EvoNatomy

EvoNatomy

"Many  things  exist  in  life  to  motivate  the  mind,  but  very  few  motivate  the  body.    My  job  is  to  know  the  difference."    -  Dr.  Hasax  Dobler

- Chapter 1 -

         Grubber opened his eyes to another bleak morning.  Grey light  filtered in through his slanted blinds and filled his room like fog.  The alarm clock bothered him with its endless noise.  He turned it off and rose from bed with a groan.  People always complained about how hard it was to get up on Mondays, but with as late as he had been staying up this past week every day was a minor feat for him.
         The house was quiet as he wandered around getting ready for class.  His parents had already left for work.  He was going to fall asleep again today, he knew it.  What was keeping him awake at night?  Maybe the anti-depressants the doctor gave him were laced with crack or something.  He chuckled to himself as he stumbled out the door.
         Sam looked as tired as Grubber felt, his head hung on his neck like a piñata swaying from a tree.  He hurried over to talk with him before class began.
         "Hey Sam."
         "Oi, how's things?"
         "Same as the day before, and the one 'fore that.  Wish I knew what the hell is wrong with me."
         Grubber had known Sam for several years now.  They met in the fifth grade when everyone already knew everyone else, and a transfer student was unwelcome among the well-established groups of children.  They both fit the loner description perfectly and had become closer as their number of real friends dwindled.
         "You'll figure it out, sir.  I'z sure of it.  S'probably not as complicated as you're trying to make it.  You nervous about somethin'?"
         "No, not any more than usual.  Definitely nothing that would keep me awake."  They walked in silence for a moment, said their farewells, and split ways for class.
         Shortly after taking his seat, Grubber realized that he could do nothing to prevent himself from falling asleep in science class again, despite his prediction.  Mr. Salvan's voice was so monotonous that only a lullaby would have made him doze off quicker.


"Ethics.    Now  why  would  I  care  about  something  so  paltry  when  scientific  discovery  is  at  stake?"    -  Dr.  Hasax  Dobler

- Chapter 2 -

         The room was so bright that at first he did not even realize he was indoors.  It was the reflection of sunlight off all of the tiles.  Who's horrible idea was that anyway?  White tile floor.  Blinding.  He let the hot flare of anger simmer down, and he surveyed the room around him.  There was a balding man in the front of the room who seemed to be talking more to himself than anyone else.  The people sitting around him all looked to be about Iddicus' own age, but he knew that none of them had his strength.
         His wings were still too weak to take physical form, but he could feel them even if he couldn't see them.  They ached from underuse.  Gently he flexed them, testing.  It felt good to stretch them and he arched his back and thrust them out, spreading them as far as he could with no concern for who was in the way.  In the process he knocked over the two guys in the chairs beside him.  They should have reacted quicker.
         The light was starting to hurt his eyes so he shut them for a moment...


"First  rule  of  medicine:  do  no  harm.."    -  Dr.  Hasax  Dobler

- Chapter 3 -

         Grubber jerked his head up.  Everyone was looking at him.  Mr. Salvan must have called on him to answer a question and he'd been caught sleeping.  He locked eyes with Mr. Salvan, and somewhere inside he felt angry.  A feeling he could only describe as deja vu passed over him.
         "Mister Talneskey, main office, now."  Salvan continued to stare at him all the way out the door.
         As he trudged down the long hallway, he tried to figure out once more, as he had been all week, why he was so tired.  He never fell asleep in class.  He got to the principal's office, paused for a moment, and stepped inside.
         The principal hung up the phone as he entered and looked at him for a brief moment before motioning him into a seat.
         "So, Mr. Salvan tells me that you are getting in fights in the middle of class and having difficulty paying attention."  He loomed over Grubber with a look that lie somewhere between menace and conviction.  Grubber just sat there confused.  What was he talking about?
         "Would you care to explain things from your end?"  He spoke slowly and clearly, as if explaining to an infant that fire could burn you.
         "You would not stand a chance of understanding my situation even if it were to save your own soul," Grubber replied, shocked at his own words before they were even out of his mouth.  Had he really just told the principal off?
         The man placed an elbow on his deck and leaned in close, giving Grubber a glare that could melt wax.
         "Look, Grubber, I know your situation better than you think.  I spoke with your parents and your doctor.  Depression is common among teens these days.  That does not excuse your tone.  You would do well to remember your surroundings."
         "Great.  You talked to my parents.  As if they could comprehend a-"  He caught himself mid-sentence.  These weren't his words.  Where was this coming from?  "I'm just so tired these days.  I'm sorry."
         Principal Svekart looked unconvinced.
         "I'm going to let you go home early since no one actually saw you hit either of the boys, and I don't want any further incidents.  But don't think you'll get away with this again.  I'm calling your parents back to have them schedule another appointment with your psychiatrist.  These issues will be resolved."
         Grubber groaned and headed to his locker to collect his books before he went home.


