Oath of the Survivor

Kyle had been a fan of old-world martial arts films as a child.  He would watch in awe as wise old men would defeat opponents of superior strength and numbers with pure technique and finesse.  These flights of fancy were quickly tossed to the wayside as Kyle realized he had no idea how to properly use a staff.  He tried imitating the martial artists he remembered idolizing as a child; he tried doing what felt natural; he even went as far as to ask if by some miracle C.H.A.D.D. had downloaded any martial arts manuals or staff techniques. 

Whatever he was supposed to be able to do with this weapon, he had a hard time executing more than the basics.  After three days of travel and practice, Kyle settled in next to a broken tree stump and thought about the problem.  His attributes were just too out of balance to make this type of melee combat a real viable option for him as things currently stood.  Unlike his Perception, his Dexterity and Strength were lacking, making his motions feel sluggish and ineffective. 

C.H.A.D.D. had identified a group of smaller beetles the size of large rats earlier in the day, and Kyle quickly found that his body just couldn’t keep up with his eyes.  Even though these insects were far weaker than the previous one, he still walked away with dozens of nasty cuts that proved similarly difficult to heal.  He sighed and considered his problem as he pulled out the last strip of beetle jerky to chew, already accustomed to the foul taste. 

As he’d done so many times before, Kyle went back to his training to approach the problem.  He looked first at the facts he knew: people have successfully used blunt instruments as weapons for generations; he was physically more capable than virtually any athlete pre-awakening; the piece of rebar was of an appropriate size and weight to be used as such an instrument.  Satisfied that all the ingredients for success were present, he next began to consider the problems. 

He had already noticed the handicaps created by his imbalance in attributes, and started thinking through the other technical issues he was running into.  Kyle closed his eyes and replayed the skirmish with the smaller beetles, trying to think about what he could have done differently.    He remembered feeling useless trying to attack the quick-moving creatures, watching as his swings passed ineffectually past them as they skittered and buzzed about.   He held the staff in two hands in an alternated grip, hands spaced about as wide as his shoulders like he remembered from the old films.

 He would make quick jabs and swings at the beetles but was just never able to land anything solid against them.  It felt awkward in virtually every aspect – his footwork was uncoordinated and didn’t match his arms and shoulders as he rotated to attack.  Eventually he tossed the rebar aside in favor of grabbing the bugs when they bit him, pulling them off, and smashing them against a tree. 

Thinking of the mental image of the martial arts masters, he opened up his eyes and turned to the patiently floating drone. 

“C.H.A.D.D., are you able to run a continuous scan of my body over the course of a couple minutes, then show me the footage?” 

[DR. MAYHEW, UNFORTUNATELY THAT WILL NOT BE POSSIBLE.]  Well, there goes that idea. Kyle thought, as C.H.A.D.D. continued.

[IT IS AGAINST CENTRAL HEALTH POLICY AND MULTIPLE TRAFFIC REGULATIONS TO DIRECT ATTENTION AWAY FROM THE ROAD DURING AN EMERGENCY.  VIOLATORS WILL FACE SUSPENSION OF AMBUALTORY PRIVLIGES, A FINE, AND FURTHER CORRECTIVE ACTION UP TO AND INCLUDIGN TERMINATION.] 

Kyle blinked, stunned.  “C.H.A.D.D., we aren’t driving.  Run the scan.”  The drone floated in silence for a moment before responding, but respond it did. 

[DR. MAYHEW, THIS UNIT HAS BEEN SET TO AMBULATORY MODE.  RECENT INSTRUCTION INDICATED THAT DR. MAYHEW WAS HANDLING A MEDICAL EMERGENCY AND REQUESTED THIS UNIT TO ASSIST.  DR. MAYHEW INDICATED THAT HE WAS BOTH THE ASSIGNED PHYSICIAN AS WELL AS DIRECTING THE AMBULANCE.] 

Realization hit Kyle like a ton of bricks.  He had used the ambulance excuse to get the drone to follow along.  “How were you able to run the diagnostics before?” Kyle asked, seeing a flaw in the programming. 

[PREVIOUS DIAGNOSTICS WERE RUN FOR A SINGULAR SCAN, NOT A PROGRESSIVE MULTI-MINUTE SCAN.] C.H.A.D.D. clarified unhelpfully. 

Then the idea clicked. “Are you able to run a series of individual scans back-to-back, then play them one after another?”  Kyle asked. 

[DR. MAYHEW, IS THIS AN ATTEMPT TO CIRCUMVENT AMBULATORY POLICY?] C.H.A.D.D. asked, a hint of warning and consternation somehow coming through the robotic voice. 

“No?” Kyle sheepishly replied, hoping the drone would take the bait. 

[IN THAT CASE YES, THIS UNIT WILL RUN MULTIPLE SCANS UNTIL DIRECTED OTHERWISE.]  Kyle pumped his fist inwardly at his victory, and eagerly assumed his stance, ready to begin.

Several hours and a lot of frustration later, Kyle reviewed the playbacks for what felt like the hundredth time.  When he was moving slowly, he could move with something resembling grace, but as he watched himself try and accelerate his pace and movements things started to fall apart quickly. 

His legs couldn’t keep up with how he wanted to move and rotate his arms, and he once again saw the reinforcement that to move and engage beyond a purely mundane speed was just not something he could coordinate effectively right now.  Maybe with an instructor and years of tutelage, but it was unlikely that he would have access to either of things for a long while yet. 

As he reviewed the scans again, he caught sight of a note placed by C.H.A.D.D.  Kyle turned to the drone, “What’s with the note present here?”  Kyle asked, pausing the recording and indicating the highlighted portion. 

[DR. MAYHEW, AFTER MULTIPLE REVIEWS OF THE CASES YOU HADN’T POINTED OUT THE BEGINNINGS OF A TEAR IN THE POSTERIOR LABRUM.  TREATMENT IS SIMPLE BUT SHOULD NOT BE LEFT UNDONE, NOR SHOULD THE PATIENT CONTINUE TO PLACE STRAIN ON THE TEAR.]  Kyle paused for a moment, thinking about what C.H.A.D.D. had said. 

“Isn’t that tear referred to as something else?  It’s not an injury I dealt with often.” 

[IT IS PRIMARILY FOUND IN YOUNG UNAWAKENED, TYPICALLY CAUSED DURING THE COURSE OF ATHLETIC ACTIVITY.] 

“You’re telling me I have batter’s shoulder?”  Kyle asked, confused. 

[NO DR. MAYHEW, BUT CONTINUED ACTIVITY COULD AGGRAVATE THE EARLY ONSET OF THE TEAR AND LEAD TO IT.]  Kyle shrugged and activated REGENERATION to get to work on the repair when he stopped, an idea forming in his head.  He realized with the resources and time he had left he wouldn’t be able to become a competent staff fighter in the near-term, but using baseball as a platform hadn’t occurred to him before. 

The essence was simple, identify the trajectory of a fast-moving object and use a single precise and explosive strike.  Where he continued to fail was in his footwork and constant coordination, but a solid stance and one precise strike driven by his high perception felt within his grasp.  This was very different from the fluid martial art he had envisioned in his head, but he couldn’t deny the appeal.  He grabbed a large stone, tossed it in the air, and focused.  He saw it as it fell, and easily struck it with his metal-turned-staff.  There was a canyon-sized gap between hitting a falling piece of debris and a functional fighting style, but it was a step in the right direction. 

~~~

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