Memories(?)

[ABAlice]

It's been a long time since I tried any creative writing but thought I would give it a go, appreciate any comments / feedback on what I have written so far. The ABDL part doesn't start to show itself until chapter 2.

The image doesn't quite capture the story but I can't draw so was just trying to get something from an AI that somewhat fitted the story.

 

 Chapter 1 - Welcome to ARC

As Michael surveyed his surroundings, he began to think this might not be such a nightmare after all.

It had all started a month ago, on a rainy Saturday morning. A hungover Michael had been lying in bed going through his emails, he came across something entirely out of the ordinary. 

An email from ARC Education notified Michael that he failed to turn up for an exam five years ago while studying for his undergraduate degree. It went on to state that because of this, he did not have enough credits for his degree, which was now considered null and void, and that he should contact ARC Immediately. 

Michael's heart hammered against his ribs as he stared at the email. His hands trembled as he scrolled back and forth, rereading the message that threatened to unravel his entire life. His mind raced with worst-case scenarios: losing his job, facing humiliation, and being labeled a fraud. Each possibility felt like a crushing weight on his chest, suffocating him with dread. He paced back and forth in his dimly lit bedroom, his thoughts spiraling into a chaotic whirlwind of fear and uncertainty. He needed to talk to someone to make sense of this nightmare before it consumed him entirely.

Luckily, Amanda picked up the phone on the second attempt. 

"Michael?" Amanda's voice crackled through the phone, bearing the remnants of a night that seemed to have treated her as unkindly as it had him.

Michael rushed to unload the contents of the email to her, his words tumbling over each other in haste. But before he could finish, Amanda's voice sliced through the air with a sharpness that snapped him to attention.

"Michael," she said firmly, "it seems like you may have had too much to drink last night and are mistaking a dream for reality. Rest, and we can discuss it again in a few hours."

"It's not a dream," Michael insisted before Amanda could disconnect the call. "I'm forwarding you the email right now."

Amanda fell into a thoughtful silence as she perused the email. When she finally spoke again, her tone had softened, laced now with concern. "This seems too coherent to be spam."

Michael held his breath, the weight of uncertainty pressing down on him.

"I don't recall you ever missing an exam," Amanda mused, her words slow and deliberate. "But considering we didn't share all the same classes and had a knack for skipping lectures, it's plausible."

She paused and exhaled heavily. "Like I said before, it sounds like a bad dream, but maybe this does happen from time to time, and that's where people get the idea from," she said. 

Amanda paused again and then took a deep breath, her voice now confident. "But you would never have graduated if you had missed an exam, and the university would inform you directly if there were some kind of issue."

All the anxiety seemed to lift from Michael as he heard these words: "So you're saying I can ignore this?"

"Well," Amanda said, concern returning to her tone. “There wouldn't be any harm in getting in touch with the University to be sure; if there is anything to this, they would have had to be the ones to inform this other company." 

The dread returned to Michael, but Amanda's plan was sensible. He made her promise to keep this to herself before wishing her luck with her hangover and hanging up to call the University. 

Michael found the University's website, which he noted had changed dramatically since he had last seen it, and rang the examination office. Given that it was the weekend, he was surprised that someone picked up the phone, but after the third time being put on hold, his fears were confirmed. The examination office stated that while reviewing their records, they had come across a missing examination grade, and after an internal investigation, they had been forced to invalidate his grade. However, they decided to pass the situation on to ARC, a private research company that may be able to resolve the issue. 

Any lingering hangover Michael had was now well and truly gone. He only felt panic and wanted nothing more than to find a place to hide and forget this was happening. 

So it surprised Michael when he found he had typed in the number for ARC on his phone and hit the call button. 

————

An hour later, Michaels mood couldn't have been more different from when he had first opened the email despite the fundamental situation remaining unchanged. 

The lady on the other end of the phone understood his situation. She had been quick to point out that it was the University's mistake as well, given that they had awarded him the degree. It was in everyone's interest to resolve the situation quickly and discreetly. 

She presented Michael with two options: the first was to spend a semester back at the University, retake the module, and then sit the exam he had missed with the other students. The second option was that ARC, a research organization, would use its resources to put him on a two-week sprint program to cover the material and exam at its expense in exchange for Michael's assistance with its research on memory.

Option one wasn't an option at all for Michael. It would mean stepping away from his life and job, adding to his already immense student debt and the embarrassment of everyone knowing his situation. 

While the lady on the phone had recommended he take a few days to think about it, Michael accepted option two immediately. He knew he would have no issue getting the time off work; his boss had been encouraging everyone on the team to take a vacation while the office was quiet anyway. Most importantly, this meant that nobody would find out what had happened.

Michael called Amanda back later in the day to tell her it had all been a scam and there was nothing to worry about, to which she was greatly relieved (clearly, she hadn't been able to convince herself that Michael hadn't been foolish enough to miss an exam).

