The Perfect Disguise

"About what ..." "Exactly, because of the white energy, it must change, creating the illusion of my rebirth." "Ah, that's ... a normal process."

- Sure? Arsi looked doubtfully .

- Of course.

Ink stepped out into the corridor, where he nearly ran into Kiass's rubbing eyes .

- Where's the bathroom?

- Ink ? Further down the corridor and to the right. Ext ... ik! - the facial expression of a golden-skinned person sharply lost its drowsiness.

- Good morning, love! - almost cried out Arsi .

"Yeah ... what ?" Kiass's finger pointed at Ink a, "is that ...?"

- I'm also reborn. Small changes in appearance are normal, " Ink explained .

Kiass tried to say something, and then stared suspiciously at his golden hands.

- Maybe in vain I chose this ability? - Ink heard his murmur.

The door to the bathroom was open, but next to the washbasin there was already a tooth- brushing Grank .

"Hey, wait until you get free," he grumbled indistinctly. Instead of a motorcyclist's suit scorched in places, he wore shorts and a T-shirt, which created a strange contrast with Ink's image that had become conscious in his mind . - And in general ... prfff!

Ink frowned. On his body, he noticed many specks of foamed toothpaste. The sensations said that they were noticeably more on the face.

- What you think you are?!! - shouted Grank , I should have heard the whole block. He was pointing at Ink while brushing his hand in a slightly trembling hand. White foam crawled out of his open mouth onto his chin. Wide eyes expressed fear and disbelief.

- This I must ask!

"Come here," Gran grabbed Ink a and led him to the mirror, which was on the wall to the left of the entrance.

"Yours, then! .." Ink could not stop screaming.

Someone with a pair of horns of bright saturated green color looked at him from the reflection. In cross section, their shape resembled a triangle slightly smoothed on the edges. From the bases - behind and just above the temples - to the very ends there was a thin serif, like on any bolts. The horns were not straight, but slightly bent, diverging initially to the side, then forward and upward. Not too long, but very massive in appearance. If they were at the beast, Ink would have decided that such an animal could string a heavy enemy and throw it away, leaving severe wounds. What to think of such an ornament on his head he did not even imagine. In addition, a beautiful gold-colored ornament was present on the nose. This kind could fit for some kind of cosplay (if you remove the white spots of toothpaste from the face of a uniform size).

- What is this?! - angrily threw his hands Ink the horns. Contrary to hopes, they were not going to disappear anywhere. The edges were quite sharp. The notch guaranteed that even a glancing blow with such a tool would be costly for the victim - at least it would scratch the skin. Ink was worried that if he carelessly held his hand, he would cut himself on countless small tips.

"You yourself said that small changes in appearance are normal," Arsi sarcastically said over her shoulder. - ABOUT! Beloved, come here soon. Give me a hug! Unfortunately, I cannot go far from this cuckold.

- Do not call me that!! - Ink exploded , then turned to the entrance to the bathroom. There Kiass stood there with a relief look .

"Since this is not normal, then this fate does not threaten me," said the golden-skinned man with a smile. - Good morning, Grank !

Ink did not even find a response to such words .

"Good at ..." Glam appeared in the aisle. For a moment he stared at Ink and then continued as if nothing had happened - good morning. As you put yourself in order, I'm waiting for you below.

"He just ignored it!"

Ink felt weird. His legend was confirmed and it's good. Concern about cover fees. Once again he touched the horns with one hand. He pressed a little and did not even know himself what he wanted more: so that they would break or be strong enough. You never know how damage will affect the body ... in a global sense.

"From somewhere, after all, material came to create them. The law of conservation of mass and all that ... "

While Ink was washing Arsi did not stop joking with him. Fortunately, the newfound owner of chic, saturated emerald-colored horns considered the girl's twitter as only a small addition to the concentration training. He already remembered everything that was in the bathroom, noted details that seemed insignificant at first glance, such as Grank's habit of squeezing pasta from the middle. Kiass preferred to smooth the tube from the end.

