Condition Evolution 4 by Kevin Sinclair (books for 10th graders TXT) 📕

you would not remember me. I am Ialos. We have met before your… memory loss.” Her face darkened slightly as she said it, barely noticeable really. If I hadn’t been staring at her so intently for reasons I barely understood, I would have missed it.

“I am responsible for your wellbeing throughout this training experiment. I am Accre’s physician.” She smiled. But that word, experiment. It set me on edge, just as Fiekela’s calling me a blank state had. I needed to watch these people very closely. Especially Ialos, but there were other reasons for that. I chuckled to myself.

“What do you mean by experiment?” I inquired.

“Only that we are attempting to increase the levels within your Cerebral Interface at a greater speed than has ever been tried out before.”

“Is that safe? It doesn’t sound very safe.”

“Honestly, yes. It should be given the level of support and supervision you have available.”

“Well, I suppose you seem pretty trustworthy, but I’m not exactly in a position to do anything other than what you all say. So what happens from here? More training?”

“If you are fit enough to train, Fiekela requested I return you to the facility as soon as possible. There is so much you must learn.”

The last thing I wanted was to train. Part of my mind rebelled fiercely against it, while the other part accepted the benefits it would bring. Ialos was waiting for an answer.

“I wouldn’t have a clue how to get there on my own, so by all means, lead the way,'' I said, rolling out of the bed. I appeared to have no clothes on, other than a pair of tiny white shorts.

Ialos laughed, covering her mouth. “You might wish to clean and dress first.”

“Nah. I’ll skip the cleaning, thanks. I’m sure I’ll be leaving the training lab a sweaty mess.”

“Perhaps, yet cleanliness is next to godliness. Try, even if only for a few hours, to maintain hygiene standards.”

“Whatever.” I shrugged indifferently. “Hopefully you all don’t make me pass out when we finish today, and I can get cleaned then too,” I said as I headed to the bathroom. It hit me on the way, that if I could recall the basic routine of getting washed and ready, why did everything else about myself remain such a mystery?

Ialos shouted after me as I reached the bathroom door, “You will need clean clothes.” Then she hurled a folded pile of white clothing in my direction.

I caught most of them, stooping to snatch the underwear from the floor. “Seriously. I could have just come back and took them.”

“We’re in a hurry.” She smiled, then turned and walked out of sight. I watched her go. So far, I’d felt absolutely no connection to the others I’d met, other than a compulsion to do as they asked. In the few moments I’d spent with Ialos, I’d warmed considerably to her. She seemed to have a natural positivity and a slight smile on her face at all times. I found myself wanting to impress her. A strange feeling, but a strong one, nonetheless. Snapping out of my haze, I headed into the bathroom and approached the shower. Again, I had a sense of what it was, despite having no idea how it turned on. As I stepped into the cubicle looking for more clues, it turned itself on automatically. I probably should have taken the shorts off first.

The sensation of the shower was so far the most amazing experience of my known life. Far better than experiencing the entire history of the Apochros and Fystr being crammed into my head. Thinking about the Fystr brought a wave of depressing images into my head. I felt a deep anger and hatred well up in my chest, followed by a wave of unexplained sadness. Swiftly followed by a knock at the door.

“Are you alright in there, Vakuna. You have been an awfully long time,” Ialos’s voice sounded in my head, causing me to jump in surprise, then slip in the shower. In response to the fall, a stream of unsavory words flowed through my mind. Thankfully, the shower turned itself off as I lay on the floor, and saved me that indignity at least. I had to calm myself before I responded to Ialos.

“Please don’t do that again,” I responded in her mind and heard a chuckle from behind the door, before she told me to hurry up and meet her outside of the house. I finished up quickly in the shower, and got into my fresh training robes before heading out to meet her.

She was sitting on a bench enjoying the warm sunlight, smoothly getting to her feet as I approached. The sight evoked feelings of exhilaration in me but I could not find any words to say to her. I was more than a little disoriented by the six-inch height difference she had over me. I didn't know why it mattered, but it just felt unsettling somehow.

At the training facility, Ialos had to assist my descent down through the opening in the floor, since I had not yet mastered the finer arts of levitation despite all of the knowledge I was pumped full of yesterday. Fiekela was there, waiting and ready for my arrival. “Good morning, Vakuna!” he greeted me exuberantly. “It is marvelous to see you looking in such fine health. Are you ready for another day of maximum growth?”

His overly enthusiastic words gave me a strong sense of being patronized, but I held my tongue and replied as positively as I could. “It is the path that I’m on, for good or ill. Yesterday wasn’t pleasant, but I can do it again,” I replied with certainty.

“Excellent, and what a path it is. I wonder just how far we can take you, and how quickly. This really is all extremely fascinating. The first item on our agenda is to peruse your Interface. I would like to ascertain the improvements derived from the six-hour regimen you completed yesterday. It should hopefully provide us with