27. Chapter 27

Jayna hunted through the amazing outfits in her hotel closet, all purchased for her by Emmaline, but she didn't see anything that would be right for the Manutai Jubilee Ball. Sure, it wasn't the Met Gala or Monaco's Rose Ball, but there would be plenty of celebrities, world leaders, and royalty in attendance, and she was excited to be going.

She just had to figure out what to wear.

At last, she settled on a navy V-neck dress with a flared mid-thigh skirt. She tried it on and admired herself in the mirror. The dress itself was rather basic, but the contoured cut and deep blue satin were both quite flattering. If she dressed it up with accessories, it just might do.

She was startled by a knock on the door.

Emmaline stood outside her room. She looked Jayna up and down and asked, "Oh, are you going out?"

"No," Jayna said. "I was just trying this on to see if it might work for the ball this evening."

Emmaline made a face. "No, no, no, you can't wear that."

Jayna looked down at her dress, confused. "What's wrong with it?"

"Nothing is wrong with it if you're going to the theater or a fancy dinner. But this is the Manutai Jubilee Ball. You need something special."

Jayna sighed and opened the closet door again.

"You won't find what you need in there, which is why you have a fitting in thirty minutes."

"A fitting? Are you serious? The ball is in ten hours."

Emmaline smiled and waggled her eyebrows. "We can't have you wearing something off the rack to the Manutai Jubilee Ball. Come on."

A waiting limo took the women to a tall building shaped like a giant spiral seashell. Jayna had been curious about it ever since they'd arrived in Manutai. Once inside, a maglift whisked them, limo and all, to a private car park on the top floor.

Emmaline exited the limo and gestured for Jayna to do the same. Together they walked into a huge open room with a reception desk and what appeared to be a small fitting room on one side. On the opposite side of the room, a piece of clear rectangular glass over three meters long rose at a forty-five-degree angle from a broad, short platform.

"We're here, Lena!" Emmaline called out.

A woman with light brown skin and black hair pulled up tightly into a bun came out from behind the fitting room. She walked elegantly towards Jayna, the gauzy tropical print fabric of her pantsuit flowing behind her.

"Okay, let's see what we have to work with," she said in a French accent. Lena scrutinized Jayna for several long moments. "Oh, yes, we can do amazing things for you. We'll get your measurements, and then we can begin."

Jayna stood up straight and held her arms out to the side. Lena gave her a tight-lipped smile and pointed to the fitting room. "Step into the multi-scanner, please."

Jayna felt her cheeks flush. "Oh, right." As if a high-end place like this would use anything as simple as a tape measure.

As soon as she entered the multi-scanner, every surface lit with brilliant light. Jayna squinted. The door closed behind her, and Lena's voice came from hidden speakers. "Hold still. This will only take a few minutes."

Jayna did her best not to move as the room buzzed and vibrated around her.

"Very good. Now deep breaths," Lena said.

Jayna did as she was directed. After several deep breaths, the lights dimmed, the vibrating stopped, and the door behind her clicked open.

As she left the chamber, she became aware of a loud humming sound. Once her eyes adjusted to the ambient light in the room, she gasped. The tall piece of glass spun so quickly that it was nearly invisible. And on the spot, there was now, well…it was her.

Jayna stared slack-jawed at a near-perfect reproduction of herself standing in the middle of the floor. The anatomically ambiguous digital mannequin was naked, and the sight of it made her feel exposed.

"Impressive, isn't it?" Emmaline said quietly.

"I guess," Jayna said. "I was thinking more like ‘creepy.'"

Emmaline let out a tiny laugh. "It gets better. Watch."

But instead of getting better, the situation only grew creepier as Lena intently studied Jayna's naked digital likeness.

"You have an impressive physique," Lena said at last. "Quite unique. What exactly do you do again?"

"I'm a performer and athlete," Jayna said, giving the vague answer she always used when talking with someone she thought might not respect her chosen career.

"Don't be so modest," Emmaline said. "Jayna is an award-winning mermaid."

Lena's eyes lit up. "Ah, yes. I thought I recognized you. The mermaid Olympics or something like that? Well, I have the perfect dress for a mermaid champion."

She gestured, and a long emerald-green gown shimmered into place on the mannequin. The dress had a fitted bodice with long sleeves and a floor-length skirt that hugged the hips and thighs and flared at the knees. "It's daring, but you simply must wear a mermaid skirt."

"Oh, I like that," Emmaline said. "Do you think you could do it with beads, you know, kind of like a golden age Hollywood starlet?"

