Excursion
06 Feb 2024Kasumi Goto
January 24, 3310Aegis head office
"You want to attack the Titans."
My tone was accusatory, and... somewhat displeased. I hadn't been happy about this idea that Aegis was building - or supporting the development of - a weapon to fight the Thargoid motherships with. And it showed in my stance, too, standing there with my arms crossed, legs slightly apart. Not that it looked like they were, given their size.
"There is no other apparent way to resolve this war, Kasumi. Surely you know that.", Alba replied, sitting at her desk.
"You have not tried to understand them. Why they are here.", I retorted, not content with the answer.
"That's not a fair criticism. The Thargoids have made no attempts to communicate with us or state what their goals are, while it would take us months, if not years, to understand their language enough to do communicate. And that effort might be in vain if they show no interest in it. That only leaves us the option to fight back and defend ourselves."
"But you have not tried to understand. Instead, you sabotaged their spires and want to destroy the Titans. What if they are not here for us? What if it makes it worse?"
"That's hardly something you can know, Kasumi, unless you're hearing things through your link that you're not telling us."
I shook my head. "No. But if they wanted to destroy us, why have they not? Why would they take people without killing them?"
"Kasumi, I understand that you want to see a peaceful resolution to the conflict. I'd very much like the same, but we have to admit to ourselves that it just isn't an option right now. Maybe after it is proven that we can defend ourselves against the Titans, they will be more willing to talk to some of us."
I was... not convinced, and remained in the same position, with the same pose. "And what will happen to the people on the Titans? We don't know what they did, to them. Maybe they want them to talk to us."
An uneasy silence began to settle in, only to be broken almost immediately by Seo coming into the office, so it was not just me and Alba now.
"Seo. Were you looking for me?", Alba inquired at that sudden appearance.
"No. I was looking for her ..." Seo pointed at me. "But she wasn't in her apartment, so I came looking here."
"She was discussing the anti-Titan weapon, and her concerns about it, with me."
I nodded, to confirm, then looked at Seo directly. "But I was here for... something else. I want help with... something. A... letter, maybe."
"What kind of letter?", Alba asked.
"About... the abducted. I want people to not... overreact, if they turn. Or... are changed, like me.", I explained. "But... I don't know how to write it."
"Feel free to sit down, then, Kasumi. It might take some time to get it written, once you've explained your idea in more detail." Alba looked at Seo. "Would you like to help her as well, Seo?"
"Of course.", Seo replied, though remained standing. I'd wanted to ask for her help, too, anyway.
Looking around... there was a 'suspicious' and quite convenient chair without arm rests placed by the wall, near a corner, so it wouldn't get in the way anywhere. Seeing as I was - probably - the only person to require such a chair to even sit in the first place, I took the liberty of moving it to the desk, then sat down on it... still quite enjoying that odd feeling of my body's soft mass sprawling to the sides under the weight of the upper half. And I pulled out... a piece of paper, alongside a pen, unfolding the paper on the desk. It got me a curious look by both of the other women.
"You're writing on... pen and paper? Why not a datapad?", Seo asked, sounding... almost dumbfounded.
I nodded in response. "I... want to write. To see how good I am at it, maybe. Hand writing."
Alba didn't comment even when I looked at her, so I began to write, in... reasonably legible, but very average hand writing. It certainly wouldn't win any awards for style, but it was good enough, while I noted down the various points I wanted to structure this letter around. Mostly, it was about appealing to people to be lenient and still consider those people... people, not a "threat from the Thargoids", but also to remain considerate and not judge them if something was done to them that makes them hybrids, as well as keep in mind that they had no choice in the matter, while some of them might be willing to help humanity even after getting 'turned', rather than be controlled by the Thargoids.
But I didn't know how to articulate those four points well, and what to title it, exactly. I had three ideas for the title in mind, and wrote those down too. Then I presented the paper with my scribbled notes on it, all centered around the top so I could write more below.
"Hm ..." Alba contemplated my scribblings. "If you have the ideas already, what's stopping you from writing the letter?"
"I... don't know how to write them out.", I explained, blushing a little from embarrassment. "I need a little help with... it."
"It's okay.", Seo said. "It's not wrong to ask for help if you need it. Come on."
She moved to my left and spun the paper around, looking at the titles.
"Those look good, but you should capitalize some of the letters."
I tilted my head slightly, a little confused. "Why? That is... weird."
"It's just a writing rule. Something to make the reader more interested."
"... okay."
It bothered me a little, that it was this way, but I could always decide later. I wanted to focus on picking a title first and so made things go along that direction first. Once settled on one of the three options, the next hour or two... maybe three, were spent on properly writing out the ideas and arguments for them, until I felt happy enough with the end result. Throughout the process, a small part of my mind was amused with the idea of how this had to look because of my oversized body, deeply focused on writing this letter, on a chair without arm rests, and hips so big they spread past the surface area to sit on.
Once it was done, I folded the paper back together, and then stood up... mostly, so that I could actually access one of the front pockets of my pants, since the internal pressure, and my size, made it almost impossible to slip anything in there while sat down.
"I will... publish it later. When there is a good time.", I announced, feeling... a little proud about it, even. "And copy it to this."
