I couldn't say at what point I had arrived. Simply sitting here in this waiting room, absorbing the atmosphere in a daze. Some part of me felt distant, some part of me felt unfamiliar. Yet I sat in a calm stupor waiting for my turn to... what?
Shaking the cobwebs from my mind and blinking my unfocused eyes into clarity, I came to. Where am I? A room with an antiquated character came into view. Dim light licked at the little detail there was to see. Arches of Gothic persuasion, frescoes curled in almost eldritch imagery. Nothing was too unwelcoming, yet most was alien enough to remind the viewer that you were intruding in a completely unknown space.
Yet there I sat like I had been invited, waiting for my turn. My chest heaved with the beginnings of a panic. Taking a deep breath I tried to centre myself, only to slam head first into my other problem. My body doesn't feel right.
Looking down at my own hands a petite set of fingers curled and uncurled. My shoulders ended much closer to my torso than expected. A petite set of bulges sat on my chest and my hips protruded out much further than normal. No way. I was almost numb to the barrage of new sensations, but they didn't end at just my new proportions. An unexpected weight sat on top of my head and an extra appendage sprouted from my rear.
One petite hand reached up to stroke the the unexpectedly soft structure crowning my head. While a dancing length fluttered around my torso into view. A tail of pastel blue fur fwipped into view tipped with a spiral of pastel pink petals. Not only my gender has been flipped but also my race? Species? I was tempted to check my junk. However, first of all, their absence was readily apparent. Secondly, I wasn't alone.
Sitting at the end of the room behind a desk was a rather busy receptionist. I had to blink as I counted her arms. Four arms each carried out a different task, from riffling through a stack of papers, to massaging into the furrows on her brow. She paid me no attention as I drummed up the courage to act.
It was easier controlling my new body than I'd expected. Fully prepared to catch myself as I stumbled with my new proportions there turned out to be no need to worry. Just as naturally as I'd done all my life I stood and begun walking. Everything's normal, nothing to worry about... I lied to myself. Hands nipping at the unfamiliar clothes plans flitted through my head on what to say. Hi, why am I here? Idiot...
What could I say? How did I get here? Or perhaps where is this? What if this was all an accident? Something supernatural had to be the cause. And if my presence was a mistake anything could occur when that became apparent. But I still need to broach the topic.
Nearing the desk my feet faltered as the thought of speaking up caused that all too familiar dread. I'd never been good at human interaction. And now I can't even claim it to be 'human' interaction. I almost shrieked as the sight behind the desk came into view.
A long chitinous torso lay in a lazy winding curve behind her. Hundreds of oversized insect legs tapped rhythmically as she worked away at her tasks. A pair of feelers protruded from the end of her body, feeling the surface of the wall behind in that flesh crawling way insects do.
"Hmm?" She grumbled as she noticed my presence for the first time. I stiffened as her gaze left her work for the first time and fell over my new form. "You fully with us then?" She drawled in a uninterested manner. That's not English. A small part of my mind noted.
"Y-yes!" I suppressed the shudder crawling down my spine, and surprisingly my tail as well. If I'd looked I fully expected to see a puffy tail like that of a surprised cat.
She huffed a little disappointment at the unfinished pile of work before pushing it aside. "Welcome to the Academy." She says mechanically, like she's said this speech a thousand times. I can't help but notice that her two sets of arms are mismatched. One set long slender insect like limbs with three fingers. The other set more human like and familiar.
She sets an elbow on the desk and props her face up with one of her insect arms. "You have been selected for a placement with the Academy. If you wish to accept, all you need do is sign a few form."
"The Academy?" I mutter in confusion. Only realising after that it may have been better to keep my mouth shut.
"Yes, indeed The Academy. We have recently moved to this sector of the cosmos and are recruiting students again. You were randomly selected from compatible candidates of the neighbouring realms." She drums her three fingered hand as she drawls out her speech. The constant clack of exoskeletal plates tapping against one another set my nerves on end.
"What does the Academy teach..." She frowns setting off alarm bells in my mind. I decide to amend my question. "I mean, what courses are available?"
