Player 1

Chapter 33 Level 3(1)
The outside world is not as beautiful as imagined.

—Chapter 17, Paragraph 32 of Anola's Almanac

0028
When the IOI security finally came to catch me, "To the Sky" (1985, directed by Joe Dante) was only halfway through.The film is about a few kids who built a spaceship in their backyard, only to be invited into space by aliens.Even though it's just a kid's movie, it's really good.I watch it almost every month and it always calms me down.

A small window on the edge of the screen showed the apartment's external security surveillance footage, and I saw the car of the IOI Credit and Collection Department parked at the gate.Then four security guards in boots and riot helmets jumped off the top and ran into the building, followed by a guy in a shirt.When they took out the IOI work card and went through the security check to the elevator, I had already cut to the camera inside the hall.

Now they are on their way up.

"Max," I couldn't hear a trace of fear in my voice, "execute security order No. 127: Chrome, King of the Mountain [[-]]." The program operates, and all the local data including Max are packaged and uploaded to the Internet.

"Horse-horse-immediately, boss!" With Max's happy answer, the apartment entered the highest level of defense in an instant.The reinforced titanium alloy bulletproof door clicked and locked behind the anti-theft layer.

In the surveillance video in the corridor, four security guards have already left the elevator and are rushing towards me.The two guys in the front are holding plasma torches, and the other two are holding military-grade stun guns.The man in the shirt came last, with the clipboard in his hand.

This is not surprising.I know what they're here for: to blast through this apartment door and take me.

When they came to the door, the scanner transmitted the detected information, and the visitor's information was presented on the screen.All five were members of IOI's credit and collection department, and they were ordered to take Bryce Lynch away.In accordance with the state's federal law, the door to my apartment was immediately opened to them, but the bulletproof door I just closed kept them out.

Of course, these cops already expected to encounter additional security doors, which is why they had plasma torches in hand.

The man in the shirt walked up to the four security guards and reached out to press the intercom button on the door.Immediately his name and affiliation appeared on the screen: Michael Wilson, IOI Credit and Collections, employee number IOI-481231.

Wilson looked at the surveillance camera and smiled happily. "Mr. Lynch," he said, "I'm Michael Wilson and I work for IOI Corporation's Credit and Collections Department." He held up the slate. $[-]. Since your records show that you are unemployed, we have determined you to be insolvent. Under current federal law, you must be indentured. Before you can pay off your debts and fines, you will need to be in the Our indentured department service." Wilson pointed to the security guard next to him, "These gentlemen are here to help me get you to your new job. We ask you to open the door to let us in. Please note that we have the right to take All your property, of course, will be sold to pay your debts."

Wilson said this with a mechanical flow, without a single pause.I guess he must have repeated those words countless times.

After a short pause, I replied over the intercom, "Of course, buddy. Let me catch my breath and open the door right away."

Wilson frowned, "Mr. Lynch, if you don't open the door within ten seconds, we have the right to enter your room by force. The property damage caused by the forced entry, including damage to items and repair costs, will be added to your on the debt bill."

After saying this, Wilson backed away from the intercom and nodded to the people beside him.A security guard immediately turned on the welding torch, the tip of which quickly turned bright orange, and began cutting through my titanium bulletproof door.Another torch was aimed at another spot a few feet away.It seemed that the other party wanted to dig out a hole in the wall to the right of the door.These guys are familiar with the structure of each apartment, and they know that walls are easier to deal with than alloy doors.

Too bad I already reinforced the walls, floors and ceilings of my apartment with titanium alloys.After they cut the cement, they had to deal with these high-strength alloys.But this can only last five or six minutes at most, and they will come in sooner or later.

I've heard that the IOI security has nicknamed the job -- cutting open the residence and taking the occupants out -- a caesarean section.

I drank two of the anti-anxiety pills I had prepared for today.I've actually taken two this morning and they don't seem to be working.

After closing all the windows of "Oasis" and adjusting the security level of the account to the maximum, I opened the score board.It hasn't changed. The "Sixth Man" has yet to win a game.A few days ago, these ten names were on the scoreboard.

high score list

1. Artemis 354000
2. Parsifal 353000
3.IOI-655321 352000
4. Edge 352000
5.IOI-643187 349000
6.IOI-621671 348000
7.IOI-678324 347000
8. Soto 347000
9.IOI-678330 346000
10.IOI-699423 346000
Artemis, Edge, and Soto all went through the second door and got the crystal key within 48 hours of receiving my email.Artemis returned to the first place because of the 25000 points of the crystal key, which is 1000 points higher than me.

