Elysian Fields (16 page)

Tom met with Serge and discussed with his old friend everything that he found out from Daniel and David. The pieces of the puzzle were coming together at last. They decided that Tom would call a meeting with the city council and there he would reveal all their findings and order a formal investigation. The time for waiting was over. He had one more thing he needed to know before that. He had to find out who was behind Thomas.

With the tiny package containing one of the chips retrieved from his clone’s brain, Tom
was finally on his way to see Dr. Jones at his office. The medical surgeon’s voice seemed pleasantly surprised on the phone, and he had welcomed Tom’s proposal for a meeting.

Better be ready to confront him head on,
Tom was thinking.
No point on beating around the bush.
He wondered how he could make him talk, if he even had something to hide.
I’ll just be straight with him
, he finally decided.

The front desk nurse asked him to go to the doctor’s office on the
main floor, second corridor on the left, and the last door to the right.  Tom proceeded as instructed and in no time he knocked on the door and heard a voice, asking him to enter.

Dr. Jones
greeted him at the door and offered him a seat in a luxurious armchair, in which Tom immersed himself with a sigh of pleasure.

“How are you, old friend?”
Dr. Jones asked, and Tom felt himself smiling, thinking back to all their years working together.

“
All right, thanks for asking. And how about you?”

“
Well, I’m fine now, once I got over the disaster at the cloning facility. Such a pity, all the destruction. All that work in vain now. We have to start all over again, I’m afraid.”

“
I was never a big fan of the work being done there. If we’re starting over, perhaps we should focus our efforts in making life better for everyone, instead of just the Elites.”

Jones frowned.
“I’ve been conducting research on various cloning techniques at that facility for years, my whole life’s work is gone. What really happened, Tom? Who destroyed the clinic?”

“
You heard the announcement. There was an accident, an explosion caused by some pressure vessels, probably oxygen tanks.”

“
Accident, my ass. There was no accident. It was sabotage, you must know that. You can be honest with me. We’ve known each other since you still needed your mother to help blow your nose.”

“
Yes, we’ve known each other for a long time. And since you mentioned it, you can be honest with me too. Did you know that I had a clone?” Tom’s eyes bored into the old man’s eyes, unwavering.

“
Of course I didn’t, you never ordered one,” the doctor replied, holding his stare.

“
Yes, we both know that, and yet someone broke into my genetic material bank and stole one of my embryos. Did you know about that?”

“
Is this a simple question or an investigation? Because I’m not comfortable with your tone, Tom. I’m old enough to be your father.”

“
Sorry, doc, I didn’t mean to sound like I’m accusing you of anything. The fact remains that I went through a very rough time lately. For the last four months, the Thomas you’ve been working with was a clone that stole my life away from me.”

The doctor seemed taken aback.
“How did that happen? That’s outrageous.”

“
I’ll tell you later. It’s dealt with and done now. The clone is dead. And I had an autopsy performed on it. It’s why I’m here talking to you.” Tom took a chip from his pants pocket. “We discovered
this
implanted in his brain. Do you know what this is? And what it’s for?”

Dr. Jones got up from his chair and came close to Tom’s armchair. He grabbed the chip in his hand, looked closely at it, and then he gave it back to Tom.

“I haven’t seen anything quite like it. Do you have a lead?”

“
No, that’s why I came here first. I want to go to the medical device manufacturing plant, maybe they built the product.”

“
That’s a good idea, Tom.” The doctor stretched leisurely, then said, “I feel like having a scotch, you look like you need one more than I do. Care to have one?”

“
Sure. Neat, please.”

T
he doctor went to the bar obscured in one of the cupboards, and poured two generous glasses of scotch, one neat and the other on the rocks.

The old man is getting sof
t, needing ice in his drink nowadays
, Tom thought, while receiving his glass with his open hand.

They both raised the
ir glasses to each other’s health and Tom downed the drink he loved, which was especially enjoyable coming from the doctor’s coveted stash. There was always something special about that scotch. This time, though, there was something amiss with the taste and Tom wondered briefly what it was before Jones began talking again.

