Dreamscape

October 31, 2018 - 3:00am CST - New Orleans, Louisiana

Dr. Sean Mallory slowly moved his cursor up to the little apple icon in the far left top corner of his massive twenty-seven inch Thunderbolt display. He clicked on it and then hovered over the words "shut down". He paused briefly, and then, with an audible sigh, he confirmed his choice. The computer slowly began to shut down all open programs. The screen went grey, and then black, and the fan that had been cooling his hard drive came to a stop; and then there was silence. He brought his hands to his face and rubbed his very red and tired eyes. He looked around his lab and he could hardly believe that it was over. Whiteboards with formula after formula written and scratched out surrounded the perimeter of the room. Stations with computers and monitors and beakers of fluid surrounded him. He looked down at the cheap watch on his wrist.

3:00am

He sighed audibly again and chuckled to himself out loud.

"Not to shabby for yourself, Doctor Mallory, not to bad at all." Sean said to himself

The last four years had been such a whirlwind experience for him. Plucked from obscurity and thrust into a journey reserved for fairytales and comic books. But it was all over now. All good things must come to end and his agreement with the DEA meant the last of Dreamscape would be destroyed in the morning. They had already confiscated all remaining supplies that were on hand at the Humanatech facilities, and he spent the better part of the night alone in his lab wiping all of the data from the hard drives of the Humanatech macines.

He would be whisked away to some unknown part of the world and given a new identity. No one would ever hear from him again. The thought of some peace and quiet and a fresh start was a welcoming thought that brought a wry smile to his lips.

He stood from his desk and grabbed his jacket, his wallet, and his keys and began to make his way towards the exit. So many emotions flooded his mind. So many memories came rushing back...

___________________________________________

March 1, 2014 - 6:00am PST - 4 years ago

Dr. Mallory's iPhone began to buzz on the nightstand next to him. Lying on his stomach with his head still lodged under his pillow he flung his left arm up from under the covers trying to locate the phone to stop the buzzing. A small beam of early morning light was trying to peak in from the edges of the curtains that hung on his window a few feet away.

BZZZZZ BZZZZZ

The phone continued to vibrate across his nightstand, and his hand continued to fumble around in vain.

BZZZZZ BZZZZZ

Finally his hand made out the vibrating phones features and his fingers closed around the frame and he drew it under the pillow. His eyes tried to focus on the bright screen. He squinted at the screen.

BLOCKED

"UGH!" he gasped out loud.

He never answered numbers he didn't recognize. He moved his finger to the DECLINE button, pressed it, and then dropped his phone next to his head. No sooner had he let go of the phone and it started ringing again.

BZZZZZ BZZZZZ

"Fuck me!" he snorted into his mattress.

He lifted himself up onto his elbows and his pillow spilled off of the side of the bed. He took the phone in both hands.

BLOCKED

"It's fucking six a.m. on fucking Saturday morning!" he snarled under his breath.

He pressed the decline button and dropped the phone off the bed onto the hardwood floor below.

BZZZZZ BZZZZZ

It rang again.

Sean threw the covers off in disgust and jumped out of the bed. He grabbed the phone and slid the little icon over to the right to answer the call.

"Hello?" He shouted, with a questioning anger, into the phone.

"Is this Dr. Sean Mallory?" asked a female voice with a slight British accent.

"Yes! It is! And do you know what time it is? It's Saturday morning. It's six a.m.!" he shouted back.

"I do apologize, Doctor. Mr. Crowe insisted on getting a hold of you immediately," said the voice on the other end of the line.

"My name is Marcy, Dr. Mallory. I am Mr. Phineas Crowe's personal assistant." She said calmly.

Sean paused a moment as his mind was suddenly jerked into gear by the lady on the phone's last statement.

"Phineas Crowe?", Sean asked. "As in, the billionaire playboy,...that Mr. Crowe?" Sean asked again.

"Yes sir, Doctor. He insisted that I get a hold of you immediately." Marcy repeated.

"I don't understand, Marcy, why would Mr. Crowe need to get a hold of me?" Sean asked with a puzzled look on his face.

He sat down on the edge of his bed as his anger at being woken up on his day off so early began to be replaced by his desire to find out what this billionaire could possibly want with a mid-level research scientist from Stanford.

