Well, the angle I was going after was Biomantic Astral Constructs, by investing magical energy(power points) into one of my embedded gemstones, they take on an independent life, briefly. This makes things smoother when I get to the Phenotype Impressionist, since they'd be extensions of my body that 'echo' the transformational energies.
And for the location, if we're colleagues, your base would be more or less the same place as my labs, if not the same entirely.