Chance and Death and Mutability
By Autolycus, maynlinz@earthlink.net
A genetically altered woman battles to stay alive in a brutal prison.


This is a work of fiction. Any similarity to real persons is only a figment of
your imaginations. Let's face it, we all wish these babes were real! Anyway,
they're not, so go take a nice cold shower.

BABES IN SPYLAND XII:

CHANCE AND DEATH AND MUTABILITY

(With apologies to PB Shelley)

(c) 1999 Autolycus

Here's the deal: This is the story of a genetically altered female who is not
only a perfect physical specimen, but also has psychic abilities. She was
created by the US government to be the ultimate espionage agent, although her
creator/father, the late Dr. Smitrovich, didn't know that at the time. She was
seized by an ultra-secret anti-terrorist government agency, the Aegis Group,
and (ultimately, but against her will) trained in martial arts and other forms
of combat, although she refuses to kill anybody. By the way, her name is
Jessica Chance and this is the story of her struggle to stay alive, and sane,
in a brutal federal prison after being trapped in the body of her "little
sister," Melanie Chaos.

What has gone before:

If you haven't read Part XI, go and do it now! Otherwise, this won't make much
sense.

(.(. ) For Diana, my favorite Valkyrie ( .).)

My name is Jessica Chance. That's the important thing to remember, despite
appearances to the contrary. See, the thing is, now, bear with me, 'cause it's
gonna sound weird, but I'm not me. That is, I am me, but I don't look like me.
I look like Melanie Chaos, the late General Winsome's genetically altered
daughter, who was created using the same techniques which brought about my own
existence. But, where I was created by the brilliant Dr. Mikhail Karsten
Smitrovich, the leader of Project Angel, to be a savior for the human
race--Dr. Smitrovich hoped that my increased intelligence would lead to the
solving of many of the problems which plague the world, from medical to
technological advances, and everything in between--Melanie was given life by
former Angel team members who had been forced, bribed, or possibly tortured
into doing so, and for the sole purpose of serving as the General's personal
assassin.

I looked around the cell I had been in for several hours, only dimly recalling
the circumstances that had resulted in my wrongful imprisonment. I had been
driven directly to prison by myself, er, Jessica, no, by Melanie and one of
the DC police officers who had discovered her, er, me standing over the
mutilated corpse of General Armitage Winsome, my father, er, that is her
father and my boss. I still remember the stink of death wafting up from my,
er, her blood-stained hands.

Upon arriving at the prison, we were greeted by Dr. Nagusame, who immediately
drugged me, er, Mel, that is, she drugged Mel's body as Mel looked on, smiling
her approval with my lips.

When I woke up I was strapped to a bed with metal manacles which were attached
to a heavy voltage of current, as I discovered when I tried to pull my, er,
Mel's arms and legs free. There were also several electrodes attached to my
forehead, but they didn't seem to be tied to the same circuit that powered the
physical restraints. The impromptu shock treatment must have triggered some
sort of alert because a few minutes later Dr. Nagusame showed up. The doc was
a pleasant looking Japanese lady in her late forties, or maybe her early
fifties--It was tough to tell because she took pretty good care of herself.
She certainly didn't have that traditional roundness one always associates
with middle age, but she did have very tired eyes. They were deep brown and
nestled within a gentle, smiling face. Her long dark hair was eternally tied
up in a tight bun, held in place with a wooden pick adorned with a jeweled
butterfly, so that it looked like the insect was resting momentarily before
flying off again.

She looked at me in that semi-patronizing fashion that doctors always greet
their patients with and shook her head and said, "Now, Melanie, you should
know by now what happens when you exert too much pressure on your restraints.
Are you all right?"

I nodded. "Dr. Nagusame, I need to tell you something, something that, quite
frankly, is unbelievable. But, it's a matter of life and death that you do
believe me," I said desperately, doing my best to imbue Mel's jaded voice with
some semblance of sincerity.

"I can't make any promises, Melanie, you know that. But, I will listen to what
you have to say. I'm always willing to listen. I've told you that many times
in the past," she said, typing quietly on her mini-laptop.

"That's just it, doctor, you haven't told me that many times in the past.
You've only met me in person once, when I hired you to look after Melanie," I
explained as rationally as I could.

"You are Melanie, dear. And I was hired by Jessica, you know that."

"Exactly. I do know that. And the reason I know it is because I am Jessica.
But, somehow, I've been trapped in Melanie's body." I willed my eyes to
radiate honesty, but she smiled enigmatically. "I'm not joking, doctor. I'm
deadly serious."

"Of course you are, dear. Please, forgive my rudeness," she said, becoming
coldly professional.

"I need to get out of here, so I can figure out how Koyuki did it, and find
some way to reverse it before it's too late!" I said, trying to keep the panic
I felt welling up inside me out of my voice.

"Koyuki?" questioned the doc, continuing to type away.

"Dr. Koyuki Takagashi. I captured her almost two years ago after she tried to
kill me. She's supposed to be serving a life sentence in a Japanese maximum
security prison, but, somehow, she was able to assist the General in the
process he used to transfer me into Melanie's body," I explained, hoping I
didn't look as crazy as I sounded.

"A life sentence for trying to kill you? Doesn't that seem a bit excessive?"
she asked gently.

"Listen, I don't have any sort of bloated image of my own importance, if
that's what you're getting at. She was imprisoned for the murders of business
rivals' friends and family, and a number of private investigators who had been
lured to her home and then trapped in an amber-like substance."

"I see. Well, that's different. It's a good thing you caught her, then.
Perhaps now you'd care to enlighten me on why you killed General Winsome?" she
said casually. "Was he also responsible for numerous murders?"

"Thousands," I nodded. "But, I didn't kill him. I think it might have been
Melanie, but I can't be sure, since I was unconscious when it happened."

"That would make it difficult to know with any degree of certainty," Dr.
Nagusame said in an incredibly patronizing tone.

"I'm just saying it was Melanie's style: Pointlessly brutal," I said.

"Why have you begun referring to yourself in the third person, Melanie?" she
asked. "Are you so repulsed by your latest three murders that this is an
attempt to disassociate yourself from your actions?"

"Three murders?" I asked fearfully, something unpleasant hovering just beyond
my ability to consciously recognize it.

"General Winsome, Myrna Fitzpatrick, and Kendra Willowgate. The authorities
are still trying to figure out how you got in and out of the country. Care to
elaborate?" Dr. Nagusame inquired.

She was dead. It hadn't just been a nightmare. Almost involuntarily, I
momentarily surrendered to the white hot anger and incredible sorrow and not
only employed my physical skills to try to break free, but my mental ones as
well. The result was that enough electricity coursed through my body to light
a small village, with the probes attached to my forehead delivering the most
powerful jolts as they fought to keep my genetically bred abilities from
effectively manifesting themselves, despite the dampening field which
blanketed the prison.

"Melanie! Calm down, dear! Stop resisting and the pain will stop. You know
that," the doctor said desperately. "Stop it before you do any permanent
damage!"

I stopped then. Not because of what she'd said exactly, but because I suddenly
realized that if I were here, in Mel's body, then she was out there...in mine!

* * * * *

This is just too cool for words! For the first time in my life I'm truly free.
No ties to anyone or anything. Not even Daddy. He no longer has anything on me
which could compel me to work for him. And, even though he's kind of cute,
I've never been one to let sex, no matter how good it might be--And Daddy's
new bod is way hot, and you'd better believe we did the nasty before I called
in his "murder"--control me to any degree.

After I dropped sis off at the prison, I returned to her apartment, hoping to
settle an old score with Codfish, but the wolf-bitch was gone, and I couldn't
find any clues as to her location. Then, as I was going through my dear older
sister's things, tossing out anything I thought might be of sentimental value
to her, the office called and ordered me to report for an emergency meeting in
order to meet Daddy's replacement. I considered going AWOL right then and
there, and diving deep undercover, reconnecting with some of my old contacts
in the assassination game, and picking up my life where it had left off before
I'd agreed to do that one special job for Daddy and kill my "sister."

