Ó Tim Barker 2001
(1186 words)
“Speed. We need speed and plenty of it. Enough to blow your skull apart and asphyxiate the brain. Damn you, give me more speed !” Alan cried as the teleporter ripped him apart, atom by atom. His cry was acted upon by his team of minions. They activated numerous invisible controls through their matrix of neuro-feeds, automatically triggering the acceleration of numerous sub-atomic particles. Alan felt the increase throughout his body as his physicality merged with the virtual world leaving his mind hanging over a dangerous precipice. He knew, however, that his disembodiment wasn’t complete until he took the leap into the constructed suspension that lay ahead of him. As the final particle left the confines of the laboratory Alan fell into the abyss of pure mind.
A spectrum of coloured circular lights rapidly approached then vanished behind him. He was experiencing the classic tunnel syndrome as his mind adjusted to working on the sub-conscious level. As if in a dream he ‘felt’ as though he was in freefall, heading through a gateway into the hyper-dimensions and all that lay beyond. A pure energy being, he felt enormous liberation as though he was hang-gliding through the cosmos, passing nebulae and dwarves, binary systems and multi-mooned planets. An intense pleasure filled his self as though he had achieved his life’s one true goal. And, in fact, he had done just that.
Suddenly, and quite remarkably, he was on a beach and, even more remarkably, he had a body. He looked down at his naked feet and beheld ten toes. He wiggled them, they moved up and down in the soft, damp sand, trillions of particles lost in a sea of infinite improbability. He seemed to be clothed in his old grey jogging shorts and a red and white football top. Stoke City, his favourite team. And on a familiar left hand was his wedding ring. He momentarily thought of his wife, Denise but, like a fleeting glance, the memory quickly faded. He wondered why he was on a beach and why he had a body at all. As his mind puzzled over his predicament the surrounding illusion began to fade, to be replaced by pure feeling - void of the unwanted intrusion of physical sensory information. As this unnecessary information fell from around him and, realising that it was a survival instinct to construct such worlds, Alan became master of his own world, a world where anything could happen, as he was to discover.
Meanwhile, in the laboratory, the minions were marvelling at the disappearance of their mentor’s body. According to their information, Alan would arrive on Jupiter in approximately 34 minutes and 53 seconds. In the meantime he would be experiencing a dream-like state as his consciousness existed in simulated approximation. They were all quietly confident but remained vigilant nonetheless, keeping a close watch on all their indicators, assuring that his mental life survived the journey as well as his physical self. They knew that the two were inseparable and that they would have to ensure both remained whole if the mission was to succeed.
Alan now found himself in a complete darkness, the kind of darkness that no light could possibly penetrate. He experienced zero sensory input but major disorientation combined with a desire to anchor his consciousness in the absolute. Without a frame of reference his mind was reeling around a previously unknown dimension like a child lost in the woods. His memories became extraneous and his future immaterial. It was all he could do to maintain his sanity as blankness permeated his being. Then he realised, he had finally attained complete disembodiment. He imagined his physical molecules travelling through deepest space towards their eventual destination. No amount of pondering could have prepared him for the surge in power he now experienced in his mind as it was free of it’s Earthly shackles. As he mused over his present condition he felt a deep sense of loss rooted in his separation from his biological self. For all of his thirty years he had been a whole human being with physical motivations, emotions and raison d’être. He now found himself existing without bounds as his inner life blossomed like a rose in the desert.
He knew that he had to keep himself occupied. He began counting but quickly grew bored as he reached one million in no time. So he started to compute p, amazed at its beautiful surprises but that too soon became banal. Next he recounted his past life, being able to regress back to his time in his Mother’s womb, the beat of her heart and the innocent bliss of security. This too was too easy. So he decided to meditate. Unable to exercise rhythmic breathing he concentrated on a tantric design he remembered from his time in India, it’s vivid colours and beatific symmetry steadying his thoughts as he recounted a mantra he had gleaned from a Tibetan monk. Amazingly it had the opposite effect to that which he desired, instead his ‘vision’ became awash with multicoloured manifestations of ancient deities which seemed to surround him with smiles and compassion. He almost felt God-like himself, as if he had attained enlightenment and achieved oneness with his worshipful brethren. As he swam in an ocean of calm Alan at last felt the guiding hands of sanity.
Meanwhile, in the laboratory the technicians were monitoring their Master’s progress. If all had gone according to plan then Alan’s molecules would begin to reassemble in 4 minutes. For the last time, they checked and double-checked the instrumentation on Jupiter. All seemed well. As the seconds counted down they braced themselves for a hard landing just like first-time flyers. They would all have to be ready for a possible last-minute catastrophe but they felt quietly confident as progress through deep space had gone without a hitch. Each molecule was still carefully packaged in the data-stream ensuring a complete and proper materialisation. They collectively felt sure that Alan would be the first human being to achieve interplanetary teleportation. As the first particle reached the receiver and was instantly materialised the massed techies breathed a sigh of relief. But they knew there were still plenty of things that could go wrong. However, all of their fears were unfounded for in an instant following primary materialisation all particles were received without error and Alan was reconstructed on the planet Jupiter. The numerous assistants and project directors let out a cry of relief tinged with astonishment and around the room the cacophony was punctuated with the eagerly awaited popping of champagne corks.
It wasn’t long until the call came through from Jupiter. Although Alan’s body had arrived and had been reassembled in one piece his mind had proved more elusive. A team of Psych’s had deemed that no amount of therapy would return his once much respected mind to its previous state. Seemingly, in the process of teleportation, Alan had been sadly reduced to a persistent vegetative state.
And around the cosmos the Gods welcomed a newcomer to their world: the first human being to join them in interstellar existence.