As Elizabeth and Veronica wriggled forward, their heads and hands finally emerged from the far end of the boxes. Just as they were about to push themselves all the way out, there was a sudden click—a mechanical sound that sent a shiver down their spines.
Before either of them could react, both ends of the boxes snapped shut with a metallic clang, locking their heads and hands out of one side, and their feet out of the other.
“Wait—what?!” Veronica exclaimed, trying to pull her arms free. “Daniel! What just happened?!”
Elizabeth tugged at her wrists, but the openings had moulded perfectly around her limbs, keeping her firmly in place.
“Oh, you have got to be kidding me.”
Daniel, who had been reading ahead in the magician’s book, looked up and blinked in surprise.
“Ohhh… yeah, I probably should’ve mentioned that part.”
“What part?” Veronica snapped, twisting her shoulders to see if she could move at all.
“The boxes… uh, they’re part of the trick,” Daniel admitted. “Once you get inside, they automatically ‘secure the infiltrators’ so they don’t escape.”
Elizabeth groaned. “Of course they do.”
“So… how do we get out?” Veronica asked, already dreading the answer.
Daniel turned a page. His expression shifted slightly.
“…Well, good news! There’s a way to escape.”
Elizabeth narrowed her eyes. “And the bad news?”
“You have to complete the ‘Heist’ first,” Daniel said, grinning. “And that means breaking into the vault.”
Veronica sighed, letting her head hang forward. “I swear, next time we come here, I’m bringing a sledgehammer.”
As soon as Daniel placed the small metallic vault between them, a soft mechanical hum filled the air. A digital timer appeared on the front of the vault, ticking down from 60 seconds.
Elizabeth glanced at Veronica. "Okay, no pressure, but we should probably get this open fast."
Veronica sighed, flexing her fingers. "Sure, because nothing about this entire setup screams 'pressure'."
She reached forward with her locked hands, trying to manipulate the dial while Elizabeth tested the edges for hidden latches. But the vault was designed to be just out of their full reach, forcing them to stretch awkwardly.
"Thirty seconds left," Daniel announced, flipping through the book with mild curiosity.
Elizabeth shot him a glare. "You could help!"
"Yeah," Veronica added, yanking at the lock, "or at least tell us what happens if we fail."
Daniel hesitated. “Well, uh… the book says, and I quote, ‘Failure to open the vault in time will result in full-body segmentation via high-precision laser array.’”
Elizabeth froze. "Full-body what now?"
Veronica scoffed. "That has to be a bluff. What laser—?"
Suddenly, a soft bzzt sound echoed above them, and the ceiling lit up with crisscrossing red laser beams, slowly lowering toward them.
Veronica's eyes widened. "...Oh."
"Fifteen seconds!" Daniel called out.
Both women frantically twisted and yanked at the vault, but it was no use—the lock wouldn’t budge.
"Ten seconds!"
Elizabeth winced. "Oh, we are so dead—"
The moment the timer hit zero, a loud BZZT! filled the air as the lasers reached their bodies.
A strange, tingling sensation shot through both Elizabeth and Veronica as the beams passed right through them, neatly severing them at the waist. Their torsos and legs slumped slightly, still locked in place by the trick boxes.
Elizabeth blinked. "Well… that was weird."
Veronica groaned. "I knew I should’ve worn my catsuit for this…"
Daniel clapped his hands together. "Right! Now for the next step."
He pulled out two large divider blades from the side of the trick setup.
"Wait, wait, wait," Elizabeth protested. "Aren't we already cut in half?"
Daniel nodded. "Yes, but according to the instructions, I have to complete the illusion by inserting these blades through the middle to ‘lock’ the effect in place."
"That doesn't sound reassuring," Veronica muttered.
"Yeah, well, neither did ‘full-body segmentation via laser array,’ and here we are," Elizabeth countered.
With a theatrical flourish, Daniel carefully slid the first divider blade into Elizabeth’s box, separating her upper and lower halves completely. Then he did the same for Veronica.
The moment the blades locked into place, a metallic click echoed through the room.
Daniel grinned. "Congratulations, ladies. You are now officially in two pieces."
Daniel, now fully engrossed in following the trick’s instructions, gripped the side handles of the boxes containing Elizabeth’s and Veronica’s legs.
"Alright, next step," he muttered, carefully maneuvering the lower halves forward.
Elizabeth and Veronica, still processing the bizarre sensation of being separated at the waist, suddenly found their own feet being brought up toward their faces.