But those people and that life belonged to Melanie Chaos, and that isn't me.
Not any more. I am Jessica Chance, one of the good guys. I laughed out loud at
the delicious irony of that as I grabbed a quick bite to eat before heading to
the meeting.

I was thinking at the time that I would play along for a while and be the good
girl, and then turn Jessica Chance into the biggest and most publicized
traitor since Benedict Arnold by committing a shocking string of treasonous
actions, culminating with the assassination of whoever the next President
turned out to be. My money was on Norwood, and I hoped I was right, since
nothing would give me greater pleasure than to put a bullet in her brain. But,
if it turned out to be that idiot from Texas, I could live with that.

After all, the person I was going to kill wasn't important, just Jessica's
reputation.

When I walked into the meeting room, I was confused to see the unfriendly
looks I got from most of my fellow operatives, especially Kallista Blackhart.
But then I remembered that they weren't seeing their old friend and fellow
ruthless killer, Melanie Chaos, but the loner and sometimes antagonist,
Jessica Chance. My dear sister had never made much of an effort to be a part
of the team, and they resented it. Along with her
holier-than-thou-shalt-not-kill attitude, of course.

I did my best to adopt her haughty, indifferent manner and made my way to a
seat apart from the others, taking the opportunity to check out my old running
mates while waiting for the show to begin.

As I already mentioned, Kallista was there, looking more like a heroin waif
having a bad hair day than ever. Her nose was covered with a thick bandage,
which I got the impression was Jessica's fault from the way she kept glaring
at her, er, me.

Damien Hawke was there, looking yummy as ever, and I wondered what sort of
relationship the mysterious agent and my sister had, if any. I'd never had
much contact with Damien--And certainly not the kind of contact I
wanted!--since he tended to keep to himself a great deal, just like sis, but
for entirely different reasons. He had a nasty habit of losing partners. No
one actually ever accused him of killing them, but there were whispers.
Finally, Daddy had gotten the message and stopped assigning him any. Damien
also tended to go for those assignments which needed to have things blown up
and lots of people killed. Not that I have anything against blowing things up
or killing people, but I prefer the personal touch. I'd rather infiltrate a
building and take every living soul out of commission than just blow it up.

Lorelei Taubert was talking quietly with Rashida Mavuno. Those who didn't know
them were surprised by their friendship, seeing as how Lorelei was an Aryan
Amazon and Rashida was a black babe. But, they were bound to each other by the
same thing that had made the three of us such good friends: The absolute joy
we get from killing. It's hard to describe to people who've lived their lives
denying their true animal natures, trying to fit in with civilized society,
but the power we feel as an enemy's life ends at our hands is indescribable,
and a definite turn on sexually.

Miller Jacobs, with his omnipresent scowl firmly in place, was casually
cleaning a gun near the front of the room, even though weapons were strictly
prohibited in headquarters. But, no one was about to tell the huge, deadly man
he couldn't do something. Miller was a decent enough guy, though, for a
psychotic megalomaniac. His special kick was taking on corrupt dictators. I
think because he resented them achieving his life's goal. But, whatever the
reason, he had proved invaluable to the group.

There were others, but I'd never met them before or had never worked with
them, either because they joined after my incarceration, or simply weren't my
type. And, from the looks they were giving who they thought was my sister,
they weren't Jessica's type either.

Suddenly, the room got very quiet and President Hemdale's voice spoke. The man
himself wasn't in the room, of course, just his voice in what sounded like a
taped presentation.

"Ladies and gentlemen of the Aegis Group, as you are all sadly aware, General
Armitage Winsome was murdered in his home early this morning. What makes his
death even more tragic is the fact that it was one of his own ex-agents who
killed him. I'm referring to Melanie Chaos, who somehow escaped and killed not
only the General, but also an agent of the British Secret Service and a former
terrorist, for reasons that remain a mystery, along with how she managed to
get in and out of the US. But she has been returned to custody in the Maryland
Federal Penitentiary and I will personally see to it that she never leaves
there again, even if I have to assign guards to watch her every minute of the
day."

As he babbled on about what a great American Winsome had been and the irony
that it had been his influence which had prevented her, er, my execution when
I had first apprehended her, er, had been apprehended by her, I couldn't help
but think how disappointed I was that my dear sister's stay in prison was
going to be longer than I'd hoped; I had really been looking forward to her
death at the hands of the very justice system she so staunchly defended. On
the other hand, this situation might provide an opportunity for me to kill her
personally...

My attention was drawn back to the proceedings when a robust woman with short,
light hair stepped to the front of the room. She was wearing an army uniform
and the two silver stars on her shoulder were polished to a high sheen. "It
gives me great pleasure to introduce the new head of the Aegis Group, the
first woman to earn the rank of Major General and a true American patriot,
Margaret P. Holm." We all applauded politely, and I have to admit that even I
was impressed with Hemdale's choice; Holm had been a very vocal critic of
Hemdale's military policies, and the man himself, on more than one occasion.

She acknowledged the applause with a curt nod and then spoke, "I want to first
of all thank President Hemdale for his kind words. I've never had the honor of
serving with any of you before, but I look forward to establishing a good
working relationship with each and every one of you in the next few months. My
late predecessor did some amazing, innovative things with Aegis, and I fully
intend to continue and expand on his ideas. But, I will also be making some
changes. I don't want to go into details right now, but let me just say that
the days of the 'spy thriller' assignments are over. I will be running this
organization like a military operation, not something inspired by the writings
of Ian Fleming, Tom Clancy, and others who depict the life of an espionage
agent as sexy, exciting, and, for the most part, unsupervised. I intend to
focus on making us a real team, instead of a bunch of hot-doggers. I don't
mean to criticize anybody, and I'm not singling any one out here. I'm just
letting you all know that things are going to change. I'll be meeting with
each of you individually in the next few days to get to know you and to go
over your past records and see if we can't figure out ways to make your future
accomplishments even better. The funeral for General Winsome will be this
Saturday at noon at Arlington. All of you will be there. Now, I think that's
enough for our first meeting. You're dismissed," she said with a curt nod.

By the end of her speech I had pretty much made up my mind to kill her, too.
She approached me as I was leaving and asked me back to her office for a talk.

"Ms. Chance, I know that you're under a lot of strain at the moment, with the
death of your friends and the murder of your boss, but, I need to know what
happened last night when you went to see Winsome at his home. Did you see
Melanie before you left, or did she arrive afterwards?" she asked me as we sat
across from each other in black leather chairs.

I thought back and tried to recall if the old butler had seen me at all, but I
was pretty sure he hadn't. "The General invited me to his home to discuss a
private matter, Ma'am, one that I would rather not talk about. I was only
there for a little while, an hour at most, and he was alive and well when I
last saw him," I said in a voice conveying a mixture of both remorse and
annoyance.

"Edmund Grim reported only that he escorted you into the General's study, not
out of it. He further stated that he saw your car parked out in the drive when
he checked well after midnight, which would have been hours after you
supposedly left. Care to tell me the truth this time, Ms. Chance?" she said,
her dark eyes glinting with smug assurance.

Damn that nosy old man! Okay, I figured I didn't have much to lose, since I
was gonna blacken Jessica's record anyway, so I decided to come clean with
most of the story behind her and Daddy's relationship--After all, the
documents detailing his treasonous activities had been confiscated by the
police and turned over to the President earlier that morning, so the truth was
going to come out sooner or later anyway. I did, however, leave out the fact
of my relationship with Daddy, since the files containing that information
were safely locked away...along with the disc of my session with Dr.
Smitrovich. My own antagonism toward me, er, Jessica, I attributed to the fact
that I'd, er, she'd been responsible for her, er, my initial imprisonment, and
nothing more.

She seemed satisfied with what I told her and said that she'd be in touch,
but, until then, I should take it easy. I promised her I would, suppressing
the giggles I felt bubbling up inside when I thought about poor Jessica in
prison and how she was the one who really needed to take it easy...but I
doubted she'd get much opportunity for that.