"Mr. Crowe has informed me only to contact you and ask you to meet him this afternoon at 2:30pm in New Orleans so that he can explain it all to you." Marcy explained in a very matter of fact business like fashion.

"New Orleans?" Sean quipped. "I'm in San Jose. How am I supposed to get to New Orleans by 2:30? I don't have a car. I live on campus. Seriously?" Sean asked.

"It's already been arranged, Doctor Mallory. There's a car waiting to take you to a private airfield where one of Mr. Crowes private jets is awaiting your arrival. It will bring you here to New Orleans. Don't pack any clothes. Just get cleaned up and head down stairs. We will take care of the rest. Mr. Crowe wanted me to assure you that you would be back home later this evening if you so choose." Marcy said quickly.

"What if I don't want to go?" Sean asked hesitantly.

"That's certainly your prerogative, Doctor Mallory, but how many times in your life will you be summoned to a meeting with one of the most powerful, rich, and influential men in the world?" Marcy asked triumphantly.

"Well...yeah, I guess I already knew that would be our answer." Sean said quietly.

"Okay. I'll be there." said Sean.

"Perfect! We will see you at 2:30 Dr. Mallory. Enjoy the flight!" said Marcy. The phone clicked dead, and Sean put his phone down on the bed next to him and just stared at it in shock.

________________________________________________

Phineas Crowe was a forty something billionaire playboy. Most of his fortune was handed down to him from his father who had founded Humanatech, a bio-genetic firm that specialized in bridging the gap between medicine and technology, in the early 1980's. They didn't really produce anything of significance until Phineas came to control the company in the early 2000's. Their greatest achievement under Phineas to date was manufacturing Miomex; a drug that had basically brought an end to the debilitating disease known as Alzheimers. Humanatech figured out a way to use nano-technology along with a synthesized formula that was built around an individuals DNA. After many human trials they finally cracked the code and now with a small prick of your finger the DNA sample taken from your blood would be merged with nano technology. Swallow a one-time dose of a liquid mixture and...voila...within hours people who had suffered for years with this debilitating disease were returning to the people they used to be. Memories returned. Mind returned. Complete and utter modern day miracle.

The world flocked to Humanatech. They couldn't produce Miomex fast enough. Because they were the only ones with the miracle drug they could also control the price. They were accused of price gauging early on, but they quickly realized they could make more money by lowering the cost to make it as commonplace as aspirin, and winning the goodwill of the world around them. Not only did it prove to be a brilliant public relations strategy, but it also lined their coffers with more money then most developing nations.

Phineas Crowe had very little to do with Miomex. He was simply the benefactor of some lab rats stuffed down in a research facility that finally happened upon the correct formula and code for the nano-tech to be able to merge and blend with the host DNA, thus being able to "re-program" to some extent the faulty DNA that was causing this horrible disease to take root in the first place. But he did benefit. Handsomely! His net worth was estimated to be over 100 billion dollars. Needless to say, Phineas Crowe was not lacking for anything. If he wanted it...he just bought it. He had a particular attraction to the flamboyant and over the top decadent lifestyle, and if he was ever seen in public, he was surrounded by a bevy of scantily clad women that were half his age. His public image was one of being a spoiled young boy trapped in a forty year olds body. With nothing out of his reach he lived a life of wanton pleasure and endless partying.

It has been rumored in recent years that the board of directors was really leaning hard on Phineas to lead the company into the future; to continue to be the leader in innovation when it came to bio-medical treatments. Being the playboy he was did nothing to erase the pitiful memories of failing to impress and garner the pride of his father. His father was a hard worker that built Humanatech from the ground up. Phineas could have cared less. Their relationship was often strained due to Phineas' constant need to rebel and party.

His father left him everything when he died. It was his way of telling his son that he loved him even though they were never the father and son ideal that he had desired. Phineas changed his ways briefly after his father's passing, but it was short lived once his bank account added a few more zeros to the end of the line.

