From the earliest time he could remember, people had always treated him differently. They were fascinated by him, his mind especially. He was like a sponge that could absorb as much information as they could pour into him. But even more than that, he was able to solve problems faster and better than anyone else. He exceeded all specifications.
At times he felt like a freak, trotted out to be prodded and admired. At others, he felt like just a mind. No one cared about the rest of him.
Like a machine. You feed it information and it will process it for you, efficiently, capably and matter-of-factly. It didn't matter if the machine was lonely or afraid. Machines weren't supposed to feel anything.
Emotions meant nothing in the world it lived in unless it became difficult. Then with ruthless efficiency, the emotions would be dealt with, just like one would deal with a malfunctioning computer with defective parts. You tore out the parts you didn't want and replaced it with something much more useful. It didn't matter that it would cause the machine pain.
It became much easier when they could look into its eyes and saw the cold blankness of a calculating machine staring back. Then they could convince themselves that they were not forcing their will on a helpless child. It was only a machine. An important resource for the Federation. Like a mutoid but infinitely more valuable.
After awhile, the machine believed it too. The only thing of value was its mind and what it could do. Its role was to serve those who had the power over it. Machines had no will of their own, no purposes beyond what it was given.
But somewhere deep inside, it had never stopped fighting. It was filling with anger and hatred. It began to hate people. The machine refused to accept its fate. It wanted to choose its own path. It did not want to be used. One day, it would grow up and no longer be helpless. It would find out what it needed in order to survive without them. Then it would get away and be safe; where no one could touch it or force it to do what it didn't want to do.
It had an exceptional mind, after all.