I pointed at the miniaturized computer on my wrist. Having it was actually really quite handy, and I liked its compact design, compared to dragging around a datapad everywhere that I went. And I couldn't exactly stuff one into my pant pockets either, since they were only at the front - as I badly disliked back pockets due to how they looked - and those pants were kind of 'filled' already, at that. Or maybe I just wanted people to have an unimpeded look at how big I was back there. Or both.
"Why'd you want to write this?", Seo inquired, visibly curious... though she probably kind of knew the answer already. It wasn't that hard to figure out.
"I want to ..." I stopped for a second, rethinking my wording. "They are still people, even if they are not... biologically human. Like me. And we should treat them as people. Maybe, they could even help us talk... to the Thargoids. If they turn."
"You know that we haven't been able to determine if they were affected by the Thargoids in any way, Kasumi.", Alba reminded me.
I nodded. "I know. But I... want to have done this. If anything happens. It... matters to me."
It did a lot, feeling like it was... close to my heart. If just for the reason that I was pretty much the example of a human turned hybrid by the Thargoids, though with, until recently, little apparent signs on the surface. And, deep inside... I knew that anyone like me would be viewed with suspicion, especially with the war, so I hoped that... I could maybe, moderate some of it. Somewhat of a silence settled in, while I moved to the side of the chair, and pushed it to the desk until its back was flat against it. And I worked up some courage to ask for something else I felt that I really wanted.
"Can I... go to the city?"
That got Alba to raise an eyebrow. "Why do you want to go there?"
"I... want to... see it. To walk around there, maybe. I think I need things for my ship, too. Like... clothes." I put on a begging look with my eyes wide open, like a child trying to convince a parent about a present, though it was mostly theatrical. "Pleeeeease."
I began to hop on my toes slightly, because I was a little excited, which... also caused something of a more amplified bounce up on my chest, where I had those big bags of fun. Even wearing a bra only created some stability, since it was mostly just intended to support their weight.
"I'm not sure if that's a good idea.", Alba remarked. "There are people out there who would take any opportunity to do you harm, and with your body ..."
"Let her go, Alba.", Seo threw in. "She won't do anyone any harm there, and she's been training to defend herself. Right?"
I nodded. "I will behave. I promise. But I want to see what it is like."
Alba sighed. "Alright, fine. You can go there in two days. We'll review how you get there and other important aspects tomorrow, but I expect you to be back before nightfall. And look at what you need in your ship, today."
"Okay. Will Seo come too?"
"I'm afraid not. She should be better here, and we have something planned that she is needed here for on Friday."
I looked at Seo. She just shrugged, seeming to not mind this. It felt like they weren't telling me about some concern they had, but I decided not to ask about it. I was more happy I'd been allowed to leave.
"Can I... go?", I then asked. "I want to look around my ship."
"If you don't have any more questions.", Alba replied. "I'm not keeping you here, Kasumi. You came of your own accord, after all."
I didn't need to be told anything else. I picked up my pen, clipped it on the edge of the pant pocket with the paper in it, and turned around to leave. Seo looked ready to follow, but Alba called her back.
"Please stay another moment, Seo. We have something else to discuss."
I was a little curious what they were going to talk about, but decided I wasn't that interested in listening in... even if I probably should have, given the subject that the two did talk about, in the office. So I walked off toward the hangars, where my ship was. All available information called it a 'Krait Phantom', but I could do little with that designation. And even looking at its flight characteristics... didn't seem to help me much. I'd have to fly it to get a feeling, but that was just not an option right now. I had no clue how to fly a ship after losing those memories, so I'd probably just crash it. Or not even manage to take off.
I recalled that I did have a VR simulation device, and could probably re-learn the basics there. Maybe that was what I needed to recover those memories, reflexes and all that, since it seemed to be how my brain found them again... or, at least, how the implant was able to put whatever it had preserved back in there. Much to my dismay, though, it was getting harder to find things that could bring memories back, even when reading logs of things I had supposedly done and - if I could, be that physically or in VR - going to those places. And the memories of people especially were just... not there, any longer, and I couldn't understand why. It, all of those absent memories, made the emotions floating around inside me meaningless, when I knew they should have had meaning. And it annoyed, frustrated me. Something that didn't elude 'Kira' in the implant, but there was little consolation she could offer.
Suddenly... I was already in the hangar, completely lost in thoughts to the point that I didn't even notice all of the 'views' that I - still - got. And I walked up to the front elevator, which, it turned out, was actually just very barely wide enough to fit me without... too much squeezing or discomfort. I still stood sideways to not get my thighs caught anywhere, anyway. And the first place I visited was the cockpit. A brand new seat sat in the middle of it, in a red and black color pattern that I liked, and quite evidently, widened at the hip level to accommodate for my bigger size. I could flip the controls, panels and whatnot to the side to, quite comfortably, sit down in in, too. Even with the soft mass spread out under the force of gravity, I fit now, indicating it had been designed with... some tolerance toward that. The base looked somewhat reinforced, too, and it generally looked quite well-made.
