Stelle barely had time to blink before a high-pitched, slightly dispassionate voice cut through the chaotic atmosphere.
"Stelle. You're causing more trouble than usual, aren't you?"
She turned to see Herta floating into the room with her usual impassive gaze. The self-proclaimed genius seemed entirely unfazed by the sight of Asta and Arlan doing a scene about "swapped bodies". Instead, she looked at Stelle with the same curiosity one might reserve for a rare collectible. After all, her Stellaron in inside this Trailblazer, and Simulated Universe is pretty happy to get this kind of ... guinea pig.
"Herta!" Stelle exclaimed, trying to sound nonchalant while stepping away from the panicking duo. "I was just, uh... testing something."
"Testing something? Hmm." Herta’s mechanical body drifted closer, her eyes flicking between Stelle and the two mismatched souls. "So, the rumors were true. You've unlocked an ability linked to the Stellaron."
Before Stelle could answer, Herta added "A tangible separation of soul and body. This is more advanced than anything I've encountered in the Simulated Universe simulations. You must tell me everything."
"Uh, maybe later? I should probably fix this mess first." Stelle gestured to the swapped Asta and Arlan, who were still squabbling in confusion.
"No," Herta said flatly. "Let them simmer. Observing their interactions will be valuable for my research."
"Herta!" Stelle groaned.
Herta ignored her. Clearly, she's only interested in the research she can do on that, not on the two poor souls. "If this is what I think it is, your ability to interact with consciousness could prove revolutionary. With refinement, you might even affect entire systems—change thought patterns, rewrite mental constructs..."
Stelle was not entirely against building such a huge power, but didn’t like where this was going. "I’m not rewriting anyone's thoughts, okay? I’m just figuring this out."
"Oh, but you will." Herta’s smile widened slightly, an eerie glint in her eyes. "I insist you join me in my lab for further testing. Let’s see the full extent of this 'Diversity Path,' as I’ll call it. It’s such a... flexible ability."
Stelle hesitated. Herta is not the perfect ally, nor a moral person, but her genius can help to harness this power, right ? Moreover, if she can bargain a bit ... "I accept, but only if I can put them back in their rightful body
Herta paused, her head tilting slightly as if calculating the probability of compliance. Then she sighed nodded. "Fine. But only because I want to see you doing it. Hurry, then come along, Stelle. There’s much to uncover about your new power."
Stelle sighed, casting an apologetic glance at Asta and Arlan as she uses once again her power. Soon, the two are back in their bodies, pretty confused about what happened. At least, they don't know it's her ... for the moment. But for now, she has to follow Herta, trying not to think about what kind of "tests" the genius had in store for her.
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