The Commander

by Kevin Groh

  Carter’s confusion became even greater as she had raised objections in the administration and made a lot of noise but quickly got over it. She seemed to have come to terms with her fate after only two days. It seemed strange, but at his question, she only replied that she had tried everything and that the military would harvest what they had sewn. With more intelligence, she wanted to tackle the system even harder.

  The rest of the week went by fairly quickly with the usual lessons. Already on the weekend, Leena was to be operated on, while Rod was scheduled on Monday and Carter on Wednesday. When she entered the medical department of the main building on Saturday, she looked very frightened. The others accompanied her to the door, but then she had to go in alone. Magnus had sent a Syntech shuttle very early that morning to deliver the latest upgrades for the three. So Leena would not just be the only one to receive an intelligence upgrade, but also the most advanced model on the market. But at that moment she didn’t care because she just wanted to run away.

  Rod put his hand on her shoulder and nodded at her. Her otherwise stubborn nature could not be seen and she looked back insecurely. Rod smiled at her and told her that everything was going to be fine. His tone left no doubt. She pulled a corner of her mouth slightly upwards and then turned around. After she was gone, the others slowly strolled back to the drill ground to sit and wait. The procedure would take about two hours.

  »Can you believe that operations used to take many hours? Sometimes thirteen or more. And this although it was still people who had to perform it manually. Phew, no wonder the mortality rate was so high.«, Rod thought.

  Kelly said: »If this had already been possible on Earth with precision robots, the overpopulation would probably have come much earlier. Even before we had developed the necessary space travel. Then we probably wouldn’t all be here today.«

  Carter said nothing and when they asked what was on his mind, he replied: »I was wondering if such an intelligence upgrade would have more effect than just Leena’s thinking capacity.«

  »What do you mean?«, Kelly asked.

  »If this implant increases your thinking power, it will certainly affect other areas as well. The way she thinks will change. It is a well-known fact that rationality and emotion are opposites. In most people, the two keep themselves in balance or the emotional side is stronger. But with the great thinkers, one finds, again and again, hints that they were described as people who were eccentric, unapproachable or emotionally cold. The more intelligent someone is, the more he becomes like a computer.

  You heard Jazzir after all. The T’zun teach their AI that it sometimes has to make deliberately wrong decisions. The behavior that would be rational, logical and correct does not correspond to what is morally or emotionally right. When people lose their connection to this emotional inner compass through too much intelligence, they become the opposite of an emotional AI. Such a person knows morality, but the newly gained intelligence makes them decide to ignore it.«

  Rod said ›Stop‹ before he could go any further with his philosophical remarks.

  »Now go easy, buddy. We’re talking about Leena here.«

  Carter said: »If it’s still her.«

  Kelly put her hand on his shoulder: »If the military gives someone such an upgrade, then they’re doing it because that person is suitable for it. They certainly don’t want the implant to produce a completely uncontrollable result. I’m sure they’ve taken precautions. Somehow.«

  Rod now seemed depressed, although Carter hadn’t intended that.

  As soon as Leena joined them again in the early evening, they were all extremely curious. The others in the group also came to hear how she felt.

  She was sitting on a bench looking straight at the sun. One could see her pupils shrinking in a flash, much faster than normal. Rod noticed that the iris had a different color and looked more perfect and flawless. Carter saw that the pupils were not contracted, but that a focus had set in. The whole eye seemed to be mechanical.

  Leena said: »Actually I don’t feel any difference. The intelligence upgrade takes a few days to work properly. My eyes were completely removed and replaced by these prostheses. I was angry when they told me that, but I don’t notice any change. The normal visual functions seem to work as intended because the improved functions don’t seem to be activated yet.«

  Her statements were not really helpful or meaningful to any of them. On Sunday, she had several moments when she flinched briefly, after which everything was normal again. That way Carter could get used to the idea that his eyes would soon no longer be in his head. He looked at himself in the mirror and made himself aware of it, but it was like a dream. He did not realize it properly.

  On Monday the lessons took place as usual, except that Rod and Henry were missing because they were operated on. Rod’s operation was supposed to last four hours, but they would not see him again this week. As his upgrades were physical, he needed a week to get used to them in a sheltered environment. The same was in store for Carter on Wednesday. Kelly had sex with him before getting up to say goodbye. She wished him good luck and kissed him long and lovingly before going to class. Leena also came by again to hug him. Late in the morning, he trotted to the main building. His stomach growled because he had to be sober. Since his stomach rebelled anyway, that was probably a good thing, he thought. In the medical department a doctor, a nurse, and a technician awaited him. Before he could say much, the nurse instructed him to undress. While he was doing that, the doctor talked to him.

  »Carter Slade Sanders. Very nice. I see you’re receiving a lot of modifications. One could almost become jealous. Such a list of upgrades is usually reserved more experienced soldiers. People seem to have high expectations of you. But well, to the topic. You are immediately put into an artificial coma, then the robots go to work.«

  He showed a projection with about twelve illuminated spots on the human body.

