The chocolaty thoughts

Anakin walked out of the colossal hall. Things were not so queer as he had imagined.
All in all still he was himself. He could still appreciate the virtual images of the blue veins of light that were slithering chaotically in the glass panes behind him. Despite the rush the air seemed to be still mediocre and calm. He was walking alone but he was quite habituated to it. He liked being alone.
He strolled out of the azure hall and stepped down into the corridor.
Outside the corridor there was a garden featuring several kinds of green herds and shrubs and beautiful flowers. The pathway was quite large and hence the queue was diluted.
Anakin eyed a bunch of giggling girls walking about the farther side of the flyway.
The flyway went over the netshasdey herbology section and landed them into an open area. The entire architecture had been designed very systematically and all the things beginning right from the water taps to the casual sanitization system were completely automated.
As Anakin was walking down the flyover he noticed a bunch of small bug like entities accumulating over the floor near a corner. Curious, he went near. The minuscule metallic balls were gathering near a patch on the floor that was perhaps some water accidentally spilled out by some of the visitors. The clustered around the patch and completely absorbed the splattered liquid and rendered the floor absolutely dry. Then they rushed swiftly towards a corner and vanished into a tiny opening on the floor.
But then as was thinking about these bugs suddenly something happened. He felt something happening in his mind. He all of a sudden knew it. He had wanted to know more about the cleansing system and now getting instant information was possible. He had received data from the netshasdey query centre.
In front of his eyes popped up upon an invisible screen a 3d diagram featuring a tiny miniscule bug in high magnification. There was no text, just the picture. Whenever he focused over any part of the 3d virtual model he just ‘knew’ what it was. It was a strange experience. He had before expected to receive information the way it was done in the consoles that he had operated yet so far. But now he knew what his parents had said. This was language-independent direct delivery of information —- just information not a document. This was the magic behind brain chip implants.
He could, at his will, rotate the model anyhow he wanted. It was just like he was using the fingers of his hands. When he wanted a part to get magnified or simplified in complexity it happened instantly, all at the spped of lightning. Now he knew why everyone was so confident about the usefulness of this technology but still that doubt – that faint corner of hesitation remained.
The model disappeared once he was finished with the details he was curious about.
‘Hi Anakin!’
A few feet meters behind him, the same red haired girl he had met while entering the hall, was hastily walking towards him. Anakin felt the rush of adrenaline in his veins and was now finally confirmed that he was himself at all. There could be no doubt.
‘Hi’ Anakin returned a silky reply and tuned back. Within seconds she caught up with him.
‘OH! Do you appreciate the transplant! Now after you have got it done?’
‘Well quite much!’ Anakin answered hesitantly.
‘Did you get all the implants? ‘, he asked.
‘Yeah!’ now I will never have that eerie toothache again. It is all managed.’
‘Do you ever have that glowing smile off your face?’
Anakin could not refrain from asking that question. The effect was only to get a brighter and wider grin.
‘Well I always keep smiling! Don’t I! Just a habit. By the way, I never see you smiling? Why?’
‘Just habit! Or may be you haven’t seen much of me!’ Anakin felt himself getting daring.
‘Has anybody seen much of you Anakin? You remain so conserve! However, are you prepared for the foundations? The classes will begin today evening! Can you imagine how powerful capabilities we have got now! It’s all so exciting!’

