Around eight years before the collapse of Sapey. The Cellrebrum Region Rehabilitation Centre had just opened. Pardi Carvaress had been invited to meet with Octavius Spiro for brunch to discuss future investment opportunities. Pardi travelled in his own private carriage on the Sapien Loop Express from the Capital Region.
Pardi was sitting in his private hot tub, staring angrily at a picture on the wall of the carriage. His assistant entered from the adjoining carriage carrying his morning coffee.
‘Why is this painting on the wall of this carriage?’ asked Pardi angrily as he gazed at his assistant.
‘It’s a painting of your… of your son, Orcille,’ replied the assistant in a jolly tone.
‘I know who it is,’ said Pardi angrily. ‘I don’t want to see his face. Even as a boy, he looks too much like his mother.’
‘I see her loss still greatly pains you,’ said the assistant as he gently placed the mug of coffee beside the hot tub.
‘It’s the betrayal that haunts me,’ replied Pardi as he pushed his head back. ‘I see it in her… his eyes.’
‘I’ll solve this problem for you, sir,’ said the assistant as he carefully removed the painting from the wall.
‘Stay a bit; talk to me,’ insisted Pardi as he gestured towards a chair facing the hot tub.
The assistant placed the painting down facing the carriage wall and then sat in the chair Pardi was gesturing towards.
‘I know you’re new here,’ said Pardi as he leaned forward slightly.
‘I’ve worked for you for ten years, sir,’ replied the assistant.
Pardi put his hands over his face and then slowly dragged them down as he clenched his eyes closed. There was an awkward silence, and then Pardi opened his eyes.
‘I have this terrible flaw,’ said Pardi as he stared at his assistant, who was now looking nervous. ‘And you immediately exposed me.’
‘Well, there are ways to compensate for a bad memory,’ replied the assistant, who was deeply hoping that this was an appropriate response.
‘First you corrected me,’ replied Pardi as intensity grew in his eyes. ‘Then you insulted me. Yet, I allow you to remain in here. I didn’t call in my guards to drown or even have you thrown off this high-speed train.’
The assistant stared back at Pardi, too afraid to speak.
‘I’m too kind!’ said Pardi in a slightly raised voice. ‘My employees take advantage of me. My own, now deceased, wife cheated on me with an inferior being. What am I to do?’
The assistant stared back at Pardi, not knowing how to respond.
‘Please, tell me something,’ said Pardi as he shook his head. ‘Advise me, or should I say assist me.’
‘You need to be less kind,’ replied the assistant as he nervously nodded his head.
‘You’re a genius!’ shouted Pardi. ‘You know how to parrot.’
The assistant was about to get up when Pardi grabbed him and then pulled him into the hot tub with him.
‘Help me!’ shouted Pardi as his head went under the water and then popped up again. Please, help me!’
Two guards rushed in. They grabbed the assistant and pulled him out of the hot tub.
‘He tried to kill me!’ gasped Pardi as he pulled himself upright in the hot tub. ‘Please get him away from me.’
The two guards were about to escort the assistant to the next carriage when Pardi interrupted them and said, ‘Don’t take him that way. Boot him off the train.’
The guards dragged the assistant, who was now whimpering in intense fear, to the exit of the carriage. One of the guards pressed a button to open the carriage door. The door opened, and they both shoved him out. They quickly pressed the button to close it again.
‘That was savage and quite shocking,’ said Pardi as he stared at the two guards.
‘I always knew there was something up with that guy,’ chuckled one of the guards.
‘Yet, you let him in here when I was vulnerable,’ said Pardi as he stared angrily at the guard who just spoke. ‘Now get out!’
The expression on the guards’ faces changed from content to slightly afraid. They both quickly rushed into the next carriage.
Thirty minutes later, the train arrived in Cellrebrum. Collingswaggle and a dozen enforcers were waiting at the station. Pardi casually alighted from the train. A few seconds later, the enforcers grabbed the two guards that threw Pardi’s assistant off the train. They wrestled them to the ground and handcuffed them.
‘I got your message,’ said Collingswaggle as he approached Pardi. ‘I’m so sorry that you had to go through that.’
‘It’s one thing after the next,’ replied Pardi as he lowered his head slightly. ‘It’s like the whole of Sapey is out to get me.’
‘I want you to know you have a friend in me,’ said Collingswaggle as he placed his hand on Pardi’s shoulder.
