Singularity - Part III

Story by OttersGonnaOtt on SoFurry

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#3 of Singularity

Carbon cooks up a plan and boils down some odd information.

The writing continues! This one's a tad short compared to the others but I didn't want to get ahead of myself and be stuck writing an extra eight-thousand words. I ended things on a logically transitional chunk of the story to keep focus. Next chapter is shaping up to be quite interesting, so stay tuned folks!

This story contains adult content and sexual innuendo. This material isn't for children, but might be deemed PG or T for Teen in US ratings systems so viewer discretion is advised. Comments and critiques are welcome and encouraged. Enjoy!


"Gah! I can't wait to get out of these things!" Carbon sat down hard upon a seat in Johnny's inherited office and began fiddling with the buttons of an Army officer's uniform. "Can you help? I had enough problems getting this on."

Johnny rounded his desk, placed a large stack of files on the surface, and reached for the phone. "Sure, just give me a minute. These I need to make a call or two or we'll miss our window."

Carbon finally managed to get his shirt open but ran into more problems when he tried to remove some bandages from his chest. "Seriously, it's hard to breathe..."

The fox almost whined at Carbon's persistence, but relented when he indeed noticed hos more panicked breathing. "You need to learn how to calm down, Carbon. Arms up." He went back around the desk and started unwrapping the otter's wrappings, blushing when Carbon's new feminine globes were free of their makeshift confines. "At least the board doesn't know about this. They'd never have given us approval if they knew you could mutate in these ways."

"Well Evelyn says she can change me back now that the process is finished." Carbon lowered his arms once Johnny was clear and worked his way back into his shirt out of modesty. "Not that these changes aren't worth exploring, I guess."

"Well there's some changes I'm now so sure about." Johnny resumed his quest to make the proper phone calls, hunting through the folders for the digits needed. "I really hope you know what you're doing. Once we go through with this, there's no going back."

"Well I needed to do something. I don't want to leave Adrian, and we both need a purpose."

"Yeah, and you need special air to live. What if things go south and we can't get your supplies?"

A full-sized Evelyn walked in from the other room and sighed in agreement. "You know I only look out for you, so I'm not taking sides... but Johnny's right."

"Shush." Carbon nudged to Evelyn's position and Johnny got the hint, resuming his work. "We'll make it work. Besides, we'll be working in the supply lines. We should be fine on getting what we need."

"And if you get captured? What about killed?" The fox pulled his phone forward and reluctantly began keying in some numbers. "I don't want to see you die, Carbon. Your mom was bad enough."

Carbon drooped his head at Johnny's concerns. "And she wouldn't have wanted me to die alone in a cell, or get locked underground for the rest of my life. I'm a living person, Johnny. I want to do something with my life." He grabbed for the phone and covered the buttons so Johnny would stop for a moment. "I really want this. It's not just about you or Adrian."

A now-tiny Evelyn blinked into view next to the phone with a smile. "My little Carbon's growing up fast. Also, your tits are, uh..."

The otter backed away and pulled his shirt closed with a grunt. "It's been three days, right? Change me back already, Evelyn." He sighed and looked back to Johnny, who was shaking his head with a chuckle. "What? She gets on my nerves sometimes."

"And makes you change genders." Johnny resumed punching the last few digits and placed the receiver by his ear. "If I were you I'd be more concerned what else she could do."

Carbon shook his head right back and rose from his seat, fixing his mask as he left the room. "Same back at you, ~boss~. Just make sure to get something more robust than this flimsy mask. We are going into a war zone after all."

Johnny nodded at the suggestion just as the line picked up. "Hi. Doctor Trotter here to change an outgoing flight. Oh? One minute." He checked a sheet of paper for some data, spewing order numbers for the secretary on the other end of the line. "That's right. Two containers, two passengers... Hotel company... Camp Carroll, yes..."

Carbon slipped away and headed for his chamber so he could take off his mask. "Hey, Evelyn... you know what he's talking about? I know there's a war but that's about it. Thought you might have gleaned something extra from those guys earlier."

Evelyn appeared full-size on the other side of the bulkhead, though she could still be heard clear as day within Carbon's noggin. "I saw a few maps you missed. If it's a war, we aren't doing so well. The other guys have a lot of good positions."

"Yeah, well I don't care so much about the bad guys since we'll be behind the lines. You know where we're even going though?"

Evelyn waited for Carbon to cycle the doors before she answered his question. "Somewhere halfway around the world called Vietnam."

"Vietnam?" The otter took off his mask and then immediately slumped into his bed. "Sounds like a beautiful place. A nice forest maybe."

"We'll see about that, Carbon. For both our sakes I hope you're right. Nice would be... nice."

"You doin' alright, man?"