They've all been trying to reach me since I got the email, but I haven't answered their video requests, answered their emails, or listened to their code words.I have no reason to tell them what I want to do, not only can't they help me, but they are more likely to dissuade me from this crazy plan.

But it is a done deal, and there is no way out.

I close the scoreboard, gaze at my fortress-like abode, wondering if this will be the last time I'll see it, and take a few quick deep breaths, like a deep-sea diver getting ready, and click the view The logout icon in the .The oasis disappeared, and I emerged in my virtual office, a standalone simulation stored on my hard drive.I turned on the operating system, and entered the computer's self-destruct command: shit flow [128].

A progress bar appears on the screen and the hard drive is being formatted.

"See you later, Max." I murmured softly.

"Goodbye, Wade." Max said goodbye to me before being deleted.

Even sitting on a plastic chair, you can feel the heat coming from outside.I took off my mask and saw the smoke pouring in from the cuts in the walls and doors.The air purifier in the apartment couldn't handle the fumes, and I started coughing.

The security guard who cut the door had finished his work, and the smoking metal circle that used to be called the doorknob fell to the ground with a loud crash, which really startled me.

The security guard with the torch took a step back, and another guard stepped forward and sprayed condensate on the newly cut metal hole, so as not to be burned when he climbed in.

"Confirmed!" Someone shouted in the corridor, "No visible weapons!"

The security guard with the stun gun was the first to go through the hole.In an instant, he was running in front of me to the right, with a gun pointed at my face.

"Don't move!" he yelled, "Otherwise it will be enough for you to drink a pot, understand?"

I nodded to show that I understood, and suddenly realized that the security guard was the first human being I'd seen since I lived in the apartment.

The second one who came in was not polite at all.He directly gagged my mouth with the gag.This is a matter of routine so I don't have to speak to the computer again.But they don't need to worry at all, because the small incendiary bomb installed in the computer exploded before the first security guard came in.Now my computer is nothing more than a pile of slag.

With the gag in place, he pushed a button to release my haptic suit, then pulled me out of the haptic chair like a Ragdoll and dropped me on the floor.Another security guard pressed the switch of the bulletproof door, and when the door opened, the other two security guards rushed in with the shirt man Wilson.

I curled up in a ball on the floor, eyes closed, shaking involuntarily.I know what's going to happen next.

They'll take me outside.

"Mr. Lynch," Wilson said with a smile, "I'm here to arrest you and bring you into the company." He turned to the security guards. computer, so looked at me and shook his head, "Stupid. We could have sold it to pay off your debt."

I couldn't speak, so I could only shrug and give him my middle finger.

My haptic suit was left with the recovery team.Since I would be naked then, they threw me a disposable blue-gray jumpsuit and a pair of plastic shoes of similar size.The texture of the jumpsuit is reminiscent of sandpaper, and the skin is very itchy when put on, but since the hands have been handcuffed, it is not easy to scratch the itch.

They escorted me to the elevator, where the pale fluorescent lights cast large shadows, making people feel like they were in some black and white horror movie.As I took the elevator down, I kept humming a little tune to show that I wasn't scared at all.Then the security guard raised the stun gun and let me settle down.

In the hall, I was pulled into a hooded winter coat.They don't want me to have pneumonia, and as a human resource, I am now part of the property of IOI.They then took me out of the building.This is the first time in half a year that I have experienced the feeling of the sun hitting my face.

It was snowing outside, covering everything with a thin layer of gray.I don't know the exact temperature, but I know I've never felt so cold, and the wind is blowing like a knife on the right side of my face.

They threw me into the back of the delivery van, which was already filled with two indentured workers strapped to plastic chairs, both of whom had been caught earlier this morning, both wearing masks.For IOI's security guards, catching us is probably the same as recycling garbage, just a daily routine.

