Riding on the Greyhound, Sam was pretty impressed by the technology in the bus. There was free wifi (not the best by a long shot but free nonetheless), electrical outlets (three prong and USB), flat LCD monitors (where you can watch movies and view the current position of the bus), and free bottle water. Even Greyhound was upgrading their buses, though looking at the money they were charging he didn’t know how they still made money.
Sitting in the middle of the bus on the window side, Sam looked at the landscape passing by and thinking how in a couple of hours they were going to reach the facility. The trip was a pretty interesting one, talking with the various passengers and having to sleep at one of the bus stops (the transition bus had broken down so they had to wait for the next one). Using his smartphone, he made all the necessary payments to cancel his apartment contract. Luckily for him, he just needed to gain access to a certain model of ATMs, which are commonly seen across the US. The awesome thing about the internet and smartphones is the information that you’re able to access, usually for free. People are awesome when it comes to passwords, especially when they don’t even know that there’s a password in a machine. A couple of years back, Sam realized that most people don’t change the default password in most machines, especially in ATMs. Whenever he had to travel, Sam would just hit a nearby ATM and get into the machine as an “administrator” using the default password. He would get some cash, not enough to cause trouble for him but enough to meet his immediate needs. Since he didn’t have much cash on this trip, he would occasionally go to a nearby ATM and grab some cash to pay for dinner and other needs they had. The nice thing about taking part in a half a decade, or more, long experiment is that you don’t need to worry about people suspecting you of stealing some cash. When it comes to the life he’s had, following laws and certain moral codes aren’t on the top of his list. Luckily, he’s been pretty good about not being too greedy, so his record is still clean as far as law enforcement is concerned.
Looking over at where Sarah sitting, she was fast asleep. Sarah stayed up marathoning all the seasons of Supernatural, so when sleep had finally hit her she conked out. The nice thing about his bus was the number of passengers allowed them to get both seats, on either side of the aisle. He could stretch out his legs, whenever he needed to go to sleep.
Pushing the touchscreen, he saw that they were coming up to Phoenix, Az. The city was pretty nice looking, compared to the other cities he’s been in. Maybe after this experiment ends, he’ll stick around this area for a year before heading back to school.
Pulling into the station, Sam got up and smacked Sarah’s leg to wake her up. Jumping a little, being woken up suddenly, she glared at him with a ‘what the hell are you doing’ looking. Signalling her to look behind him, she could see that they had arrived at Phoenix.
Grabbing his baggage from the overhead compartment, he followed all the other passengers out of the bus. When both him and Sarah got out of the bus and into the warm Arizona sunshine, he opened up his arms wide and soaked in the good feeling of being out of that bus.
Smacking him on the shoulder, Sarah laughed saying, “What the hell are you doing?”
“I’m just glad to be outside and in Arizona! I was starting to go crazy on that long bus ride, being bored out of my mind!” Sam whooped into the air.
“Well how are we getting to this place?” She asked him.
Pulling out his smartphone, he said, “Let’s grab a taxi.” Googling ‘taxi near me’, Sam found several taxi companies. Tapping on the phone number, he dialed one of the companies with a four star rating. Using a taxi was never a great experience for him, but the nice thing about them was that they always accepted cash. There were ways to get a disposable credit card, without needing to provide ID, but lately most companies have started to require ID so that wasn’t really an option aside from the fact that he didn’t have anyway to keep them charged up.
After he got off the phone, Sarah asked him, “How long until they get here?”
“They’ll be here in half an hour. I told them that we would be at the BBQ joint across from the station.” Sam said, pointing to the giant BBQ sign. The last time they had something to eat was yesterday, so he was feeling a little hungry.
Walking over to the restaurant, the smell of slow-cooked pork hit him in the face. If there’s one thing he could never get enough of is good old tender meat. Beef and pork were his favorite, and those were what this type of restaurant did best. Walking up to the counter, he glanced at the menu and told the really, like seriously, cute lady that he wanted some the house combo, which came with brisket, beef tri-tips, back ribs, and mashed potatoes and gravy. Definitely the type of dish that makes the trip worth it.
“What’s with you and meat.” Sarah laughed at him, ordering some baby backs with some slaw. She definitely wasn’t a big eater like he was.
Moaning in pleasure, Sam chowed down on the glorious platter of meaty goodness. He ignored the raised eyebrow from Sarah. She didn’t understand how amazing this food is.
