EX//MACHINA: EXORDIUM

Chapter I - Per aspera

Pain. The first sensation was pure pain. Right after came agony and despair, with nausea so strong, no person could stay on foot. Then there were the heartbeats, so fast and strong, it seemed like a heart attack was imminent. Breathing was close to impossible and the brain felt like it was about to explode, accompanying the swelling on the head.

If speaking was possible, there would be screaming, if anything seemed like it could get through the throat, there would be puking. And increasing the feeling of being lost in nothingness, the eyes just wouldn't open, like they were sewn shut. Even if they weren't, there simply was no strength left, and when the eyes managed to open a little bit, another reason to fear came: pure darkness, nothing could be seen no matter where he looked. And in those few minutes — that more seemed like a lifetime — he noticed that he didn't even know why he was suffering like that, actually, he didn't know anything about himself. There were no memories at all.

If anyone else were to be in that room at this moment, they would just hear growls and choking sounds of someone drowning in their own saliva and blood. Excruciating noises that looked like they could be someone begging for help. And the begging came with a single, cruel response: the whispers of silence, interrupted by the cries of the boy, already lost in despair. Within the cacophony of running thoughts, his mind highlighted a few repeating questions: "Where am I?", "Why is this happening?", "I'm going to die" and most important of all — "Who am I?".

Slowly but surely, the pain was fading away, leaving space only for the mental anguishes, and they were hurting as much as the other kind. Managing to get up from what appeared to be a long, curved chair. He fumbled around until he hit a wall, hugging it and walking using it as support while he looked for an exit, then hearing the first sound that didn't come from him.

— Yes! It worked! — a familiar voice celebrated, happy. — Now permit the access and we will treat the rest later.

Scared, the boy retreated when the lights in the room turned on at the same time the voice made itself known, allowing him to see a room in a square shape, with a single chair in its middle. In it came many wires and devices that fell from a circle-shaped hole in the ceiling. With the lights now on, the wires were glowing with moving blue lights, like they were moving something to the chair.

In the wall to the other side of the room there was a single reflective surface. It mirrored not only the entire room, but the boy's own appearance too. He approached the mirror cautiously, confused while noticing all his characteristics like they were new: his dark, messy and slightly curly hair was close to covering his eyes, and the occasional strand in his cheek and chin revealed failed attempts at a beard's growth. His fair tawny skin showed a concerning paleness and his green eyes were devoid of life. Besides that, his clothes were drenched in sweat, and they seemed like usual, day-to-day clothes.

Stretching his arm and touching the mirror, he noticed that five drops of blood showed up in it. Turning his hand to himself, the boy noticed small punctures in each of his fingers. They didn't seem dangerous, neither did they hurt, but now that he noticed them, they started to bother him.

— Peter? The access, now. — the voice sounded a little more impatient, and the boy looked around trying to figure out where it came from.

— Who are you? Where am I? — he questioned while searching, confused.

— Oh, unbelievable.

Confused, he noticed that the voice didn't seem to come from any specific direction, like it was in his own head. Not understanding the situation he was in, his head ached from the strain of trying to force his thoughts, causing him to hold it between his hands in an attempt to suppress the pain.