Reassignment II: Deep Water free porn video

REASSIGNMENT: DEEP WATER by Ingrid Halb Reassignment Case file 2113-1725-O(P) Subject: Candace Kaine Classification: TOP SECRET/Black Start Run: {stop run} UNAUTHORIZED ACCESS Run redacted file? Y/N Classification: SECRET/Blue Start Run: *** The former Special Agent Candace Kaine rode in the back of the transport under close guard and level four restraint. There was little about her to indicate her former status. A thousand-mile stare and an inscrutable facial expression covered a grim determination that she would get through this. The grey cotton jumpsuit of a convicted felon hung loose on her. Underneath that, she still had the lean body of a field agent. The weeks of trial and confinement had done little to diminish a physique worn hard by countless hours training and even more hours out in the cold on assignment. She had not lost her edge. Even the six-month restriction to desk duty during the official investigation had not softened her or slowed her reflexes. She had kept up her training despite the show-trial marking the end of her career. She had ignored the newsfeeds and paid scant attention to all the official proceedings. This, despite the desperate pleadings of her defense attorney to take a deal, any deal. In her heart, she had done no wrong. True she had killed a man, if not exactly in self- defense then at least for good reason. The man was selling military Counter-IED frequencies to fund his high-rolling lifestyle. Killing him had saved the lives of countless soldiers. Regrettably, killing him had also cut the information pipeline from several disgruntled cabinet members of some very unfriendly governments. That was forgivable from the Center's point of view. It could all have been washed clean. She would not have been the first field agent dropped from the rolls only to report for duty again with a new face. No, what she had done was worse. She had brought public attention to the Center and its actions and that was something that would not do. The cleanup was messy. The court of public opinion needed careful grooming. The press was directed to focus on the target being a second cousin to a sitting Senator. There was great emphasis given to the political implications of an attack on the family of a minority Senator before an important vote. The media portrayed Candace as either a strong-arm mercenary of an arrogant Administration or a rogue political extremist operating on her own agenda, depending on which newsfeed you preferred. The public's attention focused on the controversy and the Center dropped from public discussion. All the public saw was a grieving Senator crying for justice and the traitor Candace Kaine. Candace practiced rhythmic breathing as she contemplated her immediate future. The Center was taking her back. Not as an Agent this time, but as a prisoner. The ankle bracelet she wore advertised her new status; she belonged to Criminal Rehabilitation and was destined for punitive reassignment. It chafed. The transport rolled to a stop with a slight shudder and the vehicle's door spun up revealing two additional guards dressed in Center Security black. "Let's go, Kaine," the larger guard said, rapping his stun baton on the side of the door. The dislike in his voice was plain to hear. Candace noticed the shorter guard was female and showing signs of tense nervousness. However, she did stand poised two steps back with the baton ready in the standard schoolhouse trained posture for receiving a dangerous prisoner. She was new. Her loud-mouthed partner was veteran enough to be taking this transfer lightly. He was overconfident in his authority and his weaponry. Idly Candace wondered if she could take them. Maybe. Probably. Of course, there was the fully armed transport guard behind her. Striking out now was not worth the chance contact of a stun baton. And certainly not worth a high speed fl?chette in her back. Candace got up to leave the vehicle with both hands visible and slowly entered the Center avoiding any threatening gestures. She woke up to the all too familiar feeling of a pounding headache and sand paper eyes. Bastards stunned me! Probably the loud mouth, she thought. Then again, it may have been the nervous one. Newbies get a little trigger-happy with the prisoners sometimes. It did not really matter which one. Getting even was not an option. They had the full authority of the Center. She was just one prisoner and no one cared if she was roughed up. Just as long as she was not damaged too badly. At least, not until her labs that is. Stifling a groan, Candace rolled off the hard bunk and sat up. She noticed that someone had taken the time to dress her in the standard white tracksuit of a Center newcomer. She was also wearing the standard confinement collar coded to the Center. Leaving here soon was not going to be an option. At least the ankle bracelet was gone, she thought rubbing the sore spot on her leg. She took in the details of her room. Spartan. There was the bunk itself, bolted to the wall, and a laundry disposal chute. No closet. No drawers. No net access terminal. There was a small sink but no toilet. The walls were painted in an off-yellow that reminded Candace of every other government building she had ever seen and the floors were covered in a rubberized easy-to-clean coating that looked like primer. "Nice," Candace said with no small tone of irony in her voice. She considered her options. There were few. Gathering herself together, she got up to leave her room and try to find something to ease her headache. The Center had not changed much since her first visit and original reassignment. Automated kiosks and long lines at the service counters were very familiar, as were the bored looking civil servants. The setting was exactly as she remembered, with rows of uncomfortable plastic chairs hard mounted to steel frames. The floors, covered with the same industrial-grade carpet of an indeterminate grey-brown color, still showed obvious signs of wear from countless feet and too many encounters with the cleaning bots. Vid screens announced the next available service counter in between newscasts and sports scores. For Candace, it was a step back in time, but any thoughts of nostalgia were quashed by the attention of the guards that watched her every move. She looked wistfully at the front entrance, knowing that her confinement collar would not let her pass that way. Instead, she headed for the cafeteria to get something for her raspy throat and pounding head. The cafeteria brought another wave of familiarity with a handful of Good Time Girl trainees serving mixed tables of Center clients. The trainees' uniform had not changed much with their short skirts and heels too high for this type of work. Candace's feet ached with remembered pain, and she smiled sympathetically as the girls worked hard to stay cheerful and flirt with the clients for tips. Most were well along their transformation, but two had that frightened clumsy look that suggested they were still coming to terms with their new lives. This had almost been her life and Candace wondered if reassignment would have her back on track to becoming a Good Time Girl. Probably not, she reasoned. Not punishment enough, she thought with a sneer on her face betraying what she thought of Center attitude toward the Good Time Girl program. "Hi, I'm Lana. What can I get for you, Hon?" said the girl that came to serve her. She was a tall girl, with dark hair. Pretty, but mannish enough to make Candace wonder as to her origins. No matter, Candace thought determined to be nice. "Just some tea, please," Candace said. "And maybe some banana pudding." "Rough night?" Lana asked. Candace smile wanly and nodded her agreement. "Don't worry, I'll get that right out to you," Lana said, touching Candace in a warm and friendly manner before making a note in her order pad and