Chapter 13: Everyone Wants to Live on a Desert Island.
Josh and Chloe felt they had finally made it to safety. It would take hundreds of men thousands of hours to find on them on an island so remote from other human habitations. No doubt the evil ones had been researching and would have a good idea of where they weren’t at least, but actually finding them should take ages. Max had been good to his word and dropped off supplies, the laptop and solar panel himself. They now had minimal electricity, enough to charge a satellite phone and keep in touch with Max and, to Josh’s delight, his mother and Chloe’s parents. Satellite phones can be traced of course, but they had now been given all the advantages of working for MI6 and could make calls with reasonable confidence that the scrambling device Max had issued them with would screen them. Officially of course, they were dead. Only their parents knew where they were. Well, not exactly where, but close enough to stop them causing problems. Josh had started working on a solution to the computer programme which he thought, rather pessimistically, he might get in a year or two. Meanwhile he had taken up sex, fishing and writing. He had mainly been working on the sex and fishing to be honest. The writing filled the Xbox shaped void in his life. He could only focus on equations for so long. They had been living in the beachside croft for about a month and Josh was coming to terms with the fact he had fallen completely in love with an alien. Chloe had fallen in love with Josh too which was interesting sensation. It was a precedent for her kind and the organic equations in her programming seemed to have become unbalanced. She had electrocuted Josh twice, by accident, her unstable equations alarmingly out of kilter from the wondrous feeling of being totally and absolutely submerged in another person’s needs, wants and desires. It had taken at the pair of them a week to figure out that they needed to talk to each other about how they felt, the electrocutions bringing this realisation about rather sooner than would usually be the case.
Chloe was extraordinarily inventive. She had created a new capacitor that discharged electricity when her bait reached a certain depth. This stunned the fish, allowing her to scoop them all up.
Josh, however, had managed to catch fish nearly everyday with an old fashioned rod and line but consistency and size were an issue. He did get to use the smaller ones for bait with Chloe’s technique. Spring and summer passed by in blissful peace. They spent most of the long summer days immersed in the natural beauty of the area. They saw all manner of birds, as well as the occasional passing whale. Chloe was amazed. Josh realised that it’s quite a different thing being born as a sentient life form, and quite another to be transubstantiated from a computer sentient programme into human form. Chloe appreciated life itself and was awed by the delicacy, fragility and eventual mortality of every life. Unlike Josh, she had seen her people, programmes, slowly evaporate into nothingness. Computer programmes, like humans, suffered from copying themselves with errors. Humans get old slowly, but computer programs freeze, get stuck, stop moving, explode and jam things up. Humans, she observed, have to be taken care of by family members, usually when they go wrong. With programmes, they simply stop; the Internet slows down and then nothing. She had heard a theory that sometimes these programmes re-emerged as viruses or spam, ghostly elements of what they had been but thought that this was mainly wishful thinking on the part of their families. The average being came from a family of about thirty two to forty, not too big in her eyes. Of course larger families could be interrelated to a thousand beings or more. Chloe developed a lot over the summer. She was used to the steady hum of programmes but the beach was quiet and the silence gave her time to reflect on the programmes she had left behind. They would all be dead now and she still was alive. She hadn’t reproduced though and, if she did, she didn't know whether she would survive. She guessed that Josh would want children at some point but chose not to dwell on this. Any upset could send her sparking all over the place again and Josh want to know what was wrong. Chloe found driftwood she on the beach and began to carve. She wanted to recreate some of the imagery she remembered from living on the Internet although what she saw through human eyes was a completely different thing. Chloe attempted to carve Josh a mother programme. The sight was amazing; as a programme grows large it expands and breaks up like a dandelion puff with each particle, if it survived, fully capable of reproducing the parent programme. It really was the mother of all programmes. Broken down to it’s individual components, it would have been maybe an thousand tiny programmes of whom only one or two would go on to learn and develop as had the original mother. Chloe was attempting to draw something resembling an electronic double helix as Josh watched her, greatly intrigued. She had only a good quality Swiss Army knife but she was using it like an artists brush. With each stroke of the knife another integral detail was woven into this masterpiece. If he had seen it in the Tate Gallery he would have thought it had been created by a famous sculptor. She made hours worth of work appear in seconds although, of course, she needed to eat the equivalent of the weight of a large horse shortly afterwards. Josh tried to grasp what it would be like to have the computational speed to carry out tasks with such ease. Surely she must be getting bored with him by now. She had lived many lifetimes from his perspective but she still told him she loved him every time he woke up and again before he went to sleep at night. It seemed strange that anybody could care about another person for such a long time. Josh spent a considerable time just watching Chloe. She didn't seem to mind, and enjoyed bathing in his attention.
