Merek came back to the room with her face locked down.
"Old reports have a bad habit of walking back through the door," she said. "That is all you need from me today, Kael."
Elias did not move. Moving would have cost too much and gained nothing.
"I will consider you for later deployment if you survive your own training," Merek said.
Then she turned to Oliver. "Prepare the selected recruits now, Oliver, because ten minutes means ten minutes and not twelve because someone wanted better socks."
Oliver saluted and started barking orders. Kikaru, Paul, and Colby broke away from the line and headed for their rooms. Paul gave Elias a two-finger salute as he passed.
"Do not improve too much while I am gone," Paul said. "I would hate to return and discover you learned to walk forward without me."
Elias looked down at his feet. "Your position as resident expert in basic human motion is safe for at least one breakfast."
The three left with Oliver, and the training floor emptied out in pieces. Faye returned to her pod hall. Colby nearly forgot his towel. Dot's followed Elias as he lowered himself onto the turf with less grace than he wanted.
He lay on his back and stared at the ceiling beams again.
"She knew something about your father," Dot's said.
"A lot of people know something about my father," Elias said. "They all seem committed to mentioning it after I am too tired to ask proper questions."
A voice drifted from the pod hall.
At first, Elias thought the building was playing music through the speakers. The sound was soft and controlled, with a rhythm that did not match the training floor. Then the notes bent, and a faint shimmer crossed the air near the door at the far end.
Dot's tilted sideways. "That is not the base speakers."
Elias rolled to his stomach, braced his palms, and pushed. His arms shook. His right knee slid the wrong way. He stopped, reset each limb like separate equipment, and got one foot under him.
Dot's brightened. "That was your fastest recovery from the floor, although the landing standards remain questionable."
"I am adding questionable to my list of achievements, because it has room."
He started down the pod hall. The first open door belonged to Tidwell. The room looked like a locker had exploded. Tidwell sat against the bed with one arm tangled in a blanket and one shoe across the floor.
Elias leaned against the frame. "You alive enough to insult me, or should I send medical help first?"
Tidwell glared at him. "I am alive enough to hate everyone who can stand, which unfortunately includes you now."
"Start with the smallest movement you can control," Elias said. "Begin with toes, then ankles, then knees and hips, because the whole body is too much at once."
Tidwell stared at his foot as if it had betrayed the family. "If this works, I am taking credit for discovering it myself."
"That sounds like a very healthy plan."
Elias moved on before Tidwell could throw something and miss on purpose. The singing grew clearer at the next door. He stopped outside and raised his hand to knock.
The door opened before he touched it.
Faye stood inside with a microphone in one hand and her other palm extended toward a tiny creature hovering above her desk. Its body carried bands of blue, red, and pink, and a small metal spring bounced from the top of its head whenever it moved.
Faye lowered the microphone. Her face went red with anger before embarrassment could claim it. "Elias Kael, if you opened my door during private practice, I will use my political upbringing to ruin your morning with very specific complaints."
Elias lifted both hands. "The door opened before I touched it, and I am currently too busy fighting my legs to sabotage your singing career."
The small creature made a soft chiming sound and landed on Faye's shoulder.
Dot's drifted closer. The two Ikona stared at each other with immediate suspicion.
Elias pointed carefully. "That is your Ikona, unless the base has started issuing decorative witnesses."
Faye sighed and set the microphone on the desk. "Her name is Bellatrix, and she reacts when I sing; sometimes she floats farther, sometimes she makes words appear, and sometimes she opens doors at the worst possible time."
A faint label blinked beside the creature, then faded before Elias could read more than the first symbol.
"You mean control words like actual commands?" Elias asked.
Faye looked annoyed that he had guessed correctly. "That is what the task calls them. My assignment says I have to practice vocal triggers until Bellatrix produces three stable commands. It makes me feel like a performer in a cage."
"Were you trained for politics before everything changed?"
"My parents were trained for it, not me," Faye said. "I was trained to smile when people lied, remember names, and speak long enough for donors to forget they disliked each other. When the military took over, that education became a liability with good posture."
Elias leaned against the wall. "That sounds useful here, even if nobody admits it. Shard users are scared, command is hiding half the truth, and everybody keeps pretending procedure counts as trust."
Faye studied him for a few seconds. "You speak better when you are not trying to stand."
"That is because my legs are taking all the stupid parts."
A laugh escaped her before she caught it.
Elias nodded toward the training floor. "If you need space for Bellatrix, use the open area. If a door opens by itself out there, at least nobody has to pretend privacy survived."
Faye picked up the microphone again. "Maybe after I stop wanting to throw this at the wall."
Elias recognized the look she tried to hide. It was not fear of the shard. It was the old shame of being watched while failing at something she had not chosen. The base made that worse by turning every failed attempt into a note for someone else's file.
"For what it is worth, nobody looks controlled in this place yet," he said. "Some of us only have better lighting while falling apart."
"Aim away from my Ikona if you throw it, because she remembers insults."
Dot's made a sharp little hum. Bellatrix copied it badly, and both Ikona seemed offended.
Elias left before the room became a diplomatic incident.
Tidwell had managed to get both feet flat by the time Elias returned. His jaw was tight, and sweat marked his collar, but he was upright against the wall.
"Small movements solved most of it," Tidwell muttered. "Fine, I admit it helped, but I still hate that you said it first."
Elias checked the clock near the hall exit. "It is almost seven, and I am going to find breakfast and bring trays back before the rest of you start chewing furniture."
Tidwell pointed one shaky finger. "Bring extra protein, because if I am suffering like a soldier, I want soldier food."
"I have never heard anyone describe base eggs that generously."
Elias pressed the exit control.
The door slid open, and Elara stood on the other side with a tablet tucked under one arm. She looked like she had been waiting long enough to decide whether patience was still worth the effort.
"Good, you are moving well enough for this," she said. "You are moving, because I need you to walk with me and watch something before command decides how much to hide from you."