Jeremy Lefroy drove his old Ford up the steep hill. The road was full of pot holes. It was just a mud track. The cottage was on top of the hill. Behind the house, there was a thick forest full of tall pine trees, willows and shrubs.
Jeremy wondered why Dr. Miller wanted to stay in this lonely spot. It took five minutes of violent knocking on the door to get a response. Finally, he heard a gruff voice shouting, “Don’t break down the door. I am coming.... I am coming.”
The person who opened the door was old and bent with age. He peered at Jeremy and asked, “Are you my new assistant sent by the employment exchange.”
“Yes, Sir. And I presume you are Dr. Harry Miller?”
“Quite right, my boy. Come in. You must be tired after driving down from Tewksbury. Would you care for something hot to drink?”
“Well, certainly yes. Thank you.”
The old man tottered off to fetch Jeremy a hot cup of chocolate “Well, I wanted someone with a lively interest in science. I am sure you are computer literate.”
“Yes Sir. I am a competent computer operator. I know a bit of programming and I am a video game freak.”
“That is good, really good.” The old man looked at him with his piercing blue eyes. He was wearing a spectacle with round frames. The lens made his eyes seem unusually large.
“What did the employment exchange people tell you about me?”
“They told me that you are a retired professor from Princeton University and an expert in electronics with many patents to your credit.”
The old man laughed. “I am sure they must have also said that I am a crazy old chap.”
He was then shown his room in a corner of the house. After a quick wash, he joined the old man for a late night dinner and went to sleep. There was no one else in the house and Jeremy wondered who did the cooking and washing up.
It was a full moon night and after the long hard drive, Jeremy was tired. He quickly fell into a deep slumber. He was awakened by a blood curdling scream, as if someone was in great pain. He looked up and saw that the door to his room was slightly open. He distinctly remembered having closed it before getting into bed. He thought of getting up and investigating the source of the noise. But he was too tired. He waited for some time and when he didn’t hear anything more, he got up, closed the door and went back to sleep. He presumed that he’d just had a nightmare.
In the morning, he walked into the main hall. Dr. Miller was not to be seen. Finally, Jeremy located him in the basement, which was the old man’s laboratory.
“Goodness gracious! I forgot all about you. This is my lab and quite often, I sleep here. You must be hungry. Let me fix you some breakfast.”
Jeremy ate his breakfast silently. He noticed that the old man just sipped his orange juice and nibbled at the toast. After some time Jeremy asked, “Sir what happened to your former assistant? I mean the young man who worked for you before I came. What was his name?”
Dr. Miller didn’t reply. For a moment, Jeremy thought the old man didn’t hear his question. So, he repeated the question.
“His name was Jim Hawthorne. Nice boy. He just left. Young people get bored in this God forsaken place.”
“Did he take up some job in Framingham or Lowell?”
“I don’t know. I never asked him for details.Who knows, maybe he is somewhere around right here.”
Jeremy was puzzled by that strange answer. He thought it wise not to ask too many questions though. Later on in the day, the professor invited Jeremy to his lab. He explained some of the experiments he was doing.
“Jeremy, my boy! The brain is a marvellous thing. It is more complex than any supercomputer you can think of. Do you remember anything about your childhood, I mean when you were just one year old?”
“Certainly not. I remember my grandpa and grandma and their lovely cottage in Hampstead. The smell of freshly cut hay, the farm animals and the small pond behind the house teeming with fish. I was then about six years old.”
“You mean you have forgotten everything that happened when you were just one or two years old?”
“Yes, Sir.”
“Hmm, you may have forgotten it, but your brain may not have.”
“What is the difference, Sir?”
“Quite a bit. My final years as professor emeritus in Princeton University were spent studying the human brain and its activities. Now, we only know how ten percent of the brain works. I was able to discover the special areas which control emotions and also your dreams. I can touch a spot on your brain with an electrode and it will bring back the memories of your early childhood.”
“Sounds fantastic, professor.”
“Yes, it is fantastic. When you dream, you experience pleasure, pain, fear and excitement. While you are dreaming, everything is real for you. Only when you wake up you say – Oh! It was just a dream. When you are dreaming, you are in a virtual world.”
“I am getting a bit scared professor!”
“ There is nothing to be afraid of. The visit to the virtual world will be a happy experience for you.”
“It sounds fantastic. But I am afraid to try it out.”
“You must. After all, that is the job of my assistant. My previous assistant was very helpful with my experiments. In fact, I have a suspicion that Jim Hawthorne started enjoying the experience.”
