X Change

"OK" said Nina "so where do I come in?"

"Katrina has put together a plan that has been approved by the Counsel. You and Doctor Cavendish are here to help implement it."

Nina turned and looked at Cora, astonished.

Cora smiled at her and said "I know, I'm as equally surprised as you are."

Katrina said "You both have expertise that the Federation needs. As you are well aware, all males regardless of age, have long been required to have a female guardian. Recently passed legislation has now placed the remaining male population under the custodianship of the state and its agents and further increased the authority of those guardians. In the near term, these agents will simply be the current guardians, who will act as custodians for the state. Longer term, the state will assume full custody as the male population naturally declines to a predetermined level that can safely sustain the population. This is essentially the Tiresias Compromise but it also suggests a way for dealing with the uber-males."

'Which is?" said Cora.

"The problem is one of supply and demand," said Katrina. "The uber-males are exclusively heterosexual and have very high sex-drives. Unfortunately, although there are many, many females, very few if any want anything to do with males, especially large sexually aggressive ones. Unfortunately, some of these males are unable to deal with the situation and despite the best efforts of their guardians, become violent. As this is happening with greater frequency, a solution is needed."

"And what are you proposing?" asked Cora.

"Increasing the supply of 'female' partners for these males," said Katrina.

Nina and Cora looked at each other.

"Surely you aren't proposing that we..." began Nina.

"No, no," said Katrina. "Nothing so crude as that."

"Why not just eliminate the uber-males?" said Cora. "I know this sounds inhumane but given the circumstances..."

"Two reasons," said Amelia Wu. "First it would give credence to those proposing the elimination of the entire male population. Though technologically feasible, most of the scientific community agrees that this is both unwise and dangerous."

Amelia Wu paused to look at both scientists. Nina and Cora nodded their agreement.

"And the second reason?" asked Nina.

A humorless smile tightened Amelia Wu's lips. "Such a move could lead to panic or worse, a situation that the Federation could not control."

Both Nina and Cora nodded. Although the Federation might conceal a few rapes and other violent crimes, rounding up and confining or eliminating thousands of males could not be easily hidden. It would simply be a matter of how soon, not if, the news got out. Given the scale of such an operation, it would be very soon and almost certainly before the round-up could be completed. Once this happened, questions would quickly follow. It did not take much imagination to see that every male would become suspect and any female living anywhere near a male would begin to question her safety. The result could easily be panic, or worse.

"So where do we fit in?" said Cora.

"Most of the male population is quite docile and obedient," said Katrina. "Aurora, and you in particular, Doctor Cavendish, have perfected the technique of whole-body transformation via genetic interjection. I read your paper Gender Transformations and found it to be quite...enlightening."

Cora's mouth fell open and she said "Are you actually suggesting that..."

"Yes" said Katrina. "Transforming males into females. The transformed males will then be paired with the more problematic uber-males thereby relieving...tensions"

Cora couldn't believe her ears. "But the kind of transformation you are talking about is purely experimental. It's never been done on humans and we are years away from such an attempt. Even if willing volunteers could be found, the results..."

"Come, come doctor" interrupted Katrina. "I spoke with Gabriella Bains and she said your experiments with higher-order primates were a total success. There is no reason that human trials will not be equally successful."

Cora was taken aback. Gabriella Bains was the CEO of Aurora and a reputable scientist in her own right. It was true that their experiments on chimps had been totally successful, but Cora had never imagined repeating such an experiment on a human. The entire endeavor was intended to help women with undesirable male-like physical characteristics such as facial hair, deep voices, broad shoulders, and the like. The idea of using the process on males to feminize them had never been seriously discussed though technically feasible. However, Katrina was correct, she had to admit, if performed such a transformation would almost certainly succeed. Although the scientist in her was intrigued, she was still skeptical. Also, the legal issues were enormous.

"But who would volunteer for such a transformation?"

