You decide to check off the craziest sounding one. Mindswap? Like a bodyswap? Surely that wasn't possible? Then again, they were paying you the big bucks for this, so maybe...nah.
You ask Marcie what she checked off. She grins.
"Timeline Manipulator! Doesn't that just sound groovy?"
It sure does, but probably not in the way she's thinking.
Pretty soon, Violet collects all the sheets. It's a while before she calls out your name, but it does happen eventually. Marcie squeezes your hand as you get up to disappear beyond the curtains.
"Good luck," she says.
"Always," you smirk. She smirks back and hits you on the shoulder playfully. Before you know it, Violet has taken you beyond the curtain, where you pass by several more until you reach the end of the hall. She parts the cloth to let you through, where you see Doctor Strauss hard at work on what looks like two human-sized metal pods linked by a single tube at their tops.You guess that's the Mindswap Contraption.
She grins at the sight of you and indicates the left pod quite eagerly. "Go," she says, "climb on in! Since you got here first, you get the privilege of choosing your partner! Don't worry, the other ones will get their own turns."
You opened your mouth to ask something but were cut off by the doctor's sudden change of expression.
"No questions! Into the pod!"
You shrugged and went ahead and laid down in the pod, back-first. The pod's open hatch swung down and sealed you in with a click. Somewhat worried, you pushed against the heavy metal lid. It didn't budge.
"Hey...."
The doctor glanced over her shoulder and winked at him. "It's perfectly fine, I assure you. That is exactly what is supposed to happen."
Well, okay. You were just glad you weren't afraid of enclosed spaces.
Doctor Strauss read something off a monitor on a table hooked up to the machine. She turned to face the curtain expectantly. So did you, for that matter.
Five women walked through the door. Five very different women. You were beginning to get seriously worried. If this machine worked, you didn't particularly want to end up at the opposite gender-- or in anyone else's body at all. This was a seriously ill-advised idea.
Doctor Strauss stepped in front of the women and grinned at you.
"So, allow me to introduce your options!"
The first woman was a middle-aged mom type. She'd clearly let herself go recently-- her pink t-shirt was struggling to contain her flab, and her pants were so tight you could practically see everything. Curly ginger hair was draped over her shoulders.
"Melissa Abernathy! 42 years old and mother of three! Ooh, I bet she'd like a change of pace!"
The second woman was much shorter. And skinnier. Oh god-- she looked so weak. She might have been fourteen years old? Certainly not much older than sixteen. Her black hair was greasy and her retainer was obvious. Thinking about being her was making your head spin.
"Ursula Ruiz! She's only fifteen, but she's a senior in highschool. Bet you'd like being a genius like her!"
The third woman was definitely your type-- if you ever had the balls to ask anyone out. She was about your age and curvy in all the right places. She was wearing a pair of tight tight jean shorts-- the top of her thong was peeking out. Her top wasn't much better.
"Eunhee Kang, 27 years old! She's a hard worker. An admirable trait!"
The fourth woman was-- oh god, she was pregnant! How was that gonna work? But you had to admit, it piqued your curiosity.
"Sunshine Jones, 31! What an appropriate name-- isn't she just glowing?"
The last woman had something in her ears-- just barely visible beyond her long brown hair. Your eyes widened as you realized what they were-- hearing aids! She was hard of hearing?
"Katya LeGuin, 19! What a beautiful girl. She lost her hearing in an accident. It sure would be nice for her to get a chance to experience something else!"
Was she trying to guilt trip you? Well, it wasn't totally ineffective... None of these choices seemed good-- You wanted out! You slammed your hand against the hatch.
"HEY! LET ME OUT!"
Doctor Strauss shook her head, an evil grin on her face. "I can't! Nor do I want to. Now choose. Which of these fine women's bodies will you choose to live in?"
You wanted to scream in frustration. Your heart thudded in your chest as you examined your choices. This was bad--- really bad. What were you supposed to do?
Who were you supposed to choose?
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