Part 18 (2/2)

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After a refres.h.i.+ng bath, and a couple hours of exercises designed to increase mobility, I felt almost almost human. It was still difficult to walk without the a.s.sistance of a cane, but the doctor rea.s.sured me my strength would return quickly. I was surprised at the rate of my recovery. After all, I'd been in a coma for over two human. It was still difficult to walk without the a.s.sistance of a cane, but the doctor rea.s.sured me my strength would return quickly. I was surprised at the rate of my recovery. After all, I'd been in a coma for over two decades. decades.

Dr. Solomon explained as we walked through the last set of exercises. ”Three times a day, seven days a week, each patient receives a thorough work-over to keep their body from degenerating muscle ma.s.s. Every muscle is systematically ma.s.saged. Each joint and tendon is flexed and stretched.”

”That's a lot of ma.s.sages.” I attempted a smile. ”This little vacation is going to cost me a bundle.”

He chuckled. ”In addition to the physical workouts, the computer is programmed to periodically stimulate the brain. Every hour on the hour, for ten minutes, a program tells your muscles to tighten and relax, causing a mild cardiovascular workout.”

I was puzzled. ”All this is done even though there's little chance the patients will ever wake up?”

”Yes, because the main purpose is to increase brain activity. The fact that it facilitates a quick recovery turns out to be a nice side effect.”

Side effect? More like a More like a miracle miracle, I thought.

When we finished, I was given some clothes and was allowed to change in the locker room. Dressing was difficult, but at last, I tucked my medical gown into the laundry shoot, then made slow progress over to the bathroom area. Rounding the corner, the reflection of a man in one of the mirrors caught my eye. I turned to see where the reflection was coming from-- but quickly discovered, that I was alone in the room. Slowly I turned back toward the mirror. The face before me was more like my father's than my own, with wrinkles embedded in its curves, a receding hairline, and a thickness that did not appeal to me. At all.

I stood examining every detail of my features. They had changed dramatically, but strangely, what stood out to me most were my eyes. They seemed-- wrong wrong somehow. They were a greenish hazel, as they had always been, but there was a flash of blue in my memory. The feeling washed over me like a whisper, then was gone. I quickly dismissed it as imagination. somehow. They were a greenish hazel, as they had always been, but there was a flash of blue in my memory. The feeling washed over me like a whisper, then was gone. I quickly dismissed it as imagination.

The door in the other room made a soft thud and I heard someone approaching. I stepped away from the mirror, composing myself for the visitor. It was Dr. Solomon. ”Found the mirrors I see,” he said with mock humor.

”So it would seem.” I made no attempt to hide my disgust.

”I won't pretend to know how you feel, but I realize it must be tough,” he said gently. ”What do you say we go get something to eat? I can bring you up to speed on some things.”

”Sure.” I made an attempt to sound positive. ”That sounds appealing.”

He gave me a friendly smile and gripped me in a half hug. ”Well, let's go do it then.”

He helped me through the locker room and out into the hall. During our walk down the long white corridor, only one person pa.s.sed us.

”Where is everyone?”

”I noticed your reaction when we entered the hall earlier, so I had the way cleared, and the cafeteria as well. Eventually you will feel more comfortable, but for now we'll take it one step at a time.”

”Thank you.” It did make me feel better. I didn't like the idea of parading around like some stone age freak show. In my weakened state, I felt like a frail old man. This was not a condition I was used to. I was a man of power and influence, not someone to be pitied.

The doors to the cafeteria opened before us and the sweet smells of breakfast filled my nostrils. My mouth watered. I hadn't noticed before, but I was extremely hungry.

Dr. Solomon headed off to the beverage table. I dug into the breakfast buffet: eggs, toast, sausage, bacon, hash browns, fruit, even pancakes. My tray was heavy under the weight of the farmer's breakfast. So I stood waiting for a.s.sistance to carry it to a table.

When the doctor returned, he looked at the tray, looked at me, and raised one eyebrow. ”You've gone a long long time without eating, Thomas. You need to start out slowly.” He held out a chocolate shake in a gla.s.s. ”Here, try this.” time without eating, Thomas. You need to start out slowly.” He held out a chocolate shake in a gla.s.s. ”Here, try this.”

I gave it an unwelcoming stare.

”Here.” He held it closer. ”Give it a try.”

Slowly I took it from him and had a sip. ”Hmm. Not bad.”

”It's organic and full of living vitamins. It will a.s.sist in your recovery.” He patted me on the shoulder.

We headed toward a large window overlooking the parking lot, I blinked in the morning light. White and gray buildings littered the asphalt grounds. In the distance, a fence that looked like it surrounded the entire compound stretched out of sight. ”Are all these buildings involved in this project?” I said, taking a seat across from him.

”Most, but not all.”

”It must be very important.”

”Some think so.”

”So, what's the big deal about a few coma patients?” I took a sip from my shake.

His eyes turned down. ”It wasn't always a big deal.”

”Oh?” I stared out at the parking lot.

”Originally it was a small offshoot of a project my colleague and I were working on for the government. But then this colleague, who was also a good friend of mine, was severely injured in a car accident, which put him in a coma. It was my hope that by using the technology we'd designed together, I could communicate with him through the computer to find a way to bring him out.”

”Communicate with him through the computer?” with him through the computer?”

That got my attention. got my attention.

”Yes. But when I proposed the project to the government, they wanted nothing to do with it. I tried to explain that Robert was an integral part of the existing project, and that it would be very useful for them to get him back, but they were less than optimistic about any chance of success. They a.s.sumed that by the time I figured out how to reach him, if if it was even possible, that he would be a vegetable. So they refused funding.” it was even possible, that he would be a vegetable. So they refused funding.”

”But you managed to get the project going anyway.”

”Yes. That's where you and the others came in. You are all from wealthy homes. Your families are funding this project.” He stopped and looked around cautiously. ”But things have changed recently. The government brought up a legal complaint a few weeks ago, about my using technology developed for the government in a personal venture.” He leaned in close. ”But at that time, I had started talking with Robert, or, who I thought was Robert.”

I squinted at him. ”You actually talked talked with a coma patient through the computer?” with a coma patient through the computer?”

”Yes. By using part of the technology we were developing for the government, we created a system that could talk directly to the human brain, and vice versa.”

I looked at him sideways.

He continued. ”We were unsure of how to start the dialog because the comatose mind is unresponsive, so we left the computer to input stimuli until a response was registered. I used VRIN, the virtual world we designed for the government, to create a base environment my friend could relate to. But it has changed so much that it isn't even the same creature anymore. Anyway, now that we've had some success, the government wants in again. They threatened to shut us down if I didn't cooperate, so I was forced to let them take control.”

I stared at him. ”Amazing. ”Amazing. I can see why the government wanted back in.” I can see why the government wanted back in.”

”Yes, well we weren't happy about it. But if I didn't comply, they were going to take me to court, and if they won, they were going to shut me out completely. I wasn't about to let that happen, so I agreed to cooperate. The families were given the option of withdrawing or allowing the government to take over, the latter reducing their financial commitment. So everyone agreed to continue on. But now, guards are posted at the gate, security has tripled, and military experts examine every log we create. We can't even leave the grounds without an escort. It's like a prison prison in here.” in here.”

”And there's nothing you can do about it?”

”No. The military gave everyone the option of staying or leaving. We're stuck here now.”

”We? What about me? Are they going to try to keep Are they going to try to keep me me here?” here?”

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