Progression
27 Jan 2024Kasumi Goto
January 15, 3310Salvation.
The name, or term, had... a strong hatred, attached to it. Both in my mind, and... the other me, that existed within the implant. As did "Azimuth".
Both were for good reason. It had taken me roughly a week to go through all the materials, a year's worth of history, if not more. Discoveries made during the campaign to... ultimately, it was to construct a massive superweapon based off of the technology of a long-dead species, the Guardians. The Proteus Wave. But during the steps that led to it, an ancient company's history was retraced, telling of disloyal rivalry, alien research before anyone else knew of it, in case of one particular discovery, participating in the creation of mycoid, the first attempt to wipe out the Thargoids... and many horrible tales of human experimentation, cruelty, all in the pursuit of a singular, misguided goal, and "furthering humanity" along the way.
My own place in it, was... difficult. I opposed "Salvation", initially, or withheld from participating, refusing to blindly support such a figure, from... older logs, of the time. Then, the weapon came, and... I fought for it, during the last week. As it was revealed later, contrary to my intentions to avoid it entirely, manipulated by a device in my head. The events that ensued, leading to my position now, as a hybrid between human and Thargoid genetic material, with biomechanical support structures throughout my body, both at a cellular level, and in the form of implants on my organs... and on my head.
Some of it was information from my old logs, others were historical records held by people since... 3306, in October, with a big gap between then and April, in 3307. I had read some of it before, but was not... 'well' enough to recall all the information properly. But now... I could. And it made me not just understand, but reflect the angry, disgusted feelings of - from - the implant. At... seeing all of this. The mycoid, from over a century ago, systematic killing of anybody attempting to research Thargoid technology in the early years of their return, the Alexandria, which I possibly was one of the first discoverers of, Project Seraph...
There were too many reasons to both hate Caleb Wycherley, as his real name was, with aliases "The Witch" and "Salvation", and Azimuth themselves. Seo had told me... that they were still bad, and hadn't changed. And now... "Nemesis" was hanging over the heads of... everyone, a measure for "Salvation" to continue living past the point where he should have died. And... it made me even more upset. He should have been dead, gone, cut from the world entirely. Yet he insisted on continuing to try corrupting it, but nobody knew where he was now.
And Seo refused to speak, even to me, about something she had - clearly - found, when looking into it. Recently, not her initial discovery. I didn't understand why.
"Why are you not telling them?", I asked her, a displeased... and somewhat accusatory tone slipping into my voice, which was at odds with the, currently, still soft, voice.
She looked at me, confused. "What do you mean?"
"You know."
I sat differently today. With my legs folded, rather than curled up or with them stretched out in front of me, sometimes crossed, if in that pose. And I displayed the schematics of the data that she had found, then reviewed with "Utopia" many months later. As if what she could feel through our shared link was not enough.
"What - how did you get - "
"You are not the only one who can get things she shouldn't.", I replied, sounding saddened by this... lack of trust, as I perceived it, and turned off the holo-projection from the wrist computer again. But the glyph, on the back of my right hand and currently plainly visible, glowed in an annoyed yellow, rather than the deeper, dark blue it took on when I felt sad. "Why do you not tell me?"
"It's... not that simple, Kira. I - "
"Why not?"
I was getting annoyed, not just at her continuing to use 'Kira' instead of 'Kasumi' for me, and the glyph shifted to a slowly pulsating orange. It felt like I was being treated as an irresponsible child. But, while there might have been comically oversized breasts and hips on my body, I had a brain to go with them, and it was making me run out of patience. Something that she could clearly feel through our shared link, too. She sighed.
"Alright, fine. I'll tell you. But you need to keep it to yourself."
Seo did tell me what she had found, recently, and showed. I listened, and watched. The glyph returned back to a yellow color, by the time she finished, because I still wasn't happy about this. And I intended to let her know.
"I don't like that you are hiding this. People should know.", I said.
"They can't. Not yet.", Seo retorted, remaining firm.
"Why?" I just... couldn't understand this, not in the slightest. "If there are bad things coming, people should know."
And I emphasized those last three words in particular, not believing this should have remained hidden. It just seemed stupid to me. Seo leaned forward on the chair she sat on.
"Alright, look, Kira. If this is out there, people would just panic, and that wouldn't help. I know you don't want that, so I need you to keep it a secret until I'm ready to reveal it."
I shook my head. Not in disagreement, but disappointment. "And what if they don't? We could prepare."
Seo looked frustrated. "And I don't trust them not to. It's simpler this way."
"But you hide this for another reason, too."
"Of course. If there's anything else to track down, I don't want Azimuth getting the jump on it and hiding it like they always do. Then we might be stuck in this same situation for another year. Is that what you want?"
I shook my head again, this time signifying no. "I don't understand why this could be so bad."
"Do you know about the Guardians?"
"I know they are dead."
"Then you should look into the reasons why they are. That should help you understand."
"But... I don't know how. And I... can't fly. Yet."
"I know someone, a... contact, that can point you in the right direction. And I'll give you a few things to help you find the right information. As for getting there... just give yourself time to really heal first. Then you can worry about flying ships again."
I sighed, put my elbows on my thighs, and held my head in my hands, for a few seconds. Then I looked up slightly, at Seo, only moving the head.
"Is it... wrong, that I... want to kill him?", I asked her.
"No.", she replied, the answer practically shooting out of her mouth. "It isn't. Not after what he and Azimuth did to ruin your and my life."
