Dreamspinner

by Merita King

  “Hey you. You lot behind the Q-Wall. I know you’re experimenting on me for something. I know you’ve been pretending to be Mykus, Tovis, and Doctor Arma. I reckon you’re probably doing experiments on how to drive people insane. Maybe that’s some kind of twisted weapon you’ve invented and you want to know how a man’s mind can withstand it. I don’t know how I got here, nor if I even consented to this. You lock me up in this prison with no one to talk to or hang out with and expect me to carry on my daily life. Dammit, I’m a person not some lab animal that can’t think. For years I’ve served the galactic military, put my life on the line to keep your dirty secrets and overlook your mistakes. Times without number I’ve turned a blind eye when you’ve lied to whole worlds and I’ve probably taken innocent lives to cover up for you. So this is where that loyalty gets me huh? At least afford me the courtesy of some company while you drive me insane as payback for my service. There’s no way I can get off this crate alone, I realise that, but I can’t simply remain here like this and wait for the walls to start talking back to me. I’m taking control of this situation here and now.”

  Tearan walked to his makeshift bed, an idea having found its way to the forefront of his overactive mind. ‘If I’m the subject of some kind of experiment, they’re gonna want me alive so they can keep doing whatever it is they’ve been doing. Maybe if they think I’m a danger to myself they might reveal themselves in order to save their investment.’ Taking up the nearest of the laser pistols, he faced the wall.

  “What I do now, I do with a sound mind and as a man of clear conscience and spotless record. I have no control over you or whatever it is that you’re doing, but I do have ultimate control of one thing, my life. I choose to exercise that control now. I will no longer allow myself to be subject to your experiments and I will not walk these corridors as a mindless husk of a man whose mind has been driven from him, for countless years into an unknown future.”

  He lifted the pistol and held it against his temple. “I am Tearan Lindo of the Inter-Galactic Elite Command, Unit 389C4. I am thirty-three years old and from Arlenika Prime. I go to the afterlife with a full heart and a clear conscience.” Squeezing his eyes shut, he prayed it would be a painless end and tensed his finger on the trigger.

  “Hello, Tearan.” The voice made Tearan almost jump out of his skin. His eyes snapped open and he found himself looking into the pale eyes of a middle-aged man. Lowering the gun in shock, he squeezed his eyes shut, then opened them again. The man was still there and offered a reassuring smile. “I assure you I am real.”

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  14

  For several seconds, Tearan stared into the pale eyes of the stranger, who continued to gaze at him benignly. Wide eyed and open mouthed, he did not at first believe that what he was seeing was not a hallucination. Conflicting emotions battled for control. On the one hand, he was so happy to see another real live person that he felt tears pricking at his eyes, and the urge to rush over and hug the man was hard to resist. On the other hand, all his pent up anger and frustration fought to burst out now that there was someone at which to aim it and the urge to shoot the man was equally hard to resist.

  Shaking himself from his daze, he straightened his shoulders. “Who the fuck are you?”

  “I am Doctor Hunter and I am in charge here. I am happy to answer any questions you have.”

  Tearan was immediately suspicious and looked the man up and down. “You’re the one who’s responsible for me being imprisoned here? It’s you who gave me amnesia?”

  Hunter held his gaze. “Yes.”

  Quick as a flash Tearan lifted the gun once again, this time taking aim at Hunter’s head. “Then this is for you.”

  “If you kill me I can’t answer your questions can I?”

  “There must be others with you. You can’t do whatever it is you’re doing, all alone. They can talk, you can die.”

  “Is that really what you want to do, Tearan? Is this what you’ve come to after all this, a killer?”

  “I’m in the IGEC; we kill to cover up for assholes like you. It’s what I do. Killing you will be therapy.”

  “Will it really make you feel like justice has been served to you? After killing me, this place, this work will still be secret and will still go on. You will be executed and everything else will go back to being as it was. Killing me will achieve nothing other than relieving this present moment of anger. I thought IGEC personnel were more disciplined than that.”