"Your eyes," Ink looked at the reflection of Arsi .

- What is the matter with them?

- Yesterday they were green, and today they are blue.

- My changes in appearance are not so significant.

"By the way, you said yesterday that many years have passed since your former death." I did not find time in the world of reflection long.

"Fifteen years," Arsi sighed. "This is just my case."

"After the death of the former you ..." Ink tried to carefully select the words. "She remained Michaelon's experimental rabbit?"

"No," the girl answered gruffly. "Don't you have anything more important than worrying about others, cuckold?"

"I told you not to call me that!"

"Beeeeeee ..." Arsi drew back her eyelid and showed Ink a reflection of his tongue.

"Well, what nonsense ..." Ink put a hand to his face, calmed down a bit while wiping his face and hands dry, and then returned to the room.

The chest of drawers found clean clothes of the right size. Gray pants and a white t-shirt are enough for warm summer weather.

In the hall, to the surprise of Ink a, there was only Glam. The rest came down a couple of minutes later.

"They chose a more stylish wardrobe for them," said Arsi .

Grank and Kiass were wearing colorful clothes. The motorcyclist, in addition, stood out for several shiny, polished metal accessories, and the unusual color of the golden-skinned almost did not catch the eye due to the abundance of bright spots on his hawka. A small hat with a red pattern and sunglasses, which he held in his hands, were supposed to further distract outsiders from the features of the metallic appearance.

Ink decided not to respond to the provocation by Arsi .

"We're going on a short trip now," Glam told everyone. - Try to train the cinema and remember as many details as possible during this time.

- Can we eat first? Belly rings like an empty barrel.

"Not a very good comparison, Grank , but you're right." The first in our visit list is just a small restaurant serving useful dishes for us. They are made from rare ingredients from the zero world. Stimulation and stabilization of physical characteristics, strengthening cognitive abilities and even a small effect on thin bodies. We will prepare you for the development of sairen ahead of time.

No one else had any objections.

"It seems our neighbor has guests," Kiass nodded his head toward the house opposite. Several cars were parked nearby. One or two people came out of each and greeting each other began to go into Michaelon's housing.

"He invited me for today," Ink recalled . - He promised to show the results of failed experiments.

"And we will certainly take advantage of such a generous offer." You need to see the work of the master of magic, but breakfast and training come first, - with a slight rustling the door of the minibus moved to the side. Glam gestured for the students to climb inside, and he himself went to the driver's seat.

To the barely audible sound of the engine outside the window flickered at home. All conscientiously peered around. At the same time, Ink tried not only to remember the details of the houses, but also to draw a map of the path in his head. How far have you covered the distance, from one turn to another? How the situation changes relative to their home and other details.

"What does the master of magic mean?"

- Kiass , don't you know? - Ink was amazed , not forgetting to glance at the side windows on both sides, complementing the picture seen through the windshield. "You're from the clan after all."

- My relatives from the buffer almost never happens in this world. If it does, then only to collect the ingredients or determine their value. All this is under strict protection and nothing special can be learned about the native space, "the golden-skinned explained. "Is he really a magician?" How are these fantasy stories and tales?

"If you're talking about the terrible tales of the Middle Ages, then yes," Glam said. - These are pretty dangerous guys. Warning your next question, my family has nothing to do with them. Our neighbor did not go through the process of ascension or rebirth. Due to the development of special skills, he has been able to live for several centuries under this sky. So it goes.

"I can't believe ... what will happen if he is reborn in a buffer?"

- Carl De Montier, leader of the Castle of Goodar, the strongest of the five clans of the small circle. This is what happens when true magicians, as they call themselves, ascend or are reborn. Of course, our neighbor doesn't suit even the strongest creature among those who didn't pass Ink's arnation, but it's still quite dangerous.

"The Letu clan has a much longer way to go than I thought."

