Chapter Text
Therese, Danny, and Genevieve were on a train that chugged and clanked down tracks leaving a sooty trail of smoke. They were silent as they looked out the windows into an orange expanse of the most beautiful western landscape their eyes had ever seen. They could not speak to one another; they were in a complete state of awe. They had been assigned to this trip by the New York Times. Despite the fact they were anxious to participate in this week-long vacation/demonstration of one of the most exclusive theme parks known to man, they didn’t want to let each other see their excitement. However, the events of the past two days were slowly chipping at their façade. Every so often Danny would sneak out a smile, Therese would look wide-eyed and then blush, and Genevieve merely sat with her mouth slightly parted as if for once in her life she was on a complete emotional overload.
Therese’s mind slipped back to yesterday at the office. She had not been employed long, six months into her Junior Photo Editor position at the New York Times. That morning she got in at her usual five minutes before eight and as she sat watching her computer start up she rubbed her eyes and pulled her long, brown hair back into a ponytail. At 8:00 am on the dot the phone rang. It was the Secretary to the Sr. Editor of the paper informing Therese she was to attend an emergency meeting in half an hour. She hurriedly notified her supervisor, ran to the restroom and fixed her makeup, got a glass of water from the cooler then nervously made her way to the meeting room. As she entered she found she was one of only three people sitting at the conference table herself, Danny McElroy, and Genevieve Cantrell, or Gen as she was known, similar underlings and her best friends at the paper.
Danny and Gen were sitting looking down at the table; both appeared to be nervous wrecks. Danny was shifting and twirling a pencil in his fingertips when he looked up at Therese as she entered. When she sat he leaned over and spoke to her. “This is all your fault Belivet!” he whispered.
Therese looked back shocked, “What are you talking about?”
“Why are the three of us in here? Was it that prank you pulled last Monday? I feel like I’m going to get fired any second.”
“I think your Friday hangover is getting the best of you.” Before Danny could respond the door quickly swung open and in stepped a stenographer with recording equipment and as she began to set up Therese suddenly felt a wave of nausea twinge in her stomach. Gen and Danny looked as if they were turning five paler shades of white.
A moment later, in tromped Mr. Harkavy in a puff of stale cigarette smoke, and behind him Lois, his dutiful Secretary. As he plopped down in the chair, Lois began dialing a phone number on the conference system at the same time glancing at the Stenographer to see if she was ready.
Mr. Harkavy was a big man and it took him a minute to get himself situated as his rear rubbed and stretched against the leather chair. Once he did he looked at the three in front of him and held his breath for a minute. “You guys need to develop thicker skins if you want to do this kind of work for a living!” Gen, Danny, and Therese all exchanged quizzical looks with one another. Harkavy took a pen out of his front shirt pocket and then shouted “YOU’RE NOT IN TROUBLE!” They all jumped in their chairs. Mr. Harkavy exhaled quickly and then arched his eyebrows. “Unless there is something you are all guilty of that I need to know about!”
After a rather lengthy pause all that was heard was a “No sir.”
Harkavy looked at the conference phone. “Burt, you there?”
“Yes, I’m here.”
Burt, as the staff knew him was none other than the elusive owner of the paper. No one ever saw him; he only attended meetings via conference call. Danny kicked Therese’s foot, my God, he’s in this meeting too? ‘Breathe.’ she thought...’just breathe.’
Harkavy looked at the stenographer “Are you ready?” She nodded yes.
“Okay, let's get this underway. We received a very unusual request from the owner of the Theme Park known as Westworld, have you all heard of it?”
Therese, Gen, and Danny all looked at one another, then uttered, “YES” almost at the same time.
Harkavy looked at Gen. “Genevieve, what do you know about it??”
Gen sat in thought before she spoke. “Well, off the top of my head I hear it costs $10,000 a day to attend. I don’t know of anyone personally who has gone to the park. From what I have read, those who attend view it as the experience of a lifetime.” She paused. “That is if you’re into the old west, having lots of anonymous sex or killing people. It’s supposedly very violent but I understand there are areas of the park that have experiences more geared towards families without the violence. The Park is not without controversy, despite the safeguards there have been some injuries but no deaths that I am aware of, and there has been some protest about it because some feel it promotes violence against women as well as minorities, those being Mexicans and Native Americans.”
“Danny?” Harkavy asked.
“Well, I’ve heard the same,” Danny said. “The Robots or Hosts as they are called are so lifelike you cannot separate them from the Guests, or attendees. The flesh of the Host is warm, they have pulses, odors, body fluids, they eat and drink...react to physical stimulation just like we do.” Danny cleared his throat. “And they do fulfill your every need...if that is your thing of course.” Danny then quickly looked down and glanced at the table like he regretted that he knew so much information.
“Therese!?”
