A faint hum filled the blankness of limbo. Qi Meifen — once a flesh-and-blood doctor, then a faceless Admin worker, and now reduced to drifting data —slowly became aware of herself again. She had no physical body, no heartbeat, yet her consciousness remained intact, tethered to the vast machinery of Maxproxemix like a phantom.
Her last memory: the abrupt end of her assignment, and the swift, clinical termination that followed. Now, she existed in a realm of translucent code and flickering windows, waiting for a new opportunity to be reassigned.
Somewhere in that digital twilight, a soft chime sounded.
> LOCAL SYSTEM MESSAGE
> Department of Equanimity – Free Evaluation
A glowing message materialized in her vision. It bore the emblem of the local Department of Equanimity, whose mission was to ensure that the planet’s populace remained psychologically balanced, content, and — above all — loyal.
A calm, melodic voice played directly into Mei’s consciousness, as though reading from a script:
> DEPARTMENT OF EQUANIMITY
> Dear Qi Meifen. We have analyzed your mental profile and performance metrics from your last assignment in Admin—Complaints & Appeals.
>
> Our findings indicate that distracting thought patterns and strong emotional responses significantly impacted your decision-making, resulting in sub-optimal efficiency.
>
> Maxproxemix demands unwavering focus and contentment. Birthborn human minds may lack the necessary conditioning experience crippling distractions—fear, stress, moral hesitation.
>
> To facilitate your reintegration, we highly recommend adopting an appropriate Conditioning Package.
The statement concluded with a slight echo, leaving Mei disoriented. She had known, even before she first arrived, that Disposables were genetically engineered for unwavering focus, obedience and contentment. But she wasn’t a disposable—she was an offworlder with ordinary human emotional depth. By Maxproxemix standards, that made her a liability.
> SYSTEM NOTIFICATION
> Conditioning recommendations for Qi Meifen
1. > Emotion Damping v2.0 (150 credits) – Reduces fear, anxiety, guilt. Preserves mild curiosity.
2. > Obedience Reinforcement (100 credits) – Enhances compliance with hierarchical commands.
3. > Linguistic Focus Patch (75 credits) – Improves ability to parse and analyze large volumes of natural language data.
4. > Comprehensive Recalibration v1.1 (200 credits) – Overhauls emotional reflexes, cultivates loyalty.
5. > Discounted Combo Pack (400 credits) – Combines the above for total synergy (insufficient credits).
Even in limbo, Mei could see her credit balance in a small corner of her mental HUD:
> ACCOUNT BALANCE: 249.75 CREDITS
Thanks to the modest payout from her ill-fated stint, she now had enough to afford some mix of these “enhancements.”
The Department of Equanimity concluded its pitch:
> Given your environment on Maxproxemix, we strongly advise you to undergo conditioning before seeking a new assignment. Without it, your risk of repeated termination remains high.
The message dissolved, replaced by a blinking prompt:
> PURCHASE CONDITIONING PACKAGE?
> YES | NO
In the empty digital void, Mei pondered her limited freedom. She could decline, remain unconditioned—and likely fail again, facing a swift recycling. Or she could pay for modifications that would quiet her anxieties, bury her doubts, and align her personality with the hyper-efficient soul of Maxproxemix.
She glanced at the recommended packages. Comprehensive Recalibration (200 credits) looked robust enough without going over budget. Perhaps she could add the Linguistic Focus Patch (75 credits) to gain an extra edge. That would total 275 credits—too high for her 249.75.
Her second option: Emotion Damping v2.0 (150 credits) plus Linguistic Focus Patch (75 credits) made 225 credits, which would leave her 24.75 credits in her balance. But that might not be as thorough a solution as the “Comprehensive Recalibration.”
The numbers whirled in her mind. She felt a jolt of unease about surrendering her emotional autonomy. But the memory of being forcibly terminated—and the humiliating sense of failure—still burned in her consciousness. She had come here on a cultural exchange, hoping to learn. What could she possibly learn if she was re-recycled in less than a cycle?
She selected:
* Comprehensive Recalibration v1.1 (200 credits) — Overhauls emotional reflexes, cultivates loyalty.
* Linguistic Focus Patch (75 credits) — Improves ability to parse and analyze large volumes of natural language data.
Error. That would cost 275, which she didn’t have. She tried to confirm it anyway, but the interface beeped negatively. She’d have to settle for something else.