turning to leave, smiling back at Candace as she left. Nice girl, Candace thought, her spirits lifted slightly by the first friendly face she had encountered in a very long time. She contemplated tipping her, but she was not sure how credits worked for someone at the Center under legal confinement. Did they even keep a tally on her? Candace did not dwell on the thought. Instead, she allowed herself to relax, close her eyes, and pretend to be an ordinary person at an ordinary cafeteria. It was a tempting feeling, interrupted only by Lana's return a few minutes later. "Here's your tea and pudding," Lana said, her tone colder and more venomous than her previous cheery attitude. "Anything else I can get for the traitor Kaine?" she said, spilling the tea slightly as she plunked the cup rudely in front of Candace. Lana had her thumb stuck in the pudding in an intentional manner as she put the bowl down. Candace stared coldly. Clearly Lana had figured out who she was, or someone had told her. Not the worst situation Candace had found herself in, but something that needed attention. She had learned that if one did not take control of situations, then situations tended to take control of you. Candace's hand struck out and grabbed Lana's wrist with a practiced twist that brought the girl's offending thumb up to Candace's face. The motion was violent enough to make the guards start to move, but too quick and not threatening enough for a full reaction. Candace smiled up at Lana's frightened face, then licked her lips slowly before taking Lana's thumb in her mouth, cleaning the pudding off with her tongue, slowly withdrawing Lana's thumb from her mouth. "I think I'm good," Candace said seductively, releasing Lana's wrist. Lana almost ran back to the kitchen in her haste to get away. This set the tone for Candace's stay at the Center. People were friendly until they found out who she was. The animosity and derisive comments would soon follow. For the most part, she was able to counter the hostility of others with an air of open defiance that kept her isolated from the general crowd. That worked for her and the more timid residents of the center. This did not work with the guards who took every opportunity to invent reasons to punish her. Candace bided her time. This situation would change. The Center was not a place of permanence. *** The first sign of change came five days later with the next arrival of the prison transport with a new contingent of convicts. There were four of them, three men and a woman. The woman and one of the men were apparently a couple. Candace learned that their names were Jennifer, and Paul. They were rough looking, possibly drug addicted, and maybe in their late thirties, although that was hard to judge. Paul was a big- boned but thin man with thick black hair. Jennifer was pear-shaped with wide hips and breasts that sagged more than they should. Her shoulder length hair had the dyed blond look of someone that could not afford genetic modification. They kept close to each other and guarded their personal space with cold challenging looks. Candace let them be. The second man's name was Alvin, but Candace just thought of him as the banker. He was soft, pudgy, easily in his late forties and had a constant nervous look about him. He seemed too eager to obey the guards. The third man caught her eye. Younger, he was maybe mid to late 20's in age, with short but tousled dark hair and brown eyes. He had a square jaw and his build looked trim enough to suggest at least occasional participation in sports or some form of physical labor. He had a wary look and kept his mouth shut, showing that he might have some level of intelligence. She found out that his name was Javier. Any chance to talk with her fellow prisoners was precluded by the guards through most of the in-processing. There was a momentary lull after the ident cards were issued as two of their three guards talked quietly with some confusion while the five prisoners were watched warily by the third. One of the two hurried off to seek clarification leaving the prisoners in a group with the remaining two guards. Candace looked at her new ident card. As expected, it was bright orange with 'Pre-Assignment Medical/Physical Section' in the career field. She was a little surprised that her name was not on the card. Instead, the number 13-47(P) filled the space where her name should have been. There was also a black stripe down one side of the card. She could see the same black stripe on the ident cards her fellow prisoners were examining. Candace considered her options. She was a convicted felon and the orange ident card confirmed what she had already guessed. She was at the Center for reassignment. Punitive reassignment. She had full confidence in her own abilities, yet a strong male presence had certain psychological advantages when dealing with others. An ally could be useful. Candace let her body go soft, but kept her attention sharp as she casually maneuvered to be closer to Javier. "Hi, my name's Candace," she said, eyes downcast with only occasional glances up to meet his eyes. Her hands brushed imaginary folds on her jumpsuit in a manner she knew would direct his gaze. "Hi, I'm Javier," he said, turning to give his full attention to the blond girl talking to him. "Kind of a mess we're in, huh?" he said, flashing her his warmest smile, reflexively glancing down at what her hands were doing but keeping enough discipline to look her in the eyes again. Candace looked him deep in the eyes for a measured moment, then smiled and looked away as if embarrassed. "Yeah," she said, taking a quarter-turn away from him while simultaneously moving a half-step closer. She found herself looking into the startled face of Alvin, the prisoner she called the banker. "Candace?!" he said. "You're THAT Candace Kaine?" Candace tensed inwardly, then moved so that Javier stood between her and the fat prisoner but still gave her room to maneuver. She noted that one guard was watching this interaction closely. The second guard kept glancing at the prisoners and looking to where the third guard had gone. She also noted that the other two prisoners were not moving in her direction. Paul was looking on in amusement, while Jennifer just looked bored. "You ARE her!" Alvin said, with obvious disdain in his voice. "You're Candace Kaine!" Candace noted that everyone was looking at Alvin except for the first guard. He was looking at Candace very closely, and there was an amused look on his face. Candace memorized his badge number. "What the hell are you talking about?" Javier said, taking an aggressive step forward towards the fat man who stepped back as far as the guards let him. "Your girlfriend's the traitor Kaine," Paul said, and then spat on the floor. "Quiet down, you!" the second guard said, looking back and forth between the prisoners and down the hall where the third guard had gone. "She's not... I mean, we've all done something," Javier said. "Or we wouldn't be here." "She killed Senator Barbier's cousin! She's an anarchist!" Alvin said, his voice squeaking with slight hysteria. "Fuck the anarchists!" Paul said. "She handed the election to those god- damned fascist Tories!" "Kind of late for any of us to worry about politics," Javier said, keeping a wide stance between Candace and her accusers. For her part, Candace stayed small and watched the guards from behind Javier. She also kept a light but reassuring touch on Javier's back and side. "I mean, look where we are!" Javier said, perhaps a little too loudly. "Whatever politics... whatever we were before... will be something else before we get out of here." This quieted everyone, and the uneasy peace continued until the return of the third guard. He was carrying a portable coder, probably preloaded. Candace did not think he looked clever enough to code on the fly. Candace knew she could wreak havoc