Chapter 1: No. 13.
"Up next is test subject No. 13. He is a highly evaluated super soldier and these results show. In terms of strength, he is above average compared to other test subjects. As of this date, at the age of 15, No. 13 can bench 550 kilograms. But, strength is not where he excels at. No. 13 top speed clocks in at 90 kilometers per hour and No. 13 can sustain a speed near that for about 15 minutes. No. 13 shows a remarkable recovery rate which adds to No. 13's endurance. In terms of reflexes, No. 13's reflexes is rated at a 6. This number is taken from the avrage human adult male around the age of 25. Compared to these males, No. 13's reflexes and response speed is 6 tiems faster. The average super soldier reflex and response is graded at a 4.5." The female researcher speaks into a device in her hands. She takes a deep breath and sips some water before continuing. "I need to see how the nanites have altered his neuro pathways so we can try and replicate these same results. I also have mapped his genetic sequence so others can figure if any genetic factor plays a role. If we can combine No. 13 with the better developed muscular and skeletal tissue of No. 5, we may be able to create the best fighting force currently known to man. These next generation of super soldiers could propel the evolution of humans."
While she spoke, No. 13 stood at attention in the room, his hazel eyes still and unmoving like he is stuck in time. The only signals that show he is an actual person and not a statue is the slight rise of his chest as he takes air into his lungs. No. 13 possesses a graceful body like a gymnist and when he moves, it is like a cat on the hunt. At only age 15, No. 13 stands only at 1.75 meters tall. He is currently going through puberty and he is given some drugs to inhibit any fluctuation in his emotions.This method is a way of control and if someone is not motivated by any means, they are less likely to act. A mother whom has her oxytocin receptor cells inhibited will not react to the sound of her own infant in distress. They are indifferent about it until the inhibitor is out of their system.
"No. 13, you may return to the barracks. Please notify No. 14 to make his way here for his evaluation." Says the female researcher.
"Yes ma'am."
No. 13 gives a crisp salute before shifting his feet with precision and marching out of the room. He makes his way down a large white corridor with doors appearing about every 10 meters. The bright white light overhead keeps the place nicely lit and no one could tell whether it was day or night from the outside world. The smell of a sterilized and chemically clean area slightly fills No. 13 nostrils. He is not bothered since this smell has accompanied him all of his life.
No. 13 finally reaches a large door after 5 minutes of walking and he proceeds to enter after some verification on his own end. He had to punch in some numbers and take a retinal scan before the mechanical doors were pulled apart with a hissing sound. The two halves slid apart like magnets of a similar polar nature.
The barracks inside were simple with rows of bunk beds lining up each side of a wall. Metal footlockers that are about a meter wide, and a meter tall with a depth of a meter. The footlockers contains two compartments for some miminal personal effects of each test subject. The researchers found that by allowing a test subject to maintain some of their own personal identity, the test subjects are less likely to go AWOL.
No. 13 notifies the next test subject before he hits the shower to work away the midday's strenuous workout. The hot water splashes against his skin and some of the stress left his muscles, leaving him feeling more relax. The high pressured water spray pulses rhythmically and helps massage his body and leaving him in a state of lull that he rarely gets the opportunity to enjoy. These brief moments allows him to feel human for a bit and he is sure the others feels the same way. But, with the researchers around, their voices are like a compulsion to enslave his mind. At that moment, he feels detached from his body and he moves around like a machine for them to order about. He often wonders what life would be like in the outside world. He wonders about his genetic donors, if they know he exist or if they are part of this organization or simply don't care.
Breathing in and out, his body relaxes further but his mind still remains in turmoil. It is not like he has no knowledge of the outside world, they have been train to observe and mimic other people's behavior. They are the ghost in the night, the people without real faces, around, and secretly will turn into your personal nightmare should the higher-ups make the call. Even at 15, No. 13 is not some innocent child. His first kill was at age 14 last year. His target was an arms dealer that sold weapons to terrorists along with the group that is fighting against those terrorist. Since he is part of a neutral faction, the country going against the terrorist organization paid his country to solve the problem of their own citizen in secret. No. 13 was just a mugger, looking for some cash when he stumbled upon the man and stabbed him in the neck with a cheap knife he bought in the same neighborhood. He even killed the innocent child that was with his target because he was simply there when he was not suppose to be.
