CaptainWacky
I want to smell dark matter
Stuart arrived at the hospital wing...only to see the image of Glen there, lying in the bed next to Leslie's. Except it wasn't Glen, of course, it was his android. Stuart could tell, his nano bots were telling him. It was another one of the things he could do that the others here could not, something to seperate him from them...this was still very much all about him, he had to keep saying to himself. You are the centre of this reality. He'd had that phrase recorded and played back in his brain once a day for a century not so long ago. He'd eventually gotten over that depressed phase.
It was typical of Glen to give the android his appearance. Its eyes open as Stuart walked towards the beds. He decided to see if he could fool it.
"Glen? What are you doing here, are you okay?"
"You can't fool me, Stuart," said the Glenbot with a smile. "I know you know it's not really me."
"Okay...it's only because I saw Glen in the tree on the way here."
"DOES NOT COMPUTE," said the Glenbot. "Haha, just a little android humour for youthere. In the tree? What nonsense is this?"
Glen had even given the bot his personality. It really was quite convincing and would surely have fooled anyone else in the complex..if they had been awake, of course. Stuart explained why Glen was in the tree, as best he could.
"Sounds like something I'd do," mused the Glenbot. "Something he would do, I should say. Still, spoiled things for me! I've been waiting for someone to come in for decades! I've only had Leslie to talk to, and she's a vegetable!"
"What abou the Nursebot?" asked Stuart, looking over at the pink android in chage of the hospital wing.
"I don't talk to that thing. I hate androids," said the Glenbot. "Bunch of fakers."
"So what are you dong here?"
"It's part of my stuides on becoming more human! I'm seeing what it's like to be sick!"
"You want to be human, eh?"
"No, not at all. But Glen programmed me to want it...but he also gave me that programming where I could refuse any programming he gave me that I didn't want to obey...yet I do want to obey, out of guilt...he gave me a guilt programming before the refusal programme. Crafty bastard."
"You don't look very sick."
"OH NO?" said the Glenbot, dramatically, pulling back his sheets. His flesh was rotting and there were maggots crawling in and out. Stuart's gag reflex didn't even go off. Maybe five hundred years ago...maybe a thousand. But not now. He was completely numb. He shrugged.
"Gross."
"Just an illusion, of course," said the Glenbot, pulling the sheets back up. "I like you, Stuart. You've handled being here better than anyonne, even Glen. He says some crazy things to me sometimes. Like 'NIPPLE-FRIZZLE!' He used to say that a lot. But you? Even your great depression didn't last very long, relatively speaking. It's almost like there's something special about you."
"Just lucky, I suppose," said Stuart. It didn't know, did it? Well, maybe it suspected, Glen had made it smart. Still, it was a part of reality, his reality, so there was nothing to worry about. He could bend it to his will. "I came here to see Leslie."
"Of course. Not much to see, but go ahead. I need my rest!"
"Goodnight," said Stuart. The Glenbot winked at him then shut its eyes. Stuart walked over to Leslie's bed. The Nursebot activated as he did.
"Greetings," it said.
"I don't suppose there's any point asking if there's been any change," said Stuart, sadly, looking at Leslie's empty face.
"Her condition remains constant," said the Nursebot.
"Alive, but empty," said Stuart, nodding. "The others? Are any of them approaching her level of vegetation?"
"No," said the Nursebot. "They are steadily becoming less active, but none are at Leslie's level."
"I just don't understand it," said Stuart. "She was so alive, for a while. Sure, she went through a long depression, but she seemed to come out of it...she even slept with me! That was a pleasant surprise. But then, twenty years later...this. She just sat down one day and didn't get up. But you know all this, of course."
"Of course," said the Nursebot, emotionless. Stuart suspected that the Nursebot, the computer, the sentience of the complex, whatever it was, was somehow responsible. But that would mean this wasn't his reality. So he tried to believe that it really was natural.
"Her mind, empty! She just managed to lose all her memories and personality!"
"She chose to. She let go."
"I thought they could be stimulated...it's worked before, for others. Even for me."
"She is unique. Her body managed to adapt and resist the stimulation. It wants to be dead."
"But she's still alive!"
"We can keep her alive forever."
"Yes...do that...maybe someday she'll just wake up..."