‘That’s great,’ said Pardi as he pushed Collingswaggle’s arm off him. ‘So where is this new state-of-the-art prison I’ve come here to see?’
‘It is right over there!’ said Collingswaggle as he gestured towards a large, luxurious-looking compound.
‘I can’t see it,’ said Pardi as he shrugged his shoulders. ‘That massive resort is in the way.’
‘Maybe I should’ve told you this, but we’ve moved on from prisons,’ said Collingswaggle as they both began walking towards the lift. Behind them, the enforcers could be seen dragging the guards by the legs to a service lift. ‘They’re now called rehabilitation centres. They will be far more effective than the old prisons.’
‘This is all wrong!’ said Pardi angrily as they both got in the lift. ‘You should not have allowed a hotel tech mogul, whatever he is, to design a prison.’
‘Trust me, this place is truly revolutionary,’ replied Collingswaggle as the lift doors closed. ‘This new system and the technology behind it unlock the root causes and the true motivations of the perpetrators. Besides, we still have the fallback of a secret out-of-region facility that will maintain the old practices if we ever need them.’
‘It’s just that I had my hopes up on seeing some desperate, sad, and tortured prisoners,’ said Pardi as the life doors opened again on the ground floor. ‘Why should I be the only one who has to suffer?’
‘Brighter days are definitely on the horizon,’ said Collingswaggle as they both got out of the lift together.
Cortex and Crane, who were standing by a self-driving minibus, greeted them. Cortex and Crane were part of an experimental program that integrated the brain with technology. They both had chips implanted in their brains, which enhanced their ability to perform certain tasks. This enabled them to interact with the new technology installed in the rehabilitation centre.
‘Good morning, Representative Collingswaggle and Mr. Carvaress,’ they both said at the same time. ‘We are here to give you a brief tour of the new Cellrebrum Region Rehabilitation Centre.’
Both Collingswaggle and Pardi nodded politely and climbed into the minibus. Cortex and Crane climbed in after them. A few minutes later, they arrived at the rehabilitation centre. The huge gates opened, and the minibus entered the compound. In the outer courtyard, there were around a dozen prisoners. They were wearing virtual reality headsets. They appeared to be acting out different scenarios.
‘What’s he doing?’ asked Pardi as he pointed at a prisoner who was moving his arms above his head.
‘He is rock climbing in a virtual world,’ replied Cortex as the minibus came to a stop. ‘I can make his climb more interesting if you like.’
‘Sure, why not?’ said Pardi as he shrugged his shoulders.
Cortex pressed a button on his electronic pad. The prisoner began to wave one of his arms around frantically.
‘What happened?’ asked Pardi.
‘I made the rock under his right hand crumble,’ replied Cortex. ‘He is now desperately trying to cling to the rock face without falling off. Look at this.’
Cortex showed Pardi the screen on his pad. It showed the prisoner’s perspective from inside the virtual reality headset. It also included his vital signs, such as heart rate and blood pressure.
‘It’s like he really believes he’s going to fall to his death,’ chuckled Pardi.
‘Of course, that is the whole point of this exercise,’ replied Cortex as the minibus continued.
They drove a lap around the main buildings. Cortex pointed out various sections of the buildings and their purpose. Eventually the minibus stopped at the main entrance to the building.
‘Before we proceed to brunch, I would like to take you up to the Observation Room,’ said Cortex. ‘This is where we control and observe the whole rehabilitation centre.’
The four of them got out of the minibus and entered the main building. They walked across the lobby and entered a lift. The lift took them to the top floor. They exited the lift. They walked down a short corridor. At the end of the corridor was a large, heavy door. Just as they reached it, it opened automatically. The four of them walked through the door to enter the Observation Room. The walls of the Observation Room were lined with dozens of screens. Below them were control panels.
‘Wow, this is fancy!’ exclaimed Pardi.
‘From here, we can observe any part of the entire complex,’ said Cortex, sounding quite proud. ‘We can observe any inmate. What they are doing physically as well as what is going on inside their head.’
‘I’d like to see inside one of the cells,’ asked Pardi.
‘Of course,’ replied Cortex. He walked over to a control panel and pressed a few buttons. The inside of a cell appeared. ‘The cells more closely resemble apartments than typical prison cells.’
‘That makes no sense,’ complained Pardi as he frowned at Cortex. ‘If you can create a virtual world, what is the point of fancy apartment-type cells?’