  Tearan bristled, annoyed at the man’s logic and the way his words made him feel stupid. Furrows creased his brow as he struggled to regain his composure. Trying not to appear as if he had been caught off guard, he swiped a trembling hand across his forehead and dropped the gun to the floor.

  “A moment ago you were going to shoot yourself, then you were going to shoot me. Neither of those actions would get you the answers you’ve been seeking. At least give me time to explain things to you before you decide if either of us is to die.”

  “So talk. How the fuck did I end up here and what is going on?”

  “Come with me and I’ll show you. Perhaps you’d like to umm, get dressed first?”

  Tearan remembered he was naked and blushed. “Shit,” he hissed and rummaged around for his clothes.

  Two minutes later, Hunter motioned towards the Q-Wall. “Down there between the racks of shelving is a gap just wide enough for one man. Follow me.” He walked down the cargo hangar, glancing back twice to make sure he was following. Tearan had noticed the gap in the shelving many times but never noticed anything different about this portion of the wall. He scanned it closely but there was nothing that caught his eye as being out of place.

  Hunter took a small device from his pocket. “This is a mobile Q-controller. It is calibrated in such a way that allows us to open a limited portion of the wall, big enough for one person to walk through. It allows us entry and exit without having to activate the whole wall, which would be harder to defend. Here, you try. Press the button at the top and hold the unit towards the wall.” Tearan took the device from Hunter and examined it. It was a rectangular box about twice the size of a cigarette packet, and had five buttons, a rotating dial, and a small one-inch square screen. A regular quiet blip was coming from it and a constantly moving waveform was flowing across the screen. “I would advise you don’t fiddle with that rotating dial or we will both be stranded on this side. The button at the top makes the wall traversable. The next one down makes it a solid wall again. The other three are a locking mechanism, an alarm, and an intercom that allows us to communicate with those on the other side. That rotating dial alters the calibration, so unless you’re an expert in quantum mechanics, I’d leave that one alone. Go ahead, press the button at the top and I will show you where we’ve been hiding.”

  Tearan held the device towards the wall and pressed the button. He heard a low hum and a noise like a small stone splashing into water and the surface of the portion of wall in front of him changed. Gentle undulations flowed over the surface, a glowing radiance emanating from between the individual cells that made up the wall.

  Tearan frowned at Hunter. “Why do Q Walls always glow like that when they’re activated?”

  The hint of a smile played on Hunter’s lips, as if he were delighted that Tearan were taking an interest in the science. “It’s a by-product of the quantum interference process. Without getting too scientific, cells that make up structures bind together through the actions of special cell adhesion molecules.”

  Tearan’s frown deepened. “You mean special sticky molecules?”

  “Yes, that’s one way of describing it. These special sticky molecules stick cells together in various different ways, some of which allow liquids or gases to pass between the cells. In order for a person to pass through a structure, we had to make a brand new kind of special sticky molecule that allows us to pass through the structure, and then makes the cells bind together again without our passage having caused damage.”

  “
And they glow?” Tearan asked.

  “Yes. When they’re activated by a sound wave, they glow. When we pass through, the cell bindings are broken, but our special binding cells automatically re-bond again without damage. You’re interested in science, Tearan?”

  “Yeah. Oh, I would never be in a position to take your job or anything, but I’m interested in how and why stuff works. When I was a kid, I wanted to invent things when I grew up. A relative of my father invented a fuel valve that made engines use half the fuel without loss of power output and I used to love tinkering with things whenever we went to visit. I wanted to be like him when I grew up, but I didn’t have his brain.”

  “You make your own contribution to life,” Hunter said. “One that’s just as valuable as any other. Let’s go shall we?” He indicated the wall ahead. The wall glowed, its surface gently undulating and Tearan swallowed. Although he had traversed Q-Walls a couple of times before without adverse effect, it still made him hesitate for a moment.