"Ah, well. There are the general courses outlining the basics needed for later subjects. You'll learn foundation subjects such as Universal Geometries, Soul Studies, Rune Scribing, etc, etc. After you've mastered the basics, you'll be given the option to specialise. Any particular area you're interested in?" I'd been so invested in gleaning any clues about the academy that I hadn't expected a question myself.
"Eh, ah..." I scrabbled for a satisfying yet evasive answer. I have no idea what any of those subjects mean. However one subject in that list had caught my attention. Universal Geometries sounded quite mathematical in nature, which was a subject quite in my wheel house. And any subject can be studied to an ever increasing level of detail. "I'm curious about the Universal Geometries course." I hedge.
For the first time during the chat the lady shows an emotion other than boredom. She barks a laugh and a slow grin crawls onto her face. "Most would find that a rather dry subject matter. But yes, there are advanced courses in Universal Geometries, ones most students have to be dragged kicking and screaming to as a prerequisite. But our craft often finds itself returning to our origins of circle diagrams and rituals."
The more I listen the more this sounds like the occult. Circle diagrams and rituals? Soul studies? Against my better judgement I lean closer as she describes what's on offer. I try to ignore the skittering, crawling dread I feel at her form. Am I being invited to some sort of Wizard School? Or more correctly a Mage College? A flutter of emotions thrums in my chest. Unsure if its anticipation or fear I feel crawling around in my chest I swallow my hesitation and start asking questions.
"Wha-what's the cost for attending?" I start a list of pertinent questions. Gaining a little confidence that this isn't all a huge mistake. "Where exactly are we? Why..." and then I remember that I'm not even in my own body anymore. A confusing melting pot of sensation mixed with a guilty tinge of impostor syndrome. There must have been some mistake, why else would I be the wrong gender? They didn't pick me, this opportunity, whatever it is, was for someone else. "Why am I like this?" I finish with a note of melancholy.
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"Whoa-whoa, steady on. This old mind can't keep to many questions in it at once. You're not too familiar with the Academy are you?" She asks. I feel my stomach drop as I expect the next comment from her to uncover my guilt. However her mood seems to lift as she takes pride in alleviating my ignorance. "No cost, think of it as winning a scholarship if you accept." She waves a hand dismissively as she continues. "There's a whole point system for determining how long you can stay, but that's neither here nor there for new students."
"Ehm, whats next?" She mumbles. "Oh yes, where? Well, I assume you're not asking for the exact location." She gives me an even stare, before returning to her previous candour. "The true location is of course a secret, as there would be many who would abuse such information. However in general the Academy floats somewhere in the ether between worlds. Sitting in the void anchored to the local cosmos for a variable duration before moving on. Hence the full title of this Academy..."
She spreads her arms and displays a rare dramatic flair for the next statement. "The Void Academy of Magical Excellence, or VAME for short. However that translates to your native language. Known across the cosmos for producing the best of the best in the study of magic. Accruing vast quantities of magical knowledge applicable no matter the world and generally being an equal opportunities institution." Coming down from her theatrics she clacks her insectoid arms along the desk. "Well, they're all just a bunch of nerds if you ask me, but it's true that they never care much for politics or background. Not much point when you don't really belong to any given world anymore. This place is like its own pocket universe... well actually its exactly that." She mulls to herself.
"What was the last question?" She gazes at me. I feel her stare pierce right through me as I begin to regret asking it. What if I really have taken this opportunity from someone? I'm in equal parts awe and anxiety. Questions I feel I can't ask tumble around my head. Am I stuck here? Will I be able to return home? Can any of this knowledge even be used on mundane earth? What will happen about my uni course back home? Will I be reported missing?
"Ehm, well." I try to think of a way to deflect, but only questions I don't want to risk asking pop into my head.
"Oh yes! Why that body? Well as far as I remember it's an avatar deemed most compatible with you out of our catalogue of templates. Can't remember all the details, but they serve several purposes. From bringing students together by breaking down species barriers. To allowing communication and ensuring a modicum of biological magical talent for learning the curriculum. Bah!" She waves a hand dismissively. "Ask a teacher these sorts of question. The short of it is, it should be familiar but won't be exactly the same as what you're used to."
