Jack's New Position

"That is truly terrifying but there is still one more hitch in that plan. I have no idea why they chose me. My memory was wiped after the meeting just like every other applicant. That's how the game works. Everyone gets their memory erased. Even the winner. This guarantees they can use it again when my time is over. The game goes back to square one for everyone. So I couldn't tell you if I wanted to."

More silence ensued. Then fierce whispering.

Jack was getting nervous. They were beginning to sound desperate.

There was another loud gunshot and Jack jumped. That shot was from within the room. The cold voice came back.

"So... there was no way to win from the start. It was a fixed game."

"Well, you were trying to cheat and the game doesn't allow for that." Jack said cautiously.

"Then maybe it won't be such a loss to reset the game." The voice was so very cold and Jack's mouth went dry.

"Is- is that a butterfly?"

Brilliant blue wings flapped erratically until it landed on Jack's forehead. He looked up in confusion.

A second one landed on his shoulder followed by a third on his chest.

"What the hell- URK!" There was a thump of someone falling. Jack felt like he was going to throw up, his stomach was so tied up in knots.

Then the spot lights turned off one by one and Jack was staring at Gee standing over two bodies. The kerchief man was dead from a bullet wound to the chest. Another man lay unconscious on the ground behind a fallen chair. Gee was tying him up so Jack assumed this was the cold voiced man and he was still alive.

Bal entered from the door behind the lights and gestured to Gee. Gee pointed to their prisoner then walked over to Jack. She pushed her hand back down into his pants and retrieved a small metal disk she'd hid between his cock and balls. A tracker. She moved on to removing the straps. Once he was free she swished the butterflies away from his head. She bleated then froze when she saw the injury.

Jack was surprised by her sudden outburst and raised his hands to feel the injury. She quickly stopped his hands and shook her head. She opened up a pocket on her belt and fastened a bandage over the spot with tape. Then she looked at his other temple, paused, and fastened a bandage on that side too. Her dark eyes were troubled and Jack was worried.

"Did they injure me when I was drugged?" he asked.

"Please do not remove the bandages until we get home to see a doctor about your... injuries," Gee said looking into his eyes. She held his hands as she said it and he nodded.

"Butterflies?" he asked.

"A most dangerous creature. Excellent diversionary skills," Bal said walking up to them. "The Earth Council Security Forces will be here shortly."

Jack's adrenalin was quickly depleting so he sank back against the chair. The butterflies returned to their perch. He didn't have the energy to swish them away.

Two hours later he was sitting in another conference room but this time they didn't close the door and several members of the Earth Council and their Security Force were in the room with them.

"Once more we would like to offer our sincerest apologies to you for this most egregious attack upon your person," the Secretary of Something Something said to him in earnest.

"It's OK. I just want someone on your Security team to follow through and track down any other participants in their little scheme. Start with Director Goodson and those Security Goons. It had to be far reaching considering the scope of their plan. Treaties between some Humans and some Sanosians at the very least. Find out and smoke them out. Okay? We're going to be watching from our end, right?" he said looking at Gee who nodded with her eyes fixed on the security chief.

"Now, I want to go back to Altaria. I'm done here for now. I will be taking a short break, probably a few days, just to settle my nerves, then we can get back to business as usual. Sound good?" Jack said with a smile which was immediately and gratefully returned by the Earth Council members who had expected some retaliation or petty demands. That wasn't Jack's style.

He stood and his stomach cramped again. He felt flushed and swayed a little before he got his bearings. They looked at him. "Sorry, my nerves must be a little more frayed that I thought. I'm ok."

Bal and Gee hustled Jack back to the sidewalk where a Security Forces armoured carrier picked them up and took them back to the Gate Terminal. They walked straight in and up to the customs and security agent. A lovely woman with raven hair and captivating emerald eyes stood behind the counter. She smiled at Jack and he felt more than a little dazzled. She was as tall as he was so he was able to look straight at her. He smiled back and realized he was a little out of practice with speaking with Human women.

"Uh, hi, I'm Jack Danner. The Altarian Trade Representative for Earth and the Altarian Ambassador. These lovely ladies are my security escort and we are going back to Altaria," he ended with a smile of his own and felt his face getting a very warm. The agent had the most amazing eyes.

