She Who Controls the Past

It had been three months since Eva had effectively slept her way into a job at the prestigious Fertility Ministry, and two months since she began her year-long intensive training program. She had mostly gotten over her uneasy feelings about how it had all gone down, but she still felt pangs of guilt at home. For what it was worth, Eva's girlfriend Sarah seemed none-the-wiser. However, Hannah, Eva's "interviewee" on that fateful morning, seemingly took great joy at crossing Eva's path whenever she could. Hannah even cornered her on one occasion, whispering in a sultry tone in an empty hallway how much she'd enjoyed their last encounter...and how her office was always "open" so to speak.

Regardless, Eva was where she wanted to be, and she was absolutely excelling in her studies so far. Today was a special day, the first time she'd be allowed access to the fabled Library at the Fertility Ministry. The day-to-day operations of the Fertility Ministry was kept on a strict "need to know" basis, and the public, by large, absolutely did not need to know. But the Library? That was on a completely different level. Just to get in, there was a second ID check point, with bio scanners. No electronics or recording devices were allowed in. All material must be seen or read within the secured facility, and each and every book, article, journal, movie, or any other bit of media was tracked and catalogued.

In preparation for her upcoming class "History of the Foundation of the Ministry," she had downloaded the syllabus, and nearly squealed with glee when she saw the course would grant her access to the fabled Library of the Ministry. And yes, Eva was

that

student who always did a little pre-reading in preparation for a course.

First on the reading list was "Zoe's Diary."

Eva approached the heavy wooden doors of the Library with a mixture of trepidation and excitement. She wondered if she'd even be granted access. After all, the course hadn't even begun. Thankfully, when she swiped key card, the light flashed green and she was able to open the door and enter. On the other side of the door, there was another set of glass doors, with a pad for scanning fingerprints and another device for a retinal scan. Once again, the lights flashed green, and the glass doors opened automatically into a cavernous and dead silent library. It dwarfed every other library she'd ever seen. The halls, branching off the main lobby seemed to never end, and looking up, she could see floor after floor of highly classified and archived media.

Eva's mouth was agape as she looked up and around. It was, you could say, bigger on the inside.

"Phone please."

"Huh?" She turned around to find a woman in her early thirties, dressed conservatively, her dirty blonde hair and warm and brown, welcoming eyes greeted her.

"Phone, please" she pointed to a sign hanging above a check in station reading: "All electronic devices must be checked in first. No photos or digital recordings are allowed of any material."

"Oh...umm...sure..." Eva dug her phone out of her backpack, handing it over, getting a slip of paper matching the cubby in return.

"First time, huh?" the librarian said with a wry smile.

"Umm, yes. I wanted to get a start on the upcoming semester's reading material. Starting with..." she fished around for the curriculum, even though she already knew her first assignment, she suddenly became nervous and worried she'd misremembered, "Zoe's Diary."

"But of course, it's on the first floor, down and to the right, under 'historical records.'"

Eva nodded, walking slowly down the aisle, head on a swivel, taking it all in. She couldn't read all of these books, even in a million lifetimes. How much history and brilliant literature had we, as a society, lost, "for our own safety?" Many, if most, of the names seemed foreign and unfamiliar. But of course, she reminded herself, most were male authors. She remembered from her introductory gender studies course how there used to be male and female names in the Before Times. Many of the male names either fell out of favor, or were forgotten entirely.

Finally, after walking for what seemed like ages, Eva finally reached the correct section. Thankfully, the library already had a few copies of "Zoe's Diary" set aside on a display, ready for consumption by eager, learning minds. Eva grabbed a copy and sat down at one of the desks.

* * *

Zoe's Diary: A first-hand perspective of the virus that changed the course of human history.

[Editor's note. This is an unedited, first-hand account, written in real time by Founding Mother Zoe Hansen. Some of the contents and events depicted of this document may be shocking to the reader. It is also extremely sensitive, due to the less-than-stellar light it paints our Founding Mother and first president of the New Republic, Dr. Diana Stein. Please read this document with an open mind and understand that drastic measures were needed in order remake the world to become the present-day global society, without poverty, inequality, warfare, violence, and fear that marked the day-to-day reality of the Before Times.

