Letter from the Frontline in 2050

Year 2050: Letter from the Frontline

This fictional story was a selected response in
the U.S. Army TRADOC G2's "Soldier 2050" Call
for Ideas. It formed part of a compendium of
thoughts and ideas that supported the bio-
convergence implications on the Army of 2050 at
the U.S. Army Mad Scientist Conference which
took place on 8-9 March 2018.
* This story does not represent the US Army or any government
entity's opinion or programs.
2

BACKGROUND Norak is a rogue nation and its leader has for many years
threatened to use nuclear weapons and has been building
Artificial Intelligence (AI) capability. The rogue nation’s
political leadership does not respond to sanctions or threats
waged by the international community.
Intelligence operatives successfully stalled Norak from receiving
the vital AI hardware they needed but intelligence sources have
reported with high confidence to the President that Norak has
acquired military grade AI technology and will soon connect it to
its robot army which includes a naval fleet of unmanned nuclear
submarines with the latest stealth torpedoes, and sea to air
missile technology, an army of hybrid motorcycle robots equipped
with electromagnetic weapons capable of permanently frying
electric grids, and an air force of drones loaded with
neurological weapons that when operated as a flock can blanket
cover a mega city causing its inhabitants to have seizures. The
missing piece is connecting the software and setting it up to
connect land, air and sea to the AI.
Just as with the nuclear industry, the military AI software
experts who can connect the warfighting domains are few and far
between and have been targeted all over the world. In this case,
nuclear weapons are the next generation of electromagnetic
nuclear weapons capable of destroying electronics (circuit
boards) through non-kinetic means. A leading Swiss military AI
scientist (and his family) have been kidnapped while on holiday
in Thailand and they are now behind enemy lines kept somewhere in
the vicinity of Norak's Black Mountain.
There are concurrent missions to address this situation; the
below story is told by one of the members of the special
operations unit (Unit 41) who has been tasked on a top secret
mission to destroy the central artificial intelligence brain of
Norak’s military lab deep inside Black Mountain before the Swiss
scientist is forced to make it operational.
Norak’s military is ready for this, and although they have had
years of sanctions and have not been able to buy the latest
military technology or develop it themselves through heavy
regulation, they have been able to purchase a significant amount
on the black market and are capable of creatively waging a dirty
make-shift offense and defense that can challenge even the most
technologically-advanced nations.
3

Hi Mom and Dad,
Because of the sensitivity of this message, I am
sending you this private brain mail using deep
memory encryption through Brain Computer Interface
(BCI), instead of just calling you through the
simple BCI channel. I would have loved to call you,
especially since it would be our last conversation,
but I have to finish this mission and I cannot be
interrupted. I made sure to encrypt this BCI message
with our deepest memories because I want to tell you
everything before I go.
THE LETTER
4

I have been working for the military as you know, but not as a
military strategist as you thought, although strategy is a part of
my job. Instead, I am part of a secret special forces unit called
Unit 41, well there are two of us, one is connected to IBM Watson
and is AI enabled (called Unit 41-AI), and the other, which I am a
part of, has the regular BCI BioNET, but is enabled in other ways.
The reason is because the AI-enabled unit, while necessary for
competitive advantage with peer and near peer adversaries, is too
dangerous when its connected to the brain and a backup one is
necessary for mission assurance as it can operate swiftly in all
tech environments - including no tech. When I say no tech, I don’t
mean the body enhancements, that is part of our genome enhancement,
I mean the neurological-tech connection when I say tech. Don’t worry
mom, I’m not in the 41-AI unit where the soldiers brains are on 24/7
link to the risky AI BCI. I am in the other one, the “lesser” tech
unit, (we just go by the number of our unit 41). 41 also happens to
be the one that takes over when the 41-AI unit has technical
glitches, which is often, as it is hard to preserve the integrity of
machine learning environments and protect it from manipulation. Even
when it is authentic, AI has a way of doing things that are still
not understood by humans. In one case we had to shut down a portion
of our AI support capability because it invented its own language
and was communicating to other machines with it. That brings me to
this message. The mission I am on was too important to take any
technological risks and they have sent my unit. My unit is named 41,
after the year in which the German Enigma machine was cracked. The
reason my unit is called 41 is because the technology we use, and
that is a part of us, is the very latest, and like the year the
enigma machine was broken, no one was told about the breakthrough.
The latest technology we use isn’t public yet, not even our closest
allies know, not even most of our own military, that is what gives
us our competitive advantage, the fact our capabilities are secret.
I can’t tell you about all of them, but I’ll tell you about some as
I describe this mission.
As always, anytime something important happens I’m on my period, but
the great thing is my uterus has been enhanced with a menstrual
genome enhancement. The DNA editor CRISPR was used to read through
my DNA code and find the sequence that determines how my body reacts
to menstruation. This edit has optimized my blood flow and has given
my muscles a 200% strength boost, so not only am I not feeling
fatigued muscles, which slows me down, but I’m 200% stronger than
any regular day and have significantly more stamina. And I’m quite
strong on regular days, this enhancement also leverages the fact
that women’s tolerance for pain is higher than for men due to our
childbearing capacity. This uterus enhancement has also triggered
the pain tolerance capacity and it is 50 times stronger during
menstrual contractions.
5

