Plugged In

"Have a good day, honey," my wife Holly said as I descended the stairs.

"What? No goodbye?" I smiled at her.

"Sorry," Holly said as she rushed toward me. "Have my head in the clouds," she said as she kissed me on the cheek. "Have to take the kids to school. Be safe!"

I nodded and picked up my briefcase, and the to-go breakfast Holly had packed for me.

Being the police chief had its advantages; today was one of those days.

"V.R.," I said as I got to the downtown laboratory.

"Yes," the lady said standing in front of me said.

"Virtual Reality," my assistant said to me.

"Yes, I know what V.R. stands for Thomas," I barked back at him.

"How does this help my officers?" I asked. "We have in real life situations, how is this going to simulate that?"

I had other chiefs with me from different cities and nearby states.

Supposedly this company was trying to get us all to start using this technology to help eliminate some of the accidental police shootings.

Of course, the media got wind of this new technology, and all of us were in a bind to try it out, just in case it would help. I had my doubts, as well as many others.

"Well, all of you have been in many situations, and with each person that trains on it, the more it learns," the lady said.

"So, this thing learns, from each situation?" one of the others asked.

"And person, that plugs into it," the lady added.

There was talk between the rest of them. "You should try it first Dalton, you have the highest casualty rating," Bernie smiled.

"Actually, we have enough for all of you," one of the lady's assistants said.

"To hell with it," I said. "I'll try it," I smiled as I took off my blazer and sat in the large seat. "My kid has one of these things at home, it's not that bad."

"Yes, it is just like a kid's game," the lady said.

I saw the others looking at me. Some were sitting down. Others were shaking their heads.

"It's a fucking video game, for Christ's sakes, man up!" one of the others sitting in the oversized chair beside me said.

"What he said," I nodded. As the assistant next to me lowered the V.R. monitor.

"Can you hear me?" I heard a voice say it was the lead's voice.

"Yes," I said.

"You don't have to talk out loud, you can think it, and the program will do the rest," she said.

"Will do," I replied.

"Perfect," she said back.

"Now, putting you into the simulation, remember you cannot be harmed while in here, your body will react, but it will do no harm," another voice said.

"Okay," I replied.

For a moment, nothing happened, then I found myself standing in the street. "I know this place," I smiled. "My old beat," I said as I started to walk. "Wow, I can even feel the pavement."

I knew my body was lying down in a laboratory downtown, but it truly felt like I was walking the streets of my old neighborhood.

' Just do what comes naturally,' the computer voice said.

"This feels so real," I said.

I could even look down at my hands and feet. I felt the wind on my face and smelled the food from the shops. I looked in the shop window and saw myself, well, a younger version of myself.

"Playing to my ego, extra points," I said.

'This simulation is of the younger you when you were just an officer,' the voice said.

"Understood," I nodded.

Then I heard it, shots being fired across the street.

I quickly reacted and rushed over to the shop. Customers were coming out. I called it in and got dispatch's reply informing me backup was on the way.

'React normally, remember if you are shot the simulation will end, and you will not be harmed,' the voice said.

I went in and saw the gunman holding a hostage.

I remembered my training and went through all the steps, one at a time.

'Where is my back up?' I thought as the situation was not going my way, he was intent on killing what I now knew was his ex-girlfriend. Her current boyfriend was dead on the floor.

"Just leave man, I don't want to kill you too," he said as he pushed his gun into the side of his girlfriend's head.

All of it felt so real. I knew I had to do something and fast. He was losing patience, and at any moment, he would kill her.

"Just wait," I said as I slowly knelt on the floor, putting my gun down. "We can talk," I said.

I had him. He was looking down at my gun and not my other hand. I nodded to the girl, and she nodded back. Quickly she reacted and pushed off him. I promptly shot him in the shoulder. He dropped the gun, and I rushed him.

'Simulation ending,' the voice said.

"Wow, that is perfect," I said as I found myself back outside on the street.

'Want to try another?' the voice asked.

"Yes," I nodded.

I tried two more scenarios, and then I told it no, that I was done for the day.

'Exiting simulation,' the voice said.

"Where did the rest go?" I asked as I sat up in my chair.

"You enjoyed it more than most of them," the lady said as I looked around and saw others still plugged in while some had left.

"It's good," I nodded. "You have my vote."

"That's good," she nodded.

Thomas stood by, and we walked to the car.

"Had a good day?" Holly asked as she woke me from my chair.

"Yes," I said, yawning.

I looked around my living room. I didn't even remember coming home. I remembered getting in the car, then laying back. I must have fallen asleep, and Thomas brought me home.