I put my head back into my hands. Something felt... wrong, with my brain, today, and I felt a rather bad headache coming up. The noise had been too loud recently, too, to the point where it sometimes prevented me from focusing on anything else.
"I want to be alone now. Please.", I told Seo.
She didn't argue, and left. I didn't want to see her right now, anyway. The headache was still building, so I took a quick acting painkiller to reduce its effects, and lay down on my back, after stretching my legs. The tower of pillows, now as consistently there as the heavy weight on my chest was, had shifted under my waist slightly. I tried to ignore it at first, but it just wouldn't stop bothering me, so I set it straight before laying back down.
I wanted to rest, yet my mind just wouldn't come to a standstill. Maybe it was because of the noise of the Thargoids, which I really just didn't want to listen to. I was not even very good at it, worse at inferring basic intent than even Seo with her - seemingly - imperfect link. Often only 'seeing' things after her, if I did at all, through perceived changes in the noise. And, sometimes, knowing what local Thargoids did ahead of time, according to my memories... but over a hundred light years from the closest Titan, I received no such feedback. It didn't even seem to be very useful to have better 'local' insights on where they would attack, as the Titan fleets seemed to restrict themselves to an oddly predictable attack pattern, in a shell surrounding each one.
My thoughts drifted off to... my own learning, of my body. The use of the VR training programs had begun to show... some effect, beginning to properly form the necessary muscle memory to handle my very big thighs, and... how much my big chest swung around if I moved to abruptly, or tried to run. Currently, I managed a light jog at best, for a few seconds at a time before slowing back down, but it was still an improvement over just being able to walk, very slowly. And... the way I walked actually felt quite nice, due to it accentuating my curves as a necessary side effect. The doctor I'd met over a week ago had noticed the improvement too, during a checkup, and I was not at risk of falling off the treadmill almost immediately, too.
I hadn't built any muscle, partly due to the training taking place in VR, but... I didn't feel like I wanted to. And the doctor had said that it would serve little practical purpose because of what the implant had done, forming it according to my subconscious impulses already, to where I wanted it... while there was also just a physical movement limit to my legs due to how big and disproportionate their lower half was. An idea, that... oddly, made me feel quite nice, and maybe spread a tingly feel around somewhere below, at the thought of being so big for my body that it inhibited my movement no matter what I did.
And yet... something just... didn't feel right. I couldn't say what, but it kept me awake even when the painkiller kicked in, despite my intention to sleep, or at least take a nap, and hope the noise became quieter then. And that I wouldn't have any nightmares. They were too frequent, ranging from getting chased by Thargoids through... one of their ship's corridors, getting forcibly linked to one of them, with no actual certain memory of it occurring, and... other traumatic experiences the war had put me through, like the arrival of the first Titan, Taranis, where I had stupidly chosen to be nearby when it arrived... despite getting the signs myself, in a way, through a repeating nightmare of a Titan arriving and beginning to rip apart a station I was on.
My mind eventually came to the big, handheld weapon that I'd seen... in my ship. And an idea began to form in my head, one that quickly became quite irresistible, constantly forcing itself to be at the forefront of my thoughts, despite trying to push it back down for later, so that I could sleep. And it eventually succeeded in defying my suppression attempts, getting me to stand up and have my feet carry me over to the ship - a Krait Phantom, as research had told me - if in slightly lazy and sleepy manner. Annoyingly, that haze in my head would always have been there, even if I'd slept, as naps at the wrong time of day... somehow seemed to just have that effect of making the sleepiness worse, more than they helped.
Then I had it, a 'railgun', the memory called it, in my hands. I'd built it myself, which the presence of 'other me' in the implant was quite fond of. Unfortunately, the building process itself seemed absent, other than that I'd gotten zapped by electrical components a few times. And... my feet began to carry me somewhere else. I wasn't too consciously aware of where, other than following the signs labelled 'Armory' and 'Shooting Range' in the tunnels, which I'd noticed earlier in the week, and felt an odd attraction too. Carrying that weapon, which was about half my height in its length, with ammo mags for it on a belt, also earned me a few more odd looks than usual, some curious, a few others wary. And I was... less aware of them, for now, as if caught in a slight trance.
That changed when I got to... wherever that shooting range thing was. There appeared to be an outdoor section to it, as well as indoors for the case that weather was too bad, which... it currently was. It'd started raining while I was on my way, and it always poured down whenever it did. Both of the 'tracks' were parallel to each other, and at the very edge of the complex, however, posing minimal risk. At worst, there was a hill a short distance away, which rounds would end up in. It looked as if there were safety measures in place anyway, and... maybe 'indoor' was a strong word. Some of the elements could certainly still find its way to where the targets were located.
But the change in environment was not what'd raised my attentiveness again. It was a person approaching me directly, looking at my gun... then my big features on those enlarged body parts, of course.
"Here to use the range?", they asked.
I nodded in response.
"Hm... well, I guess there's a free spot. You didn't take that thing from here, did you?"
The armory was pretty much right there, so I could understand the question. I shook my head, which was already enough to cause a bit of movement on my chest. "My own. It... works."
"Fine, but we're not taking liability for injury by personal firearm use. And only keep that thing pointed down range." The person looked me over again. "... only wearing a shirt? Won't be good for your shoulder."
I looked down at myself. I had, in fact, forgotten to put on something else, on top of my regular attire so far. But I didn't really know what to say. The person simply walked off and returned with... some kind of vest, to be buttoned up along the middle, holding it out for me, and a piece of ear protection.
