This is purely fantasy, created by me and written by me. Everyone in this story is over the age of 18. Please leave feedback! I would prefer feedback on story content. I do my best to edit my story several times, but small mistakes escape me from time to time, so I am sorry in advance if there are any errors in grammar, spelling or punctuation. Thank you for reading!!
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"You are really going to pay me that much to test out a game, Dr. Phillips?" I asked.
"It's not just a game, as I have explained, Ms. Monicos."
"It's just Amelia, please." I said to her for at least the tenth time. "I know it's not a 'game' per se, it's just easier for me to think of it that way. From everything I've read and what you've told me, it's more like an interactive virtual reality type... program... but, it runs inside my mind? And I'm the controller?"
Dr. Phillips sighed and pushed her glasses up her nose. "Well, that's an... uh... interesting way to describe it. You will be hooked into a virtual world. You will feel as though you are actually moving, talking, touching... it will feel like a very real experience to you. You will have all your senses, just as though it was real life. If you see food in the program, you will be able to smell it, feel it, bite it, taste it and even feel full afterwards. There will be times when you won't even realize you are not in a real world. We are developing a way for paraplegics and other people disabled by an accident, birth defect or disorder to be able to interact in way they never could before. The system is being tested extensively, and the reason you are being paid so much is because you are testing the sexual aspects of the program."
"But, it's not as though I will really be having sex... right?" I asked, nervously. I knew that Dr. Phillips, the genius, beautiful doctor of computer engineering, was probably getting very annoyed at me. Despite that I had to score very high on an IQ test to even be considered for this, I am sure that she thought I was an idiot for repeating the same questions. I couldn't help it- I was nervous - extremely nervous. I just could not pass up this type of money.
$100,000... to test a game... er... program! That would cover all my student loans and my future schooling. No more working 3 jobs and taking a full load of classes while living with three roommates in a tiny apartment! I could actually breath and enjoy school. I had always loved to learn, but lately I'd been too tired to really soak it in.
I did have some concerns... Why on earth were they paying that much? Dr. Phillips sat me down in what looked like a hospital bed and began to hook different electrodes to me. She could see on the monitor that my heart was beating much faster than it should be, but she didn't say anything about it.
"You won't physically be having sex, but you will feel like you are. As I explained about eating food... you will feel, hear, smell, taste and see everything. You will feel the other person touching you; you will be able to touch them. When you orgasm in the program, you will have a real orgasm in your body."
I blushed and looked down, too embarrassed to look her in the eyes.
"Look, if you don't want to do this, there are many others who-"
"No, no that's not it, Dr. Phillips. I am sorry to ask you these questions so much, I am just really, really nervous. I am not very experienced, and it seems odd that I will be experiencing things in this game- er, program- that I have not even experienced in real life. I am not trying to belittle your life's work by calling it a game, it's just that I feel a little less anxious if I think of it that way." I didn't tell her that I had never even had an orgasm with another person before. I had only ever come through masturbation. I hadn't had sex with many partners, and all of those experiences had ranged from horrible to boring.
The doctor's face softened, and her tone was without annoyance for the first time all morning.
"Call me Darla," she said, "I'm sorry, I really am being insensitive. I have been working on this project for years, and this is a pivotal test. You will be the first person to test this newest version, and I believe we finally have the program almost perfect. This is my life's work, you're right about that."
"I completely understand, Darla." I said, This money is going to get me through school. I have been working my ass of to pay for college... working up to 60 hours a week while taking a full load of classes. I understand stress... and because of my busy life, I just haven't had much time for dating..."
"It's okay, believe me. Too be honest, I have tested this program before, one of the first versions, and it was really an amazing experience." she blushed as she told me this, and I was surprised. She had been so curt and professional this whole time, it shocked me that she was confiding in me this way.
"The other people in the program with you will basically be side characters in a story, and you are the ...leading lady, or as we call it- the pilot. The program will adapt to your desires. It was learn from your responses. If your breathing and heart rate increases with arousal, it focuses on the positive response and adapts the subsequent scenarios and experiences accordingly... that's why we had you hooked up to all those monitors the other day and ran those test, to give it a head start in knowing what you like, but it is also adaptive and will learn the most while you are immersed in the program. When we showed you those pictures, movie clips and music, the system was getting familiar with your responses to different stimuli. For example, when you become aroused, your heart rate increases, but it also increases when you are angry or scared... so the program takes several different things into consideration in order to know the difference between those reactions.
"So, it knows if your heart is speeding up because of fear, anger or arousal, and it takes that into consideration...
"Human emotions are so complex, though. For instance, you can be scared and aroused by something at the same time. You might be a little scared to try something, but that doesn't mean you don't want to, and it certainly doesn't mean you aren't aroused by it. So programming the system to understand these nuances and complexities has been years and years of development, and this is the final beta!
"We learned early on that having computer generated avatars for the pilot to interact with isn't very realistic for them. The computer generated avatars can mimic emotions, but not feel them. So we have people running the avatars now. Unlike you, though, they are not completely submerged into the program. They control speech and limited movement. Mostly, they are there to give you a human response. The computer tells them how you are responding, and gives them responses that you will most likely enjoy, and they give those responses a human touch to make them more realistic. They aren't pilots, more like passengers along for your ride.
"These technicians are also protected. They will not look like themselves, so if you were to run into them, you'd never know. In fact you will basically conjure up what they look like in your own mind, and it will translate into your perception of their physical appearance. Only their voices are recognizable."
"Right... wow," I said, "I did read that in the contract, but it's really sinking in now. I am guaranteed anonymity though, right? The contract said that the avatar technicians wouldn't actually know who I am, or even what I look like, just like I won't see what they look like."
"That's correct. You will not look like yourself to them."
"What I don't understand is if all this is going on in my mind... than how on earth will the technicians be able function... inside my head?"