CHAPTER 3

I froze, staring at the device as it lay on the floor.

What the hell?

Who would be—no, how could they even…

Is this still part of the game? Has the test not concluded yet?

Before I could reach a satisfactory answer, the man asked, “Allen, can you hear me?”

I swallowed, licking my lips nervously before answering, “Yeah, I can hear you.”

“Good. My name is Mr. J and I work for an undisclosed entity on a special project related to a new video game. You’ve heard of DreamLIFE, correct?”

I nodded, then remembered he couldn't see me.

Clearing my throat, I said, “Yeah, I mean, yes, I have. I applied earlier, so—um, did I make it in or not?”

I grabbed the Holoset, putting it on as he said, “Yes Allen you—” he paused as we saw each other for the first time.

The man was older than I expected with gray hair and lines in his forehead. He wore a dark suit with a bright red tie, and his office was big and empty it might have been the size of my whole house.

He looked surprised, or confused. Or maybe both.

He cleared his throat, then continued, “—you scored very well, so well in fact that you made our other applicants seem like children. We would like to offer you a position, but first you must still complete an orientation to fully determine if you are a good fit for the role.”

This was the strangest application and interview process I’d ever experienced, but it was also a pretty unique job, so I shrugged. He was offering me a job.

I smiled, saying, “Yeah, sure. Let’s get started.”

He nodded, his expression hardening.

Mr. J picked up a file, opened it and asked, “Is your address listed correctly? 6758 S. 12th Street, Denver, Colorado. is this correct?

I frowned, taking a moment to think before I answered. I hadn’t actually entered any personal information. The fact he even knew my name was odd.

“No,” I answered decisively. “I live in Detroit, right next to the factory where they build those fancy VR rigs for rich bastards like yourself. I bet you’re sitting in one right now.”

He grinned, saying, “Shrewd and cheeky. Yes, I am, but that doesn't matter, does it? Mr. Rush, Agents will be knocking on your door any minute now. When they arrive, go with them and don’t fight, no matter what happens.” His smile spread even wider, but it wasn’t warm, it was sort of unsettling. With his lips spread so far, I wasn’t sure how he managed, but added, “As of today, your life as you know it is over.”

Then he leaned back, closing his eyes and disappearing from view.

The holoset screen went dark.

What the fuck?

I took the headset off and stared at the device.

Was this all a joke?

I glanced at the screen then put the Holoset aside to type out a message to Seya.

Owl: Hey, what is th

A loud crash came from the front room.

Someone shouted,

A door broke and I heard my mother scream.

I rushed from my room and down the hall.

Two men, dressed in black suits, were wrestling with mom. They had pinned down, face pressed against a couch cushion. Another, with his gun drawn and pointed at me, shouted, “Get on the floor now!”

I froze, not sure what to do.

They had guns and could shoot us.

I did as I was told.

The man with the gun approached and cuffed me.

The two others kept hold of mom, until a fourth man entered, stepping over the broken door. He knelt beside my mother as she trembled.

He whispered something into her ear, then looked over his shoulder at me with a smile.

Mom stiffened.

The agent turned back and fished something from his pocket that he showed to my mother.

Her expression melted into one of absolute terror.

My heart throbbed.

What the hell have I done?

Mom started to speak, but the man slapped her across the face.

I lunged, but the one of the agents grabbed me by the cuffs and swung me into a wall.

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Mom screamed then started to stammer “No, please! Please, I don’t want it—I want to—”

Her words turned to muffled sobs as the man shoved into her mouth.

Rage and horror burned through me.

I didn't know what I was doing. All I knew was, I needed to get to mom and the men holding her.

I twisted and pulled, but the agent had my arms restrained behind my back.

“Let me go!” I yelled.

Something hard struck the back of my head and the world went dark.

***

My face itched, irritated by whatever cheap sack the agents found to cover my head. My hands weren’t cuffed together anymore, but they were strapped to what felt like the arms of a fancy swivel chair.

I tried to twist, but the seat wouldn’t spin.

Must not be a swivel chair.

I swallowed, but my mouth was so dry I coughed.

I thought about calling for water, but the room was so quiet I felt certain I was alone. I didn’t think anyone would hear me.

Where was I?

Why had they taken me? If it was a job, couldn’t they have just arranged for transport?

What was going to happen to me now?

The dryness in my mouth finally forced me to call out, “Hey, is anyone there? Hello? Hello! Water, I need water! Hey, someone please.”

There was a beep followed by the sound of air pressure releasing. A door slid open then several sets of footsteps approached.

A rough hand grabbed the sack over my head and ripped it off.

I winced, squinting against the bright lights overhead.

Mr. J stood in front of me, smiling.