Look at all the designer babies that are out there that are getting
their DNA edited to take out mutations for Alzheimer’s, reducing
probability for cancers, or superficial changes like determining the
color of their hair and eyes. The kind of modifications we do are
classified, but I want you to feel proud that your daughter is in the
only unit in the nation that has highly classified female genome
enhancements. It’s what makes us a secret weapon as our adversaries
create their offensive bio weapons with the male anatomy in mind. Of
course, women are also susceptible, but the uterus enhancement makes us
a particularly secret weapon in the menstruation window. And it’s a
good thing, because I am now the last one standing…..
Let me start from the beginning. Unit 41 was deployed to
destroy a secret military AI lab in Norak’s Black Mountain.
Remember what you saw on the news about that Swiss
scientist that was kidnapped in Thailand? Well, they have
his family hostage as well and they are going to force him
to connect their entire robotic army to a central military
grade artificial intelligence brain. This has never been
done before, the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) has
unanimously voted to ban this type of military integration
back in 2028, as it has the capacity to pose an existential
risk to our entire species.
We use quantum technology combined with AI to continuously
search for new DNA enhancements for each one of our unique
DNA strands. And then we get notified when we have updates
and go and get our shot. It’s just like a flu shot, no
biggie. It doesn’t hurt and after a good night’s rest you
wake up and the update is complete. Easy peasy! I know these
things seem scary or new to you, and while they are to a
certain degree experimental, we have come a long way.
Our Genome Commander has already altered all my muscles so I
am as strong as the Navy SEALS you see on TV, and I can run as
fast as a cheetah. Who would have thought, as the DNA I was
born with said I was never going to be a runner. My eyesight
was also enhanced, while I had 20/20, now I have night vision,
thermal vision, can see the electromagnetic spectrum which is
critical in today’s hyper tech enabled world. I can’t see
through buildings, but I hear the Genome Commander has made it
a top priority.
41
6

Only half of us were sent. Each one of us has Unit 41
specific upgrades, but also our own unique upgrades, tailored
to us based on our genome capacities. Should our bodies end
up in enemy territory it becomes a counterintelligence
problem as they may learn from our altered DNA and the tech
embedded in our bodies. Luckily our unique genome changes
will not be revealed as the adversary would need to have our
original DNA code to match it up with the current altered
one. But some of our unit specific upgrades include changes
to the core of our species’ DNA strand. They could
potentially be identified if they had enough of us, despite
the discrete way in which it was done, we are in a technical
sense already a different version of homo sapiens, even
though the changes are not profound enough to be visually
evident.
Out of the five of us that have been sent I am the only
woman, as it is too risky to lose two women at a time on such
a sensitive mission. It’s risky because they’ll be able to
compare our DNA strands and have a higher chance to find our
enhancements. We do have measures to reduce exposure should
we be captured (dead or alive), we use a technique called
mutation masking, where we hide the changes we have made in
seemingly normal mutation stands. We haven’t even shared our
women’s military genome enhancements with our closest allies.
Much like what happened in 1941 at Bletchley Park, when
Turing cracked the code and it wasn’t shared with the entire
British government; same with this.
7

