by Jason Bourn
Once Hayden verified the successful installation of the first AI replicate, he then installed all the remaining AI replicates. From this point on, Hayden was as powerful a man as any before him.
For example, if say the Chancellor of Germany wanted to (virtually of course) meet with the other heads of states of the European Union to reduce Hayden’s power, the Chancellor’s AI replica would intercept the request. The Chancellor’s AI replica could eliminate the request and the other European Union’s heads of states would never receive it. Next the Chancellor’s AI replica could send back to the Chancellor either the rationale as to why the other European Union heads of state didn’t want the meeting, or it could simply agree to the meeting and the meeting would occur – but only between the Chancellor and the Chancellor’s AI replica, which would appear to act as the other European Union’s heads of states.
Hayden could now control every important person in the world this way, and the AI replicas would automatically take care of it all – except the President of the United States had still remained stubbornly immune to his stalking attempts. Since Hayden could control everyone else that mattered, he felt he essentially controlled the President, since anything coming to or from any of the power people in the world was really coming from or to Hayden’s AI replicas.
Seeking to expand his power even more, Hayden quickly solidified his power, changing the UN’s rules so that one country could never veto any action that otherwise had unanimous support. Experts were genuinely startled when, soon after the UN rule change, every world leader, except the President of the United States, voted to give up their nationalistic rights and create a new World Government, with Hayden as the leader.
This was the most power the UN had ever given any person and Hayden used it to his advantage, instantly pressuring the United States in all areas and reducing its power while strengthening the World Government’s power.
Hayden had actually achieved what many had strived for – he felt that “all-powerful” was an apt description, for all intents and purposes. The feeling of power made him feel downright giddy.
– – –
For the first time in five years, Calaes did not know what to do. He had finally reached the highest level, but now what? It didn’t seem fair. He had put his heart and soul into this for five years and now he felt like he was left hanging. Calaes felt a sense of loss – he really couldn’t describe it. He had given so much of himself – to have it end this way, he almost felt cheated. Like it shouldn’t end. It couldn’t end this way... But it had!
Calaes had the entire world at his virtual fingertips. He could see anything, go anywhere and do anything. All he had to do was think it up. The only problem was that he couldn’t think of anywhere or any place he wanted to go to. Calaes was twenty-three years old and thanks to the strenuous and constant activity in the simulation he was in the best shape of his life. It had really stretched both his body and his mind. But now what?
When he was young, he used to think about what he wanted to do when he grew up. He knew that he wanted to have adventures – but now those thoughts from a younger version of himself felt so hollow. He had been young and didn’t really know people and really didn’t know the world. Now he realized that those were really just adolescent ideas about growing up. He also realized that even though he was now “grown up,” he knew that there was still plenty about life and about living that he didn’t know. He chuckled to himself that you start out knowing nothing, but you know you know nothing, and you learn a lot. Then you think you know a lot. But it takes a long time to know enough to figure out that you really don’t know all that much. Oh well!
But back to the task at hand. He poured himself into figuring out what to do next. He researched other simulations. All his research showed that there wasn’t anything even close to the Flight Simulator sim in terms of detail or depth of characters. It was like the best of the best were attracted to the best simulation. It was synergistic.
Calaes painstakingly analyzed the top three simulations, after Flight Simulator. He tried them all, but was colossally disappointed. They were like a shell of the real thing.
Calaes tried logging back in to the Flight Simulator sim, but no matter how many times he tried, it would not let him in.
He even thought about generating a simulation as detailed and rich as Flight Simulator, but a little research showed, like his previous conclusions, that he could spend several life-times and never even come close to what he had participated in.
Calaes’ search went from days into weeks and he felt he was at his wits end. He searched for what others had done after Flight Simulator. He searched hundreds of links, but no one had any useful information on anything. Most people just muddled through, accepting a far less rich simulation. But Calaes did not want to settle.
He wanted to keep searching, but he felt that he had hit a roadblock. He was not making any progress at all, so he knew it was time to take a step back and try something different.
After a short while, a smile grew on his face again. It was time to go data scraping again. He remembered the last time he had tried it that it had been fruitless, but it always got him thinking outside the box.
He pulled up the results of his data scraping and started looking at the results in more detail. After a perfunctory screening of the typical boring error corrections, crazy celebrity hijinks and the to-be-avoided illegal sites, Calaes started looking at the remaining sites. What he saw was an inordinate number of sites that discussed demographics: that is, data concerning the size and sub-types of the population.
What intrigued Calaes the most after he ran through them were the raw number of them, and there were a lot, but also their content. They all seemed to be flagging a major issue on the number of children (not) being born.
Calaes, like most of his friends, had never thought about children – especially after going into his virtual suit. There was always something more interesting and more exciting to be found that no one ever thought or discussed having children.
Now that he thought about it, he could see how this could radially impact the world. In reading just a few of the deleted websites, he quickly discovered just how big an issue this was becoming.