“Fine…” she muttered in the silence of her own mind. She picked:
* Emotion Damping v2.0 (150 credits)
* Linguistic Focus Patch (75 credits)
Total: 225 credits. That left her with 24.75 credits—a small cushion, at least. Her intangible finger hovered over the “Confirm Purchase” button, the final door between free will and reprogramming. But a calm part of her recognized there was no real alternative if she wanted to function here. She took a breath—though, in this limbo, it was purely psychological—and pressed Confirm.
Immediately, a new system window unfurled:
> PURCHASE CONFIRMED
> Emotion Damping v2.0 + Efficiency Focus Patch
> Processing Payment…
> CREDITS DEDUCTED: 225
> REMAINING BALANCE: 24.75
Then a final prompt pulsed into view:
> NOTIFICATION
> CONDITIONING: INITIATING
> PREPARE FOR SYSTEM OVERRIDE
Mei felt a jolt at the core of her mind. For an instant, she tried to brace herself—then everything went black, even blacker than the void of limbo.
She experienced an electric surge of white noise, as if her consciousness were being torn apart and reconfigured on a molecular level. Her personal memories, feelings, and reflexes were forcibly reorganized. The fear she had felt—the panic under suffocating workload—seemed distant, muted. Even the sharp regret of her termination began to fade into a dull shape at the edge of her awareness.
Ghostly images flickered: a swirl of half-remembered training instructions, compliance reinforcements, code after code rewriting her neural pathways. She had no sense of time. It could have taken seconds or entire cycles.
At some point, a single line of text flashed in the swirling oblivion:
> “Maxproxemix has no place for doubt. Efficiency is paramount. Service is pride.”
Then, with a snap, the process ended.
Qi’s senses—if they could be called that in limbo—flickered back. Suddenly, she felt more centered, more calm. Where there had been an undercurrent of tension and dread, she now felt… acceptance. No crushing regrets. No gnawing fear about the future. The conditioning had quite literally dulled her emotional responses—just as promised.
> SYSTEM REBOOT COMPLETED
> Conditioning packages successfully installed.
> Emotion Damping v2.0 – Active
> Linguistic Focus Patch – Active
A flutter of cold excitement coursed through Mei, but not the frantic or anxious kind—more like a steady, unwavering readiness. Part of her recognized that she’d just sacrificed some piece of her individuality. But it no longer bothered her, and that thought was quickly sidelined by the priority that glowed in her mind:
* Acquire new assignment
* Perform tasks with minimal emotional interference
* Thrive under Maxproxemix standards
She felt motivated. The old Mei might have questioned the ethics of this “brainwashing.” Now, she only felt a calm determination to make better use of her second chance.
This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version.
Another system window appeared:
> NEW ASSIGNMENT OPPORTUNITIES:
> 1. Admin Department - Cultural Exchange Specialist (Retrial)
> 2. Industrial Ward Administrative Aide
> 3. Microplant Efficiency Coordinator
> 4. Nutrient Paste QA Specialist
> 5. Department of Equanimity - Councillor (Intern)
> 6. Department of Flow – Radiator Maintenance Engineer
> ...
Mei scanned them all in a fraction of a second, her newly upgraded mind parsing the text with remarkable speed. She felt a surge of gratification at how easy it was now, a tingle of pleasure from fulfilling the prime directive to be efficient.
And for the first time since her arrival on Maxproxemix, she did not feel overwhelmed or terrified. She felt… perfectly functional.
With her new conditioning, she was ready—ready to choose a path forward in this colossal, planet-wide machine that consumed everything and everyone in the name of marginal gains.
Service is pride, the conditioning whispered. We exist to serve.
She applied for the retrial with the Admin Department.
> SYSTEM NOTIFICATION
> Application Granted
> ASSIGNMENT UPDATED
> Position: Cultural Exchange Specialist
> Assigned Department: Admin – Complaints & Appeals
A smile—a numb, placid smile—formed in the intangible corner of Qi’s consciousness. She was ready to begin again.
===
A swirl of sterile fluid. A faint glow from overhead lights. A slow, measured pulsing in newly formed arteries and veins. Qi Meifen’s consciousness drifted toward the surface of a clone vat, resurrected in flesh for the second time on Maxproxemix. Yet, unlike her first awakening—which had been fraught with shock and confusion—this time, she felt only calm acceptance.