with one of those, and being this close to one was very tempting. Her confinement collar would prevent her from using it on herself, but she could use it to remove Javier's collar. She could then show him how to remove her collar. That would let her leave the Center. Of course, there was still the small matter of the heavily armed guards. Candace continued to review her options as the returning guard walked up to a standing counsel, plugged in the coder, and began pushing buttons. One palm scan and card swipe later, the guards gathered the prisoners together and shepherded them down a side hallway. Candace began to get a hard, cold feeling in the pit of her stomach as recognition crept up on her. She had been here before. This was the hallway to the Medical/Physical Section. They were on their way to the labs. Candace had a very strong sense of d?j? vu, as they made their closer to the labs section. She was more familiar with the unofficial lab section that the Center kept for its field agents and other special projects. This was only her second time at the publicly acknowledged labs. However, any resemblance to her first trip through the Center ended at the labs. The tests were perfunctory with minimal concern for the prisoners' health and none for their comfort. The testing was done in an hour and apparently, they all passed. Candace's arms were still bleeding from numerous needle-sticks as the prisoners lined up at the final station. This was it. The bio-safety curtain and viral storage cabinet identified this as the station where the prisoners would get their retrovirus injection. This is where their transformation would start. The guards locked the prisoners into the medical treatment chairs, under medium restraint for 'their safety', and cleared the room. This left the lab technician alone behind the bio-safety curtain except for the one guard that had been watching Candace closely. "Special request on that one," the guard said, pointing at Candace. "Again?" the technician said. "That's the third time this quarter. I can't keep doing this." "Can't be helped," the guard said with an ambivalent shrug. "Lucas wants her in the deep. You going to be the one to tell Lucas no?" "No," the technician said. "But I can't pull one punitive out of sequence. This was a priority fill. They're going to notice her missing when only four new workers show up." "So send them all to the deep," the guard said. "Let the next five take this fill.' "That could work," the technician said, looking at his counsel. "There's three 'maids and two workers lined up for the sea colonies over the next two months. I could combine them into one work order and move them up the priority list." "Three 'maids, huh," the guard said thoughtfully. "Where they assigned?" "Neptune City, entertainment class," the technician said. "Damn!" the guard said. "Lucas wants her mobile. What's the gender bias on the frogs?" "Zero two," the technician said. "Okay, do it," the guard said. "But make her one of the frogs and change the bias." "I can't do one one," the technician said. "But there is a two zero, light support requirement." "Two zero, then," the guard said with an indifferent shrug. "All right," the guard said, loading an auto-injector. "But if we get audited, it's going to be hard to explain why we sent these five to the sea colonies." "Then we better not get audited," the guard said with a menacing tone. This conversation did not go unnoticed by the prisoners, several of whom were becoming increasingly agitated. "Hey!" Paul yelled. "What do you mean sea colonies? We had a deal!" "Quiet you!" the guard shouted back. "No! Fuck this shit!" Paul said, still yelling. "We had a deal! We testify for you and Jen and I get light duty in South America!" "Don't worry," the guard said, his voice dripping with sarcasm. "It'll be light duty." "Paul!" Jennifer said. "What's going on?" "These bastards are turning us into fucking sea monkeys because of this bitch!" Paul said. His hands were immobile under the restraints but he managed to gesture in Candace's direction with a thrust of his head. "Sea monkeys!" Alvin said with great alarm. "No! This is a mistake. I can't go to the colonies! I'm not like these people. They're criminals! I did nothing wrong!" The technician paid no attention to the complaints coming from the prisoners. He just donned his protective hood and gloves and stepped through the bio-safety screen with the auto-injector in his hand. Candace stared coldly at the guard as the technician walked up to her and dispassionately hit her with the business end of the injector. Next, he injected Javier with the same business-like manner. Paul struggled violently in his restraints and loudly cursed the technician. Jennifer pulled back as much as the restraints let her and spat on the technician's face shield. "This is a mistake!" Alvin said, his voice breaking shrilly as the technician approached. "I'm not like them! Listen, this is a mistake!" The technician injected the fat man anyway. "But I can't swim," the fat man said, staring at the red mark on his arm where the injector had hit. "Don't worry," the technician said. "You'll learn." This made the guard laugh. "Maybe it won't be so bad," Javier said to Candace. Candace turned to look at Javier. There was obvious worry on the young man's face. Candace gave him a sad smile. "This is all your fault, bitch!" Paul said. "You traitor! You fascist bitch traitor!" Candace said nothing in reply. *** Two days later, Candace sat in her room reviewing her situation. She was going to one of the sea colonies. The swimsuit in her closet and the letter 'O' on her temporary ident card made that plain. Furthermore, there was no denying she had been genetically altered. The last few days of fever, chills, and vomiting confirmed it. By now, her genome was completely different; tailored for life under the sea. This was not the way this reassignment was supposed to happen. Even a punitive reassignment was carefully planned to meet colony requirements in a balanced fashion. There was organization here aside from the official order. Someone had reached across channels and made this happen. Someone who could scare guards and technicians. Someone named Lucas. Her mind began to compare the threats and opportunities. This 'Lucas' obviously wanted her alive. That was good, depending on why he wanted her alive. There was an underworld here that ran deep and she was only on the surface. She needed more information. In the meantime, she was going to have to deal with her own transformation. She had transformed before. Life as a field agent required it, but this was different. This was the colonies. It felt non-human. She mentally ran through a list of names for the sea colonists; fish, squids, sea monkeys, mermaids. Is that what people would call her now? Probably. Candace ran her hand over her thigh. It felt the same. The nanites would need time to complete her transformation. How much time would depend on how drastic her transformation. "Your presence is required in Assignments. Your presence is required in Assignments. Your presence is required in Assignments." The melodious voice kept softly but insistently repeating the message while the confinement collar around Candace's neck buzzed and pulled in the direction of her door. "All right," she said to no one. "Just let me get my suit on." Outside her room the voice stopped but the tugging on her collar continued, always urging her in the direction of Assignments. She could ignore it but she knew the guards would show up if she did. She drew curious glances from her fellow residents. Even at the Center, it was a little unusual to see a woman dressed only in a steel-grey one-piece swimsuit and a confinement collar. Ignoring them, she strode purposefully, knowing where she was going if not exactly what she would find when she got there. Candace thought of it