Ipseity (The Stork Tower Book 5)

by Tony Corden

  ACADEMIA - EDUCATIONAL PORTAL WORLD

  Leah is enrolled for several courses at the Brisbane Community College at the same time as working towards her doctoral studies at MIT.

  Dr Ellen Whitfield - Leah’s MIT Doctoral Supervisor in Theoretical Physics

  Dr Thomas Ellis - MIT Doctoral Supervisor - Experimental Physics

  COSMOS ONLINE - GALACTIC SPACE WORLD

  With one of her game avatars, Leah and Wisp have exited from Plankian space into a previously unexplored solar system which shows evidence of significant natural resources and gaming potential. Leah’s other avatar is still on the Annoyance and is heading for a rendezvous with Mahigan to hand over the spaceship. Leah has already downloaded the information but Mahigan thinks it is on board.

  Atherleah - current avatars on Betrayal and Annoyance

  Brett - Trainer on Berne - Thad’s friend who betrayed Leah

  John - current avatar on Annoyance

  Mahigan the Black - Meredith’s character

  Red - part of Red Star Protective Services

  Star - part of Red Star Protective Services

  Tungsten - leader of Berne Assault team

  Wisp - current avatar on Betrayal

  PNEUMATICA - STEAMPUNK WORLD

  Leah (as Charlotte) has rescued Catherine Trang and is headed back to Aeolipile aboard the Tempest. She has been injured and needs to purchase a prosthetic eye. Her next task is to hunt down Frank Emerson and find a way to save Thad.

  Atherleah_Carroll - Leah’s user name - known as ‘Charlotte’ - Privateer Captain of the Tempest and the Draken

  Edison - Developer in charge of Pneumatica

  Lord Frank Emerson - Thad’s uncle - part of crime syndicate

  Thad Emerson - Leah’s boyfriend - virtually controlled by his father

  Tedrick Emerson - Thad’s Cousin

  NPCs

  Commander Abbotsford - First Officer of Maelstrom’s Fury

  Albert Lincoln - Head concierge at the Hotel Herrington

  Captain Barnsdale - Privateer Captain of Maelstrom’s Fury

  Billy Bartle - Head thief

  Major Ian Daniels - Marine Captain and member of Charlotte’s crew

  Master Mary Fallow - Brownsmith

  Mr Wilks - member of Charlotte’s crew - previously the first officer of the Tempest

  CYBER-VERSE

  During Leah’s rescue of Akia she discovered a hidden security vault which appears to be the virtually prison of Meredith Kodoman as well as several other individuals. Virtual Security forces are looking for the person who broke Akia from their security vault.

  Akia - Security Oversight AI 4 - Security AI

  Atherleah Lin Mu-Ling Carroll (Leah)

  Gèng - Leah’s AI

  Other Worlds (so far)

  Adventure World - second date with Thad

  Alexandria - Horror and the Occult theme world

  Carnival - first date with Thad

  Curator - History and Archeology world

  Dark Moon Duel - Leah learns swordplay

  Master Archery - Leah learns archery from Lady Flèche

  New World - 4X universe world

  Persepolis - Persian theme world

  Quickdraw - Western theme world

  Ringworld - World based on novel by Larry Niven

  Runes of Destiny - Michael is playing to find out about Kodomans

  Saturn’s Rings - Space world

  Spectator - Provides immersion into virtual feeds and news

  United Federation of Planets - Star Trek theme world

  Virtual World Today - news and current affairs world

  Walworld - shopping world

  Warrior - Conflict Resolution world for the wealthy

  1

  December 14, 2073 - Part 1

  REAL WORLD

  Her mum was home. Her family was together. The world wasn’t as dark as it had been for the last few days. Leah ached everywhere and slowly leant her head against the side of the vehicle. She closed her eyes until an insistent tapping noise gradually intruded into her reverie. Leah opened her eyes and looked up to see John standing beside her window. She expected him to be smiling, but he looks worried. He opened the door carefully, so she didn’t fall out and said, “Leah, are you OK? You’re just sitting there.”

