Capítulo 62: Evolving
"Who are you talking to?" frowned Zhao.
"N-no, I swear there was someone." Anna hugged herself, shivering from shock.
"Girl, what's wrong?"
"I don't…" something ran across her back. She screamed and scurried to take off her white coat, almost tearing it in the process. Tiny animal paws tickled her feet, snaked around her waist.
"Help! I need people here!" yelled Zhao and helped his precious student undress. Anna wore nothing but a T-shirt under her lab coat, her childhood in colder parts of Russia had made her tolerant to April Swiss weather.
The Russian girl inspected the skin, but there was nothing alarming. No tracks, no bites, and the sensations stopped too.
"What?" three scientists ran in, huffing. Zhao's shout scared them, so they were now looking for danger with eyes wide open.
"I'm sorry. I don't know what happened to me. Aaah!" again, some small animal got under her clothes and was trying to crawl its way out. She hit herself in the stomach, aiming at where the sensations came from. Everyone caught the girl's limbs and held her tight, preventing her from hurting herself.
"Anna, look at me!" her teacher grabbed the sides of her head. "You're all right! There's nothing here! This is our laboratory, no one can sneak in! What are you feeling?"
"Ants!" she shrieked, thrashing and scratching, almost breaking the hold the scientists had on her. "Mice! Ants! Help me!"
"She is hallucinating!"
"Is it a side effect of something here?"
"Hold her still, damn it! She's kicking!"
Zhao ran out and returned soon after with a syringe. "Keep her steady for a second, I will knock her out!"
The old men managed to restrict Anna's movements long enough for the drug to work. The young girl's body softened in their arms.
"She's asleep, we need to lay her down," exhaled one of the scientists heavily. Their advanced age and sedentary lifestyle didn't help when doing any kind of physical work. Old Zhao's friends were the same as him – in their sixties or so. Many had their own grandchildren which was why they all doted on Anna.
"I'll ask you guys once again, could it be something from the lab? Do we keep hallucinogens here? Or maybe a side effect of our drug?"
"Impossible," barked Zhao. "Come on, help me put her on the bunk. She needs to sleep it off." He rubbed his scratched face and suggested, "Let's call the doctor, too. Just in case it's something…" The words stuck in his throat.
"No, it's not serious. No. She was fine a minute ago. That's not how these things go. She'll be OK," shook his head another professor.
…
An hour later, Michael quietly entered the infirmary and closed the door behind him. Anna was the only sick person on the grounds currently, at least among the students. Others had a dedicated medical unit they could refer to, which was a necessity in a complex housing over 200 children and 400 adults.
There were ten beds in the room, but only one was filled. Anna had been changed into a hospital gown by a female nurse and was sleeping under the covers. Her expression was peaceful, not resembling the distressed hallucinating girl tearing off her clothing in the least.
"I'm sick of seeing people I care about like this," muttered Michael. "When the comet passed our planet, there were so many bodies… and then my dad, your mom. Now you? The doctor couldn't even tell me what's wrong with you."
He sat on the chair next to the bed. Anna looked so calm, it was hard to believe there was something wrong with her.
The covers came up to her chest, so there was no exposed skin. Michael tugged on the corner until the gown's short sleeves could no longer hide the girl's upper arms. He placed his palms on the patch of skin and sank his consciousness into his friend's body.
As soon as he saw the energies contained within, he couldn't help but exclaim in shock. Glowing green threads penetrated Anna's every organ and tissue. They felt like they contained great power and were obviously of alien origin.
"It's happening. She is evolving."
Michael jumped up and paced around the infirmary room with large steps, holding onto the back of his neck.
'I didn't expect it to happen so soon, and to Anna too…'
He looked at the girl again. After changing her fate so much, he couldn't help but feel responsible for her. She was like a little sister to him, one he took care of. Something constant in this ever-changing world.
Was this evolution good or bad? Harmless or…
"Glory! Is this energy field a good thing? Glory!?"
"Access restricted. Host's cultivation is too low."
"Damn it!"
Michael sat on a random bed and yelped when something poked him. It was a TV remote. He looked around and noticed a TV attached to a wall.
"Right. If Anna's condition is so bad, there must be even worse cases, right? Wouldn't the news reports talk about this all day?"
He pressed the ON button and searched around for an English news program. He had to flip through three dozen channels before he found one.
"… but the symptoms are different from one visitor to another, so the doctors agree it isn't an epidemic. Some have argued it's a new strain of a common virus like the flu, but the evidence isn't there yet. Currently, no known disease manifests itself at once through headaches, stomach pain, misleading sensations, dizziness, limbs falling asleep – and these are only a few of the symptoms described to us.
One possible reason for the sudden influx of complaints is magnetic storms. In this case, the problems will go away in a short while. Still, if you have experienced any of the symptoms mentioned or a combination of them, if you feel unwell at all, we suggest you undergo an observation.
In other news, Mexican police officer Acosta, nicknamed 'Lucky' after the events on the day of the Chaos comet, has made the headlines again. To remind our viewers, officer Acosta was eating lunch with his family when eight cartel hitmen approached his house to get revenge. When everyone lost consciousness due to the comet, the officer was the first to wake up. He ran out of the house, only to see eight criminals on the pavement. They came to their senses later, already handcuffed. Not a single shot was fired.
Today, officer Acosta's 9-year-old daughter Mireya suddenly realized she could speak German without ever learning it. This phenomenon has happened before, but usually in people who suffered a head trauma. Little Mireya speaks the language fluently and with no effort. Officer Acosta remarks, 'The cartels have been a constant threat to my family for months. Maybe it's a sign we should move to Germany.' We wish the brave police officer to be safe.
In other international news, Russia has changed its stance on migrants…"
Michael turned off the TV with a sigh.
'It's difficult to make sense of what's happening. There are other people who have felt something, but no word on anything supernatural. That's a good thing, I guess? And that girl, a coincidence?'
Anna's steady breathing was the only sound in the infirmary room. Her serene expression contrasted with the perilous future Michael began imagining. He tried to evaluate his options, but his nerves got the better of him
"I just wanted to live peacefully. One life gone to shit, and now this… What the hell is happening? Glory, what do I do?"
"Host, please cultivate," suggested the program.
"You're on about that again? What good is cultivation if there are people that need me right now, and there's nothing I can do? I don't even know where I am. The nations' leaders are all different, the time jump, the comet! My old life in that world was fucked, but at least I knew where I stood! If I'm even IN ANOTHER WORLD!"
Michael ran his fingers through his forehead and hair in a familiar motion to wipe the sweat off. Except, there was no sweat, it had been removed by an ability from the shop.
"Agrh! Everything's moving too fast! Anna's hallucinated, but Dimitri complained about nausea. Sofia… that was normal, wasn't it? I'm being paranoid right now."
The cultivator used Control over Emotions. Like a cool breeze, the heaviness in his head disappeared, replaced by clarity.
"That's a problem for another day. I can't change my situation or the fact that something's happening. First, I must determine whether these energy fields are harmful or dangerous. For that," he stared at Anna's defenseless body intently, "I need to test them."
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PENSAMENTOS DOS CRIADORES 
BlackInk
BlackInk Wow, you guys. I'm seeing a lot of comments pointing out that Michael is older than he looks, very smart and has an enhanced mind. You wonder why he's behaving irrationally.
Because smarts and emotions are not the same! He can solve problems like the best think tank, but he lacks in experience, he is unbalanced and distraught.
But I understand that you want to read about a hero, not a self-doubting wimp. Please be patient. His journey towards becoming one is at its end.
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