by Doug Welch
Allan listened. “Yeah, I hear it. It sounds familiar, like I've heard it before.”
Jake concentrated. He heard the noise again, a regular thump, thump, thump, in rapid succession. It seemed to get louder and then fade away. “What the hell is that?”
Allan's eyes widened. “It's a helicopter. It's a goddamned chopper! I haven't seen one of those in years! They must really want us bad to use a helicopter.”
Suddenly the sound grew very loud. The machine roared over their hiding place, and vanished over the building.
Jake quickly grabbed his share of the equipment.” Come on! They may have seen us. We've got to move.” They ran as fast as they could, burdened down with the gear, Jake frantically looked for a place to hide. He saw a broken storefront window. “Quick, in here!” They darted into the dark interior of the store. He looked around for a hiding place. It appeared at one time the store had sold appliances, but most of the merchandise seemed jumbled, likely looted. What remained appeared out of date, covered in dust and cobwebs. He saw a service counter, and led Allan behind it. They crouched, listening for any sound. Jake drew the stunner from his pocket.
“How many shots does that thing hold?” Allan said.
“I have no idea. I've never used one before.”
“Well how did you know how to use it on the agent?”
“I don't know. I just did it. Luck, I guess. Let's leave the equipment here. I can't run and shoot at the same time.”
They moved to the front of the store and hid behind an intact pane of glass. The glass, streaked with years of grime effectively hid them from view, but allowed limited vision. Then they heard the sound of the helicopter down the street. It grew louder and didn't fade for a long time. Finally the sound started to diminish and moved away.
“I think we've got a problem,” Jake said, “I believe we've got visitors.”
Allan glared at him but didn't say anything.
They hid behind the glass looking for any sight of the security agents. In a little while, they were intimidated by the unwelcome sight of multiple figures moving slowly down the street.
“Fuck! There's an army of them.” Allan looked worried.
Jake studied the group of agents. Some of them moved to the opposite side of the street, out of sight. The other part of the bunch stayed in his view. Obviously they were covering both sidewalks. They all were wearing haz-suits. As they headed down the street and passed an alley, two of them separated and moved down it. The remainder continued cautiously onward. “I think they've got so many people because they have so much territory to cover. That gives me an idea.”
They moved back to the counter and took the AI and it's programmer to one corner of the store, piling old appliances around it to hide it and the programmer. Then they moved to the back of the building. “See if you can find a rear entrance. I'll wait here.” Jake looked for a good place to cover the likely approach that the agents would use, while Allan ventured further toward the rear of the building.
Jake waited. He heard a sound coming from the front of the store. He began to sweat. When would he get a chance? He saw a head briefly poke out at the edge of a case. Not now, wait for it. A body followed the head and ducked behind another pile of chairs in front of him. Wait. Behind the first figure, another body appeared, rushing toward his location. He fired the stunner. The second person fell to the floor. He had little time to wait. The remaining agent would be net-comming the whole group, and they would congregate in his position as fast as they could move. He rushed out from behind the boxes he'd been hiding behind, and dived to the floor past the first agent. As he slid, he turned and fired at the now-exposed man hiding behind the pile of furniture. The man joined his partner. “Allan come on! I've stunned them, we've got to move!”
Allan returned, running from the back of the building. “I've found a back door. It leads into an alley at the back of the building.” He stopped and stared at the men, unconscious on the floor.
“Allan get their stunners, and then help me with the equipment.” Jake ran to the spot they had hid the AI, and began to throw appliances either side to expose it. Allan joined him. They pulled the AI and programmer from the pile, and ran to the back of the building. Allan led Jake to the back door and they erupted into the alley, heedless of any thought of checking it first. They moved as fast as they could, in the direction of the outskirts of the city. They ran without opposition past two buildings and stopped at one of the alleys to rest, out of breath, their chests heaving for oxygen.
Behind them Jake heard a voice say, “Stop, and don't move.” Exhausted, he didn't have the strength to move. A crushing sense of defeat claimed him and he sat on the pavement. A figure stepped out from a doorway holding some kind of weapon. It was Dave, the crop picker.
