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- Blue Box (Part 1)
-
- "I knew it," Jeffrey muttered to himself. "One letter in my
- INBOX, and it had to be this one." In the past three years of his
- dealings with the government, they had always used private couriers to
- correspond, or more often the telephone. But when the message came
- via MCI MAIL, he knew that his three-year project was at an
- unsuccessful end.
-
- From: George F. Frankel MCI ID: 213-9164
- To: * Jeffrey Landers MCI ID: 150-1060
- Message-ID: 5M113684/818802K3
- Subj: Final Project Decision - Confidential
-
- Dear Mr. Landers,
-
- It is with great regret that we must inform you
- that your proposal to refine, and implement the
- use of, the device we have discusssed has been
- denied. Unfortunately with budget cuts applied,
- this department does not have the resources to
- properly administer programs which consist
- primarily of research and development. I will
- personally keep the proper information on file so
- that, if the situtation changes, we might be able
- to continue work on what could be a valuable tool
- to our society. I also commend your work and
- thank you for your efforts to this point. Formal
- notification will be sent to IDT shortly along
- with cost recovery information.
-
- Sincerely Yours,
-
- Gen. G. F. Frankel
- Human Services
-
-
- He switched the terminal off. Government Imbeciles. Not only
- did they make any sort of effective demonstration impossible, but they
- had to break the news through MCI MAIL.
-
- Strangely, he felt little anger. He had a good time working on
- the project, excellent pay, at the mere expense of his social life.
- His time had been devoted to endless revisions, modifications, and
- testing of the Device. It wasn't his fault that the Federal people
- who came to test it were just too-- too-- boring to use it.
- Unfortunately he'd never be able to prove that. He wasn't sure of the
- situations that caused the tests to fail. It worked for him, he felt,
- because he had a good imagination. Good enough to think up the device
- in the first place means that one must be good enough to use it.
-
- The Device was a thought amplifier. Bred from some licensed
- Japanese electro-encephalographic technologies that never saw any use
- outside some experimental psychiatric clinics that (giggle) were now
- being sued for some sort of fraud, the Device was a miracle more
- stunning than the space program, the new light-speed superprocessors,
- or Ronco's solid-state IR laser turkey carving set. It started out as
- a device which could clarify thought patterns for analysis by trained
- therapists, for use in mental hospitals. The Feds got involved when
- the NSA wanted to know if it could be used to read minds. Even if
- Jeffrey could have spent a few years researching that application, he
- wouldn't think of it-- because certainly he wouldn't be ALLOWED to
- think of it if the device became a reality. But Jeffrey's employer,
- Interactive Device Technologies, liked the idea of lucrative
- government contracts and encouraged him to continue with the
- development. Three years later, Jeffrey and IDT had finished the
- thought amplifier, but this last MCI letter meant that there was
- NOBODY, and that meant nobody, interested in continuing with it. Now
- that IDT had no hopes of a $12 billion contract, Jeffrey would
- probably be out of job.
-
-
- *** Chapter 2 ***
- Cheryl walked into the Lab. "Is that the TA-12?" she queried,
- pointing to the metallic blue box on the counter, without even saying
- hello.
- Jeffrey knew at that instant he was being set up. Cheryl never
- had anything to do with the technical staff. He had seen her around
- the building often enough, but learned quickly of her distaste for the
- techies, and had properly ignored her ever since. Undoubtedly one of
- the IDT managers got a carbon-copy of the MCI letter and sent Cheryl
- in to cheer Jeffrey up, rather than stopping in themselves. How
- unthoughtful. He didn't want to be cheered up. Cheryl was still
- standing there, though, and Jeffrey racked his mind to remember what
- she had asked him.
- "Yes, that's it."
- Cheryl didn't waste a second. "It doesn't work, huh?"
- Nice cheering-up job, Jeffrey thought. He answered in a tone
- normally reserved for when you lose your best friend. "It works fine.
- It just doesn't work for everyone, that's all. All the government
- people who tested it were so skeptical, so narrow-minded it couldn't
- have possibly worked." He wondered if he was rationalizing it or
- not.
- Cheryl continued her insistent questions as if she had a list of
- them. "It works for you?"
- "Yes. And most other people can use it too."
