The World I Left Behind

I had been told that the entirety of my existence was bound to the forest of the North and East and to the sea of the South and West. Never have I passed these two boundaries that seemed to thwart any sparkle of wanderlust that I once felt as a young man. That is until I decided my demise, although unfavorable, was a much better fate than to stay within the claustrophobic borders of my world. The great and tragic irony of the matter was that this was not my world, in fact it was just a village, a village that I will no longer identify with in a possessive manner, for I have long ago separated myself from the manipulation and trauma of that hysterical place.

On my sixteenth name day I was finally granted the privilege of owning my very own mode of transportation: a horse. This was my first true taste of freedom and believe me when I say, it was splendid. Throughout the next two years I had learned to ride my stallion with complete and utter confidence, galloping through the fields and hills of what I believed was the entirety of my universe. The problem with “my universe” arose when I realized it’s lack of diversity and ability to keep the adventure in me satisfied. By the time I was eighteen I had already seen the old tower by the sea at least twenty times, the willows in the North forty, and the  wet marshes in the East fifty. I must have lived closer to the Northeast region for I’d find myself near the tree line of the forest much more often than the beach. I had enjoyed the forest's essence much more than that of the sea ever since a young child, so this was never truly an issue. 

One disgustingly humid day, I mustered the courage to ask a lady I had gone to grammar school with, on a horseback ride along the South Beach, courtesy of myself of course. After her declination I was firmly prompted to loathe every day moving forward that I was forced (although unknowingly) to live in My World. The woman’s denial did not wound me as it might sound, rather the experience was the catalyst for a depressive turn. Months passed and my love for riding was no more,  for the things that kept my adventurous attitude alive were simply not in my reality. I will note that the structures of this village were truly outrageous and its obscurity is usually hard to grasp for the common man. When children turned to the age of sixteen they were seen as fully capable adults, and this meant you were no longer allowed to live under the roof of your fathers and mothers (This is how I was able to roam so much of My World without retaliation). By seventeen you were expected to have either signed away your freedom to the Lord of the village as a guardian (although we did not know against what) , or have a daily job in something respectable. I had not followed the conventional or “respectable” guidelines that the village put on me, in fact I had, for the most part, lived off the land for my two years of freedom, successfully avoiding any real responsibility. I am certain in my belief that the way that society functioned influenced a great deal of depression throughout the population, also causing bitterness to become the preset attitude of the average village adult. I was no exception to this either, as time continued to pass and I was nearing my nineteenth name day, I had truly become exhausted with My World’s tendencies. I had been living near the forest’s edge in isolation, with the exception of my stallion, for a few weeks in hope to find some source of meaning. This retreat was to no avail and it was at this point I was ready to risk it all. I vividly remember asking myself

“If I have nothing to lose then why not just do anything my heart desires?” 

Since I was as young as a man can remember I had been told that one could not move past the forest or the sea, and that was the end of it. It had been made very clear nearly everyday of my life and it was the single string of knowledge that tied all of us sheep together. Anytime someone had asked why these boundaries were so absolute and obscure they were promptly shunned, humiliated, or excommunicated (at least to my knowledge), depending on how far the accusations were taken. As I stood there  the forest had started to adopt a new meaning. Yes I was dreadfully afraid of what was beyond its unknown shadows, but I was now truly ready to discover its secrets. I couldn’t bear to watch my only trusted companion suffer the same unknown fate as I so I released it of it’s lead before I finally started my steps toward the treeline. My heart began to pulse a renewed type of blood, a type that would not match all of the villagers I would be leaving behind. This blood was turning into that of an animal in the most pure of definitions; wild, primal, and free. By the time my beaten leather sandals had reached the absolute edge of safety my body had poised itself for its own demise, and I was alright with that. 

When I took my first step in, I took time to notice what it was that was actually in the forest, and my eyes were met with life. More life than I had ever seen in My World, and to this I was astonished. The trees were dense but it seemed for every open space they allowed there was a beating heart that flew through or stood upon it. The birds were possibly the most diverse of the bunch, squawking and singing songs that were foreign to my young ears, and shocking me with shades of color I had never even imagined. Then I took notice of the life on the floor, small animals that were familiar and unknown danced along the trunks of the pines, seeming to enjoy their existence much more than I had believed possible. The way the sun pierced through the canopy in rays resembled a dreamscape, far from the reality of My World. This sight was contradicting. I was filled with spite toward all those who had told me against this place, and for a moment I debated going back to the village to tell everyone the truth and to shame those who lied. After coming to my senses I realized that the risk of going back was too true and that now that I was in, I had to continue. 

After days of wandering I was starting to become regretful of my decision to leave My World. The forest had lost its enchantment and I was nearly starving vulnerable to the wilderness that surrounded me. On what I believe was the seventh night of my forest excursion everything changed, and I mean everything. I managed to create a small fire, a skill which I learned two nights prior, where I was nestling closely to feel it’s warmth when a ray of light appeared into the trees around me. The ray was constantly swaying around the trees and came from a central point a few hundred feet away. It was in this shock that I then heard a voice come from this same ray;

“ Hello?.... Hello? We are not going to hurt you, we are here to set you free!”

My heart sunk deep into my stomach. There was no escape. The men or things out for me had achieved the power of the sun to be used in their own hands. Not only did these things use the sun's power, but they were trying to manipulate me into their trap. I was sure of it. What had I gotten my poor soul into? This is most definitely what the village people warned me of, what else besides men with the sun's power could instill such a fear. I had to think quickly, and that I did as I decided to make a run for it. It didn’t matter where I ended up as long as I could manage safety from the men of the sun's power. Dashing off into the night I remained focused on one goal: escape. For a moment I thought I would be able and then there it was; A great beam of the sun's light shined directly onto my damned body. Somehow they teleported in front of me, not surprising of men with such capability. I expected that I would burn as I sat still in shock, showered in the rays brightness.

“You are going to be okay. Please do not resist.”

My heart fluttered and my eyes went dark.

I woke up with hundreds of strings tied to my body in a robe that was much too drafty. There was noises and boxes of magic that surrounded me displaying numbers and symbols that I drew no meaning from, and the room was lit up by a much whiter version of the sun's light. I wasn’t afraid but I didn’t question it as I was too overwhelmed to think coherently, and as I tried to move my arms and legs were met with bondings.  Not soon after a man dressed in all white walked through the door. Before I could ask him anything he handed me a board, pen, and paper with dozens of questions. At the top it read:

Experimental Group