2020-03-03 - spike - Trapped again Part four

Author: spike
Title: Trapped again. Part four.
Date: 03 March 2020

“And we get back to now, sir. Cal asked me to come to deliver the information he’d gathered. The breakthroughs he’s made concerning Rhy, my blood and the addition of phages to antibiotic treatment in order to prolong their effectiveness but he warned me I would likely be arrested for his abduction. So, I was prepared. He said if my computer became locked, I had to allow it. I had to stand trial and I had to insist that Van Holder appeared as a witness so the information could be transferred. It was locked before it even managed to tell me Van-Holder’s address. The rest… You’ve seen, sir.”

“And you can perform this… vanishing act at will?”

“That’s what set the alarm off earlier, sir. I didn’t know I had a chip and I made my hand vanish. The doctor tried to cover for me, but you know everything now, so there’s no harm in telling you.”

“Could you do it for me, now?”

“I could, sir. But what about the alarms?”

“Oh, I think it’ll be safe to disable yours for a minute. That’ll be enough time for a quick demonstration, won’t it?”

“Yes, sir. I might bump into a world with another me explaining all this to you though and if that’s the case… It’ll be a shock for him, sir.”

“Why?”

“Because he’ll know he can no longer do it. There is a possibility something might be able to get him back home, but… He might be stuck here, if not in this prison, then in this world for the rest of his life.”

“Five minutes then.”

“Thank you, sir.”

Eric shifted, scanned and located someone wearing black. He inched forward and shifted back to normal vision to see Eric staring at him in horror.

“Oh fuck! No!”

“I’m afraid so, me.”

Eric sank to his knees. “This place is going to be fucking hell for me.”

“Pull yourself together, me. When the retrial gets off the ground make sure every single thing you had on you is in that courtroom as evidence! Everything means the orbs and even if you don’t trust the computer after what the police might’ve done to it, the doctor there has that program on his now, doesn’t he?” He glanced at the governor to find his face ashen. “Sir? Are you alright?”

“It’s… Everything you said…”

“I’m very open about my abilities when it’s necessary, sir. It was necessary. Try to get that retrial as soon as possible, please. The longer we wait, the more risk there is he’ll lose his ticket home. There’s no telling what the police will do with those orbs.”

“You do realise retrials often take a considerable amount of time to organise?”

It was Eric’s turn to stare in horror. “But I’ve got to get back before Christmas! Failing that, I’m booked on a physical training instructor course in January! I can’t wait too long! Neither can he! Those orbs are critical! Without them, he really is stuck here, unless he can find the scientist who invented them! That’s assuming he even exists in this world!”

“Oh, I can assure you, he exists. He even reported a set of his devices stolen a few years ago. Telling me your tale reminded me of the event. The thief was arrested in the most unusual of circumstances but his devices were never recovered. Presumably, because you claimed them?”

“Good god. Really? Medeline was from this world?”

“Yes. She was found, naked in the street, hammering at a jeweller’s rear entrance screaming bloody murder. The strange thing is, all her possessions were behind that door and no-one could figure out how. She’s here now, in fact. Her crimes go far beyond a few thefts.”

“She’s… She’s here? In this prison? Oh god, please tell me I could visit.”

“What do you mean, visit? She’s one of you. She’s even in the same block.”

”Don’t tell me… Men and women are segregated, aren’t they?”

“Segregated? What would be the purpose?”

“All the rapists in ‘ere!?”

“Oh, I wouldn’t worry about that. They know what happens if they break the rules. They’d never get away with it, the amount of surveillance we have here. If any of them attempted anything like that, if any couple decided to enjoy a little… casual entertainment…” He shook his head. “Sexual congress between inmates is strictly forbidden here and they know it.”

“So… Oh god, I might get to meet her. To gloat?”

“Wearing that, Unknown, you really don’t have anything to gloat about. Even she isn’t in black.”

The other Eric struggled back to his feet with a grin. “Knowing that, I think it might even be worth being here for a little while. Oh god…” His eyes widened. “Oh bloody hell! Now that’s a corker.”

“What is? What the hell’s rattling around in your head that isn’t in mine?”

The other Eric looked at himself and the governor with a grin. “How about we get the media involved? I’d be willing to be interviewed. Questioned by journalists, if they still exist here. Get the public up in arms about police corruption. Publish those videos and invite them to speak to me. It might bring about a much speedier retrial with the public on our side and when they found out the man who introduced this world to a medication that could save millions has been treated so harshly, so unfairly…”

“Eric… If my arms weren’t clamped behind me back, I’d bloody well hug you! That’s a fucking brilliant idea! What do you think, sir? Especially the interrogation video? Publish that with text saying number of blinks… none… Expected number of blinks…” he looked up in the air, calculating… “three hundred… Conclusion, subject is unconscious and not aware of the questions… Besides… Seems to me, the police in this world’ve got a bit too big for their boots. They’re supposed to serve the public, uphold the law, not stamp on them and it! They seem to think they should be treated differently. They should, but not in the way they are. They should be held to account. Held to standards of behaviour above that of the general public. They should be setting a fucking example!”