Feeling his phone vibrate, Sam pulled it out and saw that it was the taxi company calling him back. They were probably outside, so after talking with the person on the phone the two of them left. The nice thing about these restaurants is you pay when you get the food, but it’s a better atmosphere than a fast food place.
After putting their luggage into the trunk, they got into the taxi. “You guys heading to the facility?” The taxi driver asked them, confirming the destination Sam told the company on the phone.
“Yeah. How much will it be?” asked Sam. After hearing the total, he passed the driver a big wad of bills. “Tip is included, for driving us all the way there. I’m sure it’ll take a large amount of your time, and we appreciate the help.” The driver thanked him, and started to drive off.
On the highway the driver started to talk to them about various stuff. The guy seemed to be a really chatty type, but a decent fellow. “So have you had to drive anyone else to the facility?” Sarah asked the driver.
“No. You guys are the first people that I’ve driven to that giant structure. Some of the other drivers had driven people, but from what I’ve heard there have been buses coming through the city towards the place.”
Listening to the two of them talk, Sam was thinking about whether those buses were from the local universities. Considering how large the place was, there must be ton of people travelling to this place. He was getting even more curious about this whole situation.
The drive was fairly boring. As they were travelling, the driver would try to keep them entertained by telling them random factoids. Looking off into the distance, Sam spotted a giant white structure. Nudging Sarah, he pointed at the structure. When Sarah spotted it, she started to bounce on her seat looking excited.
Getting closer to the structure, they could see that it was massive. Until you see such a structure, it’s hard to imagine its scale. Sam wondered if this was what the Great Pyramid of Giza looked like from a distance. Like the rising of the sun, it only got bigger the closer they got to it.
Turning into a driveway, the taxi drove up to what looked like a entrance. Looking like some modern temple, the doors into it were massive thick panes of glass that, aside from some reinforced looking concrete on the supporting pillars, and made it so you could look inside. It was pretty impressive looking, especially the people in suits waiting outside.
Once the taxi stopped, they got out and walked towards the people. The taxi driver grabbed their bags and placed it at the entrance, and after getting back into his car he drove off. One of the guys in suits took out a smartphone and walked up to Sam.
“Welcome to The Structure. Are you here to take part in the study?” The man asked Sam. After seeing Sam nod his head, the man followed up with, “I am assuming you are one of the, relative, few that found the back way to The Structure? You would have received a text message with a code, to present once you arrived here. If you could provide me with that code, we will be able to continue.” He gave off a professional feel, as he asked them all these questions. It felt like one of those mystery games, with the whole atmosphere.
Pulling out his phone, he opened up the Signal app (the encrypted message he received had made it all seem extra mysterious). Seeing the message he received, he told the man the code. The man typed it into his phone, and after seeming to confirm something he said, “Please follow me, and I will guide you to where you need to be.”
Walking towards the entrance, two of the suit guys opened the massive doors and let the three of them enter. Sam and Sarah walked behind the guy as they walked down a massive hallway. The hallway gently sloped downwards, but for some reason it felt like they were walking forward. “Excuse me, is the hallway sloping down?” Sam asked the man.
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Chuckling, the man answered, “I am impressed that you were able to notice the descending path. The hallway was purposefully designed so that an individual would be tricked into thinking they were walking a path with a slope of zero. The fact that you were able to notice this is a clear indication of your intelligence, which also validates how you were able to find the alternative method to arrive here.”
“How did other people show up?” Sarah asked the man.
“We of the Center used the resources of various universities and organizations, to gather a sufficient number participants to arrive at a solid sample size, of the US population.” The man answered her. “Most, if not all, of your questions should be answered when we arrive into the welcome area.”
As we neared the end of the hallway, there were several full body scanners and an area that looked like the inside of an airport. There were several desks with people in lab coats looking at monitors. In addition there were people who looked like they were security, with what looked like firearms. I looked at the man who guided us, but he just shook his head like we were not supposed to ask.
