Phase Complete
Phase Five Terminated. Test Complete.
Kai adjusted her cadet suit outside the test chamber airlock, inhaling deeply prior to her turn. She wanted that lieutenancy more than anything, but of the mandatory battlefield promotion tests on the SS Courage, this one was the most notoriously difficult. All thanks to the Theta-Modians.
Modians. Really neither friend nor foe to humanity, they were complex creatures. The two species were surprisingly similar in many ways both mental and physical, somehow managing to evolve somewhat convergently despite residing in completely different galaxies.
Still, they were different enough to be...well, different. Often, they butted heads with each other over interstellar resources, and thus most of the battles were conducted in boardrooms rather than galaxial trenches. Modians even maintained a civil albeit strained facade diplomatically, though were not above using underhanded tactics to expand their empire. After all, needless bloodshed was mostly relegated to more primitive epochs of history on both ends.
As opposed to other, comparatively primitive alien species thitherto discovered by both civilizations, Modians did not kid around when it came to manipulation. Their covert wave emitter—affectionately dubbed the “mezzer”—proved to be a particular cause for human concern. This gadget was capable of temporarily but effectively “mesmerizing” a given subject, modulating the electrical frequencies and voltages of the human brain to ends that varied from mild disorientation to total domain over the individual. Modian skulls, by contrast, contained minerals that naturally resisted the mezzer’s transmogrifying signals, thus rendering them largely (though not completely) immune to their own weapons.
Thanks to the skills of the Courage engineers, their very own ship was equipped with such wave-bending technology, though not as efficient as the Modians’. Wave manipulators required quite a lot of power, and humans had not yet figured out how to scale down these requirements to practically machine a handheld mezzer of their own. A countermezzer, if you will.
In the meantime, human space personnel were trained to do the next best thing: resist. Mezzers were by no means infallible. By building mental fortitude and learning to recognize as well as counteract wave manipulation, humans could successfully rebuff most mezz attempts. After all, the Modians were not interested in destroying a useful trade partner—they simply wished to manipulate to their advantage.
To Kai, however, the thought of a bended brain was tantamount to maiming. And so, resist she did. Running the gauntlet was her manner of self-insurance.
Kai stepped through the airlock into the surprisingly comfortable-looking quarters, anomalous to the rest of the rather sterile ship. She signaled to her friend and test controller, Lieutenant Aiden Santino, that her test was to be taken both supine and restrained. He nodded from behind the glass.
There were eight phases total, each of which increased linearly in signal strength. There existed several versions of the test that varied in difficulty—not to be underestimated even in its easiest form. Taking it lying down on a soft, comfortable bed with no way to move was exponentially more difficult than taking it while ambulant, which weighted one’s resistance score appropriately. Kai, ever the glutton for punishment, always went straight for the most difficult test condition.
Test pending initiation. Awaiting subject confirmation. Confirm airlock. Visual scan.
The overhead lights went down and a singular rotating red light came on, bathing the facility in a dim crimson.
“Confirm test start,” Kai said, slipping on her restraints. She stared at the ceiling in determination as metal restraints rose from the bed and locked her limbs to the cot upon which she laid.
Voice sample verified. Test initiation confirmed. Phase One initiating in three...two...one…
A long beep. Silence. A low hum grew louder, giving her surroundings a slight vibration. The test had begun.
She felt relatively normal, perhaps a bit more relaxed than before. Resisting at this stage wasn’t particularly effortful if she was of typical alertness; she could even manage it passively. But she knew well that it was easy to get cocky. After a particularly tiring day, one might find themselves thoroughly incapacitated by just the second phase. Energy was to be conserved, train of thought managed diligently.
Phase One complete. Phase Two initiating in three...two...one…
Five minutes gone by. Phase Two was not typically much different from Phase One, but Kai found herself wandering into involuntary daydreams now, alpha and theta waves attempting to coax her mind into peaceful reveries. As long as she remained concentrated, it was usually no more difficult than waiting for a long class or shift to end. Another five minutes to endure.
Phase Two complete. Phase Three initiating in three...two...one…
Now, Phase Three marked the onset of the test’s actual difficulty. Kai found herself stifling yawns, needing now to utilize training techniques to avoid losing concentration and resist drowsiness. Focus, eyes open, breathe consciously.