Adrian pulled his eyes up from the floor of the cargo plane he recently been ushered into and looked to Gary. "Not truly. I really liked that lad and I feel rotten for leaving him like that. He needs support."

The elk secured a bit of gear and then went to help his absent-minded friend with his camera bag. "As much as I hate to admit it, the little guy ~is~ pretty cool. I wouldn't have minded if they took us off assignment to help him or something."

"Yeah, that would be nice. As much as war sounds like good material, Carbon would have made for better footage."

"Well top secret government projects and cameras don't tend to go together, pal." Gary finished checking everything and rested back against his seat, only to quirk an eye and lean forward again moments later. "Uh, Adri...?"

Adrian checked down Gary's line of sight, gawking at two last-minute additions to the back of the flight as they cautiously shuffled aboard, garnering salutes along the way. "Can't be. Carbon?"

The otter in question was about to speak up when the officer leading them made an announcement instead. "Listen up, rangers. Some of your orders have been updated. 75th Infantry here, you have a new CO shipping with you. Captain Optik here is taking over your Airborne platoon under special orders. Assignments are otherwise the same, as are your duties. Good shooting, rangers."

Suddenly Carbon was presented with a vehicle full of salutes, to which he nodded and waved them away with a significantly weaker salute. "I, uh... As you were, soldiers." He eventually found Adrian with a surprised smile and walked over to the bobcat and lizard sitting next to him. "Mind if we have these seats? I'd like to talk with Specialist Halcyon."

The two immediately picked up their gear and moved across the cabin to the only other chairs left unfilled. Once they were gone both Carbon and Johnny took their places, Adrian burst out a chuckle. "Carbon! How on Earth did you--?!"

Carbon reached out and lightly clamped the husky's muzzle. "Keep it formal for now, okay? I'm still learning this whole officer thing and I don't need any more holes in my performance right now."

"Yeah... Oh. Yes sir." Adrian found himself chewing on those words a bit. "That just doesn't sound right. Sorry, but... I mean, you look too young for the part."

"Part? This isn't an act. I'm actually your commanding officer."

Gary gawked at that and spoke his mind. "Seriously? How in the hell could someone make that decision?"

"The guys in charge of us wanted to see what we could do in the field. Well, I proposed the idea but..." Carbon paused a moment to shift his breathing unit as Johnny worked something under his seat. "Okay. It's dumb. Evelyn helped me cheat the role a bit and they think we can make better future super-leaders with some field research."

"Well, there's more to it than that." Johnny finally settled down and went for a small bag he'd prepared. "Our results were few and far before. Now we need to send back data every week. I'll actually have my work cut out for me."

"So we're all effectively guinea pigs."

Adrian grunted at Gary's comment. "I'm sure your plan will go well. How'd you get stuck with us though?"

Carbon glanced back to Johnny as he yanked out some supplies and then went back to the others. "I asked. You guys are just gonna be flying around out of the line of fire so that keeps me safe. Plus you will be there to photograph things as we need it."

"Ah, you get to snap pics of the kid after all," Gary nudged.

"Hey Carbon? Got time for an injection?"

The otter looked back to Johnny and started rolling up a sleeve. "I hate these damn things. At least I won't need this mask for a while though."

Johnny brought a syringe to the now-exposed arm before him. "You know the deal. Little prick and then you're good for about twelve hours."

Carbon winced as the larger-gauge needle poked through. "How long are we supposed to sit in this thing, anyway?"

"I think it's a sixteen-hour flight. Well, this isn't a commercial lane though."

The otter took back his arm and squinted out a light frown of confusion to Adrian. "Flight? What's a flight?"

Suddenly Gary looked baffled, a state Adrian decided to remedy. "The lad really doesn't get out enough. We're in an airplane, Carbon." Still harder confusion emanated from the otter. "Oh... Well, we're going to fly to Vietnam. Our supplies already went by boat a week ago, so we go by air."

"Flying... Oh, right. Airplane. That's what this is." Carbon recalled a few bits of knowledge on the vehicles thanks to some mental images from Evelyn and suddenly felt a bit less sure of his position. "Oh. Right."

"Such primitive devices these beings create." Evelyn herself decided to comment to her only audience. "Not exactly the most safe of craft with liquid fuel stored in the wings. To think, they even came up with nuclear fission on their own. I'm surprised there's anything left on the planet."

"Carbon? You're lookin' pale, mate."

The otter snapped himself out of a slight trance. "Uh... just never been in one of these. I'm sure they're ~perfectly~ safe, right?"

"More or less. Chances are better until we hit the war zone, anyway." Johnny sat back in his seat and urged Carbon to do the same. "It'll be a long trip. Hook up your other air system and relax."

"Bit hard to do that all tied up." Carbon reached for his chest but threw his paws down with a muffled whine. "Do I have to keep this up the whole time?"

