#biometric augmentation

In the Empire™, all who are in the workforce/crewmembers/service are required to be biometrically augmented. While there are jobs exempt from this such as leadership/political/media/entertainment, most that require machinery operation will require its employees to become part machine themselves. In the mid-21st Century, the Empire™ took steps to regulate AI and make sure people didn't lose their jobs to AI; rather, they became integrated with it.

Those in the Imperial workforce are raised from birth into such vocations, trained for their jobs as soon as they can walk and talk. At age 10 is when the biometric augmentation surgery is typically performed to interface with Imperial system mainframes.

The surgery happens in two phases:

Phase I: Hardware Installation. The subject is basically cut open for a subcutaneous procedure to insert biometric circuitry, including intra-neural sensors, into their nervous system. In the brain, they are implanted with chips for wireless routers, uplinking, networking, and ID recognition via a system mainframe, and a retinal HUD is installed in the optic nerves. A silicone-encased lithium battery core to power the circuitry is installed near the heart. The subject's body is then resealed with no scarring.

Phase II: Software Installation. While in an induced coma, the subject's body is patched with electrodes via USB connection to a desktop where the setup/installation wizard can begin. The Imperial Operating System (colloquially referred to as the "iOS") is the first to be installed, and then the Imperial App Store is accessed to search for software and apps related to the subject's directive. While the subject is dormant, the REM is active, and the HUD will display messages such as "Downloading 1 of 5 updates", "Please do not power down your system", "Your system may restart several times during the process", etc. The newly-established biometric ID will also be uploaded and registered into the ☁️Imperial Cloud☁️. Once the setup wizard is complete, the subject will be awakened with the press of a button. Upon being fully activated, the subject will see a "Welcome" video play in their HUD; it looks something like this (well for starters, the actual video would open with the ✨Imperial Seal✨, not the 🍎 logo).

While not one of the two main stages, there is a finalization step in the process. Biometrically augmented people are considered products of the Empire™, and since the Empire™ values quality guaranteed or your money back, these people are given a permanent seal of approval—on the napes of their necks, they are tattooed with the ✨Imperial Seal✨ (similar to how a Louis Vuitton purse will have the "LV" branding all over, or a TV will display "Panasonic" or "Sony" prominently on its frame). The Empire™ sees value in all biometrically augmented individuals; from the maids and butlers serving prominent Imperial figureheads, to the social pariahs relegated to a life of trash compacting...they all bear the Empire™'s brand. Because although now part machine, they are still valued and cherished as loyal, Executive Membership card-carrying customers of the Empire™.

It's actually pretty easy to tell if a person is biometrically augmented aside from the ✨Imperial Seal✨ tattoo (and some occasional wearable tech). Due to the retinal HUD, their eyes will glow brighter than a non-augmented person. Their eyes are usually red, orange, yellow, turquoise, or blue, and will have an LED-like glow. Also, their circuitry apparently grants them super strength, enhanced stamina, lightning-fast reflexes, and an extended lifespan commonly referred to as a "warranty".

Bio-augmented people will also have "start-up" and "shut-down" sound effects play in their brains for their sleep/hibernation cycles. They can be pretty mix-and-match to the individual's taste, some sound like a musical fanfare, while others sound like a chime. There are other sound effects too, mainly for important alerts. Also, they can talk to interactive AI assistants such as Siri Alexa at will without the need for an external device like Meta-powered Ray-Bans; the chips for Meta-search are already installed in their prefrontal cortex or cerebellum...or something like that.

There are, of course, downsides to being bio-augmented. Computers and machines can break down and malfunction from time-to-time, and the Empire™'s workforce is no different. Best-case scenario is an occasional BSOD error (displayed in the HUD) that may cause a short freeze, worst-case scenario is that a malfunction or catastrophic failure error results in the individual being declared "Impounded" and sent off to troubleshooting/diagnostics. Impounds will wear a thick red cuff on their non-dominant hand that can, with the press of a button, force-hibernate the subject and then manually re-boot them into Safe Mode for troubleshooting sessions. Troubleshooting is done with the Impound being electrode-patched and doing basic vision/motion tests (like to sync with Wii motion controls) and testing equipment interfacing to find the error.

Aside from the aforementioned hiccups, bio-augmented people live their lives to the fullest. They eat, drink, shop, play...just like regular people. They max out 💸 their 💳Imperial credit cards💳 on the hottest products, raid the wholesale market stores for free samples, connect with others on 🌐social media📱 and IRL, sing the Imperial Anthem, even marry and form families (most probably have their kids bio-augmented to continue their lines of work). Even Impounds are generally happy people, and alongside the fully organic customers they serve, they all contribute in meaningful ways big or small to the great and flourishing Empire™. By and large, the bio-augmented are anything but slaves—the Imperial Ruling Council and Tribunals elevate them as equals to the average customer; maybe even more so due to their service being the lifeblood and backbone of the Empire™.

Graphics by @honeyluvsw and @saradika-graphics