Silex 'M': The Silex Trilogy, #2

By Elliott Trevor

Fifteen years after the incarceration of Carsten Pietersen the brilliant young computer scientist in a secret cryogenics facility in San Diego, a new Regional Manager, Patrick Calloway discovers the identity of the occupant of cryo vat 75. Carsten Sorensen had been the first recipient of Cybio Inc.'s biocompatible Silex computer chip and the projects lead programmer who broke all the rules by installing his own modified version of the Anthropos operating system with startling results. His secret incarceration was almost forgotten after a tragic accident killed the small group of people who knew he was 'on ice'.

Fascinated by his discovery Calloway learns that under the influence of the rogue operating system Carsten had become almost superhuman, absorbing information at astounding rates and optimising his body including curing his diabetes and developing the ability for self-healing even after being shot and stabbed. Shadowy members of the security forces became concerned that Carsten might leave Cybio to pursue his own agenda or even worse be captured by a foreign Government or criminal organisation.  The solution was to secure him in cryostatis until they could work out how to control the scientist and his rogue chip.

A decision is made to recover Carsten and persuade him to cooperate in the extraction of the unique operating system he carried and the development of a new military 'M' version to exploit the endurance and self-healing properties of Carsten's chip. Dr Mary McClusky, Carsten's boss at Cybio and the focus of his affections is persuaded to help with recovering Carsten and in return, if the Silex-M project proved successful she could have the opportunity to disable his chip and return him to normal life.

Everything went well with the recovery and Carsten, much to McClusky's surprise he agreed to help the CIA develop the military version of his chip. However, he wanted nothing to do with Mary who he blamed for his incarceration. Within a few months, Carsten delivered the Silex-M chip and operating system, which was loaded into a special ops team who proved almost invincible in the field. One of the enhancements Carsten added was the ability to withstand severe injury in action and continue to function, with pain, blood loss and shock suppressed until the injured operative reached safety. Then the chip put them into a light coma whilst it implemented rapid healing. The amazing performance of the first team carrying the Silex-M chip came to the attention of Delta Force who wanted control of this project for its own ends...

With Carr in charge, deployment of the Silex-M technology led to the formation of an elite Delta Force unit called DEFLATT1, who were the envy of all the military services. Then problems began to appear, firstly with Carsten's health and subsequently with DEFLATT1 team members who had been wounded in action and undergone rapid self-healing. Was this the result of the huge workload placed on Carsten and the massive overclocking of the soldiers endocrine system.

In a separate development, the Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in Atlanta Centre identified unusual clusters of Graves' disease or hyperthyroidism. A fluke observation linked these clusters to the roll out of the Silex-DB1 diabetes chip and a race began to discover what was happening and what level of threat this presented to the millions of recipients around the world.

Were Carsten Pietersen's illness, the problems appearing within the Delta Force teams and the threat to the massively successful diabetes chip connected? With the Silex-M project classed as Top Secret and Carsten Pietersen officially dead, it fell to an adhoc team thrown together by circumstances, to find the answers before a worldwide epidemic, national scandal and uncontrolled panic set in.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Elliott Trevor
• Release date: Jun 29, 2020
• ISBN: 9781393454960

Book preview

CHAPTER 1

Ten years after an anonymous Directorate of Science and Technology (DS&T) Facility became the cryogenic resting place for a young computer scientist named, Dr Carsten Pietersen, a new CIA Facilities Manager, Patrick Calloway, pulled a file marked Top Secret and began making plans to resurrect the unwitting frozen guest. If successful, he would embark on a plan to develop the ultimate battlefield soldier, with enhanced strength and endurance and an ability to heal himself without medical intervention.

Calloway, a tall amiable Irish American had recently moved to San Diego from a previous CIA posting in San Francisco. He stumbled across the file when consolidating his predecessor’s records and its omission from the handover discussions sparked his interest. An initial perusal of the summary pages revealed that whoever held the post of East Coast Facilities Manager also held responsibility for ensuring Pietersen’s stay in the cryogenic holding tank remained secret. Any decision about his recovery from the cryo storage rested with an Agency department called Strategic Affairs of which Calloway had never heard. The only contact details was an email address and emergency telephone number with a Washington DC area code.

