The door closed behind him, and the chamber within appeared exactly as it had been described in Old EAA's records. An interface it was, seamless and perfectly spherical, upheld by forces that could not be perceived. The chamber had an indigo glow, cycling and modulating in response to Isaac's unique QCD Perturbation signature.
A synthetic, genderless voice stirred within the chamber.
"Signature identified: Subject: Student 137: Isaac Mun."
Out of a now-existing slit in the wall, electrode probes and coils presented themselves. Instantly, a section of the chamber lit up, showcasing a demonstration tutorial on placing the apparatuses.
"Carefully follow the instructions, ensuring measuring instruments are fitted properly."
Isaac watched and imitated the subject. He had to improvise quite a fair bit, seeing as his body was famished compared to the skinniest of tutorial demonstrators. Once fully fitted, he could precisely feel certain areas, or even certain neurons, of his brain tingling.
"If you have felt a tingling sensation in areas of your body, you have fitted the measuring instruments properly. If not, repeat the fitting process until the above condition is satisfied."
Now linked up, when Isaac breathed, it seemed to breathe with him. When he thought, the indigo glow wavered, as though analyzing and extrapolating the shape of his mind. Inferring, perhaps, the entire chamber was a scientific experiment capable of parsing quark-level interactions without disrupting their integrity, every centimeter of the surface pulsing with SU(2)ₜ frequencies.
"If all is ready, allow us to commence Test 1, wherein utilization of surface interferometry and the cranial relay coil allows determination of boundary transmission coefficient (𝜿∂). Following this, a set of mild pulses directed towards your peripheral (P) and cranial (C) electrode probes will be fired to determine your active PTau-9 (Nₚ) and CTau-9 (N꜀) receptor count. Permitted?"
"Permitted. Begin."
On the command, Isaac felt goosebumps across his entire body, as an unexplainable force traveled through and fro, from head to toe. It was incredibly uncanny for the Human Isaac, as if a finger was somehow tracing the insides of his body.
Ew… I'm getting molested…
Test 1 lasted for 1 minute, a relatively short duration compared to the mean of students.
"Analysis complete. Results will be provided at the end of your session. Commencing Test 2. Allow us to explain the mechanism by which you will perform the following test in clinical detail beyond your textbooks.
You must hold an intended outcome as a goal state with high precision, low doubt, which sets Sₑₙₜ, scaling how much of the neural effort biases the Thaumiton's isospin direction nₐ. You must run a trained theta–gamma sequence, usually scaffolded by an incantation, where each gamma-cycle item corresponds to one element of a stored pattern. The sequence drives calcium-dependent gating of the Tau-9 receptors, whose phosphorylation landscape was sculpted by the years of your life, so that each receptor cluster takes a specific conformational state and phase φᵢ.
Together, the clusters form a Source, the bio-current J^μ₍τ₉₎, and through the interaction term g₍τ₉₎ J^μ₍τ₉₎ Aᵃ₍μ,ₜ₎ nₐ, that phase mask sets the boundary condition on the phase of the T-BEC. The mask fixes a target winding number 𝒲, the condensate relaxes to that topology under its own Gross–Pitaevskii dynamics, and the resulting configuration is the Clause-Construct.
In-Threading then pumps energy into that configuration as ΔE ≈ ω Ψₜ gₜ N₍τ₉₎ Sₑₙₜ, and the condensate's amplitude sets 𝒩ₚ, which reweights outcomes in proportion to exp(α𝒩ₚIᵢ). The Thaumiton responds only to the spatiotemporal pattern, so the thought acts as the command because it is a reproducible neural sequence; a wrong pattern closes the wrong winding and produces backslash.
Understood?"
What the fuck… I don't give a shit.
"Understood."
"Right. Please begin In-Threading and focus on inducing SU(2)ₜ isopin-topology upon your frequently used neural tissues. Allowing us to apply an Out-Threaded Thaumitonic Field (Ψₒ), we name Anchor Load and measure your Coherence Time (𝛕꜀). Permitted?"
"Permitted. Begin."
"Applying 0~20%"
At the base of his skull, a numbing sensation started spreading as though invisible threads were being layered slowly onto his pre-existing mental load. Isaac really felt as if a virtual load was seeding itself inside his consciousness, thoughts vivid and fragmenting.
"Applying 20~40%"
The Thaumitonic Field continued to induce an overwhelming sensation of multiple realities converging on him. Isaac prepared for the above and had already begun counting sheep in seconds, yet even that felt like time was distorted.
Fuck… What am I doing here?
Argh… "Applying 40~60%" Ow ow ow… My head.
By the third minute, an intense pressure was building behind his eyes, not instantaneous, like his eyes were bursting. Yet still, an extremely disorienting pain. Isaac was slowly losing his sense of self; whether he was Isaac Mun of the present, Isaac Wong of the past, or even his Comatic Id, Ego, and Super Ego, began slipping from him.
