The Evolution of Genius: Every Night, I Get Smarter!

I couldn’t hear anything. I couldn’t smell anything. It felt like days or even months before I felt that I was alive again.

I couldn’t now discern the sound of some sort of device around me—the sound of a heartbeat, they were most likely medical devices.

I could feel something plugged into my arm and something was flowing through my bloodstream.

Then I lost consciousness again.

The next time I woke up, I opened my eyes and at first, all I could see was a penetrating, sharp, bright light.

The harsh glare of the light almost blinded me.

But after a few minutes, my eyes got used to it and slowly, shapes began to form in the light.

I could now make out the ceiling.

To be exact, I saw white.

I thought it might have been the ceiling of a white room.

As I shifted my gaze downward, I noticed the IV tubes connected to both my left and right hands, delivering a steady drip of some sort of greenish liquid.

I lay on a white bed, completely naked.

With a groggy effort, I tried to move my right hand to touch my body.

I seemed to be heavily medicated. The painkillers dulled my senses, making it hard to feel the sensation of my fingers against my skin.

What happened to me? What is all of this? Where is my family?

I could feel myself falling asleep again, drained of energy, with just a couple of movements.

The next time I woke up, I tried to speak, but only a rough sound escaped my throat.

I moved my head around, surveying my surroundings. Rows of unfamiliar medical devices surrounded me, their displays showing various data points and lines in an array.

There were monitors displaying vital signs, screens with pulsating graphs and scrolling numbers.

Tubes and wires connected me to machines emitting soft hums and beeps.

In the corner, a control panel with flashing lights and touchscreens displayed diagrams and charts.

I had never seen such advanced equipment, even in the hospitals where I had observed eye surgeries.

I glanced around the room. There was no one in sight, but my eyes landed on a white door with a metal knob at the far end. It seemed like my only way out.

With effort, I swung my legs off the bed and planted my feet on the floor. Surprisingly, it didn’t feel like I had been lying down for long. Perhaps the medication helped.

I reached for the IV tube in my wrist, starting with my left hand. With a steady hand, I removed the tube, wincing slightly at the sensation.

Quickly, I used the bed sheet to stem the flow of blood. Then, I repeated the process with my other hand.

As I waited for the blood to clot on my wrist, I took a more thorough look around the room. My gaze landed on a smaller panel situated on my left, resting on a sleek silver podium.

After another minute, I managed to stand up, feeling a bit clumsy and unsteady. Nevertheless, I carefully shuffled over to the panel.

As I examined the panel, I found it displaying a series of logs. From the bottom up, the entries read:

"Subject Breached Barrier Before The Control Group: Confirmed"

"Subject Is Apathetic: Negative"

"Emotional Stability: Confirmed"

"Subject Has A Clear Goal: Confirmed"

"Architect Confirmation"

"Codename TheLord: Purpose Completed"

"Codename GeneralNaomi: Purpose Completed"

"Codename DoubleMaximillian: Purpose Completed"

"Codename #223: Purpose Completed"

"Codename #211: Purpose Completed"

The list seemed endless, continuing on and on.

I kept on scrolling and scrolling.

My suspicions solidified. Everything, including my own existence, seemed to be a part of this experiment.

However, I couldn’t find any mention of my family’s names. Unless they didn’t even get a named codename.

The name "DoubleMaximillian" caught my attention.

If the Zytherian Maximillian wasn’t real, then was I the only subject of this experiment?

Had everything I accomplished been nothing more than a simulation? Were all my memories and experiences just illusions? Despite these doubts, my memories felt undeniably real and a part of me.

With these thoughts swirling in my mind, I approached the door at the end of the room.

Perhaps the answers I sought lay on the other side of that door.

As I neared it, my eyes caught sight of something.

A number, boldly written in black. – "1286".

I slowly opened the door, my heart pounding loud in my ears.

What I saw on the other side filled me with fear.

The glass wall showed endless darkness, dotted with spinning spacecrafts.

I was in space.

The spinning circular spacecrafts looked almost ghostly against the distant stars. There were more of them than I could count.

And right in front of me loomed a massive green planet.

I stood frozen, unable to move, when I heard footsteps around me.

As the footsteps grew louder, panic clawed at my chest as I strained to see where they were coming from.

Turning to my right, I realized I was inside a circular corridor.

Was I in one of those spinning spacecrafts?

The footsteps paused abruptly, and I turned to see a man emerging from my left. His wavy black hair dropped over his shoulders, contrasting sharply with the white leather cloak he wore.

As soon as he laid eyes on me, he stopped in his tracks. "You should have waited in bed. You could have gotten hurt," he said, his voice calm yet tinged with concern.

Who was he?

"Where is my family?" I asked.

"Thank God! You retained your emotional intelligence," he remarked, breaking out into a smile.

"Where are they?" I demanded, my voice laced with anger.

"Unfortunately, they are not all here," he replied.

"What do you mean?" I pressed, my fists clenched at my sides.

"Well... there wasn’t enough space. We needed to simulate a lot of it," he explained, his tone apologetic.

I felt a surge of rage building inside me.

"You need to understand, Max. You agreed to this," he insisted.

"Just lead me to my family," I demanded, my voice strained with desperation.