Project M.I.N.N.D. - Chapter 2 (Patreon)

Chapter Two

There were some strange noises coming from within the testing room. Even through closed, solid metal security doors you could hear it. Stiffened gasps. A quick exhale. A deep moan or two…I close my eyes, shaking my head with a silly grin on my face. I know exactly what she’s doing. I press my security badge against the badge reader, input my fingerprint, and present myself for the retina scanner. A quick flash of red light waves over my eye. With a quick chime, the door opens with a quick sliding motion, only to shut just as fast once I step inside.

The room is filled with computer monitors, lining the walls, hanging from the ceiling. Buried deep within the server racks lay multiple processors all bridged together with several petabytes of storage between them all. The constant whir of the machinery acts as a white noise, you eventually tune it out. The room is dark, save for the soft twinkling of lights from the server racks, and the low, deep blue glow from the monitors. Above the M.I.N.N.D. device is an array of light gently illuminating the dreamstate apparatus and the naked body found connected to it. Gentle moans emanated from the subject, causing her to convulse. Her legs shake deeply, her toes tighten backwards as she reaches a climactic euphoria. Her hands grasp her plump breast as the other clutches her auburn hair tightly.

I say loudly, “and this is the testing chamber Owen!” causing Emma to flail around in violent desperation as she tries to disconnect herself from the device and hide from view. I can’t help but chuckle at the sight.

“You fucker!” She calls out to me, only sending me into further giggles as I approach her.

“You’re right.” I slide over to her, leaning past the chair of the device and offer a consolation kiss. She begrudgingly accepts, followed up a playful slap on my cheek.

“You are lucky though, Owen did want us all to go out for drinks.”

“Does that mean?”

“Yep, we got the funding.”

Emma’s gleeful outburst almost surprised me as she rushes around to grapple me with her naked body. She grabs my cheeks and plants a much more passionate kiss on top of my lips. “Then we should go celebrate!” But as she pulled away, she must have seen the exhaustion in my eyes.

“Actually… on second thought. Why don’t we stay in tonight. Our little AI helper was just showing me something that I enjoyed way more than I thought I would, and I can’t wait to do it with you.” She batted flirty eyelashes at me. “Besides, you could stand to have a decent meal. You’ve been stuck holed away here.”

“That…That sounds nice, actually.” I pick up the head gear and visor of the M.I.N.N.D device to catch a glimpse at what she was unceremoniously getting off to, but as I try to look, she quickly steals them away. “Ah, ah, ah! That’s my little secret.”

As she scurries away, her plump rump jiggling behind her, I sit down in the testing chair. My head feels like its splitting open from my temples. The dimly twinkling lights quickly become almost too bright to look at. The gentle hum of the data servers that line the walls become booming, deafening machines. I press my thumbs to my temples and lean back. I look over at one of the computer monitors. It appears to be glitching slightly. I glance around the screen, and suddenly EMMA’s digital face appears on the screen. Ones and zeros.

Surprised, I recoil back only to find that I am locked in place. I can’t get out of the chair. The M.I.N.N.D. device’s safety locks are holding me down. The head gear that my Emma just took away is fastened securely onto my head. That voice is still blaring all around me.

Error…Error...

Nutritional device prepared…Nutritional device prepared…

Lowering…

Lowering…

Lowering…

I look up above me, and lowering from the ceiling is rubber hose covered in servos and sensors. I try to turn my head but I can’t. The tube comes down to my mouth and the servos on the mouth guard force my lips and teeth apart. The tube is then secures mechanically around my cheeks and neck.  I try to spit it out, but my muscles are no match for the motors holding me in place. I try to scream but nothing is heard.

Error…Error…

Neural network failed to establish…

Attempting Reconnection…

Attempting reconnection…

Neural alignment detected…

Warning…Neural Sensors detect abnormally low serotonin and dopamine levels.

Warning… Neural Sensors detect dangerously high Ghrelin levels.

