TJ felt like an idiot for bringing all these morons to New York. He woke them up early the next morning and gave each of them a $25,000 check. He’d entered the game briefly, just to check out Beth’s base, and to check his own compatibility with the newest version.
“Where’s Beth?” Jack, aka Maverick, demanded.
“She’s still in the simulation.” Which was almost true. Really, she was in the back being prepped for the micro-bot injection.
Jack folded his arms over his chest. “I’m not leaving without her.”
TJ held up the signed waiver. “She’s actually doing the next stage of beta testing.” He wouldn’t mention that he’d tricked her into signing it. He was deep into this project, and he needed to figure out what made her different.
His team had run all sorts of tests overnight while the testers slept. Beth was 100% compatible, Jack was only 86% compatible.
TJ, himself, was 96% compatible, which meant he was going to risk everything to join Beth in the simulation. She’d also get the upgraded version, the game mechanics were smoother, more realistic. The characters were more human and less animated looking. The zombies … the zombies were fucking fantastic.
As soon as his security team had the stragglers out the door, he went into his bedroom, where two micro-bot tanks were set up. With the injection, they were almost redundant, but he wanted to make sure everything was working how he wanted it to. They shouldn’t feel pain, just pressure. And hunger, and thirst. Things would definitely feel more realistic. It would be like living through a zombie apocalypse without the threat of actual death or infection.
TJ wandered back into Beth’s bedroom, where the doctor was setting up for her injection. Beth was still out, thanks to the pill TJ had given her. It was basically an oral tranquilizer.
“Are we close?” TJ asked the doctor, glancing at Beth still laying in her pod.
She nodded, lifting the needle that contained the micro-bot. “Yes, sir.”
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“Perfect. As soon as you’re done with her, have her transported to the second tank in my room. I’ll be waiting in the first one.”
The doctor nodded. “Of course, sir.”
TJ looked to his assistant, Gary, and nodded. He nodded back. The two of them were the only ones who knew the truth, that Beth had unwittingly signed the consent for the procedure.
Gary’s research (which just entailed watching the security tapes from the Poky lab) had revealed that Beth hadn’t even read the first consent before signing it. Getting her to sign one with the new terms was as simple as handing her a pen and putting a clipboard in front of her.
TJ headed to his room and slid into the micro-bot tank. The small robots shifted around him, tickling at first. He settled in and looked up at the blank projection screen above his pod.
This penthouse was TJ’s home. He’d had his bed exchanged for a micro-bot tank long ago. The robots were programmed to support his weight properly. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d woken up with a kink in his neck. They were also climate-controlled; they sensed his comfort level and adjusted to keep him the perfect temperature. They’d been programmed with other bells and whistles too, for longer-term tank use. Like waste disposal, self-cleaning, heart rate and blood pressure readings. Anything they could think of, was written into their code. They were designed to meet every need the human body had. And, if this worked, he was going to be filthy rich.
Of course there were other applications for the technology, and he fully intended to expand the business, once it took off, but his first love had always been gaming, so this, here, was where he’d make his mark.
Brian, one of his tech guys, came in and sat at the glass desk beside TJ’s tank.
“How’s everything looking?” TJ asked.
Brian hit a few buttons on his keyboard and the projector cast an image on the screen.
It was like watching a home video. They were seeing exactly what Beth saw as she climbed the wooden ladder and sat on the roof of her base, watching the sun rise over the mountains.
TJ gasped. “It’s working.”
Brian grinned. “It looks fuckin’ real.”
A few minutes later, the good doctor and an assistant brought Beth in and carefully transferred her body to the second tank.
“Are you ready, Mr. Carothers?”
TJ could only nod as Beth walked through the desert. She stopped at a cactus and touched the spiky needles.
“Ouch,” she said in the enhanced sultry voice, then popped the finger in her mouth, sucking off the dot of blood.
TJ held out his arm and they placed an IV in the crook of his elbow. Seconds later, he drifted off.