Therese looked up like a deer caught in the headlights. “Mr. Harkavy, I could make up a story but in all honesty, I don’t know much about the park other than it seems to be geared more towards folks who like to have lots of sex and or kill people. I have not followed it that closely because of those reasons, it really hasn’t interested me.”
Harkavy looked at Therese and slightly smiled. “I appreciate your honesty, Therese.”
“This past week the owner and creator of the park, Dr. Robert Ford called Burt and proposed something to him that we both felt agreeable to, but there are quite a few considerations to keep in mind, hence the court reporter here. I would like to remind you all that you signed non-disclosure agreements when you were employed with the Times and this is extending to this meeting so everything we are about to speak about in this room is confidential and not to be shared with anyone or discussed outside this room. Do you understand and will you abide by that? I need a verbal confirmation from each of you.”
They all went down the line and said 'Yes'.
“Burt is also close friends with Dr. Ford so there is a conflict of interest that you are now aware of, do you have any issue with that?” Once again they all went down the line and answered 'No'.
“Great! Okay, well, the park as you know has been around for 30 years and yes, it has been known to cater to people who want to involve themselves in either some form of Western death-defying adventure, risk-taking, or violence without repercussion, as well as no holds barred sexual activity if they so choose. Anything under the sun I was told, is that correct Burt?”
“You got it.” came the voice from the conference phone.
“Dr. Ford realizes the nature of this leaves many sections of the population without a desire to attend so over the years they have made adjustments to the park. For example, there is a family area separate from the shoot-em-ups. They have some ethnic areas; an area specifically designed to explore Native American or the culture of Mexico, as well as an area that will take you back to 1200 AD where you can live among the Anasazi Indians of that time.”
Gen, Danny, and Therese all looked at one another.
“This past year they built an area with the Gay and Lesbian community in mind that will be without violence and more in keeping with the themes and interests of that particular community.”
Therese's eyes widened and she looked at Gen and Danny. "A Gay Westworld?” she asked.
Harkavy continued, clearing his throat. “In a manner of speaking. It's my understanding it’s a hybrid. It has western elements but also modern conveniences and entertainment in keeping with that community.”
“In addition,” Burt added, “They are adding some preliminary testing that they want to give the guests prior to their entrance to the park that is designed to enhance, to tailor their experience to their most intimate needs and wants.“
Gen raised her hand and Harkavy nodded for her to speak. “I read that they have the guests fill out a rather extensive questionnaire in order to get a feeling of what they would desire out of the experience.”
“You mean whether they prefer blondes or brunettes.” Danny mumbled.
“You’re actually correct Danny.” Burt’s voice sounded from the speaker. “But the problem is the questionnaire is so extensive that they have found the guests are either not filling it out entirely or not being honest. So, they have conceived of another way to get this information.”
Harkavy leaned forward and crossed his fingers together. “They are testing this as well. So in addition to the new area which has some bells and whistles we were told not to disclose to you, they are using this new questionnaire process. What we have been asked to provide is for members of our staff to go through this testing process and then attend the Park for a week and report back to us, similar to an assignment for an article. They have specifically asked for our younger staff to be the first to try this.”
Gen, Danny, and Therese shot glances and then Danny kicked Therese in the ankle making her jump in her seat.
“Do you have an issue Ms. Belivet?” Harkavy glared.
“No, I don’t actually.” Therese looked down at her blank notepad and then up at Mr. Harkavy. “I just don’t understand why I’m here. I am not a reporter, only a photographer, and I am not familiar with the Park.”
Burt’s voice echoed from the speaker. “That’s exactly what they are looking for Ms. Belivet, someone who may not have considered going in the first place. Many times these vacations are given to people as gifts and unfortunately too many find the experience lackluster and they would like to remedy that. Therese, I hope you don’t mind me asking a personal question, but you are gay right?”
Therese’s eyes almost popped out of her head. Danny started to giggle.
“Ummm.” Therese paused. “Yes Burt, I am. Sorry, I am just a little taken aback by the question. I didn’t think it was that obvious. I mean I don’t recall telling....” Therese then paused remembering the repeated conversations she and Danny had about clubs, dating, and such. “Never mind,” She whispered.
Burt continued. “Listen, the reason why I asked is that we’ve been told that normally all hosts in the park are programmed to be attracted to both men and women. This has actually worked out very well for heterosexuals who may have had fantasies about same-gendered dalliances they never felt comfortable acting out in the real world. However, their research has shown that in regards to homosexuals who attend, not all of course, but most actually prefer to interact with exclusive homosexual hosts only. So this new area will have only homosexual guests and hosts, the genders will be mixed of course but you can be assured that each adult attending is in fact interested in the same gender. That is why I asked Therese.”
Therese could feel her face getting slightly more flush and was glad Burt was not in the room to see it.