A brief synopsis of the events leading up to Dr Pietersen’s incarceration captured Calloway’s interest, and he stayed late that night to read the contents from cover to cover. He was astounded at what he discovered. Why the story and the guest had laid undisturbed for so long remained a mystery until further investigation revealed a tragic accident. The key agents associated with the original capture and incarceration of Pietersen under a false identity, tragically died in a helicopter accident en route to a routine liaison meeting with neighbouring regions. Most of the names on the list of dead were unknown to Calloway although their rank and responsibilities were standard Agency positions. Joseph Pickard was an exception and had no details opposite his name just the same Washington DC phone number listed in the Pietersen file. Calloway surmised that because the details behind Pietersen’s detention were restricted to this small team and concealed from the DS&T staff, his presence became no more than a number in the cryo log. Those responsible for the day-to-day operation of the Facility assumed the occupant of Vat 75 to be just another politician or rich guy hoping for immortality. 

However, Calloway discovered Pietersen was not like the other occupants. The brilliant neural software programmer at Cybio Incorporated became the first recipient of the now famous Silex chip. The research project, code named ‘Crossover’ was a five-year programme to explore the ability of the chip and it’s OS (operating system) to grow neural connections with the brain. The project team intended a phased implementation to ensure that it could upload predetermined segments of the operating system in a controlled sequence over several years, with each upload fully assessed before the next implemented. The Facility Manager learnt how Dr Pietersen went against all procedures and downloaded a modified OS comprising all the individual modules plus a number of special enhancements of his own. This led to a massive expansion in the chips neural connections and some startling changes to his physiology. The most well-known change was the elimination of his type two diabetes and this formed the foundation of the multi-billion dollar business, which projected Cybio into one of the world’s largest companies. Another significant development, known to only a few, was Carsten Pietersen’s ability to heal himself without medical intervention. Two incidents during the months before his move to the DS&T Facility demonstrated this ability.

The first involved his recovery from a near fatal gunshot wound and the second a similar recovery from a knife attack that pierced his lung. In both incidents, he made a full recovery in under twenty-four hours. This remarkable ability attracted the attention of the CIA who recognised the potential of this phenomenon and moved to take charge of the Crossover project, in the interest of the nation. Unprecedented publicity surrounding the diabetes ‘cure’ made a move on Cybio almost impossible. However, when the software scientist started to act irrationally, and looked like he might jump ship and disappear, the then local CIA controller, Warren Martinez, a man with great ambition and little patience, made an abortive attempt to kidnap Pietersen. The bungled incident came close to pushing the young scientist to a point where his chip enhanced neural system took over control of his body. The rogue operating system had already demonstrated an ability to suppress Carsten’s conscious thoughts, implementing its own ruthless mental state where survival became the only priority. More by luck than judgement, the Agency got a second shot at apprehending Pietersen. They had stormed Cybio headquarters and used a prototype EMF weapon to crash the rogue Silex chip and take Pietersen into custody. They also knew by holding Pietersen’s body in a cryo vat, it was feasible to keep the chip off-line by reducing brain activity to a minimum. Under immense pressure Cybio’s CEO, Mark Morgan, reluctantly agreed to this course of action or risk losing everything including the chance to launch a modified version of the Silex chip, designed purely to treat type two diabetes.

That was all history now with the worldwide success of the Silex-DB1 diabetes chip confirming Morgan made the right decision in handing over Pietersen but the CEO unable to overcome the feeling he had betrayed his research team, resigned from the company as soon as the DB1 chip reached the market.

A copy of the CIA ‘Justification for Action Report’ was the last item in the file and provided evidence that the chip and operating system Pietersen created and hosted in his own body, was trying to take control of the young scientist to pursue an independent agenda aimed at increasing the number of hosts with this rogue configuration. This led to unpredictable behaviour, fits of extreme temper and the risk he would abscond. In view of the strategic value of Pietersen's self-healing ability and his staggeringly learning ability, the Agency concluded that if he could not function within the Cybio research environment, action was necessary to prevent the technology he carried from falling into the hands of a foreign power or criminal organisation. That’s why an elite team replaced the impetuous Martinez to ensure the second attempt to secure Pietersen succeeded.

Over the next few days, Calloway spent most evenings dredging the Facility’s archive records for more information and became obsessed with Pietersen. He wanted to share the discovery with his science team colleagues who might provide answers to some of his many questions but the original file contained an explicit warning not to share the data with anyone below the rank of Regional Director. All the documentation stressed that before any disclosure, clearance from the Department of Strategic Affairs must be obtained. Calloway needed to know more about this shadowy organisation. A little off-the-record enquiry revealed this little known Department to be a joint CIA/Pentagon operation in which the Agency acted as the junior partner.