- "Oh." It sounded like she just ran out of questions. "Sorry to
- be ignorant. I just don't pay much attention to what our experiments
- do, that's all."
- Jeffrey reached behind him and picked up the Device. "Have a
- seat", he said, pointing to a chair across from him. Cheryl sat.
- "All it is, primarily, is a thought amplifier. It looks to what
- you're thinking, and retransmits it so that you can see it more
- clearly. But the big advantage is that it transmits to others within
- a few feet. Want a sample?"
-
-
- *** Chapter 3 ***
- Cheryl nodded without saying a word. Jeffrey started his long-
- rehearsed demonstration speech, required so that the visitors would
- know what's going on and would have some margin of safety should
- something go wrong.
- "Touch your finger here for a second", he said, pointing to a
- small metal circle on top of the Device, which was in his lap. Cheryl
- did. "All you did was allow the device to calibrate itself to
- your..." (he hated the oversimplification)... "'wavelength', so you
- can participate. You know what the Device does, and it's easier to
- show you it's abilities than to tell you. All you have to know is
- this: This box cannot reproduce itself in this color in your mind.
- It's a safety device that took almost nine months to install. If I
- were to try to fool you into thinking that the demonstration was over,
- you'd notice that the box was red, not blue, because it won't let you
- see it any other way. There's a timer on the top that will end the
- demonstration in..." (he set the timer) "about ten minutes. That's
- another safety device in case for some reason I can't turn it off.
- It'll also turn off on any sort of sensory disturbance, so you have to
- be comfortable before you can start." He elected to omit the usual
- comment about using the rest-room first. "The final safety device
- limits the amount of pain and suffering you can feel no matter what
- happens to you. In the image that the box presents, you could stab
- yourself with a knife and would feel only momentary discomfort. And
- of course, you wouldn't sustain any real-life damage. That prevents
- the Device from being used to torture someone, for the most part. Now
- just clear your mind for a moment, and relax."
- He looked up at her. She closed her eyes. He stole a quick peek
- at her uncrossed legs and the space between them, that had crossed hi
- mind many times before. Why didn't she like the technical people?
- Such a waste. Oh well. He leaned back and pressed the switch to
- start the demonstration, then put his hands at his sides.
- He opened his eyes. "Cheryl?" She opened hers without saying
- anything. The box was red, instead of blue. It was incredible-- she
- could have, by any other measure, been actually sitting there staring
- at a red box there with Jeffrey. But no, the box was blue, and her
- eyes were closed. It just SEEMED that way. She moved her arms. They
- moved. Fingers too.
- "Everyone always does that", Jeffrey giggled. "Obviously it
- works with you. Yes, everything seems normal. Your fingers wiggle.
- And no, they aren't really wiggling in real life. But, for now, they
- might as well be."
- "Incredible. You did this?"
- Jeffrey smiled. "Yup. Three years for this. But you haven't
- seen anything yet!"
- They both got up. Just as they got to their feet, the walls and
- ceiling of the building vanished, revealing the trees, sky, clouds,
- and such outside. It may have been 41 degrees on the outdoor
- thermometer 5 minutes ago, but it was a comfy 70 or so now.
- "How did that happen?"
- "Easy. I just decided that the walls should go away, and even
- before I imagine it happening, it does. The Device reads what I'm
- thinking, and makes it seem like it's happening. It was all so simple
- once we got the basic theories straight. Notice how there's no detail
- left out?"
- Cheryl looked around the room (what was left of it) and nodded.
- Jeffrey continued. "In actuality, that's not true. For all we
- know, none of the things we're not looking at this second exist. But
- once we go to look at anything, the image gets filled in from our own
- thoughts. For the most part, what we see, hear, smell, feel, or taste
- depends on who looks at it first-- it fills in the detail from that
- person's memory. The other person sees that as the first imagined it.
- But the person who's holding the physical box has the ultimate
- authority. Watch." A small metal box appeared on the counter, with a
- lid that was closed. "There's an index card inside that box with a
- four-digit number on it," he said, "but I don't know what it is
- because I haven't decided on one. Why don't you open the box and see
- what it says?
- Cheryl walked over to the box while Jeffrey looked around
- outside. It was mid-afternoon. Some birds flew nearby, something not
- formerly present.
- "It's 9601, the last four digits of my phone number", Cheryl
- reported. How did that happen?"