Over the next month, Michael had a few conversations with the lady from ARC. She explained that he would live at their state-of-the-art headquarters during the program, with all meals and amenities covered by the company. Then, after he had signed several confidentiality agreements, the nature of the research was also outlined to him, and it seemed genuinely exciting. 

So, as Michael stood in the ARC lobby, he was almost looking forward to the two weeks ahead. 

The lady from ARC (who it turned out was called Rachel) met him at reception, gave him his schedule for the next few days, and then took him on a tour of the facility. 

 

Monday Morning: Orientation Afternoon: ARC. Research

Tuesday Morning: Lesson 1 Afternoon: ARC. Research

Wednesday Morning: Lesson 2 Afternoon: Practise Assignment 

 

Chapter 2 - Memories?

When Michael first heard Rachel's voice on the phone, he assumed she was much older than him due to her smooth, caring tone. She also exhibited a high level of intelligence that suggested she had been working in her research field for a lifetime. However, Michael couldn't have been more mistaken. Rachel was around the same age as him, dressed professionally in a black suit, with her long blond hair tied up in a ponytail.

Rachel took Michael on a tour of the facility and he was amazed that not only did she know everyone by name, she was also just as knowledgeable about their research as her own. Her small ideas always brightened the mood of her colleagues, leaving them excited to try something new.

The headquarters itself was unlike anything Michael had ever seen before. Rachel began by taking him to the room he would stay in, which was much bigger than his apartment. It featured a king-size bed, a huge TV, and a separate office for his studies.

Following this, Rachel showed him around some of the workstations, where almost all the walls were made of glass panels, except for a few offices that senior management used for confidential meetings. This design made everything feel more light and open. All the computers looked brand new, with some workstations featuring VR headsets and access to supercomputers for complex processing.

It was a lot to take in, but the best part was when Rachel led him into what she called the canteen. Canteen certainly wasn't the word Michael would use; the place was set out like a fancy restaurant, with a few of Rachel's colleagues already seated and eating anything from steak to Lobster. 

Michael was new to such high-quality food, so he ordered as much as he thought would be polite. Still, he couldn't help but think about returning later by himself to indulge in every dish the place had to offer.

After treating himself to a second dessert, Michael was taken to the research area, his home, for the next few weeks. This room was simple and plain, unlike the glass-encased offices he had seen earlier. The walls were white, with little to no distractions, except for a large window that revealed a computer-filled room. The centre of the room had a solitary chair that reminded Michael of a dentists chair, with its frame entwined with cables that disappeared into the adjacent room through the window.

Rachel led Michael towards the chair and began running through what they had already discussed on the phone. ARC had been working on state-of-the-art technology that allowed people to experience their memories as though they were happening to them again. She explained that it was similar to seeing a memory in a dream. They hoped that one day, anyone could relive any memory they wanted at the touch of a button, but there was much more research to do before they got to that stage. 

Because Michael couldn't remember missing an exam, he would also be a test case to see if they could locate missing memories in a person. This might mean that, eventually, the technology could help people with Amnesia. 

Rachel left the room after getting Michael seated and attaching some cables to his temples. She reappeared in the adjoining room dressed in a lab coat alongside another younger-looking colleague. 

"Michael, this is Luke. He is going to be helping me out for the next two weeks. It's his first day here, a bit like you I guess, so you will both be learning more about our research as we go along." 

Luke was younger than Michael and looked like he had just graduated from school. Having only spoken to Rachel about the research, Michael was a little uncomfortable with having someone else there. Then he then remembered the creme brûlée he had just eaten and realized a little discomfort was worth the price. 

"Well, we have a lot to cover, so let's get started," Rachel said. "Today, we'll mostly be calibrating the machine with you, Michael. If you could start by closing your eyes, we'll dim the lights and begin." 

Michael closed his eyes as the room darkened, and Rachel's voice returned to the room before he could think about what was to come.

"To calibrate the machine, we need to give it a spectrum of your memories. We like to keep it simple, so first, let's try your most recent memory, and then we can try your oldest memory to see how they compare. "So, for your most recent memory, all I need you to do is picture yourself walking into the room with me and sitting in the chair." 

Michael was surprised at what Rachel had asked him to do. He knew nothing about how this would work but he had expected a lengthy induction process, potentially even hypnosis, to get him into a specific state of mind to experience his memories. He began to consider whether the research was anything more than a fantasy of Rachel's and not the miracle she had discussed. 

But he trusted Rachel and was there to do a job, so he decided to see what would happen if he thought of himself simply walking into the room. Immediately, there was a flash of blinding white light and a slight pinch coming from whatever had been attached to the side of his temples. When the light faded, Michael found himself being led back into the room by Rachel, just as he had done a few moments before. 

