HT Incorporated

The residents took off their blindfolds as soon as they were instructed to do so and allowed their eyes to adjust to the piercing bright atmosphere. Once the realization that they were in the middle of nowhere sat in, two armed security guards led them to a dark-haired man in a crisp suit. His professional attire appeared so out of place in comparison to the arid desert backdrop, that the residents were taken aback. He smiled and appeared oblivious to their discomfort. "Welcome to HT Incorporated, where pure human connection starts!" Immediately after saying the well-practiced phrase, he turned around and placed his wrist on what appeared to be an electronic door sensor on a solid metal wall. The wall immediately split in two and a large gap appeared in the middle revealing the inside of an elevator. The doctor stepped in and motioned his residents to follow. 

As quickly as the doors opened they had shut, leaving the residents cramped and silent. Stealing nervous glances at one another, the familiar feeling of an elevator travelling downward crept into their stomachs. 

The elevator stopped, and after a loud beep, the doors opened into what looked like a single unit on a hospital floor. Swarms of women and men in white uniforms were collected at what HT Inc. referred to as "the hive", the central nursing station. Some were typing and reading giant monitors, others were drawing up a clear solution in a large syringe, and some were speaking to important looking men. 

The doors shut behind the residents, and every one of them noticed the large stone-faced security guards standing on either side of the elevator door.

A sterile white hallway branched off from "the hive". The hallway consisted of 10 doors on each side leading to the individual client suites, AKA interaction rooms. For marketing purposes, "suites" landed better in the focus groups, but interaction rooms were what the staff used to refer to these small client rooms. A heavy steel door with a large square window was the only way into an interaction room and was locked from the outside. There were 17 adult interaction rooms, and the remaining 3 were reserved for children. In the adult rooms, the only furniture present was a bolted down table with 2 bolted down chairs and a small sofa in the corner. The children's rooms had a smaller bolted down table, 2 small bolted down chairs, a colorless play mat, and a small box of children's toys and books. If one looked closely, they would notice the books and toys were colorless and wordless. Blank covers were followed by blank pages. Inside every cell, there was a door to a holding closet where the HTs were activated and paired to their human counterparts, which was locked on both sides and controlled by the staff at the central station. 

"We believe we found the cure for loneliness at HT Incorporated. We are going to change many lives here, and you all should count yourselves lucky to be a part of the first phase of human trials." The medical director's voice shocked the residents out their dull, humming reveries brought on by the buzz of the monitors and disorienting walls. He gave them a cold, clinical smile and proceeded on with the tour. His smile, similar to the walls and floors, was almost too white, and hadn't reached his eyes. 

"The clients are seated in their assigned suite when they first arrive. A nurse then takes a baseline set of vital signs, lab tests, and then conducts a psychiatric screening. This information allows our experts to cater the experience to our clients, as well as streamline the care for the most effective outcomes. It's this combination of advanced medicine and client personalization that sets us apart from any current competition." 

The director led the residents towards the 1st doorway on the left, and they all huddled around the window looking into the room. 

"Here is Sonya. She is a 42-year-old widow who has suffered extreme familial and financial loss in the past three years. She signed up for the human trials, desperate and discouraged after many therapeutic approaches were not successful in controlling her severe depressive symptoms." 

Through the window, the residents saw one of the nurses inject Sonya in her left arm with a clear, colorless solution. The nurse's bright red lipstick contrasted severely with the white walls. After she applied a small bandage to the injection site, the nurse was observed speaking to Sonya and then promptly exited the room. The residents moved off to the side as the nurse opened the door and walked back to the station. 

"The clients have portable heart monitors on so we can monitor any changes the medication may cause," the director explained. 

One of the residents, a tall young man with large glasses asked, "What is the medication you are administering?" 

"It is a combination of three medications, actually. One is a blood pressure medication to prevent any fatal blood pressure spikes during the interaction with the HT. The other two medications consist of an anxiolytic and a specific psychoactive compound that is tailored to the client's genetic and physical make-up." 

