“I remember a gal named Lena— maybe that’s her fantasy: to become a guy. All I know is that we have to stick together to get out of here. I think we should talk to the others and come up with a plan,” Maggie said, knocking on Jaz’s adjoining door.
“Who is it and what do you want?” said a deep male voice.
“It’s Maggie and Jaz. We want to talk to you about the testing. We aren’t comfortable with it, are you?”
“I can’t deal with this right now— got a lot of problems at work. Just leave me alone,” the male voice said.
Maggie knocked again.
“Please, something’s not right. We need to work together. Did you know we got kidnapped?” Jaz pleaded.
The door flung open and a thin man in sweats stood in the doorway.
“Yeah, that’s pretty screwed up, but you think you have problems— I used to be a woman. Need a cigarette and a drink really bad. Got either?” said Lon, a frown creasing his forehead.
Jaz laughed.
“And I used to be a fat teenager with frizzy hair and sometimes I pop back into my old self like when I went to Eden. Maggie, I mean MJ, saw it, helped me big time. Now I’m a model and got to maintain this beauty thing—thanks to the pills and my daily routine.”
“What’s your story, MJ? Heard you wrote a book on love that became a best seller like Love Story way back in the 1970’s? My love life is more like revenge.”
Maggie smiled and reflected on her success.
“Yeah, it seems like a fairytale, not reality, but I always had this book in my mind. Just had to write it and present in this Sim World. That green pill gave me confidence.”
Lon went back in his room and opened the armoire. It was filled with tofu and dried fruit and a refrigerator contained healthy waters and juices.
“Hey, of course it’s all natural. I guess they don’t want us to hurt ourselves. What’s the fun in that? I don’t trust any of them, but I’ll do anything to get more pills and serum.”
Both Maggie and Jaz grabbed some drinks and fruit. Maggie knocked on Lon’s adjoining door.
“Hey, we’re having a little get together. Want to talk?”
No answer and no sound. Jaz knocked again.
“It’s just MJ, Jaz and Lon. How do you feel about the testing tomorrow? Are you okay?”
She pressed her ear to the door.
“I can’t even hear any breathing or movement. Hope she didn’t pass out,” Jaz said and tried the door knob.
Unlocked, it opened. The others peered over Jaz’s shoulder and saw a figure at the window. Sydney looked like a statue, motionless and still in her lab clothes. The three looked at each other, unable to move any farther.
“Go away. Nothing to say to anyone,” said the figure with her back to the group.
Maggie’s eyes widened and she motioned for the others to leave. She shut the door and locked it from Lon’s room. Then she walked back into Jaz’s room.
“Let’s talk in here. Obviously, she’s upset. She was the last one to come. Maybe she came against her will,” Maggie said.
Jaz plopped on her couch, sipping on a healthy water.
“Well, I hope she’s okay. I noticed she avoided contact with everyone at the meeting. Barely ate her food.”
Lon munched on more snacks and downed his drink.
“Heard she won big at the Star Casino. Wanted to talk to her about investing. Infinity, where I worked was real interested in her. Don’t know her backstory, don’t care. Hey, what’s the plan?”
Maggie checked her messages.
“I have terrible reception, but did get one message from Mark. He says, ‘Sit tight, got the FBI looking for you. Targeted your location, but can’t find a building, just a forest. Keep me posted and help Jaz. Love u.’”
A tear slipped down her cheek and she wiped it off. Jaz gave her a hug.
“I know he will find us. First, if we can get the serum, let’s cooperate. Keep each other informed. When we’re not being tested, let’s explore this place, find a way out,” said Maggie.
“I told my mom that I was okay, but she’s upset. So’s Matt and Enrico. Enrico has friends and they’re looking for us. But I’m scared. Can you stay with me tonight, Maggie?”
Maggie nodded. Lon stretched and checked his messages.
“Nobody knows where I am except the guy who followed me, but I heard the guards chased him away. I wanted to disappear because as Lon I created a mess that only Lena can fix. Got to get some sleep. Night, girls.”
Maggie and Jaz exchanged puzzled looks.
