Out of Sorts and Incognito

Empathy Jack - The Data

Simon's added gear allotment on LITA's center stage did the usual, mixing of her sources of course but it also had some extra gear, most notably was the harmonic heart beat refactor- basically a pulse array that recommended speeding up or slowing down the set based on where the crowd was at. It basically registered the top 40% of the audience heart rate data, and processed it, and gave predictive insight to LITA as to where the audience could be gravitating towards in terms of "sync" with the beats. She rarely observed it, noting that she wanted as much of her own feel as the crowd as possible to drive her. But to Simon, to him, he couldn't really feel people- he wanted the data.

He wanted all the data.

"Slow it down.." he said to himself noting the data reflected in his receptor, a kind of mobile computer he carried with him at all times. The Jack did most of what old phones would do, and with everything around us assisted by AI and automation, you really didn't need computing as much. Most would use a Jack + AR/VR apparatus and just jack into whatever they wanted to get, social, online, education, logistics, sex, it was all there.

Only die hard geeks had receptors, who would use an old fashioned system like that- data geeks and engineers, a bonus for Simon.

In the midst of the beats pulsating Simon left his post, not that anyone would notice. He as invisible to the crowd. He went back to the bar and ordered a drink, he didn't really drink but he wanted something for what would come next.

"Gimme a shot..." he said to the bartender, who was a bit surprised to see him.

"What kinda shot, and you actually drink?" the bartender said while he kinda mocked Simon.

"Tonight I'm drinking for everyone, self included, gimme something those girls would do..." Simon said pointing to the girl posse that bothered him earlier.

"CrystalBomb it is..." the bartender said putting together the shot.

Simon touched his right ear again, clicking a button on his Jack and experiencing a jolt of pain. His eyes twitched, as his neck recoiled, notably showing some pain.

LITA felt it as well, she too snapped her head back for a sec, and blinking, but felt it less, perhaps her senses dulled a bit from drinking a bit to calm her nerves before hitting the center stage.

"Ok.. here ya go.. you ok?" the bartender handed Simon the shot noting his perspiration on his face, he was sweating, like he was up there or something.

"Time to feel Simon." Simon said slamming the shot in one gulp. He was a bit off, a bit sinister. He'd never done that before, but there were many firsts tonight, much to accomplish he thought to himself. He'd get more tonight than he had ever collected from a building, any warehouse, any simple structure or in the home of recent murder.

He didn't really tell people about those captures, he kept that data to himself. But by this point, he had witnessed, no- relived countless murders, reconstructing the moments, harmonically, frequency absorption, molded, and meld into his data set. Tonight he would go beyond anything he had collected before. He would collect it all tonight.

He began to push through the crowd, headed for the heart of it, prime center stage viewing material. Girls pulsated around him dancing to the groove and most ignoring his advance, pushing them aside. Guys a mix of hetro and gay men didn't even recognize his presence as he pushed by them.

Refracted murder, or pain data as he called it was only partial, and he would have to the software figure out the missing elements. It was like a tainted data set. He needed the next level. To feel the real, the now, the moment. These people were as high as he would ever get, and multiple data sources in one room, eons to feel, he would finally get it, one way or another.