A slight problem did occur when I tried to flip the panels over my thighs, because... they clashed with them. I was so big that, even with gravity pushing down, I sat so much higher that my body got in the way of those instruments. Which was not ideal.
"EDI?", I called out to the strange AI construct on the ship. Its hologram popped up.
"Yes, Kira?"
'Don't remark on the name ...', I thought to myself before replying.
"Look at... this.", I said, pointing at how those instrument panels flipping toward the chair's center - and, given how wide it was, doubling up as arm rests - uncomfortably pushed them into my big thighs. "They don't fit. I'm too big."
I chuckled at this... it was both an admission and a realization of how I'd just gone way too far with it thanks to my state of mind when my hips had begun to widen, but I didn't care now, even loving this problem of my own creation. Because I was, just, in love with my body.
"I will order an adjustment. May I ask why you are here today?"
"I'm... going to a city! In two days." I was unable to mask the excitement in my voice when saying that, and there was a certain shine in my eyes, too. "Alba allowed me. I want to look around for... anything I need, here, that I can pick up there."
"I see.", EDI replied, while I flicked the controls and panels aside, very happy to relieve the pressure on my thighs again. That was not a bother I wanted to fly with... if I ever would again. A part of me felt, or knew, that I was going to again, not too long from here. And I stood up from the pilot's seat, heading over to my personal cabin. As expected... the only clothes there were ones made to fit my original body, and that was... so hopelessly inadequate now it wasn't even funny.
I wouldn't ever wear these again, but I didn't want to dump the clothes either, so I left things where they were, and closed the drawers back up. I'd only need a few more shirts and sets of pants, if any, so I would focus on trying to find some hoodies, and their hoodless counterparts, bras and, maybe, some more underwear for the lower half if I could find some. Though I, kind of, knew that... I'd really most likely have to ask for custom fits to be made, due to the quite unusual proportions of my... non-rounded parts, relative to my curves. At least I had the measurements saved to my wrist computer.
I turned my attention to the bed. Contemplating it, I wasn't sure if I could still fit on it too well... it was a standard, one person size bed, after all. And I was a lot wider now.
"Do you think I can... fit?", I openly asked into the room to catch EDI's attention, an arm stretched out toward the bed.
"The measurements of your body suggest your form does not exceed the width of the bed. However, it may only narrowly fit.", the AI replied, and paused for a second. "I recommend testing whether it will be comfortable for you, before deciding if you want to replace it with a wider frame."
"Okay."
I hauled my big form on the bed and tried to position myself in its center as best as possible, flat on my back. There definitely was some space present on either side of my wide hips, but not as much as I liked. And, given how I 'rotated' quite differently if I wanted to change position, I had to be... a little too careful to not fall off for those 'Be a lazy thing in bed' moments, where I didn't want to be careful. I sat upright on the bed to relieve my lower back muscles, desperately trying to keep the spine in its natural position while my oversized rear lifted it up.
"I will get a new bed. And some pillows, for... under my back."
I'd just have to find out where. But maybe Alba could help me with that tomorrow, since I was told to come there again that day, to plan the visit out a little better.
I noticed the pen from my pocket was missing, then. I searched for it on the bed, as it had come out of the pocket and landed somewhere... under the right thigh, where my fingers found it. And the one thought that came into my mind first was... that it really spoke to how thick my voluptuous thighs were that I basically didn't even notice it pushing into them, until I found it there. And I quite liked the sensations of my fingers brushing against that big, soft mass during the searching process. Getting off the bed and standing back up, I returned the pen to the pocket in that same position. I'd thought about leaving it and the paper here, but decided against that - I would be spending more time in my apartment than the ship, so taking them back with me would be more useful.
"I suggest getting a mattress with a custom shape, Kira.", EDI then said. "It may alleviate the issue of the gap formed under your waist, by your body."
I tried to think on that suggestion for a little while... to no avail. "Pillows is simpler.", I replied, and looked at the sleeping bag, placing both hands on my hips. I definitely wouldn't fit in there without either getting stuck, stretching it dangerously thin, or putting some holes into it. "Need one of those, too."
I noted all of those items down for later reference, on my wrist computer, or I'd probably end up forgetting about them. Then, I noticed the locker with my armor was open. And... there was a new one present, too, with a visibly rounder chest piece to fit over my big breast. But I wasn't too bothered to try it on yet and left it be, instead going to the armory. Mostly, to examine what ammo I had for my weapons, but also to look at my suits. All three were... upsized now, with quite nice and generous space where my enlarged parts would go. And the ammo situation looked acceptable, if a little low for the plasma pistol that I had. The 'new' assault rifle also sat in its spot in a weapon locker quite nicely, though I yet had to get more ammo for it.
I added it to my list of things to buy, then took it off again and created a separate reminder... because I could actually just get that here in the Aegis HQ too, if I didn't find a suitable store in that city. And I kind of didn't feel like carrying a few dozen ammo magazines around with me while I was also looking for clothes. And furniture items, which reminded me that any chairs around would need to be replaced. Maybe the single-seater sofas too, if there were any. So another item went on the list. And I sighed, realizing I'd have to do this for every single ship I owned, or at the very least those ones I actually still wanted to fly myself.
