Two days after losing the last Wizard’s Eye, Mayu called a meeting in med bay.

Mayu stood outside the door to med bay, “We are waiting for everyone before seeing.”

Becky was shifting her weight from foot to foot and looked excited, “I can’t wait to see what you’ve been doing in there.”

Anton stood next to Mayu, “Mayu is a genius! You’ll never guess what’s in there.”

Becky turned to Anton and looked annoyed, “You already know what Mayu was doing?”

Anton turned to Mayu as if asking permission, then back to Becky when Mayu didn’t say anything, “She needed a little help with… uh… the project.”

Sashae yawned as she stopped next to Becky, “Good morning.”

Becky returned the greeting with a smile, “Good morning Sashae! Did you sleep well?”

Mayu gave Sashae a slight bow, “Good morning.”

Ryan had already greeted her before she came so stayed silent.

Anton began looking around, “Hurry up, Chie.”

Sashae mulled over Becky’s words as her grasp of English was still very basic, “Sleep well? Yes.”

Becky nodded, “Your English is getting better.”

Sashae shrugged and appeared to only partially understand Becky’s compliment, “Okay?”

Chie rounded the corner, her limp from her broken leg nearly gone.

Anton waved her over, “Hurry! You’re gonna love this!” He turned to Becky, “You might not, though…”

Becky raised an eyebrow, “Why wouldn’t I like it?”

Mayu became uncomfortable, “Things maybe not good if on Earth.”

Becky sighed and shook her head, “I’m not sure I want to know any more.”

Ryan had worried about Becky’s reaction, “Uh, Mayu. Should I open the door now?”

Mayu nodded and turned around, “Yes.”

Ryan opened the door, “Anton’s right, what Mayu did was pretty genius. Ethical concerns aside.”

Mayu entered med bay.

Anton followed right after, “Screw ethics!”

Becky followed Anton in, “I’m not going to say anything until I see what you did.”

Chie exchanged looks with Sashae and went in next.

Sashae cocked her head to the side, shrugged, then went in last.

Five vats with a fairy in each lined the wall between the med bay and the room with the resurrection vats.

Anton ran to the right side of the large cylinders and splayed his hands towards them, “Tada! Five fairy clones! With… some slight modifications…”

Becky let out another sigh, “You know what… I’m fine with this.” She knelt next to a cylinder and put her hand on the transparent casing that made up most of the vat, “What modifications?”

Mayu pointed to a fairy. It’s hair only had a few days’ growth, but it was enough to show it was the green-haired fairy, “I was wanting to be helpful. I was thinking maybe I could be making fairies to being drones…”

Becky turned to Mayu, “You’re plenty helpful! You’re a great doctor, and probably our best fighter.”

Mayu blushed, “Thank you.”

Anton put his hand on the vat closest to him, “Yeah, Mayu is pretty awesome! Just wait until you hear about what she did to these clones.”

Everyone turned to Mayu and waited for her to speak.

Mayu looked uncomfortable and turned to Anton, “Can you be telling?”

Anton nodded, “Sure!” He pointed to the blue-haired fairy in the leftmost vat, “Well… Uh… Oh! So Mayu wanted to make these fairies drones we can use to explore, but she wasn’t sure how to control them.” He puffed out his chest and pointed to it, “So she asked me!” He patted the vat, “We weren’t sure what to do so we tried some different things. The fairies wouldn’t even grow until we gave them nanites from their hosts and let them do their thing.” 

Anton knelt down and looked at the fairy in the vat, “This blue-haired fairy, ‘Aoi,’ is the ‘control’ and is a normal fairy.” 

Anton moved to the next tank over that held a fairy with purple hair and red highlights, “We put some of Ryan’s nanites in Murasaki, but the nanites from her host’s body killed Ryan’s nanites.”

Anton moved to the third vat, which held the clone of the green-haired fairy, “We put a comm device in Midori with some of Ryan’s nanites and wired it to the fairy’s brain, but the fairy nanites didn’t like it and kinda went overboard so… uh… yeah…”

Anton moved to the fourth tank that had a golden-haired fairy in it and looked at it with sadness, “We tried killing off the fairy nanites in Kin before putting a comm device and Ryan’s nanites in, but she died without them for some reason.”

Anton’s energy returned when he moved to the last tank that had a fairy with bright orange hair, “We pumped Mikan full of Ryan’s nanites after the fairy nanites did their thing and kept doing it until only Ryan’s were left.” He leaned over and put his hand on the casing, “Not only did Ryan’s nanites keep her alive, but they modified the fairy’s brain to accept the communication device for us. It kinda looks like Ryan’s half robot brain now.”