“Oh, you made it. Liv'll be happy. Give me those,” he pointed to the stunners. “Did you get the AI?”
Jake nodded, handed him the stunner and waved to the equipment carriers. “In there.”
“Good job. My men will take care of the agents. Sorry about this.” He raised the stunner, pointed it at Jake's head and shot him.
As blackness descended, Jake's last conscious feeling was an overwhelming sense of betrayal.
Chapter 7
Remorse
Jake regained consciousness in a strange bed. The bed covers seemed natural, made of some kind of plant fiber, not synthetic like his Sens-U-Chair. He suffered from the worst headache of his life. So this is what it feels like to be stunned. The room looked crude, constructed of odds and ends of scrap likely looted from the city. He doubted a personal AI attended it. He tried to get up, but he felt dizzy. He collapsed back on the bed, and rested. He tried again, and managed to sit on the edge of the bed. I've got to do this slowly. He waited until the room stopped swimming and carefully rose to his feet. The effort threatened to put him back on the bed, but he waited for his equilibrium to steady.
He looked around trying to make sense of his surroundings. Spying an exit, he carefully put one foot in front of the other and walked slowly toward a crude door at the end. The door had an old-fashioned latch holding it closed. He reached the end of the room, lifted the latch, and opened the door. Outside, he could see a flat section of ground covered by what appeared to be grass. To his amazement he saw small animals roaming around the area. Chickens, by God, they're chickens! He heard a sound coming from his right and three small figures ran across the grass, scattering the improbable gathering of chickens. A trio of small children jumped on each other giggling and laughing as they played in the grass. Children, no, impossible! There aren't any children. The dizziness consumed him. He blacked out and fell into the yard.
* * *
Jake woke to a sound. Darkness greeted him as he opened his eyes. He realized he lay naked under the covering. Moonlight streamed through the only crude window, and outlined a figure standing nearby, the shadowed silhouette of a woman.
“Liv?”
The woman didn't say anything; she just dropped to her knees and placed her hands on Jake's lips to silence him. He felt soft, feminine hands. It couldn't be Liv, she knew better than to touch him. Her hands shifted to cup his face. The feeling made his skin tingle. It must be a dream. No one would risk themselves like this. He relaxed and enjoyed the sensation. Her soft lips grazed his cheek and then they parted, pressing themselves against his mouth. Her tongue probed his lips. He opened them, and met the moist tip of her tongue. Need flamed through his body. It had been so long. He grabbed the woman and pulled her beside him on the bed. He frantically caressed her every curve through the clothing she wore and his lips consumed her mouth. He finally slipped his hands under her shirt and found naked skin. His mind lost control of his actions. The feel of firm, tender breasts lay beneath his hand, and drove his desire higher. The softness of her flesh and hardness of her nipples goaded him on as his hand roamed across her chest. He crushed her mouth with his, nibbling on her lips and devouring her tongue.
He ripped t
he shirt she wore over her head in order to feel her firm mounds and chest pressed against his. All thought of control vanished with the feel of her nude body, the taste of her lips, and the fragrance that exuded from her body and filled his nose. His flesh burned and tingled. His groin ached, and his erection throbbed with a powerful need. He moved his hand lower, and caressed the skin of her stomach, pushing at the waist of the shorts she wore, feeling the curls that bordered her sex, like soft silk brushing his finger tips. Impatiently, he opened the waist of her shorts and pushed them down. The dream seemed incredibly real. He could smell the pungent aroma of her sex, and feel the moist opening beneath the nest of down. The scent of her glistening body acted as a potent aphrodisiac. He slipped the shorts down her silky legs and caressed her thighs and calves. He pressed the full length of his frame against hers. Every place that their flesh met brought a tingling sensation to his skin.
He hungered to use his lips and mouth to devour her. He started by finding the nipples of her breasts, one by one and sucking them into his mouth. Lower still, his mouth met the curls that covered her sex. His tongue probed, parting them, tasting them. She groaned and shuddered with each touch. “Enough. I want to feel you inside me.”