‘When I saw you entering the hall, I saw you with a friend of yours! Is he still in there?’ she asked!
‘Oh! Yeah! He has applied for a typical surgery! He wants an arm replacement and he wants it to be a Le Gairo implementation. That would take him a couple of hours more.’
‘Oh! Le Gairo implementations are really very powerful! I have always wanted to have my jaw replaced by a Le Gairo implementation. But they are so very costly!’
‘That is hardly a deterrent for him! Derek’s dad is the CEO of the Grimsico enterprise ‘, Anakin explained.
‘He is the son of Mr. Enrickey Grimswald? ‘
‘Definitely!’
‘Wow! A dream life!’
‘I don’t think so! He was born physically handicapped. He had to spend 9 years of his childhood in wheelchair! They don’t allow implants until you are 12.’
‘But in situations like that they do allow for the implants! ‘
‘But he was not allowed- because he did not fall into the case of un-improvable! His doctors thought that they could pull him through.’
‘They did not succeed?’
‘They didn’t! They found that he was suffering from the same hereditary disease due to which his mother died. After a series of failed operations they concluded that the implant was only alternative!
The brief conversation ended once they reached the end of the herbology gardens and found themselves into a cafeteria where their parents were waiting for them.
She waved him goodbye and tore into a deep grey car.

Chapter 4: The End And The Beginning

Then Anakin woke with a jerk. His eyes busted open into a flood of images. For a few seconds he found himself swimming helplessly into a rapid deluge of abstract visualizations. Then the images began to take shapes. He saw faces. Faces he could recognize. It was all happening so rapidly as if in the speed of light.. But yet he found himself capable of recognizing each and every face that he was staring at – faces of his friends, relatives and people he felt that he would know in the future …. A bizarre sensation. And then he found himself staring at something horrific. The faces were not just mere images floating in empty space anymore. They were corpses. Open eyed, ashen faced corpses all staring toward him with unblinking eyes. He had never felt more uncomfortable ever before. Thousands and thousands of faces helpless, dipped into an eerie fluid serum, staring at him. They seemed to be conscious, alive but confined to the medium in which they were trapped.
Then everything ended. All of a sudden it disappeared. He found himself staring into a vast emptiness through which millions of images and codes appeared to be flowing. Slowly and slowly he felt asleep again.
He awoke into the blue luminosity. Still drowsy, he opened his eyes. Had it happened ? The armchair that he was sitting into had changed its configuration and transformed into a partially slanting bed. He recognized the place. He was back into the netshasdey preparatory. A blue screen popped up in front of him.
‘The transformation is complete’
‘The testing is over ‘
‘Case normal’
But suddenly he noticed something. The tiny blue screen, which had now slowly evaporated into empty space, had not popped up from a screen. He had just visualized it. The first virtual message had been transferred to his brain and his brain chip had correctly interpreted it. The transformation was complete.
He got up from the bed.
His teeth were aching. The eyes were watery. But he knew that this was normal. Now no blue screen responded to him but he felt an invisible system answering the queries that arose in his mind. He tried to close it towards the response system and found that he could do so if he desired. It didn’t require any training. The entire system had integrated into his senses. He would now need to get habituated to these ‘powers’
He was a cyborg now.
He was ready for the foundation.

Chapter 3 : The Beginning of The Transformations

The spell binding session ended. Slowly and slowly the animations featuring various stages of developments of the digital technologies through out the stages of history disappeared into nothingness and the pink lady reappeared.
‘Please be prepared …. The transformation is about to begin. Prepare yourself for the anesthetic!’
A pleasant fragrance spread through out the room.
Anakin, already in deep thought and upset for some reason he himself did not know, felt his eyes growing heavier and heavier. He didn’t try to stay awake although there was a portion of his mind that consistently told him to opt out of it… it had done so since the very moment he had heard about the concept of brain chip implants when he had asked his father how he could access the net without using any console.
Streaks of hazy light filled the room and as the time passed by the things became more and more indistinguishable. Anakin felt some pointed tool pressing into his scalp but didn’t feel any pain. The next moment he was unconscious. Everything had disappeared. The oblivion had superimposed everything.

Chapter 2: The first introduction to the cyborg community.

Both of them seated themselves in the cozy seats. Slowly and slowly more seats around them occupied. They noticed that there were not one but many such elevators, possibly one along each entrance to the netshasdey main hall. The elevators descending down to the floor from a seemingly infinite height, (sometimes ten or more of them together) added to the extra-terrestrial appearance of the place.

