With a deep sigh, you slump back down in the seat.
"TRUDI, I want to terminate my contract."
"Understood," your AI responds impassively.
Then her green holographic head flickers a few times, and vanishes.
You don't move for the last few minutes of the journey, following the instructions of the flight attendant with a zombie-like lack of emotion. Finally, you stand to leave when you dock with the station.
Before you actually step away from your chair, though, there is a hand on your shoulder. You spin to look into the solemn face of a young man with a black baseball cap and shades. Calmly he states, "You shouldn't leave. You'll be coming back with me."
The return journey is no more fun than expected, and when you find yourself being escorted to a corporation lab by the young man, you pause for a moment. He doesn't force you on quite yet, but his hand is firmly placed on your shoulder, indicating this will be a momentary delay, nothing more.
"What will happen to me in there?" you ask him, doing your best to keep your voice calm.
"I don't know. They don't tell us. All I know is, we'll never cross paths again," he says, betraying little emotion.
"Will I have my memory wiped? Will they kill me?" you ask, uncertainty causing you to speak in a higher pitch than you're comfortable maintaining for long.
"That's for you to discover," he says.
Two tall men in labcoats approach, and greet him with a silent nod. Then, they lead you into the lab.
This certainly isn't a win, but it's not quite a lose either. Whatever your eventual fate is, it's not as bad as it could have been. If you'd like to try for a different ending, feel free to pop back to
page 1, and call this one a trial run.