* * * * *

After I calmed down and the electricity ceased ravaging my body, Dr. Nagusame
gave me a tranquilizer and I got an impromptu nap. When I awoke, there was a
tough-looking guard sitting in the chair next to my bed. She had dark hair,
pulled back in a pony tail, and even darker eyes than I, er, Mel did. Her name
tag read "Carla" and I got the definite impression that she and Mel didn't
exactly get along.

"Finally awake, huh, cop killer?" she snarled, placing her billy club under my
chin and forcing it back painfully. "The doc says you need a shower, so I'm
going to take you to the bath room. Try anything, anything at all when I
unchain you, and I'll happily knock your brains clean outta your head. Got
that?" I grunted, since I couldn't nod or speak with the club pressing into my
windpipe the way it was. "Good." She unlocked the manacles and disconnected
the wires from the probes.

"You seem awfully quiet today, cop killer," she remarked as we walked down the
hall. "What's the matter? Didn't your little vacation agree with you?"

Realizing there was no point in trying to convince her I wasn't Melanie, I
simply kept my mouth shut and that seemed to both please and annoy her.

"Okay, I'll be right out here, so, don't even think about making a break for
it," she said, shoving me hard in the back and sending me sprawling onto the
cold tile floor. She just laughed as I struggled to my feet.

I turned on the shower and let the warm water run over Mel's body, wishing it
could clean my mind of the nightmares as easily as I washed the dirt and blood
from this borrowed flesh. I grabbed the soap and began to clean myself
thoroughly, appreciating the fine shape--Not to mention the shape in
general--of my little sister's body. I took my time washing her large, firm
breasts, admiring them, and at the same time missing my own, curiously
cone-like ones. I continued to scrub, eventually working my way down past her
taut abdominals and between her legs. I shuddered at the thought of everyone
and everything that had visited there, knowing no amount of scrubbing could
ever wash all the traces they'd left away, and then, involuntarily, I felt
myself getting aroused by the touch of my fingers. It was almost as if Mel's
body knew it wasn't her inside there and responded accordingly.

I tried to stop myself, repulsed and excited though I was, but I couldn't. Her
body seemed to demand that I continue and I was helpless to resist it.

"Haven't I warned you about doing that in showers before, Chaos?" a voice
behind me sneered. "It's disgusting, mon. Other people have to use that soap,
too, you know."

I turned and was alarmed to see Tempest O'Roarke, flanked by Bambi, Harley,
Lessa, and Greer, the air pirates who'd recently tried to kidnap
Vice-President Norwood's younger sister, standing in the doorway of the
changing room. I didn't need to ask how they'd gotten past Carla, since I was
sure that the guard had no doubt arranged this "welcome home" party for me,
er, Mel. They were all wearing orange coveralls, except that they had
customized them by cutting or tearing holes in them which were strategically
placed so as to reveal just enough, without actually showing anything. "I'd
forgotten you'd be here," I said, dropping the soap and stepping underneath
the water again.

"How could you forget me, mon?" she asked. She was a tall black woman with
short blonde hair, no more than an inch long, and piercing blue eyes. When she
smiled nastily, I saw that she still had a single gold-capped tooth among her
pearly whites. "It hasn't been that long, has it?"

"What do you want?" I asked, turning off the faucet and reaching for a towel.

"Be that any way to talk to an old shipmate?" she asked her cronies, who all
obligingly shook their heads. "I didn't think so. Maybe Miss Chaos needs
another reminder of who's running things in here, eh? Bambi, Harley, why don't
you do the honors again, seeing as how you did such a bang up job of it last
time."

Bambi was a leggy blonde with green eyes and a nice body, even if her breasts
were a bit on the small side. Harley was shorter, with brown eyes and hair and
a bigger bust. Both of them were nasty customers. But I'd taken them out
before and I was sure I could do it again. Unlike the last time we fought,
however, this time I decided to take the initiative, instead of waiting for
their attack.

I charged at them with my arms extended and knocked both of them off their
feet. As they climbed to their feet, I noticed that their white sneakers
didn't have as much traction as my bare feet and immediately put the knowledge
to use by dropping down and doing a leg sweep which again landed both women on
their backs. Before they could even start to get up, I grabbed a handful of
hair with each hand, spun around a couple of times, and then let go. They slid
across the shower on their backs and crashed into the far wall.

Fortunately, while not doing a great deal of damage, it did serve to disorient
them and that, added with the difficulty they already had of standing on the
slick floor, gave me enough of an edge to reach them just as they stood up. I
drove my knee into Harley's gut and then snapped her head back against the
wall with a powerful uppercut. She slumped back to the floor holding her head.
Bambi took a swing at me, but I dodged it and she slipped, falling forward and
right across my lowered shoulder. I used her momentum to flip her over my back
and onto the floor on her back. I then grabbed a handful of her blonde locks
and picked her up, only to flip her over again. As I hauled her to her feet a
second time, Harley charged me from behind. Almost casually, I extended my
right leg backwards and she impaled herself on my foot, with my heel being
driven deep into her gut.

I removed my foot and then grabbed her by the hair with my other hand and
cracked their skulls together.

"That was a lovely sound," I nodded, seeing they were dazed but still
conscious. "Shall we hear it again?"

Before I could do it again, however, Harley stomped hard on my bare foot,
causing me to release their hair. Then, they winked at each other and both
struck me full in the face with their fists, sending me flying back against
the wall. They moved in quickly, each one grabbing a hand and holding down a
foot with their own for good measure as they used their free hand to pummel my
face and their free leg to deliver alternating knee-lifts to my stomach and
crotch.

I don't know if I blacked out for a second or what, but I got the most vivid
images of them beating me, er, Mel, except it wasn't the same as they'd just
done. It was more brutal and they'd used different moves. Heck, I'd used
different moves! Er, that is, Mel had. Anyway, I could barely keep my head up
after a few minutes of this treatment.

So, they resorted to slapping me hard across the face, to make sure I was
awake. Then, they dragged me over and threw me at Tempest's feet.

"Will you never learn, me girl, that I don't care what kind of fancy powers
you've got outside?" She smiled, deliberately placing a foot on my bruised and
bleeding head. "In here, you're just another con, and I'm the queen of this
place by virtue of me influence, thanks to me crew. And don't you be
forgetting it again, mon." She ground the toe of her shoe against my temple to
emphasize her point.

Then, laughing, they all left me there on floor and I couldn't do much more
than watch as Mel's blood flowed down the drain.

I wasn't left alone for long, however.

"Well, well, what happened, Chaos? You fall down and hurt yourself?" Carla
asked, walking in and standing over me. She had her nightstick out and was
slapping it against her gloved hand.

"You know what happened," I said, spitting up blood and struggling to stand
up.

"You wouldn't be accusing me of anything, would you, Chaos?" she snarled,
forcing me back down by placing her boot in between my shoulders and stomping
down hard.

I just kept my mouth shut, hoping she'd let it drop.

She didn't.

"I asked you a question, cop killer!" she growled, stomping down on my back
again, even though I'd made no move to rise.

"I'm not accusing you of anything," I said quietly.

"That's better. Now, get yourself cleaned up and-"

"I'm stating it outright," I added, even though I knew I should have kept my
mouth shut.

"You lousy, stinking, bitch!" Carla exclaimed and cracked me across the back
of my skull with her stick. "You just don't know when to leave well enough
alone, do you, Chaos?"

My head was spinning and I was barely conscious, but I felt her step over me
and then sit down, straddling me and facing my feet. Then, I felt that damn
stick of hers sliding up between my ass cheeks and into my anus.

"Maybe this will remind you that in here you don't have any rights, not on my
watch, you cop killing cunt!" She proceeded to ream me out good with her billy
club, forcing it deeper inside than I would have thought possible and being
about as gentle and loving as a shark in a feeding frenzy. When she'd finished
violating the ass, she moved to the pussy.

But, just as the end of the club, slick with Mel's blood, brushed against the
quivering lower lips, she pulled it away and stood up. "Not today, Chaos," she
said, shaking her head as she washed the filth and blood from her billy club.
"From what I've read about you, you'd enjoy that too much. Now, get cleaned
up."

She stood watching me as I slowly, painfully, struggled to my feet and
proceeded to wash my fresh wounds and clean myself as best I could without
passing out. Then, I was escorted back to my cell and reshackled.