"Oh, I am sure there will be more volunteers than we need," said Katrina. "The males see the writing on the wall, so to speak. They know they are an increasingly disfavored minority and that their situation is going to continue to degrade. With the new laws going into effect in a few weeks, every male will be aware of the increased authority of their guardians and commensurate restrictions this will place on their lives. As such, becoming a female provides them with an attractive opportunity to transform their lives for the better."

Cora was still shocked by Katrina's logic but she had to admit it made perfect and practical sense. Besides, it was the ultimate transformation and as a scientist she was eager, no excited, by the prospect of working on such a groundbreaking project. If willing volunteers could be found, then any moral objections would be eliminated. So why not, then?

"OK" said Cora. "As long as the males volunteer, I can have no objections. It's an exciting project."

Katrina smiled and said "Thank you doctor. That is most excellent."

Nina who had been listening, was both astounded and fascinated. People had dreamed of flying and changing genders since ancient times. Like flying, which had become a reality over two centuries ago, the dream of switching one's gender was now real. Nina had to admit she was excited by the prospect of such a project, but it was far afield from her own area of expertise and she wondered what Amelia Wu and Katrina wanted with her.

"So where do I fit in all this" she asked.

"You and your work are key to the success of this effort," said Amelia Wu.

Nina raised her eyebrows and said "I don't follow. My expertise is far afield from this sort of..."

"I read your paper on the Genetic Basis for Psycho-Sexual Suppression and the Reinforcement of Social Norms. The genetic link you discovered for an individual's need to suppress certain sexual desires to conform to social expectations and how this reinforces society's rules is quite to our purpose," said Katrina.

Nina was taken aback. Katrina seemed to be quite well read for a politician. Both her paper and the one Cora had written were quite technical and Nina was impressed that Katrina was even aware of them, not to mention having read and understood their contents. As for the paper in question, Nina had discovered the genetic basis for a person's feelings of shame or embarrassment over certain sexual fantasies, especially if they were outside what society deemed 'normal' or 'appropriate'. She had also gone a step further and speculated that such genes could be used to reinforce the rules imposed by society by genetically heightening these feelings of embarrassment and shame and then making the associated sexual acts a form of punishment. Thus, for example if masturbation was felt to be an embarrassing act and best done in private and not discussed, then heightening an individual's sense of shame over masturbating while simultaneously making public masturbation a penalty for committing a crime, would act as a deterrence and help ensure compliance with the law.

Nina had her doubts about the morality of such a modification (as well as the legalities) and her paper had focused on the technical aspects of the genetic link between emotion and behavior and not it's possible uses. "I'm flattered that you read my paper, but I am not seeing any connection to your project," said Nina.

"The uber-males are only part of the problem," said Katrina. "The larger issue is the remaining male population in general. As you so aptly pointed out, given about a century the problem will solve itself. However, given the current political situation, this is far too long. The Tiresias Compromise when enacted will significantly reduce this time but it assumes acquiescence by the male population."

"Why wouldn't they agree?" said Nina. And then using Katrina's own words added "After all, as you pointed out, they can 'see the writing on the wall'."

"Yes, that's true. However, just like any other population, not all males will act rationally or even in their best interest. There will certainly be resistance and this could become violent. The new Guardianship Law was only accepted reluctantly and with a great deal of...dissatisfaction. The Tiresias Compromise will impose even more radical changes and, as such, will be unpopular, especially among certain of the more militant groups in the remaining male population. Although these groups are in the minority, they are also quite vocal and have caused...difficulties in the past."

This was news to Nina, but then again like most women, she gave little thought to the male population. She was aware of the general issues concerning their declining numbers and the controversy over what actions to take, as well as the differing opinions and various options, but beyond that, the debate was largely irrelevant to her personally. Nina had only met and interacted with a few males, and it had been several years since she last encountered one. As such, the entire issue had remained in the background of her consciousness.