Anakin looked into the nuts and bolts of the mesh of the equipments they were sitting upon. The apparently cozy armchairs were supposed to contain within themselves all the tools and machinery required for a complete surgical operation -the Netshasdey neuro-transplant. Within a few hours they were going to be completely transformed. Anakin had always had doubts regarding this surgery. But everyone whom he had asked about the drawbacks or possible side-effects people had tried their best to convince him that the transplant was completely safe and he too would be completely convinced of it once he completes his foundation course- a five moth course that would enable him to get control over his so called super-powers.

What more? This transplant would connect his mind directly to the cyber world and enable him to manage his calculations and computations at extremely super fast speeds that would be essential for fulfilling his dream of becoming a Ornickole programmer.

The Netshasdey project had been successful for about a hundred and fifty years and though some mishaps were reported in the initial few years, none had occurred in the last hundred years or so. The process had been completely digitized and the authorities claimed that the chances of occurrence of some error were extremely remote. The probabilities of errors were in nanofractions. His own logic told him that it was impractical to think that such advanced level of intelligent design could go wrong.

Even then he was hesitant. Why? Why did his instinct kept telling him that something could go wrong? What if …………

People had always tended to think that Anakin thought more than was required. But they also believed that he would be alright once he had been operated. He was now twelve and was ready to undergo the surgery. So was he going to be alright …. ? This was his principle worry. What he lost his individuality after a neuro operation? Was he going to be converted to an altogether different person? Before he could venture more into such thoughts …… Something happened. The Space in front of him that was filled by clusters of armchairs was brightening up. An incandescent blue light was spreading and in a few moments he could make out shapes of humans in the misty blue light that superimposed everything that lied in front of him. Then it struck to him. That’s why the Aurlewhiskan aberration had been implemented. Some central computer was generating the animation that was being transmitted via the air. Every viewer ,just like him, would perceive the images appearing right in front of him… perfect 3d images , superimposing every thing else in sight. The images would appear to be just in front of the observer – a few feet ahead. But yet another observer in front of him would also perceive the images being formed a same distance from him. That was the magic of Aurlewhiskan technique. But the technique which was such a breakthrough when it was first introduced, was now rarely used. Reason? Anakin had heard from his parents and from other internet sites that once he was operated and the netshasdey neuro chip inserted into his brain and all the rest associated equipments in place, He would be able to receive holographic images directly into his brain from a remote computer. From the brief acquaintances with Ornickole programming that he had had, he knew that these signals could be programmed to make the brain feel that the images were real objects and these images would be interpolated with the signals coming from the retina and the human would perceive the sensation of actually seeing those holographs. If he succeeded to become an Ornickole programmer he would be able to program such animations and supplement them with realistic interactivity. Programming is the most powerful thing that could exist in the universe. It is magic – it is fantasy and it is possible!!!

In the bluish illumination there appeared dramatically, a beautiful lady dressed in pink cloaks featuring violet embroidery. She emerged out of an assembly of coloured pixels that disappeared behind her elegantly as she flicked the fingers of her right hand.

‘Welcome ‘

Anakin heard his neighbors utter similar words of greeting out of intuitive response. He remained calm. He knew that this was not required. She (rather it) continued in a dreamy sweet voice…

‘As you all know, you are here for the netshasdey neuro chip transplant, a revolutionary technology that has dramatically altered the live of millions and is about to transform yours.

It is quite natural, keeping in view the popularity of brain- chip implants in present day world, that you have got ideas regarding the neuro transplant and its benefits. But yet we don’t assume so, as your concepts may be incomplete or less practical and hence we would like to introduce you to the intricacies of this sophisticated technology, how it would transform your life and your future.

Let’s first get acquainted with a brief history of the technological developments that took place in the last three centuries. In the year 2120 in the research laboratory of Netshasdey, A team of computer analyst led by Dr. Zaikasemond Lahiri, developed an algorithm that changed the world of computer programming for ever. They had first managed to develop a language through which programmers could control every pixel of an aberration arena – a concept by Raskamond institution.

