Drone

The worst sewage spat out outside the city, into the swamps. As the source of the filth disappeared with the rest of civilization, the drainpipe turned into an escape route. Etho took a breath… and felt nothing. The smell has not come back yet. He snarled, rubbing his chest. Someone coughed in the tunnel behind him. Several other throats screeched. Altogether a dozen or so throats and lungs irritated by the restainover. Partly, that's why the unit looked terrible Musty and frayed jackets. Pale faces with greenish tones around the eyes, nostrils and ears. Lips thin, whites of the eyes shining like a full moon. They grinned and clenched their jaws at the shuddering inside them. The exit of the pipe was blocked by a sweet flag from which the frogs should have croaked, but everything was silent. Even the wind stopped, as if waiting. Meanwhile, a dirty morning in the forest welcomed the refugees with a festival of fleeting, green light and shade, entangled in a low-hanging mist. Fireflies? How about a wisps? Etho wondered as he jumped from the low wall. This was not the kind of guidance we expected. He splashed ankle-deep into the overgrown, cloudy water. A sudden movement caught his eye. A man in camo denim emerged cautiously from behind a tree. A gas mask with tinted glass and a hood pulled over his head obscured his face. He raised his hands in thick gloves. “The fifteenth?” he said with voice that sounded distorted, as if unused for a long time. The sergeant stepped forward. “You were supposed to wait by the pipe.” “I preferred to disappear from the open. Not only the living are fleeing the city.” His answer shocked unit, everyone looked around. Etho contented himself with examining the stranger. The latter bowed, pointing back: “This way,” he said calmly. Etho closed the procession. The empty medical bag was knocking against his thigh, but he didn't bother to throw it away. He looked at his feet and counted the steps and then how many circles each of them made in the water. He felt empty and marched because he had received an order with a clear direction. It seemed to him that an eternity had passed since he dropped out of medical studies. Now healing anything was pointless in the face of the enormity of death. For two years, he took part first in the suppression of riots, and then in mass decontamination. Humanity was, as it were, finished. The rest’overs sealed world’s fate. His thoughts were interrupted by the guide's sudden, cautious voice: “A treasure for your mind.” Etho's distorted silhouette was reflected in the dark lens of the guide's mask. “You have to try harder to get them,” he replied. Instincts told Etho that not everything was fine with the man who led them. But were there any other normal people still alive? "Etho," he introduced himself, holding out his hand. The guide did not return the handshake. He seemed amused, but also curious about the gesture. "Felix," he replied reluctantly. Second later he added: ” For now, I can only propose a short conversation. It will change, eventually…” Etho broke a twig from the passing bush. It broke, revealing an empty interior with burst of green powder. "It's the same everywhere," he said. “I do not know where we are going, but I see no point in further wandering. Why are you saving us?” “Survival.” “And what's next?” The guide stopped, pulled a knife from his belt, and squatted. With a quick movement, he thrust it into the dark water, and then pulled out. At the blade an oblong shape twisted, black and shiny. “What is this?“ Etho scowled. The animal's head was crowned with a dozen or so insets with tiny whiskers. Thin green veins covered his round torso. "Something worth investigating, but later," Felix replied. Then he looked up. The visor of the mask turned bright green. Etho stumbled, felt a sudden flash in his head that split his skull in two. A beam of conical light swept the bronze canopy of the trees in which a bulky shadow slowly fell towards them with humming. "Drone," said Felix as the mask’s light went out. He pulled the still fighting mutant towards the machine. “Survival is enough. The world has become alien. Dangerous. But not for long. You have to change with change, as they say. Tame it. Etho looked at the drone, it’s sensors that simulate eyes, small shell and aquamarine veining on the cylindrical back. The wings replaced four arms with nozzles and propellers. It glowed with a pulsating green glow that caused Etho’s headache. The drone grabbed the mutant and flew away, leaving a trickle of gas behind it. Etho sniffed and immediately regretted it. “Res’ver?” he asked, using his colloquial abbreviation. Feliks wiped the knife on his pants. “You noticed.” “It's the only smell that reaches me. For the past year, Fifteen had only sanitized with restainover. “Interesting, isn't it?” Feliks remarked.” The wind of change is blowing. We are in the very eye of the storm. Whether you want it or not.” Etho was surprised by the flow of words. “Want…” Feliks c****d his head. “I want changes.” The guide nodded cautiously, then moved to the head of the group, leaving Etho with resolve and little hope sprouting in him. He promised himself that if things were going to get better, he would abandon the military and devote himself to a medical apron. He patted the medical bag for reassurance. Just to survive. As dusk was falling, they emerged from the swamp and saw the walls of the base. Etho noticed the green drone lights between the trees several times. He wanted to ask Felix about them, but there was no occasion. The medic