The other Eric’s brow creased. “Wait… When I searched Medeline’s clothing after zapping her… I found her driving license… We concluded that she couldn’t possibly be from this world if she had that… What’s the point when everything’s stored on the chip?”

The governor sighed. “Now that, I can answer. You might not be a retro, but she is. They carry old style identification to prove to each other they’re retros. After all, without chips, how else would they identify each other? The robbery you described… I have no idea what she had in mind for those diamonds but I bet it wasn’t good. Maybe fund the creation of more bombs… The purchase of more weapons…”

“But the diamonds would’ve drifted.”

“Hmmm…” Eric attempted to shrug but failed miserably. “Maybe she was willing to sacrifice one of her followers. The marble holds the diamonds in place. She sells them… They take the diamonds after she’s made herself scarce… She collects the diamonds from the world they drifted to… She might’ve even been able to retrieve the follower again. It’s unlikely a fence would recognise it for what it is. Just a marble to him. Pull that scam a few times and she’d have more money than she knew what to do with… Wouldn’t make her very popular with the criminal underworld though.”

“Ahhh shit! If she is from this world, that might mean the orbs have been returned to their rightful owner. Sir, please. This could be critical for both of us eventually. Who is this scientist?”

“Hmmm, I read about it in the newsfeed some time ago. Computer, what is the name of the man who invented the string resonance manipulator?”

”Professor Tyrell Birk. London University. Quantum physics department.”

“You’re… not planning on stealing them again are you?”

“I didn’t steal them the first time, I confiscated them. Sir, with those orbs and a computer equipped with Tad’s program combined, we could offer him the chance of a lifetime. He could come with us and return home whenever he wanted. He’s probably been limited to a few days of travel. We can offer him the multiverse or a large chunk of it. Worlds he couldn’t imagine, his to explore. I’m sure with him on our side we’d get home.”

“I’d like to thank you. Both of you. As for the journalist idea. I’ll get onto it. That is an idea in a million. It seems when two of you get together you’re really a force to be reckoned with.”

Both Erics said “Thank you, sir.” in unison.

Eric sighed. “I’d better be getting back. I was only given a five minute grace period before the alarms were reactivated.”

The governor sighed. “I take it this’ll be the last I see of you?”

“I suppose that depends, sir. If you could be persuaded to cancel the alarms on occasion I might be able to visit, but somehow, I doubt it.”

“Good point. This was a very interesting experience. I’ll say goodbye. I know I’m not the kind of man to break protocol. The fact I did this time is surprising in itself.”

“Goodbye, sir. Bye, me. Goodbye doctor.” Eric drifted back with a grin wider than any he’d had since he arrived in this world.

The doctor chuckled at his expression. “Went well, then?”

“Better than you can imagine. We came up with some cracking ideas, me and me. It was a shock for him but we both found out some very useful information that could save our skins.”

The governor leant forward and cradled his chin on his fingers. “Go on.”

Eric repeated the conversation and was greeted with a grin from the governor that rivalled his own.

“I’m right… Two of you get together your really are a force to be reckoned with.”

“Thank you, sir… Actually…” Eric groaned. “Oh god, I wish I’d had this idea when we were together. I really hope he has the same one.”

“What’s this?”

“Sir…” he looked down at himself. “This… It’s going to be hell for me. I might be able to relish in a little gloating at Medeline’s expense but… I’ll be a social pariah. I most certainly do not want to mix with the other blacks, sir. The doctor said I’d have a very lonely time of it and I need people.”

“You know you’re stuck in black until a retrial can fix this? If it even does?”

“Yes, sir. But… I… Can you arrange for the arrest and interrogation videos to not only make it to the press but to every prisoner in here? Maybe except for Medeline. I want her to fear me, it’ll make meeting her more interesting. Cut the first half, just from the arrest speech, so they don’t see me vanish or offer up the taser. It should show them I’m not… Not this!” he nodded at his uniform. “I’ve not seen an active cell yet but the doctor did say there were entertainments, I presume on a screen?”