as the sorting room. It was very familiar, even though she had not been here since her original transformation. That experience had seared it into her memory. Chairs set in the floor and arranged in groups of four around tables angled to face a low podium at the front of the room. It still reminded her of her old university classrooms but with more sinister undertones. She was momentarily disorientated by how empty it looked. The only people in it were the two guards that stood at the entrance to an open hallway at the front of the room beside the podium. Two more people were standing around and it took Candace a moment to recognize them. It was Jennifer and Alvin. They were dressed in the same steel-grey one- piece swimsuit that Candace wore. It looked reasonable on Jennifer as she leaned against one of the tables with her arms crossed and a stern look on her face. It looked ridiculous on Alvin who sat dejectedly in one of the chairs with his head down. The swimsuit fit him but looked very inappropriate. The suit pushed the flab on his chest together enough that it almost looked like he had breasts, but his very hairy legs with his ham-like thighs destroyed any illusion of femininity. Candace kept a poker face as she sat down at one of the tables. Jennifer flashed Candace a hate-filled look while Alvin avoided eye contact. Candace ignored them both and studied the guards. They looked official, bored but official. There was nothing to suggest they might belong to a criminal cabal. Javier showed up a few moments later and Candace felt a pang of regret to see that he too was wearing a one-piece women's swimsuit. "I see we're all in uniform," he said sheepishly. Alvin perked up a little to see someone else in shared humiliation. Jennifer openly sneered at both of them. Candace smile supportively. She was a little surprised to see Javier still looked good despite the suit. His broad shoulders and flat, toned stomach combined with his narrow hips and muscular thighs presented a very masculine image that was little diminished by the feminine swimwear. Her examination was interrupted by the loud commotion of Paul being dragged in backwards by three burly guards, two of whom held him firmly by each arm while the third kept a stun baton aimed squarely at his chest. Paul was also wearing the identical women's one-piece swimsuit and was not going quietly. He cursed and kicked at the heavily clad guards to little effect except to highlight his bare feet and naked legs. The guards dropped Paul on his ass in the middle of the room and stepped back warily. Jennifer rushed up to Paul, whether to comfort him or reassure herself was not apparent to Candace. Paul glared angrily at the room then stood up slowly with Jennifer close by his side. Candace mused on how different the two looked even while wearing identical swimsuits. Somehow, she felt the nanites would have made them more similar despite the short passage of time. Paul was thin, dark, and hairy which contrasted sharply from the woman's slightly dumpy figure. From Jennifer's figure, Candace thought, mentally checking herself. They were all women now, even if their bodies had not caught up with that yet. She wondered if the others realized. "All right, that's the lot of them," one of the guards said. "Get them their ident-cards and get them to the pool." "Come on, you," the guard nearest Candace said, gesturing down the hallway with his stun baton. It was with a great deal of curses and threats, and with an occasional strike from a baton or weapon butt, that three of the guards got the group of five grumbling and whining prisoners moving down the hallway. Candace remembered this hallway as leading to the Education center and it was with a great deal of d?j? vu that she let the guards lead her and the rest of the small group down the hall. She remembered the Education center with unease. It was where they had first given her the name Candace and told her she would become a woman. She was all right with the name and gender change now, but the memory of forced change and the feeling that it would happen again left her with a feeling of trepidation. That feeling of trepidation rose as they turned down an unfamiliar hallway, away from where Candace knew the Education center lay. The large, square marble-like floor tiles and faux-wood trim on the walls gave way to inch-square ceramic tiles in shades of blue on the floor and seamless walls in a pale green coating, occasionally interrupted with patch-like repair. Candace could feel the humidity rising and smell a faint scent of chlorine in the air. The group came around a corner to a section of hallway that sloped down to a small pool of water. The floor formed a ramp of sorts. There were no steps, but there were traction pads imbedded. Candace noticed the security cameras and automated weapons systems trained on this area, and she especially noticed the two guards in the pool. These new guards were men by legal definition, but did not look like any men Candace had ever seen in person. Frogs, she thought, automatically using the slang term for the sea colony working class. The guards were big but lean. Their skin was a grey-blue color flecked with brown spots, with a visible white patch at the throat and on the palms of the hand. Their fingers were disproportionately long and clearly webbed, with dark claw-like nails at the tips. Both were dressed in black swim trunks and black vests, each embossed with the Center security forces emblem. The uniforms made them seem more human, as did the rifles they carried. Semi-automatic fl?chette, she noted with professional approval. Only an idiot would fire off a stun baton in the water. "You're late," one of the guards in the water said with a scowl. "We had some problems with this one," a land-based guard said, striking Paul a particularly harsh blow to the shoulder blade that knocked him to his knees. "Careful with the merchandise," the guard in the water said. "Don't worry, she'll heal up pretty enough," the land-based guard said with a derisive snort. This caused a few snickers and chuckles among all the guards. Paul's face burned red, although Candace could not tell if it was from anger or embarrassment. The other prisoners shuffled nervously. Candace could hear Alvin whimper softly. "All right!" the land-based guard said, loudly addressing the prisoners directly. "Everyone into the pool, and say goodbye to dry land!" Javier looked at the guards then at Candace. Nodding once, he took a resigned breath, squared off his shoulders and walked down the ramp into the pool. Candace was impressed despite herself as she returned Javier's nod and followed him into the pool. Jennifer had rushed to Paul's side and now helped him stand. The two of them shot angry looks at the guards as they supported each other down the ramp. Alvin looked down the ramp in horror then desperately from face to face. "Please!" he said. "There's been some sort of mistake!" "Get down there, you," the land-based guard said, shoving Alvin hard from behind. Alvin fell down the ramp, rolling head over heels, as he tumbled into the water with a loud splash. He blubbered and thrashed helplessly in the waist-deep water. The guards left him for a moment before one of them rolled his eyes and waded over to him. "Get up," he said with scorn as he reached down and roughly grabbed Alvin's arm, yanking him to his feet. Candace took the opportunity to examine the guards and her surroundings more closely. The guards' faces looked normal enough except for color. Hair on their heads looked like ordinary hair, each guard having slightly different shades of brown. There was a disturbing double-blink their eyes made that gave them a slightly alien feel, but otherwise they were recognizably regular human beings. The pool continued as an aquatic hallway to an arched entrance with an obviously larger expanse of water