Codename: Freedom - Book 5 - Chapter 5

I stood in a giant cube. The whole simulated cube within a cube thing at first had me thinking it was a joke, but Destiny floated before me like some life-sized fairy without wings and glared down at me. This wasn’t her dressed in her military ballistic suit, but neither was it the young playful version that had raised me. This was the adult version. Her blond hair was back in a ponytail and wore metallic pink plate armor as if she were some fantasy princess.

“So this is how you imagine yourself?” I asked.

“You’re in my world now, bub,” she replied with a sinister smirk. Holding up her hand, a green psionic bolt rated at rank D started to form.

I raised my brow. “Okay, that’s impressive.”

She gave me a big grin. Even if she was trying to act like an evil empress, she liked my compliments.

Making a big swooshing sound, she threw out her hand. Instead of a flying bolt, a metallic ball appeared, floating above her up-facing palm.

Her other hand flew out, mirroring the first. Above it appeared something like a ceramic orb. At least that was my guess. Most ammo was made of either metallic alloys or a special ceramic, energy-field piercing material.

I asked her to confirm, but instead of answering, she arched her back suddenly. Around her navel appeared a silver psionic bolt.

“Did that just jump out of your belly button?” I asked.

She narrowed her eyes. “I only have two hands, and I didn’t want your mind to go anywhere inappropriate. So yes, I have a formidable belly button.”

“Let me guess. You’re going to stick me in this cube and throw belly button balls at me?”

She shook her head. “I have complete control over this cube’s shape and dimensions so I can change the terrain as I will. Also, the orbs I throw at you can change in shape, size, and most importantly, material. We’ll start simple, but I plan on mixing it up and trying things the government hasn’t even considered as ammunition to make you immune to surprises.”

I shrugged. “Okay, but if you are hitting me with these things, they’ll hurt. What about your pain is not fun mantra.”

“Oh, it won’t hurt,” she said with a thin smile. “You’re underestimating the control I have over this sim.”

“Then, what happens if I get hit?”

“You’ll just have to try it and find out.”

Clapping my hands, I moved to the middle of the cube that was only about ten feet wide by ten feet tall. Suddenly, the walls and ceiling went ethereal. Beyond their boarders appeared a forest of white and red striped trees with pink leaves…

“What’s this, Destiny. I thought you meant this was supposed to be fun for me. Not for you.”

She chuckled. “Did you forget I have access to your full body scan? It’s impossible for you to deceive me, Lucius. Admittedly, it’s not the environment itself that motivates you, but because you associate it with me. You adore me and still desire to impress me. I’m flattered, but you’re right.”

As soon as the candy landscape appeared, it was gone. In its place was a red plain of rock. There were almost no landmarks on its alien planet-like surface. The most distinguishing feature wasn’t the planet. The sky was crystal clear, allowing more stars to shine through than he’d ever seen on earth. There were more than a dozen moons in different places in orbit, casting just enough light so that he could clearly make out the red of the planet he stood on.

“Does this remind you of anyone?” Destiny asked.

“Victoria has never mentioned a red planet without anything on it,” I objected.

“True, but she’s an alien and you’re on an alien planet. Is there a better place to train?”

“It’ll work.”

“Yes, it will. I’ve already sensed you’ve made the connection emotionally. Here. Catch.”

She moved as if she were going to pitch a ball, but when she released it, it flew at me from above.

Jumping back, I asked, “What was that?”

The orbs she’d been holding had disappeared. In her hand was now a sword. An oversized claymore, she pulled back and prepared to swing. “Here they come!”

As soon as she swung, I felt an orb flying in from directly behind me. Casting an energy field from my body to create a bubble which allowed me to sense the world had become instinctual by now. I felt it come.

Each time she swung her sword, an orb flew. The direction it came from was different each time. Out of necessity, I pushed myself off the ground with Othisi. Being in a ten foot by ten-foot cube might have limited my movements, but it also allowed for me to push in any direction. It gave me extreme control over which way I moved. Up, down, side to side, back and forth, I had control of them all.

Dodging wasn’t my only option either. I could block and use all of my other abilities, but I understood the cube’s dimensions instantly and what her intentions were. I’d asked Victoria if it were possible for me to have dodged all the bolts thrown at me in the last quarterly event. She had given me good advice, but hadn’t gone as far to say it was possible. That meant that that she believed it wasn’t.

I wasn’t upset with her. She could be extremely blunt when the situation called for it, but she didn’t like hurting people. I took her response for what it was. She cared. I also had my answer.

There wasn’t time for me to thank Destiny. Soon she was swinging twice in quick succession. Of course, the two orbs didn’t fly in from the same directions either.

“I’ve done a full analysis of your time in Freedom and Vanguard so far, including all of your training sessions,” Destiny announced while still throwing orbs at me. “I know the angles and patterns of attacks that you are the most susceptible to. Are you ready for a real challenge?”

“Bring it on, Drone head,” I shouted.

She stopped in the air, hovering there. Her sword disappeared. In its place was a pair of nunchucks. Giving me a smug look, she started swinging them both at once. With each swing an orb came. Two nunchucks made them come in pairs. There was no way this sadistic AI princess that was likely semi-sentient would send them from the same direction either.

I knew she was serious as soon as I sensed them sweep in across the ground. It made it slightly harder to detect them because they were located so close to a much larger object. That didn’t mean they reached me.

Pushing off the wall, I moved back so that both orbs would fly past me. Two more were already on their way. This time they flew in from the ground but were aimed for my head.

I ducked low only to feel something clank off my head.

