Last Thing to Change

I was at the stage of the transformation where my body had completely transformed from male to female and now my personality was changing as well. I had already bought a bunch of things suited to my new mindset. In fact, the old me was almost completely gone. The only thing left was a nagging memory of who I was coupled with a sense of not wanting to fully embrace my new female entity.

I sat under my new pink blanket as I looked at my fingernals -- both hating them so much I wantd to rip them off and worried about breaking one at the same time. I knew which side of me would eventually win. It’s how the transformation virus worked. The mind was just the last thing to change...

Kawaii Transformation Virus

I watched my roommate transform in front of me. The hair growth, the big eyes, and even his clothes changed. He had all these cutesy, feminine traits that fell into this weird uncanny valley -- except it was very real and standing right in front of me. He now spoke with a squeaky voice and was extremely needy. He grabbed me; I wished he hadn’t.

I’d come to learn that my roommate was the first to fall victim to the Kawaii Transformation Virus, which changed both his body and his mind. He became this weird kawaii female version of himself.

I knew my transformation would be next.

No Hope (Part 2)

View Part 1 of No Hope.

Over the next few days, our transformations progressed. The virus had soon changed both Michael and I into women. There was no trace of the virus left in either of our systems, and both of us now had fully functional female parts. But our work continued.

Michael seemed to embrace it well enough. I noticed he was wearing makeup and painting his nails. He also seemed....happier.

“How’s things with the girlfriend?” I asked one day.

“Good. Very good.” Michael replied. “She’s pregnant. The doctor’s say it’s a boy.”

“Congratulations! That’s amazing!”

“More so than you think,” Michael started to explain, “The fetus in the womb shows no signs of infection or exposure. At first I thought it was the protection of the womb, but I took some samples from my wife, and...well...”

“A cure? A vaccine?” I asked hesitantly.

“Not exactly. There’s no stopping the spread among any males now, but if we administer what I’ve developed to pregnant women, it should stop the disease in any future generations. My boy will still be a boy. I’m not sure if this will save humanity, but it will at least give it a chance.”

No Hope (Part 1)

Michael and I had been researching the virus extensively for the past year. It didn’t have any affect on women, but it would cause any infected male to change genders. We had both recently tested positive a few weeks ago, and we were both nervously anticiating when the transformation would begin.

Michael was the first to show. It was obviously when he showed up one morning with his chest inflated outward, explaining that he had to borrow one of his girlfriend’s bras before coming into the lab. Then he confess something else.

“We’re trying for a kid,” He said. It seemed to come out of nowhere but he felt like explaining further, “Once I was diagnosed, we started trying. We figured it would be our one and only shot at it. There’s no way humanity suvives this.”

“We could find a cure...or a vaccine!” I tried to offer hope.

“You’ve seen how fast this thing speads and mutates. It’s like six months before every guy is infected. Even if we discovered a vaccine today, we couldn’t manufacture enough in time. As for a cure? Once it’s done, it’s like there’s nothing wrong with your body -- so what’s it even curing? I’m telling you, Man, there’s no hope.”

Stop the Spread

The news reports had said masks would held stop the spread of the body swap virus. They said two people catching it outdoors was virutally impossible. Well, it seemed that Evan was suffering from very bad odds when he walked passed the grocery store, swapping bodies with a woman standing outside. The worst part was they were BOTH wearing masks.

They were both required to go to a quarantine center. She offered to drive them both; Evan told the woman he’d be happy to carry her grocery bags to the car for her. As they drove, they went over their basics. Evan was attending college in the area; the woman was a mother of a 10 year old. He didn’t ask her age; he didn’t want to know how old he was now.

With not much in common, they began to talk about the groceries. The woman mentioned buying seaweed and kimchi; how much she loved these foods; and yet how unappealing they now seemed. Evan on the other hand had never had these before, yet he was finding the descriptions he was hearing mouthwatering. It began to dawn on both of them that there was much more to this body swapping virus than merely swapping bodies...

Vaccinated

“Honestly, it feels a little silly. I just got the Transformation Virus two weeks ago,” Jorge said as the pharmacist jabbed his arm with the vaccine.

“Well, you know what they say,” She replied, “It’ll prevent you from getting it a second time.”

“Would that be a bad thing? Maybe I could end up being a guy again, you know? Maybe it wouldn’t hurt to roll the dice.”

“Or you could end up 60 years old. Or 70. Or 80. Rolling the dice can be risky. And from where I’m seeing, the body you transformed into is young and healthy and quite attractive.”

