“Reality TV stars,” I mutter numbly.
“Exactly. Right now I’d say of the roughly ten thousand people on this planet that would be considered famous, 90-95% are not from around here, but the lure was greater than the risk.” My cigarette burns my hand and I let the nub of the filter drop to the floor. “Some of them have actual talent. Some we just manufacture because they were willing to gamble with their own lives in order to preserve all of ours. Some I personally look forward to finding their crispy fried corpses and then replacing them with another worthless opportunist who will also repeat the pattern.”
“Why?”
“Why what?”
“Why all of it? If Earth was being fed by The Renaissance and The Crusades and all of that shit; why all of the work to create an entire fake class structure to feed the planet? Why do it at all? It sounds like things were going just fine before Hitler?”
“Hilarious choice of words.”
“Why speed it all up? Why burn through living creatures whose sole purpose is to be a wastelock for excess human emotion?”
“Because the universe moves too slowly. Because evolution on a cosmic and planetary scale moves at a snail’s fucking pace. Before the global celebrity class it would have taken ten billion years from the dawn of man before the inevitable great exodus. This is the first planet that The Keepers have ever directly intervened in the development of. Honestly the Fame/TV thing is a brilliant creation of humans. We just used it to our advantage.”
“So you just use celebrities like food? That’s horrible. Ironically satisfying but still fucking reprehensible.”
“Any more reprehensible than a predator eating its prey? Than a Veterinarian euthanizing a sickly pet? And it’s not like they’re not generously compensated for it.”
We stare at each other across the table. He smokes his cigarette and I sip my coffee.
“So what happens now?”
“Keeper Book, being one who adheres to the line and letter of the law, wants you dead. Right here. Right now.”
“And what do they call you?”
“I am Keeper Stone. I have been here since the beginning. I am molded by my environment but remain largely unchanged and I think I can use you. Do you have any aspirations Steven?”
“I’m a writer.”
“You’re a waiter in Los Angeles; of course you’re a writer. I think you want all of the things that you hate. I think you hate them because you want to be one of them so badly that it burns inside of you. I want to make you a world renowned screenwriter, and then an Oscar winning film maker. You’ll live a life where the word ‘no’ is a misnomer. Travel, mansions, playmates, artistic fulfillment. Everything you secretly want. You will be adored and reviled. You will be studied and dissected by people just like what you are now. You will become part of the food chain and you will love every second of it. But make no mistake; for all the benefits that come with it, I still intend to feed you - mind, body and soul - to this planet. I intend to use you up completely and have absolutely no qualms about it.”
“So what’s the question?”
He pulls the phone out of his pocket and slides it across the table. There’s a lifetime of weight between us.
“Would you like to be famous Steve?”
IMMORTALITY by Mark Fetterolf
Swimming up through layers of fog, the light around him started to brighten and his body felt suddenly heavy. Peering at the world around through a haze, he felt as if underwater and rising to the surface. The sharpness of the light, the temperature, the touch of the real world paralyzed him. Breaking the surface of his dream, everything came into focus, sharp, real, and harsh. Gasping, a paralyzing despair gripped him.
Earlier that week
--------------------------
Feeling ill, she took pause for a moment and tried to gather her thoughts. “Jonathan, hold on for a moment, I’m not feeling well.” Jonathan looked over at her through his goggles, concerned, “What’s wrong? Do you want to land?”
They had been holding hands, gliding over the neighboring lands to explore, to see what people had built anew and to just “get outside.” They had spent the last few days building on their own lands, constructing their own buildings, castles and machines. After a time however it became tedious and the need to get out and stretch their proverbial wings overrode the need to just be done.
Penny liked to fly and Jonathan liked to walk, to take the “normal” route, but he always gave in to her whims. So today they flew. She grasped his hand and smiled as they both quickly lifted into the airless sky, drifting up into the lack of atmosphere to settle at a height just above the buildings.
“No sweetie, I should be okay. I just need to coast for a bit”, she increasingly had a problem keeping her thoughts straight, for the past several days something pulled at her. Or was it weeks? Time seemed to have changed to where she had no concept. It was hard to tell anymore.
She spotted a new building below, and pointed. Jonathan steered them, hand-in-hand, and their bodies sailing through the sky at a breakneck speed, towards this new landmark. They landed with a thump and bowed at the knees, brushing off their clothing as they looked around, trying to figure out where they were.
A young woman sauntered up to them, “Hey guys, welcome and feel free to look around!” Something seemed wrong with her. Actually everything around here seemed just a little off. Penny stared for a moment, not understanding, but then finally realized, the woman’s hair wasn’t moving and neither were the loose folds of the dress she was wearing. There was no wind. She turned to her partner, head cocked to the side, “Jonathan, there’s no wind?” To which he responded with a laugh and a smile. “Of course there isn’t. Did you want to look around?” He ignored her concerns.
She grabbed his arm and turned him around to face her, “Jonathan I am not feeling well, I want to get out of here.”
“Of course sweetheart, go ahead and port home and I will see you there. I will just be a minute.”