We arrived to Black Mountain a few hours
ago, two team members and myself crossed
the land border between Tufr and Norak
at 0300 finding ourselves at the base of
Black Mountain. We already knew this was
a forest filled mountain so we came
prepared with our portable advance
drones which are the size of golf balls
and when activated fly up and around the
vicinity to scan the thermal and
electromagnetic perimeter so we know
what is ahead. Because they look like
golf balls, we call them flying golf
balls and we say we are tee-ing up when
we send them out. We are not alone
though, as the information is sent back
to our brain through the Brain Computer
Interface (BCI) network we have with our
devices. The Advance Perimeter Check
(APC) can even see through adversary
stealth clothes and gear that makes them
go under the radar.
We managed to use classic social
engineering techniques to access the
blueprints for their stealth gear so we
went in confident. No matter how much
technology there is, social engineering
will always be a powerful tool as people
continue to be the weakest link. The
perimeter check came out empty, and we
sent the flying golf balls all the way
up and around Black Mountain. We sent
the perimeter check results back to C2
through our encrypted secure BCI
communication, its part of the BioNET.
Still hard to believe that people in the
not too distant past had to use their
voice to tell others what they thought.
On a mission, the reduced speed of
spoken voice communication compared with
brain-to-brain thought communication
which is at the speed of light could
mean the difference between life or
death.
8

At Command and Control (C2), they took the data from our flying
golf ball drones and reproduced it into an augmented reality
hologram pop up of the terrain with markers of the electromagnetic
and thermal terrain. With this information, C2 gave the green
light to send the last two of my colleagues on this mission on the
other side of the mountain. They dropped them by air with a
stealth plane that had technology that was only talked about in
fairy tales and Harry Potter — the invisibility cloak. It is some
sort of physicist eye trick and the bending of light which I still
don’t understand, but it’s real and it works.
Luckily this time it is just five of us, last time we were on an
operation with other units from different countries. The feed from
the perimeter check that C2 read was wrong and identified friendly
forces as enemy forces, this was the result of a classic network
penetration and data manipulation hack. This is one of the reasons
Unit 41 exists, because technology can’t always be trusted.
Luckily, we already spoke with the friendly forces prior to that
operation and had conducted enough synthetic training and we knew
exactly where their position was going to be, and as such
prevented a lethal friendly fire incident. The quality of our
synthetic training is how we consistently out maneuver our
adversaries, and how we are so prepared. The generations of
special operations soldiers before me have already been training
in synthetic environments that include electromagnetic weapons,
urban assaults, and even hypersonic weapons. By the time we got
in, there were so many lessons learned that we built from,
combined with today’s genetic and implant technology - we truly
are a force to be reckoned with.
On foot, my two colleagues and I made it a quarter of the way up
the mountain through the dense trees and under the dark sky. Our
night vision enhancement made all the difference as we were able
to see through the trees. We were getting closer to the middle of
the mountain which is where the entrance of the lab was. Our
intelligence sources and aerial reconnaissance drones confirmed
the lab is tucked into the belly of the mountain, and that there
were three levels underground where the main lab is. This is where
I am now sitting on the floor with my back pressed against the AI
main frame, as you are fast asleep.
But I’m getting ahead of myself….
9

We continued under the dark blanket
of the night sky, as we were making
our way through the dense trees, the
humidity started to feel thicker and
heavier, like it was wrapped all
around us weighing us down, which is
strange as the higher up a mountain
the less the humidity. At first it
didn’t register, it was more of an
obstacle that we were capable of
overcoming, we have trained in humid
temperatures before. The ground
seemed to get wetter as we went up,
as if it rained higher up but not at
the base, and then my magnetic
sensors picked up some metal tubes
on the ground. As I was ahead of my
other two teammates I instantly was
able to relay the message through
our mission brain network. They
froze and registered it as well.
Together we concluded within seconds
what it was. We initially thought it
could have been related to mines,
but we were relieved when we
realized they were irrigation tubes,
with little holes which explained
why the ground was wet. But then a
chill went down my spine, which
because of our brain network my
colleagues were able to feel. Brain
to brain communication happens so
fast and in 41, when we are on a
mission 90% of our internal self-
talk communication is shared, it’s
the only way to share ideas fast and
respond with as little lag time and
deliberation as possible. We process
thoughts in milliseconds, so brain
to brain communication with 90% open
self-talk communication is a
competitive advantage.
10

