"It's working!"
Maya was marveling at their breakthrough. in front of her, a faintly shimmering circle was the base of an incorporeal arm. Her right arm actually. She looked to her right shoulder. She was leaning against the wall, where the originating portal was located. It shimmered right next to her shoulder. She moved her arm, and scratched her own head with it. It was weird doing it like this, her arm being in front of her instead of beside her.
Behind her, Adam laughed at the sight.
"Impressive, weird that it only lets live material through though."
Maya nodded.
"That sort of rules out personal transportation. I doubt people would want to arrive naked."
Adam snorted. Maya turned, to look at him, and he nodded.
"Yeah - I was just imagining diplomats arriving at a shared location, and all starting off completely naked."
Maya laughed at that.
"Well first, we need to sort out the distance. I am impressed of the low energy needed to establish the portal, and even more of the fact that it maintains itself without power as long as it something is in transit."
Adam nodded.
"Yep - and since the pairing requires a biological link, we are limited by our arm spans."
Maya looked around for something. She pointed to her table.
"Get me a pencil."
Adam walked over to the table, retrieved the pencil, and handed it to her.
"Other arm."
He handed it to her right arm. She started pulling it back through the portal. When she got to the pencil, it felt as if something held her back.
"Failure." Adam observed.
Maya nodded. She took the pencil with her left hand and pulled her hand through.
"Phew."
"How about if you drew on your skin?"
She looked at him. Hesitating only a heartbeat, she thrust her right hand through again, and drew a line on her thumb. She pulled through, and it went all the way. She breathed out, and put it back in the portal, to keep the connection open.
"That worked."
Adam took off his watch and put it on her arm, closing the strap. Maya pulled, and felt as if something stopped her as soon as it got to the strap.
"Maybe we can sell it to the police." Adam observed.
Maya smiled.
"Portal cuffs - ensure your perp can't fight back. Maybe that would work. I will write it up as a proposal."
***
Later the same evening, Maya locked the door behind her as she entered. She had another idea. She laid her bag on the bench, and took out the vest she had brought. It was leather, with the arm slots closed off. She had glued it up herself. She turned it inside out, and took the primer solution out, priming the arm area. it was the same size as their test portal. She had been very exact in her measurement. She took off her t-shirt and stood there in her sports bra.
She turned on the apparatus. It hummed, and all the indicators turned blue and yellow. She smiled at their nod to the game that had inspired the whole project. She touched one probe to the vest on the table, the other to the left area on the wall. Then she stuck her left arm through the vest, and it came out the wall. She looked down at her shoulder. Seamless. It was as if she had no arm at all.
Maya went over to her bag and took out the handcuffs. She shackled her right wrist, and then she initiated the other set of portals. She awkwardly thrust her right arm into the portal, and pulled the vest closed. with her left hand. With great difficulty she closed the vest.
Wow. This was strange. But what a turn-on. She loved self-bondage. She turned around, trying to spot her reflection in the glass partition to the corridor. This was the ultimate straitjacket concept. The blinds were down. Too bad. She turned, and walked to the far wall. She could control everything, as if it was a remote robot arm. She grasped her own hands and shook, and then in a moment of unfocused arousal at the success, she put the handcuff on the other wrist and it ratcheted closed.
Her heart sank as reality hit her. The key was in her right front pocket. Her heart must have stopped. She walked over to her arms on the wall, and turned her right hip towards her hands. It was not easy. The adrenaline rushing through her robbed her of her calm and the untold consequences of being discovered like this.
Maya took a deep breath and tried to gather her wits. She shook herself. She balked at her disembodied arms shaking on the wall. It was a little strange to behold.
She redoubled her effort at coordinating her hands, and lifted her hip as high as she could. She snagged the keys with her right hand. Success!
She fumbled, trying to get the key into the left cuff. she twisted it. The ratchet released, and she started pulling her left hand away, when her phone started ringing, startling her.
The key made a 'plink' sound as it hid the laboratory floor. She cursed. Her phone was in the opposite pocket. She looked desperately at the key. Then she focused on her left hand - could she get it out? No. the second thumb joint blocked it. She decided that her only other solution was to use her teeth. She got down on her knees, and leaned forward, letting her forehead thump to the floor. She moved closer to the key, and touched it with her tongue. She managed to get her lips on it, but couldn't pick it up. She tried moving it around, not thinking how unsanitary it was. after much concentration and effort, she got it to flip, so she could close her lips on it. She wanted to cheer, but was too worried she would drop the key again.
