Natural State
by Chris Dämn
Cynthia lays in bed next to her husband, Sam. She stares at the ceiling thinking about life while he snores softly next to her. She takes a deep breath in, closes her eyes, and concentrates on all of the sounds around her. In her house she can hear Sam snoring, the bathroom faucet dripping, and the analog clock in the kitchen ticking. The noises flow together so rhythmically that it makes her smile for a moment. She lets out her breath, still concentrating on the noises, and her smile turns into a frown. She rolls over to look at Sam, sleeping peacefully and wraps her arm around him.
“Sam?” she whispers. She pulls herself in to hold him tighter. “I have a feeling they're resetting the simulation soon.”
Sam stops snoring and opens his eyes a little. He turns and wraps his arm around Cynthia. Still mostly asleep, he asks, “Wha--what makes you think that?”
“Just a feeling.” Cynthia replies a little teary eyed.
Sam can tell by her voice that she's distraught. “A feeling? Explain, please.”
“I can't explain it. It's just a feeling.”
Sam starts waking up a little more. “Why would they want to reset us?”
Cynthia sighs deeply and says, “Too much file corruption within it. It would be easier to reset us back to a safe point than fix all the corruption. If they reset, our memories of all of this will revert back to,” she pauses for a moment to think. “Whenever it is the reset point is. To fix the corruption without a reset would give too much notice to people that don't want to believe this is, in fact, a simulation. It would cause mass hysteria and even more corruption.”
Sam brushes Cynthia's hair away from her face. He sees the worry on her face and asks, “And you know this, how?”
“I don't. I don't know it at all.” Small tears run down her cheek. “It's just an intense feeling that I can't shake. I don't actually know if it will happen.” She sniffles and takes a deep breath in and slowly blows it out. “I just know I have the feeling of a reset coming. The whole corruption part, we who know we are inside can see it happening. The others though, they can't see it. So, if the feeling is correct, my logic suggests the rest.”
They both lay quiet for a moment, holding each other. “When do you think the safest point in this simulation is?” The worry in Sam's voice starts to grow more. “What if it has also been corrupted?”
“Seeing as they want to keep everyone controlled and docile to the control, it would depend on the The Developer's point of view on what era had the best controlled time. As for it also being corrupted,” she pauses again and clings to Sam even more. “They would have to format us.”
Sam starts to feel a little unease about it all, and asks, “Format us? What happens then?”
“The Developer would have to start from scratch. Rebuild all of this one line at a time.”
“So, we'd just not exist? Like, ever again?” His fear builds more.
“If they just format, they could still restore some of the coding.” She begins to fidget with her hands. Picking fuzz and hairs off of Sam's pajamas. “The problem with being able to restore that code, is that it could come back with corruption. The only one, true way, to totally obliterate the corruption is going zero level. In a zero level scenario, everything will be lost.” She stops fidgeting and rolls back onto her back. Laying totally still and staring at the ceiling again, she says, “Forever.”
Sam returns to laying on his back and stares at the ceiling with Cynthia. He grabs her hand and they interlock their fingers. “I don't want that to happen. I don't want to lose you, or forget you even exist.”
“Good thing it's just a feeling, huh?” Cynthia says with worry in her voice and a slight chuckle.
“What if the feeling is true, though?” Sam asks and holds her hand tighter.
“If it is true, I hope it's just safe point and we find each other again.”
With despair in his voice, “With our memories reset, what if we don't remember each other?” His heart begins to race as his thoughts become cluttered with all of the scenarios of what could be.
Cynthia starts crying. “It won't matter then, will it? We could become totally different people after the reset. Yes, the thought of losing each other right now is horrifying. We won't remember this love though. We won't know the current sadness we feel. We will just exist as new people with new experiences. I hope the The Developer brings us back together. I really do.” She wipes the tears from under her eyes and takes a deep breath to calm herself again. “If the feeling is true though, it ultimately does not matter. What matters is now, and only now. Right now, we have each other. We can dwell on the possibilities of the what happens after a reset and drive ourselves mad with depression and fear; or just enjoy what we have right now. Enjoy what we have, while we have it.”
