The First Catalyst [A Man to Woman Sci-Fi TG] - Part 3

Commissioned by Cooolooo

Part 3

Zach stood before the barn doors, her hands braced against the cold metal, fingers pressing into the hard surface. The air was thick with dust, and the usual hum of early morning quiet settled around her as she faced the stubborn, unyielding doors. She had done this dozens of times before, a few weeks ago, she could do it effortlessly, one-handed even!  But today, they felt heavier than ever.

Her shoulders ached from the strain, and her arms trembled as she pushed, willing the doors to move. A sharp breath caught in her throat. No matter how much she pressed, the doors remained unmoving, mocking her.

‘Come on!’ she thought. ‘You’ve got this.’

The early morning workouts weren't helping. Any strength she would have built up was being drained away by the catalyst. After a little over two months, her change was almost complete. But while it was in her system, gaining any strength seemed impossible. She tried again, digging in her heels, pushing with everything she had, but it was as if something had changed. Her strength, once so reliable, now abandoned her. She glanced over her shoulder nervously, half-expecting to see Alex standing there, watching her struggle.

She wasn’t sure how to reconcile this change in herself with the image she had of being the strong one, the one who held everything together. The protector. The provider. Her heart raced as she stepped back, wiping her palms against the baggy pants she was using to hide her now hourglass figure. A little voice at the back of her mind whispered, maybe it was time to tell the truth.

‘What would he think?’ she wondered, biting her lip. 

She shook her head and let out a slow breath. No, she couldn’t let herself go down that road. She wasn’t weak. She wasn’t falling apart. This was just… a setback. She would fix it. She would work harder, get stronger. This wouldn’t stop her. It couldn’t. Not after everything they had been through. She refused to let Alex down now. 

Zach turned away from the barn doors, her mind already racing ahead. She would start a new routine, maybe increase the weights she was lifting, and focus on more endurance work. If she could push herself just a little harder, maybe this would never happen again. She didn’t have to tell Alex. Not yet. She gripped the doors once more and hauled, hearing metal scrape as they finally, slowly, opened. 

Zach braced herself against her knees, her bound breasts hung heavy on her chest, only just covered by the baggy jumper and extra layers. When she couldn't do it anymore, that’s when she would tell Alex. Until that day came, she would keep it a secret, so he wouldn’t worry. 

Zach redoubled her efforts; she woke before dawn, when the surface was still dark. The ranch was still, silent except for the soft breath of her own body, still sore from the days that had passed. She dropped to the ground and began. Crunches, push-ups, squats—her movements slow, deliberate, her body protesting as it had in the early days, but she pushed through the discomfort. She had to. She had to rebuild herself. 

Then, slowly but surely, she started to see results. Her curvy body started to take on more muscle. Not as much as she used to have, but her overly curvy, feminine shape started to thicken slightly, like that of a gymnast. And while the barn door still proved to be her daily nemesis, it hadn't defeated her yet. She padded into the barn to gather the hay. The bales sat stacked in the corner, waiting to be moved to the fields. Alex was out, monitoring the cows; he would see her this time. 

She glanced at the heavy bales, then at the barn door. She couldn’t help but feel a hint of fear—fear that she wouldn’t be able to lift them as she used to, fear that her body had betrayed her for good. But there was no time to doubt. There was work to be done.

With steady hands, she bent and gripped the nearest bale, feeling the fibres dig into her palms. She pulled it toward her chest and pushed with her legs, the muscles in her arms and back straining as she hefted the weight. She winced in pain slightly as she leaned back, and the heavy bale rested against her chest. The wraps helped to support her now massive breasts somewhat but they were still so damn sensitive. Her breath came in sharp bursts, but she fought through. The bale settled onto her shoulders with a satisfying weight, and for a moment, she paused, feeling the fullness of her muscles working. She could do this.

Zach started walking, feeling the familiar strain in her legs, but there was a difference this time. Her legs were a different shape. Her thick thighs burned with the effort, but the pain made her grin. With each step, she felt a rush of pride, her chest swelling with the accomplishment. It wasn’t as easy as it had once been, but she was getting there. She could feel the power returning, small and slow, but it was there.