"Where are the kids?" I asked.

"The usual," Holly said.

"It's just us?" I asked.

"Yes," Holly replied as she went into the kitchen.

"Been a while," I smiled.

"I have to make dinner," Holly said as I put my arm around her.

I felt her ample breasts, and she shook her head. "Dalton, dinner, remember?"

Holly had been my wife for many years, and I knew all I had to do was keep going, and she would turn to putty.

I squeezed them harder and kissed her neck.

"Dalton Andrews," Holly said, shaking her head as she put her hand on the counter.

I had her. I started moving my hand down the front of her body, unbuckled her pants, and let them fall to the floor.

"You can be a brute sometimes," Holly said as I pushed into her.

It had been months since we last had sex. And even longer since I had taken her from behind. Holly didn't like this position. She always said it felt like I didn't want to look at her.

I pushed deeper and grabbed her waist as I fucked her. Holly didn't complain or say a word as I fucked her in the kitchen.

I grabbed her waist firmly and pushed deeper as I came inside of her.

"Happy?" Holly asked.

"Much," I replied.

"You can cook dinner," Holly said as she picked up her pants and walked out. "No ordering anything, this time!" she said as she looked back at me.

"Okay," I nodded.

I looked in the pantry and decided to make Spaghetti Bolognese. It was easy to make, and the kids loved it.

When I finished, I went upstairs, thinking Holly would be in her office. She wasn't there. I went into our room, but she wasn't there either. I looked outside. Her car was still there.

"Holly!" I yelled as I frantically searched the whole house.

Holly was nowhere in the house.

I went outside and searched the backyard. Nowhere.

I called her cellphone. It went straight to voice mail.

Then something hit me. I went back to the front of my house. Except for my home and Andrew's house, no cars were in the other house's driveways.

"What is going on?" I asked myself.

Another thing slowly dawned on me. How long had it been since I came home? I fell asleep, woke up, had sex with my wife, and cooked dinner.

The sun was still beating down like it was midday.

"What the hell is going on?" I said.

I walked back inside and called Thomas's number, straight to voicemail.

'Welcome!' the computer voice from earlier blurted out.

"What!" I said.

'Welcome to the new world scenario,' it said.

"New world, what?" I shouted.

'Scenario, you are in a computer-generated world, you and the others like you, are part of a new world,' it said.

"Shut up, off!" Andrew, my neighbor, shouted as he came into my house.

'Turning off,' the voice said.

"What the hell?" I turned to him.

"You've been abducted and slammed into this virtual world," Andrew said as he sat at my table. "Trust me, it's real, what's the last thing you remember?"

I told him everything.

"It's been a week, Holly and the other women set you up," Andrew said as he went to my fridge and then slammed the door. "Heineken, cold!" he yelled.

He reopened the fridge, picked a Heineken, and popped the top.

"I don't drink Heineken," I said as I went to my fridge, it was now empty when it wasn't before, "What the hell!"

"Everything is empty, you want something ask for it, and it pop's right up," Andrew shrugged. "Like I said, virtual world, men only!"

"What, how?" I asked.

"If I didn't stop the talking, it would have told you the long story of male dominance is coming to an end and blah blah blah, the short of it, women have created a virtual world and are slamming men into it, the end."

"They can't," I shook my head.

"Go for a drive," Andrew said. "I will be in my house. I have been here for a month, this world's time, no idea how long it's been out there."

I shook my head. There was no way.

I got in my car and drove. I would just drive to Holly's mom's house. She must be there. She always went there when she was pissed at me. I drove towards the end of my street and immediately found myself back in my driveway.

"What?" I shouted.

'Sorry, but as more cities come online, the bigger the scenario will become, sorry for any inconvenience, and hope you will be patient with us during this transition,' the voice said.

I walked to the end of the street, and it happened again. The same message replayed itself.

I ran in another direction. It happened again. Every way out of my neighborhood, I encountered the same thing.

"Give up?" Andrew asked as I walked into the house.

"A week?" I asked.

"That's my guess," Andrew nodded. I knew from talking to Andrew in the past that he worked in computer programming or something like that, but I never really paid attention to him. "Here is the kicker," he smiled as he stood up. "United States percentage," he said.

'United States. percentage at twenty two percent,' the voice said.

"It was at four percent when I came in here," Andrew said. "That's how much men have been put in here."

"There's no way," I shook my head. "We would have noticed."

"Clones," Andrew shrugged. "You thought they outlawed it but, no," Andrew shook his head. "They put it on the shelf."

"No," I said, shaking my head. "Holly would know, it wasn't me."