  “You will feel a tingling sensation,” Hunter said from behind him. “It’s a little like strong pins and needles but it fades within a few seconds once you’re through.”

  “Yeah I know,” Tearan replied. “I’ve done Q-Walls a couple of times. It’s so unnatural that’s all. It’s not the physical part of it that bothers me, it’s the fact that we’re not designed to walk through walls. It kind of, goes against nature I guess. Stupid I know.”

  “I understand completely. Many people feel the same way. I felt that way when I first started working with them. Believe me you get used to it and don’t worry, you won’t get stuck halfway through. Those special sticky cells we invented won’t stick when living tissue is passing through. It’s a safety feature we built into the process. Go ahead, the rest of my staff are waiting to meet you.”

  Tearan stepped into clean white surroundings. Several men and women sat at workstations in front of bleeping computer consoles, readouts, display screens, and flickering lights. A group of men in overalls stood at one end and Tearan thought they were probably manual labourers. Another group of men in security uniforms stood at the far end and stared unseeing into the middle distance.

  “Hello, Tearan,” a thin young man approached him, a polite smile on his lips and his hand outstretched. “It’s good to meet you at last. My name is Doctor Julian Danvers.”

  “Another doctor,” Tearan remarked as they shook hands. “Is that the medical kind of doctor or the scientist kind?”

  “The scientist kind,” Danvers replied.

  Hunter came up and joined them. “First things first eh? You haven’t eaten properly in the last couple of days, so would you like a proper meal?” Tearan hesitated, tempted to say no. He was hungry and now that he finally made it through the wall, there was no immediate need to do without. Hunter read his hesitation as acceptance. “Right then, follow me. Danvers, would you like to join us?”

  Hunter and Danvers led Tearan along several corridors and up three flights of stairs before they entered a reasonably sized dining room. From the areas he had so far seen, he was even more confused about the size of this missing portion of the ship. From the maps on the walls, this missing space should be almost the same size as the cargo hangar on deck eight, and a similar sized area above it on deck seven. From what he had seen so far, this whole space was way too big. Something was off and he frowned.

  Hunter noticed his frown. “It must be confusing, Tearan. Don’t worry, the moment you’ve got a decent meal inside you, we’ll take you down to meet everyone and tell you everything. Now, what would you like?”

  Several people were staring wide eyed and Tearan felt the weight of their stares. It made him feel self conscious and he blushed. Turning away from their stares, he squared his shoulders as he forced himself back into IGEC mode. During the meal, he fired questions at the two doctors, but both skilfully avoided answering them. Halfway through a delicious steak, Tearan slammed his knife and fork down and growled. Everyone in the room stopped talking and turned to stare. He felt their gaze burning and anger flared into life.

  “What are you looking at, assholes?” he yelled. Everyone snapped their heads away and pretended to be continuing with their own conversations.

  “Please try to be patient, Tearan,” Hunter said. “I’ve promised you all the answers you want, but it would not be fair to prevent the other staff here from contributing to that discussion. They are all experts in their own fields, all of us have an interest in you and what you’ve experienced.”

  “You’ve earned the right to enjoy a decent meal that you don’t have to cook for yourself after what you’ve been through,” Danvers added.

  Tearan closed his eyes, trying to force his anger back down. When he opened them, he looked down at his plate. “Okay, I apologise for yelling but I’ve been imprisoned back there for days on end, lost my memory and still haven’t got it all back. Why this happened to me and what I did to deserve it is a mystery. I’ve always done my job to the best of my ability; kept the secrets, done the dirty work, turned the blind eye and never questioned orders. I’ve earned the truth if nothing else.”

  “You’ll have it, I give you my word,” Hunter said.

  “Hello, Tearan,” the pretty brunette said with a genuine smile that crinkled at the corners of her eyes. “I’m Doctor Melissa Frost.”

  “Hi,” Tearan replied.