The governor nodded. “If you hadn’t suggested that edit, I would’ve excluded the blacks. Anything that attracts attention is likely to go badly for you in their case and they will be your primary point of contact at first. You are a black. Being forced to watch you submit willingly to the police and them incapacitating you… That would not have gone down well. With the edit, universal coverage throughout the entire prison, even if you can never interact with most of it.”

“There’s another thing, sir. I downloaded a lot off the computer I arrived with once we realised it it’d been unblocked, sir, including entertainments you have never seen the like of. Actors who were never born, written by writers who never existed.”

“You have telop? From other worlds?”

“Two different TV series, sir. One’s called Doctor Who. It’s a science fiction, about an alien who regularly thwarts the plans evil nasty things. He travels around time and space, often with human companions in a blue box that’s bigger on the inside. Been going for years back there, but I only downloaded the new era.”

“New era?”

“Yes, sir. It got cancelled in the late eighties, resurrected in about two thousand and five with far better production values. It’s a classic, there’re some incredible episodes.”

“And the other?”

“It’s called Taskmaster. I’ve never seen any of your telop stuff, but I think you’ve likely never seen the like. It’s funny, it’s clever… It’s five comedians from that world pitted against each other completing very silly tasks. I’ve only seen a couple of episodes but… It looked good so I downloaded it on the way down to London before I travelled across.”

“That does sound intriguing. Telop from another… I’ll review them personally. If I deem them appropriate, they’ll appear on the menus. I’ll make sure you receive credit for supplying them too. That should help on the popularity front.”

“Thank you, sir.”

“Anything else, before I dismiss you?”

“I don’t know how long this is going to take or if I’ll ever get out of here, sir, but, I hate being idle. I’d like to volunteer my talents, sir. My… mundane talents that is.”

“Go on.”

“Doctor Anderson raised a very good point. You’ve lost so much. Not you personally, but, your world. You rely on your technology far too heavily. I’m not letting retro ideas in or anything, but… This is some of the art created by the boy who was paralysed, sir. The boy I got Doctor Anderson to fix. Doctor, could you bring up gallery mode for a folder called Rhy?”

“Of course. Computer, show me Rhy, gallery mode.”

The screen popped up and the governor swept through the images. “They’re good. Why is this relevant? A five-year-old could instruct”

“Sir… No computers were involved in those images.”

“What do you mean, no computers were involved? Look at it!” He said, pointing at a painting of Satan.

“That was painted with nothing but a selection of horsehair brushes, a pallet of oil paints in different colours and a canvas-covered board to paint on, sir. That’s what I meant when I said you’d lost a lot. The boy was twelve years old when he painted that, sir.”

“Twelve? Just… Just brushes?”

“Traditional crafts, sir. It’s incredibly satisfying and it can even be therapeutic. Swipe through until you get to a ship at sea, sir.”

The governor did so. “Now that…”

“That was painted when he was paralysed from the neck down, sir. His brother’s a clever one. He saw a potential in the doctor’s equipment that even the doctor hadn’t seen. It was still painted by hand, but by virtual hand. Tad ordered the computer to generate a virtual version of his brother, armed with the paintbrushes and pallet and a virtual canvas to paint on. The sensor that detected nerve impulses directed the image. Fine, careful muscle control, sir. That was one of the doctor’s breakthroughs. A realisation that art could help the paralysed. The lad was weeks ahead of the initial prognoses after he started doing that.”

“But… If we’ve lost these skills… Is it even possible to regain them?”

“The public domain archive might be ignored by many sir, but it wasn’t ignored by me. I downloaded the lot from a neighbouring world on our way back from that explosion in London, before we bumped into your world and that poor shop assistant.” Eric smirked. “There are thousands of books and they hadn’t lost those skills when they were published. Instructional works as well as fiction and reference. They can teach those skills. Begin craft lessons after reviewing the books, offer it to the inmates. And then there’s mine, sir. While I’m here.”

“And yours… But… But wood costs…”

“What about a wood substitute, sir? As long as it’s got the same weight, texture, grain... As long as working it’s the same… Trees are just like every other plant. They’re comprised mostly of cellulose. It’s just a hell of a lot denser in wood. If you had scans of various wooden items, would your printer be able to produce a similar material? Something that looks, feels and even works like wood, but… Well, just, printed. If such a thing is possible… I’d like to teach, sir.”

“What tools would be required for this… this...”

“Carpentry and wood carving, sir. Just to show you what I’m capable of… Doctor, can you bring up the gallery for the church?”

“Computer, do as he said.”

The interior of St Thomas church in Kidsgrove sprang up. Pictures detailing every piece of work in it, stone and wood.

“So… That’s a church? Why bother?”

“The people of my world treat religion as one of the most important aspects of their lives, sir.”