She shifted in her restraints, glancing through the glass at her friend and proctor. He gave her a thumbs-up.
Phase Three complete. Phase Four initiating in three...two...one…
Phase Four was definitely a challenge, and the phase which Kai considered for herself the minimum benchmark of good performance. Undulating pulses pumped through her head, dragging her off her trains of thought and into warm seas of relaxation, her stream of consciousness intruded upon by lapses and loops. She tensed her body and regained focus, squeezing her eyes shut before opening them again. The longer the test stretched on, the better it felt to close her eyes and give in. Ever the more imperative that she resist the gentle tug into bliss.
Phase Four complete. Phase Five initiating in three...two...one…
Kai swallowed, widening her eyes and forcing her gaze back into focus. Long, low, spindling waves drowned out other frequencies. Supine, she’d often lasted until phase five before her mind started getting away from her. Which was fine, really—Four was the most commonly-used setting; after which everything else was just gravy.
At any rate, to her knowledge, the Modians seldom used anything over those levels on the Mezzer, especially not for five straight minutes. Their preferred use was for subtle, surreptitious manipulation, and high levels of mezzing was rather obvious.
She needed a Phase Seven finish to promote, but her personal best thusfar was just Six. She’d spaced out that time for just a few seconds, yielding her brainwaves to delta form and allowing her resolve to instantly melt. Not her finest moment.
That was what Kai found most frightening about mezzing. The sheer disorienting suggestibility it induced, making the brain hunger for sleep despite knowing this state is manipulated. It cannot help itself.
Must not sleep.
Phase Five complete. Phase Six initiating in three...two...one…
Things could get weird in Phase Six. Thoughts tended to flow into and out of dreams, and consciousness became nebulous. Kai vigilantly maintained a steel grip on her mind, balling her hands into fists. The pulses felt dizzyingly assaultive now, her eyelids struggling to stay open, body paralyzed.
She had gotten plenty of sleep the night before. She knew she needed none. But blinking felt so good. Amazing. And longer blinks felt even better.
Kai exhaled, opening her eyes again forcefully. Her hazy surroundings appeared to ripple in waves now, small flickers of something appearing in the corner of her vision. She heard a shout. Her brain was conjuring hypnagogic artifacts, suspending her in a bizarre, half-lucid state. Vigilant she remained, but her periphery began to tunnel, vignetting her vision and threatening to submerge her fully.
Though Phase Six was no longer than any other phase of the test—all five minute intervals—to her it was by far the most interminable.
Phase Six complete. Phase Seven initiating in three...two...one…
Phase Seven? Kai perked up, a second wind of resolve surging through her. She’d never gotten this far before, not even...oh my. Kai widened her eyes again, gritting her teeth. Those were some insanely strong waves. Her mind was being actively yanked away from her grasp now, thoughts malleable like bubbles in a heated lava lamp. Warm, lazy, floating bubbles. She closed her eyes and waited to open them again, enjoying the warm respite washing over her as she relaxed her body.
Imagine if she could survive Phase Eight, the final level. Phase Eight was rare, and nearly impossible to resist for long as it numbed and silenced all waves but deep, dreamless delta.
She startled and tensed up again in a panic, afraid that her brief lapse might’ve ended the test. Thankfully not. It was at the controller’s discretion whether or not a subject’s slips were test-ending, but one could always feel the approaching breaking point nonetheless. Usually, you found yourself gripping desperately to your dwindling, increasingly absurd thoughts, feeling waves of aching warmth radiating from behind your eyes. And you could no longer keep your vision from unfocusing, mind melting and drifting, becoming quiet and empty. Becoming so hard to think.
So hard to…
The room spun, its red-soaked details blending together. It felt so good to let her eyelids sink closed and sleep, drifting peacefully in the colorful, geometric afterimages awash in her vision. Pleasure blossomed through Kai’s shivering body, her mind now at its own mercy.
“Dude, she’s been out for like 10 seconds now. Stop the test,” Aidan snapped. He frowned at his underling, Ben, who had been shadowing him for a potential role as a test proctor. And who happened to be gawking at Kai, whose skin tight suit in her splayed position left little to the imagination.
“Yeah, I know. But look at her, man. Not every day you see Sarge laid out like that. Whew. Gimme a sec here.”