It was a warm evening and Chloe snuggled up to Josh who was lying on the beach watching the beautiful sunset. The temperature had hardly dropped after an idyllic summer’s day. As she lay in his arms, admiring her work which she had placed a few feet in front of them, Chloe told Josh that cuddling was the best thing in the world. It gave her the nicest feeling that anybody could ever have, besides sex of course. The evening was perfect, so perfect in fact that Josh had a niggling feeling worrying away at his brain. Everything was perhaps just a touch too perfect and this gave the scene a sense of dream like unreality. As soon as this thought crossed Josh’s mind he knew something really was wrong. The sun was disappearing before Josh’s eyes and everything was losing resolution. The sky above him looked as if it were breaking into separate pixels as if a television had a bad signal. He felt as if he was waking up from a deep sleep. He blinked and opened his eyes. This wasn't right, he wasn't on the beach. He couldn’t move his arms which felt as if they were tied down. He looked around in panic and saw he was surrounded by machinery mentoring his breathing and blood pressure as well as ominously beeping display screens whose functions he had no idea about. He also seemed to have tubes and wires sprouting from nearly every orifice. Surreally he became aware that there was a dog in the room with him, a husky, and that it was pulling at the ties on his hands. It was busily gnawing, chewing through the bonds which its sharp teeth made short work of. Freed, Josh pulled a tube out of his mouth that, from the dreadful gagging reflex it triggered, must have led into his stomach. He started pulling at the wires he could feel attached all over his head. This isn't right; Josh thought frantically, I shouldn't be there. He managed at last to pluck all the wires and tubing and to free his legs which had been bound together by two serious looking straps. As Josh attempted to stand up he wobbled precariously before falling helplessly onto the floor. He felt as sick as a pig and had an incredibly sore throat. It felt as if he hadn't used his legs for a week or two. From his position on the floor Josh took time to catch his breath and survey his surroundings. He realised that he was in a structure similar to a giant incubator containing a bed, a host of machines and himself. There were probes and equipment that he had never seen before and had no idea what they did. The husky, who had been sitting placidly watching Josh, came forward and started to lick and nuzzle Josh. The handsome animal was wolf like in appearance with deep ice cold blue eyes that cut through him and snowy white fur, fluffy with a light brown overcoat. It uttered a short high yap, its intelligent eyes
focused on a point of the room shrouded in shadow. Josh looked carefully and saw that a machine hulking in the deepest recesses of the corner held a motionless figure. Blonde hair hung over the edge of the bed trolley it lay on, Chloe’s hair. His legs still too weak to support his weight Josh crawled over to her. He saw that she was restrained as well and, forcing himself into a standing position, Josh started removing the clamps and straps that were holding her down. Chloe still wasn't conscious as he started removing tubes from all over her body. His fingers shook as, terrified of causing the sleeping figure harm, he freed her from all apparatus. Chloe looked so peaceful and was still in a deep sleep. The husky, who had remained at Josh’s side, howled meaningfully and trotted across the room, Josh stumbling weakly after him. Lighting suddenly flooded the room, banishing shadows from every corner and crevice, showing two other machines were occupied. He saw that one of the occupants was Max.
Josh still felt tired to his bones and every joint was in pain but his legs, arms and body functions were slowly returning to him. He carried out the same procedure, removing wires and tubes from the sleeping figure. Max was alive, as was Chloe. He could see the rise and fall of their chests. None of them, Josh included, wore any clothing. Josh looked around the room, searching for anything to cover his modesty and that of the others. Max started to show signs of returning to consciousness, coughing and spluttering and moving his body restlessly, as Josh dragged himself over to the final occupied machine. It contained a woman that he didn't recognise. She was in her mid to late twenties Josh decided he would release her. The husky sat there watching the proceedings inquisitively, for all intents and purposes appearing to be weighing up what was happening. Josh looked over at the husky.
“You could find some clothes rather than just sit there, you know,” he told it jokingly. To his astonishment the husky wagged his curly tail, barked once and ran to a door Josh had not previously noticed in the far corner of the room. The dog took hold of the handle with his teeth and turned it, opening the door to a cupboard full to almost bursting with cleaning and medical supplies Josh saw it also held a supply of white all in one boiler suits. They had a logo ‘Terra Max Corporation’ printed on the pocket and were obviously uniforms of some kind. Grabbing four boiler suits Josh headed towards Max who was now awake but showing the same signs of complete confusion that Josh had experienced on his awakening. He handed Max the largest uniform and put one on himself before going over to Chloe, who was just beginning to stir. Max dressed and was attempting to walk. He too was struggling, stretching and pulling at himself to get himself going. Chloe was waking up, confusion written all over her features as she grasped the clothing Josh offered her.
"What happened?" Max croaked, his voice sounding as if it hadn’t been used for a long time, his throat sore sounding and rusty.