She pushed back, and sat on her knees. Then she thrust herself up, and towards the wall. She pushed her legs back, but she was not thinking what she was commanding her arms to do, so, in an effort to keep her balance, her arms flailed, delivering a smack to her cheek, making her release the key and sending it flying over toward the workbench, where the apparatus to make the primer solution was still set up. A beaker clinked and she swore.
The lab phone started ringing. Maya had sunk back down to her knees, so she started crawling on her knees over to the wall on which it hang. she knew that she had three rings, before the answering function took over. The phone rang again. She wouldn't make it. She crawled faster, but accidentally bumped a workbench and made a beaker fall and smash on the floor. She stopped, regarding the mess. The phone rang for the third time. Then the speaker turned on.
"Hello? Dr. Andreasson?" It was the guard, "I forgot to say that they are turning off the power to install a new UPS. They will be two hours, starting in ten minutes. I tried your mobile too, but I assume that you have your hands full, but I hope you have left for the evening. Call me back if you need them to postpone the fix."
Maya looked hopelessly at the phone. Ten minutes? She surveyed her surroundings. glass surrounded her on the floor. She would have to navigate it no matter if she tried to get a postponement, or go for the key. She twisted around, and looked at the emergency button each lab was equipped with. Placed 185cm above the ground so no one bumped it by accident. She was 175cm not enough to push it without her arms.
She shifted her gaze to the bench with the key. She couldn't actually see it. She bent down to try and see if it could be on the floor. No such luck.
She did NOT want to be discovered like this. She would be the laughing stock of the whole company. That was not going to happen. She looked over at her arms. She concentrated, and caught her left hand with her right, switched her hold, took a deep breath and yanked. As hard as she could.
She heard the crack a split second after she felt the jolt of pain. She had dislocated her thumb. Her, who had never broken anything before in her life. She breathed through the pain. She surveyed her options and decided to try simple force physics. She grabbed the left portal with her right hand. She felt her fingers brush her breast under her vest as she did. Then she bent her left arm at the elbow, grabbed her right arm by the wrist, and pushed. She felt the latex bulge as her elbow passed through the portal. It was lucky that it was flexible.
She re-positioned her hold, and got her whole left arm out of the portal, using her right arm as a fixed point, as it existed on both sides. She reached down, and undid the vest button, pulling most of her right arm through as well.
At that very moment the lights went out. Maya cursed. She fumbled to reach her phone and pulled it out. The screen bathed her torso in soft light. 22:30. She had spent more time than she thought. She dialed the security desk.
"Security, Dan speaking." The voice sounded young but authoritative.
"This is Dr. Andreasson. You were right, I had my hands full, and unfortunately I smashed a beaker just as the lights went off. Can you turn them back on for me?"
"Sorry Doctor. They disconnected everything, except the running experiments. Didn't the emergency lighting come on?"
Maya could see a glow though the blinds.
"Only in the hallway."
"I will come with a torch right away. stay put."
He hung up before Maya could find an excuse. She popped the phone back in her pocket and pulled the vest as far down her right arm as she could.it hung there. Then she used her left hand to prop herself up and stand. She crushed a shard of glass under her shoe.
The door opened, and Dan stepped in, sweeping the room with his torch until his light met her face.
"Sorry Doctor. I should have come and checked up on you in person."
Maya saw her way to redemption. Play the martyr.
"Indeed you should. this could have been dangerous. And why is there no emergency light in the lab. Is this up to code?"
"Sorry Ma'am. I mean Doctor. It's not my responsibility. I will log your complaint though."
Maya looked as furious as she could.
"You better. Now shine your light on this bench." She indicated the one with the key.
The apparatus was set up, but it was clean, the chemicals had not been added. She spotted the key, partially obscured by a Bunsen burner, and grabbed it. Now how to unlock the cuffs without him seeing them.
"Shine your light so I can see where I am walking. And try not to look at anything. I think most of what happens in these labs is beyond your paygrade."
"Yes Doctor Andreasson."
He followed her steps with his light. She walked over and fumbled a bit with the key, until the cuffs fell to the floor. Dan's light went to them and then to her face, which was fortunate, since she had pulled her right hand through, letting the latex vest fall to the floor.
She stared daggers at him, and he faltered, moving the light to her chest, highlighting her sports-bra and bosom.
"Not helping." She said in mock anger.
She heard a gulp.
"Shine it on the ceiling, she offered." That would give her enough ambient light to get her clothes and bag and leave. She did.
She hurried down the emergency floodlight-lit corridor. Dan behind her, desperately trying to keep up.
"Please call me a cab. I need to go to the emergency room."