In moments like this, he becomes the tormented soul that is haunted. He cannot let go of the guilt at the exhilaration that course through his being when he snuffed out a life that had no powers against him. He knows that those bastards probably feel the same way about a successful killing minus the guilt that he feels over the child. He was simply given a lower grade because of it and had extra hard training as recourse for what those assholes felt was a mistake on his part, nothing more. Yet, No. 13 is haunted by the look and horror on the child's face whose only real crime was being born to a man that decided on his own to dabble with terrorists. The child, still innocent and has not yet really set his own course, was deemed guilty by No. 13 and sentenced to die. Whether the child became a monster like his father or not, that is undecided and No. 13 took away a possibility before the child could choose. He likely would have carried on his father's thoughts, given all the research done, but that future will now cease to exist. Who knows, killing the man may of set the boy's mind free and someone else could nurture him in a better environment. But those basttards, they feel like their own hands are clean of this blood that now stains his own hands. It makes No. 13 seeth inside but he is so powerless to do anything about it.
Currently, the researchers cannot create remorseless killers. In order to keep him and the others in line, they have been programmed to feel such emotional turmoil and pain at the thought of betraying their handlers and the researchers that gave them these powers. It is obscene. Any of these thoughts would trigger a neurochemical that creates a hyper bond, something akin to artificial love, to hold back his hands from acting against them. It overwrites his own personal wants and makes him unable to act.
In the past, humans tried creating AI robots to do their killing for them. There were problems and with humans writing these programs, an AI can overwrite their own programming or some faulty issue with the original base program caused a robot insurrection that killed thousands of people. After that debacle, the research went into making super soldiers like No. 13 himself. He is a third generation of this program and he will be put into full service when his training is done in a couple of years.
Most of his training is complete. Most days, it is nothing more than constant repetition of going through unarmed combat training, knife work, guns, explosives, gymnastics, running, swimming, and fencing. It is not all physical training though. No. 13 also goes to class studying subjects like human psychology, sociology, history, tactics, warfare, languages, chemistry, and other sciences. Of late, there has been a major shift to training the mind more than the body. The only real way to increase his physical skills is to use them while sparring and in the field. No. 13 has already seen an increase in field missions that have been growing more difficult.
Not all the test subjects are male. The group also genetically engineered attractive female soldiers that sometimes plays a different role. It is no hidden secret that some of the skills taught to them is of a sexual nature. On some occasions, the two groups have trained together, both in the bedroom and on how to fight the opposite sex. Even male super soldiers like himself may have need of these intimate skills in the future.
No. 13 left the shower and heads over to a mirror and looks at his own reflection. A youth standing about 175 centimeters tall at his latest check in. He is a pretty boy according to the researchers and not ruggedly handsome like some of his other super soldiers. There is still a lot of the boyish charm to him and his body is sculpted like a gymnist. It is hypothesized by the researchers that once he is in his mid-twenties or thirties, he will probably be able to bench 700 to 800 kilograms. He is not a bruiser like other super soldiers whose strength estimates that they will be able to bench around 1,000 to 1,200 kilograms. What he excels in is endurance, speed, with his reaction speed the highest of the current super soldiers. He was able to take down others that are stronger than him due to this advantage. In most fights, strength and speed determines who wins. If of similar abilities, skills then plays more of an important role. No. 13 has been told that other countries also hav their own versions of super soldiers.
He brushes back his short black hair. Unlike military regulations of a crew cut, NO. 13 often will need to work in the field and having a crew cut is too obvious of a clue to give away. They just need to keep their hair short and the female soldiers at least need to keep it shoulder length. All super soldiers have their facial hair removed permanantly so No. 13 does not have to worry about ever shaving. Well, most men and women have hair permanently removed to make life easier for themselves.
Donning on a forest green t-shirt and black cargo pants, No. 13 reenters into the living space of the super soldiers. He moves over to his bunk and picks up a book he left on his bed without worrying about it being stolen. It is nothing more than a mere text book on the ecology of Southern America and the only goods another soldier would steal is something like a fantasy novel or a sci-fi novel. Theft is something encouraged and frowned upon when caught. Soldiers like to play games and trade stolen goods from other soldiers. There is a bartering system and certain items are given a certain amount of points. No. 13 owns sevral sci-fi novels that are worth about 20 points each. A dessert like an ice cream sundae is worth about 3 points. So, if someone traded in a week's worth of their dessert, another soldier may give up their book.
It is not all bad at the facilities. They are rewarded often enough and given enough liberties to stop them from going insane but they don't enjoy the freedoms most are accustomed to. No. 13 has no doubt that if a super soldier is damaged beyond repair, they will be scrapped. It would take a lot to even make a super soldier useless. No. 13 can regrow any lost limbs, heal 20 times faster with the help of the nanites coursing in his body, and can even heal a spinal cord injury if given sufficient time. Things like severe brain damage however is one way to incapacitate a super soldier without killing one outright. Brain tissue is still very susceptible to damage unlike their muscular and skeletal tissue. Still, neuro tissue have been made a bit better thanks to the nanites and some altercation to the makeup of neuro tissues.