Ryan could feel his connection to the fairy’s brain, but hadn’t turned it on yet, “Pretty sure Mikan here is under my control but I haven’t tried connecting to her yet.”

Chie seemed impressed, “This is amazing work.”

Becky looked conflicted and avoided looking at the two definitely dead fairies, “Are you going to make more?”

Mayu took a long look at the dead fairies and shook her head, “No. I am thinking this is the end.”

Anton nodded, “Yeah… We almost stopped after the third and fourth fairies died, but we wanted to get at least one success. Ya know?”

Sashae moved next to the fairies, “Fairy. Cool.” 

Chie turned to Anton, “You mentioned the fairy nanites ‘doing their thing.’ What did you mean by that?”

Anton nodded and grinned, “Remember that weird stuff we found in the fairies?”

Chie nodded, “Yes, I remember.” She tapped her chin and nodded again, “You are saying the fairy nanites built these structures?”

Anton turned to the fairies, “Honestly… these nanites are even better than Ryan’s. Only took a few hours after we modified the nutrients with the stuff they needed for them to do everything. Probably would have taken Ryan’s three times as long.”

Chie crossed her arms and studied the fairies, “Fascinating.”

Anton nodded, “Yeah. Whoever made these nanites has some tech even better than Luna’s. Probably.”

Becky stood up. She looked like she was getting impatient, “Well, when are we going to let them out?”

Mayu glanced at Ryan’s camera and nodded.

Ryan gave the command, “Opening vats one, two, and five.”

Becky gave the two dead fairies a sad look, “We should bury them later.”

Mayu nodded, “Yes. That would be good.”

The fluid emptied from the vats, and the fairies slumped to the bottom as they drained.

Once the tubes supplying nutrients and oxygen to the fairies retracted, Mayu opened up Mikan’s tube and pulled her out and placed her on a bed.

Becky pulled out Murasaki and placed her next to Mikan, “You think they’ll wake up?”

Mayu nodded, “They are very healthy.”

Anton pulled out Aoi and placed her on a second bed, “Yep! These girls are perfect clones!”

Mayu retrieved three small blankets from a nearby counter and placed them on the three fairies.

Aoi and Murasaki both started stirring as Mayu put the blankets on them.

Becky touched Murasaki’s hand and smiled gently, “Wakey, wakey!”

Chie moved next to the bed and turned to Mayu after giving Murasaki and Aoi a brief look at each, “What are you planning to do with the blue and purple ones?”

Mayu smiled gently at the fairies, “I will be their mother.”

Becky put her arm over Mayu’s shoulder, “I think you’ll do great.”

Anton sat next to Aoi and sighed, “I guess that makes me dad?”

Becky laughed, “Anton, good luck!”

Murasaki woke up and looked around for a moment, then closed her eyes again.

Chie studied Murasaki, “I suppose these fairies will be blank slates and need to be taught from the beginning.”

Mayu poked Aoi’s cheek, “Yes. I am thinking that too.”

Becky turned to Mikan, “What about her?”

Ryan felt reluctant to turn on his connection to Mikan, “I guess now is the best time to test my connection to her.”

Becky’s face spasmed slightly at the word ‘test.’

Mayu nodded, “Yes.”

Ryan ‘turned on’ Mikan.

A flood of new senses assaulted him. He could hear, see, smell, and feel through Mikan. It made him nostalgic, and he felt truly alive again.

The light was bright, so Ryan kept Mikan’s eyes partially closed until they adjusted.

The room smelled slightly of body odor and got slightly stronger when Mikan turned towards Anton. There was also a hint of cleaner.

Mikan only took up a portion of his consciousness, but the sensations overpowered the others and easily commanded his attention.

Ryan felt more subtle senses once the initial onslaught ended. He felt some sort of energy inside Mikan and that he could use it, but wasn’t sure quite what.

Mikan sat up, the blanket falling down, and Ryan looked at Mayu and Becky through her eyes, “It worked!”

Mikan’s voice was similar to a teenage girl’s, and Ryan felt a little embarrassed.

Mayu looked ecstatic, “It worked!”

Becky hugged Mayu, “You did it!”

Mayu hugged Becky back and the two did a couple excited hops.

Anton bent closer to Mikan, “Ryan…” He grinned, “How’s it feel being so cute?”

Ryan felt Mikan’s cheeks blush, “I… It’s not me! I’m just controlling her!”

Anton patted Mikan’s head, “Hey, I was a cute chick for a while. It’s your turn now.”

