The Last Shapeshifter Ch. 08

"That is sweet," Derek's voice said.

"Why'd you turn back into the freak?" Bekka asked.

"I wanted to see if..." a hand reached into the jeans and hit paydirt. "Wow, a wallet is here, so we should have money to get a place to stay. We just have to make it to a hotel without touching anyone."

"Weird."

"I know. It's been a long time since we had to do it the old fashioned way. But we'll manage."

As he walked out of the parking garage, Bekka asked timidly, "Derek...do you...do you think you could transform into anyone?"

"I've already thought about it. And as soon as we get somewhere secluded, I'll give you a chance to find the answer while I do a deep dive into this guy's subconscious." Derek smiled as he sensed the Bekka's excitement. He was glad he could give someone hope. He was still worried about his own prospects.

By the time they got to the nearest hotel, Derek knew enough about Trevor's mind to know that he could afford a really nice room. He booked a deluxe suite, and made his way to a crowded elevator. Having learned his lesson, he smiled, and waited for the next one. When at last he entered the room, he shut the door, engaged the security latch, and went into the bathroom. He flicked on the lights, and stood in front of a lengthy counter with two sinks, and a large mirror.

"Alright, let's see if we can give you what you want," Derek said softly. When Bekka didn't respond, he concentrated, trying to remember how her body looked. When he had seen her last, she had been 19 or 20 years old. It hadn't been fair what had happened. But he pushed that aside, and thought of her form. Trevor's hair shorted and turned blonde. His face grew smaller and feminine. A pair of small, very perky tits grew from his chest. A few seconds later, the spitting image of Bekka stared back at him from the mirror. "Bekka..." Derek said carefully to the voice that lived in his head. "Are you okay?"

Bekka's initial response was pure emotion and unintelligible. He gave it a moment, then heard the voice say, "I can't believe it. It's me. I never thought..." and the rest was incomprehensible.

"You want to take it for a spin?" Derek's voice asked from Bekka's mouth. He got no immediate response as her emotions spiked again, but in a sheer wave of joy. "I'll take that as a yes, but you'll have to compose yourself."

Bekka's voice could finally be understood as she blared loudly in his head, "Yes! I'm doing it! I just, I never thought I'd see my body again. And I'm still young, and still hot! I can't wait! Give me control!"

"A couple things," Derek said, and his voice grew serious. "I know that you typically go out and party when I'm investigating someone's mind, but not this time. You need to stay put. This body is like an unstable bomb in public. You can't go anywhere, or touch anyone."

Derek sensed anger flare up from Bekka, but she said nothing. Derek continued. "Look, I'll take my time okay, I'll try to give you a few hours, and if we can get this body under control, maybe you could even have a day or two." He still could feel her anger, but also a bit of happiness was returning. "Seriously, given what this guy knows, I'll probably need a lot of time."

"Okay, okay, let me at my body!" Bekka pleaded.

"And remember to shove his soul down when it..."

"I've done it before Derek! Not my first rodeo."

"Okay, I'm sorry. But seriously, don't leave this room, Bekka."

Even as Derek withdrew into Trevor's subconsciousness, searching for his center, he doubted Bekka would listen to him. He hoped she had seen how crazy it had gotten, and how it could have been so much worse. She was older now, hopefully wiser, maybe she'd make good choices. On that optimistic note, he dove into the depths of Trevor's soul, relinquishing all control over to Bekka.

A new light seemed to spark behind the blonde girl's eyes. She gazed at her fingers, flexing them, then pinched her arm. She began to cry again, but only gave herself a minute to do so. She didn't want to waste this gift blubbering.

She studied herself closely. Derek had left her in Trevor's clothes, which wouldn't do. She concentrated, and watched the clothes shimmer, then disappear. She stood there completely nude. She had always been a bit of a narcissist, and she was delighted at seeing her own skin again. She began to pose seductively in the mirror. One of her hands cupped a breast and squeezed. It all felt so good, so familiar. She let her imagination run wild, and began shapeshifting different outfits onto her body. First a cheerleader, then a leather bdsm outfit, then a school girl outfit with a low skirt. "Can you imagine how horny I could make someone?" she remarked out loud to herself. She also said it as a test, wanting to make sure that Derek was really incapacitated at the moment.

