chapter 2

It took Claire a few weeks to recover from the invasive surgery. Sure, she had expected the whole procedure to be a little bit jarring but all the preparation in the world wouldn't have readied her for dealing with the little things that came along with it.

She had spent many a moment running her fingers over the small scars that now adorned her elbows and knees and desperately trying to catch a glimpse of the ones located on her back and her nape.

Then there was her hair! Brain surgery required that she have her head shaved bald, she hadn't imagined that the loss of her long blonde tresses would have hit her so hard but now every time she looked in the mirror and saw her shorn head, she couldn't help but feel a certain disconnection to the person reflected back at her.

Now she was going through what felt like an army boot camp of physical training, something she hadn't considered when she signed up to the military technology trial program.

"You can't expect to efficiently test this technology unless you are as fit as the soldiers who will be using it in combat" Doctor James had told her as she struggled through one rigorous workout. It wasn't that she was unfit, she just wasn't military fit and the process was taking its toll on her.



Then there was her diet. Due to the pressing timeframe of the trial Claire found that she wasn't allowed even the slightest treat when it came to her intake. Her meals were scientifically calculated to ensure that she was receiving the exact number of calories needed for her energy consumption. The meals were bland and she couldn't always tell exactly what it was she was meant to be eating. All in all, Claire had very little to raise her spirits during this very mentally and physically challenging period.

"At least once all this is done with, I'll never have to work another day in my life" she thought to herself as she soaked her aching muscles in a warm bath.

The military were paying her handsomely for her participation in the trial, she just hoped that once they turned on the transmitter that was nestled in her brain everything worked as it was supposed to.