beyond. The side of the archway bore an official looking sign that read; HOMELAND EMPLOYMENT COLONIAL AFFAIRS OCEAN PROCESSING CENTER CORRECTIONAL FACILITY "Alright, ladies. Let's move it!" said the first of the water guards. He was the only one of the two to have spoken so far and was apparently the one in charge. The two guards submerged and darted around the prisoners, prodding them into motion towards the archway. They swam quickly, quicker than any human should, with a frog-like kick of the legs and an occasional assist from a webbed hand. It looked like they were wearing swim fins but Candace suspected it was the way their feet were built. The guards were not gentle as they jabbed at the prisoners, staying underwater for a disturbing length of time, only emerging to shout orders and insults. The pool did open up once they were past the archway. It was a large well-lit rectangular space, maybe fifty meters along the long side and it reminded Candace of a public pool. Only this pool had no walkways. Water stretched from wall to wall with no place to stand that was not wet. The roof was high with large exposed beams and industrial lighting. The hallway entered this pool on a long side, nearer one of the short sides on their left as they entered. The opposite side of the pool looked like a wall of half-sunk offices with windows and entryways just visible over the gently lapping ripples. On their right, near the center of the pool, stood a woman above the waves and it was to this woman that the guards herded the prisoners. By her uniform, she was also a guard, although she held no weapon. Her black swim trunks were bikini cut and on her, the black vest looked more like a halter-top. There was no mistaking the gold security logo on her uniform or her air of authority. She had the same aquatic look as the male guards but for the long dark brown hair that was pulled tight and hung down her back in a thick braid. At first glance, it looked to Candace that the woman was standing on the water, but as they got closer, she could see that the woman was standing in ankle-deep water. The pool grew deeper as the prisoners waded towards the woman, causing her to loom over the approaching group. The guards stopped them in chest-deep water, ten meters from the woman. The woman glared at the prisoners with a look of contempt on her face and scowled before speaking. "I am Lieutenant Kaminski," she said in loud yet precise voice. "You will address me as Ma'am. You will address the guards by their rank and last name. They belong to me. While you are here you belong to me." Candace noticed that there were at least three additional guards, submerged and circling the group of prisoners. She also thought she could make out a clicking or whistling sound, just at the edge of perception. "This is not a prison," Kaminski said. "This is a kiddie pool. You are in the shallow end. Behind me is the deep end. You can leave any time you want to. There are two ways to leave the kiddie pool. One way to leave the kiddie pool is to disobey me, or my guards." The three submerged guards popped up suddenly, their weapons trained on the prisoners. Jennifer, Javier, and Alvin flinched back at the splashing commotion. Alvin actually squeaked in surprise. Paul just scowled at the guards as Candace tensed ready for any movement of the guards. Lieutenant Kaminski eyed Paul and Candace closely before speaking again. "The other way is through the deep end, to salt water and your new homes," she said, still looking directly at Paul and Candace. "Where you can maybe redeem your criminal selves, and pay back the society that has blessed you with the gift of a water life." Candace kept poker-faced as Lieutenant Kaminski talked; only looking to the deep end of the pool when the other prisoners did. "But you dirt walking dry landers do not know your head from your ass," Kaminski said. "You dumb sluts will need to learn how to swim, talk, sleep, take a crap and eat before you get anywhere near the deep end." Candace had the distinct impression that Kaminski was not exaggerating. Things were going to be different, and there was a lot she needed to know. "Sergeant," Kaminski said. "Get our guests their new names and take them to their kiddie beds. School starts tomorrow." With that, Kaminski dove off the submerged platform and disappeared into the deep end. The guards quickly turned the prisoners back to the shallows. Candace could have sworn she heard that clicking noise again. *** Candace floated easily in her room, just under the water. She was tired. Sleeping had been difficult since they took her floating headrest away. She was better at reflexive surfacing, but still tended to wake herself up sputtering and choking. It helped that she could hold her breath longer now. She was amazed at how easily she could stay submerged. She could stay under for more than ten minutes without difficulty, fifteen if she pushed it. That was nothing compared to the guards. She had seen a pair of them stay submerged for over an hour as they worked a repair on one of the intake pipes. She was changing. She could feel it as a dull ache in the bones of her hands and feet. She rubbed the fingers on her left hand. Her fingers were longer now, as were her toes. Not as long as they would eventually be, but half again longer than they had been. The guards had fingers that looked twice the length of a normal human. Twice the length of a dry lander, she thought, mentally correcting herself. The guards were as human as she was. She idly rubbed at the webbing that was starting to fill in between her fingers. It was tough, rubbery and elastic, stretching easily as she spread her fingers, but stiff enough to provide solid thrust in the water. She had changed much over the last month. Not just structurally, but physiologically as well. Her ability to hold her breath longer was an obvious example, as was her skin. It was starting to take on the grey- blue color of the guards and her nails had darkened. Her skin felt different too, or rather the air felt different. It felt drier somehow, like an itch she could resist that disappeared when she slid back into the cool, silky water. The first week had been the worst, when neither air nor water felt right. Her dry lander skin had pruned and swollen up painfully until it sloughed off in ragged strips, leaving smooth but sensitive new skin in its place. She thought briefly on Javier. Her fellow prisoner's skin had not changed as dramatically. Like the other Mer, Javier's skin still looked like ordinary skin. It was smoother and softer than it had been, and hairless now except for the hair on his head. She had a momentary twinge of jealousy thinking of Javier's new complexion, which she quickly suppressed. She did not envy him the more dramatic changes he was going through. Javier was paying a high price for whatever criminal act that sent him to the Center. Corrina, she reminded herself, Corrina was paying a high price. Javier's name was Corrina now Ever since that first day in the pool when they received their new ident cards for their new careers. That had been a day. None of the men had known they were women yet. Or, if they had known, they had not believed it until they received their new names. Paul had gone ballistic, especially after he found out that his wife Jennifer was going to be a mermaid named Mindy while he was now a worker frog like Candace. Alvin and Javier were both mermaids now too, and the fat banker had cried and begged when he found out his name was now Tammie. It was pathetic. Even Jennifer/Mindy took the news better, joining Paul in his angry denials. Javier had taken the news more stoically. Candace could tell he was shaken but Javier gave little visible indication when he looked at his new ident card. It could not have been easy. Candace knew what an involuntary gender change felt like, but could only