The Mouse and The Wheel

wo, two" Neil said to himself softly so nobody could hear. Especially the two goons standing in front of the door that Neil must get through.

Neil remained close to the wall, frozen with his gun in his hand. His eyes were shut but then he slowly opened them. He saw only the green wall on other side of the hallway meeting the light gray rug on the floor. The dim lights of the hallway flickered on and off, this building used to be a bustling factory that made sweaters and knit hats years ago. These days the only product out of this former plant was crime, and Neil was going to stop it. Neil was in the front offices of the old musty building where managers and salesmen once met to discuss profits. Today things like drugs and murders were the topics of the men behind these doors. A smell of sweat filled the hall. Neil couldn't tell if the stench came from the two idiots blocking his way or himself from wearing the same clothes for thirty hours straight. You don't punch a clock with a gun in your hand, Neil thought.

Neil wanted to kiss the rug that quieted his foot falls; if it weren't for the thick piece of fabric under his feet he'd be caught and the quest would be over. He smiled because he wasn't dead yet. Two days ago he started this detective gig and things just kept coming at him. Now he was coming for them. Two dead men away from all the answers.

It started with a dead hooker, he remembered. The quest started with him a young new officer starting his first day on the job in Kingston, New York. It was a strange case that lead to stranger questions. His partner Sal Castle wanted to shut the case as a suicide. That seemed fine to Neil if it weren't that this jumper, had killed herself form a bank's rooftop at two o'clock in the morning. There was no fire-escape on the three story building and an alarm would have sounded if she broke in so how did she get to the top. Besides, why go through all the trouble when there were so many other taller buildings with easier roofs to kill yourself on in Kingston. The hooker's own apartment was in a building that was six stories tall. No, something else was happening here and Neil was going to find out what it was; that's why he started this job to find out how good he was at being a cop. Questions are supposed to lead to answers but Neil kept on getting more questions. The last stop had arrived.

Neil composed himself and took a deep breath. This old factory was owned by the same guy who owned the bank's building. Mr. Canon was known as a drug dealer and a killer in Kingston and still had time to raise a family. His wife had died mysteriously a few years ago, but he still had four children two boys and two girls. Neil only knew the whereabouts of one of the children, a girl who was named Paula Canon. Miss Canon also was known to Neil as the hooker that killed herself from a the top of the Jefferson Savings Bank. That was as much as Neil could piece together of the story so far. Okay, enough stalling time for answers.

These guys weren't going to just let Neil walk in. The gentlemen he met outside the building showed that much. One guy tried to break his ribs. He wasn't going to make the same mistake twice. Neil focused, Two shots, one in the head of each thug should do it. What if he missed? Now he was sure it was his sweat he smelled. On the count of three and go. Two shots and through the door, don't even blink, he reminded himself One, Two, Three and Neil turned the corner and aimed His gun. One of the thugs saw Neil and drew his gun the other ducked, Neil shouted and...

"WARNING---WARNING---WARNING"

A beeping went off in Neil's headphones, the screen in front of his eyes flashed red and green with yellow lettering smeared across the colors saying "Emergency Pause". A female's voice came in headphones calmly said, "Neil Jasper, farmer FA613, your heart rate has hit powerful levels. To correct this danger, a bio-feedback program has been activated on your unit until you cool down. More information in seven minutes."

Sweet music hit Neil's ears and pretty lights flashed in front of his eyes. Neil was no longer a cop or in the sweater factory anymore. He was still in Kingston just in a different state of mind. Neil worked in a video world on what we call the internet. Neil called it the cyberscape. Everything Neil saw was through a television screen in a special helmet he worn with headphones built in to provide everything he hears. Neil operated a VEBU, which besides the helmet the device also contains a computer, a microphone, pressure gloves (which allow Neil and other farmers to pick up things in this video world),and a bio-sensor (which monitors his health). This equipment was hooked into an modern exercise bike with peddles that powered an electric generator that provides power for the VEBU and excess energy. The only thing the machine needed was a person and rumor had it that an attachment was coming to solve that need too.

What the inventor, a man by the name of Adam Leif called video excise bike unit ( V.E.B.U.), Neil and other farmers called it a lightning hog. Sixteen years ago when Mr. Leif started his company, AKQ Inc. one of the first farmers said the bike looked like a futuristic motorcycle or simply a hog that was as fast as lighting. The project started as an experiment to see if people would exercise longer if they were able to use a computer and play on the cyberscape. It worked so well that the test subjects would stay for a very long times peddling away and exploring the 'net. The V.E.B.U. was so addictive that a safety had to added to the system to stop people from having heart attacks. C.A.S.E.Y. (Computer Active Safety and Emergency (Y) Unit) was invented to stop and calm people down if they got too involved with the video world, as Neil did.