A man in a lab coat approached us with a broad smile on his face. Rubbing his hands together, looking overly excited like the guy in Independence Day. “Welcome. Welcome. Glad to see the two of you here, taking part in this historical event. My name is Dr. Reicherson, and I am one of the assistant scientists taking part in this project. If you could, please enter into the body scanning device. Once you enter into the scanner, you will place both hands on the corresponding yellow hand image. Please stay as still as possible, and we will scan your body for devices not allowed in the new environment. If any are detected, we will ask you to deposit them into the grey plastic tub. Have no worries, the items will be place in a secure holding unit and will be returned at the end of the experiment. In addition, we will provide new outfits for you to wear, so you will enter the changing room and place all of them into the blue plastic container. I apologize for any inconvenience, and entering the scanner will signify your acceptance to all terms and conditions of this experiment, regardless of whether you understand the agreement, or not. Reading of the agreement is not necessary to enact the contract, and purely based on the entry into said scanner. The reason for not being able to explain the agreement is to not taint the experiment. The only thing we can tell you is that once you enter the scanner, you will be taking part in the experiment and will not be able to leave until the end.”
Both Sam and Sarah looked at Dr. Reicherson with a shocked look on their face. Even though they knew, from the beginning, that they would be in this experience for maybe a decade facing reality was different.
Sam looked at Sarah and asked, “Are you sure you want to go through with this?”
Looking a little flustered, Sarah just stood there and after some time nodded her head. “I’m sure I want to do this. This is a once in a lifetime opportunity, and if I don’t go through with it I know I’ll regret it. Anyways, we don’t have a job if we go back.” She chuckled at the last part, thinking how pathetic it would be to go crawling back for their shitty job.
“Ok” Sam said in response to Sarah’s declaration. Sighing and facing what was going to happen, he walked into the body scanner, placing his hands on the image. He could hear the whirring of the machine, as it scanned him. Once the scan was finished, he emptied out all the contents in his pocket into the bin. On top, he placed his bag that he grabbed at the entrance. Another scientist indicated where the changing area was, so he entered into the spacious room with a blue plastic bin placed in the corner, with a sign stating “Please Place Clothing in Bin”. The room had a bench and on top was a set of clothing. After undressing, he grabbed the new article of clothing and checked them out. The shirt was a long-sleeved white shirt, white plain boxers, and white pants. He put on each of them and looked at himself in the full body mirror. The outfit made him look like someone in those old kung fu movies. Exiting out of the changing room, he saw Sarah coming out in her full white outfit.
“I feel like I’m in one of those young adult post apocalyptic movies” She said, sounding both amused and annoyed.
Dr. Reicherson approached them clapping his hands, and saying, “you two look wonderful! I will ask you to enter through those doors, where you will find a waiting area. You will be provided with additional information at the counter. Tomorrow will be when the selection process officially ends, so you will be resting in the next area.” Opening up the door, the doctor indicated for them to enter the next area.
Walking into the room, Sam saw a long counter on the right side with several women behind the counter. They were dressed like workers at a hotel, looking very dignified and professional. All of them had their hair tied up in a neat bun, a blue dress coat, and a white blouse. Part of him imagined them wearing short skirts, the kind that let you see their thighs. “Calm yourself, Sam” He thought to himself. This is what he gets for not dating in a while.
When he went up to the counter, one of the ladies smiled at him and asked, “May I have your name?”
“Sam” He answered.
Hearing her type into the computer, she then said, “Welcome, Sam, I have you in our system. We would like to congratulate you on this revolutionary experience, to further understand what it means to be human. You will be sleeping in pod #34ZZYZ1. As you can see below you, there will be a light that will appear and lead you to your pod.” Placing what looked like a pebble watch on the counter she then continued, “Please put on this device. It will store all relevant information. What information is stored into your device will be further explained in a video. This video will be played in your pod. If you ever get lost, your device will be able to redirect you to your destination. Just talk into your watch and say, ‘I’m lost’, and the lights on the ground will help you to your destination. Behind you will see a chair, and once you sit on the chair you will have a miniature computer inserted on the back of your neck (close to the spine). This device is wirelessly connected to the device on your wrist. If you lose your wrist device (aka watch), the device in your neck will automatically direct you to where your watch is located. The two devices have a corresponding code reader and generator, which matches the two items together. This allows the wearer to know that they are wearing their own watch, and not another participant’s watch. We, at the Center, hope that you have a wonderful experience at The Structure.” She then directed him to the aforementioned chair, behind him.
Sitting on the chair, Sam felt the chair adjusting to him like it was measuring him. A ring appeared above his head, and then moved down to scan from his head to his upper torso. After this was done, his head was secured, so it couldn’t move, and he felt some kind of liquid sprayed on the back of his neck. A slight pinch was felt on the back of his neck, and then he was released from the chair. Standing up, Sam felt the back of his neck and realized that it was slightly numb. The pinch he felt must have been the machine injecting him with the device. It’s pretty cool how they even thought of the pain he may have felt, and resolved the issue.
