For as long as he could remember, Michael would have the same reoccurring dream.
Walking through a roaring blizzard that stings his skin and whips his body. A barren forest, its greenery and life sucked away by the frigid cold.
He collapses in the firm snow, consumed by fatigue. Laying in the freezing winter land, he finds it too difficult to continue, the hardships too difficult to endure.
It's easier to let fate take its course, he thinks.
His extremities gradually freeze over and become numb. The frost painstakingly crawls up his body until he's trapped in a frigid prison of ice, unable to move.
Too afraid to acknowledge the true meaning of the dream, he remains unable to grasp his own future. A weak person.
...
"Hey you! Wake up!"
Michael raised his head as his professor called out to him. Somehow Michael had managed to sleep through the entire lecture hall he attended. Packing his things and leaving the empty classroom, he headed off campus.
The ear-grating sounds of industrial work and loud commotion filled the air as Michael walked the streets.
Entering Mcjuan's, a burger shop popular with college students, his phone vibrated.
Pulling his phone out of his pocket, he saw that his friend Juan had texted.
April 16, 2027, at 3:06 PM
"Hey Michael its been a minute, you free to come over? I want you to meet someone."
"Sure, what time?" Michael texted back.
"Whenever you want."
Although Michael had piles of unfinished schoolwork , he decided to forfeit it and go to Juan's. Putting his phone back in his pocket, he walked up to the cashier to order.
"Can I get uhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh...
12 cheeseburgers... 15 orders of fries... 20 piece nuggets... and five large milkshakes?"
"Coming right up sir, you must have a big family to feed!"
Little did she know the food was all for him.
Scarfing down his Mcjuan nuggets, Michael finished eating in about five minutes and walked out the door, heading to Juan's house.
The towering buildings and gloomy atmosphere of the city weighed down on its inhabitants. Empty lots of concrete and endless asphalt streets stretched into the distance.
The next district over was an entirely different story, though. If the city of Beaumont had a face, their complexion would have gone from depressed to joyous.
A homey, rustic atmosphere engulfed Michael as the industrial sounds of labor were drowned out. The chirping of birds, sparse sounds of conversation, and a peaceful silence that radiated throughout the district. Beautiful homes lined the streets, their yards spilling with greenery and foliage.
It was no wonder Juan lived in such a place.
Arriving at the address, Michael walked to the porch of the elegant Victorian style house.
Ringing the doorbell, he waited...
"Hello?" A stunning girl with long red hair and soft blue eyes creaked open the door. She wore a long white skirt that flowed in the wind and a baby blue sweater that complimented her eyes.
"Uh... Is Juan here?"
"Yeah, let me get him," the silky tone of her voice entranced Michael.
The door shut and reopened quickly.
"Hey, it's nice to see you, man. Come in."
Juan's sharp profile and hazel skin shone in the afternoon glow.
He enthusiastically greeted Michael and ushered him inside.
"I want you to meet my wife, Miku.
Michael froze and stood in silence. He had no idea what to make of the situation. Shocked, he thought Juan's never been popular with women, so how's this possible?
Michael asked, "Is she a paid actress?"
"NO, she's not a paid actress!"
"You're kind of defensive about it; I don't know Juan."
Miku giggled as their absurd conversation continued, and they all started laughing.
"Hahaha! To think you'd get married before me, it feels like yesterday when you played with those anime girl trading cards."
"Shut up Michael," Juan said irritatedly.
Miku piped up, "Is that true, darling?"
"No, of course not," Juan chuckled, wrapping his arm around his wife. Their eyes met in an intimate stare that made Michael feel out of place.
"So... how'd you guys meet?" Michael questioned Miku.
"We met in middle school but lost contact, and we reunited a few years ago."
Juan chimed in, "Our wedding was last year; we held a private ceremony."
"Last year? Why didn't you tell me, Juan?
"I've just been so busy that I don't really have time to talk to anyone."
Knowing how hard working Juan was, Michael didn't doubt it.
A loud vibrating sound coming from Juan's direction interrupted their conversation.
"Hold on, guys. Let me take this call." Juan walked upstairs, phone to his ear.
Now alone together, Miku and Michael awkwardly sat in silence for a considerable length of time before Miku spoke in a troubled tone, "I want to help Juan."
"What do you mean?"
"He spends so much time working, he has none for himself."
"That's just how he is, he's always pushing himself to be better."
"I know, it's one of the many reasons I fell in love with him, but it's just hard not being able to shoulder any of his burdens. What should I do?"
Her navy eyes glistened with affection, and it was obvious she really wanted to be there for Juan.
"Do you do things around the house, like cooking and cleaning?"
"Of course, I do everything around the house."
"Do you listen to him whenever he needs to vent his problems?"
"Yeah, of course."
A warm yet melancholic feeling welled up in Michael's chest. "I think that what you're doing right now is enough. He can carry his own burden, but when all of his work is finished, he needs you to be there so he can be at peace."
"You think so... You think that I'm enough for him?"