  »Parts are used at these points. In addition, we remove all the joints of your body and replace them with stronger models. Otherwise, the muscle upgrades would tear you apart. Your eyeballs will also be removed and replaced with these. They are state-of-the-art ocular prostheses. They are connected to the optic nerves so that your vision functions independently of the technical extensions of the prosthesis. In other words, your vision cannot simply be switched off. On the contrary, it even gets a lot better. Many people ask me that. Since you get the Syntech special model, you have a nice extra that we’ll explain to you later.

  When the surgery is done, you will stay in the rehabilitation area for about a week. There your vital functions, your values, and all other factors will be monitored. We will also teach you how to handle the new upgrades. All clear so far?«

  Carter had many questions, but since he couldn’t avert the surgery, they had time until after the surgery. So he shook his head and the doctor led him to the stretcher. As he stared at the ceiling, the nurse injected him with a very strong sedative and he couldn’t even finish his next thought or feel fear before he had passed out.

  When he opened his eyes again, it seemed to him that no time had passed. However, his whole body hurt, so that was probably not the case. He raised his head and his bed adapted to the movement and raised the headrest. He was lying in a recovery room with several hospital beds in it. Some people were walking around, nurses, guards, patients.

  »Hey, buddy! I’m glad you’re awake. How do you feel?«

  The words came from Rod, who sat next to him by the bed and grinned at him. Carter immediately noticed that Rod’s muscles had grown, and clearly so. He looked like a bull.

  »Everything hurts, so the procedure must have gone according to plan. But shit, Rod, you’ve become a real bear!«, he exclaimed.

  Rod laughed and got up to present himself.

  »Well, I was told my evaluation had clearly shown that I was a good front-line soldier. To give me this option, the muscle upgrades were set a little higher. I like it pretty much. I feel like pure strength c
rammed into a sexy body. I’m like a sports car.«, he laughed.

  Carter lifted the blanket to see if he had changed too. To his relief, everything seemed to be the same. But Rod said in astonishment:

  »Wow, your eyes dude! Just like with Leena. You can only see it when you look closely, but the green has become more intense and you blink less.«

  Carter took a hand mirror from the bedside table and looked at his face. Most of his eyes looked the same as before, but on closer inspection, he saw tiny mechanical parts that controlled the opening of the iris. It was subtle, but you could still see it. Yet it didn’t feel wrong. He had feared his body would no longer feel like his, but both the pain and the sight were proof that it was not. He wanted to get up, but Rod stopped him.

  »You must not get up yet. I’ll tell the coach that you’re awake. He will help you to cope with the changes, otherwise, you will break something. I accidentally knocked my bedside table to pieces when I wanted to turn off the alarm.«, he said with an embarrassing smile.

  After a while, the trainer came in a medical uniform and sat down on the chair.

  »Good morning, my name is Ted. I’m one of the rehab coaches. I’m sure you have a lot of questions and I’ll be there all week to help you get along. You’ve had several operations at once. Your body takes a while to accept the upgrades. The pain you feel is the change in your muscle structure that was initiated during activation. Your new joints and muscles will not function properly until this process is complete. This will take about a day. Until then you should stay in bed because sometimes your body will disobey you. As soon as the pain stops, you know it’s all over.«

  »Will I also become an animal like Rod?«, Carter asked.

  Ted laughed: »No, don’t worry. You can adjust the strength of the change and Rod deliberately made it more comprehensive. You are well suited in so many disciplines that you get a balanced setting first. You will be a bit stronger, but not as massive as with Mister Tindall. Get some rest and let me know if you need anything, okay?«

  He nodded. Since he couldn’t do much, he spent the rest of the day reading and watching movies.

  When the pain stopped the next morning, Carter called Ted. He came and said:

  »Wonderful, the values look good. All upgrades are fully active, your body has accepted them and they have started up. Now try to get up, but please slowly. Too hasty and you smash the bed against the wall.«

  That sounded a bit exaggerated, Carter found. But he noticed how movements that he could previously do naturally now required more control. If he grabbed the edge of the bed too tightly when he got up, the metal frame would bend. He placed his feet on the floor and lifted himself too quickly from the bed so that he flew half a meter into the air and fell on his nose.

  Ted straightened him up and commented: »That’s what I meant.«

  He explained to Carter that his gross and fine motor skills did not immediately adapt to the changed conditions. That’s why it took a week in isolation. They spent the day throwing softballs, lifting objects, opening doors and putting down and picking up water glasses. Everyday movements that could easily lead to destruction with the new strength. Rod was also in the large lounge and practiced close combat with Jazzir. He waved from time to time.

  Already on the second day, they switched to fine motor exercises. Computers, skill games, drawing and similar things that Carter hadn’t done for years.

  »Let’s test the limits of this power! I’d like to know what I’m capable of now.«, he asked Ted.

  He said: »Yes, that will come, but first you have to be able to live normally again«.

  On the third day, Carter was supposed to go to the obstacle course. Banes was waiting there for him.