"You've got about an hour before dinner, Chaos," she stated as she closed the
door.

Once I was alone, I cried the tears I'd been keeping inside since learning of
Kendra's death and prayed to the Goddess that Melanie wouldn't find Lupe and
kill her, too.

* * * * *

After the meeting with the new boss, I was in the mood for something to
relieve all the stress I was feeling. And, in my case, that meant one of two
things: Killing or sex. If I was real lucky, of course, it would be both. It
wasn't really late enough to hit the bars and find anyone worth killing or
fucking, so I decided to take Jessica's car for a spin and see what turned up.
After all, this was Washington, DC, so something was bound to need killing if
I looked in the right places, no matter what time it was.

It didn't take long for me to hear the familiar wail of sirens. Loathe as I
was to play the hero, I figured the cops would lead me to a situation where I
could lose some of this tension legally. And they did. I was a bit
disappointed when it turned out to be a simple liquor store hold up. But, I
was a bit happier when I saw it was a man and a woman. I get a special thrill
out of killing chicks. Maybe because I get a special thrill out of fucking
them. I don't know and I frankly don't give a rat's ass. If you all want to
try to psycho-analyze me, figure out what makes me tick, be my fucking guest.

Just be sure you stay the fuck out of my way and keep your Goddess damned
conclusions to yourself.

I parked the car and got out, flashing my AG badge at the locals and ignoring
their confused looks as I walked past them and towards the store.

"Are you crazy?! You don't even have a gun!" one of the pigs pointed out.

"Don't worry about me, officer," I replied in Jessica's stuffed-shirt,
Here-I-am-to-save-the-day kind of way.

"Who are you?" the woman demanded when she saw me walking toward where she and
her partner were holed up.

"I'm the law. Throw down your weapons and surrender the hostages," I said,
thinking how fucking cool this was.

"Fuck you, bitch!" she shouted and then started shooting.

I'll say this for my dear sister, she certainly has kept her mental powers
honed. It was easy to create a small shield, off which the bullets bounced
harmlessly. Even easier than using my own brain would have been. Of course,
Jessica hasn't been locked in a stinking hole for almost two years, or wired
to the mainframe at Volts 'R' Us.

Not being very bright--Or maybe she just thought she was a bad shot?--she
fired again. This time, I caused the gun to blow up in her hands by setting
off the bullets in the chamber with a telekinetic spark. I did the same thing
to the guy's when he pointed his shotgun at me.

The blast knocked both of them off their feet.

"You people, clear out of here," I said to the four people who had served as
hostages. I saw the teller on the floor in a pool of blood. "Now!" They all
ran out in a hurry.

I knew I didn't have much time before the cops would realize that I'd survived
and had somehow subdued the culprits, so I ignored the woman and walked over
and grabbed the man's head and lifted him to his feet. He was your basic punk.
Mid-twenties, unshaven, unwashed, ugly tattoos, and a brain the size of a BB.
He might have been handsome under all that dirt, but I couldn't tell and I
didn't particularly care. I slowly increased the amount of pressure I was
exerting on his skull until he figured out what was happening and started to
scream.

"Shhh," I whispered, and then his head exploded.

"What the fuck did you do to Gerry?" the woman screamed, charging at me with
her hands bared like claws. She was ugly and filthy. Clean her up and she
still would have been ugly. She was heavyset and had a set of tits that looked
like uneven piles of Play-Doh.

"Don't worry. I won't do the same thing to you," I smiled, turning to meet her
pathetic attack. I stepped beneath her claws and buried my fist deep into her
gut. "You I wanna play with."

She coughed and gasped for air and I thought her bloodshot brown eyes might
pop right out of her head the way they were bulging. Then I realized that my
hitting her had nothing to do with her bulging eyes; they were like that all
the time. Killing her would be doing her a favor. Which, I admit, took some of
the fun out of it.

She would have dropped to her knees if I hadn't grabbed her hair with my other
hand and held her up. She looked at me with those obscene eyes of hers and
started to cry. "Play?" she whimpered.

"Definitely," I replied, punching her square in the right tit. I then grabbed
her around the throat and brought both feet up and slammed them into her
chest, sending her flying into the counter and knocking her to her stomach. I
quickly walked over and hauled her to feet by her hair only to deliver a
beautiful uppercut which lifted her off the ground and completely flipped her
over so that she landed on her stomach again.

Then, hearing the sounds of the locals tromping my way, I leaned down and
lifted her head, looked her in the face, and said, "Today's your unlucky day,
bitch. I'm going to let you live. And you'll go to prison, where, if you're
lucky, the only thing they won't do with a freaky looking broad like you is
fuck you up the ass for sport. Then, when you get out, if you don't get stuck
like the pig you are, I'll know it and I'll make sure you stay alive long
enough to go back inside for something. Murder, maybe, or something serious,
so you'll spend the rest of your life among women. Because I know how much the
thought of a woman touching you repulses you and how much you crave men's
caresses and need their dicks inside you. Because that's the only time you
feel like a woman. When the lights are off and some guy who beats you and
treats you like dirt is lying next to you in sheets stained with sweat and
semen."

"How do--how can you know those things?" she sobbed.

"Woman's intuition," I grinned. Then I punched her, knocking her out cold, and
stood up and straightened my clothes just as the police stormed the store.

"Good God Almighty!" one of boys in blue swore when he saw what was left of
the guy. "What the Hell happened to him?"

"His gun blew up in his face," I shrugged, heading toward the exit. "Lucky for
me his girlfriend was a lousy shot, too."

One of the pigs followed me, demanding I come down to the station and file a
report. And then the weirdest thing happened. I got this flash in my mind of a
similar thing happening, except it wasn't this cop, it was some Asian guy,
yelling at Jessica in Chinese. It was like a memory, but it wasn't one of
mine. It seemed more like a vision.

"Did you hear me, agent Chance?" the cop hollered, snapping me out of whatever
it had been. "You have to go and file a report at the precinct."

"No, dear, you have to go file a report. I have to go get laid before I kill
someone else," I replied and floored it, leaving him choking on my fumes and
his own.

As I was getting out of the car outside one of my old haunts where I knew I'd
find plenty of women who'd do Jessica for a drink, my cell phone rang.
"Chance," I snapped into the receiver.

"Melanie, I've just spoken to Dr. Takagashi," Daddy said. "We might have a
problem. You'd better come to my place."

"I'm on my way," I snarled, closing the phone and climbing back into the car.

I'll say this for Dad, he's no idiot. As soon as he knew his consciousness was
going to be transferred into a clone whose physical growth had been
accelerated using the same process they'd used on me, he liquidated most of
his assets and used the money to set his new self up in some pretty fancy digs
for an eighteen year old kid. But, even with the new body, it was still the
same old Dad underneath, so it's not like he was about to go nuts and have fun
or anything like that. He was actually considering joining--Or should that be
"rejoining?"--the army and earning his stars all over again.

He may not be an idiot, but he gets an "F" in creativity in my book.

I parked Jessica's car at a corner store and walked to his place, just to be
on the safe side. It was a big house, smaller than his mansion, sure, but big
nonetheless. And, with the secret laboratory below the real basement, it was
actually a four-story building. I walked up and rang the bell and a few
minutes passed before Dad opened the door.

"Come in, Melanie," he said, serious as ever. He was a good-looking kid with
dark hair and old eyes and a body in better shape than his old one by a long
shot. And, speaking of long shots, Dad was also incredibly well-endowed.
Something I never would have guessed from his monk-like existence in his last
body.

"Hello, Dad," I smiled, leaning in and kissing him deeply. His breath smelled
like Scotch and I figured he'd taken the precaution of stocking his house with
enough liquor to last him until he turned the legal age to buy it again.

"As enjoyable as making love to you is, even in that body, we don't have time
for that now. I'm afraid I have some bad news," he said, breaking away from my
kiss and closing the door behind me.

He explained that the doc had called from her lab and discovered something she
hadn't been able to confirm from the prison: The process which transferred
consciousness wasn't permanent. In time, it would reverse itself and I would
find myself back in my body.