- "Either because you wanted it to, or because the Device decided
- that it was the most likely thing to put there. I don't know your
- phone number and couldn't have put it there. See?"
- Again, Cheryl just nodded. With that, the numbers on the card
- changed to 2066, Jeffrey's office extension number. Jeffrey
- explained. "You might create something out of your imagination... but
- if there is a conflict, the box-holder gets his way with reality. The
- problem with the tests was that the people who tried it either didn't
- have the imagination (faith if you like) to make the device work for
- them, in which case the only effect they ever saw was the box changing
- color, or they couldn't mentally lock on to the signals from the box,
- which meant that even THAT didn't happen." Again, did he really know?
- Maybe not. It could take years of research. Oh well. "Come on,
- let's go."
-
-
- *** Chapter 4 ***
- Cheryl wheeled around and discovered that Jeffrey had sprouted a
- perfect pair of wings, feathers and all. It was one of his favorite
- diversions, which he had developed after weeks of testing. He picked
- Cheryl up from behind; his arms fitting into the somewhat innocent
- space below her breasts. She was very light because he had decided
- that she should be, at least for now. She didn't complain about it.
- In an instant Jeffrey cringed down, and leapt into the air.
- It was too fast for Cheryl, who felt that the exciting part had
- been rushed. They were already fifty feet above the ground, coasting
- over the trees towards downtown. With a few flaps, Jeffrey lifted
- them both to several times that altitude. "Nervous?" he asked.
- "No, I'm fine." It wasn't convincing. The only other person
- he'd ever taken on this tour couldn't take it too well. Jeffrey
- pitched upwards a little bit and slowed down, then gained some more
- altitude, and generally swooped around a bit. The scenery was
- breathtaking, and the feeling was unparalleled.
- "Afraid of heights?" Jeffrey remembered how he had thought of
- the Device as a tool to eliminate such fears, the last time he asked
- that question. Cheryl didn't answer.
- With nothing to lose as far as Cheryl's opinion of him, Jeffrey
- did the only thing he could think of to remedy the situtation. He
- dropped her. Cheryl screamed, fell a few feet, and stopped in midair
- at Jeffrey's command. She couldn't have done that herself. He
- stopped in midair and had her float up to him, facing him. "You see?
- There's nothing to be afraid of. You can't get hurt here. And I
- wouldn't let you get hurt anyway.
- She didn't look resentful. She looked down at the streets below,
- then reached down as if to see what was holding her up. It always
- seemed to take a while for people to get "the idea"-- that the
- constraints of reality no longer hold.
- "It can be like an amusement park-- thrills without danger, or
- whatever amuses you." Cheryl was now smiling. It was time for
- Jeffrey to try and promote that idea. It was no fun here with someone
- that didn't understand, and it looked like Cheryl was beginning to.
- Jeffrey continued. "Take my hand," he said. "I think you've got the
- idea."
- She did. Jeffrey's wings disappeared. A moment later they
- started falling, from the five thousand feet (funny, we weren't that
- high up a moment ago) to the town below. Jeffrey looked straight at
- Cheryl. She looked up at him. It had worked! She felt enough
- confidence in him to be able to take her eyes off the approaching
- Earth. He couldn't keep his feeling to himself.
- "I'm impressed, Cheryl. You've got more inside than I credited
- you for. Congratulations." He pulled her to him, and held her tight.
- She wrapped her arms around him, and looked down.
- Just before they reached the earth, a large pool of water
- appeared below them and they splashed harmlessly into it, coming to an
- almost instant stop. Cheryl, who had let go just as they reached the
- water, paddled back over to Jeffrey and grabbed onto him again. He
- liked the feeling where she was pressing against him.
- Finally, she spoke up again. "Can we try it again? Not the
- fall, I mean, but flying around? I'd like to try it out for myself."
- Jeffrey nodded. A moment later, they were both in midair, and
- Cheryl had developed some nice orange feathers. Jeffrey followed
- Cheryl as she flew back towards the company, swooped down over the
- trees, and shrieked with excitement. "I want to try landing", she
- said. "Will you go first?" Jeffrey agreed, and lined up in front of
- her, feet down, heading for the flat roof of IDT's main building.