Ryan pouted through Mikan.

Chie chuckled, “It appears being trapped as a ship’s AI hasn’t hampered your ability to use body language.”

Becky poked Mikan’s cheek, “And it’s adorable the way you pout!”

Mayu pokes Mikan’s other cheek, “Cute!”

Ryan endured the poking as he had to admit the situation was kinda funny, especially since he got to see it happening from the med bay camera too.

Sashae patted Mikan’s head, “Ryan is this?”

Becky stopped poking Mikan’s cheek, “Yes. A little. Ryan still Luna. Ryan fairy too now.”

It seemed Sashae understood Becky’s simple explanation and nodded, “Ryan now cute.”

Sashae gave one of her rare smiles.

Anton leaned forward, and it was obvious he was trying to hide the bulge forming in his pants “So… you gonna stay naked all day?”

Ryan looked down at Mikan’s naked body. He’d known this was something he’d had to deal with as soon as he’d known what Mayu was up to, but now that he was Mikan, his resolve went out the window and he felt his cheeks flush with embarrassment again.

Ryan pulled the blanket up and covered Mikan’s nakedness, “Mayu, can you grab the clothes?”

Becky chuckled, “Hey, you’ve seen us naked plenty of times! Besides, despite what Anton and Chie say, being a woman is awesome.”

Mayu nodded and glanced at Anton, “Yes, better than being stinky man.”

Anton scoffed, “Stinky? Have you smelled period blood? I’d take BO any day over that.”

Chie nodded heartily in agreement.

Becky shrugged, “Hey, as long as you keep clean down there it's not bad.”

Ryan switched back to speaking through the camera, “I hope fairies don’t have periods.”

Mayu scowled, “Ryan, use fairy voice. It’s cuter.”

Anton nodded, “Yeah, it’s cuter.”

Becky nodded too, “New rule. If someone is with uh…”

“Mikan,” Anton said after realizing Becky couldn’t remember the name.

Becky gave Anton a smile as thanks, “If someone is in the room with Mikan, you need to speak through her.”

Ryan had Mikan shrug, “I’m… okay with that. I’d forgotten how nice it was to use body language, so it’s worth it. I’m keeping my normal voice for comms, though.”

Anton gave Mikan a thumbs up, “Cool.”

Becky gave a satisfied nod, “Sounds good!”

Mayu handed Mikan a dress she’d retrieved from a nearby counter, “Here you go.”

Ryan took the dress and studied it, “I never thought I’d ever wear a dress. You know, since they don’t carry them in spaceship sizes.”

The dress was a shiny navy blue and would go down to the Mikan’s ankles when worn. It was backless to accommodate the large translucent wings. The sleeves went to the elbows but left the shoulders exposed. The front was modest and didn’t reveal any cleavage, per Ryan’s insistence, not that any of the fairies had much bosom to show off. The fabric itself was made from nanotubes for their durability, but had silk accents thanks to the scans they’d made of Sashae’s clothes. The result was a light dress with surprising durability.

Anton chuckled, “I can arrange that.”

Becky seemed to consider it, “It might be funny seeing a spaceship in a dress. Has any fiction ever done that before?”

Chie groaned, “One would hope that is not the case.”

Aoi woke up and groaned.

Mayu moved next to Aoi and knelt next to her, “Good morning Aoi.”

Becky moved next to Mayu, “Um, what do their names mean?”

Anton shrugged and looked disappointed, “They’re just the colors of their hair. Well, except Mikan.”

Mayu held her hand out to Murasaki, “Murasaki is purple.” She turned to Aoi, “Aoi is blue.” 

Ryan raised Mikan’s hand, “And Mikan is an orange, like the fruit.”

Becky smiled, “Aoi and Mikan are cute names. Murasaki is kinda…”

Mayu thought for a second then smiled, “Saki.”

Becky mulled over the name for a moment then gave a satisfied nod, “I like it!”

Anton shrugged again, “I thought Green Wind or Blue Lightning were cooler.”

Mayu shook her head, “Maybe if men fairies.”

Ryan wondered something and he could see Mikan’s face show how he felt, “What if there are only girl fairies?”

Chie tapped her chin, “If so, I would be very interested in their method of reproduction.”

Anton suddenly became very interested, “Yeah, that’s something I’d want to watch.”

Becky face palmed, “Men…”

Mayu looked amused, “Yes, I am interested too.”

Aoi tried moving, but fumbled and nearly rolled off the bed. She started whimpering.