The indentured worker on my right is tall and thin, probably only a few years older than me, and looks malnourished; the other indentured worker is so fat that I can't even determine his gender, so I can only put him/her first as a man.His face was covered by a tuft of dirty brown hair, and what looked like a gas mask covered his nose and mouth.Thick black tubes connect the mask to the floor.I was thinking about its use when I saw the man shuddering and bending over, vomiting into the tube.After a sound like a vacuum cleaner, the vomit slid down the tube and into the floor.Not sure if the IOI packed it into the container or just threw it out.Presumably to pack it up so they can analyze the substance and fill in the results in the contractor's file.

"Are you uncomfortable?" A security guard asked me when he took the gag away. "If you feel uncomfortable, just say it, and I will give you a mask."

"I'm fine." I replied weakly.

"Well, if you make me have to clean up this carriage in the end, I will definitely let you know how to write regret."

They pinned me down and strapped me to the chair opposite the skinny guy, and the two security guards who followed us into the car put the plasma torch in the locker.The other two closed the door and climbed into the cab.

As the engine fired and the car slowly left the apartment, I turned my head and looked out the window at the house I had lived in for a year.Through the dark window glass, I can still recognize the spray-painted black window on the 42nd floor. Behind it is undoubtedly the room I once lived in.The recovery team is probably already there by now.All of my items are dismantled, valued, tagged, boxed, and sent to the auction house for processing.The money for rebuilding the exterior walls and installing the iron gate after the room is cleared will be paid by IOI first, but needless to say, they will definitely end up being added to the bill I owe to IOI.

By mid-afternoon, someone lucky enough to be on the apartment checklist will receive a message that the application has been approved, and by the time the sun goes down and the new tenant moves into the apartment, all traces of the previous occupant will have completely disappeared.

I was looking at the city road outside the window when the security guard suddenly reached out and pressed a mask onto my face.The field of view suddenly switched, and I found myself sitting on a bench on the beach, facing the setting sun burning across half of the sky.This must be a simulation system used to appease the contractors.

I pull down the mask with my handcuffed hands.The security guard didn't pay attention to it, or he didn't care at all.I look out the window again.It's been a long time since I last saw the scene here, and I wonder if the outside environment has changed.

0029
Everything looks a little blurry through the thick glass.Streets, buildings, crowds, and even snowflakes are like dust, and the gray flakes that fall one after another are like smoke after a volcanic eruption.

There seem to be a lot more homeless people than before.Tents and cardboard houses line the streets, and parks look to me like sprawling refugee camps.As the transport truck moved deeper into the city center and got closer to the skyscrapers, I saw unkempt people crowding every corner of the street. They huddled together, relying on scrap wood and small gasoline heaters for warmth. .Others wait at free solar-charging stations, escaping into the world of Oasis with clunky, outdated face masks and haptic gloves, fingers wiggling slightly.

Finally, we came to IOI Plaza, the heart of the city.

I fell silent in fear. The IOI headquarters consists of two rectangular buildings, which surround the central circular building, just forming the IOI trademark pattern.These three buildings are among the top three high-rise buildings in Columbus. The soaring metal-colored exterior walls and mirror-like glass are split and reconnected by countless sky corridors and elevator tracks.The top of each building is submerged in the sea of ​​clouds. The replica of the IOI headquarters building in "Oasis" is exactly the same as the one in front of me, but the impact brought by reality is even more breathtaking.

The truck pulled into the parking lot beneath the rotunda, rounded a few concrete curves, and finally arrived at what looked like a sprawling cargo port.The plaque of IOI Contract Works Department Center is impressively hung on the wide door in front.

The other indentured workers and I were kicked out of the car, and a team of security guards with stun guns waited to take over us.After the handcuffs were removed, another staff member scanned our eyes with retinal scanners.I held my breath nervously when it was my turn, when the machine beeped and read "Lynch Bryce. 22 years old. Full citizen. No criminal record. Credit: Deed of Debt Work" words.Seeing this information, the staff member nodded in satisfaction, and clicked a few times on the record book.Then, I was led into a warm, bright room.There are already hundreds of contractors here.They all staggered along the guiding arrows on the wall.There seemed to be about the same number of men and women here, but that's hard to say because most of them were about my age, pale and hairless, and we all wore the same gray jumpsuit and plastic shoes.It is simply the mortal beings in "500 Years Later" [129].

(End of this chapter)