Touch the Sun

Minny was friendly to everyone, waving at anyone who caught her eye, yet Cole could not help but think that she was not as happy as she appeared. It was not from any hint in her demeanor, and the only explanation Cole could think of was that her eyes were not fully present. It was as if she was not fully seeing what she was looking at.

Another oddity was that after Minny had introduced herself, she had only paused to hear Cole's introduction, not giving Alyx the chance. 'She doesn't seem to know anyone's name.' Cole realized as Minny greeted a young man, without saying his name. Cole thought that Minny recognized the person, and had to wonder if she knew his name.

"I suppose you two are on a break. Do you need to get back by a certain time?" Minny suddenly asked, as if she had taken in their work uniforms for the first time. 

"You don't need to worry about that, please give us the full experience." Alyx replied. Cole expected Minny to ask a follow up question, but the woman just nodded brightly and led them past the front desk.

"Minny 0201 is open, I will give you full access." One of the receptionists looked up and shouted to Minny as she led Cole and Alyx. "Thank you." Minny responded, again ignoring the name of the receptionist.

Past the front desk there were many doors on the wall, and Minny barely paused as she picked one, ushering Cole and Alyx into a hallway. The corridor was not as well lit as the lobby, a line of light ran across the ceiling, bright enough to chase away darkness, but dim enough to encourage sleep.

The hallway was lined with doors with numbers emblazoned above them, and Minny quickly led them to 0201. After Minny tapped something onto her clipboard, the door smoothly swung open. Once inside the room, Cole's eyes were immediately drawn to the row of three beds against the wall. The beds were the only things in the otherwise barren room.

The room had matte black walls that seemed to reject the soft orange light that emanated from a crack in the ceiling. The floor and the ceiling were made of the same matte material, and the room felt like nothing more than a small box containing a few beds. It felt like a prison cell

"You guys aren't connected to the network, so you have to use these for now." Minny tapped the wall near the door, and it opened to reveal two eye masks. As Cole accepted one of the masks from Minny, it hummed to life. 

Alyx tapped his shoulder reassuringly as Cole took a second look at the mask. It was definitely not ordinary, and he had no idea how the foreign technology worked. Alyx's reassurance was enough to calm his doubts, but Cole still looked toward Minny questioningly.

"You will see in a moment." Minny flopped onto the middle bed, gesturing for Cole and Alyx to follow suit. Alyx did not hesitate, so Cole lay down, pulling the sleep mask over his eyes. As soon as his head hit the pillow, a blur of color filled his vision.

It was so overbearing that Cole started to panic, only for the color to subside, changing into the picturesque scenery of an overbearing waterfall. Cole was standing at the base of the waterfall, and he felt hints of coolness as droplets of water splashed off of the waterfall towards his face. However, he did not feel the water hit his face, and he quickly understood that he was in some sort of virtual space.

It was different from the room at the company outing because that place relied on projections and props, while an entirely virtual world had no interactions with his actual body. Even as his body lay in the bed, Cole could walk around, and he could still see, even though his eyes were closed. He was in an entirely new reality.

Cole bent down and dipped his hand in the water, confirming that he was in virtual reality. He could tell that he was touching something, and his hand felt slightly cold, but he could not feel the life in the water. His brain was telling him that he was touching something, yet his sense of touch felt dull. That was the biggest failure of virtual reality, it had never managed to fully simulate touch.

"Let's go somewhere a bit quieter." Cole turned and noticed Minny for the first time. The young woman clapped her hands, and the scene instantly shifted. The roaring waterfall faded into a deep purple sky that twinkled with countless stars. Waves of light slid through the sky, causing the purple horizon to blend into an ocean of different shades. In the distance, Cole spotted a golden planet wrapped in a soft hazy fog.

"Have a seat." Minny patted the grass beside her, and Cole sat down, realizing that he was on a small grassy hill, viewing the endless cosmos. When Alyx sat down next to Cole, he realized that the three of them were wearing new outfits. Alyx was wearing a formless white nightgown that swayed slightly under gentle breeze. Cole was also clothed in white, in the form of a simple ensemble of linen looking clothes. 

Minny had the biggest difference from her real world outfit. Gone was her comfy sweater, and in its place was a formal suit that was no less brilliant than the view around them. It sparkled with stars of its own, and swathes of rainbow colors swirled around the sleeves, blending into the body of emerald green.

"Welcome to Harbor." Minny smiled, and Cole saw a spark in her eyes that had been missing in the real world. She was finally fully present in the moment.

"What is Harbor?" Cole asked, once Minny started gazing into the sky, after she had spoken. Minny laughed gently.

"Harbor is anything you make of it." The light of the golden planet reflected in her eyes, marking her as a stroke in the painting. "But I suppose that is not a good enough answer for you." Minny took a deep breath. "There was once a woman who was not satisfied with the world given to her, and when she saw the opportunity to make a better one, she took it without hesitation. While we will never know the identity of that woman, she was the one who started Harbor." 

"Why don't you know her identity? I imagine that it is not difficult to find the engineer of this place." Cole interrupted. 

"She did not create this space, she created Harbor. And she chose not to become a figure of worship, so as to better enjoy the fruits of her labor." Minny responded.

"Harbor is not a place, Harbor is a concept that can embody anywhere outside of the ordinary world. A place where anyone can be safe, and have the opportunity to enact all of their dreams, without prejudice. Harbor can be a scene on a screen, an enticing game, a virtual space like this one, or a variety of other places. I'll say it again, Harbor is what you make of it."

Cole squinted his eyes, trying to wrap his head around Minny's words. As he tried to formulate a question that would not insult the woman, he saw Alyx smirking out of the corner of his eye. He suddenly knew that she had created their roles to force him to be the one asking the questions.

"How does Harbor have an organization?" Cole eventually asked. "We spread Harbor, and make sure that no one is kept from its grace. It is a sacrifice, but it is beautiful work to bring others into its shelter." Minny seemed at odds with reality, but Alyx spoke up before Cole had the opportunity.

"How does the organization work? Are there different ranks? How is it decided who does which job?" Minny looked at Alyx with appreciation, as if viewing a martyr who wanted to sacrifice herself for the greater good. "There are rankings in the organization, which are determined by our jobs. Higher ranking means more responsibility, and one raises their ranking if they are promoted at their place of work. What are your positions?"

"I am a contractor." Alyx said. "Baseline worker." Cole grunted. He wasn't sure if that was his actual position, but he decided to use the lowest ranking in Resource Management.

"You two are lucky, you will get to enjoy the embrace of Harbor and its community without too many responsibilities. I am a manager, so my workload here involves introductions like these." Minny looked at them wistfully, as if she wished she were a lowly employee, like Cole.

"What is Harbor's goal?" Cole asked. "We want to spread Harbor everywhere and allow people to exist solely in Harbor." Cole could not contain a shudder at Minny's response, she wanted there to be no more reality. "How can you want people to forsake the real world?"

Minny looked at Cole with pity. "Who are you to say what is real? I believe this place is real." Cole was taken aback. "But you can't touch anything here. This is just a virtual construct."

Minny looked into the purple sky, her eyes gleaming like a fading nova. "Touch the sun."