"What about you?" I asked Dad. "You don't have a brain to go back to."

"Which is fortunate, as it turns out. You see, since the consciousness which
used to inhabit this body is no more, there's nothing to take it over," he
explained. "I'm here for the duration."

"So, as long as my brain and Jessica's consciousness remain alive, it's only a
matter of time before we're back in our own bodies," I surmised. He nodded.
"Well, then, I'll just have to make sure 'Melanie' meets with an unfortunate
accident at prison." I chuckled and pulled out my cell phone, suddenly
understanding the weird "vision" I'd had, and not liking it one bit.

* * * * *

Dinner was uneventful, apart from seeing someone who surprised me there:
Zuleika, the former Libyan terrorist and fellow genetically altered government
experiment. Although, in the case of the huge blonde, it was a strictly
physical alteration. From what the late Dr. Grazier had told me about her, she
was kept locked up, securely bound in an industrial strength strait-jacket,
and drugged 24/7 to prevent her from hurting herself or anyone else.
Apparently, Dr. Nagusame had adopted far different methods for dealing with
her. And, judging from the way everyone was giving her a wide berth, it seemed
to be working, insofar as she wasn't killing anyone. I wondered if the
loneliness was helping her rehabilitation any, though.

I was about to join her at her table--She was the only one to have a whole
table to herself--when she got up and walked out of the mess hall, flanked by
several female guards with cattle prods, who kept their distance, but also had
their prods charged to the limit from the sound of their high-pitched humming.

So, instead I ate alone, even though there were at least a dozen women at the
table. But, I made no effort to talk to them, and they made no effort to talk
to me.

That night I was once more strapped into my bed and the wires were reattached
to the probes on my forehead.

I think I slept a little, but I can't be sure because of the nightmares. They
were awful, more like memories of the things Melanie had not only experienced,
but had done to others, too. Horrible things I could barely believe human
beings would do to one another. And, perhaps not too surprisingly was the fact
that what Melanie had done to others turned out to be much worse then the
things she'd suffered at their hands.

I'll say this for my little sis, she always gave at least as good as she got,
and, more often than not, much better. Or worse, depending on your point of
view.

The next morning, Carla once more showed up to release me and escort me to the
shower room so I could get cleaned up. This time, however, while there were
several other women present, none of them paid me any attention, other than
the leering, lustful glances they directed at me as we all stood naked beneath
the warm water, scrubbing away the filth as best we could.

After the shower, I was lead to the mess hall for breakfast, and this time I
did join the Libyan. "Hello," I said, standing across from her, holding my
tray of food. "Mind if I join you?" She just grunted without looking up and I
took that as a "yes." I sat down and proceeded to eat and she didn't so much
as look at me.

As she was getting up to leave, I said in Arabic, "Go with Allah."

She stopped and then sat back down. "You speak the Holy Tongue?" she asked. I
nodded. "Aiee, it has been so long since I have been able to converse in
anything other than the language of my oppressors, I had almost forgotten how
beautiful it was. You are not one of The People, though, are you?" I shook my
head. "Well, no matter. I am Zuleika Qawi."

"I'm Melanie Chaos," I said after a slight hesitation.

Zuleika's eyes narrowed. "You were put in here by the one called Jessica
Chance, too, were you not?" I nodded. "Then, we have more in common than our
knowledge of the Holy Tongue, for I, too, owe my imprisonment to that
she-demon."

I hadn't exactly expected Zuleika to be grateful for my having captured her,
but I guess I was hoping she wouldn't loathe me for it. Oh, well.

"I must go, the Western dogs have me on an extremely short leash, but I will
look for you out in the yard, during our exercise time, so that you can tell
me what is happening beyond these stone walls," she said, standing up.

"I look forward to it," I replied. She nodded and was then escorted out by two
other guards, but with the same juiced up cattle prods.

After another pointless session with Dr. Nagusame, it was exercise time, and
Carla showed up and led me out to the yard where most of the prison's female
population was working out with weights, playing basketball, soccer, or some
other team sport. There was even a group doing aerobics, led by a video of
some perky actress named Simone Stallion, who was famous not only for her
series of failed marriages and sex-filled thrillers, but also for her chest,
which was even bigger and rounder than Melanie's. And this was after she'd had
some implants removed which she'd gotten early in her career.

Not being inclined to team sports or group exercising of any kind, and not
seeing any sign of Zuleika, I found a quiet corner and practiced my Yoga. As I
sat in the lotus position, concentrating on regulating my breathing and
heart-rate, I experienced more of the weird memories that seemed to belong to
Melanie, rather than myself. And these were even worse than the nightmares of
the previous night.

I saw Mel being tortured and raped by a group of men I recognized from an old
memo about a Latin American strongman who was under investigation. The man
leading the group was Major Alcavone, the dictator's right-hand man. Everyone
assumed he had been blown up when Damien Hawke destroyed the presidential
palace in one of his trademark, needlessly violent displays. Unfortunately for
the Major, that apparently wasn't the case. I did my best to block out the
disturbing images of his gruesome death, beginning with a slowly performed
castration and ending with him being literally skinned alive, but I couldn't.
They were in my mind, too, now, no matter how much I didn't want them there.

"Why do you waste your time with this meditation crap, mon?" Tempest demanded,
snapping me out of the horrifying visions. She and her crew had surrounded me
while I was struggling with Mel's memories. "They're just a lot of hocus
pocus. Aren't they, girls?"

The four smaller women nodded and laughingly agreed.

"Now what do you want, Tempest?" I asked wearily, still shaking from the
haunting memories.

"Since when are you and I on a first name basis, Chaos?" she demanded, kicking
me in the face and knocking me to my back. "I be Miss O'Roarke to you, missy,
and don't you be forgetting it, mon."

"Fine," I sighed, untangling my legs and slowly getting to my feet. "What do
you want now, Miss O'Roarke?"

"Only your life, mon," she grinned, pulling a very sharp homemade shiv from
her stocking. "An old friend is paying me a lot of money to gut you, Melanie
girl, and once I get out of this stinking place, I'm going to need it, you'd
better believe it. So, nothing personal, mon, it's just business. Hold her,
girls."

Harley and Bambi reached for my arms as if I was just going to let this
happen. I lashed out with both fists, catching them in the cheek and
momentarily dazing them. I quickly grabbed them both around the neck in
headlocks and using them as support, swung my feet up and into Tempest's
chest, throwing the big pirate to her back.

Pain suddenly exploded in my lower back when Lessa, a smallish black woman
with brown eyes, kicked me in the kidneys. Then Greer, a brunette with red
highlights, green eyes, and light freckles, jumped up and kicked me in the
back of the head, right where Carla had cracked me with her nightstick, and I
fell forward, dragging Harley and Bambi with me and doing my best to drive
their faces into the grass.

Even though I did, it didn't keep Lessa and Greer from jumping on my back and
head, pounding my face into the moist grass. Then, Harley and Bambi regained
their feet and started kicking me in the ribs. Just when I thought that I was
going to either pass out from the pain or simply die, I heard Tempest say,
"Easy, there, girls, I'm the one who gets the pleasure of ending this bitch's
life. Drag her to her feet so I can gut her and slit her throat."

I was hauled to my feet and held firmly in place by all four of them and
watched helplessly as the Jamaican pirate drew back her arm with the makeshift
knife in it. "I do want you to know that I really am going to enjoy this,
mon," she grinned.

Suddenly, a large shape appeared behind Tempest, throwing a shadow over her
and the five of us, and a giant hand reached out and grabbed her wrist,
crushing it painfully until she dropped the knife and cried out.

"Play nice," Zuleika said, releasing the shattered wrist and then bending down
and picking up the knife. She snapped it in two as easily as a normal person
would a pencil and tossed the pieces over the wall.

Taking advantage of the stunned condition of the four women holding me, I
grabbed Harley and Bambi's collars and forced my arms together, throwing the
two women chest-first into each other. Then, before Greer or Lessa could
react, I drove both my elbows backward and into their stomachs and then
snapped my fists up and caught them in the face.

