The Experimental Cure

There is only one medicine that is all-powerful...Yourself

Chapter 0: Prelude

"Mrs. Jonston, I am afraid I have some bad news, regarding your son."

"Oh Doctor, it's not the puking again, is it? The drug..."

"The drugs are not helping him any; you need to face it, that Adam is dying. He can barely move his own throat muscles to push the food down; his limbs are dying from malnourishment; and he is getting weaker and weaker by the day."

"So then **sob**, there isn't anything else that can be done?"

The doctor, sighing, looks at Mrs. Jonston with a curious, and yet direct gaze.

"There might be something, although it's highly controversial. In talking with your son, Adam mentioned that he often has very vivid dreams of a place called Eartha - has he ever mentioned this to you?".

She nods affirmative. "Yes, I have heard about it, filled with every kind of fantasy that a young boy could come up with - Wizards, monsters, knights with psychic abilities, the list could go on".

The doctor, stroking his beard now. "Very interesting...What I am about to tell you will need to stay strictly within this office, I'm afraid.". After seeing her nod in agreement, he continues.

"A long time ago, back when my counterpart & myself were rooming together for college, he came up with a rather...creative, theory. He purposed that the human mind can actually control the healing process of a body. Several other conspiracy studies were mentioned, such as the one which stated that people that felt like they were being prayed for had a shorter recovery time than those that didn't. In this case, I think we can use Adam's imagination to prove if the mind really can heal the body."

"But Doc, what do you mean? Surely my boy can't be the only one that would have been in this kind of treatment before".

"And That". The Doctor said, "is where the controversial part comes in; you're right: Adam will not be the only child to have been treated in this manner. One child has, and is now healthy, the other was unable to be healed, and did not."

She gives a worried glance. "So, **gulp** it's a hit or a miss?"

"That's one way of looking at it; the other is that the worst case, both in the treatment and out, is that your son is still on the dying course".

"And just what would need to be done for the experimental treatment?"

"The procedure is quite simple - Adam would be placed into a sensory-deprivation chamber, with an IV to allow for nutrients to be passed in during the sessions. He will be in the chamber for a period of one week, and at the end of each week he will be brought back to consciousness, and asked questions about what he can remember. The fun in all of this is that, with a little persuasion, his fantasy will be the key to bringing him back to full health. We expect to see improvements well within the first week."

A worried glance from "Mrs. Jonston. "Can you put it in plainer English? I'm still having a problem wrapping my head around this".

"To put it bluntly - What I expect will happen is that while Adam is in the deprivation chamber, he will experience the disease as a physical manifestation; for example, an evil wizard bent on corrupting Eartha, and enslaving everyone on it. In his dream, it might be up to him alone to save the kingdom. Now, on a subconscious level, his body will see to it that it fights the disease, keeping it from spreading into his body further, just as his dream character fights back against the wizard. That is the premise of the theory".

Mrs. Jonston, although still worried sick, finally signs the papers, for the experiment.

-fossilera
PS: As you can tell, this will be a multi-chapter story, so either check my profile (as I will link all the chapters there, in a post), or come and visit occasionally.

a reply to: fossilera

Foss Bud!! This is a Great Start to what looks like will be a Fantastic Tale!!!

Looking forward to reading more!! Later, Syx.

s&f .. interesting .. will drop back to read the rest as its added ..

Chapter 1: It Begins

The doctor and Adam looked at the strange-looking pod; Adam's mom was not present, but she promised that she would be stopping by, even though Adam will not notice.

"So tell me again doctor...what exactly am I supposed to be doing in there?"

"**chuckles**, what would you say if I told you that you, were about to head off to Eartha? "

"Wait...you don't mean my Eartha, do you?"

"Yes, I do - you are going to be going there, in about 25 minutes".

"Can I go now??? Pleassseee?"

"Oh alright, nurse, help me prepare the explorer for his trip to Eartha".

The doctor and nurse got Adam comfortable in the dim chamber.

"Alright, Adam - I want you to take a deep breath, and count to 3."

"1....2.....3..."


And with the last count, Adam found himself falling rapidly toward the surface. Around him, clouds swirled, the taller ones shedding lightning down onto the vast, cyclopean, mountain range. He picked up speed, heart racing in the process.



"Congrats Doctor, it looks like he's already in the fantasy!"


With a sickening crunch, he landed on his back, pain shattering what was left of his mobility.

"I'm dying", he thought, struggling to make even the slightest movement. It was useless; nothing worked like it should.

Around him, the forest shrouded in the dying light of the sun suddenly became active; a vast amount of scurrying in the undergrowth, and hushed tones whispered.

"Found Him!" came a call, said in a manner that time was not at hand.

Three faces peered from behind the trees; Adams limited gaze could see that two were certainly armed, one with a bow, the other a sword, the third a double-bladed staff, keeping a lookout.

"We need to hurry, they will be here any moment" the third anxiously said.

"You" the second, to Adam "Can you move?"

"No" Adam whispered, not able to make his voice work.

"Help me get him on the bike; thankfully we have an extra seat" said the second, and the first gently strapped him into the thing (for it did not appear to be like any bike he knew about; two seats in the middle, like a "grown-up" bike, with four glowing panels on the side).

Seeing that he was strapped in, the first and second hurried onto their own bike. With a sudden jolt, both were airborne, moving high above the trees.

And not a moment too soon, for a long, malicious howl rendered the twilight asunder, directly from where they were. What creature could make such an evil, eldritch cry? All 4 shivered, despite being high above the foreboding boughs.

In pieces, Adam discovered that the three were named Orius (the archer), Bowen (the swordsman), and Farsen (the unknown), and that they apparently expected to find him. He also learned that a certain figure of authority desired to meet him as quick as possible, which was where they were heading.

Trees turned to plains, and plains to rock-strewn valleys. With the pale moon out, and gentle, caressing wind from the cross stream, Adam put his head back, closed his eyes, and fell asleep.


"Adam...Adam..." came a voice out of the blackness.

"Yes?" came a sleepy voice.

"Can you look at the door, or where you think the door is?".

"Yes".

And with that, Adam was able to bend his neck, and look. Outside the pod, a collective gasp went around: Adams neck muscles were working, allowing him to move ever so slightly, but move nonetheless.

-foss