“See you tomorrow, bright and early,” Maggie said. She closed the door behind Lon.
The two women brushed their teeth and settled into the twin beds. A full luminous moon shone through the curtains. Crickets chirped outside the window.
Maggie noted that Jaz was sound asleep; she could see her breathing. She sighed and stared at the ceiling. She needed to get her act together for Jaz’s sake and she felt comforted that Lon at least was aware of her plan. What Optimal had in store for them or if they would be freed were huge issues. If they had some down time, they could search this place. She would have to convince Dr. Neilson with her persuasiveness. It seemed to help her make more sales at book signings. Look deeply into his eyes, Maggie shivered at the thought. Her eyes became heavy and she could barely keep them open.
She drifted off to sleep. Thoughts of Mark, his gentle touch yet strong arms around her— she looked up at his face and saw Seth, his sneaky eyes staring disdainfully at her. He gripped her tightly and she felt trapped, unable to break free. Maggie found it hard to swallow and her breathing became shallow. She opened her mouth to scream.
Then a blood-curdling cry sounded and a door slammed. Maggie sat up quickly, almost hyperventilating and looked over at the next bed. Jaz was also awake.
“Did you hear that?” asked Jaz.
“Where was that coming from?” asked Maggie.
“Not sure. Maybe below us.”
“Could be coming from a bottom level.”
It was so quiet that Maggie could hear her breathing. No more strange sounds, but at least she wasn’t dreaming; Jaz heard it also. She checked the wall monitor: it blinked 5 a.m. Must get at least a few hours before the wake-up call. Maggie noted that Jaz was already asleep once again and that the moon looked mysterious, now hidden by a cluster of clouds.
Lon aka Lena
Pale walls, white furniture, and hot opal lamps reminded Lon of a sanitarium— a fitting place for what he had been through for the last few years. He desperately wanted to get over with this testing and just get the damn pills. His e-mail contained hundreds of messages about Infinity’s hacking of accounts. Clients wanted assurance and the administration demanded answers of the account managers. JD operated in panic mode and wondered about Lena’s whereabouts; she begged for her return. And their new client Lon Montana didn’t even exist.
Even whiny Sam left messages, threatening to search her apartment if she didn’t return. Lon e-mailed for Lena, saying that her mother was terminally ill and needed her assistance. If it wasn’t serious, it would have been totally hilarious.
“Lon, or is it Lena? Just relax, drink the green serum, and let’s go for a virtual ride. Are you ready? First let me check your iris from the last time.” said Dr. Neilson.
He looked carefully thorough his lens and compared the iris from the last time and the current iris and was pleasantly surprised.
“Your iris has changed significantly; maybe an indication of your new sexuality.”
“So, if you change it, I’ll turn back into a woman?” Lon replied.
He was not sure where this conversation was going or the science behind it.
After this brief examination, Dr. Neilson dimmed the room and the small monitors fused into a large screen. Lon downed the shimmery green twelve-ounce drink and sat back in his comfy lounge chair, his legs extended and his eyes glued to the screen. He felt like he was in a theater, waiting for the show to b
egin. Images rushed at him, enveloping him, crashing around him in waves of emotion.
Baby coos, scrapped knees, first kiss, fired from Infinity, street life, punching the drunk, in bed with Tim, man transformation, hacking into Infinity, racing from the stalker to Optimal. Comfort, laughter, tears, shock, lust, revenge, fear, hunger, and anxiety over forty-seven years of his life exposed and unraveled. He felt dizzy with the thousands of sensations, especially of those as a man. Vengeance, greed, dark world, new man genitals flooded over him.
“Stop, make it stop now. Can’t deal with this,” said Lon, turning his head away from the screen and struggling to get out of his chair.
Reaching for the arm, he tried to pull himself up, but the drink made him dizzy. He covered his eyes. Every good or bad thing that happened leading up to his current situation— becoming a man made him ill.
Lon felt Dr. Neilson pushing him back down in his chair.
“Whoa, Lon, just a little mind manipulation. Just tell me why you wanted to be a man. Seems like you’re feeling uncomfortable in your new body. Can’t you change back?” said Dr. Neilson.
