by Bruno Flexer
Tom said nothing.
"Lieutenant, let me shake your hand—"
"Sir, we've already strapped him in—"
"So, free his hand!" The general fumed and the tech people removed the metal straps around Tom's right hand. He could not lower his head to see, but he felt strong, gnarly hands tightly grab his own.
"Sir, I'm just following orders," Tom said again when he felt his hand being shaken vigorously.
"Nonsense, Lieutenant. The human race is counting on you, not to mention the army and me. You're a fine example for us all!" the general said. He shook Tom’s hand for the last time and moved away.
Tom felt the tech types reattach the metal strap, and others held his head tightly in place. The Serpent's hatch was partly closed, and Tom felt the lead tech person now standing next to him. "Relax, Lieutenant. When you'll wake up, you'll be the pilot of the most advanced weapon the United States possesses."
But Tom couldn't relax; there were too many unanswered questions. Why was all this security necessary so far from the front lines? Why were the security forces armed with so many anti-tank missiles? Why won't they reveal the names of the general, the lead tech person and the military units in charge? Why did they just pick three soldiers who didn't even know each other, let alone ever work together, to pilot these personal battle tanks? Why did they have just three days to learn to pilot these Serpents? Why did the general bring up his family and his captive sister? Why…
A plastic breathing mask was now pressed onto Tom's face. Tom closed his eyes, and the strange world outside went away. There was precious little time for them, Tom suddenly remembered. The enemy must be stopped in six days. Tom rapidly inhaled from the strange-smelling mask and total darkness yawned before him.
Chapter 4
Day Two, Fort Belvoir, Virginia
Where was he?
There was nothing but darkness. Tom tried opening his eyes but he couldn't. He tried again, fighting as hard as he could but he failed. There, … there were no eyes! He couldn't feel his eyes! He tried feeling his face with his hands but he couldn't move his hands. He couldn't feel them either!
Tom tried taking a deep breath, but he couldn’t. He couldn't breathe!
Help. Help me! Help!
There was no voice. There was no mouth. He couldn't shout. There was nothing! There was—
"Down the rabbit hole."
A voice arose. A speaking voice in the darkness! Tom would have sobbed with relief, if only he could.
"There, all set. Start the boot procedure."
"'Batteries' is in the green. Power core is online. Internal network is online. Secondary and tertiary networks are operational. Internal sensors status is green. Monitoring system reboot completed. 'Engines and circulation' is online. Optical and radio sensors checking sequence initiated. Quantum processing initiated. Self-diagnosis routines running. Gyros beginning rev-up sequence. Power consumption is nominal. Interim and management processors communicate normally."
It went on and on, an endless checkup list that meant nothing to Tom, but its very existence was somehow comforting. It was a human voice, even though it droned endlessly. It was still human, something to drive away the darkness. Tom still could not breathe but some of the panic went away. The human voice running down its inscrutable checklist kept reporting everything was okay. No reason to worry.
What was that thing with the rabbit?
"Lieutenant Riley, can you hear me?"
It was the voice of the unnamed man with the ponytail. Yes, yes, I can hear you. Can you hear me? Does somebody hear me? If I could only move a hand, or—
"Very well! Lieutenant Riley. You might have noticed you can't speak or move. Yet. That's because we're booting up the Serpent's systems step by step."
So why did you ask me if I could hear you, Bastard?
"So far you have only hearing. We're going to add more systems, step by step. Are you ready?"
Tom said nothing. He couldn't say anything anyway, but he wouldn't have said anything even if he could. That bastard round glasses man. Probably being nice was not a job requirement in this project.
"We're going to return eyesight now, Lieutenant Riley. Are you ready?"