“Now,” Adrian said sternly, impatiently jamming the termination button. As right as Ben was, they had an actual test to proctor. An impressive one, at that. “You’re going to ruin her results.”
Phase Seven Terminated. Test Complete.
The vibrations stopped and the test chamber’s regular amber lighting gradually returned. Kai blinked, her eyelids still heavy from the inertia of her sleep. Thankfully that thick, languid fog dissipated quickly from her mind as her waves returned to baseline beta. Her restraints slackened and she sat up.
“Seven?” she said in surprise, sitting up immediately. “That’s a personal best, baby!”
“Congrats. Think you can withstand Eight?” Adrian radioed from behind the glass, admittedly astonished with his shipmate’s performance. Kai usually outdid the platoon, but this idea of her finishing the entire test was exciting indeed.
“I did so well that time, I think I could do Eight right now. It’s right in front of me. Bring it on,” she said, stretching and laying back. Single-phase testing for practice purposes was common, although officers seldom elected to run Phase Eight. She could certainly tackle it though. She could tackle anything.
The adrenaline of victory coursed through her veins, her bravado getting the best of her. Despite stellar performances, their medical team highly advised officers against testing back-to-back.
“Now Kai, I meant another time. You know Medical highly advises against testing back to back,” Adrian said matter-of-factly, giving her a paternal look. “You most certainly won’t do any better.”
“Try me.”
“Kai. Kai.”
A startled snore. Adrian gently shook Kai’s sleeping form as the restraints retracted. This test had been terminated only a minute in, and she was out like a light. Even if successfully rebuffed, the mind was typically left highly fatigued and suggestible after a full-battery test. She stood no chance.
“Huh?” she said, rousing. She brushed a stray lock of straight, chestnut hair out of her face. “Oh.”
“Yeah. Not gonna say I told you so, but.”
“I know,” Kai mumbled, sitting up and rubbing her eyes. She was definitely a little worse for wear than after the last test. “I know. Bad idea. Shoulda known better.”
“You’ve gotta be more careful,” Adrian replied, helping his crewmate up. “This test is for building short-term resistance, not putting your brain through the wringer. You could open yourself up to more trouble that way.”
He was right. A tired, frazzled brain was not a brain in shape to resist real hijacking attempts. Kai frowned, disappointed at herself for being so foolish. She of all people should know better.
“You’re right. Santino,” Kai began casually, sitting up again. “Do you think I’ve got what it takes to be a lieutenant?”
“Yeah, sure. I think you’d be a good fit,” he replied, sitting next to her. “Is that why you’re hell-bent on somehow becoming immune to mezzers?”
“No. Yes. In a manner of speaking,” she admitted, gaze cast on the floor.
“You’d do perfectly well, Kai,” Adrian said, patting her on the back jovially. “You’re tough, smart, sensitive. Got to Phase Seven today. Makings of a good leader here.”
“Thank you. I needed to hear that,” Kai sighed, stretching and standing. “Take care, I’ll see you in the morning.”
“Sweet dreams. Don’t let the Modians bite.”
“They should be so lucky.”
“So, Napova, is there a real reason why we cannot send you and your men as envoys tonight?”
“No, sir, not at all. You can expect us there most promptly.”
Kai looked at the floor, her captain’s gaze boring holes into her. Likely thanks to her stellar test results, she’d been called into the captain’s office the next morning and asked to help represent the Courage that evening as human dignitaries at a Modian gala. All accompanying officers had to be in peak condition due to the fact that these summits and conferences were prime hotbeds for mezzing. She very well could not admit to having overexerted herself testing.
“Very well,” her captain said, eyeing her. “I understand then that you and those chosen from your platoon will meet at the docking bay with the others at sixteen hundred local time.”
“Yes, sir.”
They saluted and Kai turned on her heel, walking briskly down the hallway to prepare herself. She spotted Adrian near his bunk and flagged him down.
“Were you aware that we’re going to a Modian gala tonight?” she asked in a panic, hands desperately in the air.
“Wow, you and your guys are coming, too?” he asked, quirking a brow. “Are you...able to?”
“Of course I am!”
“You sure?”
“What, you don’t think I can?” she asked, somewhat incredulous.
“It’s not that I don’t think you can,” he said carefully. “I just want you to exercise caution after…yesterday.”
“Well, I…” she sighed. “Look, I have no choice. See you there.”
“Good luck.”