"Put that on. If that gun packs as much recoil as it looks like it does, that should keep your shoulder from getting sore too quickly."
I took the vest with one hand, and looked it over. It seemed like it would fit... on my waist, while it covered the arms. And it turned out to do just that, once I put my weapon on the ground to put it on, but the buttons over my big breast definitely would not be closing up. And it was also a quite tight fit, making them look rather highlighted in there, if providing a little... extra stability that way. This... overseer, or whoever they were, seemed a little unsure and amused at the display this provided.
"Ah... yeah, that'll work. Feel free to go ahead, since it looks like you brought your own ammo too."
I gave them a funny look, because a vest that was undersized at the chest area was not my idea of 'good enough', but at least I wore a shirt underneath. It still looked a little funny to people watching, anyway, as it did to me when I looked down, with the way the breast was highlighted, and the open halves spread apart more and more from the point where its curve started. It was prevented from being indecent by the shirt, but still earned me a few looks as I walked up to a free spot with a target at the end. I placed the ear protection on my head there, put some mags in front of me, and... tried to figure out how to aim.
There was some basic knowledge coming from the implant, but not enough to be particularly helpful for how to handle this particular weapon. On top of that... my breasts were actually just getting in my way here, making it difficult to figure out how to place it on the shoulder properly. And when I thought I had that done... now they were in the way of my left arm, in the position where I thought it made sense to have my hand on the grip. I couldn't find out where to put it that was not at a spot which I thought was wrong, no matter what I tried, and it made me become rather impatient. My right hand was already in the right spot and ready to pull the trigger.
So I left my left arm clashing with the mass of fun on my chest, and looked down the scope, which automatically adjusted to the range of the target. Maybe that was what the funny button I found on the side did, I thought, as it hadn't caused anything to happen when I got curious and pushed it. Little did I know that it had actually caused the weapon to switch its firing mode from charging up for three, separately controllable shots, to firing a single very powerful shot.
I'd also forgotten to check whether my stance was appropriate to firing this weapon, in my impatience. And it most definitely was not, since I had my feet relatively idle, rather than solidly placed on the ground and close to each other - as close as they could get with the size of my thighs, at least. One person, to my right, noticed and was looking to warn me, but it was already too late to prevent me from committing.
The trigger finger moved inward, weapon aimed roughly at the center of the target. A hum emanated from the weapon, low at first, then grew louder and more intense in steady intervals, as electricity spread through its circuits, triggering the magnetic fields that pushed the projectile accelerator in the chamber, and with it the round, forward. A loud 'bang' from the round travelling at hypersonic speeds when it exited the barrel signified that it had fired - the bullet hit the target and embedded itself in the ground behind it, before the recoil could even make the weapon hit my shoulder.
I didn't get to witness anything more than the weapon firing, however, because that same recoil, which I did not expect, was enough to outright knock me off my feet. And while I had managed to keep the gun in my hands, it did not spare me from the humiliation of landing on the ground and smacking flat on my big rear, which caused quite a big wobble to spread through it and my thighs, ripples which I quite definitely felt. And as if to make things worse, the breasts also bounced quite a bit due to the impact, enough that the button underneath them just popped open, though it remained on the vest to close it up again later... if I was bothered. And all but two or three of the people had turned their heads to look when I'd fired, because it was that loud, making them all see me smack the ground with my backside.
"Did anyone else feel that?", I hear someone remark, also making me realize the ear protection had come off and landed on my neck.
That remark made the brightly burning blush of pure embarrassment on my cheeks even worse, the white skin doing absolutely nothing to conceal it, while I was sat there, a gun in my hands, resting on my thighs, when it should still have been pointing at the target which it'd been fired at. A voice pulled me out of the loop of shame my brain was currently going through.
"Hey, you alright?", the voice asked, seeming to belong to a slightly older man, maybe around his 50s.
I looked up. My guess was right. It appeared to be someone military, or at least belonging to whatever Aegis' own forces would qualify as, judging by a badge on his uniform. And I nodded to respond - since there was so much soft material to absorb that impact, most of the damage had been to my morale. I pulled my legs closer, breathed deeply, and began to stand up, holding the weapon in the left hand, using the right as support to get up again. The man had held out a hand for me, but I wanted to get back up myself just to... do it. Maybe because of my continued attempts to train my brain to my new shape.
I'd actually managed to hit the target. And tear it right off of its stand in the process. It lay somewhere between the - likely, as I couldn't see it in the rain - impact point, and the range itself. I looked through the scope to get a better look at the result.
It hadn't been nearly as terrible as my own handling. The shot was fairly close to the center, having left a clean entrance wound on the circular metal target. And a new one had come out of the ground already, replacing the 'killed' one somewhere behind it. I'd probably go through a lot more of those... if I continued, which I was not sure on, after that initial test. I still didn't even know how to hold it properly, and how to prevent that incident just now from repeating itself. So I hesitantly stood there, trying to figure out how to posture myself and hold it.
The man who'd offered me the hand noticed came over again. I looked at him questioningly.
"Do you want some help? I can offer you advice.", he told me.
I shrugged, a little in desperation, because I felt hopelessly lost. And still very embarrassed.
"Alright. Let's start at your stance. Your feet should be apart further, about at your shoulders, that gives you more stability while firing. It also helps to have one leg placed forward slightly, and shift the weight on it."
