The monotonous drone of Professor Hawkins' voice filled the lecture hall, barely audible over the whir of the overhead projector. Jason Keller's pen tapped an irregular rhythm against his notebook as he struggled to focus on the complex equations scrawled across the whiteboard. The faint aroma of coffee wafted through the air, a remnant of his classmates' desperate attempts to stay awake during the early morning physics lecture.
Jason's eyes darted to the clock on the wall. Only ten minutes had passed. He stifled a yawn and tried to refocus on the professor's words.
"The principles of quantum entanglement suggest that..."
Jason's mind began to wander. What was the point of all this anyway? His thoughts drifted to the upcoming weekend. A smile tugged at the corners of his mouth as he imagined hanging out with his friends at their favorite spot by the lake.
"Hey," whispered Sarah, the girl sitting next to him. "Did you get that last part?"
Jason blinked, snapping back to reality. "Uh, sorry. I zoned out for a sec."
Sarah rolled her eyes good-naturedly. "Typical Jason. Always daydreaming."
He grinned sheepishly and glanced down at his nearly blank notebook page. Maybe he should at least try to take some notes. As he picked up his pen, Jason's gaze lingered on his reflection in the shiny metal spiral binding. His dark hair was a mess, as usual, and his blue eyes looked tired. Just another ordinary day in the life of an unremarkable college student.
"Mr. Keller," Professor Hawkins' stern voice cut through Jason's reverie. "Perhaps you'd like to explain the concept I just covered to the class?"
Jason's heart skipped a beat as all eyes turned to him. He cleared his throat nervously. "Um, well..." He racked his brain for anything he might have absorbed in the last few minutes. "It's about... quantum... stuff?"
A few snickers rippled through the lecture hall. Professor Hawkins sighed. "Thank you for that insightful contribution, Mr. Keller. Now, as I was saying..."
Jason slumped in his seat, his cheeks burning with embarrassment. He really needed to get his act together. As the lecture droned on, he made a half-hearted attempt to scribble down some notes, all the while dreaming of the moment when he could escape this tedium and return to his normal, uncomplicated life.
Suddenly, the world around Jason ground to a halt. The professor's hand froze mid-gesture, his mouth open in an unfinished syllable. The clock on the wall stopped ticking, its second hand quivering in place. An eerie silence descended upon the lecture hall, broken only by Jason's ragged breathing.
"What the hell?" Jason whispered, his eyes darting around the room. His classmates were frozen like statues, some with pens poised over notebooks, others caught mid-yawn.
Before he could process what was happening, an ethereal voice echoed in his mind, calm and authoritative. "Jason Keller," it intoned, cutting through the stillness. "You have been chosen."
Jason's heart raced. "Chosen? For what? Who are you?"
"I am the Enigma," the voice replied. "And you, Jason, have been selected for a series of trials that will test your limits and shape your destiny."
Jason swallowed hard, his mouth suddenly dry. "Trials? I don't understand."
"There are four difficulty settings," the Enigma continued, unperturbed by Jason's confusion. "Easy, Normal, Hard and Unreal. The greater the challenge, the greater the reward."
"Wait, wait," Jason interrupted, running a hand through his messy hair. "Are you saying I have to choose how difficult I want my life to be?"
"Precisely," the voice confirmed. "What will it be, Jason Keller? Will you embrace the challenge or shy away from it?"
Jason's mind reeled. He glanced around at his frozen classmates, wondering if this was some elaborate prank. But deep down, he knew it wasn't. This was real, and it was happening to him.
Jason's throat felt tight as he considered his options. His instincts screamed at him to choose the easiest path, but a small voice in the back of his mind whispered of untapped potential.
"I... I choose normal," he finally stammered, his voice barely above a whisper.
There was a pause, and Jason could almost feel the Enigma's disappointment. "Very well," it said. "But know this, Jason Keller: your journey will not be as simple as you might hope."
Jason's brow furrowed. "What do you mean?"
"For you, there is only the calamity setting," the Enigma revealed, its tone growing more ominous. "You must face trials that will push you beyond your perceived limits."
"But I chose normal!" Jason protested, his heart hammering in his chest.
"You need to endure the calamity to become the calamity," the Enigma stated cryptically. "This is your path, Jason. Embrace it."
Jason's mind raced, trying to make sense of the Enigma's words. "I don't understand. What does that even mean?"
"In time, all will become clear," the Enigma replied. "Your journey of transformation begins now. Prepare yourself, Jason Keller, for the trials that await."
As the voice faded, Jason was left with a gnawing sense of uncertainty and a head full of unanswered questions. He glanced around the still-frozen lecture hall, wondering what lay ahead and if he was truly ready for whatever the calamity setting had in store for him.
The world lurched back into motion with a cacophony of gasps and murmurs. Jason blinked rapidly, his eyes darting around the lecture hall as his classmates stirred from their frozen state.
"Did... did anyone else feel that?" a girl with thick-rimmed glasses whispered, her voice trembling.
"Feel what?" her neighbor asked, brow furrowed in confusion.
"Like everything just... stopped," another student chimed in, his face pale.
The room buzzed with nervous energy as students exchanged bewildered glances. Some leaned towards each other, whispering frantically, while others sat rigid in their seats, eyes wide with disbelief.
Jason's heart raced as he watched the reactions unfold around him. His gaze flicked from face to face, searching for any sign that someone else had heard the Enigma's voice. But as the moments ticked by, a sinking feeling settled in his stomach.
"Am I not going crazy?" he thought, his hands clenching and unclenching in his lap. "Was it real?"
A loud thud echoed through the room, jolting Jason out of his thoughts. His teacher, who moments ago was standing at the front of the class, now laid on the ground with a now broken piece of chalk in hand. The suddenness of it left Jason frozen in place.
"What's happening ?" asked Sarah on his right, her voice shivering from fright.
Jason turned to answer.
"Maybe he had a stroke or som…"
He was cut off by a sickening crack as Sarah's head collided with her desk. Before he could understand what was happening, the sound of bodies dropping echoed in the classroom.
Jason's heart raced as he watched one by one his classmates go limp and collapse on their chairs. As he tried to process what was happening, darkness suddenly engulfed him, robbing him of his sight and understanding.
"What the f… is happening." he screamed, at the top of his lungs.
Suddenly, the blackness gave way to a burst of blinding light. Jason squinted, raising his arm to shield his eyes. As his vision adjusted, he found himself standing on a small life raft. Endless azure waters stretched out before him, neither land or island in sight.
"Pass away peacefully in your sleep on a deserted island," the Enigma's voice whispered in his mind. "Good luck Jason."