‘It makes perfect sense,’ replied Cortex. ‘I can give you many reasons why it is necessary. Prisoners cannot live in perpetual virtual reality. They need a place to escape the stress of some of the exercises. After all, our aim is to release well-adjusted residents back into our communities, not nervous wrecks who could snap once again. We also need the space and controlled facility that can help with our virtual worlds. Their minds might be transported somewhere else, but their bodies remain in this world.’
‘Excuse me, I don’t quite understand,’ asked Collingswaggle. ‘They are only wearing headsets; why do they believe the virtual world is real?’
‘They’re obviously drugged,’ chuckled Pardi as he jokingly slapped Collingswaggle on the back.
‘No, absolutely not,’ replied Cortex. ‘They are given the exact medication they need to fully enhance their experience. In some cases, the medication alone can create the experience we require to observe responses to certain stimuli.’
Pardi looked at Collingswaggle while raising his eyebrows up and down, and Collingswaggle frowned back at him.
Cortex took them on a quick tour of a standard cell using the many different cameras that had been discretely placed inside them. Collingswaggle looked quite impressed, but Pardi grumbled under his breath about it being too extravagant.
‘Traditionally, a violent criminal would be locked away in a standard prison for many years,’ said Crane as Cortex changed the camera view to the internal courtyard where several inmates were having a casual conversation. ‘Here, nobody is expected to stay longer than three years.’
‘You are just going to let violent criminals walk free after less than three years!’ exclaimed Pardi in shock.
‘That is a maximum duration,’ replied Crane calmly. ‘Some might be released in a matter of months or even weeks.’
‘Now that sounds a little crazy,’ said Collingswaggle as he defensively raised his hands.
‘When someone is guaranteed to no longer be a threat to society, what is the point of keeping them?’ replied Cortex as he looked up from the screen where the inmates who had been talking to each other appeared to be having some form of fit.
‘It’s a little thing called punishment,’ said Pardi angrily. ‘If you break our laws, you must suffer horribly for the rest of your life.’
‘What makes you sure they will never be a threat?’ asked Collingswaggle. ‘What if they are still dangerous after the three-year process?’
‘Well, I have good news for you,’ said Cortex. ‘Octavius Spiro is now arriving. I will take you to the brunch room. He will answer any questions you might have.’
‘I’ve been dealing with Spiro Company for years,’ whispered Pardi into Collingswaggle’s ear. ‘Not once have I met him or even seen him.’
‘I haven’t either,’ whispered Collingswaggle into Pardi’s ear. ‘Rumour has it; he’s a bit of a freak.’
Meanwhile, both Cortex and Crane stared at them.
‘We will have time to chat later,’ said Crane. ‘Now please, follow us to the brunch room. We must enter before Mr. Octavius.’
A few minutes later, the four of them entered the brunch room. In the middle of the room was a large and high table. On the table was a great spread of various different flavoured pancakes, puff pastries, cannolis, sweet breads, jams, and tropical fruit. Around the table were high stools, and on the side of the table next to the window overlooking the courtyard was a huge beanbag.
‘Make yourself comfortable,’ said Crane as he and Cortex sat at opposite ends of the table. Pardi and Collingswaggle sat down facing the window.
A few moments later, the door to the brunch room swung open. It was Octavius Spiro. Pardi and Collingswaggle stared wide-eyed at his enormous size. He was at least twice their height and many times heavier than either of them.
‘Welcome, my guests, to the Cellrebrum Region Rehabilitation Centre,’ said Octavius in a booming voice as he made his way around the table to the giant beanbag. ‘I’m sure you have lots of questions, but first tuck into this marvellous spread prepared by the amazing staff of this centre.’
Pardi and Collingswaggle immediately stuck into the food. Pardi piled up chocolate pancakes and bananas on his plate, and Collingswaggle chose the puff pastries and sweet breads, which he then slathered in apricot jam. Octavius grabbed just one large cannoli and placed it on his plate. Neither Cortex nor Crane took any food. They were interested in watching Pardi and Collingswaggle.
‘This is an absolutely amazing spread,’ remarked Collingswaggle. ‘We are deeply grateful for your superb hospitality.’
‘Thank you for your kind words,’ replied Octavius. ‘It was no problem at all. We have a large modern kitchen run by professional chefs. We want our guests and inmates to have the best and most appropriate meals.’
‘You’re not telling us that you’re giving these criminals pancakes for breakfast,’ retorted Pardi as he shoved another piece of pancake into his mouth.