Putting on his assigned watch, the screen automatically turned on and the combination of the capital alpha and omega symbol appeared. The watch said, “Welcome, Sam”, the voice being a cute female voice. Speaking into the watch, Sam said, “I’m lost”.
The female voice asked, “Where are you trying to go, Sam?”
“I want to head to my pod.”
On the floor, a glowing line appeared, seeming to lead him to his destination. Thinking, “Wow. That’s pretty cool.”, Sam followed the line into a hallway. There was an elevator at the end of the line, and he entered it. Going into the elevator, Sam noticed that there were no buttons or indicators and was a smooth metal surface. The elevator doors closed and it began to descend. After several moments, he felt the elevator stop and the doors open. In front of him was the same glowing line, letting him know that he was on the correct floor. Sam guessed that either the watch of the device in his neck had GPS, NFC, or RFID capabilities and that was what helped to locate him in The Structure. It definitely was impressive technology and made him super curious, as to how they created this stuff.
He passed by numerous pods on either side of him, though these were different than the ones in Japan. These pods seem to be completely soundproof and had no windows. Each pod just had the ID on the pod door. Walking for quite some time, Sam saw where the line had ended. The line went up the wall and the correct pod ID glowed, letting him know that this was his pod. There was a small animation of a square getting smaller, repeatedly, and a ‘Touch Me’ sign below it. Touching the center of the square, the door to the pod opened up. Out of the wall, rungs slid out to help him climb up into his pod since it was on the second level.
Climbing up on the rungs, Sam went into his pod There was enough space for hims to crawl into it comfortably. The pod had a comfortable mattress as a floor, and the walls and ceiling was a smooth plastic. When he got fully into the pod, he lay on top of the bed and saw there was a similar touchscreen interface on the ceiling. There was a button on that had ‘Close Pod Door’ on it, and touching it Sam heard the door close. A monitor appeared and a video started to play. The same symbol on his watch appeared, and a beautiful woman’s voice said, “Welcome to The Structure. The Structure was created by the Center for the Study of Mankind. The main purpose of this experiment is to learn more about what it means to be human. By taking part in this experiment, you are contributing a lot to help all of us build a better and brighter future. You may have a lot of questions, so this video will help to alleviate any of those questions.”
What is The Structure?
In order to create a simulation of the real world, we built The Structure to simulate the real world. Many of the aspects seen in the real world will be provided inside. You are currently in the Welcome area; designed to keep all participants occupied until all participants are selected and brought to The Structure. Once the selection process is over, all participants will head into “The World”. The World is where the experiment will take place.
What can be expected in “The World”?
The World was designed to mimic the real world. You will be able to find food and dining area, entertainment area, residential area, and many more. There are many things to discover in The World, so please look forward to exploring this area.
What is the purpose of this experiment?
To improve our understanding of humanity.
How long will this experiment last?
This experiment will last anywhere between 5 to 10 years. During this time, you will be unable to leave The World.
Is everything in The World free?
No. Each and every day, a participant will be required to roll a 20 sided (D20) die, which will determine the number of tickets they will be provided with.
What is a ticket?
A ticket is the currency that is used within The World. It can be used to utilize any of the services, within The World, to help improve the participant’s experience. It can also be used to gain access to nutritional sources.
How much does food cost?
The cost for food can vary. There is a wide variety of food choices.
What happens if I only have 1 ticket?
Do not worry. We provide a nutritional supplement that provides all the necessary calories for a person to survive.
Where are my tickets kept?
Your tickets are kept, digitally, in your watch and everyone else’s watch in a blockchain format. This makes sure that everyone has the correct amount of tickets, without worrying about any underhanded methods.
What happens if I have questions?
You will be able to ask your watch, and it will be able to answered most of your questions.
How do I ask my watch questions?
If you talk in a casual manner to your watch, as if talking to a person, your watch will be able to understand you. All the watches are networked to a powerful AI that keeps all of your various AI personalities.
When do we go into the world?
As of now, entrance into the world will take place in ten hours. You will receive a notification to let you know when you need to be ready to walk to the appropriate destination. Times will vary based on your own walking pace, which is constantly updated into our system to provide accurate information.
After going through all the information, Sam decided that he should head off to sleep and mentally prepare himself to enter into The World.