EILEITHYIA: MAN & BEAST

 

The crackling night fires brought some life to the otherwise dead-quiet night, casting a calming warmth against the dreadfully chilly evening. In that moment, Lieutenant Cael's blood was nothing more than a concoction of adrenaline and plasma. He felt everything—the bead of sweat slowly inching down his back, the freezing, the needling wind causing the fire to dance erratically, and the pulsating thump of his racing heart providing a twisted symphony to the nervous, puppy-like whimpers of the child he stood over.

 

Lieutenant Cael placed his hand on his sidearm, resting his finger on the clasp of his holster. The ridges on it provided a grip he pushed down to release it. At that moment, he felt nothing. His mind was focused, and his heart was hardened. A noticeable twang from the spring-loaded holster broke the silence as his portable railgun jumped into his hand and nestled perfectly within the creases of his concave-set palm. As he raised his hand, finger already set on the trigger, he felt the weight of the gun, not unlike that of a newborn held in one hand.

 

"Wait!" yelled Captain Winters from the bushes, his voice noticeably winded. "Don't you dare loose a sho…"

 

His words were interrupted by an unmistakable whoosh nestled in a thunderous crack. The sound could not be mistaken. He knew he was too late. The tungsten round had broken the sound barrier and had no doubt found its target, resting peacefully in the boy's skull as his lifeless body hit the ground with a gentle thud.

 

"What have you done, boy!" Captain Hunter asked in a stern yet erratic voice.

 

"He was an enemy combatant," the Lieutenant said nonchalantly. "A few weeks old at best."

 

"You saw it in the briefs, sir. They use 'Undeveloped' combatants to fight. I did what I always do, sir. I dispatched a threat."

 

"He wasn't an undeveloped lieutenant; he was a natty. Natural born," said Captain Winters.

 

"Even so," replied Lieutenant Cael. "He could have been one. Better safe than sorry."

 

"What in the name of all that is holy did you say, Lieutenant?" The captain thundered in a deeper, more commanding voice. His rage seeped through to his voice, his disgust bubbling at the Lieutenant's nonchalance at killing a child in seemingly cold blood.

 

"He was a child, damn you!"

 

"He wasn't like your kind, you cold-hearted bastard. He was a real human."

 

"And I'm not, sir?" asked the Lieutenant.

 

"No!" Winters thundered back.

 

With a tone etched with the weariness of years of conflict, Captain Winters interjected, "It's been 25 years since the Casper gene research program was legalized and fifteen years since the military birthed Project Eileithyia. We've created a new breed of humans, like cattle. Selectively chosen from the finest, tweaked and perfected in the lab, genes altered. They grow and mature in half a decade but last in peak physical health for the average human lifespan. Unlike cattle, though, you aren't bred for the sustenance of human life but for its elimination. You are cold, calculating bio-machines, worse than the robots in the old motion pictures."

 

"You are animals. Grown in a lab, an abomination to God and his goodness."

 

"You are no more than cattle. Spare meat so real humans do not waste our lives."

 

"You are a tool, Lieutenant. Don't ever think of yourself as anything else."

 

As the rest of the squad gathered around, the captain's words ran through the Lieutenant's head and settled in his heart. Somehow, he had forgotten how much these men he had bled for, fought for, and nearly died for had hated him. They could not see more than his edited genes, but deep down, he knew he was human and wouldn't let anyone take it away from him.

HELP FROM AN UNCANNY SOURCE

A crucial collaborator in the creation of my new narrative was ChatGPT. It made the future world more vivid for me to see, full of imaginative and realistic technologies. I discussed railgun technology and its potential use with AI in the future. Our combined research improved the narrative and gave me fresh ideas for consideration. I also enhanced the story's flow and made it more engaging by utilizing ChatGPT. Writing the story became more enjoyable and collaborative due to the AI's engagement, resulting in a work that successfully combines fantasy and reality.