"I can request replacements for all your ships once you have settled on which items you would like in them.", EDI proposed, as if she'd read my thoughts.
"Yes. That... that'd be nice.", I replied in a low tone, as I was already beginning to feel a little overwhelmed. Luckily, this seemed to be it. And my usage history suggested that I used this ship most of the time, so not much would really need to be moved to the others frequently, saving me the need to get a ton of clothes.
I returned to my cabin to take a few pictures of the chairs and such that needed replacing in there, to get an idea of the visual style I was going to want to look for, then... there was one part of the ship I hadn't explored yet, which appeared to be some kind of vehicle hangar, with space for one. Upon entering the bay, I was faced with a four-wheeled surface vehicle, which had decent armor panels, and a gun with what looked like some kind of explosive launcher attached. The word 'Scorpion' was painted on its side.
I found a few buttons around it, too, and pushing the big red one - because of course I did - caused the vehicle to be lowered down into the hangar, where it hit the surface with something of a loud thud. Now I had to wonder how to get down there myself, because that wasn't really what I'd intended, but I could at least examine it more easily that way.
My answer came in the form of a ladder which extended downward, to the surface. I worried for a moment if it could take my weight, but it turned out to be a baseless concern.
Walking around the 'Scorpion', there wasn't much to note besides one... maybe two access hatches, in the middle, with the engine clearly being in the back. And looking in through the glass at the front, I could see two seats, one for the driver, and another... for the turret? That confused me. What was the point of having the vehicle on a ship I would fly alone if it required two people to operate?
I opened an access hatch to get inside, and... couldn't. No matter how much I tried to squeeze myself in through there, at different angles, my big rear quite simply just refused to slip through with me, and eventually I gave up. This was in no way practical, even if I could get inside, as I'd go through that same horrendous struggle to get back out. Something made me tap on the wrist computer, and... talk to the ship.
"EDI? I will need another... thing."
"What is it, Kira?", she responded.
"This... vehicle. Do you have cameras on the outside?"
"I do. Why?"
"Then you can see, if you go through the footage. I don't fit inside. My back is too fat and it gets stuck. In that hatch." I pointed at it, more annoyed than anything.
"It should be possible to request a modified version of the vehicle with a larger access hatch, without significantly compromising protection or internal space. Do you wish for me to do so?"
"Yes." To say I was a little exasperated was an understatement. For some reason, this particular instance was one where my big body really annoyed me. "And... make sure they give it a bigger seat to drive, too."
I closed the hatch and took a few steps back, more instinctively than because I knew what would happen, then hit a prompt on my wrist computer to send the 'Scorpion' back into the hangar. A kind of "arm" came down and picked up the vehicle, pulling it into the underbelly of the ship. The two doors closed once there was sufficient clearance, hiding the vehicle bay from view. I left the ship hangar and returned to my apartment, beginning to feel excited about the prospect of visiting the city, again... though I hadn't yet quite put down what I was excited about for, within that visit.
----------
Two days later...
24:00 local time
Today was the day. Ordinary for most people, perhaps, but not for me. Within that limited set of memories and experiences I had... this was a first.
I woke up feeling excited, though for more than just the city visit, since I'd experienced another pleasant, particularly erotic dream that involved unreasonably large, increasing body part sizes. And it was keeping me distracted from another nightmare involving Thargoids from earlier in the day, while I lay there somewhat lazily, for another fifteen minutes, after shutting up the alarm.
I dragged myself over to the bathroom after getting up, and squeezed into the shower, where I... yet again, got completely carried away once the water began to tickle those sensitive parts of my body in just the right way. So I spent at least a good thirty minutes in it, teasing my body until its limits were exceeded, and then doing the actual cleaning part - because it was just too easy to get carried off in my instincts, even now.
Once I was dry, I dressed up. And my eyes fell on that jacket which seemed to be a bit of a tighter fit. Of course... I decided to put it on over my shirt. And it... kind of worked to highlight my big chest, even though it was impossible to actually get the zipper to go any further than just underneath the breast curve. So my shirt was visible underneath that, quite tight, black leather-ish jacket, which seemed to show off my size even more. It actually looked good.
I still spent time actually looking at myself in a wardrobe mirror, holding the right breast with that same hand, slightly off to its side, while the left one was left to hang along the side of my body. And I... smiled, subtly, but I actually genuinely felt a smile forming on my face. It was all still just... so good, the size, roundness, even the odd color of my skin I began to accept more and more...
Kira was around, too, sending similarly positive impulses, from wherever she was poking around in my brain now... an inactive section. Somewhere that I couldn't 'follow', so much as the word applied for sending out an electrical signal through the brain, so I reached out to the implant itself instead, 'stopping' at the physical barrier between it and the brain. Since no response came quickly, I began to think on that whole matter again... because it was really confusing.
Mostly, because I struggled to figure out exactly where the distinction lay. Where 'she' stopped' and 'I' began, since we were effectively two almost identical minds, sharing the same body. But it... just didn't feel quite right that I inhabited it. I was not... really, 'Kira', but more of a... copy, which had been created entirely by accident, and inherited her memories, the same feelings, emotions, social awkwardness, reactions and responses to what was happening in the world around me. I couldn't, or rather didn't, even use her name.
