Chapter 14 - (part twelve)

A gentle voice roused Lina. "Good morning, Ms. Lazuli. Are you well rested? Do you require additional sleep?" It was the synthesized voice of WIDE-AS. Light had begun to permeate the room, dimly at first, then gradually growing brighter. Its source was artificial, but it was a decent enough simulation of sunrise. Lina stretched. She had slept in the bodysuit, which she had learned had security features to prevent the wearer from removing it unless authorized by WIDE-AS. The bodysuit also relied on biometric feedback and its own internal temperature regulation system to keep the wearer in optimal comfort.

"Good morning, Ms. Lazuli," WIDE-AS reiterated. "Breakfast is now being served in the Dining Hall. Would you like something to get started? A breakfast parfait, perhaps?"

"No, thanks," replied Lina groggily.

"I'll prepare your morning shower," said WIDE-AS.

Lina took a moment to get her bearings and to overcome that disorienting feeling of waking up in an unfamiliar bed, though she was not entirely unaccustomed to that. While she had hoped that she would discover otherwise upon waking, with a moment's reflection she quickly realized that there really was a place called Fatropolis and that she was a prisoner in it...for the time being, anyway.

The bed, however, was the most comfortable Lina had ever slept in, which was something that no other prisoner in any cell anywhere else in the galaxy ever could have claimed. It would be easy to lounge around all day out of sheer boredom. She knew that was by design. Ample comfort, constant eating, and sitting idly watching vids all day would be enough to lull any girl into letting herself go. But Lina had a job to do. Her job was to keep Daesti from overstuffing herself until they could both get out of Fatropolis. So Lina rolled out of bed and made her way to the bathroom.

A green light lit on the console by the sink. "Please deposit your bodysuit and undergarments into the bin for laundering," said WIDE-AS, as a compartment opened for just that purpose.

Lina undressed as WIDE-AS turned on the shower. "Kindly test the water temperature. Is it to your liking?"

Lina held her hand under the shower spray. "Fine," she said curtly, feeling no particular need to be acquiescent to a computer. But WIDE-AS evidently already had gleaned a good deal about her preferences, because the temperature happened to be exactly as she liked it.

"Do you require assistance?"

"Assistance?" said Lina. "No. Should I?"

The shower stall was extremely wide--far bigger than the tiny compartment on the Luna Moth, which stood to reason, since room was at a premium on that craft. But in here she could stretch out her arms and still not quite touch the sides of the stall.

A warm foam with a creamy, vaguely sugary scent squirted from jet-dispensers in the stall. Lina lathered up, knowing that even the soap was formulated to get her thinking about food. Everything in their environment had been taken into account. And she was thinking about food--specifically, how to do without it, as much as possible. Still, a few days without food was one thing. A prolonged period without it would be quite another--especially when there were no distractions from her hunger and everything to reinforce it. She had immense willpower, it was true, but she had never been opposed to gustatory pleasure before setting foot in Fatropolis.

The bathroom was warmed when Lina emerged from the shower, and a body dryer switched on. WIDE-AS outfitted Lina with a fluffy bathrobe that was much too large for her. She saw that her bodysuit was already neatly folded on a rack, with fresh undergarments beside it. The latter, like the bodysuit, were made of a soft and extremely stretchy synthetic fabric, clearly designed to accommodate an expanding figure without causing the slightest discomfort.

A hairbrush and hair-dryer emerged from beside the mirror near the sink, and Lina readied herself and dressed.

"Your weight this morning is...55.5 kilograms," announced WIDE-AS when Lina had gotten the bodysuit back on. "Body fat percentage is...15%." She was a already half a kilogram lighter than she had been when she arrived. Lina was quite pleased with herself.

"Sending results to GAINPOUNDS," advised WIDE-AS. Mim, on the other hand, would not be so pleased, Lina realized with trepidation. Mim would be keeping close tabs on her and Daesti to ensure that they were progressing towards their respective so-called regulation weights. And their bodysuits, implanted with an intricate array of sensors throughout, would tell Mim most of the story.

As Lina walked into the living room, she again caught a whiff of food cooking, perhaps wafting up from the Dining Hall. It was an evocative aroma--homey and enticing--and for a fleeting second she felt she wasn't a prisoner somewhere, but at home, as though she had been transported momentarily to the past and was among family again. She realized, of course, that this was impossible and put it out of her mind. This certainly was no place to feel at home.

She went next door to collect Daesti. They would go to the Dining Hall together. There, at least, Lina could keep an eye on Daesti to see what she was eating and (she hoped) prevent Daesti from eating too much. And Mim would not be quite so suspicious if it appeared as though they were making an honest effort to be sociable and to comply with the law. Most importantly, Lina understood, she and Daesti had to stick together as much as possible. Lina knew that if she let Daesti sleep in and eat by herself in her room, Daesti would stuff herself silly.

The downside to the Dining Hall was, of course, that Daesti still would gain weight. There seemed to be no way to avoid that now. But she seemed quite content to overeat, with or without Lina's approval. So to the Dining Hall it was.

Lina was relieved to find Daesti already awake and ready.

"Feeling better?"

"Much, thanks."

"Still a little bloated, I see," Lina observed, gently poking Daesti's belly.

"Would you believe I'm hungry again? I can't wait for breakfast!"

Lina grabbed Daesti's arm. "After everything we talked about last night?"

"I know, I know, I shouldn't be hungry...but I am."

Lina paused, remembering that Mim had offered Daesti a remedy for her bellyache. "Mim gave you something for your stomach last night. What was it?"

"I don't know. Some kind of liquid. It was in a cute little bottle. She said it would calm my stomach, and it did. It stopped hurting right away."

Lina looked dubious and apprehensive. "Well, keep your appetite in check. I'm serious. As ridiculous as all this might seem to us right now, the truth is that Mim wants us fat. And for your part, you're not making it difficult for her. The reason we're trying to get out of here is to avoid that."

"I don't want to get fat, either, but I can't help feeling hungry! Besides, food is probably the best thing for me right now. Hair of the dog and all that."

Lina feared that it might already too late to spare Daesti from a weighty future. Daesti had fallen for Mim's machinations all too quickly, and there was no reason to assume that Fatropolitan food's hold over her would diminish the longer they remained here. Even by the time they enacted their plan, Daesti likely would be considerably plumped up. Lina would have to do her best to minimize the toll on Daesti's figure.