"Second  rule  of  medicine:  Forget  rule  number  one  when  testing  new  medicine.."    -  Dr.  Hasax  Dobler

- Chapter 4 -

         He walked into the psych's office -- the one place he had been wanting to avoid.  He was here last week to get a prescription for his depression and his doctor had been very... strange.
         Striding into the room presently was the short man who reminded him of nothing more a rat walking on two legs -- minus the tail.  Oversized eyes that rarely blinked looked down at Grubber.  He smiled, revealing his buck teeth.
         "Grubber Talneskey, welcome back, welcome back!"  he declared excitedly.
         "I'm glad to be back," he lied.  Grubber tried to smile back at the man, glancing down at his name tag.  "Doctor Dobler."
         "Excellent.  Let's get down to the nitty gritty, shall we?"
         His parents were outside in the waiting room, having already spoken with his shrink.  Grubber was all alone with this beady-eyed man.
         "So, Grubber, I have a few questions for you concerning this... outbreak of yours in your school today.  I assume you knew that was why you were called here today.  Yes?  Yes, of course you did.  So, so, this 'outbreak' as I've been told almost injured two of your classmates.  Did you happen to feel anything prior to attacking them?  Perhaps something related to your previous depression?"
         "I didn't attack..."
         "Of course you didn't," Dobler interrupted, "just answer the question.  How did you feel?"
         Grubber wasn't so sure he was comfortable talking to this little man.  He wasn't interested in the other side of the story at all.  He was simply digging to see if his patient was still depressed.  Grubber detested this room, this lab, this man...
         "I, I can't remember," he whispered.
         "Try."
         His brow furrowed in concentration as he tried to remember what he was feeling earlier.  He had been so confused when he woke up.
         "Panic.  Everyone was looking at me like I had done something wrong.  No.  Wait.  There was something else.  Pain."  He rose his gaze to meet the doctor's unblinking stare, eyes squinting.  "Everything was so bright, but that wasn't the worst part.  I felt like my back was stiff, but it wasn't my back.  It was behind my back."
         The shrink had his eyes locked on him, wearing a grin the size of New York City.  "Anything else?  Phantom pain is something experienced in amputees after nerves to a limb have been severed.  This is interesting."
         What was he talking about?  How could he understand the bizarre feeling that Grubber had experienced earlier?  Maybe this doctor really was some crazed voodoo man who had given him cocaine pills.  The thought was like ice water streaming down his spine, giving him goosebumps. 
         "Nothing else," he muttered.  "Can I go now?"
         Hasax Dobler blinked for the third time since Grubber had arrived.
         "Not just yet.  Are you out of the anti-depressants I gave you yet?  Do you need more?"  He brandished the question like a man with a spear.
         "I'm fine.  I've taken about half of the bottle.  I don't think I'll be needing them anymore anyway.  I never have been a big fan of using drugs as a crutch.  You never know what kind of side effects they might have on you."
         Dr. Dobler had an unmistakable glimmer in his eye.  "I think you'll find that these have only beneficial side effects.  You may go now, Grubber.  Oh, and sweet dreams."
         Grubber didn't speak for the entire car ride home.

