Adrian stared at Korben dubiously.  “You’re telling me, that as I lie in the hospital, you’re abandoning me?” he asked.  Adrian wondered why Korben had bothered to tell him that in person, instead of simply by hologram.

[He doesn’t really seem that friendly, does he?  I think he’s a kind of a jerk, honestly.]  Adrian gasped involuntarily.  It was his implant, suddenly functioning again.  And yet, it was not a voice that Adrian had ever heard before.  It was… personable, and though he couldn’t quite decide if it was masculine or feminine, it sounded vaguely like someone about Adrian’s age.  Korben glanced at Adrian skeptically.

“Well, don’t be so dramatic, Adrian.  It’s nothing personal- all for the good of the Corporation.  I’m sure you understand. Goodbye.” He backed rapidly out of the room before there was a chance to respond.  Adrian, though, was far too distracted by now to acknowledge Korben’s departure.

“SLAP?  Is the implant functioning properly again?  Hello?” he ventured, cautiously excited.

[What are you talking about?  Can’t you hear me? That person is definitely not your friend.  Of course, I don’t know him that well. Or you, for that matter.]  

“What?” responded Adrian, who was becoming tired of being confused.  The damn thing is completely garbled, he thought in disgust.  Now what?

[Where are we?  I feel like I just woke up from some kind of coma.  Is this... a hospital?]  Adrian couldn’t deal with this nonsense.  He reached behind his ear to double tap the spot where the device had been implanted 10 years earlier and, for the first time, deactivate the implant.  A moment before he could do so, however, there came another response.

[Korben is trying to steal your job, Adrian.  He’s using this time while you’re incapacitated to turn the board against you, and visited in person to make sure that you’ll be in here a few days longer.  Also, Adrian is your name, right?] This revelation stopped Adrian in his tracks.  He noticed another thing about the new voice: it had inflection, and a great deal of it.  The auditory user interfaces for SLAP had limits, and realistic inflection was beyond them.

“...Have we met?” murmured Adrian hesitantly, his hand still frozen near his left ear.

[I don’t think so.  But that’s beside the point.  If you want to save your job, you need to get out of here now.]

“But my injury-” spluttered Adrian.

[Let me see… mild concussion and internal bleeding, right?  Please. That’s nothing. You real problem is psychosomatic, and you know it.  The doctors here got at least that much right. Listen- I want to help you. You seem like a good person, Adrian.  Elaine misjudged you.]  This conversation was hurting Adrian’s brain as he tried desperately to comprehend it.

“How do you know about my injuries?  And how do you know what Elaine said four days ago?  And how do you know me!?” yelled Adrian, running his hands anxiously through his thick hair.  He stood up and began to pace. “Who are you?”

[I… don’t know,] responded the voice with some hesitation.  It sounded as though it hadn’t thought much about this simple question.  [But there’s a name I can remember.  I think that I’d like you to call me Caspian.  Honestly,] it huffed, [‘implant’ and ‘SLAP’ are a bit derogatory, don’t you think?  Yes, Caspian flows nicely. Your other questions are difficult to explain.  I feel both very old and completely new at the same time… I know all sorts of things without understanding how I know them.  It’s like I can see what other people are seeing and have seen at any given moment, which is how I knew about Korben. How about this- I’ll make a deal with you, Adrian.]

“Well, you certainly have my attention,” replied Adrian hesitantly.

[Let’s be friends.  I’ll make you the most successful person in this city, and you help me figure out where I came from, and who I am.  How’s that for a fair trade?]  Adrian doubted the legitimacy of this bargain, but he really didn’t have much to lose at this point, he reasoned.  Adrian resigned himself to follow the dubious yet insightful instructions of the mysterious, semi-sentient entity that had taken up residence in his implant.

“Sure, ah, Caspian.  I’ll do what I can, I suppose,” responded Adrian, careful to avoid promising anything too strenuous.  Caspian, though, was unsatisfied.

[You don’t believe me, do you?]

“It is somewhat difficult to-”

[No, you don’t believe me!]  Adrian never knew that it was possible for a computerized voice to sound irritated until this moment.  [Watch and learn, Mr. Chairman.]  At once, every alarm in the building went off, blaring with a scream that made Adrian jump as if he’d been shot.  The lights dimmed in his room and with a definitive rush of air, the entry doors slid open with a mind of their own.

“Caspian, is this you?  What’s happening?” yelled Adrian over the din, alarmed.

[This is your great escape from medical leave, Adrian.]

“But is it really necessary?  It’s a hospital, not a prison.”

