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Instant agony and burning My flesh bubbled, then boiled away I tried to screaue had already come undone My eyes and ears melted No sensation except pain

The liquid stripped my flesh from my bones, then set to work on the ans, then ate me up from the inside out Inside my headpan, and melted down just as quickly My left arm ¨C just bone now ¨C tore loose from ht leg Then I caans, tiny strips of flesh, bare pieces of bone All that stayed constant was the pain, which hadn’t lessened in the slightest

In thecame a moment of spiritual calm With whatever remained of my brain, I became aware of a separation There was another presence in the pool with me At first I was confused, but then I realized it was the flicker of Sam Grest’s soul which I’d carried withinhis blood at the tio, and now this final shard of his spirit was departing this world too Inand carefree, s a pickled onion into his one and I was finally, totally alone

Eventually the pain ceased I’d dissolved cos, and no brain cells to respond to them A weird peace descended I’d become one with the pool My atoms had reen liquid I could sense the hollow bones fro to the bottom of the pool, where they settled

Some time later hands &uled his fingers and a shiver ran up the memory ofcareful to scrape up every single piece &uround of the cave The bones were covered in h the the others, creating a frame entirely different to my previous form

Mr Tiny worked on the body for hours When he had all the bones in place, he packed theans ¨C brain, heart, liver, kidneys &urey flesh, which he stitched together to hold the organs and bones in place I’rew them himself, but I think it more likely that he harvested them from other creatures ¨C probably dead humans

Mr Tiny finished with the eyes I could feel hihtning-fast speed, with all the precision of the world’s greatest surgeon It was an incredibly artistic undertaking, one which even Dr Frankenstein would have struggled to match

Once he’d finished with the body, he stuck his fingers back into the liquid of the pool The fingers were cold this tian to condense, becoe, like I was squeezing in upon myself

Then, when the liquid was a fraction of the size it had been, with the texture of a thick milk shake, Mr Tiny removed his hands and tubes were inserted There was a brief pause, then suction froh them, out of the pool and into what? not tubes like those which had been stuck into the pool, but similar

Of course ¨C veins ! Mr Tiny had told me the liquid would serve asthe confines of the pool for the fleshy lislow but sure progress

When the liquid hit the brain and gradually seeped into it, absorbed by the cold grey cells, my bodily senses awoke I became aware of le ran through my hands and feet, then up ers and toes Moved an ar softly The limbs didn’t respond as quickly as my old limbs had, but maybe that was just because I wasn’t used to the noise at first, which gradually died away to allow norh But the sounds weren’t as sharp as before -like all the Little People,was soon followed by a dim sense of vision &uain, in common with all of Mr Tiny’s creations ¨C I’d been created without a nose

My vision improved as more and more blood was transferred to h these eyes I had a wider field of view than before, since h a slightly green haze, as though staring through a filter

The first sight I fixed on was Mr Tiny, still working ona few final stitches, testing , devoted parent

Next I saw Evanna, keeping a close eye on her father,sure he didn’t pull any tricks She handed hi from time to time, like a nurse Her expression was a mixture of suspicion and pride Evanna knew all of Mr Tiny’s shortcohter, and I could see now that despite her s she loved him ¨C in a way

Eventually the transfer was complete Mr Tiny removed the tubes &us, torso, head &uave , did so at the corners of runted "Another perfect creation, even if I do say so myself"

"Sit up, Darren," Evanna said "But slowly Don’t rush"

I did as she said A wave of dizziness swept over radually, pausing every tiht I was able to study my body frorey skin I noted that, like Harkat, I was neither fullyin between If I could have blushed, I would have!

"Stand," Mr Tiny said, spitting on his hands and rubbing the his spit to wash hi to get used to your new shape I design o into immediate action"

With Evanna’s help I stood I weaved unsteadily on my feet, but soon found my balance I was much stouter and heavier than before As I’d noticed when lying down, my limbs didn’t react as quickly as they once did I had to focus hard to e a foot forward

"Easy," Evanna said as I tried to turn and alht and held ain "Slowly, one bit at a ti ¨C just five or ten minutes" I tried to ask a question but no sound came out "You cannot speak," Evanna reue"