“
Now, Tom, let me explain some things to you,” the doctor said, taking a seat on the edge of his desk, facing Tom.

Tom signaled the doctor to go ahead.

“Do you remember my son, Arthur?” Tom remembered the doctor’s son who had died more than ten years before in an accident. “He was the best man I’ve ever known,” Jones continued. “Arthur had a dream, a big and generous dream. He wanted to escape the limitations of our city. He was always sort of claustrophobic and he felt the constraints of the city and the ever present mist more acutely than the rest of us. Since we couldn’t expand the outer world, he thought of expanding the inner world, as it were. Oh, how smart he was, my Arthur. Nobody came even close to his genius.”

Tom remembered
a different Arthur, a schizophrenic man, always watching his shadow. Still, he acknowledged the fact that the man had been brilliant. A lot of the games and virtual reality shows had been designed by him, and even at present, all the software was based on the platforms Arthur had developed, based on modularity and scalability.

“
Arthur had dreamed of a connectivity of all the minds in the city, a network that would enable the memories and thoughts and feelings to be shared by everybody, so that no knowledge would be lost, no life would vanish without a trace. It was his way of securing a means of everyone living forever.

“
His dream was so grandiose... but the society we lived in had so many undesirable elements, such mediocre minds, and such lack of depth and breadth of thought. It was beyond the capacity of the computer databases to store all the information, and rather useless in some cases.” Jones stood up to look out the window.

“
Instead of trying to save everyone, his idea turned to saving the best minds. Eventually he determined, based on statistical methods, that the civilization he dreamed of establishing was unsustainable, given the number of people.” He turned to face Tom.

“Euthanasia thus became
an integral part of his plan, along with the creation of the network of minds, living for the most part inside the virtual reality of the computer. Can you imagine living in a world where you could go anywhere you’d like, not restricted by mist or walls or anything at all? It meant creating programs that would allow the people to travel to exotic places, copies of the original ones that perished together with the earth we had lost, plus completely new ones, even going to distant constellations and immersing yourself in the stellar dust, if only in your imagination. He invented a computer chip that could be implanted in the brain, thus connecting everyone forever. The problem was that the existing human being has a hard time adjusting to a new implant, foreign to their organic material of the brain.” Tom was starting to feel drowsy, but Jones kept talking.

“H
e asked me to help and together we developed new clones that would have their chip implanted at very early stages, thus making the connection stronger and less prone to being rejected by the body. It took a lot of experimentation to perfect the method, and we were never quite successful in creating a true network that would allow human beings to function both in the real world and the virtual world.

“
So we settled for the further development of virtual reality, trying to capture as many talented minds as we could. At the same time, I proposed the use of addictive chemicals that would lead to the decrease of our population in a humane way, and according to their wishes. Arthur helped by
motivating
the people further through the use of subliminal messages, placed strategically in commercials and entertainment programs. The things we could have accomplished if he was still alive… Our whole world would be connected together, with only the best of us alive, with clones that would give us the chance to transfer our essence from the central database to an organic form, to experience the joy of living, and then going back to the virtual reality realm.”

Jones knelt in front of Tom, his face a mask of madness.
“Our spirits would live forever, back and forth between the real world and the virtual world. But for ten years, it’s been only me doing the good work, and we’re not there yet. And now the west wing lab is gone. What a pity, indeed.”

Tom was shocked and he felt sick
to his stomach, yet at the same time he could not help but feel fascinated and awed at the extravagant, grotesque, unbelievable ideas he was hearing.

Then he
realized that, for the last few minutes, as he had been listening, he couldn’t move his body.

Tom found his voice, finally. “
I guess you do know about the chip I just showed you.”

“
The implant? Of course. It’s based on Arthur’s design.”

“
So you knew about my clone.”

“
My dear fellow
, I
implanted it when the clone was just a fetus.” The doctor seemed very proud of his accomplishment.

“
You’re a maniac,” Tom muttered as he tried to get up from the armchair. But his body had turned into stone, with no feeling at all.