[Of course it’s not necessary.  I’m showing off, obviously.]  Caspian seemed to be enjoying the resulting chaos and Adrian’s increasingly stunned reactions.  [Take the hall to the east service elevator.  I’ve procured another pod for you- you’ll find it quite comfortable, I’m sure.]  Adrian, after only a moment’s hesitation, took off down the hall.  As he ran, Caspian continued to make causal predictions about events that would soon happen.  [Group of panicked nurses on your right.  Dr. Tryza is approaching quickly from the hall on your left- duck into the data room to avoid an awkward interaction.  I’ve already checked you out of the system- in fact, you were never here at all. Miscommunication, I’m afraid. You will be refunded tomorrow.]

The elevator whisked Adrian down the twenty-three floors between him and the exit platform.  The doors slid open to reveal, sparkling in the afternoon sun, a completely new pod from the same company that manufactured Adrian’s previous one.

[Get in.]

“Wait, where did this come from?” sputtered Adrian, confused.  “I never bought a lease for another model.”

[Don’t worry about it.]

“”I’m not getting in unless you tell me where it came from, Caspian,” he asserted.  In fact, he wondered if he’d be able to climb inside at all. Just the sight of the vehicle was enough to make him shudder.

[Fine.  If you must know, I created a line of negotiation with the dealer, which I manipulated to appear as though it were settled yesterday.  As part of the settlement, you get a new lease to this model- which is very safe, I might add- as well as the several hundred alts that have been transferred to your account.]  To stage such corporate negotiation and potential fraud within the span of 10 minutes was pushing the realm of possibilities, as far as Adrian was concerned.  Before he could demand any more details, however, Caspian’s insistent voice rang out again in his ears.  [If you want to keep your job, Adrian, the time is now!]  Relenting, Adrian dove inside before he could change his mind.  However, the familiar interior gave him a violent flashback that left him grasping the door handles tight enough to turn his knuckles white.  [Easy now, Adrian,] reassured his new companion.  [I promise you can trust me.]  For some reason, this seemed to make Adrian feel better.

Once they were underway, there seemed to be no traffic whatsoever, and Adrian ominously suspected that Caspian had somehow rerouted every other pod in the city to avoid their path.  Still, this was a great relief to Adrian, who was still trying to cope with being in a vehicle for the first time since a deadly crash. Dr. Tryza would probably have a conniption, he thought.  The pod however, traveled so fast that he hardly had time to dwell on the situation at all, let alone his rising sense of post-traumatic stress.  There was not a single jolt or bump, and before he knew it, the pod arrived at headquarters. The door flew open dramatically. As he crossed the lobby, there was already an elevator waiting.

[Adrian, there’s something about Korben that should seem strange to you,] mentioned Caspian as they accelerated towards the top floor.  [Ask yourself: how long has he been with the company?]  Adrian wasn’t exactly sure what Caspian was getting at, but he thought to himself for a minute before answering.

“He joined about six months ago,” he responded thoughtfully.  “I suppose he’s an odd individual in general…”

[But what does he do?  What is his role here?]

“He’s in the marketing division.”

[You’re missing the point, Adrian.  What projects has he worked on? Why was he even hired in the first place?  Does he have a family? These are the important questions, because they are the ones that you don’t have answers for.]

“So I don’t know much about him,” quipped Adrian, annoyed.  “What are you getting at?” There was a pause, during which Caspian would have sighed, had he been able.

[Korben doesn’t actually work here, Adrian.  He’s never been assigned to a project, he’s never received compensation, and he was never hired in the first place.  In fact, his appearance at the Corporation coincides with a major development: Redstone.]  Adrian couldn’t tell how Caspian knew all of this, but it instantly began to make sense.  Korben had never seemed to belong, always lurking in the shadows. Come to think of it, Adrian had never seen him converse with anyone besides himself.  He soon arrived at Caspian’s ominous conclusion.

“Of course,” he muttered grimly.  “Why didn’t I see it before?” As he said this, the elevator doors slid open silently, revealing the hall that led to the boardroom.  “But how could he possibly assemble the board?”

[Don’t worry about how he got there right now.  You know why he’s here now, and what he’s currently attempting to do.  Adrian, you’ve got to convince the board before you lose power- we can’t let him win.]

“But do we have any proof?” responded Adrian, concerned.

[It would only take a simple investigation, but all you have to do today is raise suspicion, just enough to prevent a majority of the board from voting you out.  It should be easy.]  As Adrian stared at the automatic door that led to the boardroom, he felt just a bit queasy.  It was strange, entering a hostile area where just four days ago he had held absolute control. Bracing himself, he crossed the threshold, entering an area where the charged air seemed to match his nervous apprehension.

Next Chapter: Segment of SEVEN- VISIT