Johnny reached for a knife on Carbon's belt and then discretely worked the back of his shirt free for access. "That was mostly for the base. You're clear now, but try not to flaunt it--questions and all."

Carbon sighed in relief and stretched out a bit once his bandages were cut and his breasts were allowed to jostle freely under his shirt. "~So~ much better. Thanks, Johnny."

Adrian caught Gary gawking at the otter's now-full chest and pulled him backwards into his seat. "Enough of that, you horn dog."

"Well it ~is~ worth a look." The elk tried to sneak another peek under continued restraint and then settled for eye contact with Carbon. "Seriously, those have gotten bigger. What the hell do they put in the water in that lab of yours?"

"Not enough testosterone, apparently," joked Johnny with a snicker.

"Don't worry. I'll start changing back soon enough. Evelyn thinks she's got a grip on how it all works now."

"Well good on her, lad. Great that's sorted then." Adrian diverted his attention as the hatch to the bulkhead was shut and locked. "You should be able to look however you want. Though truth be told you did actually make for a decent bird."

Gary leaned forward again as with a smirk he examined the otter's enhanced, curvier hips as well. "So was that it, or did you get the whole package after all?"

"The whole...?"

Adrian put a paw up and answered for his new friend. "He doesn't need to answer that. And you shouldn't be so crass, mate. He's still a kid, yeah?"

"I'm not a kid!"

"Why don't you just tell him your age?" Evelyn asked as she faded into place standing in the aisle ahead.

Carbon huffed and kept his mouth shut, the flower girl not needing words and literally reading his mind. "I ~am~ your commanding officer. Don't treat me that way."

"Alright, alright. I guess we're both old enough for that sort of stuff anyway." Adrian gave up his point with a simple nod and then relaxed in his own seat. "But while we're at it, you do look a bit more attractive with that hourglass about you."

The others laughed at the comment, but Carbon felt otherwise. Surprisingly his heart seemed to skip a beat at the compliment, leading him to lean over and rest his head against Adrian's shoulder. "Thanks."

Evelyn enjoyed the tender moment and then softly interrupted it. "I can try to keep some of that if you want. Make it subtle, even."

Carbon closed his eyes and slumped softer into Adrian's side. "Nnn... Yeah. Thanks." Then the engines fired up to full speed, causing the otter to wince and grip his friend almost painfully. "Oh hell."

Adrian smirked as he looked down at Carbon, adding a paw to the top of his head to rustle in a little calmness. "I've got ya', lad. It's alright."

"Here we go! Time to kill some commies!" Johnny and Adrian looked over to expect another soldier had spouted that, but instead the found Gary. After the rest of the passengers fired up similar remarks though they got the point. "No more fucking training. Thank the gods for that."

Adrian slipped his paw over to Carbon's shoulder and kneaded a bit until the takeoff was more or less over. "Don't worry, Carbon. I'll try to keep us ~out~ of the line of fire. Gary can get his bum shot off instead."

"I heard that!"

Once the plane leveled out Carbon opened his eyes and slid back to an upright position. "Thanks, Adrian. Now help me get this mask changed out?"

"I'm not sure if I should. I boffed it up the last try."

Carbon took off his medical mask and took a few cautious breaths before pulling his clear tubing about with a chuckle. "Don't make me order you to do it."

Johnny helped pull out the other system while Adrian worked on detaching the larger one with similar snickers. "Yes sir," he slipped out through a playful grin.

Gary shook his head at the three and rested his head back for the trip. "Vietnam, here we come."

Choopchupchupchupchupchup...

Carbon halted in his tracks to watch in utter amazement as a transport helicopter passed overhead. "So that's what an airplane looks like in the sky?"

As if summoned by the question Evelyn popped up behind the otter and lightly smacked him on the head. "No. Helicopter, dummy. Planes go laterally, not vertically."

"Hey, what was that for?" Carbon rubbed the back of his head, as if somehow it would cure the quite literal phantom pain. "I didn't know any of that. Take it easy."

"Nope. You're ~in charge~ of helicopters, Carbon." The flower girl walked around to her host's front and sighed a margin of defeat. "Okay, maybe that was a bit much. But I'm not taking it easy on you. You've got to remember a lot about these vehicles and their capabilities yourself. I can't feed you that much information as you need it."

"Oi, Carbon! Shake a leg, will ya?"

"Yeah, coming!" Nodding to the husky Carbon continued moving his gear from the back of the plane to a temporary tent. As he caught up with Johnny and Adrian he placed the crate he was carrying down by his hindpaws. "I don't want to whine, but I'm not too strong so..."

"You've just sat around for years. I won't hold it against you." Johnny set down a pipe he was fiddling with and looked around for a missing component. "You can stay and learn how your air system works though. Need to figure that out sooner than later."

"Right. I'll get the rest of it then."

