7 doors, 7 minutes, 7 phobias... Nobody has ever made it. Dimash Kudaibergen seizes an opportunity to become 'humanity's bravest person' by taking part in a simulation experiment. He faces his worst nightmares that seem to be even more real than him...
The same pitch-black darkness crushes me once again with its all-consuming presence. You can't escape it, you can't keep it away, you can't evade it. You need to head straight for it but you never get used to it. I breathe in and out the black molecules, feel their weight in my lungs, the hush so deep that I can't even remember how it was to hear a sound.
I hear a baby crying and my heart somersaults in its chamber. The sound is so distorted, like listening to the baby's cries through an effed-up baby monitor I've seen in horror films. Bone-deep shivers travel up arms to my neck where my hair is already standing up.
This is not real, I reassure myself, but in the deep recesses of my mind, an opposition can be found. There was always more to this simulation. It knows my whole life story, unfolds it like an old film roll, warps it in a way that should break me mentally. But I've got to admit as I look down to my clothes that once hinted at white, now tainted by blood stains from bad wounds and scratches, I probably look like I've been wrenched from the middle of a war.
Yet... I feel nothing. The pain that was there a moment ago is gone as if it never existed. My consciousness tries to cling to the most recent memories, but they run away from me the more I reach out. There was an ordeal so painful that I even begged for death... But it has faded away to something so hazy an image I'm not sure if the person who endured it was really me. Maybe it happened to someone else, in another story. The feeling is strange and unfelt, yet so familiar.
There's got to more to this than just becoming the first person in the world to pass this test. They would've never promised me such a huge sum of money if it didn't benefit them.
Because... There must be something truly important behind that final door... I am going to find out the truth on my own.
Speaking of which, I can't see the seventh door anywhere where my wandering gaze falls onto. My nerves tighten around one another, ending up in a jittery tangle. There must be a way, always.
A heart-wrenching bawl slices the silence like a knife, snapping my chain of thoughts.
So I have to go near the baby since it's the only concrete and interactive thing here... and a telltale sign to stay away. I'm not stupid, but at the moment, I can't come up with any better idea to operate with.
Fifty seconds.
A sense of foreboding drowns me in anxiety as I wrestle with the two options I am left with: fight or flee, win or lose. My alarm bells are ringing loudly at the back of my mind but I choose to ignore them. I know my gut-instinct is right and I should back away, but my desire to win overcomes everything else.
Forty-five seconds left. No time for hesitation.
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
My curiosity gets the best of me, my legs start carrying me toward a metallic cradle surrounded by lit candles. The quivering flames cast a cold glow over the darkness, making everything appear in marine color. Contrary to what I had thought, the cradle stays put and silently waits for me to approach it. I'm not sure if I should be relieved or not.