The whimpering woke Saki up and she turned to Aoi, then the crew and looked scared.

Mayu scooped Aoi up and held her to her chest and started humming. She looked the happiest Ryan had ever seen her.

Becky looked less certain about what to do so imitated Mayu and scooped Saki up, “Uh, I’m not good with kids…” She looked down at Saki, “It’s going to be alright.”

Anton groaned and turned to leave, “Uh… I’m gonna head out now. Good luck with the kids.”

Becky stuck her tongue out at Anton, “You just don’t want to help take care of them.” She then looked at Saki and patted her back, “Don’t worry, the mean Klingon is going away.”

Anton rolled his eyes and left.

Aoi relaxed and closed her eyes.

With Aoi calmed down, Saki relaxed too.

Chie walked to Mikan and studied her, “So… What are our plans now?”

Ryan looked up at Chie, “Hmm, the deeper parts of the forest are too dangerous, so I think I’ll scout around the parts near the city.”

Chie nodded, “Perhaps you could… ahem… borrow some artifacts such as those metal rods?”

Mikan laughed, “Only if it doesn’t get Mikan killed.”

Becky turned to Chie and Mikan, “Yeah, be careful with Mikan.” She turned to Mayu, “We won’t be making any more clones, right?”

Mayu had gotten Aoi to fall back to sleep so she looked at Becky and her expression went from bliss to sadness, “Okay. I am thinking no more doing this.”

Ryan noticed a sensation in his stomach he hadn’t missed, “Maybe I’ll grab some food the food processor can handle.” He looked at Aoi and Saki, “Like milk?”

Becky grimaced, “Yeah, that shrew paste was a little much.”

Mayu smiled and looked at Aoi, “I am thinking eating usual food is fine.”

Chie tapped her chin, then smiled, “Perhaps we can convert the bridge into a garden. Some fresh produce would be an excellent supplement to our diet.”

Becky’s face lit up in excitement, “That’s a great idea! Once we’ve got the priority repairs over we should totally do that.”

Mayu turned towards the tubes that grew replacement organs, “Maybe we can be growing meat?”

Chie realized what she meant first and nodded in approval, “Lab grown meat is an excellent idea, and one we can start right away.”

Mayu nodded, then carefully placed the sleeping Aoi on the bed and covered her with a blanket.

Saki had fallen back to sleep too and Becky put her down, “Well, we better get back to work. Mayu, let me know if you need help with anything.”

Mayu smiled at Becky and nodded, “Thank you.”

Becky turned to Chie, “I suppose we should help Anton finish that last Wizard’s Eye.”

Chie nodded in acknowledgement, “Indeed.”

Becky turned to Mikan just before she left med bay, “Have fun, Mikan.”

Becky winked and left.

Now it was just Mayu and the three fairies.

Ryan stood Mikan up for the first time.

She wobbled and almost fell over, but somehow stayed up, “Phew, looks like I don’t need to learn how to stand again.”

Mayu chuckled and spoke in Japanese, “Ryan is… uh… Mikan is... which should I use?”

Ryan wondered how everyone should treat his fairy body.

Ryan replied in Japanese, “Eh, Mikan is fine. Seems weird calling a fairy ‘Ryan.’”

Mayu smiled, “Okay. Maybe it will be confusing at first, but I am happy everyone likes the name.”

Ryan wasn’t too familiar with Japanese names, “Yeah, but most Japanese girl names I’ve heard sound pretty cute.”

Mayu shrugged, “Does Mikan think that is the case? I suppose that is so.” She smiled.

Mikan’s stomach rumbled, “We should get some food for myself and my sisters.”

Mayu looked pleased at Ryan’s use of the word ‘sisters’ and looked between the three of them, “Yes, I am thinking of the three of you as sisters is a wonderful idea.”

Mikan smiled, “I wish you talked this much more often.”

Mayu’s face turned melancholic and she leaned on a bed, “Yes, I would love to do that, but it is very hard following everyone’s conversations in English and I am still not confident.”

Ryan had noticed Mayu’s frustration several times, “Yeah, our conversations do get pretty technical. Still, your English is getting better.”

Mayu’s smile returned, “Does Mikan think that is the case?”

Mikan gave Mayu a gentle smile, “Yeah. I think so.”

Mayu stood back up, “Thank you. I still have much to learn, but I will continue to do my best.”

Mikan’s stomach rumbled again, “I… it’s so weird feeling hungry.”

Mayu laughed lightly at the noise, “Would Mikan like me to get some food for Mikan?”

