An Image Beyond The Mind

Cold water splashed on her face. The cold liquid sunk itself into the collar of her sweatshirt, and she shivered. Felicity sputtered from the water getting into her nose, and she started coughing as she sat herself up. Her eyes were blinded by bright light, colors swirling around. She recoiled violently.

"Calm down. You're in a testing room," a soothing voice guided her.

Felicity brought her hands to her face and shook her head. "I can't see!"

"The pain will go away in a couple of minutes or so."

Breathily evenly through her nose, Felicity tried to gather her thoughts. "Which test am I taking first?"

The lady softly chuckled. "Antsy to get it over with?"

Felicity fluttered her eyes open, and she took in the small white cube that she was in. Her eyes were stinging like crazy, she was squinting. The lady was wearing a white lab coat, and her auburn hair was in a tight bun. She wasn't wearing a mask though.

"Why aren't you wearing a mask?" Felicity asked sharply.

"I don't have anything to hide," she answered. "Aren't the masks revolting?"

Felicity remained silent.

The woman smiled lightly. "I thought so as well."

"Can I rinse my eyes?" Felicity asked.

"Yes, let me grab you a wet towel."

The woman stood up and went over to a drawer. She placed the small white square underneath the faucet, and Felicity took her time to look around more clearly. The room she was in reminded her of a hospital room, but all eerily white. It was also high-tech; images were being projected off some items. The woman passed Felicity the wet towel, and Felicity pressed it to her face.

"I apologize. I haven't formally introduced myself. I'm Dr. Savannah Peters."

Felicity forced a smile. "Hello."

"We are going to get started right away then. How are you feeling?"

"Better now. Thank you."

Dr. Peters grabbed a headgear set and placed it over Felicity's head. Quick fingers strapped the headgear on tight. Felicity felt the pull of the headgear, as Dr. Peters plugged wires into the back. Wires upon wires, red crossing over black ones. Felicity was scared that the machine was going to fry her brain.

"Don't be worried, Felicity. The headgear is similar to a virtual reality goggles. It will take you in, but you won't be responsive until you come back to the real world."

Felicity nodded. "I assume this is the psychological testing?"

"Yes. Remember that everything seen inside is not real. It is testing you on your mental skills. Nothing more."

"What happens next?"

"Your physical testing is next." A beep went off, and Dr. Peters brushed Felicity's hair out of her eyes. "Do you have any questions?"

Felicity shook her head. She wanted to get it over with. Her head was pounding, and she didn't know how well she was going to do in this condition. Dr. Peters clicked some buttons on Felicity's headgear and pulled back. "Good luck."

A sound of a crow above made Felicity jerk awake. Her body was sore, and she couldn't help the loud groan that came out of her mouth. The sky was pink, and Felicity screamed.

She scrambled to her feet and blinked again. The world was in reverse of colors, and Felicity felt like she had just jumped down a rabbit hole. Running a hand through her hair wildly, she turned around again. Pink sky. Blue trees. Purple leaves. Black dirt? Grass? Felicity couldn't tell anymore.

Pinching herself to try and get the numbness out of her limbs, she slowly gauged her surroundings. Everything seemed normal, albeit the odd colors. She could smell the saltiness of the air, and Felicity made her way to the shore.

The water was a shimmering grey among the black sand. Felicity paused, it was crazy how real the simulation was.

Looking out over the water, she saw the ocean sway gently to the breeze. It was almost peaceful with the birds in the sky and the shining ocean. But it was all an illusion. She didn't have any time to react.

A large presence made itself known, and Felicity screamed. What was going on? She could feel the force of something so strong, it was pulling her in. Felicity tried to run off the shore, but her legs were rooted. There was a humming sound radiating out of the ocean, and Felicity felt chills run down her back.

A large hole opened up, splitting the ocean into two. Felicity lost all feeling in her legs and crumpled to the ground. She covered her eyes and tried to block out the noise. She didn't want to see it. Not today. Not ever.

Water crashing into the beach, Felicity could hear the being move out of the hole that ripped out of the sky. Gritting her teeth, she steeled herself from the fear. She just wanted to leave. She just had to get through this.

Felicity turned herself around and felt the wind violently shift. The wind was whipping her hair around, her black sweatsuit sticking to her body. Her dark eyes met with translucent ones, and Felicity felt a tear slip down her cheek.