Mei’s genetic blueprint, stored securely in Maxproxemix’s data vaults, activated a specialized growth chamber. Microscopic nanoscale drones assembled her body layer by layer: bone lattice first, then muscle strands, then an intricate web of nerves. A neutral nutrient solution, thick with proteins and nanites, surrounded her forming tissues.
As her brain took shape, the infomorph that was Qi Meifen seamlessly integrated with the neural template. Under normal circumstances, merging a digital consciousness with new synapses would have induced existential dread. But the Emotion Damping v2.0 made the process feel like flipping through an orderly list of tasks. Her cortical folds synchronized with the preloaded neural map, forging continuity of identity—if not continuity of memory.
Automated needles descended into the vat, injecting tailored hormones to ensure a stable circadian rhythm, minimal stress response, and properly aligned doping for mental acuity. The Linguistic Focus Patch data wove itself into her hippocampus, making memory recall and data processing more streamlined.
A soft whir signaled the draining of the nutrient solution. Medical servomechs gently lifted the new body—a perfect copy of Qi Meifen’s physiognomy—from the vat and laid her on a metallic gurney. Tubes and cables detached from her forearms and spine. An overhead speaker announced, in calm monotone:
> Clone Sequence Complete.
Mei’s eyes opened. This time, no panic—only a mild curiosity at the lights overhead. The overhead beams reflected off a polished ceiling, and her retinas adjusted quickly. She felt the dryness of her newly minted skin, the mild ache of fresh muscles not yet accustomed to gravity.
Her brain—now embedded with advanced conditioning—registered these sensations as negligible details. Standing up is required, her mind declared with a crisp mental efficiency. She swung her legs off the gurney and set her feet on the cold floor.
A single note blinked in her field of vision:
> CLONE STATUS: ACTIVE
> BODY ID: QI MEIFEN (INSTANCE 2)
> CONDITIONING: STABLE
She experienced no surge of relief or excitement—only a determined readiness. With practiced composure, Mei walked out of the clone bay and into the corridor leading back to her place of work.
The corridor was identical to her memory: The endless hordes of workers marching in tight formations, the seamless metal panels, a faint hum of power lines, overhead cables forming a mesh. She navigated swiftly, guided by the occasional notification in her mind and by the unstoppable impetus of moving bodies.
And there, in front of the Admin—Complaints & Appeals entry hatch, stood the same attendent who had kindly led her inside on her first try… and also disposed her when she failed. He wore the same unassuming grey uniform, that same unwavering, helpful smile.
“Citizen-Doctor Qi Meifen!” he greeted with genuine warmth, his voice brimming with unshakeable positivity. “Welcome back! We are so glad you have rejoined us.”
Previously, she could easily have felt unease about being welcomed by the same individual that killed her without a second thought not too long ago. Now, she felt nothing beyond a basic acknowledgment. She gave him a tiny nod.
“Thank you,” she said, her voice smooth and steady. No resentment. No fear. Simply a polite civility.
If the Attendant noticed the stark difference in her demeanor, it showed no sign other than a slight brightening of its unblinking eyes. It gestured politely for her to follow. “This way, Citizen-Doctor.”
Mei stepped into the cavernous Admin Department again. This time, she barely noticed its intimidating scale—20-kilometer-high superstructure or not, it was just background noise. The endless rows of manned stations, massive data screens, the myriad of glowing cables snaking from the ceiling—this was her domain now, and she felt perfectly at ease.
The attendent guided her to a waiting seat. She recognized it as the same station where she had toiled and failed before. With her new conditioning, any recollection of that failure sparked only a mild desire to improve.
Metal clasps extended from the seat, snapping into place around her torso and wrists. A slender cable rose from behind, connecting to the small port at the base of her neck. No momentary jolt of fear this time; just a relaxed acceptance as data began flowing across her vision.
* Interface Activation: A rolling string of code scrolled across her HUD, verifying that Qi Meifen (v2) was recognized.
* Data Link: The console’s OS merged with her augmented neural pathways, granting her near-instant access to the planet’s labyrinthine administrative records.
* Conditioning Overrides: Subroutines spun up, ensuring that any emotional surges would be repressed.