There will also be some terms that are now defunct, antiquated, and/or difficult for modern readers to understand. In such cases, we will elaborate in brackets.]

Day 1

:

I felt uneasy as soon as I entered the waiting room. There I was, one of 12 volunteers, all 18-24-year-old women, all recruited from the university, and all straight [anachronism, a term used for women who were primarily or solely attracted to men; in the Before Times roughly 95% of women considered themselves straight]. The last point was an especially strange requirement to me, but who was I to question it? Besides, with bills and student debt [a lack of money, or poverty, was a massive problem in the Before Times, which often led to desperation, poor living standards, and even early mortality; many students had to take on life-long "debt" (legally-binding commitment to repay borrowed money) just to get an education] piling up, the promise of a year-long scholarship [an earned benefit, to get free or greatly reduced education], plus $2000, plus room and board for a month-long research project was an opportunity that I couldn't miss out on.

The experiment was to take place in a modern house, made with a blocky design and large glass windows looking out on the forest and small lake, about a half an hour outside of the city. It was completely isolated. Whatever we were doing here, the professor, Dr. Stein, didn't want us interrupted. Like the other girls, I showed up with a large suitcase, packed for a month away from home. She also asked that we bring our passports [a small identification booklet used in the Before Times in order to gain access to different countries], which I suspected was for identification, but no one checked, and we wouldn't find out what they were really for until much later. We met at the university first, and were then bussed to this isolated location, far outside of town.

We were given room assignments, each bedroom housed two women, and then told to come back to the spacious living room and take a seat on one of the couches or chairs. As we showed up, one by one, it was pretty quiet around the room. A few of the girls were complaining that there was no service on their phones, and I looked at mine to confirm this was true. Well, I'm sure we'd be getting the Wi-Fi code, I thought to myself.

I was never one to abide by silences, uncomfortable or otherwise. So, I started introducing myself around the room. I noted that all the girls were a) attractive to very attractive, and b) and from all over the place. I was one of 2 Americans, and all others were from other countries. We also had girls from 2 girls from China, then girls from Argentina, Australia, Japan, India, Egypt, South Africa, Russia, and Germany [there were over 200 countries in the Before Times, often with cumbersome requirements to gain entry to them]. My initial thought was that we were well-represented and diverse. Though after the experiment, I knew why these girls were so carefully selected.

Eventually the others started exchanging pleasantries, but before things got too carried away, the TV on the wall switched on. It was Dr. Stein; I, like the others had interviewed with her before being selected for this experiment.

"Good morning, ladies, and welcome. You have all been selected to participate in this experiment. I believe it will have the potential to change the world. As you know, you will not be allowed to leave the facility for the next month, though it could be sooner if we get the...results...we're looking for."

I scrunched my face up with concern. I didn't like the way she said "results."

"Now, let's get to the point. I have engineered a virus that is designed to turn straight women into submissive lesbians." ["Lesbian" is an anachronism, like "straight" used to denote a woman's sexual preference, in this case for other women. In the Before Times, being a lesbian was often looked down upon, or even persecuted in some parts of the world.]

My eyes went wide, and there were several gasps around the room.

"Now, before there is a panic," Dr. Stein continued, "please know that one of you has already been infected and is contagious. I have designed it to be airborne. The rest of you, I suspect, will start showing symptoms within 10 to 14 days."

The room was now completely silent, although several of us were looking around the room suspiciously.

"Typically, the first symptoms are fever, followed quickly by extreme arousal. Soon thereafter, subjects become increasingly aroused by the idea of having sex with women, which grows into an obsessive need that cannot be denied.

"Now, all the doors to the outside are locked. And as you may have noticed, there is no cell service out here. I will check in on you when the experiment is over."

With that the TV switched off and the room sat in stunned silence.

After a moment, I started laughing hysterically.

"What the hell is wrong with you...?" the Russian woman, Dasha, asked.