We all knew something was wrong. Black mountain does not need
irrigation, it is a mountain with trees and an uphill slope
suitable for the amateur hiker, the rain falls evenly and is
spread across the mountain with streams, there was no need for
irrigation tubes. We cautiously continued, when all of a
sudden, we started to notice mosquitoes buzzing around us.
11

We were wearing bulletproof, radiation proof, and RFID
blocking, special operations gear, but our faces were exposed
and so were our hands, as we had taken off our gloves to sense
the metal tubbing better using our implanted magnetic chips in
our hands. The mosquitoes started to bite us so we just put our
gloves back on. We continued on and made it further up and it
was less humid and we found a space between the dense trees to
regroup and wait to hear from the other two airborne colleagues
who parachuted in on the other side of the mountain and were at
the same level as us. We tried to connect through our brain to
brain interface with them but couldn’t get through, so I
climbed up a tree and tried to see if I could see them coming
down. We have a special reflector on our chest only used in
Unit 41 that only can be seen through our genetically modified
eyes. Sure enough, I saw them 5 miles out coming in.
12

Something was off about the way they were coming down. We are known for
swift and graceful drops, but they were sloppy, almost having seizures
in mid-air. I immediately knew something was wrong. I tried to contact
them with brain-to-brain (BrainNET) and was able to feel their
sensations of pain and suffocation. Looking down, my two colleagues
sitting at the bottom of the tree I climbed also got the message. We
pulled up their stitch stats. Stitch stats are the statistics and data
derived from smart clothing that we use. Their stitch stats said that
they didn’t have enough oxygen, their heart rate was abnormally high,
and that their lung capacity had reduced significantly. As I sit here
on the floor in the Norak AI brain lab and recall it I am still shaken
by the image of their bodies violently shaking in mid-air and then
disappearing into the trees.

I looked at them as they just looked up with their teeth clenched and
through brain to brain they told me it is as if someone had kicked
them in the groin, but from the inside. As if they were experiencing
the pain after a hammer had smashed their prostate. It was crippling
pain, that went straight through their entire neurological system and
took away their super powers. It was their kryptonite. In that second,
we got the last BrainNET connection with our two airborne colleagues
on the other side of the mountain, we were able to feel their pain of
broken bones, difficulty breathing through crushed lungs, and then
their last breaths a few miles away. We went from five, to three and
we haven’t even breached the lab yet, something was wrong and nothing
was a coincidence.
We all knew something was wrong and I immediately climbed down the
tree to find my colleagues in pain and almost in fetal position but
sitting. Through the BrainNET I knew they had a sharp neurological
pain that was pulling them down from inside.
14

Norak was prepared for us, but not in a
sophisticated technological way, but in a
dirty and low-tech way. It was effective
and we weren’t expecting it. The same
planes that are used to seed clouds for
rain, were used before my airborne
colleagues parachuted in. Instead of
spraying the substance used to seed
clouds, they went to the drop altitude
and used the same tool to spray white
phosphorous. Their skin didn’t burn
because they were wearing our protective
gear but their lungs were exposed. I
don’t want to say more, they died a very
brave death. The fact of the matter is
that we are fighting against adversaries
who don’t play by the same rules, but now
is not the time to start my rant about
warfighting ethics.
We didn’t have time to deal with the
death of our two airborne colleagues on
the other side of the mountain as we had
to see how we could overcome crippling
prostate pain that brought my two
colleagues down to their knees. Pain is
nothing but a message, communicated
through neurons, so we needed to re-route
that message and send it to a dead end.
Using the electronic tattoo interface in
their arm they tried to manipulate the
nerve communications. As they did that I
pieced the strange incidence together.
The anomaly was that I, too, was bitten
by the mosquitos, but did not feel any
discomfort.
The irrigation tubes were a booby trap,
to keep the humidity levels high closer
to the entrance, so that the genetically
modified mosquitoes would thrive and
create a layer of defense. The mosquitoes
seem to have been genetically modified to
target the male prostate and trigger
numbing pain that sends shockwaves
through the neurological system
paralyzing male victims with pain.
15