"This isn't your concern, you great whale of a woman!" Tempest shouted,
hitting Zuleika with her good fist right on the point of her chin. She then
screamed in renewed agony when her hand broke against the unyielding surface.
"Forget Chaos and help me!" she ordered.

The four women rushed the blonde giantess, only to find themselves trapped in
a suffocating bearhug. As she squeezed her arms together until she could lock
her fingers and really pour on the pressure, she asked me, "Are you all right,
Melanie?"

"I've been better, but I'm in good enough shape to handle Tempest if you can
keep those four from interfering," I replied.

"They won't bother you again," she smiled, shaking the barely conscious women
in her grasp like a dog worrying a rat and knocking their heads into each
others.

"Don't kill them, Zuleika, or you'll have an even more unpleasant time here
than you have already," I advised her. She just nodded and slackened her
pressure slightly, allowing her prisoners to draw some much needed oxygen into
their compressed lungs. I smiled and then turned to Tempest, who stood looking
on with horror and shaking both of her useless hands. "Time to finish what I
started a few weeks ago," I nodded, punching her in the face with a lightning
series of rights and lefts.

"What are you talking about, mon?" she asked when I stopped. She was swaying
as her knees threatened to buckle on her. "You and I have never fought each
other personally. Just me girls."

"Must have been in another life," I shrugged, jumping up and wrapping my
ankles around her neck and then flipping around in mid-air and throwing her to
her back. I then sat up and looped my right leg around her throat and pulled
on my foot until her head was wedged firmly between my legs. Then, I tightened
my calf muscle until it pressed snuggly against her windpipe. "How's that
feel?"

But all she could do in reply was grunt and flail her arms and legs
helplessly. I kept the hold on her until I sensed she was about to pass out,
then I removed my leg and swung around until my ass was sitting on her chest.
"No, this just won't do, will it, Zuleika?" I asked, looking up at the blonde
giantess who was still holding all four of Tempest's crewmates in a smothering
bearhug. She just smiled and and shook her head.

Knowing that the guards wouldn't come to investigate until they were sure
"Melanie" was dead, I stood up and stripped out of the orange coveralls and
sat back down on the dazed pirate. This time, though, I made sure my pantied
crotch was covering her nose and mouth, and that Mel's shapely posterior was
resting firmly against her neck. "Much better."

Zuleika nodded and then unceremoniously dropped all four of the barely
conscious women to the ground and neatly lined them up next to each other. She
then stripped out of her coveralls and I was once again impressed by her
amazing build. The woman was basically one enormous muscle, with all the bumps
and curves of the female anatomy thrown in for good measure. She was big,
huge, in fact, but I seriously doubted if even she was big enough to face-sit
all four of them.

I never got to find out, since she wasn't planning on doing that anyway. She
did sit on Harley's and Bambi's faces, though, trapping the blonde and the
brunette between her powerful thighs and squeezing their skulls together until
they ceased squirming and mercifully passed out. Meanwhile, she had grabbed
Lessa and Greer in headlocks and pressed their faces tightly into the
relatively soft flesh of her massive breasts until they, too, passed out.

"Very nice," I nodded, noting that Tempest had likewise left the land of the
conscious. "Now, you'd better get out of here before the guards show up. No
arguments, my friend, I'm already in enough trouble here. A little more won't
make that much difference. Hurry." She nodded and then quickly dressed and
headed back toward the central part of the yard as I likewise got dressed and
then piled the four smaller women on top of Tempest and then sat on top of
them in a very provocative pose and waited for the guards to appear.

I didn't have long to wait.

Carla turned the corner and the smile dropped off her face like a lead
balloon. "You'll get the big sleep for this, Chaos!" she screamed, rushing
forward and pulling out her night stick.

"Don't worry, they're not dead, just sleeping off a fight they lost," I
replied, still lying on top of them.

Carla seemed genuinely surprised by this, but she nevertheless grabbed me by
the wrist and yanked me off the pile of slumbering women. "You're still going
in the hole, cop killer!" she snarled, dragging me toward the main building.

* * * * *

Daddy was pretty proud of his new place, especially the secret lab. He took
great delight in showing me where the computers were stored which held the
back-up copies of our consciousnesses, as if I could take some comfort in
them. "So, if I do switch back to my own body, you're sayin you can always
transfer me into another one?" I asked, glaring suspiciously at the bank of
computers.

"If I have to, yes. I thought you'd be pleased to learn that you're an
immortal, like me. What's the matter?" he asked, placing his hand on my
shoulder.

"I like my body. I miss my body. I know it's convenient for both of us to keep
me in here for the time being," I said, gesturing semi-disgustedly at
Jessica's form, "but I don't want to live the rest of my life in this thing!
Or any other body, besides my own."

"Now, Melanie, you know as well as I that that body is doomed. It's probably
already dead if your "friend" came through with your request," he reminded me,
sliding his hand down to my waist. "But, I do have one other little surprise
for you..."

"Oh, who are you kidding, Pop, that's hardly a surprise and it's anything but
little," I grinned, grabbing his erect penis through the fabric of his pants
and squeezing it tightly. "See?"

"That's not what I was talking about," he smiled. "This is."

He flipped a witch on the wall and a panel slid away revealing a hallway lined
with glass tubes. The glass tubes on the right held male figures and the ones
on the left, female figures, each in a different stage of development, from
embryo to adult. I looked closer at the features of the more developed figures
and gasped. They were me and Daddy!

"What does this mean?" I asked, confused and repulsed by the sight of so many
me's floating in bubbling liquid.

"You're a bright girl, Mel. You tell me," he smirked, folding his arms across
his chest.

"That I can go back to my body...sort of," I ventured. He nodded. "I'm not
sure I approve. I mean, it's not like it will really be me. There will be a
gap in the memory from the time I made the original recording to the time I
died. Kind of creepy."

"I'm disappointed, daughter. I thought you, of all people, would appreciate
the genius of this operation. You and I will never, ever die, Mel. And, once
Jessica is dead, I can put you in your own body again," he said, caressing the
tube of the most developed figure. "It's perfect."

I tried to smile, to see the same big picture he did, but all I could see was
me in tubes...and I didn't like it. Then, I suddenly got another of those
memories which I now knew were the result of Jessica's consciousness
re-establishing itself.

This time, she was in an underground lab, not unlike this one. In fact, there
were similar tubes lining its walls, too. But the figures suspended within
them weren't human. Not even close. They were like some twisted hybrid of
humans and animals, mostly big cats, but also bears, and canids, and even some
weird reptile and fish ones. There was a man there, too, talking to her,
explaining his vision of a world run by him under the control of his
creations. Apparently, he had an entire army of these poor creatures. This all
seemed so familiar...then I recalled reading about this nutter in an old
report when I was preparing to confront Jessica for the first time. He was Dr.
Ferguson Noah and this had been one of my dear sister's earliest assignments.
I remembered how it had almost been her last, too. And how it had ended up
being not one of her more stunning victories...seeing as how the not-so-good
doctor had escaped, even if his menagerie hadn't. Suddenly, one of the
creatures, an aligatoid, burst from its tube and attacked Jessica, allowing
Dr. Noah to make good his escape. The battle was nasty, with the mutant nearly
costing Jessica her arm, and her life. But, in the end, sis triumphed and the
creature was rendered unconscious and placed back into stasis and then stored,
along with the others from the ARK (Animal Research Kennel), in a secret
government warehouse...supposedly.

"Did you hear me, Melanie?" Daddy asked, snapping me out of the unwanted
memory. "I asked you if you wanted to re-record your memories every couple of
weeks so the lag time would be significantly cut down."

"Let me think about it. In the meantime, though, why don't you and I take
advantage of this lag time and go upstairs and..." I leaned over and whispered
into his ear and was rewarded with his face turning bright red.

"Sounds like a plan to me," he grinned, snaking his hand down and squeezing my
ass affectionately.

