Chapter 5

Date: 2180 AD. Planet Earth, Long Beach, WA, EIC Immersion Center

The day following our eventful interaction with the company retrieval crew, a moving crew came by, and following our directions got the few remaining items packed. There really wasn’t much since most were taken due to being company property or technical in nature, but we still managed to accumulate a few items and had most of the rest shipped to the local thrift store. Since that was quickly squared away we were driven to the local airfield and got on the company jet headed to the private villa in the Bahamas where we would spend the next few months. We would be spending just enough time at the villa’s to complete the final parts of our will and hopefully have a good time for what was likely our last time on Earth. We planned to spend some of our money on things that were ridiculously over the top like a 100’ luxury yacht for a few weeks to putz around the Caribbean, luxury cars, and I planned on splurging on some designer clothes. We would of course be followed by EIC personnel, so they could keep an eye on us, while annoying was not too onerous.

The next few months flew by with some of the most enjoyable times I had experienced in years. We relaxed, got some sun and we were able to exercise and get in shape prepping for our immersion. We had been in decent shape for our age but with money not an object, and personal trainers we got extremely fit. I know Phil enjoyed how I was looking in a bikini and I loved looking at his toned physique. Aira was doing great as well within her nanites She was able to see via the AR glasses I wore everywhere and could communicate with me the same way. It wasn’t perfect since it was text-only but she was having as much fun as she could and getting more excited as the days progressed.

The portable charging system worked great, and Phil did not only update the wireless glasses to provide a better fit, but he was also able to create a better power transfer rate, making it so it was not hot against my skin while I was wearing them. We were “tourist shopping”, with our escort, when we received the message that everything was ready and we could depart at the end of the week. Our final week on Earth came to its end, we said goodbye to our short lived home as we made our way back to Washington State where they had set up an immersion center in Long Beach.

Despite living only a few hours away for most of our lives we had actually never been there before. The entire peninsula had become the world's largest tourist attraction and had become a massive version of the former Las Vegas, that is if Las Vegas had few laws, no government, and every vice a person could indulge in if you had the money. There were plenty of acceptable places to go but since we generally disliked large crowds of people we did all we could to avoid going to places like this for that exact reason. As our plane landed we were immediately greeted by a new security detail who brought us to the EIC private underground terminal that would take us to the immersion building just half a mile east of North Head Lighthouse.

The underground was used only by the big wigs and their special guests. “Guess we are lucky,” Phil said to me as we boarded the tram. Looking towards one of the security guards Phil asked“Hey, so do you know how many are going in''? The guard did not even react to Phil’s question and maintained his stoic facial expression. “Well, whatever. Look Honey” Phil turned and looked at me smiling, “the company is still hiring the British queen's guards, think I could put them in one of those poofy hats and get a picture?” laughing he put his arm around me and held onto me tightly.

Phil’s joking was just a way of letting off steam to calm his nerves. He always got stressed when not knowing what was going on and following someone else’s plan.. Instead he preferred to be able to plan well in advance making sure everything was ready. That was one of the many qualities that I liked about him. I never had to worry about what was going to happen because he always had everything already worked out. I smiled back at him briefly and looked back out the window as the tram started to move. His arm squeezed me tighter, he could tell I was nervous, he always just seemed to know how I was feeling. The tram picked up speed and soon we were rapidly moving towards our final destination.

As the tram finally came to a stop the guard finally spoke with a brusque voice, “Follow me”. He turned and stepped off the train and started walking briskly down an opulent and brightly lit corridor. We followed after him and after a few turns later we started to see staff busily going about their work. No one stopped to look at us, and we did not dare stop in fear that we might lose sight of our escort. He never slowed his pace and after a few more minutes of walking, we came to a stop in front of a concierge desk where the concierge greeted us before the guard left at a brisk pace.

“Good evening. Sir and Ma’am the elevator to your left will take you to the living quarters for immersion guests. A member of our serving staff will be there to take you to your rooms and answer any of your questions. She will also update you on your schedule. If you need anything don’t hesitate to call us through the 24/7 AI available to all guests.”. With that he scanned a security badge that opened the elevator, he entered a passcode on the keypad and ushered us onto the elevator which quickly closed behind us and began to take us away.

“So how are you doing honey, you seem really tense” All I could do to respond was nod my head and lean against him in response to his question. “Ah, do not worry, everything will be fine” he wrapped his arm around my shoulders and gently rubbed my arm. I gave a light sigh and took comfort in his embrace.

As the elevator came to a soft stop the doors opened with a slight ding. Standing there in front was a young woman barely out of her teens with a bright perky smile, not to mention perky in other places as well. As we stepped off the elevator she said “Good Evening! I am Kate and I will be your personal assistant during your stay if you would please follow me I will show you to your quarters. Everything you need before immersion has already been placed in your rooms, but if you have any questions or need anything at all I would be happy to help. Please follow me”

She took us down the hallway similar to hotels we had been in before although the doors were much further apart suggesting enormous individual suites. The plush carpets muffled our footsteps, the lights were dimmed perfectly to create an ambiance of warmth, with the temperature set a little on the warm side. The whole effect was making me relaxed, almost to the point of being sleepy. Kate stopped in front of a door with the lucky number 13 on it. She swiped a keycard to unlock the door and holding it open for us she gestured to us to go in. We walked into the suite and she followed us in closing the door behind her.