Veronica blinked. "Wait—what are you—?"
Before she could finish, her own booted feet were right in front of her, toes wiggling slightly.
Elizabeth let out a breathy laugh. "Okay, this is weird, it's more intense compared to the previous divisions." She tried flexing her feet, and sure enough, her toes responded as if nothing was wrong.
"I don't know whether to be horrified or impressed."
Veronica tested it too, raising one foot slightly. "So we can still move them? That's so bizarre..."
Elizabeth laughed, "Yes Veronica, this happens quite a bit."
Daniel gave a smug grin. "Well, that is the whole point of the illusion. The audience gets to see your feet moving while your head is in a completely different spot."
Elizabeth wiggled her toes again and smirked. "You know, if we were actually performing, I'd totally throw in some exaggerated movements to sell the trick. Maybe cross my ankles dramatically."
Veronica rolled her eyes. "Of course you would."
Daniel chuckled. "Well, now that you’re both folded up neatly, the book suggests taking a moment to let you experience it before we move on."
Elizabeth raised an eyebrow. "Experience it? As in, just sit here, folded like a pretzel?"
Daniel shrugged. "It says ‘assistants should familiarize themselves with their new positions for maximum effect.’"
Veronica groaned. "Great. So now we just... hang out like this?"
Elizabeth grinned mischievously. "At least we can say we’re really getting into our roles."
Veronica sighed. "I walked right into that one, didn't I?"
Daniel snorted. "More like you crawled into it. Now, shall we move on to the next step, or do you want a few more minutes of bonding time with your own feet?"
Daniel glanced at the book again, then at Elizabeth and Veronica, both neatly folded up with their feet in front of their faces. A wicked grin spread across his face.
"So, uh… there's a very interesting note in the instructions here," he said casually, setting the book down.
Veronica narrowed her eyes. "Why do I feel like I’m not going to like this?"
Elizabeth, on the other hand, smirked. "I dunno, I think I am going to like this."
Daniel knelt down and reached for Veronica's boots first.
"Hey! What are you—" Veronica protested, but before she could do anything, he had already unlaced and slipped off one of her sleek black boots, followed by the other.
Her bare feet flexed instinctively.
Then, he turned to Elizabeth, who was already giggling in anticipation. Her glowing red-lined bodysuit still hugged her form, but her feet were soon bare as well.
"You know," Daniel mused, "it does say here that when someone is divided like this, certain sensations can be… amplified."
Veronica's face paled. "Wait. No. Absolutely not. Don't you dare—"
Too late.
Daniel’s fingers brushed against the soles of her feet.
Veronica shrieked. "DANIEL, YOU—AHH!"
Her body jolted in the box, but she had nowhere to escape to. The sensation wasn’t just normal ticklishness—it was heightened, running through her divided body like an electric current.
Elizabeth erupted into laughter—both from watching Veronica’s reaction and from knowing her turn was next. "Oh no, this is amazing!"
Daniel smirked, then turned to Elizabeth. "Your turn."
"Bring it on," she challenged, wiggling her toes.
As soon as his fingers danced along the arch of her foot, Elizabeth let out an uncontrollable burst of laughter.
"OH—OH WOW—OKAY YOU'RE RIGHT—IT'S WAY MORE INTENSE—"
She squirmed as best she could in her confined state, but like Veronica, she had nowhere to escape.
Daniel alternated between them, watching their helpless reactions with amusement.
Veronica gasped between giggles. "I—I'm gonna get you for this—"
Elizabeth was too lost in laughter to even form a threat.
Eventually, Daniel leaned back, satisfied. "Alright, I think that proves the book was right."
Veronica, breathless, scowled at him. "You’re evil."
Elizabeth, still giggling, shook her head. "No, that was incredible. Imagine using this in an actual performance!"
Veronica glared. "Nope. Never. Not happening."
Daniel just grinned. "Oh, we'll see about that."
Chapter Fifteen: Preparing for the Heist
Chapter Fourteen: Introducing The Transposition Trick
Chapter Thirteen: Stretching, Spikes and Shackles.
Chapter Twelve: Blades and Misalignment
Chapter Eleven: Veronica finds her suit
Chapter Ten: The Lockup. Veronica gets a glow up
Chapter Nine: Compacting Veronica
Chapter Eight: Pancakes and inflating balloons
Chapter Seven: But wait, there's more!
Chapter Four: One becomes two, two become one
Chapter Three: Restoration of a Lady