The Lunar Life Ch. 03

"Something tells me it's just your bedroom." Will deadpanned, raising an eyebrow at the elite.

"You seriously take the fun out of everything." Thane shook his head, opening the door to his room. Will looked in, taking in his surroundings. The room was moderately sized, big by Will's standards but he assumed it was moderate for an elite. In the middle of the room stood an enormous bed, big enough for probably four people to lie side by side with room to spare. A door stood to the right, Will assuming was the bathroom. A large screen TV hung on the wall across the bed, a couch sitting between them.

All these seemed insignificant however, when Will's gaze fell onto the far left corner of the room. The area was taken up by an old school pac-man arcade machine, standing next to it an authentic jukebox, and to top it off, both of them standing over a foosball table in the middle. Will had never seen those items in real life before, knowing that most of those retro stuff weren't brought to Lunaris. Most of what was left were stored for safe keeping in museums and such.

"Whoa." Was all Will could muster.

"Like them? A personal hobby of mine. I have a soft spot for stuff like that." Thane said, walking over to the recreational corner, Will following behind.

"I've never seen any of them in person before. CKT sessions made sure I knew of them, but I never thought that any existed outside a museum." Will said, walking over and running a hand across the rim of the foosball table.

"Getting them weren't easy. The pac-man machine was actually damaged during transport to Lunaris. The transport shuttle had a systems failure and a blown coolant pipe in the cargo area meant that almost everything in there were destroyed. Still, they kept it in storage somewhere until a couple years back when there were plans to scrap it. I heard about it and I was down there in a flash. Got this baby, fixed her up and now she's as good as new." Thane said, patting the arcade machine.

"Sounds like you got really lucky with that."

"Yep. I still can't believe I got it. The rest were gifts from my dad. He knows I like such things and he helped get me the jukebox and the foosball table. You like them?" Thane asked.

"Yeah. They're really cool. Natals never dream of seeing stuff like this."

"But you're not an ordinary natal."

"Don't get me started on that. It's still strange to me how my test results somehow make me elite material. I just like to question stuff, doesn't mean I'm elite right?" Will asked, walking over the couch and having a seat.

"Well it's not just that. The test takes in a lot of factors before having a final answer. Using CKT, the program analyzes your memories, experiences during your job attachments, your knowledge retention from CKT theory sessions. It's a very complex system."

"I don't remember the test though. Nobody does." Will stated.

"That's the way it's meant to be. The CKT system is very capable of transferring information into a person's brain, but the same can't be said when information is extracted from the brain. In order to access your memories, the system forces your brain to recall what you were taught. The brain however, is unable to stop this memory recall even after the test has ended.

"You are made to forget the test, because a signal sent during the test is what triggers memory recollection, and if the brain doesn't forget this signal, the person basically goes mad. The brain forever recalling old memories unable to make new ones and, because the brain is so preoccupied, unable to perform other basic tasks. Does that make sense?"

"A little, I guess. Basically what your saying is that, if we remembered the test, we would become a walking encyclopedia, just spurting out facts that our brain knows?"

"In essence, yes."

"But I don't see how that could affect my test results."

"Well, the test draws upon previous memories. The way natals are educated, you remember the facts told to you as they are. You are not taught to question that fact. Elite education however, revolves around problem solving. We aren't ever given facts straight, but given circumstances leading to that fact and we have to figure it out ourselves. The system isn't able to read these memories efficiently, hence why elites don't get a result."

"That's what I'm saying. I was educated the natal way. How is it that I didn't get a result?"

"That's what we're trying to find out, but for now, just try to wrap your mind around the fact that you may just very well be special, and that's just the way you are." Thane said.

"Somehow I'm not very satisfied with that answer." Will groaned, rubbing his face in frustration.

"And that my friend, is the very reason you think like an elite."

Will thought about what Thane said. It couldn't be the fact that Will was just simply never satisfied with just knowing. He always needed to know how, when, why. He was excited for the opportunity but he wanted to know what made him so special that he got this chance. Almost 700 million natals and he was the only one who thought like an elite? The idea that he was the only natal who questioned the facts in his life seemed crazy to Will.