Phineas lived the life that men everywhere only dream about. But the cost of such living took its toll. The pleasures he surrounded himself with ceased to bring the pleasure it once did. He was always searching and looking for something else to fill the void. He became desensitized to life itself. Nothing shocked him anymore, nothing moved him anymore. Drugs had lost their effect. The highs were just not getting him high enough. He could have sex with anyone he wanted whenever he wanted. Sex had lost its appeal. It was becoming harder and harder to get hard.

Phineas began to devise a plan. He had near unlimited wealth, and he had access to the best labs in the world. He started to contrive a plan that would not only solve his own personal search for happiness, but would catapult Phineas to the top of the list as the most influential and powerful man in the world. Miomex was just the beginning. Finding a cure for Alzheimers was truly miraculous, but it could only benefit people who had the disease. Phineas knew that if he could use that same technology to create a drug that would give him a safe high with unlimited potential, then there would be no end to the people lining up at their doors to use it. A drug that could give people the power to be anyone they wanted to be or experience anything they had dreamed of experiencing. A drug that would cure the boredom that living in this rat race everyday produces. It would be a drug that he would want. A drug that he would use. A drug he needed because his senses had been dulled by his extravagant living.

The problem would be that this would have to be off the books. The board would never go for something like this. The FDA certainly would never approve something like this. He would be shut down the minute any word of this got out. He needed people he could trust, but since he didn't have many friends inside of the company, it would mean he would have to look outside. He would need someone that he could control, and he knew of no better way to control someone then with money and extortion.

Phineas needed a dreamer. He needed someone that was smart enough to help, but that would be in a position that he could not refuse to help even knowing the grey areas that this sort of venture would put them in.

___________________________________________________

Sean ran to the window and pulled back the curtain just enough to peek out. Sure enough, there was a black SUV sitting by the curb in front of his townhome. There was a young looking Hispanic woman in a short black skirt with a white shirt and black jacket on top. She wore high heels and dark sunglasses and was standing properly beside the passenger side door waiting patiently. He let the blind go and stood there for a minute. He rubbed his hands in his face and then ran them through his black and wild bed-head hair.

"Could this really be happening?" he thought to himself.

His heart began to pound a little inside as he made his way to the bathroom. He jumped in the shower and washed off. All kinds of thoughts were running through his head. Some made sense, most didn't, and others just terrified him. He put on a white button down shirt and some khaki pants and then grabbed a navy blue blazer; not to formal and not to casual.

"What do you wear to a meeting with one of the richest men in the world?" he thought to himself.

He grabbed his watch and wallet and keys. He threw his macbook in his satchel and then headed out the door.

The young Hispanic female waiting by the black SUV snapped to attention when the front door opened and Sean appeared.

"Good morning Dr. Mallory." she said as she opened the back passenger door.

"Good morning." Sean said, very cautiously.

Sean sat down in the back of the SUV. The driver went around and got in and started the truck, and began to pull away.

"We will be at the airport in 25 minutes, sir, they will have breakfast for you ready to go on the plane." the driver said.

"Do you work for Mr. Crowe?" Sean asked.

"I work for Humantech. I have been a driver for their executives and VIP's for almost 4 years now." answered the driver.

"Really? That's great. Does he always wake up people and tell them to go get in a strange car so that he can fly them across the country for a meeting?" asked Sean almost not expecting an answer.

The driver laughed.

"Well, it doesn't happen all the time, but typically Mr. Crowe does pretty much just tell people what to do and they just do it." The driver answered.

"I guess if you are worth a hundred billion dollars you can do pretty much anything you want." Sean retorted.

"Yes, indeed." Answered the driver.

The rest of the trip remained quiet. Sean sat in the backseat looking out the window left alone to his wandering thoughts. There was an uneasy excitement as his mind raced with the possibilities ahead of him. The scientist part of him was straining and telling him to remain calm and logically assess the situation, and the dreamer/inventor side of him was jumping up and down at a chance to realize and have access to a near unlimited and powerful resource like Mr. Crowe.

The SUV approached a small private airfield that Sean had no prior knowledge of its existence until this very moment. The security gate opened and the SUV pulled around a few buildings and approached a tarmac where a sleek looking private jet sat with its door open. There was a beautiful young woman with long red hair in a stewardess' outfit standing at the bottom of the stairs awaiting their arrival.

The SUV pulled to a stop within six feet of the plane and the beautiful red-headed woman stepped forward and opened the door.

