The Art of Skydancing

Alex reeled in disgust as he looked out the window of his e-taxi at what sub-level eight had come to refer to as Sim Street. The street was full of virtual clubs with projections of gorgeous landscapes and various scenery advertised on its windows. Simulated reality chambers lined the sidewalks like vending machines with signs like “Experience the seven wonders of the world here for the low price of $50!” and “Wonder what having a family is like? Step in now to find out!” The lack of seeing the outside world for the past few years had opened up a market for simulated experiences of what life was like before the bombs dropped. America had been secretly building deep subterranean cities since the first threat of the atomic bomb, and on April 6th, 2117 they proved their use when Russia launched the first ever nuclear strike on the United States. This of course set off multiple retaliations world-wide, simultaneously starting and ending WWIII over-night.

Alex hated everything about Sim Street. He knew the realism these places were supposedly capable of achieving would just make his grief for the outside world even worse. Sadly it was the only spot he could find a job listing within a relatively close distance of his dormitory. The place he was looking for was called the Mile High Club. Ironically enough they weren’t even one of the more intimate clubs. He just knew it was a dance club of sorts that was looking for a new doorman. He was good at being a bouncer. School was never his strong suit but he took care of himself fairly well physically and was good at diffusing situations with a glare.

He finally saw a big holographic sign of a plane with a fairly suggestive flight attendant serving drinks and the letters MHC on her shirt and figured this must be the place. He went through the revolving door, turned left, made eye contact with the woman working the front desk, and immediately found that breathing had become more of a labor than a basic reflex. “Just one wristband sweetie?” she asked him. Her southern accent was honey to the ears. “She thinks you’re here to go dancing stupid , say something,” he thought to himself after realizing he had been staring. “Uh- I’m here for an interview. My name is Alex Waller.” She clicked her mouse a few times. “Ok honey just head down there and it's the second door on the right,” she said as she smiled and pointed down the hall behind her. “Thanks uh-” Alex stumbled. She giggled. “Kyra.”

-

“Well did ya knock em’ dead?” Kyra asked as Alex walked back into the lobby area. His heart sank. “Honestly I don’t think so. They started asking about my thoughts on clubs like this, what my passion is, all that kind of stuff and I think they could tell I’m not exactly a frequent flier.”  He felt like a kid telling his parents he got a bad report card for some reason. She gave another one of those giggles, it made him feel like sunlight was being injected straight into his heart. “You’ve never actually been in a sim-chamber, have you? Well lucky for you it’s my break time, and I get guest passes for free.” 

In a blur he was putting on a pair of mag-boots while Kyra scrolled on the touchpad connected to the chamber looking for a specific simulation. The chamber resembled a pod from those indoor skydiving places from before the war. Except instead of a giant fan that would be suspending them, they would reverse the poles in their magnetic boots to, as Kyra made him call it, skydance. She grabbed his hand, “Ready?” she asked. Before he could answer she dragged him into the massive cylinder and smacked a big orange button on the wall that said BLAST OFF.

The door slid shut and the glass around them went from transparent to solid black. Kyra had told him this sim used the glass itself to simulate their surroundings but he still didn't quite know what to expect. “Boots on,” she half whispered to him. It was dead silent thanks to the noise cancelling insulation. “Just take my hands and don’t move around too much yet.” Not really able to see, he switched on his boots to the feeling of sudden weightlessness and realized they must be floating now. “I dunno about thi-” Alex started. “Shhh,” hushed Kyla. “It’s starting.

The simulation flashed to life and next thing he knew they were floating in space. Not just relatively, but actually hovering in the cosmos. “Where are we?” Alex asked, trying to make his voice calmer than his face. “The simulation silly,” said Kyra, “This is one of my favorite sims to skydance in. It is showing us floating somewhere in the Omega Nebula.” It might have been the most breathtaking thing Alex had ever seen if he had not met Kyla earlier that afternoon. “Plus, I figured for your first time we better not start somewhere too close to home in case… you know… it’s too much to deal with quite yet.” All around them stars gleamed. Clouds of green, purple, and orange space dust sat seemingly suspended in animation. The infinite cosmos shined forever in every direction in their ten foot round chamber.

Kyla gave a little shove on where the wall must've been with her foot to send them into a slow spin. “Lead like we were on the ground silly, put your arms around me.” Alex’s nervous system couldn’t decide if he was on a date or getting ready to fight a lion. He complied and they drifted in silence for a while, space a pastel painting all around them. After a while she smiled and said, “Just because what's around you may not be ideal, that doesn’t make moments like this any less real. We’ll be down here for years, even generations maybe. It is up to you to decide if your time is spent being sad for all we’ve lost, or excited for what's to come.”