Machine Story

Second Chance

David awoke from his slumber with sweat running down his forehead. For a moment he thought everything that happened might have been a terrible dream but as he stared at his mechanical hand, he knew this was his new reality.

“Is it safe? He’s not going to go bonkers again is he?” Kaviya asked, hiding in the far corner of the lab. “All systems are fully functional and everything is reading stable so we should be good,” replied Anusha. David was still shaking off the grogginess from his sleep. Out of nowhere, Niall slapped him on the back, “Well aren’t you the luckiest fellow I’ve ever met!”

David looked at the man confused, wanting him to elaborate. “You don’t remember, do you? Well, I don’t know what you were doing outside the colony but me and my comrades found you severely injured. We couldn’t do anything to help you so we decided to bring you back here to this crazy scientist lady who somehow kept you alive.”

“Hey! I’m not crazy!” Anusha jumped at the accusation. “Sorry, what I meant to say was, she is a fanatic.” Niall rephrased his words calming Anusha, “Yes! That is much better!”

David's mind was filled with questions, so he decided to start with the most obvious one, “What happened to my body?” Anusha began to explain, “Your body was in critical condition when Niall brought you in. The only way I could keep you alive was by using the parts found from the Metadross to help keep your vital organs stable. I also had to replace some of your limbs as some of your bones that were destroyed beyond healing.”

David began focusing on the movement of his hand and legs. It was a strange feeling that would take getting used to. “You should be thankful, not everyone gets a second chance like this, the others didn’t turn out so wel…” As Niall was about to finish, Anusha elbowed him in the gut to stop him from talking. Unfortunately, David was now curious as to what Niall meant about ‘the others.’ Seeing no way to divert the topic, Anusha decided to tell David the truth.

Colony Five had been under siege for years by the Metadross. Their soldiers had done an admirable job to fend them off and over time, Anusha had been able to develop new technology against their enemy. She was able to take the Metadross parts from the battles and turn them into new armor and weapons. However, even with the upgrades, the colony’s forces were still dwindling.

Eventually, Anusha had the idea to use the parts scavenged from their previous battles and create mechanical augmentations to equip their soldiers. Initially Anusha only tested this on wounded soldiers that were willing to go through with the process. The idea was sound in theory but its application had horrifying results.

Many of the fighters who went through with the procedure were unable to survive the augmentation. Their bodies could not handle the Metadross technology that merged with them. The few that managed to physically endure the augmentation process did not have the mental capacity to maintain control of their new enhancements. They end up in fits of rage that put themselves and others in danger.

After hearing all this, David wondered, “So how come I still have my mind intact after what happened earlier?” Anusha was hesitant to continue with the conversation. She looked toward Kaviya who stood in the far corner of the room still cautious in case David turned hostile again.

Realizing no one else would speak, she continued, “We installed an A.I. unit within your system to help control the mechanical functions of your body.” David was confused as to what she meant so Kaviya elaborated from a distance, “It stands for artificial intelligence! It’s like having an extra mind to help you handle everything going on in your body.”

David turned to thank the assistant for explaining it in a matter that he understood. Kaviya accepted the gratitude and continued hiding. Now, David was curious as to why they never used A.I. units on the other soldiers. He thought that would have saved many lives!

“Umm, well, you see, the A.I. has a very heavy requirement.” She told him. David raised his eyebrow in confusion and Niall who had been around, finally had enough of the conversation. “Oh my gosh Anusha you take forever, I’m taking over from here!” He pushes her aside to take control of the conversation.

Niall explained to David how he wasn’t the only body they found when they fought against the cannon unit Metadross. They also found a girl whose condition was far worse than David’s. Even though they rushed back to the laboratory, Anusha informed them that there was no way to save her body. However, she thought it might be possible to preserve her mind. Using the Metadross parts they found and Anusha’s scientific creativity, they were able to transfer the girl’s mind into a data chip. That chip was installed into David’s new mechanical body to help him gain control of his new strength.

After hearing everything, David felt overwhelmed. He asked for a few moments to be left alone. They all kindly obliged, leaving the room with Niall first, Kaviya second, and then Anusha. Before Anusha left she added, “Just don’t break anything, please!”