"ｔｒａｎｓｃｅｎｄ ｐｒｏｃｅｓｓ ｃｏｍｐｌｅｔｅ．"
The numbed silence drilled in my conscience was interrupted by these words, pleasantly slurred from afar.
I felt the weight of nothing. All I appeared to do was float in, what seemed to be, a vast and boundless ocean of black.
Eyes fluttered open, and suddenly, my vision had become exposed to a world of brilliance I never knew. My body began to twirl and spin, faster and faster. A great white light flashed into my sight and has almost just about blinded me.
"Transporting, transporting..." The voice recited soulessly; no sign of emotion evident in it's tone.
The strange slurred voice murmured something in the distance, as my eyes squeezed shut and temples began to throb...
Skies painted with purple stretched across like a canvas above me, and the warm draughts of wind caressed my skin with a feather-like touch. The sun appeared to be dip deeper into the horizon; it's rays would cause the line dividing sky and sea, creating an amber glow. The smell of the salted summer breeze from afar wafted carelessly through the air. But that was only what lied far beyond. I seemed to have landed in the centre of a desolate road, high into the hills. Perfectly aligned residences so perfect; dollhouses with mysteriously immaculate lawns and features stood tall and towered over my head. It was that hour, where families had reunited after their tedious days of work and school, and all was quiet. Eerily quiet.
"ｗｅｌｃｏｍｅ ｈｏｍｅ．"
It was almost as if I had been entranced. The atmospheric beauty was bewitching.
But was this home? Surely not. As beautiful as this strange place was, I wasn't receiving that familiar sensation of home. I grew curious, and mildly suspicious of this all-too-perfect universe. I decided to wander a little bit further, and investigate.
It was the kind of atmosphere you would smoke in, a relaxing feeling like no other. So, as you do, I proceeded to take this opportunity to take a pack of smokes, (that had mysteriously appeared in my pocket), and lit a cigarette. I lightly inhaled and exhaled. It was the kind of lulling feeling that reassured me that there was nothing to be worried about. Almost seemed that I had finally reached the ultimate euphoria.
But dusk had already come to say good evening. It was strange to see darkness come around so quickly in such a timeless place.
Suddenly, that voice again...
The earth rumbled and quaked beneath my feet.
"ｓｈｕｔｔｉｎｇ ｄｏｗｎ．．．"
"Wait, no!" The two panicked words of mine croaked pathetically out to the sky, my fingers tensing apart alarmedly. My cigarette, still encased with heat within its contents, dropped to the ground unnoticed like a droplet of rain. Unwillingly, my body jerked violently and jolted backward all the way to the pavement's surface.
On impact, my vision once again faded to black.
I'm once again, back where I was, floating in a pool of boundless black sea. My eyes closed, head nodding downward.
I must open my eyes. Now.
Colours and lights once again bursted into my vision, and swooned me into a mystical trance.
In a blinding flash, I was whisked off my hypnotic spell and back to familiar ground. I supposedly had respawned into the same location I had previously been within. Apart from the fact that these were the exact coordinates of my last landing and that the time hadn't budged one bit...
Something didn't feel right.
It felt somewhat eerier pacing down the street, passing the neighborhood houses. A strange ringing looped inside my ears and head, as it pounded with each ring.
Now was not the time for cigarettes, something awfully strange was up. And that's when I saw him.
Amongst the many lines of houses stretched far beyond and into the horizon, was a little boy. He was dressed in typical 60s fashion, wearing a small pair of charcoal slacks and a ocean blue plaid shirt, and his sandy hair slicked back with layers of product. But there was more than that, a striking feature that caught my attention well.
His eyes were glowing white, no pupils. It was as if small beacons were buried inside his head and projecting right into my direction. They were prominent, especially in the darkness of the evening. Although he may not have had pupils for me to figure out whether if he really was looking at me, his cold yet emotionless expression and stare in my general direction made me extremely uneasy.
Now, I may not have been the most angelic of all, I truly have seen some of the most horrific of things, but this was the freakiest shit I had ever seen in my life. The absolute fear over a small child in me was overwhelmingly cowardly and stupid. My mind felt conflicted, should I provoke this child or not? Nevertheless, I had to face the fact that my mind was internally driving in haphazard directions and descending into insanity.
"Hey! You there!" I hoarsely hollered out. I hadn't realized until then how I hadn't spoken at all to anybody during my entire visit. My throat had tightened quickly and sent me into a complete coughing fit. I sank to my knees and gasped for air. This stupid kid didn't even offer to help. In fact, all he did was silently watch on.
"That's real retarded, kid," I said, as I hauled to my feet and dusted my knees with a quick sweep. "You should always help others whenever you can."
The kid just looked at me.
"Christ..." I muttered, my fingers sprinted and ruffled through my hair. "It's okay Jack, it's just a dumb kid." I decided not to waste my time any further, and carried on. I turned my heel and kept walking, careful not to make eye contact with the creepy thing. I could feel that oppressive glare from behind slowly following me. I was legitimately terrified.
But before leaving, the robot child finally spoke.
"His every word, every sin. The inevitable catalyst shall begin."
You've got to be kidding me.
Since when did this young 6 year old know so much about the devil? At least that's what I thought he was implying. My pace quickened and broke into a slow jog. I didn't want to make it clearly obvious that I was incredibly uncomfortable about this whole situation.
But little did I know, things were about to get a lot worse.
ns 15.158.61.16da2