"Zoe," I said, introducing myself and calming down from my fit of laughter. "No, don't you get it?" I looked around, they all thought I'd gone mad. "Listen. There's no such thing as a 'Lesbian virus.' This is clearly a social experiment, to see how we all react to such news. The 'one of you has already been infected' line was the kicker. She wants us suspicious and guarded. I have no idea what her ultimate goal or study is trying to accomplish here, but you hear how ridiculous it is, right?"

I looked around the room and saw a few nodding heads. Dasha, at this point, also started laughing. "No...you're right. This is crazy," she said in her thick accent.

Several more echoed my thoughts.

"So. Listen. We're stuck here together for a month. Let's relax. There are board games, and plenty of food. There's even a hot tub downstairs. We'll be fine. Let's make a schedule, rotating various cooking and cleaning chores, and work together to get through this. She

wants

us to tear ourselves apart. Or get so mixed up that we, I don't know? Have a lesbian orgy or something? Let's not give into panic. Let's make her experiment a total failure."

I could see that several women were skeptical. But most went along with it.

Day 10

After the initial shock, a few of the women immediately decided to self-isolate (as well as they possibly could), including my roommate Julie, an annoyingly pious and devout Christian [a popular global religion from the Before Times, whose followers often hypocritically denied women's rights and shamed their sexuality and sexual expression] from Tennessee, but most decided to go with the flow.

Of course, now we were all conscious that were "in the window" when we should start showing symptoms. I could definitely feel a tension in the room, even if none of us outwardly believed that a "Lesbian virus" could possibly be a real thing.

Another day came and went. Or at least nearly did. Just as we were finishing up our dinner, Franziska from Germany, or Franzi for short, started running a fever.

Again, I took the lead on this one. I agreed with the girls that even if she wasn't infected with a Lesbian virus, she should at least be isolated, lest we all get sick with whatever cold or flu she has. So, her roommate moved out and we started delivering meals outside of her door.

We tried not to panic, but of course the coincidence was difficult to overlook. But it was just one case, I reminded myself (and others).

The coincidence became more difficult to overlook after we started hearing loud moans, coming from behind the door. You could almost feel the blood draining from our collective faces. Those moans were clearly sexual. Not just sexual...primal. She was obviously aroused and pleasing herself with abandon.

We sat silently in the living room. No one was saying a word. No one was blaming me, even. Which was fine, I was already terrified and kicking myself for not doing something, anything, while I could.

An hour later the South African girl, Sophie, stood up, making her way toward the quarantined room.

"Sophie..." I ran and grabbed her, "W-what are you doing..."

I could tell just from touching her bare arm that she was burning up.

"I think I have it" she said, eyes partially glazed over. "I'm feeling...hot...all over..."

I let go of Sophie and watched her open the door and quickly close it behind her. There was a morbid curiosity that took over, as I took a few steps closer, wanting to hear what was going on.

"Hey..." Sophie said softly. "I...I think I have it...you don't have to stop...wait...what are you doing...?"

Sophie's voice sounded distant, and soft. As if she were in a daze. "Wait...I'm...I don't think I'm into...mmmm" there was a long pause, "...that." She concluded, breathlessly. "Ohh...ohh Franzi...that feels...wow...oh god..."

Soon both girls were moaning, essentially non-stop.

I walked back into the living room. All 9 pairs of eyes were on me, glaring. "I...come on! This...this has to be some sort of psychological trick, right? Right?!" I said, trying to convince myself as much as anyone else. "None of this makes sense! You can't just make someone gay [anachronism, another term for someone who enjoys sex with the same gender] with a virus!"

They just looked back at me, speechless, scared, furious, and a million other emotions in between.

Dasha stood up, saying in a thick Russian accent, "This is crazy! I'm going to bed, I've had enough for today!"

Others soon followed suit. It was a long, sleepless night for myself and the others. Sophie and Franzi's moans were seemingly unrelenting. I wished, for the first, but not the last time during my stay, that I had packed earplugs. There would be brief moments of reprieve, possibly when they had nodded off after yet another orgasm, but soon they would be back at it.

As if that weren't bad enough, I was also checking my own body the whole time. Was I feeling feverish? Aroused? Any unusually gay thoughts? Eventually, I nodded off.