Nina raised her eyebrows again and said "I never realized the seriousness of the problem."

"Me either" echoed Cora.

"I can assure you it's quite serious," said Amelia Wu. "There are vocal elements on both sides advocating quite passionately for opposite solutions. There are males who want their population restored to previous levels and women who want a zero-male population. Both are unrealistic. Unfortunately, emotions are high and this raises the likelihood for violence."

"Given their small numbers, surely the males realize that they would be on the losing side of any violent argument," said Cora.

"Certainly" agreed Amelia Wu. "However, cool minds don't always prevail in these situations."

"This is all very disturbing" said Nina "but I still don't see how I can be of any assistance. I'm just an academic, not a politician."

"We want to put your discoveries into practice doctor, under the Guardianship Law," said Katrina. "Modify the male genome to ensure compliance with current laws and eventually, the Tiresias Compromise.

Nina was aghast and she struggled to keep her mouth from falling open. "But the results in my paper are only theoretical. They have never been verified experimentally. More importantly, I'm not sure they should be."

Katrina frowned. She hated dealing with academics. They were great at making scientific progress but always became squeamish when confronted with the practical applications of their discoveries. She especially detested the faux attempts at taking the high moral ground when confronted with the need to apply their results to solve real-world problems.

"Come, come Doctor," said Katrina. "Would you rather see the remaining male population forcibly eliminated or would you prefer to help them transition peacefully to a permanent, stable, and useful position in society?"

"I'm not convinced the situation is as dire as you are implying" said Nina, still not convinced.

"I assure you it is" interjected Amelia Wu. "It's only a matter of time before news of these rapes gets out or there is another such incident. Either way, if that occurs before the passage of the Tiresias Compromise and the plans for its orderly implementation are in-place, there will be trouble and all males will suffer as a result."

Nina stared at Amelia Wu who returned her gaze. The Governor's eyes were hard and unwavering and Nina felt the atmosphere in the room suddenly become tense. The bulldog was watching her, ready to pounce. She was clearly in the presence of power. These women were not accustomed to taking 'no' for an answer or accepting excuses. Refusing to help would undoubtedly carry consequences for both her and the University. However, Nina was not ready to acquiesce solely on such grounds. On the other hand, she had to admit, Katrina's argument did have merit. If she refused to help and the situation degenerated into chaos or worse, then she would be at least partially responsible. In addition, the scientist in her, like in Cora, was intrigued. If theory meshed with reality, it could transform how both individuals and society dealt with both crime and punishment. The possibilities were both exciting and real. Still...

"Even if I agree to help, there is no guarantee that the theory will work as intended. Although the science is solid, the results are speculative," said Nina. "There are no experimental results to verify..."

"Understood" said Katrina. "But either way there is little to lose and much to gain. As such, can we enlist your support and cooperation Doctor?"

Nina opened her mouth and then quickly shut it. Katrina had out maneuvered her. She felt the tension in the room increase further as everyone waited for her answer. Next to her, Cora moved uncomfortably in her seat, sliding forward as her body tensed with anticipation. She too seemed to sense the danger if Nina decided to refuse.

Nina's mind raced as she struggled to process both information and consequences. In the end, Nina knew she had no choice. "yes" she said.

"Excellent!" said Katrina as the tension in the room instantly evaporated.

"Thank you doctors" said Amelia Wu standing. "It was a pleasure meeting you both. My office will be in contact with your respective organizations and you can expect to get started by next week."

Nina and Cora stood and after looking at each other, made their farewells to Katrina and the Governor. When they were gone, Amelia Wu said "You were right, again Katrina."

"Scientists are so predictable" said Katrina "and so easily manipulated."

"Well, it seems lunch is on me," said Amelia Wu. "Where do you want to go?"

Chapter 1

"I think I'd better go" said Kelly struggling to catch his breath. He had been kissing Alana for what seemed like hours but had actually been about 10 minutes.

