Page 77 - Tales Apocalyptic and Dystopian

Cannon’s Last Case

ways. No matter how wonderful or terrible that experience was, they
would be brought back after a pre-arranged time to the moment of
departure, having lost no time in our universe but retaining a wealth
of memories of their trip. Each such excursion was quite costly, but a
few celebrities were given free rides and soon the testimonials
generated a lot of business at the five regional Infinitarium centers.”
They arrived at the end of another row, pivoted and went up the
next.
“Almost a whole day was dedicated to taking a person through
Infinitarium. It began with leaving one’s clothing and possessions in a
locker, changing to a special “dimensional anchoring” jumpsuit and
surgical slippers, then proceeding to a private screening room where a
detailed video explained what to expect. The customer had already
signed a release form and debited his or her bank account—no credit
was extended to anyone. Next the wormhole traveler entered a high-
tech laboratory setting attended by several people in white coats.
After being strapped into a space-shuttle-like zero-gravity seat, the
client was pushed down a track into a huge chamber with pressure-
sealed doors. Then everything went black. All this had been explained
beforehand, and few wanted out once they had gotten that far. The
next thing they knew they were awake again, surrounded by
technicians who released them from the seat and took their vital
signs. The clock on the wall had not advanced more than a minute,
yet the customer’s mind was filled with weeks or months of incidents
occurring in a strange but largely familiar world. That was
Infinitarium.”
Mary Chase shook her head. “That sure isn’t around anymore.
Sounds like fun, though.”
“Not for everyone. One fellow, not much older than you, had what
used to be called a bad trip. His memories were so frightening that he
could not sleep. He lost weight, withdrew from society and suffered
self-destructive psychotic episodes. His family got a lawyer and sued.
Infinitarium pulled his waiver out of their files showing that he had
agreed to live through whatever some other version of him was
enduring in another universe; furthermore, as none of that experience
had occurred in our universe, no court in it could have jurisdiction.
The lawyer sent the young man to a series of psychiatrists and
neurologists. After examining him and his family history, they arrived

76