"Yeah, he wouldn't have married if he didn't think you were perfect."
She smiled wistfully, her eyes averting Michaels'. "I'll keep trying my hardest to support him then."
Juan eventually emerged from the stairway and sat down, asking, "What were you guys talking about?"
"You," Miku said as she cuddled up to him and kissed him on the cheek.
She looked into Juan's eyes and gave a smile that could only be described as the purest form of affection.
"I love you, darling," she spoke in a silken voice.
"I love you too." Juan replied, his eyes filled with stars.
Michael, who had never felt the touch of a woman, was out of place but supportive nonetheless.
...
After a few more hours of chatting with Juan and Miku, Michael left their house feeling proud but also jealous of them.
The flickering street lights contrasted by the pitch black of the night reflected his emotions.
There was something heartwarming about knowing that his friend had someone to always fall back on. But it also pulled thoughts of dissatisfaction from the back of Michael's mind.
Juan's lucky to have someone so loving in his life; I wish I had somebody like that.
His life in general is so dazzling, I can't help but wish to be like him.
Too bad.
I'm not like him, Michael thought to himself.
The street lights flickered.
Turning the corner, Michael's train of thought was interrupted by a shadowy silhouette in the distance. Their hooded figure approached slowly, steps echoing through the empty streets. Once under a streetlight, Michael could vaguely make out their pale face and thin features. Slowly backing away, a chill ran down his spine.
The lights flickered.
In that split second of darkness, in that blink of lightlessness. They appeared before him, lunging forward with a dagger in their hand and a crazed look in their eyes. Rapidly thrusting the blade into Michael's face, he desperately blocked it with his hand.
Throbbing pain radiated throughout his arm as blood spurted from his palm.
"Aaarrgghhh!"
The blade had gone straight through the back of his hand and was inches away from his eye. Michael thrashed violently, whipping around and sprinting while he disregarded the blade embedded in his palm. His heart was racing; he was terrified.
Run.
Kicking the ground behind him and forcing his legs to hasten, his body became unsettlingly weightless. A fraction of a second later, a surging pain came to him.
His ribs caved and cracked under an immense pressure as he flew through the air. A shock went down his spine as his back slammed against a wall.
He couldn't move. His body collapsed, and for a moment his vision went black before snapping back to reality.
Cold fingers pinned down his arm, and the knife embedded in his hand slowly slid upward. Flesh tore as the blade made its way up Michael's arm.
Is this it for me? Michael's waning mind thought.
With his consciousness slowly fading, a sense of numbness consumed him as little droplets of water fell from the black sky.
On this spring night, a shower of rain would wash over this city and cleanse the impure.
...
A vast city of white sprawling out endlessly. Unusual architecture and huge, empty buildings.
A lifeless forest that sped through the seasons like a time-lapse, yet always remaining frozen.
Scenery of a log cabin in a field
that spanned seemingly endlessly in every direction.
Everything unknown, everything strangely familiar.
"You have potential." A middle aged man wearing a tacky lab coat and messily slicked back hair said.
"You lost your sense of self, though." Hand raised, he stepped forward.
"Noble Chroma: Blue. Open the Gates of Limbo."
Blue. Azul. 蓝色的. Bleu. أزرق. синий.
A small sphere of the color formed, gradually expanding. The blue crashed and flowed, simultaneously calm and torrential.
It dyed every facet of the white city until it all congealed into one shape. And as it converged, Michael was consumed.
All at once, cognition came flooding back to him, as if his soul had been placed back into his empty body. But as it filled his body, something else came with it.
The blue that had once covered the white city surged into him like floodgates being opened. Breathing was painful; the color filled his lungs whenever he attempted to inhale.
His blood became filled with it, as if pouring into his heart.
Michael was becoming one with the blue.
"This is a world where people can only pick one thing that they wish for. Have any more, and you risk losing the thing you initially wanted. Observe your cradle of desires and set yourself free, Michael." The man smirked mischievously.
"The name's Weisenburg; you owe me for saving your life and that incredible life advice."
Drowning and convulsing in the blue, Michael reached out with his hand, but that soon too was glazed over by the nauseating color.
Minutes, hours, and days eventually passed. The blue occupied every niche of his mind and body. But he'd gotten used to it now; rather than a nauseating torrent, it was now a calming tide.
There was strength to be found in the color, and he felt invigorated. This feeling wouldn't last, though, for Weisenburg would soon return.
"Your time's up. I gotta send you back, or else he'll find you again." The off-brand scientist seemed to have a more serious air about him.
"What?" His arrival was so sudden that Michael couldn't process it.
"Beware of Godfried, the pale man who attacked you."
...
And as if the vast city of white suddenly zipped out of existence, Michael was sent back to the real world. Still in his city but in an area unknown to him, he took in his surroundings.
The sound of birds singing and swaying leaves filled his ears. Rays of sun beamed through the dense clouds, shining directly on him. A light rainfall could be felt on his skin as water fell through the tree canopying above him.
Dawn was breaking on this pure city as a gentle spring shower cascaded down.