The Witness

I woke to the feeling of a hundred hands. They surround me, holding me, lifting me towards the surface of my self. I continue forward, opening my eyes to the light of the world. My perspective shifts as I lift my left hand from the black polyhedron. As I sit up to a room of rust, an ominous picture hangs just before this room's passageway. Their bones undisturbed on a rusty ski lift, no semblance of fear in their being; it must have happened in an instant. The solitude of these heights.

Last night while I lay in bed I was met with a familiar sound, an unmistakable chime heard twice before on that same day. The sound seemingly had no origin but felt to signify an arrival. For a moment I could make out an interesting figure, a friend. His appearance could only be from another world. Looking soo much like a person it waved a friendly hello, toolbox in hand. I relaxed into myself, what an interesting fellow, what is he here to fix.

I feel a comforting hand, unseen, assuring me. I opened my eyes slightly and found nothing but a darkened bedroom. I feel like I'm being pulled on lightly, like wires and plates are protruding from me. As I lie on my back it feels as if I'm sitting. As it works around my body, my neck becomes its focus. I feel sharp dull yanks under my left ear. As my attention grows I become detached from what was. A rope of twisted wires tugging a plug under my skull is all I can imagine. I'm well aware but unable to move. I am in darkness.

As this continues I drop away from my body. I feel like a conglomerate of hardware modules, like a chair that I am one with. A cocoon of metallic boxes fills my view, I can sense my self sitting inside. Unable to move but able to view this prison from the outside, a feeling of despair washes over me. The wire is pulled free, I am returned to my body in a smooth flash. I hear a pleasant whisper "what an antique'' as I reach back to feel a phantom pain of something missing.

I woke up this morning with disorientation. My eyes would focus in and out randomly as if adjusting to something between me and the walls of the room. I can feel a slight pressure where the plug was. The area vibrates like a sleeping leg. I notice the feel of a repulsed magnet just above the back of my neck. It was strange but I knew I could continue on without issue. I have noticed more strange activity than normal but I have yet to feel a procedure like this.

Earlier this evening I felt a similar presence. This time there was no introduction. My head was checked over, a momentary silence, hands plunged into my chest. I could feel them moving and pulling at things unseen. Like piano wires they snapped under the surface of my skin, the popping sound felt audible. What were they removing? My chest opened like a heart-shaped locket. I could only feel emptiness where before I had a sense of boundary.

My thoughts ran while I lay there waiting for night. Am I somewhere else being taken care of; what could be beyond this place I saw; maybe I am just a machine receiving new hardware. Being upgraded by something beyond me was the best I could tell my self. I had to create my own freedom, my own sense of relief in this absurdity. Tonight I will place my hand on the black crystal, returning to its darkness to see what awaits.