  “I was just thinking about my family, Mum is home and it’s a good feeling. I was resting.”

  For a moment he looked distracted and then said, “Leah, I want you to come inside, please. You’ve been hurt, and you need to get out of that suit. Gèng says you’ve expended a lot of energy and need to eat and then you need to be checked out in the Pod as soon as possible.”

  “What do you mean, ‘Gèng says’?”

  Leah subvocalised, “Gèng, what is going on?”

  Instead of an answer, all she got was silence.

  “Leah, Gèng can hear you but hasn’t been able to get you to hear her for some time. When did you last communicate with her?”

  “During the swim, I think. I spent most of the ride back just watching Mum.”

  “Come inside and I’ll have someone help you to your room and into the Pod.”

  Leah tried to communicate with Gèng again but, getting no reply she slowly moved her legs out of the vehicle and tried to stand but found she had no strength. In the end she needed John’s help. Once she was upright, she shuffled slowly beside John toward the building. She said, “I want to see Mum first. One more minute won’t hurt.”

  He nodded and together they made their way inside. As soon as she was inside the building, Leah said, “John, can you help me remove the faceplate? It’s hard to reach it with only one arm working.”

  As soon as it came off, John winced and said, “You have a bruise covering the whole left side of your face, and your eyes are bloodshot. Let me get the balaclava off and I’ll have Marie help you get ready for the Pod.”

  As John helped remove her balaclava, Leah said, “I’ll head to the Pod after I see Mum. I need to make sure she is alright.”

  Lin had been taken upstairs and Leah gradually made her way up the stairs. She found climbing them to be especially tiring, not only because she had very little energy but also because her various injuries were beginning to ache, and her head was throbbing. As they approached the lounge, John stopped to let Leah go first. Lacey and Marie were standing in the doorway and they moved aside to let Leah through. Lin was lying on the lounge, with Michael sitting on a low footrest near her head and holding her hand. Conner was standing on the other side not really knowing what to do except stare at his mum. He couldn’t stop looking at her shaved head.

  Michael looked up at the movement, and although he started when he saw the condition Leah was in, he mouthed, “Thank you.”

  Leah nodded and was about to leave when Lin gave a little moan. Michael turned back and watched as she slowly opened her eyes. As soon as she saw him her face crinkled in a smile and she said, “心肝”. She looked up and saw Conner and said, “心肝宝贝”. Then her eyes swivelled around the room noting everyone before turning back to Michael and saying, “How did I get home?”

  “Leah and John went to get you. They’ve just brought you back.”

  Lin looked up at John and said, “John, thank you for bringing me home to my family.”

  Turning to Leah, Lin said, “You must be Leah. I think I know everybody else and I want to thank you for helping me. When I am rested, I look forward to getting to know you.”

  Leah froze. She felt like she’d been punched. She couldn’t breathe. It seemed to her that the universe had suddenly stopped. She tried to think of something, something to say, something to do, but everything was frozen. The only movement in the room was her mother who slowly closed her eyes. As they shut, Leah could almost sense everyone in the room start to breathe again. Her dad’s head slowly swivelled toward her. She could see the shock on his face which she imagined was mirrored on her own. Before either of them could say something, John said, “Michael,
we’ll deal with this later. Leah needs to get some rest before she collapses.”

  Leah opened her mouth to argue but John talked over the top of her. “Lacey, you and Marie help get Leah to her room. I’m going to grab some of the energy supplements and will meet you there. Leah, I promise we'll find out what is going on with your mum, but you need to have your injuries checked out.”

  Without waiting for a reply, he hurried down the corridor toward the medical stores while Lacey and Marie began helping Leah toward her room. Before they had taken more than a few steps, Michael had caught up with them and stopped them. He stood in front of Leah and carefully placed his hands on her shoulders to look closely at her. He noticed the wince as his hand touched her left shoulder. He could see the bruise on her face and said, “I can see the arm and face, where else are you hurt?”

  “To be honest, I have no idea. Everything is sore at the moment. Once I’m in the Pod I’ll know more. Don’t worry dad. I’m more concerned about Mum. How could she forget me?”