I did as instructed, placing the left leg forward for now, instinctively going a bit lower on the knees, creating a slight angle with them.
"Like that, exactly.", the main said, then saw me fiddling around trying to make my left arm cooperate with my breast, because I was trying to face relatively straight with it, and not have it in the way of the gun. He put a hand on the weapon to get my attention again. "Try turning to the right with your chest a little, that should let your left arm move more freely."
I took up this position, turning the chest to the mentioned side. And demonstrated why this didn't really seem to work, because now that big breast clashed with the gun as soon as I tried to aim it right a little, without turning chest or body with it. The man made a thoughtful sound.
"Hm... maybe, try turning back to the left slightly. But that won't be an ideal position." He began to mutter to himself, but it was still loud enough for me to hear. "Maybe you'll just need to fight it a little... no, that won't work with armor." The man raised his voice again. "Turn your chest left again very slightly. That looks like the best option. Once you reach the movement limit there, you're just going to have to turn fully. I'm afraid your body won't allow it in any other way."
I shrugged. I'd kind of accepted, and even invited, the physical constraints and challenges imposed by having such a big, oddly disproportionate figure. Then, I turned my upper body left again, and went back and forth a few times until I found a comfortable middle ground, with my chest not quite turned sideways as far as it could be, but not straight in line with the lower body either. Yet, it felt like my left arm was still a little too limited, placed... somewhat centrally on the grip, on the underside of the weapon.
"Almost there.", the man remarked. "You should move your hand on the grip forward a little. You've still got space, and that might help both with movement and stability. Your gun's got a long barrel - the center of mass will be a little more toward the front with that, too."
Another helpful advice. The relative length of my arms did allow for me to do that and still be relatively comfortable, which did help with clearance to the breast, too. Now that I had a good 'pose' to use at least this weapon with - which I felt quite satisfied about - I returned to the activity that I was actually there for, shooting at things. That part, I seemed to be quite good at, landing shots fairly close together, or at least, so a little screen near my position said... since it was difficult to compare when each target got knocked over by a single shot, due to their sheer kinetic force.
After just six, or seven, shots, the magazine was already empty... as if it had not been full while sitting in the weapon, from prior use. Maybe I had, and forgotten to refill it, or swap it out. So now... I needed to reload it. And the funny button on the side clearly was not for that, going from my previous experience, so I searched for... wherever its release was located. I quickly found it... and ended up not catching the mag before it dropped to the ground with a loud clang, thanks to the high gravity.
I took a few steps back and bent forward to pick it up, not thinking to go on my knees - which provided quite a view to onlookers - and heaved myself back up, struggling with those heavy weights on my chest. Fitting a new mag was... also not a particularly quick process, between slotting it in, figuring out how to make sure it was properly locked in place, that a new round had properly loaded, and that the weapon was not jammed up... then, I placed the weapon down ahead of me, rather than shoot more. I wasn't sure if I wanted to continue yet.
"This your first gun?", the man who'd helped me asked, then.
I shook my head.
"Yeah, though so. Beginners usually don't start with something like that. How come you didn't know how to handle it and yourself, there?"
"Forgot." There didn't seem to be much brain energy currently available for talking, so I had to leave it at fairly brief responses.
"Right... quiet type, I see. You're usually good learners, though. You're no exception. And a good shot, too, it seems."
I shrugged. The compliment was nice, but it seemed... natural, to me.
"Tell you what.", the man said. "When you're done here, I might have some ideas for other guns to try, that should complement that railgun of yours nicely. It is one, right?"
I wasn't sure... there was no memory. So I shrugged again. "Can't... remember. Maybe. I 'made' it."
"Okay... so, what kind of guns do you like? Assault rifles, maybe?"
I thought about that. And... there was a good amount of positive feedback coming from that other me. From 'Kira'. But he didn't need to know, that I had strange dual personalities. "I... think. Yes."
"Well, in that case, I've got a good one for you." He used the screen nearby to go through various guns, stopping on... a very ordinary looking one. "That's it."
"It... looks... normal.", I remarked.
"Precisely the point." He turned back toward me. "It used to be a fairly common standard-issue weapon in the military for independent territories at the edge of the Bubble. Started to be manufactured around the 3280s, well into the 90s. Sturdy, rugged, reliable, hard to have it break down on you in the field. And easy to maintain or fix if it does. That particular model might be discontinued now, but you should be able to find replacement parts for it pretty easily even at this point."
I remained quiet, expecting more talk. And leaned against the little, waist-high separator wall.
"The quartermaster should have one for you. I wouldn't recommend the later models, they're made more cheaply and seem to be quite prone to failure. And if you want to take it with you, I'm sure he'll allow it, if you prove to him that you can handle it well, and get a proper license for it. If you're looking for an assault rifle up to military standards, in places where you don't expect to find the pieces you'd need for some of the higher-tech stuff used in the core of the Bubble, that one's hard to beat."
He looked at the 'railgun', still laying there.
"Won't pack the punch of that, of course. Still going to do whatever you need it to, in circumstances where this kind of long-ranged weapon isn't too useful, without needing all those fancy gizmos. But, be warned, he's not going to give you an easy time of getting your hands on it. Likes his gun safety and making sure people know how to handle them responsibly... as you might have noticed by him giving you that vest, even if it doesn't quite fit."
The man paused.
"Damn regs of those last few years don't help. I remember the days where pilots used to be able to get their weapons license and not need to answer too many questions when they wanted proper gear. Now, it's practically illegal everywhere, and they try to flaunt that civilian crap as 'real guns' to everybody outside a military force. Which, I'm guessing, is another reason you made your own."