"Who do you think put you up for it?" Andrew smiled.

"She wouldn't do that," I shook my head.

"All of them are in on it, and if they aren't they will be," Andrew nodded. "Go home and ask to show you and you will see."

I got up and ran across the street.

"Show me," I asked.

A large monitor appeared on my wall. It was me, well, what looked like me. I was in front of a large crowd addressing the police officers.

"No, no," I shook my head.

I was telling the officers about the new V.R. technology and was applauding its work and telling them it would be coming to them soon, and they all had to try it.

"No!" I shouted.

The thought of them all being plugged into this thing.

'Would you like to watch something else?' the voice said. 'Football maybe, your Wildcats are playing a game tonight, would you like to watch that when it comes on?'

"You can't do this!" I yelled.

"We already have," another voice said.

"Holly?" I asked. It was my wife's voice. "Why?" I asked.

"Why not?" Holly replied. "This version of you is so much better, two days in a row, it has gone to Sebastian's ball games, it even sat through Cindy's violin recital without sleeping. It even slept with me and cared about my needs before its own, when was the last time you did any of that?"

"I am sorry, I know, I have been a jerk, and put my job first," I said, almost crying. "But I have learned my lesson, please stop this," I begged.

"No, when they reached out to me, I had my doubts, but after they showed me what could be, I begged them to do this for me," Holly said. "Do you hear me? I begged them."

"Holly!" I said, putting my foot down. "You end this, right now!"

"Goodbye Dalton," Holly said.

'End of call,' the voice said.

"Call, you said call," I said with a bit of excitement. "Who can I call?"

A list of names appeared on the screen. "Ha!" I smiled.

"Call Frederick," I smiled.

Frederick was one of my friends from college. He was a high-ranking official in the military.

"Dalton, please say they didn't get you, also," Frederick's voice said.

"No," I shook my head.

"Dammit," Frederick said. "Of course, they did, or you wouldn't be able to call me."

"How?" I asked.

"Who do you think they wanted to try their new training technology on first?" Frederick said.

I nodded. "The military," I shook my head.

"How many?" I asked.

"Don't know, but nearly everyone I know is on here, including some politicians," Frederick said. "With their stupid clones running things, it won't take them long to get the rest."

"The other me just told my officers to use it," I nodded.

"Well, there goes most of the police, I am sure they will do it state by state," Frederick said. "Then the civilians, then who knows what."

It was the end.

"What about them, can these clones, reproduce?" I asked.

"Take two guesses," Frederick said.

I nodded. Of course, they could or wouldn't have put us in here.

"Well, there goes golf this weekend," I said.

"You played with me last weekend?" Frederick asked.

"Yeah," I replied. "No," I shook my head. "That wasn't you?"

"Nope, I was already here," Frederick said. "You didn't notice?"

"It even had your limp and your bad game," I shook my head, remembering talking to Frederick's clone. I had no clue it wasn't him.

"Got to go, two others are calling, guess more people are coming in," Frederick said.

I walked over to Andrew's house. "So, when does it turn to night?" I asked.

"About another day or two your time," Andrew said, passing me a beer. "You will get used to it. They are still working on the kinks."

I shook my head. There was no way I would get used to this, "I am going to find a way out, watch me."

I stood up and walked towards my house.

"They have great porn, by the way!" Andrew yelled at me.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Andrew was right about one thing; they did have great porn. All I had to was think of it, and it happened.

I managed to fuck my old high school sweetheart and the busty redhead at my favorite restaurant at the same time, all while watching football on my big screen.

It had been four days by our count, and I had tried everything. Even jumping off the roof of my house, all the pain of a suicide attempt without the actual death.

Andrew and I were sitting on his porch when I saw Johnathan, my neighbor, pop out of his house.

"They got to the fire department," I nodded.

"Yup," Andrew nodded.

I watched as Johnathan searched around his house. He was probably looking for Barbara, his wife.

"Your turn," Andrew nodded.

"I guess so," I said as I slowly walked towards Johnathan's house.

I entered through the back door, and the welcome speech was just starting.

"Shut the fuck up, off!" I yelled.

'Turning off,' the voice said.

"Dalton!" Johnathan yelled at me.

He oversaw the fire department in our city and now stood in front of me as confused as I was when it first happened to me.

"Sit down," I said. "You're going to need beer for this," I said as I opened his empty fridge. I rolled my eyes at the empty shelves and closed it.

"Two Budweiser's cold," I said.

"Dalton? It's empty...." Johnathan looked at me with a crazed look as I pushed a bottle over to him.

"So, let's talk," I said as I sat down.