Two people stood behind him, but I could only see them from the waist down because of a set of bright spot lights shining between them. I knew at least one person was behind me, but it sounded like there were probably more.

I heard a gun cock, then a gloved hand reached around the high back chair holding a cup to my mouth.

I shook my head. “No thanks,” I said, feeling uneasy about consuming anything in this situation.

“Go on,” Mr. J said.

The hand brought the cup to my mouth again, but when I turned away, it pressed against my face forcing water inside.

It was cold and tasted fine, but still, I tried not to swallow. My body reacted despite me and I gulped it down, coughing and spluttering.

Mr. J chuckled.

His laugh made me shiver, but the water had quenched my thirst and cleared my head.

Once I was done coughing, I said, “Where is my mom? Who the hell are you people?”

Mr. J smiled. “Welcome to project New Dream. This is the birthplace of the game you were so eager to play, but we’ll discuss that more later.”

A semi transparent blue screen appeared between us, then a video feed of my mother filled the space. She was at Riley’s convenience store purchasing several bottles of liquor.

“My mother doesn’t drink,” I snapped. “Is this some kind of joke?”

Mr. J shook his head. “I wish it was Allen. Unfortunately though, this is reality. Your mother was an alcoholic before you were born, she has a long history with law enforcement too. Have you ever wondered who your dad was?”

“He’s a scumbag that couldn’t be bothered to stick around.” I rolled my eyes, wondering why any of this mattered. “Why should I care about a name? He’ll never be more than that anyway, so I may as well call him Jack Off.”

The old man pressed his lips flat. His eyes narrowed as he held up a hand, and the video feed of Riley’s switched to an image of a dead man in an alley. “His name was Sean Yakum and he was once a most brilliant FBI, although he had one massive lapse of judgment.

“You see, Sean was investigating a sex trafficking ring, which he helped to save your mother from. Somewhere along the way he fell in love. You can probably guess the rest of the story. He did at least manage to get your mom away from her pimp and after learning she was pregnant it appears that she made great strides to get her life on track.

“Imagine her surprise though, when FBI agents raided her home and arrested her son for hacking into a government server and releasing an AI mind from cyber containment.”

The screen changed again, this time showing a news broadcast accusing me of doing exactly as he’d said.

“I didn’t do that!”

Mr. J shrugged. “We know. But someone had to take the blame, and we needed a way to ensure you couldn’t go back to your previous life.”

He paused a moment, letting his words sink in.

I wasn't sure what to say. It didn’t make sense.

I didn't have the skill set to break into a federal server and release an AI. Sure, I was good with computers, but this was way beyond my abilities. My crap computer couldn’t even handle it. Anyone that knew me should’ve known that.

Still it was pretty clear that this wasn’t just some random operation. As far as I knew, these people worked for the government. They would’ve planted evidence and covered their bases. I probably would never get a chance to speak publicly, and even if I did, who would believe me?

My jaw hung open as tears welled in my eyes. This was supposed to be my chance at a new start, not the end of my life!

“Calm down Allen, didn’t you want new start? A chance to play DreamLIFE and make your mark on a new world? You should consider this opportunity a gift. Allen will be executed for treason and cyber terrorism, but your task here is actually to capture and recounts in the cyber mind that was released. We need your skills Allen, so what do you say?”

I stared at him.

Was he being serious?

My whole life was over, and I didn't have a choice, but what would happen if I refused. Would they torture me into submission, or just kill me?

Mr. J was clearly unhinged, but the agents with him seemed completely normal.

I took a deep breath, closed my eyes and focused.

When I opened them, Mr. J was staring at me with a frown and anxious eyes. “Allen… I thought you wanted this chance? Are you perhaps, no longer interested in working for us?”

Something in the way he spoke sent shivers down my spine.

He was definitely crazy, and I had no doubt that refusing was the wrong choice, but I didn’t really understand what I was agreeing to either.

“Can you explain in more detail? How am I supposed to capture an AI?”

Mr. J frowned.

It was clear that he wasn't used to being questioned, but I had to know.

He sighed, then raised his right hand again. “This,” an image of high class hotel room appeared on the blue screen. “Looks real. Everything in it feels real, smells real, taste real, but it’s all just virtual. A virtual prison to be more accurate and once you’re insider there’s no getting back out. We can construct many such rooms and they are even capable of containing an AI mind.”

“So what if it can, how do you expect me to get an AI inside the room?”

Mr. J chuckled, but I felt a gun press against the side of my head.

Mr. J shook his head.

I bit my tongue, then nodded.

His grin widened. “Once you sign your contract and complete your orientation, we can finish this chat.”

I took a deep breath.

This was a lot to process, but my situation was pretty grim. I wasn’t really in a position to negotiate and I wasn’t ready to die either. There might still be a way for me to get my life back, I’d just have to play along for now.