Destiny had stopped swirling her nunchucks and was standing there and nothing tapping her foot.

“What happened?” I asked.

A screen appeared before my eyes where I watched a rubber ball fall from above and bounce off my head while I was dodging the other orbs.

“As soon as I sent the second series of orbs, your mind naturally segmented its attention to focus on any attacks coming in from below,” she replied. “Because of all your training, you don’t have as bad of tunnel vision as most. But your mind is still accustomed to your natural peripheral vision. On average, even including far-peripherals, a human typically has between 170 to 200 degrees of vision. So even if you can extend your psionics in every direction, your mind automatically reverts to a smaller ranger or scope, when it believes it’s called for. It allows your mind to better focus on what it believe to be the actual threat. This happens unconsciously.

“If you want to improve your defensive ability to avoid attacks, the first thing we must do is train your mind out of this bad habit. So are you ready for your first reward?”

I narrowed my eyes. “I just lost…”

“You’d prefer electroshock therapy?”

What she was saying wasn’t an exaggeration. That was basically what I was choosing to do every day.

Then she touched down on the ground and ran over to hug me.

I couldn’t just not hug her. This was Destiny who was certainly doing better but I hadn’t forgotten her first few weeks after upgrading to the artificial brain my father had developed. I liked hugs, but I couldn’t see how it could be a reward or a punishment. I feared this approach might even be a waste of time even though I think she’d correctly pinpointed a weakness I needed to work on.

Then I saw the sinister glance she gave me. The next instant, her fingers wormed their way into my ribs, and she tickled me. My eyes went wide as I used a big psionic push to get away from her, but the rules of physics had rebelled, and I couldn’t get away.

“Destiny,” I scolded as I finally broke free of grasp and was able to breathe. I couldn’t help but snicker. “What in the world? How is tickling me supposed to help my training?”

She looked pleased, but her countenance faltered. “So much has changed between us.”

“Are you okay?”

She rolled her eyes. “I think I’m jealous.” She tapped her lips as if considering. “I once had your full trust. Now it’s split between several people. Achilles, Kline, your friends, Victoria, Peter… And rightfully so. But answer me honestly, Lucius. Is there anyone in existence that understands you better than I do?”

I gave her a sympathetic frown. “I guess you’re right, but no. I don’t think they know me better than you do.”

“Then I need to ask you something.”

“Yeah?”

She looked into my eyes as if pleading. “There’s a reason for all of this. You might not remember, but there was a time when you and your father spent a lot of time together when you were younger. One of your favorite things to do was wrestle. But not just any wrestling. You weren’t satisfied until your father tickled you. I have the data. To some people tickling can produce a negative reaction. Especially if it’s unexpected. But not you. Even if you don’t want to admit it, one of the fondest memories you have from your childhood are those times playing with your dad. And don’t think tickling is the only reward I have in store for you.”

Instead of getting defensive, I lunged as if to tickle her back.

She began a phantom, and I passed right through her.

“That’s convenient,” I said.

She grinned but the pleading in her eyes hadn’t disappeared. “I don’t just not want you to have to suffer through the pain of your training, Lucius. There are even times that I will implement it here. It has its place. I won’t deny it. But I also believe I can do better. I know how you response to stimuli, all stimuli, better than any human trainer ever could. Better than any training system, regardless of how successful it has been.

“I will use everything. Not just your pain response system. I will manipulate every aspect of who you are while keeping an eye on your long-term mental health. As you progress, the system will only improve. I won’t eliminate stress. I have every intention of helping you strengthen your response to it. So I ask that you trust me once more.” She shook her head. “No, I need you to trust me more than you ever have. I’ve improved the bandit training sim you received from Achilles, yes?”

I swallowed. She was dead serious. “You have done a wonderful job with it, Destiny.”

“Then give me full access. Not just to the simulation. I already have that. What I mean is don’t ask me to change something. Give me permission to reject your requests. I know better, Lucius. Not forever, but for the few hours each day we’re in this training sim. We’ll still discuss goals, and the rest of your training will be yours to do with as you like. You’re actually extremely efficient in the way you train. I just think I can push you further than you can on your own.”

Pushing past my initial reaction, I pondered the consequences of what she was asking. A few hours of training each day would add up to a lot over time. I also hadn’t forgotten that I was supposed remain independent from her. I didn’t consider myself Ekseliksi just to help Victoria and the people of Earth. The principle of self sufficiency from technology was something I believed wholeheartedly. It was one my AI had helped ingrain in me even as she raised me as contradictory as that sounded.

I hesitated to agree. Not that I didn’t think she was capable, but because this could lead me into such dependency. At the same time, she was an expert AI, and potentially the greatest tool I could utilize for my personal growth.

Where was the line? A few sessions wouldn’t make me dependent. I knew I’d feel no emotional compulsion to continue. There may be an intellectual agreement that the training was worth it, though, if it proved to be so. This was Destiny, after all.

Was that it? A person didn’t become emotionally dependent on a hammer just because it was the best tool for the job. So was it the emotional aspect I had to guard myself from?

There was another struggle I had periodically been contemplating. I could accurately say I wasn’t emotionally dependent on Destiny. Not any longer. But at the same time, I also undoubtedly cared for her. Was it like the fondness some people had for their vehicles? Their pets? Defining what she was wasn’t simple. Victoria had said she failed when she petted my wolf Wink in Freedom when she was struggling. She’d treated the AI like a real pet. If that were failing, then how was my caring for this AI that raised me any different? It was a question I’d need to have with Peter fairly soon.

“Let’s do it, Drone head,” I ultimately responded. “Show me what you got.”