An interface appeared in front of me. I finally heard a voice external from my mind balanced in gender, "here is your control panel, it's touch based for now but you can always change it at will. This will allow you to do many things, so many in fact it takes a long time before the Involutes get bored. Try starting out with setting up your living quarters. Use the top left menu to create a new living quarter project."
Intuitive as could be, the menu dropped down, and let me name the space. Home sounded appropriate for now. There's flooring, ceilings, wall art, furniture, oh wow… just there's a lot to do.
"Don't worry, if you're overwhelmed there's templates from you to draw from. Try using some of them to get a feel for what it's like. Also, you can close or open the interface by either doing a physical motion of box expansion, or once you're used to it just conjure up its visage."
I lightly scrolled through the options, Roman Villa, Luxurious Beach House, Mud hut, Dive Bar…I think I'll try Top Story New York Apartment.
Near instantly, I was reoriented, my feet firmly planted on the tile floor, and I realized for the first time I'm naked. This was my dream apartment, a dream I didn't know I had. Beautiful sable, marble countertops, perfect sun lighting cascading through the windows, lovely impressionist art on the walls, open seating areas with cream colored leather couches and armchairs, a VR chair. I went into the master bedroom to find it did not disappoint either, but the large walk-in closet was completely empty.
"Just select the fashion menu, you can sort by era, style, or customize as well if you feel so inclined and then your closet will be filled"
I scrolled down the top choices and 1950's rockabilly sounded nice. Sure, let's go for that.
"You can manually dress, or use the menu to choose from templates of course and instantly change your appearance. Gender and species can also be changed at will, but there is a disclaimer that some Involutes experience gender and body dysphoria as well as dysmorphia. It's recommended you acclimate properly before experimenting with physical body changes that were not mapped from your original body."
I picked the black and white polka dot dress, red strap heels, and red bandanna template. I turned and looked in the mirror, and it was immaculate. My hair was tied up in a lovely updo with gorgeous little curls, and red bandanna. My Artificial Being couldn't do my hair this nice. I had a gentle ombré of gray eyeshadow, eyeliner, and a stark, red lipstick.
This is incredible… How do I meet other Involutes?
"We have some welcoming areas where veteran Involutes love to greet and introduce new Involutes to others. Your living quarters will be automatically saved but can always be manually saved or changed as well. Once you're done here just slide to the social tab on the interface."