"Glad you understand that," Glam answered in an indifferent voice, carefully following the road.

For a while, the trip continued in silence until Ink noticed a strange thing.

- Uh ?! Did we make a loop along the way?

"Sounds like it," Kiass added . "I remember that sign."

- Grank ? - the mentor's voice demanded an answer.

- Yes, I also noticed.

"Well done," Glam accelerated. - We assume that you have done your homework, so you can have breakfast with a clear conscience.

- Must you drive like that? - clarified Ink , who, unlike sitting on his lap Arsi , jerked a little on the turns. "I'm starting to worry about my lunch." If we again have to prove our ability to remember the details of the road ... I would not want to be left without food due to the fact that the vehicle is moving too fast.

"Don't worry about lunch." No evidence is required.

"That's good. Who would know that just watching everything around would be so difficult. "

Soon, a minibus parked at a restaurant with an outdoor terrace. Glam did not take a table under the canopy and led everyone inside.

"Fooh," Ink sighed in relief when the group sat at one of the tables. "I was afraid that my appearance would attract too much attention."

"It will be so if you decide to walk in this form without my escort," Glam did not take his eyes off the menu list.

- So what, now I can't even leave the house on my own?

- Not before you master the third step of the keenra, and even then in a large crowd of people of your strength is hardly enough to distract attention from such features. You can also try to find a good way to disguise.

Ink thought that it could be suitable as a cover for horns, he did not consider the pattern on the nose as an obstacle - on the contrary, he was even a little happy with such a cool thing. Options with a huge wig; a hat in which holes were made a la "these are not my horns, this is part of the headgear"; and the hoodie with a "well, a very large hood" seemed the most real, but did not inspire confidence.

"A hat is the most appropriate option ... Can I somehow manage to use my abilities? If the force field somehow begins to distort the light so that the horns seem transparent ... "

Ink pondered the last idea in more detail. Small channels, like fiber optic, will transmit light only through the ends. If you make a large number of microtubules so that they go around the horns ...

"Each point will show what is on the opposite side. The light, as it were, would go around the horns ... the points would be very small. Shouldn't that work? "

Ink was completely immersed in the process of implementing his idea, confident in its genius. It turned out surprisingly fast.

"Beautiful," Arsi praised .

Kiass nodded in agreement , and Grank only rolled his eyes.

- A good way to disguise, but in this form is only suitable for poorly lit space. At night or just in the dark, among dense thickets or sand can come in handy.

"Now what is wrong?" - Ink squinted his eyes up, but failed to examine the uninvited jewelry on his head, after which he waved his hand and created a flat circle from the force field, reflecting the light. It turned out a good mirror. In the reflection, Ink saw that the horns had not disappeared, but had become partially transparent. Most of all, it looked like crystal.

"Exactly ... The length of the tubes is greater than the thickness of the horns, so the distance, albeit a little, but is distorted, as if from refraction in a lens or a glass bottle of water. Yes, and the distance of each individual fiber is different, so there was such a mishmash of colorful spots ... But if you solve these problems, can I become invisible? .. - Ink thought and was forced to temporarily abandon this venture. "I have no idea how to do this."

"You're better at managing your abilities." Keep up the good work. Did you notice that I ordered us for breakfast?

"A seafood pie for the four of us and a cloudy cocktail for Arsi ," Ink replied without hesitation, for granted.

"What was written on the waiter's gold bracelet?" - continued to pry Glam.

- He did not have a gold bracelet. Unless, is hidden ... - Ink thought for a while, and the image of the sleeves of a man flashed in his mind, who came up while he was creating the disguise. "No, certainly not." There were only gold watches on a chain. On the side of them is the inscription " Rertis " and another scratch due to which the letter " r " became like " n ". It may mistakenly be read as Rentis .

~ Clap ~ Clap ~ Clap ~

Glam quietly applauded Ink y.

- Congratulations, now you can start studying the second stage of the cinema.