- Then he was sitting in a chair, with the blue box on his lap. He
- looked at the top of it. "Timer's... No, there's still time left,
- must be..." He looked towards the door. His supervisor had walked
- in, and the noise had tripped the sensory-monitor device, ending the
- simulation.
- "Good night, you two. Lock up the lab when you leave, OK?"
- Jeffrey and Cheryl both nodded. Jeff added a "Good night" as the
- supervisor was on the way out the door. As the door closed, he turned
- to Cheryl once again. "Always happens that way... There were only
- about 30 seconds left anyway."
- "That certainly seemed like more than four and a half minutes!",
- Cheryl exlaimed.
- "It always does seem longer," Jeffrey agreed. "It would be
- impossible to test, though, right? A simulated clock would go just as
- fast as you would imagine it to go. Everything else could speed up
- too. It just seems to be the way people think."
- Surprisingly, although it was a few minutes after five, Cheryl
- wasn't leaving like Jeffrey expected her to. Did she really feel like
- spending time with Jeffrey? Maybe her opinion about techie types had
- changed a bit.
- "Can we try it again? Everyone's gone now and I just had so much
- fun with you...?
-
-
- *** Chapter 5 ***
- Jeffrey couldn't get his mind off the words 'with you' very
- easily. "Sure, I'm in no hurry tonight." He started to reach for the
- timer controls again, and Cheryl interrupted.
- "Could I do it this time? You did it last time, and..."
- Jeffrey nodded and handed the box to her, touching the circle on
- the top after setting it in her lap. "We just set the timer for as
- long as we want-- maybe ten minutes would be better this time, and..."
- Cheryl didn't wait for the explanation. She set the timer for
- four hours, sat back. An instant later, the box turned red. Jeffrey
- got up, startled, and noticed the timer was set for 4:00, not 0:10.
- "How come you--"
- "Because I don't want to be interrupted again. I can turn it off
- anytime before four hours runs out, right?"
- "Yes-- you just IMAGINE you're holding the box, and are turning
- it off, and it does. Maybe we should do that, and fix the timer--"
- Jeffrey reached for the box, but it vanished from Cheryl's lap before
- he could reach it. She had made it disappear. She could bring it
- back, but he couldn't. He felt uncomfortable at the prospect.
- "I just want to play a while. I'm SURE you won't mind. You said
- you weren't going anyplace." Pointing to her lap, she added: "Pretty
- good, huh?"
- "Um... Yes", said Jeffrey, obediently staring at her lap. "OK,
- then, let's see what you can do. Want to go flying again?"
- "Not right now. I was just thinking how you can do anything
- here-- like flying before. Anything." She looked straight into his
- eyes. "Must be pretty good when your company's getting horny, huh?"
- At first, Jeffrey thought she was talking about him. After all,
- the thought had crossed his mind since they first started the
- adventure. But no, he hadn't expressed that thought. Then maybe she
- was just being hypothetical. But the tone of her voice was telling
- him otherwise. He didn't know what to say.
- Cheryl stood up, and wrapped her arms around him, pressing
- herself against him. "Remember? In the air? It was your idea, not
- mine. I don't know whether it was all the adrenalin, the thrill, or
- you personally. And I don't know how you felt, but it got me
- positively wet between the legs. Even if I was just imagining it."
- Jeffrey restrained himself at the thought of that wetness. He
- had felt a little something, but at the same time was worried about
- being a little too forward. But he had to say something. "Isn't this
- a little... fast? I like you a lot. But two weeks ago you wouldn't
- have given me the time of day, much less admit what you just said."
- "Maybe. I never really thought about you at all until about two
- weeks ago. I don't know why. I guess I started feeling guilty about
- the reasons I DIDN'T pay attention to some people. So, it seemed like
- the perfect opportunity when Dan asked me to see how you were doing.
- And..." (she ran one hand across his bottom) "...what a better way to
- meet? Perfectly romantic." They were standing on a boat, facing a
- setting sun, with a violin playing in the background. "Or however
- else it should be." The corny sunset-boat-violin scene disappeared,
- leaving total darkness except for themselves. "Much better than
- meeting in a laundromat." Sounded rational.
- Of course, rational was the last thing on Cheryl's mind. Jeffrey
- had his arms around her. He slid his hands down across her derriere,
- feeling the soft fabric of the jeans she was wearing. She seemed to
- approve. But she let go of him. She stood back a foot or so.
