few splinters around if I need you. I’ll be back.”
With that I flitted off home.
§
Opening the door to our apartment, a foreboding gloom enveloped me like a storm cloud dropping from the sky. It was dark inside, with the glimmering reflections of a holo projection playing off the walls.
“Honey?” I announced, worried, peering around the door as I entered.
Cindy was in a heap on the couch, the same as when I’d left many hours ago, and our home was a mess. The room was almost pitch black with Hal’s EmoShow playing endlessly in the center. I was anxious but not sure what to do, so I walked over to the couch and sat down with her. I put my hand on her knee.
“Honey, how are you doing?” I asked.
She put her hand on mine and sat up a bit. Hal’s head disappeared as she turned off the EmoShow, and the lights in the room came up a bit. At least she was trying.
“I’m okay,” she responded, but sounding less than okay. “How are you?”
“I’m good,” I replied. “But seriously, honey, what’s up? Please talk to me.”
“I’m just a little down. It’s hard, you know.”
“What’s hard, honey?”
She didn’t reply. She just looked at me.
“Do you want to speak to someone, maybe someone other than me, have you tried that?”
Maybe it was something to do with me.
“Oh, I’ve been talking to people, I have someone to talk to,” she replied. “It’s okay sweetheart, but thanks.”
“What about our plans?” I asked gently. “What about having a child, I thought that was what you wanted, what would make you happy? You were so great with the proxxids. Don’t you want to try and have our own child? We’re ready now.”
Cindy looked at me and smiled weakly.
“I know you are, honey.”
I was running out of things to say.
“Do you want to try some more proxxids?” I asked helplessly.
“No,” she responded, brightening up, “not anymore. I think I’m ready now.”
Cool relief poured into my veins.
“Honey, I’m so happy to hear that,” I replied, my heart in my throat.
I leaned over to kiss her, but she just held my head in her hands and kissed my forehead.
7
I GOT THE call the next day, on Sunday morning.
We were all back at Command again, running through the storm predictions for the millionth time as they swung around in perfectly the wrong way, trapping Atopia against the coast. We’d just decided that we needed to take some emergency action, and we were about to begin the escalation process when the call came in.
Echo patched the communication straight through and immediately requested to take over all of my Command functions. I glanced at him with a furrowed brow and took the call.
“Something is wrong with your wife, Commander Strong,” the doctor told me immediately, his image floating in a display space while I sat at my workstation.
“What do you mean, something is wrong?”
“I think you’d better come down here,” he said.
I immediately punched down and was standing beside him in the infirmary watching over Cindy, who was lying on a raised bed in front of us. The infirmary had an otherworldly look and feel to it with glowing, pinkish hued walls and ceilings that were there but not there in a soothingly anesthetic sort of way. The doctor was the only one in attendance, and he looked at me with detached concern.
“So what do you mean exactly?” I demanded.
I looked towards Cindy. She had all the appearances of being asleep.
“It’s a new phenomenon—we’re calling it ‘realicide’ or reality suicide.”
“What the hell does that mean?”
“It’s a condition where the subject, your wife, withdraws completely from reality to permanently lock their mind in some fantasy metaworld that they’ve created.”
“Can’t you stop it? Can I talk to her?”
“No, I’m sorry, we can’t reach her,” explained the doctor. “Her pssi and inVerse are completely contained within her own body, a kind of extension of her own mind. We
With that I flitted off home.
§
Opening the door to our apartment, a foreboding gloom enveloped me like a storm cloud dropping from the sky. It was dark inside, with the glimmering reflections of a holo projection playing off the walls.
“Honey?” I announced, worried, peering around the door as I entered.
Cindy was in a heap on the couch, the same as when I’d left many hours ago, and our home was a mess. The room was almost pitch black with Hal’s EmoShow playing endlessly in the center. I was anxious but not sure what to do, so I walked over to the couch and sat down with her. I put my hand on her knee.
“Honey, how are you doing?” I asked.
She put her hand on mine and sat up a bit. Hal’s head disappeared as she turned off the EmoShow, and the lights in the room came up a bit. At least she was trying.
“I’m okay,” she responded, but sounding less than okay. “How are you?”
“I’m good,” I replied. “But seriously, honey, what’s up? Please talk to me.”
“I’m just a little down. It’s hard, you know.”
“What’s hard, honey?”
She didn’t reply. She just looked at me.
“Do you want to speak to someone, maybe someone other than me, have you tried that?”
Maybe it was something to do with me.
“Oh, I’ve been talking to people, I have someone to talk to,” she replied. “It’s okay sweetheart, but thanks.”
“What about our plans?” I asked gently. “What about having a child, I thought that was what you wanted, what would make you happy? You were so great with the proxxids. Don’t you want to try and have our own child? We’re ready now.”
Cindy looked at me and smiled weakly.
“I know you are, honey.”
I was running out of things to say.
“Do you want to try some more proxxids?” I asked helplessly.
“No,” she responded, brightening up, “not anymore. I think I’m ready now.”
Cool relief poured into my veins.
“Honey, I’m so happy to hear that,” I replied, my heart in my throat.
I leaned over to kiss her, but she just held my head in her hands and kissed my forehead.
7
I GOT THE call the next day, on Sunday morning.
We were all back at Command again, running through the storm predictions for the millionth time as they swung around in perfectly the wrong way, trapping Atopia against the coast. We’d just decided that we needed to take some emergency action, and we were about to begin the escalation process when the call came in.
Echo patched the communication straight through and immediately requested to take over all of my Command functions. I glanced at him with a furrowed brow and took the call.
“Something is wrong with your wife, Commander Strong,” the doctor told me immediately, his image floating in a display space while I sat at my workstation.
“What do you mean, something is wrong?”
“I think you’d better come down here,” he said.
I immediately punched down and was standing beside him in the infirmary watching over Cindy, who was lying on a raised bed in front of us. The infirmary had an otherworldly look and feel to it with glowing, pinkish hued walls and ceilings that were there but not there in a soothingly anesthetic sort of way. The doctor was the only one in attendance, and he looked at me with detached concern.
“So what do you mean exactly?” I demanded.
I looked towards Cindy. She had all the appearances of being asleep.
“It’s a new phenomenon—we’re calling it ‘realicide’ or reality suicide.”
“What the hell does that mean?”
“It’s a condition where the subject, your wife, withdraws completely from reality to permanently lock their mind in some fantasy metaworld that they’ve created.”
“Can’t you stop it? Can I talk to her?”
“No, I’m sorry, we can’t reach her,” explained the doctor. “Her pssi and inVerse are completely contained within her own body, a kind of extension of her own mind. We
Similar Books