"Oh, we can definitely do beads." Lena gestured again, and the gown was instantly covered in an elaborate pattern. "And I'm pretty sure with muscles like those, we could skip the plastic and do genuine crystal."

Jayna had worn enough beaded tops that she worried about wearing a gown covered with them. "Won't that be heavy?"

Lena dismissed her concern with a wave. "It adds a couple of kilos. It should be nothing for a strong young woman like you."

"What if you shorten the sleeves?" Emmaline asked. "Would that reduce the weight?"

"It would," Lena said, and with a gesture the sleeves shrunk to cap length. "Or better yet, we'll give you a halter top." The sleeves pulled back far enough to reveal the mannequin's collar bones. "If I had your shoulders, I'd never want to cover them."

"I love it!" Emmaline said.

The gown truly was amazing. It wasn't like anything Jayna would have picked for herself, but she felt a thrill run through her at the thought of wearing it.

Yet, as gorgeous as it was, something about the dress bothered her. It took Jayna a moment before she figured out the problem. "This dress is amazing," she said, "but, well, doesn't a ball imply dancing?"

Lena folded her arms. "I would think so."

"Of course," Emmaline said. "I understand that you're an excellent dancer, and I think you'll find Obsidian's skills as a partner are more than satisfactory."

Jayna's face flushed. "I don't know about excellent, but I definitely enjoy it." She gestured at the dress and said, "I guess that's why I was expecting a more traditional ball gown, or at least something I could dance in."

"You can dance in this dress," Lena said, sounding rather defensive.

Jayna examined the dress again. "I don't think so," she said.

"Of course." Lena gestured again with her hands. Music started to play, and mannequin Jayna swayed gently to the rhythm.

Real life Jayna made a face. "I have no idea what that is, but it isn't dancing."

Lena gestured again, and the mannequin's movements became more pronounced. But the motion was still less like dancing and more like someone trying to escape a strait jacket.

Jayna winced and shook her head.

Lena scowled and made a swiping gesture with her hand. The music cut off with a record-scratch sound effect. She stalked to a cabinet on the far wall and removed a small black box. She returned, thrust the box at Jayna, and quirked an eyebrow. "Please, feel free to demonstrate your idea of dancing."

Jayna lifted the lid and gasped. Inside she found a gorgeous pair of t-strap sandals with ten-centimeter heels. The shoes were the same gem-encrusted emerald green as the gown and were clearly made for dancing, with their reinforced heels, flexible soles, and perfectly-spaced toe straps. She hurried to a bench so she could put them on.

The shoes fit as if they had been custom-made for her. It seemed odd that Lena happened to have a pair in her size that were an exact match for the gown, but Jayna was too excited to dance in these amazing shoes to worry about coincidences.

She glanced at the dress and decided if she was going to look like a 1930s classic Hollywood starlet, she should be able to dance like one, too. "Play Benny Goodman's ‘Sing, Sing, Sing.'"

Lena flicked a finger, and the opening drumbeats echoed through the room. Jayna launched into the dance routine from one of the Realms of Neptune stage shows. It was admittedly more exuberant than anything she would do at the Jubilee Ball, but certainly not out of line with a proper swing dance.

As she danced, the mannequin copied her every move. More than once, the mannequin stumbled and glitched. If it hadn't been a digital representation, Jayna was certain it would have fallen. There were also multiple spots on the dress highlighted red. Jayna assumed these were places where the fabric or seams would have torn.

She finished her dance, out of breath and invigorated by the exertion, and Emmaline clapped loudly. "Very impressive."

Lena also clapped, but it was a slow death clap. "Yes, that would be fine for some kind of dance show. But I don't think you'll be dancing like that at the Manutai Jubilee Ball."

"Maybe not," Emmaline said. "But Jayna's right. No matter how beautiful the dress is, the ability to dance should come first."

Lena narrowed her eyes at Emmaline, and Jayna expected her to push back. But then Lena gestured, and the virtual skirt shortened until the flare began mid-thigh and hit the mannequin mid-calf.

Lena again flicked her wrist, and the mannequin began the dance routine.

There were still a handful of virtual tears, but after two more rounds of adjustment, the dress, the mannequin, and the dance all worked together.

Lena's sour look was replaced with one of triumph.

"There. I think that should do it."

Jayna had to admit that what she had seen was quite impressive. But she had doubts. "Are you sure you can have this done in time for the ball?"

"No problem," Lena said. "We'll have this delivered in six hours."