“Wait, this is personal. My new identity— you can view my thoughts? What the hell?” he asked, suddenly twisting Dr. Neilson’s injured arm and lunging for him.
Dr. Neilson yelped from the pain and then stuck a needle in Lon’s forearm.
Lon went limp and collapsed in the lounge chair; his head fell back and his mouth was slightly open. He struggled to push himself awake to run away from being pulled underwater. His eyes opened and he was running in a dark tunnel. Footsteps behind him, gathering momentum, gaining on him. He could feel someone’s warm breath, hear their breathing, smell the woodsy perfume. He turned around to see a woman running toward him. As she got closer, it seemed so familiar… to see a female version of himself. Lena, his real self, smiled at him.
Out of the tunnel into a room of mirrors, he faced a multitude of people. A distressed vision of Lon stared back at him, then increased one hundred times, changing back into hundreds of grinning Lena’s. Morphing back and forth, then every other mirror became a Lon or Lena. Swirling, twirling, the images changed, multiplying again and again. He thought he was going mad, but no scream came out.
Who am I? Lon or Lena? thought Lon. He closed his eyes for a minute and heard a challenging male voice. It echoed in his brain and he wanted to answer.
“Who are you, Lon or Lena?”
Lon opened his eyes slowly to see two mirrors. One showed Lon, the other Lena. Both expressionless and calm versions of himself gazed back at him. He realized he wanted to be both in some way.
“Show me who you are,” said Dr. Neilson.
Slowly he felt his body shift, his breasts grow larger, his hips wider and his beard disappeared to reveal a beautiful smooth face. Now Lena stared back at him, wearing a tight black dress and heels, her short curls framing her lovely face and pouty red lips. The vision astonished her.
“Unbelievable! You truly are a beautiful woman,” said a surprised Dr. Neilson.
But only for an instant: the woman’s face became elongated, a beard and shaggy eyebrows appeared and tinted glasses over a Roman nose. The body lengthened and grew thinner; the black dress become an open black shirt and slim black jeans with cowboy boots. He sported a chest full of dark hair and a smirk played upon a chiseled face.
“Wow, you are a multi-faceted person! But who is the real you?” asked Dr. Neilson.
Now Lon took a deep breath and exhaled slowly.
“I don’t know, but I think I’m still Lena and always will be.”
He thought hard for a moment, focusing on his female side, wishing for curves and breasts. But nothing changed; the Lon image in the black shirt and jeans stood before him; his female version vanished.
“I think today you are Lon.”
The mirrors disappeared and the lights came back on to once again reveal a pristine white lab room. Lon adjusted slowly to the bright lights, felt the presence of other people, heard breathing, and found himself surrounded by Dr. Arno and some military personnel.
“Totally amazing, Dr. Arno. You have swayed me, but I want to see your other recruits, then I’ll make up my mind. Anymore scheduled for today?” said an officer, with a chest full of medals, observing the monitors.
“Thank you, General Burke. Of course, our other recruits are ready for your review. Now let’s go back into my office and chat while Dr. Neilson takes care of our recruit here,” said Dr. Arno.
Lon’s blood boiled and he thought he would explode. How dare they bring these people in to observe me! This is supposed to be private, he thought, breaking one of the straps that held him to the chair. He leaped from his chair to grab the General’s leg.
Dr. Arno sensed the tension in the room and quickly whisked the general and his two aides away as Dr. Neilson stuck another needle into Lon’s neck.
“Steady, man, calm down. You weren’t supposed to see them, but once you’re awake you’ll completely forget you saw them,” said Dr. Neilson with his hypnotic voice.
Lon’s head dropped to one side and his body slumped in the chair.
Maggie
“We might as well relax before our session starts. A glass of chardonnay and that cheese and fruit tray please,” said Maggie to Charlie as she lay on the teakwood lounge chair in her black one-piece and floppy hat by the kidney-shaped pool on the rooftop. Ferns and clay pots of white daisies surrounded the pool and jacuzzi. A small teak bar near the pool contained wine, beer, and waters.
