What Can Go Wrong?
by John D. Boyden

"This day may be the last to any of us at a moment"
--- Horatio Nelson, 1801

Here I stand. The landscape is unbelievable, but I believe it. I see sand dunes on all sides, as far as I can see. The sun is bright overhead. It must be nearly noon, whatever the local time and place might be. I can access the heat, the burning heat. That was scary. I don't think I could survive that kind of heat long.

Checking other systems: Sound, the wind is blowing lightly in the silence. Smell, Not sure. It seems that there are nuances of sand and dryness, perhaps some elements of vegetation, but nothing that stands out. Sight. Fortunately it is on automatic, so I can see. Yes, and other spectrums are available too. Are they other realities? I can see myself standing in front of the full wall screen beside the rest of my expensive paraphernalia that allows my entry to this virtual reality. That view helps ground me to reality. Further I can sense the electronics, and monitor their functioning. I am able to accomplish thousands of searches, conversations, and the many other daily activities that make up my normal life. I am satisfied. OK. Back to the senses.

Touch. I bend and grab a handful of sand. I know it is hot, dry, and I watch it roll through my fingers. I keep the damper set to a pretty high blockage rate. It is just low enough that I can feel, perhaps just sense that my senses are active, without any of the accompanying distress. Taste. I look around, shake my head and create a piece of caramel candy in my hand. Yes,it tastes real. Perhaps it is.

Now I look through the perceptions menu. I nod to myself as I make my selections. Finally the absolute controls. These are vital. These include program overrides, safety, security and other available options. The controls work. The parameters are set. I am ready to begin. Or am I?

Are any of us ever really ready to begin anything? I have my doubts, even as I subvocalize the command: Begin.

Directly in front of me the atmosphere clouds into a 3 foot block rising up just at the level of the sand. I see a form materialize. He is an older man. He is in raggedy clothing. He is sitting, bent over his knees, and shivering. He looks emaciated. This isn't right. That isn't the oasis that is supposed to be the first "creation". All around me other individuals begin to materialize. I can feel the distant panic begin to rise in my breast. Thank God for the dampeners. I would be a wreck in minutes, otherwise.

What went wrong? I shrug and go to the overrides to cancel the scenario. It won't cancel. It WON'T cancel. A distant part of my mind puzzles with this unexpected problem, the overrides aren't working?

Slightly concerned, I step back in my mind to view of myself in front of the controls, select the analytics and minimize the scenario. My heart is beating fast. Really it is beating too fast. I am suddenly sweating, pouring sweat and in a full blown panic attack. I am a total mess. I stumble back, removing my contact with the computer. I am shaking. I collapse. It feels like a slow motion drop into a puddle of body parts barely held together, as my legs seem unable to hold me upright and everything drops. I am sitting, bent over my knees, and shivering just like that old man in the scenario, except it is me...

I suddenly realize that I am watching myself! Where did this detached part of my mind come from? I turned off the machine, didn't I? How is it maintaining itself?

I hear a quiet voice from somewhere asking me "What is reality?".