Calloway surmised the Department provided a vehicle by which the CIA might conduct operations inside the USA, albeit against its official remit. Calloway, like most career CIA executives, possessed a strong reluctance to share data with the Pentagon, who had a long history of taking control of projects and claiming the credit. However, if the Pietersen story was true, the DS&T Facility was secretly hosting a massively important asset, which had been overlooked for over a decade. The files focussed on the military implications of Pietersen’s recovery from the potentially fatal gunshot wound and subsequent stabbing. These recoveries, without any significant medical intervention made Pietersen appear to be superhuman.

Not some Marvel comic character or complex cyborg but a normal human enhanced through a revolutionary chip simply implanted under the skin, which grew neural connections with the brain. Despite the irresponsible action of Dr Pietersen, his unauthorised departure from the strictly controlled implementation schedule of the Crossover project, had achieved astounding results. In the years following Pietersen’s incarceration, Cybio successfully exploited the diabetes cure, which became a mainstream medical solution with the Silex-DB1 chip in use across the world.

Each evening Calloway read and reread all the information uncovered. Taking the files off-site and reading them at home broke a dozen different rules and left him in a very difficult position. On one hand, any disclosure that millions of recipients carried a chip with undisclosed potential to transform them into something superhuman was dynamite. Nevertheless, the ability to self-heal offered a huge benefit to those who risked their lives in the police and emergency services let alone the military.

The evidence that Pietersen was unpredictable and unlikely to cooperate in any Government controlled programme, led Calloway to leave things as they were and focus on his new role as Facilities Manager. In the weeks that followed, Calloway found that the science team handled all the day-to-day priorities around the DS&T Facility and his role was supervisory rather than hands-on. This gave him a great deal of spare time, so over the next few months, he kept coming back to the Pietersen file. He decided to learn more about the circumstances leading up to Pietersen's incarceration and started to make some discreet enquiries about the project Crossover team at Cybio. Since the successful market launch of the Silex-DB1 diabetes chip, Cybio had created a dedicated division to bring additional enhancements to the market, completely changing the pharmaceutical’s sector. Cybio’s CEO, Mark Morgan had long since retired and become something of a hermit, living in the wilds of the Sierra Nevada Mountains.  The original Project Head, Peter Brown left the company just before the market launch and used the sales of his shares to go into fish farming. One name jumped out of the file, Dr Mary McClusky who appeared to not only, be Dr Pietersen’s boss but also a close friend. She shared the secret of Pietersen’s incarceration and had special permission to visit the cryo facility to check on Vat 75, but the log revealed that no visit had occurred for many months. Another significant caveat in the notes was the Agency’s agreement to inform Dr McClusky should Pietersen be revived and invite her to be involved in some undefined role in his future. The woman obviously had more than a professional relationship with Pietersen or at least that’s what the maverick scientist believed before his internment.

There was only one logical next step; Calloway needed to talk to McClusky. Now forty-seven, she had recently retired from the role of Science Director but held a non-executive position on the Cybio Board.

CHAPTER 2

Mary McClusky woke around 9.30 am, glanced at her bedside clock and for a second almost panicked about being late for work. Then she remembered that work finished a month ago, and she was now retired and free to do whatever she wanted. The problem was she did not play golf, have any hobbies or belong to any charity fund raising committees, so since clearing her desk at Cybio she struggled to come to terms with the concept of retirement, particularly at such a young age. She was also struggling to cope with a recently reactivated conscience. Whilst clearing her office and locker she had stumbled across photographs and notes on Carsten Pietersen and felt guilty that she had not visited the DS&T cryo unit in several months to check on their mystery guest. Although Carsten would be, none the wiser and everyone else who worked on the original Crossover Project seemed to have forgotten about Carsten’s detention, she was unable to shake off the guilt of abandoning him.