“Did they say how much time between lab sessions? Lon has been gone for one hour, five minutes and twenty seconds. It’s the waiting time that kills me,” said Jaz, rubbing oil on her smooth, sleek body, donned in a tiny white bikini.
Both women watched as Charlie prepared a tray of drinks and snacks for the women. He seemed preoccupied with Sydney as she lay face down on a lounge chair in a red bikini.
“You know I’m not sure, but it will probably take a few hours. I just want to get this over with and get back to reality. I don’t trust that Wright woman; she’s probably spreading more rumors about us,” said Maggie.
Charlie smiled, setting the food and drinks on the table beside them.
“If everything is okay, I will let you women enjoy yourselves. There’s also a masseuse available if you need her,” he said. He pointed to the cabana at the end of the pool.
They nodded and smiled back as Charlie hurried over to Sydney. He sat down beside her and started to rub oil into her shoulders. She twitched, attempting to shake away his hands.
Maggie sipped her wine and nibbled on her cheese and crackers. Jaz drank her water and then eased herself into the shallow end of the pool. The poly-palm trees protected them from the hot sweltering sun.
“Stop touching me,” Sydney said, as Charlie massaged her shoulders gently.
Charlie continued and bent down to whisper in her ear. Then she abruptly turned over, her eyes blazing.
“What are you doing? I told you I want to be left alone,” said Sydney.
“Syd, I told you I’m sorry and you’ll be out of here soon with more pills. Then we can get away from here. Let me get you some fresh orange juice and I could give you a tour of the gardens,” he said.
He scrambled to pour two glasses and set one by her. She covered her eyes and pretended to be asleep.
“Hey babe, we’ll be together soon,” he said, sitting down close to her.
Sydney sat up and drank a sip, a scowl on her face. She then threw the rest in Charlie’s face.
Charlie leaned back in surprise and wiped the liquid from his face.
“What the hell’s the matter with you?” he asked.
Maggie and Jaz looked up, shocked by this scene.
“What’s with them?” Jaz asked.
“I don’t know or care, but let’s go. Here’s our chance to escape,” said Maggie, signaling to Jaz to get out of the pool.
Both women quickly put on their shorts, T-shirts and flip flo
ps, grabbing their purses and cell phones.
“I’m trapped here and you just don’t get it.”
Tears fell from Sydney’s eyes. Charlie wiped the tears from her eyes and poured Sydney another glass.
“They’re still at it. Perfect timing. Where do you want to go?” asked Jaz, turning around to see Charlie and Sydney embracing.
“Let’s find a way out before he figures out that we’re gone. Uh oh, looks like they’ve kissed and made up already,” said a laughing Maggie, glancing over her shoulder.
They turned to see the two figures entangled on Sydney’s lounge chair, their lips locked. The couple wrestled with their clothing and then threw a blanket over each other.
Maggie and Jaz opened a sliding glass door to the hallway toward the transporter and adjacent stairs.
“We better not take the transporter; it’s too dangerous. Might run into somebody. Let’s take the stairs,” Maggie said.
Maggie opened the first door that led to a stairway. They zigzagged the next floor, entering more hallways, filled with empty rooms. They continued to search the remaining floors. Each level contained different types of rooms, bedrooms with windows, some utility rooms and some offices. All empty, but never leading to a back exit.
“I’m so tired. How many levels have we climbed down?” said Jaz, her breathing hard.
“Not sure, but let’s keep going. Got to find a way out of here without walking out the main entrance,” said Maggie, opening and closing the numerous doors that led to nowhere.
Their tenacity paid off and they finally reached the ground floor.
“Matt would be happy at all the exercise I’ve had today,” Jaz said. She stretched her slim legs.
Maggie sighed and opened the door that led to another hallway, but they could see light at the end of it. They started to run, but stopped sharply when they heard a whine and howl.
“What was that? Don’t tell me I’m hearing things,” said Maggie, glancing in all directions, her heart racing.
Another howl, a scream, and a thump sounded. Both women jumped in their tracks.
“I hope they’re not hurting Lon. But it sounds like an animal to me,” said Jaz who shivered and pulled her jacket around her.
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