  “I don’t know, but John’s right, you need to be checked out before we start talking about Lin.”

  “What will you do?”

  “I’m going to go and talk with the healers and talk it over with John before I do anything. For now, you need to put it aside and get yourself checked over.”

  Michael took a step back and watched as Leah shuffled the rest of the way to her room. By the time she arrived, John was back with several of the ultra-high energy supplement bars. He said, “Lacey, make sure Leah eats these, then help her have a shower and get into the Pod. I want one of you in the room until I send someone to relieve you. I’m going to ask Gèng to let us know when Leah is leaving the Pod and I’ll want one of you there to help her out. No one except those who were in the rescue team is to be told the full extent of her injuries.”

  Turning to Leah, he said, “I expect you to have more than the minimum NREM3 sleep. I don’t want you back in any world until we’ve had a chance to debrief.”

  “Don’t forget that I have an appointment with Nathan at midday.”

  “Lin’s back. There isn’t going to be any meeting.”

  “There won't be a meeting in this world. The Annoyance is arriving in the Epsilon Serpentis System, and I have to decide what I’m going to do.”

  “Forget it. It doesn’t matter about a single ship. I’d rather you get healthy first.”

  “Maybe… maybe you’re right. Let’s wait and see though. I'm sure Nathan has something up his sleeve, I know I do.”

  Once in the room, Lacey handed Leah one of the energy bars and began to undress her while Marie held her upright. Even though Lacey tried to be careful, Leah almost passed out when her top piece of armour was removed because Lacey had to tug to get the tight body-armour off Leah’s arm. Leah sensed both Marie and Lacey tense as she stepped out of the suit’s lower piece.

  “What’s the matter?”

  Lacey said, “Your shoulder is one massive bruise, and it looks deformed in places. That armour is amazing but you still have bruises over your entire torso. How many times were you hit?”

  “I’m not sure, ten or eleven at least. The last few hurt more. I think something broke when I slammed into the door.”

  “You’ll need another suit, but it can wait. I think you need to see a doctor for this.”

  “I can’t. You know as well as I do that this has to stay in-house.”

  Marie said, “I understand wanting to hold off getting outside treatment until you’ve been checked out in the Pod, but it looks like you’ll need expert care. Now for the shower. Do you need a hand?”

  “Probably, but I’ll try on my own first.”

  Marie helped Leah get into the shower and although Leah tried to wash herself, she found it harder to move now that she’d cooled down. She was also more aware of her various injuries and her body rebelled against every movement. In the end, Leah had to ask Lacey to come and help. After rinsing off, she ate two more of the energy supplements and stumbled to the Pod. She needed help to get into the Pod and smiled weakly as the cover descended.

  Leah rested her head carefully on the recessed section of the headrest and closed her eyes. Instead of being transferred to the Tower, Leah heard Gèng’s voice from the internal Pod speakers. “Leah, before I do anything I think its best to do some tests. I’ve communicated with Dr Roberts, and she agrees that before stimulating your nervous system to enter the multiverse we should have a better picture of any neural damage you’ve sustained. Your inability to receive my communications is almost certainly caused by more than inflammation.”

  “What do I need to do?”

  “Lie still. I will fill the capsule with gel as normal, but this time you’ll experience the process. I understand that for some people it can be disorientating and possibly uncomfortable. Some have described it as claustrophobic. Other people love the experience and find it relaxing and similar to meditation. I read it is best if you keep your eyes closed. First I’ll lower the mask to help you breathe.”

  Leah felt something touch the bridge of her nose and then extend across her cheekbones and under her chin.

  Gèng’s voice continued, “Next is the gel. Once the chamber is filled, it will muffle my voice. I don’t know how long it will take to complete the tests, but I will try and be as quick as I can.”