"Bodily  motivation  has  proven  to  be  more  tricky  with  mental  reactions  confusing  the  subjects.    Therapy  may  be  required  to  recover  sanity."    -  Dr.  Hasax  Dobler

- Chapter 5 -

         The sparkling water was so clean that Grubber almost didn't want to taint it with such a dangerous substance, but he had no easier way to dispose of the pills.  He emptied the remnants of the bottle and flushed, happy to be rid of the vile things.
         The last two days had not improved his condition.  Exhausted as he was, sleep still evaded him for the better part of the night.  Grubber had started to become worried that he was taking the pills in his sleep, so he had to get rid of them.
         "Good riddance," he mumbled as he turned out the bathroom light and meandered off to his room.
         His bed looked inviting, yet he knew as soon as he lay down it would turn into another night of tossing and turning.  He recalled the last thing his maniacal psychiatrist had said to him.  That was what had truly bothered him.  Whatever was wrong with him, it had nothing to do with depression.  If something had been done to him psychologically to prevent sleep then maybe he could seek psychological means to undo the damage.  He sat down on his bed and gazed out the window juggling the possibility of self-hypnosis.  He decided to open his window and let some fresh air in.
         The chilled night air enhanced his clarity of mind and he closed his eyes, enjoying the darkness.  That was when he realized that it wasn't really that dark outside.  He glanced quickly at the clock.  9:37 PM.  It was definitely night, but it wasn't as dark as it should have been.  He could easily see his entire backyard and everything in it.  He could even make out a lone squirrel searching the ground for nuts and seeds.  His eyes began to search the sky for the moon to see if it was abnormally bright tonight for some reason.  He couldn't find it.  The moon was hidden behind clouds tonight, that meant it should have been darker, not brighter.  What was going on?
         "You aren't afraid of the dark, are you?" he asked himself without thinking about it.  "I hope not, for that is the best time to hunt."
         "Hunt what?" he replied, confused at the things he was saying.  The answer hit him like a sixty pound sledgehammer in the chest.
         "Humans, of course."
         He became dizzy when he realized that he wasn't the one answering himself, but it was his mouth that was speaking.  He looked frantically around his room... for what he wasn't sure.  He needed something to prove that he wasn't going insane.  He had to understand what was going on with himself once and for all.  When he saw it, everything fell into place like a solved jigsaw puzzle.  A mirror.
         He walked over to his mirror and stood there for a moment looking at himself.  The person looking back at him appeared to be tired.  His eyes had developed dark streaks under them, his face looked slightly sunken, his skin was pale, and his mouth hung open partway.  Less than twenty hours of sleep in two weeks did that to anyone.  He spoke to his reflection as though it were an oracle and could tell him the future.
         "Who am I?" he demanded of the mirror.  His reflection stared back at him, mocked him.
         "What am I?"
         Still no reply.  Perhaps he was wrong and his mind was just playing tricks on him, slowly driving him insane, from lack of sleep.  Once more he tried.  His final attempt more deliberate than the first two.
         "Who are we?"
         He watched as his mouth spoke to him without conscious direction.  Possibly the most disturbing thing he had ever witnessed.  If he believed in ghosts he might have considered himself possessed.
         "We are Iddicus."
         The name seared into his memory like a hot branding iron.  He had always known that name, and now that he had heard it he would never forget it.
         "What happened to our eyes?"
         The face in the mirror smiled at him.
         "One of many benefits gained through the merging.  The longer we are awake during the night, the more we shall bond.  Nightsight is merely the first to manifest.  Are we unable to feel the other changes?"
         Grubber thought for a moment before responding to the strange voice coming out of his own mouth.  He did feel different, but most of that was simply lack of sleep.  He felt groggy and stiff.  He wanted to sleep,
         "I...We don't feel any other changes."
         "Then allow us to experience this together."
         Iddicus stretched his wings to their full span, this time taking care not to hit anything that would make noise.  It felt good to be rid of the stiffness, but he dared not flap them in the small room.  He tried to focus his energy and force the wings to become corporeal.  The room began to hum with the high intensity of kinetic energy being used.
         Grubber had forgotten the strange pain behind his back that he had felt that day in class.  Now he understood the origin of the stiffness.  It hurt to use muscles he didn't know he had control of for the first time.  Suddenly, understanding washed over him like a crashing wave.  He knew what he was, what Iddicus was...
         The world began to spin slowly and colors shifted.  Sleep took him and he collapsed to the floor.

"When  the  humans  remember  their  ancestry  all  of  the  black  dragons  will  emerge  once  more  to  resume  their  reign."    -  Iddicus  Extari

- Chapter 6 -

         Grubber opened his eyes to another blinding morning.  Bright golden sunlight shone in through his slanted blinds and filled his room like wildfire.  The alarm clock bothered him once more with its endless noise.  He rose from the floor with a groan and turned it off.  People always complained about how hard it was to get up on Mondays, but with as late as he had been staying up these past two weeks every day was a minor feat for him...