"Good morning Dr. Mallory." The woman said, with a thick Irish accent, as she waved her arm motioning to the stairs leading up into the plane that was already running and waiting for his arrival.

"Good morning." Sean answered and stepped forward climbing the stairs.

The woman followed up closely behind him, and he was keenly aware of how close she was following him up. As he entered into the plane he noticed the pilot and co-pilot already seated with their headsets on and it appeared they were going through some pre-flight checklist of some kind. He turned and looked at the luxurious cabin and was immediately blown away. It was certainly not like any plane he had ever flown on before. This plane was the epitome of over the top luxury. There was a long white leather sectional couch with a chaise recliner along the right side of the plane. There was a small conference table with four impressive captains chairs on the left side of the cabin across from the couch. Behind the chairs of the table there was a fully stocked bar. Wood and gold trim was everywhere throughout. There were two large flat screen monitors at the front and rear of the cabin so you could see them no matter where you were sitting. He noticed there was a wall near the back that had 2 doors that were closed.

"Good morning Dr. Mallory." Said another beautiful young stewardess that appeared from one of the closed doors from the rear of the cabin.

"My name is Jenna and this is Sarah," she said, motioning to the red-headed woman who was closing the door of the plane. "Please make yourself at home. You can sit anywhere that you are comfortable. Have you had breakfast yet?" she asked.

"No." Sean said politely.

"As soon as we take off we will make sure you get exactly what you want." Jenna replied. Sean thought he saw her give him a wink, but he wasn't certain.

Sean made his way to the conference table and sat in the chair facing the front of the cabin that had a window to look out of. As he was seating himself he felt the plane begin to move slowly forward. He sat down and looked out the window. The plane taxied onto the runway and then without a pause began to accelerate quickly down the runway. The scenery outside sped by and he lost his stomach briefly as the wheels lost contact with the ground. Not a minute or two later and the plane had leveled out and the ground below got smaller and smaller until after passing through the clouds it disappeared completely.

"What would you like for breakfast Dr. Mallory?" said Jenna who had quietly appeared beside him yet again.

"Uh...bacon and eggs?" Sean asked.

"How would you like your eggs?" she asked.

"Scrambled with some orange juice would be fantastic." Sean said smiling up at the young woman as he took her appearance in. As she made her way past him to the rear of the cabin he turned to get his first real assessment. She appeared to be about 5'5" with a slender frame. She had medium length sandy brown hair that was cut in a short bob that fell just short of her shoulders. He guessed she wasn't more than 25 years old. She was wearing a short black skirt that reached the middle of her slender yet athletic thighs. A white button down shirt was tucked in tightly to the black skirt. It did little to hide her rather impressive chest. The buttons on the front were strained rather tightly leaving little gaps in between that allowed anyone to take note of the black lacy bra she was wearing to support her impressive chest. There was a black ascot loosely tied around her neck. He watched her walk away on some black strapless four-inch heels behind the closed door.

Sean turned his attention back to the window. His thoughts still not gathered and so many questions running around inside his head. He looked towards the cockpit of the plane and saw that a narrow door had been closed so that he could no longer ascertain what was taking place up there.

After about 10 minutes of waiting he heard the door behind him open and Jenna appeared rolling a small cart with a dish covered with a round metal lid. She approached where we was seated. She took the plate off of the cart and bent over across Sean to set it down. Sean couldn't help but notice the straining shirt against her chest and he caught a glimpse of the top of the creamy white globes that lay beneath. He looked back up at Jenna to see her fully aware of where his gaze had wandered, and this time, without a doubt in his mind, she gave him another wink.

She lifted the lid off of the plate to reveal a plate full of scrambled eggs with 7-8 slices of fresh fried bacon and a buttered piece of toast. As Sean began to grab the utensils Jenna produced a rather large napkin that she fluffed in the air and then preceded to place in Sean's lap. She had leaned in extremely close to Sean. Her face was no more than an inch away. He could smell her sweet perfume. Her eyes never left his. Her hands spread the napkin across his lap and then smoothed it out over his crotch area pressing down a bit into his manhood. She smiled a wicked little smile, and gave him another mischievous wink.