First draft

– Hey, you came!
I'm quite surprised to see Emi joining us in the hall.
– Hey, did you think I'd back out like a coward?
Actually, you never made a promise or anything, but knowing you...
– That's all right, because you didn't. You even bet Rin five hundred yen on it, right? She tried to trick me into ditching so she won't have to lose, even resorted to bribery! She's not very good at words, though.
Would you believe that.
– So here I am, and now *you* owe me.
– For the record, I'd call you a sell-out under any other circumstances.
She frowns annoyedly.
– Not funny, Hisao.
– Same here.
– G-guys... we're r-running late.
Hanako is right, by the way. The elevator's been waiting for us for quite some time already.
Right, the elevator. Always thought it didn't belong here. I mean, the wood-colored doors and old-fashioned buttons instead of a convenient sensor panel made it blend in nicely until you saw the doors open. Behind them lies another world. A world made of shiny reinforced plastic, LEDs and sensors. I never got to see much, just the insides of the elevator when people used it. Surely, Yamaku never was an ordinary high school, yet this box of luminous gray seemed too alien to both here and the outside world, like something you once saw dreaming and walked away from it, not decided if it was resentment or exaltation that pushed you.  And every time you close your eyes it's somewhere near, lurking in the corners of your consciousness. Same with the elevator, you can't stop thinking it's there once you notice it.
A light touch snaps me out of thoughts. Emi must've ever seen Hanako so close, so apparently she's been stealing glances at her this time, so now the poor girl was trembling and trying to move away as far as possible, which was not easy since she stood between us. Now it's even worse because she can't move further. I silently switch places with her and give Emi a long stare. Geez girls, how difficult can it be to get you four floors underground?
The next second the doors open and I am left speechless.
White floor. White walls. White ceiling. Every corner smoothly rounded. Have I said anything about stepping out of the real world? Well, there goes the Wonderland. Like Alice down the rabbit hole we plunge into these corridors. Hanako seems to know where we're going (not surprising since she has probably been spending a lot of time by Lilly's side here), or it'd be a real pain to find "Area 409".
Oh wait. It has a huge sign above the entrance, "Area 409: Storage and Testing (HL0)". Questions leave my head as I hastily try to remember what to expect ahead. Bizarre, that's the word.
– Dr. Hayes, we're here, – Hanako says as she puts her palm on the scanner.
 As the door opens, I realize my expectations were a little too low. We walk into a tiny control room filled with lots of displays, indicators, sensor panels, switches and whatnot, that leaves not much free space for the three of us to stuff ourselves in. The room oversees the actual area, and even the observation window, which is a whole wall, as two images of a human eye connected to a lot of threads are projected on it. On a closer inspection, the images are different and live.
I pull my gaze from the trembling eyeballs and look down. The whole main area is lit by a single spotlight which points at something like a dental chair and a girl lying on it. Her head is fixed with two metal circlets, thin wires coming from the back of the chair find their way under her closed eyelids. Cold shivers run down my spine as I realize what those threads on the windows must be.
The two people orchestrating this surreal ritual don't appear to take any interest in their visitors, they just chant spells aloud:
– Primary connection, check. Base cord secured.
– Secondary connections are a go.
– Proceeding with secondaries. Rod channels, check. Cone channels, check. Equalizing grids. Analogue-to-RGB solution... adjusted. Acceptable deviations.
– Good thing we're running all the tests. I will need that solution perfected by the time she hits colors, understood? Establishing tertiary connections. Interocular synch, recording, vestibular... oh, we're not doing this yet. Alright, initialize emulation, default package. Put F on the standby.
One of them is a short buff redhead acting bossy, the other being a generic glassy nerd, probably a whole head higher than me.
– Feeling good, ma'am?
– It's itchy. Inside.
Lilly's quiet anxious voice is clearly audible here. Must be hidden speakers somewhere. On the other hand, the boss's bass makes the walls tremble down there, no doubt.
– Well, we're done with POSTs, so feel free to roll your eyes. Just don't rub them yourself, I'll let your guests down for that.
No way, we are finally getting his attention.
– Dr. Hayes. Irving Hayes. Or just Doc.
His tired cheerful smile somehow ensures me that the earlier chanting was too important to interrupt with trivial greetings.
– Hisao Nakai, class 3-3.
– Ah, Mutou's favorite! Well, don't ever hesitate to come here as a patient. Nothing simpler to correct in human body than an off signal.
Oh really, and then spend a whole life addicted to neuropozyne. I see why Rin came here and why Emi's debating over it, but my precious self isn't missing any limbs or crucial senses yet.
– Thanks, I'll pass for now.
As he shakes my hand with the strength of a wild bear, I notice his left hand touching a panel behind his back. Lights turns on in the main area. Hanako immediately dashes through the door in the far left corner and down the stairs to Lillly. To rub her eyes without disturbing the wires, probably.
I realize Emi has been silent all that time since we got in the elevator.
 – E-eh...
Dammit, that's no way to introduce anyone.
– You came, Ibarazaki, – Doc's voice has lost all its cheer. – Told you not to rush it.
– I didn't! I keep telling you, I'm...
– We can discuss it elsewhere. Shouldn't you head down?
Emi looks through the glass and frowns. Was that panic I've just heard in her voice?
– Thanks, I'll be fine up here.
The nerd interrupts Doc's reply before he's able to open his mouth.
– All right then. Nakai, if you please? We're falling behind schedule.
I hurry to the door and of course trip over every cable lying on the floor, and there's plenty. Seeing this, Doc is unable to contain a laugh.
– Ask Ikezawa to teach you the fine art of parkour some day, Nakai!
Riight, Hayes.

