The woman was determined to stop Shan, any way possible; she was still aware, however, that stopping Shan could be a death sentence for all the people still trapped in the maid suits.

She had to find a way to free them first. Luckily enough, she had one working at home that she had a ‘special interest’ in…

Asana had been sealed in her suit for some time now and had almost forgotten about her ‘previous life’ as James. It was the familiar surroundings that kept reminding her of her past, almost as a torture.

She jerked, then crumpled, as her mother jabbed her with a syringe…

Carolyn, sadly, picked up Asana and carried her through to the bedroom. She then started working on the suit…

An hour later, she’d made no progress at all. Asana was just as trapped as before. She had to find a solution!

She slammed her fist down on the bedside table.

By sheer chance, the power cable popped out of a radio and fell onto Asana’s collar. It touched the collar in just the right place, still plugged in…

The fuse blew in the lead, but only after it sent a surge of electricity through Asana’s collar. All the electronics in it fried at once. The collar sprang open, the locks broken. All of the suit also unlocked.

Carolyn, shocked, quickly undressed Asana. A naked girl was soon lying on the bed…

Carolyn inspected ‘her’ all over. She thought it was another bodysuit, and James was trapped underneath. She cried as she realised she was tragically wrong. James was Asana now, forever. She could see the fading scars from her operation, as well as the fact her tongue was missing.

Carolyn was going to have a daughter for the rest of her life…

She was sitting on the end of the bed as Asana woke up.

Asana’s face widened as she realised she wasn’t wearing her suit. She shook and cried silently, burying her face in her hands…

She then tried to talk to her mother, but only a quiet hiss came out…!  This only started her crying again.

Carolyn just hugged her, not sure what to do next. At least her ‘daughter’ was still alive, and out of her suit. She was free again.

Why, then, did Carolyn feel that she had lost her son forever…?

Asana was able to eat normal food for the first time in ages, not being confined in her suit. To start with, she was violently sick; her digestive system wasn’t used to solid food. Gradually, though, she got used to eating again, even without her tongue.

Not being able to talk anymore scared her; she was used to being a girl, now, but really fed up with being mute. She was actually envious of some of the other maids, especially their being able to talk; she found herself wishing she was wearing a collar again…

Carolyn was scared for her. She’d come in from work one day to find her trying to fit her old collar back round her neck. She snatched it away, angrily.

“I knew I should have thrown that damn thing away! It’s fried, useless, but I thought examining it would help me be able to unlock others. Now I know it’s definitely just a case of ‘zapping’ it while the wearer is unconscious.”

“I just wish I could do more for you…”, she said, hugging Asana.

Asana gave her a note. All it said was;

“I want to go back to being a maid. I’m lost like this.”

Carolyn just cried…