CRYO-TRANS - 2084

#41 - Man alive!

Cryo-Trans - 2084 

William Oliver Williams III had come to know that “the brightness” that “burned” his “eyes” was “the sun” and “the blueness” overhead was “the sky” and “the feeling” on his “skin” was “the warmth” that came from the sun.  

He had only recently relearned all that he presently understood. Once having been reminded, or having relearned something, a flood of memories related to it also fell into place. But for a few instances, he quickly remembered his past. It was an awakening. 

He was brought back to life one week ago after having entered his cryonic deep sleep in March 2023. He was eighty-six at the time. Though his mind was strong, organ failure left him legally dead (This legal restriction was overturned in 2043.), and he was entered into the deep freeze.

He believed the day would come when his body, with the help of advanced science, would be regenerated and he would live again. 

Now in the year 2084, that day had arrived, and he was indeed brought back to life. 

The attendant assigned to him was ROBO-LOLA, a robot brought online in 2080. “Lola” was programmed with all manner of information regarding William Oliver Williams III. She was quickly bringing him up to speed.  

His instincts were still sharp. Lola was good looking. 

He had money as his inheritance, business, and investments had done well. He would be taking Lola with him. She could do everything. Where he was going, he was not certain.  

It would be a while yet. He was still “Hooked up”. He was connected by tubes and sensors to a pump and motherboard, housed in a small monitor/pump on the table next to him. Tubes with his lifeblood ran out of his chest to the pump and back again into his neck. It was a small inconvenience, but the pump would kick into action if it detected any irregularities in his body or brain.  

He would remain tied to the pump until it was seen that his body and brain were indeed communicating and in sync. He would start walking this week. After seeing that he was functioning physically, he would be freed from the pump. 

He enjoyed sitting out on the patio of the facility. He couldn’t get enough of the warm sun and blue skies. He was pleased that he had made the cryonic decision and his future was looking bright. It was his “Brave New World”. 

It would take some getting used to. He felt far removed from the culture he was “reborn” in. 

But he had money so how difficult could it be? He’d make it work. Even with the two incidents that had occurred during his “sleep” years. 

The first incident occurred when the “new guy” attendant unknowingly stepped on the power cord and pulled it out of the wall socket. The tanks in WOWIII’s room lost proper temperature before it was discovered. 

The result was brain damage and/or organ failure to all the room’s “Sleepers” as assessed by the connected sensors. WOWIII lost the motor function in his brain.  

The tank next to him housed a world-class, world-wide surfer who became comatose, and later died, after “wiping out” on a “big one” that slammed him to the ocean floor. His family hoped for a remedy in the years to come and so put him in a cryonic state. 

The resulting warmup dashed those hopes, but the motor functions part of his brain still showed life within and as luck would have it, was a match for WOWIII. A simple hookup by usb cord to the sensors of each brain allowed (with surfer parent’s permission, (and compensation)) for the transfer of data. Bad out and good in, as it were. 

WOWIII was now furnished with a stronger, younger brain than before the accident. 

The second incident involved a power failure that affected the whole facility. It wasn’t the power failure per se, it was that the generators kicked in but were underpowered. Several Sleepers were deemed lost before the temperature regained proper levels.  

But there were now body parts available for switching out and experimentation (with parent or guardian’s permission, and compensation, of course). 

WOWIII’s body organs didn’t make it through the semi-thaw but his brain weathered the storm and as luck would have it, the body of a thirty-year old woman CEO of a big tech company was available and was a match. She had been declared braindead shortly after having received a flu shot. Her family had also hoped for an eventual cure. 

Unfortunately, that would not happen now. 

WOWIII’s head and the young woman’s body were joined at the neck and there were no complications. He/she had been successfully transitioned.  

With a beefed-up brain and a new body, all was looking good. WOWIII was brought out of his/her cryonic state.  

He/She had mood swings often which were attributed to the female aspect of himself/herself that he/she now possessed but he/she was able to manage reasonably.   

He (WOWIII identified as male) also had reoccurring dreams of surfing. Vivid memories of far-off places that now made up a significant portion of his brain and thoughts. They were highly entertaining and could see why his surfer friend loved surfing the way he did. 

One memory had him flying along inside the curl of a huge breaking wave when he caught a rail that spilled him into the churning turbulent underside of the wave. Spinning and tumbling, his topsy-turvy world suddenly went black. 

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He knew he would pose a confusing figure as he got out amongst the public. But not overly so, as nowadays others like himself were back in the world. Old body parts were exchanged for newer ones. Organ transplants were common.  

Still, there were few complete body transplants worldwide as they continued to be a challenge to the medical world. Seeing one would be a novelty.

The big brouhaha today, WOWIII discovered, and like the transitioning controversy before he entered his cryonic state, was the trend for individuals to want to graft, or otherwise take on the body parts of their dear departed pets. Ears and tails were most used. A transplanted nose was seen now and again.  

Their own ears, or nose, were cut off and replaced with those of Fido, or Fluffy. Tails were implanted. Clothing accommodating a tail addition was all the rage.  

There were some who transplanted the fur of their beloved pet to their arms and legs. Whole bodies were refurred. This involved removing their own skin first. There were some replacing their skin with that of alligator and snake. Exotic pets were being raised for their fur. Cheetah was high on the list.  

This form of body art was flourishing. Science did that. 

None of it mattered to WOWIII. He was happy to be alive again. Live and let live, he thought. Besides, he had money and soon he and Lola would be moving to someplace warm. It had to be warm as he always felt a slight chill in his bones. Key West was at the top of the list. 

WOWIII leaned back in his chair and basked in the warm sun and blue cloudless sky.  

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