concluded that the drones had created a security buffer around the unit. At the sergeant's signal the group hid behind a low hill at the edge of the forest. "Rest’overs," whispered Felix. Etho peered out from behind a tuft of grass. A group of several shadows was approaching the base. They looked like ordinary wanderers in the light of dusk, but were surrounded by a cloud of dark grinish dust, denser than the rapidly falling night. Etho turned and lay on his back. Others stared blankly under their feet. They didn't look tired, rather worn out. Nobody's eyes closed from lack of sleep. Apart from coughing and a few healed wounds, they seemed ready to continue walking. But not fighting. A figure emerged from the woods behind them, then another, and then another one. Dozens of shadows headed towards Etho's squad. When he understood who, or rather whatthe beings came out from behind the trees, he was overcome by fear. “Unresters!” He shouted and started to run. “Run!” The alarmed soldiers shifted awkwardly. The body of one of the attackers exploded, collapsed into it’s empty center, exploding with dark green smoke. Etho looked no more behind him, ran at breakneck speed down the hill. He did not stop, only shouted: “Alive! Alive!” We're already dead, Etho thought fleetingly ... and relieved. When the squad gathered in a heap on the threshing floor in front of the gate, the silence on the wall and barricades took on a sinister note. "Open it up," the sergeant shouted. Etho collapsed to the ground. He habitually began to count survivors. Nine. A few must have been stuck in the dark on a silent hill. They are gone, he thought, staring into the darkness. “Where's Felix?” he asked his companions. A shrug of the shoulders answered him. They barely made contact, but again - they didn't seem tired. Rather dull. Nobody coughed anymore. “Light. What's wrong with the light?” one of the soldiers whispered. Etho blinked. The sun had already set, but a green glow stained the thin pale line of the horizon. He held out his hand as if trying to grab it, and the emerald green tears of the day shone between his fingers. "Help us," the sergeant continued, pounding his fists on the gate. “We've got wounded. After all, you can see that we are living people.” Wounded? Etho wiped his forehead, but it was dry to the touch. He ran a finger over his mouth, sensing cracked lumps on them. He noticed a few drops of blood on the pads, rubbed the dark brown dust with his fingers. Meanwhile, the base's defenders remained silent. Etho became concerned. "Sergeant," Felix said from the walls, this time his voice was not muffled by the mask. “You will bring your people in one by one. Go down the foil tunnel.” "Yes, thank you," the sergeant shouted, relieved. Etho was looking for similar feelings in himself. They survived and everything will be fine. But all he found was a dulling void. The gate swung open and it swallowed Fifteenth. When they entered the base, Etho sadly realized that he had lost his medical bag during the escape.       Maybe they'll give me a new one, he thought. Hopefully with apron. Outside the walls, people in camo-overalls led them away. Like Felix, they wore black masks, and hoods covered their heads. Each of them was accompanied by a drone. From the foil tunnel, they ended up in a spacious room with hexagonal mirrors instead of walls and ceiling. A bit like a hive, Etho thought sluggishly. After the guards with the drones were gone, Etho walked over to one of the larger mirrors that flashed green light. He tried to collect his thoughts, but felt empty and then acted pure out of intuition by putting his hand against the glass. Data appeared: Etho Pavil, twenty-four. Medical studies: incomplete. Two-year military service as a medical assistant. Final Assignment: Satrape Decontamination Unit. Died… That’s impossible, he shivered. “What do you have there?” The sergeant asked. "I've been dead for two days," muttered Etho. The sergeant pushed past him. “Show it to me,” he said and put his own hand on mirror, then frowned. Status: Dead. Same date. ”Probably a mistake. We'll straighten it out later.” But how did we know what to do with this mirror, Etho worried. Meanwhile, the mirrors on the ceiling swung open and nine drones flew from the holes. The swollen abdomens made them look like oversized insects. "Attention please," a female voice said from the loudspeakers. “Find an available bunk and lie down on it.” "Do what she says," the sergeant ordered, and the soldiers obeyed him. When Etho lay down, the drone hovered over him. The green abdomen of the machine brightened, pumping green gas. Etho recognized the familiar smell of the restainover. He tried to move, but he couldn’t. He coughed as his lungs burned, mind suddenly felt light. "You are witnessing the miracle of science," the woman spoke again. The miracle of the life in another form. But first, rest.” Etho broke down as the invisible fire burned through the muscles and organs, penetrating the bones. His whole consciousness screamed as it sway away and vanished with the green gas cloud of res’over. The drone sucked in his will and stored it up in one lump. "Welcome to the new world," Felix said over the loudspeaker. “Trust the guide’s light.” A green light flashed from the all of the room’s mirrors. Etho's dead eyes shined green, like pair of wisps. The drone has taken off, hid in the ceiling. “Six died. Three survived,” Andrea read the data.” Congratulations.” She was sitting in front of three monitors. The glow emanating from them emphasized shadows of a