A research team at Raskamond, led by a team of digital computing experts from all over the world had developed a technique called virtual aberration in which utilizing a cross spectrum of specific radiations a virtual three dimensional images could be generated in open space- a concept previously unheard of. But this technology although a scientific breakthrough wasn’t much of commercial use because of technological difficulties involved. But Dr. Lahiri’s work changed everything. Using his programming tool – The Ornickole language the entire digi-matrix created by the Raskamond techniques could be controlled to the extent of nano dimentions .

The world of multimedia research had been altered for once and for ever. Within twenty years of this technological major marketing tycoons began to utilize aberration technologies for commercial purposes and thus began the phase of interactive virtual worlds. Within the next hundred years, the internet and the cyber world became fully interactive interspaces where people could talk, communicate and share resources in virtual environments.

The computer did not remain mere button controlled animation sequences – they evolved to thought controlled immensely complicated competitions which in every aspect paralleled actual world realism. This was made possible by the immense advancements in thought processing and mind programming which were then implemented using aberration arenas. The Ornickole language had evolved. After Dr. Zaikasemond Lahiri, the project was taken forward his successors and the 2200 world saw programmers become experts in brain processing algorithms.

The users entering aberration arenas could interact with the central code by just utilizing their thinking capacities – the brain to computer interactions had matured and computer could pick up thought signals from virtual environs. It was thought that the age of console gaming and human hardware interactions had come to an end. But all this was not enough.

Again in the year 2231 in the research laboratory of Netshasdey another concept was proposed that re-revolutionized the world of software-engineering and computing – Brain chip implants.

A team of engineers from Westward University proposed a radical concept – Why not attach minute processing units in the brain itself rather than picking up the signals from a virtual interactive world. This move would enable users to process colossal amounts of data within fractions of seconds and since there was a more secure and more sophisticated interface between the cyber world and the brain chip which was to be integrated directly into the brain, the human brain would no more need to connect to an external peripheral for computations – it would be an ultra-powerful computer system itself.

In the next thirty years this technology developed and evolved, Even though it took about fifty years to gain recognition, finally in 2290 it came to be thought that brain implants were safe, sophisticated and essential. Today, in 2350 we know and we appreciate that neuro surgical transplants are essential and affordable for each and every individual. A vast majority of the world has willingly opted to transform themselves into cyborgs and the rest are about to join this community.

Welcome to the community of Cyborgs ladies and gentlemen. Allow us to transform you into superheroes.

Chapter I : The First Visit To The Netshasdey Preparatory

‘Hey Anakin! You must be excited, aren’t you?’
‘Yeah! A bit!’
‘JUST A BIT! You know… sometimes I doubt that you are a human or not? I couldn’t sleep the entire night man! I am so nervous …What if something goes wrong?’
‘They haven’t got it wrong a single time since the last hundred years or so… Why do you think you are going to get such a special treatment?’
‘You know what Anakin? If I hadn’t met you … I wouldn’t ever have believed that in the world there existed people as cold and disinteresting as you …’
The conversation unhurriedly continued as the two teen boys rubbing shoulders with each other in a friendly fashion entered the large hall, along with several others in the queue. The colossal auditorium seemed to be infinitely large spreading out seamlessly in all directions . A faint blue pacific light bathed the entire place.
Derek, the one in the reddish gown with yellow spots continued in his excited tone of voice …. ‘Look at it boy… The entire place has got such a geekish look……. ‘tis awesome.’
The automated gate closed behind them and they continued to move along the golden railings that furnished the pathway along which they were supposed to move. The glass pans that accompanied the twisted golden rails and glowing blue veins embedded within them and as they moved along, they could see the veins twisting and slithering. They seemed to interact with each other in a typical snake-ish fashion occasionally splitting into sparks and then recombining to form glowing blue streaks.