Synthetic DNA codes are for sale all
over the dark web, they could have
bought it and bred their own
mosquitoes. Mosquito DNA altering and
breeding was done many decades ago
back in the Zika virus days in 2016,
so today this is nothing but a
download of the synthetic DNA, put it
in to the CRISPR program and any
simple biologist can put the rest
together.
Such simple technology cripples such
an advanced human. In advanced
nations we have allowed ourselves to
be uncontrollably seduced by
technology. You can blame it on the
egos of Silicon Valley start-ups back
in the early 2000s, society’s
subsequent love affair with tech all
around, inside and outside of them,
governments being too busy dealing
with the next information warfare
attacking their legitimacy, or maybe
a vast majority of the world choosing
to look the other way instead of
listen to the few who tried to alert
the world to the potential
consequences.
Whatever the case, we prepare for the
most advanced a nation state can do,
but we forget nation states can also
employ street tactics.
16

My teammates managed to reroute the pain and get back on their feet
although the ordeal had reduced their battery level. We are so
enhanced and updated and have technology embedded in us that we see
ourselves as human machines sometimes. So we say our battery is
low, but basically our calorie consumption has increased, reducing
remaining capacity. We slowly approached the hidden door of the lab
and before reaching the entrance we communicated with our command
and control for the last time, we disconnected from the BioNET. It
was too dangerous to stay connected with Unit 41’s HQ, as we could
risk a potential attribution, although it would be very hard to
prove technically, they could arguably point the finger at us with
enough coincidences. Since the beginning of my training days we
were taught to operate on intent, and expect communications devices
to fail us.
17

Our intelligence sources told us the lab door had biometric
authentication and thanks to the great work of our covert
operatives who hacked in the system and got all the biometrics we
needed, and the bio hack unit at the special operations command
we were ready with altered fingerprints, contact lenses and voice
alteration for all the biometric authentication necessary. The
light on the door flashed green and the vacuum sealed door
opened. The next authentication was the hallway camera which
would match up the face biometric to the Norak officer we
impersonated. My teammate already had the 3D printed mask of the
officer on his face, and my other teammate and I put our
invisibility cloaks on. 3D printing has come a long way
especially for those who have the best cartridge materials.
We could fool the camera but the mask wouldn’t be enough if we
ran into someone who knew the officer we impersonated. We had ear
implants that could simultaneously translate any language, but we
still didn’t have the capacity to automatically speak foreign
languages that weren’t learned the natural way. Besides, it might
not have done us any good as they may very well be speaking
through their own BrainNET, as its too risky to speak. We
accessed the blueprint of the floor plan to navigate and in
unison two of us under the invisibility cloak followed our
colleague with the 3D printed face mask, without a word exchanged
as we communicated with our BrainNET. We used a very special
connection via the Neural Linguistic Programming (NLP) memory
network.
18

Remember when I told you that I went on vacation to Aspen with my
teammates? Well that was part of the training to layout the NLP
memory network for secure communication on the BrainNET. For
example, for you to access this message I have prompted your memory
to fill in the blanks on very unique memories we shared that no one
else would know. We went to Aspen to create those kinds of unique
Unit 41 training memories. The training is actually very fun, it
includes playing games, going hiking around the mountains and
spending time bonding; and of course, synthetic training in Virtual
Reality (VR). Basically, it is about creating new and organic
memories. The cabin we stayed at is in a top-secret location and
was designed in a particular way for us to mentally regroup there
to recall information. It is where we go back to when we prepare
for missions. Each room, and wall has something to do with the
mission. One way to explain it is, it is like organizing all your
papers and maps and relevant information, but it is organized in
the same way for everyone and we all learn it together and prepare
for the operation together in those specialized rooms. What it does
is the information and images and experiences are all stored in our
brains the way that we experienced it which can vary from person to
person, but it also provides us with human memory back-up copies.
So when we are in an operation we all go back to that cabin
together and go over everything and no piece of information is
missed. Remember that electronic tattoo you saw behind my neck?
Well that is an additional layer of security as it authenticates my
Unit 41 colleagues when we connect to the NLP memory network. That
tattoo is a sensor that knows the particular beat of my heart, a
non replicatable authentication method. Luckily the Noraks didn’t
have access to this state of the art technology.
19