- Slowly, and tauntingly, Jeffrey's clothes began to fade away.
- First his shirt, then his slacks, and without any hesitation, his
- underwear began to become transparent, revealing everything to
- Cheryl's eyes. He couldn't bring his clothes back. The awkward
- situation made him lose what erection he had.
- "Neat", Cheryl exclaimed. "I just have to imagine it starting--
- your clothes disappearing-- and unless I stop it, it happens by itself
- without me helping".
- At first, Jeffrey though "Neat" was referring to his naked body.
- But then he realized that he was an unwilling accomplice to Cheryl's
- vanishing-clothes trick. She had never seen him naked before, and so
- the vision that she now saw was constructed from Jeffrey's own
- thoughts. He was beginning, more and more, to feel like the student
- in this environment, when before he was only the teacher. He'd never
- done anything quite like this in the demonstration--
- Cheryl's voice interrupted his thoughts again. The sexy tone in
- her voice had returned. "YOU'RE neat TOO, you know." She was
- staring, unashamed, at his previously private areas. She walked back
- up, still dressed, and touched his penis. He didn't complain. She
- looked at him straight in the eyes, and made her own blouse disappear,
- slowly like before. No bra-- just two very nice tits were now
- visible. She still looked straight into Jeffrey's eyes, watching them
- sweep down her body, hesitate, then look back up into her eyes. "I
- want to see you get hard. I want it to happen right here. Bigger,
- harder than you ever have before."
- Jeffrey obliged her. He felt himself starting to stretch right
- in her hand, growing, getting warm, and longer. Her grip tightened
- around him as he grew. He ran his eyes over her chest freely now,
- using the stimulation to carry out Cheryl's request. Finally he
- reached up and touched her breasts, which somehow seemed to excite him
- more than her. Her attention was on his growing member. He rubbed
- his fingers, then hands, then both hands over her tits, watching her
- nipples grow erect at his fingertips.
- She let go of him. It felt cold now, but his penis didn't
- wither. Cheryl stood back, again, and this time revealed the rest of
- herself to him. Jeffrey's eyes, as one might expect, focused on the
- little patch of brown hair between her legs-- as his mind focused on
- the infinite pleasure just beyond.
- At this point Jeffrey's mind was so fixed on the impending
- copulation, that even the unnatural absence of background didn't seem
- unnatural anymore. This wasn't imagination; it was reality. There
- was Cheryl, and Jeffrey, and that was all. Nothing else. And Cheryl
- had decided, apparently, that there was only one thing to be done--
- and it was just minutes away. He was impatient-- knowing that those
- minutes would seem SO LONG -- until he finally reached his goal.
-
-
- *** Chapter 6 ***
- Cheryl's voice was the sexiest he'd heard yet. "Touch me. Touch
- me all over. You know what I want. You know what to do so I get it."
- Jeffrey slid one arm around her, pulling him to her. Her bosom
- pressed into his chest again, and he could feel her nipples stiffening
- against him. He wrapped his other arm around her, and slid his hands
- over her buttocks. It was something he never thought he'd be doing.
- A few seconds later they were both floating, weightless.
- Cheryl kissed him, sliding her tongue into his mouth, exploring
- it. Her hands went to his bottom also, one hand between his bowels,
- rubbing the area around his anus. Nobody had ever done that to
- Jeffrey before; he liked it.
- Jeffrey's hands approached her pussy. It seemed warm even before
- he touched the hair around it. He could smell her wetness. The scent
- was making him lose what little control he had left. He hesitated for
- a moment, giving himself final clearance to proceed, then probed
- through her pubic hair, touching the skin between her legs. He rubbed
- the area for a minute before one finger felt her pussy's lips. It was
- wet inside. He spread them apart, and touched it. After a few
- seconds he knew what was where... She clenched him as one finger slid
- by her clitoris; and when a finger finally discovered the opening into
- her vagina, she grabbed his hand and pushed his finger inside. He
- slid it back and forth. His other hand was now on her breasts.
- Cheryl came after just a few seconds. She pushed his hand
- against her. He felt a ripple inside her as her muscles contracted.
- She held him there for a moment, then let him slide out.