My heart sinks a little. Well that seals it. This can't be right. There's no way males don't exist in the wider cosmos... I'm here by accident aren't I? Most compatible? A part of my mind baulks at the thought of being female. A guilt that I'm trespassing, a feeling of shame at taking what isn't mine to take. I'd never really though my male body was wrong before now, but being in this form drums up this feeling of being illicit and immoral. Like I'm being told, 'You can't have this.'
My male body is hum drum. Merely a vehicle with with I get through the every day. I'd heard about transgender people and so on, but it'd never really be relevant to my life. I don't feel disgust at my body do I? Rather it's just something I use to live my life. But lacking pride in my appearance doesn't equate to the horrors of living with dysphoria, does it?
Do I continue the charade? Will I be punished for not coming forward? Then it hits me. They haven't cottoned on that there is something wrong here. And they're giving me a perfect excuse for plausible deniability. It's a random selection process. What's to say it couldn't have picked me... apart from the wrong body, and earths complete lack of magic. It's a flimsy excuse. But that flutter of excitement wont abate.
I can't help but feel it's a risk. But one worth taking? Hell yes. I grew up dreaming of wizard schools and isekai adventures. And if this all doesn't turn out to be a dream I'd kick myself for not even trying.
With a tingle running down my spine I make my decision. "How-how do I sign up." I stutter. A multitude of worries plague me, from deals with the devil to fears of discovery, but this is my chance to see beyond the mundane. What's one more guilt on my conscious.
"Glad to hear it." She pulls out a fancy declaration from beneath her desk. I begin to read as she instructs me. "Simply push your thumb onto the circle on the bottom and it will bind you to the agreement."
I gulp. This would be the point to pull back and admit it was all a mistake. I read the strange text which isn't written in English but can read just fine anyway. It reads like the usually legalese. Funny, that that transcends the boundaries of the universe. I can't find anything to disagree with. Some notes are relevant however. No spreading general theories among your native populace. Makes sense I guess? Seems derived theories are OK though. Right, well, this is the best I'll get anyway. With a hesitant breath I push my thumb into the mystical pattern on the bottom of the page.
Light spreads from my point of contact filling the pattern and spreading outward. The entire page gets swallowed in complex swirls. After the light show ends the circle is replaced with a delicate floral pattern in subtle pastel shades. Something about it seems strangely familiar.
"And done!" She announces. "You're officially a student of the VAME institute. Welcome to the campus." She fishes around a draw in her desk and takes out a couple of items.
I stare at the document pondering what I've just signed myself up for. She hands me a small medallion on a chain. "Wear that always. You'll be dragged back here when one of your classes is due to start. It logs your points, indicates lesson times among other things. Give me your hand a second."
I dumbly reach out I have to hold back a shudder as she grabs it with one of her insect limbs. The spiny fingers dig slightly into my skin, but it doesn't hurt. She takes the second item she found and stamps the back of my hand with it. Without even using ink it leaves a small marking on the spot it was applied. A intricate circle is painted no bigger than my thumb nail.
"Don't rub that off. Eventually you'll learn how to anchor yourself to this world but that'll require a bit of work on your end. But until then you'll need to reapply it whenever you return. We might not find you again if you otherwise, so don't forget OK?"
"So wait? Where do I go now? What happens next." I ask in a fluster. Slowly considering the fact that I may not be going home for a long time.
"Hmm? Nowhere. For now you're going home. Watch your token. You'll be back before you know it. You'll be starting in the general class. It has no particular order to the lessons so students can join at any time."
"Eh?" The rather anticlimactic conclusion throws me for a loop. Before I can even ask for clarification the world starts to blur at the edges. Definition quickly falls away and...
How long has this lecture being going so far? I want to drum up the interest I should know this subject deserves but the lecturer has sucked all the moisture out the room. He couldn't have delivered a dryer presentation.
"And this is why the fundamental theorem of algebra is so essential. Without a unique factorisation..." His drawl continues and I struggle to stifle a yawn.
Hmm? A strange sense of déjà vu comes over me. Like a word on the tip of my tongue that just doesn't form properly. What am I missing? For the life of me I couldn't think what I'd forgotten about.
An idle hand stroked through my pathetic excuse for a scraggly beard. Unkempt and uncared for. Just as I pondered this foggy thought a metallic jangle sounded from my chest.