Something about that 'presence' within my mind changed, telling me that I had her attention. And I wasted little time getting to the point.
'If you like this body so much, why... are you not in it?', I inquired. And felt the mental equivalent of a sigh coming through.
'I... can't.', 'Kira' answered.
'Why not?'
'It... is not simple. And you should maybe go outside now.'
'I want to know. I have time.'
'Fine. But don't complain to me if you end up having to rush.' A brief pause followed. The reason why I want you to be in control is because... I can't be trusted. Not again.
'But why?'
'It's just... the Thargoids. You haven't been affected or fooled by them. I... failed. I let them get the better of me. But you... you haven't made that same mistake, and you can learn. From my own mistakes. And... do better.'
'But... I shouldn't even exist.'
'It doesn't matter. You're here now. And we should both use that as an opportunity.'
'Why can't I be in the implant instead of you?'
'You... you wouldn't be able to control any of it well. But I'm trying to keep their influence away from you, so you can form your own personality from... what I have experienced. And it's... difficult.'
'It doesn't feel right.'
'None of this is right. Nothing in this world is, or we wouldn't be talking about any of this. We wouldn't both be a fucked up mess in a body that is neither really Thargoid nor human. All I can do now is try to give you the best possible chance at actually doing things right.'
'... okay. Will you... always be there?'
'As long as I can be.'
'Could you... do something about the nightmares? They're not nice.'
'I... can't, no. Sorry. They're partly caused by the link the implant has to the Thargoids, just like the visions during the day. And it can't just be shut down. It needs it to work, somehow.'
I felt disappointed at hearing that, and let the feeling do the talking for me. But I also knew I needed the implant to even be able to live now.
You really should get going.'
Kira's presence withdrew. And I looked at my wrist computer... seeing that the bus would be there in ten to fifteen minutes. And I'd need at least that much time to go to its stop.
"Oh no! Shit, I'm going to be late!"
'I told you.'
'Shut up.'
I knew she had a point, but didn't really want to hear it. I quickly slipped into some basic sneakers and rushed out of the apartment, much to the surprise of the guards. Luckily, my training allowed me to keep a quick pace now, at least, so I was... not horribly slow when going to the bus stop outside the primary entrance. And that bus... was very much already there, with its engine running. It looked ready to leave at any moment now, but someone, maybe the driver, stood outside watching. Waiting to see if anyone came, probably.
"Wait!", I shouted, and... at least made an attempt to run, which was extremely hopeless and transformed into a stumble that I caught myself from on my knees. Learning that was really going to be difficult, and frustrating. 'Maybe I shouldn't have gotten so carried away in the shower', I thought to myself.
Luckily, they didn't appear to be in a rush to leave. Unluckily, I... couldn't really fit through the narrower front entrance very well, prompting the person outside to shake their head, looking ready to facepalm at this and the 'show' of me trying to get to the bus faster. They waved me to the back entrance. Technically made for two people, my very widened hips still took most of it up by themselves.
The good thing about the bus was that not many people were currently inside it, maybe owing to it being right about in the middle of the day, for this planet's day and night cycle. And those people that were inside... most definitely stared at me, which partially counted as a positive for me right now, too.
The bad things - trying to fit myself through the corridor between the seat rows was something of a pain, owing to my hips quite literally, and constantly, colliding with said seats. Not to mention any people that were sat on the outer one, for any reason, though they currently all had space to move out of my way, right now, as I tried to go to the back of the bus... because I wanted to be there.
Then, I ran into the issue of... a single seat quite simply just not being enough for my enlarged form. Which meant that I needed two for myself, either a pair, or... two of them in the 'box' at the very back end. I picked one of the two seater rows, and once settled, the third issue turned out to be... that there was really no way for me to adequately put on a seat belt. Even if I'd managed to pull one all the way across two seats, which they didn't appear to be designed for, it would have been far too 'tight' and dug into my thighs in a very uncomfortable way, because I sat a lot higher than the average human. And so... I simply decided to go without it.
At least the bus driver had waited to drive off until I'd sat down somewhere... falling in here would have been quite embarrassing and not reflected well on my intended image of being able to handle this body quite decently, now. Not to mention that I still intended to avoid another 'smacking on the backside' incident somewhere public, as those were... quite embarrassing.
The bus ride itself was... fairly uneventful, and I divided my attention between reading news and just... looking out of a window, kind of wishing I could sit a little closer to and lean against it better, but that was a privilege reserved for women without oversized hips. At least, it was a sacrifice I was very willing to make to feel this... happy.
One person - another woman, as it happened - at a particular stop had thoughts of trying to sit next to me for a moment, as some more people were getting on, but quickly decided against that attempt, as I seemed to take up half of the other seat even when I was as far to the right as possible. I'd observed this with some mild interest, and amusement, then shrugged it off when the expression on her face indicated she realized there was no space next to me, except for maybe a very thin person. And even that would have been a quite narrow fit without risking hip bumping.
