"So, what's for today?"
The lady in the Office sighed as she turned around and looked toward the tech assistant who usually works on AI simulations and the mainframe database of the academy here. Since she had regular work-ins here, both of them worked together often. Though she was unaware that the young man had quite a crush on her for a long time.
"A student, who is recommended by General Dan! For the new batch. Honestly, I am surprised he is a 'Merit student' because he didn't look anything special to me."
The tech assistant who was operating a workstation halted his work and nudged his rolling chair to slide towards the office lady. He adjusted the glasses on his face as he inquired,
"General Dan? No way. That old man is the epitome of discipline. Even, he has someone whom he owes to? Surprising."
"Yeah, looks like it. "
There was some silence in the room as she was busy calibrating the Supercomputer feeding reference to normal brain activity levels and then syncing it with the 'Dream Room' in which Crey was taking the test. But suddenly, her face registered a frown as she checked the activity level being displayed by the scanning AI.
"What the hell? Is this thing broken? "
The tech guy woke up from his woolgathering to ask her out. He hurriedly checked the screen on which the lady was operating. It was showing the output connected to the brain activity level of Orion inside the room. And right now, what it was showing was completely unnatural.
"How can this be?..." He mumbled under his breath.
"Right, no! The process has just started but the machine is showing that the boy is completely furious and still his other brain signals are normal. It is a contradiction, how can one be so angry yet so calm at the same time.
I think the Computer is broke.."
The Woman began to complain but the guy refused her outright as he stood up and fiddled with the computer. He has clear confusion on his face which finally melted as he settled back on his chair. He sighed,
"Computer is not broken, we certainly have a bizarre student this time. Look! He is so angry that it is approaching levels of abnormal blood pressure but there is no spike in any of his vitals, even his heartbeat is normal. What kind of kid is he and…and what the hell is he dreaming about?"
*************************
Crey observed impassively the scene in front of his eyes. Not one or two times, he had seen this exact scene play out in his mind several times, but even now he wasn't sure if the thing he did at that time was right? And today again, he was witnessing the same without any intention to intervene in between.
In front of him, the whole facility was burning with extreme vigor. The scientists and employees who were usually like robotic workers round the clock, today were screaming and displaying fear while doing their best to save themselves. Some were trying to douse the fire, some were focused on running away themselves and some were even helping their partners or friends to escape together from this burning doom.
But in the middle of all this, where was he? Right, He saw this happening. He felt people dying. He watched them burning alive but what did He do? He….
Crey turned his head and looked towards one unassuming room, and there in the invisible 'healing solution tank' was a child hardly of age ten submerged naked inside the cylinder to heal his previous mission wounds. He wasn't asleep or unconscious….he was wide awake witnessing the massacre of fire through his eyes. From inside the cylinder tank, watching the fire consume his Seniors as well as his Doctors with nonchalant indifference.
Like…death and life don't matter to him. The very people who raised him and taught him were nothing more than unknown people to him whose life or death doesn't matter to him a bit.
Suddenly the room's wall collapsed with a fiery explosion and a man whose half body was on fire burst into the room all while screaming. The fire was not a natural one, it was clear from just one look as it was eating away his body bit by bit, giving him no chance to save himself.
With the intense torture of being cooked alive, the man was much close to losing his sanity when suddenly he found that cylinder in the room and the boy inside it. There was a shift of expression on his face to visible 'Hope' as he trotted towards him and knocked on the cylinder.
He shouted something at the boy, but the boy silently watched him screaming something. But neither the boy nor….. Crey, who was dreaming about this memory, heard anything. There was abject silence in the room with only lips of that burning saying something inaudible.
'What is he saying? I can't hear it'
Thought Crey and the child at the same time, as they watched him beg and cry while the fire bit by bit charred his body alive right in front of them. Both had apathetic indifference on their face seeing the fire close on the medicinal tank.
Suddenly the scene stopped at that moment, and Crey found himself separated from that frozen dream. A voice….much like an automated sound of AI sounded in his ears,
"You heard him! You understood him yet you didn't do anything and pretended to hear nothing. Why? "
So this was AI who was taking his personality test. Crey rolled his eyes as he answered in an irritated voice,
"What do you expect from a ten-year-old child? Do you expect him to jump into that fire to die alongside that man? Come on! I am not a selfless human."
"Very well! "
Suddenly, Crey found his surroundings swirling and the next moment he found himself in the crowded bar. It didn't take him long to spot a youngster and an old man with prosthetic hands sitting while drinking booze in the distance.
Everywhere around were groups of rough criminals as well as bounty hunters who were betting on their skills. Illegal currency, booze, and women, everything remains pretty civil here as long as these things are in abundance.
Crey was confused for a few moments but as he looked around more he recalled this memory as well.
"Ah! We are in the Tune Shack, Near 'Sun Mexico'. And here I am fifteen or sixteen years old maybe…oh f*ck! I know what is going to happen now."