The clothes vanished again, and she began touching herself. As she stroked the pussy she had missed so very much, she had a thought. A second later, her breasts began to expand, growing larger and larger. "Dude! Just what I've always wanted!" she exclaimed, then laughed.

Confident that Derek was deep in Trevor's subconscious, she got herself off one time, then left the hotel. She figured she'd probably have a few hours to herself, and she did not want to spend her time caged up in a stuffy hotel room. Besides, this is what she usually did when she got to be in charge of the host. Derek might think there was reason to be worried, but she didn't see it that way.

As a passenger fused to Derek's soul, she had experience intense attraction for people she didn't know, and had gotten to fuck and suck two of them. She was having a good time, and did not pick up on any potential danger. Sure, there was the occasional involuntary shapeshifting, but no one seemed to notice it. So she was going to use it for some extra fun. If Derek hadn't been so keen to peer inside Trevor's mind, he might have warned her better.

Probing the depths of a person's mind was something that Derek had found himself doing a lot more than he would have liked. There was always a danger poking around the essence that made up a person. You could turn them into a vegetable, make them forget vast chunks of their life, or reshape who they were entirely. It was very useful though, especially to Derek and those he worked with. When you were at a person's core, there were no lies. You saw a person for who they really were.

Memories were helpful, but could only take you so far. If you studied them enough, memories could get you names, passwords, behavior and mannerisms. It could be a time consuming process, but with enough practice, you could pull off a perfect imitation of the host. If all of them could be laid out and studied thoroughly for months, it's possible Derek could learn what he wanted to know. Or he could just visit a person's core, and find what he needed in a few hours or days. What he most often searched for when recruiting, was how a person would most likely react when they found out they had inherited the gene to body hop. And more importantly, would they use that ability for good, or evil. So far, the majority would choose evil, and Derek had let them go about their lives in ignorance. But the ones who had potential for good, he had tried to recruit.

It wasn't a perfect system. There were a lot of variables. When new knowledge gets presented, it affects a person's growth, changing them little by little, or a lot depending on the knowledge. It also was an extreme invasion of privacy. Their group had rules that tried to minimize their use of hosts best they could, but for a few of them that had lost their original bodies, it was the only option. And when they were on a mission, either for recruitment, trying to do damage control from their opposition, or hunting down their opposition, exceptions were made.

Still, they were not gods. Derek had accepted that, and he tried to follow a certain code that respected people's lives. Bekka was the devil on his shoulder that made that exceedingly difficult, along with a ramped up sex drive that seemed to be included with all activated hoppers. But there was another out there that did think of himself as a god, and he was capable of much evil. Derek's group had made it their mission to stop him at all costs. The problem was, he was more powerful than they were, and could not be killed, at least, not by conventional means. But his sister Aubrey was hard at work on that.

As Derek went deeper into Trevor's psyche, he picked up memories along the way. He had a pretty decent childhood, parents and siblings that loved him, friends that supported him. There was the typical bully that made life suck from time to time, there was... there was the cancer his mother had, and then her death. Derek felt the emotion cling to him, and he did not try to shake it off. It helped him understand Trevor better.

Derek arrived at the events of Trevor's senior year. He saw Trevor's curse reveal itself. He watched as it strained, and almost broke his relationship with his father. He saw horned up friends that helped, hindered, and very much reminded Derek of some of the things he went through when he first discovered he was a hopper. He saw the childhood bully try to blackmail Trevor, and Trevor's victory over him. More than anything, Derek saw the struggle Trevor faced, and the bravery he had as he tried to find answers to his curse.

Derek was very deep now, almost at the center of the center, the core. In the ether of the mind, Derek saw Trevor's soul laid bare before him. It was different than every soul Derek had ever witnessed. It shone brightly, almost seemingly entwined with light. It beckoned him. Derek drew nearer, and as he did, his own soul began to glow. It felt wonderful. It felt like coming home. He could stay here. He could stay forever. This idea was dangerous. Derek knew he should be even more cautious than usual, for Trevor's safety, and for his own. This might take even longer than he had thought.