> NOTIFICATION
> Interim Goals:
> 1) Your efficiency rating must exceed 25% by the commencement of your first evaluation period.
> Failure to complete will result in immediate termination.
> Have a safe and productive cycle!
Mei mentally reviewed the macros for complaint resolution, but this time, the details felt second nature. She needed no frantic scanning of policy files; her internal Linguistic Focus Patch instantly cross-referenced the database.
> NOTIFICATION
> Ready for Processing.
> Pending Cases: 12,492
> Evaluation in 150 millicycles.
Begin.
> Batch 1
* > Case #1: Microfactory worker requests shift swap.
>
> * Cross-checks: labor policy 54.2 + reference to sub-district constraints.
> * Assessment: Applicable sub-clause violation).
> * Deny.
>
>
* > Case #2: Supervisor disputes resource allotment.
>
> * Reference departmental budget logs. High priority, but the data shows a shortfall.
> * Approve partial allotment.
>
>
* > Case #3:Disposal unit’s complaint about defective equipment.
>
> * Misfiled self-report. Low priority.
> * Defer.
Case after case flicked in her mind, her responses near instantationeous. After hundreds of cases were processed, her interface whizzes:
> BATCH COMPLETE
> Efficiency Gains: +5.0%
Immediately, she experiences a pleasant mental ping—the new conditioning rewarding her for each correct, efficient judgment. Instead of fear or pressure, she feels a crisp surge of motivation, a satisfied hum in her mind that encourages her to keep going. She quickly moves on to the next batch.
> Batch 2
* > Six subcases revolve around coolant reallocation. Please reference the Department of Flow general guidelines.
* > Cluster deals with scheduling expansions for sub-block U21. Identifies potential solutions.
Mei’s new brain swiftly sorts them into “approve” or “deny,” referencing the relevant Department of Flow guidelines. She moves on to the next task and identifies the standard solution in milliseconds.
> BATCH COMPLETE
> Additional Gains: +3.5%
> Cumulative Efficiency: 8.5%
The harness hums approvingly. Mei can sense the synergy of her improved mental processes. Her quick decisions no longer feel like guesswork. She’s not skipping steps—she’s simply analyzing them at lightning speed with minimal emotional interference.
A more complex set of disputes regarding heat radiator quotas appears. Mei’s Linguistic Focus Patch retrieves relevant sections of the planet’s thermal management protocol. She instantly sees a path to optimizing these lines, selecting “Approve, Approve, Deny” with concise justifications that the system automatically logs.
> BATCH COMPLETE
> +6.2% Efficiency
> Cumulative Efficiency: 14.7%
Her mind churns contentedly as she processes batch after batch. She notices a subtle phenomenon: each time she nails a decision, the system’s neural link feeds her a microdose of compliance satisfaction. A mild euphoria builds with each correct judgment, fueling her drive to keep going at this breakneck pace.
As Mei is mid-approval on a dispute about sub-district shift changes, a wide notification expands across her HUD:
> EVALUATION IMMENENT
> 0.003 Cycles Remaining...
> 0.002...
> 0.001...
She doesn’t even break pace when the timer hits zero. The harness’s feed flickers once, and a calm, mechanical tone states:
> REPORT
> Energy Usage vs. Output Final Efficiency: 28.1%
> INTERIM GOAL: COMPLETED
> ASSESSMENT: PASSED
> DECISION: VIABLE
There is no surge of triumphant relief, no wild excitement—only a subdued note of satisfaction. For a moment, Mei allows herself a half-smile. She has cleared the crucial threshold. She is, by every metric, valuable to Maxproxemix now.
The harness retracts as her shift concludes without incident. The same attended who escorted (and killed) her stands by, still wearing its unwavering smile.
“Congratulations, Citizen-Doctor Qi Meifen. You are proceeding at an excellent rate.” It speaks as though they were meeting for the first time, no mention of her prior disposal.
Mei merely nods, face impassive. “Thank you.” Then she returns her attention to the console, already anticipating the next wave of tasks with a newfound sense of professional zeal.
No bitterness. No hesitation. She is prepared to serve.
Around her, Maxproxemix hums with the industry of quadrillions of loyal workers. inside, Qi Meifen has become an integral part of that machine—her mind sharpened and her emotions harnessed. The planet demands unwavering efficiency, and now, with the dull ache of any emotional friction excised, Mei stands ready to answer that call.