- "Lick me," she demanded. "Learn what I taste like."
- Jeffrey wasn't bothered by that prospect. He floated away from
- her for a second, then she floated towards him, aiming her pussy
- towards his head. As he started to slide between her thighs, she
- locked her legs around him, squeezing him, locking him in place. Sh
- was getting him wet. His tongue instantly found its target, first
- sliding across her clitoris, and then inside. He swallowed her
- juices. She came again, squeezing with her legs so hard that, for a
- minute, he couldn't breathe. Her pussy surrounded him. He felt
- another surge of liquid from within her. As soon as it was over, she
- released him, and they floated alongside each other. She had regained
- some of her control; yet now her pussy was aiming towards his
- previously ignored cock. She held on to him, and pulled him towards
- her, keeping a careful eye on his navigation.
- Jeffrey seemed to have some reservations. He hardly knew her,
- really, and that thought was starting to surface. That thought got
- through to Cheryl, who knew better-- that they both wanted the same
- thing and there was no reason not to have it.
- "You have no choice now." The distance between their pubic areas
- continued to reduce. "Besides, I know what you want. You wouldn't
- have gone this far. You're not getting away now. You want me as
- much as I want you." She was right.
- Jeffrey insisted, though, not because he was unwilling, but
- because he was afraid that she'd regret it later, and would blame him
- for it. "It's too fast. Why are you rushing? I want to learn about
- you... get to know you..."
- Cheryl didn't listen. Jeffrey's penis touched the hair around
- her pussy. Then he felt the warmth at the tip of it. His cock still
- had some flexibility to it. In a short time-- almost too fast, Cheryl
- took him inside. The heat made him grow very hard, conforming to her
- shape. She started to wrap her legs around him, and to slide against
- him. He grabbed her body, realizing that it was the last chance to
- save his rational self, and stopped her from moving. He concentrated
- on everything but the fact that they were now mating.
- She resented the fact that he was forcibly interrupting her
- pleasure. But it did return her faculties to her, long enough to
- realize once again that this wasn't really happening, and that she was
- in control of things. She hadn't heard what Jeffrey said, but this
- time decided quite consciously to continue. She could show her anger
- now without Jeffrey being able to do anything about it. Besides, she
- knew that he was struggling to hang on to his mind, while her pussy
- did its work on him, her breasts and body draining his willpower.
- "Shut up. It's too late. I'm screwing you and there's nothing
- you can do to stop me." The words, she figured, would send him over
- the edge and he'd stop resisting. Jeffrey never thought he'd ever be
- in the situation of resisting a beautiful woman's advances, unless she
- was married or had some disease or something. But neither was the
- case now.
- Her words were a temptation of defial. He placed both hands on
- her hips, and started to push her away, hoping she'd forgive him, and
- even be thankful that he gave her a chance to think rationally about
- her actions. His penis started to slide out. The tip was swelling
- inside her, though, at Cheryl's command. Jeffrey felt his skin
- stretching. He didn't know how big he was, and he wouldn't feel much
- pain as long as the Device was working.
- Cheryl's orifice tightened around the base of his cock. It had
- grown inside her, and she was growing tighter. He pushed harder
- against her hips, but couldn't slide out. He was locked inside her.
- He slid back in to try again, and this time the sensation of sliding
- into her warm flesh pushed him over the edge. Her words had come
- true. He lost his last reasons for stopping it, and his thoughts
- faded with only one intense purpose remaining. He started sliding in
- and out, making no further attempts to escape.
- Cheryl giggled once. "That's it, animal. Fuck me. Then, maybe
- I'll let you go." It was all a game, Jeffrey and Cheryl both knowing
- the rules quite well. Each word, each motion, could do nothing but
- stimulate desire. Jeffrey's attempt to "stop" her was played
- perfectly. He probably knew it would excite her. And now, he was
- hers, undulating against her, and pulsating inside her. She giggled
- again once more, watching Jeffrey turn into the animal she wanted,
- before her own thoughts turned again towards the act of mating. She
- grew hot inside as the excitement increased.
- Cheryl was approaching her climax, but still had a handle on what
- was happening. Her words came one at a time, with each breath and
- each of Jeffrey's thrusts. "I.. want.. all of.. you... inside..
- deep.. yes..."
-