The nice thing about having an additional soul, is that it can take the wheel whenever Derek needed to take a deep dive. He knew Bekka loved these times, infrequent though they were, because it let her feel human again. But this time was so, so much better. It was her own body! It wasn't her having to pretend to be someone else, but herself. She had better stay in the hotel.

Bekka was far from the hotel. She had always been a party girl at heart, but rarely got the chance to cut loose. She was in a big city, looking hot as hell as her original self, and she was going to make the most of it. She asked the front desk where the hottest club was, got directions, and headed out. She wisely used a taxi again instead of more crowded public transportation. She knew that direct contact with people sometimes triggered a transformation, and wanted to make sure to set it off when she was ready. When it happened, she wanted there to be lots of people, and get passed around like a party favor.

While Bekka was traveling towards a night of debauchery, Derek was trying to make contact. It was usually an easy thing to interact with a soul, but this had been anything but easy. The light that ebbed and flowed from it was seductive, trying to draw him into a vortex of peaceful tranquility and pleasure. Derek drew as close to it as he dared, trying to speak to Trevor's soul, but it seemed happy to be at peace. Derek patiently watched and waited, pouring through more memories as he did. He knew his opportunity would soon come, so he waited. It was here that he saw Trevor's ability to see the threads that connected him to the others. Derek realized that he was an "other." He was supposedly someone that was locked in some centuries long struggle. But he didn't wish Trevor harm, did he? That's when he understood the light. It was pouring out of his soul, and shooting out to body hoppers all over the world. That could be extremely useful.

Time flows differently in the place of the soul. Minutes could be hours and vice versa. But he couldn't miss his window when it presented itself. After what seemed like an eternity, he watched Trevor's soul spasm and begin to rise. Derek knew this was the moment Trevor's soul would subconsciously try to reassert dominance in his body. Pushing it back into submission was an easy feat, one Derek knew Bekka could handle. The only sign of this inward struggle would be a small shudder..

Derek sensed Trevor's soul trying to wake as it breached the surface of his subconscious. But just as quickly, it began to lower. Derek moved forward quickly, and his soul cried out to Trevor's. "Hello! Can you hear me?"

At first nothing. Then a faint, "What? Where am I?"

"That's a long story. I'll fill you in later. I need you to tell me what you are?"

"I am...I am cursed."

"Okay. Well, I want to help you, but you have to open up to me so I know I can trust you." Derek was dangerously close. He'd need to get even closer to be sure. He was sure he could break it off when the time came. It would be okay.

"I just want to...I just want to be normal, to live my life."

"I want to believe you. Just let me in for a moment so I can see."

Trevor's voice did not give consent, but his soul suddenly reached out and latched onto Derek's. That's when he heard another voice. Even in this place, it sounded foreign, other worldly, but it made itself understood. All it said was, "Unite us."

Derek would have asked what that meant if he could, but right then, he felt his soul spiraling, as if it were being sucked down a drain. A drain there was no escape from. His last thought was hoping that Bekka would be okay.

Bekka would have said she was more than okay. The music in the club was loud and everyone looked like they were having an amazing time. Bekka had no problem whatsoever gaining entry. She looked under 21 and didn't have identification, but a shapeshift later that made her a little older, plus a complimentary flash of her new, larger boobs, and she was able to saunter in. Even better, she was able to make these changes in front of people, and they didn't seem to notice a thing. She ordered a drink at the bar and began changing her outfit. Short skirts in different colors flashed by, tight tops, clothes that sparkled or revealed more flesh, she whizzed through it all, right there for the world to see. She got a few compliments from guys, but no one came running up to her demanding to know how she was doing that. She did notice that a person's eyes seemed to glaze over for a moment, and then they just accepted that this was how she had always looked.

She almost panicked a couple of times when she had accidentally brushed against someone's hand. Both times she thought she'd be forced to change earlier than she'd like, but nothing had happened. Then she had felt disappointed that she didn't change. She wondered if Derek had to be in control in order for a compulsive transformation to happen. Still, she was sure she could have a good time and get laid by herself.

She had polished off one drink and was about to head out to the dance floor when she felt a hand on her shoulder.