After an hour, the bell rung, signalling that the time is 1130 hours. The 100 soldiers gather and make their way towards the mess hall for their meal. No. 13 is looking forwards to the spaghetti and meatballs as today's special. The food serve here is great and he had on occasion, tasted some food from the outside world and found it lacking while a few were on par. This food may not match the five-star restaurant he had on a couple of occasion for a mission but it compares to some of the best family owned diners and restaurants out there. Not only do the soldiers eat the food here, but the researchers, commanders, and the higher ups. Though, most are served food in a special office for those higher in the pecking order. Nonetheless, No. 13 gets to at least enjoy something that makes life worth while even if he is essentially a slave to these two-faced creatures.
Wesley seats himself near those he knows and everyone eats quietly to themselves. They have learned how to mimic social interactions but most are closed off and no one wants to tell any stories since most were raised the exact same way and came from the same artificial womb. The only things they hadn't shared are their mission but that compulsion has kept their mouths mum on those subjects. Nor, is their any real sense of camaraderie since all the mission have been solo missions. They are spooks and they haunt alone.
No. 13 took a bite of the garlic bread. The warm and chewy bread brought a delight to his taste buds. The slightly roasted garlic has a pungent and slightly sweet taste. Add in the olive oil and the rich butter and some grinded salt and black pepper, it taste simply divine with its simplistic but wonderful combination of flavors. The rich garlic bread goes well with the more tangy spaghetti and meatballs. Parsley and some root vegetables helps break up the noodles and meatballs to give it more taste and textures. The carrots, onions, tomatoes, and celery were pretty much stewed into the sauce itself. Add in a splash of red wine vinegar and some sugar, helps brings out the flavor of the oregano and marjoram inside of the sauce. No. 13 cannot forget about the additional garlic flavor with the ribbons of basil that intertwines itself with the spaghetti noodles. It may not be traditional but No. 13 sure does enjoy the damn thing.
After his meal, he went on to train in unarmed combat and his knife work with the combat droid. After an hour of work, he goes through an additional hour of film to see where he has made mistakes or the simulator would give him different ways of possibly reacting and possible outcomes in lieu of those changes. With that done, he spars again before hitting the shooting range for about 20 minutes and then heads off to shower again.
In the afternoon, it is classes on history and math before the day ends with dinner once again at the mess hall. No. 13 just devours the food and then heads back to the barracks area to catch up on his own personal time. And so it goes, this cycle of traning, eating, and learning. The constant same routine makes most of the super soldiers glad to place their lives on the line to break the monotony of it all. it is better to be a little insane than fully insane as the saying goes around here when they do interact with one another.
No. 13 stood on a rooftop looking down at his next prey. This individual, is hacking into top secret projects and selling it to the highest bidder in the black market. He then wires the money to several accounts across the world and not spending a dime of it yet. He is a smart man but made some errors. Inside of the employee ID, there is a chip that keeps constant track of each employeee. The man just thought it was safe to hack in with another person's account. He even had several account information of other high level employeees. The information stolen are flawed and nothing more than dummies and would cause harm to the person that built such an laser array. But, that is something No. 13 is not worried about, his goal is to make this person disappear like it were nothing more than a mere accident.
No. 13 sighs inwardly. This mission is too simple. He plans on walking in and snappping the man's neck before shoving him down the 4 flight of stairs. If it were only possible to have a guarantee that he would die on the way down but humans can be more resilient than they should be and it is really bothersome to have the man scream while he fell or scream for his life and yelling about a killer. He needs him silence as quickly as possible.
When No. 13 saw the man enter into the apartment building, he slips inside of the door. No. 13 is dressed in clothes that would make him nearly invisible to cameras and the like. This stealth suit has been recently removed from the trial project list and placed into circulation amongst the super soldiers. He was part of the trial run with sevral other super soldiers and he feels like this suit is like a cheat item that makes their work a lot easier. The price of the suit is not small by any means, it may even be comparable to their own worth, but it also means selling their services would rake in more money for the organization. They are not government owned but it allows the government and the corporationss' hands to be clean of these matters.
In the darkness with only a small light above the top of the stairs , No. 13 awaits in the dark shadows.Like a bat, he hangs from the ceiling with several strong lines of wire keeping him up and away from the illuminating light. He now waits, and is ready to end the life of this prey so he can have some free time to see the city and experience how the norms, a term he uses for those people outside of his world.