She reached the fields and set the bale down with a grunt. She looked back toward the barn, a grin spreading across her face. The work was far from over, but she had taken a step. Alex was standing at the edge of the field, her gaze fixed on Zach with a curious expression. He didn’t seem surprised, but there was a quiet intensity in his eyes as he studied the weight Zach had carried. Zach could practically hear the gears turning in Alex’s head and that made a nervous sweat break out on her neck. 

“That looked difficult.”

“Well, they’re pretty heavy.” 

“I know, but you lifted two of those without much trouble when we first got here.” 

“You’re always saying I shouldn’t push myself, I’m just taking it easier.” Zach lied, “Maybe the air is thinner on Titan or something.”

Alex shook his head.

“No, the climate is perfectly controlled to be that of sea level air, air composition-wise.”

“There are different air levels on Earth?”

Alex chuckled but then refocused.

“Don’t try to change the subject.”

That cold sweat got stronger as Alex hopped over the fence and started toward her; his eyes were sharp, and Zach could practically feel them studying every time detail she couldn’t hide. 

“If you need help, you can tell me,” Alex said finally. “If this is too much for you…I could try helping with more of the physical stuff, or I could modify a few of my observation drones. Maybe even call the main settlement for more help.”

Zach had to hold back a sigh of relief; he hadn't figured it out. 

“Nah, man! I am just taking it easy so I don’t overdo it! Isn't that what you have been telling me to do for years?”

“Yeah, but I didn't expect you to actually start listening.”

“...I feel like I should be offended.”

Alex just rolled his eyes fondly and turned back to climb out of the paddock. This time, Zach did let out a small, nervous breath. The best thing about being less brainy is pretending to be just that little bit dumber than you really are. Even Alex didn't question it, so putting on an extra layer of loveable goofball was easy. Still, this had been a wake-up call. As she watched Alex walk back to the main ranch house, Zach realised this was starting to get out of hand.

“I have to tell him the truth.” She told herself, “Soon. It’ll be worse if he figures it out by himself.” 

But just the idea of admitting she’d been lying for almost three months at this point made her guts twist. Even if Alex could get past the whole being transformed thing, even if he wasn't annoyed that she took things into her own hands, would he be able to forgive her for such a big lie. For the first time since taking the catalyst, Zach felt herself start to panic; she really should have thought this through more. One wrong step now and their whole friendship would be ruined! 

“Hey, Zach! I just got a deep space communication!” Alex called from the Ranch window. “They’ve established a link to Earth! We can talk to our parents! Tonight!”

“Awesome!”

Zach questioned whether his parents would even find the time, but Alex’s mom definitely would. She’d always been an observant woman, able to tell when there was something bothering him and ready to offer a shoulder to cry on. Like a proper mother should. Even through a video screen, she might notice something was going on. Maybe he could reveal it all at once, with Alex’s mother there, it might soften the blow. Or after, yes, after the call, she would tell Alex everything. 

~

The colony ship had been built for durability and storage first and foremost. There hadn't been any deep space communications, outside of emergency channels. Then when they landed, there wasn’t the infrastructure necessary to call back to Earth. All that meant that it’d been years since either of them had talked to their families. For Zach, that was no big loss, he barely saw them anyway but he knew how hard it had been for Alex, he and his mom were close. 

As they sat down in front of the datapad, Zach could see tears shining over Alex’s eyes for a moment before he blinked them away. She could feel herself slowly justifying why now wasn't a good time to mention the catalyst, this was a special occasion, he didn't want to ruin it for Alex after all. The phone symbol appeared and Alex gasped. Zach smiled and motioned for him to answer. 

A second of static later, a group of faces appeared, Alex’s mother, Trust, was front and centre with her thick glasses and dark hair, but to Zach’s surprise, both his parents were there as well. 

“Zach! Alex!” Tudy gasped, “Oh, it’s so good to see you both!”
“Boy! Look at you, did you start packing on the pounds in space or something?” Her father chuckled, and Zach suddenly felt very aware of how many layers she had to wear to hide her curves. 