You may not believe this, but Daddy is an incredible lover, for a guy. Oh,
sure, he basically worries about pleasing himself, but with a cock that big,
he can't help but please me, too. And he's not exactly into foreplay--Then
again, my idea of foreplay is to beat the shit out of someone and then rape
them, so maybe that's not such a bad thing. And he never snuggles--But, again,
to me snuggling is the fine art of strangling someone almost, but not quite,
to the point of death. And I'm not talking about that erotic-asphyxiation
crap, either. Anyway, Daddy had just finished banging the holy shit out of
Jessica's pussy and I was just about to take that amazing cock of his into her
mouth when my damn cell phone rang. "Chance," I snapped. Carla proceeded to
tell me what had happened and how she'd had no choice but to lock "Mel" up in
the hole. She apologized and promised she'd do the job herself when she was
released in ten days. I snarled a "thank you," hung up and explained what had
happened to Daddy.

"You might not have ten days, Mel," he informed me.

"I know," I nodded, taking his "riding crop" deep into my throat and working
it with a skill I hadn't been able to practice for nearly two years. After I'd
swallowed him, I removed his finally flaccid member and said, "I think it's
time I call in a favor."

* * * * *

The hole, nicknamed "The Hellhole" for obvious reasons, turned out to be a
small, hot, unlit room in the basement of the main building. I think it must
have been next to the boiler room the way the stone walls sweated and radiated
heat. Ordinarily, I would simply have placed myself in a yogic trance, slowing
my heart and breathing to the point where I was literally in suspended
animation, and waited out the punishment in relative ease. But, each time I
tried, my mind was bombarded with more of Melanie's horrific memories and I
couldn't concentrate enough to achieve unity of self--Not surprising, really,
seeing as how I was currently anything but unified.

To make matters worse, without light or any other distractions, all my mind
had to occupy itself was its memories, and, for some perverse reason, the only
ones which I could readily call to the fore were Mel's.

Sartre was right: Hell is other people.

I began to feel, sitting there in the dark, that I was Melanie. As if,
somehow, her consciousness was attempting to take back possession of her mind,
and the more I tried to push "her" out, the harder she pushed back. Until I
felt myself, the person I'd been, Jessica Chance, being slowly, but
inexorably, overcome, devoured by the entity known as Melanie Chaos.

I've no idea how long I was in the Hellhole, it might have been hours, it
might have been days; I was too busy struggling with Melanie's resurgent
memories and trying to maintain my own sanity to notice...or care. When the
door opened and light flooded in on me, dim as it was from the single bulb
which lit the dark hallway, I saw Carla standing there, grinning like the
Devil herself.

"I told you you'd get iced for your last stunt, Chaos," she smirked. She
walked in and rammed the end of her nightstick into my belly as I stood up
hesitantly. "You're going to death row, bitch. So, I guess this is goodbye,
since I don't work the Morgue. How about a kiss for old time's sake?" She
grabbed my face with her gloved hand and squeezed my cheeks together, forcing
my lips to pucker. Then, she kissed me...hard and deep.

I should have resisted. I should have punched, kicked, or even bit her. But,
it felt so good--Even though I knew she was only doing it to mock me--to feel
a woman's lips against mine again that I didn't struggle at all. When I
started to kiss her back, however, I was rewarded with another blow to the gut
from her billy club.

"You keep forgetting who's in charge around here, Chaos," she scolded, pulling
her mouth away and striking my yearning lips with the back of her hand. "You
don't do anything, anything at all, unless I tell you to. Got it?" I nodded
sullenly. "Good. Now, get your sorry butt moving. Your bon voyage party is
happening tonight, and you wouldn't want to be late, would you?" She laughed
and shoved me ahead of her, kicking my backside for good measure.

I was taken to one of the smaller buildings and locked in a traditional cell
with bars for walls, instead of the solid-walled room I'd been in before.
There were several men in nearby cells of their own, but no other women. Carla
secured familiar looking manacles to my arms and legs and attached wires to
the electrodes in my forehead. She then briefly talked to a big black guard
before leaving without so much as a backward glance.

"I understand you won't be with us for very long," the guard said. His name
tag read Franklin and he was almost as big as Zuleika. Almost. "Just behave
yourself and this will all be over before you know it. Oh, what do you want
for your last meal?"

"Chocolate. Lots of chocolate," I replied without hesitation.

He cracked a bit of a smile at that and nodded and walked away.

A little later Dr. Nagusame showed up, looking quite flustered. "I'm so sorry,
Melanie," she said, shaking her head sadly. "I think you were actually making
progress these last couple of days--The fact that Tempest and her gang are
still breathing and only Tempest herself is in the infirmary is testimony to
your ability to restrain your homicidal impulses. But, I'm afraid there's
nothing I can do. As you know, it was largely through General Winsome's
personal influence that you were sentenced to life without possibility of
parole in the first place. But, with his murder, I'm afraid you lost your only
advocate."

"The irony of that just kills me. Believe me," I said grimly.

"Yes, well, that's sort of the problem. You see, the order to carry out your
execution comes from no less than the President and Vice-President themselves.
And when I say order, I mean an Executive Order. There will be no pardon from
the Governor, even if she were so inclined. I don't know what to say..." Her
voice trailed off and she looked at me with moist eyes that appeared on the
verge of bursting open with tears.

"You fought the good fight, Dr. Nagusame. Trust me, there are forces at work
here which even I don't fully understand," I told her, reaching through the
bars and wiping the single tear from her cheek. "The fact that you tried, that
you cared enough not to give up on her, er, me, really means a lot...to both
of us," I added quietly. "When will it happen?"

"Midnight tonight. I'll be there, of course, but I'm not sure who else is
coming. Possibly some of the family members of the staff you killed a few
months ago, maybe even Dr. Grazier's daughter." She shrugged helplessly.

"It's all right, doctor, they should witness her, er, my death after all the
pain she, er, I caused them," I stammered.

"If only you'd exhibited this disassociation sooner, we might have had a
chance at proving you were insane and been able to get you the help you
needed," she sighed.

"But, I'm not insane, doctor, and neither is Melanie. She was abused,
tortured, really, but at every step of the way she consciously chose to do the
things, the horrible, unspeakable things she did. Maybe it could be argued
that she was never really given a chance, that she was never taught the
difference between right and wrong, good and evil, and there would be some
truth to that. But, that doesn't excuse or even explain why, once she did
discover the difference--And I know she did--she continued to choose evil. She
could have stopped. She could have chosen to do other than she did. But she
didn't. Why not? If it makes it easier, you can convince yourself that she was
so fractured emotionally by her past experiences that she literally couldn't
distinguish between good and evil. That she was solely driven by what caused
her pain and what gave her pleasure, with no true concept of right and wrong,
not in the sense that you and I have of them," I said slowly, quietly,
watching her eyes.

"I suspected that from the beginning," she nodded.

"Then, you were wrong, doctor. The uncomfortable truth is that Melanie was
evil because she wanted to be. Not because she didn't have any choice, she
did; the same choice that each of us has. Not because she couldn't distinguish
between right and wrong, or good and evil, because she could; she just flat
out chose evil because she enjoyed causing people pain," I said bitterly. "I
can't say that she was completely evil, there was humanity in her, but she did
her best to deny and bury it beneath all of her righteous indignation at the
raw deal she felt she got. And, make no mistake, she did get the shit end of
the stick. But, if you write off all she did by saying that she didn't have a
choice, you're not being fair to her, or the next person who chooses to do
evil. Excusing what she did without truly understanding her does her a grave
injustice and won't help treat the next person who comes along and does the
same sorts of things. But, and this is just as important, neither will blindly
condemning her without understanding the reasons she did as she did. And, as
horribly incomprehensible as those reasons might be to you and I, she did have
them. So, in the end I can't really explain or excuse what she did, but I can
understand it in the most literal sense of that word."

"Oh, Melanie, this is such an incredible breakthrough!" Dr. Nagusame smiled
sadly.

I shook my head. "No, it isn't. I told you before, I'm not Melanie, I'm
Jessica. And, before you get the idea that I hate Melanie, or that I think she
deserves to die, let me set you straight. I love her. And I really do
understand her. That's why I know that she will never change. But, even after
all she did, including the brutal murder of my lover, I can't wish her
permanent harm and I don't want her dead. I want her in prison for the rest of
her life so that she can have some hope of attaining an inner peace with
herself, so she can finally come to realize what she did and, hopefully,
eventually forgive herself."