Neil's legs were still turning the peddles of his lightning hog. He wasn't thinking; Neil was in too much shock to do anything else but peddle. When someone is ripped out of the cyberscape that person feels tired and disoriented. A person can go into shock, if the act of being ripped out of the cyberscape is traumatic enough. Farmers call it wiping out, for the rest of your life your mind is in a state of shock.

With the safety in the V.E.B.U.. the vehicle of the future was ready for sale. Except it wasn't flying off the shelves. Because of all the attachments the Vebu was three times more expensive that a regular exercise bike. It was also a very small market, people who wanted to excise and surf the net. A hard sell indeed. Mr. Leif wouldn't give up thought. He though of another use for the Vebu. The Vebu also made electricity threw it's generator, why not harness this power as a new energy source. So, Mr. Leif did and the Vebu is the fourth largest source of power used today. The name farmer came from an article a reporter wrote that said "There is a new farmer on the cyberscape and this one grows energy.". The name stuck.

"Time's up.," CASEY spoke in cool tones," Neil you must take a break for twenty minutes before you start your program again."

The machine turned itself off, despite Neil's peddling. He glared at the dark screen for a few seconds before removing his video helmet. Neil wanted a ripper, a program that rips apart other programs so a person could change what the program did.

Neil got off his bike and finally pulled off his helmet. He looked around his cubical. Every farmer got his own cube in his/her second year. It was a box with four walls and a three-foot cut out for a doorway and no roof a reward. Better than the first year which was a big room with bike after bike lined up and no privacy at all. Neil looked up at the catwalk suspended high above the cube, the reason the designers didn't put in a door or ceiling was so people could check on you. The boss looked down on him, a manager by the name of Mr. Watership. Neil waved but Mr. Watership wasn't waving back today.

Neil looked around his cube, pictures of movies he liked hung on the walls. He was allowed to hang whatever he wanted and keep anything on or in his desk. Movie posters like "The Maltese Falcon", "The French Connection", and "The Thin Man", were placed on the white walls with great care. A note was on his desk, it read that he was to meet his friend Joseph at the juice bar as soon as he was done. Neil headed towards the rec. rooms.

Neil hated most of the juices but it was free; he really wanted a beer but alcohol wasn't allowed during working hours. Free juice, free games, free cyberscape access: the farmers lived the high life. All Neil had to do was peddle and not go insane, the latter was the hard part. After another year he would get retirement benefits and access to the company pool. It was a gradual system of reward for time on the line. First month training you got nothing but pay and had to work nights. After that a health plan and the first available day shift. After three months access to the juice bar and the billiard room.

To tell the groups apart, the management, uses certain animals and colors to on the framer's uniforms to tell what year and training class an employee was in. The color tells how long they have been there, white for one month, yellow for three months, green for nine months, and so on. Neil was a blue (second year) mouse.

Another way the management thought they could improve the moral was to name the sections of this electric factory, after fruits and vegetables. Neil's cube was in the strawberry section. Farmers wore pins of their prospective fruit or vegetable so the bosses could tell where an employee belongs on the line. The bar as located in a section called the grapevine. Neil finally made it to the area and entered.

Neil saw Joseph at the bar. The room was designed not to be modern, it had the feel of an old saloon from the days a man carried a gun and didn't care who he used it against. Old guns and cowboy hats hung on the walls. Instead of white and gray, the walls were brown with the finish of real wood. The juice was even stored in old style whiskey bottles. If it wasn't for the blenders, the bar was a perfect fake like everything else around here. Joseph saw Neil at the bar and wave for him to come over.

"Hey Neil", Joseph said, " I have been waiting here for an hour. "What have you been doing.". Joseph like to talk to people and at six foot even, with short dark hair and was built like a football player. He was a health nut all right, perfect for a farmer.

"I'm sorry," Neil said with a touch of annoyance. "I'm having a bit of a problem and Joseph I need your help in finding things. Can you please help me?"

Joseph loved to talk which meant he knew most of what went on in AKQ's factory before the bosses did. That included rippers and company policy.

"Sure good buddy (Everyone was his buddy) what is it that you need?" Joseph questioned.

" I need a ripper for a game called Crime Quest, I think it was made in the year 2002, but I'm not sure. I think even a universal ripper for any games made by Easy Death Systems." Neil spoke plainly and low. Universal rippers ripped all the programs made by a certain company and sometimes it was easier to find a ripper for a company than a specific game.

" Well I just got something yesterday from a farmer in Brazil." Joseph said equally low, " It's not a game ripper but it might work. It's lighting hog ripper."

" What does it do?, " Neil asked.

"It deactivates CASEY, how's that interest you?" Joseph said seriously and then held up a red disk. " I haven't had the guts or need to try it out. You might have the desire though. I'll give it to you for free if you tell me if works."

"Yes, that's what I need" Neil spoke calmly although his eyes looked like they were about to pop out of there sockets. "I'm better than that pile of micro-chips and I'm going to show that thing who's the real man. Give me the disk.."

