Shedding the Demon Read Online Free PDF Page B

angry, shocking red. All
in all it was a breathtaking view, and Avelina soaked it in.
    I've spent too little time outside the lab these past
. . . twenty years! Is it really possible? This is it—after this
program is complete, I'm taking time off. LOTS of time off.
    She daydreamed about travel and carefree living, but the
illusion didn't last. Her smile faded as she realized that she was fooling
herself. She spent so much time in the lab because that is what she liked to
do. It was what she lived for.
    Maybe I'll take a little time off.
    She’d been working toward this day and this presentation her
entire life, although she didn’t know it when she started down this path. The
importance of this moment triggered reminiscence of the long road she traveled
to get here.
    Her most poignant memories began when they pulled her out of
the regular classes in her secondary school. Despite their assurances that she
was special and required personalized attention, she was young and missed her friends.
From that point on, her entire life consisted of study, research, and religion,
with no time for social activities. That was when she first met Reverend
Trueblood, and she still felt awed by him to this day.
    She remembered walking into the lab with a fresh doctorate,
big ideas, and no clue how to make them happen. In an unusual display of
support for a single scientist, the Kyndraist Church set her up in her own lab,
and her research began in earnest.
    Most vivid in her memory was the day she presented D-SAP to
the Council. She started the day ecstatic and barely able to contain her
enthusiasm, but before it was over she felt that her life was in shambles.
    The Council, of course, wanted results, but their idea of
results was more specific than her own. To her, the actual creation of the “impossible”
material was a victory in itself. However, the Council (and Reverend Trueblood
specifically, a particularly painful memory) wanted an application of the
compound, not just a discovery.
    Finally, nearly ten years later, she was ready to give them
their application. She knew that they would be shocked. It was much bigger and far
more effective than they could ever imagine. This would finally give Reverend
Trueblood, the Church, and the Council what they needed to ensure Kyndra’s
peace throughout the Consensus.
    Avelina looked out the window again and let contentment flow
over her.
     
    **** ****
     
    Alexander Pryke adjusted his tie and
finished his drink. The pilot had just announced that they were on final
approach to the meeting place for the Council, and he was eager to arrive. He
knew something big was going to be announced but he had no idea what it was. He
chafed at the fact that the four other Council members still considered him a
second-rate newcomer to their circle. They didn't communicate with him the same
way they did with each other and he often found himself in the dark about major
decisions or policies.
    “Mr. Pryke, sir,” one of his men said, stepping into his
office.
    “Yes, yes, what is it?”
    “We just found out that Dr. Baksa will be at the meeting,
sir.”
    Alexander looked perplexed and replied, “What? Why is she here?”
    “Well, sir, we don’t know, but if she's coming in person,
she must have something big to present.”
    “Ha! I bet.” Alexander didn't think much of the official
Council Research Division. Other than controlling the dissemination of current
technology and preventing unauthorized research, he thought they were useless.
Their direct ties with the Kyndraist Church made him uneasy, since it gave
control to the Truebloods.
    “Why are we just finding out now? We’re there in what, five
minutes? Don't we have better intelligence than that?”
    The man stammered an incoherent reply.
    “Oh never mind,” Alexander said irritably, “is that all
you've got?”
    “Yes sir.”
    “Then get out.”
    This is ridiculous! He told himself over and over.
His anger was ratcheting up as he