"Which medications are those specifically?" glasses asked again. 

The doctor gave another cold smile and scanned the room before answering. "Given how this trial is still in its early stages, I have been advised by the company not to state the specifics. We have a lot of rival companies who are willing to do anything to access our secret formula. I apologize for the disappointment this may cause, but unless you are a spy, I'm confident you will find that a reasonable answer." 

Immediate silence spread through the group. 

"Now, let us observe how Sonya does when the HT is brought in. The medication should be starting to take effect now." 

The residents looked toward the window. Sonya was seen sitting at the metal table looking towards the door in the back corner. A few seconds later, the door opened, and out came what was named after the company that designed it. The HT had the basic structure of a human and was fitted with a layer of white silicone material. Even with these features, it appeared even less life-like than it would without them. The face, if one could call it that, had no defining structures. 

Before the residents could express their confusion, Sonya flung out of her chair and began crawling towards the HT on her hands and knees. The HT stopped and tilted its head to look down at Sonya as she began crying and kissing its feet. 

"What is happening?" one of the female residents asked, clearly concerned. 

The doctor flashed another one of his award-winning smiles, "Despite Sonya's losses in this life, she is a deeply religious woman. She believes one day, the suffering and sickness that make up this world will end and be replaced by eternal life, but only after Jesus Christ's second coming." He paused, allowing the residents to observe the scene, "Well, I'm not able confirm or deny if that is true, as I am a scientific man, but here at HT Incorporated, we were able to get Jesus to come back a little earlier for our friend Sonya." The director smiled a little longer after this last sentence. It was as if his mouth was completely detached from his face manipulated by an unseen operator.

Another resident chimed in, "So, she thinks THAT is Jesus?" 

"No, she doesn't think anything. She 100% believes it to be the case." 

Before anything else could be said, the director began to walk further down the hallway. The residents looked in the windows of each room they passed. In one room, a lady was slowly dancing with an obvious HT, but to her, it must have been a long-lost lover. Her face was resting on the thing's torso, with her eyes closed and a sweet smile forming at the corners of her lips. 

"We have installed settings to help the HT's respond to their human counterparts that would be the most comforting to them. Within the silicone covering, temperature sensors are present to help mirror the body heat of the client. The legs can change height to mimic the height of the person the client is remembering or fantasizing. They even have an audible heartbeat, breath sounds, and movements that respond to the client's facial expressions, change in heart rate, and non-verbal cues." 

The director continued, " By achieving this with an extremely cost effect model, production will be fast, and anyone can afford it. The medication is the trickier aspect. We are currently working on a long-acting tablet form, but that is going to take some time to get the formula just right." 

They stopped in front of one of the children's rooms. Looking in, a child of about 4 years-old was sitting on the play mat with an HT, who was holding one of the books up and appearing to read to the child. Looking closer, a light coming from the HT's torso was projecting a story onto one of the blank pages. 

"Johnny has severe difficulty in school. Not only with the materials, but the social aspect as well. By allowing Johnny to learn at his own pace with someone who can foster social interaction in the most comforting way to him, I am confident we are going to see significant improvements in his functional and emotional well-being." 

The director and his residents passed by the remaining rooms. Room by room they passed. A man sitting with an HT appearing to fish, an elderly woman rocking a small HT in her arms, a man kissing an HT on its silicone mouth, a laughing child being carried on an HT's back. Each of these people were engrossed in their own perfect worlds, completely unaware of the real humans in the rooms next to them. 

The residents came to the end of the hallway and followed the director back to the elevator entrance. 

"I sincerely hope you have enjoyed your first day here at the HT headquarters. We are doing excellent work, and I have no doubt we will be the leading face of human flourishing. I will see you all back here at a time undisclosed." 

With that, the director flashed one last sterile smile, and the elevator doors opened behind the perfectly still residents. They got in and started their return trip back, blindfolded and speechless.