After about an hour of driving, a lot of which was through flat plains with either forest or mountain terrain in the far background, I could clearly see the city coming up. But I wasn't going to get out in the outskirts - it was more likely that I'd find what I needed to visit around its central parts. Or, rather, I knew from the rough plan I had set up with Alba. So I kept an eye on the stops coming up, and when mine came, I readied up.
First, I let people go ahead of me, which... they seemed quite grateful for. Except for one man who seemed quite insistent on letting me pass first, whatever the reason for that was... I had my suspicions, but those were hard to prove, as everyone seemed to start staring in my direction from the moment that I appeared, not that I minded... at least, for now. Or maybe that man did just want to be behind me in case I got 'stuck'... thankfully, despite repeated fighting with the seats, I got out of that bus relatively fine.
Next step... getting to the nearby city plaza, or at least it was the quickly improvised goal that came up in my brain. And, the more I walked, the more I realized... I was out here because I wanted to be looked at. To see the reactions of people that had absolutely no idea who I was, or that I had this really damn curvy form. And their reactions were... exactly as I expected.
Most people stared. Some of them whispered, or spoke in a hushed tone. And the rest were either not that interested, or... just didn't know what to do with my appearance, which was so out of the ordinary. And I loved it, the glyph on my hand glowing in a warm, green tone as a result of that, of the attention - though it was, quite consciously, hidden underneath a glove, else people would have been rather unsettled. My walk cycle emphasizing my body naturally, without 'artificial' swaying input, made it look even more interesting to bystanders.
Normally, I was not very sociable, but... I could make a singular exception for this unique experience. I received a lot more views once I reached the plaza, which... also appeared to be connected to a large shopping center. I knew I'd definitely find something for my clothing situation in there, and my social needs were already satisfied by this short exposure, now that I'd proven people were... quite fond of pointing or staring at my body in shock, awe, amazement... and a number of other things. I especially 'enjoyed' the looks of those that were completely dismayed and maybe even annoyed at my figure - they were the kinds of people that I especially wanted this figure for, if just to prove them wrong about their preconceived notions of what was 'acceptable'.
One particular woman even had the courage to question me about my form a little, directing some questions at how I felt, and managed to look so natural, in it, exhibiting a... very clear interest. I had to disappoint her slightly when she asked about which place I had done such a surgical intervention at, as... I hadn't, but helped her along by using my wrist computer to search for reputable places offering them, with appropriately qualified personnel, certifications and patient opinions to back that up. Some even seemed to have more... experimental methods of doing so through implants that, temporarily, and safely, aimed to alter hormone balance, to make the body build up mass in those certain areas again, up to the desired size. Much like my own had done, except possibly more limited and slower in application, and also maybe not too well researched yet. Though those came without having Thargoids stuck in one's head, so it was probably worth looking at.
She still looked content at my help, and... also didn't quite stop a remark on how "fucking hot" I looked from slipping out, before walking off, probably with new plans in mind. I of course couldn't quite know how those would end up looking like, but I had a fairly good idea, not even mentioning that she wanted to feel my body. Something that I politely declined, as I... really was not too interested in that kind of attention, even if I welcomed looks and interested questions.
Slipping into the shopping center itself provided a relief from the busy noise outside, though I didn't get far before another amusing scene played itself out behind me, started off by a child's voice.
"Mommy! Look at that woman! Why is she so big?"
"Jeremy!"
I turned my head to see what that was all about, and saw a fairly young boy pointing a finger at me, and my... "features". Along with his embarrassed mother telling him off slightly.
"Pointing fingers at strangers is impolite." She gazed over at me. "Sorry about that."
I shrugged it off, lightly amused, and walked forward again... onto the upper floor, though preferring to take the rolling stairs rather than the 'normal' ones. Somewhat to the dismay of clearly rushed people that wanted to go up quicker, but had no space to squeeze past me while remaining decent. I wasn't too bothered - I quite enjoyed this, so far, even when it'd only been a short time yet, and they could have taken the other stairs when they saw me ahead of them.
I suddenly began to feel a strong craving for food, and explored the mall for a place to eat. Sure enough, a couple of places were scattered around, and I ended up settling for my usual preferred choice - Italian restaurant, and for this day, a simple pizza with - generous, per my request - ham coverage, on top of the tomato sauce and cheese. And a good pizza I received, as it barely seemed to fit on the plate that was provided to me. A bonus on top of that, I hadn't needed to ask for any kind of special chair, as there were some tables next to a wall-fitted bench-like sitting spot available... though I did still have to be careful with my movements, because my size made it a slight task to fit myself behind, and the legs under the table, even once sat down.
I completely devoured that pizza, which seemed to make a few people surprised, when they could have imagined I had a certain food intake to get the shape that I did, and also to keep it. And with my belly nice and full, I began to look around for clothing stores. Unsurprisingly, quite a few of those were scattered throughout this mall. I settled on one that seemed like it was offering clothing items of fairly decent quality - a more important factor, now that I would exert a higher stress on anything that I wore - and began to poke around inside... of course, still attracting more views. Some began to focus on my upper half more, with the way the jacket kept everything neatly highlighted without exposing any cleavage, thanks to the shirt underneath.