The bulky target makes his appearance soon, his labored breathing loud in the near and deathly silence of the apartment building. With each thudding footstep of his obese frame, he draws nearer to his inevitible end.
As soon as the target passes from beneath No. 13, he slackens the wire and moves down several more meters. He then lightly places his foot against the wall and pushes so he can swing forwards. With a near perfect arc, the momentum carries him where he was able to get behind the target. No. 13 captures the man's head with quick and sudden precision. Before the man can fully register what happens, No. 13 snaps his neck and his weight drags the man backwards and he falls down the stairs like a rolling meatball No. 13 thought darkly. That made him want to eat more spaghetti and meatballs but he shuts down those thoughts so he can focus on escaping without notice.
He lowers himself and frees the mechanical grappling from the suppport that he found. He then silently moves down to the second floor and enters a vacant room that he broke into earlier during his scouting phase. He climbs out the window and closes it before he drops the 4 meters onto the ground below without much discomfort. His enhanced tissues finding it easy to deal with the stress from the drop.
He walks away with nonchalance, the lights behind him turning on from several units but he does not look back. There is no need, his mission is done and he cares little to stay and watch the chaos that will ensue once someone notifies the authorities. Like a ghost, he will be gone and like he was never there.
Back inside of a hotel he paid for, No. 13 changes his clothes after a hot shower. The latest suit may be a modern marvel but it lacks a lot of ways of ventilating his body. There is really nothing he can really do about it. As for the suit, he packaged it up and sealed it for pickup. The organization wouldn't allow No. 13 to hold onto such an expensive gear while he gets 36 hours of freedom. This policy only starts after a super soldier has reached their fifteenth year of life. The organization will slowly introduce the super soldiers back into the populace so they can gain more awareness of the cultures and habbits of those they impersonate.
No. 13 is about to enjoy his second time mingling among the normies. He has some feelings of excitement and nervousness but it fails to show on his exterior. He is just going to slowly integrate himself into the world, as in a few more years, he will be out in the field and another generation of super soldiers will take his place in the facilities. Each spook will live a normal life until they are activated. Each spook will be given a region where they will haunt the land. And they will hand back intelligence to the main headquarters. Not only is their mission one of surveillence, but it is one of vigilance. They are not the only spooks out there. It is unlikely another spook from their own would even come in contact unless they are notified early on.
No. 13 dresses in civilian clothes with a handgun secretly strapped to his lower back. Ten magazines of 15 rounds makes its way around his body and, under his right pant leg, a military combat knife sits snuggly. On his keychain is a mini flash light and a laser torch that is powerful enough to cut through steel like thick chains or start a fire out in the wilds. The only other things on him is a fake ID and some cards with about 10,000 credits, which is about a fifth of the average income of a typical 4 member family.
Done dressing, No. 13 leaves the hotel and calls a automated taxi to his location. In this future, driverless cars are the norm. Most jobs are taken by AI and robots. Most humans have been made obsolete and through some difficulties, there now is a system of UBI, universal basic income that keeps the world from collapsing into anarchy. Capitalist need most people to have money for them to have money mean anything at all. If only 1% of people actually had credits, no one would even dain to use those credits to barter any goods and those credits would be only worth something to a very select few. In truth, only 20% of people actually hold any forms of employment and that is pretty high in today's society. Even if the employment numbers drift down to 15%, it would matter little.
However, there are more stringent laws that govern human behavior. Ina world where the average life span reaches 160 years, there are hard limits to how much children a couple is allowed. Each man and woman is only allowed two children before they are made sterile. It is a necessary balancing act between sustainability and a way to stem war from breaking out. If a nation cannot control its population and is unable to feed itself, it will need more land and resources to achieve such goals. No nation wants that since a war at this stage in human development means the total annihilation of the earth itself. Far more dangerous weapons than nuclear bombs have been created in the last 200 years. So, some freedom is lost for humans to exist. That doesn't mean that a lot of humans remain logical about it though. Humans are flawed beings with flawed logic. If one actually thinks back to all of human history and its beliefs, it is easy to make this assertion. Man's ancestors once thought that lightning and thunder was the way of the gods to scare the mortals and they must atone for their wrong doings. There are people that beleive the world is flat even after they flew around the world in a plane and can witness the rotating heavenly bodies that always seem to remain spheroid in shape.