I shrugged. "I... will ask. Tomorrow."
"Of course. Sorry if I overwhelmed you here, but that shit pisses me off, and I recognize someone who knows guns when I see 'em."
"It... is fine. I like... to listen."
He nodded. "Say, don't suppose you used to be military yourself?"
"I... don't know. Cannot remember."
"Hm ..." The man studied me in detail again. "The way you carry yourself with that weapon tells me you were. But how'd they accept you with that body?"
I blushed a little. With the previous embarrassment having worn off already, it was quite visible. "It was... not like this. Before."
"Ah. Yeah. That makes more sense. Suppose you found something you quite like, if you went that far with it. And some... other eccentric choices."
He didn't appear to be aware that I was the human-Thargoid hybrid in Aegis' care... 'Kira' told me it was fine to not let people know, if my odd appearance didn't bother them or make them curious why it was like that. And I didn't really want to talk about my body more than that, to a stranger. I turned toward the targets on the range again, placing both hands on the little wall, one leg held forward slightly.
"I see you want to get back to it. Don't let me stop you.", the man said. "I've got to finish up my own target practice anyway."
I took that as my sign to start back up, and placed the ear protection on them again. Rather than continue to shoot at a stationary target, I decided to try a moving one, using... two or three more mags up, which each held twelve shots. I was not sure whether to call them rounds, since they contained no gunpowder or anything that ignited to achieve propulsion, instead only being a bullet-shaped piece of metal accelerated to hypersonic speeds by a physical accelerator block inside the weapon.
Once I felt satisfied, after achieving an acceptable accuracy rate on the moving targets... I decided to leave the railgun in the nearby armory, along with the ammo and mags, used or unused. I quickly found a free weapon locker in there, which sealed and only became accessible to me via biometric lock... as soon as the machine cooperated on recognizing my rather unique gene print. Then I went back to my apartment, planning to return here tomorrow.
Not only because I wanted to see what that other weapon was all about, but also... doing this, somehow, felt relieving, in a way. As if it reduced built-up stress. It certainly was a good distraction from the restlessness that'd bothered me today, and it had completely evaporated by this point in time. So, now, I could actually sleep.
-----------------------
The following day...
Seo was here with me today, quietly observing. I wasn't mad at her any further - for the moment - but there hadn't really been any particularly interesting discussion subjects either, so far, either. Hence, I was looking around for this supposedly great and reliable 'standard military-grade assault rifle', flicking through what appeared to be an inventory screen with... quite detailed information on a fairly generous selection of weaponry.
I didn't particularly retain any info on the various weapons on display until I found the correct one. The stated specifications were a caliber of 8x60mm for its rounds, 600 RPM, with rounds per minute in brackets behind it, as rate of fire, and a magazine size of 20 rounds as standard. I tapped on it, and a message displayed, reading 'Please request permission to use this weapon from the quartermaster'. Who... happened to be right there, on the other side of a desk, keenly observing me.
"Good choice.", he remarked. "Who recommended that rifle to you?"
"It was ..." I gazed upward slightly, trying to remember. "... the older man, here, yesterday, with... slightly grey hair. I think."
The man's eyes lit up slightly. "Ah... that old bastard. He loves that rifle, alright. Maybe a little too much - it's good, I'll give him that, but he might view it with a little too much nostalgia."
I raised an eyebrow. "Oh?"
He grinned. "Oh, yeah. But come on. I'll show you."
The quartermaster waved me along, over to a locker... somewhere further at the back. Opening it revealed a few of those assault rifles, a number of them differing slightly.
"There you have it. Simple, straightforward assault rifle, up to most military standards I could think of. And any that it isn't are over the top. Also a little old school, uses combustion propellant, but it'll do the job. And the only reason it'll stop firing is if you run out of ammo." He pointed at the rifle at the top of the rack. "That's the oldest of those models. If it's still being produced, you'd have to go looking for some of the more obscure independent systems at the edge of the Bubble. Replacement parts, though, those are still fairly common, and to my knowledge this weapon still circulates quite actively."
The pointing finger moved down a few lines.
"That point onward, those are the more recent models. More lightweight components, primarily, and generally cheaper to manufacture. They may be slightly less reliable, but not terribly so, or it wouldn't have remained popular." He paused to breathe. "Having said that, I would recommend the original model if you do get a chance to own one."
"So... I can try it?", I asked.
"By all means. Pick one and try it over at the range. But it's coming back here again unless you've got a license and prove you can handle it."
I tilted my head to the right slightly. "The... other man, said, you would make it difficult."
He laughed heartily. "Did he, now? Relax. I'm not gonna rip your head off over a few missed shots. I simply prefer to ensure a weapon is going into the right, and responsible, hands."
"I'm... not sure, I would call them... responsible." I placed both hands on my hips after that, looking down, which both held symbolism, and kind of served as a reminder that the view to my feet was blocked by breast now.
The quartermaster scoffed. "What you do with your hands besides on the gun is none of my business. Hell, don't blame ya for putting them there every once in a while. Got quite a body, I've got to admit. But after that demonstration of your other gun, I think this one'll be in good hands with ya."
He had to mean the weapon, not my body, even if it was probably one too... in its own right. I hesitantly took the first assault rifle in the top row, and found ammo mags in that same locker, too, gathered up at the bottom. One was the 'standard' twenty rounds, another had more 'height' to it, and seemed to hold more shots. I looked at both questioningly, trying to figure out which to pick.
