the day with his
three gorgeous creations, drove them all back to their apartment
complex. With a few hours to kill before heading over to the
University's Applied Physics Annex Building, they decided to spend the
time shooting the shit with one another at Felicia and Helen's pad,
rather than across the hall in Rob and Danielle's apartment.
Shortly after entering the apartment, Danielle drew Helen off to the
side and entered into a short exchange with the striking brunette.
Their conversation ended with Helen saying in a voice that could be
heard by all, "You should find it in the top drawer of the night table
that's located on the left side of the bed as you enter the room. And,
if it's not there, give me a holler and I come in and see if I can
locate it for you." And with that said, Danielle, without saying
another word as to what she was about, turned and made her way into
Helen's bedroom. Shutting he door behind her, the telltale sound of
lock mechanism being thrown could clearly be heard.
Curious to know what was going on, Rod inquired of Helen, "What was
that all about? And, what's Danielle up to in your bedroom? And, why
the hell did she feel the need to lock the door?"
"Rob." Helen took her seat on the sofa. "You know what 'they' say
about how every cloud has a silver lining. Well, let's just say that
last night, or rather, early this morning, with a little help from
yours truly, Danielle found her silver lining."
Mistakenly thinking that Helen was implying that she and Danielle had
engaged in lesbian sex, Rob chuckled, "Oh! I had no idea that you
swung both ways, Helen."
"I don't!" Helen bristled. "For your information, Robert Alexander, I
happen to like guys. And, with this new body of mine, the guys are
finally going to like me. In other words, I'm not bisexual, nor do I
have a lesbian bone in my body. That's to say that I'm as heterosexual
as you are! I mean, you are a heterosexual aren't you?"
"Yes!" It was Rob's turn to irately bristle. "Of course I am! And,
for that matter, so is Dan! Which, I guess makes him - rather her -
the lesbian in the group, you know, given the fact that he's a she for
the time being."
Felicia, who hadn't contributed anything to the conversation as yet,
decided it was time to have a little fun at Rob's expense. "Rob, if
you're as heterosexual as you say you are, how come you never asked
Helen or myself out on a date? Could it be that you didn't find either
one of attractive enough?"
Even though Felicia had hit the nail on the head with her last remark,
Rob was not foolish enough to try and answer it. "Look! We're
friends, and the last thing I ever wanted to do was to jeopardize that
friendship by dating either one of you. I mean, I like you both and
were I to start dating either one of you, things could get awkward."
"Good answer!" Felicia cheerfully commented. "But, that was then, this
is now. Do you feel the same way today as you did yesterday, you know,
before you used that transporter of yours to physical enhanced our
looks?"
Though he would have given his right nut for the chance to go out with
either one of them, Rob played it smart. "Of course I do. The last
thing I would want to do is to risk the friendship the four of us
enjoy."
"I'm really sorry to hear you say that, Rob," Helen, in an attempt on
her part to really get his goat, interjected. "Because, while I never
said anything, I've always had a thing for you."
In an effort to change the subject, Rod said, "Hey! What's that
buzzing sound I hear? I do believe that it's coming from your bedroom,
Helen. By any chance, does it have something to do with Danielle, and
why she's still in there?"
A lot more sternly then she intended, Helen gruffly replied, "It has
everything to do with Danielle and why she hasn't come out yet. You
see, Rob, since she only has few hours left as a girl; Danielle wants
to make the most of it. So, she's in my bedroom, using my vibrator to
get off on herself. And, the reason she locked the door was probably
due to the fact that she rather not have anyone barging in on her while
she doing what she's doing. Understand?"
Rob, aware that he had not other recourse open to him, replied that he
understood perfectly.
An hour or so later, dressed once again in both the black leather mini-
skirt and blue satin blouse combo, a somewhat unkempt looking Danielle
rejoined her friends. "Is it time to go?"
Checking his watch, Rob replied that they still had a good hour to go
before the transporter system's capacitor bank would be fully charged.
However, seeing how glum Danielle looked upon hearing him say that, Rod
continued on to say that since the four of them were walking over
there, it might be for the best if they got a move on it.
During the walk, Rob took the opportunity to converse with his
roommate. "Dan, are you sure that you really want to do this? I mean,
it sure looked to me like you were enjoying yourself today."
"Actually, now that you mention it, once I got into swing of things, I
kind of did enjoy myself. But, in answer to you question: yes, I'm
sure. I mean, being a girl does have its moments, but given my
druthers, I'd much rather be a guy..."