We followed my teammate with the mask of the
Norak officer down the dimly lit stairs to
the second floor underground. He unlocked the
door which led us into a white corridor with
glass on both sides looking into the endless
stacks of black quantum computer drives
flashing with their blue lights in unison. We
followed closely behind him with our
invisibility cloaks. We got to the end of the
corridor which opened into a command and
control center with a big window looking down
into the core of the brain on the third
underground floor. It was 0426 and not a soul
in sight, and that is when two Norak security
guards game with their coffee into the C2
room from the 3rd floor. My teammate who was
under the invisibility cloak raced towards
the door before it closed and tried to slip
in. There was no way my colleague with the
mask was going to pass for the Norak officer
we impersonated, and while we were wearing
invisibility cloaks we still made noise, it
was time for lethal action. One of the guards
pushed a button on his wristband as my
colleague with the impersonated mask raised
his fist towards the security guards and
using his thumbs pushed the button under the
bottom of the rings he was wearing on his
middle fingers. A neurological agent shot out
at them in the face and they collapsed to the
floor shaking, choking as they gasped for
air. Within twenty seconds their hearts
stopped and the guards were neutralized.
20

However, the button the security guard pushed alerted others and
within seconds five Norak security guards came storming. By that
point my teammate under the invisibility cloak made it safely with
me into the 3rd level unnoticed. The door locked behind us, we knew
the chances of us getting out through that door again alive were
slim to none, but we didn’t spend any time thinking about it. The
two of us made it to the 3rd floor underground lab.

We stayed still in the lit-up room and were able to see the lab’s
C2 room through the window above us, which is where our teammate
with the mask was. We saw him pull out his gun, it had regular
bullets, on a mission like this hand held rail guns are a no-no.
That is the latest of the latest technology, we haven’t even gotten
approval to use them in operations for fear that word will get
around that it exists. Hand held rail gun or regular gun, he is
still made of blood, tissue and bones, even if it is of altered
DNA, and he has some implants; he wasn’t going to win over five
armed Norak security guards in this confined space, he did it to
force the security guards to use lethal force against him so that
he could disconnect from the BCI and so that his body could die
before they used the BCI reader. While we feel very confident the
Norak BCI reader couldn’t retrieve sensitive information from our
network, we still don’t fully understand how vulnerable the BCI
connection is at the verge of death. We are still human and while
there are many ways to extend life and enhance our capacities, when
you destroy the body there is no coming back. We saw his body
receive countless blows from the bullets of the Norak machine guns.
We immediately shut him out of all our brain connections, each one
of us shares admin authority over the others. They used the latest
bullet technology that penetrated our gear, and we knew they had it
as intelligence told us our greatest enemies regularly sold them
those bullets. He followed protocol and signed out of our NLP
memory network and the BrainNET with the account self-destruct
option. It was the only thing he could do, and luckily because
everything is controlled by our speed of light brain, he was able
to do it before the bullets killed him. The reason I say luckily is
because sure enough, we saw them rush to his body to use the BCI
reader.
22

My teammate and I had our backs pressed against the wall with our
invisibility cloaks on us and we went to the NLP memory network,
back to the Aspen cabin, quickly rushed to the kitchen where the
information about the Norak AI brain was in the fridge, we went
over the blue prints of the 3rd underground floor lab and
instructions on how to permanently fry the Norak AI brain and make
it forever inoperative, then without even telling each other we
went out the back porch and met in the shed, both of us
disconnected from the NLP memory network and initiated the account
self-destruct option for the NLP memory network. This meant we
would never have access to it again. We were the only two left of
the five from Unit 41 that were sent. We had to protect the rest of
our unit. We then went to the BrainNET and started to work.
My teammate was working on breaking into the AI network and
starting phase one of the destruction which was to tell the AI to
delete software on devices as far as it could reach, and leave
carry on commands on every network it could reach. Someone on the
2nd floor seemed to be registering these changes on the Command and
Control computers and since we locked the Norad guards out of their
AI network they couldn’t stop it. I immediately went to the door
and used the electronic sleeve to hack into the door and lock the
guards out. I hacked the door just in time before they arrived,
they banged the door and tried to shoot through, but they should
have known better as the doors were made of nuclear submarine grade
metals. It then went quiet, they left and a click sound went off on
the side of the room where my teammate was hacking the AI computer.
It seemed as if some sort of clear gas was coming in. My colleague
didn’t make note of the click because he was too absorbed working
on destroying the AI network. I used the BrainNET to alert him but
he had already signed off it and closed any incoming messages. I
immediately shut mine down and shouted to him, I couldn’t tell
where he was exactly as he had the invisibility cloak on. I went
towards the computer where he was at and saw the screen, he was
half-way through but didn’t finish, I put my arm out to touch his
body but couldn’t find him, I stepped closer to the screen and then
I felt my foot bump into something. It was him. As all our BCI
networks were disconnected I had no idea what happened. I smelled
something odd, it was almost like a hospital sterile clean scent.

