It has been days since Elias had been able to sleep in past dawn.
He drifted inside it, carried by lists and the quiet scrape of thought. Sera's words kept returning like a tide he could not ignore.
You are not human anymore.
Incorrect, every trained part of him argued.
He had lived with protocols for years, each step nailed down with double checks and sterile gloves.
He had watched vials, logged batches, recorded adverse events until numbers felt safer than air. He trusted the chain more than he trusted memory.
But chains break. He knew that, too.
He eased onto a stool at the far end of the kitchen counter and opened a notebook.
His handwriting had always been neat enough to pack into small spaces, precise enough that anyone on his team could read it. It looked the same now. That alone calmed him.
Observation: Unusual stamina in cold.
Observation: Night vision improved beyond normal range.
Observation: Minor aches resolve faster than expected.
