Cyber Reality

I lay frozen in the steel box provided. All its corners and walls confine my privacy. My eyes exchange nervous glances back at the walls, back at my feet, back at the walls again, back at my arms and legs. At least this is real I tell myself. The feeling of touch, sound and smell are still alive… at least for now.

The following morning my aunt asked how my first night of cyber travel went.

“Umm, it was okay.” I responded.

“Just okay?” She seemed anxious.

“Yeah.” I paused for a while. “It was really nice of you to buy me a Cyber Reality for my birthday.” I didn’t want to seem I didn’t appreciate her gift.

“Well I’m glad you like it. You know it takes two lifetimes of hard work just to purchase it?” She didn’t let me respond. “The bright side is that you won’t have to leave the house anymore, your generation has it lucky.” Her voice grew tiresome. “I’m off to work now kiddo, don’t stay awake for too long.” She took out her sandwich from the fridge, and went to work.

I have lived with my Aunt Linda for thirteen years now, after my mom’s death. My aunt doesn’t like to talk about her sister very much, it makes her nostalgic. I tried asking how she passed away, but her sensitive heart couldn’t suffice. She works seventeen hours a day, every day. She told me that her boss has her covering the important tasks of the Baxter Corporation. She comes home late at night from doing paperwork and research. Her research focuses on finding cures for those of dire need around the world, from what she has told me. I tried looking at the paperwork she left home one night, but she keeps it locked under her work desk in her office. I’m not allowed in her office. My aunt is a caring aunt. She always asks how I am doing in hopes of healing my sorrow for my mother’s death. She is not the type to hit me if I make a mistake, but she will let me know that I have made the mistake. She doesn’t let me go out much though. She is caring. Not loving, I suppose.

Shortly after she left I wondered what she meant by her words, “don’t stay awake for too long.” I hope she wasn’t referring to the gift she gave me, but the truth was, that's what exactly what she was talking about. The Cyber Reality was the new gadget in our year 2192. It has sold over 2 million worldwide and is still reaching sales, at least from what I’ve heard. Many have said that it is the best revolutionary invention since household computer hit stores. But that was some time ago. We don’t have many stores where I come from, and by stores I mean a place where you can walk in to; an environment where you can meet new people and have decent conversations with; an experience of human contact just by the brush of a shoulder as you walk past a person. The Cyber Reality takes away that experience. You can now experience a second life by the use of the cyber world programed in it. Social media, texts, phone calls and anything that deals with cyber space can all be accessed through the Cyber Reality. It isn’t real of course, but it is designed so that it feels real. At least from what I’ve heard.

I looked at the tag attached to my gift that read, “Happy 19th Birthday Emmelia. I hope this gives you a new perspective of things. Love, your Aunt Linda”. My aunt saw me using it last night, at least she thought she did.

The weekend started and my aunt made spaghetti for lunch. She came home from her break at work.

“How did you sleep?” She asked as we ate at the table.

“I slept okay. I had a little mini nightmare though, but it’s no big deal.” I swirled a big heap of noodles around my fork.

“Really now? Why don’t you tell me what it was?”

“I don’t really want to. I don’t want to think about it very much.”

“Emmelia please tell me, we rarely talk about things like this.” Her voice grew with concern.

“We rarely talk at all.” I dropped my fork on the table. “We rarely even have a bond together. You are always asking how I am feeling about certain things but that’s just as deep as we are going to get. It’s like you’re waiting for me to say something new.”

A few moments of silence struck the air. Her face looked guilty.

“I’m sorry.” I finally said.

“No I’m sorry, Emmelia. You are absolutely right.” Her teary eyes gently focused on mine. “I know I am not the best aunt. I really want to be there for you and help you. It’s just been really difficult living through these days. I love you Emmelia, remember that.” Her voice showed genuine emotion, the first I’ve witnessed in years.

“I love you too Aunt Linda, I know you’ve been working hard these past few years, all I really want is your love and support.” I said with dejection.

“You got it kiddo.” She managed a little smile as she wiped a few tears from her eyes. “Please tell me what that dream of yours was?”

“Okay.” I focused my eyes on my half eaten meatball on the plate. “My dream was about mom.” I stayed quiet for a moment, but refused. “I know you don’t like talking about her, we don’t –”

“No, no it’s okay.” Her eyes were drowning in a pool of water, just waiting to fall.

My voice grew soft. “Well, she seemed really scared, and she was running away from something. I couldn’t follow where she was going. All I could remember is fire. Fire all around her.”

Dead silence filled the room. I could tell my aunt was about to break down about what I’ve just said.

Her voice trembled. “That’s umm, scary that you would dream that.” Her legs were shaking as she walked toward the front door. “I’m going to be late for work, finish your food dear.”

“Aunt Linda, wait.” I protested. “I’m sorry.” I didn’t want to hurt my aunt. I was regretting my decision now.

“Please sweetie, it’s going to get cold.” She shut the door half way and turned back. It looked like she was going to collapse any minute. “Do me a favor please? Use the Cyber Reality I got for you.”

“But I-” I exclaimed nervously.

“Just, please do what I say, Emmelia.” She shut the door behind her, and left.

My mind was left blank as I stood alone in the kitchen. There’s no way I told myself. There’s no way..

Hours passed by. There was no getting out of it now. I opened the Cyber Reality and looked down. All I could see were black buttoned cushions. No wires. No speakers. No see-through glass. Panic escalated as I laid on the soft material. There was something about this device that I was not too sure of, but I shut the lid, and closed my eyes. A few moments passed and my body felt weightless.