“I know. I know. There’s a reason I’m getting this vaccine! But still, a guy can dream of going back to normal too!”

Quarantine

Bill had lost track of the days since he was put into isolation. Every day a scientist would enter and he would ask from his bubble, “How long have I been in here.”

Today the scientist replied, “Three months.”

And Bill would follow up with the same question, “Can you let me out yet?”

And once again, the scientist shook his head with a “No.” They were doing all they could to make sure Bill wasn’t contageous, but they still didn’t know. The Transformation Virus had been devistating a few months ago -- people’s body would undergo dramatic physical changes with few other symptoms, and then spend about a month as a completely different person before finally dieing.

Bill, of course, had survived his transformation -- the only patient who contracted to virus to have done so. He had transformed into a young woman who seemed to be 20 years younger than his own actual age. Immediate quarantine was the only solution to stop the spread. Despite their small size, the bubbles could keep people fed, exercised, and entertained. However, no one envisioned them to be used as long as Bill had. He was a medical mystery that they just couldn’t risk releasing.

Quarantine

Well, it seems I’m going to be stuck in this hotel room for the next two weeks. I had caught the body swapping virus, and they were trying to quarantine people to prevent it from spreading. But I knew there really wasn’t any containing this thing. In fact, the people quarantined here would most likely just end up swapping with each other, the staff, or some unfortunate guest. This thing just didn’t seemed to be stopped by anything -- even walls.

As for me, I actually caught the damn thing a while ago. They just happened to catch me on what should be my last swap. Most people swapped with a maximum of three others -- but I was one of the unlucky ones who swapped with a fourth. My third body was an average guy pretty similar to my original body. I thought I could sort of continue on as normal until I ended up swapping one more time with this Asian chick. She was the one who filed a report, which is how I ended up in quarantine in this hotel. Sure, they’d deliver clothes, food, and anything else we might need, but it was going to be a very boring two weeks within these four walls. Though, I suppose I always had a new body to explore.

It Started with a Cough (Part 2)

View Part 1 of It Started with a Cough.

For the rest of the day, Dr. Fielding was mostly worried about his nurse, and why she suddenly seemed to lose her mind. He didn’t notice the slight cough he was developing. As the rode the train home from the city to the suburbs, it got a little bit worse. When he finally arrived home and greeted his wife, he let out a much bigger cough.

Much like how his nurse had described earlier, his soul seemed to escape from him. It entered his wife’s body, and Dr. Fielding took control.He watched as his own body turned to dust before his eyes. It was all exactly as his nurse had told him! It was real, and he was now in the body of his own wife! He had to try to contact his nurse... or Mr. Baldwin? Then he realized whatever she had must have been contageous, and he had just been coughing for the past hour on his commute. There’s no telling how many people he had spread this strange body swapping virus to!

It Started with a Cough

Dr. Hans Fielding entered his office quite surprised. Instead of the patient he was expecting, he saw his nurse there; she seemed to be taking off her uniform.

“Excuse me, Nurse. Where is...” He checked his forms, “Mr. Baldwin?”

Dr. Hans Fielding entered his office quite surprised. Instead of the patient he was expecting, he saw his nurse there; she seemed to be taking off her uniform.

stead of the patient he was expecting, he saw his nurse there; she seemed to be taking off her uniform.

“Excuse me, Nurse. Where is...” He checked his forms, I am Jerry Baldwin!” The nurse protested, “I came in with a cough. And somehow I coughed hard enough that it sort of ejected my soul frommy body. The nurse was standing here...she must’ve breathed me in! And so I became her while my own body just sort of turned to dust! I was just changing into the gown, so you could take a look at me. After all, something is very wrong here!”

Dr. Hans Fielding entered his office quite surprised. Instead of the patient he was expecting, he saw his nurse there; she seemed to be taking off her uniform.

“I see. This is beyond my expertise I’m afraid, but I do have a colleague that might be able to help you.”

Dr. Hans Fielding entered his office quite surprised. Instead of the patient he was expecting, he saw his nurse there; she seemed to be taking off her uniform.

Dr. Fielding handed Jerry a card for a psychiatrist, thinking his nurse had gone completely crazy. It seemed like an absolutely off-the-wall story, but the thing is -- it was absolutely the truth!

The Infection

In 2074, the strangest virus began to work its way across the globe. For the first two weeks of infection, it was mostly undetectable but highly contagious. Then the virus started to make you sick and attack your brain; once it could be tracked in your system, it was determined you had approximately two months left to live.