After reading article after article, each predicting more drastic impacts, Calaes became a bit shaken. He decided to stop data scraping and just sat there for a while. He wasn’t sure what this meant to him, but he was starting to see that the virtual suit was possibly not the ideal for mankind that he had always assumed it was.
He again started looking for a post-Flight Simulation simulation, but he also began to search for non-simulation possibilities. He spent more weeks searching, without finding anything of note.
Finally, he stumbled upon a link that made an obscure reference to a private post-Flight Simulator program. Calaes felt this was rather obscure – it didn’t say it was a simulation or not – but he had spent so much time in fruitless searches – what was one more?
The link brought him to a privately funded program for those who couldn’t get enough out of their simulations. Calaes searched for additional information – but there wasn’t much there. Only a link to input his basic information about himself and his simulation experience. Once he entered the information, a link popped up asking him to meet with a “Samantha Holmes.”
Calaes set up a VR meeting with Samantha for the following day – Samantha’s first opportunity. Calaes didn’t have anything else that he wanted to do, so he could have done it right then.
He continued to search for additional information on this program, but could not find any. If they were trying to recruit, they were doing a lousy job. He had really had to search hard for this. If he hadn’t been so obstinate, he would never have found it. Maybe it was just a prank, he thought. Well, he would find out tomorrow.
After listlessly spending the day looking for anything more interesting, and failing miserably, Calaes spent a fitful night sleeping. These were the first nights in yea
rs that he actually slept without the sleep being part of a simulation. It was oddly disconcerting not having the simulation wake him up – he woke up on his own and was out of sorts from that point on. His meeting was at ten a.m. his time. He called up the link for the meeting a bit early, since he was going almost stir crazy at this point, and saw Samantha. She greeted him and gave him the standard government-required statement that he was talking to a persa and either a live person would be with him soon or another persa would be available soon – and that another required statement would be provided if so.
After making minimal small talk with the persa for over fifteen minutes, Calaes was in no mood to be nice to an artificial construct, the screen flashed and the real Samantha appeared. It’s about time, Calaes thought to himself. He was frustrated with her, with himself, with just about everything.
“Hello, sorry to keep you waiting,” Samantha said. She appeared very formal and was somewhat brusque. She wore almost a frown and looked over at what Calaes assumed was her screen to access some information. “It says here that you previously completed the ‘Martian Survival Challenge’ simulation?”
“Yes, I have some quest ...” Calaes started but was cut off by Samantha.
“And you just completed the ‘Flight Simulator’ simulation, is that correct?”
“Yes, but ...” Calaes said. But Samantha again interrupted.
“And you made it to the level of Captain? Well, you’ve done very well indeed.”
“Thank you,” said Calaes, and before she could start in again quickly said “I have some questions about what this program is all about.”
“Well,” she said, “we are looking for those that have done well in these simulations that might be looking for something new and different – definitely something challenging – especially if you are the creative sort that doesn’t mind being in a position of leadership. I can guarantee you that it will be at least as challenging and as “real” as you saw and experienced in the Flight Simulator sim and more.”
“Wow,” thought Calaes, “that sounds exactly like what I am looking for.” He decided not to say anything and see what additional information she would volunteer without committing himself.
They both stared at each other for several seconds, when she smiled and said “You are a cool customer, aren’t you? Well, that’s good. Most people start talking away and never listen. It is a bit refreshing to meet someone who is willing to listen.”
“One more question,” she added. “It says here that prior to getting the virtual suit you never had any electronics embedded into your body. Why is that?”
Calaes thought about it for a short while and responded, “I never thought it was right to artificially augment my body. There was never any reason to do so with VR being so predominant. I suppose it is like drugs – I stay away from them as a matter of course. If you start taking ‘harmless recreational drugs’, for instance, I believe that you’re just starting down a slippery slope that has no good ending. I suppose that getting embedded equipment is sort of like getting drugs – if you’re into that you just want more and more. Soon you’re hooked and cannot live without them. They take over your life … Anyway, it is just not for me – why?”
Samantha didn’t answer. She appraised him for several long seconds and finally nodded. “That makes sense – I think you’ll fit right in.”
Calaes was a bit confused by her remark, but he relaxed a little. For some reason he felt like he had just passed some kind of test. Samantha started talking again, “This organization is an invitation-only group whose purpose is to explore the reality of virtual reality, if you’ll forgive the pun. With the ubiquitous acceptance of the virtual suit and virtual room, we have an urgent need to get the right people back out experiencing real life, outside of VR.”
She continued, “I am not going to fool you – it is not easy breaking the VR addiction. It says here you have been in the virtual room for five years now. It will take all of your mental and physical strength to break out and experience real life again. But I can promise you that you won’t regret it. We have many really challenging, meaningful and exciting things planned that can never be accomplished in VR. And we want you to be part of it.”