The area is much more interesting with the lights on. Disassembled machinery lies all over the floor, machinery of a kind I've never seen, then again, this whole place seems to have stepped off the pages of science fiction. Some parts are badly damaged, almost crushed by enormous force. Others are melted like wax under a hair dryer. I'm not sure if I should be intrigued or try to forget what I'm seeing. Meanwhile, legs brought me to the destination.
– Lilly?
– Hello, Hisao. Nice of you to come.
She looks a bit more relaxed now.
– Well, since I couldn't come to the ope-
– Time to get started, ladies.
Doc's thunderous voice startles me.
– Satou, since this is your first session, we shan't turn the actual vision on. In fact, first weeks of training will not involve your new eyes at all. We're to teach you brain what to expect first, starting with simple things. Release the F-package.
As he finishes his last sentence is a muted voice, I sense something wrong. Lilly stiffens, her fingernails turn white as she digs them into the armrests and her eyelids throw open, showing lifeless artificial eyes.
Doc gets the picture.
– Turn it off! OFF, goddamit!
After a brief second of torture she brokenly breathes out.
– ...and doesn't the Academy teach working with people anymore? There are NO on/off switches. You increase values nice and slow, keyword being "slow".
– Okay, okay, understood. You know it's my first day at adaptation therapy, right?
– Yes, and this kind of incidents is exactly why I asked for an experienced second pilot. Those bureaucratic s-
He finally notices everybody's listening.
– Sorry for that. How are you, ma'am?
– I... I'm fine. I'm fine Hanako. What happened?
Hanako doesn't seem convinced, but doesn't say anything.
– I hoped you'd let me ask this question first. What did you feel?
She takes a moment to find the right words.
– Something new. Scary a little bit, and it was too intense.
–Excellent, –Lilly seems to disagree. – What you experienced was white light. Simple white, everywhere. We turned the brightness up way too much for someone who's lived her whole life in darkness, too. That's why it was overwhelming. Come on now, we have many exercises to go through.
And so the session begins, one data package after another. Slowly adjusting brightness. Blinking light. Vestibular connection. Light to the left. Light to the right. She moves her hands in the air to understand which side is which, blushing in embarrassment. With each task, though, her face becomes brighter, and by the beginning of dots and lines she's shining with happiness. I wonder how is it to learn something so basic to others yet so new to yourself. Seems to be worth the pain at least. Did Rin feel the same when she first clapped her hands? Will Emi be this happy if she is able to jump again? No, this girl won't stop until she does double backflips. I smile and sigh. Emi, Emi, Emi. No matter how much we bark at each other, you make me smile. You make me feel confident. I could run to the edge of the world with you. Even if you aren't around, I will still run, knowing that somewhere you're running too, and there is no stopping you. Geez, am I being a hopeless romantic here?
– Wake up, Hisao!
Lilly stands tight next to me with a wide smile across her face.
– Sorry for being a boring cripple, but the session is over. We should leave and find ourselves something more interesting. Or maybe someone?
– Lilly, it, er, isn't...
Hanako lets a sort giggle out. Man, I am blushing way more than I should.
– My, my, Hisao. I promise not to hit the ten again.
– Thanks, I guess.
Now they are both laughing. A fair deal for zoning out on someone you were supposed to support.

Lilly is dizzy. A side effect of the vestibular connection, the assistant explains. Would be way worse if not for the circlets. We help her up the stairs and through the exit, dropping our goodbyes to the nerd on our way. Doc has already left; I get a vague feeling he said something about it earlier but refrain from asking. No need to show how much I was out of it. Emi is gone too. As far as I know, Lilly wasn't even aware of her presence.
We make our way to the surface and it finally strikes me how huge this place is. Area 409 is in a several minutes' walk from the elevator, and other corridors cross ours here and there. They are not wholly lit, though, so I can't really guess their length. Is Yamaku standing on a giant technogenic anthill? How hard is human augmentation if it takes an underground facility like this to satisfy the needs of hardly a hundred of augmented kids?
This is going to be a sleepless night.