As Will sat in the hovercar that drove him back to his house, the questions still kept playing through his mind. Questions that neither he nor anyone for that matter, have the answers to and that frustrated him. The thought that this was what elites should be solving, what they thought he was capable of solving, made his head hurt. Thane was right about the pressures of being elite. Will wasn't even elite yet and already he felt the weight of what that title meant. It meant that he would be one of the people called upon to solve the unanswered questions, and your mind was what the progress of the colony depended on. A lot of pressure for a twenty one year old.

As the hovercar stopped down the street from his house, the door slid open. After spending a whole day in the city centre, Will realized just how different the rest of Lunaris was in comparison. It wasn't dilapidated or anything, just different. Just as Will was about to get out, the driver bot spoke. "Sir, I will be here the same time tomorrow morning to bring you to Helios Grove. Have a pleasant evening."

Will nodded thanks, getting out of the vehicle. Not a second later, the door closed and the car was off down the road. He took his time, strolling back to his house. He was sure that his parents would have a thousand questions for him, and he too had some big news to break to them. Not to mention he needed to get their input on the whole becoming elite thing.

He should have known that his parents would be eagerly awaiting his return. Not a second after the front door opened, did he see his mother's head poking out from the top of the stairs. She rushed down, grabbing Will and pulling him to the couch, sitting him down.

"Tell me everything. What happened today? What is your job? Who did you meet and what did they tell you?" Sarah said, bouncing in her seat in anticipation.

"Calm down Sarah. Let the boy breathe a little." Trevor said, walking calmly into the room. Sure he may have seemed calm but deep down, he was just as curious as his wife. Sarah apologized before her husband took a seat beside her. "So, what happened today? Did anyone explain anything to you?"

"Yeah they explained everything, but you guys probably won't believe it." Will said chuckling. He took his parent's silence as a go ahead to continue. "Well after I left I was brought to the city centre, where I met a few elites who took the liberty of explaining to me my peculiar test results. Apparently, my test results are something that elites get when they take the test." Will paused, looking at his parent's to see if they could follow.

"Wait, I don't think I understand." Sarah said, her eyebrows creasing in confusion. Next to her Trevor shared a similar expression.

"They want to make me an elite. They think that I am capable of being the first natal elite transition." His parents remained quiet, unsure of how to respond to the news their son had just presented to them. It's not everyday your son tells you that he was becoming an elite. "It's not final yet though. They gave me some time to think about it. I could reject it and get assigned a job like normal if I didn't like the idea too. I just wanted to get you guys' input before I decided anything."

"Um...well...I don't know what to say actually." Sarah said, her mind still processing the words that Will had just uttered. She had never heard of such a thing and this was all pretty new to her.

"If you guys don't like the idea I can reject them."

"No no, I don't think that's what your mother means. It's just...this is a lot to process Will. I myself am still pretty shocked." Trevor chuckled.

"What does that mean though? Becoming elite? Like what does that entail?" Sarah asked.

"Well basically I will learn the ins and outs of being elite and the responsibilities that come with that. I will learn leadership and all that, probably start a specialization or so. Improving myself in a way."

"Is that what you want?" His father asked.

"I don't know. Kinda? I think it's a good opportunity. It's not exactly something that many natals say they get to do after all." Will chuckled.

"Well, I think your mom is with me on this and really, if that's what you want then go ahead. You are an adult and your decisions are your own. We know that this is an amazing opportunity and denying you that would be very selfish on our part as parents." Will smiled at his father before turning to look at his mom. She smiled and nodded, agreeing with her husband.

"Thanks guys."

"What about your living arrangements?" Sarah asked.

"Well they said I could either stay here with you guys or move to the city centre. Varek, the elite I met just now, has graciously offered me a place to stay at his place. He says it's more convenient and productive that way." Will said, recalling the conversation he had with Varek before he left. The elite had offered Will residence while under his mentoring.

"I can tell you want to live there don't you." Trevor smirked, seeing past his son's coy remark.

"I think it's a good opportunity that's all."

"Well I'm all for it. It's good to learn a little independence."

Will smiled at his parents. He knew they would be happy for him but seeing the way they looked at him just filled him with joy. They weren't only happy for him, they were proud.