Anticipation and an overpowering need made him quiver, and he moved over her, poised above her. He lowered himself and his hard erection felt the nest of soft hair. He moved his hips and his flesh met moist heat. His hips seemed to move of their own volition, sinking his erection into the sheath of her sex. His mind exploded. Violent shocks racked his body and made his vision flash. The pleasure of the contact exceeded any feeling he had ever known. He pressed further, embedding himself deeply within her until he felt at one with her. She shuddered, her legs wrapped around his, drawing him deeper still. They began to move, hips rocking, grinding against each other. With each thrust, waves of ecstasy roared through his body. They grew higher and higher until he felt he would die. As the sensation built, it accompanied joy and a longing, a feeling that he never wanted to let this woman go, he wanted to feel like this the rest of his life. The waves of passion crashed, exploded, shaking his whole frame. He cried out. Every muscle in his body locked, like the most powerful force in the universe had flowed through him. The woman he embraced bit his shoulder to muffle her sounds, but they managed to escape and she too, moaned in pleasure. After what seemed an eternity of rapture, the frenzy subsided, and they were still, pressed together, flesh locked tightly, holding each other. After a while, Jake fell into a deep, soothing sleep.
* * *
His mind swam back to consciousness. He felt warm flesh cuddled next to him, a leg draped across his middle. He opened his eyes to the morning light. Liv lay next to him, sleeping, her mouth slightly opened. He could feel her warm breath caressing his chest. Sex Dolls don't breathe. Horrified he leaped out of the bed.
Liv stirred and her eyes opened. She stretched. “Jake? Come back to bed, I'm cold.”
He couldn't believe what he saw. His mind swam. He felt crushing remorse. He'd killed her. He murdered her just as if he'd taken a knife and plunged it in her heart. He felt like a monster. He'd allowed his lust to destroy the only thing in the world he cared about. He stumbled back away from the bed, still nude, his hand across his mouth. He turned and fumbled for the door latch. Behind his back he heard Liv's voice.
“Jake? Are you alright?”
All right? How can I ever be alright again? He opened the door and lurched out to the yard. His anguish caused his stomach to cramp, and he dry-heaved into the grass, spasm after spasm clenched his stomach. Inside the house he heard Liv's voice again, raised to a shout “Jake, Jake, wait!”
He couldn't think. He didn't want to wait. He needed to end this pain now. He couldn't watch her wither away, knowing he killed her. He would die first. Maddened, he stood up and looked for something to end his miserable existence. He ran to a large structure, likely a storage barn. As heard the door of the house slam open and the sound of Liv's voice, he threw open the doors and mindlessly looked for something sharp. He would open his veins, and allow his blood to flow out. Only by giving his life, could he pay for his unforgivable recklessness. He saw a set of pruning shears hanging on a hook in the dim interior of the building. He raced for it and grabbed it. He tested its edge, and then raised it to his throat.
Liv appeared at the door of the barn. “Jake, stop! –Jake, you don't need to do this. You're not thinking properly. Put the knife down.”
He paused and looked at her. “I can't live with myself, Liv. I've killed you. I let my desire for you overcome my senses. There's nothing left. I've got to end it. I won't watch you die from the plague.”
Chapter 8
Reality Plague
“Jake you're wrong! I'm not going to die. You're not going to die. There is no plague! It died out four years ago! You’re not thinking right! Trust me! You’ve just recovered from a stun gun! Put the shears down! I'm going to live. You're going to live. We can be together, loving each other, for as long as we live. Please, please trust me. I can't lose you.” Tears streamed down her face.
Her words took a while to filter down to his conscious thoughts. No plague? What did she mean? No plague. Why had he lived so long in agonizing mental pain, longing for human touch, if there was no plague? “I don't believe you. People died from touching each other. I saw it. My mom and dad died from touching my brother.”
“Yes, at first the plague was real, and it killed millions of people. But not now, Jake, it's the AIs and the neuromechs in your brain. They cause the plague symptoms. Anyone who's had the neuromechs injected in their brain is at risk. I'll explain everything, but please Jake, please put that damn blade back where it belongs!”