He was back viewing the world from his former self's perspective. He realized he couldn't control his limbs or even choose where to look. It was like he was a second version of himself watching the original version play out a scene. 

He could focus on certain parts of the memory, the way Rachel's hair moved as she led him towards the chair or the taste of dessert still lingering in his mouth. 

Part of him had expected to be able to freeze the memory in place if he focused hard enough, but events played out just as they had. As Michael looked to see Rachel and Luke enter the other room, the blinding white light returned. When it faded, Michael was back in the room. 

"Is that really how my hair looks from the back?" Rachel's said, sounding alarmed. 

"You can see that!" Michael exclaimed, turning to face Rachel and Luke, who were removing what looked like VR headsets and placing them on the table. 

'Well, it's not quite as vivid for us as it is for you, but yeah, we can see what you see, and the computers even give us some readouts to indicate how you are feeling". 

"Can you look at all of my memories with that thing?" Michael asked, suddenly fearful of what they might be able to see. 

Rachel reassured him, "No, we can only see the memory you are focusing on at that time. And if you are worried about confidentiality, don't be. I signed the same confidentiality agreements as you did."

Michael wasn't entirely reassured, but he started to think about everything this technology could do. He could live out the highlights of his life whenever he wanted, even revisit conversations with relatives who had passed away. On top of that, it wouldn't matter that he lived in a small apartment if he could relive the memory of himself lying on a beach in Thailand whenever he wanted. 

Rachel's voice once again brought Michael back from his thoughts. "Now Michael, that first one was simple, partly because it was so recent and partly because I was there so I recognized what was happening. If you remember, I said we need to calibrate the machine, so now we need to look at your first memory, which may be much more difficult. Can you describe your first real memory for me?"

Michael started explaining a time when he was four and had fallen off a swing at the park. He had half expected to see the flash of white light and be there when Rachel began speaking. "If I am being honest, Michael, that sounds like what someone has told you happened rather than an actual memory of your own. Can you try to think of your first actual memory for me?"

While he was annoyed at being told his memory wasn't his, he had to admit that he couldn't remember how it had felt to fall off the swing, and there had been a picture of him at the park at his parent's house growing up. He spent a few minutes racking his brain before saying, "Well, I am not sure it's the sort of thing you're looking for, but I have a small flash of a memory of being sat on the carpet at school while the teacher read a book to us, I was probably about seven."

"That sounds perfect. Now, all you need to do is close your eyes and concentrate on what you remember, be it the feel of the carpet beneath you or the sound of your teacher's voice." 

Michael did as he was told, and after a few moments, there was a flash of light and a jolt at his temples. This time, when the light faded, Michael was genuinely amazed. 

He was inside a much smaller version of himself looking up at his teacher, Mrs Stone, a woman he hadn't thought about in nearly twenty years, yet there she was. She looked about the same age as Michael was now (yet the younger brain he was currently inhabiting thought of her as old), with her long, messy brown hair and oversized glasses. 

She was reading to the class, and Michael suddenly realized how safe he felt sitting there and the awe at the story. He wanted nothing more than to listen to what would happen to the brave mouse Mrs Stone was telling them about, but the adult Michael was also busy trying to take in the memory and his surroundings. 

He was sitting on an old grey carpet with his legs crossed, wearing his school uniform—a polo shirt and shorts—like all the other boys. 

The walls were decorated with brightly colored pieces of work that he and his classmates had worked so hard on. The room was filled with small tables and chairs that were made for someone of his size. 

At the back of the room, he could see his beloved backpack, which was a brilliant shade of blue with a giant dinosaur embossed on it. He felt a sense of pride wash over him at the sight of the backpack. The dinosaur on it was the biggest one he knew of, a T-Rex. 

Before he could take it all in, he was once again presented with the white flash and returned to the present, completely stunned by what he had seen. 

"Holy Shit," Michael exclaimed. "Did you see that? It was like I was seven years old again?"

Rachel still seemed to have the headset on and offered no immediate response. 

Unlike before, the pinching at his temples continued even after leaving the memory. He started to reach up to see if he could adjust them when Rachel finally spoke. 

"Unfortunately, that didn't seem to work quite so well on our end," her voice not filled with the same excitement as before. "I think we saw a bit of the classroom, but everything was so blurry I couldn't make anything out."

"As I said, the older memories are more difficult, but they are important to ensure we can calibrate the system. Please stay where you are and give us a few more minutes while we make some adjustments. Then, let's try it again."

Michael wanted to mention the painful sensation, but Rachel had said to stay put, and it wasn't so bad anyway. 

After a few minutes, Rachel invited him to try again and warned him there might be a bit more pain this time as the system needed to work harder to ensure they could access the older memories. 

Michael once again closed his eyes, and after a few moments, a white light and a significant amount of pain in his temples, he was back in the classroom. 