Anakin, the sober boy in dark grey outfits and modest in appearance, uttered as usual in his dismal demeanor …. ‘There must be a reason for that. This entire setup has been designed for some purpose.That I can be sure of…’
The glassy floor formed dim reflections of the surrounding vicinity. All in all the Netshasdey preparatories had a glamorous outlook- far more stylish than the boys had expected .
Anakin pondered closely over the transparent glittering sheets and kept muttering to himself, as he always did.
This habit had annoyed Derek, his best friend, since ages. Anakin was, by nature, very conserved and spent almost all his time lost in dreams. He never shared his thoughts with anyone, not even Derek. although he was friendly and always ready to help him he never disclosed anything about his world of fantasies. Ironically, though he had always topped in the pre-foundation courses, many distant relatives thought him to be ‘abnormal’ and many of the neighborhood folks even found it sporty calling him lunatic. But Anakin seldom paid any attention to these trivial happenings. Calm, Sluggish and dreamy … that was how he was.
There were empty unoccupied seats on either sides of the pathway confined between the railings. On neither side they were able to see any wall. There seemed to be an infinite array of seats and they could figure out people sitting some rows beyond but they appeared hazy.
‘Why do you have to look out for logic in everything that you see and hear…. Why can’t you just appreciate…?’
Before he could complete the sentence, he was cut short by Anakin….
‘Did you notice something …?’
‘What’
‘It is not possible for us to make out how many people are sitting here with us….’
‘Now what d’you mean by that… But yes…. You are right. The light is dim around the corners … I can’t make out even the faces of the people a couple of seats away. As if there is some kind of fog…’
‘Aurlewhiskan aberration technique’
‘For heaven sake, can you speak english’,
They had reached an elevator that led them to some sort of cabinet located above the room at a height of about fifteen feet.
A red haired girl ,about three to four people ahead in the row,suddenly noticed Anakin just as she turned back to talk to the girl next to her and gave a bright glowing smile. Anakin returned a silvery smile, though much fainter.
‘who was that ?’Derek shot the question straight to Anakin, still gazing at the girl.
‘It is a high end physico-digital effect that makes it impossible for you to make accurate estimations of distance and dimensions, or identify faces of our companions unless they are too close. If I am correct and this is what it is then you will always feel that the light is gradually getting dim at places away from you irrespective of where you are standing.’
‘what ?’
‘what happenerd ?’
‘What are you telling me about ?’
‘I thought you were curious about the Aurlewhiskan aberration……’
‘yes, but then I asked you about that girl in pink gown … !’
‘Oh !sorry, but I hadn’t heard that , just missed out !’
Derek had expected Anakin to say more but he again focused his attention to the glass sheets along the railings.
‘ANAKIN !’
‘What ? ‘
‘What about that girl …. ? ‘
‘I met her in the café a few days before …. She’s a student of basic Lemord algorithms ‘
‘Have you got some supernatural ability to magnetise computer enthusiasts ? How come you you know so much about computers … You have not even completed the foundation.’
‘I just keep looking up things here and there ……’
Anakin’s voiced dimmed down to silence and Derek knew that no more could me extracted out of him .
They approached a blue coloured panel equipped with several associated panels and instruments.
‘Anakin J. Oleanderfrost? Verify vocally!’
‘I verify!’ Anakin courteously answered to the digital face bit-mapped in the screen in green and violet pixels. A red light flashed upon his face and within fractions of seconds the digitized voice replied ..
‘Voice verification successful’
‘Face matching confirmed. Please proceed’
Derek too had to go through the same procedure and minutes later they found themselves descending another elevator that was apparently changing its directions and curvatures to lead the candidates directly to their seats.
‘Engineering marvel’, uttered Anakin as the spiny staircase after releasing the boy standing in front of him at a place swooshed past several rows rising raptly into the air and then descending down to another location.The gate in front of him opened and he landed upon solid ground. Derek too had to land there. Just as they stepped upon the glassy floor the gate behind them closed the helical staircase sleekishly swep past them and within the fraction of second was nowhere to be seen.