"Unlikely."
"Yeah...unlikely." He stroked her face. "Seeing her just makes me want to go back to bed."
"Why go to bed?" said a voice. He span around. It was John! "When you could go to HELL!" he said, lunging at Stuart.
It was typical of Glen to give the android his appearance. Its eyes open as Stuart walked towards the beds. He decided to see if he could fool it.
"Glen? What are you doing here, are you okay?"
"You can't fool me, Stuart," said the Glenbot with a smile. "I know you know it's not really me."
"Okay...it's only because I saw Glen in the tree on the way here."
"DOES NOT COMPUTE," said the Glenbot. "Haha, just a little android humour for youthere. In the tree? What nonsense is this?"
Glen had even given the bot his personality. It really was quite convincing and would surely have fooled anyone else in the complex..if they had been awake, of course. Stuart explained why Glen was in the tree, as best he could.
"Sounds like something I'd do," mused the Glenbot. "Something he would do, I should say. Still, spoiled things for me! I've been waiting for someone to come in for decades! I've only had Leslie to talk to, and she's a vegetable!"
"What abou the Nursebot?" asked Stuart, looking over at the pink android in chage of the hospital wing.
"I don't talk to that thing. I hate androids," said the Glenbot. "Bunch of fakers."
"So what are you dong here?"
"It's part of my stuides on becoming more human! I'm seeing what it's like to be sick!"
"You want to be human, eh?"
"No, not at all. But Glen programmed me to want it...but he also gave me that programming where I could refuse any programming he gave me that I didn't want to obey...yet I do want to obey, out of guilt...he gave me a guilt programming before the refusal programme. Crafty bastard."
"You don't look very sick."
"OH NO?" said the Glenbot, dramatically, pulling back his sheets. His flesh was rotting and there were maggots crawling in and out. Stuart's gag reflex didn't even go off. Maybe five hundred years ago...maybe a thousand. But not now. He was completely numb. He shrugged.
"Gross."
"Just an illusion, of course," said the Glenbot, pulling the sheets back up. "I like you, Stuart. You've handled being here better than anyonne, even Glen. He says some crazy things to me sometimes. Like 'NIPPLE-FRIZZLE!' He used to say that a lot. But you? Even your great depression didn't last very long, relatively speaking. It's almost like there's something special about you."
"Just lucky, I suppose," said Stuart. It didn't know, did it? Well, maybe it suspected, Glen had made it smart. Still, it was a part of reality, his reality, so there was nothing to worry about. He could bend it to his will. "I came here to see Leslie."
"Of course. Not much to see, but go ahead. I need my rest!"
"Goodnight," said Stuart. The Glenbot winked at him then shut its eyes. Stuart walked over to Leslie's bed. The Nursebot activated as he did.
"Greetings," it said.
"I don't suppose there's any point asking if there's been any change," said Stuart, sadly, looking at Leslie's empty face.
"Her condition remains constant," said the Nursebot.
"Alive, but empty," said Stuart, nodding. "The others? Are any of them approaching her level of vegetation?"
"No," said the Nursebot. "They are steadily becoming less active, but none are at Leslie's level."
"I just don't understand it," said Stuart. "She was so alive, for a while. Sure, she went through a long depression, but she seemed to come out of it...she even slept with me! That was a pleasant surprise. But then, twenty years later...this. She just sat down one day and didn't get up. But you know all this, of course."
"Of course," said the Nursebot, emotionless. Stuart suspected that the Nursebot, the computer, the sentience of the complex, whatever it was, was somehow responsible. But that would mean this wasn't his reality. So he tried to believe that it really was natural.
"Her mind, empty! She just managed to lose all her memories and personality!"
"She chose to. She let go."
"I thought they could be stimulated...it's worked before, for others. Even for me."
"She is unique. Her body managed to adapt and resist the stimulation. It wants to be dead."
"But she's still alive!"
"We can keep her alive forever."
"Yes...do that...maybe someday she'll just wake up..."
"Unlikely."
"Yeah...unlikely." He stroked her face. "Seeing her just makes me want to go back to bed."
"Why go to bed?" said a voice. He span around. It was John! "When you could go to HELL!" he said, lunging at Stuart.
