In the Ignavis Institute, an elite academy spanning all grades from kindergarten through high school and including post-secondary studies, the 50th floor was abuzz with activity. Several researchers examined results on various computer screens, printing pages upon pages of data and analyzing them. Nearby, three sleeping pods whirred and opened, allowing an anorexic woman, a fitness-obsessed young man and a teenage girl to wake up, and doctors removed a needle protruding from each of their left arms that had administered sedatives.
The trio was escorted into an office, where the chief researcher met them and scanned over each of their files. He was an older gentleman approaching his fifties, his blonde hair and beard slowly going grey, and his brown eyes sharp and intelligent. Yet, he seemed to have an aura as if he had little empathy for his test subjects.
“I appreciate all of you for partaking in this experiment. I would like to ask how your experiences were in the network,” the man stated, gesturing to the woman for her to begin.
“It was really depressing. I kept staring at myself in some mirror, and I couldn’t find my scale anywhere. But then I saw something white… I don’t know if it was a flower or a ball of light or what, but suddenly those horrible thoughts went away.”
“Has your appetite returned?”
“Yeah… I’m starving, actually. I want to go to the cafeteria as soon as possible and get some pizza. I haven’t had that in a long time, and I’m suddenly craving for it.”
“Very good. You’re next.”
The buff man explained, “I was on this endless road biking towards some number that always escaped me. But just like she said, something white overwhelmed me and I got off my bike before waking up.”
“How is your appetite?”
“It’s really good all of a sudden. I think I’ll go out with my girlfriend to that restaurant later tonight.”
“And you?” the researcher asked the teenager.
“I was surrounded by all of my favorite magazines in this girly room that had no doors. I kept reading over them, always feeling jealous about how glamorous those models looked. Then the white light they talked about broke through the wallpaper and engulfed me before I woke up.”
“Do you plan on continuing your bulimia after supper every night?”
“I don’t know about stopping altogether… But I felt someone crying for me to stop, and I feel like I’ve disappointed someone out there. I feel horrible for causing so much trouble behind Mom’s back, especially when she makes dinner every single night without complaining. Maybe I should help her out once in a while too.”
“That is very good news,” the man nodded. “I thank you for your feedback and cooperation in Project Soma. As promised, here is the reward for your cooperation.”
He handed the three subjects a check for $100 each and sent them on their way back down the elevator. After they left, the man returned to the facility, bypassing his subordinate scientists and entering his private office. It overlooked the entire city on this partly cloudy day and was complete with an oak desk, velvet carpeting, an in-built aquarium, and a small spa for his personal enjoyment. The only other person inside was a female nurse sitting next to a lone sleeping pod that had a 10-year old girl sleeping inside it. She kept watch on her vital statistics and taking care of necessary functions, while an IV of sedatives constantly fed into the child’s left arm.
“Good morning, Dr. Ignavis,” the nurse addressed him. “How did the project fare last night?”
“Splendidly, although it is still a little risky to expand the network too far at this point. The hardware still doesn’t have enough space to maintain so much cranial activity at once. Last night’s subjects failed to manifest as Oneiros – they only created negative zones that could have encroached the network. Several other subjects, including Cordelia, were able to cure the volunteers of their eating disorders.”
“That’s fantastic, doctor! Your wife’s theory is slowly coming into fruition, isn’t it?”
“Yes, it is. Project Soma will eventually cure any mental disorders by connecting everyone’s minds into a single network. People will finally be able to ‘feel’ each others’ emotions. The selfish ideal of an ‘individual’ will fade, and the much-needed sense of ‘community’ will evolve among homo sapiens.”
“It’s such a wonderful concept. I don’t understand why your wife and her sister abandoned the project in its prototype phase.”
Dr. Ignavis didn’t respond. He stared at the blonde-haired child as she slept peacefully in her pod. He fondly stroked the fiberglass cover and murmured, “Keep up the good work, Cordelia. Your mother would be very proud of you…”