Authors: Pamela Foland
“Well, for one I didn’t know I was having a metamorphosis until it was over, and for two, I was properly supervised. Tawny was keeping her
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eye’ on me,” Annette said on the defensive.
“Who is Tawny?”
Annette grimaced, her head hurt and Tina was grilling her not healing, “The program in Corrine Dayton’s old room.”
“And it’s an expert?” Tina asked retrieving a device from the cupboard and placing it on Annette’s forehead, “Hold still, but let me know if this makes you dizzy or nauseous.”
Annette felt a slight vibration through her back teeth and the pain abated slightly.
“Ready to sit up?” Tina asked lifting the device.
Annette sat, no dizziness but the pain remained. “What about the pain?”
Tina turned back in the act of putting away the device. “It should be gone.”
“Guess again,” Annette held hand to the side of her head the toy had impacted. The pain didn’t seem to be coming from there, because the touch had no effect. Instead it was more of a generalized pressure on the back of her mind.
Tina scanned Annette’s head, and frowned, “Can’t find anything.” Annette heard a soft pop halfway through “can’t” and the rest of Tina’s words seemed to echo loudly. Then minus the echo Annette heard, “Could be a slight mis-calibration, or maybe an alternate neural concern, possibly . . .”
Annette shook her head and made a guess, “You’re thinking awfully loudly.”
“I’m sorry . . .What did you say!?” Tina echoed painfully in Annette’s ears and mind.
“You know what you heard,” Annette massaged her temples as Tina’s internal speculations exploded in a hundred directions at once. “Oh, ouch!”
Tina’s thoughts quieted but didn’t disappear from the edges of Annette’s mind. “Is that better?”
Annette could only nod.
Tina opened a panel on a cupboard door revealing an order screen, she tapped at the screen until apparently satisfied. Then she opened the cupboard and retrieved the headband inside.
“I hope this will work. I’m honestly not sure if it will be powerful enough. The only way I could be sure would be to run an Everett. I don’t know if you could handle the test, and it wouldn’t be of any help if you’re too far off scale. Hopefully, you’ll scale down once your metamorphosis is over.” There was no echo to Tina’s words, and her lips were definitely not moving.
A
Put this on.”
Annette did as she was told and felt the pain-pressure dissipated. She realized, only from its absence that, it had been building for months. Her head felt almost empty without the pressure. It was like her head was ten pounds lighter, or like it held up her body rather than the other way around.
Tina smiled, then spoke, “I will assume you didn’t hear me ask you if you heard me.”
Annette smiled back, “No, and I’ve never been happier not to hear someone else’s thoughts.”
Tina’s eyebrows rose, “It was that bad?”
Annette offered a meek nod in response.
Tina smiled weakly, “Well, the good news is we have a temporary solution. The bad news is that your subconscious is already striving to hear what it is now missing and it will find a way around the suppressor if we don’t wean you off gradually.
Now the really scary news, my past experience
suggests that if your levels don’t reduce on their own, I will have to intervene.
I don’t want to do that. Namely because I only have a rough idea what you are. Yes, you are briaunti, but not from any of the known lineages.”
Less than encouraged, Annette slipped into fear when her reading of Tina’s face spoke of the woman’s worry. Was she peeking around the suppressor already, or was she reading body language? Annette shifted her thoughts to other concerns, avoiding the unpleasant. “What about training, can I start training?”
Tina laughed, shaking her head, “I’m telling you I might have to do a serious procedure and you’re still worried about becoming a factor. Yes, you can begin training, but no amplifier or psychokinetic training until I say so! And if you experience any dizziness, nausea or headaches I want to know immediately! By the way, congratulations on the purple.” Tina closed the cupboard and the panel before heading towards the door. “I have other emergencies to take care of, I’ll send Niri in on my way out.”
No amp or kinetics, Annette shook her head at the idea, until very recently she hadn’t considered either as much of an option. Now they were two of the things she was curious to try. Could she maybe move things with her mind now? Could that ability have come with telepathy?
“How are you doing?” Niri asked from the hall as she entered the room. The surprised look on her face and sudden speechlessness once she saw Annette was priceless.
Annette rose to a standing position and found herself taller than her mentor. “I’m fine, and the weather up here is clear and sunny.”
“W-w-what did you do?” Niri barely managed to stutter.
“I had a metamorphosis, turns out I am a very rare form of Briaunti,” Annette wasn’t sure if she was boasting or not, or even if it was something worth boasting about.
Niri smiled, “Chavez would crap a brick! Heck he probably will. Ooooh, can I be there when he sees you for the first time? Talk about hidden potential! Did Tina tell you what your rating is?”
“No, she didn’t run an Everett, she was afraid of what it might do to me. What she did do is give me this,” Annette tapped her headband, “and make dire proclamations about what could happen if my rating didn’t back down a bit.”
Niri chewed on her bottom lip, “I guess that means rest and relaxation for you.”
Annette spoke up quickly, “No, I checked as long as I stay away from kinetics or amps and don’t strain my brain in that way I can begin my official factor training.”
