Trapped

Chapter Eleven

January 7, 2060

She can't be dead, she just can't be. 'No, you're lying! Just like you always do!' My voice cracks up, I can't lose her, I just can't take it. Doctor Eckhardt chuckles softly. 'Go and find out for yourself, I have no reason to lie.' I need to move forward again, I shouldn't listen to what he says. My body feels weak, but I manage to find the strength to start walking. The flashlight feels heavy in my hand and I can't hold it steady. Using the wall as support I take slow steps, each one is heavier than the last. I get a spark of energy when my flashlight catches something at the end of the tunnel. Moving slightly closer I see it's a similar door as before, dark grey with nothing but a handle. This time there is nothing written on or besides the door, I have no clue what I'm going to find beyond it. As I stand in front of the door I take a deep breath and push it open in a single motion. As the door is not even half open, something on the floor catches my eye. It looks like blood. There are a few drops right behind the door that create a trail moving away from it. I look down at the floor with my flashlight and follow the trail. The couple of drops quickly multiply into a steady stream of blood spatters. The amount of blood increases with every centimetre I go up. The realization that I might find something at the end of the trail frightens me. I need to remind myself it's not real, I take a couple of deep breaths to calm down. The spatters keep getting closer and closer until it becomes one continuous smudge. It seems as if someone dragged their hand through the blood in a final resort to move. Then it happens, my flashlight catches something else than blood. I can hardly move. It's ... It's a foot. The flashlight shakes in my hand, a firmer grip does nothing for it's stability. I slowly move up and see the start of a long dark red dress, a dress I could identify out of thousands. I don't want to believe it, it must be someone else. I take one step forward, the cone of light moving up simultaneously. 'Mom? Mom please say something ... Please.' I whisper into the darkness. A large cut alongside her neck slowly leaks blood, her eyes are wide open and pierce right through me. I want to look away ... But I can't.

I stand in silence and stare at her lifeless body. Doctor Eckhardt must've done this. 'You're not fooling me, I know it's not real.' Without waiting for any sort of reply I start moving forward again. I look down at my mother's corpse and don't feel anything. I move around her into the darkness once again. All of a sudden, a soft familiar voice emerges behind me, a voice I had almost forgotten. 'It's very real David, will you take it from me?' I slowly turn around. I stare into her eyes, I open my mouth but I can't pronounce the words. She smiles, reassuring me that it's alright. 'It's me, have you missed me?' It's ... Anne. I fight the urge to run into her arms, I've missed her so much but this must be the work of Doctor Eckhardt. He knows how much I love her, he knows it's her that I want. Anne stands in silence, almost as if she requires me to do something. I don't know what to do, it doesn't feel the same as before. Doctor Eckhardt's voice reappears: 'I can bring her back for you David. I can create anything you want in this world, it's not too late to turn back. You can forget about all this madness and have a good life, with Anne.' His voice is soft, he knows that I want to be in a better place. I wonder how I will ever be able to go back to a normal life, knowing it's not real. The choice should be clear, but it's not. Leaving this place also raises a lot of questions, what if Doctor Eckhardt was telling the truth about coming back to the real world. If it's true I won't be able to function, what would be the point. However, I don't think I can live here knowing what I know. Doctor Eckhardt continues: 'You won't remember these things if you go back, I'll take care of it. I can recreate your parents and Anne, everything will be fine again.' It's obvious that he truly wants me to stay in here, his voice is starting to have a touch of desperation. Something feels very wrong about this situation. 'Parents? What happened to my father?' I ask him. He takes a noticeable longer time to respond, I must be pushing his patience.

