The World, in a fleeting instant, experienced prematurely something for which it was still unprepared. Elhmbrett… to some, a genius! To others, a deranged criminal psychopath. Yet there was no doubt he was a man who, unconsciously and inconsistently, shaped the course humanity would follow.
News spread rapidly: hologram headlines and data flooding the networks. Elhmbrett, the scientist of the Army of Consciousness, had been eliminated in an operation carried out by the Governmental Execution Agency. Among his belongings and research notes, they found a revolutionary biomodifier: "Compound C."
It possessed properties until then unknown in scope. According to the first reports, it granted a monumental extrasensory ability—classified as a "sixth sense"—allowing the consumer to perceive their entire field of vision in a one-thousand–meter radius and three hundred and sixty degrees.
As if that were not enough, it erased muscular limitations—specifically, the regulation of myostatin—and reinforced tendons and cardiovascular systems to an unprecedented degree. In short: it gave mere flesh-and-blood humans the possibility of facing modified humans, both biologically and technologically.
This advancement—practically magical—was attributed to one possible cause: Compound C contained, in some proportion, synthetic enzymatic catalysts that broke biological regulation barriers. Additionally, it incorporated biomechanical reinforcement agents capable of deploying biointelligent polymers that embedded into critical tissues.
The question did not take long to arise: if enhancements in unmodified, natural organisms were so drastic… what would happen if these qualities were amplified in artificially prepared entities?
Cyborgs, automatons, nanobots, androids… all of them operate using mechanisms similar to synthetic muscles. How much could they benefit from such advances?
Time passed swiftly. Soon, the results of these advances manifested.
The biomodifier was officially classified as "LRC-12036" (Liquid Retro Quantum 12036), although it continued to be popularly known as "Compound C."
Later studies revealed that it was not merely extrasensory capacities. In reality, Compound C granted extradimensional precognition. This faculty, initially misinterpreted, was actually due to the increase in channels of neurofilaments and structural brain proteins, which accelerated brain activity at a disproportionate rate.
Scientists concluded that bodily reinforcement was a secondary effect, necessary only to withstand the elevated genetic wear this evolution provoked. Thus, those who consumed this biomodifier at the precise dosage acquired a premeditated genetic evolution.
And as the world waited, expectant, the international scientific community issued a warning: the possible consequences of such overstimulation could be catastrophic.
Meanwhile, investigations into implementing LRC-12036 in mechanical or semi-mechanical units were stalled. Every time these systems came into contact with the compound, they simply rebooted. This made one thing clear: science still had a long way to go to replicate the complexity of the human mind.
Suddenly, the holographic device, which had been broadcasting these news in three dimensions with a theatrical level of realism, powered down.
The one responsible: Xiheifer, a young university student who was fed up with watching the news. He was simply one more student, someone trying to get by in an increasingly chaotic world. Were it not for his curiosity about current events, he wouldn't have bothered to watch at all. It was always the same: violence, violence, violence… and more violence. A cycle with no return, like an endless tornado that, once it drags you inside, keeps you spinning with no way out.
While thinking this, Xiheifer finished the synthetic supplement bar he was savoring. Its flavor—a blend of chocolate and hazelnuts—was a sensory experience reserved for only the most discerning palates. Additionally, it contained most of the vitamins and proteins needed for a not-so-demanding day: undoubtedly the pinnacle of culinary scientific advancement.
He headed to the bathroom to perform the basic hygiene that would make him presentable to society. As he debated among the twenty-seven ways to polish his teeth, he could not help but look at himself in the mirror. First at himself… then at the figure slowly approaching from behind.
His complexion—brown but pale from low vitamin D intake; his face, symmetric with 49 % precision; his height, 1.81 m; his hair, brown and slightly wavy; his eyes, greenish-brown… average. Except for that birthmark located at the exact intersection between his left eye and his jaw, which he always described as an involuntary tattoo and that secretly caused him some insecurity.
Behind him, Alix.
Her feminine silhouette reflected crisply in the mirror: 1.80 m tall, with 51 % facial precision. Her skin, a uniform gray-brown, was the inevitable inheritance of contemporary genetic dispositions. It contrasted with her straight black hair, cut in a sober bob that framed her face. And her fuchsia eyes, intense, seemed to interrogate him in silence.
—"Again, wasting time on the news…" —Alix murmured as she approached.Slowly, she wrapped her arms around him from behind.
Xiheifer felt a slight tingle at the nape of his neck and a soft kiss on the crown of his head. He wasn't sure whether Alix sought comfort or pressure, but the gesture pulled him out of his thoughts.
—"It's… complicated," —he replied in a quiet voice— "Sometimes I feel that if I don't know what's happening, I'll disappear."
—"Disappear?"—Alix said, turning to face him— "Come on, you know as well as I do that nobody disappears here. This world is a perfect gear: violent, yes, but perfect."
Xiheifer frowned and adjusted his synthetic shirt over his torso.
—"Perfect?" —he replied— "I don't want to be part of a gear that only turns to unleash more violence."
Alix raised an eyebrow, amused.
—"So what do you plan to do? Live in the mountains? Forget about everything?"
Xiheifer opened his mouth to reply, but a soft vibration on his wrist interrupted him. His holo-watch projected a flickering notification. With a start, he saw the sender: Jhony, his friend, urging him to hurry so he wouldn't be late for university. Xiheifer's pulse quickened; his heart lurched in his chest and a bead of sweat trickled down his temple.
—"I'm sorry, Alix. I have to go," —he said, stepping away slightly and giving her an apologetic glance.
—"Be careful," —she replied, tucking a strand of hair behind his ear— "Still, don't forget that here, sometimes, just going to university isn't enough to find answers."
Xiheifer nodded in silence and exited the bathroom. Alix watched him for a few seconds, then sighed and turned to attend to her own matters.