Niri closed her eyes and shook her head. “You don’t have to try so hard anymore, you’re in and nobody is going to take it away from you now. The only person intent on trying probably wouldn’t even object now. Come on let’s get you some quarters, and officially requisition you some more of those purple jumpsuits.
Let me guess, Tawny got you that one. I think that room is going to miss you. Maybe I should make an exception and let you stay there,”
Niri said opening her eyes to look Annette over.
“No, Tawny made noises that I was no longer welcome. She said she already sent my things on to my new quarters,” Annette replied, sorry to think about the move.
“Okay, Did she mention which quarters it was that I’m going to assign you to?” Niri asked, “Oh never mind, I’m guaranteed to pick the right ones. I know! I’ll put you on the alpha two floor you’ll be the first one, your floor mates will join you after everyone has finished reassessment.”
“Is that where everyone was this morning?” Annette asked heading towards the door.
“Yeah, everybody is testing so I can place them properly, as opposed to Chavez-style. Some of them are going to receive well deserved demotions. I’m also trying to locate everyone Chavez rejected out of hand. Trouble is his reject pile is large and not every one of them is like you. Some of them actually shouldn’t be factors. Worse is the group like Tony, those ill equipped to be factors that have been lulled into the false belief they’re doing alright. I have so much to do!” Niri exhaled violently and stepped back out into the hall, “So do you, Angela meant it when she said she wanted you to start training today. I have a ton of actual books waiting for you in my office. Angela sent them over this morning. Though some of them don’t quite make sense. I mean really what does Tom Sawyer have to do with factoring? And why not just send the files on pad?” Niri shook her head again.
Annette was elated, real books were a treasure most people in Sanctuary didn’t appreciate, like Niri implied they were heavy and could be better replaced by files on a pop-pad that is unless a person took into account the psychological satisfaction of turning the pages and the smell of the paper. Annette smiled spontaneously. Of course Angela had real books.
Niri was still mumbling half to herself and had started off down the hall. Annette had to rush to catch up, though her newly longer legs took less time to do it. She even found it necessary to slow her pace once she caught up to Niri. “What am I going to do about my replacement?” Niri asked an elevator door while they waited for the elevator to arrive.
Annette knew better than to even try to answer. She wasn’t sure Niri needed a replacement, after all the woman had practically run the department before, the only difference was now she was giving the orders too.
The elevator door snuck up on them, and they entered. It took them swiftly to the residential level where most quarters and shops were located. It was a departure from Annette’s expectations. “Why are we coming here?”
Niri smiled, “You are an official factor trainee now. You have control of your own allotment and you could use a few outfits, something nice. You can credit any outfit you like.”
Annette considered it. She really had nothing that fit anymore, then again the only outfit she’d wanted for so long was the one she was wearing. “Actually, I’d rather go to my quarters. I still need some time to process.”
Niri looked disappointed, it seemed like she wanted to do the shopping thing more than she wanted to get back to the business at hand. It was far different from the focused Niri of even one day ago.
“Maybe you need time to process too,” Annette added, in response to the insight.
Niri paused, stopped. Her mouth didn’t move, speechless again. Tears began welling from her eyes. “I don’t know how to do this.”
“Yes, you do, you do the same things you’ve always done. You don’t have to teach every class. You have people to do that. All you have to do is make sure everyone is where they belong and that they keep doing their job. It isn’t hard. It isn’t scary. It is just what you do,” Annette said leading Niri to a bench to sit.
People walked by them on the sidewalk, glancing at Niri’s tears. Some flashed smiles of sympathy others glared at such blatant emotionalism in public. Annette knew it was a side-effect of the telepathic culture.
Niri managed to regain her composure, “When did you get so smart?”
Annette smiled, “I’ve always been smart.
Remember! It’s what got you into this mess.”
Niri smiled again, “Let’s get you into those quarters kid.” Niri went straight for the nearest transport booth. Annette squeezed in with her.
“Alpha Two trainee quarters please.”
The booth control screen showed a map of Sanctuary with the appropriate floor and room of the complex highlighted. Niri nodded and tapped the activation key.
This time the trip pulled at Annette’s mind differently than it had ever before. She’d noticed strange sensations but never the strong dizzying force that this trip through the transport system gave her. Fortunately it didn’t persist beyond their arrival.
When they arrived Niri stepped out of the pod into a combined living, dining and kitchen room.
Short hallways radiated out from each of the other sidewalls.
The corners were each set up for a different activity.
The first corner held a display screen and lounge furniture.
The second corner held a small library of books and what looked like cd cases.
The third corner held the glass doored transport boot with its obscure control panel.
A small galley style kitchenette took up the fourth corner. An elevator was centered in the wall between the first and fourth corner.
Niri went straight for the hallway between the lounge and the library.
Hesitantly Annette followed.
Four doors opened out of the hall and Niri stopped in front of the first on the right hand side.
“Put your palm to the panel.” Niri directed Annette
to the glossy square slightly raised from the surface of the wall next to the door.