“Why be in one place? There’s a whole continent to explore. Even past that, there’s probably more in the great ocean. Who knows what else there is to learn?”~Scout Ple’Tak, first dwarf to leave the mountain in 50 years.
It had been a stressful few days for Bernin. Her assignment was a lot shorter this time, her route now being finished by one of her colleagues. Kirrin also made it slightly strange. He and her had something in common. They both hadn't really processed the last few days.
He would have to face them eventually, she, as an adult, faced her problems head on…. That was what adults did right? She felt tired. Assignment first, then bed. Two things left to do. She could do that.
Walking back, she made her way to the administration spire. It was quiet as she made her way up the stairs, the long day having caught up with not just her. Getting to the middle part of the spire, she knocked on one of the few doors that didn’t close before dinner.
“Come in.”
The offices of the Agency of Responsible Spending and Experimentation were relatively small. It was a small affair. It had a front desk which was manned around the clock, behind the desk were two doors leading into the work room. During the day some members would be there, filing paperwork and checking numbers.
The boring job description is what makes most mages turn from the agency and the agency liked that just fine. Afterall, the boring work still needed to get done and if others knew what some members of the agency did instead, they would attract the wrong crowd entirely.
This time of day it was Alice at the desk. Alice always looked different, the only way to differentiate that it was her, were the eyes. No whites at all. Just solid orbs of glittering lights. Bernin always made sure to call them beautiful, but even to her it was a bit creepy. She could never tell what they were focussing on. It made her feel that could always be watching.
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“Bernin, great to see you. What do you think of the face? I did a whole makeover last week. It took a full 4 hours to get the shape right.”
“It looks great Alice, I love the cheeks and you look radiant.”
“Thank you! I actually managed to implant a thin layer of luminescent crystal beneath the outer layer.”
“It looks great, did you get my new schedule yet?”
“Ah yes, let me go grab it for you.”
Alice split in half. From the face, a second identical one grew and turned out of their chair. As they turned their chair, the new body grew from them. It stood, stretched and walked, fully nude, through the door.
Bernin managed to hold on and stop herself from cringing. It had been a while since Alice showed off her particular talent. It always freaked her out and she knew that Alice would only do worse if she reacted. She supposed that a full body sculptor like Alice would wish to show-off their work. It was just that their work was their whole body.
She must have shown at least a small reaction as Alice, still in the chair, began to smile. The new Alice, walked back with a small folder and instead of handing it to the sitting, made her way over to Bernin. Bernin felt a predator approaching and again tried to hold herself back. A reaction would only make this worse. Being calm and pretending this was normal was the only way to go. She held out her hand and accepted the folder.
“Thanks Alice, you truly look great. When I’m back from this one we should get some lunch together. It’s been a while since we caught up.”
The new Alice pouted and leaned forward, still holding the folder.
“Mmmmh, almost got you… Sure, let’s.”
Bernin turned around and walked out, her new schedule and information packet in hand. It was time to head out again. Her heart started to speed up in anticipation.