Neil ran off through the maze of gray and white back to his cube running so fast, that he almost passed his doorway. He started to suit up. First the gloves, and then the arm brace that monitored his health. Neil smiled he was going to show that heap of silicone who was the human and who was the object. He put on his helmet and started to peddle.

"Enter User ID number:" appeared in blue lettering on the black background in front of his eyes. Instinctively Neil typed "FA613" and pressed enter.

"PASSWORD" the computer innocently asked

"Video Kill"

Neil's home screen clicked on. Basically it was a blue screen, with picture of Sherlock Holmes in the left corner of the screen.

"How are we doing today?", said Sherlock, and the wrote the words on the screen, "Would you like to read your e-mail sir? You have three messages.". Mr. Holmes was Neil's genie a do it all program that helps Neil run everything on his hog. Things like finding information and starting games were done by commands given to the genie.

Using his keyboard he told Mr. Holmes to access Joseph's disk already in the disk drive and he'd read the e-mail later. In a few seconds the words "CASEY Deactivated" appeared on the screen. He couldn't remember the last time he was this excited. " I got you, go back to the junk pile you bucket of tin." Neil said to himself, "Now let's play." He typed in the command for the Mr. Holmes to load Crime Quest and start the game. He already felt he had won when Mr. Holmes said that he may start when ready.

Neil was back in front of the factory. He remembered what he had to do to get into the factory. First the goons in front of the building. He pounded the henchman into ground. Neil's body and mind were stronger and powerful now. Without the restraints of CASEY he was able to use his full strength instead of having to keep his body at a less active level. Neil also saw that his video had a more fluid motion to it's display. CASEY would slow the motion down at random times to keep Neil from becoming too involved with whatever he watched on the video screen.

He was able to move his legs faster, and the game's video displays looked sharper. Neil was now the most powerful farmer in the world. In the game he could smash his opponent with ease, using his full strength. He moved into the factory's corridors and ran to his goal. The goons he had faced before in the other video game that were in of the door that led Canon's office didn't have time to move when Neil saw the men and fired his gun. I'm winning he thought to himself, I'm the greatest farmer in the world.

"I have you now Canon, open the door or it's coming down." shouted Neil and when there was no answer he rammed the door down with his shoulder.

"What?" screamed Neil. " Where are you Canon? You can't hide from me!"

A note on the desk in the empty room, explained everything to Neil. The note said that Mr. Canon was sorry he missed the police's arrival, but Mr. Canon had important business in Mexico. Have a nice day. Neil noticed that in the office's wastebasket was enough shredded paper work that could send Canon and the thugs away for a long time.

"No! It can't be!" Neil was screaming in panic, "No I was supposed to win!"

The screen went black and white lettering wrote " Congratulations you beat level one to continue you must download Level 2, Crime Quest II: The Search for Canon".

Neil couldn't believe his eyes. Neil's idea of victory had never included the criminal getting away. "This is it!" Neil shouted at the black screen with Mr. Holmes staring back at him. He felt cheated. Neil had played thousands of games while working on the line. Never had Neil been treated so poorly after trying so hard. Victory to Neil was capturing or killing the culprit. No cop would ever think a case was successful if the bandit got away. Sam Spade would never had stood for this ending.

"This is my victory? I have spent days scrounging around bars and slums. I get my ass kicked by thugs three times my size. I break every rule and law and the scum who murdered his own daughter gets away. No this can't happened! I want my victory and to get Canon." Mr. Canon must be caught in this game not the sequel, Neil thought.

"Yes, this is a trick. I'll just start over and catch him before he gets out." Neil stated to Mr. Holmes. "Yes. I'll type in the command again and go through the game faster. I'm better than this.", Neil started to type, he was not going to settle for a "Thank you and now get out kid" from this computer.

Neil did as he said. He went through the South side of the factory and still he opened the door with no Canon inside. Then he tried the West side and still no Canon. When Neil went to the North side he made so much noise the thug guards heard him and beat Neil up. Every time Neil entered the room the computer would congratulate Neil. Neil ignored the praise and continued to restart the game like machine repeating the same task over and over again. He just wanted to throw Canon off the roof of the Jefferson Bank. All the hours of work added up to nothing unless he captured Canon. That was Neil's goal and he didn't care how long it would take him.

That is where his friend Joseph found him three hours later. Neil passed out and his mouth kept repeating the word "Canon" . Joseph took Neil's helmet off and when Neil's eyes saw the colors of reality his mind became disoriented and he became frightened. The stress and fear caused confusion in Neil's mind and in a matter of seconds he couldn't think clearly any more.

The doctor, when one came said that Neil had wiped out and it would be hours before the doctor could begin the process of bringing Neil back to the real world. For now and probably many months afterwards Neil would be in a state of semi-conciseness. The shock of the real world left a blank expression on Neil's face. The body wasn't dead, just without a mind but still a winner as far as the game was concerned. That was Neil's price for a victory he couldn't achieve.

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