Kairos Neurochip Trial 18

A short story

It’s 2034 and tech giant Kairos has a neurochip in most of America. They can access memories,
thoughts, decisions, and even the past. Kairos sees an opportunity. They use their power to swallow
mass consciousness whole, and the only people free are the un-chipped. Kurtis Gould, a convicted
burglar, walks out of prison in 2034 unchipped and unaware of Kairos’s malicious agenda. He signs
up for a Kairos experiment that pays $100,000 across three months. The conditions are 1.) Kurtis
must get chipped and 2.) Kurtis must be the subject of confidential Kairos neurochip trials.
Kurtis finds himself in a different prison. One worse than the cold cells in the real world. He’s
trapped in his mind, held hostage by the neurochip. As he progresses through the trials he gains
more control, and when he reaches trial 18, he grasps a chance for a better world. He’s told to
contact his past self because Kairos wants to know if a chipped brain can access an un-chipped
brain. Kurtis tests his luck and embeds a secret warning in his message to himself.
[TRANSMISSION STARTED]
[KAIROS NEUROCHIP TRIAL #18]
[SENDER: Kurtis Gould, 34, circa 2034]
[RECIPIENT: Kurtis Gould, 15, circa 2015]
...
I hope you hear me bud. They told me you're fifteen. Weird age. People tell you how to think. Don’t
let them. Keep your head up, stay in your lane, and do good by people. Life’s not bad yet. Get
some fresh air for fuck’s sake. Go to that park down the street, the one with the swings. I chipped
my tooth falling off those swings. You should too.
...
My point is kid, life is tough. Imagine you’re at sea. No. The sea’s at you, and it doesn’t mind
taking back the tuna on your hook. Don’t give it back. That fucker’s a thousand pounds. Control
the sea and fight that tuna Kurtis.
...
The fight lasts forever. It’s because you’re not supposed to get the tuna. The tuna means nothing
compared to the fight. The fight is what you’re doing this for. The fight is where you learn. I’ll give
you a lesson in advance, alright? Write this down. The first six lines you cast are the most important.
You got that? The first six. Because at the end of the first six lines are the fights you're not ready for.
...
I’ve been in those fights and gave up. I gave up Kurtis. I became a bad person. I got busted for
stealing fidget spinners from 7-11 when I was 16. I couldn’t control those urges. You might be
feeling those urges too. Fight them. Don’t let go of the rod. It starts with fidget spinners. I stole
fidget spinners, then video games, and pretty soon I was robbing people.
...
I didn’t want to stop. The greed. It got me. But it didn’t when I was fifteen. You still have the tuna
on the hook. You’re still fighting the good fight and you can’t let go of the rod. Not even when you
reel that thousand-pound fucker in. Cast the rod out and look for another fight.
...
Sometimes you won’t want to fight anymore. You’ll think it’s impossible. On these days, you’ll have
to get creative. Expand the comfort zone. Do things you wouldn’t normally do. You might find
something you like that you never would’ve imagined yourself liking.
...

I’ve never told anyone this, but expanding my comfort zone is what changed me into a better
person. It’s because I took my pants off and put them back on as quickly as possible in a casino.
Before you jump to conclusions, I wasn’t doing any weird shit. I was trying to get out of my rut. I
was gambling everything I had, every night. Stolen money. It meant nothing. If I lost, the next day
I’d rob someone else and be right back at the table like I never left. I felt like shit because I was shit!
And I wouldn’t face it.
...
It was a Wednesday night. I just robbed two drug dealers and had $10,000 in chips on the line with a
twenty versus the dealer’s ten. I was ready to win or lose. The dealer flipped a jack and we pushed. I
got my money back. Except it wasn’t my money. That’s when it popped into my head to take off my
pants and put them back on as quickly as possible.
...
I almost tore my back pocket off shoving the chips in. I started jogging to the bathroom and
realized I was wearing a tux. A rented tux that I never returned. “That shit took an hour to put on.
Now I have to untie my shoes and shit?” I thought. I started to doubt the whole thing. “Why did I
think to do this?” There wasn’t an answer I saw. All I knew was I had to do it. I thought I’d drop
dead if I didn’t.
...
I scurried into the bathroom like I was about to shit my pants and shook the casino when I closed
the door. It must’ve looked like something out of a cartoon. Shoes hitting the ceiling, belt jingling
against the ground as it’s kicked around, dust clouds filling the room.
...
When I got back to the blackjack table I slipped my hand in my back pocket like bread in a toaster.
The chips were gone. I patted my pockets like there was a fire spreading. No chips. They fell out
when I took off my pants. I sprinted to the bathroom and they were gone. Some fucker scooped
them up. I was pissed. Then something weird happened. I was relieved. It was like losing the chips
woke me up. I knew I had to get back in the good fight. I had to hook a tuna.
...
I was new to blackjack. I was more of a roulette guy. It was quicker. But I fell in love with the
strategy of blackjack. That was my first push. If I won I’d have the casino’s money. If I lost I’d have
nothing. But with a push, all I had was stolen money. I think that’s why my brain told me to take off
my pants and put them back on. My mind was blindfolded by greed, so my brain (or maybe it was
my soul) set a trap for me to realize it. I went home that night without chips or a plan, but hope.
The next day I returned the tux.
...
But I’d done too much. My past caught up to me and I went to prison. But I’m out now and I’ve
changed. I’m a better person, Kurtis. I’m much more like you. So if by the grace of God you receive
this, don’t feel like shit about yourself. You still have the tuna on the line. A tuna on your first line.
And remember, at the end of the first six lines are the fights you’re not ready for.
...
[TRANSMISSION ENDED]
[KAIROS NEUROCHIP TRIAL #18 CONCLUDED]
[SENDER: Kurtis Gould, 34, circa 2034]
[RECIPIENT: Kurtis Gould, 15, circa 2015]
...
[TRANSMISSION UNDER REVIEW]
[TRANSMISSION REVIEW FAILURE]
[REASON FOR FAILURE: Hidden message detected]

[TRANSMISSION DELETED]