“Port?”, she thought to herself. She clenched her eyes shut for a moment, her fists pressed against her temples. She heard him start to ask her, “Babe, what’s wr...” and then nothing but the crackling of fire.
She opened her eyes and stood in the middle of a dark room, velvet red furniture lined the stone walls and a huge fireplace stood at one end of the octagonal room, crackling loudly. A large painting hung above the fireplace, a picture of her in this very living room with a few of her friends sitting at her feet.
“Port. Right”, she thought. “I can port. All I need to do is picture the coordinates of where I wanted to go and I appear. Why would I not remember that?”, she thought to herself.
She plopped down on the long couch and stared at the shadows flickering on the ceiling. She had been forgetting things, a lot. She needed to sit down and put her thoughts in order.
“My name is Penny. Born 251 days ago I was born male and really it didn’t suit me so I switched quickly.” She shuddered at that. The male skin just didn’t feel good, it was lumbering, hairy and it just didn’t fit well. “She had changed her male name as well. “What was that name?”, she muttered to herself. She couldn’t recall. “That’s bothersome”, she thought.
Jonathan appeared in the middle of the room. “I’m baaaaaaack!”, he took a deep bow and did a little dance. Jonathan had a penchant for entertaining.
The appearance of him startled her and he could see the surprise on her face.
“It’s happening again, isn’t it Penny?”
“What’s happening again?” she asked.
“You are forgetting and remembering all at the same time, aren’t you?” he looked concerned.
“I am! Wait, I have done this before?” she stood up off the couch.
“Yes you did, exactly 242 days into your last cycle.”
She looked wholly confused, “Cycle? Jonathan, what are you talking about?”
He walked up to her and poked her in the nose, sighing, “Did you
feel that?”
She paused, staring at him, “Do it again.”
He poked her nose and then leaned in and kissed her cheek.
Alarmed she responded, “Jonathan I didn’t feel anything at all! What’s going on?” She leaned back and ran her hand across the velvety couch, nothing!
“Babe, slow down, relax. Let me explain this. First off you have done this before, it happens to some of us. Just calm down, this can be fixed.”
“Don’t tell me to calm down, what’s going on?” she looked at him, her eyes wide.
“Okay, I explained this to you last time and I did it badly so I am going to try a new tack. Can you work with me on this?” She nodded quietly.
He thought for a moment. “Come up to the roof.” He disappeared. She shouted out,
“HOW?” There were no windows nor visible doors to this room.
Don’t think about it”, his voice rose in her ear. She looked around, surprised. “Where are you?”
“On the roof, silly. Don’t think about it, just do it like you did back at that new shop.”
She sighed and tried to recall what happened last time when she got back to the house.”
“Perfect! You made it!” his voice loud and right next to her. She opened her eyes and found herself on the roof of their “house.”
He walked over to the edge of the roof, the edge dotted with outcroppings of smoothly carved stone, like teeth against the horizon. He beckoned her to come over.
She walked over to him and looked out to find that they were suspended thousands of meters in the air. She knew that subconsciously, so why did it feel so... odd? She looked around at the green and brown textures beneath her, a myriad of people, houses, and things populating the expanse for as far as the eye could see. But none if it seemed... alive.
He looked at her and nodded, “It is definitely happening again. I see the look on your face. He turned to face her. “Point to Sam’s house.” She squinted and pointed to a house you couldn’t see, far off in the distance below. “Now tell me, can you see it?” She squinted again and shook her head, a puzzled look on her face.
“That’s because we are all connected. Sam is our friend and he allows us to know where he is, where he lives, and how to talk to him without having to be in front of him. Is anything ringing a bell here?”
“I am not sure”, the confused look on her face worsening and her head moving back and forth shaking as if saying “no”.
He sighed and sat down on the edge. “I care for you deeply Penny, and I really hate to see you like this.” I’m just going to be direct and you probably won’t believe me. You didn’t last time.” He held her hands in his and lifted them, kissing her fingers and smiling weakly.
Chairs appeared around them and he sat, motioning for her to join him. Still looking unsettled from such a display she sat anyway, tentatively until she felt comfortable firmness underneath her.
“God, where do I begin?” he started.
“25 years ago I had an accident that left me without the use of my arms and legs, a quadriplegic.” He stared at her looking for anything at all but she grew even more confused.
“Penny none of this is real”, he stated bluntly, frustrated.
“What? What are you talking about? Of course this is real! Have you lost your mind? Don’t joke around about this okay? I’m a little freaked out right now!” But at the same time she looked around her, touching things, sniffing, moving and manipulating her extremities.
He leaned forward and grabbed her hands again, shaking his head, “I’m sorry, please let me try to explain.”
“Many years ago the Emtek Corporation”, he digressed, “does that name ring a bell?” She nodded and said, “I think so? It tickles something in my brain, good and bad.”
He nodded, “Okay, that’s good.” You couldn’t remember them at all last time.”
