"Theta brain waves look very normal" said a female-sounding voice coming from somewhere in the surrounding area. "There's some very unusual networking and activity patterns, but no sign of any kind of looming psychosis."

"Interesting. Should we contact the electroshock lab unit about him" said a second, male-sounding voice also in the vicinity.

"No. Go ahead and let's get him prepped for the procedure. He's regaining consciousness now."

Milo's eyes opened and he could see he was laying on an operating table with something on the top of his head. Over to his left, a couple of elves in lab coats were looking at a screen.

"Mr. Cabral" the elfess having the female voice said walking over to the table where he was laying. "I am Leeka Groom. You can call me Leeka. I'm going to be taking care of you and overseeing your treatment. Your sleep patterns seem normal. If you would come with me, let's move to a room a bit more comfortable." Milo got down from table and he followed her out of the room. The area definitely resembled a laboratory more than a health care facility. Milo followed her down a couple of hallways passing by a few elves who stole glances at him. He followed Leeka into a small room with some unfamiliar-looking instruments hanging on the wall. Leeka took one of them from a wall that resembles a barcode scanner gun with a screen on the back.

"If I could get you to remove your shirt" Leeka said. Milo removed his shirt as he was instructed. Leeka pointed the device at various places on his chest, stomach, and back. The device made a small series of soft beeps. Milo looked over at the mirror and could see what was on his head. It was a dark, round object strapped on with a band around his forehead.

"Okay, Mr. Cabral, everything seems normal with your vital organs. Sit down and I'm going to explain to you the procedure you are about to undergo" she said placing the device into what Milo assumed was a small disinfectant chamber.

"What you are going to receive is a very precise intravenous solution with Silicon nanoparticles with a special enzyme substrate on them. It is a remarkable technology unlike anything you can get at any kind of human health care facility. It will - for all intents and purposes – re-wire your brain and allow you to live a normal life."

"I don't think there's anything wrong with me or my brain. I like it the way it is" Milo said.

Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there.

"Mr. Cabral, I know that you've had a rough go at life not being able to relate to other people. It's something universal to all of those of your neurotype. The sense of isolation and loneliness will still sting you no matter how old you get. Once you get a taste of what it's really like to really be able to connect with people you will be glad you did it."

"Will it harm my intellect?" Milo asked.

"Probably will dull some of your cognitive abilities, but you will still be pretty exceptional by human standards" Leeka replied. "I promise you of that."

"But is it okay for me to give up who it is I am? Doesn't being unique count for something? Am I still going to be the man my wife married and the friend my friends have made?"

"Your debilitating neurological state does not make you who you are any more than a congenital heart deformity does. Your wife isn't attracted to any of your eccentricities; she is attracted because of your pheromonal histocompatibility and genetic factors. I can guarantee you that you will find it much easier to make friends with your corrected brain. I assure you that you will not be a test subject in any sense. The Royal Humanology Institute has studied these things very thoroughly. I understand your trepidation and how important individualism is to you humans but I can promise you this is in your best interest."

"I'm not going to get any say in this am I?" Milo asked.

"I'm afraid not" Leeka said. "We have full medical jurisdiction over you when you are in the outworld sector." Milo said nothing, and a feeling of hopelessness came over Milo. His fate seemed fixed. He could not really envision a likely scenario where he would be spared his future being shaped by some elf technology he knew very little about.

"Here's what's going to happen" Leeka said pulling up a chair to sit directly across from Milo. "We are going to sedate you and induce a sort of womb-like state for your some of your key brain cells, which will allow them to be re-wired. You will be given the treatment solution at a steady pace over the course of the night. When you wake up the process of mending your brain will begin. In the meantime we are going to give you a serious of cognitive and physical tests. Then tomorrow night we will give you a night of privacy with your wife, which we would like you to utilize so we can study your brain activity. The two of you are newlyweds so I assume that won't be a problem. Then within the next few days you will start to really feel the way you were meant to feel." Milo just nodded his head. There was no apparent escape from this predicament, nowhere to run and hide.

As Milo was taken to the operating room and was being prepared for sedation, he thought about what Leeka had said. Could she really be right about him? Could he have developed a Stockholm Syndrome for his own idiosyncrasies and social impairments? The elves were very smart – so very smart – and were more skilled with the acquisition of scientific knowledge in the most challenging fields like brain science. As Milo was contemplating this, he felt a prick from a syringe on his arm, and he very quickly slipped into a deep sleep.