  For the first time, Leah could actually feel the gel as it filled the Pod chamber. Even though it was warmed to her body-temperature, she felt it slide up her body until it covered her completely. It was like being submerged in a bath but heavier. She couldn’t feel the bench beneath her, but she did feel the gel as it pushed against her bruised flesh and sent waves of pain running through her. Slowly she relaxed, and the pain eventually subsided. As the pain receded, Leah felt like she was being pressed in on every side. She could feel the pressure on her face, and when she took a breath, the extra resistance on her chest was smothering. It was almost too much after the intensity of the last few hours, and she became anxious. Her muscles tensed and pain flared through her shoulder and across her back muscles. The sudden pain pulled her back from the brink of outright panic.

  She focused on her breathing until the pain again subsided and she found herself in a familiar meditative state. She slowed her breathing even further and began to review her day. She isolated each event, each issue and every interaction. She brought it to the forefront of her mind and tried to examine it dispassionately. She reviewed her journey through the vault and in particular the last three boxes. Were they prisons? If Meredith had somehow been locked up since 2055 then who was the Meredith she knew? Who were the other two prisoners and what, if anything, should she do about it? Was it any of her business? In the Pod and without distractions, it seemed like she had forever to think through the issues and come up with a range of options.

  She considered the download from the Annoyance. Who or what owned the voice which had given the permission to download the information? What was in the data? Or maybe even, who was the data? Was it enough to keep it from the Kodomans and their ilk, or should it be used? Should it be destroyed?

  Finally, she worked her way through the rescue of her mother. Were her enhancements as ethically neutral as she’d thought? What would people do if they knew what she was able to do? Had she killed anyone? What would the responses be to the rescue and how might the authorities respond? Why did her mother not know who she was?

  Leah slowly fell into a somnolent state of quiet ipsative reflection. She wasn’t sure how long she’d been lying in the Pod when she felt the gel begin to slide off her body. As the mask withdrew, she heard Gèng’s voice from the speakers. “Leah, I’m sorry it took so long, but Dr Roberts wanted to re-run some of the tests to see if there were any changes over the shorter term. We think you should have a small break from the Pod and take some more energy supplements and another dose of the neural antihistamines. Dr Roberts would also like to consult one of her colleagues concerning the advisability of further neural manip
ulation at the moment.”

  “What did the tests show? Why can’t I hear you?”

  “Do you remember when I suggested that the hyper-neurological activity possibly initiated adult stem cells in your hippocampus and nervous system to upgrade your sensory system and increase connectivity by forming new neurons?”

  “Yes. I thought that was related to a possible increase in electro-receptivity.”

  “It is, or rather, that has been shown to be one possible outcome. Your scans now show an increase in neural density centred along each of the microfilaments I use to manipulate your senses. I believe, and this is what Dr Roberts wants to check with her colleague, that this is a result of receptor cells specifically targeted to measure either electrical stimulation or electromagnetic fields that form along the filaments. At the moment, this is only a hypothesis, as we would need different equipment to verify the exact nature of the new cells.”

  “So why can’t I hear you? Surely I should have better connectivity?”

  “In the long term that is the most likely outcome. We have been discussing whether your inability to ‘hear’ is because this is a rapidly developing transitional phase. If it is, then we’re confident that over time the connections will allow me to interact and manipulate your sensory input as before. The other possibility is that the increase in neural density has precipitated a state of hypersensitivity, causing a form of sensory overload. If this is the case, then I need to recalibrate the signals I send and apply a filtering algorithm. Dr Robert’s associate has worked on the algorithms currently being used in sensory manipulation, and he may offer the best guidance on restructuring the signals. Dr Roberts would like your permission to contact her colleague.”

  “Can she maintain my anonymity, and what do you recommend?”

  “She cannot promise anonymity as she would need to allow access to the scans. It is possible they could be used to identify you. Dr Roberts has confidence that her associate, a Dr Howard Marsden, would maintain client confidentiality. My research about Dr Marsden shows no evidence of malpractice or impropriety of any kind. I asked both Tesfaye and Reed to check him out. They discovered nothing out of the ordinary except a large gambling debt. It is several years old, and since then he joined Gamblers Anonymous and is slowly paying it off. I’ve examined his published work and believe he has a deeper grasp of the issues involved than could be easily extrapolated from the articles or viewable lectures. I think you should allow Dr Roberts to seek his advice.”