I didn’t have time to think much of it and picked up with the
hacking where my teammate had left off. I typed in the codes and
completed the AI ripple instructions for auto destruct to replicate
throughout the Norak military network. The next step was to infect
the mainframe with the virus created by the AI Offensive team back
in HQ. As I reached to my wrist bands for the USBs I started to
feel my body being attacked from the inside. From my toes to the
arteries in my heart, to my nipples and the tips of my fingers. The
pain was spreading. I started to shake a bit from the pain as I
took out the two thin USBs from my wrist band and inserted them
into the mainframe.
The Noraks play very dirty. Nowhere in international law would nano
bot weapons be allowed. I read about them. We were told that it was
a civilian technology that could have dual-use in the military. The
nano technology used was the same technology used at hospitals for
our checkups. The one we would get put in intravenously through IV.
But this one was airborne. The thing with nano, is that it is
microscopic, and just like cocaine addicts snort cocaine powder
through their nose and it goes into their lungs and through their
lungs into their blood stream, the weaponized nano bots did the
same thing to me.
24

My arteries feel like they are hardening, I feel I’m losing
consciousness and I can barely muster the energy to breathe as
everything hurts. I’m going to have to sign out of BrainNET before
the nano bots completely clog my arteries, I just hope this isn’t
the kind of nano bot that has surgical capabilities. I’m sitting
down leaning on the wall looking at the screens and the mainframe
execute our commands. We did it…. No nation should have absolute AI
power; it puts our species at an uncontrollable existential risk.
25

Everything I told you is classified, and I’ve locked it
in your memory. You won’t be able to share it with
anyone, except between you two as you have the same
encrypted memory tunnel for this brain message.
I’m sorry you can’t share it, but I’m glad technology has
advanced enough for me to be able to tell you this.
I now have 5% caloric energy left….

Remember how I told you there is no way to come back once our
bodies die?
Well there is an option.
I have already uploaded my brain to a soldier’s reserve
system. It uses whole brain emulation which means that it is
a software copy of my brain and my memories and my
neurological connections. It is in my will for you to receive
it. You won’t hear from anyone from Unit 41 as it is a secret
unit, but you will hear from the Special Operations Command,
which I belong to. Once you receive my brain copy, you can
activate it with a range of devices and speak with me and a
non-sentient version of me, with my voice, will respond. It
won’t be sentient but a replica-database-like-version of me
blended with AI to best gauge what my responses would be.
Since this is still very new technology the military requires
that family members who choose to receive it undergo
training, and see a therapist for the first six months for
adjusting. I won’t be upset if you don’t choose to receive
it. This technology challenges mortality as we know it and it
can be difficult to process it. As part of 41, my emulation
will be stored and used for training, analysis and records; I
will continue to serve my country in death and no soldier
could ask for more. I have to sign off 2% left…
I love you.
27

ABOUT
THE
AUTHOR
Dr. Lydia Kostopoulos a global consultant advising on
strategy, security and emerging technologies. She
brings a systems thinking approach to her work,
examining technology opportunities and risks in the
context of global macro trends, geopolitics,
international economics, climatic factors and
demographic change.
Her expertise has been sought by both government and
industry alike. Namely, the U.S. Special Operations
community, U.S. Secret Service, NATO, as well as the
United Nations and the IEEE Standards Body. Passionate
about spreading awareness on emerging technologies,
she makes art about artificial intelligence and has a
multilingual, reflective game on emerging technologies
called Sapien 2.0, which explores the human and
machine relationship.
Lydia Kostopoulos, Phd
@LKCYBER
LKCYBER.COM
* The scenario is her own and does not represent any of her clients.
** Midjourney, DALL-E and Canva were used to make this document.

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