The solution, it seemed, was a technology that had been outlawed just five years prior: brain swapping. It seemed anyone who had illegal used a brain swapper in their two month period ended up surviving. Bans were quickly overturned and hospitals soon set up dating-profile-like websites to help the infected find each other. The swaps were permanent as attempts to swap back resulted in instant re-infection.

There were some catches. Not everyone could safely swap with each other. You had to find a match. Jared had signed on after being infected to find a whole host of people to choose from, but he almost instantly got a message in his inbox from a woman named Alice. She wasn’t so lucky. In fact, she hadn’t been compatible with a single person when she first signed on, and was giddy when she got an email about Jared signing up as a match. Jared didn’t want to swap with a woman, but agreed knowing he was her only hope.

They didn’t meet until they arrived at the hospital and sat in the waiting room together. Alice was extremely nervous but also very thankful. Jared was a little scared that Alice’s body was soon going to be his, but he kept telling himself it was the right thing to do.

The Island

“Grant, you need to listen to me,” Harvey tried to explain, “You need to leave this island. It changes people; it literally transforms them into women and makes them forget who they once were! I’m almost gone. I just have my arm left. I can only remember bits and pieces of my former life. We were...friends?”

Grant laughed, “That’s quite absurd, Helen. An island that transforms people?”

“No, it’s true. Look at my arm! Please! On my hand...I have a wedding ring with an engraving to my wife. Please leave and give it to her.”

Grant took the ring off of Helen/Harvey’s oddly mascline hand. He was starting to believe the whole story when a blond woman approached them.

“It makes no difference if you leave now,” She said, “Just being here means you have already been infected. You will become one of us. But staying will prevent those you know from being infected...”

“Don’t listen to her! There has to be hope!”

But in the back of Grant’s mind, he knew the blond woman was right, and he could feel it starting already.

The Virus: The Researchers (Part 3)

Click here for Patient Zero: Part 1.
Click here for Patient Zero: Part 2.
Click here for Patient Zero: Part 3.
Click here for The Researchers: Part 1.
Click here for The Researchers: Part 2.

Jim couldn’t wait to swap for the final time. He was in communication with the team of researchers every day, cheering on their progress. After two days, Yi Ji swapped for her final time, but Jim was still waiting. Finally, six weeks later it happened. He was most thankful to get his sight back, and the first thing he did was look down to see a shapely body in a little black dress and tall heeled boots. It didn’t matter. He just needed to call the lab to tell them he was going to start coming in again...but where was the phone? He couldn’t find one anywhere.

Then a burly man came in. Jim was relieved. He explained his job as a researcher studying the virus.

The man just scoffed, “You ain’t got no job as a researcher. You work for me. Now you better stop playin’, Honey, because you got a client.” Jim had a feeling he was in a bad situation and would not be able to convince this man to help him...

The Virus: The Researchers (Part 2)

Click here for Patient Zero: Part 1.
Click here for Patient Zero: Part 2.
Click here for Patient Zero: Part 3.
Click here for The Researchers: Part 1.

While in Yi Ji’s body, Jim worked long hours, continuing to make discoveries about the virus -- though they were still a long way from a cure of a vaccine. When he finally had his second swap a few days later, he was glad he did. The world went completely blurry. He could tell he was still a woman by the way his body felt, but he guessed he was just a little bit older than Yi Ji. The woman wore gloves and a mark -- though Jim knew those did little to prevent the virus, many in the public still wore them in an attempt to ward it off.

He knew hie eyes were open, but he couldn’t really make out anything. He could tell where lights were. He could maybe see a shadow of movement or perhaps the color of something if it put it a mere inch or so from his face. But he knew this condition, he was blind. He knew he wouldn’t be able to help in the lab like this. He was sure he could adapt, but it would take a while to learn. And before he could do all that, he was likely to swap again. He only hoped it would be into a body that would be able to continue the research without impediment.

The Virus: The Researchers (Part 1)

Click here for Patient Zero: Part 1.
Click here for Patient Zero: Part 2.
Click here for Patient Zero: Part 3.

Once people began to swap bodies, the public began to panic. Everyone wanted answers. Scientists brought answers as soon as they could. Jim worked as one such lab. He traced the swapping back to a virus. Others on his team started piecing together how it worked. The virus was highly airborne. It would infect a host, grabbing vital pieces of DNA from that host. Then that person would transfer it to a second host. That second host would have to reinfect the original host with their own DNA. The virus would then attack the brain, essentially swapping the two hosts brains. Only a few people showed symptoms besides swapping, and a person only seemed contagious well before swapping. No individual could seemingly swap more than three times, no one seemed to be immune, and nothing seemed to prevent the passing of the disease.

