After that speech, I was a little afraid to fall asleep but couldn't deny the exhaustion I felt. I lay awake drained and tired but soon my eyes began to feel heavy and I drifted away into sleep. The sleep felt natural, almost enviable, something meant to happen, almost as if I wanted it to happen.
The next morning I woke up feeling refreshed. My night of sleep was so great, I felt it was honestly some of the best sleep I've ever had. My eyes slowly adjusted to the bright daylight and I noticed I was in an all white room with no doors, a mirror, and in the left corner, my favorite desk. The mirror was nearly as long as me and had its own metal frame to support it. The wooden desk had intricate designs of triangular formations that covered all the legs of the desk. My favorite part though was that the desk contained multiple drawers that could store all of my work findings. The bed I was laying in was gargantuan in size. It had to be a double king size with the softest, silk sheets I'd ever lay my hands on. On top of that, the pillows felt like giant marshmallows. I just wanted to stay here forever and enjoy the relaxing atmosphere. Nothing seemed better to me, there was nothing but peace in this moment.
Alas, after some time lying there, I got up and walked over to the mirror and looked at myself. I was slender with toned muscles that beamed through my clothes. My skin was smooth and light brown. My brown eyes held a ring of blue in them giving an eerie feeling to the beholder. My short military-style haircut matched my tamed facial hair and the sharp jawline suggested I wasn't one to cut an exercise short. I walked towards my desk, the desk that brought such good memories from my work. Moving to the right side of the desk, a transparent screen showed my work and I realized it was all my files and catalogs from my experiments. It was so organized that the files were even arranged by date. My perfect memory immediately kicked in and with one look I recalled what happened from each day on those files. A smile tugged at the corners of my mouth and continued to grow as I sat gazing at them. Truly a wonderful time it was to learn and experiment on my own time.
Sporadically I selected a file.
'Experient Echo: Strength enchantment Subject lX' was written on the label. I knew what this experiment was and I couldn't help but yearn to experience this day again. Pressing play, a small voice reverberated from the speaker and my heart swelled as I heard it. My favorite assistant, my dear son, came alive in the video.
"Dad! Can we see if we can make him stronger, please? It would be so awesome if he could beat Alistar."
"That annoying ass Alistar doesn't know when to be quiet!" my voice replied back.
This small conversation surged an urgency to review more, so I opened the notes that accompanied the audio.
Inside I found written, Test subject X: Alistar. Possesses enchanted intelligence and accelerated speech. He is quite funny and prone to making some hilarious jokes. This hints at the incredible success. Humor is an advanced form of intelligence.
Before I could read more, I heard my son's voice again.
"Dad, could you be nicer to Alister? I know how much you like him, I know how proud you are of your creation."
My boy, he had been so wise. Samuel Aleric. The voice of reason and recognition in my life.
My son.
The only son I had, the son who is now gone while I'm in a world that feels unfamiliar to me.
Slowly I rotated and moved away from my seated position. In an instant, the bed and mirror were gone.
In their place were three doors that hung aloft in the middle section of the wall. How odd. Whipping my head back towards the desk, I saw it had vanished too. Just mere minutes ago I was reveling in its presence.
"Almost forgot this was a trial," I whispered in consultation.
I walked towards the doors eagerly and listened attentively as my footsteps echoed around the room. Internally my heart was beating exponentially fast and I felt it threatened to escape from my chest. This feeling of the unknown was both exciting and terrifying.
All three doors had a similar symbol sprawled out onto the smooth wood. The closer I got, the more I recognized that on the door was a phoenix wearing a wizard's hat. Inside the phoenix's talons was a cane covered in a strange zigzag pattern. It was beautiful and hilarious at the same time. Amongst my amusement, I wondered what was behind each door and considered not opening any of them. However, my body felt almost under compulsion, and without thinking I walked up to the right door and opened it. Gently, I turned the knob and pulled it open, bracing myself for the unknown challenges ahead.