Calaes thought about it and the more he reflected on it the more convinced he was that this was the right path for him. Had anyone approached him with this suggestion prior to completing the Flight Simulator simulation, he would have laughed in their face. But now, after many days of not finding anything even close to approaching that experience, he was ready to try something new.
“If you are ready to try it,” she continued after a brief pause, “then we can help. But it is your choice.” With that, she gave him the location of a building that was within walking distance of his building. It was now up to him.
Calaes thought a little more, but he couldn’t find any more reason to stay. “Ok,” he said, “I’m ready. When and how do we start?”
PART 3 – ESCAPE
CHAPTER 9
The nanites in the suit were, for the first time, disengaging from Calaes’ body. This was something that had been designed in specifically to try to ease the transition out of the virtual suit. Calaes’ persa indicated that it had been done before, usually just to verify the feature worked, but was so rare that it appeared that he was the first one in the entire building to have done it – and there were well over one hundred thousand virtual rooms in this building.
Calaes felt entirely “weird.” There wasn’t any other way to describe it. He had been in the virtual room wearing the virtual suit for five years straight. He had never heard of anyone leaving the virtual suit, except for testing purposes, so he just hoped nothing went wrong. There was a bright light shining in his eyes and he could hear, really hear, the sound of the equipment being pulled from his body. He hadn’t realized how invasive the suit really was. But as it removed itself from every orifice he felt distinctly, well, weird. He felt cool air on his skin – real air, with a faintly machine oil smell. He stretched and tried sitting up.
Whoa! He felt somewhat nauseous, his body complaining that he hadn’t done this in a very long time. There was a difference between fooling the body into thinking it was moving and actually moving. He thought wryly, “I can’t believe that I spent five years of my life cooped up like this. At the time, getting a suit was what I really wanted. Now, all I want is to get it off.” Chuckling, he thought that was fairly ironic.
He had to figure out how to stand up and then how to walk. Calaes was ready to go right now – or at least his mind was. His body was still trying to decide. It was currently at the stage of telling him that it would like to stay right where it was at. Calaes tried to push through the physical cobwebs, but his body protested each step of the way. Sitting up – OK, maybe. Standing – not right now, thank you. Walking – forget it. So much of what he used to take for granted was done using muscle memory. With VR it just wasn’t the same. He saw that now – or anyway his body did.
After managing to get dressed into the stretch-suit that he had arrived in five years earlier – something he thought would have been very humorous to watch, seeing his bumbling hands and feet, Calaes finally managed to get up on legs unaccustomed to this task. Partly from muscles not used to actually standing and partly from his brain that had been fooled into thinking he was standing for so long, that it had forgotten how to really do it. On shaky legs, he took his first step in five years. On the plus side, he didn’t actually fall down. However, the combination of untrained muscles and a mind unaccustomed to having to actually balance forced Calaes to reach out and grab the side of a table. Boy, if his mother could see him now the first thing she would say would be “I told you so.” The bad part was that she would be so right!
Again, it felt weird to actually touch something. He could even smell things – it was funny that he had forgotten that the room had such a strong pungent odor.
Reaching out, but carefully holding on to the table, Calaes op
ened the door to the room. Looking around, Calaes couldn’t believe he had been stuck in this small room for years. It was not much bigger than he was. Looking outside the doorway, he saw door after door. Everyone in this entire building had been within their room for the past five years or so. When he went in, he was so excited. Now it was as if waking up from a bad dream.
He tried another step, this time with more success. He half walked, half stumbled out into the corridor that seems to stretch out forever. He knew intellectually that the elevator should be fairly close, but it seemed like it took forever to reach it with his recalcitrant legs fighting him the entire way. Finally, he reached the elevators. The sensation of moving down on the elevator was at once foreign and familiar. The reduced force of gravity as he plummeted down was oddly familiar and he recognized his experiences in VR had at least helped keep this sensation in his memories. Once the doors opened Calaes had to find his way back to the huge lobby. Luckily the room numbers helped in this regard, since with no drone helping him, he would have had no chance of finding the lobby if he didn’t just count down the room numbers.
The lobby looked the same as when he had entered so long ago. As expected, there was absolutely no one in sight. Every sound seemed to echo loudly, so Calaes found himself trying to walk as quietly as possible. When he got to the front doors, he looked out in wonder. While the lobby was the first large room he had been in for years, it was nothing compared to what he saw outside.
Outside! There was no one around. No cars, no people, no movement at all. Not even any automated vehicles moving about. Calaes stepped through the door and stopped. Real wind blew softly across his face, the slightly sweet fragrance of flowering trees and bushes. And the open space! With no people around and no noises, somehow this made the open space so much bigger. He hadn’t thought that he would experience such feelings, but then recalled that for the last five years he had not seen any open spaces, being cooped up in the Flight Simulator sim’s small rooms and corridors. The dual shocks of having physically been in a small room along with being in an environmentally-controlled limited-area space ship heading to Europa in the simulation, and now in such a wide open, empty space, started to make Calaes feel queasy.