Day 12

I woke up early to more moaning from one of the adjacent bedrooms. There had been no new infections since Sophie and Franzi.

Or so I thought.

These moans were definitely not

their

moans. It appeared that at least four more girls had locked themselves away. Dasha was already up, she was sat up, hugging her knees on the couch with a far-off gaze.

"My roommate...she tried to kiss me...she's now in there...with one of the others..."

This almost felt like a scene out of a zombie flick. Half of the survivors down, and no one knows who's next.

I sat down, dejectedly, next to her. None of this made any sense. I was sure there couldn't really be a virus. I just kept telling myself this was a psychology experiment. But then, shouldn't I be feeling it to? I looked over at Dasha. She was very beautiful, with bright blue eyes and long brown hair. Tall and curvy. I think she's attractive, intellectually, but I'm not attracted to her. No, I have no interest in her "like that."

"We just have to stay calm," I said aloud, as much to her as myself. She rolled her eyes in response. "Fair..." I said as we sat in silence, the moans from the bedrooms ebbing and flowing, with only the occasional break to rest or eat. Well, eat food, that is.

No one else was in much of a mood to socialize.

By evening, I noticed Dasha was becoming flushed. She asked if anyone else was warm, and we just all silently shook our heads.

She let out a loud sigh, simply saying "OK..." as she headed to one of the already occupied bedrooms. This was the first time I began to doubt my theory. She knew that she was resigned to her fate. She knew that there was no use fighting the inevitable. I felt a chill go down my spine, not from a fever, but from the realization that I, too, would probably soon start accepting the same fate as the others.

By the end of the night, Julie and I were the last two who were uninfected. Or rather, asymptomatic. We had sequestered ourselves in our room with a few days' worth of food and drinks, and the other girls had taken over the rest of the house. The moaning was essentially non-stop. Occasionally you'd hear one voice above the others, asking another to "lick here" or "touch there" or to simply "keep going." Even without feeling the same symptoms as the others, I was starting to get turned on from all of this erotic energy.

I asked if Julie was OK. She was on the verge of tears, and the question just put her over the edge.

"Well, let's just try to keep our routines and get a good nights' rest" I said softly, not knowing what else to do.

Day 14

The previous 36 hours had been hell. It was impossible to sleep, eat, or do anything without being constantly reminded of the lesbian orgy going on just outside of our doors.

I finally managed to get a few hours of sleep when I was awoken by moaning from within my room. I sat upright, my head snapping in the direction of Julie, who was curled up against the wall in the fetal position.

"W-what's happening...?" she asked weakly. I could see her flushed cheeks and hard nipples poking through the thin fabric of her pajamas.

"Oh no," I said softly. Come to think of it, I was feeling...warm, too.

"Julie..." I said, "are you...aroused...?" I couldn't believe the words that had just come out of my mouth. No, no, no, this can't be happening, I thought to myself, but I couldn't help but notice how...sexy she was there. She had these incredible soft lips, and I found myself wondering what it'd be like to kiss them...to feel them on my most intimate of places...I shook my head, trying to momentarily snap out of it, but my focus quickly returned to Julie, focusing on her body and bright red hair.

I could see she was also struggling. Watching her fight her urges was also turning me on, but at this point what wasn't?

"A-aroused...I...I don't know" she moaned, "I'm...mmmm...feeling...ahhh..."

She closed her eyes, as her body writhed on the floor. She rubbed her legs together, her body desperately aching to be touched, to give her long neglected pussy the pleasure it deserves.

I heard Dasha through the door, "Come on, just get it over with..." Her Russian accent suddenly sounded incredibly sexy. I imagined her body, her large breasts and imagining what they would be like in my mouth. I thought about her standing just outside my door and how she was desperate for me...oh god, did I want her? Yes, I wanted her! But first...

I threw my legs over the side of the bed, walking confidently toward Julie, "It's OK..." I said, running a hand through her hair. She moaned just from that simple contact. I, too, felt a jolt of electricity go through my spine. I wanted this. She needed this.