Socket 3 - The Legend of Socket Greeny Read Online Free PDF

plastered
on the front. On the back was Chute’s face, a game photo of her
holding her helmet with one hand and the curved tagghet stick in
the other.
    Most Valuable Player .
    A vendor pushed through the crowd, holding up
hats and towels. “You got any shirts?” I shouted.
    He looked around, noticed I was standing
right next to him. He reached in the box strapped over his
shoulders. “I got three kinds, which one you want?” I nodded at the
girls. “You want the girl shirt? All I got left are pink. You want
the pink?”
    “I’ll take it.”
    He sold it to me and moved on. I pulled it
over my head. Pink. No one saw me anyway.
    I walked past the pedestrian ramp that led to
the upper deck. The corridor was filled with displays hosted by
student clubs and local charities. The awards night was as much for
civic awareness as it was for jocks. I remained unnoticed until I
saw the crowded display ahead.
    It was the Student Virtualmode Club. They
were future programmers that built elaborate virtual worlds and
constructed complex gear to transport a person’s mind out of their
skin and into a sim where they could experience the Internet in
virtualmode. Holographic monsters walked across the top of their
banner. A hulking rock monster thumped its chest and an armored
knight broke his sword over its head. The kids laughed, then
watched a dragon waddle over and incinerate the rock monster.
    The virtualmode students were talking to
adults, explaining what the club did, extravagant membership fees
and field trips. They touted the highest graduation rate among the
student body and the highest grade point average. And scholarships,
too. There were more scholarships available in virtualmode world
building than any career field out there.
    The bulk of the crowd was gathered in front
of a short, plump kid explaining a gadget in his right hand. I
leaned against the wall, near enough that I could hear what
Streeter was saying.
    “It will revolutionize the way we
communicate,” he said. “Our minds are as unique as our
fingerprints. We can find anyone after we meet them by using this
to capture their mindprint. You’ll never lose track of
family, friends or even pets. We can call them, link up with their
mind, and then virtually see them as if they’re in front of
us. Virtually touch them. Space will become irrelevant.”
    “Not only that, once calibrated with your
mind,” Janette said, “it will record every thought and emotion you
experience. It will record your entire life.” Janette was by
Streeter’s side. She was short, too. “The government has already
asked for a demonstration. He’s flying to Washington next week.
NASA wants to buy the rights.”
    Streeter looked at her and smiled. He may as
well have batted his eyes.
    “What do you mean virtually see them?”
a dad asked.
    “This gear,” Streeter said, holding up the
half-globe, “will link your mind with, say, your grandmother living
in California. Your eyes will see her in front of you. You’ll see
what she’s doing right this second, like she’s in the room.”
    “Let’s see it work,” someone said.
    “All right.” Streeter scanned the crowd.
Little kids raised their hands, jumping up and down, shouting me, me, me. He swung his finger around like a spinning wheel
to pick the winners. He placed the gear against their foreheads,
one at a time, and asked them to think of a friend or relative. And
when they did, a holographic image of planet Earth materialized
with a glowing dot on it, signifying where the person they were
thinking of was located. And he was right, every time.
    “Big deal,” a kid said. “You said we’d see
them.”
    Streeter smiled. “Oh, you’re going to see
them. I’m going to pick someone at random and dial up whoever that
person thinks of?” He circled the spinning finger. “You ready? Huh?
Who’s going to be the lucky one?”
    Me! Me, me, me!
    The finger spun around. Parents were even
raising their hands. The crowd grew