“What have you done to me?” h
is voice croaked.

“
Not much, don’t worry. Didn’t want to have you jump on me, or get away. You needed to hear my story. You have no idea how I longed to share it with you,” the doctor replied calmly. “I knew when you declined to order a clone that you’d never see things my way.”

“
What are you going to do to me?” Tom asked in a shaky whisper, as he was losing control over his voice.

“
My dear Tom, you are going to meet Arthur again,” the doctor smiled, and Tom could see a syringe in his hand, approaching his neck. He felt it puncture his skin and lost consciousness.

Allan was back at the mansion he called home. His father had called all of them to meet him there, to discuss the latest developments, including the discoveries about the subliminal messaging and the food poisoning. Together they would work on a plan, not unlike they had done while planning the attack on the cloning facility and the taking over of the city security forces.

Jules and Mel
had come as well. It was their first visit to the house and Allan could see how amazed they were, looking at the extravagant interior of the mansion, so different from what they were used to.
Why didn’t I have them here before? The work in the Scrappie compound took all our time, and we never had a moment just for ourselves.
That would change. They could all live here.
But somehow, he knew in his heart that the girls would not accept that offer.
They’d rather be out there, helping the people they care so much about.

David arrived with Daniel in tow, and they too seemed awed by the expensive furniture and the generous size of the rooms, bathed in light, looking immaculately clean and airy.
Serge was the last one to show up, and he seemed a bit withdrawn, with a deep crease on his forehead.

“Something troubling you, Serge?” Allan asked him. The answer was negative, yet Allan couldn’t shake his feeling that the older guy was troubled by something.

They made conversation, nothing of consequence, as if they were all waiting for Tom before getting deeper into the important things they were here to discuss.

~~~

When he regained his consciousness, Tom felt his whole body on fire. Sharp shots of pain seared through him and gripped his brain in a red hot crown of intense agony. His body, tied to the operating cube, was covered in sweat and shuddered in spasms whenever his nerves were triggered by the impulses transmitted through the myriad of connections and wiring surrounding his body.

He could see two other people in the room: Dr. Jones and his assistant, a young, petite nurse, both concentrated on their task
s at hand.
How did I get here?
What are they doing to me?”
He could not make a sound, nor move at all.

Jones, what’s going on?
He tried to form the words but could not move his lips. The nurse glanced at him with a detached look and continued the testing of the circuits. “Doctor, he’s awake.”

Tom’s head was immobilized but he could move his eyes. Dr. Jones came into view carrying a surgical knife in his gloved hand.

“Easy now, you’re ready to become one of ours,” the doctor said, lowering his face close to Tom’s. “Sorry to wake you up for this. I need to finish placing your implant and your neural reactions are better analyzed in an alert state. Not much longer now. We just have to turn you around to reach the cervical area of your spine.”

The calm tone of Dr. Jones’s voice nauseated Tom.
How can he be so calm while doing this to me?

The upper frame of the operating cube lifted itself and rotated around its longitudinal axis, until Tom found himself facing down.

The pain of the first cut, right at the base of his skull, was almost unbearable. They hadn’t anesthetized him.

They’re cutting me open!
Tom had never felt more terrified in his entire life.

He continued to suffer as he heard of various surgical instruments being called by the doctor to the nurse, in that impossibly calm voice.

Tom was screaming in his head because his vocal cords would not respond to the terror inside.
Help, help me, someone, anyone, God, please help me.

Eventually he stopped thinking about anything else, feeling like a poor, tortured animal. All his humanity was stripped away and the primordial instincts soon took over. After what felt like an eternity, he thankfully lost consciousness.

~~~

Tom never
showed up at the house. Repeated calls to his mobile were unfruitful. Serge tried calling him at the office, at the council building, at all the places he could think Tom would be, all to no avail.

“It’s been an hour since the appointed time,” Allan finally acknowledged. “I can’t think why father would be late. He’s a military man,
he’s never late for anything.”

“What if something terrible has happened to him?” Mel
sounded scared.

