Less protection means less control. Less control translates into less control over stimuli.
The rush of color, flashing and streaking around the Bubble, increases gradually. More objects, faces, and bodies appear and disappear, and do so faster, with greater frequency. A faint hum arises, growing louder by the second, resolving itself into myriad sounds.
The Bubble begins to vibrate, increasing its rate of vibration with more and more exposure to the chaos.
"Michael, please hold this level of protection."
"As you wish, Mr. Visionquest, but I fail to understand the significance of your request for less protection. Perhaps if you tell me what it is you seek, I could assist you more fully."
I close my eyes to soak up the incoming stimuli, allowing them to invigorate my mind with their energy. "Michael, I appreciate your concern, but I wish to observe, as fully as possible, and not just with the sense of sight, the various stimuli that saturate this world that knows no bounds."
"Mr. Visionquest, would you care to establish a link so that I might observe and monitor your state of mind in response to said stimuli?"
"Yes, Michael, but only when I say so. I wish to approach the threshold at which I feel compelled to participate in the community that Knows No Bounds, on my own, without your assistance."
"I understand, Mr. Visionquest. And with your permission, you would have me establish a link so as to gradually increase the level of protection at the moment you feel compelled to participate."
"Yes, Michael. Or more precisely, at the moment I begin to lose my mind."