While the memory appeared the same as it had before, as Michael looked toward his teacher, he could still feel a slight pain inside his tiny head. 

He listened to his teacher before taking in the room around him as he had done before. 

The boys were all dressed in polo shirts and shorts, and the girls in dresses with checked patterns. He looked down to admire his uniform. The school dress wasn't his favorite, but at least it was comfortable, much like his diaper which he felt rustling between his legs. 

Again, his eyes looked around the room at the various creations he and his classmates had made before coming to rest on his beloved backpack. It was easy to make out from the small pile at the back of the room. It was the perfect shade of pink with the image of the most beautiful princess wearing a white dress on the front. 

He began to look back towards the teacher as she continued her story as the white light flashed. This time the light seemed to linger for much longer, but he couldn't tell if it had been a few seconds or a few minutes. 

When his senses returned Michael jumped out of the seat, the device attached to him falling away as he did and turned towards Rachel, who was still taking off her headset. "Did you see that?" he said with a mixture of panic and embarrassment. 

Rachel saw Michaels's panic but looked confused. "Yes, we saw it," she said, "and it worked perfectly that time. Was there a problem on your side?"

"The problem is that," Michael began, but he couldn't think what he would say. 

"Oh," Rachel said, shaking her head as though she finally understood something obvious. If you're embarrassed at what you wore to school that day, don't be. Believe me, I have seen so many early memories, and most boys want to see what it's like to wear a dress one day, and most girls want to dress up like a boy for a day. And if it's the other thing, then remember, kids of all ages have trouble with that stuff and relapse from time to time. 

Michael was partially reassured, but something still felt very strange. He knew the memory was his; it was his earliest real memory, but he had never understood why he had worn a dress to school that day or what accident had led to him needing to wear a diaper. 

Rachel didn't seem impacted by what she saw. "Well, I think that was a great success," she chirped. "I am sure you would like to do some more. I know I would love to keep going, but it's day one, and it's important we don't push ourselves too hard here. After all, you are not just here to help us with this; you must study tomorrow." 

 

Chapter 3 - ARC

As Michael left the room, Luke turned to Rachel, who had begun rapidly typing up notes from their session. 

Luke had recently graduated with an MBA in psychology, specializing in the workings of human memory. Despite this and having been extensively briefed on the work being done at the facility, he was astonished by what he had just witnessed. With barely any work, they had successfully rewritten a person's memory, with the subject being none the wiser. 

"Impressive, isn't it," Rachel said, looking up from her note-taking. "We didn't create any brand new memories today, but two out of three isn't bad." 

The three Rachel referred to were the foundations of what she was creating. The machine could alter existing memories and make brand-new ones. This was the A and the C in ARC, addition and change, the ordering of the letters didn’t make logical sense, but someone in corporate clearly thought it sounded cool.

Alongside changing Michaels memory, Rachel had run a process called reverberation. Reverberation allowed the mind to re-process any new or altered memories so the patient would accept them. If, for example, someone's memory was changed so that their first memory of their first car was green instead of black, their subsequent memories would be altered to accept this and so they always thought of the car as green.

Having gone back to such an early memory showed how far the system had come. From Luke's reading, when the first tests had been done, it was almost impossible for the mind to accept anything from more than a few months prior, as the impact on other memories would cause too much of a disconnect for the participant. 

This was Rachel’s masterpiece and while the potential of the technology filled Luke with wonder, it also filled him with fear. Changing one persons memories for science was one thing, but if everyone on earth had a headset to view their memories and a corporation (or a government) had the capability to make changes to those memories, the implications were potentially disastrous.

"How much will his memories change? Will he think he always wore a dress and a diaper to school?" Luke asked, his understanding of the process still in its infancy. 

"No, I kept the impact of the change minimal this time. To him, it will be an embarrassing moment that he never spoke about to anyone," Rachel said matter-of-factly. "We need to make a few more changes before we allow that memory to change him more substantially, but he won't forget how comfortable that special underwear felt," she said with a wry smile. 

The way Rachel described it was as if it was all so obvious. Luke had always thought of himself as intelligent, yet despite her being only a few years his senior and his studies, it was like he was a five year old trying to figure out how nuclear fission worked. "What do you need me to do?" he asked, trying to push away the feeling that there was nothing he could do that she couldn’t do a million times better. 

She looked at him "It's your first day, Luke. For the next few months, I don't need you to do anything more than observe and study what we are doing and maybe write a few reports. If you can study the logs of what we changed between the two memories and look through the reverberation file, that will be enough for now." 

Luke took his seat and opened the output files on his computer, but before he started reading, he asked, "Isn't it too much of a contradiction for him to have played out the same memory twice?"

Rachel smiled. "He will remember both memories being the same, and tonight he will sleep, which will allow his mind to embed the altered memory further, and then we can start to have some fun."