“He had enemies; didn’t he say somebody was tasked with killing him? Who was the guy who saved him, anyway?” Jules asked.

“It was me,” Serge admitted. “I intercepted an email with the order through the secure channels. We’ve been trying to find out who was behind the plot with no success. The only place I didn’t call is Dr. Jones’ office, at the hospital. I’m afraid that Tom might have gone to the doctor.” He paused, and then he shook his head, as if trying to make up his mind about something, and continued. “Look kids, I have to tell you something you won’t like hearing. We were hiding something terrible from you, something that Tom felt was best kept a secret.”

“What
is it?” Allan said, almost frantic.

“After Thomas was killed, Tom asked for an autopsy to be performed. What we discovered was a series of computer chips that had been implanted in the brain, presumably while still in a fetus stage.
I wanted to share that discovery with you, but Tom insisted we keep it a secret.” Before anybody had a chance to ask, Serge raised his hand to ask them to keep quiet. Then he continued. “You have to understand Tom’s point of view. He was afraid that Allan might try to stay too close to him and get killed in case another attempt was made on his life. Tom thought it unnecessary to add another dimension to the troubles we’re still trying to solve. I’m not saying he was right, because I didn’t agree with him, but he is still in charge here.”

Serge paused for a second,
while everyone just stared at him, waiting. “That fact did not mean Tom was going to let it go. He planned on finding out more from Dr. Jones about what was going on, in the hopes that the doctor was privy to such information. So he decided that he would go and talk to Jones. If he couldn’t find out anything there, he planned in talking to the manufacturers in the city, while asking for David’s help.”

“I wish he’d done it,
talked to me first, I mean. Why couldn’t he trust me, after all we’ve been through together?” David’s voice revealed how disappointed he was.

“I’m sorry, David, it was not about you
. This was Tom’s problem, over-analyzing and trying to keep all the loose ends together in his hand. I know him better than any of you and this is what he’s been doing his whole life as the head of Secure-It. You can’t imagine how much information he’s had at any given point in time. He confided in people only if he needed their advice or input.”

“Maybe he’s going to
change his approach from now on,” Daniel intervened. “Obviously, it’s not working very well for him or for us.”

“Let’s not judge him just now, please,” Serge
insisted. “He’s a good man, and he has to think of everybody’s welfare. Anyway, he must be at the hospital meeting with Jones.”

“Wait a minute,” Allan had made a sudden connection. “When I got replaced with
Lan, there was this surgeon in the OR. It must have been Dr. Jones. Why didn’t I think about this before? He must be in the middle of this nightmare. He must know what is going on. He was the one who made the memory transfer.”

“Are you sure about that?” Serge seemed doubtful.

“No, I’m not sure. I remember only sniffing an expensive perfume, which was somewhat unusual in a hospital.”

“What did he look like?” Serge asked.

“He had a calm voice. And he called me a dear boy.” Allan’s voice became unsteady, as he remembered the tragic events he had been subjected to.

“
That sounds like Jones,” Serge admitted. “I could just be overreacting. Maybe we should give him another half an hour.”

“No!” Allan almost screamed, surprised at the urgency in his voice. “I have a bad feeling about this. The best thing is to go to the hospital now and confront Dr. Jones.”

“Have you lost your mind?” Serge counteracted. “What will you say to him?”

“For goodness sake, let’s
just call the hospital and ask if Tom is still there. They must have him on the visitors list.” Daniel’s suggestion made sense, so Jules picked up the phone and called immediately.

The call to the hospital revealed that Tom had just left, and that the doctor was in the operating room, performing surgery.

“That doesn’t make any sense,” Allan commented. “Father’s mobile would work then. Yet he’s not answering it. We’re going to the hospital. Now!” he walked towards the front door of the house, not even caring who was following him. The terror he felt in his heart that his father was going through something equally spine-chilling as he had been through was more than he could bear.

“Wait!” Serge exclaimed. “We need to have reinforcements. If we’re fighting manipulated clones, we’ll be no match for them. I’ll contact my men
to meet us at the hospital. Let’s go!”