imagine being told your legs would disappear. Javier just took his card with a sad nod, then straightened his shoulders back and stood tall. Somehow, Candace still thought of him as a man named Javier. Intellectually she knew his genome was that of a mermaid. He was already a woman with a fish's tail for legs, just waiting for the structural changes to catch up. That would come. The Center saw to that. The Center saw to everything, like new names. Everyone got a new name. Candace took the ident card out of her purse and looked at it again, deep in thought. Everyone got a new name except her. The card listed her as a sea colonist, worker class, but the name read Candace Kaine. This was not supposed to happen. Someone wanted her exposed, possibly vulnerable. Someone who could change Center protocols. Candace tucked the card back into her purse and glanced around her room with a frown. She felt exposed. Her apartment was little more than a small private pool with various underwater nooks and drawers for her few things and a platform raised slightly above the water's surface. There was no one else in the room, and as far as she could tell, no cameras, yet she had the sense that eyes were watching her. With a deep breath, Candace slid underwater and pushed off to the exit of her small room with the intent to check on Javier. The transforming man might not be the protector she had first envisaged, but he was still an ally and that was something she could use. She found him in his room, as she had presumed. The early stages of his transformation left him painfully less mobile and he spent most of his free time alone in his room. "Hey," she said, poking her head out of the water. Javier gave her a wan smile and a small wave of his hand in greeting. Javier's room was the mirror image of Candace's and he sat on the edge of the raised platform with his feet in the water. Candace hung in the water, preferring the wet over the humid air of the chamber. "How are you feeling today?" she asked. "Not too bad," he said, "my feet hurt but my knees feel better". Javier rubbed the side of one leg before flexing both legs in unison. Candace raised an eyebrow at how far Javier's legs bent forward. Javier blushed and looked down sheepishly as he let his legs drop back into the water. "Yeah, they kind of bend both ways now," he said. "It makes standing hard". Candace could not help but think that Javier would not be doing much standing in the future. Javier tugged nervously at the hem of the short skirt he wore. The skirt was baby blue in color and made of a skin- tight spandex-like material that hung low on his hips. Candace had grown used to seeing Javier in skirts or dresses as none of the Mer wore clothing that conflicted with a future of having a fish tail for legs. Only she and Paul wore clothing with leg holes, although all the transformees were required to comply with a lax sense of female modesty. Javier was wearing a sleeveless half tee shirt that matched his skirt. "Have you got classes later?" she asked. It was a conversational question. All the prisoners had classes every day. "Fashion and singing lessons," Javier said. "That sounds like fun," she said with false enthusiasm. "How about you?" he asked. "Breath control," she said, leaving out the speed drills and strength training also on her schedule. "Trade you," Javier said with a half shrug but no smile. Candace said nothing. Classes were compulsory and tailored for each person's future role in the colony. She was light duty. Javier was entertainment class. There would be no trading. Candace took time in the quiet interval to study the progress of Javier's transformation. His hair was longer. It hung to his jaw line now and had a richer and fuller look. It had been black before but was deeper now with an almost blue hue to the highlights. His skin was clearer too, with a flawlessly smooth complexion. It was lighter in tone but still reflected his Latin heritage. Candace did not notice any specific changes to his frame except that his shoulders and hands looked slender now. There was an overall reduction in his muscle mass but no obvious feminine changes except for a general softening of his features and a thickening at the hips. Candace stopped her examination of Javier's changes as he shifted uncomfortably under her gaze, tugging nervously at his half tee and unnecessarily smoothing his skirt. Candace needed to calm him down and do something to put him at ease. She needed a reliable ally, not someone nervous and afraid to talk to her. That was of little use to her. "I was going to the commissary. Do you want me to get you something?" she said, making a point to look Javier in the eyes and smile warmly. Javier noticeably relaxed and stopped fidgeting with his clothes. "I'd love an apple," he said, returning her smile. "Be right back," she said, still smiling as she touched him once on the leg before turning and diving away with a small splash. Candace's mind was on Javier as she swam across the communal pool and dove into the admin tunnel at the far side of the pool near the drop off to the deep end. Javier was going through a bad patch. The former man had been taking his transformation to mermaid with grim stoicism, but today he seemed nervous and vulnerable. It could be the hormones, or maybe the inevitability of it all finally just got to him. She remembered her own involuntary reassignment, or rather her first involuntary reassignment. She had fought her growing femininity until it finally broke her. Maybe Javier would come to embrace being Corrina the way the way she had come to terms being Candace. It would have been nice having a strong man as a protective buffer, but even a girlfriend could prove useful. Candace felt a pang of guilt over her manipulations. Perhaps she could do more to help Javier over this emotional hump and prepare him for life as a woman. Candace was not prepared for the sudden blow to her ribcage causing her to expel her breath in one sharp gasp. The second blow let her orient to her attacker enough to grab an arm coming in for the third blow and grapple with her assailant. This earned her a swipe of claws across her upper chest, which would have been her throat had she not rolled back instinctively. This put her in position to kick out and she felt the solid thud of her heel hitting a body and the satisfying sound of expelled breath. She landed a second blow with her other foot before her opponent closed with her and the two of them wrestled close, neither able to land a significant blow. The exertion was taking its toll and Candace could feel the blackness of hypoxia creeping in around the edges of her vision. She knew this could not go on much further and was relieved when her opponent broke free and pushed away from her. She swam quickly to the nearest air pocket, gasping as she broke the surface. A few quick breaths were enough to clear her head. Silently cursing herself for getting distracted, she tensed for further action and looked around for her attacker. She saw Paul at the opposite end of the air pocket, holding onto a handrail with one hand and glaring at her. Like her, Paul was worker class, with the same longer webbed fingers and toes and the dolphin-like skin. Unlike her, Paul's hair color had changed from brown to a bright ginger red color while hers stayed the blond color it had been before. Paul's gender change had progressed further along than Javier's had, especially in the softened jaw line and smaller upturned nose. His face looked quite feminine now despite hatred twisting it into a scowl. His frame was smaller too. He might even be shorter than Candace, though that was hard to measure in the water. "This is all your fault!" he shouted, spitting out the words with venom. "Hello, Cindy," Candace said, deliberately using Paul's newly assigned name. "Got your panties in a bunch again I see". "I