Chapter 45: Computers and Recollections

John's eyes widened. Could their life together, the foundation he and Marie had constructed, be based on a lie? Was the lady he was in love with, the one with whom he lived his life, just a replica of the one who dared to risk all for love? He forced the word out, his voice heavy with perplexity, "But...Marie." "The person we saw and loved..."Who is she? The "real Marie" took a step forward, a terrifying intensity shining in her eyes. "A byproduct," she spat out. An error inside the system. A ghost within the machine, doomed to vanish the moment my genuine self took my proper position." The globe swung in John's direction. Was the life he created and the love tale he treasured a fabrication? Did the lady he loved really exist only in his imagination due to faulty technology? The young couple talking carelessly under the oak tree went on, their innocent love tale a sharp contrast to the chaos that was rising within John. He glanced at the lowering sun, which served as a gli