“This is a bit strange.” I told myself. I lifted my hands to open the lid but it wasn’t there. I kicked and rolled but my efforts were meaningless, I found myself floating in mid-air. I opened my eyes and I saw a white screen with words shining above my head. It read, “Welcome to the Cyber Reality. You are now able to access unlimited content throughout the cyber world. Where would you like to go?” I pondered for a moment, trying to understand what I was just going through. Without thinking I said out loud “Harvest Garden.” In a flash I was standing on a bridge, looking at all the trees and flowers far as the eye can see. This is not real I told myself. How can this be? I walked toward a lake nearby and kicked the water. My shoes became soaked and cold. But it feels so real. My mind was racing trying to find a logical thought to what has just occurred. I then quickly thought of seeing my mom. I closed my eyes thought long and hard. I thought to myself, “If this thing could actually make me believe that I’m in this garden, then it can make me believe my mom is still alive.” I opened my eyes and saw fire. Fire all around me. A loud voice ached my ears ringing, “System failure. System failure. System failure.” My body went limp and I was weightless again.

I awoke in a small room, sitting on a chair. A single light glowed over my head.

“Shh! She’s awake.”

I looked around, but saw no one. A door and mirror were only in my presence. I felt rope squeeze tightly around my wrists.

“Hello?” I said. There was no answer.

The doorknob turned slowly and out came a man staring blankly at me.

His words came out slowly. “Oh, why did it have to be like this?”

I was confused.

He went on. “You know, it would have been much easier if you just did what you had to do.” He covered his face with a both hands in disappointment.

“Where am I? Who are you?” I demanded.

“You know it has taken decades of research and development to reach this far in this project?!” His voice grew angry. “Household computers you see, no no that was only the beginning. Not the great mind of Baxter no no he said that we would make technological history. No more worry about having to deal with others feelings or the stress of having personal issues. That was a thing of the past he said.” He was pacing around the room as he scolded me. It was obvious that he was suffering from some type of mental breakdown.

“I do not know what you are talking about, just let me go. Please?” My voice was trembling as I spoke.

“Oh no no no my dear, you have to stay with us.” He slid in front of me and looked deeply into my eyes. “You are why we are here. We need you, Emmelia.”

I grew scared. Really scared. “How do you know my name? Please-please just let me out of here.” I felt that all hope was lost for me now. I was stuck in a room with a stranger spitting nonsense at me. I was sobbing out of desperation now.

“But you are not here, Emmelia.” His back stiffened.

“What?” I sniffled.

“You are not here with me in this room, Emmelia.” He said firmly.

“What do you-?”

I looked up and saw him staring at me. “But I’m sitting in this chair, this is re-” That’s when I figured it out. I was still using Cyber Reality.

He looked pleased. “Now you finally get it. Now you finally understand the meaning of the Cyber Reality, the very purpose of what we have made. Nearly two centuries of hard work has finally paid off.” He gave out a maniacal laughter.

“What do you mean? I don’t understand.”

“You are our breakthrough of this operation. You are our first test subject!”

My mind was racing. “But-I thought everyone around the world had one? It has sold over 2 million worldwide.”

“Yes, sold. But not tested by human subjects. Companies all over the world bought our miraculous invention. They just need the thumbs up if it’s safe to use.”

“But why?” I began to cry again. “What does this have to do with me? Why am I so important to this sick idea?!”

“Ohhh.” He looked astonished. “You really don’t know, huh? Did you ever wonder why your Aunt Linda works so many hours, at a job she wouldn’t tell you about? Did she ever take you out much? Did you ever feel like you were just stuck in the dark with her?”

My mind was growing furious. I didn’t wanted to listen to him anymore.

“No? Well it’s because she has been working for us. Your family has been working with us for decades. Your great great grandfather helped revolutionized the idea of cyber travel. Your aunt has been helping us research effective ways to capture human intelligence and turn it into something meaningless for 32 years now. Your mom on the other hand, boy she was a handful.''

The blood in my veins was boiling.“Don’t you ever talk about my mom. You know nothing about her.”

“Oh but yes I do. I know that she did not like our little operation we were building. Your aunt however had no backbone to support her own sisters choice, and that’s why she stayed with us. She wanted to escape the human experience, just as everybody that used the cyber network right when it first started. I also know that your mom died when you were six years old. I remember her last words were, ‘I would rather die in a real world, than live a life through a fake one’.”

He laughed. “That’s very powerful wouldn’t you think?”

He didn’t let me respond.

“Do you see now why we need you, Emma? Without your approval of the success of our operation here, we wouldn’t give the people a whole new world to live in. This is just the beginning, sooner or later people won’t have to leave there homes for anything! We can live off a world we want to live, not for what it is labeled for us.”

His face grew eager as I sat with my head down in silence. Moments passed. Soon it was minutes. But those minutes felt like hours.

I looked at him, and finally asked. “What if I do not want to be part of your operation?”

He let my words echo for a moment. “Then we will do the same with what we did to your mom.”

Fire. I remembered the fire.

“Think about it, Emmelia. Think about it.” His voice faded away. I was weightless again.

I opened my eyes. The black lid was still enclosed. I lifted myself slowly out of the steel box and walked patiently towards the front porch. I let the door shut quietly behind me, and the moonlight was shining down on me. I looked back at the house and saw my aunt’s window glow a soft ray of light. I turned back and appreciated the night. I felt safe as the soft grass cushioned me where I sat, I heard the tree branches rustle quietly through the wind, and the smell of sweet air floated across my gaze. At least this is real I told myself. The feeling of touch, sound and smell are still alive, at least for now.