As she ate breakfast and thumbed through the newspaper, her mind remembered the happy times when Carsten was a geeky young man who reminded her of the cartoon character, Shaggy Roberts, Scooby Doo’s sidekick. He had an engaging naivety but from the start demonstrated an exceptional ability to write innovative neural programming code. The shrill ring of the telephone shook Mary from her musing. When she answered, a deep Irish American voice asked, Is that Dr Mary McClusky? Although an innocent question heard a million times before, something suggested caution and she replied, Who is this? After a pause the voice came back, My name is Patrick Calloway and I work for the Government. He continued, I was wondering if you could possible spare me half an hour to talk about a colleague of yours, Dr Carsten Pietersen?

A cold shiver ran up Mary’s spine and it was her turn to pause. The silence was longer than expected and the Calloway said, Hello, are you still there? Mary was unable to speak, her stomach turning to knots of fear. She had an uncanny hunch that she knew what Government agency Mr Calloway represented. She finally found her voice and replied, Exactly what business do you have with Dr Pietersen? I am not at liberty to discuss this over the telephone but I can assure you there is nothing sinister in my call. I am new to my position and one of my responsibilities is the San Diego Directorate of Science and Technology Facility, he added. Then quickly continuing, We both know why this Facility is significant but I have only a few out of date files from which to work and in view of the nature of this situation, I am keen to understand why we are maintaining this course of action. Mary was about to mention the cryogenic detention of her friend but Calloway interrupted saying, Please Dr McClusky, I would prefer to talk to you in private and if you don’t like what I ask, you are at liberty to walk away and not speak to me again. Part of Mary was telling her not to get involved, and the part was telling her she needed to meet this man for Carsten’s sake.

Exactly what are you suggesting Mr Calloway, Mary asked. Using his best Irish American charm Calloway said, Perhaps I might buy you dinner and we could talk about this situation?

When? replied Mary and Calloway surprised her by saying, I could drive up to San Francisco this afternoon and meet you this evening, if convenient? Suspicion reignited Mary asked, What’s the hurry?

No hurry Dr McClusky, I have a gap in my diary, which would allow me to come up to San Francisco and I understand that you have now retired and may be able to accommodate my request. Dammed if I do and dammed if I don’t thought Mary, then agreed to the meeting. She added one proviso, that they meet at Twenty Five Lusk around 9.00 pm, deciding that she might as well enjoy a top-flight meal at the Government’s expense. Calloway accepted without hesitation, giving Mary his mobile phone number in case of any problems. He then rang off and left Mary staring into space unsure if she had made the right decision.

She showered, dressed, and considered how she would handle this evening’s meeting. For the first time in a long while, she thought of Mark Morgan, Cybio’s ex-CEO with whom she had developed a close and loving relationship, which foundered on the rocks of what she still felt, was the betrayal of Carsten. Mary had no idea where Mark actually lived. She kept in touch with his son-in-law, Brad Clifton, who had been Head of Security at Cybio but resigned not long after Mark. He continued to live and work in San Francisco but it was over a year since they had spoken on the telephone and approaching three years since she had last seen him and his wife Lizzie. That last meeting proved very difficult as Lizzie made her aware that her father never got over their failed relationship and withdrew from the world to live in isolation in a log cabin in the mountains. That isolation included sporadic contact with his daughter and for that loss, she held Mary responsible.

Mary needed to talk to someone about this sudden development and knew that Brad would provide level-headed advice and perhaps suggest how best to deal with the CIA’s new found interest. After a great deal of soul searching, she decided to contact Brad after her meeting with Calloway when she would have a clearer idea of what he wanted. The rest of the day was taken up with compiling a list of questions that she thought would reveal the truth behind Calloway contacting her. Now in control of her emotions, she smiled to herself thinking; she was still a scientist at heart and a logical approach to the problem was the only way to cope with the approaching dinner that evening.

CHAPTER 3

Patrick Calloway had left his office in San Diego within half an hour of speaking to Mary McClusky, telling his secretary he would be away for two days. He had an eight-hour drive ahead of him and wanted to be at the restaurant before Mary McClusky. Calloway used the journey to get his thoughts into order and decide how to broach the subject of retrieving Pietersen from cryogenic storage. His investigation revealed Mary McClusky had always expressed guilt about Pietersen’s detention and with luck; she might be persuaded to help in the rehabilitation of the young scientist. There were one or two underlying problems to consider; the fact Mary was ten years older whilst Carsten would still be physically in his late twenties. Also his reaction to the incarceration. It appeared the scientist exhibited some disturbing signs of instability before his capture and removal to the DS&T facility. Although all recent trials had shown a high potential level of success when removing people from the cryo tanks, no actual recoveries of a human had been attempted and no tests involved subjects carrying a Silex chip or a modified neurological system. The big question, which someone as astute as Dr McClusky was bound to ask, related to what would happen if Pietersen proved impossible to control. The option to return the scientist to the cryo tank remained, but no data existed on whether a second freezing/unfreezing would be successful.