‘The pancake mix is both affordable and high quality, and everyone loves it,’ replied Octavius, shrugging his shoulders. ‘So, why not save money and have happy, healthy inmates?’
‘Do you know why I’m the richest in Sapey and you’re only the second richest?’ asked Pardi as he smiled smugly at Octavius.
‘Does it have something to do with fraud, embezzlement, blackmail, bribery, insider trading, etc.?’ asked Octavius as he smugly smiled back.
‘It’s about being a winner,’ stated Pardi firmly as he raised his left hand and pointed his index finger upwards. ‘It’s about making the highest returns possible on investments. It’s not about pampering criminals who will inevitably destroy your business model.’
‘I don’t mean to be rude, but I’ve heard you spend very little time running your businesses anymore,’ replied Octavius calmly. ‘You appear to dedicate most of your time wallowing in self-pity or in chemically induced comas. According to Wolf Magazine, you’ve also slipped to fourth richest in Sapey.’
‘You don’t know what it’s like to suffer a horrendous betrayal,’ said Pardi as he took a bite out of a banana. ‘I live in unimaginable emotional pain.’
‘Tales of your self-proclaimed suffering have not escaped me either,’ replied Octavius. ‘That’s one of the reasons I invited you here. The other reason is that you’re still one of Sapey’s greatest minds. I strongly believe we can help each other.’
‘See, he knows I’m a genius,’ gloated Pardi as he turned to look at Collingswaggle.
‘I’m still deeply concerned about prisoners who are not reformed after three years,’ questioned Collingswaggle as he ignored Pardi, who continued to stare at him.
‘Three years is the absolute longest timeframe,’ replied Octavius. ‘Most will leave here within a year.’
‘How can you make such claims?’ asked Collingswaggle in a serious tone.
‘This centre is a technological wonder,’ replied Octavius. ‘This technology enables us to know absolutely everything about every inmate. Take this table and the plates in front of you. The plates can determine the nutritional value of everything on them. It feeds this information to the table.’
Octavius rubbed his hand on the table, and a screen appeared. It displayed the nutritional value of all the food they had eaten as well as what was still on their plates. Octavius swiped the table with his hand. The screen then displayed the potential health impacts of eating the same food for brunch every day of the year.
‘This is not a great outlook for either of you,’ chuckled Octavius. ‘However, if we just tweak it a little. Then adjust for the other meals and include a basic exercise program. We can obtain a range of potential health outcomes. If we were to run some tests on you as well as factor in your genetics. We can narrow that range. If we then observe your performance for a couple of months, we can really zero in on a formula that will guarantee the health outcome you or we are striving to achieve.’
‘I get you can determine physical outcomes, but what about fully understanding and then adjusting the mental state of someone so that they can be a useful member of society?’ asked Collingswaggle.
‘Our virtual reality simulations will provide those answers,’ replied Octavius. ‘Our latest simulation technology is not bounded by time.’
‘I don’t get you,’ said Collingswaggle with a perplexed look on his face.
‘We can run virtual reality simulations in their sleep,’ replied Octavius. ‘It will be possible to run over a virtual year in a matter of hours of sleep. In a matter of weeks, we will have data on their responses to almost any scenario they could encounter. We can then stimulate their minds so that they behave more favourably to the scenarios that have the worst outcomes. Only the positive responses will be reinforced in their memory, and the negative ones will be wiped. We continue until we are a hundred percent satisfied that they will never reoffend again.’
‘Why not just turn them into zombies?’ suggested Pardi as he raised his hands and wiggled his fingers. ‘It’ll be much cheaper.’
‘That might be cheaper, but it won’t give you the best return,’ replied Octavius. ‘After all, that’s what you claim makes you a winner.’
‘Tell me how this is such a great return,’ chuckled Pardi.
‘Sure,’ replied Octavius. ‘Cost per day per inmate is four times higher than in a traditional system, but the average length of a sentence is more than ten times shorter. The number of repeat offenders will be eliminated, thus further reducing the number of future inmates by more than half. The combination of shorter sentences and no repeat offenders means we can close all other prisons. This will save an enormous amount of money. On top of all that, the technological advances from this centre can be reapplied to other ventures. For example, in the entertainment and tourist industries.’
‘Is there any fallback plan for inmates that fall short of your guarantee?’ asked Collingswaggle.
‘Well, your Government opened the door on that,’ chuckled Octavius. ‘
‘Gone case!’ said Collingswaggle, sounding slightly hesitant.
‘Exactly,’