Our suite had several large rooms including a living space and an upscale kitchen area with the bedroom opposite the hallway that we had just left. All the rooms had vaulted ceilings and were open and refreshing as cool air from the fan lightly swirling around us. Along one wall 7-foot windows made up one side of the room which let in the bright sunlight of the afternoon along with a wonderful view.

The quarters appeared to be located in the middle of a large park filled with trees, grass, and a small pond. Beyond that, you could see the borders of the park and into the city itself. The buildings and streets were clean and in good repair, and one could see people walking the sidewalks going about their day. The building obviously was located in one of the wealthier parts of town.

“Welcome to your room. Here are the key cards for each of you that will let you access your room, located on the 26th floor and the floor below you” she said as she each gave us each a solid feeling metal card.

“Over here on this interactive wall you can pull up your schedule for the next three days. You can also contact me for any needs, and order meals privately to your room” she touched the interactive wall and swiped through the various options on the screen.

“The floor that you are located on contains 4 other couples that will be a part of your group. You will be going through orientation together, and of course, you are welcome to get to know each other during your free time. You can also pull up some general information about each couple on the interactive wall” she indicated on a tab on the screen.

She then directed us to a map on the back of our room door. “Here is the layout for the floor that is below you. This is where you will go through your orientation, it also has a gym, restaurant with a communal dining area if you order something and would like to get out of your room, as well as a personal theater able to play anything you want” she informed us while pointing to each location on the map.

“Unless you have any other questions I will go ahead and leave and give you a chance to get settled in. Please tour the floor below you and familiarize yourself with the locations of each room as well as your schedule. You are expected to be on time for each class. The lead trainer of the group has requested that all couples come to the communal dining area tonight for dinner meet and greet at 1730.” With this last statement, she gave a slight bow and then left the room. I don’t know what it was but ever since I had my realization that I loved Aira, I had started noticing other women more often and I couldn’t help but watch as her ass seemed to swish away as if inviting me to follow.

“Well, what would you like to do first, stay in for a bit and get used to the room or go and roam around” Phil asked in a horrible impersonation of Kate’s voice, making me laugh. Shaking my head to get myself out of my previous thoughts I turned back to him blushing slightly and hoping he didn’t catch me staring.

“Let's take a look through our room and see where everything is first. I also need to charge my phone and AR glasses, possibly take a shower as well before doing anything else.” I said. “I can get behind the shower idea. While the private flight was great I still feel a little grungy. How about we start with the kitchen and then make our way to our bedroom?” Phil asked as he took my hand.

The kitchen was nice and open, the cabinets and appliances along one wall with a large granite island which appeared to be the primary location of eating as there was no dining table. Moving on to the living room which was the entrance to the bedroom. The room was a good size and it also had the floor to ceiling windows. The bed was massive and had to be a California king at least and was sitting on a low platform with a wood headboard that matched the wood in the other room. Off of the bedroom was the bathroom and closet. The closet had been already stocked with clothing for both Phil and myself which was good since we really hadn’t brought much. We had exercise outfits, swimsuits, jeans, and tee shirts, as well as one set of formal dress wear for each of us.

The bathroom was where I got excited as it was luxurious even compared to what we had experienced in our villa in the Bahamas. There was a large walk-in shower with multiple shower heads on the wall and on the ceiling for a rainfall option. However, what was really extraordinary was the sunken bathtub which was big enough to be called a small pool. The floor of the bathroom was gray and white granite and was heated, even stepping down into the floor of the tub was warm.

“This is pretty cool that everything is set up for us to use,” I told Phil. “Although it is kind of weird that they know what size clothing that we need”.

“Well, that was something that I did before we left. I received some forms via email that requested our height, weight, and current clothing and shoe sizes. It wasn’t a big issue so I completely forgot about it.” Phill responded looking a little abashed at his forgetfulness.

“Oh, ok. I would have helped, but thanks for taking care of that! I have been able to relax so much this last month it was nice not to have to think about anything besides keeping my AR glasses charged and what food I want to eat for dinner” I gave him a slight peck on the cheek in thanks as I responded back to him.

Speaking of which, I went back into the bedroom and sat on the bed setting my glasses and phone on their respective chargers. Laying back I let out another sigh at how super soft it was feeling like I was floating on air.

As Phil walked in and seeing me relaxing there told me not to get too comfortable since we still planned on going out tonight. “Fine but I am just so very comfortable” failing to hold back a yawn as I talked, “I think I am going to take a nap though. Would you wake me in an hour? We should have enough time to shower and then tour the downstairs before we have to go to dinner tonight” I asked him

“Sure can. Love you” Phil said, lowering the curtains, and as he closed the bedroom door, I slowly drifted off to sleep with images of a shapely brunette in tight jeans.