  Once the large briefing room was full and everyone seated around the oval table, Hunter looked at Tearan. “Okay. We are all here to explain what’s been happening and why. It will seem unbelievable to you but I promise you everything we are about to tell you is the truth. You can ask questions at any time, if you don’t understand or if we get too scientific.”

  “Good, so what the fuck have you done to me and why?”

  “This ship,” Hunter replied, “the Novosentia, has been the home of the Dreamspinner project for the past six years.”

  Tearan frowned. “Dreamspinner? I’ve never heard of it.”

  “That doesn’t surprise me in the least,” Hunter said. “In fact I’d be worried if you had. It’s above top secret and always has been. You consented to be a part of this project. That’s why you’re here.”

  “That still doesn’t tell me anything and why should I believe you that I consented? Anyone could claim that. What part have I been playing in this little game of yours?”

  Danvers leaned forwards. “You’re one of our test subjects. As you figured out for yourself, we’ve been filming you and listening to you since you woke up, but this is so that we can observe how you react to the procedure.”

  “Procedure?” Now Tearan leaned forward. “What procedure?”

  Danvers and Hunter hesitated and it was Melissa Frost who spoke. “The Dreamspinner project was set up to do research and testing into personality alteration.”

  “Personality alteration? What the fuck is that?” Tearan frowned and closed his eyes. When he felt calm, he opened them and apologised. “I’m sorry for my language but you’re all still holding out on me and it’s damn annoying.”

  She nodded. “I know, but you’ve been so successful that we don’t want to risk anything going wrong. We are a little afraid that if we dump all the missing bits of information onto you now, you won’t be able to cope and the test will fail.”

  “If you don’t tell me, I assure you all here and now that this little test of yours will fail spectacularly, because I will go insane with frustration.” He let out a howl of anger and banged both fists down onto the table. “Please, tell me what the fuck is going on. I’m an honest and hard working man and I deserve the truth if nothing else.”

  “We’ve given you a new personality,” she replied, her eyes never leaving his own. “There, I said it.”

  “You what? A new personality?” Tearan let out a cry that was halfway between a laugh and a sob, and leaned back in his chair as he ran a hand through his hair. “That’s crazy. You’re crazy. I am who I am.”

  “Actually, you’re not. A
t least you weren’t, but you are now. Sorry, now I’m getting confused.” She shook her head and gave an attractive giggle of embarrassment. “What I’m trying to say is that you came to the Dreamspinner Project voluntarily. We then implanted you with a totally new personality, with its own identity and its own sense of self. We’ve been observing you so that we can keep a check on how well you take to being Tearan Lindo.”

  Tearan listened, the words floating into his brain but making no sense whatsoever. “That’s nuts.” He leaned forward, scanning the faces around the table. “That’s impossible. Isn’t it?”

  “Not any more it isn’t,” Danvers replied. “That’s the reason why you can’t remember the time spanning a week before you came here, and a week after. That portion of time will always be gone. We’ve found that it’s the only way a subject can ever hope to accept the newly implanted personality. The newly implanted information needs that little window of time as a sort of, clean slate, on which to set down its initial roots.”

  Tearan was wide eyed by now and so amazed by what he was hearing that questions evaded him. He was so stunned he did not know how to reply.

  “The exact process goes like this,” Hunter said as he switched on a vidicom screen. “You are given an anaesthetic and then a small computerised chip is implanted into your brain.” He pointed to the various photographs, diagrams, and film footage as he explained. “After this is done, we keep you sedated while we activate the chip remotely from one of the consoles in the room by the Q-Wall. What this does is erase a small amount of your short term memory, from around a week before, and prevents new memories from embedding for approximately a further week, give or take a day or so either way. Into this memory free patch of your mind, we download the information that forms the basics of the new personality. After another week or so, when your wound is healed and our readouts show the new personality has implanted, we take you through to the ship and leave you to wake up naturally. All we then have to do is observe and be ready should anything untoward happen.”