RB Chapter 123 The First Steps

Eric spent a few minutes in the bath tub enjoying the warmth of the warm water on his skin before stepping out. 

He picked one of the white bathrobes on the rack and wrapped it around his body. 

The pieces of fur clothes which he had been wearing could be seen in a white bag. They were headed for the trash now that their usefulness had been exhausted. 

'Let's go see if the old man will accept me.' He was a bit nervous as all his future plans hinged on this. 

-----

Eric was currently leaning back in the sofa, a mug of warm tea in his lone hand. 

Chloe had raced into the bathroom the moment he had walked out.

'I thought she was going to help me, but she just ran off leaving me alone with him...haaa.'

The man appeared to be deep in thought and Eric didn't interrupt him,  simply waiting. 

"Why do you want to become a bio engineer?" Marcus asked. His gaze alone was applying pressure onto Eric. 

"...honestly, I want to find out what's special about my body." He decided to utter the truth. He was going to be working with the man, hiding his research from him was going to be hard. 

"I heard from Chloe. You are a clone. Cloning was banned a long time ago,  it's a wonder why that clan still decided to create you." Marcus was curious, but decided not to pry. 

"Anyway,  if you want to become a bio engineer, you will have to start from the basics." Marcus changed the topic.

"I know. I also want to build a sturdy foundation." Eric answered seriously. 

"Chloe told me that your education had just started, but the chaos disrupted it. 

This is the age that is most suitable for studying. You will start with basic chemistry and biology,  then work your way up to the complex subjects." Marcus said. He was providing serious advice. 

"Does that mean...?" Eric asked. 

"Yes, I will take you on as an apprentice...but, it will be after a period of observation."

"I treat Chloe like a daughter,  while you, on the other hand,  are just a stranger I have just met. What I mean, is that I basically don't know you." Marcus's voice had become cold by the end of that statement.

"You are right, my name is Eric Masanyalaze." Eric formally introduced himself. 

"I am Dr. Marcus Kumakya." he answered curtly. 

"I promise not to let down your kindness." Eric said sincerely. 

"That promise has to be made to yourself, not me. Because if you slack off, all of the consequences of that will be on you." Marcus stood up after saying his piece. 

"I am going to the lab. Tell Chloe that. You can only expect me back,  tomorrow morning." Marcus made for the door. 

'It looks like he's too busy.' Such a thought passed through his mind as he blew a mouthful of air at his tea. 

After around ten minutes, Chloe came out from the bathroom,  she too, clad in a pink bathrobe.  There was no way the doctor could be the owner. It seems like it was something he had prepared for her due to her numerous visits.

She walked in to find Eric comfortably sleeping in the white sofa. 

'He looks so peaceful.' She thought while standing over him. 

-----

"Finally!" An exclamation from Monki attracted the attention of the other two occupants at the table.

"What is it?" Dora asked while swirling the wine in her glass. Sally on the other hand, moved her gaze back towards the falling numbers on her holographic screen.

What had caused Monki to exclaim was a vibration which had originated from the patch at the back of his left hand. The vibration meant that someone was trying to contact him. Since the patch was in direct contact with the skin, the vibrations could be felt in the palm.

Monki didn't answer Dora's question. He simply tapped on the patch with his other arm, and a holographic 3D image of a person appeared above the top of his palm, formed from the light rays released by the patch.

The man appeared to be dressed in a black suit, with a white shirt, visible underneath.

"Young master, the boy, Eric Masanyalaze, has arrived in the city." The man reported. The report caused the other two to direct their attention to the hologram image.

"Oh! Where is he?" Dora asked, her eyes brightening up.

The man visibly swallowed, wowed by her beauty, but he still didn't answer. He didn't work for her.

"Sorry, I was just too enthusiastic." Dora apologised to Monki. He was Monki's subordinate afterall!

"Where is he at?" Monki only gave her a cursory glance before directing his gaze back to the hologram.

"He has entered an apartment complex, nearer to the center of the city, but a bit further from where you are. We couldn't enter as there is high security, so we don't know which apartment he's occupying in the building." The man gave all the information that he had.

"Keep an eye on the building." Monki ordered before terminating the connection.

"I will go and get those two." Sally stood up and went in the direction of the dance floor.

"So...the boy has arrived." That was the first sentence that left Mugumivu's lips the moment he sat down. The five were now all on the the table and the other three had just filled in these two the information they had just gained.

"The wait has been excruciating! Now that the boy is here, let's go over and make a deal with him." Monki appeared a bit happy at that.

"No."

"No! What do you mean no! The boy's here! Helloo...I am tired of just being here and attending these useless parties!" Monki shouted. Of course, he made sure that none of the nearby people heard him, as that would spell trouble. He was was glaring daggers at Mugumivu, waiting for an explanation, a satisfactory one.

"We shall wait until the two girls also appear, then we gather all of them together and have the negotiations." Miss Njibwa was the one who answered. She knew how Mugumivu thought.

"But, wouldn't that make the negotiations hard? They might team up and decide to boycott our decision, causing us to lose precious time." Sally pointed out, to which Monki furiously nodded.

Dora had an urge to laugh at his comical nodding, buy she stifled it.

"You are right about that, but what if we make contact and the boy suggests this same idea, to wait for the other two." Mugumivu asked, intelligence deep in his eyes.

That caused everyone at the table to have a myriad of expressions.

-----

A few weeks passed, now it was October, the 20th, still no sign of the two girls.

Eric was picking up knowledge like a sponge causing Marcus and Chloe to have endless praise for him.

In their eyes he was a genius! He dosnt simply cram the information into his brain but understood it thoroughly.

He spent most of his time absorbing knowledge like a sponge, leaving himself fewer hours of rest. His arm had been regrown, now it was as good as the old. That had been a joyous moment for him, and he spent almost an entire week with a silly grin painted on his youthful face.

Another noteworthy thing happened within these weeks. Chloe managed to persuade him to hand over the banana fruit to Marcus for research. Eric had been reluctant as he hadn't trusted the man yet. 

Eric, upon describing the fruit's effects, had expected the researcher to be shocked senseless, but the man took the information a little bit too calmly in fact.

'This man has a wealth of information, he probably already knew about spectrum warriors.' That was the conclusion Eric reached upon seeing the man's calm countenance.

After inspecting the fruit, Marcus had proposed that Chloe devour all the three fruits as one wouldn't help her awaken the ability to control brainwaves. It had been due to the fruits' immaturity. 

Chloe trusted the man and took the fruits in front of the two of them, causing her to be become one of the few on the continent to have reached the spectrum realm.

Eric, shrank his reading hours and proceeded to train with Chloe after she had absorbed the fruit. Dr. Marcus, had wanted to be there for every single training session, but his busy schedule didn't allow him to.

He found their evolutionary change a point of research. Their control of their own brainwaves advanced by leaps and bounds as they could bounce ideas off of each other.

"I am going to the wilderness." This day, was a day that something changed. Chloe, out of nowhere, without any hint, said that, causing Eric to be taken aback.

They were seating on the comfy sofas, taking a break from their training session.

"Why?" Eric subconsciously asked.

"I am bored here, no offense, as I have been enjoying the time that I have been spending with you. But, I don't feel well if I stay in a peaceful environment long. My place is out there, fighting with the beasts." Battle intent started to exude from her body with each word that she said.