“But you said you… And all those slaves…”

“Yes, sir. But that doesn’t mean they don’t appreciate beauty. For the first time in their lives they were free to express themselves without their masters dictating limits. That church is the result. We wanted to appear normal to the locals too. We didn’t want suspicious looks and distrust. Scroll to the last one though. That’s my best piece so far, sir. I completed it last year.”

Eric glanced at the doctor and returned his attention to the governor to see both of their jaws drop.

The doctor pointed. “You did all that… By hand?”

“With the aid of hammer, chisel, plane and a few other woodworking tools, sir, yes.”

“They must be sharp, to accomplish that!”

“Very sharp, sir. I’m not suggesting carpentry be open to all prisoners. Just the lighter greys with no violence in their history.”

The governor zoomed in and scrolled around the image. “That’s beautiful! And the detail! You realise this suggestion sounds like a very long term prospect, don’t you, Unknown?”

“Sir, please. Even if it’s only between ourselves… The name’s Siyisan. Fine, if it’s in front of anyone else, call me Unknown but…” He sighed. “I really am beginning to hate that and it’s only been a few hours. Those shitheads in the police have fucked me over more with the name than the sentence!”

“Very well. It was a cruelty on their part even I’m finding hard to stomach. Forcing someone to abandon their name, their very identity to a nothing word like unknown. It’s deplorable. At least those numbers on your chest have an interesting sound to them.”

“Yes, sir. They also link me permanently to the other members of my cell. I’m actually grateful for that, sir.”

He nodded. “Siyisan it is.”

“Thank you, sir. As for the long term prospect… I might be here long term, sir, and if I am here for years or even the rest of my life I want to be useful. Nothing’s certain, but if I do get out, those books could be the answer. Select my most accomplished student at the time I depart and have him study every book on carpentry and woodwork you can find in the archive. Have him practice a lot. He could resume teaching where I left off, once he’s got the hang of it, sir.”

“I’ll certainly look into the details, what’s required. Consider it a conditional yes.”

“Thank you, sir. I don’t suppose you could…” He turned his back and pointed upwards with his bound hands.

“That, no. That’s impossible. Those can not be removed. They’ll automatically disengage when you’re in the entrance to your cell but that’s the only way to get them off. Also, you will wear them should any of these journalists or your doctor Van-Holder come to speak to you. Prison regulations. No exceptions. You are in black and will remain so, possibly for your entire stay, whether that’s months or years. You will not be treated any differently from the rest. Understood?”

“Surely the teaching…”

“None of them have volunteered for anything in the decades some of them have been here. You’re something new in that respect. Very few of the other prisoners volunteer for anything either and I’d like to thank you for that. You’ve almost reawakened my faith in humanity.”

Eric chuckled. “Thank you, sir.”

“Was there anything more?”

“Not that I can think of, sir.”

“It seems we all have a lot to think about. Get some sleep. Drink lots of fluids. You’ll be back to full health in no time. Correct, doctor?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Does he need to return to sick bay?”

“No, sir. He’s fit enough to take his cell, sir.”

“Good, then escort him to it. Dismissed.”

The doctor nodded. “Yes, sir. Oh, there was one more thing, sir.”

“Yes?”

“Check his account balances, sir. He has demerits due to urinating in his cell that could make his life very uncomfortable for a very long time.”

“Very well. Computer, show me the balances of the last record accessed.”

The screen popped up. His eyes widened. “Sixty demerits? And five hundred and fifty pounds in debt?”

Eric leant forward to study the screen. “Five-fifty? But that battery they used on me only cost a tenner! What’s the other five-forty for?”

“Hmm…” He pressed the screen a few times. “Ah, the breakdown… Ten for the battery, five hundred and forty for cell clean-up. They really were laying it on thick with you, weren’t they? Computer, erase the demerits and the debt from this account. Also, grant full privileges, triple locked.”

“Confirmed.”

“Triple locked, sir? Is that like the protection on those files?”

“No, this is something entirely different. Sometimes, prisoners lose all privileges just by looking at the wrong guard in the wrong way. This will protect you from that. Three strikes before you lose them and more can be added if you behave yourself.”

“Thank you, sir. At least now I can use the gym when I like. Ooh, sir.”

“Yes, Siyisan?”

“What is Medeline’s cell number?”

The governor chuckled. “I do not want any violence, Siyisan.”

“There won’t be any from me unless she starts it, sir. I promise.”

“Even if she does start it, you will not retaliate. This is critical. You’ll find out why when you get to your cell.”

“I’ve taken stronger punches than she’s likely capable of, sir. No violence, sir.”

“Good enough for me. She’s on level five, cell thirty-one.”

“Thank you, sir.”