And suddenly the world appeared in front of Tom. Tom would have stopped breathing if he could, but, anyway, he still wasn't able to feel his mouth or throat, or breathe. But it was still awesomely beautiful just to see the bright white radiance, the neon lights shedding warmth, light and life around them, the tech types moving around, standing around or sitting in front of computers, all doing inscrutable things on keyboards, moving mouses or furiously flicking fingers on touchpads. The light was really beautiful, colorful, radiant, life giving, warm—
"Can you see me, Lieutenant Riley?"
Just in front of him stood the white-lab-coat person but Tom just watched the other people, seeing their faces moving, a few talking between themselves and exchanging technical information, one woman concentrating on the inscrutable things appearing on her LCD screen, another man punching away at his keyboard, a third man comparing things on his monitor with a large printout, scanning through it to find something.
"We'll now enable motor control. Try moving your right hand, Lieutenant Riley," said the lab-coat man and looked to his left, towards the Serpent's right hand.
Tom could not move his head, and he could not feel his eyes nor close them or blink, but he could see the room he was in perfectly. He could see every detail, from the clipped fingernails of a tech person sitting in front of a computer, to the dust motes gathering in the corner of the hall, to the body of a bug lying on top one of the ceiling lights, embedded into a crevice between the neon bulb and the starter.
"Please move your right hand, Lieutenant Riley," said the lab-coat person impatiently, glancing at his watch.
Tom was still watching the room. He could not feel that he had eyes. He did not blink, nor did he have any trouble looking straight into the neon lights without them leaving aftereffects in his field of view. There was a visual acuity greater than anything he had ever experienced in his life. He could even see small imperfections in the paint on the wall or in the plaster between the floor and the walls.
But, unbidden, a question arose. Why had he woken up in a different room? He could distinctly remember other instruments lining the wall, devices that showed his vital signs. The walls were lined with other instrumentation now, with readings he couldn't understand.
"Lieutenant Riley, we are working under a time constraint here!" The lab-coat person bent over and sharply tapped Riley with his knuckles, producing a flat knocking noise on what Tom assumed was the Serpent's faceplate.
“I hate question-loving idiots,” Lieutenant Ramirez had said. Maybe he had a point, Tom sighed in his mind. He shifted the focus of his sight to the right, and now he could see his hand. The Serpent's hand, Tom reminded himself. The arm was black, lean and slightly curved. The hand itself was wide with very long fingers that terminated in sharp points, making Tom think of the talons of some very powerful bird of prey.
Move, thought Tom, quite unsure what to do. To his surprise, the thin tapering fingers moved.
"It's about time, Lieutenant Riley. Now, make a fist. Now, move every finger separately. Now, spread your hand as wide as it can go. Now, make another fist. Rotate your wrist."
Tom would have smiled had he been able to. The movements of the fingers and hand were incredible. They moved exactly the way he wanted, with delicate and accurate movements. There was a slight humming vibration from the hand, probably from electric motors inside the joints, but nothing was visible except the matt black surface skin of the fingers and the hand.
Though delicate and precise, Tom felt something in the humming of the hand movements. There was power here, an unparalleled strength.
"Lieutenant Riley, we are now going to enable your left hand. I'll take you through the movements test."
Tom followed the lab-coat person's orders closely and in a short while,
he gained control of both of his hands, his arms, his legs and his head. He was still attached to the scaffolding, and even though most of his limbs had been released from the scaffolding, it still held him tightly. In addition, he could see a thick cable connected to something on the back of his left arm. The Serpent's left arm, he corrected himself.
"Very well. We'll now enable your speaker. Try to say something, Lieutenant Riley. Do not ask a question."
Tom tried but nothing happened. He tried blowing air, making a sound, and forming and shaping lips that weren't there.
"Lieutenant Riley, please do not take too much time. We are taking too much time here as it is."
Tom tried to relax. He had to talk through the Serpent, not with his mouth and lungs that were hibernating inside. He tried to concentrate.
"Sir," Tom said hesitatingly. His voice was obviously artificial but not unpleasant. Just low and synthesized. "Yes, Sir," he said again, more confidently. "Sir," he said for the third time, this time with full confidence. The machine voice filled the hall and bounced off the walls to reverberate for a few seconds before fading out.