Basic underwear needs were... a little tricky. While I eventually found some decent underwear 'shorts' for my lower half that appeared to be of adequate size, to fit snugly without being tight and revealing, the matter of the bras was not so simple. Either they had the right cups, but not band, or the other way around. And that was if they were even the right size at all, because I was so big that I barely fit into standard or 'natural' measurement categories not involving surgery.
I grabbed a few shirts, pants hoodies and their hoodless sweatshirt counterparts, of which I liked the design - usually, black or dark blue with little to no extra 'markings' on them - but the story was a similar thing when I went to try those on... partly wishing I had someone with me to help carry the stuff, since I only had so much space in my arms.
None of it really fit, except for the oversized hip underwear. Because of the odd offset of my female features, pants were either too narrow on the hips if they fit the calves, or too loose around those same calves if they worked for the hips, and by association thighs. And most were a bit too tight around the backside specifically.
Equally, the shirts and hoodies were... similarly inadequate, either fitting the breast nicely but too loose everywhere else, or too tight if they hit the right spot on the waist. And I hadn't even bothered to try any of the bras - that was such a hopeless situation, from the combination of that totally oversized breast and thin upper body everywhere else, I could tell from just looking. So I... came back out with my stuff and presented it to one of the local staff, who looked at me slightly perplexed.
"Is there a problem, madam?", they asked.
"I would say... yes. None of this really... fits very well." I gestured at my big body sections, as well as I could. "And I couldn't find a good bra."
"Oh. I see. Would you have measurements to provide, perhaps?"
"I do."
I walked over to a convenient dropoff point and dumped my 'prizes' there. Then activated the wrist computer and selected the file with those measurements I'd received, displaying it to the worker to note down.
"Are these the specific models you'd like?" I nodded. "Great. We'll get custom fits made for you, that won't be an issue. I just require an address to deliver these to once they are ready."
"Kasumi Goto. Aegis headquarters. I... currently stay there. The people will know where to bring it when it arrives."
"Of course. Do you require anything else?"
"Do you.... not happen to have a bra for my size available?"
"I'll go check. Wait here, please."
The worker walked off. In that time, I sorted through the pile to get those underwear items for the lower half out of it - as I could at least take them with me, right now. And the employee returned with two bras.
"Here you go. Try these two."
I grabbed both and disappeared in a changing cabin again. The first bra was... still a little too tight on the band, even if the cups were right. The second one, however, fit so perfectly that I... completely forgot it was not actually mine yet. And a red light lit up above the cabin when I left it.
"I did nothing wrong!", I proclaimed, surprised, and less than amused.
"Maybe you should check if you forgot to put the right bra back on.", a bystander remarked.
"... oh."
And that, of course, was the problem. I swapped it out for the correct one and proceeded to checkout with my newly acquired things... already beginning to feel that oddly familiar sense of "Why I don't like doing shopping". Apparently, Kira had little patience for it, and neither did I. Especially with such an unordinary body to further complicate matters.
I wasn't quite done yet, though. I still had furniture and a bed to look for. The former of which I'd probably need either larger than usual sizes, or custom ones for, too. Beds, I just planned to buy one for two people, with an extra soft mattress. But, as there was no such store present within this particular shopping mall, I had to go look around elsewhere, and found a dedicated shop for those things a little further away.
Upon entering, I immediately sought out the section dedicated to beds. Standard one person, large one person, standard double, king size... so many options. But I had my attention drawn to a - usually, expensive - double person bed of quite high quality. And it was marked out as being suitable for use in ships with magnetic legs, and all that extra, coming by default with a, as my testing revealed, quite nice mattress. But I had no clue how to tell someone that I needed it delivered, and stood in front of that bed model, a little lost. Luckily, a store worker came to my rescue.
"Can I help you?"
"Yes.", I replied. "I need... that." My right arm pointed toward the bed, stretched out. "Delivered to me. A few, actually. For different ships."
"Of course. I need an - "
" - address. I know. Aegis headquarters. Deliver for Kasumi Goto. They'll do the rest."
They nodded. "How many would you like?"
"Uh ..." I had to check that on my wrist computer, as I had a good number of ships. But not all of those I'd really be using that frequently. Especially not the Pythons, which had been gathering dust for a little too long. "I think... eight. Maybe nine."
An eyebrow was raised, of course. "What do you need that many beds for, if I may ask?"
"I have too many ships. I want to have... the more used ones covered."
"I see. Two people?"
I shook my head. "Only me. You see ..." I gestured at my hips with the left hand.
"Oh, of course. I understand. I assume you have the required credits for the purchase?"
"I... think so. Yes."
I wasn't quite tempted to show that I had over twenty billion credits. I didn't even have a damn clue where I'd gotten that ridiculously excessive amount of money from - or why I hadn't used it for something good. And then there was the fact that I had a fleet carrier...
"Actually, make that ten beds. For... an extra that needs to be covered. And I need some... custom furniture items too. Chairs, without arm rests, or at least adjustable. And custom-size sofas for a single person."
"Do you have any specific wishes?"