"Excuse me," a man said in her ear. "You are very beautiful. Can I buy you a drink?"

She thought she saw a soft glow out of the corner of her eye where the man had touched her, but didn't feel like she was going to shapeshift. She gave the guy a quick up and down. He wasn't that bad looking. Actually, the more she looked at him, the hotter he was becoming. She didn't want a drink. She wanted to let this guy put hands on her. She grabbed his hand and pulled him to the dance floor. She began to gyrate in front of him, appreciating that his eyes were exploring her every move. She spun around and bent low, then backed her ass up into his hardened groin. The man grabbed her hips aggressively and thrust. She giggled. Did he want to fuck her right here in front of everyone? That would be crazy, even for her, but she was warming to the idea as the guy began to pull her skirt down.

A strong hand grabbed hers and jerked her forward. She looked up into the eyes of a guy who was more handsome than the last. He asked, "Are you okay?

She was lost in the eyes of this new stranger, and didn't see the glow that emanated from her hand. "Who says chivalry is dead?" She loved watching those gorgeous eyes widen as her hand began rubbing his crotch.

He hesitated for a second before saying, "Do you want to get out of here?"

The other guy's arm was back on her shoulder, trying to entice her back to him. At first she wasn't having it, but when the strong hand momentarily let go, the first man was all she could think about. The two men began arguing. She didn't have time for that, and began reaching for the first man's zipper. The second man grabbed her hand to stop her from making a scene, but then she reached for his as well. Both men made eye contact, a couple of silent gestures were exchanged, and an agreement was formed. As she continued to paw at them, they led her to a men's room. They shooed one person out, and the second man stood sentry to block further entry. Bekka's clothes dissolved, and she stood there naked. Neither man thought it unusual. The first man pulled down his pants, picked her up, and set her on the sink counter and began plugging away.

Repeated jolts in the mind brought awareness to Derek's soul. He was lost, drowning in a cerebral vortex. He was happy here. He wanted to stay, but he knew he shouldn't. There didn't seem to be any way out though.

The man's dick was on the smaller side, but Bekka didn't care. She just wanted him to have a good time, to use her, to paint her insides with his cum. It's why she existed, it's why she... that thought process stopped two seconds after the man came. All she was now was thoroughly disappointed. As the first man pulled up his pants, he made eye contact with the second man. There was a nod, and they switched spots.

Bekka hoped this guy's dick was bigger, and that he'd last longer. Her eyes widened as she saw that her wish was granted on the first count. He was hesitating though. "Are you going to fuck me or what?" she demanded.

"Sorry, I just," he stammered, "nothing like this has ever happened to me before, and I just, I-"

"Am I not hot enough?" Bekka asked. She looked down, and her breasts began to grow another size. The man didn't think it odd, but seemed to appreciate the new view.

"I, wow, no, you're so hot. I just, I just got over a really bad break up, and I'm not sure I'm over my ex and-"

"Don't need your life story bro," and Bekka's hand curled behind his neck, drawing him to her. She felt her hand begin to ripple, and saw the telltale glow. Bekka's anger exploded. "Are you fucking kidding me? I'm hotter than whoever you have in mind you stupid..." But she couldn't finish the thought as the transformation took over, changing her thoughts and feelings as well.

The light burned bright all around Derek. He felt like it was trying to consume him, the way his nemesis Nevyn enveloped a soul. He began fighting against it. It took a tremendous effort. After a struggle that lasted seconds or days, Derek pushed back against the light with a will he did not know he possessed. He would not be caged. He would not let it rule him. The light surged around him, and he almost faded away again. He saw flashes, possibly memories, possibly a message, but it all came so fast and disconnected he could not make sense of it. And then suddenly, the light dimmed, and he felt a sense of release. Derek realized he was free. He still felt drawn to Trevor's soul and the light that entwined it, but he was no longer tied to it. He fled, racing back to the surface of the conscious mind.

The occupants of the men's room were momentarily blinded by the light that shone from Bekka's body. But Bekka was gone. In her place was someone else, and she looked tenderly at the man in front of her. She spoke sweetly to him. "Jack, I'm so sorry for hurting you. I'm back now, and I'll never leave you again."