Chapter 2 - the selection process

Pete was astounded that his application for the island was accepted!
He was through to the next round! He had to go to Birmingham for a series of interviews and tests.
The next stage was held in the conference centre of a large hotel. There were hundreds of other applicants, including families with children, couples and single men and women of all ages.
After the first introductory meeting, Pete settled himself down to a week of tests and interviews. Every day, there were fewer in the hall as more people got whittled down.
They were told very little about what it was they were to experience, but they could also tell that this experiment was not being carried out on a shoestring budget. All applicants were put up in the hotel. All their meals were paid for. They had full use of the spa, the gym and the other hotel facilities.
By Friday, there were only fifty candidates left. A large unwieldy document was passed to every candidate. This was their contract for the experiment. They were advised to go off and read it carefully for two hours. They could amend whatever they did not agree to, then, they were to hand it in.... and wait for the final results.
Pete, like many of the candidates took the large contract back to his room. He read the first few pages, but he knew this was what he wanted to do. He did not need to read the small print. If this was the only way of getting away from Kate's clutches and her bloody solicitors, he had to do it!
He signed the end of the document without reading the rest of it and spent the rest of his study time in the hot tub.
He handed the document in later that afternoon, not knowing that the contract bound him to the company running the experiment entirely for the next five years. There was a silence clause, so he would not be able to discuss anything to do with the project with anyone before the project started. The company could change the experiment at any time without warning and anyone who had signed up would have to go along with the changes made.
All in all, Pete had handed over his entire life to the company. They could make him do whatever they wanted him to do and he would have no legal comeback.
As soon as the project started, he would have no contact with freinds or family. He would hand over all his electronic gadgets, however, his bed and board would be provided. He would earn no money during the project, but as soon as it was over, he would receive a massive lump sum as payment.
If the project was successful, it could be extended indefinitely.

The next morning, there was another meeting. Names of the successful candidates were called out. All successful candidates had to go through to the next room immediately.

Pete was astounded when his name was one of the first to be called out!
There were twenty of them all told. They congratulated each other in the holding room. All of them were young and single, so perhaps the study was going to look at interpersonal relationships within the group. Maybe they were hoping for two of them to hit it off!

Once the last name was called out, they were led to a minibus outside. The minibus drove away and they all bid their old lives goodbye with a feeling of optimism and hopefulness.

The minibus took them to a large warehouse on a grimy industrial estate that was completely devoid of character. It could be any industrial estate anywhere.
This was where their training was going to begin!

They were all issued a uniform. A red and yellow track suit, tee shirt and trainers, all with the company logo on them.
Then, they were all separated. None of them could see what the others were doing. Pete was taken to an area with gym equipment and a formidable looking tanned and muscular personal trainer.
The trainer showed him how to warm up, how to use the weight machines to build up muscle. Clearly, he was going to have to have to be strong when he reached the island. The weights he had to lift were heavy, but Pete tried hard, built up a sweat. After a long workout, he was led to another area, given a large high protein meal to eat and plenty of water, then he was taken to a room where he could shower and rest. There was no tv in the room, no radio, no books to read. All Pete could do was rest and contemplate what life on the island was going to be like.

After that first day, Pete's new life settled into a rhythm. He had no concept of day or night because he had no watch and had no access to daylight. He was woken by an alarm, which meant he had to dress and shave and get ready for his first work out of the day.
He would be taken to the gym area, where he worked out lifting ever increasing weights. He did a two hour workout for his arms and upper torso in the morning, followed by another two hour workout in the afternoon working on his legs and lower body.
He received at least three meals a day, which were high protein, low carb and minimal fat, but they were substantial portions, designed to help him bulk up his muscles.
He had to swallow handfuls of, what he was told were vitamins every day, but he was also given several analgesics to help him through the muscle pain that never went away.
After a month of this regime, Pete was substantially slimmer, fitter and stronger. He had already outgrown his uniform once and, the way he was going, he would need another before too long.
After six months of training, Pete did not have a scrap of body fat on him. He had a washboard stomach, tight pecs and glutes. He had an inverted triangle outline, thighs as thick as a slender woman's waist.
He saw no one but his personal trainer and he was not allowed to talk to him or question him. All he could do was obey. There was no means of escape. He had nothing to think about but his exersise regime, his food and his growing musculature. He had no mirror to check on his progress.
He became an automaton, doing the same thing day in day out. Nothing ever changed except the size of the weights he was expected to lift.
When was he ever going to get out of here and move to the island?