“Where is Jim Hawthorne, now? Why did your assistant leave your service? ”
Dr. Miller looked at Jeremy with his piercing blue eyes. He paused before replying.
“Who told you he has left my service. He is here – in my virtual world.”
A cold chill ran down Jeremy’s spine. What did the old man mean? Whose voice had he heard screaming in pain, in the dead of night?
“My boy! When you play a video game you identify yourself with the main character. You shoot the villains, you rescue the pretty girl from the evil gang, you experience pain, pleasure, horror and thrill. At that point of time also, you are in a virtual world.”
“Is it dangerous Dr. Miller?” Jeremy asked, beginning to perspire.
“If the experiment is conducted properly, it is perfectly safe. You will be wearing a special kind of helmet. I call the room where the virtual reality experiments are conducted as the ‘Cave’. There will be cameras that project images on the walls of the ‘Cave’. You will have special wires connected to the glove in your hand with which you can control the movements.
What exactly is virtual reality? It can be termed as a simulation that our computer creates to make a ‘virtual world’. Objects over here are life like. The user is given power to interact as well as manipulate this virtual reality. The feeling that he derives while exploring is as though he is himself present in this virtual world in flesh and blood.”
Jeremy was a bit confused and frightened. Dr. Harry Miller tried to make him relax.
“Jeremy, I will connect some electrodes to your head. They will mildly activate various brain centres so that you will feel pleasure and sometimes, pain too. I can make you feel that you are in the world’s loveliest summer paradise with the most beautiful people around you. If you want to go back to your childhood, I can help you to go back there too.”
“Why don’t you publish your discoveries in science journals?”
Dr. Miller thought for a moment before replying. He said, “There are some snags which I want to straighten out, before telling it to the world. You are here to help me do that.”
On a bright summer morning, Jeremy and Professor Miller went to the laboratory for conducting the experiments. Jeremy was taken to a room which had a cubicle in it. The walls of the cubicle were painted with nice picturesque lakes, meadows, fields full of daffodils swaying in the breeze and in the distance some farm animals and a pretty little cottage. The Professor called this room, ‘The Cave.’
“Jeremy, now I am going to put the virtual reality helmet on your head. By moving your hand, you will be able to move objects in the virtual world. You are entering into a three dimensional world. You will meet people in the virtual world and interact with them. It is just like playing a video game or Nintendo.”
“Are you sure I won’t get hurt?” Jeremy asked.
Dr. Miller laughed. His laughter reminded Jeremy of a hyena’s derisive laughter.
“You must be brave. This is only an experiment. Imagine a virtual world where you can find unlimited happiness at very little cost. Now, let us go into the ‘Cave’ and I will prepare you for the greatest experience of your life. Note everything carefully and tell me when you come back from the virtual world. Even a small bit of information is of vital importance to me.” Jeremy reluctantly agreed to what the old man said.
“Actually, you are not going anywhere. Once I fit the gadgets on your head, you will be transported to the virtual world. You can interact with the people you see in your ‘virtual world’. I will hear whatever you speak through the special headgear that you will be wearing. If you feel uncomfortable, I can switch off the ‘virtual experience,’ and you will be back here in the real world.”
The ‘Cave’ was a cubicle with beautifully painted walls. There was a comfortable chair in the middle of the ‘Cave’ and a computer with an LCD monitor. The virtual reality helmet (VRH) was bulky and heavy. Jeremy felt as if he had put his head inside a computer. Dr. Miller adjusted the controls and helped Jeremy put on the wired gloves on his hands.
“I can watch your activities in the monitor screen in front of me. If you are in distress I can see it on the monitor and switch off the connections in the virtual reality head set and then you will be back into the real world. Are you ready?”
Jeremy nodded his head. Even though the room was air conditioned, sweat had started trickling down Jeremy’s face. Dr. Miller fixed the helmet and connected the TV monitor wires to the special sockets in the virtual reality helmet (VRH). Jeremy looked like a man from Mars with the big helmet on his head. Dr. Miller stepped out of the ‘cave’ and quietly closed the door.
Suddenly, Jeremy saw a big meadow in front of him full of flowers. In the distance, he could see hills and a beautiful cottage. Cows were grazing in the field and there was a river flowing by. He walked towards the cottage. He knocked on the door and politely waited for someone to open the door. When there was no response, he knocked again with a little more force. Suddenly, the door opened and the smiling face of an old man appeared. Jeremy was astonished to see that it was the face of his grandfather who had died ten years ago. He stood there with his mouth open wide. The old man caught him gently by the shoulders and led him into the cottage. Jeremy saw that it was the same old cottage where he had lived with his dad and mom and younger sister. The cuckoo clock, the worn out carpet in front of the hearth, the broken bicycle of his kid brother and knitting needle and ball of wool yarn were all there. His grandfather sat down on his favourite chair and asked Jeremy to sit down.