In fact, after about two weeks of working in the lab, even Jim fell victim when he swapped with his fellow researcher, Yi Ji. It aligned with their theory that the first swap was always someone in close physical proximity. Despite his now female body, Jim knew he had to focus to get as much work done as possible. There was no telling with who or when he’d swap next. He had to squeeze in as much work as possible before it happened.

The Virus: Patient Zero (Part 3)

Click here for Part 1.
Click here for Part 2.

Over the next few weeks, Nick started reading online and watching TV to find out that he wasn’t the only one who had been swapping bodies. Scientists had discovered a virus responsible for the strange phenomenon. As of right now, no one had swapped more than three times. Nick realized his next swap would probably be his last. And it happened soon enough.

He couldn’t have been more disappointed. Nick once again swapped with a woman. He didn’t know her well, but knew she worked in his office. He knew it was going to be difficult to adapt. She wasn’t the athletic type like he had been. She wasn’t older than his original body as well. She wasn’t as attractive as the previous two women he had been. It all felt like a big let down.

He went back online to search. Maybe somebody else had swapped a fourth time...or a fifth? So far, nothing. Then a year passed. The world was swapped all around, but still no more than three times per person. Nick knew he was stuck. It was time to learn to cope with it.

The Virus: Patient Zero (Part 2)

Click here for Part 1.

Nick didn’t spend much longer in the hospital. Figuring he wasn’t really equipped to help out as a nurse (despite looking the part) nor did he care much if he was fired (not his body, not his problem), leaving seemed to be the best option. He did check up on his former body before he left. The doctors seemed to be having quite a commotion about his body’s brain patterns; they seemed to be very different all of a sudden. Nick realized why, but he didn’t feel like speaking out.

He spent the next few days alone in the nurse’s apartment, trying to isolate himself, hoping whatever body swapping disease he seemed to have would just go away. It didn’t. Within a week he found himself in yet another different body, this time a blond woman. He didn’t get sick first this time -- so presumably this woman was fine enough in the nurse’s body. But how did he possibly infect her? Then he looked at his reflection; she seemed familiar. But he hadn’t run into her in the last few days or even at the hospital. It was earlier back when he was a guy, back when he felt perfectly fine. He had hit on her at the grocery store. It hadn’t been too long before he felt sick though...

The Virus: Patient Zero (Part 1)

Dedicated to those struggling and suffering in the world right now.

Nick was always an adventurer, traveling to distant places to hike, climb, and camp. On a recent trip, he explored the rainforest and was convinced he had seen things no human had before him. He was, in fact, right; however, in addition to the sights, he also contracted a virus never before known to humanity. For the first month of infection, it showed absolutely no symptoms; Nick was simply a carrier passing it on to others.

It wasn’t until he became violently ill from the virus that he became concerned. He called 911 and was rushed to his local hospital. The doctors and nurses couldn’t figure out what was wrong with him. Nick soon fell into a coma.

But a moment later, he was awake, but not in a way anyone could’ve ever predicted. The virus had infected a nurse, allowing the most truly dramatic advanced symptom to take hold, resulting in Nick swapping bodies with her. As he walked the halls, he wondered if he should tell the doctors. Would they even believe him? What sort of virus was this anyhow?

Mutated

When the body swapping virus first appeared, people were freaking out. No one wanted to be randomly swapped with someone else on the street. Many demanded a cure or at least a vaccine. Dr. Ernie McCormick was on a team that researched the virus heavily. It didn’t take long for them to determine that swapping could be prevented by simply wearing a surgical mask in public. Most people adopted this behavior almost instantly, including Dr. McCormick.

However, after several months, Ernie found himself walking down the street where he ended up swapping bodies with a young woman. The strangest part of it was that they were both wearing surgical masks. He didn’t need to panic. He theorized exactly what had happened, and he immediately texted his colleagues.

“It’s what we feared,” He wrote, “The virus had mutated.”

Smart

Chris hated his job. He considered it beneath him. He was way too smart for this, and he was ready to prove it. It was a very devious virus he had been working on for months, built on the cutting-edge tech that the company was building. He sent an email to the CEO, eager to await the results the next morning.

But when the next morning came, things didn’t feel right. The virus was supposed to swap his body with the CEO’s. Instead, he looked in the bathroom mirror and saw a very different face -- the face of a woman. It took him a while to figure out who she was until it finally came to him. She was the CEO’s assistant. Of course, why would the CEO check his own emails? She probably was the one who opened and read it, which meant he swapped with her. As he continued to look at his face in the mirror, he felt much less smart.