Josh looked up at Max, unable to formulate speech into anything that resembled intelligent sentences. He was helping Chloe who looked as thick headed as himself. Josh had already learnt that he didn’t function correctly if he had hangover. A few secretive cider supping sessions with Kate and Callan over the last summer break had taken care of that experience. He had never drunk so much that he had hallucinated though. For a moment he wondered if this was what was really what was happening, a bad hangover from a night he couldn’t remember, and he was really still on the beach fast asleep. His mind struggled to accept that he could be on the beach one moment and the next half naked, laying on some machine. He decided to deal with this reality as he seemed to be stuck in it. Catching Max’s eye, he gestured towards the woman who was waking up on the other side of the room. Max, understanding Josh’s unspoken request, made his way over to the stranger. He was struggling not to fall, his legs visibly wobbling as he carried the last boiler suit to her. Chloe, who was still lying down, looked sad eyed and near tears. Her eyes lit up though when they met Josh’s. Chloe shook her head as if to try and clear the wooliness and, reaching over to Josh, gave him a slight shock. It had the same effect as having three early morning coffees.
"Thanks, I needed that,” Josh managed to smile as he kissed her on the cheek and hugged her tightly, “I'll try and find out where we are and get food," he had spotted a door earlier and hoped it led outside the room, not just to another storage cupboard. As he walked over, trying to look more confident and physically able then he felt, Josh spotted an indistinct shape lying on the floor partially hidden behind another huge machine. He gasped as he saw it was a dead body. It was the body of a white middle aged male, a look of abject terror frozen forever on his chalk white face. Josh saw the body wore the same boiler suit as he had donned and also that there was an identity card that must double as a swipe card sticking out of the dead mans breast pocket. Gingerly, Josh removed the card, being careful not to touch the cold flesh in doing so. Shuddering, he pulled the card away and examined the door that he hoped led to freedom. It was an electronic door with a swipe card facility and Josh swiped the dead technician’s card. The door slid open smoothly and almost silently and Josh saw immediately what lay on the other side. It was a shopping mall. Josh stared in disbelief. Things had, his mind told him, just gone from totally weird to absolutely crazy bonkers. He found he was opposite a branch of W H Smiths and that people were walking around everywhere, busily engaged in shopping, browsing the store windows and looking for bargains. Josh was jolted back to his present predicament by a scream, a huge enormous scream. A passing shopper had glanced through the open door and seen the body on the floor. She had dropped her carrier bags on the floor and was rooted to the spot outside the incubator room’s doors, her finger pointing accusingly at the body, her screams echoing through the mall. Other shoppers were beginning to hurry over to her, trying to see the cause of her distress. Quickly, Josh swiped the door and to his relief it closed. The door must be soundproof he thought, no vestige of the woman’s screaming could be heard through it. He saw that the others were unaware of the scene that had just been played out, that they were still trying to complete dressing and work their limbs. He was on his own till they could muster their thoughts. At the moment it appeared they were trapped in a room and that a lot of questions to which they didn’t know the answers would be asked if he opened that door again. Josh thought that the dead technician’s body might hold some more clues. Nerves jangling and feeling increasingly sickened by what he was doing, Josh searched the dead man. The only other thing he had carried was his wallet and Josh searched through every pocket in it. It held forty pounds in cash which Josh put in his own pocket and a driving licence registered to a Nottingham address. He thought about the glimpse of the Mall he had seen while the door was open and decided that they must be in either the Broadmarsh or Victoria centre. Josh began a systematic search of the walls. He was desperately hoping for another route out and praying that the door he had used was not the only one in the room. Close examination of the opposite wall showed him that there was in fact another door. He had only found it by running his hands across each wall. This door blended almost seamlessly with the wall. He had found that the lights must be on a timer and were only triggered by movement. Survey completed, Josh turned his attention to the others. They were grouped together, still looking very ill and without the energy to attempt conversation. Josh found another door with a plain handle and no lock or swipe mechanism. It was however just what he was looking for; the toilet. He relieved himself and then, feeling rather more human, explored the rest of the area. He found a shower, a small bunk area and a kitchen. The kitchen had a supply of coffee but only two mugs. There was plenty of food in the well stocked fridge and cupboards. Josh helped the other into the kitchen area, encouraging their screaming leg muscles to reach their goal with promises of breakfast and coffee. Max was now able to articulate and join in Josh’s attempts at conversation but the others were still not functioning properly. Josh placed an impromptu breakfast, a selection of biscuits, crisps, bread, ham and cheese, on the table, along with several bananas. Chloe and the stranger ate as
if they had never eaten before. Josh could see their bodily faculties improve by the second. Max and Josh drank coffee and ate their sandwiches whilst watching the amazing sight of Chloe and the woman eat as if there were no tomorrow. Although it was evident that they were all wondering what was happening. It was also evident they were in no shape to have a serious discussion. They all felt as if they had appalling hangovers and this was preventing anything occurring in the old grey matter. Chloe’s eyes lit up though when the husky came into the room and brushed against her. It was Maddy, she told them, Maddy was the husky and she conversed with the dog for several minutes.