Ryan still felt unsteady on Mikan’s feet, “Hmm, let me see how well I do with the feet and wings. I’d like to get it myself if I can.”

Mayu sat on the bed and watched with interest, “I am rooting for Mikan!”

Ryan stepped forward and immediately fell.

Ryan saw how comical it looked and Mikan laughed, “Okay… maybe I still need some practice.”

Mayu smiled, slid off the bed, and gave Mikan a light pat on the head, “Mikan will do it with more practice.” She glanced at the other two fairies, then turned to leave, “I will be back with the food.”

Ryan realized he finally had to eat the food processor paste, “Uh… is there any meat left?”

Mayu shook her head and gave him a knowing smile, “Mikan needs to eat something simple at first.”

Ryan really didn’t want to try the food paste, “Anton has some cooked meat hidden in his room. I’d really…”

Mayu gave Mikan a stern look, “Mikan needs to be careful until Mikan is used to eating.”

Mikan’s shoulders drooped, “Okay.”

Mayu smiled and left.

Ryan knew he could refuse to turn on the food processor but didn’t think it was worth the trouble and started making the concoction Mayu had designed for the fairies.

While Mayu was gone, Ryan tried putting the dress on Mikan.

It wasn’t as hard as he thought it would be as only the loop that went around the neck had a clasp, and it was more a matter of getting the still unfamiliar body to cooperate. Being able to see what Mikan was doing through his camera was a big help too.

If only his back didn’t feel so exposed.

Mayu returned with three of the small cups they’d prepared for the fairies, “Time to eat!” 

Mayu sat next to Mikan.

As Mayu handed Mikan her cup, Ryan felt a sort of malicious joy coming from her, “You’re making me eat this on purpose.”

Mayu smiled sweetly, “Mikan needs to be careful with Mikan’s food. Ryan needs to experience our food suffering.”

Mikan laughed, “I knew it! I knew you guys would make me eat this stuff if I ever got a body!”

Mayu’s smile turned more mischievous, “I am grateful for the food, but it is not a happy experience.” She gestured towards the cup, “Please eat.”

Ryan studied the beige paste through Mikan and the med bay’s camera, “I’m sorry you had to eat this all the time.”

Mayu smiled and waited.

Mikan gulped. Ryan was going to get it over with as fast as she could.

Mikan put the cup to her lips and started chugging.

It… wasn’t that bad. Just a little sweet, but mostly chalky.

Ryan stopped halfway, “Ugh… maybe drinking it so fast wasn’t the best idea.”

Mikan’s stomach protested somewhat, but he could already feel it settling down.

Mayu looked into the other cups, “I hope this is not poisonous to fairies.”

Ryan looked back into the cup and sighed, “I told you not to worry about it. I’m sure it’ll be fine.”

Mayu looked sadly at the two sleeping fairies, “I do not want to kill any more fairies.”

Ryan plugged Mikan’s nose and took another gulp, then stood up, “These two are lucky to have you as their mother.”

Mayu smiled sadly, “I am not a good mother. I left Aya without hers.”

Ryan scooted Mikan next to Mayu’s leg and put her hand on it, “Aya’s mother WILL see her again. I’ll do everything I can to make sure it happens.”

Mayu looked like she was about to cry, but slid off the bed and walked to a stand of DNA samples, “Thank you, Ryan.”

Ryan stood Mikan up and watched Mayu for a moment.

He’d noticed how hard she worked herself and he felt he understood why because he did it too. The others did as well. They worked to keep their painful memories in the background. They rarely rested because the memories would come back.

He thought back to how much he’d learned about his fellow crewmates and realized he barely knew anything about them. He too avoided talking about his past, and he could tell how uncomfortable the others got in the same situation.

Perhaps… Perhaps that needed to change? Would they ever get past their previous lives if they avoided talking about it?

Deep down the thought terrified him. Remembering his family. His friends. The life he’d been torn away from.

Even if he made it back to Earth things would never return to the way they had. He knew there was a grave with a body under it somewhere back on Earth. A grave with his decaying body. 

Yet he still wanted to go back.

Mikan took a step and fell over.

Mikan stood back up, only to fall over again.

Ryan felt a new resolve forming in himself. Until now, they only lived to survive. Now… Now he wanted to see his crew happy, and help them, and himself move forward instead of hiding from the past they’d lost.

I'm still not sure how to handle the whole Ryan/Mikan dynamic. I'll probably stick with how I did it in this chapter unless it's too confusing.

Anyway... Ryan finally got genderswapped and as a fairy of all things. Does it count as a genderswap if he's controlling the body remotely?