amnesia

Samus woke up on a bed, confused. She looked around, remembering where she was: the space station, the artificial intelligence, the augmentations that distorted reality... when had she fainted?

She tried to get up. Her body felt strange, it was as if...

Samus checked her body. The first thing she noticed was that she now had four arms. She tried to trace their contours, finding what looked like shoulders nestled just below the first ones. She felt her back, there was a sort of membrane, then she felt a bulge near her butt, as if something like a fleshy sac was attached to her back just above her butt and then resting against her rear end.

Samus realized she'd received an augmentation, but she had no idea what it was; perhaps the augmentation had caused her to suffer from memory loss.

Samus: Artificial intelligence, are you there?

AI: I'm operational, Samus.

Samus: What happened?

AI: History analysis, data error removed by remote administrator, missing information, situation analysis in progress.... Samus has obtained the Bee Girl upgrade, congratulations on your choice.

Samus: Bee girl?

Samus wasn't an animal expert, but as a child, the Crozzos had taught her about the animals of the human homeworld, at least the most important ones. The bee was a very important pollinating insect for the Earth's ecosystem as well as an animal bred for honey production. She couldn't remember anything else. Why would she choose that upgrade of all the others?

Samus: What changed in me?

AI: Analysis in progress.... you've obtained two sensory antennas that allow you to detect certain biochemical signatures emitted by Bee Girls, a useful tracking system.

Samus touched her head, two antennas popped out of her hats, she'd missed it.

AI: Doubled limbs, doubled potential weaponry and transportation capacity.

Samus imagined herself with two energy cannons, even though she still had two hands free; it was actually convenient.

AI: Insectoid muscle capacity, your muscles can undergo greater stress before tiring. Be careful, this doesn't make you immune to muscle strain from overstrain. Practice is recommended.

Samus was worried; she should have understood her body's limitations.

AI: Semi-folding insectoid wings, flight and hovering ability, wings not suitable for gliding. Practice flying in safe air is recommended.

Samus realized what that fabric on his back was; indeed, when he wasn't wearing armor, it could be useful.

AI: Egg sac, change in uterine function. The uterus now serves to store male sperm to fertilize eggs, and can no longer support neonatal life. The egg sac produces an egg through parthenogenesis once a week. If unaltered by male sperm, the egg will develop into a drone serving Samus. If fertilized, it can produce a Bee Girl queen with abilities equal to those of user Samus.

Samus: Wait... I'm pregnant?

AI: Wrong. Pregnant is a term used for mammals carrying their offspring within their wombs. You now release eggs like avian, reptilian, and insectoid creatures. The complete egg should weigh one kilogram and will not cause any physical weakening during the creation process. If left untreated, the egg will not hatch.

Samus: The enhancement was... removable, right?

AI: Correct, if you want to undo the changes, use the password agreed upon before installing the upgrade.

Samus: Password?

AI: Incorrect password.

Samus: No, I mean, I don't remember setting a password.

AI: Analysis in progress... no password recovery system loaded. I'm sorry, I can't help you. Please try to remember, or if you did, check your personal notes for it.

Samus wasn't keeping notes. Her memory was so strong normally that she couldn't forget almost anything. This amnesia was damned uncomfortable.

For now, she should familiarize herself with her new body.

She got up from the exam table naked.

Samus: AI, is there a place in the station where I can test my new body?

AI: Yes, we have a room for that.

Samus: Good.