Fire in the Blood

In the heart of a sweltering Lagos battlefield, a routine patrol turns into a biohazard emergency. With biowarfare alerts flashing and vitals in freefall, Captain Vaughn must act fast—before infection claims her team.

A medical drone evacuates an injured soldier in a high-tech pod, while military personnel work seamlessly to administer aid.

Lagos, Nigeria – 2045

The air was thick with humidity and the scent of burning electrical wires from a drone strike just two blocks away. Captain Eleanor Vaughn, the General Duties Medical Officer, barely flinched as her tablet pulsed red. "ALERT: Two personnel in medical distress. Possible bioweapon or epidemic pathogen detected. Isolate immediately."

Her augmented reality visor flickered, overlaying a map of their forward operating base with a flashing grid where the affected soldiers—Private Kowalski and Corporal Adeyemi—were located.

Their uniforms’ biometric sensors had flagged them as critically unwell

Their core temperatures were skyrocketing, heart rates erratic. Blood and interstitial fluid samples had already been drawn via their subdermal sampling devices and were en route to the team’s AI-driven diagnostic hub.

"Jackson! Nyla! With me!" Vaughn barked at her Combat Medical Technicians as she moved.

The CMTs had already donned their sterile exo-gloves and powered on their positive pressure isolation bags—inflatable containment units that looked like altitude chambers but were designed for battlefield pathogen control. The AI embedded in the bags adjusted oxygen levels and filtration settings in real time.

They reached the soldiers in under sixty seconds. Kowalski was drenched in sweat, shivering. Adeyemi was barely conscious, his vitals dipping dangerously. The AI, integrated into Vaughn’s visor, generated a treatment decision tree.

"Diagnosis uncertain. Probability matrix suggests 40% bioweapon exposure, 30% environmental pathogen, 20% foodborne illness, 10% unknown. Immediate isolation advised."

"Contain them," Vaughn ordered.

Hiss. The isolation bags sealed around the two soldiers, bio-linked through their pre-access ports to the IV lines and life support built into the system. Within seconds, automated vitals monitoring and AI-assisted interventions stabilized them.

Nyla injected a single diagnostic nanobot into Kowalski’s IV. The tiny machine flowed through his bloodstream, scanning for pathogens, cross-referencing every known database of engineered and natural infections. Seconds ticked by. The AI chimed.

"Negative identification. Unknown pathogen. Further testing required."

Vaughn frowned. That wasn’t good.

"Requesting rapid resupply," she muttered, tapping her visor’s command interface. A secure transmission pulsed back to HQ.

Miles away, an autonomous resupply drone launched from a forward logistics station, weaving through the night like a metal hornet. Within four minutes, it touched down inside the FOB, releasing a point-of-care PCR device no larger than a cell phone.

Jackson retrieved it and extracted a fluid sample from Adeyemi’s pre-access port. The AI processed the sample, scanning for genomic markers.

RESULT: Highly engineered bacterium. Unknown mutations detected. Biosecurity Level 4 agent. Probable weaponized infection.

Vaughn’s heart pounded. "Shit. This isn't just bad luck. Someone deployed this deliberately."

The FOB commander’s voice crackled over her comms. "Medical team, prepare for immediate high-risk MEDEVAC. Enemy forces inbound. You’ve got five minutes before we lose air superiority."

She activated the call for their autonomous medical evacuation UAV

A sleek, heavily shielded drone designed to extract critically ill personnel from war zones arrived in under ninety seconds. Its AI seamlessly integrating into the isolation bags' medical systems.

"AI Medical Override: Engaging stabilization protocols. Initiating remote link with UK-based specialists."

On a screen embedded in the drone’s hull, a telemedicine team—doctors sitting half a world away—flashed online. "Dr. Vaughn, we're with you."