Gestation by John Gold (love books to read .txt) 📗

The boy said nothing.

“You’re just going to be quiet? We had a perfectly normal conversation last time, though I didn’t have time to tell you that everything’s okay with Galboa. They regenerated his arm, not to mention the neuroshunt and the sensors in his palm. He said to say hi and that Finx misses you.”

Anji again said nothing. Everything about him told her that he knew she was lying, after which there was some static and the boy disappeared.

“Moro, what happened? Where is Anji? He can’t leave. I didn’t give him permission.”

“I’m not sure, Miss Donovan. All I know is that the boy was forced out and is currently in another virtual space with access completely closed off. He’s by himself.”

“That’s ridiculous! He couldn’t do that by himself. Were we hacked?”

“That’s impossible. He connected via a med capsule with a personal identifier, and we didn’t receive anything about external interference. Somebody may have intercepted the data coming from Anji’s capsule and switched him over to a different virtual space.”

“But who? And why? This is government level stuff. The devil himself wouldn’t be able to figure it out, and tracing the data flow? That fast? Could it have been a random hack?”

“Probably not, ma’am. The work is too good.”

∞ ∞ ∞

Well, this is new. I’m sent over to a different virtual space, a room with a view of Earth floating outside a large, panoramic window. This is an office! There’s a desk, an office, chairs, bookshelves on all the walls, the pleasant smell of baked goods, two couches, and a coffee table between them.

“Hi, Anji.”

The man looks to be about thirty years old, and he’s wearing gray tights and a t-shirt with a picture of Earth. There’s a cup of coffee he’s holding as he sits in the office chair. Just a second ago, he wasn’t there. The smell of vanilla fills the air.

“Who are you?”

“A friend.”

Yeah, right, like I’m going to talk to a weird guy in tights. A new psychologist? Screw you! I’m not going to talk.

“I’m a friend who knows that your brain is overheating, Anji. My job is to figure out what’s going on when there are problems with Project Chrysalis, and I have reason to believe that the malady that sent you to the hospital for the second time in a month is being caused by the game.”

That didn’t explain anything, and it was based more on conjecture than fact.

“My guess is that you got something in Project Chrysalis that your body and mind weren’t ready for. Your nervous system was overloaded, and all I can suggest is to go easy on things. Your life cycle and the abilities of your body are limited. We can only restore it if we act fast enough, so you need to stop using what you know how to do.”

Now, that’s starting to get interesting—life cycles, the abilities of my body, restoring me… Intriguing facts. Still, I don’t have enough information to get a grip on everything.

“I get that you don’t want to talk. Situations like yours shouldn’t be happening for at least another six years, though there are always exceptions. Basically, find a way to control your health problem. If you have a stroke, it will be really hard to save you.”

Oh, I get where you’re coming from, my friend. I already know how to keep myself from dying, too.

“Good luck, Anji Ganet. You’re going to need it.”

∞ ∞ ∞

Eliza stayed in her virtual space, waiting for the boy to be returned.

“Miss Donovan, he has left the other space.”

“Get him in here right now!”

The boy stood in the room with a smile on his face, apparently, having just learned something interesting about himself.

“Who pulled you out?”

Just the fact that she was hacked was a serious crime. If he knew who the hackers were, he needed to tell her.

The boy continued smiling and said nothing.

“I can give you another month in punishment for sabotaging a conversation with a psychologist. Are you prepared to deal with the consequences?”

The only thing the boy did was think to himself.

“Okay, we’ll do it your way. You’ll get the punishment starting with today: no games for a month.”

Anji just smiled again, his look showing the superiority he felt.

“Moro, set the punishment and let Vaalsie know about his infraction.”

The conversation over, Anji left the room. Eliza stepped out into reality. On the other side of the door, she already had people waiting for her to finish getting ready for her seminar. She hadn’t even started getting materials together.

“Miss Donovan, we were banned from talking with Anji Ganet for a year, and his punishment was revoked. The boy submitted a complaint to the station’s top ArtIn about abuse and false accusations.”

“What did he write? Based on what? What about his violations?”

“Everything the boy has done in the game has been within the rules and in keeping with the articles of behavior. He got a punishment from his supervisor for all the conversations with you he sabotaged. Psychologists can’t punish their wards except in special instances that stray outside the law, the articles of behavior, or set orders. The boy hasn’t done any of that. There have, however, been instances where he has been punished for not working with you or following your instructions.”

“He was doing sacrifices, Moro! What other reason do they need?!”

“We can’t prove that. All the information psychologists obtain during their conversations and observation are covered by doctor’s privilege. I can’t submit it as proof that you’re right.”

“What else did he say?”

“Today’s incident with the boy getting bumped over to a different virtual space wasn’t an infraction. All the recordings show that he was sent there accidentally, and then he was sent back once the error was discovered. Formally speaking, he didn’t violate any rules personally. There isn’t any proof of a hack, so the punishment was wrongfully applied.”

“He knew! That little squirt knew the whole time! He just needed a reason, and he found one. Damn it!”

“Miss Donovan, we can still watch, we just can’t