Carbon smiled in thanks as Adrian passed by and then crouched by Johnny's side. "Okay, show me."

"Well this little container here holds the fuel. We'll go over that later. What I'm trying to do is hook up the hose fitting that goes to your mask. See this heating element inside? The fitting goes..."

Carbon squeezed his legs together and let his attention drift to his new feminine parts as something really started bothering him. "Damn... it itches..."

"Carbon? You even listening?" Johnny clicked his fitting into place and then relaxed for a bit. "Something bothering you? Gods, I hope you don't have some kind of allergy."

"Maybe..."

"Carbon, I think I understand this now." Evelyn flopped down onto her back and sprawled out on the dirt. "I don't have a clear view on some of my memories but this is starting to fit the bill. I think you're in heat."

"Wait, what's that mean?" asked Carbon, waving a paw dismissively so Johnny knew he directed that to Evelyn.

"Well I can't revert your body back for one thing. It's hard to suppress the chemical changes in your body. Actually, I think I might not have much of an effect." The flower girl rolled on her side with a groan. "Damn mammals and their urges and instincts."

"So I'm going to look like this forever!?"

"No, I didn't say that." Evelyn sat herself up and took things more seriously for Carbon's sake. "You'll have to wait out this heat, then I can start changing your body. If all goes well, you'll be your old self in about a week, maybe with some extra curves like we talked about. For now though, your vagina will feel a bit odd and you might get strange urges. I'll do my best to stop you from giving into them."

Johnny looked to Carbon's eyes and followed them to the area Evelyn was occupying. "Everything alright? I might be able to help."

"Uh... I'm in 'heat', whatever that means--"

Evelyn cut her host off to add in an important detail. "Oh, heed this well. Be careful around males, especially other mammals. They'll not be themselves while you're like this, and some may try forcing you to do things against your will."

"That's a bit creepy, Evelyn." Carbon took a long breath and slowly exhaled it through his snout. "Okay, so I'm stuck like this for a while and guys are crazy. Sounds like fun."

Johnny reached forward and pleadingly tugged for Carbon to open his legs, to which the otter complied. "Yeah, looks and smells about right. Maybe changing into a woman at your age triggered it, like a trap of sorts. I was wondering why you never had to deal with puberty."

Evelyn shut Carbon's legs for him. "Remember what I said. Men will want access between your legs, Carbon. Don't let them have it."

"Stop controlling me, Eve. I'll be fine." Carbon turned his attention back to Johnny and groaned. "Sorry. She thinks you're trying to get between my legs."

"Well, sort of. I needed to check something, but I'm done now." Johnny slipped back a bit out of caution and resumed his work on the air system. "Let me get this set up so you have a backup unit just in case. Then I'll go see if any of the nurses in the hospital tent are sympathetic to our cause. If you're going to stay a woman for a bit you'll probably want to see if panties make it more comfortable for you."

"Panties?"

"Much daintier undergarments than those boxers you're wearing. He's right though, the softer material would help out." Evelyn popped a pair of panties into existence and stepped into them to help her explanation. "Your mother went without any when she went into heat too, but in the wilderness I'd feel better if you wore more than less. Still, there's options."

Carbon pouted a bit as he remembered his recently-deceased mother's face. "How do you know so much about my mom? And everything, for that matter?"

"Technically you know all this too. I don't know why controlling minds can't access it though. Might be all the other stuff like muscle control." The plant shook her head as she found herself off topic. "Sorry. Genetic memory, Carbon. Some things make it through from your parents, and a bit less from their parents, and so forth. I can read it, but it takes some associative information to piece things together most of the time."

"Oh. Wait, ~parents~? You mean I had more than one?"

"Yes, Carbon. Most sentient lifeforms require opposite sexes to have a child. It's actually why you're in heat. That's part of the process."

The otter frowned at the news. "You could have told me earlier! We're having a ~long~ talk later."

Johnny set down his work again to offer his support. "Carbon, even I didn't know about your father. He wasn't around when I joined the project, and from the way your mom acted when I brought it up he's either a really bad guy or he's dead. Hard to tell with her, actually."

"Johnny... I don't expect to meet him, not after this long. I just... would have liked knowing he even existed." Carbon laid back on the ground next to Evelyn, who herself went back to her previous posture. "Dig up what you can, Evelyn. We'll eventually get to know him."

"Up until you were conceived, anyway," the flower girl admitted.

"That genetic memory of yours is where mom and dad reside now." Carbon closed his eyes as a chill went down his spine. "It's all I have left now."

Evelyn curled up against Carbon's side, her smooth, cool skin feeling quite real even though it was all just mental trickery. "We'll always be here for you, Carbon. Your parents will. I will."

Carbon put an arm around Evelyn's shoulder and reeled her in closer, relishing in such a rare moment for the girl. "Thank you, Evelyn."