Read Online The Resurrected Man by Sean Williams - Free Book Online Page A

inputs as well. A new overseer has been installed and is in the process of being optimised as we speak.”
    The darkness became a densely woven pattern of dark grey lines scrolling from left to right then back again, not unlike the patterns he had been dreaming of. He recognised the design; it was a default form constant provided by the MindSet.7 virtual overseer—supposed to be a soothing alternative to the near-zero input of closed eyes while waiting for VTC, CRE or any other application involving direct visual stimulus to begin. Instead of being soothed, however, he felt nauseous.
    â€œWhy?” he asked, concentrating on the woman's voice rather than the pattern.
    â€œWhy what, Jonah?”
    â€œWhy are you doing this? What's going on?”
    â€œYou have suffered a peculiar form of brain damage, Jonah.”
    â€œBrain damage? ” Despite the calming effect of the woman's voice, he was chilled by the thought. “How?”
    â€œYour prefrontal cortex has been altered, along with sections of your limbic system. We are still mapping the damaged areas, but it seems indisputable that your memory has been affected in a specific and deliberate fashion. In addition, various peripheral add-ons have been impaired. Many have ceased functioning entirely; others have mutated and caused secondary damage. Until we determine the precise amount of repair required to restore you to full capacity, we can dolittle more than replace the applications you have lost. Do you understand what I am telling you?”
    Jonah went to nod, remembering only when nothing happened that he was temporarily bodiless. “Yes, I think so.”
    â€œGood. I don't want you to be concerned, however. We have already rectified some of the problems in your hippocampi. Given time and the proper care, you will recover.”
    The woman's tone hinted that he should accept the prognosis without questioning it. Indeed his head had cleared already: he could remember some things, now, albeit with an effort.
    But he couldn't let it rest there. “You said the damage was deliberately inflicted,” he said. “How? Who did it?”
    â€œWe'll come to that later, Jonah—”
    â€œNo, now. There's something you're not telling me.”
    The woman was silent for a moment. He wondered whether he had offended her. When she spoke again, though, her voice was as smooth as ever.
    â€œWhen I say the word ‘InSight,’ Jonah, what does it bring to mind?”
    He thought carefully before answering, puzzled by the question. “I'm familiar with it, of course, but other than that—”
    â€œPerhaps if I explained that it is a product name, with a capital ‘I’ and ‘S.’”
    â€œI'm still not sure. It sounds like wetware. An entrainment add-on?”
    â€œWhat makes you say that?”
    â€œI'm guessing. Maybe I saw an ad or something.”
    â€œIf I said that we'd found traces of the InSight v-med agent in your system, would you be surprised?”
    â€œOf course I would. I don't use that shit.”
    â€œWell, Jonah, InSight is responsible for your present condition. Although it was originally designed to compartmentalise and restimulate memories and their emotional associations, thus allowing users to relive experiences from their past, prolonged use causes abnormalstructures to form in the brain, that impair conscious recall—both of the compartmentalised memory and in general—and the ability to reason. Not only have we located such structures, but, to be honest, there are more than just traces of the InSight agents present; your prefrontal cortex is riddled with it, to the point where we doubt we will be able to remove it all. At best, we can only render it inoperative.
    â€œAnd,” she added, “as far as we can tell, you installed it yourself.”
    â€œ I did?” Briefly he wondered if the woman was lying, then discarded the thought; why would she go to