"Allow me to explain the procedure to you," the doctor began. It held up a silver sphere in one of its tentacles. The sphere was maybe a centimetre in diameter with a smooth finish that gleamed in the light from the surgical array. Jaden ignored what the doctor was saying - she knew she wouldn't understand more than half of its sales pitch - and instead concentrated on the rhythm of its speech. Every so often, when the cadence changed, Jaden would nod or make encouraging noises. It wasn't until the doctor looked straight at her that she truly paid attention.

"So - any questions?" the doctor asked. Its three eyes blinked in succession.

Jaden had been a darling of the 3-Vee media circuits. Billions of sentient beings had been captivated by her appearance. Now, every time she looked in a mirror she was reminded that she was no longer that person. To her eyes she was old; unattractive; a has-been. She smiled at the doctor - a smile that had once graced the video screens and holotanks of a dozen worlds. "This sphere." She picked up another one from the tray in front of her. "This will make me look attractive again?"

"Yes," the doctor said. "The sphere is telepathically active. It will sense your desires and react, altering your body. to match - "

"Of course," Baden interrupted. "But it will make me look young again, won't it?"

The doctor waved its tentacles in what seemed like a gesture of frustration. "If that is what you wish - "

"It is!"

"- Then it will react accordingly."

"Good. When can you start the procedure?"

The doctor slithered over to a computer terminal. "The next opportunity will be in four days. Is that convenient?"

Jaden handed the sphere back. "Four days?"

"It cannot be done any sooner."

"Then that will have to do."

The doctor extended a tentacle to help Jaden get to her feet. She accepted the gesture of chivalry with some reservations. "In four days, then, Citizen Lafayette. My junior will give you a list of instructions."

Four days later, Baden was lying face-down on an operating table. her body swathed in a layer of sterile fabric.Only the base of her neck had been left exposed, ready for the doctor ti implant the silver sphere that would solve her problem.

The doctor stood over her. "Are you still willing to undergo this procedure, Citizen Lafayette?"

"Yes." Jaden's voice was muffled by the cushioned ring that held her head in place.

"I must ask that you give your formal consent. For the record."

"Very well. I, Jaden Lafayette, hereby consent to this procedure." Jaden tried not to sound irritated. "I am of sound mind and am not being coerced. Will that do?"

"Please breathe with your normal rhythm. With each breath count backwards from ten to one."

A device under the table released a cloud of cloyingly sweet vapour into Jaden's face. For a moment its scent overwhelmed the tang of antiseptic that permeated the operating theatre. "Ten," Baden said. And sneezed.

As the drug took hold, Jaden reflected on the events that had brought her here; the reason for her desperation.

"Nine."

At first she had only needed a little extra makeup to stave off the signs of ageing. But makeup only worked for so long. As time went on, she needed more and more just to keep up the illusion of youth.

"Eight."

The jobs faded away. She spent less time on the circuit; less time in the public eye. Excuses became more and more frequent. I'm sorry, but we've found someone new. Someone different. Someone younger.

"Seven."

Jaden had heard rumours about the psychosurgeons of Centaurus and what they were able to achieve. She made enquiries and found out about the implant. When placed in a human body, the implant - the metal sphere the doctor had shown her - would break down and spread psychoactive tendrils throughout its host. They would follow the major nerves into every limb, then break down further until they had penetrated every cell. All the host had to do was direct their thoughts in the right way and the implant would respond.

"Six."

Jaden had gone to Centaurus, to find a psychosurgeon she could afford. She had been willing to spend every last millicredit, so long as it meant regaining the appearance of her youth.

"Five."

The world became grey and fuzzy, fading to a single dot in the centre of her vision. And then oblivion took her.

When Jaden woke after the operation, her body felt strange and unfamiliar. It was if she was inhaling a shroud of flesh. She tried to sit up, to look at her reflection in the mirror on the far side of the room. However, the doctor stopped her. "Has something gone wrong?" Jaden asked.

"To the contrary," the doctor replied. "The procedure was a success."

"Then why do I feel so strange?"

"Think of yourself as a newborn. You must learn how to use your body again, to make it respond to your desires. Don't worry." The doctor offered a tentacle to Jaden. "It will soon become second nature. Shall we start your rehabilitation?"

With the doctor's help, Jaden was able to get out of bed and stumble towards the mirror. Her body responded after a fashion. Instead of reacting instinctively as it had done before the operation, Jaden had to consciously frame the desire to move in her mind then picture how her body was to carry out the desire. Her limbs moved slowly and reluctantly, jerking from one position to another as if she was a stop-motion puppet. It took time and effort to cover the few feet to the centre of the room - something that she would have previously done automatically and without thought.

Finally, Jaden stood in front of the mirror. She stared at her reflection. "I ... ." She swallowed. "I look ... ." Then she glared at the doctor. "I look just the way I did before! Your implant! It hasn't worked at all!"

"Do you not remember what I said?" the doctor asked her. "You need to picture yourself as you want to be. You need to tell the implant who it is that you are." The doctor gently guided Jaden so she was once more looking in the mirror. "Citizen Lafayette - what do you want to look like?"

Jaden tried to imagine herself as she had been some twenty - No! - thirty years ago. "I." She fixed the image in her mind. "Want." She framed her desire. "To be." She concentrated. "Beautiful."

Jaden looked in the mirror and smiled.

* * *

The 3-Vee news circuits had been buzzing for months beforehand, full of gossip and speculation.

What happened to Jaden Lafayette?

Jaden - Are the rumours true?

Jaden and her new look!

What is Jaden's secret?

Jaden - Dates announced!

The publicity company's services had been expensive but worthwhile. Jaden had been away for so long that only her most dedicated fans remembered her. But the publicists had built a campaign to capitalise on the nostalgia and to take Jaden's faded star and set it blazing anew in the media firmament. They had arranged personal appearances, chat show interviews and flash events - all aimed to tonight. Tonight was Jaden's first major public appointment. She had been invited to attend an awards ceremony, to once more parade along the red carpet and to be adored by the masses.

It was Jaden's chance to show that she had returned!

As her limousine - provided by the organisers of the ceremony, of course - approached the arena, Jaden's personal assistant went over the arrangements for the night.

"Remember that you must stay focussed. Acknowledge the crowd. Smile for the cameras. Be warm, not stand-offish. Tonight is your night."

Although Jaden had been a star long before her personal assistant had been born, she took the advice with good grace. After all, she had paid good money for it.

The interior of the limousine was lit up by flash-gun strobes. "We're there," Jaden's assistant told her. "Go for it."

A suited flunky opened the door of the vehicle. "Citizen Lafayette? This way, please."

Jaden slid out of her seat, stood up and made her way down the red carpet towards the arena entrance. The atmosphere was intoxicating. Here she was again, in the spotlight. She saw the faces of the crowd, heard the cheering, felt the waves of adulation reaching out towards her. Jaden paused to smile and wave and -

Her limbs froze. Jaden tried to regain control of them, but they refused to obey. Instead they moved in spastic jerks, pulled this way and that by forces beyond her control. Jaden danced, a puppet to the crowd's desires, and felt her flesh begin to run.

* * * * *

This was done for the 2025 'Best Of' issue of Tevun-Kruss. Each writer had to come up with a prompt, and then select a prompt that another writer had come up with. All I had to do was find a prompt that spoke to me.

The prompt I picked was: 'A struggling celebrity approaches advanced lifeforms seeking to use their technology to become beautiful, but beauty is in the eye of the beholder.'

So, I  applied my usual pessimism and sideways thinking and ...