  »Recruit Sanders. I judged you right from the start. You are talented. It’s time to put your new possibilities to the test. We go through the exercises of the hell trail one by one and see how your performance has changed compared to before. But first you run the ten laps on the course, you remember that.«

  The memory made Carter almost feel the stitch again, but he had no choice, so he started running. Surprisingly, he was faster than before and even after the third lap he wasn’t out of breath in the least. He was curious and accelerated his pace. He sprinted the following five laps and his breathing was hardly changed. At the end of the run, he felt as if he had just warmed up.

  »Damn, that’s awesome!«, he shouted out loud.

  Banes nodded with a grin: »I know.«

  Carter suddenly realized that the major had to have upgrades, too. That was certainly the reason why no recruit had been able to beat his time so far. Now he was able to do that. He kept the thought to himself and went to the stations of the hell trail, which now caused him hardly any problems. Although not all obstacles could be overcome with endurance or strength, he had acquired the necessary coordination long ago through the many training sessions. He was able to overcome all obstacles in one-third of his normal time. Banes seemed satisfied and a little impressed.

  »Even Tindall wasn’t as fast as you, but my best time comes from both upgrades and training. The new power alone will not be enough. So forget about that right away, boy.«, he grinned.

  The following day he was assigned to the strength area in the sports hall. Jazzir expected him there and together they explored how much weight Carter could move, how far the jumps were and where his limits were. He was amazed at what he was now able to do. He lifted the heaviest dumbbells, which just happened to push him to the limit. He jumped over a third of the hall and reached a height of three meters. Jazzir was impressed and he himself felt like a super-soldier.

  »Your strength now corresponds to that of a T’zun. You are all the more qualified to train with us. Dosing this power is another hurdle that you have to overcome now. I will help you with that.«

  The help came in the form of sparring with the T’zun himself. They fought against each other the whole afternoon and Carter learned not to use his strength to the full with punches and kicks, but to adapt it to the situation. Jazzir showed him some tricks that a person with normal physical strength could not use.

  Before they ended the day, Carter said: »Jazzir. I know you’re a trainer here and it’s your job to pass on knowledge, but I feel it’s a privilege to learn from a member of your people.«

  The person addressed bowed slightly, which was a sign of great respect for the T’zun.

  »You are a special person. Something about you is different and I feel that this something will take you very far.«, Jazzir said and ended the exercises.

  Back in the lounge, Carter realized Rod was gone. His week was over and he was back in class. It wasn’t over for him yet though. The next day began in the simulation room. There Kova awaited him with Leena, who greeted him joyfully. The Salvani had her computer and a strange-looking medical vaccination gun with her. She looked at Carter with her huge eyes.

  »Good morning Mr. Sanders and Miss Whittaker. I’m here to explain the functions of your eye prostheses to both of you. Normally these upgrades are compatible with all common military systems, but since you have a special model, this is not optimally given. It only works with a multitool, not with the wristbands. Typically, recruits only get a multitool if they commit, but in your case, an exception was made because Syntech donated the equipment for it.«

  Kova took their bracelets and injected a tiny chip into each of their left forearms in a capsule.

  »Now the synchronization with the bracelets is running, it takes a moment. Then the multitool initializes the existing upgrades and creates the home interface.«, she explained, although they didn’t understand a word.

  The bracelets beeped once and then a short flash of lightning drove through Carter’s field of vision. Then, suddenly, a holographic projection was built up above his arm. In a bright blue, an interface appeared that displayed file folders, metrics, commands, and settings like a computer screen. There were also various options and connections to recognized external
devices to set up.

  »Your looks tell me that the interface is now visible. At the moment this is only visible in your eyes, but nobody else can see it. There is a command in the home interface that makes it visible to others. Please do this so I can help you.«, Kova said.

  Once they had followed the instructions, she explained to them how the multitool was structured, what menus there were and how to set it all up for themselves. The customization ranged from the color of the hologram to the representation of the keys to the division of menu areas and displays.

  Kova pointed to a special field that was rather inconspicuous.

  »This is the upgrade menu. Here you can see all the modifications active in your body, their settings, and their readings. Things like endurance improvement and reaction time are only monitored here, but muscle improvements can be regulated. Then there are activatable upgrades and functions like your ocular HUD.«, she enumerated.

  As soon as they activated the HUD, it suddenly appeared before their eyes as if they had glasses on.

  »Your eyes can create an HUD without external aids. The settings were transferred from the bracelet and should look familiar to you.«, she said.

  Carter tried switching it on and off several times.

  »That’s amazing!«, he marveled.

  Leena was also completely speechless. She kept looking at her multitool and then straight ahead. Kova walked to a table and got two pistols.

  »Your Syntech models have an extra feature that the standard parts don’t have.«, she explained.

  She pointed to the ›Zoom‹ position in the eyepiece menu. When activated, Carter suddenly saw everything much closer and then normal again.

  »With your thoughts, you can now increase the zoom of your view to up to four times magnification. And if you’re holding a weapon ...«, she said and handed the guns to them. As the weapon unfolded and connected to the multitool and the HUD, their gaze changed to a crosshair and expanded the HUD to include a target calculation feature.