"Try both.", the quartermaster suggested. "Twenty rounds is a bit lighter and you won't need any support for the weapon if you fire it from the ground, but you'll have to reload more often. Thirty may be more useful in a sustained firefight, and if you're not planning to fire from a prone position, but be mindful of the additional weight."
I shrugged. At this point... I couldn't even tell what kind of situations I would be running into in the future. Maybe taking a mix of both would be good.
For now, I decided to take a few of both magazine sizes for the sake of testing... of course, I had to bend forward to pick them up, exposing my curvature down below more. Something that I... still quite liked, as it emphasized how big I was, and how happy I felt about it, rather than because it was showing it off. It already did that all by itself, anyway. After picking the mags up and figuring out how to carry them, with the weapon, as I didn't have appropriate pouches on my belt at the moment, I went off toward my locker.
"You stored your gear here yesterday, yes?", the quartermaster inquired.
I demonstrated by opening up the locker which I'd claimed for myself, the previous day. There sat my railgun, leaned against its back wall with the barrel, the stock serving as support on the ground, with mags scattered around in slightly disorganized manner. And the vest. I pulled only it out, not needing - nor wanting - the other weapon, right now. But the man in charge didn't seem to be too happy when I put it on and half of my big breast 'poked out', because I couldn't button it up properly over the shirt, once the curve began.
"Who gave you that?", he inquired.
"It was... someone there." I gestured out toward the section range with an overhead cover. And he shook his head.
"They should've asked me. Give me that vest."
I decided to oblige and took it off, handing it over. The man returned with one that was... quite clearly, bigger. Then he wandered off again, leaving me to my things. The vest fit neatly over my chest, yet seemed too wide everywhere else... a fact only partly mitigated by my offset figure. But this seemed like a better solution than the previous one, so I accepted it.
I attached some of the magazines to that vest, now realizing it had spots to do so, and walked over to the range with the overhead cover... still observed and followed by Seo, of course. But she seemed to be more content to just observe, rather than be close and talk, whether that was because she just had an interest in watching what I did, or it gave her a good view of my lower half at most times.
Once I was set up at a shooting spot, I started off simple, with a stationary target. But even before I fired a single shot, I realized that I'd have to approach this... a little differently. While the assault rifle seemed less prone to interfering with my breast, it was still a little annoying when it did, and my left arm was closer to it, too. That meant I had to experiment with my posture yet again, and it took me a good while of that experimenting to find one that was 'good enough'. It at least resembled the one I used with the railgun closely enough that minimal adaptation was required.
Firing the weapon itself was... a much starker contrast, shooting and going through a magazine much faster. Its recoil was less powerful per shot, but more sustained, providing its own challenge in controlling it - but I seemed to get the hang of it quickly, looking at how the accuracy rating improved per target, even when I activated to a moving one. Switching between the two magazine types, in this "quiet" scenario, I 'felt' little difference, so maybe I would need to try them in a simulation.
What I could practice here, though, was the act of reloading, within a safe environment, outside of the stress of a combat situation where I was getting shot at. I placed all of my ammo ahead of me, and started out by using some of the empty mags as a starter, to get the basic motions down better before I tried to do it more quickly. I moved on to a full mag of 20 rounds, swapping an empty one out for it, and back, then between full ones. I quickly got used to it, as though there were preserved memories associated to completing the motions necessary to reloading rapidly and without issue, and I moved on to swapping between 20 and 30 round mags next, then between 30s only.
Once I felt content with that, I got the railgun out and proceeded with the same practice. While its own magazines held less ammo, each projectile was quite a bit heavier, making the movement be quite different to that of the assault rifle. Still, I kept at it, and eventually smoothed it out to not take much more than a few seconds, though not as quick as the rifle's reloading process. Yet, that seemed acceptable to me, since I wouldn't be getting shot back as much at the distances where I'd likely use this weapon more.
I felt happy with that and cut short the session there, returning the vest, railgun and its mags to the locker, while I came back to the desk of the quartermaster with the assault rifle, and corresponding mags. Both the empty and full ones. Then I lifted my right hand in an asking way.
"I'm going to be straight with you - you want that thing, you'll get it and the license, no questions asked, as long as Aegis agrees to. Or, more specifically, the professor. I trust her judgement in you, but you'll still have to pay for it. In credits, of course."
"Pay ..." I needed to think a moment, to recall the meaning of the word. "Yes. I can pay."
"Good. You can do it from the terminal over there now, or later, when you're ready to take everything with you again."
"I - "
"She'll do it later.", Seo suddenly said, bringing herself into the exchange. "In case Alba decides against letting her have the weapon."
And then she pulled me out of there, into a tunnel. Or, rather, I let her, since I was more than heavy enough to resist her pull if I refused to come along... but still provided her with an equally questioning and disappointed look.
"I don't mind you buying a new weapon, Kira.", she started. "But maybe it's a little early for that. You're still going to be here for another month, at least. Maybe look at some others first."
I just shook my head, not understanding why there was an issue. Nor did I want to talk about that further, now.
"Want to go back. Apartment."
And I began to walk, carried more by my instinct than active thoughts about walking. Seo kept pace with me, maybe walking ahead slightly... or, rather, I was able to keep pace with her now. My training in VR had begun to pay off, and I could walk at a standard pace now without issue, or having to actively think about it. The only 'problem' that remained was that my thighs were quite touchy with each other, something that... I'd just not be able to get rid of any longer, simply because of their physical dimensions.