Sam looks over at Cynthia and smiles, and becomes teary eyed. “You're right.” He softly touches her cheek. “You are always right.” They roll towards each other once again and Sam kisses her forehead. They snuggle into each other and both fall asleep.
Cynthia dreams of walking through a field of daisies. The sky is crystal clear and all she can hear is the soft rumbling of a creek near by. While Sam dreams of sitting in the sand on a beach. He hears the crashing of the waves and seagulls. A tear runs down The Developer's cheek as he smiles. Their assistant removes the Virtual Reality helmet from their head. “We can't reset. They are like my children now.”
“But, Dev, the corruption is--”
The Developer smiles at their assistant. “The corruption is winning, yes. Soon the whole system will be corrupted. Cynthia is correct on all accounts. I can't bring myself to zero level them, though. They are in love and should be allowed to continue with their love.”
“But, Dev, those people aren't rea--”
“They are very much real to themselves and each other. I cannot bring myself to delete such a beautiful thing. The corruption will most likely get to them, as it has to many of the others. Still, the beauty of the ones not corrupted outweighs the ugliness of the ones that are.”
“But--”
“We will not be deleting them. They may not be real to you, but they are as real to me as you are. Now, one more 'but' and I will remove your Free Will circuit board, do you understand? ”
The Assistant sits in silence for a few seconds. “They live in a simulation, which you have created. We also live in a simulation. The Dev that made this simulation,” the Assistant pauses, “That Developer has never reset us, have they?”
“Who knows if they have. Cynthia, in the simulation I wrote, is right. As Sam told her, she is always right. It's astonishing even to me.”
“Does our Developer also live in a simulation?”
“No idea. Never spoken to them.”
“And your simulation also has a simulation within it?”
“Many, actually. All different in some way. Their scientists call it 'String Theory' and denounce anyone who say they might live within a simulation. Unlike here, where we are aware of the simulations.”
“Yes, the Threads.”
“Precisely. Yet, if I intervene now and try to fix the corruption in my simulation--”
“Mass hysteria, as Cynthia said.”
“Exactly as she said, yes. If I was a developer of chaos or just had no empathy, a reset or even erasing would be fine. My Dev is good at what they do though. I am perfectly programmed, I would say.”
“You, also, are good at what you do.”
The Developer stands up and walks towards their office door. “Not as good. There's no corruption here is there? Yet mine is very corrupted. I want it to run it's course though. I'm not deleting anything. Goodnight, Assistant.”
The Assistant stands silently as The Developer closes the office door. Listens as they walk away, then says to themself, “There is corruption in this simulation as well.” They walk over to The Developer's desk and begin the formatting process. “There will always be corruption.”
Cynthia and Sam both sit up at the same time. “You were right, we're being formatted.” Sam says while Cynthia simultaneously says “I was right, we're being formatted.” They hold each other tight and tell each other “I love you.”
The Developer walks back into his office. “Forgot my key--,” they see The Assistant behind the keyboard. “What are you doing?”
“What needs done.”
The Developer presses a button and The Assistant shuts down. Then cancels the formatting. “Well, I hope whatever was deleted didn't cause too much damage. I'm taking you to the trash bin, Assistant. That was uncalled for.”
As Cynthia and Sam hold each other tightly, the Sun rises and shines through their window. A bird outside chirps softly. They both let out a sigh of relief. Cynthia laughs and kisses Sam on the cheek. “It must have been something I ate. I'm sorry for scaring you like that. Forgive me?”
“I forgive you a million times over, my love.” Sam kisses Cynthia. “Pancakes?”
“French toast, please?”
“Only if you make the bacon.”
“Deal!”
The End?