Beyond Evolution

Val stared at the kit in front of him. He'd been alone in the medlabs since his little brother had left. Although the students and residents of Xavier's had been ordered to stay together in pairs, he knew Madelyne was still taking her much-needed rest, and there was a part of him that didn't really care about the rules. Not right now. Because for some reason, despite how hard he was trying and how many times he went back to the last step in order to recall what came chronologically next, he couldn't remember what he was supposed to do to finish preparing this package. There wasn't a whole lot that had to go into the box, and it wasn't a very complicated arrangement, but the parts in front of him might as well have belonged to some billion-piece white puzzle without any hints or clues to help him make sense of it. He'd been messing up all day, having problems with everything he laid his hands on, but now it was like he was completely unable to locate the next step in his head. His gaze swept from one piece of equipment to the next, hands raised uselessly in front of him, staring at each individual package as though hoping they'd speak to him. Give him something, anything to go on. Just a little bit of guidance.

( He felt like he was going crazy. )
[ NARRATIVE ]