The woman's smile grew and she bit her lower lip as she glanced at him while she tapped at her screen.

Jack caught Gee and Bal frantically gesturing at each other. Each was striking their nose filters against their palms as something seemed to be wrong with them. He turned back to the woman... the beautiful woman who had undone the top two buttons on her blouse. My, that was a lot of skin being exposed. Round, soft, waiting to be touched, kissed...

"I'm Diana," she held out her hand and he took it in his and marveled at its softness. He raised it to his lips and Diana began to tremble. As he caressed the skin of her knuckles with his lips a flush appeared on her cheeks and ran down her neck to color that lovely expanse of skin her open blouse was exposing. She squeaked in surprise and disappointment when Gee and Bal each took one of Jack's arms and dragged him away.

"Call me!" Diana called out to Jack as his escorts fast walked him into the terminal. Gee and Bal were desperately holding their breath as they tugged the dazed and supremely lustful man towards his gate. He pulled the two back against him and squeezed their bodies to his. They couldn't hold their breath any longer and gasped. Then they frantically renewed their efforts to get Jack through the gate. He looked at the mirror surface and his mind came back to him for a second. There was something weird about those two bandages. Then they were through.

Gee immediately made a call then grabbed Jack and kissed him hard. Her tongue frantically danced against his and he clung to her more fiercely. Bal was clutched against his other side and was rubbing against his leg.

An evacuation alarm suddenly went off and a group of security guards in breather masks rushed in and dragged the three out of the terminal and into a waiting transport. Bal was now deeply kissing Jack who was on the floor of the truck with the two ebony females clinging to his chest. He alternated kissing Bal then Gee and they ran their hands over his groin until they arrived at their destination. The Security team pulled them from the truck and scrambled into the hospital.

"Quarantine Protocol!" one of the agents called out and the halls cleared. Gee and Bal were pried away from Jack and were taken into side rooms to be sealed behind closed doors.

They continued to hustle Jack down a hallway. He saw they were at a hospital and vaguely worried that someone was sick or injured.

Then he was lifted onto a bed and strapped down. The team rushed from the room and the door was closed.

Jack's head spun. The tingling pressure in his groin was intense. He needed release but he saw he was well and truly trapped in the bed. His forehead throbbed and itched terribly. He rested his head back and soon slipped into a restless sleep.

When he woke he saw a number of females in breathing masks standing around his bed. He had a clear bag dripping its contents through a tube into his left arm and a cloudy bag dripping into a tube connected to his right arm. He looked down at the fierce tingling and saw he was tenting the sheets. His scalp was still itching like crazy. He tried talking but the oxygen mask over his mouth muffled his words. There was a hiss sound and he slipped once more into a deep sleep.

The next time he woke he felt rested and the pressure was gone. He saw he was no longer tenting the sheets and most wonderful of all Karrel was standing beside the bed.

"Karrel! You're back! I've missed you!" he blurted then felt stupid as he knew Altarians didn't maintain those kinds of relationships.

"Hello Jack! I hope you are feeling better!" she smiled.

He drank in her slim build, chocolate brown coloring and her lovely eyes. He couldn't help himself. She might not have the same longing for a long term relationship but his human sensitivities did. Then her words registered.

"Have I been sick?" he asked.

He looked down and saw he was no longer in restraints. "Why was I in restraints?" he asked. He turned his head and something felt different. He started to reach up and Karrel caught his hands. She smiled at him.

"Wait for the doctor. She'll be here in a moment," she said.

He gripped her hands and took comfort in their simple touch. "How have you been? I was told that you were having meetings with the Regency! That must have been exciting!"

Karrel smiled broadly and squeezed his hands. "I've been very well. I have much to tell you but here's your doctor who also needs to speak to you. I'll leave you two alone."

"No! I mean, please stay," Jack blurted.

The doctor, a light almost white blond Altarian nodded in agreement. "Hello, Mr. Danner. I'm Jinnae, the Chief Physician here at the hospital. The first thing I want you to know is that you are currently perfectly healthy. What you have gone through has not affected your general health."