'I guess you don't know anything. Why do you think your mother signed you up for this in the first place? She didn't do it because she thought it was fun, she did it because she couldn't handle it anymore. Your father left just before your fourth birthday, leaving your mother to take care of you. I got there at the right time and convinced your mother that I could give you a better life.' I stand in disbelief, he can't be saying this. 'You convinced my mother that you could give me a better life? My life has been shit and it's all your fault. You're in control of this world, you're in control of Anne, you could've let her live!' Doctor Eckhardt laughs in a mocking manner. 'David, if only you would understand how I've helped you. The negative impacts in your life have made you so incredibly real. Your writing, your emotions, even your interactions with other people. All these things were stripped of the facade normal people have, it were true reflections of you as a person. If that required to take away the person you loved most, it was worth it.' It's hard to believe he's proud of this, a life of misery, just to create something unfiltered. 'You're insane, you're absolutely insane. I guess the contract my mother signed was all a scam as well, why was she not allowed to pull me out, she must've not approved of what you were doing to me!' Doctor Eckhardt laughs again, this time a bit more than the last time. 'She must've tried to get you out a million times, but I wouldn't allow it. She didn't read the contract, just like you didn't. It clearly stated it needed my professional approval to release you. I have to admit, I didn't think she would go this far to release you. Nonetheless I couldn't let that go unpunished.' I look back down at my mother. I feel horrible for ever doubting her, she was trying to protect me from this monster. Without saying another word I turn around, facing the dark path ahead of me. Anne grabs my hand in desperation. 'Don't leave, we can be together again!' I release her grip by pulling back my arm as hard as I can.

Anne's voice echo's behind me as I try to run away. My body is at it's end. Every step I take I feel it slowly fading away. 'David! David Come back!' I can hear the tears in her voice, but I can't go back. It's just his way of making me stay. He was never going to give me a good life, staying here would leave me in this miserable world, living for his crazy experiment. My body hurts but I got to keep moving. My breathing becomes uncontrolled and I feel light headed, my feet can't hold me anymore and I fall down. I dropped the flashlight in my fall, leaving it slightly in front of me. Crawling back up to my knees I notice the flashlight reveals the end of the tunnel. There are two grey doors that come together in the middle, it seems as if they would be used in a hospital. They both have large metal handles over the entire width of the door. There is a small window on each door, but the matt glass doesn't allow for any vision beyond it. I use the remainder of my strength to stand up and limp towards the door. I leave the flashlight on the ground, I can't be bothered to pick it up. This must be it, this must be the end of the maze. Behind this door I will find myself and be released from this nightmare. I put my hands on both handles, if I push these down, the doors will open and everything will change forever. As I'm about to lean in and open the doors, Doctor Eckhardt's voice enters my head. 'Don't! I promise I'm not lying when I say this is going to be your downfall. You are not able to function outside of this world, you just can't!' He can say all he wants, I'm going through this door no matter what. I don't know what it will hold for me, but I know going back is not an option. I've survived it this far, whatever I may face, I can handle it. 'You've done enough, fuck off.' I push down the handles and the doors open.

It's impossible to see the edges of the room. Right in front of me there's a bed with it's headrest towards me. There's an IV bag hanging besides it with a tube moving onto the bed. The bed is lit up by a collection of lights on either side. I must be in some sort of hospital, everything points towards it. The closer I get to the bed, the more nervous I become. What version of myself will I find, and how do I actually get out of here. I guess there's only one way to find out. I move in on the right side and I'm close enough to see an arm. It's the arm where the IV bag is connected to. I start to see feet, legs and a torso. With one more step I will be able to see his face, my face. I take one last deep breath and move forward. It's ... a version of me I haven't seen before. The facial features represent mine, but it's obvious this version is a lot older. Seeing myself now makes me feel as if my body is slowly resolving from the inside. With each second that passes, I lose more and more control over my body. As if I'm wandering away on a Sunday afternoon nap, my mind releases itself from my physical being. Then there's a snap. I open my eyes, I'm in bed. My body is numb and tingles all over, my eyes are the only thing I can control. There is darkness around me but I see a shady figure standing next to the bed. He looks like me ... he looks just like me.