had a deal! We were supposed to be in South America not this fucking pool!" he said. "Me and Jen were going to start new." Candace noted that he held his side with his free arm, probably where her foot had made contact. She tensed against the wall, ready to leap. "Well, you can still start something new," she said. "You can be a happy little housewife, cooking and cleaning like a good girl while Mindy goes out and fucks tourists for money." "You cunt!" Paul said, shouting loudly and shaking with rage. "Such language," Candace said. "Is our little Cindy sensitive about fucking? Don't worry, you'll get your share of the fucking. You and Mindy can be happy little sluts together." Paul roared incoherently and launched himself at Candace while swinging wildly. Candace waited for the last moment before pushing off to the side and landing an elbow on the back of Paul's head with all the leverage the handrail lent her. Paul's momentum caused him to thud into the wall with a grunt. Candace was readying to deliver a second blow when the guards arrived, grabbing both of them and dragging them away under the water, ending the fight. *** Swimming was more natural now. Candace moved through the sunken hallway of the administrative section with casual ease, using occasional clicks to fix the location of the walls and floor in her head. Of all her transformations, echolocation was proving to be the most amazing. It seemed she had grown a whole other sense that put a picture of the world in her head and gave her a feel for what was around corners or inside things. She was nowhere near as good as the guards, but she was learning. At first, she had hated it. Her early attempts at generating a click had given her a sharp stabbing pain in the sinuses and the rebounding echoes made her jaws hurt. She had had a lingering headache for two weeks before the pain faded and an image of her surroundings began to build in her head. Now she did not know how she had managed without it. It made it harder for someone to sneak up on you. The clicks were centered forward but the lingering echoes gave one a sense of the surrounding three-dimensional space, especially if something was moving in that space. That would have come in handy when Paul had ambushed her. Fortunately, there had been no further attacks, although Paul made it very clear at every opportunity that their fight was not over. Candace smiled thinking about Paul. He had changed a lot in the months since their fight. His frame was definitely feminine now with soft sloping shoulders and a narrow ribcage. Fat had settled in on all the right places leaving him with wider hips, thicker thighs, and small pert breasts. His hair was longer too, flowing back to his mid back when he swam. Paul tended to keep it braided to keep it from wafting around him when he worked in one spot. He very much looked like a Cindy. Candace strongly suspected that he still had male genitalia but Paul would have been considered a woman by anyone seeing him for the first time. Javier's gender transition had not yet progressed as far along. Although, he too would be taken as a woman at first glance, a manly woman with thick shoulders and very small breasts. Javier's transition had focused on the lower limbs where great progress had been made. His legs were largely fused now and flexed fully in the vertical plane, like a dolphin's tail. His feet were still separate but looked more like flippers than feet. Candace was looking for him now, which was why she was heading for the Mer training pool. She was concerned. Javier had been distant lately. He was being quiet and withdrawn and refused to talk about it when Candace questioned him. She noticed he tensed in the presence of the guards and refused to make eye contact with them. She assumed it was something sexual but hoped it was just his reaction to the normal attention men would give to his increasingly female form. He was not at the training pool. Jennifer and Alvin were. Both were perched atop a padded platform raised about a foot above the water. They reminded Candace of seals as they basked in the sunlight streaming through the open skylight. She was always amazed at how much sunshine and dry air the mermaids could take. Any behavioral similarity to seals was dispelled by the girls' physical form. Both Jennifer and Alvin had long hair and obviously feminine curves with large green and gold scales starting to form along their flanks. Candace popped her head out of the water and whistled her name in greeting. "Hello ladies," she said, treading water. "Have either of you seen Corrina?" "Fuck you!" Jennifer said. Candace had not expected a better response. This Mindy version of Jennifer had changed physically but not in attitude. She shared the same hostility to Candace as her husband, Paul. That was not all they shared, thought Candace. The two could be sisters. They had the same red hair, similar facial features, and an overall similar frame except for the legs. Jennifer's former pear shaped body had trimmed to a lean curvy look, and her sagging breasts had tightened to sit high on her chest. Of course, Paul's breasts were nowhere near as large, which made Candace wonder if the final Cindy version of Paul would be similarly endowed. "Love you too, Mindy," she said. "Tammie, have you seen Corrina?" The former banker flinched at the direct address and turned her gaze downward. "She went to see the lieutenant," she said, making it sound like an apology. Even from the start, Candace had no difficulty thinking of Tammie as a woman. It helped that Alvin's overweight body had fueled a rapid transition. The fat had melted quickly leaving voluptuous curves at an early stage. The other physical changes enforced the perception. Tammie's sandy brown hair had turned honey blond and now hung over her shoulders in large loose curls. Her eyes had turned a sapphire blue and she tended to look at the world with wide-eyed innocence only set off by her pouty lips. "Thanks," Candace said before ducking back underwater and kicking off in the direction of the lieutenant's office. Candace was worried but kept calm. This was probably not good. The lieutenant ran a strict operation and was not above applying physical punishment. Candace had learned it was best to avoid Kaminski's attention and keep a low profile whenever she was around. For Javier to seek her out deliberately suggested things had reached a very serious point indeed. Lieutenant Kaminski's office was at one end of the admin section, at the very edge of the shallow end of the common area, right where the deep end began. Candace knew it well. Most of it was submerged with small air pockets but there was a large air-filled alcove where the water was only knee deep. This is where the lieutenant talked with people not yet fluent in squeaks and whistles of underwater communication. Candace stopped clicking as she neared Kaminski's office and felt her way closer. She got as near the entrance as she dared and emerged just enough for her nose and ears to clear the surface. She could hear voices. "...and do what?" said a commanding voice that Candace recognized as belonging to Kaminski. "Do you think you can just open up shop and sell souvenirs?" The reply was indistinct but held a pleading tone. It could have been Javier. "No," Kaminski said, sharply cutting off the other speaker. "You don't seem to understand your situation. You're entertainment, sweetheart. You'll entertain." The reply was still indistinct. "Well you better learn to fake it!" Kaminski said with a laugh. "Just bat those brown eyes and shake those tits. You'll have some horny dry lander on your tail in no time." A noise; it could have been a sob. "I don't have time for this," Kaminski said. "You're on colonial reassignment with five-years punitive service. You will do what we tell you. Get used to it." Candace could hear the sound of someone