Chapter 614: Step into MY Office
"Um… no offence but… if you have no body of your own… why are you qualified to make one for me? I mean… I… sorry that was probably really rude…" Lily trailed off embarrassed she'd even asked such a question.
Nobody let out a long suffering sigh that didn't fit well with Nira's default behaviour and looked rather strange on her face. "Look, the lack of a body is mostly my own fault. I wanted to build a shapeshifting body that anyone could use instead of relying on inborn talent like myself. I also tested it on myself, thinking I could change back to my default form in case it failed. It failed. Spectacularly and I don't want to risk screwing things up further with another body. I'm lucky I managed to survive at all. Still, I have more experience with experimental procedures than anyone else. I learnt my lesson with my first major screw up and haven't had another in over a millennium"
*I… holy shit I'm glad she didn't take offence. A millennium of successful surgeries? I can't imagine what that's like… I… I just have no concept of how much time that really is. And for that not to be how long she's been practicing but how long she has gone without accident… I'm not really sure I can understand that…*
"Sorry… and um thanks…" mumbled Lily.
"None of that," said Slethnoth voice distorting slightly to sound as if it was coming from a deep hole. "we've been given the chance to test one of the most interesting racial changes on the menu. The cost of it has kept a lot of the warry from even trying this. It will be truly interesting to see if it works out well."
Slethnoth then 'stood' up which was more akin to peeling of the chair. This didn't seem to give them any extra dimensions though, wherever Lily looked the shadow was flat and looking right at her… it made the back of her eyes itch slightly. "Step in to my office" Slethnoth added with a giggled and gestured to a door that certainly wasn't there before.
None the less, Lily didn't hesitate… long. Slethnoth was an exceptionally strange being to look at and she couldn't help the slight bit of unease that crept into her mind because of it. Her determination was strong though, and battered the unease into a dark corner to be dismissed. Walking into the 'office' Lily could see it wasn't much, or perhaps, like the trick with the door, it was more than it seemed.
There was another panel with a monitor large in size and almost nothing in thickness covering about half of the right wall. In front of it was a keyboard and a number of other, smaller screens that Lily thought would have looked at home in an airline cockpit. At the back of the room was a large cylinder of glass that she had no doubt she'd be ushered into.
When it opened up at her approach she just steeled herself and marched towards it. Before she could enter though Slethnoth said, "Please remove all clothing and enter the pod for scanning. While in the pod please remain as still as possible."
"What about the brooch?" asked Lily looking at the gaudy device on her shoulder. Slethnoth paused and 'turned' at that.
"Bother, I had forgotten we had such a low level patient. One moment." Slethnoth said before pushing a few buttons on the control panel. Suddenly a thick sheet of glass slammed down cutting the room into two sections, with Lily's side only really containing her and the scanner. "There you go."
Lily felt some slight hesitation over stripping naked in front of someone she didn't know, but that same determination that had been powering her so far berated her again. *Slethnoth is about the scan my whole body, every single inch of it, likely inside and out. Why am I feeling embarrassed about taking of my clothes. They'll be watching as they build me a whole knew body from scratch. This should be nothing. Also… he's a shadow monster, can he even find me attractive? Wait is he even a he? Based on the voice I assume so…*
Lily let her thoughts wonder in that direction partly as a distraction while she removed her clothes, glasses, and brooch before she let them drop in a bundle beside the scanner. Lily hopped in and watched the doors closed praying, knowing it was silly, that she'd have slightly more modesty behind the second set of glass doors. She didn't of course, but it was nice to dream.
A bright green light shot out Lily flinched as it went right in her eyes. "Ouch"
"Sorry about that," Slethnoth said. "Would you like me to turn that off?"
Lily rubbed at her eyes that were now certainly watering growled out, "Why is it even on if it's optional?!"
"Some doctors felt like the scanning wasn't working so they company that makes them added in the green light to make people feel like it was working better. It doesn't do anything at all. In fact, the light has to be specially manufactured to prevent it from messing with the scanner," Explained Slethnoth.Lily grumbled a little more at that but Slethnoth just ignored it and turned the light off.
*Honestly. I wish I could say that was silly, and I suppose I will… but I know plenty of silly things we've done on earth. Like the fact that car locks still click close they don't do that. It's not how locks work. Or… or that click light switches make. That's part of the design. They don't do that if you don't want them to.*
A few minutes later the doors opened and she stepped out. A small part of her admitted that it felt a little silly to sit in a glass tube as she was scanned and nothing visible happened. However, based on the large image of her up on the screen as well as more personal details about the exact dimension of everything. EVERYTHING. Which she was ignoring a little. It was quite clear that Slethnoth had indeed scanned her.
"Well, pick up your brooch. Wouldn't want anything to happen to you. I'll throw over a coat though, we won't want your clothes getting ruined," said Slethnoth this time his voice sounded like an approaching train, which Lily personally felt was the strangest effect his voice had generated. The researcher within her wanted to know if it was done on purposes and if it could be controlled. The rest of her body though moved to pick up the brooch and once that was done the wall shot up.
Slethnoth threw a big white coat over her, it looked like the coat clipped through him several times during the throwing motion and that itching in her eyes got stronger but she ignored it. Lily just wrapped herself up in the medical gown and followed Slethnoth back out of the room. Nobody reacted by turning and smiling a slightly too wide smile for Nira's face before quickly tapping away at the control panel.
Nobody moved faster then Lily's eyes could see, her whole form blurring as the requisite movements were made. "Now!" said Nobody standing up and swishing her white doctor's coat behind her like a cape, "Follow me into MY office!"
Lily's eyes followed Nobody as they walked passed her… to the same door that Slethnoth had used. Feeling a slight twitch Lily watched as Nobody opened it to a completely different room. The walls were now a light blue and there was a big tub in the middle that had ten tubes on either side of it that fed into the walls. The tubes went straight up to the ceiling and ran along it to give space to look around. Each tube was transparent and the tub in the middle was as well, though it was slightly harder to look through.
Around the tub were yellow lines, cleaning separating it from the rest of the room. There wasn't anything else there though, and Lily wondered if a wall would drop down. At the side of the room was another large screen and it had the same information on it as well. Lily once again pointedly ignored the more embarrassing details. One might think those were her three sizes. You'd be wrong. They had much more intimate and embarrassing numbers Lily hadn't even considered would ever be mapped out. She also had no desire to remember them and made a point not to look at them long enough for the numbers to sink in.
Nobody swished through the room glancing over at the large screen once before she pulled out a holographic tablet from somewhere before tapping a few icons Lily could see through the back. She'd repeat this action a few times while checking the larger screen before she swiped the screen closed and then pointing it at the tub. In a blink there was a body there. Lily's new body. Lily's jaw dropped as she stared at what was going to be her new form. "It's not done just yet dear, this is just a projection to show what you'll look like. What do you think?"
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