"So, do you like firing weapons?", Seo inquired.
I nodded. "Yes. It is... relaxing. Somehow."
"It is nice to see you find new hobbies. Or maybe just your old ones again... you never really told me that much about them."
"I... didn't?" I sounded genuinely surprised at that information.
"No, or, not all of them, at least. I remember you saying you like to play games, but nothing about weapons. Or that you built your own. I always thought you just had them to defend yourself."
I shrugged, partly aware that even something so subtle caused a slight movement on my chest nowadays. Or maybe it was because we were walking. But I certainly did like weapons and firing them, even without the self-defense component.
"So... I noticed you're walking better now.", Seo then remarked, gazing in the direction of my lower half, to which I nodded before replying.
"I have been... training, in VR. It is good, for that."
"I can see that. And I think it's good you're practicing there, since you mostly sit on your bed, a couch or a sofa if you're not outside your apartment."
"It... is tiring, sometimes. They are so... big. Takes a lot of energy to... move."
"I can imagine, but it's not wrong to be lazy sometimes. And I think I might like you more this way."
I blushed a little bit at being told that, for... a reason I couldn't quite tell, but it made my heart beat faster and gave me a weird fuzzy feeling in the chest. "I know. And it is nice... because it is so big."
"I no longer doubt that.", Seo replied. "Don't think I ever did. You wouldn't go for a figure this... big, without really wanting it. And it seems like you find the attention nice, too."
She was... right, in a way. I quite liked being looked at, not for being a very social or extroverted individual, but it still continued to reinforce my positive feelings about my big and round body. I began to absent-mindedly follow its curves - purely in my mind, not physically - rather than to continue the conversation, and... was rapidly pulled out of that daydreaming by feeling like I tripped over something, or because I stopped paying attention to where my feet were going, and it made the thighs move too closely.
That also threw off what fragile balance I had, with the center of mass moved forward and higher due to my large breasts, and... I had also slowed down to pursue those positive thoughts, which meant Seo was somewhere ahead of me, directly in the path of my largely fruitless attempts to catch myself and regain the balance. Without yet knowing how to run properly, I had no chance to stop my momentum, especially with no supporting objects to grab on to nearby. And, by now, I was very well aware I was quite weighty, thanks to my 'additions'.
" Seo- get out of - "
I made a largely pointless gesture with my free arm, as if to signal her to move out of my way, and... she did the worst possible thing, which was to stop and turn around, just in time to see me to slam into her with all of my mass and drag both of us to the ground. The impact was... best not described beyond feeling very wobbly, soft, and extremely embarrassing for me. And my breast, due to height differences, had landed somewhere above Seo's own - not quite in the face, but she probably couldn't see much more than it either.
"Kira, I like your body, but this was not how I wanted to be introduced to it.", I heard her say, partly sounding out of breath due to the impact with the ground, and muffled because of the proximity of something that absorbed sound quite well.
I heaved myself off from her with my arms as best as I could, and slowly crawled backward on my knees, without a word, then sat on them, rear half kind of resting on the ankles, while placing my hands on the thighs. Naturally, this horribly embarrassing spectacle had drawn quite a bit of attention, and I saw many people watching as I looked around, some seeming amused, others were quite uncertain what to make of this, and others... looked a little shocked, but were too caught up in shaking off their disbelief to see if any of us two needed help.
Luckily... Seo seemed fine, beyond the embarrassing nature of the incident, looking at how she got up relatively quickly, despite 156 kilograms of weight just landing on her a few seconds prior. Though, the impact wouldn't have been much softer even on Earth, had it happened there. And she stretched, holding both hands to the lower back.
"Yep, I'm gonna feel that one tomorrow.", she remarked. "Didn't I just say you were doing so well walking? How did that even happen?"
My ears caught on to something... on my left. I looked, and a cat stood there, meowing at me apologetically. It was a pretty thing, its fur resembling that of a tiger in appearance.
"I think... we have our answer.", I remarked, and held my left hand. The feline backed off, unsure at first, but then accepted a few generous head pets and scratches when realizing the hand didn't come out with any kind of malicious intent. Then, one voice distinguished itself from the crowd's hushed voices and murmurs.
"Excuse me, did anyone see my cat?"
"I think it's right here.", Seo called out to... wherever the person was. Given the figure that approached, it seemed to be a woman, who was wearing a white lab coat.
"Oh! Thank goodness." The cat meowed in the woman's direction, but seemed to stay near me, who was still sat on the knees, providing some picture of what happened. "You little rascal! Did you make someone trip again?" She sighed, and looked at me. "Sorry about that. He loves to rub against the legs of strangers. Or slipping through them."
"That explains... what I felt down there.", I replied.
"And she stumbled right into me.", Seo added. Then pointed at the ground more or less where she stood.
"Oh! I'm so sorry, Ms. Seo. I didn't mean for that to happen. Especially not with your... friend. Kira, was it?"
"Kasumi.", I said. "Not Kira... not fully, maybe."
"Ah. I see." The woman paused. "You... didn't fall on her, did you?"
"Yes. Yes, she did.", Seo answered, in my place.
"Oh no! Are you okay?"
"I'm fine. I think most of the damage was to her integrity."
Seo was definitely right, considering the blush that I had on my face.
"Oh. That is... well, it's not good, but I'm glad neither of you came to any harm." The scientist turned to me. "Do you need help getting up?"