Jack smiled and felt relief. Karrel gave him a happy smile.

The doctor continued. "That said, you've had a rather unique reaction to your time spent here on Altaria. We're trying to determine exactly why you reacted in the way you did and the closest we can get is that it was a combination of a rare Altarian virus, a genetic predisposition, and environmental factors. The exact measure of each of these components is unknown. We can say with great confidence that your condition has stabilized and you seem to have reached the end of the changes your body was undergoing. Again, you are very healthy!"

"Why does my head feel funny?" he asked.

"Before I answer that I need to ask you just a few questions so we can pinpoint some of those factors that led to the reaction. Can you tell me how many times you have mated with Altarian females since you've been here?" Jinnae asked.

Jack was surprised by the forward question. "Sorry, I couldn't tell you a number," he replied, embarrassed.

"Well, can you tell me how frequently you have sex?" she returned.

He squirmed as he worked out the estimate. "On average... two to four times a day... but sometimes only once!"

The doctor looked at him in shock then at Karrel who was smiling fondly at Jack. "Every day? Since you arrived?" the doctor asked.

"Yes... Is that bad?" he blurted.

"No! Just... surprisingly frequent. So you've been exposed to female musk every day for an extended period of time." she said tapping on her tablet. He nodded.

"Doctor, Jack also does something our males do not do. He ingests female sexual secretions... from the source." Karrel blushed.

"Ingests... orally? He uses his mouth down there?" she whispered looking shocked.

"Yes, it is extremely stimulating and never fails to deliver the most powerful and wonderful org-"

"Karrel!" Jack yelped, embarrassed.

"Sorry, but the doctor needs to know!" she chastised him.

"I see, uh, do you make this part of every sexual liaison?" she asked, intimidated.

"Not every time but... many. Most." he confessed.

"Have you- have you ingested the secretions of a fertile female. One who is not taking contraceptives and is at her time of peak ovulation?" the doctor asked Jack as her hands fidgeted on her tablet.

"How would I know?" he asked.

"The liquids... they would be sweeter from an increase in sugars."

He looked at Karrel then recalled Marrell. "Yes, first from Karrel before she left to visit the Regency and just before I left for Earth I had sex with a Customs agent named Marrell. Her... secretions were very sweet and I... ingested a large quantity," he blushed fiercely.

The doctor shared a look with Karrel. "I think we have a pretty good idea of the environmental factors contributing to your change."

Jack's forehead was beginning to itch so he lifted his hands to rub at it. His fingers gave him relief but he found something new.

"What- What's on my forehead?" he gasped.

The doctor tapped her tablet and turned it to face him. The camera picked up his face and he saw, rising from his forehead, starting at his hairline, two symmetrical white streaked wide black horns curving back to a point roughly eight inches back. He also noted his hair was considerably longer.

"Horns? I've got- horns?" he croaked. Frightened he threw back the sheets and looked for other changes. He was naked but at least everything seemed human.

The doctor and Karrel were both looking at his cock so he pulled the sheet back to cover himself. "What the hell happened to me?" he yelled.

"It would take an in-depth study to truly pinpoint the exact cause but if I had to guess I would say it was a combination of things. Your... lifestyle exposed you to the musk of females in heat over an extended period of time. You also ingested potent fertilization hormones from the secretions of multiple ovulating females. These on their own couldn't have done it but combined with your particular genetics you became receptive to a very rare but typically benign Altarian virus. For us the virus simply causes a dormant pigment gene to activate causing monochromatism, the genetic alteration of our fur and eye coloring to a single shade. Typically black or white. For you it bonded some dormant Altarian genes into your genetic sequence. Back at the dawn of our race all of our males once had proud and full horns like you now wear. The trait still remains in our genes but it is dormant. For you, they activated. Your horns are very attractive," Jinnae said with a smile.

"Except I'm Human and we've never had horns. It's going to be highly problematic for me to return to Earth looking like this. Can you remove them?"

The doctor looked shocked and appalled at the suggestion then shook her head. "No, they're integral to the structural integrity of your skull now. It would leave your brain cavity vulnerable to damage if they were removed."

"So, they're permanent," he groaned.