“Grandpa, you are alive.”
“Of course, son. What did you think ?” The old man laughed loudly.
“But you died ten years ago.”
“Certainly not. Now let me go and get you something to drink.” The old man got up and walked into the kitchen. Jeremy glanced at the newspapers and magazines lying there. They were all old ones. He checked the dates. Yes, they were all at least ten years old. Suddenly, he felt a twitching pain in the head. He put both hands on his head and bent his head down.
After a minute, when he felt relieved, he looked up. The cottage and furniture and magazines – everything had vanished. He stood up and continued to walk. In the distance, he could hear the sound of waves crashing against the rocks. The air had a salty smell. He walked quickly and soon saw, below the cliff where he was standing, a beautiful curved beach, with white sand gleaming in the bright sun. There were lots of pretty young boys and girls running around and playing on the white sand. Some were playing beach volleyball, while others were lying on the sand under large beach umbrellas, sipping coke and canned juice.
Pretty teenagers were surfing on the sea and some were swimming in the clear blue waters.
“Hi! Handsome! Join me for a swim, come on. Don’t be bashful.” A pretty young girl invited him. He accepted the invitation and ran with her into the water. They laughed and swam briskly quite a distance. Jeremy was getting a bit tired and wanted to turn back to the beach. A large wave crashed into him, throwing him up in to the air. When he landed back, he couldn’t see his companion. He was a bit worried that the girl might have been hurt. He dived into the sea to search for her. He saw nothing. He came up gasping for breath and dived once again. Suddenly, he saw some shadowy thing in the water. He swam towards it. He realised that it was a young man who was thrashing about in the water.
“Hold on. Don’t panic. I will help you. Be still.” Jeremy shouted. He closed in on the young man and caught him by the hair and tried to pull him to the surface. He couldn’t. The powerful ocean current was pushing him towards the sea far away from the beach. He dived again and caught the young man by his shoulders. Keeping a grip on him Jeremy tried to swim with one hand. He didn’t succeed. He was now afraid for his own life. Finally, he got the young man’s head above water.
“Hold on to me and try to swim. I will help you.”
The young man looked at him with open staring eyes. He seemed to be in a shock.
“Who are you? What is your name?”
Choking and spluttering, the young man managed to say, “ I am Jim Hawthorne. You go back to the beach. Don’t try to save me. You won’t be able to do anything. Go .....Go.”
A bell rang in Jeremy’s mind. With a sense of horror, he realised that this man was Dr. Harry Miller’s former assistant. How had he come here?
“Do you know Dr. Miller?” Jeremy shouted.
The young man looked at him staring in horror.
“Yes. Did he send you here?
“I don’t know. I am confused. I am his new assistant. He said this is only an experiment.”
“No...No” screamed the young man. “You can’t escape. We are trapped in this virtual world. There is no going back. You were a fool to come here.....”
The young man slipped away from Jeremy’s hands and sank to the sea. Jeremy suddenly remembered the screams that he had heard in Dr. Miller’s house in the dead of night. They were the screams of other victims who were trapped in Dr. Miller’s virtual world.
Jeremy tried to swim towards the beach with powerful strokes. But the ocean currents were pulling him back to the sea. He shouted at the top of his voice, “Help! Help! I am drowning. Someone help....please.”
He could see the people in the beach looking towards him. No one came forward to help him. They were standing there staring in horror at the unfolding sight. From a distance, they looked like wooden toys stuck in the white sands. That was the last thing Jeremy saw before he sank into the depths of the ocean.
Dr. Harry Miller watched the sight on the TV monitor. His face was expressionless. When finally Jeremy’s face vanished from the monitor screen, he switched it off.
Dr. Miller opened the door of the ‘Cave’. He saw Jeremy’s lifeless body slumped over the table. “My experiment is a failure. I had hoped Jeremy would be able to bring back Jim. It didn’t happen. I have to straighten out some problems in the software. I am sure that they are minor glitches. I will succeed. I must succeed. I must get another assistant.”
The old man mumbled to himself as he wandered around his library deep in thought. His eyes were bright and shining - like that of a maniac.
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