Having checked into a hotel, he travelled by taxi to the restaurant so he could calm his nerves with a double whisky sour and reflect on why he was so uptight. Could it be the excitement of the potential Pietersen offered or the tricky task of tiptoeing around the Doctor’s guilty feelings and suspicion of the Agency's past and future role? He concluded, by persuading Mary McClusky that her onward involvement was in Pietersen’s best interests, he might secure a reluctant but extremely valuable asset.

Calloway arrived half an hour before Mary McClusky and spoke with the maître de, using his full CIA title, to ensure a secluded table where there was little risk of being overheard. Mary arrived just a few minutes late and was shown to Calloway’s table. Calloway was pleased to see the Doctor was even more attractive than the photographs in the case file had suggested and thought at worse he faced an enjoyable evening in the company of a beautiful woman. The plan was to let things develop slowly, ordering drinks to start and asking if it was OK to call her Mary. Then using his Agency training to kept things light, seek a quick update of Mary’s current situation whilst providing a little background information on his own recent career. Mary was keen to get to the point but employing his best Irish charm Calloway kept the discussion away from Carsten whilst the waiter served the entrée. Calloway realised they would not get to desert without some frank replies but wanted his guest to relax as much as possible.

Eventually, he conceded the need to be more forthcoming and explained his discovery of Dr Pietersen’s details, filed under Top Secret. He described the implications of the tragic accident that had killed most of the people aware of Carsten’s true identity and the impact this must have had on any scheduled reassessment of the need to keep him in cryogenisis. As the current DS&T Facility Manager, he felt that this case should have been reviewed many years ago. In fairness to Dr Pietersen, he wanted to gather and then reconsider the facts of the case and determine whether it was in the National Interest for this confinement to be continued or whether there was an alternative course of action. Mary jumped at this comment asking whether he was suggesting Carsten might be revived and what would happen to him then. Patrick Calloway understood he had reached the critical point in the meeting and looked Mary in the eye saying, Firstly, the decision on what happens to Carsten is not mine to make. I need to discuss this with senior members of the Agency who will understand the wider risk to the National Interest. As you are aware Carsten’s detention in the Facility arose because of a concern about his long term actions and the potential risk to himself and to the nation of him being abducted by a foreign power or terrorist organisation. He explained, Unlike our other guests, Carsten was unable to agree the conditions under which he would be revived. The sudden death of the case officers meant no ongoing assessment was in progress and is why I am trying to establish exactly where we stand.

Mary interrupted before Calloway continued, So if the shadowy figures with whom you work decided Carsten should be revived, would he be free to leave the Facility, would he be transferred to another Federal establishment and would he be held against his will, despite having committed no crime?

Calloway responded, Actually Carsten can be implicated in two deaths, one of a Federal officer, so although a different form of detention was chosen, he could have been sentenced to life in a Federal Facility. Although I concede that due process of law was not followed. It was obvious from the increasing volume of her replies Mary was becoming increasingly agitated, so Calloway decided to allay her fears.

When I examined the case file I found certain conditions were conceded by the Agency under pressure from Mark Morgan. These included your access to the Facility to verify everything was OK and an offer that should Dr Pietersen be revived, you would have a place in any team established to rehabilitate him. Before I take this case any further, it would be helpful to know where you now stand. It is some time since you last visited the Facility and I hasten to add this observation is not a criticism. However, your circumstances have changed, so in one respect you are less involved with the Crossover project and you can probably take on a new role should you so decide.

Mary’s mouth dropped open, but she was unable to formulate an answer so Calloway kept talking, Clearly, it would be in everyone’s best interest if Carsten saw a friendly face if he was revived. Should he agree to cooperate with any ongoing research project, I am sure your input would be exceptionally valuable.

And if he disagreed and rebelled against any continued detention would I be expected to stand by and let the Agency repeat that heinous act, she retorted with emotion cracking her voice. The arrival of the waitress with coffee and liquors broke the mounting tension and gave Calloway a few moments to regroup. The attentive waitress took a few minutes to serve