thin face, sunken eyes, sparse hair. Ceramic skin stretched like in a corpse. Or a doll wearing a doctor's apron. There was a single fluorescent lamp in the room. "It's not a success," said Felix. "The process has no scale," the woman continued, turning in the swivel chair. “It's experimental in every inch of my methodology. Even one rester is a success.” "Don't call them that," Felix pleaded reprimanded. He was still wearing the camo suit, but the mask was hanging from his neck. Andrea avoided his eyes. Felix leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees. "That young medic..." he began. He didn't know. Neither of them knew. They were unaware. A few more days and we'd lose some amazing data. They would become the same as those mindless husks behind the walls. Andrea grabbed a folder from the desk. When she opened it, photos fell to the floor. Dozens of them pictured ravaged, empty corpses. She started collecting them. "Restainover,” said Felix. ”Fifth generation disinfectant that drains life from body, but not killing it. Chemistry so advanced, so lethal... So perfect imperfection.” The woman finished putting her folder together. One picture in particular caught her attention: it showed a crowd shrouded in geen smoke. The cracked face showed empty insides. A drone with a snake mutant in a jar landed on the desk in front of Andrea. "The changes," Felix tapped his temple. “Drones are inconvenient. They need operators,” he continued, nodding at Andrea's monitor, where in a looped video one of the drones with a green abdomen flew over the unconscious Etho. "Yes, Andrea, I know you tried to c***k their code." The woman leaned back against the chair, which creaked under her weight. "If I had more time..." she began. Felik waved his hand. "You would have failed," he pointed to her folder. “You won't know that…' Andrea stammered. “The drone is just a mechanism. Empty creation. No code, algorithm or artificial intelligence at our stage of technological development would allow us to create an appropriate operator. The machine is too foreign even to a digitized mind, accustomed to nerves, muscles and bones. For cells and DNA metallic body is just too alien. Andrea nodded. “The restainover was destroying cells, but not life hidden inside. It ousted life from DNA,” Feliks continued. “Or so we thought.” He leaned down and brought his face closer to Andrea, forcing her to finally meet his eyes. They emanated a green glow. "Humanity has long been a corpse which did not know it was dead," he added. “And so it would be, if not for you, Andrea. If it weren't for you and your discovery.” The woman nodded. The green spectrum is united by the consciousness construct in the restainover cloud particles. A single flash stimulates proteins in DNA. Light crosses the cell barrier at the molecular level. Initializes a save and transfers mind-data to the cloud. It comes to life where it has always been naked and defenseless, ripe for picking Felix stretched his lips in a forced, fake smile. He nodded at the drone sitting at the monitor, where Etho's face was closely related. “Empty the body, let it rest from the mind, but still connect it to the operator’s mind, saved in dron. Brilliant.” Andrea shifted uneasily, got to her feet, and as she paced the office, she began to think aloud: “The soldiers on the Fifteenth breathed in the restainover that imprinted their consciousness. They died, but did not know it. They continued to control their bodies. Cloud with saved mind stayed inside of them. Their bodies…” "Perfect drones," added Felix. Sergeant of the Fifteen entered the room, wearing a camo suit and a black mask in his hand. Green, dead eyes. His drone hovered behind him. “How about that?” Felix pierced the sergeant's hand with a knif. As he pulled it away, Andrea saw the drone fly over the soldier's front and release a cloud of green smoke. The restainover cloud dissolved into the wound, sealing it shut. “Permanent regeneration. Virtually immortality.” “But what does it want? Does he have any desires?” Andrea asked, staring at the sergeant's green-glistening eyes. Felix c****d his head. “Drones-robots and drones-bodies share the same awareness of one operator hidden in machine the first one. For the sake of conversation, let's call both of them simply a drone, one entity. They're all controlled by this.” Feliks revealed his wrist. Green veins ran under the skin. “Overnatural network,” he added. Andrea stared at him, fascinated. “Can I... can I have it too?” Felix pulled up his sleeve. "We'll see," he replied. Andrea nodded, realizing he hadn't said no, but at the same time she felt a twinge in the dimple. For now, she is needed in hers present form. The sergeant left without a word. Felix paused in the doorway. "They have to be prepared," Felix said, starting for the door. “Who?” Andrea asked. "The world," he replied shortly. Andrea shuddered. Felix left, leaving a lonely drone behind, and Andrea watched it with a fascination and pious awe she would never admit. It circled the fluorescent lamp. "What..." she began, but hesitated. It's stupid. The drone is aware, that's right. But nothing else. “What could a drone want? We all now belong to someone else, in mind and body” she said. Andrea tossed her apron on the armchair. She left, and then the drone took off. It dashed over the desk several times, brushing the hot air over it, then sat down on the back of the chair. The fluorescent light in the ceiling went out. A green glow smoldered in the darkness as it fell on the doctor's coat with lingering dream.