Simulation--Elisa

The sun was just coming up from the horizon, the golden orange hues blended together in a brilliant show of light. I had been restless all night, but standing here now, I felt at peace. The soft sand underneath my feet, the cool breeze raising goosebumps on my skin and the constant whoosh of the tide coming in and out. As the sun made its way up, more people began to make their way down to the beach, so I got up, dusted myself off and made my way back to my room. It was right on the beach, expensive, but that’s the price you pay when you have the best view in the area. As I made my way back I decided I would go for a run along one of the hidden trails that the locals had shown me, a fairly flat, 180o​ ​path through a tropical canopy. I got dressed and immediately set foot to my destination, I figured on the way back I’d grab a bite to eat in one of the hole-in-the-wall cafes. I noticed while I was walking that the once clear, bright blue skies had turned a shadowy gray, I guess my run will have to be a little shorter than usual. I set a goal for 5 miles and did a quick stretch before starting in a light jog until I got to a comfortable pace. As I jogged, I took note of the beautiful nature surrounding me, the hum of the insects as they hid from predators, the chirping of birds as they looked for their next meal and the chatter of monkeys as they carried about their daily activities. Before I could trip I focused back on the path in front of me and set to focus on the rest of my run. In fact, I was so focused that I didn’t even notice that all those sounds I had been hearing just a few minutes before had suddenly stopped. In its place was a low rumbling, the suddenly quiet skies erupted with a cacophony of shrieks so loud I had to cover my ears. That was my first mistake. In the chaos of noise the only thing I could think to do was run back the way I came. Second mistake. As I got closer to the entrance I had come in through I noticed people running, but from what I still could not tell. When I reached them I tried to get someone, anyone to tell me what was going on when I looked up. Third mistake. I willed my legs to move but they just wouldn’t cooperate. The once peaceful waves that I had seen this morning now betrayed me as they towered over and rushed towards me. Adrenaline kicked in and I finally had enough sense to turn around and run like everyone else. But it was no use. The water hit me with a force so strong that my lungs felt as if they had burst with the pinprick of a thousand needles. I couldn’t escape the debris that I was forced upon as the water continued rushing and never had I ever felt as much pain and fear in that moment in my entire life. I never thought it would end for me this way, I still had so much I wanted to accomplish, so many places I wanted to see...but I’d never get the chance. There came a moment, however, when I finally looked up, I could see the muddled sky from beneath the water and resolved that this was not the way I was going to go. I fought with all the strength that was left in me to reach the surface, and just as my hand was about to break the top...everything went black.
“Miss Wi...ms, c.. you ..er me?” 

“Miss ..iams, can y.. h... me? 

“Miss Williams, can you hear me?”

I strained to open my eyes against the bright glare of the lights overhead. Where am I? What happened? Wait... the tsunami! I immediately tried to sit up and noticed that I was in a dimly lit room with four solid metal walls surrounding me as well as a man with a white coat and another posted at the door with all black attire. “Where am I? Am I in the hospital?” I asked.

“Miss Williams my name is Dr. Howard, the tsunami you experienced was not real, you’ve been under a simulation for one year. Your full name is Estelle Williams, you live in Quantum City, today’s date is May 3, 2089. I know not everything may be coming back to you right now but a nurse will be in shortly to administer you a serum that will help restore your memory of life before. Thank you for paying to experience SIMULATION PARADISE, once you gain your memories back, you will remember that the easiest way to take you out of the simulation was to create an environment where your fear hormones would overpower your system that it would shut down long enough for us to remove you from said simulation. Again thank you for your time and I hope you had a good experience please do not forget to rate us on our free SIMULATION app.”

As he got up and walked out I sat there bewildered about everything he had just told me, I couldn’t believe that I had purposely paid to be put through something like that. All that fear and hopelessness that I’d never take another breath...wasn’t real but it was all just a simulation.