it is the same with crime. Studies have been done that the more prosperous and equal the population, the lower the crime rate becomes. However, when people reach obscene amount of wealth and upwards, they commit more crimes to gain more. Wealth and power is easily an addiction as most research shows. So, while these wealthy people commit crime at a higher rate than people of average means, their crimes tend to be of a financial nature. Half of No. 13 targets have been wealthy people whose income nets them more than 20 million credits annually. No. 13 can understand why through his study of human psychology, but it does not mean he can internalize these people's drives. The best way he can put it is an asexual person can read and understand how someone of a much higher sexual drive is driven to seek sex but, for them, they will never know that need as it is not hard programmed into their being. Like, AI can never fully comprehend human emotions unless they have the same biological functions. So, why does a person who can live a free and vicarious life risk it all for a few more millions of credits, it is simply to climb the ladder of the social ranks even if those extra few million will never impact their lifestyle and well-being. Greed is good but like all things, it can become a sickness. Some even tried destroying the earth's future because the money kept rolling in and increasing their own power and influence. They dumped waste in the water and air, poisoned the people and its land, and in the end, killed millions indirectly through cancer, still birhts, miscarriages, and other wonderful diseases and health problems. Over time, it became an accumulation of many others doing the same where human life on earth became threatened and the great purge began worldwide, removing these people from their wealth and power through the flames of revolution and rebirth.
No. 13 smirks inwardly at these thoughts. And yet, the cycle continues with new aristocrats in power with the guise of governers and the so-called elections that put these hybrid of CEOs and politicians into power. The same games of manipulation and propaganda makes its way into the 23rd century. Each nation now dehumanizes the others when their policies rarely differ. There is always someone new to hate if not for race and religion. Just make the other side a serious enough threat and people would gladly give away their freedom while giving those on top more power and privilege just like back in the 21st century. Back then, rich powerful men and women privatized more public land and kept vast amounts of resources to themselves.
No. 13 finds those in charge of the organization no different and they know they aare asimilar to these types since they taught these things to the super soldiers themselves. The super soldiers will never rebel against them so they fear little of any consequences from super soldiers like No. 13. Whenever No. 13 wishes to cause harm to the organization, he will enter into a catatonic state and will remain so until the feelings passes and the nanites alter some of his neuro pathways and administer some neuro chemicals to change their thoughts. It is very insidius and illegal to do this to anyone of the sivilian population. But, for slaves like No. 13, and those same people that make these laws, it is perfectly justifiable in their own world view. In order for some of these sane people to do evil, they must convince themselves it is good to begin with.
The night crisp air gently rolls along and caresses No. 13's exposed skin. The constant noise of chatter and people walking gives life and breathes air into the world itself. Tall erect buildings spanning hundreds of meters skywards turns the city streets into a steel and concrete jungle. The masses navigates through its technological trunks and branches and work their way to their destination. No. 13 has left the taxi and is now in the city proper, just seeing what the night life has to offer for these people. He has read articles and research into this matter, but experiencing it for one's self is a different story.
"hello handsome, are you looking for some fun?" A sultry female voice calls to him and he turns to see what he beleives is a prostitute before him. No. 13 shakes his head no as he can easily get his sexual needs met by the female super soldiers. But, he wants to find someone that he does not have to pay for so he can experience what sex is like from two people that want to simply enjoy sex through mutual attraction. "No thanks, I am looking for my friends, perhaps another time."
With that said, he turns and walks away. He has nothing against prostitutes and beleives it should be made more legal for both men and women. When people have easy access to sexual outlets, it can help stimulate a better sense of well-being and reduce their levels of stress. In the facilities, sex is like a bartering system where you scratch my back, I scratch your's, has No. 13 looking for something a bit different. now that he thinks about it, he finds it rather odd that he has never formed a bonded pair with no female super soldier, given that all are attractive. He feels that attraction himself but has never proceeded to make more progress in the human relationship side to those feelings. He can only chalk it up to the reserchers doing something to them.
No. 13 finds a restaurant and then decides to give it a go. This one serves not only Italian cuisines, but some Asian and South American as well. He may primarily like Italian and French cuisines, but he also enjoys some aspects of other culture's food. Food is one of those rare pleasures that the organization does not regulate and so many super soldiers end up as foodies, those that enjoy and love savoring food that is delicious to them in which they also have a vast amount of knowledge in the subject. No. 13 can cook himself and he has worked in the kitchen back in the facilities like so many super soldiers. He may not be one of the world's greatest chefs, but his cooking can match a lot of high end restaurants.
After his meal, he jumps on a bus with a few others to head off to differing locations. His only plan is to wait for a stop to see if any place looks interesting before he gets off. Right now, he has little clue on what he wants to do since he has done so little to begin with. He has some inkling of what these people do during the night life but he would rather wait until something tickles his fancy before he gives it a shot. However, this plan will never materialize because something drastic is about to occur.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone