Thrust forward by the future,
Nevertheless exists a tale that does not butcher,
Memories that never fail to announce their presence,
And a life changed in its cadence.
A bell rang as Ayden opened the glass-paned oak door. It was a sound he hadn’t heard in ages. He surveyed the floorboards of what seemed like a dingy but spacious interior before he fully stepped into it, eyes fixated to the floor. He could feel that it was filled with the now uncommon warmth of wooden planks and LED lighting, with the chaotic emptiness inside giving it a stark contrast to the controlled bustle on the outside.
Ayden fiddled with the chip behind his left ear, he had learnt of a new trick to temporarily deactivate the video transmission from his retinas from a Light Web page he had read a few days ago. With the prying eyes above him left blinded, he looked straight ahead of him, his vision landing on a countertop adorned in black and cabinets stacked miles high behind it.
“Anyone here?” he asked the void.
“Right where you are.” someone replied, coming from… behind him?
He jolted awake and turned backwards, a man that seemed around his height was behind where he just stood.
He took many quick breaths, feeling a sense of tightness in his chest.
“Poor guy, how long have you been under their influence.” he reached his hand t o pat Ayden’s shoulder.
What was a normal interaction Ayden would have day to day felt like a wave of ecstasy washing over his body.
“Since birth, haven’t we all?” Ayden writhed in overwhelming pleasure.
“I see you…” he put his hand back at his side “I best ought to not tell you now then.” He walked into the expanse of the void, which now seemed brighter than ever.
“Why not?” Ayden said with curiosity.
“I assume you have temporarily deactivated IT’s chip, right? That’s how you can perceive me. So your mind is fragile, you shouldn’t expose yourself to too much stimuli.” the guy explained, now behind the countertop.”
“Oh, I guess that makes sense.” he took small steps towards the guy.
“Ahem,” he cleared his throat a bit “The name’s Hans, how may I be of service sir?”
“Hi, do you carry the CD?” Ayden asked.
Hans chuckled.
“What kind of CD sir? There are many, from videogames to music videos to just good ol’ memories.” Hans replied.
“Uhhh the one that lets you deactivate IT?’
“Oh my, you want to leave The Cloud?”
“Is it real?” Ayden’s eyes sparkled.
“It certainly is,” Hans turned to the myriad of shelves behind the counter “But first…”
The room bathed in a red glow, illuminated by the lasers pointed at his left ear, neck, right wrist and lower spine.
“Uh…” Ayden was flabbergasted.
Hans opened a blue screen on his wrist, a modified IP. “Sorry, just gotta check that you’re not from The Government or any bullshit like that.”
“If I was, why would I be here…?” Ayden was puzzled.
“Oh dear, have you not heard of undercover raids?” Hans closed his IPhone (IP) and the room returned to its original state.
“Oh yeah, I kind of remember now” Ayden adjusted his clothes as he blinked to adjust his vision.
“Here you go, the CD to disable your Internal Technologies (IT).” Hans placed a circular iridescent disk on the table.
A wave of dizziness seemed to spread over Ayden, a throbbing pulse beat fiery inside his cranium.
“Sorry, the sedation of your IT seems to have completely worn off. You’ll be fine soon kid.” Hans said.
“Kid? How old are you, you don’t seem a day past me.” Ayden fumbled in his black jacket to find his barter.
“Would you believe that I’m actually 46? You do seem like you’re 20 or some sort.” Hans replied.
“Thats wild, and yeah you’re right.” Ayden placed a gold poker chip on the table, piquing Hans’ interest.
“A 2016 Resort World chip, that’s insanely rare.” Hans inspected it closely.
“Yeah I got it from my grandfather, he just passed.” Ayden exchanged the items in his hands, inspecting the shimmer of it.
“Oh, before I forget, you can use this player to connect it to your IP’s, USB port.” Hans passed him a bulky black box, which was surprisingly light, which he then pocketed in a hurry. A could here a whir behind his left ear.
“Oh it seems like its activating,” Hans peered to see the back of Ayden’s left ear, blue light pulsating beneath his pale skin.