Harkavy looked directly at Therese. “I need you there to take pictures. Both Genevieve and Danny are writers. Now, we want you to write a dissertation about your experience as well but you need not worry about how well this is written. In fact, I don’t want any of you to approach this like you’re writing an article. Think of it more like a science experiment, one that you really get into. I want you to do whatever it takes for you to enjoy yourself and experience the Park, no holds barred. You want to have sex, have sex. If your desire is to sneak into the gun-slinging area, you're free to do that. Go wherever your heart leads you. Then when you return you will report back on what you decided to do and how you felt. How the experience was for you? Were you scared, happy, did you have fun, were you bored, would you go back and if you wouldn’t, why not? Keep in mind your report is also confidential, it will not be shared outside this room other than with Dr. Ford at Westworld.”
“This is an experience of a lifetime kids!” Burt chimed in “We’ve made some rather large concessions with Dr. Ford and agreed to do this without the guarantee of any finished piece.”
“Therese, we are going to outfit you with an antique appearing camera on a stand, like an old-fashioned 8 x 10 studio camera. For the first day, we would like you to take pictures, more if your heart desires but the camera is the type that will be attached to a tripod. It's a bit cumbersome to carry so we do not expect you to lug it all over the park the entire time you’re there. It will operate like a digital camera and will snap multiple pictures but will appear to flash only once. Then in the evening, you will have access to a laptop in your room with instructions on how to download the photos to a server. There will be other Guests in the park intermixed with the Hosts. Westworld staff will be reviewing the photos and making sure those guests are blurred and only the host is present once they begin sending them to us.”
“You mean the sex robots.” Gen mumbled.
“Gen,” Burt said. “I have recently been to the park myself and I guarantee you, you will not be able to tell the Guests from the Hosts. They are in fact made out of living tissue, the realism is remarkable. So understand that if you meet somebody at the park you could be interacting with another Guest or a Host, you have absolutely no way of knowing. The Guest may in fact assume you are a Host or Robot yourself.”
“It wouldn’t be the first time.” Dannie mumbled.
Gen quickly hit Dan’s arm.
“And you are not to take any 'selfies' with the camera or act in any way that makes you appear like you are from this time period. You will act like an old-time photographer. Some may ask you to take a photo or will want to purchase one from you, you merely tell them the photos are not for purchase and that you are on assignment from the New York Times. We were around back then anyway as you know.”
Harkavy paused and stared at the three. “You kids have any questions? If you want to back out, now is the time to speak.”
The room was silent.
“Okay, this starts early tomorrow. At 9 AM, you will be picked up by a white van in front of your home so be out waiting. You do not need to pack a bag other than some personal toiletries if you like but technically you don’t even have to bring those. All clothing and necessities are provided. No cell phones or communications to the outside world can occur during your stay. If you bring your phone it will be confiscated. In the event of an emergency or if we need to reach you we will be in touch with the Park directly. Lois will provide you with more information as well as papers to sign.”
Burt then spoke from the phone. “And once again, enjoy yourself! As I said before I have visited the park myself and it’s a wonderful experience, a chance of a lifetime. Good luck everyone and have fun. We look forward to hearing from you when you get back.” Mr. Harkavy then disconnected the phone and got up and shouted out through the door, “Lois, I need you in here now!”
As Harkavy walked out Lois came in with a slew of paperwork. As they sat and filled it all out she once again reminded them of the confidentiality of the assignment, that they were not to discuss it with anyone.
The rest of the day could not pass quickly enough for Therese. She had been emailed an image and directions on the camera she would be using; it was an old wooden 8 x10 studio camera with a wooden tripod and cloak. She googled the park but was surprised at how little information was available. She then decided against reading personal blogs, she would just learn on her own.
On her way home that evening she stopped and picked up a pack of cigarettes and a nice bottle of wine. She sat by her window in her apartment slowly savoring both and looking out at the bustling city of New York dreamingly smoking and sipping. In a sense, it was sad because even though she knew she was not supposed to, she was alone and not able to share the news of this adventure with someone special. She didn’t have a family or siblings because her mother sent her to an orphanage at seven. She had dated a man; Richard about a year ago but broke it off. At times she thought she was over the lonely reality of her life but tonight she began to feel worse. Special occasions like this seemed to pain her. She was uncertain about interacting with others at this park and certainly was not at all motivated to have romantic relations with of all things a Robot. She wished she could call Danny but she knew they had to be mum about this entire adventure at least until tomorrow.
The next morning as she stood outside waiting for the white van to approach she smoked another cigarette and swung her bag of items she could not do without. Makeup, lotion, sunscreen, shampoo, her favorite herbal tea and a leather notebook and pencil for taking notes, and lastly, a small packet of her business cards. Then, exactly at 9 am a white van pulled up and the door magically opened. Therese walked over and got it as the door automatically closed with a click.