Turn on, Tune In, Drop Out!

Al's words hung in the air, met with a tense silence.

Dean rolled his eyes, psychedelic drugs? Of all the things he'd anticipated, mind-bending substances weren't on the list. Sure, he'd been ready for weird, maybe a little danger, but letting someone tamper with his mind? And the rich kid act didn't help either—Al could wax poetic about "truth" and "liberation" because he didn't know what it was like to live on the edge, relying on a nothing income just to make ends meet. Dean threw a skeptical glance Viktor's way, fully expecting him to be as unimpressed.

Viktor, though, was silent, staring at the floor, seemingly deep in thought.

Then, like a spark in dry grass, the silence burst into a clamor of voices:

"Whoa, whoa, whoa! Nobody said we'd signed up for this!"

"Psychedelics? Are you out of your mind?"

"Oh, come on! They're probably just sugar pills."

"Ha! You wanna drug us? Where's my contract?"

"Not even a free drink first?"

Among the noise, one voice stood out, calm and clear.

"I'm in."

Dean's eyes darted to Viktor, wide with disbelief. You're in? But Viktor merely shrugged, meeting his gaze with a steady look.

"Two grand a week? I've done worse for a lot less." He hesitated, a deeper sentiment hidden in the depths of his eyes.

"And anyway…. this guy might be onto something."

Al's face lit up with a predatory gleam. No doubt enthused by the discovery of a willing sacrifice, he turned towards Viktor, flashing his thousand megawatt smile.

"Perfect! I'm sure the rest of them will be convinced after hearing your testimony."

"Then…"

Raising a hand to beckon Viktor forward, Al motioned the man to the front.

"Come on up, and let's get started."

Viktor moved, steady and deliberate to the front.

Dean felt something tug inside him - a magnetic draw, something that he couldn't explain. They'd come here together, at Viktor's behest, and he felt now that he was being pulled into his rhythm entirely. For some strange reason, a feeling of unease began rising up in his chest to go along with this magnetic pull, and now Viktor - Viktor who had inspired these feelings in him was stepping forward like it was nothing.

Before knowing what he was doing, and before he could even consider the absurdity of his actions, Dean's mouth opened, and his voice rang out.

"I'll go too."

The words hung in the air for a second, startling him and sending a ripple through the room. Shock flooded his body, and his mind began to race, attempting to catch up to the words that had already left his mouth.

Gazes darted between him and Viktor-laced with disbelief, yes, and something else.

Curiosity, or maybe admiration.

He was just as astonished, not anticipating his actions. He was pulled forth by an invisible force that commanded his attention.

This is a quality inherent to men. It's impossible for us to compare ourselves with those who already embody the traits we desire. We view them as distant, beyond our reach, alien. There lies, however, something special in the process of becoming that enraptures us and draws us in inexplicably.

No one wants to be left behhind.

Al's grin widened, his eyes alighting with sick thrill.

"Number 2 stepping up to the plate! Excellent, excellent,"

He stood in place, bouncing off the soles of his feet, his hair moving erratically in every direction.

Viktor shot Dean a quick, sideways glance, surprised, but with appreciation evident in his gaze. He gave a tiny nod; they'd formed a pact.

There was no turning back now.

Al led the group away from the sterile, class-room like space, guiding them with eager energy down a narrow hallway that wound along the inner curve of the observatory.

From it's initial cold, the air grew warmer, tinged with a faint, musky scent, and the low hum of distant machinery seemed to melt away, replaced by an almost palpable silence.

Finally, Al paused before an unmarked door, swinging it open with a flourish.

The interior of the room was bathed in dim, amber light that cast thick shadows dancing along the walls, driven by the flickering of candle light. Their gentle flames moved in tune with the breath of the participants. A soft, warm glow filled the space, giving everything an otherworldly, hazy look, as though they'd stepped back in time, or into some hidden sanctuary.

Across the floor, yoga mats were spread with thick blankets and neatly folded cloths, as well as a water bottle.

Each station looked like a ritual space prepared for sacred rites.

Al, his face a mask of reverence, gestured them forward seriously.

"Take a seat,"

He spoke, motioning towards two mats near the front of the room.

"This space has been prepared specifically for the journey that you're about to undergo. Here, you'll face beyond the veil. Don't worry about collecting any data, or mapping the realm out in your first run-through. Just consider this a trial run."

Viktor moved first, and Dean quickly followed. They settled onto the mats with expressions of calm resolve, Dean's partly feigned.

He could feel the eyes of the others resting upon them. An invisible, hulking mass of observers just beyond his line of sight, watching his every move. He felt the weight of their gaze, and the weight of his uncertainty, but was urged forth by an almost childish desire to not lose out.

He breathed in the earthy scent of the blankets. They smelled like sage, lavender, and something else that he wasn't able to plae. sage, lavender, and something else that he was unable to place.

The atmosphere pulsed with anticipation.

Al looked first at the two of them, and then almost disdainfully at the other eight, before moving behind them in a fluid motion.

He reached into the depths of his messenger bag to produce two slender vials, brimming with a shimmering liquid that shone in the orange light.

He held them with an air of reverence, as if soliciting worship from the participants.

Al set the vials down with theatrical concern, then, in a swift, practiced motion, revealed a needle from within the folds of his patchwork coat.

The crowd moved, just short of releasing a collective gasp, but Dean forced himself to remain still, even as his skin prickled.

'Am I really going to do this'

He'd braced himself for the research, but this was bordering on lunacy.

Al knelt beside Viktor first, positioning his arm with precise, practiced touch.

"Hold still for me,"

Al spoke with a low, steady voice.

His gaze had a hypnotic quality to it; it was clear that he wasn't even seeing Viktor in this moment.

Without hesitation, he slipped the needle into Viktor's artery, and Viktor's face remained etched in hard stone, unperturbed.

Al pressed the plunger, injecting the needle slowly, before smoothly replacing the needle with a catheter, securing it to an IV drip bag, which he then mixed with the vial.

He turned to Dean with a maniacal glint, daring him to waiver.

Although he recoiled instinctively as the needle approached, his doubt had already vanished as he saw Viktor's stony face.

Mimicking the process, Al finished his work with a dusting of his hands and a contented smile.

He instructed them to lay back, and they did.

He instructed them to close their eyes, and they did.

Waving his hands overhead as if he were casting a spell, Al's laughter was the last thing he heard while conscious-

"Turn on, Tune in, and Drop out!"