"Very well, Lieutenant Riley. Please keep your voice volume under tighter control. Now, we're going to try testing your equilibrium. Feel up to it?"
Tom started forming a response but the lab-coat person spoke first. "Great. We will remove the scaffolding, but be careful. We have monitoring equipment attached to your left arm."
Tom craned the Serpent's head to see, but his left arm was still held by the scaffolding, and all he could see was the data cable snaking away.
"Lieutenant Riley,” the lab-coat person now said, raising his voice a little.
The scaffolding was removed, and Tom took one step ahead. He didn't think of stepping forward, he just controlled his legs, making his left move, followed by the right. It's just like moving with my own body, Tom thought.
The Serpent moved, making Tom's perspective change. A clicking noise coming from below attracted Tom's attention. The long, curved claws on the Serpent's feet clicked again as they unfolded on the concrete floor, ensuring that the Serpent stood perfectly balanced.
Tom turned the Serpent’s head so that he could look at his left arm still attached to the scaffolding. Now, two techies removed the metal restraints around his arm and Tom gently freed it.
"Be careful with that cable, Lieutenant Riley. We still need it," the lab-coat person said. Tom watched as a tech person lifted a laptop that was connected to the cable and then turned to the back of the Serpent's left arm. There was a small display there, bright schematics dancing on it. A black armor panel was folded on Tom's arm away from the display. A host of connecting sockets rested there, one connected to the data cable that was already attached to the laptop.
"This is your arm computer along with various data and power ports. You need not concern yourself with the diagnostic or administration menus, Lieutenant Riley," the lab-coat person said, noting the direction of the Serpent's head.
"Arm computer, Sir? Touchscreen activated?" Tom asked and moved his right hand over the back of his left arm, his long black fingers hovering above the light-filled display of the computer. Tom noticed that the fingers of the Serpent's hands were long, really long.
He touched the back of his arm and the display changed. Seven icons appeared: sensors, power, diagnostics, navigation, communications, interface and administration.
"I thought my thoughts would control the computers. Why don't they? And why don't I have radio data links to exchange data with my team members and auxiliary forces?" Tom said.
"Enough with the questions, Lieutenant Riley! The computers in the Serpent are not to be played with. You'll receive instruction about the functions you are to operate in the battlefield, including the head-up display. Now, we must move onwards. We already wasted too much time here."
The man made sure that Tom had abandoned any intention of tinkering with the computers and turned to a control desk. He picked up a phone and rapidly punched in a number.
"Yes, it's me. Integration is complete. Yes, he's ready. All indicators are positive."
Tom moved slowly and carefully through the hall, taking care to stay well away from the working tech people. He towered above them, like an adult standing high above children, or a god seeing his disciples groveling on the ground far beneath him. Actually, his height in the Serpent was more or less twice the height of an adult, but the feeling of incredible power remained.
"No, Sir, no incidents. There were no problems."
Actually, Tom thought he felt different than he did outside the Serpent. Something was different. Actually, a lot of things were different, but something in particular drew his attention. Only now he realized how many things a man feels with his skin: the wind, starting from small wafts that turned to the steady drafts from the air-conditioning; clothing that moves, slides and crawls over a man's skin; soft touches on one’s fingertips; the weight on one’s feet and legs supporting his body. Room temperature, too, changed and would be sensed.
"Yes, we'll wait."
Now, Tom felt none of these things, although he had a general feeling of the temperature in the room. He felt his black limbs moving, but there was no feeling of his skin, no chafing or itching or anything else. He did have tactile feeling in his fingertips, which he tested by stopping by one of the devices in the room and running a finger on its metal surface. He felt the device's texture, its metal casing under his long black finger, the cool temperature of the material.