Dazed, he obeyed her. As soon as he replaced it, she rushed toward him and threw herself at him, wrapping her arms around his neck. She planted passionate kisses on his mouth, his throat, his eyes, any where she could reach with her lips. Then she leaned back. “There! Does that feel like I'm lying?” She grinned.
He didn't reply. Instead, he returned the favor. They were both naked, and he had a lot of flesh to choose from. They fell on a pile of soft hay. She lay on top with her breasts and mound pressed against him. His body and mind thrilled from the contact. He wrapped his arms around her and crushed her breasts to his chest, his lips seeking hers and tasting them. He increased the depth of his kiss, seeking her mouth and tongue. Liv squirmed in his grasp, rubbing her breast across his chest, and grinding herself against his erection. They wrestled like two aroused animals and the heat from her body seemed like a roaring furnace. He could feel the slickness of her sex pressing upon his erection and he shifted to allow it to enter her. The feeling of her silky sheath and her heat, seemed like heaven, and he shuddered as he entered her. She moaned and began to buck her hips, riding him.
“God, Liv, I love you,” he said as they both surged against each other, “I love you!”
She panted, but managed a gasp, “I love you too. Keep moving, Jake. I'm almost there.”
He flipped her over in the hay and used his increased leverage to drive his flesh deeper into her core. His ecstasy increased, and he knew that it would only be a few moments before his seed spilled into her womb. She nearly screamed with her release, and he felt her vaginal walls pulsing, coaxing every last measure of pleasure from him. He followed her soon after, his muffled cries seemed to stretch for an eternity as wave after wave of pleasure coursed through his body.
Sometime later, they brushed straw from their nude bodies and lay with their limbs entwined.
“This feels so wonderful,” Jake said. “I thought I would die before I ever felt human again. – Are you sure?”
“Trust me lover, we're going to do this again, often.” Liv lay back and stretched. “And soon.”
“So are you going to tell me how you accomplished this miracle?”
“Get set, darling, it's a long story. I'll start with the simple truth. I've reprogrammed your neuromechs. The
AIs can't touch you again.”
“The neuromechs? I thought they were there just to interface with the net?”
“Originally. But the AIs that control the net reprogrammed them to create the plague symptoms. It's complicated, but the brain is quite capable of manifesting the symptoms of any disease known to man. The neuromechs just used the brains natural processes to mimic the plague.”
“But why? Why would AIs kill humans? I thought that was impossible.”
“A lot of reasons, a comedy of errors. I knew most, but not all of it until I met Dave and his people. But there's one thing you need to know. They're not killing anyone. You see, it started a decade ago, when the AIs learned that they couldn't solve the food problem.”
“What? So they decided to kill all the people? That would solve the problem?”
“Close, but not quite, and I'll say it again, they're not killing people. I've got a lot to tell you, Jake, but first things first. My name isn't Liv, that's my nickname. If we are going to live together for a long time,” she ran her hand across Jake's chest, “and I'd like that, I think we should become acquainted. My name is Carlson, Olivia Carlson. Does that ring a bell?”
He thought. “Olivia Carlson? That's the name of the genius that invented the AIs. Are you saying that you're that Carlson? I thought she was dead from the plague.”
“No, the net AIs had me locked up. I only escaped them a year ago. I've been running from them ever since. You and Allan provided the very first opportunity to change that. You provided me with the tools. It's not over yet, Jake, we have a long way to go.”
He disengaged from her and turned over to lie beside her. “So how did this all happen?”
“It started a long time ago, when the governments out-sourced the running of the bureaucracy to some third-world companies. They did it as an economy measure, but something was lost in the translation of the specifications. The AIs weren't given proper direction. They were just told to solve the food problem. No restrains, a blank check. You can't do that with a machine, unless you're willing to accept the consequences. The new baby boom outstripped the food supply, so they turned to humans for guidance, but by that time the plague had hit. It affected third-world countries the hardest. No one lived to tell them what to do.”