The Magic tunnel and the mystery

Dream and Nightmare

"Hey, is Ajay here?" Anurag said at Ajay's house

"Yes, coming!" Ajay yelled.

Anurag came with Karthik, and when Ajay arrived, he told him about a celebration by some person who was claiming that they invented something that could change the world.

"Oh, really, let's check it out then," Ajay exclaimed.

It was near his house, and the trio went there to find out the big reveal.

"Yo, I didn't even know this existed here!"

It was a large festival ground that fit over 10,000 people, and there were some banners saying "Eurika Celebration.".

They went in and found lots of people inside, and they saw the stage with a large machine. 

"Hey, what's this machine supposed to be?" Ajay asked someone there.

"I don't know; they still haven't announced anything."

After some waiting, the scientist arrived. He was a 60-year-old man with white hair and a wrinkled face with a red mark on his cheek.

"Hello ladies and gentlemen," he coughed.

"In this ceremony, I am going to introduce... a machine, or, you could say, a weapon, that can put the target to sleep."

He then takes a gun-like thing and says, "This is a small-scale device that can put anyone, anytime, to sleep, and you can choose which sleep to get, a good or a bad one."

He then points to the large machine and says, "This is a large-scale device... which can put every single human to sleep in this country... I intended to make an even larger range one, but unfortunately this was discontinued by the government, saying that this is too deadly to be put into use because it can trap people into a sleep for the rest of their lives... approximately 50 to 60 years of a peaceful world with everything you can wish for... though with challenges in their way to not kill the user by boredom."

"Well, wouldn't we die starving?"

"No, not actually. Because their bodies are kept in a suspended state, they can live without the need for food; furthermore, this machine is built using a nuclear fusion generator, which will be used to create an invisible, untouchable barrier around the country that will put nanotechs inside the targets to better sustain the body."

"I see. So you only intend to use the small-scale device that just for them to sleep for a short time,The large one will be destroyed because of it's deadlyness isn't it?" someone from the crowd asked.

"Well, I am supposed to."

Feeling doubt about the professor made Ajay curious. He pulled his friends closer to the stage at the front.

"Just think about how many people suffer in this world, all because they aren't given enough money to live. Only the fortunate few are able to live peacefully in this reality... The only things that truly exist in this reality is pain and suffering. So I am going to put this machine on. Please wait."

The crowd was astonished, and some people ran to stop the professor. But that's when they found out that the professor wasn't actually there. It was a 3D projection.

"Wait, I think this is a huge problem. We need time Anurag," Ajay said while shaking Anurag. 

"Ok, ok, I already stopped it."

"Ok, Karthik, and I will try to find this professor. This 3D projection is live, I'm sure of it."

"Well, what if he is joking?" Karthik inquired 

"I don't think so; I know this scientist. He never pulled pranks, but his inventions are weird, and people call him a psychopath too. I don't know his history, though," Anurag replied. 

"There is a chance, right?"

"Yeah, it could be, because fusion reactors are in their early stages, so I don't believe he made a real working fusion reactor secretly."

"But that doesn't mean we shouldn't look for him. We do not have a second chance about this."

"Ok, then search every corner of the town; I will wait here."

They searched everywhere but couldn't find him; they went back to Anurag.

"Did you find it?" 

"No," they said in unison.

"Well, how are we going to stop it? The moment I resume time, we will all get into sleep, where we will probably never escape."

They looked at the projection sad; they only have about 10 minutes until Anurag exhausts his power.

That's when Karthik realised something:Wait, is that?"

"What?" Ajay asked 

"Look at the projection; at that window, you see my cousin's house, which is 100 kilometres away in the district next to us!" Karthik declared with a smile.

"Then go get him! We have only 8 minutes!"

"

Karthik sprinted at an incredible speed, covering a distance of 20 kilometres in the blink of an eye. In a fraction of a second, he arrived at his cousin's house, his rapid pace leaving a blur in his wake.

There is the house that I was looking for. I need to take Anurag and Ajay here.

"No need"

"Huh." Karthik looked back and saw Ajay and Anurag.

"Don't say that you put a summons formula on me."

"I put one on each one of my friends." ajay said

They went inside the house and found the professor inside.

"Hey Anurag, resume time; I am going to destroy this thing."

Just as he returned time, Karthik destroyed the machine. The professor stuttered when it was broken.

"No. My dream. My machine." He shouted and cried.

"Why does this world hate to bring peace?" he sobbed, looking at the heroes.

"So you are the one who destroyed my lifelong project, huh? You monkeys don't know pain. You will never know what true peace  is." He quickly took one of the guns that put someone to sleep and quickly recalibrated it, making it like the large machine except it can only be used on one target.

"Come on guys, let's go; the festival is over." Right as Karthik was going back,the professor shot Ajay and Anurag before they could react. Putting them in a nightmare, each seeing their worst possible "reality" for them

After the professor shot them, he changed it to have a great dream and put himself to sleep.