Tom, almost against his will, steadily increased the fingertip's pressure on the device. His finger started leaving a thin furrow behind it, a furrow that deepened into a crack as his finger cut into the metal skin with almost no resistance.
He felt, though, a small resistance as the metal skin of instrument held for a moment against his finger before succumbing.
"Lieutenant Riley!"
Tom whirled around. The general was standing in the hall's entrance, staring at him sternly. Tom saluted smartly and rose to attention, though the general now seemed more like a child confronting a dark giant.
"At ease, Lieutenant. How do you feel?"
Tom lowered his right hand and regarded the general. How did he feel?
"I feel … I feel great, Sir."
The general said nothing, just looked at Tom's Serpent with narrowed eyes.
"How did he make the transfer?"
What transfer? thought Tom.
"All indicators are green, General. He's fully operational and ready to begin training," the lab-coat person said, exchanging a look with the man holding the laptop still connected to the computer embedded into the back of the Serpent's left arm.
"Are you ready to take the fight to the enemy, Lieutenant? Ready to fight for your sister?"
"I'm ready, Sir. The Serpent's a hell of a weapon, Sir," Tom said. He didn't fail to notice that the general exchanged another look with the lab-coat person who glanced at the laptop guy who stood behind Tom's Serpent.
"Lieutenant Riley, if you please," said the man with the laptop. Tom lowered his arm and the man disconnected the cable and returned the Serpent's armor plate that covered and protected the arm computer.
"Soldier, we have less than three days to train you before you go out. In that time, we'll go though basic Serpent training, comprehensive target intelligence assessment and weapons practice. Feel up to it?" The general had a fierce look in his eyes, and his face appeared a bit more animated than Tom had ever seen before.
"Sir! Yes Sir!"
"We commence in fifteen minutes. You are now piloting one of the most expensive weapons that the United States military forces possess. Lieutenant, do not disappoint me," the general said, a dark look entering his eyes, and his face hardening into a mask again.
The general left the hall.
Chapter 5
Day Two, Fort Belvoir, Virginia
They had taught Tom how to fold down his legs and arms, and now he moved awkwardly in the corridors of the
hangar, a butterfly waiting for the chance to unfurl its wings and fly but still forced, for the time being, to crawl on the earth.
He was still being escorted by troops in full combat gear toting anti-tank missiles who moved alongside the tech types, but Tom barely noticed them. A heady feeling of power flooded him. He felt strong, in control, able to do anything. Everything around him seemed to be made of cardboard or paper. He could bend metal, punch through walls, jump incredibly high. In fact, Tom had to struggle just to keep sedately walking onwards.
Once, they stopped before a security door, and Tom reached out with one hand towards a hole that had been made in the plaster wall. Then, he extended one black finger to its full ten-inch length and touched the hole. The dimensions fit perfectly. A Serpent had made that hole. Apparently, he wasn't the only Serpent pilot to feel all that power surging inside.
"Lieutenant Riley!"
They had entered another large hall, and Tom looked inside in amazement. There were already two Serpents there, extended to their full height. One moved towards Riley enthusiastically.
"Sergeant Jebadiah?"
"Yes, Sir. How do you like the Serpent, Sir?"
"It's fantastic," answered Tom slowly. It was quite incredible seeing a Serpent moving from inside another Serpent using its unparalleled quality vision. Even just walking across the floor, Sergeant Jebadiah's Serpent moved with a smooth, powerful motion that resembled nothing Tom had ever seen before. A panther's movements seemed paltry in comparison.
Tom paused to watch Jebadiah's Serpent's motion. He saw power, sheer power. Tom had never seen anything that gave the impression it held so much compressed power, just waiting for the chance to rip away and explode into action.
"And it is a good thing too, Sir. Let me tell you, I really hoped we’d get some good chow in this here base, but they just stuffed me in the machine. It’s a great machine Sir, but they should have fed us first, know what I mean, Sir?" Sergeant Jebadiah asked.