"Yes, but they really are very attractive," she said and bit her lip. "Uh, if you have further questions I can be reached by calling the nurses station." With that she fled the room in a cloud of musk.

Karrel moved closer and took his hand again as he was looking a little lost. "There is something else that's changed for you. Well, two things really but I'll let you know the second one tomorrow when you've had time to process this."

He looked up at her with a worried expression.

"It's a good thing," she smiled. "You know females emit a musk which signals willingness to mate?" She smiled and nodded towards the doorway where the doctor just fled. "Males constantly emit a musk which broadcasts their suitability for mating. It's like a... calling card, a report on the male's health, strengths, and weaknesses. Females pick up this scent and if they find it agreeable it triggers them to emit their musk. Your glands have changed and now you emit this male musk. It is VERY agreeable."

"Well that's a good thing because I could never get a date for Friday nights," he grumbled.

She understood that he was being sarcastic, not her favorite kind of humor. She saw him give himself a shake and a determined look passed over his face. She watched him with pride as he forced himself to adjust to this new state of being.

"OK, I can roll with this punch. Like she said, I'm healthy so it's just a cosmetic change... mostly. I can deal with this. So I look a little different and I assume I smell a little different. It's not offensive?" he asked quickly.

Karrel grinned and shook her head vigorously.

"Right. Altarians like it at least. Well... I can get used to these things. Are there sprays or perfumes one can wear to nullify the musk?" he asked.

She laughed delightfully thinking he was kidding then went wide eyed when she realized he was serious. "Why would you want to suppress your wonderful scent?" she gasped, reaching out absent mindedly to stroke one of his horns with a finger.

"You know, so I could actually get some work done in the office?" he groaned watching her fondle his horn.

He jolted as he suddenly remembered his promise to the Earth Council members. "How long have I been in the hospital?"

"About a month."

"I told the Earth Council I'd only take a few days to recuperate!" he exclaimed.

"Not to worry. I've been in touch with them. They will wait for you to be ready," she assured him.

"Can I go back to my apartment?" he asked.

"I believe the doctor plans to discharge you from the hospital tomorrow morning," Karrel replied.

He sighed and leaned back looking at Karrel with a smile. "I really did miss you! How was your visit with the Regency?"

"It was a very good visit! I hadn't been back home in years!" she smiled in return.

Her words sunk in. "Home? You're related to the ruling family?" he croaked.

"Yes, my mother is Queen," she said factually.

"Princess Karrel?" he croaked again.

"We don't use that honorific anymore. Only 'Queen' remains in use," she smiled sweetly as her eyes and fingers returned to his horns.

"Karrel... Karrel? KARREL!"

"Hmmm?" she hummed as she looked back at his eyes. He plucked her hands off of his horns and gently set them by her side. She gave him a sweet little pout which he ignored.

"You said there was one more thing you were going to tell me about my changes. I think I'd like to hear it now. Get it all on one sitting," he said, steeling himself.

She bent down and gave him a quick peck on the lips and spun around. "Tomorrow!" she said as she ducked out of the door. As the door closed some nurses were passing by and slammed to a halt as they caught sight of his horns. The door finally closed blocking their stares and he groaned in anticipation of his new celebrity.

For Altarian females the horns promoted him to stud muffin status. He had no idea what the Altarian males would make of him. He hadn't spent too much time with any and the ones he had spoken with had all been self-absorbed flakes.

For humanity he was going to be the 'Freak with Horns'. He recalled the raven haired beauty at the Gate Terminal on Earth... Diana, right. Well, he could forget about calling her any time soon. She'd likely run screaming.

He looked over at the table next to the bed and saw a phone. He picked it up and dialed a number. He was going to need Leffera to pick up a change of clothes for him from his apartment for tomorrow. He'd ask her to bring it by tonight.

The next morning the doctor came by to give him the good news. The latest test results indicated that his body had indeed stabilized. No more changes were expected. The factors that had altered his body chemistry, his very DNA, were now a part of him. They could no longer have any transformative effects on him. And wasn't he a delicious looking specimen! She was practically salivating as she delivered her news. She signed his release forms and he was free to go.