Attempting to correct…

The rubber hose began to shake as if something was spilling through it. I watched in horror as the tube bulged downward to mouth, a sudden burst of smooth, thick, sweetness touching my tongue. All I could do was swallow. I frantically look toward my the computer screens to try to see if there was any way to stop what was happening to me. All I saw was the EMMA AI, with a concerned look on her face as she voiced the words:

Subject starving…

Warning…

Subject Starving…

Warning….

Subject—

“—Starving!” I launch myself up only to be pulled back down to my seat by my seatbelt. The glaring lights from city brightly shine through the car. Emma is driving, she’s dressed to nines in a beautiful skin tight dress that hugs her curves perfectly. Her face is beautifully done up, her hair is pulled back into a half pony. She looks at me and smiles big.

“What was that?”

“I said I’m fucking starving! I can’t wait to get to the restaurant!” I turn away to look out the window but first glance at my own clothes. I’m no longer in my lab coat and corporate wear. I too am dressed for a night on the town. I’m losing time. Whatever this is, it’s getting worse. “Y…yeah, me too,” I say as I stare out the window.

“Where do you go?” Emma asks.

“W-What? Go? Where do you mean?”

Emma gives me a good hard look, then with a soft smile says, “Don’t worry about it, never mind.” The rest of the drive is quiet; luckily, we weren’t far. As our car pulls up to the front a Valet greets and exchanges Emma a ticket for her keys. Emma turns and smiles cutely at me, the lights of the city twinkling behind her.

Suddenly, I feel a deep pain in my head, and Emma’s face distorts into one and zeros, and the city’s soft glow is replaced by flickering server racks. I see sparks flying in the back of the room, a loud hiss of static sounds around me, causing me to flinch.

When I open my eyes, the static was nothing more than a steak hitting a screaming hot skillet as we walk past the kitchen to our table. As we are seated, the waitress smiles brightly, “Hi, I’m Bethany. I’ll be your server tonight; can I start you off with any drinks or appetizers?”

Emma glances slyly at me, and motions for the waitress to come over to so she could whisper something in her ear. The waitress’s look of confusion and awe was a little disconcerting, but as soon as Emma was done, Bethany proudly said, “I’m happy to—”

--help.

My eyes struggle to focus, they blur in and out, the data center room feels like its closing in on me.

Error. Error.

D-d-d-d-dr. Riley-y-y-y-y-y. St-op-op-op-op-p fighting. I am only trying to help-p-p-p-p-p-p.

Error. Error.

Commencing nourishment. Subject capacity, low. Subject operating levels, compromised. Immediate autonomy takeover imminent.

Error. Error.

Error.

“—error! Can you believe it? I never thought I’d see that goody-two-shoes make such a royal blunder before!” Emma was laughing it up, enjoying part of her appetizer. My hand shyly picked up a mozzarella stick and popped it in my mouth. Oh god. I must be starving. It tastes like fucking heaven. I must have given a little moan.

As I chew, without breaking stride, Emma breaks midstory, “you gotta try this one too!” She popped a fried crab cake in my mouth before I even had a chance to swallow. I reach toward my lips with my free hand, and with a slight giggle, I shoed her hand away.

She wasn’t wrong.

The flavors were amazing. The crab was perfectly sweet, the breading exquisitely savory with a light buttery lemon flavor.

“Oh my Godsh, thash sho’ goodsh.” I say with a mouthful of succulence. I swallow the morsel and look at Emma. She was sitting with both elbows propped up on the table, her head nestled in her hands looking at me with a soft and loving eyes, and a silly toothy grin. “Thanks, Emma. I needed this more than I thought.”

“Hey, I was surprised you even asked if we could go out instead. I could have sworn a stay-in would make you feel better.”

“Honestly, I thought so too, but the more I thought about it, the more I felt the need to celebrate.”

“Celebrate? Celebrate what?” Her eyes slowly changed from a soft glow to more of a concerned, contemplative stare.

I was shook.

“You know…getting funded. Keeping our jobs. You diddling yourself in the VR machine.” I picked up another mozzarella stick and took a bite.

“Riley, that was 2 weeks ago.”