rapidly turning in the water and coming closer. She slid under the water without a sound and hid on the bottom as a mermaid darted out and swam away with a rapidly fluttering tail. Candace emerged again. It had to have been Javier. He was the only mermaid here with black hair and he was clearly upset. "I know you're there, Kaine," Kaminski said. "Your echoes linger." Candace considered slipping away but decided to confront instead and swam into Kaminski's office with casual ease. "Come here," Kaminski said. She was in the alcove, seated on a chair the seat of which barely cleared the water. The light was subdued and slightly behind Kaminski. Kaminski was gesturing at another chair across from her, a small plastic-topped table between the two chairs. Candace swam over, hauled herself up out of the water and into the alcove, taking the seat opposite Kaminski. Kaminski had a bemused look on her face but said nothing as she poured herself a small glass of amber liquor from a crystal decanter on the table. There was only one glass and Kaminski did not offer any to Candace. "So were you spying on me or your girlfriend there?" she asked. "Maybe I was just admiring your leadership style," Candace said with a shrug. Kaminski said nothing for a while but had a scowl on her face as she studied Candace closely. She took several sips of her drink before speaking. "You know, people in our line of work shouldn't get involved in messy relationships," she said. It was Candace's turn to say nothing as she carefully considered Kaminski's words. Finally, Kaminski stood, finished her drink in one shot, and slammed the glass back on the table with a sharp noise. "Come on," she said, gesturing for Candace to follow "Where we going?" "There's someone that wants to meet you." With that, Kaminski dove into the water. Re-emerging at the other end of the room, she turned to address Candace. "That was not a request," she said. Candace obligingly dove into the water and followed Kaminski back out to the common area. She expected Kaminski to turn right to the admin section but instead Kaminski turned left, into the deep end of the pool. Candace stayed close but made every effort to study the details. There were more details here then she had anticipated. Overall, the deep end stretched to a depth of approximately 50 feet with several tubes stretching down to considerably deeper. There were separate training areas that resembled underwater obstacle courses or giant puzzle boxes. Each was attended by a diving bell. It grew darker the deeper they went and color began to wash out of the surroundings. Candace normally relied on color to help overcome the blur of looking underwater and she found herself relying more on echolocation than she did in the shallow end. This limited the detailed awareness of her surroundings to little more than 20 feet. Beyond that, her blurred vision and the diminishing echoes left her with a vague impression of larger details only. Kaminski led them to a hatchway at the deepest end of the pool. Candace noted a bioscan access with an old-fashioned keypad as a secondary lock mechanism. She could probably override the key pad if she could set up a repeat-last routine on the bioscan. The trick would be getting this deep unobserved. It was something to keep in mind. The hatchway led to a ramp with foot and handholds that automatically lit up as they entered. At the top of the ramp was a small workroom with tools, equipment, and a small weapons locker with additional access controls. Candace did not give the weapons locker any overt attention but did set the configuration of the access panel in her mind as well as the relative distance from the entrance. There was a similar ramp at the other end of the room leading down to a different pool and this is where Kaminski was leading her. "Stay close," Kaminski said as she entered the water of this second ramp. "Swim smooth and easy. And don't wander off alone. There are sharks." Candace said nothing but followed Kaminski down the second ramp. She noted the increased buoyancy immediately and could taste the salt as soon as her head went under the surface. Candace considered the situation. It made sense that the Center would have a saltwater pool to train colonists, but why have sharks? Perhaps it was a guard training pool, or some sort of perimeter security training area. Whatever it was, there was another hatchway at the bottom. It was an exact match to the one they had used to enter from the other side. Candace had an unsettling flash of vertigo as they passed through the hatch. It felt like she had swum out to empty space. There seemed to be no floor and no walls except for the one immediately at her back. Eventually a sense of ground stretching far below her began to come to her as well as sounds rumbling from far off into the distance. It took her a brief moment to orientate to the expanse around her and realize that this was no pool. This was the ocean. Candace could sense movement out there and even though nothing was very close, she kept Kaminski's advice in mind and swam with smooth and easy motions. Kaminski led her down to deeper water. Candace was wondering if this was just a way for Kaminski to eliminate her and followed warily. The trip down was taking time and she was beginning to feel the effect of hypoxia and contemplated breaking for the surface when she began to hear the echo-shape of a large metallic object just ahead. It was a craft, hanging in mid-water with no lights or engine noises. It was bigger and closer than she had thought. There was obviously echo reduction stealth technology in play and Candace longed to examine the exterior, but Kaminski had reached a hatch and Candace was starting to get dizzy from lack of oxygen. She quickly followed Kaminski through the hatchway and hit the surface of the interior, greedily sucking in air between coughs and sputters. Her stomach gave a lurch and seawater she had swallowed came back out in a small stream. "Nice," Kaminski said. "Clean yourself off." Kaminski turned and addressed a nearby panel. "Lucas," she said. "I have her here." "Excellent!" said a disembodied voice. "Bring her to the forward chamber." The voice was deep and sonorous. It had an air of authority, or at least that of someone used to being obeyed. "Come on," Kaminski said, gesturing for Candace to proceed her through a dry, narrow gangway. The gangway passed a series of pools and closed rooms that appeared to be both dry and wet. It was clear this craft was designed to house both sea colonists and dry landers. The overall d?cor was rich earth tones with brass trim and faux wood panels showing various nautical themes. The gangway opened up to a double chamber, the nearest of which was a pool split down the middle by the gangway, which led to the further, second chamber. This second chamber was mostly a large viewing screen curving around a pilot's chair centered on a slightly raised platform. The small area of walls in this section continued the nautical theme with a specialization towards weapons. Candace noticed fishing gaffs, a harpoon, and a small signal cannon. There was a small table beside the chair on which stood an antique chess board with a game set up in an advanced stage of play. The chair turned to reveal a large man, heavily muscled with dark, wavy hair and a disarming smile. He was casually yet impeccably dressed in close-fitting leisure clothes that could have served dry or aquatic use. He was barefoot and his fingers and toes looked normal for a dry lander but Candace had a feeling that there was more to this man than first appearances. "Ah, my dear Miss Kaine," the man said, rising in greeting. "So good to have a real celebrity aboard. Welcome." "You have me at a disadvantage," Candace said, warily. "Of course, where are my manners. I am Lucas Zemmour. You are familiar with the good Lieutenant Kaminsk