"No. I just... didn't want to. Yet.", I replied, and shuffled around a little. I actually kind of liked sitting like this, and realizing that this pose still worked despite the lower flexibility of my legs, because the thighs - and backside - were just so big that they entirely compensated for it. And maybe went a little beyond compensating.
"Alright, sure. If you'll excuse me, I should bring this cat back home, and then get back to work. Come up here, you little naughty thing." The cat meowed in unenthusiastic manner but hopped into the arms of the woman, who walked off while telling her pet off about running away to go wandering, again.
The crowd also quickly dispersed again now, since the 'show' was over, or the most interesting part at least. A few people remained until I stood up and balanced myself out again, either to make sure I was actually fine, or because they had some interest in watching my shape move around as I did so.
"I'd... like to go back now, to the apartment.", I told Seo.
"I was going to suggest the same.", she replied. "I'd like to go there with you, if you don't mind. And I'm glad you tripped because of a cat, not from getting distracted by your thoughts."
I shrugged. I certainly didn't mind her coming, so I began to walk again. Of course, she still seemed to have a question for me, for the way there.
"So... did you read that message I sent you, about the things I want you to search when you can go out there - " Seo had a finger pointed upward, at space. " - again?"
I nodded. "I... read it. I will keep it, until I go, there. So I know... where to go."
"Good. But you can visit other places too, if you don't remember them. I think, maybe, it would make sense if you visited those places where Azimuth did their... experiments."
I knew which ones she meant. "I... read, already. Maybe I will. And visit... other places, that are important."
"I'm sure you'll figure out where you want to go in time, Kira. But not yet."
I nodded. I knew that just as well, and... just focused on getting back for now, so I remained quiet, and internally enjoyed those gazes that still kept coming my way. Most of the Aegis personnel seemed to hold back their urges of commenting well enough, though, so I generally only had their astounded or mystified looks, to look forward to. But it was enough. Then we were back at the apartment, and Seo locked it off behind her, letting me enter first, despite the risk of my body blocking the doorway a little.
I thought about staying in the living room first, but then decided the cozy space of the bedroom was more interesting. And, once on the bed, I curled up into the 'Big Ball of Kira' again, once I'd taken off my shoes. Or, at the very least, I was a lot rounder and closer to a ball now, maybe not so close to 'Kira' any longer, even if she... somehow... still existed inside me. And it seemed like... that was what Seo wanted to talk about.
"So, when you said you're... 'not fully Kira', do you know?", she asked me.
I nodded. "Yes. She is... inside me. The implant. I am... 'Kasumi', but also her, too. And I don't... understand it."
Seo let air out of her mouth in a certain way, telling me she was just as clueless. "I got really confused about it when I reactivated the link and 'felt' that you were... are, basically two separate personalities in the same body. And yet, you're really hard to tell apart."
"I think, we are... linked. Somehow. But not... fully. I have the same... memories, or get them. But she... works, better."
"That doesn't have to do with you. It's just... well, your brain. I saw what it looks like in there, and it's still a bit of a mess."
I nodded. "Still... healing. But I can think better already."
"Not good enough ...", Seo muttered. "So, who am I talking to right now?"
"'Kasumi'... I think. 'Kira' says I should not get angry at people using... her name. She wants me to be like... her. Mostly."
"Do you have a problem if I use it? You're still Kira to me."
I had to think about that for a moment, just on the impulses my brain provided. "I... don't know. Maybe I can... accept it. For you."
"I was hoping you'd say that. Already noticed you were getting less annoyed about it the last... week and a half, maybe."
"I... wasn't aware."
"So... what do you two both like?"
"This ..." I looked down at my body, and how its curves spread outward. "And... weapons, maybe. Reading. Being lazy, and... watching, things."
'And "worse".', I added in my thoughts.
"That does sound quite similar to the Kira I know, except for maybe the oversized curves. Are you sure you're not a copy of her?"
I shrugged. "Maybe... I am. She... hasn't said." I paused for a second. "I like to be... lazy, even more, since I got big. It is so nice. To sit, or lie on, and feel... it. Or how it spreads out, when weight... is on it." I took my right hand from the knee temporarily, to point down at my lower half. "Sometimes, I think about... how it would be, to be even bigger."
"But you won't do it, will you?"
I shook my head. "No. This is... big enough. Or it would be, too much. But... I sometimes try, in 'VR'."
"I think you should get me one of those things, one day. I'd like to see what you do in there."
I blushed at that thought, a little. "Are you... sure? It is... strange."
"I never said I'd participate in it, but I'm still curious."
"Maybe... later." A yawn escaped my mouth, all of a sudden. "All this talk... is nice, but tiring. Could I sleep?"
"You don't need to ask for my permission, if that's what your body's telling you. I didn't have much more to talk about anyway."
"Oh. So... you are going?"
"Unless you want me to watch you change and sleep."
That... wasn't really in my interest, but words already refused to come off my tongue, and my eyes were suddenly quite weary. So I just looked at her in a, somewhat, sleepy way, as my answer, and she walked out after giving me a small goodbye sign. I yawned again and got off the bed to change into my sleepwear - the appropriately sized one - then made sure the pillow tower was arranged properly, before and after throwing myself down on it. A few somewhat inappropriate, intrusive thoughts made their way into my brain as I was drifting away, but couldn't quite take hold, before the darkness pulled everything into the embrace of restful unconsciousness.