"It isn't ready for field tests." The voice that uttered the words was filled with the weariness of the eternally put upon. The person speaking did nothing to dispel that impression. The speaker would have been quite tall if he hadn't been afflicted with a permanent slouch, and his face gave a general impression of sad droopiness. The owner of the voice was Herman, and he was an engineer.
"And yet I have scheduled one anyway. Because I believe in you. Because I believe in this company. And because I believe our creditors are close to pulling the plug." This was the voice of confidence. It could only come from a man in a perfectly fitted suit. Handsome, in an ivy league sort of way. The owner of this voice was Bertram, and he was a CEO.
"And you did promise me it wouldn't kill anyone." Bertram said, confidency abutting against a not completely hidden bit of worry..
"I said it is unlikely to kill someone. You didn't even ask what unlikely means in that context." Herman said.
"Well, if this fails we're all dead." Bertram said, "The subjects will just get a head start. Game faces now."
"This is my only face." Herman said. Though in spite of his words he managed to look even more downtrodden.
A loud ding broke up the conversation. The doors of their elevator opened into a very large room, with a screen dominating the far wall, and rings of desks facing it. Every desk had a person sitting at it. And every one of these people was wearing, regardless of gender, a white button down shirt and navy chinos.
In front of them, with numerous stars prominently displayed on a perfectly pressed blue uniform, was a general. He was flanked by a pair of colonels.
"Bertram Guilden, I presume?" The general said, presenting a practiced and confident handshake.
"You presume correctly." Bertram said, as he returned the handshake with equal confidence. "And this is my associate and lead engineer Herman Bartleby." Bertram said.
The general carefully sized up Herman and decided that Herman was not a handshake guy. He turned his attention back to Bertram.
"I am not going to lie to you, I think your product is a bunch of bullshit wrapped up in a fuzzy old cocoon of hope. But the press is getting real tired of us killing people to win battles. Which, I don't need to tell you, has been historically the most effective way."
"Well General, I think you'll find that war is evolving, and we're the start of it. Our product is non-lethal, is within the bounds of the Geneva Convention, and is significantly less expensive than the tools you currently use to wage war."
"Cheaper than a bullet, son?"
"Long term, yes. The upfront cost of a bullet is cheap. But the long term costs? Damn near incalculable."
"Well let's see how your little dog and pony show goes before we start questioning the wisdom of lead."
With that the General led them to a set of chairs at the topmost ring of desks.
"I do want to stress that, until quite recently, we were solely in trials." Herman said. "The trials were promising of course, but realistically we are three-"
"Weeks," Interrupted Bertram. "Three weeks away from production readiness. Assuming a generous contribution from the defense department. We already have contractors lined up. All American, of course. Our tech is far too sophisticated to get into foreign hands."
"Son," The general said, looking at Bertram, "Let's stop talking about what might happen and let's see what does happen. If this is as good as you say the checks will write themselves. Now stop jabbering and let's run the test."
The giant screen flickered to life. A squad of ten soldiers stood in the middle of a clearing in the woods. Seven women, three men, standing vaguely at attention and trying not to stare into the cameras.
The general clicked on a microphone at the desk, then spoke.
"Soldiers, thank you for volunteering. This is a test of a non lethal suppression device. For this mission you have to walk north, one klick. That is all. If the suppression device does not stop you then it is a failure."
The soldier with the most bars spoke up.
"Ain't nothing stopping us sir!"
The other nine let out a "Ooh Rah!"
"That's what I like to hear soldier. Mission commences now. Talk to you in ten minutes."
The soldiers set off a light jog, the cameras switching as they passed.
"I thought we agreed on ten klicks, General." Bertram said, the strain in his voice not quite as hidden as he'd like.
"We discussed. We did not agree. Tick tock gentleman." The general leaned back into his chair and turned towards the screen.
Bertram looked to Herman, who had a tablet in his hand.
"Permission to deploy General?" Herman asked.
"Granted."
"This will just take a minute." Herman said. "The drones were positioned for an intercept at five clicks, and of course given the humidity and the temperature they are not operating at peak efficiency--"
"Herman, do you know how fast our soldiers are? With a full load out they can cover a mile in under six minutes on flat terrain. And between those fir trees it is flat as hell. If you can't done what needs to be done in--"At this the general checked his watch --"The next two minutes then I can't rightly recommend your product."
"General, we were told ten klicks." Bertram said, in a voice as smooth as he could make it.
"This is a weapon of war. You can plan all you want, but you have to adapt."
"I protest--"
"I don;t care."
"Plotting intercept." Herman said. "Contact in ten, nine,"
"Show me something boys." The general said.
"Eight, Seven"
"This is highly irregular." Bertram said.
"Six, Five"
"Complain to your pinko congresswoman." The general said.
"Three, four."