Chapter 1: Reality is a Mere Illusion

Naomi was so frustrated, she was tempted to throw her computer out the window. Of course, that wasn’t an option. She considered kicking something, but that seemed ill-advised too. Instead, she rubbed her temple and groaned. “Ugh. Janky computer!” 

For days, the company had been struggling with a strange new computer virus. Virtual sloths had started popping up on people’s screens, blocking access to their applications.  

Mostly, they would hang down from task bars, but occasionally, they would actually meander their way across the screen. And in many cases, people could not resume work until the dawdling creatures moved out of the way. If you could ignore the massive impact it was having on productivity, it was actually kind of cute. 

But of course Naomi could not ignore the impact to productivity. Nothing was as important as productivity these days. People were under constant pressure to do more in less time, just to keep their jobs. They were constantly running as fast as they could to stay in one place.  

Obviously, computer viruses like these had to be prevented. As an IT technician, Naomi was the one to do it. Or at least find ways to quickly fix them if she couldn’t prevent them. 

So, when the virus appeared, she tried to find a little patch of real estate on her computer screen that was free of sloths and got to work there. First, she searched vendor sites for security patches. Nothing. Then, she cast her net wider, googling “sloth computer virus” and other similar terms. But the results were always the same. A single link appeared that said, “Shh. It’s nap time.” 

After hours of this, she desperately wanted to click the ridiculous link to see exactly what would happen. But of course, everyone knows you shouldn’t click sketchy links. So, she quelled her curiosity and moved onto something different.

Next, she wiped a few of the infected computers clean. She figured if she reinstalled the operating system, the applications, and the files using backups from a couple of weeks before the virus hit, she could solve the problem. But either the backups were corrupted too, or people contracted the virus immediately after getting their clean computers back. Either way, the entire process was a long, fruitless journey back to Square One. 

Which left Naomi’s company with two choices. They could live with the extra “company” on their computers or shut down the business completely while Naomi and her boss, Rosa, tried to figure things out. 

They chose the latter.

Now Naomi and Rosa were the only ones left in the building, trying to figure out what had happened and how to fix it. The rest of the company was due to return tomorrow, when (with any luck), Naomi and Rosa would have resolved things. If not, everyone would be sent packing again for another day. 

Naomi and Rosa couldn’t even tell people to wait for their call. Everyone’s cellphones had been taken over by the lethargic beasts along with their computers. Hence, the plan for daily, physical check-ins. 

The pressure was unbelievable. 

“Hey!”

Naomi jumped and then whirled around to see Rosa. As usual, she was smiling in the face of chaos.

"Sorry! I didn't mean to scare you. I shouldn't have snuck up on you like that." 

"No worries." Naomi took a few breaths to calm down. "I'm just a little hopped up from all the coffee."

"I wanted to see how you're doing, but I think I'm getting the picture."

“Ugh. This virus is kicking my butt. How can something so slow always be two steps ahead?” 

Rosa laughed. 

Naomi rolled her eyes. “I bet this never would have happened without the layoffs. This stupid company thinks they can replace everyone with AI. Anyone could have told them it wouldn’t work out well.”

Rosa nodded patiently. 

“How long have I been saying that this situation is unsustainable? Now here we are! We’re down to just two IT people. They’ve taken everything away from us, the whole thing has come crashing down, and they just left us to clean up their mess. It’s all so tragically predictable.” 

Rosa sighed. This wasn’t the first time she had heard this rant. It probably wouldn’t be the last either. She paused as she reran the conversation on repeat in her head and then thought through her options. Finally, she responded. 

“You’re right.” 

“What?”

“I said, you’re right. You and I have hit a dead end.” 

“Oh.” That wasn’t what Naomi expected to hear. Rosa didn’t usually admit defeat. 

Naomi switched gears, “Um, so what should we do?” 

“Go home.” 

Now Naomi was concerned. “What do you mean, go home? You’re not going to give up, are you? I’m sorry. I was venting too much wasn’t I?” 

Rosa replied with her usual patience, “You’re tired. I understand why you need to vent. It’s a frustrating situation.” 

“OK, but now you’re giving up? Please don’t give up. Oh, God. You’re not going to quit, are you? This job is impossible, but I need it. If you quit, there’s no way they keep me around.” 

Rosa smiled, “I’m not giving up and I’m not quitting. But we have been working very long hours. The best thing we can do now is get some rest, I think.” 

“OK,” replied Naomi. She didn’t sound fully convinced. 

“I’ll meet you back here tomorrow at 9:30,” said Rosa. “If we’re lucky, we’ll have some better ideas after a good night’s rest.”  

“Are you sure?” asked Naomi.

“Positive,” replied Rosa. “See you tomorrow.”

“OK,” said Naomi. “Well, good night then.” Then Naomi started shutting down her computer, but not before she said, “Good night, sloths.”