“Uh, space food must have extra calories.”

“Next time you get a call, we should invite your brother Brian over,” her mother chirped. He’s got some wonderful workout routines. Did you know he recently opened his own gym?”

Zach felt the air leave his lungs as her features fell.

“Considering I’ve been in space the last few years, no, I didn’t.” She deadpanned. 

Alex had to hide a snort of laughter behind a fake cough. 

“Tell us all about what it’s like on Titan!” Trudy asked. “Oh I have missed you both, I was so worried when I heard about that outbreak onboard. I am so glad you’re alright, even if it means more work for you now.”

“We’re getting by.” Alex smiled, “It’s not so bad now that we have the drones up and running, besides, muscles for brains here does all the heavy lifting.” 

“Hey! Rude!” 

Zach gave him a playful punch on the shoulder, but winced when his parents laughed just a little too genuinely. Alex took control of the conversation, explaining the ins and outs of the ranch and what they were doing. 

“And Zach is incredible, he does so much hard work I could never do on my own. Even the drones would struggle to keep up with him.”

Trudy beamed proudly, but all Zach’s parents gave were simple nods, as if being part of the first colony to Titan wasn't a massive deal. Nothing would ever be good enough for them. Trudy at least seemed proud of both of them. Then, her father said something that made her blood turn to ice. 

“What about that catalyst situation?”

“Yes! We saw it mentioned on the news!” Tudy added, “You two are the only ones at your ranch. Have you been asked to take it?”

Alex cocked his head to the side.

“Catalyst? What are you talking about?”

“It hasn’t been rolled out here yet!” Zach said quickly. 

Alex’s head snapped to her in shock.

“What hasn’t been rolled out? What are you all talking about?”

“Sorry, I forgot to mention it we uh, got a communication about it a while ago. Whoops. But there are only two of us here so I guess they never decided to send one.” Zach was talking fast, too fast. 

She could see the suspicion in Trudy’s eyes and Alex’s but for whatever reason she couldn’t stop.

“Anyway, I guess neither of us has to take one, so that’s the end of that. Oh no, look at the time, we’d better go! Bye!”

She slammed her thumb against the hangup button before anybody could protest, and the screen went black.

“Hey! We still had a few minutes left!” Alex cried, “Zach, what the hell, that was our first call with Earth!”

“Sorry, I just…”

“You just what? You’re acting so weird lately, and what’s this about a catalyst?”

“It’s nothing! I swear.”

“It’s not nothing. Why are you keeping secrets?” 

“I-I’m not!” 

Alex threw up his hands in frustration, and for a second, Zach thought he might even throw a punch, but instead, he deflated. He let out a heavy sigh and ran his hands through his hair in irritation. For a moment, he refused to meet Zach’s eyes, but then, when he did, it was the worst thing imaginable: disappointment. 

“Fine, if you don’t want to tell me, whatever.”

“Alex…”

“Yeah?”

He raised an eyebrow expectantly, and Zach’s mouth opened, but nothing came out. She couldn't tell him now, not like this, it was all going wrong. An awkward, tense silence stretched out for what felt like infinity before Alex huffed.

“Fine, goodnight.”

Zach reached out a hand but stopped herself from following as Alex walked down the hall to his room. What was the point? There was nothing she could say. No lie she could come up with that would cover everything, even now, the idea of trying to cover it all up with more deceit made her stomach clench with yet more guilt. She returned to her own room and flopped down on the bed and groaned; she really fucked up. 

Zach thought about Alex in the next room over and sighed. She would fix this. Sure, they’d never had a fight before, but there was a first time for everything. Somehow, she would mend the bridge and everything would be normal again. For now though, that was a problem for future Zach. 

She was on the cusp of sleep when a strange realisation hit her: Alex had never asked about the catalyst when they hung up. There was no way he’d forgotten, and it was so unlike him to leave a thread untugged. Something about it didn't sit right, but before she could think about it further, sleep took her.