“Thank you, I think I should leave.” he nervously shook Hans hand, a tradition of the Old World.
“Oh yeah, I don’t think I caught your name?” Hans leaned on his counter, playing with the chip in his hand.
“It’s Reyn.” Ayden didn’t dare to turn back, in fear for exposing the kind soul.
Ayden walked back into the bustling streets, the building he was just in was now nowhere to be found, but the idyllic landscapes of the New World surrounded him once more. “My life seemed so pitch perfect, so why would I want to resort to this?” is the faint question that echoed in his empty head. Maybe it was the uptick in disappearances linked to The Cloud. Or just the realization that what is empty can be filled.
With a newfound feeling, one that didn’t seem to be emulated from his IT, he walked over to the nearest teleporter. Upon entering he typed his residence and password. With a faint blue light that blended into the clear skies, and the calm music that played with the process, he was taken to The Cloud HQ.
Ayden Qyn-Cloud was the youngest son of The Cloud. The first in-line of humans born from the Augmented Reality (AR) that The Cloud layered over what was once called reality. His parents, the CEO’s of The Cloud, the first to leave the Material Reality (MR) to the AR indefinitely, were always painted as pioneers to him. But he recently came to realize, after his 21st birthday, that the world worked in two ways: one for those at the top of the world, and another for the 99.9% below them.
His days were filled with resting, the arts and sometimes just observations from researchers. He had never had the need to lift a finger around anywhere, there were myriads of servants who he could summon at his will. However on what was supposed to be a special occasion, his own brother painted his memories in a red haze.
For his youngest brother’s 19th birthday, a human hunt was organized to celebrate. That day the woods behind the HQ would be stained in all hues of red, horror and flesh. And the next day, everything seemed to move on like clockwork.
But Ayden felt like his heart stopped ticking the right way.
Was he supposed to feel this way?
The next time he was under an observative session, his mind had collapsed all the possibilities into one.
“Ayden, has anything traumatic happened recently?” His usual researcher peered over the many monitors that surrounded his room.
If he became privy to this knowledge, only God knows what would befall that researcher. So Ayden did what he was taught the best to do, lie. It felt oddly suffocating this time around, like milk that was stirred till it curdled.
In a whirlwind of thoughts, Ayden found himself in segments of The Cloud he had never been to, in an attempt to know what to make of this situation. After much browsings and reflections in the mirror, he stumbled on the CD that could disconnect your from the AR, and from that urban legend he managed to actually find it.
His gazed now fixated at the CD and its player. As he walked toward his desk, he felt like waves washed upon him. As he grabbed a razor to free the USB port beneath his skin. As crimson trickled down his palm, the air bit at his scar.
In a daze he plugged the player into the incision behind his left ear, and then he put the CD into it. A slow whir encompassed his being, which slowly ascended to a sensation akin to being tumbled in a washer. He was glad he decided to take a seat beforehand, he could barely concentrate on anything aside from how nauseous he felt.
Time seemed to pass by excruciatingly slow, but out of nowhere a notification flashed on his personal IP; “PROFILE OFFLINE”.
His face seemed to melt into accomplishment, he didn’t know what he had done, but he knew he did something. Slowly a burning sensation flooded his left ear, but somehow his heart kept on feeling, feeling appreciative of it all.
He walked slowly to the glass pane that overlooked the now lacklustre city, his suspicions were confirmed, life under The Cloud had been partly an illusion. He opened the pane of glass, grateful that it was the only part of his room not automated. A foul stench of acid and sour befell it, it was hard not to gag, but at least the Sun still felt warm on his skin.
He then left to his bed, feeling every part of his temporary mortality. He got into his white sheets, tainting his pillows red, crimson and maroon as he tossed and turned.
He felt both elated and melancholic.
His mind wanted to leave this place, to see what reality had to offer him. But first he had to figure out how to leave his room when he was not under The Cloud.
At least he now had himself, his thoughts and his emotions.
Ayden then realized the answer to his predicament was in him. In ignoring the sound of his heart and mind, he had begun to live a life that wasn’t his, but rather one defined by his past.
Written By : Caelan
Edited By : Kalila