"You said you understand her and love her, but, the question is do you forgive
her?" the doctor asked.

I knew she still thought I was Melanie, possibly playing some desperate,
twisted joke, maybe being sincere; there wasn't much difference where Mel was
concerned. "It isn't my place to do that. Besides, she wouldn't ask for it,
want it, or care about it one way or the other," I stated.

"Maybe, but ignore all that and just tell me if you can forgive her for all
the things she's done, no matter how terrible, no matter what you think made
her do it, be it free will or predestination based on her genetic make-up. Do
you forgive her?"

I stared deeply into her eyes for a while before I answered. Then, she left
and I was alone with Melanie's memories.

* * * * *

"Would you like another drink to celebrate the death of my dear sister?" I
asked, stumbling from Daddy's bed and staggering toward the wet bar.

"It's only 11:45, dear, aren't you being a bit premature?" he joked.

"Yeah, maybe I am," I laughed, pouring us both a stiff one. "It could be like
one of those pathetic films from last century where the hero rushes in at the
last minute and saves the heroine from certain death."

"Ah, they don't make films like that any more," Daddy sighed.

"Thank the Goddess for small favors!" I chuckled, handing him his drink and
climbing back into bed. "Salud!" I clinked my glass against his and then
downed it in one swallow while he did the same. As soon as his mouth was away
from his glass, I lunged forward and kissed him hard and hot while my hand
closed around his erect penis. "You know...I was just thinking that the most
absolutely fabulous way to truly pay homage to that frigid bitch would be for
us to be fucking our little brains out at the moment of her demise. What do
you say, Dad?"

"I say that you're the most depraved woman I've ever met...and that I'm proud
to call you 'daughter'," he grinned, climbing on top of me.

I quickly reversed that. "You know how much I like to be on top," I laughed,
sliding his cock inside Jessica.

* * * * *

Good old Dr. Nagusame came back shortly after I'd finished my last meal and
stayed with me right until they came to take me away. And, even then she
followed along, until the warden gently, but firmly, escorted her into the
viewing gallery. Not too surprising, she was the only one there. Apparently
the others who'd suggested they might attend, had decided they had better
things to do than watch someone die...and I could hardly blame them for that.

The doctor had told me that a small group of fanatics had gathered just
outside the prison, singing and chanting in protest, but I took little comfort
in it, since that happened every time there was an execution, regardless of
who the state was putting to death. It wasn't that they objected to the
prisoner's death so much as the fact that it was the state which was killing
them.

I was escorted into the execution chamber and strapped tightly onto a metal
table and the warden asked if I had any last words. I just shook my head,
knowing I'd said all I had wanted to the doctor already, and feeling odd about
recording any words for posterity that would be mistakenly attributed to
Melanie.

He nodded and the medical technician injected me with sodium pentothal to put
me to sleep.

As I felt myself dropping into a sort of yawning blackness, I was assailed by
the most horrific visions yet: I saw firsthand the torture and death of Kendra
and Myrna. And, what's even worse, I felt what Mel felt as she ruthlessly
dismembered my beloved: Joy. No remorse. No guilt. No hesitation or pangs of
conscience. Just malicious, incomprehensible glee at the hurt this would cause
me.

Then, something strange happened.

As that terrible vision faded, I felt Melanie's presence more strongly than
ever before.

"What the fuck is happening?!" she screamed silently as our souls brushed
against each other, and, for one brief instant I shall never forget,
momentarily became one.

"Whatever process you used is reversing. You're going back, Mel. I'm sorry.
Really," I said to her mind.

"Take your fucking sympathy and shove it up your slit!!! I'll be back, sis,
and I'll slice Codfish and you both up next time! You'll see!!!" she shouted.
But, just before her voice faded away completely, I swear I heard her start to
cry.

* * * * *

"You can't do this to me!" I cried, struggling against the restraints and
scaring the shit out of the warden and the med tech. "I'm just a child! A kid,
barely five years old!"

"I don't understand this," said the medic, shaking her head as I began
bawling. "She should have been put into a deep sleep with the first shot."

"Please, listen to me! Call Hemdale, tell him...Fuck! I don't know. Tell him
that...Shit! Forget it," I sighed, feeling suddenly very sleepy and not
knowing how to begin to explain this anyway. "Fuck him, and fuck all of you.
Just shoot me with the potassium chloride and get this farce over with. But,
I'm giving you all fair warning, I'm going to kill you slowly and so fucking
painfully you won't believe it possible to stay alive as long as you do."

Then the medic injected me with something and everything went black...

* * * * *

"Are you all right, Mel?" the man I was sitting on top of, impaled by his
penis, asked me.

"Holy fucking shit..." I gasped, recognizing the General's eyes in that
youthful face. I scrambled off him, ripping his throbbing member out of me
painfully in my haste to get clear of him, and promptly threw up off the edge
of the bed.

"Too much to drink, huh?" he chuckled, sitting up and placing a hand on my
shoulder. "I suppose it's a little late for a fatherly chat about the evils of
alcohol, eh?"

"It's a lot later than you think, General," I snarled, grabbing the hand and
bending it back painfully until the fingers were practically lying against his
forearm.

"J-J-J-Jessica...?" he stammered, wincing from the pain.

"Oh, yeah! I'm back! With a fucking vengeance, Winsome! And you'd better
believe that you are going down for the count this time!" I shouted, catching
him in the side of the jaw with a powerful right cross that knocked him clean
off the bed.

"Don't bet on it, Ms. Chance," he sneered, climbing shakily to his feet.

I casually used my telekinetic abilities and tossed him around the room,
bouncing him off the ceiling, floor, and walls, just to show him I was
serious. "Still want that bet, General?" I asked as he lay bruised and
battered at my feet as I got dressed.

"I'm still two steps ahead of you, as usual," he grunted, rolling onto his
back and staring up at me with eyes too old for his face.

I deliberately placed my heel on his windpipe and pressed down just hard
enough to make him very uncomfortable. "Shut up and get your clothes on,
Winsome. It's almost a pity that you chose such a young body, seeing as how
you're going to spend the rest of your life in prison," I said with a wolfish
grin.

He pushed the foot from his throat, grabbed his clothing and stood up. "No,
Ms. Chance, I'm not," he said. He then calmly turned, ran, and jumped out the
second story window, crashing through the glass.

I ran to the window and looked out, expecting to see him riding away on a
motorcycle or a jet pack or even a bicycle. What I did not expect to see was
his lifeless body lying in the grass.

I ran down the stairs and out into the yard, still expecting it to be some
sort of trick on his part, but there he was, lying on the grass which was
stained with blood from the numerous cuts on his naked body, his neck
obviously broken, as if he'd purposely landed on his head instead of rolling
with the impact as every soldier is taught to do. The conclusion was clear,
he'd committed suicide to avoid imprisonment, just like Hitler had sixty-seven
years earlier.

Now I knew how disappointed the Allies had felt when they discovered the
burned out bunker.

I called the locals and reported the body anonymously--Let them figure it out
for themselves; I was tired and I felt so absolutely defiled I could hardly
stand the thought of being inside this flesh after what had happened between
"me" and the General. All I wanted was to go home and take a nice hot shower
and then catch the next flight to LA and see Lupe and try to explain what had
happened.

I never did "remember" what had happened to Melanie while she was in my body,
and that's probably a good thing, given what I heard about it second-hand. I
decided when I got back from LA that one of the first things on my to-do list
was going to be tracking down Koyuki and finding out how her little mind
transference process worked before putting her back in prison.

I needed to be sure it was over and Koyuki was the only one who could tell me
whether it was. And, if it wasn't, if my worst fears were real, one way or
another, she was going to help me end it.

* * * * *

Long after the sirens faded back into the night and the police and the
ambulance bearing the body of the young man had left, deep below the house the
computer banks in the secret room continued to hum and the tanks still softly
bubbled as hoses provided nutrients which kept the figures within alive...

The End

(For now)

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