Alana, who was laying on top of Kelly raised her head so she could look at his face and said "Why? It's still early. Besides I'm enjoying myself."

Kelly looked into her violet eyes which stared at him mischievously. "Mom told me to be home by ten and it's almost 9:30. If I'm late again..."

"Don't worry silly" said Alana smiling. "Your mom knows you're with me. I'll speak with her; it will be fine. Now where were we..."

Kelly frowned and said "Alana, please! She's already angry about the last time I was late and if I'm late again she'll punish me."

Alana sat up and let out a faux sigh, her long black hair falling neatly onto her shoulders. Suppressing a smile, she looked at Kelly giving him her best expression of disappointment and said "Very well, go."

Kelly seeing the disappointment on her face apologized and left quickly. Alana laughed at the closed door and said "perfect!" to the empty room. Of course, she could have forced Kelly to stay. As a male he was always subject to all adult female authority even if the female in question (her in this case) was not his guardian. But the kisses had been enough for her purposes. More than enough.

Alana had known Kelly since early grade school and there had always been a certain rapport between them. In earlier times Alana would have called it friendship; in modern times there was no appropriate word for it. After all, males were tolerated, an unavoidable burden to be endured by those forced to be around them. No female in her right mind would openly associate with one, beyond what was minimally necessary or unavoidable. The idea of a friendship with a male was, of course, unthinkable. Alana liked Kelly but in the way one likes the beach or ice cream, but definitely not as a companion, even a casual one. Kissing him had been a favor to his mother, Helen, whom she had known most of her life and regarded as a mentor or a second mother.

There was something pervasively feminine about Kelly, yet also strangely different and alluring, almost fascinating. When she was with Kelly, Alana found herself watching and listening to him, oddly captivated by the way he moved and looked at her, his simple male expressions, shyness, and his curious demeanor that was almost feminine yet not. He was like some exotic and strangely beautiful creature, captivating to watch yet alien. This fascination left her strangely unsettled. After all, Kelly was only a male, and males were so oblivious and inconsequential, an endangered species preserved despite themselves and more for curiosity than any real intrinsic value. Still Kelly vexed her with primal stirrings deep within her that she suppressed and refused to let surface and dared not acknowledge.

She was a woman, superior and privileged, beautiful and clever, and with an assured and promising future. Soon Kelly, Helen, and the border town where she lived would be miles away and in time, just a memory. Alana had already been accepted for graduate work in engineering at the University and was due to leave soon. Kelly, who had also graduated college with her, had much more limited options. He had majored in virtual arts which in itself was not limiting, but as a male, his career options were essentially nonexistent, especially with the passing of the Tiresias Compromise which severely restricted his independence and movements, a fact that his mother and guardian, , Helen Williams, lamented whenever they spoke.

"He would make a good spouse and homemaker for some woman interested in males, but alas there are no takers."

"Have you looked?" asked Alana knowing the answer.

"Have I looked!" said Helen in frustration. "I've scoured the net making offers of a dowery and other enticements but not one response! Not even a timid inquiry or a curious question!"

Alana nodded in sympathy. She was not surprised but saw no point in stating the obvious. Even if there existed the rarest of women, one interested in a male, the new laws governing male guardianship made such a pursuit burdensome and risky and perhaps even dangerous. The Federation had promised to eventually assume full custody of all males, but more pressing matters had postponed such action indefinitely. Instead, existing guardians had been forced to take even greater responsibility for their charges, including full lifetime support, and in addition full civil liability and even partial or full criminal penalties for any misbehavior. Although Alana could not envision Kelly doing anything serious or criminal, she was not envious of Helen's situation and sympathized with her predicament.

"Perhaps the Federation will assume guardianship sooner than currently predicted," she offered, hopefully. But her words sounded hollow even to her own ears.

"When the earth stops spinning!" retorted Helen.

"Well, he's not a bad sort...for a male," said Alana trying to offer what little reassurance she could.