Chloe, who had visibly improved since she ate, undertook introductions to the stranger, explaining that one of their numbers was a dog and that they had been captured.
"I'm Janice,” the woman said, “and of course you got captured. What is it that you call us? Oh yes ‘the evil ones’. We've been around for years."
Everyone in the room turned and looked at her, full of questions. They were all wondering why she hadn't attacked them or escaped and why she was in a virtual world with them.
"You're one of them.” Josh reeled in shock, “can you explain why we are here?".
"They feel you’re a threat to them, the same as they think I am,” the woman explained.
"How long were we in there," asked Josh, nodding towards the machines.
"How would I know? I don't know how long I was in there myself after I was captured," the woman shrugged.
"Yes, why didn't they just kill you? The same question goes for us as well I suppose." Chloe mused.
"Let's finish eating and check my machines," Janice suggested.
They ate plentifully then Chloe made the husky breakfast which included sandwiches, a banana and a packet of biscuits. Josh sat stroking the husky, mainly as he liked dogs but also as a way of communicating as he didn't speak dog. After the huge and impromptu breakfast Janice led them out to the machines. Chloe, Josh and Max followed, all still very wary of her. She pointed to a bank of panels, which were lit up and displaying the programmes purposes, functions and outcomes. Janice showed them that her programming was designed stop her interacting with humans and ensure she remained alive to make machines such as these. She had invented all the machines and subsequently was considered very important by the evil ones even if she didn't comply. They had kept her alive until a replacement as technologically gifted as she was could be found. She was in a looping programme where she was charged with assisting humans in developing technology that would be used against them. They were creating scenarios to see what technology she would develop against them. She had been given a human body which was then stored in a machine so that she could work on the technology to sustain and repair human bodies. It had been estimated that they could increase human life to over two hundred years using a combination of organ cloning and nutritional supplements, coupled with specific exercise regimes. The evil ones knew she could engineer most of this, given enough time. Janice showed Josh his machine next and explained that Josh's programme had been designed to immerse him in happiness to the point where he would develop the death programme. The evil ones planned to use this against Chloe's people to purge them from the Internet for ever. Chloe, they discovered, was to help Josh fulfill his potential by making him happy. They had reasoned that if Josh had the woman of his dreams he would eventually run the program. Max was placed in the machine purely because he was in the wrong place at the wrong time and to eliminate the risk he would trace Josh and Chloe.
"How long have we been in there?" Josh wondered. He looked at Max's beard, the length and bushiness of which showed a few weeks must have passed at least. As they explored further Chloe found the machines settings and discovered the truth. Josh Max and Chloe had all been there for two months and five days. Janice had been there for longer, for eight long months. Whilst the others had been checking the machines, Max, who was much less squeamish than Josh, thoroughly searched the dead man in the corner. To his immense satisfaction he discovered a phone tucked away in the corpses inside jacket pocket. It showed a full battery and a good strong signal. Max flipped it open and dialed a number he knew by heart.
"Marcus this is Max. Trace this phone and bring everyone to its location." Max wasted no time on pleasantries or explanations.
"Max! I thought you were dead. You just disappeared," Marcus’s voice showed pleasure and surprise.
"There's no time to explain, send locals to secure our position and I want an armed response unit on standby,” Max ordered “Let them know that we have one dead and four undercover on site." He took the swipe key and unlocked the door. The police should be here momentarily.
He took Chloe to one side and asked her if Janice was on the level or if she was lying. “She’s telling the truth,” Chloe informed Max, “Maddy extracted information from her while she was unconscious.”
“Why is Maddy in a husky rather than human form?” This was Max’s next question; a four legged form didn't seem a good choice if she had come to help.
“There are two reasons. Maddy needed to find me and Josh regardless of our condition, and she could do this most easily as a dog. We weren't showing up on any cameras anywhere so she tracked our scent. It took her four weeks to find us. The evil ones are looking for her in human form. They’re guarding exit points from the Internet to this reality, but they are not guarding exit points into animals. Animals have MRI scans as well so Maddy chose that route out. There is something else as well,” Chloe paused, trying to choose her words, “They’re not like us. We thought they came from our programme but they don’t. We don't know where they came from, but they’re nothing like us. Maddy says they mask themselves to look like us but she had seen them and says it's as if they have a different electronic DNA. Someone else has made them.”