A Wish the Heart Makes: Fornever in Blue Genes

by Tigger

Chapter 23: Estrangement

"MacPherson's transition is complete, Freuda," Florence said
as she entered the other woman's office.

The older woman looked up from the file she was studying and
gave Teri a hard look.  *She's changed so much in the past
years,* Teri thought to herself.  *Where is the smile that
used to greet me when ever I would come to see her at school,
and call her up on the televid?*

"And your point is, Florence?"

*She won't even call me by my given name anymore she is so
caught up in this feminist counter-insurgency movement of
hers.  It's like we're playing secret agents against the space
marauders instead of trying to make the world better and safer
than it is.*  "We need to consider what we are going to do
about her.  We can't leave her under the sedation
indefinitely.  Even with our modern techniques, eventually
she's going to suffer brain damage from the continuation of
this chemically induced coma."

"*She*??  You just said transition was complete, did you not?"
Freuda asked coldly.  

"Well, yes . . . "

"Then *he* is no longer a female.  I don't particularly care
if *he* suffers brain damage.  Even when he was female, he was
a threat to us.  When the Leader completes transition, she
will decide MacPherson's fate, but until that time, we will
keep her sedated so that she is not a danger to our cause.  Is
that understood, Florence?"

"But, Freddie . . . "

"Do NOT call me that!" Freuda snapped.  "Doctor of Psychiatry
Fredricka Van Damme is no longer among us.  Only Freuda of the
New Women's Order remains, and that is how you and everyone
else will address me, regardless of our relationship in our
former lives.  Is that understood, Florence?"  

Teri shuddered at the vehemence in her old mentor's voice, and
the strange light in her eyes, but nodded her assent.

"Very well, then.  Do you understand your orders with respect
to MacPherson?"

"Yes, Freuda, I understand them, and I will obey them."  *For
now, anyway,* she thought grimly.  *For now.*

"Excellent.  And how long do you estimate it will be for the
Leader's transition?"

"Another day or so, I would think," Teri answered carefully. 
"Physically, the Leader's old and new forms are much closer in
size than MacPherson's were, so the transition does not have
to be slowed to allow for the assimilation of the hyperactive
nutrients that allowed MacPherson to grow so much during the
transition to male.  Even though the Leader started two,
almost three days after MacPherson, she should finish a couple
of days sooner."

"Well, keep me informed.  That will be all, Florence."

"Yes, Freuda.

~--------------~

Cat left orders with her security team to wake her instantly
if the need arose.  She and Mandy went down hard for the first
time in nearly seventy two hours.  It was a measure of her own
exhaustion that Cat forgot that Morag's disappearance left
other holes unfilled as well.

~-------------~

"I can't get over it, Leader," a foolishly grinning Freuda all
but gushed.  "You . . . are . . . PERFECT!  Welcome to
womanhood, darling, where you've belonged all your life."

Teri looked on from her watchstation, feeling as if she were
somehow reliving her recent past.  The Leader certainly had
the look of Mandy, right down to the nutrient accelerated hair
growth. *Well, that is to be expected,* she thought,
*genetically, she *IS* Mandy, right down to the smallest amino
acid group.  Except . . .* and here Teri fought not to stare,
*she really doesn't LOOK quite right - like something isn't
just as it should be, but for the life of me, I can't figure
out what it might be.*

For a moment or two, she wondered if she should point out her
concern to the two women seated on the bed, but then decided
against it. *What could I say?  "Sorry, Leader, but I think
there is something wrong about you."  Right, Teri, and get
your head handed to you by Freuda.  And I am not all that sure
that would be a figurative head-handing, either.  Something is
seriously different about her, and that frightens me.*

Grimly, Teri shook her head to ward off those thoughts, and
tried to eavesdrop on the two women.

"I don't know, Freuda.  Do you really think it is necessary? 
The process has still only been successful three times.  Isn't
it enough that I can get us in there?"

"Leader," Freuda said earnestly, "If we are to take control of
Sorenson's company, we have to make things as smooth as
possible.  We've already hit them once, and we're going to hit
them again.  If only Sorenson survives, particularly an attack
that was enough to take out Donovan, it might be an issue for
some of the police types, and Donovan *has* to die.  She's too
bloody dangerous."

"But I still don't see the point in the rest of your idea."

"Look, it was Jacobs who was able to blunt our original thrust
by means of his legal maneuvering.  And we can't leave him
alive - he knows Sorenson too well and he'd figure out
something about you wasn't quite right - eventually.  We'd
have to kill him.  If he dies in yet a third attack, the
compound will be crawling with investigators who might just
figure out what is really going on in there.  But having an
"Adam Jacobs" on our side when you take over the company will
definitely smooth things, particularly with the police, and
will buy us time to consolidate your position at
BioCybernetics."

The Leader went quiet, and then nodded.  "You are sure this is
the correct strategy?  It is a great sacrifice to ask of a
real woman - being made over into a mere man."

"Only for a while.  Now that we have the process, in a year of
so, Jacobs can die of natural causes and it can all be undone. 
Heavens, it can be done better as your own case will attest."

"All right.  We'll do it.  We will move on BioCybernetics as
soon as the transition is complete."

"Leader?  I think you should move now, and have the new Jacobs
join you when my transition is finished."

"That makes no sense.  I will still have to deal with Jacobs,
then."

"You can be injured, or in shock - whatever, but the longer we
wait, the more time they have to recover their wits after our
last attack.  The very last thing they will expect is for us
to come back, again, this soon after the last time."

The woman lying on the bed became quiet and thoughtful. 
Finally, she looked up at Freuda.  "You've given this a great
deal of thought."

"It is my duty to you and to the Order, Leader."

"Very well, then.  Tell the attack team leader.  We will move
tonight."

"Excellent."  Freuda turned to Teri. "Florence, have another
nurse relieve you and meet me in the transition room.  You
have another subject to oversee through the process."

"Yes, Freuda," Teri answered as she buzzed for a relief nurse. 
"Who is going to be changed?" she asked.

"Me," Freuda responded, and then strode out of the room.