He reached out. He began to slam against what he thought was the wall.
"Applying 60~80%"
"Please!" A slam. "Don't leave me here!" He began coughing. "Please!" Frantic slamming. "PLEASE!" His knuckles were bruising. "Help me!"
.
.
.
Gasp.
Gasp.
Gasp.
Before it abruptly vanished, leaving him momentarily stunned as he awoke from his slumber.
"Hah… Hah… Hah…"
Never again… Never again…
"Analysis complete. Test 2 has been halted at 66.26%; any higher and the student would have undergone Synaptic Overdrive Syndrome and dissociated completely. As the automated system, we advise you to continue testing another day, on top of retaking Test 2. The maximum load you withstood is far below the average across our database. If you choose to end the session now, complete results and analytics will be provided. If you so choose to continue the session, we must inform you that the predicted κ Coherence Value will fall well below the baseline requirement for an Δ-type TM."
What a fucking joke I am…
Hah… Still…
"I accept your advice. However, I would like to know the logistics of Test 3, so that I may be prepared for the secondary session."
"An extremely valid concern. We are happy to explain. Test 3 is similar to Test 2 in the sense that we apply Anchor Load at each TM configuration's load-bearing sites, in turn: tendon and joint sites for Σ, cortical sites for Ψ, each pair for Δ, and the full array for ζ. The difference from Test 2 is that we request that you deter your body of SU(2)ₜ isopin-topology by way of Out-Threading a Thaumitonic Field of your own. In that way, we can analyze the effects of a Topological Matrix on your body."
AI prose is still AI prose even in a high-tech society.
Funny…
"Hah… I see… Thank you."
"You are most welcome. Would you like to end the sess—"
"No. In fact, could I try 'the full array for ζ' in Test 3?"
"We strongly advise you not to. As we determine that your chance of success is varied around 0.1 to 1%."
"I like those odds."
"Very well. Out of duty's line, we are pleased to see another student step up to the challenge with the odds against them. More is needed of your spirit. Back on track, you have been granted the standard break between Test 2 and 3 of 7.5 minutes; and an additional 1,5 minutes can be granted if you feel unwell. We do recommend you accept it. Please recuperate."
.
.
.
"The 7.5 minutes have lapsed; would you like to spend another 1.5 minutes to rest?"
"Not needed."
"Understood. Lastly, allow us to wish: May Probability's Scales Tilt in your Favour; As Causality Acquiesces, bending to the Virtue of your Endeavours. May your Resolve Remain Unshaken, and your Aspirations Find Their Fulfilment."
"?" He stared. "Thank you?"
"Announce your willingness to begin, and Out-Thread your Thaumitonic Field. Student 137: Isaac Mun: Are you ready to begin?"
"Yes. I am. Begin." Under his breath, "Topological Anchor V2: Activate."
In the depths of his mind, a more aggressive, hateful thought flared. Bringing his palms together and squeezing shut, the above was inundated as a manifold with no mathematics was spread.
| Attribute: 'I Hate Therefore I Think, I Think Therefore I.M' Activated |
As a man… No… As a Human… I will not let these people's odds define me!
C'mon!
Let's go—
Something unseen drew him into perfect coherence with the room. Iron and ozone rose faintly, touching his tongue. What he was seeing was a violation of reality, which was slowly being tainted red.
He chose to refuse it. In all his intellect, Isaac could not fathom the sheer complexity of imagery that was around him. His mind was too fixated on the rigidity of math to grasp the expanse of 'art'.
He was standing on rippling hot white plasma.
It definitely was painful, but he did not suffer any burns.
Perhaps all this was a mental conjuration to help bear the load of his exhaustion.
Or maybe this was a dream; there was no way for him to tell at the moment.
Because the 'art' laid in front of him was the stars as far as the eye could see.
Isaac stood on the surface of a white dwarf, staring into the infinite universe above. Redshift dictates that the light from the furthest ends of the world becomes invisible to the naked eye. Isaac realized that what he saw was the very light of stars formed in the beginning and end times.
He tried to override it with Topological Anchor's Binary, attempting to learn all that there was.
Idiocracy.
The 1s and 0s boundlessly grew.
What was green and what were numbers soon became inane.
Indistinguishable.
So trivial that all returned to white except himself.
What a foolish action it was, driven by egoistic hate.
Who was he to match the superiority of the world?
He was sure at this rate.
Isaac Mun of the New EAA.
Is definitely.
Dead.
.
.
.
Because this is a sight he had seen once.
All those years ago.
When he was in a deathly state, between the hospital and his childish imagination.
And yet.
He had seen it once more.
Where?
Where was such a nostalgic sight from?
Ah…
He opened his mouth, no words coming out.
His lifeline. How he chose to live.
The words he was uttering were clear.
That's where he saw this white.
And BLACK.
| With Three Attributes combined, here lies a Play in a World that does not exist. |
"Theater of Loci: Activate."