He continued much longer this time, “The Emtek Corporation, the foundation for most all technology in the 23rd century, started off in the 22nd century as the brainchild of Edgar Stiles and his brother, William. Together they created an implant they eventually embedded, for questionable reasons in my own mind, within their own brains that allowed them to read the thoughts of others.”
She interrupted, “The God Frequency! I remember that!” She looked excited.
“Yes!” he laughed. “That’s what they originally called it but later they referred to it only in terms of “the chip.” With such a secret of incredible magnitude the owners and creators kept it to themselves for years.”
Puzzled she asked, “So how do we know this?”
“Slow down, I am getting to that. You are always so impatient!” She laughed contritely.
“Later in the 22nd century Edgar died and passed on Emtek’s legacy to his son and daughter, Peter and Jenna. They took over the corporation and the other owner, Uncle Bill to them, retired and lived a good life until he died a handful of years after Edgar. Opting to further the legacy and vision of Emtek and their father the children opted to have the chip implanted themselves. Together with their android assistant they decided to dig deeper into the realm of virtual reality.”
“Wait, that android… Penny, wasn’t it?” she asked, her head cocked to the side.
“Yes, the name of their assistant is Penny Steelwater”, he just looked at her, waiting for the next question.
“Am...,” she paused searching inwardly, “Am I Penny?”
He smiled, “I knew you would ask that, but no, you are not Penny.”
He smiled, fake irritation on his face, “Can I continue?”
She laughed, a welcome sign, “Yes, sorry.”
“This secret had to be kept hidden so that people, other corporations, even governments and countries would never find out. But someone did. They never found out how or who.” He paused, “I think I’m going too fast, let me explain the core of what this is. In the 22nd century Emtek created this.” He held out his hands in a dramatic flourish. “You are sitting in a virtual world, Penny. Everything you see, hear and sense through your so-called eyes is a fabrication. This is why you find it odd that you can fly. Deep down you know you cannot fly! There is no wind, there is no breathing. You didn’t catch that did you?”
She stared at the floor for a moment, trying to breath but realizing that breath would not come. She again looked at him puzzled. “Ok I am remembering something, yes, ok I feel a little better. This is becoming familiar.”
He smiled, “Ok this is much better than last time, it looks like your axioms are growing and healing.” She raised an eyebrow.
“You and I are here for a reason, Penny. After Emtek created this “Neural Net” as they call it they realized it could be used for so many things. This is but one. Once you heal I will show you everything. But let me talk about that.” He cleared his throat unnecessarily and paused. “It’s funny, but even in here I could use a drink of water.” He laughed and continued, somewhat somber. “Penny, when someone found out about the chip, they tried to either take it or destroy it, nobody is sure which. Because of that, you and I were in an accident and we didn’t come out so well. We both suffered major physical injury as well as seemingly irreparable damage to our brains, you more so than I.” She shuddered, blinking away tears that didn’t exist, not knowing what to say. “The best and brightest at Emtek did what they could to save us and they did an incredible job. Our bodies are now preserved, our minds are intact due to the backups they had on file for our cerebral activity. We are mostly functioning out of the neural network but we tap into our physical brains as much as we can. This is what helps the neurons keep firing and the cells to heal so we can be whole again.”
“But wait, neurons, axons, dendrites, they don’t heal”, she said confused. “That’s basic medical science.” Jonathan shook his head, “And this is where we run into problems, Emtek fixed that years ago and can now heal almost anything. And you should know that!”
Finally exasperated she stood and threw up her hand
s, “How the hell would I know that?”
Jonathan looked at her, still, “Because you are Peter Stiles, son of Edgar, and I am your sister, Jenna.”
OVER THE RIDGE by Anthony Pendleton
The heavy breathing fogged up the inside of Ben’s helmet, one of the older domed models built too close to the face. He reflexively reached up to wipe it away with his sleeved arm, forgetting that there wasn’t anything he could do about it but let the automated defogger do the job on its own time.
Which is too damn slow, he cursed to himself, don’t have time for this...
“Is it close, dad? Are we almost there?”
Bounding beside him through the weak lunar gravity, Jake didn’t seem to be affected at all by the soft, patchy sediment they were fighting their way through. Their feet sank into the ground a few inches with each step, clinging at their weighted boots as though the desolate surroundings wanted to prevent them from reaching their destination.
Starting to run a bit ragged here, Ben smiled almost against his will, watching his son skip alongside him with ease, to be ten and young again…
“Dad?” Jake’s high pitched voice was touched with fear, the words coming out with a slight tremble.
No surprise after the state he had to leave his mother in… Sara… I knew we shouldn’t have taken that damn cruiser out…
* * *
“Let’s go over that one, dad. Really gun it this time!”
Jake threw his arms up, pointing towards a large crater ridge just a few dozen meters ahead. His laugh turned into a squeal, gripping the seat restraints tighter as the lunar cruiser rapidly picked up speed.
Science Fiction Short Stories Books 1 & 2: Twelve Engaging Sci-Fi Tales (One Mind, Different Voices Series) Page 8