"Maybe ..." I looked around. There was a handy terminal to review the product catalogue of the store with nearby, and I flicked through it until I found some models that I liked. For the sofas, mostly, the color mattered, and I picked both a few black, blue and red ones, of course, with the option for magnetic legs or bottom ticked. I'd let EDI figure out the exact number needed later on, since it likely differed for each ship. "Hm... and ..."
I added bed sheets and a whole bunch of pillows to the entire thing as well. Then the beds, since it seemed I had the option too. It made me question the need for local human workers, but maybe they were there to provide some familiarity. I could appreciate that, certainly. I double checked everything, ticking the box of 'Add mattress to purchase' for the beds, because I definitely wanted that. Or, at least, to not have forgotten about that. The worker behind me nodded and walked off, seemingly having received that order from the terminal. If it hadn't been paid yet, I'd just do it later. Or tell EDI to, so I wouldn't have to fiddle around with bank accounts once everything was delivered.
I was now definitely out of the 'shopping mood' and left that furniture store, since I'd found all I wanted, while I still had... little interest in locating a gun store. Some more people stared at me, as expected, of course, and... I was beginning to feel both quite content and a little saturated. Yet, not that much time had passed, and it was even still quite hot outside. Which reminded me I'd totally forgotten to put on any sunscreen... luckily, I kept my exposure to the outside quite short whenever I did have to see sun.
A little bit more time was spent wandering around, visiting a local dessert shop for some ice cream, as I did like my sugar once in a while, or quite often, and... this planet definitely always was in season for that stuff. Then a pancake with chocolate cream followed, because apparently I really craved some sweet stuff today. And with that sweet tooth satisfied, I went to pay some local book shops a visit for anything of interest.
It was only in the late afternoon when I felt like I was running out of energy and checked the bus times. One would arrive in... fifteen minutes, going back to the Aegis headquarters, from a close by stop. It'd definitely been quite nice of a thing to do, on my own, and pretty much only contained highlights. Unfortunately... it seemed like the work day, as opposed to the 'time' day, was coming to an end, and a lot more people were around. Two of them, looking like very young adults - even younger than me - had quite a time looking at my form.
"Damn, look at that girl! She's got breasts the size of her head!"
The other one whistled. "Damn. Don't see that every day. Some hips, too."
They both just went quiet when I walked past and they got a view of my even more impressive backside. Now, I also had to make my way through crowds, and was a little pressed for time... inconvenient, at the very least, especially as I needed to squeeze through a lot of narrow spaces in suddenly filled streets.
"Pardon... excuse me... can I... oh. Sorry. Didn't want to bump you."
It was... both embarrassing and in an odd way, exciting, adding a little spice to getting to the bus stop. And, of course, the bus itself was a little full, too. Maybe I should've gone back an hour earlier, I thought to myself, but stepped inside anyway.
Expectedly, I received quite a few looks. Most of those weren't happy about the fact that a woman this big was coming into an already filled bus. And... as I didn't want to remain standing, while noticing a space free enough for me to slip into without getting into anyone's private space too much, I tried making my way to the back of the bus. Semi-successfully, and more slowly, both for trying my best not to bump into the people, who also moved inward as much as they could, and due to the bus moving before I had a chance to sit, further complicating the endeavor.
One man in particular was really giving me a bad side-eye. And, when I was not yet at the spot I wanted to sit but the bus had reached the next spot, someone wanted to get out, leaving me with little more choice than to clumsily back off again, which really set him off.
"Oh, for god's sake. Just drive next time instead of clogging up a public transport, would you?"
I ignored the remark, for now, though remembered exactly where that man sat, after I was able to get to the spot I wanted. The only one I could occupy, really. Thankfully, its location left just enough room for anyone that did want to get out of the bus box to slip by.
When the bus got to the HQ about an hour and a half later - thanks to getting caught up in traffic - that same man was still there. And I... quite deliberately and forcefully hip bumped him, stopping while providing a smug look.
"I don't drive."
And I exited the bus, quickly heading back to the apartment, where I decided to just relax on the bed and read something, and watch some vids, sealing everything off, with as little light as possible on. Today had been quite a good distraction from that whole matter of the war and the anti-Titan weapon, even with the Thargoid voices managing to intrude into my head. Somehow, they were... a lot more manageable now. I couldn't yet determine the reason for that, beyond maybe 'Kira' in the implant doing whatever she was.
I was equally glad no one had bothered me about being 'that Thargoid hybrid'. Maybe no one'd recognized me. It didn't really matter, in the end, as I'd have had fun regardless. And it... was a really good experience. Perhaps one I'd talk to Seo about later, if she wanted, but either she had no intention to come by now that I was back, or sleep overcame me before she had a chance to.
I was also lucky that I hadn't noticed the two Aegis people discreetly shadowing me from a distance, disguised as civilians, in case I needed assistance, or was not as 'docile' as I looked. Had I known, it would certainly have soured the experience a little... even if I'd have understood.
But I didn't become aware of them, and had proven that I was not just something waiting to be set off by the Thargoids either. And so, that excursion was not just a sign of a good recovery, but also my own integrity.
Yet, I was not planning to leave Duamta, or the Aegis HQ, too soon. In some way, it had begun to feel like... home.