+
As he had the evening before, Rob led his friends around to back of the
Union Hill's Applied Physics Annex Building. Though he was authorized
to be in the building at any time, be it night or day, Rob wished to
avoid any unnecessary hassles with campus security. Producing two AA
flashlights, he handed one to Danielle and then, using his key,
unlocked the rear door. For some unknown reason, the freight elevator
was not working, so with Rob leading, the four of them used the rear
stairs to head down to the building's sub-basement.
As Rob opened the door to the large room that housed the cluttered
transporter lab, Felicia ruefully quipped, "What that's smell?"
Knowing exactly what caused such an odious and ominous odor, even as
Rob turned on the lights, Danielle despondently responded, "There is
only one thing that emits such a smell. Fried circuits boards. And,
it smells like it's a hell of a lot more of them than just one."
"Oh, shit!" Helen gasped, as she surveyed the damage. "There's puddles
of water all over the floor! What the hell could have caused that?"
"My guess would be that," Rob said, as he pointed to the overhead
sprinkler system.
"Rob!" Danielle drew Rob's attention to the bank of larger industrial
capacitors that were grouped on the far side of the room; the same type
of heavy-duty oil filled capacitors that the electric companies use as
a principle component in their substations. "I think this is were it
all started."
Rob, seeing that several of the huge capacitors were badly charred,
concurred with Danielle assessment. "I do believe that you right about
that, Dan. My guess is that this is a result of that terrible storm we
had last night. Lightening must have hit one of the high voltage
feeds, which in turn caused an overload that zapped one of more of
these capacitors. And that, I'm afraid, lead to an electrical fire,
which in turn caused the sprinkler system to activate, drenching
everything in here."
"Yeah..." Danielle glumly agreed. "That would be my guess as well..."
Though she knew it was bad, Felicia nevertheless felt compelled to
inquire, "How bad is it, Rob? I mean, you're still going to be able to
turn Danielle back into Dan aren't you?"
"Not tonight, I'm not." Rob disgruntled snapped, as he sniffed one of
many closet-sized bays that containing row after row and shelf after
shelf of handcrafted circuit boards. "The prognosis isn't good. The
water has probably shorted-out most of the boards in this bay, and
probably most of the other bays as well. I'm sorry, Dan. I just
assumed that the sprinkler system had been disconnected back in the
late forties when they first started work on this experimental
transporter system. I mean, anybody with good sense knows that you
don't use water to put out an electrical fire. Why they didn't
disconnect the sprinkler system before they started the project is
beyond me. But, you know how assumptions work. I guess I should have
checked. I sorry..."
Taking Danielle's hand compassionately in her own, Helen sheepishly
inquired, "Danielle, does this mean what I think it means?"
"Well..." Danielle heaved a labored sigh, as Felicia moved in to take
her other hand. "If you think that it means that I going to be stuck
like this for the foreseeable future, than I would say that you're
right. The truth is that unless the government has another
experimental transporter system stashed away somewhere, I would say
from the look of things, I'm probably going to have to spend the rest
of my life as a female."
Since Helen had suggested the practical joke that had resulted in Dan
becoming Danielle, she felt responsible, and therefore awful. Felicia,
having been the one who egged Rob on, felt as bad as Helen did. As a
wealth of tears began to pour from their eyes, both emotional
distraught girls began to beg for Danielle's forgiveness, as they
repeatedly promise to do everything they could to help their former
male friend cope with her new lot in life.
Though extremely upset over the deplorable situation she found herself
in, to the point where she had teetered on the brink of becoming teary-
eyed herself, Danielle could not find it in herself to blame her
friends. It had been a practical joke. Nothing more. Nothing less.
While it was true that her three friends were technically responsible
for her present condition, they could never have foreseen the freakish
chain of events that had occurred. In fact, Danielle knew that given
the opportunity, she could have prevailed upon Rob to play the very
same sort of practical joke on one of their male associates, much as
Helen, Felicia and Rob had played on her. Though it was an uphill
battle, Danielle struggled to maintain a pragmatic view of things.
"Hey!" Danielle managed. "I'm not the only one who stuck as they are
now. You two are in the same boat I am."
"Not hardly!" Helen sniffled. "I mean, we are, but then again we
aren't, you know, if you catch my meaning? I mean, we're still the
same sex as we were before, while you're not. Besides, Felicia and I
had no intention of changing back. We both like the way we look now."
"That's understandable..." Danielle replied. "Had I been born a girl,
I probably wouldn't want to change back either. But that's the
problem. I'm not a girl! I'm a guy! Or, at least I was a guy..."
"Yeah..." Felicia sobbed, as she enfolded Danielle in am empathetic
embrace. "You poor thing. I mean, even though I really didn't want
to, when push came to shove I probably would have felt compelled to
asked Rob to tone down these new looks of mine a tad or two. In other
words, Danielle, I really like how sexy I look right now. Which means,
I'm not all that upset about the situat